Only the Blog Knows Brooklyn

No Words Daily Pix: Photograph by Hugh Crawford

The List: Things to Do on New Year's Eve

1. Fun Run in Prospect Park; Ring in the New Year in a healthy and fun way! Costumes welcome! Runners, walkers and all paces welcome! Presented by Brooklyn Road Runners Club and Slope Sports. 3 mile course. Start at 9th Street, down around the Lake, turn Left on Center Drive. At the end of Center Drive, turn right back onto West Drive to the Finish line at 9th Street. Runners, please make note of your times at the end of the race. There will be an unofficial timing and this is an un-scored Fun Run. More info at Slope Sports. 

2. The 28th annual New Year’s Eve fireworks spectacular at Grand Army Plaza . The free celebration, sponsored by the Brooklyn Borough President’s Office and held in partnership with the Prospect Park Alliance, starts around 11 p.m. with musical entertainment and hot refreshments. Best locations for viewing the midnight fireworks include anywhere in Grand Army Plaza , inside the Park on the West Drive , and along Prospect Park West between Grand Army Plaza and 9th Street .

3. New Year's Eve at Vox Pop: The Cortelyou Road cafe reopens tonight with a big New Year's Bash.

4. The pub quiz with Scott Turner is just part of Rocky Sullivan's New Year's Eve Extravaganza in Red Hook.

5. Dinner at Bussaco with jazz by Josh Shneider and friends. Second seating includes jazz and dinner. Starts at 8:30 - 11 PM.

6. A full list of special New Year's Eve menus at Fifth Avenue restaurants is on the blog, All About Fifth. 

Greetings from Scott Turner: A Little Summation and New Year's Eve at Rocky's

Greetings, Pub Quiz Year Enders...

Overwhelmed by Year In Reviews?  Best Of?  Worst Of?  Even worse, the prognostications for the coming year?  And worst of all, the coming year's predicted Year In Review for stuff that hasn't happened yet -- more Shecky Green than Nostradamus.

Even worse, we get a double-dose: Year in Review and Decade in Review.

This ain't no disco, and it ain't my call to make.  The best of the year, best of the decade, is whatever you say it is.

This little summation is just stuff that makes me smile or sticks in my craw -- sometimes at the same time.

And what, exactly, is a craw?  It's the crop of a bird or an animal, or an animal's stomach.  And, idiomatically, the place where really annoying stuff goes and sticks.  And doesn't come out -- not with the wash, not with scholastic remediation, and not with the healing qualities Time is supposed to be so good at.

2009...the last year of this terrible decade.  We should've known it would be bad -- any decade that lends itself to the spectacle known as New Year's Eve Spectacles was bound to go off the rails.

yes, yes...it's a new year AND you can see us!

And it did.  Spectacularly at the outset and grindingly for the rest of the way.  The '00s were mostly the dark days of the Bush era.  Really, really dark.  At the end, the disappointment (thus far) of the Obama administration's hold-hands-circle.  Dude, you were elected with a huge mandate -- end wars and give everyone health coverage and encourage queer rights and all the other stuff we talked about!

Also, people now say "dude" more than ever.

Hard to believe this is the same decade as 9/11 and the big tsunami and the end of Buffy The Vampire Slayer.

Since he's still in office, it's sadly not hard at all to believe Michael Bloomberg is mayor.  It's cruel to wake from the nightmare of W and still be in Bloomy's New York -- like a sci-fi plot where the character opens her eyes only to discover by the next ad break that she's still in a terrifying dream.

Assuming he doesn't buy his way into a fourth term, we'll discover that we can't even afford to leave the Bloomberg's frightful nightmare -- sky-high rents, box-stores, wrecked subway and school systems, deference to the wealthy, trite initiatives that ignore the city's real problems.

If Bloomberg's such a "good businessman," how come the city's in such bad shape financially?  And no, you can't give his alleged business acumen credit when times were good but, now that times are bad, blame events somehow beyond the mayor's control.

There were bright spots -- political movements and new politicians that could bend the steel bar enough to make a difference, bands and movies and t.v. shows we loved, medical advances (though, good luck paying for them), and technology that has us at the crossroads -- this way, radical new possibilities to improve our quality of life; that way, a planet so self-absorbedly addicted to Twitter and celebritydom that when we finally look up and see the giant asteroid about to destroy Earth, we won't have time to use all 140 characters to scream.

Of course, humans being humans, it'll be somewhere in the middle.  It always is.  We somehow always recover from doing terrible things to one-another.  The worst things possible -- genocide, torture, t.v. shows about the Kardashian sibblings -- and still we continue.

What we do to each other is one thing.  What we're doing to the planet...that's another story.  There's a desperate push to name the '00s.  Could be hard, because we can't even agree on the prosaic numerical nickname -- Zeroes? Aughts? Pre-Teens?.  Still, I nominate this clunker: The We've Known We're Killing Our Planet And Destroying Humanity One Hummer Meat-Cattle-Raising Acre Rampant Western Consumer Thirst Slaked But Not Enough By Emerging Factory States At A Time And We Can't Get Our Shit Together To Save The Only Home We've Got Decade.  It's not as catchy as the Me Decade, but at least it's too long for a tweet -- and that's a start.

Upon further review, how about the Toxic Decade.  "A lie told often enough becomes the truth," so the insidious insist.  These last ten years, lies didn't even have to be said that often before we caved in and took them at face value.

Michael Bloomberg, China's quest to satisfy Western urges, the Kardashians, Bruce Ratner and Jay-Z, W & His Number 1, Enron -- the forefront of the Toxic Decade.  An incomplete list.

We've fought our way through the Toxic Decade.  That says a lot.  We allowed it to become this toxic.  That says a lot more.

The obvious retort here is "Dude, every decade's been toxic."  True -- nuclear proliferation, world wars, depressions greater than this one, bubonic plagues (that's a lot of decades ago, but still...).  What makes this last one so toxic is that by now, we should know better.  Know better than to wage stupid wars, pollute the planet, build superblock projects and give wealthy developers public money to destroy neighborhoods, allow fiscal corruption to run rampant, piss off the world with hubris and arrogance, and pull cover after cover over our head instead of letting the warm sunshine of resistance heat us up.

Fact -- fighting the power is more fun than DVDing another season of America's Next Top Model.

So onward to 2010.  My one moment of Nostradamual prognostication:

Things are gonna change...

* * * * * * * *

...starting with the best way to celebrate New Year's Eve this Thursday evening:

The Rocky Sullivan's Pub Quiz Quizzin' New Year's Eve Extravaganza!

The Current Weather in Park Slope: Snow, Snow, Snow

Brought to you by the Feldman Family from their local weather tower.

OTBKB Film by Pops Corn: The Best of 2009

Defining any year in cinema is a difficult task.  And if one’s personal taste is involved, it can be downright impossible.  I’ve rediscovered this truth looking at my 10 favorite films from 2009.  It’s  a diverse collection of ignored and the celebrated films, notable for their range of parental figures, immoral enforcers, fringe dwellers, educational institutions and questions so difficult to answer that they often remain unsolved.  My 2009 favorites, I hope you will discover them as well.

1.    Observe and Report – While Kevin James’ light mall cop movie was a surprise hit in January, a few months later Jody Hill’s irreverent comedy with Seth Rogen as a disturbed mall security guard was only noticed only for its notorious date-rape joke.  But, for me this was a truly unique work.  It aimed to create a new film experience and I walked out of the theater with that incredibly rare feeling that I had actually seen something I’ve never seen before.  An absurd take on Taxi Driver-like delusional hero redemption, it’s outrageous, satiric, funny, makes brilliant use of music on the soundtrack and gleefully breaks all kinds of rules of cinematic technique and storytelling. 
2.    A Serious Man – Trippy yet dramatic, snarky yet sincere, A Serious Man may be my favorite Coen Brothers film.  They brilliantly build the narrative tension around a story of faith and karma, wonderfully open to both atheistic and spiritual interpretations.
3.    Sugar – When telling an American story, baseball makes the perfect backdrop.  This American tale is a subtle meditation on the migratory pattern of a Domican baseball prospect discovering the promised land’s hard truths. 
4.    The Hurt Locker – I wish it didn’t start with a quote that sums up what the film so perfectly captures.  Still, Kathryn Bigelow’s film about war’s corruption of the human soul is a powerful statement and an incredible artistic and technical achievement, anchored by Jeremy Renner’s outstanding performance.
5.    Up – A cinematic journey that is as imaginative as it is heartfelt, this animated Pixar offering is thoroughly delightful.  One early sequence that depicts Carl and Ellie’s life together is the year’s most memorable, reminiscent of Buster Keaton with its warm comedic touch and aesthetic mastery.
6.    Precious: Based On The Novel Push By Sapphire – A film that simply does not get a disinterested reaction, Precious pushes all kinds of buttons, yet it’s ultimately a heartfelt tale of inspiration.  Director Lee Daniels’ stylized mayhem was finally applied with perfection.
7.    World’s Greatest Dad – Death’s false honor is explored in Bobcat Goldthwait’s black comedy.  Robin Williams stars as a failed writer father who exploits tragedy to turn his life around.
8.    An Education – A tacked-on ending enraged me, but otherwise Lone Scherfig’s film is smart, endearing and offers no easy answers. 
9.    Antichrist – While the violence, abuse in all forms and talking foxes got all the attention, Lars von Trier’s attack on the senses feels like the Dutch filmmaker’s most personal work.  Where will he go with these demons now exorcised?
10.    Bad Lieutenant – Port of Call: New Orleans – It may be a weak 10th-slot choice, but this B-movie curiosity piece is full of hammy acting, story dead-ends and bizarre moments. Its lack of quality is somehow also its substance

OTBKB Film by Pops Corn: The Best of the O's

If you had the ability and perseverance to do sift through the movies the decade we have just lived through, you may find, like I, that the 00s offered a lot of strong films, particularly by American filmmakers.  Asked by OKTBKB to compile a list of the best of the decade, I can only offer up my personal favorites.  I like to think that many of these films will be long remembered, although some, in fact, have already been positively ignored.  Still, these are the films that spoke the strongest to me over the last 10 years.  There are many more films I’m sure I have yet to discover, but this is the list I am passionate about today.

1.    The Weather Man (Gore Verbinski; 2005) – Critically dismissed and a box office bomb, this study of meaninglessness shocked me with its honest and profoundly sad depiction of how we live our lives today. Brilliantly conceived by screenwriter Steve Conrad, the titular character played by Nicolas Cage is one of the cinema’s most vapid protagonists, a disrespected mini-celeb whose useless existence becomes more and more evident as he balances family problems with a million dollar network job possibility.
2.    Mulholland Dr. (David Lynch; 2001) – Lynch’s techniques, once so secular, are now all over the edges of blockbusters and straight-to-video horror.  But no one does it like the master, probably our greatest living filmmaker.  A meta-mystery, Mullholand Dr. is a bizarre, dreamlike subconscious meditation and a definitive Hollywood satire.
3.    Capturing The Friedmans (Andrew Jarecki; 2003) – In a decade during which the face and status of the documentary changed, none so clearly re-defined my view of documentary filmmaking as Andrew Jarecki’s debut film.  The portrait of an accused pedophile and his family’s spiral amidst the crisis displays formal brilliance and benefits from incredible, powerful archival footage.
4.    Sideways (Alexander Payne; 2004) – Depicting the middle-aged male psyche with painful humor and emotional tenderness, Sideways is a complex character study, superbly performed. Alexander Payne’s film manages to be an entertaining blast and a time capsule of human behavior.
5.    Human Nature (Michel Gondry; 2002) – Months before screenwriter Charlie Kaufman was celebrated for his personal, audacious Adaptation script, this hilarious take on a Brave New World-like scenario was also ignored. One of Kaufman’s strengths is that he shoots for the moon with existential searches and raw exposure of human foibles and failures. Riotously funny and absurd, it is a rare, unique film in many ways, including turning off audiences with excessive leading lady body hair.

Below are some additional 00s favorites, organized by fabricated sub-genres.  I hope you add to your must-see list if you’ve missed them until now:

The Past Reflecting The Present
Far From Heaven
Revolutionary Road

What’s Happening Now?
About Schmidt
Happy-Go-Lucky
House Of Sand And Fog
In The Valley Of Elah
Little Children
Whale Rider

No Escape From Self
Adaptation
Dahmer
A Serious Man

Pure Cinema
The Assassination of Robert Ford By The Coward Jesse James
In The Mood For Love
No Country For Old Men
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber Of Fleet Street
There Will Be Blood

Crowd Pleasers With Depth
Catch Me If You Can
Little Miss Sunshine
Unbreakable

Mindfucks
Apocalypto
Observe And Report
Oldboy
Planet Terror

No Words Daily Pix: Photograph by Hugh Crawford

Vox Pop To Reopen For New Years Eve

Vox Pop reopens on Thursday night after being closed down by the NYC Department of Revenue.

I want to thank everyone for your support during this difficult two
weeks while we were closed.  We were able to raise the money to get
our doors back open! 

But, this doesn't get us out of the woods yet.  Being closed for 14
days has cost us dearly in lost revenue (especially through the
holiday) and we still need to move forward with all of our fundraising
efforts to get us on the strongest financial footing possible.

We have an amazing benefit show at Jalopy Theater ( on January 12th.
Mark your calendars and come on down to show your support. t.

Fun Run: Around the Park on New Year's Eve

Come ring in the New Year in a healthy and fun way!
Costumes welcome!
Runners, walkers and all paces welcome!

2009-2010 NEW YEAR'S EVE FUN RUN
presented by
Brooklyn Road Runners Club and Slope Sports

3 MILE FUN RUN
Prospect Park, Brooklyn

DATE/TIME
Monday, December 31, 2009 -- 11:15pm start

NEW START/FINISH LINE
Start/Finish line is at the 9th Street, inside the Park

ENTRY FEE
$20 before December 31, 2009 ($15 for Brooklyn Road Runners Club members)
$25 on Race Day ($20 for BRRC Members)
No refunds and/or exchanges. Race will occur rain, snow or shine.

NEW COURSE
3 mile course. Start at 9th Street, down around the Lake, turn Left on Center Drive. At the end of Center Drive, turn right back onto West Drive to the Finish line at 9th Street. Runners, please make note of your times at the end of the race. There will be an unofficial timing and this is an un-scored Fun Run.

AWARDS

• A free pair of running shoes (value up to $100) from Slope Sports for Top Male & Top Female finisher!
• Running gloves for the first 250 participants
• Hot chocolate from Cousin John's Bakery

RACE REGISTRATION
(1) Print and mail a race application. DOWNLOAD HERE >> CLICK HERE
OR
(2) Online registration at Active.com >> REGISTER ONLINE

REGISTRATION / RACE NUMBER PICK-UP
Slope Sports
70 Seventh Avenue, between Lincoln & Berkeley
Brooklyn, NY 11217
718-230-4686

Wed. Dec. 30th, 11a-7p
Race Day, Thurs. Dec 31st, 11a-5p
Onsite registration: 10:30-11:00p

BAG CHECK
Bag check is provided at registration area as a convenience. Please do not bring anything valuable since we are not responsible for lost or stolen items.

OTBKB Muisc: Still No Plans for New Year's Eve? Try This...

Maybe your New Year’s Eve plans have fallen through, or maybe you just kept putting off planning what it was your were going to do or maybe you just don’t want to empty your bank account to do something overpriced and under wonderful.  But whatever the reason, New Year’s Eve is tomorrow and there’s nothing on your calendar.

Here’s the last refuge for you last minute types.  The Rockwood Music Hall will be sticking to it’s usual policy on New Year’s Eve.  That means no reservations.  There’s no cover charge with a one drink per set minimum (but a $5 contribution for each band is requested).  Not only will they will have a full night of music, but OTBKB Music fave James Maddock will be playing during the 10pm to midnight slot.  Not only is James a great live performer but his album, Sunrise on Avenue C, is on the OTBKB Music Top Ten for 2009.

The only downside is the size of the Rockwood; it holds only about 40 people in the main room, which is where the stage is.  There’s a back room which holds about another 25 or so, and it does have a closed circuit TV view of the stage.  So if you want to see James, get there early, maybe an hour early.

James Maddock, The Rockwood Music Hall, 196 Allen Street (F or V Trains to Second Avenue, use the First Avenue exit), 10pm-midnight

 --Eliot Wagner

No Words Daily Pix: Photograph by Hugh Crawford

January 20: Hollywood in the Heights

The Brooklyn Heights Association (BHA) is celebrating it's centennial in 2010 with a yearlong series of events called Celebrating a Century.  The kick off event for this series, Hollywood in the Heights, is scheduled for Wednesday, January 20th at 7pm in St. Francis College's Founders Hall.

Hosted by Academy Award-nominated filmmaker and novelist Peter Hedges (What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, Pieces of April, About a Boy), the event will be a unique and comprehensive look at how the scenic neighborhood of Brooklyn Heights has been portrayed in film, and present attendees with a close up look at why so many great films choose Brooklyn Heights for their setting.

The evening will begin with Peter Hedges, a Brooklyn resident, presenting the premiere screening of a film montage featuring notable clips from films shot in Brooklyn Heights throughout the years. Mr. Hedges will then lead a panel discussion of film industry professionals in an intimate and informative conversation, giving an inside look into the mechanical, technical, and creative aspects of filming a Hollywood-quality scene on the picturesque streets of Brooklyn Heights.

Murder Rate Down Citywide; Car Theft Up in Park Slope

The murder rate in NYC is the lowest since the current record system began in 1963. As of Sunday, there had been 461; the record low was in 2007, when there were 496 for the entire year.

According to the Brooklyn Paper, crime in the 78th precinct in Park Slope was down in all categories except car theft:

Every crime category was down — and down big — this year except for car theft. As loyal readers of our police blotter know, car theft is the unending plague on Park Slope — often with thieves taking cars older than 10 years. This year, car theft was up 14 percent, with 97 sets of wheels being swiped. The good news? There was only one murder, down from three last year, and there were double-digit cuts in robbery (147 to 125), assault (70 to 57) and grand larceny (437 to 374). Overall, crime was down 10.86 percent.

New LIRR Terminal Now Open To Public

From the Brooklyn Paper:

After nearly six years of construction, the new entrance to the Long Island Rail Road’s critical Atlantic Terminal at Flatbush Avenue is finally open to straphangers.

Commuters looking for the LIRR ticket office will find that it has moved to a new location on the concourse below the ground floor entrance, where natural light shines through glass that spans from the road to the ceiling, offering views of the Williamsburgh Savings Bank tower across the street.

New Year's Eve Fun Run: New Start/Finish Line at 9th Street

Come ring in the New Year in a healthy and fun way!
Costumes welcome!
Runners, walkers and all paces welcome!

2009-2010 NEW YEAR'S EVE FUN RUN
presented by
Brooklyn Road Runners Club and Slope Sports

3 MILE FUN RUN
Prospect Park, Brooklyn

DATE/TIME
Monday, December 31, 2009 -- 11:15pm start

NEW START/FINISH LINE
Start/Finish line is at the 9th Street, inside the Park

ENTRY FEE
$20 before December 31, 2009 ($15 for Brooklyn Road Runners Club members)
$25 on Race Day ($20 for BRRC Members)
No refunds and/or exchanges. Race will occur rain, snow or shine.

NEW COURSE
3 mile course. Start at 9th Street, down around the Lake, turn Left on Center Drive. At the end of Center Drive, turn right back onto West Drive to the Finish line at 9th Street. Runners, please make note of your times at the end of the race. There will be an unofficial timing and this is an un-scored Fun Run.

AWARDS

• A free pair of running shoes (value up to $100) from Slope Sports for Top Male & Top Female finisher!
• Running gloves for the first 250 participants
• Hot chocolate from Cousin John's Bakery

RACE REGISTRATION
(1) Print and mail a race application. DOWNLOAD HERE >> CLICK HERE
OR
(2) Online registration at Active.com >> REGISTER ONLINE

REGISTRATION / RACE NUMBER PICK-UP
Slope Sports
70 Seventh Avenue, between Lincoln & Berkeley
Brooklyn, NY 11217
718-230-4686
Tue. Dec. 29th, 11a-7p
Wed. Dec. 30th, 11a-7p
Race Day, Thurs. Dec 31st, 11a-5p
Onsite registration: 10:30-11:00p

BAG CHECK
Bag check is provided at registration area as a convenience. Please do not bring anything valuable since we are not responsible for lost or stolen items.

The Current Weather in Park Slope: Brrrrrrrr

Brought to you by the Feldman Family from their local weather tower.

No Words Daily Pix: Photograph by Hugh Crawford

Some Bubbly for New Years Eve?

The Green Grape in Fort Greene will host their annual champagne  tasting on Wednesday, December 30 from 5 PM until 7 PM. 765 Fulton Street. They deliver.

Every single champagne at the tasting -- and on the list below -- is a grower champagne, which means that the  grapes were raised, harvested and vinified by grower instead of being sold off to a big champagne house.

Here are the champagnes to be poured. If you can't make it to the tasting you may want to just buy a bottle for yourself for New Year's Eve. The words are from the Green Grape website. 

Henri Goutorbe Champagne Special Club 2002 $90.00
A real New Year's Treat! The 'Club de Viticulteurs Champenois' began in 1971 as a way for the smaller growers to join forces in order to market their wines. With over a dozen different producers working together they felt they could more easily compete with the larger Champagne houses. They created the 'Special Club' bottling with the idea that it would always be the best of what each producer had to offer and would always be presented in the same oddly shaped bottle. Henri Goutorbe is one of the leading vine-nurserymen in Champagne and the owner of Hotel Castel Jeanson in Ay, along with being one of the great small growers. The Special Club has malic, yeasty and sorrel aromas and shows great length. 2002 is a stellar vintage.

Chartogne-Taillet Rose, NV $59.00
Our only rose champagne, it is not only fun to drink, the pleasing pink color makes it festive in the glass. Pinot Noir and Chardonnay grapes provide the base to which Pinot Noir still wine is added to give color. It blossoms with aromas of strawberries, and, believe it or not, prosciutto and can stand up to more assertive foods than our other champagnes.

Henri Goutorbe "Cuvee Prestige", NV $45.00
This non-vintage version from the great Henri Goutorbe was best value in the WSJ this month. The wine, packed with red cherry fruit, is bright, generous and has an amazing long finish.

Jean Velut Champagne Brut Tradition NV $40.00
30 years ago Denis Velut's grandfather Jean established this domain in the Cote des Bars as a recoltant/manipulant (small grower) following a venerable history of supplying grande marque houses further north. Montgueux is the village where Denis and Anne Velut's 7 hectares of vines reside and surprisingly in the context of the larger region, this is an area planted to roughly 85% Chardonnay due to the phenomenon of it being highly concentrated in calcaire soil. Half of the grapes grown here are still sold to negociant houses and it seems as though this is the perfect economical balance allowing Denis the leeway to carefully craft the very best wines that he can. Just 3000 cases are produced here each year. Structure is provided by the steely austerity of the chalk infused chardonnay while the ripe Pinot provides a fruity lift.

OTBKB Music: There's A New Rockwood Coming in 2010

The Rockwood Music Hall is a small club located on Allen Street about half a block south of Houston Street.  It’s the home base for many local musicians including Leslie Mendelson, James Maddock and Sasha Dobson.  Sometimes big name acts, including Ryan Adams, Matisyahu and a Norah Jones side project have played there.

But the place is small.  It holds 40 people in the music room, if everyone is really friendly.  Another 25 or so can fit into the back room.

But the word is that owner Ken Rockwood has taken the space immediately south of the current Rockwood and will be opening that new space in early February.  From the information I’ve received, it appears that the new space will be a separate club from the current Rockwood and hold 300 people.  It looks likely to open in early February.

 --Eliot Wagner

Manhole Explosion on Park Slope's Fifth Avenue

Early Monday morning (approximately 12 AM) there was an manhole explosion on Park Slope's Fifth Avenue near President Street. One tipster says it was between Joe's ShoeRepair and Moutarde on 5th ave, and an adjacent manhole on President.

The explosion occurred at around 12 am and woke many residents up, who went running to the corner to see what was happening. .

Firemen said it was an explosion that did not affect the buildings.

At least five fire trucks and many police cars were on hand. No one was hurt but Joe's was searched for fire damage. At 1.20 AM  the police/firetrucks were still investigating

Photos by: E. Cherilin Stephens

NY Mag: Nouveau Brooklyn with Maggie Gyllenhaal

Thanks to Verse Responder  Leon Freilich for sending this my way:

She lives in an old brownstone on Sterling place and calls Manhattan
"the city," is planning to buy bookshelves at Ikea, shovels snow in front
of her house and is, quaintly, married to the man she lives with.

She's Maggie Gyllenhaal, and New York Magazine talks to her as she
prepares to schlep an armful of paperbacks to below her stoop for
intellectual recycling.

http://nymag.com/news/intelligencer/encounter/62917/

No Words Daily Pix: Photograph by Hugh Crawford

Smartmom's Charlie Brown Xmas Tree

Smartmom bought her Charlie Brown-style Christmas tree from the Vermont tree farmers who set up in front of the Park Slope Food Co-op every year. It was $20, which is a lot to pay for what was more like a branch. But the gangly tree caught her eye and seemed lovable in its own — slightly pathetic — way.

As Smartmom walked home, she knew her little tree was a far cry from the huge, tree that Hepcat’s mom always sets up in her humongous California living room and decorates with a lifetime’s collection of vintage ornaments. The fragrance of pine and hot apple cider permeates the house as a fire roars.

Christmas with Hepcat’s family is a Jewish girl’s fantasy, and Smartmom loves that her inter-faith children have such holiday’s in their memory banks of childhood.

Smartmom knows she could never match that level of Christmasness: she’s Jewish, for Buddha’s sake, and any attempt at Christmas is fraught with inexperience and ambivalence. But this year, the family is spending Christmas in Brooklyn. This has happened three times before in her children’s lifetimes. Turns out, Teen Spirit is thrilled because all his friends will be home from college and he’s excited to hang out with them. The Oh So Feisty One has mixed feelings about not being in California, but she, too, is glad to be near her friends.

Walking up Seventh Avenue with her tiny tree conveniently tucked under her arm, Smartmom remembered 2007 when they bought a huge Christmas tree and it was like Rockefeller Center in the apartment because the Oh So Feisty One kept bringing friends in and out of the apartment to see it.Smartmom worried that OSFO and Teen Spirit would feel cheated by this year’s tiny tree. But she tried not to worry about it. She was already stressing about how to make this as nice a Christmas as the one’s they spend in California. O the pressure, o the guilt, o the need to meet everyone’s expectations at this time of year.

When Smartmom got home with her tree, Hepcat rolled his eyes (it sure looked that way to Smartmom). He wondered how they were going to get the tiny tree to stand up in the metal tree holder intended for a much larger tree.

“Don’t worry I’ll figure it out,” Hepcat said sounding alternately annoyed and excited at a challenge that required a trip into the metal tool box. When he got his saw out, Smartmom knew things were getting complicated.

“Don’t worry. I just need to saw off a few branches,” he said.

“But there won’t be much tree left!” she told him.

“Calm down,” he said.

When he went out to Tarzian Hardware for more supplies, Smartmom realized that this project was becoming a real production. It might have been easier just to get a bigger tree.

Smartmom waited anxiously for Hepcat to return. Why did holidays feel like a referendum on her capabilities as a mother and a wife? Would this little tree be enough for Christmas?

Finally, Hepcat returned, and Smartmom watched as her handy (i.e. non-Jewish) husband, a genius at solving random engineering problems, made it possible for her tiny tree to stand. Smartmom gave him a big kiss as relief pulsed through her.

Smartmom found all their ornaments in a mildewed bag in the basement. It was like a reunion with old friends. Sadly, she had to throw out quite a few that were growing mold on them.

Later, Diaper Diva and Ducky came over to join in on the tiny tree trimming. Smartmom even made hot chocolate. The tree was exactly as tall as 5-year-old Ducky, and she had a great time decorating.

When Teen Spirit woke up (it was 2 pm), he came into the room and stared at the sweet little tree.

“I know, I know. It’s a Charlie Brown tree,” Smartmom said in anticipation of a snarky remark.

“I like it. I really do. I just think we should put a huge ornament on it so it’ll droop,” he said.

Teen Spirit felt moved to download some of his favorite Christmas songs: “Blue Christmas” by Elvis Presley, “Fairytale Christmas” by the Pogues and “Merry Christmas, Baby” by Otis Redding.

Smartmom sat on her new couch and observed the scene, which was like something out of a Frank Capra Christmas movie. Her interfaith family was having an idyllically good time decorating their tiny tree. Ducky was busy cutting out a paper star and coloring it with red and green crayons. Diaper Diva was alternately napping and supervising Ducky. Teen Spirit, inspired by his Christmas playlist, decided that he was going to write a Christmas song and was fiddling with various chords, melodies and lyrics. Hepcat found tiny battery-operated lights that fit perfectly on the tiny tree.

And OSFO she took one look at the scene and made a bee-line for a friend’s house.

Tom Martinez, Witness: Christmas Eve

No Words Daily Pix: Photograph by Hugh Crawford

Leon Freilich, Verse Responder: Crowdy Day

CROWDY DAY

Christmas Day, Rockefeller Center,

Madly where I went,

Joining a flock of slow-moving tourist sheep,

Mutton for punishment.

Courtney Lee Adams, Jr at Banjo Jims Tonight at 9 PM: Join Us

Come see Hepcat's favorite Lower East Side country western swooner, Courtney Lee Adams. Great vocals, smart lyrics and a top notch band.

 She says she was born pissed off and in tonight's show she promises to confuse, amuse and abuse. Hecat says: If there's a continum from Patti Smith to Tammy Wynette Courtney fits in there somewhere."

We're going to Banjo Jim's (700 East 9th Street  near Avenue C) tonight to hear her at 9 PM. Catch brilliantt guitarist Knox Chandler in V.I.K. for some urban blues at 10 PM.

Promises to be a fun evening in a fun, divey East Village bar.

End Eminent Domain Abuse at Freddy's bar

In anticipation of the upcoming seige of Freddy's Bar in Prospect Heights, activists are declaring revolt and collecting money for armor plating to protect homeowners an and renters from eviction.

Billionaires Bruce Ratner and Mikhail Prokhorov are on the verge of using the State of New York to seize the neighborhood for a stadium using New York State’s outdated Eminent Domain laws. They hope to build a stadium named for Barclay's Bank, for the soon-to-be Russian owned N.J. Nets, and some housing to be operated by ACORN.  We say the banks and foreigners have taken enough from America, and that ACORN needs to reform its ways and keep their paws off our bar and neighborhood.

As evictions loom ever larger following the Atlantic Yards Master Closing which authorizes the state to wrongfully take over the embattled neighborhood, locals are standing their ground and escalating the battle to stay in their homes. The threat to the neighborhood has galvanized us – and to prove it, we are raising funds for galvanized steel plates to put on neighbors doors to resist eviction.

Eminent Domain Revolt is being declared in our neighborhood. We are overthrowing the rule of the Real Estate Royalty who keep outdated laws on the books and use the government to do their bidding.  We are up against a real estate company that is the second biggest political donor and lobbyist spending force in the state. The law must be changed. Period.

Senator Bill Perkins, Chairman of the New York State Senate Corporations, Authorities and Commissions Committee has begun a crusade to rid New York State of Eminent Domain Abuse. He has asked Governor Patterson for a moratorium on Eminent Domain takings until the Columbia decision against the Empire State Development Authority’s pattern of operating in bad faith, and abusing Eminent domain has been reconciled with the Atlantic Yards decision in the Court of Appeals.   And we are behind him 100%. 

They will try to take the neighborhood and the bar with Eminent Domain, and we are going to stop them. 

Brooklyn’s Prospect Heights, where Freddy's Bar is located, faces a unique twist: The State of New York is moving to take properties from families and businesses and, instead of building a road or a school, the State will hand the land over for private use by Russia’s richest man, who, in partnership with billionaire Bruce Ratner is building a stadium to house the NBA’s worst team. 8 acres of the 22 total acres the State is taking will be for the stadium.  The rest, it has recently been revealed, will be leveled, with nothing required to be built on it for decades.

In addition to telling the New York Times Eminent Domain Abuse corrupts our democracy, Senator Perkins is also charging that the half billion dollars worth of bonds, issued for the building of the stadium were issued fraudulently, in a failed backroom deal aimed at getting around New York State’s new Public Authorities Control Act.

OTBKB Film by Pops Corn: End Credits

“What are those words at the end?” one of my daughters recently asked me.  I could answer the question perfunctorily and explain union obligations.  But let’s look at it more philosophically.  The end credits roll provides an opportunity for filmmakers to leave audiences with one final thought, often presented in music, more specifically, generally pop or original scoring. 

For the viewer, it provides a moment of brief contemplation to consider what has just been screened.  I’ve probably spent months of my life in this state of contemplation during end credits. More often than not what end credit choices have some level of narrative/character relevance, but are not especially interesting.  What can you really do with that space, right?  But there have been incidents when end credits have quite possibly blown my mind, shoving me out of the theater mouth agape, eyes wide open, invigorated.  

The following are three films that truly re-defined what can be done during the end credits.

Cold Turkey (1971, USA), the story of a town that gives up smoking to obtain $25 million from a tobacco giant is a scathing satire.  Like Robert Altman’s Nashville,  the film is just as relevant today in our American Idol society.  Both say a lot about our culture, and it isn’t confirming that America’s Got Talent.  Randy Newman, in his first foray into film music, follows the film’s final irony, the billowing factory smokestacks erected with the prize money, with “He Gives Us All His Love” against the backdrop of a dog rummaging through ruins.  While contrasting the chaotic, broad style of the film, Newman’s song retains the irony while being simplistic and melancholic.  A pitch-perfect move to land the movie’s message in your gut. 

Penn and Teller Get Killed (1989, USA), the magician-comic duo’s entry into feature films, was never widely released.  As dry and dark as comedy gets, the film is unremarkable until its final sequence when a running gag of escalating practical jokes ends tragically and initiates a serial body count.  The ending is stunning, funny and disturbing.  Then the film fades to credits over the strains of The Bee Gees’ “I Started a Joke,” a choice that perfectly captures the film while still one last unexpected charge of tragicomic shock. After years of being unavailable, the film was recently released as a Warner Archive selection, available only through the distributor.

Little Sister (1995, Netherlands), an obscure gem, follows a young man who ends his estrangement with his sister and addressing an incestuous incident from their past.  The encounter is documented by the brother and, pre-Blair Witch, the film is shot entirely through the POV of a video camera within the narrative. While most movies use exit music to sum up the story (see any Ice Cube credit jam) or themes (the end credits of 8 Mile and The Wrestler practically made the movies themselves irrelevant to me), Little Sister offers an odd ode to youth.  It was so unexpected and fresh to hear the Sesame Street song, “Somebody Come and Play,” artist identified on the original 45 as simply The Kids, over this film’s end credits.  The song and movie are contemplating, both somehow adding depth to the other.  Remains only available as a VHS from Facets Video.

--Pops Corn

The Family of Hospitalized Fire Victims Wish to Thank the Firefighters

I got a note on Christmas day from the daughter/sister of the man and woman who are fighting for their lives at Cornell Hospital after Wednesday morning's fire in a Third Street condo in Park Slope. She had just landed in New York rushing back from a holiday vacation to be in the hospital with her father and sister, who are still in critical condition.

So here goes a big thanks from the family and the whole neighborhood to the firefighters from Ladder Co. 105, Ladder Co. 122 and Squad 1 who responded to the 2:47 a.m. blaze that occurred on the top floor of the four-story building. Many EMTs were also on hand. 

The Rabbi Goes to Church on Xmas Eve: A Gift of Hospitality & Light

Andy Bachman, the rabbi at Congregation Beth Elohim in Park Slope, reflects on Xmas Eve at Old First Dutch Reformed Church on his blog Water Over Rocks.

Last night I participated in the Christmas Eve service at Old First Reformed Church, having been invited by my dear friend the Rev. Dr. Daniel Meeter. I will admit to both externally accepting the invitation with great joy while internally contemplating for a few weeks the symbolism of the gesture and I want to share some of those thoughts with you, dear reader.

The first thought is about the practice of being able to accept the gift of hospitality. A friend invited me into his home--his spiritual home--and on one of the holiest days of the year, no less. The intimacy of this gesture is great.

The second thought is that the music for Christmas Eve is just out of this world--and being so close to it, watching the cues, behind the scenes, as it were, made those aesthetic moments that much better.

Then the third thought dawned on me: I'd be wearing a kippah in the church on the holiday that celebrates the birth of the messiah I do not accept. I wondered if this was hypocritical; or syncretistic; or confusing for those witnessing the event. Would theological lines be crossed?

Read more here.

No Words Daily Pix: Photograph by Hugh Crawford

OTBKB Music: Best Albums of the Decade, Part Two

The second half of my best of the decade list.  If you missed the first part, you'll find it here:

Matt Mays & El Torpedo – Matt Mays & El Torpedo (2005): First released in Canada, this record produced a huge hit there for the band in Cocaine Cowgirl. Finally released in the US on Halloween 2006, this album is straight ahead rock of the Neil Young – Tom Petty school. And the fact that MM&ET may just be the loudest band I’ve ever seen live is, in my book, a point in their favor.

Milton – Grand Hotel (2008):  Milton is both the name of the lead singer and of this New York City based band.  This album, the band's third, shows them at their peak with their brand of rock, Americana and even some alt country.  Everything here is extremely radio friendly, the only problem being that radio as a means of exposing new music has basically ceased to exist.

The Watson Twins – Southern Manners (2006): An “Oh Wow” moment for me came as I was sitting in the cafe at the South by Southwest music festival and heard the Watson Twins do a semi acoustic live set.  This eight song CD (which makes it either a short album or a long EP, take your pick) has the absolute standout Shoot the Lights Out, which will make you utter the word gorgeous.  If you know the Watson Twins (which is actually the name of the band) from Jenny Lewis’ album, you only know a little of what they are capable.

Winterpills – The Light Divides (2007): The second effort from the band, this is a CD to which I listened again and again.  You can call this music chamber pop; I've always described this band's sound as quiet songs played loudly. Perhaps a bit more polished than their debut album from 2005 because this was a studio set as opposed to the recorded at home first set.   

Steve Wynn – Here Come the Miracles (2001):The leader of the 80s band The Dream Syndicate, Steve Wynn played around with a variety of styles in the 90s.  With this double CD, Steve finally returns to straight ahead rock, finds his 21st century band and produces a double album that is worthy of being a double album.

 --Eliot Wagner

OTBKB Film by Pops Corn: My Son, My Son, What Have Ye Done?

It’s hard enough to keep on top of the Oscar race, but any serious film fan who is a Werner Herzog completist, has been especially busy this season.  My Son, My Son, What Have Ye Done?, the latest Herzog-directed work, comes less than a month after the delirious unrecognizable sequel/remake Bad Lieutenant – Port of Call: New Orleans , Further immersion into American crime and investigation, this film focuses on one murder case at the crime scene.  The investigation here is no mystery, rather we seek to understand the murderer’s reasons.  In this way, the how-did-this-happen narrative style recalls Sean Penn’s Into the Wild, but with a look that is considerably more DIY; it seems like it was made to play on late-night cable.

Herzog’s double shot in 2009 seem like films he should have or--had his career taken a more well-worn path--would have made as an entry into the American cinema 20-30 years ago after his early masterworks such as Aguirre, Wrath of God.  Both these films brought to my mind Abel Ferrara (Bad Lt. is of course a re-working of a Ferrara film) in that they seem to tip-toe on the fence between the grindhouse and the arthouse.  Bad Lt. was a fun throwaway, but My Son aims to make more serious statements.  Unfortunately the effort is often ham-fisted.  Even things that would be typically, wonderfully Herzogian—the ostrich farm shots come to mind—feel forced here.  Werner Herzog is a filmmaker who is always willing to take it over the edge, but his work has rarely been so strained.

Father and Daughter in Serious But Stable Condition After 3rd St. Fire

I got this note from Rev. Billy Talen. He is friends with the father and daughter victims of the Third Street  fire and had this to say about how they are doing.

Our friend Kate  is, with her father Michael, in the Cornell Burn Center now.  The father and daughter are in serious but stable condition.  Michael's partner Robin is there with family and close friends arriving from their holiday locations. 

The two will be in and out of consciousness for some time, perhaps weeks, as the toxins of the smoke inhalation are dealt with and the healing goes forward.

At the time of this holiday near-tragedy, thanks and huzzahs go to the New York City firemen...

Kate is an indomitable New York character, a soulful survivor, and we know that her fierce love of life will prevail.  Our prayers are with Kate and Michael in this season of hope.

---Rev. Billy Talen

No Words Daily Pix: Photograph by Hugh Crawford

OTBKB Film by Pops Corn: Crazy Heart & The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus

Crazy Heart

Jeff Bridges anchors the performance vehicle Crazy Heart with a durable turn as the washed-up never-was country singer Bad Blake.  There’s also fun and perfectly character- and narrative-appropriate songs composed by T-Bone Burnett.  But what starts as a loosely-paced character study dissolves into a string of loser redemption sub-genre clichés.  It’s The Wrestler in a Kristofferson mask.

A failure at fatherhood and marriage Bridges’ struggling country singer’s second chance appears in the form of Maggie Gyllenhaal.  By the time he utters the line, “My name is Bad and I’m an alcoholic,” your eyes will begin rolling if they’re not buried in your forehead by that point already.

The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus

The tragic passing of Heath Ledger occurred before he had completed work in his final film, The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, opening Christmas Day.  Director Terry Gilliam has handled the completion of the work in a clever way, having three of Ledger’s most accomplished peers—Johnny Depp, Jude Law and Colin Farrell—play Ledger’s role during three separate sequences taking place within the imaginarium fantasy world.  The concept becomes a touching tribute to an actor whose brief life has left what is certain to be a lasting legacy.

However, it’s one of the only redeeming elements of Doctor Parnassus.  The fantasy film is filmed with great visual audacity, but the film’s only wonder is the kind associated with confusion.  A collection of set pieces, it is not the first time that a Terry Gilliam film has felt to me to be a hodge-podge of randomly juxtaposed sequences and ideas.  Things that work—a black hole of mirror shards, the cinema’s largest pair of stilts—are fleeting and aren’t accompanied with the emotional investment needed in order for these moments to provide any power.  To experience magic, it is necessary to believe.

--Pops Corn

Bklyn Frugal Family Examiner: Last Minute Gifts

Wendy Ponte of the Brooklyn Frugal Family Examiner has ideas If you waited until the last minute to buy Christmas gifts, and don't want to spend a lot. All is not lost as there are several gifts you...
Keep Reading »

Kristin Goode: Ring in the New Year at Bklyn Restaurants & Bars

As always, Kristin Goode, who writes the about.com Brooklyn site has info-a-rama about New Year's Eve and fun ways to ring in the New Year.

According to Priceline, New York City is the second most popular New Year's Eve party destination. But if swimming through the Times Square crowds or paying exuberant club covers in Manhattan doesn't sound like much of a party to you, don't worry. There are plenty of ways to celebrate the beginning of 2010 without leaving the borough. Below you'll find something to please everyone. Read more

Marlene Clary: 1943-2009

Thanks to Rev. Daniel Meeter of Old First Dutch Reformed Church for providing me with the biographical information that enabled me to write the following obituary.

An amazing and accomplished member of the Park Slope Community died yesterday. Marlene Clary, a gifted teacher and leader in musical and theatrical endeavors was born in Cleveland, Ohio. She attended Northwestern University on a full scholarship as a voice major, Goodman Memorial Theater School of the Art Institute of Chicago and later received a MA from New York  University.

She was hired by the Berkeley Carroll School in October 1976 in the preschool, and eventually taught Lower, Middle, and Upper School. Besides a variety of duties and responsibilities, she directed the Upper School plays and conducted the Upper School chorus. In 1994 she received the Dexter Earle
Award as Outstanding Teacher.

She also created and directed the Creative Arts Program at Berkeley Carroll from 1982-2008.

In 2001, Marlene founded and directed the Brooklyn Community Chorus, a group dedicated to including singers from diverse backgrounds, ages, and musical experiences. She would end every concert with the singing of Set Me As A Seal with a text from the Song of Solomon.

also acted and sang professionally off-Broadway, in regional theater, and summer stock, and was the soprano soloist for the Lafayette Avenue Presbyterian Church in Fort Greene.

Clary is survived by her husband, Roy Clary, whom she married in 1964 and two grown children, Megan and Ethan.

Judging from the outpouring of tributes from students, parents, friends and colleagues sent to OTBKB, Marlene spread her gifts widely and will be greatly missed. A funeral service will be held on Monday, December 28th at 4 PM at the Old First Church on Seventh Avenue and Carroll Street in Park Slope.

Park Slope Father/Daughter Fire Victims On the Mend

According to information kindly provided by an OTBKB reader: the condition of Kate, the daughter of the owner of the Third Street condo where there was a serious fire early Wednesday morning, is improving at Methodist Hospital. Michael, the father, is undergoing therapy in a barimetric chamber.

A barimetric chamber is a high-pressure atmosphere primarily used for medical therapy so that you can breathe air or oxygen up to three times the normal pressure, which helps to increase the oxygen level in tissues. This is used treat carbon monoxide poisoning.

Our thoughts and best wishes go out to Michael, Kate and  all the families that were displaced by the fire.

Funeral Service for Marlene Clary on Monday

A funeral service for beloved teacher and founder of the Brooklyn Community Chorus will be at Old First Dutch Reformed Church on Monday December 28th at 4 PM.

Old First Dutch Reformed Church
729 Carroll Street
Brooklyn, NY 11215-2101
(718) 638-8300

Subway: Grand Army Plaza Station

Top Five Park Slope Holiday Shopping Picks for Today 12/24

So this is the final day before Xmas. And you know what that means: last minute mayhem. Here are some suggestions:

Save on Fifth: I was just in there yesterday and they've already got their New Year's Eve stuff on dispaly. Get your hats, get your horns. But they've still got chocolate Santas and plenty of practical gifts, including the Simple Human touch hands free sensor soap pumps: a perfect gift in these times.

Lion in the Sun: Moleskin notebooks in all sizes. Acme pens. Great place to find gifts for the writer in your life.


Matter: This shop is a beautifully curated selection of modernist and contemporary high design objects for life and home. Still life fruit bowl -- ceramic and wood; rainbow of 13 colored sake or shot glasses; cork chair and much, much more.

Bob & Judi's Coolectibles: How many times have you walked by this shop and not gone in? Well, go in. They've got a lot of cool stuff inside (just like their name says). Wide variety of laminated posters that are ready to hang: Mighty Mouse Float Like a Butterfly, Sting Like a Bee film about Mohammad Ali by William Klein ($13). Locker baskets.

Extraordinary: I've bought their key rings with small metal high heels, wing tips, ballet slippers, high tops as gifts for colleagues and friends.

4-Play BK: For the tweens and teens on your list: hppy-chic brands like Free People and Blue Platealong with urban essentials like Puma kicks, designer jeans and Paul Frank t-shirts and more.

Slope Teen Dance Troupe Raising Funds for Performance in Scotland

From the Brooklyn Paper:

Park Slope’s own teenage dance troupe is one high-step closer to strutting its stuff on the world stage.

The 16 dancing teenagers of Dancewave, the Fourth Avenue-based instructional studio, have been selected to perform at the Aberdeen International Youth Festival in Scotland next June — but the group still needs to raise roughly $29,000 to get them across the pond.

“We applied and when got accepted, we thought, ‘We’ll find someway to do this,’” said Princeton Spicer, 17, the troupe’s sole male.

This week, Dancewave just might have found that way. Nick Kotsonis, the owner of Park Slope Health and Fitness, stepped forward with a pledge to match up to $10,000 in donations.

---The group was the only American group selected, Dancewave would represent not only Brooklyn, but the entire United States.

To donate, visit www.dancewave.org.

Leon Freilich, Verse Responder: Personal Ad

PERSONAL AD

Handsome, youthful,

Richest of guys,

Seeks a beauty

Who also lies.

Power Strips and Fire Risk

While it is still uncertain what caused the fire on Third Street in Park Slope that sent two people to the hospital and dislaced six families, there has been some speculation that it was an overloaded power strip. 

An overloaded power strip? This alarmed me because we have power strips all over our apartment and I know very little about the proper usage of power strips. I found this information about surge protector and power strip safety online:

Surge Protector and Power Strip Safety
Information from Yale University Office of the Fire Marshal

Every year, thousands of fires result from surge protectors, power strips and electrical cords. Listed below are some suggestions to help prevent a possible fire from beginning.
• Use only surge protectors or power strips that have an internal circuit breaker. These units will trip the breaker if the power strip is over loaded or shorted to prevent overheating.
• Surge protectors, power strips, or extension cords are not a substitute for permanent wiring.
• If at any time the surge protector or plug strip is hot to the touch remove and replace the unit. The electrical load for this strip should be evaluated for overloading.
• At no time should a surge protector or plug strip be placed in a situation that will allow it to be exposed to a moist environment
• Any surge protector or power strip that does not have an internal circuit breaker, has frayed wires, or has a unit that is not working properly, should be replaced immediately.
• Do not plug a surge protector or power strip into an existing surge protector or power strip. This practice is called "daisy chaining" or "piggy backing" and can lead to serious problems.
• All surge protectors or power strips need to be UL (Underwriters Laboratory) or ETL (Electrical Testing Laboratories) approved. The UL or ETL label must never be removed from the unit. On the underside of the casing, there should be the manufacturer's name and the name of the testing lab where the unit was tested.
• There should only be one surge protector or power strip plugged into a single duplex electrical outlet.
• Do not locate a surge protector or power strip in any area where the unit would be covered with carpet, furniture, or any other item that will limit or prevent air circulation.
• Do not staple, tack, or tape a surge protector or power strip.
• Visually inspect all surge protectors or power strips on a regular basis to ensure that they are not damaged or showing signs of degradation. During the visual inspection, ensure that the plug is fully engaged in their respective outlets.
• When the surge protector or plug strip is not in use, unplug the unit.
• The surge protector or power strips should always have either a polarized plug with one of the blades being larger then the other one or a three-prong grounded plug. Never use a three to two prong adapter to power the unit.
• Surge protectors or power strips should have a cord of no more than 6 feet in length.
• Never plug medical equipment into a surge protector or power strip unless it is approved for this purpose.

No Words Daily Pix: Photograph by Hugh Crawford

Brooklyn Paper: 2009 Brooklyn Year in Review

From the Brooklyn Paper:

To some, it was the worst year in decades. To others, it was merely horrible. But for us at The Brooklyn Paper, 2009 will go down in history as another 12-month period when lots of interesting, important, newsworthy, exciting, traumatic and Atlantic Yards things happened.

Here’s our gimlet-eyed view on the year that was:

Third Street Fire May Have Been Caused By Overloaded Power Strip

ABC News reports that the FDNY is speculating that it was an overloaded power strip that caused the fire in the Third Street condo early Wednesday morning. A father and his visiting daughter fled the flaming scene. Today he was in critical condition at the Cornell Burn Center due to burns but is expected to survive. His daughter was at Methodist Hospital in stable condition.

I walked by that building at around 7 PM this evening and saw that there were lights on in the other fourth floor apartment. The windows of the burned apartment are boarded up. The rest of the building is dark .Six families were displaced and there are 8 units in the building. I think that two of the apartments were unoccupied.

Marlene Clary, Beloved Teacher And Founder of Brooklyn Community Chorus, Dies

Marlene Clary, a beloved teacher and the founding director of the Brooklyn Community Chorus, died this morning at Calvary Hospice at Lutheran Hospital in Sunset Park. The cause was cancer.

In 2001, Clary founded The Brooklyn Community Chorus (BCC), a group committed to including singers from diverse backgrounds, ages, and musical experiences.

One member of the chorus writes: "Marlene was the ultimate teacher and she brought out the best in everyone - English students, actors, singers - she pushed hard and demanded the best, but always with tremendous love and spirit.  She was so full of love and a love for life - and fortunately, because she was such a giving person, her life touched so many people."

Clary also touched many lives as a highly respected teacher of English literature. One former student writes:

As a former student of hers I can say that Marlene treated every student in the same tough but loving way. In her English class, while the work was plenty, and the level of academic output and class participation she demanded of us was high, she showed all of us a true, motherly sort of love. She loved and respected us, and from this we were able to trust, love, respect, and admire her. She truly was an amazing woman. I only wish I had had more time to learn from and grow under the tutelage of a woman of such valor.

Clary was an actor, director, and soprano soloist, who appeared in leading roles in summer stock, Off-Broadway and regional theaters. For many years she taught English at the Berkeley Carroll School, where she was honored with the Dexter D. Earle Award for Excellence in Teaching. She is  survived by her husband and two grown children.

A funeral service will be held on December 28th at 4 PM at Old First Dutch Reformed Church in Park Slope. .