The Long Island Blog

It’s been a while since I’ve posted here in the Long Island Blog. I like to keep the blog fresh with good material that I think other people would enjoy reading and that’s usually pretty easy when you write about Long Island.

However…

In October one of my children’s friends was killed—murdered senselessly in a drive-by shooting—and that knocked the wind out of my sails.

She wasn’t the target. With bullets flying everywhere, everyone was the target. Several people were hit; she’s the only one that died.

I barely knew Danielle, but she was my son’s best friend and very close with my daughter. There’s still a message from Danielle on our answering machine. My kids were devastated. I can only imagine how her family must feel.

As for me, I don’t know. Something like this makes one question everything, and there’s not a religion or philosophical tenet that can answer the big question that everyone asks: why?

How can someone born with every gift, who meant so much to so many, perish under such senseless circumstances? There’s no resolution here. Time will numb the pain and reveal the silver lining, if there is one, but the damage is done and there will always be scars.

So how does one cope? I tell my kids to remember and honor Danielle by living the kind of life she would have wanted for them. Don’t be depressed, just get up and go the same way she used to.

Because if you don’t, then you become another victim of this utterly senseless crime.

It was reported in yesterday’s Newsday that Donald Trump and Steve Carl (of Carlyle on the Green in Bethpage) will be opening a new restaurant at Jones Beach to replace the old Boardwalk Restaurant which closed down years ago and was recently demolished.

Donald Trump on Long Island? I’m not sure I like the idea…

Pros:

Anything built by Trump is top notch. This won’t be a half-baked sham or under funded project.

Plans call for a 36,000-square-foot facility on 6 acres, which could handle groups up to 1,400 people. In addition to the restaurant the three story building will also house a nightclub.

According to Mr. Trump, “When it’s finished, there will be nothing like it anywhere in the world.” Of course…

The facility will be open year round and includes an outdoor dining facility for beachgoers.

Cons:

Probably not too much in the con section. Anything is better than what was there.

My only concern is that the facility will be “marketed towards an affluent clientele,” not the everyday guy like you and me. According to Trump and Carl however, it will be accessible to “those who aren’t Rockefellers.”

Is it just me or does that not sound encouraging?

Jones Beach was built for the masses and I think that tradition should be observed. To plop down a haven for the affluent in the middle of it seems just plain wrong.

Most Long Islanders work pretty darn hard for a living and places like Jones Beach offer a great escape from the week’s BS. I don’t know about you, but the last thing I want when I’m relaxing is a reminder of how not rich I am.

Well, the place isn’t even built yet so maybe I’m overreacting. We’ll see.

Back on the Pro side, Donald Trump is against the LIPA proposed wind farm. Good man, Donald! Although he’s against it purely for aesthetic reasons I’m still glad he’s against it.

Tangent

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In my opinion the wind farm is a bad idea. It’s going to cost us a fortune to build and is not going to save us ratepayers a single cent.

Not only will it ruin the view all along Long Island’s south shore, but you’ll hear it as well. That’s right, the windmills make noise.

For a preview of how bad this is going to look check out these pictures on the LIPA Offshore Wind Park website. Click on each link below and when the picture opens scroll back and forth a dramatic panoramic view.

Jones Beach | Cedar Beach | Gilgo Beach | Robert Moses

Then read this eye opening article opposing the LIPA Wind Farm by Long Island resident, Richard Moore.

(Note: the links non longer work, so they were removed)

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Construction of Trump by the Ocean is scheduled to start this year with a completion date sometime in 2008.

Regardless of the targeted clientele, this project is a much needed improvement to Jones Beach. I just hope it’s not so pricey we can’t even afford an anniversary or birthday dinner.

Yes! This is what I had hoped for.

ABC canceled One Ocean View last week due to lack of interest.

My concern all along had been for the welfare of Fire Island. Myself and many others worried that One Ocean View would bring the wrong kind of attention to the Island and possibly create a huge invasion of tourists.

I don’t think we have to worry about that any longer. Apparently, everyone who watched One Ocean View either hated it, or was bored to tears.

The number of viewers dropped by almost 22% to 2.82 million for the second episode prompting ABC to leave remaining episodes unscheduled.

So what did we miss in the canceled episodes? Not much. Here’s a summary gleaned from some ABC press releases:

• Heather fights with John because he won’t hold her hand in public.

• After a great night in bed Anelka takes Usman on a date. Usman attempts to assert his dominance by ordering her dinner for her.

• Heather and John makeup.

• Heather and John fight again when she accuses him of avoiding her.

• John and Usman drop their current interests when two new girls, Lallie and Carisa show up at One Ocean View.

• John is so interested in Carisa that Heather freaks out and cuts her weekend short.

• Usman and Mary fight when Usman reports seeing Mary’s new boyfriend kissing another women.

As I said, we didn’t miss much.

In my previous post on this topic I worried about One Ocean View ruining Fire Island. After watching the first two episodes I don’t think that’s possible.

One Ocean View is so bad I don’t think anyone is wasting their time watching it. The only interesting thing about this show (from a man’s perspective anyway) are the bikini shots.

But that’s not enough to keep me watching. Nor am I interested in the messed up dynamics of the housemates, Lauren and Zack in particular.

The two of them need a good kick in the @ss. Lauren for manipulating and emasculating Zack, and Zack for allowing it because he doesn’t want to hurt her. Come on!

Usman, on the other hand, is shaping up to be a halfway decent guy. Conceited, yes, but not nearly as self centered as he seemed in the first episode. I think, as One Ocean View plays out, he’ll be the one cast member who keeps his head together when everyone else is losing theirs.

Anelka, a recent addition to the One Ocean View zoo, slept with Usman the first night of her stay. She’s on the bottom of my list along with Lauren the manipulator. Not that Anelka has done anything particularly wrong; I just don’t like her attitude towards romance, relationships and sex.

I’m warming up to the twins, Miki and Radha. They’re cuter than cute, educated and successful, I luv the way they toss a soccer ball around. I could watch them play all day long. So far they’ve kept their act pretty clean on Once Ocean View and I’m hoping they keep it that way.

My personal favorite resident is Mary, a handbag designer. Mary is not overly/artificially attractive and from what I’ve seen so far appears sincere and wholesome. If I was on One Ocean View she’d be my first pick for a summer romance.

I wont pass judgment on the rest of the cast until I’ve seen more of them, although I can tell Heather, the playboy model, will be on my sh!t list real soon.

So why do I watch this show? I’m only watching One Ocean View because it was filmed on Fire Island and I’m concerned about the impact it might have on this beautiful Long Island treasure.

I hate reality TV and unless ABC decides to film another season, this will be the last reality show I watch.

One Ocean View, ABC’s latest reality TV show premiers tonight. Ugh…

What’s the big deal? Why do I, the one who doesn’t even watch TV, care?

One Ocean View, in case you don’t already know, was filmed this summer in Ocean Beach, Fire Island.

If you know Fire Island at all you know that hosting a reality TV show is the last thing Fire Island would wish upon itself.

If you don’t know Fire Island, let me explain…

Fire Island is Long Island’s best kept secret and most of us would like to keep it that way. Just a few miles across the Great South Bay, Fire Island offers 32 miles of pristine beaches, shops restaurants, summer cottages, small marinas, and a charming old lighthouse.

Local residents, summer renters, and regular visitors all love Fire Island for the tranquil, unpretentious escape it affords us.

Once Ocean View will bring undue attention to Fire Island. While that’s great for the business owners it’s not so good for the rest of us or the Island itself.

I’m not necessarily worried about crowds, but crowds that don’t care. Imagine hordes of people who know nothing about Fire Island coming over and treating it like the mall parking lot. That’s what I’m afraid of.

Once Ocean View will probably misrepresent Fire Island. Fire Island is already victim enough of misunderstanding. “It’s gay” is the most common myth and today’s Newsday article, Ocean View is same old by Verne Gay is case in point.

Writing for “Long Island’s hometown newspaper,” Verne carries on the myth by suggesting that since this is Fire Island there’s a chance of “guy getting guy” on the show.

There are two gay towns on Fire Island, Cherry Grove and Fire Island Pines. Ocean Beach isn’t one of them and the chances of a gay relationship happening in Ocean Beach are the same as anywhere else, not higher because it’s on Fire Island.

But, gay romance is not the misconception I’m concerned about from One Ocean View. One Ocean View is about a bunch of very attractive, very successful twenty-somethings living it up on the beach.

The Fire Island lifestyle? It’s not like that and I don’t want people watching One Ocean View to think that’s what it’s all about. Sure, there are rich people on Fire Island, but they wear old jeans and torn up boat shoes just like the rest of us.

And that’s how I want it to stay. You want fancy, go to the Hamptons, but don’t try to turn Fire Island into the Hamptons. Just leave it alone.

And that’s what I think One Ocean View should have done in the first place—left us alone. Fire Island is a fragile place. And now, it’s not only the beaches that are subject to erosion, but the very essence of Fire Island itself.

Maybe One Ocean View will stink and all this unwanted publicity will just go away.

We’ll know in six weeks.