The New York City Department of Correction (DOC) invites the community to attend an open house at the Brooklyn Detention Complex, more commonly known at the Brooklyn House of Detention or the “House of D’.”
…

The open house in being held in advance of the phased re-opening of the House of Detention. Approximately 100 inmates per week will be transferred to the facility beginning in February. This will be an opportunity to meet Warden Walter Nin, ask questions and tour the facility.

To take advantage of this (we hope) once in a lifetime opportunity, please RSVP to Delilah Ortega in the DOC Department of Public Information at Delilah.Ortega@doc.nyc.gov or (718) 546-0631.

The second speaker of the series will be Peg Tyre, author of The Good School: How Smart Parents Get Their Kids the Education They Deserve (Henry Holt, 2011). Currently a fellow at the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism, where she teaches writing about education, Tyre offers both practical advice and insight to cutting edge research on what works best in education. She is also the author of the NYTimes bestseller, The Trouble With Boys.
Future scheduled speakers include Paul Tough, author of Whatever It Takes: Geoffrey Canada’s Quest to Change Harlem and America. Tough’s appearance will coincide with publication of his new book on teaching character.

Diane Ravitch: January 10, 6:30 p.m.- 8. p.m.
Peg Tyre: March 7, 6:30 p.m.-8 p.m.
Paul Tough: September 2012

If you have questions, please contact Lesley Alderman (Lesley61@gmail.com) or Rebecca Johnson (Beckersny@yahoo.com).

Neighborhood HOLIDAY TREE RECYCLING

In Cooperation with Mulchfest 2012 by City of New York/ Parks and Recreation Department

Saturday, January 7 and Sunday, January 8, 2012

Drop off your Holiday trees at the location below.

Wreaths and garlands cannot be accepted. Please remove lights and decorations.  No artificial trees!

Location: Cobble Hill Park: Clinton and Verandah Place

9:30 am – 1:30 pm

MULCH BAGS WILL BE AVAILABLE FOR THOSE WISHING TO TAKE MULCH FOR THEIR GARDENS OR TREE PITS.

Trees will not be accepted after the scheduled times.

Sponsored by:

Cobble Hill Tree Fund ,  Cobble Hill Association,  Friends of Cobble Hill Park, and  Boy Scout Troops 213 & 815

Whether you celebrate Christmas, Hannukah, or Kwanzaa, come join us as we celebrate the Holiday Season at the 5^th Annual Columbia Waterfront District Tree Lighting Event. The festivities start at 5:00 pm on Friday, December 9^th, 2011 at the Human Compass Garden, located at the corner of Sackett and Columbia Streets. This year’s event will feature live Holiday Jazz Music by the Less Magnetic Band and an assortment of free refreshments from local restaurants and businesses.  Santa Claus will also spread more cheer by handing out toys to children at the event.

Gowanus Canal, Photo by Andrew Nicholas

The Gowanus Canal Conservancy has devised a great way to gift yourself while giving to a local cause this holiday season, with the inception of its first annual Winter Festival fundraiser.

Billed as “a celebration of local food, beer, and music on the Gowanus Canal,” the event will feature a three-course dinner followed by a three-hour concert on Saturday, December 3, at Build It Green! NYC’s warehouse space on 69 9th Street.

“On the one hand, this fundraiser is important to our lifeline” said Hans Hesselein, Director of Special Projects at the watershed stewardship organization. “On the other hand, a lot of what we’re trying to achieve is social and environmental change around the canal. A great way to get people aware is to have social functions like these that bring the community together.”

In keeping with the spirit of community, the Winter Festival’s dinner will be provided by Lot 2, the farm-to-table restaurant on 687 6th Avenue that is located within the Gowanus Canal watershed. “The stormwater that lands on their property usually ends up in the canal, so they’re physically connected to it,” Hesselein noted. “But also, their mission to bring sustainably farmed local foods to their restaurant and to the people that dine there is very much in line with the conservancy. Although we are not a food advocacy organization, we certainly appreciate and support sustainable food practices, which is what Lot 2 is all about.”

Lot 2 will serve up chicken and sausage gumbo, coleslaw with pickled pepper vinaigrette, buttermilk and honey cornbread, and apple crumble bars. The sausage and tasso for the gumbo will be provided by locally based Brooklyn Cured, and the drink selection will include beers from New York microbreweries Butternuts Beer & Ale and Captain Lawrence. Dinner will be served from 6:30 – 9 pm and will be accompanied by a DJ set and silent auction.

After dinner, the concert will kick off, with live music by performers Amanda Palmer, The Suzan, Savoir Adore, and Ambassadors. “I’m really excited,” said Hesselein of the Winter Festival’s musical lineup, which he describes as indie rock pop that is experimental, yet dancy. “It should be a lot of fun.” The concert is scheduled to begin at 9 pm and wrap up at midnight.

Three types of tickets are being sold for the fundraiser – a $15 ticket for the concert only (with a cash bar), a $40 ticket for the concert and dinner (including two beers), and a $60 ticket for the concert, dinner, and conservancy membership. Tickets are available for purchase at Brown Paper Tickets.

All proceeds will benefit the Gowanus Canal Conservancy, including the organization’s Clean & Green Volunteer Program, Compost Program, and Rain Garden projects. “The fundraiser is going to support our volunteer program and help us continue to bring exciting capital investments to the community,” Hesselein explained, noting that two of the conservancy’s current projects are the 6th Street Green Corridor and the 2nd Street Sponge Park, which will create gardens designed to capture and clean the stormwater runoff that presently drains into the canal.

“We’re focused on bringing sustainable environmental practices and green development to the Gowanus Canal and its watershed,” Hesselein added. “In order to support those goals, we have a bunch of different initiatives – from our green infrastructure capital projects… to our meetings with elected officials to try to bring the most effective and green solutions to stormwater management and environmental problems as possible.”

Fruity. Nutty. Savory. Sweet.

From cobblers, crisps, buckles and pandowdies to whoopie pies, tarts, strudels, empanadas, borek, Chinese egg custard tarts, pasteles, crostatas – EVERYTHING pie-inspired will be on hand, as PS 29 in Cobble Hill embraces the hottest food trend of 2011 with EAT, PIE & SHOP.

This holiday festival, flea market and pie-tasting bonanza’s big draw is not only a gigantic TASTING opportunity (more than 300 pies expected) –but also a celebrity-judged PIE BAKING CONTEST (celebrity judges include Gail Simmons, Food & Wine and “Top Chef,” Danielle Kyrillos, “Top Chef: Just Desserts, Chef Marc Anthony Bynum of Food Network’s Chopped).

EAT, PIE & SHOP
Sunday, December 4th
11am till 4pm
PS 29 – 425 Henry Street, Brooklyn

Other draws include a flea market featuring dozens of local, artisan holiday gifts – and activities for the kids.

Event FEATURES:
Pie Social – Home Baked AND Professional Pies
Pie Contest – featuring TOP CHEF celebrity judge panel
Gift Fair – Artisan products with over 20 vendors
Kids Activities – workshops by Children’s Museum of the Arts

SPONSORS: Half Pint Citizen, Fork & Pencil, Brooklyn Farmacy & Soda Fountain, Shake Shack, Children’s Museum of the Arts and Mini Max Toys & Cuts!

PS 29 is hoping that by embracing the 2011 pie trend, they’ll increase the take from this annual event – as the school’s PTA must raise more than $600 per child to maintain it’s current programs.

For more event information: www.eatpieandshop.org

Cobble Hill Association: In our continuing efforts to green the neighborhood, the Cobble Hill Association and amazing folks at PS29 are yet again holding an electronics recycling event with the Lower East Side Ecology Center. What’s more, it’ll include plenty of other recycling opportunities too throughout the day!
• 10a.. to 4pm…Old computers and electronics will be collected by Lower East Side Ecology Center, in conjunction with Cobble Hill Association. See www.lesecologycenter.org to review the list of accepted items at bottom.
• Composting Workshop led by The NYC Compost Project in Brooklyn. Backyard composters will also be for sale.
• Computer hard drive shredding provided by eRecycleNY, PS 29 parent owned EPA compliant electronics recycling company serving the NYC area.
• Clothing rummage sale, proceeds go to PS 29 PTA. Wearable Collections will be picking up remaining clothes, as well as stained & ripped clothing, textiles & stuffed animals.
• Confidential Documents shredded on-site (& then recycled) for a small fee. by Time Shred Services

Walls and Bridges, the Franco/American arts and ideas festival, is returning to New York Oct 19 – 28 for its third season.  The festival brings together French and American performers, artists, philosophers, and writers who otherwise only encounter each other remotely.  There are 14 events over 10 days, bringing the total of Walls & Bridges events in NYC over 2011 to nearly 50.

Over the course of next weekend, Walls and Bridges will present five events at The Invisible Dog in Cobble Hill and all but one are free.

On Saturday we have:

A Tale of Two Chefs: a pop-up restaurant featuring Mathieu Rostaing Tayard (“one of Europe’s most exciting young chefs”-WSJ) paired with Brian Leth of Vinegar Hill House. The two will mix styles and prepare a $20 haute-cuisine lunch box that’ll be served up with discussion of who and what influenced their cooking in surprising ways. $20

• Screening Identities with Danny Glover and Malian filmmaker Mathia Diawara in discussion about African and African-American filmmaking  FREE
• Playing with Cinema: an exploration of French cinema through live representationin a set of performances pairing American choreographers and theater companies with famous scenes from French films by Godard, Tati, Melville and Demy. Performances by Migues Gutierrez, The National Theater of the United States of America, Annie-B Parson, & Dan SaferFREE
• Stranger Strangers: 4 French performance acts premiere in NYC, including digital juggling, a group that wears realistic pig costumes to explore our fascination/abhorrence with pigs,a performance of Professor Bad Trip, and a performer with an unhealthy obsession with Derek JarmanFREE (my pick of the weekend)

On Sunday we have just one show:

• Please Kill Me, the rock musical based on the lauded book of the same title by Legs McNeil, which used hundreds of hours of interviews to present the punk days of NYC, featuring the Velvet Underground, the Ramones, The New York Dolls and more. The show received raves in France, including from La Monde, and will be performed here for one night only.  In English.  FREE

Full event calendar here.

Under an instructor’s eye, a student kayaker does a roll behind One Brooklyn Bridge Park.

The U.S. Coast Guard cutter Dependable is berthed at Pier 7.

Update: “To be a part of it, you’ll need to pick up a free immersion card at By Brooklyn or Brooklyn Tattoo/Urban Folk Art Gallery starting at noon on June 18. There will only be 500 in circulation, so appoint a responsible friend to pick up yours if you can’t get to Smith St. early. (They go fast!)” There’s a list of participating stores giving discounts here.

via Grub Street

If you have some free time Tuesday evening and a spare $5, consider a trip to Union Hall in Park Slope to see Adult Education Presents: Brooklyn. There will be presentations on Coney Island; corrupt Brooklyn politicians of yore; and Brooklyn’s annexation by New York. And I will be presenting on the Brooklyn accent. Questions I’ll be answering include: Does dese dem and dose qualify as a Brooklyn accent? Where does youse come from? And how do I curse in Brooklynese?

Well, you should be so lucky to find out. Hope to see you there, I could use some friendly faces!

While I recognize that the Department of Education must utilize every amount of space they have the Department has not handled this situation in the appropriate manner. The Department did not speak with stakeholders prior to the release of their Educational Impact Statement. It is unfortunate that the Department has chosen to act this way and continues to do so despite community opposition.

She went on to praise the parents of P.S. 9 students for their energy and commitment to the school, and urged the DOE “to work with stakeholders to create an alternative site for the Brooklyn East Collegiate School.”

There will be a DOE hearing this evening at P.S. 9/M.S. 571 to discuss this issue, starting at 6:00. Ms. Millman, who is in Albany on business, will be represented by Michael Czaczkes, who will read her statement of opposition in full.

The class ran drop-in style. From 2pm to 7pm, participants could stop by and tune in to presentations every 30 to 60 minutes. All ingredients were provided, but if you wanted to bring your kimchi home, you had to BYOC (bring your own container).

Missed today’s class but want to learn from Brooklyn Brainery too? Sign up for the next class– “Bee Night,” complete with a movie, Q&A session, and honey tasting on January 25th at 7pm. For more details, visit this link.

Wednesday, February 2, 2011 7-8pm : The ABC’s of Mixing Drinks

Saturday, February 5, 2011 4-5pm : American Whiskey

Wednesday, February 9, 2011 7-8pm : Gin and the Winter

Saturday, February 12, 2011 4-5pm : Cocktails and Love Potions

Wednesday, February 16, 2011 7-8pm : Rum, X2

Wednesday, February 23, 2011 7-8pm: PUNCH

Saturday, February 26, 2011 4-5pm: TBD

Don’t need repairs, but want to learn how to make your own original jewelry? The Beginners’ Bead and Wire Work Course starts on Thursday January 27th. The program includes 6 classes– on Thursdays through March 10 (no class on February 3) from 7pm to 9pm, for $150. Students will make earrings and earring wires, create both delicate and old beaded chains, and engage in a variety of other projects. If you’re interested, email or call 718-462-5607.

The Hungry Cat Cafe Jewelry Studio is located at 455 Argyle Road.

Each year MulchFest sets up outposts all over the five boroughs where residents can discard their trees. This year, it will be held on January 8th and 9th at the usual spot, Cobble Hill Park (Clinton St. at Verandah Place). The site will be operating from 10am to 2pm and biodegradable bags will be provided should you want to bring some mulch home with you.

The market will be open on Saturday and Sunday from 11am to 7pm.  More information can be found here.

The market will be open from 2-6pm. For more details, click on the flier or visit http://wordoncolumbiastreet.blogspot.com/.

The event is part of the Shop & Dine Late Nights promotion happening along Atlantic Avenue this month. For more information on Hope Veterinary Clinic, visit their web site.

Full details and a list of vendors can be found here.