Overcast with a blanket of rippling cloud that allows occasional sunburst and a high in the low sixties. Gloomy in the woods mid-afternoon.
Daily Catskills: 10/11/23
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Tag Archives: Mountain Life
Daily Catskills: 10/10/23
A little warmer with a high of 58F and a mixed lot of multifarious cloud cover.
Daily Catskills: 09/19/23
An overcast and gloomy morning clearing up mid-afternoon to late evening and a clear blue sunset. Chilly with some sprinkles and a high of 64F. Lows in the fifties.
Daily Catskills: 09/16/23
Warm and sunny, mostly clear with a high of 71F.
Daily Catskills: 09/12/23
Bright and warm with scattered clouds like a handful of odd, mismatched clouds were chucked in the air, and a high of 79F.
Happy Birthday Upstate Dispatch!
Yes, I’m still here! I know some of you can’t believe it. It is, however, the 9th birthday of Upstate Dispatch and this is the 2,355th post. Yes, I persist. The Daily Catskills section began again this year on September 1st for the fall season, but it’s just too much work to maintain it year-round. (BTW, there are a few splotches of red in the foliage here and there, and in small pockets, mostly shady areas, we have piles of fallen leaves, but because of the heat, it still feels like summer. Try telling that to the tomatoes, though.)
If you’re a regular reader, you’ll know that I have mostly been focusing on art, and writing. I’m working on a memoir, not because I’m special, but because there’s a story here that I need to tell. Part of this story was published in Farmerish and it was well-received. You can read it here.
I will be publishing an introduction, some excerpts, and companion pieces to this memoir on Substack: a “new economic engine for culture”, which is a paid newsletter that gives writers a chance to earn a living. For those of you who are interested in paying a very small subscription for my content. Here’s a chance to find out more about who I am. I hope to see you there!
Finally, I often go out for lunch, breakfast or dinner in the Catskills and hear about how Upstate Dispatch has helped local businesses. I really appreciate the feedback and thank everyone for their support.
Jenny Neal 9/9/23
Daily Catskills: 09/06/23
Heavy and humid, mostly sunny with a high of 90F, but cool in the shade. Sweaty.
Daily Catskills: 09/04/23
Early morning sprinkles, but otherwise sunny despite big, chunky clouds like a rumpled duvet, and humid with a high of 83F. The last of the downed hay needs to be dried out before its baled because of the overnight rain.
Daily Catskills: 09/02/23
Day 3 of haying in the Dry Brook Valley, mostly clear and sunny, a high of 72F, with late afternoon cotton wool cloud and some post-sunset sprinkles. Jewel weed is thriving down by the river.
Catskills Conversations: Gary Mayer
“Are you coming to the drawing tonight?” Gary Mayer asks me. I’m honored to be part of a Catskills figure drawing group with local artists such as Steve Burnett, Gary, Peter Mayer, and Sandy Finkenberg.
“No,” I say. “I’m going to a potluck dinner”.
“Well, you won’t find potluck in here,” he says as he steps up into his studio. “More like shit out of luck,” he laughs, highlighting a disparity between the lightness of his personality and the intensity of his work. He’s quick to laugh, good company and chatty, but this magnanimity belies the intensity of his imagery. “I have a wild imagination,” he frowns, nodding gravely. “I didn’t sleep a lot as a kid”. We have something in common. “Me, too,” I say. It’s a little exhausting. But I’m keen to keep him laughing because all the profile pictures I see of him make him look flummoxed, for want of a better word.
His general demeanor is nonchalance, however, like his image: hey, look at this shit I did. I don’t get it either. *Shrugs* The ad for his new gallery in Margaretville named Art Up is photo of a handwritten note, for example. I get the sense that his reward comes from expressing himself, while painting, rather than the final work being appreciated.
Continue readingDaily Catskills: 05/21/23
A humid morning with heavy, misty cloud and rain on the peaks. Sun in the afternoon and a high of 64F.
Daily Catskills: 05/18/23
Another sunny day: warm in the sun, cool in the shade with a high of 64F.
Daily Catskills: 05/01/23
Rainy, overcast and chilly for most of the day with a high of 54F, but you would hardly believe that on the peaks at sunset, under a shining sky layered with milky blue whipped cloud. A glorious end to an unremarkable day.
Daily Catskills: 10/31/22
A grey day, overcast and humid with a high of 61F. A tinder polypore on a hemlock bench perfectly reflects the day’s colors.
Daily Catskills: 10/29/22
Sunny and warm with a high of 62F. Leaves hanging on.
Daily Catskills: 10/27/22
A cloudy morning, clearing up to a sunny afternoon with a high of 57F. Fall is over at higher elevations, but there are still hardwoods hanging on to their leaves downhill.
Daily Catskills: 10/26/22
Misty and humid with blustery afternoon rain and a high of 71F. Fall is on the wane, but the oaks, beech and ironwood are still hanging on.
Daily Catskills: 10/25/22
A little gloomy, with muddy puddles of overnight rain but rising to a balmy high of 71F.
Daily Catskills: 10/24/22
Mostly overcast with a low blanket of mist, and humid with the occasional peep of sun, a sprinkle of rain carried over from last night and a high of 65F. 2022 is having a spectacular, drawn out fall and now we are deep into the earth tones of the giant oaks: copper, gold and brassy brown.
Daily Catskills: 10/23/22
Overcast with the odd glimmer of sun and still balmy for the season with a high of 61F. The fall colors are now the golden, brassy, maroon and copper tones of the oaks and ironwood, and some of these trees are still green.
Daily Catskills: 10/22/22
Another clear, fall day with a high of 70F.
Daily Catskills: 10/21/22
Another crisp day under a bowl of clear blue, warming up to a high of 60F. The flaming red oak tree holds its ground with its yellow and green neighbors amidst the brush of a waning fall landscape.
Daily Catskills: 10/20/22
Bright and sunny with a nippy wind and a high of 53F. Big dome of clear blue with the odd remnant of wispy cloud.
Daily Catskills: 10/19/22
An overnight frost coats the last remaining rose and the temperature only rises to a high of 44F. Mostly clear blue skies for the rest of the day.
Daily Catskills: 10/18/22
A frosty morning with dew steaming out of the valleys, a fresh dome of azure sky, chilly but humid, rising to a high of 55F with giant clouds moving in mid-afternoon. Fall is falling.
Daily Catskills: 10/17/22
A dingy start to the week, with a sky like washed ink and a high of 55F.
Daily Catskills: 10/15/22
A frosty morning, warming up to a high of 65F. Clear and sunny with leaves fluttering like confetti in a light breeze. Coral-colored sugar maples line Andes’ Main Street.
Daily Catskills: 10/13/22
A gloomy, chilly morning warming up to a humid, rainy day with a high of 62F. Falling leaves tossed around by gusty winds. Torrential rain into the evening.
Daily Catskills: 10/10/22
An overcast morning giving way to an afternoon of big, dramatic clouds, the barest sprinkle of misty rain and a high of 59F. Two farm dogs declared cancer-free and loving the view from their mountain.
Daily Catskills: 10/09/22
Peak fall colors, but only brief periods of sun in which to showcase their glory. A nippy wind and a high of 58F.
Daily Catskills: 10/08/22
Chilly and overcast with brief periods of sunshine and afternoon rain. A high of 50F.
Daily Catskills: 10/07/22
Overcast and misty with late afternoon rain and a high of 66F. We’re in the peak of glorious fall here in the Catskills. We just need some sun to show it off.
Daily Catskills: 10/02/22
Overcast and chilly with blustery winds and a high of 57F. Fiery sunset.
Daily Catskills: 10/01/22
Overcast with ruffled grey cloud, morning mist and a high of 62F. Goldenrod still hanging on.
Daily Catskills: 09/30/22
Mostly sunny with a gauze of cloud and a high of 62F.
Daily Catskills: 09/29/22
Thick cloud cover clearing by late afternoon. Humid but chilly, with a high of 62F. Yellow leaves falling.
Daily Catskills: 09/28/22
More gloom. Overcast, with a slight chill taking the edge off the humidity and a high of 65F. Misty clouds sail through the valley towing their falling rain.
Daily Catskills: 09/27/22
Another overcast day: humid with swirling clouds with misty rain and a high of 65F. Some color still remains in the garden.
Daily Catskills: 09/26/22
Dull and overcast, mostly rainy with brief periods of sunshine, with cloud cover clearing at sunset, a rainbow and a high of 65F.
Daily Catskills: 09/25/22
Gloomy and overcast with brief periods of sunshine, but a mostly rainy afternoon and a high of 63F.
Daily Catskills: 09/21/22
Sunny and warm with a high of 77F. Wispy clouds, and a lavender sunset on the eve of the autumnal equinox.
Daily Catskills: 09/20/22
A bright, crisp morning, but overcast. A high of 67F, and pockets of sunshine despite stormy cloud cover and afternoon sprinkles. A slight yellowing of the foliage and a few splashes of red.
Farm Life in the Catskills
I’ve recently been receiving a lot of kind feedback on the writing I do here, and some inquiries into what I’ve been up to since I last posted back in June. It’s the feedback – along with the helpful donations – that keeps me going, so here’s an update. Daily Catskills will resume in the next few days, from the September equinox until Winter solstice and all the snowbirds will shortly be seeing our Fall in all its glory from afar. Stay tuned!
Continue readingThe Anatomy of a Bird Box
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A base layer of dirt, then grass, then a thick wedge of insulation and finally, twigs topped off with a small, vacated wasp’s nest and a large insect exoskeleton, probably a caterpillar/butterfly. A once crowded bird box now getting repaired and cleaned out for new tenants.
Daily Catskills: 10/02/17
After an overnight frost dissolving into a misty morning, 70F by mid-afternoon and sunny.
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Daily Catskills: 10/01/17
After a foggy start, 60F by mid-afternoon and warm in the sun.
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Daily Catskills: 09/16/17
A balmy morning at 65F by 9am. The morning fog rolled away to reveal trees, bushes, forest floor and fields liberally bestrewn with lacy spiders’ webs, as if the forest had been dressed for halloween overnight.
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Daily Catskills: 09/14/17
A high of 75F, humid and overcast with scene-stealing, multifarious clouds leading to isolated showers and a balmy evening. Dashes of red appearing on the landscape like hot pepper seasoning. Moody.
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Daily Catskills: 09/12/17
79F by mid-afternoon and sunny with hazy cloud. Cool in the shade. Splashes of red dot the landscape.
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Daily Catskills: 08/20/17
80F by mid-afternoon, hot and sunny.
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Daily Catskills: 08/12/17
A sunny morning, despite big, bossy clouds. 78F by mid-afternoon with a cool breeze through the trees. A lovely day with some evening sprinkles.
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Daily Catskills: 08/09/17
77F by mid-afternoon: a wrestling match between the sun and potbellied clouds that had waned by the evening.
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Daily Catskills: 08/08/17
Mostly sunny and bright despite with an armada of voluminous clouds. 74F by mid-afternoon. The rain takes a holiday.
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Daily Catskills: 08/06/17
74F by mid-afternoon and cloudy with a cool breeze. Periods of sunshine ripen the hazelnuts.
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Daily Catskills: 08/02/17
Early morning mist rolls out to reveal laden clouds. All-day thunder leads to torrential afternoon rain. 72F by 1.30pm.
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