Only The Blog Knows Brooklyn

Planet Green’s Wa$ted Wants You

I got this email from the casting director of a show on the Discovery Planet Green. Read on, it might be of interest to you”

Dear Louise, I recently came across your blog, Only the Blog Knows Brooklyn, and thought I would pass along this opportunity to you and your readers. I am the casting producer for a national eco-makeover show produced here in NYC by Lion TV. Wa$ted airs on Planet Green, a Discovery Company. Wa$ted is an eco-green, home makeover show. We are currently casting our 2nd season and we are looking for energetic, unique, and diverse households in and around the tri-state area that might be interested in learning how to be a bit more green. Our mission is to show the viewing audience and the show’s participants’ ways and means by which they can reduce their impact on the environment and frequently save money in the doing. The program is fun but with a clear message. I am reaching out to you for help spreading the word about this unique opportunity among your readers and the Brooklyn Community.

If you think this is something either you or your readers might be interested in it would be great if you could pass along our official casting call or post it to your blog. The ideal households are those who may not want to go green or are hesitant to buy into the green movement or maybe they are interested in being green but feel overwhelmed by all the information and options that are out there. I’d be pleased to explain the details with you further if you would like. So please feel free to give me a call or email and we can discuss the show in greater detail. In the meantime, I am including below a brief description of the show and what it entails along with a link to the Planet Green website.

Wa$ted is in its 2nd season for Discovery’s Planet Green. The goal of the show is to teach people to be less wasteful and to be more green. Our hosts, Annabelle Gurwitch and Holter Graham, want to show people how easy and fun it can be to save the environment and save money. We want to show that through some simple changes to your house and your lifestyle you can reduce your carbon footprint and save money without sacrificing your luxury and comfort. The eco-makeover will involve lifestyle tips, cool gadgets and products, and superficial changes to the home. And the best part – we help you save MONEY! With the potential to WIN money based on your success. Wa$ted focuses on a spectrum of environmental issues within households from their waste, energy, water and transportation consumption. With the help of our green experts we narrow in on certain problems facing each family that are both hurting the environment and the homeowner’s bank account. Each episode offers dozens of customized, unconventional solutions in the form of appliances, gadgets and easy-to-maintain tips and tricks on how to best shrink ecological footprints, conserve energy and produce less trash, which in turn saves the homeowners (and viewers) some serious cash, both upfront and over the years.

Requirements:
Must own home or apartment
Must live within 2 hours of NYC
Shooting is 2 days – with some additional time over the course of the month

I look forward to hearing from you. Thanks for your consideration.

Best Regards,

Joey Lucas
Casting Associate Producer
Wa$ted – Planet Green
Lion Television
212-206-8633 ext. 3852

Hepcat’s Hometown Newspaper on the Obama Magic

Here’s an excerpt from an editorial in the Tracy Press, Hepcat’s hometown newspaper. Sounds like they’re feeling the Obama magic in California’s Central Valley, hit hard by the recent economic downturn.

“So let us summon a new spirit of patriotism, of service and responsibility, where each of us resolves to pitch in and work harder and look after not only ourselves, but each other.”
— President-elect Barack Obama, Nov. 5, 2008

A local grocery store clerk talked animatedly to a customer the day after the election.

For the first time in her life, she said, she felt patriotic. She wanted to do something in answer to the new president-elect’s call to pitch in. Maybe it was a flashback to the idealistic ’60s, with President John Kennedy’s eloquent call to service. Or a sense of pride that the country had finally broken through historic barriers. Or maybe it was just the visceral awareness that the depressive Bush years would soon be over.

But what? Should she quit her job and join the Peace Corps?

That same day, a new generation of activists gathered on 11th Street outside Tracy High School and waved “Yes We Can” and “Yes We Did” signs in jubilation. As the afternoon wore on, more joined the group, smiling wildly.

Obviously, the magic of Tuesday’s election of Barack Obama and the wave of change is contagious, bringing forth a mosaic of intense personal feelings.

But does this new spirit of patriotism, this enthusiastic resolve to pitch in, have to be one that takes us outside of our own communities? Isn’t there work to be done in Tracy?

Evelyn Tolbert thinks so. Even though she didn’t win her bid to be Tracy’s mayor, the day after the election she said she has no intention of stopping her efforts to “change the face of Tracy.” She said she’s moving full steam ahead on projects as a city councilwoman with another two years in her term.

Plenty of Tracy people know what’s possible, because they’ve already made a difference in their schools and churches and neighborhoods.

For more than 30 years, Dr. A.R. Glover offered free flu shots in town, simply because he believed it was a way to save lives, and he became a mentor for Dan Schack and so many others.

Brighter Christmas was started when Gene Birk and a couple of others decided to help needy families in town 28 years ago. Their efforts snowballed and continue to this day.

A 9-year-old girl named Rainey Lomolino, now 17, wanted to see what it was like to spend the night in a cardboard box and started Kids in a Box, now an annual fundraiser for McHenry House Family Shelter.

The Oh So Prolific One: Leon Freilich, Verse Responder

Our Verse Responder is back from his world travels:

Worldly Comforts

From crossing continents

To taking an island hop

The seasoned traveler knows

Don’t skip a bathroom op

New York Times

William Kristol on a Puppy in the White House

William Kristol may be the New York Times’ ultra conservative columnist (boo boo, hiss hiss) but his column on Monday, GOP Dog Days?, was good. Read this excerpt:

In other words, this was a good Democratic year, but it is still a center-right country. Conservatives and the Republican Party will have a real chance for a comeback — unless the skills of the new president turn what was primarily an anti-Bush vote into the basis for a new liberal governing era.

Those were my thoughts when, a few minutes into his victory speech, just after midnight, Obama told his daughters, “And you have earned the new puppy that’s coming with us to the new White House.”

I gulped.

Not out of my deep affection for dogs, fond of them though I am. But because while we’ve all known that Obama is a very skillful politician, he hasn’t until now been a particularly empathetic one. Competence plus warmth is a pretty potent combination. Suddenly visions of the two great modern realigning presidents — Franklin Roosevelt (with his Scottish terrier Fala) and Ronald Reagan (with his Cavalier King Charles spaniel Rex) — flashed before my eyes. Maybe a realignment could be coming.

Obama was, naturally, asked about the promised-but-not-yet-purchased puppy at his press conference Friday. (If one were being churlish, one might say that it was typical of a liberal to promise the dog before delivering it. A results-oriented conservative would simply have shown up with the puppy without the advance hype.)

Obama commented wryly that the canine question had “generated more interest on our Web site than just about anything.” He continued:

“We have two criteria that have to be reconciled. One is that Malia is allergic, so it has to be hypoallergenic. There are a number of breeds that are hypoallergenic. On the other hand, our preference would be to get a shelter dog, but, obviously, a lot of shelter dogs are mutts like me. So — so whether we’re going to be able to balance those two things, I think, is a pressing issue on the Obama household.”

Here, in a few sentences, Obama did the following: He deepened his bond with every dog lover in America. He identified with every household that’s tried to figure out what kind of dog to get. He touched every parent with a kid allergic to pets. He showed compassion by preferring a dog from a shelter. And he demonstrated a dry and slightly politically incorrect wit by commenting that “a lot of shelter dogs are mutts like me.”

Not bad. It could be a tough four or eight years for conservatives

Election

Term Limits Law Suit Filed by Councilwoman Tish James and Others

The complaint filed yesterday states:

“Allowing a self-interested mayor and City Council to dismiss the results of two recent referenda undermines the integrity of the voting process, effectively nullifies the constitutionally protected right to vote, and perniciously chills political speech by sending the unavoidable message that the democratic exercises of initiatives and referenda can be disregarded by public officials.”

Councilmember Bill de Blasio released the following statement on Monday about the filing of a lawsuit challenging the newly enacted law to extend term limits to three consecutive terms for New York City elected officials:

“One week ago, the Mayor enacted his term limits bill into law, officially signing away the votes and voices of hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers. Public outrage at this move, made by a handful of politicians to circumvent the democratic process, has been blatantly disregarded. The people will long remember the events of the past few weeks, and they will be rightfully unforgiving.

“Today marks an important next step in our fight to restore democracy in New York City. All voters have a constitutional right to have a meaningful vote on term limits; one that cannot be overturned at the drop of a hat by a self-interested few. I have pledged to my constituents and to all New Yorkers to continue fighting to restore public participation in this process. Today we took this matter to court to ensure that the voices of the people are heard.”

Great for Gifts: Blue Ribbon General Store and Scaredy Kat

November 11, 2008 louise crawford 2 Comments

I’ve been hearing about Blue Ribbon General Store located at 365 State Street in Boerum Hill for some time. And this morning I read about it on The Daily Yelp Brooklyn. I think it’s going to be a stop on my holiday shopping itinerary.

June W is such a fan of Blue Ribbon General Store that she almost kept it a secret — thankfully her love of this "perfect store for gifts (even for someone who has everything)" stocked with a range of goodies "from gigantic rubber ducks, to reprints of old maps of New York" was too mighty to keep to herself

.
Another Yelper is like me. She loves Scaredy Kat on Fifth Avenue Between Carroll and President.

Liz S is never frightened that she might not find a stellar present when shopping at Scaredy Kat, where they stock "a perfect balance of kitschy and classy gifts for young and old." She adds that it’s "amazing that a store so small can be chock-full of so many great items."

Tonight: Adult Education at Union Hall

November 11, 2008 louise crawford 1 Comment

Tonight Union Hall’s Adult Education series welcomes a panel of presenters to speak on the theme of “Lies and Liars.” The line-up will include:

“Confessions of a Literary Forger”
Lee Israel, author of the memoir Can You Ever Forgive Me?, details her career in literary crime.

“The Way We Lie”
Is a white lie a gateway drug to larger lies? Writer Jill Stoddard investigates this and other fun facts about lying, including some she made up on her own.

“On the Internet, Nobody Knows You’re a Fraud”
D.E. Rasso examines the duplicitous and desperate world of Internet impostors.

“You Are Not Going to Be Famous”
Jim Hanas debunks America’s big lie.

All hosted by comedian Charles Star.

The Where and When

Tuesday, Nov 11 2008 – 8 pm (doors at 7:30)
Union Hall in Park Slope
702 Union St. @ 5th Ave
$5 cover

Grace in Action: Alexander Technique with Jane Tomkiewicz

So I took Jane Tomkiewicz’s 4-class series in Alexander Technique in
October and I must tell you: it’s wonderful in a life altering kind of
way.

Okay, so it’s hard to describe. It’s not physical therapy, massage,
meditation, or Yoga but it can be thought of as a blend of these.

Frederick Matthias Alexander was a 19th century Australian actor who
discovered this technique when he tried to figure out why he suffered
from chronic hoarseness when he had to speak in public.

According to Jane, he stood in front of mirrors and studied the way he moved when he spoke.

Over time he began to understand his body’s patterns and how to
change them. The Alexander Technique was born when he discovered that
thought could be used to release muscles and decrease tension.

It’s pretty subtle stuff. A sending of directions to your body, little cues. Think it and then…

Alexander Technique is a way of deconstructing the way your body does things. Sitting, standing, lying down, reaching, holding.

The sessions are very, very interesting and simple. During one
session we addressed sitting. Another time we dealt with working at a
desk and at a computer. It’s a wonderful technique if you have any kind
of body pain. It’s also great if you want to rethink the way you use
(or abuse) your body.

But we didn’t just talk. Jane led us through floor and standing
exercises that helped us key into the mind-body connection. She offered
images that helped us move our bodies differently.

Jane is offering another series soon. You can get in touch with her for more info:

Alexander Technique Series for our community: a great opportunity in Park Slope for new or continuing students in a small group (limit 5)

included in the series:

1 free introductory hands-on demonstration

4 classes (an hour and a quarter each)

1 private lesson (45minutes)

Fee: $150

Jane has been teaching the Alexander Technique to
groups at the 92nd St. Y since 1992 and privately in Manhattan since
1990. She served as the Executive Director of the American Center of
the Alexander Technique from 1996-2008. She is very pleased to begin
teaching group and private lessons in Brooklyn at the Feldenkrais
Center of Park at 375 5th Ave (between 5th & 6th).

For more information about the Technique or class series please email or call 718-369-3092 or 347-387-2366.

EDUCATION

Nov 16: Return to Learning at Long Island University

Long Island University is launching a new program called Return to Learning (R2L). R2L’s emphasis on a diverse learning community and flexible class schedules targets Brooklyn residents from all walks of life.

LIU offers undergraduate and graduate programs in competitive fields including social work, psychology, media arts, business, and health sciences.

We are having an Open House event for R2L on Sunday, November 16th, from 12:00 to 2:00 pm, at 1 University Plaza, at the corner of DeKalb and Flatbush Avenues, Luntey Commons (cafeteria).

The Where and When

Sunday November 16
12 p.m. until 2 p.m.
One University Plaza
Corner of Dekalb and Flatbush Avenue
in the Luntey Commons (Cafeteria)

No Words_Daily Pix by Hugh Crawford

No Words Daily Pix: Photograph by Hugh Crawford

Buy Local

Why Shop Local?

OTBKB is thrilled to present the first installment of Buy in Brooklyn’s “Why Shop Local?” Series

Melinda Morris (pictured here with her husband Dave) is the owner of Lion in the Sun and communications and outreach coordinator for the Park Slope Chamber of Commerce, A founding member of the Buy in Brooklyn team, she will be participating in the Snowflake Celebration, Park Slope’s second annual shop local campaign, during the first two Thursdays in December by offering 10% discounts on holiday cards & holiday gift wrap items, along with prosecco, sweets and live music by the Lion in the Sun elves.

Q: When did you open for business and why did you choose Park Slope?

A: I opened the shop in June of 2002 and choose Park Slope because I had lived here for about 8 years (at that point) and saw a real need in the neighborhood for a good quality paperie and custom invitations. I was really taken by the small town communal feel of the neighborhood and was excited about getting to know my neighbors better and being an active part of the community. (I still am!)

Q: What’s a little known fact about your business that you think people would find interesting?

A: Two things: 1.) We carry a lot of recycled paper and paper made from renewable resources. Although we are a paper store, we try to be environmentally conscious. 2.) The name Lion in the Sun comes from the original store (owned by my parents on LI) who, in the early 1980’s, sold their vacation house in the Hamptons to start the business. Because they were no longer going to be lying in the sun they named it "Lion in the Sun."

Q: Which of The Sustainable Business Network NYC’s "Top Ten Reasons" to shop locally resonate most with you & your business?

A: Reason #3: Our one-of-a-kind businesses are an integral part of Brooklyn’s distinct character. At Lion in the Sun, we really pride ourselves on the uniqueness of our shop, our products and our services. We are all about personal relationships with our clients— it is what makes it meaningful for me. For instance, we are always looking for ways to customize things for our clients (and their events) that are thoughtful, specific and personal. It is much more work to do it that way, but totally worth it in the end. We also try to offer unique collections by supporting many local Brooklyn designers and artists as well as small independent companies—taken altogether, that’s what makes it possible to stand out among the "big guys."

"Why Shop Local? is a communication initiative of the Buy in Brooklyn team. To learn more about Park Slope’s Buy in Brooklyn campaign, visit their website at http://www.buyinbrooklyn.com/– the site, with its ever-growing list of participants (and discounts!), will launch this weekend and be updated regularly.

Interview conducted by Rebeccah Welch

brooklyn beat

Brooklyn Beat: Coney Island of the Soul

Here from Brooklyn Beat of Deep in the Heart of Brooklyn: Seasons Change With the Scenery

Election fever and school application mania not withstanding, on Sunday, it seemed like a touch of nature and a long walk were in order, so we headed down to the sea. While, in terms of commerz, Coney Island is in more of a state of quietude, there is such a wonderful sense of the natural world at his time. Still, plenty of excitement: Polar Bears in beachwear getting ready for a dip; a few vendors still open for business on the boardwalk and off; kiteflyers by the shore. The boardwalk now features some sand in spots where recent weather and tidal action have made for some very powerful waves indeed. A deep trench seems to have been cut by the waves, just east of the long pier. Seems too deep to have been human-made.

And in the mix, a solo electric blues guitarist performing some very soulful tunes for the strollers on the woodenway. Blues for a lost lover, blues for the future of Coney Island, and simply blues for the passing of the seasons.

But also, for this stroller, blues for a nation that seems to have narrowly escaped despair, at least for the moment, but that still has a long way to go to pull ourselves out of the trench that has been created by the storms of the last 8 years.

John Hodgman Lives in Park Slope

John Hodgman plays the PC guy in the funny funny Mac commercials. He is also a regular on The Daily Show, where he is the program’s resident expert, available for comment on
such matters as currency rates, planetary bodies, mixed martial arts,
American Idol, and lice.

Apart from the many fake books he has
advertised on the show, he is the author of The Areas of My Expertise, although that is a book of fake facts.

His
new book is called, More Information Than You Require. Here is an excerpt from an interview he did with the Washington Post:

What is your favorite city and why?
John Hodgman: While I lived in Manhattan for a dozen years, I never felt fully at home there.
Now, as I reveal in my book, I live in a utopian commune ruled by children known as Park Slope, Brooklyn. And I have never been happier.
NEVER HAPPIER
NEVER HAPPIER
NEVER HAPPIER
NEVER HAPPIER
NEVER HAPPIER
NEVER HAPPIER
That is all.

The Gish Sisters: Orphans in the Storm

Supposedly one of the greatest silent films. Ever. With Lillian and Dorothy Gish.

The Where and When

Tuesday November 11 at 7 p.m.
BAM Rose Cinema

BAM: Tom Stoppard on Chekhov

And he’s being interviewed by David Remnick, the editor of The New Yorker.

In
January 2009, as part of The Bridge Project, BAM will present the world
premiere of Tom Stoppard’s new version of Anton Chekhov’s The Cherry Orchard. Stoppard, the author of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead and The Coast of Utopia has written sparkling adaptations of other plays by Chekhov including The Seagull and Ivanov.
Join him for this special prelude conversation about the Russian master
whose work has fascinated and delighted generations of theater makers
and audiences.

David Remnick, a Russian specialist, won a Pulitzer Prize in 1994 for his book Lenin’s Tomb: The Last Days of the Soviet Empire. He was the Moscow correspondent for The Washington Post and has been editor of The New Yorker magazine since 1998.

The Where and When

Nov 11 at 7pm
BAM Harvey Theater
$10, $5 for Friends of BAM

Wed: Guitarist Mary Halvorson at Barbes

Mary Halvorson is a brooklyn-based guitarist and composer who performs with Trevor Dunn’s Trio-Convulsant – as well as Joe Morris,
Nels Cline, Elliott Sharp, Marc Ribot, Oscar Noriega and Jason Moran.
"With her hollow-body electric guitar, broadcasting its natural tone
through an amp at low levels, she seems all set to play standards; no
doubt she can and does. But in her own tossing, prickly trio she seems
more like a folk musician who has spent months in isolation, building
strange chord clusters and then soldering them together." Ben Ratliff,
NY Times

The Where and When

Barbes
CD Release party for Dragon’s Head (Firehouse 12 Records)
Ninth Street near 6th Avenue in Park Slope
7 and 8:30 p.m. (two shows)
$10 per set

John Hodgman in the Brooklyn Paper

As noted below: John Hodgman lives in Park Slope. For those who don’t know the name, he’s the PC guy in those funny Mac commercials. He’s also an author AND the subject of a story that was in the Brooklyn Paper by Gersh Kuntzman complete with a great pix by Julie Rosenberg. Here’s an excerpt.

The minor television celebrity is none other than John Hodgman, the humble²
Park Sloper who has achieved his renown through two hilarious, and
completely fake, trivia books (“The Areas of My Expertise” and the new
“More Information than You Require”), regular appearances as the
resident expert on “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart” and a bit of
trifle as the physical embodiment of Windows-based computers in a
series of Apple commercials that have been viewed by more than 26
billion people worldwide³.

Not that Hodgman resents those Apple ads, of course. They are almost
entirely responsible for his current renown, which includes a
nationwide book tour to support his new fake book, money to support the
lavish lifestyle to which he has become accustomed and spontaneous
conversations with people everywhere he goes. All this for a former
literary agent and one-time cheesemonger⁴.

Thumbless Caesar: New Works by Patrick King

An OTBKB reader wrote in to say that her husband will be showing new art works at the cool space called Madarts up on 18th Street.

Madarts is a space for artist’s studios as well as a very nice exhibition space.

As you can see on the poster to the left, the work looks interesting. Makes me think of cells and such. The show has an interesting name: Thumbless Caesar

So don’t miss: new works by Patrick King at Madarts, 255 18th Street (between 5th and
6th Avenue), Brooklyn.

The Where and When

Opening reception on November 15th
8-11 p.m.
The show will be up until November 23rd at
Madarts
255 18th Street (between 5th and 6th Avenue) in the South Slope.

Greensboro Documentary at Brooklyn College: Powerful

An audience of faculty, students and others gathered on November 3rd for a screening of Greensboro: Closer to the Truth in the Woody Tanger Auditorium at Brooklyn College.

The film, made by my friend Adam Zucker, documents what happened 29 years ago in Greensboro, North Carolina.

On November 3, 1979, members of the Communist Workers Party were holding a Death to the Klan rally in Greensboro, North Carolina, when a caravan rounded the corner, scattering the protesters.

Klansmen and Nazis emerged from the cars, unloaded an arsenal of guns and began firing. Five people were killed in what became known as the Greensboro Massacre.

Greensboro: Closer to the Truth reconnects 25 years later with the players in this tragedy—widowed and wounded survivors, along with their attackers—and chronicles how their lives have evolved in the long aftermath of the killings.

All converge at the first Truth and Reconciliation Commission ever held in the United States is convened in Greensboro from 2004-2006 to investigate the Massacre. As the Commission struggles to uncover what actually happened and why, the participants confront the truth of their past, and struggle with the possibility of hope and redemption.

Sally Bermanzohn, professor and chairperson of the Political Science Department at Brooklyn College has a profound connection to the massacre. She was a labor organizer in the Duke Hospital cafeteria when her husband psychiatrist Paul Bermanzohn, was critically wounded in the Greensboro Massacre.

At present, she is researching and teaching courses on the international phenomenon of truth and reconciliation commissions. Bermanzohn is the author of Through Survivors’ Eyes: From the
Sixties to the Greensboro Massacre (2003), for which she received the Brooklyn College Award for Excellence in Creative Achievement.

She also co-edited Violence and Politics: Globalization’s Paradox (2002),which includes her chapter on Violence, Non-violence and the US Civil Rights Movement.

Bermanzohn and Zucker were at the November 3rd screening and answered many questions about the making of the film, the event 29 years ago and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, held in Greensboro from 2004-2006.

They discussed the individuals involved in the Death to the Klan rally back in 1979 and what’s happened to them since. Zucker said that "showing the way people change over time" is what interested him in the subject to begin with.

Nelson Johnson, a fascinating individual featured in the film was a member of the Communist Worker’s Party and a union organizer in 1979. He is now a Protestant preacher. While he has undergone a transformation he is still passionate about the rights of workers.

Watching this film on the eve of an election that would elect the first African-American president of the United States was very powerful.

"Remember to vote," Zucker said by way of a closing remark. And we did.

Cold Weather Coming: Don’t You Need Hats and Gloves?

Good Head makes good hats. Good Head loves to knit, and especially to design interesting hats.

I bought one of her hats at Bar Reis where she works the bar (that’s me
at left). I’ve gotten a lot of feedback on my hat. Hepcat says I look
like Princess Leia from Star Wars. Teen Spirit said I look like Eeyore.
A random friend of OSFO’s said I look like a Muppet.

It’s a great hat and so so warm. I’ve been wearing it almost
constantly. I also get a lot of compliments. Plus it has ears, which is
an especially good idea for a New York winters.

Good Head is making these hats constantly and her stock at her Etsy site
is growing and growing. So check out the hats and gloves she has there.
If you like my hat she’ll make you one. Or you can pick one of the hats
she has in stock.

Good Head writes:

"I can’t keep everything I make, so I thought I’d give you an
opportunity to get some great winter-wear, and I’ll use your money to
invest in new yarn, to make more stuff! I support yarn companies that
use environmentally sustainable practices, are careful with their
animals, and as often as I can, I use fibers that are made by women at
coops in under-developed parts of the world. I guarantee everything I
make for life, but so far my products have turned out to be
unbelievably durable. Just don’t put ’em in the washing machine!"

Good Head also makes fingerless gloves that are very sexy. Good
Head writes: "These are fingerless gloves that stretch out long, or
accordion to
short wristlets. They have an interesting shape, and they are not
itchy. They’re good for people who play music outside."

Tom Martinez, Witness: Brooklyn Tea party

David Liotta’s class of Middle Schoolers re-enact the Boston Tea Party outside I.S. 62 in Kensington. Photo: Tom Martinez

No Words_Daily Pix by Hugh Crawford

No Words Daily Pix: Photograph by Hugh Crawford

Open Source Soup Kitchen: Volunteers Needed

For the month of December, open-source-gallery is about Cooking, Eating, Sharing, Celebrating…

We ask that artists, cooks, friends and neighbors join us for SOUP KITCHEN, where for as many days as we have volunteers, we will be offering a “one-pot meal” to all on a first come, first serve basis. Unique dishes from any ethnic tradition are more than welcome. Each participant can set their own hours and have the place to themselves, a solo show if you will, and you may decorate the place or not at your discretion. We’ll provide the necessary cookware and utensils and help with logistics. We ask that volunteers supply the love. Interested participants should contact us ASAP to reserve a day.

The Where and When

The month of December
Open-source-gallery.org
255 17th street between 5th and 6th Ave (street level) in South Slope, Brooklyn
Opening hours are monday through wednesday 10 am – 2 pm
and appointments

Smartmom: The Gap Year

November 9, 2008 louise crawford 2 Comments

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

Smartmom is getting used to the idea. In fact, she’s all for it.
Sort of. It’s just that she isn’t sure what it means exactly. But if
Teen Spirit wants to do it …

Smartmom is even getting good at answering the question frequently asked by friends and family.

“So where does Teen Spirit want to go to college next year?”

Smartmom doesn’t even stutter anymore. She just comes right out and says it:

“Teen Spirit is taking a gap year!”

A gap year? The faces of friends and family get all quizzical and
weird. Most don’t have a clue what she’s talking about. So Smartmom is
called upon to explain.

“No, it’s not a year spent folding t-shirts at the Gap (though that’s not a bad idea). A gap year is the
newfangled phrase for what people used to call taking a year off before
going to college.”

Friends and family smile. Some even pretend it’s a good idea, a great way to grow up a little and have an adventure.

Smartmom even had some high school friends who did it. There was her
high school boyfriend who spent a year on a kibbutz in Israel. Another
friend spent a year on a sailboat.

Everything turned out fine. They ended up at good colleges with a
better sense of themselves and what they wanted to study in college.
One runs a hedge fund, and another has his own woodworking business.

Even Hepcat tried to take a year before going to college. He was all
set to live and work on board the Schooner Sophia in New Zealand.
Unfortunately, the boat needed repairs and it was going to be months
before Hepcat could come on board.

Sadly, Hepcat’s plans for an exciting adventure were foiled.
Instead, he went to a local community college in California and
eventually transferred to Bard College in Upstate New York

And the rest is history.

Taking a year off before college is a bold thing to do. It isn’t
easy to get off the conveyor belt of what all your friends are doing
and what your family is urging you to do.

You gotta go college! You don’t want to spend the rest of your life
sitting on a milk crate in front of the Korean market on Garfield, do
you?

But that didn’t stop Teen Spirit, who tends to dance to the beat of
his own drum anyway. Boom. Boom. Boom. Plus, he is applying to college
— he’s not that rebellious. It’s just that once he gets in he’s going
to defer admission.

A bunch of his friends are already doing it. One friend, who
graduated from Brooklyn Tech last year, is working full time In
Manhattan and sharing an apartment in Park Slope with a friend. Another
friend is in South America teaching English as a Second Language.

You can imagine that Hepcat and Smartmom are dying to know what Teen
Spirit is thinking about doing next year. But they’re trying to be
really casual about it. “Like, hey, what you got planned for next year,
buddy?” And then:

“AND HOW ARE YOU GOING TO PAY FOR IT?”

Understandably, they don’t get very far with that line of
questioning. Teen Spirit is a lot more receptive when they act really
uninterested and bored.

One time he told them that he’s thinking of living in a shack in Ireland.

Did you say something, Teen Spirit?

Another time he mentioned walking across America.

That’s nice, Teen Spirit. Very nice.

Actually, Smartmom loved that idea. She loved it so much that she
actually found out that you can Google maps for walking across America.
Plus, it would make a terrific college essay. But she didn’t tell him
that.

Last week, he told Smartmom that he might just get a retail job and
live with one of his best friends in an apartment somewhere in
Brooklyn.

Whatever.

The truth is, Smartmom wants Teen Spirit to do something really
exciting for his gap year. But she knows that if she comes on too
strong with a list of things to do he’ll just tune her out. He
especially hates it when she mistakes what she wants for what he wants.

So she’ll just have to stay mum about a European train trip, Outward
Bound, backpacking in the Czech Republic, apprenticing for a
documentary filmmaker, hanging out with songwriters in Nashville,
trekking in the Himalayas, building houses in New Orleans, teaching
English in …

It’s starting to sound like one of those ”100 Things To Do Before
You Die” lists. Hey, maybe Smartmom should take a gap year. It sounds
like a perfect antidote to turning 50 and a great way to infuse her
life with some excitement. Can’t she just defer her marriage and
motherhood for a year?

Tom Martinez, Witness: Dog’s Life

It’s a Dog’s Life: a regal little k-9 on his morning walk or, um, ride through the park.
Photo: Tom Martinez

Zuzu’s Petals: The Spirit Was in Us

A momentous day on Fifth Avenue: the first meeting of the Fifth Avenue Business Improvement District and Fonda, owner of Zuzu’s Petals, has to find a Mrs. Claus costume. You can see the pix on the Zuzu site.

It was the first official meeting of the Fifth Avenue Business Improvement District (BID).

Beloved Irene LoRe of Aunt Suzie’s had agreed to be the chairman of the board. The Autumn sun was streaming through the windows of the Old Stone House.

We were eating bagels. Bear was with me, under the table, eating his favorite: sesame seed,no shmear.

The spirit was in us all; it had taken years of hard work to get to this point; this group never gave up despite frustration and lack of support deserved to feel proud.

We were planning a kick off event for the holidays; tossing around ideas about a tree lighting, Menorah lighting, staying open late nights.

Irene asked if anyone would volunteer to be Santa and Mrs. Claus.

My hand shot up.

There you have it.
Now all i need is my Mrs. Santa suit.
So, I went online to check out the possibilities.

I must say, i wasn’t prepared for how frumpy Mrs. Santa is. I don’t know what i could have been thinking …

After all,what sort of woman would be married to Santa Claus?