Breaking News

Life

Should I be signing up now for Medicare and Social Security?

Senior News

Question: I am turning 65 in April of 2025 and wondering about Medicare and Social Security Benefits. Should I be signing up now for Medicare and Social Security? Answer: This is the second answer to this two part question, so as I said last week, Happy Early Birthday! Most of us understand you become eligible to file for Social Security Benefits when you are 62, and this age is considered early retirement. For those born in 1960 and after, Full Retirement Age (FRA) for Social Security Benefits is 67. To collect Social Security you must “file a claim” with the Social Security ...

Our Trees Need Help!

Nature

New York’s forests are in trouble. Tiny, destructive insects are spreading fast, killing trees that have stood for hundreds of years. We’ve already lost American chestnuts and millions of ash trees. Now, another tree is at risk—the eastern hemlock. A tiny bug called Hemlock Woolly ...

The Corvus Amongst Us

Nature

Last week, driving home from Audubon Community Nature Center, my daughter and I were so captivated by a flock of crows that I had to pull over just to take it all in. The scene was incredible—thousands of crows crowded the neighborhood trees, their dark silhouettes watching us like something out of an Alfred Hitchcock film. They weren’t doing much besides cawing and interrupting one another, yet the sheer presence of so many wild creatures gathered in such mass was breathtaking. When I told my 9-year-old that a group of crows is called a murder, she eagerly spread the news, proudly ...

Algae vs. Plant – The Battle In Chautauqua Lake

Nature

Did you know that there is a war underway each summer in our lakes for nutrients and light? This war is between plants and algae! Like a football game, each side has many players who excel with differing abilities to use various nutrients and light. In this war, if the plants are winning, the ...

Conner Anderson Lexie Turner

Engagements

Lexie Turner and Conner Anderson, along with their families, are pleased to announce their recent engagement. Turner is the daughter of Bill and Angie Turner of Russell, Pa. She graduated from SUNY ECC in Williamsville, N.Y., and works as a dental hygienist at Francese Dental Medicine. ...

Our Biggest Resolution

Nature

It’s about now we have a firm grip on the scope of our New Year’s resolutions. We did the easy part of planning and inspiring ourselves, and by now we’re starting to understand what committing to our goals really means and how it might impact our routines. We are reflecting on who we ...