Our Urban Odyssey » ouo

Lost Unicorn in the Heights

ouo — Tue, 09 Nov 2010 00:14:18 +0000

C-mixto submitted this photograph near Dyckman Street. It’s a poster looking for a Lost Unicorn, Unicornio Perdido… C-mixto, being a poet at heart and music fan, noticed it was printed on blue paper, and immediately wondered if the person who posted it is calling out for Silvio Rodriguez’s Unicornio. Ah C-mixto. Here are the lyrics in Spanish and English:

Mi Unicornio azul ayer se me perdió,
pastando lo dejé y desapareció.
Cualquier información la voy bien a pagar,
las flores que dejó, no me han querido hablar.

Mi Unicornio azul ayer se me perdió,
no sé si se me fue, no sé si se extravió.
Y yo no tengo más que un Unicornio azul.
Si alguien sabe de él, le ruego información,
cien mil o un millón yo pagaré.
Mi Unicornio azul se me ha perdido ayer,
se fue…

Mi Unicornio y yo hicimos amistad,
un poco con amor, un poco con verdad.
Con su cuerno de añil pescaba una canción,
saberla compartir era su vocación.

Mi Unicornio azul ayer se me perdió,
y puede parecer acaso una obsesión,
pero no tengo más que un Unicornio azul
y aunque tuviera dos, yo solo quiero aquel.
Cualquier información la pagaré.
Mi Unicornio azul se me ha perdido ayer,
se fue…

My blue unicorn, I lost it yesterday.
I left it grazing and it disappeared.
Any information, I will pay for it well.
The flowers that it left behind don’t want to talk to me.

My blue unicorn, I lost it yesterday,
I don’t know if it left me, or if it got lost,
and I don’t have but one blue unicorn.
If anyone’s got any news, I beg to hear them.
A hundred thousand or a million, I will pay.
My blue unicorn, I lost it yesterday,
it went away.

My unicorn and I became friends,
a little bit with love, a little bit with truth.
With its indigo horn it was fishing for a song
knowing how to share it was its calling.

My blue unicorn, I lost it yesterday,
and it may seem perhaps like an obsession
but I don’t have but one blue unicorn
and even if I had two I only wanted that one.
Any information, I will pay for it,
My blue unicorn, I lost it yesterday,
it went away.

http://www.translatum.gr/forum/index.php?topic=915.0#ixzz14ju4fUam

If you have seen this person’s unicorn, a number is posted on the flyer.

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Super Nova

ouo — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 23:45:13 +0000

This post was submitted and written by Zorro.

In the world of social dancing, we are all on a quest for individuals tuned into our particular dance frequency. Much like in relationships, you walk onto the dance floor searching for individuals who understand you, who are on the same wave-length. You go through the cycle of partnering, compromising your rhythm to match theirs, spending 4 minutes of your life attempting to understand each other over the metaphorical static, and decoupling with a smile and a polite nod before you continue on your quest. The 4-minute-cycle begins and ends for hours on end and you enjoy yourself throughout. However, on rare occasions, and only for those who are extremely lucky, a phenomenon occurs that changes your perspective on the cycle.

The beginning of the cycle begins almost as usual. You see the salsera/o from across the room, s/he looks like a dancer you’d get on well with, and you are compelled to investigate further. You continue watching and something looks almost familiar in her movement. You await impatiently for the opportunity to present itself, and you ask her to dance. You take each other’s hand, join each other in frame, and then, it happens. The music begins and you are perfectly in tune; the darkness of the dance floor fades away to a brief moment of unbelievable brightness. You’ve just experienced a Super Nova.

It is not that you have become a better dancer per se; it actually has little to do with you. You have simply found someone who perfectly understands you. Your feet are no longer held down by gravity. You float across the room, dancing along the same frequency: turning, dipping and sliding in complete unison. You misstep, but her foot follows as though it was meant to be. You try that pattern that you’ve never been able to get quite right, and she flows through it with you effortlessly. Then, long before you could have ever wanted it to, the music stops. Somehow, your allotted 4 minutes has already passed. A new song begins and you must politely nod, continuing the cycle.

The Super Nova shows you that somewhere in the vast dance cosmos, there is someone who understands you – that someone can understand you. The sheer brilliance of the experience illuminates who you are as a dancer and helps you understand what makes your movement yours. If you are lucky enough to find a Super Nova, dance as often as you can with him/her for it is a rare phenomenon. However, be cautious that your desire to repeat the experience does not make you over-zealous; you don’t want to transform into a succubus.

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Dante’s Inferno, Perhaps Third Cirlce: The Gross Man

ouo — Sun, 25 Jul 2010 21:15:12 +0000

For those who don’t remember, the Dante’s Inferno series are reserved for rants and the literary banishment of those who offend Urban Odyssey bloggers. Watch out, because this post comes from the fury of Bianca. Only mildly censored so as not to ignite an internet riot.

“Dear God,
Why? Why I ask, why do certain people exist?

Picture it, a muggy Spring morning in late May. The 6:00am 2 train. Abnormally packed train for this early in the morning. Seating is limited. As I go into my usual morning trance during my 90 minute commute I am rudely interrupted by foul play. That foul play my friends is Body Odor. A 6′ 5″ inch male, approximately 40 years old, still rockin fubu hard as if they were ever cool or like they ever made anything of quality…or perhaps his Asian themed button down is a “Dragon Ball-Z” shirt. Nonetheless his shirt sucks. His jeans are visibly filthy and 2 inches too short. He is wearing crew cut socks (do they even make those anymore?) and his new balance sneakers look like his lawn mowing sneakers however somehow I doubt he has a lawn to mow. Too harsh? Well you try sitting down wind from this motherfucker standing over you with what I believe to be 2 days worth of underarm body odor. There is no escaping this. I tried plugging my nose, burying my face in my arm then my bag. Shallow breaths from my mouth did not do the trick. “Ding!” The train doors open after this 15 minute violation. He takes two steps toward what I believe will be my freedom to breath. NOPE sits right next to me. I thought for a moment the smell would die down since I was no longer right beneath his armpit. 5-4-3-2-NOPE.

A long day of work and running around on a hot day justifies why he might not be so fresh… but it is 6am.

What made him leave the house without a shower? A few swipes of deodorant? Some cheap cologne to mask this odor?
Time? No time was on his side because he had the time to put on his tarnished rhinestone bracelet that looks like some shit from an old lady’s garage sale that he probably got for a steal still pondering the possibility that it could be real.
The gentleman enjoyed several games on his iPhone and bopped to the beat of whatever music he appeared to be too old to be listening too.

“Ding!” He gets off at 125th in Harlem which allows me to drawn one conclusion for a man not dressed for work traveling this early. Off to the DMV to stand in line to pay off his 64 parking tickets for his car that he has found himself behind 5 months on his car note because he couldn’t afford it o begin with. It was either this or jail time.

So God I ask you why. Why does this human exist? What purpose does he have on this earth? Answer me this.

Sincerely violated,

Bianca”

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funny signs

ouo — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 03:07:09 +0000

Submitted by JPLogan

Yonkers, NY October 2009

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Underground talent

ouo — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 03:24:08 +0000

JPLogan asks…

Whatever happened to street performers?

“It only takes a great musician, battery powered amp, eye seeing dog and a banjo. Subway music Boston style.”

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Miami knows what’s up

ouo — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 15:50:30 +0000

This Miami sign was submitted by JPLogan, passed along from others… More smart urban planning.

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Chutes and Ladders

ouo — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 03:35:22 +0000

This story idea and link was submitted by JPLogan of NYC.

Recent salsa reflections had us commenting on gender dynamics. Here’s a look into some theory that’s out there which seeks to explain gender dynamics, from a guy who seems to have approached the male/female game as a graduate internet thesis project. It pretty much goes like this: gals keep two “ladders” where they put men: a friend ladder and a f*ck-ables ladder. Men keep one ladder and there is a hierarchy of women on the ladder based on attraction. Here is a snippet from the webpage, “Ladder Theory”:

“Scenario 1: Tom meets Jane. She’s pretty and seems interesting to talk to.
Tom and Jane start hanging out and talking more and more. Tom develops an
attraction to Jane, and one day tries to kiss her. Jane tell Tom she doesn’t
think of him that way and she wants to remain friends. The next few weeks
contact between the two falls off. Jane starts fucking an outlaw biker.

Ladder Theory Explanation: Tom met Jane. Tom was immediately placed on the
friends ladder. Tom didn’t know this. Tom tried to jump ladders. Jane kicked
Tom in the head rather than let him on and sent him hurtling to the Abyss
below. The outlaw biker was not on her friends ladder (they never are) but
rather on her good ladder.”

http://www.laddertheory.com/ladderconstruction.htm

My feeling is that this ladder theory plays out in full force in cities like NYC where there is an abundance of people to place on rungs of a ladder. Dare I say if this theory is true, the reason women have two ladders is that it’s hard for a woman to find “that perfect man”- a combo of the two ladders. Or we’ve got issues similar to the mother-whore complex men have. Thoughts?

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Alien Street Cookie Arrives in Inwood via Black Hole

ouo — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 15:51:52 +0000

This find was submitted by C-mixto in Inwood, NYC

Speaking of outer space, if this isn’t Street Cookie I don’t know what is. C-mixto submitted this photo reluctantly. He is not a fan of the Street Cookie thread, but was shaken by his find and might be a new believer. This is alien Street Cookie emerging from a black hole vortex. He came across it near Academy Street in Inwood.

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“Harlem Homeland Security”

ouo — Sun, 31 May 2009 11:55:11 +0000

This Urban Odyssey find was submitted by Divafish, discovered two years ago in Harlem. It’s just a find, not an advocacy of opinion, so don’t get all up in arms. Gentrification is not an easy subject or phenomenon.

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Who dropped their shopping list?

ouo — Wed, 27 May 2009 00:44:59 +0000

This picture was submitted by Divafish, who spotted this urban odyssey find on 125th Street and Amsterdam. Yours?

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