And they're having a liquidation sale. Everything 50% off. I spoke to the owner. He was hoping to sell the store and came very close. But the buyers backed out after speaking to the landlord who were offering a 10-year lease on a rent that would eventually be $18,000 per month. I'm not sure what the rent is now. But that's a lot of money. 

She's done it again! Kristin Goode of About Brooklyn has a nice selection of things to do in January. Here are a few examples. There are plenty more at her site.

• Saturday, January 10
  Mulching Madness
  
  Not sure what to do with your Christmas tree? Head to one of
  Brooklyn's parks, "treecycle," and watch your tree be made into mulch.
  Saturday at the Green-Wood Cemetery; Saturday and Sunday at two locations in Prospect Park.
  10am
  to 2pm at the Green-Wood Cemetery (25th Street and 5th Avenue) and
  Prospect Park (Park Circle entrance or Third Street and Prospect Park
  West)

• Sunday, January 11
  Eating Local in the Big Apple
  
  This class
  will teach you everything you need to know to become a true locavore.
  Learn how to eat local, find local ingredients without spending a
  fortune, and more. $44 includes class and a cooking demo/tasting.
  Advance registration required.
  
  12pm to 3pm at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, 1000 Washington Avenue
  (718) 623-7200

• Tuesday, January 13
  Philosophy and Fries
  How do you define belief? Talk it out while taking in dinner at a diner. This meet-up is sponsored by the Center for Inquiry.
  
  7:30pm to 9pm at Park Plaza Restaurant, 220 Cadman Plaza West

My cousin is the Executive Director of the Petra Foundation, which identfies and recognizes unsung heroes who are making distinctive contributions to the rights of others. Here's the email I received this morning. If you are thinking of nominating someone make sure you read the criteria carefully.

Dear
Friends

Each
year since 1988, through a national search and nomination process, Petra has
identified and recognized unsung heroes who are making distinctive contributions
to the rights, dignity and autonomy of millions who are marginalized in America
today

 Now almost 80 in number, Petra Fellows work in 29 states, often at risk and without
the safety net of personal privilege or institutional support. The foundation
gives fellows a no-strings personal financial award, publicizes their models
for change and welcomes them to a national network of leaders working across
the divides of age, ethnicity, class and issue to build a more just society.

If
you know a leader who fits the awards criteria, please nominate your candidate
for a Petra Fellow award. If you know of others who might make a
nomination, please forward this note and help to spread the word.

The
awards guidelines and brief nomination questionnaire can be easily downloaded
from http://www.petrafoundation.org/nominations.html

Please
read the guidelines closely and note that nominations are submitted without the
knowledge of the nominee by those who know the nominees and their work.

This
year’s deadline is February 12, 2009.  If you have any
questions, please don’t hesitate to contact us.

With
your help, the Petra Foundation will continue to champion local leaders who are
fighting on the frontlines of the struggle for justice.

We
look forward to hearing from you!

Here's something about Jezra Kaye's upcoming public speaking workshop; lots of good food for thought—and speaking. If you would like to communicate with POWER, AUTHENTICITY and EASE, join her for an evening of hands-on activities that will lift your speaking skills to the next level. I took a 3-hour workshop and enjoyed it very much and picked up some very useful ideas and tips.

For weeks, I’ve been shuffling through
the same stack of papers, articles, notes, biz cards, invitations, old socks and photos waiting to be scanned.

If you want to de-clutter your public speaking
(and that means everything you say that's not private), here are some simple ways to start:

1.  ADD SOME
SPACE

Those of you who live (and talk!) in New York will be glad to hear that adding space does not
mean s p e a k i n g   r e a l l y   s l o w l y. 

And those
of you who went to college will be glad to hear that it doesn't require
you to give up those erudite-sounding, run-on sentences, so rich in
subordinate clauses and clever little asides that allow you to keep
talking
about the topic at hand, which is probably quite delightful, until
you've exhausted everything that one could imagine saying about it and
then
you add something else because…

No, "adding space" means pausing—briefly, fractionally—between one phrase and the next so that people can
hear your entire thought.

And if you want to slow down further, add some emphasis.

Now you're pausing…   briefly, fractionally…  between one phrase and the next…   so that people can hear your entire
thought.

You can practice this
trick in your "private" speech (i.e., when you're talking to family or friends): 

Add some space! 

You'll sound calmer…   and
smarter…  and people will have time to
take in your words!

2. 
SIMPLIFY

Now that you've slowed down enough to hear yourself think, you can start to edit.

Most of us say much more than we need to:

• We repeat ourselves.
• We pile on the arguments.
• We make point after point.  After point.

Unfortunately, people don't remember large chunks or subtle nuances unless they've studied a
topic at length.

In normal conversation, as in public speech, they're likely to recall just ONE
THING that you said.  So what's it going to be?  

To find the answer, ask yourself: 

• What ONE IDEA do you want them to retain? and
• WHY THEY SHOULD CARE?

When you can answer those questions, you've got the simple, elegant core of what you want to
say.

Concentrate on stating it as clearly…   cleanly…   and authentically
as possible.

And leave some space to let it sink it!

3.  CALL A
“SPEECH-ALIST”

An experienced Speaker Coach can help you develop these (and other) tips into
a powerful and authentic speaking style.

Would you like to begin right away?

Contact me about private
coaching, or come to…

Presentations that
Persuade Workshop

Next Thursday, January 15th, 2009, 6:30-9:00PM

Download the PDF

The meeting of two legends in experimentation and sound: the meeting of two fabulous
violins:
Tony Conrad and Genesis Breyer P-Orridge.
Guest musician: Edward Morrisey, PTV3.
Guest visual artists: Bradley Eros and Sebastien S. Santamaria.

 
Tony Conrad and Genesis Breyer P-Orridge will meet for the first time
and perform on two consecutive days in improvisatory concerts centered
on their mutual love for violin. The shows will take place at ISSUE
Project Room on January 10 at 9 p.m. and January 11 at 4 p.m. The event
will be recorded for an album release and filmed by Marie Losier for
her upcoming feature documentary on P-Orridge.

The idea to unite the two influential musicians was conceived at the screening
of "Marie Losier's Film Portraits" at the French Institute Alliance Française in September of 2008. Upon watching
Losier's documentary, "Tony Conrad DreaMinimalist," P-Orridge
confessed that violin, which figured prominently in the film, was her
favorite instrument and that hearing Conrad's personal story made her
cherish it even more. "I initially wanted to create a scene for the
film on Genesis in which she and Tony would just play the violin
together," says Losier. "But very quickly this idea developed into a
strong desire to see the two musicians I love perform live for an
audience. Even though their paths have not crossed up until this point,
it only felt natural to me that they should."

The Where and When

January 10 at 9 p.m. and January 11 at 4 pm
Issue Project Room
The (OA) Can Factory
232 3rd Street,
3rd Floor
Brooklyn, NY 11215
get directions
t: 718-330-0313
contact us

Last week in San Francisco we went to the gorgeous new deYoung Museum, designed by architects Herzog & de Meuron and Fong & Chan, and saw an amazing—and very powerful—exhibit called In the Name of God: War, Religion and the Reliquaries of Al Farrow.

In this work, Farrow appropriates and reinterprets the iconography of Jewish,
Christian, and Islamic religious institutions. The Spine and Tooth of Santo Guerro (2007), which is pictured to the left, is an elaborate construction, which looks like a scale model of a European Gothic cathedral.

A closer look reveals
that the entire structure is fabricated from deconstructed gun
components, as well as bullets and steel shot.

I heard from Al Farrow today. He thanked me for mentioning him on the blog. It turns out that he was born and raised in Brooklyn and left 20 years ago for California, where he exhibits widely.

Anyone know where an elderly couple might play bridge in Brooklyn Heights? An OTBKB reader posed the question and I'm just trying to help…

Loads to do at the Brooklyn Arts Exchange, including a special President's Week Arts Program for kids, programs for curious dults and the Deedle Deedle Dees (four guys raised on the Muppets, Tom Waits, Dr. John, and the
Pixies).

And check out these workshops designed for the curious, creative adult...

Then there's a series called January First Weekends, which highlights work by BAX’s Artists in Residence
and Artist Advisors

And one more thing:

The Jumpin' Juniper Show
Featuring the Deedle Deedle Dees!

Are you ready for Real World Brooklyn, which takes place in Red Hook? Tonight on MTV bringing you group dynamics, hook-ups, fights, and a hot tub.

Political artist Randy Jones exhibits his work in the main lobby of the Brooklyn Public Library at Grand Army Plaza:

This exhibition shows three aspects of my art: current (featuring
the long march of the 2008 presidential race), historical and the Inner
Circle Annual Roast for Mayor of New York City.

From food fights to lipstick, the first section features highlighted
events leading up to the memorable 2008 presidential campaign. It also
includes tear-sheets and original artwork from this long two-year race.

The second section features some of our favorite historical figures
such as Teddy Roosevelt, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and Bud Abbott
and Lou Costello. It includes original art and the tear-sheets from the
publications in which they were printed.

Finally, work from the Inner Circle is featured. The Inner Circle
has been around since New York City Mayor Hylan (1918-1925) was in
office, and it continues to operate today. Its 100 members are
reporters who have covered City Hall and who are elected to join by the
standing members. I have created art that illustrates the songs about
the political year, from mayoral to national politics, written and
performed by the members of the Inner Circle. My first year doing so
was the last year of Mayor Dinkins's time in office in 1993.

This is an artist I've always liked. Known for his nudes, he's having a retrospective at the Montclair Museum of Art that includes other works as well. Ken Johnson of the New York Times writes:

"Realism returned from the dead in the 1960s, and Philip Pearlstein was
one of its chief revivers. His seven-decade career is the focus of
“Philip Pearlstein: Objectifications,” a small, surprisingly varied
exhibition at the Montclair Museum of Art. The show offers proof that
Mr. Pearlstein, 84, has been an artist of greater range than his
signature nude works."

I got this email from Robin Warren about an education advocacy coalition called Learn NY.

So how do people with kids in co-ops, condos and rentals co-exist with those without children, who don't appreciate the noise generated by the pitter patter of little feet, especially in public spaces?

A post on Park Slope Parents brought this vexing issue to light. One mom has resolved the problem she had with her neighbors by deciding  to "discontinue hallway play." She even had a revelation:

So I guess it's about communication. It sounds like the angry neighbors should have brought up the matter earlier. Guess what? The complaing couple is pregnant. The PSP member wonders:

What would we do without the weekly Brooklyn Based Tip Sheet? It's got loads of interesting ideas for things to  do in Brooklyn in music, art, shopping, culture and food.

So what is Brooklyn Based?

From where to find the best tailor, to weekend
events, to interviews with neighborhood chefs, we are the most original
guide to Brooklyn life you’ll read.

Sound good? Then sign up for BB, delivered Tuesday through Thursday.

Go for it.

• Super Chicken Cacciatore & Spaghetti
• Roasted Pumpkin
• Baked Hopping John
• Grilling Corn-On-The-Cob
• Seitan Shepherd's Pie
• Dee's Delicious Turkey Chili & Rice
• Spicy Tropical Bliss

See all recipes »

Robert Guskind writes powerfully of the current state of Coney Island.
Read it and weep. Here's an excerpt but read the rest at his blog,
Gowanus Lounge:

"There were a lot of people in Coney Island on Saturday and most of
them were taking pictures of the mess it has become under the
stewardship of Joe Sitt and Michael Bloomberg. We stood on
Stillwell Avenue, freezing, with Mr. Sitt’s big empty lot on our left
and the vacant Beer Island on our right and wiped tears from our eyes,
not because of the cold but because of fond memories and a sense of
hopelessness and despair that those in charge of this process aren’t up
to the challenge of keeping it on life support while the economy works
itself out.

"What a sad, sad thing for a place that has suffered so much. We urge
the city to negotiate hard with Mr. Sitt. We hope all parties sit down
and come up with a realistic five year plan to keep Coney going. We
hope that Mr. Sitt shows that he has a shred of human decency in his
body and that “Joey Coney Island” helps save it instead of being the guy that pulls the trigger and inflicts the final fatal wound.

Time is running out."

I got this helpful reminder from an OTBKB reader. It may just be an Internet rumor. Ahhhh…Hold off until I confirm. Thanks for all the comments.

.

Nerissa Campbell, an indie-jazz singer- songwriter originally from Perth,
Australia has been lving in Brooklyn, (Park Slope/Prospect
Heights) for over seven years.

She is set to release a new album next week. Check it out: there are a few tracks on her website at www.crookedmouthmusic.com.

Musings of a Telescopic Tree is described on the website as "an album of moodiness and of melancholy
– stories of desire and the sorrows of losing loved things, the weight
of depression and the lightness of being. The indie-jazz
singer-songwriter ponders a new approach to her music, – its roots in
jazz, it also ponders its way through somber pop-ballads, bluesy folk
songs, moody instrumentals and a lyricism full of thought and space."

"Her songs roil in the smoke of forgotten bars and express a love of
many styles and thoughts. Campbell composed these songs in her home of
Brooklyn, NY as well on travels across Europe, Australia and North
America. Drawn largely on her own life stories and from the tales of
the characters from those adventures, her songs are a manuscript of
insights to self and the world around her."

There's an album release gig  on January 15th at the 55 Bar in Manhattan.

The Where and When

January 15th
55 Bar
55 Christopher St (btn 6th and 7th av)
www.55bar.com
7 – 9pm
no cover

Sounds interesting: Brooklyn Songwriters' Exchange at Union Hall with Lucy Wainwright Roche, Rebecca Pronsky, Stephen Clair, Brooke Campbell.

The Where and When

Monday January 12 at 7:30 p.m.
Union Hall
702 Union Street
Park Slope
Free

Times Square Gaza Protest on January 3rd.

photo by Tom Martinez 

Find out who and what to watch out for in Brooklyn in 2009. Here are just a few of the things on the Brooklyn Paper’s long list. For the full list, go to their website.

Like any respectable publication, The Brooklyn Paper makes lists. So
without any further ado, here are the 90 people, places and things to
watch in ’09:

84. Paul Auster: The prolific Park Slope author is rumored to be coming
out with a new novel this year, “Invisible,” after penning “Man in the
Dark” last year, which was set in a fictional United States wracked by a post-election civil war.

77. Cordula Volkening: This Park Slope artist has been battling
brain cancer while producing an astonishing array of representational
paintings in the past year. She is planning a spring show to benefit
her children at Brooklyn Artists Gym in Gowanus.

76. Susan Fox: The founder of the once-quaint, now-booming Park
Slope Parents Web site has emerged as a force throughout the borough.
She’s on the Park Slope Civic Council, she’s helping the Old Stone
House, she’s helping local merchants, and this year she even led the
annual Halloween Parade for kids. Someday, she’ll be in the City
Council.

70. Peter and Kristen Sclafani: The restaurateurs who brought Bar Tano
to a barren stretch of Third Avenue in Gowanus are planning to open
another European-styled cafe and wine bar in 2009, this time on an equally foodless stretch of Eighth Avenue in Park Slope. Econony be damned: These two know what they’re doing.

68. Catherine Bohne: The Park Slope Community Bookstore’s owner can’t
be stopped with her ebullience to keep the locals shopping locally. In
2008, Bohne started a restaurant tour along Seventh Avenue and expanded
the holiday bazaar Snowflake Celebration to two nights. She’s got more
up her sleeve for 2009.

Well, they’re around. Their shop just in’t in Park Slope anymore. Here’s the Root Stock & Quade calendar of January and February events, where you can find out the latest about what they’re up to.

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

They had a little fight about it. Smartmom said they couldn’t afford
to go. But Hepcat prevailed. It had been two years since they’d spent
Christmas in California and Hepcat wanted to go.

Ultimately Smartmom gave in. She knows that Christmas means a lot to
Hepcat and it had been a while since he’d celebrated with his family:
last year, Smartmom’s dad was in Mt. Sinai Hospital between Christmas
and New Year’s. And the year before that, Manhattan Granny’s health
necessitated that they stay in town.

So it was decided. Hepcat charged the tickets ($2,000!) and they
were good to go. Smartmom knew the kids wouldn’t be thrilled at first
because they like to be around their friends during school vacation.
But they’d adjust.

Even Smartmom got used to the idea. She decided that loads of
together-time as a family was just what they needed. For seven days,
they’d be stuck in a big house in the country with nowhere to go;
they’d eat every meal together and have loads of time to talk, play
Scrabble and do jigsaw puzzles.

It sounded like heaven to her. 

Hepcat was thrilled to be going home for Christmas. That’s not to
say that he didn’t enjoy his two Brooklyn Christmases. He loved buying
Christmas trees from the handsome Vermonter who sells them on Ninth
Street from a tent blaring jazz music, and he loved the Christmas lox
and bagels brunch with Diaper Diva, Groovy Grandma and various members
of Smartmom’s extended Jewish family. And he always seemed to love a
Christmas Day movie at the Pavilion and Christmas dinner at Hunan
Cottage on Union Street.

But Smartmom wouldn’t be Smartmom if she couldn’t tell that her big
old California farm boy was homesick. He pined for the smell of
eucalyptus leaves in the garden, the whistle of the Southern Pacific
freight trains in the distance, the braying of his mother’s goats,
Flora and Miss America, out in the pen.

You can take a farm boy out of California, but you can’t take the farm out of the boy — especially on Christmas.

Teen Spirit and the Oh So Feisty One liked their Brooklyn
Christmases, too. It was fun to wake up on Christmas morning to find
their filled stockings tied to the dresser in the living room. No
matter that there’s no mantle. In Brooklyn, it is believed that Santa
Claus enters through the dumbwaiter or disguised as one of the delivery
guys from Coco Roco.

On the night before Christmas, Smartmom and family arrived on
Hepcat’s family farm (after an unusually long flight which included a
refueling stop in Salt Lake City) tired, hungry and ready for sleep.

For a nice Jewish girl from New York City, the scene couldn’t have
been more perfect. As always, there was a towering Christmas tree
festooned with vintage decorations; Mexican crèches placed tastefully
all over the house; and roaring fires burning in not one, but two,
fireplaces.

Yup, it was nice to be back.

OSFO popped out of bed Christmas morning. Teen Spirit was harder to
rouse (he’s 17 after all). They opened their gifts and hung out with
their cousins who they hadn’t seen in more than a year.

It was a jigsaw puzzle and Scrabble kind of day topped off by a
bountiful Christmas super, which included ham, oysters, sweet potatoes
and great conversation. Smartmom couldn’t stop eating the pannetone,
almond roca and coconut macaroons and swore to be back on Weight
Watchers by morning.

She could tell that Hepcat was enjoying himself big time. His mother
went through bags of old photographs while his sister regaled them with
hilarious stories about her new chihuahua.

In the days after Christmas, Teen Spirit and OSFO pretended to be
wildly bored. But Smartmom knew it was good for their creative juices.
Teen Spirit spent much of the holiday writing songs while OSFO
practiced a Bach minuet on the piano and used her grandmother’s
potter’s wheel.

As promised, the family ate every meal together, played plenty of
Scrabble and did jigsaw puzzles. They spent loads of time in each
other’s company.

Sure they got on each other’s nerves. 

Sure they had a few fights.

But it was Christmas in California. Seven days with nothing to do but be together. What could be better?

We only had one day in San Francisco during our Christmas trip to Northern California but we always cherish whatever time we have in that great city.

Part of the fun was that we took the BART into town. That means a 40-minute drive from the farm in Tracy to Pleasanton and then a 40-minute ride to the Embarcadero.

We went to the new Academy of Sciences in Golden Gate Park, which meant taking the N-Judah Muni, which is both an underground and overground mode of transport. Cool.

We got off at Ninth Avenue in the Sunset district and walked into San Francisco’s awe-inspiring Park. Imagine our surprise when there was a one hour wait to get into the museum, which opened its new building in October. And that was the member’s line.

But it was a lovely day and we didn’t mind standing on line. Well, we minded a little. But it was worth it: the museum’s new digs are gorgeous complete with a green roof that reminded Teen Spirit of the Teletubby set.

In addition to a great aquarium, the museum features an elaborate rain forest exhibit, dioramas akin to those at New York’s Museum of Natural History, an albino alligator, a penguin exhibit and much more.

Worth the wait. But it was very, very crowded inside.

We also went to the gorgeous new deYoung Museum, designed by Swiss architects Herzog & de Meuron and Fong & Chan Architects, where we saw an amazing—and very powerful—exhibit called In the Name of God: War, Religion and the Reliquaries of Al Farrow, in which the artist appropriates and reinterprets the traditional iconography of Jewish,
Christian, and Islamic religious institutions. The Spine and Tooth of Santo Guerro (2007), is an elaborate construction appears to be a scale model of a European Gothic cathedral. Closer examination reveals
that nearly the entire structure is fabricated from deconstructed gun
components, as well as bullets and steel shot.

Afterwards, we made our usual pilgrimage to the City Lights Bookstore in North Beach, where I browsed their second floor poetry department—one of the best poetry selections I’ve come across.

We walked from North Beach back to Market Street passing the tail end of an Anti-Gaza  demonstration, which brought out a crowd of kafiah-clad protestors, police vans, news trucks and police helicopters overheard.

Later, we stopped in the Palace Hotel, our favorite bathroom stop in San Francisco. We also like to gaze at the Victorian Garden Court, and the wood-paneled Pied Piper Bar with its gorgeous Maxfield Parish mural over the bar. That hotel was built before the 1903 earthquake.

Then it was back to Tracy on the BART. 40 minutes and we were back in Pleasanton to begin our drive through Livermore and the Altamont Pass, a hilly area filled with graceful windmills generating electrical power.

                  YOST LEARS

Have you done it yet, remembered to write

Two thousand nine now it’s due?

Then you’re many miles ahead of me–

I’m still writing two thousand two.

Brenda Becker, who writes the blog, A Year in the Park, has completed her year in the Park. Now the big question: will she continue to visit Prospect Park daily?

I am happy to report that the answer seems to be yes:

This little chronicle of my forays will indeed continue into 2009–I
keep finding cool stuff and can’t not share it, just as I promised,
although for Google’s sake I don’t think I’ll rename it "Another Year
in the Park."

Becker writes movingly about what she has learned this year in the park. Here’s an excerpt. Read more at the blog. 

A year ago, I wondered aloud in cyberspace whether a year of daily visits to Prospect Park could change my life.  To understand what this year has meant, let me tell you a signal moment–a danger sign, if you will–in my shared history with my mother in her old age. Once sharp-witted and tender-hearted, she had slipped into a deepening cycle of depression and disability. One summer evening, as she sulked on the couch before her array of pill bottles (none of which made her any happier), I suggested that we sit together on the porch and get some fresh air, which blows straight off the park to our house.

Why bother pushing the damn wheelchair out there? my mother responded. There’s air in here.

Some folks spend a lifetime searching for the secret to happiness; in that moment, I intuited that I had stumbled on something perhaps even more valuable, the secret to perfect unhappiness. Why move? There’s air in here. I carry half my genes from my mother’s pool, in which swum a brace of robustly morose and self-obsessed Irish neurotics, several of them prone to dramatic suicide attempts. I do not mock her response as much as you might think; I’ve done time draped over the furniture, brain bloated with bad chemicals, barely motivated to breathe the air "in here," much less out there.

But the other half of my family tree, like the tree above, seemed to have gifts of astonishing resilience. My father, who never met a human being in whom he couldn’t find some interest and goodness. His twin elder siblings, Don and Valeska, who lived to their mid-nineties defying a battery of physical ailments and frailties just to get out of the house, explore their worlds, and (especially in Don’s case) take pictures, even when one eye no longer worked and his hands shook. (He produced some wonderfully impressionistic photos in this phase.) They would all have understood AYITP and come along for the walk, in any weather. They showed me another way forward, even into old age, beyond thin ice.

I want my MTV! That’s what Park Slopers are saying to Time Warner Cable who discontinued some of the area’s most popular children’s and adult programming, which happens to be provided by Viacom (which owns MTV).

I was just over at the Time Warner Cable website and they’re saying that the two companies have reached an agreement "in principle."

TWC says to  "ignore incorrect Viacom/MTV ads" that were in newspapers today and yesterday. Time Warner Cable and Viacom have reached agreement for continued carriage of 19 of Viacom’s MTV Networks, with no interruption for Time Warner Cable customers. They are calling them false ads. The ads, which wrongly stated that Viacom had pulled programming from Time Warner Cable, ran in New York, Cleveland, Orlando, Dallas, and Raleigh

Sounds like the programming isn’t back yet but it will be in the next few days—once they are able to finalize negotiations.

Here’s the press release from the Time Warner Cable’s website:

Time Warner Cable (NYSE:TWC) and Viacom (NYSE: VIA and VIA.B) jointly announced this morning that they have reached an agreement in principle to renew carriage for Viacom’s MTV Networks.  The companies expect to finalize the details of the agreement over the next several days.

Glenn Britt, President and CEO of Time Warner Cable said, "We are pleased that our customers will continue to be able to watch the programming they enjoy on MTV Networks. We are sorry they had to endure a day of public disagreement as we worked through this negotiation."

Philippe Dauman, President and CEO of Viacom said, "We’ve been partners with Time Warner Cable for a long time, and we’re happy to be renewing that partnership for the benefit of their customers and our loyal viewers.  It’s gratifying that we could reach an agreement that benefits not only our audiences but that is also in the best interest of both of our companies.

Like every year there are things to like and things not to like.
Especially as you get older, stuff happens. People get sick. Precious people die. There are personal and professional disappointments, as well as
terrible world events.

Life can be scary and sad.

And this year was one for the record books. One awful thing after another and then some.

Luckily there are always a few things to remember that make you feel
good about things, our community and the world we live in. Ever since I
started this blog, I make this list. If you’re interested, check out:  2004, 2005, and 2006 and 2007.

–All the time I had with my dad last year, including the day we visited the Chelsea galleries and had lunch at a Cuban/Chinese diner on 9th Avenue; our many trips to the Metropolitan Museum to visit the new Greek and Roman Galleries, and the Turner show; his 79th birthday on January 16th at Po in Cobble Hill; many lunches at the Pain Quotidian on Madison Avenue; sitting in his living room talking and listening to music…

–Wonderful family and friends!

–Running in Prospect Park!

—Writers at the Beach in Rehoboth, Maryland!

–Montauk Basement Writers!

—Brooklyn Reading Works including Edgy Moms, Poetry Punch, Feast, Baby Love and more!

—Weight Watchers meetings with Melanie at the Montauk Club!

–Getting an agent!

–Finishing my book proposal!

—The Brooklyn Blogfest at the Brooklyn Lyceum!

–The Jamie Livingston/Photo-of-the-Day frenzy in June!

–OSFO’s graduation from PS 321!

–My week on Block Island at the Sea Breeze!

–Ace in the Hole at Movies with a View /Brooklyn Bridge Park!

—Institute for Collaborative Education!

–Thursday visits to 11th Street.

–New Voices Middle School!

–Election day.

–ELECTION NIGHT!

–The Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving!

–Ice Skating with Ducky, Diaper Diva and OSFO!

–No Words Daily Pix!

–Thais at the Metropolitan Opera with Renee Fleming!

–Christmas in California!

–All of you: you know who you are!

–New Year’s Eve spent eating, drinking, reading Henry James, talking to family and playing Trivial Pursuit in California. A festive end to a pretty awful year.