Brooklynian

Hi, everyone. I am moving to New York on June 1st, 2013. I have an apartment with a roommate lined up in Greenwood Heights, but she wants to explore other areas. She is looking at an apartment about $200 cheaper in Prospect Lefferts Gardens off of Church Avenue. We will be 2 blocks from a subway stop. Is this area safe for 2 single Caucasian women in their 20s? The only reason I ask is because I see many mixed reviews all over the Internet about crime and violence. Any help/ advice would be great!

Please if you have found a 7-10 pound small shizu dog, please call me, she is 7 years old and a huge companion of mine. If found I will send you a reward.

Please call me or send a txt of the dog, 917 699 1269... i so appreciate your efforts.

Thank you!

Good People of Brooklyn,

On Sunday afternoon I lost my diamond engagement ring which slipped off my hand as I was getting out of the car on Park Place between Carlton and Vanderbilt. I just put hand lotion on, and I guess that was the reason. I am desperately hoping someone with a good heart found it and will be kind to return it to me. The ring was in a square top cluster setting with 4 small diamonds... Please, please if you hear anything, if you found it contact me. Or spread the word. Thank you. I greatly appreciate it.

I went to 606 R&D with the hubs last night for a drink and a bite. We ended up having an experience so bizarre that it should be the opening episode of Brooklyndia.

The decor at R&D is nice - clean and modern -- and I appreciate that as someone who loves good-quality modern design. The portions are very small given the prices. But this, too, I can live with. We ordered a glass of wine each and two appetizers. Mine was a dandelion green-ish salad (if you can call it a salad). More like a nicely trimmed pile of greens, said on the menu to be served with hard boiled egg, but actually dusted with hard boiled egg crumblets. So be it. Neither this or my husband's dish came with any kind of bread accompaniment. We were brought a tiny bowl of raw radish spears next to a smear of sea salt-coated butter, though.

I ask the waitress if I could have some bread to go with my salad. We don't have any, she tells us. Really? I asked, how can you not have something bread-like? A flatbread, a cracker, a breadstick - something? I've ordered a salad here before and received (when requested) a small slice of bread. Nope, she says, we don't have any.

She does offer at that point to bring me some oyster crackers. Okay, I say, I guess I'll take them.

Just before she brings us the two bags of pre-packaged oyster crackers,hubs recalls that there is a cheese plate on the menu. When she returns, I ask her (and a colleague who comes out with her, because I guess this bread request qualifies us to be troublesome customers or something) what do people get to eat with the cheese when they order the cheese plate? Waitress #2 says "we don't have bread," with a strange smile. Doesn't directly answer the question. But definitely with a period at the end of that statement.

Okaaaay....hubs and I make the best of it, trying to enjoy our glasses of one-note red "draft" wine, which comes cold and tastes like a super-young beaujolais nouveau.

When we are on our way out of the restaurant later hubs calls me back to peek into the open kitchen, where a chef is preparing food. Say, what is that on the counter?

An enormous loaf of crusty bread -- one they couldn't possibly use up by the end of the night (we left at 8:30PM).

R&D owners - this left us with a bad taste in our mouths (one a nice piece of bread might have taken care of). We live nearby and I come from time to time. But this was a most unpleasant experience - the opposite of a Danny Meyer-esque welcome that I would think an upscale little place like yours would strive for.

You should tell your staff to err on the side of gracious generosity rather than miserly stinginess. But it's too late for us. We won't be coming back.

So, let me get this straight:

You are accused of stealing the proceeds from foreclosed homes, and using some of the money to fund your campaign to be the Brooklyn DA?

...if these allegations are correct, I am really glad you are not now the DA.

Story:
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/07/nyregion/john-sampson-faces-charges-after-corruption-inquiry.html?_r=0

MEC is getting a face lift on the main entrance and remodeling the library. Looks nice.

Buy the whole building for $1.85M
http://www.cpexre.com/system/assets/properties/documents/545/original/662_Washington_Ave_Setup.pdf?1366294144

Or, just lease the first floor for $6k a month
http://www.cpexre.com/system/assets/properties/documents/549/original/662_Washington_Ave_-_Setup.pdf?1367349585

Is this restaurant closed for good?

2013 Season I International Artist Residency Exhibition

The Garden

May 10 – June 14, 2013

Opening Reception & Performance
Friday, May 10, 6 – 8pm

Artist Talk & Performance
Friday, May 31, 7pm

Participating Artists
Erica Bailey
David Birkin
Katya Grokhovsky
Takeshi Ikeda
Taiyo Kimura
Thessia Machado
Yoko Shimizu

The NARS Foundation is delighted to present The Garden, a reflection on life’s cycles and our perception of inevitable transformation. The exhibition features selections from the work of the 2013 Season I Residency Artists: Erica Bailey, David Birkin, Katya Grokhovsky, Takeshi Ikeda, Taiyo Kimura, Thessia Machado, and Yoko Shimizu. Their practices encourage possibilities for growth, re-birth and renewal, but this is not Shangri-La. The artists are keenly aware of decay, impermanence and isolation. While they reap a harvest which is abundant and vital, their work simultaneously brushes up against the edge of macabre.
Yoko Shimizu and Taiyo Kimura use materiality that evokes the organic process of growth and decomposition. At once fragile and robust, their work seemingly and literally self-replicates. Thessia Machado embraces objects which have been deemed defunct, giving them a second chance at a life with new purpose. Katya Grokhovsky’s voluptuous sculptures are seedlings of feminine corporeal performances; a relentless search for a sense of place as she plants her feet in two worlds. Erica Bailey’s architectural rendering sinks us even deeper in; conveying an ineffable consternation, she disorients our sense of perspective, asking us to engage with her environment from below the ground, looking up. David Birkin and Takeshi Ikeda play with the implications of light and color, seeking to illuminate sociopolitical moments which remained in shadow. From their pieces, brightness emanates with fury, necessitating ideological, as well as visual, reorientation and restructuring.
The Garden is immersive and non-conclusive, an exploration of permutations, revelation and surrender in relationship to our natural and self-perpetuating systems.

NARS Foundation Gallery
88 35th Street, 3rd FL, Brooklyn, New York 11232
Gallery Hours: Monday – Friday 1:00PM - 5:00PM or by appointment.

This weekend at LADY J +1 are celebrating our 1 year anniversary with a swimsuit sample sale on 5/10 and 5/11. Friends and family night is on Friday from 6-9 where you can enjoy a drink on us to celebrate. Flyer is on our blog at: http://www.ladyjjewelry.com/blog

Hope to see some of my neighbors there!

I drove by this weekend and noticed that the sign was down, a dumpster was outside and work was being done.

I'm somewhat surprised that the vegan spot couldn't survive the changeover of the neighborhood. Especially since it had lasted here for over ten years.

Does anyone know what the issue was? Rent increases, loss of customer base, owners deciding to move to a bigger spot or do something else?

As a non-vegan, I have to say this place had some of the best food.

Somebody i know found this dog in bay ridge, brooklyn on 86th between 3rd and 4th. Seen wearing a red harnest. Please share to see if we can find the owners!! Currently dog is being held at Sean Casey Animal Rescue located at 153 E 3rd St Brooklyn, NY 11218 for 3 days (May 8th) and then will be put up for adoption!!

Does anyone know this dog?

DAMION SILVER and SCOTTY ALBRECHT "WOOD & PULP"
May 25, 2013 - June 23, 2013

Opening Reception:
Saturday, May 25, 7-9pm

COLAB PROJECTSPACE
487 Atlantic Avenue
Brooklyn, NY  11217

Colab is pleased to present "Wood and Pulp," a two person exhibition by Damion Silver and Scotty Albrecht.  "Wood and Pulp" features new bodies of artwork, including collage, assemblages, and works on paper.  The artists' works share an intricate use of found objects and carefully wrought wood and paper.

Silver and Albrecht both have backgrounds rooted in design as well as influences and techniques derived from traditions of crafting by hand. While there are strong commonalities in the artists' processes, "Wood and Pulp" demonstrates distinct approaches in their use of material and the resulting forms.

In the process of creating "Wood and Pulp," Silver and Albrecht found unexpected insights about the other's work.  Viewers will share this sense of discovery around how the highly considered works communicate and diverge.

A common point of departure for "Wood and Pulp" is the concept of balance. Meticulously formed materials, whether derived from wood or paper, come together to form a larger composition.  Many of the materials, imbued with their own past memory and meaning, take on a personal significance in the resulting work.  While there often inherent context in the underlying material or iconic form, each artist distinctly draws upon these, then recomposes and presents their own records that recontextualize and communicate anew.

About Damion Silver
Damion Silver was born and raised in central Connecticut and lives and works in Northern MA.  Silver is a predominantly self-taught artist, who has developed his skills from trades such as animation inker, cabinetmaking, and foundry work.  His latest body of work evolves his collage and assemblage techniques from paper to wood and metal.  Utilizing found, made and sometimes liberated materials, Silver draws influence from the decaying urban landscape and a lifetime of skateboarding on the East Coast. Silver's work has been shown from coast to coast, Europe, Japan and Australia.  When not designing at his day job, he is hanging out with his son and wife.

About Scotty Albrecht
Scotty Albrecht was born in New Brunswick, NJ and raised in a small town called Bethlehem Township, NJ.  Albrecht is an artist and designer based in Brooklyn, NY and a member of The Gowanus Studio Space.  A graduate of The Art Institute of Philadelphia, his work has been exhibited and published internationally.  A self-taught woodworker with a passion for hand-drawn typography, Albrecht utilizes classic techniques with contemporary style. Much like the organic line elements of rendering type by hand, Albrecht has found joy in the imperfections that are his own.

Hi,
I locked my bike up for 2 days to a big light pole on St. Johns and now it is missing. It was a beater of a bike, so I almost consider it a blessing, but I'm just wondering if maybe it was removed by the city b/c of locking it up to a light pole (which I usually don't do).
If so, might I be able to retrieve it somewhere?
I use a thick wire cord(?) and heavy duty lock as a lock, as opposed to a kryptonite kind of lock. Was it only a matter of time before this happened? i.e. what is the best kind of lock to use, that's not super expensive.
Thanks for any tips!

For more photos, and video of the car being flipped right side up....

http://crownheights.info/accidents/384773/2-injured-in-wild-rollover-crash/

The voice of the young boy saying "this is going to be cool" alone, makes the video worthwhile....

We have been watching the construction on the former "African Hair Braiding" storefront (800 Franklin Avenue) for a while.

First it was rumored to be in the process of becoming a pizza place.

Now, it is has declared itself a self serve yogurt place. Today (May 5, 2013), I took this fine plywood photo:

1548, 1550 1552, 1554, 1556, 1558, 1560, 1562, 1564 Bedford Avenue

Photo: Loopnet

This property has been for a sale for a little while, and is rumored to have recently been sold. It might be torn down.

The property is zoned C8-2, so the new owners will have a hard time building residential.

Here are the listings for site: http://www.masseyknakal.com/listingimages/setup/pdf/1550_Bedford_Avenue_-_Setup.pdf

http://www.masseyknakal.com/listings/detail.aspx?lst=21477

Brooklyn Blues Organization weekly Blues Party spinning all the Blues you can use. bushbaby Bar and Lounge 1197 Fulton Street Brooklyn New York 11216. (btw Bedford Avenue & Spencer Pl.) Easily accessible by Subway A&C trains to either Franklin Ave or Nostrand Ave stop. Drink Specials, Drafts, Specialty Drinks, Great food and a Great time.

http://youtu.be/CgFVHTDtS70

has anybody used their services? living social has a two hour cleaning for $45???