Category Skaneateles
Bull Dog House on West Lake
Plans are underway to demolish an existing structure on West Lake Street and build a replica of the Bull Dog Café on the site. A Los Angeles architect has been given the assignment of recreating the original as a weekend home for a financier from New York City. “Everything will be a little larger in […]
The Bug
Time has passed, and I think I can talk about the bug now. It was Holy Week, 2010, at St. James’ Episcopal Church in Skaneateles, N.Y. I sang in the choir. The choir sat in the front of the church, a few steps above the congregation and a step below the altar. Which is to […]
Poppies at Riddler’s
May 17, 2003 On a recent rainy morning, I had the privilege of accepting a red crepe-paper poppy from a woman standing in the doorway of Riddler’s, our local news and tobacco shop. I had already purchased my fresh $1 chance at Saturday’s millions the day before, so I was just hurrying by. But when […]
Chester
July 4, 2001 I was making my rounds at Lake View Cemetery this holiday morning, rediscovering Mary Norton Loney’s tomb, walking over to the Legg/Thayer plot to visit with the lions that guard it, when I saw that I was not alone. A woodchuck, used to having the grounds to himself, was watching me intently, […]
Wild Animals
July 2000 Wednesday evening at the Krebs, an outdoor dinner party of 45 people was savoring appetizers and enjoying perfect weather when a deer wandered into the garden. “A deer,” someone said and all eyes turned. At that moment, a 55-pound Akita bounded into the garden, hauled down the doe by the throat, and finished […]
Sailing
August 21, 2001 I saw something this afternoon that simply amazed me. I was walking home from work on a picture perfect day, warm sun, cool breeze, clear air, deep blue sky with a few high white clouds, and as I got to Thayer Park on the water, a young woman was bringing a sail […]
Polo Cookies
August 2002 About midway through the second chukker, one of the tournament organizers gave us each a chocolate chip cookie. He had made 200 the night before, for the players and their families after the match was over. I asked him if this meant there were now 198 cookies, and he said, “No, there has […]
The Land of Oz
November 1999 For me, the phrase “high school play” does not call up images of reserved seats and $9 tickets. But that’s the way it is in Skaneateles, and after you’ve paid your $18 per couple, you can see why. The recent Wizard of Oz was swell, two acts, 27 scenes, amazing backdrops and sets […]
Notes on the Dead
June 25, 2000 I spent Friday afternoon at the Creamery, home of the Skaneateles Historical Society, and it was like Aladdin’s Cave. They kept bringing me new treasures. The first suggested a solution to this mystery: Out at the end of the jetty, on calm mornings, when the surface of the water is smooth and […]
Moving to Skaneateles
Aug. 31 – Sept. 10, 1998 It started, I think, with a feeling of being stuck. Abbie was in a school where crowd control was the priority, and violence was frequent. My advertising job looked tenuous, and the owners spoke of retiring in five years. As I explored my options, a local competitor offered me […]
Faithful Readers 