CARITAS Needs Donations

From Councilperson Parker Agelasto’s FaceBook page:

CARITAS Furniture Bank is reporting a significant shortage of sofas, chairs, linens, and pots/pans. If you have extra items in the garage or attic, please consider making a donation this holiday season to help a family in need. For VCU students, landlords, or anyone who may be moving at the end of the month, please coordinate with CARITAS to have your surplus items become more than a pile on the sidewalk or alley.

“Day of Infamy”, Also Don’t Forget the Christmas Parade On Broad Street

Tomorrow the Virginia War Memorial will hold a Pearl Harbor remembrance ceremony.

From the Times Dispatch:

The event from 11 a.m. until noon Saturday will honor Virginians and all U.S. military who were killed during the attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on Dec. 7, 1941.
The ceremony is sponsored by the Richmond Council of the Navy League of the United States. The Richmond chapter’s president, Milton Owen, will speak.
The program will include laying of memorial wreaths and special tributes to Pearl Harbor survivors who’ve been invited to attend.

From Wikipedia:

The attack on Pearl Harbor[nb 4] was a surprise military strike conducted by the Imperial Japanese Navy against the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on the morning of December 7, 1941 (December 8 in Japan). The attack led to the United States’ entry into World War II.

The attack was intended as a preventive action in order to keep the U.S. Pacific Fleet from interfering with military actions the Empire of Japan was planning in Southeast Asia against overseas territories of the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and the United States. There were simultaneous Japanese attacks on the U.S.-held Philippines and on the British Empire in Malaya, Singapore, and Hong Kong.

There were numerous historical precedents for unannounced military action by Japan. However, the lack of any formal warning, particularly while negotiations were still apparently ongoing, led President Franklin D. Roosevelt to proclaim December 7, 1941, “a date which will live in infamy”.

Also, don’t forget the Christmas Parade On Broad Street tomorrow.

“NO SHOCKOE STADIUM!”

Over thirty people turned out yesterday evening at the William Byrd Community House for an organizational meeting of citizens opposed to the Shockoe Stadium proposal. In addition to a summary of the proposal, a listing of upcoming related dates, and much discussion, there was a preliminary presentation of alternatives to the City administration’s proposal for Shockoe Bottom development.

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This contrasts with the light attendance at the Mayor’s presentation in the 7th District last night, although there was a few people opposed to the ballpark proposal at that meeting too.

Meanwhile, 5th District Councilperson Parker Agelasto, who has come out against the Shockoe stadium plan so far, has announced a meeting on Jan. 9 at George Wythe high school to discuss Shockoe Bottom development. Other City Council members have announced meetings also.

From The Camel’s Beers and Banjos Night

RVA Magazine recently reviewed a night at The Camel. Here’s a portion:

Beers and Banjos night features a different band every Friday, typically in the folk music genre. This week the band was Birdseye Speedwell. Birdseye Speedwell is a family band, comprised of Hannah Rucker, her parents (James and Anne Rucker), her aunt (Laura Kinnaman), and her uncle (Bruce Blizard). The family “started playing while living together locally in Oregon Hill,” but this was their first gig together in front of an audience at a venue–not that you’d notice. The band members played an array of instruments: guitars, fiddles, banjo, washboard, a bongo drum, and acabasa.

Greta’s New Business

Laurel Street neighbor/resident rock star Greta Brinkman got a nice write up in this week’s Style for her frame-making venture.

Brinkman has continued her habit of salvaging old wood from project sites, and wherever else she can find it. And she’s using it to build some beautiful homemade frames of all sizes.

“I just hated to throw away the really old stuff like heart pine,” she says. “It really has the most beautiful grain and wonderful luster — and it smells fantastic.”

Brinkman says she’ll work on commission and that for now, postcard-sized frames run around $25, and an album-sized frame is $50. You can find her Etsy page at etsy.com/shop/framesbygreta or email her at gkb498 at yahoo.com.

Brinkman plays bass for metal band Druglord, but she’s had a long and colorful career playing for such big-name and wide-ranging artists as Debbie Harry, L7, Moby and Jayne County. Druglord has a new vinyl EP, “Enter Venus,” coming out in a month and it plays Strange Matter on Dec. 17 with Torche.

Trash/Recycling Pickup Tomorrow

This Wednesday is a red Wednesday, which means trash and recycling pickup. Please make sure you pick up containers after pickup tomorrow night. They do not belong on the sidewalk after tomorrow night.

In recycling news, Charlottesville City Schools launch recycling challenge. As reported by NBC29,

“the project is led by the city’s high school students and supported by local recycling and waste hauler, Republic Services in partnership with TFC Recycling.”

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