Part of the charm of the Sagaponack Post Office, whose building is now undergoing a major renovation, was the presence of over 600 brass post boxes, opened with a combination lock, and adored by residents. While the new owner has no control over what happens to the old boxes, she has sourced and secured 200 more, so that when the post office reopens, hopefully by the end of next summer, there are enough for every resident.

Near a gap in the 30-foot-tall border wall that separates the United States from Mexico, Elissa McLean and Andy Winter found themselves wrapped up in humanitarian efforts to aid the hundreds of refugees who have been pouring into the U.S. daily, waiting — and hoping — to be picked up by Border Patrol agents so they can begin the process of seeking asylum, having fled extreme violence, corruption, and crime in their home countries.

Forty years after moving to East Hampton Town and more than 20 years after starting a journey in public service that has now reached its conclusion, Councilwoman Sylvia Overby reflected this month on her tenure on the town board, the planning board, and, prior to those, the Amagansett Citizens Advisory Committee.

Patricia Garcia-Gomez's winter swims, whether in Long Island Sound or on a Greek island, stimulate not only her art but her well-being and mental clarity.

A class-action court ruling on Halloween, stemming from an antitrust trial in Kansas City, Mo., is the talk of the town among real estate professionals here. A federal jury found that the National Association of Realtors and multiple large brokerage firms had “conspired to artificially inflate the commissions paid to real estate agents,” The New York Times reported that day, calling it “a decision that could radically alter the home-buying process in the United States.”

Randy Parsons was first elected to the East Hampton Town Board in 1979, when the population of East Hampton was only 14,000; he will be leaving the planning board, on which he has served for the last seven years, on Dec. 31, and when he leaves, a great deal of institutional knowledge leaves with him.

All but two of the 20 students contacted said the pressures of the college application process this year have weighed more heavily than what they experienced as students during the Covid-19 pandemic, describing their state of being as“ Stressed,” “100 percent the most stressful year of my life,” and “So stressed my hair is falling out.”

The positive impact of art and culture on the economy was examined in a recent presentation by the Long Island Arts at the Southampton Arts Center.

The Sticks and Stones Comedy Club will bring Rob White, a comedian (and tattoo artist), to the Southampton Cultural Center.

LTV Studios in Wainscott is showing paintings by Josh Dayton, Stephen Loschen, and Haim Mizrahi, with a reception set for Jan. 6.

Better late than never, Baron’s Cove in Sag Harbor has announced its four-course New Year’s Eve menu, which will be accompanied by music, party favors, and a view of fireworks over the harbor.

The year 2023 began with Shelly Snyder Schaffer’s gift to East Hampton Town’s young people of Hub 44, a pitching and batting facility, continued with the hiring of Kathy Masterson as athletic director, and included a number of notable playoff runs.

After three terms as East Hampton Town supervisor, two as town councilman, and tenures on both the planning board and zoning board of appeals, Peter Van Scoyoc is leaving Town Hall. It has been an improbable path for the onetime owner of a construction company, he said, “and yet circumstances arose, and I felt compelled and called to serve.”

Star readers ring out an acrimonious year.

The language-learning app Babbel this month released its annual list of the most-mispronounced words of 2023.

Non-standard motorized vehicles have been a big problem in resort locations for a long time.

American men start to pick up books on Rome or dial in the History Channel for its endless depictions of gladiators and battle strategy almost the minute they turn 50.

I’m not a Christian, exactly, but I do believe in the winter solstice celebration of lights. The older I get, the closer I feel to ancestral rituals involving trees and bonfires.

Another lame-ass winter brings thoughts of cabin life up north. Way up north.

Vermont’s aging population is pleading for help up there, and people who want to work in this country are being beaten back at the Rio Grande. Go figure.