Concrete jungle where something something. All photos by Mary Dorn.

You know you’re in Manhattan when the check arrives.

Living in the coolest place on earth, you find you get swallowed up in the hype, getting high on your own home-grown kombucha, as it were. But just across a river lies an island dubbed “The City that Never Sleeps.” The center of the world and home of pizza places named after a series of men named Ray; the place so important to the imagination of the world that Las Vegas has a casino themed after it. Even Egypt doesn’t get to claim the Luxor, and THAT’S A COUNTRY. What had I been taking for granted, living in my homemade duplex in a former warehouse, when famous dead guys like Jack Kerouac, O.Henry, and Lou Reed (he’s dead, right?) had been living less than 5 miles away, making the art that we’ve been stocking our cement block bookshelves with over here?  (more…)

Pork Slope
247 Fifth Ave (Carroll & Garfield)
Park Slope
(718)768-7675

What is it: A new edition to Park Slope, this bar/restaurant comes from the owners of Talde and Thistle Hill Tavern with a down-home classic barbecue menu that does not shy away from its titular protein.

Why we love it: What’s not to love? Aside from the fantastic take on bar food, Pork Slope embraces the feel of the Double Deuce from Road House, without the throat-ripping and barbaric brawls. With TVs scattered around the bar and a pool table, Pork Slope is a great place for any game day, or to work on a plate of “redneck nachos” with a friend and some beers. (more…)

Freddy’s Bar and Backroom
627 5th Ave (between 17th and 18th Streets)
South Slope
718-768-0131

What is it: A Brooklyn staple and one of the major casualties of the Atlantic Yards, Freddy’s has found a new home in South Slope, and is already back to its fame without missing a beat.

Why we love it: Whether you’re there for the acid-tavern experience (TVs run bizarre video art collages on a loop) or to see a music, comedy, or storytelling show in the backroom, Freddy’s always has something to fix a stale night. (more…)

See, it’s funny because PBRfedoraartisanal

Sunday TV’s longest-running sitcom, The Simpsons, logged another stop in its 2012 Desiccation Tour with an episode dedicated to the “cool-ification” of Springfield by Portland natives, voiced by Portlandia’s Fred Armisen and Carrie Brownstein. Though the show dodged the use of the term “hipster” thank god (they rely on the simple word “cool” and Fred’s character refers to his demographic as “us-types”), it’s pretty clear that The Simpsons were looking to take on that new fad (of the last 8 years) known as hipsterism. (more…)

The couple that Snuggies together…breaks up when it gets nice out. via Facebook

As the days grow shorter and we begin to enter our own Fortresses of Solitude, there’s a primal drive awakening among us single folk. Just as squirrels furiously scramble to store their nuts for winter, many singles are furiously scrambling to…uh, get their nuts taken care of, too. And the best way is with a winter girlfriend (or boyfriend!).

This someone to hunker down with for hours upon hours of cooking at home, an entire season of Walking Dead, and never-get-out-of-bed sex during snowstorms. A winter relationship is probably the only relationship that doesn’t cost more when you’re in it, because you literally do nothing. And what happens after winter? Well, that’s up to you, but generally, once spring and skimpy clothing come back around, one or both parties will realize how little they have in common beyond a mutual understanding of Peggy Olson’s character arc.

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There are other ways to be communal and charitable this weekend. via Izismile

With the weekend coming up, we have our first opportunities to raise some money through some socially conscious social events and sites. These will be great places to check out after you’re done volunteering. Who knows, maybe you’ll meet a civically responsible cutie and have a perfect date on your hands. (more…)

Matt & Meghan’s HaLOLween Party at Littlefield

After two days cooped up in your apartment with no hope of subway service soon, you might want to re-watch The Shining as a cautionary tale about cabin fever. But not as an idea generator. Or, you could remember that it’s Halloween, after all! We’ve gone over what’s going on with the kids, now here are some fun adult events for that Hurricane Pecan Sandies costume that you’ve been feverishly working on. Now put down the ax. (more…)

Officer, do I look like I have a license?

If there’s one thing brokesters can appreciate across the board, it’s bar-time — that special time, whether it’s at 11pm or at 11am, when we forget about work, our tiny apartments, roommate troubles, bills or student debt and argue passionately about whether the dad from Teen Wolf is the same actor as the main bad guy in Lost Boys (he’s not). So it’s easy to see why certain neighborhoods and their bars get flack for allowing families with children in their hallowed halls during prime drinking hours (read: opening to closing).

But just like we childless folk will do anything to allow for the relative extravagance of liquor, parents have to contend with babysitter costs whenever they want to go out. Parents living on a budget need a drink, too, but they should understand the etiquette first. Here are a few solid tips that will not only have your kids be tolerated by your fellow drinkers, but might just make you legendary within the establishment. (more…)

Unskilled woodworking may result in sawdust abundance.

If you’re unemployed and looking to pick up a new skillset in the manual labor field, or you’re Hannah’s boyfriend from Girls, you’re in luck (except that you have to be Lena Dunham’s boyfriend and exist in Girls)! Brooklyn Woods is holding a free seven-week full-time course in woodworking staring in September to prepare you for an entry-level job in custom woodworking, cabinetmaking and fabrication. Now, I know what you’re going to say: woodworking is boring. Well, it’s not just that! It’s also drilling, sanding and all kinds of other stuff with hand and power tools! (more…)

You’re not planning to leave town or anything this weekend, are you? Of course not! Not when Brooklyn is packed with so many fun and free events that will put lake houses and road trips to Ohio to shame. Crowning the apex of Memorial Weekend is the super free Let’s Get Pregnant With Comedy monthly show at Hank’s Saloon. What better way to celebrate America, Veterans, the start of beach season and WWF Superstar ice cream pops—one of those has to be what Memorial Day commemorates, right?—than to get drunk on cheap booze and see a night of comedy? Featured performers will be Adam Newman, Myka Fox, Julia Stratmann, Shane Shane, Ashley Brooke Roberts, and your humble cabana boy (aka me), also including the vocal stylings of Aerial East, as well as the second episode of Brokelandia! (more…)