If you’ve seen one possessed toy horror movie, you’ve seen them all. And if you are still seeking these films out, and judging from the scores of fans of films like “Annabelle” and “Child’s Play,” there is a market. If you like your horror kills doled out with gobs of gore and twisty Rube Goldberg…

In this day and age of endless film awards shows and scores of internet Oscar prognosticators, the winners are all but a foregone conclusion by the time the Academy Awards ceremony takes place; if you even watch the show anymore, all you can hope for is perhaps one surprise win and some years that doesn’t…

If the state of Vermont is fully committed to confronting the current housing crisis head-on, its most powerful move would be to partner with landlords and look for ways to support them. One-third of all Vermont households rent their homes. Of those homes, the vast majority are owned by mom-and-pop landlords, who, on average, own…

For four decades, Vermont has been my cherished refuge, especially when I was working fulltime in Manhattan and traveling for clients. Yet, as the years passed, my tolerance for winter’s icy grip diminished, and for the past two winters, I sought refuge in the sun-kissed embrace of Carmel-by-the-Sea, California. The siren call of sunshine and…

It’s safe to say that the New Year period is over. It’s been a rather arduous start to 2025. While the calendar tells us we are close to the third month, the planets are still very much embedded in their previous cycles. At first glance, this is frustrating and not very conducive to progress and…

Director Greg Kwedar’s film finds the humanity living within the souls of men who society has locked away If you’ve heard of the film “Sing Sing,” it’s likely due to the critical attention placed on its two lead performances, Colman Domingo, playing the real-life "Divine G," and Clarence “Divine Eye” Maclin, portraying a version of…

It’s completely rare, but we left Killington this past week. We went skiing—at another resort.  We always joke that we all get this Beast365 with the Ikon attached, but rarely venture out of town to use it until our west coast vacation. I mean, there are several iKon resorts in Vermont, but you seldom hear of Killington folk making…

My son made a claim recently that I disputed. It was something outrageous about how much money athletes were making playing basketball outside of the NBA. He cited a social media-driven league I had no knowledge of and then boasted that most of the players were making millions of dollars. When I questioned his primary…

Young people in Rutland City experienced a true a “neighborhood concept” as they were growing up back in the ‘50s and ‘60s. There were neighborhood schools, playgrounds, tennis courts and skating rinks. Back in that time period, most families had only one car. For that reason children walked to school and to activities with their…

The Northeast has experienced significant ice storms throughout history, and we may be due for another one. Though we see icing in many winter storms, including recent ones, major ice storms cause widespread damage to forests and infrastructure and occur in the Northeast every 15 to 25 years. Our most recent one was in 2008.…

Each one of us has the capacity to go with the flow. To look at something, then look away. If it doesn’t concern you, then no harm, no foul. Just keep doing what you were doing. As you were. You draw your line. You blur your line. Then, sometimes, something happens that forces you to…

Award-winning Brazillian filmmaker Walter Salles does what all great filmmakers do when tackling heavy subject matter; he drills down to focus on one family amid tumult, providing the viewer a ringside seat into life under a Brazil’s brutal military dictatorship without trying to tackle every facet of the history behind a regime which lasted from…

We all do dumb things in our 20s, right? When you are testing the boundaries of life to see which lines are flexible and which are legit. But in your 20s, you don’t have any experience in life, and you certainly cannot imagine listening to those who went before you. You might not mean to…

Many years ago, when my son was a budding teenager, I got into a heated debate with him after coming home from baseball practice. The details are foggy, but my recollection is that I was disappointed with his effort that day, so I lectured him about the benefits of focus and hard work. I’ll admit…

On a subzero morning, I clip into skis and head out across my meadow, gliding between desiccated husks of sundial lupine (Lupinus perennis) poking up above the snow. I imagine this spot eight months ago, as I watched bumblebees, mason bees, and sweat bees forage among them. Back then, in June, the world was exploding…