So Spring 😊 :: Retail Therapy Guide 4/21/2023
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HUDSON VALLEY FOOD HALL
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Beacon Free Loop Bus Seeks Feedback From Community - Marist Student Run - Study Seeks Change
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The Beacon Free Loop Bus began rolling down Main Street in 2018, the result of a collaboration between BeaconArts, the City of Beacon, and Dutchess County. Former BeaconArts president Kelly Ellenwood helped spearhead the partnership with her artistic conviction that new branding would help the bus increase ridership and help people get around Beacon for free.
Now, the Beacon Free Loop Team is seeking ways to improve the bus to make it more accessible with this online survey, open until the end of April. The study is being conducted by the student-run PR firm out of Marist College, North Road Communications, who was an original partner in the origin of the Free Loop Bus.
A new Free Loop Bus Sign from when the bus first launched.
The big blue bus replaced the G-route from Dutchess County Public Transit, and with help from various funding sources, eliminated the bus fair to make it free. They wrapped the bus in a design based in pale blue, and altered the route so that it included more popular stops in Beacon for people to enter and exit.
Running in alignment with the Beacon train schedule, the new amenity was celebrated in Beacon. It has made changes since then, such as stopping at designated stops, instead of the “Wave and Ride” concept it launched with. According to the organizers, Beacon’s Main Street got too busy for impromptu stopping.
Free Loop Bus Schedule
The Loop Bus increased the number of stops in Beacon, but Dutchess County’s bus schedule doesn’t include all of the stops.
According to the bus stop signage, the designated stops include:
Beacon Train Station
Dia: Beacon
Route 9D & Main Street
Main Street & Cliff Street
Main Street & Veterans Place (near the Post Office)
Beacon Theater (the movie theater)
Tioronda Avenue & Route 9D (Wolcott Avenue)
Route 9D (Wolcott Avenue) & Howland Avenue (Mount Beacon parking lot)
Howland Avenue & East Main Street
Main Street & Route 52 (Fishkill Avenue)
W. Center Street & Teller Avenue
Forrestal Heights (apartment complex)
Beacon Street & Wolcott Avenue
Take the online survey now. It’s quick, easy, and has room for your ideas.
Muslims In Beacon Celebrate Eid ul-Fitr At Memorial Park To Complete Ramadan
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Masjid Ar Rashid (the Islamic Teaching Center) led the community of Muslims in and near Beacon in a celebration of Eid ul-Fitr, (“Festival of Breaking Fast”) at the end of the holy month of Ramadan.
The mosque led Takbir at 8:00am and Eid prayer at 9am in Memorial Park. Muslims brought their prayer mats and laid them on a tarp, as the grass was wet. Men, women and children came out to enjoy the sunshine, pray, and see each other.
For a refresher on what is celebrated during Ramadan, read this article from Izdihar Dabashi. If you see someone celebrating the day, it is joyous to say to them “Happy Eid” or “Eid Mubarak.” And remember, if you hear the call to prayer (adhan) from the mosque, this is what it means. Take a moment to take in some peace!
Muslim Women during Eid at Memorial Park.
PHoto Credit: Masjid Ar Rashid.
Muslim Men getting ready to pray during Eid at Memorial Park.
PHoto Credit: Masjid Ar Rashid.
Locations For Beacon's Earth Day Cleanup: 9-12pm: Walk-Ins Welcome!
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City Of Beacon's Earth Day Cleanup
Days: Saturday April 22, 2023
Time: 9am-12pm
Location: Several. Signup for the location you want. But you can also just show up! The locations and meeting points are below:
Location for “East Side Of Creek: Grandview/South Avenu at the Tioranda Bridge”
South Avenue Elementary School: Main Entrance
South Avenue Park: Beacon Recreation Lot (23 West Center Street)
Sargent School: Main Entrance
Rombout Middle School: Memorial Park in the Pavilion Parking Lot
Rocky Glen and Rte. 52: Rte. 52 & Mill Street
Teller Woods: Guardrail on Teller Avenue (opposite from Ballet Arts 107 Teller Avenue)
East Side of Creek: Grandview/ South Avenue at the Tioranda Bridge. Enter from 9D down Grandview, near the Craig House and across from Beacon's University Settlement Camp. ALBB has posted a picture of it on the map here, provided by Green Beacon Coalition.
JV Forrestal School: Playground Entrance
East Side of Beacon: Stone and Liberty Street
12pm - 3pm: Hudson Valley Brewery.
Conservation Advisory Committee program outreach and social.
One free drink ticket will be provided to volunteers 21+ and a discount on Groundlings pizza. Non alcohol beverages also available.
Come to celebrate Beacon and learn about electrification, composting, trail development and pollinator pathways.
Information >
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HUDSON VALLEY FOOD HALL
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Thrift Store Launched From Beacon High School Students For Gender Equality Club - Here's How To Donate
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Editor’s Note: This announcement has been written by the BHS Students Gender Equality Club, and retained their voice.
Beacon High School Students for Gender Equality Club is beginning a school-wide thrift store that is 100% run by donations of pre-loved clothes, non-perishable food items, and toiletries, to give directly to our students from the Beacon community. It is open for students, teachers and staff on Thursdays and Fridays in the morning before Homeroom, and after school from 2:15-3:45pm (please note these hours may change by the time you read this article, so please check with their Instagram).
How To Donate Clothes, Food and Toiletries
All clothing donations must be pre-approved to ensure that each item is suitable for wear. This can be done by sending a simple email with photos attached of each item, including any possible signs of wear and tear, to bhs.thrifts@gmail.com
Please understand that every item may not be selected.
Students and faculty members can bring their pre-approved clothing items, non-perishable food, and toiletries to boxes outside of the school store located in the lobby.
Community members without a direct relation to BHS can send an email to bhs.thrifts@gmail.com to have a representative from S4GE look through items. Once items are approved, they can be brought to BHS and left with Security.
Currently, we are looking for prom attire (dresses, suits, dress shirts, dress shoes, heels and accessories). Our hunt for prom attire will end April 8th. We already have a prom dress surplus so please consider donating other prom attire. Dresses will be considered, but possibly not selected.
We are going to continue to take donations of other school appropriate clothes, non-perishable food and toiletries until June 1st.
Please understand this is a completely self-sustaining student run store, meaning, there is no compensation besides the joy of the good deed :)
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HUDSON VALLEY FOOD HALL
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Interview With Junior Zayed Dabashi About The Call To Prayer Spoken From The Mosque Speakers and the Eid al-Adha Community BBQ
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Mo Dabashi, for Eid, where the first prayer started at 9am.
PHoto Credit: Masjid Ar Rashid
Women at the Eid al-Adha Community BBQ.
Photo Credit: Masjid Ar Rashid
As foot traffic picks up on the sidewalks of Beacon’s Main Street, more people are walking by and entering the Masjid Ar Rashid Islamic Teaching Center, next to Beacon Natural and across from the Post Office. Some people are looking at their phones saying: “I found it! The mosque is right here. Let’s go in.” Other people, when they hear the Arabic coming from the speakers on the outside of the building say: “What is that sound?” if they don’t speak Arabic.
To answer that question, ALBB interviewed Junior Zayed Dabashi in July 2022 after a community BBQ at the mosque for the the 2nd Eid al-Adha. Junior is on the board of the mosque.
Photo Credit: Masjid Ar Rashid
ALBB: When we hear a voice coming from the speaker, what is its meaning? What is he saying?
It is the call to prayer (adhan). Muslims pray 5 times a day, and it is a reminder to leave everything be and pray.
They are calling people to prayers by saying:
Allahu Akbar, Allahu Akbar,
(God is the greatest, God is the greatest)
Allahu Akbar, Allahu Akbar
(God is the greatest, God is the greatest)
Ash-hadu an’ la ilaha ill Allah,
(I bear witness that there is no God but Allah)
Ash-hadu an’ la ilaha ill Allah,
(I bear witness that there is no God but Allah)
Ash-hadu ana Muhammadan Rasoolallah,
(I bear witness that Muhammad is the messenger of Allah)
Ash-hadu ana Muhammadan Rasoolallah,
(I bear witness that Muhammad is the messenger of Allah)
Hayya ‘alas-Salah,
(Rush to prayer)
Hayya ‘alas-Salah,
(Rush to prayer)
Hayya ‘alal Falah,
(Rush to success)
Hayya ‘alal Falah,
(Rush to success)
Allahu Akbar, Allahu Akbar,
(God is the greatest, God is the greatest)
La illaha ill Allah
(There is no God but Allah)
ALBB: At today’s community BBQ, I chatted with a girl who was in the area for business. She was looking for something to do, heard about today’s BBQ at the mosque, and had her taxi driver drive her here. Are you noticing an increase in new visitors?
Yes.
ALBB: What was today’s community BBQ celebrating? Was it open to all?
Junior Zayed Dabashi and Kamel Jamal at the cookout.
Photo Credit: Masjid Ar Rashid
Today we celebrated Eid al-Adha, which is also called the "Festival of the Sacrifice.” It is the second of two Islamic holidays celebrated. During Eid, we do Eid prayers, animal sacrifice, charity, social gatherings, festive meals, gift-giving. Anyone can come. It is open to all.
ALBB: Is lamb traditionally served?
Yes. Lamb or cow. There are other ways you can help the less fortunate with paying for their lamb or cow, and you don’t have to do it for your home. It’s a nice chance for a family gathering.
Kids playing in the bouncy house placed in the parking lot of the mosque.
Photo Credit: Masjid Ar Rashid
ALBB: Is sharing with family and friends encouraged?
Yes, but you don’t have too. Most Muslims get together with family.
ALBB: How many Imams are leading the mosque? I didn’t realize Mo is a Imam!
We have 2. Mo helps outs when needed.
You can read about Ramadan and Eid al-Fitr from Junior’s niece Izdihar Dabashi here at ALBB.
Last Day To Vote For A Little Beacon Blog For Best Of Hudson Valley 2023
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Best of Hudson Valley Magazine 2023 ends tonight at 5pm!!
By casting your vote, you can help A Little Beacon Blog win Best Blog of the Hudson Valley 2023.
HERE ARE THE DIRECTIONS ON HOW TO VOTE:
Visit the Best Of Hudson Valley 2023 home page.
Scroll down to “Select a Group” (scroll past the START button - don’t click that).
Click on People (even though ALBB is a blog - media publication - and not a person - though it is written by people).
Scroll to Categories and click Blog.
Select “A Little Beacon Blog” and click Vote.
The rules say you need to vote for 5 total. But you could vote for more if you wanted. The screen will advance you to a next Category. If you don’t know the people or entities, take a minute to Google a few that catch your eye and place a vote. For example, we learned about Girly Wolfpack and voted for them. And Nicole Harris for Tiny Green Farm for “Farmer.” Repeat this for 4 more categories.
This may be all you need to do. Your vote may be submitted at that point.
Thank you!
Please note that votes originating from identical email addresses or IP addresses will not be counted.
The Elimination Ballot for Best of the Hudson Valley ends tonight at 5pm.
Beacon Post Office To Stay Open - BUT Carriers Being Re-Routed To Newburgh To Pick Up Mail And Drop It Off. Trump Appointed Postmaster General Thinks This Efficient
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Editorial Note: This article has been updated to include accurate and updated information, terminology, and the latest response from the City of Beacon in their City Council Workshop meeting last night.
The Beacon Post Office is not closing - as of now - despite rumors and two local publications misunderstanding the information (WRRV and ALBB) and who have both issued corrections. However, with the flurry of articles concerning the posts offices in the Mid Hudson area that are slated to undergo a big change, came answers of clarification from the USPS and the City of Beacon. Let’s dive in.
But First, Answers To Some FAQs:
Is Beacon’s Post Office protected as a historic place?
Yes. Thanks to a tip from an anonymous citizen reporter, Beacon’s Post Office is listed on the State and National List Of Historic Places, as identified in Beacon’s Comprehensive Plan on pages 40-41.
Will Glenham’s Post Office be closing?
According to Steve Hutkins of SaveThePostOffice.com, “Haven’t heard anything about Glenham, but it appears to be a small office with no letter carriers, so it wouldn’t be part of the plan. The plan is just about relocating carriers from those post offices that have them.”
At Least 200 Post Offices Nation-Wide Will Become “Spokes” and Will Stop Being A Hub For Local Delivery
According to the new commercials from the USPS, a new super-smart system is coming for mail delivery that involves big coordination for max efficiency, the USPS promotes. The roll-out of this max efficiency has been confusing so far, according to some carriers of the Beacon post office who deliver the mail.
According to the USPS and the American Postal Workers Union (APWU) via letter, some local post offices - 16 in the Mid Hudson Region, and 200 post offices across the country are slated to stop having carriers deliver mail from them - but instead will drive to local centers to pick up the mail and drive it back to their local routes.
Carriers will not get the mail from the local post office, like Beacon, but will instead get it from a Sorting and Delivery Center (S&DC). According to Steve Hutkins of SaveThePostOffice.com, who also lives in the Hudson Valley, who has been following and reporting on the post office for over 10 years: “Beacon and the other post offices on the list will be giving up their carriers to the Sorting & Delivery Center in the Mid Hudson Newburgh facility.” Residents will still have their mail delivered to their homes by carriers. But the carriers will be driving to and from Newburgh - across the Hudson River on the traffic-prone Newburgh/Beacon Bridge - to do this.
These post offices include Beacon, Fishkill, Wappingers, Newburgh, and several others. They will become “spoke” post offices. To help define the USPS lingo, Steve tells ALBB: “A ‘spoke’ post office is one of the offices giving over its carriers to the S&DC, which is the ‘hub’ of the wheel. This is how USPS refers to them in its presentations, like this one.’”
According to the USPS, the delivery trucks will park at the S&DC (Sorting and Delivery Center), which for Beacon, is in Newburgh.
According to a Beacon postal worker, Beacon employees heard from other postal workers who may have received official notices from their bosses or union at the Post Office that fulfillment and distribution would be done at the processing center in Newburgh. The Newburgh Post Office (different from the processing center) is also slated to stop having mail delivery service from it in September 2023. This has since been confirmed by SaveThePostOffice.com’s publishing of the postal carrier’s union’s letter.
At the time of speaking with ALBB, the postal worker was sitting in their delivery truck, sorting mail for the next block of delivery. Which prompted the question: where will the trucks park? According to a presentation from the USPS in August 2022, parking and commute time was taken into consideration. However, it is not clear if traffic for the commute time for any employee heading over the Newburgh/Beacon bridge was taken into consideration.
The postal worker did not know. Nor did they know how it would work driving in the little truck back and forth across the Newburgh/Beacon Bridge. Also not clear was who would be paying for all that gas, and the new tolls the trucks would accumulate.
With Wappingers, Fishkill, Newburgh, Cornwall, Montgomery, New Paltz, Pine Bush, Walden and other nearby Post Offices closing, the USPS says in a presentation that they have factored in parking, if there is enough parking for those delivery trucks. In this new USPS commercial, it looks like the original post office truck is being directed by the airline-looking traffic controller person.
The traffic on the Newburgh/Beacon Bridge can be thick. One accident, bless the people involved in the crash, can stop traffic for 2 hours at times, backing up all the way to Fishkill’s Route 9.
City of Beacon’s City Administrator Chris White Confirms Building Not Closing
Speculation has been so strong by the public that the Beacon building would close (with the burning hot real estate market going on in Beacon, and the loss of several iconic businesses to new development, this served as a strong foundation for this rumor) WRRV and ALBB first published that the building would close. WRRV was quick to update their initial article, and included this statement: “From the USPS: ‘As we move forward with this initiative, customers will see no changes to their local post office retail operations. No post offices will be closed and PO Box service will not be changed.’"
ALBB emailed Beacon’s City Administrator Chris White days ago to inquire about a possible building closure, and he did not reply. Instead, he updated the community in the final moments of the weekly City Council meeting, as he seems to like breaking his own news on his own time. Special thanks to Councilperson Justice McCray who commented via Instagram that the City of Beacon made an update in the final moments of the meeting.
From the City Administrator’s update, just seconds before the meeting adjourned:
“I have a 2-minute update on the Post Office. Your emails are blowing up. A week to two weeks ago, word spread in Beacon that we were going to loose carriers, and that was a preface to closing down the post office. When we got word of that, we did reach out to Congressman Pat Ryan's office in Kingston. They were doing a call today (Monday) with their Washington Office to ascertain the details on it.
“I did reach out to both the Postmaster who is currently on a different assignment - the Beacon Postmaster is in Hopewell. I did speak to the interim Postmaster. Neither of them believes that closure is at all considered. They thought that was highly unlikely. It had not being discussed.
“What is being discussed is these S&DC centers. The Sorting and Delivery. The carriers that now report for the 13 routes that are done in the 12508 area, would instead report to Newburgh. There were 15 or 16 communities that were going to be moved there. When I talked to the Postmaster, she said that all of the retail functions of the post office are going to remain the same. In fact, there was a similar consolidation of the sorting and delivery a couple of years ago in Eastern Dutchess that Hopewell was part of, and they still remain open.
“We are waiting for a final call back from Congressman Ryan's office. I left messages with the Vice President Of the American Postal Workers Union who I worked with years ago fighting other closures in Sullivan County. It doesn't seem that there is any real threat to close the post office. It would change where the carriers report, but the function day to day, your delivery, your ability to go to the post office, to have a box, to purchase postage, and other items there, would not change."
Mayor Lee Kyriacou clarified: "None of the customer-facing elements are involved in any consideration for change?"
City Administrator Chris responded: "That's correct. And when I said 'Well, do you think this could be a step toward closing?' They said 'No, this is one of our busiest post offices.' If somebody was going to close post offices, this would not be top of the list to close. When we fought this years ago, when I worked in a Congressional office, we were closing very small post offices in towns you would not recognize the names of. Where they had only a few people going in and a few boxes left. And even there we were able to stop it."
From this roll-out, Steve told ALBB that he is waiting to see how more details are addressed, like how a package that cannot be delivered will be handled. Will Beaconites need to drive over the bridge and back to retrieve it?
Editor’s Note: If you are a postal employee in the Mid Hudson region who works in the building for window service and has been impacted by this - where you did see change - please tell ALBB about it. If you were told by a superior that the building may close in the future, please contact us to tell us your source.
The Change From Post Offices To Fulfillment Centers
Suddenly news in the post office is moving quickly. Steve at SaveThePostOffice.com has been following this closely, and researched the large processing centers being built by the USPS by reviewing lists of processing centers that were released to postal unions. He has not been able to come up with a conclusion as to how they will work. However, he did notice that two of the large processing centers were located in North Carolina. “It’s noteworthy that two of the four new leased facilities will be in North Carolina, the Postmaster General’s adopted home state. DeJoy built his fortune as CEO of New Breed Logistics, based in High Point; he has a home in nearby Greensboro; and his chief logistics officer and executive VP is also a former New Breed executive. They have a lot of experience doing logistics projects in North Carolina, but why develop two new leased RPDCs in the same state, just 110 miles apart?”
Steve has also been tracking who has already been fired at the local post offices. In an article published on April 3, 2023, he followed which “spoke” post offices have been impacted.
Steve reported on April 1, 2023: “According to the impact statements the Postal Service is required to provide the APWU when it excesses employees, at least 40 clerk positions are being excessed at about 30 post offices, some of which aren’t scheduled to lose their carriers until September. [Update, 4/2/2023: The Postal Service has dialed back the S&DC plan yet again. The number of spoke offices sending carriers to the Mid Hudson S&DC is now 7 instead of 16, and the total number of excessed positions is now 8 instead of 23.]”
This is just the beginning of what is sure to be several news reports about this.
What will happen to the Elf in the Beacon Post Office who receives the letters to Santa?
What will happen to the Elf in the Beacon Post Office who receives the letters to Santa, and answers each one herself, with candy canes taped onto the envelope? Which magically make it through the sorting machines without getting crushed, or needing a stamp?
Editor’s Note: Any post office worker who wants to contribute to how this will impact them, or how they see this has been handled on the inside, can email ALBB with their anonymous input. We can interview you and not publish your name if you wish.
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HUDSON VALLEY FOOD HALL
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Look Up! New Lamppost Streetside Art Exhibit In Wappingers Falls
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Look up! A new streetside art exhibit has popped up in Wappingers Falls. The artwork of several artists from around the Hudson Valley has been printed onto banners, and mounted onto lampposts.
With a theme highlighting the artist themselves, individuals were asked to submit a piece that best reflects their work, style and aesthetic.
“The Hudson Valley is filled with an abundance of talent and the goal of the Community Streetside Artist Exhibit is to showcase the creative diversity of these artists throughout the Village of Wappingers Falls via lamp post banners” say the organizers, Courtney Kolb of Wappingers Rises, and the artist Sarah Davida of Nixie Sparrow.
On Thursday, April 13, 2023 Wappingers Rises will be holding a reception to highlight artists and their artwork at River Valley Arts Center from 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM (9 S Mesier Ave, Wappingers Falls). There will be a champagne toast sponsored by Coupe Champagne at 6:30 PM.
This event will be open to the public, free of charge with food and drink available for purchase by local restaurants.
Sponsors of this outdoor art include:
Graceland Tattoo, Keely Sheehan Design, Wappingers Falls Business and Professional Association, Inc., Coupe Champagne, Garay-Michaud Team, River Valley Arts Center, Sam’s Realty, Helen Piteo Interiors, Treybich Law, Orsi + Co, Wappingers Falls Hydroelectric, Center for Physical Therapy and The UPS Store of Wappingers Space, Place, Storage, UHAUL, Falls Woodsmith and Sarah Davida.
Artists In This Streetside Exhibit Include:
Adam Lauricella
Alexa Spaddy
Alex Grey
Allison Frost
Allison Lahikainen
Allyson Grey
Alyssa Follansbee
Andrew Cook
Anna West
Brad Parsons
Brian C. Zickafoose
C-MOR
Cerise Kacensky
Chris Ams
Christina Kokiasmenos Cindy LaColla Corrinne Sternberg CoSM
Destiny Arianna
Elizabeth Castagna
Erica Hauser
Gerardo Castro
Hilary Astrid
Jane Wu
Jessica Nash
John Breiner
Keely Sheehan
Kim Dei Dolori
Lala Montoya Heredia Laura Golben
Laura Holmes McCarthy Lindsay Loforte
Margot Kingon
Marieken Cochius
Mark Darnobid
Nicole Morris
Nigel Clair
Pamela Herbst
Paola Bari
Paul Caicedo
Sarah Davida
Sean McCarthy
Taylor McLeod
"You Are Not Broken" - An Essay Of Phrases
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Editor’s Note: This article has nothing to do with living local. It’s just a column that ALBB’s publisher Katie hasn’t sought publication for yet in other magazines, so ALBB gets to publish it. :)
Phrases have a way of sticking; whether they were spoken in passing or with strong intent. They can stick and change a course. As a person who remembers certain phrases very well, and cannot unbrand them from where they are stored, it has been told to me to delete this ability and forget the phrases. Move on.
In my current phase of setting boundaries, I have found boundary setting to be quite exhausting; first recognizing what the boundary needs to be, and then setting it up. And then maintaining it! The boundary can come in a variety of shapes and sizes. It can be loud or quiet. It can be physical or invisible. Each time one is put up, the feeling is like going back under the water, after enjoying a few moments at the surface breathing air and sunshine, but then a current sucks one back under the water, and a whirl of waves turns ‘round and ‘round until the arms can straighten again to guide to the top.
The nice thing about setting the boundary has been embracing it, and then seeing what that feels like. It has been feeling like rolling and tossing and turning in rushing water. Last week, it all felt depleting, where I could not drink enough water or eat enough sauteed spinach and garlic to keep the nutrients in my body. That, or there was a lingering stomach bug kicking around, making me dizzy. To me, my face looked like I’d been crying for days, but I hadn’t shed a tear. That, or I need to buy proper eye makeup remover and stop relying on shower water and moisturizer to get off 5 layers of mascara each morning.
Thankfully the sun came out, the air warmed a bit, and after two long jogs, the circulation kicked into gear to begin the spring acclimation of the shedding of winter.
Nourishment began refilling when my daughter smiled at me at pickup after track practice. Nourishment began refilling when this article started percolating in my brain, and the courage buoyed to publish it.
The Amazing Thing About Boundaries
What has been incredible about setting boundaries has been realizing I have the freedom to live after the boundary. Once a boundary is set, one has to be strong. “Stay Strong!” one might say to themselves. But staying strong gets tiring. However. Once it passes, and the boundary is reinforced the next time, the reaction is (hopefully) a little less. And it gets less tiring. But one must stay sharp and alert for when a new boundary needs set and current boundaries honored.
As a person who is going through a breakup and learning how to co-parent, I am thankfully surrounded by support and love. Out of all of those supportive phrases, there will be some that hit a certain way. This essay is going to explore some of them.
During the week of depletion, all of the phrases were compressing in. Pressurizing all of the phrases until nothing else would fit. No more changes could be made. No more reactions. Just being. Hence this essay. To spit them back out and let them fly.
“You are not broken. Do not tell yourself that.”
Although spoken gently but firmly, this was a hard phrase to hear, because I felt broken. It was over something light-hearted - a project management program for my client work that was kicking my butt and breaking my brain. So many emails, reminders, emails of the emails, emails to remind you to check off the item to stop the emails. I cracked and went and bought markers and paper and put all of my client projects onto paper and taped them to external computer monitors that surround my desk but aren’t plugged in.
“I’m broken,” I laughed. “This computer program broke me and I have to be on paper.” The friend I said this to insisted that I not speak this way about myself, and my friend was right. She said it was important to her that people she likes don’t speak down on themselves. Positive self-talk is real. Normally I’m an advocate of this too. But we all need reminders.
“You are not having a mid-life crisis. You are reclaiming yourself.”
This is a phrase I said to another woman, who was out in a professional setting instead of at home in her usual routine of fixing dinner, entertaining her kids, and/or doing laundry. She apologetically explained herself, on why she was there. When people need change, I suppose they are told they are having a mid-life crisis. Not so. Don’t let anyone tell you this. You are reclaiming yourself. You may twirl in the water, but go with it. Fold your arms over your heart, straighten your legs, and let your body shoot through the currents as it needs to, with the water pushing you the directions you feel.
“You want someone to make you dinner!”
This was a cute one. After a breakup, your loved ones want you to be happy. Find happiness. This was a wish put upon me to find someone to make me dinner :) While I do love eating, I’m not looking for someone to make me dinner. Not that I would mind someone making me dinner sometimes. While this may be other people’s dream, I had to embrace this was not my dream. I want to cook for someone to provide what they like. Even if I don’t like it or know what it is. I want to know how to make it and provide it.
“You want someone to book you a trip to Cancun!”
Woo! A trip would be nice, but I’m not looking for someone to buy me a trip. I want to book a trip to Charleston, SC to visit my friend and I want to bring my kids to visit her kids. I want to walk all over Charleston and show my kids all the places I used to live down there - the dorm room, the duplex, the carriage house behind the mansion, the beach house.
Then I want to book a trip to Arizona with my kids and have us sit in the sun and maybe never leave the hotel pool because that would be too much effort. Would I mind if another set of kids and their parent leader showed up and we lounged around together? That would be nice. But in time!
Next, I want to book a trip to visit my sister to see where she lives, and maybe I’ll do that in an RV. But that would be a much bigger project, so maybe my kids and I will just fly.
Also important, I discovered, was booking myself into an Airbnb - in Beacon! - by myself. Everyone should do this. Take a vacation with yourself even for just a night. And then do it again.
It’s been really liberating to say what I do want. If you’ve been doing things a certain way without a thought for very many years, and then you gave yourself permission - the freedom - to not do those things, it feels really good! “Going out to dinner and brunch is not my highest priority, personally. But I do love to eat so of course there will be restaurant food.” BAM!! Liberating.
“I fear you will be poor.”
Ok, back to the heavy ones. This was spoken as a fear. The fear of the result of breaking up, and a reason to stay as is. This emboldened me. At that time, I had done so much exploration, I was able to have a response, instead of allowing the fear to scoop me up and toss me around.
“We need to resolve this.”
This phrase was spoken after a very well intentioned gesture got turned upside down. It resulted in a compressed, turbulent communicative experience. After the plane landed safely, and we exited back into our lives, I realized that during the conversation, I felt like my friend was trying very hard to help me - to put my shoulder back into its socket. Only my shoulder was not dislocated. Nothing was wrong with my shoulder. My shoulder could have used a hug, but it wasn’t hurting and wasn’t broken. Trying to fit it back into place was what was hurting me. Fitting it back into place was breaking me.
Which brings us back to: “You are not broken.”
Such a beautiful phrase.
To people who speak up: Keep being there for your friends. Keep showing up. Even if you are afraid to speak to them - if you’re afraid of how your words will hit them. Just listen and watch and show up. Practice speaking.
To people who live (and these people are all the same people - we just switch roles): Keep remembering when you’re in a moment of needing nourishment. Recognize when you’re depleted. Nourish as best you can. When you’re right again, try to spot it. It will be hard, because you’ll feel happy and light again. But take the moment. Because the next moment could be a whole new spiral that you weren’t expecting. But perhaps in your journey of tossing under the water, you’ve learned some moves where you know how to trust yourself. And from that rock foundation, you can push off to the next rock, and emerge.
…
PS: To those science nerds reading, who read my depletion feeling as something medical, OK. I will get a physical. It’s time anyway. I got a mammogram before dissolving our marriage contract and losing my health insurance. I’m figuring out the COBRA, will look into NY State’s Marketplace, and will book a colonoscopy. I’m of the age. And then will book an Airbnb again to rest and recover. TMI, but consider it your PSA. xo
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HUDSON VALLEY FOOD HALL
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One Beacon Bartender's Women's History Behind The Margarita Cocktail
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by Emily Morales
Emily Morales is the front of house manager at Meyer's Olde Dutch and has worked in multiple other bars and restaurants on Beacon’s Main Street. She grew up in Beacon and is now also raising her daughter here. When she's not working, she's usually reading anything she can get her hands on.
When I say “Margarita,” what do you think about?
A classic blend of tequila, lime, and orange liqueur. Maybe salt, maybe on the rocks, everyone has their own preference. But who created it?
As a woman who grew from barback, to bartender, and now to front of house manager at Meyer’s Olde Dutch, I wanted to create a menu centered on women’s contributions to the cocktail world for Women’s History Month. I quickly realized, however, that there are very few cocktails more well-known than the one named after a woman, Margarita.
I put together three recipes based on Margarita lore, but nothing beats our house recipe at Meyers Olde Dutch. Served over one large ice cube and half a salt rim, it’s a serious crowd-pleaser!
Origin Stories Of The Margarita
Most, if not all, cocktails have one person we can point to and thank for their genius and dedication to the craft. Take the Hanky Panky, for example. It was created by head bartender Ada Coleman at the Savoy Hotel’s American Bar in 1903 and features gin, sweet red vermouth, and a splash of Fernet Branca. This drink happens to predate any Margarita recipe by over 20 years.
The Margarita, however, has over a dozen origin stories. Many people claim the world-famous classic as their own intellectual property, whether by accident, on purpose, or something in between. In honor of Women’s History Month, Meyer’s Olde Dutch is selling Margaritas inspired by three of these claims centered around women: Marjorie King, Margaret Sames, and Doña Bertha (and the Hanky Panky for gin drinkers).
Marjorie King’s Margarita
In the 1930’s, actress Marjorie King often stopped at a bar called Rancho la Gloria with her friends and fellow socialites, but was unable to drink. According to legend, she was allergic to all alcohol except tequila but hated the taste, so bar owner Carlos “Danny” Herrera got to work! He combined three parts white tequila, two parts Cointreau, and one part lemon juice, and she loved it. He dubbed it Margarita, the Spanish form of Marjorie, in her honor.
Margaret Sames’ Margarita
Another American socialite, Margaret Sames, claims an equally popular origin story. She was famous amongst her friends for her parties and wanted to come up with a new, refreshing, poolside drink. She created several recipes for this new drink while entertaining at the party, all of which ended up horribly (I personally believe it’s ill-advised to perform mixology while drunk, great ideas presented fantastically while intoxicated don’t tend to taste so great) until finally she landed on this: equal parts tequila and Cointreau, lime juice to taste, and a trace of salt on the rim. Now, I know what you’re thinking, but all truly great cocktails are simple in retrospect. During the party, and many parties thereafter, her guests would refer to this concoction as “the drink,” which eventually evolved into “the Margarita.”
Doña Bertha’s Margarita
So far we’ve covered two quite classic-sounding recipes for the Margarita, you’ve got your Cointreau, your salt rim, your lime, now let’s shake it up a bit!
Very little is known about this next recipe, but you’ll be glad I’ve included it. There is a bar in Taxco, Mexico, called Bar Berta, which was owned by a woman known as Doña Bertha. It is said that her recipe using silver tequila is a precursor to today’s Margarita, but once you give it a shot, you may never turn back to a regular Margarita again. In homage to the city’s famous silver mines, Doña Bertha created a drink to showcase silver tequila. She added honey for sweetness, lime for tartness, and an egg white for creaminess, shook it up and served it plain. No salt, no rocks, no garnish, she let the drink speak for itself.
Emily Morales Herself
Here’s a Margarita tip: at your backyard parties this Spring, try using agave instead of regular simple syrup!
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