Every year about this time, I would go through the same litany of worries. That gosh-darned turkey gave me no end of heartburn. But this year is something else entirely.

The encampment site was chosen because of its proximity to two Shinnecock billboards, one unfinished, that have become symbols of contention between tribespeople and the town and state governments. The Shinnecocks say that the tribal land the billboards sit on is exempt from local, county, and state regulation, but the town and state have argued otherwise. 

Thanksgiving
Amagansett
November 23, 2020

Dear Editor,

About 10 years ago, when Averill Geus discovered a reel of nitrate film in her barn, her son warned her that it could combust and burn the whole place down at any minute. She donated it to LTV, which learned recently that it contained never-before-seen footage of a 1915 Independence Day celebration in East Hampton.

One point of information included in a press conference by Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo on Monday may come as a surprise to many in East Hampton: The Covid-19 positive test rate here was 4.41 percent that day, less than .2 percent lower than the average daily rate in Riverhead, which is under new restrictions as of Monday.

Phil Hartman's "Anal Retentive Chef" on "Saturday Night Live" kept cleaning up his counter space, agonizing over unsymmetrically cut bell peppers, uneven numbers of ladyfingers, and disposing bits of food in such an elaborate and fussy way, he never got around to actually cooking. There's nothing wrong with that, except for not beginning or completing a dish.

Gurney's provides new ways to socialize outdoors in bungalows with fire pits and Guild Hall will hold a benefit wine dinner in Montauk.

A life spent living on both coasts has always inspired Mary Heilmann's artwork. This year, it has taken a more literal form and is on view in Southampton.

This year’s Hamptons Doc Fest will present a slate of 28 features and seven shorts virtually, over a 10-day period. Now in its 13th year, the festival has a diverse lineup covering politics, history, science, biography, social justice, the environment, and the arts.

Emmanuel and Christina Di Donna have taken years of experience in the art world and channeled it into a jewel box of a showroom on Job's Lane in Southampton. Selavy by Di Donna aggregates both high art and design objects into livable spaces where everything is for sale.

Most holiday-themed events are virtual this year, but the East Hampton Historical Society is offering two on-site events to celebrate the season.

A career survey with a seasonal focus at South Etna, members show applications, Jeremy Dennis's Dreamstarter grant, and more.

The Southampton Arts Center’s “Raconteurs” storytelling series, hosted by Amy Kirwin, will return in virtual form next ‘Thursday at 7 p.m.

The Sag Harbor Chamber of Commerce will hold a weekly holiday event with Main Street stores offering discounts and free gifts with purchases, restaurant specials, and more starting this week through Dec. 18.

Students from East Hampton High School are taking part in an international effort called the Breathing Project that is meant to be therapeutic for essential workers who have kept society afloat during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Bedtime stories, bouncy balls, online trivia and creative writing sessions, and a Thanksgiving photo contest for teens.

Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo has instituted limitations on restaurants, houses of worship, and schools in Riverhead and Hampton Bays, the two East End communities that crossed a line on Monday into higher Covid-19 infection rates.

The Pike food truck at the Corwith Farmstand in Water Mill has a Thanksgiving menu of appetizers, soups, entrees, side dishes, and desserts. Appetizers offered by the dozen include pigs in a blanket for $14.50, barbecue pulled pork quesadillas for $18.95, and curried tuna cakes with mango salsa for $12.50.

Parts of Suffolk County are on track this week to become a yellow micro-cluster zone according to New York State’s Covid-19 focus area system. In a yellow zone, mass gatherings, both indoors and outdoors, would be limited to 25 people, houses of worship are limited to 50 percent capacity, and there would be a four-person limit at tables in both indoor and outdoor dining.

A new case of Covid-19 diagnosed in a fourth-grade student at the John M. Marshall Elementary School has led the East Hampton School District administration to close that school to in-person classes for the two days leading up to the Thanksgiving break next week.