New York Area

Mayor Eric Adams and NYC politics

Tue, 18 Feb 2025 16:31:54 GMT

Posted by: brainwane

I am having opinions about NYC local politics right now; if you are interested in reading mine, sharing yours, and/or knowing some things I am doing about said politics, please reply and say so!

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Improve An Open Data Bill To Prevent Heart Attack Deaths in NYC

Fri, 31 Mar 2023 16:37:16 GMT

Posted by: brainwane

Improve An Open Data Bill To Prevent Heart Attack Deaths in NYC

New Yorkers don't know where our nearest automated external defibrillators (AEDs) are, so when someone has a heart attack, we lose people we could save. A new NY City Council bill aims to open that data. We need your help to improve it and get it passed. Submit written testimony by 10am ET on Sunday, April 2nd. Or contact your councilmember to ask them to support the bill.

Or: If you know someone at the health department, or at NYC Office of Tech and Innovation, or at NYC's emergency medical coordination council (REMSCO), please reach out to them about this bill and ask whether it's on their radar and what they and their colleagues think of it.

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Zine fest in Queens tomorrow, noon-6pm

Fri, 24 Feb 2023 21:33:46 GMT

Posted by: brainwane

Tomorrow, Saturday 25 February, is the Queens Zine Fest! Astoria Bookshop is one of the hosts.

A zine fest celebrates a mash-up of art, letters, stories, and emotions. The Queens Zine Fest includes comic book artists, makers of art ephemera (like stickers, buttons, cards, etc), and writers who might also make graphic novels or children’s books. Our Zine Fest on Saturday, February 25 from 12noon to 6pm includes events at Everyone Comics (41-26 27th St, LIC), Astoria Bookshop (31-29 31st St, Astoria) and Sunnyside Arts (45-18 Skillman Ave, Sunnyside). Zine Fest patrons who visit all three locations (and collect a business card from each) will receive a 25% discount off one item from each shop.

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get to know the new councilmembers

Mon, 03 Jan 2022 10:45:13 GMT

Posted by: brainwane

Quick Q&A with the incoming city councilmembers.

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Understanding & influencing the city's budget

Mon, 15 Jun 2020 13:52:54 GMT

Posted by: brainwane

I wrote a time-sensitive blog post about NYC's budget and how to find out details & contact your councilmember.

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Dar Williams concert in December

Tue, 26 Nov 2019 16:52:51 GMT

Posted by: brainwane

Dar Williams is playing The Bell House on December 28th -- I'm going; let me know if you are also going and would like to try to sit together!

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Erewhon Books events

Thu, 20 Dec 2018 17:58:40 GMT

Posted by: brainwane

Every month, Erewhon Books holds a literary salon -- author readings, games, and food. The next one is Thursday, 1/10/19 with Elsa Sjunneson-Henry and Su-Yee Lin.

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Short plays about programming, Sunday night 9/30 (and we need a projector)

Tue, 25 Sep 2018 15:16:25 GMT

Posted by: brainwane

I invite you to a preview performance of "Python Grab Bag: A Set Of Short Plays" the evening of Sunday Sept 30th.

Location: 244 West 54th Street (near 8th Ave), New York, NY
Time: 6:30pm-7:30pm
Cost: free
Very light snacks & drinks provided
Prerequisites: none

Jason Owen and I will perform 18 short plays that we (mostly I) wrote, including "from import import import", "If Shakespeare Wrote Incident Reports", "The Relief of Reuse (The Colorful argparse Play)", "Code Review: Fast Forward and Back". "The End (Of 2.7) Is Near (feat. Jason as Guido van Rossum)", and more.

There's room for about 15 people in the audience. We hope to get 5-15 people, and I'd love for about 3/4 of them to be people who have previously done even a teensy bit of programming in Python. There is a tiny bit of entirely voluntary audience participation.

We also need to borrow a projector that can hook up to a Linux laptop, e.g., a ThinkPad (HDMI or VGA would be fine I think). I can come pick it up and drop it off, and am pretty flexible on time tomorrow through Sunday morning, and can drop it off late Sunday night or sometime Monday.

Edited 3:40pm to add: If you'd like to come to the official performance, it's Saturday, October 6th, 11:15am-noon, at the Hotel Pennsylvania, as part of PyGotham. Tickets to PyGotham are $75-$300 and right now there are a few free tickets available.

And it looks like we have 2 offers to lend us a projector, so that's sorted out!

Edited Sept. 26th to add: We now have about 20 people RSVP'd and I do not know the maximum number of people the room can actually comfortably hold, so, caution in case you decide to turn up!

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Housecleaning co-op recommendation: Up & Go

Mon, 03 Sep 2018 14:26:00 GMT

Posted by: brainwane

Short version: I am happy with Up & Go and you can get 10% off a housecleaning with this referral discount code: GIVE10GET10-475

Longer version:

My experience using the Up & Go co-op for cleaning has been more than adequate. The MTA made my cleaner late to my home the first time, and the initial clean took longer than she expected (since we hadn't had a cleaner in some of our rooms for several months), but I think she did a good, thorough job, and I appreciated that she spoke English that was good enough for us to communicate easily. And then for subsequent cleanings things have gone faster.

We have a two-bedroom, one-bath apartment, and paid extra to have the housecleaner bring cleaning products instead of providing them ourselves. Price breakdown for the first cleaning (charged to my credit card only after the cleaning):

2 br, 1 bath base price: $111 - $121
Provide cleaning products: $11
Fresh Start (additional charge for a first-time cleaning): $32
Estimated Price: $153 - $163
Estimated Hours: 3.5-6
Actual Hours: 6.0
Final Price before tax: $163.00
Tax Amount: $13.72
Payable Amount: $176.72

This is a little more than I've been charged by my previous cleaner, We Can Do It, but I am really happy about being able to pay with a credit card online instead of having to have cash on hand to pay the cleaner, and with the ease of scheduling and rescheduling online, including setting up regular (e.g., monthly) cleanings. There was a miscommunication about my second or third booking and I got a $50 discount on the next cleaning by way of apology.

Also I work from home so I consider housecleaning expenses to be deductible expenses on my taxes and my tax accountant seems to think that's fine.

Up & Go is sort of a meta-co-op/platform cooperative that handles booking/scheduling and payment processing, and works with area housecleaning co-ops who are the ones who actually do the cleaning.

You get 10% off a cleaning with discount code GIVE10GET10-475 .

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Moments choisis des histoire(s) du cinéma

Sun, 28 Jan 2018 14:44:00 GMT

Posted by: brainwane

Noon today in NYC: a screening of Moments choisis des histoire(s) du cinéma at the Museum of the Moving Image. Basically this seems like an 84-minute vid enough that I'm planning to go, and cross-posting to vidding. Just found out about it. Feel free to join me!

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MergeSort, Thurs Jan 11 in Brooklyn, New York City

Fri, 05 Jan 2018 20:56:47 GMT

Posted by: brainwane

I've just posted about an upcoming meetup in dw_meetups.

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Naloxone training

Wed, 29 Nov 2017 15:56:30 GMT

Posted by: brainwane

Tuesday, December 5th, there's an Overdose Prevention and Reversal Training by New York City's Bureau of Alcohol and Drug Use Prevention, Care and Treatment.

This training will teach you how to recognize and reverse an opioid overdose. You will become a Certified Opioid Overdose Responder and receive an Overdose Rescue Kit with naloxone--a medication that reverses the effects of an opioid overdose and restores breathing. This training will be happening on a monthly basis and is open to anyone who wants to learn how to reverse an overdose; you do not need to be associated with an organization to attend.

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World AIDS Day activities and testing

Mon, 27 Nov 2017 15:42:38 GMT

Posted by: brainwane

On Friday, December 1st, for World AIDS Day, the Alliance for Positive Change is hosting several activities in midtown Manhattan, including free, confidential HIV testing.

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Int 1696-2017 and source code transparency in New York City

Tue, 19 Sep 2017 15:38:08 GMT

Posted by: brainwane

I wrote a blog post about supporting a new New York City Council bill that would require city agencies to publish source code used to make decisions. Also currently available via sumana_feed.

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MergeSort, evenings of Mon Apr 17 & Mon May 8 in Manhattan

Fri, 14 Apr 2017 18:23:31 GMT

Posted by: brainwane

I've just posted about an upcoming set of meetups in dw_meetups.

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Wed, 12 Oct 2011 19:30:55 GMT

Posted by: watersword

Internet hive mind, activate! I'm looking for someone to take over my room in my apartment — $715 a month for rent, ten minutes from Columbia at my journal.

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volunteer opportunity in NYC

Fri, 14 May 2010 17:51:41 GMT

Posted by: watersword

If anyone's looking for an awesome volunteer opportunity, the Doula Project is recruiting at the moment.

The Doula Project is a pro-choice New York City-based organization that was started in 2007 to provide free services to lower-income individuals across the spectrum of pregnancy. It was founded by pro-choice doulas and reproductive justice activists, two of whom currently serve as the Project Co-Coordinators. The Project is a volunteer led and run organization that trains and manages its own doula base. We currently have 3 programs that serve the greater NYC area:

To provide doula care to people facing abortion, miscarriage, and stillbirth (in partnership with a Manhattan Public Hospital and Planned Parenthood Brooklyn). You do not have to be a birth doula to serve as an abortion doula. We train our own volunteers on this component of care.

To provide doula care to people choosing adoption (in partnership with Spence Chapin Adoption Agency). Please be a trained birth doula to apply. We do not require a lot of experience, only a formal training with an established doula certifying program.

To provide doula care on a case by case basis to lower-income individuals who are not affiliated with either of our partner organizations. Please be a trained birth doula to apply. We do not require a lot of experience, only a formal training with an established doula certifying program.

We are recruiting doulas for all components of our mission, though priority is given to those who are interested in being both Birth and Abortion Doulas. While you are not required to serve as a doula for all components, you are expected to support the mission and values of the entire project
and the work each individual doula engages in. You are also expected to attend all components of our training. We encourage you to apply for all components of our work!

( details & application below the cut )
I'm unaffiliated with the Project, just on their mailing list, just FYI.

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Opera?

Thu, 08 Oct 2009 19:07:47 GMT

Posted by: seekingferret

My friend bailed on me at the last minute. I have an extra ticket for the Barber of Seville at the Met tonight at 8pm. I'm at the hail mary desperation point, so does anybody want to see an opera tonight?

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Wed, 06 May 2009 22:48:30 GMT

Posted by: watersword

Anyone know anything about the Harlem-area greenmarkets? I'm a greenmarket addict, and whilst apartment/cat-sitting for a friend at 157th/Broadway, I refuse to go without my fix. But it's juuuust early enough in the season that I may starve if I go depend on them and go in blind.

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Sat, 25 Apr 2009 09:16:45 GMT

Posted by: hatman

Hate to do this, but... My sleep schedule shifts around a lot. It's hard to predict. And it's been moving faster than expected. I'm not entirely sure what it'll be like a week from today, but I'm going to sleep at 6am today, and that's only going to get later. I think I'm going to be asleep at 9pm on May 2.

If anyone's interested in going forward with the plans, such as they are, by all means do.

This is really disappointing for me, but there isn't much I can do about it without exhausting myself and ruining the whole week.

Still, there'll be other opportunities. Full site launch, for example. And maybe some other get-togethers, if we decide to make them happen. We shall see.

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Wed, 22 Apr 2009 00:05:13 GMT

Posted by: hatman

No comments on the last entry, huh? And still only 4 votes.

How about this, then?

~~Friday, May 1. 9pm.~~

UPDATE: Saturday, May 2. 9pm.

At a coffeeshop or some such TBD.

That work? Would you come?

Please comment and let me know your thoughts on the matter, whatever they are.

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Mon, 20 Apr 2009 03:28:02 GMT

Posted by: hatman

Hmm. I had originally been thinking of a get-together to celebrate the actual launch. But it's looking like people would prefer the weekend. Which makes sense. (In which case, maybe we don't need the laptops? Or is that just crazy talk?)

Hoping for some more votes in the poll, but I guess we'll see. Meantime, any further thoughts/suggestions welcome.

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Open Beta Party Poll

Fri, 17 Apr 2009 13:07:09 GMT

Posted by: hatman

View Poll: Open Beta Party

(With thanks to the Poll Creator!)

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Open Beta party?

Wed, 15 Apr 2009 20:44:06 GMT

Posted by: hatman

Well, hopefully people are interested. We'll need to figure out roughly how many people. And then find a venue. Preferably with internet access. And desk space. And outlets. I mean, sure, we'll be there to hang out and meet each other, but let's be realistic. This is the kind of party you bring your laptop to. (How else are we all going to buy accounts the moment the payment system comes online?)

Thoughts?

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