Kaatscast: the Catskills Podcast

After 36 years in the New York State Assembly, Deborah Glick is stepping away from public office. First elected in 1990, Glick became the first openly LGBTQ member of the New York State Legislature and went on to play a key role in some of New York's most consequential fights over civil rights, reproductive freedom, environmental protection, tenant rights, and public health.In this episode of Kaatscast, recorded at her Catskills home, Glick reflects on a career that spanned six governors, dramatic shifts in Albany, and decades of social and political change. She discusses everything from coming out publicly in 1973, to helping secure statewide protections for LGBTQ New Yorkers, to the compromises and negotiations behind landmark legislation.We also talk about the importance of state government, the growing influence of money and lobbying in politics, efforts to protect horseshoe crabs and pollinators, and why she believes ordinary citizens still have more power than they realize to influence public policy.In this episode:Becoming the first openly LGBTQ member of the New York State LegislatureThe fight for SONDA, GENDA, hospital visitation rights, and a ban on conversion therapyCodifying Roe v. Wade protections in New York before the Supreme Court reversalHow compromise shapes legislationProtecting horseshoe crabs, pollinators, and New York's ecosystemsThe stalled Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure ActWhy state government may affect your daily life more than Washington doesWhat comes next after a lifetime in public serviceLinks & ResourcesLearn more about the New York State Assembly: https://nyassembly.govDeborah Glick's legislative record: https://nyassembly.gov/mem/Deborah-J-GlickDeb's public "coming out," 1973, in: New York IllustratedKaatscast: https://kaatscast.com

A behind‑the‑scenes journey into one of the most unusual and inspiring places in the Catskills — the Catskill Biological Field Station — where museum artists, taxidermists, curators, and scientists gather to practice and preserve the craft of natural history.Kaatscast spends a full day at the Catskill Biological Field Station, a Catskills campus operated by the Institute for Natural History Arts. More than a location, it’s a living workshop — a place designed from the ground up to keep traditional museum craft alive. The station’s main building, The Pavilion, is itself a museum: “to step inside… is to enter the movie set for Indiana Jones or maybe Jurassic Park with the design and direction of a Wes Anderson movie.”Across its cabins, trails, and field stations, the property functions like an open‑air classroom for natural history — a place where museum professionals can immerse themselves in slow, careful, hands‑on work, surrounded by the landscapes that inspire it.The day begins with Dr. Walter Meshaka, who demonstrates herpetological fieldwork and explains why museums still collect specimens. His analogy captures the spirit of the place: “Think about these specimens as a research library. Every specimen is a first edition book.”In a meadow clearing, diorama artists Stephen Quinn and Sean Murtha paint an expansive wetland scene en plein air — a reminder that museum dioramas begin not in studios but in natural landscapes. Their presence underscores what makes the Field Station special: it’s one of the few places where artists can still practice diorama craft the way it was done a century ago.Back at the Pavilion, Joyce Cloughly demonstrates how leaves and plants are molded and cast by hand. As George Dante notes, modern shortcuts — “a generic fern… bought online from Amazon” — undermine accuracy.  The Field Station exists to counter that trend, preserving the field‑based techniques that once defined natural history exhibits.The expedition continues to unfold at a rustic ornithologist’s cabin, where Dr. Peter Capainolo prepares bird study skins and skeletons. His demonstration — “the feathers are attached to the skin… sort of like a pelt”  — reveals the unseen labor behind museum collections and the precision required to make specimens useful for generations.Later, Brett speaks with Darrin Lunde, mammalogist, museum curator, and author of The Naturalist. His perspective deepens the day’s themes: the value of fieldwork, the ethics of collecting, and the responsibility museums carry as repositories of biodiversity. His presence rounds out the lineup, connecting mammalogy and museum science to the artistry unfolding across the property.The Catskill Biological Field Station is not a museum, not a school, and not a retreat — but something in between. It’s a rare space where natural history professionals can gather outside institutional constraints, work with their hands, teach emerging artists, and preserve techniques that are disappearing from modern exhibit production. It’s a place built by people who care deeply about the craft, and who want to ensure it survives.Featured Guests:George Dante, President & Founder, Institute for Natural History ArtsDr. Walter Meshaka, Senior Curator of Zoology & Botany, State Museum of PennsylvaniaStephen Quinn, Diorama Specialist, American Museum of Natural HistorySean Murtha, Artist & Preparator, Bruce MuseumJoyce Cloughly, Modeler & Exhibit ArtistDr. Peter Capainolo, Senior Museum Specialist, Ornithology, AMNHDarrin Lunde, Mammalogist, Museum Curator, Author of The Naturalist

In this episode, Brett Barry visits the Delaware County Historical Association to talk with historian Tim Duerden about Escape From the Sugar House, his first work of historical fiction. The book follows Levi Hanford, a Connecticut teenager swept into the Revolutionary War and imprisoned in a New York City "sugar house" — one of several makeshift prisons where thousands died from disease, starvation, and neglect.Duerden discusses the Revolution as a civil war, the economic forces shaping Loyalist and Patriot strongholds, and the postwar migration that brought veterans like Hanford to the Catskills. The conversation centers on a unique artifact: a cane crafted from a Sugar House beam and gifted to Hanford late in life.A compelling blend of history, storytelling, and regional heritage.

As the leaves change, Kaatscast and Cidiot join up to look at fall foliage on both sides of the Hudson. Cidiot's episode covers the science of leaf color with Cary Institute scientist Dr. Amy Zanne. This one covers the west side: an environmental educator explains why leaves change color, and five more Catskills residents describe how they spend the season and where they go to see it.In this episode00:00 Introduction, with a reading of "Poème d'Automne" by Langston HughesThe autumn leavesAre too heavy with color.The slender treesOn the Vulcan RoadAre dressed in scarlet and goldLike young courtesansWaiting for their lovers.But soonThe winter windsWill strip their bodies bareAnd thenThe sharp, sleet-stungCaresses of coldWill be their onlyLove.01:33 Matt Savatgy, environmental scientist in residence in the Onteora School District (Cornell Cooperative Extension / Ashokan Watershed Stream Management Program), on chlorophyll, why trees go dormant, how drought and a wet August affect color, and why the Northeast shares its foliage with places at similar latitudes like South Korea. Favorite spots: the escarpment at North Lake, Ashokan Quarry Trail, Giant Ledge, Overlook Mountain.11:57 Milton O'Connell of the Bruderhof community in Platte Clove on fall hikes (Kaaterskill High Peak, Indian Head, Plattekill Mountain, Dibble's Quarry) and the community's fall festival.15:41 Painter Christie Scheele on why fall is the season she paints least, what she looks for in late-fall oaks, and driving Route 28 west.21:24 Photographer Casey Kelbaugh on shooting foliage in overcast light, iPhone settings, and a one-way hike through Diamond Notch to the West Kill brewery.28:10 Ed Ullmanm of Wellness Rx in Phoenicia on fall as a season of reflection, plus his advice on flu shots, COVID boosters and immune support.33:05 Samantha Awand-Gortel, manager of Ulster Savings Bank's Phoenicia branch, on preparing finances for winter costs and her favorite views, including the Belleayre and Hunter Mountain Oktoberfests.35:42 Closing and how to send in your own fall favoritesEvent: The Bruderhof fall festival in Platte Clove is Saturday, October 3, 2026, 2:00–5:00 PM, open to the public (hayrides, pumpkin carving, cider making).LinksCidiot podcast, East of Hudson fall guide with Dr. Amy Zanne: https://www.cidiot.com/Bruderhof: A Christian Community in the Platte Clove: https://www.kaatscast.com/bruderhof-a-christian-community-in-the-platte-clove/Christie Scheele's Kaatscast episode: https://www.kaatscast.com/catskills-artist-christie-scheele/... and the Drive 28 Arts & Culture audio tour: https://drive28.com/Walking the Long Path from Manhattan to the Catskills (Casey Kelbaugh): https://www.kaatscast.com/walking-the-long-path-from-manhattan-to-the-catskills/Wellness Rx: A Prescription for Rural Healthcare: https://www.kaatscast.com/wellness-rx-a-prescription-for-rural-healthcare/Samantha Awand-Gortel's 2023 financial literacy episode: https://www.kaatscast.com/financial-literacy-at-ulster-savings-bank/Share your fall favorites: kaatscast.com (contact page or Send a Voicemail): https://www.kaatscast.com/contact/

“Invasive species” has become one of the most charged phrases in environmental discourse — but what if the term itself obscures more than it reveals? In this episode, Brett Barry sits down with Dr. Erik Kiviat, co‑founder of Hudsonia and a field biologist with decades of research on introduced plants, to explore the nuance behind weeds like knotweed, purple loosestrife, and common reed. As Kiviat notes, “There is a fear and hysteria of things that come from somewhere else….” His perspective reframes the conversation, showing how many “invasives” also provide habitat, pollinator resources, water‑quality benefits, and even medicinal compounds like resveratrol.From the herbarium at Hudsonia's field station on the Bard College campus, Kiviat explains how human disturbance creates ideal conditions for these plants, why management must be site‑specific rather than fear‑driven, and how wildlife — from songbirds to pollinators — routinely use knotweed in ways that complicate the usual narrative. The episode offers a grounded, science‑based look at a topic often clouded by alarmism, reminding us that ecology is complex, adaptive, and rarely served by simple labels like “invasive.”