Table Hopping February 2022

FEBRUARY 2022

FREE

FAMILY OWNED & OPERATED SINCE 1920

^ Update Month ^ Happy Valentine’s Day! BUSINESS OF INTEREST THE SPEACH FAMILY CANDY SHOPPE 10

DINING OUT

A MANO KITCHEN & BAR 14

DEALS OF THE WEEK ON OUR WEBSITE 30

ENTER TO WIN

NIGHT ON THE TOWN 27 AN OFFICE PARTY 32

EUCLID FAMILY RESTAURANT

OPEN 6 DAYS A WEEK • TUES-SUN

OPEN VALENTINE’S DAY! SERVING ALL DAY FOR LUNCH & DINNER 11AM-8PM SEE AD ON BACK PG

PAGE 2 • February 2022

•

TABLE HOPPING

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION, CALL (315) 474-1011

Word on the Street

by Bill McClellan

America’s Terrible Little Secret That This is True – We Should Weep

This was in the news 20 years ago. It is still happening in the Marianas and all over the world and swept under the table. Good people have worked on this and accomplished much in the Marianas but so much remains it is still an American and Human disgrace. What you will read is meant to highlight how Walmart, Disney, GAP, Tommy Hilfinger and many more have acquired filthy rich fortunes off the suffering and subjugation of human beings all over the world. I include a patriotic backdrop to highlight how far we have deteriorated as a people. Everyone is looking for an answer. The most effective answer is a “LEADER” that inspires and a few highly skilled unique speech writers that inspire. When they leave the stage, any audience needs to go “Whoa, where has this guy (gal) been? That leader is our greatest hope. If only we can find them.

There is no shortage of greatness among the people of this country. However, it is lost in our system and lost among those in the three branches of Government. And it is most certainly absent among the corporations and wealth that have purchased our leadership, and their silence, so that such abominations as you are about to read can exist without interference. Greatness comes from great words that successfully guide great deeds of compassion and good. In America the cessation of progress in the pursuit of the intent of our founders is in place.

You will cringe with disbelief and mighty disappointment as you continue to read. Today, lies and subversion try to hide these realities, not just in the Marianas, but everywhere exploitation for American convenience and profit exists.

The super-rich and corporate buyers of our government currently bathe in our great struggle as little attention is paid to their path of greedy evil that caused all of today’s division. The awesome truths contained herein clearly exemplify that we have reached a reality so far removed from the noble course set forth in our founding, as to seriously jeopardize this great experiment called America. Please sing along and read: Mine eyes have seen the Glory of the Coming of the Lord; He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored; He hath loosed the fateful lightning of

his terrible swift sword; His truth is marching on: “The Mariana Islands are a possession of the United States of America.” Their citizens are American citizens. Undisturbed slavery and the terrifying abuse of people from the teeming shores of China and other parts of Asia, and the world are the truths of many economies that qualify them as meccas for child sexual and labor abuse, and one of the most abusive environments for females on earth. This was rampant until the early 2000s and is far too prevalent today. This is fully known by the 535 in Washington, D.C. and is allowed due to campaign contributions. I don’t know how the 535 sleep at night. Where is the media?

Don’t they know what they are for? Glory Glory,

“Undisturbed slavery and the terrifying abuse of people from the teeming shores of China and other parts of Asia, and the world are the truths of many economies that qualify them as meccas for child sexual and labor abuse, and one of the most abusive environments for females on earth.”

Hallelujah, Glory Glory Hallelujah, Glory Glory Hallelujah, His truth is marching on.

I have seen Him in the watch fires of a hundred circling camps: We are building Him an altar in the evening dews and damps; I can see His “righteous” sentence by our dim but flaring lamps; His day is marching on: As his righteous sentence continued from the Civil War to Afghanistan, our heroes who would falter only under such knowledge as you read here, gave their lives as the 535 participate in the enslavement of populations, with no wage, safety or health measures in place and where every abuse is rampant and thousands are forced to lay on their backs in hope of one day getting out of this environment controlled by and for America: Glory Glory Hallelujah, Glory Glory Hallelujah, Glory Glory Hallelujah His truth is marching on. continued on pg 4

PAGE 3 • February 2022

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION, CALL (315) 474-1011

•

TABLE HOPPING

CLINTONSTREETPUB $3 SHOTS

Get your burgers here !

when you spin the

Shot Wheel! check out our

BURGER MONDAY Burger, Fries & Soft Drink

FABULOUS FRIDAY FISH FRY featuring our Line Drive Burger

$12

Specialty Burger extra $3

ALL DAY

EVERY MONDAY

Cocktail or Beer extra $2

We got beers here!

$1 OFF ALL DRAFTS MON-FRI 4-7PM

A few of our menu offerings!

Sal’s Birdland Wings

Blooming Onion Petals

Bacon Mac & Cheese

Spedie Nachos

127 W Fayette St. Syracuse, NY 13202 (315) 424-1187 Mon-Wed 4pm-1am • Thurs & Fri 4pm-2am • Sat 12pm-2am • Sun 12pm-12am

PAGE 4 • February 2022

•

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION, CALL (315) 474-1011

TABLE HOPPING

America’s Terrible Little Secret continued from pg 2

forced prostitution is okay if you pay: As he died to He has sounded forth the trumpet that shall never sound retreat. He is sifting out make men Holy, Let us Die the hearts of men before his judgment seat. O be swift, my soul, to answer him, be to Make Men Free. jubilant my feet, our God is marching on: Chinese and Philippine women, as I write, The American people are being sought in villages of straw huts with promises of American life. They accept don’t speak up as our massive enslaving debt to acquire jobs on the United States Territory of the Island leaders have a new of Saipan and other islands in the Marianas. These women are not only recruited for foremost rule superceding textiles, but to fill the all others, including bars and karaoke clubs American values which is: where they are forced “For Sale.” This creates the into prostitution. Many differences between the are threatened with values of the American death if they do not people and the American make their payments. reality.

It takes many years to In the beauty of the lilies pay their bondage. The Christ was born across the construction trades sea, with the glory in his are also riddled with bosom that transfigures human abuse in the you and me: As he died Marianas. Examples still to make men holy let us abound throughout die to make men free. the Marianas and the world. Glory Glory Hallelujah, Glory Glory Hallelujah, Glory Glory While God is marching on: Hallelujah, His truth is marching on.

Prostitution for some is a The Tan family companies (the largest garment manufacturers in the Marianas) gave bargain over labor. Many huge donations to the National Republican Senatorial Committee. Island donors gave are underage. Textile mills large sums to the Republican Presidential campaign. Dozens of prominent American have no air conditioning; companies donate regularly for silence in their pursuit of exploitation. This does not they are overcrowded count many forms of known and surely “Secret Favor.” It is astounding beyond belief that and qualify as mental and our leaders turn their heads away from the most severe aberrations of American values physical torturous labor and beliefs for money. Enslaving populations of other lands for profit. Even slavery and facilities. Construction work is full of human abomination. How would you feel if you were offered GIFT CARDS AVAILABLE the American promise and found yourself on an island under these hideous conditions? The dream of America is now a hopeless lie to you. Disney, Walmart, GAP, Arrow, Montgomery Ward and so many more participated. They call it an Export Production Zone. What a fancy title for slavery. What fancy names for back door slave owners. Glory Glory Hallelujah, Glory Glory Hallelujah, Glory Glory Hallelujah, His truth is marching on.

Every human degradation imaginable is taking place in the Marianas and all over the world for American corporations. Many will try to lie and cover this up. If the 535 did not fear offending the participating donors they would send clandestine parties of investigators wherever exploitation thrives. Where are Newsweek and Time and TV and so many others? They do one or two stories and forget it. They too have lost track of their JOIN US FOR purpose. If they held leaders accountable, perhaps America could once again righteously sound the trumpet that shall never sound retreat. Let us loose the fateful lightning of our SPECIALS terrible swift sword and as we correct our course, let us remember this great hymn that Chicken Parmesan, Prime Rib, Chicken was inspired by freeing slaves and let us free them again, once and for all. Not one of us Cordon Bleu, Delmonico, Stuffed Haddock deserve any of our bounty if we are not fighting to free these women and children from w/crab Meat Stuffing American controlled tyranny. www kostasbarandgrill com The 535 need to recall what America is. What patriotism is. They must belong to the 105 Grant Ave, Auburn, NY • 315-253-7711 Hymn. I have seen Him in the watch fires of a hundred circling camps; Not just the brave young soldier alone, but also the leaders of this land, must be seen in the watch fires.

“How would you feel if you were offered the American promise and found yourself on an island under these hideous conditions? The dream of America is now a hopeless lie to you.”

HERE!

GOURMET PIZZAS - FREE DELIVERY

LET US

WATCH THE BIG GAME HERE! — FEB 13TH—

SEE ALL THE

GAMES HERE! ON OUR 64 TVS

VALENTINE'S DAY WEEKEND

–FEB 12TH-14TH–

.

.

MON - THURS 8:00 AM - 10:00 PM • FRI - SUN 7:00 AM - 10:00 PM

PAGE 5 • February 2022

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION, CALL (315) 474-1011

•

TABLE HOPPING

WITH CENTRAL NEW YORK

est. 1979

www.table-hopping.com

1129 North State St., Syracuse NY 13208 Ph: 315.474.1011 Fax: 315.474.7072

PUBLISHER: Shawn Fresina

ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES: Jim Bastian GRAPHIC ARTISTS: Lauren Brown, Jamie Wallace SOCIAL MEDIA: Jennifer Nastasi-Guzelak

Interior Images: Freepik.com, Pixabay.com, Freeimages.com & Pexels.com.

The Table Hopping Newspaper is published the first week of every month by Table Hopping Inc. Business hours are Monday through Friday 9am-5pm. We deliver to over 1,100 locations throughout Central New York.

Display advertising rates may be obtained by calling 315.474.1011.

The 535 must sound the trumpet That Shall Never Sound Retreat. We have stumbled badly in the Marianas. It is the 535 that must loose the fateful lightning of his terrible swift sword. They must see that “All men are created equal” is the soul of the American pursuit. They must walk tall and proud and above all they must produce the deeds that give value to the spine-chilling decency of our Founders Hopes. “Let us Die to Make Men Free” Glory Glory, hallelujah, Glory Glory hallelujah, Glory Glory hallelujah, His truth is marching on. How is it that our departure from all this beauty is so embraced by the 535?

Inside... on the

8

brew time

“It is astounding beyond belief that our leaders turn their heads away from the most severe aberrations of American values and beliefs for money.”

by Kristin Merrit Sundays Are For Football and Beer

10

business of interest

by Nancy Roberts The Speach Family Candy Shoppe

14

dining out

by Keri Micale A Mano Kitchen & Bar

february 2022

VOLUME 44 No. 2

WORD ON THE STREET by Bill McClellan . . . . . . preventative medicine by Dr. Barry. . . . . . . . .

Now Playing by Brian Miller. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

The Write Stuff by Nancy Roberts. . . . . . . . .

Tales from the Vine by Vicki Denig. . . . . . . . .

COMPUTERS by Nancy Roberts. . . . . . . . . . . . .

My Mind To Yours by Debra Merryweather . . sounds of syracuse by Chuck Schiele . . . . beauty & fashion by Alfred Mears. . . . . . . . . streaming now by Brian Miller . . . . . . . . . . .

Sports take by Mike Lindsley. . . . . . . . . . . . . golf by Richard Boyle. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

2 6 12 16 18 22 24 26 30 32 33 34

Also...

MUSIC & EVENTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 CLASSIFIEDS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 Recipe. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

20

excercise & fitness

by Jennifer Nastasi Guzelak Stay Motivated to Workout This Winter

Table Hopping, Inc. will not knowingly accept or publish advertising which is fraudulent or misleading in nature.

The publisher reserves the right to reject or cancel any advertising. The opinions, views and comments expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the publisher. The contents of this publication are protected by copyright and may not be reproduced without express written permission from the publisher. © 2022 Table Hopping Inc.

AD DEADLINE for the March Issue is February 22nd.

CALL 474-1011 to reserve your advertising space!

PAGE 6 • February 2022

•

TABLE HOPPING

Preventive Medicine

by Dr. Barry

Fruit Isn’t All That!

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION, CALL (315) 474-1011

sugar so that’s a lot of extra sugar that the body has to remove from circulation. Glucose and fructose are very similar sugars but are handled very differently by the body. Fruits contain both glucose and fructose in roughly even proportions.

Chronic elevation of sugar causes advanced glycogenated end products to build up.

This turns to oxidized fats etc. to contribute to inflammation. These AGE’s affect the brain, the eyes, the heart, the kidneys, wound healing, infection and cancer. Elevated glucose levels also glycate other tissues and lipids. The glycocalyx is a coating of every endothelial blood vessel...it’s critical to health and is fragile. This organ of sorts is particularly affected by elevated blood glucose. Damaging the glycocalyx is analogous to damaging the lining of your gut causing leaky blood vessels much as you get a leaky gut.

Excess sugar triggers increased insulin which is generally inflammatory. There is a direct correlation between insulin levels and degree of inflammatory markers in the knee as shown in a study done within the last 5 years and mentioned by Dr. Fettke Insulin reduces vitamin D absorption; Insulin stimulates tumor growth; Insulin lowers magnesium levels which are required in myriad biochemical pathways and insulin increases clotting measures.

Now Fructose in particular is mostly

“For millenium carbohydrate intake was seasonal and fruit based and since we began to bake and use grains our health has deteriorated.”

This article draws heavily from great work on carbohydrate metabolism by Dr. Gary Fettke, a Tazmanian surgeon who drew the ire of the nutritional service at his hospitals when he suggested diabetic patients could prevent further amputations if they lowered their carbohydrate intake. Even though the government guidelines suggest you should get half your calories from fruits and grains, excessive carbohydrate intake is dangerous. For millenium carbohydrate intake was seasonal and fruit based and since we began to bake and use grains our health has deteriorated.

Fruit was intended to fatten us up for Winter. We now have endless Summer in our groceries so we are not seasonal anymore and it shows in our waistlines.

All carbohydrates are sugar. There are many different sugars...glucose, sucrose, fructose for example. The human body Endless summer in our markets goes to great lengths to remove excess sugar from the bloodstream. Any excess sugar in the bloodstream is dealt with aggressively by the body to keep the levels low because too much is toxic. Turns out more than a teaspoon of sugar has a toxic effect.

It’s all about energy production and that brings up the Krebs cycle in which acetyl coA is converted by the mitochondria into energy...ATP to be exact. Acetyl coA can be produced from fatty acids, sugar and amino acids. There is no absolute need for sugar as an energy source in contrast to fatty acids and amino acids which are absolutely essential.

Glucose can be consumed by us or created by gluconeogenesis and from glycogen stores. Excess glucose triggers an elevation of sugar which in turn stimulates insulin.

More than one teaspoon calls for a response. A slice of bread contains 5 teaspoons of

metabolized in the liver. Fructose raises uric acid which is also inflammatory and elevated uric acid negatively affects the production of nitric acid which is a critical component of vascular heath. Uric acid decreases white cell function and adversely affects our response to infection. Fructose actually increases hunger via both the leptin and ghrelin pathways if you want to get technical. Fructose increases the oxidation of LDL, the type of lipid your doctor calls the “the bad cholesterol.“ Just as an aside...why do they give you so much sugar in the hospital?

It’s not just in the food... breakfast pizza and pecan pie are touted as healthy.

Sugar is directly toxic to the immune system but how many people are getting a sugar water intravenous solution?! One more thing to worry about when you go into the hospital.

One way to manage your sugars is obviously via your diet. Keto diets are low carbohydrate/ low sugar diets that directly address this issue of carbohydrate toxicity.

More than a teaspoon of sugar has a toxic effect Many physicians are leery of a keto diet but let’s look

PAGE 7 • February 2022

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION, CALL (315) 474-1011

•

TABLE HOPPING

Scheduled obesity is the process of turning sugar into fat during times of plenty. There were papers published as early as 1948 that connected sugar with illness. By 1992 the food guide suggested 5-9 fruits and vegetables a day but there is no real science behind that recommendation. In 2005 the CDC partnered with the produce industry to continue to promote fruits along with vegetables. The Epic Study in Europe involved over 500,000 people and lasted for over 15 years and did not show a correlation between fruits and veggies and cancer rate.

How much sugar is healthy according to the World Health Organization? 25 grams which is 6 teaspoons of sugar a day. We have gone from 5 pounds a year of sugar consumption to 152 pounds a year. And that’s an average.

Well, what about all the other nutritional benefits of fruit in terms of minerals, vitamins and micronutrients? Fruit nutritional value is overstated. Look at antioxidants...a cup of coffee has much more antioxidants than most fruits. Look at vitamins...well green leafy veggies have much more vitamin E, vitamin A etc. Look at minerals... again green leafy veggies, ie. spinach, has more potassium than the banana. Fruit also has less phytonutrients and fiber than many vegetables.

So let’s start the New Year off right and keep things in perspective. Fruit may not be the substance you should base your diet on but it’s way healthier than any fast food, fried food, processed food and liquid calories like soda and fruit drinks. Have fruit but seasonally and sporadically like your ancestors experienced and see how you feel. If you want to try to lower your carbohydrates in your diet, I would refer you to Keto Syracuse on facebook. Keto Phil knows what he is talking about and has all the references you would ever want and more.

Knowledge is power. Make this the year you become truly powerful! Until next month...get well and stay well.

“Fruit has less phytonutrients and fiber than many vegetables.”

at the keto diet in the most vulnerable population we have...unborn babies. We have a long and consistent medical record here. Mothers with morning sickness are often in ketosis...this is something we have seen and measured. The other end of the spectrum is babies whose mothers have gestational diabetes. So. Some babies are exposed to very low sugar and some babies are exposed to high sugar levels and we can track their outcomes. It’s no surprise that the keto exposed babies are healthier in every metric compared to the gestational diabetes babies...premature births, birth defects etc...all worse in the high sugar group.

OPEN until Midnight 7 Days a Week! • 10PM - 12AM CURBSIDE PICKUP ONLY

!

K C A B S I T A E N A C U O Y ALL NLY! O N I T A E | S Y A D SUN BONELESS $

AUGUST 13TH & 14TH • NAPA Auto Parts presents ESS Sprint Speedweek plus Mods/Spts/ LM/Novice and Bernard’s Beagle Rescue/ Misfit’s Animal Sanctuary Auction

5 9 $ 5 STEAK 2

SUPERBOWL VALENTINE’S

SPECIALS DAY ALL DAY SPECIALS

NOW SERVING

5 9 5 1

PORK $ STEAK

12” SUBS! HOT OR COLD

WINGS

2095

E L B A L I A V A G N I R E T CA SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL PHOENIX & SCHROEPPEL BUSINESSES!

• Cam’s Pizzeria • Bombadils Tavern • Basil Thai Restaurant • • CJ’s Deli • The Gingersnap Gift Shop & Cake Bakery • • Duskee’s Sports Bar & Grill • R.F.H.’s Hide-A-Way Restaurant • • Li’s Garden • Monirae’s Restaurant • 916 Restaurant • • Tasswood Bakery • Our Family To Yours Café • • MaryAnne’s Countrytime Café • Lock 1 Distillery

228 HUNTLEY ROAD Off Route 57A (Off Rt 481) PHOENIX, NY • 315.695.2245

PAGE 8 • February 2022

•

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION, CALL (315) 474-1011

TABLE HOPPING

Brew Time

by Kristin Merritt

Sundays are for Football & Beer By the time this article goes to print, we’ll know who our Super Bowl LVI contenders will be. My personal hope is that the Buffalo Bills go ALL THE WAY, but truly, anything can happen. Regardless, come Sunday, February 13th, I’ll still be watching the big game, cheering on just about any team that doesn’t have Tom Brady on it. (Sorry, not sorry!)

Beer and football go hand in hand – you really can’t have one without the other these days. Just think about all the famous Super Bowl commercials over the years – some of the most memorable being the Budweiser frogs (“Bud,” “Weis,” “Er”) in 1995, Budweiser’s “Wassup” bro-culture coining phrase in 1999, the Bud Light Knight who ended the “Dilly Dilly” saga of commercials in 2018, and of course, the famous Budweiser Clydesdales who have appeared in one commercial or another every single year since 1986 – except in 2021 where they re-directed the enormous sum of money they would have paid for advertising to instead support Covid-19 vaccine awareness and education. While I really respect Budweiser’s decision last year, I would like to see those beautiful horses back in action and gracefully galloping across the screens of our televisions this year.

We go out to the bar, host parties at home, and if you’re lucky enough, get to enjoy the big game in person – and boy, oh boy, do we enjoy our game day

food and drinks. FarmRich, the company that makes frozen mozzarella sticks and jalapeño poppers, conducted a poll of 2000 American adults in December 2019, posing the question, “What foods can’t be missed at a Super Bowl party?” The top spot went to chicken wings with 50% of the votes, followed by pizza (45%), chicken bites (38%), mozzarella sticks (33%), chips (32%), veggies & dip (28%), loaded potato skins (28%), cookies (26%), fruit (26%) and hot dogs (26%). Another 2019 poll with 1175 American adults over 21, conducted by the Beer Institute in Washington D.C. found that 76% of respondents planned to drink beer at their Super Bowl festivities that year.

“Additionally, 78% of those planning on having that cold beer stated that beer was an important part of the Super Bowl experience.”

Some top Super Bowl foods

Additionally, 78% of those planning on having that cold beer stated that beer was an important part of the Super Bowl experience.

While I am a die-hard craft beer fan myself, especially loving darker beers, stouts and porters, that’s not what I’ll be drinking during game day. I’ll want a light beer to go with all the tasty food that I’ll be surrounding myself with. Not only will a lighter beer not fill me up, it will also allow my palate to enjoy the sweet, salty, and savory items I’ll be noshing on – accompanying the flavors of the food and not totally overpowering them. An ideal light beer for me would be Labatt Blue Light if I’m kicking it cheaply-yet-satisfying, or Genesee Brewing Company’s Honey Brown golden lager – a light, subtly sweet, completely unobtrusive, smooth, easy-going brew. Of course, you also can’t go wrong with a light hard-cider or sour beer such as

PAGE 9 • February 2022

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION, CALL (315) 474-1011

“It’s about America and the sport of football creating a melting pot of fans that are able to come together no matter their background, race, religion, creed, orientation, sex, education, or political preference.”

Brooklyn Brewery’s Bel Air Sour, either.

Football as a whole is simply about enjoying the camaraderie of fellow fans of “your” team while having fun ribbing and talking-smack about the opposing team and their fans. It’s about the pursuit of greatness in the game, rooting for the underdogs and rookies,

SUPER BOWL PARTY $8

JOIN US FOR ALL THE BIG GAMES!

BONELESS WINGS EAT IN ONLY

Join us on

3-6PM

$ 3 CANS

VALENTINES with our SPECIAL MENU!

Valentine’s SPECIAL ROOM RATE

SERVING 4-9 PM

LIVE MUSIC

$ 65 FEB 11-14

FRIDAY, FEB 4 • 6-9pm • Mike MacDonald FRIDAY, FEB 11 • 7-10pm • 13 Curves FRIDAY, FEB 18 • TBD FRIDAY, FEB 25 • 6:30-9:30pm Mike Farrar and The House Rockers

Check out our new website!

TABLE HOPPING

watching your favorite players rise to new heights, watching athletes grow into Hall of Famers, but it’s also about enduring the lows when the game doesn’t quite go your way, coping with the losses and injuries, never losing hope, and never being a “fair weather” fan. It’s about families and friends gathering together, cooking out, tailgating, snacking on favorite foods, relaxing with a few brews, cheering, highfiving, and introducing the next generation to the game and creating life-long fans.

It’s about wearing that lucky sweatshirt or not laundering your Zubaz pants for the entire season out of pure superstition. It’s about America and the sport of football creating a melting pot of fans that are able to come together no matter their background, race, religion, creed, orientation, sex, education, or political preference.

Football, when you really think about it, is one of the greatest American treasures we have in this country.

FEBRUARY 13TH

3-9PM

•

NOW OPEN

MONDAY-THURSDAY: OPEN @ 3:00pm FRIDAY: OPEN @ NOON SATURDAY & SUNDAY: OPEN @ 2:00pm

**Now Available: Select bottles of wine and 6 packs of beer to go**

Mon

NEW Specialty Burger Night Bison, Elk, Venison, Veggie

Tues Wing Night Jumbo Wings Wed

Cans-Clams-Shrimp Night

NY State, All Farm Raised

$ 8.9t9in peonrlyor•der • ea

$3.00 Cans, $8.50/doz Clams, Jumbo Shrimp Specials

Thurs Steak Night Fri WESTERNRANCHINN.COM

1255 STATE FAIR BLVD., SYRACUSE • 315-457-9236 WESTERNRANCHINN.COM

Sat

9oz. Prime NY Top Sirloin Steak $15.99

Seafood Night

Fresh Haddock Dinner $15.99

Prime Rib

Special prices for eat-in only

PAGE 10 • February 2022

•

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION, CALL (315) 474-1011

TABLE HOPPING

Business of Interest

by Nancy Roberts

The Speach Family Candy Shoppe “One of my favorite stories about Valentine’s Day and chocolates,” Michael Speach told me, “was about a special offer we had on our highly decorative and unique heart boxes. If a customer brought one back in, as long as it was in good condition and it had our label on it – we’d refill it with the items they chose to buy the next year, and the year after that. We had one gentleman who came in year after year and got a special assortment to fill that same box. Every year. Well one year, he didn’t show up – but his wife did. He had passed away, but she wanted to keep that tradition going, so she was going to fill that very special box with candy for her kids and grandkids. That’s the kind of thing that keeps us working as hard as we do with Valentine’s Day and Easter coming up – the stories we share with customers. That, and a sense of humor!”

I asked Speach if he knew how Valentine’s Day and chocolate came to be so closely associated, and as it turns out, while chocolate and love go all the way back to the Aztecs, it was in 1861 that British chocolatier Richard Cadbury got the brilliant idea to package his chocolates in heart-shaped boxes, decorated with Cupids, frills and bows. The tradition has never gone out of style.

But if you want to explore the whole idea of “sweets” and “fun” this holiday, or any holiday,

you owe it to yourself to visit the Speach Family Candy Shoppe. Just a quick stop on the website will give you all you need to know: the company is about delicious, absolutely. But it’s also quite clear that it’s about fun, joy, and sharing some “happy,” especially in a time that’s been a challenge for us all.

“When a child comes in the store,” Speach told me, “they just go crazy before they’ve finished looking in the first aisle. But we find that when an adult comes in, they feel young again, too. But it’s more than nostalgia, finding Michael Speach candy from your own childhood, or wanting to try something new. It’s that people want to feel good, have a laugh, or look forward to something.”

He explained that a novelty mix – “For the Love of Vinyl Tray” – came out of his staff dedicating Friday’s at work to a little fun, listening to vinyl records to keep things happy and lighten the load, since they were an “essential business” (and candy is definitely essential!) and stayed open throughout the early days of the pandemic. “Now we sell a box that is dedicated to the vinyl lover. Real vinyl records are melted into a candy tray that’s going to make any vinyl collector delighted. They’re available in 45 RPM or 33 1/3 RPM styles, and come with a Speach Family Sweet Studios label that will be unique to every order.”

Speach admitted that he gets less and less sleep as February looms ahead, knowing that one of their, if not the biggest candy selling seasons of the year is coming up. “So humor is our way of enjoying the holidays.”

This Christmas, the company offered “Snowman Poo,” and it was a hit, so they decided to see what Cupid had to offer. Cupid Poo (“Love Happens”) turns out to be a white chocolate party mix made with cereal, mixed nuts, pretzels, cinnamon, chocolate candies and red hots – and served up by a unique version of Cupid, complete with fluffy wings and a special smile. When you see him, you’ll fall in love!

There are molded chocolates in everything from traditional, to absolutely silly, to adult; a delicious assortment of fudge; miniatures; chocolate covered pretzels and chips; and something called a “brickle,” 80 different varieties of the Speach version of chocolate bark – crisp, flavorful, and offered in both beautiful and bubbly styles to suit a special holiday, occasion or gift.

If you were to simply meet Michael Speach, or any one of his family or co-workers, you’d think that surely this merry and motley crew created the company. Not so. It’s actually a family affair, having been started by Michael’s great-grandfather, Michele

“We had one gentleman who came in year after year and got a special assortment to fill that same box. Every year.”

PAGE 11 • February 2022

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION, CALL (315) 474-1011

Spicciati, who emigrated to the United States to join some of his family already here. Like many new Americans, he moved around, worked at various jobs, and eventually ended up in Syracuse working for a cough drop company, where he learned the basics of candy making. Equipped with the essentials, Michele became intrigued with the magic – dreaming up an idea, blending just the right ingredients, cooking and mixing them “just so” and cooling and packaging them when they’re perfect for wrapping, and then waiting to see the smile the flavor would bring to a customer’s face.

“Today, we still make some of the recipes he handed down, along with others my mother created,” Speach said.

“Each generation has expanded the line.

I added the alcohol flavorings to some Truffles, and we call them ‘Top Shelf Truffles.’ A little cocktail, a little dessert.”

The Chocoholic Box was a result of the pandemic, hitting as it did just before Easter. “We had a lot of product to move,” explains Speach. “So we started creating a mystery box. There were six different designs, all related to COVID. ‘Just a Test’ came with an empty roll of toilet paper; or the ‘Zombie Apocalypse’ was wrapped with caution tape in a bright red box. We packaged them up in six different sizes, flavors and mixes. We were selling them locally and on-line through our website, when someone from Amazon contacted us Subscription Box about a subscription box idea. In June we’ll have been selling them that way for two years. You can still order a single surprise box direct from us, or subscribe through Amazon. You never know how a product will get created. A bride wanted a ‘care package’ to give to her guests who couldn’t attend her wedding – so she had us make a bride and groom chocolate covered pretzel rod!”

A glance at the website assures you that in addition to candies, old and new,

•

TABLE HOPPING

traditional and custom – including some of your old favorites like Black Jack Gum, Necco Wafers and Licorice Laces – two other important offerings are family: relatives; co-workers; and the greater community; and fun.

The company is proud of its record of fundraisers, partnering with a wide range of local organizations to help raise up the community

“It’s that people want to feel good, have a laugh, or look forward to something. Humor is our way of enjoying the holidays.” that supports them, celebrating 2020 as its official 10 Decades (yes, that’s 100 years!) of Giving.

And the fun just oozes out of every little thing about The Speach Family Candy Shoppe. From specialty gifts of the non-edible variety to just about everything sweet (and sassy) that’s more-than-fit to serve, you’ll find it at your home-town candy shoppe.

You can order online, but stop in if you can – including Sunday, February 13th, just in time for Valentine’s Day. The spirit of sweet is contagious, and you’re bound to leave with something delicious, and a smile on your face.

2400 Lodi Street Syracuse, NY 13208 315-478-3100 855-472-2639 www.speachfamilycandy.com

Hours: Monday-Saturday 10AM-5PM Sunday Closed Sunday, February 13th open Noon-Five (special hours pre-Valentine’s)

You may also schedule an appointment by: calling: 315-478-3100 • e-mail: speachcandy@gmail.com Facebook: www.facebook.com/speachfamilycandy Twitter: @SpeachCandy Instagram: speachcandy

PAGE 12 • February 2022

•

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION, CALL (315) 474-1011

TABLE HOPPING

Now P l ay i n g

NOW

TABLE

by BRIAN MILLER

PLAY

ING

HOPP

ING

The Matrix Resurrections I’m not sure how many folks there were out there clamoring for a new MATRIX movie, but when Warner Brothers announced that the groundbreaking franchise was getting another chapter, buzz began to build.

Upon its release in 1999, THE MATRIX became a cultural phenomenon. The “bullet time” effect blew everyone’s collective minds, and from that second forward, it (or some variation) was utilized in virtually every action movie for years to come. Though this particular effect was revolutionary, the wonderment didn’t stop there. The trilogy itself was chock full of dazzling sequences (including one of the great car chases in cinematic history) and deep, often confounding philosophical musings. Its conclusion seemed to provide a fitting end to the story, so I don’t think a continuation of the saga was on anyone’s radar.

Hugs & Kisses

FOR THAT someone

special

Carrie Ann Moss Released simultaneously on HBO Max and in theaters, THE MATRIX RESURRECTIONS certainly does not provide the same game-changing thrills as the original, but does emerge as a welcome return to a world that I hadn’t realized that I had missed.

As RESURRECTIONS begins, Thomas Anderson (Keanu Reeves) works as a video game developer.

He had struck gold with his Matrix series, which had become one of the most popular franchises of all time. With this, we learn that the events of the original trilogy were little more than his professional creation, though

“The true delight of RESURRECTIONS is watching Reeves and Carrie Ann Moss back together again.”

Support Your Local Business!

Valentine Arrangements

$4500 STARTING AT

ROSES, GIFTWARE, BALLOONS, PLUSH & CANDY

By supporting a small business you help support a dream, a family and so much more!

OPEN SUN 9-2 104 Myron Road, Syracuse

•

315-488-3164

www.samraoflorist.com

WITH CENTRAL NEW YORK

PAGE 13 • February 2022

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION, CALL (315) 474-1011

•

TABLE HOPPING

as it has ever been, and there is a genuine comfort in seeing them share the screen.

Once Neo realizes the true nature of his existence, he will stop at nothing to save Trinity from forever flailing in the Matrix. As Thomas Anderson, the two had struck up a relationship of sorts after meeting in a coffee shop. She is aware of his video game, and though she is married with children, she can’t help but find an inexplicable link between herself, and the character of Trinity within the game.

Though at this point there is no plan for future MATRIX films, RESSURECTIONS lays down a foundation to build upon, and RATED: R Reeves is already on record as saying he’d RUN TIME: 2h 28min absolutely return if asked. It seems hard GENR E: Action, Sci-Fi to believe that this is the last that we have STARR ING: Keanu Reeves, seen of Neo and Trinity, and admittedly, Carrie-An ne Moss, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II I’m far more interested to see where it DIREC TOR: Lana Wachowski goes now than I expected to be.

the matrix: resurrections

Keanu Reeves admittedly, he had inserted portions of himself within the character of Neo. He struggles with crippling nerves and anxiety, constantly questioning what is real and what isn’t. With the help of his therapist (a delightfully cast Neil Patrick Harris) he takes blue pills days in an effort to keep himself grounded in reality.

The whole “the events of THE MATRIX were just a video game” revelation would normally serve as the surprise twist in most productions, but here, it’s the foundation of the entire film. Little does Neo know that the life he is currently inhabiting isn’t real, and what unfolded in his video game actually occurred. This blurred line of reality is about to dissipate, and Neo will once again be called upon to be “the one.”

Those who can’t recall the specifics of the original trilogy need not fear that they’ll be lost this time around.

RESURRECTIONS doesn’t simply recap important moments, it features clips (particularly that of Trinity’s death) in abundance. It happened so frequently, in fact, that it was almost confounding.

I’m not sure that I can ever recall a time when a new film featured so many clips from an old one. At times it felt as if “The Matrix’s Greatest Hits” was being interjected throughout this new installment, and though I appreciated the reminders, I found the sheer volume of these moments to be somewhat off-putting.

Director Lana Wachowski follows the same formula and plot points that worked so well in 1999, yet does so in a way that keeps the audience engaged and entertained. It hits all the right notes of nostalgia, while delivering a number of thrilling action sequences that aren’t quite as innovative as their predecessors, but still exciting enough justify their own existence.

New iterations of characters such as Morpheus (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II) and Smith (Jonathan Groff) were stand outs in this regard.

The true delight of RESURRECTIONS is watching Reeves and Carrie Ann Moss back together again. The chemistry between the two is as strong Neil Patrick Harris

THE MATRIX RESURRECTIONS: B (Now showing in theaters, no longer available to view on HBO Max)

Writers: Lana Wachowski

GRADE: B

-2021-

Thank you for voting us

Best Take Out Restaurant

JOIN US FOR VALENTINE’S DAY • MON, FEB 14TH

For all your Party & Catering needs!

L et us ta ca re of y ke our

SUPER BOWL PA R T Y !

Call & Make Your Reservation Today • 315-622-9690

Check out our new website!

WWW.MYAVICOLLIS.COM Check Out Our New Facebook Page!

7839 OSWEGO RD., LIVERPOOL

PAGE 14 • February 2022

•

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION, CALL (315) 474-1011

TABLE HOPPING

Dining Out

by Kerilyn E. Micale

A Mano Kitchen & Bar Extraordinary times call for extraordinary meals and there is no better place to get just that than A Mano Kitchen & Bar. Whether you stop in for a celebration with the whole family, a hand crafted cocktail and wood fired pizza with friends, or a romantic date night sharing new culinary experiences, you are bound to have a great time at A Mano. They are located in the Icon Tower at 344 S. Warren St. in the heart of Downtown Syracuse. They are open Wednesday through Saturday from 4:30 pm to 9:30 pm. You can call (315) 303-1630 to make a reservation or even book them through the website at https://www.amanosyr.com/ A mano means “by hand.” This phrase is simple and yet so elegant. This name is the embodiment of everything you will find at A Mano Kitchen & Bar because as you might have guessed everything is made by hand. From the freshly made pasta to the hand tossed pizzas, right down to the citrus and fennel butter. At A Mano Kitchen & Bar they pride themselves on utilizing the finest, freshest, and often locally sourced ingredients which helps them provide an unforgettable culinary experience. They have also adopted a fitting description for their style of cuisine – Modern American with an Italian Soul. At A Mano Kitchen & Bar you can experience this fusion of modern and traditional through the culinary journey of the Fiacchi family’s story: a combination of decades in the culinary industry, world class culinary education, and travels across Europe learning about food, culture, and farming.

Kyle and I arrived at A Mano on a wonderfully snowy winter night. We were delighted to be seated at a table near a window so that we could see the glittering snowflakes dance down from the sky while enjoying the warm atmosphere that is so enjoyable at A Mano.

One of the things we like the most about dining at A Mano is pace, you are never rushed or hurried so you are truly able to relax and enjoy your time, your

“This name is the embodiment of everything you will find at A Mano Kitchen & Bar because as you might have guessed everything is made by hand.” meal, and your company. The wait staff is always very accommodating, friendly, and knowledgeable, and our server, Nikki, was no exception! Another fantastic thing about A Mano is that their menu and specials are constantly changing so there is nearly always something new and exciting to try! We began our meal with an order of the Calamari, a dish of hand breaded and gently fried calamari served with long hot agrodolce and lemon aioli. We both really enjoyed the sweet and spicy flavor that the agrodolce added to the dish especially when paired with the zesty lemon aioli. We also just could not pass up an order of the Polpette, pork and veal hand rolled meatballs served with a red sauce arrabiata on top of a scrumptious dollop of whipped ricotta. We really enjoyed the juxtaposition of the meatballs with the creamy ricotta, making it an absolutely delightful dish! I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the bread baskets which are a thing of beauty at A Mano. They are served with different types of freshly baked bread, a selection of handcrafted butter and even grownup cheese – that are to die for! This evening we were treated to Deloro’s Italian bread and house made focaccia with cool ranch butter. For our entrees Kyle knew what he was ordering the moment I told him we were headed

“You are never rushed or hurried so you are truly able to relax and enjoy your time, your meal, and your company.”

PAGE 15 • February 2022

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION, CALL (315) 474-1011

to A Mano – the Ribeye, this is an impressive slice of carnivore heaven, a 34 ounce ribeye on the bone served with baby lettuce and grilled lemon and a side of smashed potatoes.

Of all the places to get a steak, A Mano is by far Kyle’s favorite. This entrée is cooked to perfection Calamari Polpette and big enough to share so I was able to sneak a few bites! For my meal I was intrigued by one of the specials: Spinach Strangolapreti. I had never heard of this dish before but culinary adventures at A Mano have never disappointed me before so it was worth a try. This dish was an absolute delight made with soft Freshly Baked Bread Ribeye spinach strangolapreti (playfully translating to priest strangler), a hearty gnocchi like pasta, topped with crispy prosciutto, smothered with brown butter, and topped with taleggio. This dish was wonderful, interesting, and totally filling. I would absolutely order it again!

Spinach Strangolapreti We decided that it was time to head home before the snow got worse so we ordered desert to go. Kyle ordered the Budino, a heavenly combination of chocolate pudding, salted caramel, mascarpone, and a brownie cookie. Every bite was amazing.

I decided on the Lava Cake (which came with heating directions) a peanut butter cake with warm peanut butter inside topped with molten chocolate and sprinkled with peanuts. This was the perfect way to end a perfect meal!

This Valentine’s Day impress your sweetheart with an unforgettable meal. At A Mano Kitchen & Bar they are focused on providing you with a unique dining experience that you can’t find anywhere else in town. The menu is always evolving to make sure the best of the season is served to every guest so be sure to look out for new things! Check them out on Facebook to keep up with their yummy daily specials and special events and visit their website at www. amanosyr.com. Better yet, head over to A Mano today and experience the “handmade” difference!

•

TABLE HOPPING

Join Us For

s ' e n i t n Vale

WEEKEND

Open for inside seating at the bar and dining room.

HOURS: Wed-Sat 4:30-9pm

PAGE 16 • February 2022

•

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION, CALL (315) 474-1011

TABLE HOPPING

The Write Stuff

by Nancy Roberts

Disneyanity – of “Walt” and Religion

by Douglas Brode The shortest possible summary of this very intriguing book: The Bible of Walt Disney.

First, a few words about the author. When Doug and I were both on a cable TV show called “Magazine 13,” we conceived a contest called “Stump Doug.” The idea was for viewers to come up with difficult film questions for Brode, and he would be asked them, with no preparation or warning, on the show – live. Even I was amazed at the sheer depth of the man’s knowledge of film. It was truly encyclopedic, and dare I say, triviamaster-level. “A third remake of a 1920 silent film featured what bit player who had helped design the set in the 1920 film?” He knew. (I’m making that up, so don’t bother trying to research it – but if there were such a question, he’d know the answer!)

He has long had, within his overall category of films, some areas of particular interest: westerns; cult classics; B movie femme fatales; and specific actors or directors whose body of work put them in a special category; to name a few.

“Doug Brode has approached Walt Disney as one might a figurehead of a, in his own words, “secular spirituality.”

He’s also written a number of fictional works.

But there’s something special, even in Brode’s world of “specials,” about Walt Disney. Doug Brode has approached Walt Disney as one might a figurehead of a, in his own words, “secular spirituality.” As a child of the early days of Disney-on-TV, I certainly can’t argue with the premise that Walt Disney had a powerful impact on the children of the Baby Boom. While he had entertained older kids at the movies, creating Mickey Mouse, a kind of “Little Tramp makes cartoons” character, along with all his pals, a collection of misfits and oddballs who singly or together manage to overcome the odds; with TV, Disney had a direct path to little kids who could quickly name all the Mouseketeers, knew what words came after “Meeska-mooseka-mousekateer...” spoken while aiming “magic fingers” at a spinning dial, and who knew every word to:

“Who’s the leader of the club that’s made for you and me?”

Brode contends, though, that Disney, and his movies and TV specials, and eventually “Magic Kingdoms” were far more than silly entertainment prized by kids of all ages.

Walt’s “world” was a lens, a magical lens, if you will, through which you viewed the world – and so viewed, it was a better place.

If you were one of those Walt Disney children who saw either “Bambi,” or “Old Yeller” at, say, under 10 years of age, you’ll understand the power of the stories Walt told.

Bambi was a tiny deer destined, King Arthur like, to become King of the Forest – where man was the greatest thing to fear. In “Old Yeller,” a noble dog saves his beloved human companions from a rabid animal, only to become rabid himself, requiring his adored boy to put him down, saving him from pain, and others from danger. Both spoke deeply to the hearts and minds of young kids – and, to Brode, helped spawn a kind of spiritual revolution of the young, and spread the Word of Walt.

Brode begins the book with a forthright comparison: what, to the secular fun lover, is akin to a sacred trip for faithful Catholics, The Mouseketeers or he might have added, a pilgrimage for a believing Muslim? The answer to the last two is a trip to the Vatican, and a visit to Mecca, in that order. And for the first? A trip to Walt Disney World!

I recall the anticipation with which I approached my first trip (as an adult, even!) to Disneyland in California. And the excitement in the voices of two young family members when they were going to visit – wheeeee!

– Disney World!

While not suggesting the two, religion and the world of Disney, are quite the same, Brode does clearly suggest that religion is tied, however loosely, to magic, and Disney, of course, is the magic kingdom. There is something in the human mind and heart, he argues, that was built to recognize and crave magic. And Walt Disney, while not purporting to be a prophet or magician (exactly), certainly did aim to supply some magical fun, and even, if you will, magical thinking.

Brode breaks his book into a combination of concepts/precepts, and the films, characters, cartoons, and nuggets buried in each that represented them.

So, for example, Disney was a framer of Nature as a wise, loving, and good Being (often female). Even in films like Davey Crockett, where our hero must do battle with nature to survive, he learns to work as one with her, eventually moving in peaceful harmony. She is often represented in the shape of a tree, he notes, tying that impulse back to the Druidic worship of the trees, each one having a symbol and a purpose. He made films specifically to introduce young (and older) minds and hearts to the wonders of nature, taking us on adventures deep into the wilderness which, according to Brode’s reading of it, was not

PAGE 17 • February 2022

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION, CALL (315) 474-1011

the dangerous nature of the Puritan or Victorian mind, but the gracious mother Gaia, who, if you just took the time and care, could produce wonders.

Another theme is the little oddball who, against all odds and with pluck and “sticktuitivity” is able to overcome challenges and, with a wink and a nod, win the day.

The God-King who appeared as something less, but felt his heroism bubbling up from some well deep within him, so he reached down to find it and tap its power.

Yet another Disney insight Brode perceives is anticipation of the feminist movement, in which the woman plays the hero’s role and bests a challenge to save the ones she loves – and lives not simply to be “won” and collected as a trophy,

“And Walt Disney, while not purporting to be a prophet or magician (exactly), certainly did aim to supply some magical fun, and even, if you will, magical thinking.”

but as a champion in her own right, who can follow her own dreams – and “kiss the guy” she wants, when she wants.

As in scripture, in Disney (or the word according to Walt) the lessons and the stories are entwined. There’s no need to try to pry them apart if you don’t wish – you can simply sit back and let them wash over you, enjoying the beauty of the music, the fun and wit, the wisdom and insights, and letting the characters become part of your literary and spiritual vocabulary.

Or you can inspect them more closely and ask, “why did Disney choose that fairy tale, and change that element? What was he trying to say? What has Disney taught me about the animals of the forest, or why an angry quacking Duck (Donald) reminds me of

•

TABLE HOPPING

people I know and what they can teach me?”

With this book, Brode has done a lot of the heavy lifting for you, but as with any body of work as complex, chock-full, and varied as Disney’s, there is – once you’re looking – always something more to find, prize out, examine, and put back to consider again another day. Brode has given you the key to the Kingdom – explore!

Fine Dining

Va len tin e’s R es erva tions!

MAKE YOUR

VOTED BEST ROMANTIC RESTAURANT & BEST CHEF of CNY

Books End

-2021-

Gently used, rare & out-of-print books, hardcovers, paperbacks and ephemera Thank You for Voting Us BEST BOOK STORE

-2021-

• Cash paid for books •

2443 James Street • Eastwood (Across from Palace Theatre) • (315) 437-2312 Mon – Sat 10:00 – 6:00 • Sun 11:30 – 5:00 • www.thebooksend.com

RESERVATIONS REQUIRED DUE TO LIMITED SEATING

2290 W. GENESEE TPK (RT. 5) • CAMILLUS, NY 315.672.3166 • www.inn-between.com

PAGE 18 • February 2022

•

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION, CALL (315) 474-1011

TABLE HOPPING

Tales from the Vine

by Vicki denig by Cassandra Harrington

Alcohol-Free Wine Whether pursuing wellness goals, or simply seeking a balance in your drinking regimen, alcohol-free wine provides the perfect solution. I know what you’re thinking – wine without the booze? Trust me, I was skeptical, too, though after some extensive research, I finally found my answer in New Zealand’s Marlborough region – and I was much more pleasantly surprised than I thought I’d be.

But beware – not all alcohol-free wine is created equal, and I’m not just saying that in regard to taste. In a sea of alcohol-free wines, only a few are actually produced using a veritable dealcoholization formula. Confused as to what that is? Not to worry. I’m going to break down everything you need to know about alcohol-free wine.

How does the alcohol removing process work?

There are two main ways in which alcohol can be removed from wine. The most popular way in which alcohol is taken out of wine is through vacuum distillation, a process that heats the wine up and allows the ethanol to evaporate. High-quality producers of alcohol-free wine are extremely careful to heat the wine to the lowest temperature possible (around 95 degrees fahrenheit), which allows evaporation to take What is place without cooking the wine. The result is an authentic, true-to-taste “wine” with an alcohol-free wine?

ABV no higher than 0.5 percent.

Alcohol-free wine is The second way in which wine can be dealcoholized is through reverse osmosis. exactly what it sounds like – Although this process has been proven successful, the technique uses a significant wine with little to no alcohol amount of water, which renders it not so environmentally friendly. Additionally, the content. Great alcohol-free removed ethanol cannot be reused and repurposed, as it is too diluted. With vacuum wine contains all the same distillation (the former process), ethanol removed from wine can be used to create other flavors and structure, and products, which makes the first option a much more sustainable choice. provides the same level Marlborough-based Giesen Wines uses an advanced spinning cone technology of taste, that an alcoholic (which is popular in the bottle of wine would, just perfume industry) to without the presence of delicately execute the ethanol. dealcoholization/distilling process. First, the aromas How is alcohol-free wine made? are distilled and collected It’s not as tricky as it sounds, though it’s important to know that many “alcohol-free” through vinification, then wines are simply just grape juice marketed as such. True alcohol-free wines endure the the alcohol is removed. entire vinification process (fermentation, aging, etc.), then undergo a dealcoholization The aromas are then process, which removes the alcohol from the final product. recombined with the The biggest differences between these two products is that the former does not alcohol-free juice. The result undergo any form of vinification or see any yeast, and is therefore simply unfermented is a dry, delicious, and thirstgrape juice – think Welch’s – whereas the latter has been fermented, aged, and fully quenching wine void of vinified, and then has its alcohol content removed prior to bottling. ethanol and low in calories.

“Not all alchohol-free wine is created equal.”

“Because true alcohol-free wine undergoes the entire vinification process, great alcohol-free products should taste very similar to alcoholic wine.”

OPEN VALENTINE’S DAY

Book Your Next PartyWith Us Rehearsal Dinners • Bridal Showers LIVE MUSIC

CHECK OUT FACEBOOK

Pasta’s

STOP IN FOR LUNCH • WE OPEN AT 11AM EVERYDAY

1 Village Blvd. • Baldwinsville NY 13027

Watch The Super Bowl With Us! SU GAMES

TRIVIA EVERY TUESDAY PLENTY OF ROOM FOR ALL

Check Out

OUR SECOND LOCATION!

8055 Potter Rd, Baldwinsville

315-635-7992

PAGE 19 • February 2022

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION, CALL (315) 474-1011

So…some alcohol-free wine actually isn’t wine?

Fruit for Giesen’s 0% Sauvignon Blanc comes from two vineyard sites Unfortunately, that’s correct. When in Marlborough’s Wairau shopping for alcohol-free wine, look and Awatere Valleys. for words like alcohol-removed or Post-harvest, the grapes dealcoholization somewhere on the are fermented with yeast label to avoid buying overpriced grape and vinified to a normal juice marketed as such.

ABV before undergoing What does true alcohol-free the dealcoholization process via spinning cone wine taste like? technology. The result is Because true alcohol-free wine a crisp, full-bodied, and undergoes the entire vinification refreshing wine loaded process, great alcohol-free products with delicate flavors of should taste very similar to alcoholic fresh lime, grapefruit juice, wine. “Alcohol-free”wines that don’t undergo a yeast fermentation and aging and tropical fruits.

Crisp, bright, and thirstprocess will simply taste like sugary quenching, this bottle grape juice – in other words, tasty, but is perfect for enjoying nothing like wine whatsoever. at home or sharing with What is the exact calorie count/ friends, without ever ABV of alcohol-free wine? having to experience the Most alcohol-free wines contain after-effects of consuming about 20 calories per 8-ounce pour, alcohol. Pair with light hors which is 85 percent less than fulld’oeuvres, seasonal salads, strength alcoholic wines – even more or linguine tossed with reason to feel less guilty for indulging clam sauce. Thankfully, your craving. Alcohol-free wines wellness goals and a love of generally will not contain more than 0.5 wine needn’t be mutually percent ABV. exclusive.

•

TABLE HOPPING

Old School Italian Dining

Open 67 years

Same O

wner

RESTAURANT

“One of Syracuse’s Best Kept Secrets Since 1954”

Authentic

Italian Specialties Fresh Fish Everyday!

Prime Rib Saturday and Hand Cut OU Ribeye Steaks SEE Y S ’ E NTIN VALE KEND E E W Takeout & Catering

Dining Room

OPEN

LET US CATER YOUR NEXT PARTY OPEN 6 DAYS A WEEK | CLOSED MONDAYS Tues-Thurs 11am-8:30pm, Fri 11am-9pm, Sat 12pm-9pm Sun 12pm-8:30pm

1524 Valley Drive • Syracuse 13207 315-492-9997 • www.luigisofsyracuse.com

How should I best enjoy my alcohol-free wine?

Alcohol-free wine is best enjoyed in any situation where alcoholic wine would be served. Simply pop a bottle after work for a refreshing happy hour at home or pair with your favorite meals.

Note: When pairing alcohol-free wine with food and snacks, follow the same guidelines that you would when matching alcoholic wine with food. For example, think about the alcoholfree wine’s acidity, structure, and tannins (where applicable), then consider the meal that is being served.

Cooking up a hearty, meat-heavy dish? Look for an alcoholfree red with ample acid and moderate levels of tannins.

Preparing a seafood-dominant dish or snacking on salty happyhour snacks? Grab a bottle of Giesen 0% Sauvignon Blanc for an out-of-this-world pairing.

Tsha‘hoñ’noñyeñ’dakhwa’

315.498.6813

ONONDAGA NATION www.onondagaarena.com ARENA 4000 State Rt.11 Onondaga Nation via Nedrow, NY

What is a good example of true alcohol-free wine?

After searching high and low for great examples of true alcohol-free wine, we’ve found that Giesen 0% Sauvignon Blanc is one of the best in the business. For a bit of background, the Giesen family moved from Germany to New Zealand’s South Island back in 1981, after falling in love with the island’s beauty, warm weather, and unbelievable potential for world-class wine production. After four decades spent creating alcoholic wines in the heart of Marlborough, the Giesen brothers tried their hand at making an alcohol-free option, and the results were nothing short of mesmerizing.

We are currently closed, but please see our social media and website for future upcoming events.

4000 State RT. 11, Nedrow NY • 315.498.6813

www.onondagaarena.com

PAGE 20 • February 2022

•

Exercise & Fitness

by Jennifer Nastasi Guzelak

Stay Motivated to Workout this Winter There’s no question that being active – both mentally and physically – is important year-round, but in the wintertime, it’s even more critical. It’s hard to stay motivated to workout this time of year! With the weather getting colder and the days so short there’s no question that most of us would be more than willing to trade in our treadmill for an extra hour of sleep.

Let me drop a bit of wisdom on you. Summer bodies are made in the winter and healthy bodies are made through consistency. The winter months are actually the perfect time to start working towards your fitness goals, even though the dark mornings and cold weather may say otherwise!

It’s definitely possible to keep up your momentum all year round. You just need to have a plan, stay focused and most importantly you have to keep moving! Here are a few tips to help you get started.

Take It Outside

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION, CALL (315) 474-1011

TABLE HOPPING

“With the right clothing, spending time outdoors can be really enjoyable during the winter months.”

Winter may not be your favorite season, but instead of resisting the cold, try embracing it. With the right clothing, spending time outdoors can be really enjoyable during the winter months.

Downhill and cross-country skiing, as well as snowshoeing and ice skating are great activities to keep you active throughout the winter months.

Invest In Indoor Exercise Equipment

Not everyone likes being outside when it’s cold. It’s safe to say I’m one of them. If being outside really isn’t your thing, then investing in some indoor exercise equipment may be the perfect solution for you.

Standard equipment like treadmills, elliptical machines, and recumbent bikes are good investments because they tend to last for years.

Exercise equipment like hand weights, kettlebells and resistance bands are inexpensive and let you design your own at-home workouts. With the internet at our fingertips, you can find endless workout videos and programs that are designed to help you workout from home.

Get a Gym or Pool Membership

Even if you’re not a regular, joining a gym for the winter months is a great excuse to get yourself out of the house. You’ll have the opportunity to meet other gym patrons with similar fitness goals and you will have a safe place to exercise until the weather improves.

Most gyms include access to a pool as part of your membership fee. If you don’t like exercising alone, try an aqua class. There are several fitness facilities in the area that offer a variety of classes at various times.

Socializing in the winter tends to happen less for many of us, so having a standing date to attend a fitness class is a great way to burn calories and catch up with friends.

Work Out Your Goals

What motivated you to get started? Revisit your fitness goals or take the time to create new ones. Do you want to lose those last five pounds, build muscle or just tone up?

Whatever your ultimate goal is, committing to what you want to achieve will allow you to track your progress and set smaller goals along the way.

Spice It Up

Switching things up every so often with your fitness regime doesn’t just keep things interesting, it also helps your body burn fat more efficiently.

Spice things up by trying a new group fitness class or by working out with a friend.

Make sure you choose an exercise routine that uses a variety of exercise methods, and more importantly make sure it’s fun. If you aren’t dreading going to the gym, you’ll be more likely to show up.

Make Time

Don’t use your busy lifestyle as an excuse to set exercise aside. You and your health need to be a priority. Stay physically active throughout the day by parking farther away from your destination, meeting a friend at the gym, taking the stairs instead of the elevator, or going for a walk with a co-worker on your lunch break.

If you are more productive at night, schedule your workouts in then. Getting on the treadmill or bicycle for twenty minutes is better than doing nothing at all.

PAGE 21 • February 2022

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION, CALL (315) 474-1011

•

TABLE HOPPING

Managing Stress

When it comes to managing stress, staying mentally healthy is just as important as staying physically fit. Slowing down throughout your day and taking a couple of minutes to breathe will pay off in the short and long-term.

Stress can also be a result of a lack of self-control and time management. Make “to do” lists for tasks such as meal planning and grocery

“Fruits and vegetables are highly nutritious and also low in calories.” part of my profession is helping one of my clients succeed at reaching their personal fitness goals. Making a difference in someone’s life makes it all worthwhile.

I am currently certified by the National Sports Conditioning Association, Apex Fitness Group, and the International Sports Science Association.

THANK YOU FOR VOTING US BEST IN CNY FOR ZUMBA! shopping, but also accept the fact that there will be days that you won’t be able to do it all. Just do your best.

Control Cravings

Meal prepping at the beginning of the week will help control cravings and the urge to splurge. Try to eat meals around the same time every day. When you have scheduled mealtimes throughout the day, you will be less likely to veer off track at work, school and in the break room.

Stock Up on Fruits and Vegetables

Most of us crave comfort foods this time of year. A big plate of cheesy nachos sounds good right about now!

Clean eating is a really big part of making a healthy lifestyle change, especially in the winter months. If you can consistently make good food choices all year round it will make it a lot easier to reach and maintain your fitness goals.

The next time you visit the grocery store, stock up on a variety of fruits and vegetables. Fruits and vegetables are highly nutritious and also low in calories.

In Conclusion:

At the end of the day, fitness is so much more than getting that perfect six-pack and a rock-hard butt, it’s about the quality of your life. If you want to be successful for the long-term, you have to transform more than your body; you have to change your mindset and develop a healthy lifestyle that is realistic, achievable and sustainable.

Stop wasting time and get started today! Before you know it, you will be on your way to achieving a fit and healthy lifestyle that you can maintain all year round.

Good luck to you!

I have been a personal trainer for over eighteen years and I absolutely love what I do. I honestly feel that I have one of the best jobs out there! The most rewarding

WE OFFER

POWER SCULPT • ZUMBA FITNESS • P90X LIVE • INSANITY LIVE CLASSES • STRONG BY ZUMBA AND MUCH MORE!

GET FI T IN

2022!

CURRENTLY OFFERING ONLINE CLASSES!

FOR MORE INFO PLEASE CALL: 315-436-3488

PAY-AS-YOU-GO OR MONTHLY UNLIMITED PASSES AVAILABLE Please visit us on

facebook

Syracuse, NY • 315-436-FITT(3488)

PAGE 22 • February 2022

•

TABLE HOPPING

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION, CALL (315) 474-1011

devices (Google Glass and Oculus, for example) that “layer” reality upon “reality,” or vice versa, allowing you to live in a game, or see things (IRL –

by Nancy Roberts in real life) that is added for your convenience or fun (a simple example of this is when you ask Google Maps to find you a restaurant, and it places “you” – at Tech mogul, Elon Musk formed Neuralink your current location, as in, yes, it knows where Some time ago, this column covered “what is 5G?” Essentially, it’s the 5th generation you are right at this minute – and then shows you all your restaurant options within a mobile network, designed to connect “everything,” including your phone and wireless network, plus machines, objects, and devices. This Christmas, while shopping for battery defined perimeter).

The limitation of our Cyborgian nature, he explained, is the speed of “I/O,” or “Input/ operated lights for the windows, I found that there were not only lights that could be operated wirelessly, but on a handy timer so that you could program them for on and off Output.” The output, he points out, vastly exceeds the input. That is, we can absorb hours – eliminating all that pesky walking around from window to window turning them a lot of information with our eyes and ears, certainly much more quickly that we can tap information into our phone or computer keyboard. Yes, now we can “talk” to our on and off! But clearly, we are addicted to our wireless devices, and the demand for devices, but that is still imperfect and slower than the output. And of course, the device them will only increase. When I wrote that column, 5G was definitely on its way, but not quite here yet. That threshold, while not without a few bumpy “take offs” along the way, you are interacting with is capable of doing 100, 1000 things at the same time it’s has “taken off.” (All puns related to the airlines’ concern that 5G might interfere with their answering your question, or giving you directions to the grocery store, tracking what you spend, reminding tracking altimeters and other digital equipment – but so far, so good. The actual event you to call your mom and has thus far been a bit like Y2K in terms of concern vs. reality.) uploading a scheduled Among the many things that can now be operated wirelessly: your “Nest” or front post to social media. In door camera, doorbell type device, as well as moisture, fire, and temperature sensors other words, the limits of (and resets); your washing machine (yeah, you can do the laundry from the office); your our cyborg state are our crockpot (start dinner from cocktail hour at the nearby pub); your Roomba (vacuum physical ones, not so much while on vacation) – you get the idea. The “IOT” or “Internet of Things” stretches just the digital ones. His notion about as far as your imagination can conceive. is the faster we can move Does that mean that “Skynet” is really possible? First, for anyone who is not aware data into and out of our of what Skynet is: Skynet is a fictional artificial neural network-based “group mind and devices, the more powerful AI system created for the Terminator movies. In those films, Skynet developed selfthey, and we, will be. awareness, and became In 2016, Musk the super-antagonist when humans tried to deactivate announced the formation of a company called it. But, dystopian scare Neuralink, which would tactics aside, yes, Skynet is be devoted to the possible. Things talking to creation and things, even if only carrying implantation out the instructions of of “neural lace.” programming, is things Neural lace operating without the direct would serve as intervention of human an additional control. It’s convenient, but layer on the a little scary. cortex of the I recently watched a few brain, and acting interviews, dating back as as a brain-computer interface that could record brain signals and pass them along to far as 2016, with Elon Musk, external devices like a computer or an artificial limb. a fascinating and brilliant It’s important to remember that while this sounds a little spooky, there already are tech mogul, in which he devices that are implanted in the brain, much the way a pacemaker is implanted in the acknowledged that we, heart, in patients with diseases like Parkinson’s, which send regular brain stimulating human beings, are already pulses through patches of brain tissue to help control tremors, and similar technology “cyborgs.” When challenged is being tried in patients with epilepsy. Neuralink’s technology would be first aimed at to explain, he said, look at treatment of brain malfunctions, and later at ramping the brain’s function up to come a all the devices we spend little closer to that of the devices we interact with. most of our time with: our So, the day may come when you think, “Oh, I forgot to turn on the dishwasher.” And it computers, smartphones, goes on and feeds that information back to you. televisions, Bluetooth and So, take that, Skynet. You may not be needed, after all. wireless devices, and now Roomba our AR and immersive

Computers & the Web

Your Brain on Wireless

“Neural lace would serve as an additional layer on the cortex of the brain, and acting as a brain-computer interface that could record brain signals and pass them along to external devices like a computer or an artificial limb.”

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION, CALL (315) 474-1011

PAGE 23 • February 2022

•

TABLE HOPPING

HIGHLIGHTS: Thursday, Feb 17th

Medallion Hunt begins Free Skating at NYS Coliseum Friday, Feb. 18th

Fireworks Kickoff Party with Hard Promises Saturday, Feb. 19th

Culinary Cruise Martini Mix-off Sangria Mix-off Ice Carving Free Skating at NYS Coliseum Sunday, Feb. 20th

Human DogSled Races Winterfest at Inner Harbor Chili Cook-off Beer Tasting Cornhole Tournament Free Family Day at Everson Museum Ice Carving Saturday, Feb. 26th

Sandwich Stroll Margarita Mix-off Cosmopolitan Mix-off Ice Carving Free Skating at NYS Coliseum Sunday, Feb. 27h

Family Breakfast Buffet Kids Fun with Checkers Chowder Cook-off Bloody Mary Mix-off Wing Walk Ice Carving Team Trivia Finals Fireworks

PAGE 24 • February 2022

•

TABLE HOPPING

My Mind To Yours

by debra Merryweather

Changing Our Own Minds We feel with our minds, bodies, and emotions. Thinking, feeling, and acting involve distinct types of energy all moving at different speeds within and around our nervous systems. For instance, what we sometimes think of as falling in love: knots in the stomach, and nervous anticipation, likely result from changes in blood flow through our physical core and periphery, triggered by sight of or thoughts of the loved one.

Many relationship therapists suggest that subconscious dynamics, some rooted in prior relationships including family relationships, lead or pull us into patterns where we recreate relationships that feel familiar. Mind is not over matter. Mind and consciousness develop from the neurochemical encoding of labeled sensations and thoughts; the mind stores this information in the words and imagery it understands at the time. Self-awareness grows from thinking about what we think.

In 2000, Eric Kandel won a Nobel Prize for his work in finding the biological basis of memory. Kandel found that a sea slug, Aplysia californica, learned Eric Kandel to withdraw from a siphon, likely through a mechanism involving serotonin in Aplysia’s ganglia. In 1904, Ivan Pavlov won a Nobel prize for showing that, by ringing a bell before feeding them, Pavlov could condition dogs to salivate at the sound of the bell. The 1949 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine went to Antonio Moniz, the father of modern psychosurgery, for developing the lobotomy, a treatment soon discredited because of the damage it caused.

(Lobotomist Dr. Walter Freeman and Ivan Pavlov neurosurgeon Dr. James Watts treated Rosemary Kennedy for emotional problems that likely stemmed from a hypoxic brain injury Rosemary suffered when an obstetric nurse held Rosemary in her mother’s birth canal until the doctor could arrive.

Dr. Freeman’s treatment to quell her emotional behavior left Rosemary paralyzed and further impaired. It was decades before Rosemary eventually received physical and occupational therapies that improved her mobility and speech.)

The dramas “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” and “Suddenly Last Summer” treat the subject of injuring brains to change thinking. The 2004 Sci -Fi Romance “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind” tells a similar tale set against a backdrop of romance.

Plot spoilers follow.

Mary is a receptionist who has a crush on her boss, Dr. Howard Mierzwiak. Dr. Mierzwiak operates Lacuna, a memory erasure service. Mary tells Dr. Mierzwiak how she admires his work and how she feels connected to him. Circumstances force Dr. Mierzwiak to inform Mary that while he appreciates her, he can’t be with her; he’s married, and, they have already had an affair. Dr. Mierzwiak has erased Mary’s memory of their relationship.

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION, CALL (315) 474-1011

Mary’s continued attraction to Dr. Mierzwiak is not the main storyline. “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind” begins when Joel Barish encounters his former girlfriend, Clementine Kruczynski, and Clementine acts as if she doesn’t know him. In fact, and truth, Clementine does not know Joel. Not knowing who Joel was to her, Clementine mentions to Joel that she has had her memory erased after a failed romance. Joel still has feelings for Clementine; now faced with a seemingly hopeless situation, Joel decides to have his own memories of the relationship erased.

Seeing an opportunity to improve his love life, Patrick, a Lacuna technician uses information and mementos from Joel’s file to seek and seduce Clementine for himself.

Much transpires throughout the story and ultimately, when Mary realizes the significance of what has happened to her, she resigns from Lacuna, but not before mailing Lacuna’s clients their recorded pre-memory erasure tapes and paperwork. Mary, Joel, and Clementine are left to become reacquainted with their memories and uncomfortable emotions.

Science fiction isn’t all that far from reality.

Researchers at UC Berkeley recently reported that they may be able to chemically alter specific memory connections to treat PTSD; research reveals that axons in the gray matter of some veterans suffering from PTSD show higher levels of myelination than normal. Myelin insulates nerves allowing for more efficient transmission of information. Myelin is white and the highly connective white matter of the brain is so named because of the high density of myelination there.

The UC researchers posit that myelinated connections in gray matter of PTSD sufferers cause traumatic memories to quickly trigger strong emotional/behavioral responses.

Researchers believe they can use a virus to deliver a chemical that will deter or decrease myelination in memory circuitry and thus slow traumatic memory recall.

Research and literature related to wholistic mind-body function, including the functions of the myelinated and unmyelinated branches of the vagus nerve, which regulates emotion by monitoring respiration, circulation, and digestion, suggest that memories and what we think about those memories are stored with multiple connections involving both hemispheres of the brain as well as throughout our conscious and subconscious awareness.

That’s a long sentence.

The interconnectedness of consciousness and brain function seems more akin to long wandering sentences than to lists that can be edited, reordered, and, sometimes, disordered. We know our inner worlds affect the worlds of others near to us. Aren’t we better off learning to manage our own thinking than having someone change our minds for us?

And “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind” is a great movie for Valentine’s Day. It really is.

“Researchers at UC Berkeley recently reported that they may be able to chemically alter specific memory connections to treat PTSD.”

PAGE 25 • February 2022

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION, CALL (315) 474-1011

The 24th annual

sunday, march 6, 2022

WITH CENTRAL NEW YORK

•

TABLE HOPPING

PAGE 26 • February 2022

•

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION, CALL (315) 474-1011

TABLE HOPPING

Sounds Of Syracuse

by Chuck Schiele

Meet Bassist “Reverend” Ken Kellerman When Ken enters a room, everyone notices. The tall, bearded man with his long hair tied back saunters his way through those who greet him – usually toward the stage or often to the sign-up sheet. While he is a looming presence, he is equally a pleasant presence in any occasion. The freespirited “Rev” has been on the scene for some time now, a regular figure in the open-mic circuit, and with his band I Am Fool.

An interesting thing to note about Kellerman is that he is a routine world traveler. Every time I see Ken, it seems as though he just returned from a multicountry travel tour (He conducted his side of this interview from Ecuador), or, he’s on standby to leave for his next trip. His air of worldly savvy is evident.

And from where I sit – or on several occasions jam with him – I think you can hear a bit of his travels in the unique way he plays bass, and approaches the musical situation in general.

Not by design, but it just so happens that we conducted this interview on his birthday while drinking coffee in the early morning.

Chuck Schiele: How long have you been playing bass?

“There’s nothing like getting to create a bass line for a new song – that’s skiing virgin snow.”

Ken Kellerman: I got my first bass, a Hagstrom, for my birthday in 1966, inspired by seeing the Motown Review at the Apollo theater about a year earlier. l started playing it silently, because I couldn’t afford an amp. It was frustrating. A year later, I got an early solid-state amp, a Haynes. Almost immediately, I traded up to a Fender Jazz bass.

CS: I hear folks referring to you as “Reverend Ken.” (If this is relevant..) please explain.

KK: When I first came to Syracuse in 2008, I didn’t know a single person here. I started playing out with my 2003 Reverend Rumblefish PJ. Nobody had seen a bass like that, and it’s all anybody was talking to me about. Johnny ‘Rage’ Brown was hosting an open mic I attended every week. He caught on that people seemed more interested in the bass than me, and gave me the nickname (with my permission – he’s a real gentleman). The very first time he called me up as Reverend Ken, people picked up on it, it stuck, and I had a brand.

CS: Cool. How would you characterize your own style of bass playing?

KK: I was inspired to play bass by Motown’s James Jamerson. That’s the sound of bass I love. So, old-school, finger-style, bouncy, syncopated. Every musician who hears me knows what I bring. I take that sound and apply it to whatever song I’m playing. I don’t dislike other sounds, or techniques, but I’m pretty much a one-trick pony.

CS: What players have influenced you?

KK: It begins with Jamerson. There isn’t a bass player that doesn’t owe him a debt, whether they realize it or not – he was the first to give the electric bass guitar it’s own voice, I think. Others: Carol Kaye, Paul McCartney, Bernard King, Bootsy Collins, Chuck Ken Kellerman with band, I am Fool Rainey, John Entwhistle, and upright players like Ray Brown and Ron Carter.

CS: Please tell us about your projects and past projects.

KK: First and foremost, my band, I am Fool. Playing with them has been the most challenging, rewarding, and satisfying work I’ve done, mainly because of the songwriting of J. Brazill, an excellent songwriter and arranger.

There’s nothing like getting to create a bass line for a new song – that’s skiing virgin snow. We’ve been on hiatus due to some medical issues, but we’re coming back this year. I also love open mics – that’s where I really honed a lot of my skills, and also are, directly or indirectly, where I’ve met about 99% of my friends in Syracuse. I’ve hosted some, been house bass for some, but I’m a regular participant, and they probably account for the majority of my playing. My

PAGE 27 • February 2022

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION, CALL (315) 474-1011

past background includes Soul revues, one other rock band, and some studio work.

CS: You are a traveler. Do you think it brings anything to your music?

KK: I’m going to give the unexpected answer here. I am dedicated to open mics. I love the challenge of backing up someone new, not knowing, in advance, what’s coming, and trying to make something musical happen in an improvised ensemble. When I travel, that’s what I look for, and so far, I’ve always found it, but it’s pretty much the same as when I’m home.

CS: As someone who globetrots routinely, is there an area of the world where the music strikes a particular fancy for you?

KK: I’m in Ecuador right now (I’m a snowbird these days, in the winter I fly to warmth), and the folk music of the Andes really, really speaks to me. I heard a group the other night that blew me away. Then, yesterday, I ran across them playing in the street. They invited me to ‘sit in’ by singing a bass line along with them, and we did a very interesting instrumental version of ‘Wicked Games’ (Chris Isaak), which they had heard me perform.

When I was in Lisbon, I was greatly moved by Faldo, which is kind of like Portuguese blues, more varied, melodically, but very melancholic.

CS: Your thoughts on the CNY music scene: KK: I think it is an amazing, highly unusual scene. The first time I played out, at the Rooters Sunday night blues jam (gone and missed now), I was taken completely by surprise by the welcome I got from the musicians – I didn’t even expect to play, but instead I found the other musicians friendly, generous and supportive. That has pretty

•

TABLE HOPPING

much been the case for the last 13 years. The gigging scene, though, is tough. Especially now. When I was coming up, it was a lot easier, but I think, in that respect, CNY is no different than anywhere else these days. The only reason I stayed here after my first year, and the reason I am staying here, is the music scene.

CS: What’s in Ken’s near music future?

KK: Watch for I am Fool in 2022 – there should be a new CD or two coming out this year, and we’ll be looking to play out again.

Once I get back to CNY in the Spring, you’ll find me at nearly every open mic/ jam session in the Syracuse area. I’ll continue working as a sub bass player when called (call me!).

CS: How do we stay in touch with you?

KK: I’m on FaceBook and Instagram. I have a musician’s page (Reverend Ken) and a personal page (Ken Kellerman) on Facebook. On Instagram, I am, unimaginatively @ kenkellerman. Also, I am Fool is on Facebook, and at iamfool.com.

Chuck Schiele 858 663 9612

A NIGHT ON THE TOWN! Long h t n o M l l A Listen ame!

N r u o Y r a e to H

FREE $100

Restaurant Certificate * SEND IN YOUR: Name, Address, Phone Number & Restaurant Choice TO WIN! (One entry per person per household)

Listen All Month Long to Hear Your Name!

WITH CENTRAL NEW YORK

MAIL YOUR ENTRY TO:

Table Hopping/Sunny 102 Contest, 1129 N. State St. Suite B Syracuse, NY 13208 Go to www.tablehopping.com & enter to win.

Entries must be received by February 22, 2022.

*All Prizes Subject To Availability. Restaurant selection must be a February 2022 Table Hopping Newspaper Advertiser.

Must Be 21 or Older To Enter. Offer Good For 1 Use Only.

Prizes Do Not Include Gratuities. PRIZES MUST BE PICKED UP WITHIN 30 DAYS.

PAGE 28 • February 2022

•

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION, CALL (315) 474-1011

TABLE HOPPING

Stay safe and healthy from our family at

Music

February 5

February 2

Dominick’s Sports Tavern, Oswego

Badfish: Tribute To Sublime 20th Anniversary Tour • 8pm The Westcott Theatre, Syracuse

February 2

Fresh Winds with the Telos Trio • 12:15pm St. David’s Episcopal Church, Dewitt

KennaDee

February 5

The Ponytail James Band • 7pm The Westcott Theatre, Syracuse

February 5

I Don’t Know How But They Found Me • 7pm The Lost Horizon, Syracuse

February 3

February 5

Average Joe’s Beernasium, Baldwinsville

The Gig at Del Lago Casino, Waterloo

KennaDee

February 3

The Regrettes • 8pm The Westcott Theatre, Syracuse

Under The Paige • 10pm

February 5

Thirty 6 Red with Chris Reiners • 9pm

February 4

Tin Rooster at Del Lago Casino, Waterloo

Western Ranch, Syracuse

Cheat Codes • 8pm

February 4

The Westcott Theatre, Syracuse

Funk ‘n Waffles, Syracuse

February 4

Gems for Wind/ Piano Trio • 12:15pm

Sharkey’s Event Center, Liverpool

February 10

Mike MacDonald • 6-9pm

Mo Lowda & The Humble • 8pm

Off The Reservation • 6-9pm

February 4

Ronny Chieng • 8pm The Vine at Del Lago Casino, Waterloo

February 4

Primetime • 9:30pm

February 6 February 9

St. David’s Episcopal Church, Dewitt

KennaDee

The Village Tavern, Marcellus

February 12

February 18

February 25

Tin Rooster at Del Lago Casino, Waterloo

Tin Rooster at Del Lago Casino, Waterloo

Tin Rooster at Del Lago Casino, Waterloo

February 12

February 19

February 26

Dock’s Grill at Pirates Cove Marina, Clay

Allen’s Florance Hotel, Camden

February 12

February 19

The Showroom at Del Lago Casino, Waterloo

Six String Crossing with Chris Reiners • 9pm

MystykGrooveMachine • 8-11pm

Bon Giovi– The Bon Jovi Tribute Band Colloca Estate Winery, Sterling

February 12

Rudy Wells Band Oswego Music Hall, Oswego

February 12

No Ceiling DFG Godly Held presents Sydney Renae • 9pm The Westcott Theatre, Syracuse

February 13

KennaDee

Boyz II Men • 8pm The Vine at Del Lago Casino, Waterloo

February 19

Trumptight 315 • 9:30pm Turquoise Tiger at Del Lago Casino, Waterloo

February 19

Tom Nitti with DJ Skeet• 9pm

February 16

JoJo Siwa • 8pm

Upstate University Medical Arena, Syracuse

Western Ranch, Syracuse

Funk ‘n Waffles, Syracuse

Skout • 8pm

February 23

Turquoise Tiger at Del Lago Casino, Waterloo

February 18

February 24

February 11

Mark Zane • 5-8pm

February 4

Mark Zane • 6-9pm Buried Acorn Brewery, Syracuse

February 4

Concert Crave Artist Showcase • 7pm The Westcott Theatre, Syracuse

The Westcott Theatre, Syracuse

Tin Rooster at Del Lago Casino, Waterloo

Mitchell Tenpenny • 8pm

February 11

Del Lago Resort Casino, Waterloo

February 18

Mike Farrar & The House Rockers • 6:30-9:30pm

The Gig at Del Lago Casino, Waterloo

Hook

February 12

Oswego Music Hall, Oswego

February 25

February 25

The Gig at Del Lago Casino, Waterloo

February 18

Only Jahmez w/Jack Moe • 8pm

The Gig at Del Lago Casino, Waterloo

Ménage A Soul • 9:30pm

February 12

Turquoise Tiger at Del Lago Casino, Waterloo

February 25

February 18

The Gig at Del Lago Casino, Waterloo

Junkyard Heights • 10pm

February 5

Sydney Irving and the Mojo • 9:30pm

The Vine at Del Lago Casino, Waterloo

Turquoise Tiger at Del Lago Casino, Waterloo

Andy Grammer • 8pm

Wifis Funeral w/Wizard King X Rosh Dawg • 8:30pm

February 18

Scars n’ Stripes • 10pm

Last Left • 10pm The Gig at Del Lago Casino, Waterloo

Jamcrackers

Oswego Music Hall, Oswego

February 27

The Floyd Concert • 8pm

March 3

The Westcott Theatre, Syracuse

March 4

February 4

St. David’s Episcopal Church, Dewitt

Tin Rooster at Del Lago Casino, Waterloo

February 26

March 3

110 Grill in Destiny USA, Syracuse

Six String Crossing with DJ Skeet • 9pm

Tin Rooster at Del Lago Casino, Waterloo

Contrary Forces: Contemporary Music for Solo Saxophone • 12:15-1:15pm

Primetime • 9:30pm

Tom Nitti with Big Poppa • 9pm

Nick Drouin with DJ Skeet • 9pm

The Regrettes w/support from Kississippi • 8pm

Mark Zane • 5-8pm

February 4

February 26

Onondaga Community College Cafe, Onondaga Hill

February 11

Shaughnessy’s Irish Pub, Syracuse

The Gig at Del Lago Casino, Waterloo

The Westcott Theatre, Syracuse

Mark Zane • noon-1pm

Turquoise Tiger at Del Lago Casino, Waterloo

The Gig at Del Lago Casino, Waterloo

Gridley Paige • 10pm

February 23

February 17

Nine Deeez Nite • 10pm

Grand Central Station • 9:30pm

February 26

February 20

February 11

February 26

The Gig at Del Lago Casino, Waterloo

Neon Rocks • 10pm

Tin Rooster at Del Lago Casino, Waterloo

Park Central Presbyterian Church, Syracuse

Little River Band • 8pm

Turquoise Tiger at Del Lago Casino, Waterloo

Park Central Presbyterian Church, Syracuse

Winter Music to Warm the Soul • 12:15pm

Beadle Brothers with DJ Skeet • 9pm

February 19

Singing Strings with Piano • 4pm

February 17

13 Curves • 7-10pm

Chasing Neon with Chris Reiners • 9pm

The Westcott Theatre, Syracuse

Scars n’ Stripes • 10pm

February 25

The Arcade • 9:30pm Turquoise Tiger at Del Lago Casino, Waterloo

Cooper Alan • 8pm Del Lago Resort Casino, Waterloo

Beth Hart • 8pm The Showroom at Del Lago Casino, Waterloo

March 4

The Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band • 8pm The Westcott Theatre, Syracuse

March 5

Crash Test Dummies • 8pm The Westcott Theatre, Syracuse

March 6

B-Lovee Live in Concert • 7pm The Westcott Theatre, Syracuse

March 7

A Cool Jazz Evening • 6-7pm St. David’s Episcopal Church, Dewitt

PAGE 29 • February 2022

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION, CALL (315) 474-1011

March 9

Songs of Love, Loss, and Humanity • 12:15-1:15pm St. David’s Episcopal Church, Dewitt

March 11

Joe Bonamassa • 8pm Landmark Theatre, Syracuse

March 12 Mad Agnes

Oswego Music Hall, Oswego

March 13

Adelitos Way • 6pm The Lost Horizon, Syracuse

March 18

MystykGrooveMachine • 8-11pm TK Tavern, Camillus

March 26

February 13

Stretching Boundaries: The Life Work of Sculptor Arlene Abend

Art February 1-18

...While Black Exposition

Syracuse University Art Museum, Syracuse

February 1-March 11

Reckonings: American Art and the Slow Violence of Climate Crisis

“Floor Burns” Book Talk with Author M.C. Antil • 4:30-6:30pm

The Everson Museum, Syracuse

Dirty Rotten Scoundrels Redhouse, Syracuse

March 4 & 5

Upstate University Medical Arena, Syracuse

Funny Bone Comedy Club, Syracuse

February 19

Thru February 20

The Everson Museum, Syracuse

February 2-March 31

Forever is Composed of Nows The Everson Museum, Syracuse

February 2-April 17 Arlene Abend: Resolute

The Everson Museum, Syracuse

February 3-April 10

Charley Friedman: Soundtracks for the Present Future The Everson Museum, Syracuse

February 3-April 10

Dawn Williams Boyd: Woe The Everson Museum, Syracuse

February 3-May 14

“Scene|Unseen: Artistic Engagement as a Ritual of Return Post 9-11” Exhibition National Veterans Resource Center Gallery, Syracuse

Onondaga Historial Society, Syracuse

Syracuse Crunch vs.

Rochester Americans • 7pm

The Everson Museum, Syracuse

The REV Theatre Co., Auburn

March 6

Thru February 24

The Hunchback of Notre Dame

Mission Steps Walk • 9:30am

UVP Screening + Q&A, No Emoji for Ennui

Events

Destiny USA, Syracuse

The Everson Museum, Syracuse

February 1

Nimesh Patel • 7:30pm

February 25 & 26

The Oncenter Convention Center, Syracuse

February 26

Prof’s G League Tour • 8pm The Westcott Theatre, Syracuse

February 3

Are You Garbage • 7:30pm Funny Bone Comedy Club, Syracuse

February 4 & 5

The Princess Bride, an Inconceivable Carmen Lynch • 7:30 & 7pm Evening with Cary Elwes • 7:30pm Funny Bone Comedy Club, Syracuse

FOCL Presents Dr. Eddie Glaude, Jr. • 7:30pm The Oncenter Crouse Hinds Theatre, Syracuse

February 5, 6 & 7

The Nave Law Winter Fair New York State Fairgrounds, Syracuse

Sports February 2

Syracuse Men’s Basketball @ NC State • 9pm

February 2

Syracuse Crunch vs.

Belleville Senators • 7pm CAA Arena

February 12

Blac Media Presents: Boogie Fever Dance Party • 8pm-12am Sharkey’s Event Center, Liverpool

Syracuse Crunch vs.

Belleville Senators • 7pm CAA Arena

February 5

Syracuse Men’s Basketball vs.

Louisville • 2pm

Eastern Winery Exposition

Maddy Smith • 7:30pm

The Oncenter Convention Center, Syracuse

Funny Bone Comedy Club, Syracuse

February 17-27

Syracuse Crunch vs.

Charlotte Checkers • 7pm

Thru February 6 Yoga Play

Syracuse Stage, Syracuse

February 23-March 13 Somewhere Over The Border Syracuse Stage, Syracuse

February 25-March 6 Fences

Redhouse, Syracuse

March 1

Blippi: The Musical • 6pm Landmark Theatre, Syracuse

March 15-27 Hamilton

Landmark Theatre, Syracuse

February 21

Syracuse Crunch vs.

Belleville Senators • 3pm CAA Arena

February 22

Syracuse Crunch vs.

Belleville Senators • 7pm

February 23

Syracuse Men’s Basketball @ Notre Dame • 7pm

Upstate University Medical Arena, Syracuse

February 16

The Spagetti Warehouse, Syracuse

Carrier Dome, Syracuse

February 4

The Auto Expo • 4-9pm

March 22-24

The Sound of Murder

Syracuse Men’s Basketball vs.

Georgia Tech • 7pm

Syracuse Crunch vs.

Rochester Americans • 7pm

Harlem Globetrotters • 7pm

Carrier Dome, Syracuse

February 3-March 10

February 21

Funny Bone Comedy Club, Syracuse

The Oncenter Convention Center, Syracuse

Theatre

Carrier Dome, Syracuse

Upstate University Medical Arena, Syracuse

Upstate University Medical Arena, Syracuse

March 18

Funny Bone Comedy Club, Syracuse

Syracuse Men’s Basketball vs.

Boston College • 2pm

February 3

Q. Brooks • 7:30pm

February 10

Jeff Dunham, Seriously!? • 7pm

March 10

February 19

February 9

March 18

February 1-March 14

CNY Artist Initiative: Laura Reeder

Upstate University Medical Arena, Syracuse

July 13-August 2

The Oncenter Crouse Hinds Theatre, Syracuse

February 2-March 13

March 3

Kelsey Cook • 7:30 & 7pm

Brit Floyd: World Tour 2022 • 8pm

LeMoyne College, Syracuse

Catch Me If You Can

Mutual Affection: The Victoria Schonfeld Collection

Syracuse University Art Museum, Syracuse

Wilson Art Gallery Call for Proposals

Syracuse Crunch vs.

Laval Rocket • 7pm

June 10-19

March 9

Per (Sister): Incarcerated Women in Louisiana

February 18

The REV Theatre Co., Auburn

February 1-25

February 1-March 11

Hasan Minhaj: The King’s Jester • 7:30pm

Conversation with Artist, Arlene Abend

February 17

Corner Gallery, Tyler Hall, SUNY Oswego

Edgewood Gallery, Syracuse

Redhouse, Syracuse

March 3

Landmark Theatre, Syracuse

The Oncenter Crouse Hinds Theatre, Syracuse

Organic Abstraction

MacBeth

TABLE HOPPING

June 8-28

The Everson Museum, Syracuse

Special Olympics New York, MystykGrooveMachine • 7:30-11pm 2022 Winter Games The Finish Line, Central Square

April 1-10

•

Syracuse Winter Fair

February 17

Heather Land • 7:30pm Funny Bone Comedy Club, Syracuse

February 18 & 19

Ryan Hamilton • 7:30 & 7pm Funny Bone Comedy Club, Syracuse

February 19

Comedian Tom Ryan • 7:30pm Cortland Repertory, Cortland

February 20

Marlon Wayans • 8pm The Showroom, Turning Stone, Verona

February 23

Alton Brown Live: Beyond the Eats • 7:30pm The Oncenter Crouse Hinds Theatre, Syracuse

February 24-27

February 5

Upstate University Medical Arena, Syracuse

February 8

Syracuse Men’s Basketball @ Boston College • 8pm

February 9

Syracuse Crunch vs.

Laval Rocket • 7pm Place Bell

February 11

Syracuse Crunch vs.

Laval Rocket • 7pm Place Bell

February 12

Syracuse Crunch vs.

Laval Rocket • 3pm Place Bell

February 12

Syracuse Men’s Basketball @ Virginia Tech • 6pm

Blue Man Group • 7:30pm Landmark Theatre, Syracuse

Deadline is february 22nd for the march issue

February 25

February 26

Syracuse Men’s Basketball vs. Duke • 6pm Carrier Dome, Syracuse

February 26

Syracuse Crunch vs.

Utica Comets • 7pm Upstate University Medical Arena, Syracuse

February 27

Syracuse Crunch vs. Wilkes Barre Scranton Penguins • 7pm Mohegan Sun Arena

February 28

Syracuse Men’s Basketball @ North Carolina • 7pm

March 2

Syracuse Crunch vs.

Rochester Americans • 7pm Blue Cross Arena

March 4

Syracuse Crunch vs.

Utica Comets • 7pm Upstate University Medical Arena, Syracuse

March 5

Syracuse Men’s Basketball vs. Miami • TBD Carrier Dome, Syracuse

PAGE 30 • February 2022

•

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION, CALL (315) 474-1011

TABLE HOPPING

Beauty & Fashion by alfred mears

Five Things to Ask Before Asking About Tattoo Prices There are usually two reactions you can have to seeing someone with a lot of tattoos on their body: “Wow! That looks so cool! I really wish I could do something like that.”

“Wow! That looks so cool...and, dang, that must have cost so much money!”

It’s the latter reaction that brings to mind the notion of tattoo prices and the world of body art. Anytime you bring up the idea of some kind of monetary exchange for something considered ‘art,’ there’s going to be some tension. For some, tattoos are the height of body art, using the ultimate medium (the human body) and turning it into

something altogether different, better, unique. For others, tattoos are just permanent drawings on skin that are nowhere near the height of art and nothing to be held up with the likes of artistic expression movements through history.

When it comes to pricing art, in this case, tattoos, feathers can certainly get ruffled.

Walk into most tattoo studios, and it’s likely that you won’t find prices anywhere. Maybe you’ll find an occasional promo deal with some little ‘meh’ tattoo thing BFFs or young sweethearts might do on a whim to get folks in the door. But serious tattoo studios and artists aren’t much for just slinging ink. They want to do something good and get their name out there, and they want a reputation for quality.

Designs by tattoo artist, Shannon Gates Unfortunately, consumers tend to make the world go round, and this makes tattooing tough to do with an artistic mind and spirit. Even if it’s not the work an artist wants to do, drawing a cartoon bird on a sorority girl’s shoulder blade with a chanting group of jackasses nearby helps pay the bills. But it doesn’t have to be this way. Customers can do a lot to help keep the artistic aspect of tattooing alive by doing more than just asking

DEALS OF THE WEEK ON OUR NEW WEBSITE!

FEATURING: Amano’s, Avicolli’s, Camillus Country Club, Euclid, Fish Cove, Inn Between, Munjeds, Pasta’s on the Green, plus many more!

GET 50% OFF Gift Certific ate s New deals every Monday!

Supplies are limited. Your gift certificate will be sent to you via USPS mail.

WWW.TABLEHOPPING.COM

PAGE 31 • February 2022

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION, CALL (315) 474-1011

about tattoo prices from the get-go. This isn’t to say that how much you may pay isn’t important; it’s just that there are other much more important questions to be answered that you should be asking.

For example: Can you break down the cleaning process? Unless you’ve been living under a very large rock for the past two years or so, the world has been grappling with a health crisis that it just can’t break free from. On top of the amazing scientific work that’s being done to help get us past this mess, one thing that’s been stressed is keeping things clean.

This includes washing hands, and as tattoo studios have been allowed to open again, doubling down on how much they’ve had to really clean every square inch of their space.

Which areas of speciality do certain artists have?

While tattoo artists can do just about all kinds of designs quite well, there are certain things they do better than others. It’s not a point of shame or derision – it’s about knowing what you rock the best. If you have a clear idea of what you want tattooed, find the artist who does it the best, not just someone who can do a pretty solid job.

There’s a distinct difference between the two.

How do you work around clients with certain allergies? Believe it or not, some folks have allergies to certain ingredients in tattoo ink. Others are strict vegans and are adamant about sticking to vegan products, which include vegan ink.

Tattoo artists are like other artistic individuals in that they can get fairly married to their habits and materials. The progressive artists, however, understand that they need to adapt to a changing world and changing dynamics in their customer base in order to meet greater needs AND attract more customers.

What’s the quoting process like? Leaning closer to the tattoo prices idea now, we come to the quoting process. Getting a quote for a tattoo in the past wasn’t the easiest. It usually consisted of the artist telling you: “Well, I can do this for this much or this for this much. If you want something else, tell me now ‘cuz it may not happen.”

Nowadays, modern tattoo studios take the time to interact with prospective customers so as to find out what they want including the size, color, placement, and complexity of the design.

As a final point about tattoo prices, keep in mind that if you’re only thinking about how much you DON’T want to spend or how much you’re hoping to save, it may mean that you’re just not ready for the tattoo you want.

“Modern tattoo studios take the time to interact with prospective customers so as to find out what they want including the size, color, placement, and complexity of the design.”

•

TABLE HOPPING

LINE COOK:

Pasta’s On The Green. Call 315-638-1362 and ask for Chris.

LINE COOK & COUNTER PERSON:

Luigi’s Restaurant. Call 315-492-9997 or inquire within.

COOKS:

Euclid Family Restaurant. Will train. Apply within.

DELIVERY DRIVER:

Part-Time or Full-Time. Email Resume to: art@table-hopping.com

OUTSIDE ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE:

Part-Time or Full-Time. Looking for reliable, motivated, enthusiastic individual to join the Table Hopping Sales Team. College Degree and Outside sales experience a plus! Includes Base + Commission + Bonuses. First Year Earning Potential $50K. Email Resume to: art@table-hopping.com

CUSTOMER SERVICE/MARKETING:

Part-Time or Full-Time. Part time, flexible hours.

Email Resume to: art@table-hopping.com Reach over 170,000 people with your classified ad. ONLY $25 for 5 lines!

CALL TABLE HOPPING TODAY AT 474-1011

BLAKE SHELTON

JASON ALDEAN

FLORIDA GEORGIA LINE LUKE BRYAN

LUKE COMBS

DAN + SHAY

KANE BROWN

MORGAN WALLEN THOMAS RHETT

KELSEA BALLERINI

PAGE 32 • February 2022

•

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION, CALL (315) 474-1011

TABLE HOPPING

Streaming Flicks by MILLER byBRIAN debra Merryweather

Peacemaker After largely languishing in the shadow of the MCU, things have finally started to look up for the DC Universe.

Zack Snyder’s cut of THE JUSTICE LEAGUE exponentially improved upon the disastrous, unwatchable Joss Whedon version, building buzz that had previously been non-existent. A short time later, James Gunn’s THE SUICIDE SQUAD redefined the entire Universe, delivering a film that was fiendishly over-the-top and gratuitous.

Unlike many other DC releases to that point (with the notable exception of the original WONDER WOMAN) it wasn’t a slog to get through. It was fun, outlandish, and hilarious. It was like an R-rated take on his Marvel franchise, GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY. One of the keys to the film’s success was John Cena’s inspired performance as Peacemaker. Though he was seemingly killed towards the end of the movie, the end credit sequence revealed that he had been saved, and his mission was far from over.

Debuting on HBO Max in January, PEACEMAKER serves as the first major expansion of

WIN A FREE OFFICE PARTY For You and Your Co-Workers!

Free Buffet • Drink Specials Giveaways • Prizes Send your entry on company letterhead and include number of employees who will attend.

SEND TO: TABLE HOPPING / OFFICE PARTY 1129 N STATE ST. SYRACUSE, NY 13208

APRIL 2013

FREE

WITH CENTRAL NEW YORK

Go to www.tablehopping.com & Enter to Win • *PRIZES MUST BE PICKED UP WITHIN 30 DAYS*

All entries must be received by February 22, 2022. You must be 21 years of age to enter.

the DC Universe to go beyond movies. Hoping to achieve the same level of success as Marvel series’ like WANDAVISION, LOKI, and HAWKEYE, it skillfully redefines a character who was indisputably horrible in THE SUICIDE SQUAD. While he still subscribes to his quest for peace and proclaims that it doesn’t matter how many men, women, and children he has to kill to achieve it, he is far less enthusiastic about these executions than he used to be. As he is brought in by a secret agency to help them save all of humanity, he finds himself questioning the methods by which this peace will be established.

The very nature of PEACEMAKER makes it seemingly impossible to capture the same audience who reveled in some of the

“I’m also absolutely convinced that there isn’t a single performer on the planet more well-suited to be PEACEMAKER than John Cena.”

John Cena is the Peacemaker aforementioned Marvel series’. Those were, for the most part, accessible to a much larger audience based on content. They aired on Disney Plus and were, for the most part, fairly family friendly. PEACEMAKER, on the other hand, airs on HBO Max, and is certainly geared for a more mature crowd. Please note, the word “mature” in this case is meant much more in terms of age, because writer/director Gunn’s series is shockingly sophomoric and gleefully gratuitous. Like THE SUICIDE SQUAD there are copious levels of violence and language and has mixed in plenty of sexuality along the way.

Clearly, PEACEMAKER isn’t for everyone, and will likely prove to be too offensive and outlandish for some. It’s difficult to put my finger on it, but I find the series to be utterly magnetic. I find myself thinking about the show and chuckling over scenes days later. “Do Ya Wanna Taste It,” the song by Wig Wam that plays over the delightfully absurd opening sequence is now in regular rotation on my Spotify, and I’m completely enamored with Cena’s performance. Building on his incredible turn in THE SUICIDE SQUAD, he is just so completely committed to the character that I find it hard not to admire. This is a guy who showed up to press junkets in full costume, and obviously cares far more about the character than most give him credit for. I’m not saying that this is on the same level as say, Jeremy Strong becoming Kendall Roy, but I’m also absolutely convinced that there isn’t a single performer on the planet more well-suited to be PEACEMAKER than John Cena.

Providing laughs and cringes in equal measure, it’s the type of show where the episode ends, and I immediately want more. Supporting cast members Danielle Books, Chukwudi Iwuji, Jennifer Hollad, Steve Agee, Robert Patrick, and in particular Freddie Stroma (as Peacemaker’s best pal and fellow hero/villain/psychopath Vigilante) are all spectacular, and with each passing episode, craft characters that become increasingly interesting as they find their footing. The eight episode first season was written by Gunn (he also directed the majority of the episodes) and I truly hope that this is just the beginning of the sordid tale, because the foundation has been established to develop something unlike anything we’ve really seen before.

PEACEMAKER- B+

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION, CALL (315) 474-1011

Sports Take

by Mike Lindsley

Alex Tuch is Perfect for Buffalo He is big and strong. He is from Baldwinsville, NY. He is a high energy guy and blue collar. He is as positive as they come as a hockey player.

Back in November, the Buffalo Sabres finally were able to trade superstar Jack Eichel for a load from Vegas. In that deal, Peyton Krebs and a couple of future draft picks were sent to Buffalo as was the key piece, Alex Tuch, the guy described above, who grew up about two hours away playing youth and junior hockey.

I, for one, am a die-hard Buffalo Sabres fan and was thrilled to see that Tuch was coming to Buffalo. The Sabres need guys who want to win there, want to be there and understand what they are trying to build. Tuch is that guy, despite leaving a Stanley Cup contender in the Golden Knights.

Recently, I had Scott Montagna on my podcast show, the ML Sports Platter. He coached Tuch at the junior and youth levels in Central New York. He said it best when asked of Tuch’s value as a Sabre and his superstar potential: “I think he’s very, very close to being that (an NHL superstar). And I think with this opportunity of being traded from Vegas to Buffalo where I think he will be relied on even more to be a huge part of Buffalo’s rebuild and their whole team in general. I think he’s going to be looked to more in a leadership role in Buffalo just because he’s got so much playoff experience over the last 3-4 years.”

For the whole interview, have a listen here: https://bleav.com/shows/ml-sports-platter/

PAGE 33 • February 2022

•

TABLE HOPPING

episodes/alex-tuchs-youth…h-scott-montagna/.

Tuch and Krebs are huge pieces to add to other core players in Buffalo. Rasmus Dahlin at defense, Dylan Cozens at center, Owen Power waiting at defense at Michigan, JJ Peterka at right wing, Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen in goal.

Now, the Sabres have to develop people quickly, find the right chemistry among many players and win. That last part has not happened really at all this year and in most recent years. The city is starving for a playoff berth, something that hasn’t happened since 2011.

And with the recent success of the Bills and the same ownership group as the football team, well, you can only accept another rebuild for so long.

This is where Tuch hopefully comes in if you cheer for the blue and gold. Maybe he hits the switch and turns into a bonified superstar next season. Maybe he is the next captain.

Maybe he scores clutch goals down the stretch for Buffalo to help them into the playoffs.

He certainly has the skill set and work ethic and everything else in-between to do so.

So do these Sabres. They just have to all do it together, stop blowing leads (3-2 overtime loss to Detroit after being up 2-0 as I write this) and keep grinding.

Western New York is right now dominated by the Bills and rightfully so. From the outside, most everyone will say “it’s a Bills’ town.” But when the Sabres are right?

When the Sabres are in the Stanley Cup Playoffs? The city goes crazy. I have seen it first hand so many times. This city loves hockey, they love the Sabres and they love watching hockey outside the Sabres, even in the playoffs. Just check market ratings annually. Buffalo is always on the short list even when the swords aren’t playing in the postseason. “It’s a Sabres town” can be stated also. But you have to win.

And so, Alex Tuch, Sabres fans are looking at you, not the only hopeful savior to this franchise’s woes, but a superstar in the making who knows what life is like when the Sabres are great and making a run at the Stanley Cup. You saw it, you lived it, you played two hours from it.

The Sabres will be good again, we Buffalo fans hope. And with any luck, it will be largely because of Alex Tuch.

Mike Lindsley has been in sports media for 20 years. Follow him on Twitter @ MikeLSports and download and subscribe to his podcast, the ML Sports Platter, on Apple, Google, Spotify and anywhere you get your podcasts.

Sharon Dineen

was our Lucky WINNER for the

Night on the Town Contest!

She chose EUCLID for dinner!

WITH CENTRAL NEW YORK

Alex Tuch is as positive as they come as a hockey player

Photo does not represent actual winners.

PAGE 34 • February 2022

•

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION, CALL (315) 474-1011

TABLE HOPPING

The same could be said of each bunker on the course. Some are quite deep while others guard the green a fair distance away creating a long difficult bunker shot to the green by richard boyle especially for the average golfer.

All the fairways are tree lined and, in some cases sloped to one side meaning that the golfer needs to aim at placement rather than distance.

There are elevated tees, which when playing off the back blue marker change the dynamics of each hole, often making the hole seem longer and more difficult.

There are six fairways with doglegs, both right and left in direction often Every club golfer usually loves their home course for a number of reasons. They know obscuring the green for the next shot the nuances of the fairways and greens. They know how best to attack each fairway leaving the golfer with a decision on and green to enable them to score well. Going to a new course often offers greater where to place his or her first and challenges than is usually the case at their home course. For me as a “hacker,” if I can second shots. score under one hundred on a new course, then I would be well pleased because as yet I The easiest of the dogleg holes is have not achieved that 100 or less on a score card. the second. It curves left at about 200 But let me get back to golf at my home course of Ashgrove in Brisbane’s inner west in metres from the back markers. The the shadow of Mt Coot-tha. first shot is up hill over a fairway which Here is what I like about the course. slopes left. Any shot too far left either It is nestled among the hills west of the city. It has a large creek following through the runs onto the third fairway or into a course that can offer a challenge to the newcomer and hacker alike. There are four large position where large trees force a layponds/small lakes that come into play for the unwary. Each fairway is different. up shot or a dangerous shot over large Each green is a different challenge. Your putt will often veer towards the watercourses trees to the green. Any tee shot to the or valleys on the course. Few greens are not without a slope in one or more directions. top of the rise allows an easy shot to large rather flat green.

Five of these doglegs are on the back nine holes of the course.

The eleventh hole doglegs to the right from a narrow opening in front of the tee. If your shot is short, it will end up down a slope with no view of the fairway for your next shot. Although the shot is blind, the fairway ahead is wide but requires a shot of no more than 150 metres to be safe before your third shot down a hill to a large green guarded on the left and right by large bunkers.

The right side bunker is very deep.

The twelfth fairway is narrow with a tree lined creek on its left and a steep tree lined slope on its right. The dogleg goes around the creek beginning around 200 metres from the back tee.

If you fail to reach the corner of the dogleg, your shot to the green is blind as large trees grow along the creek around the bend of the dogleg preventing a direct shot at the green.

The green is large but guarded by bunkers on the left front, left side and

Golf

The Challenge of Golf at the Ashgrove Golf Course

!

Like us on Facebook Follow us on Instagram

WIN PRIZES

“Ashgrove Golf Course is in a rather beautiful setting with a great variety of trees, birds, a creek flowing through the course, four small lakes all surrounded by low tree covered mountains.”

PAGE 35 • February 2022

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION, CALL (315) 474-1011

•

TABLE HOPPING

along the entire right side of the green. If you over hit the green, your ball will lie well below the green down towards the creek.

The 14th requires a long uphill first shot, best positioned towards the right side of the fairway. Any shot left will have trees as well as a steep slope preventing the golfer from going directly at the green. Your next shot has to contend with the dogleg and must stay towards its right side as any shot too far left will roll down a very steep slope making your next shot very difficult. The green has two tiers and is guarded on the left front by a large deep bunker.

The 15th tee is high above the dogleg which is about 200 metres from the back markers.

Most golfers can reach the corner to allow a shot at a large sloped green. However any shot to the right will bring the creek into play or a large bunker on the right corner of the green. This is the easiest of all the holes with doglegs on the back nine holes.

THIS MONTH’S

from allrecipes

Chicken Breasts in Dill-Caper Cream Sauce

Finally, the 16th hole requires a shot over a hill onto an unseen fairway. Any shot left will slide down the hill, making the second shot much longer and over or through some trees. Golfers need to aim just left of a large tree above the corner of the dogleg to land in the best position for a long uphill second shot to an elevated green protected at the front by two bunkers, one of which is very deep.

The club house is situated on a rise overlooking the first and 14th tees as well as the 8th and 18th greens with a large balcony where play can be watched.

The 8th hole has recently been reshaped to make it a greater challenge. The creek crosses the fairway at an angle, like the diagonal of a square. The position of the tee determines the golfer’s first shot. Hugh trees on the right of the fairway from the tee to the creek can force the golfer to “lay up” or take a risk to fly over the trees and land on the fairway over the creek within a short iron shot of the green. To make the challenge even greater, the large sloped green is guarded by two very deep front bunkers. This hole is regarded as a one of the signature holes of the course.

The third hole, a par three, is yet another signature hole. Most of the fairway is dominated by a lake. There are large trees down the right side of the lake; a steep slope with large trees some 10 meters on the left of the lake where a golfer can bail out and a ten metre landing area between the front of the green and the edge of the lake. Many average golfers aim at a paperbark tree in the shape of a “Y” as their bail out point on the left front of the green. This then allows a short chip to a large two level green.

Ashgrove Golf Course is in a rather beautiful setting with a great variety of trees, birds, a creek flowing through the course, four small lakes all surrounded by low tree covered mountains. The course does have some hilly sections but they just increase the challenge of the course without tiring out the golfer. The course might be relatively short but is a challenge for most golfers. You have to position your shots accurately or suffer the consequences. So, if you are a “Brisbanite” or a golfer visiting Brisbane, I challenge you to play the course and score under one hundred on your first try.

Ingredients 4 boneless chicken breast halves, pounded very thin ¼ cup all-purpose flour salt and ground black pepper, to taste 3 tbsp. butter 3 cloves garlic, minced ½ cup white wine

1 cup heavy whipping cream 2 ½ tbsp. fresh lemon juice 1 tbsp. fresh basil, chopped 1 tbsp. fresh parsley, chopped 2 tsp. dried dill weed 1 ½ tsp. fresh thyme, chopped 4 tbsp. capers, drained

Directions Step 1 • Dredge chicken breasts in flour and season generously with salt and pepper.

Step 2 • Melt butter in a large skillet over med-low heat. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add chicken to skillet and cook over med-high heat until chicken is no longer pink in the center and the juices run clear, about 10 minutes. A thermometer inserted into the center should read at least 165 degrees F. Remove chicken from skillet, cover in aluminum foil, and keep warm.

Step 3 • Pour white wine into skillet and deglaze pan by scraping up all the brown bits from the bottom. Stir in cream, lemon juice, basil, parsley, dill, and thyme; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medlow. Cook, whisking constantly until sauce is reduced and has a creamy consistency, 3 to 5 minutes. Stir capers into sauce and heat for 1 to 2 minutes more.

Step 4 • Plate chicken breasts and spoon sauce on top.

Prep Time: 10 min.

Total Time: 30 min.

Servings: 4

EUCLID

PAGE 36 • February 2022

•

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION, CALL (315) 474-1011

TABLE HOPPING

OPEN 6 DAYS A WEEK!

FAMILY RESTAURANT

FRESH SEAFOOD · STEAKS PASTA · PRIME RIB

ONLINE ORDERING & CURBSIDE PICKUP AVAILABLE! • CALL FOR ORDERS TO GO!

VALENTINE’S DAY OPEN ALL DAY! MONDAY, FEB 14 SERVING LUNCH & DINNER 11

OPEN

SUNDAY NOW! S

AM-8PM

PRIME RIB & SHRIMP • CHICKEN RIGGIES

SHRIMP BROCCOLI ALFREDO • CHICKEN TORTELLINI

6 DAYS A WEEK

WATCH ALL BIG GAMES HER ON OUR E 9 TVS

LAKE PERCH & WALLEYE • PLUS FULL REGULAR MENU

JOIN US FOR SUPER BOWL SUNDAY! COMPLIMENTARY MUNCHIES DURING THE GAME!

NOW SERVING EVERYDAY CHICKEN TORTELLINI CHICKEN RIGGIES BOOM BOOM SHRIMP DINNER

SERVING FISH & SEAFOOD

Lunch Fish Sandwich Friday Fish Dinner Walleye • Perch

DAILY SPECIALS

HAPPY HOUR

ALL DAY!

TUESDAY

Cattleman’s Cut 24 oz.

Prime Rib Chicken & Biscuits

WEDNESDAY

THURSDAY

Southern Fried Chicken Sauerbraten

Spaghetti or Pasta

ALL YOU CAN EAT

ALL YOU CAN EAT

TUES-SUN

FRIDAYS ONLY

• PRIME RIB • FISH • FRESH SEAFOOD

FISH SANDWICH SPECIAL with French Fries & Coleslaw FISH DINNER with French Fries & Coleslaw ALL DAY

WWW.EUCLIDRESTAURANT.COM • 315.622.2750 AT ROUTE 31 & MORGAN ROAD • BIKER’S WELCOME!

GIFT CERTIFICATES AVAILABLE!