Three Tall Persian Women is a comedic and touching play is about generational differences, grief, control, and learning to let go; but more than anything, it’s a love letter to immigrant mothers. Golnar, a punkish Iranian-American millennial, returns home to her mother Nasrin for the anniversary of her father’s passing and walks into hoards of family memorabilia that her grandmother Mamani has moved in with her. Get Shakespeare & Co tickets here.

This wall came tumbling down, the roof too

In News, News - Columbia, The Columbia Paper
October 4, 2022
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VALATIE—In early August one section of an old mill building, the former home of Energy-Onyx on River Street, collapsed. The building is owned by the Local Development Corporation (LDC) and not by the village. According to Village Attorney Rob Fitzsimmons, at a Village Board meeting on September 20, former LCD President Jason Nastke is filing missing audit reports with the state, and then the board will move forward with taking ownership of the building so the village can finally sell it to buyers who, according to Mr. Fitzsimmons, are still interested in purchasing the site but not interested in preserving the building.

Mr. Fitzsimmons stressed to the board that courts are backed up at this point. Valatie Mayor Frank Bevens said that the village was looking at spring before anything could be done with the building. The village put up barriers around the site and “keep out” signs.

The Village Board put the former mill building up for sale in 2020 and received several bids. But they couldn’t finalize any sale of the building, which also has a parking lot across the street, because they had to wait for the state courts to transfer the title to the village.

The roof and wall on the Gimp Mill building on River Street in Valatie, pictured above in late September, collapsed in August after being empty and falling apart for several years. According to the historic marker sign in front of the mill, this “was the smallest of Valatie’s eight textile mills.” Built around 1836 and running until 1995, it was “the last built and the last closed.” Photo by Emilia Teasdale

The LDC owned the mill as well as the former trolley depot and the U.S. Hotel on Main Street. Those buildings were sold in March of 2021. At a meeting in 2020, Mr. Fitzsimmons said the LDC has started the process in state court to transfer titles of the properties to the village. The LDC can then petition to dissolve as an organization.

The Village Board thought it would be possible to move forward with selling the mill site after village officials went through a foreclosure process, but they found out they had to wait until the state resolves the title issues.

Also at the village meeting on September 20:

•The mayor stressed that there is a leash law for dogs in the village. He said he is asking people to abide by the law and to pick up after their dogs when on village property. He said village property includes River Street Park and Pachaquack Preserve

•The board heard a report from Climate Smart Community Coordinator Meg Todisco about the process the village is making towards being designated by the state as a Climate Smart Community.

The next board meeting will be Tuesday, October 11 in the Martin H. Glynn Municipal Building at 7 p.m.

To contact reporter Emilia Teasdale email eteasdale@columbiapaper.com

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THROUGH THE WOODS: When to harvest a field

In Communities - Columbia, The Columbia Paper
August 26, 2024
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By NANCY JANE KERN

THIS WAS A HOT TOPIC GROWING UP and still is. Farmers must feed livestock and can only harvest in warm weather. Unfortunately, it is the same time that birds, animals, insects, and plants grow and reproduce. My family was conservation-minded and tried to balance the conflicts. One concession was to delay mowing fields for hay until late June or early July with possibly a second mowing in August. This gave the grass nesting birds like several species of sparrows, bobolinks and meadowlarks food and time to raise their young. From the 1940s to the early 1950s, we still used draft horses which gave a more wildlife-friendly type of mowing.

My father grew up using horses and enjoyed being with them. The pace was slow, and the horses’ hoof sounds and movements warned wildlife ahead of the blade. Dry, raked hay was either hand forked up onto a wagon, or a hay loader was hitched to the wagon. This motorless, clanking machine picked up the windrow of hay then caught by several wooden slats of teeth that moved up and down and fed the hay to the top and into the wagon. One of my early jobs was to fork the hay back to even out the load and pack it down. Things like insects, fawns, rabbits, mice, snakes, and fledged birds had a chance to escape injury.  This method also left areas for them to take cover.

My father’s young family and responsibilities grew and necessitated an increased dairy herd. The bigger the herd the more hay was needed, so he bought and rented additional farm fields. Consequent upgrading to more efficient tractors and machinery meant less food and safety for wildlife.

We never used herbicides or chemicals on the fields, which can be hazardous. My mother was adamant about this and followed the writings of Rachel Carson. A recent problem has been the widespread use of Roundup. For years it was touted as a safe and short-lived spray to reduce weeds. Too often chemical companies promote a product, and then years later we find people or wildlife suffering the consequences.

I don’t harvest hay anymore and can fully support conservation. My field is left alone all season and rough cut once after August to keep it open. Now it serves as a grassland and native plant sanctuary for birds and other wildlife, a plan others might want to consider and promote.

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