Late-Season Discovery: The Springs Library

SO I’M STILL HERE in Springs, a woodsy hamlet five miles north of East Hampton, Long Island, N.Y., thanks to the installation of a wood-burning stove that staves off the day when I have to turn off the water supply and return to the city.

In between honing my fire-tending skills and raking, raking, raking, I finally made it to The Springs Library in the 1851 Ambrose Parsons House, below. In nine years of owning a house just a mile down the road, I’d never managed to check it out.

It was closed the two or three times I tried to gain entry, and I imagined it full of dated, dusty volumes on sagging shelves.

Wrong! The library, which is not part of the Suffolk County library system but operated by the Springs Historical Society, was recently discovered to have a structural issue that required all books removed from the second floor. Then, questions of staffing and the need for a new state charter threatened the library’s existence. Alarmed, more than 100 people turned out for a community meeting a few weeks ago. Alarmed, I decided to make an overdue visit with a check for membership ($25).

Meanwhile, actor Alec Baldwin gave the Springs Library $5,000 to buy new books. So when I turned up there the other morning and finally found it open — it keeps regular but short hours, 10AM-noon most days — I was delighted to come away with the new Susan Orleans book (about libraries, coincidentally) and the new David Sedaris, and to discover that they had all six volumes of Karl Ove Knausgaard’s monumental memoir, and all four of his subsequent ‘Seasons’ series (I’ve read a few, and can now easily fill in the gaps).

Inside the building, which is on the National and State Registers of Historic Places, the atmosphere is warm and welcoming, with wood floors, resident dogs, geraniums on the window sills and an elderly woman who hand-wrote my name on an index card for each book I borrowed.

The library is part of the Springs Historic District, which consists of ten 19th century farmhouses, four barns, and several other vintage buildings. The historic district is notable for its complete lack of commercialism, tourist appeal or chic, which is what I love about it.

I’ve been in all the other buildings around its central green: the Springs Community Presbyterian Church (1882) for yoga classes and rummage sales, Ashawagh Hall (1884) for art shows and memorial services, and, once, the 1886 Charles Parsons Blacksmith Shop, above, normally locked up, for an avant-garde theatre production.

But most of the time, when I’ve gone to the Springs Historic District, it’s to get coffee and a bagel at the 1844 Springs General Store, above, where aging hippies can be found hanging out on the porch on weekend mornings.

From now on, this aging hippie can be found hanging out at the library. ##

Hamptons August Rental, Walk to Water

SPEND A WEEK OR FOUR this August living the beachy life in my idyllic modern rustic/Bohemian chic summer house in East Hampton (Springs), N.Y.

Built in the 1940s as a fishing bungalow, with a c.1970 addition, the house is 1,400 square feet on half a landscaped acre. Share with friends or another family — it’s ideal for two couples with a total of two or maybe three kids.

• Swim in Gardiner’s Bay, at unspoiled, never-crowded Maidstone Beach, a 5 minute stroll from the house
• Walk the scenic ‘loop’ through Maidstone Park, or along nearby Gerard Drive with Gardiner’s Bay to one side and Accabonac Harbor to the other
• See egrets and ospreys, wild turkey and deer (not on my property, however; I’m fenced:-)
• Nap on the deck, watch the sun set over the jetty, picnic at Louse Point, make bonfires on the beach or in my fire pit, shower outdoors, grill on the brick patio, hang out on the porch at the Springs General Store
• Paddleboard or kayak in the bay
• Do yoga at one of several nearby studios
• Surf or swim in the ocean at Amagansett (10 minutes by car) or Montauk (25 mins.)
• Farm stands, greenmarkets, nurseries
• Yard sales, antiquing, shopping
• Art shows and galleries, live performance at Guild Hall, music at Stephen Talkhouse, historic house tours
• Garden tours + garden visits at LongHouse Reserve, Madoo, Bridge Gardens
• Restaurants and bars galore
• Explore nearby Sag Harbor (20 minutes), Shelter Island (30), North Fork, Block Island (day trip)

The house sleeps 6, officially — there’s a master bedroom with comfortable queen bed; guest room with two twins; as well as a separate 14’x17′ guest cabin with double bed and space for additional cot or crib (bathroom is in main house). There are also sofas comfy enough for overnight guests and a queen-size air mattress.

There are two showers, one indoors and one out, and plenty of room to spread out — there’s a dining/sitting room with sofa, chairs and fireplace, in addition to a great room with three sofas, and a home office with a partner desk, if you must work.

Live like Jackson Pollack and Lee Krasner in (whose home and studio is a mile away) in the 1940s… no TV, no air conditioning, no dishwasher.. but good Wi-Fi and fans in each room. (*TV and DVD player on request)

Flexible rental schedule, August through Labor Day, $3,000/week.

Contact me for more pics and info: caramia447 [at] gmail [dot] com

Vintage Hamptons Cottage For Rent

UPDATE, SPRING 2015: If you’re looking for a Hamptons beach house to rent for summer 2015 (by the full month for July and/or August), the one in this post is no longer available — I’ve sold it — but no worries, I have another! See some photos here (these are dated and the house is now fully furnished), but you’ll get the idea). Contact me at caramia447@gmail.com for more info and current pricing. thanks!

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SPRINGS near bay. Vintage 2BR writer’s cottage, tastefully furnished, comfortable, bright. Private backyard, woods, gardens. Nov-May $1,800/mo or year-round.

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SPEND SIX MONTHS OR MORE in my 1,000-square-foot 1940s cedar-shingled cottage on a wooded 1/2-acre in Springs (East Hampton), N.Y., a 10 minute walk (2 minute drive) to magnificent Maidstone Beach on Gardiner’s Bay.

Cathedral ceiling living room with skylights; two bedrooms, one with double bed, the other with two twins. Screened porch, huge deck, great outdoor shower. Open kitchen/dining with new appliances (no dishwasher), washer/dryer in basement. Tiled skylit bathroom. Flat screen TV, DVD, microwave, linens, dishware, cooking utensils, etc. included. Just move in!

The fine print: One month’s security deposit required. Utilities (heating oil, electric, cable/internet) extra. Year-round lease also possible at $2,200/month. House can be delivered furnished, semi-furnished, or unfurnished for longer-term rental. Email caramia447@gmail.com for more photos and info.

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More About the Neighborhood…

Enjoy the Hamptons off-season, when it’s quiet (but not isolated) and peaceful (but not boring). The hamlet of Springs is more rural than suburban, with a historic district including the Jackson Pollock-Lee Krasner House & Study Center,  Ashawagh Hall, and the beloved Springs General Store.

Long Island’s best ocean beaches are 5 miles away. The new Parrish Art Museum in Southampton opens November 10; there’s opera and theatre at Guild Hall, live music at Stephen Talkhouse. Join the EH Rec Center (pool, gym); do yoga at three great local studios; hike with the East Hampton Trail Preservation Society. Take advantage of off-season happy hours and prix fixe menus at dozens of uncrowded bars and restaurants. Drive to East Hampton (10 minutes), Amagansett (10 minutes), Sag Harbor (20 minutes), Montauk (25 minutes) for restaurants, movies, shopping, art galleries, historic houses, great libraries.

There’s more: art courses, bird watching, writing groups, knitting groups, photography workshops, live jazz… you’ll find some details here, in my “East Hampton Winter Survival Guide.”

Got a book to write? Or books to read, for that matter? Music to compose, or listen to? Want to give the area a trial run while you look around for a house to buy? Rent mine, and get to know the Hamptons like a local.

For more photos and info, email caramia447@gmail.com … and please spread the word to anyone who might be interested. Thanks!

AUGUST RENTAL: COTTAGE NEAR BAY, SPRINGS (EAST HAMPTON), N.Y.

WANT TO RENT my bright and comfortable 1940s cedar-shingled cottage in Springs, N.Y. (5 miles north of East Hampton village) August 1-31? It’s on a landscaped half-acre with a view into peaceful woods from the back deck.

The house is half a mile – a 10 minute walk, 5 minute bike ride, or 2 minute drive –from the beautiful, unspoiled, never-crowded Maidstone Beach on Gardiner’s Bay.

– 2BR (one full bed, two twins), 1 bath

– High ceilings, skylights, screened porch, huge deck, best outdoor shower ever

– ½ mile to Maidstone Beach, 1 mile to Louse Point (another spectacular beach on Accabonac Harbor). Superb swimming, kayaking, paddleboarding, etc.

– 5 miles to ocean beaches at East Hampton and Amagansett

-Under 1 mile to Springs Historic District, including Jackson Pollock-Lee Krasner House and Springs General Store

– 10 minutes East Hampton Village, 10 minutes Amagansett, 20 minutes Sag Harbor, 25 minutes Montauk (restaurants, bars, stores, art galleries, historic houses, movies, etc.)

– 2-1/4 hours from NYC, barring traffic

– Washer-dryer in basement

– Flat-screen TV, DVD player, Wi-Fi, printer, iPod dock

– A/C in living room, ceiling fans in LR and MBR

– $7,000 August 1-31

To see more photos, go here. Email caramia447@gmail.com if interested in renting, or for more information. Thanks!

The 99 Cent Banana

CHIEF AMONG THE THINGS I MISS about living in Brooklyn are Sahadi’s, the Middle Eastern food emporium on Atlantic Avenue, Trader Joe’s, and Fairway. Not just the selection, but the prices.

Here in the Humptons, as blogger Michael Daly likes to call them, finding reasonably priced sustenance is an ongoing challenge. Yesterday I paid 99 cents for a single banana (not even a big one) at the Springs General Store. There seems to be a “we’re here in a resort community at the ends of the earth, so factor in extra shipping charges and expect to be ripped off” approach to pricing.

So, full-time resident that I now am, and frugal to boot, I embarked on an informal survey of  prices at Citarella, the upscale Manhattan chain that now has several stores on the South Fork, one conveniently located on my way home from anywhere; the Amagansett Farmer’s Market, now owned by Eli Zabar (it’s like the Upper West Side around here in a number of ways); and the IGA supermarket on North Main Street in East Hampton, which you would THINK would be more down-to-earth.

It seems that prices on the items in “Cara’s Market Basket” — the groceries I, creature of habit, typically buy — are best at Citarella (though not across the board), and that’s where I gravitate. They have top-quality cheeses, olives, and produce. Their house brand of French Roast coffee is wonderful at $7.49/pound.

The food is generally impeccable but prices are outrageous at the AFM, though I like to go there for the beautiful picnic grounds. Sometimes I fall into a what-the-hell-it’s-a-resort-community mentality myself. But I cringe at paying $7.99 for a can of tuna — a brand called American, ‘pole caught’ and delicious, but still.

The IGA, where the produce is disgusting, has some of the most bizarre grocery prices I ever encountered. Total 0% yogurt – the large size – is $7.49! Still, I go there for basics like spring water, seltzer, milk, and canned beans. For paper goods, it’s CVS all the way.

Just check this little table of mine, below, for price comparisons between Citarella, a relative pleasure palace of quality and service, and the IGA, so depressing you might as well be anywhere but here.

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ITEM                                                                                    CITARELLA                 IGA

Tuscan Milk –  quart                                                          1.79                                .95

Total Yogurt – large size                                                    6.49                              7.49

Carr’s Table Water Biscuits                                              3.49                              4.29

Hero Preserves                                                                    3.99                              4.79

Genova Tuna                                                                        3.99                              2.19