The spring open house at Bedlam Farm was a couple of weeks ago, Jon Katz and Maria Wulf’s generous semi-annual sharing of their farm and lifestyle with fans, animal lovers, other artisans, and curiosity seekers. I’ve been to three of these now, with gathering interest and meaning, and what I think you could fairly call … Continue reading Bedlam Farm Takeaways: The Katz Effect
Closing a Chapter
Yesterday Handsome Chef Boyfriend and I made our final run to Vermont's beautiful Upper Valley to collect the last of my things from the loft I called home for about a year and a half. It was a grind; there was still some heavy stuff he missed last week because he could not get to … Continue reading Closing a Chapter
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
Promise, Renewal
Friday was stunning, Saturday overcast, and today cold, rainy, and windy as hell. So windy in fact that a big whoosh felled a tree near the house (good-sized maple), bouncing off Handsome Chef Boyfriend's new car—big damage—and hitting the ground next to mine, but not before completely taking out a tail light on my Subi … Continue reading Promise, Renewal
Heavy Burdens
That's my son in the photo at age five, in his school uniform, a kindergartener, a blank canvas, full of curiosity, and loads of energy, trusting of the people around him. Something awful happened to him a few years later when he was a fourth-grader. The fallout from that incident was bigger than his dad … Continue reading Heavy Burdens
It’s the Little Things
I think it must be a function of age and want. I don't recall ever getting so excited over ripe tomatoes. And crispy local green beans. And fresh ears of corn just arrived from Georgia, and expensive organic strawberries like the pint I bought as a special treat last Friday, and my Sunday morning yoga … Continue reading It’s the Little Things
Bustin’ Out All Over
Every single year, every single June I get that earworm from Carousel: "June is bustin' out all over!" Aw, c'mon. Sock it to me. It's Tonys night, after all. And guess what? I survived my third <wait for it...> Vermont Winter! I am still standing. I am also bustin' out all over, a condition to which … Continue reading Bustin’ Out All Over
Photo Essay: Found Objects
Moses Farm, Cambridge Arlington, Vermont Post Office Saratoga Springs Saratoga Springs Saratoga Springs Saratoga Springs Saratoga Springs, Uncommon Grounds Arlington, Vermont Arlington, Vermont Tag Sale Finds: Vintage Tablecloth & Pie Tin
Why are you here?
A while back there was a meme floating around social media, a clever photograph of a (presumably) professional ballerina's feet on pointe in parallel, one fully shod in a pink satin pointe shoe and the other naked, besmeared with bloody padding and various daubs of gauze and other patching. The caption read something like, "Everyone … Continue reading Why are you here?
Life in Vermont, Writ Mini
Today was gorgeous, but we spent it mostly inside, organizing and spring cleaning, and weaving into an impossibly-small-and-growing-smaller-by-the-moment house another vanload of stuff we carted down from my oldish place to the newish one. It's not fun, it's a process, and that's about all you can say. As of exactly a week ago we officially … Continue reading Life in Vermont, Writ Mini
Sycamore Stories 