23 Comments
Aug 8Liked by Rob Stephenson

I’m sorry while everything about Rosebank and the people you covered was fun, my fave characters in this issue are turmeric gull and masala gull!

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I’m glad you like them because the whole reason I wrote about them was to curry favor with you. #dadjoke

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Good one!

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No, no it isn’t

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Aug 8Liked by Rob Stephenson

Also lol at the before and after shots of the gum factory!

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More like after and even more after.

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Wish you had included some text with your photo of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Grotto which is an extraordinary place to visit. Even if you are not religious, it is a work of traditional art to appreciate.

Our Lady of Mount Carmel Grotto is a national historic district located at 36 Amity Street in Rosebank, Staten Island, New York. It is a historic Roman Catholic grotto designed and constructed by the local Italian American community. Work on the distinctive concrete and stone folk art structure was begun in 1937 and continues to the present. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2000.

It is surrounded by residential neighborhood and is a shocking vista when you get there. Every square inch is filled up.

They have a large yearly feast described as great food, music and games and even rides for the kids.

Also a procession thru the streets (I have never gone)

https://forgotten-ny.com/2008/10/staten-island-shrine/

Lots more pictures and descriptions

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Thanks Sharon! I ran out of space but I did mean to include a link to the grotto. Will fix that shortly!

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Aug 9Liked by Rob Stephenson

Thank you for always making me laugh through all your fun and fascinating accounts of New York cities!!

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Thank you for reading!

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Aug 8Liked by Rob Stephenson

I did not know that Meucci and Garibaldi worked together on Staten Island. Fascinating. As is all the photography in this post, especially the work of Austen, Moakley and yours.

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Thanks Renato! Kind of amazing they lived together. Would make for a good movie!

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Aug 10Liked by Rob Stephenson

Thanks for another enlightening article (this has sent me down many rabbit holes). I live in an English market town which boasts pink pigeons on almost every street. I found this Substack article, written by a Texan, about them and their truly odd history. https://open.substack.com/pub/terrycowan/p/the-pink-pigeons-of-faringdon?r=7afuc&utm_medium=ios

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Great read! Thanks for sharing that. I think you should start driving around town with a pig head mask on just to see what kind of a reaction you get.

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Aug 12Liked by Rob Stephenson

Well that sounds like a challenge

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Aug 9Liked by Rob Stephenson

Too bad they took down that weird Parthenon addition to the Garibaldi-Meucci home. Bizarre is truly the word but I like it!

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I love it so much

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Aug 9Liked by Rob Stephenson

What a cute dog, standing on its hind legs! Seems to be saying hello😍

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A beauty!

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Aug 9Liked by Rob Stephenson

Like Anne, I too like the turmeric gull and masala gull characters. I'm half Italian...my maternal grandparents migrated from Salina, one of the Aeolian Islands north of Sicily to Australia...perhaps I'll get there one day, or even to New York to visit some of the places you and Anne write about. Just back from a few days in Melbourne, where the most Italian thing I did was, of course, to visit a traditional Italian restaurant. (Note: turmeric is very easy to grow...)

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You don’t find too much tumeric in trattorias! Would love to grow some though.

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Aug 10Liked by Rob Stephenson

It's easy to grow...I bought a piece of fresh (organic) turmeric and put it in a pot with quality potting mix. All my pots are under the grape vine so semi-shaded in the summer. Water (at least daily in the Australian summer!). It's ready to harvest now but I ran out of time yesterday. I'll save a few bits, tip out all the potting mix and start again. What I harvest, I wash, dry and put in small freezer bags to use as required.

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Okay but that shot you took through the window of the green construction barrier is the shot I've tried to take about a hundred times. Fantastic.

Also love the dog's quizzical expression.

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