Some Things Never Change

"Except for half a dozen in each town, the citizens are proud of that
achievement of ignorance which it is so easy to come by. To be “intellectual” or
“artistic” or, in their own word, to be “highbrow,” is to be priggish and of
dubious virtue….
…Doubtless all small towns, in all countries, in all ages,
Carol admitted, have a tendency to be not only dull but mean, bitter, infested
with curiosity. In France or Tibet quite as much as Wyoming or Indiana these
timidities are inherent in isolation."

- From "Main Street" by Sinclair Lewis (1920)

Jim

Dinner In Ocean Beach

Last night we walked down to Ocean Beach to have dinner at the Island Mermaid, a nice bayside restaurant. They have sushi and sake available on Tuesdays, and we had a nice time. I ordered edamame and some maki rolls, while Dan ordered Thai shrimp. I really enjoyed the evening but Dan thought it was too expensive. The prices at Fire Island restaurants are high, but that's because this is a resort and prices are high on everything out here. The water taxi boat ride back to Cherry Grove is also more expensive this year due I'm sure to the price of gasoline. All in all, I thought it was a nice evening albeit expensive.

Here's another photo I took at Sunday's Fire Island Dance Festival performance.

Jim

Cherry Grove: A Valuable Safe Haven For Gay Youth

Yesterday I saw two high school age boys on the beach here In Cherry Grove. They were lying together on a blanket fully clothed but enjoying each other, doing some necking. One of the boys had a bicycle, the other did not. It's easy to speculate on how this scene came about. Perhaps they met on Facebook or some other online venue, and arranged a rendezvous in Cherry Grove, where they would feel comfortable expressing their affection for each other in public. Maybe the one with the bicycle came to the Grove from one of the communities to the West. He could have pedalled down from Ocean Beach or even (gasp!) Point Of Woods. The other young man could have arrived by ferry from Long Island. It stuck me that the Grove is still serving as an important venue for gays and lesbians to meet and feel comfortable. Perhaps this is not as important as it once was for adult gays, but for young people the Grove is a place where they can meet and feel comfortable away from the disapproval of family and peers. Seeing these two young gays on the beach yesterday really made me appreciate the uniqueness of Cherry Grove, which is easy to take for granted if you have lived here for any length of time.

Jim

PHOTO: Youthful participants in Cherry Grove's Gay Pride Parade last weekend

Feds Bust Men in "The Rack"

Apparently, U.S. park rangers have recently issued several citations to men caught having sex in the notorious "meat rack," the undeveloped area that lies between Cherry Grove and the Pines. There is a decades long history and tradition relative to such activities in "the rack." Sex in the meat rack is a victimless crime. The rangers would do better to issue citations to people who walk on our dunes, which DOES damage the ecosystem on Fire Island. In any event, the rangers will be very busy indeed, particularly at night, should they choose to mount a campaign to end the decades long tradition.

Jim

PHOTO: Peonies and roses in bloom in our garden

Cherry Grove: Stormy Weather!

We're having some beautiful late Spring weather here in Cherry Grove, with two great beach days last weekend. However, a particularly violent thunder storm rolled through here late Sunday afternoon. For some reason, we seem to get really strong storms every once in a while out here on the island. We were entertaining guests, who had to wait for the storm to subside before they could make there way to our house. It looks like the same conditions will persist for the next couple of days. Yesterday I went for a 25 minute swim in the ocean. It's still too cool for most people but I found it refreshing. The water is warming up nicely from what it was just a week ago.

Jim

PHOTO: Cathedral rose w \indow in Leon, Spain

Cherry Grove Realities: Oil Price Realities

New York Times columnist Paul Krugman writes today:

If Europe’s example is any guide, here are the two secrets of coping with
expensive oil: own fuel-efficient cars, and don’t drive them too much.

We just came back from a trip to Spain during which we rented a car and drove it for about 300 miles. The car was a Nissan compact but it had plenty of room for the two of us and our bags and it got great gas mileage. That was a good thing because gas was probably about $7 or $8 a gallon. It way past time for Americans to abandon their gas guzzlers, trucks and SUVs. Pretty soon they will have no choice. Our own car is a Saturn compact SUV with a manual transmission and it gets excellent gas mileage, when we drive it, which is less and less. Krugman is right: this is the future for Americans - smaller cars and less driving. Get used to it.

At our Community Association meeting yesterday, it was announced that there would be no Daminex program this year because there is no money for it. Daminex is a pesticide that kills deer ticks that carry Lime Disease. The program costs $8,000 a year for the entire community. Funny how there are some very wealthy people here in Cherry Grove...wealthy enough to buy and refurbish big businesses like the Ice Palace, Top Of The Bay, etc. but there is no money for programs that benefit the people who live here. As usual, what really matters in Cherry Grove is what is good for the bars and businesses. The people who own homes here are just a footnote to what is the real reason d'etre for the Grove.

Jim

PHOTO: Beach Plum in bloom on the Fire Island dunes

Cherry Grove Community Organization Meets

One of the joys of being on Fire Island in the Spring is the flora. For a few short weeks, the dunes look like they're snow covered but it's not snow, it's Beach Plum blossoms. The blossoms start out pure white, then the blossoms turn pinkish as they mature. In a few weeks the blossoms are gone.

Earlier today I went to the first joint meeting of the season of the Cherry Grove Community Association and the Property Owner's Association. Due to lack of money there will be no "Community Welcome Back" party. There was a lot of talk about the Doctor's Fund, which is promoting their own cookbook to raise money. The Doctor's Fund endeavors to provide the community with doctors during the summer, although if you have anything other than a minor issue you really have to seek medical help on Long Island. There was also lots of talk about the boardwalks, and a lecture from a member of the Cherry Grove volunteer fire department on safety. The Property Owner's Association president talked a lot about his efforts to get politicians to help with various problems that confront the community.

Cherry Grove is a small vacation community. Most of us live here only half of the year and few of us vote here, so we're pretty much powerless and largely at the mercy of the Town of Brookhaven on Long Island, which has political and fiscal control over us. So, we spend a lot of time and effort out here trying to raise money to help ourselves out. It's just the way it is out here in this summertime community.

Jim

Cherry Grove: Early Spring In The Garden

We've had a few summer-like days out here and the plants have responded with a spurt of growth. Yesterday there were some people on the beach and some kids actually went swimming. Today we're back to more normal Springtime weather with more seasonal temperatures in the 50s. It's been dry so we need some rain. Maybe tonight we'll get some. The plants would like that.

Jim

Cherry Grove, Fire Island: Bayside Erosion

We had a mild winter this past year, but it seems as though erosion on the bay side is continuing. This is the outlook between the Grove and Sailor's Haven. The platform is sturdy still, but looks precarious. Note the tree that is down due to the sand having been washed away underneath it.

Jim

Pass A Full Transgender Inclusive Version Of ENDA

RE: ENDA: The Employment Non Discrimination Act - It seems as though openly gay Congressman Barney Frank made a calculation that the only way it would pass, even with Democratic Party control of the House is if they stripped the "T" (transgender) out of the bill, so he split the bill up into two bills, one that protects lesbians, gays, and bisexuals, and the other that protects transgendered people. The sexual minority community revolted at this with some 90 organizations issuing statements or sending letters opposing such a move.

Barney Frank has made a number of silly statements and has done some whacko things, but this one truly is revolting. Even if both houses of Congress were to pass his "stripped down" ENDA, Bush would veto it and he has enough Republican support to sustain such a veto. So why abandon some of the people who need protection the most? So that the Democrats can claim some sort of limited victory? The outpouring of opposition to Frank's plan has forced the Democratic leadership in the house to cancel their plans to adopt his ridiculous strategy. ENDA needs to protect all members of sexual minorities. They need to go back to the original bill and work to pass that again and again until it is signed into law. No thanks, Barney, we don't want your half-assed bill.


PHOTO: We think of our summer cottage as being located in sort of a beach version of "Brigadoon," since it sleeps in the off season and comes to life once again every year in the Spring. This friend's house has closed its eyes for the winter.

Jim

Of Daisies And Couples

A sure sign of autumn: "Montauk" daisies in bloom, This group is located on the South side of the house, the side that gets the most sun, wind and salt spray, so they have to be hardy to survive.

Yesterday I attended a wonderful party thrown by two friends, Matt and John, who are celebrating their 30th anniversary as partners. The guys rented an entire establishment, the Tides bar, and provided guests with an open bar, drag show, and a full buffet dinner. Their families were present and Matt & John introduced them to the approximately 150 Grove friends who attended. It was a heartwarming and affirming celebration and a great way to cap off the season here in Cherry Grove. Congratulations Matt and John!

Jim

Fall On The Island

It's a beautiful time to be out here at he beach. The weather has been great with mild temperatures and little rain. Most days I take a couple of long walks and I can still swim in the ocean. The water remains warm, around 70 degrees. There's a cold front due in soon so maybe that will make it feel a little more like Fall than the end of summer.

Halloween comes a bit early out here in Cherry Grove. Since most of us close our houses for the season sometime in October, the pumpkins and other Fall decorations usually appear right after Labor day. This is a photo of our front window.

Jim

New York Times: "Fire Island Heats Up"

One tough job...digging up and dividing our Iris. Here's the before and after. Hopefully we'll have more blooms in the Spring.

The article in Today's Times on Fire Island real estate values is an interesting read. Here in Cherry Grove we've seen some of the recent changes mentioned in the article. We've noted the increase in values as well as the influx of straight people into overwhelmingly gay and lesbian Cherry Grove. Apparently, this is just the beginning. The word is out. We'll have to see if these trends continue.

Jim

New York Times Ends "Times Select"

Hooray! We get to read Frank Rich and Maureen Dowd again without having to pay a fee. The Times says their online paid subscription plan worked for them but now they are ending it. So it must not have been all that wonderful for them. From Today's Times:

"The New York Times will stop charging for access to parts of its Web
site, effective at midnight Tuesday night. The move comes two years to the
day after The Times began the subscription program, Times Select...What changed, The
Times said, was that many more readers started coming to the site from search
engines and links on other sites instead of coming directly to NYTimes.com. These indirect
readers, unable to get access to articles behind the pay wall and less likely to
pay subscription fees than the more loyal direct users, were seen
as opportunities for more page views and increased advertising revenue.
“What wasn’t anticipated was the explosion in how much of our traffic would
be generated by Google, by Yahoo and
some others,” Ms. Schiller said."

This move is good for Times readers. I hope it's good for the Times.

Jim

PHOTO: Ocean view from our Cherry Grove roof deck. Next year we may be looking into someones bedroom instead, unfortunately.

A Cool Sunday Morning

It's 54 degrees out here on the island this beautiful, crisp Sunday morning. Fall is in the air. Yesterday started out rainy but by afternoon the sun came out and it turned into a beautiful day. At about 4 Pm I took a long hour and a half walk in the beach with Bradley (my canine companion.) After our walk we both went for a swim. The water is still warm. Actually, it's warmer than the air temperature!

Here is a photo of the "Top Of The Bay," a Grove landmark that has fallen on hard times after the last owners defaulted. Anyone who has visited the Chery Grove regularly will probably have fond memories of the place, of dining upstairs on the deck overlooking the bay, or having one of Sherwood's powerful cocktails at the bar. According to my sources, more than one entrepreneur is prepared to buy it and rehabilitate it immediately. Businesses (shops) could reopen in the structure in 2008. Let's hope that such good things happen soon for Top Of The Bay!

The Noise Problem In The Grove

Photo: Beachfront homes in Point 'O Woods.

The "Elephant In The Room" here in Cherry Grove is the perennial battle between residents and bars that play loud music sometimes all night long, seemingly, with the tacit approval of the Community Association, which has been loathe to approach the bar owners directly about the issue. Instead, residents bothered by noise late at night have been told to call the police. Some residents who live in the East end of town believe that the noise from one bay front establishment has been ignored for years because the officers of the Association live on the other end of town. Others feel that certain establishments get a pass on excessive noise because they are owned or managed by the the friends of certain factions within the community. So the undeclared war goes on with the Suffolk County Police called in on a regular basis as referees between the two camps who will not talk to each other directly about the problem. The bottom line is that the bar owners and managers could care less about community concerns relative to noise. They probably feel that, since they host charitable fund raisers and employ residents, they have a right to operate as they wish even if the excessive sound late at night creates a public nuisance. This is the way it's gone on here for years. It's too bad that some leadership and common sense has not been brought to bear on the situation. Instead, the police are kept busy responding to nuisance noise complaints.

Jim

A Full Circle

(please click on the photo on the left to enlarge it.)

This past weekend a friend from New Jersey, Paul Orlando, visited Cherry Grove.
Paul and his partner Charles used to be Grove regulars, but in recent years
they have not often visited and are selling their home here. So it was a sentimental
journey to see them again, and I had wanted all summer to give Paul
a copy of "Queer Collection" which has a story based on certain adventures in his life.

After he recounted an early period of his life several years ago, I asked him if I could use the material in a short story. He consented and I wrote a piece called "The Golden Tattoo." With a certain amount of artistic license the story recreates a period in America's history, that time in the early 1970s when the country was full of hopes for a better future. These dreams are intermingled with the story of how Paul came out as a gay man.

During a few years when another gay magazine considered the story for publication but ultimately rejected it, I hoped somehow the story would eventually be published.Then I heard of the new publication "The Queer Collection" and sent the story out yet again.That's frequently the way it works in publishing fiction. I was pleasantly surprised when"Queer Collection" accepted the story last Fall and published it this Spring.

This past Saturday I was finally able to give Paul a copy of the magazine with the story.
Both he and his life were great inspirations, and I hope he enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.


In the photo: a picture of Grove friends dinning in the Pines, taken in 2003, the year that Paul recounted the fascinating story of his early adulthood. Paul is the handsome gent in the foreground left, seated next to his partner Charles. I'm next to Charles, in a yellow shirt. Among the other Grove friends, the waving, smiling man in the background was Jerry Ehrlich, now no longer with us, but fondly remembered as one of the finest persons Jim and I have ever met and known on Fire Island.

Dan

Weekend Events In The Grove

The beach here in Cherry Grove is really quite beautiful. The white quartz sand lends itself to all sorts of fun activities including sand sculptures. Bob Russell took this shot of one person's sand art in early July.

Speaking of art, the Arts Project Of Cherry Grove annual community art show opens today at the Community House. This give local artists a venue to display and sell their creations.

Last evening Dan and I attended a lovely party at "Blueberry Hill," one of the largest homes in the Grove. Hosts Bob and Dick know how to throw a party complete with a full bar and wonderful food.

This weekend we'll also get a chance to see our Philadelphia friends Gary and David who are guesting with our friend Juan. We're looking forward to chatting with them all.

Jim

Cherry Grove: Recent Break-Ins

Click on this picture to view the larger version. Kudos to Charlie Isola for keeping the community informed and for the good advice on what to do if you see something suspicious. I spoke with another police officer yesterday. They have someone in custody but they can't discuss the details yet. Let's hope they got the culprit. Still, we need to come together as a community and institute some sort of local crime prevention program, such as a community watch.

Jim

A Stormy Day...And Some Other Thoughts

The early ferry wasn't very full on our trip over to America (Long Island) on Wednesday. The weather was threatening and before long the rains came. The storm hit hard on Long Island. Many roads were flooded. I went to one store, Best Buy in Patchogue, only to find out that they weren't sure they would even open because of the severity of the storm. We did our chores and returned to Cherry Grove on the 11:30 AM boat.

The freight boat on its way over to the Grove loaded with supplies.

Another freight boat containing construction supplies, and the garbage scow leaving the Pines harbor.

I spoke with a Suffolk County Police Officer late yesterday afternoon. I asked him if the police had apprehended any of the bad guys who are responsible for the recent crime spree in The Grove. He told me that they caught one individual, but he did not elaborate and apparently did not know what particular crime(s) that this individual was charged with.

Have you been following the free fall of the American dollar vs. European currencies? The last time we were in London a couple of years ago, we felt the pain of the unfavorable exchange rate at that time. It's worse now, with the dollar worth only about 1/2 a British Pound. Ouch!

Jim