World Brooklyn: Growing up Global - Panel discussion on bilinguilism - Sunday, May 1st

This event is not in our neighborhood, but I know a lot of families are raising their children bilingual around here. I have gone to this event the last 2 years, and have enjoyed the informative panel discussion as well as mingling with like-minded parents.

"So please join Lango Brooklyn and Families with Children from China for a screening of Speaking in Tongues followed by a panel discussion with language experts from Brooklyn. The event will open with a Spanish concert by Bilingual Birdies and a Spanish puppet show called One, Two, Tres by P is for Puppets.

At a time when 31 states have passed “English Only” laws, four pioneering families put their children in public schools where, from the first day of kindergarten, their teachers speak mostly Chinese or Spanish. Speaking in Tongues follows four diverse kids on a journey to become bilingual. This charming story will challenge you to rethink the skills that Americans need in the 21st century.

Mandarin, Spanish and French language expo with International School of Brooklyn, Language and Laughter Studio, Musica Para Mi and El Pequeno Artista.

Free babysitting and Chinese kite making provided by Lango Brooklyn.

Details

Sunday, May 01, 3 to 6 PM

The Coop School, 81 Irving Place, Brooklyn NY 11238
Limited seating. RSVP required.

3.30 PM Spanish language concert by Bilingual Birdies

3.45 PM Spanish puppet show by P is for Puppets: One, Two, Tres

Price: $10 per adult and $5 per child

Free for Families With Children from China Members

Please register at:

http://worldbrooklyn.eventbrite.com/

SPEAKING IN TONGUES — 4 kids, 4 languages, 1 city, 1 world
Watch the trailer: www.speakingintonguesfilm.info

AUDIENCE AWARD for BEST DOCUMENTARY
San Francisco International Film Festival"

REMINDER: COWNA Spring Social on Sunday!

The Columbia Waterfront Neighborhood Association

Invites you to our

Spring Social

Fixing the BQE Ditch:

Next Steps?

Meet Your Neighbors &

Get Involved

Sunday, May 1

4-6 pm

MikNic Lounge

200 Columbia Street at Sackett St.

Happy Hour Drink Specials!

For more info: cowna.blogspot.com

Have you bought your ticket to Cora Dance's Spring Fling yet?

SHANNON HUMMEL/CORA DANCE
SPRING SWING BENEFIT BASH AND SILENT AUCTION

Benefit Date: Saturday, May 7 at 7pm

Cora, which includes the professional company, Shannon Hummel/Cora Dance, and the educational outgrowth of that company, Cora School for Dance will be kicking off a $100,000 capital campaign in support of our new spaces and expanded programs at SPRING SWING, Cora's 14th Annual Benefit Bash and Silent Auction. Spring Swing will take place on Saturday, May 7 at 7pm on the rooftop of Rocky Sullivan's Bar and Restaurant, 34 Van Dyke Street at the corner of Dwight Street in Red Hook, Brooklyn. The evening will feature catered food by Daniel Eardley/Knife for Hire (former head chef of Chestnut); neighborhood favorite The Good Fork (head chef, Sohui Kim); and many others. The night includes a silent auction, presentation for benefit honorees Donna Costello and Sara Coffey, and swinging french dance hall music by Primitivo.

Tickets for the Bash are sliding scale ($20-$100), and can be purchased at the door or in advance by visiting www.coradance.org. Those purchasing $100 tickets in advance are invited to a VIP champagne swing dance lesson at 6:30pm. Funds raised from the benefit go toward the recent expansion and relocation to 1500 square feet of studio and office spaces in Red Hook Brooklyn that will serve as home to the professional company Shannon Hummel/Cora Dance and the pay-what-you-can programs of the Cora School in Red Hook.

Plant Sale at the Urban Meadow - Sat, April 30th

Plant Sale this Saturday, April 30th at the Urban Meadow, from 11am to 3pm.
Purchase annuals, perennials and herbs, for you window boxes, backyard or rooftop garden.

The Meadow is located on President street, at the corner of Van Brunt.

Clockworks Puppet Theatre opens on Columbia St this weekend!

Check out the facebook page here
or
Check out the official website here

Columbia St. Tree Brigade strikes again! Saturday, 4/30

Come help beautify the community and protect local trees by participating in the "Columbia Street Tree Brigade" this Saturday, 4/30/11 starting at 10am. We will be focusing our efforts this time around on Columbia St. between Union and Hamilton (last year's events covered Atlantic to Union).

Mulch and tools are being generously provided by the Partnership for Parks. Donations of used newspaper and cardboard are more than welcome - as this can be used for extra weed protection!

All ages are welcome - last year the kids loved it!

Saturday, 4/30/11
10 AM - until supplies run out
Meet at Woodhull and Columbia

The Columbia St. Tree Brigade is a project of the COWNA environment committee.

Bayou n Brooklyn Music Festival- May 6th and 7th - at Jalopy

First Annual Bayou n’ Brooklyn, NY, Music Festival is May 6th and 7th 2011 at Jalopy Music Theatre. It features two nights of ongoing performances by the renowned Cajun musician Jesse Lege, Bayou Brew, Cleoma’s Ghost, ZydeGroove, and Cathoula Cajun Band.... and surprise guest artists, plus Community Jam Sessions and Workshops to bring driving force Cajun waltzes and two-steps to novice and experienced musicians.

Tickets
$12 Advance / $15 Door
Both Days: $24 Advance / $30 Door
Workshops: $25

Check out http://www.bayou-n-brooklyn.com/ or http://www.jalopy.biz/ for more details

Community workshop for Red Hook residents by the Brooklyn Greenway

Red Hook Residents, We Need Your Input!
Tuesday, April 26th / 6:30PM / Red Hook Recreation Center

If you live and/or work in Red Hook, we need your input at an upcoming community workshop for the Columbia Street Connector Project:

Columbia Connector Workshop
Tuesday, April 26th
6:30PM-8:30PM
Red Hook Recreation Center
155 Bay Street

RSVP to 718.522.0193 or info@brooklyngreenway.org with Columbia Connector in the subject line. We'll send background information to prepare you for the April 26th workshop.

The objective of the Columbia Street Connector Project is to improve the pedestrian experience between the Red Hook Houses, Columbia Street Esplanade, Red Hook Park and the route of the Brooklyn Waterfront Greenway. This stretch of Columbia Street has low traffic and wide sidewalks. The land uses in the northern three blocks are mostly industrial and commercial and the pedestrian experience could be improved significantly with vegetation and plantings. The esplanade itself could also become a more attractive destination with some trees and landscaping.

Because this is an important junction with the greenway, Brooklyn Greenway Initiative and Regional Plan Association seek the Red Hook community’s ideas on what improvements would be desirable to make this an attractive route and destination for Red Hook residents. We will work with you to get the plan implemented.

Planning for the Brooklyn Waterfront Greenway is made possible by the New York State Department of State with funds provided under Title 11 of the Environmental Protection Fund sponsored by the Office of the Brooklyn Borough President.
Additional funding for this public workshop provided by Partnerships for Parks.

New at WORK

SPACIAL SMARTS

NEW PAINTINGS and SCULPTURES by KRISTINE TAYLOR

OPENING APRIL 29th, 7 - 10PM
ARTISTS TALK MAY 1st @ 6PM

WORK Gallery presents Spatial Smarts, a solo exhibition encompassing over 6 years of the paintings, drawings, and sculptures by the artist Kristine Taylor. In this extensive and varied body of abstract work, Taylor portrays scenarios of control and release arising from short and intense physical, psychological, and emotional events. Taylor, a former competitive diver and Southern California native, draws on these potent memories of athletic performance, the peculiarities of southwestern space and light, architectural features and the SoCal lifestyle to create an artistic vocabulary that is both poetically gestural and cooly diagrammatic.

Free art workshop for families at Kentler - Sat 23rd

K.I.D.S. Art Education

presents

DRAWING TOGETHER

IN APRIL

FREE Saturday Art Workshops for Families

Saturday, April 23

10:00 am - 11:30 am

Art Workshop responding to

100 WORKS ON PAPER

BENEFIT EXHIBITION

with Teaching Artist RUTH WETZEL

Designed for ages 4 & up
with their care givers (no drop offs)

PLEASE REGISTER IN ADVANCE:

sallie@kentlergallery.org

KENTLER INTERNATIONAL
DRAWING SPACE
353 Van Brunt Street

Egg Hunt rescheduled due to rain!

The weather is decidedly against us for tomorrow, so the Egg Hunts have been moved to Sunday, April 24th, at 10am.

Be sure to make it and bring home some of the 1000 eggs we are putting out this year!

And stick around for face painting, baked goods, and Urban Meadow t-shirts.

See you there!

COWNA Spring Social: Fixing the BQE Ditch. 5/1 at MikNic Lounge

The Columbia Waterfront Neighborhood Association

Invites you to our

Spring Social

Fixing the BQE Ditch:

Next Steps?

Meet Your Neighbors &

Get Involved

Sunday, May 1

4-6 pm

MikNic Lounge

200 Columbia Street at Sackett St.

Happy Hour Drink Specials!

For more info: cowna.blogspot.com

Brooklyn Greenway: Columbia Connector workshop 4/26/11

Columbia Connector Workshop
Tuesday, April 26th
6:30PM-8:30PM
Red Hook Recreation Center
155 Bay Street

RSVP to 718.522.0193 or info@brooklyngreenway.org with Columbia Connector in the subject line. BGI will send background information to prepare you for the April 26th workshop.

The objective of the Columbia Street Connector Project is to improve the pedestrian experience between the Red Hook Houses, Columbia Street Esplanade, Red Hook Park and the route of the Brooklyn Waterfront Greenway. This stretch of Columbia Street has low traffic and wide sidewalks. The land uses in the northern three blocks are mostly industrial and commercial and the pedestrian experience could be improved significantly with vegetation and plantings. The esplanade itself could also become a more attractive destination with some trees and landscaping.

Because this is an important junction with the greenway, Brooklyn Greenway Initiative and Regional Plan Association seek the Red Hook community’s ideas on what improvements would be desirable to make this an attractive route and destination for Red Hook residents. We will work with you to get the plan implemented.

Planning for the Brooklyn Waterfront Greenway is made possible by the New York State Department of State with funds provided under Title 11 of the Environmental Protection Fund sponsored by the Office of the Brooklyn Borough President.
Additional funding for this public workshop provided by Partnerships for Parks.

International Family Resource Fair -- 4/21/11

Do you speak ENGLISH AS A SECOND LANGUAGE?

Want to know where to go to get help with EMPLOYMENT, HEALTH, & EDUCATION?

Meet organizations from Red Hook, Sunset Park, Gowanus, Park Slope, and Flatbush

that can help in your primary language!

FREE FOOD*****FREE INFO*****FREE FOOD*****FREE INFO

PLACE: Red Hook Initiative, 767 Hicks St & W.9^thSt

DATE: Thursday, April 21, 2011

TIME: 1-3 pm

For more information contact Anna Ortega at the Red Hook Initiative,

718-858-6782X209

Sat, April 23rd - 3rd Anunual Egg Hunt at the Urban Meadow

Join us for our biggest hunt yet!

100 eggs and 2 hunting grounds:
- For little ones (0 to 4), the hunt will take place at the Urban Meadow
- For big kids (5 and up), the hunt will be next door, at Mother Cabrini Park

Both hunts will start promptly at 10:30, so get your basket and be on time!!

After enjoy some baked goods, coffee and face painting.

This free event is open to all and brought to you by the members of the Urban Meadow, local businesses and neighbors like you. Thank you!

The Meadow is located at the corner of President and Van Brunt streets.

Q&A with Jim Mason, author of Positively No Dancing

This Saturday (6 pm), Jim Mason returns to the neighborhood and Freebird Books (123 Columbia Street) to read from his collection of short stories, Positively No Dancing (the second edition now out in a Freebird paperback for $10). In prep for that, Freebird posed a few questions.

So when did you start writing these stories?

I don't know. I took a writing class at Gotham Writer's Workshop when I turned 40, and some of these stories came out of that. I guess I was always scribbling, but I didn't get anything done until I paid someone to make me write.

They seem to take place in and around watering holes. Where were some of the bars you found inspiration in?

O'Connor's, mostly. Also Hank's, Montero's, Brooklyn Inn. And I'll give a shout out to B61, since that was my last regular, though most of these stories were written before that.

These aren’t really “bar stories” per se. Your writing is never self-indulgent like Bukowski’s. Rather there is a quieter, more uncanny style to your prose that reminded me a lot of Denis Johnson. Without getting too fancy pants, where would you situate your stories?

In fancy pants bars.

For a pretty no nonsense guy, what’s with all the kids in your stories?

I didn't realize there were all the kids in my stories. But you're right. Someone once pointed out that there's a lot about teeth in my stories, too. I don't know. I like kids. I feel more comfortable around them. They don't judge. I remember dozens of BBQ's in Brooklyn where I'd end up talking to my friends' kids instead of my friends. It's fun to talk to them like they're adults. Like asking them what they do for a living or if they're married. It cracks them up. They're a great audience. The only judgement I ever get from them is they invariably ask me why my front tooth is black. But they don't tell me I should get it fixed or anything, so I guess it's not really a judgement. They just notice it, announce it, and go on. So, kids and teeth. I don't know.

Who do you like to read?

Raymond DeCapite's "A Lost King" is my favorite novel ever. It was just republished. Buy it, anyone who is reading this. Salinger, T.S. Eliot, Ogden Nash, Cormac McCarthy, Katherine Anne Porter, Flannery O'Connor, Tim O'Brien, Langston Hughes, Joseph Conrad. Shit, so much. So much yet to read, too.


Care to tell us where you have been hanging out in the last few months?

I've been living in my parents' basement in Elyria, Ohio. I have become a bit agoraphobic. I will go to the drive-thru for beer and cigarettes. I will occasionally venture to the local bar, Smitty's (where Obama stopped on his campaign tour and ordered a burger) and get drunk with my Sanitation worker friends. I'm not a Sanitation worker. They just let me hang out with them.

In the 20 plus years you made Brooklyn home, what changed the most about the place?

Well, the usual. Outrageous rents and ping pong tables.

You still have the pork pie hat?

I don't wear pork pie hats. I wear teardrop fedoras.

What do you plan to read at the event?

My book, Peter.

What’s the deal with calling me smartass in all your interviews? Haven’t I exploited you in the best possible way?

I apologize, Peter. I've always been accused of having a self-destructive streak. Smartass.

Last chance for Urban Meadow CSA registration!

There are still spaces left in the Urban Meadow Community Supported Agriculture program (CSA), but the deadline for registering is April 16th! If you have been thinking about it, or if this is your first time reading about it, now is the time to act!

Email urbanmeadowcsa { at } gmail.com to get signed up. Also check out the Urban Meadow CSA blog for details about membership, FAQs, links, pictures, and much more!

The season runs for 22 weeks from June to October. The price for the season is $450, and includes a weekly selection of vegetables from Ant Hill Farm.

Eat healthy, support local farmers, and reduce your impact on the environment!

Red Hook Ramblers to accompany Buster Keaton comedies at the Fabulous Jalopy

Who: The Red Hook Ramblers
What: Live Music-Silent Film Screening of Buster Keaton’s “Cops” and “The Playhouse”

When: Sunday, April 10, 8:00 p.m.
Phone: 718.395.3214
Where: Jalopy Theater & School of Music

Cost: $10

Dixieland band teams with acclaimed old-time music venue for jazz-age movie night; screening to include short classics “Cops” & “The Playhouse”

The Red Hook Ramblers, Brooklyn’s premier Dixieland band, will make their first-ever foray into silent film accompaniment when they provide live music for a pair of silent comedy classics at Jalopy Theater & School of Music in Brooklyn this Sunday.

On April 10^th, the six-piece band will perform their New Orleans-style jazz to screenings of Buster Keaton’s “The Playhouse” (1921) and “Cops” (1922), two of the most popular short comedies by the iconic silent film director and actor. Following the screenings, the band will perform selections from their new CD, Something More Sinister, a collection of burlesque-inspired original tracks.

The show is presented by Jalopy Theater & School of Music, a celebrated mainstay of the city’s country, blues, folk, and jazz community located in Red Hook, Brooklyn. In 2008, the Village Voice named Jalopy the Best Old-Timey Venue in New York.

Founded in 2005, the Red Hook Ramblers are among the leading torchbearers of New York's revitalized traditional jazz scene. In past years, they’ve led the Louis Armstrong House Museum’s celebration of the trumpeter’s birthday, toured Switzerland, and played a sold-out concert with the Squirrel Nut Zippers. More recently, they’ve been named the New York Jets’ Home Game Hype Band, and have established themselves as in-demand live burlesque accompaniment through residencies at the Slipper Room and Galapagos Art Space's Floating Kabarette as well as appearances in other neo-vaudeville productions.

Widely regarded as one of the best comic actors and film directors of all time, Buster Keaton was among the silent era’s biggest comedic stars, along with Charlie Chaplin and Harold Lloyd. His flair for rapid-fire gags is at its peak in the classic chase farce “Cops,” while “The Playhouse,” which opens with Keaton playing nine roles at once, showcases his genius for special effects.

“Buster Keaton’s comedy was so pure and universal that the humor translates flawlessly today, and that’s the kind of timelessness we try to convey when we perform traditional jazz,” said Jason Benjamin, cornetist with the Red Hook Ramblers. “It’s thrilling to collaborate in this way with an artist from an era so close to our hearts, and there’s no better place to conjure his spirit and share our joy for his work than Jalopy.”

In the burlesque spirit of the band’s new CD, Jalopy will kick off the show by screening a series of short burlesque clips from the silent era, accompanied by selections from Jalopy’s collection of vintage jazz recordings.

Tickets are $10 and will be available for purchase at the door. Jalopy has a limited bar that serves beer, wine, soft drinks, and coffee drinks.

Cora Dance announces Spring Swing Benefit Bash

SHANNON HUMMEL/CORA DANCE
ANNOUNCES OUR SPRING SWING BENEFIT BASH AND SILENT AUCTION AND
LAUNCHES A $100,000 CAPITAL CAMPAIGN!

Benefit Date: Saturday, May 7 at 7pm

Cora, which includes the professional company, Shannon Hummel/Cora Dance, and the educational outgrowth of that company, Cora School for Dance will be kicking off a $100,000 capital campaign in support of our new spaces and expanded programs at SPRING SWING, Cora's 14th Annual Benefit Bash and Silent Auction. Spring Swing will take place on Saturday, May 7 at 7pm on the rooftop of Rocky Sullivan's Bar and Restaurant, 34 Van Dyke Street at the corner of Dwight Street in Red Hook, Brooklyn. The evening will feature catered food by Daniel Eardley/Knife for Hire (former head chef of Chestnut); neighborhood favorite The Good Fork (head chef, Sohui Kim); and many others. The night includes a silent auction, presentation for benefit honorees Donna Costello and Sara Coffey, and swinging french dance hall music by Primitivo.

Tickets for the Bash are sliding scale ($20-$100), and can be purchased at the door or in advance by visiting www.coradance.org. Those purchasing $100 tickets in advance are invited to a VIP champagne swing dance lesson at 6:30pm. Funds raised from the benefit go toward the recent expansion and relocation to 1500 square feet of studio and office spaces in Red Hook Brooklyn that will serve as home to the professional company Shannon Hummel/Cora Dance and the pay-what-you-can programs of the Cora School in Red Hook.

The Secret Garden at Big Movies for Little Kids next Monday

A young British girl born and reared in India loses her neglectful parents in an earthquake. She is returned to England to live at her uncle's castle. Her uncle is very distant due to the loss of his wife ten years before. Neglected once again, she begins exploring the estate and discovers a garden that has been locked and neglected. Aided by one of the servants' boys, she begins restoring the garden, and eventually discovers some other secrets of the manor.

I remember reading the book by Frances Hodgson Burnett as a kid and loving it. This movie version is very well done and perfect at this time of year. You will want to grow things, you know, in dirt.


Monday, April 4th at 4pm, at Cobble Hill Cinemas.

Public brieffing for Brooklyn Bridge Park funding

Representatives for the Brooklyn Bridge Park Development Corporation have agreed to brief us on the Draft Report findings for the "Study of Alternatives to Housing For the Funding of Brooklyn Bridge Park Operations" prepared by Bay Area Economics for the Committee for Alternatives to Housing.

The meeting will be hosted by the Brooklyn CB6 Executive Committee at 6:30pm on Monday, April 11th, at Long Island College Hospital, 339 Hicks Street (at Atlantic Avenue), Brooklyn.

The report itself can be viewed by clicking here.

Written comments on the report are due by April 25th and may be submitted directly to:
bbptestimony@bae1.com

Join the new "friends of Carroll Gardens Library" community group!

Here is a message from the newly formed Friends of Carroll Gardens Library about upcoming ways to get involved:

Come join the new Friends of the Carroll Gardens Library and make a difference to our neighborhood! Our first event is a book sale fundraiser on Saturday, May 14, Love Your Library Day from 10 AM - 4 PM

Friends of the Carroll Gardens Library, located on the corner of Union and Clinton Streets, recently signed its charter and has a few goals: To support the library by fundraising and to help make the Carroll Gardens branch a center of the community with programs for children, youth and adults all year round. With budget cuts and closings, our community libraries are under siege and active community participation working closely with the library staff can make a huge difference for our branch.

The next Friends meeting is Wednesday, April 6th at 6:30 at the library downstairs. All members of the community are invited.

And come out to our first big fundraiser - a book sale on Saturday, May 14, Love Your Library Day. We need volunteers to help out on the day of the sale, please follow this link www.SignUpGenius.com/go/carroll/846077to find out more details and volunteer. The library already has donated books to sell but we are soliciting additional donations of gently used books, feel free to drop them at the library and the staff will direct you where to leave them. Our goal for this event is to raise funds to buy new shelving and other items for the children’s area – the staff has told us that this would be so much more user friendly for young readers. For up to date announcements about the Friends group we're on Facebook at Facebook.com/FriendsofCarrollGardensLibrary

Also,consider donating to the Brooklyn Public Library's "Support Our Shelves" campaign and designating your donation straight to the Carroll Gardens branch - link here to donate

https://bpl.brooklynpubliclibrary.org/donate/ and then if you'd like, scroll down to "Direct Your Donation" to choose the CG library - this money is sent to our librarians to purchase new books for the branch.

4th Annual Red Hook Jazz Festival in the URBAN MEADOW

Once again the Urban Meadow will be hosting the Red Hook Jazz Festival in June 2011. This is the fourth year of a homegrown jazz festival featuring an amazing line-up of mostly local talent. When we say local we mean they mostly live and work in NYC but these musicians regularly play all over the country and the world - and we love that they also play in their own backyard. The RHJF is known for great music, a laid back vibe, an outdoor setting, and family friendly good times. Adults pay $5 for 5 hours of music each day and kids are free.
Come out for two days of musical fun in the sun. Link to the Urban Meadow website for complete details on this and other activities at the Meadow this year.

Sunday, June 12 1PM - 6 PM
ON DAVIS' FAMOUS ORIGINAL DJUKE MUSIC PLAYERS
pete barr (drums), nick gianni (baritone sax & flute), welf dorr (alto sax), cavassa (bass), ibrahiim muhamad (percussion)
VINNIE SPERAZZA/MATT BLOSTEIN BAND
vinnie sperrazza (drums), matt blostein (sax), jacob garchik (trombone), geoff kraly (electric bass)
MARCO CAPELLI PROJECT
THE WEE TRIO
james westfall (vibraphonist), dan loomis (bassist), jared schonig (drummer)
ANDREA WOLPER TRIO
andrea wolper (vocals), ken filiano (bass), michael howell (guitar), michael T.A. thompson (drums)
JEFF NEWLETT’S NEW TRAD
jeff newell (sax), isrea butler (trombone), dan peck (tuba), brian woodruff (drums)

Saturday, June 18 - 1PM - 6 PM
RENKU
michael atias (sax), john hébert (bass), satoshi takeishi (percussion)
STEPHANE WREMBEL’S DJANGO EXPERIMENT
stephane wrembel (guitar), koran hasanagic (guitar), richard lee (percussions), ari folman cohen (bass)
JEFF DAVIS BAND
oscar noriega (alto sax/clarinet/bass clarinet), kirk knuffke (cornet), jon goldberger (guitar), matt pavolka (bass), jeff davis (drums/compositions)
JOSH SINTON’S HOLUS-BOLUS
josh sinton (sax), jon irabagon (sax), jonathan goldberger (guitar), peter bitenc (bass), mike pride (drums)
INGRID LAUBROCK TRIO
ingrid laubrock (sax), tom rainey (drums), dan peck (tuba)

For up to date announcements on the RHJF, visit Facebook/RedHookJazzFestival.com. For directions to the Urban Meadow go here http://urbanmeadowbrooklyn.blogspot.com/p/directions-to-urban-meadow.html

Image above from the Urban Meadow blog