Soudgarden is the best record store in the city. hands down. They have a great selection and great prices.
Ever wonder why?
It's because it's all stolen property. I suppose they actually pay wholesale for some of it, but mostly it's just stolen.
Junkies and hustlers steal from Barnes and noble, take the prices off and sell stacks of the latest CDs and movies to soundgarden at $2 per each. The rest comes in shipments from the other store in Syracuse, which ships stolen CDs and DVDs to the baltimore store on a regular basis. A $2 CD + 400% markup is $9.99 - the standard price for a CD in the store.
It's great - the product is in perfect condition. Every once in a while they even forget to take off the B&N label, and it still costs half of what you would pay for the product from a real retailer.
Surprised - You can always go to fletchers (which Brian also owns) and buy cocaine from the guy working the door.
I'm a pretty god hustler myself - I've gotten over more times then most, but at some point people like me should go to jail. The problem with baltimore is that if you put us all in jail, there wouldn't be anyone left.
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
The Fells Point Hysterical Society
45 years ago, the Fells Point Preservation Society was created to prevent interstate 95 from wiping out the neighborhood. In the end, I-95 was routed under the harbor ($40M under budget no less), Fells Point was saved and one day James Rouse decided to build a mall on the harbor front and the Baltimore Inner Harbor was born. Not bad for a bunch of plucky locals.
Today, the FPPS is still very active. From their website:
$ They sell booths for the Fells Point Festival, an annual event that typically draws 700,000 people.
$ They host a monthly flea market where, for a fee, you can sell your stuff in the public square.
$ They sell tours for tourists where you can hear some of the most outrageous lies ever told for $10.
$ They manage the Historic House Tour where, for $10, you can look into other peoples houses. (The people with the houses are not paid)
$ They deny tax credits to people who are trying to rehab their homes
$ They sell lectures, christmas ornaments, postcards and historic kitsch (made in china)
$ If you don't like any of these things, they also take donations.
In short, they collect money. A lot of money. For $50,000 you can be a supporting sponsor of the festival. If you're short on cash, you can get a 10x10 foot space for $5,000, according to the sponsorship package. Not to worry, though, because the money gets spent on, well, nothing.
A quick look at the FPPS web site lists dozens of ways that your dollars can contribute to the cause, but precious little in accomplishments. They have been active in keeping the mexicans above fleet street and being a general pain in the ass but otherwise I couldn't find a single reference to a recent accomplishment or even a project in progress, save the current fund raiser.
True, 10 years ago they agreed to stop protesting the destruction of the old Ruckert Marine Terminal in exchange for being able to buy the Historic London coffee house for $1. The result? The evil developers who tore down the historic building built this while the London Coffee House fell into such disrepair that it became structurally unstable. Fortunately the FPPS was awarded a $200,000 grant to remodel it in 2000 and we expect construction to start any day now.
Well, there is always the St Stans demonstrations.
Today, the FPPS is still very active. From their website:
$ They sell booths for the Fells Point Festival, an annual event that typically draws 700,000 people.
$ They host a monthly flea market where, for a fee, you can sell your stuff in the public square.
$ They sell tours for tourists where you can hear some of the most outrageous lies ever told for $10.
$ They manage the Historic House Tour where, for $10, you can look into other peoples houses. (The people with the houses are not paid)
$ They deny tax credits to people who are trying to rehab their homes
$ They sell lectures, christmas ornaments, postcards and historic kitsch (made in china)
$ If you don't like any of these things, they also take donations.
In short, they collect money. A lot of money. For $50,000 you can be a supporting sponsor of the festival. If you're short on cash, you can get a 10x10 foot space for $5,000, according to the sponsorship package. Not to worry, though, because the money gets spent on, well, nothing.
A quick look at the FPPS web site lists dozens of ways that your dollars can contribute to the cause, but precious little in accomplishments. They have been active in keeping the mexicans above fleet street and being a general pain in the ass but otherwise I couldn't find a single reference to a recent accomplishment or even a project in progress, save the current fund raiser.
True, 10 years ago they agreed to stop protesting the destruction of the old Ruckert Marine Terminal in exchange for being able to buy the Historic London coffee house for $1. The result? The evil developers who tore down the historic building built this while the London Coffee House fell into such disrepair that it became structurally unstable. Fortunately the FPPS was awarded a $200,000 grant to remodel it in 2000 and we expect construction to start any day now.
Well, there is always the St Stans demonstrations.
That mysterious odor? It's Smug.
A classic case in point is the fate of St. Stanislaus Church.
St Stans is a reasonably impressive roman catholic church that once served the polish community in Fells Point and Canton. I'm a big fan of cathedrals myself, and this one's ok but nothing to get too excited about. It doesn't help that it's surrounded by a series of dormitories that can only be described as eyesores.
The polish community pretty much evaporated about 50 years ago, the church closed completely in 2000 and I guarantee that nobody from this neighborhood has ever been inside of it or even gave it much thought until recently.
But now somebody wants to tear it down and build something else, so enter the nut jobs. Katy Greene Davis wrote an impassioned letter to save the church. In the spirit of Orly Taitz, Katy and her ilk have organized protests, passed around petitions and gotten letters published the paper (The City Paper has a policy of printing every letter that they get). From the rhetoric, you would think that there were little children trapped inside. The best part was when they rented a boat and sailed back and forth in the harbor annoying everyone by screaming slogans through a microphone.
The church is empty. There are no parishioners. Mother Seton Academy relocated to a facility 3 blocks away. The last time a Franciscan frier was ordained there was in the early 1970s. The protestors want to turn it into a museum that no one would visit paid for by anybody but them, all in order to save a piece of history that they never cared about until now. This is why people hate liberals.
Did I mention the blog? It's a testimonial to their commitment that it has all of three posts. I guess protesting outdoor tables at the local coffee shop sucked up all their time.
Meet the loons. One the left we have Fells Point Preservation Society which was once described by a city zoning official as an "Openly Racist Organization" and on the other the Fells Point Homeowners Association (and Katy Greene Davis) who would be truly terrifying if they actually had any authority. I guess you don't have to live in San Francisco to love the smell of your own farts but San Francisco is prettier.
For a fairly balanced article about the whole sorid mess, go Here.
St Stans is a reasonably impressive roman catholic church that once served the polish community in Fells Point and Canton. I'm a big fan of cathedrals myself, and this one's ok but nothing to get too excited about. It doesn't help that it's surrounded by a series of dormitories that can only be described as eyesores.
The polish community pretty much evaporated about 50 years ago, the church closed completely in 2000 and I guarantee that nobody from this neighborhood has ever been inside of it or even gave it much thought until recently.
But now somebody wants to tear it down and build something else, so enter the nut jobs. Katy Greene Davis wrote an impassioned letter to save the church. In the spirit of Orly Taitz, Katy and her ilk have organized protests, passed around petitions and gotten letters published the paper (The City Paper has a policy of printing every letter that they get). From the rhetoric, you would think that there were little children trapped inside. The best part was when they rented a boat and sailed back and forth in the harbor annoying everyone by screaming slogans through a microphone.
The church is empty. There are no parishioners. Mother Seton Academy relocated to a facility 3 blocks away. The last time a Franciscan frier was ordained there was in the early 1970s. The protestors want to turn it into a museum that no one would visit paid for by anybody but them, all in order to save a piece of history that they never cared about until now. This is why people hate liberals.
Did I mention the blog? It's a testimonial to their commitment that it has all of three posts. I guess protesting outdoor tables at the local coffee shop sucked up all their time.
Meet the loons. One the left we have Fells Point Preservation Society which was once described by a city zoning official as an "Openly Racist Organization" and on the other the Fells Point Homeowners Association (and Katy Greene Davis) who would be truly terrifying if they actually had any authority. I guess you don't have to live in San Francisco to love the smell of your own farts but San Francisco is prettier.
For a fairly balanced article about the whole sorid mess, go Here.
Monday, October 26, 2009
Welcome to the Fells Point Blog
Many words have been written about Fells Point. it's a picturesque community and entertainment district with a colorful historical going back 300 years. People will tell you that Edgar Allen Poe died here (that's a known lie, but they still say it). It has low crime (Only 5 shooting deaths this year, the other 5 shooting victims lived).
It was the home of hippies, beatniks and artists until the yuppies and the real estate prices drove them all out and it morphed into a place for affluent white people and the people who cater to them. The good part is that you can get some really good beer. The bad part is that the residents tend to really suck.
You can see an interesting history of fells point here
http://www.fellspointoutoftime.us/. My suggestion would be to skip the film and just read the transcript of the interview with Steve Bunker interview with Steve Bunker. He does a nice job of explaining how a great neighborhood turns to shit.
There are, fortunately, still havens for deviants. Broadway hosts a wonderful little strip of two bars, Rodos and Mobys, next to a remarkably good pizza place called Hot Tomatos. They're easy to find because of the constant police presence whenever they're open. It's always been a given that the police in Fells Point won't get involved unless there's an ambo involved but those bars get special treatment. Probably because they play a lot of baltimore club music and cater to black people.
Contrast that with the now defunct Fletchers, where underage drinking was rampant and you buy cocaine from the staff.
David Lynch showed that evil lives in the water pipes. Fells Point is next to the Baltimore Harbor - need I say more?
We'll get to the details of that in time, but there's a lot of material to cover.
It was the home of hippies, beatniks and artists until the yuppies and the real estate prices drove them all out and it morphed into a place for affluent white people and the people who cater to them. The good part is that you can get some really good beer. The bad part is that the residents tend to really suck.
You can see an interesting history of fells point here
http://www.fellspointoutoftime.us/. My suggestion would be to skip the film and just read the transcript of the interview with Steve Bunker interview with Steve Bunker. He does a nice job of explaining how a great neighborhood turns to shit.
There are, fortunately, still havens for deviants. Broadway hosts a wonderful little strip of two bars, Rodos and Mobys, next to a remarkably good pizza place called Hot Tomatos. They're easy to find because of the constant police presence whenever they're open. It's always been a given that the police in Fells Point won't get involved unless there's an ambo involved but those bars get special treatment. Probably because they play a lot of baltimore club music and cater to black people.
Contrast that with the now defunct Fletchers, where underage drinking was rampant and you buy cocaine from the staff.
David Lynch showed that evil lives in the water pipes. Fells Point is next to the Baltimore Harbor - need I say more?
We'll get to the details of that in time, but there's a lot of material to cover.
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