A picture in today’s Times of mothers dropping off their children at a Baghdad school made me feel sad and disgusted; that’s why I write this.

How do they do it? The mothers. The fathers. The children. The teachers. How do they manage to do such normal things amid such abnormality as Bush’s American war, rampant terrorism, their city in ruins, their city under siege?

Those children deserve a life like our children. To be: carefree, playful, full of joy. To be children.

What about the mothers?

They, like all mothers, must want what’s best for their children. Screw the politicians, the war makers, the terrorists, the killers…

Mothers want safety, routine, and all that is good for their children.

In the month of July and August 5,106 people in the capital were killed, a figure much higher than reported before.

In this environment of death and dispair, these families are heroic to carry on. They still have hope despite…

Contrast the first day of school in Baghdad with the first day in Brooklyn. Here, the first day is all about the excitement of the new: teachers, classes, books, clothing, friends, hopes.

There is nervousness of course. But it’s not about an American war or terrorists: it is simple first day jitters.

How lucky our kids are to feel just simple first day jitters.

Our kids don’t have to live in a violent city without infrastructure, electricity, garbage services, water. The death and dispair and disruptions of war.

How sad for those mothers and children and teachers in Baghdad on their first day of school.

It is those struggle in a worn torn country to do the normal things who are the heroes. The parents, the teachers, the children. Those who carry on. Who put back the pieces, who do what they can.

THIS UNJUST WAR (THIS DECEITFUL WAR) MUST END.

We mourn the passing of another longtime local biz: the Musician’s General Store on Court Street. It’s been there for ages and we rented TS’s clarinet back when he was taking clarinet lessons. We’ve also bought guitar strings, picks and music books. We believe in local music stores. I grew up with one called Levitt and Ellrod (first on 96th Street and then on 83rd Street in Manhattan). It was a wacky place but that’s where I got my first guitar ( a USA for $29.00). A Brooklyn Life reports:

"Based on a note in the window, it seems that the owner’s decision to
not renew their lease was more personal than financial (i.e., they did
not say they are being crowded out of the neighborhood by high rents).
And the store will be continuing music lessons at the Micro Museum on
Smith Street." – Brookly Life

Interestingly, last week I walked in front of the store and the owner or an employee was standing in front of the store having a screaming/cursing phone conversation with someone very loudly. There may be no connection but I did make note of it and thought to myself: hmmmm, something’s up.

photo by chttp://flickr.com/photos/jimbob/246794406/

Sunset Parker has a piece today about what he calls "the utterly unnecessary the cancer
causing chemicals sprayed indiscriminantly all over pregnant women and
children last month by the City."  He’s got some other interesting stuff up there, too. Take a look.

This might be the best article yet,
detailing how utterly horrendous and utterly unnecessary the cancer
causing chemicals sprayed indiscriminantly all over pregnant women and
children last month by the City. Once again, its worth pointing out
that not one Brooklyn resident was diagnosed with West Nile Virus this
year, yet thousands (if not more) will potentially have their lives cut
short. If you think the government gives a wit about your health, look
at how they lied to people, guilting them to come down to the "pile"
after 9/11, knowing full well(yes knowing full well) that they were
sending them to an early (and most likely agonizing) death.

This is
a big deal (so was that.) What’s done is done. At least the folks who
(naively) went down to the "pile" had a choice. Those of us living in
areas that were inundadated with low grade chemical weapons (this is
not hyperbole in that those are chemicals; chemicals whose only purpose
is to kill) last month had no choice in the matter whatsoever.

She knows it’s a corny idea. But that’s why I like Creative TImes. She’s not afraid to go with it. I’m going to try it, too. Check out her blog for more creative ideas.

The thing is, I have a little habit of focusing on "problems" rather
than giving my attention to what’s going well in life. So I finally
started to keep a gratitude journal, first in an actual paper journal
and then in a computer file. At the end of each day, I list ten simple
things that I feel grateful for. It’s a great way to end the day and
gets my attention on what’s going well.

Here’s one of my lists:

Finding greeting card with Quentin Blake illustration
(see above image)
Finding Brenda Ueland’s If You Want to Write for $2.oo
Nice chat with middle school principal
Hugging Carol, the security guard at PS 6
Rearranging the office
Buying palm tree/hula girl earrings for my friend’s birthday
Wearing new terrycloth flip-flops
Spotting two red dachsunds the size of baby seals
Listening to Missy Elliott while working out
Watching Project Runway with my sweetie
Getting advice from fellow co-op shopper about best cheese to buy for pizza
Making pizza at home

–From Creative TImes

TWO YEARS AGO TODAY (okay, yesterday) I started OTBKB. As part of the festivities, here’s a piece about where I got the name. This line from the story is my mantra for this blog and a good metaphor for life: "It’d take a guy a lifetime to
know Brooklyn t’roo an’ t’roo. An even den, yuh wouldn’t know it all."

Curious about the name of this new blog? Here’s an excerpt from
Thomas Woolfe’s masterful short story, "Only the Dead Know
Brooklyn" written in thick Brooklynese:

"Dere’s no guy livin’ dat knows Brooklyn t’roo an t’roo, because it’d
take a guy a lifetime just to find his way aroun’ duh goddam town.

"So like I say, I’m waitin’ for my train t’ come when I sees dis big
guy standin’ deh — dis is the foist I eveh see of him. Well, he’s
lookin’ wild, y’know, an’ I can see dat he’s had plenty, but still he’s
holdin’ it; he talks good an’ is walkin’ straight enough. So den, dis
big guy steps up to a little guy dat’s standin’ deh, an’ says, ‘How
d’yuh get t’ Eighteent’ Avenoo an Sixty-sevent’ Street?’ he says…"

and

"Jesus! What a nut he was! I wondeh what evah happened to ‘m,
anyway. I wondeh if someone knocked him on duh head, or if he’s till
wanderin’ aroun’ in duh subway in duh middle of duh night with his
little map! Duh poor guy. Say, I’ve got to laugh, at dat, when I t’ink
about him! Maybe he’s found out by now dat he’ll never live long
enought to know duh whole of Brooklyn. It’d take a guy a lifetime to
know Brooklyn t’roo an’ t’roo. An even den, yuh wouldn’t know it all."

French fashion designer and movie producer Agnes b. has chosen some of her favorite American films to be shown during the upcoming series, "BAMcinematek presents J’aime le cinema americain: agnes b. Selects."

Movies from filmmakers John Huston, John Cassavetes, David Lynch, Tod Browning, Quentin Tarantino and John Waters, "agnes b. Selects" is slated to run at the Brooklyn Academy of Music’s Rose Cinemas Oct. 2-11.

The first show is a screening of Buster Keaton’s silent 1925 comedy, "Seven Chances." (Donald Sosin will be on-hand to provide live piano accompaniment to the film.)

For later in the week she has selected:  "Too Late Blues," "It’s a Gift," "Reservoir Dogs," "Pink Flamingos," "Lost Highway," "Freaks" and "Reflections in a Golden Eye."

"Agnes b. Selects" will close with "julien donkey-boy," Harmony Korine’s 1999 film, which stars Werner Herzog, Ewan Bremner and Chloe Sevigny. It is the only American film made under the avant-garde, Dogma 95 movement.

BAM Rose Cinemas are located at 30 Lafayette Ave. at Ashland Place in Fort Greene. Tickets are $10 per screening for adults and $7 for students age 25 and younger (with valid I.D. Monday-Thursday, except holidays), seniors, children younger than age 12, and BAM Cinema Club members. Tickets are available by calling (718) 636-4100 or by visiting www.BAM.org.

shirt available at agnes b online

I just got this email from Helen Richman, piano and flute teacher extradonaire. Now she dons an impressario’s hat and is programming a music series at Old First Reformed Church on Saturday mornings throughout the year. It looks great and I happen to know that the chocolate chip cookies are wonderfu.

Chocolate Chip Chamber Music, an engaging and interactive mini-concert
for the very young,  is an exciting new concert series in Park Slope
for 2 to 6 year olds. 

We hope you will join us for our first concert
of the 2006-07 season, coming up on Saturday, September 30, which will
feature the dynamic Andrew Rathbun Jazz Quartet.
This concert was added to our calendar due to popular demand from our
debut last spring as a new children’s music series. 

Performance times
are 10 and 11:30 a.m. at Old First Reformed Church, located at 126
Seventh Ave. (corner of Carroll St.) in Park Slope.  Tickets are $5
each (free for babies under one) and go on sale at the door 30 minutes
prior to start times.
 

This concert is entitled Kind of Two, as a nod to the famed
Miles Davis album of similar title, and will showcase some of the
city’s most active and prominent jazz names on the scene today.  The
quartet, comprised of Andrew Rathbun on saxophone, Frank Carlberg on
piano, John Hebert on the bass, and Owen Howard playing drums, promises
to get toes tapping and fingers snapping from children and parents
alike.
 

This particular program finds our emcee and mascot, “Baker Bobbie,”
fretting over her quest for the perfect cookie and the fact that each
time she bakes what she’s sure is the same recipe, the end result is
never quite the same.  With the musicians help, she discovers that
adding different ingredients each time – similar to how jazz is played,
creates the most interesting and delicious result of all.  Works on
this concert range from Duke Ellington and Sonny Rollins to Miles Davis
and Thelonius Monk. 
 

Don’t miss this unique experience of an opening sing-along, great live
music presented in a theatrical context, hands on instrument
demonstrations, and of course, chocolate chip cookies for all in attendance at the end of the program!
 

Also note, we are pleased to announce the launch of our brand new website.  http://www.chocolatechipmusic.org/
 

We look forward to seeing you!

Helen Richman

Founder and Artistic Director

PHOTO FROM YVE IN LONDON ON FLICKR

Thanks to Gowanus Lounge for bringing this to OTBKB’s attention. It’s from someone named Kara on Myspace.   

First little poetry:

Somebody stole my car
Somebody stole my automobile
They ripped off the radio and sold the wheels
And if it’s happened to you
Then you know how I feel
Somebody stole my car

somebody stole my car
I left it parked outside of my home
It had a new A/C and a cellular phone
And I’m as sick as a dog
‘Cos I’m still paying off the loan
Somebody stole my car

A letter:

Sunday, September 17, 2006

To the person who stole my car on Saturday night:

Current mood: angry

You know who you are. You took it from its parking spot on Prospect Park West between 9th and 10th Streets in Park Slope Saturday night. You did it while I was watching the Yankee game and drinking a Sam Adams.

Enjoy listening to Howard Stern on my Sirius Radio. Feel free to change the presets if you’d like, but maybe you actually like the Classic Vinyl channel. I also hope you’re a big Pearl Jam fan because that’s 75% of what you’ll be hearing on that iPod you took along with my car. Yes, that’s right. I hope you’re excited to hear 27 different live versions of "Evenflow".

In the event that you can’t remember your prayers, perhaps the rosary beads hanging from the rearview mirror will jog your memory. I know they helped me remember my prayers when I got them for my First Holy Communion back in 1987.

Watch the head on that bopping Dalmatian on the dash, though. It tends to break if you make him dance too much. My dad told me the same thing when he bought it for me.

Keep the parking pass that allows me to park at work. I won’t need it seeing as how I no longer have a car to park in my reserved space. Keep the Dunkin Donuts napkins that have accumulated in the glove box, too. You’re also welcome to the spare change in that slot on the driver’s side. But there’s no Altoids in that box that’s on the floor.

That sleeping bag in the trunk? It’s insulated because I take it camping. But if you would rather play some sports before settling down in your new sleeping bag, maybe the hockey skates will fit you. I know they fit me fine when I bought them back in 1994. They were a good reliable pair of skates. Maybe you’re more of a baseball fan? There’s a glove in the trunk but it’s a left handed one. I hope you’re right handed.

The various items of clothing in my car probably won’t be to your taste or your size though.

I think I’ve thought of everything.

Oh, wait.

Fuck you!

Here’s the scoop from New York 1:

New York became the eleventh state Friday afternoon with a confirmed
case of illness resulting from E. coli bacteria in bagged spinach,
according to the Associated Press.

In all, the bacteria is known to have sickened roughly 60 people, ages 3 to 84, the majority of them women.

Connecticut, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, New Mexico, Ohio,
Oregon, Utah and Wisconsin have all reported cases. Wisconsin accounted
for about half, including the lone death.

Health officials were also investigating Firday possible cases in California, Pennsylvania and Washington.

FDA officials are advising people not to eat packaged spinach bearing the following brand names:

Bellissima Cheney Brothers Coastline Compliments Cross Valley D’Arrigo Brothers Dole Earthbound Farm Emeril Fresh Point Green Harvest Jansal Valley Mann Mills Family Farm Natural Selection Foods Nature’s Basket O Organic Premium Fresh President’s Choice Pride of San Juan Pro*Act Pro-Mark Rave Spinach Ready Pac River Ranch Riverside Farms Snoboy Superior Sysco Tanimura & Antle The Farmer’s Market Trader Joe’s The affected packages have "Best If Used By" dates between August 17 and October 1. E. Coli symptoms include diarrhea, stomach cramps, nausea, and vomiting.

Check out the Writer’s Coalition table at the Brooklyn Book Fest.

        Join us tomorrow at the Brooklyn Book
Festival at Borough Hall! We will have a table
inside the cozy Youth Pavillion Info Tent, safe from
all elements! We will have advance copies of our new
anthology, If These Streets Could Talk, on sale at
the special Book Fest price of $10 (33% off cover
price!), so come on by and pick up a book or just
say hi!

The Brooklyn Book Festival has an
amazing
lineup of authors, readings and panel discussions,
including with NYWC favorites Jhumpa Lahiri and
Libba Bray, among many many others!! It’s not to be
missed.
       

Silver-haired Ann W. Richards, who was Texas’s 45th governor until an upset
in 1994 by George W. Bush, died Wednesday at her home in Austin. She was 73.

I remember she made a great speech at the 1988 Democratic Convention. It was funny, tart, and full of greats Southern attitude.

And in the gubernatorial race against Bush she coined the great phrase: "Poor George, he can’t help it, he was born with a silver foot in his mouth."

That was a good one.

The daughter of the first Caribbean-born woman to serve on the City Council, Yvette Clarke narrowly won the race for Major Owen’s congressional seat, a seat once held by Shirley Chisholm,

Shirley Chisholm figured prominently in Clarke’s acceptance speech: "She rewrote history. She was
independent. She was brilliant. I will never be intimidated
from standing up for what I think is right for a diverse cross section
of my constituency,’’

David Yassky conceded the race early Wednesday morning saying, “I congratulate Yvette Clarke on her victory."

It was a race that generated a lot of national attention because it brought up issues of race, representation and the appropriateness of a white politician running in a black district, one of many created after
the Voting Rights Act to increase minority representation in Congress.

David Yassky angered many for entering the race at all. Many felt that he had no business running in a largely African American district.

It was a contentious race from the start with three African American candidates and Yassky, who is white. The Atlantic Yards issue became a key issue, even though it is obviously not a matter that will be determined by congress. All of the candidates were anti-war.

The anti-Ratner candidate was Chris Owens, the son of Major Owens, who is retiring from the seat this year.

I’ve heard from Ed Koch, Andrew Cuomo, Al Sharpton, Yassky’s people, Carl Owens, and others. Every time the phone rings it’s a politician (on tape) or a poller. I can’t stand it anymore.

Tuesday is primary day: alright I get it. You want me to vote for you or your guy or gal. Okay. Got it. But stop calling pleeeeeeeeeeze stop calling.

Vote.

Gowanus Lounge made this beautiful collage with the last photo he took of the WTC on August 24th, 2001, masking tape, and his typewritten words. I had to run it. Go to the Lounge for more.

Continue reading MEMORIAL →

A friend who is director of a local after school program in a city housing project is looking for ideas for programming to bring into the center for kids age 6-12 in the afternoon and teenagers in the evening.

She’s looking for performing arts groups, troupes, bands, etc. to perform, as well as artists who can provide hands on experience with the following: music, art, film, writing, poetry, dance, gardening and more.

The program has NO MONEY. If you know anything about fundraising, that could be helpful, too.

If anyone is affiliated with a performance group or an interesting arts organization of any kind that might be of interest to kids and teens please let me know. You can contact me by email (louise_crawford@yahoo.com) or post as a comment on OTBKB.

Oh how things have changed since 9/11. The world’s love and sorrow rained down on us after  9/11. It was q healing and beautiful show of unity. Then the Bush administration and our depressing quagmire in Iraq made us the most reviled nation in the world. What a lost opportunity. A tragedy, whose outcome we don’t even know. Here is the opening of Hendrik Hertzberg’s "Talk of the Town" in the 9.11.06 issue of the New Yorker.

After the calamity that glided down upon us out of a clear blue sky on the morning of Tuesday, September 11, 2001—five short years ago, five long years ago—a single source of solace emerged amid the dread and grief: a great upwelling of simple solidarity. Here in New York, and in similarly bereaved Washington, that solidarity took homely forms. Strangers connected as friends; volunteers appeared from everywhere; political and civic leaders of all parties and persuasions stood together, united in sorrow and defiance. In certain regions of the country, New York had been regarded (and resented) as somehow not quite part of America; that conceit, not shared by the terrorists, vanished in the fire and dust of the Twin Towers. The reconciliation was mutual. In SoHo and the Upper West Side, in the Village and the Bronx, sidewalk crowds cheered every flag-bedecked fire engine, and the Stars and Stripes sprouted from apartment windows all over town. New York, always suspect as the nation’s polyglot-plutocratic portal, was now its battered, bloody shield.

The wider counterpart to our traumatized togetherness at home was an astonishing burst abroad of what can only be called pro-Americanism. Messages of solidarity and indignation came from Libya and Syria as well as from Germany and Israel; flowers and funeral wreaths piled up in front of American Embassies from London to Beijing; flags flew at half-staff across Europe; in Iran, a candlelight vigil expressed sympathy. “Any remnants of neutrality thinking, of our traditional balancing act, have gone out of the window now,” a Swedish political scientist told Reuters.

So this is what really goes on at the Park Slope Tea Lounges. Sez Brooklyn Record: people make eyes at each other over their laptops and then post a Missed Connections on Craig’s List.

And you thought it was all about Jennifer Connolly sightings and babies. By the way, all of the following posts have expired. Tea Lounge has a new outpost on Court Street near the corner of Kane Street.

Sep- 5   You were sitting outside Tea Lounge on 8th Street… – m4m – 35 (Park Slope)

Sep- 4   MC with a cool place to read…

Aug-16   Tea Lounge, Union St., blonde barista – m4w – 36 (Park Slope)

Aug- 8   ghetto white boy at tea lounge – 19 (tea lounge in park slope)

Aug- 7   Sunday around 10pm, red t-shirt at Tea Lounge – w4m – 25 (7th Ave Park Slope)

Aug- 6   you: beautiful, writing a screenplay about a challenged hasid – 31 (Park Slope)

Here’s the publisher’s blurb on Lori Soderlind, who is reading on September 21 at Brooklyn Reading Works at the Old Stone House at 8 p.m. Fifth Avenue between 3rd and 4th Streets. Her book, CHASING MONTANA: A LOVE STORY, is said to be "an outrageous adventure told with humor and compassion." 

Lori, the heroine of this rousing narrative, is attempting to flee the hectic East Coast for a better life in the West. She is a child of the Seventies who feels misled by the rebellious "boomer" generation and disappointed with life in 1980s New Jersey. Spurred by the tale of her pioneering grandparents, who immigrated to Montana, and following her friend Madeleine, who has all the answers, Lori quits her job, loosens her ties, and sets off into a wild frontier.

Lori’s story is one of love for people and for places that are more mythic than real. Her pursuit is as painfully familiar as it is impossible: she seeks meaning in life while working dead-end jobs, falls in love with uninterested partners, and plans a future that seems doomed from the start. Somehow, though, she persists and ultimately finds her place as a twenty-first-century pioneer.

"An understated and moving memoir that feels like a road trip with a really good friend. But more than that, it’s a subtle social commentary, a travel story, a coming out, and an epitaph for the ghost towns of the West. Chasing Montana will be a new road favorite for meandering women across the land."–Mack Friedman, author of Setting the Lawn on Fire

"I rolled down my window. The air rushed in like a flood of invisible cotton, soft and edgeless. It smelled like the earth baked in sun. Oh god: it could all be so beautiful, it could, it could, if we wanted. I yelled above the radio and the wind rushing in: ‘Madeleine, I want to be free as wild horses, I want to live among the buffalo, I want to let my hair grow to my knees and swim naked in cold rivers. I want to live, to live, to live until I die and nothing can stop me now. I WANT TO BE FREEEEEEE!’ "–Excerpt from Chasing Montana

Brooklyn Reading Works starts up again on THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 21 AT 8 p.m. at the Old Stone House on Fifth Avenue between 3rd and 4th Streets.

And it’ll be so much easier to pull off than Brooklyn Film Works, our exciting July outdoor film series. I’m not kidding you: putting up a 15 x 20 ft. screen, audio equipment, tents, etc. every week was as A LOT OF WORK. Luckily we had a crack crew of volulnteers and technicians. But boy. And all that worry about rain and HEAT and the garbage truck and on and on. Not to mention we set up on either the hottest days of the summer or the wettest. On the Moonstruck night, we had to stop the film and were just lucky to get the audience off the lawn before the big lightning storm. But it was really, really fun and a great sucess.

But a reading series is easy by comparison: you don’t have to worry about the weather because it’s indoors, you set up a bunch of chairs, drinks and refreshments, the podium…Easy and fun. And oh so literary.

BROOKLYN READING WORKS 2006-2007 SEASON

September 21, 2006 Opening Night Festivities

Lori Soderland, author of CHASING MONTANA (UW Press) will read. park Slope residet, Mary Sternbach reads recently published short story.

October 19, 2006

LEORA SKOLKIN-SMITH will read from her book, “EDGES: O PALESTINE, O ISRAEL” published by “Glad Day Books” a small literary house founded by GRACE PALEY and Robert Nichols. Ms. Paley was the editor of “Edges” . The novel has recently been nominated for a PEN/Faulkner Award. It was also, selected by The Jewish Book Council for a National Tour and will be featured at this year’s Virginia Festival for the Book.

RICHARD GRAYSON reads from his new collection of short stored, “AND TO THINK HE KISSD HIM ON LORIMER STREET AND OTHER STORIES.”

November 16, 2006

Author DARCEY STEINKE, author of SUICIDE BLONDE (chosen as a New York Times notable book of the year), UP FROM THE WATER and JESUS SAVES will read from her new book.

December 14, 2006

An evening of poetry with 32 POEMS MAGAZINE. 32 Poems is a semiannual poetry magazine published in April and November. Each issue of journal contains 32 poems so you can give intimate, unhurried attention to each. It’s easy to carry and inviting to read.

The comfortable size of 32 POEMS and the superb quality of the work therein provides an alternative to larger collections and is attractive to new readers of contemporary poetry. Publisher Deborah Ager and a group of 32 Poems poets will be present.

January 18,2007

CLYDE OF NYC: THE FUNKY HOMOSEXUAL Clyde is a twenty-, thirty-, forty-something living in New York City, the Northern suburbs, the Eastern suburbs, in a van down by the river; the East River, the Hudson River. He love naps, White Castle cheeseburgers, The Flintstones, I Love Lucy, and Batman-THE Batman. He is madly in love and totally unavailable (sorry girls; and guys). He is a prolific short fiction writer and dabbles in poetry, rarely.

February 22, 2007

CARLA THOMPSON will read from her book, BEARING WITNESS, NOT SO CRAZY IN ALABAMA, which was well-reviewed by Booklist, Library Journal, Baltimore City Paper, MyShelf.com and Black Issues Book Review. There will be another reader TBD.

MARCH 15,2007

Brooklyn Reading Works celebrates ONE STORY MAGAZINE, an acclaimed literary magazine published right here in Park Slope. About their unusual, one-story, small format: “We believe that short stories are best read alone. They should not be sandwiched in between a review and an expos� on liposuction, or placed after another work of fiction that is so sad or funny or long that the reader is worn out by the time they turn to it.”

Publisher Marybeth Batcha and Editor Hannah Tinti will gather up a bunch of ONE STORY fiction talent for a night of fun, frolic and readings at The Old Stone House.

APRIL 19,2007

KRISTINA CHEW, a classics professor and mom writes a blog called AUTISMLAND. “Finding out your child has autism is like the end of a love affair and the start of a new, lifelong, really beautiful relationship.” MOTHERS VOX, the nom-de-net of a mother, teacher, scholar and activist living in New York City, will read from her blog, AUTISM’S EDGES.

MAY 24,2007

In honor of Mother’s Day, ALISON LOWENSTEIN, author of City Baby Brooklyn, will read from her novel-in-progress, MOMMY GROUP, about a group of Park Slope moms. SMARTMOM (aka Louise Crawford) will be reading excerpts from her Brooklyn Papers column and another Mommy blogger TBD.

JUNE 21,2007

Poets MICHAEL RUBY and NANCY GRAHAM will read

Michael Ruby’s first book, At An Intersection , was published in 2002 by Alef Books in New York. His poems have been published, or are forthcoming, in the print journals Lungfull!, syllogism , Fell Swoop ‘s Brooklyn Stoop issue, Lost & Found Times, and The Torch ; and in e-zines xStream , Aught , Big Bridge , La Petite Zine , Sidereality , BlazeVOX, Castagraf and Unpleasant Event Schedule, as well as in single-author issues of Mudlark and Poethia . He lives in Park Slope, Brooklyn, and works as a journalist.

Nancy Graham’s poetry and prose have appeared in Aught, BlazeVOX, Chronogram, Prima Materia, Listening in Dreams: A Compendium of Sound Dreams, Meditations and Rituals for Deep Dreamers and Eratio. Her chapbook, Somniloquies, is available through Pudding House Publications.

The retirement of Rep. Major Owens means that there’s a vacant seat in Brooklyn’s 11th
Congressional District (spanning Brooklyn Heights to East New
York, parts of Park Slope, Cobble Hill, Windsor Terrace,
Prospect Heights and East Flatbush). In the race are State Sen. Carl
Andrews (D-Crown Heights), City Councilwoman Yvette Clarke (D-Flatbush)
and Chris Owens, the current congressman’s son and City Councilman David Yasky.

This week, the Brooklyn Papers surprised everyone by endorsing David Yasky. Here’s an excerpt from from this week’s editorial. Who are you voting for?

Wonk-like in demeanor and a bit stiff on the campaign trail, Yassky is unlike many politicos — he actually makes a difference.

In his term-and-a-half as a city councilman, he’s pushed the mayor
to mandate affordable housing as part of the rezoning of the
Williamsburg and Greenpoint waterfronts; worked to revise taxicab codes
to provide for hybrid cabs; helped keep film companies, with hundreds
of union jobs, working in New York City; and continued the fight —
begun when he was an aide to then-Rep. Charles Schumer — against gun
manufacturers.

We’re not pleased by the strong support he receives from developers
who fill his campaign war chest. Or with the fact that he moved to New
York City from Washington, D.C. after the imposition of term-limits
created open seats on the Council — or that he again moved so that he
would reside within the 11th District before running for the seat.

But while Yassky has been supportive of development, he has also
listened to the critics of the Atlantic Yards project. Yes, he supports
Bruce Ratner building at that site, but at last week’s state public
hearing he reiterated his position that the development must be halted
if it is not scaled back.

As Yassky demonstrated in the City Council, he doesn’t just issue
press releases or make speeches, but makes deals with those who have
other agendas and priorities.

Yassky is clearly the best candidate for the job. Our guess is that
once he gets to Washington, all voters will see what a gifted,
energetic legislator like Yassky can deliver.

View the September 2, 2006 Print Editions

I’m Seeing Green has quite the story about leaving his son at the seats to get food at the US Open. He should rename his blog I’m Seeing Red. Here’s an excerpt from this ‘Only in New York’ kind of story.

The D gets cranky when hungry (as do I, according
to Elizabeth,) and refuses to give a pre-hunger warning, so when we
were waiting in Armstrong stadium for a match to start, I decided to
get us lunch. Had no idea how long it would take in line for hot-dogs
(20 mins) and that you had to wait to get back into the stadium at a
game break (5 mins). Back I came and two nearby moms informed me that
they had been about to call security on poor "abandoned" Dylan. This
seemed more than officious…here’s a perfectly content 8-1/2 year old
enjoying the match. When I suggested they were overreacting, one said
"…after all, this is New York!" and the other muttered something
about "being sorry if something happened". My reaction, flak suit
donned?

Tom Cruise made nice with Brooke Shields who he criticized for using antidepressants for post-partum depression. The couch-jumping ass, however, has not changed his mind about antidepressants. It seems that Brooke has accepted his apology. This from the NY Times.

Brooke Shields says Tom Cruise has apologized for publicly criticizing her use of antidepressants after the birth of her first daughter.

The
two had a public beef last year after the ”Mission: Impossible III”
star, echoing the position of Scientology, said in an appearance on
NBC’s ”Today” show that depression can be treated with exercise and
vitamins rather than drugs.

The 41-year-old actress says Cruise apologized in person Thursday.

”He
came over to my house, and he gave me a heartfelt apology,” Shields
said Friday during an appearance on ”The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.” ”And he apologized for bringing me into the whole thing and for everything that happened.

”And
through it all, I was so impressed with how heartfelt it was. And I
didn’t feel at any time that I had to defend myself, nor did I feel
that he was trying to convince me of anything other than the fact that
he was deeply sorry. And I accepted it.”

Cruise’s spokesman confirmed the celebrities made up.

”It
is true that his friendship with Ms. Shields has been mended,”
spokesman Arnold Robinson said in a statement. ”He has not changed his
position about antidepressants, which as evidenced by the black label
warnings issued by the FDA on these types of drugs, are unhealthy.”

Shields,
who wrote ”Down Came the Rain: My Journey Through Postpartum
Depression,” has dismissed the actor’s remarks as a ”ridiculous
rant” and ”a disservice to mothers everywhere.”

Look what’s playing at the Park Slope Pavilion captured by Brooklyn Record.

LOTS TO DO AT the Brooklyn Artists Gym : 168 Seventh Street. 3rd Floor. Brooklyn, NY

OPENING!! THE FIRST BAG "SMALL WORKS SHOW" The Small Works Show will open on Sept. 8. Over 50 artists. Over 100 works. PARTY 6:00-9:00. Come have some food, some wine, buy an early Xmas present of art. Show’s open from Sept. 8-19. Click here for more info.

BAG AND IRART KIDS JOINS FORCES. BAG will have a kids art program starting September 26. Call us for more information.More.

JOIN US AT THE "ATLANTIC ANTIC" We’ll have a booth on Atlantic Ave. between Smith and Hoyt Sts. Come say Hi, do some painting, buy a painting, sign up for Kids Art, take advantage of the Antic Special and become a member. Membership info.

SATURDAY LONG POSE FOR ARTISTS
Every Saturday from 12-3 we have a 3-hour pose for artists to do extended studies or paint.  This will be a complete set-up with model and props.  Saturday replaces the Monday evening session; the Wednesday session (6:30-9:30 continues as always.  More….

WATCH OUT FOR "PLASTIC BAG SCREENINGS"
In the fall we are starting a bimonthly new and experimental film night! Interested in showing your film? Email us at: pbs@brooklynartistsgym.com. Please check back soon for dates and times.

Hepcat found this on Boing Boing.  Dinosaur Jr. played at Warsaw in Williamburg on August 29th.

Dinosaur, Jr’s entire collection of gear has been stolen out of their
trailer, and they’re trying to recover it before they have to start
cancelling gigs.

After a blistering set last night in Brooklyn, NY the band awoke this morning to find that the their trailer had been broken into and all of the gear has been taken.

J’s Amma guitar, the mountain man guitar, Lou’s Rickenbacker… EVERYTHING IS GONE. They are still taking inventory to see what else is gone but they were pretty much wiped out.

WE NEED YOUR HELP!!! Spread the word to everyone you know, every music store, pawn shop, club… anywhere you can think they may show up.

If you have ANY information let us know – management@jmascis.com.

Details, descriptions and serial numbers are on Dinosaur Jr’s Blog

My new fave blog, I’m Seeing Green, has a great piece today about sports, boys, his son, and other matters….

I remember reading an excellent children’s book, "The Man on the
Ceiling," by Jules Feiffer, to Dylan almost three years ago; it’s about
a 10-year old who loves to draw cartoons (surprise, surprise) and do
not much else, and laments "It’s hard to grow up in [these United
States of America] as a boy who doesn’t like sports." Dylan’s eyes lit
up–I’m sure he related totally to this sentiment.

My first birthday in New York City in 8 years and my twin sister spends the evening in the emergency room. Great.

Day started just fine. I slept really late and then my sis came by with her car. We went into the city and had lunch with my mom. My sister complained about something in her eye. It kept getting worse and worse. While browsing at Barney’s on the Upper West Side she started to really worry about her eye. Maybe there’s something in there? It’s not getting any better. She bought some eye wash at a pharmacy and that didn’t help at all.

Once in Brooklyn we drove by my doctor’s office in Cobble Hill but his office was locked up. It was close to 6 p.m. We went to a few of the local eye glass shops on Seventh Avenue hoping there was a ophthalmologist around.

At Eye Shoppe, the owner said: "Go to Methodist. If she’s got something in her eye than she needs to get it out. Go to the emergency room.

So we did. Triage went quickly. But then we waited and waited and waited. My sister’s friend, who was supposed to meet us for a birthday dinner at Belleville, came by and sat with my sister while I went to meet part of my family at Belleville. OSFO would not leave Diaper Diva’s side in her time of need.

She finally saw a physicians assistant and a nurse. They didn’t have much to say. Gave her a script. She’s going to the eye doctor today. Most of my experiences with the Methodist emergency room have been positive. The pediatric ER was especially great when OSFO bashed her head into the gate at the 9th Street Playground — there was so much blood they saw us right away. HC has been there numerous times with breathing trouble — so they always saw us quickly.

The rest of us had fun at Belleville and kept trying to reach them in the emergency room but of course they weren’t allowed to use their cell phones. When they finally returned: jubilation and questions. And a birthday cake from Two Little Red Hens.

Happy Birthday!

Gowanus Lounge linked to this photo on Frank Lynch’s Flickr page of Tom and Carlos of Soundtrack, which will be closing its Seventh Avenue Store after 25 years of doing business. They plan to reopen on Fifth Avenue. They are still open and selling inventory at a huge discount as far as I know.