Date: August 27th 2010

Friday, August 27
* Comedy! Beer! Party! Manhattan
* Tom Stathes Cartoon Carnival No. 6: Travelaffs, Queens * Critical Mass, Manhattan

Saturday, August 28
* Rumble! Brooklyn
* Second Annual McKibben Street Fair, Brooklyn * Black Laffs, Manhattan
* Schlapentickle Family Burlesque and Revue, Brooklyn * Brooklyn Zoo 3, Brooklyn
* Brooklyn Boogie, Brooklyn

Sunday, August 29
* Bushflix Sunday Screeners: Amarcord and Radio Days, Brooklyn * Gowanus 8th Street Block Party, Brooklyn * The Poetry Brothel, Manhattan

Tuesday, August 31
* Tiny Dangerous Fun, Brooklyn

Wednesday, September 1
* Bailout Theater, Manhattan

Thursday, September 2
* Spirit Tours, Manhattan

Wishlist
* Living Bosch characters

All That We've Met
* Kevin Balktick

Spectre
* Harnessing Lightning

Learning
* Burlesque Clothing

Help
* Housing Works

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

Passengers pushing a bus.

XXXXX FRIDAY, AUGUST 27 XXXXX

Comedy! Beer! Party!

It's the Comedy Beer Party from No Tea Productions, with all-you-can-drink beer from 7:30 to 9:30. The show goes on at 8p and will include comedy performances, short films, and stand-ups including Michele McNally, actress, stand-up comic, and author of the blog Actor with a Business Card; Claudia Cogan, recently seen on Last Comic Standing, and Noah Garfinkel, comic, Twitterer extrodinaire, and blogger for Best Week Ever.

Under St. Marks theater
94 St. Marks Place, between 1st Avenue and Avenue A, Manhattan 7:30-9:30p; $20 at the door
LindseyNoTeaProductions.com

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

Cinebeasts, the Attic Studios, and Cartoons on Film announce:

Tom Stathes Cartoon Carnival No. 6: Travelaffs

Tom is NYC's premiere private collector/exhibitor of classic cartoons on their original celluloid: when it comes to millimeters, he's been called the Dean of 16. Stathes specializes in 16mm shorts from the '10s, '20s and '30s but also collects rarities from before -- and after -- the purported "golden era" of pre-movie cartoons.

This Friday, Tom will be running his biggest cartoon carnival yet, a glitzy soiree in Long Island City that's a must-attend for any lovers of cinema, cartoons, anachronism or adventure. The theme is Travelaffs, giggles abroad, far destinations in the human psyche: Yes, Tom will be focusing especially on the macabre, outdated, politically incorrect, offensive, and grotesque gems in his collection.

Located in the spacious (and air-conditioned!) Attic Studios just a few minutes from Manhattan, it also promises a rediscovered 16mm print of a long-lost cartoon by Max and Dave Fleischer, the geniuses behind the original Popeye cartoons -- the stiffest competition Disney ever faced. Animation historian David Gerstein has graciously posted a few clips online, and over the weekend they were picked up by Cartoon Brew, the internet's no. 1 stop for animation news and discussion.

Further-to-the-more, there will be a bouncing-ball singalong number, sultry cigarette girls, abundant popcorn, a stacked raffle with multiple prizes, and a heavy dose of 1920s and 30s style attire (strongly recommended). Drinks, free popcorn, raffle, candy.

Attic Studios
11-05 44th Road, Long Island City, Queens 7 train to Court Square station
7p doors; $6
atticstudios.net
cartoonsonfilm.blogspot.com

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

Critical Mass

Critical Mass is a spontaneous celebration of what our streets could look like. this fun group ride encourages new cyclists and creates safer streets and new green infrastructure.

Union Square North
North 17th Street and Broadway, Manhattan 7p; $free
critical-mass.org

XXXXX SATURDAY, AUGUST 28 XXXXX

Rumble!

Brooklyn's first retro rock-n-roll throw down for the queers, dykes, transfolk, and otherwise sexual. We're beating the summer heat with a beach party so cool you’ll shiver all over. Come catch a wave of go-go boys, tiki lights, cheap drinks, and a blend of retro-surf-rock-rockabilly-tropicalia-soul to keep you boogying all night long.

Featuring on the ones and twos: The One and Only, DJ Drumpelstiltsken, Lefferts Gardens’ Finest, DJ Austin, and the Sizzling Hot Tunes of the Homewreckers’ Own Cristy Road (aka DJ Chode).

Dress code (not mandatory, but encouraged): retro swimwear, James Dean, Annette Funicello, snorkels, bathing suits, polka dot bikinis, Kings and Queens of the surf, greasers, prom queens, and rebels without a cause.

Sweet Revenge
348 Franklin, Brooklyn
C or S trains to Franklin station
9p-4a; $5

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

Potion presents:

Second Annual McKibben Street Fair

Food, bands. After party at the WAR Room.

McKibbin Street, between Bushwick Avenue and White Street, Brooklyn 3-9p; $free
Brooklynpotioncollective.com

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

Black Laffs

Come check out Black Laffs, the new comedy show brimming with dark comedy and a look at the twisted side of life. Not for the faint of heart. With Jena Friedman, Sara Schaefer, Shaina Feinberg, and Ben Lerman, with dark sketches starring Mike Amato, Soce the Elemental Wizard, and Captain Hilarious. Ice cold A/C, beautiful people, cool place with people wearing neat hats, interesting things to cast your eyeballs upon. Cheap local fun in the beautiful metropolis known as NYC.

77 Delancey, at Allen, Manhattan
8-10p, with post-show music to dance to from 10p until late; $5

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

Schlapentickle Family Burlesque and Revue

The Schlapentickle Family presents cabaret-burlesque so over the top you'll want to take yours off. Mixing drool-inducing strip-tease, stinging comedy, the magic of sideshow, and live ragtime music, the Schlapentickle Family Burlesque and Revue promises an evening so absurd, it will make you swear your family's normal.

The cast includes the wildest acts straight from the East Coast's most respected burlesque and sideshow houses, including New York's own raunchy ragtime revivalist Sabrina Chap, the devilish undulations of burlesque star Paco Fish and hot new cherry-bomb burlesque siren, Scarlett Let-Her. Featuring burlesque super-star, Lefty Lucy.

Parkside Lounge
317 East Houston Street, Manhattan
11:30p; $10
212 673 6270
caponcapon2001yahoo.com
Schlapentickle.com

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

The Party That Never Was presents:

Brooklyn Zoo 3

Three floors and giant rooftop. The Escape, that final piece of the trilogy of our legendary summer parties. The place that everyone loves, the place that everyone is talking about, the place with no name.

Three floors, giant rooftop, Tha Pit, chill rooms, two dancefloors, and a maze of intimate rooms to explore your forbidden sides. The castle has hosted this summer's hottest parties. This is going to be a sonic meltdown featuring dubstep, electro, techno, house, hip hop, reggae, and salsa

This lineup is the most insane we have seen in a long time: Atom C, Hellfire Machina, Jane Bang, Hiro Tha Jap, Cobra Krames, DJ Shakey and Barney Iller, Anton Glamb, Wckids, DJ Steve Nieves, Nightspitter, DJ Sav, DJ Vox, and DJ Mojo.

RSVP for address and passcodes, Brooklyn 11p; $10-15
thepartythatneverwas.com

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

Brooklyn Boogie

Come prepared to dance, sing at the top of your lungs, start a silly face contest, bust out into impromptu jams, make up a pantomime game, play a random game of ninja tag or humans vs. zombies, jump into a human pyramid, and fall down laughing.

First, gymnastics coaches and physical comedian duo Dave and Pete lead a class of interactive gymnastics and improvisational physical comedy. Then a community circle and barefoot dance party. DJs to be announced.

Barefoot Boogie is a relaxed, playful dance party that happens twice a month in New York City, and in other cities around the country. Dress code is very casual, comfortable, and self-expressive. We welcome and celebrate all backgrounds, ages, and physical abilities. There are no drugs, alcohol, or smoking.

The Gym Park is a gymnastics and play center with a foam-carpeted spring floor, 20-foot trampoline, rigs for aerial silk and yoga, flying rings, soft colorful mats, and 2700 square feet of gymnastics equipment.

81 Oak Street, Brooklyn
G train to Greenpoint Avenue station
8:30p; $10-15 sliding scale, $free if you volunteer 347 665 5976
infothegympark.com
thegympark.com
barefootboogie.org

XXXXX SUNDAY, AUGUST 29 XXXXX

Bushflix Sunday Screeners: Amarcord and Radio Days

For its final Sunday Summer Screening, Bushflix offers up a program steeped in nostalgia, by two venerated directors, Fellini and Woody Allen. As always, the films will play on a 15 foot screen in our DIY warehouse movie theater, free of charge. Bring all the food and booze you like. This space also boasts a permanent video installation (the TV Wall). Come check out.

Amarcord: A 1973 Italian drama film directed by Federico Fellini, a semi-autobiographical coming-of-age tale that combines poignancy with bawdy comedy. It tells the story of a wild cast of characters inhabiting the fictional Borgo based on Fellini's hometown of Rimini in 1930s Fascist Italy. Amarcord is Romagnolo for "I remember."

Radio Days: Several generations of a family packed into a pre-War Rockaway house always have the radio on. The fearless Masked Avenger, breakfast-show socialites (and philanderers) Roger and Irene, and Sally the Cigarette Girl are almost important as, say, whether the Pacific is a better ocean than the Atlantic, or even what your dad actually does for a living.

The Bushwick Project for the Arts
304 Meserole Street, Brooklyn
5p Amarcord, 8p Radio Days; $free.

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

Gowanus 8th Street Block Party

Jupiter's and our neighbors are having a block party. There will be motorcycles and classic cars -- bring your bike or car and get a chance to win a free motorcycle rental. Live music, local artist show, games, food, and beer. With members of the Brooklyn Artists Gym. Afterparty at Littlefield.

8th Street, between 2nd and 3rd Avenue, Brooklyn 10a-4p; $free

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

The Poetry Brothel

The Poetry Brothel invites New York City's discrete and discerning residents to the Lower East Side's prohibition-era speakeasy, the Back Room, for a night of coquettishness of word. Come dip in to our cast Poetry Whores, tarot and palm readers, portrait painters, body painters, and, of course, the Brothel's mysterious gypsies. This particular evening will offer a poetry contest to all you poets who hope to one day become poetry whores. Guests are encouraged to bring poems, which will be judged by the Poetry Brothel Management, and the winner will become our featured reader, or new girl, for the night. As always, it is recommended that you come attired in the spirit of the evening to enjoy the night's festivities.

The Back Room
102 Norfolk Street, Manhattan
8p-1a; $10, $5 with flyer, RSVP, or student ID thepoetrybrothel.com

XXXXX TUESDAY, AUGUST 31 XXXXX

Tiny Dangerous Fun

Come out to the land of porches and tall trees this summer for an evening of big-top risks in the well air-conditioned basement of a bar/flowershop. Each month a handful of clowns, burlesque performers, puppeteers, acrobats, and musicians perform their ballyhoo in the bar's bowels for 35 or so lucky patrons who got there in time to get a seat. For the audience goer who wants it intimate and hilarious, Tiny Dangerous Fun will knock your socks off.

MCs: John Leo and Audrey Crabtree, with Shara Ashley Zeiger, Exhotic Other (from Brown Girls Burlesque), Barbara Ann Michaels, Ora Fruchter and Christopher Scheer, Erickson Huertas, Helen Nesteruk and Marina Mezzogiorno, and Laura Cossa.

Sycamore Bar
1118 Cortelyou Road, at Westminster Road, Brooklyn Q train to Cortelyou station
8p; $10
sycamorebrooklyn.com
johnleo.net/news

XXXXX WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 1 XXXXX

Bailout Theater

We will have free dinner and desserts provided as always by friendly Village restaurants (John's Pizza, NoHo Juice Bar and more), plus homemade meals using farm-fresh produce from our friends at Norwich Meadows, and a potluck for potluck enthusiasts.

At 8p, we will have a double bill concert from Sara Banleigh (with her band) and Tim Skehan. Both are truly exceptional singers and songwriters who you won't want to miss, especially if you have any of that Irish fever.

All of our events are completely free, require no RSVP, virtually no understanding of etiquette and are open to everyone. If you would like to bring a small dish or dessert to add to a potluck, we love that, but it is by no means required.

Judson Memorial Church
55 Washington Square South
7:30p; $free
212 477 0351 x 28
infobailout-theater.org
bailout-theater.org

XXXXX THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 2 XXXXX

Spirit Tours

Recess Activities is bidding adieu to Spirit Tours (the two artists who dared bring fortune-telling skulls, homemade water slides, and various other out-of-body experiences to SOHO over the past couple months). I wanted to submit the details of this event for possible listing in your newsletter. Free drinks, free Spirit Beans (a mini-portrait on a lima bean done by the artists themselves), and I'm sure there will be a few surprises in the mix.

Join Recess for Too Much Past, the last leg of Spirit Tours' residency on Grand Street. Collaborators David Hardy and Siebren Versteeg will recast ephemera from the Wetslipper, Rockspa, Logshowroom, and Premonition events as discrete objects, performances and videos -- as they continue to investigate the notion of journey and the demand for immediacy and consumability in an experience economy. Visitors can decide for themselves whether their Spirit Tour was worth the trip.

Recess Activities, Inc
41 Grand Street, between West Broadway and Thompson, Manhattan 6-8p; $free
646 863 3765
recessactivities.org

XXXXX UPCOMING XXXXX

• Flux Factory's Going Places Doing Stuff all summer
• Stranded III: The Forbidden City, September 4
• Rubulad Presents: Pre-hysteria, September 11

XXXXX ONGOING XXXXX

Nonsense is too long. The great thing about the internet is that it doesn't really cost much to run long listings and exhaustive descriptions. It turns out that's ... exhausting. After several complaints and a little deliberation, we're trying a new format: On the first Friday of the month we will run updated ongoing listings in each section: events, learning, and help. Other weeks we're going for leaner, meaner sections. If you're desperate for something to do on an off-Tuesday night we suggest you either look back a few issues ago in your inbox, or poke through our online archives, which you can find under the subscribe page.

Also, a note about 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/, garagepunknyc.com, and eardrumnyc.com. For the most exhaustive list of underground shows at unusual venues, track down a copy of the extremely useful -- and handsome -- Showpaper.

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 *****

• We are looking for male and female actors/dancers of all ages with training or interest in mask work, dance, viewpoints, Suzuki, Butoh or improvisation to audition for a performance event to take place in late October. The play will bring to life Hieronymus Bosch's triptych the Garden of Earthly Delights while commingling the theme of cosmiscism via H.P Lovecraft's mythos. The event is a progression of traveling performances and visual ephemera that intermittently pull the audience into situations that encourage participation. The piece is divided into 3 Acts and moves through three separate locations within a Brooklyn neighborhood. Each segment is an unveiling of the secret dwellings of H.P. Lovecraft's Ancient Ones within the context of Bosch's painting as a means of illustrating a world that lies beyond our ordinary five senses. Very low intensity rehearsal process. Please email your resume and a photo of yourself. Include in the body of the email any specific training i n the above mentioned. Deadline for submission: September 10. Please email Chunklundt(at)gmail.com.
• I can do pretty much anything that requires a truck almost anywhere you need to go. My goal is to provide good old fashioned honest work and meet interesting people along the way. I am offering a plethora of services including: moving, rides, hauls, delivery, art handling, trips to Home Depot, MFTA, flea markets. Can you think of something else? Plants and animals are welcome. Call: 501 827 9978, ebentley9(at)gmail.com

***** SPACES *****

• Room available at Rubulad Home Base September 1. Room has two windows and loft bed. Rubulad is a 6,000 square foot community arts and event space near the Navy Yard in Brooklyn. Amenities include large common areas, roof garden, eat-in kitchen, four bathrooms, washer and dryer, high-speed Internet and more. Two blocks from Myrtle Avenue's cafes etc. Great for artist/musician type. Share with others. Opportunities to participate in large and small events. We currently have one cat upstairs and one dog downstairs and so prefer no more pets at this time, though this could change one day. $700 per month covers all bills. One month deposit required. Must have steady income and references and play nicely with others.
• Room/workspace available September 1 at Port D'Or, $600 per month plus deposit, Crown Heights. Currently we are one male-female couple, one guy, and a cat. We are seeking one more lady for the upstairs apartment. We have our own building. It is a basement, storefront, and upstairs apartment. Storefront is used for rock shows and art shows and temporary workspace. We have one to four events a month. Your room has a big window, fan, and closet. A private studio space may be available for additional rent in our windowless basement. Otherwise, work must be broken down and stored for shows. Perfect person would be someone who works light but needs extra space on occasion—video artist, performer, conceptual sculptor, solo musician, etc. Near A,C,2,3,4,5, parks, and groceries. kkesslernyc(at)gmail.com

XXXXX ALL THAT WE'VE MET XXXXX

All That We've Met is Pauline Pechin's series of interviews with artists, underground influencers, and people with interesting stories. You can email her here: pauline.pechingmail.com

This week: Event producer Kevin Balktick

What's the most difficult thing that you've ever had to do?

"In the event context, New Year's Eve this year was extremely brutal. We had way more people than we had anticipated. We were understocked and understaffed. I was genuinely nervous about safety issues, having enough security, all sorts of problems. We ran out of water at one point. I was really worried about people passing out, not being able to hydrate, being at an extremely busy party, where they'd been dancing all night and drinking ..."

Read the complete interview at allthatwevemet.com/2010/08/kevin-balktick-supports-mindful.html

XXXXX SPECTRE PRIORITY XXXXX

Before we had a name, the Spectre Event Horizon Group used to meet at a bar to commiserate and trade what our business friends like to call best practices. The group has expanded since then, but it remains focused on smartening the crowd mind. There are no subject limits; our favorite is the incredible sci-fi present, or anything that goes toward a better understanding of human behavior and our universe's ecology. Our simple intent is to connect good minds with as much quality mind-blowing information as we can freely locate 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. The list is compiled for Nonsense by J. Sinopoli. Contact us at spectre.event.horizon.group gmail com or spectregroup.org. Here's some of what came in this week:

***** Harnessing Lightning *****

spectregroup.wordpress.com/2010/08/26/harnessing-lightning/

Positively Charged in High Humidity
news.cnet.com/8301-11128_3-20014798-54.html "Nikola Tesla would be jealous. A group of chemists from Brazil have presented research claiming they've figured out how electricity is formed and released in the atmosphere. Based on this knowledge, the team said it believes a device could be developed for extracting electrical charges from the atmosphere and using it for electricity. They found that silica becomes more negatively charged when high levels of water vapor are present in the air, in other words during high humidity. They also found that aluminum phosphate becomes more positively charged in high humidity. "This was clear evidence that water in the atmosphere can accumulate electrical charges and transfer them to other materials it comes into contact with. We are calling this 'hygroelectricity,' meaning 'humidity electricity,'" Galembeck said in a statement. But the discovery, if true, goes against the commonly held theory among scientists that water is electroneutral -- that it cannot store a charge. Galembeck d oes not dispute the principle of electroneutrality in theory, but believes real-life substances like water have ion imbalances that can allow it to produce a charge."

Steam Shocks
scientificamerican.com/blog/post.cfm?id=harness-lightning-for-energy-thanks-2010-08-26 "My colleagues and I found that common metals -- aluminum, stainless steel and others -- acquire charge when they are electrically isolated and exposed to humid air," he says. "This is an extension to previously published results showing that insulators acquire charge under humid air. Thus, air is a charge reservoir." The finding would seem to confirm anecdotes from the 19th century of workers literally shocked -- rather than scalded -- by steam. And it might explain how enough charge builds up for lightning, Galembeck argues. The scientists envision devices to harness this charge out of thick (with water vapor) air -- a metal piece, like a lightning rod, connected to one pole of a capacitor, a device for separating and storing electric charge. The other pole of the capacitor is grounded. Expose the metal to high humidity (perhaps within a shielded box) and harvest voltage."

Ion Imbalances
newscientist.com/article/dn19367-can-we-grab-electricity-from-muggy-air.html "In 1840, workers in Newcastle upon Tyne, UK, reported painful electric shocks when they came into close contact with steam leaking from factory boilers. Both Michael Faraday and Alessandro Volta puzzled over the mysterious phenomenon, dubbed steam electricity, but it was ultimately forgotten without being fully understood. Fernando Galembeck thinks there is a simple explanation, but it involves accepting that water can store charge -- a controversial idea that violates the principle of electroneutrality. This principle -- which states that the negatively and positively charged particles in an electrolyte cancel each other out – is widely accepted by chemists. His team electrically isolated chrome-plated brass tubes and then increased the humidity of the surrounding atmosphere. Once the relative humidity reached 90 per cent, the uncharged tube gained a small but detectable negative charge of 300 microcoulombs per square meter -- equating to a capacity millions of times smal ler than that of an AA battery. The Victorian workers would have had to have been particularly sensitive souls to complain of such a shock, but Galembeck thinks his study shows steam electricity may be a credible phenomenon. He thinks the charge builds up because of a reaction between the chrome oxide layer that forms on the surface of the tube and the water in the atmosphere. As the relative humidity rises, more water condenses onto the tube's surface. Hydrogen ions in the water react with the chrome oxide, leading to an ion imbalance that imparts excess charge onto the isolated metal.

The work finds favour with Gerald Pollack at the University of Washington in Seattle. Last year he suggested that pure water could store charge and behave much like a battery, after finding that passing a current between two submerged electrodes created a pH gradient in the water that persisted for an hour once the current had been switched off. He says this is evidence that the water stores areas of positive and negative charge, but the experiment led to a lively debate in the pages of the journal Langmuir over whether the results really violated the principle of electroneutrality or whether there were salt impurities in the water that led it to behave like a conventional electrochemical cell."

Polywater Batteries
uwtv.org/newsletter/insider_0408.asp
"Pollack’s water studies have led to amazing possibilities: that water acts as a battery, that this battery may recharge in a way resembling photosynthesis, that these water batteries could be harnessed to produce electricity. “Some findings seemed to imply that water acted as though it was a polymer; in other words, all the molecules would somehow join together into a polymer and create some really weird kinds of effects,” Pollack described. Eventually, these results -- first presented by a Russian chemist -- were discredited. “The nails were driven into the coffin of water research by another debacle that took place 20 years later, and that was the idea of water memory,” Pollack said. “The idea was that water molecules could have memory of other substances into which it had been in contact. It’s a 100-year-old idea that there’s a fourth phase of water. This is not an original idea.” Though the concept of a liquid crystalline, or gel-like, phase of water ha s been around for some time, the generally accepted view is that this kind of water is only two or three molecular layers thick. “And what we found in our experiments is that it’s not two or three layers, but two or three million layers. In other words, it’s the dominant feature,” Pollack said. He has since discovered much about its underestimated thickness, its capacity to create a charge, its connections to photosynthesis and its practical applications. The thickness of this gel-like water may explain why items of higher density than water -- such as a coin -- can float. Surface tension is at work, but it arises from this thick, gel-like surface layer. “Turns out that the thickness depends on the pH,” Pollack said. “If you increase the pH, we found that this region gets thicker. It also gets thicker with time.

Dr. Pollack works in his lab to demonstrate some of the unusual properties of water. “This kind of water is negative, and the water beyond is positive. Negative, positive -- you have a battery,” Pollack explained. “The question is, how is it used and might we capitalize on this kind of battery?” The key to understanding how this water battery works is learning how it is recharged. “You can’t just get something for nothing -- there has to be energy that charges it,” Pollack said. “This puzzled us for several years, and finally we found the answer: it’s light. It was a real surprise. So if you take one of these surfaces next to water, and you see the battery right next to it, and you shine light on it, the battery gets stronger. It’s a very powerful effect.”"

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 weekly, with general recurring classes listed at the end on the first Friday of each month. 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 listing suggestions to libby(at)nonsensenyc.com.

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

Free Fashion Re/Action Workshop: Linear Materials

Culture Push and JEM Fabric Warehouse present their third of six weekly Fashion Re/Action workshops. This week: Linear Materials. This workshop focuses on repurposing old yarn, scraps, and clothing into linear materials that can be reused to spin, knit, crochet, and macramé. Future weeks will include workshops on natural dyeing, working with remnants, and wearable sculpture.

JEM Fabric Warehouse
355 Broadway, Manhattan
1-5p; $free
houseofjem.blogspot.com

***** LEARNING: Also on SATURDAY *****

Canning Tomatoes

How to keep your tomatoes tasty year-round.

Rose Red and Lavender
653 Metropolitan Avenue
10-11a; $?
lavender(at)roseredandlavender.com
Pre-register: 718 486 3569

***** LEARNING: Also on SATURDAY *****

Free African Dance in Marcus Garvey Park

Sister Shawnee invites all to join her outdoor African dance class today in Harlem. (Another class follows Sunday 4:30p in Prospect Park -- enter at Ocean and Parkside.)

Marcus Garvey Park, Manhattan
Saturday 4:30p; $free
myspace.com/blackempress368

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

Burlesque Costuming

By frequent request, the School of Burlesque is producing a costume intensive. Come empty-handed, or bring trim or rhinestones and find out how to use them. Bring your costumes that need improvement or images of costumes. You’ll learn the basics of classic costuming, plus the essentials of making street clothes into costumes in the second half, incorporating elements of our Stripping Out of Street Clothes class. You’ll learn how to lace and trim a corset, and how to purchase stockings and gloves. There will be tips for making headdresses, go-go costumes, and more. Plus, every student will make a pair of tasseled pasties, all materials provided.

School of Burlesque
440 Lafayette, Manhattan
Noon-6p; $129
Preregister: schoolofburlesque.com

***** LEARNING: Also on SUNDAY *****

Caribbean Street Food and Wine Pairing

You won’t find the best food in the Caribbean inside of restaurants. If you want to eat what the locals eat, sidle up to one of the vans parked on the side of the road and order what the guy standing next to you is having. The street food of the Caribbean varies from island to island but it is all delicious in its own way. You can cruise with us to the Virgin Islands where Hercules is famous for hid cod-fish “patés” (patties filled with bacalao), to Trinidad and its curried goat roti (the local answer to the burrito), to Haiti where they make black-eyed pea fritters called accra, and Jamaica where they’ll jerk anything, including jumbo shrimp, and finally to Cuba where you can taste empanadas filled with savory pork picadillo and tostones (double-fried plantains) with garlicky mojo sauce. Led by Michael Krondl.

And, while custom wine pairings aren’t frequently seen in the streets of the Caribbean, they are a frequent occurrence at Astor Center. So once your culinary creations are complete, we’ll relax around the table as a resident wine expert leads us through a flight of perfect pairings.

Astor Center
399 Lafayette Street, Manhattan
Noon-4p; $125
Use promo code SUMMER10 for 25 percent off 212 674 7501

***** LEARNING: Also on SUNDAY *****

Free Yoga

This class kicks off a new Sunday series that explores yoga on and off the mat. Yogis will learn to harmonize mind, body, and spirit moving to higher levels of complete wellness. Everyone welcome. Come dressed to move.

BHQFU
225 West Broadway, Manhattan
7:15-8:45p; $free
bhqfu.org/wiki/doku.php?id=start#courses

***** LEARNING: Also on SUNDAY *****

Free African Dance in Central Park

A free traditional West African dance class. Bring a blanket, some snacks, and plan to stay long after class is over and enjoy the magic of the village! If it rains, class is cancelled and there is no rain date. Led by Nafisa.

The Great Hill in Central Park
106th Street and Central Park West, Manhattan 1-4p; $free
ethoh(at)hotmail.com

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

Free Bike Shoppe

Use the shop to fix your bike or just hang out, jam, and shoot the breeze. Or jump in on someone’s creative project. Or peruse the salvaged bike pieces and start fixing them and learning about bikes and putting a bike together.

3rd Ward
195 Morgan Avenue, Brooklyn
Six Wednesdays
3-8p; $free
718 715 4961
3rdward.com/calendar

XXXXX HELP XXXXX

It is a wonderful thing, to help. Helping strengthens communities and allows you to meet new friends. With that in mind, we look for one-day volunteer opportunities with no long-term commitment required. We want to be open to fresh ideas and think of help in a broad way. These listings could include anything from a large-scale day-long service project to a local theatre company that needs volunteers for load-in; from an artist looking for film extras to a community garden that needs a few extra hands. Our goal is simply to help groups or individuals that serve the greater good in small but significant ways. Unique and interesting job opportunities are acceptable fare for this section as well. Looking for ways to help out? Need volunteers to get your own community project off the ground? Know of any existing opportunities? Send your requests to Meeo Ward at meeo(at)nonsensenyc.com.

***** HELP: FRIDAY *****

Hand Out Fliers for Housing Works

Come help us on Friday, Saturday, or Sunday. We need help handing out flyers in the area. Ninety minute shifts.

Email for address
Continues through SUNDAY
D.Schayne(at)housingworks.org

***** HELP: SATURDAY *****

Help Needed for the Annual Hacia Afuera festival

Art for Change presents the annual Hacia Afuera public arts festival. Hacia Afuera ("to go outside") will take place in Spanish Harlem's public community spaces this weekend.

El Barrio is a neighborhood rich in history and public art, from theater and performance to murals and community gardens, and Hacia Afuera is an opportunity for residents, artists, and performers to reclaim public spaces in celebration of its history and culture. Volunteers are needed to help with multiple events.

105 Street and Lexington Avenue, Manhattan 12-5p
Continues SUNDAY
347 612 7959
juniormanon(at)yahoo.com
artforchange.org/get-involved/volunteer/

***** HELP: SOON *****

Editorial Volunteers for the Lambda Literary Foundation

The Lambda Literary Foundation, America's premier LGBT literary organization, is seeking editorial volunteers for fall 2010 and spring 2011 (two and a half month commitment), 10 hours per week.

To apply, e-mail a short cover letter, resume, and links to two published writing samples/links.

agonzalez(at)lambdaliterary.org

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

NYC Unicycle Festival, September 3-5

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

Overidentified.