By Merisa Sherman As a child, Christmas in our house was absolutely perfect – and was always a party.  Friends and family would gather, Christmas music would be blaring and trays of hors d’oeuvres were placed in different rooms as there were always too many people to squish into the one room where everyone wanted…

By Dom Cioffi I have a friend who has collected movies for years. He’s amassed a huge array of films on multiple formats that has literally commandeered an entire room of his house. I’m an obvious movie-lover but I’ve never felt the need to collect physical copies. In fact, I’ve never been much of a…

By Gary Salmon “May” and “shall” are found on legal documents and for us laypersons mean “can” and “must.” These terms are important when reading H.673 which Governor Scott signed into law on Oct. 8 and became “the law of the land” effective Nov. 1. The legislation modernizes the existing tree warden statutes which have…

By Kevin Theissen Holiday shoppers may not have been racing into brick-and-mortar retail stores, but that doesn’t mean they weren’t shopping. Consumers have earmarked about $998 for spending on winter holidays, which include Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa, according to the National Retail Federation. They plan to spend: Slightly less on gifts for family, friends, and…

By Lee Emmons As winter approaches and snow coats the ground, the tufted titmouse (Baeolophus bicolor) will again become a ubiquitous backyard visitor. Familiar to even the most casual observers of nature, titmice readily come to feeders, especially those filled with sunflower seeds. Like many other birds that spend winters here, they seem to relish…

By Cassandra Tyndall One thing was for certain in 2020 and that is, that nothing was certain. As the New Year grows closer and we begin to reflect on the year that was, there is no way we could have known it would have looked quite like this. In our modern and material world, we…

Do you know what motivates you? By Sandra Dee Owens Through a series of mental growth spurts, I discovered that adventure is highly motivating for me while telling myself I “should” do something—is not. Below is the true story of one of those mental growth spurts. In the days and weeks leading to my 50th…

By Merisa Sherman We arrived at the boat launch with the best on intentions. It was Thanksgiving and we wanted to do all our favorite activities before settling down to eat as much food as humanly possible. The idea was to sneak in a quick lap around the pond on our way up to go…

By Dom Cioffi It was an inexpensive, under-sized, tobacco sunburst acoustic guitar whose brand name is now long lost to memory. In essence, it was an incredibly forgettable conglomeration of wood and wire… but it was the catalyst for a lifelong obsession. The guitar was a hand-me-down from my mother who took a stab at…

By DJ Dave Hoffenberg Sahara Moon, 22, released her “Worthy” EP on Nov. 12. I highly recommend getting it. Moon is a singer/songwriter from the Long Beach Island area in New Jersey, but you may have caught her Killington shows last winter when she came up to play with Daniel Brown. You can find her…

By Kevin Theissen The premiums and coverages vary, and you must realize the differences. Medicare takes a little time to understand. As you approach age 65, familiarize yourself with its coverage options, costs, and limitations. Certain features of Medicare can affect health care costs and coverage. Some retirees may do okay with original Medicare (Parts…

By Mary Ellen Shaw If you are old enough to be reading this you probably had a summer job during your school days. The winter months were spent searching for places to apply. The types of jobs available to young people today are often quite different than they were back when my husband, Peter, and…

By Susan Shea Rat-a-tat-tat. Showers of acorns hit the ground and tapped our heads as my husband and I hiked the Appalachian Trail. Thousands of acorns strewn across the path atop multi-colored leaves made for treacherous passage. We were hiking a portion of the trail through the Berkshires, and the tall, straight red oaks that…

By Cassandra Tyndall We are currently traveling through the eclipse portal. This is the time between eclipses. The first lunar eclipse happened last week, and the following one, a total solar eclipse, happens mid-month. As a usual cosmic quirk, this time is renowned for being exceptionally quiet in the sky. It’s as if the sky…

By Merisa Sherman After 252 days, Killington Resort finally reopened to the public for skiing and riding this past weekend. For so many reasons, there was absolutely no place else that we have wanted to be for the past eight months, to remember the feeling our skis and boards gliding underneath us as we meander…