Whassup: City at Peace Edition

via telephoneandsoup.com

As London Calls, it's a good time to be thankful for the little things: like that our city is not rioting. Celebrate the peaceful dog-days of your NYC summer with Whassup: City at Peace Edition:

* Thursday, Aug. 11: Art and Java, Cafe Grumpy: Consistently ranked one of top spots for Joe in NYC, Park Slope's Cafe Grumpy hosts a night of Colombian-inspired art and Colombian-derived brew. Paintings completed on a trip to the town Gigante accompany the Grumpy coffee flown in from the same locale. You can also sip the anis-flavored Colombian liqueur aguardiente. But, most importantly, if you haven't had Grumpy coffee -- well, I envy you the amazing transformation it will make in your life. 6:30pm, FREE.

* Saturday, Aug. 13: Kite Fest, BK Bridge: If "Go Fly a Kite!" is a gentler way of saying "Go Fuck Yourself!" then, "Go Fuck Yourself!" must be a more vigorous method of encouraging kite flying. (That's how language works, right?) Well, Go Fuck Yourself -- and your kids! -- this Saturday, at Brooklyn Bridge Park. Bring a kite, or make one with free materials and instructional workshops led by volunteers. 11am-3pm, FREE.

* Saturday, Aug. 13: Derby Dash, Open Source Gallery: If kites are a little too floaty for your tastes, build and/or race something a bit more grounded at the annual Soap Box Derby in South Slope. First, kids ages 7 to 12 compete in their creations -- built from found materials at the side of a professional artist. Then, Brooklyn's "adults" (aka, hipster man-children) hit the slopes (get it?) with their own racers, built during a series of workshops at Open Source. (You can still get in on the action, with derby-building workshops this Thursday and Friday, 7-9pm, $40.) Kids race 11:30am, Adults 1pm, FREE.

* Saturday, Aug. 13: RIP Amy, Union Hall: Come honor the art of the latest (sadly unsuprising) addition to the 27 Club at "Back to Black: a Neosoul Funeral for Amy Winehouse." DJs will spin tracks by Winehouse, her contemporaries and forerunners. Drape your mourning soul in black the way Amy would have liked: big hair, thick eyeliner, cigarette pants. 10pm, FREE.

* Tuesday, Aug. 16: Maude StorySLAM, Tea Lounge: The monthly "I Like You, Maude" StorySLAM series returns with featured tale-spinner Matt Koff, one of the scribes behind the Onion News Network. Hosted by FIPS' very own fount of humor Kerri Doherty, the monthly SLAM invites stories on all topics. Come listen -- or put your name in the hat, and share your tale. No notes or reading allowed. 7:30pm-9:30pm, FREE.

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COMING UP:

* Tuesday, Aug. 23: Food Truck Panel, Tea Lounge: The Non-Motivational Speaker Series, brought to you by Gelf magazine, wafts the delicious aroma of controversy your way with a discussion of NYC's loved-and-loathed food truck explosion. Are food trucks a fun summer thing for Brooklyn's girlfriends to casually suggest their boyfriends definitely take them to? Or are they a bane on the profits of non-wheeled neighborhood eateries? You decide, after listening to the distinguished panel:
* David Weber, of the NYC Food Trucks Assocation
* Kate Collignon, NYU prof. of urban planning
* Irene LoRe, executive director of the Park Slope 5th Ave. BID
7:30pm, FREE.