Browse: June 2007

Got food? Then thank a farmer. Nearly 25 years ago, well before heavy fears about global warming and chic motivation to go green, John Halsey founded Peconic Land Trust. The nonprofit organization was initiated with the mission to protect Long Island's farms, and has since protected over 8,500 acres of land from development and desecration and conserved more working farms on Long Island than any other private conservation organization. The shellfisher preserve program to restore shellfish farms, efforts to replace invasive plant species with native varieties, and guardianship of thousands acres of agricultural and natural landscapes are only a few of the many actions the Trust has been taking.

Thanks to the organization's efforts, that beautiful scenery we take in with our eyes and those incredibly fresh odors of flora and sea are practically everlasting on the East End. Hence, there will also always be plenty of fresh and local produce, diverse lands and wildlife habitats, clean water resources, and much more.

Through donation you can partake in ensuring that the Peconic Land Trust's efforts continue to maintain the precious place that is the East End. You can also benefit from their educational lectures and hikes to familiarize yourself with the land and how to keep it precious.

How much have you done to preserve and conserve our beautiful backyard? Please share below.

When most individuals hear of "green living," they picture hippies and the granola types living off of the land in tents and with their own grown vegetables. But then there is the Project Greenhouse: an undisclosed house in East Hampton where every aspect of the building, as well as the lifestyle practiced within it, must be carbon-neutral, organic etc. This structure proves that eco-friendly living does not have to come with a sacrifice of luxury.

For a significant portion of the summer, the eco-show house will host high-end events, organic brunches and afternoon teas, as well as priate dinner parties– with all proceeds going to environmentally-friendly charities. The building includes a full-service organic kitchen and eco-conscious products require a disciplined lifestyle that preserves and conserves.

Before you start fantasizing about what life must be like in the home, consider your habits and think again. Plum's own Josh May will undertake such a challenge when he lives in the house for a month. He'll go from the cigarette-smoking, meat-eating, SUV-driving journalist he is today to a carbon-neutral, organic-eating blogger who will share his experience with all to read. Within a few days, his story will be told in a Yahoo blog (and here as well).

How do you think he'll do? Please share with us below. 

The Southampton Fresh Air Home celebrated the Fourth of July holiday early, and its 106th camping season, with the 20th Annual American Picnic with Grucci Fireworks last night. This fundraising event (which raises over 40% of the Home's annual operating expenses) brough friends, family and community together a private, oceanfront home for an evening of picnic eating, carnival games and, of course, a grand finale of fireworks that lit up the sky over the glimmering waters of Shinnecock Bay.

In addition to the visual spectacles and good-eating, 17-year-old Gabrielle Ross, who recently won Amateur Night at the Apollo Theatre, contributed her extraordinary talent with an exclusive performance for the campers- who were in awe of her the moment she stood before them.

The 150 physically challenged children and young adults from the tri-state area will experience camp life and build summer memories and friendships at the Southampton Fresh Air Home this summer thanks to the support of all who showed up Friday night.

The Fresh Air Home's need for support, obviously, did not end with this event. You can help out by clicking here.

Since May 6, Margo Pellegrino, a 40-year-old stay-at-home-mother, has been paddling her way up the East Coast from Miami in a 20-foot canoe. Her final destination is Camden, Maine, but she will stop by the Hamptons on Saturday, June 30. Her purpose for this nearly 2,000 mile journey is to raise awareness about such problems facing our oceans as overfishing, pollution, development, habitat destruction, aquaculture and beach access.

Members of the Group For the East End and the Eastern Long Island Chapter of the Surfrider Foundation will be on hand to great her at approximately 4 p.m. on Shinnecock Bay across the street from Edgewater Restaurant (between Ocean View and South Valley Roads in Hampton Bays.

There is still time to support Margo during her journey. You can make a donation through her website, or you can provide her with company in Shinnecock Bay if you have a canoe, kayak or paddle board by calling 631-848-9927.

Thursday July 5:

Our friend Jack Yee has been making the reporting rounds about what's been biting where and when in Montauk. Bass, bluefish, porgies and fluke have been coming over the rails.

Jack hears from Paulie's Tackle that using sharpies during the midnight runs near the north shore of Montauk will land you both some bass (a 15-pounder was caught) and some bluefish. Lazy Point is also bountiful with blues and bass as well.

Bluefish are prevalent (without the bass) on the south shore near Emerson Street in Montauk as well, while many bass (without the bluefish) have been caught in Montauk Harbor at night. Paulie's has also informed Jack about the many porgy sightings near Nave Road Pier in Colluden.

If you're a fluke fan, we hope you're an early riser. Viking Fleet's morning fluke trips have been seeing up to 10 keepers per trip, some up to 6.5 pounds. However, afternoon and evening trips have not had as much success.

Meanwhile, the Sea Otter has had some successfull trips near the south side of Montauk with frequent keepers of fluke and sea bass that has weighed up to 25 pounds.

If you can't make it all the way out the The End, there has been plenty of action in Hampton Bays as well.

Word has it that green and white jigs will land you some nice porgies, while using clams may get you some bass on the south side. Another source mentions frequency of schoolies and bluefish on the Peconic Bay side.

As always, we'd love to hear your stories about what's biting... or not. Please share below.

Guild Hall remains a significant staple in the Hamptons, particularly for aficionados of everything that is theatre and art. It's been said that this establishment is the first center in the United States to combine a theater, museum and community meeting place under one roof, thus setting an example for all regional theaters that followed in its footsteps.

Perhaps the most important structure of the establishment remains the John Drew Theater. Originally consructed in 1931, it is currently undergoing renovations (thanks to the expertise of Robert A. M. Stern Architects) which will revitalize the structure from floor to ceiling. New seating, state-of-the-art sound and lighting as well as new mechanical systems and rigging will improve the already incredible experience at the theater.

Friday night, Guild Hall proudly presented the John Drew Theater Benefit Season Opener with a jazz and theatrical performance by John Pizzarelli and Jessica Molaskey at the Maidstone Tennis Club off Further Lane in East Hampton. The evening began with cocktails and dinner, and finished with an incredible performance by the duo. All proceeds went to the renovation of the John Drew Theatre, which will continue to bring the Hamptons the finest in theatrics and arts.

Your shopping experience in the Hamptons is not exclusively limited to boutiques and shops on the Main Street of any village. That's because, almost every weekend, an extravagant antiques show comes to town to get your buying bugs biting.

This weekend it's the Stella Shows' Antiques & Design at the Bridgehampton Historical Society. It becomes quite clear that this is not your average antiques show when you hear the walkie-talkie static muffle beneath the show organizers' voices as they communicate direction and set up. Meanwhile, outsider art, industrial design, and rarities you'd expect to find at a Ma and Pa antiques sale on the front lawn are all keeping cool under the big white tents, as one potential buyer after another peruses one table to the next.

Plum got a close-up look at several items this weekend during the live broadcast of the MorningNoon&Night Show, and we highly suggest you head down there before that fancy item that would look great in your home is gone.

Some may label surfers as more of a tribal group, but it was a family affair Thursday night at Sagg Main Beach for the Eastern Long Island Chapter of the Surfrider Foundation. In celebration of International Surfing Day, and in conjunction with the summer solstice, the Foundation combed and cleaned the Sagaponack sands before holding a memorial service together in the ocean.

Some clouds and rain almost delayed the event and initially hindered the crowd size, but the brief shower ended in a rainbow that leapt from the land and into the sea. Every aluminum can, plastic utensil, garden hose, and anything else imaginable or not were tossed into sand-colored trash bags as Sound Wave performed easygoing tunes that would make Jimmy Buffett smile and groove.

Although the waves were not the steepest, a crew still paddled into the waters of their newly-cleaned home. In a tribute to Frank Gill, who passed away in April, his son Alex spread his ashes in the water as the Foundation encircled him.

According to his sister Jane, Frank Gill was a big fisherman AND an avid surfer. During the final hours of sunshine on International Surfing Day an unusually frequent number of bluefish were jumping close to shore all evening. One batch splashed just a few feet behind Alex shortly after the ceremony.

Michael Moore is at it again. Three years after the release of his politically controversial Fahrenheit 9/11, which was preceded by the Oscar-winner Bowling For Columbine, the filmaker has created Sicko- an engaging documentary about healthcare in the United States.

The film stole the spotlight at the Cannes Film Festival, though it was not officially in competition. Even before then, reports of Moore's trip to Cuba while shooting the film made headlines in the entertainment and political newswires. Last night, the film came to East Hampton.

Alec Baldwin, Tommy Hilfiger, Donna Karan, and Chevy Chase are only a few marquee names that joined Michael Moore at the screening at United Arists East Hampton, which was followed by an after party at Prime 103.

Plum's Olivia Sterns was on hand and reporting. She also got a more personal interview with Moore regarding such topics as ABC News and Tom Delay, among other things. For more from Moore, click here.

With no new episodes of Dr. Jennifer Melfi in the near future, Lorraine Bracco enjoyed being herself last night at the annual Artists Against Abuse Gala at Hampton Hall in Southampton. Like the hundreds in attendance, she perused specifically created and artistically designed plates (among many other items) up for auction, with all proceeds going to The Retreat.

Meanwhile, three villages east n Sagaponack, Luna Farm hosted the annual Love Heals benefit for the Alison Gertz Foundation for AIDS Education. With a "Viva Las Vegas" theme, the throngs of galavanters danced under the disco ball with DJ Graham Funke and enjoyed classic barbecue food with cocktails and cigars against a backdrop of bucolic beauty.

Friday night, the chatter and the clinking of cocktail glasses were audible by the silent auction inside B Smith's while the outside resonated with the music of the Lone Sharks. It didn't take long for one member of the crowd to join another, and yet another, on the dance floor at the Summer Solstice Celebration– an annual benefit for the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation. In addition to celebrating the start of the first (official) weekend, the crowd was contributing to the Foundation's dedication to finding a cure for spinal cord injury by funding innovative research, and improving the quality of life for people living with paralysis through grants, information and advocacy.

This weekend set the tone and a high standard for many more to come. Did you have any special moments this weekend? Please share with us below.