Park Slope Entrepreneur Asks “What’d You Buy Today?” with Personal Finance Site, The Birdy


Photo Source: iDone This Blog

Park Slope resident Corey Maass, who has helped others get their startup businesses off the ground, has just launched a unique startup of his own: TheBirdy.com, a free App that tracks your spending to help you better manage your money on a day-to-day basis. The service sends an email once a day to its members asking, “What’d you buy today?” The Birdy members can respond to the daily email or choose to text-message their response. In turn, The Birdy provides them reports of how they are spending their money.

The Birdy came to be through Maass’ own poor spending habits. NYDailyNews.com reports Maass as saying, “The joke was that I was a third-generation shopaholic.” His efforts to curb his out of control spending habits using personal finance websites did not work because “they were way too complicated, boring and not informative.” TheBirdy.com aims at making money management incredibly easy for its members.

Methodist Hospital ER Earning Bad Grades

Gowanus Lounge just posted a couple of not-so-nice stories from Park Slope Parents about recent visits to the Methodist Hospital ER. This would come as no surprise to Carmen who posted about her trip to the ER in April:

…I was kind of mortified that the PA was pressuring me into treatment when the plastic surgeon told me I didn’t need them. He was very brief when speaking to me and didn’t look me in the eye once. He basically threw my paperwork at me and walked out the door, at which point I asusmed I was done and left.

While in discharge, I heard the woman next to me complaining that a nurse had said “no wonder you’re on so many pills” when she complained about the tightness of the ID bracelet. Is this place ALWAYS like this? I’m really considering writing a letter to the hospital about my experience (excellent with the plastic surgeon, but terrible with everyone else,) …

Have any experiences, good, bad, or ugly to share? Check them in here: Park Slope Message Board – Methodist hospital ER- not nice! :: Brooklynian.com

Mail Delivery Problems in South Slope


37 cents a rock

Originally uploaded by elevatedprimate.

…………Missing Netflix DVDs… Lunch breaks in the mysterious green lockboxes… lines out the door on 9th Street… surly clerks who would rather ring your neck than sell stamps… Could it get any worse?

Shinybeast writes on the Park Slope Message Board:

What in the heck is up with the mail service in Park Slope (South)? I’ve never seen so many errors with delivery during my time in Brooklyn (15 years plus). I live in a two-family and we constantly get mail for people with addresses not really close to ours (we’re on a street, we repeatedly get mail for people who live on avenues). I’ve lived in Greenpoint (two locations), Williamsburg & Sunnyside, Queens and have never experienced anything even remotely like it. It’s pretty disturbing how wrong they get it repeatedly. Anyone else notice this? Our mail gets routed through the P.O. on 9th street. I don’t even want to think about how much of my mail has ended up 17 blocks away…

Park Slope Message Board

Best of Park Slope


Red Horse Cafe, Brooklyn

Originally uploaded by 536.

Yavel’s list:

Best Loaf – Lopez Bakery – 5th ave bet 18 th and 19th St. The bread is very good and cheap. I always get the 7 grain. They make a nice loaf, but stay away from the pastry. The bread is baked fresh every day, but the other stuff tends to be stale. Haven’t tried the tamales yet.

Bakery – Two Little Red Hens – 8th Ave. They’re expensive, but so good.

Bodega/small grocer – La Dolce Vita – 7th Ave – Clean store and nice owner, also has a good beer selection

Toy Store – Toy Space on 7th ave around 13th – Nice selection of toys, if a bit overpriced. This place has saved me on a few occasions when I had to get a quick gift for a kid. There’s also a place on 5th ave, but I can’t remember the name.

Children’s Shoes – Windsor Shoes – Prospect Park West – The staff is very helpful and they have a good selection.

Pizza – Pino’s La Forchetta – 7th Ave – classic pizza joint

Coffee Shop – 6th ave and 12th St – Red Horse Cafe – good coffee and not crowded

Sandwich shop – Pollios – 5th Ave – Good hoagies and specialty foods. It has a nice, neighborhood feel.

More lists in the Park Slope Message Boards

Let’s All Drink to the Death of a Cell Phone Store

Grand Master steve writes in the Park Slope Message Boards:

“I’m a big believer in supporting small local business… which is why why I am somewhat conflicted to be happy about the demise of one: a cell phone store on 7th Ave. just outside the F station.”

“… One less cell phone store sounds great to me. There must be one on nearly every block of 7th Avenue, and the proprietors largely seem like shysters, so enough is enough. I might even call to see how much they want for the space, but I think it will be more than I want to spend right now for my business.”

They’ll be back. Commiserate in the Park Slope Message Boards

Click here for more resources
for small businesses.

Where Can I Find a Notary Public?

New on the Park Slope Parents website: a list of Notaries in Park Slope.

To date, they’ve got contact information and specifics on Berman Realty, Neergard Drugstore, Ansonia Chemist, Prospect Gardens Pharmacy, Palma Chemist, 7th Avenue Jewelers and Time Pieces, Accentiques Antiques, and the insurance office on Union between 7th & 8th St.

So, lots of pharmacies and real estate offices offer Notary Public services. What’s missing? We can add that the M&T Bank on Flatbush Ave. has free notary services (customers only).

What else? We’ll compile a list and forward it to Park Slope Parents.

Discuss Notaries in Park Slope. Add another to the list.

IMAGE: neon-das.com