Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Bronx Beautiful

When the movie 30 Days of Night came out, I thought, "Gee, this pretty much describes the month of October for me." October is a busy, busy month for me, but I can't submerge myself into routine. Sometimes I work the graveyard shift, sometimes, I work the four to twelve shift... I basically throw my "internal clock" out the window for the entire month of October. Once in a while, though, I have to see the sun (it hasn't helped that it has rained almost every day for the past week) and boost my Vitamin D synthesis.

Today being a beautiful day (and not having enough time to head to downtown Manhattan before work) I decided take a walk from my Yonkers abode to the Bronx, where I walked the perimeter of Woodlawn Cemetery. While a pleasant walk, the stretch of Webster Avenue on the eastern verge of the cemetery is pretty desolate- not much traffic, and no pedestrians besides the occasional freak. There is, however, an abundance of wild grapes in the area, so I was able to snack on the go.

For those of you unfamiliar with the Bronx, here is a view along Jerome Avenue, on the western edge of Woodlawn Cemetery- Van Cortlandt Park is to the left of the photo, the Woodlawn terminus of the Number 4 Subway is to the south.





Here's a picture of a D.A.R. memorial north of 233rd St, dedicated to Chief Nimham of the Stockbridge Wappinger tribe, who perished fighting on the side of the revolutionaries in the War of Independence:





A detail of the monument gives a brief mention of the sacrifices made by the Stockbridge people:





Most people don't think of the Bronx as a particularly verdant part of the world, but those of us in the know are aware that the Bronx is the Borough of Parks.

After my walk, I stopped by Rory Dolan's to conduct some research (honest!). Of course, sleuthing being hard work, I had to fortify myself with a pint and a burger. A second pint would have been unseemly, seeing as I had to prepare for the workday.

8 comments:

Vonnie said...

Lovely pics!
I had no idea.

Big Bad Bald Bastard said...

Now you know. Thunder will back me up on this one.

ifthethunderdontgetya™³²®© said...

Yes! Watch out for errant tee shots.

While a pleasant walk, the stretch of Webster Avenue on the eastern verge of the cemetery is pretty desolate- not much traffic, and no pedestrians besides the occasional freak.

Like taking the shortcut from Ezra Styles up to Science Hill.
~

Big Bad Bald Bastard said...

Like taking the shortcut from Ezra Styles up to Science Hill.

We hopped the wall of the cemetery one night- it was a very peaceful locale. Somebody wanted to tell a ghost story, but it was too tranquil a spot for the idea to catch on.

Laura said...

I wish that I had the courage to walk where the freaks are.
Sadly, as an uptight soccer mom, I can only admire from afar.
And while I enjoy wild grapes, cemeteries are NOT my bag. I understand why people like to explore them but, I figure I'll be spending a lot of time in one soon enough so... no spanks. :)

Hmmmm, do you happen to have one of those cool Bronx accents? or am I thinking of Brooklyn?

((Hugs))
Laura

Big Bad Bald Bastard said...

I wish that I had the courage to walk where the freaks are.

Should have clarified just who the freak is...

Hmmmm, do you happen to have one of those cool Bronx accents? or am I thinking of Brooklyn?

Only when I want to!

Laura said...

Oh. Well, I'd walk past you. ;) I might even smile and say "Hello!"
And if I was single, perhaps a "big boy" added on.

Big Bad Bald Bastard said...

Hubba hubba!