Most holidays have food or drinks associated with them—turkey and pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving, eggnog on Christmas, hot dogs on the Fourth of July. But Valentine's Day takes the cake—the chocolate cake, that is. And there's a great opportunity to learn more (and consume more!) of the treat that everyone in America associates with this February holiday. The League of Women Voters of Bedford, Lewisboro and North Salem hosts "A Chocolate Valentine," tomorrow night at the Katonah Village Library. Starting at 7:30 p.m., the evening includes a brief lecture by Dutch food writer Peter Rose, …

Librarians are more important than ever in the Google era, argues auther Marilyn Johnson in her 2010 book, This Book is Overdue. Johnson interviews modern-day librarians—"cybrarians," she calls them—and how their work has transformed from the days of using the card catalog to consulting multiple information databases and the Internet. I've only read the sample chapter on my Kindle, but I can't wait to read the book in its entirety. In the first pages, Johnson contrasts the duties of a librarian who runs the show at a century-old structure in South Dakota—and steadfastly guards precious paper …

The sun was shining by 8:30 a.m. this morning, leaving some parents to wonder about the necessity of a fourth, full-day school closure. And as local districts tick off the available snow days in the school calendar, people want to know: how are snow days declared and how many are left before future vacation days are taken away?  Patch caught up with Jere Hochman, Bedford Central Schools superintendent, via email at 11 p.m. last night, as he was monitoring the latest weather reports. He verified that today’s closure was the last one built into the school calendar.  “We have four snow days …

You knew you could host your child's birthday party there, and take a mind-boggling array of art classes offering education in various techniques and mediums, but did you know how accomplished the faculty at the Katonah Art Center is? This weekend they display their artwork in a faculty art exhibit, held for the second year in a row. Last year over 100 local artists were on hand, and this year, the "amount of talent gathered in this show is truly inspiring both to professionals and to students," said director David Hughes. Whether you're in the market for a new piece for your home, or just …

In many trips over the past few years, Dan Slepian has commuted from Katonah to Sin City, and has recently been given unprecedented opportunities to become embedded with the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, documenting the pursuit of assorted criminals. (Full disclosure: I'm writing about my brother and Katonah neighbor, a tireless seeker of  justice who tells true stories of crime and punishment. You may even have seen him around town—he is the guy always with a video camera in hand, documenting everything.) Along with correspondent Chris Hansen, he has compiled stories which have …

The scaffolding that covers much of the Chase branch on Katonah Avenue will finally be coming down and the dumpster blocking some key parking spots will soon be gone. According to the branch manager, Heather Solomon, the painting and roof job should be complete in about a week.  It has been at this location for three years, having taken the place of a branch of The Bank of New York.  “There were leaks and we needed some painting,” Solomon says.   She also says that even with ATM machines and online banking so widely used, the number of customers who come in-person to the branch has not really…

Though frigid temperatures may prevent passers-by from a lengthy look-see at the Katonah Village Improvement Society message board, even a quick stop reveals an interesting array of services-for-hire, support groups and a page-long missive on the so-called shortcomings of the Bedford planning board. An astonishing assortment of housecleaners, piano teachers, academic tutors, pet sitters, locksmiths and realtors have posted their business cards—but there's plenty of room for new additions. If you scour the listings carefully, however, you'll find some unusual ads, and a few pitches that went …

With a week left for Christmas shopping and lots of holiday preparations still to do, the clock seems to be ticking a bit faster.  In case you are struggling for some gift ideas, About Town asked some local shoppers for an inside peek at their gift choices to provide perhaps some inspiration and a few ideas. Maybe one or two will hit the right spot in your search for the perfect little something. Elyse Brandt was shopping at Weinstein's in Katonah, which was chock full of wonderful gifts.  "I love this place for teacher's gifts," she said. As for her husband, it will be an all-in-one bottle …

Have you ever seen a real reindeer up close? I had my first encounter this week with these gentle and stocky animals when I stopped by to admire the Country Children's Center's winter wonderland, put on for over 100 children by Executive Director Polly Peace and her staff at The Farm, one of CCC's five day-care facilities in Northern Westchester. When I got there, a group of toddlers—as quiet as I've ever seen a bunch of three-and-four year-olds—sat, caught up in the tale of Polar Express, the wonderful story of the young boy who travels to the North Pole by train. When the storyteller got to…

Yesterday's spectacular weather brought my family to St. Matthews Episcopal Church in Bedford for a walk on the lovely trails that were filled with dappled sunlight. The church property has 67 acres of wooded land and a stream along the Beaver Dam Brook. The serene grounds are open daily from dawn to dusk and take about an hour to walk-dogs are welcome too. "There is surpassing beauty here," says the Reverend Terence Elsberry who is the Rector at the church. "All are welcome to walk and enjoy the trails, the waterfall and the countryside."  He mentioned that there is a holiday boutique …

If you live in Katonah, even if you're not a dog lover, you're bound to encounter the canine companions of local residents. In the same way that large horse farms are part of the character of Bedford, friendly dogs accompanying their caretakers are part of the character of Katonah. I spoke with some dogs one day in Katonah. Is your dog here?Yetta the Lab, who is in training with Guiding Eyes dogs, really wanted to say more, but felt it her duty to restrain herself in order to please Susan Kroha, one of the trainers for the Guiding Eyes program. Susan says that Katonah is the perfect town for …

If you live a reasonable from distance from Katonah village, you have likely heard the fire horn bellow its loud foghorn-like sound.   For frequent insomniacs like me, 3 a.m. is when I find myself trying to figure out the meaning of the sequences of horn blasts.  My sons insist that I am hearing trains announcing themselves through the Katonah train station. But my investigation showed they are in fact, fire signals.   Jim Arena, who has been a member of the all-volunteer Katonah Fire Department for over fifty years, explains. "Before cell phones and pagers, we had specific signals for …