Day: February 24, 2026

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Maps - Photos - Videos

Raising Charolais Cattle

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Dennis Martin tells us what it is like raising Charolais Cattle in the western part of North Carolina and about public perceptions on where their food comes from.

The end of the Syosset – Oyster Bay Expressway

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Right of way purchased and cleared a mile further north but canceled after Robert Moses and later Nelson Rockeller could never accomplish the elusive Long Island Sound Bridge due to environmental concerns and community opposition. If built as Robert Moses proposed, would have connected with the Cross Westchester Expressway. Some of those ramps are kind of unless unless you want to make a U turn.

East Ithaca is Pricey 🎓

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Ithaca might be ten square miles surrounded by reality but certainly buying a house in East Ithaca will set you back some big cash compared to some of the rundown farmsteads not that far away from the city with the Ivy League college. 

The Godzilla Holstein and (Anti-) Status Symbols 🐮

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You know, I go back and forth in my mind about the big truck and being a status symbol. It is but at least in liberal Albany, it will be as much an anti-status symbol with friends and colleagues judging me the wrong way, seeing the truck as completely fuelish, wasteful both in money and fuel. One day, when I show up with an F-250 or F-350, everybody is going to think either I’m rolling in money or more likely debt, my landlord included. But I live simply, I keep my heat at 47 degrees and my lights low, I don’t eat out or party, don’t have home internet or television. I’m not arguing the truck isn’t a big chunk of money but it will last 10 or maybe 15 years, a long portion of my life leading up to retirement, and won’t cost more then a few months of dividends and stock market growth.

The truth is big truck will have a lot of utility for me with my travels, having lots of room to reliably transport all my gear up to camp. I like getting to camp, setting up and hanging out for the weekend or week. I really dislike driving, which seems werid for somebody who wants such an ginormous truck. Maybe I could make a little Toyota Taco truck work, but it would be tough to fit all my gear. And I did the half-ton thing for the past 14-years, and I am not sure I want to go back, especially with the complex blown engines the EPA is forcing down our throats. Truth is the work-truck level SuperDuty, isn’t that much more money then a Taco truck.

I am not arguing that some small-town, pickup truck people will say, that’s a cool big-ass truck. Yeah, it is. I am not going to argue it, but it’s not just about a status symbol to me, even if I’m not planning to tow boats or cattle as of now, even if I do pack the bed with batteries, camping gear, and other toys for up in woods. Based on the sometimes stink of over-heating alternator on my old truck, the bigger electrical system will be much welcome, as will be the bigger engine, as that lift kit, when Big Red was loaded down, was kind of a dog going both up and down the mountains.