In this issue:
Happy Baby
Two Brother's Corn
Moon Viewing at the Hammond Museum
The Nature Conservancy: save the date

This Mother's Day I was given the best present of all time. Really? you ask. What could it have been? Well, you'd probably never guess it was a field of corn would you?

Not a diamond, not a pair of shoes or a great handbag...no, a field of corn. You see, I am corn obsessed. I'm not by nature a gourmet, I'm happy with a bowl of cereal, a baked potato, or whatever my husband feels like cooking me.

So you get the picture, incompetent in the kitchen, not exactly picky...but not so when it comes to CORN. With corn, I am obsessed, shop around, and beg for more when I find the "good kind." Silver Queen...the one and only true sweet corn. Sweet, juicy, and fabulous, a taste of summer on a cob. So, for Mother's Day this year, my "boys" gave me a card with a bunch of corn seeds in it, promising to plant them. Cute? Yes. Questionably crazy? Maybe. But then the corn actually grew!

We now have more corn than I can begin to eat or even give to friends. We've begun to sell to our favorite local spots, and the response has been more than favorable. So....all sales pitch aside of course...get yourself over to Mount Kisco Seafood at 477 Lexington Avenue in Mount Kisco, or to Daisy Hill Farm Stand at 133 Guard Hill Rd, Bedford Corners, and ask for the Two Brother's Corn. If you don't taste a little bit of summer, give me a ring.

Join the Hammond Museum and Japanese Stroll Garden for their Annual Moonviewing Concert & Picnic, August 24, 2007.

6:30 Introduction to Tea ceremony class by Michael McKenna
7:00 Bento box picnic
8:30 Concert
Concert admission: $15 for Museum and Japan Society of Fairfield County members, $20 for non-members. Concert free to North Salem Residents.

MoonViewing is one of Japan's most refined customs. August is the best month for watching the moon, as this is when it seems to shine most beautifully. The elegant custom of listening to music, and writing poems while watching the moon and drinking wine has been performed devotedly in Japan since the Heian period (794-1192).

At the Hammond Museum the annual MoonViewing party is a tradition that was begun by Natalie Hays Hammond in 1966. The evening includes music and sake, and both are accompanied by our frogs. The Japanese Stroll Garden, lit by paper lanterns, is a magical setting for this ancient custom, which every August brings together people and traditions of the East and West.

The koto will be played by Masayo Ishigure and the shakuhachi flute by Shoji Mizumoto.

NO OUTSIDE FOOD. However, individual Bento boxes, $15 each from Kira Sushi are available, must be pre-ordered and paid for by August 21.
Choice of:
A. Chicken Teriyaki with vegetable roll, shumai (shrimp dumpling), and white rice
or B. Vegetarian Bento Box sauteed mix vegetables with vegetable roll, vegetable spring roll, and white rice.

Hammond Museum and Japanese Stroll Garden, 28 Deveau Road, PO Box 326, North Salem, NY 10560 (914)669-5033.

As part of its ongoing series of discussions with conservation minded authors, The Nature Conservancy's Eastern New York Chapter is pleased to announce the following events:

September 16, 2007: Please join the Eastern New York Chapter and Callum Roberts, internationally recognized marine researcher and author of The Unnatural History of the Seas, at a private home on the Long Island Sound in Westchester on Sunday, September 16th from 5:30-7:30 p.m. Callum will describe the history of exploration and exploitation of ocean fisheries, while Conservancy staff will share the newest marine ecosystem research. This event is open to the public with a suggested $100 minimum contribution. R.S.V.P. to Marie Jones at 914-244-3271 ext 22 or mjones@tnc.org.

October 23, 2007: The Eastern New York Chapter and the New York City Office are pleased to sponsor an evening with David Wilcove, author of No Way Home: The Decline of the World's Great Animal Migrations, on October 23 at the Yale Club from 6 to 8 p.m. David examines the travels and travails of species such as wildebeests, salmon, and monarch butterflies as today's cell towers, invasive species, global warming, river dams, and habitat destruction make the journey even more challenging. Chapter staff will share cutting edge research on locally seen migratory species, including the American eel and songbirds. This event is open to the public, with a $50 suggested minimum contribution. R.S.V.P. to Marie Jones at 914-244-3271 ext 22 or mjones@tnc.org.

October 30, 2007: Kitchen Literacy: How We Lost Knowledge of Where Food Comes from and Why We Need to Get it Back. Ask children where food comes from and they'll probably answer: "the supermarket." Ask most adults, and their replies may not be much different. Where our foods are raised and what happens to them between farm and supermarket shelf have become mysteries. How did we become so disconnected from the sources of our breads, beef, cheeses, cereal, apples, and countless other foods that nourish us every day? An avid gardener and cook, Ann Vileisis promises to make us think about what we eat and where it comes from. Industrialized eating is undeniable convenient, but has also created health and environmental problems, including toxic pesticides and pollution from factory farms. Join us for a fun evening with wine and (homemade!) cheese. This event is open to the public. Tuesday, October 30th from 6-8 p.m. at Rainbeau Ridge Farm in Bedford Hills.

The Nature Conservancy, Eastern New York Chapter, 265 Chestnut Ridge Road, Mount Kisco, NY 10549 Tel. 914-244-3271.