Friday, June 20, 2008

Sea Creature


Last night, as I was walking home on Third Avenue after dinner with a friend, I found a starfish lying on the sidewalk.

I kid you not. A real, actual starfish. It wasn’t a living starfish, mind you -- it had been bleached and dried and otherwise rendered non-stinky. But a starfish nonetheless. I picked it up and looked around quizzically, thinking I might be on Candid Camera, or whatever the modern equivalent is. But no one paid me any attention.

So I brought the starfish home and put it on a shelf with some other seashells.

Strange things wash up on the sidewalks of New York from time to time.

Unrelated: If you’re a Suzanne Vega fan, you’ll want to read this.

(Photo: E. 29th Street, May 2008)

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

I love suzanne vega and never thought of her as simply a two hit wonder - of course I don't consider someone making it to the top 40 as any indication of their talent - and is suzanne ever talented! thanks for the heads up on the article!

and nice find! saves a trip to the beach!

Anonymous said...

starfish?

weird!


v. interesting link. the 2-hit wonder makes such huge (outrageous) assumptions about the measure of success and talent!! Its fascinating to hear her "story" of the development of luka.

and the loofah made me laugh.

maybe you'll find a loofah on the street tomorrow?

Anonymous said...

Love the shot. The starfish brought back memories of huge arrivals of them in St-Joe Beach after a big storm. Didn't know they could make it all the way up the Hudson though :-)
The Vega article is excellent. I love her work - and her attitude to it all.
thanks, Steve.

Anonymous said...

Definitely a sign that you need a vacation to the beach! Some poor kid was probably taking it in for show & tell when it was lost on the sidewalk. When I see things like that I always want to know the real story about how they got there. If you had been walking TOO fast, you probably wouldn't have seen it! :)

Anonymous said...

A starfish decided to take a vacation to the Big Apple. He was on a bus tour of Manhattan when he leaned over the top deck of the bus to see a genuine New York hot dog vendor and fell out. He tried walking back to the YMCA but he dried out and died on the sidewalk. The end.

Anonymous said...

New York is so full of magic, especially for the people who pay attention, like you!

Very cool!! Starfish? Oh yeah!

Anonymous said...

Dennis says the star fish represents Stella Maris which means Star of the Sea--who lovingly creates safe travel over troubled waters and is also seen as an emblem of salvation during trying times.

The star as well as the Starfish are seen as celestial symbols and as such, they represent infinite divine love. In addition to love, the Starfish also holds characteristics such as guidance, vigilance, inspiration, brilliance and intuition.

Lucky Find!

Anonymous said...

I like Merle's story.

Anonymous said...

I agree -- Merle's story rocks!

Anonymous said...

dennis says starry starry -fish!