Spare Times

AROUND TOWN

Museums and Sites

QUEENS BOTANICAL GARDEN The word sustainable has lately been used to describe everything from toothpaste to sport utility vehicles to cruises. So you can be forgiven for greeting the news that the Queens Botanical Garden is opening a sustainable visitors' center on Friday with a bit of skepticism.

After all, wouldn't the garden be more sustainable without a building there at all?

Well, not exactly. The Botanical Garden conceived of the center as a tool to promote an environmental agenda, and what better way to have a minimal impact on the environment than to create a sustainable building that might persuade others to follow suit?

"We want to showcase all the environmental technologies we can," said Susan Lacerte, the garden's executive director, "because we are a public organization that 300,000 people visit a year."

On permanent display in this very public showcase - the first phase in a million capital improvement project - are a roof that gathers the rainwater that fills a fountain, another roof on which plants serve as an external insulator, and a third that provides 20 percent of the center's energy by transforming the sun's rays. There's also geothermal heating and toilets that turn waste into compost, thus bypassing the city's sewage system. These are all wrapped inside what amounts to a pretty sleek-looking building.

To celebrate the opening, the garden has lined up a number of events this weekend, including performances by the tai chi group that regularly congregates there; tours in English, Spanish and Korean; and a moon festival parade Saturday evening to celebrate the harvest. And right on cue Sunday morning: a farmers' market. (The Queens Botanical Garden, 43-50 Main Street, Flushing, Queens, 718-886-3800, queensbotanical.org; free.) MONICA DRAKE

MUSEUM OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK, Fifth Avenue at 103rd Street. Saturday at noon, a lecture on collecting baseball artifacts by Stephen Wong, a collector and the author of "Smithsonian Baseball: Inside the World's Finest Private Collections." Saturday, 1 to 5 p.m., and Sunday, 1 to 9 p.m., staged readings of literary works presented by the American Place Theater, including Sandra Cisneros's "House on Mango Street," Richard Wright's "Black Boy" and Khaled Hosseini's "Kite Runner." Through Dec. 31, "The Glory Days: New York Baseball 1947-1957," a display of balls, bats, uniforms and other memorabilia, with video presentations and special events. Tuesdays through Sundays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. (212) 534-1672; mcny.org. Suggested admission: ; for students and 62+; free for children under 12 and for everyone on Sundays, 10 a.m. to noon; for families.

NEW-YORK HISTORICAL SOCIETY, 2 West 77th Street, Manhattan. Through Jan. 1, "Here Is New York: Remembering 9/11/01," an exhibition of photographs, artifacts and oral histories documenting the terrorist attack. Tuesdays through Sundays, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; to 8 p.m. on Fridays. (212) 873-3400; nyhistory.org. ; for educators and 65+; for students; free from 6 to 8 p.m. on Fridays, free at all times for children under 12.

NEW YORK TRANSIT MUSEUM, Gallery Annex, Grand Central Terminal, adjacent to the stationmaster's office. Through Oct. 28, "Architects of the New York City Subway, Part II: Squire Vickers and the Subway's Modern Age," with artwork by Squire J. Vickers and his staff. Mondays through Fridays, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Saturdays and Sundays, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. (212) 878-0106. Free. Sunday, noon to 5 p.m., the annual Bus Festival in the museum's Brooklyn Heights space, Boerum Place and Schermerhorn Street. Vintage buses will be on display, and there will be free activities and admission to the museum during the festival. Tuesdays through Fridays, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Saturdays and Sundays, noon to 5 p.m. (718) 694-1600. ; for those 3 to 17 and 62+; free for members and children under 3 every day, and for 62+ on Wednesdays.

Gardens

BROOKLYN BOTANIC GARDEN, 1000 Washington Avenue, Prospect Heights. Sunday, noon to 6 p.m., "Chili Pepper Fiesta," with music and dance, cooking demonstrations and children's activities. Tuesdays through Fridays, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Saturdays, Sundays and holidays, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. (718) 623-7200; bbg.org. ; for students and 65+; free for under 12 and members at all times and for 65+ on Fridays. Free admission all day on Tuesdays and Saturdays, 10 a.m. to noon.

Events

ANNUAL BRONX RIVER FESTIVAL, Saturday, beginning with the procession at 10:30 a.m. of the golden ball at River Park, 180th Street and Boston Road, in the West Farms section. From 1 to 4 p.m., there will be a festival with entertainment, food and vendors at the Bronx Zoo Mitsubishi Riverwalk, reachable from the Bronxdale Avenue entrance. Sponsored by the Bronx River Alliance, the Wildlife Conservation Society and the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation. (718) 430-4665. bronxriver.org. Free admission.

ANNUAL UPPER BROADWAY HARVEST FESTIVAL, Sunday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., from 96th to 110th Streets. Sponsored by One Stop Senior Services and the Bloomingdale Area Coalition.

ART UNDER THE BRIDGE FESTIVAL, Friday through Sunday in the streets of Dumbo, Brooklyn, with exhibitions at neighborhood studios and other activities. Sponsored by the Dumbo Arts Center, 30 Washington Street, where information is available; dumboartscenter.org. Most events are free, but donations from to are requested at some.

ATLANTIC ANTIC FESTIVAL, Sunday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., between Fourth Avenue and Hicks Street, Brooklyn.

BROADWAY AUTUMN FAIR, Saturday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Broadway, from Waverly Place to 14th Street, West Village.

CROSSING THE LINE: FRENCH INSTITUTE/ALLIANCE FRANÇAISE FALL FESTIVAL, a multicultural program, through Oct. 30 at various sites; (212) 355-6160; fiaf.org.

DIGITAL LIFE, Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., and Sunday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center, 655 West 34th Street, Manhattan. An electronics show featuring the new developments in the industry. (866) 761-7303; digitallife.com.

ENTER STAGE RIGHT: A BEHIND-THE-SCENES TOUR OF BROADWAY'S HISTORIC THEATERS, Sunday at 11 a.m., sponsored by the Historic Districts Council. ; for Friends of the Districts Council. Meeting place and other information: (212) 614-9107; hdc.org.

ESTUARY ACCESS DAY, Sunday, featuring a tour of the Brooklyn shore from aboard the tugboat W. O. Decker, leaving from Pier 16, at the South Street Seaport Museum, at Fulton Street. Rides at 10 and 11:30 a.m. and 1:30, 3 and 4:30 p.m. reservations: (212) 748-8786; southstreetseaportmuseum.org. , for children.

FAB! FESTIVAL, Saturday, 1 to 5 p.m. on East Fourth Street, between the Bowery and Second Avenue, East Village. Featuring six stages of entertainment. Sponsored by Downtown Art. fabnyc.org.

FOREST HILLS CHAMBER OF COMMERCE STREET FAIR, Sunday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., on Austin Street, between 69th and 72nd Roads, Queens.

40 YEARS OF PUBLIC ART IN NEW YORK CITY PARKS, an indoor exhibition of photographs, drawings and sculpture, at the Arsenal Gallery in the Park, 830 Fifth Avenue, at 64th Street. Mondays through Fridays, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., through Nov. 23. Information at 311; free.

LEXINGTON AVENUE FALL FESTIVAL, Sunday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., from 34th to 42nd Streets. Sponsored by the Soldiers', Sailors', Marines' and Airmen's Club.

LONDON TERRACE STREET FAIR, Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., on 24th Street, between 9th and 10th Avenues, Chelsea.

MANHATTAN SHORT FILM FESTIVAL, Sunday, beginning at 4 p.m., in Union Square Park, Park Avenue and 14th Street. The final screening in a competition featuring 12 films that were shown in movie houses around the world earlier in the week; the screenings, with viewer voting, begin at 7 p.m. msfilmfest.com. Free.

NIGERIAN INDEPENDENCE DAY PARADE, Saturday at 1 p.m. on Second Avenue, from 54th to 44th Street, Manhattan.

THIRD AVENUE MERCHANTS ASSOCIATION STREET FESTIVAL, Sunday, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., between 69th and 94th Streets, Bay Ridge, Brooklyn.

2007 JACKSON HEIGHTS FILM AND FOOD FESTIVAL, at two Queens locations: screenings are Friday through Sunday at various times at the Eagle Theater, 73-07 37th Road, and food samplings are Saturday from noon to 4 p.m. at St. Marks Church, 35-50 82nd Street. jhfff.org. for each screening; food, to .

Spoken Word

IS NEW YORK LOSING ITS SOUL?, Wednesday at 6:30 p.m., a panel discussion at the Donnell Library Center, 20 West 53rd Street, Manhattan. Participants include Clyde Haberman, a columnist for The New York Times, who is the moderator; Rocco Landesman, president of Jujamcyn Theaters; Alison Tocci, president and publisher of Time Out New York; and Darren Walker, vice president of the Rockefeller Foundation. Sponsored by the Municipal Art Society. (212) 935-2075; mas.org. , for members and students.

POETS IN THE GALLERIES, Queens Museum of Art, New York City Building, Flushing Meadows-Corona Park. Saturday, 5:30 to 8:30 p.m., a reading by Roger Bonair-Agard of poems based on immigration, in conjunction with the exhibition "General 1.5," which highlights the works of artists who immigrated to the United States while teenagers; there will also be a tour of the exhibition and a discussion and reception with Mr. Bonair-Agard. (718) 592-9700. Free.

PRELUDE '07; AT THE FOREFRONT OF CONTEMPORARY NEW YORK THEATER, Friday and Saturday, 2 to 10 p.m. at the City University of New York Graduate Center, 365 Fifth Avenue, at 34th Street. Featuring performances, readings, panel discussions and rehearsals of works in progress. Schedule: (212) 817-1861; preludenyc.org. Free admission, first come first served.