Memorial Day weekend signals the beginning of summer, or as my mother used to say, “Now you can officially wear white.” And while fashion rules have changed, one thing hasn’t. This is a day to honor all those who have served their country since our nation was founded. While the focus of this holiday is largely on the fallen, I’d like to suggest that ...
When I was a junior in high school, my parents announced to my sisters and me that we were moving from Albany to Buffalo. A distance of only a few hundred miles, it might have been the other side of the moon to a 16 year-old who was perfectly happy in her New York State public school. After I graduated in 1978, my family away and I have rarely made it ...
I’m a bath lover. At the end of a long day, or when I crave warmth, I draw a hot bath and sink into the water. When my kids were little, the bath ritual signaled day’s end. Baths calmed everyone down, transitioned us to pajamas and bedtime stories. But somewhere around middle school, my girls turned up their noses. “Baths are gross,” they said. ...
It may be the shortest month, but February’s haul of good books should warm the cockles of every reader’s heart. And while the recent global weather extremes (polar vortexes, mudslides, ice storms and raging fires) are a reminder that Mother Nature has her own mind, nothing beats waking up on a quiet February snow day in the northeast. (Okay, lie, ...
I’ve got a bone to pick with T.S. Elliott. The way I see it, January is actually the cruelest month. After the excitement and activity of the holidays, after they’ve swept up all the confetti, this stretch of time feels like a hard stop. Living on the east coast, the lengthening of days is almost imperceptible. Gray feels like a primary color. ...