From the blog, A Year in the Park, where Brenda Becker documents her daily discoveries in the mystical heart of Brooklyn.

After school, the Third Street Playground sat deserted under a bleak sky. Not a toddler, mommy or nanny in sight; no strollers, juice or Goldfish crackers; just the patter of cold rain on fallen leaves. I imagined where they are instead, the crew that fills this place with happy shrieks on sunny days. Maybe struggling into leotards for ballet class; slumped under the plastic stroller cover, watching the Christmas lights roll by; peeling off parkas and heading for the couch and cartoons; spread out on the floor coloring next to a companionably hissing radiator in an old brownstone. But not playing outside, not today.

Someone on Park Slope parents wanted to spread the word about this scam.

A while ago several people wrote about a guy who
buzzed people’s doors claiming to be a supplier for
Con Edison.  I think he then tried to get money if
people opened the door. 

Well, today he buzzed my downstairs buzzer and said the same thing. 
When I said all the meters were downstairs, he insisted that
he needed to come in and see me.  I said no and did
not go downstairs to talk to him.

Please be aware that this is going on in the slope
again.

I’ll be listening to him on WNYC public radio!

An OTBKB reader wrote in to say this.

On my way home tonight I noticed that the gate for Kiku Sushi on 7th
between 10th and 11th Street was halfway down–perfectly positioned to
hide the giant yellow CLOSED BY ORDER OF THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH sign
that was posted on the window. 

It seriously grates (no pun intended) when restaurants try to hide their health code violations…so I came straight up and emailed you! Hope you can find some space to get this info out.

Note from OTBKB: I just want to add in the name of fairness that it’s important to find out what the actual violation was. It could be something gross or something like a problem with their garbage (which is gross) but it doesn’t mean there’s rodent poop in the soup or anything.

Anyone know the details?

Here are just some of  Adrian Kinloch’s photo from the event yesterday commemorating the fifth  anniversary of the announcement of the Atlantic Yards, where the  Council of Brooklyn Neighborhoods called for a complete state and city audit of the stalled project

Speakers included NYS Senator Velmanette Montgomery (pictured in the upper left photo on the far right) and NYC Councilmember Letitia James (upper left photo on the left) and Daniel Goldstein (below right) of Develop Don’t Destroy Brooklyn.

As reported in the Brooklyn Paper, there is now a white painted ghost bicycle chained to a street sign on the corner of President Street and 8th Avenue near the site where Cobble Hill resident, Jonathan Millstein died in September.

Cycling activists locked a white-painted bicycle to a street sign at
the corner of Eighth Avenue and President Street in Park Slope on Dec.
2, turning the site of a fatal crash into a makeshift memorial.

Biking advocates from the New York City Street Memorial Project
installed a plaque and a “ghost bike” — adorned with plastic flowers —
on the corner where 50-year-old cyclist Jonathan Millstein lost his
life after colliding with an empty school bus on Sept. 10.

Picture by Don Wiss for the Brooklyn Paper.

Toni Rowe, a 97-year-young artist,  loves to paint and create.  She grew up in Greenwich Village above a blacksmith shop that repaired
wagon wheels and remembers gas lights prior to the dawn
of electricity. 

She takes a weekly art class on 14th Street at her late husband’s Union.

She is a member of the All Souls Bethlehem Church in Kensington where Martinez is minister.

Photo by Tom Martinez

Always happy to hear from the folks at Cog & Pearl, that most interesting Fifth Avenue store, which sells all manner of designerly objects, jewelry, home items, clothing and more made of recycled and re-purposed materials. I assume they will be participating in the Snowflake Celebration tonight so that you can buy local, buy late.

Hi everyone,

We recently added some new items to our online store, including a couple of Elizabeth Soule’s
box-framed Little Zoo polaroids,
patina brass and gold-fill jewelry by Virginia Galvan,
Hand Soap–literally–by Foliage, and Adam Frank’s new Lumen design. Of course there’s lots more, so we hope you’ll have a look. Enjoy!

Please note: To ensure delivery by December 24, place your order by noon on Friday, December 19.

All best for a healthy and happy holiday season,

Kristin and Seth

Peaches, the woman who runs the readings at the Park Slope Barnes and Noble, introduced author and "famous minor TV personality" John Hodgman with these well-chosen words:

"You remind us that genius is sexy and intelligence is cool…"

Hodgman, dressed in a khaki colored suit and sneakers with bright orange laces, good naturedly greeted the crowd at the event to promote his new book, All the Information You Require, a follow-up to his bestseller (which he described as garbage) The Areas of My Expertise, fake trivia books with information drawn from Hodgman’s well-stocked imagination.

The crowd was decidedly young (20-40). And devoted. Quite a few wore glasses, as Hodgman noted, and donned blazers. Many came out because of Hodgman’s frequent appearances on The Daily Show. And of course, because of his role as the PC guy in those funny Apple commercials.  "I play a human-shaped computer. I’m a mentat."

"As you can see, I’m not wearing a tuxedo," he told the crowd. Apparently he’s been donning a tuxedo, given to him by an editor at GQ Magazine, at readings across the country.  But since he was in his hometown, he was dressing down.

"The children run things around here," he said. And his child had picked out the shirt/tie combo he was wearing. He then spoke directly to the kids in the audience.

"I salute you. I hope I didn’t offend you." He then asked a young boy in the audience.  "If I have your permission, may I continue? This is Park Slope."

He went on to read the hilarious chapter of the new book about "the small Utopian commune known as Park Slope, where there are leafy streets, good schools, and strong neighborhood spirit cemented by the fact that we are all silently judging each other."

According to Hodgman, all are equal in Park Slope except the children, who are all-powerful and capable of psychically exploding your head. "The neighborhood was founded by exiles from Manhattan in 1990, who were expert at the time honored art of gutting brownstones."

Hodman’s timing and droll way with word  had the crowd laughing all the way through the Park Slope chapter, which seeks to correct certain myths about this much-maligned neighborhood.

"Do we crawl on all fours and allow dogs to hold the leashes?" he asked the crowd. "Only before 9 in the morning."

"Do we wear secret magic underwear?" he queried. "Are we dirty?" He then described a secret cleansing ritual that requires Park Slopers to bathe in baby spit.

Hodgman is deadpan, wacky and wildly absurd always staying in character as the man who knows too much or at least pretends to know all the information you require.

Despite B&N asking him not to do a Q&A because of the number of people who wanted their books signed, Hodgman insisted on taking questions, because he was in his home turf and he loves to do so; he really showed of his ability to be funny on the spot.

"I want to thank you and everyone on The Daily Show for helping me survive the last 8 Bush years," one audience member announced.

"I think you would have muddled through," Hodgman said without missing a beat.

The crowd roared.

Tonight is part 2 of the Snowflake Celebration so tell your friends and neighbors about it.

And don’t let the weather stop you. It’s gonna be a party on Fifth and Seventh Avenues. Stores will be open until 10 p.m. for Christmas shopping and frivolity, including ice sculptures, caroling and waffles from the Wafel and Dinges truck.

This is a win-win for everyone.

–You  get discounts and special treats and a festive atmosphere while shopping until 10 pm.

–The shops get the local business they desperately need.

–The neighborhood economy is boosted by the mutual show of support. Sound good?

Local merchants once again throw open their doors to stay open late
and create a holiday atmosphere, enabling you, the people of Park
Slope, to do your holiday shopping . . . here! Each participating
business will stay open until 10pm and  offer some special
promotion – Could be a sale, could be a giveaway, raffle, carolers,
snow machine (it’s been done!), mulled wine, special hors d’oeuvres,
etc. etc. The listings of participants grows daily!!!

Last
year we had 150 participating businesses — who knows what will happen
this year!?! In the current and impending economic climate, it’s more
important than ever to keep our local economy strong and healthy, so
let’s get together and Keep it Local!

 
Markowitz, Bloomberg, Pataki, Ratner, Schumer (Dec 10, 2003)

I got this in an email from Develop Don’t Destroy Brooklyn.

Five years ago today, December 10, 2003, Forest City Ratner officially unveiled
its Atlantic Yards proposal. Bruce Ratner, joined at Brooklyn Borough Hall by
Borough President Markowitz, Senator Schumer, Mayor Bloomberg and Governor Pataki,
announced his plans to build the massive project extending east from the intersection
of Flatbush and Atlantic Avenues, in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn.

(NoLandGrab
is
wishing the billionaire’s boondoggle a Happy Birthday Atlantic Yards, unfavorably
comparing the progress of the project to that of a five-year old child who would
be toilet-trained and in pre-school by now.)

Bruce Ratner announced that his new arena for the Nets–the team he had just overpaid
to purchase–would open to the public in 2006. The project
overview released by Forest City Ratner on that December day read, on page
5: "Arena development to begin at the end of 2004, with completion
set for the summer of 2006."

Here are some big books a big special someone that the Community Bookstore is recommending. You can order online or just walk into the store and BUY.

Tales of Chekhov by Anton Chekhov (Ecco, $150.00): 13 Beautiful Books in a Big ol’ Box! The most comprehensive collection of his stories, including both the hits and
the brilliant-but- lesser-known, showcasing Chekhov’s humor and
insight. Featuring critical essays and reminiscences by the likes of
Nadine Gordimer, Susan Sontag, and Russell Banks.

Hidden Letters annotated
by Deborah Slier and Ian Shine (Star Bright Books, $35.00): A
profoundly moving collection of letters and photographs from a young
Dutch man’s life during World War II, found in 1997 after remaining
hidden for decades. This book details the war-time story of a family in a manner we have not seen since Anne Frank’s diary.

An Irish Florilegium by Wendy Walsh (Thames & Hudson, $125.00): A gigantic lapful of a book, requiring two strong arms to lift. 48 hand-tipped color plates reproduce delicate original watercolor illustrations of both wild and garden flora. Includes an introduction on the history of plant collecting and horticulture in Ireland and individual notes to each plate.

Lapham’s Quarterly, Vols 1-4 ($100.00): A
box set of the first four issues (Winter through Fall, 2008) of Lewis
Lapham’s newest and most ambitious enterprise, including the almost
immedjetly hard-to-find “States of War” issue (el numero uno).

Verses and Versions: Three Centuries of Russian Poetry Selected and Translated by Vladimir Nabokov (Harcourt, $40.00): One of the great writers, critics, and minds of the 20^th
century – Nabokov knew his Russian literature. For fans of poetry or of
Russia , this collection includes work most of us have never read.

Jewish Museums of the World: Masterpieces of Judaica by
Grace Cohen Grossman (Universe, $50.00): 10 lbs of beautiful book form
a comprehensive and staggering catalogue of myriad artifacts from
Jewish cross-cultural history, as well as the history of preserving
them, featuring beautiful full-color illustrations from museums spread
all over the world.

Lalanne(s) by Daniel Abadie (Flammarion, $125.00): An enormous and beautiful retrospective of the French sculptors who have been working and exhibiting together since 1964. It’s
all here, from the rhinoceros-desk and the onion-watch, to brass and
wool sheep benches, from bathtub-enclosing hippopotami, to the delicate
and weird finger sculptures . . .

The Complete Ripley Novels Boxed Set
by Patricia Highsmith (Norton, $100.00): Finally collected together in
a bea-yoo-tee- ful boxed set, these novels follow the chameleon Tom
Ripley through his thoroughly murderous and bizarrely seductive
escapades, which both implicate and goad us into sympathizing with this
most “debonair confidence man.”

The Printed Picture by
Richard Benson (MoMA, $60.00): Follow the physical, scientific, and
cultural evolution of the printed image, from the Renaissance up to
tomorrow, with this delectable art school textbook qua coffee table
book.

Lots of news from the Community Bookstore. Sales are up 50%, which is amazing. They’ve got a new website. They’re going to be open late during the Snowflake Celerbation on December 11th and their website has a HUGE list of gift books. Oh, they’re having a holiday party on December 21st at 7 p.m.

Here’s the word from owner Catherine Bohne.

Ho, ho, ho (or hee hee hee and a bumper of ‘nog) . . . The season is upon us once again, and here is the bookstore’s quasi-annual round up of ideas for books we’d like to get, anyhow.  We hope it may help you in list-making endeavors, but in any case, we had a lot of fun putting it together, and now it’s yours to do with as you will.  It’s posted on our website  (www.communitybookst ore.net, under “Messing About”) where you can download extra copies to print.  ALSO, under the “Get Books” section (our new on-line store) there’s a ‘Holiday Newsletter’ link in the left-hand navigation, which takes you to the same list of books linked to books in print, with full ordering capability – so you can look at the covers, read more about ‘em and have things shipped directly to your friends, family, and followers all over the country.  Any books ordered this way are 10% off, and orders costing more than $50 get free shipping

We will be having a Holiday Party, starting at 7pm on Sunday, December 21st.  It’s the first day of Hanukkah, and the end of the last weekend before Christmas, so it’s going to be a bit of a funny catch-bag celebration, but what more appropriate for our extended bookstore family?  I’ve been rereading Anne of Green Gables, and am accordingly a bit entranced with the idea of “Concerts” – evenings in which the community comes together and parades their various personal talents, whether for singing, reciting uplifting pieces, or setting “tableaux” (Faith, Hope & Charity, anyone?).  Oh – speaking of which, there’s usually the premise that something’s being done for charity, so perhaps we could make the evening a drive for Toys for Tots? 

Come one, come all, and bring a small gift to donate to the many in our city who can’t afford ‘em.  So far, we know that there will be the obligatory (as far as I’m concerned) reading of A Child’s Christmas in Wales, and we have some rumors of music, too.  I don’t see why we shouldn’t set aside a time for singing all together (what are holidays, without Dreidel, Dreidel, Dreidel stuck in your head?).  Don’t forget we have a piano, too, so the possibilities are, if not endless, at least manifold!  As you perhaps know, the bookstore staff are usually pretty much well on the way to comatose with exhaustion by then, so any help with setting up or pot-lucking would be appreciated – just email me at catherine@community bookstore. net if you’d like to be involved!

Of course, any production of the Slant is also an opportunity to update you on the State of the Store, about which so many of you are kind enough to enquire.  I suppose that some of you reading this will have stumbled on it (and us) by chance, while some of you haven’t heard any news since the last Slant, whereas some of you may well be kindred spirits and bookstore habitués, and some of you are possibly already aficionados of our fourth, new, and finally functional website, so It’s a Little Confusing to know where to start . . . but the thumbnail is this:

This Bookstore, now in its 37th year of continual operation (well, I mean, we close at night, most of the time, but you know what I mean), is one of the oldest surviving Independent Bookstores in NYC.  It’s a long and tangled (not to say sometimes garbled) history, with concomitant ups and downs, but the latest dramatic chapter began with the Great Crisis of 2007, in which we (I) admitted, somewhat inadvertently, to the world at large, that the store was in the last throes of complete failure . . . and what happens?  The neighborhood rallied round emphatically and firmly.  We found ourselves with 20 fabulous and self-appointed advisors, who put together a rescue package, which in turn led to 12 equally fabulous investors, and the short of it is that the store was put gently back on its (little cat) feet, and away we’ve sailed.  After 7 quite horrible years of tightening every belt that exists in the complicated machinery of the store, mostly to no avail, the last year and a half has been a giddily unfolding dream of calmly proceeding modest success.  Our inventory has been tripled, things are getting fixed, we’ve built a fantastic website, and sales are up almost 50% . . .

And it’s been a very great pleasure to use this success as a platform from which to think of creative new ways to give back to the neighborhood (which is our home, which is to say is we-all !) It’s been a ball to organize the Snowflake Celebrations, the First Annual RestaurantTour, to start the Community Forum, and to generally meddle with helping everyone undertake whatever good we can.  Then what happens?  The economy has to go and crash.   It’s enough to make you quote Mehitabel (“Archie – why does life have to be one damn litter after another?”).  Well, we’ll see.  Sales do seem to be down a little, but in a business of our scale, that’s not hard to make up – research last year revealed that if our most loyal customers shifted an additional 5% of their book-buying to Community, that would be enough to put us solidly in the black.  So without haranguing you to shop more than you want to or can, I would just urge you, as ever, to be quietly conscious that little decisions about where to spend what you do spend can add up to make a significant and effective difference on a local level.  So without further ado . . .

Here’s more from Scott Turner of Rocky Sullivan’s in Red Hook. He runs the weekly pub quiz  over at that cozy bar and writes these great emails that I share with you.

What the hell’s in the
water that powerful people drink?  Either it makes them arrogant and
corrupt, or it leads them down the path of Haircuts of the Damned.

With Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich, it’s both…with a vengeance.

I and many of you live in Brooklyn, where both political malfeasance (see Yards, Atlantic, boondoggle) and bizarre coiffage are pretty common.

Chicago, with its infamous ward system, the place where
"vote early, vote often," if it didn’t originate there, it sure took
root.  Chicago, the Second City.  Chicago, in Carl Sandberg’s words:

Hog Butcher for the World,
Tool Maker, Stacker of Wheat,
Player with Railroads and the Nation’s Freight Handler;
Stormy, husky, brawling,
City of the Big Shoulders

It’s all that.  Not to conflate ol’ Big Shoulders with the Blaggy the
Governor’s operation in Springfield.  Still, stormy husky brawling
apples don’t fall that far from the tree.

As
you may have heard by now — it’s today’s big breaking domestic news
story — Gov. Blagojevich has been arrested and charged with an endless
cornucopia of corruption allegations

One of Blagojevich’s transgressions was trying to sell Barack Obama’s Senate seat.  "Unless I get something real good for [Senate Candidate 1], s–t,
I’ll just send myself, you know what I’m saying?" 

Later,
he fine tuned his message.  The senate seat, he said, "is a f—ng
valuable thing; you just don’t give it away for nothing."

[Those timid hyphenations cleverly camoflaging out cuss words come from the transcripts of U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald’s press conference today.]

Patrick f—ing Fitzgerald, f—ing bada-s stomping Blagojevich’s weak s—t press conference

Pretty sure the right-wing blogosphere’s collective head is exploding, trying to link Blagojevich
with our next prez.  Well, it’s fun for ’em, like the sugar-rush
excitement of kids on a school field-trip, walking up to the museum’s
front door.

There’s plenty more in the Rod Blagojevich Bag of Goodies.  So, so much more.  Stuff about getting Chicago Tribune newspaper board members fired, something about the Chicago Cubs, a children’s hospital.  Across the board wackiness.

Here in Brooklyn, there’s a valuable lesson in all of this: write laws that make corruption legal.  Mayor Bloomberg
strongarms with money, power, greed, arrogance and pure all-out bully
tactics — seemingly all covered by laws written for people like him by
people like him.  His beneficiaries include the Yankees, Mets, Bruce Ratner,
big developers, and local politicos willing to trade votes for pork, no
matter how few of their constituents get to actually feast on the pork.

What, him worry?

There’s
a second, sadder construct: people don’t get angry, so enjoy your
ill-gotten gains.  We’ve let Bloomberg gut this city’s soul,
infrastructure, schools, budgets, social programs, and every
development site in the five boroughs.  Some of us have risen up, but
not enough.

Blooomberg’s not as smart as everyone thinks — he’s certainly not
the big-business miracle-worker his carefully-cultivated image claims.
Tell me…what kind of society do we run when Blagojevic gets hauled in
for selling senate seats, but Bloomberg walks free after selling our
neighborhoods, infrastructure, our present and our childrens’ future
for far more than Blagojevic ever hoped to clear?