Giselle is a story ballet with Romantic-era sensibilities that still somehow reaches modern audiences. In it a pretty peasant girl—Giselle—dies at the close of the first act, duped by a handsome nobleman promised to a princess, her heart too weak to withstand the loss. In the second act she is transformed into a wili, a … Continue reading Kingdom of Wilis: Foggy Vermont Morning
Summer
July 27th Lake George Reunion
Sometimes I really am a princess. I never know exactly how to behave at big, multi-generational family gatherings because they weren't part of my own childhood. It's kind of like that feeling you get when you're in somebody else's kitchen—you want to be helpful, but it's not your kitchen or your stuff and you don't … Continue reading July 27th Lake George Reunion
Architecture of a Day: Cambridge, NY to Williamstown, MA
The 3rd of July: Cycling on the Battenkill
Great news: today is gorgeous, a perfect day for a longish ride. Less great news: the tourists have arrived, lots of 'em. Yes, I know they drive the economy. They also drive their luxury cars like maniacs on otherwise quiet country roads, and I still have a little grit in my teeth to prove it. … Continue reading The 3rd of July: Cycling on the Battenkill
Waning Summer
I have a pair of visitors who make their presence known every single morning on my front porch, expecting to be fed. I confess I have cultivated this habit in them. Handsome Chef Boyfriend chides me about this, insisting I will be the kind of old lady one day who can't afford to put food … Continue reading Waning Summer
Travel Log: Maine Attractions
I know, awful title. But fitting after a birthday weekend in beautiful, coastal Camden with the King-o-Puns, my Handsome Chef Boyfriend. That happened weekend before last, a birthday gift HCB planned and handed to me with the admonition to put away my wallet. We had to move heaven and earth to make our little jaunt … Continue reading Travel Log: Maine Attractions
Clear Brook Farm, 180 Degrees
We are spoiled in Vermont during the summer growing season with an abundance of gorgeous produce to be had in local Saturday farmers' markets and elsewhere. (I am okay with being spoiled, or spoilt as a Southern friend likes to say; the flip side of that is Vermont winter.) I have observed before that the … Continue reading Clear Brook Farm, 180 Degrees
Sycamore Stories 