Very close to the building where I work is Grant's Tomb. (Old riddle: Who's buried in Grant's Tomb? No one. President & Mrs. Grant are entombed, not buried.) It's really a beautiful structure and well worth the tour. The NFT rates Grant's Tomb as one of the best "hidden secrets" on the Upper West Side. Well, I don't know that I'd go that far, but it is nice.
My mom's maiden name is Grant. Some in the family claim we're connected to Ulysses S. Grant, while others say we aren't. I don't know, and it really isn't germane to this blog.
What is germane is that this beautiful monument is marred! It's surrounded on three sides by these surreal, absolutely tacky mosaic benches. Yesterday, a colleague of mine and I braved the July humidity and ate our lunch there.
I almost wish I had had some sort of inebriant. As gabby as I am, I am almost mute trying to describe these things. I think John Lennon had these in mind when he was singing "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds." There's one section in particular that depicts several faces. I think one of them is William Shakespeare, but he also looks like Kyle's dad from South Park. There was another depiction nearby that tried to look Greek. All I could think of were the plates from La Cage Aux Folles / The Birdcage and wouldn't be surprised to see a delegation from the Village making jokes about sitting on penises.
Oh, well, I suppose tackiness serves the fitting contrast leading to better appreciation of the tasteful.
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