Yesterday, we heard the tale of Reikki healer Dorothy McGurk, an allegedly "disabled" divorcee who found spiritual healing and happiness through shaking her belly button lint. The Staten Island woman claimed that she was too injured to work again, but lost out on lifetime alimony when her ex-husband discovered her belly dancing blog, complete with glowing testimonials and pictures of her front rump in action. But McGurk told the News that everyone was just confused by the pics: "I wasn't really belly-dancing in them. I was posing. In some of them I was moving a veil around with my arms, but I wasn't belly-dancing." more ›

And the internet ruins another life: a Staten Island woman who claimed she was too injured to work again lost out on lifetime alimony when her ex-husband discovered her belly dancing blog, complete with pictures of her shaking her pudge. "My belly dancing is the reason why I adore myself so much...Today I decided to dedicate myself more to my dance. Even though I dance everyday, it's not enough. It won't be enough until I dance for you all, until you feel my euphoria," wrote Reikki spiritual healer Dorothy McGurk. more ›

Ten years ago we had to explain to the olds what a blog is, and this headline in the Times implies that in another twenty years we'll have to explain to the kids what a blog was. A NIGHTMARE. In an article titled, "Blogs Wane as the Young Drift to Sites Like Twitter," the Times points to a Pew study from December about Milliennials' Internet use, and concludes that blogging is so over, because it's all about Facebook and Twitter. Then the article goes on to contradict the headline's premise that blogs are on the wane. Some things never change, like editors' determination to match the facts to a trendy title. more ›

With President Obama visiting Wall Street and Cooper Union this Thursday in order to push for a new financial overhaul package, you'd imagine that someone would have let Mayor Bloomberg know. "I just saw on the blogs this morning he was coming so I haven't talked to anyone in the White House," Bloomberg told reporters this morning. Wait...the Mayor reads blogs plural—as in other blogs besides Gothamist? more ›

There have been plenty of nasty (and entertaining) battles over bike lanes and bicyclists, but you never hear about unicyclists liberating bike lanes from toxic cars while dressed as clowns (despite that being a kind of reasonable image to picture). Well, one reason might be that they're too busy: one group of unicyclists has been occupied trying to cross the least-cycle friendly places in NYC, its 2,078 bridges. more ›

After a long saga and multiple lawsuits, City Hall has officially proposed new rules for issuing press passes to members of the NYC media, even those whose work appears only on the Internet. According to the NYC Law Department, the rules would be implemented to help the Police Department "modernize the City’s credentialing system to reflect changes to the media industry and, for the first time, expressly incorporate online-only media such as blogs." Gothamist has tried to obtain press passes for almost six years; besides allowing journalists to report during emergencies, the credentials greatly facilitate attending non-emergency events like mayoral press conferences. more ›

The Times business reporter who resigned yesterday after the Wall Street Journal accused him of lifting copy from their articles has come clean about the situation. 31-year-old Zachery Kouwe tells the Observer that when his editors told him about the allegations, he "was in complete shock. Then I started worrying and started thinking, how the fuck did this happen?" Apparently, it happened because Kouwe, in his rush to crank out content, forgot that some of the information he was piecing together was other people's writing, not his own: more ›

It's not exactly news to anyone that print media can sometimes get a story from a blog and "forget" to credit the original source. Maybe they just haven't learned how to hyperlink yet! Most recently the NY Post picked up a story without crediting blogger Miss Heather. Nieman Journalism Lab reports that when she "uncovered a major zoning violation in her Brooklyn neighborhood last month, it was only natural that the New York Post would pick up the story. But credit the blogger? That would be a violation of policy." more ›

We're looking for one more enthusiastic intern to work out of our Brooklyn office (or from the comfort of your own home/dorm room, depending on the task at hand) on Tuesdays and Fridays for the rest of the summer, and, who knows, maybe beyond. Responsibilities vary widely, hours are very flexible. Bloggers, journalism students, English majors, autodidacts, quick wits, and anyone with a passion for NYC and the skills to write about it are encouraged to drop us a line. No pay, but occasional perks and college credit available. For more details inquire within, and please email your resume and any other relevant information to info (AT) gothamist (DOT) com, subject "internship." (No attachments, please.) more ›

This weekend a Times reporter gets his hands dirty (but keeps his fingers unsmudged) while diving into the cutthroat world of commenting on New York neighborhood blogs. They discover that the city's "fabled brashness" often leads to "raucous New York-style debate." The writer then falls prey to something that a lot of us have been guilty of on more than one occasion—following insane comment threads. After introducing us to a Brownstoner post where commenters had a familiar battle over parents in Park Slope, the story ends with (Spoiler Alert) a get-together of Brownstoner regulars that was "bearing a notable absence of ill will" where "virtual friends didn’t look like what they had expected." The whole thing leaves you with so much of a virtually warm feeling that you almost begin to imagine a world where a couple who met as fellow Gawker commenters could end up betrothed—oh wait. more ›

There goes the neighborhood? Some Harlem residents are distressed at a sudden “epidemic” of Smart Cars parked around the ‘hood. One blogger even came out of retirement to marvel at the sight of a Smart Car parked on the street; apparently it’s a symbol of gentrification on steroids and proof that Harlem is “over.” But at least one commenter on Harlem Fur isn’t having it: “I am a teacher who moved to Harlem last year so that I could afford my rent. Blogs like this confused the hell out of me. Why is it okay to rave about the new pet store and the new restaurant but then.. oh god.. someone buys an eco-friendly trendy car, and your response is to say, ‘I'm moving out?’” more ›

Amanda Palmer coined the term and genre "Brechtian punk cabaret" for her band The Dresden Dolls so that critics wouldn't describe them as Goth. After two albums with the Dolls and a live show that has earned a reputation for doubling as a circus act, she is just beginning her first tour on her own. Her upcoming solo album sports the Twin Peaks-inspired title "Who Killed Amanda Palmer?" and will be released in September alongside a book with same title that is a collaboration between Palmer and graphic novelist Neil Gaiman. Tonight Amanda brings her unique brand of theatricality into town with a show at Spiegelworld. She talked to Gothamist last week about blogging, opening herself up to new collaborations, and what Britney Spears's next tour should look like. more ›

• Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: shots fired and a large crowd at 98th St. and Rockaway Blvd. in Queens, a carjacking on Ave. Y and Nostrand Ave. in Brooklyn, and an overturned auto on 28th St. and 7th Ave. in Manhattan.
• The New York Post continues to discover the brave new world of "twisted sex play," commonly known as BDSM.
• The gentrification of Harlem is colorblind, to the consternation and frustration of many newcomers and long-time residents.
• A Bronx man and his son, who were bound, robbed, and shot in the alley next to their home, may have been followed all the way from Brooklyn by their assailant.
• QueensCrap notes some less-than-professional tree pruning after the Parks Dept. improperly issued permits to a notorious company. There's a difference between pruning and just lopping off most of the tops of trees.
• Ironic Sans was included in a new book titled Ultimate Blogs; masterworks from the wild web. Congratulations!
• The persistence of gay bathhouses in what only seems like the post-AIDS era.
• TreeHugger wonders about the carbon footprint of a bloated Gmail account.

In 2006 Brooklyn photographer Noah Kalina had a lot of eyes on him. After posting a video online containing a photograph of himself taken each day for six years, he went down in viral video history. That video, called "everyday," was scored to original music by his ex-girlfriend Carly Comando, and both have the world's attention again after The Simpsons parodied it a couple of weeks ago. If you are one of the few who haven't seen the original, you can do so here. This Friday marks the 8th year he'll be taking a photograph of himself every day! And today Jen Bekman is offering one of Kalina's prints for sale through her 20x200 website. more ›

You could be the very first to see CLOVERFIELD before it comes out on January 18th! Below, you'll find a very special Cloverfield Widget, which includes an introduction from JJ Abrams, and 5 whole minutes from the film! Whoever gets the most people to "Grab" their widget will get to be the very first person to see the movie with 30 of their friends in the city of their choice. more ›

Mayor Bloomberg and City Council Speaker Christine C. Quinn have announced a plan to issue 1,500 new permits to vendors who commit to selling fresh fruits and vegetables from carts in low-income neighborhoods. The “Green Cart” plan, expected to be approved by the City Council, comes on the heels of a Health Department study comparing Harlem to the Upper East Side; it determined that supermarkets in Harlem are 30% less common than the UES, and that only 3% of Harlem bodegas carry leafy green vegetables, compared to 20% on the UES. The UES also has better sushi, but that disparity remains unacknowledged in Bloomberg's plan. more ›

This week in the Times, Bruni one-stars Primehouse New York . Calls it “an estimable [steakhouse], with virtues that will rightly earn it the affection of many discerning carnivores and give it a solid chance in a competitive field.” On the downside, the quality of the meats isn’t always quite what it should be, service is uneven, and beyond the steaks, the menu doesn’t have much to offer. more ›

Charles Mee is renowned for his distinctive approach to playwriting, which synthesizes disparate pre-existing texts into startlingly new theatrical creations bursting with music, dance, video and other inspired surprises. The superb Signature Theatre is now in the midst of their season devoted to his plays; the first production, Iphigenia 2.0, was a devastating depiction of America’s Iraq catastrophe as seen through the prism of classic Greek tragedy. The current show, Queens Boulevard, is a funny, boisterous musical that swerves from hyper Indian ragas to contemporary dancehall tracks by M.I.A., telling the tale of a hapless bridegroom and a chain of absurd events that keep him bouncing around Queens on his wedding night. (It’s been extended through January 6th; tickets.) more ›

• Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a police officer was struck on Richmond and Wilson Aves. on Staten Island, there was a large fight on Franklin Ave. and Empire Blvd. in Brooklyn, and a double homicide on Furman Ave. and East 237th St. in the Bronx.
• The US Postal Service is expecting to process one billion individual pieces of mail today, three times the daily average. The busiest day of the year is expected to be Wednesday.
• Interboro Institute, the two-year commercial college, is going out of business due to financial and regulatory problems.
• Oysters used to be one of the most plentiful animals in NY Harbor. Now they're making a recovery in one of the most unlikely of places--the Gowanus Canal.
• The Metropolitan Museum received quite the holiday present when the estate of Diane Arbus presented it with the photographer's entire archives as a gift.
• The airline industry is seeking in court to block a passenger bill of rights that originated in New York due to horrendous service.
• The city's looking to combat the obesity of New Yorkers (we're less obese than the rest of the country) by increasing the number of permits issued to food cart vendors selling fresh fruit and vegetables.
• Collaborative sleuthing tries to dig up why the planned Brooklyn College dorm that used to be under construction seems to be going nowhere.

It’s that time of year again when New Yorkers debate how much to tip the – deep breath – doorman, super, handyman, locker room attendant, trainer, baby sitter, dog walker, beauty salon, cleaning person, day care center, garbage collector, mail carrier, paperboy and parking attendant(s). Sewell Chan, the Times’s Man on the Web, has tied himself to the tipping post with a 1,780 word monograph on the subject, largely sourced from Doorman, a book by Professor Peter Bearman, statistician and sociology professor at Columbia University. more ›

ART: Art, fashion and blogs meet tonight at the Met. In an exhibition entitled blog.mode: addressing fashion, viewers will be able to comment on what they see. It's "the first in a series of shows designed to promote critical and creative dialogues about fashion. The exhibition presents some forty costumes and accessories dating from the eighteenth century to the present." Visitors are then encouraged to share their reactions online or from a "blogbar" of computer terminals in the exhibition galleries. Pictured is one of the dresses -- you know you have comment about it. more ›

It’s said that when Dick Cheney was tasked with vetting potential Veeps for the Bush campaign, he carefully considered all the applicants before recommending the best man for the job: himself. Perhaps tearing a page from Vader’s playbook, Dark Lord Balthazar – AKA Gawker Media Czar Nick Denton – has found the ideal replacement to helm his flagship website in the wake of managing editor Choire Sicha’s resignation: an eager young go-getter from sector 7G named... Nick Denton! (We interviewed Sicha in the midst of all that drama.) more ›

During the holidays, we are all bombarded with requests for charitable giving. Sure, it's a great way to do something good and squeeze in one more tax deduction before year's end, but given the number of requests, making a choice about how to spend your charity dollars can be somewhat daunting. The Times focused this week on the dizzying number of food-related charities making year-end requests. more ›

The Brooklyn-based Wheelhouse Pickles company has been selling a hot sauce named after the seminal D.C. hardcore band Minor Threat – and the band’s co-founder Ian MacKaye has given it his conditional blessings. The famously anti-commercial MacKaye, who not too long ago blasted Nike for ripping off a Minor Threat album design, was sent a sample of the sauce with a label similar to the Minor Threat illustration “Bottled Violence.” And after tasting the sauce, MacKaye unexpectedly agreed to let Wheelhouse use the name, though without the artwork: “I don't have an occasion to eat a lot of hot sauce, but I also thought the Minor Threat stuff was nice.” more ›

At 6:30AM yesterday morning, federal agents delivered "wake-up" subpoenas to the Reverend Al Shaprton and four of his employees at the National Action Network. The FBI and IRS are looking for financial and corporate records, some dating back to 2001, as part of an investigation into Sharpton's financing of his 2004 presidential campaign as well as allegations of tax fraud. Ten people in total were subpoenaed, including a former chief of staff who left in... more ›

In some good news, the bigwigs at Viacom have heard the angry cries of their permanent freelancing employees, and today announced they were ready to concede. Just over one week ago the company Scrooged over a large portion of their workforce when they announced permalancers insurance benefits and their 401K plans would soon be a ghost of Christmas Past. Demanding equal treatment with full time employees (which the permalancers basically are), the group took... more ›

When The Villager broke the news that fancy East Village cocktail lounge Death & Co. would be temporarily shut down by the State Liquor Authority, no one was as publicly dismayed as Times restaurant critic Frank Bruni. In a blog homage to the elegantly dark nightspot, Bruni gushed:There’s a drink on Death & Co.’s latest cocktail menu with bourbon and rye, along with Courvoisier and bitters. I may in fact have had it – or... more ›

The NY Times is reporting that the Nets won't be playing in Brooklyn for the 2009-2010 season because the arena won't be finished until 2010. The Times attributes the delay to legal challenges. The most publicized lawsuit is the federal case brought by 13 property owners and tenants. The suit alleges that the taking of their property via eminent domain was unconstitutional. In June, a US District Court judge dismissed the case, finding that... more ›

This week in the Times, Bruni two-stars Allen & Delancey. Loves the atmosphere; says “the food at Allen & Delancey is at once sophisticated and accessible, reliant on fail-safe luxuries deployed in a modestly creative and occasionally playful manner.” Says that in some ways it’s similar to what he did uptown (at Gordon Ramsay at the London) but it works much better in this context. In $25 and Under, "> Peter Meehan goes to Food... more ›

• Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: shots fired on 166th St. and the Grand Concourse in the Bronx, a pedestrian struck at Berry St. and Division Ave. in Brooklyn, and a found body on Richmond Valley and Arthur Kill on Staten Island.
• Still searching for the Staten Island ninja burglar, police questioned New York Post photographer Ron Romano because of his ninja-like ability to tightrope walk.
• A huge hole in the middle of Brooklyn's Pacific Street provides rude awakenings for drivers who don't see it.
• Mark it. Police Commissioner Ray Kelly says he has no intention of running for Mayor.
• The City of New York was found liable for the 2004 mauling of a toddler in the Bronx, because a police officer gave a pit bull to a mother who had never handled the dog before.
• The loudest neighborhoods in NYC, based on the number of noise complaints. The Bronx is blasting.
• With two weeks to go before Christmas, customers are lining up day and night to get a hand on a Nintendo Wii game system.
• Brooklyn District Attorney Charles J. Hynes describes the sub-premium mortgage meltdown as equivalent to the crack epidemic of the 1980s.
• And w00t is Merriam-Webster's word of the year.