Allerton International Merchants Meeting  By Robert Press Tuesday night was the Allerton International Merchants Meeting, which was held in an outdoor area on Radcliff Avenue. The guest speaker was Bronx Department of Transportation Commissioner Nivardo Lopez. Commissioner Lopez was there […]

Van Nest Neighborhood Alliance Meeting By Robert Press Monday night was the second in person Van Nest Neighborhood Alliance meeting. The scheduled guest Republican 13th City Council candidate Aleksander Mici was a no show, but it was good that State […]

Rosalba Carriera (1675) One of the greatest Italian portrait and miniature painters of her day, Carriera became known for her miniature portraits on snuffboxes and was an originator of the Rococo style in France and Italy. By the time she was 30, she had been elected to the Academy of St. Luke in Rome, the Academy of Bologna, and the Florence Academy. As her career progressed, she gained a reputation for her pastel portraits and was even commissioned to create one of King Louis XV. What tragedy befell her late in life? More…

Revolutions are usually accompanied by a considerable effusion of blood, but are accounted worth it—this appraisement being made by beneficiaries whose blood had not the mischance to be shed. Ambrose Bierce (1842-1914)

bewitch Definition: (verb) Cast a spell over someone or something; put a hex on someone or something. Synonyms: hex, jinx, enchant Usage: After reading Harry Potter, I spent hours on end trying to bewitch a broomstick to fly. Discuss.

A Vast and Growing Threat   The U.S. Department of Defense is now openly acknowledging what strategic observers have noted for some time: the threat from the collective and rapidly growing might of Russia and China is vast. During the […]

BRONX MAN INDICTED FOR MANSLAUGHTER FOR DRIVING UNDER THE INFLUENCE AND COLLIDING INTO MTA BUS Passenger in Defendant’s Car Was Killed in Crash             Bronx District Attorney Darcel D. Clark today announced that a Bronx man has been indicted on Manslaughter, […]

Frederick VII of Denmark (1808) The last absolute monarch of Denmark, if only for the first year of his reign, Frederick VII faced popular demonstrations calling for political reforms almost as soon as he ascended the throne. He acceded to many of the demands, appointing a liberal ministry, renouncing absolute rule, and adopting a representative government, but he rejected a proposal to cede a portion of Schleswig to Prussia. His position on this issue eventually led to war with Prussia. What was the popular king’s motto? More…

Where does a wise man hide a leaf? In the forest. But what does he do if there is no forest? … He grows a forest to hide it in. Gilbert Chesterton (1874-1936)

mellifluous Definition: (adjective) Pleasing to the ear. Synonyms: mellisonant, dulcet, sweet Usage: Her mellifluous voice could make him agree to anything. Discuss.

Snowplows in September!   DSNY’s Snow Training Begins Sunday, September 26   New York City residents may notice a strange September sight – snowplows and salt spreaders on city streets! The New York City Department of Sanitation has announced that its annual […]

Chevalier d’Éon (1728) The inspiration for the now-obsolete term “eonism,” describing the adoption of female dress and behavior by a male, the Chevalier d’Éon was a French noble, soldier, and spy who lived first as a male and then as a female. His cross-dressing appears to have begun as part of his covert activities, but by the 1770s, rumors reached France that the Chevalier was actually a woman masquerading as a man, and he was ordered to live as a woman thereafter. When was it proven that he was anatomically male? More…

Are not there little chapters in everybody’s life, that seem to be nothing, and yet affect all the rest of the history? William Makepeace Thackeray (1811-1863)

roguery Definition: (noun) Reckless or malicious behavior that causes discomfort or annoyance in others. Synonyms: mischief, devilment, rascality Usage: Ms. Adams caught Tommy dipping Sally’s pigtail in his inkwell and gave him detention for his roguery. Discuss.