The Confined Nomad arrives in Bangladesh

The Confined Nomad, a local blog dedicated to, as they put it, "Eating the UN, A-Z, without ever leaving NYC" have made their alphabetical way through various national cuisines all the way to Bangladesh. They seem to try to stay local when possible, and this time around they hit Jhinuk and Abdullah Sweets and Restaurant on McDonald Ave.

The Confined Nomad writes:

Us: Excuse us, Mr. Proprietor, what is this delicious stuff?
Mr. Proprietor: Yohgart.
Us: Yohgart? How do you spell that?
Mr. Proprietor (Beaming): You spell it yohgart! (read more)

Keep those reviews coming, folks!

Matt Marks' The Little Death Vol. 1

Local musician Matt Marks has made us aware that he is putting on an opera this weekend

"Someone walking with someone, going somewhere, feeling something." -

We meet two characters, Boy and Girl. Boy then shoots Girl, and she sings an erotic Christian pop anthem through her pain.

Welcome to The Little Death Vol. 1, a new opera by Matt Marks that blends the avant-garde, Christian pop, and classic breakbeats into a show that will leave you singing his twisted pop creations in your head for days. Using decidedly limited, hypnotic lyrics, The Little Death Vol.1 tells the story of two clichéd, yet bizarre, teenagers, their journey through the world of Fundamentalist Evangelism, and their attempts to keep their relationship pure in the eyes of the LORD.

Featuring Matt Marks and Mellissa Hughes as "Boy" and "Girl".

and The Lil Death Band:

Caleb Burhans - Vocals
Wil Smith - Organ, Keys
Nathan Koci - Accordion
James Moore - Guitar
Peter Wise - Drums

Performances are:

March 20th and 21st @ 9:30PM
@ The Tank - 354 West 45th Street (in between 8th and 9th Ave.)
Tickets are $10

Listen to songs from The Little Death here:

http://www.myspace.com/mattmarksmusic

Sounds pretty compelling. The name itself is open to interpretation... it may be a reference to the Litany Against Fear, but since I doubt anyone has time to write operas about dopey 60s Sci-Fi, I must conclude that he is referring to La petite mort.

Good luck Matt... we hope to see you out there!

Ambrosia out; Zaffran in.

I walk past this place every day, but tonight is the first time I felt comfortable poking my head in the new Zaffran restaurant (located in what used to be Ambrosia). Ambrosia was a pretty nice place considering its location between a 99 cents store and a fish market and I'm really sorry to see it go. Somehow it seems the new restaurant that opened up this week seems to have actually done some sort of reverse renovation and actually made the place look worse, or is that just me? They serve Bangladesh, Indian & Pakistani cuisine for eat-in, takeout and delivery. They claim to have great hours and the prices seem okay. I decided to ask for a menu and was greeted with a smile by the woman closest to the door. The other person, not so much of a smile but the food smelled delicious so I'm willing to give it a shot this weekend. Has anyone actually tried the food at Zaffran yet?

If you're brave enough to order without a menu, the number is 718-686-6517. They're located at 90 Church Ave near McDonald.

Tired of the trash?

Local Kensingtoner Debbie is, and I don't blame her. She tipped us off to this site: www.stoplawnlitter.org.

You sign up and they put your name on a "do not distribute" list. It seems to be legit - somehow connected with a new local law aimed at stopping pollution in Queens.
I know my block is always covered with flyers and garbage from these advertisements which get blown all over the place. Thought it might be of interest to my neighbors.

Thanks for the tip! I know I'd love it if the corner at the Church F stop wasn't such a trash storm on a windy night.

I think our dogs deserve a run too...

...even if some of their owners do not. Orion tipped us off to a petition Sean Casey and the gang are working on to get the Kensington/WT area its own place for pups to hang with one another. Dogs like Frank here apparently feel the need to dress up like... well, something other than a dog in order to fit in around the 'hood. Perhaps a dog run would give him somewhere to feel more comfortable in his furry birthday suit. Word is you have to head over to the Animal Rescue to sign the petition. Sounds good, but if anyone knows of a nifty online version of that, we'd love to post a link.

Publishing classes for everyone... even you!

Local Kensingtonian Kris Waldherr will be offering workshops at her gallery, along with exhibitions and other events. Starting this spring, Kris Waldherr Art and Words will be adding arts and publishing workshops to the mix. The studio-gallery is located near Newkirk Plaza on Marlborough Road. Class sizes are small, so each participant receives individualized attention.

Here are summaries of the workshops:

1. Children's Bookmaking. Saturday, March 28 and April 4, 2 - 3 pm.
Recommended for age 6 to 9. This two session creative art workshop teaches kids how to make a picture book. They'll learn how to take a simple story and transform it into a book utilizing collage, drawing,
and writing.

2. Publishing 101. Saturday, March 21, 2 - 4:30 pm.
Ever wondered what it takes to get published? Or what makes a publisher decide to buy a manuscript? Here's your chance to find out! This entry level workshop covers everything: manuscript submissions, book proposals, literary agents, self-publishing, book acquisitions, marketing. No prior publishing experience necessary.

3. Bookmaking Bootcamp: Children's Picture Books, Gift Books, and Art Books.
Tuesdays, April 7, 14, 21, 28; 7 - 9:00 pm.
This hands-on workshop is for fine artists, illustrators, photographers, and children's picture book creators -- anyone who has ever wanted to transform their art and words into a professional book. By the end of this workshop, you'll be on your way toward creating a book that can be submitted to a publisher or self-published. Bootcamp early bird special: Register by March 9 and receive a free half-hour follow up consultation with Kris ($50 value).

These workshops will be personally taught by Kris Waldherr, a publishing professional with twenty-plus years of experience. Kris began her publishing career as a children's book designer. As an author, illustrator, and designer, she's created Doomed Queens, The Book of Goddesses and numerous other illustrated books for children and adults. Kris has been published by Harry N. Abrams Books, Random House, HarperCollins and other major publishing houses.

To learn more or register for these workshops, visit ArtandWords.com/events.html
or e-mail kris@kriswaldherr.com.

Hey Kris, maybe you could add a class for blog publishing next time. We could probably use the help.

Kensington Blog State of the Union

Well, it's been a while since our last post. We're really happy with the way the blog and the Facebook group (over 1000 members now!) has been received since we took over and I feel an explanation for the lack action recently is owed to all of you. As I'm sure you've noticed, the economy and all that goes with it is managing to get its grip on everything these days. We're no different. We've found ourselves busy trying to keep a business afloat and draining more energy out of our personal lives and hobbies than it has in the past. I think there's a light at the end of this tunnel though, and we're moving forward in hopes that everything will reach it in strength, including the Kensington Blog. Our business project is progressing and we think we'll be able to get back in the swing of more regular updates soon enough. In the meantime, keep our RSS feed somewhere close and we'll reach out to you when we can. We plan on having a party to celebrate the start of something bigger here, and it looks like that will be this Spring.

If you have some content to share, please keep sending it in. We're still here. We may not be able to write a clever post every morning right now, but we still want to keep things moving, even if it's at slow pace. We hope you'll be patient with us and that you'll share our enthusiasm to get things back in step when the time comes.