August 22 - August 29

Hi everybody, and welcome to the ultimate dog days edition of Ideal Week, when it’s still hot, it feels like everyone’s out of town, and it’s hard not to question the decision to live in a city that makes being physically submerged in water at all times so damn difficult. I’m fresh back from a glorious week in Maine, which was spent blissfully swimming, reading, eating lobster, visiting various craft breweries, and not checking email, and though I’d be lying if I said I’m ready to get back to the grind, I’m for sure in a better place than I was when I wrote my last dispatch. All of this is to say that if it’s been months and months since you’ve had real time off please do yourself a real kindness and make it a priority—I’d bet you need it more than you realize.

As for moi, I’m BACK... back in the New York groove and pretty amped about a weekend at home, particularly one that has as much available action as this one does. The star-studded Afropunk Festival returns to Commodore Barry Park this weekend and there are still some tickets available or, if your musical taste runs a bit more retro, the fabulous Jazz Age Lawn Party is back at Governors Island for the second and final weekend of 2019. On Saturday, the Brooklyn Navy Yard is hosting a Craft Brew Fest with over 100 different styles of beer provided by local and far-flung breweries, and Green-Wood Cemetery will host a reenactment of the 1776 Battle of Brooklyn, which took place on its grounds, on Sunday. Alternatively, you can celebrate National Dog Day with your favorite furry sidekick at Lucky Dog, a puppy-friendly Williamsburg bar that’s hosting and Ice Cream Social featuring pupsicles, complimentary photo sessions, and a meet and greet with Not the Rug, a local dog walking biz. Curiously, there are a ton of movies I want to see in theaters right now-- in particular, I keep hearing good things about Good Boys, the latest from the Seth Rogen/Evan Goldberg team, and Blinded By The Light, which is about a teenager’s love for Bruce Springsteen and therefore right up my alley. I’m also deep into the second season of Mindhunter, which I can only assume all you other true crime freaks are watching too. 

Looking ahead, Nitehawk’s Prospect Park location is hosting a one-night-only screening of a new documentary about one of the best shows ever, Freaks and Geeks, on September 4, and Greenlight Bookstore has released tickets for its fall lineup of Brooklyn Voices: A Literary Series at St. Joseph’s College, which includes readings by Ann Patchett, Mark Bittman, and Lindy West. Speaking of fall, it’s coming, and if you’re looking for a new Thursday night activity to get you out of the house and socializing, consider signing up for Parklife’s cornhole league. 

As for this week, read on for a day-by-day collection of stuff happening in and around Brooklyn between now and next week. We’re taking off for Labor Day, and hope you are too, so we’ll see you back here on Thursday, September 5. Until then, friends, and hope you get the chance to squeeze out every last drop of summer—it's not going to last forever!

-- Kate Hooker