Yay, We Won!!

Yay, We Won!!
Now Where's My Carrot??

Thursday, September 25, 2008

NYC's Very Own Pinocchio

Sorry to intrude on this fine soft evening with unpleasantness, but the simple truth is that our on-going fight with Councilmember Tony Avella (flanked by his coterie of conspirators and his ever-present sidekick band of slavering minions, of course), is being kicked into high gear here in dear old New York.

In a post this coming weekend, I'll be getting into the particulars of the latest salvos fired at our lovely little business (and also divulging a few very interesting tidbits of some of our detractors' behind-the-scenes shenanigans that we have recently uncovered!)

But until then, here is a list of the oft-repeated lies that are making Mr. Avella's nose very long indeed:

TONY AVELLA AND HIS LIST OF LIES

LIE:
"Other major cities across the planet have banned horse drawn carriages."
-Tony Avella, The Brian Lehrer Show 12/11/2007
TRUTH:
The fact is that there are horse drawn carriages in nearly EVERY major city in both the US and Europe.

LIE:
"The horses are forced to walk several miles back to their stables at the end of the day."
-Tony Avella, The Brian Lehrer Show 12/11/2007
TRUTH:
NO carriage stable is further than 1 1/2 mile from the park, and two of them 1/2 mile.

LIE:
"The horses are worked in illegal temperatures."
-Tony Avella, The Brian Lehrer Show 12/11/2007
TRUTH:
The horses are not allowed to work below 18F or above 89F, and there have been NO summonses issued in violation of these laws by any agency in the last 14 years.

LIE:
"The horses are kept in narrow stalls."
-Tony Avella, The Brian Lehrer Show 12/11/2007
TRUTH:
EACH AND EVERY carriage horse is housed in a BOX STALL (unlike some riding horses and police horses in the city, which are kept in "straight" stalls.)

LIE:
"The horses ...are improperly fed"
-Tony Avella, The Brian Lehrer Show 12/11/2007
TRUTH:
EVERY carriage horse receives a high quality diet of oats/sweetfeed/pellets and hay. NO tickets have EVER been given by any agency for "improper feeding".

LIE:
"There is only one water basin at Central Park."
-Tony Avella, The Brian Lehrer Show 12/11/2007
TRUTH:
There are TWO horse troughs with a constantly running spigot at Central Park, and EVERY carriage originating its ride anywhere on 59th Street passes EACH one on EACH ride.

LIE:
"The horses are not properly watered."
-Tony Avella, The Brian Lehrer Show 12/11/2007
TRUTH:
NO diagnosis or summonses have EVER been given for dehydration. A horse that is "not properly watered" would soon sicken and die from complications of dehydration, like any mammal.
NO HORSE has ever died from dehyration.

LIES, LIES, LIES
So -how's the ole schnoz, there, Tony?
(And wouldn't a wooden nose be attached to a wooden head? LOL)

Soon Mr. Avella might be needing some help lugging that growing nose around - yanno, for when he's busily bustling around, sticking it in other people's business.

Maybe the Coalition to Ban Horse Drawn Carriages will buy a nice wheelbarrow for Tony's nose with all that $$$ they make from those fundraisers!

(What DO they do with all that moolah, anyways?)

Sunday, September 14, 2008

Autumn in New York

You can feel it coming into its own.

And there is no better time to ride in - or drive! - a carriage.

Yes, yes - there are those who will disagree. While 'tis true devotees will sing the praises of a horse-drawn carriage ride through Central Park in the Spring (enchanting, no doubt), Summer (lazy and languid, for certain), and Winter (bracing and cozy, to be sure), it is the magnificent Autumn that I enjoy most each year.

Firstly, Central Park is unlike any other landscape anywhere in America. The trees to be found here are an amazing mix of specimens, both native and foreign. Trees indigenous to Europe and Asia can be found everywhere among the native American species. One can see a stately and rare stand of American Elms within sight of the fuzzy and cute Japanese Red Pine; a European Beech with it's cookie-cutter cartoon leaves just a stone's throw from the tear-drop outline of the a Bald Cypress.

As one can easily imagine, this international, hodgepodge canopy of Central Park in Autumn becomes a delicious swirl of surprises for the casual observer - an unintentional botanical representation of NYC itself!

Then of course, there's the carriage horse in Autumn.

The carriage horse in Autumn resembles somewhat the carriage horse in Spring. That light, cool wind playing under his belly gives a little extra frisk, a little lightness in the feet. But, instead of the shedding out of Spring, the coat is getting it's first bloom of that fuzziness that precedes the winter growth. Perhaps the horse will have a little extra appetite; the doldrums of hot, heavy-aired days isn't conducive to big eating. The horse will stick his nose in his feed with a little more gusto this time of year, to help him along to his 'winter weight'.

Autumn in NYC is short and sweet. People who experience it with a carriage ride make the most out of this fleeting time, and see it in a way unlike any other.