Discover More from This Category: Columns

Looking Back: College life in the 1960s

December 31, 2019
By Mary Ellen Shaw Most of you reading this probably did not go to college in the 1960s. And if you did you were probably not at an all-girls Catholic college. It would probably seem like being in the convent if you could relive that experience today. I spent four years at Trinity College in…

Tree Talk: Subnivean space

December 31, 2019
Even the sound of that word stirs the imagination. Perhaps it describes deep outer space full of new uncharted stars, planets, and asteroids. Nope. Look closer to earth because subnivean space, as owls, red foxes, coyotes, and even house cats know, is that area between the outer snow crust (top) and the earth surface below.…

2019 year in review via film

December 31, 2019
by Dom Cioffi Here we go again! Another year at the movies has come and gone, leaving us with the inevitable year-end review of the season’s best pictures. I go to the theater once a week so that gives me the opportunity to see roughly 50 films a year. Obviously, I don’t get the chance…

Save on gym membership costs

December 31, 2019
The start of the new year is here and you might be thinking of tackling those extra pounds with a gym membership. The cost of a membership to your local fitness center can be pricey, especially if you are looking for a modern facility with a wide selection of the most current equipment. But there…

A rightful place for the American beech

December 31, 2019
By Olivia Box I’ve always found slender, sharp, yellow-ochre beech leaves alluring, and it’s endearing how they cling onto saplings late into the fall. However, Fagus grandifolia, the American beech, tends to get a lot of flak from foresters. The trees are plagued with beech bark disease, which ruins any timber value, and they can…

The passage of time

December 31, 2019
This week’s horoscopes are coming out under the light of a void-of-course Aquarius Moon that will remain in that state until it enters Pisces at 10:41 a.m. on Monday, Dec. 30. These are such interesting times. With the New Year just around the corner, I got to thinking about a lot of things, so, like…

Rockin the Region through 2019

December 31, 2019
By DJ Dave Hoffenberg The top 10 live shows I attended in the region this past year There were a lot of really good shows in the region in 2019. I narrowed the list down to my top 10 favorites and put them in chronological order. We started Jan. 10 with a rocking Kung Fu…

Money Matters: Retirement plans

December 24, 2019
Not everyone is financially prepared for retirement. Earlier this year, the Employee Benefit Research Institute estimated almost 41% of American households will run short of money in retirement. Believe it or not, that’s an improvement over 2014 when almost 43% of 35- to 64-year-olds were unprepared. Here is some good news: Many Americans are doing…

Rockin the Region with Taz Niederaurer

December 24, 2019
By DJ Dave Hoffenberg An extra present is waiting for you at the Pickle Barrel Nightclub Thursday, Dec. 26, at 8 p.m. It's an all-star lineup concert with The Joey Leone Trio and Brandon "Taz" Niederaurer with Beau Sasser and special guest Higher Education. It's going to be a sick show. I've never seen Taz…

The Movie Diary: Knives Out

December 24, 2019
Signed, sealed, delivered The holiday season is filled with countless traditions. Some, like decorating your house with lights and putting up a Christmas tree, are observed by millions of families across the country. Other traditions are trendy, like incorporating an Elf on the Shelf or placing blow-up ornaments on your lawn. And then there are…

Celebrating the solstice

December 24, 2019
This week’s horoscopes are coming out under the light of a void of course Scorpio Moon that will remain in that state until it moves into Sagittarius at 11:34 a.m. on Monday, Dec. 23. I don’t need to remind you that Christmas is coming up on the 25th, and will herald a new, Capricorn Moon…

Skiing in Japan, a contrast to Vermont and America

December 24, 2019
By Eesha Williams My wife Elizabeth and I have lived in Vermont and skied at Killington since 2001. Elizabeth was born in Japan. She hadn’t been back since she was five. This year, we decided to go to Japan. Since she is a vegetable farmer (she owns the New Leaf CSA in Dummerston, Vermont) we…

The 12 Days of Fitness

December 18, 2019
It’s that time of year again! That time when everyone puts off their health and fitness goals until the New Year, sigh. We understand that allure of starting fresh in a new year. But, we want to challenge you now, to get a kickstart your journey to a healthier life. That is why this year…

The Movie Diary: Jumanji: The Next Level

December 18, 2019
Upping the competition Ask anyone who knows me, and they’ll tell you I have a highly competitive streak. I don’t deny it. In fact, I point to it as a contributing factor in the many successes I’ve had in life. When I was very young, I had a hard time losing at anything. It wasn’t…

Looking Back: Children’s Christmas gifts from the 1950s

December 18, 2019
By Mary Ellen Shaw It’s fun to take a look back at Christmas in the ’50s when we lived in simpler times. I don’t think the world was as materialistic back then. Christmas lists that were compiled by me and my friends didn’t have many items on them and those that made the list didn’t…