A Brooklyn Writer's Dream: Find Spring in a Chaotic City

Tweet

An Oasis in the Midst of Brooklyn 

By Norma Jaeger Hopcraft

Spring has quickly sprung past these photos, taken a week ago. 

But they illustrate a timeless truth: With persistence you can find a place of beauty even in a gritty city like Brooklyn.

Very grand, very old trees have survived in Brooklyn's Prospect Park despite generations of people encroaching on them constantly.

A stand of white daffs (foreground) and a mystery beyond the top of the hill.

A garden hut a la Brooklyn.

The entrance at the corner of Flatbush, Empire and Ocean Avenues.

Brooklyn trees love to bask in their glory, just like blooming trees everywhere.

A quick visit to Bryant Park in Midtown Manhattan. Soak up spring wherever you might be!

A Great City, Park and Library

Tweet

American Dream: To Wander New York City

By Norma Jaeger Hopcraft

What could be more romantic than New York City at night? And Bryant Park, which stretches behind the New York Public Library's main building, exudes romance.

Here's the carousel, with lights, music, and beautifully carved creatures.

Look at this beautiful horse. 

Here's a galloping horse.

This is the door to the Bryant Park Cafe, a great place to have your office party.

This is the front of the famous Schwartzman building.

Another shot of the imposing structure.

Here's one of the lions, guarding this palace of books and maps. Yes, this was taken at night. How about you? Do you love New York City at night? Comment below!

Bryant Park Skating Rink at Night

Tweet

By Norma Jaeger Hopcraft

Some scenes from New York at night coming up. But first, a moment of silence for a beloved backpack. It went all around the country with me, on my back for 10,000 miles and all over more than 20 cities.

Then it went to Paris with me: libraries, the Louvre, up the Eiffel Tower. It went up into the French Alps with me, through Provence, Nice, and other South-of-France cities, to the Atlantic coast of France. 

It went to Barcelona, through Las Ramblas, the Gothic Quarter, under the Arc de Triomphe. It watched the wild parrots flit through the palm trees with me and waited for me while I swam in the Mediterranean.

The only reason I tossed it was the back straps were badly frayed and looking very poorly. Don't anybody comment below that I could have replaced the back straps!

On to happier things. This is the fountain at Bryant Park, merrily babbling.

Here's an intrepid skater, very tall on his skates.

Showing a little footwork.

Here's one of the skate guards, telling the wild ones to slow down.

A glass pavilion overlooking the ice at Bryant Park.

More guards. Looking quite comfortable on skates.

A little love in the making?

And a last goodbye to the best ever backpack. How about you? Do you get fond of things and then wait years before you throw them away? Comment below!

New York Public Library II - Rose Reading Room

Tweet

American Dreams of Having One of My Stories on the Shelves

By Norma Jaeger Hopcraft

You know that I'm passionate about the Map Room, but I decided to try something new today. I'm in the Rose Main Reading Room on the third floor. It's one of the largest uninterrupted interior spaces in the city--almost as long as a football field. 

Three kinds of heads, including a sleepyhead, at my table.

The people behind me to one side.

The people behind me to the other side. Past the glare of the windows, you can see skyscrapers lurking on the edges of Bryant Park, behind the library.

The fantastic ceiling, and most important, the cutie directly across from me. When my flash went off inadvertently, he scowled, I said sorry, and he didn't rip the camera from my hand. A nice New Yorker!

Each spot at the big tables is numbered. The catalog says there's room for 636 readers, but obviously that's not true. You can see the laptop that's responsible for this blog. 

Two people talking quietly. It's quite quiet in here. You can work but feel like you have company.

Dreams of Being Published at New York Public Library

Tweet

American Dreams in an Auspicious Place

By Norma Jaeger Hopcraft

On a recent visit to the New York Public Library, I approached it by walking on East 41st Street, which is NYC's answer to the Hollywood Walk of Stars. Many plaques with quotes from great writers are embedded in the sidewalk. This is my favorite, the one I'm keeping in mind while I write a book about my journey around America (see blog posts from September 2011 - February 2012).

This is by Virginia Woolf. If you haven't read her, please do! Especially "Mrs. Dalloway."

Here it is!

Not too shabby for a front door, no?

A cafe under one of the staircases. On the walls of the gift shop, people wrote the names of the books they were currently reading:

Excellent book!

Love the title! I want to read it. Also on the walls, sayings:

Then I went into the Map Room because it's beautiful, it has free wifi, and it's a great place to work.

It's actually "The Lionel Pincus and Princess Firyal Map Division." Step inside and look up.

Pretty fabulous, huh?

Look at the corners, where all the patterns come together.

A detail of the ceiling above one of the windows.

But the Map Room doesn't take itself too seriously.  Among its collection of priceless maps are these -- a child's globe and a bouncing rubber ball.

See why I like to be here? The world at your fingertips…

Do you ever go the New York Public Library? Or your town library? What's your favorite place to sit? Comment below, and tell a friend about this blog!

American Dream: A Job

Tweet

My American Dream: A Job

Going to job interviews in New York City, I often take pictures of  happenings and views. I hope that my longing for this job search to be over gets transmuted into the pictures. 

A shot of the roofline of New York City, taken just before a job interview. I was nervous, that's why the picture is tilted : )

Juggling in Bryant Park.

The lobby of Bobst Library at NYU (my recent alma mater).

A bulletin board for NYU students in the basement of Bobst. Think of all the activities you could go to and learn from, held in all the interesting meeting spaces of NYU!

Outside, in nearby Washington Square Park, a man played Tchaikovsky in 30-degree weather.

My son and his friends from Costa Rica with the lions outside the New York Public Library on 

Fifth Avenue at 42nd Street.

The trio from Costa Rica with an American icon.

Times Square truly is the crossroads of the world. The artist was from China. What do you think of the likeness of Abraham, from Costa Rica?