Mad Mama's early Manhattan life

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We started the day by taking the subway and buses to Madison Ave and 90th St, where my father's sister Bessie, whom I called Noni, and her husband, Uncle Spiro, lived when they owned the Lyric restaurant. My father bartended at the Lyric for many years when I was a kid. I loved my Noni with all my heart, and spent as much time with her as I could. We walked by the house and identified the apartment's windows. They lived in two different apartments in that building, I think, but if memory serves, the first one faced 90th St. My parents must have met in that apartment when my mother was babysitting my Noni's boys, and my father was home on leave from the Navy visiting his sister. She was only about 15, and he was 20, so it would have been an issue for the adults around them.

We walked to where the Lyric used to be on Lexington Ave near 77th St. It's no longer there, but there's a diner called Soupburg, and I ate the best hamburger of my life. Gracie had a veggieburger that was as big around as a saucer, and a chocolate egg cream. A number of staff came in from Lenox Hill Hospital across the street, where I had my tonsils out. Because of its proximity to the Lyric, my father knew all the Lenox Hill doctors and nurses of 50+ years ago, at least the ones who drank.

Moving down Lex we stopped in at St. Jean Baptiste church. It's apparently still has a girls-only HS. The teens coming from the school were very mature in demeanor, at least compared to the rowdier Queens and Brooklyn kids of my youth. The church itself is fabulous in its gorgeousness, inside and out.

We passed Hunter College, the first college I attended, and went east on 68th in search of St. Catherine of Siena church, a parish my mother belonged to as a child. It was lovely. I imagined my mother as a little girl walking up to Communion. I "lit" a candle in her memory -- again, it was just pressing a button -- but it looked pretty anyway.

We took the 2nd Ave bus down to 59th St, and took the Steinway bus home because of the great views from the 59th St bridge. Exiting the bus at Broadway, we visited the Steinway branch of the Queens Public Library. I remember being super-excited when it opened in its new building in 1956. The old library was in a storefront on Steinway between Broadway and 34th Ave, and it was small and dark. I got my first library card the old library in 1953, at 4 years old. The new library was bright, modern, and much larger. It's still a vibrant community center, with ESL classes in the basement and books on the shelves in different languages.

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Comments

[atty]

Great pics, great food
Wish I was there, you two, I really do. The photos you've taken so far are wonderful. I wish I could be there to chow down with you but, alas, it is not to be. Besides, someone had to stay home and prevent the cats from eating Charlie while he slept. I'll keep watching for updates...please keep writing about food ;^)

[Seanzo]

As Your Loyal Travelblog Followers...
We need to see PICTURES of food.

[Mad Mama]

Pics of food
GREAT idea! Those Seaside Cheese Fries were as beautiful as anything on MOMA's walls.

[Renee A/]

Reads like a movie
Mary, I like this website. Reading this takes me right there with you. The photos are great and that little video was great. Thank you for sharing yourself with me. I feel privileged. I started at the newest entry and then went back to the beginning. You are truly amazing and I look forward to the rest and more. Love, Renee