REQUIRED READING
The Number-One Secret to Lifelong Happiness? Relationships of All Kinds
(NPR) - Happiness can be hard to quantify, because it can mean something different to everyone. But let's say you could change one thing in your life to become a happier person, like your income, a job, your relationships or your health. What would make the biggest difference? The strongest predictors for people to maintain their happiness and health throughout the course of their lives were people who described their relationships as having satisfying levels of quality and warmth. And that applies to a wide breadth of interactions in your daily life, from spouses, close friends and colleagues to the barista who makes your morning coffee or the person delivering your mail.
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You have no idea how bad the pizza box is (The Atlantic)
Survey finds ‘classical fascist’ antisemitic views widespread in U.S. (WaPo)
Why I hate skiing, by Elaine Godfrey (The Atlantic)
FOOD & DINING
Actor Sarah Podemski's Perfect Day Off in Hudson Is All About Thinking and Eating Local
(Thrillist) HUDSON, N.Y. - Sarah Podemski is busy these days. She stars as Rita, a single mother navigating complex identity politics and interpersonal relationships in an Oklahoma Indigenous community, in FX's critically acclaimed series Reservation Dogs that was recently renewed for a third season, and as Kayla, the dynamic lawyer on Ute Reservation in Syfy's dramedy Resident Alien. "My husband and I love road trips; we love investigating small towns and cities. I saw Hudson in a magazine maybe 12 years ago and we started going almost every year," says Podemski. "The shops there are so unique, and it’s so beautiful. Being on the river, there’s something really special about it." Her favorite places include Talbott & Arding, Wm. Farmer & Sons, Rivertown Lodge, and Minna.
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Full Belly Tex-Mex BBQ to open at former Desperados in North Adams (iBerkshires)
Little Cat Lodge, a European-style ski chalet and tavern, welcomes winter (RI)
Mielke Confections - successor to beloved Catherine’s Chocolates in GB - to close after Valentine's Day (B Eagle)
Lil’ Deb’s Oasis planning move to former garage site (GoR)
Good news about cheese — it’s much healthier than you thought (WaPo)
NEWS FROM THE BERKSHIRES
Where Alarms Were Raised, a New Calling Is Answered
(Boston Globe) PITTSFIELD, Mass. - Tyler Street Fire Station in Pittsfield was built in 1906, a two-story, two-bay, redbrick building with a pair of large arched garage doors for firetrucks to exit and enter. North Adams-based real estate developer David Carver of CT Management Group points to the concrete floor inside. “This was poured when the building was first constructed,” Carver said. “It is eight inches thick, heavy enough to bear the weight of fire engines, and now it is a great foundation for the building’s new life.” The new life brought together a city persuaded not to tear down the building, a preservation-minded developer, and the efforts of The Kaleidoscope Project, a nonprofit collective devoted to showcasing the talent within the BIPOC (Black, Indigenous people, and people of color) design industry. Now the fire station is home to four apartments: two one-bedroom units measuring 1,000 square feet and two two-bedroom 1,400-square-foot units.
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DA says latest Pittsfield drug bust nets largest haul of meth ever (Berkshire Edge)
Steven Valenti’s men’s clothing shop buys building after four-plus decades renting in downtown Pittsfield (B Eagle)
Dept. of Where Have We Heard This Before: Nascent electromagnetics business asks Pittsfield for quarter-million grant to buy equipment (B Eagle)
Triplex cinema sale nearly complete (B Edge)
Hotel project at former Searles School in GB may go forward this year (B Edge)
Boston-to-North Adams passenger railway service gets $1B ticket (B Edge)
North Adams’ mayor gets day in court - as a crime victim (B Eagle)
Williamstown dispensary still aims to sell medical cannabis (iBerkshires)
North Adams filmmaker’s ‘As Prescribed’ documents dangers of 'benzos' (Berkshire Eagle)
GB nursing home Fairview Commons fined more than $88K for neglect in resident's choking death (B Eagle)
West Stockbridge venue The Foundry plans to reopen and seek private funding (B Eagle)
Will winter stage a comeback? (B Eagle)
NEWS FROM THE HUDSON VALLEY
Foley&Cox Owners Bullish on Hudson’s Retail Scene
(Business of Home) HUDSON, N.Y. - Since opening the brick-and-mortar extension of his and partner Mary Foley’s design services 15 years ago, Michael Cox, the co-founder of the Hudson–based Foley&Cox interior design firm and home-goods store has watched the industry transform — but never more so than in the past three years, when the pandemic fundamentally changed Hudson. "There’s a new awareness of local economies and small businesses, for the authenticity that only a small, privately owned store can bring," says Cox.
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Local charity pays medical debt for almost 1,200 Hudson residents (ATU)
18-wheeler trucks wreak havoc on Hudson's streets, neighborhoods (GoR)
A new Hudson house inspired by the Wild West (ATU)
New makeup of Hudson Planning Board revives debates over longstanding issues, including mining operation at the waterfront (GoR)
Much-needed trees being planted in Hudson, which has the smallest ratio of green space to hardscape of any municipality in Columbia County (GoR)
With Eric Galloway having moved to Savannah, Ga., Galvan Foundation shifts geographic focus (GoR)
Flooding closes Kingston's Hutton Brickyards for the winter; management company departs (ATU)
Hinchey introduces bill to track and tax vacation rentals (ATU)
Hudson Valley GOP congressmen call on Santos to resign; Stefanik mum (ATU)
Roll Call: Founding Members
Erik Bruun
Benno Friedman
Richard Koplin
Rhonda Rosenheck
Anonymous