Reuniting in a Bed Stuy Brownstone
There were a couple of things that stayed with us after we read Sunday’s piece in The Times about the Indian family who moved into a beautiful brownstone in Bed Stuy last summer. The first was their decision to stain the parquest floors cranberry and green. This looks fine to us in the photos but…
There were a couple of things that stayed with us after we read Sunday’s piece in The Times about the Indian family who moved into a beautiful brownstone in Bed Stuy last summer. The first was their decision to stain the parquest floors cranberry and green. This looks fine to us in the photos but we’re wondering what others think of this idea. We were more struck by Rina Banerjee’s description of the first time she visited the neighborhood:
“I came for a visit five years ago and honestly I was a little scared, Ms. Banerjee said. I walked out of the Utica subway station and there was a gang of boys there fooling around and I was worried, but I decided I had to know the neighborhood and I asked them for directions and they were so kind that I immediately felt comfortable. It’s amazing how a neighborhood’s reputation impacts your thinking about it even before you see it.
Food for thought indeed.
Family Reunited in a Brownstone [NY Times]
Well, then don’t post with a handle.
Next problem…
It matters, WTF and others, only that CHP (the real one) has been posting here a long time, and we’ve gotten to “know” her, as well as all of the other people who have regular handles who post here. I’m sure David, or lp or Bob Marvin would not like someone else stating their opinions for them. Nobody likes to be misquoted or misrepresented, even if we are all faceless.
Software that would prevent someone from posting with the same name as someone else, (aside from anonymous or guest), would be great.
I don’t think that the muslin below the parquet or other wood strip type flooring is necessarily indicative of a “wood carpet” installation. In my place, built in 1862, below the parquet or long thing diagonal wood stripping (depends on the room what I have) there is a layer of muslin cloth (not glued) then a layer of thick paper, then the pine subfloors. The muslin and paper reduce any squeaking you might expect. The parquet or wood strips are nailed down, not glued. I’m pretty sure our front parlor is not the original floor covering, though it probably still dates from over a hundred years ago, but I’d venture to guess that all of the other parquet floors are original to the house. With all of the marble fireplaces, ornate plasterwork and heavy woodwork, I doubt that the pine subfloors were the finished product. In the one room where the old parquet is gone, I can see the pattern of where it used to be nailed down and see no evidence of carpeting (i.e. regular nail holes along the edges where the carpet, or tack boards, would have been affixed to floor).
Then again, what do I know. It sounds like it was a mixed bag as to whether you got parquet or wall to wall carpet in the more lavish brownstones, depending on the developer/architect I suppose and what they thought would bring the best buyers.
I for one am getting extremley confused as to whose the imposter Crown Heights and whose the originel one! In fact if there wasn’t such a big hullabolloo I would never know as they sound like the same fellow to my ears. Perhaps Mr Brownstoner should instituit a policy where by those posting comments are required to also submit a picture of them selves visable to other readers. Result, we each would be able to distinguish (sp?) “the real macoys” from those who are mereley imitating them. Allthough in this instants it appears they are each making equally valid points, so in my opinoin they can both keep posting, for surley Brownstoner readers benefit from hearing both view-points. But in the future new users would be disallowed from sharing the same pen-name as a way of avoiding identity theft or ambiguous statements.
Ya know, one could also just post anonymously all the time and save personal dialogues for private email between friends–and just not have to worry about anyone stealing your forum identity. It is nice to have dialogue without having to register.
I’m not able to see the photos (darn it!), so I can’t say much about the floors. They certainly sound interesting, though.
I’m also not a Bed Stuy resident, but I’ve frequented Bed Stuy for many years and it has always impressed me with its friendliness.
Oh, false CHP –
“disregard this moron and get on with life. His punishment is simply having to live his miserable life.”
Please – listen to yourself and take your own advice.
I used to think you were a pimply faced teenage moron. I now think you are an older, highly intelligent, well read, uber-moron with issues – no, subscriptions! What can the pleasure and joy of doing this day after day, month after month be? How absolutely pitiful and pathetic. Bob999 and Jimmy are right.
That’s it for me. No one will have to further slog through my interaction with this pathetic piece of work, thus ruining what was an interesting thread. What a great end to the year.
Everyone – please continue to talk about stained floors and initial assumptions about moving into places like Bed Stuy. These are good topics.
Bob999, your lips to Brownstoner’s ear. That would be great. I believe you are correct on the subfloors.
Here’s a fun quote from Winkler-Moss regarding pine subfloors: ” The Wood-Mosaic Company of Rochester, NY offered the following advice, not without some bias, in its 1898 catalogue under the heading ‘How to Treat a Soft Pine Floor’:’If very bad use it for kindling wood. Most soft pine floors are very bad. If in fair condition cover it with soft parquetry or wood carpet. Or, if it must be scrubbed and mopped like a barroom or butcher’s stall, cover it with linoleum or oil cloth. In this case don’t cover it with parquetry. Don’t cast pearls before swine. Or it may be painted. Paint adheres well to pine. Don’t cover it with a dirty, dusty, disease disseminating carpet.'”
Looks like something else for Brownstoner’s suggestion box: make it impossible for more than one person to use the same handle. Many forums have this feature.