Category: Uncategorized

A Brooklyn-based photographer named Harlan Erskine was sent on assignment by Brooklyn Magazine to capture the essence of Brooklyn brownstone interiors from a voyeur’s point of view. The assignment was intended to pay “homage to the voyeuristic artwork of Shizuka Yokomizo” reports Henry Stewart of Brooklyn Magazine. Harlan went around Park Slope leaving a note that read:

“I am a Brooklyn-based photographer and would love to photograph the exterior of your home for a photo story referencing the work of Shizuka Yokomizo. In the acknowledgement to Shizuka’s ‘Distance’ piece, the essay places the same amount of emphasis on the design of the home as it does as the participation of the resident. Therefore, I would like to call on you in hopes that you might participate in this feature, to leave your lower level lights on from the hours of 10pm-11pm TONIGHT and arrange the apartment as you would like it to be seen. I would also encourage you to engage in the space or in front of the window if you too would like to be photographed.”

The images that were captured definitely embrace the essence of Yokomizo’s work. Visit Yokomizo’s website to learn more about her work.

Jean-Michel Basquiat was born in Brooklyn Hospital on December 20, 1960, and lived in Park Slope. In his teenage years, he attained notoriety as a graffiti artist; his work, signed SAMO, was humorous and poetic. And though some modern-day Park Slope graffiti writers say Basquiat Lives, and some blogs refer to him as a “Park Slope native,” the artist actually had very little connection to Park Slope, it turns out.

A lot has been made about Basquiat running away from Park Slope at age 15 (not 17), but apparently, that was a very short stint of sleeping on park benches in Washington Square Park; after being arrested, Basquiat was returned to his father in about a week. By another account, after he ran away from home, he stayed a few hours at a local radio station until the employees called his father. Moreover, it’s not really clear whether he ran away from Park Slope, since this timeline says the family actually moved to East Flatbush (East 35th Street) in 1966, at which time, Jean-Michel would have been only 6 years old, max.

In 10th grade, Basquiat dropped out of Edward R. Murrow High School in Midwood. His father kicked him out and he stayed with friends elsewhere in Brooklyn.

In the picture, you see his father, Gerard Basquiat, who was born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. His mother, Matilde Andradas, was born in Brooklyn to Puerto Rican parents. And this mod-looking photo shows the Basquiats at home at 553 Pacific St., which according to the NYPL Digital Gallery, is Park Slope:

Source NYPL Digital Gallery

So that’s between 3rd and 4th Aves, right around the corner from Target – whether that counts as Park Slope may be open to discussion.

Jean-Michel Basquiat died on Friday, August 12, 1988 in his loft on Great Jones Street. He was 27 and his autopsy report listed cause of death as “acute mixed drug intoxication (opiates – cocaine).” But after all that, it turns out that his body rests much closer to Park Slope — Basquiat is buried in Greenwood Cemetery:

Photo: Brooklyn Daily

Image source: Here’s Park Slope

Park Slope’s favorite little soup shop that serves new renditions on old favorites is open again this year. The Soup Bowl is located at 321 Seventh Avenue between 8^th and 9^th Streets. Don’t count on getting a table as seating is very limited but most people grab a cup and go. During the summer months the location is an ice cream parlor, but come November the space is transitioned into a soup shop. A Brooklynian.com community member comments about the Soup Bowl’s soup in the winter months, “This stuff is so good and a perfect day for soup. The man is definitely a soup craftsman.”

The Soup Bowl menu constantly changes. You can go to The Soup Bowl website for their daily soup menu. Today’s menu is below.

Lobster Butternut Squash Bisque

Serious Split Pea

Turkey Chili

Chicken Pot Pie with Corn Bread Crust

Northern Bean Tomato

Smoked Ham and Diced Vegetables

Green Vegetables

Butternut Squash Potato

Porcini Shiitake

Sausage Chick Pea

Market Vegetable

Chicken Vegetable

New England Clam Chowder

Photo: Megan the Librarian

If you haven’t yet had the pleasure of selling a car in NYC, there are a few things you might want to do aside from posting that beautiful black and orange ‘FOR SALE’ sign in the window.

Pretty much any attempt to sell your own car is a royal pain. One obvious approach is to post it on Craigslist, but it’s debatable whether it’s worth the time/hassle of dealing with potential scammers and time-wasters. There are some specific websites where you can post your car (sellmycar.com, nothingbutcars.com) but be prepared to get calls from dealers hoping to sell you a replacement vehicle. You can try the classic “flyers with rip-off contact info” approach and post it at coffee shops and neighborhood stores; you’ll get responses, but it’s the whole process of dealing with people that is annoying. People will say they are coming but never show up… Some will subject you to endless negotiations … Some will bounce checks … the list goes on.

Before you attempt any of the above, get your car detailed; that will insulate you against aggressive negotiators, who will have fewer complaints and problems to haggle over. You will get more clicks on Craigslist or autotrader.com. Even if it costs a few hundred dollars for a thorough detail, you can fold that in to your asking price.

If you put a FOR SALE sign in the window, make sure you park your car in high traffic areas at high traffic times so you get the most eyeballs – think Seventh Ave on a Saturday. One caveat – apparently there’s a rule against posting a ‘for sale’ sign in your window while the vehicle is parked on the street, and you may get fined $45. We haven’t confirmed any fines doled out, but if it can happen anywhere, it will happen in Park Slope.

Finally, do some comparative shopping to find out how much your car is worth. Search Craigslist for cars exactly like yours, and find out how much they are asking. Price yours competitively compared to theirs. Make it the best deal on the block.

Get more advice from Brooklynian.

Photo: Brooklyn Paper

Tonight may be the last night for a great Park Slope bar. Recent reports said that Dec. 31 would be “last call” for Timboo’s. Owners Timmy Hodgens and Bobby Booras say their main reasons for closing down is because they are ready to retire, and also because they are sick of harsh city inspections, according to the Brooklyn Paper.

Their bar was one of the few places you could still find reasonably priced drinks, like a bottled beer for only 3 dollars. It was one of the only laid back, reasonably priced hangouts in an area where most of the new hangouts were ritzy and expensive. The bar was a hub for many people of the Irish community as well, including immigrants and iron workers; after work, they could sit back and enjoy a cold one while singing along to some songs with some piano accompaniment. It was also a great place to watch football and gather with friends, and was named one of the best bars in Brooklyn. A more thorough history and analysis can be found on Here’s Park Slope.

One reviewer on Yelp described his experience with Timboo’s like this:

“Okay, I just moved in right above this bar last night and after carrying things up to the 3rd floor, I needed a beer, and I headed downstairs to Timboo’s. It’s a dive, if you don’t like ’em, you won’t like this place. But I love Dives. Cheap drinks and interesting people. Right away the bartender, Tara, introduced herself and starting talking to us – super nice. She introduced me to the regulars, who yes, all have probably been regulars here since well before I was born. They all gave me a hard time (jokingly) because I was rooting for the Tampa Bay Rays against the Red Sox. All of them were nice guys and provided some entertainment for the evening in between innings…”

5^th Avenue in Park Slope has one last remnant of a time when the area was run down. The decrepit building on 5^th Ave. between 6^th and 7^th streets is finally getting a facelift. HeresParkSlope.com reports, “the owner, Chiu-Kun Wu, realized that he could make a lot more money by fixing up the decrepit building than by letting it slowly rot.” Wu has already initiated the renovation process starting with the building being gutted. The building’s “ground-floor space is being prepped for a retail tenant” reports Brownstoner.com. The renovation of this property will bring another business to flourish in the area and finally get rid of 5^th Avenue’s last decaying building.

A simple renovation may not be enough to bring this building back to life. Members of the local community have posted their goodbyes on Brooklynian.com. Mamacita wrote, “It already has a X marked on it.” She continued by commenting, “No amount of gutting alone can make a structurally unsound building ready for a simple prep-and-rent situation.” While the renovation process may take longer than anticipated, Park Slope residents can rejoice in the fact there will be one less decaying building in the neighborhood.

Where is the best place to watch the Prospect Park Fireworks at Grand Army Plaza? Read below…

Source: ProspectPark.org

Brooklyn’s “biggest party,” featuring fireworks and more, gets underway on Saturday, December 31 at 11 p.m. at Grand Army Plaza (Interactive Map). Right around 11 p.m., entertainment and hot refreshments start at Grand Army Plaza. According to the folks at Prospect Park, the best locations for watching the fireworks are:

• Anywhere in Grand Army Plaza
• Inside the Park on the West Drive
• Along Prospect Park West between grand Army Plaza and 9th Street

To get to the fireworks by train, take the 2 or 3 to Grand Army Plaza station, or the Q to 7th Ave. Station (Flatbush Ave.). Buses B-41, B-71, and B-69 can also get you to Grand Army Plaza.

The New Year’s fireworks, sponsored by Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz, aren’t the only fireworks visible from Brooklyn. The more distant midnight show, over the Statue of Liberty and organized by the Grucci family, are visible anywhere on the Brooklyn waterfront where you can find a view of the sky over the statue, according to the Brooklyn Eagle. So  parts of Red Hook, the Brooklyn Heights Promenade, Brooklyn Bridge Park and the Brooklyn Bridge pedestrian walkway are fair game for watching.

Read more here (ProspectPark.org): ProspectPark.org

While the price of property has continued to decline, there are definitely deals to be had. Unfortunately, the correct decision to rent or to buy is not as clear as you might think. In neighborhoods like Park Slope, renting may be less expensive when you compare that to the mortgage on purchasing the same square footage. If you are fortunate enough to find yourself in a rent stabilized apartment in a great part of town, it probably makes sense for you to continue renting (although these can be hard to come by).

Purchasing an apartment or condo is attractive to all of us. Being a homeowner is part of the American dream. It has been drilled into our heads that it’s another step in life that achieves a certain status in society. That may be true, but you need to make the best financial decision based on your circumstances. If you choose to live around the Upper East Side, you probably find yourself in a situation where your rent is far less than what a mortgage would be for the same space.

If you are serious about purchasing an apartment, you should hire an experienced appraiser to find out what the property is worth at today’s market value. This will give you a clearer picture of whether or not you can afford the mortgage versus the rent you are currently paying. You may find your rental situation is so good that the real estate market could not possibly provide the deal you currently have as a renter.

If this is the case, there are some steps you should take to protect yourself financially. Negotiate a long term lease agreement with your landlord. Lock in your rent amount as far in the future as you can (if you plan on staying in that location for a while). Invest in rental insurance in order to protect your belongings. This is critical to ensure you will stay financially whole if a catastrophe occurs. Rental insurance in NYC only costs between $15 and $30 a month. You may never need it, but if disaster strikes you will be glad you have it.

Photo: John Hodgman and friend in Weather Up, Prospect Heights, Brooklyn. (sarahbibiable.com)

F’ed in Park Slope attended that Bored to Death cancellation party last week at the Brooklyn Inn, and scored an interview with John Hodgman. Not many of the Q&A exchanges are substantial, but Hodgman’s thoughts on the Pavilion stand out:

KD: What do you think about The Pavilion?

JH: Get it together, Pavilion … I’ve been there. I went there to see Arthur Christmas — great movie, by the way — there is no business in Park Slope that I want to support more. There’s nothing more essential than having a good movie theater. And there is also no reason why it should not be an incredible space. I’ve been there a few times, and I’m like, “this isn’t so bad,” but theater 8 — it’s like Led Zeppelin was in there.

KD: It’s disgusting.

JH: I can’t believe what happened. And I don’t know when it happened. It looks terrible, like a snuff film was shot in there. And I really urge them to get it together, because I want to go there everyday.

The fact that the Pavilion is a dump (and may have bedbugs) is not new … but maybe having some celebrity encouragement will help the Pavilion decide to “get it together.”

You may have noticed the 30 new signs skirting the Prospect Park shores explaining the fishing rules. This is due to the work of the Prospect Park Alliance. The alliance is in charge of restoring and maintaining Prospect Park for the public’s enjoyment. After birds were continually found injured or dead due to discarded fishing line and hooks, the alliance acted to enforce rules and educate the fishing community on best practices that would ensure safety for the park’s bird population. The NY Times reported Emily Lloyd, the alliance’s president, as commenting, “we don’t want wildlife to get hurt; we feel very strongly about that.” She continued to say, “we may not get perfect compliance, but over a year or two, I think you can accomplish a lot in changing people’s behavior.”

This is not an easy fix. Most of the fishing line and hooks that are left behind happen because lures or hooks get snagged in weeds or trees. Dan Mundy, vice president of environmental group Jamaica Bay Ecowatchers suggested, “Bait shops could put up signs.” He continued by saying, “Most fisherman believe in the environment and enjoy being out there. A lot of times I think it’s just something that goes unrecognized.” The Prospect Park Alliance has already started a program to educate the community on the importance of discarding harmful fishing line and lures.

Photo Source: Brooklyn Daily

Many of the shows with a Brooklyn setting are actually filmed on a California sound stage. HBO’s “Bored to Death” was filmed in the neighborhood and locals could tell. “Brooklyn looks more like Brooklyn than any West Coat soundstage does,” says Matt Flegnheimer from NYTimes.com. The show was filmed throughout the borough at places like Fort Greene, Brighton Beach and Park Slope. You can get a list of shooting locations on the show’s website. “Bored to Death” show was on air for 3 seasons before getting the ax at the end of December 2011.

The show’s creator, Jonathan Ames, invited fans to a Boerum Hill bar to celebrate the show while it was on air and mourn the fact that now it’s not. While fans loved that fact that Ames nailed the neighborhood culture they also “did not want the show’s local popularity to cause an influx of non-Brooklynites to the area” reported NYTimes.com.

Source: Park Slope Lens

Marcelo A reports on Park Slope Lens regarding the Steve’s C Town near Continental Car Service on 9th Street: “There’s a girl there who’s particularly good at efficiently packing the boxes for delivery.  She doesn’t waste an inch of space.  I complimented her ability one day.  She replied in a very dry, unemotional, factual way, while still packing.”

“‘Tetris,’ she said. I’m awesome at Tetris.'”

Photo: Joe Hume, Brooklyn Magazine

Amy Sohn, author of Prospect Park West: – A Novel, was just interviewed by Brooklyn Magazine and gave her take on the “best of” Park Slope. For example, she says her favorite place to people-watch is Grand Army Plaza on a Saturday, on the stone benches: “I do laugh at the line at the coffee truck and the Blue Moon Fish people who start lining up at the crack of dawn,” she says, “But mostly the people make me happy. I like public space. It reaffirms my love of Brooklyn.”

Other notable faves:

AMY SOHN’S FAVORITE PLACE TO DRINK: Vinegar Hill House. Her husband had the ice-cold martini and she got one of those fancy cocktail drinks. “This bar is one of the few places where it really is worth it that your bartender takes ten minutes to fix the drink,” she says.

Favorite restaurant – Al Di La. Her standby that never gets old: “I love that everything is delicious and that they never have a bad night.”

Favorite grocery store or farmer’s market: Park Slope Food Co-op for the cheese selection and organic snacks (she even likes doing her shift to quiet her “writer’s overactive mind.”

Favorite coffee shop – Cafe Martin: “This shop needs its own reality show. It’s like Cheers … “The only downside is that it’s so small you cannot discuss movie pitches there or someone will steal them.”

Favorite local celebrity – Peter Sarsgaard (apparently also a Park Slope Co-op member)

Favorite date spot – Thistle Hill Tavern: “Romantic but not in-your-face romantic.”

Most intriguing local character whose name you do not know – The Park Slope Stoop Sale Sign-Ripper: “I once heard him speak aloud and was stunned at his voice’s melodiousness. The guy could do Mitsubishi Galant voiceovers for a living.”

Best weekend night out when you don’t feel like traveling far – The Vanderbilt, for its Manhattan feel, wine list, and meatballs.

Read more at Brooklyn Magazine.

The observer investigates:

“Whole Foods is coming to Brooklyn, building a huge new store right in the Park Slope Food Coop’s backyard. The Observer went shopping last night to see whether the coop’s mythic savings might save it from the micro-greens giant, even if it means working that infamous two-hour-and-forty-five-minute shift each month. We grabbed all the staples, headed for the express lane—15 items or less, please!—and tallied up the totals to see how the grocers fared.”

Check out the delicious slideshow.

We claimed they were opening yesterday, we were sadly wrong. However, a quick call today has lifted our spirits. Yes! Baluchi’s Indian Food is open! Free delivery in the Slope with a take out/delivery special of $15 for an appetizer, entree, basmati rice, nan bread, and their great yogurt and chutney sauces. 

Baluchi’s Indian Food
310 5th Ave. (BTW 2nd and 3rd St.)
Call (718) 832-5555 to order

Let us know what you think!

Last week was report card week, and parents in Park Slope were debating the age old question of how or if they should reward their children’s good report cards.  Do they give them cash prizes, a special dinner or a big smile and a pat on the back?  Naturally there are different schools of thought on this parenting issue.  Here are some excerpts from the discussion:

Testiculon: “I use the good report card as an opportunity to tell my daughter how proud I am to be her Dad. I can tell from her face that that is a huge reward.”

xlizellx: “i’m a public school teacher, and i would def. encourage parents to spend time with their kids as the reward rather than give them stuff.”

ringrunner: “I gave them a coupon for 30 cents off a bag of chips“

How do you reward your kids for a good report card?  Park Slope Message Board – Brooklynian.com

If you thought Park Slope was all about baby boutiques and fancy frogo, think again.  Park Slope has found it’s edge in the form of Forgotten Championship Wrestling, a group committed to restoring the integrity to fake wrestling.  These guys want to bring wrestling back to it’s Ric Flair era heydays, “When the fans believed in the wrestlers and when the wrestlers bled, it meant something not just a match where there has to be blood.” Fight night is this Saturday at the already edgy Brooklyn Lyceum.

Discussion goes here: Park Slope Message Board – Pro Wrestling Anyone? :: Brooklynian.com

“It seriously pisses me off when I wake up at 3 a.m., freezing my balls off. I’ve called him numerous times, but I keep getting this feeling that he thinks I’m lying for some reason.”

This testimonial comes from a discussion at Brooklynian.com. As the quote illustrates, the coming winter can be one of dread for those unfortunate Park Slopers at the mercy of unsympathetic landlords.

Daily Slope is here to help.

According to the New York City Housing Maintenance Code, between Oct. 1 and May 31, a landlord must provide an adequate amount of heat (at least 68 degrees) from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. when the temperature outside falls below 55. If a landlord fails to comply with the code, he or she is in violation of what is called the “warranty of habitability.”

“Every residential lease agreement in New York carries with it an implied warranty that the premises are suitable for human habitation,” one law coordinator for Legal Services for New York City told The New York Times. The first step in dealing with a landlord in breach of the warranty is to call the heat hot line: 212-960-4800. A tenant has several other options, too. One would be to withhold the rent. Don’t worry, if your landlord takes you to court, he won’t have a leg to stand on because he’s not in compliance with the code.

Another option would be to apply for a “rent reduction order” from the Division of Housing and Community Renewal. Yet another option entails taking your disreputable landlord’s ass to housing court.

We like the last option best.

Is your landlord withholding the warmth? Share your story at Brooklynian.com.

Somehow we missed the news that Barrio Restaurant now has a Bingo thing going on every Tuesday night at 6 pm (210 7th Avenue, corner of 3rd).  Hipsters and parents, take note of your respective “safe” times: there is a “Kids and Families” bingo at 6 pm, and Adult Bingo starting at 8PM, with prizes to include t-shirts, games, and “festive cocktails” (for the over 21 crowd).

Bingo isn’t new to Park Slope. There is a well-lit basement bingo parlor on 5th Avenue in Park Slope. At least one hipster bingo night seems to have faded into obscurity. And of late, we have been proud to play Palin Bingo, homegrown by madman, a regular on Brooklynian.com.

At one point, bingo (More info) could be played for fun and profit, but the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGA), passed in 2006, essentially prevented online gambling in New York, so that’s certainly one factor that could be driving the occasional resurgence of bingo popularity in Park Slope.

An observation made by Old Time Brooklyn that 7th ave. stores and restaurants in Park Slope seemed unusually dead this week seemed to be consistent with what locals are saying about their recent spending habits.  Some comments from the thread “Has Everyone Stopped Shopping?”:

bohuma: “Stopped for everything except essentials. Don’t go out for dinner, cook at home. Brown bag my lunch.”

bullyboy: “We buy groceries. That’s about it.”

WhyFi: “I work in a retail environment, and the pace has certainly slowed…People seem hesitant, waiting to see if we’ve really hit bottom or not, and whether there’s some stability is around the corner. I don’t think that there needs to be a rebound before people start opening the wallets, but they do want to know that it’s not going to get any worse.”

Are you cutting back on the luxuries you once enjoyed?  Share your penny pinching ways on Park Slope Message Board – Has everyone stopped shopping? :: Brooklynian.com

A first time poster stopped by the forum this week seeking advice on how to deal with a downstairs neighbor who finds the time to complain about every sound she makes.

japes317: “My fiance and I moved into our apartment in July. In the 3.5 months that have passed since then, we’ve come to find out that we have a downstairs neighbor who is out of her mind.”

The downstairs neighbor reportedly has come to japes317’s door on numerous occasions and tried to get inside the apartment to see what was “going on” as the cause of the noise.  To avoid those situations the poster gave the neighbor her number, and has since had to deal with frequent calls of complaint.  She wants out of her lease and has turned to the boards for advice. hitokiri was first to offer advice on how to fight back the old fashioned way:

“If she tries to force her way into your apt again, give her a good palm to the nose…If you want to get even more childish, put some guerrilla glue into the key holes of her door lol“

There’s also plenty of grown up style advice in the thread as well regarding ways someone can get out from under a lease of doom.  Only the lucky have never had to read up on what to do about a crappy neighbor, so the collective knowledge of the community has been pooled together in this thread.  Be prepared: Park Slope Message Board – Insane woman downstairs…can I get out of my lease??? Help! :: Brooklynian.com

The partying in the streets that erupted all over the city last night showed up in Park Slope as well.

MichaelKeys: “It was New Year’s and the Yankees AND Mets winning the World Series all rolled into one here in Brooklyn!”

caaahyoko: “I had the most wonderful bike ride home from Southpaw to Bushwick. The party in the streets extended all the way and my bell got a workout with all the celebratory ringing. As I passed through all those neighborhoods it felt like a sticky cloud of cynicism had lifted into the atmosphere and dissipated.”

Of course it wasn’t all roses for the liberal minded Park Slope bacchanalians.  Dismay was expressed over the various anti-gay props that were passed on the historic day:

LadyLibertine: “Don’t even have to be gay to feel stabby over that Arkansas measure. No “unmarried sexual partners” can adopt or foster children. WTF.”

Keep the hope alive on the Park Slope Message Boards – Cheering in the Streets :: Brooklynian.com

Perhaps it has come to your attention that there is a sort of big deal election taking place today.  Well you aren’t the only one who noticed, as a quick look at any Brooklynian board will prove.  Locals have been checking in all day, sharing their experiences:

tapdame: “just wanted to let you know how things went at my polling site. I voted at PS 282 on 6th ave. The line was about 3/4 of the way down Berkeley street towards 5th ave. I got in line at 6:11am and was out the door by 7:05am. I strongly suggest that you know your election district prior to getting in line, as waiting in that line probably tacks on about 45 minutes. “

asking questions pertaining to their local polling site:

Cabaki: “ This is my first time voting in park slope (8th street) so I have no idea what to expect. Is is better to get there when the polls open before work, or after work? How many hours do you think we’ll have to wait on line to vote?”

and giving tips on how to vote best:

henrycurtis: “Don’t wear political clothing, or excess button/pins. It may be considered “electioneering” in the polling place and you may not be allowed to vote.”

So stop by, share your stories and ask your questions at Park Slope Message Board – voting in park slope :: Brooklynian.com

A New York Times article this week tells the story of a local anomaly: “Four — count ’em, four — brownstones on a single Park Slope block are waving a flag rare enough in this liberal bastion to stop passers-by in their tracks: “McCain.”” pastoralia posted the link in the Park Slope forum and added “now we know their names”  What pastoralia mightn’t have expected is that the posting would bring a handful of McCain supporters out of the woodwork and spark one of the most heated political discussions on Brooklynian.com that I’ve seen.  Living in such an overwhelmingly liberal neighborhood such as Park Slope, one might assume that everyone around them is more or less on the same page.  But as it turns out that’s not the case.  Just read transplant‘s first of many posts in the thread:

“I’m voting for McCain and Palin too (well, mostly Palin). I live on 3rd St. between 4th and 5th, no need to hunt me down.  I think there are more of us out there than you think, we just know to keep our opinions to ourselves around Park Slope and NYC in general. Y’all can be pretty intolerant of dissenting viewpoints.”

Who knew?  Come meet your neighbors at Park Slope Message Boards – Now we know their names :: Brooklynian.com