It’s Lenore Skenazy’s latest caper and she’s not kidding. Saturday is Take Your Kids to the Park and Leave Them There Day.” She’s getting plenty of publicity, some ire, some encouragement from the public. Ah, she’s used to it. Remember what happened when she let her 10 year old ride the subway?

From the Wall Street Journal:

Lenore Skenazy has declared Saturday “Take Your Kids to the Park and Leave Them There Day.” The former New York Sun columnist gained notoriety two years ago after writing about letting her then 9-year-old son take the subway home alone. She’s now campaigning for parents of children age 7 and older to give their kids a little freedom to play.

BROOKLYN FOLK FESTIVAL

May 21-23 at Jalopy, the Brooklyn Folk Festival presents the best in old-time music, blues, pre-blues, jug band music, New Orleans jazz, folk style songwriting, African folk music and Mexican folk music and dance. 7 pm–12:30 am.

DEBUTANTE BALL

Friday One Story magazine hosts a fun fundraiser in support of their fabulous magazine issued 18 times a year that is a must have for those who follow the art of the short story. Tickets are $50, which includes drinks, hors d’oeuvres, the night’s performance by Wingspace, hobnobbing with some of New York’s finest writers.

ART EXHIBITS

On Friday: Brooklyn College’s Performance and Interactive Media Arts MFA Program are presenting a show about their semester long inquiry of the Atlantic Yards. It’s called: A Question of Domain: Art About Atlantic Yards” and the show begins at 6:30pm in the playground located on 6th Avenue between Dean and Bergen Streets in a U-Haul truck and then continues at Southpaw at 8PM.

American High Style: Fashioning a nation collection at the Brooklyn Museum of Art.

Opens May 22 through June 13: Lucky Gallery presents: “Made in Red Hook”, a traditional salon exhibition by Red Hook artists Todd von Ammon, Laura Arena, Maria Baraybar, Andy Vernon-Jones, Christina Kelly, Heather Phelps-Lipton, Nate Luce, Rachel Mosler, L. Nichols, Julia Oldham, Anna Ortiz, Joshua Ray Stephens, Eric Taylor, Elizabeth Tomasetti, Tonky and Beriah Wall.

MOVIES

Iron Man 2, Robin Hood, Letters to Juliet, Barbie in a Mermaid Tale at the Pavilion;  City Island, Babies, Exit Through the Gift Shop at Cobble Hill Cinema.

DANCE

Friday at 7pm, Saturday at 3pm & 7pm, Sunday at 3pm: Elizabeth Streb and her superbly-conditioned performers are on a great, romantic adventure as they pursue, possess and exemplify pure action. Nowhere on earth will hardware, humans, extreme action and true grit combine in such an outrageous, explosive and shocking way. This is action magic for the masses! And it’s great for kids  at the Streb Lab for Action Mechanics.

The glass of writing: Truth and Rocket Science

Group show at Lucky Gallery in Red Hook: Art in Brooklyn

The Singer’s Gun: The Written Nerd

The Godfather, The Big Chill, The Cutaway: Peel Slowly

Heartbreak House: Rhinebeck Theater Society

Pee Wee Herman to get Broadway Playhouse: NY Times

Bring a flashlight and you’re all set. This special nighttime walk, led by Cemetery historian Jeff Richman, features live accordion music, by Famous Accordionists Bob Goldberg and Carl Riehl, a visit inside Green-Wood’s Catacombs and the light (weather permitting) of the moon. From “Erie Canal” to “New York New York”, a stroll through New York’s history. In the dark, with flashlights No reservations necessary.

The tour is $20 / $10 for Historic Fund members. Reservations are not required, but are recommended. Reserve your ticket online today or call 718.768.7300.
Saturday, May 22, 2010 at 8:15 PM

Meeting Point: Inside the main entrance at 25th Street and 5th Avnue

Price: $20.00

http://www.green-wood.com/store.php/store/category/2/tour/107

Brought to you from the Feldman Family weather tower in Park Slope.

From May 30-June 13, the Toy Theater Festival, a panopoly of miniature productions, takes over St. Ann’s Warehouse in DUMBO for theater on a small scale.

The festival begins with the Greatest Smallest Parade through Dumbo. Tiny floats. A full-sized marching band.

Over the course of two weeks, there are more than 20 productions from the silly to the serious.

Pictured above is “Kamp” (June 2-6), by Holland’s Hotel Modern

Brooklyn Reading Works presents the Fourth Annual Edgy Mother’s Day on May 20, 2010 at 8PM at The Old Stone House in Park Slope. It’s motherhood without sanctimony and an evening  of maternal revelry, wisdom and irreverent fun.

This is not your mother’s Mother’s Day but a celebration of mommydom nonetheless that will shock, rock, and make you laugh ‘til your thongs snap!

Hear Brooklyn writers of non-fiction, fiction, memoir and poetry rant and rave about mothers and motherhood. They will shock, amuse, and entertain but won’t make you eat carrots before dessert.

Bring a friend. Or bring your mom.

Hosted by Louise Crawford and Sophia Romero, here’s the evening’s line-up (don’t panic everyone is under strict orders to keep their readings brief):

–Marian Fontana, author of A Widow’s Walk

–Rosemary Moore, author of Side Street

–Martha Southgate, author of Third Girl From the Left

–Jill Eisenstadt, author of From Rockaway

–Wendy Ponte, author of Mothering Magazine’s Having a Baby Naturally. She is also a life coach.

–Sophia Romero, blogger, The Shiksa from Manila and author of Always Hiding

–Yona Zeldis McDonough, author of Breaking the Bank

–Michele Madigan Somerville, poet and author of WISEGAL and Black Irish

–Allison Pennell, parenting journalist and writer for Effed in Park Slope

–Kayla, aka Kathy Fine, accidental poet and educator

–Nicole Caccavo Kear, writer of Dispactches from Babyville, a regular column in the Park Slope Reader and blogger for A Mom Amok.

On Friday Brooklyn College’s Performance and Interactive Media Arts MFA Program are presenting a show about their semester long inquiry of the Atlantic Yards. It’s called: A Question of Domain: Art About Atlantic Yards” and the show begins at 6:30pm in the playground located on 6th Avenue between Dean and Bergen Streets in a U-Haul truck and then continues at Southpaw at 8PM

Also on Friday One Story magazine is hosting a fun fundraiser in support of their fabulous magazine issued 18 times a year that is a must have for those who follow the art of the short story.

Tickets are $50, which includes drinks, hors d’oeuvres, the night’s performance by Wingspace, hobnobbing with some of New York’s finest writers (up-and-coming and bold names), and a chance to see John Hodgman ham it up as the night’s emcee.

So what makes her edgy?

For starters she is the author of the novel, Always Hiding which was published by William Morrow. She also writes the hilarious blog, The Shiksa from Manila AND  and she is mom to Amalya and Eli and thorn in the neck to Dan Schwartz AKA the good egg.

Brooklyn Reading Works presents the Fourth Annual Edgy Mother’s Day on May 20, 2010 at 8PM at The Old Stone House in Park Slope. It’s motherhood without sanctimony and an evening  of maternal revelry, wisdom and irreverent fun.

This is not your mother’s Mother’s Day but a celebration of mommydom nonetheless that will shock, rock, and make you laugh ‘til your thongs snap!

Hear Brooklyn writers of non-fiction, fiction, memoir and poetry rant and rave about mothers and motherhood. They will shock, amuse, and entertain but won’t make you eat carrots before dessert.

Bring a friend. Or bring your mom. Your sister. Your daughter. Your…

Okay. So the secret is out. Absolut is launching its “Brooklyn” vodka in collaboration with filmmaker Spike Lee.

So what does this vodka taste like. I don’t know yet but I hear its a blend of red apples and ginger and comes in its own specially- designed bottle featuring probably one of the most recognizable features of our lovely borough, the stoop.

Cool fact: Absolut Brooklyn is the fourth in the company’s US city-themed editions following New Orleans, Los Angeles and Boston.

It’s not Absolut New York or Absolut Manhattan. It’s Absolut Brooklyn. Got it?

The company is donating $50,000 of the proceeds to Habitat For Humanity New York City. They are also sponsoring this year’s Brooklyn Blogfest.

Cheers!

Lucas Fine Foods opening on Union: NY Times

The accidental black and white: A Cake Bakes in Brooklyn

Fornino adds kid’s menu: Brooklyn Paper

Third Ward’s food cart: Eater

Food news: The Brooklyn Food Blog

Brooklyn food & drink roundup: Brownstoner

So what makes her edgy?

Jill Eisenstadt is the author FROM ROCKAWAY and KISS OUT and has written for The New York Times, New York Magazine, Vogue among other places. She has three daughters Jane 15, Lena 13, and Colette, 7.  Asked what qualifies her as an Edgy Mom she cited her ability to stick her hand into a kid’s mouth and yank out a loose tooth without blinking.

Brooklyn Reading Works presents the Fourth Annual Edgy Mother’s Day on May 20, 2010 at 8PM at The Old Stone House in Park Slope. It’s motherhood without sanctimony and an evening  of maternal revelry, wisdom and irreverent fun.

This is not your mother’s Mother’s Day but a celebration of mommydom nonetheless that will shock, rock, and make you laugh ‘til your thongs snap!

Hear Brooklyn writers of non-fiction, fiction, memoir and poetry rant and rave about mothers and motherhood. They will shock, amuse, and entertain but won’t make you eat carrots before dessert.

Bring a friend. Or bring your mom.

Hosted by Louise Crawford and Sophia Romero, here’s the evening’s line-up:

–Marian Fontana, author of A Widow’s Walk

–Rosemary Moore, author of Side Street

–Martha Southgate, author of Third Girl From the Left

–Jill Eisenstadt, author of From Rockaway

–Wendy Ponte, author of Mothering Magazine’s Having a Baby Naturally. She is also a life coach.

–Sophia Romero, blogger, The Shiksa from Manila and author of Always Hiding

–Yona Zeldis McDonough, author of Breaking the Bank

–Michele Madigan Somerville, poet and author of WISEGAL and Black Irish

–Allison Pennell, parenting journalist and writer for Effed in Park Slope

–Kayla, aka Kathy Fine, accidental poet and educator

–Nicole Caccavo Kear, writer of Dispactches from Babyville, a regular column in the Park Slope Reader and blogger for A Mom Amok.

Clean out your closet, find new threads from your neighbor’s closet, and keep clothes out of landfills! Bring your clean and usable women’s, men’s, and children’s clothing to contribute.

reduce/reuse/recycle is *always* in fashion.

Clothes left over from the swap will go to the wonderful programs at Housing Works, which provide the highest quality services for homeless men, women, and children living with HIV and AIDS in New York City and beyond.

Brought to you by Greener Gotham Events, founded by Green Party activists to create fun and social eco-events in the Five Boroughs!

On Saturday, May 22 from 11AM until 3PM at All Saints Catholic Church, located at 115 Throop Ave (basement entrance) at the corner of Thorton Street. Take the G and J/M trains to Flushing Avenue — or the L train to Montrose Avenue.

FREE with a contribution of clean, usable clothes to the swap. Email michael@counterpower.org or call 347-788-1646.

Craig Hammerman, District Manager, Community Board 6, just wrote to say:  “As a followup to the EPA’s meeting the other night where 2 candidates for the Community Advisory Group facilitator position were introduced to the community, they just released the following announcement.”

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 2 is pleased to announce that Jeffrey Edelstein of Edelstein Associates has been selected by the Gowanus community to act as the neutral facilitator for the Gowanus Canal Community Advisory Group.  Mr. Edelstein is a professional environmental engineer with 20 years of expertise in storm water, wastewater and the Clean Water Act. He holds a BS. from Cornell University’s School of Biological and Environmental Engineering, and has trained in public policy dispute resolution at the Muskie School of Public Service, the University of Southern Maine Mediation Institute, the Consensus Building Institute, and the Lincoln Center for Land Policy.  In addition, Mr. Edelstein is on the national mediation/facilitation roster of the U.S. Institute for Environmental Conflict Resolution (USIECR), and is actively involved in initiatives that help grow and improve the practice of Environmental Conflict Resolution.

The Gowanus Canal is a recently listed Superfund site located in Brooklyn, New York.

Mr. Edelstein will now begin to work with the communities impacted by the site to help form the Gowanus Canal Community Advisory Group.

First On the Unwanted List

Former New York City Police Commissioner Bernard Kerik reported to a federal prison in Maryland yesterday to serve four years for tax fraud. –news item

Call it schadenfreude

Be righteously annoyed,

But hail jailtime for Kerik

No matter how barberik.

Marian Fontana, author of A Widow’s Walk: A Memoir of 9/11 and the upcoming novel, The Middle of the Bed, will be reading at Edgy Moms on Thursday at the Old Stone House in Park Slope.

How edgy is she?

“I am Edgy mom because I don’t bake cookies, but love to eat them, because I can play electric guitar, because I let my son do his science project by himself…”

Hear her read her hilarious tales of single motherhood on Thursday, May 20th at 8PM.  Fifth Avenue and Third Street in Park Slope. Free wine and fun.

Good to know about an investigation that Brooklyn Ink and Bronx Ink have been working on for months: a look at one of the city’s most notorious landlords and how he has worked the city system to avoid any sort of real repercussions for repeated violations.

Here’s the link: http://thebrooklynink.com/2010/05/18/12158-moshe-piller-how-a-new-york-landlord-works-the-system/

Photos from North Brooklyn: NY Shitty

Dead fish smoking: Sheepshead Bites

Joe’s Restaurant expands its menu: Pardon Me for Asking

Brooklyn libraries need support: Bushwick BK

The DUMBO Photo Fest was nice: McBrooklyn

Taste Williamsburg/Greenpoint was delicious: Free Williamsburg

Nicole Caccavo Kear writes Dispatches from Babyville, a regular column in the Park Slope Reader. She also writes the blog, A Mom Amok and will be one of the edgies at the Edgy Mother’s Day on Thursday, May 20th at the Old Stone House at 8PM.

How edgy is she?

“I’m a former contortionist, sometime martyr and incurable neurotic. Instead of cooking dinner, I let the kids pretend to cut off my Gorgon head more times than seems strictly necessary. I’m an edgy mom because I’ve got a lot of rough edges and I like it that way.”

Allison Pennell, a parenting journalist and writer for Effed in Park Slope will be one of the edgies at Edgy Mother’s Day at the Old Stone House on May 20th at 8PM.  She wrote this on FIPS the other day.

So, one of the side effects of my permanent banishment from Park Slope Parents is that I’ve been invited to join another club. I am now, God help me, an “edgy mom.” Yes, the Park Slope doyenne of edginess, Louise “OTBKB” Crawford (aka smart mom/crazy lady) sent me a personal invitation. And no, it wasn’t in the third person.

Whatever the fuck an edgy mom is, I’m not sure I want to be it. Past the first blush of earnest playful parenting? A free-range kid farmer? Apt to poke fun at this whole alternately grand and appalling experiment in raising future good citizens? Allergic to treacle-y sentimentality? Check. Check. Check. Check.

My new designation means, I suppose, that it’s no skin off my teeth that my seven-year-old daughter is now standing buck naked on our dining room table and playing “boy,” complete with pencil. Or that she asked me for a tattoo last week (and I don’t mean temporary). Or that she barfed all over her suitcase, two rugs, and her brother’s favorite Jordans midway through her plans to run away last night. Or that I would be even thinking of penning this post at 7:54 am while I still have a lunch to pack and dog to walk.