Laugh in the New Year with New Year’s Laughin’ Eve at Theatre Three, 412 Main St., Port Jefferson at 6 p.m. and again at 8 p.m. Now in its 13th year, the lineup will include Eric Haft, Joe DeVito and a surprise guest comedian. Hosted by Paul Anthony. Tickets for the early bird show are $50, tickets to the prime time show are $65. To order, call 928-9100 or visit www.theatrethree.com.
Comsewogue Public Library, 170 Terryville Road, Port Jefferson Station will screen a series of holiday movies from Dec. 27 to Dec. 30 at 2 p.m. Join them for Elf on Dec. 27, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation on Dec. 28, It’s a Wonderful Life on Dec. 29 and Miracle on 34th Street on Dec. 30. Open to all. Advance registration is required as seating is limited. To register, visit www.cplib.org or call 928-1212.
Pat Darling ran Santa's Workshop in Port Jefferson Village. File photo
By Allan Varela
The very successful 25th celebration of Port Jefferson’s Charles Dickens Festival has come to a close for this year, with energetic plans already in the works for the 26th celebration in 2022. Sadly, one of the many bright spots of the event, Santa’s Workshop, will not be returning. The historic Phillips Roe House, aka the Drowned Meadow House located on the corner of Barnum Avenue and West Broadway, which has played host to the workshop all these years, is officially becoming a year-round museum.
For the last seven Charles Dickens Festivals, Santa Claus and his elves came to life through the tireless work of the acclaimed confection artist Pat Darling. The whimsical workshop has welcomed both the young and young at heart to step back in time and reflect on the storybook charm of cherished memories of an era that has quietly faded.
Snowflakes glistening high above the elaborate confection nutcrackers and giant turrets that have adorned the beautiful displays throughout the workshop area set the mood, while children were greeted by sugar trees and toy soldiers.
The wonderment continued into Hollyberry’s bedroom, an elaborate vignette that featured Hollyberry anticipating the night before Christmas as she busily wrapped presents. The nightscape background featured Santa in his sleigh high in the night sky, coming to visit the workshop.
And visit he did, as the third room presented the real live Santa in all his glory, sitting in a giant arched chair as he greeted families. Smiles and happiness are the legacy of this special exhibit.
Pat Darling has charmed literally thousands of people over the years with her creative vision, inspiring execution and attention to detail that made Santa’s Workshop such a very special happening for the Dickens Festival. The workshop will be sorely missed, but the community at large will be eternally grateful for Ms. Darling’s resolute efforts.
Allan Varela serves as chair for the Greater Port Jefferson-Northern Brookhaven Arts Council which hosts the Port Jefferson Charles Dickens Festival.
Gerard Romano of Port Jefferson Station was out with his camera on Dec. 17 ‘looking for something appropriate for the season’ when he spied these pretty bells adorning the door of the Belle Terre Village Hall and took the perfect shot. Happy Holidays!
4 Sunkist Navel oranges
3 cups water
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
1 cup dark chocolate, melted
Directions:
Rinse and dry oranges. Slice both ends off each orange. Using paring knife, carefully score each orange in quarters then remove peel from each section, trying not to get too much pith. Slice peels into 1/4-inch strips. Add to pot and cover with water and sugar; stir. Bring to boil. Turn heat to medium-low until water reaches soft simmer. Simmer 45 minutes. Add vanilla before turning off heat and stirring. Remove peels from syrup and cool on wire rack. Roll in sugar to coat. Dry at least 4 hours, or overnight. Dip candied orange peels one at a time in dark chocolate. Place on parchment paper to set up and harden. Store in airtight container.
With Christmas this weekend, families are looking to get together for some quality time.
Last Christmas, in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, people quarantined with just those in their households. It was lonely for some, but they stayed safe, away from contact with other people.
Then 2021 came around and with the vaccines we saw some hope — we began slowly peeling off our masks and traveling again. Families became reunited.
But unfortunately, that was premature and now Suffolk County is at a 14% positivity rate as of Tuesday, Dec. 21.
To put it in perspective, municipalities across New York state were shut down at 5% in the spring of 2020. We have doubled the seven-day average compared to where we were at that time and have not shut down.
And there are reasons for that. Luckily more than a year-and-a-half later we have the vaccines, we have boosters and we know that masks work — we just need to continue using them and continue using common sense.
It’s sad to think that this is the second Christmas where some families might not be able to see their loved ones out of fear. It’s sad that we as a country were doing well and now have fallen back into old habits of not taking care of ourselves and of others.
If we continue not to listen to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, our health care providers and the science,
Politicians insist we won’t go into lockdown, but what will happen if the infection rate goes to 20%? What will we do if the hospitals are overfilled again?
With the comfort we felt during this past summer, newly vaccinated with restrictions lifted, some might have forgotten what early 2020 looked like. Visits to grandparents were through a window. Restaurants were not allowed to have inside dining. Disinfectants and masks were impossible to find, while bodies were kept in outside trailers because the morgue was filled to capacity.
We don’t want to head back in that direction, especially with all of the resources now available to us. We have the vaccine, we have the booster, we have masks and we know how to combat this virus. We just need to collectively do it and not treat it lightly.
So, for this holiday season, and throughout the rest of the winter, please take care of yourself, take care of others and be cautious.
As the year draws to a close, I think of the Chinese curse, “May you live in interesting times.” That would seem an apt description of the times we are living through today. Why do I say that? Let me count the ways.
For one, we have been tricked by the coronavirus. As spring faded into summer this year, we thought the pandemic was ebbing. We gathered in groups again, even without masks, visited relatives, returned to restaurants, went on vacations. Surprise! By the end of October, the virus started making itself felt again, by November, it was led by the new variant, Omicron, and now it commands the front page of newspapers and the top of the network and cable newscasts.
Yes, we have made impressive progress with vaccines and precautions, but society is still in the grip of the disease, still with some 30 percent of the population unvaccinated, still with those refusing to don masks, and now lined up not for inoculating but for testing. Testing and boosters are the new battle cry. Just as our grandparents, who were living through it, didn’t know when WWII would end, so we who are at war with the virus don’t know when the pandemic will fade into just another annoying wintertime contagion.
For another unprecedented way in recent memory that times are interesting, we have a country so divided and vehemently at odds that neighbors, friends and family members are afraid to talk politics with each other. It is such a contrast with the 9/11 era, when we all held doors open for each other, flew the American flag together and identified as one nation. “Democracy is at risk” is the new battle cry. And the threat of political violence and random shootings simmers just beneath the surface.
Meanwhile, worthy issues involving any sort of social safety net and how to provide money for them, like pre-school education and acceptable child care enabling parents to work, lie undebated in a symbolically divided Congress. It’s no wonder that the national birthrate for this past year is the lowest since 1979. That’s not just due to the pandemic but has been a trend for the last six years.
Climate change is another subject that has driven itself to top of mind this past year. Fires, the likes of which never before seen, also floods, tornadoes and melting ice caps have changed the face of the nation and have killed many residents.
And then there is racism, the shadow that has always loomed over the United States since its inception and has burst forth to claim attention across the country, spawning marches and protests. Is it better for bigotry to come out of the woodwork and be viewed in all its aspects in the clear light of day? Perhaps that is a necessary step for it to be ultimately eradicated. Until then, the atmosphere is bitter with recriminations.
There are some bright spots. Although the possibility of spiraling inflation has lately been a concern, unemployment is decidedly low and the economy has been growing. So has the stock market, while not the economy, is nonetheless a telltale of how their financial standing is perceived by residents. Stimulative monetary policy on the part of the Federal Reserve and equally generous fiscal action by the administrations of both presidents and Congress have kept civil unrest at bay. Savings rates are at a high. And the kinks in the supply chain, although most apparent now with the gift-giving demands of the holidays, will eventually be straightened out.
Furthermore, Dec. 21 is one of my favorite days because it brings with it the longest night of the year. After that, each day has a bit more light. So I hope for whatever darkness we are presently living through to lift, and I am optimistic that it will.
Until the new year, wishing you all healthy holidays filled with devotion and love.
TIME TO CREATE!
Build your own model boat at the Cold Spring Harbor Whaling Museum on Aug. 16. Photo courtesy of Whaling Museum
Programs
Holiday Train Display
Historic Longwood Estate, Longwood Road & Smith Road, Ridge will present a beautiful holiday train display from Dec. 26 to 31 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Kids can play an “I Spy” game to find hidden items in the display. Free. Call 924-1820.
Star Quest!
New! Calling brave explorers! The Whaling Museum, 301 Main St.. Cold Spring Harbor presents Star Quest! from Dec 26 to 31 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Hunt for star constellations around the museum with a spyglass to navigate your journey, just like mariners at sea. Solve puzzles to find your reward — a glittery star lantern you can decorate in our workshop to light your way home. For ages 5 and older. Admission fee plus $10 participant. Call 367-3418 for further details.
Build a Boat Workshop
The Whaling Museum, 301 Main St., Cold Spring Harbor hosts a Build a Boat workshop on Dec. 28 and 30. Families can drop in any time from 1 to 3 p.m. to imagine, design and create unique wooden vessel models out of a variety of materials in this open-ended workshop. Go home with your creation! Fee is museum admission + $10 per participant, $5 members. Call 367-3418 for additional information.
Winter Solstice Celebration
In celebration of the Winter Solstice, the educators at the Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum, 180 Little Neck Road, Centerport will offer three children’s workshops over winter break. On Dec. 27 children in grades K through 4 are invited to visit the decorated Vanderbilt Mansion and make a lantern to light as winter days turn cold and dark. On Dec. 28 children in grades K through 4 will explore the collections, learn how wildlife adapts to less sunlight, and make a miniature glow-in-the-dark diorama. On Dec. 29 preschoolers with a caregiver will visit the wildlife dioramas and make a twinkling snow globe. All workshops are offered from 10 a.m. to noon. Fee is $20 per child/ $18 for members. To register, visit www.vanderbiltmuseum.org.
Holiday break at the hatchery
Cold Spring Harbor Fish Hatchery, 1660 Route 25A, Cold Spring Harbor presents several programs during winter break. On Dec. 27 children from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. children can make homemade playdough; on Dec. 28 and 30 there will be a hatchery tour at 11 a.m. and trout feeding demonstrations at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.; learn to identify animal tracks and make your own track to take home on Dec. 29 from 11 a.m. and 3 p.m.; and join the hatchery on Dec. 31 for a Trout Birthday Celebration event throughout the day. Activities are free with admission. No reservations required. Call 516-692-6768.
Theater
‘Frozen Jr.’
Do you want to build a snowman? The Smithtown Center for the Performing Arts, 2 E. Main St., Smithtown will present Frozen Jr. from Nov. 20 to Jan. 17. A story of true love and acceptance between sisters, Frozen Jr. expands upon the emotional relationship and journey between Princesses Anna and Elsa. When faced with danger, the two discover their hidden potential and the powerful bond of sisterhood. With a cast of beloved characters and loaded with magic, adventure, and plenty of humor, Frozen Jr. is sure to thaw even the coldest heart! Tickets are $25. Call 724-3700 or visit www.smithtownpac.org.
‘Barnaby Saves Christmas’
The holidays have arrived at Theatre Three, 412 Main St., Port Jefferson with Barnaby Saves Christmas from Nov. 20 to Dec. 26. Come join Santa, Barnaby, Franklynne and all of their friends for a wonderful holiday treat. As Santa’s littlest elf and his reindeer friend set off on their journey to save Christmas, they meet some new friends along the way and learn the true meaning of Christmas, Hanukkah, and the holiday season. All seats are $10. To order, call 928-9100 or visit www.theatrethree.com.
‘Frosty’
Tis the season! The John W. Engeman Theater, 250 Main St., Northport presents Frosty from Nov. 21 to Jan. 2. Join Jenny and Frosty on their chilly adventures as they try to save the town of Chillsville from mean old Ebenezer Pierpot and an evil machine that will melt all the snow. Jenny calls on her Dad, the mayor, and all of you to help her save her home, get Frosty to the North Pole, and make this holiday season a Winter Wonderland for one and all! Tickets are $20. To order, call 261-2900 or visit www.engemantheater.com.
Workers come in two-hour shifts to provide gifts of joy
With holiday music blasting overhead, dozens of Northwell Health employees gathered together for a marathon gift-wrapping session to ensure that school-age children enjoy a happy holiday season.
“I am so proud of each Northwell employee and all of our community partners who made this joyful event possible,” said Edward Fraser, vice president of Community Relations at Northwell. “Today, literally hundreds of our team members joined together to wrap thousands of gifts for children in the communities we serve. It is our belief that no child should be denied the gift of joy at the holidays.”
Through an on-line platform operated by Northwell’s nonprofit project partner, Supplies for Success, employee donations were used to provide art supplies and other gifts for different age categories. No contribution was too great or too small. And, the results are impressive: more than $40,000 was collected for this worthy cause.
All the wrapped gifts will be distributed to families who cannot afford them in in four Long Island communities (Brentwood, Bay Shore, Freeport, Hempstead) as well as locales in Manhattan, Westchester and Staten Island.
Along with the gift, the final item placed in each bag was a hand-written, holiday message by the staff member who packed it. At the bottom of their bags, students will find such joyful messages as, “Happy holidays,” or simply, “Enjoy!”
The Northwell “elves” who participated in the gift-wrapping marathon, along with Mindy Richenstein, founder and president of Supplies for Success, said that the motto of the day was, “All children deserve the gift of joy at the holidays!”