FEATURING

‘Springing’ Out of the Gate (4/5-4/12)

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Written by George L. Nitti George L. Nitti

Category: Week in Review Week in Review

We started our week on a music note, meeting up with friends last Thursday evening at the Dautaj Restaurant in Warwick. Meeting once a month, jazz musicians throughout the Hudson Valley have an opportunity to play amongst each other. It’s fruitful ground for musicians looking to develop their music chops and also makes great entertainment for spectators like us. Top musicians play, reminding us how lucky we are to be amidst high caliber talent right here in Warwick. For more on this new series, click here. On April 26, don't miss the Gabriele Tranchina Quartet, who will perform jazz and world music at Silvio’s Italian Villa. For more on that special show, click here. 

Last weekend we attended the Warwick Valley Community Expo where we met up with lots of business owners. Visit our photo album on facebook to see who we chatted up. It was nice to see familiar faces like Betsy Mitchell from Track 7. Speaking to her briefly, she told us that they were embarking on their seventh year in business and were appreciative of all of the support their business has received from the community. Always busy, their growth reflects their positive spirit and energy. All of the work they have done for the Food Pantry in Warwick has not gone unnoticed, either.

At the expo we enjoyed a pleasant conversation with representatives from Certa Pro Painters. Fans of our website, they gave us a few tips about our music calendar before we stumbled onto the subject of favorite eating destinations. At their booth, they were raffling off a $100 gift certificate to the Landmark Inn, which then launched us on a long conversation about food. We really hope we win that raffle as the weekend is here and we are hungry for something good to eat.

Their raffle gave us an idea: To focus energy on the variety of ways vendors promote themselves through what they giveaway at their booth. Opening up our plastic tote bag courtesy of Edward Jones Financial Services, we took up a large collection of company pens, frisbees, stressballs, and chocolate from as many vendors as we could gobble up. We enjoyed all of the food, devouring it immediately. Thank you to all of the vendors for the abundance of new office supplies you furnished. And that nifty beer opener, free photography session, back massage and stress test. The book on insurance tips will come in handy. We will continue to nurture that small plant we received from the Warwick Valley Community Center. All the raffle contests we entered give some hope too that we might be winners of a host of prizes, like a mini-ipad. And we are looking forward to our Discover Warwick Valley T-Shirt, which has arrived. Thank you again for the gifts!

Believe it or not it was a frivolous bag of popcorn that engaged us most at one of the booths. A harmless giveaway, I thought to myself. The man giving out the popcorn, Bob Bogert, was the owner of Alpine Air Heating and Air Conditioning. The popcorn was a big hit, not just with me but amongst a line-up of kids, who had one thing on their mind and it wasn't related to heating and air conditioning.  An hour later, I didn’t know that bag of popcorn was going to lead to a long conversation about geothermal  energy, a technology the company was promoting to showcase its cost savings.

It looks like spring has finally broken loose like a race horse sprinting out of the gate. Find out in the next couple of weeks how the horse race fares amongst our nursery brethren as we preview the area to see what’s springing forth on their lots.

This week we have some spring clothing that’s been out for some time as we look at some of what's fashionable. We also have a few other stories for you to check out and we've dug deeper into  “Letters from My Father,” this time focused on living a life of relevance. That's a great story, I must say so myself. Click here for the latest letter. 

Remember he who is first out of the gate is not always first to the finish line (Got that one from a Chinese fortune cookie). But gaining good track position is advantageous.  So…having said that….on your mark, get set………..Happy Spring!

The Food on our Table (3/30-4/5)

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Written by George L. Nitti George L. Nitti

Category: Week in Review Week in Review

Can you eat the delicious looking black dirt and drink the glistening waters of Greenwood Lake? Our neighbor’s boat is already in the water. And the tractors are plowing the fields. Some say you can’t eat the scenery. I say you can.

Around the area we go, from Greenwood Lake to Pine Island, from water to black dirt, as far north as the city of Middletown to the denser fringe of Suffern, even as far south as Bergen County. You can bet you will find us somewhere in between. If not we may be on the road to Maine. Or a favorite monthly excursion. In our dreams it’s St. John, San Francisco, Italy….

This month we will go to Ridgewood, NJ getting a scoop on what’s happening there and sharing it with you in May. We love to go places, both in and out of the Warwick Valley, and that’s just the way it is. Since I grew up in Ridgewood, I enjoy returning, reminiscing and seeing how things have changed. And then reporting on it.

As far as what is happening here, we are happy to say – way too much. Spring starts out with much hope, slow going, and then accelerates, blossoming out of control. The farmers are now preparing the ground for planting, as we discovered enroute to Rogowski Farm in Pine Island last week.

At the farm, we picked up a loaf of wood-fired rustic sourdough rye from Bobolink, listened to acoustic guitarist and singer/songwriter Sarah Morr perform live (these days she's been very focused writing new material) and visited with vendors from around the region who were selling cheeses, organic grass fed meats, vegetable seedlings, local wine, honey, lotions, and much more. 

Cut me a nice sliver of local cheddar and I’m in heaven!

At the market, I ran into locally grown photographer Francesco Mastalia, who is working on publishing a unique series of photographs on farmers and chefs around the Hudson Valley in a project entitled Organic, catching the attention of both Table and Orange Magazines, where it has been featured. “Organic is not what you think it is,” he says. “There is “organic” and then there is “organic.” That’s one thing I discovered after talking to over 120 farmers and chefs for this project.” Visit his website and take a look at his fascinating project. Click here to view project.  

This week, we will focus on the fashion scene, visiting 3 clothing retailers to find out what’s currently in style for women.  Just as winter gets underway, these retailers already have their spring line-up on display. Talk about planning for the future. I would never have made it in the clothing retail business, as I’m usually trying to catch up to the last season.

Which brings me to a winter’s day in Florida, NY, when I learned all about the metal arts. The tale about the iceforge was not easy to write; there was so much to take in and learn that I found it challenging to assimilate all of the new vernacular. But who says we don’t grow. Even in the dormancy of winter we are preparing for rebirth. Now the story has emerged and I’m wearing it more loosely. Please take a look, especially at the fabulous photos by West Milford photographer Carol Moran. Suffice it to say, there is so much abundance – from metal to earth, water and fire – that there’s plenty for everyone. Read More

On a personal note, we had a death in our family, our cat Sydney passed away and we hope he is somewhere in cat heaven. I shared my story with a group of 3^rd graders this week in one of Suffern’s elementary schools where I substitute teach. The subject of the lesson – what I did over springbreak. It was nice to learn what they did as well, as they read me their more uplifting stories of fun and adventure while Kerryl and I buried our cat.

Finally, when you thought it was over, I came up with one more project to sink my teeth into and share amongst you all. Last spring brought the death of my father.  The letters he sent me over the last 30 years away from home are now resurfacing, as I’ve decided to reread them to rediscover how much he impacted my life.  I will imbibe the letters slowly, ruminate over them, write reflections and respond to his thoughts from another perspective. Join me in this other journey, a memoir called "Letters from My Father: Lessons I've Learned."  Read More.

Take your pick of what you want to eat. Broccoli, cauliflower, asparagus, brussel sprouts.... Take what you want. Leave the rest. There is a lot of good food on the table and you are welcome to it all.