Single-digit temperatures? A great day to hit the beach. Grafton Lakes State Park and the Friends of Grafton hosted the 26th annual Winter Festival and Ice Fishing Contest last Saturday. The highlight of the day rested squarely on the shoulder of the annual Polar Plunge into Long Pond. Tip of the hat to the two dozens of courageous people who jumped in the freezing waters for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. I'm pretty certain I also saw a giant, mutant trout, ... Continue Reading

Back in 2010 Bennett and myself spent a few hours exploring an abandoned mill in Victory, east of Saratoga Springs. Originally a textile mill opened in 1846, the Victory Mill has been abandoned since 2000, its closure essentially leveling the local economy. The 215,500 square foot monolith towering this quiet town can hardly be missed. We scouted the surrounding area in September and came back a few weeks later, armed with our best innocuous looks. Here is what I brought ... Continue Reading

This series of virtual postcards from France wouldn't be complete without talking about food. I indulged. I indulged a lot. When US Airways mentioned a weight surcharge on my way back I didn't really suspect my suitcase first. Hundreds, thousands of books have been written about French Cuisine, I'm certainly not an expert, far from it, and I don't cook much. With that out of the way, here are a few food products I had a chance to try during ... Continue Reading

I really love the vast, sprawling spaces in the USA, but there is something quite convenient about the density of Western Europe. I started my journey in Paris and a few hours later I was freezing at the bottom of the French Alps. I hopped on a train after Christmas and joined my mother in southern France that same afternoon. A few oddly-shaped castles later I settled down in Uzès, a small village in the same region, where I stayed ... Continue Reading

If we were to ever run out of wine in France, we might as well export castles by the wheelbarrow. It's no secret that there is an obscene number of châteaux in this country. Do you stop noticing after a while? I won't tell, but let me remedy this situation by shedding some light on two castles I bumped into last week, the Château de Portes and the Château d'Allègre. Both citadels are located in the Gard département in southern ... Continue Reading

Welcome to 2011! How are the resolutions working out? I won't complain much, I'm still on vacation in France for a few more days. In this series of posts I started last week, I intend on sharing pictures of France in winter, not the most well-known side of my country. Lots of variation in Frenchland, you see. I honestly favor June but every 3 years or so I do have to face a pilgrimage for Christmas, to replenish with ... Continue Reading