Dumpers have really outdone themselves this time!

 

43rd Avenue Tableau

Oh, and also this:

Behold, Mount Dumping!

 I called 311 this morning. 

Conditions are grim :(

Mea culpa

Picture it: Craphurst. 2020. A beautiful young maiden walks up 74th Street on the way home

from work. She has put in a 12+ hour day, just got off the train, and, well, that should be enough

information for one to surmise that her state of mind and energy level were not ideal. Along the way, she passed a man and woman lugging a mattress, not unlike the one pictured (in fact, the same one), towards 43rd Avenue. The young maiden thought, “I hope they’re not going to dump this mattress on the Avenue!” But she quickly dismissed this idea. After all, these people were neighbors- they had exited a building down the block. Why would they want to sully their own neighborhood? And why would they be so bold as to do so in the unforgiving light of day? The beautiful young gal concluded that maybe they were in the process of moving to a nearby house near 43rd Avenue, or maybe they were giving a mattress to a neighbor in need. Yes, these thoughts really did enter the young gal’s mind (as I mentioned, she was very tired), and prevented her from angrily confronting the pair. She thought no further of the mattress until she came to stroll along 43rd Avenue the following day. Imagine her horror- and regret- upon seeing the resting place of the mattress: the jizz- and crack-coated pavement of 43rd Avenue. 

Moral of story: always assume that people lugging a mattress towards 43rd Avenue are planning to dump it!

Insulting to animals...

....nevertheless, I admire the intent of whosoever posted this sign. Now if only they would clean up!

43rd Avenue in Covid Times...

Sadly, the Pandemic has not deterred dumpers from 

doing their thang, as evidenced by the following photographic images.

Construction is booming in Phase One!

Mmmm.... soiled linen.

The crapping’s on the wall*

*overpass.... Specifically, the railroad overpass on Woodside Avenue, next to the notorious collection of benches on 69th Street where dead-drunk dudes hang out all day and night, occasionally engaging in fights, smashing each other over the heads with glass bottles, and hitting on moms picking up their kids from PS 12. Yay Woodside!

Narcissus shitandpissus

Last summer the Woodside Neighborhood Association spent many an hour cleaning up this little triangle of earth off Queens Boulevard and 69th. They pulled weeds, picked up all the litter, and even planted daffodils. Well, a year has taken its toll. But a few fleurs are still popping up, can you believe it?!?! 

Reminder to all who try to do good: We Cannot, Will Not!!, have anything nice here! Queens is all about crap! 

How I love the DSNY!

This crap greeted me as I walked along Woodside Avenue this past Saturday (between 72nd and 74th Streets):

I called it in to 311, and today (Tuesday), it is gone! Thank you DSNY!!❤️

If you see a pile of crap, please call 311!! We have to call as often as dumpers dump. It is annoying, but it is the only way to keep the streets clean(ish).

For your viewing pleasure...

Another bag of piss, this one open... I went to pick up what I thought was just another plastic bag, but lo and behold, t’was filled with a frothy yellow liquid. Keeping it classy, Elmhurst!

Elmhurst storefront decor

The very light yellow urine in these bags looks much healthier than the usual dark yellow-almost brown piss that I usually observe. Glad to see that pee-baggers are getting more hydration.

But ya know what’s NOT healthy? Living in a neighborhood in which people throw BAGS of piss on the sidewalks and streets! This particular photo was captured in front of an Elmhurst store that was open for business. The  owners/employees didn’t bother to remove these bags of urine. Screw the customers! Screw the community! 

My Proclamation

1. Did you know that 2017 saw the departure of Dave R., leader of the Woodside Neighborhood Association? What is the WNA?- only a group of volunteers- many of them kids- who met in front of Pollos Marios in Woodside every single Saturday morning at 10am, and spent the day cleaning up garbage, remediating graffiti, even mulching and planting flowers throughout Woodside and its surrounding neighborhoods. They spent long hours in the blazing sun toiling away. They spent frigid hours chipping at ice and clearing snow so that residents had paths to stores and subway stations. Many of them worked throughout the week, not just Saturdays. I do not know what has/will become of Woodside- hopefully the dedicated volunteers will continue Dave’s work. For reasons I do not understand, Dave felt like his efforts were not successful. I am SO sad that he feels this way. He was MY inspiration! Seriously, around 2014, when I complained to my husband (who worked with Dave’s crew often) about the filth of Elmhurst, my hubby said, “You can always follow Dave’s example and do your part to clean the streets”- a light dawned. I took up arms (a garbage can on wheels and a grasper on a stick, avalable in any dolla store for about 5 clams or at Home Depot for a still-reasonable mark-up). I rolled my cart just one block: the shitty desolate drug-gang hangout/city-wide-known-dump-spot/prostitution plagued/body-parts-droppoff filthy short block of 43rd Ave between 74th and 72nd Streets— and I picked up litter, and called 311 whenever someone dumped some huge pile (like the couch/car bumper/construction debris currently there). Dave sent a powerful message: If ye litter, I will clean up after you; If ye graffiti, I will paint over that sh*t toute de suite!  I’ve been trying my best, and in the process I have had my life threatened, I’ve had some loser try to entice me into a shed while flashing his pathetic member, and I’ve been approached several times by some dude in a fancy big car whom I suspect of being a local drug sales specialist. I have grown very weary and depressed lately, and I admit I have thought of quitting my work (yes, I have skipped many Saturdays of clean-up). But you know what? I am NOT giving up! I am going to keep picking up litter, keep calling 311 when there is dumping, and... well... I can’t promise that I’ll have the guts to scream at crack dealers/cracksmokers anymore... but the litter, that’s my thing! No doubt someone will throw down another used condom or drug baggie as soon I’ve picked them up, but I will continue to pick them up. WHY? Because this is the neighborhood, the community, in which I live. I care about it. I care about you (unless you’re a liitering drug dealer).
   

Over and out.

De profundis clamo!

Crappy New Year!

Complaint Number: 1-1-1513635661

Thanksgiving, 43rd Ave Style!

I cleaned the Avenue the day before T-giving. Wanting to enjoy the holiday and maintain a normal blood pressure, I avoided 43rd until today (Sunday). As expected, there was crap aplenty. Tom the Turkey left this behemoth for us:

 

                        ~~~~~~~~~

AND..... for those who overate on Thursday, and/or for peeps wanting to get a head start on their 2018 weight reduction goal, a dumper was kind enough to provide this device:

                        ~~~~~~~~

If exercising, be sure to stay hydrated, Craphurst style! (Also please be sure that your tetanus vaccine is up to date before stepping on the exercise machine.)

                       ~~~~~~~~

Oh, and the local talent was out as well:

No, Krill! NOT OKAY!!!

~~~~

Complaint #2017:ML9211724

Concerned neighbor

I passed a small apartment building in Brooklyn that had a modest collection of dead leaves and a few pieces of litter out front:

I barely even noticed this pile, having been a Craphurst resident for several years now. But someone taped this note to the front door: 

Wowzers! Upon reading the note I felt a sense of shame that I myself have grown so unfazed to a comparatively* small pile of crap that I didn't even register this as a dirty sidewalk condition (*compared to my neighborhood, where practically every domicile has a pile like this out front, but in addition to leaves and tissues our building fronts are decorated with old broken furniture and appliances, drug bags, Georgi bottles, bloody rags, pee bags/bottles, et cetera et cetera).

 The building in this photo was in Brooklyn, adjacent to the BQE, with a gas station on one corner, and blocks away from any stores or restaurants. The buildings on this block were nothing fancy, but they were NEAT. The sidewalks were immaculate (barring that in front of this building). People who live on this block make an effort- they keep their sidewalks clean, put out flower planters, decorations; even though it's not in a great location, through their efforts it looks like a nice, cozy block on which to live. Goes to show that even if you don't live in a pretty area, you can still make it a nice place by being a decent freaking person and at least keeping it clean!

Well, fear not, I returned to Craphurst shortly thereafter, and was greeted by the usual sight:

Pee bottle and empty booze bottles, in front of restaurants that were doing a booming business this Saturday night but didn't feel it necessary to take care of this mess out front. (Why bother, they had plenty of customers who didn't seem to care.) Yay Elmhurst!

Mail dumped on 43rd Ave, but who cares?

As someone who has had multiple packages stolen, along with one known (because it was important and expected) missing letter, and as the very same someone who has found a bundled pile of her mail- including a ripped open packet that once held a book she had ordered- on the sidewalk a block away, I always pay close attention to envelopes that I find while cleaning 43rd Ave. When I find an undelivered piece of mail I drop it in the nearest mailbox; if it is addressed to a nearby building, I just deliver it myself.

Today I found a PILE of letters, tucked UNDER the still-present smashed television (see previous post). These were addressed to 3 different addresses. I suspect that the mail carrier du jour* stuck them there. (*We have an awesome regular mail carrier, but unfortunately he has a lot vacation time, so we get a lot of subs.)

I really wanted to report these undelivered letters to, I dunno, the USPS Inspector. The title implies a person (or agency) that inspects-investigates-inquires about issues pertaining to mail. Well, first I tried the USPS Inspector's web site, but they only list a link to report stolen packages. I tried calling the phone number listed on the Inspector's site. After a good 7 minutes of "listening to the following options," I finally reached a human being. I explained to her that I had found a pile of undelivered mail, semi-hidden under a dumped TV on a notoriously sh*tty and lawless block. Her response?- "Hmm, maybe bring this to the attention of your mail carrier?"

I also asked a 311 operator what I should do about this sitch. She transferred me to the same USPS Inspector's toll-free number.

?!?!?!?!

Am I insane? Is it no longer a crime to (1)steal mail, or (2) to dump mail that you are entrusted by the public to deliver? What about that "Tampering with mail is a federal offense" line? Is that just a load of hooey? If anyone reading this has suggestions, or any leads on how to contact a postal authority who might actually give a tiny shred of a f*ck, please let me know!! In the meantime, I am going to document what I found with this post and the photo below, and drop these letters in a mailbox.

43rd Avenue between 74th and 72nd Street provides a perfect spot to catch up on your TV watching.

Just pull up a seat..... whoops, this photo is actually a couple weeks old; the DSNY❤️ has since removed this lovely piece of furniture:

This smashed up TV is still on the Avenue (when I checked last Sunday at least). It may not broadcast programs anymore, but there is still enough screen left to reflect the activities on 43rd Avenue. If you like to watch hours of people doing drugs, engaging in prostitution, and dumping furniture and appliances and construction debris, then pop a squat! Watch where you sit though, or you may well end up with a used jizz sack stuck to the seat of your pants.

Need a refreshment while watching the tv "show"-? Take a frothy gulp from this p-bottle.

UPDATE: Sunday, August 6, 2017: The TV and Microwave have been removed!! Thank you DSNY❤️❤️😘

Attempted Rape on 43rd Avenue and 74th Street

110 Precinct's Tweet from 7/22/17: 

At 440am we received a report for an attempted rape in the vicinity of 74St & 43Ave by a Male 5ft5in. Anyone with info plz call the 110pct

(718) 476-9311 Precinct Phone Number

(800) 577-TIPS CrimeStoppers Hotline

Please be careful everyone!!! 

Update-- I found more details posted on the COMET site:

"Saturday 7/22/17, at approximately 4:42 am patrol officers received a call from a sexual assault in the vicinity of 74th Street and 43 Ave. Upon arrival officers were met by a 28 year old female Hispanic who stated that she was walking home from the 74th Street and Broadway train station and when she arrived at her home she noticed a male standing behind her. The male then threw her to the ground and placed his hands over her mouth, while attempting to pull up her skirt. The victim was able to scream for help and the perpetrator ran off in an unknown direction. The case is currently being investigated by Special Victims Squad, if anyone has any info about the incident please contact the 110th Detective squad at 718-476-9318. I will keep you updated on the case as I receive more information. Thank you. - Det. Jeanine Rivera, 110th Pct."

A before and after of sorts

The residents of this building on 74th Street between Woodside and 41st Avenues-- (corrected, thanks to the commenter below) don't mind if the front of their domicile looks like this.

UPDATE: July 24, 2017:

I only had the strength to fill one can, but I picked up most of the litter. Maybe this will inspire the residents to clean up the overgrown grass and weeds and keep their lil tree pit lookin' better. Yeah, dum spiro, spero!

Drug Moose*

*or reindeer?---- anyway, someone with antlers

Last night I spotted the following eviscerated item on a sidewalk near 43rd Avenue:

I don't know FOR SURE if this creature once had cocaine sewn inside its belly, but really, what are the alternatives? The belly wasn't ripped open by a puppy- it looks like a straight incision, made by a (human-wielded) blade. Maybe a kid cut open the beloved toy of another kid with whom he is feuding. But in these druggy, sh*tty parts, I think the drug mule scenario is more likely.