By Merisa Sherman The howling wind cut across the exposed ridge line was trying to knock us off our skis.  Protected on the right by the track of the Mt .Washington cog railway, the mountain just dropped off into the valley on our left. One slipped ski and down we would go, 3,000 feet into the…

This week’s horoscopes are coming out under the light of a Gemini Moon that will be void-of-course from 7:08 a.m. until 9:11 p.m., when it enters Cancer on Monday, Jan. 6.This is what we could call an auspicious moment in time. Not only does the Epiphany fall on Jan. 6, also happens to be the…

Resolving to be better I had a conversation with some coworkers recently concerning New Year’s resolutions. Their opinions ran the gamut from not caring at all to caring very much about resolving to do one or many things differently in 2020. One of my coworkers followed the classic trajectory of signing up for a gym…

Two chipmunks vie for seeds on our front lawn. One lives directly underneath the bird feeder. Another hails from the far side of the house, address unknown. The chipmunks appear identical to me: same size, same stripes. Same interests, namely seed hoarding, aggressive chittering, jumping into the bushes and back out again, and brazen stiff-tailed…

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…

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.…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…