History, Natural History & the Arts
On March 25, 1833, the celebrated Shakespearian actor Edmund Kean collapsed on stage at London’s Covent Garden while playing the role of Othello. He died shortly thereafter.
Sixteen days later, New York-born Ira Frederick Aldridge – known as the ‘Negro Tragedian’ – was asked to replace him as the Moor. His chequered career in England coincided with the final push towards the abolition of the slave trade there. [Read more…] about New York’s Black Othello, Ira Aldridge
From the earliest days of human occupation of the Adirondacks music has sustained the people of the North Country, and we’re fortunate that so much of it has been handed down for our enjoyment today. [Read more…] about Adirondack Music and Stories on Tuesday
Hunger as Focus
Wads of newspapers
New York Times
Glens Falls Post-Star
Albany Times-Union
With flames to pulp
kindling ignored news
Favors votes to get
dinner on the table
The “Victory Quartet” was in political harmony with fellow Republicans when it performed on the GOP “No Third Term” broadcast at 6:30 pm on October 23rd, 1940 on WSLB radio in Ogdensburg.
The musicians had been singing much longer that FDR, who they hoped to turn out of office. [Read more…] about Republican Music: Ogdensburg’s ‘Victory Quartet’
This March, our world turned upside down; COVID-19 was declared a global pandemic, many of our favorite local establishments closed, friends and neighbors lost their jobs, and social distancing became a necessity to protect our families and flatten the curve of new infections.
At Adirondack Foundation, we’ve been heartbroken by the stories of need and also uplifted by the generosity and innovation we are seeing. [Read more…] about Adk Foundation CEO Cali Brooks: Helping Neighbors Now
Adirondack Community storytellers have recorded 160 first-person accounts about life in the Town of Keene, yesterday and today, and there are opportunities for the public to participate in this Keene Valley Library project, from home. [Read more…] about Quarantine Pastimes: Adirondack Community Story Project
The Life Waiting for Us
(For Joseph Campbell)
You are not living unless you
have at least one crisis before
breakfast. The crisis of adventure.
The crisis of receiving supernatural aid.
The crisis of not receiving it.
The crisis of meeting with the Goddess
and being spit on. Or being embraced like
a child. The crisis of faith that is not knowing
how much faith is enough, and when
faith becomes its own form of doubt. The crisis
of atonement with the Father. The crisis of returning
home again and again and again, until every person
knows that you left in the first place. The crisis of
not having a home to leave. The crisis of justice ringing
in your ear. The crisis of death on your footstep.
The crisis of losing the people in your life
that make it worth living. The crisis of the times and
the crisis of the past. The crisis of the storm brewing
even when it has already faded into the history books
of bored students. The crisis of boredom! The life we’ve
planned and the life waiting for us.
There are numerous physical and mental benefits of exploring and connecting with nature. Often though, we are so eager to get on the trail and reach a destination, that we miss the details along the path – and the details can often make the journey more meaningful.
One way to help slow your pace and deepen your connection with nature is to start a journal. Nature journaling requires you to take pause, observe the wildlife, plants, or scenery around you, and record what you see through a combination of notes and sketches. [Read more…] about Conservation Minute: The Art of Nature Journaling
Before long it will be three hundred years ago that James Franklin started printing the combative New-England Courant, employing his younger brother Benjamin as an apprentice. It set a precedent for independent newspaper publishing in the English colonies.
Demands for freedom of the press were ignored and the paper was suppressed in 1726 – but once ink starts flowing, autonomous thinking cannot be reversed. [Read more…] about In Praise of Printing And A Favorite Ben Franklin Typeface
As we navigate the uncertainty surrounding the spread of COVID-19, Lake Placid Land Conservancy (LPLC) has offered some suggestions on ways to enjoy the outdoors from inside your own home or yard.