If it looks like a duck . . .

National Register of Historic Places 1997 . . . seriously  

Q.  What starts with a duck, then slowly winds 30 miles along South Fork bays and hamlets before ending at a lighthouse? 

A.  The NY-NY South senior missionary Mecca to Montauk. 

(One of the semi-monthly social excursions to New York environs. You don't need a senior discount card to join the group. But it helps.) 

BIG DUCK - Flanders, NY.  #1 among the 7 wonders of Long Island, just ahead of the Commack Motor Inn and inspiration for the architectural term: Duck - "a building in which the architecture is subordinate to the overall symbolic form." Venturi, Robert, Denise Scott Brown, and Steven Izenour. Learning from Las Vegas: The Forgotten Symbolism of Architectural Form. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 1977;  Representational Architecture, Roadside Attractions, NPS 

BIKE RIDING IN THE HAMPTONS 

TOURIST STYLE . . . . . . . . . . . . and LOCAL STYLE 

The Montauk Point Light, hamlet of Montauk, Town of East Hampton, Suffolk County, New York
A popular location for marriage proposals and weddings  

View from lighthouse dome west toward Manhattan 

Stefanie watched one wedding while we were on the point. An older gentleman was marrying a very youthful bride. The minister began. "We are here to witness the union of a young bride and her financially comfortable groom."   A little hamptons honesty?   Refreshing.











Locals are fond of travelling to Montauk Point and watching the sun rise. One hopeful young man in our YSA branch recently included this celestial tradition in his wedding proposal: Sunrise at Point Light and Sunset in Central Park, where he presented the ring. Vanessa accepted. 

https://www.facebook.com/vanesa.villanes

________________________________ 

Yes - it's a Pottery Barn.
Southampton. 

Peeping (day 2)

CarTalk Program #1239: 
The Truth About Leaf Peepers
Description: This week on Car Talk, welcome to foliage season! Tourists are descending on New England, and locals like Kurt have plenty of time to sit in traffic, developing theories about the drivers clogging his roads . . . 
______________________

Still in leaf country, But due back on the island Tuesday night. The Plan: further exploration of Williamstown and then a southerly meander through western Massachusetts . . . 

We began with a tour of Williams and its art museum. An ancient rival of Amherst, this small liberal arts college was recently ranked by Forbes magazine as the best undergraduate institution in the United States, including all Ivy League universities and national liberal arts colleges. This marks its eleventh consecutive year as 1st place in U.S. News & World Report's ranking of 266 liberal arts colleges in the United States. 

Mid-October is peak leaf season in the Berkshires, but it is a weekday. So we owned the road, or did, once we found it. The Notch has a devilishly clever access point from North Adams. We passed it several times before the connection. Five seconds later, we entered a cloister of drooping cloud and dense wood. Sound and colors were muted. Twisting through grades we glimpsed a few hikers and trail crossings. I noticed one sign with familiar lettering and remembered that the Appalachian Trail crossed through . . .somewhere. 

Yes. I got out and "walked" the Appalachian Trail. 

We stopped at a boutique restaurant in the town of Lenox and met a self-declared foodie couple. They told us of travels made chiefly to sample the local gastro fare. Lunch was the high moment of their day. Our main purpose was to reconnoiter the Tanglewood estate and anticipate a summer meet with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, et al. It is beautiful, but not much happening there now. The nearby village of Stockbrige is famously mentioned in James Taylor's lullaby Sweet Baby James. 

Our time was now spent and we needed a freeway desperately. We decided to save Litchfield Connecticut for another day. The afternoon waned as we jetted down Highway 8 into Bridgeport, driving our Mazda into the ferry's belly bare minutes before departure. Stefanie was an additional fare charge. 

We studied our Books of Mormon (2nd Nephi) from the top deck on the hour cruise over the Sound. Then, down the ramp into Port Jefferson and up the hill to Terryville Chapel and our Tuesday class. 

Peeping (day 1)

View from Bennington Battle Monument

Leaf peeping 
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Leaf peeping is an informal term for people who travel to view and photograph the fall foliage in areas where foliage changes colors, particularly New England.^[1][2] The origin of the term "leaf peeping" is not well known. A similar custom in Japan is called momijigari.
______________________
President Calderwood approved our travel request in September, adding his own regional suggestions. "Peak color" usually comes around the first week of October, but we had difficulty finding two days together. I monitored the foliage reports as the change moved down from Canada. It reaches Long Island sometime around Halloween, but we wanted to see the famous autumn of Vermont and New Hampshire, and maybe a covered bridge or two. By mid-October the mountain top leaves were sparse, but the valley foliage was SPECTACULAR. And - no people. We had most trails and vistas to ourselves.

Popular leaf routes wind throughout New England. Some are national scenic trails. We chose an area where the borders of three states meet and the Green Mountains of Vermont become the Berkshires of Massachusetts. The proposed route seemed reasonably navigable.









Right after Sunday meetings we crossed Throgs Neck Bridge north toward Albany and at sunset followed the Taconic Trail to our Berkshire County base, a Howard Johnson near Williams College. (Changed rooms on Day Two. Second night habitable.)

Morgan Hall | Williams College 

As the sun rose Monday we saw that fall colors still painted this corner of New England. Robert Frost spent nine years in Shaftesbury. We visited his grave behind the Old First Congregational Church at Old Bennington Cemetery. Apparently, things here are stately "old" & nominally "Old."

Headstone inscription: "I had a lover's quarrel with the world"

It was a full day. We explored forest hills and crooked rivers, shopped antiques, sampled chocolate cherries and homemade ice cream . Stefanie read in the car while I toured the amazing Orvis store in Manchester. She came inside upon learning that it also sold home goods. I particularly liked the custom long guns. When I tried on a $3000.00 leather jacket she said it was time to go. We lunched on Pizza (can't get enough of that in New York), and then browsed books at the Northshire Bookstore where I soon found the poetry section and Robert Frost biographies. On the drive back we read poems and discussed embedded issues of mortality: "Whose woods these are I think I know."

The air was crisp, the roads less traveled. I opened the sun-roof and we followed highway 100, "Vermont's Main Street," south along the Deerfield River to an intersection with the Molly Stark Trail. Hmmmmm. Memorable name. I had to know. Google obliged. Her husband fought the war, but his battle cry made her the legend: "There are your enemies, the Red Coats and the Tories. They are ours, or this night Molly Stark sleeps a widow!" I love this guy.

The best angled rays come early morning and late afternoon. The back-lighting on our return to Willaimstown was a showstopper.

Gustavo

We met Gus a couple of months ago following his return from Texas, and on rebound from a paralyzing stroke suffered one year earlier. He is a young man and this was obviously an atypical medical event. Life threatening at inception, it became a spiritual watershed. After months of pain and therapy he could reach, grasp and eventually walk again, but not drive. He has related an earlier separation from fellowship and a dramatic return after the personal cataclysm . The fear and physical dependence of his injury awakened acute spiritual need. He described the encouraging embrace of his Heavenly Father during this critical time and his growing love for the Savior.




The Sister missionaries visited his apartment and invited Gus to the singles branch. As we say in our New York, New York South Mission Statement:

The TEMPLE is the goal. 
The MEMBERS are the key. (recited in eight languages including creole and ASL at every mission gathering).

So the temple became his goal. He attended meetings faithfully and has added rich perspective to our institute discussions.

Gus works professionally as a videographer, particularly with local rap and hip-hop bands. He is also developing still photography skills. We enjoy discussing different types of photographic and editing equipment.

He asked me to ordain him as a Priest in the Aaronic Priesthood and shortly thereafter, a temple trip was scheduled. President Nulty, the Branch president, tries to take the branch to the Manhattan temple once each month. This was one of the circumstances where the missionary sisters were allowed to attend.

Gus later sent me one of his photographs from the outing: Central Park, Upper West Side, the sisters and a few friends.  Beautiful.

"Let's Go Fly a Kite"

Finding a suitable place for kite flight is a challenge. Consistent with my Henderson habits I thought I could enjoy the breeze at any local island park. To my mind, kite flying is a self-evident freedom of park usage. 

Not so. 

Master-planner Robert Moses embedded many parks in the Island landscape, but there are myriad rules associated with their use. In fact, most of the parks are activity specific. Some pastimes even require written permits. (Forms conveniently provided online) 

Permits are required for: Fishing, Artifical Turf Use, Metal Detector, Surfing, Film, Photography, Sound Recording, Diving, Geo-Cache & Star Gazing. 

the Piping Plover Kite Plight

Kite-flying is even more restricted. Less than half of the 26 state parks allow kites, and then only in certain areas. 9 NYCRR, Part 377 (g) Regulated Activities. Enthusiasts are further asked to, "Please avoid flying kites during April 1 through August 30, in the appropriately marked areas, to help keep," the Piping Plover (an endangered species) undisturbed and safe. "Unfortunately, kites can be threatening to our nesting adults and chicks, and are seen as predators, which could then scare the birds off of their nests." KiteFlyingLocations.pdf  

(Yes, there is a specific publication on the subject) 

Our closest option is the Bethpage Park Picnic area playfields. "Note shaded kite area in in official diagram." They are a reasonable bike distance from our apartment. Kite flying is approved when the playfields, "are not in use." However, the field is always in use. Particularly in the spring and fall. 

Next closest kite allowable area: The favorable winds of the Robert Moses State Park on Fire Island. (Kiting allowed Field 3 & 4, east and west of bathing area. Field 2 & 5, west of bathing area, AUGUST 31ST-MARCH 31ST ONLY.) 

Fire Island is one of the barrier strips along the south shore - variably 31 miles long and two to five football-fields wide. Chelsea and Oliver have described an adventure weekend there during their "Manhattan" summer a few years back. 

On warm days the local population of 300 swells to thousands as residents of The City jam the Southern Parkway conduit. An entrance fee of $8.00-10.00 is charged during popular seasons. The approved kite season comes much later. 

So there it is. Only a 30 minute drive and an average seasonal temperature of 40 degrees, but hey, no fee, and . . .  

how do you say no to this guy?

 Move Over for the Plover Mr. Banks 

Brunching on the Southfork

- or -



Mainstreet looking toward the bay.
Southampton. 
Autumn day.
elevenish . . . 




Hi, I'm Frank Mansuetto

I'm a Mormon, Vietnam Veteran, and Italian Brooklynite  

"We are in a very unusual area of the world where Mormons might as well be an endangered species. There isn't too many of us. I've served in the church when I first was baptised after my military service on a mission in France for two years, as a Branch President in Queens and a million other callings Young Mens President and scouting to the High Counsel. I did it all, but so do most Mormons in this part of the world. I serve because I'm asked to and I also love to help people. I have been given lots and share it when I can." 
_________________________________________________ 
 We met a new counselor in the branch: Frank Mansuetto. The sisters told us about his Mormon Ad. Frank shared an engaging testimony Sunday morning, describing his journey to the LDS faith. It was half an hour of personal insights and humorous anecdotes. "The missionaries only told me about tithing as I emerged from the baptismal waters: 'Oh yeah Frank, and we need one-tenth of your money."

We enjoy many branch activities on the timbered hillside that forms part of their East Northport property. Toasting marshmallows on the back decking, hickory smoke drawing gently through the crisp air, enclosed in youthful conversations, guest cottage glow drifting down the rise. They say that Autumn is the best New York season. Tonight, we easily agree.