one of my favorite stone houses on Rt. 66 this week
Some fun history, butt apples, old news, and the latest podcast episode this week, but first:
I’m in Week 2 of my “Jiffy Not Jeffy” funding drive, and we’ve brought in some early supporters (thank you!), but I have a ways to go if I’m going to meet the goal: So I’m spending the rest of December inviting readers who believe in local documentary storytelling to support the drive.
If you’ve learned something new from my videos, or found yourself sound asleep on a Sleep Hike, or simply want to see more from The Jiffy next year, I’m asking (need) you to become a sustaining member today.
Everyone who joins during this drive at an annual membership at any of the tiers will also receive the Inaugural Bookmarks Collection as a thank you gift!!
These handy bookmarks don’t just save your page, they feature a cozy map of comfy places, recipe conversions, and even the entirety of Moby Dick (essentially).
Your membership directly supports the stories I’m currently working on (an audio biography of Shaker Mother Ann Lee, a deep dive into the H-2A farmworker program in New York, an audio guide to Wassaic, more Comfy And Cozy Corner profiles) and so much more to come in 2026.
It’s expensive to produce these stories, so here’s how you can help:
You can chip in with a one-time gift:
Or join as a monthly or annual supporter here:
Thank you, as always, for reading and being part of this.
OK, on to this issue:
The podcast is in holiday mode, but I’m still posting episodes through December! And in keeping with our tradition of using this downtime to bring you the later-breaking headlines of the 1800s, we’re back with a look at the holiday headlines of 1850s-60s, according to the Rhinebeck Gazette.
The episode is what I imagine a “headlines of the day” podcast would sound like if produced by the venerable Gazette, which actually has a fun side-history you might be interested to know:
After I recorded this week’s episode, I came across a Times Union story from July 23, 2024, about a major archival discovery for the Gazette: a long-forgotten run of the paper had been sitting unnoticed in the attic of descendants of the former owners for decades. The pages, now digitized and part of the collection at the Rhinebeck Historical Society, cover the 1850s-60s and were (unknowingly to me) partially the foundation for this weekend’s episode!
I love sifting through these archives, because you find stories like these:
From the Rhinebeck Gazette, Dec. 22, 1857.
From the Rhinebeck Gazette, Dec. 21, 1858.
From the Rhinebeck Gazette, Dec. 8, 1857.
I recently visited Left Bank Ciders in Catskill to imbibe on some of their delicious spiked mulled cider and stumbled into something intriguing. It’s their annual calendar of butt apples, “Nature’s Booty.”
Of course I picked it up for my cozy corner, and of course I interviewed co-owner Anna Rosencranz about the backstory.
I also posted a short teaser over on TikTok, and the people went a little crazy over the calendar. It’s been watched some 564 hours, with comments such as: “July’s is juiccccy,” “Having a hard time resisting this as a white elephant gift for my office party,” “February was literally a boudoir photo shoot,” and “butt shaped foods are so funny.”
They may be funny. But more importantly, as Anna told me: “Butt apples make great cider.”
If you’d like to purchase and support Left Bank, you can find the calendars here (before they sell out!).
Coming soon: My Comfy Guide To Cozy Corners! If you have a favorite place I should know about, reply to this email and tell me.
I’m sponsoring my own newsletter this week as part of my “Jiffy Not Jeffy” fund drive, because I want to ask you for something, and obviously that something is money. The truth is, it’s expensive to produce the documentary podcasts, videos, photography, this newsletter – I pay platform fees, podcast and visual editing tools, gasoline (tons of gallons of gasoline to drive across this area) every month.
And I absolutely love doing it. But it also needs to be financially viable. So if you’ve found this work to be informative, or if it’s helped you see the Hudson Valley in new ways, please consider joining a paid subscription.
If you want to catch up on some of my previous adventures, here’s a short reintroduction:
@jamestheecave What is The Jiffy? And who is it? A brief intro into the lore #upstateny #ruraltiktok
Your gift supports my mission of sharing stories about rural America through the lens of upstate New York.
And if you’re already a paying subscriber but would like to support in other ways, I’ve set up a donation page, and we can also talk through ways to gift a subscription!
AND if you run a business and would like to sponsor this newsletter or some of my other channels, please respond to this email.
I’m truly thankful that you’re here and read, watch, and share the stories of the Hudson Valley. I’m James Cave and I approve this message.
interesting events that look fun and are happening soon!!
Curated by Brian Wallis, Everyday Culture: Seven Projects by Documentary Arts is currently on view at CPW in Kingston: seven major projects from Documentary Arts examines aspects of everyday, yet marginalized culture: traditional artisan skills, tattooing, blues music, and community photography. On view through Sun., Jan. 11, 2026. (Info here)
The Northern Spy Reading Series will host their “quasi-annual Holiday Parade of Poetry and Prose,” with over a dozen short readings from literary giants: Marie-Helene Bertino, Rebecca Wolff, Mark Wunderlich, Paul Yoon, and more. Wed., Dec. 17, 6:30 p.m., 150 Water St., Catskill (Info here)
Meet Jen Beagin at Made X Hudson’s book club event, Thurs., Dec. 18, 6 p.m. – 8 p.m., 391 Main St., Catskill, NY. (Info here)
Fun pop up tastings and events at Ten Mile Table: Dec. 11 with Selection Massale, Dec., 13 with Coltsfoot Valley Farm, and Dec. 18 with Emma Isakoff. (Info here)
Did someone kind forward this to you?
Join "The Jiffy" to get stories like this delivered straight to your inbox every time! Subscribe here.
