We went over to New Paltz yesterday to just bum around (well, we hit a few antique shops first) and check out the scene. New Paltz is a very old town, one of the oldest around (the year 16xx something) and even contains original (yes, original) Hugenot stone houses and they are still in use. Cool. Apparently the reason New Paltz is so liberal and hippy-ish is that, according to local wisdom, people on the way to Woodstock got to New Paltz and just stayed... for the rest of their lives. Could be. It's a nice place located at the base of the 'Gunks (Shawangunk Mountains).
Anyway, we had a nice chat with "Frank" at the local coffee shop and then ate some decent food over at the Mainstreet Bistro. The waitress had big colorful tatoos on each of her forearms -- of table lamps. Lamp shade, cord, etc. Being curious I asked what the significance of the lamps was and she simply replied "I like lamps." Now that is a commitment to a niche most people might not ascribe to -- liking lamps so much that you etch them into the skin of your arms. Gotta give her credit for her passion, though. Whoa.