Harvesting Bamboo

WCA member James Wolf sent me these photos. They are shots of him harvesting bamboo in Vietnam for his Boo Bicycles and many other projects. Here is what his email said: "Howdy, here are some fun and beautiful shots at the bamboo plantation today. A hot and very sunny November day as we get into the Hot/Dry season for the next few months here." I think the "Rambo" photos of James are especially funny knowing how kind and gentle he is in person. His new nickname should be "Rambamboo"!

I found this information on bamboo on Wikipedia "Bamboos are the fastest growing woody plants in the world. Their growth rate (up to 60 centimeters (24 in.)/day) is due to a unique rhizome-dependent system, but is highly dependent on local soil and climate conditions. They are of economic and high cultural significance in East Asia and South East Asia where they are used extensively in gardens, as a building material, and as a food source." These facts make bamboo a highly renewable resource. Very interesting! Thanks for sending us these photos James!

Spam Mail Warning

Jeff Schwartz sent me this message about some spam mail that he received in the valley this week. He wanted to warn everyone this was going around. Thanks for giving us the heads up Jeff!

"When we got home tonight we had waiting for us 2 letters that each contained a Cashiers check" for $2950. With an offer to represent a "Mystery Customer Employment firm".

No return address on outside of envelope.
Mailed from Canada (Canadian stamp).
Same firm name on both cover letters.
Address of the firm in Arizona.
Cashier checks drawn on TWO DIFFERENT CREDIT UNIONS.

THIS IS A MYSTERY SHOPPER SCAM.
In the letter they indicate you have to call them for further instructions.

According to posts that I have read they tell you to deposit the check, go shopping and wire a portion of the money back to them.

THEIR CHECK WILL BOUNCE AND HAS CAUSED GREAT HARDSHIP AND FINANCIAL LOSS TO THOSE THAT THOUGHT THEY WERE THE RECIPIENTS OF A GOOD DEAL.

The holiday season is fast approaching and with these hard financial times there may be some see this as a holiday gift for some extra cash.

You may want to post a warning on the blog as they may be targeting this area.

a link describing this scam is Mystery Shopping Scam."

- Jeff Schwartz

Fall Poetry by Boreegard aka Mike O'Neil

OH RARE POMPION

Of puddings, pies, and orange beers,
Since Massasoit lent the seed,
The pompion or pumpkin breed,
Has fed us well and has no peers.

Yes, cuke’s or ‘mater’s flesh is fair,
And good for us, there’s little doubt,
But ne’er can they be hollowed out,
To light the lantern’s ghoulish stare.

Boreegard
November 6, 2009

Velsani Antiques at the Emerson

WCA members and antique dealers Ivan and Gustavo of Velsani Antiques have opened a shop at the Emerson Resort & Spa. Here is a link to the announcement on the Emerson website. Go check out their new shop when you get a chance. I am sure they have plenty of gifts for everyone on your holiday shopping list! Good luck Ivan and Gustavo!!

Velsani at the Emerson

Call for Extras on "Stake Land" Film

I got this email today from a woman named Mona Lessnick whose production company is working on the film "Stake Land". The internet says the movie is an "epic vampire road film". She is looking for some background/extras for the film. Her colleague is also looking for some young people to intern for a day or so on the set and help out. They are shooting up in Margaretville and Pine Hill. If you are interested here are the details.

Come and experience a day on Set!

- Tuesday 11/10: 7-10 male Brotherhood gang members (approx. 6-8AM) at Bellayre Ski Resort
- Friday 11/13: 2 male roadhouse guards (approx. 3-5PM) at Hanah Resort in Margaretville
- Monday 11/16: 12 male Brotherhood gang members (approx. 6-10AM) in Pine Hill
- Wednesday 11/18: 8 male/female townfolk (approx. 3-7PM) in Pine Hill
- Wednesday 11/18: 5 male border soldiers (approx. 3-8PM) in Pine Hill
- Wednesday 11/18: 12 male/female bar patrons (approx. 6-10PM) in Pine Hill
- Wednesday 11/18: 2 male roadhouse guards (approx. 6-10PM) in Pine Hill
- Sunday 11/22: 4 male rugged soldier (approx. 12-9PM) in Pine Hill
- Sunday 11/22: 8 male/female townfolks (approx. 12-9PM) in Pine Hill
- Sunday 11/22: many more (30) male/female townfolks (from approx. 5PM-10PM) in Pine Hill

contact Mona (mona@belladonna.bz or 917.687.2690 or 845.586.6110/-6111) for details and confirmations.

Mona Lessnick
Belladonna Productions, Inc
118 West 22nd Street/3rd floor
New York, NY 10011
P: 212.807.0108
F: 212.807.6263
skype: m.lessnick

Here is a synopsis of the film.

Stake Land

Synopsis

In a fierce, alternative vision of America’s bleak future, a young boy is about to learn how cruel the world can become. Martin was a normal teenage boy before the country collapsed in an empty pit of economic and political disaster. And from the ashes rose a new breed of terror. A vampire epidemic has swept across what is left of the nation’s abandoned towns and cities, and it’s up to Mister, a death dealing, rogue vampire hunter, to get Martin safely north to Canada, the continent’s New Eden.

With his family slaughtered and his world splattered across the backroads of the nation’s northeast, Martin is taken under the wing of this mysterious stranger, learning the ways of the hunt and the cold reality of survival in a world left to fend for itself. Along their journey Mister and Martin discover firsthand the horrors of small town American extremism and are forced to ponder which is more bloodthirsty— the starving vampires or the corrupted humans who seek to control them.

Armed with a trunk full of wooden stakes and a desperate will to stay alive, Mister and Martin make their way through locked down towns, recruiting fellow travelers along the way— a devout woman of god, an abandoned Marine, and a pregnant musician all on their way north to safety. But a nationwide Brotherhood of violent, end-of-days survivalists is just one obstacle that stands between them and freedom.

Welcome to Stake Land, kid…

Weather Station in Woodland Valley

For all you weather junkies (like me) here in Woodland Valley you will be happy to know that Hawley Botchford has installed a weather station on his house here in the valley. He has linked it in to The Weather Underground site so we can all see the information that he is getting. You can click on the link below and go down the page to the weather stations where you will see one marked "Woodland Valley, Phoenicia, NY". It gives all kinds of great data like, temperature, wind speed, wind direction, precipitation etc. In the future you can just use the Weather Underground link on the right (permanent) side of this blog to reach the same page. Thanks for installing this Hawley you are providing some great information for us all!

Weather Underground Phoenicia, NY

Unofficial Election Results

These are the unofficial election results posted by the Ulster County Board of Elections. I do not think this count includes absentee ballots. I have put a asterisk next to the name of the unofficial winner of each race and their party affiliation in parenthesis.

Here are the results so far:

Town Supervisor
* Robert Stanley (R) - 588
Peter DiSclafani (D) - 519

Town Board
* Jack Jordan (R) - 509
* Doris Bartlett (D) - 503
Patricia Ellison (R) - 389
Barbara Redfield (D) - 384
Randy Ostrander (C) - 300

Highway Superintendent
* Eric Hofmeister (D) - 676
Keith Johnson (R) - 451

Town Justice
* Tom Crucet (R) - 673
* Mike Miranda (D) - 572
Charles Frasier (R) - 442
Amy Brown - (D) 408

Town Assessor - 4 year term
* Peter DiModica (D) - 545
John Horn - (R) 407

Town Assessor - 2 year (unexpired) term
* Carol Seitz - (D) 521
Joanne Kalb - (R) 397

Here is a link to the Elections page for Shandaken:
Ulster County Board of Elections

VOTE!!!

Please remember to vote today. These elections are very important to our town. Not only are we choosing our Town Supervisor, Town Board members, Highway Superintendent, Town Justices and Town Assessors but the people on the Town Board will appoint the members of the Planning Board and the Zoning Board of Appeals. So these elections are critical to our local government. Please get out and make your voices heard!!! I will post the election results when I have them.

New House Checking Business in WV

I got this message from WCA member Joyce Burzan.

"My husband and I have started a business which, we hope, will make some of our neighbors, particularly 2nd homeowners, feel more secure because someone is checking on their home and property. We're also available for house sitting on a short term basis, which could include pet sitting for friendly animals.

We moved here from Michigan in 1995 because we have family here and because we love to be outdoors - especially in the forests of the Catskills. It's hard to beat."

- Joyce

Check out their website at: catskillmountainlife.com

More Photos from Dennis Havel

Dennis Havel sent me these photos he has done with his brand new digital SLR. He is especially excited about all the macro possibilities of his lenses. He took the ladybug photo last week during one of Woodland Valley's periodic ladybug infestations. Does anyone out there know why that happens? Send your answer to me here and I will post it.
- Carol