The Rogovoy Report 1.2.23
From around the corner to around the globe...
REQUIRED READING
Making a New Year's Resolution? Don't Go to War With Yourself
(The Atlantic) - In the culture of New Year’s resolutions, there’s a really heavy dose of perfectionism—a sense in which it’s all about starting completely afresh and being completely perfect in some area of life from this day forward. I don’t think fresh starts like that are actually possible, and I don’t think aiming to make them is the healthiest way to change.... I do think that probably one of the pitfalls of New Year’s–resolution culture is that it encourages us all to buy into the idea that you need to make some big change in order to be a minimally acceptable, worthwhile person. And that doesn’t leave any room for the thought that maybe you’re more okay than you thought. Maybe you don’t need to change in some particular way. Maybe reconciling yourself to certain ways that you are is a more powerful thing.
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In New York City, traffic deaths were almost equal to shooting deaths in 2022 (MoJo)
Remote Work Is Poised to Devastate America’s Cities: In order to survive, cities must let developers convert office buildings into housing. (New York)
FOOD & DINING
Chocolate Springs Mixes French Tradition with Japanese Design
(Berkshire Edge) LENOX, Mass. - When Joshua Needleman was a sixth grader, he wrote a school report on Swiss chocolates. That report turned out to be a harbinger of his future career as the owner of Chocolate Springs Café at 55 Pittsfield Rd. (Routes 7/20) in Lenox. When Joshua Needleman was a sixth grader, he wrote a school report on Swiss chocolates. That report turned out to be a harbinger of his future career as the owner of Chocolate Springs Café at 55 Pittsfield Rd. (Routes 7/20) in Lenox. In conversation, Needleman has clearly maintained his passion for chocolate, which he said reflects many of his personal interests and inclinations. “As we grow up, the pressures of life can cause us to lose touch with what we are innately drawn to,” he says. “I believe one key to a rewarding life is to reconnect with the things that originally resonated with us when we were kids.”
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Just months after a new team took over, Desperados in North Adams is closed. Why?(Berkshire Eagle)
A business wants to open a cannabis cafe in North Adams. Cannabis-infused prime rib au jus would be on the menu. (B Eagle)
New restaurant Espetinho Carioca brings the flavors of Brazil to Pittsfield (B Eagle)
Elm Street Java in Pittsfield under new ownership (iBerkshires)
Hot Plate Brewing Co. hopes to tap into downtown scene and give Pittsfielders a place to hang out (B Eagle)
From second locations and renovations to passing the torch, a look at some of the changes Berkshire restaurants faced in 2022 (B Eagle)
The new Hudson Valley cookbook canon features works by Hudson's Colu Henry and Lil Deb’s Oasis (Chronogram)
An antique store? A bar? Former editor of Saveur opens UnQuiet in Coxsackie (ATU)
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Spotlight Shines on 'Eloise' Illustrator at Rockwell Museum
(ATU) STOCKBRIDGE, Mass. - In a flurry of black ink and a splash of pink, illustrator Hilary Knight created one of the most iconic children’s literature characters: the precocious, Plaza-terrorizing Eloise. His collaboration with author Kay Thompson on a series of Eloise books began in 1955, and Knight’s whimsical depictions of the adventurous young girl came to be what he was best known for. Knight’s career extends beyond the Plaza Hotel, though, with illustrations for magazines, newspapers, Broadway and advertising, showcased in a new exhibit titled “Eloise and More: The Life and Art of Hilary Knight” at the Norman Rockwell Museum through March 12.
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What to expect from Arlo Guthrie's return to the stage in 2023? A man and his guitar, greeting old friends (Berkshire Eagle)
Woodstock musical wizard Marco Benevento pulls a Paul McCartney/Stevie Wonder with his latest visionary album (by Seth Rogovoy/Chronogram)
NEWS FROM THE BERKSHIRES
Embracing Change Is Key to Simon's Rock’s Survival
(Berkshire Edge) GREAT BARRINGTON, Mass. - John Weinstein became provost and vice president of Bard College at Simon’s Rock in July 2020, right near the height of the COVID pandemic. “I think that was considered an awkward time for a new job,” says Weinstein. “But it was crucial to keep the college going during the pandemic.” Weinstein says that embracing change is key to the college’s survival. “There are some things that are much different now than when I first started here,” he said. “For example, when I first started here there used to be very few options for high school students to take college-level courses. Because of the work the college has done to expand this program to the public sector, this program is now huge for us. I believe that across America, the amount of high school students who are taking at least one college course has gone up substantially.”
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North Adams might be the ‘cutest’ winter spot yet (The Travel)
MassDEP seeks more information from Housatonic Water Works on contamination by cancer-causing compounds (Berkshire Edge)
Alert issued after elevated levels of manganese detected in Hinsdale's water supply (Berkshire Eagle)
New owner has plan to save historic Elm Court property in Stockbridge/Lenox (B Eagle)
Berkshire County will lose a statehouse voice, change senators in 2023 (WAMC)
Outgoing and incoming DAs ring in new year with conflict (B Eagle)
Complaint filed against West Stockbridge Planning Board over Foundry special permit (B Edge)
A look back at some of 2022’s biggest headlines in the Berkshires (WAMC)
NEWS FROM THE HUDSON VALLEY
Four-Season Wonderland: Hunter & Tannersville
(Upstater) HUNTER and TANNERSVILLE, N.Y. - Winter is coming to the Catskills, which in the past has meant that things in Hunter are about to get very busy. That’s arguably no longer the case, but not in the way that you might think. The eponymous mountain that overlooks the village of Hunter, home of the most historic and arguably most popular ski resort in the Hudson Valley, still keeps Hunter and its neighboring village of Tannersville, with which it shares a Main Street, packed in the colder months. What’s different is that the twin villages are now busy pretty much all year round, as hikers, leaf-peepers, and anyone who just wants to spend a little time outdoors have discovered that Hunter and Tannersville are ideally situated as a base of operations to discover what the Catskills are all about.
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Hudson continues to debate sidewalk repairs; suburban homeowners ask 'Why should we pay'? To which homeowners without schoolchildren reply, 'By that logic, why should we pay school tax'? (GoR)
Amtrak ridership at 75 percent of pre-pandemic levels in New York (ATU)
A day in the life of the Saugerties Lighthouse keepers (ATU)
Rail trail running through Dutchess and Columbia counties gets $375K grant (ATU)
This meme account pokes fun at Hudson Valley life (ATU)
International glamping brand chooses Rhinebeck for first U.S. hotel (ATU)
The Invention of Elise Stefanik: To rise through the Trump-era G.O.P., a young upstate N.Y. congresswoman gave up her friends, her mentors and her ideals. Will it be enough? (NYT)
Roll Call: Founding Members
Benno Friedman
Richard Koplin
Rhonda Rosenheck