Over a cozy dinner at Lucoli Pizza in Red Hook, my former colleague Amy remarked that if she were ever alone in a new city, she might need to bring me along. What a compliment! Even without a car during my sabbatical, I manage to get around.
Of course, dinner and drinks with some colleagues from my Hood College days, passing through the area on their sabbatical, was a highlight!
Blithewood Garden
In late September I toured the traditional walled Italiante garden of the historic Blithewood Estate. Blithewood is now part of Bard College’s campus, home to the Levy Economics Institute.
The garden was designed in 1905 and intended to be an extension of Blithewood Manor. I can certainly imagine curling up in a nook here with a good novel on a sunny day.
Of course, I might just admire the view!
Clermont
I found Clermont one day while exploring a new running route. After visiting Janet Livingston Montgomery’s home at Montgomery Place, I wanted to return to the first Livingston family property in the area, Clermont.
I need to follow a family tree to keep track of all the Livingstons! One of the Livingston’s (Robert R., who is Janet’s brother) helped draft the Declaration of Independence and negotiated the Louisiana Purchase. The tour was not as engrossing as the one at Montgomery Place, but I was glad to see the property. I’ve gone back on several occasions to hike or run on their trail network.
More Tivoli Bays
I have continued to enjoy hiking through Tivoli Bays, especially for the Autumn foliage.
At the Tivoli Free Library
In mid-October I attended an interesting lecture on the history of Halloween given by Kevin Woyce at the Tivoli Free Library. Two tidbits I especially enjoyed: In the US, carved pumpkins were used as table decor through Thanksgiving Let’s bring that back! And, I enjoyed seeing prints of Victorian Halloween greeting cards. At the time Halloween was a harvest festival. Though images of witches were common, this was before the scary-supernatural slant to the holiday. Young women might catch a glimpse of the man they would marry, and witches helped them with their love potion brews. Oh my!
The monthly game of Dungeons & Dragons hosted at the Tivoli Free Library continues to be a treat. In November’s game a second adult joined the party, that previously consisted of myself and a smattering of youngsters . . . ages 7-12 I would guess?
Theatre and Dance
I’ve attended two shows at the Fisher Center for the Arts at Bard College. One was a staging of the Underground Railroad Play, a powerful piece about how history is told and re-told. You can watch the video of a conversation with the writers and stars, Jennifer Kidwell and Scott Sheppard, from the 2019 Hannah Arendt Center conference.
I also attended a performance of the musical Promenade, by María Irene Fornés and Rev. Al Carmines, which first premiered off-off Broadway in 1965. It was a bit avant garde for my sentiments (I am thus part of the “mainstream”), but I’m glad I saw it. It’s given me much to chew on, especially with respect to how incarceration figures in the story. And the ending: “And for those who have no cake/ There’s plenty of bread.”
Tivoli, where I live, is home to the Kaatsbaan Cultural Park for Dance. In November, I attended a performance by the Vivo Ballet Company. Part of the company had been doing a residency at Kaatsbaan, developing a new ballet. The idea is a sort of Giselle part 2, but set in our contemporary political moment. They performed two works-in-progress they’d workshopped during the residency. I’m not sure I followed all the story elements, but it was a delight!