Other Musings Winter Distemper I think the deep freeze we have been experiencing is making everything irritable
winter Frozen Irony is at work in global warming, tempting bluebirds north for the winter to be sandbagged by frigid temperatures.
Other Musings Report from the Outside World Except for those sanctuaries we have discovered along the way, we drove two thousand miles through an unimaginative, impersonal wasteland.
winter Deep Winter It has been a steady barrage of wind . . . the sort of wind that occupies your thoughts, and raises your voice.
Other Musings Gripped by Vortex It is the season when I feel the undertow of email offers, direct mail catalogues, and the bombast of television commercials. They won’t get me.
winter A Conversation With My Boots The boots are all business at these times, plodding forward like draft horses, saddled with crampons that grab the ice underfoot.
Other Musings Shop and Drop. When you shop like. . . I do, you rarely win prizes for Best Overall Present at the holidays.
Other Musings Bare Trees Nature...does not usually confront us with the piled-up carcasses of once living things—not, at least, in the normal course of business.
Other Musings Standard Time—Sort of Of course, “standard time” is a misnomer. Time is far from standard around the world.
Deer season Good Luck, Little Buck Deer season starts today in New Hampshire, and this is no time for attitude if you are a handsome buck.
Other Musings Holiday Megalopolis It is within the power of marketing to transform any inherently good and joyful thing into one of those over-muscled people, wearing a Speedo.
Other Musings Thanks for Working Today Since we were together last, I attended a college reunion of sorts in Schenectady, New York. It was the 200th anniversary of the fraternity I belong to, and let me point out, I was around for the 150th. On the appointed evening, there was the obligatory reception and dinner, which
autumn Of Free Will and Graders Free Will and Graders 10 3 25 123 PM0:00/326.93399092970521× We live along a dirt road, and the big news this week was the town arriving to grade it. This happens once in the spring and once in the fall. Sitting outside on our porch, we can usually
Other Musings Local Newspapers Are Our Best Defense Where is our final line of defense under the circumstances? The local newspaper.
Grandchildren Ever Seen a Lizard Dressed as a Wizard? Science is not the concern of Postcards from Monadnock. Wonder is; more specifically, wondering.
Other Musings When the Inspector Calls A singer’s got to sing, a dancer’s got to dance, and an inspector's got to find stuff.
August The Culmination of Days One goose honked until it was hoarse—until anyone could have understood its anguish. ‘Help!’ it was screaming. ‘My baby!’
Other Musings When the Rain Came I wanted to know how well we did at our cabin in the woods recording eight inches of rain . . . It turns out, we can run with the big dogs.
Other Musings Les Grandes Vacances What we would do if France did not have Les Grandes Vacances, which sends the country into a state of hibernation every August?
essays Riding with Mom We have heard, my brothers and I—now wives, even grandchildren—those stories a thousand times.
Other Musings Cue Summer There is not enough closet space in our cabin to accommodate our seasonal wardrobes, that is, our separate fall/winter and spring/summer collections. I feel like a putz mentioning it. How many sweaters or cotton shirts does one person need? If we could simply divest ourselves of three-quarters of
Other Musings Blindfolded Canoe Racing There is something about blindfolded anything that separates us from the rest of the animal kingdom: you do not see chickens daring each other to cross the road blindfolded.
ticks Eat, or be Eaten I am all about live and let live these days, with one—well, two—current exceptions: ticks, and mosquitos.
