Only the Blog Knows Brooklyn

No Words Daily Pix: Photograph by Hugh Crawford

The Current Weather in Park Slope

Brought to you by The Feldman Family from their weather tower in Park Slope.

Press Release from the Department of Transportation

Here's the press release from the Department of Transportation about the alternate-side-of-the-street holiday started May 19th:

Effective Monday, May 19, 2008, Street Cleaning/Alternate Side Parking Regulations will be temporarily suspended in the Park Slope section of Brooklyn's Community Board 6 until further notice as the Department of Transportation (DOT) installs signs with new, reduced regulations. In many cases, residential street cleaning parking restrictions will be reduced from three-hour intervals to just 90 minutes, and from twice a week to just once a week, to ease parking for local residents. On commercial corridors, some streets will now be cleaned more often and regulations will be better coordinated to help ensure some curbside parking for local shoppers. The new rules were established by the Department of Sanitation.

Street Cleaning Regulations will be suspended within the following borders from May 19 until further notice:

North: Pacific St. (included) from 4th Ave. to 6th Ave.;
6th Ave. (not included) from Pacific St. to Flatbush Ave.;
West side of Flatbush Ave. (included) from 6th Ave. to Plaza St. West.

East: Plaza Street West (included) from Flatbush Ave. to Union St.;
Prospect Park West (included) from Union St. to Bartel Pritchard Square;
Bartel Pritchard Square (included) from Prospect Park West to 15th St.

South: 15th St. (not included) from Prospect Park West to 4th Ave.

West: 4th Ave. (not included) from 15th St. to Saint Mark's Pl.;
4th Ave. (included) from Saint Mark's Pl. to Pacific St..

The new Street Cleaning Regulations will take effect once sign changes are complete in the entire area, also indicated on the map. The DOT will give advance notification before enforcement resumes.

The changes do not affect 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. parking rules or meter regulations, or any other parking rules that are not Street Cleaning Regulations.

Similar conversions and temporary suspensions of ASP rules will occur later this year in Board 6's Cobble Hill, Carroll Gardens and Red Hook neighborhoods.

For more information, please contact the Citizen Service Center at 311 or visit the Department of Sanitation's web site at www.nyc.gov/sanitation, or contact Brooklyn Community Board 6 at (718) 643-3027 or online at www.BrooklynCB6.org.

Contact: Seth Solomonow (DOT) (212) 442-7033
Vito Turso (Sanitation) (646) 885-5020
Craig Hammerman (CB 6) (718) 643-3027

The Oh-So-Prolific-One: Leon Freilich/Verse Responder

Our verse responder, back from a vacation in the hinterlands, brings us this song of the Food Coop.

BALLAD OF THE FOOD COOP FROG

He tagged along as the member took
Her head of lettuce home;
Among the green organic leaves
He quietly chanted Om.

For three cold days he went on chanting,
Napping now and then
And wondering if he'd ever see
His Florida pals again.

The member had taken the tiny frog
Across the Carroll Street Bridge
And reaching her kitchen, had transferred
Her Coop food to the fridge.

Till now he'd basked beneath the sun,
Floating on a lucky tide,
Escaping certain painful death
By fatal pesticide.

The third day on his frozen shelf,
He replaced his chant with a yelp,
And Om gave way to urgency,
For Froggie needed help.

It came at last, when just in time,
He found his lettuce haven
Withdrawn by a knowing hand and  placed
In a bowl by a salad maven.
 
The member's eyes doubled in size
And yet she had no  regret
As she spied her guest and marveled, How
Organic does it get!

Past shock on her part, relief on his,
Froggie no longer drifts;
He's joined the Coop and shops in peace--
As long as he does his shifts.

The Nikki Giovanni Songs: Louis and Capathia Do it Again

Louis Rosen's musical settings of poems by the contemporary black poet Nikki Giovanni are a great leap forward in a career already sparkling with high points.

For those who are fans of Rosen's song cycles based on the poetry of Maya Angelou and Langston Hughes—and his own South Side Stories—the Nikki Giovanni songs will be yet another revelation.

Last night at the CD release show for One Ounce of Truth: The Nikki Giovanni Songs (on PS Classics) at Joe's Pub, the audience knew they were witnessing something very special. Indeed, a chance to hear Louis Rosen and Capathia Jenkins is always a treat but the added bonus of a  6-piece band (including Louis on guitar) made this performance something even more interesting and complex.

The new songs swirl through a variety of musical styles and moods, including blues, R&B, funk and the smooth Brazilian vibe of The Moon Shines Down and The World, two ravishing love songs. The Laura Nyro-esque Telephone Song is a joyous and giddy swoon of musical pleasure.

There is darkness in You Were Gone and One Ounce of Truth and humor and a sassy sexiness in a songs like, I Wrote a Good Omelet and That Day. The Black Loom, from a Giovonni poem dedicated to Nina Simone, is a showcase for the funky, soulful side of Capathia.

Not enough can be said about the smarts, musicality, and 2-octave interpretative genius of Capathia Jenkins. She is a treasure to behold, on CD or on the stage of Joe's Pub.

One Ounce of Truth, is another chapter in Rosen's musical exploration of black American poetry. The deceptively causal,  often funny and wise verse of Giovanni is a perfect companion to Rosen's multi-timbered musical settings. Here's what Nikki Giovanni had to say about the recording:

"I'm just a girl who writes poems and was lucky enough to find someone who writes music who found someone who sings like an angel so my work once again has this wonderful opportunity to reach out and embrace and tickle and lovingly dance with you. I hope you like it. The moon is still against the night singing loves songs to the stars."

Luckily, you have 3 more chances to catch this go-round of performances by Louis and Capathia: May 18, 19, 26 at Joe's Pub

Free Ferry from Lower Manhattan to Ikea in Red Hook

So Ikea will offer free ferry service from Pier 11 in lower Manhattan to its dock in Red Hook. It will be for shoppers and anyone else who wants to take the ride to Red Hook.

Ikea opens on June 18th in Red Hook.

This Weekend: Artist Studio Tours

Leaf and Circle, a work by artist Jessica Baker, is on display at the Prospect Park Audubon Center. Baker invites readers of OTBKB to check out her studio on this weekend's studio tour.

I would like to invite you to visit my studio next weekend (5/17 & 5/18) during the annual Sonya Studio Stroll (see stroll directions and info below - my studio is at 122 Washington Ave. on the 3rd floor). Previous work will be on sale, and I'll be showing some friend's prints on the walls.

My exhibit Leaf & Circle is still up at the Prospect Park Audubon Center and has been extended through June 1st (jessicabaker.net - Leaf & Circle).

After visiting my show, art critic and blogger, Olympia Lambert, featured me as "artist of the day" on her blog: olysmusings.blogspot.com

You can also see the work of a wide variety of other artists on the Sonya Studio Stroll in the Brooklyn Navy Yard.

View a sampling of works by artists on the Studio Stroll.
SONYA Gallery
394 Waverly Ave, between Greene & Gates Aves.
Open by appointment: 718-857-5696 and
Stroll Weekend, Sat & Sun, noon to 6pm.

Artists
Jo-Ann Acey, Pamella Allen, Jessica Baker, C Bangs, Fred Bendheim,
Caitlin Bermingham, Doug Beube, Ramona Candy, Mary Chang, Carol Foy,
Tanda Francis, Deborah Goldstein, Sheila Goloborotko, I. Leon Golomb,
Kathleen Hayek, Ryan Ketchum, Melanie Kozol, D. Lammie-Hanson,
Richard Lebenson, Winicjusz Lysik, Halina Marki, Diana McClure,
Johanna Mendez, Kathleen Migliore Newton, Reuben Moore,
Ragnar Naess, Douglas Newton, Gabriel Pacheco, Sandra Perez-Weeden,
Jim Porter, Mary Salstrom, Gina Samson, JD Siazon, Deborah Singletary,
GG Stankiewicz, Kathy Stecko, and Valerie Williams

Artist Groups, Museums, Institutions, and Galleries
Artists of 35 Claver Place, Clinton Hill Art Gallery,
Fort Greene Photography Organization,
I.O.I - Items of Importance Gallery, MoCADA,
Sankofa Ceramics Cooperative, Tres Gallery,
and Underbridge Pictures

Free and open to the public. Over 100 artists exhibiting work at 32
locations. With hundreds of great works of art at affordable prices,
you can easily start or add to your own art collection.

From May 19th: Summerlong Suspension of Alternate-Side-of-the-Street Parking

The Brooklyn Paper reports that alternate-side-of-the-street (ASOTS) parking will be suspended on residential streets in Park Slope starting on May 19. This means that there will be no residential street cleaning at all this summer.

What's the reason for this summer vacation from ASOTS parking for Park Slopers?

According to the Brooklyn Paper, the Department of Transportation needs to install street signs explaining new street-cleaning regulations that will reduce “No parking” times on residential street-cleaning days from three hours to 90-minutes.

In the commercial zones, streets will be cleaned as many as six times a week, up from four or five, and at staggered half-hour cleaning schedules.

Blogfest Portraits Online Now

The portraits that Hugh Crawford took of Brooklyn bloggers (mostly) at the Brooklyn Blogfest are online now.

If you want to use a picture on your blog, leave a comment or email Hugh and he will contact you.

Prints are available at prices ranging from inexpensive to pretty expensive depending on size and quality at Smugmug.

If you'd like a fine art print of one of the pictures, please get in touch with Hugh:  hugh(at)hughcrawford(dot)com

What's Going on this Week?

Look what's going on this week. Try to get to one of these events!

May 14 at 7 pm: Martha Dudman, author of Black Olives and and Nan Bauer-Maglin, author of Cut Loose, a collection of true stories and reflections written by 27 women, read their work at the Old Stone House. Fifth Avenue and 3rd Street in Park Slope

May 15 at 7 pm: Have a post-Mother's Day cocktail (or two) with NY Sun Columnist, Lenore Skenazy, magazine writer, Amy Sohn, and the Brooklyn Paper's tell-it-like-it-really-is Smartmom and others, who will will shock, amuse, and entertain you, and they won't make you eat your vegetables before you get dessert. It's happening at the elegant and fun The Montauk Club at 7 p.m. Cocktails and a reading. Free.  Lincoln Place and 8th Avenue.

May 17 all day: NY Writer's Coalition Write-A-Thon: a daylong writing festival will benefit NYWC's free, unique and powerful creative writing programs across New York City. Colson Whitehead is the guest speaker. 

Use the day however best serves your writing needs; write on your own, participate in workshops, or receive fun and stimulating prompts from our “prompt stations.” Like a walk-a-thon, our attendees will ask friends and family to donate in support of their day of writing. These contributions will help fund NYWC's creative writing programs for at-risk youth, the homeless and formerly homeless, the formerly incarcerated, seniors, and many others that aren’t heard from often enough in our society. At theNY Center for Independent Publishing. 20 West 44th Street.

May 18: Cho-Chiqq: The ultimate Park Slope backyard theater festival. 11:00am - 4pm
369 1st Street, Garden Apartment - Park Slope. R to Union Street. For details go here.

 

 

The Treachery of a Trusted Partner: May 14th Reading at the Old Stone House

It’s happened to too many women we know.The guy that they thought they knew well walks out. In fiction and in real life, what happens?

This is the territory covered in two remarkable books.

--Martha Dudman’s latest novel Black Olives
--Nan Bauer-Maglin’s Cut Loose, a collection of true stories and reflections written by 27 women

For an entertaining and therapeutic evening, join
Martha and Nan reading from their books

Wednesday May 14
7:00 pm
The Old Stone House
Fifth Avenue between 3rd and 4th Streets, Park Slope, Brooklyn
(easy to reach from R train, Union Street stop, or F train, 4th Avenue stop)
718-768-3195
For additional information, call Betsey at 718-768-1130

ONLY THE BLOG LINKS

Rescuers Struggle to find Chinese quake survivors (NY Times)

Quake Relief for China (NY1)

Horse chesnuts in spring (Brooklynometry)

Companies with sponsorship deals with FCR (McBrooklyn)

A little ditty for Genesis I

An officer's novel arrives in the bookstore 14 months after his death (NY Times)

Breastfeeding tied to intelligence (NY Times)

No Words Daily Pix: Photograph by Hugh Crawford

May 15th is Post-Mother's Day Cocktails for Edgy Moms

Join ruckus rousing NY Sun Columnist, Lenore Skenazy, magazine writer, Amy Sohn, and the Brooklyn Paper's tell-it-like-it-really-is Smartmom and others, who will will shock, amuse, and entertain you, and they won't make you eat your vegetables before you get dessert.

Come to this reading/cocktail party (cash bar) at the Montauk Club in Park Slope on May 15th at 7:00 pm.

Readers include:

Christen Clifford, writer/ performer of Off-Broadway's hit show Baby 
Love, true stories about sex and motherhood
Louise Crawford, The Brooklyn Paper’s Smartmom and editor of Only the 
Blog Knows Brooklyn
Michele Somerville Madigan, poet and blogger, Fresh Poetry Dail
Sophia Romero, blogger, The Shiksa from Manila and novelist, Always 
Hiding
Lenore Skenazy, the controversial New York Sun writer, who let her 9-
year-old take the subway alone
Louise Sloan, Huffington Post blogger and author of Knock Yourself 
Up: A Tell-All Guide to Becoming a Single Mom
Amy Sohn, author of the novels Run Catch Kiss and My Old Man

Location: 25 8th Avenue between Lincoln and St. John in Park Slope, Brooklyn
Date: Thursday May 15th
7 p.m. Cash bar for cocktails
7:30: The reading begins
Admission free

Cho-Chiqq: The Ultimate Park Slope Backyard Theater Festival

This is the ultimate Park Slope backyard theater festival. It's a down home, grown up, "let's put on a show" event organized by a bunch of playwrights, actors, and directors, including the founder/director of the Brooklyn Writing Space, who is a playwright. This event sounds awesome: A full day of theater and fun. Karinne Keithley closes the event with her magic ukulele fingers. Look/see who/what is on this wild program. And Mac Wellman will be there.

SUNDAY MAY 18 2008
11:00am - 4pm
369 1st Street, Garden Apartment - Park Slope
(R to Union Street)
$5 (includes beer and hot dogs)
Grill Angel: Matt Korahais
$2 silk screened t-shirts – bring yer own light colored t-shirt

                    MAY 18 2008 Cho-Chiqq Line-Up

                    11:00    Doors open (coffee and donuts)
                    11:15    Black Cat Lost excerpt - Erin Courtney
                                   dir. Ken Rus Schmoll performed by Heidi Schreck, Mike
                                   Iveson, Birgit Huppoch
                    11:25    Ethan Crenson plays some music
                    11:40    Tupu Tupu Tupu excerpt – Scott Adkins
                                   dir.  Erin Courtney performed by David Brooks, Heidi Schreck, Birgit Huppoch,
                                   Lula Graves, Matt Korahais, and Homer Frizzell.
                    <Fire up the grill>
                    1:00    Lesser Magoo excerpt - Mac Wellman
                                   dir. JOYCE CHO performed by Scott Adkins, Karinne         
                                   Keithley, Sibyl Kempson and Amber Reed.
                    1:25    Brian Mendes and Siobahn  play some music
                    1:40    My Address Is Still Walton Have You Forgotten? excerpt
                                   - Karinne Keithley
                                   undirected by Karinne Keithley, performed by members of Joyce Cho,
                                   Machiqq, and "the public"
                    2:05    Mr. Aposcope excerpt – Amber Reed
                    2:20    <Break>
                    2:30    Constitution Extravaganza excerpt - Heidi Schreck
                    2:45    Hoi Polloi sings
                    2:55    Kyckling and Screaming excerpt – Sibyl Kempson
                    3:15    Off the Hizzle (an excerpt from OFF the HOZZLE)      -lumberob

 

May 12th: Snail Mail Postal Rates are Rising

Thanks to Leon Freilich who just sent this along:

On May 12th, 2008 the United States Postal Office will be raising the following postal rates:

• First class mail one ounce or less: Up one cent to 42 cents
• Post card: Up one cent to  27 cents
• Large envelope, 2 ounces: Up 3 cents to $1.
• Certified mail:  Up 5 cents to $2.70
• First-class international letter to Canada or Mexico:  Up 3 cents to 72 cents
• First-class international letter to other countries: Up 4 cents to 94 cents

Maggie Gyllenhaal Talks About Jen/Paul Leaving the Slope

Tim Murphy of New York Magazine's Daily Intel cornered Maggie Gyllenhaal about the recent move Tribeca flight by Jennifer Connelly and Paul Brittany at the 4th Annual Design on a Dime benefit for Housing Works, an organization devoted to fighting the twin crises of AIDs and homelessness.

So what does Gyllenhaal think about her fellow Brooklyn celebs, Jennifer Connelly and hubby Paul Bettany, fleeing the borough? "I don't know her" — we found that a little suspect, because we know all about that SlopeCelebs Yahoo group where they all conspire about the best times to hit the food co-op without being spotted — "but everyone's telling me that she's leaving, she's leaving. But she lives in a mansion, like a huge house, and we don't…"

Our eyebrow involuntarily took flight.

"I mean, we live in a brownstone, it's huge, it's big, believe me, I'm grateful for all the space we have. But I think [Connelly] was saying that her house was kind of too much. Our house, like, it doesn't feel like too much."

She then reiterated that she was glad to be out of Manhattan. And then she dropped the bomb, one in a string that may eventually restore Park Slope fully to the unboldfaced, if not the unfinanced: "To be honest, I'm thinking in the next few years of moving even further away." Like … to Gowanus? we asked. "To the country," she said...

The Great Mistake of 1898

1898 was the year Brooklyn, previously an independent city, merged with New York City. The merger was called the "Great Mistake of 1898" by many  newspapers of the day, and the phrase is, according to Wikipedia, used to denote Brooklyn pride among old-time Brooklynites.

The Great Mistake of 1898 is also the name of a local Williamsburg that plays around town, mostly at the Luna Lounge. They played Arlene's Grocery on Saturday night. Photographer Cameron Justice is documenting their evolution as a band in a photo essay. He writes: 

The Great Mistake of 1898 is a small, underground brooklyn rock band that I have been photo-documenting over the last couple of months. They are very talented and committed to their music, and are currently recording their first full length album.  I hope to continue with this project.

Has anyone heard them? I hear they're great.

Photo by Cameron Justice

Science Fiction from Park Slope Auxillary Cop Killed in the line of duty

"The too-short life of Nicholas Pekearo was both triumph and tragedy. He died a hero's death, sacrificing his own life to save others.  And now comes The Wolfman, a brilliant, insightful, overpowering debut from a writer who studied, listened, and learned before he took his shot...and centered the bulls-eye.  Published posthumously, this "debut" novel is a triumph."--Andrew Vachss

Nicholas Pekearo's first novel, The Wolfman, will be released in the coming weeks from Tor Books.

Pekearo, a young writer, who lived in Park Slope, was killed in the line of duty while volunteering as an NYPD Auxiliary Police Officer in the neighborhood he grew up in, New York City's Greenwich Village.

He worked in bookstores throughout New York City, including Crawford-Doyle on Madison Avenue. The Wolfman is his first published novel.

Marlowe Higgins has had a hard life. Since being dishonorably discharged after a tour in Vietnam, he's been in and out of prison, moving from town to town, going wherever the wind takes him. He can’t stay in one place too long--every full moon he kills someone.

Marlowe Higgins is a werewolf. For years he struggled with his affliction, until he found a way to use this unfortunate curse for good--he only kills really bad people.

Settling at last in the small town of Evelyn, Higgins works at a local restaurant and even has a friend, Daniel Pearce, one of Evelyn's two police detectives.

One night everything changes. It turns out Marlowe Higgins isn’t the only monster lurking in the area. A fiendish serial killer, known as the Rose Killer, is brutally murdering young girls all around the county. Higgins targets the killer as his next victim, but on the night of the full moon, things go drastically wrong. . . .

Plastic Recycling at the Food Coop

The Food Coop accepts plastics that NYC Department of Sanitation does not. My question is this: Does the Food Coop accept plastics from non-members? Here's the blurb from the PSFC:

We've expanded the Saturday and Sunday recycling hours. See below for details.

Bring clean, dry plastic to the Coop's sidewalk during monthly recycling hours. We close up promptly. So, the final drop offs will be accepted 10 minutes prior to our end time to allow for sorting:

2nd Sat., 10 AM-2 PM
3rd Thur.,  7 PM-9 PM
Last Sun., 10 AM-2 PM.
 
We accept...

* #1 & # 2 (where mouth is wide or wider than the body, meaning NOT bottles) plastics
* #4 plastics
* #5 plastic tubs, cups & specifically marked lids and caps (discard any with paper labels)
* Plastic film

Unbearable Noise Pollution From Airplane Traffic Over Park Slope

In response to my post/column about Jen and Paul moving from their gorgeous Prospect Park West mansion to Tribeca, I received this interesting email from a Park Slope resident, who is also selling a home. Reason: unbearable noise pollution.

I live on Fifth Street between 8th Avenue and Prospect Park West and I am also putting our house on the market as Jen and Paul Bettany did, because of the unbearable noise pollution from the major air traffic that passes over our homes on route to LGA airport.   

    Since last summer there was a drastic change in all flight rotations and air traffic patterns that had a tremendous impacted on the quality of life for many Park Slope residents.   Despite letters to politicians and FAA/ Port Authority to remedy the situation, we got no relief.

    We approached Senator Schumer with several communications to his DC office and never got any reply.   We saw him on TV waving a loaf of bread during congressional hearing to illustrate how much he cares about the middle class but so far he didn't do a thing for the community he lives.

    So I wouldn't be surprised if that is the reason why they are selling their beautiful house: they have two young kids and they stay home a lot and who wants to live with this nightmarish noise that starts at 5:30 AM and goes on till 01:00 the following morning.

Au Contraire: The Occasional Note From Peter Loffredo

Here's a post from our pal Pete of Full Permission Living, called, Learning to Love Your Hate on Mother's Day. As always, he's urging mothers to take better care of themselves. Who can argue with that?

I have been very hard on mothers during the past year, its true, but invariably my criticism has been in the direction of urging mothers to take better care of themselves, to focus on their own self-acceptance and seek gratification in their adult life. I have tried to encourage mothers to trust nature more, and to trust their kids, without trying to control or "fix" everything.

In that regard, Donna Fish, a psychoanalyst writing on the Huffington Post offers a perfect Mother's Day gift entitled, "Love and Hate in the Time of Parenting." It beautifully informs us that having feelings of "hate" for your kids at times is not only normal, but beneficial, if experienced consciously and without guilt.

Here are some excerpts from Donna:

"I want to help all you parents out there learn why and how it is vital to embrace your intense feelings of hatred at times towards your kids. Don't feel guilty. This is not to give yourself a free pass, or a rationalization, but rather to let you know why in fact it is a vital part of teaching your children how to tolerate ambivalent feelings. Part of being a human being and part of relationships.

"I promise you, this is not coming only from the Mom perspective of how I feel at times when I am in the biggest fight with my kids. It comes from the training I have gotten as an analyst, when I was told by one of my best teachers: 'good enough is not only 'good enough', it is vital to help kids tolerate disappointment, and learn to hold onto us in their minds in the face of their own anger and hatred."

I love that! I have said that many times to mothers - "Good enough is good enough." Perfect is not only not an attainable goal, it is not a desirable goal. One of the biggest and most important tasks of growing up is learning how to accept all of one's feelings, especially the negative ones. And children, like the little sponges that they are, learn by example through absorption. If you feel guilty for every moment of anger, sadness or fear you have, your kids will pick up on that guilt, and incorporate it into their evolving personality. They will then treat their own feelings as suspect, not legitimate or acceptable.

Here's more from Donna:

"Now we are talking primitive feelings here, right? But name me an intense relationship that doesn't involve love and hate, and I will say that is not intimate. Or deeply involved."

Exactly. In interpersonal relationships, you cannot hate someone you don't love and expect love from, nor can you love someone without having feelings of hate at times. But experienced in a clean way, the moments of hate are not a problem.

Continue reading "Au Contraire: The Occasional Note From Peter Loffredo"

Only The Blog Links

Biggest Brooklyn Designs Ever (McBrooklyn)

Brighton Beach urban patchwork slideshow (City Section)

A Sanctuary by the Sea (City Section)

Police group and State Senator Adams Charge NYPD with institutionalized racism (NY1)

A Brooklyn Saint (Brooklynometry)

A tribute to my mother (Pardon Me For Asking)

Brooklyn Blogfest (Sticky Map)

A word for today (Luna Park Gazette)

RIP: Cicely Nichols: 1938-2008 (Self-Absorbed Boomer)

No Words Daily Pix: Photograph by Hugh Crawford

Ten Times Around the Park on a Bike

A Year in the Park biked ten times around Prospect Park the other day and she wrote about what she saw:

On a Saturday blessed with a few sunny hours, picnics blossomed on the soaked grass of the Long Meadow. I had ample opportunity to observe them pitching camp and settling in: Today I cycled around the park 10 times. That's a personal best for one-day mileage: about 35 miles. (Each circuit is about 3.5 miles.) My Century ride is next week. (It will almost certainly be a "metric Century," or 65-mile segment, for less Olympian riders; I am digesting my disappointment in the hopes of converting it to fuel.) I was thrilled to find some other members of Team in Training were also charging around the park drive.

 

Smartmom: Jen and Paul We Hardly Knew You

Here's this week's Smartmom from the Brooklyn Paper:

So, Jennifer Connelly and Paul Bettany are selling their gorgeous limestone mansion on Prospect Park West for a cool $8.5 million and buying a place in Tribeca.

Sure, the mansion is a bit out of Smartmom’s price range, but she did check out the listing on the Sotheby’s Web site, where the home is called “one of the all-time great houses of New York [where] sunlight fills the grandly proportioned rooms all day long through oversized windows.” (Oh, so that explains why Connelly and Bettany always had their shades drawn tight!)

Of course, the neighborhood is abuzz. In Smartmom’s case, the buzz started at 3 am on Tuesday, with that first e-mail from her twin sister, Diaper Diva. Luckily Smartmom was sleepless on Third Street, so the pair chatted in the old-fashioned way — over their cellphones.

“One thing you have to say is they kept up the integrity of it,” Diaper Diva told Smartmom as they surveyed the pictures together. “They kept the original details and decorated with a light touch. I like the mix of the mid-century with the Victorian.”

Then Diaper Diva went back to bed. But Smartmom couldn’t sleep as she tried to figure out how Jen and Paul could possibly walk away from all that?

Why would anyone — especially anyone with a house like that?! — leave Park Slope for Tribeca? Why would anyone give up a view of Olmsted’s magnificent Prospect Park for one featuring the West Side Highway and New Jersey?

In some ways, Connelly and Bettany’s Manhattan move calls into question everything that people like Smartmom hold dear. That house on the corner of Carroll Street is a Slope dream, a home to lust over: a historic, 5,200-square-foot mansion crammed with architectural details and facing a beloved park. If they were miserable in a house like that, what does that say about the rest of us? (You got it: we’re more miserable!)

Then again, if Jennifer Connelly can walk away from such a great home, maybe it is possible for all of us to give up the material things that we always think will make our lives so wonderful (but never do).

Smartmom would prefer to think that Connelly, a lifelong Brooklynite, just wants to try life on the other side of the East River. That would be less of a blow to Slopers because we all know that Park Slope is a Shangri La compared to Tribeca.

Still, Smartmom still took it personally. After all, she liked having the actors as neighbors.

They were just a nice couple with kids. All right, they were Hollywood royalty — she has an Oscar; he has, well, those tall, gorgeous, British good looks — but they were good Slopers.

They kept a low profile.

They seemed smart.

They filled their front garden with tulips.

She rode her bike in Prospect Park and played with her kids at the Third Street Playground and the Tea Lounge (though the one on Union Street, not the less-fancy original on Tenth Street!).

Like Us magazine is always pretending, these stars really were “just like US.” Or so we could pretend.

But now they’re walking away from us.

So Smartmom is walking away from her Prospect Park West envy. Yeah, right. What Smartmom wouldn’t do for a cool loft in Tribeca.

No Words Daily Pix: Photograph by Hugh Crawford

Bed Stuy Banana: It Was Good to See You

Now I'm the Gertrude Stein of the Brooklyn blogging world, eh? I loved what Bed Stuy Banana had to say about the Blogfest. Here's an excerpt. She has more fun descriptions on her blog. I was pleased that she, along with many others, did a shout out.

I attended the Third Brooklyn Blogfest (an annual communion of artists, activists, and other misfit toys culled from the Brooklyn blogosphere by the Gertrude Stein of the Brooklyn blogging world, Louise Crawford of Only the Blog Knows Brooklyn) last night with a mixture of trepidation and excitement, my hand firmly clutching Big Joe's (formerly known as Joseph, more on that later). As usual I was prepared for the absolute worst, for my detractors to come up and flip loaded nachos into my face, telling me how much they hated my blog and bearing printed out sheets highlighting my blog's grammatical errors, incorrect word usage and run-on sentences. And as usual, the absolute worst failed to happen. In fact I had a small group of fans (amazing what a complimentary bunch of bananas sent to the right people can do) cheering me on and I felt feelings akin to what I'd felt in art school, having found my tribe at last. Or one of them at least. At various times in my life thus far, my tribes have included gay men at New York clubs in the early nineties, earth mamas, curmudgeons, and fashionistas.

Brooklyn Blogfest: What Does It Want To Be?

The Brooklyn Blogfest started in 2006 as a joke. Sort of. I run Brooklyn Reading Works, a literary reading series and decided that it would be fun to do a reading dedicated to bloggers.

On the poster I called it the First Annual Brooklyn Blogfest. It really was kind of a joke. I made the poster in September but as the date got closer and closer, I realized, hey, I better organize this thing.

By then, there were quite a few bloggers. So it really was the first annual blog gathering.

Initially I thought it was going to be like these geeky computer conventions I used to go to with Hepcat back in the late 1980's. He was a big Amiga Computer guy and we'd travel up and down the east coast (and even out west) attending these conventions, including Siggraph on one occasion.

The first Blogfest was geeky and fun. A bunch of bloggers in the upstairs room of the Old Stone House. And just about everyone there spoke and did sort of a show-and-tell. It was a very long evening but a fun one.

You could describe it this way: a meeting of co-conspirators, who had never met in person but had been following the activities of one another

There was barely anything to eat or drink because I didn't expect too many people to come. I thought it would be like a poetry reading. I didn't know any of the bloggers personally and who knew they'd all show up.

They did. In droves.

Brownstoner came incognito because he still had a day job. Gowanus Lounge introduced himself to the crowd. No Land Grab and Norman Oder were there, as was Lost and Found and the ever lovable Dave Kenny of Dope on the Slope, delivered a hilarious PowerPoint presentation about the evolution of blogging beginning with cave paintings.

Joe's NYC and Travis Ruse both presented incredible slide shows of their work. I read the opening paragraph of "Only the Dead Know Brooklyn" by Thomas Wolfe, the story that inspired the name of my blog.

That, my friends, was the first Blogfest.

The second Blogfest was in 2007. A huge number of people crowded into the Old Stone House. Some people had to be turned away due to concerns about fire code regulations. The program was a bit more organized. It wasn't quite the fun, free-for-all of that first year but a lot of interesting ideas were shared. Lumi Rolley, of No Land Grab, gave Norman Oder a superhero cape for for his his journalistic masterwork,  Steven Berlin Johnson, talked about place blogging, Pastor Daniel Meeter blessed the event with a dutch benediction, Brownstoner talked about quitting his day job.

Afterwards, some complained that there was too much about development and real estate. Too much about Atlantic Yards.

Everyone, however, loved that the party was sponsored by Partida Tequila. Getting them as a sponsor was a real coup. And people enjoyed the margaritas and the Mexican food.

This year was a whole other kettle of fish. I knew we had to get a bigger space and when I toured the Lyceum I was smitten by that big, historic building and the feeling of the performance space. I also noticed the huge screen and video projector and got it into my head that we could show video.

There were rental fees involved, which there never were at the Old Stone House (because of Brooklyn Reading Works). This was going to be a much bigger deal.

Thankfully, many people got involved and I even had a slew of co-producers/partners in crime, including, Eleanor Traubman and Mike Sorgatz of Creative Times, Petra Syrmister of Bed-Stuy Blog and Adrian Kinloch of Brit in Brooklyn. Blue Barn Pictures volunteered to make a video and Morgan Pehme of Brooklyn Optimist put together a beautiful Tribute to Brooklyn's photo bloggers.

Twenty or so bloggers showed up to set up before the show and it was a wonderful collaborative effort.

The presentation to my mind was diverse and interesting. There was a nice selection of bloggers, who brought up many interesting points about the lack of diversity both racial, economic and geographic. The videos were a high point, as was the Shout Out when more than 60 new bloggers got up to share their blogs with the crowd.

I got a variety of comments from people after Thursday's Blogfest:

--quite a few people loved the event

--one blogger thought it was an exercise in self-congratulation and self-promotion.

--others found the ideas interesting

--one guy said there should be more readings from blogs and less speeches about blogs

--one guy said we shouldn't charge for the event but should charge for the liquor; it should be a free event.

--someone said it just needs to be a party.

--others were inspired by the speakers and the shout-out; it made them feel like blogging.

All in all, it makes me wonder if there needs to be another blogfest and, if so, what the blogfest needs to be. A good question that I'm sure will be discussed in the coming weeks.

Whatever happens, it's been a fun journey getting from that first one, which was conceived in jest to the third one which was a great collaboration and a thoughtful program and party.

Reaction to the Blogfest

Not surprisingly, there's lots to read about the Blogfest.  I am feeling tired from last night so I swiped these links from Gowanus Lounge about the Blogfest. Thanks Bob (I knew you'd understand).

· Brooklyn Blogfest [Reclaimed Home]
· Gratitude [New York Shitty]
· Brooklyn Blogfest 2008 [Sustainable Flatbush]
· Blogfest 2008 Coverage [Flatbush Gardener]
· Blogfest 08 Photoset [Flatbush Gardener/flickr]
· Brooklyn Blogfest is a Hit [Brooklyn Optimist]

Everyone had a lot to say.

Brooklyn Skeptic  wrote with her signature skepticism that the Blogfest was an exercise in self-absorption. She did, however, like the free beer. Angela Freeburg with NBC Universal made a short video and had a more upbeat take on the event.

Hundreds of bloggers came out to promote their blogs, discuss the evolution of blogging, and network while munching on Mexican food, sipping Brooklyn Beer, and indulging in sweets like wasabi brownies provided by Brooklyn Fudge.The blog-fest enabled blogging pros and new bloggers to discuss the blogosphere, a rapidly changing world that covers everything from vegan food to hyper-local news.

Creative Times listed some of her personal highlights, including

The evening concluded with the Shout Out, where roughly 60 bloggers from the audience came to the mics up front to introduce themselves.

People stayed well past the ending of the program to dine on the donated edible goodies, mingle, and get their portrait taken by Hugh Crawford of No Words Daily Pix from Only the Blog Knows Brooklyn.

A personal highlight from Blogfest was being part of the team of bloggers and non-bloggers who pulled together as Staff to make every aspect of the event go well, from the food to the DJing, to the sound system. It definitely takes a village to raise a Blogfest.

New York Shitty, who delivered a terrific speech at the Blogfest about her life as a blogger, seemed to enjoy the fest even if it was in Park Slope:

Anyone in the know will tell you schlepping one’s ass from Greenpoint to Park Slope and back is no picnic. This usually entails taking the G to F. Getting to the Brooklyn Lyceum is a bit more complicated. Do I want to transfer at the 4th Avenue Station for the M(aybe) or R(arely)? No, I have more faith in my feet than those trains, thank you very much,

All in all, a good time was had by all. Personally, I'd like to thank Gerritsen Beach for all his help during the clean up help at the end of the night. I am now, officially, a fan of his blog, which is dedicated to Gerritsen Beach Offering current news, links and reviews and not memories.  

Continue reading "Reaction to the Blogfest"

So How Was the Blogfest?

Like a bride at her own wedding, Thursday night's Brooklyn Blogfest at the Brooklyn Lyceum is mostly a blur for But it was also an incredible gathering of a vivacious "tribe" of New Yorkers.

Brooklyn bloggers.

As I said in the Blogfest video by Blue Barn Pictures, Brooklyn bloggers are a smart, ambitious, entrepreneurial, creative, opinionated and enthusiastic group and they're a lot of fun to hang out with.

The Blogfest back story is just as fun as the event. For months, there's been lots of  behind-the-scenes planning and organizing by a large group of bloggers drawn from the Brooklyn Blogade, an constantly expanding group of bloggers who meet monthly all over Brooklyn. My co-producers Eleanor Traubman and Mike Sorgatz of Creative Times, Adrian Kinloch and Petra Symister deserve the lion's share of the credit (their links are below). 

20 bloggers showed up at 6 p.m. to do whatever needed to be done. Bloggers set up video equipment, chairs, tables, food, beer; they made name tags, signs, manned the money table and more. It was a sight to behold.

You can be sure they did it with gusto. I thank them all. 

When Amanda from Brooklyn Fudge showed up with her signage and her pretty cake plates I wanted to kiss her. She helped set up the "hospitality area" along with Angela of Red Mango Bakery, the folks behind much of the vegan baked goods at many Brooklyn cafes and Danielle of Habeas Brulee who runs Jack, an occasional restaurant that is open for one seating per night every other week or so.

I was equally thrilled when Bierkraft delivered the 17 cases of beer, that were paid for by Outside.in, the company that is fast becoming an essential resource for place bloggers.

Pre-show, I had no idea what to expect. On Thursday I started to get the feeling that the event might be well-attended. But I also had my doubts. I always have doubts and lots of worry.

What if nobody comes?

By 8 p.m. I knew we'd have a crowd. A very good crowd.

As is often the case at special events, there were some pre-show technical challenges (video, ah video). Still thanks to a great crew spear-headed by Adrian Kinloch (Brit in Brooklyn), Morgan Pehme (Brooklyn Optimist), the guys from Blue Barn Pictures and two incredibly helpful guys from the Brooklyn Lyceum, we were ready to go by 8:20 or so.

While the crowd filed into the downstairs performance space, that used to be a bath, DJ Solo P from Groovalicious Entertainment entertained the crowd with a great selection of groovalicious music including calypso favorites and other fun stuff.

The Lyceum was full of friends and strangers when the video, Place Matters; Blogging My World filled the enormous screen.

Blue Barn's video was, as expected, fantastic and it contained the biggest talking heads in High Definition video you've ever seen, who conveyed something of the feisty spiritedness of the small group of Brooklyn bloggers, who were interviewed.

The video, which included an appearance by NY Shitty's mascot, Hannah the Hardhat, was followed by short, consistently interesting speeches by a diverse group of bloggers and journalists:

Eleanor Traubman of Creative Times spoke about the community that formed around the planning of Blogfest

Petra Symister of Bed-Stuy Blog, spoke about the need for diversity in the Brooklyn blogosphere, especially in the realm of place blogs, which, she said, are very homgenious in terms of race and economic class.

Greg Sutton, Megan Donis and Narina from Brooklyn Community Access Television spoke about their new series, A Walk Around the Blog and showed a short trailer.

Miss Heather of the blog, New York Shitty talked about the interactivity of blogging, "I am not merely putting something out in the world for people to read. My blog is not a monologue; it is a dialog with my readership," she said.

"Keep the dead rat stories coming," she said in closing.

Gowanus Lounge's Robert Guskind, in his sonorous, low radio announcer's voice, suggested that the word blog has less and less meaning because there is so much unique content online. He urged those who are "thinking about starting a blog to stop thinking about it and to start doing it." especially in underblogged areas like Sheepshead Bay and Sunset Park.

WNYC talk radio host and recent winner of a Peabody Award, Brian Lehrer, appeared in a video personally reaching to bloggers to send stories for his CUNY-television weekly news show. After Lehrer's clip, Gersh Kuntzman, editor of the Brooklyn Paper, wondered aloud about the future of blogging and the destructiveness of mean-spirited blog comments.

Heather Johnston, producer of a wonderful food blog called sogood.tv talked about her evolution as a video blogger and delivered the Top Ten Tips for New Bloggers.

Big gratitude to Morgan Pehme of Brooklyn Optimist for his  Tribute to Brooklyn's Photo Bloggers, a montage of photographs by some of the best, including Fading Ad Blog,  Joe's NYC, Flatbush Gardener, Bed-Stuy Banana, Park Slope Street Photography, No Words Daily Pix, Brit in Brooklyn, Forgotten NY and many more. All I can say is WOW. It was a beautiful tribute to these hardworking and creative folks, who are capturing what's going on on the streets and skylines of Brooklyn.

Chris Kreussling of Flatbush Gardener talked about the Brooklyn Blogade as an opportunity to attach a face to a blog at monthly meet ups. This group is constantly looking for new recruits: those who blog and those who are thinking about blogging. The next one is on June 22 at noon at Root Hill Cafe on Carroll Street and Fourth Avenue. Come one, come all.

Finally, Rob Lenihan, the wonderful blogger behind the very well written Luna Park Gazette, told the crowd it was time for the Shout Out, everyone's chance to announce their blog to the world.

Imagine my surprise when 50 or more people lined up for the microphones. Thank goodness  we had that timer/buzzer with us (operated by my daughter).

In the next few days I will post a list of all the bloggers who did the shout out; it was a high point of a great evening.

The party and the schmoozing went on until around midnight. A good time was had by all. For me it's a bit of a adrenaline blur.

But I loved it. I really did. More thoughts to come...

Pix by Flatbush Gardener

No Words Daily Pix: Photograph by Hugh Crawford

No Words Daily Pix: Photograph by Hugh Crawford

Today's the Day: Blogfest at 8 p.m. at the Brooklyn Lyceum

Today is the day. There are a few last minute details to attend to but everything seems to be in order for tonight's third annual Brooklyn Blogfest.

For those who don't know, the Brooklyn Blogfest is a gathering about Brooklyn blogging for bloggers, blog fans, those interested in blogging and those passionate about Brooklyn.

The festivities are TONIGHT at 8 p.m. at the Brooklyn Lyceum, 227 Fourth Avenue just steps from the R train's Union Street station. Suggested donation is $10 to help offset the costs of this event. There will be food and drink a-plenty and lots of time for networking and socializing.

Indeed, it takes many hours of unseen work, coordination, attention to detail, writing, phone calling, emailing, and outreach to the community to pull off an event like this and thank goodness there were so many people lending their positive energy and creativity to the event.

As Eleanor Traubman of Creative Times wrote in an email the other day: 

Thanks to those who helped to do the behind the scenes prep work and who have stepped up in such a generous way to help out on the day of the event.  It takes a village to raise a Blogfest and we are a really great village!

Thanks to Eleanor and all the other people, who came together and donated their creative energy to this project. It was a team effort that was a joy to be part of.

Ikea Getting Some Positive Reviews from Hammerman, NY 1

Ikea is opening on June 18th after years of protests from local Red Hook residents. But now that it's a reality, it will be interesting to see how the neighborhood likes its new neighbor.

According to Jeanine Ramirez, the Brooklyn reporter for NY 1, Craig Hammerman and others seem to think that Ikea is a good neighbor and doing things right by Red Hook.

It remains to be seen whether Ikea is indeed a positive thing for Red Hook and the surrounding neighborhoods of Brooklyn.

But it can't be denied that Ikea has done (or was forced to doP quite a few things right even if the big blue and yellow box store is a bit glaring contextually in that historic area.

On a positive note, the store offered first choice of jobs to people in the community and they are offering full benefits even for part-time employees.

Now that's cool.

No doubt the Red Hook Ikea, the first Ikea in New York City, has great views of the water, the New York skyline and the Statue of Liberty.

Sitting on  22 acres in the Erie Basin, the big box Swedish store turned 6 of its acres into a public waterfront esplanade. I am eager to see if this effort to win over the community pays off. It sure sounds nice.

Craig Hammerman of Community Board 6 seems to be very positive about the new Ikea.

"There were certain conditions that the community board had imposed on its land use review and IKEA has lived up to all of the conditions," Hammerman told NY 1.

According to NY 1:

Ikea helped pay for turning lanes on Hamilton Avenue to ease the traffic flow in and out of Red Hook. Shuttle buses will pick up customers at nearby subway stations, water taxi service will run to and from Manhattan's Pier 11, two city bus lines are extending their routes to the store and rental Zipcars will be on-site.

IKEA widened and paved the street in front of the store, upsetting some residents who wanted to keep the old stone road that was here. So, designers included the stones in the park landscape. The store also incorporated cranes to preserve the site's maritime history.

Sounds like Ikea is adding public transportation (i.e. shuttle buses, extended lines for the existing buses, and water taxi service) to a neighborhood sorely in need of public transportation. Whether these modification will just be for customers or for the community as a whole remains to be seen.   

June 18th is just a few weeks away. Everyone wants to see how this store fits into the life of this very special Brooklyn community and whether it is a benefit to the place or just a drain on the community's resources.   

Sharpton, Sean Bell's Fiancee, and Hundreds Arrested at Protests

If you wondered what all those police helicopters were doing swarming over Brooklyn on Wednesday afternoon, it was because of the demonstrations at the Brooklyn Bridge and other sites around the city protesting the Sean Bell verdict.

Reverend Al Sharpton, Sean Bell's fiancee and hundreds were arrested at a Brooklyn Bridge protest and call to urge authorities to launch an investigation into Bell's shooting by police. Here's an excerpt from the NY 1 article:

The Reverend Al Sharpton and Sean Bell's fiancée were arrested along with about over 200 protesters shortly after 4:45 p.m. Wednesday, as they blocked traffic on Park Row by the entry of the Brooklyn Bridge in Lower Manhattan.

According to police authorities, the over 200 arrests were part of a coordinated campaign organized by Sharpton to urge federal authorities to investigate Bell's shooting by detectives more than two years ago.

Joseph Guzman and Trent Benefield, who were injured during that shooting, joined Sharpton and Bell's fiancée, Nicole Paultre Bell, lined up and peacefully put their hands behind their backs as police put plastic handcuffs on them. Sharpton and Bell were placed in a police vehicle.

Late Wednesday night, some demonstrators told NY1 that the protests would be weekly, but there was no official confirmation of such strategies.

No Words Daily Pix: Photograph by Hugh Crawford

Music for 17 Musicians: Josh Schneider Easy-Bake Orchestra

TONIGHT at the Brooklyn Lyceum at 8 p.m. hear original compositions and arrangements by The Josh Schneider and the Easy-Bake Orchestra, 17 of New York's most fearless improvisers.

The Brooklyn Lyceum
227 Fourth Avenue
Brooklyn, NY 11215
$10.
Take the R train to Union Street.

If You're Thinking of Starting a Blog...

Come to the Blogfest and get the cool handout: Top Ten Tips for New Bloggers and Top Ten Tips for Photo Bloggers.

The Third Annual Brooklyn Blogfest 2008 is an event for bloggers, blog-readers, those interested in Blogging, and those passionate about Brooklyn. It is open to one and all and everyone is warmly welcomed. No need to RSVP or be personally invited.

Date and Time: Thursday May 8th, 2008 at 8 p.m.

Location: The Brooklyn Lyceum. 227 Fourth Avenue at President Street just steps from the R-trains Union Street station.

For cool Blogfest T-shirts: Come to the Blogfest

More info: Louise Crawford at 718-288-4290 or louise_crawford(at)yahoo(dot)com

What to Expect: Here's the line-up for the program. The show begins at 8 p.m.

Video: Place Matters: Blogging My World by Blue Barn Pictures

Brief Welcome: Only the Blog Knows Brooklyn (Louise Crawford)

Speaker: Creative Times (Eleanor Traubman)

Speaker: Bed-Stuy Blog (Petra S.)

Video: A Walk Around the Blog Promo by Brooklyn Independent Television

Speaker: New York Shitty (Miss Heather)

Speaker: Gowanus Lounge (Robert Guskind)

Speaker: Gersh Kuntzman, editor of The Brooklyn Paper

Video: A Word from WNYC's Brian Lehrer

Speaker: Top Ten Tips for New Bloggers presented by So Good (Heather Johnson)

Speaker: Outside.in, a resource for bloggers who blog about where they live

Video: A Tribute to Brooklyn's Photo Bloggers with music by Brooklyn's Ready Fire Aim  (video produced by Brooklyn Optimist)

Speaker: Bloggers Reach Out: The Brooklyn Blogade presented by Flatbush Gardener

ANNUAL SHOUT-OUT: Your chance to share your blog with the world introduced by Luna Park Gazette

Food and Fun: There will be light refreshments and other goodies from Maria's Mexican Bistro, Red Mango Bakery, Brooklyn Fudge, and beer courtesy of Outside.in

After the presentation there will be plenty of time for conversation, networking, beer and delicious snacks courtesy of Maria's Mexican Bistro, Red Mango Bakery and Brooklyn Fudge.

Many Thanks to Our Blogfest Sponsors: Only the Blog Knows Brooklyn, Blue Barn Pictures, Outside.In, Brooklyn Optimist, Gowanus Lounge, Michael Sorgatz, Brit in Brooklyn, Bed-Stuy Blog, Red Mango Bakery, Brooklyn Fudge, Maria's Mexican Bistro, DJ Solo P from Groovalicious and the Community Bookstore.

No Words Daily Pix: Photograph by Hugh Crawford