Autumn In Mastic Beach

Summer sands slip through our fingers the leaves turn from green to shades of orange, yellow and red.  Instead of hanging out at the Beach Hut at Smith's Point, we are hiking at our local trails.

The Wertheim, St. Georges Manor and William Floyd Estate are beautiful places to hike during the fall season.  Listen to the birds as you observe the fantastic fall foliage and watch the deer run by. 

We took a hike last week at the Wertheim but I forgot to bring my camera.  I can't wait to go back and get those fabulous shots of the fall foliage reflected on the Carman's River.

Mastic Beach is much more than summer fun - it's a breathtaking place to be in the fall. 

By the way, are you getting ready for Halloween?  I just put up all my harvest decorations and bought pounds of candy in preparation for the trick-or-treating ghosts and goblins.

Do You Really Want Mastic Beach To Be A Village?

Everyone is doing it. Those cool green signs are posted all over the neighborhood, indicating a household in support of making Mastic Beach an incorporated village. Is it peer pressure or do you really want to be a village?

Having been employed in municipal law for over a decade, I am well aware of the positive and negative elements of becoming an incorporated village. In some instances, communities gain much-needed organization and assistance. Often this occurs in tiny communities with little other opportunity for a voice.

Mastic Beach is a large area. While many people claim we won't pay more taxes as a village, that simply isn't true. I've seen these plans in action over the years in many areas. We will pay more taxes and can the residents of Mastic Beach really afford that? What about seniors who lived here their entire lives? Disabled veterans and their families barely getting by now? Will this new village financially force these people out? Where will they go after building this community, often considered one of the "last hopes" on Long Island? Is this a way to thank them, the PEOPLE of Mastic Beach?

I don't see it impacting the slumlords, who are all integrated into our school district, government and community organizations. They will tailor laws to suit their own needs, creating an area with the "have's" and "have-nots" instead of the wonderful, struggling middle class community we are.

It seems to be another way to pick the pockets of residents of our community. Ultimately, more people will be in "power" with greater control over our lives, homes and money. We know what government officials have done with that power in the past. Is this what we really want?

Frankly, I was for this Village idea for all of ten minutes until I started to reconsider the harsh realities. It seems to be wiser to band together to demand our already elected officials DO THEIR JOBS. If everyone did their jobs, this would not be an issue. Our government is already top heavy with little real representation for the people. Though I don't see it in the media or local papers, many people I talk to do NOT want the village and feel it is a mistake.

How about signs for us? Let's stand up and be counted.

Mastic Beach's Anna Wintour On David Letterman

Mastic Beach is home to an array of famous people including artists, writers, politicians, editors and more. One of our most famous residents is Vogue magazine editor, Anna Wintour. Also known as the inspiration for the movie, "The Devil Wears Prada", Ms. Wintour recently spoke about this and more on the David Letterman show.

Letterman asked if she was as cold as the movie "The Devil Wears Prada" portrays. Wintour demurely replied, "Well, I'm very decisive and I try and give very clear direction to the people that I'm working with, and sometimes, unfortunately, they don't hear the answer that they would like to hear."

Wintour further commented on a recent New York times article claiming she's an ice queen. "I read in the New York Times this week that I'm an ice queen, I'm the sun king, I'm an alien fleeing from District 9 and I'm a dominatrix. I recon that makes me lukewarm royalty with a whip from outer space. What do you think?"

Wintour removed her signature sunglasses for the Letterman interview and wore a fabulous black and white dress by Carolina Herrera.

Kate Browning Visits Bay Manor Reunion

For decades, people sent their children to preschool at Bay Manor. Located in a cozy little room at the Grace Lutheran Church, many happy memories were made at Bay Manor. Both of my children attended this preschool. It was a joyful introduction to learning and we made several lifelong friends.

Due to lack of funding, Bay Manor finally closed their doors. Last year was the first year people did not have Bay Manor to send their children to. It was a sad moment for many of us.

On July 26, Miss Maria decided to host a Bay Manor reunion at South Haven Park. It was a beautiful afternoon. Miss Rosie and Miss Debbie were there to celebrate with many Bay Manor students and families. We all picnicked, talked and had a great time.

Kate Browning visited the Bay Manor reunion to give kudos to Miss Maria for her dedicated service to the children and community. Miss Maria was touched by the lovely commemoration she deservedly received.

I wrote an enthusiastic article about Bay Manor preschool years ago if you want to read more about it. For many Mastic Beach residents, Bay Manor was the beautiful beginning of community life in Mastic Beach. We will miss you, Bay Manor, and look forward to future reunions!

Mastic Eyesore Co-Owned By Assistant Principal

I was alarmed to read a recent Newsday article about Rob King, the assistant principal at Paca Middle School in the William Floyd School District. The article states Rob King co-owns a Mastic home the Brookhaven Town Supervisor Mark Lesko claimed is "one of the worst properties in the entire Town of Brookhaven. It was unfit for human occupancy."

The house located at 120 N. Titmus Drive, Mastic, was illegally rented to tenants. King, who works in our community but lives in Smithtown, co-owns this Mastic home with a resident of Nesconset since 2003. King claims to be unaware of the situation and thought the co-owner was residing in the home to make renovations for legal rentals.

Since King is present in Mastic Beach everyday for his job, I'm unsure why he never checked the house. The lack of electricity, presence of a generator and outdoor cooking conditions were obvious from a quick perusal. According to King's attorney, his client states he never signed leases or received rental income from the home.

It upsets me a school administrator would be part of the slumlord problem in our community, whether knowingly or unknowingly. What I found even more perturbing were statements made by a few neighbors that one of the tenants was a sex offender. I cannot substantiate this rumor but find it even more disturbing.

It is rather surprising we heard so much about a store proprietor giving a robber a loaf of bread but there was little publicity about this serious problem. Our community has suffered as a result of careless behavior from "investors" for too long. To find them employed by our school district and taking home a salary while living miles away is offensive to me. Why wasn't this home found in the Town of Smithtown, where the co-owners reside? How do you feel?

Shirley Store Owner Helps Robber - Only In Our 'Hood

I wasn't surprised to hear about the Shirley convenience store owner who wound up praying with a robber and giving him $40 and a loaf of bread. That's just the kind of neighborhood we are.

Newsday reports a masked man with a bat entered Shirley Express Convenience store on William Floyd Parkway. He demanded cash and store owner Mohammad Sohail grabbed his rifle and ordered the man to the floor. Suddenly Sohail felt compassion as the robber said, I have no money. I have no food. I haev no job. I have to take care of my family." The man indicated he wanted to be a Muslim, too, and prayed with Sohail.

Sohail gave him 40 bucks, bread and when he went to get him milk, the robber fled on foot. Sohail doesn't want him arrested or punished but hopes he learned a lesson from the experience.
By the way, the gun Sohail brandished was legal.

It's a great example of the understanding and compassion people of all ages, backgrounds and circumstances show for each other in our neighborhood.

Memorial Day In Mastic Beach

Happy belated Memorial Day! Some bad news in our family has kept me away from my personal blogs for a few weeks. This past weekend, we took some much-needed time out. We got out on our boat for the first time and launched at Mastic Beach Marina I. As always, everyone was friendly and helpful. It felt good to get out on the bay and get some sunshine after a backyard barbecue with family. My husband is a disabled Vietnam veteran so I try to infuse a little joy into this day filled with sad memories.

How did you spend Memorial Day and are you looking forward to summer as much as I am? (Although the last couple of chilly, gray days don't feel anything like the warm, hazy days of summer I was dreaming of...)