Vital Stats:
- Alex Bandon
- 38 years old
- Grew-up in Somers, NY; Now lives in the West Village
- Senior editor, This Old House magazine and freelance writer
Alex's World:
Did you always really want to be a writer? You almost went to law school. What were your arguments as you debated law school vs. writing?
I guess I did, but I didn't know it. In 5th grade, I won a short story contest, and I always did well writing research papers in high school and college. But I was never one of those kids who used to write stories in her spare time.
I spent my first three years out of college doing what everyone I knew was doing: working for a law firm to make money before starting law school. I [applied] to law school, mainly because I didn't have confidence that I could be a real writer. I was accepted to Fordham and even paid $500 to hold my place in the class. But around June I said to myself, “Oh my god, what was I thinking?!” [After working as] a paralegal, I was just repulsed by the idea of doing that for the rest of my life. My dad is a lawyer and always said to me, "You'd make a great lawyer because you can write." I guess after a while I just thought, if I'm a good enough writer to be a great lawyer, maybe I can be a mediocre magazine writer. And here I am.
The thing is, as poor as I’ve been, I’ve never regretted my decision for a single moment.
You seem to have written on such a wide variety of topics (from food to film to real estate) and worked for an assortment of publications (Vanity Fair, Ms., Modern Bride). Is your process the same regardless of the topic?
Yes. A good writer learns everything there is to know about a subject in order to write about it, and I'm the kind of person who wants to tell you everything I know. I usually over-report my stories. I can't even start writing until I know I have all the information ready, and [I already have] the lede. I know people who write in chunks, then piece it all together, but I have to start at the beginning and go straight through. In fact, I try to write without referring to notes, unless it's to get a quote correct. I think that makes the story flow better.
You left a job as a freelance fact-checker at the New York Times Magazine to pursue freelance writing full-tim,e and along the way started writing for This Old House magazine. Was this just another publication to write for, or have you always had an interest houses and home repair?
I actually left the Times Magazine because there was no more freelance research work for me there, but I always say that when one door closes another opens. So that’s how I began my true freelance writing life, when I was at home with a laptop, pitching stories one after another.
Along the way, I heard This Old House was looking for an associate editor, which had kind of become my role at the Times. Now, I was a huge fan, and I loved watching and doing home repair. (I once had a boyfriend who, on my birthday, gave me a choice of where we could go for my present: Banana Republic or Blaustein's Hardware. I started jumping up and down shouting "Blaustein's Hardware, Blaustein's Hardware!!" I got a random orbit sander for my birthday that year.) I had been a charter subscriber to the magazine when it started in 1995, and the show was appointment television for me every Saturday morning. I just love old houses, and history, and craftsmanship.
When I was at the Times, I did a couple of stories for the Times Magazine about the show -- "A Question for Norm Abram" to publicize the This Old Houst magazine launch, and a story about the house of the future for "The Next 100 Years" anniversary issue. That one was killed in favor of one about the kitchen by Martha Stewart – go figure.
One of your pieces was an interview with Jimmy Carter. Is it strange that of all the venues that you write for, it was This Old House that brought you in contact with a former president and Nobel laureate?
When I was at the Times, I got to interview or talk to all sorts of people, from celebrities to politicians to writers. I've asked Rudy Guiliani what New York is the capital of (the world, of course); I have all the high-up contacts at the Vatican in my Rolodex; I once had Clare Danes's cell phone number; and I used to get Christmas cards from Teller (of Penn and Teller). I once spent a week fact-checking a story about my favorite writer, Toni Morrison, another Nobel Prize winner. Talking to her made me very, very nervous.
I got to interview the former president at Habitat for Humanity's Jimmy Carter Work Project, which is their biggest building event each year. Thousands of people pay their own way to spend a week putting up 30 new houses, and I went along on the generosity of This Old House. I had 10 minutes to ask President Carter about his role with Habitat and his recommendations for our readers who want to give back. He was one of the most brilliant, articulate people I've ever talked to.
Unfortunately, my editor at the time wasn’t a fan of Jimmy’s, so he decided not to run the interview in the magazine and it only appeared on the website. That editor was eventually let go, too.
What's your relationship to the TV show? How closely do you work with the producers? Does the magazine consider itself simply a companion to the show, or does it have its own separate identity as well?
The magazine and the show work very closely together, but the magazine certainly has its own identity. Many of our readers have never seen, or at least are not regular viewers, of the show.
The magazine is really a more in-depth reference for homeowners who want to get inspiration and information for their own home projects, and who want to learn more about specific tools and techniques. It has a little of something for everyone – beautiful photos and stories about finished projects, as well as step-by-step how-to projects and detailed tool guides. My role at the magazine allows me to work very closely with the show and the producers,. I edit (and occasionally write) the stories we run that relate to the projects on the show, so I get to travel up to Boston (or to Bermuda, or Chicago, or wherever they may be). I talk to the producers (who work out of Concord, Mass.) several times a month, and I'm also on the phone with the show guys all the time. They're all wonderful friends as well as colleagues; there's a real sense of family at the show, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary this season.
You've also written several pieces for the Times Real Estate section. How did that start?
The first piece I wrote for them I actually started before I was at This Old House, but because it was a very heavily researched piece it took me a couple of years of working in my spare time to finish it. After that, I held off on freelancing for a while, but always had a few ideas in my head. Some of the ideas came from personal experience, some from observations in my travels around the city, only a few from anything I picked up at This Old House. Still, a lot of what I've written about has to do with history, old houses, and renovations, so I suppose it's all related.
One memorable story was about the remaining backhouses/carriage houses in New York City, almost exclusively in the West Village. What especially piqued your interest about these hidden dwellings? And why are there so relatively few of them?
That's the story it took me years to write, because I wanted to know if they existed anywhere else in the city. I live in the West Village, and I'd seen hints of them over the years. Backhouses are either whole houses or converted stables that sit on the back of a lot, behind the house that faces the street. Some are even leftover farmhouses that were built around. There are 75 of them in the West Village alone. One I could see out the window of my apartment, behind another house two doors down. Others I’d see hints of through little alleyways on the street. But it wasn’t until I started looking at insurance maps, which show all the structures on the lot, that I realized how many there were.
My parents actually lived in a backhouse on Monroe Place in Brooklyn Heights when they were first married. I’ve seen pictures – it’s this unbelievable carriage house with wood paneling all over the inside. They left when my brother was born.
There are very few backhouses left in other parts of the city, because so much has been torn down and rebuilt. With all the tenement laws, they were essentially outlawed by the late 19th century. You can still find a few in the East Village and in Williamsburg where old houses remain. Flushing once had a bunch of them, but the area was torn down to make way for the Number 7 subway terminal.
You're also working on a book about these buildings. What do you hope to accomplish with a book?
The article was just the tip of the iceberg, I think. There are great stories for these places. One, on 10th Street, was the servants quarters to a sailors’ boarding house in the front, where there were hammocks instead of beds. Another, on W. 3rd Street, was the Golden Rule Pleasure Club, the first all-male gay brothel, which figured prominently in the Rev. Parkhurst’s 1896 report to Police Commissioner Theodore Roosevelt on corruption in the department.
But besides all that notoriety, some of these houses just have interesting histories. After I wrote the piece for the Times, by coincidence a boyfriend and I ended up living in one of the ones I’d written about. One night, three people came to our gate when I happened to be outside. Turns out that their brother had lived on the third floor of our house in the late '60s, and they were revisiting old memories. They described for me all the other people who also lived there, when it was broken up into apartments. So just the fact that these places had been through so much of the history of the Village, from family residence, to bohemian apartments, back to whole house residence, means there’s a lot to find out about them.
Plus, New Yorkers are just so curious – they want to know what’s hidden behind walls and gates. And the houses are mostly really beautiful places, so the photography would be spectacular.
Are there any other interesting and/or hidden oddities unique to New York City neighborhoods and architecture that particularly fascinate you?
Well, living in the Village, I find the twists and turns of the streets very compelling, because those are remnants of another time, before the city had a grid. I try to imagine what the original streets looked like, or where the mansions of old New York were. The topography of the city has changed too. When John Adams was vice president, he lived in a mansion called Richmond Hill (on an actual hill) that would have been around Charlton Street and 7th Avenue, I think. The hill and the mansion are long gone. When Alexander Hamilton was mortally wounded in his duel with Aaron Burr, they rowed him across the river to Bayard’s mansion, about where 80-82 Jane Street is now. One of my favorite New York oddities is a hand-painted scrawl to the right of the Ear Inn on Spring Street that says “Hudson River Shore, 1852” with an arrow. That’s now about three blocks in from the current shore, with all the landfill. It makes me wish I could go back in time to see what old New York looked like.
You also wrote a story about renters making their own home improvements to their apartments. How common is that practice, at least on any major level beyond simple painting? Do you rent or own, and have you made any significant renovations to any of your rentals?
It’s more common than you think. I rent, and I just spent about $2000 of my own money to give my kitchen an upgrade, with refaced cabinets, a new stove (landlord chipped in) and granite countertops (half-price leftovers). I also painted the whole place and plan to work on the bathroom next. One couple in my story had spent $7000 to renovate a one-bedroom on the Upper West Side, because their rent was only $1500. I know so many people who have had their floors done.
I think a lot of people who do it justify that renting in New York can be a life-long experience, so why wait to live in a place that you enjoy and that makes you feel comfortable?
What’s your favorite room and why?
Each of my rooms is decorated very differently, and they all reflect a different part of my personality. (I have six rooms in my apartment, plus the garden, which I consider another room). My living room is bright and formal, my bedroom is cool and calm, my kitchen is quirky, etc. Choosing one would be like picking a favorite child.
Does Restoration Hardware just make you giggle? Gracious Home or Home Depot? What about Bed, Bath & Beyond?
Restoration Hardware is fun to look at but often too overpriced to be practical. Home Depot frustrates me, but it’s a necessary evil when you’re working on a renovation. Gracious Home is lovely, but too far away. BB&B has terrible, terrible service, but I could still spend hundreds in there. My new obsession is the Container Store, which has the means to inspire whole remodels centered around organization.
But the perennial favorite has to be Garber’s Hardware, on Greenwich Street between 10th and Charles. They are a true old-fashioned hardware store, established in the late 19th century by the same family that still runs it, and they have absolutely everything -- except arrogance. They know the difference between a wood screw and a sheet metal screw, they’ll order something for me if they don’t have it, and they never, ever, ever treat me like a helpless girl.
How handy are you yourself? Have you paid more attention to renovations and decorations in your own home since starting with This Old House than you did before?
I consider myself pretty handy. I own several power tools and countless hand tools, and I’m always acquiring more. I like to do repairs in my apartment myself, and I’ve done three Habitat for Humanity builds so far. I’m also very good with decorative painting effects, a talent I’ve put to use a number of times.
But I know I have tons more to learn from the guys at This Old House. I’m always asking questions. And they’re always eager to answer, so I’ve got that going for me. I’m looking forward to the day when I own something and have to renovate it. I wouldn’t shy away from buying a total junker and fixing it up over time. It may be the only way I’ll ever be able to afford a piece of real estate in Manhattan.
Ten things to know about Alex:
What's the best thing you've ever purchased/salvaged off the street?
A long time ago, when painted furniture was in, I had it in my head that I wanted to get an old coffee table that I could paint and then tile the top. One day when I was out for a run, I came upon a perfectly sized table that had a plywood-insert top that had been painted to look like tiles. It was as if the gods had put it there and said, "Is this what you meant?"
I took it home, replaced the plywood with a thinner board, tiled it and painted it with intricate American Folk designs. Its quite out-of-date now, but I still like it. I use it to hold plants in my sunroom.
Which city establishment sees more of your paycheck than you do?
Jefferson Market. I love to cook and bake, and that is the greatest grocery store in the world. But they ain't cheap.
Gotham Mad Lib: When the ____________ (noun) makes me feel ___________ (adverb), I like to _____________ (verb). (Strict adherence to "Madlib" rules is not required – answer however you wish.)
When the rent makes me feel incredibly poor, I like to go shopping. Why? I don't know. It's a sickness.
NYC confessional: Do you have a local guilty pleasure?
Magnolia cupcakes. But I refuse to stand in line for them.
When you just need to get away from it all, where is your favorite place in NYC to be alone, relish in solitude and find your earthly happiness? (We promise not to intrude.)
There's a beautiful quiet garden behind St. Luke's on Hudson Street. You can see it from the street, but it's not clear how to get to it. The entrance is actually far away, and takes you through a strange labyrinth before you reach the gate. I’m not telling you how to get in – you’ll have to find out for yourself.
Assuming that you're generally respectful of your fellow citizens, was there ever a time when you had to absolutely unleash your inner asshole to get satisfaction?
In general, I'm a quiet seether and sometime glarer when faced with subway pole huggers or Times Square slow walkers. But I can not keep quiet when random men say dirty things to me on the street. I've been known to spin around and confront them, usually by saying something like "Does that ever work for you?" or "I know you do this because you're trying to compensate for your small penis, but just because it makes you feel like a bigger man, it doesn't make you a bigger man." I know it's lame, but it throws them off, especially if I do it in front of one of their friends.
Describe that low-low moment when you thought you just might have to leave NYC for good.
There have been two wonderful men in my past who each thought that leaving New York would solve all their woes. So I spent a lot of time figuring out whether I could leave my precious city behind. As it turns out, both relationships ended for other reasons, and I later realized that neither man had actually asked me if I wanted to go with him. One eventually left – with a new girlfriend. The other is still here, married and owning real estate.
Besides more square footage, what luxury would you most like to have in your apartment?
My current place is pretty great. I already have a fireplace, a garden, and a dishwasher. But in my old house, the backhouse, we had a laundry room/powder room with a full-sized washer dryer and a toilet. That's the only thing I miss, really. There's nothing like being able to do your own laundry whenever you want -- and having extra facilities for party guests!
311: Help or hoopla? Have you ever put it to use?
F-ing brilliance. I use it all the time – to find out about alternate side of the street parking (the day's status is on the initial recording), have bulk items picked up, complain about construction starting too early in the morning -- and the operators are always so nice. A friend just told me the story of having to track down his brother in law, who works policing the reservoirs upstate, during a family emergency. He called 311, they patched him through to a dispatcher, who radioed the guy in Rhinebeck.
There are 8 Million stories in The Naked City. Tell us one, but try to keep it to a New York Minute.
When my ex and I split, and we had to give up the backhouse, our landlord started looking for new tenants right away and ended up with a really nice couple who were living directly across the street. They signed the lease months before they had to move in. Meanwhile, I was frantically looking for a place of my own. Then one night the couple came over to get a kind of orientation from us on how to take care of the house. They jokingly said, “Know anyone who’d want to rent our place? We promised the landlord we’d find new tenants.” I asked them how much and it turned out to be exactly my price. So they said, “Well, why don’t you come over and look at it right now.” We put down our wine glasses and ran over there, and as soon as I saw it I knew it was for me. It was a mess, and needed a bit of work, but it was huge and had a garden. On moving day, we literally passed each other on the street as we carried our stuff back and forth. Only in New York.
Alex Bandon's most recent piece for the New York Times appeared in Sunday's Real Estate section: "Calculating a 'Best and Final' Offer". This Old House magazine is published 10 times a year; the TV series airs locally on WNET Thirteen Saturdays at 7 PM. If you're interested in Alex's prospective book on New York City backhouses, she'd love to hear from you via email.
Photo by Mary Ellen Matthews.
-- Interview by Aaron Dobbs
