IMMINENT CREEKSIDE. “Chocolate As Aphrodisiac” is subject to be treated (tastefully, we trust) today(Saturday, 2/11) at Beattie-Powers House, from 2 pm., by
Janeen Sarlin, a new GreeneLander who is the author of, among other works,
Fifty Ways to Feed Your Lover. Demonstrations—of, presumably, amorously efficacious dishes—will be given, with the results disseminated. If you can find Prospect Avenue in Catskill, you can find Beattie-Powers House. Open to all. Bring a $10+ donation. (943-4764)
Coinciding with that treat will be a writers’ salon at the Arts Council building, 398 Main Street, from 2 pm, with
Jeanne Heiberg reading from her novel
Honey, A Life in Black and White.
Later in the afternoon, Main Street will rock with art+wine+nibbles. At the M Gallery (350 Main; 943-0380), the new show is “Ain’t Love Grand,” a collection of original drawings and paintings from romance novels and turn-of-century magazines. Open, a few doors up the street, at #360, will be Cooper & Co., where visitors can learn about the subtleties of conserving (and not over-‘restoring’) classic furniture. At Gallery 384, meanwhile, visitors to “The Image CafĂ©” will be served a smorgasbord of short Indie films plus an inter-active “video in the round” during 4-8 pm. Farther up the street, at number 402, visitors can experience “Fetish,” a new collection of assemblages & objects & drawings & sculptures. On the way to that opening, however, visitors will be enticed by still more eye candy, as well as hospitality, offered by the neighboring
Harolds (
Hanson and
Gondrez) in the adjacent shops Verso (20th century objects) and Dream (East Asian furniture.
If all that Main Streeting is not enough, take in a movie at the Community Theater. The current choices are the new “Pink Panther” and “When a Stranger Calls.”
IMMINENT MOUNTAINWARD. “Before Night Falls” is title of new show, featuring works of
Ragallah Rourke and
John Greene, from 5 pm. tomorrow at Windham Fine Arts gallery, 5380 Main Street, Windham.
In Hunter, both of the Mountain Foundation’s movies this weekend are Oscar material: “Brokeback Mountain” (from 7:30 pm. tonight, Saturday and Sunday, and 2:30 on Sunday), and “Munich” (from 8 pm. F-S-S and 3 pm. Sunday).
HOT COLE. “Have you prepared your application for next year?”
Rep.
John E. Sweeney voiced that question yesterday (2/9) in Catskill at Cedar Grove, where
Thomas Cole, founder of the Hudson River school of landscape painting, had lived and worked 150 years ago. Sweeney addressed the question most immediately to
Betsy Jacks, who is executive director of the volunteers’ organization--part of the Greene County Historical Society--that maintains the Thomas Cole National Historic Site. He voiced it on the occasion of celebrating the allocation of $745,000 of Federal funds, for fiscal year 2005-06, for improving Cedar Grove’s accessibility and infrastructure. Meanwhile, in his speech the Clifton Park-based Republican paid tribute to Cole for “capturing” on canvas “the awe-inspiring landscapes this region has to offer,” thereby making “cultural contributions” that are “immeasurable.” By means of that question to Ms Jacks, Congressman Sweeney signaled readiness to bring home another substantial appropriation in fiscal 2007.
And that’s just a bit of the news about Cedar Grove. In addition:
*The Salon that was scheduled for this Sunday, with GreeneLand Historian Ray Beecher expatiating on “The Wintry Picturesque,” has been canceled, in anticipation of too-wintry conditions, namely, a snowstorm.
**!An original Cole painting, “Prometheus,” fully (and laboriously) restored, will soon be hanging in the house, thanks to a permanent-loan deal with the board of Catskill Public Library. (Value of that painting? Don’t think about it).
**Due to open this spring is an ambitious exhibition of paintings by one of Cole’s best known followers,
Jasper Cropsey.
**!Cole’s own guitar, portrayed in his painting “The Pic-Nic,” will soon be on show, forever, at Cedar Grove.
**!And Cole’s original paint brushes, which are currently on display at the Dorsky Museum in New Paltz, will be coming home.
OF CONFLICT OF INTEREST. When village, town, school district and other governing boards make decisions about selection and compensation of employees, what should members do when the employees in question are close relatives or friends? Should they excuse themselves from participating in the decisions? The latter question is timely for, among others, the Athens Town Board. In strictly legal terms, board members are not obliged to stand apart. But legal advisers at the New York Conference of Mayors also urge local elected officials to avoid conflict-of-interest situations and decisions that could give an appearance of impropriety
CLOSING: upper grades at St Patrick’s Academy. After this June, Grade 7 and Grade 8 schooling will no longer be offered there. Principal
Rita Kunkel ascribes the decision to shrinkage of enrollments. In consequence, 23 students who otherwise would have gone up a grade must find other schools. In addition, Grade 6 at St Pat’s will go into hiatus for a year, since there are presently too few students in Grade 5. But Grade 6 will be restored starting in 2007-08.
FIRE BLOGGERS. How come all those hitchhikers who key in to
Seeing Greene have not blogged about the fund-raising breakfast on Sunday, (Jan. 29th) that raised $2500 for medical expenses of brother fireman
John Holt Jr? Gee gosh golly, fellers, one could infer from that event that the fraternal spirit isn’t dead after all.
VILLAGE ELECTIONS will take place on March 28 in GreeneLand. At the present time, it looks as if the habitually ruling Republicans in Catskill won’t field a single candidate.
Peter Markou did seek and receive G.O.P. endorsement, but then, citing health problems, withdrew.
Paul Rosenblatt, a registered Republican and former village trustee, did not solicit his party’s endorsement but is currently circulating petitions so as to qualify as an independent candidate; and he may yet be adopted, we hear, by the Republicans.
Evan Ulscht, a registered Democrat,former Village Trustee and Town Board candidate in 2005, solicited Republican endorsement ahead of the caucus, but his name was not put forward at the caucus. At the Democrats’ caucus (Feb. 1), the two incumbent trustees whose terms are expiring sought endorsement, and received it. They are
Forest Cotten and
Jim Chewens. Mr Cotten is a registered and active Democrat. Mr Chewens is a registered Republican; but in 2003 he stood as an independent and won. Mr Ulscht attended the Democrats' caucus but did not avow an interest in running; had he done so, we understand, he would have been given the nod. Only afterward did he announce a bid to run as an independent. Thus, if he persists and meets the filing requirements, he will be opposing the candidates endorsed by his erstwhile co-partisans. About Mr Chewens’s dealings with the Republican caucus, we’ve heard at least three stories:
i) he did not seek Republican endorsement, because he knew it would have been refused, since he had ‘broken ranks’ before, standing as an independent (and winning) after--so They say—pledging to back the Republican slate.
ii) He was approached by local Republican heavyweights with a view to standing for re-election on the G.O.P. line, but declined.
iii) He was offered Republican Party support IF he would (a) repudiate the current Village President,
Vincent Seeley (a Republican) and would (b) promise to support Mr Markou’s elevation (as a presumably victorious candidate for trustee) for Village President. He refused those terms.