Our Homes, Our Clients
A Saturday Before Christmas Dinner Party attended by folks from Cottage 23, Cottage 22, Cottage 14, Ranch 10, Cottage 46, Farm 27, and Cottage 34. Lots O Love, my friends, Lots O Love. White glove catering by Early Bird Cookery.
Farm 32. 1550 sq ft, Olivebridge NY Area. For Sale.
Farm 30, Olivebridge area. Set to close in February.
Mini Barn, Narrowsburg. Set to close in January.
Farm 26, Narrowsburg, NY. Set to close in January.
Ranch 10. Just Getting Started. Narrowsburg NY.
Farm 31. Olivebridge Area. For Sale.
And a Christmas Day message from some anonymous person (I'm one of the few people who will always sign my name).
"Let me get this straight. Every New Yorker against fracking is a NIMBY?
The hate in you is strong. You're suffering from a serious case of borderline personality disorder on a scale rarely seen in a functioning member of society.
I'll rest well knowing you lost, and we won!
Happy New Year. "
Couple of thoughts on the above - if you are using natural gas or shale oil (which we all are in abundance), but opposed to its local production that is happening all across the country, that's called NImbyism. There is no other term for it. One doesn't have to be offended by the term.
Regarding the personality disorder, I would say it is not borderline - its what makes me special and creative (lol) - . And I would say this Christmas day message is as hateful as anything I write (always signed).
And 'you' didn't win anything. America is energy independent - a thought completely unfathomable just 8 years ago- because of shale oil and gas, creating a completely new world order where the US is not beholden to the crazos in the Middle East. Not to be circular here, but to miss the reality that shale gas - with all it's admitted challenges - is happening everywhere, is really to be mis-informed to a eye-popping extent.
Let me summarize - using american produced shale oil and gas, while opposing its production locally, or even regionally, is called nimbyism. Not understanding that shale oil and gas is being successfully extracted everywhere in this country, including states with strong regulatory and environmental like California, is called 'stupid'.
So the only thing 'won', is the battle to keep the production (not the use, mind you) out of your back yard, since it is happening all across the country to the benefit of tens of millions of consumers and workers. And it happened while the fractivists were busy in their NY bubble of protest.
Newest Upstater Blog Post - A Holiday Full of Nina Simone and Ella Fitzgerald, .... and Home. (granted, might have had one too many while penning this love letter to life)
Have a great Holiday. I know quite a few people are spending 10 solid days at their Catskill Farms country house, which is always the greatest compliment that we can receive.
Another NYC Christmas Weekend
57th Street, Friday Night, on the Way to FOA Schwartz.
Checking in at the Le Parker Meridian - cost me an extra $10 for the bell man to accommodate Lucas on the trip up the 36th floor.
Up at 6:30, to Macy's Santa Land by 7:30. 12th in line to see Santa.
Lucas has for 3 years pulled the same trick of getting very quiet and speaking in a voice you can barely hear while talking with Santa. We always role play the night before a few times to cut down the chances of performance anxiety.
Then the first customer of the day over a Build a Bear, where we built a batman bear which we named BatBear.
Then a nap before noon before heading out to see Matilda - spoiler alert - NOT A SHOW FOR KIDS, even though in all the ads there are kids everywhere. Poor lucas - mean parents, mean headmaster, mean people - really put a wrench in his general world understanding.
Our in-room lego assembly area.
And then a $36 super awesome room service sundae.
Breakfast with Tiffany's gingerbread display in the lobby.
Subway.
Nostrils.
Sketchers.
Before Church choir.
He 'lost' that tie before Sat. church choir singing even began.
Pool deck, 42 floor.
Our Home (no, the tree wasn't installed crooked, the tree has a crink in it's truck half way up).
The End
After 6 years of political calculation, Gov Coumo ruled that domestic energy production through hydraulic fracturing wasn't happening in New York State.
Funnily, the guy in charge of the ultimate decision summarized his conclusion by saying 'would I feel safe having my children living close to a well? I certainly would not'. I guess extending that logic to a simple end and we would need to close landfills, airports, shopping malls, highways, salt mines, prisons, army bases, town highway department, oil wells, mobile home park, train tracks and the million other places one wouldn't want to raise a child that make modern life possible.
NY Times Joe Nocera's Critique of NY.
This brings to a conclusion a friend versus friend, neighbor vs neighbor debate that started slowly in 2008 and metamorphisized into one of the more energized and ultimately successful grass roots movements ever seen, reminiscent in local impact as to gandhi's India and MLK's civil rights were globally.
And it started here, in Sullivan County (SuCo), with bent teeth land men going door to door, signing leases and scaring the bejesus out of just about everyone.
The debate also monopolized all elections, conversations, dinner parties, newspapers and social media. For a guy in my business of selling bucolic ruralness, it permeated every waking thought I had for years in terms of how to react and strategize about what could be literally a landscape changing development (good pun, right?)
I feel a little funny as I make an extra $1500 a week due to low energy prices - a result of the rest of the country's participation to the decades old dream of energy independence - but I'm certainly glad it's over and we now have resolution. The uncertainty was hard to deal with, personally and professionally.
I also pray that all the lives of the fractivists still have meaning now that this all-consuming exercise of nimbyism is over.
Lord knows there isn't a person or family - poor rich black white young old - who isn't benefiting from the new world order provided by shale oil and gas.
Stalker
I hear a lot from folks who say 'they have been stalking me (my company) for years'. Here's a fun one I just came across while googling myself while killing some idle time away waiting to go pick up my son from his tony little private school on 85 acres in Glen Spey NY.
Design Crush
A sampling -
"...The ideas that swirl around inside Charles’ head pour out into every single one of the homes that his company builds.
He builds the kind of homes that have the amazing ability to both put you into a state of awe with its elegant finishes and airy openness throughout, while making you feel like you just want to hug someone by the fire. I love the way that Charles Petersheim makes modest and humble look so amazing.
Maybe Jason would want to move to New York?………….
Enjoy."
