Last week there was a particularly disturbing news story out of the hamlet of Copake, in Columbia County east of the Hudson. A despondent dairy farmer committed suicide, shooting dead 51 of his cows before killing himself. Although the scope of this private tragedy caught the collective breath of nationwide news consumers (for […]

This past weekend I took a camping trip down to Bowman Lake, a remote state park in the middle of Chenango County. There really isn’t much to see at Bowman Lake, which makes it the perfect place to relax and do nothing. Nowhere is usually a challenge to get to, however, and […]

I am sorry to report that one of my tater tots has died. I don’t know what caused the problem, but it doesn’t look like the dreaded late blight (especially since the one right next to it is doing fine). It all started after a heavy rain which flattened the plant. Some […]

The New York Times has more information on a story I first saw in the Plattsburgh newspaper a couple weeks ago:
A highly contagious fungus that destroys tomato plants has quickly spread to nearly every state in the Northeast and the mid-Atlantic, and the weather over the next week may determine whether the outbreak abates or […]

It’s been 40 years since Richard Nixon declared war on cancer. Why haven’t we won yet?
Below the flip are a few thoughts on technology, apple picking, space travel, the State Senate crisis, DestiNY USA, the Connective Corridor, backyard gardens, physics, and youth and old age. Proceed at your own risk!

I have sometimes considered where in New York (or the Northeast) I might like to live if I weren’t living in Syracuse. It might seem crazy, but in addition to the usual factors (jobs, politics, weather etc), I find myself considering the history of a place. To me, it’s like the character of […]

The long-anticipated $2 million restoration of the Nine Mile Creek Aqueduct at Camillus Erie Canal Park is a “go.” This was what it looked like on Saturday. They are now just starting to place the watertight layer of boards on the floor. When it’s finished in October, it will be the only […]

The Post-Standard has an important and very welcome front-page story today about elevated levels of lead and arsenic found in some community gardens in the city of Syracuse. (One of the beneficial side effects of the paper’s shrinkage: a front-page story really stands out and focuses the attention.) Although some of the contamination […]

A few weeks ago, the New York Regional Interconnect finally threw in the towel on their plans for a monstrous power line running from Oneida to Orange counties. This marks the end of a three-year battle by a consortium of citizens to turn back the project. EveAnn Schwartz and Chris Rossi of Stop […]