From: "Jeff Stark" <jstark@nonsensenyc.com>
Subject: nonsensenyc: 9.18 to 9.23
Date: September 18th 2009

Friday, September 18
* Williamsburg Fashion Weekend, Williamsburg * The Ride, Various
* Cant Stop Wont Stop: The Party, Brooklyn * Conflux Festival, Manhattan
* Supernovas, Manhattan
* Charlie Chaplin Movie Night, Manhattan * Off the Grid, Brooklyn
* Avant-Garde-Arama, Manhattan
* Pornj Star, Manhattan
* 2nd Annual Nerd Nite Nerdtacular, Brooklyn * The Confidence Man, Manhattan
* Arctic Book Club, Manhattan
* Kill Me Loudly: A Clown Noir, Williamsburg * Not Waving But Drowning Nautical Disaster-Themed Hoedown, Brooklyn * You Are Here, Williamsburg
* Brooklyn Fashion Festival, Williamsburg

Saturday, September 19
* Nineteen Thirty Three, Brooklyn
* Blackout Film Festival, Manhattan
* Benefit Party for the Indypendent, Brooklyn * Hey, I'm Walkin' Here! Staten Island
* Governor's Island Art Festivals
* Cops and Bandits, Brooklyn
* All-Day Sacred Harp Sing, Manhattan
* Dr. Sketchy's Anti-Art School, Manhattan * The Soul Clap and Dance-Off, Williamsburg * Dances of Vice presents: The Cursed Circus, Brooklyn

Sunday, September 20
* Human Countdown: A Climate Wake Up Call, Manhattan * The Hip Hop Subway Series, Manhattan

Monday, September 21
* Walrus of Love: Barry White and the American Experience, Williamsburg * Moviehouse on India Street Film Series, Brooklyn

Tuesday, September 22
* Shakey's Record Fair, Williasmburg
* Jane Jacobs Night, Manhattan

Wednesday, September 23
* How I Learned to Live in New York, Manhattan

Ongoing
* Some new stuff

Wishlist
* Nonsense needs performers

Spectre Priority
* What Eats Plastic?

Learning
* Video blogging

Help
* New York Innovative Theatre Awards

NOTE: For some navigation help, or an explanation for what this is all about, scroll all the way down to NONSENSE. You'll find snarky editorial comments and little bits of praise littered throughout this list. These nuggets are marked with all caps, like this: NOTE. Also, we make a lot of mistakes, especially with dates; you should always double check our work. And you can donate to this project at nonsensenyc.com/special.

XXXXX COVER ART XXXXX

Squeegee, ink.

XXXXX FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18 XXXXX

Williamsburg Fashion Weekend

Williamsburg Fashion Weekend, the original innovator of unorthodox fashion shows in Brooklyn, opens its sixth season at Secret Project Robot. The group of designers we assembled this year, with their finger on the pulse of our fashionable neighborhood, will display the diverse elements that make up what Williamsburg fashion aesthetic is about, right now.

With Erin Weckerle for Sodafine, Sirius for Treehouse, Saira M.Huff of Total Crap Uninc., King Gurvy, Racecar by Nettie Tiso, Marcus Hicks of SDN, Adrianne Lee of Ninkybink, Alisha Trimble, Raab West of Yard, and Noname Collective. DJ C0unt Zyr0, from the band the Trilateral Commission, does his turntablism magic between shows, and is joined by guest Djs after. Javelin play the after party on Saturday.

Secret Project Robot
210 Kent Avenue, entrance on River Street, Williamsburg, Brooklyn 8p; $free
Continues SATURDAY

***** Also on FRIDAY *****

Abri Inc. Artist Collective Welcomes you onto:

The Ride

My name is Hasan and I am the operations and production manager for an artistic collective that produces events of all kinds throughout the year. We recently bought a NYC school bus and converted it in to a mobile art space that we have used to host an art installation and performances at various locations, with dance, music, and -- no kidding -- magic. We have a carny barker and musical men in wrestling masks; we have disappearing lemons, sexy dancers, and suave yet spooky magicians. And we have drinks. Come, climb on board, have your senses tingled and your whistles wet. We are a small independent business that is trying to bring all mediums of art to the streets of NY in true guerrilla fashion. For five bucks you get a cold drink, a hot show and a blown mind.

Call hotline for exact location
7p-midnight; $5
212 868 ABRI
theartificegroup.com
abriagency.com

***** Also on FRIDAY *****

Cant Stop Wont Stop: The Party

Acts: Murdertronics, Whack!, Rude Mechanical Orchestra, Natti Vogel, Night Spitter (Percyst and Miniwhisk), DJ Tony Tantrum, 3 King Sound System, and Daniel Lion-I. Cheap drinks, dancing all night. It will be epic. Proceeds benefit 123 Community Space Relocation and New School Occupation Legal Funds.

Refuge
1532 Decatur, Brooklyn
L train to Halsey station
9p-4a; $7
tinyurl.com/wontstop
123communityspace.org

***** Also on FRIDAY *****

Conflux Festival

The art and technology festival for the creative exploration of urban public space. Produced by Glowlab in New York since 2003.

Complete schedule of events, including workshops, special events, and Conflux City openings listed online. Check website for details.

Various locations, Manhattan
Continues through SUNDAY
confluxfestival.org/2009/

***** Also on FRIDAY *****

Supernovas

Billy Name, Kymara Lecchi-Lonergan, Robert Munn, and Sara Cook invite you to join us as we magically transform the Art Space at the Historic Chelsea Hotel into a Silverized Celebration of the Warhol Superstars and the Ante Art Movement. Music: Whore's Mascara, Ixion Burlesque, and Albert Garzon's Fabulous Cabaret Show. Art. Film. Performance. Featuring the Warhol Superstars Billy Name, Ultra Violet, Mary Woronov, Allan Midgette, Robert Heide, Bibbe Hansen, Louis Waldon, And Ivy Nicholson. New works by Ante Artists Robert Munn and Sara Cook, Jayne County, Rick Longo-Burrows, Christophe Von Hohenberg, Coco Dalton, And Philippe Laurent. And the fashion design and work of Justin Drew.

Chelsea Hotel
222 West 23rd Street, Manhattan
7p-midnight; $10
depthography.com/supernovas.html

***** Also on FRIDAY *****

Charlie Chaplin Movie Night

A Benefit for Books Through Bars. The Gold Rush (1925) at 8p. Modern Times (1936) at 10p. Monsieur Verdoux (1947) at midnight.

ABC No Rio
156 Rivington Street, Manhattan
8p-2a; $5
212 254 3697
abcnorio.org

***** Also on FRIDAY *****

Off the Grid

A new site-specific installation for a building in Red Hook by artist Mike Ross. It is a four-story rope and wood structure suspended from the top of the roof, and extending over the garden below. Opening reception, with group show Buddy List.

414 Van Brunt Street, Brooklyn
7p; $free
mikerossart.net/card.jpg
space414.com

***** Also on FRIDAY *****

Performance Space 122 presents:

Avant-Garde-Arama

PS122's longest-running series, this multidisciplinary mini-festival features an exuberant and eclectic line-up of the wildest experimental performance shorts to be found in NYC.

Tonight: Performances by Karen Therese and Lizzie Thomson, Joey Arias, M. Lamar, Maria Hassabi, Carmelita Tropicana and Maureen Angelos, Carol Lipnik, and Spookarama. Band: GoonSquad. Installation by Andrew Schneider. Party music by: DJ Scott Ewalt.

Performance Space 122
150 1st Avenue, at East 9th Street, Manhattan Continues SATURDAY
8p; $20, $15 (students, seniors)
ps122.org
212 352 3101

***** Also on FRIDAY *****

Disorient and Doojee present:

Pornj Star

Fresh off the playa, Disorient goes techno with double headliners Henze and Joey Beltram. Bring your dust and get ready for the cleanse. Pornj is pink and orange. Pornj is the color of Disorient. Pink room: DJ Henze, Joey Beltram, Bruce Tantum, and DJ Shaggy. Orange room: DJ Balls, Reda Briki, the Bass, and Cristina Rafaeli. Visuals by Jaygo. Post-playa slide show.

Rebel
251 West 30th Street, Mahattan
10p-5a;
$10-15 advance, $25 door, $5 off with pornj star costume 21 and over
brownpapertickets.com/event/81455
disorient.com

***** Also on FRIDAY *****

2nd Annual Nerd Nite Nerdtacular

In case you missed it over the summer, I'm happy to let you know that Nerd Nite kicks-off its second year. Featuring presentations about foraging for food by a New York Times writer, Daoist sexual vampires, and Cold War-era pinball raids, DJ Eric EQ spinning wise tunes, as well as a musical performance by eccentric, bear-costume-wearing Claymation Velociraptor.

Galapagos Art Space
16 Main Street, Brooklyn
8p; $12
nyc.nerdnite.com/updates/

***** Also on FRIDAY *****

The Woodshed Collective presents:

The Confidence Man

Herman Melville�s novel the Confidence Man is a colorful tale of a con man aboard a riverboat in the mid-19th century. The story follows the protagonist as he charms and then cheats his fellow passengers. As disarmingly relevant today as it was in the 19th century, the Confidence Man begs the question: in whom may we safely place our confidence?

The Woodshed Collective�s production of The Confidence Man will be composed of a series of interwoven and simultaneously performed vignettes, and will evoke the whirlwind of both a riverboat journey and the everyday urban chaos of New York City. The audience will choose what to see and which character�s story to follow just as one selects which newspaper stories to read, which YouTube videos to screen, or which online links to click. By allowing audience members to immerse themselves in the experience, the production seeks to blur the line between performer and patron, reclaim confidence in the power of live theater, and leave the lingering impression that the audience members themselves may not be immune to the confidence man�s charms or cons.

Aboard the U.S.C.G. Ship Lilac
North Side of Pier 40, at the Hudson River (near the intersection of Houston and West), Manhattan 7, 9:30p; $free
Continues various times and dates through September 26 woodshedcollective.com/productions/the-confidence-man

***** Also on FRIDAY *****

EFA Project Space and Flux Factory Present:

Arctic Book Club

A collaboration between Flux Factory and EFA Project Space, and the result of a group of artists' process-based responses to the book, An African in Greenland.

T�t� Michel Kpomassie's book, An African in Greenland, is the account of the author's unique journey from his native Togo to Greenland. As a young man living in Africa, Kpomassie happened across a book about Greenland. Fascinated with the distant Arctic island, he embarked on a ten-year journey across Africa and Europe, working as a translator, and eventually able to complete his odyssey and live in Greenland.

A cross-disciplinary group of artists was assembled to respond to Kpomassie's book, meeting regularly in the form of a book club. Upon completion of the book, the artists were then tasked to create new work inspired by Kpomassie's narrative and the resulting discussions.

With artists: Amber Cortes, Jenelle Covino, the Green and Bold Co�perative, Katerina Lanfranco, Fabienne Lasserre, Valerie Piraino, Greg Pond, Annie Reichert, Julian Rogers, Ranbir Sidhu, and Christopher Ulivo.

EFA Project Space
323 West 39th Street, second floor, Manhattan 7p daily live shadow puppet performance; $free Continues through October 24
projectspace@efa1.org
efa1.org

***** Also on FRIDAY *****

Fools on Fire presents:

Kill Me Loudly: A Clown Noir

Very good intentions. Very bad clowns. A brutal comedy about desire, betrayal and murder. Done by clowns. All these clowns want to do is make a film noir. But their dark sides are about to get the best of them. Join us in a world of shadows, silhouettes and cityscapes--where brain-battered boxers and drug-addled bums greet you at every corner. There are not one, but two femme fatales, neither of whom are women -- and the main Dick doesn't even have one. We guarantee these clowns will go too far.

Triskelion Arts, Williamsburg
118 North 11th Street, between Berry and Wythe, third floor, Williamsburg, Brooklyn 8p; $15, with 2-for-1 tickets with code "Private" Continues through SUNDAY, and September 23-25 brownpapertickets.com/event/80536
foolsonfire.org

***** Also on FRIDAY *****

Not Waving But Drowning Nautical Disaster-Themed Hoedown

Featuring a tasty blend of sea shanties, Weimar decadence, and absinthe-tinged mayhem. The ukulele speakeasy swing of the Moonlighters, the Balkan brass powder keg Veveritse, convivial and coquettish burlesque and bellydancing by Darlinda Just Darlinda and Paige, and a one-act scene of sordid submariner sodomy will round out the festivities as we party until the last lifeboat is launched.

House of Yes
342 Maujer Street, Brooklyn
L train to Grand station
9:30p; $10

***** Also on FRIDAY *****

Trouble presents:

You Are Here

You Are Here (the Maze) is a performance festival in a sculptural maze taking place at Williamsburg's Death By Audio. Emphasizing the sprawling and interconnected nature of New York's underground, a trip through the maze offers a peek inside NYC's DIY art and music scene. A meditation on passage and desire, You Are Here engulfs the space and presents beckoning inhabitants, dead ends, and uplifting epitaphs. Medium and genre vary and overlapping and simultaneous performances are frequent, each performer establishing a different corner or dead end as his or hers. Participating artists in the three-week festival include Calvin Johnson, Skeletons and the Kings of All Cities, Zs, Excepter, Mick Barr, The Coathangers, Knyfe Hyts 81, The Present, Loud Objects, Grooms, Extra Life, Mike Pride, Dan Friel, Ninjasonik, Vaz, Pygmy Shrews, Nine 11 Thesaurus, and many many others.

You Are Here subverts prefab expectations for both audiences and performers -- there is no prescribed order, start time or end time, duration, location of performance, relation of audience to performers, and so on. All of the participating artists have been asked to create something site-specific since the performances will, in fact, take place within the maze. Audiences will be asked only to expect something unusual.

Tonight: The Sian Alice Group, Nine 11, Thesaurus, Experimental Dental School, Reading Rainbow, and Delicious Beverages. Line up changes every night. Check website for complete listing.

Death by Audio
49 South 2nd Street, Brooklyn
8p doors, 9p performances-late every night; $8 includes open bar Friday-Sunday 8-10p Continues through October 2
myspace.com/youareheremaze

***** Also on FRIDAY *****

Brooklyn Fashion Festival

A collective of eight independent fashion designers -- four designers each night -- will present their latest collections at the Knitting Factory with live music and performance art in this runway-free show. Emerging choreographers and dancers will enhance the presentations.

Knitting Factory
361 Metropolitan Avenue, Williamsburg, Brooklyn 7p doors, 8-11p show, midnight afterparty; $12.50 advance, $17 door all ages, 21 to drink
347 529 6696
brooklynfashionfestival.com
knittingfactory.com

XXXXX SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 19 XXXXX

Nineteen Thirty Three

A celebration of the grit, beauty and desperation of an all-too-familiar era. Featuring two epic spaces: a 19th-century brewery building and a three-level lost ferry boat both in Bushwick Brooklyn. The spaces will be made live by two dozen artists and performers including: Lady Circus, the Rude Mechanical Orchestra, the all-female accordion band Main Squeeze, and a dozen other live performers filling every hidden nook of these massive spaces. Plus, hobo-blues infused techno and retro dance tracks from: the Vintage DJ, Jon Margulies, Haj, Atom, Hobotrail, Future Ben, As Is, D_Juice, and Zemi 17.

Also witness an amplified menagerie of art and mischief from the fire starter Sandhi Ferreira, incongruous juxtapositions from Dr. Flummox and her band of outlaw musicians and a massive scale video art installation by Sebastian Patane Masuelli completing the epic setting with forgotten images from a familiar time. Arrive early for free Dark and Stormy cocktails, rum soaked watermelon and cheap eats.

260 Meserole Street, Brooklyn
L train to Montrose Avenue station
9a-9p; $15 for those in rag-tag formal wear (think moth eaten dresses and dusty tuxedos), $20 otherwise thedanger.com/

***** Also on SATURDAY *****

Blackout Film Festival

I am writing to let you know that the Blackout Film Festival, New York City's only event-inspired film festival, returns with an unparalleled 90 minute program of short films centering on the theme: The Great Recession. Filmmakers around the globe have submitted a surprisingly light-hearted group of films about the current economic recession that we are extremely excited to share.

We appreciate your consideration. For more information and specifics about the event, Below are some highlights that we've put together. The Blackout Film Festival was originally created to celebrate the one-year anniversary of the great Northeast power outage of 2003, featuring films inspired by that memorable, powerless night. In 2009, the festival returns with the theme the Great Recession, falling on the one year anniversary of the collapse of Lehman Brothers. The 90-minute program is comprised of over 15 short films, many that were made in direct response to our call for submissions (aka Blackout Originals), and over seven film festival premieres.

Visual Arts Theater
333 West 23rd Street, between 8th and 9th avenues, Manhattan 3p, 5p, 7p; $12 advance, $14 door
blackoutfilmfestivalnyc.com

***** Also on SATURDAY *****

Benefit Party for the Indypendent

Four hundred years of resistance themed benefit party for the free newspaper the Indypendent. When Henry Hudson's Dutch ship the Half Moon inched around Mannahatta Island September 12, 1609, little did he know that his arrival would set in motion four centuries of resistance and rebellion.

Forget Hudson! Let's revel in this 400 years of resistance and rebellion with music by Rebel Diaz, Riot-Folk Collective, Broadcast Live, and DJ Radio Rios.

Get your groove on and join the Indypendent newspaper in celebrating the rebels and dreamers -- Native Americans, runaway slaves and indentured servants, abolitionists, anarchists, labor reformers, women suffragettes, antiwar and civil rights activists, environmental defenders and many more -- who have made the Other New York and another world possible. If you dress like your favorite revolutionary or rebel, we'll give you a free drink. This is a benefit for The Indypendent, New York City�s premiere radical newspaper, which is kicking off its 10th anniversary year.

Starr Street Loft
207 Starr Street, Brooklyn
9p-4a; $10-20 sliding scale donation at the door indypendent.org/donate

***** Also on SATURDAY *****

Hey, I'm Walkin' Here!

A series of exploratory perambulations through the five boroughs. Or, less pretentiously: Get off your butt and come walk around the city with us.

Come celebrate/learn about Rosh Hashanah on our 20-mile walk this Saturday. Snacks, booze, casting off your sins -- the perfect way to start a new year! What else are you gonna do, go to synagogue?!

Meeting point: Underneath the first S in the big Staten Island Ferry sign outside the Staten Island Ferry Terminal, Manhattan 8:45a; $free
matt.burnsomedustgmail.com
burnsomedust.com

***** Also on SATURDAY *****

Governor's Island Art Festivals

We went to Governor's Island last weekend.

Perhaps the rest of you have already been.

We know that a lot of invitations have been passed around, and the magazines have listed it, but nothing has been totally clear to us.

It turns out the current Dutch festival is really cool, and it's confusingly put on top of three or four other art festivals on the island, so you just go and then there's tons of stuff to see. We suggest going to the Dutch part of the island first (named the Boulevard of Broken Dreams, for some reason), and checking to see if you can get any of the free tickets to various performances. Then kill time by checking out installations, including the stuff for Creative Time (especially the cones of light in the church). We also suggest taking food and coffee and something to sit on because you could be there for hours and hours without thinking about it. Ok, that's it. just a public service announcement from your Nonsense.

Governor's Island
Various times and locations; $mostly free Continues SUNDAY
govisland.com/Visit_the_Island/directions.asp

***** Also on SATURDAY *****

Cops and Bandits

A party presented by Glass Bandits, a Brooklyn-based theater company, in support of their upcoming first full length play in November. Musical performances by the Peeps. DJ Tres. Dancing? Duh. Clowning? Of course.

House of Yes
342 Maujer Street, Brooklyn
L train to Grand Street station
$10 door includes open bar, $8 if you come in a cop/bandit costume, free in a panda suit

***** Also on SATURDAY *****

All-Day Sacred Harp Sing

Come sing in an unofficial festival of Sacred Harp music, a musical tradition that's easy to pick up, moving to sing and stretches back to before the country was founded. Singers from around the country and from all different communities will be coming together for a weekend of making music together.

15th Street Friends Meeting House
15 Rutherford Place, near 15th Street and 3rd Avenue, Manhattan 10a�4p; $donations
347 866 6064
nycsacredharp.org/nycads.html
fasola.org

***** Also on SATURDAY *****

Dr. Sketchy's Anti-Art School

With the beautiful and subversive Manko, and performances by Berlin cabaret duo the Horasistas. Sponsored by Baby Tattoo Books and Glittle Cupcakes. Dr. Sketchy's is a life drawing class turned cabaret extravaganza. Artists draw glamorous underground performers, compete in contests, and win booze and prizes. From its humble Brooklyn beginnings, it's spread to 100 cities on five continents- including London, Rome, Tokyo, Paris, Sao Paulo, and Melbourne.

On September 19, the stunning Manko will perform subversive, Luchadora inspired tableaus on the Sketchy's stage. Plus, free cupcakes from Glittle Cupcakes, and performances by Berlin cabaret duo the Horasistas. Hosted by art provacateur Molly Crabapple.

Slipper Room
167 Orchard Street, corner of Stanton, Manhattan 4-7p; $10 in advance, $12 door
21 and over
drsketchy.com

***** Also on SATURDAY *****

The Soul Clap and Dance-Off

Returns to its Glassland�s Gallery home Saturday. This month�s Soul Clap will, as always, feature dancing to the exquisitely dynamic 45s of soul proprietor Mr. Jonathan Toubin, plus the Dance-Off will be presided over by lovely MC Laura Leigh and a distinguished panel of judges consisting of New York Press� Jamie Peck, Heeb/Impose Magazine�s Jason Diamond, Jesse Gassface, author/publisher of Quality of My Life fanzine, Maria Falgoust, co-founder of activist librarian group the Desk Set, and OJ, guitarist for Brooklyn underground music favorites Golden Triangle (and one-time Dance-Off winner). Additionally, this night is dedicated to the spirit and memory Dance-Off�s finest and most prolific contestant, Carlos Alvarez, a local nightlife legend and friend to all who died August 15. This is first time we will soul clap since his ascension to the big dancefloor in the sky.

Glasslands
289 Kent Avenue, Brooklyn
11p, free beer from 11-midnight, 1a dance off with $100 prize glasslands.com/

***** Also on SATURDAY *****

Dances of Vice presents: The Cursed Circus

A circus of wonder and depravity awaits you in a magnificent display of freaks, fools, fire, and frippery that will astonish and delight.

Abandon all virtue as ring-mistress Gioia Marchese and her deadly cohorts at Company XIV lead you through a world of sensuous marvels. Featuring Isengart, the captivating libertine of the cabaret underworld, an arousing spectacle of flames by Priestess of Fire Sky Claudette and Vlad of Eros Fire, the salacious rapping of the tap-dancing Minsky Sisters, magician and performance bizarrist Michael Carbonaro, raucous carnival melodies provided by Ben Ickies' Ja Ja Jas Band with hostess and circus songbird Shien Lee. Also, for one night only, outr� pop surrealist Muffinhead displays his otherworldly paintings and prints as well as his own largely exclamational attire.

Fiendish beasts of the natural world to astound the most stoic of hearts, winking beauties to set your blood aflame, devillish clowns and countless temptations await you this one sinful night at Dances of Vice. So come one, come all, to the most bewitching show on earth.

303 Bond Street Theater
303 Bond Street, Brooklyn
9p; $20
dancesofvice.com

XXXXX SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 20 XXXXX

Human Countdown: A Climate Wake Up Call

A 4,000-person human sculpture in Central Park of a global alarm clock counting down to the midnight hour of climate chaos. On September 20, people from all walks of life will gather in New York's Central Park for an exciting creative action calling upon world leaders to take necessary steps to bring about a new climate deal.

As world leaders prepare to meet at the United Nations on September 22 to discuss the urgent issue of climate change, citizens will gather in Central Park to create a Human Countdown (a 4,000-person human sculpture in Central Park of a global alarm clock counting down to the midnight hour of climate chaos). This global photo op will demonstrate that the time to act is running out.

Climate change is happening right now. While least responsible for causing climate change, the world's poorest bear the brunt of the impacts. It is imperative that world leaders agree on a global climate deal that is fair, ambitious and binding in December 2009 in Copenhagen.

The Human Countdown is the flagship event kick-starting the Climate Wake Up Call, a series of coordinated events happening around the world. Organized by a broad global coalition fighting climate change as part of the TckTckTck Campaign, it will frame events during Climate Week New York City.

Wollman Ice Rink, Central Park, Manhattan 1�5p; $free
oxfamamerica.org/campaigns/climate-change/human-countdown/forms/signup-for-the-human-countdown

***** Also on SUNDAY *****

The Hip Hop Subway Series

Yo people I am back in NYC after an amazing run of the Hip Hop Subway Series in Prague, Berlin, and even one set up in Warsaw. Had an amazing time in France and got to chill for real in Singapore. After my travels its time for me to reconnect.

There are gonna be a few surprise guests from another country so get ready to get your network on. The theme will be Da Hustla. In these days and times, hustling is on the come back. Hustlas know how to make gold out of lead. I wanna know can you rhyme about economics? Can you rhyme about making real life and death situations just to feed your family? Just to live? The theme is for the ones who go out every morning never knowing exactly how to get that bread and at the end of the day give it to their family. Da Hustla does not recognize recession. Hosting will be yours truly Kid Lucky.

Times Square
Meet at the rear of the A train platform on the Brooklyn-bound side, Manhattan 6p; $free
609 910 1842
beatboxerentgmail.com
youtube/kidlucky1

XXXXX MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 21 XXXXX

Walrus of Love: Barry White and the American Experience

Almost 250 years into its storied history, America has yet failed to produce a single true artist on the scale of a Shakespeare or a Rembrandt or a Milton. With one exception: Barry White. The crooning achievement of this nation�s great Socio-Political experiment with Democracy, Barry White�s satin sound and smooth lyrics represent America�s highest cultural achievement to date. Join scholar and author Jamie Hook for a definitive appraisal and PowerPoint presentation about America�s only Artist. Featured will be numerous samples, from his early Auteurist creation Do the Banana Split for the TV show the Banana Splits and to his breakthrough discoveries of the wackawacka guitar sound (memorably deployed in Love's Theme) and the double glissando (climaxing in Satin Soul).

Jamie Hook is a cultural scholar whose work focuses almost exclusively on the smooth soul musical era of the mid- to late 1970s. He has written about Barry White for publications including the Stranger and The Rocket in Seattle, and lectured on Barry White for the Rendezvous Reading Series. He is currently working on his new book Lights under a Bushel: the Ashford and Simpson Story. Mr. Hook is also the curator of this series.

Pete's Candy Store
709 Lorimer Street, Brooklyn
7:30p; $free

***** Also on MONDAY *****

North Brooklyn Public Art Coalition presents:

Moviehouse on India Street Film Series

As part of its India Street Mural Project -- currently on view on the Greenpoint waterfront -- the North Brooklyn Public Art Coalition and Moviehouse celebrates six murals created this summer by projecting a series of films directly on the wall around the murals. On September 8, six local filmmakers Lam Thuy Vo, Joshua Carrero, Sarah Pirozek, Vanara Taing, Nathan Punwar, Hiram Becker, and Chris King presented the movies they created to capture the mural artists as they spent the month of June turning a common white wall into a master work of public art. On September 21, the series wraps up with two decidedly Brooklyn documentaries: Uncertain Industry and Up on the Roof.

India Street between West Street and the East River, Brooklyn 8:30p; $free

XXXXX TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 22 XXXXX

Shakey's Record Fair

Record fairs on Friday and Saturday evenings and weekend mornings are held at the worst possible times for DJs. Shakey's Record Fair is held on weekdays at night to accommodate the hours of DJs and fans of club culture.

The fair takes place 4-6 times per year at venues of various sizes. All kinds of music is represented: punk, techno, experimental, latin, club, rap, rock, house, jungle, reggae, etc.. Vendors selling music related merchandise, such as videos, handbags created out of record covers, t-shirts, etc. are also welcome. To add to the fun, the fair program includes drink specials, contests, live entertainment, and DJ sets from notable record collectors.

The next record fair will take place on Tuesday evening at Williamsburg's Public Assembly. Diggers can expect to find all formats: 7"s / 12"s / Albums / whatever. Rare underground film visuals from Cine Noir Film Society

Public Assembly
70 North 6th Street, Williamsburg, Brooklyn L train to Bedford station
7p-2a; $3
21 and over
facebook.com/djshakey#/event.php?eid=131095698209

***** Also on TUESDAY *****

Jane Jacobs Night

Readings and musings by those inspired by the defender of neighborhoods -- MC'd by Rev. Billy Talen and Savitri D from the Church of Life After Shopping.

Activists and authors read excerpts from Death and Life of Great American Cities and correspondence that Ms. Jacobs sent in support of neighborhood-saving campaigns over the years. With: Michael Premo, New York Hip Hop Festival and Picture the Homeless; Cathryn Swan, Washington Square Park Blog and Save Union Square; Christabel Gough, NYC preservationist hero; Bob Holman, Howl Festival, Bowery Poetry Club; Kevin Baker, Historian and author of Dreamland; Joy Chatel, Defender of the Duffield House Brooklyn Underground Railroad landmark; Philip Dipaolo, the People's Firehouse and Brooklyn neighborhood activists; and Carol Greitzer, City Councilwoman, Landmarking of Tammany Hall building on Union Square.

After a street in the Village was named Jane Jacobs Way --and the presiding city official of the ceremony was Christine Quinn-- we learned a lesson. The legacy of our heroes will be appropriated by our opponents as a matter of strategy. The letter to Saving Coney Island by Ned Jacobs, Jane�s son, urging resistance to the Bloomberg-and-Quinn backed highrises of Coney -- underscores the need to hold our values in the face of sophisticated public relations spin.

We celebrate Jane Jacobs Night to share the personal impact that she has had on our campaigns to save neighborhood diversity here in the city. We celebrate Ms. Jacobs as the founder of our activism.

Judson Memorial Church
239 Thompson Street and Washington Square South, Manhattan 9p; $free, donations encouraged for space rental

XXXXX WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 23 XXXXX

How I Learned is pleased to present:

How I Learned to Live in New York

Featuring: Paul Ford (Harper's, Author of Gary Benchley, Rock Star), Seth Herzog (Zog's Place, Sweet), Brad Lawrence (Moth StorySLAM winner), and Brooke Van Poppelen (NY Is Retarded). Hosted by Blaise Allysen Kearsley.

Happy Ending
302 Broome Street, between Forsyth and Eldridge, Manhattan 8p (doors open at 7p); $free
212 334 9676
howilearnedathappyending.blogspot.com

XXXXX UPCOMING XXXXX

• Williamsburg Fashion Weekend, September 18 and 19
• DUMBO Art Under the Bridge Festival, September 25-27
• Urban Arts Fest 2009, October 3
• Nonsense NYC 10th Year Anniversary Celebration, October 10
• NYC Decom, October 17

XXXXX ONGOING XXXXX

• Better Rock Shows. Nonsense does not straight list rock shows in New York unless they occur in tandem with puppet shows or jump rope tournaments or in subway tunnels or in graveyards. For listings of good shows, especially shows that feature independent bands at quality venues like Death by Audio and those booked by hard-working promoters like Todd P or Sleep When Dead, consult resources like ohmyrockness.com, brooklynvegan.com/, sleepwhendeadnyc.com/calendar/, or the lively New York Happenings listserve on Yahoo groups launch.groups.yahoo.com/group/nyhappenings/. For the most exhaustive list of underground shows at unusual venues, track down a copy of the extremely useful -- and handsome -- Showpaper.

***** ONGOING: FRIDAYS *****

• Burlesque at the Beach. September 18: The 7th Annual Miss Coney Island Pageant. 10p; $15. Sideshows by the Seashore, corner of Surf Avenue and West 12th Street, Brooklyn. coneyisland.com/
• Manhattan Critical Mass. Union Square, 17th Street and Broadway, Manhattan. Last FRIDAY of the month. 7p; $free.
• Brooklyn Critical Mass. Grand Army Plaza entrance to Prospect Park, Brooklyn. Second FRIDAY of the month. 7p; $free.

***** ONGOING: SATURDAYS *****

• Floating Cabaret. Trapeze, burlesque, song, dance. Hosted by Olga and Bjorn. Galapagos Art Space, 16 Main Street, Brooklyn. 10p doors, $10. 718 222 8500. galapagosartspace.com.
• Coney Island Film Society. September 19: Dead Alive. 8:30p; $3-5, free popcorn. Sideshows by the Seashore, corner of Surf Avenue and West 12th Street, Brooklyn. coneyisland.com/
• Night Kayaking Tours, Manhattan and Brooklyn. Explore: Coney Island submarine, creepy Governors Island, gross Gowanus Canal, and money-making Manhattan. Website: http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=ddrw24x5_167dxdpf3d9
• Rock and Roll 101. Watch music documentaries projected on the wall. St. Jerome's, 155 Rivington, between Clinton and Suffolk, Manhattan. 4-9p; $free.
• Barefoot Boogie: No shooze no booze. The Boogie is a not-for-profit alcohol-free event that happens every second and fourth SATURDAY of the month. Insight Meditation Center, 28 West 27th Street, 10th floor, buzzer No. 27. 8:30p-12:30a. barefootboogie.org

***** ONGOING: SUNDAYS *****

• CrazyTown / Locoville. Odd open mike hosted by Steph Sabelli. Weirdoes welcome and encouraged. Under St. Marks Theater, 94 St. Marks, at First Avenue, Manhattan. 9p sign up-1a; $free.
• Grub. A cheap, simple dinner for strangers and co-conspirators. Rubulad home base, 338 Flushing, at Classon, Brooklyn. G train to Flushing or Classon stations, J,M,Z to Marcy, B61 bus to Flushing. First and third SUNDAYS, 6:30p doors, 7p dinner; $pay what you want, and bring your own booze. suckapants.com/grub.html
• Church of Craft, group crafting. Etsy Labs, 325 Gold Street, third floor, Brooklyn. 2-6p; $free. churchofcraft.org/
• NYC Bike Polo. No experience needed. We'll show you how to play. We have mallets and balls; bring your bicycle. 1:30-5p-ish (or later if it's really nice out); $free. Sara D. Roosevelt Park, Broome between Chrystie and Forsyth, Manhattan. groups.myspace.com/NYCBIKEPOLO

***** ONGOING: MONDAYS *****

• Demonstration of the Great Organ, there are five organs in the beautiful St. John the Divine church up on Amsterdam Avenue, but the most impressive is the Great Organ. The head organist is giving a demonstration on how the organ functions. 1p; $free. Cathedral of St. John the Divine, 1047 Amsterdam Avenue, Manhattan.
• Church of Craft. Weekly crafting. 6-9p; $free. Spacecraft, 355 Bedford Avenue, Williamsburg, Brooklyn. spacecraftbrooklyn.com/, churchofcraft.org
• Glasslands Gallery Game Night. All ages, free sangria 8-8:30p, live music, and bingo. The Glasslands Gallery, 289 Kent Avenue, between South 1st and 2nd streets, Williamsburg, Brooklyn. 8p; $free. glasslands.blogspot.com/ and myspace.com/theglasslands
• Free movie screenings. Double feature, with free popcorn. The Lovin Cup, 93 N. 6th Street, Williamsburg, Brooklyn. 9p; $free. myspace.com/movienightqueen
• Aerial Open Work Out. Come play in 29 feet of vertical fun. Use our silks, lyras, and trapezes, or rig your own. 8-10p; $15, Sky Box, 342 Maujer Street, Williamsburg, Brooklyn, L train to Grand Street. 585 507 1770. RSVP to skybox.info@gmail.com
• Williamsburg Spelling Bee, compete for bar tab at a real adult spelling bee, every other MONDAY, 7:30p; free, Pete's Candy Store, 709 Lorimer St., Williamsburg, Brooklyn. petescandystore.com
• The Big Quiz Thing. NYC's live trivia spectacular. Crash Mansion, 199 Bowery, at Spring, Manhattan. Two Mondays a month. 7p doors; $7, $200 grand prize.
• Show and Tell. Each performer gets seven minutes. Writing contest and Beer Walk for free beer. Hosted by the O'Debra Twins. Bowery Poetry Club, 308 Bowery, Manhattan.

***** ONGOING: TUESDAYS *****

• Jugglers Anonymous: The Pratt Chapter. All ages and abilities welcome to practice juggling and related arts. Tony Dapolito Recreation Center, corner Varick and Clarkson, Brooklyn. 7:30-11p $free jugglenyc.com/clubs.html

***** ONGOING: WEDNESDAYS *****

• Drink N Draw. Art. Nudity. Beer. We provide the beer and the model, you bring your drawing tools of choice. 3rd Ward, 195 Morgan, Brooklyn. Second and fourth WEDNESDAYS 8-10.30p; $15, or $20 for two. afenton3rdward.com, 3rdward.com/.

***** ONGOING: THURSDAYS *****

• The Lower East Side Community Choir, a non-auditioned choir that believes that everyone can sing and that singing together in harmony with others is essential for personal and community health and vitality. Our repertoire is eclectic. If you love a cappella music and want to be able to join a drop-in gathering of like minded people, then this is for you. Lower East Side Girls Club, 56 East 1st Street, Manhattan. 7-9p; $donations. ubuntuchoirs.net/locator_United_States.php
• Private Ear Audio Theatre: Radio Plays. 8:30p; $?. Brooklyn Lyceum. privateear.org
• $mall �hange and House of Yes present: No Parking on the Dancefloor. Next party: July 30. A party bringing it back to dancing. Basically we do not have any kind of dogma or judgment. Do what feels comfortable to you and be respectful to those around ya, that's basically all we ask. Different DJs every time. House of Yes, 342 Maujer, near Morgan, Brooklyn. Every third THURSDAY, 9ish-midnightish (starts/ends early); $5-10 suggested donation. NOTE: This event is every third Thursday, not every Thursday. Also, sometimes they cancel the event for some reason or another. You should check first: smallchange666@gmail.com
• Carmine Street Jugglers. All levels welcome to practice juggling and related arts. 7:30-9:45p. Club is free, but building requires NYC Parks and Recreation membership ($0-$75 per year). http://jugglenyc.com/clubs.html
• Rocky Sullivan's Pub Quiz, with Quizmaster Scott M.X. Turner. 8:30p; $free admission, potable prizes. Rocky Sulivan's, 34 Van Dyke Street, Brooklyn. rockysullivans.com/quiz.html

XXXXX WISHLIST XXXXX

What have you been wishing for? Collaborators, grant monies, a new home? Please send brief listings to Alita at alitanonsensenyc.com. We only list available apartments, lofts, studios, and one-off rentals -- not spaces wanted.

***** ARTY STUFF *****

• Nonsense NYC is celebrating its 10th Year on October 10 with a huge, complicated, and absurd event at 3rd Ward in Brooklyn. In order to approximate the actual experience of the list itself, we are coordinating a night of dozens of performances. Shows between 1 to 15 minutes long will start every 5 minutes for audiences of 1 to 15 people. Please send us an email if you would like to perform. We are especially looking for people whose shows have been featured on Nonsense in the past. You can perform your own act (your puppet show, your burlesque dance, your pitchshifted harmonica solo), re-create an event featured on Nonsense in the last 10 years (the Mongolian New Year's kitchen party, the Running of the Bulls), or ask us to give you an assignment to interpret. We are especially interested in interactive performances, like jam tastings or jousting matches. Little to no pay. Fuzzy feelings galore. Email us here: jstarknonsensenyc.com.
• Artist and writer needs used but undeveloped rolls of film for a project: Film of any kind, any time period, old junk cameras with leftover film in them and disposable cameras, too. Even if the film is only partially used, may have gone bad, if what's on it is mundane or a mystery-- if you can part with it, I'd love to use it. I'll be developing pictures from the submitted rolls for use in a writing project. I'm particularly interested in film left over for family events, vacations and daily life. Lost and found pictures. Garage sale cameras. The older, the better. You know that roll that's been rattling around the junk drawer for years, and you don't remember whether it's from your teenage niece's baptism, an insurance claim or a camping trip during the Clinton administration? That's the one. If you have film or a disposable camera to contribute, please email lucidinsomniac(at)gmail.com for the mailing address. If you prefer, email me your address and I'll send you a posta ge-paid envelope. Thank you so much for your help!
• Have you had a problem with law enforcement while taking a picture in public space? Get in touch with PictureNewYork through the comments section of the website pictureny.org. It's been 13 months since regulations on street photography went into effect in NYC. The City Council is having a hearing September 24 at 1p about the regulations. It's an open hearing -- you sign up to speak when you arrive. The Sergeant of Arms will have slips for you to fill out. Please give yourself ample time because of security checks before entering City Hall. We received this invitation from the City Council, which we pass along to you. If you've had any interaction with law enforcement while taking photos in public space, this might be a good venue to talk about it. The Committee on Cultural Affairs, Libraries, and International Intergroup Relations will hold a hearing on Thursday, September 24, 2009 at 1p, in Chambers at City Hall. The hearing is entitled Oversight: Procedures for Filming an d Photographing in Neighborhoods throughout New York City. If you can't go, you can submit a statement. See pictureny.org/ for details.
• Actions with the Yes Men, September 17-22: If you want to wear ridiculous costumes, shoot video, help dress, kayak please email me, Larken, at Larken(at)artevolve.org with the dates you are available, your phone number, desired role. Dates include September 17-22. Experienced sewers who know how to use a machine and want to help construct: email your availability to kaeburke(at)gmail.com. Or meet any Thursday night between 5-8p at 3rd Ward, at 195 Morgan Avenue. Bring a bike if you have one, I will plug you in to tons of ways that you can help reduce global warming, get involved in arts and activism in your community through the Yes Men, House of Yes, and Band of Bicycles.

***** SPACES *****

• Available November 1: Share a two-bedroom railroad apartment in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. $675 for a small/medium-sized room that overlooks a leafy backyard, with two windows and a real closet. My bedroom is on the opposite side of the house for max privacy. The place is affordable but it's an old building that requires lots of care and upkeep from us -- not the landlord -- so handy, proactive people who can use a drill and who don't panic when the ceiling leaks are preferred. I'm a late-20s accessories designer, I currently have a separate studio but also do some work from home. I have a lot of clutter, two cats and a very elderly dog. It's perfect if you like sweet loving pets, but not the care and responsibility for them. My ideal roommate is not allergic, a non-smoker, works outside of the home, and cleans shared spaces without being asked. I would also be open to another dog, no more cats though, we have plenty. I like to cook and feed people if our schedules work out th at way, I cook 90 percent veggie but on occasion will cook meat (for the dog mostly!). I will also be traveling quite a bit in Jan-May or June next year, and subletting my room, so I need someone who can commit to at least an eight-month period while I am away. Our building is just three apartments and we are all old friends who have dinner together once in a while. We share bike parking. We have a tiny porch. Life is good here. The location is great -- super close to the Met Pool, all the shops and restaurants on Grand Street, and the pocket park on the waterfront. We share wifi and full cable with a Tivo for cheap, though I try to only turn on the TV a few times a week (Mad Men!!) and not be a couch potato and I hope it's the same for you. Please get in touch and tell me a bit about yourself, and come by and see the place in early October. Move-in Nov. 1st!! Alita, reversibleskirt(at)gmail.com
• Big bedroom available this week with flexible move-in and prorated rent payment up until October 1. Recently renovated, big room in Bed-Stuy (Bedford Ave at Kosciuszko). Big enough to fit a queen-sized bed, large desk, chest of drawers, clothes rack and then some. Even more awesome storage/moving around capacity with a loft bed. High ceilings, sunny big window - with your own fire escape. Bathroom with full bathtub, gas stove. Rooftop access. One block from the G train Bedford-Nostrand station. Walk out the door and you're practically in the station. Roommates are wonderful, genuine, creative people -- all four are independent fashion designers (three boys and one lady). Everyone keeps different hours, you have the place to yourself often. Utilities are less than $30 a month generally, wireless internet $5. Cute cafes (Tiny Cup!) in the neighborhood, One block from a community garden, a liquor store, 24 hour bodega, grocery store across the street, brand new laundromat near by, library one block away, and huge public pool for future summer fun one block away. Large park three blocks away. Looking for laid-back but respectful and clean people to share a home. Email with a little about you and when you want to see the place. Pets could be a possibility -- on a case by case basis. Contact Talena, dinosaur.fight(at)gmail.com
• About us: The treehaus is an effort to establish an example of a community of people working together to reach the common goal of sustainable living. We're rejecting the New York "fend for yourself" attitude and collectively building a strong alternative to individualistic consumer culture. By living together intensely, sharing food, space, and projects, we are more able to enroll others into our common goals. Our collective success is stronger as a sum of the parts. The treehaus was started to provide a supportive living space of people united together to inspire each other to accomplish work in the arts, activism, social justice and cooperation. The tenets of treehaus living: affordable living, righteous food, and working together to fulfill personal and collective goals. We're twelve people in a four-story brownstone seeking to make it a baker's dozen. We have a small house built in our backyard, a compost bin, and we're planning on getting a few chickens someday. We sho p at the Park Slope food co-op and receive local CSA shares. We have two cats, tons of bikes, a huge kitchen, two fridges, four bathrooms, and a living room. All hausmates are responsible for a weekly chore, attendance for a Monday night dinner and meeting. In addition to rent, we pay for food collectively ($100 per month) and share utilities ($20). Room available for October 1 for $500 per month. It's on our second floor with high ceilings, a window looking out to the backyard, and secret bathroom access. We have house events, including the occasional dance party. Public transportation is the C/S train to Franklin or G train to Bedford/Nostrand or Classon Ave. We're a half a block away from the YMCA, bike lanes, and a number of bus routes. We don't discriminate based on race, gender, or sexuality. We'd love to have you over for dinner this Monday. Contact carly.liebman(at)gmail.com.

XXXXX SPECTRE PRIORITY XXXXX

Before we had a name, the Spectre Event Horizon Group used to meet at a bar to commiserate about the news and trade what our business friends call best practices. The group has expanded since then, but it remains premised on smartening the crowd mind. There are no subject limits; our favorite is our sci-fi present, and we like anything that goes toward a better understanding of human behavior and ecology. Our basic idea is to connect minds with mind-blowing information and create a space for the informal trade of specialized investigative research, presented for the non-specialist.

The Spectre email list, which is a separate group from this column, is a moderated open forum. People are encouraged to join and to post. This section is compiled for Nonsense by J. Sinopoli. Contact us at spectre.event.horizon.groupgmail.com or spectregroup.org. Some of what came in this week:

***** What Eats Plastic? *****

http://spectregroup.wordpress.com/2009/09/17/what-eats-plastic/

Garbage Patch Is Size of Continent
http://www.digitaluniverse.net/upcycling/articles/view/135971/ The World's Largest "Landfill" is the Middle of the Ocean "There is a large part of the central Pacific Ocean that no one ever visits and only a few ever pass through. Sailors avoid it like the plague for it lacks the wind they need to sail. Fisherman leave it alone because its lack of nutrients makes it an oceanic desert. This area includes the "horse latitudes," where stock transporters in the age of sail got stuck, ran out of food and water and had to jettison their horses and other livestock. Surprisingly, this is the largest ocean realm on our planet, being about the size of Africa � over ten million square miles. A huge mountain of air, which has been heated at the equator, and then begins descending in a gentle clockwise rotation as it approaches the North Pole, creates this ocean realm. The circular winds produce circular ocean currents which spiral into a center where there is a slight down-welling. Scientists know this atmospheric phenomenon as the subtropical high, and the ocean current it creates as the north Pacific central or sub-tropical gyre. Because of the stability of this gentle maelstrom, the largest uniform climatic feature on earth is also an accumulator of the debris of civilization. If plastic doesn't biodegrade, what does it do? It "photo-degrades" � a process in which it is broken down by sunlight into smaller and smaller pieces, all of which are still plastic polymers, eventually becoming individual molecules of plastic, still too tough for anything to digest. For the last fifty-odd years, every piece of plastic that has made it from our shores to the Pacific Ocean, has been breaking down and accumulating in the central Pacific gyre. Oceanographers like Curtis Ebbesmeyer, the world's leading flotsam expert, refer to it as the great Pacific Garbage Patch. The problem is that it is not a patch, it's the size of a continent, and it's filling up with floating plastic waste. On our return trip to Santa Barbara, we discovered something never before documented -a Langmuir Windrow of plastic debris. Circular ocean currents with contrary rotation create long lines of material, visible from above as streaks on the ocean. Normally these are formed by planktonic organisms or foam, but we discovered one made of plastic. Everything from huge hawsers to tiny fragments were formed into a miles long line. We picked up hundreds of pounds of netting of all types bailed together in this system along with every type and size of debris imaginable. Sometimes, windrows like this drift down over the Hawaiian Islands. That is when Waimanalo Beach on Oahu gets coated with blue green plastic sand, along with staggering amounts of larger debris. Farther to the northwest, at the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands Coral Reef Ecosystem Reserve, monk seals, the most endangered mammal species in the United States, get entangled in debris, especially cheap plastic nets lost or discarded by the fishing industry. Ninety percent of Hawaiian green sea turtles nest here and eat the debris, mistaking it for their natural food, as do Laysan and Black Footed Albatross. Indeed, the stomach contents of Laysan Albatross look like the cigarette lighter shelf at a convenience store they contain so many of them.

It's not just entanglement and indigestion that are problems caused by plastic debris, however. There is a darker side to pollution of the ocean by ubiquitous plastic fragments. As these fragments float around , they accumulate the poisons we manufacture for various purposes that are not water-soluble. It turns out that plastic polymers are sponges for DDT, PCBs and nonylphenols -oily toxics that don't dissolve in seawater. Plastic pellets have been found to accumulate up to one million times the level of these poisons that are floating in the water itself. These are not like heavy metal poisons which affect the animal that ingests them directly. Rather, they are what might be called "second generation " toxics. Animals have evolved receptors for elaborate organic molecules called hormones, which regulate brain activity and reproduction. Hormone receptors cannot distinguish these toxics from the natural estrogenic hormone, estradiol, and when the pollutants dock at these rece ptors instead of the natural hormone, they have been shown to have a number of negative effects in everything from birds and fish to humans. The whole issue of hormone disruption is becoming one of, if not the biggest environmental issue of the 21st Century. Hormone disruption has been implicated in lower sperm counts and higher ratios of females to males in both humans and animals. Unchecked, this trend is a dead end for any species. A trillion trillion vectors for our worst pollutants are being ingested by the most efficient natural vacuum cleaners nature ever invented, the mucus web feeding jellies and salps (chordate jellies that are the fastest growing multicellular organisms on the planet) out in the middle of the ocean. These organisms are in turn eaten by fish and then, certainly in many cases, by humans. We can grow pesticide free organic produce, but can nature still produce a pesticide free organic fish?"

Upcycling
http://www.digitaluniverse.net/upcycling/ http://www.wiserearth.org/group/BerkanaExchange http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn14764 Plastic-munching bugs turn waste bottles into cash "Newly discovered bacterial alchemists could help save billions of plastic bottles from landfill. The Pseudomonas strains can convert the low-grade PET plastic used in drinks bottles into a more valuable and biodegradable plastic called PHA. PHA is already used in medical applications, from artery-supporting tubes called stents to wound dressings. The plastic can be processed to have a range of physical properties. However, one of the barriers to PHA reaching wider use is the absence of a way to make it in large quantities. The new bacteria-driven process � termed upcycling � could address that, and make recycling PET bottles more economically attractive."

Down The Rabbithole
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polyethylene_terephthalate http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polyhydroxyalkanoates http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pseudomonas http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sphingomonas Pseudonmonas Genome Database
http://www.pseudomonas.com/

Hey Thanks! Canadian Teen Decomposes Plastic Bag In Three Months http://blog.wired.com/wiredscience/2008/05/teen-decomposes.html "The Waterloo, Ontario high school junior figured that something must make plastic degrade, even if it does take millennia, and that something was probably bacteria. (At between one-half and 90 percent of Earth's biomass, bacteria's a pretty safe bet for any biological mystery.) The Record reports that Burd mixed landfill dirt with yeast and tap water, then added ground plastic and let it stew. The plastic indeed decomposed more quickly than it would in nature; after experimenting with different temperatures and configurations, Burd isolated the microbial munchers. One came from the bacterial genus Pseudomonas, and the other from the genus Sphingomonas. Burd says this should be easy on an industrial scale: all that's needed is a fermenter, a growth medium and plastic, and the bacteria themselves provide most of the energy by producing heat as they eat. The only waste is water and a bit of carbon dioxide. Amazing stuff. I'll try to get an interview with this young man who may have managed to solve one of the most intractable environmental dilemmas of our time. And I can't help but wonder whether his high school already had its prom. If he doesn't get to be king, there's no justice in this world."

Yeast, Tap Water, Dirt
http://news.therecord.com/article/354044 WCI student isolates microbe that lunches on plastic bags "Getting ordinary plastic bags to rot away like banana peels would be an environmental dream come true. After all, we produce 500 billion a year worldwide and they take up to 1,000 years to decompose. Daniel Burd's project won the top prize at the Canada-Wide Science Fair in Ottawa. He knew plastic does eventually degrade, and figured microorganisms must be behind it. His goal was to isolate the microorganisms that can break down plastic � not an easy task because they don't exist in high numbers in nature. First, he ground plastic bags into a powder. Next, he used ordinary household chemicals, yeast and tap water to create a solution that would encourage microbe growth. To that, he added the plastic powder and dirt. Then the solution sat in a shaker at 30 degrees. After three months of upping the concentration of plastic-eating microbes, Burd filtered out the remaining plastic powder and put his bacterial culture into three flasks with strips of plastic cut from grocery bags . As a control, he also added plastic to flasks containing boiled and therefore dead bacterial culture. Six weeks later, he weighed the strips of plastic. The control strips were the same. But the ones that had been in the live bacterial culture weighed an average of 17 per cent less. That wasn't good enough for Burd. To identify the bacteria in his culture, he let them grow on agar plates and found he had four types of microbes. He tested those on more plastic strips and found only the second was capable of significant plastic degradation.

Next, Burd tried mixing his most effective strain with the others. He found strains one and two together produced a 32 per cent weight loss in his plastic strips. His theory is strain one helps strain two reproduce. Tests to identify the strains found strain two was Sphingomonas bacteria and the helper was Pseudomonas. A researcher in Ireland has found Pseudomonas is capable of degrading polystyrene, but as far as Burd and his teacher Mark Menhennet know � and they've looked � Burd's research on polyethelene plastic bags is a first. Next, Burd tested his strains' effectiveness at different temperatures, concentrations and with the addition of sodium acetate as a ready source of carbon to help bacteria grow. At 37 degrees and optimal bacterial concentration, with a bit of sodium acetate thrown in, Burd achieved 43 per cent degradation within six weeks. The plastic he fished out then was visibly clearer and more brittle, and Burd guesses after six more weeks, it would be gone. He hasn't tried that yet. To see if his process would work on a larger scale, he tried it with five or six whole bags in a bucket with the bacterial culture. That worked too. Industrial application should be easy, said Burd. "All you need is a fermenter ... your growth medium, your microbes and your plastic bags." The inputs are cheap, maintaining the required temperature takes little energy because microbes produce heat as they work, and the only outputs are water and tiny levels of carbon dioxide � each microbe produces only 0.01 per cent of its own infinitesimal weight in carbon dioxide, said Burd. "This is a huge, huge step forward . . . We're using nature to solve a man-made problem.""

See Also: Microbes Convert Styrofoam
http://portal.acs.org/portal/acs/corg/content?_nfpb=true&_pageLabel=PP_ARTICLEMAIN&node_id=222&content_id=CTP_003309&use_sec=true&sec_url_var=region1

Previously On Spectre - Biodegradable Plastics http://spectregroup.wordpress.com/2007/06/22/spectre-investor-biodegradable-plastics/ Domesticating Biotech
http://spectregroup.wordpress.com/2007/07/20/domesticating-biotech/ Grow Your Own Bacterial Slave Army - Sea Monkeys Done For Good http://spectregroup.wordpress.com/2006/09/05/grow-your-own-bacterial-slave-army-sea-monkeys-done-for-good/

XXXXX LEARNING XXXXX

We look for the sort of classes you circled in college course catalogs but never managed to fit into your schedule. And we also look for the kind of things that no college could teach. Cheap and eclectic is the rule, though all rules get broken occasionally, and we especially love workshops, round-tables, and teachers who won't take your work out of your hands and show you how to do it right. One-time listings are categorized, with general recurring classes at the end. We thrive on your suggestions, so make sure to tell us about upcoming classes that you think are nifty-keen.

Learning is compiled and edited weekly by Libby Sentz. Send listings, announcements, and corrections to her at libbysentz(at)me.com.

***** LEARNING: FRIDAY *****

Conflux 2009: Art and Tech Workshops

Don't miss this jam-packed weekend of workshops at Conflux, an art and technology festival for the creative exploration of urban public space. Full calendar of events available online.

NYU Steinhardt�s Barney Building
34 Stuyvesant Street, Manhattan
11:30a-8:30p, $5 suggested donation
Continues Saturday and Sunday 10a-6p
confluxfestival.org/2009/schedule

***** LEARNING: SATURDAY *****

Open House: Jamaica Center for Arts & Learning

Free workshops all day in Bollywood dance, capoeira, African dance, bellydance, drawing, painting, and much more.

Jamaica Center for Arts & Learning
161-04 Jamaica Avenue, Queens
11a-5p, $free
jcal.org

***** LEARNING: SUNDAY *****

The Nutrition-Centered Life Workshop

Nutrition experts, lecturers, and authors Michael Greger, M.D. and Victoria Moran lead this four-hour workshop on the nutrition-centered life. Dr. Greger, director of public health and animal agriculture in the farm-animal welfare division, specializes in the human health implications of intensive animal agriculture, including the routine use of non-therapeutic antibiotics and growth hormones in animals raised for food, and the public health threats of industrial factory farm. Moran is an international speaker, a certified life coach, and the Oprah-featured author of 10 books on well-being and holistic spirituality. RSVP by Friday, September 17.

Atmananda Yoga
324 Lafayette Street, Manhattan
Seventh Floor
11a-3p, $15 suggested donation
info(at)omwellness.org
atmananda.com

***** LEARNING: MONDAY *****

Free HoopSculpt

This is more a hoop-fitness class than a tricks class, but you may learn a few fancy moves and you will most definitely sweat. No experience necessary.

Location TBA when you RSVP
West 41st Street, Manhattan
7:30-9p, $free
thefunnestbootcamp(at)gmail.com

***** LEARNING: TUESDAY *****

EcoBizNYC Sustainable Business Workshop

This free Do-It-Yourself Greening Workshop is designed to help you make your business more sustainable without spending much cash. Learn how to make cleaners from scratch, start a compost bin, clean your filters, and get creative while saving money and reducing your pollution.

Lower East Side People's Mutual Housing Association 5-6:30p, $free
228 East 3rd Street, Manhattan
7th Floor (buzzer CR)
info(at)lesecologycenter.org
lesecologycenter.org

***** LEARNING: WEDNESDAY *****

Videoblogging 101

The Brooklyn Center for Media Education will show you how to make a Web page that showcases videos you've created. Learn how to set up a blog and upload your footage, and find out the many benefits of having your video on the Internet. Contact the media center for info on orientation, which must be completed before taking any classes there.

BCAT Media Center
647 Fulton Street, Brooklyn
6-8p, $10
718-935-1122
bricartsmedia.org/events

***** LEARNING: Also on WEDNESDAY *****

Free Dialogue Writing Class

Gotham Writers' Workshop presents an hour-long dialogue writing class, led by Pete Jensen.

Barnes & Noble Lincoln Center
1972 Broadway, Manhattan
7:30-8:30p, $free
writingclasses.com/CommunityEvents/index.php

***** LEARNING: THURSDAY *****

Furniture Design and Construction

This eight-week course is for the furniture designer/woodworker who feels comfortable enough in the shop to want to flex their muscles a bit. Each student will arrive at the first session with a drawing, however rudimentary or well developed, and the entire class will look at these with an eye toward execution, including materials, techniques, skill, and feasibility of completion within the eight-week run of the course. Led by Stephen Pino. Enrollment includes a 12-day shop pass (a $1,200 value) so students may work on their projects outside of class time. Prerequisite: Intro to Woodworking, Furniture Design 1, or instructor's permission. Mention Nonsense NYC when you register (deadline September 21) for a 10% discount on this class.

3rd Ward
195 Morgan Avenue, Brooklyn
Thursdays, September 24 through November 12 7-10p, $480 (members), $600 (nonmembers) $80 equipment fee
3rdward.com/calendar

***** LEARNING: Also on THURSDAY *****

Slow Living: A Choice for Self and Planet

The Spiral Series brings together a panel of guest speakers from the worlds of science, spirituality, social change, and creativity. Charlie Gonzalez speaks on the ancient science of life and art of healing Ayurveda. Ariane Burgess discusses labyrinth walking as contemplative practice. Jordan Schachter introduces Time Interchange of New York (TINY), where goods and services can be traded for an alternative currency called Time Dollars. And Joshua Adler discusses the Theater Research Ensemble (TRE), a mindfulness-inspired performance ensemble.

Ciao Stella
206 Sullivan Street, Manhattan
7p, $5
meetup.com/StorySpiral-NYC/calendar/10348512/ nadya(at)storyspiral.com

***** LEARNING: Also on THURSDAY *****

The Science of Fasting

The Fathomless Five and Organic Avenue present this workshop, which will demonstrate the effects of juice fasting (cleansing of the physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual bodies) and the overall effect of a plant-source diet on the entire planet. This Super Hero program was initiated by Rabbi Gabriel Cousens, M.D., in preparation for the June 2010 bicoastal event Juice Fasting to Stop Global Warming.

Meta Center
214 West 29th Street, 16th floor, Manhattan 7-9p, $free
info(at)parashakti.org
organicavenue.com

***** LEARNING: Also on THURSDAY *****

Intro to Digital Photo Editing

This absolute beginners course covers the basics of creating Photoshop documents, adding text and images, working with shapes and color, managing layers, design, and more. If you have a laptop with Photoshop or Gimp, bring it to follow along (not required). Bring a healthy snack to share and stay afterwards to mingle. Led by Amber Kusmenko, a freelance animator and designer who holds Permaculture Design certificates from NYC's Center for Bioregional Living and Brazil's Ecocentro IPEC.

The Be Hive
440 Lafayette Street, Manhattan
6th Floor
7:30-10p, $10
RSVP: behivethrives(at)gmail.com
behivethrives.com

***** LEARNING: UPCOMING *****

• Horizons Perspectives on Psychedelics, a weekend forum about psychedelics, hosted by Judson Memorial Church. September 25-27; horizonsnyc.org

***** LEARNING: ONGOING *****

• African dance with Sandella at the Booker T. Washington Middle School gym, 103 West 108th Street. Manhattan. Fridays 6:30-8p; $free. 212-942-3566. (The class airs on Time Warner channel 56 Wednesdays at 2p.)
• Kripalu Yoga at Socrates Sculpture Park, 3201 Vernon Boulevard. Long Island City. Saturdays (through September 19) 9:30-10:30a and 11a-noon; free. socratessculpturepark.org/programs/fitness.php
• Open tai chi at Bryant Park's Fountain Terrace, 42nd Street and 6th Avenue. Manhattan. Tuesdays and Thursdays rain or shine (through October 8) 7:30-8:30a; $free. bryantpark.org
• Self-defense at St. Mark's Church. Manhattan. Wednesdays 7:30-8:30p; $free. mkdkarate.com/classes.html
• Kayaking on the Hudson River. Slots are 20 minutes, but kayakers may go more than once. Manhattan. Weather permitting, Saturdays and Sundays (through October 11) 10a-5p; $free. nycgovparks.org/parks/riversideparksouth/events/166151
• Canoeing and kayaking in Hallets Cove. Socrates Sculpture Park, Long Island City. Weather permitting, Sundays (through October 25) 1p; $free. licboathouse.org
• Power vinyasa with Hosh Yoga in McCarren Park. Manhattan. Saturdays 3p; $donation. hoshyoga.org/schedule.html
• Trampoline at Streb Lab for Action Mechanics. Brooklyn. Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays 7-8:30p; $25. streb.org/V2/school/adults.html
• Balkan folk dance at the Hungarian House. Manhattan. Wednesdays 6:30-8p; $12. nycfolkdance.org
• Bujinkan Budo Taijutsu at Triskelion Arts. Brooklyn. Training is centered on jissen gata combat fighting. Membership is selective, but you may attend the first class without paying dues. Saturdays 5-7p, Sundays 2�4p. triskelionarts.org/events.htm#classesoffered
• Group tightwire walking and foot juggling workshop at Trapeze Loft. Williamsburg. Sundays 5-6p; $25. thetrapezeloft.com
• Capoeira, a Brazilian martial art and dance, with Capoeira Angola Quintal. Manhattan. Various days; $15. afrobrazilarts.org/newyorkcapoeira/index.htm
• Co-ed nonsexual naked yoga. Manhattan. Various days; $?. groups.yahoo.com/group/coyoga/
• Parkour workshops. Manhattan. Sundays 4p; $15+. nyparkour.com
• Aerial yoga. Manhattan and Williamsburg. Various days; $20. aerialyoga.com

BRAIN

• Open craft/hack nights at NYC Resistor. Brooklyn. Thursdays 6-9p; $free. nycresistor.com/2008/11/22/open-craft-hack-nights-on-thursdays/
• Math studies at the School of Mathematics, which cultivates a natural, stress-free environment where everyone can explore, study, and discover mathematics. Prior knowledge is not assumed. Brooklyn. Various days; $free. thewe.net/math
• Writing with constraints at the Writhings Society. Practice writing with arbitrary, sometimes mathematical, rules invented by the French group Oulipo and others; no experience necessary. Brooklyn. Wednesdays 6:30-8:30p; $5+. proteusgowanus.com

HANDS

• Knitting for beginners by Gotta Knit! in Bryant Park, Upper Terrace. Manhattan. Tuesdays 1:30-3p. $free. Pre-register: 212-989-3030.
• Craft-On (fun with yarn, thread, and more) with Church of Craft. Brooklyn. Various days; $free. churchofcraft.org/2008/10/01/welcome-nyc-crafters/
• Freegan Bike Workshop: Learn how to turn found bike parts into working bicycles and build your own bike. Brooklyn. Wednesdays and Saturdays; $free. 123communityspace.org/event
• Project Film School's film-theory freeschool with a weekly screening series and online resources. Brooklyn. Sunday nights; $free. projectfilmschool.org
• Bicycle repair classes at Time's Up! Manhattan and Brooklyn. Various days. $free. times-up.org/index.php?page=bike-co-op
• Home-improvement classes, from tiling to drywall repair, at Home Depot stores. Saturdays and Sundays; $free. homeimproverclub.com/workshops.aspx?Type=3
• The Fixers Collective is a social experiment in improvisational fixing and mending. Participants bring their broken objects and put them on a large, common fixing table and share ideas and techniques for repairing, mending, enhancing, or repurposing the objects. Brooklyn. Thursdays 6-9p; $5. proteusgowanus.com/main/fixers-collective
• Beading classes at Brooklyn Bead Box. Various days; $varies. brooklynbeadbox.com/classes.html
• Classes in the needle arts at Brooklyn General Store. Various days; $varies. brooklyngeneral.com/classes.htm
• Knitting and spinning classes at the Yarn Tree. Various days; $varies. theyarntree.com/studio/classes/
• Mosaic workshops. Manhattan. Wednesdays 1-4p and 6-9p; $100 for four-class workshop. newyorkartworld.com/things/things-mosaic.html
• Figure drawing at Brooklyn Artists Gym. Mondays 6:30-9p and Saturdays 12-3p; $8+. brooklynartistsgym.com/events.html#workshops
• Screenprinting at 123 Printshop. Brooklyn. Fridays 5-8p and Saturdays 3-5p; $3+. 123communityspace.org/program/screenprinting-workshop-50

GRAB BAG

• Night School at House of Yes. A different workshop each week on everything from whistling to wine tasting. Email kaeburke(at)gmail.com if you are interested in hosting your own workshop. Brooklyn. Wednesdays 9p; $varies. houseofyes.org/events/
• 3rd Ward offers multi- and interdisciplinary courses in visual art, technology, and fabrication. Various days; $varies. 3rdward.com/classes
• Gearilla!, a street theater workshop (on bikes). Various locations. Tuesdays 2p; $10+. monicahunken.com/classes.html
• Didgeridoo classes in Prospect Park for music, meditation, and healing. Saturdays; $10. didgeproject.com
• Creative arts classes at Spoke the Hub. Brooklyn. Various days; $varies. spokethehub.org
• First aid for cats and dogs. Manhattan. Saturdays 10-2p; $65 (if purchased online). nyredcross.org/viewclass.php/prmCID/32/month/08/year/2009

XXXXX HELP XXXXX

Ever taken part in an old-fashioned barn raising? We never have, but we think it would be kind of cool -- all those neighbors in funny hats and overalls coming together to pound nails, stand up walls, and raise the collective roof. In that spirit, we look for one-day volunteer opportunities with no long-term commitments required. Our goal is to help groups or individuals that serve the greater good in small but significant ways, avoiding mega-nonprofits and people just looking for free labor. Know of any existing opportunities? Looking for ways to help out? Or need volunteers to get your own community project off the ground? Send your requests to Joanie Schaffer at schafferificgmail.com.

***** HELP: SEPTEMBER 18-22 *****

New York Innovative Theatre Awards

The New York Innovative Theater Awards, a night when Off-Off-Broadway and the independent theatre community comes together to celebrate and honor their own, seeks volunteer event and production crew for its 5th awards ceremony taking place September 21. All areas of support are needed through Tuesday, September 22. Seeking volunteer staff in all areas, including: load-in crew, load-out crew, production assistants, interns, drivers, video crew, photographers, box office, ushers, and other general tasks. General event volunteers should plan on being available for one orientation session and the event on Monday, September 21. Production crew must be available September 13, September 20, all day September 21, and for at least one pre-production meeting with producers. No pay, but good opportunity for contacts, and a great way to support the Off Off Broadway theatre community. You will also have the opportunity to enjoy the ceremony after party and future New York Innovative The atre Award Events.

New World Stages
340 W. 50th Street, Manhattan
September 18, 12-4p
September 20, 2-10p
September 21, 10a-11p
September 22, 10a-3p
Akianyitawards.com

***** HELP: WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 23 *****

Feel Free -- A National Parks Celebration

The nonprofit National Parks Conservation Association is partnering with PBS to " Celebrate the National Parks with Ken Burns,� an evening of entertainment at the East Meadow in Central Park. We are hoping to sign up 15-20 volunteers to help with on site guest services, directions and information assistance to guest arriving for the film and entertainment. Please arrive at 4p for orientation.

East Meadow, Central Park
Fifth Avenue and 96th Street, Manhattan 4-10p
ospellmannpca.org
212 617 2769

***** HELP: UPCOMING *****

• September 26: Dreams to Deeds needs help planting and preparing an area for planting near the dogrun at Morningside Park. Meet at Morningside Avenue and 114th Street at 10a. For more information please visit our website at dreamstodeeds.com or email Felice at felicedreamstodeeds.com
• October 5: The FDNY Foundation is seeking 15 volunteers to help coordinate students at the largest ever Junior Firefighters Swearing-in Ceremony at Rockefeller Center. We are looking for enthusiastic, energetic individuals to work with us from 10a to 1p on that Monday. Experience with children a plus. Background check may be required. Free FDNY shirt and hat for all volunteers. Please contact Jonothon Chuang at chuangjfdny.nyc.gov or 718 999 0329.
• November 12. Set up help for the NephCure Foundation. Help is needed for the NephCure Foundation's 2009 New York Countdown to a Cure. Ten volunteers are needed to help with set-up for this charity event. Volunteers should arrive at 1p to begin set-up and will be fed. Countdown to a Cure will be held at the Citi Field Caesars Club in Flushing, Queens. Over 800 guests are expected. The reception-style dinner will begin at 6:30p. All proceeds benefit the NephCure Foundation, the only organization committed to finding a cause and cure for two devastating kidney diseases, Nephrotic Syndrome and Focal Segmental Glomerulosclerosis (FSGS). Minimum age 15. Please contact Miriam Long at mlongnephcure.org for more information. volunteermatch.org/search/opp572855.jsp

***** HELP: ONGOING *****

• Food Servers of St. John's Bread and Life. We are in need of groups that would be interested in helping out in our Soup Kitchen and Food Pantry. Minimum age 21. 795 Lexington Avenue, Brooklyn. volunteermatch.org/search/opp572876.jsp
• Looking for volunteers to do light administrative duties for non-profit outreach opera/musical theater group based in Washington Heights and Inwood. Most of the duties can be performed at home on your own computer. This is a great prospect for some one pursuing a degree in artistic administration. Looking for someone who can volunteer 5-10 hours a month. Again, just looking for someone to perform light administrative duties. For more info, contact cheron.g.cowangmail.com or visit nystreetopera.com.
• The GiveGoodGet Project is looking for "Good Deed Ambassadors" to take to the streets and find people doing good for their community! GiveGoodGet is a brand new project, still in its pilot stage, with the purpose of acknowledging good Samavritans for their contributions to making their neighborhoods stronger, friendlier places to live. We need outgoing, dedicated volunteers to identify and interview Samaritans on the streets, and award them with a small token of appreciation. To top off the fact that this is a great way to spread positive energy around the city and meet great people, all Good Deed Ambassadors will be compensated for their time (15/hr)! Interested? Please email marliewilsonstreetattack.com with your contact information, resume, and reason why you want to get involved.
• Reverend Billy Talen of the Church of Life After Shopping is the Green Party candidate for Mayor of NYC. The election is November 3 and we're looking for volunteers to help us between now and the election. Come share your fabulous talents with us, whatever they may be. We have a new headquarters at 250 Lafayette (between Prince and Spring) in lovely SoHo. Whether you're a poet, an artist, an organizer, or just willing to do odd jobs around HQ, like run errands or stuff envelopes, we'd love to have you working with us. To get involved, go to our web site and sign up on the volunteer page, stop by HQ, or come to our weekly meeting for new volunteers on Wednesdays from 7-9p in HQ. Right now we're especially in need of web savvy folks who know Drupal - we need Drupal administrators and Drupal themers to help with our web site. VoteRevBilly.org.
• Lit Drift: �Storytelling in the 21 Century� Seeks creative folks. I'm looking for bloggers, marketers, event organizers, and tech people to help out on our new blog dedicated to highlighting innovations in storytelling, with the ultimate goal to celebrate the art and craft of storytelling (in all its forms) by serving as a storyteller's resource and community. Lit Drift will start out as a blog, and eventually grow into an offline headquarters and creative space. But in the meantime, it's just a blog, so no one is getting paid until the site starts generating serious traffic and revenue. All I am looking for is a few passionate, creative people to pitch in for a few hours each week from the comfort of their own homes, and maybe get together every once in a while to discuss how the site is doing, where it's going, and schmooze over a beer or two (or ten). Please get in touch if you're interested at julialitdrift.com and tell me about yourself. litdrift.com.
• We can always use help in our office during regular business hours. There are a range of projects that volunteers can help with, some examples: press clippings, a Google Maps project (related to Community Boards and Council Districts), lending a hand in our events closet re-organization, general data entry projects and much more. Volunteers are welcome to come in for short or longer shifts, as often as you want. Please feel free to call or email Elena (volunteer and membership outreach coordinator) with any questions or to set up a time to come by and help out. elenatransalt.org 646 873 6036
• GALLOP, a New York City-based nonprofit corporation offers therapeutic riding lessons to individuals with disabilites at the historic Kensington Stables in the East Windsor Terrace section of Brooklyn, near Prospect Park. Staffed by a riding instructor certified by NARHA (North American Riding for the Handicapped Association) and a supported by licensed physical therapists, as well as a dedicated and experienced group of volunteers, the program offers a safe and supportive environment in which an individual can reap the many benefits of therapeutic riding. GALLOP is always in need of volunteers to help out with our program in any way. No horse experience is necessary, but it does help. We provide all the training you will need. We need people to help out at the stable with the horses and riders during lessons. Also, we have tons of "behind the scenes", such as office work, fundraising, grant writing, etc. Visit gallopnyc.org.
• SafeWalk is a free service to increase safety in our communities. From 11p Friday to 2a Saturday, we organize volunteers to take your call, bike to your location, and walk you to a destination within a 10-15 block radius. Our area of service currently includes Williamsburg, Greenpoint, Bedford Stuyvesant, Bushwick, Fort Greene, Clinton Hill, and downtown Brooklyn. Interested in becoming a volunteer? Contact safewalknycgmail.com or visit rightrides.org/templates/volunteer.php?page=vol_service.
• More than a barn, we're raising the mother of all meeting houses. New Yorkers deserve the basic democratic right�enjoyed by most other Americans and in most of the country's big cities�to have a direct say in our city's future and the laws we live by. (Just think: we could actually make dancing legal again.) The right of citizens to propose and vote on laws is fundamental to democratic government around the country. Some of NYC's lowercase democrats aim to win it and bring it into the 21st century. Join in designing the meeting house (i.e. writing the needed amendments to our city's charter), help grow the November '09 - June '10 petitioning drive, or find out more at lowercased.org.
• The Fortune Society is looking for volunteers to teach reading, writing and math to former prisoners and young people facing prison time. Contact 212 691 7554 x250 or visit fortunesociety.org.
• NY Artists Unlimited is a 25 year old, multicultural nonprofit that takes professional theatre and art to under-served audiences. Volunteers/ interns are used in all areas: administration, office work, design, graphics, technical, fundraising & development, PR/marketing, creative areas, and more. We are soon moving back into our renovated East Village arts center and need help in design, planning & development, fundraising, PR/marketing. In the summer, we present the International CringeFest, which includes the Bad Plays, Bad Musicals, and Bad Films Festivals. All proceeds go to support our work with under-served audiences. Class credit is available for college interns. Come join us in an artistic, supportive environment where noble deeds are being done and great creativity is taking place. No pay, but snacks, beverages, occasionally lunch available. Visit the website for further info: www.NYartists.orgVisit the website for further info: NYartists.org or contact Nyartunlt[a t]aol.com.
• The Rock Dove Project focuses on connecting health care practitioners who offer cheap/free services with seekers of those services. rockdovecollective.org/project
• Mentor kids through skateboarding, surfing and snowboarding at Stoked Mentoring. Contact infostoked.org
• Rescue disoriented and injured birds and ultimately help migratory birds make it to their destinations as a Project Safe Flight Volunteer. volunteernycaudubon.org
• Volunteer with Books Through Bars, an affiliated project of ABC No Rio that sends books to prisoners all over the country. Books Through Bars meets Mondays and Thursdays 7:30-9:30p and Sundays 5-8p at the NYC AIDS Housing Network, 80-A Fourth Ave, Brooklyn. abcnorio.org/affiliated/btb.html
• Help feed the homeless by volunteering at a City Harvest special event. cityharvest.org
• Volunteer as a writing tutor for kids at 826NYC. 826NYC.org
• Dog walking and Cat Petting at the Brooklyn Animal Rescue Coalition. barcshelter.org

XXXXX NONSENSE XXXXX

nonsense nyc is a discriminating resource for independent art, weird events, strange happenings, unique parties, and senseless culture in new york city.

please remember that you are always free to pass nonsense nyc along to anyone who needs to see it, but you do not have permission to use any of the listings for your commercial publication. if you are receiving this list as a forward from someone else you can sign up for yourself at nonsensenyc.com/subscribe.

we now accept donations to cover the costs of producing this list, and suggest $5 a year from individual readers or $20 a year if we list your events. to be clear, this is not a traditional subscription, but a donation because you believe that independent artists should support other independent artists. if you've ever paid for a ticket to see your friend's band you know what we mean. you can make donations here: nonsensenyc.com/special/. and thank you.

XXXXX END XXXXX

Reading palms with the psychic who lost her keys.