Dave Speaks | Tips Every New Yorker Should Know — Speak To Dave | Brooklyn's Best Property Manager Back to Top

New Yorkers

,

Dave's Picks | NYT | ‘High Maintenance’ and the New TV Fantasy of New York

,
Dave's Picks | NYT | ‘High Maintenance’ and the New TV Fantasy of New York

Well now. In which we discuss the merits of television (“It’s not TV, Dave. It’s HBO”.) portraying our fair city . . . Do they get it right or nah?

By Willy Staley | Jan. 30, 2020

It was probably during the fourth episode of the second season of HBO’s “High Maintenance” when I finally noticed what it was up to. The show follows a weed dealer known only as The Guy while he bikes around Brooklyn, leading the viewer into his customers’ homes and lives, where the cameras remain long after he’s gone, letting us peer into their problems, quirks, traumas and anxieties. Like many representations of New York on TV, it’s loosely predicated on the notion that people who live here are inherently more interesting than people who live in, say, Milwaukee. This particular episode centers on a man named Baruch who has just left one of Brooklyn’s ultra-­Orthodox sects. His hair is still twisted into payos, and he’s crashing with a friend in a squalid railroad apartment, looking for whatever work he can find by plugging search terms like “kosher jobs” into Craigslist. He tells his friend that he’s going on a date with a shiksa, one who has been asking him penetrating questions. “Wait a minute,” the friend responds. “Is she a writer?”

,

Dave's Picks | Gothamist | Can You Get Evicted For Cursing Out Your Landlord? It Depends

,
Dave's Picks | Gothamist | Can You Get Evicted For Cursing Out Your Landlord? It Depends

Let’s just file this one under OKAY WOW and It Takes Two To Tango — and as far as we here in Speak to DaveLandia goes — everybody keep cool and nobody's gonna hurt anybody. We're just gonna be like a bunch of little Fonzies up in here.

— 👀 —

,

NYT Photo Essay | Your Tales of Subway Escalator Hell

,
NYT Photo Essay | Your Tales of Subway Escalator Hell

Okay folks, time to discuss the dire Metro subway escalator situation. Peep this photo essay and don’t hesitate to tag @NYTMetro on social media to get their attention.

Out of 472 subway stations, only about 25 percent are accessible to riders in wheelchairs. Some stations are so deep beneath the city that your impromptu cardio session could mean walking up 100 steps to the street.

Subway riders already have to deal with a variety of daily indignities: unexpected delays, sweltering cars with no air conditioning and broken ticket machines. But as service on New York City’s subway slowly improves, the escalators are getting worse.

,

NYT | Welcome to the party. The New York City block party

,
NYT | Welcome to the party. The New York City block party

New Yorkers, we live on top of one another, so it’s only natural that sometimes we spill out onto the concrete. It happens especially during the sweltering summer spells, when even the apartment walls seem to sweat.

There are very few backyards in the city, so to avoid walking up flights, a steamy basement or balmy bedrooms, we hug the block.

Across all five boroughs New Yorkers set out on their streets with lawn chairs, pools, bouncy castles and tables full of food, to enjoy the summer together. Throughout the day there is a cacophony of familiar music, the laughter of children playing and the sizzling sound of meat on a grill. No cars are allowed.

,

Dave's Picks | NYT Opinion — Should Work Be Passion, or Duty?

,
Dave's Picks | NYT Opinion — Should Work Be Passion, or Duty?

It’s worth noting on a national holiday extolling the value and dignity of labor that Americans are uniquely obsessed with work. Could any other nation come up with a product like Soylent, a meal substitute, not for the elderly, the poor or the malnourished, but for software engineers, Wall Street brokers, tech entrepreneurs and others who don’t want to be diverted from their work by the time consuming intricacies of a meal? Could you imagine the French conceiving such a thing?

While other wealthy nations have shortened the workweek, given their citizens more free time and schemed to make their lives more pleasant, stress-free and enjoyable, the United States offers a curious paradox: Though the standard of living has risen, and creature comforts are more readily and easily available — and though technological innovations have made it easier to work efficiently — people work more, not less.

Can I have a 'Nappuccino' please?

Can I have a 'Nappuccino' please?

I found this NPR article to be more relevant with living in NYC - we spend most of our time commuting, working, eating, exercising or not, having drinks with friends or just hanging out watching the latest on Netflix - finding enough time to sleep is sometimes difficult with our busy schedules. Its time to strategize having a nappuccino …

You’re almost home!