Me here, checking in with all of you. How are you? Did you make it through the storm OK? Did your roof stay on and basement stay dry? Do you have power back yet? This storm made me aware of how lucky I am, and I am very aware that for those without a woodstove […]

Winter has officially arrived and I am uncomfortably aware that I have not been paying it as much attention as I usually do. Partly, I suppose, it is because it has been unseasonably warm – so that’s on you, winter. A lot of it, though, is because I’ve allowed myself to be so distracted by […]

I am the daughter of “a train guy.” The decline of the rail in this country was one of his true, great sadnesses. I would never claim to be quite the fanatic Dad was, but I do love a good train. A lot of my favorite childhood memories, and almost all of my bucket list […]

Have you been watching the World Cup? I have. I have no idea who is actually going to win in terms of the tournament itself, but I do know who has already won everyone’s hearts: Japan. It started with a picture of the locker room that went viral. The usual post-game locker scene is a […]

Recently, when I was writing about the rescue horses returned to the wild, I referenced the classic tale “A Christmas Carol” by Charles Dickens. Unavoidable really. From now until the new year, good luck navigating your day without encountering it on radio, in film and on stage, both in the original and in numerous modern […]

The temperatures have dropped, we’ve seen our first (admittedly brief) snow flurries, and Thanksgiving is behind us. It’s official, We are now well within the designated holiday season. Thanks to Charles Dickens and his brilliant wordsmithing, we will all have the chance to delight once again in the lessons of human kindness and charity. Much […]

For those of you reading this column for the first time, or for those who simply missed last week, my apologies. Like that awkward moment at a party, you’re about to join a conversation already underway: that of the deeply ingrained ideas of Rights and Responsibilities, with a heavy emphasis on the first half. This […]

We are a nation that revolves around “rights.” Which makes sense. Our government was literally founded in opposition to a monarchy. The founders of this system took up arms and fought a bloody, long, and daunting war in order to be done with authoritarian rule. It is hardly surprising then that the language of the […]

Another school, this time in Maine, has now had to endure a day of trauma and anxiety as they were forced into lockdown due to the threat of violence. Thankfully, no one was hurt. I am grateful to everyone who worked so selflessly to keep the kids safe. Mostly though, I am just so angry […]

You can take the snow-topped Swiss Alps, the azure seas of the French Riviera, the wide-open vistas of the African veldt. For my money, there is nowhere on Earth prettier than Maine in September and October. Nowhere. I am so very thankful that this is my home. Which is most appropriate given that Thanksgiving is […]