AUTUMN MUSINGS * GIFTS OF MUSIC * ARTVAARK * ROSH HASHANAH * Bill's Coffeeshop Newsletter * Vol. 12 * September 24, 2011

Uptown Bill's has emerged as a place for great music and stimulating community conversations. This week's events offer particularly good examples of the expanding role of the coffee house. Hope you'll be able to join us for one or more of these events:

Live TV on Tuesday, Sept. 27...
Tom's Guitar Show will be broadcast live from Uptown Bill's on Tuesday. Join us for the PATV production at 6 pm. You'll hear great music, some informative commentary and maybe even "Werewolves of Iowa," a spoken word piece inspired by the Warren Zevon song "Werewolves of London."

Pree, Washington, DC band on Wednesday, Sept. 28, 7:30 pm...
Pree combines a wide variety of folk instrumentation with electric and digital elements to create a unique sound brimming with layered melodies and contagious energy. Find out more by visiting the band's page on Facebook.
(Also on Wednesday evening: Readers & Writers Group, 6 pm and Spoken Word, 7 pm)

Singer/songwriter Jessica Smucker on Thursday, Sept, 29, 7:30 pm...
We've been playing her CD in the coffee house during the last couple of weeks. Now you can hear Jessica in person. From Lancaster, Pennsylvania, this is her first time at Uptown Bill's You can find out more about her and listen to a sampling of her music at: www.jessicasmucker.com. 
(Also on Thursday, Art Night, 6 pm and Open Mic, 7 pm)

Community meeting about disabilities on Friday, Sept. 30, 10 am...

Talk with David Morrissey, director of the US International Council on Disabilities. Learn about the proposed UN Convention about the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Hosted by UI Center for Disabilities and Development.

New this Saturday, Oct. 1: Artvaark at 3 pm...
Join us on Saturday afternoons at 3 pm for Artvaark, artistic activities for all ages. This week, we'll be working with leaves. We'll decorate the leaves and write short messages on them. 

Irish Sessions on Saturday, too...
Join us for another delightful afternoon of Irish music by local musicians. 4:30 pm. For more information, check out Iowa City Irish Sessions on Facebook. 

Plus Saturday Night Music with Marc and Brandi Janssen...
Join us at 7 pm for a great performance by local musicians.  Here's a video from a performance at the coffee house earlier this year: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ASt6cXzBLnQ 

FALL STARTS
MOVING IN
SLOWLY, but persistently fall is slipping into our part of the prairie. Each day is a few minutes shorter; each night a few minutes longer. The daytime high temperatures are lower than at the beginning of the month; so, too the night time lows.

September is the month of the first of the harvest moons. There wasn't much of a yellow-orange tint to this one. But next month's full moon is likely to have more of an orange color. According to the Ojibwe calendar in the coffee house, this is the month of the leaves change moon -- waatebagaa-gizis. You ca see the calendar in the meeting room.

AUTUMN APPEARS
WITHOUT A SOUND
Autumn comes quietly
Sneaking up on us
It makes no sound
to announce
the cooling of the days
or the falling of the leaves
Perhaps that is why
Fall's colors 
are so loud
Reds, yellows and browns
All shouting for attention
They sing out
Look at me, look at me
And we do,
with oohs and aahs
We look ahead
and shiver at
the thought of winter
But we can also
drift back
to other autumns
and be warmed
by the memories

THESE DAYS IN
SEPTEMBER...
...Miguel Cervantes went to prison on Sept. 15, 1602. He wrote Don Quixote during his time in prison, a story which celebrates possibilities in people when everyone else has given up on them. The musical "Man of La Mancha" is based on this novel. "Dream the impossible dream," is probably the best-known song from the show. It's a great source of inspiration for anyone working to improve the lives of people and communities.

...Jane Addams, social work's founding mother, and Ellen Gates Starr, her college roommate, moved into the old Hull House in Chicago on Sept. 18, 1889. They'd rented the house on Halsted Street for $60 a month. Their dream: to serve the neighborhood. Very quickly, they started a kindergarten and day care program. In 1891, an art gallery was added. In 1893, a coffee house and gym were built. The original Hull House is still standing, but most of the other buildings which were part of the complex were torn down in the 1960s to make room for the University of Illinois at Chicago.

...Pinwheels for Peace is one of the events organized for International Peace Day (Sept. 21) each year. Tables in the coffee house were decorated with pinwheels made by customers on that day.

...Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, begins at sundown on Wednesday, Sept. 28. For some reflections on the meaning of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, visit the website for Tikkun magazine (www.tikkun.org). Look for the High Holiday Workbook: "Stand up for the visions of the prophets for a world of peace, justice and love." For a great selection of recipes, check the "Jew & the Carrot' blog: http://blogs.forward.com/the-jew-and-the-carrot/ 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Bill's Coffeeshop Newsletter is a virtual extension of Wild Bill's Coffeeshop and Uptown Bill's Coffee House. Published since 2000, the Newsletter is written by Tom Gilsenan, a former manager of Wild Bill's and now director of Uptown Bill's. You can write to him at tomgilsenan@gmail.com

Wild Bill's Coffeeshop is a project of the School of Social Work at the University of Iowa. It has been a part of campus life in Iowa City for more than 35 years. Located in North Hall, the coffeeshop is open weekdays from 8 am. For more information, check the Friends of Bill's Coffeeshop page on Facebook. You can call the coffeeshop at (319) 335-1281. Donations to support the work of the coffeeshop may be sent to: Bill's Coffeeshop Fund, University of Iowa Foundation, P.O. Box 4550, Iowa City, IA 52244. Contributions are tax deductible.

Uptown Bill's is the crosstown cousin of Wild Bill's. Now in its 11th year, it includes a bookstore, performance venue and other businesses in addition to a coffeeshop. Located at 730 S. Dubuque, Uptown Bill's is open Monday through Saturday from 7 am. For more information, check the Uptown Bill's website or Facebook page. You can call Uptown Bill's at (319) 339-0401. Donations to support the work of Uptown Bill's may be sent to: Extend the Dream Foundation, Uptown Bill's, 730 S. Dubuque St., Iowa City, IA 52240. Contributions are tax deductible.

--

In the spirit of Bill Sackter, Uptown Bill's strives to nurture and encourage a gathering place where people of all abilities are welcome. Find us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Watch us on You Tube: www.youtube.com/playlist?p=PLEE41220297F8D82C

Visit our web page: www.uptownbills.org

SEEKING YOUR SUPPORT * HUGE CALENDAR * Bill's Coffeeshop Newsletter * Vol. 12 * September 16, 2011

WE'RE SEEKING

YOUR SUPPORT
Thank you for your support of the projects which make up the Extend the Dream Foundation.  Because of your support and encouragement, Uptown Bill's Coffee House is celebrating its 10th anniversary.  The Coffee House (which moved to 730 S. Dubuque Street in 2010) is one of the enterprises under the umbrella of the Extend the Dream Foundation.

Other businesses include a bookstore, vintage shop, furniture shop, and chore services. You can find out more on our web page (www.uptownbills) and our Facebook pages.  All the projects of the Extend the Dream Foundation exist to help make Iowa City a place where people of all abilities can interact and thrive, guided by the life and spirit of Bill Sackter.

Please accept this invitation to donate your time and/or your funds to the Extend the Dream Foundation.  Our goal is to log 10,000 volunteer hours during the next 12 months, and $10,000 in financial donations by October 10, 2011. You may send a donation to us at 730 S. Dubuque St. in Iowa City (52240).

Or stop by and see us; we'll have the coffee on. Thank you.

Here are other ways you can be  involved:

1. Attend one of the musical performances or other events at Uptown Bill's. There's live music every Saturday Night and other events throughout each week.

2. Subscribe to our free weekly blog featuring coffee quotes and activity up-dates

3. Come in for a cup of coffee and browse our used books and CDs for sale.

4. Shop at the Vintage Shoppe, 2203 F. Street (near the corner of Muscatine and First Avenue)

5. Donate furniture to Mick's Workshop, and shop there also

6. Tell your friends and neighbors about the good work being done by RAMP (painting, yard work, and  small construction projects)

7. Show the Bill Sackter DVD to friends and help spread the spirit of Bill Sackter

8. Read one of the books developed through Sackter House Media Productions

9. Help recruit for the E-bay training course

Our Mission statement: In the spirit of Bill Sackter we strive to nurture and encourage individuals with disabilities by providing: a gathering place where people of all abilities are welcome, employment and micro-enterprise opportunities for individuals with disabilities, and a community forum on abilities awareness.

Tom Walz/Founder      Tom Gilsenan/Executive Director

SO MANY THINGS TO DO
AT THE COFFEE HOUSE
Here's a look at what's coming up at Uptown Bill's...

Saturday, Sept 17, 7 pm. Saturday Night Music: Terrapin Isle

Tuesday, Sept 20, 6:30 pm. Film Night: The Field (Hosted by UI Global Aging class).

Wednesday, Sept. 21, 7 pm: Spoken Word Open Mic (Readers & Writers Group at 6 pm)

Thursday, Sept. 22, 6 pm Art & Music Night: Singer/songwriters Sarah Pray and Thomas Kivi. 7 pm: Open Mic.

Saturday, Sept. 24, 7 pm. Saturday Night Music: Karla Miller

Tuesday, Sept. 27, 6 pm: Live broadcast of Tom's Guitar Show (Hosted by PATV).

Wednesday, Sept. 28, 7 pm: Spoken Word Mini Mic – 2 minute performances. (Readers & Writers Group 6 pm)

7:30 pm: Pree, musical group from Washington, DC.

Thursday, Sept. 29, 6 pm: Art Night. 7 pm: Open Mic. Singer/songwriter Jessica Smucker plays after Open Mic

Friday, Sept. 30. 10 am: Community meeting with David Morrissey, director of the US International Council on Disabilities. Learn about the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and about about the Widernet Project. Hosted by UI Center for Disabilities and Development.

Saturday, Oct. 1, 4:30 to 6 pm: Irish Sessions

7 pm: Saturday Night Music with Marc and Brandi Janssen

Wednesday, Oct. 5, 7 pm: Spoken Word Open Mic (Readers & Writers Group at 6 pm)

Thursday, Oct. 6, 6 pm: Art Night. 7 pm: Open Mic

Saturday, Oct. 8, 5:30 pm: Lizzie Rasmuson, singer/songwriter

7 pm: Saturday Night Music with Ben Schmidt and Larry Mossman.

Wednesday, Oct. 12, 7 pm: Spoken Word Open Mic (Readers & Writers Group at 6 pm).

Thursday, Oct. 13, 6 pm: Art & Music Night. Local musicians The Sideman will perform.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Bill's Coffeeshop Newsletter is a virtual extension of Wild Bill's Coffeeshop and Uptown Bill's Coffee House. Published since 2000, the Newsletter is written by Tom Gilsenan, a former manager of Wild Bill's and now director of Uptown Bill's. You can write to him at tomgilsenan@gmail.com

Wild Bill's Coffeeshop is a project of the School of Social Work at the University of Iowa. It has been a part of campus life in Iowa City for more than 35 years. Located in North Hall, the coffeeshop is open weekdays from 8 am. For more information, check the Friends of Bill's Coffeeshop page on Facebook. You can call the coffeeshop at (319) 335-1281. Donations to support the work of the coffeeshop may be sent to: Bill's Coffeeshop Fund, University of Iowa Foundation, P.O. Box 4550, Iowa City, IA 52244. Contributions are tax deductible.

Uptown Bill's is the crosstown cousin of Wild Bill's. Now in its 10th year, it includes a bookstore, performance venue and other businesses in addition to a coffeeshop. Located at 730 S. Dubuque, Uptown Bill's is open Monday through Saturday from 7 am. For more information, check the Uptown Bill's website or Facebook page. You can call Uptown Bill's at (319) 339-0401. Donations to support the work of Uptown Bill's may be sent to: Extend the Dream Foundation, Uptown Bill's, 730 S. Dubuque St., Iowa City, IA 52240. Contributions are tax deductible.

--

In the spirit of Bill Sackter, Uptown Bill's strives to nurture and encourage a gathering place where people of all abilities are welcome. Find us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Watch us on You Tube: www.youtube.com/playlist?p=PLEE41220297F8D82C

Visit our web page: www.uptownbills.org

FULL CALENDAR * REFLECTIONS ON 9/11 * THANK YOU * BILL'S COFFEESHOP NEWSLETTER * Vol. 12 * November 10, 2011

THANKS TO
EVERYONE
This year's Labor Day event was a great success. Thanks to all who came to see us -- and to all who helped make it possible. Let's do it again next year. 

LOOK WHAT'S
COMING UP...
Saturday, Sept. 10, 7 pm. Saturday Night Music: Jeff Leonard, singer/songwriter from Wisconsin

Wednesday, Sept. 14, 7 pm: Spoken Word Open Mic. (Readers & Writers Group at 6 pm)
Thursday, Sept. 15, 6 pm: Art Night. 7 pm: Open Mic. After Open Mic: Folk/blues singer Frank Strong                                                                 
(presented in cooperation with Access 2 Independence).
Saturday, Sept 17, 7 pm. Saturday Night Music: Terrapin Isle

Tuesday, Sept 20, 6:30 pm. Film Night: The Field. (Hosted by "Global Aging" class)
Wednesday, Sept. 21, 7 pm: Spoken Word Open Mic (Readers & Writers Group at 6 pm)
Thursday, Sept. 22, 6 pm Art & Music Night: Singer/songwriters Sarah Pray and Thomas Kivi. 7 pm: Open Mic.
Saturday, Sept. 24, 7 pm. Saturday Night Music: Karla Miller

Wednesday, Sept. 28, 7 pm: Spoken Word Open Mic (Readers & Writers Group 6 pm)
Thursday, Sept. 29, 6 pm: Art Night. 7 pm: Open Mic. Singer/songwriter Jessica Smucker plays after Open Mic
Saturday, Oct. 1 4:30 to 6 pm: Irish Sessions. 7 pm: Saturday Night Music with Marc and Brandi Janssen

Wednesday, Oct. 5, 7 pm: Spoken Word Open Mic (Readers & Writers Group at 6 pm)
Thursday, Oct. 6, 6 pm: Art Night. 7 pm: Open Mic
Saturday, Oct. 8, 7 pm: Saturday Night Music with Ben Schmidt and Larry Mossman.

Wednesday, Oct. 12, 7 pm: Spoken Word Open Mic (Readers & Writers Group at 6 pm).
Thursday, Oct. 13, 6 pm: Art & Music Night. Local musicians The Sideman will perform.

READER REACTIONS
TO SEPT. 11 ATTACKS
Friends of Bill's Coffeeshop filled this Newsletter with their thoughts after the tragedies of Sept. 11, 2001. Here are some excerpts from the reflections published ten years ago:

Words do not come easily when we are faced with horror as large as that of this past week. It is a tragedy far too big for our words. Yet there is an urge to speak. Perhaps it is a way to try to make sense of what seems senseless. Each day and each night I have heard people near and far try to do this. Here is a sampling of the voices heard since last Tuesday, Sept. 11 ~ Tom Gilsenan

+From Bill's in Italy...

Carissimi Amici, 11 Settembre ha lasciato un mondo diverso. Non ho parole.
Sono vicino a voi tutti. Che la speranza non ci abbandoni.
               -- Giovanni Ardissone
(Sept. 11 has shaken the whole world. I do not have words. We are with
you. Do not give up hope. Giovanni.)

+From Maria Kummer, coordinator of the local Million Mom March chapter...

We did have a Million Mom March table on the Ped Mall on Friday. We put up a
large poster that said: "Alternatives to violence/Compassion for victims and
families." ...We wanted to be a peaceful presence and give people an
opportunity to talk.

+From young people who organized a memorial Friday night downtown on the
Ped Mall....
The way to have peace is to be peaceful

+From Craig Mosher, who teaches social work at Iowa State..

[Craig forwarded a petition on responses to terrorism. This is an excerpt]
We implore the powers that be to use, wherever possible, international
judicial institutions and international human rights law to bring to
justice those responsible for the attacks, rather than instruments of war
violence or destruction.

+From Michael Lerner, Jewish rabbi and editor of Tikkun magazine...

We should pray for the victims and the families of those who have been
hurt or murdered in these crazy acts. We should also pray that America
does not return to "business as usual," but rather turns to a period of
reflection, coming back into touch with our common humanity, asking
ourselves how our institutions can best embody our highest values.

+From Bob Vander Beek in the school of social work...

I think Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) is especially important this
year. We have immediate reason to celebrate the dead while celebrating
living. The task of building respect and love between communities seems to
me to have become all the more important.

+From Lynn Mennenga, an MSW student...

[Lynn forwarded a letter from the Dalai Lama to President Bush. This is an
excerpt.]

I personally believe we need to think seriously whether a violent action
is the right thing to do and in the greater interest of the nation and
people in the long run. I believe violence will only increase the cycle of
violence. But how do we deal with hatred and anger, which are often the
root causes of such senseless violence? This is a very difficult question.

+From Elizabeth Salines Newby, head of Iowa's Division of Latino Affairs..

It was a very difficult day and many, many lives and events have been
affected beyond our understanding. Our lives will never be the same
again...It is out of respect, support and reverence that... [we] postpone
the Latino Heritage Festival that was to be held Sept. 13 and 15.

+From Julie Dreschler, a friend in Australia...

I can't describe the horror that came over me; the country I love was
being attacked. Luke and I stayed up watching in horror most of the night.
The kids found me in the morning watching TV on the couch. They wanted to
know what was happening. I tried to explain it in the best way I could to
a six and eight year old. The thing they couldn't get over was that they
did it on "purpose."

+From Carolyn Lieberg at the UI Center for Teaching...

[Carolyn forwarded messages from teachers. This is an excerpt from one.]
I had class at 11 am today. I didn't know what to do, but I knew I could
not go into that room and teach as if nothing had happened. I asked if
anyone wanted to talk, and was met with a deafening silence. I
acknowledged that we don't really know each other yet, and it might be
hard to talk in a room full of 40 strangers.

Then someone asked, in a small voice, what it all meant. And I realized
that my students were looking to me for answers that I don't have. I said:
"I don't know." And then they started to talk. And talk. They told stories
of people they know whose lives have changed forever.

+From Stephanie Salter, writer for the San Francisco Chronicle...
As you watch first one and then another 110 story building crumble and
dissolve into apocalyptic clouds of dust, you keep hoping the words
"computer simulation" will flash across the screen. Instead, it just says,
"live."

You try, for a few seconds, to imagine what it feels like to harbor the
magnitude of hate that the human beings -- oh, yes, they are made of flesh
and blood just like all the rest of us -- must hold to dream and executive
this nightmare. You can't imagine. You never want to imagine.
You remember Gandhi's absolute: "There are many causes for which I would
die, but none for which I would kill.

You wonder if George W. Bush, with his initial vow to "hunt down...the
folks" who are responsible, has ever heard the Gandhi quote. For the first
time since he assumed leadership of the United States, you deliberately
short-circuit your customary anger and malice toward him. Instead, you
start to pray.

Through the ether, you beg him to believe in the God he says he believes
in, to ask himself -- before he decides anything -- the question he swears
he often asks: "what would Jesus do?"

+From Fran Hawthorne, longtime friend of coffeeshop manager Tom Gilsenan.
She is a writer and lives in Brooklyn. Joey is her son...

I appreciated the words from people in the Wild Bill's Newsletter. Perhaps
you'd like to hear from someone who was in New York and saw the
aftermath.

I think the thing I think about most often is the faces.

Joey's first grade classmate, James, and his mother, Lisanne. Lisanne's
boyfriend worked at Cantor Fitzgerald on one of the high floors of the
World Trade Center and hasn't been heard from since the explosion. They
just had a baby this summer.

Joey's preschool friend Duncan, his mother Suzanne, his father Jeff. Jeff
was a chef at Windows on the World at the top of the World Trade Center.
He, too, hasn't been heard from since last Tuesday.

I also think about Jakub, a boy now in Joey's second grade class. He and
his family are, I assume, Muslim. I'm not sure Jakub has been in school at
all since Tuesday.

It hurts to think about all of them.

I walked home Tuesday night across the Manhattan bridge from Manhattan to
Brooklyn. Stretched across part of the evening sky was a cloud -- a cloud
unlike any I had ever seen. It was deep, mud-brown, and huge. It must have
stretched for miles, from the site of the World Trade Center deep into
Brooklyn. The air was caked with smoke, of course. We all breathed it in,
like smoke from an overburned barbecue. Burnt papers, burnt steel, I
assumed. Until I read the newspapers: I was also breathing in the smoke of
burnt flesh.

Thursday I was able to get within a few blocks. This time, instead of
brown, the dominant color was grey: air, street, debris, everything was
grey. As I looked down Church Street, two blocks away, there was this
thing on the ground. Did you ever see the first Planet of the Apes movie?
It reminded me of that famous last scene: It was a huge, jaggedly
triangular hunk of latticed steel, sticking up taller than the debris
around. It used to be part of the structure of the World Trade Center.

Everywhere you walk now you see American flags. On our block, we have
"adopted" the local fire station and are collecting food for each change
of shift. (Half the firefighters in the station have been lost in rescue
efforts.) I am glad to do something to help. There are no words for the
bravery of those firefighters.

But I am scared. Not so scared of war, but scared of what is happening to
America. Will it be possible to be a political liberal and also a
patriotic American anymore? Can we mourn the dead, condemn the killers, and
celebrate the brave and also criticize George Bush?

[Editor's note: Fran has visited Bill's twice in recent years to talk about her

books. She was at Uptown Bill's this past summer to talk about her newest

book, "Overloaded Liberal."]

+From Sue Rebedeau:
I have vacillated between feeling the numbness of shock, feeling
vulnerable, feeling sorrow and anger, feeling relief that my family is
safe and sound, and feeling some degree of guilt that we are all well.
So the sun shines differently, the rain felt different as I stood at our
high school football game Friday night, and I know that my children and
grandchildren will grow up in a different world than the one I grew up in.

***Your thoughts and comments are welcome. You can simply hit
reply and start writing. Or send your message to tomgilsenan@gmail.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Bill's Coffeeshop Newsletter is a virtual extension of Wild Bill's Coffeeshop and Uptown Bill's Coffee House. Published since 2000, the Newsletter is written by Tom Gilsenan, a former manager of Wild Bill's and now director of Uptown Bill's. You can write to him at tomgilsenan@gmail.com

Wild Bill's Coffeeshop is a project of the School of Social Work at the University of Iowa. It has been a part of campus life in Iowa City for more than 35 years. Located in North Hall, the coffeeshop is open weekdays from 8 am. For more information, check the Friends of Bill's Coffeeshop page on Facebook. You can call the coffeeshop at (319) 335-1281. Donations to support the work of the coffeeshop may be sent to: Bill's Coffeeshop Fund, University of Iowa Foundation, P.O. Box 4550, Iowa City, IA 52244. Contributions are tax deductible.

Uptown Bill's is the crosstown cousin of Wild Bill's. Now in its 10th year, it includes a bookstore, performance venue and other businesses in addition to a coffeeshop. Located at 730 S. Dubuque, Uptown Bill's is open Monday through Saturday from 7 am. For more information, check the Uptown Bill's website or Facebook page. You can call Uptown Bill's at (319) 339-0401. Donations to support the work of Uptown Bill's may be sent to: Extend the Dream Foundation, Uptown Bill's, 730 S. Dubuque St., Iowa City, IA 52240. Contributions are tax deductible.

CAKE * RALSTON * MUSIC * Bill's Coffeeshop Newsletter * Vol. 12 * Sept. 3, 2011

LABOR DAY BASH
AT UPTOWN BILL'S
Finally, it's here. The annual Labor Day extravaganza at Uptown Bill's. It's Monday, Sept. 5. This year's event includes:

  + Ralston Creek Fair and Flea Market (8 am to 3 pm)
  + Ten hours of live music (starts at 10 am)
  + Birthday party to celebrate 10 years for Uptown Bill's (You're invited to bring a cake)
  + Showing of "A Friend Indeed," the documentary about Bill Sackter's life and spirit (8 pm)
  + Children's activities (including a small circus in a tent just outside the coffee house)
Do join us. It's going to be a wonderful day.

TEN HOURS OF MUSIC
ON MONDAY, SEPT. 5
Here's the schedule for live music on Labor Day at Uptown Bill's:

10 am: Pennies on the Rail

11 am: Drew Hayward

1 pm: Irish Sessions

3 pm: Tom's String Band

4 pm: Beat Prairie

5:30 pm: Deadhorse (Ambient rock from Erie, PA)

7 pm: Greg & Susan Dirks

ARE YOU BRINGING
A BIRTHDAY CAKE?

Here's the invitation the coffee house has been sending out this week:

Chocolate cake. Carrot cake. Butter cake. Cheesecake.

Uptown Bill's wants to serve cake – and lots of it – for its 10th birthday next Monday, Sept. 5. So, we're inviting everyone to bring a cake to the celebration.

Cupcake. Sponge cake. Pound cake. Bundt cake

Share your favorite cake recipe. Or try out a new one. Any cake of any size is welcome.

Chiffon cake. Spice cake. Lemon cake. Tea cake

Cake decorating is encouraged. It can be as simply as "Happy Birthday." Or as elaborate as a sketch of Bill Sackter.

Sheet cake. Layer cake. Funnel cake. Even fruitcake.

Cakes will be displayed on a table in the coffee house. If bakers would like to share the recipe, bring along a few copies and we'll put them by your cake.

Upside down cake. Perhaps cake on a stick.

Displays will be brief, of course. After all, birthday cake is meant to be eaten.

...If I were a'comin' I'd bake a Red Velvet Cake from scratch using the recipe from the Waldorf Astoria. But, alas, I'm not ~ Katherine Werner (Minneapolis, Minnesota)

...I hope you will post photos of this array of cakes. I will bake a cake in Bill's honor and will bring it to the dinner for the homeless Sunday at St. Mary Magdalen ~ Michele Jurich (Berkeley, Calif.)

... that sounds very exciting...and very yummy ~ Melissa Pirwani (San Jose, Calif.)

... What a nice idea. And congrats, UB's ~ LuAnn Dvorak (Iowa City)

COMING UP...

Saturday Night Music (Sept. 3, 7 pm): Singer/Songwriter Showcase.

...Spoken Word Open Mic (Wednesday, 6 pm)

...Art Night (Thursday, 6 pm)

...Open Mic (Thursday, 7 pm)

...Saturday Night Music (Sept. 10, 7 pm): Jeff Leonard

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Bill's Coffeeshop Newsletter is a virtual extension of Wild Bill's Coffeeshop and Uptown Bill's Coffee House. Published since 2000, the Newsletter is written by Tom Gilsenan, a former manager of Wild Bill's and now director of Uptown Bill's. You can write to him at tomgilsenan@gmail.com

Wild Bill's Coffeeshop is a project of the School of Social Work at the University of Iowa. It has been a part of campus life in Iowa City for more than 35 years. Located in North Hall, the coffeeshop is open weekdays from 8 am. For more information, check the Friends of Bill's Coffeeshop page on Facebook. You can call the coffeeshop at (319) 335-1281. Donations to support the work of the coffeeshop may be sent to: Bill's Coffeeshop Fund, University of Iowa Foundation, P.O. Box 4550, Iowa City, IA 52244. Contributions are tax deductible.

Uptown Bill's is the crosstown cousin of Wild Bill's. Now in its 10th year, it includes a bookstore, performance venue and other businesses in addition to a coffeeshop. Located at 730 S. Dubuque, Uptown Bill's is open Monday through Saturday from 7 am. For more information, check the Uptown Bill's website or Facebook page. You can call Uptown Bill's at (319) 339-0401. Donations to support the work of Uptown Bill's may be sent to: Extend the Dream Foundation, Uptown Bill's, 730 S. Dubuque St., Iowa City, IA 52240. Contributions are tax deductible.

--

In the spirit of Bill Sackter, Uptown Bill's strives to nurture and encourage a gathering place where people of all abilities are welcome. Find us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Watch us on You Tube: www.youtube.com/playlist?p=PLEE41220297F8D82C

Visit our web page: www.uptownbills.org