jpreardon.com

Ars Subterranea is organizing a scavenger hunt titled The Riddle of the Buried Stream:

Manhattan is perforated by a number of streams, which once provided fresh water to the island’s residents. Although the streams have been forced underground during the last two centuries, they are still very much alive, bubbling up now and then to cause trouble for foundation engineers. In 1865, the engineer Egbert L. Viele created a topographical map of all subterranean rivers that is still in use today.

One of these rivers, however, was deliberately left off the map. Apparently it was carrying the purest water in all of New York and its course, marked by just a few cryptic indicators, was known only to the initiate. For reasons that will unfold during the event, it is imperative that this secret river is located. Charting its underground course will be the object of our scavenger hunt.

Sunday, November 7, 2004
Manhattan, approximately noon to 7:30 PM
$15 per person (includes beverages at the final location)

More information @ Ars Subterranea

via Satans Laundromat

The Presidential Endorsements page aggregates the endorsements of newspapers from all over the country. Endorsements are broken down by circulation, state and ownership and presented in easy to read graphs.

via Simon Willison’s Weblog

Treehugger points to Carfree Cities, a new book by J.H. Crawford.

Carfree Cities offers a practical solution to the many urban problems caused by cars and trucks. The carfree city saves energy, preserves the environment, and improves the quality of our lives.

The carfree site is a companion to the book. It offers a peek at Crawford’s solutions for building livable, car free cities.

Get the all cachet of the ubiquitous New York City coffee cup (the 75 cent kind) without filling landfills. The Manhattan User’s Guide points out that 180,000,000 of these little cups are produced a year, that’s a lot of cups. They also point to www.wearehappytosearveyou.com where one can purchase a dishwasher safe, ceramic alternative. Yes, the little blue cup that provides so many New Yorker’s their first jolt of caffeine in the morning is now available in a less disposable material. Ready to add that “fresh from the bodega” touch to your home or office? A list of merchants (both online and off) is also available on the site.

Having a hard time coming up with a truly gruesome getup for Halloween? The Stranger offers up some ideas for the scariest Halloween costumes of 2004. My personal favorite is the “Arrested Protester” (pictured):

Capture the rebel spirit of New York City during the Republican National Convention with this wonderfully simple costume. With a broomstick from the hardware store, a protest sign, and some of your own child’s suitably “grungy” clothing, you can transform your child into one of the thousands of demonstrators who greeted the GOP in NYC. To complete the look, wrap your little protestor in the same orange plastic construction fencing that New York City’s finest used to corral and arrest demonstrators up and down the island of Manhattan. With one simple prop and a few dollars’ worth of netting that can be purchased at any traffic- and road-sign supplier, your little boy or girl can sock it to the Man!

Total cost: Under $7.
Total time: Under an hour.

via Slapnose

Democracy Plaza is open until 5 November at Rockefeller Center. There are several historical exhibits including an original copy of the Declaration of Independence. Democracy Plaza will also serve as the backdrop for NBC’s election coverage.

It appears that the ice rink is now sporting a gigantic map of the United States. Will this extra large map will serve as the electoral vote projection map during NBC’s Tuesday Election Night broadcast? Wouldn’t it be great to see Tom Brokaw and Tim Russert skating around the swing states?

Thanks for the photo Tais!

The city sought to bar cyclists from participating in Critical Mass without a parade permit this week. However, a judge has ruled that the ride can take place.

A new law requiring carbon monoxide detectors takes effect on November 1st:

The new law (Local Law 7 of 2004) requires at least one carbon monoxide detecting device within 15 feet of sleeping rooms in Class A multiple dwellings and private dwellings; buildings which are within occupancy groups J-1, J-2, or J-3; and buildings classified in occupancy group G and H-2. Owners will be responsible for installing approved devices, while occupants would keep and maintain the devices in good repair. Owners would also be entitled to a reimbursement of $25 per device from tenants.

Thankfully, the carbon monoxide detectors come with good instructions: “WARNING! The Silence Feature is for your convenience only and will not correct the CO problem.” Otherwise, I might have thought, quite erroneously, that the carbon monoxide detector would magically purge the space of any dangerous CO gas upon pushing the silence button.

All joking aside, here are a few tips from the city:

• While a CO detector may help to alert you to the presence of elevated CO levels, it is important to make sure that plumbing, heating and other gas powered equipment in your home is properly maintained and serviced regularly by a licensed professional.
• Keep chimneys clean and maintain chimney flues.
• Do not attempt to heat your home with the oven. Burning gas in a closed house or apartment uses up oxygen and produces deadly carbon monoxide gases.
• Never keep your car idling in the garage and never turn on gas-powered equipment, such as snow blowers, chainsaws or generators inside your home and garage.
• Kerosene heaters are dangerous and illegal in New York City. If you use electric heaters make sure that they are U.L. rated, and kept away from any combustible materials such as draperies and linens. Unplug electric blankets and portable electric heaters when not in use.
• Make sure you have a working smoke detector in every bedroom and on every level. Check and change the batteries often.
• You can check if a repair company has a plumber’s or oil burner installer’s license online by using the Building Information System at www.nyc.gov/buildings

The New York Times Magazine points to the impressive collection of grocery lists amassed by one Bill Keaggy. Each of the 550 lists are scanned in full size. If you are short on time, check out the Top 10 list.

My favorite item: Pine Soul.

These switcher ads don’t extol the virtues of the Mac OS nor do they outline the frustrations of the average PC user. Instead, they feature life long republicans and other (former) Bush supporters speaking about how the current administration has let them down. The advertisements were created by Errol Morris for MoveOn. There are over 40 spots available for your viewing pleasure on Morris’ site.

via Cult of Mac & BoingBoing