Summer! Mermaid Parade today Gentrifying Brooklyn tonight Events all over

Ah summer time of fitting in more temperate joy than there are hours in a day..

I'm thinking of hitting up the Mermaid Parade at Coney Island in a few hours and giving some love to the Brooklyn Boardwalk.

Also tonight at Coney Island is the season opening for the Brooklyn Cyclones, the Mets' minor league team, they face off against, who else, the Staten Island Yankees!

There's a screening tonight of a film called Gentrifying Brooklyn at FiveMyles Gallery in Crown Heights

In Prospect Park tonight at the bandshell there's a revisiting of "Bitches Brew" a celebration of the original Miles Davis release, part of the "Celebrate Brooklyn" series.

Habana Outpost is always a good look for good lookings in Fort Greene

The green markets at Fort Greene Park and Prospect Park's entrances are underway

The Brooklyn Flea is going on of course at Bishop Loughlin Field in Clinton Hill

and whatever more is happening give a shout and I'll post it

In the city at SummerStage in Central Park there's a NYC Pride Rally with Me'Shell Ndegeocello, Martha Wash, The New York Gay Men's Chorus, Vickie Shaw, Billie Myers, Bruce Vilanch, Wendy Williams and More. That's a good look, Me'Shell Ndegeocello is a musical genius.

Saturday: Prospect Hts Flea, & Habana Block Party in Fort Greene

Sunny Saturday in the city. After days of September weather I hope you're ready to soak up the 70° sun.

For activities I recommend these two:



World Akcent's Artisan Marketplace Prospect Heights Flea. A long name to be sure. But it's all to describe a very casual flea market with over 40 vendors in the cool shade atop Eastern Parkway at little Dr. Ronald McNair Park(which is the patch of green space on the other side of the Brooklyn Museum, across Washington Avenue).





I found the market two weeks back and it will be occurring every two weeks through the summer. It was great for a simple stroll even. I passed through amid happy shoppers, cool merchants all in a very friendly space with live music and an easy attitude. Among some great wares on sale there were fashions from Society HAE (as in the shop Harriet's Alter Ego) (Shout out to Ngozi!!)

Dr. Ronald McNair Park is located on Eastern Parkway btw Classon and Washington Aves. You can take the subway to the Eastern Parkway or Franklin Avenue stations to get there. Check MTA.info to avoid their weekend construction madness.

My next recommendation is Habana Outpost's Block Party(below).

The party's events will be going on today from 12-4 with kid friendly activities, a designers market featuring hand-made crafts for sale and musical performances all afternoon from diverse talents whose music stylings range from Salsa, to London Soul, to HipHop from Sierra Leone courtesy of Bajah and the Dry Eye Crew.

Also I have it on good authority that there will be a very special guest performing after B-DEC's set, so don't be the one who missed....

You can get to Habana Outpost directly by the Lafayette C train station but except it to be impossible to exit during the late afternoon from the South Portland exit which is almost center of the block party activities. Try exiting at Greene Avenue and walking down Fulton Street. Same as above check MTA.info for less travel headaches.

I missed it monday, here's last weekend

A good weekend takes days to respond to. so sayeth me. Last weekend was a great weekend so much so that I totally missed my "Missed it Mondays" edition.

Without much ado here's the highlights:

Friday was a movie with the fellahs, (avoid GI Joe)

followed by a rubberneck moment at this accident and the accident heavy intersection of Vanderbilt and Atlantic (is it right-of-way on turns causing the uptick?)


it seems the sedan was from Evelyn car service, located on Vanderbilt a few blocks south. (overheard but not confirmed)

finally a quick wander through Franklin Park.

Saturday I didn't get to see Big Daddy Kane at Prospect Park, but I did see some big air and daddy's on boards at the Skate Park Jam held by Park Delicatessen on Saturday(which was so popular the cops decided to visit not once but twice).

The event was held across from Park Delicatessen (the skate and floral shop's inherited name)


Obama Deli had work done was stepping down, in name at least the Times FG/CH Blog has the deets:


There was no lederhosen but Der Schwarze Koelner BierGarten finally opened to a packed house. Much bier was consumed, happily.

Under the Brooklyn Bridge (and yet still D.U.M.B.o) the Brooklyn Flea Sunday edition was under way,

which gave me a chance to (again finally) sample the Lobster from the Red Hook Lobster Pound.

Yummy as all hell (if hell were delicious)

This was the only pic I took of the food that didn't make it look like starving termites with dynamite had attacked it.

(Photo src: www.brooklynmuseum.org)

I finally got to the see the pomposity that is Yinka Shonibare MBE at the Brooklyn Museum and I really enjoying his brand of Art, ego unleashed and all. My fave part was in the accompanying video in which he described something as beautiful as he is. Plus Mannequins in a threesome, how can you not like that?

Missed it Mondays: Wknd of 7/11-7/12 Edition

Whooooo-a-Wheee! Busy Weekend, I got to do lots, hope you did too...but nuff about me, let's talk about you! Did you have a full weekend around Brooklyn?

Then this "Maybe you missed it Monday" is for you. Wknd of 7/11-7/12 Edition

First stop was marked on the calendar 7/11! as in Free Slurpees at 7-Eleven!
I shot over to the Bed-Stuy boarder 7-Eleven grabbed the biggest cup and then had a moment of reality. I asked the dude behind the counter which was the free size. He handed me a cup like the one pictured to the left.

That cup is almost life-sized. Sheesh! But free is free!

And too much of that Slurpee mix ain't good for me, even though in my life I've probably had three total Slurpees. Of course I had something Blue to celebrate the rare occasion.

After wandering through Restoration on Fulton St. in a hypoglycemic stupor, I made my way to Crown Heights just in time to see Council Member Letitia James (Tish to friends) doing her best to drum up business for the Franklin Av/Sterling Pl Flea Market.

Councilmember Letitia James "Tish" (center) enticing passersby to check the nascent
Franklin Av/Sterling Pl. Flea Market. Below she seems to be happily product testing.

The Council Member was pushing for the Smoothies being made by the ladies of Bristens at 715 Franklin Av (next door). According to Tish her toughest competition were a bunch of locale kids hawking water. For me, the idea of natural banana and mango purifying my blue tongue made for an easy sale.

Fresh banana/Mango/Honey Smoothie by Bristen's (over exposed poor photography by yours truly)

I had never heard of Bristen's Eatery (I've actually been meaning to write that Franklin (imho) needs more diverse businesses) but if that smoothie and the cool ladies who made it are any indication, I'd say a good meal is to be had at Bristen's.
I'll check them properly and let you know soon.


Councilmember Letitia James "Tish" with a soon to be flea market customer.

While the blender whirled and the ladies and I chatted a smoothie little line had formed before I knew it. I gotta tell ya Ms. James has a pretty effective sales pitch.

Smoothie in hand, cool sweet natured in belly, I made the rounds of the Franklin/Sterling Flea. It's a modest entrepreneurial encampment as Fleas go but filled with a variety of goodies, like the mobile below there were all variety of crafts.



Next things got saucy! (I'm so corny. I know)

I met up with chef Jason Hait and Marketing Director Ayelet Prizant of the "Pour Gourmet"(below). Jason's a local Chef currently hard at work bringing his sauces to market. He said the Franklin Av/Sterling Place flea market is perfect for him because it's nearby, and provides him an opportunity to get direct feedback from the public plus make some sales.

I declined to taste the sauces, explaining to Jason, that my reason was the Smoothie, and not a lack of confidence in his culinary skills. Scott then demonstrated he's as skilled with the pitch as he is with the sauces, he pointed out a Plantain based barbeque sauce which he assured me would blend nicely with my then taste sensations. It did. It was delicious, for real though.
I coulda ate a whole bottle of that stuff without a meal.


Next I met this duo whose table of jewelry and accessories shimmered in the warm July SUN (Capitalized because after a month like this, we need to be capitalizing on the SUN)


And they'd like you know their website is: http://925ikonz.com/


I enjoyed my trip to the Franklin Av/Sterling Pl. Flea but there was more to do so I broke out and headed for the subway (the long way) which led me to run into this sister at my fave Fort Greene Triangle; Cuyler Gore Park.Here's her clip:


This was an organized event with signage and everything. Seemed to be similar to those neighborhood blood pressure testings that happens at community events. But I was in a hurry and this wasn't a planned stop, so after this clip I kept it moving. The vibe was cool though, no hypertension there.

After that I was off to (gasp) Manhattan, "The City".


You may ask yourself (or me) Why oh Why would ANYONE choose to go to Manhattan when they could be in Brooklyn?!? And my answer is Central Park, and specifically one of the things I like as a Born and Bred (CityBoy) is the looming presence of the city as a location reminder. Sometimes I draw comfort from the geometric confines that the city provides. And unlike in Prospect Park, it's easier in Central Park to be reminded how much in a city you still are. I like the contrast.


It's even more interesting when you look at what goes on inside and think of the hard fast city being home to these activities...

Which led me to the Skate Dancer's Circle near the Band shell in Central Park that has been going strong for over 30 years. Did you know that your boy "Brooklyn Born" spent most of the 90's going in circles out here trying to pick up women in a space heavily enlivened by gay men? Took me years to figure that out. No wonder the women couldn't understand why I was interested.


Cooley I ran into several characters I hadn't seen in ten years and a circular pleasure ensued. Here's a skate level view, (not for the faint of heart or easy to dizzy)

Then came Sunday 7/12 late in the day I got over to what is fast becoming the ritual end of each season's Afro Punk festival, the AfroPunk Block Party.

I did just enough housework Sunday to miss all the concert performances. Sad. I really wanted to see John Forte, after all how many Hip-Hop acts get a presidental pardon, from a white republican President at that! Yeh inflammatory, I know.

Anyway maybe you missed it or maybe you'll enjoy reliving but here's some sights, some sounds and lots a motions from (warning shaky camera) from the day:


















Wanna see more? Here's a video clip from the block party:


And as if all that weren't enough I got an earful from damn-near everyone that the Soul Summit, the party in the park (specifically Fort Greene Park) was back and celebrating it's first jam of the summer.

I sped on over and got there while it was still light enough out to notice a lot more people were there than I'd ever seen. The Soul Summit has grown from an outdoor dance party to a nexus for meet-ups, picnics and general socializing. What's additionally cool, and I noticed this as I entered the park, is how well the event works with all the other activities of the park. Tennis was still being played on all courts, bike wheels and soccer balls continued to spin all overlapping each other's energy. beautiful thing.


Wanna see a shakey clip? Here we go!:


And it keep on an on and on, even after the sun got tired and went down, the dancers and drummers stayed up.




Now let's get this Monday over so we can get back to the weekend!