saturday TCB'n

on set at OVERFLOW photo shoot, jeff brown and jon melamed

the daily [mis]haps

For those bookworms out there, the Cobble Hill Association is hosting a free book swap tomorrow at the Long Island College Hospital Sitting Park. 

If you're not convinced, this ex-con proves how the literary world can change your life. So if you're on the road to criminal pursuits, read Henry Morales' memoir and learn how to obtain peace rather than a jail sentence. 

Take it from Mikey. Everyone needs to read a little more. So if you're still wondering where else to grab a good read, head out to the Brooklyn Flea and dig through those tables upon tables of books.

Bike and Barf?

Sometimes I wish I had a bike. Then I think about all the times bikes have almost run over me, all those close-call collisions when the delivery boys rapidly ring their bike bells at me. (One time a stationary bike attacked me on 13th street. Someone had the cojones to leave their wheels in the middle of the sidewalk.) Perhaps I should pay more attention...

My mixed feelings on biking in New York (boroughs and all) apply to THIS little adventure ride as well. Due to go down this Sunday starting in Prospect Park, this bike tour sounds partly delicious, partly cramp-inducing...possibly vomitous. Check it out and let us know!

You Can't Have This House

Who would have thought that a bright pink house could get so much press.

The infamous Bubble Gum Brownstone, which was recently up for sale, is now off the market. Otherwise known as the pink house of Garfield Place, owner Bernie Henry (at an impressive 92 years old) who originally painted the house has decided to take it off the market due to legal issues over ownership with his grandson.

Henry worries that purchasers will strip the place of its unique color. At $2.295 million, who could blame him?

the daily [mis]haps

First of all, I just have one thing to say:           

North Brooklyn   vs.   South Brooklyn

And now that that's been established, a further tribute to the hotness that is South Brooklyn: 

Adrien Grenier is not only a resident of South Brooklyn, but he's also so hot that we stalk him all the way from his eczema ointment shopping spree at the Park Slope Food Co-op to Paris. 

In other news, The Brooklyn Start! Heart Walk in Prospect Park raised money to save lives this past weekend.  

So, if you're looking for somewhere to chill tonight with the attractive and compassionate humanitarians of South Brooklyn, Langhorne Slim is playing a show at the Bell House.

Two-wheels are better than none

Brooklyn Bicycles, our favorite new bike shop in the hood, is running two new weekly programs that are free and open to all.

• Wednesday Nights: Around 7PM, neighbors shove off from the shop for a ride around Prospect Park. They welcome all bike types and skill levels.
  
  
• Thursday Nights: Evening flat fix workshops. You've been stranded before--don't let it happen again.

This shop is a real boon to the neighborhood--I've been missing a decent neighborhood shop for some time [cause those guys suck]--and these guys are the balm for my itch.

Editorial: David Yassky is Dunzo (Thank Christ)

David Yassky should have studied Robert Moses a bit more carefully. Had he done so, the Brooklyn Councilman’s political career wouldn’t be in its final death throes. While it’s clear he’s borrowed freely from the Book of Moses over the last few years, Yassky just can’t seem to get the equation to amassing power right.

Lord knows he’s tried. And failed. Neither his controversial bid for Congress in 2006 nor his shot at city comptroller this year were successful, though he was willing to do just about anything to win both.

Part of the problem has been Yassky’s puzzling political identity. Tom Robbins of the Village Voice has outlined the history of zigzags, flip-flops and U-turns that have to come to define Yassky’s time in elected office.

While Robbins sticks to the reporting and rarely editorializes he manages to suggest a fairly obvious conclusion. It’s difficult for Yassky to successfully run for higher office as a good government type and a champion of reform when he’s: carpetbagged a predominately black congressional district and ran as the only white candidate in an open house seat; been accused of diverting discretionary funds from the city budget to a phony non-profit in exchange for political favors; cozied up to party bosses whose influence he’s formerly opposed, and; sold out his constituents to big developers time and time again.

Of course, Yassky’s greatest gaffe came when he voted to extend term limits last year. The ensuing shit-storm would deal a mortal blow to two of Yassky’s perceived strengths, his integrity and his idealism, and effectively sink his chances at citywide office.

In all of these instances Yassky’s brazen political calculations proved to be gross miscalculations. Looking back it’s apparent that Yassky was not as conniving and not as smart as Robert Moses, nor does Yassky possess the raw political instinct that is fundamental to climbing the ladder of power.

As a result, come January, Yassky will most likely be scratching at the door of some of the bigger corporate law firms in Lower Manhattan and Midtown. Hopefully by then a few of those firms will have lifted their hiring freezes.

the daily [mis]haps

The Guns of Brooklyn:

three shot outside Prospect Park
Skater Cozmik dead

Her So Called Life [politely] Disapproves:

Claire Danes needs to hit up OVERFLOW

Hasidic Harrassment:
Orthodox Jews of Brooklyn seek justice outside rabbinical courts after rise in child sex abuse

The Beverage Manager

by james subudhi

We sat next to each other in our silence through two beers. I read. She drank and stared into the space between conversations. We gave periodic glances, our eyes swinging down like pendulums, at the blackberries in our laps, as if to give each other the sign that we were wanted, connected, not alone. We were alone.

She was at the bar to drink good beer and to prove to herself and her husband that she still had the looks to be hit on by a younger man. I sat at the bar to read and hit on women. We were a perfect match.

I suggested the Spatan to break the silence.

We dissolved each other’s insecurities in a warm solution of commonality, self-affirmation, flirting and intellectual indulgence.

I gave her a younger age. She gave me her hand to hold gently. I offered to play her a song. She gave me her business card.

Our conversation danced and tip toed on the thin silver back of the ring with a diamond on the other side facing her palm.

She was either too drunk to notice that I knew or wanted me to know to have a sense of security to fall back on in case our feet slipped it off her finger, her nail the edge of her comfort.

The ring turned up. The glass emptied. She told me she had to get up early in the morning. Somewhere in the distance a pumpkin carriage began to rot.

A Higher Class of Halloween

In the event that you are really sick of struggling your way through bunch of slutty kittens and angels on your way to a warm, flat keg and bowl of stale candy corn this Halloween, look no further than The Halloween Eve Masquerarde, hosted by Michael Arenella & His Dreamland Orchestra at the ultra chic speakeasy, The Green Building in Carroll Gardens.
Perhaps this might be the one party that I can wear my vintage 20's flapper dress without it being covered in beer, someone else's vomit or a combination of both? Here's hoping!

Event Details:
The Green Building
405 Union Street
Friday Oct. 30th, 2009

9:00pm

These Guys Actually Know How To Party

Bergen Street Comics knows how to throw down. Last month they broke out the Pabst and celebrated the newest comic book release by South Brooklyn's very own sci-fi/rock 'n' roll/superheroes, AMERICANS UK. The event was free and open to the public, yet somehow I received a complimentary invitation. I'm glad I showed up. Before receding into one of those phase three alcoholic fogs (I had been playing badminton earlier that afternoon in Prospect Park) I recalled having had a splendid time among familiar strangers.

This is all a fairly long-winded and self-indulgent way of saying that Bergen Street Comics has a couple of more killer events coming up. Quite frankly you'd be a fool to miss them:

Wednesday, October 14, 6:00pm - 9:00pm Release Party for the Act-i-vate Primer!

Bergen Street Comics is proud to celebrate the long awaited release of Act-i-vate’s very first print anthology, The Act-i-vate Primer! The book features 16 exclusive, never-before-seen stories by the acclaimed creators of “The Muppet Show Comic Book,” “Freddie & Me,” “The Salon,” “Fahrenheit 451,” “The Alcoholic,” “Scarlett Takes Manhattan,” “Nicolai Dante” and many more! Enjoy the refreshments, pick up your very own copy of the Primer and have it signed by your favorite comics creators! After-party at 4th Avenue Pub!

October 17, 7:00pm - 9:00pm High Moon, Box 13 and comiXology!
On Saturday, October 17^th, Bergen Street Comics and comiXology are proud to co-host the Brooklyn launch party for critically acclaimed creators, David Gallaher and Steve Ellis. Join us as we celebrate the launch of the print version of their online Zuda Comic “High Moon,” as well as “Box 13,” created by Gallaher, Ellis and Scott O. Brown. “Box 13” is a 13-part, a neo-noir thriller, and serialized digital comic, launching exclusively through comiXology and available on October 13.

We Wuz Wobbed

Last night, we participated in a battle of the wits at Public Assembly against the venerable Greenpoint Gazette. The whole shebang was orgaznied by the good folks at Vol. 1 Brooklyn.

It was a pitched battle, tightly fought. OVERFLOW was up going into the first break. At the second, we were down by 3/4 of a point. In the end, the judges settled the win via essay. We were each asked to write why our respective neighborhoods deserved victory. The judges went with GG's reasoning.

We think it had something to do with the fact that four out of four judges were from North Brooklyn.

But, in any event, the whole thing was fun, and were happy so many of our fans from South Brooklyn came out to check us out. We're looking forward to the rematch.

Unleash your Inner Nerd at The Secret Science Club!

Ever wonder what two black holes spinning next to each other sound like? Well, now you can stop wondering! Tonight, the Bell House in Gowanus is hosting another installment of the Secret Science Club. This week features Astrophysicist Janna Levin discussing gravitational waves and the amazing symphonies in space that these waves create. All that awesome science-y speak and I get to hang out at the Bell House? I'm there!

The “Secret Science Club” meets Tuesday, October 13 at 8 pm @ the Bell House, 149 7th St. (between 2nd and 3rd avenues) in Gowanus, Brooklyn, p: 718.643.6510 Subway: F to 4th Ave; R to 9th St; F or G to Smith/9th

More information can be found here:
http://secretscienceclub.blogspot.com/

the daily [mis]haps

Note to Mayor Bloomberg: withholding party invites is not the way to make friends with the community.
http://foundinbrooklyn.blogspot.com/2009/10/bloomberg-comes-to-gowanus-and-locks.html

F Train = Fail
http://cobblehillblog.com/archives/2951

If the city’s going to pay its drug lords, it should at least get some of the good stuff in return.
http://gothamist.com/2009/10/11/to_settle_lawsuits_city_paid_out_to.php

Object Lesson likes OVERFLOW!

Our good friend, Gabrielle Begue, over at Object Lesson has given OVERFLOW some love in her venerated blog. We suggest that you check it out at http://object-lesson.com. Ms. Begue features smartly written posts on the pleasures that quirky and unique objects can bring to our lives. Ms. Begue has worked on and written for OVERFLOW in the past and we hope that we can welcome her back to our pages very soon!

Thanks Ms. Begue!

Get tipsy with the spirit of Whitman at Henry Public

A new bar fashioned to resemble an historic Brooklyn saloon has opened in Cobble Hill, on Henry Street between Atlantic and Pacific. Brought to you by the same team that gave us Brooklyn Social, Henry Public has been put together to give old Brooklyn new life, supposedly channeling great thinkers "that shaped Brooklyn's history." To get a first-hand look at the just-opened space, check out this link to a slideshow on New York magazine's Web site. If they really do serve egg creams, I'm there like a shot.

http://newyork.grubstreet.com/2009/10/henry_public.html

Some Interesting News

1. "Are Park Slope moms undersexed?"

-for some reason, I just thought this was kind of funny:

2. "World's Fastest Nudist"

-pretty much says it all:

3. "More on the Gowanus Canal Cleanup"