Mark your calendars for Greenpointers Love Birds Valentine’s Market! On Saturday February 11, 2012, food, gift & craft vendors will take over the Lutheran Church of the Messiah (129 Russell St) from noon-5pm. The interiors of the space will be transformed by a professional set designer and local artists will be showcasing their work. There will be live music, a FREE birdy photo booth, a love letter writing station, $1 raffles, and a $10 surprise gift table, free astrology readings, plus more! Check back as we update our list of vendors, prizes and happenings…
If you bring in a recipe for the Greenpointers Community Cook Book, you will get a *free raffle! Just print this out and fill it in. *Limit one raffle per person.
Tonight, January 30, 2012, there will be a community board meeting (435 Graham Ave @ Frost) at 6:30pm regarding the proposed Farmer’s Market at McGolrick/Winthrop Park. With over 500 signatures, there is strong support from the community. Please make sure to sign the petition and be at the meeting to show your support. Greenpointers’ fingers are crossed. The market will be a great weekly meeting place for neighbors and families to have access to local and sustainable food.
Greenpointers is a neighborhood website that serves as a communication hub for people who love Greenpoint. The more diversely and openly we can share our skills, ideas and information, the better we can support one another and grow as a community.
Greenpointers is holding general weekly meetings on Monday evenings at 7pm at Cafe Royal for contributors new and old, to discuss ideas, talk, write, shoot, film, draw, plan and create content for Greenpointers.com. (REDESIGN COMING VERY SOON!)
The first meeting will be held Monday, January 30, 2012 at 7pm.
Photographers, Writers, Artists, Organizers, Directors, Thinkers, Lawyers, Cartoonists, Accountants, Psychiatrists, Environmentalists, OTHER BLOGGERS, Chefs, Mechanics, Stylists, Animal Lovers, Bicyclists, Politicians, Children, Curators, Social Media Gurus, Illustrators, Designers, Bartenders, Fitness Instructors, ANYONE WITH ANY SKILLS to share that are relevant to Greenpoint is welcome.
If you have anything you want to offer, meet up in person with others who have also have something to offer.
The location and time of this weekly meeting is subject to change.
At this point, Greenpointers does not have a budget to pay contributors. But you can take advantage of the immense traffic the website gets to promote your own endeavors as shamelessly as you want.
All contributors’ content is reviewed, chosen and edited for appropriateness, relevance, grammar, spelling and posted at a time and date chosen by the editor.
I spotted this amazing poster at the Lutheran Church of the Messiah. I’m bird obsessed and have a poster fetish so I was extremely hyper about this find. I tacked it to my fridge then upon closer inspection discovered it’s for a martial arts class called White Crane: Unity of Body and Movement from the Island of Java. And it’s right here in Greenpoint (129 Russell St) on Thursdays at 7:00pm for $5. Dreamy.
The description of this beginner “no experience necessary” class is promising, with “self-cultivation opportunities appropriate for everybody – independent of age, gender and physical condition,” that “will work on learning balance, coordination, strength, and endurance, so if you don’t have those skills yet, no problem.”
Yet? I have been working on these elusive skills my whole life, especially balance and coordination. Sometimes I wonder why I even have hands with all the dropping I do. Three broken iphone screens later and the universe needs me to take this class.
Five bucks is cheaper than a beer and you get a hell of a lot more out of this intense hour and a half class than from a beer. And you can just have a beer after class!
When I met our instructor Karl a.k.a. Kayrock, who has years of experience studying this “movement system” and spent some months training in Java, I didn’t ask him about the class, I asked him about the poster.
“I love this poster!”
Kayrock runs Kayrock Screenprinting, which was at Monster Island then moved to the GMDC building on Manhattan Ave. after the massive evacuation. Another multi-talented Greenpointer doing great things in the community. And your $5 is donated to the church.
White Crane was so on. We began by jogging around the basement of the church barefoot to warm up. Then we did a series of punch and kick repetitions that really got us pumped. After some stretching, Kayrock described the method as a the yoga of martial arts, and many of the stretches were similar and very relaxing.
Then the coordination training began. We did slide walk kicks across the floor, repeatedly. At first they felt awkward but after my body learned the movement and I started to get it, it was a lot of fun. I was able to focus on what I was doing in the moment, which is great for dealing with everyday stress and distractions.
After that we moved on to the “dance fighting with a partner” portion. That is not the technical name, but that is what it felt like. This is where martial arts really differs from yoga. In yoga you fly solo, on your own mat and work on an inward practice. White Crane is more dynamic in that your practice is outward and shared, and you must anticipate the movements of someone else, while trying to be coordinated yourself. Not easy, but even in the short time I was there I got better.
My fight dance partner was my boyfriend. If this isn’t a form of couples therapy I don’t know what is. At one point Jon and I were fumbling through one of the block then punch slide routines and he said, “You punch me, then I punch you.” I never thought I would ever hear that sentence much less it be a positive statement, but it was and we got better at fighting each other, gently of course.
We raved about the class all week and look forward to returning and getting better. I can’t wait until I can trip him so he falls on the floor! And he’s going to like it.
Try White Crane; you will be hooked. And watch this video I made. Aaliyah and Timbaland and trips and back flips make up for the poor editing.
White Crane: Unity of Body and Movement From the Island of Java
Thursdays @ 7:00-8:30pm
Lutheran Church of the Messiah
129 Russell St
Greenpoint
WEDNESDAY 1/25 • Poker Unleashed @ TBD (224 Franklin) 7:30pm, fundraiser for Dog Habitat Rescue. • Bruichladdich & Burn’s Supper @ Noorman’s Kil (609 Grand) 7-9pm Taste Islay Single Malt Scot Whisky and celebrate the life and works of the poet Robert Burns; Scottish by birth and held in fond regard by Scots all over the world.
THURSDAY 1/26 • Swap for a Cause @ 61 Greenpoint Ave, Suite 501, $25, 7-9:30pm, 2nd annual Flying Kites Oasis clothing swap, to benefit orphaned and vulnerable children in Kenya, drinks and light snacks, Bring an item home for every item brought to the swap. • Largehearted Boy’s 10th Anniversary @ Word (126 Franklin) 7-8pm, a birthday-themed reading and fundraiser for Girls Write Now! Cupcakes by The Brooklyn Baker. Readers: Emma Straub & Jennifer Gilmore. Music by: Alina Simone. RSVP ♫ Bustle in Your Hedgerow @ Brooklyn Bowl (61 Wythe) $10, 9pm, A band showcasing only Zep tunes. But don’t call them a tribute band they channel Led Zeppelin’s songs with such passion and energy, you would swear they are their own songs. RSVP
FRIDAY 1/27 ♦ The Sugar Bread House @ The End (13 Greenpoint Ave) Opening Reception 7-10pm, Paintings and Drawings by Lorene Taurerewa & Warwick Mcleod * Brooklyn Writer’s Space Reading Series @ Book Court (163 Court St) 7-9:30pm, readings by David J. Rose, Nina Herzog, Christina Lewis Halpern and Leslie Maslow, RSVP ♫ Emily Einhorn/Blues in Space/Iced Ink @ Greenpoint Gallery (390 McGuinness) 8pm, Free, Two floors filled with “Magical Music Showcases” and & open call art show. RSVP ♦ 120dB @ Fort Useless (26 Ditmars, Bushwick) Opening Reception 6-10pm, a group exhibit showcasing the work of thirteen female concert photographers, curated by Maryanne Ventrice, More info ♦ Cactus Milk @ Youth Group Gallery (407 Johnson Ave, Bushwick) 7pm, a solo exhibition by Michelle Matson, includes painting, sculpture and large scale installation, RSVP ♥ Kielbasa @ Veronica People’s Club (105 Franklin) 10pm, Homosexual bar, Homosexual Party, Free booze 10:30-11, RSVP
* SATURDAY THRU MONDAY * 150th ANNIVERSARY USS MONITOR EVENTS
SATURDAY 1/28 * Winter Bird Walk, Meet at VPC (105 Franklin) at 9am, BYOB (binoculars!) A walking tour guided by Peter Dorosh, president of the Brooklyn Bird Club, learn about our avian neighbors, RSVP * Greenpoint Hand Skills: Snowy Day Skills Session 2 @ Greenpoint Library 10am-2pm, Each month’s craft is inspired by a book. Coffee, music & FUN! RSVP * Sex During and After Pregnancy @ Caribou Baby (272 Driggs) $10, 3-5pm, Get the information you need to enjoy your sexuality on your own terms during this momentous time, hosted by Babeland. ♦ Art Hack @ 319 Scholes (Bushwick) “Massive Party” 7pm, Artists and collaborators will inhabit 319 Scholes from 1/26-28 to create and explore the participatory nature of technology. The event will be streamed to online audiences, who will participate through various platforms to be listed on the ArtHackDay.net website.
SUNDAY 1/29 • Girls Only Basketball Clinic @ BK HS for Communications (300 Willoughby, Ft. Greene) 11:30am, FREE, open to girls 7-14 yrs, Pre-Register • A Wedding & Cocktail Event @ The Parlour Brooklyn (72 Greenpoint) 3-6pm, a specially chosen group of Brooklyn based wedding vendors to help with all of your bridal needs plus cocktails, RSVP * Scrap NYC Paper Craft Group @ Uncanny Valley (26-09 Jackson Avenue, LIC) 7pm, a paper craft group that explores paper making and paper craft. Followed by a Potluck! • Homebrew Celebration @ Brooklyn Brewery (79 No. 11th) 6:30-9:30pm, celebrate the sixth annual Homebrew Alley national homebrew competition! Doors open to all friends of the New York City Homebrewers Guild, including entrants of this year’s competition, and friends thereof: anybody at all that wants to support the homebrewing community, say “Homebrew Alley” at the door for admission! RSVP
TUESDAY 1/31 * Open Drawing @ Arts@Ranaissance (2 Kinsgland) 7-9pm, Join Round Robin Collective members for a loosely structured studio drawing workshop where participants can come in and draw, discuss their work, hang out and learn about RRC and Arts@Renaissance. More info. * Masters of Social Gastronomy: Food Lecture Series @ Public Assembly (7 No. 6th) FREE, 7-10pm, Sarah Lohman of Four Pounds Flour and Jonathan Soma of the Brooklyn Brainery take on a curious food topic and break down the history, science, and stories behind it. This month’s topic is strange meat, RSVP
* Greenpointers’ Pick
♫ Music
♥ Pheremones Likely
♦ Art Event
You can’t usually find gorgeous romanescu cauliflower in the supermarket! Wouldn’t it be amazing to stroll into Winthrop/McGolrick on a Sunday morning and buy gorgeous produce, local honey, scrumptious bread, fresh seafood, pastured eggs, a plethora of mushrooms, hormone-free milk and sustainably raised meat? Support small farms, talk to your farmer, and make the planet and Greenpoint better by shopping at a Farmer’s Market right around the corner.
Greenpoint’s favorite beer store had a barley wine tasting. What a perfectly snowy weekend to drink strong beer by a wood burning stove. Learning and drinking are two activities I enjoy and combining them is even more fun, although retention can be a challenge. To be honest, I don’t know shit about beer.
Good thing Erik and Frances, the beer geniuses who work at Brouwerij Lane, and my man Jon, who is a home brewer, were there to school me. I was so sorry when I asked, “Do you think there are more wine makers or beer makers?” After an in-depth discussion (I wasn’t even listening) the final answer was, “Who cares, beer is better anyway!” I was bound to learn something from this bunch of beer nerds.
We were served a flight of 5 barley wines (totaling 40 oz!) on a laminated guide detailing each brew. If you don’t know what Barley Wines are, I can tell you one thing: they are knock you on your butt strong. It is a type of beer that is “brewed to match the strength of wine,” about 12% or more alcohol, according to our handy placemat. They are nice and sweet and very easy to drink. It was wise that we shared the 40 oz. flight.
We tasted the following:
Pretty Things Finest Regards, The Bruery Cuir, Firestone Walker XV, Avery Hog Heaven, and BFM & Terrapin Spike & Jeromes.
Between each flight we drank a lot of water, because the barley wine leaves such a lasting flavor in your mouth. The flavors and colors between each varied very much. This is my first session of really trying to understand the flavors happening in my mouth, instead of just mindlessly chugging.
“Coconuts!” I kept getting the taste of coconuts and I liked it. Frances didn’t believe until he sipped and agreed. Erik explained that Barley wines are aged in oak barrels, which accounts for what is more likely vanilla rather than a pina colada flavor, like the Cuir which is aged in bourbon barrels. Or the XV, which is blended with Stout so it was chocolatey, too.
Ever drink with a beer snob and they are like, “this is really hoppy” or “this is really malty” and you are like “what is this guy talking about”? I better learn if I want to hang with this crowd.
According to Jon, hops are a flower, which contribute bitterness to balance the sweetness in beer. They give flavor and aroma to a beer which can range from fresh cut grass to pine needles to citrus to herbal earthiness. How lovely! A good example from the barley wines we tasted was the Hog Heaven, in which you could smell the pungent hops before even tasting it, which were piney and citrusy. Jon explains that malt is the sugar that ferments in beer to make alcohol and carbonation, but some sugar remains and that residual sugar is what gives beer it’s sweet flavor and “mouth feel,” which is how thick or watery the beer is in your mouth. Malt flavors can be a basic sweetness or can taste roasted, or like coffee or chocolate or caramel. Our Finest Regards was very malty and the best example of a traditional English Barley Wine and our favorite of the flight.
Sign up for Brouwerij Lane’s mailing list to find out about other beer nerd events, like Kelso Night with Kelso of Brookyn’s Kelly Taylor this coming Thursday 1/26.
We have been very birdy here in Greenpoint. A Coopers Hawk has been perching on Norman Ave between Sutton and Nassau, and the Red Tailed Hawks in McCarren have been very visible, like the photograph on the left taken after it took off from from one of the stadium lights. I am getting many emails from neighbors about interesting sightings.
Victoria sent me this great shot of a hawk by the automotive high school.
Nancy Pi-Sunyer, of Copy-cology, has created these community identification cards just for Greenpoint! There are two Birds of Greenpointsets illustrating a total of 16 birds to be found in our awesome neighborhood.
You can do so many things with these cards. You can frame them, because I think they are beautiful pieces of artwork. You can color the birds in. Or you can make a photo copy of the cards and cut them out and play memory or laminate them for pocket reference. We will be selling these cards on Saturday 1/28 during the Bird Walk. Black and White – $5, Color – $10. Plus we will have some ID Card Rings. To find out more check out Copy-cology.
WEDNESDAY 1/25
THURSDAY 1/26
TUESDAY 1/31
You can’t usually find gorgeous romanescu cauliflower in the supermarket! Wouldn’t it be amazing to stroll into Winthrop/McGolrick on a Sunday morning and buy gorgeous produce, local honey, scrumptious bread, fresh seafood, pastured eggs, a plethora of mushrooms, hormone-free milk and sustainably raised meat? Support small farms, talk to your farmer, and make the planet and Greenpoint better by shopping at a Farmer’s Market right around the corner.
Jon explains that malt is the sugar that ferments in beer to make alcohol and carbonation, but some sugar remains and that residual sugar is what gives beer it’s sweet flavor and “mouth feel,” which is how thick or watery the beer is in your mouth. Malt flavors can be a basic sweetness or can taste roasted, or like coffee or chocolate or caramel. Our Finest Regards was very malty and the best example of a traditional English Barley Wine and our favorite of the flight.
