It’s with great sadness that I share the news about my beloved cat Shadow who needed to be released from this plane after a brief illness a few days ago. She was just over fourteen years old and was rescued by my Mom some thirteen and a half years ago and had been with me ever since. It’s been a hard few days of tears and accepting that she is not here with me anymore for sure but I wanted to take a few moments and share some of my favorite photos that were taken and remember her with a smile. Below is the first pic that I ever took with her. It was to introduce her to the world via the at the time popular social networks of Friendster and MySpace and to include in email for far away friends.
Shadow was rescued from my Mom’s backyard when I saw a mouse zoom by me in my old apartment. They were working in the streets outside and I guess the critters were running into our basement and up into the rest of the building. The little black cat was very friendly and left in the bathroom for the night in order to get her scent in the place and frighten off any future mouse visit. I noticed she had a slight scratch on her eye and a small cut on a paw so I didn’t wait on getting her to the Vet because she was going to be living with me from then on. I made this decision rather quickly since she was so friendly and loving. I guess she appreciated being brought into a warm apartment in the dead of winter. At the time I was only calling her “Black Cat” or the generic “Cat” since I didn’t decide on a name yet.
By now I am sure that you realize how we love Halloween over in the Piercing Ken Creative Command and for the last few years I have been doing a post here on the website that simply showcases some of the spooky decorations or scenes that I have observed while exploring our always interesting Metropolis. With that being said, here is this years installment. Enjoy and uhm, watch your back in the darker alleys.
Just a quick note to let you know that today is Black Cat Appreciation Day and since I have two such lovely felines in the creative command HQ, I wanted to give them their moment in the sun. I was lucky enough to catch them just before mealtime because they will nap after that and not enjoy being disturbed by that big human who feeds them and cleans the litter box. Pictured from left to right is Spooke and Shadow. Shadow is a rescue that has been with me for thirteen and a half years now and was hanging around my parents old house in Brooklyn now so long ago. She is the smaller one in the photo.
Spooke is actually her offspring and is now thirteen plus years old. Yes, Shadow was a young momma cat when I took her in an she has a great love of people even in her elder years. Now its time to let them enjoy the rest of Black Cat Appreciation Day and have treats and sleep once they are done eating supper. Love your pets if you have them.
It’s with incredible sadness that I share the email that I just received about Duke’s Bar, which has been one of my very favorite places to get together before Metal and Rock shows at the Irving Plaza and Gramercy Theatre venues for several years now. I began my forays into Duke’s thanks to my buddy Steve Keeler who “found” the place for my own dining radar and from there I helped set up Metal pregaming hangs for more shows than can easily be counted. Here’s the email….
“To our loyal Duke’s Customers, After 20 years in the Gramercy Neighborhood, we are closing our doors at the end of the summer. Thank you for all the great times throughout the years. Our Murray Hill location at 860 Third Avenue will remain open and we hope to see you there for more of your favorite food, drinks, staff and good times”.
The note continues with their inviting patrons to join them for one last dinner on July 28th by calling 212-477-1500 to book a space while there is the means to do so.
Front Of Duke’s Bar
I’m numb because if you have gone to the amount of shows that I have in the region, you have most likely been here on your own or as one of the masses that raised glasses with me before the charge onto the venues. This is a loss that I am surely going to feel as it draws closer to its last day. I plan on visiting Duke’s a few times before the closure as I am not sure I could handle the final night. When Smith’s Bar initially closed I did the same thing and went the night before the final night as it was easier to say goodbye in my head. Of course they had a miraculous return thanks to new owners but I am doubtful that the same shall be found with Duke’s. I’ll likely be lamenting Duke’s once again but friends and those who had enjoyed some good times at this pub with me over the years or on their own are welcome to leave comments in below since that adds some weight to these words. The sadness countdown begins now with just over one month left to go. New York City really doesn’t want to be New York City anymore it seems.
Well hello again and welcome back to my visuals from my wanderings through the Ripley’s Believe It Or Not! Odditorium in Myrtle Beach, SC. I’m picking up where I left off in our first chapter and will keep the dialogue light for the most part. Let’s get back to the wandering/exploring shall we?
