Boating season

As Central New York experiences summer, one of the activities commonly enjoyed across the Finger Lakes region is boating.

Whether it is a one person kayak or a canoe, fishing or water skiing, or even a languid scenic venture along the waterways, it is likely there will be numerous boats out on the region’s many lakes this summer.

While boating in any form should be an enjoyable activity, it is also one that should be safe for all who are out on the water.

With this in mind it is often deputies from the sheriff’s department that are assigned to patrol the regions waterways and ensure safety as well as that rules and regulations are being adhered to.

One of the things these units will be on the lookout for is activity that arouses suspicion of intoxication.

According to the sheriff’s office, alcohol is the number one factor in recreational boater deaths.

Like operating a vehicle on the road, operating a boat on the water, requires the same attention to traffic, people and conditions and requires the same amount of attention and clarity to operate in a safe manner.

The sheriff’s office website also provides other regulations people should keep in mind.

To operate a motorboat an operator can be as young as 10 or under with a person 18 or older on board, if you are between 10 and 18 years old and have a person 18 or older on board, or if you hold a safety certificate and people are 18 years old or older.

The same regulations as apply to boats apply to personal water craft such as jet skis according to the sheriff’s office and operators must complete a boating safety course, the operation of these craft is prohibited from sunset to sunrise, operators and passengers must wear personal flotation devices and an engine cutoff lanyard must be attached to the operator.

Other regulations state that vessels should also be equipped with a fire extinguisher.

Vessels must display their navigation lights at all times between sunset and sunrise, and during daylight periods of reduced visibility.

Personal flotation devices are mandatory and should be in good working order free from tears or any other damage that may inhibit their effectiveness.

It is also recommended that craft carry first aid supplies, oars/paddles and spare lines as well as binoculars.

Operators should also be aware of local ordinances that may impose regulations on speed

It is also important to note, in an effort to curb the spread of invasive species, the New York State DEC has implemented cleaning programs with washing stations at or near boat launches.

Boats, trailers, waders and other fishing and boating equipment can spread aquatic invasive specie s from waterbody to waterbody unless properly cleaned, dried or disinfected after use.

Although some invasive species such as water milfoil are readily visible to the human eye, many others are too small to be readily noticed.

To avoid spreading invasive species please follow the guidelines in the following steps: check, clean, drain, dry and disinfect

The most effective method to ensure that no invasive species or fish diseases are transported to a new body of water is to completely dry your boating and fishing equipment.

The key, according to the DEC is to make certain that equipment is completely dry before using it in a new water body.

Drying times vary significantly depending upon the type of equipment, air temperature and relative humidity.

While the outside of a boat will dry relatively rapidly, bilge, live wells and other areas of a boat not reached by the sun or lacking good air circulation will take additional time to dry completely. A minimum of five to seven days drying time in dry, warm conditions is recommended.

Thomas Jefferson wanted to be remembered as “author of the Declaration of American Independence, of the Statute of Virginia for religious freedom, and Father of the University of Virginia. I would like to add that he is also credited to be the person who popularized ice cream in the United States. His original ice cream recipe still remains available online.

I am one of those for whom Ice cream is a key part of the food pyramid, a much loved confection that can be savored and critiqued. Like most things, it all goes back to my childhood.

They cost five cents. Our mother and father were ice cream aficionados and so our begging for ice cream was often heard by giving us the money to go to Pop’s candy store on the corner of 55th and 3rd Avenue to buy Dixie Cups, little four-ounce paper cups with lift-off paper lids filled with mostly vanilla ice cream. They also included the affectionately-remembered wooden flat spoon used to scrape the ice cream into a form that we could eat. Now, this isn’t widely known, but my siblings and I saw that wooden spoon as a bonus; not only could we use it in our make-believe play as a piece of flatware, but when you had a loose tooth, it would be the device that would free the tooth engendering a visit from the tooth fairy who would leave 10 cents under our pillows … 10 cents would buy two more Dixie Cups. It was a crude version of “cash back” for those under 10 in Brooklyn a long time ago.

I saw Dixie Cups again in the freezer section of a grocery store just last week. I don’t’ think they were the “Dixie Cups” brand as such, but the same cup form, multiples packed in a plastic bag, without wooden spoons. Maybe they gave you the spoons when you checked out. I didn’t pursue this line of questioning because my love off ice cream was now fulfilled by other offerings in that same freezer

Riley Hogan, who lives in Liverpool, posted a word of warning July 10 on the nextdoor website: “Hello neighbors, I wanted to post about an incident that took place earlier today at Nichols Supermarket in the village of Liverpool as I believe it’s crucial that we all stay informed and look out for one another. This morning at about 9:30 a.m., while entering the supermarket, I encountered an unsettling situation where a disturbed man brandished a knife at me outside the entrance of the storefront.

“With sincerity, I want to acknowledge and give thanks to [owner] Mike Hennigan and [manager] Mark Hall from Nichols for their quick actions in diffusing the situation and ensuring everyone’s safety, including mine and that of other customers.”

Hogan described the suspicious man as dark-skinned with a scraggly beard, between 5’10” to 6’0” tall, wearing a black jacket over a plain white T-shirt.

“He was likely homeless and mentally disturbed, so I immediately notified the village police, who responded promptly and are currently investigating the incident. I really appreciate their swift response and dedication to our community’s security,” Hogan wrote.

No arrests made

“At the very least, I hope this message serves as a reminder for us all to remain vigilant and watch out for any suspicious activities around our community. If you have any information related to this incident or any section. Half gallons or cartons that looked like half gallons offering multiple flavors of the dessert. “Monkey paws, Orange sunset, Key Lime,” etc. - exotics to tempt the consumer.

As tempting as the many brands and flavors are, the offerings are not the same quality. If you purchased a half gallon of ice cream and allowed it to melt (and who does that on purpose?) you can compare it with other melted half gallons. There are significant differences because of the amount of air or “overload” that the ice cream maker beats into the basic ingredients. Less air, more ingredients, equals a creamier mouth feel and, in my mind, a better ice cream. How do I know this? When I was in high school, I worked three summers at a venue in Lake Carmel that made and sold frozen custard. The custard mix was rich with eggs and cream and would make a superior product. The degree of superiority was determined by how much air was added as the giant machines churned the mix into frozen custard. My boss was adamant about producing the most superior product. Eating that ice cream was a pleasure played out in taste and how long a cone would last.

You can also judge how much overload was used in making any ice cream by seeing how fast it melts.

Seeking really good ice cream is a side hobby of mine which has contributed to my sides, my front and my back, but that is another story… related but not germane here. Once, when my spouse and I were on a tour in Italy, I found myself climbing the hill that led to the town of San Gimignano. Half way up this precipitous hill, I began to have chest pains.

“Oh, my God,” I worried. Am I having a heart attack?”

My spouse had long reached the town and disappeared. The rest of the tour group were scattered. I began to walk more slowly, thinking about my other concerns, please don’t hesitate to contact the village police department. I see our community’s safety as a collective responsibility. Together, we can ensure a safe and secure environment for ourselves and for our loved ones. Stay cautious, stay safe, and please keep an eye out for each other.”

Liverpool Police Chief Jerry Unger reported that officers were unable to locate the suspect. “Regarding the person in crisis at Nichols,” Unger told me, “by the time the call was made to 911 and officers arrived, the person was unable to be located by officers in the area.”

The nextdoor crowd thanked Hogan for his warning, and seconded his opinion of the staff at Nichols. Linda Jackson from Crestview Drive wrote, “I have shopped at Nichols for more than 45 years and have always been impressed with Mike Hennigan and all the employees.”

Steve Frass, an old friend of Hennigan’s from Streamwood, wrote, “I worked with Mike there many, many moons ago. Great place to shop. Great people.”

Sky-high sausages

I stopped at Heid’s for lunch last week.

When I was a kid back in the 1960s, I remember buying a couple dogs and a birch beer there for less than $5. Last week’s lunch reminded me how inflation has pushed 21st century prices to all-time highs.

I ordered one Texas hot, one coney, one macaroni salad and one small chocolate milk. My bill? $18.36. Deli- mortality and wondering how they would get my body home, when I spotted Gelateria Dondoli, a gelateria the guide had told us produced the best gelato in Italy. OK, I figured, if I was having a coronary, I might as well go out enjoying the best gelato in Italy. So, I went in and bought the biggest cone that I could. I sat in the ancient town square and ate my gelato, the strains of sad melodies in my head. The pain disappeared with the first lick. A side note, it was the Howitzer style coffee that I had for breakfast that had awoken my esophageal problems. The cool gelato calmed the angry cells down. I credit the gelato for saving my day, if not my life. Gelato is a poster ice cream for low overload. So creamy tasting, it is made from milk rather than cream and churned slowly with practically no air added.

I often take my grandsons to the ice cream stand next to the Bowling Alley in Marcellus. On a hot day there is nothing like one of their “small” black raspberry cones to cool down your body and mind. Watching those boys enjoying their treats, laughing, giggling and exclaiming about the amount of ice cream they are eating is a gift I give myself. Of course, I will have had my own small cone too. If you haven’t partaken of said small cone, you are missing something that revises the meaning of small.

I have, in my mind, a list of places where I can find great ice cream. I recently added the Ice Cream Sandwich shop in Marcellus to that list which also includes … now these are my favorites …the Marcellus Lanes ice cream stand, Doug’s ice cream, Abbots Frozen Custard on Onondaga Boulevard in the city, the little shop in the building that houses the Chinese restaurant on Kasson Road across from Tops in Camillus and the Creamery in Caz.

But there is one source of ice cream, no longer available, that makes me smile the most. I was working at Catholic Charities on the west end