What’s Your Favorite Corner?

The first time I came to this neighborhood, I parked on Cortelyou Road after driving up from Coney Island Avenue. Heading back, I drove down Westminster and got to the stop sign at Dorchester, and I saw the thing that so impresses visitors when they see it for the first time: the stretch of big, old trees and individual wood-framed houses as far as you can see.

Now that I live here, I walk past that corner almost every day, and it feels the same every single time. It’s something so special, and it’s unique within New York City. But what I’ve learned, what you can only learn from living here, is that the beauty of this neighborhood is more than on the streets–it’s in the people.

There aren’t many places in this city where neighbors say hello to each other when they walk down the street. And though I’ve only lived in the area for two years, I’ve made more friends here than I made in my entire time living anyplace else in NYC–and that’s the same story I hear from so many neighbors. When you look from the corner, you see these historic trees and houses, but they’re just a symbol of the strength and longevity of our community.

In the past week, I’ve met so many more of you, and I’ve heard from you via email, comments, Twitter, and Facebook (please follow us there if you haven’t already!). Thanks in particular to Amber and Avi (and Emma), who have already brought such great life to this blog; and to each person who let me take their photo for this favorite corner series–if you readers would like to see something like this continue, let me know. I truly appreciate your kind words and your input, from photos to news tips to ideas for things to make this site better for the entire neighborhood. Please keep it coming!

And just to keep this from getting too sappy: a special thanks to those who drove past me and did not honk while I was trying to take this self-portrait.