When I was a kid, my friends and I would bike down to Crab Creek on Shelter Island, kickstand our (unlocked!) hand-me-down hogs on Peconic Avenue at the end of Crab Creek Road and head down to the very end for the best ride of the summer. I’m sure there’s a better name for it, but we just called it The Current and it was here, where the waters of the Shelter Island Sound and Crab Creek meet, that a semi-fast-moving swoosh of water pulled us along, no effort needed.
This memory, that thrilling feeling of delightful, refreshing “you’re just along for the ride!” joy is what summer feels like to me every year. Like, no matter how much I plan or try to, the current comes and pulls me along, and I just need to give myself over to it.
That spirit of giving yourself over really hits home in Parker Schug’s story about local long-time restaurateur Adam Lovett. A self-described “punk from Queens,” he found his gravity in the swirl of the hospitality industry (which tells you an awful lot about this industry pro’s sense of balance) and has created a trio of successful restaurants on the North Fork—plus a catering business—over the last two decades. No easy feat.
On the topic of wild rides, choosing to be a musician for a living? Boy, that career seems to have a tidal push and pull all its own. But lately, musicians on the North Fork are seeing a wonderful uptick, not just in audience attendance but in less traditional venues whose owners find the added value of their performances a boon to business. New to our pages, musician and media pro Glen Hoffman knows a thing or two about the inside of this world and brings that expert eye (in both words and photos) to his interesting story.
Something I keep wanting to make time for every summer is visiting and learning more about our East End lighthouses — eight in Southold Town alone! Our own Stephanie Villani lends her excellent skills of bringing history and the sea to life in this great story, with breathtaking images shot by the very talented Jeremy Garretson.
But if you still crave a plan, aw, who are we to deny you the traditions, old and new, that you don’t want to see pass you by on the North Fork? Check out our annual Summer Plan, chock full of your annual favorite events — and maybe a few new-to-you ones, too!
Said the very clever Antoine de Saint-Exupéry: “A goal without a plan is just a wish.” Fair enough. Make some goals this summer, but make some wishes, too. And definitely jump into the current — you never know where you’ll wind up.
Amy Zavatto
Editor-in-Chief, Northforker
