February came and went. As Februarys do. As we approach the anniversary of “the year of living hunkered” in what we call our gilded cage, I’m reflecting on the month. We had snow. Lots of it. Then more snow. This made for some icy walks and some muddy walks and early morning vistas of pink … Read more
A plea to County government for assistance to residents to keep us as safe as possible during the COVID vaccine roll-out Positive COVID cases are rising in Dutchess County at an alarming rate, and the threat of the UK, and perhaps other, more infectious variants are on the horizon if not already here. While the … Read more
Knowing that as far as our Federal Government is concerned I am – along with pretty much everyone else – expendable, I am committed to avoiding contracting COVID-19. So that means not going shopping. And it means arranging for deliveries. Almost a full time occupation in itself. And that means someone else taking the risks … Read more
It’s not coronavirus alone but it was almost a final straw on top of other financial threats. Schools are braced for a dose of tough reality.- UK private schools feel pandemic squeeze And so it begins – the great corona virus contraction of 2020. The old new normal is now the new abnormal normal. After … Read more
Doesn’t look like any of us are going to be traveling any time soon so I’m glad to have the vicarious opportunity via the tea towels. We have quite the drawer full – gifts over the years from Brit visitors and souvenirs bought on various trips to the UK and elsewhere. Each one has a … Read more
Politics without mercy, demonic world events, power without responsibility, nature takes flight. National Insecurity The Under Secretary leans forward and draws an X and her ear-drops dangle like swords of Damocles. As a mottled butterfly is invisible against the ground so the demon merges with the opened newspaper. A helmet worn by no one has … Read more
What Schools Have To Be About Now A colleague shared an article – That Discomfort You’re Feeling Is Grief from the Harvard Business Review and it struck a chord. Suddenly – with the pandemic – the future, that had been lurking and looming on a horizon in plain sight, had arrived all at once. And … Read more
Dear Friends and Neighbors: Based on personal observations and reports from others, many, if not most, grocery stores and other essential retail outlets in our area do not appear to be in compliance with the current New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) “Guidance for Cleaning and Disinfection for COVID-19 For Retail Stores.” How We, … Read more
So many parallels between our current pandemic and the plague that swept through London in 1665, at least as described by Daniel Defoe in Journal of the Plague Year. It’s a novel, written many years later in – 1722 – by a remarkably talented fabulator. So always good to take it with a shovel of … Read more
As my inbox and timeline fill up with Corona Virus updates and advisories this is little footnote to my post about the much fabled NYC Lincoln School (1917-1940) The School is Dead, Long Live the School. Lincoln was dedicated to experimentation and research in the interests of uncovering the best ways to education children in … Read more