All posts by louise crawford

Postcard from the Slope

POSTCARD FROM THE SLOPE_The Last Time

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Guest Blog by Caroline Ghertler
My great aunt died less than a week ago. Losing her has been tougher than I expected. There’s an old song that goes: "When landmarks fall and institutions tumble, Will it be just a memory from the past?"

And that’s just how I feel. Losing my aunt, the consummate New Yorker, was like losing a piece of my world.

We weren’t very close. In fact, the last time I saw her was at my wedding nearly five years ago. She was very weak but she came to the ceremony anyway and I appreciated her for that. My father lived with my aunt when he was a child. It was just after his parent’s divorce. My aunt lived on the top floor of an Upper East Side apartment building, where she had a sumptuous view of the Guggenheim Museum and the resevoir in Central Park from her windowed breakfast room.

In the mornings, my father would be driven to school by my aunt’s chauffeur. He was so embarassed by that limo, he’d ask the driver to drop him two blocks from his public school. She was like a mother to him during those years, and throughout his life. And he loved her a great deal. Even if he was embarassed by her fancy limo.
She loved fine things and her apartment was not only full of art but a work of art, as well.

At her funeral her grandson eulogized her, wearing crazy blue-tinted granny glasses. He imagined that if his grandmother were there she’d probably say, "Why are you wearing those ridiculous glasses." In her honor, he removed them.

A friend spoke lovingly of my aunt’s good taste, fine manners, savoir faire and sense of humor. Just days before her death she asked him if he was a Yankees fan. When he told her that he was a Mets fan she said, "It’s going to be a long year."
I’m sorry that she won’t get to see the Yankees play the Red Sox and become world champions again.

After the funeral, we went back to my aunt’s apartment. It was strange to be there without her. I kept thinking she’d join us looking the way she looked twenty years ago. She’d walk around the antique-filled dining room checking to make sure that the platters were full of smoked salmon and caviar spread.

And she’d probably tell her grandson to take off his ridiculous blue sunglasses.

It was hard to walk away from that 15th floor palace. "This is the last time we’ll ever be in one of the great New York apartments," I said to my sister as we got on the elevator. "This is the last time we’ll ever know someplace like this."

Caroline Ghertler is Louise G. Crawford’s twin sister. She lives in Park Slope.

Postcard from the Slope

POSTCARD FROM THE SLOPE_Gone Fishing

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3585816_stdI’m going away for a few days. My husband will be holding down the OTBKB fort. I’ve prepared a special weekend version of Scoop Du Jour – to keep you all on top of what’s going on in Brooklyn this weekend (wouldn’t want you to miss a thing).

So it should, more or less, be OTBKB business as usual.

While I’m gone, there will be a couple of guest writers for Postcard from the Slope. It’ll be fun to see what they have to say.

Where am I going you might ask. I will be in the Berkshires attending a workshop. It’s supposed to be a beautiful spring weekend and I should have some free time  for rest, meditation, reading, deep breathing, hiking and whatever else I feel like doing.

I am looking forward to tomorrow’s three and half hour bus ride. I love the limbo – being between two points, feeling the anticpation of going someplace new. I am, of course, nervous about being away from the family. But I think everyone’s going to be okay. My sister, brother-in-law and mother are pitching in as it’s a busy weekend for the husband: Saturday he’ll be at Fou Le Chakra taking portraits of whoever happens to stroll in wanting a shot of themselves and/or their friends and family.

Curious? Saturday April 16th from 12:00 on he’ll be there with camera, gray backdrop and his unerring eyes. Fou Le Chakra. 411 Seventh Avenue between 13th and 14th Street.

I’ll be somewhere else that day. Far, far away from Seventh Avenue.

-Louise G. Crawford

Scoop Du Jour_Weather. News. Events.

SCOOP DU JOUR_Weather. News. Stuff to Do.

Secrets_2

BROOKLYN WEATHER: What’s it gonna do today?  Check here for Brooklyn weather.

CITY NEWS: A 20-year-old Brooklyn woman was killed on Ocean Parkway in a multi-vehicle accident on Ocean Avenue and Avenue N. Five others were injured and hospitalized but they are in stable condition.

_New York City gets $43 million for transit security from Homeland Security.

_New York Assembly democrats close off Death Penalty for 2005.

_Cyclists gathered near the Manhattan Bridge to honor Noah Budnick of Transportations Alternatives who was seriously
injured on March 28th when he was investigating safety issues on the
bridge and he had to swerve out of the way of a gigantic pot hole.
Although he was wearing a helmet, he sustained serious head injuries.
Bikers gathered to demand safer biking conditions.

_April 15 is not only tax day. It’s also the 90th anniversary of
Billie Holiday’s birthday and WKCR 89.9 FM is playing her music for 15
days straight or 360 hours from April 1 until April 15. Check out the web broadcast.

_NYC to recognize same sex unions performed in other states. This
means that same sex couples could get married in Toronto and be
recognized as married in New York City, even though same sex marriage
is not allowed here.

BROOKLYN BEAT:  The 1955 World Series banner captured by the Brooklyn Dodgers was unveiled after a $16,000 restoration at the St. John the Divine Textile Lab. It will be the centerpiece at an exhibit at the Brooklyn Historical Society about Brooklyn baseball.

_A 12-year old girl was injured in a triple shooting on Ralph Avenue in Crown Heights.

_Intensified security measures were taken at a Brooklyn Federal courthouse in response to letters that said there were plans to harm all the judges in the building.

_Service is suspended indefinitely on the L-train, the train goes across 14th Street to Williambsurg, Greenpoint and East New York.

_Hoyt Street Garden at Atantic Avenue and Hoyt has been the labor of love of Margaret Cusack and other local gardeners for thirty years. The owners of the lot, a small Hispanic church that is part of the Presbytery of New York, would like to build a high rise condo on their property and the gardeners are fighting it. Cusack, the master gardener, distributed flyers informing the neighborhood of what the church wanted to do and found that she had the heartfelt support of those who have enjoyed the garden for years. For more of this interesting story: go to the New York Times.

_One-time Park Slope
resident, Andrea Dworkin, the feminist writer and anti-pornography advocate,  died on Saturday at her home in Washington. She was 58. Her husband, John Stoltenberg, said that Ms.
Dworkin had suffered from several chronic illnesses in recent years. A
familiar sight on Seventh Avenue in denim overalls, Ms. Dworkin was for
decades active on the lecture circuit, at antipornography rallies and
"take back the night" marches.

_April 11-20th is Brooklyn Restaurant Week, designed to showcase the
diverse eating options in this fair borough. Participating restaurants
are offering a 19.99 prix fix for a 3-course meal.  A good chance to
try places you’ve been meaning to try.

_State legislators propose bill to provide affordable housing on Williamsburg, Greenpoint waterfront.

_The non-profit Fifth Avenue Committee, which has campaigned against
landlords trying to evict low income renters, can’t afford space on
Fifth Avenue anymore. They are moving to the other side of Fourth
Avenue and Degraw Street. Victims of the street’s gentrification, they
will still be advocates for affordable housing in Park Slope.

_Brooklyn community groups are protesting a proposed high-rise condo
that would block the view of the Statue of Liberty and the NYC skyline
from historic Battle Hill in Green-Wood Cemetery.

_Judith Zuk, 53, the president of the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens is
retiring at the end of June. There’s a profile of her in today’s New York Daily News.
During her 15 tenure she oversaw the renovation of the Japanese Tea
House, Lily Pond Terrace, the Rock Garden, the Fragrance Garden, the
Francis Milner Children’s Garden and the Rose Arc Pool, and opened the
Discovery Garden.

_Brooklyn Assemblyman William Colton introduced  a bill called
"Terri’s Law," that would make it illegal in New York to remove a
feeding tube. Read all about in at New York 1.

Thursday morning, a man climbed up a fire escape to the window of a 9-year old girl’s bedroom, with the intent of kidnapping her
robbing the apartment. The girl said, "Who are you?" and the man said
"Nobody," and ran away.  He has not been found. Helicopters flew over
Third Street and news and police vehicles were in the vicinity of the
apartment building just up from 6th Avenue on Third Street all day.
According to the New York Daily News,which has an article about the attempted robbery in today’s edition, burglaries
have become increasingly rare in Park Slope, where the number of
break-ins has dropped by 17% this year compared with the same period in
2004. Burglaries are also down 17% citywide, police statistics show.

_There have been a number of muggings between President and Ninth
Street in Park Slope. The victims are women who are talking on their
cell phones. The suspect surprises them from behind, puts his hand over
their mouth and asks for money. According to the police, he hasn’t hurt
anyone; he just takes the cash and runs. The most recent incident was
on Tuesday at 4 p.m. on President Street on or near 8th Avenue.  If you
have any information, please call the 78th Precint Pct.,  re: Pattern
29. 718-636-6484.

IT’S THURSDAY: "Step up to the plate"
and experience the diverse menus of  Brooklyn’s world-class restaurants
April 11-20, 2005. $19.55 prix fixe, in the spirit of the world
champion Brooklyn Dodgers. "Three courses, no attitude on the side."  Click here to see the list of participating restaurants

_Brooklyn author, Alfred Gingold reads "Dog World and the People Who Live There" at the Old Stone House in JJ Byrne Park. Fifth Avenue between 3rd and 4th Streets. April 14. 7:30 p.m.

_Eat, Drink, and Be Literary. Jhumpa Lahri reads and discusses her work at BAM. Prix fixe dinner and a celebrated Brooklyn author. At BAM. 6:30. 30 Lafayette Avenue. $38. for everything.

_For more stuff to do scroll down to Grab-Bag_Brooklyn and Beyond. Or go to g0-brooklyn.com

THIS SOUNDS COOL:  UniverSoul Circus is in town. You can smell the elephants from the park’s roadway. Performance schedules,

_Too Cool for Shul: Festival of Contemporary Jewish Music. Various artists at The BAMCafe.3 Weekends in April.

_April 20-24 the Brooklyn Underground Film Festival is coming
to the Brooklyn Lyceum. A rare screening of Indianna Jones: The
Adaptation is on April 23rd. You’ve probably heard about  the kids who
made the shot-for-shot copy of Raiders back in the ’80s. Well, this is
it. And it’s a rare screening. at 9:15 p.m. 227 Fourth Avenue at Union
Street.

_Brooklyn Reading Works. Curated by Louise G. Crawford.  APRIL 28 at 8 p.m. Pamela Katz reads: And Speaking of Love (Aufbau-Verlag) "a compelling and beautifully rendered novel about the astonishing life of Lotte Lenya," and poet Michelle Madigan Somerville reads from Wisegal
(Ten Pell Books) and newer work: "A multilingual hardrock
reverie…going upside your head to whisper whipsmart secrets about
cracked-out big-city survival.

Postcard from the Slope

POSTCARD FROM THE SLOPE_A Final Tea at the Plaza

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2cbw4938_stdLast Saturday my sister, my daughter, and I attended a tea at the Plaza.  We were invited to join my sister’s friend and thirty of her closest friends, a power lunch for creative interesting women of all ages. Even her gynecologist was there giving out cards. And when she ran out, she wrote her name down on small scraps of paper.

I was very pleased to be included as I was dying for one last trip to the Plaza before it closes. I’d never met my sister’s friend before, a tall, attractive television art director, with a warm personality and a penchant for bringing people together. She looked absolutely Plaza-ish in a vintage cloche hat with a tall feather and her grandmother’s old-fashioned gloves. She welcomed everyone personally and gave each of us Plaza candy bars, postcards, and unlimited amounts of champagne.

I sat at a table  with an assortment of well-traveled, accomplished women. One, a filmmaker of Persian descent, is on her way to Baghdad next month for the second time as part of a humanitarian group made up of Quakers and Mennonite Christians; she’s making a film about  her experiences there.

My daughter is a great afficianado of the Eloise books so a trip to the Plaza to see the portrait of Eloise is always a treat. She is aware that the Plaza is closing and has decided that Eloise is moving to Paris, along with Skipperdee and Weannie, to be with her mother. She is, however, concerned about where Nanny and Mr. Salamone will relocate. In an Eloise sort of way, my daughter spent much of the tea collecting white plastic Plaza Hotel tea sandwich tooth picks (see photograph, above left).

When we arrived at  the hotel,  I asked one of the doormen if he’d seen Eloise. "I think she’s around here somewhere," he said cheerfully. He then turned to another doorman and asked, "Have you seen Eloise?"

His willingness to go along with the game was very endearing. We then asked a managerial looking person if he knew where to find the hotel manager, Mr. Salomone. He looked at us like we were crazy and said he didn’t know anyone by that name.

-Louise G. Crawford

Postcard from the Slope

POSTCARD FROM THE SLOPE_Young Choreographers

Ds013339_stdLast Tuesday and Wednesday, all the 2nd graders at PS 321 performed in a Dance Informance, an informal presentation of what the kids have been learning in Karen Curlee’s fabulous dance classes.

At my daughter’s Informance, Curlee explained what the kids had been up to. In coordination with the children’s study of cities – in social studies and art – the children choreographed their own "Cityscape" dances. Each child created two kinds of movement: axil and locomotion and used these movements again and again to create an exuberant and improvisatory piece.

The music was an infectious, highly rhythmic track that made you want to get up and dance. Parents with video cameras were standing in the aisles while those seated clapped along and BEAMED.

CUT TO: One week later…

Today, the 3rd and 5th graders at all New York City public elementary schools are taking a crucial standardized test, which can determine academic promotion. This is all part of Mayor Bloomberg’s big revamping of the  New York Public Schools. Until the next election, these kids are caught in this administrations sometimes mis-guided attempt to "improve" a troubled system.

I can’t help thinking that what went on last Tuesday during the Informance was so much more wholesome and REVEALING about the nature of our kids than what they are being forced to do today: becoming statistical specimens in the Department of Education’s effort to categorize and stigmatize children.

Curlee is, in my opinion, a real hero of the New York City public school system.  As a dance staff developer, she trains academic teachers how to use dance to teach core curriculum. She works in approximately 25-30 schools a year, offering training that can last anywhere from a few hours to a few days, depending on the school

Scoop Du Jour_Weather. News. Events.

SCOOP DU JOUR_Weather. News. Stuff to Do.

Secrets_2

BROOKLYN WEATHER: What’s it gonna do today?  Check here for Brooklyn weather.

CITY NEWS: The city’s Third and Fifth graders taking a crucial standardized test in English that determines academic promotion.

_Cyclists gathered near the Manhattan Bridge to honor one of their own. Noah Burdnick of Transportations Alternatives was seriously injured on March 28th when he was investigating safety issues on the bride and he had to swerve out of the way of a gigantic pot hole. Although he was wearing a helmet, he sustained serious head injuries. Bikers gathered to demad safer biking conditions.

_April 15 is not only tax day. It’s also the 90th anniversary of Billie Holiday’s birthday and WKCR 89.9 FM is playing her music for 15 days straight or 360 hours from April 1 until April 15. Check out the web broadcast.

_NYC to recognize same sex unions performed in other states. This means that same sex couples could get married in Toronto and be recognized as married in New York City, even though same sex marriage is not allowed here.

BROOKLYN BEAT:  One-time Park Slope resident, Andrea Dworkin, the feminist writer and anti-pornography campaigner, died on Saturday at her home in Washington. She was 58. Ms. Dworkin died in her sleep. Her husband, John Stoltenberg, said that Ms. Dworkin had suffered from several chronic illnesses in recent years. A familiar sight on Seventh Avenue in denim overalls, Ms. Dworkin was for decades active on the lecture circuit, at antipornography rallies and "take back the night" marches.

_April 11-20th is Brooklyn Restaurant Week, designed to showcase the diverse eating options in this fair borough. Participating restaurants are offering a 19.99 prix fix for a 3-course meal.  A good chance to try places you’ve been meaning to try.

_State legislators propose bill to provide affordable housing on Williamsburg, Greenpoint waterfront.

_The non-profit Fifth Avenue Committee, which has campaigned against landlords trying to evict low income renters, can’t afford space on Fifth Avenue anymore. They are moving to the other side of Fourth Avenue and Degraw Street. Victims of the street’s gentrification, they will still be advocates for affordable housing in Park Slope.

_Brooklyn community groups are protesting a proposed high-rise condo that would block the view of the Statue of Liberty and the NYC skyline from historic Battle Hill in Green-Wood Cemetery.

_Judith Zuk, 53, the president of the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens is retiring at the end of June. There’s a profile of her in today’s New York Daily News. During her 15 tenure she oversaw the renovation of the Japanese Tea House, Lily Pond Terrace, the Rock Garden, the Fragrance Garden, the Francis Milner Children’s Garden and the Rose Arc Pool, and opened the Discovery Garden.

_Brooklyn Assemblyman William Colton introduced  a bill called "Terri’s Law," that would make it illegal in New York to remove a feeding tube. Read all about in at New York 1.

Thursday morning, a man climbed up a fire escape to the window of a 9-year old girl’s bedroom, with the intent of kidnapping her robbing the apartment. The girl said, "Who are you?" and the man said "Nobody," and ran away.  He has not been found. Helicopters flew over Third Street and news and police vehicles were in the vicinity of the apartment building just up from 6th Avenue on Third Street all day. According to the New York Daily News,which has an article about the attempted robbery in today’s edition, burglaries have become increasingly rare in Park Slope, where the number of break-ins has dropped by 17% this year compared with the same period in 2004. Burglaries are also down 17% citywide, police statistics show.

_There have been a number of muggings between President and Ninth Street in Park Slope. The victims are women who are talking on their cell phones. The suspect surprises them from behind, puts his hand over their mouth and asks for money. According to the police, he hasn’t hurt anyone; he just takes the cash and runs. The most recent incident was on Tuesday at 4 p.m. on President Street on or near 8th Avenue.  If you have any information, please call the 78th Precint Pct.,  re: Pattern 29. 718-636-6484.

IT’S TUESDAY: "Step up to the plate" and experience the diverse menus of  Brooklyn’s world-class restaurants April 11-20, 2005. $19.55 prix fixe, in the spirit of the world champion Brooklyn Dodgers. "Three courses, no attitude on the side."  Click here to see the list of participating restaurants

_Container gardening workshop at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. 6:30 – 8 p.m. Call the Garden to register.

"Brooklyn Jewish Film Festival at BAM. 30 Lafayette Street.

THIS SOUNDS COOL:  UniverSoul Circus is in town. You can smell the elephants from the park’s roadway. Performance schedules,

_Too Cool for Shul: Festival of Contemporary Jewish Music. Various artists at The BAMCafe.3 Weekends in April.

_April 20-24 the Brooklyn Underground Film Festival is coming to the Brooklyn Lyceum. A rare screening of Indianna Jones: The Adaptation is on April 23rd. You’ve probably heard about  the kids who made the shot-for-shot copy of Raiders back in the ’80s. Well, this is it. And it’s a rare screening. at 9:15 p.m. 227 Fourth Avenue at Union Street.

_Brooklyn Reading Works. Curated by Louise G. Crawford.  APRIL 28 at 8 p.m. Pamela Katz reads: And Speaking of Love (Aufbau-Verlag) "a compelling and beautifully rendered novel about the astonishing life of Lotte Lenya," and poet Michelle Madigan Somerville reads from Wisegal (Ten Pell Books) and newer work: "A multilingual hardrock reverie…going upside your head to whisper whipsmart secrets about cracked-out big-city survival.

Postcard from the Slope

POSTCARD FROM THE SLOPE_Non-stop Billie Holiday

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2cbw4887There is something so reassuring about being able to turn on the radio at any time of the day or night to hear Billie Holiday sing.

And that’s what’s happening at WKCR . They are playing Billie Holiday for fifteen days straight. 360 hours of anything is probably too much. But if you like total immersion, tune in to 80.9 or the web broadcast and give it a go.  For me, her music holds up to the constant play.

The Billie Holiday marathon started on April 1 and it’s going to continue until April 15th, which would have been Billie Holiday’s 90th birthday. 

It gives you faith in humanity that something like this is going on.

Firstly, the fact that there is a radio station in the world crazy (wonderful) enough to come up with such a concept. And as a fund raising measure. You gotta love WKCR, Columbia University’s radio station, with Phil Schaapp at the helm of the Jazz Department.

WKCR has been responsible for independent programming for over 63 years. Since 1999, they’ve been sending out their signal worldwide over the internet. They’re famous for their Louis Armstorng, Charlie Parker (Bird) and other jazz greats’ marathons. But this may be their longest one yet.

Currently, WKCR is in a period of financial crisis. And they need the financial support of their listeners to  ensure that they can keep on going.

Radio in New York is, generally speaking, a sad state of affairs. Other than New York Public Radio and WFMU, what’s a gal to listen to in this city?  WKCR is an oasis in a desert of lousy, commercial radio.

Billie Holiday, is, in my opinion, one of the greatest artists of the 20th century. The way she transformed the popular songs of her day into masterpieces of phrasing, nuance, meaning, and deep emotion is remarkable. When I was in college, I nearly wore out my copy of "The Golden Years  Volume Two."  "All of Me" I’ll Cover the Waterfront," "No Regrets," "I’m Pulling Through," Them There Eyes," and all the other songs on that three record set were the soundtrack of my life back then.

So it’s really not that strange to listen to Billie Holiday for 15 days straight. For me it’s like being twenty-years-old again when the lilt of Billie’s voice was all that I needed to get out of bed in the morning.

-Louise G. Crawford

Scoop Du Jour_Weather. News. Events.

SCOOP DU JOUR_Weather. News. Stuff to Do.

Secrets_2

BROOKLYN WEATHER: What’s it gonna do today?  Check here for Brooklyn weather.

CITY NEWS: April 15 is not only tax
day. It’s also the 90th anniversary of Billie Holiday’s birthday and
WKCR 89.9 FM is playing her music for 15 days straight or 360 hours from April 1 until April 15. Check out the web broadcast.

_NYC to recognize same sex unions performed in other states. This
means that same sex couples could get married in Toronto and be
recognized as married in New York City, even though same sex marriage
is not allowed here.

BROOKLYN BEAT: State legislators propose bill to provide affordable housing on Williamsburg, Greenpoint waterfront.

_The non-profit Fifth Avenue Committee, which has campaigned against
landlords trying to evict low income renters, can’t afford space on
Fifth Avenue anymore. They are moving to the other side of Fourth
Avenue and Degraw Street. Victims of the street’s gentrification, they
will still be advocates for affordable housing in Park Slope.

_Brooklyn community groups are protesting a proposed high-rise condo
that would block the view of the Statue of Liberty and the NYC skyline
from historic Battle Hill in Green-Wood Cemetery.

_Judith Zuk, 53, the president of the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens is
retiring at the end of June. There’s a profile of her in today’s New York Daily News.
During her 15 tenure she oversaw the renovation of the Japanese Tea
House, Lily Pond Terrace, the Rock Garden, the Fragrance Garden, the
Francis Milner Children’s Garden and the Rose Arc Pool, and opened the
Discovery Garden.

_Brooklyn Assemblyman
William Colton introduced  a bill called "Terri’s Law," that would make
it illegal in New York to remove a feeding tube. Read all about in at New York 1.

Thursday morning, a man climbed up a fire escape to the window of a 9-year old girl’s
bedroom, with the intent of kidnapping her
robbing the apartment. The girl said, "Who are you?" and the man said
"Nobody," and ran away.  He has not been found. Helicopters flew over
Third Street and news
and police vehicles were in the vicinity of the apartment building just
up from 6th Avenue on Third Street all day. According to the New York Daily News,which has an article about the attempted robbery in today’s edition, burglaries have become increasingly rare in Park Slope, where the
number of break-ins has dropped by 17% this year compared with the same
period in 2004. Burglaries are also down 17% citywide, police
statistics show.

_There have been a number of muggings between President and Ninth
Street
in Park Slope. The victims are women who are talking on their cell
phones. The suspect surprises them from behind, puts his hand over
their mouth and asks for money. According to the police, he hasn’t hurt
anyone; he just takes the cash and runs. The most recent incident was
on Tuesday at 4
p.m. on President Street on or near 8th Avenue.  If you have any
information, please call the 78th Precint Pct.,  re: Pattern 29.
718-636-6484.

IT’S MONDAY: "Step up to the plate" and experience the diverse menus
of  Brooklyn’s world-class restaurants April 11-20, 2005. $19.55 prix fixe, in
the spirit of the world champion Brooklyn Dodgers. "Three courses, no
attitude on the side."  Click here to see the list of participating restaurants

"Brooklyn Jewish Film Festival at BAM. 30 Lafayette Street.

THIS SOUNDS COOL:  

_Too Cool for Shul: Festival of Contemporary Jewish Music. Various artists at The BAMCafe.3 Weekends in April.

_April 20-24 the Brooklyn Underground Film Festival is coming
to the Brooklyn Lyceum. A rare screening of Indianna Jones: The
Adaptation is on April 23rd. You’ve probably heard about  the kids who
made the shot-for-shot copy of Raiders back in the ’80s. Well, this is
it. And it’s a rare screening. at 9:15 p.m. 227 Fourth Avenue at Union
Street.

_Brooklyn Reading Works. Curated by Louise G. Crawford.  APRIL 28 at 8 p.m. Pamela Katz reads: And Speaking of Love (Aufbau-Verlag) "a compelling and beautifully rendered novel about the astonishing life of Lotte Lenya," and poet Michelle Madigan Somerville reads from Wisegal
(Ten Pell Books) and newer work: "A multilingual hardrock
reverie…going upside your head to whisper whipsmart secrets about
cracked-out big-city survival.

Postcard from the Slope

Postcard from the Slope_Sleeping Teens

1 Comment

2646448_std There are three teenage boys sleeping in my living room as I write this. God knows what time they actually fell asleep. One is sleeping on the couch, one is in a sleeping bag on the floor, and my son is squeezed into the red club chair, his legs hanging over the side, covered in his favorite blue comforter.

They are snoring, drooling, generally lost in sleep.

I went to bed around 11 p.m. and they were, of course, awake. I woke up a few hours later, maybe 1:30 a.m., and they were still up. I said something like, "You guys should really think about going to sleep. You must be tired." One of them, a tall redhead said, "We’re teenagers, we never get tired."  The redhead was listening to thrash metal music  on an iBook, the other boy was noodling on an unplugged electric guitar, and my son was reading a Japanese pulp classic called, "Battle Royale," which, he explained, is about a class of junior high school students who are taken to a deserted island,  provided with arms and forced to kill one another.

The guys were together all day. They’re in a band called "Cruell and Unusual  Punishment" and they were recording some songs over at one of their apartments. They were particularly excited about a self-penned, acapella cut called: "Onomatopoeia."

I always know my son wants to ask me a favor when he says, "Hi Mom," in a really cute English accent. When he called at 10 p.m. last night asking if his two friends could sleep over in the living room (because my son’s bedroom is too small for sleepovers), I couldn’t say no. I probably should’ve because it looks like they’re going to be sleeping in the living room for most of the morning. But that’s okay.

They look so cute when they’re sleeping.

-Louise G. Crawford

Scoop Du Jour_Weather. News. Events.

SCOOP DU JOUR_Weather. News. Stuff to Do.

Secrets_2

BROOKLYN WEATHER: What’s it gonna do today?  Check here for Brooklyn weather.

OTBKB SCOOP: At 2 a.m.
Thursday morning, a man climbed up a fire escape to the window of a 9-year old girl’s
bedroom, with the intent of kidnapping her
robbing the apartment. The girl said, "Who are you?" and the man said
"Nobody," and ran away.  He has not been found. Helicopters flew over
Third Street and news
and police vehicles were in the vicinity of the apartment building just
up from 6th Avenue on Third Street all day. According to the New York Daily News,which has an article about the attempted robbery in today’s edition, burglaries have become increasingly rare in Park Slope, where the
number of break-ins has dropped by 17% this year compared with the same
period in 2004. Burglaries are also down 17% citywide, police
statistics show.

CITY NEWS: April 15 is not only tax
day. It’s also the 90th anniversary of Billie Holiday’s birthday and
WKCR 89.9 FM is playing her music for 15 days straight or 360 hours.

_NYC to recognize same sex unions performed in other states. This
means that same sex couples could get married in Toronto and be
recognized as married in New York City, even though same sex marriage
is not allowed here.

_A, B, C and D train service is back to normal after a subway tunnel fire Thursday afternoon.

_The MTA has decided NOT to
close subway booths. According to New York 1, the 169 booths  set to be
closed will remain open but the attendants will still be out in the
station acting as customer service representatives. Subway booths will
remain accessible to the clerks so that they can use the phone to call
police or fix metro card problems.

_The federal government issued report saying that the city’s bridges are structurally inadequate or obsolete.

_Children age seven and younger must be buckled into a car seat in New York State. This is up from age four.

BROOKLYN BEAT: State legislators propose bill to provide affordable housing on Williamsburg, Greenpoint waterfront.

_The non-profit Fifth Avenue Committee, which has campaigned against landlords trying to evict low income renters, can’t afford space on Fifth Avenue anymore. They are moving to the other side of Fourth Avenue and Degraw Street. Victims of the street’s gentrification, they will still be advocates for affordable housing in Park Slope.

_In Greenpoint Brooklyn, home of  the city’s largest Polish community,
mourners gathered at a park near the St. Stanislaus Church on Driggs
Avenue to watch the funeral of the Pope. St. Stanislaus Church on
Driggs Avenue, on a large screen television.

_Brooklyn community groups are protesting a proposed high-rise condo
that would block the view of the Statue of Liberty and the NYC skyline
from historic Battle Hill in Green-Wood Cemetery.

_Judith Zuk, 53, the president of the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens is
retiring at the end of June. There’s a profile of her in today’s New York Daily News.
During her 15 tenure she oversaw the renovation of the Japanese Tea
House, Lily Pond Terrace, the Rock Garden, the Fragrance Garden, the
Francis Milner Children’s Garden and the Rose Arc Pool, and opened the
Discovery Garden.

_Brooklyn Assemblyman
William Colton introduced  a bill called "Terri’s Law," that would make
it illegal in New York to remove a feeding tube. Read all about in at New York 1.

_There have been a number of muggings between President and Ninth
Street
in Park Slope. The victims are women who are talking on their cell
phones. The suspect surprises them from behind, puts his hand over
their mouth and asks for money. According to the police, he hasn’t hurt
anyone; he just takes the cash and runs. The most recent incident was
on Tuesday at 4
p.m. on President Street on or near 8th Avenue.  If you have any
information, please call the 78th Precint Pct.,  re: Pattern 29.
718-636-6484.

IT’S SUNDAY:  Residents of South South Park Slope near Green-wood Cemetery are taking
action against developers that are rapidly transforming their
neighborhood into condoville. On Sunday April 9th,
10th at 1 p.m. there’s a march to save the character and history of
this neighborhood.  March in
support of what the organizers are calling "contextual development in
the South Sourth Slope and display a "Not for Sale" sign. The march is
assembling at 15th St. & 7th Ave. at 1 p.m. and people will march
to the memorial in the cemetery to protest the proliferation of large
multi-story apartment buildings and to promote responsible housing and
construction. If people want more info go to the South South Slope Web site

_Around the World in 80 Days at Puppetworks. Weekends at 12:30 and 2:30 p.m.
338 Sixth Avenue at 4th Street.

_The first Park Slope Kids Music Festival. This Sunday at Southpaw:
Wendy Gesanliter, John Carlin and Uncle Rock. Refreshments available.
4/10 at 11 a.m. 125 Fifth Avenue. $12 for kids, $6 for kids 2 and up.
Under that: free. concertforkids.com

_Frank London, trumpeter for the Klezmatics, leads kids at the Eldridge Street Synogogue
through a lesson on traditional Jewish melodies. Plus a tour of the
1887 synogogue and egg creams. 4/10 at 11 a.m. Reservations required.
12 Eldridge Street, near Canal Street. 212-219-0888 or
eldridgestreet.org. Admission is $8.

"Brooklyn Jewish Film Festival at BAM. 30 Lafayette Street.

_The National Ballet of Canada at BAM. "The Contract" a work
loosely based on the Pied Piper of Hamlin. 7:30

_Too Cool for Shul: Festival of Contemporary Jewish Music. Various artists at The BAMCafe.3 Weekends in April.

THIS SOUNDS COOL: "Step up to the plate" and experience the diverse menus
of  Brooklyn’s world-class restaurants April 11-20, 2005. $19.55 prix fixe, in
the spirit of the world champion Brooklyn Dodgers. "Three courses, no
attitude on the side."  Click here to see the list of participating restaurants

_April 20-24 the Brooklyn Underground Film Festival is coming
to the Brooklyn Lyceum. A rare screening of Indianna Jones: The
Adaptation is on April 23rd. You’ve probably heard about  the kids who
made the shot-for-shot copy of Raiders back in the ’80s. Well, this is
it. And it’s a rare screening. at 9:15 p.m. 227 Fourth Avenue at Union
Street.

_Brooklyn Reading Works. Curated by Louise G. Crawford.  APRIL 28 at 8 p.m. Pamela Katz reads: And Speaking of Love (Aufbau-Verlag) "a compelling and beautifully rendered novel about the astonishing life of Lotte Lenya," and poet Michelle Madigan Somerville reads from Wisegal
(Ten Pell Books) and newer work: "A multilingual hardrock
reverie…going upside your head to whisper whipsmart secrets about
cracked-out big-city survival.

Postcard from the Slope

POSTCARD FROM THE SLOPE_Dried Flowers

1 Comment

2272720_stdThere’s a woman on my block who lost her husband last September. A small, stocky woman, she waddles a bit as she walks up Third Street. And she  looks like the loneliest person in the world.

Her husband was much taller than she, handsome, with a full white beard. Barrel chested, he always looked so robust. I was surprised one day when I saw him coming out of a yellow cab looking so weak, she had to help him walk to their stoop. At first I thought the man might be his father. He looked exactly like her husband just much, much older.

I mentioned this to my husband and he said he knew something was wrong. He’d seen him talking to someone about selling the BMW motorcycle he kept in the front cement yard of their building. "That bike meant the world to him. I thought it was strange that he was selling it," my husband said.

We learned that he had cancer soon after from neighbors on the block. One day I saw two of his sons sitting on the bench in their yard and somehow I knew.

I never knew him at all. I only observed his comings and goings on Third Street. But I liked him: the way he looked, the way he talked to his adult children, his friendly, deep-voiced hellos, the closeness he emanated with his wife. I guessed, in that way you conjecture about neighbors,  that they were longtime Park Slopers, progressives, political-types. Through their front window, there was evidence of a former hippie life – Indian fabric, abstract paintings, stained glass. To me it brought to mind: civil rights, New York in the 1970’s, "We Shall Overcome." 

Infused with grief, his wife looks lost, aimless, sad all the time now. She still smiles at me as she walks up Third Street. But we’ve never been in the habit to stop and talk. Besides I don’t know what I’d say. Clearly, she is trying to find her bearings in this life without her bearded man. The other day I noticed a vase of dried out roses in her window.
It made me sad just to see them there.

-Louise G. Crawford

Scoop Du Jour_Weather. News. Events.

SCOOP DU JOUR_Weather. News. Stuff to Do.

Secrets_2

BROOKLYN WEATHER: What’s it gonna do today?  Check here for Brooklyn weather.

OTBKB SCOOP: At 2 a.m.
Thursday morning, a man climbed up a fire escape to the window of a 9-year old girl’s
bedroom, with the intent of kidnapping her robbing the apartment. The girl said, "Who are you?" and the man said "Nobody," and ran away.  He has not been found. Helicopters flew over Third Street and news
and police vehicles were in the vicinity of the apartment building just
up from 6th Avenue on Third Street all day. According to the New York Daily News,which has an article about the attempted robbery in today’s edition, burglaries have become increasingly rare in Park Slope, where the
number of break-ins has dropped by 17% this year compared with the same
period in 2004. Burglaries are also down 17% citywide, police
statistics show.

CITY NEWS: April 15 is not only tax day. It’s also the 90th anniversary of Billie Holiday’s birthday and WKCR 89.9 FM is playing her music for 15 days straight or 360 hours.

_NYC to recognize same sex unions performed in other states. This means that same sex couples could get married in Toronto and be recognized as married in New York City, even though same sex marriage is not allowed here.

_A, B, C and D train service is back to normal after a subway tunnel fire Thursday afternoon.

_The MTA has decided NOT to
close subway booths. According to New York 1, the 169 booths  set to be
closed will remain open but the attendants will still be out in the
station acting as customer service representatives. Subway booths will
remain accessible to the clerks so that they can use the phone to call
police or fix metro card problems.

_The federal government issued report saying that the city’s bridges are structurally inadequate or obsolete.

_Children age seven and younger must be buckled into a car seat in New York State. This is up from age four.

BROOKLYN BEAT: State legislators propose bill to provide affordable housing on Brooklyn waterfront.

_In Greenpoint Brooklyn, home of  the city’s largest Polish community,
mourners gathered at a park near the St. Stanislaus Church on Driggs
Avenue to watch the funeral of the Pope. St. Stanislaus Church on
Driggs Avenue, on a large screen television.

_Brooklyn community groups are protesting a proposed high-rise condo that would block the view of the Statue of Liberty and the NYC skyline from historic Battle Hill in Green-Wood Cemetery.

_Judith Zuk, 53, the president of the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens is retiring at the end of June. There’s a profile of her in today’s New York Daily News. During her 15 tenure she oversaw the renovation of the Japanese Tea House, Lily Pond Terrace, the Rock Garden, the Fragrance Garden, the Francis Milner Children’s Garden and the Rose Arc Pool, and opened the Discovery Garden.

_There was a fatal accident on the Belt Parkway at 4 a.m. Thursday morning.

_Brooklyn Assemblyman
William Colton introduced  a bill called "Terri’s Law," that would make
it illegal in New York to remove a feeding tube. Read all about in at New York 1.

_Senator Charles Schumer is asking the government to reopen the
investigation into the Rockaway crash of American Airlines Flight 587 Read all about at New York 1.

_Packages of pound cake sold at the T&H Supermarket on 86th
Street in Brooklyn were recalled because a milk ingredient was not
listed on the package. It could lead to a serious or fatal reaction in
someone allergic to milk. Read all about in at New York 1.

_Last Monday night the City Council held
its first public meeting on the city’s Greenpoint-Williamsburg
waterfront rezoning plan. Much of the crowd, which didn’t fit in the
room, held its own rally outside on the steps of City Hall, and the
majority of the people there wanted the plan thrown out.

Postcard from the Slope

POSTCARD FROM THE SLOPE_Such a Balabusta

3545485_stdIt never ceases to amaze me how very connective the Internet
is. I have "met" so many people through this blog.

Just
today a woman from Chicago wrote to say that she’d like to use my "balabusta" poem as part of a wedding shower gift. She also wanted to
know if I had any other balabusta poems.

I am delighted that this woman, who is 67 years old and a former English teacher at the University of Wyoming and Iowa State University, wants to use my poem as part of an elaborate shower gift she is giving to a colleague’s daughter. I am also incredibly impressed that she asked in the first place. That seemed pretty classy to me.

And no, I don’t have any more balabusta poems.

Balabusta is a
Yiddish word that means terrific homemaker or super-efficient housewife.
There’s an exclamation in American Jewish that goes: "such a balabusta
you are." It’s something you would say after a wonderful and effortful
meal. Or when admiring an immaculate apartment. 

I also wondered how exactly this woman from Chicago found the poem in the first place – it appears
on the Internet in two places, but still. So I googled "Balabusta" but there
was no link to it there.

My husband, also known as Mr.
Knowledgeable, suggested I try "Balabusta Poetry" and lo and behold –
there it was, number 2 on the google roster, which directs surfers to
the Poetry Superhighway, where the poem was published in January 2005.

This Chicago woman and I have exchanged a flurry of e-mails. She sounds very nice. She even asked what kind of photography my husband does because "we are always looking for new talent for our publications," (she now does public affairs, communications and fundraising for an environmental organization ).

Ooooh, I thought, maybe something more will come of this connection. So I sent her a link to No Words_Daily Pix by Hugh Crawford because, as she said in her last post: "God works in mysterious ways."

Here is the poem that the woman from Chicago admired.

Yiddishe Mama

Such a balabusta
I am
bringing this tin of
homemade cookies

More fodder for
your extravagant elucidations
your theoretical be-bop

Chewing them slow
you savor the X-ray view
swallowing the id of me

Flavorful, rich
Freudian frosting
Purveyor of
phantasmic erogeny
and childhood suffering

I whipped up these
mnemonics of small
sweet longing
in my hot basement kitchen

For your plaisir
and your analysis, of course

Sugar on your lips
you lean forward
eyes shut tight
receptor of
psychoanalytic radio signals

and riff radiantly on my
unconscious confections

Take them for what they are

my cookies
are yours

-Louise G. Crawford

Scoop Du Jour_Weather. News. Events.

SCOOP DU JOUR_Weather. News. Stuff to Do.

Secrets_2

BROOKLYN WEATHER: What’s it gonna do today?  Check here for Brooklyn weather.

 OTBKB SCOOP: At 2 a.m.
Thursday morning, a man climbed up a fire escape to the window of a 9-year old girl’s
bedroom, with the intent of kidnapping her robbing the apartment. The girl said, "Who are you?" and the man said "Nobody," and ran away.  He has not been found. Helicopters flew over Third Street and news
and police vehicles were in the vicinity of the apartment building just
up from 6th Avenue on Third Street all day. According to the New York Daily News,which has an article about the attempted robbery in today’s edition, burglaries have become increasingly rare in Park Slope, where the
number of break-ins has dropped by 17% this year compared with the same
period in 2004. Burglaries are also down 17% citywide, police
statistics show.

CITY NEWS: NYC to recognize same sex unions performed in other states. This means that same sex couples could get married in Toronto and be recognized as married in New York City, even though same sex marriage is not allowed here.

_A, B, C and D train service is back to normal after a subway tunnel fire Thursday afternoon.

_The MTA has decided NOT to
close subway booths. According to New York 1, the 169 booths  set to be
closed will remain open but the attendants will still be out in the
station acting as customer service representatives. Subway booths will
remain accessible to the clerks so that they can use the phone to call
police or fix metro card problems.

_The federal government issued report saying that the city’s bridges are structurally inadequate or obsolete.

_Children age seven and younger must be buckled into a car seat in New York State. This is up from age four.

BROOKLYN BEAT: In Greenpoint Brooklyn, home of  the city’s largest Polish community,
mourners gathered at a park near the St. Stanislaus Church on Driggs
Avenue to watch the funeral of the Pope. St. Stanislaus Church on
Driggs Avenue, on a large screen television.

_Brooklyn community groups are protesting a proposed high-rise condo that would block the view of the Statue of Liberty and the NYC skyline from historic Battle Hill in Green-Wood Cemetery.

_Judith Zuk, 53, the president of the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens is retiring at the end of June. There’s a profile of her in today’s New York Daily News. During her 15 tenure she oversaw the renovation of the Japanese Tea House, Lily Pond Terrace, the Rock Garden, the Fragrance Garden, the Francis Milner Children’s Garden and the Rose Arc Pool, and opened the Discovery Garden.

_There was a fatal accident on the Belt Parkway at 4 a.m. Thursday morning.

_Brooklyn Assemblyman
William Colton introduced  a bill called "Terri’s Law," that would make
it illegal in New York to remove a feeding tube. Read all about in at New York 1.

_Senator Charles Schumer is asking the government to reopen the
investigation into the Rockaway crash of American Airlines Flight 587 Read all about in at New York 1.

_Packages of pound cake sold at the T&H Supermarket on 86th
Street in Brooklyn were recalled because a milk ingredient was not
listed on the package. It could lead to a serious or fatal reaction in
someone allergic to milk. Read all about in at New York 1.

_Last Monday night the City Council held
its first public meeting on the city’s Greenpoint-Williamsburg
waterfront rezoning plan. Much of the crowd, which didn’t fit in the
room, held its own rally outside on the steps of City Hall, and the
majority of the people there wanted the plan thrown out.

Scoop Du Jour_Weather. News. Events.

SCOOP DU JOUR_Weather. News. Stuff to Do.

Secrets_2

BROOKLYN WEATHER: What’s it gonna do today?  Check here for Brooklyn weather.

CHANGE YOUR CLOCKS: Daylight savings time
for New York (EST, GMT -7:00) began on Sunday. You were supposed to set your clocks
ahead (spring forward) one hour at 2:00 a.m. on Sunday, April 3,  2005. DO IT NOW.

CITY NEWS:  A
federal engineering study of the collapse of the World Trade Center,
released Tuesday, highlights flaws in assumptions about evacuating
skyscrapers and responding to emergencies.

_A missing man was discovered Tuesday
inside a stuck elevator in the Bronx apartment building where he was
headed to deliver food four days ago. Ming Kung Chen, 35, was taken to
Montefiore Medical Center to be treated for dehydration.

_The MTA has decided NOT to
close subway booths. According to New York 1, the 169 booths  set to be
closed will remain open but the attendants will still be out in the
station acting as customer service representatives. Subway booths will
remain accessible to the clerks so that they can use the phone to call
police or fix metro card problems.

_The federal government issued report saying that the city’s bridges are structurally inadequate or obsolete.

_Children age seven and younger must be buckled into a car seat in New York State. This is up from age four.

BROOKLYN BEAT:  Brooklyn Assemblyman William Colton introduced  a bill called "Terri’s Law," that would make it illegal in New York to remove a feeding tube

_Senator Charles Schumer is asking the government to reopen the  investigation into the Rockaway crash of American Airlines Flight 587.

_Packages of pound cake sold at the T&H Supermarket on 86th Street in Brooklyn were recalled because a milk ingredient was not listed on the package. It could lead to a serious or fatal reaction in someone allergic to milk.

_Monday night the City Council held
its first public meeting on the city’s Greenpoint-Williamsburg
waterfront rezoning plan. Much of the crowd, which didn’t fit in the
room, held its own rally outside on the steps of City Hall, and the
majority of the people there wanted the plan thrown out.

Postcard from the Slope

POSTCARD FROM THE SLOPE_by Louise G. Crawford

4282858_stdSeventh Avenue after midnight: dark, quiet, even a little forbidding. 

At Santa Fe,  the busboys wash down tables while the bar stays semi-full with singles and lonely men; big baskets of tortilla chips on the counter.

Two Boots  is childless; free of flying pizza dough, mismanaged toddlers, parents soused on one too many margaritas. TV on, an easy crowd gathers at the friendly bartender’s bar. Talk about politics, sports, sex, moves seamlessly from one end of the amoemba-shaped bar to the other.

Walking home from writers group and drinks after,  I venture through the dark Slope Streets.

The smokers stand outside of Snookys, the old-time slope sports bar between President and Carroll. A man, coatless and drunk, looks like he might not make it home. Inside, a woman makes out with the bartender, her belly flat on the bar.

Late shift shoppers at Key Food avoid the daytime crowds. But there’s usually only one cash register open and a long line just the same. At the Korean on Garfield, a man buys a big can of Fosters Ale and Scott toilet paper.  The scholarly homeless man sits near Starbucks, which was closed for the night. In his worn-out preppy clothing, he has a thoughtful face and the gait of someone who’s been in and out of mental institutions.Last night he was studiously working on math problems in a text book. Usually, he’s tackling heavy, existentialist tomes.

Ironically, it’s spooky going past PS 321 at night, where people get stoned under the playground equipment or on the dark steps. In front of the newstand between 2nd and 3rd Streets, one of Arabic boys who works there packs up the daily papers and brings the low newspaper tables in.

Turning the corner on Third Street, I am cautious and alert, making sure that no-one is  following me. Some nights  I pass a dog walker or young revellers walking home from the beer pub on Fifth Avenue. Often, it’s me alone, peeking inside television-lit rooms that face the street. I usually cell phone my husband and ask him to wait on our steps; it makes me feel better just to know that he’s there.

 

Scoop Du Jour_Weather. News. Events.

SCOOP DU JOUR_Weather. News. Stuff to Do.

Secrets_2

BROOKLYN WEATHER: What’s it gonna do today?  Check here for Brooklyn weather.

CHANGE YOUR CLOCKS: Daylight savings time
for New York (EST, GMT -7:00) began on Sunday. You were supposed to set your clocks
ahead (spring forward) one hour at 2:00 a.m. on Sunday, April 3,  2005. DO IT NOW.

CITY NEWS:  A
federal engineering study of the collapse of the World Trade Center,
released Tuesday, highlights flaws in assumptions about evacuating
skyscrapers and responding to emergencies.

_A missing man was discovered Tuesday inside a stuck elevator in the Bronx apartment building where he was headed to deliver food four days ago. Ming Kung Chen, 35, was taken to Montefiore Medical Center to be treated for dehydration.

_The MTA has decided NOT to
close subway booths. According to New York 1, the 169 booths  set to be
closed will remain open but the attendants will still be out in the
station acting as customer service representatives. Subway booths will
remain accessible to the clerks so that they can use the phone to call
police or fix metro card problems.

_The federal government issued report saying that the city’s bridges are structurally inadequate or obsolete.

_As of last Sunday, children age seven and younger must be buckled into a car seat in New York State. This is up from age four.

BROOKLYN BEAT:  The City Council held its first public meeting on the city’s Greenpoint-Williamsburg waterfront rezoning plan. Much of the crowd, which didn’t fit in the room, held its own rally outside on the steps of City Hall, and the majority of the people there wanted the plan thrown out.

Postcard from the Slope

POSTCARD FROM THE SLOPE_LIFE ON THIRD STREET

2 Comments

2929275_stdYou know it’s spring on Third Street when you see your neighbors’ faces for the first time in months. Last night before sunset, Third Streeters were out in force, sitting on the steps in front of their buildings, watching the kids play, seeing who was walking down the street.

And chit chatting.

On Third, we spend much of the warm months out on the street. The 8-unit lime stone apartment buildings, of which there are ten or more, have these large, gated front yards that are perfect for hanging out.

Unlike those with brownstones, we don’t have backyards, so we do our outdoor sitting, eating, lounging, reading, watching our children play in plain sight. This adds a pleasant social element to our outdoor recreation. There’s lots of spirited talking over the fence at passersbys. "Nice bike," we might say to the neighbor’s kid. Or "Is it possible that so and so is going to college. When we moved here he was just six."

On summer weekends, the people in my building bring out canvas umbrella chairs, green plastic turtle-shaped pools and barbecues: we do a great imitation of suburbanites. We even have impromptu building-wide pot-luck barbecues, which include marshmallow roasts for the kids and lots of beer and wine. For the grown-ups. "Anyone up for a barbecue?" is all it takes to motivate the neighbors to check what’s in the fridge and cook dinner outside.

For the next few days it’ll be like old home week. If the weather stays
warm, we’ll shoot the breeze with friends we haven’t shot breezes with in
ages due to cold weather and rain. Everyone will be in a slowed
down, "isn’t this a lovely day," kind of mood and we’ll hear the latest news, all the Third Street gossip.

And we’ll be out-of-doors for a change, back to living our lives out on the street near the window boxes and the garbage pails.

Yours from Brooklyn,
OTBKB

Scoop Du Jour_Weather. News. Events.

SCOOP DU JOUR_Weather. News. Stuff to Do.

Secrets_2

BROOKLYN WEATHER: What’s it gonna do today?  Check here for Brooklyn weather.

CHANGE YOUR CLOCKS: Daylight savings time
for New York (EST, GMT -7:00) began on Sunday. You were supposed to set your clocks
ahead (spring forward) one hour at 2:00 a.m. on Sunday, April 3,  2005. DO IT NOW.

CITY NEWS: The MTA has decided NOT to
close subway booths. According to New York 1, the 169 booths  set to be
closed will remain open but the attendants will still be out in the
station acting as customer service representatives. Subway booths will
remain accessible to the clerks so that they can use the phone to call
police or fix metro card problems.

_The federal government issued report saying that the city’s bridges are structurally inadequate or obsolete.

_As of last Sunday, children age seven and younger must be buckled into a car seat in New York State. This is up from age four.

BROOKLYN BEAT:  Jury selection began today in the Crown Heights malpractice trial. The family of Yankel Rosenblum’s is accusing Kings County Hospital of botching up  emergency care of Rosenblum who was injured during riots.

_Greenpoint, Brooklyn, the city’s largest Polish community, mourned the death of the first Polish Pope at the St. Stanislaus Church.

_Tafare Berryman, a promising college basketball player from Brooklyn was shot dead outside a nightclub in Long Island.

_The New York Times reported on Saturday that Bruce C. Ratner has purchased two properties owned by a rival developer, thus removing a potential
obstacle for his $2.5 billion sports and housing project for the
Atlantic Yards. He paid $44 million to Leviev Boymelgreen for the two
properties that Mr. Boymelgreen bought for $20 million in August 2004.

_A rash of muggings at
MS 51 by students from other middle schools resulted in a meeting
between school parents and the 78th pct.

_When more than 500
District 15 fifth graders received the news that they
were not admitted to any of their three top choices for middle school,
City Council Member Bill DiBlasio pressed Chancellor
Klein at an Education Committee hearing, invited colleagues who also
represent District 15 to follow up by letter, and joined parents at a
Community Education Council meeting. ‘This situation should have been
anticipated and avoided through better planning and communication,’ he
said.  ‘I’ve been working with my colleagues to ensure as many students
as possible have their choices honored this year and that the process
is improved next year. " From
a press release distributed by Councilman DiBlasio’s office.

_Brooklyn now has a city program aimed at treating sexual assault
victims very quickly in the hopes of increasing the odds of catching
the attackers. This program, which includes a response team with
specially trained forensic examiners, and rape crisis counselors to
treat every victim within one hour of their arrival at the hospital.
started in the Bronx and now includes Brooklyn.

_There have been a number of muggings between President and Ninth
Street
in Park Slope. The victims are women who are talking on their cell
phones. The suspect surprises them from behind, puts his hand over
their mouth and asks for money. According to the police, he hasn’t hurt
anyone; he just takes the cash and runs. The most recent incident was
on Tuesday at 4
p.m. on President Street on or near 8th Avenue.  If you have any
information, please call the 78th Precint Pct.,  re: Pattern 29.
718-636-6484.

IT’S TUESDAY: Broolyn luminaries Paul Auster and Siri Husvedt read at PS 107 as part of Readings on the Fourth Floor, a fundraising event for the school’s library. 1301  8th Avenue. At 7:30 pm.

_The National Ballet of Canada at BAM in "The Contract" a work loosely based on the Pied Piper of Hamlin. 7:30

_Park Slope Poetry Project, Ryn Gargulinski reads followed by an open mic.  St. John, St Matthew Emanuel Church. 283 Prospect Avenue. 7:30 – 10 p.m

_Opening night of the Brooklyn Jewish Film Festival. BAM 30 Lafayette Avenue.

THIS SOUNDS COOL: Jack Rabbit’s tri and swim classes start this week. Where would we be
without Jack Rabbit to help us get our bodies in SHAPE. And it feels so
goooooooood.  Go to Jackrbt.com and find a class for YOU.

_The first Park Slope Kids Music Festival. This Sunday at Southpaw:
Wendy Gesanliter, John Carlin and Uncle Rock. Refreshments available.
4/10 at 11 a.m. 125 Fifth Avenue. $12 for kids, $6 for kids 2 and up.
Under that: free. concertforkids.com

Frank London, who plays trumpet in the Klezmatics, leads kids at the Eldridge Street Synogogue through a lesson on traditional Jewish melodies. Plus a tour of the 1887 synogogue and egg creams. 4/10 at 11 a.m. Reservations required. 12 Eldridge Street, near Canal Street. 212-219-0888 or eldridgestreet.org. Admission is $8.

_Around the World in 80 Days at Puppetworks. Weekends at 12: 30 and 2:30 p.m.
338 Sixth Avenue at 4th Street.

_Too Cool for Shul: Festival of Contemporary Jewish Music. Various artists at the BAM Cafe. Weekends in April.

Brooklyn Reading Works. Fiction. Memoir Poetry. Curated by Louise G. Crawford.  APRIL 28 at 8 p.m. Pamela Katz reads: And Speaking of Love (Aufbau-Verlag)
a novel that evokes the life and loves of Lotte Lenya and Kurt Weill, and poet Michelle Madigan Somerville reads from Wisegal
(Ten Pell Books) and newer work: "A multilingual hardrock
reverie…going upside your head to whisper whipsmart secrets about
cracked-out big-city survival.