Ilana Papele’s The List

Critters - please let me know if you would like an angora bunny.

Wethersfield is open Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, 12 -5. Call ahead if you would like a tour of the carriage house or main house. 373-8037. Where it had been free to go for years, I understand there is now $5 admission.

Free HIV testing Thursday and Friday. June 25 at the Family Partnership Center, 29 North Hamilton Street, Poughkeepsie, NY 12601 (845) 790-5914 x3185, 11:00-4:00
English/Spanish.
At Planned Parenthood Health Centers on June 26.17 Noxon Street, Poughkeepsie, NY 12601 (845)471-1540, 9:00-4:00.
169 Washington Avenue, Kingston, NY 12401 (845)338-0840, 9:00-2:30.
44 North Chestnut Street, New Paltz, NY 12561 (845)255-6450, 9:00-3:30
An important thing to know and this will invariably cost a good deal, should anyone want to contribute.

Animal Wildlife Rehabilitator. I have found one. Motherless fawns, injured birds. Please let me know if you would like her contact info. Of course, she could use any monetary donations if someone is feeling generous.

The Half Moon Passport of $16.09 dinners ends July 1. Poughkeepsie’s best restaurants are participating, like The Artists Palate, Busy Bee, Castillo Espanol and many more.

Self seeded tomatoes abound at our house. I think they are a yellow cherry and please contact me if you would like some.

June 26-July 12:
The Who’s Tommy. Peter Townshend’s tale of a young boy’s journey from pain to triumph is the most electrifying evening of rock and roll ever to play in a theatre! The classic 1960s rock opera by The Who, is a high-energy, one-of-a-kind theatrical event. 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays; 3 p.m. Sunday. The Center for Performing Arts at Rhinebeck. Tickets: $22; $20. 845-876-3080. www.centerforperformingarts.org.

Funny Thing On The Way to the Forum at Triarts in Sharon, through July 4. www.triarts.net. 860-364-SHOW.

Forbidden Broadway at Stageworks in Hudson. A “panoply of parodies” June 24 – 28. 518-822-9667. How marvelous and next weekend too.
Phedra at Time & Space in Hudson. A Ted Hughes version. 518-822-8448. Fri – Sun.
Tales of Anton Chekhov at the Basilica Industria in Hudson. 518-610-0909. Fri – Sun. AKA Virtue, Desire, Death and Foolishness. Next weekend performances as well.

Great idea for this summer: an art class! Barrett School of Art offers classes in Millbrook at Merritt Bookstore and in Poughkeepsie. There’s something for everyone, all ages and all skill levels, so check it out www.barrettartcenter.org/classes or call for a catalog 471-2550. Classes start soon.

Wednesday, June 24:

Sustainable Landscaping forum at Cornell Cooperative Extension, 7:00 ­ 8:30 pm and it is free, with refreshments. Sustainable landscaping, or “GreenScaping” encompasses a set of landscaping practices that can improve the health and appearance of your lawn and garden, while protecting and preserving natural resources (USEPA). Thus, saving time, money and protecting the environment.
Greenscaping can include building and maintaining healthy soils, choosing the plants that are adapted to their locale, practicing smart watering, using a holistic approach to pest management, and practicing natural lawn care. Come to the free forum to learn more about greenscaping, rain gardens, and the benefits to our local natural resources and water supplies. 2715 Rt. 44, Millbrook. For more information, contact Vicky Buono at (845) 677-8223, ext. 153, or vcb4@cornell.edu. Come early to tour the tour the CCEDC Sustainable Gardens from 6:30-7:00pm. The GIS Special Interest Group Meeting is held before the forum from 6:00-6:45pm, and the EMC Meeting is held following the forum from 8:30-9:30pm.

Genealogy Discussion Group at the Millbrook Library. 6:30 p.m. Have you ever wanted to research your family tree? Have you been hunting for family histories and hit a brick wall? Are you an experienced “genie” and would like to share your experiences and expertise? All are welcome!

Harvest Band plays for free at the Vanderbilt Mansion grounds. 7pm. 229-8086.

Thursday, June 25:

A promising line up for the Open Mic at Seany B’s. Starts around 9:30. 677-2282.

Friday, June 26:

Shorty King’s Clubhouse brings the best Post-War Jump, Swing, Rockin’ Boogie and Rhythm & Blues to La Puerta Azul, 9pm.

Aston Magna at Bard. Music of the 17th and 18th centuries performed on period instruments. Admission charged. 8 pm, Olin Hall. 845-758-7887.

Vassar’s Powerhouse Theatre Reading Festival and this marks the start of Powerhouse Theatre’s 25th season. Over the past twenty years, I have seen some wonderful productions here. The reading festival is free, but reservations are strongly suggested. Four plays, through June 28. The second reading festival features five plays and is July 30 – August 2. 845-437-5599, http://powerhouse.vassar.edu, www.newyorkstageandfilm.org.

If I can steal away for a few hours, I just may head to Williamsburg, of all places, to see a friends recent work shown at Jack the Pelican Presents. Gregory and I were good friends when we lived in MA and I think his work is stupendous. Do let me know if you need the address or are interested in seeing Gregory’s art.

Saturday, June 27:

Millbrook Arts Group concert at the Bandshell. Don Egry Trio with Rosemary Sepe Neilson “Jazzamatazz: From Basie to Broadway” http://www.millbrookartsgroup.org/mag_events.html.

Wild Edibles Plant Walk at the Mohonk Preserve, 9:30-12. Explore wild plants at the Mohonk Preserve. Learn to identify plants that can be used for food and medicine.
Registration thorugh the Mohonk Preserve. 845-255-0919. Led by Aleese Cody, LMT,
NCTMB. www.aleesecody.com, coyotefarms@att.net. Free to members, non-members must buy a day pass.

Grace Church in Millbrook presents “A Musical Evening with Broadway Singer-Songwriter Jim Wann,” at 7 p.m. at the Chelsea Morrison Theatre at the Millbrook School. The musical evening will feature songs celebrating our wonderful land and will benefit Grace Church’s Caring for God’s Creation ministry, which researches and promotes practical ways to protect and preserve the environment.
Creator of the Broadway hit “Pump Boys and Dinettes” and the off-Broadway successes “King Mackerel and the Blues are Running” and “The People Vs. Mona,” Jim Wann has been a professional composer, singer, actor, and musical theatre performer for over thirty years. A resident of Claverack in Columbia County, Jim currently hosts Farmers Almanac TV’s new magazine show for PBS, in addition to his live performances.
Tickets are $25 for adults and $10 for children (12 and under) and are available from the parish office (3328 Franklin Avenue), online at www.itickets.com/events/231138.html or by calling Diane Schnoor at 845-702-5379.

Hudson Valley Chamber Music Circle: Concert 3. Emerson Quartet. Hudson Valley Chamber Music Circle, Sharon Robinson and Jaime Laredo, artistic directors. Presented in cooperation with the Bard Center. Admission charged. Olin Hall. 8 p.m. 845-339-7907 or hvcmc.bardcenter@gmail.com.

Songs for the River at Staatsburgh’s Norrie Point, with Betty and the Baby Boomers. 8-10pm. 845-889-4745 x 104. (Mom, you like them).

Powerhouse Theatre Gala at 7pm. Wow. Don’t miss the chance to see Powerhouse stars, including Oscar winner Mary McDonnell, David Strathairn, Rob Morrow, Carol Kane, and Jon Tenney, reunite for one-evening-only. Powerhouse Theater will celebrate 25 fabulous seasons of great new theater with a star-studded gala featuring Oscar, Tony, and Grammy Award-winning artists and works. The performance is followed by a party featuring great cuisine and beverages produced in the Hudson Valley. Single orchestra or parterre tickets are $100 and there are limited balcony seats available at $50 (enter code: GALABALC). powerhouse.vassar.edu or call the box office at 845-437-5599 or (845) 437-7235 for additional information or to purchase your tickets.

Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival Much Ado About Nothing opening night. The HVSF is honoring Scenic Hudson with a special “Much Ado About Green” evening of networking, nibbles, wine tastings, music and glorious theater — all on the beautiful and scenic grounds of Boscobel in Garrison, Putnam County. Festivities begin at 6 p.m., theater at 8 p.m. If you are a Scenic Hudson member, receive a 15% discount off the $50 ticket price. Just call the box office 845-265-9575 and mention the code “Go Green.” www.hvshakespeare.org, 845-265-9575.

Studio Stu Exotic Dance Grooves at The Rhinecliff Hotel, 4 Grinnel Street
Rhinecliff, 845.876.0590. www.rhinecliffhotel.com.

Sunday, June 28:

Upstate Films special event at 5:45 PM. Screening of ENLIGHTEN UP! followed by Q&A with Yoga practitioner and film participant Shyamdas, who has written and translated more than 20 books on the yoga of devotion and is a recognized speaker in the West as well as in India. www.upstatefilms.org 845-876-2515.

Monday, June 29:

Gathering Of Gardeners - Garden forum held at Dutchess County Farm &
Home Center, 2715 Rt 44, Millbrook, 7-9. Meet with CCE staff & Master Gardener volunteers to discuss gardening techniques, problems & environmentally sound gardening practices. Network with & meet fellow gardeners in our area. Light refreshments will be served. $5 donation (payable at door) to support Community Horticulture Program to help fund educational programming. RSVP to Nancy Halas, nh26@cornell.edu, 677-8223 x 115.

Tuesday, June 30:

Powerhouse Theatre at Vassar. First production is “Ninety”. “Isabel just wants ninety minutes. Soon, William will be married again, so ninety is all she has to make her case. Ninety to remember what they had. Ninety to regain what was lost. Just ninety to redisocer love or call it a day forever.” 845-437-5599, http://powerhouse.vassar.edu or www.newyorkstageandfilm.org.

Wednesday, July 1:

Zappa plays Zappa at the Bardavon. www.bardavon.org, 845-473-2072.

With a semi drought followed with the better part of ten days of rain, my garden is about a month behind. But my summer reading is coming along nicely. Currently enjoying The Reach of a Chef (Michael Ruhlman) and nearly done with “Things I’ve Learned From Women Who’ve Dumped Me”.

Restaurants are preparing for summer. Not only taking advantage of the region’s bounty, but the hours of your favorite restaurant may have changed. Stissing House is on summer hours, so no more lunch until frost? School? Further notice. And closed on Tuesday and Wednesday. Loopey’s is now open on Tuesday. Also, Millbrook Winery is on summer tour and tastings hours of 11 to 6.

Jobs. Someone is looking for someone who can shape tall hedges. Someone is looking for responsible childcare for July and many weekends to follow. Another person is hoping someone wants to run their table at the farmer’s market, including gathering and pricing produce.

Critters. Kittens, three litter mates, need a good home. At the Beekman Shelter were a Lhasa Apsa and a wirey Jack Russell cross among the usual larger unique dogs.

Food wow for the week was Old Chatham Sheepherding Company’s Ginger Yogurt. Pricey, at $2.50 for a little container, but wow. Found at Silamar’s Farm Stand and certainly other places. Wow.

Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum at TriArts in Sharon. Thru July 4 and a reminder some people survive on just being lovely. www.triarts.net, 860-364-SHOW.

Benefit for the Poughkeepsie Library district at the former Linens and Things shop on Route 9, now thru June 23. Book sale, including music and movies. 845-473-1464, www.poklib.org.

Clothes Swap was a huge success and we have a room full of clothes being donated. Whew. We plan to have one more, probably late summer, definitely a Sunday.

Friday, June 19:

Chair Sale to benefit the Bardavon at 10am. Hudson Valley Office Furniture and the Bardavon will be hosting a fundraising Chair Sale Thursday, June 18 (rain date June 19) from 10am-4pm at Lawrence Farms, 1083 Route 9 South in Fishkill (just past Stop & Shop and BJ’s). Executive desk chairs! Task chairs! Conference and reception chairs! More than 1000 chairs will be on sale for $5 and up. Make a Bardavon membership donation and receive one chair free. A large portion of the proceeds from the sale benefit Bardavon programs. The impetus? Hudson Valley Office Furniture president, Steven Chickery, is a member of the Bardavon Board of Directors and said, “When I heard that the hard-working, dedicated staff of the Bardavon were willing to take unpaid furloughs and time off to help reduce the operating expenses for 2009/10, I came up with the “chair sale” idea as a fun fund raiser. We will have at least a thousand chairs at the sale and I hope we sell every one. My goal is to raise $ 10,000 for the Bardavon and get at least 100 new members.” Call the Bardavon at 845.473.5288 ext. 108 or Hudson Valley Office Furniture at 845.471.7910 for more information.

Farmer’s Market in Poughkeepsie, Main Mall, during business hours and probably Pleasant Valley, 4 -7.

Washington (Connecticut) Art’s Gala Opening Party of the Atelier Sale and Summer Solstice Festival. 6pm start, a joyful gathering of friends and community. Delicacies provided by The Mayflower Inn, The Winvian, Woodward House Restaurant and Mojitos Wine Beer with Live Music, Sidewalk painting and hundreds of works of art on sale for $250 and under. Swing with the Mojito King. $35 and last chance to reserve a ticket 860.868.2878.

An Evening of Magic, Mystery and Mayhem with John Shaw. Shaw will be bringing his brand of comedy magic and illusions to The Center for Performing Arts at Rhinebeck and will be featuring all-new, never-seen-before illusions. 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday. 845-876-3080. www.centerforperformingarts.org, also on June 20.

Art Outside the Box Fundraiser at the Cunneen Hackett. “A Night at the Studio and whether it is an Andy Warhol Factory Scene or Studio 54, get ready to channel your inner superstar as Steven Evans DJ’s a night of the best of the 70’s and 80’s music for your dancing pleasure.” Pay what you think it is worth to you and come dance, dance, dance. 8 – 11 and drinks too. RSVP ASAP 845-454-3222.

Music Scene: Marshall, Will and Holly play at La Puerta Azul. Ken Faranda, Joe Bouchard (yes, the man from Blue Oyster Cult) and Bobby MacDougall play at Loopeys. Sloan Wainwright at Towne Crier.

Saturday, June 20:

Millbrook Farmer’s Market, 9 -1. Too Blue performs and they’re fun!

Clearwater Festival this Saturday and Sunday, with the usual amazing line up of talent. www.clearwater.org/festival/index.html.

Guided Bird Walk at Clermont in Germantown. 9am, $3, reservations please 518-537-4240. www.friendsofclermont.org.

Birding Breakfast & Nature Store Sale at the Sharon Audubon. Spreading out over the entire 1147-acre property to take inventory of the birds that are using the Audubon Center as their summer breeding grounds, Birding will begin promptly at 7am and breakfast will be at 10. This fun event will provide information about the presence of birds that will help guide management activities for the property. Registration is required, but this is a free event. Please contact Dawn Osborne at 860-364-0520 x 14 or dawnosborne@audubon.org.
After birding, celebrate the summer solstice by treating yourself to something from the Audubon Nature Store. Various merchandise and all field guides will be on sale! The Store is open 9-5. All donations made to Audubon Sharon by June 30 will be doubled, thanks to a challenge grant. And if you go, do check out their herb garden. www.sharon.audubon.org, Route 4, Sharon, CT 06069 / (860) 364-0520.

Upstate Films, special event at 2pm. Screening of 1982 classic MY FAVORITE YEAR.
Fundraising Event for the Dutchess County Arts Council. The screening is followed by a Q&A with actor Mark Linn-Baker, and a wine and cheese reception at the Rhinebeck Savings Bank. Tickets may also be purchased to enter a drawing for an original film poster, signed by the artist. All event tickets available through the DCAC - RSVP by Friday, June 19th at 845-454-3222 or by email at info@artsmidhudson.org.

Commemorative FDR Royal Hot Dog Picnic, noon, free. 1939, Franklin and Eleanor hosted reigning monarchs George and Elizabeth. AT the Hyde Park Station, 34 River Road. www.hydeparkstation.com.

Crafts at Rhinebeck Fairgrounds. Also on Sunday. www.dutchessfair.com.

Hyde Park in Bloom 2009- River Views and Rural Vistas. A Tour of Gardens and
Landscapes. Brunch 9 -11 AM. Garden sites open at 10 AM. $30 person. Gardener’s House Mills Mansion, Staatsburg. For directions, www.staatsburgh.org.

Dazzling Dragonflies Program at the Hudson Highlands Nature Museum’s Outdoor Discovery Center, entrance on Muser Drive across from 174 Muser Drive, Cornwall. 10am. Learn about dragonflies then take a walk in the fields. $3, Members are free. www.hhnaturemuseum.org. 845-534-5506, ext. 204.

Reception for Every 71 Seconds: Memories of Alzheimer’s. A photo essay by stellar photographer Michele Muir abou the lives of those with Alzheimers. Mill Street Loft, 3 – 7. Exhibit runs thru July 31. Michele will give a talk, other readings given, live music too. www.millstreetloft.org, 845-471-7477.

Hudson Valley Chamber Music Circle (HVCMC) series at Bard College presents the first of three concerts in June by world-renowned musicians. 8p.m. in Olin Hall. A subscription to the three-concert series is $60 ($50 for senior citizens). Individual tickets are $28; for senior citizens, $20; for students, $5 For ticket information, call 845-339-7907 or e-mail hvcmc.bardcenter@gmail.com. Trio con Brio Copenhagen—violinist Soo-Jin Hong, cellist Soo-Kyung Hong, and pianist Jens Elvekjaer. The repertoire includes Per Norgaard’s Spell, Shostakovich’s Piano trio in E minor, op. 67, and Mendelssohn’s Piano trio in C minor, op. 66.

Hollywood Horse Trainer, Rex Peterson teaches a clinic at Windrock Farm, Amenia, Fri June 19-Sun June 21. Rex has trained horses for over 40 films and has 3 of his movie horses at Windrock Farm, Tuff who was Flicka, and Jeremy Irons mount in Appaloosa, Cache who was Viggo Mortensens mount in Appaloosa, and RJ/Hidalgo. You can bring your horse to work with Rex, or come and watch him work RJ at liberty at 3pm on Saturday. Contact cari@cariswanson.com for details to attend the clinic. www.swansonpetersonproductions.com Free Black Beauty poster signed by Rex for the kids.

Washington Art Association continues the Solstice festivities from 10 – 4. Kid focused family entertainment, but all ages welcome. Roger The Jester: After touring with the Swiss theatre troupe Mummenschanz, Roger the Jester took to the road “to recreate the wandering lifestyle of a medieval fool.” That decision has left a trail of laughter throughout twenty-three countries. Magical Mayheim: Peter Juris has performed all over the world and blown away audiences with his hysterically unique brand of entertainment.
IF YOU WERE A PENGUIN: Florence Minor will be reading her new book, behind the town hall at 1pm this will be followed by an opportunity for the children to “illustrate” the book on the nearby pavement with chalk provided by The WAA.
Spirit Dance: at 2:30 pm on the front lawn of the Town hall led by Edwin Olvera former Philobolus Dancer.

Music Scene: Providers play at La Puerta Azul. Frank Carillo & The Bandoleros, with Special Guest Eric Hill, at the Towne Crier. Studio Stu will be at the Rhinecliff Hotel.

Sunday, June 21:

Angus Martin in concert. Danceable music from around the world in French, Spanish and Haitian Creole. 3 p.m. Sunday. The Center for Performing Arts at Rhinebeck. 876-3080. www.centerforperformingarts.org.

Clermont Garden Tour, $10 and reservations please. Tree identification. (hint: many old locusts and a fabulous collection of lilacs) 518-537-4240. www.friendsofclermont.org.

Rhinebeck Farmer’s Market, 10-2.

Fundraisers to feed Dad. Pancake Breakfast at the West Clinton Fire Department and the Fire Department on Route 82 in Billings.

Wednesday, June 24:

Annual Mohonk Gardens Tour & Luncheon Returns to Mountain House. Enjoy the splendorous beauty of Mohonk’s gardens while gaining insight into how they are created and maintained as Cornell Cooperative Extension of Ulster County’s Master Gardener Program hosts its annual Mohonk Garden Walk and Luncheon on at the Mohonk Mountain House, in New Paltz. Garden enthusiasts will embark in groups of approximately 15 people on a two-hour walking tour of Mohonk’s formal flower gardens, annual and perennial beds, and greenhouse.
Tours begin between 10 and 10:30am followed by a buffet style lunch served at 12 noon in the West Dining Room that will feature guest speaker, Naomi Brooks. Brooks is an accomplished designer and landscaper specializing in native plants and the owner of Verdant Landscapes. The fee is $55 per person, which includes luncheon. Pre-registration is required no later than June 19 to attend. Participants should plan on arriving early as traffic can back up at the gate. Valet parking is available at the Mountain House. Call Dona Crawford at 845-340-3990 for the Mohonk Walk Registration Form.

Waterman Bird Club trip to Institute of Ecosystem Studies (Cary Arboretum). Meet at Gifford House parking lot, 65 Sharon Turnpike (Rt 44A) at 8 a.m. Call Carol: 845-452-7619.

Genealogy Discussion Group at the Millbrook Library. 6:30 p.m. Have you ever wanted to research your family tree? Have you been hunting for family histories and hit a brick wall? Are you an experienced “genie” and would like to share your experiences and expertise? All are welcome!

Harvest Band plays for free at the Vanderbilt Mansion grounds. 7pm. 229-8086.

June 26-July 12
The Who’s Tommy. Peter Townshend’s tale of a young boy’s journey from pain to triumph is the most electrifying evening of rock and roll ever to play in a theatre! The classic 1960s rock opera by The Who, is a high-energy, one-of-a-kind theatrical event. 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays; 3 p.m. Sunday. The Center for Performing Arts at Rhinebeck. Tickets: $22; $20. 845-876-3080. www.centerforperformingarts.org.

Sat., June 27
Grace Church in Millbrook presents “A Musical Evening with Broadway Singer-Songwriter Jim Wann,” Saturday, June 27, at 7 p.m. at the Chelsea Morrison Theatre at the Millbrook School. The musical evening will feature songs celebrating our wonderful land and will benefit Grace Church’s Caring for God’s Creation ministry, which researches and promotes practical ways to protect and preserve the environment.
Creator of the Broadway hit “Pump Boys and Dinettes” and the off-Broadway successes “King Mackerel and the Blues are Running” and “The People Vs. Mona,” Jim Wann has been a professional composer, singer, actor, and musical theatre performer for over thirty years. A resident of Claverack in Columbia County, Jim currently hosts Farmers Almanac TV’s new magazine show for PBS, in addition to his live performances.
Tickets are $25 for adults and $10 for children (12 and under) and are available from the parish office (3328 Franklin Avenue), online at www.itickets.com/events/231138.html, or by calling Diane Schnoor at 845-702-5379.

Critters. Puppy needs a home, Australian cattle dogs need homes (two, preferably together), goats need homes, exotic birds need homes. And someone is looking for a male tabby cat. Every shelter around seems to be full so please remember to look there before hitting the pet stores.

More about animals: Sarah Montague’s Adult Rider is so practical and inspiring that even I am thinking about trying to get up on a pony. Signed copies available at Merritt. For more inspiration, consider attending Hollywood Horse Trainer, Rex Peterson’s clinic at Windrock Farm, Amenia, this Friday through Sunday. Rex has trained horses for over 40 films, creating some of the most exciting sequences in the movies including the Horse Whisperer, Flicka, Hidalgo, The Ring, All the Pretty Horses and many more.
Rex has 3 of his movie horses at Windrock Farm, Tuff who was Flicka, and Jeremy Irons mount in Appaloosa, Cache who was Viggo Mortensens mount in Appaloosa, and RJ/Hidalgo. You can bring your horse to work with Rex, or come and watch him work his horses. Contact cari@cariswanson.com for details to attend the clinic. For more information about Rex, visit www.swansonpetersonproductions.com.

Sorry. A correction for last week. Both festivals are close by. Hudson Valley Shakespeare is https://hvshakespeare.org. Berkshire Shakespeare is www.shakespeare.org.

Phil has a 2003 Craftsman Lt 1000 42inch riding mower for sale. 19.5 HP. Runs but needs some valve work. Decent shape with grass/leaf bagger (1yr old). New belt. $300 or best offer. 845-877-9164.

Vrooom. Friday June 12 – Sunday June 14 The Rhinebeck Grand National Super Meet. Rhinebeck Fairgrounds. Antique motorcycles, tractors, trucks, airplanes. Special attractions, stunts, thrill shows. Vintage club displays. Information: 845-242-4690 or tstkrl@verizon.net. They say it’s kid friendly, $15 per adult, Friday 10-5. Saturday, 8-5 and Sunday 8 – 3. www.rhinebecknationalmeet.com.

Clothes Swap will be 11 to 1 on Saturday, meaning everything bagged up and ready to go before 1:15. Please email me for a head count and directions.

Wednesday, June 10:

Poughkeepsie celebrates Henry Hudson. Geological Tours, historical walking tours, public art tours … come celebrate the incredible amount of history and art this area holds. If you go, pick up a laminate Half Moon Passport, which entitles you to $16.09 specials in many of Poughkeepsie’s restaurants, like the Artist’s Palate, Busy Bee Café, Castillo Espagnol and the River Station. The ships leave at 4, so you can still make it over this afternoon for that, but I reckon most of the tours are finished.

The Saints play at Mills Mansion (aka Staatsburgh), on the massive lawn, overlooking the Hudson, so you’ll probably see the ships sail past if you get there a bit early. Free, music begins at 7.

The Rhinecliff Hotel will have its own Halve Maen (Half Moon) fiesta from 5 – 8, watching the ships come up the Hudson. Fundraiser for Hudson River Heritage, $20 includes light fare, a drink and a great place to watch the river. 845-876-2474.

Thursday, June 11:

Towns of Union Vale and Washington board meetings. 7:30 and 7pm starts.
Hear the decisions being made in your town.

Locust Grove Sunset Sensations featuring Chef Bruce Kazan of the Main Course. 5:30 – 7:30, about $25. 845-454-4500 x 17. www.lgny.org. Food and wine sampling with demonstrations and a tour of the heirloom vegetable garden. For those not familiar with Locust Grove, it is a surprising oasis off Route 9 between 44/55 and the chaos of the shopping malls. It was the home of inventor Samuel Morse, there is a small museum worth visiting and the grounds are wonderful.

Greek Festival in Poughkeepsie. Thru June 14. Free. Vendors, food, performances, music. 845-452-4000.

Millbrook Library Literary Luncheon, 11:30. Pot Luck lunch before the discussion, so please bring an item to add to the lunch table. Refreshments and dessert will be provided. The Millbrook Library Book Club will be discussing: Stones From The River by Ursula Hegi.

Friday, June 12:

Millbrook Garden Club House and Garden of six fabulous gardens in the Sharon and Salisbury, Connecticut area will be open, featuring expansive views, open farmland, perennial beds, walled gardens, weekend retreats and colonial homes. Pre-ordered lunch will be available at the Sharon Country Club, along with a variety of interesting boutiques. For ticket information please call Claire Reid at 845-677-0680 or email claire.reid@verizon.net or purchase a ticket on the day of the event at the Sharon Country Club.

Loopeys, 9pm til late. The Eric Hill Band, www.erichill.net. 845-677-6212.

The Annual Rosé Invasion At Old Mill Wines in Rhinebeck. All over the world in vineyards, wineries, restaurants and cafés, wine lovers are reveling in the new crop of rosés. Crisp, lively, refreshing, and best of all pink, these wines are perfect for lazy day lunching, paired with appetizers and grilled delicacies, or simply quaffed on the deck or by the pool. We’ll be tasting some of these crowd pleasing wines made from a variety of varietals such as tempranillo and sangiovese, or classic southern French rosés like bandol, and côtes de Provence. So be sure to welcome summer with us and try some delicious rosé wines. Tastings every Friday & Saturday 4pm, 6390 Mill Street, Rhinebeck (across from the Beekman Arms). 845-876-5343

Saturday, June 13:

Defensive Driving at the Millbrook Library. Course will be taught by the Daytona Driving School, which is approved by the Empire Safety Council. Empire’s lesson plan is distinguished from other sponsors with a state specific lesson plan that is referenced with the NYS Vehicle and Traffic Law manual. (ie – will knock points off your license). 10 am – 4 pm, so bring lunch. $40 with a $5 non-refundable deposit. Register at the Circulation Desk during regular Library hours.

Annual Tea for the Washington/Millbrook Historical Society. 2 - 4pm at the Millbrook Village Hall. You must be a member for this occasion, but can join then. See the new home and part of the collection of paintings and photographs. David Greenwood, Town Historian, will speak about the society and the collection.

Stissing House, 6-8, is having a discussion and book signing for Michael Gross author of a brand new book Rogues’ Gallery: The Secret History of the Moguls and the Money that made the Metropolitan Museum. Pat Beard, friend and local author (her latest is Blue Blood and Money: The Fight for the Soul of Morgan Stanley) will be interviewing Michael about the book as well as his experience with “libel tourism”. This promises to be a very interesting event, as Michael is always entertaining. So come by, have a drink, buy a book, say hello to friends, hear who really made the Met, have a bite. Unique opportunity. Route 199 & Route 82 junction in Pine Plains. 518.398.8800 www.stissinghouse.com.

Kevin Zraly, the founder and teacher of the immensely popular Windows on the World Wine School, and the author of the Windows on the World Complete Wine Course, will bring an abridged (but equally entertaining) version of his 8-part “Windows on the World Wine School” to Millbrook Winery this summer. Seating for all three sessions will be limited so call soon! Cost is $125 per session. Session 1: Understanding Pinot Noir.
Kevin will discuss and taste through Pinot Noir wines from around the world. Our tasting will include a minimum of 8 wines and will focus on the different styles that these regions offer and the vinification procedures that are used to make a great Pinot Noir. The tasting will include wines from Côte Chalonnaise, Côte de Beaune, and Côte de Nuits from Burgundy and from the best regions in California, Oregon and New York. Join us from 5 - 5:30 for a short reception featuring Millbrook wines and local cheese. 677-8383 x 17, Stacy. www.millbrookwine.com

Hudson Valley Chamber Music Circle presents the first of three concerts. Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson Trio, “one of the best-blended, most sensitive and intelligent piano trios in the world today” (New York Times). The trio—pianist Joseph Kalichstein, violinist Jaime Laredo, and cellist Sharon Robinson—perform an all Schubert program: G minor Sonatina for violin and piano, Arpeggione Sonata for cello and piano, and Piano Trio in E-flat major, op. 100. Bard College, Olin Hall, 8 p.m. A subscription to the three-concert series is $60 ($50 for senior citizens). Individual tickets are $28; for senior citizens, $20; for students, $5. 845-339-7907 or e-mail hvcmc.bardcenter@gmail.com.

Waterman Bird Club trip to Pawling Nature Preserve. Meet at Reserve, 126 Quaker Lake Rd, Pawling at 8 a.m. Call Barbara: 845-297-6701.

Annual Spring Paint Out & Art Auction, by The Dutchess County Art Association and the Barrett Art Center at Lathrop Center at Lakeside Park, 2 Lakeside Drive, Pawling, NY 12564 (no longer in Millbrook). Artists paint Pawling all day followed by an Auction preview, then a Live Art Auction. Fine art paintings & drawings of Hudson River Valley scenes in oil, pastel, acrylic and watercolor by 50 professional artists. www.artsmidhudson.org.

Sheila Buff signs her book, Insiders’ Guide to the Hudson River Valley, at The Book Cove in Pawling at 1 p.m. Joining me will be Hudson Talbott, author of the lovely children’s book River of Dreams, and Lucey Bowen, author of Great River of the Mountains. 22 Charles Colman Boulevard in Pawling, just off East Main Street. Call (845) 855-9590 or check the website at www.pawlingbookcove.com for directions.

Eggs-perience Chickens Learn about raising chickens for your own eggs and meat. View portable chicken housing. Go home with an oven-ready “broiler” that you slaughtered, plucked and prepared! 10:30 - 1:30 at Local Farm in Cornwall, CT $35/family. Pre-register with Debra@Motherhouse.us or 860 672-0229.

Basic Orchid Care II: Repotting and Reflowering, 10am Phantom Gardener. Is your orchid growing out of the pot? Do you have an orchid that you wish would flower again? Fortunately, these are problems that can be easily solved, with the right guidance. Let Lorien lead you through the ins and outs of orchid aftercare, as she offers some simple techniques for repotting and reblooming your plants. All species require different conditions, so please bring your plant tags or plants to the class, for some personalized instruction.

094GAR165 The Independent Garden, 9am-12pm, Bard. How do you keep the critters out, the flowers blooming and the vegetables producing without 24/7 care? Scott Canning, Wave Hill’s Director of Horticulture, will deliver his strategies for achieving success as a part-time home gardener. Learn how to arrange your schedule, select self-reliant plants, and prevent disasters while away from home. Members $42 / Nonmembers $47, http://inside.bard.edu/arboretum/events/courses.shtml. 1-800-322-NYBG (6924), http://www.nybg.org/bard.

For more garden inspiration, Open Days at the Garden Conservancy offer many ideas. http://www.gardenconservancy.org/opendays/events.pl?ID=219&SortBy=&State= for information about how you can see superb local gardens in Amenia and Stanfordville. Also, five gardens in Columbia County. On Sunday, three gardens in Litchfield County as well as StoneCrop in Cold Spring.

Saturday June 13 and Sunday June 14:

Home Coming Weekend, Netherwood Baptist Church, 1211 Netherwood Road, Salt Point. Chicken Barbecue at 5 p.m. followed by a concert with “Heart Song Singers” at 7 p.m. “Heart Song Singers” at Sunday 10:15 a.m. service. RSVP by June 7 to Pastor Liz Travis, 845-471-3349.

Sunday, June 14:

Make an Appalachian Egg Basket with Carol Hart (author of Natural Basketry) 10:00 - 4:00 at the Local Farm barn in Cornwall, CT. $75/person. Please pre-register with Debra@Motherhouse.us or (860) 672-0229.

Artists Reception at The Artist’s Palate, 3 – 5. Artist being Jennifer Axinn-Weiss and I think her work is lovely. Exhibit continues through July 31. www.theartistspalate.biz 845-483-8074, www.jenniferaxinnweiss.com.

Monday, June 15:

Fundraiser for Charlie “Clocker” Cunningham. Only 55, born and raised in Amenia and
long-time bartender at Dervin O’Brien Restaurant in Millbrook, Charlie was recently diagnosed with brain cancer. To assist Charlie and his family with extraordinary medical expenses, Maureen and Kevin Rooney are hosting a fundraiser at De La Vergne Steakhouse on Rte.44 in Amenia, starting at 5:30pm. There will be a BBQ dinner, silent auction and raffles with many prizes. For more information please contact Maureen Rooney at 845 373 9233. $25 per adult is suggested.

Tuesday, June 16:

Matters Of The Mind at 1:30 p.m. at the Fountains of Millbrook auditorium. This is a video-lecture discussion group which is exploring the American Identity. The videos are produced by the Great Courses Teaching Company and this month our topic is Edmund Ruffin. Light refreshments will be served after the discussion. No fees.

Wednesday, June 17:

Summer Serenade with David Temple. An evening of original compositions and unique transcriptions, classical guitarist and composer David Temple will feature an eclectic program in an intimate setting. The beautiful Center for Performing Arts at Rhinebeck will host this evening of inspiring music. With music by Satie, Villa-Lobos, Reis, Morel, Pernambuco and others, this concert will begin at 8 p.m., at the CENTER on Route 308 in Rhinebeck, NY. $18, $16 for seniors and children. For tickets and more information, call 845/876-3080 or visit www.centerforperformingarts.org.

Waterman Bird Club trip to Madam Brett Park. Meet at the parking lot on Tioronda Ave., Beacon at 8 a.m. Call Carol: 845-452-7619

Not to be missed is a trip to Poughkeepsie, Beacon, Kingston or Hudson to watch the ships come up the Hudson River. More at www.dutchess400.com. June 7, ships arrive at Beacon. They come to Poughkeepsie June 9 and leave June 10. Beacon is earlier, Kingston and Hudson are later.

Bought my annual pass for Innisfree. Only $25 for the season and a strong incentive to go as often as possible. What a fabulous little treasure. The peonies are in bloom and it is simply splendid. www.innisfreegarden.org.

Clothes Swap. I think we’ve decided on June 14, in the morning. Please let me know if you would like to participate, drop things off or have a favorite place to bring the surplus. This is a terrific way to get rid of the clothes that no longer fit, that you no longer like, clearing out closet space and make other people happy at the same time.

Local business expo at the Tymor on Sunday. I think a job fair is part of that venue.

Good time to plan entertainment for the summer. Powerhouse Theatre at Vassar starts June 26, http://powerhouse.vassar.edu/, Summerscape at Bard starts July 9, (845) 758-7900 www.fishercenter.bard.edu and the Spiegel Tent returns. Hudson Valley Shakespeare starts June 16 www.shakespeare.org.

The Fantasticks, the longest-running musical in the world, tells the moving story of two young people who fall in love, though their parents build a wall to keep them apart. Until June 14. $22 for adults and $20 for seniors and children and if you phone The CENTER in advance, you may get one child’s ticket free for each adult ticket purchased. (845) 876-3080. www.centerforperformingarts.org.

A small loft cottage for lease, one person, no pets, $750 a month plus one month security on Mabbettsville Rd. If interested, please ring 677- 6989 or Dvfoxden@aol.com.

Handy tip from the Ideal Bite. Running your fan counterclockwise in summer directs air downward and creates a breeze; in the winter, running it clockwise will force cold air upward and warm air down to you. Not quite sure about the physics here, but worth a try.

The Bottle Tree is Ancram just got a great rating and review from Zagat. Now open for brunch and dinner. 518 329 0444. Food 26, Décor 20, Service 23 Cost $55. “like being invited to a talented friend’s house for dinner” at this New American newcomer with “potential” in “totally underserved” Ancram; the former gourmet market is now a country-style cafe, offering a “fabulous” weekly three-course menu of such dishes as rabbit pâté and beef tenderloin, all served with “much personal attention”; it’s open weekends only, so “call ahead to hear the menu, bring your wine and enjoy.”

Charlotte’s restaurant has opened the Wood Fired Grill, served with Hunt Country Whiskey BBQ Sauce. Many choices and sides. 4258 Rte 44, Millbrook, 845 677 5888.

Friday, June 5:

Full Moon Hike at the Sharon Audubon, 8pm. Join Audubon Staff Member Dawn Osborne on a night hike using the light of the near-full moon. Listen for owls, insects and other nocturnal critters. Bring a flashlight if you have one. Registration is recommended. Please call the Center to sign up. FREE! www.sharon.audubon.org, Route 4, Sharon, CT 06069 / (860) 364-0520.

Book sale in Rhinebeck at the Starr Library, Friday through Sunday.

Music at Loopeys in Millbrook, 9pm start. New spring menu of food to share looks scrumptious. 677-6212.

Saturday, June 6:

Millbrook’s Farmer’s Market, 9 – 1. It was so good to see the vendors, now friends after getting to know them from many summers past. New things to buy too. www.millbrookfarmersmarket.com. Great way to support local farms and help keep them around. This is a very exciting day for me at the market, Sheep and Wool! Sheep shearing demo, Sunset Hill has yarn and manure for sale and music by Doug Marcus. In season vegetables include lettuce, chard, rhubarb, asparagus and always a few surprises. Lots of great plants for your garden too.

The Chancellor Livingston Chapter & the Museum of Rhinebeck History will sponsor their 2009 House/Garden Tour, a self guided tour beginning at the Gen. Montgomery Chapter house at 77 Livingston St., Rhinebeck, NY at 10:30 am. There will be a complimentary breakfast. The first 75 attendees will receive a gift bag. Event features 7 gardens 4 interiors, and a garden lecture on bulbs. Rain date June 7. $20 if purchased by 6-2-09 and $25 day of the event. Checks payable to the Chancellor Livingston Chapter, DAR. Brenda Klaproth 845- 876- 2436 bklaproth@hvc.rr.com Box lunch: $10 at the Dutch Reformed Church. Goes to 5pm.

A Taste of Millbrook. Fifth Annual Event at the Millbrook Vineyards & Winery. Music and live auction to accompany your hors d’oeuvres and wines. (845) 677-8383 $75 per person, of which $50 of your ticket price can be treated as a charitable donation.
Take advantage of the Dutchess County Historical Society’s Silver Ribbon House Tour taking place earlier that day; www.dutchesscountyhistoricalsociety.org. Joint “Taste of Millbrook” ticket with the Silver Ribbon House Tour: - $100.
The Millbrook Educational Foundation was established in 2001 to create stronger ties between Millbrook Central Schools and our community, the Millbrook Educational Foundation raises funding for projects that provide for the complete education of our children. With the communities help more than $200,000 has been donated to Millbrook’s public schools through the Foundation. Contributions have purchased SmartBoards, Project Lead the Way materials, computers, musical instruments, recording equipment, sports equipment, and the refurbishing of the high school auditorium.

Open house for people from the area to meet the animals at Safe Haven Sanctuary from 12 - 3. 542 Gardner Hollow Road, Poughquag, off Pleasant Ridge road off Route 55.

Beacon Hat Parade. Hat Manufacturing Capitol of the Northeast, “400 Years of Hat Design”. Music, crafts, vendors and more. www.beaconarts.org.

Walk for the Rural Migrant Ministry. www.ruralmigrantministry.org.

Free event at the Phantom Gardener, 9am. Walks in the Yard with Eli: Olfactory Gardening. Smells can influence our mood and trigger long-forgotten memories; why not surround yourself with pleasant ones? Let woody plant buyer Eli introduce you to the most fragrant trees and shrubs in the Phantom yard. Learn how you can perfume your surroundings with spices, florals, even the aroma of cooked sugar, while adding beauty to your landscape. Questions on other topics are also welcome.

New York Academy of Ballet - Masquerade Ball 2:00 – 6:30 pm at the Bardavon. www.bardavon.org.

There will be a not to be missed book signing at Merritt Books, 57 Front Street, Millbrook starting at 4pm. Sarah Montague’s The Adult Rider will be released in early June. Are you ready to enter, or re-enter the barn? Are you a former equestrian longing to ride again? Have you always had a dream of riding? Sarah’s The Adult Rider will lead you through the ins and outs of horseback riding today: where to take lessons, which disciplines to consider, fitness and nutrition tips, and what it will cost in both time and money. “Horses… they’re not just for kids anymore.” Michael Page, Olympic medalist and former Chef d’Equipe of the United States Equestrian Team, has this to say about Sarah’s book: “A well-written and comprehensive outline for an adult’s entry or re-entry into current equestrian sports. If you read this, you will know more and make better choices in your pursuit of riding skills and safety.”

Merritt in Red Hook 4pm, Hillary Jordan reads and shares her book, Mudbound.

Two classes with Brad Roeller at the Olin Humanities Building, Bard College. Native Perennials for Landscaping, 10:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
Increasing in popularity, native plants can outperform their exotic counterparts in the perennial garden as well as conserve limited resources such as water. Learn which ones are best adapted to local landscape conditions, the value they provide to the environment, and ecologically responsible tips on growing and maintaining these perennials in your garden.
Native Trees and Shrubs for Landscaping 1:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Many native trees and shrubs make excellent ornamentals in the landscape, yet they have long been overlooked. Discover flowering trees and shrubs, evergreens, and deciduous foliage trees that thrive in our climate naturally. This class dispels the notion that natives are less interesting than exotic imports. Instructor Brad Roeller is Manager of Display Gardens at the Institute of Ecosystem Studies in Millbrook. $47 Non-Member, $42 Member for each session.

Cornwall Community Contra Dance at 24 Pine Street, Cornwall, CT, Town Hall
7:00 - 9:30. Bill Fischer calling, Guest Fiddler Mickey Koth, and Still the Homegrown Band playing! Suggested Donations: $3/child, $5/adult. For more info call Debra at (860) 672-0229 or Jane at 672-6101.

Sunday, June 7:

Rhinebeck Farmer’s Market, 10-2, www.rhinebeckfarmersmarket.com

Butterflies And Habitats from 12 noon – 2 p.m. Take a butterfly adventure at the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies. Visitors will have the opportunity to explore butterfly life while taking a stroll through our fields and hiking trails. Barry Haydasz will provide insight into butterflies and skippers, including where they live, what they eat, and what attracts them to various habitats. Bring your camera. Hiking shoes are recommended. Free and open to the public, the program will begin at the Gifford House, 2917 Sharon Tpk/Rt 44, Millbrook, N.Y. (845) 677-7600 x121. www.caryinstitute.org.

Gardens of the Arts and Crafts Movement at FDR, 2pm. Lecture, tea and cake for $25. This is a Beatrix Farrand garden. www.beatrixfarrandgarden.org.

Nature Walk at the Sharon Audubon, 1pm. Join Audubon Staff for a walk around the property in search of birds, wildflowers and other surprises of the season. FREE! www.sharon.audubon.org, Route 4, Sharon, CT 06069 / (860) 364-0520

Phantom Gardener’s Forest Gardens, 10am. Permaculture design aims to create sustainable habitats by following nature’s patterns and processes. Introduction to temperate-climate permaculture: the forest garden. Made up of trees, shrubs, herbacious perennials and understory perennial food crops, this permanent and attractive planting provides years of food and beauty without the yearly toil of an annual garden. Learn how to design, plant and tend a forest garden for an early and diversified yield, and discover exciting perennial food crops and medicinals you can include.

Claudia Gorman has been photographing the Unison Sculpture Garden for the past several years in all types of weather with many different cameras and film. It’s a magical place! Please join her from 4 – 6pm for an opening reception: a solo show of Sculpture Garden Photographs in the Unison Gallery in New Paltz. www.unisonarts.org/programs/ClaudiaGorman.html. There will also be an opening reception for the 11th Annual Outdoor Sculpture Exhibition.

George Washington’s Spies in Pawling. Elizabeth Kahn Kaplan’s lecture about a small group of spies working for the Patriot Cause. www.pawling-history.org.

Join Scenic Hudson down by the river in Beacon from 2 to 7pm for waterfront fun for the whole family. Celebrating Henry Hudson’s historic voyage with music, dancing and boatloads of fun, all taking place on the very shores the Half Moon sailed past 400 years ago, as we await the arrival of the Quadricentennial flotilla. Live music by The Kids from Room 12, nopresha and The Big Takeover along with storytelling by River of Dreams children’s book author Hudson Talbott. Free kayak and bike rentals, volleyball, hulahooping, community sculpting and some great food vendors!

The 34th annual Town of Union Vale Community Day at Tymor Park. Free admission, free parking, and free entertainment! The indoor/outdoor event begins at noon and culminates with an evening fireworks display. For the first time ever we have invited Climb Time, a portable rock climbing wall to be a part of the day’s events.
Also, Union Vale Community Day will host its first ever Local Area Business Expo held in the Big Barn.
The general public is invited to enjoy the festivities, which includes booths of local service organizations, magician, horse pull, games, puppet show, farm animal exhibit, pony rides, free swimming, crafts/collectibles, and much more. The Jazz Pioneers, a 22 piece Jazz band, will perform at 6pm at the Band Shell. A family dinner will also be held at 6pm. Call Town Hall as soon as possible to reserve tickets. Tymor Park is located off Bruzgul Rd, (CR21). For information call the Union Vale recreation department at (845)-724-5691 or Town Hall (845) 724-5600.

Monday, June 8:

Big ships in Beacon.

Tuesday, June 9:

The Millbrook CSD holds their annual bandshell concert at 6:30, at the Thorne Building Bandshell. The youngest band plays first and then the Middle School Band, Jazz Band and the High School Band. Bring your own chair or blanket and snacks. If you’ve never heard our High School Band and Jazz Band, you will be wowed.

Big ships in Poughkeepsie, 6pm ish, welcomed with an enormous CIA cake. Waryas park. PoTown Jazz starts at 6:30. Marching bands before that. Free, free, free.

Wednesday, June 10:

Poughkeepsie celebrates Henry Hudson. Geological Tours, historical walking tours, public art tours … come celebrate the incredible amount of history and art this area holds.

The Saints play at Mills Mansion (aka Staatsburgh), on the massive lawn, overlooking the Hudson, so you’ll probably see the ships sail past if you get there a bit early. Free, music begins at 7.

The Rhinecliff Hotel will have its own Halve Maen (Half Moon) fiesta from 5 – 8, watching the ships come up the Hudson. Fundraiser for Hudson River Heritage, $20 includes light fare, a drink and a great place to watch the river. 845-876-2474.

Thursday, June 11:

Towns of Union Vale and Washington board meetings. 7:30 and 7pm starts.
Hear about the decisions being made in your town.

Locust Grove Sunset Sensations featuring Chef Bruce Kazan of the Main Course. 5:30 – 7:30, about $25. 845-454-4500 x 17. www.lgny.org. Food and wine sampling with demonstrations and a tour of the heirloom vegetable garden. For those not familiar with Locust Grove, it is a surprising oasis off Route 9 between 44/55 and the chaos of the shopping malls. It was the home of inventor Samuel Morse, there is a small museum worth visiting and the grounds are wonderful.

Greek Festival in Poughkeepsie. Thru June 14. Free. Vendors, food, performances, music. 845-452-4000.

For those not around this weekend, you are missing locusts (honey locusts?) in bloom and wild phlox at the roadside.

Selling a car? My brother just graduated from university and needs a reliable car. He also needs a great job. Anyone need a really nice, smart, well socialized mechanical engineer?

Wisteria. If you would like one, please email me. It does need to be dug out or rootings taken. Please. And if you are pulling out Lady’s Mantle, there’s a taker.

New Sunday Hours at Red Devon. Restaurant open12pm to 8pm. Brunch menu served 12pm to 3pm. Dinner menu served 3pm to 8pm. Market open 8am to 6pm. Breakfast and lunch served 8am to 3pm. Essentially, if you would like to eat yummy, local and/or organic foods and find yourself in Bangall, you can eat at Red Devon from 8am to 8pm on Sundays.

Goats. Someone is still trying to rehome some goats. Free lawn mowing and invasives control. Please email me if interested.

Aside from the immediate Millbrook attractions that I love, like Innisfree and the Trevor Zoo, I was lucky enough to spend two days in Hyde Park this week. The FDR home and library are truly spectacular and a wealth of information. By the way, if you go, check out the display area by the stable. Not only is there a wonderful photo of a Mr. Gallinger holding a rooster he quite resembles, there are reprints of late 1800’s articles stating how local land is being bought up gentle farmers coming up from Manhattan. Peonies should be in bloom by next week.

Another stop in Hyde Park was the SPCA. Gorgeous gray cat there, as well as one of the largest cats I’ve ever seen, one guinea pig, one bunny and more dogs that I’d want to see behind bars.

Final stop was the CIA, which is why we came back for Day Two. The book shop is one of my favorite places to find new kitchen gadgets and culinary books. If a Matthew is there, he knows his stuff so ask away. The Apple Pie Bakery and Café is a great place to sit with that new book and munch on something divine. Where the tea is adequate, the chocolate milk is extraordinary. And the take home desserts and cupcakes are works of art that just happen to taste great.

Clothes Swap. How is the weekend of June 13 or 20?

For ye Blondie fans, there is a wonderfully different version of Heart of Glass on YouTube. www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y4dc0CiMGw8.

Thursday, May 28:

Art Along the Hudson - Seven Cities - Kickoff Celebration with Refreshments, Art and Live Music at Cunneen Hackett, 9 Vassar Street, Poughkeepsie, NY. 6 – 8pm. Reception hosted by Barrett Art Center at Cunneen-Hackett in Poughkeepsie, NY. An opportunity to meet the artists and creators of this regional initiative, along with city officials actively working to revitalize their cities through the arts. The reception includes light refreshments, live music and an Art Exhibit by selected artists from the seven cities. Curt Belshe, Ed Benavente, Jason Corette, Joe Costa, Ryan Cronin, Decora, Claudia Engle, Staats Fasoldt, Kari Feuer, Linda Jean Fischer, Theresa Gooby, Claudia Gorman, Richard Harper, Patrick Milbourn, Katy OHagan, Gilbert Plantinga, Mike Sibilia, Sarah Snow, Patrick Terenchin, Kara Thurmond, and Carol Wax. A program about the seven cities - Beacon, Catskill, Kingston, New Paltz, Newburgh, Peekskill and Poughkeepsie - is scheduled for 6:45 pm. At 8pm, an Artists Salon with Marlene Wiedenbaum is scheduled at the Barrett Art Center. Also, Barrett has their course catalog online and are having an exhibit at Merritt Book Store, upstairs, in Millbrook.

Late Night at the Lehman Loeb. Not your typical happy hour… Come spend yours with Pablo, Vincent, Georgia, and Jackson! Please join us for special tours, films, entertainment provided by student groups and local performers and refreshments. Check the website for up-to-date details. 5 – 9 pm. The Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center at Vassar College. 845-437-7745 fllac.vassar.edu.

Friday, May 29:

Brutal Relapse at Loopeys. Three incredibly talented local musicians play come 9pm. Great food, fun music, new wines. 845-677-6212.

The Fantasticks, the longest-running musical in the world, tells the moving story of two young people who fall in love, though their parents build a wall to keep them apart. May 29 to June 14. $22 for adults and $20 for seniors and children and if you phone The CENTER in advance, you may get one child’s ticket free for each adult ticket purchased. (845) 876-3080. www.centerforperformingarts.org.

Saturday, May 30:

Millbrook’s Farmer’s Market, 9 – 1. Perennial favorites have returned as well – Wigsten’s vegetables, Martha’s Baskets, Remco, Millbrook Farmhouse Cheese, oh so many more terrific local offerings. www.millbrookfarmersmarket.com. Great way to support local farms and help keep them around.

Ballet Arts Studio & Dutchess Ballet Company Mozart Minuets & More at the Bardavon 2 – 6:30pm. www.bardavon.org.

Container Gardening & Gardening for Kids at the Sharon Audubon, 10am. This program will cover creating/designing our own containers, what plants work well in what containers, and how to properly maintain these containers. The Gardening for Kids section will cover how to get kids interested in gardening, creating a gardening space for kids to take care of themselves and how to reconnect our kids with where their food comes from. Pre-registration is highly recommended. www.sharon.audubon.org. Route 4, Sharon, CT 06069 / (860) 364-0520

Creative Container Gardens at the Phantom Gardner, 10am. Forget the geraniums in terracotta – container gardens can be every bit as dramatic, whimsical, colorful, even /edible/ as those in your backyard beds. Consider a tasty “salad bowl” or a spicy salsa garden. Put together a spectacular succulent arrangement, or combine heat-tolerant species in a display that won’t wither in the mid-summer sun. Get advice on choosing containers and potting soils, proper planting methods, maintenance and more. Of course, there’s nothing wrong with geraniums in terracotta. I find it a classic look that always reminds me of Madeleine in the hospital.

Benefit horse show for Lucky Orphans Horse Rescue, catered by Great Food and Company. Pony rides all day. Great food, great cause, great entertainment (watching kids ride horses who have been given a second chance) and great vendors. Please contact Deanna ASAP if you are interested in being a vendor. 9am start at Tymor Park. 845-416-8583. PS – they have a donated car program, going to a person’s house (or business) and pick up, free of charge, and vehicle, running or not. Thus creating a win/win by Spring cleaning, removal of old cars, Recycling and helping the environment; Non profit horse rescue benefits from recycled parts; or sale of running car, Donor receives tax deduction and care removed fee of charge. www.luckyorphanshorserescue.org. (But a running car in good shape for engineering graduate is greatly appreciated too!)

No Child Left Inside event to combat “Nature Deficit Disorders”. Dutchess Stadium in Fishkill. Walk across the Newburgh BeaconBrdige, 9:30am followed by outdoor expo 12:30 – 4. 845-566-7300.

Fish the Hudson at Norrie Point, Staatsburg. Angling or 30 foot seine net. Rods and bait provided by the DEC. 3-5 and free. 845-889-4745 x 108.

Picnic In The Park from 11am to 3pm, Denning’s Point, Beacon, NY. Bring your picnic and a blanket for a day of music and fun! Tour Denning’s Point with historian Jim Heron. Learn about CEIE’s “Green Building” features with architect Oliver Schaper. Fish printing activities for kids age 6 and older. Time capsule ceremony. Live music with HV musicians Kathleen Pemble; Jenn Clapp; Wicker Pinch with Patti Pelican; Terry Platz; Andy Revkin & Al Hemberger Please RSVP at www.bire.org so we can plan for your attendance. The event is free and open to the public; however, your donation in any amount is greatly appreciated! Rain or shine. No alcohol, no pets.

2009 is the quadricentennial of Henry sailing up the Hudson. The big events happen in October, but the early events are starting now. 12 -5pm at the Poughkeepsie Plaza (aka Marshalls Plaza). Dutch cooking samples, period costumes, Colonial games, artifacts on display, art tables to make your own, skits on HH’s sail, raffle and replica of the Half Moon. Free. By the way, if you are by the Bardavon or Artist’s Palate, go to the old Poughkeepsie Savings Bank and spend a few minutes gazing at that superb stained glass of Henry’s Half Moon in the Hudson.

Sunday, May 31:

Rhinebeck Farmer’s Market, 10-2

Learn to Make Your Own Stained Glass as an Art out of the Box Fundraiser. Pay what you think is appropriate and rsvp by May 29. At the Starr Library in Rhinebeck, 2 – 4.
www.artsmidhudson.org.

Calvert Faux fans! Please support the CVPA’s efforts to save the Hoyt House (”The Point”) and maintain the legacy of Calvert Vaux. 2:00 until 4:30 on the front lawn of the Hoyt House in the midst of Margaret Lewis Norrie State Park at Staatsburg. The afternoon will include a performance by classical guitarist David Temple, informative speakers, an exhibition, food, wine and good company. Admission is free, donations are welcome. www.calvertvaux.org.

Barber Shop Quartet at the Cunneen Hacket in Poughkeepsie. 845-471-5845, www.newyorkerschorus.org.

Not much going on midweek, but a few ideas for next weekend:

Tuesday, June 2:

Washington Town Planning Board Meeting, 7:30pm at the Town Hall.

Thursday, June 4:

The Town of Washington Town Board will have a workshop meeting on at 7pm at the Town Hall to discuss the proposed Wetlands Ordinance. Although the Public Hearing remains open on this matter, this meeting is for Board discussion only and public input will not be heard. An additional public hearing will be scheduled for a later date. 677-3419. www.millbrookmatters.org has a perspective and some background information as well.

Saturday, June 6:

The Chancellor Livingston Chapter & the Museum of Rhinebeck History will sponsor their 2009 House/Garden Tour, a self guided tour beginning at the Gen. Montgomery Chapter house at 77 Livingston St., Rhinebeck, NY at 10:30 am. There will be a complimentary breakfast. The first 75 attendees will receive a gift bag. Event features 7 gardens 4 interiors, and a garden lecture on bulbs. Rain date June 7. $20 if purchased by 6-2-09 and $25 day of the event. Checks payable to the Chancellor Livingston Chapter, DAR. Brenda Klaproth 845- 876- 2436 bklaproth@hvc.rr.com Box lunch: $10 at the Dutch Reformed Church. Goes to 5pm.

A Taste of Millbrook. Fifth Annual Event at the Millbrook Vineyards & Winery. Music and live auction to accompany your hors d’oeuvres and wines. (845) 677-8383 $75 per person, of which $50 of your ticket price can be treated as a charitable donation.
Take advantage of the Dutchess County Historical Society’s Silver Ribbon House Tour taking place earlier that day; www.dutchesscountyhistoricalsociety.org. Joint “Taste of Millbrook” ticket with the Silver Ribbon House Tour: - $100.
The Millbrook Educational Foundation was established in 2001 to create stronger ties between Millbrook Central Schools and our community, the Millbrook Educational Foundation raises funding for projects that provide for the complete education of our children. With the communities help more than $200,000 has been donated to Millbrook’s public schools through the Foundation. Contributions have purchased SmartBoards, Project Lead the Way materials, computers, musical instruments, recording equipment, sports equipment, and the refurbishing of the high school auditorium.

Open house for people from the area to meet the animals at Safe Haven Sanctuary from 12 - 3. 542 Gardner Hollow Road, Poughquag, off Pleasant Ridge road off Route 55.

Walk for the Rural Migrant Ministry. www.ruralmigrantministry.org.

Free event at the Phantom Gardener, 9am. Walks in the Yard with Eli: Olfactory Gardening. Smells can influence our mood and trigger long-forgotten memories; why not surround yourself with pleasant ones? Let woody plant buyer Eli introduce you to the most fragrant trees and shrubs in the Phantom yard. Learn how you can perfume your surroundings with spices, florals, even the aroma of cooked sugar, while adding beauty to your landscape. Questions on other topics are also welcome.

New York Academy of Ballet - Masquerade Ball 2:00 – 6:30 pm at the Bardavon.

There will be a not to be missed book signing at Merritt Books, 57 Front Street, Millbrook starting at 4pm. Sarah Montague’s The Adult Rider will be released in early June. Are you ready to enter, or re-enter the barn? Are you a former equestrian longing to ride again? Have you always had a dream of riding? Sarah’s The Adult Rider will lead you through the ins and outs of horseback riding today: where to take lessons, which disciplines to consider, fitness and nutrition tips, and what it will cost in both time and money. “Horses… they’re not just for kids anymore.” Michael Page, Olympic medalist and former Chef d’Equipe of the United States Equestrian Team, has this to say about Sarah’s book: “A well-written and comprehensive outline for an adult’s entry or re-entry into current equestrian sports. If you read this, you will know more and make better choices in your pursuit of riding skills and safety.”

Merritt in Red Hook 4pm, Hillary Jordan reads and shares her book, Mudbound.

Two classes with Brad Roeller at the Olin Humanities Building, Bard College. Native Perennials for Landscaping, 10:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
Increasing in popularity, native plants can outperform their exotic counterparts in the perennial garden as well as conserve limited resources such as water. Learn which ones are best adapted to local landscape conditions, the value they provide to the environment, and ecologically responsible tips on growing and maintaining these perennials in your garden.
Native Trees and Shrubs for Landscaping 1:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Many native trees and shrubs make excellent ornamentals in the landscape, yet they have long been overlooked. Discover flowering trees and shrubs, evergreens, and deciduous foliage trees that thrive in our climate naturally. This class dispels the notion that natives are less interesting than exotic imports. Instructor Brad Roeller is Manager of Display Gardens at the Institute of Ecosystem Studies in Millbrook. $47 Non-Member, $42 Member for each session.

Sunday, June 7:

Butterflies And Habitats from 12 noon – 2 p.m. Take a butterfly adventure at the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies. Visitors will have the opportunity to explore butterfly life while taking a stroll through our fields and hiking trails. Barry Haydasz will provide insight into butterflies and skippers, including where they live, what they eat, and what attracts them to various habitats. Bring your camera. Hiking shoes are recommended. Free and open to the public, the program will begin at the Gifford House, 2917 Sharon Tpk. (Rt 44) Millbrook, N.Y. (845) 677-7600 x121. www.caryinstitute.org

Phantom Gardener’s Forest Gardens, 10am. Permaculture design aims to create sustainable habitats by following nature’s patterns and processes. Introduction to temperate-climate permaculture: the forest garden. Made up of trees, shrubs, herbacious perennials and understory perennial food crops, this permanent and attractive planting provides years of food and beauty without the yearly toil of an annual garden. Learn how to design, plant and tend a forest garden for an early and diversified yield, and discover exciting perennial food crops and medicinals you can include.

Claudia Gorman has been photographing the Unison Sculpture Garden for the past several years in all types of weather with many different cameras and film. It’s a magical place! Please join her from 4 – 6pm for an opening reception: a solo show of Sculpture Garden Photographs in the Unison Gallery in New Paltz. www.unisonarts.org/programs/ClaudiaGorman.html. There will also be an opening reception for the 11th Annual Outdoor Sculpture Exhibition.

A wee note, a bit on the cranky side: I write about events, because I strongly feel there is a tremendous amount to do in this area that people simply are not aware of existing. I’m not an advertiser, nor a clairvoyant. When I don’t include something, it is because I usually don’t know about it. To address a recent criticism about being choosy of which restaurants I cover, I have included many restaurants over the past five years that I thought were mediocre and /or overpriced, but I am not a restaurant critic either. I was covering events or special offerings. For example, the Millbrook Café has lowered some of their prices, as written on the windows, and I just happen to find their food exceptionally good.
Regardless, if you would like to make a submission, please email all pertinent information to me. Thanks. Oh, I am not affiliated with the Millbrook Business Association nor am I paid for this little boost of awareness to the local economy.

Millbrook and the surrounding area will be bustling on Saturday. Dutchess Day School May Fair www.dutchessday.org, Millbrook Book Festival www.millbrookbookfestival.org and Food For Thought: Learn to Grow, Plant A Row. Also, there is the Planned Parenthood Gala, Trade Secrets www.tradesecretsct.com and many other events in the area too.

The Rhinebeck Farmer’s Market opened last Sunday, 10-2. Millbrook’s opens on May 23, 9 -1. www.rhinebeckfarmersmarket.com, www.millbrookfarmersmarket.com.

Bunch of wonderful productions around the corner should you want to get tickets now. Vassar’s Powerhouse Theatre, Bard’s Summerscape, Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival at Boscobel and of course Tanglewood. Powerhouse.vassar.edu, fishercenter.bard.edu, www.hvshakespeare.org, www.boscobel.org.

Friday, May 15:

May Dance at Bard. Senior Project choreography and other works. Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m.; Sunday at 3 p.m. and 8 p.m. Theater Two. The Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts. 845-758-7900 or www.fishercenter.bard.edu.

Kick off the Millbrook Book Festival at the Cary Institute with an open house celebration featuring lab tours, hands-on discovery, and Hudson River History. 4pm to 6:15pm, visit the Cary Institute’s main building to tour research labs, participate in hands-on demonstrations, and see ecological science in action! At 4:30 pm, guests can explore the Cary Institute’s weather station facility and discover how and why we continuously monitor climatic conditions, such as temperature and rainfall. At 6:15pm, festivities move to the auditorium, where the Cary Institute will host the Millbrook Book Festival’s opening reception. Enjoy conversation, scientific posters, and complimentary light fare courtesy of Red Devon and Millbrook Vineyards & Winery. At 7pm, author and conservationist Frances Dunwell will discuss her book, The Hudson: America’s River. Dunwell has been working to protect the Hudson River and its historic heritage for over 30 years. Free and open to the public, events will take place at the Cary Institute’s main campus, located at 2801 Sharon Turnpike (Route 44A) in Millbrook, NY. www.caryinstitute.org (845) 677-7600 x121.

Great live music at Loopeys with Ken Faranda and Bobby MacDougall. 9pm start.

Saturday, May 16:

The second annual Millbrook Book Festival. An all-day free event, with nearly a hundred local authors, lots of panels, and plenty of fun activities for the kids. Support your many local authors and come out for this fun event. For more details, check the website at www.millbrookbookfestival.org.

Food For Thought: Learn to grow, Plant A Row in Millbrook. A special event at Twinbrooks Garden Center 3424 Franklin Ave, from 12 to 5pm. It is a day dedicated to learning about where to buy locally grown food, how to produce your own, and how you can help your community with Plant a Row for the Hungry. There will be a range of activities including cooking demonstrations, local wine and cheese tasting, Q&A with Master Gardeners, gardening demonstrations, book signing, and live farm animals (like cows, sheep, alpacas and a few of my comical little ducklings). There is something for everyone in the family.

Caitlin Twain is teaching a special class for the remaining Saturdays in May at the Half Moon Yoga Barn, with a focus for beginners and those wanting a yoga refresher. Noon to 1pm. $15. www.halfmoonyogabarn.com.

The Millbrook Hunt is hosting the 2009 Adjacent Hunts/N.J./N.Y. District Puppy Show at the Millbrook Hunt Kennels. Judge will be Patrick Anthony Leahy, Master and Huntsman of the Fox River Valley, and the Cornwell Hounds of Illinois. The show begins at 10am. Six hunts will be bringing entries. It is always a fun day!

Kent River Road Bird Walk, 8 -11am. Meet at Kent Town Hall, Kent, CT. Join expert birder Bob Moeller for this walk which has become a tradition for the Audubon Center. Bob will help identify various species of warblers, thrushes, water birds and many others by sight and sound. Bring binoculars and/or a spotting scope if you have them! www.sharon.audubon.org, Route 4, Sharon, CT 06069 / (860) 364-0520.

Trade Secrets in Connecticut is a great place to buy plants, garden ornaments and support a terrific cause, Women’s Support Services. From 10 – 3. Exclusive Garden Tours on Sunday. www.tradesecretsct.com.

Rain Garden Presentation 2:00 PM at the Red Hook Town Hall - Master Gardener Judy Wolf will do a power point presentation about rain gardens. She has installed one at her home and will focus on residential rain gardens.

Flea market at the Rhinebeck Fairgrounds. Also on Sunday. www.dutchessfair.com.

Rhinebeck Sidewalk Sale. I love those.

Olafur Eliasson’s Parliament of Reality, a new, permanent outdoor installation created specifically for Bard College, will open to the public. The work is located on the north end of Bard’s campus, near the Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts. 845-758-7598, ccs@bard.edu, www.bard.edu/ccs.

Bard Recital by mezzo-soprano Solange Merdinian, accompanied by Adam Bloniarz. Olin Hall, 8 p.m. 845-752-2191 or conservatory@bard.edu.

The Last Rights will finally be playing at La Puerta Azul with special guests.

Fred and Ginger night at St. John’s Lutheran Church in Poughkeepsie. Foxtrot, tango, waltz and more ..with instruction and bubbly. This is an Out of the Box semi Fundraiser for the Dutchess Arts Council. Basically, donate what you can or feel the arts gives back to you. www.artsmidhudson.org.

Sunday, May 17:

Geri plays her ukulele and sings, Suzi reads the Tarot cards and Colin will cook up a brunch to savor at Loopey’s. 677-6212. Noon to about 3pm.

Sunday Afternoon Event at the Millbrook Library: Is Anyone Out There Listening? at 2:00 p.m. Join David Ruth and Scott Dunlavey as they introduce us to the world of “hams”. Since his licensing in 1996, David Ruth has made contacts with hams in all 50 states and over 100 foreign countries. His main interests in amateur radio are using Morse code to contact hams in far corners of the world and building radio equipment. His talk will describe: the various facets of amateur radio, license requirements and how to get started in the hobby. After the talk there will be amateur equipment on display and a demonstration of what can be heard on the amateur bands.
Scott Dunlavey was licensed in 2005. He has worked many amateur stations throughout the world, some of which are very rare; this is his most enjoyable part of ham radio. Scott also finds great joy working contests. He will bring some of his QSL Cards of those rare contacts. No registration is required. Free.

Daedalus String Quartet at the Howland Cultural Center in Beacon. www.howlandmusic.org.

Monday, May 18:

At the Fountains in Millbrook, Musicals, America’s Million Dollar Miracles at 2pm. Free, for seniors and presented by Stephen Press.

Bard Recital by tenor Sung Eun Lee, accompanied by Lucas Wong. Olin Hall, 8 p.m. 845-752-2191 or conservatory@bard.edu.

Tuesday, May 19:

Millbrook Library Matters Of The Mind at 1:30 pm. This is a video-lecture discussion group which is exploring the American Identity. The videos are produced by the Great Courses Teaching Company and this month our topic is: Frederick Douglas.
Light refreshments will be served after the discussion. No fee.

School Budget vote for Millbrook and probably other school districts too. Also, three candidates running for two board seats. www.millbrookcsd.orgor 677-4200 x 100 for info or to download an absentee ballot.

Wednesday, May 20:

Millbrook Library Family Movie Night in the Children’s Room. at 6:15pm. Popcorn and a movie (rated “G”) for all ages. Bring a comfy cushion or blanket. (Adults can bring a low beach chair for the back row) Registration required.

Join Joe Dalu of Le Petit Bistro and Charles Derbyshire of Old Mill Wines as they smash plates, nibble mezze such as taramasalata and tzatziki, enjoy grilled pulpo and fish wrapped in grape leaves, wood-roasted lamb and many other Dionysian delights. Wine pairings of indigenous grape varietals from Greece like moschofilero, agiorgitiko and mandilaria should lure you like Jason to the Sirens for this memorable evening of food and fun! Six-course Wine Dinner, 6:30 pm, $95 per person (includes tax and gratuity), Le Petit Bistro, 8 Market Street, Rhinebeck. 845-876-7400.

Thursday, May 21:

Rubber Stamping With Mrs. Lyon at the Millbrook Library, 3:30pm for those grades 5-8. Create cool crafts using the techniques of rubber-stamping. Registration required.

Baby Bird Training Workshop for interested volunteers at 5:30. www.sharon.audubon.org, Route 4, Sharon, CT 06069 / (860) 364-0520

Washington Millbrook Historical Society on the history of the Dutchess County Infirmary, with legislator Margaret Fettes. Lyall Church, 7:30.

Late Night at the Lehman Loeb at Vassar, 5 - 9. Not your typical happy hour… Come spend yours with Pablo, Vincent, Georgia, and Jackson! Please join us for special tours, films, entertainment provided by student groups and local performers and refreshments. Check our website for up-to-date details. The Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center 845-437-7745 fllac.vassar.edu.

Free housesitter! An old friend is coming to visit me in June, but our guest room has a wonderful exchange student occupying it. Would barter services for a place to stay as well. May 30 to June 5, or any portion thereof.

Honey Bees. If you have a swarm that you would like to have relocated, please contact
Nannick Farms at 845-756-5350. Or contact Remco, as you may read in the Millbrook Independent, he is losing his bees.

Some of the best news of the season: Innisfree reopened yesterday www.innisfreegarden.org. Wednesday to Friday, 10-4 and Saturday to Sunday, 11-5. Open holiday Mondays too.

The Town of Washington and the Village of Millbrook are seeking an artist to prepare a banner for the opening parade at the Walkway Over the Hudson, the refurbished railroad bridge over the Hudson Valley. If you are an artist interested in the project, please contact Supervisor Florence Prisco at 677-3419 or Mayor Andrew Ciferri at 677-3939.

Garage sale in Moores Mills on Friday and Saturday, off Route 82.

Scherezade and the Arabian Nights at Cocoon Theatre in Rhinebeck. 845-876-6470. www.cocoontheatre,org. Runs through May 10.

How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying at the Wappingers County Players. To May 16. www.countyplayers.org, 845-298-1491.

And a note from Grace Church: The need for our collaborative church food pantry (Grace, St. Peter’s, St.Thomas with the food pantry located at St Thomas in Amenia Union and open on Fridays) has far exceeded our original estimates. The numbers have grown each week and now we consistently provide food for over 150 each Friday. We are blessed with many volunteers. But now the food is getting low. You can help by sending a check marked “food pantry” to Grace Church OR bring non-perishable food items to Grace and leave them in the back of the church (the church is open 24 hours a day) and we will deliver the food to St Thomas.

Friday, May 8:

As many of you have read, I cannot say enough of the importance of a Spring Without Bees, www.PlanBeeCentral.com. To quote the Chronogram: There’s been another unfortunate occurrence: The author, who is a Willow resident, recently suffered a stroke. As often happens in the Woodstock area, individuals have banded together for a benefit. This time it’s legendary frame drummer Layne Redmond and special guest Tommy Be (aka Tommy Brunjes) in “The Path of the Bee Priestess—The Final Oracle.” In addition to the musical portion of the benefit, Redmond will give a slide lecture on the bees, as well as teach the audience a powerful, yogic humming practice called Bhramari. “It releases anxiety, combats insomnia and depression, and eases childbirth.” Join the queen bee for a magical performance at 8pm at the Kleinert/James Arts Center, 34 Tinker Street, Woodstock. A $20 donation at the door is appreciated. (845) 679-www.woodstockguild.org.

Dirty Harry, on the big screen at UPAC. $5 and starts at 7:30. Nice place to go early and enjoy the displays and the Wurlitzer. www.upac.org.

Vassar Exhibition Opening. Catching Light: European and American Watercolors from the Permanent Collection. Artists have treasured the free-flowing, luminous qualities of watercolor for centuries. This exhibition, featuring 47 extraordinary examples, includes works by J.M.W. Turner, John Ruskin, John Marin, Jim Dine, Jane Freilicher, and Andrew Wyeth. 5pm start. The Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center.

Acoustic music with Karl Allweier & Alfred Sire, 8pm ish start, Loopey’s, 3279 Franklin Avenue, Millbrook, 845-677-6212, www.loopeys.com.

Shorty King’s Clubhouse at Tin Pan Alley in Upper Red Hook. 8:30ish start. www.tinpanalleyrestaurant.com.

Saturday, May 9:

Spontaneous Brubeck at the Bardavon. Hudson Valley Philharmonic and violist Nicholas Kendall. 8pm concert with preconcert talk with the conductor at 7pm. 845-473-2072, www.bardavon.org.

St Luke’s Chamber Ensemble in Beacon has Hopeless Romantics at Dia, Beacon. Schumann, Brahms and Clara Schumann. Oslmusic.org.

Sheila Buff will be signing copies of her Insiders’ Guide to the Hudson River Valley at 11am at the Red Hook Public Library. It’s part of Red Hook’s annual Apple Blossom Festival, a street fair that’s always a lot of fun. The RH library is in an octagon house, architecturally very interesting and worth a visit

All Day- Birdathon! Birders and pledges most welcome at the Sharon Audubon.
www.sharon.audubon.org, Route 4, Sharon, CT 06069 / (860) 364-0520.

Bard Orchestra, conducted by Nathan Madsen, performs Erica Ball’s (a) tone poem (2009) and Mendelssohn’s Symphony No. 4, with Concerto Competition winners. 8 p.m., Olin Hall. 845-758-7250.

Triple Threat at La Puerta Azul, 9pmish start. That’s Ken Faranda, Bobby MacDougall and Joe Bouchard.

Walks in the Yard with Eli: Gardening for Shade @ 9 am, free, Phantom Gardener.
Join woody plant buyer Eli for the first of two free guided walks through the yard at Phantom. If you’ve ever bemoaned your shady property, this tour will allow you to see the magic that’s possible with woodland gardening. Benefit from Eli’s encyclopedic knowledge of understory trees and shrubs, and perhaps have your eyes opened to tempting new possibilities for your landscape. Questions on other topics are also welcome.

OSLSS workshop Organic Gardening with Vicki Harkness at Perry Hill Farm in South Amenia. Celebrate our wonderful earth as we learn about raised beds, mutually beneficial plants, mulches, and permaculture practices. Includes a pot-luck lunch. 10:30 - 1:30. $35/family. Must pre-register with Debra@Motherhouse.us or 860-672-0229.

Sunday, May 10: AKA Mother’s Day

Many restaurants have wonderful brunches so you can treat your mom. Artist’s Palate 483-8074, Red Devon 868-3175, Loopey’s 677-6212, Puerta Azul 677-2985, Charlotte’s 677-5888 and many others have put together special menus for a special day. My mind reading skills have waned and if you would like for me to post something about your restaurant, send me an email with the details. (Ps –if you go to the blue door, there is a sweet coupon at restaurant.com).

Also, a high tea at Horton House Family center in Wappingers Falls. Traditional Dutch Colonial High Tea Luncheon, with live music by tenor John Vergil. Homestead tour too. 12 noon or 4pm seating, $35, 845-463-3088, www.hortonhousefamilycenter.com.

Choral Group Will Celebrate With Spring Sing. The Hotchkiss Chorus will be hosting a spirited celebration of spring at 7 p.m. in the Hotchkiss Chapel when they present Spring
Sing. The choral group, which is led by music instructor Laurie Ellington, is comprised of Hotchkiss students. A joyful program is planned. Free and open to the public. 11 Interlaken Road in Lakeville, CT. www.hotchkiss.org or 860-435-4423.

Monday, May 11:

For Ye Seniors, a lecture on Music Made in America: Blues, Gospel, Jazz and ShowBiz. Today’s talk will be from Peter Muir and on Fascinating Rhythms: The Emergence of Jazz. Free, 2 to 3pm. I’m uncertain what happens if those not yet seniors attempt to cross the threshold.

Community Action exists to help low-income individuals and families acquire useful skills and knowledge, gain access to new opportunities, and ultimately achieve economic self-sufficiency. Please call Nyvette Reyes-Scialpi at Community Action Partnership 845-264-4675. At the Millbrook Library.

Tuesday, May 12:

Jazz Ensemble and Guitar Consort Spring Concert at Dutchess Community College. 7pm, free, sunydutchess.edu.

Bard Conservatory students in concert. Olin Hall, noon. 845-758-7196 or conservatory@bard.edu.

Wednesday, May 13:

Music at the Millbrook Library 7 – 8m. June Elizabeth May Conti will be in the Main Gallery to share her love of music with us in a violin concert. June’s program will include classical music and show tunes. She is now 14 years old. At age 12, she won 4th place in the All Ireland Fiddling Championship. She is a member of the Empire State Youth Orchestra and has been accepted to participate in the New York State School for Orchestral Studies during the summer of 2009.

As there is Talk Like A Pirate Day, there must be a national day for this some place, but I don’t know what it is. Therefore, I declare May 4 as Give Things Back That Are Not Yours Day, or rather, the first Monday of May. I have a pile of books, movies, music and dishes to return to people and certainly many of you do too. Like whomever I lent the first season of Six Feet Under to, months ago. If I have something of yours, please email me a reminder.
Really, you could take this as far as you like. Part with anything you’ve mentally parted from already. Write something you’ve meant to write for ages. Send in that thing on the counter you’ve been meaning to return or gift. Library books, whatever.

Last weekends, April 18 and 24, were full and beautiful days. No guarantees on the weather, but the weekend of May 16th will be even busier. Kent River Bird Walk, Trade Secrets, Millbrook Book Festival, fundraisers and a big event in Millbrook focusing on feeding the local hungry with locally grown good food. Guess who is the backyard chicken person.

The Town of Washington and the Village of Millbrook are seeking an artist to prepare a banner for the opening parade at the Walkway Over the Hudson, the refurbished railroad bridge over the Hudson Valley. If you are an artist interested in the project, please contact Supervisor Florence Prisco at 677-3419 or Mayor Andrew Ciferri at 677-3939.

Thursday, April 30:

8pm Dramatic Performance at Vassar. Badass: Fighting from Never/Land. Created, directed and choreographed by Julianna Allen ’09. Presented by the Experimental Theater of Vassar College Drama Department. Also on May 1, at 5pm and then again at 8pm. The Martel Theater, Vogelstein Center for Drama and Film. Reservations required; call 845-437-5584 or 5599. drama.vassar.edu.

Locust Grove on Route 9 in Poughkeepsie for the Dutchess County Volunteer Engagement Fair, 11a.m. – 3p.m. The event will be your chance to connect directly with agencies in need of volunteers. 486-2555.

Late Night at Vassar’s Lehman Loeb will celebrate the variety and power of female artistic vision in the community. “Views From Within: Community Impressions Through Teen Eyes,” a multimedia presentation and conversation, will honor the year-long partnership between the Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center and young women from Mill Street Loft’s PASWORD (Program for Adolescent Student Women of Real Direction) program (directed by Joan Henry).
Working with students from the Vassar Education Department, members of PASWORD painted four-part panels about their visions of the community, which will be shown during “Late Night.” In addition, “View from Within” will present some of the correspondence between members of PASWORD and students from the Zuni High School in New Mexico. The evening will also include a performance by the Vassar all-female student a cappella group, The Night Owls. For additional information about the PASWORD program and Mill Street Loft, see www.millstreetloft.org.

Cabaret, the wonderful play, will be showing, free of charge, at the Poughkeepsie Day School this coming Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 7 pm.

Friday, May 1:

Young Playwrights Festival, 7pm, Bardavon. $5. Young artists and their original works.

Lyall Federated Church Rummage Sale in Millbrook. Also on Saturday.

Songs For Autism III at the Towne Crier in Pawling. Third annual benefit concert featuring award-winning performances to benefit people living with autism in the Hudson Valley. Songs for Autism has helped raise over $10,000 for Putnam ARC’s preschool for children with autism, located in Mahopac, NY, and for the Hudson Valley Autism Resource Center. Please join us for a great night of music and FUNdraising and support children and adults in need. $25 advance/ $35 door. 845-278-7272, ext. 287 for tickets and information. http://townecrier.com/acts/autism.htm.

Vassar College Orchestra. Eduardo Navega, conductor. 8pm, Martel Recital Hall, Skinner Hall of Music, 845-437-7294, music.vassar.edu. Free!

Solas en Lae at Rhinebeck Center for Performing Arts. Saturday too. Irish dance troupe. 845-876-3080.

Scherezade and the Arabian Nights at Cocoon Theatre in Rhinebeck. 845-876-6470. www.cocoontheatre,org. To May 10.

How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying at the Wappingers County Players. To May 16. www.countyplayers.org, 845-298-1491.

The Woodstock Chamber Orchestra, Conducted by artistic director David Leighton. The program features the Brahms Serenade No. 1 in D and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 3 in E-flat, Eroica. Tickets: $20 for adults, $5 for students, and free to t, he Bard community with I.D. 8 p.m., Olin Hall. 845-246-7045 or www.wco-online.com.

Millbrook Music Scene: Head Soup at la Puerta Azul, somebody fabulous at Loopeys and maybe a late night band at Seany B’s.

Saturday, May 2:

Screening of FIRST, with local filmmaker Hazel Gurland in person. Fundraiser for Hudson Valley Planned Parenthood. 2pm. $10 for all tickets. FIRST is a documentary compiling 10 women’s personal histories of their developing sexuality, directed and produced by local filmmakers Eve Waltermaurer and Hazel Gurland. The women of FIRST welcome us into their bedrooms and their private past sharing ‘first’ stories. We learn about the sexual path from first kiss onward that is so unique but in many ways so similar across women. The women in FIRST come from a variety of geographic backgrounds: urban, suburban and rural, a variety of racial/ethnic backgrounds, and a variety of socio-economic backgrounds. In addition, the women in FIRST span four generations revealing the change in sexual attitudes from the 1920’s through today. 40 mins. 876-2515, www.upstatefilms.org.

Skyhunters in Flight, Blithewood, Levy Institute, 2pm. The Landscape and Arboretum Program at Bard invites the Bard community to a special falconry demonstration with master falconer, Brian Bradley from Skyhunters in Flight. Learn about our local birds of prey and the ancient art of falconry. Amy Foster has the answers to your questions 845-758-6822 x7179 or e-mail afoster@bard.edu.

Great American Auction 10 – 8. 845-471-5107, www.greatamericanauction.com. Usually copious amounts of Victorian and Gothic furniture.

Opening of the new art gallery in Millbrook. Where the department store was. Sorry, no other info.

“The Allure Of The Object” will be on display May 2 through May 31, with an opening reception from 4-6pm. The Washington Art Association is located in Bryan Memorial Plaza, Washington Depot, CT. Gallery hours are Tuesday-Saturday, 10-5 and Sunday 12-5. For additional information, please call 860-868-2878 or visit website www.washingtonartassociation.org.

Artist reception and show at the Tremaine Gallery, Hotchkiss. Allen Blagden’s paintings, etchings and drawings. Reception is from 4 – 6, but show continues to June 14. www.hotchkiss.org/arts. 860-435-4423.

Maplebrook Art Show and Kentucky Derby Day Reception. Mint Juleps, derby fare and many great local artists. Free, 5 – 8 and big hats are welcome. The show runs through June 7 and has historically been a great place to see and buy local art. 845-373-9511 x 246.

Millbrook Music scene: Real Men at La Puerta Azul, not sure about Loopeys and Seanys. If you are in town and looking for something to listen to, swing by.

Keeping a Family Cow Workshop is FULL … the next one, scheduled for September 12 is also filling fast. To get on the list, write Debra@Motherhouse.us. Cornwall Community Contra Dance with Bill Fischer calling 7:00-9:30 at the Town Hall. Still the Homegrown Band playing. $3/child, $5/adult. For info, call Jane 672-6101.

A Spring Without Bees book discussion at 7:30pm at Oblong Rhinebeck with Barbara Schacker. Barbara Schacker gives an eye-opening presentation based on her husband’s book A Spring Without Bees: How Colony Collapse Disorder Has Endangered Our Food Supply. In A Spring Without Bees, we learn the interconnected clues that point to the most probable cause-that honeybees are being poisoned and weakened by a new class of pesticides. These pesticides, which have only come into use in this country in the past five years, are now in widespread use on lawns, gardens and golf courses as well as farms. A chilling description of the chain reaction of events that will lead to economic disaster and the most unthinkable-the possibility of widespread famine in the most powerful nation in the world-all depends on the life of the humble honeybee. I heard Barbara speak at Cary IES and this is just fascinating. Keep in mind what master beekeeper David said “I spoke with the USDA and they see all fruits and vegetables, aside from corn and soybeans, being imported into the US by 2015

Bottle Tree Grocery reopens. (518) 329-0444 or thebottletreeg@aol.com.

Sunday, May 3:

Phantom Gardener in Rhinebeck, Annuals with Style workshop,10am. Michael Ruggiero introduces you to basic design principles and tips for incorporating annual plants into your garden and landscape. Get the scoop on new varieties and ideas for how to use them for maximum effect. Michael is author of several books, including /Annuals with Style/, and a former Senior Curator at The New York Botanical Garden. I was lucky to take courses with him at IES and he is a wonderful educator.

10:30 am and again on Thursday, May 21, 5:30 pm
Baby Bird Training Workshops. Do you enjoy working with animals? The Sharon Audubon does too and they could use some help! The Center’s Wildlife Rehabilitation Program starts becoming more active in the spring and, in the summer, Sharon Audubon receives many orphaned birds, which need to be cared for and fed in preparation for their release. This is a great parent/older child activity. We can accommodate most schedules, but we have the most need between 4-7pm and anytime on Fridays or Saturdays. Interested individuals willing to volunteer over the summer may sign up for one of these training sessions by calling Erin at (860) 364-0520 x11. www.sharonaudubon.org

Judy Collins at UPAC in Kingston at 7pm and there are still tickets. One of my favorite voices since I was a small child is Judy Collins. www.upac.org, 845-339-6088, call Ticketmaster or swing by the Bardavon.

Bard Conservatory Orchestra, conducted by Gisele Ben-Dor. Program includes Antonín Dvo?ák’s Symphony No. 6, Mieczyslaw Weinberg Concerto for Trumpet and Orchestra, Op.94 with Conservatory faculty Carl Albach. Presented by The Bard College Conservatory of Music. Sosnoff Theater, Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts, 3 p.m. 845-758-7900 or conservatory@bard.edu.

Joint Student Ensemble Concert. Vassar Camerata, Mary Elizabeth Alexander ’09 and Emily Bookwalter ’10, conductors; and Mahagonny Ensemble, Ashley Alter ’10 and Mark Van Hare ’10, conductors. Martel Recital Hall, Skinner Hall of Music, 3pm. 845-437-7294
music.vassar.edu

A Tribute to Billy Joel, 3pm, the Center for Performing Arts, 661 Route 308, Rhinebeck. Special guests, The Chain Gang, present a concert of classic hits by Billy Joel. The Poughkeepsie-based band is known regionally for its timeless classic rock and pop music. Tickets: $18 adults; $16 seniors & children. www.centerforperformingarts.org (845) 876-3080.

90th Birthday Party for Pete Seeger. A sing-a-long celebration to Benefit the Clearwater Foundation. May 3rd is Pete’s Birthday, so come sing along at Madison Square Garden with Pete Seeger, Bruce Springsteen, Dave Matthews, Eddie Vedder, John Mellencamp, Juanes, Ani DiFranco, Arlo Guthrie, Bela Fleck, Ben Bridwell, Ben Harper, Billy Bragg, Billy Nershi, Bruce Cockburn, Emmylou Harris, Joan Baez, Keller Williams, Kris Kristofferson, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Michael Franti, Patterson Hood, Preservation Hall Jazz Band with Del McCoury, Ramblin’ Jack Elliot, Richie Havens, Steve Earle, Taj Mahal, Tom Morello, Warren Haynes, Abigail Washburn & The Sparrow Quartet, Bernice Johnson Reagon, Dar Williams, Guy Davis, Jay Ungar & Molly Mason, Kate & Anna McGarrigle, Larry Long, Mike & Ruthy, Native American Indian Cultural Alliance, NYC Labor Chorus, Scarlet Moore, Silvio Rodriguez, Tao Rodriguez-Seeger, Tom Chapin, Tom Paxton, Tommy Sands, Tony Trischka, and Toshi Reagon.

Monday, May 4:

Dutchess County Bounty, dedicated to connecting local field to table, hosts its first ever Speed Networking for farmers and chefs, at 9:30 a.m. Stissing House. The Networking will finish no later than noon. Anyone with questions can call Dutchess Bounty Coordinator Vicki Simons at 518/392-9696 or e-mail vsimons@fairpoint.net. Advance registration is preferred.

Town of Washington Master Plan Comprehensive Committee meets at 11am at the Town Hall. This is an updated time. Please call 845-677-3419 with any questions. Riverstreet will discuss the town wide survey.

Music Made in America series at the Fountains in Millbrook, 2-3pm, free. Sorrow Songs and Jubilees: The Rise of Blues and Gospel.

Lecture Series: “What is the Enlightenment? Revolution and the Limits of Reason.” Dramatic reading of the Einstein-Freud Correspondence. 4:30 p.m., Olin Hall, Bard. 845-758-7216, or deady@bard.edu.

Tuesday, May 5:

Southern Hemisphere Wine Dinner at the Artists Palate. One seating at 6pm.
$65 per person includes 5 courses and all wine pairings. The Artist’s Palate has made a local commitment. Through networking with area growers, farmers, and agriculturalists, The Artist’s Palate hopes to create a greater awareness of Dutchess County’s bountiful harvests. By using local and regional sustainable foods and products (like eggs and rhubarb), we can assist in the preservation of local farms and industries (ahem). When dining with us, you are helping to support area farmers in an effort to keep it local! All that and good food too! The Artist’s Palate will be for Mother’s Day, Sunday, May 10. 1:00-8:00. 845-483-8074.

All Day Cinco de Mayo Fiesta at la Puerta Azul. 5:30 to 8:30 Dos Equis party with drink specials and Flamenco guitarist Jeff Armstrong.

Wednesday, May 6:

Dance Performance. VaBang! is a bi-coastal modern company based in New York City and San Francisco. VaBang! creates intensely athletic, socially-conscious works. The company’s mission is to bring together the unique styles of modern dance from the east and west coasts. Frances Daly Fergusson Dance Theater, Kenyon Hall, Vassar, 845-437-7468, dance.vassar.edu, 8pm.

Thursday, May 7:

Vassar, 5 to 9, Jazz will be in the air during “Late Night”, with a performance of standards by Vassar students Jonathan Kanen on alto saxophone, Bren Cavallo on keys, and Dan Salton on bass. They’ve been playing together for almost two years and also perform with the Vassar Jazz Combos and the Vassar Jazz Ensemble. Free! The Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center 845-437-7745 fllac.vassar.edu.

Tivoli Bays talk on the invasion of the Chinese Mitten crab. 845-889-4745, free. www.dec.ny.gov/public/33037.html

Town of Union Vale Board Meeting, 7:30.

And finally, Innisfree reopens. www.innisfreegarden.org.

NYSDEC’s Hudson River Estuary Program and Hudson River Fisheries Unit has initiated a volunteer-based river herring monitoring program during the annual migration of river herring from the ocean into freshwater tributaries to spawn. They are looking for volunteers to monitor streams from now until 5/31.
Monitoring involves looking to see if, where, and when herring spawning runs exist on these tributaries. Each volunteer will conduct visual observations at least twice a week for 15 minutes at a site close to their town. Training is provided, no experience necessary. For more information on the program, please visit www.dec.ny.gov/animals/41545.html, r3hermon@gw.dec.state.ny.us or (845)256-3182. Some of the sites: (Albany County) Coeymans Creek, Vloman Kill (Columbia County) Stockport Creek, Mill Creek (Dutchess County) Fallkill, Wappinger Creek, Crum Elbow Creek, (Orange County) Moodna, Quassaick Creek (Ulster County) Black Creek (Westchester County) Croton River (Rockland County) Minisceongo Creek, Sparkill Creek.

And wonderful words from the Hudson River Almanac: Every reach of the river seems to have its own special and often unique signs of spring. It is not uncommon to find them linked, reminding us of the ecological connection between the air, land, and water. This week northern gannets returned to Sandy Hook and the Lower Bay of New York Harbor. Their appearance tends to correspond to the arrival of springtime fish migrants such as herring, shad, and Atlantic mackerel, prime forage for the gannets, and signs of spring for many coastal areas of the Northeast.

Peter Pan will be performed Thursday, April 23 through Saturday, April 25 at 7:30 p.m., and Sunday, April 26 at 2:30 p.m. at Red Hook High School. Flying effects by Flying by Foy. Both reserved and general admission tickets for all performances are available.
$10 in advance and $12 at the door, with a $2 discount for students of all ages and senior citizens (60+). 845-758-2241 X 3506, PeterPanTickets09@gmail.com. May want to compare it with the production at Vassar a few days later.

The Hotchkiss Dramatic Association will present Buried Child, a tale as ancient as Oedipus and as current as tonight¹s news, in the Walker Auditorium April 24 and 25 at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, April 26, at 2:30 p.m. Sam Shepard play, one of my most chilling favorites with the memorable “I don’t like being ignored!”. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for students and senior citizens and may be reserved by calling 860-435-3203 or purchased at the door.

Earth Day, but of course every day is Earth Day. www.earthday.gov. Making small changes are still important and it is easy to start with small things, like forgoing buying water when the tap water is fine, changing the lightbulbs to CFLs and bringing your own takeaway dishes. How about going chemical free on the lawn this year?

Upstate Films: Everlasting Moments and Sugar. 845-876-2515.

The Locust Grove Invitational Fine Art Auction will celebrate the region’s art heritage by bringing together the work — past and present — of distinguished artists. Join us for the first ever Locust Grove Invitational Fine Art Auction. Preview hours now to April 25 10am-5pm, Preview Reception & Party with the Artists, Friday, April 24, 5 - 8 pm. Preview day of auction April 26, 10-noon. Auction starts promptly at 1:00pm. http://jamescoxgallery.com/Locust_Grove/locust_grove_catalogue.html.

Friday, April 24: Arbor Day!

The Landscape and Arboretum Program at Bard invites you to the annual Arbor Day Celebration and Arboretum Open House.
* A ceremonial tree planting on the historic “Elm Walk” (the road between Stone Row and the Chapel, 2pm. Rain or Shine!
* Pick up FREE tree educational information and brochures
* Register for upcoming horticultural classes with The New York Botanical Garden continuing education program at Bard
* Take a FREE Tree Tour on campus! Meet at the Campus Center at 12:30.
* Take home FREE tree seeds.
* Purchase locally-made tree t-shirts and bags.
* Learn how to become a Friend of the Arboretum.
* Join us for an evening lecture by Douglas Tallamy, author of Bringing Nature Home - How Native Plants Sustain Wildlife in Our Gardens, 5pm, Olin Humanities, room 102.
Amy Foster at 845-758-6822 x7179, or e-mail afoster@bard.edu.

Lou Sebasta, an urban forester with the DEC, has bare-root nursery stock shrubs and trees available at no charge to anyone interested. The plants are designed for wetlands restoration and preservation, so they’re most appropriate for planting in soggy places, stream banks, and so on. They require basically no care once they’re in place and are excellent for preventing erosion along streams and in flood plains. Silky dogwood, red osier dogwood, wetland rose, red oak, and American sycamore. You have to pick them up yourself, soon, at the Stony Kill Environmental Center off Route 9D near Beacon. Stony Kill is worth a visit anyway, but perhaps neighbors or groups can get together to arrange a pickup. If you’re interested, call Lou directly at home at 831 2053 or at his office at 831 8780, x 316.

The Ecology of Pizza. Ecologist, award-winning author, and cancer survivor Dr. Sandra Steingraber will discuss the benefits of organic food and the costs associated with pesticide-dependent crops. An expert on how environmental factors influence human health, Dr. Steingraber is a Distinguished Visiting Scholar at Ithaca College. 7pm, Cary IES. Free!

At the Bardavon, Cool Hand Luke (1967). 7:30 pm. Paul Newman. Only $5.

Jo Dee Messina at UPAC, Kingston. 8:00 pm 845-339-6088, www.upac.org.

Vassar College Opera Workshop, 8pm. Drew Minter and Miriam Charney, directors. Scenes from “L’Italiana in Algieri,” “Il Turco in Italia,” and “Il Barbiere di Siviglia,” by Rossini. Martel Recital Hall, Skinner Hall of Music 845-437-7294 music.vassar.edu. Free and also on April 25.

Opening artist’s reception at the Millbrook School for the Advanced and Honors Art Show. 5 -7pm and the exhibit continues through May 5, 845-677-8261 x 166.

Kimlin Cider Mill Celebration in Poughkeepsie. They had wanted rsvp’s last week, so please ring them at 845-849-1675 if interested in attending. At the Vassar Alumnae House. Regional food from Gigi’s, Irish music, storytelling and a silent auction. www.cidermillfriends.org, cidermillfriend@optonline.net.

Dutchess Divas at the Half Moon Theatre in Poughkeepsie. www.halfmoontheatre.org, They also wanted an rsvp early on. 845-235-9885.

Bard Playwrights’ Festival. Featuring original works by Zoe Morris, R. Alex Davis and Joanna Gurin (’09). April 24 and 25 at 8 p.m.; April 26 at 7 p.m. May 2 at 8 p.m.; May 3 and 4 at 7 p.m. Resnick Theater Studio.

Merritt Books, 3:30 in Millbrook, welcomes Robin Palmer and new book Geek Charming.

Loopey’s in Millbrook (at the light in the village) has super live music. Food is terrific too!

Saturday, April 25:

The Millbrook High School Lacrosse Club will be holding a car wash from 10:30 am – 4:00 pm at the Grace Church, Franklin Ave., Millbrook. The Lacrosse Club is a self-funded program that is fundraising to field the Boys team, which is in its second season with 30 players, and the newly formed girls team with 19 players! Yea! Clean cars!

k.d. lang at UPAC. I think she’s terrific. 8:00 pm, 845-339-6088, www.upac.org.

Sheep and Wool Day at Clermont. Not only one of the earliest Hudson River houses, one of the most beautiful ones with gorgeous grounds. 11- 4:30, rain date 4/26. www.friendsofclermont.org.

Hudson Valley Green Fair, 10am - 6pm. Dutchess County Fairgrounds in Rhinebeck.
(845) 471-8404, info@hvgreenfair.com, www.hudsonvalleygreenfair.com. For all of that toxic stuff, like old computers, you’d like to safely dispose of, bring it to the HV Green Fair. $10 a car load. I think Saturday for people, Friday for businesses. Fair will be on Saturday and Sunday.

Two neat events at the Sharon Audubon, www.sharon.audubon.org, Route 4, Sharon, CT 06069 / (860) 364-0520.
Bed Preparation & Mulch, 10am with botanist Ron Aakjar as he discusses this hands-on approach to gardening, creating a new garden area at the Audubon Center. We will be looking at different types of mulch and which ones work for what kinds of area. Pre-registration is highly recommended
Wildflower Walk at 2pm. Spring is a time for new growth and the Sharon Audubon Center comes alive with budding wildflowers throughout the property. Come take a walk with botanist Ron Aakjar and learn to identify these beauties.

Mother/Daughter Retreat: a relaxing day of quiet activities for mothers and daughters to share. Includes making Jump for Joy jump-ropes, a sushi lunch, and a hand-made book of your favorite jumprope rhymes. 10:30 - 3:00. $35/mother-daughter pair. Contact Debra@Motherhouse.us or 860 672-0229 for location and to pre-register.

Plein Aire Paint out in Wingdale, 73 Wheeler Road, The Manor House. 10 am start for painting, but 12 – 6 for the sale. Also on Sunday. www.eppsinc.org has some info.
Starr Library in Rhinebeck Book Sale – antiques and art too, 10-4. 845-876-4030, www.starr.rhinebeck.lib.ny.us.

Spring Festival in Clinton at the Fran Mark Park. 10- 5, lots of good things for kids of all ages, like the ATV mud bog, 845-266-3445, www.townofclinton.org.

Wappingers Creek Derby, in Pleasant Valley. 845-635-3463, www.aquaticexplorers.org, 8 to 3 and ends in Poughkeepsie at Greenvale Park.

Oblong Books & Music, 6422 Montgomery St., Rhinebeck, hosts a reading and signing with Olivia Gentile, author of Life List: A Woman’s Quest for the World’s Most Amazing Birds. This event is free and open to the public. 7:30pm.

Bard Chamber music featuring students of the Conservatory. Free. Olin Hall. 8 p.m. 845-758-7196 or conservatory@bard.edu.

Bella Notte dinner and recital will be taking place this Saturday, April 25th at 7pm. Leonardo’s Bella Notte is a unique and very special, 6-course dinner served family style just for 16 people, followed by a lovely one hour recital featuring three talented local youngsters who will play and/or sing beautiful, classical music and arias for us during coffee and dessert. This is a wonderful evening from 7pm - 10pm that includes absolutely everything: dinner, all taxes, all gratuities, corkage of your wine, the recital, and other surprises. It will be a Bella night and a unique and different evening for you and perhaps another couple or more that might come with you. The total cost is $69.95 per person and again, this price includes EVERYTHING. Call Leonardo’s at 876-3980 to reserve your spots.

Sunday, April 26:

Grand Re-opening of the Sharon Audubon’s Kids’ Adventure Center, 1:00-5:00 pm. Center admission is free! The Adventure Center has been closed for several months due to renovations and now features an exciting “waterworld” of exhibits and activities for children and their parents including a coral reef aquarium, beautiful identification murals, activity blocks, an indoor boardwalk, beaver den and more! Everyone who attends the open house will receive a free Audubon print in celebration of John James Audubon’s birthday, and the first 20 children to go through the new Adventure Center will also receive a special gift! Additional prizes and activities will take place throughout the day.
Sequence of Bloom, 10am, Phantom Gardener. If you’re looking for full-season appeal in your garden, you need to get in touch with the S.O.B. – and we’re not talking about your temperamental property manager. Keep it in mind when you plan and plant, you can enjoy a wave of horticultural interest from April right through October. Join this entertaining and interactive discussion with *Andrew Koehn*, Garden Manager for Mohonk Mountain House, as he presents several scenarios for different garden situations – with one sure to be perfect for your landscape.

Barrett School of Art presents spring classes at Merritt Bookstore in Millbrook. Paint small, work fast and create with faith with Tilly Strauss Sundays, April 26, May 3 & 17 during Daily Painting Exercise. Barrett will also offer summer classes at Merritt. Check their website www.barrettartcenter.org or call 471-2550.

FDR Tulipomania, Banking with Bulbs During the Golden Age of Dutch Culture. 2pm, $60 and sounds fascinating as it’s about frenzy and obsession, commodities and market crashes and bankruptcy. 845-229-9115 x 26, www.beatrixfarrandgarden.org.

The Friends of Mills Mansions as a Below the Scenes Tour at Staatsburgh. 3pm, free, but reservations required. 845-889-8851. If you have not been to Staatsburgh, it is not the most grand nor the most historical of the Hudson River Great Houses. However, it is the only one that accesses the Hudson without crossing the rail (well, you cross the rail early on, so the access to the water is direct). The grounds are splendid.

Much happening at Bard. Chamber music featuring students of the Conservatory. 8 p.m., Olin Hall. 845-758-7196 or conservatory@bard.edu. “Glories of the Hudson—The Quadricentennial Olana–Cedar Grove Student Symposium” Joint symposium convened by Olana State Historic Site and the Thomas Cole National Historic Site and hosted by The Fisher Center in celebration of New York State’s 2009 Hudson-Fulton-Champlain Quadricentennial. Sosnoff Theater, The Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts. 845-758-7900 or www.fishercenter.bard.edu. Recital by tenor Patrick Cook, accompanied by Adam Bloniarz. Presented by the Graduate Vocal Arts Program. 3 p.m., Olin Hall. 845-752-2191 or conservatory@bard.edu.

Zuill Bailey at the Howland Cultural Center in Beacon. www.howlandmusic.org. $30, unless you can be discounted to $10. 845-297-9243.

Tuesday, April 28:

Bard Conservatory Noon Concert Series, free. Conservatory students in concert. Olin Hall, noon. 845-758-7196 or conservatory@bard.edu.

Wednesday, April 29:

Noontime Concert Series at the Lehman Loeb. Delight your senses at the Art Center. Listen to a performance by students of the Music Department while viewing works of art in the galleries. The Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center. Free! 845-437-7745
fllac.vassar.edu.

Dawn Upshaw and students of the Graduate Vocal Arts Program in recital. Presented by the Graduate Vocal Arts Program. Sosnoff Theater, Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts, 8 p.m. 845-758-7900 or conservatory@bard.edu. Tickets must be purchased, proceeds to benefit the Scholarship Fund.

Thursday, April 30:

Dramatic Performance. Badass: Fighting from Never/Land. Created, directed and choreographed by Julianna Allen ’09. Presented by the Experimental Theater of Vassar College Drama Department. Also on May 1. The Martel Theater, Vogelstein Center for Drama and Film. Reservations required; call 845-437-5584 or 5599. drama.vassar.edu.

Locust Grove on Route 9 in Poughkeepsie for the Dutchess County Volunteer Engagement Fair, 11a.m. – 3p.m. The event will be your chance to connect directly with agencies in need of volunteers. 486-2555.

Late Night at Vassar’s Lehman Loeb will celebrate the variety and power of female artistic vision in the community. “Views From Within: Community Impressions Through Teen Eyes,” a multimedia presentation and conversation, will honor the year-long partnership between the Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center and young women from Mill Street Loft’s PASWORD (Program for Adolescent Student Women of Real Direction) program (directed by Joan Henry).
Working with students from the Vassar Education Department, members of PASWORD painted four-part panels about their visions of the community, which will be shown during “Late Night.” In addition, “View from Within” will present some of the correspondence between members of PASWORD and students from the Zuni High School in New Mexico. The evening will also include a performance by the Vassar all-female student a cappella group, The Night Owls. For additional information about the PASWORD program and Mill Street Loft, see www.millstreetloft.org.

Remember, this is Library Week - Amnesty on those missing cards, overdue and lost books, and a reminder of just how cool your local library is.

Swarm season for bees is approaching and you might be lucky enough to see one. Honey bee swarms are important and should never be sprayed or killed. Call a beekeeper instead to have the swarm captured and removed.

As Mom pointed out, if you gain five pounds a year, over ten years you’ll have a problem. So, Weight Watchers meets at the Fountains in Millbrook on Wednesdays 5:30pm.

Upstate Films this week: Sunshine Cleaning and Sin Nombre. 845-876-2515, www.upstatefilms.org. And a special event on Saturday.

Thursday, April 16:

Washington Meeting, Town Hall, 7:00pm

Town of Washington/Village of Millbrook Historical Society; 7:30 at Lyall Memorial Federated Church, Millbrook. Free, but donations gladly accepted. Sports Night at “The Y Field”: History of Ball Games in the Town of Washington with John Flanagan, President of Sports Museum of Dutchess County. Yes, there exists a Sports Museum of Dutchess County.

Bard Recital by soprano Rie Miyake, accompanied by Lucas Wong. Olin Hall, 8 p.m. 845-752-2191 or conservatory@bard.edu. Free.

Late Night at the Lehman Loeb. Not your typical happy hour… Come spend yours with Pablo, Vincent, Georgia, and Jackson! Please join us for special tours, films, entertainment provided by student groups and local performers and refreshments. Check our website for up-to-date details. 5 to 9, The Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center
845-437-7745, fllac.vassar.edu.

Friday, April 17:

“Wilson, Shostakovich, Brahms.” Wilson’s “The Cello Has Many Secrets,” ASO with Botstein. Shostakovich’s Violin Concerto No. 1, and Brahms’s Symphony No. 3. Tickets: $35, $30, $20. Sosnoff Theater, Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts, 8:00 p.m. Preconcert talk by Richard Wilson, ASO composer in residence. 6:45 p.m. 845-758-7900 or www.fishercenter.bard.edu. On Saturday as well.

The Duhks (pronounced “ducks”) come to the Towne Crier in Pawling. They are a 5-member Canadian group that seamlessly blend Gospel, Celtic, Old time, Zydeco, Country, Latin, French-Canadian and sheer Rock & Roll. The Winnipeg-based group has always gravitated towards traditional roots-based song structures, but they’ve never stopped evolving since their inception. http://duhks.com/bio.cfm, 7:3opm; $20 advance/ $25 door. www.townecrier.com.

Vassar College Jazz Ensemble. James Osborn, conductor. Free. Martel Recital Hall, Skinner Hall of Music, 8pm. 845-437-7294 music.vassar.edu

Stephen Lynch at the Bardavon. 473-2072, www.bardavon.org.

Saturday, April 18:

The event I am most excited about is They Came to Play, coming to Loopey’s 2-5pm. For $25, tons of food, a drink, dessert, the film, Q&A with producer and competitors. Limited seating. Maybe a piano too. www.theycametoplay.com

Dutchess Land Conservancy Vernal Pool Workshop and Tour, 9am to 12noon. Learn about vernal pools and their extremely important role in the environment and then take a nice short walk to explore one. Great for the whole family and my personal wish is that anyone making wetlands decisions will attend. www.dutchessland.org. By the way, there is a petition online requesting vernal pools are included in the Town of Washington’s Wetland ordinance. www.petitiononline.com/vp12545/petition.html.

Clothes Swap! 10am start and please email me, ilana677@gmail.com, if you would like to join us, donate or possibly accept the surplus.

Resources For The Recession: Free Information Fair featuring local resources to weather the recession. Information on Community Garden, STAR Exemption Applications, Senior and Veteran Tax Exemptions, Financial Seminar Sign-ups, Job Bank (paid or volunteer), Food Banks, Local Support Services and more. 9am to 1pm,
Millbrook Firehouse, Front Street, Millbrook. All are welcome. Light refreshments will be served. Children’s activities. Bilingual Spanish translator.

Elizabeth Mayhew, the lifestyle expert for NBC’s Today show and special projects editor at House Beautiful magazine, at Merritt Book Books in Millbrook, 11am, to talk about her new book, Flip! for Decorating. Bring pictures of rooms in your house and ask Elizabeth questions.

Maple Hill Farm Festival at the Clinton Library - celebrating children’s authors and illustrators, 9:30 am to 1 pm. Peter McCarty, Susanna Hill, Iza Trapani, David Soman and Jacky Davis and Sheila Buff will all be there. Merritt Books will have books available for purchase and the authors/illustrators will have some time set aside to sign the books.

Family Round Sing. 7:30 at the Cornwall, CT Town Hall. Call Debra 860 672-0229 for more info.

Dutchess County Resource Recovery Agency in Poughkeepsie is holding the first of the year Household Hazardous Waste Day. Call 485-6020 or visit www.dcrra.org for more details and to register.

Two artist receptions. Small Wonders at the Waddle and Swaddle Mother and Child Boutique in Poughkeepsie, 845-473-5952, www.lynnesteban.com, which continues to April 30. Ten Artists at the Morrison Gallery in Kent, with local greats like Peter Woytuk. www.themorrisongallery.com, 860-927-4501.

The Master Gardeners of Putnam County are excited about their Spring Gardening School, a One-Day University on all things gardening. Classes and a presentation with digital images by Duncan Brine, http://gardenlarge.com/duncan-brine, principal landscape designer of Horticultural Design, Inc. His speech, “Structuring Nature: Whole Property Landscape Design,” focuses on his six-acre garden in Pawling. Classes include the recent revival of interest in Coleus, new ideas for container gardens, the hands-on workshop Turf Love: environmental lawn care, preventing or delaying tree death, creating a cutting garden, fresh ideas for growing salad greens, organic ways to protect your plants from pests and disease, and a hands-on class in plant propagation. Participants may choose four of the eight classes offered. The day concludes with a question-and-answer panel. 9:00 a.m. to 4:15 p.m., at the Emergency Training & Operations Center, 112 Old Route 6, in Carmel, NY. Pre-registration is going on now. 845-278-6738. $40 per person. Continental breakfast provided, bring your own lunch. Registrations are taken until the day before the event and walk-ins are welcome.

Grand Wine Tasting,12:00pm - 5:00pm. 845-452-2175, info@arlingtonwine.net
Arlington Wine & Liquor is hosting a Grand Wine Tasting, featuring over 40 wines from outstanding producers from all over the world. Come sample extraordinary wine selections from France, Italy, Spain, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, California, Washington, Oregon and New York State, and enjoy specially discounted prices on all the wines being showcased. This free event is open to the public, but you must be of legal drinking age to participate. And remember, it’s ok to spit. Careful driving home and just as careful wandering around Adams nursery section afterwards. Or cheese section for that matter. Easy to overbuy after a good wine tasting.

Gardeners Day will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday at the Farm and Home Center in Millbrook.

Barrett School of Art presents spring classes at Merritt Bookstore in Millbrook starting soon. Visiting artist, Carol Ann Morley, who used to teach at the Carey Arboretum, offers Drawing Flowers with Color Pencil, a special weekend workshop which emphasizes ways to capture the beauty of flowers and the versatile medium of colored pencils, April 18,19. www.barrettartcenter.org or call 471-2550.

Bard’s Ani Kavafian, violin, conducts a master class with selected Conservatory students. Free. Olin Hall, 3 p.m. 845-758-7196 or conservatory@bard.edu.

Two free events at the Phantom Gardener in Rhinebeck: 9 am Stroll the promising pathways with woody plant guru Eli Joseph-Hunter as he introduces you to exciting new arrivals and answers questions about using them in your landscape.
11am Norbert’s Favorite shrubs. If you want to add almost instant impact to your property, try incorporating some shrubs. With such varied habits, architecture and interest, you can find one suitable for almost any location and any landscaping need.

Upstate Films is showing the 1967 PLAYTIME, the much-appreciated but rarely-shown masterpiece by Jacques Tati, who won several international awards for his films featuring Monsieur Hulot. Hulot, one of the few modern comic characters in the mold of Chaplin and Keaton, is a bridge between the silent and sound eras’ approach to film comedy. Ostensibly documenting a group of American tourists and Hulot as they wander aimlessly through a simulacrum of Paris. Sole show at 1:45pm.

Two Free Recitals at Vassar, Martel Recital Hall, Skinner Hall of Music. 845-437-7294
music.vassar.edu. 1:30pm David Wojciechowski, cello, assisted by Anna
Polonsky, piano. Music of Bach, Brahms, Schumann, and Chopin.
4:00pm Peter Walker, bass-baritone, assisted by David Alpher, piano. Music of Brahms, Marcabru, Ventadorn, Vaughan Williams, and Ireland.

HVP plays Beethoven’s Ninth at the Bardavon. 473-2072, www.bardavon.org.

Sunday, April 19:

The Millbrook Free Library will host local author Jillian Quinn as she presents her highly prescriptive interactive workshop based on the practical system found in Jillian’s new best-selling book The Secrets of the Bulletproof Spirit: How to Bounce Back from Life’s Hardest Hits. 2pm.

South Asian culture comes to Vassar with annual festival that will feature music, dance, and food. Residential Quadrangle from 11:00 am to 4:00 pm. The free event will feature music, dance performances and wares from both Vassar students and the community. Vendors will include Making Faces, which will paint henna and thread eyebrows, food outlets that will sell South Asian cuisine including Kabab Palace, and the Students’ Alliance itself, which will sell accessories such as bindis and other jewelry. This festival is open to the public. (845) 437-5370.

Starting a Garden Journal at the Phantom Gardner, 2pm. Botanical sketches are a wonderful way to capture the details of your landscape or a woodland walk, and can help you appreciate plants in a whole new way. Conservation biologist, naturalist and artist Cris Winters will share some simple techniques for observing and drawing plants in the garden or in nature. You’ll find that drawing leaves, flowers, and fruits will lead to fascinating discoveries, as well as an increased knowledge of plant structure and function. Sketching materials will be provided, though students are welcome to bring their own materials if they wish.

Bard College has so much to offer. Chamber music featuring students of the Conservatory. Free. Olin Hall. 3 p.m. 845-758-7196 or conservatory@bard.edu.
Two art openings:
Sunday, April 19 through Sunday, May 24. Five exhibitions curated by second-year students in the graduate program in curatorial studies and contemporary art. Opening reception on Sunday, April 19, 1–4 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday, 1–5 p.m. 845-758-7598, ccs@bard.edu, www.bard.edu/ccs.
Sunday, April 19 through Saturday, April 25
The Bard College Nursery School and the Bard Community Children’s Center will have an exhibit of the children’s artwork. 845-758-7480 for info. korn@bard.edu.

Tenor Ronan Tynan at the Bardavon, 5pm. 845.473.2072, www.bardavon.org.

Monday, April 20:

Sara Pearson and Patrik Widrig, of Pearsonwidrig Dancetheater, will conduct “The Creative Process in Dance Composition, a Showing by Vassar Dancers.” Working with Vassar dance students, Pearson and Widrig will elucidate the process of their unique choreography and creative inspiration. Their choreographic sensibility extends far beyond the body, with use of oranges, blocks of ice, and other props in order to convey socio-political, poetic, mystical, historical, and humorous ideas. In site-specific and community dance/theater/video installations, they challenge habitual assumptions of what art is, where art happens, and who may participate. www.pearsonwidrig.org. 845-437-7468, dance.vassar.edu.

Wednesday, April 22:

Noontime Concert Series at the Lehman Loeb. Delight your senses at the Art Center. Listen to a performance by students of the Music Department while viewing works of art in the galleries. 845-437-7745 fllac.vassar.edu.

Thursday, April 23:

The World is Blue: How Our Future and the Ocean’s Are One. One of the world’s most distinguished marine scientists, Dr. Sylvia Earle, will discuss the ocean’s rapid decline, what it means to humanity, and the need to protect the blue heart of the planet. An explorer-in-residence at the National Geographic Society, Dr. Earle has investigated the ocean’s deepest depths for over forty years. 4pm, Cary IES. Free.

Young Environmental Scientists’ (YES) Conference
A special event for 5th-12th graders who conduct an environment-related science fair project. Participants will display their project at the Cary Institute, where they will interact with scientists, take a lab tour, and receive a certificate of merit. To RSVP, contact Kim Notin at (845) 677-7600 ext 303. 5pm, Cary IES. Free!