Online CommunityThese are a few of the Web sites and blogs that are helping to build online communities in Northern Manhattan. Scan the latest posts from some popular local blogs along the left side of this page. Email info@manhattantimesnews. com to have other Web sites considered for this page.Notable Local Web sites The granddaddy of local online resources with a host of active forums on all manner of Northern Manhattan minutia.
A Yahoo Group moderated by Jessica Shapely where users ask questions and offer tips about local resources for children. A dog owners association who frequent Homer's Run in Inwood Hill Park. BlogsInwood blogger Carla Zanoni (The Streets Where We Live) compiled the following list of blogs with a local interest. Brad Aaron of Inwoodite takes time to root out what goes on in his neighborhood, reporting back with level-headed smart analysis. Matthew Gallaway (formerly The Gay Recluse) has a team made up of ten staff members, two of which are gorgeous gray-haired cats. The blog takes a literary approach to social commentary, both in the Washington Heights area and abroad. The Inwood Astronomy Project is committed to showing off the stars over Manhattan to at least 5,000 New Yorkers over 100 nights in 2009. Every Wednesday and Saturday night this blogger will take his telescope to Inwood Hill, Isham and Fort Tryon Parks. Washington Heights resident Jamie Conniff writes in his foodie blog that his antidote for whiny downtown complaints about coming to the Heights for dinner is to feed them El Malecon’s chicken. Cole Thompson had lived in Inwood for close to ten years when he decided to switch careers from television production to real estate agent. When he did, he realized that he didn’t know as much as he thought he did about the neighborhood and began researching it. Aliza Hausman was raised as a “first-generation American of Dominican descent” on the "Dominican side" of Washington Heights until she was age 14 and as an adult she returned to live on the "Jewish side" of Washington Heights. This recently launched English and Spanish language site looks to “generate lively banter and debates related to urban issues, economic development and migration studies” and has made a great start at covering some of the issues affecting the immigrant population in Northern Manhattan. Claudio is a 25-year-old native Inwoodite who is one of the few young voices online representing the Dominican community in the Inwood and Washington Heights area. This site hosts a wealth of glorious images from Washington Heights with enough swooping shots of the George Washington Bridge, children playing in Fort Tryon Park and views of the local architectural and natural vistas to make it clear why so many people call this slice of Manhattan a gem. Devoted to the dogs of Washington Heights and their people. Washington Tykes doubles as a soapbox for my scattered musings on the relationship between canines and humans--the good, the bad, and the fugly. After Jim Carroll’s recent death, different sites and publications have written tomes to his life, his loves and his home. Inwood being his first and final home and ultimate resting place, this neighborhood has received some more attention than usual; take this time to talk through some of the connections to the neighborhood and the Irish writers who had ties to the area and culture. Not so much a blog, but more a gathering place for people who live or have lived in Inwood. A social network-type site, participants who are approved to join the group can view old photos, share stories and bond with Inwoodites of all ages. Holly Ramos was born and raised in New York. She writes about her childhood struggling with the distance from her friends and moving from the Inwood area. Read about her memories about the old ‘hood and get lost in the rest of her gorgeous writing. She sees Inwood through a light that many don’t see shine here very often. Eating the World in NYC takes that premise and tours the city in search of the best food fare to indulge in the five boroughs’ nooks and crannies. It’s been some time since Amanda moved to New York City, but the way she writes and her excitement for the city gives it that doe-eyed quality that reminds even the most jaded New Yorker that this is pretty great place to live. Many people begin blogs. Few people blog for nearly a decade. But Inwoodite Rose Fox has, and she does it with such a lack of self-consciousness that it sometimes gives a reader a thrill you’d get reading someone’s journal (minus the guilt and fear of being caught). The Pink Factor is a diary-style blog that charts the life of one young woman living her life in New York City. Nothing groundbreaking or out of the ordinary, except for one thing: the young person in question is Mormon and, according to her, life in the city can be tough for a 27-year-old woman of her faith. But that doesn’t get her down. The poem, written by Aracelis Girmay, is titled, “For Estefani Lora, Third Grade, Who Made Me A Card,” and begins with a dedication to Estafani Lor, a student at PS 132 in Washington Heights. The words lyrically express the challenges and opportunities presented by learning English as a second language. The result is touchingly beautiful and heart wrenching. The Bridge and Tunnel Club holds a bounty of older Inwood and Washington Heights photos that are a sight to behold. Take a look at the streets of Washington Heights during the winter and Sherman Creek before its clean up and reminisce.
In Inwood, bird life is just as big a part of city life as those other subjects. Joining several other bird-focused blogs this column has featured, is The City Birder, which takes a look at all feathery friends throughout the city. Holtman says he's began blogging in June, and will be a place writing about his “playwriting and such matters,” including musing on the emotional impact of flash mobs, long lost and found emails and warm weather. ReverbNation site gives music fans the opportunity not only to check out new songs and genres, but the chance to get to know an artist’s thoughts and personalities as well. It is an amazing thing when someone can show you the world through their eyes. Even the most mundane and everyday objects become special and exciting. It’s been a while since Sean has posted new photos of his neighborhood (and these images truly reflect his world), but what he has posted make a reader hunger for more of this magical place he calls Inwood. History buffs and New York City devotees are sure to get a lot out of the rich blog, which features all sorts of tidbits about the five boroughs. The authors ventured north of 125th Street this summer as they researched how to rank the city’s oldest tree. Louise Fury is known as a type of Shangri-La for artists, especially of the musical and acting persuasion. An Inwood resident, the subtitle to Louise’s site says it all, describing her passion and personality in one fell swoop. A personal diary of her process as a writer, Louise Fury’s Blog gives insight into the writer’s experience while occasionally lending a peak into life in Inwood as well. In keeping with the writers living in Inwood theme, Shawn Fury (name sound familiar? Shawn is married to Louise Fury, whose blog is above) uses his site as a sounding board for various topics ranging from sports to the economy to his favorite childhood television programming to recent events in Northern Manhattan. Following the theme of out-of-towners writing about Northern Manhattan, Alex lives in Washington, DC, and typically writes about “photography, travel, and blogging.” This artistically laid out site features all sorts of recommendations for places to go and people to see throughout the city. Not necessarily about Northern Manhattan, but written by a Northern Manhattanite, Sadé Dreaming is self-described “central repository for random reflections … i think is funky fresh [or lame].” More often “funky fresh” than “lame,” the site gives fun insight into the accidental obsessions of one person living in New York City. This uptown foodie claims that her site is unpopular, but her tour of New York and its gourmand delicacies and treats make that claim fall on its face. Whether writing about tomatoes, food shopping in Washington Heights cooking food from the farmer’s market, or her writing for this very newspaper, she does it with style, grace and a large dose of humor. It is fitting that included in an amazing list of adventures to faraway lands like Russia and Finland, blog author Wes has found time and space to include lovely Washington Heights. With lovely photos of his travels Fort Tryon Park, the architecture of Hudson Heights and the transit system of New York, it’s easy to see the beauty that makes this area so special, best seen through the lens of a traveling soul like Wes. Jeremy Del Rio is an activist first and blogger second. Although it is not clear whether he has made Inwood his home, it is clear that Inwood in his heart. Check out his July 9 post featuring the work of a local organization that is teaching local kids about the value of keeping Inwood clean and green. The very thing that makes New York City so exciting is that which can make it feel intangible, fleeting, and, well, ephemeral. That’s what “Ephemeral New York” is all about, chasing that dynamic thing called New York City and trying to immortalize it in words and images.
There are a lot of really cool things about the author of this site. He is the author of three books, an online writer, a comedian, a soon-to-be host of a new television program called “Popular Science's Future Of” on the Science Channel, and not least of all, an Inwood resident. His site is the perfect blend of humorous insight and satire and good old fashioned Inwood-promotion. Check it out for some good local and not-so-local laughs. Although the site has been dormant for a while, Ts Blog is worth checking out if only for the five posts dedicated to Dominican culture in Washington Heights. Watch a video about Bachata dance and what life is like for Dominicans and other Hispanics in Northern Manhattan or the history of Washington Heights itself. Inwood resident Gabriel Dunn is a self-proclaimed “geek living in NYC” who likes to collect and display tidbits of somewhat random Internet information on his site “Subject to Change,” which features anything from movie trailers to poems, philosophical quotes to funny photos Reading “This Redeemable Life,” an online diary, can be an intense experience. The writing is candid, honest and flavorful. And with that intensity comes the pain of relating to someone else’s struggle and challenges. The beauty of this site is that the author, Alan, who lives in Inwood, manages to also keep a spark of humor in all of his writing, reminding the reader that we’re all in this together. Megan is 24 years old, lives in what she calls Washington Heights/Inwood, is an avid runner and, by the looks of her blog and blog title, likes to cook and eat. If you don’t come to her site for her stories about exercising in the city, definitely come for her recipes. Not sure what a GCast player is, but it’s certain that DubbleX, the author of this site, is a talented poet with an ear for deep rhythm and rhyme. His work has a definite sensuality and eroticism in unexpected places, with lines like “the island of Manhattan/ is a body of land/ surrounded by water Inwood is her head/ tracing down to a Washington Heights meringue nights neck/ sloping to strong Harlem shoulders.” Sizzling. Sometimes words fail when trying to illustrate the character, pace and beauty of a place. Cedric Gore, the person behind DDoD gets this and uses a video camera to capture the nuance of New York City, and more specifically, Northern Manhattan.
Although the site is officially about Inwood and Washington Heights’ southern cousin Harlem, the authors like to occasionally venture north and enjoy the bounty that exists this side of the 155th Street divide. After living in Inwood for six years Amanda Reynolds said she had enough with what she viewed as sub par policing of the area. She attended community meetings and voiced her concerns, but left frustrated numerous times, ultimately deciding that traditional tactics just weren’t going to work. Amy likes to run. She runs through Inwood Hill Park, Fort Tryon Park, Riverbank State Park, and many of the streets of Northern Manhattan. Hence the name “Runnin’ Around Uptown.” This street-level blog is chock full of photos and musings on the neighborhoods that make up Northern Manhattan. It's clear that her sense of wonder surrounding the beauty and energy of the area is refreshing and lovely. The author of “Getting My Voice Back,” is a musician who is struggling to recover her voice, singing and otherwise, after a year of graduate school madness. This Inwood resident is trying to figure out how to have it all, love, life, family, while staying true to herself and the dreams she shares with her partner. Written from this unique perspective, Dom P., A.K.A. “That Kid from Washington Heights,” writes that he “may not be the most intelligent or eloquent individual in the internet,” but he promises to be “thought provoking and entertaining” in a “mixture of hilarious observations, serious topics, random thoughts and everything else in between.” Little is known of the author(s) identity other than a great sense of humor, love of cooking (see the many dishes chronicled on their pages) and a great eye for photography. “Lost City” is billed as a “running Jeremiad on the vestiges of Old New York as they are steamrolled under or threatened by the currently ruthless real estate market and the City Fathers' disregard for Gotham's historical and cultural fabric.” Nathan Kensinger is a “filmmaker, photographer, film festival programmer and location scout” who likes to capture the underside and underused portions of this great city.
Inwood welcomes newcomer and new blogger Inwoodette to the Northern Manhattan blogging scene. New to the area, Inwoodette (known as Yvonne, originally from Canada) jumped into the arena shortly after moving to Inwood in June 2009. From the looks of her posts, she is embracing the neighborhood already and is getting involved in the community and culture. This author lives, writes and apparently dreams in Washington Heights. Mapondera was "raised by a diplomat/single mom/superhero whose work took her around the globe including stops in Belgium, Botswana, India and Germany" and has been influenced by all of those different locales, writing that "being raised around so many different cultures, interests and ideas made me an incredibly curious person." Although Shakespeare can sometimes feel as far away from Washington Heights as the Shake Shack in the Flatiron District, this Washington Heights-based writer brings it home in his rundown of this summer's Central Park Shakespeare in the Park line up. Whether you own a dog, love dogs, or just love Inwood's Isham Park, this fairly new site is a good way to stay connected to the neighborhood and get involved with the founders' mission to keep the park clean, safe and friendly for dogs and dog lovers alike. Blogger Chana lives in Washington Heights and writes about a range of topics, from movies to music, art to Mary Poppins, and everything in between. And when words fail, a collage made up of inspirational quotes and popular images allow the reader to get a telling glimpse into Chana's life. The writer behind "Una in a Million" is the former, a true blue writer. Life in Washington Heights for her takes on a literary tone as she reflects on her day-to-day life, hopes and aspirations. She writes that she is a "contradiction and a work-in-progress." She is a striver, who is trying to find her place in this world, one in which she is "Too American to be Dominican and too foreign to fit in. E. B. White wrote that there are three types of New Yorkers: "the man or woman who was born here, who takes the city for granted"; "the daily commuter--the city that is devoured by locusts each day and spat out each night" and the third, who he deems most important, the "person who was born somewhere else and came to New York in quest of something." Alta Berri calls herself a painter, illustrator, graphic designer, motion designer, animator and aspiring graphic novelist" who "would love to make an art house film in the same vein as Julie Taymor, Michel Gondry or Julian Schnabel." What You Write believes in the former and celebrates the work of graffiti artists throughout the world. Recently, the site took a look at talented artists in Inwood who get permission from local business owners to decorate public and private spaces in the area and educate young people about their art. This blogger really does love forests, as the title conveys. Post after post features lovely lush photos of verdant views ranging from the Black Forest in Germany to Kuruwa Islands in South India to Inwood Hill Park. Don Rice Metíer is poetic about his adoration of all things nature-related in Upper Manhattan. Even his paintings take on a lyrical tone, mixing photography with audacious color manipulation. Why does he do it? Simple, he writes, "close observation can reveal/ unexpected beauty/ in unexpected places." And reveal unexpected beauty he does. Jon Michael Anzalone's blog is a mix of worldly travel logs and spirited home photos and snippets of conversations he has picked up while shopping at Rite Aid or the local hardware store. Whether with his camera or ears, he deftly picks up and records bits and pieces that will resonate to all. On "eye heart new york," a blogger by the name of "double Jeff" travels the whole of New York City, jotting notes, taking photos and coming up with cool images that illustrate his well worn adventure lands--be they Crown Heights or Washington Heights. This intellectual blog focuses on all things related to the life of an immigrant in the United States, be they from Asia, Europe, Latin America and beyond. Lisa writes that she started her blog in early January of this year because she wanted to relive her "childhood, specifically the nerve-racking, sickening thrill of show-and-tell. Her recent photos of Inwood Hill Park's long-neglected lampposts manage to find beauty in what others might call run down and dirty trash. Through her eyes, those somewhat forgotten relics get a breath of new life. While many New Yorkers stare at the ground avoiding eye contact with the cohabitants on this island, blogger Veronica does the opposite. Not only does she look at passersby, she chronicles their faces and creates micro-prose that sketches out the possibilities of their lives. Living in the Washington Heights/ Inwood area, Veronica's commute "one mile to and one mile fro" work feeds her with the "people in New York City whose faces reveal a story," be they a Hasidic man on 181st Street or an Indian woman in a fuchsia skirt on Cabrini Boulevard. It's hard to figure out much about the creator of this photo-driven blog other than the name of the author: Aiden Ingersoll. One day the viewer is transported to Chelsea, the next day Barcelona and the next Fort Tryon Park. Judging from the steady stream of Northern Manhattan photos of the parks and subway station views, the author either resides in the area or has a warm place for it in her heart. Although the site is more of a five borough taco-fest, one entry on Taco Por Vida has enlightened several Mexican foodie Inwoodites with its scrumptious description of a one-fisted simple feast at Kirsten Taco Truck on Dyckman Street and Sherman Avenue. Dos Lives is powered by a "team of bicultural bloggers in the U.S. and abroad" who "explore the ever-changing Latino experience in the U.S. and everything that comes with it." Based in New York City and overseen by Jon Byington, the site covers news that ranges from hard-hitting to fashion-forward as it relates to Hispanic culture overall. The Hispanic New York Project is an initiative produced by Columbia University's American Studies Program, whose goal is promoting the Latino and Latin American cultural heritage of New York City. Directed by writer and journalist Claudio Iván Remeseira, postings range from media coverage of Latin American community to the arts. This Liberally-bent political blog rarely delves into the world of Northern Manhattan culture, but recently took an intelligent and honest look at the subject of gentrification in Washington Heights and Inwood. Drew Kaplan is a rabbinical student at Yeshiva Chovevei Torah with a penchant for alliteration. A transplant from Ohio, this husband and very recently-made father of one spends his time living in Washington Heights thinking and writing about faith, life and the best way to live both to the fullest. Don't let the name confuse you. This blog contains the writings of a bona fide Southern girl who once lived in Boston and now resides in The Heights with her husband Nathan and cat Miss Marple. In "Washington Heights - NYC" she allows the viewer to get a true glimpse of one man's experience of the neighborhood with humor and style, all within three tight frames Moby, purveyor of fine music that he is, may not live in Northern Manhattan, but knows that Washington Heights is the place to go for good music and the company of talented musicians. As a sommelier is trained and knowledgeable about wine, any woman living in New York City quickly becomes an expert in the art of cat calls having tasted her fair share on the streets of this fine city. Inwood's municipal office's remain a mysterious and force in the neighborhood, be it the post office or library, no matter how long one has lived in the area. But a newcomer's observations can uncover and highlight the nooks and crannies most people have forgotten about or become resigned to experiencing with little more than a shrug of the shoulder. Todd is scoping out a new neighborhood to call home while he studies for his law degree at Fordham and is riding his bike throughout the city to find just the right spot to rest his weary legs. Inwood and all of its natural beauty and fairly flat terrain struck his fancy in this post. He is now expanding his search to include Washington Heights, making it look like Northern Manhattan could be a good contender for home sweet home. Tom McGee is officially not a New Yorker, but this New Jerseyite has earned an honorary slot in the New Yorker roll call through his perceptive eye and discerning ear when it comes to appreciating good music in a good space in Inwood. Although this neighborhood blogger is actually from Morningside Heights his/her love of all flying feathered animals brings the blog's focus uptown. And when it comes to trailing hawks, no other neighborhood can provide quite the sites Washington Heights and Inwood offer. The "Bollywood Barbie" is an aspiring dancer who lives in Washington Heights but travels from New York to Los Angeles; somewhere in the mix of her rant are the seeds of a philosophical argument and a feel for what it is really like to live in the Heights. Inwood Washington Heights Memories tracks and marks all of those changes with a diverse collection of photographs of the area. Early this year an anonymous actor began a blog about his life living in New York, Inwood to be specific. Other than coming up with a great title for a blog, so far, he has written about his movie loves from the past year, views on auditioning and hatred of golf-sized umbrellas in an urban setting. In her own words, The Green Cat is a “former stage manager, a quilter, a Manhattanite and a childfree atheist” who has a green streak, that is, an eco-friendly green streak. Take a walk on the wild side with Yojimbot, an urban documentarian and street art historian, as he chronicles an aerial and somewhat ethereal view of New York’s fauna. The creator of “Shards” filed an entry about a newfound love for Washington Heights that captured his realization that the neighborhood perfectly reflects the symbiotic J.D. Salinger and Wes Anderson perception of New York. All it took was one photo of the entryway to a subway in the Heights and a few lines to make his point clear. And it was perfection. Matt Meyers, a sports journalist who now lives in Brooklyn, wrote about his experience growing up in the Heights, his disbelief in the possibility of them moving here and his perspective on the neighborhood’s growth or decline over the past 15 years. What he had to say was quite interesting. Mary Sargent has been chronicling her walks through New York City for the past three years. This gifted photographer finds the best nooks and crannies to feature on her site and, lucky for us, lives in Inwood. “One Monkey Show” has been putting on a show since 2007, adding a bit of spice to the neighborhood blog circuit. Vacillating between Thank-God-It’s-Friday posts that pay homage to the finer men in life, and the more sedate, yet equally attractive photos of Inwood. Although this is not an Inwood site, its writers did recently take an unusual approach to furthering their eco-friendly mission by describing what New York City might look like in the future. The current MTA train yard along 10th Avenue gets a makeover as a robust international food bazaar called “The Hub. Written by two “similarly-minded individuals who are dedicated to exploring, understanding, and enjoying everything that this world has to offer,” this blog’s posts range from pop to political culture. But this recent entry featured an ode to chivalry and the A-train. Doesn’t get more local than that. Showing that Central Park’s got nothing on Inwood, this hawk-obsessed blog takes a break from reporting on the famous red-tailed hawks Pale Male and Lola to show viewers Inwood Hill Park has its fair share of birds of prey. Some of the best postings of Northern Manhattan can at times be written or photographed by outsiders. In this case, a New Yorker by address and native Iowan features lovely photos from her visit to one of Washington Heights’ museum gems, the Cloisters. Recently the town of Northern Manhattan celebrated the Yankees winning their 27th World Series title, marking their first year in the new Yankee Stadium with pride. This non-New Yorker recounts his good friend’s tales of the victory celebrations in Washington Heights. The beauty and dynamic quality of New York City make it a wonderful place to photograph nature, people from all walks of life and art. My 2 Cents takes advantage of that dynamism, drinking it up through a camera lens and pouring it onto your computer screen. Covering news from as far south as 96th Street in Manhattan Valley and as far north as W. 218th Street in Inwood, this group of students from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism* has recently reported on crime in the Washington Heights, furry residents in Inwood and arborcide in Inwood Hill Park. Another Columbia Graduate School of Journalism student-run blog covering Manhattan areas as southern as East Harlem and as north as Inwood, The Uptowner promises to “provide a voice for upper Manhattan communities that other news outlets miss.” A place to display student work about varied topics and varied locales, Interactive Journalism recently covered an interesting article by Northern Manhattan police that reported crimes have gone down in Washington Heights. This author does not seem to find the idea of living in New York City all that appealing, never mind Northern Manhattan, yet she writes about the soaring numbers of observant Orthodox Jews she’s learned have moved from small towns to New York City. Inwoodite Lakshmi Ghandi is a journalist interested in various subjects, people and trends, with a leaning toward reporting on Southeast Asian culture. Blogging since 2007, this site is a an amalgam of pop and political culture and a strong resource for keeping up with news tidbits that range from the profound to the absurd. Several photo blogs in focus their cameras on the streets of New York City, but few set their lenses on Northern Manhattan. Here a photogrpaher takes a look at one of the most iconic landscapes in Washington Heights. “Paz’s New York Minute” explores those happenings through rich, iconic photographs of the people who live here, some of which feature the beauty that is only found in Washington Heights. Dreamcatcher is a corner of the Internet where writers, poets and dreamers explore the universe. Karl Wilder is originally from the south, but today he lives in New York City and writes about his cooking life here. This blogger is a mother who writes about her escapades raising children with her husband in New York City, specifically Washington Heights. The author writes that she is not a native to the area but is Dominican and has a unique perspective living in what she terms a rapidly gentrifying area. Connie Vasquez is a practicing attorney, cardiac yoga teacher and life coach who lives in Inwood. Her mother recently passed away after struggling for years with Alzheimer's disease. Connie’s blog is all about her own struggle to deal with her mother’s passing. She writes it with the hopes of helping others through their own similar journeys. A group of writers ply their trade for a day, chronicling what life in their corner of the big city looks, sounds, smells and feels like. Writer Lauren Frey, who may or may not still live here, writes about Inwood. Enjoy her jetlagged tale of woe via Northern Manhattan. Little Miss Fussbudget may not live in Northern Manhattan, but she does work here. And boy is Washington Heights lucky. This quirky, interesting and frequently self-effacing writer is full of funny observations and stories about her work and life The Brooklyn Bachelor has other good taste, like nature, poetry and an appreciation for Inwood. Random musings, images and thoughtful quotes fill the pages of this local blogger who advises his readers to keep "your eyes open, you never know what you'll see out there."
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