8/8/2019 Dec. 23, 2010 Issue

1/12

UPPER WEST SIDE NOWAll The Neighborhood NewsVolume #1 No. 3 | Deebe 23, 2010

Surge In New StresBreathes Lie Int UWSAnd Defes Glmy Trend

When Spanish che Jess

Nez was seeking a spot

to open his New York res-

taurant Grat, everyone told him the

Upper West Side was not the right

area. People dont come to the

Upper West Side to have dinner,

Nez said he was told. They go

downtown.

But Nez ound the perect space

or his restaurant on 69th street and

decided to dey the naysayers, open-

ing on Dec. 12. I could go to a

neighborhood where all the other res-

taurants are, yes, Nez said. But

i I come to the Upper West Side, Ill

be more special because, here, there

is no restaurant like mine.

Nez is joining a mini boom

o Upper West Side restaurant and

store openings. From cookie shops to

a planned retail building on Broad-

way, the area is seeing a surge in re-

tail activity that has some observers

optimistic the neighborhood is re-

gaining its verve ater several years

o decline.

Janet Currie, an economics proes-

sor at Columbia University and UpperWest Side resident, said that the re-

cent lourish o businesses on the

Upper West Side relects both the

act that New York was not as hard

hit as some other areas by the eco-

nomic downturn, and, as such, the

area is able to right itsel relatively

quickly.

The Upper West Side has elt eco-nomic hard times with For Rent

signs popping up all over the neigh-

borhood. Along with OTB branches

across the city, the O-Track Betting

parlor on West 72nd street, between

Columbus and Amsterdam, recent-

ly closed.

But other parts o the Upp er West

Side are seeing a denite surge. In

particular, Currie noted that the area

between 100th and 116 th streets

seems to be picking up. One new

restaurant Currie enjoys is Buca, an

Italian place, on 103rd street between

Amsterdam and Broadway. Buca

uses local and organic ingredients in

their dishes whenever possible and

its location is small but was jammed

with customers one recent aternoon.Amsterdam Avenue around 72nd

Street is also seeing a spate o activ-

ity. Around Thanksgiving, the retail

warm-cookies-and-milk-joint Insom-

nia Cookies (whose Village locations

are mainstays with NYU students)

debuted its new store at 405 Am-

sterdam Ave. Well-reviewed Chinese

restaurant Grand Sichuan recently

opened a branch on 75th Street and

Amsterdam Avenue. Lobster roll em-

porium Lukes Lobster opened Dec.

17 at 426 Amsterdam Ave.

The Yard, a wine bar and casual

restaurant, recently opened on Free-

dom Place and 68th Street. Nearby,

the Graceully ood market at 65th

and West End Avenue opened this

month. West Lake Palace opened in

the ormer Silk Road Palace location

at Amsterdam and 81st Street.

Other recent openings are colo-

nizing parts o the neighborhood

underserved by retail. A Brooklyn

Industries store opened its doors re-

cently on 99th Street and Broadway,

a stretch better known or diners

than trendy ashions. It joins a new

Urban Outtters clothing store on

the block.

And across the street, on the east

side o Broadway between 99th and

100th

Streets, plans are aoot to trans-orm the ormer Metro Theater into

a shopping destination. The art deco

Metro Theater closed in 2005 ater

more than seventy years running.

Until recently, the Metros space has

remained empty as one commercial

project plan ater another commer-

cial project plan continued to all

through. Upper West Side residentMichael Oliva recently started the

Metro Theater Project which is try-

ing to raise money to transorm the

building into an arts, education and

retail space. He envisions the uture

Metro as being what it once was

not the adult lm site it became dur-

ing the 1970s and 80sbut a place

or the diverse residents o the neigh-

borhood to gather and interact with

one another.

According to the Metro Theater

Projects website, the Metro when

it reopens (as the Metro Art Center)

plans to provide a un and exciting

outlet or community nightlie that

is sae and inclusive to an ethnical-

ly and inancially diverse audience

o neighborhood residents. It u-ture Metro Art Center will be a com-

munity-driven eort, the site says,

with an emphasis on involvement

and contributive diversity.

B E B

The Upper West Side has felt economic hard

times with For Rent signs popping up all

over the neighborhood.

The New Years Eve Concert or Peace at the Cathedral Church St.Jhn the Divinewill eature the lighting o thousands o candles, $60.Govt Mule p lays the Beacn Theatre or 2 Nights o Peace & Mule.

Four-course prix xe menu and champagne toast or $175 at Dovetail. NewYr Rad Runnersjog through Central Park to ring in the New Year. Five-hour premium open bar, hors doeuvres and DJ at the Empire Htel or $125.Fatty Crab oers a $75 dinner including a glass o champagne and one hour oall-you-can-eat crab. The Gilords play Prhibitin with a midnight champagnetoast, and a live broadcast o the Times Square ball drop or $125. Sistermonk

plays the Thalia Cae at Symphony Space, ree. Stay home with an ounce oZabars Desietra Ossetra caviar or $120. Open bar and unlimited ood at the

Sunburnt Cal or $100. Bistr Ten 18 oers aour-course menu or $85 with an optional wine

pairing or $45. VIP tickets or $100 will get you

a bottle o champagne, two bottles o premiumliquor, and a selection o appetizers per table or

$100 atVillage Purhuse . The New YrCity Ballet at Lincoln Center perorms GeorgeBalanchines The Nutcracker, tickets $250.

IN THE NEWS

$1.00COM

PLIM

ENTAR

Y

FormEr Bounty huntErCarl Tanner ismaking hisDEBut at thEmEtropolitanopEra with asinging rolEin puccin is laFanciulla DElwEst. Page 3

States BlockNeedle ExchangeDee e fede fded d-

e e ee -

e e je d dd

e ded e e,

eede exe eed -

bed. Page 2

Resident WithIncredible Memorya ue we sde ede

x ae e b-

e, d -

e eebe eve

d f e ve. le oe, 37,

recently proled on 60 Minutes. Page 3

Ex-Riding SchoolGets New Tenantte fe ce rd ad-

e 89 see bee

f e see g s. te

, f de e d-

be, ex e e b 30

de e e. Page 3

Adults ConquerFear of Bikesw e f e d-

d ee be e

eve e ze f e b f-

, e d e de e d-

ing off their bicycles for the rst time

e. ad e d e d e

learning to ride for the rst time. Page 4

Home Is WhereThe Art Is theretee e e e-

e m f

e . tee e - ve ed exd e

denition of a gallery by opening their

d, f e f fed ,

e b d d

e e. Page 6

The Green Fairy ReturnsGovernment ofcials recently agreed

to allow the word absinthe on bottle

labels, effectively ending a 95-year

ban. Absinthe enthusiasts from Seattle

to Boston are thrilled that the spirit has

returned to the United States. Page 7

Researchers SeekAntibiotic AlternativesFacing a growing incidence of bacterial

resistance to antibiotics, pharmaceuti-

cal companies are struggling to comeup with new drugs to ght infections.

Phage therapy is the use of what are

known as bacteriophage, viruses that

are parasites of bacteria. Page 9

Ring In The New Year

Without Leaving UWSw vee f e ebd e e ue

we sde ffe e ed neye Eve? hee e e de:

ne y c Be s

me de geeBe te n-e ne ye Eve l cee

Photo: Pu Koik

8/8/2019 Dec. 23, 2010 Issue

2/12

2Volume #1 No. 3 | Deebe 23, 2010UPPER WEST SIDE NOW

News

State Laws Block

Funds For Needle

Exchange

Editors Bd

At Dectaexe k

Photographyg kvv

ContributorsEzbe Je, abe

lebv,m.r. oc, Be p,

m seee

Upper West Side Now bed b

ne y n med, llc,188 avee f e ae,

ne y, ny 10013.(646) 397-7143.

ue we sde n ebe f ed

.a eeved.ped e usa.

www.upperwestnow.com

E very Tuesday morning,

Miguel Ramos and his

team rom the nonprot or-

ganization New York Harm

Reduction Educators park two mid-

size motor homes on a Manhattan

street corner. They pitch a small white

tent along the sidewalk; stock it with

sterile syringes, cookers, cottons and

water; and wait or neighborhood ad-

dicts to drop by.

The organization, known by locals

as the Cadillac o harm reduction

programs, is one o the oldest nee-

dle exchange programs in the coun-

try. Such programs were born in the

1980s, during the early stages o the

HIV/AIDS epidemic, when injection

drug users were disproportionately

aected by the disease.

Two decades later, New York City

health workers like Ramos have

helped decrease HIV inection in drug

addicts by 75 percent, according to a

2005 study.

But despite multiple ederally

unded studies showing that access

to sterile syringes makes injection

drug addiction less deadly withoutincreasing use, needle exchange has

remained a political battleground.

Health experts across the country

celebrated victory a year ago when

Congress voted to lit a 21-year ban

on ederal unding or needle ex-

change programs. While legal pro-

grams in states like New York and

Caliornia are already applying or

new unds, underground operations

have little hope o any nancial as-

sistance. Antiquated state law, rather

than ederal unding, is still the real

obstacle to needle exchange, accord-

ing to grass-roots advocates.

Meanwhile, injection drug users

with no access to clean syringes are ac-

quiring atal blood-borne diseases like

HIV and hepatitis at alarming rates.Legal barriers disproportionately aect

poor, minority populations, according

to new research. Improperly discarded

needles litter towns and endanger res-

idents, while increased rates o disease

place nancial burdens on an already

stressed health care system.

Simply put, needle exchange pro-

grams enable the addicted to contin-

ue down the destructive and deadly

path o drug dependence, states the

Florida-based nonprot organization

Save Our Society From Drugs, in its

position statement.

Florida state drug parapherna-

lia laws currently outlaw needle ex-

change.

In November 1988, Congress

banned ederal unding or any pro-

gram that distributed sterile syringes

or illicit drug use. The ban undercut

initiatives providing important public

health services, according to commu-

nity health experts.

States were let with the power to

decide whether they would permit

and und needle exchange programs

via a public health exception to drug

paraphernalia laws. Many decided

against it.

But this past December, Congressdecision to lit the 21-year-old ederal

unding ban gave legalized programs

a glimmer o hope.

There have already been unding

cuts at the state level, says Herbert

Quinones, program director at NewYork Harm Reduction Educators. We

are deinitely applying or ederal

money, but thats not guaranteed ei-

ther. The administration has just de-

cided to reeze domestic unding. So

who knows whats going to happen?

Were hoping or the best.

In states that have outlawed nee-

dle exchange, like North Carolina and

Nevada, activists believe that ederal

unds will do nothing or the injec-

tion drug users they serve.

We dont have any needle ex-

change programs in the state o Ne-

vada, says Jennier Morss, executive

director o the nonprot organization

Aid or AIDS o Nevada. So I cant

really tell you how the unding would

aect our programs.Some 94 percent o injection drug

users surveyed in Las Vegas reported

that they would use a clean-needle

exchange program i one were made

available, according to a 2001 study.

The health department can apply

or all the ederal unding it wants,

says Harney. Even i the ederal law

has lited the ban, this is still a state

issue. I the state doesnt allow us to

receive those unds, were not going

to get them. There is such a ear at

the legislative level.

As in many states, the North Caro-

lina drug laws are tricky. Although sy-

ringe exchange programs are banned,

drug injectors are legally permitted

to purchase sterile needles without a

prescription rom local pharmacies.

But North Carolina has strict drugparaphernalia laws. Anyone caught

in possession o a needle without

having a prescription, even i it was

just bought rom a pharmacist, can

be (and oten is) arrested.

Pharmacists also have the right toreuse to sell a syringe i the customer

does not have a prescription. Some

request identicationsorely lacking

in the homeless populationor other

inormation beore they are willing to

sell needles.

One day a guy came in here look-

ing or me to give him a clean nee-

dle, says Harney. But he couldnt

ind me. So he goes to a pharmacy

down the street. Pharmacist asks to

see a prescription. He says he doesnt

have one but asks whether the phar-

macist would rather be lling him a

prescription or HIV or hep C meds.

The pharmacist replies, I youre a

junkie, you deserve to have AIDS.

Harney started the Needle Ex-

change Program o Asheville in 1994.I was an outreach worker in west-

ern North Carolina, says Harney.

Every day, I was tripping over nee-

dles in the streets. Thats when I de-

B le Be

cided to do something about it.

Harney describes his operation as

illegal but tolerated by local ocials.

Political support in what is considered

by many to be the most liberal pocket

o the state sustains his eorts.

Although there are other harm re-

duction organizations in North Car-

olina, they do not openly advertise

needle exchange services. Injection

drug users are oten too araid to seekout clean needles or other health ser-

vices.

We operate underground, says

said one public health activist in

North Carolina who asked to remain

unnamed or ear that she would be

targeted by law enorcement ocials.

The minute they nd out that were

passing out syringes, we get shut

down. People are scared to call the

police or call the ambulance when

someone has ODd. Theyre araid o

the legal repercussions. They think

they cant go to the doctor because

the doctor is going to see the track

marks. So they never go to the emer-

gency room.

IV drug users account or more

than 20 percent o new HIV inec-tions in the U.S., according to 2007

data rom the Centers or Disease

Control and Prevention. Injection

drug use is also the leading cause o

hepatitis C inection.

Restrictive drug paraphernalia

laws disproportionately aect mi-

nority populations. In the Raleigh-

Durham, N.C., area, white injection

drug users are ve times as likely as

black users to report pharmacies as

their primary source o syringes, ac-

cording to a January report by Family

Health International.

Public health ocials believe that

individuals who do not obtain their

needles rom pharmacies must ac-

quire new needles illegally or simply

reuse the ones they or their riendshave. An estimated 50 percent o

Americans diagnosed with HIV are

black, according to 2007 data rom

the Centers or Disease Control and

Prevention.

But syringe exchange programs

dont beneit only injection drug

users.

My biggest concern is proper dis-

posal o used needles, says Harney.

Dont lush em down the toilet.

Then youre gonna need a plumber.

Dont put em in the garbage can.

It puts garbagemen in harms way.

Dont throw it over your ence andget your neighbors in trouble. This is

about public health and saety or the

entire community. Ive received pizza

boxes o needles, milk jugs, Pepsi bot-

tles, you name it.

Mickela Mallozzi teaches The Masala

Bhangra Workout Monday nights, 5:30

p.m. at the The West Side YMCA, 5 W. 63rd

St. mickela@masaladance.com

Two decades later, New York City health

workers like Ramos have helped decrease

HIV infection in drug addicts by 75 percent,

according to a 2005 study.

me r, e e f e ne y h red Edeede exe m vde ede e e.

Photo by lu Bow

More than 60 percent of IV druge ne y e feed e c.

There are 12 exchanges operat- e .

In a recent one-year period, ex-e ve 1.9 e, d eed1.5 .

There are between 40,000 and110,000 IV drug users in the.

In New York City, only about 10 20 ee f je d

e e exe.

Source: New York City Ofce of Drug

Us Pvtio

NEEDLE EXCHANGE FACTS

8/8/2019 Dec. 23, 2010 Issue

3/12

3Volume #1 No. 3 | Deebe 23, 2010 UPPER WEST SIDE NOW

News

It is possible to be awestruck by the exoticsplendor of this meticulously restored sanctuary.

Edward Rothstein, The New York Times

Visit the Museum at Eldridge StreetBased in the 1887 Eldridge Street SynagogueA National Historic Landmark12 Eldridge Street between Canal and Division StreetsSunday through Thursday from 10 am to 5pm

Frederick Charles

Neighborhood In Brie

advee UPPER WEST SIDE NOWceve e,

x exe

email uwsnow@gmail.com or call 646-397-7143

Former BountyHunter To Sing AtMetFe b e c

te deb

e me oe

e p-

l F de we.

te ue we sde e-

de e e

De. 27. te d e

ve exed b

deb d e ee

ee d

fd ee eve-

e fed.

Researchers Find UWSResident With IncredibleMemoryhve d e eebe

d f bef? we, ee uewe sde ede x

ae e b-

e, d

e eebe eve d f

e ve. le oe, 37, ee

proled on 60 Minutes. Owen, a pro-

fe v, ve we 100

see. reee oe e-

ebe de f eve d f 1985

fd.

Controversial TacosHead To Neighborhoodp t t ed e ue we sde fe

getting the cold shoulder at its former location on 86th

see d lex avee. uEs ede ed

b e d e d v fe ed

. te be ev cb uve -

de.

Ex-Riding School GetsNew Tenantte fe ce rd

ade 89 see

bee f e see

g s. te , f

de e db-

e, ex e e b

30 de e e.

se e d $12

million for the ve-story building.

13-year-old Goes Missingpe e e f 13-e-d bee

f e ue we sde e e De. 10. X-

see f 28 w. 91 see ee ev e

e b 9 .. se 5-fee-2 e, 130 d d

ee e e , be je, ed e-

e d b je.

SJP Turns Nose UpAT UWS Pad

te $21.5 ue we sde dex e

s Je pe d bee de eed

b e e. te fee e te

Brentmore building has eight bedrooms and ve and half

b. n d e sex d e c d

bd me Bde deded e ve f

her current West Village digs.

Parents Criticize Success Academy Plante ed ue we se ade e e e ved-

f e ebd, e e d ee bd ee.

te ade e e ue we sde ex e b ed

ofcials havent said exactly where it will go. We just dont believe that

e eve e e e e f

who want to go to your school, said local parent Eric Shufer.

pe e e eed e b de

f de e e d dd ved d deee

ed ee. B e f e ade d

the Dec. 16 Community Board 7 education committee meeting

e e e de.

8/8/2019 Dec. 23, 2010 Issue

4/12

Lie4Volume #1 No. 3 | Deebe 23, 2010UPPER WEST SIDE NOW

Ihad the lier or a year beore I

nally signed up. Zalima Khan

said with a grin as she waited or

her instructor to help pick out a

bicycle or her petite rame. Its just something

I always wanted to do.

Khan, 44, o River Edge, N.J., had come to a

bicycle shop in New York City where she joined

our other adult women intent on learning, or

rereshing, their bike riding skills. Khan was in

the last week o instructor Terry Chins three-

week course and she and the others made their

way to a nearby bike path. A ew weeks earli-

er they had wobbled and careened. Today they

were pedaling and balancing on their own,

while learning more advanced skills.

Look right, steer right. Look let, steer let!

shouted Chin. Dont pedal when youre going

over a bump!

Chin, 58, has taught hundreds o New Yorkers,

including some whos who o the citys limelight,

to conquer their pedaling ears. People take it or

granted that biking is elementary, but its not,

said Chin. Ive got it down to a science where

everybody rides by the third week, not perectly,

but they get by. From then on its going over pot-

holes, shiting gears, and learning bike signals.

With the cost o gasoline rising dramatically

and people becoming increasingly sensitive to

the size o their carbon ootprints, more and

more riders are dusting o their bicycles or the

rst time in years. And more and more adults

are learning to ride or the rst time.

Bicyclists says the nations population o 57

million bike riders is on the rise, especially in

cities.

In the last ive to eight years, cities like

New York, Portland, Boulder and the Washing-

ton, D.C., area, have seen large increases in the

amount o bicycling, said Andy Clarke, presi-

dent o the League o American Bicyclists, based

in Washington, D.C.

The league has a roster o 1,100 certied in-

structors across the country who are helping nov-

ices get into gear. John Ciccarelli, o San Francisco

has taught students one-on-one or seven years

and this spring he joined other cycle instructors

in the citys rst Learn to Ride a Bike clinic.

The interactive process o teaching someone

to ride is challenging, but un or the teach-

er, said Ciccarelli, whose students range rom

pre-teens to sixtysomethings. Youre teach-

ing someone who doesnt believe they can do

it. Being able to help them achieve a major lie

goal is really ullling.

Mallika Nallani, a 40 year-old wie and moth-

Adults conquer theirfear of bikes to avoid

the gas pumpB cd lze

er o two, attended the San Francisco bike clin-

ic along with about 15 others. She was hoping

to relearn the riding skills she developed as a

child in India. I was nervous I would all, but

it became easier ater a while and I learned

in about two hours! she said. It was so ex-

hilarating. Now I eel encouraged to try other

things I think I might not be good at.

For her part, Susan McLucas o Somerville,

Mass., has run classes through her Bicycle Rid-

ing School and through the Cambridge Center

or Adult Education since 1985. Her Web site

boasts that she has taught more than 2,000 stu-

dents. I can count the people who didnt get

it on one hand, said McLucas, occasionally

people learn in their rst ew minutes. Every-

body starts out terried, she added, but theyare euphoric by the end.

Adult students tend to be more diicult

to teach than children because their ears o

biking have become ingrained over the years.

Older adults have also lost some o their equi-

librium and level o tness. McLucas rewards

each student who learns to ride in her our-ses-

sion, weekend courses with a picnic ceremony

complete and even a diploma or completing

the course. She also oers tips to rst-timers.

Learn on a bike that is small enough that

you can sit and have your oot on the ground,

McLucas said. Stop way beore you need to stop

and, whichever way you start to lean, turn that

way. Wear a helmet and keep it nice and slow.

Even closet nonbikers are giving cycling a try.

I dont know why I never learned, said Lena

G., one o the women in Chins class. But I

want to try and do a triathlon and swimming

and biking are my two weakest links.

Beore departing, the women who have

bonded and cheered each other over the past

ew weeks, exchanged numbers and vowed to

go riding together soon.

Otherwise, what would I be doing? saida student named Muriel, Watching TV in the

morning? This, the resh air and sunshine,

is a better alternative.

s ed e-e e b eee f-e J- c, fde f cce, d-bd befe.

a fe ed je e , d row of metal les, the toolsf de, ee ed e e 5-f-e be.

me, e ve- e f ee deed e eee -sphere as it led away burrsde be f ee.

i e f e ffe, d c, 32 , be ed e e 12 e d. B- i ed d bd d ed -e d f i e de.He was deep into the 40-

e f bd ee, ed be--ef ee f -e d $1,000

e f -ze de, -ed, fe.

c e d e ede f ne

y c, b e f be f f-e e e f - ee d-debe eeed be qe ed b be ee-e d effeve ev-z e-d d.c ed b-

e 2005, d e - -e

f e e e-be f e ex f de.hf f e bd

fe, e bee,e-e be deedf e ved dbanked velodrome The rstmd sqe gde ne y c e f be e 1879.ree, e be

ed b be eee ne y d e bee ve eeed e b ed ed e fed.

te eee d,e e de-, ebef eee e

dde be, d veefe-bde rd s.se e 1980, b-e eee ve edone-speed, xed-gear trackbe d e jb. w be, ee be ve e ed e e .s, 55,

ce, b ethan 4,000 frames in his

30--e ee.he d e f e

iee de eef ee be f-ed e eqe,d eve eeebe b d e d fe. oe fd vded f e- de f e ee-e ee e ee de, dde fe--specically track bikes.a e, d s.

if e ve e, e e-ee e, de e e f

e be - e eee e.

By Tomas Dinges

BikES ArE BACk, AND So ArE THE PEoP LE WHo MAkE THEM

Z k eebe e fee be d ed e .

Photograph by Cassandra Lizaire

8/8/2019 Dec. 23, 2010 Issue

5/12

8/8/2019 Dec. 23, 2010 Issue

6/12

6Volume #1 No. 3 | Deebe 23, 2010UPPER WEST SIDE NOW

Arts

Blanka Amezkua didnt change any-

thing about her home when she

began displaying artwork in her bed-

room. The shabby linoleum, the bare

light xtures and the robins egg blue walls are

all still there, but now every month an artist

comes into Amezkuas apartment in the Mott

Haven neighborhood o New Yorks South

Bronx and installs a work o art.

Theres an opening on the rst Saturday o

every month, and on Thursdays and Fridays the

public is ree to wander in to view the work.

Amezkua sleeps with the art at night, and dur-

ing the day, she rolls the mattress up and stores

it in the closet.

Artists have always come to New York City to

make it, but with real estate at a premium, there

isnt enough room in the galleries in Manhat-

tan or many artists to show their work. These

space limitations have led artists to expand the

denition o a gallery by opening their doors, o

those o riends or sponsors, to the public and

displaying artwork in their homes. Not only

do these not-or-prot galleries give artists a

place to showcase their work, but the empha-

sis on collaboration, rather than competition,

also nurtures artistic communities outside o

the mainstream art world.

It is dicult to show in Chelsea or SoHo

galleries. This space is less intimidating, said

Hayato Matsushita, who curates a gallery

named Juntoat his home in Bushwick, Brook-

lyn. It just seems genuine, were not doing it

or money.

Four years ago, Matsushita, a Japanese-

American artist, had to move out o his studio

in SoHo. They were tearing down the building

and he had one month to ind a new space.

Home IsWhere

The Art Is

He came across a listing on Craigslist or two

lots side by side in the basement o an apart-

ment building in the gentriying neighborhood

o Bushwick. He now uses this space as both

his home and to showcase his artwork and the

work o people he knows.

The walls, the foor, and the exposed ducts

on the 13-oot ceiling are all painted white.

The only urniture is a rectangular table, and

our chairs, in the center o the main room. The

other room has a bar with a rerigerator and a

movie screen hanging rom chains bolted into

a wooden beam. Matsushita describes the space

as minimal, and zen-likea nod to his Japanese

roots. He explains that the clean, white space

is like a blank canvas. The minimalist aesthetic

allows the work he exhibits, done by local art-

ists, many o whom live in the same building,

to speak or itsel.

Collaboration is the overriding theme at

Junto. Matsushita describes the lots as a multi-

creative space. Two modern dancers currentlylive there with him. They sleep in the tiny liv-

ing quarters that lie behind a white curtain at

one end o the room and they rehearse in the

large room while Matsushita stays in another

lot next door.

Matsushita pays his rent by making models

or architectural rms. He has managed to es-

tablish himsel in the Manhattan art scenea

couple o years ago he worked at Museum o

Modern Art doing art installation and he has

had two solo shows at Christopher Henry Gal-

lery in the Lower East Sidebut he likes the

grassroots eeling o Bushwick.

I wanted to promote young artists, to show

their work, he said.

Matsushita publicizes shows using postcard

fiers and on the gallery Web site, but the peo-

ple who attend generally hear about the event

by word o mouth.The artists initially unded the Bronx Blue

Bedroom Project but now the project has a

grant rom the Bronx Council on the Arts and

other arts programs in the city, to encourage

home galleries.

This month, at the Bronx Blue Bedroom Proj-

ect, Michelle Frick has made birds nests out o

intravenous cord and placed tiny eggs that have

the names o dierent heart diseases imprinted

on them. There are syringes and other hospital

materials strewn about the room and the sound

o birds chirping is playing on a stereo.

Blanka Amezkuas liestyle changes accord-

ing to what work is being exhibited in her

home. At the moment, shes sleeping on a uton

in her living room because she doesnt want to

disturb the ragile nests.

Amezkua said the project is a huge commit-

ment or the artists and or her, but she nds it

very gratiying. She is almost maternal toward

the artwork. Every night she covers each one

o the nests with abric to avoid getting duston the eggs.

The inormal events in these spacessome-

where between a private and a public venue

have made the artistic community more

inclusive

Sometimes I call people up and say Im

having a dinner party, bring over a painting

so we can talk about it, said Jason Andrew,

who displays art in the windows o his ground

foor apartment in Bushwick. The gallery, called

Norte Maar, is a perect square, with all white

walls, and lots o natural light. Andrew said

that a painting is nished when the public sees

it, and his home completes the circle.

Andrew said he is not opposed to the main-

stream galleries, which do something very di-

erent rom what he is trying to achieve. He

describes his home as a relaxed setting that

acilitates conversations about art in the com-munity.

Its way o the beaten path o the critics and

collectors, Andrew said, the driving machine

that is the art world.

te f J ge B,B. Coutsy of Vi Fost

Artists have always come to New York City to make it,

but with real estate at a premium, there isnt enough

room in the galleries in Manhattan for many artists to

show their work.

B l ce

8/8/2019 Dec. 23, 2010 Issue

7/12

7Volume #1 No. 3 | Deebe 23, 2010 UPPER WEST SIDE NOW

Dining

Absinthe is a spirit o myth-

ic proportions: it has been

blamed or violence, in-

sanity, and bizarre halluci-

nations--most notably the conjuring

o little green airies. Some even

claim it helped drive Vincent van

Gogh to suicide.

Absinthe has always had this

strange phenomenon where its the

victim and the beneciary o its mys-

tique, said Robert Lehrman, a lawyer

who represents Kbler, a Swiss-based

absinthe distiller. There is something

dierent about it that has helped and

hurt it at the same time.

Now, ater nearly a century, Ameri-

cans have the chance to sample the

mischievous green liquor or them-

selves. Government ocials recently

agreed to allow the word absinthe

on bottle labels, eectively ending a

95-year ban.

Absinthe enthusiasts rom Seattle

to Boston are thrilled that the spir-

it has returned to the United States.

Most now realize that it does not

cause violent rages or visions o green

airies, and while van Gogh did im-

bibe, the stu didnt kill him.

Absinthe was an important ingre-

dient in some o the earliest cocktails,

and its been missing in our coun-

try since 1912, said Gwydion Stone,

ounder o the Wormwood Society, a

Seattle-based absinthe aicionados

club. Not only are bartenders learn-

ing to recreate pre-ban absinthe cock-

tails, Stone added, but they are also

mixing innovative new drinks using

the licorice-favored spirit.Absinthe originated in Switzer-

lands Val de Travers in the late 18th

century. It contains a minimum o

nine herbs, usually including worm-

wood, anise and ennel. The result-

ing pale, lime-green liquor is a very

perumed spirit with the lavor o

anise, said Ted Breaux, an absinthe

researcher and distiller who creat-

ed Lucid, one brand o absinthe now

available in the United States. Its

slightly sweet, goes down easily and

packs quite a punch.

Though originally consumed as a

medicinal stomach-soother, absinthe

soon spread through Europe as a pop-

ular social lubricant. But the potent

liquor was banned throughout much

o Europe in the early 1900s amid ru-

mors that it caused violence and in-

sanity. The United States ollowed

suit, outlawing absinthe in 1912.

Later, the Food and Drug Adminis-

tration kept absinthe o shelves by

banning thujone, a chemical ound in

wormwood that is toxic in high doses.

There things stood until a ew

years ago, when several people who

were determined to reintroduce the

spirit to the United States petitioned

the ederal Alcohol and Tobacco Taxand Trade Bureau. When they point-

ed out that products with less than 10

parts per million o thujone are con-

sidered thujone-ree by the FDA,

the government relented and agreed

to allow the term absinthe back on

bottle labels.

When it is not mixed into cock-

tails, absinthe is most popularly con-

sumed with sugar cubes melted into

it, a concoction dubbed the absinthe

drip. The spirit is best consumed care-

ully, as the alcohol content o most

brands hovers around a stinging 60

percent. Distributors say that ab-

sinthe is gaining popularity as more

bars and liquor stores start to sell it,

but it can still be tough to nd a bot-

tle, or even an absinthe cocktail, since

only a handul o companies current-

ly distribute in the United States.

Quality absinthe can be expensive

and time-consuming to produce, dis-

tillers said. The secret o absinthe is

not only in the wormwood and the

thujone, its in the recipe and all the

herbs involved, said Peter Karl, a

partner in the Kbler distiller. A bot-

tle o Lucid retails or around $60,

and other brands are similarly priced.

In New York City, where a drink

can be had on nearly every street cor-

ner, absinthe is relegated to high-end

cocktail bars.

Aside rom the classic drip, I think

they dont know what to do with

it, said John Deragon, a bartender

at PDT on Manhattans Lower East

Side, reerring to other bars. Deragon

has been mixing absinthe recipes, old

and new, or the past several months.

His repertoire includes some pre-1912

classics, like the Sazerac, a bitter cock-

tail that was popular in New Orleans

in the 1830s, and the Sea Fizz, whichcalls or egg whites and lemon juice.

He is also experimenting with some

new combinations o his own, includ-

ing one kumquat-favored concoction.

Since absinthes herbal lavor is

so intense, it can be tricky to incor-

porate it into a drink. Its like hav-

ing a bright, sharp color, explained

Breaux, who has devoted much o his

career to recreating an absinthe that

meets ederal ood and drug guide-

lines. It works with some things,

and not so well with other things.

Preparing an absinthe drip is a

complicated process compared to

mixing a drink or pouring a beer,

said Sunita, owner o a Manhattan

bar that goes by the same name, and

who preerred not to give her lastname. It calls or sugar to be melted

over a slotted absinthe spoon, which

can take several minutes. It takes a

while to prepare, so that time is lost,

she said. At Sunita, an absinthe drip

costs $14.

Is absinthe a passing ad, or will

it become a bar-shel standard? Ab-

sinthe makers think that by keeping

the standards or their product high,

they will eventually reestablish the

liquors ormer popularity.

We eel the introduction o a prod-

uct that oers quality will help those

in the United States understand why

it was so popular in France beore it

was outlawed, said Breaux o Lucid.

He and other distillers want Ameri-

cans to know that absinthe is notgreen dye in a bottle o vodka.

Sunita agreed. I think its here to

stay, she said. People enjoy s ipping

it. In a cocktail, its quite delicious.

B Je Zeveff

The Green Fairy Returns To America

It was Valentines Day, and Adam

Whitten wanted to give his girl-

riend, Julie Edmonds, a school

teacher in New York City, an experi-

ence she wouldnt easily orget. He

knew she had super sensitive taste

buds, so sensitive that eating any cit-

rus ruiteven oranges and grape-

ruit--made her mouth pucker up like

a wizened prune.

So he presented her with a tiny

a box, inside o which were six red

berries, about the size and shape o

cranberries. Whitten told her dont

ask any questions, just eat one o

the berries, and then he presented

her with a selection o some o her

least avorite ruits--oranges

and graperuits. Prepar-ing hersel or the

usual distasteul

experience, Ed-

monds got a sur-

prise: They didnt

taste sour at all;

they actually tasted

sweet. Edmonds was

delighted, he said. She had

never eaten an orange beore, Whit-

ten said. I thought that would be a

perect Valentines Day git.

The berry that made the U-turn in

taste or Edmonds is called magic

ruit. The plant grows commonly in

tropical climates, but, thanks to some

enterprising and adventurous eaters,

it is now nding its way to the living

rooms around the country where peo-ple o all ages are enjoying its magic

eects.

The plant was rst discovered in

the 1725 by a French explorer, Des

Marchais, when he traveled to A-

ricas Gold Coast where magic ruit

grows indigenously, said Adam Leith

Gollner, author o The Fruit Hunt-

ers, a new book that explores the

history o magic berries and other

ruit. During the trip, Marchais ob-

served that locals ate these berries be-

ore consuming bland porridges and

tart palm wine and noticed that the

berry signiicantly sweetened nor-

mally sour oods.

Food scientists are still not certain

about how the berry works. They do

know that, in order to taste ood, hu-mans rely on the tongues receptors,

o which there are our types, one

each to identiy sweet, sour, bitter

and salty favors. According to Harry

Lawless, a proessor at Cornell Uni-

versitys ood science department,

magic ruit contains a protein called

miraculin that seems to attach itsel

to the sour receptor and acts some-

how to neutralize the reaction to

sourness. A spoonul o sugar helps

the medicine go down because it

masks the bitterness, Lawless said.

The same eect may occur with

the miracle ruit. When miraculin de-

tects oods that have low pH value--

ones that are acidic and taste sour--it

releases sugar molecules into the sour

receptors, changing the perception o

sourness into sweetness, according to

one theory. The eect lasts approxi-

mately one-hal hour, beore

it wears o complete-ly. And it leaves no

adverse eects, Dr.

Lawless said. Its

a naturally occur-

ring berry and, as

ar as I know, its

totally sae.

In act, Lawless was

enthusiastic enough about

miracle ruit that he contributed his

research to a cookbook o dessert

recipes. Each o the dishes would be

sweetened with lemon juice, a clev-

er substitute or sugar, and then peo-

ple would take some extract o the

berry beore eating the dishes. But

the innovation was never approved

by the Food and Drug Administra-

tion. Theres speculation that thesugar lobby was involved, said Goll-

ner, the author o the upcoming book.

The agencys disapproval may en-

hance the experience or some: Its

a orbidden ruit; what could be more

exciting? Gollner said.

For todays legions o oodies,

magic ruit is oering a unique op-

portunity to rediscover everyday

oods. You look at a lemon that

youve tasted a million times, and

all o a sudden it tastes delicious and

sweet and nonsour at all, said David

Barzelay, 25, a law student.

Barzelay oten hosts miracle-ruit

parties, inviting riends to sample the

berrys eect on a variety o oods.

Last February, he ordered 75 miracle

ruit berries and invited a ew dozenriends to his apartment. First, he

asked his guests to taste a wedge o

lemon and watched their aces p uck-

er up.

Taste The Magic:A Tropical Berry MakesSour Foods Taste Sweet.B k B

Absnthe Dp

26 Little W. 12th St., nr. Ninth Ave.;646-624-2444

The Dve Pal228 Thompson St., nr. W. 3rd St.;212-254-1435

Suba: Absinte Mojito109 Ludlow St., nr. Delancey St.;212-982-5714

SPoTS To SiP ABSiNTHE:

8/8/2019 Dec. 23, 2010 Issue

8/12

8Volume #1 No. 3 | Deebe 23, 2010UPPER WEST SIDE NOW

Family

In her most critically acclaimed

moment on lm, Augusta Mill-

er is in her car seat holding a

sippy cup. The opening notes

o Journeys Dont Stop Believing

play on the radio as she sits quietly,

seeming to contemplate the lyrics o

the classic 1980s rock anthem. Then

the music ades and Augusta, age 15

months, looks perplexed and a little

angry. She begins to wail and extend

her arms skyward. When the music is

turned back on, she is pacied. When

the music is cut again, she cries until

it comes back.

Its like a calm washes over her,

Augustas mom, Zoe Miller, 34, ob-

serves rom o-camera. The video is

a part o a series Miller has posted

to YouTube entitled (with tough in

cheek) My Brilliant Daughter. This

episode led to a sequel a ew months

later, when Augusta developed the

ability to sing along.

Theres no telling how many par-

ents like Miller post videos o their

inants and preschoolers on sites

such as YouTube, MySpace or AOL

Video, but its clear that tens o thou-

sands are doing it. Even as they con-

ront privacy issues, parents use the

video sites to connect with amily and

riends or share their children with

the virtual world. Truveo.com, a vid-

eo-specic search engine, has thou-

sands o videos starring young kids

in its index.

I started thinking, this will beunny or the grandparents, Miller

said recently, explaining why she put

the videos o Augusta online. While

uploading the videos, Miller used

YouTubes keyword tagging system

and soon earned the respect o Jour-

ney ans across the Internet. Peopleshe had never met were leaving com-

ments.

Your daughter is brilliant! Jour-

ney and Steve Perry ROCK!, one an

who goes by the screen name bib1956

wrote o the rst video.

At irst it kind o creeped me

out, said Miller, a computer tech-

nician. Then I thought, well, I did

it to mysel by putting those tags on

there and now I just think its kind

o unny that people have discovered

her rom all over the place. Miller,

who lives in the Midwest, is careul

never to give away her location too

specically in any o the My Brilliant

Daughter videos.

While impressive, the 600-plus

views that Millers rst Journey video

has received havent quite made it a

YouTube blockbuster. Star Wars ac-

cording to a 3 year old, the sites lat-

est viral smash to eature a toddler,

recently scored more than 4 million

views in two weeks. (In that video,

hilarity ensues when a 3-year-old girl

tries to explain the major plot points

o the rst Star Wars movie.)

Yet the majority o parents who

post on the site deal in more mun-

dane content. Videos o rst steps or

birthday parties are ar more prev-

alent than oul-mouthed toddlers

or diaper-wearing American Idol

hopeuls.

For many parents, YouTube pres-

ents a way o sharing the same

kind o home movies that amilies

o an earlier generation might have

watched together in a living room on

holidays or at reunions. The easy-to-

share videos connect with grandpar-

ents and amily members in ar away

places without chewing up e-mail

inbox space. Its a very big world

out there and were able to make it a

little smaller, said Mike Levinstein,

31, ather o 8-month-old Jonah, the

star o TheLevinsteins.com.Mike and his wie Leah use You-

Tube to host videos o their son and

his play companion, their 2-year-

old pug. The couple is living in Ohio

while Mike earns his masters in

higher education administration,

and they want to keep in touch withtheir extended amilies in Pennsylva-

nia and elsewhere.

YouTubes privacy settings allow

users to limit who is able to view their

videos by designating who can watch

or comment on them, but parents

such as the Levinsteins are comort-

able with anyone in the online com-

munity seeing their home movies.

We dont show the ront o the

house, we dont put the address out

there, Levinstein said. Weve taken

a lot o measures in our home and in

our lives to make sure that were se-

cure. I dont think that being public

is endangering him. I we ever elt

that it was we would change it im-

mediately.That view is shared by privacy ex-

perts.

I dont think we should live in

total paranoia and ear that i we put

a picture or a video o our kids on-

line, that immediately places them

in danger, said Stephen Balkam,chie executive o the Washington-

based Family Online Saety Institute.

Common sense is really whats re-

quired here. The video o the tween

or teenage kid acting out in a risky

way is ar more problematic than, say,

parents posting their 1-ear-old walk-

ing or the rst time.

Balkams institute is a member o

the Internet Saety Technical Task

Force, which launched this month as

part o an agreement struck between

MySpace and 49 state attorneys gen-

eral. It will review, among other con-cerns, identity authentication and

age-requirement enorcement on so-

cial network sites including YouTube.

Parry Atab, executive director o

WiredSaety.org, an online saety

and education group, urges parents

to use privacy settings and to be judi-

cious about the videos they post. We

just need to weigh our wanting to be

proud and showing o images o our

kids with the risks that were posing

because o sharing, she said. The

best way to do it is to control who

sees it. Look at what youre posting

beore you post it and decide you re-

ally want to make it public.

Users oten ind out how public

such videos are only ater theyve

posted.Ken Wong, 39, a web designer, has

been sharing videos o his 21-month-

old son, Joshua, on YouTube since

Joshuas birth. His riends oten

pass links to the videos onto riends,

whom Wong might not know.

When they inally meet Josh-

ua, theyre like, Oh my God! Ive

watched you since you were a little

baby. Its really cool that way, Wong

said. I didnt expect the whole viral

element.

When Joshua approaches school-

age, Wong said he may set the videosas strictly private, so that only those to

whom he has granted permission can

view them. Ultimately, parents who

post online let their comort levels dic-

tate what goes up and who sees it.

O course, it will be a ew years be-

ore the stars o these videos will be

able to give their own user eedback.

I do sort o worry that hes going to

get really mad, said Wong. At the

same time I hope he thinks its cool.

Many ecologically conscious par-

ents view the modern baby shower as

particularly wasteul, with its throw-

away git wrap and bonanza o plastic

toys headed inevitably or the landll.

In contrast, they see an eco-shower as

a simpler, homier aair, more about

good ood and conversation, and lessabout ribbons and balloons.

At these parties, parents may even

request re-gits, items that have been

handed along rom one amily to the

next. Guests present coupons or ba-

by-sitting or homemade meals and

oer handmade books illed with

sage parenting tips. Presents, perhaps

bought rom consignment stores, ar-

rive wrapped in reusable materials like

baby blankets, or not wrapped at all.

Baby, Youre a YouTube starB me l

a me e 15 vde e e ded ytbe.Coutsy: Zo Mi vi YouTub

For many parents, YouTube presents a way of sharing the same kind

of home movies that families of an earlier generation might have

watched together in a living room on holidays or at reunions.

B ke Je

There were no gits tr immed in glit-tery wrapping paper and nylon ribbon

at Susan Rosenkranzs baby shower.

There were no baby-themed paper

plates or the soon-to-be mother, no

streamers o pastel crepe paper orcakes accented with plastic rattles.

I the men and women gathered in

the glow o reusable Christmas tree

lights hadnt been plying Rosenkranz

Eco-baby Showers and her husband with gits, it mighthave seemed like just any environ-mentally conscious couples potluck

party. But there were gits: a green

wooden dragon, organic cotton re-

ceiving blankets, baby outts in pawprint and jungle motis and used chil-

drens books, to name a ew.

Ecologically minded amilies like the

Rosenkranzes want everything they

own to be as natural and earth-sustain-

ing as possible. And with low-impact

and organic goods rom ood to urni-

ture increasingly available, expectant

parents arent waiting until their babies

are born to involve them in earth-con-scious consumerism. Instead they are

updating a ritual or new parents into

one that better refects their liestyles.

Welcome to the eco-baby shower.

8/8/2019 Dec. 23, 2010 Issue

9/12

9Volume #1 No. 3 | Deebe 23, 2010 UPPER WEST SIDE NOW

Health

Rita Smith is a tness anatic and step

aerobics is her passion, so when the a-

miliar motions in class let her with an

unamiliar pain, Smith knew something was

terribly wrong.

As soon as I stepped up onto the step with my

right oot, I was in so much pain, Smith, 59, said,

but as soon as I stopped, the pain went away.

Smith tried to go on with her daily lie, going

or mile-long walks each morning, but the pain

caught up with her. Ater one particularly ex-

cruciating walk, she removed her right shoe

and took a closer look.

My oot was completely white, Smith re-

called. No blood was circulating to my ootin my shoe.

It took six months and several tests to dis-

cover what was really going on in Smiths right

oot. Peripheral arterial disease, also known as

PAD, was the culprit.

I had never heard o this disease beore,

Smith said

Like many Americans, Smith ignored the

situation because she simply thought having

trouble walking was part o getting old. And,

like many Americans with PAD, Smith was put-

ting hersel in danger o something even great-

er: the heart attacks and strokes that doctors in

recent years have ound oten ollow this symp-

tom traditionally seen as a mild inconvenience.

There are a lot o things that can cause pain

when you walk once youre older, like arthritis

and back problems, said Dr. Diane Treat-Jacob-

son, assistant proessor in the school o nursingat the University o Minnesota and author o a

recent PAD awareness study published by the

American Heart Association. Many older peo-

ple think its just another part o aging, so they

dont bother to talk to their doctors about it.

Only 25 percent o Americans are aware o

PAD, even though it is both common and dan-

gerous. Roughly nine million American men

and women are aected with the condition,

which is associated with a high risk o heart

attack and stroke.

We tend to think o coronary disease as one

primarily o men, but PAD is denitely an equal

opportunity disease, Treat-Jacobson said. Its

oten thought that more men have this type o

disease and women might think, Oh, I dont

need to worry about that.

The risk o PAD or both men and women in-

creases ater the age o 50 and or people whohave diabetes, high blood pressure or high cho-

lesterol.

Also at risk are smokers and ormer smok-

ers, like Smith: Though she quit 20 years ago,

she used to smoke heavily, going through 40

cigarettes per day.

Together with his own history o smoking,

Daniel Sullivan, 68, who has high blood pres-

sure and high cholesterol, was at high risk or

heart attack and stroke when he elt a similar

pain in his let leg our years ago.

Once a runner on his high school and college

track teams, Sullivan, o New York, ound itkind o ironic that someone who spent eight

years running as much as he did would have

leg problems today.

His gol hobby was the rst to go when Sul-

livan could no longer bear the pain he elt in

his legs when walking.

He continued to ignore it until he went out

or dinner with riends one night and had to

walk several city blocks to reach the restaurant.

I could walk about three blocks and ater

that the pain would become more severe, Sul-

livan, also a ormer smoker, said, at which

point I would either have to wait at the corner

or start limping.

Sullivans riends noticed he was lagging be-

hind, and encouraged him to see a specialist.

It turned out that PAD, a disease he too had

never heard o, was responsible or his pain,

and his doctor inserted a stent in an artery inhis let leg.

Oten, people dont even have symptoms or

the symptoms are hard to describe to doctors,

Gwen Twillman, executive director o the PAD

Coalition, based in Washington, D.C., said, and

might only maniest when the case becomes

advanced--a blister or a sore on the oot that

does not heal in our to six weeks.

This is a sign that the blood isnt getting to

your oot to heal that wound, Twillman said.

Some therapies that people with PAD can try

to control the disease and lower their risk o

heart attack or stroke include stopping smok-

ing, taking aspirin, lowering cholesterol and

taking anti-platelet medications.

In addition to the risk to heart health, simply

putting a stop to the pain was what motivated

Smith to consult with her doctor.

I used to walk a mile a day, she said, andthen I couldnt even walk to my mailbox with-

out having to stop. It was like a clamp on my

leg. It elt like a shin splint in addition to a

pulled muscle.

Walking With The Unknown

Facing a growing incidence o bacte-

rial resistance to antibiotics, pharma-

ceutical companies are struggling to

come up with new drugs to ght in-

ections. The solution may lie in one o natures

natural killers.

Phage therapy is the use o what are known

as bacteriophage, viruses that are parasites o

bacteria.

Phage attach to a target bacterial cell, punc-

turing through and entering its host. Once

inside, a phage can use its new home as a rep-

lication actory beore bursting and destroy-

ing the cell in search o new hosts. Phage can

kill bacterial cells and disinect contaminated

ood products.

Phage were discovered in the early 20th cen-

tury separately by Frederick Twort and Flix

dHrelle. DHrelle quickly realized the medi-

cal applications o this natural phenomenon,

administering phage to patients suering rom

dysentery, but his crude experiments produced

varied results. While his research was pursued

in the ormer Soviet Union, it was abandoned

by the West in the 1940s in avor o newly dis-

covered antibiotics.

Now Western companies are returning to

this eld o research armed with a better un-

derstanding o natures bacterial predators.

Intralytix Inc., a phage company based in Bal-

timore, was established in 1998 and has been aleader in phage therapy, in particular applying

this technique to decontaminate ood. In 2006,

it was the rst company to receive approval

rom the Food and Drug Administration or

a phage product. Phage International, Inc., o

Los Altos, Cali., was ounded three years ago

and is conducting research in Tibilisi, Georgia,

into bacteriophage therapy technologies.

Phage are stealth killers, said John Vazza-

na, president and chie executive o Intralytix.

Phage even can target and kill a specic species

o bacteria, even a particular strain, he added.

The Intralytix product that won FDA ap-

proval is LMP 102 and it is known to be e-

ective in combating Listeria monocytogenes,

one o the most deadly ood-borne pathogens

ound in ready-to-eat oods.

Another ood saety product developed by

Intralytix and now under review by the FDA

is eective against E. coli O157:H7, the strain

o bacteria responsible or the recent contami-

nation o spinach in the United States, Vaz-

zana said.

Phage therapy does have its limitations.

According to Dr. Caroline Westwater, rom

the Medical University o South Carolina, the

act that the majority o phage are so highly

specic about which bacterial cells they attack

can pose problems.

This means you would have to know ex-

actly what bacteria youre dealing with, unlike

with antibiotics, where you can simply admin-

ister a broad-range drug to kill a variety o bac-

teria, Westwater said.

Broad-ranging antibiotics, however, can in

some cases cause more damage by destroying

some o the good bacteria in the human body,

Westwater said.

At Phage International, the rms goal is to

promote the commercial use o phage therapy

in the Western world, said David Hodges, se-

nior vice president o Phage International. I

believe that within eight to 10 years, phage

therapy will be a part o Western medicine.

Phage International owns the Phage Thera-

py Center in Tbilisi, in the ormer Soviet Union.This acility oers treatment or people suer-

ing rom antibiotic resistant inections. The

center is very precise about screening patients

to ensure they are a compatible candidate or

treatment.

Patients will send a sample o the bacteria

to the labs in Tblisi, Hodges said. We then

check to see i we have a bacteriophage to at-

tack that type o cell.

I accepted, patients have to travel to Tbili-

si or the treatment itsel. Patients will nd

out about us through word o mouth, Hodges

said. They search on the Internet or nd out

about it rom their riends.

So is it likely that phage therapy will over-

take antibiotics in popularity?

I very much doubt that, said Vazzana, o

Intralytix. I view them as a complement to

antibiotics, not a rival.

As Infections Become ResistantTo Antibiotics, ResearchersLook To Natural-Born KillersTo Fight Diseases

B s re

B Je Fe

a ee f bee -

ed be e.

r s e be ej e fe fve v e -- e d -- e bee eed f ee -e dee. Coutsy of rit Smith

8/8/2019 Dec. 23, 2010 Issue

10/12

10Volume #1 No. 3 | Deebe 23, 2010UPPER WEST SIDE NOW

Fitness

Balle! Balle! Sarina Jain shout-

ed during a packed session at

a West Side YMCA class on

the Upper West Side on a re-

cent night, calling out the rough equivalent o

Whoo! in the Punjabi language. Nearly orty

women and one man thrusted and stomped and

jabbed the air in the exercise studio in sync to

the hit Indian pop song Jai Ho, which blasted

rom the speakers.

Feel the beat o the drums! Jain ex-

claimed through her headset. Shoulders!

Shoulders! and then Turn those lightbulbs!

as the dancers bobbed their arms and twisted

their hands in unison.

So exuberant was Jains sweat-drenched

class that the YMCA cleaning sta gathered

to watch them through the studio windows.

You may remember Jai Ho rom Slum-

dog Millionairespecically, rom the lms

high-energy train station dance sequence that

enlivens the closing credits. The movie and the

number have inspired a growing interest in

bhangra, a traditional Indian dance common

in Bollywood lms. Bhangra classes are popping

up across the U.S., where Slumdog, which

won eight Academy Awards, including Best

Picture o 2008, has grossed over $125 million.

Jain, who teaches Masala Bhangraspicy

bhangra at several gyms in Manhattan, says

some o her class sizes have doubled since the

movie was released.

When people see that scene in the movie,

Jain says, theyre like, Honey, thats what we

do in class! Thats what we do every Tuesday!

You burn over 500 calories in a 45-minute

session, she adds.

Jain, who is Indian-American, decided 10

years ago to combine tness instruction with

her native culture by creating the Masala

Bhangra workout. Shes since trademarked

the term and had her routine certied by the

Aerobics and Fitness Association o America.

The Jane Fonda o India, as Jain is known to

some, has her own line o exercise videos and

has appeared on Fit TV.

The only reason I joined the gym was or

this class, says Kristin Carey, who credits the

bhangra classes with everything rom greater

stamina on the dance foor to newly glowing

skin. I never worked out until now, but this

just makes you want to move.

For me, its the music, says Carine Desir,

who upgraded her gym membership so shecould take Masala Bhangra. Youre eeling the

drums. You let it lead you. Ater my rst class, I

said, oh my God, that was awesome.

The trend is spreading to some unlikely cor-

ners. At Springstep, a dance and music studio in

Medord, Mass.s, the bhangra class lled past

capacity or the rst time this year, according

to programs manager Allie Fiske.

Right now everything related to India is

on the top because o Slumdog Millionaire,

says Mary Pirela, a tness instructor in Min-

neapolis. Pirela has arranged or Jain, who has

certied Masala Bhangra instructors rom Ma-

plewood, Minn., to Elk Grove, Cali., to fy in

to give a master class in April and certiy local

instructors.

Pete McCall, an exercise physiologist with the

American Council on Exercise, says bhangras

dierent jumps and s ide-to-side movementsmake it an eective and relatively low-impact

orm o training. He likens the cardiovascular

benets to running on a treadmill at a moderate

pace, with a lower risk o repetitive strain in-

juries. Its a great way to train the entire body

at one time, he says.

Bhangra music and dance originate in Pun-

jab, a diverse state in the northwest o India,

below Kashmir, that was divided between India

and Pakistan when the two countries were par-

titioned. Farmers there once celebrated harvests

by dancing in the elds to the syncopated beats

o a dhol drum and the repetitive plucking o

the tumbi, a stringed instrument.

The distinctive sound has seeped into Ameri-

can popular music, especially hip-hop. Rapper

Missy Elliott sampled bhangra beats in her song

Get Ur Freak On, as did Jay-Z in Beware othe Boys. Jay-Z recorded a remix o the song

with Indian musician Punjabi MC.

I have been so emotionalin a good way

and proud and amazed by how this movie has

rejuvenated the appreciation or Indian cul-

ture, Sarina Jain says.

Renu Kansal, an Indian-American dance in-

structor in Denver, wasnt sure i this appre-

ciation had gone mainstream when she added

three new bhangra classes to her roster last

October. Colorado, she says, is not exactly the

teeming hotbed o the Indian community.

But one class illed up so quickly she had to

nd a larger studio space. Kansal plans to s tart

bhangra classes or children.

People get the hang o the steps really eas-

ily, Kansal says. You eel very quickly on

that youre good at it. Theres no baseline t-

ness level required or bhangra, something shethinks will contribute to its appeal and stay-

ing power.

I mean, gigantic, hairy Punjabi men do it,

she says. So basically, anyone can.

Bollywood OnThe Upper West Side:

B a B w

te -ee be e e e ed f sd me ed -ee e Bd-e d, d b.s J e m B de e ne y ve bee fe e f sd me. Photo by Marie Claire Andrea

Slumdg Dance is Nw A Ftness Caze

You burn over 500 calories in a 45-minute session

8/8/2019 Dec. 23, 2010 Issue

11/12

11Volume #1 No. 3 | Deebe 23, 2010 UPPER WEST SIDE NOW

Classieds

THE TIME To BUY

IN PUERTo RICo IS NoW!Berquiz Realty

787-396-7200

www.berquizrealty.com

Americas First Espress BarFERRARA BAkERY & CAF

195 Grand St.

212-226-6150

www.ferracafe.com

WAREHoUSE WINES & SPIRITS735 Broadway

212-982-7770

ZEN SUSHIFree delivery

www.zensushinyc.com

212-533-6855

BRoADWAY PANHANDLERA Cs Best Resurce

65 E. 8th St.

212-966-3434

CARLoS oLIVEIRA SoCCERCAMP IN NYC

Join us on our tenth anniversary

and dont miss the un!

www.cosaacademy.com

917-532-3512

UNUSUAL WEDDING RINGSCall 212-944-1713

www.unusualweddingrings.com

PERSoNAL STYLING

FoR MEN!FREE consultation!

Our services include grooming and

personal shopping.

www.gentlemansimage.com

GoTHAM WRITERSWoRkSHoP

Live & online classes in ction,

screen, memoir and more.

212-WRITERS, www.write.org

ADAM WEST SALoNGRAND oPENING!

Hip and cl new saln with tpntch stylists.

103 W. 10th St. 212-243-9393.

RoCk GUITARFoR BEGINNERS

All ages. $40 per hour.

David 212-757-6527

WE BUY VINYL LPRECoRD CoLLECTIoNS

Call 212-591-2105

NEED RADIo AIRPLAY?NRP=323-658-7449

lweir@larryweir.com

Als prmting hliday music.

AIRPoRT CAR SERVICECall 631-831-9015

NANNIES, BABY NURSES,HoUSEkEEPERS, HoME

HEALTH AIDSLive in/out. Ft/pt, licensed/bonded.

Prince Agency. 516-482-7467

UNDERCoVER SHoPPERSGET PAID To SHoP.

Retail/ dining establishments need

undercover clients to judge quality

and customer service. Earn up to

$150 per day. Call 800-722-6351.

70S WEST ELEVAToRBRoWNSToNE.Gorgeous dened!

Big one-bedroom, high ceilings,

storage. Sunny, extra lot. $2290.

NYC Apts. Terry. 516-244-6741.

71ST STREET, BRoADWAY.BRoWNSToNE.

Oversized studio $2050.

Hartdiamond.com

212-725-2225

76TH STREET WEST TRUECLASSIC BRoWNSToNE

Large, with replace,

exposed brick. $2,000.

Sunny, one block to Central Park.

917-887-6944. NYC Apts.

70S WEST.A STAR oN BRoADWAY!

Art deco-gut renovation.

Studio, elevator wow!

$1675 NYCA

212-228-5656 Lucky

BED 3 BATH IN SUPERBLINCoLN CENTER

NEIGHBoRHooD!!!Price: $5,795.00

Grgeus apartment lcated inthe heart Manhattans

Upper West Side.Sandwhiched between the Hudson

River and Central Park, you are

perectly situated to take advantage

o all that the neighborhood has to

oer. You can catch a perormance

at Lincoln Center, grab a bite at one

o the antastic restaurants in the

area or get some gourmet groceries

at Trader Joes or the Gourmet

Garage. Catch a movie or shop at

The Shoppes at Columbus Circle.

Not to mention you are minutes

rom the 1,2, and 3 trains getting

you anywhere you need to go.

Along with a spectacular

neighborhood, the apartment

eatures all o the amenities us city

dwellers are looking or: drman,elevatr, dishwasher, privatebalcny, laundry in unit, andstainless itchen appliances!Schedule an appointment today!

Contact Lauren at 212 203 6013

or Lcessario@tregny.com or Justin

Hieggelke at 917 291 0423 or

Jhieggelke@tregny.com

GoRGEoUS HIGH FLooRCoNVERTIBLE 4 BEDRooM

APARTMENTPrice: $8,700.00

Size: 3 Bedroom

Location: Upper West Side

Blg Amenities: Roo

Deck,Pool,Health Club,Bicycle Room

When you walk in the door,

youll eel at home. This spacious

apartment is, indeed, a home.

Corner unit eatures amazing views,

lots o light, and lots o room.

Windowed kitchen eatures

stainless steel appliances and black

granite countertops.

Marble bathrooms, lots o windows,

and gleaming hardwood foors are

just a part o the reason youll want

to call this home. Located at 87th

and Broadway, this building truly

epitomizes the UWS.

See this today!

Call Justin Hieggelke at (917) 291-

0423 - jhieggelke@tregny.com

or

Lauren Cessario at (212) 203-6013 -

lcessario@tregny.com

$1,229,000, 2br, Luxury at the Soa

RoMANo REALTYPaul Relyea

Work: 917-769-8217

Business: 718-833-1627

Cell: 917-769-8217

Address: NYC 43 West 61st Street in

Lincoln Square Type: Condominium

Style: Apartment Bedrooms: 2

Bathrooms: 2 Suite: Yes Living Area:

1,180 square eet Year Built: 1930

This beautiul and spacious two

bedroom condominium unit eatures

a modern kitchen, two bathrooms

with marble and granite, hardwood

foors, nice size closets, 1,180 square

eet o living space and sunlight with

a southern and western view o the

City. This condominium unit is only

two blocks rom Lincoln Center,

two blocks rom Columbus Circle,

and two blocks rom Central Park.

Always something to do here in this

great city.

The Soa Condominium is a ull

service Art Deco Luxury Building

with excellent security and 24 hour

doorman service.

ADVErTiSE iN THE UPPER WEST SIDE NOWCLASSiFiEDS

Reasonable rates, great local exposure

Email: uwsnow@gmail.com

8/8/2019 Dec. 23, 2010 Issue

12/12

30% OFF*

Wysong Epigen

60% Meat, Starch-Free Dry Dog Food

healthy dog deal

*Valid Dec 21, 2010 until Jan 4, 2011

30% OFF*

Wysong Epigen

60% Meat, Starch-Free Dry Cat Food

healthy Cat CoUPoN

*Valid Dec 21, 2010 until Jan 4, 2011

Coupon#C1210

Coupon#D1210