Jackson Heights Life

What is the current standard broker commission for selling a cooperative?  I know historically  6% is a good estimate but everything is negotiable.

I saw that Justmade4u is for sale after only 1 1/2 years.  I have to be honest I never ate there.  The price is $240,000 and they supposedly have a "reasonable" 8 1/2 years left on their lease.   The owners are evidently relocating.  The price seems very high to me unless the lease deal is fantastic.  You could probably open a similar store in a vacant storefront  with just the equipment costs and no purchase price. I would never open a business unless I knew I could last for few years.  The start-up costs  and personal investment are too much. Although sometimes re-locations are not planned but a necessity if a family member is sick or a spouse has a job opportunity or transfer.

On Sunday morning  I noticed a handful of cars had their windows smashed on 86th Street between 35th and 37th avenue.  I was driving so I only noticed four or five but it could have been more.  Car vandalism seems commonplace in JH and Astoria now.  I have also noticed cars that had their rims removed in various parts of JH and Astoria.  The stolen tires seems more profit motivated to me  but the window smashing appears to be senseless vandalism. 

Went tonight for dinner and they have a pretty typical diner menu.  We had  french onion soup, chicken quesadilla and a chicken souvlaki platter.  The food was all pretty good.  Service was pretty slow and we waited about a half hour for the food.  The waitress did apologize twice for the slow service explaining it was their first day.  A very nice renovation was done inside.  It was more crowded at dinner than the Mark Twain used to be but it was only about 40% full.  Very encouraging for the first day and will return in couple of weeks when they have some time to iron out the kinks. Open 24/7 and free delivery.

Do people ever send postcards anymore?  The last one i received was probably in the mid nineties when someone I know traveled out of the country.  I know they still sell them because i have seen them when I'm on vacation.  I guess they will become obsolete - so sad.  I used to save postcards and hand written letters because they were so personal

This guy never goes away!

From the Daily News:

Hiram Monserrate is so deep in debt he wants to stiff his autistic son and ex-wife on child support, the Daily News has learned.

The disgraced ex-pol - who can't even cover his legal bills - has asked Manhattan Family Court to "modify" his monthly payments to his 14-year-old kid, his former wife said.

"He's trying to use his son's child support to write off his other debts," Janet Monserrate, 40, said Wednesday. "He has no attachment to anyone; he only cares about his ego."

Monserrate, 43, pleaded poverty last month to Family Court Magistrate Karen Kolomechuk, stating that his sole income has been a $26,000 police pension since he was kicked out of the state Senate after his misdemeanor conviction for assaulting his girlfriend, Karla Giraldo.

He also claimed a bad back has kept him from finding work.

Kolomechuk initially denied the ex-cop's request. But then she agreed to consider it at a hearing this month, asking Monserrate to bring tax forms, medical proof of his injury and other paperwork in support of lowered payments.

Currently, Monserrate pays $1,100 a month in child support.

His ex-wife said if his payment modification request is granted, the new child support based on his pension would drop to about $400 a month.

"He's not looking for employment," Janet Monserrate said.

"This is a man who cares mainly about what people think. He won't work in a Home Depot, he won't work at a supermarket, he won't work two, three jobs to pay child support."

Anyone know where I can find some low carb breads and wraps locally?  Holiday season is very dangerous for gaining weight and I am trying to make some adjustments to mitigate this.

I need to go to Main St. just south of Northern Blvd in Flushing next Thursday around 2PM.  Is there anywhere to park?  I won't be coming directly from JH or I would take the 7 train.