October 31, 2012 update, no trains or subway until further notice. MTA website is only available for service information
-Stay Tuned: We'll be back stronger than ever, that's what New York is all about. Resilience!
follow these links for important information from our municipalities and state government:
New York State official website
New York City website
New Jersey State website
Connecticut State Website
Statement on Hurricane Sandy This week, our nation has anxiously watched as Hurricane Sandy lashed the East Coast and caused widespread damage--affecting millions. Now more than ever, our neighbors need our help. Please consider donating or volunteering for your local aid organizations.
The images of Sandy’s flooding brought back memories of a similar--albeit smaller scale-- event in Nashville just two years ago. There, unprecedented rainfall caused widespread flooding, wreaking havoc and submerging sections of my hometown. For me, the Nashville flood was a milestone. For many, Hurricane Sandy may prove to be a similar event: a time when the climate crisis—which is often sequestered to the far reaches of our everyday awareness became a reality.
While the storm that drenched Nashville was not a tropical cyclone like Hurricane Sandy, both storms were strengthened by the climate crisis. Scientists tell us that by continually dumping 90 million tons of global warming pollution into the atmosphere every single day, we are altering the environment in which all storms develop. As the oceans and atmosphere continue to warm, storms are becoming more energetic and powerful. Hurricane Sandy, and the Nashville flood, were reminders of just that. Other climate-related catastrophes around the world have carried the same message to hundreds of millions.
Sandy was also affected by other symptoms of the climate crisis. As the hurricane approached the East Coast, it gathered strength from abnormally warm coastal waters. At the same time, Sandy's storm surge was worsened by a century of sea level rise. Scientists tell us that if we do not reduce our emissions, these problems will only grow worse.
Hurricane Sandy is a disturbing sign of things to come. We must heed this warning and act quickly to solve the climate crisis. Dirty energy makes dirty weather.
UPDATE Tuesday 11:50 AM: The latest on MTA and NYC transportation:
Some bus service will begin at 5 p.m. on a Sunday schedule.
There is no timetable yet for subway service resumption. Governor Andrew Cuomo and MTA Chairman Joe Lhota said in a joint press conference Tuesday morning they hope to have full bus service restored Wednesday morning. No fares will be charged through Wednesday.
Portions of subway service will return in pieces as it is able. Buses will be used to connect fractured sections.
Flooding could keep east river crossings shut for some time. The Clark, Steinway, Rutgers and Strawberry Street tubes under the East River are all flooded. Lhota said pumps are clearing the Joralemon Street tube and will have it dry in a few hours.
No buses or trains were damaged because of effective shut down preparations. Assessment of the extent of the damage on the tracks “will take a little bit more time than we thought,” Lhota said.
Lhotoa said flooding at the South Street subway station was “literally up to the ceiling.” this is the station I go to to get to Staten Island Ferry terminal for my gigs.
Pumping is underway in the Battery Tunnel.
Metro-North has no power from 59th Street to Croton.
For those stuck at home, without any way to get to work, or have any damage to clean up, I am thinking of you. This is the best time to reach out to friends, neighbors and family to connect and show strength of community.
Maybe you might enjoy reading this article I'm in. I woke up to a nice interview about my performing in NYC subways in a French blog called We Love New York. Glad I'll have new readers from France who might enjoy learning about subway performers in NYC.
The first paragraphs are in French, but the article is in English.
please be safe my NY friends, as well as anyone else in Sandy's wake.
New York have courage, resilience and humor, Goodbye #Sandy. no singing in the Subway today, hope to be back as soon as possible singing to help sooth our wind, hurricane battered beings.
By: NY1 News
Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced Monday morning that city public and charter schools will be closed a second day on Tuesday.
The city schools were already closed for Monday in anticipation of Hurricane Sandy.
All schools run by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York will also be closed on Tuesday.
This comes as the Port Authority shut down LaGuardia Airport at 7:15 p.m. Monday due to nearby flooding. The other airports are open but no flights are entering or leaving.
The Port Authority has shut down all PATH train service, suspended bus service out of Port Authority Terminal in Midtown and closed the Port of New York and New Jersey.
The city Department of Transportation, Port Authority and Metropolitan Transportation Authority closed most of the city's major bridges and some major roadways.
First, the Hugh Carey (Brooklyn Battery) and Holland Tunnels closed at 2 p.m. Monday.
Shortly before 6 p.m., the Bayonne Bridge, Outerbridge Crossing and Cross Bay Veterans Memorial Bridge were closed.
The Franklin D. Roosevelt Drive between the Battery and 155th Street. closed at 6 p.m. Monday, and the Joseph P. Addabbo Memorial Bridge in Queens also closed to traffic.
At 7 p.m. Monday, 11 city bridges closed to traffic:
• Brooklyn Bridge
• Manhattan Bridge
• Williamsburg Bridge
• Ed Koch Queensboro Bridges
• Throgs Neck Bridge
• Bronx-Whitestone Bridge
• Verrazano-Narrows Bridge
• Henry Hudson Bridge
• Marine Parkway-Gil Hodges Memorial Bridge
• George Washington Bridge
Officials plan to keep the Robert F. Kennedy/Triborough Bridge for as long as possible.
Emergency vehicles will still have access to these bridges and roadways.
DOT officials also suspended alternate-side parking through Tuesday.
Meanwhile, bus, subway and train service were suspended Sunday night and are expected to remain closed until 12 hours after the end of the storm, or likely Wednesday.
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority, New York City Transit, Long Island Rail Road, Metro-North Railroad and Staten Island Railway shut down their systems in preparation for Sandy.
National Guard troops are being deployed across the state, with 200 in New York City.
New Jersey Transit has also shut down all bus, light rail and train service and New York Waterway Ferry and Bus service is also suspended.
All Amtrak Northeast Corridor service is suspended Monday and Tuesday.
New York Stock Exchange announced that it will also be shut down on Tuesday. The physical stock exchange is within New York City's Zone A, which underwent mandatory evacuations.
All Broadway theaters went dark for Monday, and they have also canceled their Tuesday night performances. Telecharge, Ticketmaster and theater box offices are offering refunds and exchanges.
The Food Bank For New York City is still making deliveries to 100 charity groups, but the organization's community kitchen closed at 2 p.m. Monday after serving over 1,500 meals and 150 emergency food packs.
All film permits for Sunday night, Monday and Tuesday were revoked by city officials.
The U.S. Postal Service is making deliveries and closing post offices on a case-by-case basis.
There will be no Monday trash pick-ups in Zone A areas and everywhere else will be on a case-by-case basis, according to OEM officials.
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Monday, October 29, 2012 As most of the Northeast is dealing with an intense storm - Hurricane Sandy combined with a NorEaster, hopefully you are staying inside. I thought I'd share some of my clips. That's if the power stays on! If you're reading this, I hope you are taking the necessary precautions to stay safe. I lived through Hurricane Andrew in Key West years ago and believe me, no precaution is too much. Nature will show it's ultimate power over our mere flesh and blood. Okay so now that I got that out of the way, why not watch my Inspiration Project on my Youtube Channel.
It's a wonderful window into the minds and spirits of the New Yorkers and travelersI have met while performing in the subway system. But also maybe today you'll choose to turn off all electronics if the power does stay on. Under the heaviness of potential pending devastation, I believe today is a gift. Why not use it as a special day to do something completely off your usual day. Connect with a friend, family member or neighbor you haven't had time for in the past. Write, read, DREAM. Remember when you had time to do that? With everything shut down, no subway system to rumble, no bus engines to roar and spew fumes, the city is a different place if only but for a day. Stay safe and feel the connectedness of community and sharing an unusual event. I'll be back in the subway as soon as I can. Peace and love, Cathy PS don't forget to exercise your right to Vote!
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The 'Freedom To Love Now!' concert has been postponed due to pending weather conditions. Thank you to everyone who purchased tickets to support this concert, Freedom To Marry, and the fight for the equality for all Americans. With all the goodwill, momentum, and awareness this concert has generated, we are rebuilding the show on a future date, likely in the Spring.
You may hold on to your tickets as they will be valid for the rescheduled show. We will notify you with updated details of the new show very soon. Alternatively you may request a refund through TicketMaster at this time.
The battle for marriage equality in the US will be far from over even after this election. And, we hope you'll join us in the future as we continue the fight for social justice with the beauty of music. Our beneficiary organization Freedom to Marry is doing everything possible to support the ballot campaigns in the four states in the last week before the election. You can help by making calls for Mainers United for Marriage and Washington United for Marriage without ever even leaving your couch. Just sign up, and an organizer in Maine or Washington will help get you started. Sign up at these links:
http://www.freedomtomarry.org/page/s/callmaine
http://www.freedomtomarry.org/page/s/callWA
Additionally we will keep you posted on 'Freedom To Love Now!' developments and other projects at www.freedomtolovenow.com and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/FreedomToLoveNow
October 3oth live at the Beacon Theatre 8pm
Inaugural Marriage Equality concert featuring too many artists to mention here. Freedom To Love Now a concert for marriage equality.
A very special discount for those of you that still need to get your tickets to the Concert on October 30th at the Beacon Theater!
The 15% off discount code is: OCT30NOW
Get your tickets here: http://freedomtolovenow.com/tickets
see you there!
Update
on 2013-02-19 00:55 by NYC Subway Girl
cancelled due to Storm Sandy
I created a video about my experience performing in public spaces for a concert I gave at the Hudson Opera House this past June. I included it in my August 8th show at Joe's Pub in NYC. Peter Biskind executive director of FilmColumbia was in the audience and asked to put it in this years festival. FilmColumbia is a wonderful film festival in Chatham, NY. It might be a small town, but thanks to a wonderful community filled with film buffs and many professionals in the cinema world, we are thrilled each October to see firsthand some of the best films to be released throughout the coming year.
I enjoyed watching my film "Inspirations From The Underground" to a packed Crandell Theatre on opening night before the new Dustin Hoffman directed film "Quartet." Funny how after decades of being on stage and only a few years of making video for my website I would be in a movie theatre watching myself up on the big screen. It was quite a thrill.
The film is a short about the story of my life as a performer in the underground of NYC and the people I meet.
filmed in locations:
34th st - 41st + Park Times Square - 47th @ 6th ave - 57th @ 6th ave Columbus Circle - Grand Central Shuttle Graybar Grand Central - LIRR - Rockefeller Center - Staten Island Ferry and Union Square
© words and music by Cathy Grier Singerfish Publishing SESAC
Jungle, Birds Bop, Question Of Desire, Cool Trick, Good thing, Down On My Knees, Protecting My Heart, Keep U Out
also with kind permission: Amazing Grace - traditional, You've got A Friend - Carole King, Closer To Fine - Indigo Girls, Hallelujah - Leonard Cohen
Bridging The Nature-Cultural Divide
It might appear illogical that NYC SubwayGirl a subway performer was at the Central Park Woodlands Stewardship conference on October 5th amidst architect students, landscape architects and firms representing top minds in the field for a conversation about stewardship. It actually was as logical as a woodlands thriving deep in the center of an urban environment.
I love NY and I love the Park so I was excited to participate. One of the presenters of the event (Cultural Landscape Foundation) found my sustainability blog (I love search engines), I blogged about the conference. They invited me to come along and see for myself. It was held at the fantastic Museum of The City of New York.
During breaks and a beautiful walk through the Park, I asked my favorite question to a few participants, What's Your Inspiration?
As I explained why I was there, I found my description of myself in the context of the conversation about urban parks, not only interesting, but it actually helped me to define myself a bit more completely than just "I sing in the subway."
I love analogies, so I was trying out the thought of the subway musician as an ecotone (definition: the defining geographic transitional line where valley meets mountain, prairie meets forest, where land meets water), where a stationary musician meets commuters rush, where music meets subway sounds, where my asking "What's your inspiration?" to a stranger meets community.
I learned landscape architecture and stewardship of a public park has to include emotional feeling and experience, something not necessarily associated with riding or commuting in a subway system. NYC Subway Girl attempts to bring these into the conversation. Meeting a commuter who pauses to chat and then asking the question about inspiration, brings out an emotional feeling that is deeply poignant and inspirational itself.
Here I thought I was going to the conference to learn about Central Park (and I did), but I left learning more about myself.
I heard that "if green space are the lungs of the city, then parks are the soul of the city, a lens and window into nature." Christian Zimmerman Prospect Park Alliance
In stewardship of an urban park, we can no longer use the old adage "leave it alone" succumbing to fears about not thinning or felling trees that would positively help restore the landscape designed by man in the first place. "We need to love nature with more intelligence." Charles Birnbaum. That's why the conference entitled Bridging The Nature/Cultural Divide, is so compelling.
One question raised "What do we preserve today?"
Eric Sanderman: "Nature doesn't think of states, but regions." He spoke of Mannahatta (Manhattan of 400 years ago) saying if you dropped an indigenous person into a section of the island, they would know just by looking at the trees, the undergrowth, what kind of habitat it was and the animals that lived there. Same in our 21st century urban environment, "if you were blindfolded and dropped into Times Square, you'd be able to say a lot about the environment." We all have the ability to fit and understand our environment. The point being, that there is a large network that we are all a part of.
Another point raised, if you removed man from the planet, nature would restore, if you removed insects, the environment would collapse. It says a lot doesn't it?
Todd Forrest from the Bronx Botanical Garden: "we've learned we can no longer say Mother knows best in an urban park design," in truth, "the genie was out of the land."
Michael Boland Wildlife Conservation Society: "wildlife doesn't understand the difference between a national park or a city park… we need to connect parks with corridors to allow migration and movement of wildlife (for example: migratory birds "fly corridor"). A wildlands network.
Did you know that the Quail is the state bird of California? Problem is they are all but non existent due to climate change. And the state tree in Illinois is the White Oak, which they no longer plant because they are already in decline. Bright minds throughout the world are learning to adapt to nature's constantly evolving or declining species.
Elizabeth Meyer professor Landscape Architecture University of Virginia started up the second session. "Woodlands are affected by use and abuse. To manage woodlands and wildlife in an urban habitat there needs to be a management philosophy." She further added, "Woodland from a cultural aspect, is a result of designed judgement."
Designer of the evocative and reimagined Queens Plaza, Landscape Architect Margie Ruddick added that "Art helps people connect with a place and helps proprietary commitment." As a subway musician performing in public spaces I see that first hand every time I perform.
It was an truly informative and wonderful day spent with thinkers in the world of landscape architecture. I left feeling empowered and optimistic about the people out in the field working passionately every day to find solutions to better serve communities and humankind while not forgetting nature's involvement.
The clip features inspirations from Charles Birnbaum, founder president Cultural Landscape Foundation and Eric Sanderson, Wildlife Conservation Society, Michael Boland, The Presidio Trust, Alanna Rios, student City College of New York, Christopher Valencia, student City College of New York, Mauro Crestani, EXP US Servces Inc., Joanna Pertz, Landscape Architect, Eddie Krakhmalnikov, University of Minnesota, Margie Ruddick, Landscape Architect, Elizabeth Meyer, Professor Landscape Architecture, University of Virginia
Amazing Gift revealed today: The Central Park Conservancy has received the largest donation ever made to a public park to help us sustain the Park's health for generations. John A. Paulson and the Paulson Family Foundation have given $100 million to help maintain and restore every one of the Park's 843 acres.
Everyone at the Conservancy and for current and future New Yorkers, thank Mr. Paulson for his enormous generosity.
Read more about Mr. Paulson's gift http://ow.ly/eI54S
Making Central Park more sustainable through management of the Central Park woodlands is the subject of a Huffington Post article and the subject of an October 5, 2012, day long (8am-5pm) conference organized by the Central Park Conservancy and The Cultural Landscape Foundation. Event location Museum Of The City Of New York 1220 Fifth Ave @ 103rd ST
Maintaining Central Park is not easy – and the woodlands, which seem so natural, requires a great deal of attention and balancing the interests of nature and culture (bird watchers, nature lovers, etc). This is an opportunity to hear from national experts about stewardship of urban woodlands. As one Central Park Conservancy said of the park, letting nature run its course is not sustainable.
The 843-‐acre Central Park, originally designed by Frederick Law Olmsted, Sr., and Calvert Vaux, with a succession of additions and refinements by Samuel Parsons, Jr.,Michael Rapuano, Gilmore Clarke and others, is also host to 230 bird species, along with turtles, fish, and countless species of butterflies, dragonflies, and other insects. The Central Park woodlands are among the most historically significant designed landscapes in the country, providing valuable refuge for wildlife and New Yorkers alike. In the 1960s and 1970s, Central Park experienced an unprecedented decline, suffering from neglect and a lack of management. Litter filled its waterbodies; its Great Lawn was a great dust bowl; its woodlands were avoided, not celebrated. The Central Park Conservancy, a private, not-‐for-‐profit organization created in 1980, has skillfully and successfully reawakened, restored and maintained a world-‐class icon.
Nevertheless, managing a park that is both a culturally significant landscape and natural habitat is delicate; this conference specifically examines sustainability, the agendas of different constituencies, diversity, the role of people, and public education.
Creating a progression of varied landscape experiences was a primary goal of Central Park's designers. Within the landscapes themselves, horticultural diversity was also a goal. In the Ramble, both exotic and native plants were to provide a sense of lushness and intricacy, realizing Olmsted’s intended "wild garden"effect. Neglect of the Park’s woodlands over a prolonged period resulted in a lack of horticultural and social (as well as scenic) diversity. What park stewards know is “letting nature take its course” is not sustainable. While the woodlands serve to provide the experience of escape from urban life, they are in fact designed urban landscapes that require consistent management.
The conference features two panels addressing this stewardship dilemma; the irst (the morning session) focuses on “lessons learned” by public sector stewards at Prospect Park (Brooklyn), New York Botanical Garden, and The Presidio (San Francisco); the second (afternoon session) will be comprised of landscape architects in private practice with experience in urban parks
complete list:
Speakers and Moderators: ␣ Eric W. Sanderson, Senior Conservation Ecologist, Wildlife Conservation Society (moderator) ␣ Christian Zimmerman, Vice President for Design & Construction, The Prospect Park Alliance, Brooklyn, NY ␣ Michael Boland, Chief Planning, Projects & Programs Officer, The Presidio Trust, San Francisco, CA ␣ Todd Forrest, Arthur Ross Vice President for Horticulture and Living Collections, The New York Botanical Garden ␣ Elizabeth K. Meyer, Associate Professor, University of Virginia, School of Architecture, Landscape Architecture (moderator) Dennis McGlade, President/Partner, OLIN, Philadelphia, PA and Los Angeles, CA ␣ Margie Ruddick, Margie Ruddick Landscape, Philadelphia, PA ␣ Keith Bowers, Biohabitats, Baltimore, MD
Registration is $150 and is available at the conference Web site. The Central Park Conservancis the presenting sponsor, with additional support provided by Landscape Forms and the Museum of the City of New York.
About the Central Park Conservancy : The mission of the Central Park Conservancy is to restore, manage and enhance Central Park in partnership with the public, for the enjoyment of present and future generations. A private, not-‐for-‐profit organization founded in 1980, the Conservancy provides 85 percent of Central Park's $46 million park-‐wide expense budget and is responsible for all basic care of the Park. Since 1980, the Conservancy has overseen the investment of more than $650 million into Central Park. For more information on the Conservancy, please visit centralparknyc.org
About The Cultural Landscape Foundation: The Cultural Landscape Foundation provides people with the ability to see, understand and value landscape architecture and its practitioners, in the way many people have learned to do with buildings and their designers. Through its Web site, lectures, outreach and publishing, TCLF broadens the support and understanding for cultural landscapes nationwide to help safeguard our priceless heritage for future generations.
The Central Park Conservancy is the presenting sponsor, with additional support provided by Landscape Forms and the Museum of the City of New York. About the Central Park Conservancy : The mission of the Central Park Conservancy is to restore, manage and enhance Central Park in partnership with the public, for the enjoyment of present and future generations. A private, not-‐for-‐profit organization founded in 1980, the Conservancy provides 85 percent of Central Park's $46 million park-‐wide expense budget and is responsible for all basic care of the Park. Since 1980, the Conservancy has overseen the investment of more than $650 million into Central Park. For more information on the Conservancy, please visit centralparknyc.org
My first performance back from my summer break was at Columbus Circle, uptown 1 platform. This spot is great. The crowd builds in between trains, but it's also quite noisy with express trains passing in both directions on the inside tracks. I learn how to pause to save my voice. When the train arrives and the doors open, I love to see people inside look out in my direction, seemingly surprised to hear live music. I see a lot from my vantage point where I set up, and the colorful Sol Lewitt mosaics are behind me.
I met photo journalist Nousha Salimi who discovered my website and found where I was playing. She came to my gig the following day where I performed in Brooklyn at the LIRR station. It was interesting to have Nousha spend the entire gig with me 2 days in a row and each of the locations couldn't be any more different. To be able to see what I witness, the humanity, the intense experience of being in one location for 3 hours at a time, while everything and everyone else is speeding by on their way to somewhere.
by Nousha Salimi
by Nousha Salimi
I grew up believing in the power of the microphone and having some inner need to be aware and socially conscious. Sure I had public school teachers inspired by the Vietnam War and Civil Rights movement to urge me to think. And as a singer -songwriter I was deeply influenced by the work of Pete Seeger, Phil Ochs, Odetta, Joni Mitchell, Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, ...and I could go on. The Occupy Wall Street gatherings in Zuccotti Park in lower Manhattan that began last September 17th and grew to a movement inspired me. To witness something shifting, something to cling our anxiety, frustration and disbelief to. How could we arrive at such a historical economic crash and continue to allow corporations and organizations to have unfettered access to funds without oversight, tossing regulations aside, allowing greed to override "right action" in the name of profit and "free-market driven policy"? The "We Are The 1%" mantra stuck.
I went to Zuccotti Park many times over the months including before and after the NYPD raid that shut the park down. I sang Amazing Grace with a small crowd standing in the rain, surrounded by barriers and showing a stamina and resolve to continue the fight for justice that I hadn't seen since my youth.
Today I am mindful of the anniversary and how it is not the celebration of the past year so much as it is looking forward to how the next days, months and years will unfold.
Here's a little a recap of my time at Zuccotti Park:
Blog Cultural Occupation Of Liberty Square post raid
Today I'm sharing the work and writing of author and delighted to say friend, Erin McHugh.
She is a former publishing executive and author of twenty books, including the snarky midterm elections volume COFFEE, TEA OR KOOL-AID: Which Party Politics Are You Swallowing?, and THE L LIFE: Extraordinary Lesbians Making a Difference, a photo essay on lesbian heroines. She lives in New York City and South Dartmouth, Massachusetts. Her latest book One Good Deed came from her personal odyssey to blog about doing exactly that. It's a wonderful read, makes you not only feel good, but makes you think about what you can do to make our chaotic world a bit more on the thoughtful side.
ONE GOOD DEED: 365 Days of Trying to Be Just a Little Bit Better 
$18.95 in hardcover. You can order now at your local independent bookstore, Barenes + Noble and Amazon
Here's an excerpt from book seller Suzzana Hermans of Oblong books in Millerton and Rhinebeck, NY discussing Erin's One Good Deed on WAMC radio show The Rountable
I wrote about Erin's blog when she was at day 265. You can read that post here.
and here's her latest blog:
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Why One Good Deed?
Because we can do a little better....
Follow Erin McHugh on Facebook or on Twitter as @ErinHere.
and yet again I was mentioned on One Good Deed blog as I had connected with Erin and told her about how the letter came to be addressed.
Anniversary's of this kind are tricky, on the one hand we must reach into our collective and personal grief to remember the tragedy, the loss, the deep shattering and on the other hand, how to balance the knowledge of our resiliency and not eclipse the memory?
As I walked through the streets of my home, my city, for the days months and years after 9/11, I saw what was obviously physically missing, those towers that always pointed me "downtown" and then when was it that I stopped looking for the reference and couldn't remember exactly where they stood in the skyline? Singing in the subway was where I could sense what was missing within each of us. When was it that I could feel by watching commuters body language and my own, that we were over the shock, the loss, the intense sense of horror? I can't remember, it just slowly evolved into a new being.
Now I look to the sky and watch floor upon floor growing up from the scared land, what was left of the World Trade Towers. Honestly it's strange to see the buildings stretching now taller than the Empire State building. Ground Zero. Ground Rebirth. I can never forget those days after 9/11, how our world changed.
As I do every year I remember and I weep.
Today I remember for the families who lost lost loved ones, for the firefighters, police and emergency workers who lost their lives. To those who volunteered to help rescue and recover. For the workers who spent months carting away the debris at risk to their own health and who may have also lost their lives, or be forever disabled. To the health care workers who under such duress worked endlessly and who continue to help and heal to this day. To our soldiers and National Guard who have fought two wars directly related to the event of September 11, 2001, including the countless innocent lives lost overseas as a result of those wars.
Today I remember we can rebuild, we can love and sing again. I only began singing in the NYC Subway system in 1999, I know that the events of September 11, 2001 is reason enough why I continue to do so to this day. I have hope for our future where we encourage education for all people, re-imagine our financial systems, work tirelessly towards a more energy efficient and socially conscious society. I dream this new century moves more towards a place of collective peace and love. I came into this world a dreamer and I continue to dream that dreams do become reality.
I remember.
some of my previous years postings:
music performed and written by Cathy Grier
Columbia County New York Habitat For Humanity (CCHfH) has a new project in Hudson-building two Passive Townhouses. Designed by ground-breaking green architect Dennis Wedlick Architect LLC (DWA), the Columbia Passive Townhouses at 244-246 Columbia Street in Hudson will be the first Habitat townhouses in New York to be constructed using passive energy design and engineering. This process can reduce external energy consumption by 90%. Something all homes need especially affordable housing.
I'll be performing at Club Helsinki Hudson, this Sunday September 9th during the Habitat For Humanity brunch 11:30-1pm. Dennis Wedlick lead architect for the project is the featured speaker and he will discuss the Passive Home process.
Ground breaking for the construction of the Columbia Passive Townhouses began Saturday September 8th.
photo from left to right: Seth Rapport, President of the Hudson Development Corp (donated one of the two parcels), Judith Nelson, Executive Director, Habitat for Humanity New York State, Janis Smythe, President Columbia County Habitat for Humanity, Dennis Wedlick, Dennis Wedlick Architect, LLC, NY State Assemblywoman Didi Barrett, Don Moore, President, Hudson Common Council (donated the other parcel), Brenda Adams, Executive Director, Columbia County Habitat for Humanity, and Eileen Halloran, Treasurer, City of Hudson
At a past CCHfH event where I performed, I was able to get a "What's Your Inspiration?" clip of Brenda Adams, executive director of Columbia County New York Habitat For Humanity. What Inspires Brenda?
52 women. One year of history. #HerStory is a project for 2012 in which each week, a contemporary woman shares the story of a historical woman who inspires her. Hear elected officials, academics, mothers, filmmakers, authors, activists, CEO’s, and more provide a snapshot of these women’s lives, from the headliners to the lesser-known gems.
Rebecca Price creator of Chick History who has an MA in Museum Studies writes, "The challenge of women's history is the challenge of moving away from the "Great Men" method of telling stories through unique biographies and moving into a more holistic vision of social history. It’s about the contributions of individuals who did remarkable things but weren't in a position where they could distinguish themselves individually - because of societal biases of the time and of early historians.
The more I study Women’s History, the more fascinating history as a discipline becomes. I will try and do it justice, and I hope you enjoy, learn, and have fun along the way." -Rebecca Price
Cathy Grier writes: I'm excited to be a part of
a project by
. I chose to speak about the life of poet Edna St. Vincent Millay. I discovered Vincent's poetry and life, in the late 1990’s after returning home to the US after living in France and looking to immerse myself in American culture, I discovered “Savage Beauty,” a biography by Nancy Milford. I was taken by Vincent's poetic style and her artistic expression on and off the literary stage. I also learned from my mother that my grandfather her father, loved to recite Millay’s work.
here's the link to listen to my episode
#HerStory 33: Edna St. Vincent Millay by Cathy Grier
What inspired me about getting involved in the Chick History Project? Rebecca was looking for contemporary women to share their inspiration of a women in history and in what ways they connected with her. Frankly far too many women have been rewritten out of history. This is a fine way to preserve and honor them.
read more about HerStory and Chick History:
How many women in history can you name? 20? 10? Who are your favorites? Who has inspired you? How would you tell her story?
In 2012, Chick History will tell the stories of 52 women, not through names and dates of textbooks, but through the voices of contemporary women. Chick History is inviting 52 diverse women to take ownership of the historical women who have inspired them - from the headliners to the lesser-known gems - and is asking each one to share her story with us.
Hear elected officials, academics, mothers, filmmakers, authors, activists, CEO’s, and more offer snapshots of these women’s lives. You may know some of these stories. Others, you may not know. But over the year, #HerStory will provide a collection of inspiring and fascinating women of history who form the foundation on which modern women are building today.
#HerStory is also an empowering way for contemporary women to express their gratitude to these historical women, by becoming an advocate and amplifier of their lives - sharing their stories with the larger world so that others may also find inspiration in their lives.
There is someone in history for all of us. Someone whose actions and words, courage and commitment, is a touchstone for us. Someone who has shaped our values, our points of view, our careers, commitments, and beliefs. Someone whose words cheer us up and motivate us to begin a difficult new project, make a career change, or just help us to get through another depressing day at the office. Someone who inspires us and gives us the strength to make a change in our lives.
Somewhere in these podcasts, during this year, Chick History hopes you will find a connection with one of these women. That she speaks to you on a personal level through her story, and you find something of what you have done, what you are doing, or what you have thought you might try in your own life.
So tune in each week for a new story and get inspired. And when the year is over, the next time someone asks you “How many inspiring women in history are there?”...you can start with these 52 and go from there.
more:
How do you write someone out of history? read
Rebecca's piece in the Huffington Post
about removing Hilary Clinton out of the photograph of the Osama bin Laden mission from the White House Situation Room.
I was introduced to Rebecca Price through a friend -media guru Nancy VanReece, hear her episode HerStory
My partner Michele also got involved, hear HerStory #30 about Anne Morrow Lindbergh
Another wonderful discovery is the group The Edna Project led by husband and wife musical team Liz Queler and Seth Farber who put music to Vincent's poetry, set to edgy, sometimes sultry Americana melodies. My favorites are “If Still Your Orchards Bear”, “Wraith” and “The Penitent”.
follow HerStory on
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Performed live at Joe's Pub, here's a free MP3 of my song Keep You Out words and music C. Grier SingerFish Publishing SESAC
Geraldine Petrovic is an amazing photographer, she came to my show and took some great pictures, you can check out some of my favorites at my Joe's Pub pics gallery.
NYCSubwayGirl t-shirts available order here
NYCSubwayGirl trademark T-shirts have arrived made with soft Organic Cotton in slate grey
If you don't want to order from paypal, you can order directly from me checks only, please fill out contact form and I'll let you know where to send a check: $20 + $5 shipping and handling.
The t-shirts were designed by Mary Neufeld and made with earth friendly inks by Friendly Arctic.
5 different sizes to choose from.
Cathy and Dan Kleederman at Merch table at Joe's Pub concert
Dena Gold accupuncturist/massage therapist
August 10, 1846 the United States Congress passed legislation creating the Smithsonian Institution.
Smithsonian Folkways mission is the legacy of Moses Asch, who founded Folkways Records in 1948 to document "people's music," spoken word, instruction, and sounds from around the world. The Smithsonian acquired Folkways from the Asch estate in 1987, and Smithsonian Folkways Recordings has continued the Folkways commitment to cultural diversity, education, increased understanding, and lively engagement with the world of sound.
from Writers almanac Friday Aug 10 Garrison Keiller
It was on this date in 1846 that the United States Congress passed legislation creating the Smithsonian Institution.
James Smithson was an English scientist. He was also the illegitimate son of a nobleman and a widow who was related to the royal family. He was born in secret in Paris, and though he inherited a lot of money from his mother, his illegitimacy kept him from any of the social or career advantages that his family connections might have given him. He once wrote, "On my father's side I am a Northumberland, on my mother's I am related to kings, but this avails me not." He never married, and spent his life traveling and getting to know some of the greatest scientific minds of Europe. He believed scientists should be "citizens of the world," and wrote, "It is in knowledge that man has found his greatness and his happiness." Smithson published more than two dozen papers on a wide variety of subjects.
Shortly before his death in 1829, he bequeathed his estate to his nephew. But if the nephew died childless, Smithson wrote, then the money was to go to the United States for the foundation of an institution for "the increase and diffusion of knowledge." The nephew died without any heirs in 1835.
The bequest sparked a debate in Washington between the Federalists and the supporters of states' rights. The states' rights people argued that the Constitution didn't make any provisions for a national institution. But the Federalists won out, and in 1838, the entire estate, worth more than half a million dollars, was transferred to the United States Mint. The debate didn't end with the Federalists' victory, though. For nearly a decade, people argued about what he meant by the "increase and diffusion of knowledge." Did he mean a university? If so, what kind? Did he mean an observatory, a research institute, a publishing house, a national library, or a museum?
In the end, it became all of those things, with the exception of the university. The Smithsonian complex now includes museums of natural history, American history, fine and decorative arts, and air and space technology: 16 museums in all. It also encompasses four research centers, a research library, and the National Zoo.
Smithsonian Folkways Mission
Smithsonian Folkways Recordings is the nonprofit record label of the Smithsonian Institution, the national museum of the United States. We are dedicated to supporting cultural diversity and increased understanding among peoples through the documentation, preservation, and dissemination of sound. We believe that musical and cultural diversity contributes to the vitality and quality of life throughout the world. Through the dissemination of audio recordings and educational materials we seek to strengthen people's engagement with their own cultural heritage and to enhance their awareness and appreciation of the cultural heritage of others.
Our mission is the legacy of Moses Asch, who founded Folkways Records in 1948 to document "people's music," spoken word, instruction, and sounds from around the world. The Smithsonian acquired Folkways from the Asch estate in 1987, and Smithsonian Folkways Recordings has continued the Folkways commitment to cultural diversity, education, increased understanding, and lively engagement with the world of sound.
Our History
Folkways Records & Service Co. was incorporated in 1948 in New York City by Moses Asch (1905-1986) and Marian Distler (1919-1964). Under Asch's enthusiastic and dedicated direction, Folkways sought to record and document the entire world of sound. Between 1948 and Asch's death, Folkways' tiny staff released 2,168 albums. Topics included traditional, ethnic, and contemporary music from around the world; poetry, spoken word, and instructional recordings in numerous languages; and documentary recordings of individuals, communities, current events, and natural sounds.
As one of the first record companies to offer albums of "world music," and as an early exponent of the singers and songwriters who formed the core of the American folk music revival (including such giants as Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger, and Lead Belly), Asch's Folkways grew to become one of the most influential record companies in the world.
Following Asch's death, in 1987 the Smithsonian Institution Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage in Washington D.C. acquired Folkways Recordings and the label's business papers and files to ensure that the sounds and genius of its artists would continue to be available to future generations.
As a condition of the acquisition, the Smithsonian agreed that virtually all of the firm's 2,168 titles would remain "in print" forever—a condition that Smithsonian Folkways continues to honor through its custom order service. Whether it sells 8,000 copies each year or only one copy every five years, every Folkways title remains available for purchase.
In the years since 1987, Smithsonian Folkways has continued to expand on Asch's legacy, adding several other record labels to the collections and releasing over 375 new recordings that document and celebrate the sounds of the world around us.
A Worldwide Educational Online Download Network
Smithsonian Folkways Recordings launched its Smithsonian Global Sound®educational initiative in 2005. This unique online resource delivers easy access to tens of thousands of audio recordings and hundreds of video features from the U.S. national museum's Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections (which includes Smithsonian Folkways) and content from partner archives including the International Library of African Music at Willard Rhodes University (South Africa), the Archives and Research Centre for Ethnomusicology of the American Institute for Indian Studies (India), the Aga Khan Music Initiative for Central Asia of the Aga Khan Trust for Culture (Central Asia) and others still to come.
Listening and viewing are enhanced by extensive documentation, indexing and search capabilities, including in-depth features in the online Smithsonian Folkways Magazine and educational resources in the Tools for Teaching section
Today, the website www.folkways.si.edu and all of Smithsonian Global Sound's features have been strengthened and renewed within a single website Smithsonian Folkways offers downloads and streaming video, tools for teaching, in-depth features, and institutional subscriptions (via Alexander Street Press) to Music Online/Smithsonian Global Sound® for Libraries. The initiative provides unparalleled accessibility to less-often heard voices of people from all over the world. Smithsonian Folkways will continue to partner with other audio archives worldwide to increase global, digital access.
The revenue received from you for individual downloads and institutional subscriptions supports the creation of new educational content and is shared with archival partners, who in turn pass on a portion of those revenues for the benefit of artists and their communities. The development of this initiative was made possible by generous support from the Rockefeller Foundation, the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation and folkwaysAlive! at the University of Alberta.
