My biggest concern about the proposal is that the traffic pattern for this new lot requires that cars will enter on Elm, but the only exit is onto the Avenue via the alley between Holy Frijoles and the former Bank of America building. Given the high level of pedestrian traffic, the difficulty of seeing oncoming traffic from that spot if cars are parked on 36th, and the fact that stop signs on the Avenue are already treated like a suggestion, I don't see a scenario in which this won't create accidents.

The John Waters smoking PSA is still played before repertory screenings; I saw it a couple months ago at a screening of Eyes Wide Shut.

I bought a place with a parking pad specifically because I didn't want to deal with how competitive street parking can get between Thanksgiving and New Years, but it's generally fine the rest of the year. Some of my friends who live in more residential parts of the city seem surprised when they can't find a spot directly in front of my house, but there's always something within a 2-block radius.

Aimy Cichowicz is incredibly talented! She did my boudoir shoot this fall and I am OBSESSED with how my photos turned out.

I actually don't think there's an untapped market that's interested in buying big decorations for major Jewish holidays like Rosh Hashanah and Passover. If there was, it would have been tapped by now! One of the best parts of those holidays, IMO, is that they're not commercial like Christian holidays; you don't have to buy anything other than food, and the festivities are generally family gatherings and (if you're religious or more observant) going to temple.

I think people like the Hanukkah house on 34th Street because as a Jewish person, it can be nice to feel acknowledged at a time when it feels like the entire world is wrapped up in a holiday you don't celebrate. But I don't think liking this guy's decorations means that most Jewish people want to decorate this way, or want their holidays to have 5 dedicated aisles of merchandise at Target every year.

Hanukkah's a pretty minor Jewish holiday; it's not the Jewish equivalent of Christmas. Its profile has risen over the years because it gives Jewish parents an easy way to make sure their kids don't feel left out of all of the festivities and gift-giving in the Christian mainstream in December, but beyond that, it's not a big deal.

Additionally, many Jews feel that this kind of decorating is inherently assimilationist. Obviously there's a range of opinions out there, and a lot of Jewish folks get a lot of joy out of going all out like the house on 34th Street does. But I think it's fair to say that decorating for Hanukkah isn't a tradition the way it is for Christians to decorate for Christmas.