Madison Square Garden is the world’s most famous area. It houses the Knicks, Rangers, and many other events and concerts. Trips to the area are magical, but can be expensive. Unbeknownst to many, tickets to many college basketball games (St Johns plays home games at MSG) and to college basketball tournaments can cost as little as ten dollars. NCAA basketball is not professional basketball, and this is not an insult. The emotions are real, the effort is visible, and the energy is tangible. College basketball is the most exciting type of basketball, and Madison Square Garden is the most amazing area. Together, the two provide an amazing experience.

There’s nothing like going to or playing in a hockey game after a long break away from it. On Monday the New York Rangers hosted the Toronto Maple Leafs in an “Original Six Matchup,” a term used to describe a game between two of the “original six” teams. Needless to say, there was a certain energy present in the building that is indescribable. As I sat in my seat, I couldn’t help but notice all the people around me; sitting, waiting, hoping for their team to come out on top. However, the hockey gods were not on the Ranger’s side tonight. Henrik Lundqvist, my favorite goalie, let up 3 goals, and despite a potential comeback, the Leafs were victorious. What amazes me more than the game itself, is the sheer commitment and pride that the fans possess. Damn, I love hockey.

 I love cocoa, but I am not allowed to drink it. So I felt very disturbed by this fact, when an actress asked if someone wants some. But the rest of the “Too Much Light Makes The Baby Go Blind” wasn’t so distracting, if one doesn’t mind the fact that public shouted “curtain” every 2 minutes or so, – Neo Futurists know how to keep their public awake. Continue reading →

I liked “Moral Tales from Kshemendra’s Collection”. Actually, I’m amazed by all “story paintings”: while usual paintings show just one scene, those show us the whole story.

Anyway, this particular picture appealed to me because it had 3 stories within it while it wasn’t overfilled with the details. It looks even empty.

The first story tells about king Madhata, who hadn’t enjoyed giving in his previous life as a merchant, and so was punished by loosing everything.

The second story tells about king Chandraprabha, who was so selfless and generous that he gave away even his head.

The third story tells about seafarer, who gave all his jewels to the robbers to save merchants’ lives. The goddess then appeared to him saying where he could get a germ that will help him to fulfill everyone’s wishes. When a king died the seafarer was called by a wise man to become a new king. After a while, the seafarer used his germs and all people got their wishes fulfilled.

All three stories are united by the motive of selflessness, showing how people who care about others and, what’s more, enjoy these acts, they will be rewarded. But if you’re not – you’ll be punished for this.

flicker flick lights out
candle lit meal, sleep early.
oh you fallen trees…

It is becomes apparent that I have begun to compile the little things that make me – me, with the larger ideas and opinions, which set me even more uniquely apart. There is always a balance between these two things, which in fact forms the human identity. There are semblances of oneself in everyday idiosyncrasies; the makeup they put on, the cloths they wear, the toothbrush they have, and food they like. Then there are the more abstract, harder to quantify aspects of a person. Their philosophical approach towards polarization subjects. The political, economic, social views to which they adhere to. It is almost a composition of the tangible and immaterial.  I have found that my blog in its projection of myself has attained a certain life of its own while strictly identifying with what makes myself me.

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• Something I noticed artfully about NYC this past week

• The usually grey and dreary sidewalks of New York City were transformed into blooming gardens as the rain poured down yesterday afternoon. Every New Yorker came equipped, and as if on cue, opened their umbrellas as soon as they were confronted by the cold rain. It was like a synchronized dance depicting colors in motion. It was poorly choreographed, but entertaining to watch; it consisted of people going about their usual routines and agendas despite the unpleasant weather.  The colors and shapes of the umbrellas could have been reflections of the individuals’ personalities, or were perhaps just arbitrary selections made earlier that day. Either way, the sidewalk appeared to be illuminated as every color gave the sidewalk a burst of life.

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  unintentionally grouchy

While rock climbing at Brooklyn Boulders I started admiring the patterns or “routes” of pieces that are drilled to the wall or “set” and then climbed. I saw the awesomely colorful pieces as art. To add on to that, when people started climbing I started to see their motions as art as well. Maybe it was even another form of dance.

Something I noticed artfully in NYC was when I was on the subway a few days ago:

As I was on my way home, a man on the other side of the train car started playing the guitar. I wasn’t able to hear the song too clearly and that was probably the reason my mind decided that he was playing one of my favorite guitar tunes, misguided as the idea probably was. The thing thing struck me about this particular musician was that he wasn’t playing so that he could collect money, but simply because he felt like it. And in the middle of the chaos of public transit, the moment just felt so genuine.

Taking the ferry from Manhattan to Staten Island is always the same yet always new. Some days, the view from the ferry seems like a picture on a screen that drifts further and further away from me. From inside, the water looks somewhat like an alien’s arctic landscape, the terrain changing at a ridiculously accelerated pace. It’s strange to imagine all the small molecules of the river shifting and rolling underneath my feet, working together to rock the ferry.

• Something I noticed about NYC this past week

What is it so artful I’ve noticed about New York? New York.

Just look at these buildings, organisation of streets, the map of the city, and how do people match it without even knowing it You can always get a glimpse of “the soul” of the city walking around the streets, just shut up for a while and look around, or, you will bump into something.

A photograph by Stephen Wilkes that I edited. I wanted to see how the city would look throughout a very cold day. This was just a test to try out iPhoto for the first time.

Yesterday, I noticed during the heavy rain in the city, at the corner of every street there would be a range of colors in people’s umbrellas. At the same time, in the crowded streets of New York City, you could see people frantically dodging each other while trying to stay dry.

I was on the N train  when I looked at the various advertisements for TCI college artfully, they had very loud colors and shades. There were mesmerizing hues of purples and yellows and blues. It was all very distracting, perhaps it was intentional because the school wants to attract students.  After about twenty minutes the subway  became pretty crowded and uncomfortable but looking across from me I imagined that if I took a picture of the scene it could look almost like a family portrait. Everyone had their place, one man was dozing off, the women next to him was listening to music while she was on her phone. There were two little kids looking out the tiny subway window. It all seemed very artistic but also very natural because these people did not have each other in mind.