Ever notice those 5-foot tall compressed nitrogen tanks on the streets around the city? With all of the crazy stuff going on in the world these days, and with New York a perennial target of people who want to do us harm, the sight of an oblong, shiny metal cannister will always produce concern among the citizenry. But, though ominous-looking, the are actually quite necessary.

The various utility companies place these tanks above ground and run lines down into the infrastructure for a number of reasons. The most common use is to pressurize pipes, lines, and wires. Below NYC is a maze of water, sewage, heat, cold, and other elements, and pressurizing these delivery systems helps to keep the lines safe from the elements.

For the new year, I’ve resolved to learn a whole lot and to splurge a little. Now it’s time to Purge myself of excess baggage, physical and otherwise, starting with. . .
(more…)

It’s the second day of new year and the second part of this mini-series.

Now that I’ve resolved to learn about medieval art, contemporary scultpure, nature, public speaking, and hiphop dancing, I think it’s only right that I to resolve to treat myself occasionally, and Splurge. . .
(more…)

Happy 2007, everyone! Now that the holidays and partying are over, it’s time for those new year resolutions.

Usually I don’t believe in these January 1 promises – why wait till a certain time to make changes in your life – but I do like goals I can check off one by one, and the ones I came up with happen to fall into these three categories which, gee, happen to rhyme: Learn, Splurge, and Purge.

First up, Learn. . .
(more…)