This is the Jackson Heights outpost of this controversial church, spectacularly headquartered in Guadalajara, Mexico.

Epitomized by the Money House Blessing spray in the background

and a conveniently placed bench

Limousines continue their occupation of this former trolley route built along a colonial-era highway.

I wonder why...

Still going strong after more than three millennia

The Ecuadorian coat of arms

It's rare to see a marine animal assigned to this terrestrial duty.

It also featured grapes and another type of flower.

The self-proclaimed second coming of Christ just turned 66, and he's getting ready for his transformation at the end of June.

The guys inside were quite proud of their paintings.

They were not interested in sharing.

I counted; they're all there (though not all in frame). The cart in the middle is part of the Ravenswood/CaLL project that traces the former path of Sunswick Creek, which long ago disappeared from the surface when its waters were integrated into the sewer system. The poles, as well as the colored bands on the trees, are meant to recall the stacks of the Ravenswood power plant.

is what that sign says.

I can only verify the accuracy of half of the name.

Ravenswood, home of Big Allis

Run DMC and a VW bus

Here we have an excellent example of that ever-popular classical order known as Marshmallow Corinthian.

This two-block-long carnival in Astoria is held annually to benefit the beautiful St. Demetrios Cathedral.

Well, not at this time of day.

(Both people in this photo are workers.)

These colored bands, which you can find wrapped around poles in the area once known as Ravenswood, follow the former path of the now-buried Sunswick Creek.

Here are the previous four.

and her eponymous church

You've probably seen something made here.

Jesus and Mary, a nun, a conquistador, and a 1940 Oldsmobile

This little monument marks a point, surveyed under the auspices of the National Geodetic Survey (NGS), whose position and elevation are known with a high degree of accuracy. There are hundreds of thousands of such markers around the US, and, as part of the National Spatial Reference System, they can be used as benchmarks to determine the exact location of other points of interest. Having this common ground for measurements is important for providing a correspondence between maps and reality; so that, say, when a road is designed in a certain location, it can be built exactly where it was intended.

According to the engraved text, the penalty for disturbing this marker is a $250 fine or imprisonment. Considering it's embedded in a piece of concrete that's just sitting on the ground, I would guess that it has in fact been disturbed since its installation in 1932. Its NGS data sheet indicates that it hasn't been inspected since 1997; perhaps some construction in the last 15 years has displaced it.

This unmarked cop car spotted the suspected Toyminator and foolishly gave chase without waiting for backup.

Officially founded in 1787, with informal meetings taking place since Francis Asbury delivered a sermon here in 1771, Woodrow United Methodist Church was the first Methodist congregation established on Staten Island. The original church building was struck by lightning and destroyed in 1832; this one was built to replace it in 1842.

Buried in the churchyard at Woodrow UMC

Don't be afraid to crack open a nice cold can of Keystone Ice while you're sittin' there.

Running down the cracks in the sidewalk like so much melted ice cream