We who feed each other. (With soup.)

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Yowza.

I texted the group chat this morning saying I didn’t know if I wanted to run a marathon or sleep for a month. Probably sleep. I was up until 3am texting with my friend of 25+ years who is both a Maine native and Texas resident. He is now emotionally residing somewhere in Earth’s orbit.

Most of the punditry is putting the blue tsunami in terms of rejection. (How sad that we’re a week late for, “I hate gay Halloween. What do you mean you’re the blue tsu…”) Yes, we came together to reject the most objectionable things many of us have ever seen. Americans have collectively stated the loudest NO in decades.

There is already so much hand wringing about what comes next. It’s cynical and click bait-y and still kind of fair. What are we, who are we, when not “the opposition.” In the terms of pleasure activism: Do we - do you - have an equally loud YES?

Ok, just stay with me here: I’ve been working my way through Audre Lourde’s Uses of the Erotic. Before you think this is a very different kind of newsletter, here is her definition of erotic in this context:

In the last ten years, certainly the last six, many of us have sought that sense of satisfaction and found it in each other. In an essay yesterday, one of my favorite writers labeled them, “we who fed each other when an economy bloated by greed revealed the lie of independence and solitude.” In the urgency of our despair we produced clubs, committees, mutual aid groups, and so many other communities. Members had come to know that internal satisfaction and “could require no less of themselves.”

It produced Queer Soup Night, which I attended on Tuesday night at Haema in Hudson. I went because ~ soup ~ but also hoping to be among friends and folx who could distract me from election night anxiety. I was a little afraid that everyone would be reading the results from their phones. Around 7pm my friend gasped and looked up to what was being projected on the wall.

It was the lumberjack scene from But I’m a Cheerleader.

Soup and a movie with your neighbors on a dark night. The satisfaction to which we aspire can be pretty simple to pull off.

The blue tsunami had its foundation among those community members who have found that satisfaction of finding their yes. I promise that they want to loop you in. If you feel the boot has been lifted from your neck and you’re wondering what to do with all this air, just start moving in the direction of your yes.

Kenoza Hall in Kenoza Lake has a new Sunday Supper: three courses of Italian classics plus an overnight in a Main Inn room and spa access, $150 a person!! Wish this had been a thing when Mr. Gunks No link, so call 845-482-1022 to book.

Ellenville's Borscht Belt Film Fest runs Nov 6 and 7 at Shadowland Stages, with a Q&A after every screening, including The 99-Year-Old Man about Mel Brooks.

Saturday and Sunday is the long-awaited annual Niche Fall Factory Sale where you can get up to 70% off their gorgeous hand blown glass lighting fixtures. I have two, one of which was installed by the aforementioned friend!

Rally outside the Columbia County Board of Supervisors at 6:30pm for Get the Flock Out of Columbia County Rally then join the board meeting from 7 to 8.

Little Rye Bakehouse is accepting vendors for their Last Minute Mini Market, which will be Dec 12 at their cute space in Kingtson.

Thursday, November 5

Hudson Valley Canna Roll Call at Aspire Brewing in Middletown: A networking night meant to connect the local cannabis business community up and down the supply chain. 6 to 9pm at Aspire Brewing in Middletown.

Matchbook Club at The Parlour on 1 Main in Kingston: Monthly Matchbook Club at The Parlour on 1 Main: design your own matchbooks and join the ongoing gallery. $10, supplies provided, 6:30pm, RSVP on their website.

My 90s Rock Photographs at Hudson Hall in Hudson: Melissa Auf der Maur, bassist for Hole and The Smashing Pumpkins and co-founder of Basilica Hudson, talks rock, memory, and her ’90s photographs with director Michael Lindsay-Hogg at Hudson Hall. Q&A, book signing, and a reception with DJBNNYBRNS follow. Tickets start at $10.

Friday, November 6

The Dread That Consumes Us: Opening Reception at WomensWork.art in Poughkeepsie: A juried group show guest curated by Crystal Serino, built on meat-core (ew?) meme culture and how a Gen Z body absorbs ecological collapse and digital alienation. Opening reception is 5 to 7pm on the third floor of 12 Vassar St, and the show runs through December 20. Maybe it’ll feel cathartic.

Filipino Fusion Friday: Dumpling Making Workshop at Café Joust in Catskill: Café Joust's Filipino Fusion Friday dinner comes with a dumpling making workshop from 6 to 8pm, led by Glendy Yeung (local chef, musician, and energy practitioner).

Saturday, November 7

Starlight Social at Full Circle Commons in Gardiner: Full Circle throws a benefit in The Living Room: hors d'oeuvres and cocktails, live music, dancing, and a raffle and auction. The money backs Full Circle's work on getting neighbors to know each other. 7 to 10pm.

Cookbook Fest & Swap at Ten Mile Table in Wassaic: Wassaic's Main Street fills with a used cookbook swap, new cookbooks from Merritt Bookstore, and food from Fair Play, Fat Apple Farm, Vitsky Bakery and more. Wine, music, hot drinks, and a printed or handwritten recipe to share. 1 to 5pm.

Dahlia Dig Workshop at Alchemy Farmhouse in Gardiner: Alchemy Farmhouse teaches when and how to dig, store and divide dahlia tubers, and you take tubers home from the farm.

Hudson Valley Short Film Club Challenge 1 Screening at Beacon Creative Industries in Beacon: The Hudson Valley Short Film Club screens what its members made for their first challenge. 2pm.

Sip, Savor & Create: A Simple Syrup Workshop & Buffet at PBF Restaurant & Bar in Montgomery: Breathe the Trees walks you through fruits, herbs and botanicals, then you blend two holiday simple syrups and take both bottles home. A PBF buffet is included. $69, or $85 for VIP with a cocktail. 5pm, call or text 845-750-8901 to book.

Slow Fashion Fair at The Fuller Building in Kingston: Hudson Valley Sustainable Fashion Week's Slow Fashion Fair brings regional makers, farmers, and fiber artists to the Fuller Building for eat, drink, swap, mend, and play. $15, kids under 10 free, 11am to 5pm.

Grand Fall Wine Tasting at Boutique Wines, Spirits & Ciders in Fishkill: Boutique's semi-annual Grand Wine Tasting pours more than 50 wines from around the world, some new and some old favorites. 1 to 5pm, must be 21+ with valid ID.

Back Home Harvest Jam + Valley Cup at Back Home Dispensary in Stone Ridge: Back Home Dispensary celebrates two years with a harvest party: live music from The Upstate Family Band, local food, and the Valley Cup growing competition with a cash prize. 3 to 8pm.

UPCO Assembly: A Community Gathering at Campus Center North in Annandale-on-Hudson: UPCO Assembly is a community gathering for BIPOC in the Hudson Valley to talk about how to strengthen, empower, and connect the community. 2 to 5 at Campus Center North, 25 Robbins Rd. RSVP through the @upstatecolor bio.

Native Neon Residency Opening: And Her Whole Body Was Smiling at Lite Brite Neon Studio in Kingston: Sarah Rowe, the inaugural Native Neon resident, unveils her glowing rooftop sacred clown sculpture, made with the Walker Youngbird Foundation. The opening comes with s'mores, a fire pit, and skating.

Baby Beacon Bonfire at KuBe Art Center in Beacon: Fires, s'mores, and music from Strange Candy and Telepathic Moondance, plus a drum circle, clay activities, and a Synthesizer Petting Zoo. Not a bonfire for babies or of babies, just baby-sized. Galleries, open studios, and a printmaking workshop stay open indoors, 1 to 5:30 p.m. Free admission.

Fall 4-Course Wine Dinner: Around the World at Franklin Square Market in Saratoga Springs: A four-course wine dinner at Franklin Square Market in Saratoga Springs.

Sunday, November 8

Artist Toolbox Series: Artists in Progress at Garrison Art Center in Garrison: Week two of Garrison's Artist Toolbox covers brainstorming sessions, artist statements, and deliverables. 11am to 12:30pm, $45 (code TOOLBOX takes 10% off all three).

Star Party with the Mid-Hudson Astronomical Association at Rose Hill Farm in Red Hook: The Mid-Hudson Astronomical Association sets up telescopes at Rose Hill Farm on the new moon, the darkest night of the month. Saturn, the Andromeda Galaxy, and the Veil Nebula are on the viewing list. Free, 6 to 9pm, taproom open late, rain date Sunday, November 15.

Monday, November 9

Comida y tierra at Kingston Land Trust in Kingston: A seed keepers gathering in Spanish, with interpretation into Q'eqchi' and English, on saving seeds and building a more connected Kingston. All experience levels welcome, 5:30pm.

Wednesday, November 11

Thao with Kendra McKinley at Unicorn Bar in Kingston: Sheroes Radio throws its sixth birthday with Thao headlining and Kendra McKinley opening. Doors 7, show 8, $25 advance and $30 at the door. 100% the best de facto sapphic singles event of the month.

Northern Spy Reading Series: Translators & Translations at Left Bank Ciders in Catskill: A very special Northern Spy: four translators (Katrine Øgaard Jensen, Elizabeth Zuba, Jordan Landsman, and Jen Zoble) read work in translation at Left Bank Ciders, with Magpie Bookshop. Wednesday, 6:30pm.

Hi hey hello!  Did you go see Marco Benevento and Brainstory while I was gone?  What about Ak'chamel?  Those would have been my picks, so congrats to you if you read my mind in my absence.

Ok listen.  I am gonna be straight with you.  There are a bunch of shows this week that people should be excited about.  It's a stacked week of household names (if your household is a Brooklyn brownstone or a dilapidated shack with a 10k hifi rig in it.) These are not bands I have a strong affinity for but my guess is that someone who is reading this will be excited to see Adult. & A Place to Bury Strangers tonight @ Assembly or Hamilton Leithauser & Rostam @ Bearsville.  Probably same goes for Hiss Golden Messenger (with Amy's college classmate Sam Amidon) or Deerhoof on Saturday.  But I have no good anecdotes for these bands.  They have all played at festivals I've been at but I've always been at the other stage.  I guess they're good! Just not my thing!   In fact, I was gearing up to write a whole rambling screed about how much November sucks and stick season in the HV will mean no good shows but then I fixed my myopia and realized that people like things that I don't and I am not here to yuck their yum.  So this is my gift to you.  An abbreviated column without much to say, but the best effort I could put in nevertheless.  I worry that I will have the same problem next week so let this be your invitation to set me right and let me know what you're excited about.  Otherwise we may take a little detour and talk about an album or two next week.  Consider yourself warned.

[Mr. Gunks loves fan mail. If you have a tip for him, reply to this email and I’ll send it his way.]

Pick one thing from the list above and invite someone who would never think to go. Just send the text before you talk yourself out of it! Stick season is going to be long and lonely!