The silver lining of silver bells season

Winter has never been my favorite. Having lived in a region with seasonal changes four times a year, you’d think I would have gotten used to the ephemeral nature of warm, beautiful, summer by now. Alas, the Hawaiian half of me is so strong that a yearly freeze will always be my kryptonite. This year, being my second winter sans firewatwer or pills to numb the hatred of not-warm weather,.. Read More

6 Things to do in Buffalo when you’re snowbound

Jesus, Mary, and Snowseph, winter’s here in a big way, already! I’m not in New York or anything, but as we share the same coast and aren’t that far apart, I had to admit these snappies of the flakey downpour in Buffalo certainly had me checking my calendar to make sure it’s still only November. Do we usually start the ice works this early? Or at least, this much? Now.. Read More

Hurricane names: can being a sexist kill you?

My first hurricane experience came after I moved to New Orleans. I remember thinking two things: 1. This is magnificent (as I jogged down the trolley tracks of St. Charles against the violent shoving wall of wind, pelted by shards of rain, and seeing furling black clouds rolling toward me like oceanic waves of ebony gas) and 2. This is stupid! No, I don’t mean running in a hurricane is.. Read More

Complaining in the rain

Why the perpetual excitement about what the sky’s doing? I don’t mean you or me. I mean the guy on a green screen who lives in my light box. Today’s haphazardly delivered report was almost exactly this: “Today’s going to be.. well… I mean compared to tomorrow, it’s gonna be much… Actually… (insert all too familiar sigh of someone giving up on life)… it’s …It’s pretty bad right now.” (camera.. Read More