In my fledgling foray into photography I'm learning light is everything, especially when your equipment is limited to an oldish Nikon and a single lens; I can make do for now, and should until I know better. The light in Arlington Park on Friday afternoon was clean scrubbed and brilliant following a spate of biting … Continue reading Winter Has Loosed Its Grip: Perfect Friday Afternoon in Vermont
Vermont
Daily Commute
Like so many geographic place names in America, Taconic comes from a Native American word, meaning “in the trees.” I can think of no better moniker for the landscape that greets us each morning, but the daily commute frees one (if only briefly) from the confines of the woods which can at times overwhelm. In … Continue reading Daily Commute
I Can’t Twirl Pasta (and other truths): Weekend Vignettes
Whoever coined the ridiculous phrase, You can do whatever you want to do, was dead wrong: I can never be a rocket scientist (not that I wanted to). I do want to twirl pasta skillfully against a spoon and I can't do that, either. Still makes for pretty pictures and good eatin' no matter how it … Continue reading I Can’t Twirl Pasta (and other truths): Weekend Vignettes
Nostalgia and the Shipwrecked Mind: Righting the Boat
Every major social transformation leaves behind a fresh Eden that can serve as the object of somebody’s nostalgia. And the reactionaries of our time have discovered that nostalgia can be a powerful political motivator, perhaps even more powerful than hope. Hopes can be disappointed. Nostalgia is irrefutable.—Mark Lilla Should you doubt that bit of wisdom, … Continue reading Nostalgia and the Shipwrecked Mind: Righting the Boat
Romancing Haglund’s Deformity: My Forever Running Partner
Vermont broke weather records last week: my car thermometer said 73° when I left work Friday afternoon, with partly cloudy skies and a pleasant breeze that carried an earthy spring scent—in February. I could be wrong, I speculated to Handsome Chef Boyfriend a few days earlier, and I know there's still plenty of time for big snow, … Continue reading Romancing Haglund’s Deformity: My Forever Running Partner
Photo Essay: Scout Between Storms
Niko left us with about eight inches of snow on Thursday, Orson's knocking at the door right now: we expect him to gift us with ten to twelve or so inches. Yesterday Scout—with shiny, new off-leash privileges—took advantage of the calm between the storms.
You Can’t Sit With Us: Reflections on a “Mean Girls” National Policy
Find someone who looks like they need a friend, and be that person's friend: it was my mama's mandate to me on the first day of third grade, a tall order for an eight-year-old kid at a new school, but the outcome for me that year was a tight friendship with a sweet, third-generation Scot. It … Continue reading You Can’t Sit With Us: Reflections on a “Mean Girls” National Policy
Stretching Dollars, Counting Blessings
Winter was kind enough last week to gift us its annual January thaw, which means the schmutz on the ground—an unpleasant casserole of crusty, gritty snow with a menacing bottom layer of ice—retreated obediently into atmosphere and earth. We have frost heaves already, a phenomenon more typical in early spring. Extreme cold temperatures arrived in … Continue reading Stretching Dollars, Counting Blessings
Bee in My Bonnet
It happens the first week in every January, and here it is again, right on schedule: I must have lettuce. Lots of it and all kinds, and other crunchy greens, and an embarrassment of colorful, raw vegetables. It’s not about cleansing or weight loss, but instead is the natural consequence of a month of indulgences … Continue reading Bee in My Bonnet
1.1.17: Time to Press Reset
Some people claim they don’t need a special calendar day or a personal milestone to turn a new leaf, they can do it any time. I don’t possess the self-discipline for that: positive change comes to me on occasional birthdays or after emotionally significant events, mainly. For the time being New Year’s Day will do. A … Continue reading 1.1.17: Time to Press Reset
Sycamore Stories 