REMINDER: JT Hooker on Hollow Earth Radio tonight!

From the facebook announcement:

...the music will compliment some engaging discussions around our often rocky marriages between the local musical, political, economic, and social scenes... specifically touching on urban gentrification and what that means to the artist community who helped make those same neighborhoods so attractive/expensive...

Jt Hooker on Hollow Earth Radio!

If you made it to Park(ing) Day Central Park back in September -- or any other event we've hosted recently -- you probably heard JT Hooker and friends providing the music from his mobile DJ rig. This year, the judges awarded him the prize donated by Hollow Earth Radio, which consisted of an on air show. He'll be performing from 8-10 pm on Monday night, 11/29; here is the facebook announcement.


[performing @ Park(ing) Day 2009]

Community Kitchen?

You may have noticed that here at People's Parking Lot, we bring up urban agriculture from time to time. Also, you probably notice that small businesses get some screen time. One idea that I've been discussing with different neighborhood folks over the last year is creating a community kitchen: one that could serve as preparation space for groups working in urban agriculture (Food Not Bombs, Alleycat Acres, etc), and for small businesses like Mini Empire Bakery, while even possibly serving as education space for classes connected with stores like Madison Market.

We have recently heard that a catering company is leaving the neighborhood and are considering approaching the building owners to see if this is a possibility. Thoughts? Would you have use for such a space? Want to help explore the possibility of creating such a space?

John Boylan's Conversation on Honor

Tuesday, November 16th, from 7 to 9 pm @ Vermillion.

From John's website:

The quick summary: This time we’re talking about honor, the fine art of doing the right thing.

The Guests

There are no guests this time, except for you and me. See below for an explanation.

The Story

I’ve been thinking lately about honor. Honor seems on its face to be about doing the right thing. But is the right thing always the good thing, the best thing? We grow up thinking that honor is about adhering to a code, a samurai’s bushido, the knight’s chivalry, or the unbreakable principles of a noir detective. But is honor even possible when one has embraced without exception a fixed set of rules?

Most of us have lived with a lie or two or three, even small ones, at some point in our lives. Is there honor in those lies? Is telling the truth sometimes the least honorable course? Can we have honor without faith? Can there be honor without courage and sacrifice, or at the least, without a generosity of spirit?

We’ve just come through a long season of politics where honor seemed to take a holiday. I’ve been wondering whether or not the courageous politics that our future requires is possible without a deep dose of honor. Can that happen? And where does honor fit in the art and culture of our time? Do the insights of the best theater, the contradictions of a fine novel, or the rigorous prodding of a great painting have a role to play in fostering honor in our lives? Or not?

I haven’t asked any guests this time, except for you. I might have brought in a theologian, a philosopher, or an ethicist. But I think that all of us have the deepest knowledge of honor—or a lack of it—in the world of our everyday lives. The call to honor, and the temptation to refuse that call, happen around us all the time, at work, on the highway, with our families. I’m hoping to hear more about those calls this Tuesday evening, and what they mean to you.

Note: I had listed “The Street” as the topic for this month. I’d had a couple of people in mind for that, and when they were not available, I decided to hold off on that one.

Hope to see you there.

[stories]... on November 18th at Office Nomads

From [stories from] the table at the corner of belmont and pine's Facebook page.

Please join us next Thursday the 18th for more stories, thoughts and ideas around public space, community, livability, wellness, art, urban design, city planning, hyper-local/grass roots organizing, open public conversation, new media, learning, social creativity and innovation, 'making', having a voice, developing an ...idea, marketplaces, architecture, our future together, sustainability, civic engagement, empowerment and furry cats.

It's a potluck so bring something to eat or drink and even if you can't just come. Come meet some of your neighbors, share your latest thoughts and aspirations for change, for community and a voice in the future of this part of the city....5-7.30pm, Office Nomads, 1617 Boylston, 2nd Floor.

Some of the organizers will be heading up to the Capitol Hill Community Council meeting -- at the Cal Anderson Park shelter house -- after the potluck.

Construction to begin by March?

That's the story, according the Stranger. My correspondence with owner resulted in a terse, "the building permit is expiring so we are renewing it," but evidently that was not the whole story.

The whole point of this blog (see the first post here) was to serve as a 'meeting place' so that when the time for construction came, we might have the mass and momentum to influence what happens on the space. I'm not sure I've succeeded in building that base, but I feel like a decent amount of people read these posts and have participated in the events we've hosted. The question is, though, if a project really is going to begin, can we do anything about it? Does anyone have the time and energy?

Alex Steffen @ Town Hall, Wednesday Night

From Worldchanging.com:

THE STATE OF THE FUTURE | Wednesday, November 3, 2010 | 7:30pm: An evening lecture in which Worldchanging Executive Editor Alex Steffen returns to Town Hall to present his new ideas about global sustainability and planetary futurism, which have grown from over seven years of research on global solutions and twenty years of environmental journalism. Alex is a recognized global thought-leader in the field of sustainability; he is a featured speaker on TED talks and author of the best-selling book "Worldchanging: A Users Guide to the 21st Century," which has a forward by Al Gore. Join us for an evening on "The State of the Future" and find out what is the critical next step in global thinking on innovation and how it applies to work being done in our region. Last year's talk led to Seattle adopting the goal of carbon neutrality by 2030. What will this year's event lead to?

Construction Rumor?

I received an email this morning from a gentleman who had heard a rumor that construction might be starting on the lot in December. Has anyone else heard anything? I'll ask the developer and see if he'll tell me anything, though I doubt he will...