Good morning. I’ve been out to check the streets this morning — and I am reporting that it’s pretty impassable without a good pair of wellies and some nimble footwork.
Here are the photos to prove it. There’s never been a better day to WFH!
Shkumbin ‘Bini’ Mustafa came to New York in 1999, as an ethnic Albanian Muslim refugee from Kosovo. He had heard from a friend that the United States would allow in 20,000 immigrants seeking escape from war-torn Yugoslavia. “So I said, you know what? I always wanted to come to New York. I can’t go back home — I’ll just come in and try to see if I can make a better life,” said Bini. “I packed my small bag with a tennis racquet, a pair of jeans and 2 T-shirts. Hey, I’m going to New York.”
Bini ended up making his new life in Hell’s Kitchen. He’s connected with the community through a combination of tennis, his family, his love of the Olympic team sport Handball — which he describes as “either water polo without water, lacrosse without the sticks, or soccer with your hands” — and his branding agency, 47AND10. Here’s his West Side Story…
What we’ve been reading
QR Codes — from 1994 to now… (New York Times)
Local barber gives free trims to LGBTQ homeless youth. (Eyewitness News)
Nextdoor might go public — for a reported $5bn. (One Zero)
Some good news for the city’s street vendors. (Grub Street)
How WFH could bring about the demise of cities as we know them. (The Atlantic)
Freeze Frame
Anyone who has driven (or owns) a car in New York City knows that there is little beauty in parking! Kelly McCann managed to give NYC parking a touch of romance yesterday. Great shot 📸