Life in the Finger Lakes JanFeb 2019

Syracuse Donuts p. 28

•

Wine Q & A p. 48

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Pets Help People p. 16

January/February 2019

The Region’s Premier Lifestyle Magazine Since 2001

Ice, Wind

Winter Fun and

page 20

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JOIN US FOR SPECIAL EVENTS AT FERRIS HILLS Thursday, Jan. 10

The Life of Amelia Earhart

Actress Eleanor Stearns, a founding member of the Geneva Theatre Guild known for bringing history alive for local schools and organizations, will give a 3 p.m. dramatic presentation on the life of Amelia Earhart and the incidents that led Earhart to become interested in flying. This adult presentation shares Earhart’s rather unusual view of marriage and presents her strong feelings about the role of women in society.

Tuesday, Jan. 15

Fort Hill Performing Arts Center Presentation

Join us at 3 p.m. as Gordon J. Estey, president of the Fort Hill Performing Arts Center, Inc., brings us up to date on the latest news regarding the renovation of the auditorium in the former Canandaigua Academy, located at the back of what are now Fort Hill Apartments. Conifer Realty LLC, which owns the apartments, is renovating the 420-seat theater.

It is slated to open in 2020 for use by community arts organizations, orchestras, dramatic and musical theater productions, and more.

Peg Rayburn Drive, Canandaigua Trivia

Tuesday, Jan. 29

Join us for a few rounds of trivia at 3 p.m. This is a fun, teameffort game with no pressure but a lot of laughs. Come as an individual and we will have a team for you to join, or come as a team. You will be surprised at how much you really do know!

Wednesdays, Feb. 6 - March 27

Great Decisions Series

The Foreign Policy Association’s “Great Decisions” is America’s largest discussion program on world affairs, and each year, Ferris Hills hosts an eight-week series covering the program’s discussion topics. We welcome you to join us at 11 a.m. each Wednesday, beginning Feb. 6, to discuss the most critical global issues facing America today. The eight topics to be covered in 2019 are “Refugees and Global Migration,” “The Middle East: Regional Disorder,” “Nuclear Negotiations: Back to the Future?,” “The Rise of Populism in Europe,” “Decoding U.S.- China Trade,” “Cyber Conflict and Geopolitics,” “The United State and Mexico: Partnership Tested” and “State of the State Department and Diplomacy.” No experience or prior knowledge is necessary to participate in the discussions.

Please RSVP at 585.393.0410 or visit FerrisHills.com Continue the Good Life

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Since

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IER EM

Cover: An ice boat sails across a frozen Finger Lake. Photo by Derek Doeffinger

ON’S PR GI

Cover, small photo: The donuts are delicious at Glazed and Confused in Syracuse.. Photo by Cindy Ruggieri This page: A wintry view of Keuka Lake, looking north from Hammondsport.. Photo by Bill Banaszewski

Volume 19, Number 1 • January/February 2019

F E A T U R E S

20

28

34

Ice, wind and a bit of inguinity means a bit of winter fun. Ice boats and ice kites are all the rage!

by Derek Doeffinger

A popular donut shop in Syracuse recently celebrated its one year anniversary.

by Cindy Ruggieri

To capture the beauty of winter, the lure of taking photographs must be stronger than the cold bite of Old Man Winter.

by Roger Bailey

Flying on Ice

Glazed and Confused Winter Wonderland

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A G A ZI N

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Since

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Rochester 585-467-4020 Conesus 585-346-2060 Canandaigua 585-374-2384 Boat Rentals

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D E P A R T M E N T S

3 Finger Lakes Map

areas of interest in this issue

4 My Own Words

thoughts from the editor

5 Letters

16

reader feedback

6 Happenings

40 Nooks & Crannies

news and events

8 Lifestyle

mode of living Restoring old to new

a little bit of everything A closer look at the details of the Finger Lakes Region

43 Offbeat

fresh and unique The curious hobby of Scott Fybush

44 Off the Easel

creating art Treacy Ziegler – sculptor, painter and printmaker

44

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APP EXTRA!

14 Outdoors

47 Human Interest

in the open air Finger Lakes Land Trust celebrates 30 years

stories about real people Fixing cars and living the dream in Bristol

16 Health

48 Fruit of the Vine

alive and kicking Helping pets stay with their people

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wine, spirits and brews Wine questions and answers

56 Index of Advertisers

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Finger Lakes Regional Map

areas of interest in this issue

1 Branchport (p.37) 2 Brighton (p.43) 3 Bristol Center (p.47)

4 Canandaigua (p.20) 5 Fair Haven (p.40) 6 Geneva (p.41)

7 Italy (p.35) 8 Newfield (p.44) 9 Nunda (p.40)

10 Penn Yan (p.34) 11 Syracuse (p.28)

From Oswego

Lake Ontario

Hilton

5

N

Sodus Bay

Sodus Point

MONROE Webster Brockport

104

Sodus

490

2

Baldwinsville

E. Rochester Fairport

Macedon

390

5

Honeoye Falls Lima

Clifton Springs Phelps

ONTARIO

Waterloo

20 5 Geneva 6 4 Finger Lakes 20 5 Livonia 20A 1 Conesus 3 Geneseo 20A Hemlock Honeoye 2 Hemlock Mt. 3 Canadice 3 Morris 1 4 Honeoye 4 LIVINGSTON 5 Canandaigua 2 5 Penn Yan 10 7 6 Keuka YATES Naples 7 Seneca 390 Branchport 8 Cayuga Nunda 1 Dansville 9 Owasco Wayland 9 Dundee 10 Skaneateles Prattsburgh Cohocton 11 Otisco 390

Canisteo

Seneca Falls

20

Cayuga

Solvay

7

81 20

Union Springs

11

............................................................................ Cody Brackett Associate Editor..............................................Tina Manzer Assistant Editor............................................. J. Kevin Fahy Life in the Finger Lakes is published by Fahy-Williams Publishing, Inc. and owned by Eleven Lakes Publishing, Inc. Co-owners: Mark S. Stash; Timothy J. Braden. Copyright© 2019 by Eleven Lakes Publishing, Inc. No part of this publication may be reprinted or otherwise reproduced without written permission from the publisher.

TO SUBSCRIBE, RENEW OR CHANGE ADDRESS: write to Life in the Finger Lakes, P.O. Box 1080, Geneva, NY 14456, or call 315-789-0458. Subscription rates: $16 for one year. Canada add $15 per year. Outside North America, add $35 per year.

For renewal or change of address, include the address label from your most recent issue of Life in the Finger Lakes.

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Moravia

CAYUGA

Ovid

Homer

Interlaken

Cortland Groton

Dryden

Cayuga Heights

SCHUYLER

McGraw 81

Lansing

Ithaca

Burdett

CORTLAND

11

Trumansburg

Marathon

8

From Binghamton

Montour Cayuta Lake Falls TOMPKINS Odessa

STEUBEN

17

Painted Post

Candor

Elmira C H E M U N G Heights

Elmira

Addison

Contributors....................................................Roger Bailey ....................................................... Louise Hoffman Broach

Newark Valley

Van Etten

Horseheads

Corning

TIOGA

Owego

86

17

From Binghamton

Editorial Office..............................................315-789-0458

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ONONDAGA

9

15

Editorial & Production

Fayetteville

8

Watkins Glen Bath

Skaneateles

Auburn

Spencer

Rexville

11

Manlius

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SENECA

Lamoka Lake

86

The Finger Lakes Region of New York State

690

Syracuse 481

20

5

Waneta Lake

6 Hammondsport

86 17

From Jamestown

5

90

Bloomfield

Hornell

90

Weedsport

Victor

Avoca

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Jordan

Newark

From Utica

481

Marcellus

Canandaigua Avon

Clyde

Lyons

Palmyra

90

Caledonia

North 11 Syracuse

WAYNE

490 90

Oneida Lake

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Rochester

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F From Buffalo

From Watertown

Wolcott

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104

Spencerport

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My Own Words

thoughts from the editor

A Winter’s Tale February 9th, 2019

Celebrate love in Naples at our 7th annual V3 event!

Scrumptious foods, chocolate, wine tastings, musical performances, art, horse & wagon rides, renew your vows and more! “Like” our Vintage Vines & Valentines Facebook page for up-todate details as they unfold.

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B

ack in my early twenties I had an opportunity to live on a beautiful estate in Pennsylvania. I was quasi caretaker at a glass museum, and along with living in the basement of a beautiful old house, I got to spend time on the grounds of the 150+ acres around the building. Picturesque ponds, trails, fields and woods were my playground. And I loved walking through it all taking photos and sketching.

I remember one very cold winter day I took my Pentax camera out to get some frosty shots. This film camera was a single lens reflex (SLR) and the shutter had a nasty habit of getting stuck in the open position when it was very cold. And it happened again that day, which led to some overexposed images. Back then you didn’t know what the photo would look like until the film was developed.

I was reminded of this experience after reading Roger Bailey’s accounts of taking photos during the cold winter months. I know the feeling of wanting to just stay warm inside instead of venturing out into the bleakness, just to get a few photographs. I think Roger has captured winter in ways that provoke many memories.

Roger’s ice hockey photo on page 36 brings me back to farm pond

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hockey when I was around 13 or 14 years old. My brothers, sisters and friends and I would meet at a pond and lace up our ice skates. It helped when there was snow; it was a good bumper for the puck after shoveling it to the sides. I remember bruises on the knees and shins from flying pucks – we didn’t know anything about actual hockey safety equipment. As long as we had long johns under our jeans, we were good to go. Those were some of the best Sunday afternoons I have ever experienced.

Learning to play outside in the cold and actually enjoy it takes patience and a certain amount of adventure. I know that many people think the Finger Lakes Region isn’t really a nice place during the colder months, but if given a chance, the area repays that loyalty to outdoor fun tenfold. In this issue you can see people ice boating and ice kiting, skating and ice fishing. Skiing, snowmobiling and hiking are also great winter activities.

And remember, you can always eat a delicious donut and drink a nice hot cup of coffee and enjoy the white outdoors – from inside. It’s nice to have choices.

mark@lifeinthefingerlakes.com

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Letters

reader feedback

P

eople who already live in the Finger Lakes area know how great it is. Your magazine could do well to showcase a nearby town each issue, one not usually considered a Finger Lakes destination but would draw in a different interested segment.

The feature of Scottsville (November/December 2018) is a perfect example. How could you leave out Scotts Diner – the only restaurant? Also Oatka Hotel history is missing. This article was interesting and I would like to see other small towns depicted. Oatka Creek itself has history.

— Anonymous Reader

thanks for your observations about Scottsville and Oatka Creek. We try to bring the unusual and unheard stories to our readers, especially in our “Proud Community” column, which began in 2010. Thank you for reading, and stay tuned!.

— Editor

H

aving lived in Canandaigua and Victor for over 40 years, I find the articles most interesting and informative.

I especially enjoy those by Ray Levato, as they are so informative.

— Raymond Blair, Lake Placid, Florida

T

hank you for your absolute treat of a magazine. I’m moving to a senior living complex after selling my home. When a new issue arrives, my world stands still while I devour your articles. Not as likely to explore the Finger Lakes by car as I did in years past, your magazine takes me on a most pleasurable journey.

— Mary H. Comley, Geneseo

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WINE TRAIL

2019 event tickets on sale now!

Jan 25-27 February 9 chocolate savory world of seneca weekend and wine

grown here. made here.

Use the following code to get $5 off any 2019 ticket purchased online: FLXLife May not be combined with any other offer. Only valid for online ticket purchases. Discount valid for ticketed events, not Trail Passports. Restrictions and exclusions may apply. Void where prohibited.

Happenings

news and events

January January 1 – February 28…

Landscapes by Brian Keeler Come to the North Star Art Gallery in Ithaca to enjoy the art of Brian Keeler. His work is categorized as painterly realism, and he typically does plein air painting of landscapes. Landscapes favor scenes of natural and rural settings that evoke a timeless quality.

743 Snyder Hill Rd, Ithaca, NY 14850 607-323-7684 northstarartgallery.com January 2-31… Sixth Annual Festival of Trees at the Ward O’Hara Agricultural Museum Over 100 trees of all sizes, shapes, and themes are decorated throughout the museum. The trees are all inside but dress warmly – parts of the museum are not heated. Winter hours: Monday, Tuesday, Friday, Saturday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

6880 East Lake Road Rt. 34 A Auburn, New York 13021 315-252-7644 cayugacounty.us/livingworking January 16...After Hours at the Museum A series of entertaining and informative bimonthly presentations at the Antique Wireless Museum.

The next presentation is “Civil War Balloon and Observation Post” by Chris Lynn on January 16, 2019 beginning at 7:30 p.m. Learn about Thaddeus Lowe’s hydrogen-filled Civil War balloon “The Intrepid” used as an observation post complete with telegraph. Chris is a museum educator at the Genesee Country Village and Museum.

Tickets are available in advance at the museum or at the door. Admission for adults is $10 or $5 for museum members.

6925 Route 5, Bloomfield, NY 14469 antiquewireless.org

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February February 1...”Landscapes and the Unbuilt” Opening Reception 6 to 9 p.m. at the Rochester Contemporary Art Center. “Landscapes and the Unbuilt” is a new exhibition that reflects artist interactions with land and natural places. This two-part exhibition pairs nine Rochester-based artists with nine Genesee Land Trust conserved properties and presents two new sculptural installations related to human impact on the land.

137 East Ave., Rochester, NY 14604 rochestercontemporary.org

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February 9… 22nd Annual Great Downtown Ithaca Chili Cook-off The Chili Cook-off features chili prepared by 40+ restaurants as they compete for the titles of Best Meat/Overall Chili, Best Vegetarian/Vegan Chili, and People’s Choice Chili. In addition to chili, there are other chili-related food items. The Chili Cook-off will feature a farmers market with vendors and local wineries, breweries, and farmers sampling their goods. All activities will take place on the Ithaca Commons and surrounding streets. A very special Tompkins Trust Company Family Fun Zone will be going on inside Center Ithaca with plenty of all-ages family fun, games, crafts and activities. downtownithaca.com/chili-cook-off February 9…Vintage Vines & Valentines Celebrate winter, love and friendship at this annual winter event in Naples, which includes wine tastings, food pairings, art and music.

585-314-5769 facebook.com/pg/VintageVinesValentines

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February 9…Chocolate & Wine on the Seneca Lake Wine Trail 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Enjoy a self-guided tour around beautiful Seneca Lake features sampling delicious wines paired with chocolate themed dishes at 26 participating wineries. Just check in and pick up your gift item at your chosen starting winery then start sampling foods paired with delicious award-winning wines. Regular tickets purchased in advance are $30 per person. senecalakewine.com

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February 16-17…Wine and Cheese Getaway 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Celebrate the new year with the perfect pair – wine and cheese – on the Keuka Lake Wine Trail. Indulge in a wide range of creative and savory food samples prepared with a variety of spectacular local cheeses and paired with many of Keuka Lake’s best wines. Take in the captivating winter vistas of the Finger Lakes on this weekend escape. Tickets: weekend ticket: $25, Sunday only ticket: $19, weekend designated driver ticket: $20, Sunday only designated driver ticket: $14 keukawinetrail.com

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ONE FREE CHILD ADMISSION! Photocopies not accepted.

Enjoying God’s Creation

“Shapely”

Recent Paintings by Alan Singer Artist Reception – Saturday, January 12, 4 to 7 p.m.

A

XOM Gallery is pleased to announce their new exhibition, “Shapely,” a show of recent paintings and prints by Alan Singer. It celebrate a blend of art and geometry. Design and color are also guiding principles, and a feel for experimentation, giving birth to dynamic forms on paper and canvas.

Paintings resembling cellular neighborhoods are arranged to create circulation and mutual affect. Primary colors equal energy, with a correlation to astronomical events, and the imagery in Alan Singer’s new art crosses boundaries between science, visual art and mathematics.

This is Alan’s 28th solo exhibition and it contains recent paintings in oil and acrylic as well as select prints from the past four years. “Shapely” will open Saturday, January 12 and remain on view until February 23, 2019.

Visit axomgallery.com for more information. The gallery is located at 176 Anderson Avenue, Second Floor, Rochester, NY 14607.

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2052 O’Neil Road • Macedon, NY 14502 315-986-1937 www.fingerlakestram.com Ja n uary/ February 2019 ~

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Lifestyle

mode of living

E Before

verything old is new again, or can be made that way through the talented hands of Finger Lakes artisans. The region’s colorful cottage industry brings life back to everything from antique books with broken spines to smashed stained-glass lampshades. In their home workshops or small businesses, these restoration experts make their living or supplement their income by putting composition dolls back together or by repairing damaged oriental rugs.

Restoring Old to New

by Louise Hoffman Broach Doll and bear restoration of Helene Marlowe

Many of them inherited family interests. Glass restorer John Lord in Waterloo and book binder Doug Westerberg of Sodus Point took over operations their fathers started.

Others, like doll collector Helene Marlowe of Henrietta and carpet restorer June Vegh of Penfield developed their enterprises from love of their hobbies.

Chris and Paula Sophoclides have been re-caning and otherwise restoring chairs for more than three decades. They say they continue to do it because it is a dying art into which they can still breathe some life. At their Recollections ReCaning business in Canandaigua, they receive pieces for repair from as far away as Florida and Washington, D.C.

Before

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Submitted Photos

12/14/18 12:24 PM

Yankee Peddler Book Shop in Sodus Point, New York

Wine & Cheese Getaway February 16-17, 2019

Celebrate the new year with the perfect pair wine & cheese! Indulge in a wide range of creative and savory samples prepared with a variety of spectacular local cheeses and paired with many of Keuka Lake’s best wines.

Weekend Tickets $25 Sunday Only Tickets $19

Lord lives in a sprawling house at the edge of the Seneca-Cayuga Canal. Several of his metal sculptures line the driveway. He says glass restoration is just one part of his passion for the art of restoration. He also fixes early firearms and collects and repairs anything he finds interesting including tower clocks and china.

He has one criteria: it has to be old, or at least not modern or mass-produced. Otherwise, there’s no challenge, he says, and the work is “boring.”

Lord’s father, Samuel Frederick Lord, was a machinist at the Seneca Army Depot. He was a tinkerer, making repairs to whatever he found needed fixing, his son says. It led to his friendship with Richard Wickham, a glass restorer.

Wickham didn’t drive, so Samuel Frederick would take him to jobs and John would tag along. When his father passed away, John continued to work with Wickham on restorations large and small until Wickham died. At that point, John discovered he had become somewhat of an expert.

One of his most renowned projects was complete in 2013 – the cleaning and restoration of the stained-glass windows in the chapel at the Spa Apartments in Clifton Springs. He painstakingly washed and repaired each window, originally made by Boston-based Spence, Moakler and Bell, and a Louis Comfort Tiffany mosaic of The Last Supper, the chapel’s best-known feature.

One day during the project, John happened to walk out of the building with an administrator from the adjacent Clifton Springs Hospital. As they chatted about what they had done that day, “I told him that I got to wash Jesus’s face,” Lord recalls.

“I think I have the best job and I would not do anything else,” he adds.

Doug Westerberg owns the Yankee Peddler Bookshop in Sodus Point, where he not only sells rare, antique and collectible books, he also puts them back together. His parents started the business in 1970 and quickly learned

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Lifestyle

Restorers Angela Doslick Restores porcelain/China/statuary East Rochester, New York 585-264-1349 Chris Horncastle Restores and repairs upholstery Farmington, New York 585-264-1349 John Lord Restores glass and early firearms Waterloo, New York 315-789-1795 Helene Marlowe Restores dolls Henrietta, New York 585-334-5536 Canalside Metalsmith Restore silver, brass and copper Fairport, New York 585-223-7540 Dennis Morris Restores estate/Victorian jewelry Victor, New York 585-742-8040 Recollections ReCaning Chris and Paula Sophoclides Restores and repairs cane chairs (and other weaves) Canandaigua, New York 585-394-7493 Ken Root Restores wicker Kendall, New York 585-659-2877 June Vegh Restores Oriental carpets Penfield, New York 585-377-2792 Yankee Peddler Book Shop Doug Westerberg Restores and repairs books Sodus Point, New York 315-483-2667

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that people often read their favorite books so many times that they begin to fall apart, so they established a repair workshop.

First, Westerberg assesses what’s wrong with a book to determine what needs to be done to restore it.

Just about anything structural can be fixed, he says, including the book’s spine, loose binding and damaged backing. He repairs each book with love and care because he knows how important and special they are to their owners. It can take anywhere from a few hours to a few weeks to repair a book, he says, depending on what’s wrong with it and the materials he uses.

One of Westerberg’s more unusual projects concerned of a book from the late 1700s, signed by its Irishborn author Lawrence Stern. It was sent to Australia when the restorations were completed.

He also sells books, photographs,

art and collectibles at shows throughout the region. Each item he puts on display there or in the store has to pass scrutiny and may be subject to repair. “We’re pretty picky how we present our stock,” he says.

Helene Marlowe, the doll collector, also sets up at shows. Some of the antique dolls she displays need minor work before they are ready to be viewed. She started doing doll restoration in the 1980s when she reassembled her husband’s grandmother’s childhood doll, a German bisque doll made in 1905.

“It had lain in her attic for well over 60 years,” Marlowe says. “Because the elastic stringing had let loose, the doll was in pieces. Grandma learned I had been taking a class in making reproduction porcelain dolls, so she asked if I knew how to put her doll back together.”

Marlowe restrung the body, spruced up its human hair wig and

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12/18/18 8:53 AM

Before John Lord’s restoration at Clifton Springs Hospital chapel has a Tiffany glass mosaic memorial to Dr. Foster.

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replaced one of the knee joints, which had been chewed by a mouse.

“I made one from a large wooden bead that I carved to shape and then painted to match the rest of the body,” she explains. She gave the doll back as a Christmas present, much to the delight of her husband’s grandmother.

“I think I was hooked after that,” she says. “I truly enjoy bringing a doll or a bear back to life, especially when it is a treasured family heirloom.”

Marlowe said she only does minor repairs, such as stringing and setting eyes, and also repairing cracks in composition dolls (a doll made partially or wholly out of a composite material composed of sawdust, glue, and other materials such as cornstarch, resin and wood flour). She said she has to be careful there because museum restorers warn against doing any repairs that can’t be reversed. There could be detrimental reactions to the substance used for

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Lifestyle

Before

Before The recaning of various chairs by Chris and Paula Sophoclides

the repair, and also new processes invented in the future.

“Each doll can present a unique challenge to overcome,” Marlowe notes.

Vegh feels the same way about the rugs she restores in the dining room of her Penfield home. She started her work about 40 years ago when she became fascinated with two small rugs that she and her husband found in an antique store. They were cheap, but they needed repair, and she bought both of them. “I fixed them by copying what was there already,” she says, describing how she

matched the patterns with new fibers she wove into the rugs. “They came out pretty good, and my friends began throwing rugs my way.”

She likes to work primarily on small rugs made of wool.

They are easier to handle compared to rugs made of cotton that have a tighter weave, she says. Vegh prefers to do repairs on the outside edges of rugs, although she can fix moth holes and places where beetles have made tunnels.

She can also address wear problems elsewhere in the rug.

Vegh has developed some tricks and special

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Before Before

techniques, including burning yarns to get the right shades, and re-coloring faded areas using permanent marker. She does not travel to do the work; people must drop the rugs off to her.

She is self-taught, but says it is really not that hard to do the restoration. She also restores quilts and has done many renovations to her historic house herself, with help from her husband.

“It’s common sense and it’s really just like cooking,” she says. “A lot of people think they can’t do it, but they can.”

The Sophoclides do all types of seat repair including traditional hand-woven cane, rush, splint and binder.

Paula says there are fewer and fewer companies offering the variety of services that Recollections does. They also have a thriving antique business that finds them on the road as they travel to shows from their base in Canandaigua.

Restorers of many types are getting harder to find, she says, which is why she maintains a network of people with the ability to give old things new lives.

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Outdoors

in the open air

Preserving Open Space The Finger Lakes Land Trust has been saving lands and waters for 30 years

by Kelly Makosch

T

he Finger Lakes Land Trust was born in a Cornell University classroom in 1988, the brainchild of a graduate student with a keen interest in land conservation. The passionate volunteers who attended the evening gathering formed the nucleus of what has grown into a regional conservation organization – a nationally accredited nonprofit of impressive scope and scale.

Founding board member Betsy Darlington was among those in attendance from the beginning.

She remembers it like this: “I got a call from Andrew Zepp, asking if I’d be interested in going to a meeting to hear about land trusts. He was pursuing his master’s degree at Cornell and establishing a land trust was his focus. I accepted, and the 21 of us who signed up became the first board of directors, including Carl Leopold, our first president. The board decided very early on that we wanted to protect the entire region, not just Ithaca or the Cayuga Lake basin.”

Since that fateful meeting, the

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Finger Lakes Land Trust has protected more than 21,000 acres across a 12-county region, ensuring scenic vistas, local foods, clean water, and wild places for everyone. The organization owns and manages 34 public nature preserves that range in size from a small, Canandaigua lakeshore park to an 800-acre forest overlooking the Chemung River valley.

The preserves feature an incredible diversity of waterfalls, wildlife habitats, rare plants, and opportunities for outdoor recreation and education.

In addition to owning nature preserves, the organization protects open space by holding conservation easements on privately owned properties. A conservation easement is a voluntary legal agreement that allows a landowner to own and use his or her land while also permanently protecting its natural integrity by limiting future development. The easement becomes a permanent part of the title and future owners of the land must comply with its terms; the Land Trust is responsible for its defense in perpetuity. A highly

visible example is Great Gully Farm – a scenic property on Cayuga Lake, just north of the village of Aurora. The Cayuga Lake Scenic Byway bisects the farm and the easement protects sweeping views on both sides of the road, thousands of feet of lakeshore, and part of a gorge.

The Finger Lakes Land Trust also collaborates with state and federal agencies, local municipalities, and other nonprofit organizations to expand public parks and conservation areas. South of Canandaigua Lake, for example, the Land Trust and Ontario County worked together to create Grimes Glen County Park – an area with significant historical and recreational importance. Other work in the southern Canandaigua Highlands includes additions to the NYDEC’s Bare Hill Unique Area and High Tor Wildlife Management Area.

Near Seneca Lake, the Land Trust partnered with the town of Geneva to create Kashong Conservation Area, and also developed convenient access to the Cayuga-Seneca Canal Trail at its

~ LifeintheFingerL akes.com

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Left: Lick Brook Chris Ray is a nature photographer and cartographer from Ithaca. He hopes to inspire viewers to strengthen their own personal connection with the natural world through his work.

Instagram @topher.ray

own Bishop Nature Preserve.

Naturally, the Land Trust is committed to providing opportunities for outdoor recreation and education. Hikers on the Finger Lakes Trail pass through Land Trust preserves and miles of additional lands it helped secure.

The Land Trust’s Lick Brook Gorge preserves in Tompkins County are a prime example. In addition to protecting five miles of streambank, the preserves secure a spectacular 1,650 foot waterfall and provide connectivity between Robert H. Treman and Buttermilk Falls state parks. Farther west, the Land Trust recently helped Finger Lakes Community College increase their East Hill Field Station by protecting adjacent lands that will enhance opportunities for students to engage in nature exploration.

Now celebrating its 30th anniversary, the Land Trust boasts a staff of 15 and is supported by thousands of dedicated members, supporters, and volunteers. Andy Zepp, the enterprising graduate student who originally conceived the organization and later returned as executive director, currently leads the charge. “I knew this idea would take off in the Finger Lakes,” he admits. And has it ever! Under his guidance, the organization’s approach continues to reflect its core vision, drafted by that first group of volunteers, to protect water, habitat diversity, productive fields and forests, and scenic vistas.

As time and environmental conditions change, the organization’s protection work has become more imperative than ever. Toxic algae, also known as cyanobacteria, is the latest threat to the Finger Lakes – causing beach closures and polluting drinking water in each of the 11 Finger Lakes. To address these harmful blooms, the Land Trust is proactively protecting lands that are vital to maintaining water quality. Now, the organization is incorporating water quality commitments from landowners into its easements and implementing wetland and stream buffer restoration projects on its properties that filter nutrients and runoff on the land before they enter the lakes.

Please learn more about the Finger Lakes Land Trust by visiting their web site at fllt.org, emailing info@fllt.org, or calling the office at 607-275-9487. If you are seeking an outdoor adventure, the organization created a web resource to link adventurers to the best places to hike, bike, and ski at gofingerlakes.org.

LIFL

High Tor.

Hikers on the Finger Lakes Trail. Photo by Kelly Makosch

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Photo by Bill Hecht

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Health

alive & kicking

Helping

Stay With Their

People

by Gabrielle L. Wheeler

J

oan sits in a green armchair, the television blaring in her small studio apartment at St. Mark’s Terrace in Penn Yan. She tells me long stories about the cats she had to give up when she came to live at this assisted living facility. That is, all but one: Pretty Girl, a lovely white female with orange tiger stripes over one ear and beautiful green eyes.

Joan would not be able to have Pretty Girl if it weren’t for Pet Partner Connections. The nonprofit organization helps disabled, elderly, and homebound clients in Yates County keep their pets at home. As we chat, executive director and cofounder Michael Bennett disappears to scoop cat litter and do a visual check

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on Pretty Girl. When he’s done, he chats with Joan and pats a box full of cans to let her know she has enough cat food for the next few weeks.

“All of our elderly clients are disabled in one way or another. Some of them more so than others. Some of our clients are not elderly but disabled,” Michael explains. “There are people who live in their own home or in the nursing home who have animals. They have to give them up because they might not be able to bend over and scoop the litter box anymore or trim their dog’s nails.”

That is where Pet Partner Connections comes in. The organization collects donations of pet food and litter, and raises funds so

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volunteers can go to the homes and do what their clients can no longer. They help people keep their pets.

Inception

A simple search on petfinder.com shows that there are hundreds of thousands of pets available for adoption across the country at any given moment. What happens to the owners who love their pet but are unable to properly care for it due to old age? Is aging a legitimate reason for having to give up a fur baby? Multiple studies indicate that having pets is good for us, especially for the elderly, physically, mentally and emotionally.

Pets make us happy and offer companionship. Some research shows that pets may help us combat deteriorating problems that come with age, such as Alzheimer’s or dementia.

LIFL

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After working at a shelter and noticing how many pets were surrendered merely because their elderly or disabled owners were unable to care for them, Michael decided to do something. Already established with his pet therapy dog and cat, he partnered with his mother Onda Bennett to start Pet Partner Connections in 2015. “There was no assistance for these people,” Michael explains. “It’s really important to help them to keep these animals rather than giving them to the shelter.”

A Multi-Tiered Impact

The main focus of Pet Partner Connections is to provide home-visit services for clients. Starting out with two, they now fluctuate between 30 and 40 clients at any given time.

One of their newest programs is a sponsorship, which can fund food, litter, nail trimming, grooming, and even veterinary services for a client’s pet.

In addition to home visits, Michael and Onda have continued to visit nursing homes with their therapy pets – a practice they also consider central to their mission. It’s a two-tiered approach: the organization pays monthly visits to nursing homes in Penn Yan, and also partners with the occupational therapy honors program at Keuka College for a craft time at St. Mark’s Terrace. “The nursing home and college students make our crafts, dog toys and that kind of

~ LifeintheFingerL akes.com

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Above: Michael and Onda at a fundraiser at the Penn Yan Public Library; Left: Fern loves cats and wears a kitty sweater while Red snuggles with her.

thing, and then we sell them and use that to buy the food to give to people who are in need,” Onda explained to a donor at a fundraiser at the Penn Yan Public Library.

Speaking of giving away food to people who are in need, the organization also provides supplies at local food pantries. Donated items including pet food, cat litter, pet treats and toys made at craft times are given to those who access the food pantries.

Community members in need can also apply for assistance or call to speak with Michael or Onda personally. “We help a dozen or so clients at any given time. It’s temporary – they are people who have lost their jobs, or were injured on the job, or they are going through a divorce,” says Michael. “We help these folks until they get back on their feet.”

With the help of therapy pets, Bennie and Red the Wobbly Cat, Pet Partner Connections is touching the lives of Yates County residents like Joan. “Because we wanted to be involved and continue to be involved, we said we were going to do it. So, we did,” Michael concludes.

To learn more, visit Pet Partner Connections online at ppcny.org or look for it on Facebook.

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Flying on

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A string of cold, calm nights creates the smooth ice craved by ice boaters.

E

Ice, Wind and a bit of Ingenuity means

Winter Fun! story and photos by Derek Doeffinger

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f the saying fits, wear it. So the saying, “Where there’s a will there’s a way” seems perfect for summer sailors and water kiters who refuse to give up working the wind just because it’s coming from the North Pole.

For them, “the way” to keep working the wind is ice kites and ice boats.

An ice kite looks like a cockamamie contraption born from a candlelight collaboration between Inspector Gadget and Mary Poppins.

In short, fanciful and fun. An ice boat, with its intersecting triangles of sail and frame, seems like the outcome of an eighth-grade geometry project or

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a giant Calder art mobile waiting to be hung in the atrium of a museum.

Looks aside, it’s more likely desperation-spurred imagination, resulting in the thought to marry sails to thin steel runners. The result? Speed.

Joy. Delight.

As ice enthusiast Andy Kinsman likes to say, “It’s the only legal way in New York to go 100 mph on land.”

But most ice boaters don’t go that fast, especially as they get older. They know the risks are too great. But with the right sail and the right sailor at the controls, they can easily triple the speed of the wind pushing them. Like hopping into a throbbing Corvette and heading to the thruway early on

a Sunday morning, they can keep the inner daredevil smiling because they know there’s always the possibility for more.

Andy prefers the freedom of ice kiting. Standing upright on the giant ice skates (runners, technically) he designed and built, he shoots across the lake as he clasps the two control bars connecting to a wind-filled, NASA-style, para-wing (NPW) kite.

I came across Andy and others gathered at the north end of Canandaigua Lake on a warm January day. Not everybody was ice sailing. A few folks simply edged out onto the ice and walked gingerly, staying close to the shore. One lone figure leisurely

~ LifeintheFingerL akes.com

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skated under the expansive blue sky while carrying an old, beat-up hockey stick. A high-school couple holding hands alternately skated and stopped to look at each other. The ice was heating up.

The warm day was no threat to foot-thick ice and no deterrence to ice boating addicts. With the departure of the snow covering the ice and the arrival of a steady 15 mph breeze, ice enthusiasts began assembling their crafts. For maneuvering at high speeds, ice sailors prefer to have a minimum of 1 square mile of ice, which is enough space to

avoid each other and to recover from any sailing mistakes.

Among the ice boaters was David Perrin. He was offering rides on his two-seater – something he does much of the winter. I obliged him and hopped aboard. As we chased and videoed Andy kiting across the ice, I learned that David is the son of John and Pat, and nephew of Russ. Theirs is a family of national trophy winners for sailing both catamarans and ice boats.

They are also well-known and muchappreciated

for their efforts in promoting and supporting sailing on water and ice.

Andy explained why the Finger Lakes excel for ice lovers. “Obviously, you need water,” he says, “and we have lots of it.”

Also important is the location, latitudinally speaking. “We’re so fortunate to be in the geographic band where ice boating is really good – the area between 40- to 45-degrees latitude,” Andy explains.

South of 40 degrees (Pennsylvania’s southern border), the weather doesn’t stay cold long enough to give you good thick ice. Any further north than 45 degrees, you get so much snow on the ice that it doesn’t melt. “Here, we cycle between warm and cold days so the snow melts

Ice sailors can easily hit speeds three to four times that of the wind.

LIFL

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Ice kiting

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Andy Kinsman put together his own ice kiting gear.

and hardens, melts and hardens and eventually turns into good ice again,” he adds.

Canandaigua’s location at 42.8875º N is perfect.

The bigger and deeper Finger Lakes resist significant ice cover. Their “warm” deep waters circulate, keeping the ice at bay. The shallow, swampy

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north end of Cayuga Lake often freezes over to the delight of ice fishermen.

Seneca Lake usually produces only small patches of ice at the north and south ends. Most of the other lakes can produce enough ice coverage to offer a wide variety of icy entertainments, including the various forms of motor racing that commonly erupt and roar

across the southern ends of Honeoye and Waneta Lakes. A couple of lakes, such as Honeoye and Hemlock, emit gas from the bottom that can open large holes in the ice, dangerous to ice sailors. Just ask John Perrin. One almost did him in years ago.

In extra-cold years, Canandaigua, Keuka, and Skaneateles Lakes can

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freeze in their entirety. Andy fondly remembers 2005.

“We could sail all the way down to Naples and back to Canandaigua.” Only extraordinary cold spells ice over the big lakes. Cayuga Lake last froze-over in 1979, Seneca Lake in 1912.

The appearance of large expanses of ice where there was once sparkling, shimmering water may give you pause.

Water is a peculiar substance; that it turns into ice we take for granted. But should we?

Water is the only common substance that can perform nature’s hat trick. What’s that you ask? Well, it’s when a substance simultaneously exists in its three possible states:

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as a solid (ice), as a liquid (rain, lakes, streams), and as a gas or vapor (humidity, clouds, steaming tea kettle). Only water can simultaneously freeze your toes, quench your thirst, and clear your sinuses.

For most of us, ice is a challenge. A risk to bones and fenders. A risk to be avoided. For the more adventurous, it is an opportunity to slide, glide, zip, skid, skip, and slip. The greater the speed, the greater the joy. This winter when the nights turn calm and the temperatures plummet, you can imagine the phones of ice boaters beginning to chime and blink as news on ice conditions is exchanged, plans are formulated, and anticipation builds of what tomorrow may bring.

~ LifeintheFingerL akes.com

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Story and photos

by Cindy Ruggieri

and

Confused

Customers show off their box of specialty donuts.

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Glazed and Confused

Owner Paul Valenti chats with a visitor.

They had me at the name.

A

donut shop called Glazed & Confused sounded like a place I needed to check out.

I’m so glad I did.

Glazed & Confused on North Clinton Street in Syracuse recently celebrated its one-year anniversary.

It’s owned and operated by the Valenti family. Parents Paul and Sarah

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credit their two school-age children Izabella and Roman with the donut shop idea, and have named them cofounders of the business. “We were on our way home from a beach vacation when they asked, “Why don’t we have a cool donut shop at home, like our favorite donut store that we always visit on vacation?’” Sarah

explains. “Paul’s entrepreneurial spirit ran with it, and a few months later we opened.”

What a cool place it is. Upbeat music fills the air, colorful donuts featuring big bushy mustaches are painted on the walls, and a disco ball hangs from the ceiling. The décor is trimmed in purple. Signature donut

~ LifeintheFingerL akes.com

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Izzy shows off a tray of their specialty donuts.

A customer enjoys his coffee break.

flavors have fun, quirky names: The Dizzy Pig, Holy Cannoli, Pardon My French Toast, and the Cereal Killer.

“We didn’t really have a plan for what flavors we wanted to offer,” Sarah explains. “It was pretty much all of us throwing out an idea. For example, we felt we needed to offer a berry flavored donut, so we LIFL

experimented with ingredients and did plenty of tasting until we found what we wanted.”

Donuts are always fresh, made in batches of 30 and replenished constantly throughout the day.

Customers can order online through Grubhub.

In addition to their signature

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donuts, Glazed & Confused offers daily specials Tuesday through Saturday. It may be a special seasonal flavor or a favorite cake donut. On Wednesday and Saturday they offer a gluten-free donut. On Friday evenings, called “Shake it up Friday,” the shop offers milkshakes in the same flavors as their donut creations, Ja n uary/ February 2019 ~

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Glazed and Confused and a hot chocolate bar.

“We wanted to have more than just a donut shop,” says Paul. “We wanted to create an experience.”

The response from the community has made Glazed & Confused a pretty busy place, and the Valentis are making plans to expand to other cities, including Rochester, Ithaca, and Binghamton, Paul says.

An underlying mission is to support the community that has been so supportive of the business. “We try to give back; to meet whatever the need is at the time” says Sarah. Whether it’s staffing a booth at a community event or simply providing donuts to a Halloween party for underprivileged children, it’s an important part of their Below: Trays of yummy donuts Bottom: The store front is both colorful and welcoming.

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Visitors can have some fun at the photo board.

business model.

The warm personalities of the owners play a big role in the success of their shop. As I sat eating my hot cinnamon sugar donut (every single finger-licking bite!), I watched Paul greet each customer like an old friend.

The engaging smiles of Roman and Izzy were just as welcoming, and I overheard Sarah at the register telling customers to “have an awesome day!”

Awesome indeed.

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winter wonderland

Story and photos by Roger Bailey

T

o capture the beauty of the season, the lure of taking photographs must be stronger than the cold bite of Old Man Winter.

After all, a recliner next to a well stoked wood stove can be a difficult spot to be enticed from when the mercury falls below freezing. But after a freshly fallen snow, my love for photography and the anticipation of familiar landscapes looking new, makes me bundle up and venture out into the cold. Good subject matter can often be captured from the comfort of the driver’s seat, while other images can be more challenging – like crawling through a snow-covered field downwind of a skunk, or staying up way past my bedtime to witness young lads playing hockey under the lights

2

on a frozen farm pond. Sometimes I find unexpected treasures, like the waters of Keuka Lake near the outlet in Penn Yan, buckling and exposing a reminder of an autumn past (1), or a retired tractor (2) resting near the edge of Wells Road on Italy Hill.

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E

merson Road, located on Italy Hill, is home to Yates County’s highest point of 2,140 feet. I’ll often drive up there when

there’s precipitation in the air and the mercury is hovering around the freezing point. It can be like entering another world at times. That is where I photographed the young beach leaves (3) and the landscape shot with the round bale in it (4). The barn I photographed on Belknap Hill Road (5) in March of 2014 during a blizzard named Vulcan. I

3

drive by it daily; not usually paying much attention to it, but on that day it begged for a photo. The fire escape donned with icicles (6) caught my eye while I was waiting for a red light to change in downtown Geneva.

5

4

6 LIFL

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7

P

umpkins seem to pop and glow on a windy winter’s day on County Road

4 near Seneca Castle (7). An aggressive hockey game takes place under the lights on the Haven’s Corners Road near Benton Center (8). A feather seems torn between sticking around or floating away on a sunny day near Morgan Marine in Penn Yan (9). A snowy owl finds a lighted perch on the BentonTorrey Town Line Road near Route 54 (10).

8

9

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10

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11

12

13

A

warm-up and a thaw was the recipe for some reflective shots at Indian Pines Park in Penn Yan, where ice fishing was

on the agenda (11). The fog added a wonderful mood and helped to isolate the subjects. Oakley and Ruger of Tom Campbell Road, Branchport, compete for the job of branch manager (12). In Palmyra I get a lucky shot from the driver’s seat as I was preparing to stop. A black cat slipped under a white picket fence (13). After a couple of quick clicks of the shutter it returned to the other side.

Please contact Roger Bailey at flxcaptured@gmail.com.

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T

he eyesight of a skunk is not all that great but its sense of

smell keeps it alive. I approached from downwind as this one was digging up grubs in Yates County, shooting from my knees to get a good eye level shot (13). A blanket of snow arrives early beating the leaves to the ground in a horse pasture on Guyanoga Road near Route 364 (14). Subzero temperatures create a dramatic scene from the lookout near Branchport on Route 54A (15). Another reflective, foggy scene from Indian Pines, Penn Yan during a warm-up. (16) 13

15

14

16

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~ LifeintheFingerL akes.com

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Real Estate marketplace finding the perfect place for you

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Historic horse farm in the Finger Lakes

Seneca Lake- THE finest and most desirable building lot on Seneca Lake today! 5 acres of privacy, 105’ of natural lake frontage, untouched, and will be but a slight slope from your new dream home to the water. Located just south of center on the western shores of Seneca with some of the most notable wineries of the Finger Lakes within a short commute. No railroad tracks here....no 50’ lots in the neighborhood.... but instead a neighborhood comprised of upscale/newer homes, all 5 acres in size, and all with 100’+ of waterfront. Look and decide for yourself. Now priced at $299,000!

Waneta Lake- VERY CUTE, 3 bedroom cottage on Waneta Lake’s East side.

50’ of lake frontage, deep sloping lot, all new windows, enclosed front porch, and completely furnished. This is a standout! Now priced at $175,000.

Keuka Lake- A newly created year-round Dollhouse at “water’s edge”. EVERYTHING IS BRAND NEW! Central AC & heat, 1 & 1/2 baths, parking, lower road for walking/biking, granite counter tops, all new appliances, 53’ of all natural frontage, sloping lot, dock, patio, unbelievable views of the tip-of-bluff.

There is literally NOTHING TO DO, but to enjoy the simple and carefree days of summer. PERFECT......Now priced at $425,000.

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The warm hospitality of 1847 architecture in this charming farm on 24 acres of pasture, woods, maple sugar bush, pond and run-ins for cattle and horses!

Original barn restored to perfection, covered bridge, art studio! Farm home completely renovated with every modern convenience blending with the original character!

Solar panels with goethermal heating and central air!

Contact Curbeau Realty – Bonnie Curbeau 315-277-0236 for more information

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96 S Main St Moravia, NY 315-497-3700 113 Cayuga St Union Springs NY 315-889-2000

$489,900 • 122’ of East side Owasco Lake frontage!

This 3 bedroom 2 bath home is exactly what you imagine when you think of your dream lake house! 2 Bedrooms on first floor plus a loft bedroom upstairs. Full bath on each level. Large deck overlooking the lake. Fabulous wide beach with stone break-wall. Cathedral ceiling. Storage shed.

Great views! Contact Jeffrey Trescot, Broker for more infomation or to schedule a private showing!

12/14/18 12:12 PM

Nooks & Crannies

a little bit of everything

A

Closer Look

“When people ask what photographic equipment I use – I tell them my eyes.” ~ Anonymous

story and photos by James P. Hughes

L

isten up! Never visit the Finger Lakes region without a camera in tow. First-time visitors are invariably charmed with the region’s variety and beauty. Those familiar with its towns and countryside continually discover something fresh and compelling. There’s so much to photograph, but where do we start?

Almost anywhere! Foremost, there’s the crystal blue water and views of the pristine lakes themselves.

Plunging waterfalls, rushing creeks and rippling brooks abound. Lofty hilltops offer stunning panoramas of the landscape with its winding

This page, clockwise from top left: This golden field could be a symbol of the rich agricultural heritage of the region; Color and texture (O.K. – so some subtle prearrangement is necessary from time to time); Color, texture, and form highlight stones along a Lake Ontario beach at Fair Haven; Sometimes luck plays a role. At twilight geese fortuitously pass over a prominent sign at the Goose Watch Winery on Cayuga Lake; A colorful winterberry plant photographed against a soft background of snow; A building front in the Nunda business district – window symmetry, branches, and warm color.

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~ L i f e i n t hh ee F ii nn gg ee rr LL aa kk ee ss..ccoomm

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byways and flowing vineyards. Church steeples rise above villages whose quiet streets are lined with picturesque homes and welcoming shops. The area’s rich heritage is celebrated in its spacious parks, noteworthy sites, and impressive museums.

Blue and yellow New York State markers scattered along the way identify significant historical facts and sites.

Well, you get the point. It’s a very special place and it’s camera-ready!

With today’s technology, anyone from a mobile-phone user to an SLR-toting professional is capable of producing a first-rate photograph so by all means, snap away. Capture that striking landscape, that expanse of Finger Lakes water, those neat vineyards row upon row, the quaint structures along a This page, clockwise from top left: A bridge (or a tripod) can provide support allowing a slow shutter speed that adds a wispy look to flowing water; Rare across the United States, cobblestone structures are plentiful in the Finger Lakes Region. Photograph the varied buildings but include some detail shots; Row houses along Geneva’s South Main Street Historic District; As the sun sets, colorful ripples roll across Skaneateles Lake; The color and form of produce at community farmers’ markets; Take a moment to look up – a delicate perspective of autumn foliage.

JJaa nn uuaa rr yy// FF ee bb rr uu aa r y 2 0 1 9 ~

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Nooks & Crannies

village street. But once that’s done – the “big picture” has been taken and recorded – move in for some detail. Don’t overlook the multitude of subjects in that larger image: the portions of a scene, the bits and pieces so often buried from view at first glimpse. In other words, just look around and about then test your imagination.

Detail doesn’t necessarily mean (or require) an extreme close-up, or macro image, although that’s certainly one option.

Just take a closer look at the many elements within a more expansive subject, the unique and unusual, something that can be examined that, perhaps, tells an engaging story on its own.

Good composition should incorporate the use of light, color, texture, and form. Let factors such as time of day, season, and weather play a part. Look, ponder, and be creative.

As the old saying goes, “less is more.” An abbreviated detail can present a very powerful image, one that encourages the viewer to pause, contemplate, and (hopefully) appreciate.

Clockwise from top left: The sun’s backlighting leaves an aged tree dramatically silhouetted; Late summer fields of sunflowers are a common sight in the area but take time for a close-up or two; Remnants of the famed Erie Canal, like this abandoned lock, can be found throughout the region; Window, curtains, and color – details at a 19th century home in Baldwinsville; Winterberry on a snow-covered tree in Cayuga County creates a natural mosaic; Note the random details at this stone home near Union Springs.

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~ LifeintheFingerL akes.com

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Offbeat

fresh and unique

The

Curious Hobby of Scott

Fybush

by Tony Glaros

“W

e’re very partial to the Finger Lakes in spring and summertime,” says Scott Fybush, editor of online publication the North East Radio Watch. “The scenery is picturesque, the wine and beer and food top-notch, the prices affordable. Right in the middle of the region, this little village happens to be where your editor spent many happy summers at camp in the 1980s, listening to the quirky local radio stations.”

Scott Fybush successfully married his love affair with the wireless to a tasty travelogue for his subscribers. The 46-yearold is one of those souls whose curious, hyper-focused mind unearths stuff we glance at on a daily basis but completely miss. He lives in the Rochester suburb of Brighton, but spends much of his time skulking around the base of radio and TV towers all over the country, enraptured by their varying heights, their ages, their designs and their configurations. Whether it’s a solitary antenna dotting the landscape or an array of red and white steel reaching heavenward, it’s all part of the wonderment of wireless communication.

In 1999, he started a fledgling business with an online industry publication called the North East Radio Watch. He does all the writing, writing, editing and photography, and includes images of an assortment of radio and TV outlets. “It found an audience,” he explains. “It gave readers a chance to see inside some of these places.”

Many of the publication’s more than 400 subscribers are active or retired station engineers, managers and on-air talent. Before long, someone suggested that Fybush ought to feature his images in a calendar each year. He mulled over the notion before giving it sea legs.

Collaborating with Lisa, who had contacts in the printing industry, the duo began producing a Tower Calendar in 2001.

His goal is to always go for a geographic balance. The 2019 calendar pages include Radio Towers Park in Hamden, Connecticut, WNPN in Rhode Island and KNZZ in Grand Junction, Colorado. Other featured sites include Entercom’s Las Vegas cluster, KTBC in Austin, Texas and the home of the Nebraska Rural Radio Station.

It’s typical for Fybush to clock up to 15 weeks a year on the road,

scouring hills and hollows with his Nikon D7100 in search of fresh new tower images for the calendar.

When he’s not outside surveying terra firma from a vertical perspective, he can often be seen knocking on the door of the little building nearby, hoping for a tour of the transmitter that generates radio waves that ripple through the ether. Often, based on his name recognition in the industry, the station engineer will invite him in.

Hooked

The seeds of his obsession with electronic media were planted at an early age.

“I had a little GE radio I got at a yard sale,” he recalls. “When I twirled the dial, one of the first stations I heard was CJBQ, right across the lake in Ontario.”

Around the same time, an aunt who worked in sales at WHEC-TV in Rochester, invited Fybush to visit the station to get a peek at what happened behind the scenes. “Watching it all come together, I was hooked.”

He earned a history degree from Brandeis University, where he met Lisa, his future wife and business partner. When he graduated he became a radio news writer at iconic WBZ in Boston. After sunset, the outlet’s 50,000-watt signal blankets one-third of the U.S. and much of Canada.

But his obsession with all things related to broadcasting inspired him to begin building a (Continued on page 53)

Ja n uary/ February 2019 ~

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12/14/18 1:18 PM

Off the Easel

creating art

Treacy Ziegler

by Mary Beth Roach

Sculptor, Painter and Printmaker A

rtist Treacy Ziegler, who lives in Newfield, near Ithaca, had been exhibiting her work in galleries for more than 15 years when she found herself looking for a different audience. The audience she was seeing had money and power, she said, so she wanted to find one that didn’t have either.

“I wanted to sort of change the conversation,” she said. “I wanted to find an audience that did not have or would not be described in the same way as the audience I was seeing in the galleries.”

Her search, which she began about nine years ago, led her to prisons.

She began writing letters to wardens across the United States, asking if she could stage an art show in their facility.

“I didn’t want to present myself as, ‘Oh, I’m going to do something really good for your prisoners by showing them my artwork.’ And I don’t really believe that art is therapy. I don’t really want to institutionalize art as therapy,” she explains Most of the responses Ziegler received were rejections.

Her first one came when she was out of town, and she had not yet mentioned the project to her husband. Gary Weisman, a sculptor and faculty member at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts in Philadelphia, was going through the mail one day and found a letter from a super-maximum facility in Florida addressed to his wife. Gary was more than a little stunned. He called her and asked what she had gotten herself into.

Left: Fable, Bronze 18x8x6, hot polychrome patina Right: White Deer, oil on panel, gold leaf (im) diptych, 38x30

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~ LifeintheFingerL akes.com

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Two Way Dream, oil on panel

The letter and the warden’s stringent tone only motivated her more.

Ziegler received favorable responses from facilities in Ohio, Massachusetts and New York.

But the travel and her work, all on a volunteer basis, were becoming expensive, so she applied to the Center for Transformative Action, affiliated with Cornell University, for fiscal sponsorship. After they accepted her, she got in touch with Gary Fine, who runs the center’s Prisoner Express Project.

For nearly 10 years now, Ziegler has been running the project’s art program, developing assignments that the prisoners can work on through the mail. For the past several years, a Prisoner Express art exhibition at Cornell has featured pieces created through the program. Ziegler also writes for a newsletter that Prisoner Express puts out twice a year.

It includes some of the prisoners’ artwork.

The project’s network, she said, represents 48 states and 650 prisons.

From Social Worker To Artist

A Philadelphia native, Ziegler, in her 60s now, studied painting and printmaking at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts. She graduated in 1989. Prior to that, she earned a master’s degree in social work from the University of Pennsylvania.

She had what she called an unconventional childhood and went into social work. She explained that in working in that field, she felt there was a need to organize people so they fit into society, which made her uncomfortable. Always involved in art and realizing that she enjoyed working independently, she decided to follow that path.

Her training in social work was completely opposite from her education as an artist, she said. As a social worker, what she personally thought of a client could not influence her job. In art school, however, “My feelings were the ultimate,” she explained.

Her training in both fields has also allowed her to see the potential in blurring the lines between art and what she refers to as social practice in art.

“Social practice is one of the big things in art now,” she said. “I believe artists have a responsibility, but I always think there’s a danger. In social work, you have an accountability to the client. When you mix art and social work, you have to ask who you are ultimately responsible to,” she explained.

Developing New Artistic Skills

Ziegler started with printmaking and painting. When she did monoprints, it was all landscapes with her unique perspective on spatial relationships.

“I like nature, but I really don’t like nature that’s not coming into contact with some sort of presence of a person.

I would never just do a landscape without a house. There

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always had to be a structure, a dwelling place, a footprint that there was a presence here” she said.

Never afraid to explore new art forms, she moved into sculpture, bronze casting and paper casting over the past three years, but she’s decided she doesn’t have a preference.

“Whatever I’m doing is my favorite thing, so it changes,” she said.

She realized that her hand “wanted to go off the 2-D dimension into the 3-D. It needed to take the turn off the page, so I went into sculpture.”

Her husband is a bronze caster and a sculptor, so the couple has a foundry at their Newfield residence, making her work easier.

Bronze casting allowed her to learn a new skill – welding – since her art involves taking a blowtorch to bronze and painting with ashes. Her sculptures capture animal imagery

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Above Top: Treacy and Critters

in a big way.

A 6-foot, 400-pound bronze hawk is in seven pieces in her studio. She says she plans to create a 5- by 8-foot donkey.

“I like the presence of these creatures in my studio, even if they don’t go anywhere,” she says.

Recently she has found her art coming full circle, in a way. She learned about paper casting from one of her husband’s students. Compared to a 400-pound bronze bird, it’s light to work with, she says.

“One of the things I really like about the paper is that it’s bringing me back to the same medium I used with the printmaking,” she said. “You can manipulate it in a way that you can’t manipulate bronze.”

Her source of paper comes, in a large part, from the letters she receives from the prisoners affiliated with the project. Every six months, they need to write to indicate that they are still interested in participating. Over time, those letters piled up in her basement.

She has created a ritual in which she reads the letters, then shreds them and uses them in her paper casting.

The passion that she and her husband share in art has passed to the next generation. She and Gary have a son, Jack, who grew up saying he hated art, notes Ziegler. Ironically, he earned his BFA in film at York University in Toronto.

“I told my husband, ‘Don’t ever tell him what BFA stands for, he’ll drop out,’” she says. “I’m happy to say he has been able to absorb what we understand about art and use it in his films.”

~ LifeintheFingerLakes.com

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Human Interest

stories about real people

Born to be a

Mechanic story and photos by Nancy Napurski

S

ome people are born to be artists, doctors, or musicians.

Nick LaBorde, a Finger Lakes native, was born to be an auto mechanic.

As a toddler, he played with TONKA trucks and MATCHBOX and Hot Wheels cars, lining them up and making them go. At 6 years old, he helped change the brakes on his Mom’s ’68 Chevy Nova. By the time he attended Honeoye High School, he was a self-professed gear head.

“I just love fixing cars,” Nick admits.

“As a kid, I was always dragging some broken thing home: a dirt bike, gocarts, cars, trucks, lawn mowers. If it had wheels, it was a bonus. I tinkered on anything that had an engine. I would fix it then sell it.”

It seems that Nick was also born to be a student. After high school, he started a long career of hard work and education. He enrolled at Monroe Community College where he was on the Dean’s List, and graduated from its automotive training apprenticeship associate-degree program. Nick also took classes with General Motors, and was a Master Technician before he was 20 years old.

“When I went to MCC full time, I was employed at Randall Pontiac part time and worked on Buicks, Cadillacs, and GMC cars and trucks,” Nick says. “I was hired by Nu-Way Auto Parts, too.

After I graduated, I worked for Laidlaw Transit on school buses. I moved on to regional transit buses. In my spare time, I still brought home cars and trucks to repair and sell.”

In December 2009, Nick decided to open his own business. He bought a garage on Route 64 in Bristol and named it Nick’s Automotive Repair.

Since then, he’s lived and breathed cars

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“It was my lifelong ambition to own my own shop,” Nick says. “Cars are my passion, and teaching people how to take care of them motivates me every day.”

Like any good physician, Nick’s diplomas and certificates hang on his waiting room walls. “I take classes all the time. I need to learn all the bells and whistles on the new cars so I can stay on top of automotive trends.”

In the end, he just hopes you’ll take care of your car the way he takes care of your car. Over the years, he’s cultivated a reputation for honesty. With every repair, Nick gives advice on what he sees in your engine, or your tires, or your brakes. He enjoys sharing his knowledge, and wants to help customers keep repair costs down, but he gets frustrated when he sees owners’ foibles reflected in their automobiles.

“I keep telling my customers to change their oil, change their oil, change their oil, and then a guy comes to me with a seized engine,” he relates. “That was because it didn’t have any oil in it! It was the second time it happened! Changing (Continued on page 55)

Ja n uary/ February 2019 ~

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12/14/18 12:13 PM

Fruit of the Vine

wine, spirits and brews

Wine

by Jason Feulner

I

Q& A

have written about Finger Lakes wines for Life in the Finger Lakes for nearly 10 years. During my tenure, I have been approached from time to time by people with questions about wine, grape growing, and the Finger Lakes. I’m always glad to share some of my knowledge and I’m often surprised how much information I’ve picked up over the years during numerous conversations, site visits, and interviews. With these interactions in mind, I thought it would be fun and interesting to create a feature where you, the reader, can ask questions directly.

These initial questions were asked by some staff members at Life in the Finger Lakes (and they are quite seasonally appropriate as you read the winter issue … brrrr).

For upcoming issues, I invite readers to submit questions directly to jason@lifeinthefingerlakes.com. I’d be happy to answer many of the questions on these pages!

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Here we go.

Q:

How do cold winters in the Finger Lakes affect grape growing and wine production?

A:

This is a common question and focuses on the durability and ultimate survivability of vines in extreme temperatures. There are several ways to look at the potential outcomes of a cold winter.

Vinifera (European grape varieties) are generally sensitive to extreme cold, but this is not universal to every varietal (or type). Some varietals can really take a hammering and remain relatively unscathed. For example, Riesling is relatively cold hardy. Merlot, on the other hand, is one of the first to become damaged in the cold.

When is cold too cold? Depending on the site, several hours of single digit temperatures can have an effect. When

~ LifeintheFingerL akes.com

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12/14/18 12:13 PM

Accommodations

marketplace

your home away from home

a vineyard faces hours of prolonged temperatures well below zero, then some damage is virtually guaranteed.

Vines seem most susceptible when they face large and dramatic temperature swings (the temperature rising then dropping 50 degrees in the course of a day or two).

And what is damage? Extremely cold temperatures can cause the death of primary buds, which means that the plant has limited capacity to grow foliage and bear fruit. The vine may then revert to what are called secondary buds and eek out some growth, although these can also become damaged.

In extreme cases, a cold-exposed vine can die back to such an extent that a full replanting will be necessary.

This may happen to only a few vines in a single vineyard in a given season or perhaps a great deal more in a really bad scenario.

The effect of all this on winemaking is hard to quantify in some respects. Purely from a volume perspective, the damage of primary and secondary buds makes for fewer

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Culture & Attractions

marketplace

the very best of the Finger Lakes

Sweetheart Rides

GRANGER HOMESTEAD & CARRIAGE MUSEUM

February 16, 2019 (Saturday) 12:00 p.m. thru 2:30 p.m.

Limited availability–Reservations required

295 N. Main Street, Canandaigua, NY 14424

$60.00 per couple June 13 - June 23

June 27 - July 7

Your gift includes:

20-minute ride •Delicious chocolate candy Long-stem rose• Framed 4x6 photo Please call (585) 394-1472 for information and/or reservations. Prepaid reservations* required on/or before February 8, 2019.

July 11 - July 21

July 25 - August 2

August 8 - August 18

August 22 - September 1

Call 585-374-6318 or visit us at bvtnaples.org for more information

Give your sweetheart a gift he or she will long remember! You’ll feel as if you’ve stepped back in time as you cozy up with your sweetheart in a historic horse-drawn sleigh.** After your 20-minute ride on the Granger Homestead’s historic 12-acre site, you will want to come into the Law Office to warm up and enjoy a host of hot beverages and goodies. *Cancellations made less than 24 hours prior to reservation will be charged. **Either a sleigh or carriage will be used depending on weather.

Dr. Joseph F. Karpinski Sr. Educational Center 6880 East Lake Road Rt. 34 A Auburn, New York 13021 Across from Beautiful Emerson Park Sixth Annual Festival of Trees Continuing from Jan 2 to Jan 31. 2019 Over 100 Trees of all sizes, shapes, and themes decorated throughout the Museum.

Museum Decorated for Holidays Trees up through January 31 Festival Hours Mon,Tue Fri, Sat 10 A.M. till 4 P.M. Sun 11 A.M. till 4 P.M. Free Admission and Parking Trees all inside but dress warmly parts of Museum not heated.

Come revisit a holiday tradition

Winter Hours Mon, Tue, Fri, Sat 10 A.M. till 4 P.M. Sun 11 A.M. till 4 P.M. Phone: 315-252-7644 Email: tquill@cayugacounty.us www.cayugacounty.us/livingworking

January 19, Annual Winter Living Celebration

Connecting community with nature in a beloved, educational setting.

• Over 6 miles of trails across 600 acres • Cross-country ski & snowshoe rentals • Monthly Family Fun Programs • Weekly pre-school Storytime & Hike

D E S T I N AT I O N

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Chenangoc

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~ LifeintheFingerL akes.com

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Fruit of the Vine

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grapes, but good wine is often made with lower yields anyway. Not every colddamaged vineyard faces a bad vintage, and sometimes the exact opposite is true.

Of course, cold damage has very little to do with the strength of the actual growing season, which is the most important factor. If a vine makes it through the winter relatively intact, it’s the summer sun and temperatures which really ripens the grapes.

Open: Tuesday 10am-3pm & Saturday 1-5pm

6925 State Route 5, Bloomfield, New York 14469 585-257-5119 • www.antiquewireless.org

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Q: What is so important about a vineyard being near a lake?

A: This isn’t important in every region, but it’s important in places like the Finger

Lakes to balance the extremes of winter and summer we enjoy in upstate New York.

The endothermic properties of water means that large lakes can serve to modulate, if only by a few degrees, the surrounding winter lows (see previous answer above). Generally speaking, grapevines that are planted on a site near a lake suffer a little less damage and have a greater chance of entering the spring fully intact.

Overall, grapevines love warm days and cool nights to really round out their ripening and flavor profiles. The Finger Lakes region receives favorable amounts of sunlight and often reaches the requisite number of good growing days. The evening cooling effect of the lakes, the factor that humans find pleasant during the hottest stretches of the summer, is much appreciated by the grapes as well. Even warmer growing regions around the world often share the trait of varying temperatures between day and night; without it, good grape growing is challenging.

And, let’s admit it, a vineyard is often a beautiful thing to behold, but a vineyard poised on a slope over a shimmering Finger Lake is that much more picturesque. The special setting in the Finger Lakes adds something to the experience that in some ways goes beyond the wine.

Q:

Whenever I visit a Finger Lakes winery for a tasting, why do they serve the white wines before the red wines?

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Red wines have a heavier and more prolonged taste than whites due to tannins, barrel aging, more alcohol, etc. The theory behind the tasting lineup is you start with the lighter fare and work your way up the robustness of a red.

You could always try doing it the opposite way, but I wouldn’t recommend it.

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Offbeat (Continued from page 43)

small business, one that would allow him to discuss everything from bandwidths to how nighttime sky waves from AM stations bounce off the ionosphere and crackle through a listener’s speakers thousands of miles away.

Today, the North East Radio Watch

column he pens remains the flagship of an operation that has spawned other services, such as assistance in brokering sales of radio properties and the Top of the Tower podcast he produces. He also carves out time in his busy schedule to host a program and report news for WXXI-AM, the NPR station in Rochester.

Lisa Fybush, 49, handles most of the administrative work. “I coordinate the production of the calendar, its design, printing and ordering,” she says. All of the jobs are outsourced, she notes. “The thing I like best is dealing with a lot of longtime, loyal customers.”

An item in North East Radio Watch from 2003

Fybush applies his command of history to good use. He always sprinkles historical tidbits in the calendar that remind readers of important events. For example, on October 30, 1938, Orson Welles caused a national panic with the show “War of the Worlds” on CBS radio.

November 1, 1968, happened to be the date when WSFW-FM (now WLLW-FM) in Geneva signed on the air.

The Northeast is fortunate to be the breeding ground of early FM radio, says Fybush. The tower built in Alpine, New Jersey, in 1937 by Edward Armstrong, the father of FM, is still in use today by various stations. The vintage structure was pressed into service when the September 11 attack knocked out all the TV stations that transmitted from the ill-fated Manhattan skyscrapers.

Armstrong’s tower functioned as a backup broadcast transmission site, reports Fybush.

Speaking in the commanding, authoritative voice of a curator, he waxes nostalgic. “There’s a whole layer of invisible history most people aren’t really tuned into,” he says. “We don’t listen to 78 rpm records, we don’t send telegrams and we don’t shoot black and white photos.

“Radio,” he adds, “especially the AM band, is still standing. The technology is still in use.”

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Wine, Spirits & Brews

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Human Interest

Seneca Lake Wine Trail real, local, industrious and determined wineries

(Continued from page 47)

the oil is your car is such an easy thing to keep up with, but some people just can’t seem to do it.

“I don’t feel bad for the guy, I feel bad for the engine,” he adds.

Nick offered some advice for Finger Lakes drivers. “I can tell by one quick look whether a car stays here through the winter or comes from somewhere else. It’s the rust – the combination of snow, salt and calcium chloride that eats everything away.

One of the best things you can do is to get a professional undercoating every year. You want one that is lanolin-based, not tar-based, so make sure you ask about that. You don’t need to spend thousands of dollars: find someone local who’ll do it for around $150, and it will really make a difference in impeding rust.”

Nick LaBorde was born to be a mechanic, and he was born to learn and share what he knows. He’s lucky to live his passion every day, and we’re lucky to have one of the good ones right here in the Finger Lakes.

“Besides my experience, my reputation is the only thing I’ve got,” he concludes. “I work hard every day to make sure my customers are happy and that they’ll keep coming back.”

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Index of Advertisers

January/February 2019

Please support our advertisers. Let them know you saw their ad in Life in the Finger Lakes. Thanks!

COMPANY...................................... PAGE.........WEBSITE / E-MAIL

COMPANY...................................... PAGE.........WEBSITE / E-MAIL

Americana Vineyards..........................................11............americanavineyards.com

Ray Jewelers.......................................................... 5............wateresque.com

Bristol Mountain .................................................17............bristolmountain.com

Rosamond Gifford Zoo....................................... 7............rosamondgiffordzoo.org

Clifton Springs Chamber of Commerce........ 33............cliftonspringschamber.com

Route 96 Power & Paddle.................................17............powerandpaddle.com

Cottone Auctions.................................................18............cottoneauctions.com

Seager Marine......................................................11............seagermarine.com

Downtown Ithaca Alliance............................... 25............downtownithaca.com

Seneca County Chamber................................. 13............senecachamber.org

Eastview Mall....................................................... 12............eastviewmall.com

Seneca Lake Winery Association...................... 6............senecalakewine.com

Ferris Hills at West Lake....................................C2............ferrishills.com

Smith Boys Marina - Rochester......................... 2............smithboys.com

Finger Lakes Tram................................................ 7............ankomdevelopment.com

Timber Frames Inc............................................. 33............timberframesinc.com

Finger Lakes Weather.........................................19............flxweather.com

Wagner Vineyards................................................ 6............wagnervineyards.com

Granger Homestead & Museum...................... 9............grangerhomestead.org Hunt Hollow Ski Club........................................ 32............hunthollow.com Kendal at Ithaca..................................................C3............kai.kendal.org

MARKETPLACE ADVERTISING

Keuka Lake Wine Trail......................................... 9............keukawinetrail.com

Accommodations......................... Pg. 49

Real Estate for Sale...................... Pg. 39

Naples Valley Visitors Association.................... 4............naplesvalleyny.com

Camping......................................... Pg. 56

Seneca Lake Wine Trail............... Pg. 55

New Energy Works TimberFramers...............C4............newenergyworks.com

Canandaigua................................. Pg. 27

Shopping & Services.............. Pg. 52-53

North Star Art Gallery .......................................18............northstarartgallery.com

Culture & Attractions...............Pg. 50-51

Wine, Spirits & Brews.................. Pg. 54

Pennisi Fine Furniture........................................19............pennisifinefurniture.com

Naples............................................. Pg. 46

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