The Bowery Boys History Of The Rockaways Is Great Beach Listening

This week, as people hit the beaches for summer vacation, I have a great recommendation for some beach listening. The Bowery Boys podcast recently did an wonderful history of New York City's first resort beach, the Rockaways.  They start with the Indians (a tribe which gave the Rockways their unusual name), cover its height as New York's most luxurious beach resort (see above), and also cover its downfall when Robert Moses cleared a whole swath of it for public housing.

Lately the Rockaways are resurgent as a new generation rediscovers NYC's loveliest natural shoreline within the five borough.  I'm a Fort Tilden regular (where the Army secretly stashed some nuclear weapons in case of a Soviet attack), as are many of this hipsters from the BK. I have jokingly started referring to it as Hipster Beach. Anyway, the podcast is a great story told with humor and loads of factoids by the knowledgeable Bowery Boys, aka Gregory Young and Tom Meyers. Check it out on your iPhone while you lie on the beach!

Career Trucker Provides Best Promo For Sunscreen

I saw this photo on weather.com in a sidebar story about sun damage. This is a career trucker who spent nearly 30 years on the road and, as you can see, the right side of his face which was often in the sun through the window of his truck shows the damaging effects of sun on the skin.

This photo is not part of an ad for a brand (though it certainly could be) but was actually in the "New England Journal Of Medicine" as the condition of this 69 year old man has a scientific name; unlilateral dermatoheliosis. Regardless of the source, it is a potent reminder to wear sunscreen as the summer kicks in.

Top 6 Worst Excuses By Gay Politicians

So it's been a pretty big summer for political sex scandals.  It started with DSK and the hotel maid back in May, then Anthony Weiner's weiner blowing up all over Twitter in June.  And now in August, when these sort of things tend to flourish, we have two very juicy gay sex scandals entangling two very conservative Republicans.  Quel surprise!

One is a Congressman from Indiana who hired a teenage male hooker from Craigslist, but then tried to say that this was some sort of political takedown he was trying to expose (?!). The other is a senator in Puerto Rico who was on Grindr with some very explicit photos which he claimed had been taken to document his recent weight loss. Oh Mary please!

I have an article out today about some of these summer '11 sex scandals as part of NEXT magazine's end-of-summer yearbook issue.  (It should post to their site this weekend.)  And over at New York magazine, the scandals have inspired them to compile a brilliant list of the top 6 worst excuses by gay politicians.  To mangle Shakespeare--these ladies doth protest waaaay too much.

Summer Streets: Park Avenue Closed Next 3 Saturdays

For the last four summers, the city's Department of Transportation has been closing down Park Avenue on Saturdays in August.  This weekend is the first of the annual Summer Streets Saturdays where from 7am-1pm you can take to the avenue by foot or bike and experience something rare in NYC: no traffic!  Well, that is car traffic.

I did Summer Streets last year and things can get a little congested later in the day as it's a very popular event. I'd encourage you to get up early and take advantage of the lack of crowds while they last.  All along the 7 mile route through the heart of Manhattan, there are going to be free bike rentals, free yoga classes and free performances from the NY Intl. Fringe Festival.  It's a great chance to see the city in a whole new way!

A Day At The Beach In Queens

This weekend, I escaped the city heat without even leaving the city.  At the end of Flatbush Avenue, on the southern tip of the Rockaways, lies a decommissioned Army base which has a stunning strip of beach.  Fort Tilden used to house troops, canons, rockets and even nuclear weapons to defend New York City from 1917 until 1974.  Now, as part of the Gateway National Recreation Area, it is a great place for a day at the beach.


I first discovered Ft. Tilden when I was in film school and worked on a couple shorts that were shot on it's empty beaches.  The beaches aren't so empty anymore, especially after recent articles in the TIMES and TimeOut have turned the place into Hipster Beach.  But it is still not nearly as packed as Jones Beach or neighboring Riis Beach on a 96 degree July afternoon.


We stayed at the beach until sunset which is when I took these magic-hour photos.  You would never guess these were taken in Queens, right?  Or within 45 minutes of downtown Manhattan.  All it takes to get there is a Metrocard: the 2 train to the end of the line then a transfer to the Q35 bus.  

Rehoboth Beach Slideshow

Last week, I went on a Proustian tour of my childhood vacation spot, Rehoboth Beach. After 30-odd years, the town remains surprisingly unchanged, especially along the Boardwalk area in the heart of town. Here's some pics from my trip down there....enjoy!

The Fairy Schedule

There is a new website up just in time for summer weekends that combines the LIRR schedule and the Fire Island ferries schedule for the Pines and the Grove. Genius. There is even an app that you can get for your iPhone that has the same info. Now all you need to do is find a friend's house with an extra chaise lounge to crash on. :)