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Community News, September 16

9 Photos

The winners of the 2021 Hampton Bays Civic Association Rubber Ducky race were: First place, Ce Style Marble, center; Second place, Rapid Recovery, left: and third Place, Peconic Physical Therapy at right. COURTESY HAMPTON BAYS CIVIC ASSOCIATION

Duck wrangler J.J. holds high the duck race proud winner. COURTESY HAMPTON BAYS CIVIC ASSOCIATION

Ducks on deck to race at the Hampton Bays civic Association Rubber Duck Race on Saturday afternoon. COURTESY HAMPTON BAYS CIVIC ASSOCIATION

James Sirkin, Charlie Sirkin, Eileen Walsh and Brian Walsh and Teddy Sirkin at the East Hampton Aviation Association's "Just Plane Fun Day" at East Hampton Airport on Saturday. RICHARD LEWIN

Pilots John Purdy and Dave Wigley flew their plane from Farmingdale to the East Hampton Aviation Association's "Just Plane Fun Day" at East Hampton Airport on Saturday. RICHARD LEWIN

Jaelyn Hernandez will help with the bilingual ballet and tap classes being offered by Our Fabulous Variety Show through Project MOST.

Todd Tureski presents the People's Choice trophy to Tom Federico, owner of the 1962 Chevy Impala SS, at the Water Mill Classic Car Show on Saturday.

Southampton Town Councilwoman Julie Lofstad welcomes guests to the opening of he Off the Leash Dog Park in East Quogue on Monday morning. The park is located at Pine Neck Marina, 22 Josiah Foster Path in East Quogue. DANA SHAW

David Morris, Dr. Harvey Manes and Caesar Pink, Arete Living Arts Foundation executive director at the Stargazer sculpture in Eastport on Sunday. Dr. Manes donated $100,000 through his Manes American Peace Prize Foundation to restore the sculpture. David Morris is the partner of the late creator of Stargazer, artist Linda Scott, and has since been looking after the work. DANA SHAW

MONTAUK CCOM Picnic Slated The Concerned Citizens of Montauk will host its second annual picnic on Saturday, September 18, from 1 to 3 p.m. at Fort Pond House in Carol... more

A Bit Of Bathroom Poetry

Bathroom poetry may be the purest form of poetry there is. The reader is captive and the work is anonymous, so why not let it rip with what you’re really feeling, utterly devoid of pretension? I had two to assess at the Flying Point Beach port-a-potty on Sunday morning. One was an individual’s frank observation of another individual’s proclivity for performing a specific sexual act (at least I presume it’s not written in the third person; if it was, that invites a whole new level of analysis). The second was more philosophical: “EVERYTHING YOU KNOW IS A LIE.” This hangs ... 21 Sep 2021 by Tim Motz

Loads Of Toads

I always see toads in the fields. But this year, one field was special — it is loaded with them. I began seeing them in late spring: Little toads, no bigger than an almond, would jump out of my way. Later in the season, I’d often find myself stopping the tractor and waiting as one hopped to safety. Their presence meant I seldom felt alone in the field. But I worry that my industry — the cultivator, perhaps, sweeping soil in deep ridges — might kill them. Depending on the width of the tractor and implement, I get off, catch ... by Marilee Foster

Just A Dream

“LI Home Prices Go Up, Up, Up,” declared the front-page headline in Newsday last week. The article began: “Home prices reached a new high in Suffolk County … The median home price jumped to $535,000 in Suffolk last month.” And that was $10,000 more than what Peter J. Elkowitz Jr., president and CEO of the Long Island Housing Partnership, had said that the average price of a house in Suffolk County had just gone up to ($525,000). He was giving a presentation earlier in the month before Long Island Metro Business Action on “Affordable Housing, Opportunities & Obstacles.” Houses suddenly ... 20 Sep 2021 by Karl Grossman

People News, September 23

Doctors Dives In For Rescue Dr. Seth Korbin, joint reconstruction specialist at Stony Brook Orthopaedic ... by Staff Writer

Community News, September 23

EAST END National Voter Registration Day For National Voter Registration Day on Tuesday, September 28, ... by Staff Writer

School News, September 23

Musicians Named All-State Three Westhampton Beach High School student-musicians have been selected to perform in ... by Staff Writer

Community Giveback Celebration A Huge Success

Peconic Landing’s Community Giveback Celebration on September 12 raised $20,350 for the Greenport Fire Department. Funds were contributed by participants of the 15th annual John May Mile and 5K Race, as well as community sponsors and local vendors. Since inception in 2005, the annual John May Mile and 5K has raised more than $302,000 to support local first responders. According to the Greenport Fire Department, these funds go towards the purchase and maintenance of rescue equipment vital to keeping the volunteers safe during response efforts. This year, approximately 100 participants showed up to either run the 5K or walk the ... by Staff Writer

Risky Choices

Some people swim in the ocean to start their day, others swim to end it. The ocean is a luxury for most, a way of life for a few. In seaside towns, we know about the ocean’s soporific gander, and so, too, its erosive intent. It is never the same and wholly indifferent. It does not matter how good a swimmer you are, it is not advised to swim in rough seas — and yet we do. A current is ripping down the shore; only one person is near the water, a skinny boy in a wetsuit. As he wades ... 14 Sep 2021 by Marilee Foster

Who Is That Masked Man?

It seems strange — no, it seems just plain wrong — that I am wearing a mask more now than I did three months ago. Did any of us really envision, when 2021 began, that nine months later the U.S. would be having over a thousand people a day dying from COVID-19? And with vaccines readily available? Let me reassure my conservative friends about a few things. One, I’ve never liked wearing a mask, and it’s not any more enjoyable to do so now than it was a year ago. Two, I don’t agree with mask mandates, because they divide ... 13 Sep 2021 by Tom Clavin

Making Housing Affordable

With the average price of a house in Suffolk County having now gone up to $525,000 — and the mean price in the Hamptons to $1.4 million — the affordable housing situation in the county has become yet more of a predicament for so many people. “The need for affordable housing has reached crisis proportions,” the county government’s affordable housing website declares. What is being done, what has been done, to deal with this crisis? A program that would help the East End is the Peconic Bay Region Community Housing Act, which for a second time has passed the New ... by Karl Grossman