August 27, 2012

Protesting fracking - in Albany

There were at least a dozen Dryden residents in Albany today, including two families, joining the Don't Frack New York! rally and march. Sungiva settles into the crowd. One of my favorite protest signs was completely simple: the New York...

Posted by simon at 11:13 PM

August 25, 2012

Civil War encampment continues tomorrow

All I can say is wow. A free event, open to the public, and still open tomorrow, Sunday, August 25th, from 10:00am to 5:00pm. Yes, it's a little south of Ithaca on Route 13, but it's definitely worth the trip....

Posted by simon at 6:01 PM

July 2, 2012

Visiting the faeries

And now for something completely different. Yesterday we drove east to beautiful Ouaquaga, New York, to the New York Faerie Festival. Entering. Sungiva brought her wings. Watching Wolgemut. Some folks got very into the music. More than your average...

Posted by simon at 5:36 PM

June 23, 2012

Free train rides at Finger Lakes Live Steamers

I'd heard of Finger Lakes Live Steamers, but I don't get up to Clyde very often. Fortunately, Konrad's best friend Benjamin had his second birthday today, so we went up for a party. it was amazing, pretty much paradise for...

Posted by simon at 7:31 PM

May 7, 2012

Hollenbeck's Spring Classic Road Race

I spent yesterday morning in Virgil as a corner marshal on the Hollenbeck's Spring Classic Road Race, helping point bicyclists toward their last hill climb and the finish line. (I was volunteering for the Ellis Hollow Preschool - it's not...

Posted by simon at 7:31 AM

September 2, 2011

Nodal development in a walled city

Gate at Gengenbach. It's hard to imagine a more perfect nodal development scenario than a walled city on a trade route surrounded by farms. We don't tend to do things that way any longer. Even the German village I described...

Posted by simon at 5:59 PM

August 27, 2011

Vacationing in a nodal development paradise

When we went to visit Angelika's family in Germany, I thought of it more as a vacation than as a land use planning study. Somehow, though, once you start looking at land use in one place, it's hard to stop...

Posted by simon at 6:49 AM

August 9, 2010

Sterling Renaissance Festival

Yesterday, Angelika and I took Sungiva and Konrad to the Sterling Renaissance Festival with our friends Rolf and Susan Verberg, and their son Simon. They'd been there a few times, but it was a first for us. Yes, of course...

Posted by simon at 12:15 PM

October 19, 2009

Rosamond Gifford Zoo

It would be great if Dryden (or even Tompkins County) had a zoo, but given our size and resources, that's not a campaign promise I'm willing to make. Instead, we've taken Sungiva a couple of times to the Rosamond Gifford...

Posted by simon at 5:06 PM

September 2, 2008

Farm City Day 2008

Tompkins County Farm City Day was at Angel Tree Farm last month, on Scofield Road near where Dryden, Groton, and Lansing all meet. They enjoyed showing off their alpacas (and chickens), and I think everyone had a good time. Alpacas...

Posted by simon at 7:41 AM

August 30, 2007

Visiting New York City

When I was in college, I learned pretty quickly that I should say I was from "beautiful Upstate New York" instead of just "New York", because the question "Which borough?" got annoying quickly. Still, I have connections to the place...

Posted by simon at 5:09 PM

July 29, 2007

USeless Airways

I don't normally blog on Sundays, but since I'm stuck in Philadelphia Airport and US Airways is clearly uninterested in hearing about it, I may as well share it here. I booked a flight out of Ithaca Airport back in...

Posted by simon at 8:37 AM

April 10, 2007

Visit the Vet School

I drive by the Cornell Vet School all the time, and many Varna residents are veterinary students. They'll be having an Open House this Saturday, April 14th, from 10:00am to 4:00pm. They're about a little ways west of the Dryden...

Posted by simon at 8:05 AM

December 12, 2005

Visiting Stickley

I grew up in a city (Corning) full of factories, and I know too much about New York State's rich industrial history to be happy about the steady decline we've seen here over the course of my life. Every now...

Posted by simon at 12:12 PM

September 18, 2005

Judy's Day

I haven't been able to write as much as I wanted for this site this weekend, but I did spend the afternoon at Judy's Day, the spectacular event Cornell Plantations hosts each year at the F.R. Newman Arboretum, just across...

Posted by simon at 10:02 PM

September 8, 2005

Visiting the New York State Fair

Last Sunday I drove up to Syracuse and visited the New York State Fair, where I took far too many pictures and got to meet NYCO, whose blog provides me with regular inspiration on all kinds of upstate issues. Sheep...

Posted by simon at 8:36 PM

August 7, 2005

The nearest foreign foreign city

No, the title isn't a typo. Dryden is a few hours away from Canada at Niagara Falls, and Toronto isn't that much further. While those are great places to visit, they aren't exactly foreign to most Americans. The primary language...

Posted by simon at 3:26 PM

April 24, 2005

Finger Lakes Railfair

There are still a few hours to get to the Finger Lakes Railfair, open today until 4:00pm in Lansing at The Field (map), sponsored by the Cornell Railroad Historical Society. I had a good time wandering, though I only bought...

Posted by simon at 12:51 PM

April 22, 2005

Jeremiah's Place and Creed

Posted by simon at 5:45 PM

January 19, 2005

An hour at the State Capitol

I had to give a presentation yesterday outside of Albany, and drove there in the afternoon. I usually budget an extra hour if I'm driving someplace I'm speaking, and because of the weather, I budgeted two hours. Everything went smoothly,...

Posted by simon at 1:47 PM