Monthly Archives: March 2009

Food and Drink

Delicious on the Slope: Looking for An Angel

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The current economic climate is especially tough for small restaurants that are under-capitalized and in less than optimum locations with low foot traffic. Blogger Mary Warren of Eat, Drink, Memory, reveals that Delicious on the Slope, a restaurant on President Street between Fifth and Fourth Avenues, is in trouble. She's reaching out to members of the community to see if anyone can offer some help or business advice to the owner. Here is her post, which she asked me to feature on OTBKB.

 In December, I blogged about Delicious on the Slope. I didn't know,
Luis Garcia well, but he struck me as a gracious, ambitious and
self-confident man who dreamed as so many of us do of turning his
passion into a business. 

Garcia chose a tough crowd –
restaurateurs – to join.  Although he had years of experience managing
restaurants, among them The Cub Room in Manhattan, he had never owned
his own place. He had huge plans and a partner who was his chef.

A few weeks ago his partner walked out. Garcia has been struggling to keep his doors open for the last couple of months. Truthfully,
he wasn't fully prepared for an industry that is fickle and savage at
the best of times. Restaurants open and shutter at an astronomical rate
in the City.

I speak from experience. My fabulous little wine
bar, Monkey Temple, sputtered along for just better than a year. With
some distance, I see the mistakes I made – many of them the same ones
Garcia faces – a lack of capital, no budget or time for adequate
marketing, low foot traffic, and that indefinable quality – buzz.

Delicious
on the Slope is a nice neighborhood place run by a lovely man who has
invested more than simply money and time in the business.  It isn't hip
nor does it have a new-fangled menu with unusual food pairings.  Garcia
inherited a failed concept from the previous owners and he has
struggled to recreate, to make something of his own.

We can all admire his determination and see ourselves in his place, seeking, yearning to create.

Yesterday, I spoke to Garcia by phone. He hadn't been returning my calls because he's deeply saddened. I
didn't have much to offer, a few words which I hoped would give him
courage. The idea, much less the actuality, of failure is painful. Yet,
too often, we give up just at the moment we should push forward
deliberately in the face of seemingly insurmountable obstacles. I hope
Garcia pushes forward.

He is just one of the many dreamers who
live and work in Brooklyn, who make this place we live beautiful and
hopeful.  He is one of us. I wish I had the resources to help him. My wish is that someone who does will give this man some help. Foolishly, perhaps, I believe in angels.

Postcard from the Slope

NYC Store Vacancy Rates High : Brooklyn Hardest Hit

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You only have to walk down various streets in Manhattan and Brooklyn to see that store vacancy rates are high. But it seems that in Brooklyn's vacancy rates are the highest in the city. I'm bracing to see shuttered stores on Fifth and Seventh Avenue in coming months. I just hope that various local businesses can manage to ride out this recession.  Here from Crain's New York.

The recession is taking a heavy toll in shopping districts across
the city with Brooklyn hardest hit to date, according to a new study
revealing vacancy rates in retailing strips in the boroughs outside of
Manhattan.

As of this month, the vacancy rate in Brooklyn stood
at 14.1% among locally-owned stores, well above the city average of
12.1%, according to the study conducted by Rep. Anthony Weiner’s
office. In Queens, where retail corridors in neighborhoods such as
Astoria and Forest Hills still draw good crowds, 12.2% of shop fronts
are vacant. Staten Island and the Bronx are fairing slightly better,
with vacancy rates of 9.7% and 9.1%, respectively.

Postcard from the Slope

Did You Know That The Civic Council Supports East River Tolls?

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Do you?

It's a big issue right now. To toll or not to toll. What will it mean for Brooklynites and other "outer borough" citizens? Also, is our subway system ready for more high volume rush-hour commuters?

For the Civic Council, their support is directly tied into the demand that toll monies go to the MTA for subway and bus improvements. Another tie-in: Residential Permit Parking and more Muni Meters.

Here it is in the Civic Council's own words:

In June 2007 the Park Slope Civic Council voted in favor
of the Mayor's Congestion Pricing initiative, provided it was tied to
Residential Permit Parking, installation of Muni-Meters, and immediate
transit improvements, specifically subway station and signal
improvements, and increased subway and bus service.

In December 2008, the Ravitch Commission issued a set of recommendations
on the long-term funding of the MTA.  Among its recommendations is that
tolls be instituted on the free crossings of the East River and Harlem
River, with the net revenues being dedicated to improved bus service,
including Bus Rapid Transit.  Consistent with our June 2007 resolution,
it is resolved that the Park Slope Civic Council endorses institution
of tolls on the free East River and Harlem River crossings, provided: 
(a) it is tied to Residential Permit Parking and more widespread
installation of Muni-Meters; (b) the tolling structure is re-visited
after a period of time in light of actual experience, to see whether
the toll structure for each crossing needs to be changed; (c) reduced
tolls are investigated for high-occupancy vehicles (3 or more
passengers); (d) safeguards are put into place to prevent toll revenues
from being diverted to the MTA's general revenues, (e) consideration is
given to commuters from Staten Island; (f) variable toll rates, for
example by time of day, are explored.

Civics and Urban Life

Performer in Kasper Hauser Saves Man From Subway Train

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I've been meaning to blog about the Flea Theater production of Kasper Hauser, written by Park Slope's Erin Courtney (co-founder of the Brooklyn Writers Space) and theater legend Elizabeth Swados.

And then the show is in the news. The real news. One of the performers in the play is a subway hero: he jumped into the subway tracks after a man who had fallen in and rescued him from an oncoming subway train.

Actor Chad Lindsay, who is currently performing in Kasper Hauser, is responsible for this heroic deed, which occurred on Monday night.

Read about this incredible rescue here.

I just heard on WNYC that one of the things this actor has to do in the play is carry another actor on his back.

Life imitating art? For more information about the play go to the Flea Theater website.

Civics and Urban Life

Park Slope Civic Council Gives Back to Community with Annual Small Grants

The Park Slope Civic Council does a really cool thing annually. They take the proceeds from the annual House Tour and give it back to individuals and organizations in Park Slope that are doing good work. These 18 grants total $10,000 and this year they're going to help fund projects at schools, charities, cultural
institutions and other organizations. I see that any non-profit school or group working in Park Slope is welcome to apply for a grant. There guidelines are here and applications for the 2009-2010 cycle will be posted in the fall.

Here are this year’s grantees. It's a great narrative of things that are going on in Park Slope this year.

Chocolate Chip Chamber Music: 2008-2009
Community Concert Series. CCCM delivers music education programming to
young children in our community. The grant will help offset costs of
CCCM’s marketing, outreach and online communication efforts.

Park Slope Food Coop in Cooperation with Caribbean Women’s Health Association, Inc.: Brooklyn
Food Conference: Local Action For Global Change. This one-day
conference, funded in part by this grant, will examine the intersection
of social justice, human and environmental health and sustainability.

P.S. 10 PTA:
Chess Club: After School Enrichment Program. Due to budget cuts, the
school can no longer fund free after-school programs. PSCC funding will
help keep the school’s chess club going, with all its educational and
social benefits.

Spoke the Hub Dancing, Inc.: New
Film Venue and Screening. Our grant will help purchase a digital
projector for monthly screenings of independent films at Spoke the
Hub’s newly renovated Re:Creation Center at 748 Union Street.

Old Stone House:
South Garden. There is a beautiful new dog run in Washington (formerly
J.J. Byrne) Park. The Old Stone House plans to turn the old dog run
(left) into a beautiful garden and outdoor environmental classroom. Our
grant will help facilitate the transition.

The
Urban Memory Project with the Secondary School for Research at John Jay
(SSR), the Park Slope Civic Council, the Old Stone House and the
Brooklyn Historical Society: Preserving Memories of an Evolving
Urban Neighborhood. This fall, SSR students interviewed 17 long-term
Park Slope residents as part of their Brooklyn History class. Our
funding will help pay for the transcription of the interviews.

Good Shepherd Services:
Healthy Youth Relationship Options (HYRO). Funding will provide seed
money for a curriculum informing young adults about healthy
relationships and the prevention of domestic violence. Participants who
attend Good Shepherd’s Young Adult Borough Centers in Brooklyn will be
trained as peer educators in their communities and schools.

The Green-Wood Historic Fund:
Family Day at Green-Wood Cemetery. The Green-Wood Historic Fund, which
maintains Green-Wood Cemetery’s historic monuments and buildings, will
develop a Family Day Scavenger Hunt with an educational and community
theme. The grant will help publicize the event.

Friends of Douglas Greene Park, Inc.:
Community Outreach. The grant will help fund the May 2 Family Day in
the park. The group is working toward major renovations of the
long-neglected public space on 3rd Avenue.

P77K@902:
Green Thumb Hydroponics. Students in the school’s Culinary Arts classes
will learn how to grow herbs, fruits and vegetables without soil, using
a water based system. The grant will help the school develop the
project.

Prospect Hill Senior Services Center:
Community Story Time. Center seniors will read teacher-selected
material to pre-school and elementary-school children. The program will
encourage dialog between the generations, and our funding will help
purchase books and a cabinet to store them in.

Prospect Park Alliance: Replanting
at the Front of the Villa. With help from our grant, the Alliance can
plant more shrubs and bulbs in front of Litchfield Villa — a ongoing
project that has suffered from budget cuts.

P.S. 39 PTA: Spruce
Up Our Old School. The grant will help brighten up the school with
window boxes and a vegetable garden, which will be maintained
year-round by parent volunteers.

P.S. 107 (John W. Kimball Learning Center):
P.S. 107 Edible Garden. Our grant will supplement money raised by the
PTA to create a fruit and vegetable garden to provide students with an
outdoor laboratory for learning about earth sciences, nutrition, and
the environment.

P.S. 321 PTA: Front
Entrance Improvement Project, Phase 2. A PSCC grant helped with Phase
1, when benches and landscaping were added to areas along 7th Avenue.
Our second grant will help with Phase 2, in which benches and landscape
improvements will be added to the areas flanking the main entry stairs.

Reel Works Teen Filmmaking:
Reel Works/DOE Screening at Old Stone House. The Reel Works youth media
program has created a Department of Education-sponsored DVD of films
about Internet safety for distribution to middle and high schools. Our
grant will help fund a screening and discussion this spring targeted to
teens at Middle School 51 and the high schools at John Jay.

Secondary Schools for Law, Journalism and Research at John Jay:
Records Wall. Our grant will help fund an “Athletics Wall of Fame,”
which will recognize student-athletes for both athletic and academic
excellence. Despite severe budget constraints, the schools fielded
teams this year in boys’ and girls’ varsity basketball, boys’ junior
varsity basketball and girls’ varsity volleyball.

Slope Street Cats: Trap-Neuter-Return
(T-N-R) Certification Workshops in Park Slope. Funding will enable
Slope Street Cats to offer free workshops to Park Slope residents. The
workshops will focus on what T-N-R is, why it’s effective and how to
safely facilitate a project affecting feral cats in our neighborhood.
 
This
year’s Grants Committee included Chairperson Greg Sutton, Nathaniel
Allman, Alexa Halsall, Nelly Isaacson, Robert Levine, Eric McClure,
Lauri Schindler and Gilly Youner.

Food and Drink

Goals of Ambitious Brooklyn Food Conference on May 2nd

Brooklyn-food-conference-logo
It's an ambitious event and buzz is slowly gathering for the  Brooklyn Food Conference planned for May 2nd at John Jay High School and PS 321.

Local action for global change: that's the sub-title for this free conference that will include a parade and workshops for teens and adults, that will address the effects of our food systems on health, the environment, and
labor; improving the nutritional content of school lunches; urban
agriculture; far­mers’ markets; community gardens; and food coops.

There will also be learning activities for kids, teen programs, a dinner and dance honoring local farmers.

The stated goals of the conference on the Brooklyn Food Conference website are:

  1. Bring Brooklyn together to demand and participate in creating a vital, healthy and just food system available to everyone.
  2. Create a Brooklyn legislative food democracy agenda and constituent base.
  3. Organize neighborhood meetings of elected officials—congressional
    reps, state legislators, city council members—to press for a food
    democracy agenda.
  4. Influence public policy by educating elected officials and showing them the depth and diversity of public interest.
  5. Create a useful, cross-referenced directory of attendees.
  6. Help partner organizations grow their constituencies by offering attendees avenues for action.
Civics and Urban Life

May 2: Brooklyn Food Conference

Does everyone know about the free Brooklyn Food Conference, a local event focusing on food issues in Brooklyn, which will take place in Park Slope on May 2nd? Location: John Jay High School and PS 321.

Well, now you know.

From school lunches or the rise in diabetes, escalating food costs,
immigration or farmers markets, local food challenges and delights,
food touches us all. At the Brooklyn Food Conference you'll have the opportunity to learn from experts and neighbors about all the ways that the Food System affects us and how you can
get involved.

The conference is co-sponsored by the Park Slope Food Coop, World Hunger Year, Brooklyn Rescue Mission, Caribbean Women’s Health Association, and Brooklyn’s Bounty.

Here' s what they're planning to do: The day will start with a New Orleans-style parade featuring massive
puppets! This will be followed by speakers, food demos, and kids’
activities; lunch, dinner, and a dance. The conference will
be FREE to all participants.

Meet well-known activists and writers like Dan Barber, executive chef and owner of Blue Hill Restaurant, Anna Lappé,  author of Grub: Ideas for an Urban Organic Kitchen, Raj Patel author of Stuffed and Starved: The Hidden Battle for the World Food System and LaDonna Redmond, head of the Institute of Community Resource Development in Chicago.

Partners
include over 50 organizations, including Just Food, CAMBA, Bed-Stuy
Campaign Against Hunger, Center for the Urban Environment, Children’s
Aid Society, Garden of Union, Grassroots Netroots Alliance, New York
Coalition Against Hunger, East New York Farms, Restaurant Opportunity
Center, United Food and Commercial Workers.

They welcome donations from individuals and funding from foundations and food companies. Interested in volunteering?

–There's a volunteer outreach meeting at Congregation Beth Elohim on March 19th at 7 p.m.

Civics and Urban Life

Today at 11 am: Ace Your Next Job Interview or Pitch with Jezra

You've heard me mention Jezra Kaye. She's a public speaking coach, speech writer and marketing and communications specialist.

She's on the Park Slope 100 and she is awesome.

I know her forever. Well, since 1996 I think. We used to work together.

But I also took one of her public speaking seminars and it was a very valuable 3 hours. Very. As she says: "I help good speakers become great, and excellent speakers become extraordinary."

Now she's doing these seminars by phone. They're called teleseminars. Register for today's here.

It will cost you $15 and it might include information that could get you that job or project you're pitching.

As she says here: "In today's competitive market, your communications skills make all the
difference.   Whether you're interviewing for a staff position or pitching your products or services, you must be able to
convince your listeners that THEY NEED WHAT YOU OFFER! This high-energy teleseminar will show you how

  • Answer the most important question
  • Get the interviewer on your side
  • Handle objections and curve balls
  • Come from a position of authentic strength; Hard times call for clear messages! 
 
For more information, contact Jezra
 

  

Postcard from the Slope

Transportation Alliance to the MTA: Address Long Term Capital Needs

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Ruse_subway_2889
A group calling itself the Empire State Transportation Alliance – a
coalition of business, civic, labor and environmental organizations supporting
investment in transportation – and the Keep New York Moving Campaign
today released the following statement.  In it they say that it is critical that the plan address long term capital needs such as new cars. Members of this group include NYPIRG Straphangers Campaign, Transportation Alternatives, the Environmental Defense Action Fund and more. Photograph left by Travis Ruse.

Now that the New York State Assembly, Senate and Governor have put
plans on the table to bail out the transit system, the Empire State
Transporation Alliance urges all leaders to conference and arrive at a
compromise agreement in the coming days. 

It is critial that the final plan
address the long term capital needs such as new cars and buses and renovated
stations alongside the short term fixes to the operating budget which currently
call for major fare increases and service reductions.

Tough
choices have to be made and ESTA strongly maintains support for a plan that
shares the burden amongst drivers, businesses and transit riders as the most
equitable option.

Over the course of the next few days there will be much debate about
where to go from here. Ever since the MTA passed its own budget back in
December, the agency has maintained that it needs to know by March 25 if it
should pull back on its already-approved fare hike and service reduction
package. But the MTA also needs a funding source for its upcoming capital
program – a critical issue that will only worsen as the year goes on.
Further complicating matters with delaying capital-plan support is that Albany
rarely passes new taxes or funding sources in election years, like next year.
That means that the capital program and all its progress to date could come to
a standstill, along with the jobs and economic stimulus it provides.

 The plan by the Senate Democrats barely covers the MTA's operating
budget, and it fails to address the MTA's long-term capital needs, a critical
component of the funding puzzle. Lack of funding of past capital
programs, and the necessity for the MTA to borrow against future fares to
pay for things like new rail cars and buses and renovated stations, helped lead
the agency to the current crisis.

The time for political maneuvering is over.  State leaders now have to iron
out a deal to secure a source of funding not only to stave off major fare hikes
and service cuts but also to fund the upcoming program to fix and rebuild the
system.  In these tough economic times, an investment in better subways, buses
and commuter lines promotes a cleaner environment, saves people money, increases
mobility and helps keep or create the jobs hardworking New Yorkers need.

Members of the Empire State Transportation Alliance include: Regional
Plan Association, NYPIRG Straphangers Campaign, General Contractors Association
of New York, Environmental Defense Action Fund, Tri-State Transportation
Campaign, New York State Laborers’, Environmental Advocates of New York, ACEC
New York, Citizens Union Foundation, Campaign for New York’s Future,
Construction Industry Council of New York, Long Island Contractor’s
Association, Natural Resources Defense Council, New York State Building and
Construction Trades Council, New York League of Conservation Voters, Permanent
Citizens Advisory Committee to MTA, Transportation Alternatives.

Brooklyn Blogfest

Tell Your Friends and Family: Blogfest 09 is May 7 at 7 p.m.

BLOGFEST_LOGO_RGB(2)
Find
out why Brooklyn is the bloggiest place in America at the Fourth Annual
Brooklyn Blogfest on May 7, 2009 at powerHouse Arena in DUMBO.

Brooklyn Blogfest 2009, an exciting, idea-filled
event for bloggers, blog readers and the blog curious is where you'll
find: Insight. Advice. Inspiration. Resources.

Here's your chance meet your favorite bloggers; learn about blogging; be inspired to blog.

"Where
better to take the pulse of this rapidly growing community of writers,
thinkers and observers than the Brooklyn Blogfest?" ~ Sewell Chan, The
New York Times

This year's event will take place on May 7, 2009 at 7 p.m. at the powerHouse Arena in DUMBO.

WHY WE BLOG will be the theme of a high-profile panel discussion and this year, Brooklyn Blogfest introduces BLOGS-OF-A-FEATHER, special small-group sessions, where you can meet with bloggers who share your interests.

Once again, there will a VIDEO TRIBUTE TO BROOKLYN'S PHOTO BLOGGERS and the annual SHOUT-OUT: a chance to share your blog with the world!

Whether
you live to blog, blog to live or are just curious about this thing
called blogging, you won't want to miss Brooklyn Blogfest 2009, the
best Blogfest yet.

For more information or to register, visit the  Brooklyn Blogfest website.

To
find out about sponsorship opportunities for Brooklyn Blogfest, contact
Louise Crawford (e: louise_crawford@yahoo.com, c: 718-288-4290).

The Details:

Fourth Annual Brooklyn Blogfest
May 7, 2009
Doors open at 7 p.m.
powerHouse Arena
37 Main Street, Brooklyn, NY 11201
Admission: $10

Brooklyn Blogfest after-party
Galapagos Art Space
16 Main Street, Brooklyn, NY 11201
(right across the street from powerHouse Arena)
Cash Bar and refreshments

About Brooklyn Blogfest 2009:

Whether
you live to blog, blog to live, or are just curious about this thing
called blogging, you'll want to attend the premiere annual event for
bloggers in Brooklyn and beyond.

At Brooklyn Blogfest 2009: listen to some great speakers; shout out about your blog; and network
with fellow bloggers during special breakouts. Meet your favorite
bloggers; learn about blogging; be inspired to blog at Brooklyn
Blogfest 2009.

Brooklyn Blogfest 2009:

Brownstone Voyeur

Thursday on OTBKB: Brownstone Voyeur

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Brownstone Voyeur, a  regular Thursday feature on OTBKB (in collaboration with fellow blogger, CasaCARA), will
take you behind those pretty facades to see what you’ve strained to
glimpse through windows in the past (admit it, you have).

We’ll walk you through the interiors and gardens of brownstones,
brick row houses, pre-war apartments, detached Victorians, carriage
houses, lofts, and other Brooklyn abodes to see the colorful, creative,
clever, cost-conscious ways people really live in New York City’s
hippest borough.

This week we take you behind the facade of a limestone townhouse in Prospect Heights owned by interior designer Caroline Beaupere, full of rich color and unexpected elements.

Civics and Urban Life

Nursing Shortage at Methodist Hospital Prompts Protest

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I didn't make it over to Methodist Hospital to talk to any of the striking nurses yesterday. Luckily the Brooklyn Paper did.

As reported here, they were protesting the shortage of nurses at the hospital and a terrible—and potentially dangerous—nurse to patient ratio.

The nurses’ contract — which mandates one nurse for a maximum of six
patients — expired on Sunday night, so staffers picketed the Park Slope
institution the next day, complaining that the hospital employs one
nurse for every 10 patients.

Food and Drink

March 23 – April 2nd: Dine in Brooklyn

1 Comment

That's a 3-course meal for $23 dollars at all participating restaurants. Here's the list for Park Slope. Looks like just about everyone is in.

For a complete list of restaurants in all Brooklyn nabes:  go here.

Atlantic Yards

Petition to Prevent Fed Stimulus Money For Ratner

Sign the petition to prevent federal stimulus money from going to Ratner and the Atlantic Yards Project.

To New York State Governor David Paterson:

I oppose the use of federal stimulus money to fund the Atlantic Yards
project. The design, schedule and benefits of the project have clearly
departed from what were disclosed to the public in 2006. Any allocation
of stimulus to Atlantic Yards at this point would not only further
reduce the project's already unacceptable standard of accountability,
it would deprive the people of New York City investment in urgently
needed public works. I therefore urge you to reject any request for
stimulus funds to be granted to Atlantic Yards.

Sincerely,

The Undersigned

Civics and Urban Life

Put It On Your Calendar: Brooklyn Blogfest 09 is on May 7th at 7 p.m.

BLOGFEST_LOGO_RGB(2)
Find
out why Brooklyn is the bloggiest place in America at the Fourth Annual
Brooklyn Blogfest on May 7, 2009 at powerHouse Arena in DUMBO.

Brooklyn Blogfest 2009, an exciting, idea-filled
event for bloggers, blog readers and the blog curious is where you'll
find: Insight. Advice. Inspiration. Resources.

Here's your chance meet your favorite bloggers; learn about blogging; be inspired to blog.

"Where
better to take the pulse of this rapidly growing community of writers,
thinkers and observers than the Brooklyn Blogfest?" ~ Sewell Chan, The
New York Times

This year's event will take place on May 7, 2009 at 7 p.m. at the powerHouse Arena in DUMBO.

In addition to a WHY WE BLOG panel, this year Brooklyn Blogfest introduces BLOGS-OF-A-FEATHER, special small-group sessions, where you can meet with bloggers who share your interests.

Once again, there will a VIDEO TRIBUTE TO BROOKLYN'S PHOTO BLOGGERS and the annual SHOUT-OUT: a chance to share your blog with the world!

Whether
you live to blog, blog to live or are just curious about this thing
called blogging, you won't want to miss Brooklyn Blogfest 2009, the
best Blogfest yet.

For more information or to register, visit the  Brooklyn Blogfest website.

To
find out about sponsorship opportunities for Brooklyn Blogfest, contact
Louise Crawford (e: louise_crawford@yahoo.com, c: 718-288-4290).

The Details:

Fourth Annual Brooklyn Blogfest
May 7, 2009
Doors open at 7 p.m.
powerHouse Arena
37 Main Street, Brooklyn, NY 11201
Admission: $10

Brooklyn Blogfest after-party
Galapagos Art Space
16 Main Street, Brooklyn, NY 11201
(right across the street from powerHouse Arena)
Cash Bar and refreshments

About Brooklyn Blogfest 2009:

Whether
you live to blog, blog to live, or are just curious about this thing
called blogging, you'll want to attend the premiere annual event for
bloggers in Brooklyn and beyond.

At Brooklyn Blogfest 2009: listen to some great speakers; shout out about your blog; and network
with fellow bloggers during special breakouts. Meet your favorite
bloggers; learn about blogging; be inspired to blog at Brooklyn
Blogfest 2009.

Brooklyn Blogfest 2009:
Insight. Advice. Inspiration. Resources

Postcard from the Slope

Celtic Influenced Hip-Hop Band at Rocky Sullivan’s Tonight

1 Comment

Seanchai
Celebrate St. Patrick's Day at Rocky Sullivan's with Seanchai and the Unity Squad featuring the former Black 47 live-wire Chris Byrne, who fronts the only Celtic-influenced
hip-hop band on either side of the Atlantic. Seanchaí (pronounced
shan-a-kee) and the Unity Squad take the stage on St. Patrick's Day night  (and every week at Rocky Sullivan's) with their mix
of hip-hop, rock, reggae, and traditional Irish music.

"I'd been hoping for a band … that might serve as a symbol of
what Irishness has become in the intense crucible of urban New York,
and as I watch and listen it turns out that's exactly what I've got."

Tuesday, March 17th

34 Van Dyke Street at Dwight Street
Celebrate St. Patrick's Day at Rocky Sullivan's with
Seanchai and the Unity Squad
Brooklyn's #1 Saint Patrick's Night Party

Music

Niall Connolly To Perform at Ceol at Noon Today

Beach
Niall Connolly, an  Irish singer/songwriter will be performing at Ceol on Smith Street today. He describes himself on his MySpace page as an "International Folk Hero for Hire."

His influences include: Leonard Cohen, Gillian Welch, Belle and Sebastian, John Steinbeck, Bob Dylan, J.J. Murphy, The Frank and Walters, The Sultans of Ping, Nirvana, Woody Guthrie, and everyone in between. Friends, Life, Geography, Public Transport, Public Houses, Cork City Library, Cork City, Crosshaven, New York City, The F Train, the Glashaboy River, Good Teachers, Talking, Kindness, News, Weather, Mood, and Girls.

Ceol is located at 191 Smith Street in Cobble Hill near the Bergen Street station of the F Train.

The Where and When

Noon to 3 p.m.
Ceol
191 Smith Street
Brooklyn

Postcard from the Slope

The Brazen Head: Free Corned Beef Sandwiches and $5 Guinness

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Kristin Goode of About New York: Brooklyn presents 5 Ways to Celebrate St. Patrick's Day in Brooklyn. The Brooklyn Parade was on Sunday in Park Slope. But there's always the parade in Manhattan.She mentions The Brazen Head. They sell the t-shirts with the James Joyce quote pictured left for $10. You get a decent enough do at The Brazen Head:

While you're hitting
your favorite Irish pubs, why not include a few that will be serving
food? At the Brazen Head at 228 Atlantic Avenue, Irish music will be
accompanied by $5 Guinness and free corned beef sandwiches from 4pm to
8pm. Or make your way to Spike Hill at 185 Bedford Avenue in
Williamsburg for everything from a traditional Irish breakfast to
corned beef and cabbage. Looking for more pub food? Try one of these picks.
Other Bloggers

Mindful Walker: Architecture, Street Life and Nature

Mindful Walker is a blog dedicated to one woman's experience of architecture, street life, history,
and nature while walking or riding. In it, she intelligently examinies the changes in our cities,
towns, and the environment. Historic
preservation, smart growth, and the life of communities are of special interest to this blogger. She wrote to me last week and I'm so glad she did. Yesterday I ran one of her posts about Coney Island. There's lost more to read over there. Here is an excerpt from her bio.

I’ve been an explorer since my childhood in Wampum, a small town in
Western Pennsylvania, where I was blessed to grow up in a large
Italian-American family of DeMarks and Cinis (my mother’s side). My mom
encouraged my love of history. I grew up as a member of what my cousin
Phyllis calls the rare and endangered species Wampum stoop dweller (known
for spending hours sitting on the stoop of the town bank on Main Street
and observing the street life). I graduated to street crawling and
back-road exploring, after moving to New Jersey and the East Coast 30
years ago.

I’m a long-time journalist who has created MindfulWalker.com
to marry the best of reporting and feature writing with the life,
community, and immediacy of the Internet. A love of history,
architecture, people, and different places has been the connecting
thread of my career, which began in newspapers and moved on to magazine
writing, varied publishing and media projects, and ultimately online.

Postcard from the Slope

Brooklyn Beat: Journalism Not Dead, It’s Evolving!

The blogger who goes by the moniker of Brooklyn Beat over at Deep in the Heart of Brooklyn has an interesting piece about Park Slope's Steven Berlin Johnson, who, like so many hipsters, music afficionados and techie philosophers is at SXSW in Austin, Texas this week. That's South by Southwest for those who don't know.

Brooklyn-based author, blogger and web developer Steven Berlin Johnson,
at the South by Southwest Festival, said, according to Breitbart news,
that "Newspapers are dying but journalism is evolving."

Steven
Johnson equated newspapers to old growth forests, saying that under the
canopy of that aged ecosystem blogging, citizen journalism, Twittering
and other Internet-age information sharing is taking root.

"I'm
bullish on the future of news," Johnson said. "Newspapers are dying but
journalism is evolving, an acclaimed science writer told a gathering of
the techno-hip at South By South West Interactive Festival on Friday.
Johnson equated newspapers to old growth forests, saying that under the
canopy of that aged ecosystem blogging, citizen journalism, Twittering
and other Internet-age information sharing is taking root.

Brooklyn Beat also has some great photos of Salman Rushdie speaking at St. Francis College in Brooklyn Heights last week.

Election

Coming Soon: OTBKB’s Breakfast-of-Candidates Series

IMG_4450esSoon I will begin publishing my stories about my breakfasts with all the city council candidates in the 39th District.

In these posts, I hope to convey a palpable sense of who these men are as people and politicians. I want to find out what they believe in, what they're like to have breakfast with, how they grew up, what matters to them and whether or not they're suited to be in the City Council.

So far I've had breakfast with Brad Lander and Craig Hammerman and a lunchtime coffee with Bob Zuckerman; I am in the process of scheduling breakfasts with Josh Skaller (who I met the other day at a Meet-the-Candidate private party), John Heyer and Gary Reilly.

And is Steven Di Brenza actually running?

And now for some breaking news:  David Pechefsky, the Green Party Candidate for City Council District 38, just invited me, you and everybody to a kick off party for his campaign with a suggested donation prices of $25-$175 at Barbes on Friday, March 27th from 6 p.m. until 7:30 p.m. That's 376 Ninth Street near Sixth Avenue.

So, hey, David: when do you wanna have breakfast. There's no way around it.

Some of the City Council Candidates pictured left to right: Bob Zuckerman, Josh Skaller, Brad Lander, Craig Hammerman, Gary Reilly, Johy Heyer and Gary Reilly.  Not pictured: Steve Di Brienza and David Pechefsky.

Election

Bill de Blasio Raised Two Million Dollars for Public Advocate Campaign

Here's the press release statement from Council Member Bill de Blasio from the 39th district who is running for NYC's Public Advocate, the position currently held by Betsy Gotbaum.

"With 6 months left to go, our campaign has already passed
the halfway mark. With this filing, we have raised a total of nearly $2 million
with matching funds, a huge milestone. Our filing for this period put a large
dent in the gap, bringing in over $300,000 with matching funds,” said
Councilmember Bill de Blasio.

Postcard from the Slope

Mindful Walker: An Off-Season Vibe in Coney Island

Lots to read over at Mindful Walker about Coney Island. Here's an excerpt from her post, Coney Island's Off-Season Vibe:

Scrawled on the cornice of a dilapidated building on Coney Island’s
Surf Avenue is “Shore Hotel. Nature’s Paradise By the Sea.” But
paradise this isn’t. On Coney Island’s main thoroughfare, it sits in
the midst of a mish-mash of garish-colored patches of buildings,
“Stores for Lease” signs, boarded-up windows, and neon that heralds
“Eldorado Auto Skooter,” “Clam Bar,” and “Nathan’s Famous.”
Postcard from the Slope

OTBKB Book Giveaway: The Body Broken, Memoir About Chronic Pain

OTBKB is giving away copies of Lynne Greenberg's book, The Body Broken, a memoir about chronic pain and one woman's recovery from its devastation.

Email me at louise_crawford(at)yahoo(dot)com  with your address and  you will receive a book. Do it fast. I only have a few.

Lynne Greenberg will be doing a Reading & Signing at
BookCourt,163 Court Street, Brooklyn , —
Tuesday, March 24th at 7pm www.bookcourt.org