Yeah, I co-built that cube.

Tomorrow my dear friends Chris D’Acunto and Anthony Browne are having an art show called Do What You Want at 248 McKibbin St. in Bushwick. Chris has recently undergone a transformation in his paintings, making them less caricature-based, and more complex and abstract. Anthony, playing off of Sol LeWitt’s perfect cube idea, has created a series of badly built cubes, five of which I have helped him to create. The show starts at 7 tomorrow night, and for those interested, there will be a procession from Anthony’s studio on Johnson Avenue (call or tweet @anieldadler for details) where we will each take a cube and walk to the space at the McKibbin Lofts, where once inside  we will create a giant pyramid of badly built cubes. This is not a rinky-dink little art show, it is featured on ArtCat, and here’s the Facebook invite.

248 McKibbin is the good one, not the crazy one where my co-worker Jess visited last January and found a roach on her coat as soon as she set it down on the bed belonging to the hippies whose party she was at. So come one, come all, it’s going to be as distinguished an art show as you can expect in Bushwick.

Over the past two years there has been a lot of tumult in the United States Congress. By and large the American people are fed up with politics as usual and somehow assume that voting the opposite way they did the last time will fix things.

With this in mind the Republican party took a Brooklyn congressional seat in a special election last night. Brooklyn businessman Bob Turner beat Democratic Assemblyman David I. Weprin in a margin large enough to turn the heads of polsters who had been predicting an incredibly tight race, 54% to 46%.

National Republican leaders, trying to get a leg up on the upcoming Presidential race, suggested that the Democratic loss was a referendum on President Barack Obama himself. It is as if they forgot completely that the entire special election was necessitated by the public shaming of former Congressman and amateur pornographer Anthony Weiner.

Mr. Turner is the first Republican since 1920 elected to the ninth congressional district, which includes several working class Brooklyn neighborhoods and Forest Hills in Queens. In the end it seems that the Democrats greatest miscalculation was nominating a career politician, easily painted as a party insider intent on keeping things going as is.

The tenth anniversary of the September 11th attacks is receiving wall to wall coverage and for those of us who lived in New York at the time that seems totally justified. The shear terror and shock of that chaotic day has not been lost on anyone who was there or within eye shot. Brooklynites will inevitably recall standing on the promenade or their roofs watching as the course of American history shifted in an explosive moment of violence. Some might remember walking across the Brooklyn bridge from their lower Manhattan offices to let loved ones know that they were okay, even though no one was okay.

The view of Manhattan from Brooklyn, always an iconic reminder that we live in one of the most exciting and vital places on the planet, was changed forever. So too was the view from our collective psyche. The last ten years have been a series of culture shocks and cultural breakthroughs. The technology we once feared would drive a wedge between humanity has instead become a hyper connective network. In a way that reaction could have something to do with the events of 9/11. The fear of being suddenly torn from someone you love or something familiar now has us forever connecting to one another. It is safe to say that on that day Brooklyn and the world got a whole lot smaller.

You can expect some interesting changes and a bit of a makeover for the Municipal Building in Downtown Brooklyn. Mayor Bloomberg recently announced a $10 million deal to turn the first floor space into a “hip” restaurant and shops. The building currently houses the Department of Finance but I guess that’s a little boring and of little use to most Brooklynites. The first floor was sold to a developer and is part of a master plan to return the neighborhood to a retail and dining destination.

Who bought the 49,000 square-foot space? Al Laboz, chairman of the Fulton Mall Association, not to mention he’s sort of a big deal in Downtown Brooklyn’s real estate biz. Laboz states, “The goal is a cool, hip restaurant with a mid-level price range.” But this plan isn’t just about giving the hipsters more cool places to dine. It’s part of Bloomberg’s plan to cut costs by reducing the amount of city-owned property. Major retailers have been popping up all over the area, like Aeropostale and H&M. The area is a large business district, but probably won’t be for very long.

But this project also means job creations –64 construction jobs and 114 permanent jobs. No word yet on what stores will be built, but it’s highly doubtful it will be an Apple store. Hipsters cry…construction begins 2012.

I was biking down Grattan St. in Bushwick this morning and to my delight, my suspicions that a new joint was opening up were correct. It’s a ramen place called Shinobi, or something like that. They put up their sign the other day, which means they’ll be serving delicious treats pretty soon, probably by September, if my innate food sense is correct.

And the best thing is, I know it’s going to be delicious. Because one, hipsters won’t stand for sub-par ramen. And two, because there’s a reputation Bushwick has to maintain as emerging food center.

It started with Roberta’s. Then came Momo and The Morgan and Arancini Bros. and pretty soon, this new ramen place, which will probably be better than Momofuku, or if not, at least more local.

Oh and by the way, I’m blowing up Cain’s Tavern‘s spot, too. It’s a new bar on Wilson and George St. It’s cute and hip. What else would you expect?

My mom’s moving back to New York soon. She probably wouldn’t be able to afford (or want to live in) one of the dumpy Manhattan studios in her price range. So all of the above are reasons why she should just buy a loft in Bushwick.

Brooklyn Borough Hall is a highlight location for environmentally conscience New Yorkers. It’s one of many GrowNYC Greenmarket locations.  Here you can find programs and produce aimed at improving New York City’s quality of life. Back in March they began a compost. Every Saturday from 8AM to 5PM there is a food scraps collection for citizens. It will be transported to a facility to be used as amendments for fertile soil. This initiative will continue through to December so you have plenty of time to get involved.

Summer costs are already rising because of energy consumption. The compost can actually reduce costs in other areas of city life. Food can sum up to around 17% of New York City’s waste. To send it to a landfill actually increases the disposal costs. Not only that but it contributes to the emission of greenhouse gases that pollute city air. The compost can be used for planting trees and other plants in NYC parks, sidewalks, and gardens.

If you want to help out you can drop off scraps of the following foods: vegetables, fruit, non-greasy rice, pasta and cereal, coffee grinds and filters, tea bags, egg shells, and more. Place these scraps in some sort of plastic container, milk carton, or compost pails. It’s an easy summer activity to do that gives back to the community. While you’re there you can check out other things at the Greenmarket like fresh food and educational events.

It’s been a tradition for me and my friends to go to the free summer movies throughout NewYork City. One of my favorite locations, though is right by the Brooklyn Bridge. The Brooklyn Bridge Park Conservancy teams up with the SyFy channel to bring Hollywood favorites to Pier 1, Harbor View Lawn. The movies are sight enough, but the fantastic view of the Manhattan skyline behind the screen is beyond words.

It kicked off last month but it’s continuing until September 1st. The remaining films include An American Tail (Aug 4), Breakfast at Tiffany’s (Aug 11), Crooklyn (Aug 18), Rosemary’s Baby (Aug 25), and the public vote on September 1st. The place gets crowded pretty quick. The most popular films are the hardest to find space for so be sure to get there early! The event opens around 6PM and the movies will start a little before sundown. There will be snacks, beverages, and music available to you but I highly recommend you bring your own. Also be sure you have some sort of towel or blanket to sit on and sunglasses because the sunset gets kind of intense.

It’s all about good times and summer fun. Enjoy a nice breeze off the water, relax for the movie, and go to Grimaldi’s Pizza not too far out of your way afterward for a slice or two.

The Union Bar, which is appropriately located on Union Street in Park Slope, Brooklyn, is my new favorite spot.  I recently went to hear my friends’ band, The Big Takeover, play a gig there, and we all had the most marvelous time.

Both the upstairs and downstairs of the bar are refreshingly spacious. A very sizeable crowd came out to dance a few hours away as they played, and the experience was shockingly not claustrophobic. The bar serves food and drinks; I haven’t eaten there yet, but I would certainly recommend its beer on tap.  On Fridays, after the live music ends, there is a karaoke competition.

The crowning glory of the Union Bar is, without a doubt, the full size indoor Bocce court. We did not have a chance to play (waiting list was way too long), but it is yet another reason to return to the bar. The official bocce season recently ended, but you can still go to the bar and form your own unofficial team for the evening. During the season, the bar hosts league tournaments!

The Union Bar literally offers something for everyone; from the types of music it hosts and plays to the activities it offers. For more information on The Union Bar, visit www.UnionHallNY.com.

Sure Rockaway and Coney Island are great places to visit this July 4th weekend. But since they’re kind of far away, you may think to yourself, well Brooklyn NY News, where can I catch some cool-down that doesn’t involve a train ride? The answer, dear friend, is at your local pool.

That’s right, with summer here it’s nice to be able to hop into your local Brooklyn pool and cool down. The top ranked pool on Yelp is in Bed-Stuy, at least when it comes to lap swimming. The Kosciusko Pool is large and relatively clean. It is a short walk from the G train, which may or may not be convenient for you. In any case, rejoice–we can swim again!

Crif Dogs has finally made it east – to Brooklyn. Continue Reading