Here's what's going on this week:
Thursday, June 19

• All day today is Roc Transit Day, "a grassroots campaign organized by Reconnect Rochester to encourage Rochesterians to use public transit and go car-free for one day." For example, let's say you lived near the corner of Main & Minnesota and worked from 1 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Family Dollar in Irondequoit. If you drove, you'd need to leave for work at 12:45 p.m. and if finished exactly at 9 p.m., you'd be home by 9:15: an 8-and-a-half-hour day. If you ride a bike, it's about twice as long, so you'd need to leave at 12:30 p.m. and you'd get home around 9:30 p.m.: a 9-hour day. If you walk, it's about an hour and a half, so you'd need to leave by 11:30 p.m. and you'd get home around 10:30 p.m.: an 11-hour day. Now the beauty of the Rochester Transit System: to arrive at 1 p.m., you'd need to leave at 12:01 p.m. to catch a bus and arrive 9 minutes early for work. On the way home, if you left right at 9, you could walk to the stop at Portland in 8 minutes then wait 50 minutes for the bus at 9:59 p.m., eventually getting home at 10:40 p.m.: nearly an 11-hour day. Like their slogan says: "RTS: sometimes faster than walking there." [source: Roc Transit Day website, 2014-Jun-18]
• Tonight at 8 p.m., the Dryden will screen The Freshman (Andrew Bergman, U.S. 1990, 102 min., 35mm). I remember seeing it years ago: it's a weird film that would be improved by removing everything but the few scenes with Marlon Brando.
  

  Matthew Broderick stars as a college freshman who finds himself swindled out of all his belongings after living in New York City for only twenty minutes. By pure luck, he begins working for a mob boss played by Marlon Brando, in a tongue-in-cheek parody of his iconic role in The Godfather, who employs the lad as an errand boy transporting exotic animals around the city for "legitimate business." With a script bursting with both physical comedy and snappy wise-guy dialogue, The Freshman simultaneously pays homage to and parodies the great American gangster flick.

  [source: Dryden website, 2014-Jun-16]

• The Modern Electric plays at Sticky Lips BBQ Juke Joint from 9 p.m. to 11 p.m. [source: Sticky Lips website, 2014-Jun-16]

Friday, June 20

• Today at 12 p.m. at the Eastman House is A Conversation with Mickalene Thomas and Lisa Hostetler on Thomas' new installation, Mickalene Thomas: Happy Birthday to a Beautiful Woman. [source: Eastman House calendar, 2014-Jun-16]
• Today from 12:10 p.m. to 12:35 p.m., Cynthia Howk will present Architecture For Lunch in the St. Paul Street Garment District, starting at The Plaza Apartments on the corner with Andrew St.
  

  Explore the city's historic garment district where clothing, shoes, and ties were manufactured for decades. From the mid 19th to the mid 20th century, Rochester was world-famous for its quality clothing and shoe products, most of which were produced here in the St. Paul/North Water/Andrews street area immediately next to the Genesee River. Those remarkable industrial buildings have recently been converted to loft apartments, artist studios, professional offices and trendy restaurants. Because of its remarkable history and architecture, most of this neighborhood is listed in the State and National Registers of Historic Places.

  [source: Landmark Society website, 2014-Jun-16]

• This evening from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Tap and Mallet is a Victory Keg Tossing Contest. [source: Tap and Mallet website, 2014-Jun-16]
• Starting tonight at 6 p.m. at the Firehouse Gallery at Genesee Pottery and running through July 19 is Global Perspectives, "an exploration of cultural identity that consists of ceramic work created by both refugee teens in America and international artists. Photographs of craftspeople taken by Amicucci during her research will also be displayed." [source: Genesee Center for the Arts website, 2014-Jun-16]
• Tonight from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Writers and Books is a Special Presentation with David Fitzsimmons on Self-Publishing Photography.
  

  Join Sigma Pro photographer David Fitzsimmons for a fun-filled presentation of beautiful and bizarre Curious Critters. Learn how David turned his mesmerizing animal portraits into an award-winning children's picture book. After explaining the history of the project, David will talk about the techniques, challenges, and purposes for photographing creatures against white backgrounds. Then David will discuss the process of bringing a book from idea to reality. Based on the success of his first two books in the series—over 100,000 copies sold and seven national book awards—david has just finished photographing and writing his third book, Curious Critters: Marine, which will be out this fall. Be the first audience to see some of the new pages!

  [source: Writers and Books website, 2014-Jun-16]

• Tonight at 8 p.m. and on Sunday at 2 p.m., the Dryden will screen No Country for Old Men (Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, U.S. 2007, 122 min., 35mm).
  

  Somewhat of a departure for the Coens, this dead-serious Cormac Mccarthy adaptation is an exercise in tension. A taut, deliberately paced thriller, it is also the brothers' most chilling exploration of violence and the human psyche. Javier Bardem is pitch perfect as the solemn killer Anton Chigurh, who relentlessly pursues Josh Brolin's hapless Llewelyn Moss, leaving a trail of bodies in his wake. An equally strong supporting cast (including Tommy Lee Jones and Woody Harrelson) anchors what many consider to be one of the finest films of 2007. Winner of four Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Supporting Actor.

  [source: Dryden website, 2014-Jun-16]

• Starting around 9 p.m. at the Lovin' Cup is Rochester Chip Night featuring 8bit betty, Buried For A Day, and Veto. [source: Lovin' Cup website, 2014-Jun-16]

Saturday, June 21

• Starting this morning from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Flying Squirrel is a Pancake Breakfast. [source: Flying Squirrel website, 2014-Jun-16]
• From 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at The Yards is Yard(s) Sale: Summer Edition with music by great modern-Americana one-man-band Hieronymus A. Bogs. [source: City Newspaper events calendar, 2014-Jun-16]
• From 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. at the MuCCC is the MuCCC Free Family Neighborhood Fun Day. [source: MuCCC website, 2014-Jun-16]
• Today from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Writers and Books is the Best New Poets: Reading and Publication Party with Daystar/Rosalie Jones.
  

  Join us in celebrating America's young and talented poets. Entering its ninth year, Best New Poets has established itself as a crucial venue for rising poets and a valuable resource for poetry lovers. The only publication of its kind, this annual anthology is made up exclusively of work by writers who have not yet published a full-length book. The poems included in this eclectic sampling represent the best from the many that have been nominated by the country's top literary magazines and writing programs, as well as some four thousand additional poems submitted through an open online competition. The work of the fifty writers represented here provides the best perspective available on the continuing vitality of poetry as it is being practiced today.

  [source: Writers and Books website, 2014-Jun-16]

• They Dryden will screen Analyze This (Harold Ramis, U.S. 1999, 103 min., 35mm) tonight at 8 p.m.
  

  After two catastrophic box office failures (Stuart Saves His Family and Multiplicity), Harold Ramis returned to form with Analyze This—a fresh, decidedly adult comedy that also happened to be the massive success that had eluded him since his directorial masterpiece Groundhog Day. Robert De Niro does an excellent job playing a caricature amalgamated from all of his tough-guy gangster roles, while Billy Crystal is the exasperated psychiatrist tasked with healing his panic attacks. Packing a dark, dry sense of humor and razor-sharp dialogue, Analyze This adds a twist to the odd-couple formula, proving R-rated comedies could still be sophisticated.

  [source: Dryden website, 2014-Jun-16]

• Over at the Bug Jar is an early show starting around 9 p.m. with Meg Williams, and Personal Blend followed by Milkshake with David Lee Rad. [source: Bug Jar calendar, 2014-Jun-16]

Sunday, June 22

• This evening from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. is a meeting of the Africa United Organization at the Flying Squirrel.
  

  This organization focuses on sharing resources and knowledge with refugees from Africa. They are very interested in maintaining their culture and language while they assimilate (for lack of a better word) into the U.S.

  [source: Flying Squirrel website, 2014-Jun-16]

• From 7:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Comedy Club is the Funniest Person In Rochester Contest. [source: City Newspaper events calendar, 2014-Jun-16]
• Starting around 9 p.m. at the Bug Jar is Adrienne Mack-Davis, Tru Starr, Ishmael Raps, and MdotCoop. [source: Bug Jar calendar, 2014-Jun-16]

Monday, June 23

• Tonight from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. is the Flying Squirrel General Meeting. [source: Flying Squirrel website, 2014-Jun-16]
• Starting at 7 p.m. at the Little is a screening of The New Black (Yoruba Richen, U.S. 2013, 80 min.) followed by a group discussion with Bruce E. Smail, M.A., Paulette Hall, and Reverend Marlowe V. N. Washington.
  

  The New Black examines how the African American community is grappling with the gay rights issue in light of the gay marriage movement and the fight over civil rights. The film documents activists, families, and clergy on both sides of the campaign to legalize gay marriage in Maryland. This film will be followed by a group discussion.

  [source: Little Theatre e-mail, 2014-Jun-18]

Tuesday, June 24

• From 7:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Rochester Plaza Hotel is Living Peace with Craig Bullock, Kit Miller, Braco, members of the RPO, Gap Mangione, Thomas Warfield, Sanam Targee, and Shae Heitz. [source: Gandhi Inistitute website, 2014-Jun-16]
• At 7 p.m. at the Cinema is the last film in the 2014 Reel Mind Theatre and Film Series: My Name Is Alan And I Paint Pictures (Johnny Boston, U.S. 2007, 86 min.) followed by a discussion facilitated by Greg Soehner.
  

  What makes an artist? What drives someone to create a painting, a composition or write a novel? While many academic categories of art exist, not every artist easily fits into prescribed meanings. Alan Russell-Cowan — Aka Alan Streets — is one such artist. Afflicted with Paranoid Schizophrenia, Streets struggles with the desire to be a great painter, while battling delusions and auditory hallucinations. My Name is Alan and I Paint Pictures examines Streets' life, the role art and painting play in it, and how mental illness intertwines with artistic creation and perception.

  [source: Reel Mind Theatre and Film Series website, 2014-May-29]

• The Dryden will screen Fort Apache (John Ford, U.S. 1948, 125 min., 35mm) tonight at 8 p.m.
  

  The first in Ford's revered "Cavalry Trilogy," Fort Apache sees Shirley Temple joining the director's ever-growing stable of characters. Hollywood heavyweights and regular Ford contributors Henry Fonda and John Wayne offer strong performances as two Civil War veterans at odds over the command of their cavalry post. Not to be outdone, Temple turns in a strikingly mature role as the daughter of Fonda's rigid, status-obsessed Colonel Thursday. Themes of honor, honesty, and valor play out amid the brilliant backdrop of Monument Valley, Ford's most common shooting location. A sweeping period drama, Fort Apache ranks as one of Ford's finest efforts.

  [source: Dryden website, 2014-Jun-16]

Wednesday, June 25

• Updated: From 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. tonight (formerly: Tuesday) at the Gandhi Institute, Joey Hartmann-Dow will present U.S. and We Art.
  

  Dows work focuses on "relationships between humans, animals, food, industry, cultures, and landscapes, while focusing on the concepts of "human-ness" and connections." According to the UofR graduate "representing humans with images of them invokes cultural tendencies of prejudice, it is impossible to represent the human species with an individual or even a group of individuals. The challenge is to portray humans without race, gender, age, or other general characteristics that separate us from each other. They come across as uncategorized creatures."

  [source: Gandhi Inistitute website, 2014-Jun-16]

• Tonight at 7 p.m. (despite what the website says/said), the Dryden will screen Van Gogh (Maurice Pialat, France 1991, 158 min., French w/ subtitles, 35mm).
  

  French pop star Jacques Dutronc stars as the legendary painter in Maurice Pialat's understated examination that rivals other Van Gogh biopics by sheer audacity. Rather than focusing on his brush strokes or infamous stories from his life (the incident with his ear is absent), Pialat zeroes in on the artist's deteriorating mental state, his personal relationships with his doctor, friends, lovers, and figures of his paintings within his final seventy-six days at Auvers-sur-Oise. What emerges is a compelling human portrait and a moving story of one man's struggle with creativity in life that shows Van Gogh as a troubled individual, pouring his desires and personal discord into his work.

  [source: Dryden website, 2014-Jun-16]

• Scott H. Biram, Austin Lucas, and Declan Ryan perform at the Bug Jar starting around 9 p.m. [source: Bug Jar calendar, 2014-Jun-16]