Holiday 2018, vol 51 Complimentary

Our BerkshireTimes ™

Local Events | Art & Culture | Home & Garden | Vibrant Living

Cover Art by Elisabeth Ladwig / www.elisabethonearth.com

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 Holiday 2018
Our BerkshireTimes™
PUBLISHERS
Contents
Kathy I. Regan 4 art, culture & entertainment
publisher@ourberkshiretimes.com
LETTER FROM THE PUBLISHERS
Kevin J. Regan UPCOMING EVENTS
kevin@ourberkshiretimes.com ELISABETH LADWIG
_______________

EDITORIAL 8 food & drink

Kathy I. Regan STUFFED BREAD & THE GIVING TREE
editor@ourberkshiretimes.com STUFFED HOLIDAY BREAD RECIPE
Proofreader CHALLAH BREAD PUDDING
Rodelinde Albrecht 1
rodelinde@gmail.com 12 home & garden
_______________
DIY HOLIDAY CRAFT IDEAS
DESIGN NATURE MATTERS
Magazine Design/Layout BERKSHIRE FABRIC & WALLPAPER
Kathy I. Regan
IT’S NEVER TOO EARLY TO PLAN
Brianna I. Regan
_______________ FOR SPRING

TO ADVERTISE CONTACT 19 animal talk

Account Representatives THE GIFT OF KNOWLEDGE
Kevin J. Regan
kevin@ourberkshiretimes.com 20 holiday gift guide
Debra Johnson 22 health & wellness 10
mickschix2@aol.com
NATURAL TIPS FOR BOOSTING
Nina Anderson YOUR IMMUNE SYSTEM
safe@bcn.net
LEMON & GARLIC EXTRACTS
_______________

Our BerkshireTimes is a division

26 education & workshops
of Visionary Group Unlimited FACING FRUSTRATION
P.O. Box 133, Housatonic, MA 01236
Phone: (413) 274-1122
28 fun things to do this winter
advertise@ourberkshiretimes.com SOMETHING DIFFERENT FOR THE
HOLIDAYS
COVER ILLUSTRATION BUSINESS SPOTLIGHTS
Imagine by Elisabeth Ladwig 28
www.elisabethonearth.com 31 featured advertisers

Elisabeth Ladwig is
ON THE COVER - Imagine, is printed on museum-grade, textured fine art
a photographic
paper (100 percent rag archival) with Canon IPF Pro-2000 and 11 color Lucia
artist living in the
Pro pigment inks that ensure visibility of the smallest details, and colors that
New Jersey Highlands,
appear as fresh as day one, even after 100 years. Prints available framed
where an abundance
and unframed in various sizes at www.elisabethonearth.com.
of protected land
offers endless Our BerkshireTimes magazine has been proudly created without Wi-Fi since it
opportunities for was first published in 2009. This publication is printed with soy ink on Forest
Stewardship Council® certified paper. Most of our editorial content is contributed
creative inspiration.
by our community members.
More of Elisabeth’s striking creations are on
display locally at The Wit Gallery in Lenox, MA, All content in Our BerkshireTimes™ is accepted in good faith. We do not necessarily
www.thewitgallery.com. Also see Elisabeth’s advocate and cannot be held responsible for opinions expressed or facts supplied by
website at www.elisabethonearth.com, and our authors, illustrators, and advertisers. We reserve the right to refuse advertising for any
reason. For printing errors of the publisher’s responsibility, liability is limited to the cost of the
read more about her on page 6 of this issue
ad space in which it first appeared. Unless otherwise noted, we use a Creative Commons
of Our BerkshireTimes magazine. License in place of a standard copyright.

3
 Happy Holidays!
2018 marks the 10-year
anniversary of Our BerkshireTimes
magazine. As the year comes to a
close, we would like to take this time
to extend our thanks and sincere
appreciation to you, our readers,
and to our advertisers, contributors,
account representatives, and
proofreader who have helped make
this vibrant living, community-focused
publication possible. Your kind words
throughout the years have meant
more to us than you know.

In 2019 we will be making some

significant changes. Our print
publication will be transitioning from
a bimonthly to a biyearly magazine
(look for new issues in April and
October), and in addition we will be
adding some very exciting online
services. Please join our mailing list
through our website at
www.ourberkshiretimes.com to
stay in touch and learn more.

Warm wishes,
Kathy, Kevin & Brianna Regan
Publishers, Our BerkshireTimes

4 Holiday 2018 | www.OurBerkshireTimes.com

 art, culture & entertainment

Explore the Berkshires

AND BEYOND - FUN THINGS TO DO!
discarded objects, your glowing lantern will be a unique artwork lighting
Berkshire Museum’s Festival of Trees up your cold winter nights. Registration is required. Please pay and sign
up in advance at Berkshire Food Co-op. (413) 528-9697, community@
When: November 17, 2018, through January 6, 2019
berkshire.coop, www.berkshire.coop
Where: Berkshire Museum, 39 South Street (Route 7), Pittsfield, MA
Cost: $13 adult, $6 child, free for children 3 and under and members
The Elf Express™
Festival of Trees 2018: “Often Heard” will challenge participants to
When: Saturday, December 15, and Sunday, December 16, 2018
interpret their favorite music in their tree decorations: this year’s Festival
Where: r. k. Miles Depot Station, 670 Depot Street, Manchester Center, VT
will feature more than 100 dazzling, decorated holiday trees, each one
Cost: $25 Adults (13 and over), $20 kids (2-12), free under 2 (lap rider)
depicting a popular song. From hip-hop to doo-wop, blues and jazz to
pop, country, and rock. www.berkshiremuseum.org
This whimsical holiday train will take its riders on an enchanting one-hour
journey through the Green Mountains of Southern Vermont. Passengers
Lenox Santa Pub Crawl will be entertained with holiday melodies and dance routines by the elves
of the theater and dance program of Burr and Burton Academy under the
When: Friday, December 7, 2018, 8-11pm
direction of Broadway and Hollywood song-and-dance man Jim Raposa.
Where: Town of Lenox, MA. Pick up your Santa hats, wristbands, and
Refreshments will be served on decorated trains. Hear a special story about
schedules at the Lenox Visitors Center, 4 Housatonic St, Lenox, MA at 8pm.
Christopher Pop-In-Kins, who will also be hidden on every train in the
Cost: $20
greenery peeking to see who’s been naughty and nice! Mr. and Mrs. Santa
Claus will make a surprise visit to provide every child with a special gift.
Your ticket grants you entrance to exclusive holiday parties at your favorite
www.manchesterlionselftrain.com
Lenox watering holes, including drink specials, food, live music, and a
number of contests and games. A portion of each ticket sale will go to
the Lenox Council on Aging’s new HINT2/Help I Need Transportation
Winterlights
Too program. This year, the crawl is bigger than ever with Bistro Zinc,
When: Saturday, December 22, 2018. Entrance to the gardens is ticketed
Frankie’s Italian Ristorante, The Gateways Inn & Restaurant, Bagel &
in 15-minute increments between 5 and 8pm.
Brew, Prime, Firefly Gastropub & Catering Company, and The Old
Where: Naumkeag, 5 Prospect Hill Road, Stockbridge, MA
Heritage Tavern on the roster! This event sells out every year, so be sure
Cost: Members: $12, nonmembers: $17, children 12 and under: free
to buy your tickets early – we are not guaranteeing tickets the night of the
event. www.lenox.org
This holiday season, the gardens at the historic home of Naumkeag in
Stockbridge will sparkle with thousands of shimmering holiday lights. Each
Holiday Shop, Sip & Stroll weekend throughout the holiday season (Thursday to Sunday evenings
through December 30) will feature performances and activities for the whole
When: Saturday, December 8, 2018, 3-8pm
family, from the young to the young at heart. Saturday, December 22 features
Where: Downtown Great Barrington
a living nativity, Santa makes a visit for pictures, and a guided full moon
Cost: Free
solstice walk. Don your coats, pull on your boots, and join us for a new family
tradition! naumkeag@thetrustees.org, www.thetrustees.org/winterlights
Join downtown Great Barrington for their annual Holiday Shop, Sip
& Stroll. Holiday fun will include a central bonfire, holiday music, face
painting, a food court, raffles, fireworks, Santa, and more.
Winter Fest
When: Saturday, January 26, 2019, 9am-12pm
Green Arts Workshop: Where: The Montessori School of the Berkshires, 21 Patterson Road,
Winter Wonder Lanterns Lenox Dale, MA
Cost: Free!
When: Saturday, December 13, 2018, 5:30pm
Where: Berkshire Co-op, 42 Bridge Street, Great Barrington, MA Join us for a fun-filled morning of arts and crafts, games, hot cocoa, and
Cost: $10 for Co-op owners, $15 for nonowners more, at our annual Winter Fest open house. This is a great way to see the
school, meet the teachers, and hear from current parents about their child’s
Discover how to depict your favorite moments of the season through experiences at The Montessori School of the Berkshires. (413) 637-3662,
light, shadow, color, and shape. Handmade from a mason jar and other kehr@berkshiremontessori.org, www.berkshiremontessori.org

www.OurBerkshireTimes.com | Holiday 2018 5

Elisabeth Ladwig
OUR BERKSHIRETIMES MAGAZINE'S HOLIDAY 2018 COVER ARTIST

Bare Bones of Winter by Elisabeth Ladwig
symbolizes that In the winter, when
everything is bare, the evergreens remind
us that the Earth is still alive, that warmer
weather will return.
Titled after the song by John Lennon,
Our BerkshireTimes magazine’s Holiday
Elisabeth’s book, Elisabeth on Earth: Beyond the Lens of 2018 cover art, Imagine, is available in four
a Photographic Artist, slows the shutter to shed light on the sizes on museum-grade watercolor paper.
artist’s creative process and inspiration behind the works. It
includes behind-the-scenes photos, original sketches, artistic
challenges, and personal journeys through 44 color plates.

I magine . . . Gazing into her crystal ball, she sees the world. Just as the Earth is rejuvenated over the course of its winter rest, she
imagines a world that has been cleansed. She imagines a world in which the ego is extinguished by the humility and compassion in
people’s hearts. She imagines a world in which people’s judgments are no match for the undying curiosity and excitement to learn and share their
differences, instead of feeling threatened by them. As the crisp winter air flows through her being, a world without war unfolds before her, because
there is no longer a need. Imagine raising our children differently, guiding them to create a world in which the entire human race is on the same
team. Imagine a world in which there is no “us,” and there is no “them.” Will you imagine with me? ~ Elisabeth Ladwig

Elisabeth Ladwig is an award-winning Elisabeth sets out to take the photographs

photographic artist whose work explores
modern surrealism. A grade-school revelation
connecting science, nature, and magic
fuels her creations: the idea that all of life’s
mysteries fall within the parameters of
scientific explanation, that science abides
by the Laws of Nature, and that all of it is
magical. Comprising original photographs,
her images bring to life layered metaphors
for the relationship between humankind
and Mother Nature. “The Universe
encourages us to listen, even when it’s not
something we want to hear,” Elisabeth says.
“No matter what that message is, there is
always an opportunity for expansion.”
Once an idea is born in her sketchbook,
she needs to create the image. She cuts and
pastes the pieces of the puzzle digitally,
blending colors and light for a contiguous
image – a photograph that cannot be
photographed. All of her scenes have a
strong natural connection, set completely or
partially outdoors, often with an anonymous
subject. “Anonymity allows the viewer to take
part in writing the story,” she says, “and that
story is going to be different for everyone.”
This year, Elisabeth’s work has appeared
in exhibitions in ten states across the
country, and is on view year-round at The
Wit Gallery in Lenox, MA. Our cover
image, Imagine, is one of her 2018 works.
www.elisabethonearth.com

6 Holiday 2018 | www.OurBerkshireTimes.com

 art, culture & entertainment

S heilaa Hite
Intuitive Counselor
Featured in Paulette Cooper’s directory,
WE’VE MOVED!
Come see our beautiful new
store in North Adams, MA
‘THE 100 TOP PSYCHICS in AMERICA’
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Classes, Parties and Events
“SHEILAA’s accuracy rate is 95-100%.”
413-637-0085 MANAGER – MALIBU SHAMAN BOOKSTORE – MALIBU, CA

www.SheilaaHite.com

Belltower Records,
located in North
Adams, MA, at the
Norad Mill, Suite 301,
is an independent
music store with
thousands of out-
of-print records in
stock and a huge
selection of hard to
find new and used
CDs. Open Wed-Sun,
10-5pm.
g
Knittin
ns
Lesso t
jec We have an extensive selection of name brand
& Pro
Help and local yarn for every budget, patterns and
books, knitting needles, crochet hooks, gifts,
must-have haberdashery, and thousands of beautiful buttons,
making our button selection the best in the area!
Holiday Hours: Tues.12-5, Wed.12-7, Thurs.12-5,
Fri. & Sat.10-5, Sun-12-4. Closed Mondays.
Please check our website for directions to the shop.
60 Roberts Drive, North Adams, MA
Suite 302 at the Norad Mill
www.spinoffyarnshop.com ● 413-344-6257

A Whimsical Holiday Train

Top quality limo service with
a minimal impact on the
Alternative
AlternativeFuel and
Fuel Fuel-Efficient
and Chauffeured
Fuel-Efficient Transportation
Chauffeured Transportation
environment.
is arriving in Manchester, VT Serving the
Serving TheEntire
EntireNortheast
December 15th & 16th JFK, Boston, and
Northeast Hartford, and Beyond!
beyond!
Albany, Anywhere, Anytime.
JFK, Boston, Hartford,
The Elf Express™ Albany, Anywhere,
Wine Tours and Anytime. ellenlanciano@gmail.com
55 Pittsfield Rd, Lenox, MA
Ride Shares @ The Commons
Wine Tours and
Available!
● Holidaymusic Ride Shares
● Refreshments available!
● Visit
from 413-637-1224
www.tobislimo.com
Mr. and Mrs. tobislimo@aol.com
Santa Claus Post Office box 2216
Lenox, MA 01240
● Special gift!

To purchase tickets go to
www.ManchesterLionsElfTrain.com
Online sales end 12/12 at 6pm.

www.OurBerkshireTimes.com | Holiday 2018 7

 Our Food System:
AN INVISIBLE FORM OF OPPRESSION
By Mark Hyman, MD
Stuffed Bread and the Giving Tree
HAPPINESS SPREADS EASILY IF YOU LET IT / By Michael Romano
I
t was two decades or so ago when I found myself
working at a small residential treatment center and
school for behaviorally challenged kids. The coed
center was operated every day, 24/7 including
holidays, and the students’ ages ranged from six to twenty years.
It was a diverse group, and every major religion was represented
in the population. Most of the kids came from an inner city
somewhere but they had different backgrounds and presented
different problems.
A lot of the students went home for the holidays but some
of them had no place to go so they spent the respite at the
school. At times it was pretty rough on them, but every attempt
was made to make sure the kids were well taken care of and as
happy as possible. Program money was set aside for the staff to
purchase gifts, and activities were planned, on and off campus,
for all age groups.
Each year the staff discussed ways to improve the holiday
feeling, and we came up with something that was missing from
the program – the spirit of giving! So many of the kids had no
idea how important and wonderful the act of giving was. So, we
decided we would create a program within a program to try and
teach our students how to give to others by baking and raising
money with bake sales to help local kids who had even less than
they did.
Back then there was a Kmart in town, and right after Thanksgiving
a big artificial tree called the Giving Tree was put up in the
entrance of the store. On it among the decorations were tags
with the first names of needy local children along with their
gender, age, and wish list. The tags were attached to the branches
of tree with scotch tape and there were a lot of them to pick
from. We grabbed six of those tags, one for each team of the
campus group homes. We focused on buying for younger kids
because they were easier and less expensive to buy for.
Since I had a background in cooking I wrote a program proposal
for baking ingredients, and we got permission from the school to
use the kitchen and ovens after dinner was cooked and served.
After cleanup, staff and students set up shop and started making
assorted cookies, brownies, coffee cakes, fruit cakes, cupcakes,
tarts, and the anchor for the whole program . . . stuffed breads!
8 Holiday 2018 | www.OurBerkshireTimes.com
The stuffed breads were a calzone-like item except we used bread
dough rather than pizza dough. We made three different kinds:
pepperoni bread with mozzarella and Romano cheese; spinach
bread with spinach, cheddar, and feta; and four cheese bread
with cheddar, feta, mozzarella, and Romano. We started with fifty
pounds of bread dough and we taught the kids how to cut, stretch,
fill, and roll the dough. We then let the dough rise for an hour
before putting it into the big ovens.
The kids and staff were covered in flour, but you could still see the
big smiles when the first batch of browned bread was pulled fresh
from the ovens. The smell was incredible and delicious! But that also
created a problem . . . the staff on duty started buying the hot breads
the second they came out of the oven and soon they had decimated
our stock that we needed for the bake sale, so we were forced to bake
more. But it was a labor of love. We made 100 of them!
The time came for the bake sale. Kmart heard what we were
doing for the local children and allowed us to set up shop in the
foyer of their store. We arrived with tables and boxes of baked
goods and brought some of the older students who had good
people skills. Sales were brisk with the stuffed breads selling
very quickly, but the cookies, cakes, and brownies did well also.
The students did a great job of engaging the public and even
got some donations. When it was time to go we had sold most
of everything, and the leftover products were sold to staff and
students back on campus. We made $475.
We divided the money among the teams, and with tags in hand
each team went shopping at Kmart for their chosen child. They
were excited to do something nice. All gifts were left anonymously,
unwrapped with the tag attached. On the delivery van ride there and
back you could tell by the smiles and chatter that the students felt
proud – they had earned the right to feel good about themselves and
staff was proud of them too. We had all done something good and
the recipients would never know who their benefactor was.
There was enough money left to add to our own school kids’
present fund and a surprise pizza party was held for everyone.
The program within a program was a success. The students
learned a lesson about giving and making a difference to others
through a bunch of stuffed breads and a giving tree. Happiness
spreads easily if you let it. ~ Michael Romano, Great Barrington, MA

Stuffed Holiday Bread
M y grandmother’s bread recipe was epic, easy to make, and filled her house with a wonderful aroma. She would make bread almost
every day, and did so until just before she passed at 93 years old. Friends and relatives stopped by at all times of day to have her
famous bread, toasted and served with her fresh coffee along with charming conversation. Grandma was a great cook and a beautiful
person – a nice combination. She would have been tickled that we still use her recipe. She made large batches of her bread because of
the high demand, but following is a smaller, foolproof version that can be made as is or stuffed with the fillings of your choice.
Ingredients
1 teaspoon sugar
3 ounces warm water (100°-110°F)
2 packets active dry yeast (¼ ounce each)
6 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon sugar
2 tablespoons salt
Instructions for Plain Bread
Add the sugar to the warm water in a small bowl. Dissolve the yeast
in the water and let stand 10 minutes. In a large bowl, combine half
of the flour and the remaining dry ingredients; mix well. Then add
the yeast mixture and stir in the rest of the flour, butter, and water.
Mix until a soft dough is formed.
Scrape the dough from the bowl onto a floured surface and knead
until sticky and pliable. Lightly oil the bowl and replace dough
into it, turning it once to cover the entire surface with oil. Cover
the bowl with a damp towel and let it sit undisturbed for an hour
(until the dough rises to approximately twice its size).
Punch the dough down (my favorite part) and turn onto a floured
cutting board. Divide dough in half, shape each into a loaf, and
place into two greased 9x5-inch loaf pans. Cover loaf pans and
let rise again for 40 minutes, then place in a preheated 375°F oven
and bake for 25 minutes until brown. At this point, before pulling
the bread from oven, my grandmother would use a brush to paint
each loaf with olive oil and sprinkle it with salt and pepper for a
great taste. Cool for 15 minutes before cutting. (If you don’t have
time to bake from scratch, you can a few pounds of frozen bread
dough, thaw, and let rise. A pound of plain bread dough will
make about three loaves of bread).
Instructions for Stuffing the Bread
You can use just about anything for stuffing your bread – whatever
tickles your fancy – as long as it fits into the rolled dough and is
not too moist. We created three simple savoury stuffing mixtures
for the bake sale (rough proportions below) but feel free to get
more creative if you wish, possibly even using fruit, nuts, or other
sweet fillings to create a dessert bread.
After your dough has risen for the first time, been punched
down, and divided into loaf portions, place it on a floured
surface and stretch each loaf into a roundish shape about 12
inches in diameter. Then choose your stuffing.
food & drink
1 tablespoon butter or shortening, softened
2 cups warm water
2 tablespoons olive oil
Salt and pepper
Choice of stuffing, such as cheese, spinach,
pepperoni, or anything else that suits your fancy!
● For spinach stuffing you can use a thawed 10-ounce package
of cut spinach, well squeezed and drained. Mix with enough
shredded mozzarella, Parmesan, and feta until stiff enough to be
scooped as stuffing. Make sure mix is squeezed dry so it doesn’t
ruin the dough with too much moisture. Place two scoops of mix
on the flattened dough and sprinkle with a dash of salt and pepper.
● The pepperoni and cheese stuffed breads are easily made
using the same roll-up procedure, except we found that fresh
pepperoni leaks grease when baked, so you should prebake the
slices in paper towels for 15 minutes. Coat the flattened dough
with ¼ cup of pepperoni and liberally cover it with shredded
mozzarella and Parmesan.
● The four cheese mixture is the easiest. Using shredded
cheddar, mozzarella, Parmesan, and drained crumbled feta,
simply mix the cheeses well and place two good-size scoops
onto the dough.
After you have placed your choice of stuffing mix from end to end
in the middle of each loaf of dough, roll up and seal the dough
ends together with a few drops of water. Place the
loaves on a lightly greased and floured sheet pan about
5 inches apart. Cover loaves with a moist towel and let
rise for 40 minutes (until about double in size). Bake for
20 to 25 minutes until browned, and brush a thin layer
of butter or olive oil onto the hot loaf and sprinkle with
a dash of salt. If you can wait a half hour before eating,
you have more will power than I do!
The only problem I have found
is that when the loaves are
served there are seldom any
leftovers. But, that may be
a good thing. Have fun
with it! ~ Michael Romano,
Great Barrington, MA
9
Challah Bread Pudding with Fruit & Crystallized Ginger
By Guido’s Fresh Marketplace

A
comforting, custardy, raisin-studded pudding that creates its own luscious caramel syrup. Truly a dish
worthy of any Hanukkah or other celebration. This recipe is from Eating Well Magazine and has been
adapted by local dietitian Rachel Alves, Guido’s Fresh Marketplace. Serves eight.
Ingredients
2½ cup low-fat milk ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg ¼ cup crystallized ginger, chopped
4 large eggs ⅛ teaspoon ground ginger 1 teaspoon butter, softened
½ cup sugar, divided 4 cups cubed challah (about 2 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract 4-6 slices) 2 ripe pears, peeled and cored
½ teaspoon grated lemon zest 2 tablespoons golden raisins 1 tablespoon lemon juice

Directions
Preheat oven to 350◦F. Warm milk in a medium saucepan over medium low heat. Stir until steaming (4 to 6 minutes). Whisk eggs
thoroughly in a large bowl; gradually whisk in ¼ cup sugar. Slowly whisk in the hot milk until blended, followed by vanilla, lemon zest,
nutmeg, and ginger. Add challah, raisins, and crystallized ginger to milk mixture; fold together. Press down lightly, cover with plastic
wrap and set aside at room temperature.
Butter bottom and sides of round 2-quart baking dish with 1
teaspoon butter. Put a kettle of water on to boil. Cut each pear
half lengthwise into four slices. Place in a medium bowl and toss
with lemon juice.

Warm a medium skillet over low heat, add the 2 tablespoons butter;
swirl until melted and foam subsides. Sprinkle with remaining
¼ cup sugar; arrange pear slices on their sides in an even layer.
Increase heat to medium low. Without stirring, let pears begin to
brown and sauce to caramelize, about 10 minutes. Do not allow to
burn. Take pan off heat; carefully turn pear slices over and return
to cook until sauce is golden (2 to 4 minutes more).

Transfer pears one by one to baking dish, arranging decoratively in

a circle. Scrape any remaining syrup over pears.

Set baking dish in larger, shallow baking pan. Cover pears with
bread and custard mixture; press down on bread until submerged.
Place pan in oven; add the boiling water to shallow baking pan
until it is halfway up sides of baking dish.

Bake until pudding is browned on top and set in center, 1 to 1½

hours. Remove from oven; transfer to wire rack. Let cool for 45
minutes or more. To serve, run a knife around edge of pudding.
Place serving platter over dish, invert to place pudding on platter.
Serve warm or chilled.

Make-ahead tip: Cover and refrigerate up to one day. ~ Guido’s Fresh

Marketplace, www.guidosfreshmarketplace.com

10 Holiday 2018 | www.OurBerkshireTimes.com

 food & drink

½
entrées
available

Take $35 off when you spend $100 or more*

*Please present this coupon found in Our BerkshireTimes Magazine to server

D-e-e-licious!
at start of meal. Offer expires July 31, 2018. Not valid for wine dinners or holidays.
One coupon per table. Cannot be combined with other offers or promotions.

“Come taste the ancient flavors of authentic Pompeian brick oven

cooking and grilling, savored in an elegant, romantic, intimate
setting in downtown Pittsfield.” ~ Davide Manzo, Proprietor/Chef
Dinner daily starting at 5pm. Closed Tuesdays. Reservations suggested.

26 McKay Street, Pittsfield, MA

Tues-Sat dinner only • 150 Main St., Lee 413.243.6397 cheznousbistro.com (413) 499-1192 • www.trattoria-rustica.com

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NAME
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Photo by John Phelan

Route 71, North Egremont, MA (Near Prospect Lake) located in downtown Great Barrington
Call (413) 528-4796

www.OurBerkshireTimes.com | Holiday 2018 11

DIY Holiday Craft Ideas
3 4
5
Make pretty fruit cup holders – cut oranges in half,
1 scoop clean, decorate with cloves, and fill. Hint: Berkshire
Food Co-op (see ad page 11) sells herbs in bulk.
Buttons come in every size, shape, and color – in
2 plain or bling. Perfect for adorning ornaments, purses,
pillows, and more. Hint: We heard Spin-off Yarn Shop
(see ad page 7) has an amazing selection of buttons.
Use string lights in creative ways (like fairies in a jar!)
3 to add magic to the holidays. Hint: Jaeschke’s Orchard’s
garland (see ad page 13) is just right for decorating.
Have yourself a mini little Christmas – Decorate
4 a mini tree and surround with mini (real), colorfully
wrapped presents. Hint: A gift from Zabian’s Jewelers
(see ad page 17) is the perfect “small” way to go big!
12 Holiday 2018 | www.OurBerkshireTimes.com
GET CREATIVE AND GET INTO THE HOLIDAY SPIRIT!
7
Kids of all ages never grow
5 tired of making gingerbread
houses. Hint: Need a new
8 oven for baking? Visit Alliance
Appliance (see ad page 13) –
you deserve it!
Create a village down to the last detail with diminutive
6 buildings, people, plants, and an operating model train.
Hint: Find train supplies at Hobby World (see ad page 7).
Winter is a beautiful time of year, but it can feel long,
7 especially for gardeners. Bring the outdoors in by creating
a terrarium with lush plants. Add a porcelain animal figurine
to create a wildlife scene, or create a beach theme!
For a special touch, tie presents with twine, dried herbs,
8 and add a drop of essential oil. Hint: Find a handcrafted
gift at Mountain Goat Artisans (see ad page 13).
 home & garden

CHRISTMAS TREES ● KISSING BALLS

WREATHS ● GARLAND ● CEMETERY BOXES
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BOTH LOCATIONS OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK FROM 9-5.

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business since 1881! West Road, Adams  (413) 743-3896

Visit our new location. We look forward to meeting you.

85 Main Street, Great Barrington, MA 01230
(413) 274-1122 • www.HartsvilleDesign.com 413-528-3556  www.linengb.com

Emergency Water & Fire Remediation Alliance Appliance

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413-445-5678 579 Fenn Street
800-707-1441 Pittsfield, MA
• Licensed
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24 HOURS A DAY, 7 DAYS A WEEK

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Mountain Goat Artisans
● Emergency Water Damage Remediation Locally Owned Local, One-of-a-Kind Handmade Gifts
● Emergency Fire, Soot and Smoke Remediation and Operated.
● House Wide and Post Construction Cleaning ● Floor Maintenance Mary Merselis-Proprietor
● Carpet & Upholstery Cleaning ● Animal Debris and Odor Clean Up Pottery ● Furniture Weaving ● Carvings
● Mold and Odor Remediation ● Sewer and Septic Clean Up Jewelry ● Original Art Photography ● More!
● We Will Use Green Cleaning Products Upon Request
(413) 884-5339
Certified & Trained Technicians With More Than 15 Years Experience.
Open 12-5pm Wednesday - Saturday
3 Westview Road, Pittsfield, MA 130 Water Street, Williamstown, MA
www.ServiceMasteroftheBerkshires.com www.mountaingoatartisans.com

www.OurBerkshireTimes.com | Holiday 2018 13

 Nature Matters
CONSERVATION & PRESERVATION AT ITS BEST / By Helen Ward
A
red-tailed hawk perched on a little stand in the
kitchen looks at Jen Leahey with imploring
brown eye as if he were a puppy asking for a
treat. “You just had two mice, you’re good,”
she says, as a skunk named Kenny potters about the room looking
for doors to open and bags to explore. Interconnectedness
is the major theme underlying Nature Matters, the nonprofit
organization run by Jen Leahey out of Leahey Farm in Lee,
MA. And from the crew in the kitchen, which also includes a
tangerine-colored corn snake and a skink, her work is obviously
connected to her home life.
According to Leahey, “The aim of the organization [launched
in September 2017] is to have people interact with animals
and the outdoors so they become aware of the importance of
conservation and preservation, of the local landscape, and the
animals that live in it. The only hope nature has is that we accept
it and meet in the middle to foster connectivity and conservation.”
Nature Matters is uniquely situated to offer this experience.
Much of Leahey’s work involves lecturing at schools and local
institutions (such as the Berkshire Humane Society) throughout
the county with a few of her animals in tow. However, its home
base is Leahey Farm, an organic dairy (active since 1889) on three
hundred acres that encompass deep woods, edge habitat at the
border of October Mountain, and open fields where the dairy
cows graze and where most of the featured animals – owls, gray
foxes, turtles, a potbellied pig, and others – live alongside the
livestock in enclosures or stalls in the Starline red barn.
Leahey describes the traditional family farm as one component
in an ecosystem intended to act as a balancing point between
the wildlife of deep woods and edge habitat animals. “Wildlife
has often been seen as a nuisance, but it’s really the farmer’s job
14 Holiday 2018 | www.OurBerkshireTimes.com
through good husbandry to protect livestock while allowing
coexistence with neighboring wild species.”
Leahey tries to bring this home to her audience using animals to
tell the story. All of her wildlife ambassadors were either captive-
born or had been injured, usually through some interaction
with humans, and in both cases unreleasable. Local wildlife
rehabilitator Dawn Collins and Julie Shanahan, DVM, have
helped place animals unable to fend for themselves in the wild
with Nature Matters. Most of the exhibits are native wildlife of
Massachusetts, but a few of them are from out of town, such as
the skink and a pair of South American tortoises – pets whose
owners could no longer care from them.
Leahey, a graduate of University of Massachusetts Boston with a
major in English specializing in education, has been working with
animals her whole life – as a veterinarian’s assistant, a stable hand,
and a pet groomer while still a teenager. After college, she entered
the museum world via the Museum of Science in Boston as an
administrative assistant. “It was a good job, but not where I really
wanted to be. I kept wandering over to the Live Animal Center
whenever I could.” At that time the associate curator Lew Stevens was
working on his own there except for volunteer high school students;
only a few months later, Leahey made the leap to assistant curator.
Leahey regards Stevens as her mentor and is fond of quoting his
observation that “whatever you’ve read about animals, they’ve
always read something different.” She notes that despite being
representatives of their species, all the creatures she encounters
have their own characters. “Even the hedgehogs have their own
little personalities,” she says, referring to Mocha and Luna who
have a cozy home in her living room.
“I loved working with animals, the public, and kids,” Leahey says of
 home & garden

her days at the museum. “But there I was working in a basement in

the middle of the city. I wanted to be somewhere rural.” Quality since 1988
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This longing led Leahey to a farrier school in California and
then eventually back to Massachusetts and Old Sturbridge
Village, where she was coordinator of farms for several years.
Dressed in period clothing, she milked cows by hand, skimmed
butter, and plowed with oxen. From there she met and married
Phil Leahey and they have been farming the last ten years while
raising their two kids, Brenna and Thomas.

Leahey says she always knew she wanted to get back to

educating the public about wildlife, and the time was ripe for
Nature Matters. With her kids now in school and the bottling
process for the milk outsourced, she has more time and space.
MA Lic #20390 CT Lic #4485
And the livestock combined with the wildlife allows her to fuse MA HIC #137599 CT HIC #578070
her experience as a farmer and a wildlife educator.
R einer White & Sons, a family-run business since 1988, is known
for attention to detail and quality work. Our company offers
“I love to see the curiosity and excitement both adults and kids a wide variety of industry contacts and is able to meet all of your
construction needs. Whether you’re thinking of a new home, or would
have with the animals,” Leahey says. “I’m not fond of just standing
like to renovate or add onto your existing home, contact us today so
in front of a group and lecturing. I want this to be a hands-on we can discuss your project and help make your dreams a reality.
experience.” To that end her animals are brought to libraries,
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a connection with her rather aloof piebald horse. “Patch put
his head on the boy’s shoulder and just let him cradle him. He
doesn’t even let me do that.” And she describes how one girl
overcame her fear of snakes . . . Over the course of several
visits the girl came into closer proximity to Darla, the corn
snake, until she declared, “today’s the day I’m going to touch
the snake.” She took the plunge and finally made contact with
Darla, exclaiming, “Hey, that wasn’t so bad!”
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by Mark Thorne, Mocha the hedgehog by Helen Ward, Jen with Kenny ● www.sewardstires.com
and kids (Thomas Leahey, Ava Lopez, and Brenna Leahey) by Helen Ward.

www.OurBerkshireTimes.com | Holiday 2018 15

 home & garden
Berkshire Fabric & Wallpaper
W hat started out as a weekend drive through the
country ended up as a new career for Donna and
David Gopfert of Sturbridge, MA, and a wonderful
asset to home decorators throughout Berkshire County
(professionals and do-it-yourselfers alike). Donna was an
online retailer and Dave was a retired executive from Dunn
and Bradstreet. But on that day in 2003, Donna and Dave
discovered and purchased the inventory of the Old Stone Mill
Wallpaper Outlet in Adams, MA, and their new career journey
began with Berkshire Fabric & Wallpaper.
Q: Donna, please describe what you do.
A: We offer personalized home decor services and products that
help turn your house into a home.
Q: Tell us more about how Berkshire Fabric & Wallpaper
got started.
A: Our first store opened in North Adams. It was then called
Berkshire Fabric & Wallpaper Outlet. It wasn’t long before we
outgrew that space, so in 2006 we moved our still fledgling business
to the Allendale Shopping Center in Pittsfield, MA. This move
brought custom sewing and upholstery and special order wallpaper
into the mix. Finally, in 2013, another move was necessary to
accommodate the growing number of customers from Northern
and Southern Berkshire County. 274 Wahconah Street in Pittsfield
would become, and still is, the home of Berkshire Fabric &
Wallpaper. With every move we added a new service – this time
we added the most complete and comprehensive line of window
treatments available in the county along with specialty fabric lines.
16 Holiday 2018 | www.OurBerkshireTimes.com
“From reupholstery to windows
to walls ...we have you covered.”
Q: What specifically do you offer?
A: Berkshire Fabric & Wallpaper offers one-stop shopping for
your home from shades, blinds, and shutters for your windows to
custom-made draperies, bedding, window seats, and patio cushions,
along with top-of-the-line reupholstery services.
Q: What is your philosophy?
A: From the very beginning, Dave and I decided to offer only
the finest products and services. Products that we are proud
to sell and our customers are even prouder to own – famous
brands known for their quality like Hunter Douglas, Graber,
Comfortex, Norman International, P Kaufmann, Covington,
Robert Allen, Stout Brothers, Duralee, RM COCO, Norbar
Fabrics, and Greenhouse Fabrics, to name just a few.
Q: How can our readers find you?
A: Berkshire Fabric & Wallpaper is conveniently located at 274
Wahconah Street in the heart of Pittsfield. We are open daily,
10am until 5pm, Saturdays 10am until
4pm, and always by appointment.
You can visit in person, call (413)
442-4420, or view our website at
www.berkshirefabricwallpaper.com.
We are also on Facebook, where
you can see a larger portfolio of our
work. And when you visit, make
sure to ask to meet our store kitties,
Remy, Zane, and Zoe. They just love
making new friends!
 TakeAway!
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home & garden

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business. Tom and Steve Garrity welcome the opportunity to earn Upholstery, Draperies, Fabric & Wallpaper
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413-442-4420
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Open daily
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www.OurBerkshireTimes.com | Holiday 2018 17

home & garden
It’s Never Too Early to Plan for Spring! / By Michael Giannamore
T
he swimming season in the Northeast is, in many
people’s opinions, short. Although one can add
features that can significantly extend the season (heaters,
attached spas, and automatic pool covers, to name a
few), planning to build a pool for next summer should begin long
before spring. If you aspire to build your dream “oasis,” or wish to
upgrade an existing pool, it’s best to start planning in the fall or early
winter. Frost in the ground will likely prevent a pool company from
doing any manual work in your yard, but during this time there is a lot
of other preparation that can take place that will make it much easier to
start construction in the spring and provide a longer first swim season!
Decision Time: Okay, you have decided you want to get
started. Now it’s time to make some decisions . . . the best type
of pool (in the Northeast, a gunite pool lasts longest), the correct
builder (whom do you trust with your hard-earned money?),
decking (brushed concrete, gravel, slate, flagstone, and more),
size, shape, and landscaping. And let’s not forget all those extra
features to choose from (for many people, this can be the most
fun, yet longest part of the decision-making process). Decisions
take time – by starting early, you can have the luxury of time.
Permits: Once you have committed to a builder (and they to you!),
blueprints and plans must be created and submitted to the town
(regulations vary from town to town). Once the town has all the
correct information, it will take time for the officials to approve it.
Preconstruction Meetings: Before a shovel hits the ground,
everyone involved needs to connect. How will the construction
crews access the back yard? Will excavated soil be removed or left
on-site? Where will the mechanical equipment be placed? And a
lot more! The planning is just as crucial as the actual construction.
Once this takes place, other contractors can be ready to go as well.
Site Work: If there is any need for tree removal or alterations like
boulder walls and grading, some of this work can be accomplished
over the winter. The more that can be completed prior to the actual
pool construction (which requires above-freezing temperatures), the
better. This will save everyone involved valuable time come spring.
18 Holiday 2018 | www.OurBerkshireTimes.com
BEFORE
The Details: So, you want blue tiles at the water line? What shade
of blue? Is there a pattern? What size tile? Just as in building a
home, there are a lot of choices to be made from tile to interior
finishes to sanitizing equipment and lighting, and more. Some
selections can wait until construction begins so that your pool
builder can show you fully functioning “real” pools and material
samples, but a lot of the decisions can be made now. The devil is
in the details, but a good pool contractor can guide you through
this process, and it can be exciting and enjoyable if you allow
yourself ample time before the spring rush.
Saving Money: The cost of materials, especially in the pool
industry, tends to go up as the winter progresses. When that happens,
contractors have little choice but to raise their prices too. The earlier
you can make your decisions and supply a deposit, the more price
increases you can avoid and the more money you can save.
Ideally, spring will come early, the sky will be mostly clear,
and pool contractors will be out building pools in March or
even sooner. But in truth, that’s not the reality of spring in the
Northeast! Weather is unpredictable and “things” can happen to
slow down a jobsite. The ground tends to be wetter, which slows
down all construction (not just for pool builders). Come spring-
time, everyone wants to be first, and everyone is in a rush to have
the backyard ready for Memorial Day and summer. So beat the
rush by planning now and you will find yourself ahead of the
curve and ready to swim before the first heat wave!
~ Michael Giannamore is the president of Aqua Pool & Patio, located in
East Windsor, CT. Michael joined his father at
Aqua Pool & Patio in 1983 and his expertise
ranges from design to construction. Michael is an
APSP-certified building professional and service
technician and holds a plumbing and piping limited
contractor-SP1 license. Aqua Pool has been serving
all of southern New England for the past 49 years!
You can contact Michael and his team at (800) 722-
2782, info@aquapool.com, www.aquapool.com.
See ad on inside front cover.
 animal talk

The Gift of Knowledge

Keeps on Giving
Great gift-giving options for learning about the safe
and effective use of alternative therapies for pets!

HERBAL REMEDIES
There is still much we do not
understand regarding the potent
synergy of action of the chemical
compounds found in medicinal herbs.
As natural therapies, herbs are often
seen as harmless, but they must be used
with wisdom and care.

Written by acclaimed herbalists and formulators, Herbs for Pets

by Gregory Tilford and Mary Wulff (formulators of Animal
Essentials herbal pet products) is a must-have resource for
the safe and effective use of herbs as natural remedies in the
treatment of pets.

FLOWER ESSENCES
Although we can trace the therapeutic
role of vibrational healing all the way
back to ancient Egypt, it was the work
of an early twentieth-century medical
doctor that first began to characterize the
therapeutic use of the vibrational properties
of flowering plants.

Illness is often as much about emotional imbalance as it is about

disease, and Healing Animals Naturally by Sharon Callahan,
with a foreword by Dr. Michael Fox, Senior Scholar, HSUS,
offers valuable insight into using flower essences to support
pets facing emotional challenges.

HOMEOPATHY
What Newtonian physics could not
explain, quantum physics now can, and
homeopathic remedies, long confounding
to most conventional practitioners, are
now widely recognized and used in health
care systems around the world. Similia
similibus curantur!

A fantastic general introduction to homeopathy and

homeopathic medicine for pets, Textbook of Veterinary
Homeopathy by John Saxton and Peter Gregory, Part I: The
Theory, Part II: The Practice, would be a great gift for that
smart kid who aspires to be a holistic veterinarian!

~ Gift ideas provided by BensDotter’s Pet, (413) 528-4940, 940 Main

Street, Great Barrington, MA. www.bensdotters.com

www.OurBerkshireTimes.com | Holiday 2018 19

 SHOP LOCAL

giftguide HOLIDAY 2018

DELIGHT Thymes Frasier Fir Candle / Bella Flora

"
"
Fill your surroundings with the crisp, just-cut forest
fragrance of Frasier Fir. Bella Flora carries an abundant supply of the Thymes
product line. Friends and family will also enjoy the beautiful selection of handmade
beeswax candles. Bella Flora is dedicated to local artisans, sustainable products,
Fair Trade, and the latest styles. Owners Annie and Chris Whalen and their team
enhance all their floral work with creativity and freshness. Local delivery available.
This holiday, let them share their love with your loved ones with floral arrangements,
gift baskets, plants, personal accessories, and more. Visit Bella Flora at Guido’s Fresh
Marketplace in Pittsfield, MA, and at their sister location in Great Barrington, MA.
(413) 496-8242, www.bellafloraberkshires.com

CREATE Artist Gift Bundle / JWS Art Supplies

If you have an artist in your life, JWS Art Supplies
has the perfect gift. They have created a series of starter sets in different
media including watercolor, acrylic, and oil. All come with everything you
need to start painting, including paint, palette, brushes, paper or canvas,
and a JWS tote bag. This great gift regularly retails for $68, but will be
selling for $50 through the holidays. Visit JWS today and explore their
wide variety of art supplies from crafts all the way to student-grade
and artist-grade materials. Also, don’t miss their great gift section, with lots of
stocking stuffers and wrapping supplies for all your holiday needs. JWS Art
Supplies is located at 38 Railroad Street, Great Barrington, MA.
(413) 644-9838, www.jwsartsupplies.com

SATISFY Chocolate Gift Box / Chocolate Springs

Give your family, friends, coworkers (and yourself!) a
decadent chocolate gift box assortment this holiday. Chocolate Springs is a
European-style chocolate and dessert café run by proprietor Joshua Needleman,
with decades of experience in crafting the finest handmade bonbons from
natural ingredients. Chocolates at the café (and for online purchase) include milk
and dark, truffles, award-winning ganaches, and amazing hot chocolate, made
fresh every day using only the finest seasonal and organic ingredients whenever
possible. Also enjoy coffee, sorbet, espresso, and much more. Buy gifts online at
any time for the holidays and beyond, or visit Chocolate Springs Café in person
at their convenient location at 55 Pittsfield Road, Lenox, MA.
(413) 637-9820, www.chocolatesprings.com

20
" “It was her
compassion that was
so pretty.”
holiday gift guide

Close your eyes. open your heart. concernedsingles.com

CUSTOMIZE Carhartt / Stadium System

Stadium System is pleased to
be the area’s Carhartt headquarters for men and women. They
have everything you need to keep you warm this winter, and if
they don’t have your size, style, or color they will order it for Berkshire’s Premier Source for Enlightened Gifts
you. Stadium System also offers screen printing and embroidery
services to personalize your apparel. There is no better way to
brand your business than with customized apparel! Please stop incense | essential oils | jewelry | clothing
in and check out their large selection of men’s and women’s crystals | sage | gifts
jackets, vests, pants, flannel shirts, and so much more! In addition 5 Cheshire Road, Allendale Underground, Pittsfield, MA
to Carhartt they also offer Red Wing work boots, Merrell, New 413-329-8162 ● newmoongiftshop@gmail.com
Balance, Muck, and Kamik for all your winter footwear needs. Open Tues-Fri 11am-6pm, Sat 9am-12:30pm
Visit Stadium System at 297 Ashley Falls Road, Canaan, CT.
Open seven days a week – Mon-Fri 10-6, Sat 9-5, Sun10-4.
(860) 824-4300, visit them in Canaan, CT

Hartsville Design
Woodworking
 Cabinetry & Fine Furniture
 Property Maintenance
 Repairs & Renovations
 Carpentry Services

413.274.1122
hartsvilledesign@gmail.com
www.HartsvilleDesign.com

ENJOY Furniture / Hartsville Design

How often do you have the chance to get
exactly what you want right down to the last detail? You can
with custom furniture. Bring your ideas to life – choose the
color, grain, size, shape, texture, hardware, and budget,
and have it fit perfectly anywhere in your home or office.
Be practical or wildly creative. Enjoy the luxury of bespoke
furniture or cabinetry with beautiful hardwoods and simple
clean lines or exotic veneers and whimsical curves. Hartsville
Design Woodworking can create a bespoke piece for any room
in your home that will be treasured for generations to come.
(413) 274-1122, www.hartsvilledesign.com

www.OurBerkshireTimes.com | Holiday 2018 21

health & wellness
Natural Tips for Boosting
Your Immune System
NOW IS THE TIME TO TRY THESE ALL-NATURAL PRACTICES
By © Kripalu Center for Yoga & Health
A
s we head into cold and flu season, now’s
the time to try some all-natural practices to
support your immune system. Ayurveda,
India’s ancient health science, offers simple yet
effective approaches for strengthening your ojas, a Sanskrit word
that means “vigor.”
“When your ojas is strong, your immune system is fortified,”
says Larissa Hall Carlson, Kripalu Schools faculty member and
former dean of the Kripalu School of Ayurveda. When it’s
compromised, however, it can lead to symptoms such as fatigue,
inconsistent appetite, weight gain or loss, disturbed sleep, and
increased sensitivity to light and sound.
Weakened immunity, Larissa notes, can also have mental and
emotional effects. “If you’re more frazzled, scattered, restless,
indecisive, if it’s difficult to stay steady and focused, or if you’re
lacking motivation to get daily tasks done, that could be the
result of a compromised immune system,” she says.
What Weakens the Immune System
Travel. Vacation or work trips tend to wreak havoc with your
routine, making your system more vulnerable, Larissa says.
When we travel, we tend to skip our health-promoting habits,
like exercising or doing yoga. Traveling also exposes us to more
bacteria and germs; it usually leads to eating out more (which
often means eating less healthfully); and it’s more apt to disrupt
sleep patterns.
Stress. It’s the cause of countless health problems, so it’s no
surprise that stress weakens your immunity, too. “When you go
through any kind of trauma,” Larissa explains, “like a divorce,
a death, or the loss of a job or a relationship, that definitely
increases stress and depletes the immune system.”
Overworking. Multitasking and taking on more responsibility
at work might have benefits, but it also erodes your health.
“When you’re overworking,” Larissa notes, “you aren’t taking
breaks, you’re too rushed to eat mindfully, and you’re less
likely to find time for regular exercise or to nurture your
relationships with family and friends. All of these things can
lower immunity.”
22 Holiday Issue, 2017 | www.OurBerkshireTimes.com
How to Boost Your Immunity
Imagine your immune system as an invisible, protective force
field that you can fortify. Here are Larissa’s tips for boosting your
immune system as the weather becomes cooler.
Get more sleep. Slowing down and getting into harmony with
the rhythms of nature will naturally lead you to increase your
sleep time. During winter there’s less daylight; slow down earlier
and get to bed earlier, closer to 10 pm if possible. “Sleep is one
of the pillars of Ayurveda,” Larissa says. “Adequate sleep allows
the reservoir of immunity to be recharged.”
Drink tulsi tea. Also known as holy basil, tulsi is valued in India
for its purifying qualities. “It’s especially good to drink tulsi tea
in the fall and winter, because of its heating nature,” Larissa
explains. It’s considered antiseptic and antibacterial, good for
headaches, and reduces anxiety, fever, and congestion, she says.
She recommends steeping it for five minutes and drinking one
cup daily, or more if you’re fighting off a cold.
Breathe. The yogic breathing exercise known as three-part
breath can help boost your immune system, according to Larissa.
“It removes congestion, increases circulation, and releases stress
and tension,” she says. Here’s how to practice: Sit in a relaxed
position with an elongated spine. Fill up the belly with breath,
then fill the rib cage, and then allow the breath to fill your upper
chest, all the way up to your collarbones. Then release the breath
in the opposite sequence. Larissa recommends practicing this
breath for one to three minutes, two to four times a day.
Be quiet. “Increasing silent time is one of the best ways to
prevent illness,” Larissa says. “The mind can get overwhelmed with
information. Silence allows it the opportunity to digest, recharge, and
replenish itself.” She suggests eating at least one silent meal a week,
going for a walk without your iPod, turning off the radio in the car,
putting your cell phone on silent sometimes, and turning off the
TV or computer earlier at night and reading or journaling instead.
The benefits will be like deposits in your immune system’s bank
account – they’ll build up over time and pay big dividends.
~ Reprinted with permission from © Kripalu Center for Yoga & Health.
All rights reserved. Visit www.kripalu.org.
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health & wellness
Lemon & Garlic Extracts
PROVEN TO DESTROY CANCER CELLS
By Chris Wark
I
recently stumbled across a fascinating 2017 study,
which investigated the anticancer effects of lemon
and garlic extracts against breast cancer.
Garlic is the number one anticancer vegetable thanks to its unique
combination of phytochemicals and organosulphur compounds,
the most well known being allicin (thiosulfonate). I consumed
copious amounts of garlic daily during the most intensive phase
of my cancer-healing journey, but most folks are reluctant to
consume garlic because of its strong flavor, or because they just
don’t want to smell like garlic.
Important Note: Cooking garlic significantly reduces its
anticancer activity. So it is best to consume it raw. If you cook
with garlic, let it sit for at least 10 minutes after chopping,
before cooking it. This preserves the potency of some of the
anticancer compounds.
Citrus fruits such as lemons are rich in anticancer compounds
like limonene, especially in the peels. Researchers speculated
that combining garlic and lemon extracts might increase the
anticancer activity of garlic by providing the acidic environment
needed to enhance organosulphur compound production and
by adding more phytochemicals from lemons with possible
anticancer activity.
In this study, mice were injected with breast cancer cells. The
injected cancer cells were allowed to grow for 14 days, in order to
form tumors. The mice were then separated into four different
groups and given either saline (control group), garlic extract,
lemon extract, or both extracts, injected into their stomachs once
daily. The reason for stomach injection was to insure that all mice
consumed an equal dose.
Surprisingly, after just 14 days of treatment with either lemon
extract or garlic extract, the tumors shrank by an average
of 80 percent, and 60 percent of the mice were completely
cancer free!
24 Holiday 2018 | www.OurBerkshireTimes.com
Meanwhile, the control group of mice not given either extract
had an increase in tumor size of 566 percent. But wait, it gets better.
Tumors shrank by an average of 91 percent and completely
disappeared in 80 percent of the mice treated with both lemon
and garlic extracts! So, while lemon and garlic extracts are already
potent anticancer agents on their own, there appear to be powerful
synergistic anticancer effects when the two are combined. The
combination also showed no signs of kidney or liver toxicity. It’s
worth noting that 30 percent of the mice in the control group
had no detectable tumors at the end of the study, indicating that
their bodies either prevented or healed cancer without any help
from garlic or lemons.
Practical Application
Even though this is a study on mice, the good news is, you can
easily make a lemon garlic extract at home and add it to your
protocol with little to no risk of harm.¹ If you’d like to prepare a
lemon garlic extract, here’s how the researchers did it.
Fresh garlic bulbs and lemons were washed and dried. Peeled
garlic bulbs and whole unpeeled lemons were then used to
prepare extracts in distilled water.
One pound (500 grams) of each plant material was chopped
into small pieces and vigorously mixed in one liter of distilled
water, using an electric mixer (a blender could work as well).²
The resulting solution was then strained and filtered. You can
do this with a cheesecloth or nut milk straining bag. This will
yield approximately one liter of each extract, which is a lot. If
you would like to make a smaller batch, just maintain the ratio
of equal amounts of garlic and lemon and 2:1 of distilled water
and plant material.
Doses of the extract were given in a 50 mg/kg ratio (50 milligrams
of extract per kilogram of subject’s body weight). The most
successfully treated mice received 50 mg/kg garlic extract + 50
mg/kg lemon extract, for a total of 100 mg/kg of body weight.

100mg is 0.1 mL of liquid. That equates to 0.02 teaspoons per
kilogram of body weight.
Math Time
Americans, divide your weight in pounds by 2.2. Then multiply
that number by 0.02, and that will give you the human equivalent
number of teaspoons that the mice were given each day, based
on your body weight.
For example, 150 pounds divided by 2.2 equals 68. 68 multiplied
by 0.02 equals 1.36. Rounding up, that’s 1½ teaspoons per day.
Using cowboy math, that’s about ½ teaspoon per 50 pounds of
body weight per day.
One large garlic bulb and one small lemon yielded 8 ounces of
extract, which is a 32-day supply for a 150-pound person using
the formula above. In our experience, a batch of the extract stays
fresh about one week. At around two weeks it really starts to get
funky. I think it’s best to make a new batch each week.
Biohacking Just Got Literal
The first time I made this formula, I took a tablespoon of it and
got it down no problem. Later that evening, because I’m a wild
and crazy guy, I decided to see what would happen if I drank four
ounces at once . . . And that, dear reader, was a mistake.
I immediately felt lightheaded, tingly, and nauseous, and began
salivating profusely. So I politely excused myself, stepped outside,
walked out into the yard and bent over, fully expecting to barf,
but surprisingly after a few minutes the urge passed. Apparently
my body changed its mind . . . Whew! Lesson learned. Chris
almost barfs so you don’t have to! Even in small doses, to avoid
nausea, it may be helpful to not take it on an empty stomach.
Special Note
Even though 80 percent of the mice were tumor free after being
treated with lemon and garlic extracts for 14 days, this protocol,
if effective in humans, is not likely to produce results that fast.
One mouse day is the equivalent of about 40 human days, so 14
mouse days would be 560 human days or about 1.5 years. Healing
takes time.
Having said that, 1½ teaspoons per day is a very small dose for
a 150-pound person. Could taking a larger daily dose speed up
the anticancer results? I have no idea. And I have no idea how
much the maximum daily dose could be, but if I had cancer [as
I did previously] I would be inclined to gradually increase my
daily dose to as much as I could stomach or stand. Someone I
know has been taking one tablespoon three times per day with no
problems, which is over seven times the daily dose for her weight.
But remember, this is not medical advice. If you consume high
doses of lemon garlic extract, you do so at your own risk.
health & wellness
Here’s How to Make It…
Borrow a food scale from your mother-in-law. Weigh a lemon.
Peel and chop enough garlic to equal the same weight as the
lemon (eh, close enough).
Let the garlic sit for 10 to 15 minutes after chopping to activate
beneficial anticancer compounds. Put the garlic and the unpeeled
lemon in a blender together and add twice as much water as plant
material. I had roughly four ounces of garlic and lemon combined
so I added eight ounces of water. Blend the mixture until it is
liquefied. Avoid blending so long that it “cooks” it [destroying the
“live” enzymes and significantly reducing its anticancer activity].
Next, pour the liquid into a nut milk straining bag. Strain the
liquid through the nut milk bag. Squeeze every last drop of
liquid out. As you will see, two ounces of garlic + two ounces
of lemon + eight ounces of water yields eight ounces of lemon
garlic extract. The lemon garlic extract is now ready for your
“enjoyment.” Put it in an airtight glass jar and store in the
fridge. Again, it should stay fresh for one to two weeks. Enjoy!
`
¹If you are taking pharmaceutical drugs, make sure there aren’t any
contraindications with the drugs you are taking. Remember, any time you
consume plant extracts medicinally, you do so at your own risk.
²Distilled water is commonly used in lab experiments to exclude confounding
factors like chlorine, fluoride, or other contaminants, which could react with
chemicals used in a lab test and alter the results of an experiment. I doubt
that the type of water you use will have any effect on the potency or efficacy
of the garlic or lemon extracts; filtered water should be fine.
Chris’s book, Chris Beat Cancer: A Comprehensive Plan for Healing Naturally,
published by Hay House, is a national bestseller as ranked by USA Today, The
Wall Street Journal, and Publishers Weekly.
~ Chris Wark was diagnosed with stage 3 colon cancer in 2003, at 26 years
old. After surgery, he opted out of chemotherapy and used nutrition and
natural therapies to heal. He began sharing his story in 2010 with a mission to
inspire people to take control of their health and reverse disease by radically
transforming their diet and lifestyle. Chris reaches millions of people per
year as a blogger, podcaster, speaker, and global health coach through his
social media channels and his website www.chrisbeatcancer.com. His book
Chris Beat Cancer: A Comprehensive Plan for Healing Naturally, published by Hay
House in late September 2018, is available at all major booksellers.
www.OurBerkshireTimes.com | Holiday 2018 25
Engaging children
15 months
through
8th grade

Montessori means
expression

Facing Frustration and Flipped Lids
By K. Meagan Ledendecker
“B ut we don’t know what to do!” wailed one of the
boys.
We were talking in the quiet of a classroom. Classical music played
in the background. Children were reading, drawing, crocheting,
and generally relaxing after time outdoors. On this day, however,
a few children had come inside teeming with frustration.
I tried to piece together the details: a fort, a vine pulled away, a
child who felt excluded, others defending their territory. Removed
from the situation, I could fairly clearly see the dynamics at play.
The excluded child wanted to belong, but didn’t know how to ask.
So he did something that would at least get him some negative
attention – ripping a beloved vine off the fort.
Our children don’t always let us know what they need in the most
constructive ways. Rather than say, “I feel disconnected and I
need some extra love and attention,” they are more likely to hit
or tantrum, or as they get older, say or do mean things to get us
to notice. In this case, the child who wanted to belong decided to
attack the fort to get the other children to pay attention to him.
The defenders of the fort had responded from a place of fury.
Wanting to retaliate, they weren’t thinking about any consequences
of their actions, much less about the other child’s motivations.
Even as we had conversation about what had happened, the boys
became enflamed again.
I realized it was time to shift gears. “Our classroom gecko, she has
a very basic response. If threated she has three options: to fight,
to freeze, or to flee,” I explained. Continuing, I described how
we have a very reptilian part of our brain, the amygdala. When
we feel threatened, we tend to go back to basic responses: fight,
freeze, or flee. We also happen to have our frontal lobes, which
allow us to think more logically and consider other options.
Despite having a rational part of our brain, it is easy to do what
Daniel Siegel has termed “flipping our lid.” If we represent our
brain with our hand, our thumb curled into our palm is like
the amygdala, a primitive part of our brain essential for basic
functions. The amygdala is our alarm center and responds from
education & workshops
a place of instinct. If we curl our fingers over the thumb, they
can represent the frontal lobes of our brain, which help us with
self-control, empathy, and decision-making. When we get upset,
however, we can “flip our lid.” Our fingers (representing our
frontal lobes) fly up and are out of commission, leaving our
thumb (representing our amygdala) exposed. When this happens
we tend to act from the more reptilian part of our brain.
The fort defenders were intensely focused on this description of
our brain functioning, and yet they recognized the challenge. As
the boy so plaintively stated, “But we don’t know what to do!”
His question was to the point. What do we do when we are
intensely upset, have a flipped lid, and are in the midst of a
challenging moment?
The boys and I really sat with the question. What if we were able
to have a plan for when we get into these kinds of moments?
What if others around us were able to do this, too? What if
our communities, our governments, our countries were able to
manage flipped lids? What kind of world would we experience?
Ultimately the boys decided to use each other for support when
they felt overwhelmed by feelings of anger or frustration. They
also thought about the other child’s needs and tried to help him
feel more included. They moved from a place of not-knowing to
taking initial steps to figure out their own plan of action.
While they didn’t have all the answers, their careful consideration of
how to manage themselves in the face of challenge could serve as a
reminder to us all as we confront frustration, the need to belong, or
even just overstimulation this season.
So let’s all take a collective breath, unflip
our lids, and consider what we can do.
~ K. Meagan Ledendecker gets to be inspired
by children every day in her role as classroom
guide and director of education at The
Montessori School of the Berkshires. www.
berkshiremontessori.org
www.OurBerkshireTimes.com | Holiday 2018 27
fun things to do this winter
Something Different for the Holidays
By Nina Anderson
W
hen we turn the clocks back and the sun
disappears in the late afternoon, we know that
the holiday season is coming. Stores are abuzz
and online shopping peaks. Rather than give a
present that may be regifted next year, why not shop local and
offer your friends and family members something they can really
use. Gift certificates for outdoor enthusiasts are plentiful at our
local winter sports venues. And, for those who would just love to
snuggle up, relax, and rejuvenate in the colder months, you might
send them to one of our luxurious spas.
For the Outdoor Enthusiast
Most folks know that skiing is a Berkshire mainstay in the winter.
Straddling the border of New York and Massachusetts, you will
find one of the first Berkshire ski areas, founded in 1939. With
1000 vertical feet of skiing, Catamount has the really challenging
Catapult trail as well as almost two miles of easier trails, making it
a great family destination. In addition, they have night skiing and
discounted weekday tickets, as well as season pass discounts for
college students and the military.
Bousquet is the family-friendly mountain in Pittsfield, MA, that
has a fun water park in the summer. Not only do they offer
ski lessons for adults and kids, they have terrific all mountain
and development team programs during winter break to teach
children how to race. They also provide snowboarding, a super
snow tubing park, discounts for weekdays and nights, and a
lounge with a fireplace, tavern menu, and ice-cold draft beer.
If you like a slower but more energetic pace of skiing you can
find a beautiful cross-country ski center in Windsor, MA, run
by the Trustees of Reservations. Notchview’s 3,000-acre cross-
country center has groomed trails for classical cross-country
skiing as well as skate skiing. They have a separate trail system for
“skijoring” (skiing with dogs), and welcome snowshoers to trek
on their own trails. Their Budd Visitor Center is a great place to
warm up next to a masonry heater with toasty soapstone seats,
and enjoy lunch from their café.
Snuggle Up, Relax, and Rejuvenate
If you aren’t sure about getting some outdoor exercise in the
frosty winter temperatures, or if you would like to relax those ski
muscles, you can take a spa day. Up in Williamstown, MA, located
in an old grist mill, you will find InTouch Massage & Day Spa,
28 Holiday 2018 | www.OurBerkshireTimes.com
where you can relax to the sound of a rushing stream and have
the ultimate private outdoor hot tub experience. Located only
minutes from the Clark Institute, Mass MOCA, Williams College,
and Jiminy Peak Ski Area, InTouch was listed as one of the best
Girlfriend Getaways by National Geographic Traveler magazine.
Here you can get full body treatments including massage, facials,
skin care treatments, hair and nail services, and more.
In south Berkshire County you can also find many places to relax.
Body & Soul Day Spa in Great Barrington, MA, has been offering
respite from the fast-paced demands of everyday life since 1987.
Extensive spa services are available and they specialize in the relief
of neck, shoulder, and back pain, and sports-related injuries – very
important if you’ve stressed your muscles skiing. With the holistic
touch of their world-class practitioners, a session has an amazing
effect on your well-being and sense of happiness.
If you travel a little farther south to Sheffield, MA, you will
find a hidden gem of a spa. In addition to massage, Julie’s Pure
Bliss specializes in stress management and rejuvenation. She
offers facials for quick lifts, anti-aging, skin brightening, and
deep cleaning, and can create an individual package specifically
for you. Her airbrush makeovers, waxing, and signature brand
professional strength facial products make the perfect gift. Julie
even offer facials for men so they can look great for holiday parties.
Across the border in Lakeville, CT, you will find an exceptional
place for rejuvenation – the Ellora Spa & Sanctuary at the
Interlaken Inn. The sound of flowing water and beautiful music
adds to Ellora’s ambience, warming your body and relaxing your
mind. Enjoy a massage, facial, Ayurvedic treatments, or even
a scalp massage with luxurious botanical oils to hydrate and
condition the scalp. In addition to their complete spa offerings
they also have yoga and Pilates classes.
This winter you owe it to yourself, your family, and your friends to
take advantage of everything the tristate
area has to offer – and for the holidays
you are sure to find many unique gifts
that will not only be used but be greatly
appreciated.
~ Nina Anderson is author of 18 books on
natural health and on aviation. She also runs a
sailboat charter service in Salisbury, CT, in the
summer. www.nashallasailing.com
 fun things to do this winter

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members to an InTouch Massage & Day Spa gift certificate

for any spa service or product – purchase in person or conveniently
online on their website. Spa owner Marc Freedman and his staff
offer a wide assortment of services including massage, facials, skin
care treatments, manicures and pedicures, and even a hair salon
(for color, precision cutting, and/or special occasion styling), as
well as a private outdoor hot tub in a relaxed atmosphere.

The spa’s beautiful nine-sided building in Williamstown, MA,

began its life as a grist mill in 1762 and is perched on the west
bank of the Green River. Clients frequently say that after they Open
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staff allows them to leave their cares behind.

Special holiday packages currently include a Date Night Special

with a one-hour private outdoor hot tub session for two plus two
one-hour massages. They also have special pricing for Swedish or
deep tissue massage, their signature facials (anti-aging, vitamin C,
enzyme, or purifying marine facial), microdermabrasion, and spa
pedicures. Check the specials page of their website regularly at Enjoy our relaxing and restorative atmosphere inside.
www.intouchdayspa.com for updates.

great deals for skiers

A FAMILY FAVORITE SINCE 1939

C atamount Mountain Resort, located conveniently in South

Egremont, MA, offers great deals for skiers – midweek online
lift tickets are only $20 (Monday through Thursday, holidays
excluded). Looking for the perfect holiday gift? Purchase one of
their value cards (good for tickets, store items, rentals, and lessons)
or a regular gift card for any amount you choose. Discounts for
season passes are available to college students and the military, so
make Catamount your destination winter sports mountain! Route 23 S. Egremont, MA/Hillsdale, NY

soul-satisfying
THERAPEUTIC MASSAGE, SKIN, AND BODY CARE

S ince 1987, Body & Soul Day Spa, located in the heart of the
Berkshires, has been a place that offers a respite from the fast-
paced demands of everyday life. Founders Doone and Stephen
$10 SPA BUCKS
Valid thru 3/31/19 toward any full-priced Massage, Facial, or Body Treatment.
Marshall offer healing and luxurious services that support your One per person. Not to be combined with any other offer or redeemable for cash.
natural inner beauty and innate tranquility. Their superb staff
184 Maple Ave. Route 23, Great Barrington, MA
provide the ultimate in therapeutic massage and essential skin and
Open Daily • 413.528.6465 • spa@bodyandsoulgb.com
body care. Professional, courteous, and warm – you’ll always be
www.BodyandSoulGreatBarrington.com
welcomed at this soul-satisfying oasis in Great Barrington, MA.

www.OurBerkshireTimes.com | Holiday 2018 29

fun things to do this winter
MAKEOVERS | FACIALS | PRODUCTS & GIFTS | THERAPEUTIC BACK MASSAGE
LEG, BROW, AND LIP WAXING | BODY POLISH | GENTLEMAN’S SKIN TREATMENT
(413) 441-2750 ● 647 North Main (Route 7), Sheffield, MA
Located across from the Bridge Restaurant ● www.jpurebliss.com
Open by appointment ● All major credit cards accepted
ROUTE 9, WINDSOR, MA
www.thetrustees.org/notchview | 413-684-0148
ELLORA
spa ● sanctuary ● pilates ● yoga
Skin Care | Massage | Ayurveda | European Fashions
Gift Certificates Available
At The Interlaken Inn ● 74B Interlaken Road, Lakeville, CT
860.435.1305 ● www.elloraspa.com
www.bousquets.com
30 Holiday 2018 | www.OurBerkshireTimes.com
facials, skin care & more
A PRIVATE GEM IN THE BERKSHIRES
J ulie’s Pure Bliss, located in Sheffield, MA, provides a private
gem in the Berkshires where you can treat yourself to a facial,
massage, waxing, makeover, and more. Spa owner Julie Barros, a
licensed skin care specialist, is knowledgeable and accommodating.
Her signature line of professional-strength, botanically based,
exclusive skin care products are easy to apply, luxurious, and
effective. The line does not contain animal products or synthetic
chemicals and is available at the spa or online at www.jpurebliss.com.
outdoor recreation & fun!
FOR WINTER SPORT ENTHUSIASTS
W ith more than 3,000 acres of rolling terrain, Notchview
offers an idyllic escape for winter sport enthusiasts, especially
cross-country skiers and snowshoers looking to discover a winter
wonderland! 17K of trails are groomed and track-set for classical
cross-country skiing; 8K are groomed for skate skiing. Two separate
snowshoe trails explore Notchview’s beautiful northern hardwood
forest. Special events such as their moonlight ski/snowshoe, and wine
and cheese tastings make Notchview your go-to winter destination.
the perfect gift
A SPA THAT IS MORE LIKE A SANCTUARY
E llora Spa & Sanctuary’s ambience, enhanced by the sound
of flowing water and beautiful music, immediately warms
your body and relaxes your mind. Ellora, located in Lakeville, CT,
is a complete spa offering clients Shankara’s distinctive signature
spa treatments, which creatively harmonize the Eastern technique
known as Ayurveda. They also carry select products from Shankara,
Skin, Hanro, and Chantelle, and gifts including candles, fragrances,
perfume, linens, and more. Gift certificates available.
family-friendly fun
DAY AND NIGHT SKIING IN PITTSFIELD, MA
B ousquet Ski Area is a family-friendly ski area offering day
and night skiing within the city limits of Pittsfield. Tamarack
Lounge offers a tavern menu with ice-cold draft beer and a fireplace
to warm your heart. Save money with their $10 Thursday Night
Owl lift special (3 to 9pm) with live entertainment and $35 Sunday
Saver lift ticket (nonholidays), nights $20, weekdays (nonholiday)
$25. Nonskiers, try our snow tubing hill . . . no experience
necessary! Visit us at www.bousquets.com for more information.
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www.OurBerkshireTimes.com | Holiday 2018 31

Hartsville Design
Woodworking
Custom Cabinets
and Design Service
 kitchens
 cabinets
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(413) 274-1122
hartsvilledesign@gmail.com
HartsvilleDesign.com