Autumn brings a plenitude of tourists to Vermont from all over the world to view the sugar maples gone wild in their October hues. From Canada to Massachusetts no-Vacancy signs hang in front of every Inn, Motel, Lodge and Hotel, when color is banging bright during these short weeks. Back-woods dirt-roads, which are normally a place of tranquil driving, become obstacle courses as the locals have to navigate around photo-takers strategically straddling the thoroughfares. Some of my neighbors get quite peeved by these tourists obstructing their commute, but I don’t mind, in fact, I am often hopping out of my car to stand right along side of them, framing my shot of the early morning mist lifting off the river, or the electric brilliance of the deciduous trees in their glory, or the freshly hayed field against the dark stand of pines. The list is endless actually for Vermont is one entire state of beauty. And from my vantage, Mt. Mansfield is almost always in view.
Balance: Inside and Out
The equinox is a perfect balance between day and night, offering equal amounts of light and dark in our 24 hour cycle. What a perfect metaphor to hold in our mind as we bring that same balance into our bodies. Time to let go of the excess heat, laziness and wild abandon of Summer and prepare for the biting cold, introspection and long night of Winter… Autumn acts as a gentle buffer, filling our landscape with amber, marigold and crimson to ease this seasonal transition. We can do the same in our kitchens by crafting a hearty supper filled with the vegetables of harvest time.
I March For Soul Force
Writers avoid writing. There is always something more pressing or entertaining or distracting than sitting in the 
stillness to pound out the words racing inside one’s head. Always. That is until those words get so thick and fanciful or loud and obnoxious, growing exponentially inside your head, until you feel, in the most visceral way, that unless you pound them onto your screen you will know no peace.
Today is that day. Racing words are forcing me to write because ever since August 28th there has been too many to ignore. Why August 28th? Well, that date is remembered as the greatest March on Washington; on the recent anniversary, President Obama stood on the same steps as Martin Luther King, Jr. and reminded us that 50 years ago King “gave mighty voice to the quiet hopes of millions; how he offered a salvation path for oppressed and oppressors alike.”
Nine Cent Girl 