Last week on a mild sunny day I tipped balsam greens for my wreaths. I breathed in the pungent fragrance with an enthusiasm that can only come from absence. For the last four years I have had to drive up to the mountains of New Mexico to find Colorado fir for greens (also a tree […]

After reading the November 12 column, Ruth Blakney contacted me to let me know she had done a little more research into loon relocation. Ruth lives in Brooklyn, CT but has spent summers in western Maine since she was nine. Ruth did additional research on the Fall River, MA bird which was relocated from upstate […]

School’s almost out. Holidays. Time to read for fun. Many entertaining classics suit both adults and adolescents, and lead readers into vast domains of literary entertainment. Herewith, some suggestions. Treasure Island. “Fifteen men on a dead man’s chest – Yo-ho-ho and a bottle of rum.” Robert Louis Stevenson’s Jim, Flint, and Long John Silver remain […]

One of the first ducks to arrive in the spring and the last to depart before ponds freeze, the Common Merganser, is our largest diving duck. The males have distinct, dark green heads which can appear black depending on light. Their scarlet-orange beaks are long, narrow and serrated. This helps them catch and hold their […]

If you read this column, of course you care about education. But let’s review our reasons; we need to do that occasionally. If you’ve got kids, there are many reasons to care about good schooling. Schools employ experts to teach all sorts of things that we can’t teach as well at home; pandemic has reminded […]

AFCI’s Handy Neighbor Program provides opportunities for student help with outdoor chores, following all COVID safety precautions. The students are eager – perhaps the need for Community Service credits helps! For adults 65 and over, project suggestions are: end -of-fall chores, trips to the dump, and later, shoveling. Call the AFCI request number and leave […]