New Year's Eve: Kendal Style

It’s fun. It’s silly. It’s delicious. It’s Kendal New Year’s Eve! As a community, we pitch in to organize, decorate, entertain, laugh, applaud, and . . . well . . . enjoy!

As photographs of the Great Event roll in, we include them. Those that follow here are all from 2 Kendal doyens of photography: Harry Bloomfeld and Carolyn Reiss.

(Keep those pictures coming in Kendal photographers! Don’t be shy.)

New Year’s Eve Prep

Photos by Harry Bloomfeld

The Program

Ode to Ellen Photo by Harry Bloomfeld

Bob Newhart aka Greg Lozier Photo by Carolyn Reiss

A New Year’s Tradition: One Liners By Harry Bloomfeld

Moments of Calm and Beauty Photo by Harry Bloomfeld

Leonard Cohen Was There! (aka Bill Rakower — and daughter) Photo by Harry Bloomfeld

Gaudeamus Kendal Photo by Harry Bloomfeld

Highland Humor Photo by Harry Bloomfeld

Kendal Thespians in Action Photo by Carolyn Reiss

A Golden Act: The Goldenaires Photo by Harry Bloomfeld

And the Ball Begins Its Descent at Kendal Midnight Photo by Harry Bloomfeld

The Party

A Job Well Done — as Always

Photos by Harry Bloomfeld

I Didn't Know That

Ancient Egyptians Shaved Their Eyebrows as a Sign of Mourning When Their Cats Died

Ancient Egyptians are often said to have worshipped cats. They didn’t — though it is accurate to say their felines were beloved and pampered, sometimes bedazzled in gold accessories, and occasionally allowed to eat directly from dinner plates at meals.

Cats first made their appearance in Fertile Crescent farming communities around 8,000 years ago, and they initially earned their keep as household protectors from rodents, snakes, and scorpions. Eventually, the Egyptians grew to see cats’ protectiveness and companionship as the same traits held by their deities, particularly Bastet, a goddess often depicted as a cat or lion who was honored with temples and pilgrimages. All in all, the Egyptians bonded so well with their cat companions that they mourned their pets after death, and both cat owners and family members would publicly express their grief by shaving off their eyebrows. Some historians believe that the mourning period lasted until a new set of eyebrows grew in (which could be as long as three or four months).

The ancient Egyptians are often credited with domesticating felines, though in 2004, archaeologists found a 9,500-year-old cat buried in Cyprus — suggesting cats may have been living alongside humans earlier than previously thought. Still, Egyptians likely helped transform cats from the tiny, wild creatures they once were to the lazy furballs we now snuggle with; some historians believe the Egyptians selectively bred housecats, helping their numbers flourish and giving them the temperaments we now enjoy (or at least tolerate) today.

Made In NYC: Brands, Trends, and Inventions That Began in the Big Apple

Pasta Primavera

Pasta primavera seems like a dish that goes back to old Italy, with a few centuries of tradition backing it. In fact, it’s a New York City creation. It hit the big time in a 1977 Times article that included the recipe. Prior to that, it was an unlisted special at an uptown French restaurant. (The chef-owner, Sirio Maccioni, was Italian at least.)

According to lore, the French chefs at Le Cirque refused to allow pasta to be served, so, to accommodate orders, a pasta pot had to be set up in the hallway and the dish finished by waitstaff in the dining room.

Puffed Rice

School bake sales would never be the same after December 1901. That’s when Botanist Alexander Pierce Anderson conducted a successful experiment in a laboratory at the New York Botanical Garden. As the garden explains, Anderson was confirming the theory that “a starch granule contains a minuscule amount of condensed water within its nucleus.” When the grains exploded and puffed up to 8 times their original size, Anderson knew the prediction was accurate (and that commercial applications would not be far away). Today, Rice Krispies alone sells over 40 million boxes a year.

Colorforms

Remembering this toy — proudly pre-screen — may date you, although it’s still going strong, complete with its own Netflix show. Colorforms were born more than 70 years ago in a Manhattan bathroom. (The adhesive quality of the glossy paint there was what made Harry and Patricia Kislevitz realize they were onto something.) It went on to licensing agreements with pop culture icons (Popeye was the first) and accolades like ranking among the Top 10 Toys of the Century by the Toy Industry of America (TIA).

Source: “Made In NYC,” by Ethan Wolff, March 2024, City Guide New York

Contributed by Bobbie Roggemann

Art by Hart

Zelda knew all the clouds on a first-name basis

Nadelman didn’t know if it was his political insights or his political savvy that made him so popular

The 8th-grade science geeks used items from the lost-and-found to build a working spacecraft

This was the birthday Emmy would compute her age in dog years

A morning latte did wonders for Sadie’s knees

Art and photos by Jane Hart

Book It!

Here’s a new idea: what have you been reading that you would suggest to others? Valerie Wallace sent a recommendation for the new year. Here’s her brief review for Robert Harris’ Precipice:

I have just finished a fascinating novel called Precipice by Robert Harris which might interest other Kendal Readers. Here is my capsule review: Precipice by Robert Harris is a “take-your-breath-away” novel based on the correspondence of H. H. Asquith (the British PM at the start of WWI ) and his mistress. He had a very casual attitude about copies of Top Secret documents and  government discussions about the conduct of the war. Spoiler alert to fans of W.Churchill: DO NOT READ THIS BOOK. Can you say Dardanelles? Gallipoli?

I think other history-minded residents will find the book fascinating. It is a novel but solidly researched. 

* * * * * * * * *

How about you? Do you have a book to suggest? Send a brief review ala Valerie’s, and we’ll pass it along.

I Didn't Know That

A Universe of Winter

Each planet in the solar system has seasons determined by the tilt of its axis and the shape of its orbit, just like on Earth. Smaller tilts and more circular orbits correspond with less-noticeable seasons: On Venus and Jupiter, with minimal tilts and roundish orbits, summer and winter are pretty similar. On Mars, the tilt of 24 degrees and oval orbit give it dramatic seasonal shifts. Seasons on the solar system’s outer planets are not well understood, but scientists do know their winters last a lot longer than on Earth — about 7 years on Saturn, 20 years on Uranus, and more than 40 years on Neptune.

One Last Bit of Merry for the Season

Linda Mahoney and Hubert Herring’s daughter and her partner pulled together titles of 20 Christmas Carols (old and new-ish) we all know and created a YouTube “sing-along” that pretty much pays homage to each and every title. As the Holiday Season revs down, give “What a Perfect Night” a go, just for fun, and see if you recognize each reference:

Get them all? No? Maybe? Here’s a transcript, song titles in caps (and if there’s an ad, just click on “skip”):

SILVER BELLS and shining lights, oh yes

I’LL BE HOME FOR CHRISTMAS

If only in my mind

HAVE YOURSELF A MERRY little one

HERE COMES SANTA CLAUS, he’s almost done

DO THEY KNOW IT’S CHRISTMAS?

Oh, what a HOLY NIGHT

CHESTNUTS ROASTING ON THE FIRE and

People singing DECK THE HALLS again

ROCKING ‘ROUND THE CHRISTMAS TREE tonight

OH WHAT A WONDERFUL WORLD!

HARK THE HERALD ANGELS SINGing

UP ON THE ROOFTOP 

BELLS are JINGLing

I’LL BE HOME FOR CHRISTMAS

If only in my mind

I SAW MOMMY KISSING SANTA CLAUS

Wait- that’s Daddy, I think she told me once

ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS

IS YOU with me tonight 

RUDOLPH, with your NOSE a bit too bright

Think you’ve had enough to drink tonight!

Leave your sleigh, don’t HIT MY GRANDMA twice

And let’s sing JOY TO THE WORLD

Do you know how much you mean to me? 

Love’s the only gift we really need

Merry, Merry Christmas

Oh what a perfect night 

In this ever-trying world of ours

Let’s give thanks and count our lucky stars

HAVE A MERRY CHRISTMAS

Have a HOLLY JOLLY CHRISTMAS

A FA LA LA LA LA-ly Christmas

This year! 

Made In NYC: Brands, Trends, and Inventions That Began in the Big Apple

The Bloody Mary

The mural above adorns the King Cole Room at the St. Regis Hotel (bonus points if you know why King Cole is smiling in Maxfield Parrish’s rendition here*). This regal lounge is also the birthplace of a hangover staple. The Bloody Mary was born here in 1934, taking an existing tomato and vodka tipple and tricking it out with the pepper, lemon, and Worcestershire sauce we know today. In the heyday, the St. Regis was mixing 100 to 150 Bloody Marys every day. Where would brunch be without it?

 

*King Cole's face is thought to have been modeled after John Jacob Astor who originally commissioned the mural for his Knickerbocker hotel bar down the street from where the St. Regis is now. As the tale of the wry smile goes, there was an unwritten competition among illustrators of the day to see who could sneak the act of flatulence into one of their public works. Supposedly Parrish won this contest with King Cole. Not only is the king smiling a secret smile but the reactions of his flanking knights give the secret and King Cole away. (Source: queernewyorkblog.blogspot.com)

The Teddy Bear

Photo by Smithsonian Museum of Natural History

The stuffed animal here is thought to have been made by Morris Michtom in the early 1900s. Michtom, a Russian-Jewish immigrant, had a candy shop he ran with his wife at 404 Tompkins Avenue in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn. Inspired by a political cartoon that noted President Theodore Roosevelt’s compassion for a wounded bear, Michtom created a plush version that he placed in the shop window with the tag “Teddy’s bear.” Michtom asked for and received Roosevelt’s okay to use the name and sales took off, so much so that the candy shop closed and the Michtoms created the Ideal Novelty and Toy Company. The company went on to become one of the biggest toy companies in the world, bringing us  Mouse Trap, the Rubik’s Cube, and the Magic 8-Ball, among many others.

Salsa

Photo by William P. Gottlieb, Public Domain

The name of this music genre sounds Latin, and its rhythms are clearly inspired by the islands. But Salsa was invented in New York City. Evolving from the overlap of national origins that only happens in NYC, and taking inspirations from the city’s jazz heritage, Salsa came up from the Big Apple before being exported all around the region.

Source: “Made In NYC,” by Ethan Wolff, March 2024, City Guide New York

Contributed by Bobbie Roggemann

© Kendal on Hudson Residents Association 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 all rights reserved.  Please do not reproduce without permission.

Photographs of life at Kendal on Hudson are by residents.