Chronogram November 2005 by Chronogram

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Chronogram ARTS.CULTURE.SPIRIT.

FOUNDERS Jason Stern & Amara Projansky

PUBLISHER

Jason Stern

EDITORIAL EDITORIAL DIRECTOR

Brian K. Mahoney ART DIRECTOR

David Perry NEWS & POLITICS EDITOR

Lorna Tychostup ASSOCIATE EDITOR

news and politics 20 THE WATER UNDER THE STRAW Vanni Cappelli analyzes the possible outcomes of the recent elections for parliament and provincial government in Afghanistan. 24 ARE WE THERE YET? Connie Frisbee Houde travels with NOOR in Afghanistan.

Susan Piperato CONTRIBUTING EDITOR

Jim Andrews MUSIC EDITOR

Sharon Nichols BOOKS EDITOR

Nina Shengold WHOLE LIVING EDITOR

community notebook 20

28 IS RIP FROM SAUGERTIES? Robert M. Place looks for Rip Van Winkle's home. 30 ART OF BUSINESS Ann Braybrooks visits Backcountry Outfitters in Kent. 32 SUSTAINABILITY Susan Piperato discusses Indian Point's disaster potential.

arts & culture 36 PORTFOLIO The whimsical and macabre paper cutouts of Diana Bryan. 38 LUCID DREAMING Beth E. Wilson previews the Berrie Center's historical exhibit.

41 GALLERY DIRECTORY A list of what's hanging around the region. 44 MUSIC Sharon Nichols interviews darkwave artist Sara Ayers. 48 BOOKS Pauline Uchmanowicz reads into New Paltz's One Book initiative. 50 BOOK REVIEWS Books by Byrne Fone, Mary Gaitskill, Trevanian, and more. 56 FICTION The Goodbye Party by Jay Blotcher. 60 POETRY Poems by Emily Arrighi, Nancy Graham, Dina Greenberg, Mala Hoffman, Olga Kronmeyer, Jason Landon, Laurie Anna Macomber, Caitlin Grace McDonnell, Gary Sledge, David Trembley.

Lorrie Klosterman POETRY EDITOR

Phillip Levine COPY EDITOR

Andrea Birnbaum EDITORIAL INTERNS

Marleina Booth-Levy, Brianne Johnson, Max Shmookler PROOFREADERS

Laura McLaughlin, Joyce Reed, Barbara Ross

PRODUCTION PRODUCTION DIRECTOR

Yulia Zarubina-Brill PRODUCTION COORDINATOR

Kiersten Miench PRODUCTION DESIGNERS

Jim Maximowicz, Julie Novak DESIGN ASSISTANT

Lorie Kellogg

PUBLISHING ADVERTISING SALES

Jamaine Bell, Ralph Jenkins, Jordan Parker OFFICE MANAGER

Lisa Mitchel-Shapiro OFFICE ASSISTANT

food 62 THE BUTCHER'S CONSCIENCE Jennifer May stops by Fleisher's in Kingston.

65 TASTINGS A directory of whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s cooking and where to get it.

holiday supplement 73 ARTICLES, PRODUCTS, AND SERVICES FOR THE HOLIDAYS

whole living guide 90 ENDORPHINS Lorrie Klosterman on the science behind these neurochemicals. 94 INNER VISION A report on the 2005 Women and Power conference at Omega.

96 FRANKLY SPEAKING Frank Crocitto muses on getting centered. 98 WHOLE LIVING DIRECTORY Products and services for a positive lifestyle.

business services 11 4 BUSINESS DIRECTORY A compendium of advertiser services.

the forecast 127 DAILY CALENDAR Listings of over 500 local events. Plus preview features.

planet waves horoscopes 144 RECKONING Eric Francis Coppolino on the inauguration chart. Plus horoscopes.

dwellings 150 MID-HUDSON REAL ESTATE LISTINGS

127 10

parting shot 152 MARCH A charcoal drawing on paper by Chris Gonyea.

Molly Maeve Eagan TECHNOLOGY DIRECTOR

Justin Zipperle MARKETING & DISTRIBUTION

Tamara Zipperle SALES & MARKETING ASSISTANT

Matthew Watzka CONTRIBUTORS Emil Alzamora, Erica Avery, Carolyn Bennett, Michael Bernier, Jay Blotcher, Anne Braybrooks, Vanni Cappelli, Eric Francis Coppolino, Ian Cunningham, DJ Wavy Davy, Mike Dubisch, Chris Gonyea, Roy Gumpel, Hillary Harvey, Connie Frisbee Houde, Annie Internicola, Susan Krawitz, Jason Kremkau, David Malachowski, Jennifer May, Robert M. Place, Anne Pyburn, Nancy Rullo, Sparrow, Pauline Uchmanowicz, Beth E. Wilson, Vladimir Zimakov ALL CONTENTS COPYRIGHT 2005

LU M I N A R Y

PUBLISHING ADDRESS

314 Wall St. Kingston, NY 12401 845.334.8600 fax 334.8610 www.chronogram.com info@chronogram.com SUBMISSIONS

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On the Cover

Untitled

roy gumpel | 2005

oy Gumpel’s portrait of a young woman relaxing fully clothed in a local creek on a summer afternoon was created as an advertising and catalog image for Earthspeaks, a clothing line made from organic hemp, linen, cotton, and silk. Earthspeaks was founded by Bi Li, Gumpel’s former neighbor in High Falls, who now lives and works in Brooklyn. Gumpel used a Nikon D70 camera with an old lens to create a dreamy, painterly effect. He eschews “normal lenses” because they are “so sharp and perfect that it’s hard to capture a dreamy or romantic feeling” using them. “All this new razor-sharp technology is making me want to take a step back,” says Gumpel. “Technology is replacing art now; it’s a shame. We all love looking at old photos. Part of the reason is the ‘unsharpness’ of older camera lenses, and film grain, and their leaving a bit more to the imagination.” What Gumpel likes best about photography is shooting people in “interesting environments.” An assignment to photograph in black and white the people and places of Route 66 for National Geographic Explorer is now a book in the making. Similarly, a color photography book in the works, Speedway, grew from a Chronogram assignment to shoot the Accord Speedway. Gumpel is also working on a children’s books series, featuring painterly color photographs of his five-yearold daughter Alice on various adventures, with Chronogram colleague Susan Piperato as writer. Gumpel’s first photographic retrospective, “What I Did on My 30Year Vacation,” will run November 11 to 18 at The Big Cheese (402 Main Street, Rosendale), with an opening party Saturday, November 12, 4pm until late. The show will include black-and-white and color prints, film projects, and a looped slide show viewable from the sidewalk. “The work will be for sale at prices that won’t scare regular folks away,” says Gumpel. “I don’t see my photos as some precious, valuable art, but of course, it makes me happy when someone else sees it that way.” (845) 687-2109; www.roygumpel.com. 12

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Editor’s Note The First Amendment rests on the assumption that the widest possible dissemination of information from diverse and antagonistic sources is essential to the welfare of the public. —Justice Hugo Black

he recent outing of New York Times reporter Judith Miller as little more than a Bush administration flunky should surprise no one who followed her overheated coverage of Saddam’s WMD in the run-up to the Iraq war. The disgraceful stenography to those in power that she passed off as journalism seems to be of a piece with publisher William Randolph Hearst’s goading of America into the Spanish-American War in 1898. (Legend has it that Hearst sent a telegram to a reporter in Cuba that read: “You supply the pictures and I’ll supply the war.) Just one paragraph of Miller’s WMD reporting in the Times (9/9/2002, with Michael Gordon) offers a bitter taste of her toadying: “More than a decade after Saddam Hussein agreed to give up weapons of mass destruction, Iraq has stepped up its quest for nuclear weapons and has embarked on a worldwide hunt for materials to make an atomic bomb, Bush administration officials said today.” I turns out, of course, that Saddam possessed no WMD (oops!), and that Miller’s chief sources for her coverage were Iraqi exiles in the orbit of Ahmed Chalabi, himself an Iraqi exile on the Pentagon’s payroll who was itching for Saddam’s ouster. In defense of her coverage, all Miller could muster was this blithe tautology: “If your sources are wrong, then you are wrong.” Now let’s raise the curtain on act two of “Judith Miller: Woman of Mass Destruction” (kudos to Maureen Dowd for that coinage). Following Joseph Wilson’s Op-Ed in the Times in 2003 criticizing the administration’s WMD evidence, the name of CIA operative Valerie Plame (Wilson’s wife) was leaked by administration officials in an effort to discredit her husband. A number of stories were written about the leak, the most significant being one in which syndicated columnist Robert Novak, Republican hatchet man par excellence, played the name-Plame game. Another reporter whom administration officials (in this case Scooter Libby, the top aide to vice-president Cheney) spoke to was Judith Miller. Now here’s the rub: Miller never wrote a story about the leak, and went to jail to hide her source. Miller must have known that the administration was actively seeking to disembowel Wilson’s credibility, yet concealed this from her editors. She, and the Times (sadly and somewhat unwittingly, in keeping with their latest mode of cavalier idiocy), claimed that a First Amendment issue was at stake—a reporter’s need to protect his or her source. But as Justice Black has written, the First Amendment was not designed to shield the powerful from the prying of the press, but rather to protect those who would expose those in power and subsequently be targeted by the mighty wheels of governmental reprisal. As we watch the current administration’s lies unravel—as Chronogram goes to press, reports are emerging suggesting that Libby perjured himself before the grand jury in the Plame investigation—it’s useful to remember that lies need messengers, and that “diverse and antagonistic sources” are not synonymous with “administration officials.” In other news, closer to home: Chronogram has been honored with an arts patron award by the Ulster County Arts Council. (The award will be presented at an event on November 10 at New World Home Cooking in Saugerties.) We take the honor that the Ulster County Arts Council has bestowed quite seriously, and humbly, as the award is for service, which is one of the core tenets of Chronogram’s mission: to nurture the creative and cultural life of the Hudson Valley. Congratulations to all who all who have ever contributed to the success of this magazine, even in some small way. We believes strongly in community, and what we can accomplish is limited only by our imagination and our willingness to work toward a shared mission. Thanks to all who have shared our mission along the way. And lastly, we invite the community of Chronogram readers to join us and celebrate the 12th birthday of this magazine on Wednesday, November 16, at 6:30pm at the Steel House restaurant in the Rondout section of Kingston. (About the Steel House, which opened last summer: Located in the cavernous Millens Steel building, which had been decaying for many years, the Steel House is a thoughtfully renovated space, preserving elements of the building’s industrial past—exposed brick rises from floor to 50-foothigh ceilings; heavy accents of wrought-iron throughout—in combination with the demands of a 200seat, 21st-century waterfront eatery. A good look at the restaurant’s cathedral-like dining area alone is worth the trip.) DJ Dave Leonard will be on hand to help us get our groove thing working, and the party will see the unveiling of the first-ever crop of (limited edition) Chronogram T-shirts, a number of which will be raffled off. For more information, or directions to the party, visit www.chronogram.com or call (845) 334-8600. —Brian K.Mahoney

Letters

Investors Don’t Flip

To the Editor: In the September issue of Chronogram, Susan Piperato wrote an article, “House Flipping—Still a Fix?,” for which she interviewed me. While I feel she made a very good depiction of the risks and rewards of flipping, I must disagree with a significant theme of the article. I want your readers to understand that in no way do I consider flipping properties an “investment strategy.” Fixing and flipping real estate is for short-term gains.You use the proceeds to “pay the bills” or invest—invest being the operative word. I believe that investing, specifically for retirement, requires longterm investment vehicles. However, my definition of diversified vehicles is a bit different from most financial planners. I do not believe that choosing two or three different mutual funds in your tax-deferred retirement account is “diversified.” Our investment strategy includes tax-deferred funds and long-term real estate investments (primarily apartments with a positive cash flow). I hope you and your readers will take note of the distinction, and enjoy much success (financially and otherwise). Joseph Belluso, Stone Ridge Greenman Properties & Greenman Contractors

Cindy Sheehan & the Ripple

To the Editor: Re Lorna Tychostup’s “When Peace is War,” 9/05: MethinksW. Rivers Pitt, Norm Solomon, and Lorna Tychostup protest too much. Are they, perhaps, miffed that after years of expressing their erudite opinions—not a serious ripple.Then along comes one simple yet genuine woman with one question that ignites a spark in the peace (and justice) movement of this nation and the world. I wonder—are Solomon, Pitt, and Tychostup attempting to appear to take a moral “high ground” or are their positions determined by the bottom line of their “Index of Advertisers?” A.E. Wasserbach, Saugerties

Empowering Patients

To the Editor: I enjoy your magazine very much. I enjoyed the article by Dina Greenberg on Vassar Brothers Hospital’s attempt to bring more spirituality to medicine [“Spirited Medicine,” 9/05]. However I was surprised that no one brought up a longstanding program that empowers patients both emotionally and spiritually when they enter the hospital for an illness. I am referring to the Planetree Philosophy which has been around for quite a while. My first exposure to it was, I believe, at the VA Medical Center in Albany. However at that time, during my residency training, I didn’t understand it very well. But I did find out more about it when I interviewed at The Dalles hospital in Oregon. I subsequently was involved in bringing it to Page Hospital in Arizona.This is a wonderful all encompassing philosophy that opens the medical record to the patient, also educates them, and looks to provide emotional and spiritual support. A global approach that more hospitals should aspire to. Steven Ritter, MD

LETTERS GUIDELINES Chronogram welcomes letters from readers and encourages a lively discussion of articles published in these pages. Letters must include the writer's name and address and should be no more than 300 words. Longer submissions will be returned to the writer for editing to length. The deadline for submission is the 15th of the month prior to publication. Letters should be sent to info@chronogram.com or to Chronogram, c/o Letters to the Editor, 314 Wall St., Kingston, NY 12401.

Honoring the Dead Eyes Wide Open Exhibit Comes to Vassar

Lorna Tychostup

It is a harrowing sight, not easily forgotten:Walking among the too many empty pairs of boots laid out in formation like so many toy soldiers in a row. Muffled sniffling, quiet sobs, and hushed whispers break the silence. Each pair, tagged with a name, represents an American soldier killed in Iraq.When “Eyes Wide Open,” the American Friends Service Committee’s exhibit on the human cost of the Iraq war was unveiled in January of last year, 534 pairs of boots were laid like tombstones atop Chicago’s Federal Plaza. By the time this mobile war memorial reached Brooklyn’s Prospect Park on the morning of this past October 16, the number of pairs of boots had grown to 1970. (Six more pairs of boots were added to the exhibit by the end of the day.)

Alongside the boots are hundreds of pairs of shoes representing the deaths of Iraqi civilians and a wall of remembrance with more than 11,000 of their names. Life-size photos of Iraqis surround the empty boots and shoes. To date, “Eyes Wide Open” has traveled to more than 70 sites in 25 states. Many boots are now littered with photos, baby pictures, flowers, letters, teddy bears…even a small worn baby blanket, left by loved ones, friends, comrades in arms, and those looking for some common healing release—of both anger and grief. A grief made visible by these never to-be-worn-again representations of America’s lost, but not forgotten young servicemen and servicewomen. What has become an anonymous numbering in the papers, another sound bite on TV, a never-to-be-shown public accounting of the almost daily deaths in Iraq, is viscerally conveyed by “Eyes Wide Open.” It is not to be missed. Vassar College will present the “EyesWide Open” exhibit November 15-16 on the Alumnae Lawn or, in case of rain, inVassar Chapel. Events include: Monday, November 14, 7pm. Lecture: Ethics in Journalism: Making Peace with Many Truths, presentation on Iraq by Chronogram senior editor Lorna Tychostup. Rockefeller Hall 300. Tuesday, November 15, 7-10am. Exhibit set-up.Volunteers needed. 10:00am: Music, poems, and prayers on peace by students. 12-5pm: “Artists Reflecting on the War,” brief contributions by local and visiting poets, writers, dancers, and musicians. 5:30-7:30pm: Silent art auction and reception, to benefit the American Friends Service Committee. Alumnae House. All night vigil.Volunteers needed. For more information, or to volunteer, contact Judith Nichols: (914) 437-5656 17

Esteemed Reader Esteemed Reader of Our Magazine: In my role of publisher, I welcome you with open arms to this November issue of Chronogram, the 143rd since our first, in October of 1993. (I mark this event here, in my address to you, esteemed reader, because we will be celebrating the magazine’s 12th birthday with a party on November 16, near our office in Kingston—see ads throughout the magazine for details!). I also wish to acknowledge here that this and every issue represents the hard work of many people whose impulse to undertake the duties of putting out the magazine flows from a desire to be part of something vibrant, responsive, and creative, and to serve the larger community and that of our readership. If you wonder who these people are, I refer you to our masthead, which enumerates their names, at least (for names alone cannot truly tell you who they are). The deeper impulse driving the contributions of our staff and freelance contributors came to my attention today as I met with a consultant who helped me analyze and assess the state of the business which is Luminary Publishing. His first observation on viewing our financial data was that, relative to our revenue, we have an unprecedentedly large number of employees. (“But we need all these people!” I cried.) Further, he observed, they aren’t particularly well-paid, though this opinion, he qualified, was informed by his experience working with Manhattanbased businesses. Nevertheless, the message hit home. The magazine has attracted a remarkably talented and capable group who could almost certainly secure better-paying jobs with the skills and creativity they possess. Instead they have chosen to work on this magazine for reasons which become evident upon perusing its pages. Twelve years ago, when I started Chronogram with partner Amara (editor Brian joined us a few years later) I didn’t anticipate the magnitude of what the business would become. I fashioned myself a writer and photographer. I was frustrated by too many rejection letters and sought a medium for which no editor could turn my submissions away. But, as happens with many entrepreneurs, the daily needs of running a business took precedence over my creative endeavors. Or perhaps I should say—I have recently come to grips with it—that my creativity was channeled into the art of business. Indeed, as many small-business owners will attest, running a concern requires all the qualities of an artist—willingness to take risks, vigilant ingenuity, and perseverance. The arising of a coherent culture at Luminary Publishing was a somewhat startling revelation. This occurred about five years into the effort. I saw that the many functions involved in putting out the magazines were being accomplished by others—independent of my own efforts. Like a bird that takes flight from the nest, the business had taken on a life of its own.With this realization came a sense of responsibility. I had a desire to care for these people, to create an environment that had a positive tone and that they felt supported their own values. After all, they were devoting their daylight lives to the endeavor—a true sacrifice. I also saw that the quality of the magazines was a direct reflection of the culture in the business, which is influenced by many factors, of which monetary compensation is but one. We are inculcated with the notion that a business has the primary purpose of making money for its owners. But I have come to see it as something else, something almost tribal—a group that works shoulder to shoulder not only to feed and clothe its members, but to create meaning in each other’s lives. This environment is like a tumbler into which rough stones are thrown and rolled over and over one another.The process is sometimes uncomfortable, but the result is that, while remaining unique, each becomes polished through developing skills, adaptability, and the ability to work with and for others.Whatever meaning a person gleans from the experience can then become available to the world through the work that the business does. Though I often point in my writing to the evils done by corporate entities, I also recognize that business can be an agent of something useful and good. I will now go so far as to suggest that in this age in which the moribund corporate behemoths falter and fall under the weight of their empty mission statements and hypocritical “core values,” it is the small, warm-blooded businesses that will take up some of the slack and create a unique micro-culture that truly serves workers and their communities and fosters the direct interdependence that in general is so lacking. The annual Chronogram birthday party is a great opportunity to taste that interdependence and further enjoy the community that a local magazine and a local business bring together. In addition to some good partying you can also use the occasion to connect the names on the masthead to the real people, in the flesh! I hope to see you there! —Jason Stern 18

HOLIDAY! An Annual Advertising Supplement in the November and December Issues of

Chronogram

THE WATER UNDER THE STRAW AFGHANISTAN FOUR YEARS AFTER THE FALL OF THE TALIBAN

Many Afghans have great expectations following the September 18 parliamentary elections. They hope the election will spur changes in rebuilding efforts and give them greater control of the reconstruction process. Others worry that such high hopes are unwarranted and may lead to a disillusionment with democracy.

n September 18 Ronald E. Neumann, the American ambassador to Afghanistan, went to the venerable Dost Mohammad Khan School in Kabul to observe the parliamentary voting taking place there. Named for the legendary king who preserved the country’s independence from British imperialism in the 19th century, the antique, Western-style building lies nestled in the “Lion’s Gate,” the twin mountains that guard the southern approaches to the Afghan capital and witnessed the most brutal fighting during the civil war of the 1990s. As he emerged, the ambassador spoke to Chronogram about the significance of the battered nation’s first legislative election since 1969. “It’s very significant in several ways,” Neumann said. “The vote is going off generally peacefully, with the exception of a few violent incidents. There is a complete failure of fanatics and terrorists to provide an alternative to the democratic process. It represents a big step to building a stable, democratic and independent country, as well as providing greater security for everyone in the world, except for a few terrorists. The Afghan people seem to be doing just fine.” If the litmus test of this last assertion is taken to be the fulfillment of the terms of the December 2001 Bonn Agreement that followed the US-led overthrow of the Taliban in the wake of the September 11 attacks, it is technically correct. The holding of the parliamentary vote was the last of the four main provisions—Emergency and Constitutional loya jirgas, presidential and parliamentary elections—that sought to finally close the wound opened by the Soviet-led overthrow of Afghanistan’s progressive government in 1978, a trauma that widened into foreign invasion, civil war, terrorist infiltration, and culminated in the global “war on terror.” But what does this mean in practical terms? Are these exercises a fulfillment of

abstractions on paper set against the reality of an unreconstructed country, unbowed and uncaptured terrorists, and a narcostate economy that influences even these electoral processes themselves? Has the United States made any progress in addressing the underlying problems that brought it here in response to 9/11? “These elections, and the jirgas that came before, they are so much straw scattered on water,” says Haji Abdul Jaghori, an aged carpet dealer who never tires of speaking of his friendship with Adolph Dubs, the American ambassador assassinated on the eve of the Soviet invasion. “After Al Qaeda destroyed the towers in New York, and the Americans drove the Taliban into the mountains, everyone was crying ‘Afghanistan must be fixed!’ as if it took this to make people realize that. But the foreigners have done little here. Instead of rebuilding Afghanistan, they have destroyed Iraq. What good does it do to elect people to a government without power in a country lost to violence and poverty? There is an old Afghan saying that warns people against walking on straw, for it may conceal deep water. In all the years since my friend Mr. Dubs was killed, the water under the straw has grown ever deeper, darker, and bloodier. You must dedicate yourselves to the difficult task of purifying it if you are to escape its pestilence. Didn’t the fate of the towers teach you that this cesspool created by the world cannot be just hidden away?” Some critics of the international engagement in Afghanistan would agree that on a variety of levels there are things that have been “hidden away” in Afghanistan over the last four years. The simple fact of the overthrow of the Taliban is trumpeted as a final and unqualified success, without reference to the dual reality that predatory warlords have been restored to their old fiefs while the fundamentalist militia has survived and maintains a stubborn insurgency. The reconstruction effort is touted in

BY VANNI CAPPELLI 20 NEWS & POLITICS

Farzana Wahidy/REUTERS

credit

AN AFGHAN POLICEMAN SITS UNDER A COLUMN ADORNED WITH POSTERS OF CANDIDATES FOR THE RECENT PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS IN AFGHANISTAN, SEPTEMBER 13. THE CAMPAIGN FEATURED RELATIVELY FEW VIOLENT INCIDENTS AND A LACK OF ACRIMONY AMONG THE THOUSANDS OF CANDIDATES VYING FOR SEATS IN PARLIAMENT.

terms of impressive-sounding amounts of money pledged with no reference to what the actual needs are or whether these funds have been spent responsibly. “So many Afghans I spoke with felt that the monies declared for Afghanistan were well diluted by the time they were applied to projects that would benefit the people,” says Miriam Gettinger of the World Rehabilitation Fund, a New York-based NGO. “Clinics and schools are being built in regions where there is a lack of roads, water, electricity and staff to supply these facilities. The hefty salaries and lifestyles of expatriates leaves little for earmarked programs.” Afghan expert Ahmed Rashid, who wrote the bestselling book Taliban, recently estimated that of the $2.5 billion a year that Western donors have committed to the country, less than half has been actually disbursed.

MANAGING EXPECTATIONS An oft-cited corollary to the inefficiency in spending is a lack of vision as to how aid should be structured. A typical example of this is the US military’s constant reiteration that it is digging wells in the villages of the southern Pashtun heartland where it is fighting the Taliban. But the central fact of life in these arid areas is that the fragile karez irrigation system upon which agriculture has always depended there have gone unreconstructed since their devastation by the Soviets as a deliberate tactic of war 20 years ago. Such a rehabilitation project is well within the means and capacity of the Army Corps of Engineers, but the issue has never even been raised. In the absence of such an economic alternative, impoverished farmers have little choice but to cultivate the hardy opium poppies which require little water to thrive, and earn sums for them that are the difference between total indigence and relative prosperity. “In general I am not happy with the international community’s efforts,” says Shah Mohammad Rais, Kabul’s leading bookseller and an international cultural icon. “There has been an insufficient effort to integrate reconstruction with the Afghan economy and labor force. They have employed foreign builders, not local ones. Maybe in the future the parliament will put pressure on the government to reverse this.” The widespread belief among Afghans that the convening of parliament will lead to a sea change in the reconstruction effort may seem a vindication of the Americans’

assertion that a democratic Afghanistan is taking its own destiny into its hands. Such great expectations of an improved reconstruction effort, however, carry their own dangers. Many observers, both Afghan and foreign, warn that the puncturing of this hope will lead to a brutal, if not exactly justified, disillusionment with democracy at work. “One of the biggest challenges is the managing of expectations,” says Peter Dimitroff, the Afghanistan country director of the National Democratic Institute (NDI), an NGO that aids democratic institution building in developing countries. “We find increasingly that ordinary Afghans and candidates have an unrealistic view of what the Wolesi Jirga and the Meshrano Jirga (the lower and upper houses of parliament) can do. Reconstruction is at such a low point that people are going to want their representatives to deliver the goods. But there are major constraints on the government. Eighty percent of reconstruction is entirely under international control. It will lead to a great deal of frustration.” The form that such frustration can take was revealed in April, when several parts of the country were torn by anti-US riots that erupted over allegations that the Koran had been desecrated by American soldiers guarding terror suspects in Guantanamo Bay. Afghan experts such as Professor Barnett Rubin of New York University stated at the time that the underlying cause of the disturbances was frustration over the severely anemic reconstruction effort. “In essence, the Afghans are saying, ‘Did you just come here to fight your enemies, or are you here to help us? If it’s only the first, you should go,’” Rubin said while a guest on “The News Hour With Jim Lehrer.” The course of events in the last six months has amply borne out the fact that when frustration with the reconstruction effort is expressed violently, it will inevitably take the form of Islamic extremism.

IRAQ-STYLE VIOLENCE The year 2005 has been by far the most violent year in Afghanistan since the fall of the Taliban. A major increase in insurgent violence across the southern Pashtun heartland, where the Taliban is strongest, and reaching into the north, has left more than 1,300 people dead. Eighty-four of the deaths so far this year are those of soldiers in NEWS & POLITICS 21

the US-led coalition force that continues to grapple with the resurgent fundamentalist militia. Most of the coalition dead have been Americans. In early October the American military death toll in the Afghan war reached the 200 mark. But even more troubling than the scale of the violence is its increasingly Iraq-style nature. Suicide bombings and the deliberate targeting of civilians have never been hallmarks of Afghan guerrilla warfare. Indeed, it was the high number of civilians killed in the crossfire between rival warlords in the 1990s that created a consensus that the Taliban should be allowed to come to power to suppress such disorder. But with the integration of international jihadis, traditional fighting tactics have been swept aside. During the summer several clerics who were supporters of the Americanbacked government of President Hamid Karzai were assassinated, and a suicide bomber killed half a dozen people at the funeral of one of them in a mosque in Kandahar—an unheard of violation of ancient Afghan religious sensibilities and codes of honor. By early October the pace of suicide bombings had reached several a week, including the bombing of medical clinics. “There is an ugly mood here, and it is leading to ugly thoughts and actions,” says Inayatullah, a dried fruit merchant in Kabul’s ancient bazaar. “When Hurricane Katrina destroyed New Orleans, I heard some people say that this was the wrath of Allah against the Americans, and some were clapping and shouting for joy. This shocked me deeply. There is a growing anger among the people, and one day it is going to explode.”

PAKISTANI INFLUENCE Further complicating the nexus between popular dissatisfaction and its manipulation by international forces is the disputed role of Afghanistan’s southern neighbor, Pakistan. Longstanding rivals because of the “Pashtunistan” issue of whether the Pashtun population of northern Pakistan should be allowed to secede and join Afghanistan, their contentious relationship descended into large-scale violence when the Soviet invasion and its aftermath gave Islamabad free reign for a succession of brutal power games culminating in its installation of the Taliban in the mid-1990s. Although Pakistan has been a formal US ally and Karzai-backer since the September 11 attacks, experts question whether this sudden reversal of longtime policies is genuine. The virtual impunity with which Taliban and Al Qaeda forces move back and forth between the Pashtun areas of Afghanistan and Pakistan has led to repeated accusations by the Kabul government that Islamabad is not doing anything to stop the infiltrations—and is even aiding them. The unstated premise is that Pakistan is merely keeping the fundamentalist militia and other jihadis on hold as it waits for US involvement in the region to wane. As it turns out, this continued belief on the part of Pakistan that its interests lie in achieving “strategic depth” by dominating Afghanistan is inseparable from the question of the drug trade. “This is not just an Afghan affair,” says Shah Mohammad Rais of the boom in narcotrafficking. “Drug smuggling is not an easy job, and with such a strong foreign military presence in the region, it requires the help of local governments. The ISI [the Pakistani intelligence agency] is quite heavily involved in it, because the huge profits help fund their operations. This is an organized international drug mafia in which terrorists, criminals, and government elements can participate according to 22 NEWS & POLITICS

their interests, working together for profit regardless of their ideology—or lack of one.” The intractable nature of drug-linked corruption in the Afghan government and police in particular was highlighted at the end of September when Interior Minister Ali Ahmad Jalali, the most respected technocrat in the Karzai administration, resigned in disgust at his inability to force either his own superiors or their American backers to confront the problem. Jalali, a distinguished former mujahideen fighter and writer on military affairs who acquired American citizenship during his long exile from Soviet and Taliban rule, had been touted over the

This is an organized international drug mafia in which terrorists, criminals, and government elements can participate according to their interests, working together for profit. —Shah Mohammed Rais last two years as the perfect nexus for a coordination of the two countries’ efforts against the trade. But the reliance of the weak Kabul government on local warlords to keep outlying areas loyal and the continued attitude of the American military that these warlords are the best bulwark against the Taliban proved an insurmountable contradiction. In the wake of Jalali’s departure the British Independent reported that senior Western officials in the Afghan capital were resigned to the fact that the country would continue to be a major source of the world heroin supply for at least another decade. Yet the international “Great Game”-style power plays that have long been Afghanistan’s ruin, and are so much in evidence in the insurgency and the drug trade, do not always impact the country negatively. The most hopeful development amidst a summer of violence was the state visit to Kabul of Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in late August, the first such trip since Indira Gandhi met Afghan President Mohammad Da’ud there in 1976. Hoping to revive the counterbalancing alliance against Pakistan that had existed from the time of Jawaharal Nehru, India has played a role in the reconstruction effort that is markedly out of proportion to its resources, and has acquired a reputation for the efficient and quick completion of projects. One of the wonders of a stilldesolate Kabul is Habbibia High School, the country’s

oldest, which was heavily damaged during the civil war. Over the last year, it has been transformed by the Indian government into a state-of-the-art facility that contrasts strongly with the surrounding ruins. “Though the Punjabis are always against us, now we can count on the Hindustanis,” a young student entering the school said right after the prime minister’s visit, using Afghan colloquial terms for the subcontinental rivals. India’s adroit determination to exercise its influence in ways that combine practicality and symbolism was on display during Singh’s public appearances. After announcing that India would “adopt” a hundred Afghan villages to promote their development—a clear bid to curry favor with the rural Pashtuns who are so prone to Taliban and Pakistani influence—the prime minister joined President Karzai and nonagenarian ex-king Zahir Shah in laying the cornerstone for Afghanistan’s new parliament building.

OPTIMISM AND CORRUPTION Amidst an otherwise general lack of progress on the reconstruction, security, and anti-narcotic fronts, the holding of a peaceful election in mid-September was hailed as an indication that matters are not as dire as they seem. Not only did the insurgents fail to disrupt the voting, but the campaign itself was interrupted by relatively few violent incidents and a lack of acrimony among the thousands of candidates vying for hundreds of parliamentary and provincial council seats. The low voter turnout of about 50 percent of the electorate, which was largely due to the inaccessibility of polling stations in remote rural areas, did not alter the fact that Afghans are concentrating a great deal of attention and expectation on the formation of the new legislature. “Politicians and intellectuals speak in terms of having an oversight of the executive and an efficient body that will pass much needed legislation, but for ordinary Afghans, it is the simple fact that they are being represented that matters most of all,” says the NDI’s Dimitroff. “People are voting because they want their voice to be heard. We didn’t see dancing in the streets like with the presidential election last year, but there is a great deal of enthusiasm. As I’ve said, there is this great expectation about a turning point in the reconstruction effort, but also a great desire to redress some of the evils of the past.” If not open enthusiasm, a general mood of optimism was evident at Eid Gad mosque, Kabul’s grandest, on election day. As separate lines of men and women entered the sweeping, portico-style structure to mark their ballots, Zabihullah, one of the poll monitors, assessed expectations. “The consequences will be very much positive,” he said. “The voting makes ordinary Afghans feel that they have power and that pressure can be put to stop corruption. There is good security, a good atmosphere, and people are coming out to choose a new way for Afghanistan.” Yet the aftermath of the vote was tainted by evidence of ballot stuffing, and when the partial results were announced on October 5 it was evident that a substantial number of ex-mujahideen commanders, drawing on tribal and ethnic ties, had won seats. This was a severe disappointment to Afghans who had hoped that the political process would mark a clean break from the country’s violent warlord past. The disconnect between the way the Afghan elite and foreigners assisting the country’s rehabilitation ef-

REUTERS

A FARMER MILKS POPPIES IN THE SOUTHEASTERN PROVINCE OF HELMAND, AFGHANISTAN, APRIL 2, 2004. IRRIGATION SYSTEMS PROMISED BY THE US HAVE NOT MATERIALIZED, LEAVING FARMERS WITH LITTLE CHOICE BUT TO CULTIVATE OPIUM POPPIES, WHICH REQUIRE LITTLE WATER TO THRIVE.

fort view the purpose and nature of the political process here and what it means to the great majority of people is perhaps epitomized by the issue of female candidates. While their participation in the campaign is always spoken of in terms of women’s rights by Western governments and the international media, popular attitudes to the question of women in office reveal the relentless concentration of Afghans on the immediate practical betterment of their lives. “Many female and male voters have been saying that women are a good addition to parliament because, ‘their hands are clean’ and they would be less susceptible to corruption,” says Lina Abirafeh, an American who helped organize the elections as a member of the Joint Electoral Management Board that combined native and expatriate officials. “I would say that female voters are hoping that material conditions and security will be improved, more than advocating their rights.” As far as official pronouncements go, they would seem to have the perfect empathy of the international community. “There has to be an antidote to extremism and terrorism—and it is prosperity and peace and democracy. Our forces are here for those purposes,” US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said to reporters after meeting with President Karzai in Kabul on October 12. “The Afghan people will have partners through NATO and coalition forces, and through Ameri-

can forces, as long as they are needed and in whatever number to make certain we defeat terrorists and Afghanistan becomes a place of stability and progress.” Yet even as she spoke, the Taliban were preparing a major attack that blew up all eight of the large fuel tankers parked outside the international military base at Kandahar Airfield, President Karzai was warning of the powerful symbiosis between the insurgents and the drug trade, and the karez irrigation works remained in ruins. If Afghans are confident—some say overconfident—about their ability to finally take their destiny into their own hands, they remain apprehensive about whether they will be given a helping hand to do it. “There is a great fear that there will be a downsizing of the international presence,” says Dimitroff. “There is a perception that the epicenter of the war on terror has moved elsewhere, and Afghanistan is forgotten. If such a reduction did occur, it would be a great psychological blow to the Afghan people. It’s not a blow the international community can afford to inflict. The stakes are too high. The danger of Afghanistan returning to be an exporter of terrorism is too great.” Vanni Cappelli is a freelance journalist who has covered conflicts in the Horn of Africa, the Balkans, and Central Asia since the early 1990s. He is a cofounder and the current president of the Afghanistan Foreign Press Association. NEWS & POLITICS 23

FIRSTPERSON

ARE WE THERE YET? THE NOOR PROJECT IN AFGHANISTAN

re we there yet? What does this simple phrase uttered by a bored child on a road trip have to do with Afghanistan? An Afghan would chuckle because the idea of a quick trip to the countryside is viewed as a joke, and yet road trips to the outlying countryside are often a necessity. In many cases, plans to travel outside of the major Afghan cities are made a month in advance to make sure the vehicle is in proper condition to make the trip on the rutted, and in some areas, virtually non-existent roads. Four-wheel drive is a definite necessity and extra petrol, oil, and spare parts need to be taken along. Once on the road, travelers rely on locals for information about the conditions of the roads. As if that weren’t enough, the few maps that can be found are seldom reliable. When I traveled to Afghanistan for the first time in 2003, these facts were unknown to me. That initial trip consisted of a 10-day “reality tour” taken mainly of the capital city of Kabul. While there I became reacquainted with a high school

classmate, Libby Little, and her husband, Tom, both of whom had been living and working in Afghanistan for the past 30 years. Tom is currently the program coordinator for the National Organization of Ophthalmic Rehabilitation [NOOR], the only eye care program in Afghanistan. Started in 1966, NOOR has operated almost continuously through the countless wars and upheavals the country has faced. Sitting in their small kitchen, huddled around the kerosene stove—the only heat source in their home despite it being the dead of winter—it was impossible not to be moved by their tales of raising a family while living and working in Afghanistan. With a great deal of humor, the Little’s recounted tale after tale of inspiring life and death incidents. How during the Russian occupation they had to flee Herat with their three small children to avoid capture or being “disappeared” by the Russians; or how in the early ‘90s, they spent months living in the basement of their house and driving two hours around the outskirts of the city to avoid the factional fighting at

TEXT & PHOTOS BY CONNIE FRISBEE HOUDE 24 NEWS & POLITICS

OPPOSITE: AN ELDERLY WOMAN, BLIND FROM CATARACTS, IS EXAMINED IN A SCHOOL IN THE REMOTE VILLAGE OF SKAZAR, AUGUST 2005; ABOVE: WOMEN (AND BOY) WAITING TO HAVE THEIR EYES EXAMINED BY THE NOOR TEAM IN BAMIYAN, AUGUST 2005. AFTER NINE DAYS, THE NOOR STAFF HAD SEEN 1,300 PATIENTS AND COMPLETED 70 SURGERIES.

the front lines so they could continue to provide eye care to the needy. With a limited volunteer staff, NOOR has worked to train Afghans to become eye doctors and ophthalmic professionals who now run facilities under the supervision of NOOR, which supplies and manufactures the materials needed to keep the eye care program working. Having developed hospitals in the cities of Kabul, Herat, and Mazar-i-Sharif, NOOR is currently building hospitals in Kandahar and Jalalabad. They have three small clinics in smaller cities, each of which are run by individuals trained by the program. Provincial traveling eye teams consisting of at least one doctor, a number of technicians and other support personal, often including a cook and a driver, complete another phase of their work—which is to bring eye care to the outlying and more remote areas in Afghanistan. Where roads are adequate, the team travels in a bus built over the frame of a Russian-made Kamas truck. To reach the more remote areas, the eye teams use one or two of NOOR’s four Land Rovers that were driven from England in 2004. The teams carry all their equipment and set up shop—where possible—either in a local medical clinic, school, or if need be, in tents. With 85 Afghan eye doctors to treat the 25 million people living in Afghanistan, in 2004, a total of 246,411 outpatients were seen and 15,812 sight-saving surgeries were performed in 20 different provinces. All the information I received about Afghanistan on that first visit indicated that its rural areas were strikingly different from the cities. The adventurer in me wanted to visit these places and thought what better way to travel to rural regions by taking a “road trip” with one of the NOOR provincial eye teams. I returned to Afghanistan in 2004 and spent a month traveling with NOOR eye teams observing, photographing, and interviewing patients. Besides enormous travel difficulties, the only hitch encountered was overnight sleeping accommodations, which do not present any difficulties for the usual all-male eye teams since team members either sleep in tents, their travel vehicles, or the clinic or school in which they are working. But in Afghan culture, where there are strict separations between males and females—especially as far as sleeping arrangements—there is no appropriate place for a woman under such conditions. When I accompanied an eye team to the northern city Kunduz in 2004, we were lucky to find a German-run guesthouse, where a foreign woman like myself could stay. If this had not been available, as the only woman, I would have been given the hospital room the male members of the team shared and the men would have had to sleep in the bus—a major inconvenience to the team and their work. Since my initial visit, I have seen some substantial differences in the types and

rates of development between the cities and the countryside. Electricity is now more prevalent and consistent in Kabul, and smaller cities often rely on generators for electricity for a few hours in the evening, while people in remote villages still rely on candles and fires, and go to bed when it’s dark and rise with the sunlight. In Kabul, a visitor can choose between hotels and guesthouses. These are non-existent outside of the major cities unless there are non-governmental organizations present who are willing to provide a room for foreigners working for their program. In the major cities there are TVs, restaurants, and markets where you can purchase a wide variety of items—just about anything one might desire. In the rural areas the availability of goods is scarce. Women’s attire highlights another area of difference between city and country life. In Kabul women wear a small chador, only covering the head, rather than the large chador that is required among some ethnic groups to cover much of a woman’s body, or the all-encompassing burqa prevalent among the more conservative women living in rural areas. This year there were four members to our team: a male Afghan driver trained to give the basic eye chart test, a male Afghan optometrist, a female German optometrist teacher, and myself headed to the remote village of Anjuman high in the mountains at the end of the Panshir Valley northeast of Kabul. Because we traveled into a very conservative area of the country, it was necessary to have at least two women on the trip to respect the local customs and to be accepted by the villagers NOOR wishes to serve. Our plan was to survey Anjuman, a village of 250 houses, and the impoverished area surrounding it, to determine what type of eye care was needed. The major roads leading directly out of Kabul are paved and each year improvements to the road see the paving stretch a bit further into the countryside. On a good day, with everything going in one’s favor, the journey to Anjuman, can be made in 10 to 12 hours. A few weeks earlier another team was stranded on this route when a bridge high in the valley had washed out due to high water from snowmelt. This was both good and bad news. Good because the heavy winter snowfall signaled the end of a seven-year drought that had forced many farmers to relocate with their families to the cities where overcrowding taxed the already meager infrastructure and caused those making a marginal living to sink even further into poverty. It was bad news because snowmelt continuing late into July and August had made the rivers in remote mountainous areas very treacherous, overflowing their banks and washing away the roads. In remote areas villagers make repairs to the roads and bridges if they have the skills and we needed to find out NEWS & POLITICS 25

26 NEWS & POLITICS

AFGHAN MEN WATCHING AS OTHER MEN HAVE THEIR EYES EXMAINED IN KUNDUZ AT A SURGICAL EYE CAMP, JULY 2004. THERE ARE 375,000 BLIND PEOPLE IN AFGHANISTAN; 80% HAVE TREATABLE CASES.

if such repairs had been made. After a couple more hours riding through a ready-to-harvest, wheat-filled valley, we found ourselves on a fairly good narrow dirt road following alongside the river. We stopped a passing UN vehicle going the opposite direction and learned that the road was still washed out. Turning around, we retraced our steps and continued north across the Hindu Kush Mountains and through the Solang tunnel to Kunduz. This same journey had taken 14 hours in 2004 because of horrible road conditions; we had trailed behind rows of overloaded trucks on an extremely rutted, slick mud road covered in rivulets of water from a snow the previous night. This year we saw the road had been recently paved and bridges were in the process of being repaired. The road even had white painted lines down the center! At the outskirts of town we drove past a new hospital that had been built in a year to replace the shabby, outdated facility the eye team used the previous year. Drive time between Kabul and Kunduz was literally cut in half from the previous year so we had time to continue to the east to Talacon, where NOOR operates a clinic and we could spend the night before we continued. Maps are invaluable to understand where one is traveling but they are virtually impossible to come by in Afghanistan. According to the map I had brought with me—printed in 2002 and purchased in a local Albany bookstore—it was possible to get to Anjuman by driving through the mountains south of Talacon. After consulting with locals who traveled from village to village in this region we learned that there were no roads our Land Rover could take that went to the south. Our final plan was to take a two-day journey through the most amazing and breathtakingly beautiful countryside on bone jarring roads filled with ruts, cavernous potholes, and boulders. We drove through swollen streams along narrow barely one-lane wide roads carved

into the rocky mountainside. Our map turned out to be inaccurate—not a surprise, but each time it was unfolded the locals would pour over it talking animatedly and pointing at places they recognized. As the day wore on and the sun became warmer, water flowing down from snow melting high up in the mountains made our path more precarious. Finally arriving in Skazar, a small village of 140 houses, we discovered that the road to Anjuman had been washed out as well. Despite three days travel time to reach our goal and all the preplanning, we never made it to Anjuman. For the Afghans who depend upon these roads for their survival, “are we there yet” takes on a life or death meaning. In a recent e-mail from Tom, who had just returned from a trek to Anjuman and back, he recounted the story of a young man who had been suffering from appendicitis. For two days his family had carried him on a donkey over a snow covered mountain pass to the closest clinic. He died along the way. Even if they had reached the clinic Tom doubted that there would be a doctor who could have helped him. The remote rural areas also have one of the highest infant mortality rates in the world. Simple complications easily treated in the West are life threatening in these places because there are no easily accessible medical facilities. Until more roads are built and reconstruction efforts reach into the rural areas, the divide between city and country will only widen. The phrase, “Are we there yet?” will continue to a call to improve the lives of the Afghan people that is beyond the minimum needed for basic survival. Connie Frisbee Houde has been photographing remote areas of the world since 1990, beginning with work as a textile specialist on an archeological expedition to the south coast of Peru. Houde has traveled to Afghanistan for the past three years, combining her concern for social justice with her love for adventure. NEWS & POLITICS 27

COMMUNITY NOTEBOOK

Is Rip from Saugerties? by robert m. place illustration by vladimir zimakov

In the Saugerties Public Library, at the far end of the room, hidden behind the shelves, there is a reading alcove with some wooden chairs gathered around a fireplace with a tiled mantle. The tiles, with their sculpted relief in the historic Arts and Crafts style, illustrate what is probably the most famous fable to come out of the Hudson Valley—Washington Irving’s Rip Van Winkle. Here, in a series of images, we find the familiar tale of a henpecked husband, who, looking for peace of mind, hiked with his dog, Wolf, and his fowling-piece to the mountain source of the Kaaterskill. Once there, he met the short, stout ghosts of Henry Hudson and his men and accepted an evening drink that took 20 years to sleep off. Irving was our nation’s first internationally acclaimed author and Rip was his most popular character, one who became as well known from the numerous theatrical performances of his tale as from Irving’s writing. As it was Rip’s story that brought the Hudson Valley to the attention of the world, references to Rip Van Winkle are ubiquitous in this area—but Saugerties may have a unique claim to this character. Is it possible that Saugerties was Rip’s hometown? Rip Van Winkle was first presented to the public in May 1819 in the first installment of The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon Gent. This was during the Romantic movement in art and philosophy, which combined a reverence for nature with a fascination for the supernatural. The Catskill Mountains were a preserved area of rugged wildness in close proximity to the centers of population in New York and Albany, and therefore they were becoming an attraction for the Romantic tourist, who wanted to get back to nature and who valued legend and tradition. With his writing, Irving had supplied the second element, and the legend of Rip Van Winkle was seized on by the Catskill tourist industry, perhaps the first such industry in our country’s history. In 1823, the Catskill Mountain House, the first resort hotel in the US, was constructed on top of the cliff from which the Kaaterskill descends, and, as historian John Thorn recently pointed out in an article in the Saugerties Times, by 1826 there was a building claiming to be the Rip Van Winkle House along the road to the hotel. Although Rip is a fictional character, it seems that this fact was soon forgotten and some longtime residents began to claim they had known him. As the 19th century progressed, Rip continued to be a valued Catskill tourist attraction and many local towns vied with each other claiming to be Rip’s hometown. The most adamant claimants were Catskill, Kingston, Stone Ridge, and Palenville. By 28 COMMUNITY NOTEBOOK

the 20th century, Rip’s name seemed to be on everything from hotels to rocking chairs and a Rip Van Winkle theme park was built on the plateau above Kaaterskill Clove next to the lake, which is the source of the Kaaterskill. Here, among 18th century cottage architecture, complete with appropriately dressed women engaged in colonial crafts, a visitor could shake hands with Rip himself (or at least an actor playing the part). But the only road leading from the valley to the summit of the plateau lead through Palenville and here tourists would first be greeted by a sign making it clear that Palenville was the home of Rip Van Winkle. It seemed that every town except Saugerties was claiming Rip. (Even today, on the Palenville website we are informed that Washington Irving envisioned Rip living in Palenville because Irving lived there when he wrote the story. On a Catskill website designed for tourists an alternative claim is found that it was Irving’s visit to Catskill that inspired him to write the story.) Irving was born in 1783, lived in New York City, and occasionally spent time on the Passaic River in New Jersey and just up the Hudson from New York in the old Dutch village of Sleepy Hollow. His first view of the Catskill Mountains was from the deck of a sloop on his way up the river. On at least two occasions in 1802 he sailed from his home in New York to Albany to visit his sisters Nancy and Kitty, and again in 1803 he sailed up the Hudson to Canada with his employer, Judge Hoffman. It seems that before 1819, when Rip Van Winkle was published, the only time that Irving had a chance to explore the Catskill region on foot was for one week in August in 1812, when he was a guest of John Robert Livingston at his mansion on the east bank of the Hudson at Barrytown, across the river from Kingston. Irving was 29 at the time and took advantage of his stay to make day trips, with some of the young Livingston women as companions. The Livingstons were wealthy landowners who lived in a series of mansions along the east bank of the Hudson, where, from their spacious lawns, they could view their land holdings on the west bank—which included what is now Saugerties, Woodstock, and much of the Catskill Mountains. John Robert was the younger brother of Robert R. Livingston, who lived in Claremont, the principal estate, which lies about seven miles north of Barrytown, directly across the river from Saugerties. In his The Catskills: From Wilderness to Woodstock, historian Alf Evers states that during this stay Irving got his only up close view of the Catskills when he saw Overlook Mountain, in what is now Woodstock. To accomplish this it was most likely that Irving would have taken a carriage to Claremont, where the Livingstons had a ferry that

regularly crossed over the river to Saugerties. On the west side, the Livingstons had built a road from the riverbank to their sawmill in Woodstock over which logs were brought to the river. Irving could have taken a carriage up the road to the sawmill within view of Overlook Mountain. Although Woodstock at the time was only a sawmill and some workers’ huts, in Saugerties Irving would have found farms and, clustered around the Esopus where it empties into the Hudson, rows of brick houses inhabited by people who spoke a combination of Dutch and English like the inhabitants of Irving’s beloved Sleepy Hollow. And, like the residents of Sleepy Hollow, they were steeped in ancient lore and a belief in witchcraft. Sometime between 1815 and 1819, Irving was living with his Sister Sara Van Wart in Birmingham, England. Because of the bankruptcy of the family business, Irving had decided to try and make a living as a writer but, because of his depressed state of mind, he had written almost nothing for most of a year. At the urging of Walter Scott, he had been studying German folk legends and he longed to create a similar folk history for his home country. One evening, Washington was walking with his sister’s husband, Henry, and they were reminiscing about their visits to Sleepy Hollow. Sparked by the memory of happier days, Washington retired to his room early and began to write. That night he made use of two German folk stories. One was about the Emperor Charles the Great, who disappeared with his army into a cleft in a mountain, where they were condemned to stay until doomsday. It was said that when claps of thunder were heard in the mountain it was the emperor making an appearance. Irving had been reading a description of Kaaterskill Clove written by Samuel Mitchill, and he thought of replanting the story in this New World location, substituting Henry Hudson and his men for the emperor and his army. The second story was about Peter Klaus, a goatherd who followed his goats into a cleft in a mountain, where he discovered some otherworldly bowlers. The bowlers gave him a drink of wine that caused him to sleep for 20 years. In Irving’s imagination, Peter Klaus became Rip and the bowlers became Hudson’s men, complete with a means of creating thunder by striking their bowling pins. All that was left was to give Rip a suitable colonial Dutch village. Of course, when creating Rip’s home Irving made use of images of Sleepy Hollow, which he had been recollecting that evening. He described the town as being founded by Dutch settlers during the early rule of Peter Stuyvesant (1645-64) with the oldest houses being made of yellow brick brought from Holland. Sleepy Hollow was settled in 1645 and does have yellow-brick houses. Saugerties was settled in 1677 during the rule of the English governor Andros and the oldest Dutch houses are made of fieldstone, not brick. But, it is the oldest town near the foot of the mountain where the story takes place and it was founded by Dutch as well as English settlers. Irving also describes the village as seen from the river, just below the mountains; its “shingled-roofs gleam among the trees, just where the blue tints of the upland melt away into the fresh green of the nearer landscape.” This is not a description of Sleepy Hollow but of Saugerties as seen from the grassy riverside slope of the Claremont estate. Saugerties occupies the ridge just above the river, which would appear to be at the foot of the mountains from this vantage point. It seems that just as Irving amalgamated German legends within this new landscape, he fused Sleepy Hollow and Saugerties into one village. Palenville is sited at the foot of the mountain from which the Kaaterskill flows, as is the town described in the story, but it did not exist in the late 1700s when the story took place, and it cannot be seen from the river. Even in the early 1800s, all that stood there were two mills and the cabins of the workers who operated them, and as we have seen, Irving was living in England when he wrote the story, not in Palenville as claimed. Stone Ridge, at over 28 miles, and Kingston, at over 20, are just too far from Kaaterskill Clove to be thought of as within walking distance, and can stake their claims only by disputing the location of Rip’s nap. Catskill is a colonial town founded in 1678 on the east bank of the Hudson about 9.5 miles from the base of the mountain, which would have been within walking distance for Rip, but Irving is not known to have visited Catskill before he wrote the account. Saugerties is actually a year older than Catskill and a half-mile closer to the clove, making it the closest colonial town, and as we have seen, it is likely that Irving did visit Saugerties before he wrote the story. Therefore, in answer to our question, yes, it is likely that Saugerties was Rip’s hometown. COMMUNITY NOTEBOOK 29

the art of business

COMMUNITY NOTEBOOK

LIFETIME ADVENTURE BACKCOUNTRY OUTFITTERS

In the picture-perfect village of Kent, Connecticut—yet another Yankee town with a single stoplight, historical monument, and cluster of boutiques and food stops—is Backcountry Outfitters, billed as the largest outdoor supply store in western New England. It is beautiful. With concrete, Southern yellow pine, steel trusses, high ceilings, and huge skylights, the shop provides an inspiring, comfortable atmosphere for all kinds of outdoorspeople—from “throughhikers” of the nearby Appalachian Trail to casual day-trippers, who covet the Ugg boots, “Life Is Good” T-shirts, and Vera Bradley handbags. The hardcore enthusiasts go for the technical stuff: tents and snowshoes, sleeping bags and fishing poles, maps and lanterns. The store sells penny candy from jars near the registers, so anyone craving a sugar lift can fill a paper bag with saltwater taffy and chocolate coins and black licorice. Anyone can also use the large, clean rest

ann braybrooks 30 COMMUNITY NOTEBOOK

photos by

jason kremkau

ADVENTURES IN EXPANSION

ince 1994, when Anne McAndrew and Dave Fairty started Backcountry Outfitters, the store has adjusted its inventory to suit the times and the clientele. "We started out as a technical store," says McAndrew, "but we’ve softened a bit to accommodate more casual outdoorspeople. Our customer is a family person who likes to hike, fish, canoe. The outdoor industry has changed, as well. When we started, outdoor apparel was green and black. Now it comes in all colors." Backcountry Outfitters moved to its present location, in the building that McAndrew and Fairty helped design, in 2001. With two years left on their original lease, the owners needed to fill the old space with a business that didn’t involve much overhead. They opened the Cosmic Hippo, a gallery that sold the work of local artists and artisans. The Cosmic Hippo developed its own following, and when the lease ran out earlier this year, McAndrew and Fairty renamed the gallery Northwest Corner Artisans and moved it into the BCO building, in a section of the shop that once housed boats. Panini Cafe, the pair’s third business, opened a year and a half ago. "There are a lot of food places in town," says McAndrew, "but nobody served our kind of fresh Italian food, such as the panini. The cafe is so small that we get deliveries daily. The basil and tomatoes come from our garden." McAndrew is especially proud of the homemade gelato. "People tell us that we were voted best gelato somewhere." Award or no, gelato is a smooth alternative to camp grub.

OPPOSITE: DAVE FAIRTY AND ANNE MCANDREWS OF BACKCOUNTRY OUTFITTERS IN KENT; OPPOSITE AND ABOVE: THE VARIED STOCK OF BCO

rooms, one of which stocks free emergency supplies for women (a particularly nice gesture for hikers who haven’t made it to the drugstore). It seems that the store owners, Anne McAndrew and Dave Fairty, have thought of everything. They even have a store motto: The Adventure Starts Here. That motto could apply to the store’s founding, as well as to McAndrew’s life. In 1994, longtime friends McAndrew and Fairty moved to Kent to buy a wine shop. When the deal fell through, a realtor told them about an abandoned outdoor-equipment store for lease. Fairty wanted to check it out. McAndrew said, “That’s fine for you, Dave. I’ve never slept in a tent.” Fairty prevailed, and within three weeks, they had cleaned out the store, flipped the dusty, damaged inventory, and opened for business. “It was intimidating at first,” says McAndrew. “Especially since it’s a male-dominated business. I was glad to have Dave there.” McAndrew hasn’t looked back. “We’ve built a good following. Hikers come through to resupply, downsize gear, repair gear. Kent is a good stop because it has a post office and a laundry, and the hikers know we’re here. I love seeing them. They add such a wonderful flavor to the town. Some of the hikers are in their sixties and seventies. They’re experiencing life on a different level than most of us.” So is McAndrew. On the weekend before 9/11, McAndrew was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. “One morning I woke up, and my vision was very blurry. Every day, I looked out my window at the same tree. Every day, it looked blurrier. “I met a woman at a picnic who suggested that I go to an eye doctor. I took all of the tests. Then I had CAT scans, MRIs, everything. Not until I had a spinal tap did I receive the final diagnosis. That was a Friday. I had the weekend to pull myself together and tell my kids.” McAndrew has three sons, who are now 13, 15, and 18. “Then 9/11 happened. I’d told my kids, but I hadn’t told anyone in town. After 9/11, I was able to put my own hurdle in perspective. Many of our customers are New Yorkers.

It touched everyone in this area. I felt very lucky to be alive.” Three times a week, McAndrew wakes at 5:30am and walks for three miles with three other women. Two of them are cancer survivors. “I always feel like the Jaws music is playing in my body. I never know what’s going to happen. I take advantage of each and every day. My illness has also taught me not to judge people. At the store, if someone is cranky, I try to remember that maybe they were just told they had cancer or they had to put their dog to sleep.” When customers see McAndrew working the store—all 7,000 square feet of it—they never guess that she has a serious illness. Along with Fairty, she supervises three full-time employees and a number of part-timers. In the summer, when the population of Kent swells from two to three thousand, they hire students to help out. Backcountry Outfitters is not the only business that McAndrew and Fairty run. A portion of the BCO floor space is devoted to Northwest Corner Artisans, which features fine art and craft items made by local artists. And in April 2004, McAndrew and Fairty opened Panini Cafe. After a hard day of shopping (or hiking or fishing), customers can stroll across the parking lot and purchase a grilled Elvis sandwich (mozzarella, provolone, "tons" of bacon, and Tabasco) or a creamy gelato made on the premises that morning. The businesses keep McAndrew busy, but not at the expense of family life. "My favorite part of retail has been the freedom it has given me as a mom. I’m able to maintain a household and go to soccer games and the class play. If one of my children is sick, I can stay home. Retail also keeps my mind active. Retail can be hard. Every day is a challenge. And I like that." It’s that kind of spirit that makes Backcountry Outfitters a pleasure to visit. Add to that McAndrew’s sense of humor. A sign inside Panini reads: Health code regulates that all customers must wear shoes and a shirt in order to be served. However, they say nothing about pants. Backcountry Outfitters is located on Rt. 341 East in Kent, Connecticut. Store hours: Monday through Saturday, 9am-6pm; Sunday, 10am-4pm. (860) 927-3377.

COMMUNITY NOTEBOOK 31

Sustainability BY SUSAN PIPERATO

Homeland Insecurity Momentum builds to close Indian Point

If anything positive arose from the stunningly inept government response to the devastation caused by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, it has come in the form of a wake-up call for communities to adopt a “better safe than sorry” attitude, and be prepared to take matters into their own hands should disaster strike. But here in the Hudson Valley, home of the Indian Point nuclear power plant (IP), the public has heard that wake-up call before. With three original reactors, IP’s 43-year history is replete with safety violations, leaks, technical glitches, even several shutdowns—including permanent closure of IP1. For all its problems, the plant, owned by the Entergy Corporation, supplies only 2,000 megawatts of power per day—or approximately 8 percent of total power to New York City and Westchester. On September 28, simultaneous press conferences calling for the immediate closing of Indian Point were held by elected officials in Ulster, Rockland, Orange, Dutchess, and Westchester Counties. The officials included Nyack’s mayor John Shields, and county legislators Susan Zimet and Hector Rodriguez (Ulster) and Joel Tyner (Dutchess). The press conferences were held at the major roadways that would serve as IP evacuation routes for the 20 million people living within the plant’s 50-mile radius. The press conferences were designed to notify the public that an increasing number of elected officials consider Indian Point to be a disaster waiting to happen—a “potential Chernobyl on the Hudson,” said Tyner—and if and when the worst happens, for people living in New York City as well as the Hudson Valley, there may be “nowhere to run,” as claimed by the Indian Point Safe Energy Coalition (IPSEC), a coalition formed following 9/11 of over 70 environmental, health, and public policy organizations concerned about the vulnerability of the plant to both 32 COMMUNITY NOTEBOOK

accidents and acts of terrorism. Situated on the east bank of the Hudson River just 35 miles north of midtown Manhattan, IP’s placement has been controversial since the first of the plant’s three reactors began operating in 1962, when a Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) official described the location as “insane” given its proximity to such a densely populated area. Mark Jacobs, co-director of the Longview School in Cortlandt Manor, co-founder of IPSEC and a homeowner living four miles from IP, remarked, “If we have three days to evacuate the area before any radiation is released, we’re fine—I mean, we’re fine in that we get away, and then we have to pay mortgages on houses that are uninhabitable, but we live through it. If we don’t have three days, if it’s a release that takes less time, then we have less time, we hit traffic bottlenecks, chances are we don’t make it.” From all accounts, the evacuation plan is as devoid of sense as the plant’s location. The plan, written immediately after the 1979 incident at Three Mile Island, does not include New York City or the Hudson Valley. It covers only a 10-mile radius around the plant, and if nuclear industry lobbyists have their way with the NRC, it may be limited further, to a 2.5-mile radius. However, says Jacobs, “Radiation doesn’t stop at any barriers. We know from Chernobyl that a 50-mile radius is rendered uninhabitable. An incident at Indian Point could cause significant casualties, including the city, of over 20 million, which is 8 percent of the population of the entire US. Can you imagine—New York City and the Hudson Valley uninhabitable?” On January 10, 2003, James Lee Witt Associates, Inc., a research firm founded by the former Federal Emergency Management Agency director, issued a compre-

hensive draft assessment of emergency preparedness for the area surrounding IP and portions of New York City (available at www.closeindianpoint.org). The report called the plan “unworkable,” and found that the current evacuation “system and capabilities are not adequate to...protect the people from an unacceptable dose of radiation in the event of a release from Indian Point, especially if the release is faster or larger than the design basis release.” Based on Witt’s report, Westchester, Rockland, Orange, and Ulster Counties have refused to certify the plan. At present, 52 municipalities and 13 community boards have passed a “Close Indian Point” resolution, and more than 400 elected and public officials from the tri-state area, including 11 members of Congress, have called for the plant’s closure. New York State Attorney General Elliot Spitzer, who is running for governor in 2006, has spoken out against keeping IP running, and has been holding meetings to explore alternative renewable energy resources in New York State, says Lisa Rainwater van Suntum, Riverkeeper's Indian Point campaign director. In 2003, Westchester County legislator Michael Kaplowitz testified before Congress that: “The reasons to be concerned about IP are many, but can be summarized as follows: potential operational difficulties endemic in aging plants, a potential terrorist attack in this new, difficult age, and questionable security. When combined with the potential for disastrous consequences to people and property should something untoward happen and the inability to adequately and timely evacuate area residents within the penumbra of Indian Point, we, and you, have compelling reasons to be concerned.” This year, several incidents at and involving IP have provoked concern. Last February, a control rod at IP2 (the first plant in the nation to receive a “red rating” from the NRC in 2000, necessitating a yearlong shutdown) malfunctioned twice in less than 24 hours. In June, as the Federal Department of Transportation announced the end of a special exemption that allowed secret shipments of radioactive depleted uranium (DU) munitions by the Department of Defense, a DU shipment from IP began leaking somewhere between New York State and its storage unit destination in South Carolina, where workmen unloading the truck were exposed.

On September 20, a leak of cobalt and cesium occurred in IP2’s spent-fuel pool. Although the leak initially went unannounced by Entergy for three weeks, it was eventually reported on the company’s website as posing “no threat” to the populace; however, says Riverkeeper’s Suntum, the website’s wording has since been changed to “no immediate threat.” According to Suntum, as of press time in mid-October, the leak was continuing at the rate of one liter of radioactive material per day. In late September, the plant’s 156 sirens failed the mandatory emergency test for the third month in a row. Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton has demanded that the NRC require Entergy to provide backup power for the sirens within 18 months. On October 5, tritium (a radioactive isotope of the element hydrogen) was discovered in the plant’s sampling well. At press time, it had not yet been determined whether this finding was related to the leak. In the wake of 9/11, nuclear power plants in general and IP in particular became flashpoints for debate. It is known that IP was flown over and used by the terrorists on 9/11 as a navigational marker. Later, maps and floor plans for several American nuclear power plants were found in Afghan caves vacated by Al Qaeda members. Whether terrorists would ever actually attack IP is anyone’s guess. However, Imagining the Unimaginable, an HBO/Cinemax documentary, shows that small aircraft hovering over the plant go unnoticed and undeterred. IP’s security chief testified on film to inept staff training—despite being scripted toward security team victory, the guards playing the roles of terrorists still managed to win entry to the plant—and was promptly fired. IP’s licenses for plants 2 and 3 expire in 2013 and 2015, respectively, and Entergy is applying for 20-year extensions. Westchester, Rockland, Ulster, and New Jersey’s Hudson County, along with several municipalities, have passed resolutions against IP’s license renewal. Legislators from these and other Hudson Valley counties plan to hold regular press conferences to update the public on the fight against relicensing as well as IP’s problems. For more information, contact Susan Zimet at zauerbach1@aol.com or (845) 255-2117. To find out how to help, visit www.riverkeeper.org for a list of “What You Can Do” and “Eighteen Reasons Why Indian Point Should be Safely Decommissioned.”

GUILT-FREE GIVING

t takes a single seed—or a coffee bean—to change the world. Four years ago, Equal Exchange Coffee became so popular that the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Poughkeepsie (UUFP) began selling “fair trade” holiday gifts. Today, UUFP’s Interfaith Alternative Gift Fair, cosponsored by Dutchess County Interfaith Council, offers its members an array of items from fair trade companies A Greater Gift and Marketplace, which import fairly compensated goods handcrafted of sustainable materials by Third World craft cooperatives. This year, the fair features over 40 participating vendors and local and international organizations, including UNICEF and Heifer Project. “Our fairs attract a good crowd, and help raise people's consciousness of the power of their dollars and the importance of buying fairly-traded, environmentally-friendly products in making the world a better place,” says gift fair organizer Pat LaManna. Saturday, November 12 (11am-7pm) and Sunday, November 13 (11am-3pm). The Manor at Woodside (168 Academy Street, Poughkeepsie). (845) 452-4013; patla@hvc.rr.com.

COMMUNITY NOTEBOOK 33

NOVEMBER 2005

ARTS & CULTURE CHRONOGRAM

“There is a prejudice I’m fighting in the so-called fine-arts world. I really resent the notion that there is a difference between illustration and fine art. Good is good. The only difference I see is that generally, not always, illustration should have subject matter people recognize.” —Diana Bryan Portfolio, Page 36

Catcher in the Rye, Diana Bryan, from the “Books of the Century” series for the New York Public Library 35

Portfolio

THIS PAGE: ROBOT LOVE, FOR A ROBOT WEBSITE; DANCING NUDE; CASINO WOES, FOR ATLANTIC CITY MAGAZINE; HIROSHIMA, FOR THE “BOOKS OF THE CENTURY” SERIES; DIANA BRYAN IN HER STUDIO. OPPOSITE: AN ILLUSTRATION OF THE HOTEL NEW HAMPSHIRE FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW.

Photo: Hillary Harvey

Diana Bryan

DIANA BRYAN TALKS ABOUT HER WORK THE STORYTELLING TRADITION

COLLABORATION

A MUTANT ART FORM

I’m basically a storyteller in the tradition of Daumier and the Grünwald altarpiece, and Red Grooms—they were all storytellers. A lot of the artists hired by the Works Progress Administration were realistic and told stories. Many of them did murals. A lot of the great painters of the ‘30s, ‘40s ‘50s were storytellers. Then it became fashionable in the earlyto mid-‘50s to become abstract and you had the Abstract Expressionists. There’s always been a tradition of storytelling in the gallery world.

For a year I illustrated all of William Burrough’s articles for Crawdaddy. It was so much fun. I had an art director who said, “Do whatever you want.” I was lucky at the beginning of my career as an illustrator to be given respect by art directors. As an illustrator, when you’re targeting a market, you’re either looking for money or you’re looking for an ongoing relationship with someone you can collaborate with and who treats you with respect. I was very lucky to find art directors who liked my sense of humor and social conscience and let me be wildly creative.

I’ve created a mutant art form. I’m using the lowest technology, which is paper cutouts, with the highest technology, which is digital. I’m influenced by very sophisticated artists and very primitive ones in popular culture. I love comic books, cartoons, and animation. I’ve combined all the things I’ve loved, and I think that’s what creative people do. I’m not the only paper cutout artist or silhouette artist, but my work doesn’t look like anyone else’s.

36 PORTFOLIO

Diana Bryan views her work as a hybrid between social activism, cultural anthropology, whimsy, and humor. Through exquisitely detailed paper cutouts, Bryan has illustrated for Rolling Stone and the Wall Street Journal, among other media and corporate clients, and has won awards for her animation for Rabbit Ears Video. Bryan’s most ambitious project to date was for the New York Public Library’s “Books of the Century” exhibit in 1995. Bryan was commissioned to create 13 massive paper cutout murals illustrating 50 of the books in the exhibit, including The Joy of Cooking, Invisible Man, and The Metamorphosis. From these and other paper cutouts, Bryan has fabricated laser-cut stainless steel replicas of her work, three of which are on permanent display at the Colony Café in Woodstock. A selection of Bryan’s paper cutouts and steel sculptures, “From Whimsy to Macabre,” will be exhibited through November 10 at the Café with Love, 85 Partition St., Saugerties. (845) 246-1795; www.dianabryan.com. —Brian K. Mahoney

ILLUSTRATION VS. FINE ART

ARTISTS AND THE COMMUNITY

YIDDISH

The line [between illustration and fine art] usually falls when you die, when your work is elevated to fine art. ToulouseLautrec was an illustrator for the sex, drugs, and rock and roll joints of his generation and he was looked down upon. But now he’s in all the big museums. It helped his career that he died. I don’t subscribe to that theory. When an artist is doing something really exciting, if it’s reproduced in a magazine it’s an illustration, if it’s on a wall it’s a painting. I don’t think your thought process is different.

Artists are the luckiest people in the world. If you’re creative, you have a kind of work that you can do that fills you with joy. And the ones who feel that they are supposed to suffer and be self-destructive—I don’t buy into that; I think that’s bad brainwashing. I subscribe to the theory that creative people are making themselves happy, and hopefully other people happy, doing a kind of work that they love. If you’ve been smart enough to figure out how to get paid to do your creative work, I think it’s a great gift; and you have an ethical responsibility to give back to the community.

At the moment I’m writing and illustrating a pseudo-Yiddish folk tale. I love the humor in the Yiddish language and I feel very depressed about the fact that it’s disappearing. What I’m working on is kind of an autobiographical Yiddish folk tale with my favorite Yiddish words, like knibble. Knibble is [Bryan crumples a piece of paper in her hands] this. Anything that is all scrunched and funky.

PORTFOLIO 37

Lucid Dreaming BY BETH E. WILSON

Going Native

ovember has been designated—with more than a little irony—as Native American

Native Americans). The contrasting political significance of their respective cultural reenactments

Heritage Month. Given the bloody, genocidal history of this country’s engagement with

charges both images in ways that would be unthinkable without Piperno’s pairing strategy.

the continent’s indigenous populations, I suppose the least we can do now is to set aside a month to appreciate them, giving thanks for Thanksgiving, I guess.

But this is no grim, intellectual, “politically correct” exercise. The thickly layered irony opens up more than a little humor, as well. The somewhat ludicrously overstuffed figure of Captain,

An exhibition of work by two photographers—Kingston’s own Lauren Piperno, and Rhode

Colonial Regiment, who fills the frame the way he fills out his military tunic, is paired with a Pawnee

Island-based Annu Palakunnathu Matthew—opens this month at Ramapo College’s Berrie Center

man in traditional garb seen from farther away, almost receding into the landscape behind him.

in Mahwah, New Jersey. Both bodies of work raise interesting and necessary questions about our

The humor comes largely at the white man’s expense (pun intended), but it’s a way to rebalance

understanding of Native Americans, both “then” and now, and larger questions about the whole

the scales a bit, to puncture the bubble of the white worldview that was the primary source of

issue of how culture functions to define itself and its “others.” This exhibition makes driving down

trouble for the Native Americans in the first place.

to Mahwah well worth the trip.

Or, to use a more politically incorrect term, the Indians. Back in 1492, at the beginning of

Piperno’s work, exhibited locally two years ago at the Coffey Gallery in Kingston,

the European invasion, Christopher Columbus got himself a bit mixed up on the voyage across

involves an unlikely pairing of images—on the left, Revolutionary War reenactors, and on the

the Atlantic, and when he landed on the island of Hispaniola (today’s Haiti and the Dominican

right, contemporary Native Americans gathered at various locations throughout New York,

Republic), he thought he’d landed on the eastern shore of the Asian subcontinent, and so he

photographed at their tribal powwows. The strength of this work lies in its troubling juxtaposition:

dubbed the natives he found there “Indians.”

we are presented with two groups of people, both ritualistically attempting to connect with their

This bit of colonialist misapprehension has snowballed over the years into greater and

people’s pasts, but the victory of one group (the Revolutionary-era colonists, who, by the way,

greater confusion, especially now that global travel and immigration have become so frequent.

lifted many of the leading democratic principles in our Constitution and elsewhere from the

Photographer Annu Palakunnathu Matthew, the daughter of Indian immigrants in the UK, has

Iroquois Confederacy and other tribal groups) ultimately spelled the downfall of the other (the

now herself migrated to the US, raising all sorts of strange and confused questions for her, as she

38 LUCID DREAMING

2005©Lauren Piperno

ABOVE: BURNING OF KINGSTON AND SENECA DANCER FROM THE “LIVING HISTORY” SERIES BY LAUREN PIPERNO; OPPOSITE: QUANNAH PARKER BY C.M. BELL AND ANNU PALAKUNNATHU MATTHEW BY A.P. MATTHEW

recounts on her website (www.annumatthew.com):

ethnographic images, Annu Matthew turns the whole

“As an immigrant, I am often questioned about

distorted, Eurocentric worldview on its head by

where I am ‘really from.’ When I say that I am Indian, I

recreating the subjects, substituting her own image

often have to clarify that I am an Indian from India. Not

for the original sitter’s. By the ingenious use of digital

an American-Indian, but rather an Indian-American,

editing technology, her new self-portraits reproduce

South-Asian Indian, or even an Indian-Indian. It seems

the same background, the same furniture, and often the

strange that all this confusion started because Christopher

same props that appeared in the original photograph,

Columbus thought he had found India and called the native

critically turning the conversation into one between two

people of America collectively ‘Indians.’”

varieties of “other” in the process—her own Indian face

Out of this odd circumstance, Matthew has brilliantly

stands in for, and on a certain level identifies, with the

taken on the whole enchilada—in addition to the cross-

Native American, and the two images together challenge

cultural stupidity, she goes after the romanticized

the univocal cultural calculus that would simply classify

mythology imposed on the exotic, the foreign, and

them both as “other.”

indigenous people, in particular—with a photographic

Oh, and like many of Piperno’s pairs, they’re funny,

project that also pairs images to deeply dialectical (and

too. In one set, a fearsome brave, seen in majestic

often comic) effect.

three-quarter view, prominently displays an eagle

In An Indian from India, Matthew started by doing

feather dangling from his head. The pose of this Feather

archival research through the photographic collections

Indian, as the photographer has labeled him, is copied

at the Library of Congress. There she dug up a

in Matthew’s self-portrait version, but with one key

number of 19th- and early-20th-century photographs

difference—instead of the feather, a large Hindu marking

that documented American Indians of various tribes,

decorates her head—and has been given the quite logical

genders, and ages. The most well-known photographer

(and unexpectedly hilarious) title of Dot Indian.

of this genre was Edward S. Curtis, whose 20-volume

The humor and easy, self-deprecating wit with

The North American Indian catalogued its subject in over

which Matthew skewers the racial stereotypes and white

2,000 photogravures of more than 80 tribes. Curtis

cultural assumptions that have constructed this unlikely

saw his project as a means to preserve photographically

minefield of cultural meaning is the key to her project.

this “vanishing race,” which, as he saw it, was about to

There’s something exceedingly disarming about laughter;

disappear in the early 20th century, just as the Western

it’s got a potential for revolutionary energy and change

frontier had closed in the late 19th.

that not nearly enough of the boring, liberal, politically

Curtis’s romanticized view of the eminent

correct set have ever dared to turn loose. When we turn

disappearance of the “noble savage” was not entirely

our backs on the value of a good belly laugh at the status

accurate, of course. In case you hadn’t noticed, there

quo, we’re ignoring one of our most valuable agents for

are still Native Americans surviving and keeping their

change. It’s to Piperno and Matthew’s credit that we

culture alive today. (See Lauren Piperno’s work for

can look at their photographs to laugh—and learn—at

documentary evidence.) Starting with these dubious

the same time.

“IN SEARCH OF OTHER HISTORIES,” PHOTOGRAPHS BY LAUREN PIPERNO AND ANNU PALAKUNNATHU MATTHEW, IS ON VIEW NOVEMBER 9 THROUGH DECEMBER 16 AT THE BERRIE CENTER MAIN

��

GALLERY, RAMAPO COLLEGE, MAHWAH, NJ. (201) 684-7147; VISIT www.ramapo.edu/berriecenter.

LUCID DREAMING 39

gallery directory

galleries ALBANY INSTITUTE OF HISTORY AND ART

CENTER FOR PHOTOGRAPHY AT WOODSTOCK

125 WASHINGTON AVENUE, ALBANY. (518) 463-4478.

59 TINKER STREET, WOODSTOCK. 679-9957.

“Rodin.” Obsession-Sculpture from the Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Foundation. Through December 31.

“Fear and Hope.” Photos by Bushwick Farms. November 5-December 18.

“Food of the Gods.” The purchase, preparation, and consumption of chocolate. Through April 28.

“The Vigil.” Photos by Doug DuBois. November 5-December 18.

“Excavating Egypt.” Through June 4.

Reception Saturday, November 5, 5-7pm.

“Dearly Departed.” November 1-January 6.

CLARK ART INSTITUTE ALBERT SHAHINIAN FINE ART 196-198 MAIN STREET, POUGHKEEPSIE. 454-0522.

“Howard Knots: A Retrospective in Memoriam.” “Margaret Crenson-Recent Paintings.” Through November 13. “4 x 4- Four Solo Exhibits in Gallery.” November 19-December 31. Opening Saturday, November 19, 4-7pm.

ALDRICH CONTEMPORARY ART MUSEUM 258 MAIN STREET, RIDGEFIELD, CT. (203) 438-4519.

225 SOUTH STREET, WILLIAMSTOWN, MA. (413) 458-2303.

“50 Favorites.” 50 works of art follow the Institute’s 50 years history. Through May 17. “The Clark: Celebrating 50 Years of Art in Nature.” Through September 4. “Winslow Homer: Making Art, Making History.” Through January 16.

COFFEY GALLERY 330 WALL STREET, KINGSTON. 339-6105.

“Fred Wilson: Black Like Me.”

“Steve Kerner: A Retrospective 1981-2005.” November 5-November 27.

“Lisa Sigal: A House of Many Mansions.” Through January 8.

Opening Saturday, November 5, 5-7pm.

“Radius: Emerging Artists from Connecticut and Southeastern New York.” November 5-November 20. Opening Saturday, November 5, 2-3:30pm.

THE ART UPSTAIRS

COLLABORATIVE CONCEPTS 211 FISHKILL AVENUE, BEACON. 528-1797.

“Flow: Navigating the Super Paradigm.” Curated by Karlos Cárcamo. Through November 13.

60 MAIN STREET, PHEONICIA. 688-2142.

“Group Show.” Through November 20.

5 ALBANY AVENUE, KINDERHOOK. (518) 758-9265.

ATHENS CULTURAL CENTER

“Gallery of Wreaths.” November 24-December 23.

24 SECOND ST, ATHENS. (518) 943-3400.

“Small Works Show.” November 26-December 11. Opening Saturday, November 26, 7-9pm.

DEBORAH DAVIS FINE ARTS 345 WARREN STREET, HUDSON. (518) 822-1890.

“Works on Paper.” Through November 13.

BAU 161 MAIN STREET, BEACON. 591-2331.

“Light Work Lights.” Photography exhibit. Through November 6.

BCB ART 116 WARREN STREET, HUDSON. (518) 828-4539.

“Modern Day.” New artwork by Rodney Alan Greenblat. Through November 13.

BEACON FIREHOUSE GALLERY 162 MAIN STREET, BEACON. 679-8825.

“Transparency.” Group show. Through January 14.

BONNIE ANDRETTA FINE ART, INC.

“Small Treasures III.” Group show. November 7-December 31. Reception Saturday, November 19, 6-8pm.

DIA 3 BEEKMAN STREET, BEACON. 440-0100.

“Dia’s Andy: Through the Lens of Patronage.” Works by Andy Warhol. “In and Out of Place: Louise Lawler and Andy Warhol.” Includes images of work by Andy Warhol. “Vera Lutter: Nabisco Factory, Beacon.” 4 large scale pinhole photographs of the factory. Through April 10. “Agnes Martin’s Early Paintings 1957-67.” Through December 1.

415 WARREN STREET, HUDSON. (518) 828-1024.

EXPOSED GALLERY OF ART PHOTOGRAPHY

“The Glorious Kaaterskill Clove.” New paintings by Thomas Locker. Through November 30.

318 DELAWARE AVENUE, DELMAR. (518) 475-1853.

CARRIE HADDAD GALLERY 609 WARREN STREET, HUDSON. (518) 526-2999.

“New Art Exhibits.” Jane Bloodgood-Abrams, Ed McCartan, Phillip Schwartz, Marlene Wiendenbaum, Danny Garcia de Alejandro. November 1-December 17.

gallery directory

COLUMBIA COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY

“Lens Gumbo Redux.” November 26-January 3.

FAMILY NETWORK CHIROPRACTIC 223 HURLEY AVENUE, KINGSTON. 338-3888.

“Photos by Amy Fenton-Shine.” November 5-December 10.

Reception Saturday, November 12, 6-8pm.

Opening Saturday, November 5, 5-8pm.

THE CATSKILL GALLERY

FENIMORE ART MUSEUM

106 PARTITION STREET, SAUGERTIES. 256-5552.

ROUTE 80, LAKE ROAD, COOPERSTOWN. (888) 547-1450.

“Snapshots: Post-Expressionist Portraits.” Rebecca Hendrie. Through November 30.

“Eugene & Claire Thaw Collection of American Indian Art.” Through December 31.

CATSKILL MOUNTAIN FOUNDATION ART GALLERY

FRANCES LEHMAN LOEB ART CENTER

MAIN STREET, HUNTER. (518) 263-4908 EXT. 211.

VASSAR COLLEGE, POUGHKEEPSIE. 437-5632.

“Unearthed.” A celebration of sculptural and functional ceramic arts. Through November 13.

“Danish Paintings of the 19th Century.” Rarely seen Danish works. Through December 18.

galleries GALERIE BMG 12 TANNERY BROOK ROAD, WOODSTOCK. 679-0027.

“Coastal Pinholes.” Martha Casanave. Through November 7.

KLYNE ESOPUS MUSEUM ROUTE 9W, ULSTER PARK. 338-8109.

“Esopus Goes to War: 1941-1945.” Through November 30.

“Rick Jelovsek: Pictorial Landscapes.” November 11-December 12. Opening Saturday, November 12, 5-7pm.

GALLERY AT DEEP LISTENING SPACE 73 BROADWAY, KINGSTON. 338-5984.

THE LIVINGROOM 45 NORTH FRONT STREET, KINGSTON. 338-8353.

“Seeing in the Forest.” New work by Chris Gonyea. November 5-December 31. Opening Saturday, November 5, 6-9pm.

“A Multi-Media Exhibition.” Shirley Panton Parker, Omar Parker ,Gorka Marquez Vilata. Through December 31.

M GALLERY 350 MAIN STREET, CATSKILL. (518) 943-0380.

THE GALLERY AT R & F 506 BROADWAY, KINGSTON. 331-3112.

“Sentient Animals.” New encaustic paintings by Jan Harrison. Through November 26.

“American Tonalism: Poetically Correct.” Patrick Milbourn. Through November 30.

MARK GRUBER GALLERY NEW PALTZ PLAZA, NEW PALTZ. 255-1241.

GALLERY AT WORK 268 FAIR STREET, KINGSTON. 331-5057.

“Painting the Town.” 25 artists paint the streets of New Paltz. Through November 30.

“Painted Stories.” Works by Stacey Flint. Through November 1.

MAXWELL FINE ARTS GARRISON ART CENTER 23 GARRISON LANDING, GARRISON. 424-3960.

“Peter Clark’s Last Works.”

1204 MAIN STREET, PEEKSKILL. (914) 788-7166.

“All Over the Place: Genesis.” Mixed media sculpture by Lori Nozick. Through November 20.

gallery directory

“Late Work by Peter Clark.” “Beth Bolgla.” Through November 13.

MILDRED I. WASHINGTON ART GALLERY

GCCA CATSKILL GALLERY

“Vigilancia Estetica or Aesthetic Surveillance.” Through November 15.

398 MAIN STREET, CATSKILL. (518) 943 -3400.

“Stuart M. Eichel.” Colorful paintings of historic firehouses, fire trucks captured in small towns around the northeast.

HUDSON VALLEY ARTISANS SECONDS SALE

Colony Arts Cafe

22 Rock City Road Woodstock, NY Fri. Nov. 25th, 2005 11:00 to 5:00

“Fire!” Artworks about fire and firefighting. Through November 12. “Salon 2005: Small Works Exhibition.” November 19-January 14. Opening Saturday, November 19, 5-7pm.

GCCA MOUNTAINTOP GALLERY

RKING N A P E E FR MISSIO D A E E FR PEN CAFE O

For more information call 845-657-2059

“About Light.” November 21-December 13.

MODO GALLERY 506 WARREN STREET, HUDSON. (518) 828-5090.

“Then and Now.” Ken Polinskie. November 6-December 31. Opening Saturday, November 5, 5-8pm.

5348 MAIN STREET, WINDHAM. (518) 734-3104.

“Catskills Crafts, Catskills Colors.” Through November 6.

MORGAN LEHMAN GALLERY

“Holiday in the Mountains.” Crafts exhibition and sale. November 12-January 8.

24 SHARON ROAD, LAKEVILLE, CT. (860) 435-0898.

Opening Saturday, November 12, Call for times.

“From Time to Time.” Steven Sorman. Through November 6.

“Migrators.” Works by Karl Saliter. Through November 13.

HADDAD LASCANO GALLERY 297 MAIN STREET, GREAT BARRINGTON, MA. (413) 528-0471.

“Kathy Burge and John Cross.” Contemporary paintings, sculpture and carvings. Through December 4.

MORRISON GALLERY 5 MAPLE STREET, KENT, CT. (860) 927-4501.

“Sculpture.” Peter Woytuk. Through November 3.

HIPPOCRATES GALLERY 506 BROADWAY, KINGSTON. (914) 338-4630.

Amazing prices on seconds and discontinued Items: Ceramics Glass Clothing Painted silk Fiber Arts Jewelry

DUTCHESS COUNTY COMMUNITY COLLEGE, POUGHKEEPSIE. 431-8622.

“Group Show.” Kristine Carlson, Hanna Mandelbaum, Joel Mandelbaum, Bruce Moor. Through November 27.

HUDSON VALLEY CENTER FOR CONTEMPORARY ART 1701 MAIN STREET, PEEKSKILL. (914) 788-7166.

“Figure it Out.” Sculpture and video. “Nostalgia.” November 1-March 31.

MUSEUM OF THE HUDSON HIGHLANDS FARMHOUSE GALLERY, KENRIDGE FARM, CORNWALL. 534-5506 EXT. 204.

“Hidden Treasures of the Hudson Valley.” Through December 31.

OPEN STUDIO 403 MAIN STREET, CATSKILL. (518) 943-9531.

“Stories.” Mixed media works that tell a story. November 1-November 30.

KARPELES MANUSCRIPT LIBRARY MUSEUM 94 BROADWAY, NEWBURGH. 569-4997.

PEARL

“Pastel Paintings by Clayton Buchanan.” November 1-November 30.

3572 MAIN STREET, STONE RIDGE. 687-0888.

Reception Sunday, November 6, 4-6pm.

“Sacred Webs and Lyrical Coils.” Debora Muhl and Ruth Wetzel. Through December 3.

KIESENDAHL+CALHOUN ART GALLERY

PHOTONEWBURGH

192 MAIN STREET, BEACON. 838-1177.

113 LIBERTY STREET, NEWBURGH. (646) 641-5888.

“Rouge.” Abstract paintings by Lindy Foss-Quillet. Through November 28.

“Tall Tales.” Photographs by Francois Dechamps. Through December 3.

RICHARD SENA GALLERY 238 WARREN STREET, HUDSON. (518) 828-1996.

“Objects in Mirror Are Closer Than They Appear.” Isolde Kille. “From Here On In.” Anna Cinquemani. Through November 13.

RIVERWINDS GALLERY 172 MAIN STREET, BEACON. 838-2880.

“Hudson Valley In A Box.” Elisa Pritzker. Through November 7.

SAMUEL DORSKY MUSEUM SUNY NEW PALTZ, NEW PALTZ. 257-3844.

“Nianhua.” Chinese New Year prints from the 19th and 20th centuries. Through November 6. “Images in the Heavens, Patterns on the Earth: The I Ching.” Through November 20. “Juxtapositions: Selections from the Metals Collection.” Through December 11.

ST. JAMES EPISCOPAL CHURCH 352 MAIN STREET, GREAT BARRINGTON, MA. (413) 623-2068.

“Sculpture Now.” Outdoor sculpture exhibit. Through August 23.

STORM KING ART CENTER OLD PLEASANT HILL ROAD, MOUNTAINVILLE. 534-3115.

“Richard Bellany and Mark di Suervo.” Through November 13.

TIME AND SPACE LIMITED

“Katrina Benefit Art Show.” November 12-December 3. Opening Saturday, November 12, 6-8pm.

UNISON ARTS AND LEARNING CENTER

gallery directory

434 COLUMBIA STREET, HUDSON. (518) 822-8448.

68 MOUNTAIN REST ROAD, NEW PALTZ. 255-1559.

“Yoshikatsu Tamekane and Ichiyoh Haga.” Print maker and miniature architectural models respectively. Through November 6. “Judith Mohns & Susan Jeffers.” Photography. November 18-December 31. Opening Friday, November 18, 5am-7pm.

VAULT GALLERY 322 MAIN ST., GREAT BARRINGTON, MA (413) 644-0221.

“Mother Wit.” November 5-December 3.

WARNER GALLERY MILLBROOK SCHOOL, MILLBROOK. 677-8261 EXT. 132.

“A Comfortable Place.” November 5-December 10. Opening Saturday, November 5, 5-7pm.

WOODSTOCK ARTISTS ASSOCIATION 28 TINKER ST, WOODSTOCK. 679-2940.

“The Art Spirit.” Artists’ writings on art with their paintings, prints, and sculpture. November 5-January 8. Opening Saturday, November 5, 4-6pm.

YELLOW BIRD GALLERY 19 FRONT ST., NEWBURGH. 561-7204.

“The Tree Series.” Paintings by Myron Polenberg. November 19-January 8. Opening Saturday, November 19, 4-7pm.

Music

BY SHARON NICHOLS

The Sound of Thought Sara Ayers Drifts on Dark Waves

n the dream, I’m alone. The darkened sky is heavy, thick with ominous, low-hanging clouds, an eerie yellowish light in the distance. As far as I can see, black concrete covers the earth.

Far away, a lone building stands. It is my destination. But I’m blown about by a strange wind, twirling, arms outstretched and stiff, braced against the gust. I slowly march onward, in silence, one arduous step at a time. Will I ever get there?

I had this dream the same week I gave Sara Ayers’s latest recording a first listen. She describes A Million Stories as the sound of thoughts. I understand what she means. Explicitly. As a fan of Darkwave, Ethereal, and Ambient music myself—Steve Roach, Vidna Obmana, Black Tape for a Blue Girl, et al.—I began a romance with the dark beauty of this genre in my twenties, feeling blessed to have discovered record labels such as 4AD and Projekt. Ayers uses paraphrased words from one master of this music, Brian Eno, to nail the sensation behind it. “If you think of music like a painting, a landscape with no person in it, you’re free to think what you want about it,” she begins. “But as soon as there’s a person in it, it directs your thoughts. You start thinking about what that person is doing. If you create music without standard lyrics, it belongs more to the listener than to the composer. The 44 MUSIC

listener creates the narrative, and it becomes a soundtrack to your own thoughts. I adore that. It’s so important to me.” SARA AYERS A self-taught musician, Albany-based Ayers played guitar and wrote folk and pop songs as a teen, then started singing in punk, rock, and power-pop bands. Though she still loves those genres, she eventually found that she couldn’t create that music anymore; it was too ego-driven. Another reason she became bored with rock and pop was because of time limitations. Their songs were three- and four-minute creatures and she wanted to do something more symphonic. She’d been exploring Eno and Ultravox since the early 1980s and knew that eventually she’d be going down a similar vein. It would fall into place when the time was right. Now is that time. A Million Stories, released this year on Dark Wood Recordings, is an experimental, surreal, 38-minute, 27-second tone poem. The title comes from the first spoken words in the piece, whispered—much in the way Laurie Anderson would have it—over a dark wash of a single low note: “Begin at the beginning. There are a million stories. And just one.” “The most important story to me is my own,” Ayers explains. “I might appreciate

and be enthralled by other people’s stories, but the most important thing is to work on my own story. That’s the only thing I have control over.” Ayers hits the bottom of her vocal range in an eerie chant, followed by the sound of wings in dissonance. Starlings in flight. There are unidentified voices. Children. She sings from a deserted place. “You alone will tell the tale. You alone know the road you came on...all I want is for you to remember me...” Eerie chants, a collage of voices, speaking, soaring over dusky hypnotic harmonics, crackling. “I could grow wings,” she whispers, hopefully. Textured with urgent spoken voices, the streamof-consciousness piece floats back into a dark hall of discord. There’s nothing comforting in these layers. She explains in her composer notes: “I don’t know what your thoughts sound like. My thoughts, when I’m not concentrating on something, tend to be all over the map. I hear echoes of the last phrase I spoke aloud, mixed in with pieces of melodies, a small amount of tinnitus (which I’ve had since I was a child, due to some ear surgery), and random musings about this or that. Not very organized or structured, I’m afraid.” On A Million Stories, she occasionally samples from a few of her many previous recordings—Sylvatica, Voices. A third of the way into the dark drifting, the listener is awash with a beautiful waterfall of clapping sticks, a series of samples recorded in stereo and triple-tracked. “I have a sound garden,” the artist expounds. “I live in the country and I had this big pile of junk and started making wind chimes out of it. There’s a tree that’s rather deformed—it’s got a lot of low, big branches, and I started hanging all these self-made wind chimes—gongs made from the tops of barrels, metal tops. And you know those hobbyhorses that are on springs and a frame? My husband’s been collecting those for over 20 years. He takes them off the frame and hangs them up in the trees in our backyard, painted white. There are about 40 of them. When he takes the frames apart, there are those sticks you put your feet on. I have about 50 of those hung up on this tree. I went out and recorded it. It was really serendipitous.” Clacking sticks are followed by a flock of crows, trucks on a highway, a series of paranoid, whispered voices over electronica that emerged from the bottom of an ocean. “Did you see anything? It’s just a trick of the light. There could be someone here watching. What are you afraid of? We have no control over any of this. Why are you so helpless? Did you hear that? Someone crying? I don’t deserve this. None of us do. I think you’re all alone here.” Ayers fully understands that this recording is not for everyone. “The weirder your music is, there’s only a small slice of an audience out there that it will resonate with. I can accept that. It’s great, actually. I tend not to be too pretty, because with a female voice there’s this tendency to go into a pretty motif. There’s nothing wrong with that, but

the focus of what I’m working on right now is this razor edge between pretty and noise. There’s this ineffable thing, this feeling I’m trying to capture. Maybe it’s the anxiety of the times we live in. It really resonates for me.” Her work apparently resonates with the Chemical Brothers, as they have sampled her work for their latest album, Push the Button. VH-1 also snatched some samples for a “Behind the Music” spot, and the Russian electronic trio Figura recorded an entire album called The Sara Ayers Remixes. Descriptions of Ayers’s recent brand of music is sure to conjure up images of the Goth crowd. “People always make fun of Goths for being so GUTHRIE gloomy and stuff,” she says, “but IARLO ran the sound system at the QE2 nightclub [in Albany] for a couple years, and my rule of thumb was the darker and scarier the band looked, the nicer and sunnier they were to work with. They were easy, friendly, and happy, whereas the people who came in who wrote these more straight-ahead, happy, pop songs were a real pain in the butt. It’s like, what’s buried in your basement?” Not all of Ayers’s symphonic electronica is dark. The light and lovely CD Drowning in Light, and the tracks “Winter” and “Sound of Nothing” from Sylvatica are nothing like the darker Interiors, and now, A Million Stories. “I haven’t been able to tell yet whether my work has two disparate audiences or one very broad-minded one,” she says. Now back in graduate school, Ayers doesn’t have much time for performing, referring to gigs as a “timesink.” But she couldn’t resist performing on Sunday, November 6, at an event organized by Suzanne Thorpe (formerly of Mercury Rev). Ayers will present a 10-minute piece for the Edison Media Project: Groove Xchange at the Schenectady Museum (www.schenectadymuseum.org), recorded for the first time on Edison-style wax cylinders. “Schenectady is the home of GE,” she says. “They have a lot of esoteric, historical electronic equipment there. This day of interesting electronic music will be recorded on wax cylinder. It’s one of the earliest recording media, similar to playing a vinyl disc, but it’s a cylinder rather than a platter. You have a two- or three-minute limit on them. It’s so ancient that there aren’t a lot of people who have even heard of it. I love that we’re coming in with all this new technology and creating sound, then recording it with obsolete technology. There’s something about it that sits on my brain quite nicely.” Ayers will also curate an art series in January and February at the Chapel and Cultural Center at Rensselaer in Troy, (www.rpi.edu/web/C+CC/ ccc/ccc.html) combining works by 20 artists—multimedia, film, flash animation, and performance. As the wheel of the year turns deeper into its dark half, it is time to turn inward. Pick up A Million Stories on Ayers’s website for $10 and listen to the sound of your thoughts, if you dare. MUSIC 45

NIGHTLIFE HIGHLIGHTS Handpicked by local scene-maker DJ WAVY DAVY for your listening pleasure.

JEREMY BAUM TRIO November 4. Baum has matured from Rosendale Street Fest phenom to serious sideman, recently scooped up by blues steamroller Shemekia Copeland for a world tour. As if that weren’t enough, Baum plays keyboards on Copeland’s new CD, The Soul Truth (Alligator), produced by mythical MG/Blues Brother Steve Cropper. Instead of sleeping in, Baum revs up his local trio for another session at Mike Quick’s Corner Stage. (Quick’s own band rules Thursdays, Dean Scala returns Friday, November 11, and Little Sammy Davis wails on the 18th.) 10pm. $5. Middletown. 845-342-4804. WWW.CORNERSTAGE.COM

GIRL HOWDY November 5. They’re Girl Howdy, and they’re gonna get rowdy at this Hudson honky-tonk (aka Time and Space Limited.) A “retro-twang” combo that covers legends like Hank Williams, Kitty Wells, and the Davis Sisters, Girl Howdy (Paula Bradley, Betsy-Dawn Williams, Emma O’Donnell, and Rose Sinclair) delivers tight vocal harmonies, punchy arrangements, and above all, a killer collection of matching Western shirts! Look and listen at http://girlhowdyband.com. 8pm. $10, $7.50 students/members. Hudson. (518) 822-8448. WWW.TIMEANDSPACE.ORG

FIRST SUNDAY W/ STUDIO STU November 6. Nothing like a bohemian bookstore when it shakes off the dust for a party. Eschewing the First Saturday scene (but still a proud ASK member,) the Hudson Valley Book Stop in the King’s Mall has been quietly presenting alternative events with allure. On Sunday the 6th artist Jacquie Roland opens her month-long show with jazz chameleon Studio Stu, who promises “art, music, food, drink, and merriment.” (Shyla O’Shea reads Tarot cards every Tuesday, 5:30-8:30pm.) 2pm. Free. Kingston. (845) 336-6450. WWW.STUDIOSTU.BIZ

THE CHARMS November 11. Favorites of rocker/actor/radio host Little Steven, the Charms make their Hudson Valley debut at the Colony Café thanks to promoter/producer Stacy Fine. This live five-piece features lead siren Kit Kina on the organ, and a new Charms song, “Pussycat,” is featured in the trailer for the new Jim Jarmusch film Broken Flowers. Behind the high-energy show, experience the work of live video artist Jim C. and groove to Nugget the DJ when the band breaks. 10pm. Woodstock. (845) 679-5342. WWW.THECHARMS.NET

BETTY MACDONALD’S JAZZ GREATS November 13. Macdonald should never be overlooked in the context of Hudson Valley jazz, having performed with just about everyone who’s anyone. Here, Saugerties Pro Musica lets Macdonald pick a dream band, comprised of Warren Bernhardt on piano, John Menegon on bass, and the legendary Joe Beck on guitar. They’ll perform standards and selections from Macdonald’s 2004 CD Dream Come True at the First Congregational Church, and refreshments will be served. (The Flying Fiddlers land December 4.) 3pm. $10, students/kids free. Saugerties. (845) 246-5021.

DEREK TRUCKS BAND/MOFRO November 17. Derek, son of long-time Allmans drummer Butch Trucks, started his slide guitar apprenticeship early, joining the family band onstage by age 12. His own ensemble has a more subtle sensibility, guided by an astute repertoire of ragas, reggae, and jam-band soul. The Allmans were everything good about Southern rock, whereas Derek leaves room for the north, east, and west. Opener Mofro’s latest release, Lochloosa, (Swampland), was shepherded by Robert Randolph. 7pm. $27.50, 22.50. Poughkeepsie. (845) 473-2072. WWW.BARDAVON.ORG

THE NILLAZ/INSANE SHANE MCKANE November 18. Hot indie band the Nillaz earned their stripes this summer with 40-plus shows nationwide on the Vans Warped Tour. After a quick breather, they’re back with one stop locally at Forum Lounge. The music, described as “Krunk Rock,” combines the sneer of the Beastie Boys with a groove like the Chili Peppers. Opening act country rapper Insane Shane McKane and his Trailer Park Honeys can churn up a stage like country butter. (Dean Scala funks up the Forum Nov. 23.) 9pm. $5. Kingston. (845) 331-1116. WWW.FORUMLOUNGE.COM

46 MUSIC

CD REVIEWS GRAHAM PARKER: SONGS OF NO CONSEQUENCE BLOODSHOT RECORDS, 2005

Don’t be misled by British punk pioneer Graham Parker’s new album title, Songs of No Consequence. Judging by this raw, evocative record, he isn’t letting his life in the scenic Hudson Valley mellow him out in the least.

Featuring the Figgs, his long-time cohorts (and former Capital region rockers), Songs of No Consequence is vintage Parker with a current-events twist. From the “bah bah, ba bah” chorus of “Bad Chardonnay” to the “nah nah, na nah nah nah” of “There’s Nothing on the Radio,” his honest, brutal rock and roll lives. Who else would admit he’s “Seen this mighty continent from the backseat of a van / where the scenery just disappears / like the members of your band”? There’s not a contrived bone in his body, and as always with Parker, these are songs of consequence. The media-bashing “Vanity Press” hits home, as does the resigned “Ambivalent,” but it’s the harddriving “Did Everybody Just Get Old?” that leads to yet another issue—who made the rule that you had to be 20 years old to be on the charts and be relevant? They must not have known Graham Parker. www.grahamparker.net. —David Malachowski

WATER WITCH: WATER WITCH ANGELFLY RECORDS, 2005

The debut CD by the Woodstock-based band Water Witch is both inspired and also aspires to be original in an unoriginal era.

Combining acoustic and folk sounds with rock, and even jazz, ambient, and improvisational styles, and wrapping it around poetics of yearning, learning, and unfolding spirituality, the music is emotional, physical, and rhythmically driven. With his bandmates, singer/ songwriter Leland Door (also known as Evergreen Inn owner Theodore Finkle) creates a musical depiction of Mother Nature and Earth discussing the modern world, human life, and our impact on all things. The mystical, magical, and often-maligned universe is manifest throughout the album in chant-like meditations, soaring hawks, love, ancient lore, and the inner truth we all seek. Water Witch is a great band to see live, or simply to hear on your own. Far beyond, it is a haunting release of mountain soul. For more information, call (845) 254-5392. —Ian Cunningham

SUTTLE: IN A SLINKY STYLE SUTTLE, 2005

Tim Sutton and Mike Tuttle, whose past and current projects include Wooden Rope, Goblet, and Ratboy, combine their vocal/production gusto as Suttle and wave it in your face on In a Slinky Style.

These two musical magnates soak up everything and grate it finely, bringing you the alchemical distillate of their hip-hop, rock, drum and bass, and dub influences. Sutton’s vocals bounce between written verse and freestyle, always leaving you guessing which is which. Tuttle’s beats and loops weave scratchy guitars, leftfield samples, choruses of children, and Sutton’s answering machine in an inspired call-and-response. Tripped-out tracks like “Maybe It’s Because” or “U-Turn” echo Suttle vocals over wah-wah guitar sequences and retro rhythms a la Sly Stone or Al Green. Funky cameos include long-time Sutton pals Matt Senzatimore on drums and Shane Kirsch on saxophone. The project, recorded over a year at Tuttle Sound Labs in Kingston, is less an experiment and more a nod to influential bands like Gorillaz, Beck, Thievery Corporation, et al. But In a Slinky Style remixes the flow and puts the “fun” back in “funk.” —DJ Wavy Davy MUSIC 47

Books

ALTOGETHER NOW: ONE BOOK, ONE NEW PALTZ “IT WAS SEVEN MINUTES AFTER MIDNIGHT. THE DOG WAS LYING IN THE GRASS IN THE MIDDLE OF THE LAWN IN FRONT OF MRS. SHEAR’S HOUSE. ITS EYES WERE CLOSED. IT LOOKED AS IF IT WAS RUNNING ON ITS SIDE, THE WAY DOGS RUN WHEN THEY THINK THEY ARE CHASING A CAT IN A DREAM. BUT THE DOG WAS NOT RUNNING OR ASLEEP. THE DOG WAS DEAD.”

o begins Mark Haddon’s The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time (Vintage, 2003), a story narrated by Christopher Boone, a fictional 15year-old mathematical genius with Asperger’s syndrome (a form of autism), who lives outside of London and admires Sherlock Holmes. Who committed canine homicide and why? All over New Paltz, readers want to know. The town has adopted this offbeat murder mystery as the centerpiece of “One Book,” a community-wide reading celebration with scheduled events unfolding this month (November 1-7) in various locations around the village. According to project coordinator Rachel Rigolino, “One cannot imagine a better choice for a town as singular as the narrator of Haddon’s book.” Christopher’s tale, which he was assigned to write by a school counselor as a type of therapy, ironically yet poignantly examines human universals (e.g., love, family ties, survival, and fear). The resulting novel experiments with literary perspective, ingeniously blending genres and including letters, pictorial diagrams, and logic. Chapters count up in prime numbers (as opposed to a cardinal sequence) to reflect the narrator’s fascination with mathematics; ditto for the appendix, which contains a math proof. “It’s such a weird, funny, quirky, cool, neat little bestseller—just like New Paltz,” offers Celeste Cleary, the publicity coordinator. One Book programs, inaugurated by Pauline Uchmanowicz photo collage by Jennifer May 48 BOOKS

by Washington Center for the Book in 1998, aim to encourage a broad spectrum of people in a single school, town, city, or region to read the same book and to participate in programs and discussions about it during a specified period. (Such reading promotions have since taken place in all 50 states as well as in communities worldwide.) But in the artsy college town of New Paltz (recently voted second on a list of “50 Best Small Towns in America” by Men’s Journal), where traditional and progressive politics meet across a fault line, One Book’s only certain outcome is unpredictability. Several town denizens simultaneously shared the idea of launching One Book locally. Cleary, a graphic designer and small-press publisher responsible for creating the project’s poster and website, carried the concept back east from her hometown of Bartlesville, Oklahoma, where she had created the logos for a similar program. This past spring, while attending a regional planning function, she talked it up with like-minded people. Gerald Benjamin, chair of One Book, One New Paltz, was among them. Dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and Professor of Political Science at SUNY New Paltz, Benjamin first learned of One Book initiatives from a novelist at a dinner party. “Some town in Ohio had adopted her book, and when she described giving a talk there and the community consequences of reading the same book, I thought it was a spectacular idea,” he recalls. “Like most college towns, New Paltz focuses too often on divisive town-gown issues like beer and taxes. I thought rather than just talk about them, we

should do something together, and that it be an intellectual endeavor, because we have a very literate town. The fundamental question became: How do you create or enhance community to get people talking to each other intellectually?” A onetime elected member of the Ulster County legislature who served between 1981 and 1993, Benjamin claims “deep feelings” about the region, as well as dismay that “something is missing” from our public discourse. For him, One Book seems related to the precepts of modern-day communitarianism, a political philosophy whose adherents assume that the principal task of government is to secure and fairly distribute liberties and economic resources to individuals. “In creating a common experience for all who live, work, and study in New Paltz—reading one book, discussing it, and considering its broader implications—One Book intends for our citizenry to think, communicate, and act together, creating a stronger community in the process,” he suggests. To launch the local reading initiative, volunteers from the college and larger New Paltz community, including members of local government, libraries, schools, and the press, convened in Benjamin’s office on a biweekly basis over the course of half a year. The committee collectively selected The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, convinced by New Paltz High School English teacher Michelle Diana of its suitability for readers of broad ages and interests. According to Benjamin, “The book has a rationale for everyone. You can discuss it with a mathematician, a sociologist, a psychologist, or a writer.” To pique participation in One Book, the first few chapters

ALL OVER NEW PALTZ, PEOPLE ARE READING THE CURIOUS INCIDENT OF THE DOG IN THE NIGHT-TIME AS PART OF THE ONE BOOK PROJECT

of Haddon’s novel were excerpted last month in the New Paltz Times, and “house” copies placed in village hangouts, including the Bakery, Village Tea Room, Mudd Puddle Cafe, Bacchus, Suds Laundromat, Art in Soul III Tattoo & Piercing, and Convenient Deli. Under the direction of coordinator Rigolino, an English professor at SUNY New Paltz and recent first-place recipient of the annual Poughkeepsie Journal Prize in Fiction, project organizers also scheduled programs that target readers who want to enrich their experience of reading Haddon’s novel, or to meet others inclined to discuss the work. Events include a number of public discussions, such as those led by Martha Afzal, professor emeritus at Dutchess Community College (at the Bakery) and Nancy DeNicolo, school psychologist (at Unison Arts Center). Bill Connors of the Mohonk Mountain Players will give a public reading from The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time at Ariel Booksellers. As sponsors of a One Book Creative Writing Contest, Chronogram will publish winning entries in its February 2006 issue. Programs scheduled on the SUNY New Paltz campus include conversations in the dorms, a workshop designed and led by Education graduate students at the Teaching and Learning Center, and “Understanding Autism: A Panel Discussion,” chaired by Dr. Jane Nofer Poskanzer and featuring keynote speaker Michael John Carley, executive director of GRASP (Global and Regional Asperger Syndrome Partnership), at Lecture Center 100. Also in LC 100, Lou Lewis of the Baker Street Irregulars will lead a discussion following a screening of the film Young Sherlock Holmes. Meanwhile, select high school and college classes

(such as one I teach, Graphic Literature) are reading Haddon’s bestseller this semester. Among her expectations for One Book, Rigolino cites the value that reading en masse potentially holds for all area residents. She adds, “But another hope I have is that people are brought together to discuss some of the book’s larger themes, such as the idea of “otherness.” Because of his autism (unnamed in the book), Christopher is isolated, not only from his community, but also from his own family. There are times in the narrative when he finds himself completely alone and, at these moments, Haddon manages to make his reader feel the terror of such isolation—but not in a heavyhanded way. In fact, the book is often humorous. Rigolino also believes that the discussion of Asperger’s syndrome, which takes place Thursday, November 3 at 7pm, “promises to be the highlight of the week.” Along with keynote speaker Carley, panelists include Jamey Wolff, director of the Children’s Annex in Kingston; Valerie Paradiz, author of the memoir Elijah’s Cup: A Family’s Journey into the Community and Culture of High-Functioning Autism and Asperger’s Syndrome; and local poet Brian Liston, who himself has autism. “Their collective level of expertise will bring yet another dimension to our community-wide reading project,” according to the coordinator. Best known in his native England as a children’s author before The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time became an overnight international sensation and won a slew of literary prizes, Haddon has some past experience working with autistic people,

though admittedly he did little formal research when creating Christopher’s character. But, curiously echoing his idiosyncratic narrator’s chief trait, lately the author has been shunning the limelight. Before he stopped granting interviews, Haddon told Dave Weich of Powell’s Books that he didn’t set out to write a novel about an autistic boy. When such a voice came to him, a more difficult puzzle presented itself. “I wanted the whole book to be in Christopher’s voice, but the paradox is that if Christopher were real he would find it very hard, if not impossible, to write a book,” he said. Some critics consequently have faulted the portrayal of the boy’s condition, but those who know well someone with Asperger’s may find it spot-on (as I did). Haddon meanwhile revels in slightly eccentric reactions to the novel, such as that of a reader who, altogether missing its Asperger’s angle, told him, “Oh, I didn’t realize there was actually anything wrong with Christopher.” One Book, One New Paltz committee member Cleary favors that remark. “You don’t really know what’s going on with anyone at any given time—they’re in their own world in their own head and may have trouble communicating,” she says. “I think One Book is a wonderful entree into getting to know people in alternate ways, to talk about things in ways other than in a typical transaction.” Or, as Haddon told the London Observer last year, “Reading is a conversation. All books talk. But a good book listens as well.” For more information about the community-wide celebration of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, visit www.onebookonenewpaltz.org. BOOKS 49

SHORT TAKES In the Arms of Words: Poems for Tsunami Relief (see featured review) is one of many outstanding anthologies compiled by local editors in recent months. Herewith, a prime compendium of compendia.

In the Arms of Words: Poems for Tsunami Relief edited by Amy Ouzoonian FootHills Publishing, 2005, $16; special limited edition $30

THE GARDEN OF READING EDITED BY MICHELLE SLUNG OVERLOOK DUCKWORTH, 2005, $25.95

Noting that “anthology” stems from Greek words for “flower” and “gather,” Woodstock Library Fair goddess Michelle Slung has picked a garland of prose from such masters as Eudora Welty, Colette, David Guterson, V.S. Pritchett, and Stephen King (what does he plant?).

BEST BASEBALL WRITING 2005 EDITED BY MATTHEW SILVERMAN AND GREG SPIRA CAROL & GRAF, 2005, $14.95

A home team of Kingston and High Falls editors and photographer/ publishing executive F-Stop Fitzgerald of Rosendale hits a grand slam with this juicy collection of features from Sports Weekly, national newspapers, and books with titles like Baseballisimo, Baseball Forever, and Total Baseball.

CAPTURED: A FILM/VIDEO HISTORY OF THE LOWER EAST SIDE EDITED BY CLAYTON PATTERSON, FOREWORD BY ABEL FERARRA SEVEN STORIES PRESS, 2005, $24

The size and heft of a Last Whole Earth Catalogue, this bodacious volume of outsider film lore includes contributions by and about such Upstate/Downtown legends as Penny Arcade, Steve Buscemi, Larry Fessenden, and Jim Jarmusch. Even the index is cool.

WILDFLOWERS: A WOODSTOCK MOUNTAIN POETRY ANTHOLOGY, VOLUME VI EDITED BY SHIV MIRABITO SHIVASTAN PUBLISHING, JULY 2005, $10

A lively assemblage of poems by Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Roberta Gould, Anne Waldman, Donald Lev, Robert Kelly, Ira Cohen, and other notables. Lushly illustrated, with a vivid turquoise cover, eye-popping endpapers, and handcrafted floral-textured pages, this book is a visual treat.

FDR AT HOME: A COLLECTION OF ESSAYS EDITED BY NANCY FOGEL DUTCHESS COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY, 2005, $20

Sixteen essays by local scholars and residents offer an up-close-and-personal view of Hyde Park’s favorite son and his Dutchess County roots, offering unexpected glimpses of the president as a local church vestryman, birdwatcher, town historian, and volunteer fireman.

THE ESSENTIAL TRANSCENDENTALISTS EDITED BY RICHARD GELDARD JEREMY P. TARCHER/PENGUIN, OCTOBER 2005, $15.95

This newest work from noted Emerson scholar and Hudson Valley resident Geldard anthologizes writings of New England Transcendentalists, including Henry David Thoreau, Bronson Alcott, Margaret Fuller, et al., carefully selected to give readers a unique overview of this religious movement.

50 BOOKS

he arrival of 2005 was greeted with an unending series of images of an inexorable wave of destruction, something perhaps never before viewed by so many in such agonizing detail. An easy sunny morning for fishermen, churchgoers, and tourists dawned; then the sea rose into the air and pressed ashore with a speed and intensity that guaranteed the destruction of all it could reach. It dragged its victims away, only to return with even greater force to crush what remained. How does one respond to such a calamity, especially with sensibilities dulled by repeated TV images? Some rush to help, others send money—and writers write. Frequently, though, quickly written responses are funneled through sentiment or political anger, easy answers when the mind is overwhelmed. A new collection of poetry, In the Arms of Words: Poems for Tsunami Relief, edited by Amy Ouzoonian, avoids these simple responses and gathers a strong group of poems by about one hundred poets in a beautifully bound volume. Poets represented include local favorites such as Donald Lev, Roberta Gould, and Sparrow, as well as the more famous, Diane di Prima, Ellen Bass, Marge Piercy, Marilyn Chin, and others among them. The verse can be divided into several categories: poems of solace, poems of loss, poems in the voices of the victims, and poems that were written before the tsunami but relate to the power of nature to confound human life or provoke the range of emotion so necessary to comprehend the incomprehensible. In the first stanza to her lyrical poem “Basket of Figs,” Ellen Bass opens her arms to the sufferer: “Bring me your pain, love. Spread / It out like fine rugs, silk sashes, / Warm eggs, cinnamon / And cloves in burlap sacks.” Evocative images of home and love continue, becoming a rich listing of appreciation for what has been lost. Finally the poet assumes the role of caretaker, sheltering the wounded “as a great animal might / carry a small one in the private / cave of the mouth.” The voices of the victims are heard in several poems. The prolific poet Lyn Lifshin writes as a mother speaking to her daughter in “We Were on a Train and the Train Screeched.” These personal recollections are not devastating. Many poems have spiritual or other uplifting emotional tones. In one of the longer poems in the volume, “Not Our Sea,” Jennifer Browne sails through the world of the tourist-observer into the experience of the lost, conveying the extraordinary difficulty of reconciling images we can see with the enormity of the occasion. Oddly, it is her light touch that lends emotional gravity to the poem, capturing the chasm between the observer and the observed, and immediate recognition on the reader’s part. Roberta Gould’s “Miracle” stands out as a restrained, poetic slap at the powers who remain above the fray of poverty and destruction. The biblical simplicity of her first lines—“There is nothing to do but / Give to the poor / They abound as fish did / Even the division of bread / Into crumbs gives something”—belies the harshness of the poem’s later condemnation. The volume exceeds expectations with poems like Marilyn Chin’s haiku-like sequence “Clear White Stream,” David Oliveira’s “Spring,” Donald Lev’s “Something for the New Year,” “ellipses on the carpet” by James Warner, “Gathering in the North Wind” by Patricia Wellingham-Jones, and “total eclipse, new year: 2005” by Eve Packer. The book is published both as a $16 paperback and a $30 collector’s edition—hand-sewn, numbered, and signed by the editor. All proceeds from sales go to the International Rescue Committee for Relief and Aid of Survivors of Tsunami Devastation. It’s a valuable aid for healing, in more ways than one. —Nancy Rullo

The Crazyladies of Pearl Street Trevanian Crown Publishers, 2005, $24.95

hen is a memoir not a memoir? When it’s written by a best-selling author so intensely private that he’s never done a book tour, a signing, or even written under his “real” name. Trevanian is, like Christo and Madonna, an infamous one-name personality. But he shuns the spotlight, preferring the anonymity of life in the rural Basque region of France to center stage as a Big Name Author. His best-known book was The Eiger Sanction (of Clint Eastwood movie fame) a spy thriller he wrote as a spoof of the James Bond frenzy of the ‘70s. He’s written many books in his 30-year literary career, under several names and in widely ranging styles. His legions of fans will be thrilled to read this first-personal tale of the elusive and brilliant Trevanian. The Crazyladies of Pearl Street is the real story, at last. Or is it? The story is told from the viewpoint of a spirited boy named Jean-Luc LaPointe, son of Ruby, a vivacious flapper, and Ray, a smart-dressing con man who’s unable to accept the pull of the domestic ball and chain. The book opens on St. Patrick’s Day 1936; Ray’s just convinced Ruby to bring Jean-Luc and his sister Anne Marie to start over as a family in an apartment in Albany’s Irish ghetto. But when they arrive, he’s not there. They find party decorations and a note that Ray’s gone to find a green cake. He never comes back. Moored on Pearl Street by poverty and hobbled by Ruby’s recurring “lung condition,” survival is a struggle. Food is scarce, luxuries are nonexistent, and the neighborhood boys are ferocious. But Jean-Luc’s a clever kid, his mother’s “good right hand,” and heir to her infamous “French and Indian temper,” a gift that saves him from the bullying of children and adults alike. His mother is a spunky survivor given to scrambled sayings like “Believe me you” and “Shrimp and save.” She’s an embarrassment to her son, and a secret burden; he’ll be the one who’ll tow their ship to the shore, she repeatedly declares. He’ll be a doctor or a professor—never mind that he’ll undoubtedly have to leave school as soon as he’s able to work. The arrival of World War II strains further at their finances, but adds immeasurably to Jean-Luc’s growing imagination. Radio war coverage thrills him, and he stages elaborate private theatricals, the genesis, perhaps, of spy novels to come. But his most persistent fantasy is about running away. The neighborhood assortment of crazyladies populate the book without contributing much to its central theme of mother-son duty—though Jean-Luc’s neighbors would add his mother to the crazylady list. Ruby eventually marries again, liberating Jean-Luc from captain duty, but sadly, she’s become too embittered to enjoy this turn of fortune. And her son abandons her, as he always knew he would, to embark on the life of adventure he’d later mine for literary gold. Trevanian’s true identity is the subject of much conjecture: He’s a former government operative, he’s Robert Kennedy, he’s an alternate pen name for Robert Ludlum. It’s no surprise that The Crazyladies of Pearl Street is anything but a straightforward confessional. The book is officially classified as an autobiographical novel, and in a somewhat paranoid author’s note, Trevanian declares he’s claiming the characters and names are fictional in order to “thwart the litigious impulses for which Americans have become renowned.” His true story at last? Maybe. Ultimately, it’s such a good read that verité doesn’t matter. Trevanian fans will treasure this book’s insights into the forces that formed the gifted storyteller, but even the uninitiated will enjoy it as a insightful, heartfelt evocation of a Depression-era Albany and a family in difficult times. —Susan Krawitz BOOKS 51

OUT & ALOUD

n eclectic sampling of upcoming literary events.

CURATED BY PHILLIP LEVINE. Send your events listings to outaloud@chronogram.com.

Veronica by Mary Gaitskill Pantheon, 2005, $23.00

THURSDAY, 11/3, 6:30-9PM Benefit for New Orleans and Gulf Coast poets and writers. Oasis, New Paltz. Contributions will be forwarded to the Maple Leaf Poetry Program in New Orleans. Featured poets include H. R. Stoneback, Dennis Doherty, Jan Schmidt, Pauline Uchmanowicz, Bob Waugh, Jenica Shapiro, William Boyle, and Matthew Nickel. If you would like to sign up to read a Katrina/Rita poem, contact Dennis Doherty: (845) 257-2733. Hosted by William Vasse Poetry Board of SUNY New Paltz. $2, poets reading will contribute 5 cents per word.

FRIDAY, 11/ 4, 7PM Discussion and book signing with Bruce Chilton, Bard Chaplain and author Mary Magdalene: A Biography, Talk starts at 6:30 at the Woodstock Reform Church, followed by a book signing and reception at Mirabai Books, Woodstock. (845) 679-2100. Free.

FRIDAY, 11/ 4, 7PM Reading and book signing: Wade Rubenstein, Gullboy: The Inconceivable Life of Franco Pajarito Zanpa ; Barnes & Noble, 1177 Ulster Avenue, Kingston. (845) 336-4691. Free.

SATURDAY, 11/ 5, 3-5PM Reading and book signing, Ripped-Up Rhymes, a children’s book of poems and collage by Gina Tucci and Sheila Yoshpe; Elisa Pritzker Studio @ Casa del Arte, Highland, (845) 691-5506. Free.

SATURDAY, 11/ 5, 7PM Poetry Reading for In the Arms of Words: Poems for Tsunami Relief. Hosted by Arms editor Amy Ouzoonian with poets James Warner, MaryJo Martin; the Mudd Puddle Cafe, 10 Main St. New Paltz. (845) 255-3436.

MONDAY, 11/7 12PM Bruce Chilton, author of Mary Magdalene: A Biography, and Rose Solari, author of Orpheus in the Park, discuss giving voice to “silenced women.” Preregistration requested. Luncheon. Bertelsmann Campus Center, iat@bard.edu or (845) 758-7279; $15 or $12 for IAT members.

WEDNESDAY, 11/9, 7PM Reading, reception and book signing: Billy Collins, New York State Poet Laureate. SUNY Ulster Library Writers Series, Quimby Theater, Stone Ridge campus of SUNY Ulster. (845) 687-5262. Free.

FRIDAY, 11/11, 5-7PM THE LAST WORD: Authors reading, roasting, and reveling to celebrate Ariel Booksellers’ Dean and Susan Avery’s long, long run before they close their doors at the end of this year. Authors include: Nora Raleigh Baskin, Fergus Bordewich, Gwendolyn Bounds, Da Chen, John Darnton, and more. Ariel Booksellers, New Paltz. (845) 255-8041; books@chronogram.com. Free.

SATURDAY, 11/12, 2PM Woodstock Poetry Society: Poets Diana Dierks & Kathy Z. Price; poetry reading & open mike. Woodstock Town Hall, 76 Tinker Street. Hosted by Phillip Levine. www.woodstockpoetry.com. Free.

SUNDAY, 11/13, 3:30-5:30PM Cooking demonstration, tasting, and book signing for Moosewood Restaurant Simple Suppers: Fresh Ideas for the Weeknight Table. Presented by The Golden Notebook, Blue Mountain Bistro, and Moosewood Collective; Blue Mountain Bistro, Woodstock. (845) 679-8000. thegoldennotebbok@hvc.rr.com. Free.

52 BOOKS

lison is All That with a bag of truffles, gorgeous and smart. But it doesn’t take long before her ventures into the so-called adult world of high fashion modeling lead her to discover that looks, even combined with brains, are no guarantee of any sort of safety. An adventurous soul–”I wanted to live like music,” she tells us—her trust is badly broken by a Parisian mogul who uses her, abuses her, and kicks her to the curb without a second thought. Recovering in New York, she takes a temp job with an advertising firm and meets Veronica—a “strange little figure,” decades older and clad in plaid, a “nobody” in the eyes of the glitzy universe that Alison will soon re-inhabit. But despite Veronica’s lack of status and Alison’s reentry into the modeling game, theirs becomes a friendship that somehow lodges deeper in Alison’s soul than her connections with the young and trendy. For all her 1980s glam, Alison’s most redemptive relationship begins while word processing on the night shift. And 20 years later, the older and wiser Alison who is telling us of these events—worn down with aches and pains and hepatitis C, as cynical as she once was naïve—finds that Veronica’s presence has resonated in her life, a grounding point for reflections on love, friendship, family, and men. Veronica, we learn, met a frightening end: She contracted AIDS from her bisexual lover, became steadily more irascible, and died with just her cat for company, with Alison as one of the very few people who still cared. Mary Gaitskill has lived on both the right and left banks of the Hudson, in Ulster County as well as her novel’s Manhattan. Her previous works include a novel, Two Girls Fat and Thin, and two widely praised and provocative story collections, Bad Behavior and Because They Wanted To. (As we went to press, Veronica’s nomination for the National Book Award was announced.) Gaitskill is a sensual writer in the broadest possible way, a mistress of metaphor: Music has colors, scenes evoke sensations, gestures or phrases evoke vivid, almost hallucinatory imagery. The voice of Alison’s mother “ran and jumped, as if it were being chased by a devil with a pitchfork.” A club is a “great night flower of fun, open and dark like a giant lily swarming with drunken fairies.” Gaitskill’s earthiness keeps this tendency from drifting off into the ether, and the story of Alison’s life in the fast lane rocks along with a gathering depth, revealing much about the way human beings live together, or fail to. Body image, homophobia, social class, aging, death, the fashion industry and the party life, how our families of birth continue to shape our lives as adults: This is a book that leads the reader to reflect on all kinds of topics and their interconnections. Alison is a wonderful, multifaceted character. Beautiful and bright she may be, but not in a supercilious, above it all sort of way. She relates the circumstances that happened to her, largely as a result of being what is considered “beautiful,” with a certain ironic distance; she’s anything but shallow. Shallow people don’t approach life so openly. Though her first encounters with Veronica are tinged with contempt, Veronica’s offbeat, dead-on responses aren’t lost on her as they would be on a vacuous bimbo or a materialistic creep: “Imagine ten pictures of this conversation. In nine of them, she’s the fool and I’m the one who has something. But in the tenth, I’m the fool and it’s her show now. For just a second, that’s the picture I saw.” It is not a picture a vapid or cruel girl would ever glimpse. —Anne Pyburn

MON - SAT 11:30 - 7:30,

BOOKS 53

54 BOOKS

Historic Hudson, An Architectural Portrait by Byrne Fone Black Dome Press, September 2005, $24.95

was 19 and hitchhiking across Europe. I’d thumbed my way from London to Rome, but hadn’t prepared myself for the journey, other than to ready myself to greet the unexpected. I’d seen photographs of the Mona Lisa and the Venus de Milo, but this brief dip into the waters of art history hadn’t prepared me for the oft-touted “wonders that were Rome,” until a single wrong turn on an empty side street catapulted me back in time. Several centuries of Italian history merged with my own personal history to create a memory that I carry with me to this day. That is the power of architectural history. It is also part of the power of Byrne Fone’s new book, Historic Hudson: An Architectural Portrait, published by distinguished regional publisher Black Dome Press. There are many reasons, great and small, for reading Fone’s profusely illustrated book, the first (but not foremost) being the generous number of historic photographs that accompany his text. Another compelling reason for reading this history of the city of Hudson is the sound of the past as it rings in the reader’s ears, much as it must have done during the era of bell ringers and town criers, or when one of the Proprietors, Hudson’s original master builders, struck a heavy blow against a wooden post to herald the noon hour. Fone is an elegant writer. His sentences glide over the page like tall ships with stately masts as he tells the story of this architecturally distinguished New York community, founded in 1793 by New England Quaker merchants and whalers. They navigate the story of the rise and fall and rise of a great, though small, American city. Fone paints a vivid picture of Hudson—one of our nation’s first planned communities, according to the author—from its heyday in 1784 as New York State’s second most active seaport to the twisted tourism of its infamous houses of prostitution, wildly popular from the 1930s to the 1950s. Somewhere between the sloops of the whalers and the stoops of Hudson’s early Dutch settlers, Fone relates a delightful story about a brief visit to the city by American novelists Henry James and Edith Wharton in 1901; they were turned away from dinner at the Worth Hotel because of the French poodle they had brought along. Needless to say, James and his party found dinner elsewhere, at a “cook shop” down the street, whose hospitality they described as “touchingly, winningly, unconditional.” Fast forward to today. Hudson is enjoying another revival as an important antiques center. Past and present have blended here to create a perfect recipe for economic and preservationist success. The heart of Byrne Fone’s book is the city of Hudson’s scores of architecturally distinguished buildings: its Nantucket-style saltboxes, Federal, Greek Revival, Gothic Revival, mid- and latecentury Victorians, and other styles, dubbed by one modern architectural historian a “dictionary of American architectural design.” In Hudson’s churches, meeting halls, shop windows, mansions, and working-class homes is writ the changing face of America’s small cities. This is no mean feat when one considers that other towns and cities in the Hudson Valley and Catskill High Peaks region are losing their architectural fabric at an alarming rate. Like John Ashbery, who plucks poetry seemingly out of thin air, and whose foreword graces Byrne Fone’s spiritually inspired book, I recognize the hostile instinct in some individuals to destroy what is “old and distinguished,” but I choose instead to celebrate with the author of Historic Hudson and readers of his book “a whole range of small forgotten things...things intensely Hudsonian, more than Hudsonian.” Things intensely American. —Carolyn Bennett BOOKS 55

Fiction

THE

GOODBYE PARTY

BY JAY BLOTCHER ILLUSTRATIONS BY MICHAEL BERNIER

hen Michael insists that he sees Bette Midler perched on the wall clock across the room, I know we’re totally screwed.

I really mean “he” because he’s the one with dementia. But I mean “we,” too, since I’m part of a group of friends caring for this man who is slowly vanishing from a hospital bed at Beth Israel on First Avenue, body bruised and rawboned. I’m here for two reasons: the obligations of friendship (we’ve known each other since 1980) and a marked susceptibility to high drama—especially of the deathbed caliber. So, I’m helping Michael die. And with the surprise appearance of Bette Midler in his hospital room—Michael doesn’t say what she’s wearing and I don’t press the issue—I know that Michael is losing ground. It is a rotten coda to a wonderful spring afternoon. We’ve just shared a joyride through the West Village. Michael has acknowledged the inevitable with a list of stubborn final requests. On the top of the list was a hamburger. So, I pushed his wheelchair across town to this saloon on West 4th Street where the windows are caked with years of grease. Michael eats the oozing burger, his face creased with that “what the fuck” expression that has become indelible during months of being holed up at Beth Israel. On the way back, he insists that I push faster, faster, and he laughs like a madman as some rascally spring breezes whip up his hospital gown. He keeps laughing, his usual basset-hound face glowing, even though every bump in the sidewalk under his wheels is grinding bone against bone in his wasted frame. So I push faster to keep the laughter alive as smug, satisfied, healthy New Yorkers dodge out of our path. But not before getting an eyeful of the Incredible Dying AIDS Patient. I am helping him back into his hospital bed when Michael points at the wall. “There she is,” he says, voice steeped with fatigue. Bette Midler is sitting on top of the clock. HIV is turning my pal’s brain into Swiss cheese. Every birthday-boy gets a wish. It is a week later and Michael is about to announce his. We’re all here: Patrick, Dennis, Jackie, Pia, and me. Final birthday, final wish. Jackie has brought a birthday cake and we’ve wheeled Michael out into the dayroom. And we eat, even though the odor of hospital room disinfectant has already permeated every crumb. The presents are brought out. We have all shown a measure of diplomacy. The gifts are guarded gestures, not evidence of false hopes. No appointment books, no 56 FICTION

new clothes, no watches. Nothing to suggest a future, because time is now measured in weeks. It is April 1992. Sometimes I think the worst thing about dying of AIDS for Michael is dealing with the hospital color scheme. White, beige, and silvery metal. It insults the peerless taste he cultivated as a Parsons grad student and fashion plate. Michael worked hard to keep up, dressing in punk, new wave, and finally Goth styles. We all craved a friend who was both amusing and colorful, a larger-than-life Manhattan character. So we egged him on. Then we duly feigned shock, through ten shades of dyed hair, safety-pin earrings, kilts, and bondage pants. But now Michael’s hair is dirt-brown and limpid, and it gets washed maybe once a week. But what does it matter, since the disease is sucking the life out of his hair, as well? Michael seems like a statue with hairline cracks along every inch of his frame. We wheel him back to his room. We take turns tucking him in, surrounding the bed. We are Red Cross diagrams of stoic people carrying an invalid. But we have exhausted every official position for carrying the wounded. We are eager to pull back, to find a current of air not poisoned by the odor of medication. That stench of hopelessness. We pretend to make hospital corners. Anything to avert our gaze. But Michael motions us to move in closer. He has always been our most sadistic friend. There is the unfinished matter of a birthday wish. So we hover, unwillingly. “Here’s how I want my funeral done,” he whispers, not so much for dramatics but because he shares a room with another man. “Oh, come on, Michael,” Pia pleads. She is a slim young pagan with mascara-rimmed Betty Boop eyes and usually dressed in miniskirts. She comes across as flaky, yet possesses a strength that shames the rest of us. Pia has been the one who visits every single day, carrying him to the bathroom when Michael warns her in time, and cleaning his sheets when he doesn’t. But Michael is right. It’s time to plan the goodbye party. After all, he’s been leaving us for months, slowly, like the afternoon sun retreating in burnt orange shadows from a patio. I was there two weeks ago when the doctor explained quietly that he would never walk again. My breath stuck in my throat. There was no upside to this news. After a few minutes, Michael looked up at me, an odd pride in his voice. “Well? Did you ever think I’d be so calm? Didn’t I handle that well?” And for the fifteenth time that month, my heart broke. But I am proud of Michael for broaching the subject, pushing aside our awkward playacting. How odd that he spoke first. For practicality and Michael have been infrequent companions. Michael would sooner go on a shopping spree at the Salvation

FICTION 57

Army or score a bag of weed than respond to the polite reminders left on his door by his Alphabet City landlord the fifth day of every month. Michael was a gifted graphic artist of Italian working-class lineage from Syracuse. But he’d been born without a work ethic. And thanks to his sharp tongue, jobs were kept with alarming brevity. He had a knack for shredding superiors when it came to defending his artwork. “I’ll find another one,” he’d reassure us. And he would. During college at Syracuse, where we had met, Michael was an amusing self-creation. But in Manhattan, Michael had become a monster. To be a genial drunk, one requires polo mallets or a townhouse or a country house. Michael had neither, and his carousing had grown acrid, spiteful. At a gallery opening one evening, where the topshelf vodka was free, I watched as Michael knocked them back, and then was too late to catch him as he fell over. But we come to New York City to know people like this. In the novels we write in our heads from our sweet, stupid young lives, we cast characters like Michael. What we don’t admit is when the amusement wears thin. Eventually. Inevitably. And even when we’d like to move on, we don’t, for reasons that sound logical after a few blistering tokes. I had prayed that Michael would somehow become amusing again—or less sloppy in his pursuit of joy. Over the past four years, I had actually distanced myself from Michael. I’d traded in my nine-to-five work clothes for a T-shirt, jeans, and boots and learned to lie down in the streets with ACT UP. For me, it was far more bearable to yell at bureaucrats than to empty a bedpan. But then the call came that Michael was sick, so here I am. “This is what I want,” Michael says, looking each of us in the eye, our sadistic pal. “Take my ashes and put them into white balloons and let them go over Central Park. That’s what I want, okay?” White balloons? The resident cynic of our group? The man whose notion of romance was scarring himself with razor blades, because true love requires pain? Michael is going Hallmark on us? So we merely nod to the man on the pillow. There will be time to scale back his fanciful notion, like pruning an oversize bouquet whose insistent beauty reminds you more of funerals than flower shows. But with his deathbed request, Michael has set the inevitable into fast motion. His decline is swift and the AIDS monster is giddy in its victory. It is now a sunny day in late June. I sit next to Michael’s stretcher on a four-seater, jittery with air turbulence. I want to fly Michael to his version of eternity: a cloud-bedecked version of Studio 54, where a velvet rope allows in only the A-list deceased. I want to bypass the teary, fatal homecoming awaiting us at Syracuse Airport. His family rushes out to the tarmac, as if hoping to catch the shards of Michael falling from the sky. They wear identical masks of dumb, dense grief, his mother Vicki, his father Mike, his sister Marie. Tears are shed. Platitudes dispensed. At home, Michael’s wheelchair ascends the front stairs with an awkward bump noticed by every last neighbor peeping from behind their stained lace curtains. Michael’s father says little. He declares his love through his Instamatic. Michael is home less than two hours when his dad insists on photos in the backyard. So, we wheel him out. Michael in his wheelchair near some malnourished shrubs. The overcast afternoon echoes the bloodless look of his face. His hands are laced together in shame, this man who would preen for hours before allowing a camera near him. Marie and her daughter stand behind him, offering forced Kodak grins. I stay the night, and later talk to his mom in the darkened plywood den. Vicki is a pious Italian woman with a huge middle and an expansive heart. Her eyes are ringed with sadness. She talks of his comic-book collection. His younger days, sitting high on his Dad’s shoulders. She looks to me helplessly, eyes gone liquid, begging for another topic. I want to convey the exhilaration of those first years in Manhattan. The endless nights that left us dizzy during the day, so that we sometimes couldn’t distinguish when 58 FICTION

we were high and when we weren’t. The number of men we slept with and then pledged undying love, only to watch them walk out in the morning. I want to offer a portrait of life on the edge that reeks of bravery, not mere excess. But her son is dying in the room upstairs, undermining my argument. The next day, I have to return to New York City, I tell myself, to prepare for an AIDS conference in Amsterdam. But I am a coward, more suited to street demos than to sitting by a bedside. Michael is in the plywood den, dried bits of breakfast in his beard. He is looking at the window, although his mother has lowered the shades. Through the blinds, diffused sunlight bathes him. Wounded warrior. Dying god. His wheelchair is now fused to his body. I have no goodbye speeches. We have known each other for 12 years and shared too much. The sheer joy of nightmarish boyfriends, when we mistook martyrdom for romance. Visits to sex clubs, all-night drug parties. I have no stomach for the truth, and Michael tightens his grip on my hand. He lets out a “hmpphh” that is as emotional a response as I will ever hear from my pal. His helpless eyes scan and scorch my face. I stammer, choking back the fear that tastes like a mouth full of blood. I resort to offering a wordless hug and then shut down as I am driven to the airport. I have no recollection of returning to Manhattan. Three weeks later, Vicki calls me in Amsterdam to let me know. She also tells me from her small, cluttered, warm kitchen thousands of miles away that Michael has shared his birthday wish. She promised she would. It is scheduled for a Monday afternoon in late September. I promise Vicki I will explore the mechanics of Michael’s request. The day before the goodbye party, I walk up five flights in the West Village to visit my ex-boyfriends Theo and Dave. Theo sells balloon bouquets and fights to hide his disdain for customers. He keeps a helium tank in his living room closet. As Dave looks on, we experiment with peat moss. An unworthy stand-in for the bone chips of cremation. We fill a single balloon with peat moss and helium. It barely rises from the living room floor. I ask to use the phone, long-distance. “Vicki,” I say, “you’ve got to do me a favor.” She had been sitting at her kitchen table, spooning her son into white balloons. “You’ve got to empty each balloon by about halfway. Otherwise, they just won’t fly.” The next afternoon, Central Park is gripped in a raw, icy drizzle. Dusk collides with the fog hovering at knee level. Vicki and her husband, joined by Aunt Leeza and Uncle Louie, have flown in and stand across from the Dakota, swollen with plane travel and grief. We are all there: Dennis, Jackie, Patrick, Pia, and several others. The bereaved family searches our faces, eager for some indication of how to prepare for the party. “Here,” Vicki says, quietly, extending a plastic bag. I look blankly, then quickly take it. Inside is a clear Tupperware container. Within that, lying side-by-side like sardines, are 30 balloons. Each contains a bit of Michael. Within 15 minutes, 20 of us have gathered. Jackie arrives in a sleek black pantsuit, lugging a helium tank. Her brother Dennis, who sprays cologne at Bloomingdale’s, wears a tailored suit. George is either an aged hippie or a madman, dressed in tie-dyed linen. He has the white beard of a prophet and the wild eyes of a zealot. I wear an AIDS -activist T-shirt and jeans. Michelangelo, a fellow Syracuse alumnus and AIDS activist, says too loudly that he will take control of the inflation process. This is his attempt at making amends. He’d been closer to Michael than all of us, had lived with him at college and during their first years in New York City. But when the call for help had come, he’d brushed it off like cobwebs, declaring that he owed no debt to the past. But he is here, his face bruised with guilt. We persuade the family to stand around the bend, out of sight. Then we commence the operation under a gathering of maple trees. Michelangelo suggests a practice balloon, without ashes. It fills with an impulsive whoosh and bursts, like a slap across the face.

The damp afternoon air blunts the sound. It’s already too much for us. A suffocating sense of piety gives way to nervous laughter that we try to squelch, jaws aching, like bratty kids in church. Tears squeeze from the corner of my eyes and mingle with the acid rain. I try to catch my breath, but I am elbowed by Michelangelo. “You’d better go tell his family it’s okay. You know—that Michael wasn’t in that balloon.” We eventually achieve assembly-line precision. Extract balloon from Tupperware. Hook to helium tank nozzle. Inflate with a gust of helium. The bone chips dance in a mad circle. Unhook from nozzle. Tie. Every four balloons are strung together in a bizarre bouquet. The sense of loss has been replaced with liberating absurdity, heating the blood in our cheeks. Only once do we err in the process. Michelangelo fumbles as he unhooks a balloon from the nozzle, and we watch it flail spastically, spitting ashes through the air before it comes to rest on the pavement. George lunges forward and, before we can protest, his sandaled foot rubs the tattoo of ashes into the ground. Usually George takes a cabinet of medications to even out his anxiety, but no amount of pills can soothe his nerves today, and he alternately mutters to himself and barks at the rest of us. Vicki and I have both misjudged. The balloons are still too heavy. The gravity that Michael lacked in life has suddenly arrived with unfortunate timing. We tie extra helium-only balloons to each bouquet. But they hover with uncertainty. Just then, Michael’s father appears from behind the hedge with his Instamatic. He coaxes us to gather together for a photo, holding the balloons up high in the rainy sky. And, yes, he asks us to smile. The leaden balloons are tumors in our hands. Malignant, spiteful. More people have arrived and encircle Vicki and Michael Sr. protectively. We rejoin them in the middle of the mosaic of Strawberry Fields. The air is silent, save for the staccato beat of icy rain on the leaves. George orders everyone into a circle and barks, “It is time to release the balloons.” We each let go of the blue twine holding each cluster of balloons and stare upward with forced optimism. Every group of white balloons falls, one by one, to the soggy ground, like a clumsy pallbearer falling into an open grave. We are ashamed. But then slowly, one single bouquet, a haphazard equation of helium and bone chips, begins to inch itself upward into the dusky sky. I smile and see my grin mirrored in the others. Today, obvious, idiotic symbolism is a welcome thing. But our happiness is quickly undercut by the ash balloons on the ground. “A change of plans, folks,” George says too loudly, glazed eyes suddenly shimmering with power. “We’re gonna release the balloons down by the pond.” A drenched line of mourners follows the madman down the sloping path to a mossy oval of water beneath a copse of trees. Any pretense of grace is abandoned, and we dig our nails into the balloons, to burst them over the pond. Small showers of Michael float on the surface of the water. When Michelangelo explodes his globe, a gust of wind stirs. He yelps. I hold his head and with my fingers I tweeze bone chips from the corner of his eye. “That’s Michael,” he says, grateful for the rebuke. “He got me back.” A mourner who favors the traditional gesture pulls a bottle of Dom Perignon from her raincoat and distributes plastic cups. Pia lights a bundle of sage to purify the clearing where we stand and recites a prayer of Hindu rebirth. The rest of us stand silently, sipping Dom from plastic cups. I don’t know when champagne stuck in my throat before. Into the clearing comes a man in ragged clothes, a tentative smile on his face and under one arm a threadbare lawn chair. “Hello, folks,” he says, then peers at us through slitted eyes, decides we’re a suitable audience, and begins singing the ’70s soul ballad “You Make Me Feel Brand New.” His falsetto voice is oddly soothing. He finishes, flashes a practiced smile, and juts out his palm for spare coins. I take him aside to explain why this isn’t the proper crowd to hustle. His features twist. He sputters loudly, “Well, why dincha tell me? I wouldn’t of done that. Not if I knew what’s going on. What kind of person you think I am?” I try to hush him, but his character has been impugned. Just then, Michael Sr. approaches us and coaxes him into posing for the camera. It is his chance to make amends, so he quickly agrees with a nod and a wide, toothless smile. He slowly shuffles off. The afternoon’s events have attained a level of absurdity that mere coincidence cannot accomplish. We began the day hating Michael, for putting his parents through this loopy sendoff. And we still hate him, for being sloppy enough to get HIV. But we’re starting to get it. The goodbye party, which seemed like one last spastic burst of AIDS dementia, is Michael’s gift to us. I watch the realization wash over people’s faces. Pia, Jackie, Dennis, Patrick. We smile and laugh for a moment, even though the laugh catches in my throat. The icy rain redoubles its assault, hitting our skin like a fleet of penknives. Nothing remains of our fragile bravado. Michael’s folly had been carried out. We say our goodbyes to Vicki and Michael Sr., to Leeza and Louie. The group parts to allow the bereaved family to leave the leafy chapel first. Then, the rest of us hug one another, our eyes rimmed in sorrow, and our weary, ironic laughter echoes through the empty park. We have achieved a level of numbness suitable for a funeral. Michelangelo, Pia, and I head toward the subway, knowing that no taxis will collect us in the rain. Pia produces a joint and manages to light it between raindrops. For us, this is piety. We eventually arrive at a sushi bar on Avenue A, the interior bathed in blue neon. We hoist cups of sake and toast an absent friend, clinking together the porcelain with so much helpless fury that we can’t believe they don’t smash upon impact. Jay Blotcher’s essays have appeared in six anthologies, including I Do/I Don’t: Queers on Marriage, the winner of the 2005 Lambda Book Award for Best Nonfiction Anthology. His essay “The Day My Past Came Calling” will appear in the 2006 anthology Identity Envy: Wanting to Be Who We’re Not (Harrington Park Press). He has been living in Ulster County since 2001. FICTION 59

POETRY

EDITED BY PHILLIP LEVINE. You can submit up to three poems to Chronogram at a time. Send ‘em if you got ‘em, either via snail-

mail or e-mail. Deadline: November 10. 314 Wall St., Kingston, NY 12401. E-mail: poetry@chronogram.com. Subject: Poetry.

I’ll bring all my fingers You bring all your knives —p

November Kill

Practicum

I Take It on Faith

Even at a distance you could tell that the mound behind the above-ground pool had once been alive. The way the surface yielded slightly as the young boy stood aloft in his boots as though seeing the New World for the first time. Then it was obvious. He grabbed onto antlers tugging the mass closer to his cocker spaniel dipping his fingers into the liquid pot of the entry point and sniffing them.

My daughter’s chin fits perfectly within my cupped hand.

The entire party I avoided Direct confrontation was Never in our shared Sixty years ago she set The tone of our connection was careful Encountering naked vulnerability was Never see, say, show All you know for Sure, I could have looked at The evidence was available Allegedly, I could have seen for myself Before we slid it on Rollers took My mother’s casket with her in it Presumably, after we left they lowered her into The ground of all our knowing is trust.

—Mala Hoffman

—Dina Greenberg

Morning

How She Helped the Seasons Change

Last Night

In cities, across the world, men are turning on lamps as women twist in the dream of the car underground. The road-signs say Steep, Continue with Caution but the car wants to calculate loss, to scoff at progress, both tender and loyal. To lean back and roll. Up ahead—white headlights—the dog-god eyes of the insomniac regarding the petty sleeper, her mouth wet and clenched like the grip on a wheel. Body wrapped like one who is falling, yellow highway ribbons a cursive for breath, heartbeats; tiny soldier staking his claim. They lie like this in one bed. Sheets, cotton and clean, clock clicking its insistent pulse. Amazing, the distance we live from one another, the dark that we travel, unloading our suitcases of small animal desire. Alone as one must be to navigate those lower roads until morning, when she hands him the cup.

If asked about her work she would say I’m a professional bed tester. In time, she found that she did lead her family in many ways.

We went into the woods Or was it a golf course. It was dark.

—Caitlin Grace McDonnell

60 POETRY

I hold her like this, feeling the finite edge of this geometry, where her bony angles meet the triangle I make of my palm,

—David Trembley and fitting snugly, my daughter resting here with me, the proof to this equation floats beyond my grasp of mathematics, of everything they could not teach me.

One day, she found a frozen field along one side of the old house. Her boots crashed through to slush, leaving deep holes that filled with water. Making sure everything’s all right, that’s my job, she thought, darting a handful of tulips into each melting footprint. —Nancy Graham

You held my hand Or was it my neck. Stars shone. I thought to speak Or attract attention. The grass was wet. Mother asked me today How my date went. I could not say. —Laurie Anna Macomber

A Woman’s Trade

America.

Mom is making Chili Which means she is throwing Every stray chunk of chicken, Crumbled last week’s hamburgers, Shreds of cheese and all those vegetables that are Almost Too old Into a pot, turning up the heat and making Something new and delicious to feed us for many meals to come. She’s so skilled at combining scraps of things with a place no longer and making them belong. She adds just a splash of spice To conceal flavors that may clash, After all, not everything can fit together perfectly. I want to ask her, was she always so skilled At scrounging up her own life? Of taking the self-pierced ear, The cigarette addiction, run-off boyfriend, Miniskirts concealed in backpacks and Harassment for simply being a woman with dreams In a man-made nightmare And making something of it? And all those ingredients, some of which I can’t identify, But one of which I know I am, Did they end up fitting together In a recipe-less mass of varying flavors? And after all this time does it still taste good to her reheated? I hope so because I’m already collecting leftovers And I need to learn to make chili.

America, I bumped into you in a crowded train station, you came up quick behind me and said, “Hey! Hold my hostages for me, I’ll just be a minute.” When you came back I was your prisoner.

—Emily Arrighi (17yrs old)

The Pest House: A Confederate Hospital Like gravity death always seeks the ground. Before the war when smallpox scarred the young and old, the unclean—to dull the idle tongue— were carted, alive, to where they heard the sound of shovels digging up the dirt all around the Pest House, waiting for another weak lung to peter out, its death, the stench, not sung by preacher or poet. When Dr. Terrell found soldiers, rotting alive in the busy graveyard, he looked neither to the north nor south but saved their eyes. He painted the Pest House black, not white, and sprinkled, not incense, but sand, dry and hard, on the floor, and with oil and limewater, he bathed their flesh. This Quaker robbed their death of light. —Olga Kronmeyer

So where are we going America? Goin’ where the sun is warmer? Goin’ where you can stretch your stubbled legs a little better? Goin’ to bask in your glory? Cuddle up with it tight, close your eyes gently. Keeping your dreams to yourself. And every success story is deja vu. America you swallowed us whole at the dawn of time, we’ve been working our way through your stomach lining with pocket knives. America, how vast is that infinity, and where are my real parents? Ah, you wouldn’t tell me if you could. America I get sick at the very taste of blood so I climbed your esophagus to meet all the tears that ever slid down the back of your throat. And suddenly my taste buds disappeared, leaving only a gag reflex. America your lips are sticky, painted and lusting but your eyes love me. While we dance I feel the blisters on your hands, I know you’re embarrassed. America, I’m fiddling with your belt buckle entertaining your frustrated genitals. America, are you picturing me as someone else? What’s his name? Don’t say it. —Jason Landon

Red Badge Crane looked into his canine heart Two beats ahead of knowing He put hands in the unnamed His appetites, his pleasures He wrote with half-lidded eyes Saw ghosts not yet made Young men full of blood Delighting in Aesma Daeva War, the desert wind, flesh burning All young madness lives in him His wound was desire —Gary Sledge

POETRY 61

Food

The Butcher’s Conscience Fleisher’s Grass-fed & Organic Meats

text & photos by jennifer may

From behind a glass case displaying freshly cut meats, Joshua Applestone is explaining how he gave up his vegan diet and became a butcher. Contrary to my own recent experiment with the 100 percent animal-product-free lifestyle—which I gave up after five minutes due to an uncontrollable urge for cheese—Joshua was vegan for 17 years. “As I got older my body started to change. I found I couldn’t eat enough avocados and beans to meet my protein requirements,” he said. Not that becoming a butcher was the thought that immediately followed his decision to add meat back into his diet. About a year and a half ago, Joshua and his wife, Jessica, were brainstorming on what to do with their lives. At the time they both worked at New World Home Cooking in Saugerties (Joshua as a chef, Jessica as a server). And while textthey&loved photos food, they bydidn’t jennifer love the demanding may hours of restaurant work. At the same time, Jessica had been looking for the healthiest, most humane and sustainable meat sources for her personal consumption. They wanted nothing to do with purchasing meat from other butchers and supporting the current system of factory farming, which involves feedlots, overcrowding, 62 FOOD

antibiotics, growth hormones, steroids, pesticides, stun guns, and fields of manure. Fish didn’t appeal either, due to the problems associated with fish farms. With her disgust towards commercial farms paired with suspicions of the misleading nature of food labels, Jessica realized the safest route would be to buy directly from local farmers she and Joshua met and trusted. “But I didn’t want to buy an entire steer, or even half a steer. It’s too much meat for one person to deal with,” says Jessica. She thought, “It would be great if someone opened a grass-fed, organic butcher shop.” It occurred to her that she probably wasn’t alone, and one day while walking with Joshua through uptown Kingston they saw a for-rent notice on a storefront. They decided to take a risk. When they told the building’s owner what kind of store they wanted to open, he told them they were crazy. However, when the owner told his wife about the nutty kids with the big ideas she responded with enthusiasm. She told him, “That’s a great idea. That will work.” As for Joshua, he remained vegetarian for his first seven months as a butcher before

OPPOSITE: JOSH APPLESTONE SLICES ORGANIC, GRASS-FED BEEF AT FLEISHER’S MEATS IN KINGSTON; ABOVE: JESSICA APPLESTONE WEIGHS SAUSAGE

being around all that meat finally got to him. “After my first 40 pounds of bacon I was hooked,” he says. The bacon that seduced the vegan is, of course, not an average slab of meat. It came from Berkshire pigs that lived the kind of life pigs are meant to live—rooting around in the soil and giving themselves cooling mud baths in the summer. The organic meat is preserved nitrate-free with sea salt and honey. If you’ve never cooked his bacon, Joshua will give you instructions as he wraps a pound in crisp brown paper: “Don’t overdo it. Cook it clear, not crunchy.” (Although if your husband insists on ignoring that fine advice and cooking it as stiff as he has always cooked it, the bacon is still exquisite.) The benefits of pastured, organic meats go far beyond the taste. Studies have shown the meat to be leaner, and the remaining fat is full of beneficial elements. Whole milks, cheeses, and butter from grazing cows have a much higher amount of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), which has shown anti-carcinogenic properties in animal studies. The absence of hormones, steroids, and antibiotics is equally compelling. To me there are two dilemmas to eating meat. Killing an animal to eat it is an unpleasant reality. But it’s far worse to imagine the animal’s life was one of torture and suffering. Personally, I found the Applestone’s shop soon after a vegan friend leant me a video that reminded me why I used to be a vegetarian. The Applestones visit the farms they purchase from to witness the farming practices and the environment. Joshua explains how he uses his eyes and ears: “Unhappy animals moo and oink. I listen for peace and quiet.” Joshua also regularly visits slaughterhouses. He doesn’t enjoy it, but he feels it is his duty: “They are beautiful creatures. If you like dogs and cats, why wouldn’t you like pigs and cows?” He thinks for a moment and then adds, “Well, pigs are kind of nasty. Pigs will eat you.” When the Applestones find a farm that produces meat that reaches their standards and passes their taste test, they buy all they can get. “I will buy entire farms,” says Joshua as he cuts a steak for the display case. Although, in such instances, the farms are small, sometimes fewer than 20 animals. Later that morning, a customer requests a hinged leg of lamb. To prepare this, Joshua cuts the bone free but leaves it in place. The meat is bound in twine to be cooked whole. Prior to serving, the bone will be easily pulled away. Watching Joshua hoist an entire lamb onto his shoulders and transport it from the cooler to the band saw is an impressive sight. He flips the lamb with ease and runs it through the spinning blade. Out slide loin chops, ribs, and legs of lamb. He learned to cut meat by observing other butchers.

The sight of an entire animal being cut into pieces produces different responses from different people. The first time I saw it I was rather shocked; in small pieces, meat seems so much less animal-like. Another young couple watched as Joshua used his saw and a knife to pare away at the lamb. The man bounced a toddler on his shoulder while his wife whispered into her husband’s ear and squeezed the child’s toes. “Give us one too,” the man finally said, with a French accent. “But leave the bone in. We will cook it over a fire.” Later, I asked Joshua if it bothered him to cut meat. “No,” Joshua answered without pause. “I love anatomy.” Shoppers who make their weekly pilgrimage to Fleisher’s come because they are political, concerned about their health, or are foodies who want the best-tasting products available. Many combine all three traits. “We feel blessed that these people care about what we eat, because we do,” says Sandra Zuccala, an Olivebridge resident. “I read that commercial pigs eat garbage and now the FDA says the garbage has to be cooked. I love pork, but I don’t love pork from pigs like that. These pigs have eaten apples.” For me, eating meat is a new experience. I dream of what I want to eat in the days ahead and I drive weekly to Fleisher’s on Friday or Saturday. I think of my friend in Italy who shops for fresh food every day. I feel Italian. I feel French. I feel smart and healthy and politically active. It’s also fun to think I’m in the mood for steak only to have Joshua tempt me with a couple of links of a bratwurst he’s just made, or a new kind of chorizo. My most recent discovery is the frozen blocks of parsley and onion chicken sausage. It’s made from a recipe Joshua created specifically to complement the pastured chicken of a farmer he met at a conference. The chicken farmer lamented over people’s preference for breasts, and further, that he had more legs and thighs than he could sell. “I’ll take all you’ve got,” Joshua answered. There is no finer home-cooked meal than rigatoni topped with a sauce of this sausage simmered into home-jarred organic tomatoes grown locally at New Paltz’s Taliaferro Farms. Eating all parts of an animal is a crucial element to the sustainable movement. It saddens and angers Joshua to waste any piece, and he has more T-bone and porterhouse customers than he knows what to do with. “There is no bacon pig that is all belly,” says Joshua. He loves a customer willing to experiment with fresh hams and shoulders and unusual cuts. He says the customers who really know what’s going on walk in with a different attitude. They ask, “What do I want?” FOOD 63

JOSH APPLESTONE DISPLAYING HIS WARES

While most of the Applestones’ business is wholesale to upscale restaurants in Manhattan and the Hudson Valley, the retail interest is growing. As a movement, desire for meats from animals that lived stress-free lives is gaining momentum. When Fleisher’s first opened, Joshua says they sold half a steer a week. Now they sell three. The next plan is an expansion. By November 1, Fleisher’s Meats will be in a new storefront on Wall Street, around the corner from their current location. The store will be twice the size and the Applestones will be working with Michael Siegel and Barbara Caldwell of Farm and Granary to create a full-service gourmet market. It will be styled after the Union Square Market that Jessica loved so much when she lived in Manhattan. It will stock pastured meats, milk, yogurt, cheese, and eggs; plus olives, sauerkrauts, and organic and non-organic produce obtained from local, sustainable sources. In winter, look for onions, potatoes, and fresh stir-fry mixes grown in greenhouse tunnels that warm and protect the earth even in cold weather. For customers who order on time, the November special is three different kinds of natural and organic Thanksgiving turkeys—including the heritage-variety Bourbon Red from a farm in Delaware County. As for the new decor, if Joshua gets his way he will line the new butcher case with grinning pigs’ heads. Jessica says that’s not happening. They will, however, have organic chickens turning on a rotisserie in the front window. Fleisher’s Grass-Fed and Organic Meats’ new location is 307 Wall Street in Kingston. The retail shop is open Thursday to Saturday; Thursdays and Fridays: 11am-7pm; Saturdays 10am-5pm. (845) 338-MOOO; www.grassfedmeat.net.

meat & greet @ the chronogram party 64 FOOD

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The Alternative Baker

23 Broadway

“The Village Baker of the Rondout.” 100% Scratch Bakery. Stickybuns, Scones, Muffins, Breads, Focaccia, Tartes, Tortes, Seasonal Desserts featuring local produce, plus Sugar-free, Wheat-free, Dairy-free, Vegan, Gluten-free, and Organic Treats! Cakes and Wedding Cakes by Special Order. We ship our Lemon Cakes nationwide, $30 2-pound bundts. Open ThursdayMonday 8am-6pm; Sunday 8am-4pm. Closed Tuesday and Wednesday. Well Worth The Trip! 35 Broadway, at the historic waterfront district, Kingston. (845) 331-5517 or (800) 399-3589. www.lemoncakes.com.

A wine-friendly bistro with creative Mediterranean cuisine. Chef Rich Reeve has developed a menu featuring Spanish tapas, fine steaks, fresh seafood and pastas. In a restored historic building with exposed brick walls, brasstop bar, and a glass-enclosed, temperature-controlled wine room. This is a casual, cool spot with big, bright, bold flavors, Zagat rated, and a CIA destination restaurant (SoHo and Kingston). Dinner Wednesday through Sunday; Brunch Sunday. www.23broadway.com, 23 Broadway, Kingston. (845) 339-2322.

CATERING

Aroma Osteria 114 Old Post Road, Wappingers Falls, NY 12590. (845) 298-6790.

Blue Mountain Bistro Catering Co. On and off-premise catering. Sophisticated Zagat-rated food and atmosphere in a rustic country setting - wide plank floors, rough hewn beams and a stunning zinc bar. Chef-owner Erickson’s Mediterranean cuisine has garnered praise from Gourmet and New York Magazines to Hudson Valley Magazine (Best Tapas in the Hudson Valley 2004).1633 Glasco Turnpike,Woodstock, NY 12498. www.bluemountainbistro.com. (845) 679-8519.

Bacchus Celebrating our 28th Year! Enjoy creative cuisine with seafood and Southwest specialties in a casual, relaxed atmosphere. Offering a full salad bar; over 300 varieties of bottled beers, 13 on tap, plus a full wine list. Open Daily. Lunch 11am-4:30pm; Dinner 4:30-10pm. Weekend Brunch, late-night menu, and takeout available. 4 South Chestnut Street, New Paltz. (845) 255-8636.

Claudia’s Kitchen

Pad Thai Catering Delicious, affordable, and authentic Thai cuisine served with authentic Thai hospitality to your group of six or more. Lunch or dinner served in your home by Chef & Owner Nuch Chaweewan. Please call (845) 687-2334 for prices and information.

HOME MEAL DELIVERY

Beso Located on Main St. in the heart of New Paltz is Beso, formerly The Loft. Spanish for “kiss,” Beso offers casual fine dining by owners Chef Chadwick Greer and Tammy Ogletree. Fresh, modern American cuisine, seasonally inspired by local Hudson Valley farmers. Get cozy in the intimate dining room under skylights and glowing candlelit tables, or sit at the bar for a more casual experience. Housemade pastas like Acorn Squash Raviolis, Hazelnut Crusted Halibut, or Braised Beef Short Ribs. And for dessert, Maple Mascarpone Cheesecake. Private parties, families, children welcome. Open for Dinner 5pm-10pm, 5pm-11pm Fri & Sat, closed Tuesdays, Brunch begins in August. (845) 255-1426 or website: www.beso-restaurant.com.

tastings

Personalized celebrations and weddings, using fresh local ingredients to create delicious and elegant menus. Homemade artisanal breads, Hudson Valley cheese, fabulous appetizers, meat and vegetarian entrées, out-of-this-world desserts. Claudia works one on one to custom design your menu, your party, your wedding or special event. (845) 868-7338 or (914) 4759695. www.claudiascatering.com.

Catamount Waterside Dining & Bar at Emerson Place

Healthy Gourmet to Go

Located near Phoenicia and Woodstock, Catamount Waterside Dining & Bar is a great place to experience the beauty of the Catskills while you enjoy mouthwatering food. Dine Waterside and take in the vistas NATURAL FOOD MARKETS provided by the Esopus Creek and Mt.Tremper as you choose from a menu that includes right-off-theBeacon Natural Market grill steaks, chops, chicken and fish, homemade Lighting the Way for a Healthier World... Located in the pastas with delectable sauces, several dinner-sized heart of historic Beacon at 348 Main Street. Featuring salads, and irresistible desserts. The “Cat,” as locals call it, has a full bar including local micro-brews and organic prepared foods deli & juice bar as well as organic and regional produce, meats and cheeses. international wines that can be taken out onto our Newly opened in Aug. ‘05, proprietors L.T. & Kitty Sherpa streamside patio. Join us for dinner & cocktails for a are dedicated to serving the Hudson Valley with a fun and relaxed atmosphere that is children friendly. complete selection of products that are good for you and 5368 Route 28, Mt. Tremper, NY 12457. We are curgood for the planet, including an extensive alternative rently open for dinner 5:00 pm Wednesday through health dept. Nutritionist on staff. (845)838-1288. Sunday. Panoramic views are also the signature of weddings and banquets, featuring a beautiful outdoor PASTA pavilion. For reservations call: (845) 688-2444. www.emersonplace.com. (845) 339-7171.www.carrottalk.com. See Vegan Lifestyle in the Whole Living Directory.

La Bella Pasta Fresh pasta made locally. Large variety of ravioli, tortellini, pastas, and sauces at the factory outlet. We manufacture and deliver our excellent selection of pastas to fine restaurants, gourmet shops, and caterers throughout the Hudson Valley. Call for our full product list and samples. Open to the public Monday through Friday 10am to 6pm, Saturday 11am to 3pm. Located on Route 28W between Kingston and Woodstock. (845) 331-9130. www.labellapasta.com.

Catskill Rose Restaurant Four-star dining and catering in a comfortable and elegant dining room with antique art deco bar plus gorgeous gardens and outdoor dining. Chefs and proprietors Peter and Rose draw on years of creative experience to prepare the familiar and comforting to the classical and innovative. Soups and desserts made in-house from scratch. Route 212, Mt. Tremper. (845) 688-7100. www.catskillrose.com.

tastings

Cosimo’s on Union Ristorante & Bar

Hickory BBQ Smokehouse

The most unique modern Italian Restaurant in Orange County, featuring wood-fired pizza, gourmet Italian pasta dishes, and other specialties from our open-air kitchen. Homemade Desserts, Espresso, Cappuccino, Full Bar, Party Rooms on request. Private Wine Cellar Dining; New Expansion; On- & Off-Premise Catering; Highly Rated, Zagat’s; Award of Excellence, Wine Spectator; Winner, Best of Hudson Valley 19941998; “5-Star Service”–Poughkeepsie Journal. Union Avenue, Newburgh. (845) 567-1556.

Located on historic Route 28 between Kingston and Woodstock, Hickory offers diners Hudson Valley’s finest barbecue and smokehouse cuisine such as ribs, pulled pork, smoked beef, fish and free-range chicken. Whether enjoying your meal by the fireplace in Hickory’s three-star dining room or sipping a cocktail at the wood bar, Hickory’s staff is trained to make you feel as comfortable as you would at home. Hickory also features several vegetarian options, steaks, homemade desserts, happy hour specials, a complete take-out menu, and catering and special events in our private dining room. You can enjoy live music featuring the area’s hottest bands on Friday and Saturday nights. Open daily for lunch and dinner. 743 Route 28 (3.5 miles from NYS Thruway Exit 19). (845) 338-2424. www.hickoryrestaurant.com.

The Emerson at Woodstock Now open! The Emerson at Woodstock brings two inspired dining experiences to historic Woodstock. Ricks’ Bistro celebrates Woodstock’s agricultural past with hearty, wholesome dishes in a casual, laid back setting with a jovial bar serving the area’s best local beers, regional wines and created cocktails. The Riseley Room continues the culinary traditions established by the Emerson Inn. Guests enjoy an intimate, elegant setting as they savor meals created by Executive Chef Michel Nischan, a James Beard Award winning author and guest chef on “Oprah.” Open Tues.-Sat. Call for reservations. (845) 679-7500 or www.emersonplace.com.

The French Corner Routes 213 West and 209, Stone Ridge, just minutes from Kingston. Experience Chef Jacques’ menu, which features recipes using ingredients from his native Franche-Comte, France, combined with fresh seasonal products from Hudson Valley farmers. The French Corner dining room and bar are decorated with antiques and artifacts from Eastern France. Families and children are welcome, private dining room available. Dinner Wednesday through Sunday and Brunch Sunday. Closed Monday and Tuesday. Phone: (845) 687-0810.

Gilded Otter

Located at the corner of the Stockade District in uptown Kingston, the Hoffman House is a National Historic Landmark, which during the 1600s served as a lookout for marauding Indians canoeing up the Esopus. Today, you can enjoy relaxed dining as you warm yourself near a soothing fireplace in winter or outside on patio in summer. Take a step back in time as you dine in one of Kingston’s oldest stone houses and savor the cuisine and service that the Hoffman House has been providing to their customers for over 27 years. Open Monday through Saturday for lunch and dinner, 94 North Front Street, Kingston. (845) 338-2626.

Joyous Café Is it any wonder that Joyous Café is the most exciting new eating experience in Kingston? Whether it’s Breakfast, Lunch, or Sunday Brunch, the wonderfully prepared food and attentive service are outstanding. Open Monday through Friday 8 am - 4 pm. Sunday Brunch 9 am- 2 pm. Serving Dinner evenings of UPAC events. 608 Broadway, in The Heart of Broadway Theater Square, Kingston. (845) 334-9441. www.joyouscafe.com.

Kyoto Sushi

tastings

A warm and inviting dining room and pub overlooking beautiful sunsets over the Wallkill River and Shawangunk Cliffs. Mouthwatering dinners prepared by Executive Chef Larry Chu, and handcrafted beers brewed by GABF Gold Medal Winning Brewmaster Darren Currier. Chef driven & brewed locally! 3 Main St., New Paltz. (845) 256-1700.

The Hoffman House

337 Washington Ave, Kingston, NY 12401. (845) 339-1128.

Luna 61 Hana Sushi Best authentic sushi in the Hudson Valley! Superb Japanese sushi chefs serve the best authentic sushi with extended Dining Area. Sit at the counter or tables and enjoy all your favorites from Chicken Teriyaki and Udon to Yellowtail and Special rolls. Eat-in, take-out, and private room is available. Hours: Tuesday-Friday Lunch 11:30am-2:30pm. Monday-Thursday Dinner 5-9pm. Friday Dinner 5-10pm. Saturday Dinner 4:3010pm. 7270 South Broadway, Red Hook, NY. (845) 758-4333. www.hana-sushi.com.

“Best Vegetarian Restaurant.” –Hudson Valley Magazine. “Food is simply delicious, four stars.” –Poughkeepsie Journal. “Imagine spicy Thai noodles, delicate spring rolls, and the best banana cream pie you’ve ever eaten. Join the Culinary Revolution.” –Dutchess Magazine. Luna 61 is relaxed and funky, candlelit tables, cozy, and romantic. Organic wine and beer. Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Sunday: 5-9pm. Friday and Saturday: 5-10pm. Now Accepting Credit Cards. 61 East Market Street, Red Hook, NY 12571. (845) 758-0061.

www.divisionstreetgrill.com

Machu Picchu Peruvian Restaurant The only authentic Peruvian restaurant in Orange County, NY. Family owned and operated since 1990. Serving the community traditional dishes from the mountains and coast of Peru. Trained in Peru, our chefs make authentic dishes come alive. Wine list available. Serving Lunch and Dinner Sunday through Thursday 10am-10pm and Friday and Saturday 10am-11pm. Closed Tuesday. 301 Broadway, Newburgh. (845) 562-6478. www. machupicchuperuvianrest.com.

Main Course Four-star, award-winning, contemporary American cuisine serving organic, natural, and free-range Hudson Valley products. Open Lunch and Dinner Tues-Sun, & Sunday Brunch. Wed and Thurs nights, food & wine pairing menu available. Voted “Best Caterer in the Hudson Valley.” 232 Main Street, New Paltz. (845) 255-2600. Visit our Web site at www.maincourserestaurant.com.

tastings

Marcel’s Restaurant Casual and comfortable dining, warm country inn atmosphere. Price range $13.95 - $32.95. Now offering daily 4-Course Prix Fixe specials starting at $15.95. House specialties : Pate Du Jour, Duck Laprousse Grand Marnier, Coquilles St Jaques, and Filet Tornodos. Marcels is proud to announce it is celebrating 33 years of fine food and service. Check out our web site for our seasonal menu@marcelrestaurant.net or to check the date on our next jazz night. We have a complete take out menu, and catering is available. We have also recently added a vegetarian menu and a young guest menu. Our hours of operation are Thursday-Monday 5-10pm. Sundays 3-9pm. Located at 1746 Route 9W, West Park, NY. Call (845) 384-6700 to place an order or to make a reservation.

Mexican Radio 537 Warren St, Hudson, NY 12534. (518) 828-7770. cpmljs@ecoipm.com.

Neko Sushi & Restaurant Voted “Best Sushi” Restaurant by Chronogram readers and rated four stars by Poughkeepsie Journal. Serving lunch & dinner daily. Eat in or Take Out. We offer many selections of Sushi & Sashimi, an extensive variety of special rolls & kitchen dishes. Live lobster prepared daily. Parking in rear available. Sun.-Thur. 12-10pm; Fri. & Sat. 12-11pm. Major credit cards accepted. 49 Main Streetin the Village of New Paltz.(845) 255-0162.

Osaka Japanese Restaurant Want to taste the best Sushi in the Hudson Valley? Osaka Restaurant is the place. Vegetarian dishes available. Given four stars by the Daily Freeman. 8 Garden St., Rhinebeck. (845) 876-7338 or (845) 876-7278. Visit our second location at 74 Broadway, Tivoli. (845) 757-5055. 68

tastings

Pastorale Bistro & Bar Eat up, Dress down, in this hip country bistro. High quality, sophisticated cooking that could fit in anywhere says the New York Times. Serving updated bistro classics in a 1760’s colonial. Bar with signature cocktails, lively ambience. Tuesday-Saturday dinner. Brunch & Dinner on Sundays 128pm. Summer Patio. Private dining for up to 50. 223 Main Street (Rt. 44), Lakeville, CT 06093. (860) 435-1011.

Plaza Diner Established 1969. One of the finest family restaurants in the area. Extensive selection of entrees and daily specials, plus children’s menu. Everything prepared fresh daily. Private room for parties & conferences up to 50 people. Open 24/7. 27 New Paltz Plaza, New Paltz. Exit 18 off NYS Thruway. (845) 255-1030.

Roasted Garlic at the Red Hook Inn

tastings

Elegant environment, comfortable atmosphere, internationally acclaimed chef/owner, the Red Hook ‘Country’ Inn, located in the heart of historic Red Hook/Rhinebeck NY has it all. This 6 room Federal style colonial, built in 1842, offers guests a walk back in time as they enjoy modern amenities including luxury bedding, linens, jacuzzis, fireplaces and wireless internet. The dining room at the Inn, ROASTED GARLIC, features a mixture of French, American and Mediterranean menus with a focus on flavor and affordability. Meet Chef Nabil Ayoub and Hostess Patricia Holden as you enjoy charm, exquisite cuisine and warm hospitality.

Soul Dog Featuring a variety of hot dogs, including preservative-free and vegetarian hot dogs, chili, soup, sides, desserts & many gluten-free items prepared in-house. Open for lunch Mon-Fri 11am-4pm. Redefining the hot dog experience! 107 Main St., Poughkeepsie, NY. (845) 454-3254.

Wasabi Japanese Restaurant

CHRONOGRAM

807 Warren Street, Hudson NY, 12534. Open 7 days a week. (518) 822-1888.

THE PARTY

BISTRO & BAR “High quality sophisticated cooking” – The New York Times

Tel. 860.435.1011 Dinner Tuesday – Saturday Sundays – Brunch and Dinner

tastings

Lakeville, CT.

HOLIDAY PARTIES CHRONOGRAM NOVEMBER 2005

Holiday Party Planning by Susan Piperato

HIRING A CATERER LETS YOU BE A GUEST

AT YOUR OWN PARTY. Winter may be the most magical of seasons when it comes to socializing, but all those celebrations that make December stand out from the rest of the year don’t happen at all by magic. Holiday parties—whether informal open houses, elegant sit-down dinners, or cocktail parties—are not only more special but more complicated than other social gatherings held throughout the rest of the year. While some party hosts choose to go it alone—taking on preparation, hosting, and cleanup duties themselves—hiring a caterer frees you up to enjoy the fun along with your guests. Hiring a caterer not only makes a party "more elegant" but allows the host to "relax and enjoy their company instead of slaving in the kitchen," says Chef Richard Erickson. With his wife, Mary Anne, Erickson runs Blue Mountain Bistro Catering Company in Woodstock. "Some people are very organized and can handle doing a party themselves, up to a certain number—but other people plunge ahead on their own, then find the party’s too big, and wish they’d called a caterer. If you feel stressed by party planning, or overwhelmed by details, that’s when you should hire a caterer—we come in and take on the stress for you." Whether you opt for a caterer or not, says Erickson, confidence and trust are key to making the party a success. "Caterers have seen what works and what doesn’t work, and knows that it’s the sum of many little bitty details that makes an event work," he says. "Caterers bring their own experience and expertise to an event. The relationship between client and caterer works best when a client is confident and lets the caterer do their job." The earlier you begin your search for a caterer, the better. Caterers tend to get booked up to a year in advance, especially during the busy seasons (summertime and December). "December tends to get jammed up quickly because people don’t want to start thinking about the holidays until after Halloween," says Erickson. "Also, 90 percent of events happen on Saturday, and there are only a few Saturdays during the holiday season, so if you want your party on a Saturday, get it out there as soon as possible, or else be open to holding it any other day of the week." Not every caterer is right for every event, and "good old-fashioned gut instinct" is basic to choosing one, says Erickson. Get references for caterers from friends, family, or people whose parties you have enjoyed in the past. If you’re at a loss for references, try asking businesses related to catering—such as florists—suggest Phyllis Cambria and Patty Sachs, authors of The Idiot’s Guide to Choosing a Caterer (Alpha Books, 2004).

"You know when the fit is right," says Erickson. "My job is to do a party within budget and in a style that suits the clients and not impose my own ideas. If a caterer wants you to be different than who you are, that’s not the right caterer for you. That works both ways—if someone calls me asking me to make spaghetti and meatballs, or just salads, that’s not what I do, so I’ll suggest someone who does those things well." Although it’s always best to approach a caterer with clear ideas, Erickson says he doesn’t mind when potential clients use him as a "sounding board" to figure out their party’s style or determine whether they really need a caterer. "Sometimes clients change their ideas after talking with me; and sometimes, at the end of a conversation with a potential client, we agree that they really don’t need my services—they can probably do the party easier and cheaper themselves," he says. "No judgment involved—it’s all about what’s going to work best." Once you’ve chosen a caterer, iron out the specifics: time of day, level of formality (sit-down dinner, buffet, or cocktail party), number of guests, menu preferences, purpose of event, and budget. "Will this be an open house with people dropping by from 1pm to 5pm, or from 3pm to 8pm? If so, we need food that is easily replenished and an appropriate presentation to go with china and glass, or paper plates and plastic cups, depending on how formal the client wants to be," asks Erickson. "Things like time of day, and whether guests will drop by or be there for a specific time, affects everything else." Once Erickson knows the party’s parameters, he makes a home visit. "The term ‘caterer’ comes from the word ‘cater’ which means paying attention to the client’s tastes, but catering is also about logistics, keeping things flowing at an event," he explains. "Planning the party in the home allows you to figure out what’s most appropriate. Recently a woman who called us wanted dinner served on the patio, but because of the configuration of her kitchen, dining room and living room, and the type of food she wanted to serve, I suggested moving the dining table near the fireplace, which made it more elegant, and she loved that idea. Sometimes people don’t see their home the way a caterer does." Clarify responsibilities early on regarding the menu, preparation, breakdown, and cleanup, advises Erickson. "The worst situation is when a client says, ‘Oh, Aunt Mary is going to do the green beans, and I’ll do the cake if you’ll do this.’ When the lines of responsibility blur, you wind up with a mishmash." Last but not least, let the season dictate what’s appropriate to serve your guests. If you’re holding a holiday open house, try dishes that keep well and are easily replenished. "Soups and stews are great—they can be country peasant style, or very elegant," says Erickson. "Think cold weather food—roasted meats and vegetables, not barbecue. The food you serve should smell good to people as they walk in—soups and stews simmering on the stove will do that; so will hot cider or spiced wine. Dessert buffets look great for the holidays, with lots of cakes and tarts and cookies, and enable people to come and go, and mingle with friends."

Create a Winter Wonderland. If you strive to be culturally diverse in all things, there are only two options for celebrating the winter holidays: combine all four traditions (Hanukkah, Christmas, Kwanzaa, and Yule) or simply celebrate winter! After all, once the snow starts, we’re all in it together, whatever our spiritual bent. Create a winter wonderland using lots of silver, white, and ice. Decorate with white gossamer and silver ribbons, white lights, white and silver candles, silver confetti, and foil-wrapped candies. Serve “frostinis” (equal parts vodka, Bailey’s Irish Cream, Godiva liqueur, and a dash of cream) and classic desserts that evoke snow, like white chocolate, marzipan, perhaps even baked Alaska? Celebrate Twelfth Night. Maybe winter is such a long, dreary slog because all the season’s holidays occur at its start. Ancient Romans and Olde Europeans broke winter’s monotony with Twelfth Night. Observed on January 6, Twelfth Night held significance for both pagans and Christians, marking the end of the fall harvest festival and the reign of Saturn; the final mystical night of Christmas; Epiphany, or the adoration of the Magi; and the lead-up to Mardi Gras. However you look at it, Twelfth Night is pure carnival, a magical time when anything goes. Celebrate with costumes, masks, and a “king cake”—twisted bread covered with sugar and containing a trinket whose recipient becomes party king or queen. Think upside-down world. Shakespeare didn’t call his play “Twelfth Night (Or, What You Will)” for nothing. Forget Fruitcake. That doorstopper cake traditionally made with candied fruit, suet, and booze might seem edible to the English, but for Americans, it’s the only present worse than getting no present at all. But just because you might receive one doesn’t mean you have to eat it. Instead, place it on a bed of holly and evergreen, scatter it with pinecones, insert candles, and voila, you’ve got yourself a charming holiday centerpiece that nobody needs to taste. Instead, bake a walnut cake, top it with liquor glaze, and serve it with Irish Coffee and cream. Mmmm. Now that’s more like it. Make It, Literally, a House Party. Even if Christmas isn’t your thing, doubtless you can’t resist the scent of gingerbread—it’s pure nostalgia. Assembling and decorating gingerbread houses makes for a project that’s fun, relaxing, and potentially altruistic. So find an organization willing to accept your wares, bake up several sheets of gingerbread, assemble a supply of candies, icing, cake decorations, and cardboard bases, invite your friends over for an afternoon, and get building. Many organizations—from homeless shelters to Habitat for Humanity—annually raffle off gingerbread houses at fundraisers.

Be Progressive. Like having friends and family over, but hate the thought of doing all the cooking and cleanup yourself? Organize a progressive dinner and spread the party around. Meeting with your joint hosts and hostesses to organize the event is half the fun! Feature five courses as stops along the way: appetizers and cocktails; soup and salad; main course; dessert and coffee; fruit, cheese, and liqueurs. Create a menu and map to send to guests. Viva la Fiesta! Maybe it’s not the holidays themselves that have come to be no fun, but the way in which they’re celebrated. Try jazzing things up by injecting a little cultural diversity. Celebrate Latin-style with Latino Christmas tunes and salsa lessons. Go bright with the decorations—neon-colored margarita glasses, black tablecloths topped with colored confetti, piñatas, chili pepper lights tossed around cactus plants—and serve lots of hot, chili-based foods (try chocolate-dipped chili peppers) will more than spice things up. Give ’Em Candy. Candy is a time-honored Hanukkah and Christmas tradition. A candy party is an easy party alternative that both kids and adults enjoy. Use candy to decorate and hide some of it throughout the house (like Hanukkah gelt) and hold a contest—whomever finds the most wins a prize! It’s About the Light. If you’ve got access to a fireplace, bonfire, or chimenea, you’ve got everything you need. Reach out to a few folks you don’t know well, and spread the light.

HOW TO THROW AN ENJOYABLE, EVEN MEANINGFUL PARTY FOR THOSE WHO, FRANKLY, HATE THE HOLIDAYS

By Susan Piperato

Satisfy a Yearn to Learn. Always wanted to know how to make classic holiday foods from scratch? Invite your favorite folks around for a session of preparing eggnog, latkes, tamales, chocolate candy, Yule log cake, or one of hundreds of traditional holiday specialties. Print out recipe cards and tie them with ribbons onto attractive containers and wrapped foods to send samples home with your guests. Shift into Reverse. Heard of “Christmas in July” parties? Experience Christmas the way they do Down Under with a “July in December” shindig! For decorations, the tackier the combo of summer bash and winter holiday themes, the better: beach balls decorated with snowflake patterns, poinsettias, checkered tablecloths, Christmas lights, tropical flowers, and candy canes. Seat guests on beach chairs, hand out Santa hats and sunglasses as party favors, serve margaritas and picnic food, and hey, why not do the limbo? Make the Party Your Gift. Inviting the crowd over to create simple, beautiful gifts for them to keep or give away—like luminaries, candles, beaded jewelry, soaps, or window ornaments—proves the old adage that, come holiday time, togetherness and thoughtfulness count more than price tags. For ideas, and reasonably priced holiday gift-making kits, visit www.hearthsong.com. Turn Your Gifts into a Party. Maybe you’ve received a few unwanted gifts, or there’s so much unusable stuff hanging around that you can’t wait for springtime and yard sale season. Throwing a “gift exchange” party before New Year’s is a great way to get rid of junk and blow off steam. Ask each guest to bring an unwanted, wrapped item and enjoy the swap.

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As the days shorten and the sun skims a lower arc across the sky, those of us who long for brilliant overhead sunlight get a little uneasy about the prospects of a long dark winter ahead. People with SAD (seasonal affective disorder) dust off their full-spectrum lamps to augment those specific solar wavelengths that cue the brain to keep pumping out serotonin—one of the brain’s “feel good” neurotransmitters. But there are other neurochemicals, dancing in a complex relationship within the brain, that enhance a sense of well-being. Among them are endorphins. The word endorphin is short for “endogenous morphine,” referring to selfmade chemicals (endogenous) that have morphine-like effects. In fact, the discovery of endorphins directly emerged from studies of morphine’s influence on the brain. In 1973, Candace Pert and Sol Snyder published findings that morphine avidly attaches to specific proteins (receptors) on brain cells, thereby influencing the brain’s activity, especially in regions allied with mood and pain. Those proteins were dubbed opioid receptors because they bind opiates—morphine and related chemicals from the opium-poppy flower bud (codeine, heroin, oxycodone). Researchers then reasoned that opiate receptors ought to have naturally occurring neurochemicals that attached to them and induced morphine-like responses. The hunt began, and eventually enkephalins, endorphins, betalipoprotein, and other endogenous opioids were detected in brain tissue—in extremely minute amounts, but exquisitely powerful. Beta-endorphin is one of the best studied in the endogenous opioid family. It is a peptide, meaning a short chain of amino acids (30 of them), which is especially prevalent in the brain but also shows up in the nervous system outside the body and in immune cells. Other similar but shorter molecules, like enkephalins and endomorphins,

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are potent neurotransmitters as well, and their diverse actions are being elucidated. Together, the endogenous opioid family of today includes dozens of chemicals that modulate mood, block perception of pain, influence hunger, regulate reproduction, and perform many other functions. SEEKING: ENDORPHINS Endorphins are in the public vernacular in phrases like “That ski run really gave me an endorphin rush!” or “He/she is so hot my endorphins spiked the moment he/she came in the room!” It should be noted that many of the things claimed to flood us with endorphins are not well supported by studies in people. The vast majority of scientific data (and conclusions) about endorphins are from rats and mice, because studying what’s happening in the brain usually means killing the study subjects. Studies of people typically measure bloodstream levels of endorphins, not brain levels, with the assumption that there is a biologically relevant relationship between the two (though endorphins do not easily travel between brain and blood). Other studies use the drug naloxone to block opiod action and see what’s been altered in human volunteers. This method is a useful, if not direct, way of probing what endogenous opioids do in people. In addition, PET scans are now showing activation of the brain’s endogenous opioid system more directly, such as while receiving painful stimuli or exercising. HURTS SO GOOD One of the best-supported activators of endorphins is pain. Like morphine, endorphins are analgesic, replacing pain with a relaxed, calm, and sometimes “euphoric” feeling. They dampen the perception of pain signals that reach

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the brain, and may also tame the frequency of signals sent to the brain by injured tissues. Note that things not inherently delightful to some people but which trigger a tolerable level of physical pain, may be sought by others who experience a euphoric response. Presumably endorphins (or other opioids) encourage such pain-seeking activities, but the body’s other stress-induced neurochemicals, like norepinephrine (adrenalin), may be involved. But endorphins are released within the brain by more than overt injury. Vigorous exercise, childbirth, bodywork, and acupuncture also tweak brain endorphins. For some, like childbirth, the physical stress is obvious. But even something as simple as eating hot chili peppers has been shown (in rats, by direct application of a chemical extracted from peppers to nerve cells) to trigger brain endorphins, and is assumed to do the same for chili-pepper lovers who crave the afterglow. EXERCISE Vigorous exercise is a stressor on the body. Endorphins are clearly released under certain conditions to produce that famous “runner’s high,” a biochemically measurable phenomenon to which athletes attest. “It feels so peaceful,” says Dorothy Hamburg, an exercise physiologist and certified exercise trainer who owns Personal Strength and Training in Rhinebeck. “The runner’s high, being in the zone, is real. I’ve been in races where I find myself struggling, then all of a sudden it just becomes easy, fun. Instead of ‘oh, no, I’ve got to run another hour,’ it becomes effortless. There is no struggle.” Hamburg, who has enjoyed endurance athletics and marathons for years, explains that endorphins are released when exercise level is moderate to high, “at the point when you are going from aerobic to anaerobic exercise.” A clue as to when that’s happening is “when you wouldn’t be able to have a comfortable conversation while exercising.” Short bursts of activity like weight-lifting or sprinting, don’t trigger endorphins enough to be measured in the bloodstream, but might boost brain levels, and they help condition the body for more exertional activities. Also, studies do show that an hour or more of even modest exercise can elevate endorphins. Most of Hamburg’s personal training clients are women wanting to get exercise back into their lives as their bodies change in middle life. The endorphins are not a goal, but a perk, and the exercise can be just plain enjoyable for many reasons. “The most important thing is to find what you like doing. If you don’t like it, you won’t do it.” It could include a combination of things, like gardening, walking, and yoga, for a total of half an hour a day. “Start with gentle effort. Learn the movement patterns, see how you feel, then increase in duration, intensity, and frequency.” Hamburg also suggests a one-on-one 92 WHOLE LIVING GUIDE

consultation with a trainer or coach. “Look for someone with education in the health fitness industry, a sports medicine background, or who is certified by the National Strength Conditioning Association [NSCA], American Council of Exercise [ACE], or the American College of Sports Medicine [ACSM].” There are many other beneficial physiological changes induced by exercise, such as deeper breathing, revved-up blood circulation, better lymphatic drainage, and increased cellular metabolism, each of which have complex interrelations with brain chemistry and influence mood, alertness, physical sensations, and overall health. BODYWORK AND ACUPUNCTURE Physical treatments that stimulate nerves directly or indirectly (through muscle manipulation) also release endorphins, says Dr. David

Ness, certified sports chiropractor in New Paltz. “Very simply, whether it’s acupuncture, chiropractic, or bodywork, in addition to the therapeutic value, you get both the emotional and endorphin effects.” Chiropractic releases endorphins through its impact on the nervous system, he explains, adding that all bodywork releases endorphins. “Yoga, Pilates, Tai Chi, Qi Gong, any of those modalities improve overall health—physical, spiritual, and mental. They are part of the wellness revolution,” meaning the shift away from medicalized treatment of ailments to maintaining wellness and taking responsibility for one’s own health and well-being. That once-a-week class isn’t going to be much help, though. “If you are going to use it for an exercise, it needs to be done more than once a week,” Ness encourages. Bruce Pomeranz, PhD, at the University of Toronto, was the first to propose that acupuncture, commonly undertaken to relieve pain, does so through endorphins. After attending a 1975 conference at which the discovery of endorphins was announced, he theorized that acupuncture needles inserted at key locations in the body (which correspond to points on the meridian) stimulate nerves that trigger endorphin release within the brain (d’ai chi, meaning twisting the needles, is key to the effect, he says). There, the endorphins block the brain from registering the sensation of pain. He then spent 20 years collecting data to disprove that (as proper science is meant to proceed). But diverse studies of his and other researchers indeed support this “westernized” medical explanation of why acupuncture is analgesic (versus that of traditional Chinese

medicine, which explains it in terms of chi energy flowing through meridians). Bottom line: Acupuncture works and endorphins help make it happen. MIND OVER BODY Endorphins may also be behind the placebo effect, which is a measurable improvement in a person’s condition, like pain, without any specific treatment being given. The placebo effect often is explained as the power of the mind to create physiological changes in the body, but some researchers argue that a placebo effect can be explained by study design instead; an example is the likelihood that, in any study of illness or a health condition, some people would be getting better on their own anyway. But researchers at the University of Michigan implicated endorphins as a player in the placebo effect in a study earlier this year. They used PET brain scans of volunteers to record changes in activity of the brain’s opioid system while the volunteers received a painful injec-

tion. The scans showed markedly increased activity of the endorphin/opioid system after the volunteers were told they were being given something that might ease the pain (though they weren’t). The volunteers reported feeling less pain as well. This suggests that the idea of relief triggered the brain’s natural pain-reliever (endorphins), which lowered the sensation of pain. “The mind-body connection is quite clear,” the study’s authors concluded. WEAK EVIDENCE, BUT WHO CARES? Does having sex increase endorphins? The belief that it does is much more prevalent than any real data. A search of the Library of Medicine’s database of thousands of biomedical journals produced a glaring paucity of studies relating endorphins and sexual activity in people (the more abundant data for rats offers mixed conclusions). There is reasonable evidence implicating the endogenous opiod system somehow in sexual behavior, however, and in reproduction, but in complex ways that include the two neurochemicals more reliably linked to sexual behavior: dopamine and serotonin. Similarly, there is almost no data to support the notion that laughter’s emotional high is mediated through endorphins. But who cares what’s behind the warm and fuzzy aftermath of sex or out-of-control belly laughs? Something’s definitely going on

in that cranium. Plus, both have whole-body health benefits as cardiovascular exercises that increase blood and oxygen delivery and give muscles a workout, including those that other forms of exercise don’t seem to get to. The preceding brief review of endorphins suggests there surely is much more to them than we currently know. An annual review of endogenous opioids, published in the scientific journal Peptides in 2004, included sections on their relation to pain, stress, learning and memory, eating and drinking, drug abuse, sexual activity, development, mental illness, mood, neurological disorders, digestion, kidney and liver function, the cardiovascular system, respiration, thermoregulation, immunity, and more (though, again, most information is from studies in lab animals). JUST DO IT Mark Wilson of Woodstock is founder and president of the Hudson Valley Triathlon Club and a triathlon coach. “It doesn’t take much to enjoy the benefits of endorphins via exercise,”

he says. “Literally 10 to 20 minutes of activity can release the natural drugs into your system, which creates a sense of well-being and joy that cannot be felt by sedentary folks. Brief, quick efforts up stairways or down the block can trigger the release of endorphins and possibly keep you from buying that cup of joe on the way to work, not to mention the doughnut! Bottom line, keep moving your body; it likes that!” Are there any endorphin downsides? Some things that trigger them might become harmful, like overindulgence in highly sweet or fatty foods or a body-wracking exercise schedule, and they are implicated in addictive and obsessive behaviors like eating disorders and alcoholism. For example, alcohol triggers endorphin release; drugs that block endorphin attachment to receptors can decrease cravings. Interestingly, there appear to be inherited differences in brain endorphin levels, which are associated with susceptibility to alcoholism (naturally higher levels induce alcohol cravings). Still, some of the best things in life are endorphin-friendly (or suspected of being so) and generate many health and social benefits. Even if scientific studies don’t prove everything yet, how these activities make us feel is a good bottom line. No one really can tell what’s going on inside our heads as well as we can. Plus, as a drug of choice, endorphins are very safe, and you’ll never run out. WHOLE LIVING GUIDE 93

WOMEN CHANGING HUMANITY

VOICES OF HOPE FROM OMEGA INSTITUTE’S WOMEN AND POWER 2005 CONFERENCE BY LORRIE KLOSTERMAN

Few things touch a despairing soul like examples of other humans who have experienced a remarkable metamorphosis through their struggles. Stories from just such women were the backbone of the fourth Women and Power Conference at Omega Institute, held in early September. Speakers from all over the world offered an audience of 700 a glimpse into tragedy, violence, inequity, and prejudice, and shared how those experiences transformed them. When I mentioned the conference to a male friend, he jumped back, teasing me but also expressing a preconception the conference’s name can elicit: that its message would be “We’ve had it with men” or “Women are better than men,” or that it would advocate replicating a paradigm of domination and gender-based inequities, this time favoring women. Not so. Instead, it encouraged using the resources and experiences of women to improve the social fabric for everyone. The presentations and discussions often made clear that the changes women seek apply to both genders: freedom from fear, repression, violence, social silencing, inequity, and stereotyping. Obie award-winning author Eve Ensler (and conference co-creator) was one of the opening night’s speakers. Her bold and highly acclaimed play “The Vagina Monologues” has been translated into more than 35 languages and performed around the world, including clandestinely in Pakistan, where women participating in or viewing it were literally risking their lives (though now it runs openly in theaters). The “Monologues” also birthed V-Day (www.vday.org), a global movement with thousands of members that generates millions of dollars for the sole purpose of stopping violence against women and girls. Also attending or speaking at the conference were many women, from teenagers to mature women with families, who have been supported by Ensler’s example or by V-Day funds. Agnes Pareyio, for instance, travels among villages in Kenya educating people about the dangers and oppression of ritual female genital mutilation, which she suffered as a young woman and refused to perpetuate. Once traveling on foot, Pareyio now uses a vehicle provided by Ensler. V-Day has also established a safe house in Narok, Kenya, which shelters 94 WHOLE LIVING GUIDE

girls who are saying “No!” to the ritual, and so must flee their communities. More than a thousand girls have been saved from the procedure and are instead receiving an education, and are developing ways to build strong communities without debasing women. Poet, author, and civil rights activist Maya Angelou addressed the audience first in song, then in poetry and encouraging words, reminding each person that she has within herself a contribution to offer for the benefit of all people. That contribution begins with the freedom to be seen and heard. When social, political, or individual oppression denies that freedom, it will take courage, perhaps like never before, to let the “inner light shine”—a metaphor that carried through the conference. Such courage may only appear after awful tragedy, or it may come from anger at intolerable inequality, but it finally will crack the shell of fear that many women have absorbed from their personal histories or society’s “rules.” Call up the grandmothers, Angelou encourages us; call up those who would support our soul’s journey to live in joy and safety. When you are trembling in the corner, the vision of others’ courage can embolden your spirit, give you hope, stir action, and create change. Another example of hope came from Wangari Maathai, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize in 2004 for her environmental work establishing, among other things, the Greenbelt Movement, which has empowered African women to plant more than 30 million trees to stop devastating soil erosion in their communities. As a child, Maathai had witnessed the disappearance of forests in her homeland of Kenya and knew it was connected with poverty and starvation in the villages. Educated in biology and the first woman in central Africa to earn a doctoral degree of any kind, she set about replanting trees and teaching village women how to do so. She was told repeatedly by the country’s forestry officials that women without proper training couldn’t possibly know how to plant trees, and were forbidden from doing so. (She was arrested several times for campaigning against deforestation.) Still, many village women learned that collecting tree seeds and nurturing them to growth came naturally, and now they are experts on replanting central African forests—

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LEFT: OMEGA CO-FOUNDER ELIZABETH LESSER; ABOVE: WANGARI MAATHAI AND WOMEN & POWER ATTENDEES

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something that has transformed and rehabilitated many landscapes and habitats, while providing related income for families. The Greenbelt Movement is spreading all across Africa with its larger mission of “mobilizing communities for self-determination, justice, equity, poverty reduction, and environmental conservation, using trees as the entry point.” (Learn more at www.wangarimaathai.or.ke.) Dr. Maathai reminds us that a single person, if she or he can overcome despair, be it from internal or external tragedy or oppression, can start a shift in a deeply entrenched paradigm. She used an analogy that became another theme of the conference: If society’s direction isn’t working and isn’t sustainable, but you’re accepting it, it’s like you’re sitting on a bus going somewhere you don’t want to go. The bus will continue along its misguided course unless someone, like you, is willing to start a change. That could mean getting off the bus altogether, or moving closer to the front to have some say in where it’s going—even becoming the driver. Her story gives hope to those who are aware that a civilization of unsustainable, inequitable, domination-based practices is not the direction that will serve the global community of the future, and that “average citizens” can make their voices heard and their actions count, starting with the simplest of life-affirming actions in one’s community. It is not possible to summarize more of the conference here, other than to mention additional speakers: professor and author Carol Gilligan, whose research and book, In a Different Voice, introduced women’s and girls’ experiences into psychology, which had previously used studies of only men and boys to define the psychology of everyone; Pumla Gobodo-Madikizela,

founding member of Women Waging Peace and an organizer of the astonishingly courageous public hearings between victims and perpetrators for South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission; Benedictine Sister Joan Chittister, best-selling author of numerous books and dynamic spiritual visionary; actors and social activists Sally Field and Jane Fonda; and many others. Each of these accomplished women deflected praise for their achievements, instead reminding the audience that the simplest action made from unconditional love, compassion, patience, forgiveness—qualities often attributed to women—will be a step toward realizing humanity’s greatest expression. In her latest book, Broken Open, Omega’s co-founder and the conference’s co-creator, Elizabeth Lesser, offers more examples of wounded or oppressed souls, including hers, who used despair and pain to craft transformation. As she visions: “The world needs women to imagine, define, and lead us toward a sane and sustainable culture—a culture that values life more than war, people more than profits, and hope more than despair.” Lesser and Omega executive director Skip Backus are committed to providing the hub for a growing Women and Power community, and will host next year’s conference at Omega’s Rhinebeck campus. Register early, in the spring, as the conference sells out each year. Join the author for screenings of keynote speeches from the Women and Power 2005 Conference, followed by discussions. To receive notification of when and where these will be held in the Mid-Hudson Valley, e-mail info@chronogram.com and put “Women and Power” in the subject line, or call (845) 758-9491 to leave other contact information.

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www.pilatesnewpaltz.com WHOLE LIVING GUIDE 95

Frankly Speaking BY FRANK CROCITTO

Seeing Through It

Mike Dubisch

PEOPLE SPEAK OF THEIR CENTERS. YOU’VE GOT TO “GET CENTERED.” You’ve got to find your center, or go back to it. But where exactly is “the center”? How would you know? It’s an inch above your belly button. Whose belly button? What center are we really talking about? Are we talking about the center of your body? The center of your being? Your personality? What do we mean when we speak of the center? A person’s center is something to be discovered, rather than pinpointed. The only person who can find their center is the person on the search for it. How will they find it? By looking for it or wanting it. But philosophically speaking, isn’t it true that your center would be where your life is coming from, how you’re connected to life? Take the image of a diver going down into the sea. The diver’s very well aware of the connection he has to life in that example—without the tube that carries his air supply, he knows he’s a goner. Or take the example of an unborn baby who hasn’t arrived in the world yet. Where’s its center, where’s its life? Where the life is coming into it. Once we’re born, we still have a connection to life, but it’s not as obvious as it was in the womb. Once we’re born, life is something that’s entering us all the time, and as long as that connection isn’t cut, we remain, so to speak, alive. Once it’s snipped, we’re no longer alive, because life is not something we can self-generate. It’s something we’re receiving. So if we’re receiving life, it must come from someplace else—there must be a source, a reservoir of life. As long as we are connected to this source, we stay in the state of living. And wherever that life is entering us might be considered the center of our being. If you knew where that was, you could reside there—your awareness would not only be what you’re doing with your hands or your feet or your mouth or what you’re touching, the way we usually deal with the external world. Your awareness where you reside would also be deeper. When you’re aware of your “aliveneness” at the instant that life is entering you, life stops being a generalized blur, which is the usual state of things. To reside at that place where the life is entering us would enable us to live life differently. We’d be aware of its entering, we’d be grateful for just another minute, second, 96 WHOLE LIVING GUIDE

millisecond, just to be in this state. And we would recognize how fragile our existence is, how utterly dependent we are on this source that is coming into us and, by its grace and largesse, how it allows us to remain for a while in this state. So when you consider the exercise that goes by the name of meditation, realize that meditation actually means the act of going to the center. By making an effort to go to the center, we arrive at the center. But perhaps it’s more like we allow ourselves or we’re willing to be taken to the center—to be willing to be led to it. This isn’t an easy thing. Think of being blind, of the dangers you’d face if you weren’t willing to depend, at least to some extent, on another. Think of the fears that you’d have to overcome. Some people would rather die than be dependent on others. The ancient world offers us an unforgettable myth illustrating the situation I’m describing: Tiresias, in the play “Oedipus Rex,” was the blind prophet of Thebes. He’s led onstage by a child, even though he’s a great seer. The way he became blind is very telling. While walking through a forest Tiresias sees the goddess Diana bathing, and though he knows he shouldn’t look at her, he does anyway. He’s blinded for his act of insolence. But he’s also given something to balance his loss—the power to see inwardly. So he becomes the seer who knows about the inner world. The seer sees because he’s not distracted, as we are, by what’s in front of him. He can see beyond the ordinary realm, he can foretell what is to be, he knows at a level no one else knows. When Oedipus calls him in, he refuses to believe the seer’s warning. Oedipus, who is full of pride, accuses Tiresias of conspiring against him. He thinks he sees through Tiresias. The blind seer tries to warn the mighty king of things the king has been blind to—the things that will lead to his downfall. And in a play full of awful ironies, what does Oedipus do when he learns what he’s done? He blinds himself. The ability to see, to know, to be connected inwardly, is to be connected all the way deep into life itself, where there are no secrets. There are only secrets externally. Inwardly, there are no secrets. Because inwardly, everything is known. So to move inwardly as you work outwardly is to bring yourself to another state and another relationship to life itself. Through meditation, through the act of being willing to be led, you can get there. And in this willingness to be led, one has to give up something—our will, or perhaps more accurately, our willfulness, our devotion to the externals of life. Our dread of the unknown. Our fear of losing control. Take your pick. So all these things that hold us in place have to be let go of so that we can be led back to the living source of our being. The form these pulls take are familiar to anyone who’s done the slightest bit of meditating: the daily scenarios of your life, the needs, the fantasies you’ve been generating all your life, your various aches and pains, the snarl of ideas. All these things pull you back from the center, keep you shackled in the externals. Those shackles can only be broken by redirecting your willingness to go further. But who will be the child that leads us? A number of different guides are used in meditation: sounds or pictures. Whichever you choose, the movement inward can’t be mechanical. You can be taken by meditation, but it must be with all your wits about you. Meditation isn’t a trance; it’s not there to put you to sleep. It’s there to awaken you. The only way you’ll be able to arrive at your center is by being awake, and that’s the same way you’ll want to be—and want to stay—when you arrive there.

Frank Crocitto is the founder and executive director of Discovery Institute in New Paltz.

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whole living guide ACUPUNCTURE

AROMATHERAPY

Dylana Accolla, LAc

Joan Apter

Treat yourself to a renewed sense of health and well-being with acupuncture, herbal medicine, Chinese bodywork, and nutritional counseling. My emphasis is on empowering patients by teaching them how to practice preventative medicine. Great for gynecological problems, chronic pain, and managing chronic illness. Two locations: Haven Spa, 6464 Montgomery Street, Rhinebeck, and Woodstock Women’s Health, 1426 Route 28, West Hurley. (914) 388-7789.

Offering luxurious massage therapy, including Raindrop Technique, with therapeutic essential oils to relieve stress, boost the immune system, and address system imbalances. Natural animal care, individual consultations for a healthy home and personal concerns, spa consultant, classes, and keynotes. Essential Oils, nutritional supplements, personal care, pet care, children’s and home cleaning products from Young Living Essential Oils. For more information contact Joan Apter, CMT. (845) 679-0512. japter@ulster.net. www.joanapter. younglivingworld.com.

whole living directory

Acupuncture Health Care, PC Peter Dubitsky, L.Ac., Callie Brown, L.Ac., and Leslie Wiltshire, L.Ac. Mr. Dubitsky is a faculty member and the Director of Clinical Training at the Tri-State College of Acupuncture, and a member of the NY State Board for Acupuncture. Ms. Brown and Ms. Wiltshire each have years of acupuncture experience in private practice and in medical offices. We are all highly experienced, national board certified, NYS Licensed acupuncturists. We combine traditional Asian acupuncture techniques with a modern understanding of acupuncture and oriental medicine to provide effective treatments of acute and chronic pain conditions, and other medical disorders.In addition to our general practice we also offer a Low Cost Acupuncture Clinic which is available for all people who meet our low income guidelines. 108 Main Street, New Paltz, NY 12561, Phone 255-7178

Deep Clay with Michelle Rhodes, ATR-BC, LMSW See Psychotherapy.

ASTROLOGICAL CONSULTING Eric Francis: Astrological Consultations by Phone. Special discount on followups for previous clients from the Hudson Valley. (206) 854-3931.eric@ericfrancis.com. Lots to explore on the Web at www.PlanetWaves.net.

BODY & SKIN CARE Absolute Laser , LLC

Stephanie Ellis, LAc., Chinese Herbalist Specializing in chronic pain, infertility, digestive disorders, and pediatrics. Now certfied by Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in acupuncture treatment of people with cancer. Many insurances accepted, sliding scale. Evenings, weekends. In Rosendale since 2001, now with a new, expanded location at Rosendale Family Practice, 110 Creek Locks Road, (845) 546-5358.

Hoon J. Park, MD, PC For the past 16 years, Dr. Hoon J. Park has been practicing a natural and gentle approach to pain management for conditions such as arthritis, chronic and acute pain in neck, back, and legs, fibromyalgia, motor vehicle and work-related injuries, musculoskeletal disorders, and more by integrating physical therapy modalities along with acupuncture. Dr. Hoon Park is a board-certified physician in physical medicine and rehabilitation, pain medicine, and electrodiagnostic studies. His experienced, friendly staff offer the most comprehensive and individualized rehabilitative care available. Please call the office to arrange a consultation. New patients and most insurances are accepted. 1772 Route 9, Wappingers Falls, NY 12590. Half mile south of the Galleria Mall. (845) 298-6060.

ALEXANDER TECHNIQUE Judith Youett The Alexander Technique The Alexander Technique is a simple, practical skill that, when applied to ourselves, enhances coordination, promoting mental, emotional, and physical well-being. Improve the quality of your life by learning how to do less to achieve more. Judith Youett, AmSAT. (845) 677-5871.

ART THERAPY

The leaders in innovative skin care are now offering the Biomedic Facial. A gentle, clinical , deep cleansing facial, for all skin types. Absolute Laser offers commitment to beautiful skin through outstanding care and service. Offering Laser Hair Removal, Microdermabrasion, Vitalize Peel, and Fotofacial RF. The Fotofacial RF is the next generation in high-tech skin enhancement. These gentle, no downtime treatments are used to improve cosmetic appearance of the face, neck, hands, and body. The results are brighter, smoother, more radiant and luminescent skin. This process delivers results that skin care products alone cannot do! Recover and rediscover the youth and vitality of your skin. Call for a complimentary consultation: Janice DiGiovanni, (845) 876-7100. Springbrook Medical Park, Rhinebeck.

Blissful Beauty by Brenda Relax and revive with a professional beauty treatment from Brenda Montgomery, Licensed Aesthetician. Specializing in Burnham Systems Facial Rejuvenation, Belavi Facelift Massage, Anti-Aging facials, Acne treatments, and Body treatments. Also offering airbrushed makeup for a flawless, natural look for your next big event. Your skin is not replaceable; let Brenda help you put your best face forward! Call (845) 616-9818.

Made With Love Handcrafted lotions, crèmes, and potions to nurture the skin and soul! Therapeutic oils, salves, and bath salts made with the curative properties of herbal-infused oils and pure essential oils. No petroleum, mineral oils, or chemicals are used. Host a home party! Products available at Hudson Valley Therapeutic Massage, 243 Main Street, Suite 220, New Paltz. For a full product catalogue e-mail madewithlove@hvc.rr.com or call (845) 255-5207.

BODY-CENTERED THERAPY

CHILDBIRTH

Irene Humbach, CSW, PC

Catskill Mountain Midwifery

Body of Wisdom Counseling & Healing Services. By integrating traditional and alternative therapy/healing approaches, including Body-Centered Psychotherapy, IMAGO Couples’ Counseling, and Kabbalistic Healing, I aim to offer tools for self healing, to assist individuals and couples to open blocks to their softer heart energy, thereby increasing their capacity to cope, create in the world, and love. Offices in Poughkeepsie and New Paltz. (845) 485-5933.

See Midwifery.

Rosen Method Bodywork

Chinese Healing Arts Center

Rosen Method is distinguished by its gentle, direct touch. Using hands that listen rather than manipulate, the practitioner focuses on chronic muscle tension. As relaxation occurs and the breath deepens, unconscious feelings, attitudes, and memories may emerge. The practitioner responds with touch and words that allow the client to begin to recognize what has been held down by unconscious muscle tension. As this process unfolds, habitual tension and old patterns may be released, freeing the client to experience more aliveness, new choices in life, and a greater sense of well-being. Julie Zweig, M.A., Certified Rosen Method Bodywork Practitioner. (845) 255-3566. www.RosenMethod.org.

The Wu Tang Chuan Kung Association was founded by Doctor Tzu Kuo Shih and his family for the purpose of providing the American public with instruction in the ancient Chinese arts of Tai Chi Chuan, Chi Kung, and traditional Chinese Medicine. 264 Smith Avenue, Kingston. (845) 338-6045 or (203) 748-8107.

BODYWORK bodhi studio

BOTANICA Gypsy Janet Reverend Gypsy Janet has 30 years training and experience in SANTERIA and life long lessons in “Native American Ways” from her father, who is Mohawk. This is NOT your ordinary Botanica/Religious Supply Shop. Gypsy Janet makes unique Hand Crafted one-of-a-kind Spiritual Gifts, Ritual Supplies, Carved and Dressed 7 day candles. The shop is full of many surprises and there are also a Native American, Reggae, and Belly Dancer sections. Gypsy Janet also reads TAROT and TEA LEAVES, she can “Legally Marry” couples in NY State, and loves to personalize and setup your own SACRED ALTAR. New arrival just in time for Halloween: “Dia De Los Muertos” (Day of the Dead) novelties. The shop is located at 100 Mill Hill Road, Woodstock, New York. (845) 679-2999.

CAREER AND LIFE COACHING Allie Roth/ Center for Creativity and Work Career and Life Coaching for those seeking more creativity, fulfillment, balance and meaning in life and work. Offer a holistic approach to career and life transitions Also specialize in executive coaching, and coaching small business owners, consultants and private practitioners. 25 years experience. Kingston and New York City offices. Tel:(845)336-8318. Toll Free: 800-577-8318. Web: www.allieroth.com. Email: allie@allieroth.com

CHI GONG/TAI CHI CHUAN Second Generation Yang Spiritual alchemy practices of ancient Taoist sorcerers yielded these two treasures of internal arts. Chi Gong prepared the body to withstand rigorous training and overcome the battle with time. Tai Chi Chuan became the expression of the energy in movement and selfdefense. These practices have brought health, vitality, and youthfulness to myself and my students. The only requirement is determined practice of the principles and the will to persevere. Call Hawks, (845) 687-8721.

See Hypnotherapy.

Judy Joffee, CMN, MSN See Midwifery.

CHINESE HEALING ARTS

CHIROPRACTIC Nori Connell, RN, DC Nori combines 28 years as a registered nurse with 18 years of chiropractic experience to offer patients a knowledgeable approach to removing the interferences in the body that lead to disease. She combines accredited techniques such as NeuroEmotional technique, kinesiology, and Network Chiropractic to work with the body’s innate intelligence and its ability for healing. Dr. Connell also offers workshops on natural health care for the family and is also one of the directors of Alternatives Health Center of Tivoli. (845) 757-5555. Also at Rhinebeck Cooperative Health Center. (845) 876-5556.

Dr. David Ness Dr. David Ness is a Certified Active Release Techniques® (ART) Provider and Certified Chiropractic Sports Practitioner® specializing in helping athletes and active people quickly relieve their pain and heal their injuries. In addition to providing traditional ® chiropractic care, Dr. Ness utilizes ART to remove scar tissue and adhesions in order to restore mobility, flexibility, and strength faster than standard treatments will allow. If you have an injury that has not responded to treatment, call Dr. Ness for an appointment today. (845) 255-1200.

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Through bodywork one can connect with the body’s own inherent wisdom and self healing abilities. With skill, intuition, and care, we offer therapeutic massage, bodhiwork, Reiki, warm stone massage, aromatherapy, earconing, and a full range of ayurvedic treatments including Shirodara, Abyanga, and Swedna. Melinda Pizzano, LMT and Helen Andersson, D.Ay. Call for an appointment. (518) 828-2233.

Kary Broffman, RN, CH

Dr. Bruce Schneider New Paltz, New York 12561.(845) 255-4424.

COLON HYDROTHERAPY Connie Schneider, Advanced Level I-ACT Certified Colon Hydrotherapist Colon Hydrotherapy is a safe, gentle, cleansing process. Clean and private office. A healthy functioning colon can decrease internal toxicity and improve digestion; basics for a healthy body. New Paltz, NY. (845) 256-1516. See display ad.

COUNSELING SERVICES Elizabeth Cunningham, MSC Counselor, interfaith minister, and novelist, Elizabeth brings humor, compassion, and a deep understanding of story to a spirited counseling practice for individuals and couples. If you are facing loss, crisis in faith, creative block, conflict in relationship, Elizabeth invites you to become a detective and investigate your own unfolding mystery. 44 Schultzville Road, Staatsburg. (845) 266-4477. E-mail: medb44@aol.com.

CRANIOSACRAL THERAPY Craniosacral Therapy A gentle, hands-on method for enhancing the body’s own healing capabilities through the craniosacral rhythm. Craniosacral aids in the release of stressrelated conditions such as anxiety, nervousness, insomnia, depression, digestive, menstrual, and other problems with organ function, breathing dif-

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ficulties, and headaches. Increase energy, reduce pain, and improve immune system function. Effective for whiplash, TMJ, sciatica, fibromyalgia, scoliosis, arthritis, low back tension, and chronic pain. Also helpful for children with birth trauma, learning difficulties, chronic ear problems, and hyperactivity. Hudson Valley Therapeutic Massage, Michele Tomasicchio, LMT. (845) 255-4832.

DENTISTRY The Center For Advanced Dentistry Bruce D. Kurek, DDS, FAGD; Jaime O. Stauss, DMD Setting the standards for excellence in dentistry for more than 25 years, the Center for Advanced Dentistry attracts clients from throughout the northeast and abroad. Their client-centered approach to providing comprehensive dental services for adults and children includes “old school” care and concern combined with the latest technologies. The office is conveniently located 1.5 miles east of the NYS Thruway, exit 18. 494 Route 299, Highland. www.thecenterforadvanceddenti stry.com. (845) 691-5600. Fax (845) 691-8633.

FENG SHUI DeStefano and Associates

Join us for an empowering, life-changing, six-month, transformational training. This comprehensive program includes: Meditation, Visualization, Sound work, Breath work, Movement, Sacred Ceremony, Essential Grounding and Releasing Practices, and 33 Professional Healing Techniques. School starts September 23, 2005. Free special intro evening: Self-Healing with OLHT August 26 + September 9, 7:00-9:00pm; Special Introductory Weekend: Access Your Healing Potential August 27-28 and September 10 -11. (NYSNA CEU’s available). Ron Lavin, MA, founder and director of the international OLHT schools, is a respected spiritual healer with 26 years of experience. He heads seven OLHT schools in Germany and one in Rhinebeck, NY. He has worked with the NIH in Distance Healing for eight years. Appointments and Distance Healing sessions are available in Rhinebeck, NY. Call (845) 876-0259 or e-mail ronlavin@aol.com. www.OneLightHealingTouch.com.

The Sanctuary: A Place for Healing A quaint healing center in a quiet part of downtown New Paltz. Specializing in Craniosacral Therapy, Stress Point Release through Chiropractic, Swedish & Sports Massage, Shiatsu, and Energetic Reiki. New offerings include meditation and nutritional counseling. 5 Academy Street, New Paltz. Call for an appointment. (845) 255-3337.

HEALTH FOOD Pleasant Stone Farm 130 Dolson Avenue, Middletown, NY. pleasantstonefarm@usa.net. (845) 343-4040.

HEALTH PUBLICATIONS Hudson Valley Healthy Living

Feng Shui Wei Designing Your Life with Feng Shui. The intuitive practice of Feng Shui balances your individual energy with your home or workplace and harmonizes the effect your surroundings have on all aspects of life: health, wealth, relationship, emotional well-being, mental clarity, peace, self-fulfillment. Sensitive, revitalizing personal and space clearings. Intuitive Feng Shui® certification. Free 15-minute phone consultation. Contact Sharon Rothman: 201-385-5598; www.fengshuiwei.com

A comprehensive directory of Mid-Hudson health services, products, and practitioners, along with articles on health issues of interest. Published biannually (April/October) by Luminary Publishing, Inc., the creators of Chronogram, 50,000 copies are distributed in the region throughout the year. Contents are also available on the Web at www.hvhealthyliving.com. See www.hvhealthyliving.com for advertising rates or call the HVHL sales team at (845) 334-8600.

HEALTHY EATING

Healing By Design

Cool Cover ™

Feng Shui consultations, classes. Explore how Feng Shui can increase the flow of abundance, joy, and well-being in your life. Create your home or office to support your goals and dreams. Contact Betsy Stang at bebird@aol.com. or (845) 679-6347.

See Business Directory: Food Serving Products.

HEALTH & HEALING Guidance of Spirit, Wisdom of Heart Heart-based Intuitive Healing, Karma Release with Crystals, Space Clearings & Blessings, Long Distance Healings, End-of –Life Transitions, Guided Meditation/visualization.Thursday evenings at 7: 30pm. Self healing is a process of self-discovery. Within the space of the heart discover what you need to heal. Kate DeChard M.Ed. The Soul Sanctuary, 6052 B Route 9, Rhinebeck, NY12572.

Healing, Pathwork and Channeling by Flowing Spirit Guidance It is our birthright to experience the abundance of the universe, the deep love of God, and our own divinity! It is also our birthright to share our own unique gifts with the world. We long to do it. So why don’t we? Our imperfections get in the way. As we purify, we experience more and more fully, the love and the abundance of God’s universe. We can have it in any moment. We can learn to purify our imperfections AND experience heaven on earth. Jaffe Institute Spiritual Healing; Pathwork; and Channeling available. Contact Joel Walzer for sessions. (845) 679-8989. www.flowingspirit.com.

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Barbara DeStafano has been the owner of DeStefano and Associates, an interior design business, for 18 years. She received certification in Feng Shui from the Metropolitan Institute of Interior Design and has completed advanced work with several Feng Shui Masters. Feng Shui is the perfect marriage to interior design. It brings a spiritual dimension to your space. Barbara can create a kind of beauty that touches your spirit, and brings balance and harmony to a level that transcends the superficial. Barbara is available for consultations, guest speaker engagements, and workshops. (845) 339-4601.

One Light Healing Touch: Healer Training School

HERBS Monarda Herbal Apothecary In honoring the diversity, uniqueness, and strength of nature for nourishment and healing, we offer organic and ecologically wildcrafted herbs using tradition as our guide. Certified Organic Alcohol Tinctures, Teas, Salves, Essential Oils, and more. Product Catalog $1. Workshops and Internships. www.monarda.net (845) 688-2122.

HOLISTIC CENTERS Annette’s Heart and Soul Holistic Center Annette’s Heart and Soul is a non-profit, non-denominational ministry dedicated to helping you heal your heart and soul while enhancing your body. We have some of the most gifted spiritual counselors and body workers, who are fully trained in many areas. We offer fully accredited classes and much, much more. Twice a month we hold “Reunions,” getting in touch with those we have loved and lost. 500 Main Street, Beacon, NY 12508.(845) 440-0724.

HOLISTIC HEALTH Julie Barone Certified Holistic Health Counselor Live with vibrant energy! Whole foods nutrition and lifestyle consulting can help you kick the junk food 101

habit, achieve better health, tune in to your body, and eat well for life. Individual programs are customized to your health goals. Special People Pet Wellness program for you and your pet. Whole foods cooking parties – fun, educational, and delicious! Free consultation. 845-338-4115 julieabarone@yahoo.com www.peoplepetwellness.com

Priscilla A. Bright, MA, Energy Healer/Counselor Specializing in women’s stress, emotional issues, and physical illness, including stress-related anxiety, depression, and physical burnout. Women in transition, businesswomen, mothers, all welcome. Experienced counselor. Faculty, Barbara Brennan School of Healing. Convenient offices in Kingston & New Paltz. Initial phone consultation no charge. (845) 688-7175.

John M. Carroll, Healer John Carroll is an intuitive healer, teacher, and spiritual counselor, who integrates mental imagery with the God-given gift of his hands. John has helped individuals suffering from acute and chronic disorders, including back problems and cancer. Remote healings and telephone sessions. Call for consultation. Kingston. (845) 338-8420.

Spirittus Holistic Resource Center See Workshops.

HYPNOSIS

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One-Session Hypnosis with Frayda Kafka Building on my success with smoking cessation in 1978, I have continued to help clients with weight loss, pain, childbirth, stress, insomnia, habits, phobias, confidence, and almost any behavior you can think of… Known for my easy, light manner and quick results, I have an intuitive knack for saying just the right thing at the right time so that a major shift can be initiated. Phone hypnosis, gift certificates, and groups are available. Please call me at (845) 336-4646. Offices in Kingston and Pleasant Valley. info@CallTheHypnotist. com or www.CallTheHypnotist.com.

HYPNOTHERAPY Achieve Your Goals with Therapeutic Hypnosis Sharon Slotnick, MS, CHt. Increase self-esteem; break bad habits; manage stress; alleviate pain (e.g. childbirth, headaches, back pain); overcome fears and depression; relieve insomnia; improve study habits, public speaking, sports performance; heal through past-life journeys, other issues. Sliding scale. Certified Hypnotherapist and Counselor, two years training Therapeutic Hypnosis& Traditional Psychotherapeutic Techniques. (845) 389-2302. New Paltz, Kingston. See also Psychotherapy.

Kary Broffman, RN, CH A registered nurse with a BA in psychology since 1980, Kary is certified in Ericksonian Hypnotherapy, Hypnobirthing, and Complementary Medical Hypnotherapy with the National Guild. She has also studied interactive imagery for nurses. By weaving her own healing journey and education into her work, she helps to assist others in accessing their inner resources and healing potential. Hudson Valley Healing Arts Center, Hyde Park. (845) 876-6753.

INTEGRATED ENERGY THERAPY Integrated Energy Therapy IET heals with the pure energy of SPIRIT and the gifts of the angels. Suppressed emotions, limiting beliefs, and past-life memories are cleared from the Energy Anatomy on a cellular level. Remember and LIVE the true expression of your soul’s purpose. Also combining Spiritual Guidance, IET, and Massage. 15 years experience. Dona Ho Lightsey, LMT, IET Master. New Paltz. www.learniet.com/dona_ho_ lightsey.asp. (845) 256-0443. 102

INTERFAITH MINISTRIES Elizabeth Cunningham, MSC See Counseling Services.

Ione, Director, Ministry of Maat, Inc. Spiritual and Educational organization with goals of fostering world community. (845) 339-5776.

Reverend Kevin Kraft, Interfaith Minister Sacred Intimate Joyful. “Honor Tradition and Have the Ceremony You Want.” Together we develop a meaningful ceremony that expresses who you are while considering sensitive concerns. Personal attention to details ensures your needs are thoughtfully addressed and creates a joyful ceremony expressing your vision completely. Weddings, Unions, Renewals, Rites of Passage, and Spiritual Counseling. Hudson Valley Interfaith Fellowship. 89 N. Front Street, Kingston. (845) 338-8313. E-mail: Kevin@spirittus.org.

JEWISH MYSTICISM/KABBALAH Chabad of Woodstock Providing Jewish people from all backgrounds the opportunity to experience the depth and soul of the Jewish teachings and vibrant way of life. Offering Jewish resources, workshops, gatherings, and classes. Rabbi Yisroel Arye and Ilana Gootblatt, co-directors. (845) 679-6407. www.chabadof woodstock.com.

JIN SHIN-JYUTSU Kenneth Davis, CPLT See Psychotherapy.

MASSAGE THERAPY Joan Apter Offering luxurious massage therapy, including Raindrop Technique, with therapeutic essential oils to relieve stress, boost the immune system, and address system imbalances. Natural animal care, individual consultations for a healthy home and personal concerns, spa consultant, classes, and keynotes. Essential Oils, nutritional supplements, personal care, pet care, children’s and home cleaning products from Young Living Essential Oils. For more information, contact Joan Apter, CMT. (845) 679-0512. japter@ ulster.net. joanapter.younglivingworld.com.

bodhi studio See Bodywork.

Hudson Valley Therapeutic Massage Michele Tomasicchio, LMT, specializes in Integrative Massage—incorporation of various healing modalities: Swedish, Myofascial Deep Tissue, Craniosacral, and stretching to facilitate the body’s healing process. A session may include all or just one modality. No fault accepted. Gift certificates available. By appointment only. 243 Main Street, Suite 220 New Paltz. (845) 255-4832.

Shiatsu Massage Therapy Leigh Scott is a licensed Shiatsu Massage Therapist with 20 years experience and a former teacher at the Ohashi Institute in New York City. Leigh uses her skills and knowledge of Shiatsu, as well as Reflexology and Polarity, to give a very satisfying hour-long massage. (845) 679-3012.

MEDITATION Sivananda Ashram Yoga Ranch See Yoga.

Zen Mountain Monastery Offering year-round retreats geared to all levels of experience: introductions to Zen meditation and practice; programs exploring Zen arts, Buddhist

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studies, and social action; and intensive meditation retreats. South Plank Road, Mt. Tremper. (845) 688-2228.

energy level, and sleep, in addition to body weight. Recover from your eating issues and enjoy a full life! 199 Main Street, New Paltz. (845) 489-4732.

MIDWIFERY

NUTRITIONAL COUNSELING

Catskill Mountain Midwifery, Home Birth Services

Julie Barone Certified Holistic Health Counselor

Give birth as you wish, in an environment in which you feel nurtured and secure; where your emotional well-being, privacy, and personal preferences are respected. Be supported by a tradition that trusts the natural process. Excellent MD consult, hospital backup. (845) 687-BABY.

Live with vibrant energy! Whole foods nutrition and lifestyle consulting can help you kick the junk food habit, achieve better health, tune in to your body, and eat well for life. Individual programs are customized to your health goals. Special People Pet Wellness program for you and your pet. Whole foods cooking parties – fun, educational, and delicious! Free consultation. 845-338-4115 julieabarone@yahoo.com www.peoplepetwellness.com

Suzanne Berger Certified nurse midwife at the Women's Care Center offering a full range of holistic, alternative and traditional services. Serving Kingston, Benedictine and Northern Dutchess Hospitals. Rhinebeck (845) 876-2496. Kingston (845) 338-5575.

NATURAL FOODS Beacon Natural Market

PHYSICIANS

This practice offers a unique and exquisite opportunity for woman care in a powerfully compassionate and sacred manner. I offer complete prenatal care focused toward homebirth. For the nonpregnant woman, individualized gynecological care, counseling, and self-determination await you. Also offering school, work, and general physicals for all ages. Call for consultation. (845) 255-2096.

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Applied Osteopathy Joseph Tieri, DO, & Ari Rosen, DO. Drs. Tieri and Rosen are New York State Licensed Osteopathic physicians specializing in Cranial Osteopathy. As specialists in Osteopathic manipulation, we are dedicated to the traditional philosophy and hands-on treatment of our predecessors. We have studied with Robert Fulford, DO, Viola Freyman, DO, James Jealous, DO, and Bonnie Gintis, DO, and completed a two-year residency in Osteopathic Manipulation. We treat newborns, children, and adults. 257 Main Street, New Paltz, (845) 256-9884. 138 Market Street, Rhinebeck, (845) 876-1700. By Appointment. For more info call or visit www.appliedosteopathy.com.

Homebirth and Gynecology Practice of Judy Joffee, CNM

Lighting the Way for a Healthier World... Located in the heart of historic Beacon at 348 Main Street. Featuring organic prepared foods deli & juice bar as well as organic and regional produce, meats and cheeses. Newly opened in Aug. ‘05, proprietors L.T. & Kitty Sherpa are dedicated to serving the Hudson Valley with a complete selection of products that are good for you and good for the planet, including an extensive alternative health dept. Nutritionist on staff. (845)838-1288.

Sunflower Natural Foods Market At Sunflower we know the food we eat is our greatest source of health. Sunflower carries certified organic produce, milk, cheeses, and eggs; non-irradiated herbs and spices; clean, pure organic products to support a healthy lifestyle; large selection of homeopathic remedies. Sunflower Natural Foods is a complete natural foods market. Open 9am-9pm daily. 10am-7pm Sundays. Bradley Meadows Shopping Center, Woodstock.(845) 679-5361.

Aruna Bakhru, MD,FACP Dr. Bakhru is board certified in internal Medicine and is a fellow of the American College of Physicians. She also offers energy medicine by measuring the energy flow at the meridians. Herbal, homeopathic, nutritional, or flower remedies can be found, and tailor-made for your individual needs. It takes the guesswork out of spending hundreds of dollars at the health food store with out knowing if the product is helpful to you. Toxic emotions, thought patterns, chakra imbalances, dental issues can be identified and dealt with. Hidden toxins, energetic imprints of past infections, vaccinations, etc. can be uncovered. Poughkeepsie (845) 463-1044.

Women Care Center

Suzanne Meszoly & Associates, Inc.

Empowerment through information. Located in Rhinebeck and Kingston. Massage and acupuncture available. Gynecology—treating our patients through the most up-to-date medical and surgical technologies available, combined with alternative therapies. Obstetrics—working with you to create the birth experience you desire. Many insurances accepted. Evening hours available. Rhinebeck (845)876-2496. Kingston (845) 338-5575.

174 Palentown Road, Kerhonkson, New York 12446. (845) 626-5666.

PILATES

NATUROPATHIC MEDICINE

Pilates of New Paltz

NATURAL HEALING

Naturopathic Medicine Dr. Thomas J. Francescott, ND. Free Your Mind – Release Your Body – Energize Your Spirit! Solve health issues, enhance wellness, and gain awareness. Scientifically proven naturopathic solutions for challenging and/or chronic health concerns. I offer naturopathic expertise in a sacred space to help you feel better. Graduate of the prestigious Bastyr University. Call Rhinebeck Cooperative Health Center: (845) 876-5556. www.drfrancescott.com.

NUTRITION Jill Malden, RD, CSW Prominent Nutritionist specializing in eating behavior and eating disorders for 15 years. Warm, nonjudgmental treatment. Understand the effects of nutrition on your mood, anxiety level, cravings, concentration, 104

OSTEOPATHY

We are a fully equipped studio of certified, experienced, caring instructors with the knowledge to challenge students while respecting their limitations (injury/illness, age, etc.). We are offering a specialpackage price for four introductory lessons and offer small group reformer classes and mat classes. We are open 6 days a week with a very flexible appointment schedule. (845) 255-0559.

PSYCHOLOGISTS James Cancienne, PhD Licensed Clinical Psychologist offering adult psychotherapy and couples counseling. Jungian-based psychotherapy for people in crisis, those with ongoing mental health difficulties, and those wishing to expand their personality and gain greater satisfaction from their relationships and work. Some insurance accepted and sliding scale. Hudson. (518) 828-2528.

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Carla J. Mazzeo, PhD Licensed Clinical Psychologist offering psychodynamic psychotherapy for adolescents and adults. I have experience working with trauma, mood disturbances, sexual assault, depression, anxiety, grief/bereavement, eating/body image difficulties, alcohol/substance concerns, teenage problems, relationship difficulties, sexuality issues, or general self-exploration. Dream work also available. New Paltz location. Reduced fee for initial consultation. (845) 255-2259.

Mark L. Parisi, PhD Licensed psychologist. Offering individual psychotherapy for adults. Specializing in gay men’s issues, anxiety, depression, relationship concerns, adjustment, issues related to aging, disordered eating, body image, sexual identity, and personal growth. Medicare and some insurance accepted. 52 South Manheim Boulevard, New Paltz. (845) 255-2259.

Jonathan D. Raskin, PhD Licensed psychologist. Insight-oriented, meaning-based, problem-focused, person-centered psychotherapy for adults and adolescents facing problems including, but not limited to, self-esteem, interpersonal relationships, life transitions, family issues, career concerns, depression, anxiety, loneliness, and bereavement. 199 Main Street, New Paltz. Free initial consultation. Sliding scale. (845) 257-3471.

PSYCHOTHERAPY Kent Babcock, LMSW Counseling & Psychotherapy

grief and bereavement, eating disorders, dealing with divorce, gay/lesbian issues. 199 Main Street, New Paltz. Free initial consult. Sliding scale. (914) 262-8595.

Rachael Diamond, CSW,CHt Holistically-oriented therapist offering counseling, psychotherapy, and hypnotherapy. Specializing in issues pertaining to relationships, personal growth, life transitions, alternative lifestyles, childhood abuse, codependency, addiction, recovery illness, and grief. Some insurance accepted. Office convenient to New Paltz and surrounding areas. (845) 883-9642.

Eidetic Image Therapy A fast moving, positive psychotherapy that gets to problem areas quickly and creates change by using eidetic (eye-DET-ic) images to promote insight and growth. The eidetic is a bright, lively picture seen in the mind like a movie or filmstrip. It is unique in its ability to reproduce important life events in exact detail, revealing both the cause and solution of problem areas. Dr. Toni Nixon, EdD, director. Port Ewen. (845) 339-1684.

Amy R. Frisch, CSWR Psychotherapist. Individual, family, and group sessions for adolescents and adults. Currently accepting registration for It’s a Girl Thing: an expressive arts therapy group for adolescent girls, and The Healing Circle: an adult bereavement group offering a safe place to begin the healing process after the death of a loved one. Most insurances accepted. Located in New Paltz. (914) 706-0229.

Development of solutions through simple self-observation, reflection, and conversation. Short- or longterm work around difficult relationships; life or career transitions; ethical, spiritual, or psychic dilemmas; and creative blocks. Roots in yoga, dreamwork, spiritual psychology, and existential psychotherapy. Sliding scale. Offices in Woodstock and Uptown Kingston. (845) 679-5511 x4.

Irene Humbach, CSW, CBT

Judith Blackstone, MA

Martin Knowles, LCSW

Subtle Self Work is a transformative practice integrating nondual spiritual realization, psychological healing, and awakening the energy/light body. Private sessions for individuals and couples, weekly classes, monthly meditation retreats, teacher/certification trainings. Judith Blackstone, MA, author of The Enlightenment Process and Living Intimately, director of Realization Center, Woodstock. www.Realization Center.com. (845) 679-7005.

Taking a systemic approach to well-being and relationships for over 20 years, Martin Knowles works with individuals, couples and families in Uptown Kingston. His effective, down-to-earth style amplifies and encourages natural talents and resources, bringing out the best in each of us. (845)338-5450, ext. 301.

Debra Budnik, CSW-R

SYNtegration Therapy utilizes acupressure point and muscular releases, sensation awareness, active imagination, and body-centered dialogue to explore physical symptoms, behavioral patterns, and inner conflicts. Fast-acting, highly effective, it will give you the practical tools, insight, and direction needed to move forward in your life, now. Olivebridge. (845) 657-2516.

Deep Clay Art and Therapy Deep Clay with Michelle Rhodes ATR-BC, LMSW. Individual, couple, parent and child, and group arts-based psychotherapy. “Dreamfigures” Clay Psychotherapy group for women. Expressive clay group and individual sessions for children and teens. A unique, creative, and grounding approach for crisis management, transitions, and deep healing. Sessions in Gardiner and NYC. (845) 417-1369. deepclay@mac.com.

Peter M. del Rosario, PhD Licensed psychologist. Insight-oriented, culturally sensitive psychotherapy for adults and adolescents concerned with: relationship difficulties, codependency, depression, anxiety, sexual/physical trauma,

Ione Author and psychotherapist: Qigong, Meditation, Hypnotherapy, and Dreams. Specializing in the creative process. Healing retreats, Local and Worldwide. (845) 339-5776.

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Traditional insight-oriented psychotherapy for long- or short-term work. Aimed at identifying and changing self-defeating attitudes and behaviors, underlying anxiety, depression, and relationship problems. Sliding scale, most insurances accepted, including Medicare/Medicaid. NYS-licensed. Experience working with trauma victims, including physical and sexual abuse. Educator on mental health topics. Located in New Paltz, one mile from SUNY. (845) 255-4218.

See Body-Centered Therapy.

Elise Lark, LCSW, LMT Acorn Hill Healing Arts

Dr. Nancy Rowe, PhD, CET Heart Centered Counseling & Expressive Arts Therapy Emotional healing for children and adults using talk, imagery, sandplay, expressive arts, and/or movement. Background in transpersonal psychology, play therapy, family therapy, spiritual guidance, authentic movement, and expressive arts therapy. Offices in Woodstock and Kingston. Call Nancy, Call (845) 679-4827. www.wisdomheart.com.

Change Your Outlook, Heal, and Grow Sharon Slotnick, MS, CHt. With combination of “talk” therapy for self-knowledge and hypnotherapy to transform negative, selfdefeating thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. Faster symptom relief. Feel better and make healthier choices. Sliding scale, Certified Hypnotherapist and Counselor. (845) 389-2302. New Paltz, Kingston. See also Hypnotherapy. 107

Richard Smith, CSW-R, CASAC Potential-Centered Therapy (PCT) alters thoughts, feelings, and behaviors that block growth. A psycho-dynamic approach incorporating NLP, EMDR, and hypnosis, PCT resolves addictions, trauma, limiting beliefs, and destructive behaviors. Twenty years experience and a gentle spirit guide you through an accelerated process of profound healing. Gardiner.(845) 256-6456. richardsmith csw@earthlink.net.

with the world. We long to do it. So why don’t we? Our imperfections get in the way. As we purify, we experience more and more fully, the love and the abundance of God’s universe. We can have it in any moment. We can learn to purify our imperfections AND experience heaven on earth. Jaffe Institute Spiritual Healing; Pathwork; and Channeling available. Contact Joel Walzer for sessions. Call (845) 679-8989 or visit our website at: www.flowingspirit.com.

Ione Judy Swallow, MA, TEP Integrative body/mind therapist using Rubenfeld synergy and psychodrama in her work with individuals, couples, groups, and families. Inquire for workshops and training, as well as therapy. New Paltz. (845) 255-5613.

Wellspring Evolutionary coaching using movement and breath to access and clear lifelong patterns and transform relationships. Rodney and Sandra Wells, certified by Gay and Kathlyn Hendricks. (845) 534-7668.

Julie Zweig, MA

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Monarda Herbal Apothecary Join us for medicine making and herbal studies in our outdoor classroom along the beautiful Esopus Creek. 2005 Herbal Internships Seasonal Herbal Workshops Weekday & Weekend Sessions Beginning in May 2005 with Jennifer Costa, Herbalist

Monarda Offers: FULL HERBAL PRODUCTS LINE CERTIFIED ORGANIC ALCOHOL TINCTURES PRIVATE CONSULTATIONS

Website Herbal Catalog: www.monarda.net E-mail: monarda@hvc.rr.com (845) 688-2122 PRINTED HERBAL PRODUCTS CATALOG: SEND $1 TO

1305 Old Route 28 Phoenicia, New York 12464

Verbal Body-Centered Psychotherapy utilizing doctoral level training in psychology and 15+ years of experience as a therapist, as well as the principles of Rosen Method Bodywork, but without touch. See also Body-Centered Therapy. New Paltz, New York. (845) 255-3566.

REBIRTHING Susan DeStefano Heart-centered therapy for healing the body, mind, and emotions. Improve relationships, release the past, heal the inner child through personal empowerment.(845) 255-6482.

SCHOOLS & TRAINING

New York Region Pathwork The Pathwork is a way of life, a community of seekers, a school, and a philosophy. It is based in a profound set of teachings channeled over a 30-year period by Eva Pierrakos that show a way to live in this world with complete inner freedom and happiness. Learn more at Pathworkny.org, or (845) 688-2211.

Spirittus Holistic Resource Center See Workshops.

STRUCTURAL INTEGRATION Hudson Valley Structural Integration Structural integration is a form of soft tissue manipulation based on the lifelong work of Dr. Ida P. Rolf. It is a process-oriented whole systems approach that seeks to improve one’s health and vitality by balancing the body and re-establishing appropriate relationships. Benefits include feeling lighter, more energy, greater freedom of movement, relief from chronic pain, and positive psychological effects. We offer a safe place for exploration and work with sensitivity and compassion. Krisha Showalter and Ryan Flowers are certified practitioners of the KMI method. Rhinebeck,(845) 876-4654.

TAROT CARD READING Tarot Card Reading

Institute of Transpersonal Psychology ITP is an accredited graduate psychology school offering clinical and nonclinical certificates, MA and PhD degrees. The curriculum combines mind, body, and spiritual inquiry with scholarly research and self discovery. Graduates have strong clinical skills and can communicate in a variety of complex relational circumstances. (650) 493-4430. itpinfo@itp.edu. www.itp.edu.

Need some direction in your life? Have a question that needs to be answered? Call Melissa for a confidential tarot card reading. Melissa is available for solo readings as well as private and corporate parties. Call Melissa today at 845-728-8474. Reasonable rates.

Tarot-on-the-Hudson Rachel Pollack

See Massage Therapy.

Exploratory, experiential play with the Tarot as oracle and sacred tool, in a monthly class, with Certified Tarot Grand Master and international Tarot author Rachel Pollack. All levels welcome. Tarot Readings in person or by phone. Appointment/Info: rachel@rachel pollack.com.(845) 876-5797. Rhinebeck. Also see ad.

SPAS & RESORTS

THERAPY

The Spa at Emerson Place

Toni D. Nixon, EdD Therapist and Buddhist Practitioner

SHIATSU Leigh Scott

The Emerson Spa is open! This Asian-inspired design invites guests into an oasis of relaxation that is surrounded by the Catskills’ pastoral beauty. Individually-tailored treatments are created by the European-trained staff who are skilled at delivering virtually all the Emerson Spa’s 40+ treatments. Men and women alike will enjoy the personalized attention they receive while enjoying experiences such as Ayruvedic Rituals, Aromatherapy Massage, DeepTissue and Four-Hand Massage, Hot Stone Therapy and Detoxifying Algae Wraps. Call (845) 688-1000 or visit our website at: www.emersonplace.com.

SPIRITUAL Bioenergetics/Hands-On Healing, Irene Humbach, CSW, CBT See Body-Centered Therapy.

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Egyptian Mysteries, Scarab Teachings™, Journeys to Sacred Sites. (845) 339-5776.

Offering a unique combination of techniques that integrate therapeutic goals & spiritual practice. The basic principles of Buddhism and psychotherapy are concerned with the goal of ending human suffering. Both paths to liberation are through greater self-awareness, a broader view of one’s world, the realization of the possibility of freedom, and finding the means to achieve it. In essence, effective psychotherapy moves toward liberation, and Buddhist practice is therapeutic in nature. Eidetic Image therapy is a unique and powerful method that encourages the liberation of the mind and spirit from obstacles that block the way to inner peace. Specializing in life improvement skills, habit cessation, career issues, women’s issues, & blocked creativity. By phone, online, and in person. (845) 339-1684. www.eidetictherapy.com.

Healing, Pathwork and Channeling by Flowing Spirit Guidance

VEGAN LIFESTYLES

It is our birthright to experience the abundance of the universe, the deep love of God, and our own divinity! It is also our birthright to share our own unique gifts

Andrew Glick - Vegan Lifestyle Coach Certified Holistic Health CounselorThe single most important step an individual can take to help save the

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Dana Byrne, LMT Helen Gutfreund, LMT Carla Knauf, LMT Kay McCutcheon, LMT Tina Novick, LMT

Trish Ratel, LMT Michael Stern, LMT Joan Tarshis, LMT Donna Wisnewski, LMT Alice Velkey, LMT Karen Verderber, LMT

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planet’s precious resources, improve and protect one’s health, and to stop the senseless slaughter of over 50 billion animals a year...is to Go Vegan. What could make you feel better about yourself than knowing you are helping the planet, your own health, and the lives of countless animals all at the same time? If the idea is daunting and seems undoable to you, then let your personal Vegan Lifestyle Coach take you through steps A to Z. Whether you’re a cattle rancher eating meat three times a day or a lacto-vegetarian wanting to give up dairy, it’s a process that can be fun, easy and meaningful. You can do it easily with the proper support, guidance and encouragement from your Vegan Lifestyle Coach. (845) 679-7979. andy@meatfreezone.org or www.meatfreezone.org. See display ad.

Healthy Gourmet To Go Try our colossal coconut macaroons dipped in dark chocolate or our delectable pan-seared cornmeal crusted homemade seitan cutlets over rosemary smashed potatoes with mushroom gravy. From old-fashioned home cooking with a new healthful twist to live/raw foods and macrobiotics, HGTG has dishes to please every palate. Weekly Meal Delivery right to your door. Organic, vegan, kosher. Baby Registry. Gift Certificates. Catering. www.carrottalk.com. (845) 339-7171.

WEDDINGS & COUNSELING Reverend Kevin Kraft, Interfaith Minister See Interfaith Ministries.

WORKSHOPS

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Back to Basics at “The Barn” Life Transformational Metaphysical Workshop Series begins August 5 in Gardener. Set in idyllic location - 130-year old renovated barn abutting Shawangunk Mountains, Author, Hand Analyst/ Life Coach shares joyous process of Evolving Consciously. Discover your Life Purpose/Life Lesson through your unchangeable Soul Goal hidden in your unique fingerprint patterns! To register for this workshop, call (845) 256-1294 or visit www.terrasoleil.com/workshops.

up the patterns you repeat indefinitely. They take form as something so unquestionable that you fuse with them and name them “myself.” These interpretations which you take as facts are distorted experiences that are called your myth. The work of *KAIROS is about the discovery of your myth and uplifting the quality of your life thereafter. KAIROS YOGA OF TRANSFORMATION weekend personalized workshops integrate several fields of knowledge: psychological astrology, contemplation, theater, art, mythology and yoga. The KAIROS work is not something you do, it is something you live. KAIROS: The Yoga of Transformation offers a FREE Introductory Session of In Search of Your Myth on Sunday, October 9, 2-5pm. *KAIROS means the quality of the moment. Learn more at our website www.kairosyoga.com or call Glen Wild Yoga Center (845) 436-0122.

YOGA The Children’s School Of Yoga Offering yoga classes to children from infant to teen. We offer classes to Daycares / Preschool, Camps & After School programs. We offer Parent/ Child & Family yoga classes, school aged yoga classes and teen yoga classes. We are currently in over 25+ locations throughout Orange, Dutchess, & Sullivan Counties. Call for your free trial class today at: 845-791-1553 or contact us directly at: www.thechildrensschoolofyoga.com. Email: thechildrensschoolofyoga@juno.com.

Jai Ma Yoga Center Offering a wide array of Yoga classes, seven days a week, from Gentle/Restorative Yoga to Advanced. Meditation classes free to all enrolled. Chanting Friday evenings. New expanded studio space. Private consultations and Phoenix Rising Yoga Therapy sessions available. Gina Bassinette, RYT & Ami Hirschstein, RYT, Owners. New Paltz. (845) 256-0465.

The Living Seed Sivananda Yoga offered five days a week. Serve, Love, Give, Purify, Meditate, Realize–Sivananda. 521 Main Street (Rte. 299, across from Econo Lodge), New Paltz. (845) 255-8212.

Satya Hudson Valley Yoga Center Spirittus Holistic Resource Center The Spirittus Holistic Resource Center is a healing environment where people gather to explore Spirituality, Health, and Holistic Living. Each month we host 25 + workshops. Weekly meditation, monthly Nutrition, Astrology, and Reiki Study groups. We have a private healing room offering Reiki, Counseling, Hypnotherapy, and CranioSacral Therapy. We provide access to a holistic library, holistic referral network, and the holistic gift shop. 89 North Front Street, Kingston, New York. Visit our website at: www.spirittus.org or call (845) 338-8313. Kevin@spirittus.org.

Sivananda Ashram Yoga Ranch

See Psychotherapy.

77 acres of rolling hills and woodlands. Breathtaking views, hiking, and cross-country ski trails, organic garden, swimming pond, and sauna. Daily Sivananda Ashram Schedule of Yoga Asanas, Pranayama, and Meditation. Yearround Yoga vacations. Weekend Workshops on health, Yoga, and meditation. Karma Yoga residential programs. Yoga Teachers Training, September 7-October 5. Founded in 1974 by Swami Vishnu-Devananda. Woodbourne, NY. (845) 436-6492. YogaRanch@Sivanan-da.org or www.sivananda.org/ranch.htm.

WOMEN’S HEALTH

Yoga on Duck Pond

StoneWater Sanctuary See Holistic Wellness Centers.

WOMEN’S GROUPS Honoring the Soul with Adele Marcus, LCSW-R, ACHT

Women’s Health & Fitness Expo womensexpo@hotmail.com. (845) 338-7140.

WORKSHOPS Free Introductory Session to In Search of Your Myth Have you ever asked yourself, “Why can’t I really change?” What is the lens through which I see the world? What is inadvertently repeated within? Your perception of life is with you from birth and sets 110

Satya Hudson Valley Yoga Center is located in the heart of Rhinebeck village, on the third floor of the Rhinebeck Department Store building. We offer classes for all levels, 7 days a week. There is no need to pre-register: we invite you to just show up. For more information, visit www.hudsonvalleyyoga.com or call (845) 876-2528.

Grounded in the alignment of the inner and outer body, yoga can reduce your stress, reshape your body, recharge your mind. “Working with Donna is a spiritual and physical adventure for me. I experience a renewed sense of well-being, increased mobility, clarity of mind, and a natural diet adjustment. She is helping me change my life.” –Carlo Travaglia, sculptor. Donna Nisha Cohen, director and certified instructor, over 20 years experience. Stone Ridge. Classes Sunday through Friday. Call for times, and information on pre-natal and private sessions. (845) 687-4836.

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6:30pm Wednesday November 16th

At The SteelHouse

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Located on the Rondout in Kingston

For more info log on to www.chronogram.com/party

No.

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The Chronogram Party

5 cover

Free Hors Dâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;oeuvres DJ Dave Leonard Cash Bar

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Or call 845.334.8600

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business directory ACTING Sande Shurin Acting Classes Revolutionary new acting technique for Film/Stage/TV. The book: Transformational Acting...A Step Beyond, Limelight Editions. The technique: Transform into character using current emotions. No recall. No forward imagining. Shurin private coaches many celebrities. The classes: Thursday eves. at 7pm, Woodstock. Master classes at the Times Square Sande Shurin Theatre. (917) 545-5713 or (212) 262-6848.

ANTIQUE RESTORATION

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Antique Clock Repair and Restoration

Manny’s Since 1962, big city selection and small town service have made Manny’s special. We offer a full range of art materials, custom picture framing, bookmaking supplies, and the best selection of handmade and decorative papers north of Manhattan. Manny’s, it’s more than just an art store. 83 Main Street, New Paltz. (845) 255-9902.

R & F Handmade Paints

Specializing in Grandfather clocks, Tubular chime clocks, European, Atmos and Carriage Clocks, Antique Music boxes. Pickup and delivery. House calls available. Free estimates. One year warranty. References available. For appointment call Ian D.Pomfret at (845) 687-9885 or email idp1@verizon.net.

Internationally known manufacturer of Pigment Sticks and Encaustic paint right here in the Hudson Valley. Stop in for a tour of our factory, get paints at discounted prices, sign up for an Encaustic or Pigment Stick workshop, or check out bi-monthly exhibits in the Gallery. Open Monday-Saturday 10am-5pm. 506 Broadway, Kingston. (845) 331-3112. www.rfpaints.com.

ARCHITECTURE

ART THERAPY

DiGuiseppe Architecture

Deep Clay Art and Therapy with Michelle Rhodes ATR-BC, LMSW

Inspired, Sensitive, and Luxurious…these are the words that describe the quintessential design work that is DiGuiseppe. The firm, with Design Studios in Accord, New York City, and Boca Raton, provides personalized Architecture and Interiors for each and every client. Whether the project is a Sensitive Historic Renovation, a Hudson Valley Inspired Home or Luxurious Interiors, each project receives the attention of the firm’s principal, Anthony J. DiGuiseppe, AIA RIBA, an internationally published architect and award-winning furniture designer. Accord (845) 687-8989, New York City (212) 439-9611 diarcht@msn.com, www.diguiseppe.com.

ART CENTERS The Living Seed Yoga & Holistic Center Open to the community for over 5 years. Inspiring movements of inner freedom and awareness. We offer Yoga classes for all levels of students, gentle/ beginner to advanced. Including Pre & Post Natal Yoga, Family & Kids Yoga, as well as a variety of Dance classes, Massage, Acupuncture, Sauna & Organic Yoga Clothing. New Paltz. (845)-255-8212 www.thelivingseed.com. The Living Seed Yoga & Holistic Health Center 521 Main St. New Paltz, NY 12561. Phone: (845)255-8212. Web ; www.thelivingseed.com. Email: contact@thelivingseed.com

ART CLASSES Ceramic Classes Develop your creativity and learn the art of clay in a small Saturday class for adults with any experience level. Classes are taught by Doris Licht in a large, working pottery studio with gas kiln. Learn handbuilding, wheelthrowing, decorating, glazing, and kiln firing. Visit the showroom by appointment. Phone:(845) 679-5620.

ART GALLERIES Van Brunt Gallery Exhibiting the work of contemporary artists. Featuring abstract painting, sculpture, digital art, photography, and video, the gallery has new shows each month. The innovative gallery Web site, www.vanbruntgallery.com, has online artist portfoliosand videos of the artists discussing their work. 460 Main Street, Beacon, NY 12508. (845) 838-2995.

ART SUPPLIES Catskill Art & Office Supply Traditional fine art materials, studio furnishings, office products, journals, cards, maps, and gifts. Creative services, too, at all three locations: photo processing, custom printing, rubber stamps, color copies, custom picture framing, and full-color digital output. Push-

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ing the envelope and creative spirit for over 20 years. Woodstock store: (845) 679-2251; Kingston (845) 331-7780; Poughkeepsie (845) 452-1250.

See Psychotherapy in Whole Living Guide.

ATTORNEYS Law Offices of Andrea Lowenthal pllc Offices in Hudson and Manhattan, serving individuals and businesses throughout the Hudson Valley and New York City. Estate Planning (wills and trusts) and Elder Law (planning for you or your aging relatives), Domestic Partnerships (for GLBT families), Family Matters, Business Formations and Transactions, and Real Estate. Intelligent and sensitive approach to your personal and business legal matters. Please call 518-671-6200 or 917-301-6524, or email Andrea@LowenthalLaw.com

Schneider, Pfahl & Rahmé, LLP Manhattan law firm with offices in Woodstock, provides legal services to individuals, institutions, professional firms, companies, and family businesses. Specific areas include: Real Estate, Estate Planning, Corporate, New Media and Arts, and Entertainment Law. Each matter is attended to by a senior attorney who develops a comprehensive legal plan with the client. (845) 679-9868 or (212) 629-7744. See website www.nycrealestateattorneys.com or www.schneiderpfahl.com.

AUTOMOTIVE Roberti Motor Cars Specializing in previously owned SAABs. Over 150 pre-owned SAABs in stock at all times. Authorized SAAB service center. Large selection of new and used SAAB parts available. Prices range from $1,500 to $25,000. All cars warranteed bumper to bumper. (845) 339-SAAB. 385 Foxhall Avenue, Kingston, NY. www.roberti.com.

BEVERAGES Esotec Ltd. Now Located in Tech-City Kingston, NY. Choose Esotec to be your wholesale beverage provider. For 20 years we’ve carried a complete line of natural, organic, and unusual juices, spritzers, waters, sodas, iced teas, and iced coffees. If you are a store owner, call for details or a catalog of our full line. sales@esotecltd.com. or www.esotecltd.com. (845) 336-3369.

Leisure Time Spring Water Pure spring water from a natural artesian spring located in the Catskill Mountains. The spring delivers water at 42oF year-round. The water is filtered under high pressure through fine white sand. Hot and cold dispensers available. Weekly delivery. (845) 331-0504.

BOOKSTORES Barner Books Used books. From kitsch to culture, Thoreau to thrillers, serious and silly. We have the books you read. Monday - Saturday 10-7pm, Sunday 12-6pm. Located at 69 Main Street, New Paltz, NY. (845) 255-2635. E-mail: barnerbk@ulster.net.

The Golden Notebook A feast for book lovers located in the heart of Woodstock, we are proud to be a part of Book Sense: Independent Bookstores for Independent Minds. In addition to our huge database, we can special order any book in or out of print. Our Children’s Store located right next door has an extensive selection of books and products exclusively for the under-14 set. We also carry the complete line of Woodstock Chimes. 25-29 Tinker Street, Woodstock. Tel: (845) 679-8000, fax (845) 679-3054. Email: thegoldennotebook@hvc.rr.com. Web: www.goldennotebook.com.

Mirabai of Woodstock The Hudson Valley’s oldest spiritual/holistic bookstore, providing a vast array of books, music, and gifts that transform, renew, and elevate the spirit. Exquisite statuary and other art works from Nepal, Tibet, Bali. Expert Tarot reading, astrological charts/interpretation available. 23 Mill Hill Road, Woodstock. (845) 679-2100. www.mirabai.com.

CARPETS / RUGS Anatolia Tribal Rugs & Weavings Direct importers since 1981–Natural-dyed Afghan carpets; Balouchi tribal kilims; Russian sumaks; antique Caucasian carpets; silk Persian sumaks; Turkish kilims. Hundreds to choose from 2’x3’ to 9’x12’. Kilim pillows, $20-$55. We encourage customers to try our rugs in their homes without obligation. Open 6 days a week 12-6pm. Closed Tuesdays. MC/Visa/AmEx. 54G Tinker Street, Woodstock.(845) 679-5311.

CHILDREN’S ART CLASSES An Extraordinary Art Experience! The School for Young Artists provides you with the tools, materials, instruction and support to achieve your goals. Our studio is about the joy of learning and the power of making art. Classes and individual sessions for children and adults. Call Kathy Anderson (845) 679-9541.

CINEMA Upstate Films

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The School for Young Artists

Great International Cinema. Contemporary & Classic. 26 Montgomery Street, Rhinebeck. (845) 876-2515. www.upstatefilms.com.

CLOTHING Haldora

Haldora, a family name from Iceland meaning Goddess of the Mountains. Haldora designs a lifestyle in women’s clothing and scarves—styles which are timeless, understated, and have a forgiving elegance. She designs and cuts her own line, then sends it to her seamstress where it is sewn locally in New York State. Her fabrics are mostly natural, including many kinds of silk, linens, and cotton in many colors, with wool added in winter. Also at Haldora, you will find other complimentary lines. In season, she has wool, cotton, and cashmere sweaters, which include Margaret O’Leary and Kincross Cashmere. Haldora carries a full line of Hanro of Switzerland undergarments and sleepwear. Shoes are also important to finish your look. Some of the lines carried are Arche, Lisa Nading, and Gentle Souls. Haldora also carries jewelry in a wide range of prices. Open Daily. 28 East Market Street, Rhinebeck, New York. Call (845) 876-6250, or visit us on the web at www.haldora.com.

COLLEGES Dutchess Community College Dutchess Community College, part of the State University of New York (SUNY) system, was founded in 1957. The College offers an educational policy of access, quality, opportunity, diversity, and social responsibility. DCC’s main campus in Poughkeepsie is situated on 130 scenic acres with facilities that are aesthetically pleasing and technologically advanced. The College has a satellite campus, Dutchess South, in Wappinger Falls, and learning centers in Carmel, Staatsburg, and Pawling. (845) 431-8020. www.sunydutchess.edu.

Mount Saint Mary College An independent liberal arts college offering more than 30 undergraduate programs; graduate programs in business (MBA), education, and nursing; and noncredit courses. 2,500 women and men. Its beautiful campus overlooks the Hudson River and is conveniently located off I-84 in Newburgh. (845) 569-3222. www.msmc.edu.

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CONSIGNMENT SHOPS Past ‘n’ Perfect A quaint consignment boutique that offers distinctive clothing, jewelry, shoes, and accessories, and a unique variety of high quality furs and leathers. Always a generous supply of merchandise from casual to chic, contemporary to vintage, with sizes from infant to adult. Featuring a diverse and illuminating jewelry collection. Open Tuesday to Friday 10am-5pm, and Saturday 10am-4pm. Conveniently located at 1629 Main Street (Route 44), Pleasant Valley, NY–only 9 miles east of the Mid-Hudson Bridge. (845) 635-3115. www.pastnperfect.com.

The Present Perfect Designer consignments of the utmost quality for men, women, and children. Current styles, jewelry accessories, and knickknacks. Featuring beautiful furs and leathers. Open Monday-Saturday 10am-5pm, and Sunday 12-5pm. Located at 23G Village Plaza, Rhinebeck, NY 12572. (845) 876-2939.

COSMETIC & PLASTIC SURGERY M. T. Abraham, MD Facial Plastic, Reconstructive & Laser Surgery, PLLC. Dr. Abraham is one of few surgeons double board certified and fellowship trained exclusively in Facial Plastic Surgery. He is an expert in the latest minimally invasive and nonsurgical techniques (Botox™, Restylane™, Thermage™, Photofacial™), and also specializes in functional nasal surgery. Offices in Poughkeepsie, Fishkill, & Rhinebeck with affiliated MediSpas.(845) 454-8025,www.NYfaceMD.com.

CRAFTS Crafts People

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Representing over 500 artisans, Crafts People boasts four buildings brimming with fine crafts, the largest selection in the Hudson Valley. All media represented, including sterling silver & 14K gold jewelry, blown glass, pottery, turned wood, kaleidoscopes, wind chimes, leather, clothing, stained glass, etc. Open Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Monday 10:30am-6pm. 262 Spillway Road, West Hurley. (845) 331-3859.

DANCEWEAR First Street Dancewear

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First Street Dancewear in Saugerties, NY offers quality dancewear for Adults and Children. We have dancewear, knit warm-ups, ballet, jazz, tap shoes, gymnastics wear, skatewear, accessories, and gift items. We also feature a line of women’s active wear clothing suitable for Yoga and Pilates. Phone (845) 247-4517. www.firststreetdancewear.com.

DESIGN

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Actionpact Solutions

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Actionpact Solutions is your premiere, award-winning, full-service graphic, Web, and multi-media design firm located in Kingston, New York. We offer fresh, fun, and functional advertising and design solutions for businesses of all sizes. Make a pact for action and contact us today for your free consultation! Call (845) 532-5398 or email support@actionpactsolutions.com.

Bluebird Artworks Studio Get your ugly mug on one of our beautiful ceramic mugs. Let Bluebird design for you. We can create elegant and efficient websites, clean business cards, effective print ads or just create a great logo. Visit the studio of multimedia artist Jonathan James. Use his web & graphic services. Buy a gift mug, a freeform crochet hat or a fine oil painting by artist Dahlia Nichols. A small studio with big ideas. 8 Tinker Street, Woodstock, behind Walkabout. (845) 679-4659. BluebirdArtworks.com or email mrwander@gmail.com.

DISTRIBUTION Chronogram Is Everywhere!

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Have you ever noticed that wherever you go, Chronogram is there? That’s because our distribution is so damn good. We can distribute your flyer, brochure, business card, or publication to over 800 establishments in Ulster, Dutchess, Columbia, Greene, Putnam, and Orange counties and now with new stops in Peekskill, Westchester County. Call us at (845) 334-8600 x107 or e-mail distribution@chronogram.com.

DIVORCE SERVICES Lois M. Brenner See Attorneys.

EDITING Manuscript Consultant See Literary.

Bethany Saltman I am a professor of writing & literature as well as a professional writer & editor who most recently edited local writer Erin Quinn’s Pride and Politics. I have

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over a decade of experience working with teens, grad students, professionals and editors and I am available to help you with your writing projects. References available. Call or email for a free consultation. (845)688-7015, bethanysaltman@gmail.com

EVOLUTION Discovery Institute To Know. To Understand. To Be. Offering intensive training in a living school of psycho-transformism in the tradition of G.I. Gurdjieff. (845) 255-5548. discover@bestweb.net.

FAUX FINISHES Faux Intentions Cat Quinn, professional decorative artist, setting the standard for excellence in Custom Faux Finishes for your home and business. With infinite possibilities, your walls, floors, ceilings, fireplaces and furniture can be transformed using my faux finishing techniques. A full spectrum of decorative finishes using plasters, glazes and many other mediums, help to fill your home full of your unique personality and spirit. Don’t miss the beauty and exhiliration of transforming the rooms you live and work in every day into spaces that reflect your sense of style. Portfolio showing a phone call away. (845) 532-3067.

FINANCIAL SERVICES Center for Financial Wellness, Inc. I don’t sell anything! I help you become financially independent – retire early, reduce your taxes, build an investment portfolio, do work that you love, get out of debt! Robin Vaccai-Yess, Certified Financial Planner™, Registered Investment Advisor, Fee-Only. Visit www.financiallywell.com to receive my free E-newsletter and to register for workshops. (845) 255-6052. www.financiallywell.com.

FOOD SERVING PRODUCTS Cool Cover™

FRAMING Catskill Art & Office See Art Supplies.

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CoolCover™ keeps food cool, fresh and visible for hours using patent-pending air flow design. Perfect for entertaining at home, indoors and outdoors. CoolCover™ can be tipped back into stable, upright position for easy self serving. Clear, durable, food safe polycarbonate protects food from insects and pets. Great for everyday use as practical tool for healthy eating. No ice. 15 7/8” L x 11 7/8” W x 5 5/8” H. Price - $34.99. www.coolcover.us 800-601-5757.

Manny’s See Art Supplies.

GARDENING & GARDEN SUPPLIES Blue Mountain Gardens Ulster County’s newest garden center specializing in unusual annuals, proven perennials, shrubs and vines and located next to Beyond The Pail, a fine gift store offering accessories for the gardening lifestyle. 3524 Rt. 32 North, Saugerties. Open daily 9am-6pm. (845) 246-6978.

Mac’s Agway in Red Hook/New Paltz Agway Specializing in all your lawn and garden needs. We carry topsoil, peat moss, fertilizers, organics, grass seed, shavings, straw, fencing, pet food, bird seed, bird houses, and more. Mac’s Agway, 68 Firehouse Lane, Red Hook, NY (845) 876-1559; New Paltz Agway, 145 Route 32N, New Paltz, NY (845) 255-0050. Hours for both locations: Mon.-Fri. 8am-5:30pm; Sat. 8am-5pm; Sun. 9am-3pm.

The Phantom Gardener At Phantom we provide everything you need to create and enjoy an organic, beautiful landscape. Our dedicated and knowledgeable staff will help you choose from an unbeatable selection of herbaceous or woody plants, garden products and books. We offer professional design, installation, and maintenance services. Visit us! Rhinebeck, NY. 9am – 5pm daily. (845) 8768606. www.thephantomgardener.com. See display ad.

GIFTS Earth Lore Walk into a World of Wonder: Amethyst and citrine geodes; Quartz crystal clusters, spheres, and obelisks; Moldavite and meteorite pendants; Designer jewelry from Amy Kahn Russell; Peyote Bird and WatchCraft; a dazzling array of Baltic Amber; a Thai rain drum from Woodstock Percussion; a sterling silver Buddha from Bali; fossilized salt lamps from the Royal Polish salt mines; tabletop fountains of Italian marble. These and other exotic Gifts from around the globe at Earth Lore. 2 Fairway Drive in Pawling, N.Y. Open Tues. thru Fri. 10 am-6 pm; Sat. 10-5.

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Sapphire The newly opened Sapphire is a unique gift shop like none other. Featuring handmade quality gifts of pottery, stained glass, jewelry, wooden bowls, bags, prints, cards, and home accents made by American and Hudson Valley artisans. Located in downtown Rosendale, Sapphire is open Monday, Thursday & Friday: 2-7:30pm, Saturday: 12-7:30pm, and Sunday: 12-5pm. Closed Tues. & Wed. 415 Main Street, Rosendale. (845) 658-3315. sapphiresk yllc@hvc.rr.com.

GLASSBLOWING Glassblowing.com The glassblowing.com studio offers Beginner Workshops in both Glassblowing and Beadmaking. Lee Kind has been teaching glassblowing since 1990 and has the ability to make this hot medium safe for anyone to try. In addition to teaching, Lee creates a line of “one of a kind” lamps and lighting installations for both homes and businesses. For more information call (845) 297-7334 or www.glassblowing.com.

HAIR SALONS Trends Hair Design Trends is a cutting-edge hair design center offering New York City styles at Hudson Valley prices, specializing in modern color, cut, and chemical techniques for men and women. Waxing and nail services available. Open Tues. through Fri, 9am to 7pm; Sat. 10am to 3pm. Gift certificates available. 29-31 West Strand, Kingston. (845) 340-9100.

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HOME DESIGNS

INTERIOR DESIGN DeStefano and Associates Barbara DeStafano has been the owner of DeStefano and Associates, an interior design business, for 18 years. She received certification in Feng Shui from the Metropolitan Institute of Interior Design and has completed advanced work with several Feng Shui Masters. Feng Shui is the perfect marriage to interior design. It brings a spiritual dimension to your space. Barbara can create a kind of beauty that touches your spirit, and brings balance and harmony to a level that transcends the superficial. Barbara is available for consultations, guest speaker engagements, and workshops. (845) 339-4601.

INTERNET SERVICE PROVIDERS Hudson Valley Internet Local Internet access and commercial Web site hosting. Fast, reliable, easy to use, flexible pricing…Want more? How about: free software, extra e-mail, K56Flex support, personal web space, helpful customer service, and no setup charges. Call (845) 255-2799. Visit us on the web at www.hvi.net.

Webjogger Blazing fast broadband Internet access. Featuring symmetrical bandwidth, superior personal attention and technical support, rock-solid security and reliability, and flexible rates. Complementary services include e-mail, Web hosting, accelerated dialup, server collocation and management, and customized networking solutions. Webjogger is a locally grown company with offices in Tivoli and Kingston. Call (845) 757-4000 or visit us online at www.webjogger.net.

Eco-Arch Design Works Janus Welton, AIA, BBEI

LITERARY

An award-winning design architect, offering over 15 years of Traditional Chinese Feng Shui expertise to her Ecological and Healthy Building Design Practice: combining Building Biology, Solar Architecture, and Feng Shui to promote “Inspiring and Sustainable” environments for the 21st Century. Unlock the potentials of your site, home, or office to foster greater harmony, prosperity, spirit, health, and ecological integrity. Services include: Architecture, Planning, Commercial Interiors, Professional Seminars and Consultations. E-mail: ecoarchitect@hvc.rr.com or see www.Janus WeltonDesignWorks.com. (845) 247-4620.

Bethany Saltman

HOME FURNISHINGS & GIFTS

The long winter is the perfect time to get to work on your writing. I am a professor of writing & literature/ professional writer & editor who is available to help with your writing projects. I have over a decade of experience working with teens, grad students, professionals and editors. Call for a free consultation: (845) 688 -7015.

Submit to Chronogram Seeking submissions of poems, short stories, essays, and article proposals. Accepting pieces of all sorts. With SASE, send submissions to Chronogram, 314 Wall Street, 2nd floor, Kingston, NY 12401. info@chronogram.com or check out our web site: www.chronogram.com.

White Rice 531 Warren St, Hudson, NY 12534. (518) 697-3500. shaunwr03@aol.com.

HORSEBACK RIDING LESSONS Frog Hollow Farm English riding lessons for adults and children. Solarheated indoor, large outdoor, cross-country course, extensive trails. Summer camp, boarding, training, and sales. Emphasis on Dressage as a way of enhancing all horse disciplines. Holistic teaching and horse care. 572 Old Post Road, Esopus. (845) 384-6424. www.dressageatfroghollowfarm.com.

Green Heron Farm, Inc. We offer riding instruction to children and adults beginner through advanced all year round in a safe, fun environment with qualified instructors. We also offer summer day camp for children. We are located 3 miles from the center of Woodstock. 446 John Jay Road. For more information call (845) 246-9427 or visit us at www.greenheronfarm.com.

HOUSE ORGANIZING House Organizing Do you own your stuff or does it own you? Take back your home! Joyous hands-on support in de-cluttering given by an experienced teacher. Contact April Lynn Sponaugle, MS. at (845) 795-5189 for a Free Consultation.

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Ione Writing workshops and private instruction for writers. (845) 339-5776.

MAGAZINES Chronogram The only complete arts and cultural events resource for the Hudson Valley. Subscribe and get the lowdown first. Whether you live in the Hudson Valley or just visit, you’ll know what’s going on. Send $36 for yearly subscription to: Chronogram, 314 Wall Street, 2nd floor, Kingston, NY 12401. info@chronogram.com. www.chronogram.com.

MEDIATION & CONFLICT RESOLUTION Pathways Mediation Center A unique mediation practice for couples going through divorce, or families in conflict, with the innovative, combined services of two professionals. Josh Koplovitz has 30 years as a Matrimonial & Family Law Attorney, and Myra Schwartz has 30 years as a Guidance Counselor. This male/female team can effectively address all your legal and family issues. Use our one-hour free consultation to find out about us. (845) 331-0100.

Rodney Wells, CFP, Member AFM & NYSCDM If you’re separating, divorcing, or have issues with

child support, custody, or visitation, choose mediation. On average, mediated agreements are fulfilled twice as often as litigated court decisions and cost half as much. I draw on my experience as a financial planner, psychotherapist, and pro se litigant to guide couples in a responsible process of unraveling their entanglements, preserving their assets, and creating a satisfying future. Cornwall, New Paltz, and NYC. (845) 534-7668. www.mediated-divorce.com.

MUSIC Burt’s Electronics Good music deserves quality sound! Avoid the malls and shop where quality and personal service are valued above all else. Bring Burt and his staff your favorite album and let them teach you how to choose the right audio equipment for your listening needs. 549 Albany Avenue, Kingston. Monday through Friday 9am-7pm; Saturday 9am-5pm; and Sunday 12pm-4pm. (845) 331-5011.

Drums of Woodstock The ultimate source for all your jammin’ needs. Check out our diverse collection of Djembe, Dun Dun, Conga, Bougarabou Drums, Didgeridoos, Rain Sticks, Chimes, and Hand-Held Musical Instruments. 77 Tinker Street, Woodstock, New York 12498. (845) 810-0442. www.drumsof woodstock.com.

Magnetic North Studio Attention musicians - win one free day in our recording studio. To enter - email info@magnocd.com. All entries receive $50.00 discount toward studio time. Experienced recording, mixing, mastering, editing. Complete CD/DVD packages in any quantity. Magnetic North Studio - vintage analog warmth with digital precision. (845) 247-0113 www.magnocd.com

Vassar College, Poughkeepsie. A listener-supported, non-commercial, student-run, alternative music station. Programming is provided by students and community members, and includes jazz, new music, folk, hip hop, polka, new age, international, blues, metal, news, and public affairs programming. WVKR Web casts at www.wvkr.org. (845) 437-7010.

MUSIC LESSONS Guitar and Bass Lessons Guitar lessons: all levels and ages welcome. Electric or acoustic. Pop /rock / folk. Learn to play your favorite songs. Develop strength and co ordination. Learn music theory. Songwriters: move beyond generic chords. Lessons in your home or mine. Minnewaska / New Paltz area. Bibi Farber (845) 626-7944. Visit our website at www.bibifarber.com.

NURSERIES See Landscape Products & Services.

PAINTING Professional Painting Co. Hire the best for residential and commercial painting. Our skilled staff uses quality materials and combines the necessary resources to complete each job to your satisfaction. Painting improves the appearance of your residence, protects your investment, and increases its value. Call Trevor at (845) 430-1290 or (845) 679-4232.

PERFORMING ARTS Powerhouse Summer Theater/ Lehman-Loeb Gallery Vassar College Box 225, Poughkeepsie, NY 12604. (845) 437-5902. befargislanc@pop.vassar.edu.

PERSONAL ASSISTANTS Personal Assistant

Office and personal assistant more than able to provide full-spectrum support. Intelligent, dependable, industrious, discreet long-term resident can handle it all. Plan a travel itinerary or a dinner party? Organize a wardrobe or a year’s worth of accumulated clutter?

PET SERVICES & SUPPLIES Pussyfoot Lodge B&B The Pioneer in Professional Pet Care! Full house-petplant-sitting service, proudly serving three counties for 32 years. Experienced, dependable, thorough, and reasonable house sitting for your pets’ health and happiness. Also offering a cats-only resort with individual rooms. Extensive horticulture and landscaping knowledge in addition to domestic and zoo animal experience. Better Business Bureau Metro NY/MidHudson Region Member. (845) 687-0330.

PET SITTING Why have your dog spend its day in a kennel, when it can stay comfortably at home and I’ll take care if it for you. Pine Bush, Walden, Newburgh, Middletown. (845) 406-8932.

PHOTOGRAPHY France Menk Photography & Photodesign A fine art a pproach to your photographic and advertising requirements. Internationally exhibited. Major communications/advertising clients. My work is 100% focused on your needs. www.photocon.com. (845) 256-0603.

Michael Gold Artistic headshots of actors, singers, models, musicians, performing artists, writers, and unusual, outlandish, off-the-wall personalities. Complete studio facilities and lighting. Creative, warm, original, professional. Unconditionally guaranteed. www.michaelgol dsphotos.com and click on to the “Headshots” page. The Corporate Image Studios, 1 Jacobs Lane, New Paltz. (845) 255-5255.

Andy Wainwright Creative photography of artwork, architecture, people, and products. Grant proposals require outstanding 35mm slides to be successful, and your web site can be improved with fresh and imaginative images. The impact of a stunning postcard/announcement should never be underesrtimated. Andy possesses cutting edge digital skills and 28 years of experience exceeding the client’s expectations. Spectacular lighting, all the tools, and an impassioned interest in your goals. Take a look: andywainwright.com. (845) 757-5431.

business directory

WVKR 91.3 FM

Bring order to chaos? No problem. Treat yourself. Free yourself. Your style is my objective. Contact lucabra@earthlink.net or phone (518) 945-3311.

Michael Weisbrot Studio Wedding Photography. Color and Archival, Museumquality, B&W Photography. Customized packages. I’m an experienced professional whose work combines sensitivities of an artist with storytelling skills of a photojournalist. General commercial freelance. Studio and location. Portraits, Theatre. Custom B&W darkroom work. Exhibition Printing. Call for prices, samples, and appointment. mandm8377@usadatanet.com or (845) 338-0293.

PIANO Adam’s Piano Featuring Kawai and other fine brands. 75 pianos on display in our Germantown(just north of Rhinebeck) showroom. Open by appointment only. Inventory, prices, pictures, at adamspiano.com. A second showroom will be opening in New Paltz in November. Superb service, moving, storage, rentals; we buy pianos! (518)537-2326 or (845)343-2326. adamspiano.com

PLUMBING & BATH N & S Supply 205 Old Route 9, Fishkill, NY 12524. (845) 896-6291. cloijas@nssupply.com.

PRINTING SERVICES New York Press Direct At NY Press Direct we exist for one reason - to de-

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light our customers! What does that mean to you? Worry-free shopping for all your printing and fulfillment needs. Our solutions are leading edge in the industry. Our pricing is among the most competitive in the northeast region. Call John DeSanto or Larry Read for more information. (845) 457-2442.

PUBLISHERS Monkfish Book Publishing Company Monkfish publishes books that combine spiritual and literary merit. Monkfish books range from memoirs to sutras, from fiction to scholarly works of thought. Monkfish also publishes Provenance Editions, an imprint devoted to elegant editions of spiritual classics. Monkfish books are available at your favorite local or online bookstores, or directly from us. Rhinebeck, NY. (845) 876-4861. www.monkfishpublishing.com.

REAL ESTATE Willow Realty Willow Realty is a small, personalized Real Estate Agency in Ulster County, New York. We have access to all the properties in the Multiple Listing Service, but high-pressure tactics are not part of our sales kit. We have extensive experience in buyer agency and new construction. We listen to you!!! New Paltz. (845) 255-7666.

RESTAURANT SUPPLIES Cool Cover ™ See Food Serving Products in the Business Directory.

business directory

SAILBOAT SALES & INSTRUCTION Great Hudson Sailing Company Purchase a new Beneteau sailboat from us and receive 20 hours of free instruction. We have sales offices in Mamaroneck and W. Haverstraw, NY. Our sailing school also offers sailing lessons in private or group sessions in three locations: W. Haverstraw, Kingston, Jersey City. Phone (800) 237-1557. www.greathudsonsailing.com.

SCHOOLS

part time options for preschoolers. Half or full day kindergarten. Affiliated with the American Montessori Society. 62 Plains Rd., New Paltz, New York 12561. (845) 256-1875. Email: info@mariasgarden montessori.com.

Mountain Laurel Waldorf School At the Mountain Laurel Waldorf School, not only can all students do their best in academic basics, they can find and achieve a balance in rich programs of drama, speech, Spanish, Russian, painting, music, creative writing, woodwork, and more. Waldorf Education: for the head, heart, and hands. Nursery-8th Grade. 16 South Chestnut Street, New Paltz. Call Judy Jaeckel. (845) 255-0033.

Woodstock Day School Woodstock Day School, a state-chartered, independent school and member of NYSAIS, providing quality education for pre-school through high school students since 1972. Small classes and a 6:1 student-to-teacher ratio allow us to give each child the individualized consideration necessary for a positive learning experience. PO Box 1, Woodstock. (845) 246-3744. Web: www.woodstockdayschool.org.

STONEWORK See Landscape Products & Services.

TATTOOS Pats Tats Since 1976, Pat Sinatra and her team create custom, one-of-a-kind tattoos in a friendly and relaxed atmosphere. Excellent portraits, tribal, gothic, Oriental, Americana, and realism. Gray, black, and color. Appointments are advised. Walk-ins available Tuesdays and Fridays. More than just a mark, it’s an experience! 948 Route 28, Kingston, NY 12401. Tel: (845) 338-8282. Email: pat_sinatra@yahoo.com.

WEB DESIGN Actionpact Solutions See Design.

HDS Internet See Internet Service Providers.

Anderson School Anderson School is an educational residential community, serving children and adults (ages 5-21) with autism and related developmental disabilities, in Staatsburg, New York. Education and residential programs are designed to foster continuous growth, independence and social interaction. Students are accepted year-round. Funded by NYS Dept. of Education, OCFS and OMRDD. Contact Kate Haas (845) 889-4034 x534 or visit www.andersonschool.org.

Karen Williams Design Your creative solution... concept to completion. Web design, maintenance, domain registration and hosting for $80 per year for sites under 50MG. All sites are custom made for your individual needs. Free estimates. Visit my website at www.karenwilliamsdesign.com. (845) 883-9007.

WEB DEVELOPMENT Curious Minds Media Inc.

Hudson Valley Sudbury School A radically different form of education based on the belief that children are driven by a basic desire to learn and explore. We trust that children, given the freedom, will choose the most appropriate path for their education. Our democratic School Meeting expects children to take responsibility for their lives and their community. Year-round admissions. Sliding-scale tuition. (845) 679-1002. www.hudsonvalleyschool.org.

Want a website that works for you? We’ve got solutions to fit any budget, and we understand the needs of small businesses. Flash, E-commerce, database applications. CMM has what it takes to get you results. Mention this ad and receive 3 months FREE hosting! www.curiousm.com. Call now toll-free, at (888) 227-1645.

WINE In Good Taste

High Meadow School Pre-kindergarten through 8th grade, committed to a child-centered education that engages the whole child. Intimate, nurturing, with small class size and hands-on learning. A program rich in academic, artistic, physical, and social skills. Fully accredited. Route 209, Stone Ridge, NY. Call Suzanne Borris, director. (845) 687-4855.

Maria’s Garden Montessori School Cultivating independence, confidence, compassion, peace, and a lifelong love of learning. Serving children 3 years through first grade in a one-room country schoolhouse surrounded by gardens, woodlands, and streams. 8:30 am-3:30 pm, with

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45 Main Street, New Paltz, NY. (845) 255-0110. ingoodtaste@verizon.net.

WRITING WORKSHOPS Wallkill Valley Writers Creative writing workshops in New Paltz led by Kate Hymes, poet and educator. Aspiring and experienced writers are welcome. WVW provides structured time, a supportive community and a safe place for you to fulfill the dream of writing your stories, real or imagined. Many writers find the community of a workshop benefits their work and keeps them motivated. (845) 255-7090. Email: khamherstwriters@aol.com.

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new releases... Ten Pigs Fiddling

A childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s book

by Ron Atlas illustrated by

Stacie Flint

Everyday Traditions

written & illustrated by

Nava Atlas

Now at your local bookstores and online amberwoodinc@mac.com

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EVENT LISTINGS FOR NOVEMBER 2005

the forecast

courtesy geffen records

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IF IT AIN'T BAROQUE... In the mid-`60s, pop composers such as Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys and Burt Bacharach began to tweak rock and roll, adding layered harmonies, strings, and horns that added a dramatic majesty to the basic melodies, creating a new subspecies of rock—what would become known as baroque pop. (The Beach Boys' 1966 Pet Sounds is generally considered the genre’s ne plus ultra, with Love’s Forever Changes a close second.) With his self-titled freshman release in 1998, 25-year-old Rufus Wainwright became heralded as New York City’s matinee idol-prince of “popera,” and his album became a harbinger for the new wave of "baroque pop." Wainwright boasts a mixed bloodline of both Canadian and American folk-music royalty as the son of Kate McGarrigle and Loudon Wainwright III. Having grown up under the influences of classical, jazz, folk-pop, and opera, Wainwright creates albums that are an amalgamation of contagious melodies and lofty refrains, each lent an emotional complexion by strings-and-horns orchestration, though Wainwirght is not averse to sparse solo piano arrangements. Wainwright, armed with a number of Juno and GLAAD awards, has toured with Tori Amos, Ben Folds, and Sting. He has recently released his fourth album, Want Two, and will be returning to the Hudson Valley to play the Bardavon Opera House on November 5. (845) 473-2072; www.bardavon.org. —Marleina Booth-Levy

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calendar TUES 1 MUSIC

Financial Planning for Same Sex Partners

7pm. The Alamo, Rosendale. 334-7925.

THURS 3

Richie Colan’s Blues Night

8-11pm. Blues. Willow Creek Inn, Stone Ridge. 340-8510.

Open Mike Night

10:30pm. Snug’s Tavern, New Paltz. 255-9800.

Robert Kopec & Friends

11pm. Jazz. Oasis, New Paltz. 255-2400. THE OUTDOORS

Early Birds Hike

9am. Minnewaska State Park, New Paltz. 255-2011. SPOKEN WORD

Nutritional Status of Russian Adults An economic analysis of body weight. Honors Center, New Paltz. 257-3933.

Wild Life Program

1pm. Animals, stories. Unison Arts and Learning Center, New Paltz. 255-1559.

Intelligent Design

7-9pm. Public Education and the First Amendment. Stone Ridge Library. 687-8726. WORKSHOPS

Money and the Power of Prosperity

WED 2 MUSIC

Wynton Marsalis

Call for times. Troy Music Hall, Troy. (518) 273-0038.

Patricia Mazo & Dave Myers

5pm. Jazz. Bodles Opera House, Chester. 469-4595.

Da Capo Celebrates Bard!

8pm. Bard College, Annandale-onHudson. 758-7425.

Dan Brother

9pm. Blues, r&b, soul. Corner Stage, Middletown. 342-4804.

The Kurt Henry Band

10pm. Progressive. Bacchus, New Paltz. 687-0590. SPOKEN WORD

Judy Norman with Bassist Artie Bauer

The Sacraments of Mary Magdalene 12pm. Institute of Advanced Theology, Annandale-on-Hudson. 758-7279. $12/$10.

Lecture on the Tarot

An American Thanksgiving

6pm. Lombardi’s, Gardiner. 255-9779.

Acoustic Guitars and Hit Songs That Grab Your Emotions

Paths to Resilience

6-8pm. 6 sessions. Ulster County Community College, Kingston. 339-2025.

The Tarot: History, Symbolism and Divination

6:30-8:30pm. 5 sessions. Ulster County Community College, Kingston. 339-2025.

8pm. Performed by the Woodstock Chamber Orchestra. Bard College, Annandale-on-Hudson. 246-7045.

11:30am-5:30pm. Awareness about the 8-10pm. Acoustic. Mezzanine Bookstore needs of youth with emotional disabilities. & Café, Kingston. 339-6925. Holiday Inn, Kingston. 340-4174.

Lyceum Presentation

12:30pm. Bob Reiss and Man Made Weather. Dutchess County Community College, Poughkeepsie. 431-8050.

Business of Sports and the Immediacy of Journalism Today 7pm. Orange County Community College, Middletown. 341-4891.

The Steamboat “Henry Clay” and a Hero from Cornwall-on-Hudson 7:30pm. Painter’s Tavern, Cornwall. 534-5506 ext. 204. THEATER

The Illusion

Judy Norman Project

8-11pm. Rock. Ciao Bella Restaurant, Wappinger’s Falls. www.judynorman.com.

Rachel Davis

9pm. Rosendale Cafe, Rosendale. 658-9048.

Jeremy Baum

10pm. Blues, r&b, soul. Corner Stage, Middletown. 342-4804. SPOKEN WORD

Adolescents and Autism

Call for times. School for Autistic Strength Purpose and Independence in Education. Holiday Inn, Kingston. 657-7201. $15/$18.

7:30pm. Comedy about a father who uses a sorcerer to find his son. Stageworks Hudson, Hudson. (518) 822-9667.

Book Signing with Bruce Chilton

The Complete Works of Shakespeare Abridged

Poetry Reading by Thomas Lux and Marc Straus

8pm. The Center for Performing Arts, Rhinebeck. 876-3080.

FRI 4 ART

1st Fridays in Peekskill

5-8pm. Art galleries open late, music. Peekskill. (914) 734-2367.

Photographer Wendy Bohlinger 6:30pm. Barnes and Noble, Poughkeepsie. 485-2229.

7-8:30pm. Memorial Lutheran Church, Red Hook. 340-4576.

Cartooning Basics: Ages 12-Adult

7:30-9pm. Holy Cross Church, Kingston. 679-8172. $20/Children $10.

7pm. SUN Y Ulster, Stone Ridge. 687-5262. Faculty Concert 8pm. Vassar College, Poughkeepsie. Perfect Thyroid 437-7404. 7:30pm. Alternative, funk, reggae, rock. Perfect Thyroid The Chance, Poughkeepsie. 486-0223. 8pm. Alternative, funk, reggae, rock. Wide Open Mike Joyous Lake, Woodstock. 679-0367. 8pm. All genres. Backstage Studio The Barber of Seville Productions, Kingston. 338-8700. 8pm. Opera Verdi Europa. Bardavon, Mike Quick Band Poughkeepsie. 473-2072. 9pm. Blues, r&b, soul. Corner Stage, Woodstock Chamber Orchestra Middletown. 342-4804. 8pm. Holy Cross Church, Kingston. SPOKEN WORD 246-7045. $15/students $5.

THEATER

WORKSHOPS

7:30pm. Presented by the Opera Company of the Highlands. St. Mary’s Church, Cold Spring. 562-5381.

Michael McCarthy Trio

CLASSES

7:30pm. Comedy about a father who uses a sorcerer to find his son. Stageworks Hudson, Hudson. (518) 822-9667.

Die Fledermaus

Hudson Valley Youth Chorale Benefit

6-8pm. SUNY Ulster, Stone Ridge. 246-5155.

The Illusion

Call for times. Troy Music Hall, Troy. (518) 273-0038.

1-2pm. Rock, pop, acoustic, covers, originals. Dutchess Horizons, Poughkeepsie. 486-6329.

One Book, One New Paltz Event

Call for times. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time by Mark Haddon. Unison Arts and Learning Center, New Paltz. 255-1559.

Dotle Lawson and Quicksilver

Art Classes For Beginners

EVENTS

Benefit Dance for Haitian Children 8pm. W/Sonando. New World Home Cooking, Saugerties. $15. FILM

Saraband

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7-9pm. With life coach Denise Lewis. Synchronicity, Pawling. 227-3190. $25.

MUSIC

6:30pm. Author of Mary Magdalene. Woodstock Reformed Church, Woodstock. 679-2100.

7pm. Hudson Valley Center for Contemporary Art, Peekskill. (914)7887166. THEATER

Cosmic Comedies

8am. Unison Arts and Learning Center, New Paltz. 255-1559.

A Number

8pm. Presented by the Mohonk Mountain Stage Company. The Parish Hall, West Park. 255-3102.

Community Playback Theatre

8pm. Improvisation based on audience members’ experiences and dreams. Boughton Place, Highland. 691-4118. $6.

Star Mountainville Group Presents 3 Short Comedies 8pm. Clazz, Terrain, and Fully Committed. Unison Arts and Learning Center, New Paltz. 255-1559.

The Baker of Seville

8pm. Bardavon, Poughkeepsie. 473-2072.

The Complete Works of Shakespeare Abridged

7:30pm. Time and Space Limited, 8pm. The Center for Performing Arts, Hudson. (518) 822-8448. $6/students and Rhinebeck. 876-3080. seniors $4.50.

The Wedding Crashers

8pm. Dutchess County Community College, Poughkeepsie. 431-8050.

The Foreigner

8pm. Presented by TheatreWorks. Van Cortlandtville School, Mohegan Lake. (914) 528-4145. $12/students & seniors $10.

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The Illusion

8pm. Comedy about a father who uses a sorcerer to find his son. Stageworks Hudson, Hudson. (518) 822-9667.

Working

8pm. Presented by the Pawling Theatre Company. Pawling Theatre Company, Pawling. 855-1965. WORKSHOPS

Healthcare Professionals Retreat Call for times. Exploring spiritual dimensions in health, healing, and caring. Peace Village Learning and Retreat Center, Haines Falls. (518) 589-5000.

SAT 5 ART

Radius: Emerging Artists from Connecticut and Southeastern New York

10am. Museum of the Hudson Highlands, Cornwall. 534-5506 ext. 204.

Family Festival Programs

11am. The Magic Trunk. Dutchess County Community College, Poughkeepsie. 431-8050.

The Zucchini Brothers

11am. The Center for Performing Arts, Rhinebeck. 876-3080. $7/$5 children.

5-7pm. Warner Gallery, Millbrook. 677-8261 ext. 132.

Bushwick Farms & Doug DuBois Opening

5-7pm. Center for Photography, Woodstock. 679-9957.

Steve Kerner: A Retrospective 1981-2005

5-7pm. Coffey Gallery, Kingston. 339-6105.

Photos by Amy Fenton-Shine

5-8pm. Family Network Chiropractic, Kingston. 338-3888.

Then and Now

5-8pm. Ken Polinskie. Modo Gallery, Hudson. (518) 828-5090.

Seeing in the Forest

6-9pm. New work by Chris Gonyea. The Livingroom, Kingston. 338-8353. BODY / MIND / SPIRIT

Spirituality and Medicine-Partners for Health and Healing

1:30-5pm. Rejuvenating health care. Peace Village Learning & Retreat Center, Hunter. (518) 589-5000.

In the Arms of Words: Poems for Disaster Relief

7pm. The Mudd Puddle Cafe, New Paltz. 255-3436. THEATER

A Number

Lisa McCormick

Jon Keith Brunelle

8am. Folk. Unison Arts and Learning Center, New Paltz. 255-1559.

Senior Recital

2pm. Vassar College, Poughkeepsie. 437-7404.

Die Fledermaus

Meryl Joan Lammers

A Comfortable Place

7pm. Keynote Event: Temple Grandin, PhD. Holiday Inn, Kingston. 657-7201.

MUSIC

My Art, My Prerogative

4-6pm. Artists’ writings on art with their paintings, prints, and sculpture. Woodstock Artists Association Towbin Museum, Woodstock. 679-2940.

ASPIE Conference 2005: Adolescent Awareness

8pm. Presented by the Mohonk Mountain Stage Company. The Parish Hall, West Park. 255-3102.

2-3:30pm. Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum, Ridgefield, CT. (203) 438-4519.

The Art Spirit

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Creepers and Crawlers

7:30pm. Presented by the Opera Company of the Highlands. CunneenHackett Center, Poughkeepsie. 562-5381.

3-8pm. Group exhibit by the Gay & Lesbian Artists Network. Washingtonville Art Society Gallery, Washingtonville. 926-3490.

8pm. Stories, video, and music mediated by portable electronics. Hudson Opera House, Hudson. (518) 822-1438. $10/$12.

The Complete Works of Shakespeare Abridged

8pm. The Center for Performing Arts, Rhinebeck. 876-3080.

The Foreigner

7:30-9:30pm. Acoustic. Mezzanine Bookstore & Café, Kingston. 339-6925.

8pm. Presented by TheatreWorks. Van Cortlandtville School, Mohegan Lake. (914) 528-4145. $12/students and seniors $10.

Girl Howdy

The Illusion

8pm. Time and Space Limited, Hudson. (518) 822-8448.

Greater Newburgh Symphony Orchestra and Chorale

8pm. Classical, solo, symphonic. Newburgh Free Academy Auditorium, Newburgh. 562-1800.

Jazz Greats

8pm. North Pointe Performing Arts Center, Kinderhook. (518) 758-9234. $20/$15/$10.

Rufus Wainwright

8pm. Bardavon, Poughkeepsie. 473-2072. $44.50/$41.50 students/$38.50 members.

The Flames of Discontent

8pm. Protest songs. Howland Cultural Center, Beacon. 831-4988. $8.

Vassar Mahagonny Ensemble

8pm. Vassar College, Poughkeepsie. 437-7404.

Lisa McCormick

8-10:30pm. Alternative, classical, folk, rock. Unison Arts and Learning Center, New Paltz. 255-1559.

8pm. Comedy about a father who uses a sorcerer to find his son. Stageworks Hudson, Hudson. (518) 822-9667.

Working

8pm. Presented by the Pawling Theatre Company. Pawling Theatre Company, Pawling. 855-1965. WORKSHOPS

Scholarships for College Developing your Scholarship Strategy

9:30-11:30am. 2 sessions. Ulster County Community College, Kingston. 339-2025.

MarketingThe Art of Marketing Your Art

11am-3pm. Focus on visual arts. Catskill Mountain Foundation, Hunter. (518) 263-4908 ext. 211.

Majors Only: Reading Tarot with the 22 Trump Cards

2-4pm. Mirabai, Woodstock. 679-2100. $15/$20.

SUN 6

Mighty Girl

8-10:30pm. Original, pop, rock. Peekskill Coffee House, Peekskill. (914) 739-1287.

Roy Book Binder

9pm. Rosendale Cafe, Rosendale. 658-9048.

The Laura Pepitone Show

ART

Pastel Paintings by Clayton Buchanan

4-6pm. Karpeles Manuscript Library Museum, Newburgh. 569-4997.

9pm. Punk, Casio Keyboard Rock. Deep Listening Space, Kingston. 338-5984.

BODY / MIND / SPIRIT

Liz Toleno

9pm. Big G’s, Cohoes. (518) 238-2133.

11am. Lectorium Rosicrucianum Center, Chatham. (518) 392-2799.

Thunder Ridge

Introduction to Svaroopa Yoga

10am-2pm. Woodstock. 336-4609.

Clarence Spady

CLASSES

Landscaping with Native Plants to Attract the Wildlife You Want

THE OUTDOORS

CLASSES

Front Lawn Alternatives

10am-12pm. IES Continuing Education Program, Millbrook. 677-9643.

Rieki I and II Certification

1-3pm. IES Continuing Education Program, Millbrook. 677-9643.

Art Classes For Beginners

7-8:30pm. Memorial Lutheran Church, Red Hook. 340-4576.

9:30pm. Country, rock. North Street Grille, Pine Bush. 978-5999. 10pm. Blues, r&b, soul. Corner Stage, Middletown. 342-4804.

Bonticou Crag

Call for meeting place and time. Easy hike. High Falls. 339-7170.

Mount Taurus

DANCE

Call for meeting place and time. Moderate hike. 462-0142.

3rd Annual UpStream Series I

Mohonk Preserve Singles Hike: Millbrook Mountain

English Country Dance

SPOKEN WORD

7:30pm. Kaatsbaan International Dance Center, Tivoli. 757-5107. 8-11pm. Hurley Reformed Church, Hurley. 679-8587. $8.

Free-Style Frolic

8:30pm. Barefoot, Substance & Smoke free. Knight of Columbus Hall, Kingston. 658-8319. Adults $5/Teens, Seniors $2/Children, Volunteers Free.

9am-3pm. Meet at the West Trapps Trailhead, New Paltz. 255-0919.

The Geology of the Shawangunk Mountains 10am-2pm. Mohonk Preserve Visitor Center, New Paltz. 255-0919.

Hand Papermaking: Global Traditions and Contemporary Art

EVENTS

2pm. Hudson Opera House, Hudson. (518) 822-1438.

NDH Auxiliary Fall Frolic

Peter Crobin: An Artist’s Creel

Call for times. Red Hook Firehouse, Red Hook. 871-3470.

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KIDS

4pm. Merritt Bookstore, Millbrook. 677-5857.

Birth of the True Human Being

2-4pm. Satya Yoga Center, Rhinebeck. 876-2528.

Rieki I and II Certification

10am-2pm. Woodstock. 336-4609. DANCE

3rd Annual UpStream Series I

2:30pm. Kaatsbaan International Dance Center, Tivoli. 757-5107.

Swing Dance Jam

6:30-9pm. Arlington Reformed Church, Poughkeepsie. 339-3032. $5. EVENTS

International Wine and Epicurean Arts Festival

Presented by St. Francis Hospital. Call for location and time, 431-8707. FILM

Saraband

5pm. Time and Space Limited, Hudson. (518) 822-8448. $6 students and seniors $4.50. MUSIC

Jonathon Edwards

3pm/6:30pm. Morrison Mansion, Middletown. 343-3049.

UNDERTOW

(1886), WINSLOW HOMER, OIL ON CANVAS

HOMERIAN EPIC Winslow Homer was a self-made man. He worked his way up from illustrator for the Appleton’s Journal to great American artist. To celebrate its 50th anniversary, the Sterling and Francine Clark Institute in Williamstown, Massachusetts, presents “Winslow Homer: Making Art, Making History.” Winslow Homer was born in Boston in 1836. At the age of 19, he was apprenticed to a lithographer, and his drawings began appearing in magazines: first Ballou’s Pictorial Drawing-Room Companion, then Harper’s Weekly. In 1859, Homer moved to New York City to study at the National Academy of Design, and continued supporting himself as a magazine illustrator. At the age of 25, he was sent to cover the The Clark Institute has arguably the greatest Winslow Homer collection on earth, painstakingly assembled by founder Robert Sterling Clark over a period of 40 years. “In his collecting of Homer, Clark really surpassed himself,” observes Marc Simpson, curator of American art at the Clark and organizer of the exhibition. “It’s just an extraordinary gathering of top-rate objects. When you think of Clark’s Renoir

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Civil War. He did not begin painting until the 1860s.

collection—we’ve got some 30-odd paintings by Renoir—there are some outstanding things, but the focus is on the oil paintings of the early career. But you look at Homer, and there are 234 artworks by Homer in the Clark collection; the vast majority of them he acquired.” The show itself has 171 pieces, including sheet music covers from Homer’s apprenticeship, wood engravings from Harper’s, etchings, a full survey of watercolors, and 10 oil paintings, with particular emphasis on the late, great seascapes, such as West Point, Prout’s Neck (1900) . Because of the lightsensitive nature of the work, much of it is rarely shown. Robert Sterling Clark didn’t collect photography, but in 1998 the Clark Institute began acquiring photographs, including one by Homer—a snapshot of a scene in Florida, taken with a round negative. Having begun as a journalist, Homer’s images always seemed like metaphors for America, the way the cover of Time magazine summarizes the world for one week. The engraving of Snap the Whip (1873) that appears in the exhibit portrays a children’s game where one luckless boy at the end of a row is flung off, when the “whip” is snapped. Homer asks: Is this how our nation functions? Often his sober canvases capture the loneliness of the American outdoors. In Two Guides (1877), for example, the figures stand dark and bewildered beneath piled white clouds. “Winslow Homer: Making Art, Making History” will be on view at the Clark Institute at 225 South St., Williamstown, Massachusetts, until January 16, 2006. Admission is free November through May. (413) 458-2303; www.clarkart.edu. —Sparrow

the chronogram party wednesday november 16 6:30 - until @ the steel house kingston (in the rondout)

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Paul La Raia

LEVON HELM HOSTS TWO MIDNIGHT RAMBLES AT HIS WOODSTOCK STUDIO IN NOVEMBER

HE SHALL BE LEVON Hearing world class live music these days often means schlepping to a major metropolis, to be stacked like cordwood viewing performers so far away that they might as well be insects with instruments. Small wonder a lot of folks would just as soon stay home and catch a video. A beacon of hope for those who love the Real Thing is shining forth from—where else?—Woodstock,

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as Levon Helm and friends present their ongoing Midnight Ramble series. “Dreamlike” and “spiritual” are two words veterans have applied to the experience in the online guest book. “It’s intimate,” says Barbara O’Brien, who helps organize the event. “Levon exudes warmth and friendliness, and it’s basically like being in somebody’s living room. I watch the faces of the audience— they just get mesmerized. I get all choked up watching.” Helm is blessedly free of throat cancer and singing, some say, better than ever. Joining him are Little Sammy Davis, Ollabelle (featuring Levon’s daughter, Amy Helm, on vocals), and the Alexis P. Suter Band for sessions that last into the wee hours. “I tell people to come an hour early—we have a beautiful lake to walk by,” says O’Brien. “Little Sammy often wanders down there with his harmonica; sometimes we do a barbeque, there’s always something to eat.” This is not a club gig or a dance party, but a live studio session, chronicling the work of masters. Ninety audience members sit a few feet from the performers, who often mingle a bit to unwind after the music. Reservations are $100, helping to defray the costs of the studio and support Helms’s many volunteer projects, such as Blues in the Schools and an ongoing series at Sloan-Kettering Hospital’s children’s ward. November’s Rambles are set for the 12th and 26th. Request your personal invite at (845) 679-2744 or www.levonhelm.com. —Anne Pyburn Die Fledermaus

2pm. Presented by the Opera Company of the Highlands. Cunneen-Hackett Center, Poughkeepsie. 562-5381.

Call for times. Dia, Beacon. 440-0100.

Thomas Cole’s Poetry

Studio Stu

2pm. A.I.R., Kingston. 336-6450.

2pm. Speakers, fruit, wine, cheese. Cedar Grove, Catskill. (518) 943-7465. $8/$5.

Faculty Concert

THEATER

3pm. Vassar College, Poughkeepsie. 437-7404.

Robert Kopec & Friends

9pm. Jazz. Corner Stage, Middletown. 342-4804. $5. THE OUTDOORS

Mohonk Preserve Singles Hike: Lake Awosting

The Illusion

2pm. Comedy about a father who uses a sorcerer to find his son. Stageworks Hudson, Hudson. (518) 822-9667.

The Complete Works of Shakespeare Abridged

3pm. The Center for Performing Arts, Rhinebeck. 876-3080.

9:30am-4pm. 10-mile hike. Meet at Jenny Lane, New Paltz. 255-0919.

WORKSHOPS

SPOKEN WORD

10am-1pm. The Garden at Thunder Hill, Rensselaerville. (518) 797-3373. $30.

One Book, One New Paltz Event

Call for times. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time by Mark Haddon. Unison Arts and Learning Center, New Paltz. 255-1559.

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Poet August Kleinzahler

Ta Ke Ti Na Rhythm Workshop

Psyche’s Wisdom

10am-5pm. Development of the Feminine Soul. New Paltz. 256-0160. $80.

MarketingThe Art of Marketing Your Art

11am-3pm. Focus on performing arts. Catskill Mountain Foundation, Hunter. (518) 263-4908 ext. 211.

Felt Hat Workshop

1-4pm. Unison Arts and Learning Center, New Paltz. 255-1559. $30 for members / $35 for non-members / $10 materials.

MON 7 BODY / MIND / SPIRIT

Gnostic Christianity

8pm. Lectorium Rosicrucianum Center, Chatham. (518) 392-2799. CLASSES

West Coast Swing Dance Classes 11am-1pm. Unison Arts and Learning Center, New Paltz. 255-1559.

Learn to Meditate

8pm. Woodstock Community Center, Woodstock. 797-1218.

Lauren Thomas

PICKLE PATRONS AT THE

2004 INTERNATIONAL PICKLE FEST IN ROSENDALE

PICKLE PARTY Just when the days are shortening and the mercury dropping, along comes the merriment of the Rosendale International Pickle Festival as a welcome reminder that good times can still roll. In its eighth year, this event began when Bill and Cathy Brooks of Rosendale and some Japanese friends decided that it would be fun to celebrate the art and science of pickled foods—an ancient method of food preparation that just keeps getting better. Little did they know that their “pickle party” “It’s amazing,” Brooks has reflected, “how many people are into this as a hobby, and how many more just love the stuff.” Pickling has been refined to an art in many far-flung places; hence, the festival’s original Japanese/ American cross-cultural essence has expanded to include foods of many nations. Germany, Italy,

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concept would draw 1,000 people that very first year.

Romania, and Ireland have been featured in past years; this year, pickled treats of India will be the highlight. As new nations are added to the mix, the really fun things from years past are retained—the Japanese tea ceremony for example—so that the event has grown steadily more eclectic. Major distributors send pickles by the truckload; kitchen artisans proudly invite you to try a nibble of their latest inspiration, and balance is provided by vendors like the Catskill Cake Company. “We have 27 vendors at this point; more are still coming in,” said Pickle Goddess Cathy Brooks in early October. Pickle judging by master chef Patrick Wilson and festival co-founder Eri Yamaguchi will send a few lucky champions home knowing that their pickles really cut the mustard in Rosendale, while other folks can compete in the Pickle Toss and Pickle Juice Drinking contests. Bring your appetite, and come down to the Rosendale Community Center on Sunday, November 20, between 10 and 5. —Anne Pyburn SPOKEN WORD

Breast Cancer Forum

Robert Kopec & Friends

11pm. Jazz. Oasis, New Paltz. 255-2400.

6pm. Call for location, Gardiner. 657-8222.

THE OUTDOORS

Laura Lonshein Ludwig & Willard Gellis

Early Birds Hike

7pm. Monday Night Open Mike. Colony Café, Woodstock. 679-5342.

Mozart’s Final Reconciliation: The Magic Flute & the Enlightenment 7:45pm. Bard College, Annandale-on-Hudson. 758-7512.

9am. Minnewaska State Park, New Paltz. 255-2011. THEATER

Perseus and Medusa

10am/11:30am. Center for Performing Arts, Rhinebeck. 876-3080 ext. 13.

TUES 8

WED 9

MUSIC

Patricia Mazo & Dave Myers

5pm. Jazz. Bodles Opera House, Chester. 469-4595.

Acoustic Open Mike

7-9pm. Music, poetry, nonsense, spoken word, and creative expression. Morning Brew Cafe and Coffeehouse, High Falls. 687-4750.

Celtic Jam Seisun

7:30-10pm. New World Home Cooking, Saugerties. 246-0900.

Dan Brother

FILM

BODY / MIND / SPIRIT

9pm. Blues, r&b, soul. Corner Stage, Middletown. 342-4804.

Screening of 21 Grams

A Study Group in Miracles

SPOKEN WORD

8pm. With actress Melissa Leo. Rosendale Theater, Rosendale. 687-8726. MUSIC

Open Mike Night

10:30pm. Snug’s Tavern, New Paltz. 255-9800.

7:30-9:30pm. Unitarian Fellowship, Poughkeepsie. 229-8391. FILM

Island of Hope, Island of Tears

7:15pm. Documentary of Ellis Island. Orange County Community College, Middletown. 341-4891.

Challenging Victorian Stereotypes

Honors Center, New Paltz. 257-3933.

Lecture on the Tarot

6-8pm. SUNY Ulster, Stone Ridge. 246-5155.

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SEATED CHINESE MAN IN MANDARIN DRESS, JENS JUEL, OIL ON CANVAS

BEHOLD THE DANISH In German, Loeb means “to praise.” John Langloth Loeb and Frances Lehman Loeb made their praise of painting public when they amassed a vital collection of Impressionist and early modern art, and endowed an art center at Vassar College in Poughkeepsie. Their son, John L. Loeb Jr., began buying Danish art when he was appointed US ambassador to Denmark in 1981. “I originally started to collect Danish art because it was so decorative—and also so cheap,” Ambassador Loeb told me. “And then I got hooked!” When he realized no one else was gathering such art, Loeb decided to create a major collection. Thirtyfour works from his holdings, the largest such collection outside Denmark, come to Vassar College in “Danish Paintings of the 19th Century.” In the early 1800s, the fortunes of Denmark declined. Following the defeat of Napoleon, the Congress of Vienna freed Norway from Danish rule in 1814, and wars with Germany and Prussia stripped Denmark of territory. In response, Danish artists turned inward. “There was a very strong nationalist movement in the 19th century to reassert the Danish culture, and believe it or not, the person behind that was Hans Christian Andersen,” explains James Mundy, director of the Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center. “He told Danish writers, painters, and musicians to seek out the smaller towns in Denmark and capture the spirit of these places.” Often the painters traveled in the warmer months. Mundy notes that few of the paintings depict winter scenes. “The Danes were fascinated by what the light was doing at all times of day and night during the summer, and they worked to capture its many personalities,” Mundy observes. Peder Severin Krøyer’s Self-Portrait, Sitting by His Easel at Skagen Beach shows the dean of the “Skagen School” of landscape artists cheerfully painting at an easel, with a cerulean sea over his shoulder. Krøyer wears a white suit—an absurd gesture of luxury and self-confidence—and a gleaming ring and watch fob. “For me, Danish painting reflects a world of understatement, modesty, simplicity, tranquility, as does the Hudson River School in the 19th century,” John L. Loeb Jr. said in a talk at the Art Center. Some of the interiors recall Vermeer, with dreamy but opaque female servants in upper-middle-class homes. A distinctive monochromatic interior is one Danish style. Furnishings often have a minimalist style with expert craftsmanship. If one may speak of paintings as quiet, these are. One might even say silent. Artists such as Christen Dalsgaard and Vilhelm Hammershøi seek out the soul of an individual—the enigma of a down-turned human face. “Danish Paintings of the 19th Century” continues at the Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center at Vassar College through December 18. (845) 437-5632; http://fllac.vassar.edu. —Sparrow

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Billy Collins

7pm. New York State Poet Laureate. SUNY Ulster, Stone Ridge. 687-5262. THEATER

The Illusion

7:30pm. Comedy about a father who uses a sorcerer to find his son. Stageworks Hudson, Hudson. (518) 822-9667. WORKSHOPS

The Sacraments of Mary Magdalene Call for times. Miriam’s Well, Saugerties. 246-5805. $300/$145/$95.

THURS 10 EVENTS

Woodstock Chimes Warehouse Sale 9am-5pm. Woodstock Percussion, Shokan. 657-0445.

Portfolio Day

4-8pm. Presented Art Institute of Mill Street Loft. The Henry A. Wallace Visitor and Education Center, Hyde Park. 471-7477.

The Figures in Flight Dance Company

7pm. Cabaret, children’s music, comedy, dance, spoken word. Something for everyone, musical theater. Kingston High School, Kingston. 657-3370. $10/children $7.

Greg Englesson aka Mr. E

7-10pm. Alternative troubadour, acoustic, roots, rock, funk. Oasis, New Paltz. 255-2400.

Vassar College Choir and Vassar Camerata

8pm. Vassar College, Poughkeepsie. 437-7404.

8-10pm. Acoustic. Mezzanine Bookstore & Café, Kingston. 339-6925.

The Charms

9pm. Colony Cafe, Woodstock. 679-5342.

The Judith Tulloch Band

9pm. Bodles Opera House, Chester. 469-4595.

Xoch

FILM

9-11pm. Pop, rock. The Cubbyhole Coffee House, Poughkeepsie. 483-7584.

Frida

Pussycat Tour

8pm. Taylor Hall, Poughkeepsie. 437-5632. MUSIC

Michael McCarthy Trio

6pm. Lombardi’s, Gardiner. 255-9779.

Wide Open Mike

8pm. All genres. Backstage Studio Productions, Kingston. 338-8700.

Mike Quick Band

9pm. Blues, r&b, soul. Corner Stage, Middletown. 342-4804. SPOKEN WORD

Organic Mom Vaccinations & Cold Care

Big Kahuna

10pm. Dance, rock. Ramada Inn, Newburgh. 564-4500.

Captain Squeeze and the Zydeco Moshers

10pm. Zydeco. New World Home Cooking, Saugerties. 246-0900.

Dean Scala Band

10pm. Blues, r&b, soul. Corner Stage, Middletown. 342-4804. SPOKEN WORD

Networking Gathering for Educators 4pm. Sustainable Living Resource Center, Cottekill. 331-2670.

Time To Talk: Public Health and Prisons

THEATER

The Illusion

7:30pm. Comedy about a father who uses a sorcerer to find his son. Stageworks Hudson, Hudson. (518) 822-9667.

The Merry Widow

8pm. The Center for Performing Arts, Rhinebeck. 876-3080. WORKSHOPS

VortexHealing-Divine Healing from the Lineage of Merlin

7-9pm. Mirabai, Woodstock. 679-2100. $15/$20.

FRI 11 CLASSES

The White Garden

7-9pm. IES Continuing Education Program, Millbrook. 677-9643. DANCE

Annual Sister City Dance

9pm. Live music by Sonando. Church of the Messiah Hall, Rhinebeck. 876-3779.

8pm. Time and Space Limited, Hudson. (518) 822-8448. $8/students and seniors $5. THEATER

All I Want For Christmas

8pm. Christmas comedy. New Rose Theatre, Walden. 778-2478.

All In The Timing: An Evening Of One Act Plays 8pm. Orange County Community College, Middletown. 341-4790.

Knowing Women

8pm. Presented by the Mohonk Mountain Stage Company. The Parish Hall, West Park. 255-3102.

Lysistrata

8pm. SUNY Ulster, Stone Ridge. 687-4985.

The Illusion

8pm. Comedy about a father who uses a sorcerer to find his son. Stageworks Hudson, Hudson. (518) 822-9667.

The Merry Widow

EVENTS

8pm. The Center for Performing Arts, Rhinebeck. 876-3080.

Festival of Tress

WORKSHOPS

Call for times. Catskill Elks Lodge, Catskill. (518) 943-5991. FILM

Queen of Myself Retreat

Call for times. The Garden at Thunder Hill, Rensselaerville. (518) 797-3373. $280.

Listen With Your Eyes Film Festival 7pm. 2 films by Sergey Dvortsevoy: Paradise and Bread Day. Rosendale Theater, Rosendale. 626-7580. In advance $5/$8.

Shane

SAT 12 ART

Holiday in the Mountains

7:30pm. Bardavon, Poughkeepsie. 473-2072.

Call for times. Crafts exhibition and sale. GCCA Mountaintop Gallery, Windham. (518) 943-3400.

MUSIC

Joann Klein Open Studio

Bar Scott

12-12:30am. Acoustic, original, solo, vocals. Northeast Folk Alliance, Monticello. 679-1087.

Supper and Music

7pm. Dinner and jazz. North Pointe Performing Arts Center, Kinderhook. (518) 758-9234. $10.

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4:30-7pm. The Garden at Thunder Hill, Rensselaerville. (518) 797-3373.

10pm. Featuring The Charms. Colony Cafe, Woodstock. 679-5342.

11am-5pm. Paintings. Clinton Corners. (914) 489 8228.

Rick Jelovsek: Pictorial Landscapes 5-7pm. Galerie BMG, Woodstock. 679-0027.

Katrina Benefit Art Show

6-8pm. Time and Space Limited, Hudson. (518) 822-8448.

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THE THINKER, AUGUSTE RODIN

OBSESSED WITH RODIN The French sculptor Auguste Rodin, whose work will be displayed in Albany this fall, was born into a period of great artistic transformation and upheaval. His life was sandwiched between the final throes of European academic art (stuffy, representational, and rule-bound) and the early rumbles of such earth-shaking conceptual artists as Wassily Kandinsky, Marcel Duchamp, and Pablo Picasso.

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Due, in part, to the timeliness of his birth, his sculptures captured some of the defiant ethos of late19th and early-20th-century Europe. He challenged the aesthetic conventions of his day both in subject matter and in style. He is especially well-known for his innovative technique of presenting fragments such as a hand or a torso as whole figures, thereby redefining a complete sculpture. Moreover, throughout his career, he intentionally recycled his earlier works into his later projects, such that pieces of sculptures, or even entire works, would reappear in a new context with a new meaning. Rodin’s most famous sculpture, the immaculately detailed Gates of Hell, was commissioned by the French government to adorn the entranceway to a new Paris museum. While the museum was never built, Rodin’s Gates, which took him 20 years to create, became the source for many of his most well-known sculptures today including The Thinker, The Kiss, and The Three Shades (all of which are featured in Albany). The exhibit in Albany is comprised entirely by the collection of the late B. Gerald Cantor, founder and chairman of the global securities firm Cantor Fitzgerald, and his wife, Iris Cantor. Together, they collected approximately 750 Rodin sculptures, drawings, prints, photographs, and related ephemera. The retrospective "Rodin: A Magnificent Obsession" will be on display at the Albany Institute of History and Art from October 15 through December 31. (518) 463-4478, x 414; www.albanyinstitutue.org. —Max Shmookler New Art Exhibits

6-8pm. Jane Bloodgood-Abrams, Ed McCartan, Phillip Schwartz, Marlene Wiendenbaum, Danny Garcia de Alejandro. Carrie Haddad Gallery, Hudson. (518) 526-2999. BODY / MIND / SPIRIT

Ministry of Maat Women’s Mysteries Retreats

Call for times. Women of Darkness. Deep Listening Space, Kingston. 339-5776.

Woman of Darkness: Mysteries of Black Auset

Call for times. Teachings from Sirius A and B. Per Ankh, Kingston. 339-5776. $300/$325.

Healership Calls

9am-5pm. Introduction to the Fundamentals of Brennan Healing Science. Ananda Ashram, Monroe. 782-4660. DANCE

Contra Dance

8pm. Music by Jay Ungar and Molly

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Mason. Woodstock Community Center, Woodstock. 246-2121. $8/members $7/kids $4.

MUSIC

The Midnight Ramble

EVENTS

Call for times. Levon Helm Studios, Woodstock. 679-2744. $100.

Mah Jong Game Day

The Concord Ensemble

Annual Holiday Cocktail Party

Sara Mendenbach Perotta

2-5pm. Mezzanine Bookstore & Café, Kingston. 339-6925. 6-8pm. Museum of the Hudson Highlands, Cornwall. 534-5506 ext. 204. FILM

Saraband

8pm. Vassar College, Poughkeepsie. 437-7404.

8-11pm. Pianist, singer/songwriter. Artists In Residence Studio Gallery, Kingston. 331-2662.

Setting Sun

7:30pm. Time and Space Limited, Hudson. (518) 822-8448. $6/students & seniors $4.50.

9pm. Acoustic, alternative, rock, indie. The Cubbyhole Coffeehouse, Poughkeepsie. 483-7584.

KIDS

Michael Hill’s Blues Mob

Squirrel Savvy

10am. Museum of the Hudson Highlands, Cornwall. 534-5506 ext. 204.

Joanie Mac Irish Dancing

11am. The Center for Performing Arts, Rhinebeck. 876-3080. $7/$5 children.

10pm. Blues, r&b, soul. Corner Stage, Middletown. 342-4804. THE OUTDOORS

West Kill

Call for info. Strenuous hike. Catskill. 926-6208.

JONATHAN LETHEM READS AT BARD COLLEGE ON NOVEMBER

FIGURE OF SPEECH Jonathan Lethem was acquiring a growing following for science fiction novels too quirky to be confined by the genre when he published the sleeper hit novel of 1999, Motherless Brooklyn. The story of a young boy with Tourette syndrome who is recruited for a ragtag detective agency, it is both dark and playful. Through Lionel, the self-proclaimed “human freak show” plagued by compulsive verbal tics, Lethem riffs on language like a jazz improv master let loose with a dictionary. Lethem, the recent recipient of His 2003 novel, Fortress of Solitude, blends urban realism and speculative fantasy in the story of a friendship between two young boys growing up in New York City in the 1970s and becoming aware of race. His 2004 story collection, Men and Cartoons, features a tale of a sinister parlor game as backdrop for a flirtation, and one of a magical spray that can reveal absent objects—it falls into the hands of a

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a MacArthur “genius” grant, probes the darker corners of human nature while toying with the fanciful.

couple who quickly come to regret their curiosity. In his latest book, an essay collection called The Disappointment Artist, Lethem writes more personally: “13, 1977, 21” is about the summer his mother was dying and he saw the newly released Star Wars 21 times—a ritual of grieving and coming of age. In “Defending The Searchers,” Lethem the college student wanders into a screening of the John Wayne movie and, sure that he is in the presence of greatness but at a loss to articulate why, ends up yelling at his fellow students and badgering his girlfriend to share his new obsession. Marvelously inventive, powerfully observant, and laced with subtle humor, Lethem’s unique concoction of the gritty and the supernatural continues to defy classification and win fans. Lethem will be reading in Weis Cinema in the Bertelsmann Campus Center at Bard College on Monday, November 14, at 2:30p.m. The reading, introduced by Bradford Morrow, is part of the Innovative Contemporary Fiction Reading Series. The event is free and open to the public. (845) 758-1539. —Erica Avery Chilly Willy’s Winter Eve

Diana Dierks & Kathy Price

Sterling Ridge to Fire Tower

Creating a Rewarding Social Life

11am/1pm. Winter life on the farm. Bronck Museum, Coxsackie. (518) 731-6490. 8am. 6.6 mile moderate hike. Meet at McDonalds. Wappingers Falls. 876-4534.

Mohonk Preserve: Hike Along the Ridge

9:30am-12pm. Moderate 4.5 mile hike. New Paltz. 255-0919.

Mohonk Preserve Singles Hike: Millbrook Mountain 10am-3pm. Moderate 7-mile hike. Meet at the West Trapps Trailhead, New Paltz. 255-0919.

Ranger Hike

11am. Minnewaska State Park, New Paltz. 255-2011. SPOKEN WORD

Author Marla Blair

11am-3pm. Positive Fly Fishing. Hudson Valley Angler, Red Hook. 758-9203.

2pm. Woodstock Poetry Society. Woodstock Town Hall, Wdstk. www.woodstockpoetry.com. 7:30-9pm. Mezzanine Bookstore & Café, Kingston. 339-6925.

Stage Company. The Parish Hall, West Park. 255-3102.

Lysistrata

8pm. SUNY Ulster, Stone Ridge. 687-4985.

The Illusion

THEATER

8pm. Comedy about a father who uses a sorcerer to find his son. Stageworks Hudson, Hudson. (518) 822-9667.

All I Want For Christmas

The Merry Widow

Esprit De Shorts

The Pelican

2pm/8pm. Christmas comedy. New Rose Theatre, Walden. 778-2478. 5:30pm/8:30pm. Actors & Writers 12th annual ten-minute play festival. Odd Fellows Theatre, Olivebridge. 657-9760.

Auditions for Fiddler on the Roof 1-5pm. Center for Performing Arts, Rhinebeck. 876-5348.

All In The Timing: An Evening Of One Act Plays 8pm. Orange County Community College, Middletown. 341-4790.

Knowing Women

8pm. Presented by the Mohonk Mountain

8pm. The Center for Performing Arts, Rhinebeck. 876-3080. 8pm. Bard College, Annandale-onHudson. 758-7512. WORKSHOPS

Songwriting/ Publishing Seminar

Call for times. Presented by John St. Jam. Dutch Arms Chapel, Saugerties. 943-6720. $45.

John Street Jam

10am-10pm. Singer/songwriter workshops and seminars. Dutch Arms Chapel, Saugerties. 246-8936. $45.

135

THE DIRTY DOZEN BRASS BAND PERFORMS AT THE MAHAIWE IN GREAT BARRINGTON ON NOVEMBER

JUST SAY AMEN the forecast

This month, two legendary groups are coming together in an extraordinary event of hope and relief. It’s called “Just a Closer Walk With Thee: The Sacred Sounds of New Orleans and Southern Gospel.” It’s a benefit concert for victims of Hurricane Katrina, and it will feature New Orleans legends the Dirty Dozen Brass Band and Gospel icons the Dixie Hummingbirds. Members of The Dirty Dozen Brass Band had homes and families in New Orleans and the surrounding area, but all are now safe and relocated. Bridging the gap between traditional and modern jazz, the Dirty Dozen were the spirit and passion of the great city of New Orleans for three decades, delivering a hybrid of brass, bebop, jazz, R&B, and funk in countless live performances and on nearly a dozen recordings. In the 1970s, when disco and country-western were taking over the great city, the Dirty Dozen were playing wherever they could to keep the spirit alive—parties, funerals, sports events, parades—and eventually their unique blend caught on. In their cauldron they brewed the sounds of Duke Ellington, Jelly Roll Morton, and Thelonious Monk with those of Michael Jackson, Marvin Gaye, and James Brown, stirring up a wicked, volcanic gumbo to bubble over onto the masses. Since those early days, they’ve collaborated with Elvis Costello, Aaron Neville, Dizzy Gillespie, Dr. John, the Black Crowes, and David Bowie, and have toured more than 30 countries on five continents. Last year’s Funeral for a Friend was named Best Album in the Brass Band category by offBeat magazine, and earned five-star reviews from Downbeat and Jazz Times. Another set of old pros, the Dixie Hummingbirds have been performing for more than 75 years. From the Jubilee style of the 1920s to the pop-flavored gospel songs of today, the Hummingbirds have been one of the most important influences on the gospel music scene. They began in Greenville, South Carolina, as a group of classmates singing in local churches, performing sacred, mellow tunes such as “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot.” Not having the funds to tour, they borrowed a car and hit the road, turning off the ignition and coasting down hills to save money. They were determined to make the big-time. The Hummingbirds made their first recording in 1939, though a couple of members had come and gone. Leading vocalist Ira Tucker Sr., who joined the group at age 13, started the antics that helped make them popular—jumping off the stage, kneeling in prayer while singing, dashing through the aisles, and shouting. He later inspired imitators such as James Brown and Jackie Wilson. The group reached international recognition when they sang backup for Paul Simon on his pop hit “Love Me Like a Rock” in 1973, winning the Best Soul Gospel Performance Grammy in 1974 for that song. Today, The Dixie Hummingbirds continue in their energetic role as “World’s Greatest Gospel Group” (Ebony magazine). This is a soulful event not to be missed. The Dirty Dozen Brass Band and the Dixie Hummingbirds will play the Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center, 14 Castle Street, Great Barrington, MA, on Saturday, November 19, at 8pm. Tickets are $20/$30/$40. (413) 528-0100; www.mahaiwe.org. —Sharon Nichols

136

the forecast

137

Roy Gumpel

WORKSHOPS

Ascension: Christ Consciousness Path & the I AM Teachings

SUN 13

2-4pm. Mirabai, Woodstock. 679-2100. $15/$20.

MON 14

ART

Joann Klein Open Studio

12-5pm. Paintings. Clinton Corners. (914) 489-8228. EVENTS

Unison’s 22nd Annual Benefit Auction

1-3:30pm. Unison Arts and Learning Center, New Paltz. 255-1559.

Community Playback Theatre 8pm. A joint performance with the Hudson Valley Playback Theatre. A Show of Kindness. Boughton Pl., Highland 6914118. $8.

8pm. Lectorium Rosicrucianum Center, Chatham. (518) 392-2799. CLASSES

Learn to Meditate

8pm. Woodstock Community Center, Woodstock. 797-1218. SPOKEN WORD

Jazz Tea

Betty Macdonald’s Jazz Greats

Breast Cancer Forum

2-5pm. Mezzanine Bookstore & Café, Kingston. 339-6925. 3pm. First Congregational Church, Saugerties. 246-5021. $10.

Denise Jordan Finley

3pm. Well-crafted, evocative songs powerfully played on the guitar. CunneenHackett Arts Center, Poughkeepsie. 471-1221.

Bard College, Annandale-on-Hudson. 758-1539.

6pm. Call for location, Catskill. 657-8222.

Chief & Normal

7pm. Monday Night Open Mike. Colony Café, Woodstock. 679-5342.

Book Signing with Mike Segretto

Grand Montgomery Chamber Music Series

7-9pm. Author of The Bride of Trash. Mezzanine Bookstore & Café, Kingston. 339-6925.

Vassar College Wind Ensemble

Captain Cook’s Endeavor: Science and Exploration in the Pacific

The Audubon Quartet

THEATER

3pm. Featuring The Mistral Trio. Wesley Hall, Montgomery. 457-9867. 3pm. Vassar College, Poughkeepsie. 437-7404. 4pm. Church of the Messiah, Rhinebeck. 876-3533. $20/students and children $5.

the forecast

Rosycross and Gnosis: Philosophy and Realization

Reading with Jonathan Lethem 2:30pm. Author of Amnesia Moon, The Fortress of Solitude, Men and Cartoons, and The Disappointment Artist.

MUSIC

Benefit for Katrina Survivors

4-6pm. Help survivors relocate to NY. Rosendale Cafe, Rosendale. 657-5759.

Robert Kopec & Friends

7:45pm. Bard College, Annandale-onHudson. 758-7512.

ADAM LEFEVRE PERFORMS ON OCTOBER

15, PART OF ACTORS & WRITERS “ESPRIT DE SHORTS”

IN THEIR SHORTS Where can you go to see actors playing ventriloquists’ dummies, amorous deer, or sentient

The Pelican

7pm. Bard College, Annandale-onHudson. 758-7512.

TUES 15

suitcases? Made up of some of the Hudson Valley’s best, brightest, and award-winning theater and film professionals, Actors & Writers has been providing free, quality performances for the last 15 years. Most plays are new works written by company members, and many have gone on to full-fledged productions at other venues. The company’s 26 members include such local luminaries as Oscar nominated screenwriter Ron Nyswaner, Obie winner Mary Louise Wilson, 21 Grams star Melissa Leo,

9pm. Jazz. Corner Stage, Middletown. 342-4804. $5.

EVENTS

THE OUTDOORS

Call for times. Church of the Messiah, Poughkeepsie. 431-6711.

Mohonk Preserve Singles Hike: Lake Awosting

NDH Mothers’ Club Fashion Show

Kindness Day

and celebrated author Laura Shaine Cunningham. The performances are rehearsed only once, in the afternoon before the show, and the actors nearly always have scripts in hand. This does not detract, however, from the quality of the acting or the

8pm. Stories of kindness. Boughton Place, Highland. 255-7716.

enthusiasm from the audience. “The fresh plays, the intimacy of an at-home company, the coziness of

SPOKEN WORD

FILM

just theater for the pleasure of it,” says Cunningham, member of the company for 11 years.

Oliver Herring: Special Video Interview

The Middle of the World

9am-4pm. Strenuous 10-mile hike. Meet at Jenny Lane, New Paltz. 255-0919.

2pm. Hudson Valley Center for Contemporary Art, Peekskill. (914) 788-7166.

The Corporation: The Pathological Pursuit of Profit and Power 3-5pm. High Falls Cafe, High Falls. 687-7116.

One Bright Shining Moment

5pm. Narrated by Democracy Now! Host Amy Goodman. Time and Space Limited, Hudson. (518) 822-8448. THEATER

All I Want For Christmas

2pm. Christmas comedy. New Rose Theatre, Walden. 778-2478.

Lysistrata

2pm. SUNY Ulster, Stone Ridge. 687-4985.

The Illusion

2pm. Comedy about a father who uses a sorcerer to find his son. Stageworks Hudson, Hudson. (518) 822-9667.

All In The Timing: An Evening Of One Act Plays 3pm. Orange County Community College, Middletown. 341-4790.

The Merry Widow

3pm. The Center for Performing Arts, Rhinebeck. 876-3080.

The Pelican

7:15pm. Independent film. Orange County Community College, Middletown. 341-4891. MUSIC

the Odd Fellows Theater...it’s a cheery way to spend a spring or fall evening. No professional angst, Actors & Writers stages their productions at the Odd Fellows Theater, located roughly in the middle of nowhere (see their website, listed at the bottom, for slightly more realistic directions). The building, last used theatrically for a USO fundraiser during World War II, rises up rather formidably at the top of a steep hill in the woods of Olivebridge. Company members waste no time in personifying

Richie Colan’s Blues Night

8-11pm. Blues. Willow Creek Inn, Stone Ridge. 340-8510.

Open Mike Night

10:30pm. Snug’s Tavern, New Paltz. 255-9800.

Robert Kopec & Friends

11pm. Jazz. Oasis, New Paltz. 255-2400.

the aptly-named, creaky old place. “[Odd Fellows] has a certain resident aliveness,” muses A&W member David Smilow. “Maybe it has to do with the fact that the floor, ceiling and walls are all wood. It gives me the feeling that I’m inside a guitar. The space seems to hum with energy. There’s just something about that room that sharpens and heightens the charge of a show.” This fall, A&W is holding their twelfth annual Shorts Festival. This year’s model is titled “Espirit

THE OUTDOORS

de Shorts” (past titles include “Night of the Living Shorts,” “Still Short After All These Years,” and

Early Birds Hike

“Who You Callin’ Short?”) and consists of two different evenings of eight ten-minute skits. The first

9am. Minnewaska State Park, New Paltz. 255-2011. SPOKEN WORD

Risk Reduction Strategies for Cancer Prevention

6:30-8pm. Northern Dutchess Hospital, Rhinebeck. 871-4380.

performance of this year’s “Esprit de Shorts,” on October 15, included Cunningham’s “Married Before,” in which an older couple about to be wed argues, rather hysterically and to great comic effect, the pros and cons of marriage. In “Sandwich,” a monologue written and directed by Mary Gallagher, Nicole Quinn offers a crash course in American assimilation from an outsider’s perspective, throwing in some telling comments about the rushed nature of American culture. In Mikhail Horowitz’s “The

WORKSHOPS

Millennial Meeting of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse,” Messrs. Death, Destruction, Pestilence,

Evening of Clairvoyant Channeling

and Famine welcome Ms. Media to their millennial meeting to discuss the ultimate fate of human

7-9pm. Mirabai, Woodstock. 679-2100. $15/$20.

WED 16

kind. The plays run from the dramatic to the philosophical to the hilarious, showcasing the depth, range, and talent of the company itself. The second and final evening of “Esprit de Shorts” will take place on Saturday,

7pm. Bard College, Annandale-onHudson. 758-7512.

EVENTS

November 12, at 5:30 and 8:30pm, at the Odd Fellows Theater in Olivebridge.

Auditions for Fiddler on the Roof

DCC Annual Wellness Fair

See www.ninashengold.com/actorswriters.htm for more information.

10am-2pm. Dutchess County Community College, Poughkeepsie. 431-8916.

7-10pm. Readings. Center for Performing Arts, Rhinebeck. 876-5348.

138

BODY / MIND / SPIRIT

—Brianne Johnson

Roy Gumpel

FILM

Abortion Diaries

FRI 18

7:30pm. Children’s Media Project, Poughkeepsie. 485-4480.

SAT 19

MUSIC

ART

Celtic Jam Seisun

Judith Mohns & Susan Jeffers

Annual Juried Exhibition and Sale

5am-7pm. Photography. Unison Arts and Learning Center, New Paltz. 255-1559.

Sat. 10-5/Sun 11-5. Poughkeepsie Tennis Club, Poughkeepsie. 454-3222. $5/ students and seniors $4.

9pm. Blues, r&b, soul. Corner Stage, Middletown. 342-4804.

MUSIC

4 x 4: Four Solo Exhibits in Gallery

SPOKEN WORD

Call for times. Troy Music Hall, Troy. (518) 273-0038.

7:30-10pm. New World Home Cooking, Saugerties. 246-0900.

Dan Brother

Lecture on the Tarot

6-8pm. SUNY Ulster, Stone Ridge. 246-5155.

Mid-Hudson Sierra Club Speaker Social

7:30pm. Jewish Community Center, New Paltz. 255-5528.

Chris Botti

All the News That’s Fit To Sing: A Phil Ochs Song Night

8pm. Music and activism of the protest songs. Howland Cultural Center, Beacon. 831-4988. $8.

Baird Hersey and Prana

4-7pm. Albert Shahinian Fine Art, Poughkeepsie. 454-0522.

The Tree Series

4-7pm. Paintings by Myron Polenberg. Yellow Bird Gallery. 561-7204.

Salon 2005: Small Works Exhibition

5-7pm. GCCA Catskill Gallery, Catskill. (518) 943-3400.

8pm. Overtone singing choir. Woodstock Artist Association, Woodstock. 679-2940.

Small Treasures II Opening

7:30pm. Comedy about a father who uses a sorcerer to find his son. Stageworks Hudson, Hudson. (518) 822-9667.

Mambo Kikongo

DANCE

WORKSHOPS

8-10pm. Acoustic. Mezzanine Bookstore & Café, Kingston. 339-6925.

THEATER

The Illusion

Finding Your Writer’s Voice

6:30-8:30pm. 4 sessions. Ulster County Community College, Kingston. 339-2025.

THURS 17 CLASSES

Graphics II: Illustration Drawing

6:30-9pm. 6 sessions. IES Continuing Education Program. Millbrook. 677-9643. FILM

8pm. Taylor Hall, Poughkeepsie. 437-5632.

Naked States

8pm. Taylor Hall, Poughkeepsie. 437-5632. MUSIC

Helen Avakian

8-11pm. Acoustic, alternative, new age, original, solo. Maia Restaurant and Lounge, Poughkeepsie. 486-5004.

The Nillaz and Insane Shane McKane 9pm. The Forum Lounge, Kingston. 331-1116. $5.

Sonando

10pm. El Coqui, Kingston. 340-1106.

Little Sammy Davis

10pm. Blues, r&b, soul. Corner Stage, Middletown. 342-4804.

Mike Quick Band

9pm. Blues, r&b, soul. Corner Stage, Middletown. 342-4804. SPOKEN WORD

Discussion With Bruce Chilton 4pm. Author of Mary Magdalene: A Biography. Merritt Bookstore, Red Hook. 758-2665.

Hudson Valley Materials Exchange Show and Tell

7pm. With Dr. Andi Weiss Bartczak, PhD. SUNY New Paltz, New Paltz. 255-4371.

Environmental Carcinogens and Cancer

One Bright Shining Moment

The Miracle Worker

Call for times. Windham Civic Centre, Windham. (518) 989-6802.

All I Want For Christmas

8pm. Christmas comedy. New Rose Theatre, Walden. 778-2478.

All In The Timing: An Evening Of One Act Plays 8pm. Orange County Community College, Middletown. 341-4790.

Lysistrata

8pm. SUNY Ulster, Stone Ridge. 687-4985.

Star Mountainville Group Presents 3 Short Comedies 8pm. Clazz, Terrain, and Fully Committed. Colony Cafe, Woodstock. 679-5342.

The Illusion

7:15pm. Orange County Community College, Middletown. 341-4891.

8pm. Comedy about a father who uses a sorcerer to find his son. Stageworks Hudson, Hudson. (518) 822-9667.

THEATER

The Merry Widow

The Illusion

7:30pm. Comedy about a father who uses a sorcerer to find his son. Stageworks Hudson, Hudson. (518) 822-9667.

8pm. The Center for Performing Arts, Rhinebeck. 876-3080.

The Musical Pippin

8pm. Dutchess County Community College, Poughkeepsie. 431-8696.

Lysistrata

WORKSHOPS

The Musical Pippin

Science and Spirituality An Integrated Practice for Success

8pm. SUNY Ulster, Stone Ridge. 687-4985. 8pm. Dutchess County Community College, Poughkeepsie. 431-8696. WORKSHOPS

Awaken The Goddess Within Empowerment Workshop

6-10pm. The Garden at Thunder Hill, Rensselaerville. (518) 797-3373. $33.

Latin Dance Night

8-11pm. Mezzanine Bookstore & Café, Kingston. 339-6925. EVENTS

Holiday Food and Wine Pairings Call for times. Benmarl Winery, Marlboro. 236-4265.

Red Wine & Chocolate

KIDS

7:30pm. With Rosalie Minkin. Boughton Place, Highland. 255-7502.

THEATER

8pm. All genres. Backstage Studio Productions, Kingston. 338-8700.

8pm. North Pointe Performing Arts Center, Kinderhook. (518) 758-9234. $20/$16.

Evenings of Psychodrama

The Derek Trucks Band

Wide Open Mike

Ellen Sinopoli Dance Company

SPOKEN WORD

6pm. Lombardi’s, Gardiner. 255-9779. 7:30pm. Bardavon, Poughkeepsie. 473-2072.

7:30pm. Kaatsbaan International Dance Center, Tivoli. 757-5107.

11:30am-6pm. Whitecliff Vineyard & Winery, Gardiner. 255-2494. $6.

7:30pm. Narrated by Democracy Now! Host Amy Goodman. Time and Space Limited, Hudson. (518) 822-8448.

Michael McCarthy Trio

3rd Annual UpStream Series II

Call for times. For engineers, architects and information technology professionals. Peace Village Learning and Retreat Center, Haines Falls. (518) 589-5000.

Unveiling the Beauty of Self-esteem Call for times. A retreat for women. Peace Village Learning and Retreat Center, Haines Falls. (518) 589-5000.

Squirrel Savvy

10am. Museum of the Hudson Highlands, Cornwall. 534-5506 ext. 204.

William K. Whiskers

the forecast

Jackson Pollock: Love and Death on Long Island

8pm. New World Home Cooking, Saugerties. 246-0900.

6-8pm. Group show. Deborah Davis Fine Art, Hudson. (518) 822-1890.

11am. The Center for Performing Arts, Rhinebeck. 876-3080. $7/$5 children. MUSIC

Alison Krauss & Union Station featuring Jerry Douglas

Call for times. Mid-Hudson Civic Center, Poughkeepsie. 454-3388.

Peter Yarrow

Call for times. Troy Music Hall, Troy. (518) 273-0038.

Riley-Wu-Thomas Trio

7:30pm. Classical music. Hawthorne Valley School. (518) 672-7092 ext. 114. $15/students and children $5.

Julie Ziavras and Ken DeAngelis

8pm. Morrison Mansion, Middletown. 343-3049.

Ray, Stray and Lady Day

8pm. Tunes by Ray Charles, Billy Strayhorn and Billie Holiday. Kleinert-James Gallery, Woodstock. 679-2079. $20/non-members $25.

Vassar College Women’s Chorus 8pm. Vassar College, Poughkeepsie. 437-7404.

Mark Raisch

8-11pm. Jazz, swing, vocals, American Standards. The Sky Top Steak House, Kingston. 464-5836.

Bobby Kyle

10pm. Blues, r&b, soul. Corner Stage, Middletown. 342-4804. THE OUTDOORS

South Taconic Mountains

Overnight stay on the mountain. Call for meeting place and times. 297-5126.

Mohonk Preserve Singles Hike: Awosting Falls

10am-3pm. Moderate 7-mile hike. Meet at the West Trapps Trailhead, New Paltz. 255-0919.

139

SPOKEN WORD

Book Reading and Signing With Liza Donnelly

One Bright Shining Moment

7:30pm. Author of Funny Ladies. Oblong Books and Music, Rhinebeck. 876-0500.

5pm. Narrated by Democracy Now! Host Amy Goodman. Time and Space Limited, Hudson. (518) 822-8448.

THEATER

All I Want For Christmas

The Illusion

2pm/8pm. Christmas comedy. New Rose Theatre, Walden. 778-2478. 3pm/8pm. Comedy about a father who uses a sorcerer to find his son. Stageworks Hudson, Hudson. (518) 822-9667.

Star Mountainville Group Presents 3 Short Comedies 7pm. Clazz, Terrain, and Fully Committed. Colony Cafe, Woodstock. 679-5342.

All In The Timing: An Evening Of One Act Plays 8pm. Orange County Community College, Middletown. 341-4790.

Lysistrata

2pm. Christmas comedy. New Rose Theatre, Walden. 778-2478. 2pm. Comedy about a father who uses a sorcerer to find his son. Stageworks Hudson, Hudson. (518) 822-9667.

The Musical Pippin

2pm. Dutchess County Community College, Poughkeepsie. 431-8696.

All In The Timing: An Evening Of One Act Plays 3pm. Orange County Community College, Middletown. 341-4790.

The Merry Widow

3pm. The Center for Performing Arts, Rhinebeck. 876-3080.

8pm. SUNY Ulster, Stone Ridge. 687-4985.

WORKSHOPS

The Merry Widow

Native Americans of the Northeast

8pm. The Center for Performing Arts, Rhinebeck. 876-3080.

The Musical Pippin

8pm. Dutchess County Community College, Poughkeepsie. 431-8696. WORKSHOPS

SUN 20

the forecast

CLASSES

9:30pm. Focus on plant spirits. Call for location. 297-7877. $35.

Winfield of the Reduced Shakespeare Company, “The Complete Works” is a prop- and costume-

8pm. Lectorium Rosicrucianum Center, Chatham. (518) 392-2799.

2pm. Hudson Valley Center for Contemporary Art, Peekskill. (914) 788-7166. MUSIC

Conservatory Chamber Orchestra

4-6pm. Unison Arts and Learning Center, New Paltz. 255-1559. $6/$5 members.

Mamapalooza Rocks New Orleans Benefit Concert 6-11pm. Rock. The Original Chance Theater, Poughkeepsie. 471-1966.

Tequila Sunrise

7pm. Eagles tribute. Bodles Opera House, Chester. 469-4595. $20.

Matt Haimavitz, Cellist

7:30pm. Rosendale Cafe, Rosendale. 658-9048. THE OUTDOORS

Mohonk Preserve Singles Hike: Giant’s Workshop

10am-3pm. Strenuous 7-mile hike. Meet at the West Trapps Trailhead, New Paltz. 255-0919.

is followed by a morphing of all 17 of the Shakespearean comedies into one convoluted prototype, recited at rapid-fire speed. Concluding the first act with a playful display of Shakespeare’s histories, seven sovereigns engage in a football game where the pigskin’s a crown and King Lear warrants a penalty. The second act is dedicated to “Hamlet.” Played, then played again at double speed, then again Shakespearean shenanigans abound November 3-6 at 8pm (Sunday at 3pm). Center for

Community Shape Note Sing

7pm. Songs from The Sacred Harp. Holy Cross Church, Kingston. 658-3485.

Performing Arts at Rhinebeck. Tickets are $17 per adult, $15 per senior/child. (845) 876-3080; www.centerforperformingarts.org. —Marleina Booth-Levy

Open Mike Night

10:30pm. Snug’s Tavern, New Paltz. 255-9800.

THE OUTDOORS

Unplugged Acoustic Open Mike

more Fat Bastard than dead children,” says Kubik. A three-white-guys rapping rendition of “Othello”

at triple speed, and finally with a breakneck, backward recital of the tragedy.

David Roth

3pm. Vassar College, Poughkeepsie. 437-7404.

Emeril’s trademark “Bam!” “Macbeth” is done in a Mike Myers-style Scottish brogue—“You think

MUSIC

Robert Kopec & Friends

Vassar College Madrigal Singers

Andronicus.” Played as a cooking show host, Titus regales the audience at each chop of a limb with

The Ways of the Wolf

3pm. Bard College, Annandale-onHudson. 758-7512.

3pm. Morrison Mansion, Middletown. 343-3049.

a chicken-with-its-head-cut-off manner. Following this frenzy is the cracked treatment of “Titus

TUES 22 4:30pm. Benefit for the Museum of the Hudson Highlands. The Boulevard, Cornwall. 534-5506 ext. 204.

Helène Aylon: “The God Project”

Played in two acts, this feverish farce begins its romp with the news of Romeo’s banishment, squawked using the limited vocabulary of “alas” and “woe,” Juliet’s nurse accosts the stage in

7:45pm. Bard College, Annandale-onHudson. 758-7512.

EVENTS

FILM

amount of audience participation, and some long, blonde wigs.

7pm. Monday Night Open Mike. Colony Café, Woodstock. 679-5342.

EVENTS

1-4pm. Hyde Park. 229-9331.

heavy production for three actors. The production’s scarcity calls for lots of improvisation, a good

Max Schwartz

6:30-9pm. White Eagle Hall, Kingston. 339-3032. $5.

Tours of Bed and Breakfasts

140

Tivoli resident Cindy Kubik. Authored and originally performed by Adam Long, Daniel Singer, and Jess

Student Debate on Science and Religion

Swing Dance Jam

Shakespeare’s plays in just 97 minutes—and “by God it won’t be 98 minutes!” says director and

Rosycross and Gnosis: Philosophy and Realization

DANCE

2:30pm. Kaatsbaan International Dance Center, Tivoli. 757-5107.

“The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged)” is a parodic tour de force of all 37 of

BODY / MIND / SPIRIT

SPOKEN WORD

3rd Annual UpStream Series II

“Brevity is the soul of wit.”—William Shakespeare

MON 21

Our Dangerous Enthusiasm: A Gardener’s Perspective on Invasive Plants

12-3pm. IES Continuing Education Program, Millbrook. 677-9643.

“THE COMPLETE SHAKESPEARE (ABRIDGED)”

BREAKNECK BARD

Intro to Shamanism

Rune Stone Divination

2-4pm. Mirabai, Woodstock. 679-2100. $15/$20.

NICK JONES, PATRICK HALLEY, AND DAVID FOSTER STAR IN

2-4pm. Hands-on workshop with tools, artifacts and more. Mohonk Preserve, New Paltz. 255-0919. $8/$6 members.

11pm. Jazz. Oasis, New Paltz. 255-2400.

Early Birds Hike

John Bendy Plays the Music of Jimi Hendrix

10pm. Blues, r&b, soul. Corner Stage, Middletown. 342-4804.

THURS 24

9am. Minnewaska State Park, New Paltz. 255-2011.

WED 23 FILM

Dinner & A Movie Spiritual Cinema Circle

Call for times. The Garden at Thunder Hill, Rensselaerville. (518) 797-3373. MUSIC

Helen Avakian

2pm. Acoustic, alternative, folk, original. Maplebrook School Theater, Amenia. 373-9511.

Acoustic Open Mike

7-9pm. Music, poetry, nonsense, spoken word, and creative expression. Morning Brew Cafe and Coffeehouse, High Falls. 687-4750.

Celtic Jam Seisun

7:30-10pm. New World Home Cooking, Saugerties. 246-0900.

DANCE

MUSIC

Swing Dance to The George Gee Swing Orchestra

Crawdaddy

8:30pm. Lesson at 7:30. Poughkeepsie Tennis Club, Poughkeepsie. 454-2571. $10.

MUSIC

EVENTS

Michael McCarthy Trio

Hurley Heritage Society Museum Christmas Sale

6pm. Lombardi’s, Gardiner. 255-9779.

Wide Open Mike

8pm. All genres. Backstage Studio Productions, Kingston. 338-8700.

Mike Quick Band

9pm. Blues, r&b, soul. Corner Stage, Middletown. 342-4804.

FRI 25 ART

Clay Pot Luck Sale

Call for times. Garrison Art Center, Garrison. 424-3960.

Annual Hudson Valley Artists Second Sale 11am-5pm. Colony Cafe, Woodstock. 246-7493.

11am-5pm. Hurley Heritage Society Museum, Hurley. 331-0593. FILM

8pm. Cajun, blues, and vintage rock. New World Home Cooking, Saugerties. 246-0900.

Thunder Ridge

8-11pm. Country, rock. Gisiano’s Restaurant, Glasco. 246-3035.

Moose & The Bulletproof Blues Band

10pm. Blues, r&b, soul. Corner Stage, Middletown. 342-4804.

SAT 26

Cuban Legend

Call for times. With director Bette Wanderman. Time and Space Limited, Hudson. (518) 822-8448.

Future of Food

5pm. Explores the revolution that is transforming what we eat. Time and Space Limited, Hudson. (518) 822-8448. KIDS

Special Meet the Animals

2:30pm. Museum of the Hudson Highlands, Cornwall. 534-5506 ext. 204.

ART

Small Works Show

7-9pm. Athens Cultural Center, Athens. (518) 943-3400. EVENTS

Artisans Open House

Call for times. The Garden at Thunder Hill, Rensselaerville. (518) 797-3373.

Crafts on the Hudson

10am-6pm. 60 artisans and craftspeople. Mt. St. Mary College, Newburgh. 679-8087.

THE ABORTION DIARIES WILL BE SCREENED AT THE CHILDRENâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S MEDIA PROJECT ON NOVEMBER

BREAKING THE SILENCE The stigma and silence surrounding the subject of abortion can be devastating. Unfortunately, the loudest conversation we often hear about abortion is political debate, dominated by emotional anti-abortion to the Alan Guttmacher Institute, 1.3 million American women in the US have an abortion each year. The question filmmaker Penny Lane poses in her new documentary, The Abortion Diaries, is this: If it's so common, why do we feel so alone? This 30-minute film takes viewers into the lives of 12 women who have experienced abortion, interlaced with imagery from Lane's own diary. These women are not radical,

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activists who show up at clinics to remind women they will be forever branded as murderers. According

pro-choice activists; they come from all different backgrounds, cultures, religions, and age groups. In vignettes that are at times funny and at times heart-wrenching, they describe how they got pregnant, what their lives were like at that time, why they made the choices they did, and the consequences. An original soundtrack by local bands Guitars & Hearts (including Chronogram's own Julie Novak), Alpha Ursa, and Jump Cannon adds volumes to the film's emotional impact. Penny Lane is an independent filmmaker and producer of the Hudson-Mohawk Independent Media Center in Troy. Her recent films include the award-winning We Are The Littletons: A True Story, and Independent Media in a Time of War. The Abortion Diaries will be screened at the Children's Media Project, 20 Academy Street, Poughkeepsie, on Wednesday, November 16, at 7:30pm. A discussion with director Penny Lane will follow the screening. Free. (845) 485-4480; www.theabortiondiaries.com. â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Molly Maeve Eagan

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Dutchess Community College Foundation Annual Holiday Crafts Fair

10am-4pm. Dutchess Community College, Poughkeepsie. 431-8400. $5/$3.

Hurley Heritage Society Museum Christmas Sale 11am-5pm. Hurley Heritage Society Museum, Hurley. 331-0593.

A State of Mind

5pm. Inside North Korea for the Mass Games. Time and Space Limited, Hudson. (518) 822-8448. MUSIC

Hot Tuna

7pm. Acoustic and electric. Bardavon, Poughkeepsie. 473-2072.

Little Toby Walker

FILM

Future of Food

5pm. Explores the revolution that is transforming what we eat. Time and Space Limited, Hudson. (518) 822-8448.

A State of Mind

7:30pm. Inside North Korea for the Mass Games. Time and Space Limited, Hudson. (518) 822-8448. KIDS

Mysteria Magic Show with Carlo DeBlasio

11am. The Center for Performing Arts, Rhinebeck. 876-3080. $7/$5 children.

7:30-11:30pm. Acoustic, blues, folk, ragtime, storytelling, swing. Peekskill Coffeehouse, Peekskill. (914) 739-1287. THE OUTDOORS

Mohonk Preserve Singles Hike: Millbrook Mountain

9:30am-3:30pm. Moderate 8-mile hike. Meet at the Mohonk Preserve Visitor Center, New Paltz. 255-0919.

Mohonk Preserve: Hike to Castle Point

10am-3pm. Moderate 7-mile hike. Mohonk Preserve, New Paltz. 255-0919.

MON 28

MUSIC

Classical Hollywood

6pm. Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center, Great Barrington, MA. (413) 528-0100.

Twisted Sister

6pm. Mid-Hudson Civic Center, Poughkeepsie. 454-3388.

Little Toby Walker

Rosycross and Gnosis: Philosophy and Realization

8pm. Lectorium Rosicrucianum Center, Chatham. (518) 392-2799. MUSIC

7:30-11:30pm. Acoustic, blues, folk, ragtime, storytelling, swing. Brickhouse Bistro, Marlboro. 236-3765.

The Midnight Ramble

Dominic Frasca

SPOKEN WORD

8-10pm. Acoustic, classical. Unison Arts and Learning Center, New Paltz. 255-1559.

Helen Avakian

8-11pm. Acoustic, alternative, folk, original. Beech Tree Grill, Poughkeepsie. 471-7279.

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BODY / MIND / SPIRIT

The Christine Spero Group

8-11pm. Fusion, jazz, Latin, original, vocals. Griffins Corner Cafe, Fleischmanns. 254-6300.

Call for times. Levon Helm Studios, Woodstock. 679-2744. $100.

Being Overqualified

Honors Center, New Paltz. 257-3933.

Michael Platsky & Woodstock Sam

7pm. Monday Night Open Mike. Colony Café, Woodstock. 679-5342.

Philosophy, Science and Cultural Principles of Reason 7:45pm. Bard College, Annandale-onHudson. 758-7512.

Wolfe

10pm. Blues, r&b, soul. Corner Stage, Middletown. 342-4804. THE OUTDOORS

Mohonk Preserve Singles HikeGertrude’s Nose

10am-3pm. Moderate 8-mile hike. Minnewaska State Park Preserve Upper Lot, New Paltz. 255-0919.

TUES 29 FILM

Viva L’Aldjerie

7:15pm. Independent film. Orange County Community College, Middletown. 341-4891. MUSIC

Cold Spring by Candlelight

Open Mike Night

SPOKEN WORD

Robert Kopec & Friends

Johanna Burton on John Chamberlain

THE OUTDOORS

3-8pm. Holiday house tours and shopping. Cold Spring. 278-PARC.

1pm. Dia, Beacon. 440-0100. THEATER

A Switch in Time

10:30pm. Snug’s Tavern, New Paltz. 255-9800. 11pm. Jazz. Oasis, New Paltz. 255-2400.

Early Birds Hike

9am. Minnewaska State Park, New Paltz. 255-2011.

WED 30

8pm. The Center for Performing Arts, Rhinebeck. 876-3080. WORKSHOPS

MUSIC

The Tenets and Practices of Buddhism

Celtic Jam Seisun

3:30pm. With the Venerable Lama Pema Wangdak. Buddhist Center, Philmont. (518) 672-5216.

SUN 27 EVENTS

Hurley Heritage Society Museum Christmas Sale 11am-5pm. Hurley Heritage Society Museum, Hurley. 331-0593.

Crafts on the Hudson

10am-6pm. 60 artisans and craftspeople. Mt. St. Mary College, Newburgh. 679-8087. FILM

Maria Marshall: “President Clinton: January 19th, 1993” 2pm. Hudson Valley Center for Contemporary Art, Peekskill. (914) 788-7166.

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7:30-10pm. New World Home Cooking, Saugerties. 246-0900.

Dan Brother

9pm. Blues, r&b, soul. Corner Stage, Middletown. 342-4804. SPOKEN WORD

Lecture on the Tarot

6-8pm. SUNY Ulster, Stone Ridge. 246-5155.

Surrender: Writing Authentic Poetry 7-8:30pm. Rosendale Library, Rosendale. 658-9013. THEATER

Legend of Sleepy Ha-Ha-Hollow

Call for dates and times. StageWorks Hudson, Hudson. (518) 828-7843.

The Complete Works of Shakespeare Abridged

3pm. The Center for Performing Arts, Rhinebeck. 876-3080.

THE FUTURE OF FOOD WILL BE SCREENED AT TSL WAREHOUSE NOVEMBER

25 & 26

HAVE A PLATE OF PATENTS Since 1901 Monsanto has dedicated its resources to the production of chemicals such as saccharine, Agent Orange, DDT, and Roundup herbicide. By the early 1980s biotechnology had been established as Monsanto’s strategic research focus, introducing to the market in 1996 its first biotechnology products, including Roundup Ready (genetically designed to withstand applications of Roundup herbicide)

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soybeans, canola, and corn two years later. The Future of Food, produced by Lily Films, adopts the concerns of Canadian independent farmers who have been legally targeted by Monsanto for infringing upon its seed patents. In 1998 Percy and Louise Schmeiser of Saskatchewan were taken to federal court of Canada by Monsanto. The 2001 ruling against the Schmeisers stated that, should a Monsanto-patented seed contaminate, by any natural or accidental course, a farmer’s crops, those crops, including their seed yield, would become the property of Monsanto. This decision was upheld by the federal Court of Appeal and casts in doubt the fate of small farmers who have historically relied on their own seed reserves for their livelihood. The corporatization of food that is happening in the farm fields and on the dinner tables of America is transforming the very nature of what we eat. The Future of Food examines the market and political forces at work as huge multinational corporations seek to control the world’s food system and explores alternatives to large-scale industrial agriculture. If we are what we eat, what happens when we eat patents? Will we all be wholly owned subsidiaries of Monsanto one day? The Future of Food will be screened at the TSL Warehouse in Hudson on November 25 & 26 at 5pm, $6 general admission. (518) 822-8448; www.timeandspace.org. Marly Hornick of New York State Against Genetic Engineering will speak after the screening on Saturday, 11/26. —Marleina Booth-Levy

Chronogram05

1/13/05

9:42 AM

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Chronogram 143

Planet Waves Emil Alzamora

BY ERIC FRANCIS COPPOLINO

Reckoning By the time you read this, we’ll have a sense of the new political landscape in America. The key date was October 30, 2005, which comes out when you do some calculations on the chart for the presidential inauguration earlier this year. I know it feels like the inauguration was a lot longer than just nine months ago; way too much has happened. In an article in the August 2004 edition of Chronogram, I described the horoscope for George Bush’s second term as “the inauguration chart from hell.” The astrology portending this occurs in the inauguration chart’s 8th house of other people’s money, the associated power of contracts and agreements, business interests, and death (yes, these are all assigned to the same house in astrology, with the common factor being the movement of capital through inheritance and dowry). The 8th house also deals with deep secrets, particularly about sex, death, and money. The 8th is the house to watch in the inauguration chart. This all happens in Sagittarius. In the swearing-in chart (if curious for the diagram, see the PlanetWaves.net edition of this article), the 8th house has two tenants-in-

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residence: Mars (lord of war, desire, drive, passion) and Pluto (lord of transformation, death, evolution, and generally speaking, the unstoppable force). Many readers know that the Pluto in Sagittarius era, which goes back to 1994 and lasts about four more years, is the astrological phase that vividly describes both the jihad and the rise of the American theocratic movement—rule by religion, just like we say our evil enemies do. The two planets are in a conjunction, that is, working together, multiplying one another. Opposing these two planets is an early-degree Gemini Moon. So the Inauguration chart features an opposition between the Gemini Moon and the 8th house Sagittarius MarsPluto conjunction. This is not a fair match. Saggitarius Mars-Pluto vs. the Gemini Moon

is like the relationship between a hammer and an egg. Because the degree of the Moon is earlier than the degrees of Mars and Pluto, and since the Moon is the fastest object in the aspect, approaching the conjunction, it suggests something about to happen. What is about to happen is that there will be a crisis wherein the Religious Right becomes its own entity distinct from the Republicans; some people with a lot of money will get very upset, and start to call in debts and favors; and there will be divisions in the public and the administration that appear vividly, as if they were already there. Here is how I summed it up in Chronogram 15 months ago: “The values are all in place, and the game is set. The early Gemini Moon will slide along for about nine months before the media really figure out what is going on. But they will get it, guaranteed.” Nine months from the inauguration date, when the Moon reaches Mars, turns out to be October 20. Refining that date a little more precisely, we come up with October 30. Using a predictive method called Secondary Progressions, if you advance the Inauguration chart at the precise rate of one day per year (hence, about 18 hours = nine months), October 30 was when the Moon made its opposition to Mars. Then, over the next five months, it continues into an opposition with even more formidable Pluto. Mars and Pluto in the 8th house, are the death-money house, by the way. It seemed, and seems, to be a moment of reckoning. The Moon can represent the public; in Gemini, it can represent the media; it can represent the sentiments of the nation. With the Moon, we feel our way through reality, and the more advanced souls use the Moon as an intuitive device. Both work well; feelings are often intuitive. The Moon is also a wild card for the thing or person in question, in this case, the administration. (In astrology, a single planet can have many significations, and they need to be sorted out carefully.) But most of all, whatever else it may represent, the Moon is a timing factor. Apropos of Halloween, we have an image of the Grim Reaper. I think we’re going to see things go down in US politics that make the Nixon administration look quaint. In fact, as quaint as Albert Gonzalez said the Geneva Convention’s protection of prisoners against abuse and torture was. Because torture is going to be one of the issues that comes home to roost. If an 8th-house Sagittarius Mars-Pluto can represent anything, it is some kind of state secret of this dimension. Indeed, I will propose here that every odd

issue that we have seen go oddly nowhere in the past five years is going to come home to roost in the next five months. People will wonder who Bush really is, how he even got there, and how we can possibly get rid of him. And that will not be an easy question to answer; he will not be as easy to get rid of as a Bush-Cheney bumper sticker. However, unlike most astrologers, I predict he will remain in office through the end of his appointed term, and after a Democrat is elected to replace him in 2008, there will be a Constitutional crisis wherein he or his administration attempts to keep the presidency beyond the end of the term. But let’s focus on the immediate future, and what might emerge at this time (or may well have already emerged by the time you read this). First and foremost is the Valerie Plame spy-outing incident. It turns out that the grand jury’s term in this case, impaneled by special prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald, expires on October 28. So there will be an announcement of something around then, and based on the astrology I’m going to say it looks like more than one person in the administration gets charged with a crime. This will not look good on their CVs. The Plame affair is the one thread that goes through every different scandal of the Bush administration, including the most important one: Why they came to be in power in the first place. At the end of it all, that’s the real issue. For those who may not be following the news, the Plame affair is not an amorous liaison, but rather the situation where someone in the administration (apparently some combination of Karl Rove and Scooter Libby, and their bosses, George and Dick) outed an undercover CIA agent in revenge for her husband, former ambassador Joseph Wilson, exposing the lie that Iraq was allegedly developing nuclear weapons. Plame was an agent working against weapons of mass destruction; exposing her identity, and thus endangering her entire spy network, was an act of treason by whoever did it. The intersection of the grand jury’s term expiring and the progressed Moon making its opposition to Mars is ominous. And it is just the beginning. Because once the Moon gets mixed up in Mars, and the public is divided and the press awakened, that Moon moves along to Pluto, which does not suggest an improvement in the situation for those directly involved. And as it happens, We, the People, are involved—and unfortunately, I don’t think that the people who have been having a party for the past five years are going to be the ones who get to clean up the mess. Eric Francis has more to say at PlanetWaves.net.

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Horoscopes by Eric Francis Coppolino www.planetwaves.net

ARIES March 20-April 19 We’re in the thick of Mars in Taurus retrograde, and I wonder what you’re thinking. Mars allegedly hates to be retrograde, but in light of the human development project that has emerged since the days of ancient Greece, old astrological views need to be rethought and revised. This rare transit is giving you an opportunity to do just that with your values and deepest beliefs, particularly the ever-sensitive matter of how you feel about yourself. Yes, you’re an Aries—you have the ability to go forward no matter what. And you are human; all humans doubt themselves. Events, developments, and your introspective journey during this phase, which goes through December 11 but unfolds for at least a month beyond, will help you get to the bottom of those doubts, and to find some genuine treasures within. There’s an added benefit: What you learn about yourself now will provide valuable experience for a leadership opportunity that manifests early next year.

TAURUS

April 19-May 20

It would not be fair to say you didn’t know what you wanted before now, but I think it’s very fair to say that you’re making significant discoveries, particularly what you truly need from love. The astrology for the foreseeable future has you skating on a razor blade between emotions associated with fear and desire. The fear may be enormous, the desire, incredibly specific. There’s a relationship, which is the extent to which you are, one by one, willing to bring all your feelings to the surface. Most people hide their fears from themselves; you cannot do that any more. It may seem that as you go ever closer to the core of your being, at some point there will be no turning back. But I assure you that you’ll reach a natural limit; this comes with a revelation, decision, or acknowledgment whereby you find the new sense of outer direction that quite literally changes everything.

GEMINI

May 20-June 21

Keep your plans flexible, and maintain sources of information outside your immediate environment. What you learn in a series of revelations—one early in the month, the next around midmonth—will shift certain viewpoints you’ve been developing. Whether this information serves to widen your perspective or derail your plans really is up to you. Partners and close associates are going through changes of their own, and becoming aware of what we could call emotional or intuitive perspectives that are allowing them to feel their reality more directly than they otherwise might. But you are personally the master of the change-up pitch, and have the ability to keep pace with any developments—as long as you do so consciously. It may well be that each new piece of information negates the previous one, so deal with what you know when you know it; promptly skip over denial and delay.

CANCER June 21-July 22 Few people can relate to others on the intuitive level that’s so natural to you. In the most sensitive affairs of life—sex, creativity and communication—most of the world goes for prepackaged, with sugar and salt being the first two ingredients. True to your sign, you are the homemade type in all that you do. There is a significant shift developing in your environment, allowing you to open and expand your energy in a way that you and others will feel and notice. What you may also notice is a shift away from the distinctly cautious approach you’ve taken to life for so long, perhaps with good reason, probably with some frustration. Saturn leaving your sign started the process; Jupiter and the Sun entering your sign are a definite continuation in the right direction. Sensuality may not be your main purpose in life, but you are now free to drink from that well.

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Horoscopes by Eric Francis Coppolino www.planetwaves.net

LEO July 22-Aug. 23 It’s far healthier to talk about what you’re feeling than it is to hold back, and by healthy I mean that communication is necessary for both body and soul. I think you’ll be surprised at how much more light and clear you feel for talking about what you’re feeling, particularly when you make the discovery that people are interested, and willing to adapt or make concessions to what is so important to you. As powerfully as your inner reality is expressing itself to you, beware of a tendency to be tactful, political, or appeasing. I suggest you skip the formalities and, as is more your tendency, be direct. Your daring mood may not last all month, so the sooner you get clear with people, the sooner they will be clear with you, and everyone can get on with the greater mysteries of life, which you will discover are more than abundant as the month progresses on its course.

VIRGO Aug. 23-Sept. 22 I’m not big on recommending spiritual solutions; too often, they are evasions. But you have a lot to gain from looking at your situation from any angle that’s different than the one from which you’re now looking at it. There’s a particular way the past is weighing heavily on you, so if the tides of existence pull you in the direction of inquiring in that territory, I suggest you go with the flow and not worry that you’re dwelling on what you should have got over long ago. But the future is calling just as vividly—that future being a way of understanding yourself now that helps you notice clearly what affects you in this moment, and what does not. Once again, the issue surrounds noticing under what conditions you feel safe, and actually documenting the threatening influences that are lingering like so much radioactivity from ancient history. But you have to find it to clean it up.

LIBRA Sept. 22-Oct. 23 Surely you have more important things on your mind than accumulating personal wealth. You impress me as being someone for whom enough really is enough. But the astrology of gain, of increase, and of cultivating your resources is written boldly in your charts, now and for the foreseeable future. There is likely to be a reason; being a naturally resourceful person, you are likely to have projects, personal needs, or natural transition points that will benefit from the financing you are able to give them. Money also grants a measure of independence, particularly when you are working or in some way coexisting financially with other people. It’s likely to come as a great relief and true joy to discover that you don’t really need anyone, which is another way of saying that all your options are open.

SCORPIO Oct. 23-Nov.22 Scorpio is a fixed sign, and one of the ways you get your work done and build your life is through bold, steadfast persistence. Saturn’s recent arrival in Leo only strengthened this quality of your character. Jupiter arriving in Scorpio is now adding the ingredient of adaptation. The two are conspiring to present a rare opportunity that is likely to manifest through the end of the year, presenting you with what seems like a “last chance” to create or alter something that you thought had long passed its time. Indeed, the delay can easily be accounted for by saying that its time is soon to arrive. But remember that you need to work with the two basic energies of persistence and adaptability, knowing when to apply one, the other, or both. There’s a second way to look at this: One factor represents taking personal authority; the other represents luck.

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Horoscopes by Eric Francis Coppolino www.planetwaves.net

SAGITTARIUSNov.22-Dec.22 You are approaching the very peak of your astrological year, but you’re not there yet. However, this is a deeply meaningful time in that you’re sorting out certain objectives that you know you must now focus on. You’ve had time to experiment with the wider world of possibilities, and to let yourself dream even more than usual. There is, however, one matter relating to your past that you need to work out during the next month or so. It involves removing a certain hidden liability that will be easily addressed once you see the matter for what it is. The challenge is doing specifically that; and in this project you will be greatly assisted by the upcoming Mercury retrograde. Here, I need to offer a suggestion. What you learn around the time Mercury switches directions midmonth will be impressive, but it’s really only the first clue. Keep investigating, and you will discover the gift behind the problem.

CAPRICORN Dec. 22-Jan. 20 You appear divided between taking the intense approach and the subtle one. I suggest you check out from where, within your own emotional world, the energy sources of these options are coming. There are indeed two ways to solve any problem; one way is to say, “Yes, I have the resources to get this done.” The other is to doubt you have anything worth much at all. You’ve learned so much in recent years about who you are, what you have to offer, and why you have every reason to have faith in yourself; consider those discoveries. Yet I’m also here to remind you that a certain element of outside assistance has recently arrived. While you have your reasons, dating back to last month’s eclipses, not to look gift horses in the mouth, trust that certain close friends and allies really do have your best interests at heart.

AQUARIUS Jan. 20-Feb. 19 Circumstances developing within a community important to you may leave you wondering about the intentions or depth of commitment of a certain individual you’ve come to think of as one you can trust. But the subject matter is entirely their own, and they are correct to consider their individual situation first. In truth, they share your values for taking a high level of responsibility, but at this point must also proceed in the order that is right for them. For you, this is part of an ongoing, long-term seminar in the subtleties of commitment, shared responsibility, and taking life seriously that will be a vital part of your existence for a long time. In the end, true leadership has to do with how you manage your own affairs, and express your devotion to what is right and true as you see it. Yes, people are counting on you—but this need not be a burden.

PISCES Feb. 20-March 20 The moment to push your luck has arrived. I say this knowing that you tend to take a somewhat retreating approach to life, and that pushing for you is more like a friendly handshake for others. I see your goal developing with a kind of obsessive potency that will keep you on track, and likely result in a breakthrough some time between now and December 16. You are, at long last, learning the skill of refining your message, cultivating it carefully in others over a long period of time, and standing up for what you believe in. Add to this the power of focus, and you will discover certain new, undeniable ways in which you influence the flow of your life. But you must trust that you are perceived in a positive and supportive way that you may not see yourself, but which is indeed an essential ingredient to the respect and cooperation upon which this whole process is centered.

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Parting Shot

chris gonyea / march

eeing the Forest” is the title of the first local show in five years by artist, owner of Livingroom Gallery owner, and former Kingston alderman Chris Gonyea. Balancing his political work and his art for the past several years as alderman of uptown Kingston's Second Ward was never easy, says Gonyea, although he managed to continue to paint. Come November, he says, and as election season determines whom will be elected to fill his shoes, Gonyea feels it is a “good time to release

a new body of work.” A well-known abstract painter and collagist, Gonyea says that his new body of work marks a “stylistic switch.” Using charcoals and full color oils, Gonyea has been studying nature in a new way, finding “abstractions that are analogous to geometry, and creating landscapes that aren’t just representational, but have an edge to them.” Gonyea’s show, which opens at the Livingroom Gallery on Saturday, November 5 (opening reception 6-9pm) and runs through December 31, features 25 such “edgy” landscapes that were shown to acclaim at Galerie Roessler in Munich, Germany, earlier this year. (845) 338-8353; artguy38@aol.com.

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Chronogram Indian Point Insecurity | Holiday Supplement | Fiction: The Goodbye Party

11/05