Weldtastic Welding School in Brooklyn

For Lee’s birthday, I got him some classes in learning to use  a Tig welder. Lee’s done stick welding and mig welding for years, but he was always interested in tig welding. I went to Course Horses’s website and choose the tig welding class. I decided to take it with him.

We went to Weldtastic Welding School in Brooklyn. Our instructor was Gabriel and he was FANTASTIC. For four hours he instructed us in welding and we each built a candle holder,

Lee really loved the class because Gabriel was able to answer Lee’s 5000 questions about all types of welding.

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Topics: Brooklyn | No Comments »

What I Learned About Politics from Councilman Mark Treyger

When Mark Treyger was elected to the NYC Council, I was very happy.  Treyger was a NYC teacher and although I didn’t know personally, I knew of him.

Councilman Treyger began his term and I smiled at every story which included his name and picture. I even told him he was meant to do this work.

Last Fall, my admiration for Treyger was quickly lost when Treyger took a hands off approach as “the City” threatened a few property owners with eminent domain. I messaged Treyger about it and at first he was pleasant. When I pursued the topic, Treyger was short with me.  SOMETHING WAS NOT RIGHT HERE.   I couldn’t figure out how a home owner like Mark Treyger could allow someone who had an investment in his district to be treated that way. You see the commercial property owner’s family had that property for a long time. They invested in Coney Island when no one else wanted it. If you lived in Brooklyn all your life, you know  NO ONE had any interest in Coney Island for many years, but now since there isn’t any land left in Brooklyn, the developers are trying to scrape up any property.

Disclosure: My family’s business in Downtown Brooklyn was threatened with Emineet Domain FOR YEARS and while most politicians stepped back and let the City and Developers intimidate my family, Leticia James stood with my family in Downtown Brooklyn throughout the whole ordeal.   Leticia James believed she was just doing her job, but the reality was she was the only one fighting on our side and recharging our group with hope. Incidentally, after years of fighting, my family and another on our block won in court – most people who have eminent domain slapped on them don’t.

NYC has quietly made a play for property through the illegal use of eminent domain. City workers will claim that property owners will be offered “fair” market value for their property, but I can tell you that the developers speak to  you with a smirk and offer less than half the market value of the property.  Rezoning of property also allows developers to build higher and bigger building.  

I couldn’t figure out who was pushing Treyger on the other side of this equation?  

Lesson 1:  Mark Treyger Taught Me: When Something Isn’t Right – Follow the Money  

I didn’t find the SuperPac info at first because it’s listed in a different area and the money is hidden under a clever name as well.  Super PACs are controlling Treyger – Jobs for New York, Inc (cute name right?) – this is just the Real Estate Board Super Pac.  They paid for all these mailings for him – so that people would think Treyger was the right one for the job.

Then I saw this report. And there’s Mark Treyger highlighted in the report.  

I am not an expert on politics, but if Superpacs are buying the position for someone, they want something in return. It doesn’t take much to realize that Treyger owes them – Quid Pro Quo. Update: A Treyger supporter said that Treyger didn’t know anything about the Superpac supporting him. How did they get all the of his pictures for the mailings then? Politicians must think people are stupid if they actually believe that almost 400K was spent and the person didn’t know it.

In 2013, Treyger’s opponent, Lisyanskiy predicted what would happen and he was correct:

Lesson 2: Through Mark Treyger, I learned sometimes politicians start out with good intentions and then they are bought by Superpacs and just become machines of the system.  Politics is dirty and maybe some of these politicians don’t realize what they sold by allowing a SuperPac in.  Democrat or Republican don’t matter when you are representing a SuperPac.

Treyger’s team published this when he ran for office:

Ha Ha! Could anyone possibly believe they would receive all that money and do nothing in return? 

This week, I saw Councilman Treyger telling the public to help protect the NYC Boardwalk. That’s a done deal – he knows it and we know it.   Why is he playing the game? Coney Island is one of the few things Brooklyn still has going for it. But let’s go with the inverse and say that I am wrong and it isn’t a done deal. Isn’t it Treyger’s  job to protect it?   No Mark Treyger, I am not going to take off work and go to the hearing on May 4th.  I love Brooklyn as much as the next person, but it feels like someone is playing politics here.  Treyger even fed a reporter a press release and she tweeted about (If that isn’t playing politics, I don’t know what is).

Lesson 3: When you aren’t doing much for your area, send in press releases to newspapers to make it look like you are working hard. 

Yesterday Mark Treyger published this tweet. The people behind Treyger are the biggest losers because they believe that Treyger is protecting their interests.   These people lost their Saturday afternoon thinking they were doing something to help the area. They don’t know this is all a DONE DEAL – Treyger’s SuperPac may have won this or maybe someone will throw some crumbs to the people in Coney Island, afterall soon their area will be covered with shadows of apartment buildings and high rises.

Lesson 4:  Flood social media with pictures of you “doing something.”  Like this

Democracy can’t exist when the politicians owe the SuperPacs for supporting them. Why won’t any of these council people make a vote to get the money out of NYC.  Even though accepting money from a Super PAC might be legal, it doesn’t mean it’s right.   The only thing I could see Mark Treyger doing to make up for this wrong is to work with NYC City Council on putting through a bill to make it illegal to use SuperPac Money.  

Lesson 5: Treyger thinks no one is watching him.

In 2015, Tryeger and Vacca introduced a $500 tax rebate for home owners. In 2016, he did the same exact thing. Both times it was mildly mentioned in the news because Treyger sent in this press release.  BUT BOTH KNEW IT WOULD FAIL A SECOND TIME AS WELL.

Lesson 6: The final lesson I learned from Mark Treyger is that the only “ONES: who will be winning in Coney Island while Treyger is in position is those who PAID TO PLAY. The people and their needs/wants will never come first.   Superpacs and lobbyists are destroying the Brooklyn we know and love.

Lesson 7: When you are scared of the community you represent, buy a house in a gated community. Councilman Ari Kagan announced on Kings County Politics blog that Treyger bought a home in Seagate. Acris shows a home there was purchased. If security is a problem in Coney Island (and the stories in the paper show it is), the Councilman Treyger should have put his money to some patrol cars! But he doesn’t live there so no one cares.

Today I saw an article that Treyger wanted to represent Bay Ridge – OH NOOOOOOOOO!   Bay Ridge doesn’t need a politician who is siding with the Super Pacs and throwing some crumbs to the residents with a free bike helmet giveaways or free ice skating events.
Gimme a Break Mark Treyger!  It’s time for Treyger to go evaluate why he became a politician.  If you couldn’t win an election without a SuperPac, then you shouldn’t have run for office.   My family now owns property in Treyger’s district and I will be commenting on his politics from now until he leaves office.

Topics: Bay Ridge, Brooklyn | No Comments »

Hanging Out at the Hospital

It’s Greek Easter, but we are hanging out at the hospital with our buddy. Thank God for continuing to provide him good news and positive reports all weekend.

When he falls asleep, I blog.

Happy Easter to our family and friends who celebrate today!

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Pam Harris’ Closed Office in Bay Ridge

Six months ago I voted for Pam Harris for Assemblywoman. Yesterday, I tried to contact her online and noticed she doesn’t share an e-mail address online (SEE HERE).  Today we went to the Assemblywoman’s office in Bay Ridge, but there is no office!  In September 2015,  Kings County Politics wrote that Harris opened an office at 8525 – 3rd Avenue.  (But I guess they were spoonfed that information and didn’t check to see if it was true). 

At  8525 – 3rd Avenue today, there still the awning of an Arabic shop that closed last year.  There is no sign of Assemblywoman Harris’ office at this location. You can also see the sign in the door is from the old business.  

If Pamela Harris rented a storefront in Bay Ridge,  wouldn’t she have thrown up an awning or some sign that that said “I AM HERE.”   We looked inside the shop and it appeared empty.  

The “supposed office” is a strange spot behind a bus stop (see pic below). If you are in Bay Ridge, this is across the street from the new Pearl Room on 3rd Avenue between 85th and 86th Street.  

Online I found that at the December 2015 Community Board 10 Meeting, that Harris said the Bay Ridge office was being  made handicapped accessible.  It’s five months after this meeting and there is no office here.  

Could it be that Mrs. Harris provided everyone the wrong address?  I don’t think so, but I will update this if I hear differently.  

Bay Ridge gets such poor representation in our state government offices, so Ms. Harris should have made sure she was set up here by January at the latest. If more than 6 months of construction needed to be done on the office, she should have chosen another location or opened it without it being handicap-accessible and then had work done on the weekends when the office was closed or hired someone locally to do it fast. If someone was handicapped and went to the office, Harris’s staff could have met them outside. But there is no office here in Bay Ridge for anyone to go to!

 In November 2015, Pam Harris wanted our vote. In May 2016 , Ms. Harris has shown Bay Ridge that she isn’t even motivated to open office and hear from  Bay Ridge residents.  

Topics: Bay Ridge | 1 Comment »

Williamsburg

We went to learn how to tig weld in Williamsburg this week. So fun – more on that later.

The art on these garage doors was amazing!

Topics: Brooklyn | No Comments »

Why Doesn’t Assemblywoman Pamela Harris Provide Her E-mail Address to Her Community?

Pamela Harris was elected in November 2015.  I went to the polling place to vote for her.  It’s six months after the election and Harris has not displayed an e-mail address on her website or anywhere else.   

What that tells me is that she isn’t interested in hearing from the people of her community. Harris is familiar with the online world as she has a Masters Degree from Cappella University (an online university).      

 Harris used Twitter before the election, but hasn’t used it since. Harris has a Facebook presence, but that is not sufficient for an Assembly person to use for communication. Even on her Facebook page, she doesn’t provide her e-mail address. I contacted her on Facebook and didn’t receive a response.  

Here’s everyone listed on the Assembly site. I can even contact the Assembly Speaker, Carl Heastie by e-mail.       

Another thing that bothers me about Harris is that she posts plenty of selfies on Facebook. 

Topics: Bay Ridge | No Comments »

Voting Fiasco and Voting in Bay Ridge

When I heard that there was voting problems around the last election, I realized we needed to have Lee’s info looked up. Lee is registered as an independent and didn’t get to vote in this election. In the election prior to this one (the one where Dan Donovan/Vinnie Gentile and Pam Harris/Lucretia ran in our area), Lee had to vote by proxy because the polling site workers said he was not registered here.  At the time, we just thought it was a paperwork mistake between the DMV and the voter registration office. The following day, we printed a voting form online and sent it in to have the address changed.  

The day after THIS election (4/20), I checked the voter registration online for Lee after I heard that there was problems with other people’s registration in Brooklyn. Another street is listed on the address for Lee’s registration. The street is nearby, but it puts Lee at a different poll site (Why weren’t the workers at our polling site able to look this up?)   Even after we sent in form over a year ago, an incorrect address remains in the system?!   SOMETHING ISN’T RIGHT HERE.  I don’t know who handles the registration for Independents at the Board of Elections (if you know, can you leave it in the comments below). We wrote to the Board of Elections and received an e-mail that it would take a few WEEKS for them to update it. 

WEEKS?  Hello Board of Elections it’s 2016, tap tap on your computer and fix the mistake.  Will Lee be able to vote in the presidential election in November?

The following day,  April 21st, Lee received an e-mail from the Board of Elections which just said “Good Morning Leon” – nothing else.  

Why hasn’t any elected official in our area come out and called for the people working in the Board of Elections to step down? I don’t care if you are a Democrat or Republican, if you are a politician you should have spoken out against voters being removed.  The only elected official who has complained is DeBlasio,  This isn’t a situation with one person pulling a few voter registrations, this is a situation where the Board of Elections office is not being run correctly and they need to clean house. Suspending one person is not enough.  Newspapers are reporting that these jobs are given out to friends of pols – let’s change that process.  Every politician in Brooklyn should be complaining because elections are being skewed in certain directions. At the very least Deblasio should transfer ALL of these people to other offices so they can’t play with Brooklyn voters registrations. If voting is the only thing we have, then it needs to be done by people who actually care about doing it correctly.  These workers  should offer to step down.

Topics: Bay Ridge | No Comments »

Crime in Bay Ridge This Morning – April 28th

Cops from the 68th Precinct had the area closed off this morning around 7:00 am. There have been break-ins at restaurants in the area for awhile so they think they caught this group.

This morning there was no tape, but at 3:30 pm, tape went up around Xin.

The 68th Precinct posted this.

Also in our hood this morning, residents heard a helicopter looming overhead. Some guys stole a car and the cops chased them into Shore Road Park. Residents in the area said that some police officers were really moving when they entered the park and others had large dogs with them.  The police caught the three of them.

The Home Reporter’s Story.

It’s the end of the month and rent is due –this afternoon there was an armed robbery at 48th Street and 7th Avenue

Topics: Bay Ridge | No Comments »

Free Yoga in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn

Fort Hamilton Library has free yoga on Mondays and Saturdays for Adults. The library is at 9424 Fourth Ave.

SATURDAYS 10:15-11:30 AM Reduce stress and & gain flexibility in a safe & fun environment Beginners are welcome Bring a yoga mat, towel or blanket to practice  (see listing for this Saturday, April 30th)

MONDAYS – 4-5:30 pm – Yoga for Fun and Fitness

Topics: Bay Ridge | No Comments »

Music Box Faculty Recital – April 30, 2016 – Bay Ridge

The faculty at the Music Box School are having a recital on Saturday, April 30th in Bay Ridge 5:30 PM at Good Shepherd Church located at 7420 – 4th Avenue in Brooklyn.

Topics: Bay Ridge | No Comments »

Jobs for Teens in Brooklyn – Summer 2016

Here are some jobs for teenagers in Brooklyn:

1) Apply for SYEP – it’s the NYC program that let’s teens get jobs in the summer school childcare programs and office – easy work and good pay.  (Accept 14, 15 16 and 17 year olds)

2) Lifeguard at Aviator – apply here

3) The Brooklyn District Attorney has internships for high school students

4) Many jobs at the Seagate Pool Club – 16 and up – see here

5) Brooklyn Crab is hiring – see here

6) Red Hook Community Justice Center Internship – paid – see here

7) Jobs at Unos Restaurant

8) Cashiers needed at Michael’s Craft Store

9) Camp counselors 17 years old and up – see here

10) Customer Service Best Buy – see here

11) NYC Parks recently posted a jobs bulletin – see here

12) Work at Adventure’s Amusement Park – 17 years old and up – see here

Topics: Brooklyn | No Comments »

Summer Jobs for Staten Island Teens – Summer 2016

There are a lot of jobs for Staten Island teenagers.

1) Apply for SYEP – it’s the NYC program that let’s teens get jobs in the summer school childcare programs and office – easy work and good pay.  (Accept 14, 15 16 and 17 year olds)

2) Work at Chipotle – 17 and up – apply here

3) Work the register at an Italian restaurant in Staten Island – see here

4) Work at Sears Portrait Studio

5) There are jobs at Party City – see here

6) Job at Charlotte Russe – see here

7) Work at Foot Action in the mall. see here

8) Work at Wendy’s fast food restaurant – 16 years old and up – see post   – Also another post here

9) If you like to ride your bike, you can deliver pizza for Domino’s in Staten Island – 17 and up – apply here

10) JCPenny in the mall – customer service jobs

11) Garage has an opening – see here

12) High school graduates or equivalent can apply to work at Macys in the mall – see here

13) High school grads or equivalent can apply to work at BCBG in the mall $11.50 an hour – see here

14) High school degree or GED – work at Chase Bank – see here

15) Work at the solar kiosk in the mall – see here

16) A job at The Gap – see here

17) Bank teller for a high school grad – see here

18) Job at Trampoline Courts – 18 and up – see here

19) Job at paintball place – see here

20) 15 and up can apply to be a life guard – form here

21) Work at Randazzo’s Clam Bar – dish washer, wait staff, kitchen workers – call 718-273-8800 – see post

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