The Democrats chose Scott Murphy of Glens Falls to be their nominee for the 20th Congressional seat.
Today is Super Bowl Sunday
Updated 6:00 p.m. February 1st.
Registration is now closed. Two brave souls jumped in. If you tried to register and had a problem, please let us know.
… and also our first day of testing user registrations.
If you would like to register for this site;
A.) Read our rules
B.) Register here
For the brave souls going first, we are still in testing mode.
Now This Is A Friend
You’ll have to wait a few seconds for the ad to finish.
You Won’t Find These on the APA Website
9 Counties and 11 Towns Sue Adirondack Park Agency
Nine counties and eleven towns have filed suit against the Adirondack Park Agency to try to reverse new rules that have been implemented, including shoreline building prohibitions on structures that pre-date the APA. Shorefront property owners take note. Hear about it here.
Lewis Family Farm v. APA
“At 1,200 acres, Lewis Family Farm has conserved hundreds of acres of organic soils and removed thousands of tons of accumulated waste, including 15 decrepit, moldy, broken farmhouses. The documents on this site tell how the APA, a regional land use board within the blue line, violated New York State law, and engaged in an abusive, aggressive and frequently dishonest strategy to intimidate the Lewis Family Farm.”
Read about the whole case here. The Lewis family just won their case, but the APA has appealed.
Nothing about either of these on the APA site.
Now for Some History – 1955
Click on the Image to Enlarge
Saturday Quote
“How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.”
Anne Frank
Bits of Everything
30 Days Are Up – Governor Still Doesn’t Want To Pay
The Post Star has a good article about the Governor’s proposal to cap NY state tax payments to local governments with state forest preserve land. This is a must read for all taxpayers and voters. If you’re a NY state resident, please contact your downstate representatives and tell them NY state has to pay their property taxes. We do.
Dem’s Down to 6
This story from the Post Star is about the finalists who are being considered by the Democrats to be their nominee for Congress in the 20th Congressional District. The special election to fill former Rep Kirsten Gillibrand’s seat will be held 30 days after the Governor calls a special election.
Reynolds Game Farm Won’t Be Closed
The pheasants are going to make it after all. Cruella De Ville is crying.
Hold the Salt
With all the recent snow, it seems like the perfect time to discuss other options for salting the roads in the Lake George basin. Salt runoff is one of the primary pollutants reaching the lake.
Here is a product called Magic Salt, which bills itself “as less corrosive, biodegradable and environmentally friendly,” than regular salt. Here is a .pdf file of an area coated on one side with regular salt and coated on another side with magic salt. Notice how the grass is burned on the regular salt side.
Here is a product called Ice B’Gone® that is made of a molasses-like liquid that can be mixed with regular rock salt. It “contains no algae-forming phosphorus”.
These are the types of products that will bring us into the future. There are most likely many others. We’ll bring to your attention a new technology that is being studied in Maryland that can lengthen the life of an existing drain field with plain old regular air.
You never thought salt was so cool.
Do This for a Green Playable Golf Course
Letters, Faxes, Emails needed by February 28, 2009
The Lake George Park Commission is accepting comments on their proposed stream corridor regulations until February 28, 2009
We have read the regulations and historically more regulations have always meant more costs. We believe these proposed rules will impact two areas that are important to the Huletts Golf Course. The proposed rules require that any work in a stream bed requires a permit; this would impact the yearly cleaning of the reservoir which only supplies water to the golf course. Secondly, any footbridge crossing a stream would need a permit. Any environmental organization could object when a permit was applied for. This would mean that any environmental group, such as the Lake George Waterkeeper, which objected to the dredging of the mouth of Foster Brook, could impact the use of the Golf Course.
I have excerpted my comments that I submitted to the LGPC (with a copy to the HLPOCA) that deal with these two issues:
“The Huletts Golf Course is a uniquely special property. It is the only golf course within walking distance of Lake George. The water source for the Huletts Golf Course is the reservoir/dam on Fairy Creek. The Huletts Landing Property Owners Civic Association is entirely responsible for paying for the upkeep of this water source. Your proposed regulations should exempt all dams/reservoirs that require yearly maintenance. The federal government under a program launched by former Vice President, Al Gore, learned that periodic flushing of the dams on the Colorado River helped marine life downstream. Any work and/or yearly maintenance on existing reservoirs/dams should be exempted.
Likewise, the Huletts Golf Course has many crossings of Fairy Brook for people playing golf. The Huletts Landing Property Owners Civic Association maintains the course at great expense and with much volunteer labor. It would be unreasonable for existing or new pedestrian crossings to be subject to these regulations. Golf Courses in the Lake George basin should be exempted from these rules because they may at time change the location of their natural water obstacle crossings.”
Please submit your comments by February 28, 2009 telling the LGPC that these two activities that benefit the Huletts Golf Course should be exempted from their proposed stream regulations, and state the reason why; pedestrian stream crossings for people playing golf and annual maintenance on the dam that feeds the golf course should not be activities that require a permit. Tell them extreme environmental organizations that object to all human activity should not be given undo weight in this process. Send comments to:
Mr. Michael White, Executive Director of the Lake George Park Commission, PO Box 749, Lake George, NY 12845; By Fax: 518.668.5001; By email: info@lgpc.state.ny.us
Bits of Everything
Snowy Owl Seen in Area
The Saratogian has a good article about the snowy owl appearing in our area. This is a perfect article to read today because Huletts is under a winter storm advisory, with lots of snow expected.
Ice Fishing Better Understood
This is a story which I missed that came out about two weeks ago which aired on North Country Public Radio. It’s about the start of the ice fishing season and they interview some ice fishermen on Lake George. You can learn something about ice fishing while sitting inside, nice and warm.
GOP Chairmen Pick Tedisco as Nominee
While the Democrats have not yet chosen a candidate to run for Kirsten Gillibrand’s former house seat, the Republican’s today chose Assembly minority leader, James Tedisco, as their choice.
Paulist Fathers Offer Summer 09 Programs
We received the following press release from our friends, the Paulist fathers.
PRESS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – January 26, 2009
Paulist Fathers to offer exciting retreat program during June and July at Lake George, NY
As they have done for the past 12 years the Paulist Fathers will offer a series of retreats during June and July 2009 at their summer home at St. Mary’s on the Lake, located on Lake George in New York. Fr. Isaac Hecker, the Paulist Founder, established the foundation in 1868. The retreats are open to anyone. More information can be found at www.lakegeorge.paulist.org
June 12-14 Fr. Ken McGuire, CSP: RE – MEMBERING RETREAT: Bring all your parts!
Your body and soul, humanity and divinity,
color and orientation, sorrows and joys.
Don’t wait for other to recognize you in your goodness:
God already does.
Don’t let other confer power: God has done that.
If we listen, the God of the universe is acting in the ordinariness of our lives.
Let us get together and re-member ourselves and each other.
June 19-21 Fr. Vinny McKiernan, CSP : Praying Your Life Weekend
A weekend to learn and experience Centering Prayer and the practice of Lectio Divina, the prayerful practice of praying the Scriptures.
June 22-26 Fr. Vinny McKiernan, CSP : Praying Your Life 5 day retreat
Praying Your Life:contemplating and celebrating your life, past, present and future in the the context of God’s Providence. The week will be anchored by daily periods and Centering Prayer and the celebration of the Eucharist in the beauty of the Adirondacks. Fr. Vinny McKiernan, CSP is Campus Minister at The Ohio State University and an experienced Spiritual Director and Retreat Master.
June 26-28 Fr. Ken McGuire, CSP : Spiritual Discovery Through Movies
Spirituality and values portrayed through movies have a huge effect, maybe more than 10 minute sermons on Sunday. We will explore themes, values and spirituality of films like Whale Rider, Into the Wild, Brokeback Mountain and Inherit the Wind, Notebook and Stand and Deliver. Ken McGuire is a Paulist Priest and Cultural Anthropologist. He has served many years as a campus minister, pastor, director of St. Mary’s on the Lake and taught Cultural Orientation for International Priests and Nuns, COPIM at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles.
July 6-10 Br. Michael Moran, CP “Windows to Heaven: An Icon Painting Retreat”Brother Michael Moran, C.P., an artist who specializes in the painting of icons will lead the participants in the painting of an icon of the Mother of God. The daily schedule of the week will consist of two large blocks of time for painting, as well as “teachings” relevant to the spirituality of seeing and of icons. There will also be daily prayer, opportunties for discussion, as well as quiet time. No experience is necessary and art supplies will be provided. The goal is for each participant to have painted his/her own icon by the end of the retreat.
July 10-12 Brett Hoover, CSP “Here Comes Everybody: Catholic unity amidst our different opinions, cultures and theologies.”Brett Hoover is the author of “Loosing Your Religion, Finding your Faith” and “Soundbyte Spirituality” as well as numerous articles. He was the founder of Busted Halo, the Paulist Fathers program for young adults and is currently a Ph.D candidate in theology with a focus on the multicultural church at the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley.
July 24-26 Fr. Lawrence Boadt, CSP “Exploring the Major Insights of St. Paul for Modern Spirituality.”
Noted Old Testament scholar, Fr. Lawrence Boadt will examine the ten most important aspects in Paul’s understanding of life in Christ, with an in depth look at some key Pauline passages in his Letters. Lawrence Boadt, CSP, is an ordained priest in the Paulist Fathers, and professor emeritus of Scripture Studies at the Washington Theological Union. He has written and spoken widely on Old Testament topics, and currently serves as the president and publisher of Paulist Press in Mahwah, NJ. He is author of “Reading the Old Testament” by Paulist Press.
Candidates & Their County Supporters
Here is a short piece from Channel 13 in Albany about which congressional candidates have the most support from the different county chairmen who will be deciding between candidates. (The way Channel 13 shares video, is to alternate video between the weather and a given story. Start the video when you see the list of candidates by county. Otherwise you will get the weather forecast.)
Bits of Everything
The Governor Doesn’t Want to Pay Taxes Either
While upstate legislators and groups are fighting the proposed cap on NY state paying property taxes on its forest preserve, the Governor for the time being is standing behind the proposal. 
GOP Chairmen Weighted Votes Explained
The Governor will also, sometime soon, issue a proclamation calling for a special election to fill the U.S. House of Representatives seat being vacated by Kirsten Gillibrand who will be sworn in to the U.S. Senate on Tuesday to replace Hillary Clinton. In a special election, like this, there will be no primary. Republican chairmen from the 10 counties in the 20th Congressional District will meet this week to discuss how they will select the Republican nominee. Here is an look at how each County Chairman will have their vote weighted.
See Some Great Stuff This Summer
Here is an interesting story about the Adirondack Museum in Blue Mountain Lake getting a surprise donation to put on a show, starting in May, where some of the earliest known pictures, paintings and artifacts of the Adirondacks will be on display. The Adirondack Museum is a great day trip from Huletts.