Doug Hoffman: A Spectral Reflection off the Ice

Photo courtesy of AcesOverBrooklyn
With his incredibly charming grin, engaging demeanor and clean-cut looks, one would likely imagine Doug Hoffman as a model rather than on an aggressive hockey field, though few realize that those pearly whites, an essential aspect of his roguish countenance, are fake – his real front teeth were knocked out during a particularly intense game when he was a teenager.

At 26, Hoffman has been an active participant in the sport since he was five-years-old, though his ascent was not laced with sugar and crème brulee, but rather in steep grime in the form of menial day jobs.

Not the least of which was accounting.

“I worked for a company for accounts payable,” said the New York Rangers fan, who continues to bartend on the side at his family’s restaurant. “And I’m terrible in math – numbers, in general. I had to sit in a cubicle, so I was going nuts.”
Dispensable fanfare in the face of passion.

At the moment, the former General Media Communications and Marketing major is an offensive defenseman for the Brooklyn Aces, Kings County’s own minor league hockey team, who led his fellow defensemen with 36 points this season.

The potential he emits has been noticeable, however, as Hoffman has garnered considerable media attention during his tenure for the team.

He was even able to play a game with the iconic Montreal Canadiens, through his connection to team member, Chris Higgins.

“I’ve had a lot of different jobs leading up to this and this is something I’ve been passionate about and enjoyed,” said Hoffman. “I’m playing the sport and I’m getting paid for it and that’s kind of ridiculous to me still.”

Even rival hockey team, the Danbury Mad Hatters, have their own nickname for him – Hoffboy – which they freely shout in an attempt to spur the comparatively level-headed athlete.

Hoffman has not been in a single fight this entire season.

“They’re great fans there and they can be a bit brutal on you, but it’s all a lot of fun and you can’t really take it too seriously,” said the Long Island native. “I actually really like it when they get on me because that means I’m doing something right.”

His abilities are not limited to athletics, however, as the Quinnipiac-grad has had considerable vocal experience as a former member of a choir.

In fact, he continues to learn more about music each day.

“I used to play the piano,” said the “Slap Shot” fan. ”I’m trying to pick up guitar now, so that could be one of the things I’m trying to do with my free time.”

Having lost nearly 20 pounds throughout the season’s physically demanding reign, he plans to spend this off-season time working out and hitting the beach, preparing himself for the coming games in several months.

His prospects about the National Hockey League are hopeful, but he understands that such leaps are not immediate, so for now he plans to simply focus on playing well and enjoying himself.

His preparation in no small part involves recreational activities. Hoffman is an avid music fan, citing Neil Young as a personal favorite, though he professes to love almost anything except for country music and R&B.

With his degree, a wealth of personal experience and natural charisma, Hoffman’s future looks understandably bright, though his greatest passion is still at the forefront of his thoughts.

“I think I’m waiting for my best game,” admitted Hoffman. “I’ve had some grand experiences. I think that’s what I’m waiting on.”

Parades, Anniversaries and Religion on Brooklyn Day? Oh my!

Photo courtesy of secretsocietynyc

Long, grueling hours of pressured sitting and absorbing of information, stretching into the afternoon, run abundant in classrooms across the borough. Sluggish, tortoise-like in their slithering nature.

Tick. Tock.

But there is a short respite before that glorious light at the end of the academic year’s tunnel.

With the annual Brooklyn-Queens Day approaching on June 4, many school-age children are giddy with a sense of anticipation not entirely characteristic for early June. After all, with nearly a month of classes left before summer vacation, those roaming ice-cream trucks and green patches of park, just waiting to be run through with a bat and mitt, are beginning to look even more tantalizingly forbidden.

In, comes the long-favored Brooklyn-Queens Day, saving many of those precocious lads from hours of longing staring at the verdant yards outside and providing what many of them would argue is a much-needed rest-stop before the long haul toward the year’s end.

Yet it would seem that few of these children and even adults know why it is that this day is held in enough regard to close the schools’ doors for an entire day. After all, even Valentine’s Day, despite its tenacious hold on the forefront of popular culture, still does not warrant an official, academic day off.

“Most of us thought it was a borough-wide pride day, but all we really cared about was getting a
day off in June,” said Samantha LoSapio, 24, a resident of Sheepshead Bay. “There weren't exactly many holidays close to the end of the school year.”

This mysterious holiday’s origins, however, have little to do with celebrating officiated hooky from school with little to no tradition.

It began as a Protestant tradition called “Anniversary Day” in 1829, celebrating the founding of the first Sunday school on Long Island. Numerous parades would be planned for the duration of the day, effectively excusing youngsters from their scholastic duties in favor of religious promotion and festivity.

The first Thursday of June would be hailed as the day during which the merriment would take place, as State Legislature declared in 1905.

By 1959, Queens jumped on the bandwagon and our magnificent borough’s children had to share the wealth.

Today, however, few people are aware of its humble beginnings.

Whether or not the original intention of the holiday returns, it continues to be popular among children and stays a warm memory with those long past those carefree years of youth.

“Now that I know what it is, it's actually something I would have liked to have known,” LoSapio enthusiastically said. “I knew more about the first school house in St. Augustine Florida than in my own hometown.”

How Sweet It Is!

Image created by jenrock

BROOKLYN pizza. BROOKLYN cheesecake. BROOKLYN bagel.

Soon followed by the “Goodfellas,” that famous, literary tree and countless other subtle references to that giant borough that was once a city all its own.

And Manhattan is supposed to comprise the part of New York City that never sleeps?

Fuggedaboutit.

If that’s the case, then while Manhattan’s been on its caffeine-induced, insomniac binge, its eastern counterpart has been responsible for creating some of the most memorable aspects of the country’s culture.

While places like Times Square, Broadway, Rockefeller Center, Fifth Avenue and the Empire State Building have reached an iconic status worldwide, the hidden gems within its larger, more densely populated neighbor, Brooklyn, continue to fascinate locals and well-informed, off-beat travelers, alike.

The Brooklyn Botanic Garden, home to a yearly Sakura Matsuri, a festival commemorating the famed Japanese cherry blossom, has long-been a favorite destination of many Brooklynites. Located in the heart of Prospect Heights, it stands – an oasis within our beloved concrete jungle. While definitely smaller than Central Park – at 52 acres – it boasts over 11,000 different types of flora and fauna. Incidentally, June is rose month and even magnolia trees are still in bloom.

But if flowers aren’t your cup of tea and you believe are best left to the sentimental types, then the sheer feat of engineering prowess of the Brooklyn Bridge is sure to marvel even the most skeptical connoisseur. With length spanning 5,989 feet and width 85, this steel gargantuan continues to impress audiences as the first mode of non-marine transportation between the boroughs of Brooklyn and Manhattan. The longest bridge in the world upon its completion in 1883, it was officially recognized as a National Historic Landmark in 1964.

For those with a poignant sense of nostalgia, yearning for a sense of cultural history, stands Coney Island. Containing the remains of one of the world’s oldest amusement parks, Coney Island is in itself a piece of Americana – a lone relic from a time in history seemingly left behind by a world ruled by speed and size. Take a stroll into a forgotten land of Side Shows and weekly boardwalk fireworks. It’s even the location of the world’s first Nathan’s Famous hot dogs.

Yummy.

Ironically, Astroland, the amusement park that stood in the neighborhood until last year, originally had a space-age theme.

But the most famous attraction at the now-defunct park still stands and is entirely operational – the Cyclone, declared a New York City landmark in 1991.

One of the oldest surviving roller coasters in the world, the Cyclone was completed on June 26, 1927, inspired by the earlier success of the Giant Racer, America’s first coaster.

While the thrills it provides are arguably tame and even soothing compared to modern coasters, the feeling of being inside this wooden antique is incomparable to any other experience on earth. Once that shaky, rickety ride begins down a track that was considered daring generations ago, the passenger almost begins to feel a sense of wonder – recognition of the past – and.. worry? Well, those tracks are incredibly old. Maybe it is daring, after all.

These three places, although incredible, do not even begin to capture the wonder, beauty and culture that are Brooklyn, NY.

In honor of the upcoming Brooklyn-Queens day, let us take a stroll through this amazing borough that often goes sans credit while delivering priceless material to the world’s media, literature and art – much of which, in some, major capacity, feature Brooklyn.