St. James community members stepped out of their homes and businesses to celebrate local veterans the morning of Nov. 11.
VFW Post 395 in St. James hosted its annual Veterans Day Parade. Elected officials, scouts, Smithtown school district bands and members of the St. James Fire Department joined veterans to march down Lake Avenue from Woodlawn Avenue to the St. James Elementary School.
A ceremony honoring the veterans capped off the event.
This calendar first appeared in print in the Arts & Lifestyles section of TBR News Media.
* All numbers are in (631) area code unless otherwise noted.
Veterans Day
Veterans Day Parade
VFW Post 395 in St. James invite the community to their annual Veteran’s Day Parade at 10 a.m. The parade will step off from the intersection of Lake and Woodlawn Avenues in St. James and march to the St. James Elementary School for a ceremony. Questions? Call 250-9463.
Veterans Day Ceremony
The Sound Beach Civic Association will hold a Veterans Day ceremony at the Sound Beach Vets Memorial Park on New York Ave., Sound Beach at 11 a.m. All are welcome. For further information, call 744-6952.
Veterans Day Observance
In commemoration of Veterans Day 2021, American Legion Greenlawn Post 1244 will conduct its annual Veterans Day Observance at 11 a.m. at Greenlawn Memorial Park, at the corner of Pulaski Rd. and Broadway in Greenlawn. For more information, call 516-458-7881 or e-mail [email protected].
Veterans Day Ceremony
VFW Post 3054 of Setauket hosts its annual Veterans Day Ceremony at the Setauket Veterans Memorial Park on Shore Road and Route 25A at 11 a.m. All are welcome. For more information, call 751-5541.
Free admission to Vets at LIM
The Long Island Museum, 1200 Route 25A, Stony Brook remembers, honors and thanks all the men and women who have served and who are currently serving. As a tribute, the museum is offering free admission to all Veterans and their families today from noon to 5 p.m. Call 751-0066 for further information.
Starry Nights concert
Stony Brook University’s Staller Center for the Arts, 100 Nicolls Road, Stony Brook presents Starry Nights, a magical evening of music with artistic director and cellist Colin Carr in the Recital Hall at 7 p.m. The evening will feature the Schumann Piano Quartet, pieces for guitar ensemble, and even some African drumming. Tickets range from $44 to $48. To order, call 632-2787 or visit www.stallercenter.com.
Opera Stars of Tomorrow
Stony Brook University’s Staller Center for the Arts presents Opera Stars of Tomorrow in the Recital Hall at 8 p.m. featuring Eugene Onegin: Tchaikovsky/Act I Scene I, Le nozze di Figaro: Mozart/Act II Finale, La Gioconda: Ponchielli/ Act II Scene & Duet, Il Barbiere di Siviglia: Rossini/Act Two Trio, Rosenkavalier: R. Strauss/Final Trio, and La Clemenza di Tito: Mozart/Act Two Scene X. Tickets are $10 general admission; $5 students and seniors online at www.stallercenter.com or at the door.
History Hike
Join the staff at Caumsett State Historic Park Preserve, 25 Lloyd Harbor Road, Huntington for a History Hike from 9:45 a.m to 1 p.m. While the main purpose of this hilly, moderately paced 6-mile walk is to relax and socialize, stops will be made to discuss some spots of historic interest. Bring lunch and drinking water. $4 per person. Advance registration required by calling 423-1770.
Autumn Holiday Bazaar
Siena Village, 2000 Bishops Road, Smithtown holds its Autumn Holiday Bazaar from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. today. Shop for holiday gifts, jewelry, homemade cards, a Gold Table with slightly used items, food, cakes, drinks, raffles and more. Call 360-6000 for more info.
Holiday Craft Fair
St. James Lutheran Church, 230 Second Ave., St. James will hold a Holiday Craft Fair from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. featuring over 50 dealers with hand and needle crafts, folk art, wood items and more. There will also be a raffle for a handmade quilt, baked goods, homemade soups and refreshments. Admission is free. For more information, call 584-5212.
Garage Sale fundraiser
Celebrate St. James will hold a garage sale fundraiser today, Nov. 14, 20 and 21 at the St. James Community Cultural Arts Center, 176 Second St., St. James from 10 a.m. to 4 pm. Lots of treasures including books, lamps, sporting goods, lightly used clothing, collectibles, fishing equipment and more. For more information, call 984-0201.
Holiday Bazaar
Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church, 716 Route 25A, Rocky Point holds its annual Holiday Bazaar from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Featuring holiday handcraft items, Grandma’s Attic (gently used holiday themed items), bake sale, and food. Free admission. Call 744-9355.
Second Saturdays Poetry
Join All Souls Church in Stony Brook for a virtual Second Saturdays Poetry Reading via Zoom from 11 a.m. to noon. Hosted by Suffolk County Poet Laureate Richard Bronson, the featured poet will be Virginia Walker. An open reading will follow. All are welcome to read one of their own poems. To register, visit www.allsouls-stonybrook.org. Call 655-7798.
Superheroes of the Sky
Sweetbriar Nature Center, 62 Eckernkamp Drive, Smithtown hosts a family program, Superheroes of the Sky, from 11 a.m. to noon. Take a walking tour with Jim while he feeds the Birds of Prey and tells you about their incredible adaptations that help them survive in the wild. You’ll be seeing and learning about bald eagles, turkey vultures, owls, hawks and many more. Fee is $10 adults, $5 children under 12. Register at www.sweetbriarnc.org.
Saturdays at Six concert
All Souls Church, 61 Main St., Stony Brook continues its Saturdays at Six Concert series with a performance by Alison and Taylor Ackley, partners in life and in music. Founders of the Deep Roots Ensemble, the rich sound of their two-part harmony singing brings songs old and new to life in a way that feels both timeless and remarkable. Free but donations accepted. Bring a can of food to donate to a local food pantry. Call 655-7798.
Sheléa in concert
Stony Brook University’s Staller Center for the Arts, 100 Nicolls Road, Stony Brook welcomes Sheléa in concert in the Recital Hall at 8 p.m. An oasis of sultry sound in the age of Auto-Tune, Sheléa is a unique artist who blends traditional pop, jazz, R&B, and soul. Tickets range from $50 to $54. To order, call 632-2787 or visit www.stallercenter.com.
Garage Sale fundraiser
See Nov. 13 listing.
Sunday at the Society
In correlation with the Northport Historical Society’s ‘Immigrants of Northport and East Northport’ gallery exhibit, a ‘Stamp Your Passport’ event will be highlighting Greece at the Society’s headquarters, 215 Main St., Northport from 1 to 3 p.m. The owner of the Northport Sweet Shop, Pete Panarites, will be presenting a history of his restaurant, famous clientele, and other interesting facts along with a concert by the Northport High School’s chamber orchestra to our event as they play music live at our Carnegie Gallery. Tickets are $5, members free. Register at www.northporthistorical.org.
Pianist Nadejda Vlaeva in concert
Ridotto, concerts “with a Touch of Theater,” presents the critically acclaimed pianist Nadejda Vlaeva in Recital at the Huntington Jewish Center, 510 Park Ave., Huntington on Sunday, Nov. 14 at 4 p.m. The pianist returns to Ridotto with a program of Chopin, Scriabin, Bortkiewicz, Liszt and more. Tickets are $12 (student), $20 (members), $25 (seniors), $30 (general admission). The hall is handicapped accessible. For reservations, call 385-0373, or [email protected]
An evening of Chamber Music
Stony Brook University.s Staller Center for the Arts, 100 Nicolls Road, Stony Brook presents Chamber Music on an Autumn Evenings in the Recital Hall at 7:30 p.m. featuring works by Dvořák, W. A. Mozart, Brahms and Beethoven, Free admission. For more information, call 632-2787.
SBU Orchestra concert
Stony Brook University’s Staller Center for the Arts, 100 Nicolls Road, Stony Brook presents the University Orchestra’s Chamber Orchestra and Concerto Orchestra concert on the Main Stage at 7:30 p.m. Conducted by Susan Deaver, the University Orchestra will perform music of Bartok, Gershwin, Schubert, Villa-Lobos and concertos by Sibelius and Beethoven.The featured soloists are the Winners of the 2020 Stony Brook University Undergraduate Concerto Competition — violinist Ethan Forman who will perform the first movement of Sibelius Violin Concerto, and pianist Victoria Wen who will perform the first movement of Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 5 “Emperor.” Admission is $10 at www.stallercenter.com or at the door.
‘Anything But Silent’ event
Join the Cinema Arts Centre for an online screening of “Chicago” (1927) with live piano accompaniment by Ben Model at 7 p.m. Like the musical Chicago that won the Best Picture Academy Award and five other Oscars in 2002, this original 1927 version descends from a 1926 hit Broadway play by Maurine Watkins. Long believed to be a lost film, but a perfect print survived in Cecil B. DeMille’s private collection. General admission is pay-what-you-want. To register, visit www.cinemaartscentre.org.
Whaling Museum Trivia Night
Join the Whaling Museum of Cold Spring Harbor for an online music-themed night of trivia at 7 p.m. From whale song to sea shanties to cricket chirps to Mozart to Broadway to the Beatles to Beyonce, join them for a tune-filled evening with trivia questions about music in film, television, art, nature, and history. For adults. Free to play, $10 donation appreciated. To register, visit www.cshwhalingmuseum.org.
An evening of jazz
The Jazz Loft, 275 Christian Ave., Stony Brook presents the Bad Little Big Band in concert at 7 p.m. Led by pianist Rich Iacona, the 12-member band performs music of the Great American Song Book and original compositions and arrangements written by band members accompanied by vocalist Madeline Kole. Tickets are $25 adults, $20 seniors, $15 students, $10 children. For tickets, visit www.thejazzloft.org. For more info, call 751-1895.
Native American Drumming
All Souls Church Rectory, 5 Mill Pond Road, Stony Brook hosts an evening of Native American Drumming Meditation from 7 to 8:45 p.m. Led by elder drummer, Ric Statler, drumming meditation seeks to integrate the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual parts of the human self, creating a state of well-being. Please call 655-7798 for more information.
‘Mission Joy’
The Port Jefferson Documentary Series concludes its Fall 2021 season with a screening of Mission Joy — Finding Happiness in Troubled Times at Theatre Three, 412 Main St., Port Jefferson on Nov. 15 at 7 p.m. The film is a profound and jubilant exploration of the remarkable friendship between Archbishop Desmond Tutu and His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Inspired by the international bestseller, The Book of Joy, the documentary welcomes viewers into intimate conversations between two men whose resistance against adversity has marked our modern history. Followed by a Q&A with co-director Peggy Callahan via Skype. $10 per person at the door. For more information, visit www.portjeffdocumentaryseries.com.
‘All Together Now!’
Star Playhouse, Stage 74, at the Suffolk Y JCC, 74 Hauppauge Road, Commack presents Music Theatre International’s “All Together Now!,” a global event celebrating local theatre, on Nov. 13 at 8 p.m. The venue will be joining thousands of theatrical organizations around the globe for this one-night only performance. The event will highlight songs from beloved Broadway musicals, and will feature appearances by Broadway stars in addition to local talent. Tickets are $55 in advance, $60 at the door. To order, visit www.starplayhouse.com or call 462-9800 x-136.
‘White Christmas’
The John W. Engeman Theater, 250 Main St., Northport continues its MainStage season with White Christmas from Nov. 11 to Jan. 2, 2022. Based on the beloved film, this heartwarming adaptation follows vaudeville stars and veterans Bob Wallace and Phil Davis as they head to Vermont to pursue romance with a duo of beautiful singing sisters. This family classic features beloved songs by Irving Berlin including “Blue Skies,” “I Love A Piano,” “How Deep Is The Ocean” and the perennial favorite, White Christmas. Tickets are $80 per person on Saturdays, $75 other days. To order, call 261-2900 or visit www.engemantheater.com.
‘A Christmas Carol’
Join Theatre Three, 412 Main St., Port Jefferson for the 37th annual production of A Christmas Carol from Nov. 13 to Dec. 26. Celebrate the season with Long Island’s own holiday tradition and broadwayworld.com winner for Best Play. Follow the miser Ebenezer Scrooge on a journey that teaches him the true meaning of Christmas — past, present and future. A complimentary sensory sensitive abridged performance will be held on Nov. 28 at 11 a.m. $20 tickets in November; December tickets are $35 adults, $28 seniors and students, $20 children ages 5 to 12. To order, call 928-9100 or visit www.theatrethree.com
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CALENDAR DEADLINE is Wednesday at noon, one week before publication. Items may be mailed to: Times Beacon Record News Media, P.O. Box 707, Setauket, NY 11733. Email your information about community events to [email protected]. Calendar listings are for not-for-profit organizations (nonsectarian, nonpartisan events) only, on a space-available basis. Please include a phone number that can be printed.
With the revitalization of Upper Port along with the changes downtown, people are choosing to downsize in Port Jefferson or start up their lives in the new Port Jefferson apartments.
Rob Gitto, vice president of The Gitto Group, said that his sites — and other places developed by Tritec Real Estate (The Shipyard), Conifer Realty (Port Jefferson Crossing) and The Northwind Group (Overbay) — are here to help people.
“That’s one of the big things,” he said. “That we’re trying to keep people here instead of moving off of Long Island.”
The Gitto Group currently has three locations between Upper and Lower Port: The Hills at Port Jefferson, The Barnum House and the recent The Brookport.
In September, The Brookport officially opened at 52 Barnum Ave. — the former Cappy’s Carpets — featuring 44 apartments that were 100% leased. The building is mixed-use and will soon be home to Southdown Coffee on the lower level.
“By having these walkable apartment complexes, we’re helping the stores and the restaurants by bringing more people into the village without a strain on the parking,” Gitto said. “To me, that seems like a win-win.”
He said he knows the concern about parking, but his buildings — and those of other developers — have created their own spaces on premise that don’t interfere with the traffic within the village. In fact, he said, he knows many of his tenants are taking advantage of all Port Jeff village has to offer.
“I know that I have at least two tenants here that are taking tennis lessons at the country club,” he said. “They’ve already been here a couple months and are trying to become part of the community.”
Many of those tenants — across all three of his locations — either chose Port Jefferson to establish their roots or had a home in the area and decided to stay but downsize as empty nesters.
“I can’t tell you how many tenants we’ve had, especially in The Barnum House, that moved here with a significant other or met someone while they were here, got married and had a child or children,” he said. “As they got older, they grew out of the apartment, but they fell in love with the community and became part of the community, so they ended up buying a condo, a townhouse or a home here.”
Gitto said they are filling a need that was never met in the community — giving people the opportunity to start up or slow down.
The Barnum House, which opened 20 years ago this year, still has tenants who moved in originally in August 2001. A mixed building, he said many are young working professionals but quite a few empty nesters as well.
“You’re checking a lot of boxes,” he said. “It’s easy living.”
A benefit his older tenants mention often is that they don’t have to worry about upkeep — if an appliance breaks or there’s an issue, they don’t have to worry about fixing it. They don’t have to landscape outside, and they are creating a home base for snowbirds who split their time between here and the South.
The Hills at Port Jefferson, however, has some more turnover, Gitto said, due to the type of clientele the apartments attract.
Located in Upper Port, the Hills was one of the first projects as part of Port Jefferson’s master plan.
“I do see there being a nice community uptown,” he said. “That connection to Stony Brook University and the two hospitals right there, there’s no reason why that can’t be a secondary community.”
And in that 74-unit building, Gitto said the majority of tenants are young, working professionals — many of whom work at Mather Hospital, Northwell Health, St. Charles Hospital and Stony Brook University — a 10-minute train ride from the LIRR station across the street to campus.
That being said, Gitto noted that “a couple of units will turnover” because of the residency programs at these places.
“I would say 80 to 85% of the people that live there are affiliated with Stony Brook,” he said.
A fourth project with The Gitto Group is currently underway on the corner of Main Street and North Country Road, where the PJ Lobster House used to stand before relocating. Gitto said that building will be smaller — roughly 36 to 38 units — and planning should be finalized by March.
Gitto mentioned that there is often concern or comment about the IDA benefits developers receive to build these properties but noted that neighbors need to look at it long term.
“Although our property taxes might be lower to start out, eventually, when the IDA program is over, we’ll be paying a lot more than this property would have ever given in terms of taxes if it had remained a boatyard, or the carpet store that it was,” he said. “It’s important to people to look at the long term — this is really going to help the school districts to have these tax bases being thrown into the mix.”
While he can’t talk about the other developers’ properties, he said that the addition of families and people into the community isn’t causing a strain on the school district at all.
“In the Hills uptown, in the 74 units, I believe we have one child who goes to Comsewogue,” he said.
Overbay
The Overbay apartment complex, which finally opened in September, had been in the process of being built shortly after The Northwind Group purchased the former Islander Boat Center building in 2013 for $1.8 million.
James Tsunis, managing member of Northwind, said that his family was “really excited” to bring a new complex to the village.
“The Northwind Group has been in the family business and we’ve lived in Port Jeff our whole life,” he said. “We were really happy to bring a boutique luxury apartment community here for Port Jefferson.”
Tsunis added that the complex also was planned to bring more positive traffic to the downtown retail shops and restaurants — especially since many struggled throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
“It’s a win for the village in general,” he said.
Located at 217 W. Broadway, the 54,000-square-foot “nautical style” apartment building consists of 52 rentals, with one-bedroom units ranging between $2,500 to $2,800 and two bedrooms starting at $3,500.
Each apartment features walk-in closets, custom built-ins, zero-entry showers with rain heads, a fireplace and a flat-screen TV. Other amenities include an 800-square-foot common room and a fitness facility.
The complex also contains an office area, concierge service and in-building parking with over 80 parking stalls for residents and their guests.
Leasing, Tsunis said, opened up in fall of last year, and sold out almost immediately.
“There was definitely a high demand for it,” he said. “We get calls about this every day and we have a long list of people waiting to get in here, which is good —it’s good for us and it’s also good for the village, because it means that people want to live here and that’s a very good sign.”
Jake Biro, Overbay’s property manager, said that like the other developments around the village, there is a good mix of different types of people living at Overbay.
“Honestly, it’s really diverse,” he said. “We have people all the way down to the undergrad at 19 or 20 years old to I think our oldest resident is about 94.”
Biro said the proximity to Stony Brook University and the hospitals helps.
“We get a lot of doctors and nurses,” he said. “But then we also have a bunch of empty nesters — people that are taking advantage of the real estate market and selling their houses right now, then renting for a year or two and reassessing.”
“Port Jefferson has been our home and we want our residents to call it their home,” Tsunis said. “We want to help them try to transition that process as hard as possible and as best as possible.”
Tritec and Conifer did not respond to requests for interviews by press time.
Reviewed by Jeffrey Sanzel
“Plastic shapes human identity and speeds up the rate at which we move across the world and through our days, connecting people and allowing us to express who we are to each other. And yet plastic also helps us destroy. Plastic has saved our lives while taking others’ away. Plastic is a miracle. Plastic is a scourge.”
Erica Cirino’s Thicker Than Water (Island Press) is a frank and pointed examination of one of the most toxic elements of our “throwaway” culture. “Almost every single person alive today uses plastic on a daily basis, most of which is designed for minutes or seconds of use before it no longer serves a designated purpose.” Cirino, a gifted author whose writings have been featured in Scientific American and The Atlantic, has penned a smart, passionate exploration of one of the most troubling and challenging issues. Subtitled “The Quest for Solutions to the Plastic Crisis,” the book examines a problem of overwhelming global impact.
The book’s first part focuses on Cirino’s 3,000-mile journey on the S/Y Christianshavn to the Pacific Ocean’s Great Pacific Garbage Patch. Located in the turbulent North Pacific Gyre, this is “the most notoriously plastic polluted stretch of ocean in the world.” And while “the patch” has been described as a “static, floating pile of plastic” (i.e., a “plastic island”), the reality is much graver. “These waters are more akin to a soup to which humanity has added an unknown number of plastic items and pieces. The plastic is commonly suspended right below the surface, pushed just of out sight, constantly and unpredictably stirred by the rolling sea.” Her thesis is clear: While plastic defines our culture, it should not be allowed to determine our future.
The book features vivid descriptions. Whether depicting a meal or the rescue of a sea turtle from “ghost fishing,” nothing escapes her insight, expressed in often lyrical prose:
“Out at sea, time is not measured in hours or minutes, but by the intensity of the burning sun, the oscillating fade-sparkle-fade of thousands of stars and specks of glowing algae, the size and shape of the moon, the furor or calm of the sea […] The sea can show us what it is in life we need, and what we can live without.”
But the writing never masks the underlying and driving force of the dire situation.
Throughout, Cirino investigates the shift from the historical use of plants and animals to fossil fuels. She traces the involved reliance on the latter and the products created from it. She shares a comprehensive understanding. “Plastic is so permanent because of its structure on the molecular level.” She clarifies both microplastic and the even smaller particles—nanoplastic—and their invasion of the food chain.
The facts are harrowing. “About 40 percent of the plastic used today is actually not even really used by people—instead, as packaging, it covers or holds the foods and goods we purchase and is simply torn off and thrown away so we can access what’s inside.” The flimsy, disposable plastic is tossed, sometimes after a few moments’ use. “In 2015, experts estimated the amount of plastic in the oceans would outweigh fish by the year 2050 […] By 2020, humans had created enough petrochemical-based plastic to outweigh the mass of all marine and land animals combined, by a factor of two.”
And while the material presented is alarming, Cirino is never alarmist, never resorting to sensationalism. Instead, facing such devastating research, she maintains a fair and fairly objective view.
When on shipboard or in the laboratory, she presents the science to inform and engage the reader. There is a wealth of data from the manufacture of plastics to the associated chemical pollution, from oceans to fresh waters. For example, she depicts the research done on human-ingested plastic with a mannequin that emulates human breathing. Postdoc Alvise Vianello, from Denmark’s Aalborg University, states: “From what we can tell, it’s possible people are breathing in around eleven pieces of microplastic per hour when indoors.”
The third part of the book tackles the frequently ignored environmental racism. Industrial plants are commonly erected in minority communities. Cirino focuses on Welcome, Louisiana, and its environs. The area of Louisiana is home to about one hundred and fifty industrial plants, dubbed Cancer Alley. There is a great deal of corruption surrounding these factories and complexes, with the companies permanently damaging the communities with chemical pollution. Furthermore, often the factories are built on top of presumed burial grounds of enslaved African Americans. This section highlights both environmental and sociological devastation.
Cirino connects the dots from plastic production to climate change. She has a sense of the irony that the pandemic briefly lowered our carbon footprint. Additionally, as renewable energies rise, fossil fuel corporations—notably big oil and gas—counter the lack of demand by turning ancient carbon stocks into plastic.
The final section of the book, “Cleaning It Up,” centers on solutions. Technical invention (trash wheels, booms, grates, etc.) and grassroots work (simply picking up garbage) are important. But, ultimately, the solution is a combination of public awareness through education, science, and systemic change of using less, or ideally, no plastic. “You wouldn’t just mop up water off your floor if your bathtub were overflowing,” says Malene Møhl of Plastic Change. “You’d turn off the tap.”
Taxes, bans, and other legislation, combined with the search for biodegradable resources (even using bacteria, fungi, and algae), face pushback from large industries, the complexity of plastic recycling, and our own desire for convenience.
It would be impossible to read this powerful book and not look at the world differently, both in the larger picture and day-to-day life. Contents of Thicker Than Water can be overwhelming—even paralyzing. But, in the end, Erica Cirino’s ideas stimulate thought, raise awareness, and, most importantly, are a call to action.
Thicker Than Water is available at IslandPress.org, Amazon.com, or BarnesandNoble.com. For more information on the author, visit www.ericacirino.com.
By Daniel Dunaief
Have you ever watched someone who was cheering for their team at a sporting event?
Aside from the potential enormous and mindless consumption of calories in the form of hot dogs, chips and beverages, superfans scream at the players, tilt their heads when they want a ball to move in a particular direction, or beg a higher power to help their player outperform people on the other team whose fans are pleading for the opposite outcome.
As fans, we have little control over the result of a game, especially if we’re watching it on television. Sure, home field advantage likely helps some teams and players, as fans urging their favorites on, standing and shouting at the tops of their lungs could inspire athletes to raise their level of play.
But, really, all of that pleading, begging and cheering into the ether or at the blinking lights on our screens gives us the illusion of control, as if we have some way to influence games.
We generally don’t accept or give up control because we like to think that, somewhere, somehow, our wishes, goals and desires mean something to a deity, a guardian angel, or a fairy godmother. To be human is to hope to control the uncontrollable.
Give me the inspiration to pick the right lotto numbers, please! Let me ride the subway with my future spouse. Keep me from hitting the curb on my driver’s test!
Millions of Americans sit each night with a remote control in their hands, surfing channels, changing the volume and traveling, without getting up from the couch, from a program about ospreys to a fictional story about a female secretary of state who becomes an embattled president. We sometimes revel in the excitement that comes at the point that teeters between control and a lack of control. When we’re young, we ride a bike with both hands. At some point, we take one hand off the bike. Eventually, we learn to balance the bike with no hands, as we glide down the street with our hands on our hips or across our chest.
In our entertainment, we imagine people who have higher levels of control, like wizards with wands or superheroes who use the force to move objects.
When we become parents, we realize the unbelievable joy and fear that comes from trying to control/ help/ protect and direct the uncontrollable.
When our children are in their infancy, we might determine where they go and what they wear, but we generally can’t control the noises they make, even by finding and replacing their pacifiers. These noises are their way of preparing us for the limited control we have as they age.
They make numerous choices, some of which we feel might not be in their longer term best interest. We can see the bigger picture, which can be as simple as recognizing that taking eight classes while working part time at night and joining the marching band is likely creating an unsustainable schedule. We know how important the basics — sleeping, eating, exercising — are to their lives, even if they make impulse driven choices.
One of the hardest parts of parenting may be knowing when to give them the space and opportunity to make decisions for themselves and to encourage them to learn from their choices.
Parents are lifetime fans of their children, supporting and encouraging them, leaning to the left to keep a ball in play, to the right to keep it out of a goal, or higher when we want their voices to hit the highest notes in their range during a performance of “West Side Story.”
It’s no wonder so many parents are exhausted and exhilarated after a big moment in their children’s lives: we might not have done anything but sit in a seat and clap our hands, but we tried, from a distance and in our own way, to control the uncontrollable.
By Leah S. Dunaief
One hundred years ago, it was the “Roaring Twenties.”
The Flappers were the icons then. They were women who shortened their skirts and shortened their hair. They wore makeup and looser clothing, smoked cigarettes in public, drank alcohol, drove cars, and otherwise reveled in what would have been considered unacceptable behavior in the past.
Oh, and then there was a more liberal attitude toward sexual behavior. It was, in a couple of words, more relaxed. Or so they say.
It seemed that after the carnage and sacrifices of World War I, the goal was to have fun. The Great War had dramatically changed lives, bringing women for the first time into the factories to replace the men, forcing them to manage the farms, making them the breadwinners on a national scale. They won the right to vote. When the men returned, they carried with them from across the Atlantic some of European culture and broader horizons.
It was a time of positivity, of innovation. A key word was “Modern.” Labor saving devices were invented, like the washing machine and vacuum cleaner. The radio came into its own and into living rooms. Thanks to the Ford Model T at $260 in 1924, cars became affordable, offering more freedoms. Credit became cheap, and the economy surged. Presidents Harding and Coolidge issued tax cuts; the stock market took off; people flocked to the cities where they drank, danced new dances, thrilled to jazz and partied. With prohibition came the bootleggers, making it all more exciting. This also gave birth to organized crime figures like Chicago’s Al Capone. By the end of the decade, it was estimated that three-quarters of Americans went to the movies every week. F. Scott Fitzgerald chronicled the decade in his novels.
Life was not all fun, however. An anti-Communist “Red Scare” gave rise to nativism and anti-immigration movements. Quotas were set that limited Eastern Europeans and Asians in favor of Northern Europeans and Brits. The Great Migration of African Americans from the Southern countryside to Northern cities was seen as a threat and gave a couple of million people impetus to join the Ku Klux Klan by the middle of the decade. Discriminatory hiring and housing practices led to urban ghettos. The horrific Tulsa Race Massacre took place in 1921. The NAACP moved into higher gear. Finally, in 1928, the first African American congressman since Reconstruction was elected to the House from Chicago.
There was what historians call a “cultural Civil War” as well. This consisted of city-dwellers versus small town residents, Protestants versus Catholics, Blacks versus whites and “New Women” versus those with old-fashioned family values.
Many of these themes are repeated a century later. Women, of course, are still working toward a more equitable playing field in the workplace and in politics. Our society has become more liberal, embracing gay marriage, for example, and health care reform. Connectivity, thanks to the internet and social media, defines us in a much more sophisticated, two-way fashion than the radio did. And technology innovation advances at a faster speed than most of us can catch up. Just as the assembly line revolutionized the production of cars, electrically powered self-driving vehicles are taking to the road. While indoor plumbing was replacing outhouses, today’s toilets can be connected to the internet and send up-to-the-minute diagnostic urine samples to physicians.
Just as there were threats then, we see them now. Will artificial intelligence or AI put those with lower skills out of work? There are still outcries against immigrants, attributing fears to them from COVID to taking away jobs. Climate change is a more powerful catalyst for environmental protection than Teddy Roosevelt and John Muir. The stock market and the economy have reached unimaginable heights. And while nationalist groups are longing for the imagined glorious past, activists are working toward national ideals that have never quite been realized.
We are just emerging from a kind of world war a century later, the villainous COVID-19 pandemic. How will our decade be named?
THAT’S A WRAP
This scarecrow at Holzman’s Family Farm on Doctor’s Path in Riverhead gets rid of the last of the pumpkins, signaling the end of fall harvest on the North Shore.
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When the pandemic first hit Suffolk County in March of 2020, health care providers tried what they could to treat COVID-19.
The treatment options may be on the verge of increasing, as Pfizer recently revealed the benefit of an antiviral pill they developed to treat the virus in its early stages.
The Pfizer pill, called paxlovid, “decreased hospitalization significantly,” said Dr. Bettina Fries, chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases at Stony Brook Medicine. “That’s exciting.”
The Pfizer pill, which would still need Food and Drug Administration authorization before medical care providers can administer it to patients, comes just a few weeks after Merck announced its antiviral pill molnupiravir was effective in treating people who contracted COVID-19.
Indeed, at the end of last week, Britain became the first country to approve the use of molnupiravir for people with underlying medical conditions, including heart disease and obesity.
“There is more information on molnupiravir as this drug was approved in the [United Kingdom] last Thursday,” Dr. Adrian Popp, chair of Infection Control at Huntington Hospital explained in an email. “It will be administered as soon as possible following a positive COVID-19 test and within five days of the onset of symptoms.”
As for Pfizer, it has not yet released data about its clinical trials to the scientific community, which means independent researchers haven’t reviewed the information.
Still, the introduction of new antiviral treatments advances the battle against the virus on another front.
“They are novel medications,” Popp added. “The speed by which they are being developed is amazing.”
Popp added that the pace at which the new Pfizer drug eliminates the virus and its symptoms is unclear because of limited data.
Fries said the Pfizer and Merck drugs were in different classes and worked differently, which means they may be most effective in combination.
In terms of side effects, Fries wouldn’t expect anything dramatic from either treatment.
Taking pills that reduce the severity of the disease also aren’t likely to reduce the body’s natural immunity to the virus.
“The immune system has already seen enough of the virus by the time you take the drug,” Fries said. Some of the patients in the trial probably had the virus for about a week, which is enough time for the immune system to recognize the invader and develop a natural resistance.
The timing of treatment with antiviral drugs determines its effectiveness. Drugs like Tamiflu, which prevents the worst symptoms of the flu, become less effective the longer the virus is in a patient.
“If you give this drug later, it will likely have less effect,” Fries said.
Additionally, Fries cautioned about overusing these drugs in future months and years, which can lead to viral resistance.
Fries believes the virus, like the flu, will continue to stick around and will return in waves.
The authorization of vaccines for children ages five to 11 will likely reduce the threat from the virus.
“A lot of parents will schlep their kids right away, especially before Thanksgiving,” Fries said. “Physicians and people who have a deeper understanding of vaccines feel comfortable” with them.
Fries recently received her third shot.
While the likelihood of children developing the worst symptoms of the disease is low, they contribute to the spread of the virus.
Additionally, the virus can mutate, which could make it “potentially a lot worse. There is [also] a low but potentially significant risk of long covid syndromes,” Fries said. “You don’t want your kid to have that. Children should be super duper healthy, not just a little bit healthy.”
Thanksgiving preparation
In terms of preparing for Thanksgiving, Fries urged everybody over 65 to get a booster, particularly if they received their initial vaccines at least six months ago.
Stony Brook Hospital is admitting patients who have been vaccinated and are over 65, in part because their initial vaccinations were over half a year ago.
“We see more and more older people presenting with the disease again,” Fries added. “Do it now so you have antibodies for Thanksgiving” particularly if a family has children returning from college.
Additionally, Fries urged residents and their families to get tested before coming together, which will reduce the risk of household transmission.
Even though Pfizer and Merck have produced drugs that may improve the treatment of COVID-19, Fries urged people to continue to get vaccinated.
“This kind of drug treatment does not make us say, ‘Okay, you don’t need to get vaccinated,’ Fries said. “Absolutely not.”
Fries noted that those people unwilling to receive an mRNA vaccine might get another option before too long.
The Novavax vaccine has “performed really well” in clinical trials, Fries said. “It is more of a traditional vaccine.” The Novavax facilities have had production problems. Once they resolve those issues, the company could apply for emergency use authorization.
By Nancy Burner, Esq.
Couples who are both U.S. citizens receive the benefit of the unlimited marital deduction on federal estate and gift taxes. The idea is that the surviving spouse pays any estate tax at their death.
In contrast, transfers from a U.S. citizen to a non-citizen spouse do not enjoy this benefit. The IRS figures they may return home to their own countries and avoid U.S. estates taxes at their death. Instead, lifetime transfers to non-citizen spouse are only tax-free up to the annual exclusion amount –$159,000.00 in 2021.
Remember, with the current high federal estate tax exemption, a U.S. citizen can gift up to $11.7 million dollars during their lifetime or at their death to anyone, including a non-citizen spouse. But, for high net worth international couples or those planning for when the estate tax exemption is lowered, a Qualified Domestic Trust (“QDOT”) is as an exception to this rule.
A QDOT allows the marital deduction for property passing to a non-citizen surviving spouse. It does not avoid estate tax, just defers it until the surviving spouse’s death. The overall purpose is to ensure that the IRS will eventually be able to tax property for which a marital deduction is claimed.
The requirement that the surviving spouse place property in a QDOT ensures that if the marital deduction is allowed, the property will still ultimately be subject to death tax.
A QDOT, like a qualified terminable interest property trust (“QTIP”), mandates that all income be paid to the surviving spouse and that no other person have an interest in the trust during their lifetime. However, QDOTs have additional requirements and limitations, such as:
• At least one Trustee must be a domestic corporation or a U.S. citizen.
• The trust must be subject to and administered under the laws of a particular state or the District of Columbia.
• Property placed in the QDOT must pass from the decedent to the surviving spouse in a form that would have qualified for the marital deduction if the surviving spouse was a U.S. citizen.
• The trustee must have the right to withhold the estate tax and pay it to the IRS.
The IRS imposes different security requirements depending on if the assets in the trust exceed $2 million dollars, whether the trustee is a U.S. Bank, and what percentage of the trust property is located within the United States. These requirements ensure the IRS get its due on the surviving spouse’s death.
A QDOT can even be set up after the U.S. Citizen spouse passes away. A trust created for the spouse which fails to meet all of the requirements can be amended to qualify as a QDOT. Additionally, under certain circumstances, an executor can, with the permission of the surviving spouse, make an irrevocable election to a QDOT.
A QDOT would not be needed if the surviving spouse becomes a U.S. citizen before the deceased spouse’s estate tax return is filed. This is usually nine months from date of death, but can be extended six months. Multinational spouses should seek out an experienced estate planning attorney, as the rules are complex and always changing.
Nancy Burner, Esq. practices elder law and estate planning from her East Setauket office. Visit www.burnerlaw.com.
Kings Park Knights of Columbus, 44 Church St., Kings Park will hold its annual clothing drive to benefit local families on Saturday, Nov. 13 and Sunday, Nov. 14 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Donations of clean, useable adult and children’s clothing including shoes, boots and sneakers appreciated. For additional information, call 631-724-1410.
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