[olegru]

Coney Island.
Amusement park and the Russian area. There were New York Aquarium too, but I am not sure if it is already re-open after Sandy. It is less number of good restaurants now that it used to be 10 years ago, but still more than enough. Russian food in general are not vegetarian, but she surely could find something tasty and appropriate for her. Honestly that place more interesting for visiting than for living. A little far from Manhattan, a little expensive to find the apartment, almost impossible to find parking spot for the car and so on. But very good public transportation. I am living there, but I am Russian and things like Russian bookstore and Russian speaking doctors are more beneficial for me than for her.

I would probably more advise to live in Bay Ridge or in the Bensonhurst. Or maybe Sheepshead Bay. Anyway all those places are not really homogeneous and you (or her) certainly should take a closer look before make a decision.

[GreenMan]

I will just note in addition to the rest of the Long Island discussion that there is a neighborhood in western Queens called Long Island City.

But yes, if you're in NYC proper and say "Long Island," you'll be understood to be referring to the part of the island that isn't Brooklyn or Queens unless the context indicates otherwise.

[kenberg]

 Bbradley62, on 2014-May-09, 12:38, said:

Which probably means that your parents were born and raised in The City, as were mine

PS to Ken: To a Long Islander, "The City" means any of the five boroughs; to someone living in the five boroughs, "The City" probably means Manhattan.

Ok, Kathryn has a lot to learn. She will manage!
This is useful to me.

I had no idea there really was a place called Hicksville. I can imagine they take some pride in it. After all, everyone has heard of it!
As for Billy Joel, how does it go, Sonny move out to the country...

[Bbradley62]

When Billy Joel's parents moved to Hicksville, it was the country. Now, not so much.

[barmar]

 kenberg, on 2014-May-09, 16:50, said:

I had no idea there really was a place called Hicksville. I can imagine they take some pride in it.

I grew up in the town adjacent to Hicksville (a town called Plainview). It wasn't until I was an adult that I realized what the name suggests; when you hear a name often, you don't tend to notice the words that comprise it. I think it was actually the most developed of the towns in our area: there was a big shopping mall and it had the closest LIRR station.

So it was definitely not a town of "hicks". It was actually named after the founder, Elliot Hicks.

Plainview also just a couple of town over from Levittown, the archetype of the post-WWII pre-fab suburban communities. But I don't recall ever having much reason to go there, and I had no idea as a child that it was particularly notable.

[y66]

My wife and I drove up to Brooklyn yesterday. We spent the afternoon visiting family and strolling around Prospect Park. What a scene!

These places are not vegetarian but likely to have something vegetarians will enjoy:

Farm on Adderly

Nine Chains Bakery

Hope & Anchor (burger place with veggie burgers)

Bar Toto

Roberta's pizza

Northeast Kingdom

Good places to buy fruits and vegetables:

Park Slope Food Coop

Local Roots CSA

Fun places to walk

Prospect Park

Green-Wood Cemetary

Brooklyn Botanical Gardens (my neighbor Thomas Rainer posted this essay on his blog)

Old brownstown neighborhoods in Park Slope, Fort Greene, Clinton Hill and others

[kenberg]

A child just takes his surroundings as normal . I grew up in St. Paul and I took it as natural that all cities had many lakes in and around them. It brings to mind Rck's (quote approximate) comment "I came to Casablanca for the waters" "But Casablanca is in the middle of a derert" "I was mus-informed".

Side bit: I was once told that the Supreme Court decided that, for purposes of taxation, Long Island was not an island. Any truth in that as far as you know?

[barmar]

 kenberg, on 2014-May-12, 06:57, said:

Side bit: I was once told that the Supreme Court decided that, for purposes of taxation, Long Island was not an island. Any truth in that as far as you know?

This sounds like the case: http://en.wikipedia....States_v._Maine

The question was whether Ling Island Sound and Block Island Sound, the waters north of LI, were a bay or open seas. It wasn't a matter of taxation, but whether this area of water was under federal or state control. If LI is a peninsula, then the sounds are bays and under control of the states that border it; if it's an island, it's federally controlled.

They decided that it's really a peninsula, because it's separated from the mainland just by the East River, which wasn't even wide enough for ships to pass until it was artificially widened.

[kenberg]

Ah yes, sounds like the case. I don't really have an opinion one way or the other, I'm sure these things are technical. But it is amusing to think of a court deciding whether Long Island is or is not an island.It sort of fits with Brooklyn not being part of Long Island. From the Supreme's view, Long Island is not an island at all, so it makes no sense to ask if Brooklyn is on or in Long Island. There is no island for Brooklyn to be on, and Long Island is just the name of an area, having nothing to do with islands. In Minnesota there is a town called Park Rapids. As far as I know, there are no rapids there.

But of course this is another example of logic trying to dominate reality. Reality always wins.

[Bbradley62]

 kenberg, on 2014-May-12, 10:49, said:

But of course this is another example of logic trying to dominate reality. Reality always wins.

This is like a Yogi Berra quote: In theory, theory and practice are the same; in practice, they're not.

[PassedOut]

 barmar, on 2014-May-12, 09:21, said:

They decided that it's really a peninsula, because it's separated from the mainland just by the East River, which wasn't even wide enough for ships to pass until it was artificially widened.

On a much smaller scale, we have the same situation here: Keweenaw Waterway

Quote

The Keweenaw Waterway was completed in the 1860's when a ship canal was built connecting Portage Lake on the east to Lake Superior on the west. Ships could now enter this ship canal from either side of the Keweenaw Peninsula and cross to the other side without having to go around.

The Keweenaw waterway also made it possible for larger vessels to travel to Houghton and Hancock and it provided a Harbor of Refuge to protect these vessels from Superior's terrible storms. Completion of this canal made the Keweenaw an island, rather than a peninsula.

Our one bridge to the mainland will be undergoing repairs from next December to June, so we're expecting significant traffic snarl-ups then.

[blackshoe]

This is bizarre. If the problem with calling Long Island an island is that the East River isn't wide enough, then either LI is still an island (and Manhattan is part of it) or LI is a peninsula, and Manhattan is not an island either (because it's part of LI). In either case the lawyers who called LI a peninsula are a bunch of idiots.

[kenberg]

 blackshoe, on 2014-May-13, 17:50, said:

This is bizarre. If the problem with calling Long Island an island is that the East River isn't wide enough, then either LI is still an island (and Manhattan is part of it) or LI is a peninsula, and Manhattan is not an island either (because it's part of LI). In either case the lawyers who called LI a peninsula are a bunch of idiots.

But well paid idiots!

[kenberg]

 Bbradley62, on 2014-May-12, 12:17, said:

This is like a Yogi Berra quote: In theory, theory and practice are the same; in practice, they're not.

I am truly honored and pleased by the linkage, and that is one of my two favorites, the other being "A lot of things that said I didn't say".

[Bbradley62]

My favorite is: No one goes there any more because it's always too crowded.

[y66]

Amelia Lester (no relation to Yogi Berra) at the New Yorker likes the Pickle Shack on Fourth Avenue in Park Slope.

[kenberg]

 y66, on 2014-May-17, 09:00, said:

Amelia Lester (no relation to Yogi Berra) at the New Yorker likes the Pickle Shack on Fourth Avenue in Park Slope.

This looks very promising. Thanks.

[y66]

My wife and I had dinner at the Pickle Shack last night. Excellent food and service. Good vibe. Reasonable prices.

[kenberg]

 y66, on 2014-June-10, 06:55, said:

My wife and I had dinner at the Pickle Shack last night. Excellent food and service. Good vibe. Reasonable prices.

It looked good from the review. We have been traveling to and fro so I haven't done much with this, but now we are back. Kathryn, the granddaughter, is now up in Brooklyn with a roommate. Neither of them has a car, probably right for living in Brooklyn. The Pickle Shack is not walking distance away but it's not so terribly far either. My plan is to talk with her soon and see what works for her. I am convinced enough so that if we go to Brooklyn then we will go to the Pickle Shack, but of course this dinner out is to be her choice (well, subject to price constraint). I'll recommend it.

[y66]

My Brooklyn, Then and Now by 44 year resident Wendell Jamieson