Beacon Dispatch

Hey Bear, Are You There?

After comparing my scat shots to those on other sites (here, here, and here), it appears that a black bear is wandering around my neighborhood late at night. While this is uncommon for this time of year, when bears are usually hibernating, a neighbor tells me that a few years back a 289 lb black bear walked right up to his back door, silencing his guard dog with one snort. The bear was shot with a tranquilizer and released back into the wild. Apparently it was then shot and killed out of season when it turned up in Cornwall. So it goes...

In any case, we're taking all the necessary precautions. Thanks for JoeMelzingah for the following advice:

"A little shouting and arm waving will shoo them away, or give them a squirt on the nose with a CO2 fire extinquisher if they're close by - the cold blast will discourage them without doing any harm."

I'm also teaching myself this useful little ditty, "Hey Bear, Are You There?", to sing with my kids. Hopefully it will help get them used to the idea that there may be bears lurking in the yard. It'l also come in handy when we're hiking. Again, thanks to everyone for helping me figure this out. While I'm still not 100% sure (I guess it could be a coyote or bobcat), I now know more than I ever thought I would about bear scat. Happy New Year!!

Deer in the backyard & mysterious fertilizer

Last night around midnight I was pulling my oversize garbage can up my driveway (man, those things make a racket when they're empty.) After putting it down, I saw some movement out of the corner of my eye. When I looked up, there were two large deer standing about 10 feet in front of me in my neighbor's back yard. They didn't seem particularly concerned about my presence, but, then again, why should they be? They're in the middle of Beacon! I've never seen deer cross 9D, but that must be how they find their way up into our neighborhood. Much less likely they come down from the mountain where we live. What's next? Bears?

Speaking of which, lately we've been finding large clumps of feces on our driveway and in our backyard. Too big for a skunk or a dog (or even a man.) What could be doing this? Certainly not the deer, who tend to leave small pellets in their wake. Could it be a possum? If it helps, said feces includes a generous amount of seeds, so we're probably talking about something with a largely herbivorous diet. We're stumped, and kind of grossed out. Knowing what is helping fertilize our lawn would help. Anyone an expert in these matters?

A brief note on Dispatch 'netiquette'

The Beacon Dispatch blog is a place where Dispatch writers and readers can discuss events  of interest to people living in, or visiting, the Beacon area. The opinions expressed in the comments are those of the writers, and do not represent an endorsement by the Beacon Dispatch. That said, this site is designed to be a "big tent" that welcomes a broad range of opinions and responses to the original posts. 

Because there are viewpoints from all sides -- eventually you will probably disagree strongly with someone's comments. As writers of the Dispatch, it is also our responsibility to moderate the response to our posts. We're here to keep the peace and make sure everyone's opinions are represented without getting personal. Any violations to the rules of participation will be edited.

The rules, in short (with thanks to About.com's Kathy Gill):

1. Treat other contributors with respect. Don't be rude, vulgar, hateful or bigoted. Discuss the message, not the messenger. Vulgarity, profanity, mean-spirited, hate-filled adjectives and posts are prohibited. If you wouldn't say it to your mother sitting around the dinner table or to your boss, it's probably not appropriate here.
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City councilman to offer kevlar vests to hikers as stocking stuffer

Ok, not really...but Jeff forwarded me the minutes from the December 13 city council workshop (where they discuss what items will be on the agenda at the next meeting). There the issue of allowing hunting on City reservoir property was discussed -- only bow hunting is currently allowed by law, but certain member of the City Council would like to change that. One councilman was quoted as follows:

Councilmember Antalek expressed his frustration with everyone’s concern for hikers. He explained the people who are paying for hunting licenses are the ones being shut out. He feels banning hunting is unfair and recommended that hikers be advised to stay out of the area for two weeks during hunting season.

Now, I'm hardly anti-hunting, but it seems slightly unsafe to allow hikers up on the mountain if shotguns or high-powered rifles are being discharged in the area. Then again, maybe hikers aren't Councilman Antalek's base. Should hikers be required to wear bulletproof vests while enjoying the great outdoors? UPDATE: At Monday night's City Council meeting, Antalek opted to delay the vote about hunting in the reservoir in favor of further discussion in workshop. Stay tuned...

2005 Dispatch Ad Rates

After six months of publishing the Dispatch, we now have a better handle on what our costs are going to be each month. While the publishers/editors/writers of the Dispatch donate our time out of a deep felt sense of civic responsibility ;-) , we still need to pay our designer (who works for a fraction of his standard rate) and Southern Dutchess News for printing 7000 copies of the Dispatch each month. That said, we barely break even.

So, to help give us a bit more breathing room, and perhaps even hire a copy editor and/or fact checker (sorry Randall), we've increased our rates for 2005. We're still a heck of a lot more reasonable than any of the other free papers out there, and judging by the response to our latest issue, as an advertiser you'll have a captive audience. Deadline for the February issue is January 15. You can download our new rate sheet here (you'll need a PDF viewer to see the file) or drop Nell Timmer an email at ads@beacondispatch.com.

As always, thank you for your support.

Holiday crunch time

I have to give the rest of the planet credit for being more prepared than me for Christmas. Not only am I paying exorbitant fees for next day shipping, but it also looks like our Christmas tree may be going native this year. Only a few sorry strands of lights work from past years, so today I went down to Main St to see if I could pick up a few packs. No big deal, right? Wrong.

Eckerds was completely out. Most of the antique/gift shops I went to either didn't have anything as practical as lights, or their prices were a bit far-fetched ($6 for a string of 50 lights?) I'm told Nichol's Hardware has lights, but they weren't open today. Better luck tomorrow. As a last resort, I headed out to Wal-Mart. But even here, the crowds had gotten there long before me, and there were no lights to be had. It's still almost a week before Christmas, for crying out loud! What happened to all those procrastinators out there? Am I the only one left? Is everyone else making their list and checking it twice weeks ahead of time? Next year I'll outdo everyone and buy up all the seasonal bric-a-brac in July, when it's half-price. That's it! Next Christmas, everyone else will be wondering where the lights went, and we'll have the most electrified tree in the neighborhood...

Beacon author to celebrate book release tonight

Tonight World's End Books is hosting a release party for Beacon author Kazim Ali's new novel, "Quinn's Passage." You can find the shop in its new location next to the Little Pie Shop, at 474 Main St. Beverages will be served.

Kazim Ali lives in Beacon and teaches at The Culinary Institute of America. His first book of poems "The Far Mosque" will be published by Alice James Books in 2005.

beacon artist's union Opens Shop On Main Street

Six artists who currently have studio space in Beacon will be opening the beacon artist's union (bau) in a storefront at 161 Main Street on the City's west end. According to the group bau expects to, "...create an extension of their studios, providing a platform for further exploration in creating and exhibiting work."

The group will be hosting an opening event on Saturday, January 8th starting at 6:00 pm.

Wee Play Children's Park proposed for Beacon

Local resident (and mother of two) Julann Cobb is organizing an effort to create a playground for toddlers in Memorial Park, modeled on the excellent  Cold Spring Tiny Tots Play Park. You can expect to see more coverage of this effort in the Dispatch, but for now, check out her WebSite for more details. She's looking for volunteers to help make this happen...

Open studio an intimate look inside the mind of the artist

Saturday night some of the quality and diversity of the Beacon art scene was on display at Spire Studios. For anyone even slightly interested in art and the artistic process, the open studio idea is an fascinating look inside the minds of the artists. Every room I walked into had something worth lingering over. And it wasn't just the artwork, which ranged from multimedia to oil paintings -- some finished, others in progress. Music was playing throughout the space, so every room I walked into had its own rhythm.

One of the rooms I kept coming back to all night included an unfinished piece using dirt, roots, and oil paint. Another piece resembled a Tibetan prayer flag. And all the materials were right there, as if the artist had just stopped working moments earlier. The bookshelves said even more, with a baseball glove, iPod charger, case of CDs (including Venom and Red Hot Chili Peppers), and dozens of books, including Runescape, a multi-payer adventure game.

It was an incredibly positive, energetic show, with the laid back, conversational atmosphere being the most welcome surprise. Friends visiting from NYC were blown away by the labyrinthian space, and were happy to get a real sense of what's going on in Beacon. The open studio is an idea long overdue, giving everyone a chance to experience first-hand the passion and personality of the artistic  process.