Monthly Archives: March 2009

With all the really big money numbers out there — Exhibit A: $1.6 trillion in derivatives in the AIG portfolio — sometimes we don’t focus enough on the small money numbers. No, I don’t mean the $165 million in AIG … Continue reading →

Steam from a sugarhouse in Vermont is like a neon sign in Las Vegas. It’s a sort of G-rated “come hither” glance. “I won’t see some people all year,” says Don Gale, a friend of mine here in Lincoln who … Continue reading →

Yesterday I was one of the judges for the Vermont State Spelling Bee and I was absolutely dazzled by the participants. Granted the printed sign with the official Pronouncer’s name was spelled wrong — Prouncer — but once that little … Continue reading →

The postcards showed Japanese generals, Siberian tundra and the King of Siam — the son of the monarch with whom Anna would dance in “The King and I.” Some were black-and-white photos, others were color drawings. Some had elaborate trim … Continue reading →

The Winter X Games are now behind us and Malibu is cracking down on the skateboarders who are racing downhill on the switchback roads that mark the tony Pacific coast town. So, where are the daredevils and adrenaline junkies among … Continue reading →

It is a warm day on a weekend afternoon in the summer of 2007 and Elly Valastro — then 12 — pulls her father aside, her eyes wide with pre-adolescent incredulity. Not quite rage, not yet. But her father, James, … Continue reading →