Scout-the-Goldapeake-Retriever possibly suspect's something's up. The suitcases haven't come out yet, but clothing is piled in strange and unlikely places, and yesterday the house- and dog-sitter (whom Scout already knows from camp) came by to get the lay of the land. You could look at Scoutie's face and tell he was thinking something like, "Huh." … Continue reading Sunday Photo Essay: When Life Is a Walk in the Park
Photography
Journal Entry: The Garden Thus Far
Somebody was supposed to bake honey oatmeal bread on the weekend, a thing that never came about because of Pressing Matters. I had every intention of photographing that somebody whilst he was baking the bread, and the bread itself. So now I shall give you a little photo essay showing what happened instead, which was … Continue reading Journal Entry: The Garden Thus Far
Journal Entry: Oh, Spring, Don’t Be Such a Sullen Teenager
Sometimes spring reminds me of the agony of adolescence: It’s gangly, awkward, sulking, insecure—still a work in progress. And as much as it wants to be all grown up, has miles yet to venture down that road. Springtime in Vermont still doesn’t quite know how to groom or fix its hair or make nice with … Continue reading Journal Entry: Oh, Spring, Don’t Be Such a Sullen Teenager
Sunday Photo Essay: An Afternoon at the Clark
Yesterday was damn near perfect, bumper to bumper. It was also the first day I could feel winter finally, if a tad reluctantly, begin to loose its grip up here in these New England parts. After the Chef and I finished a little morning puttering, and after each of us—and Scoutie—had nice city runs in … Continue reading Sunday Photo Essay: An Afternoon at the Clark
Journal Entry: Sunday Soup and Silver Polish
Polishing the silver on a glorious Sunday afternoon means one of two things: the silver is tarnished, or I’m procrastinating. I leave you to draw your own conclusions. Today I had a vestry meeting after church, which meant I got home mid-afternoon, antsy to move around after sitting on my bum for about three hours … Continue reading Journal Entry: Sunday Soup and Silver Polish
Winter Solace: Food Without Tweezers or Fog
Last night Chef David and I watched The Hundred-Foot Journey, an inspired movie about life and love and beautiful food (and you know you can’t go wrong with Helen Mirren)—the scenery alone is worth your time, to say nothing of the enchanting score: go find it and watch it if you haven’t already, or watch … Continue reading Winter Solace: Food Without Tweezers or Fog
A Memory: Living Like the One Percent
The main condition for the design, we said to the contractor standing in our Knoxville back yard 15 years ago, is for the pool to look like it’s been here since the house was built, in 1926. Yes, he said, he thought he could do that. No vast expanse of boring white concrete pool deck, … Continue reading A Memory: Living Like the One Percent
Journal Entry: The Compulsion to Make Soup Continues
Blue Moon Soup. It makes me happy because it brings back so many memories of preparing food with my kiddo in our Knoxville kitchen. The book is not a child's cookbook per se, but a family cookbook. It's easy to add ingredients and seasonings to make the recipes a little more complex. But good soup … Continue reading Journal Entry: The Compulsion to Make Soup Continues
Sunday Photo Essay: Glass Pieces
Chef David came inside from an outside task yesterday and said, You should look at the ice formations where the river has grabbed the trees. It's photo-worthy. And so it is, as it was last year. But this time, I believe it's safe to say the river is roiling, and even so, yesterday when I … Continue reading Sunday Photo Essay: Glass Pieces
Journal Entry: Spring Cleaning in January
My internal hard drive feels full—not in the “I know everything now” sense. What I mean is, there’s lots of junk on it. Lots of annoying clutter slowing it down, taking up too much space. It needs defragmenting. Or maybe reformatting. I need some intellectual spring cleaning. I’ve also been thinking about the other kind … Continue reading Journal Entry: Spring Cleaning in January
Sycamore Stories 