Rhode Beauty

Beautiful the time when the Ocean Drive had been hailed at once as a triumph of civilization and as a proof of the possible appeal of Scenery even to the dissipated. It was spoken of as of almost boundless extent--as one of the wonders of the world; as indeed it does turn often, in the gloaming, to purple and gold, and as the small sea-coves then gleam on its edge like barbaric gems on a mantle. Yet if it was a question of waving the wand and of breathing again, till it stirred, on the quaintness of the old manners---it was most touching of all to go back to dimmest days, days, such as now appear antediluvian, when ocean-drives, engineered by landscape artists and literally macadamized all the way, were still in the lap of time;


- Henry James, The American Scene, "The Sense of Newport" 1907

Flower power

For some time now, the one thing that says "summer" to me more than anything else is the annual Newport Flower Show. Put on at the end of June by the Preservation Society of Newport County - this year its being held at their most Gatsby-eque property, Rosecliff - the show is a celebration of everything that's best about summer in Newport, and is the closest thing to a county fair that we have here. But what a county...! Instead of 4-H displays and agricultural charts, you'll find sumptuous six-foot tall flower arrangements - playful topiaries - numerous horticultural lectures and demonstrations - and my own personal favorite, dozens & dozens of booths featuring all kinds of unique, high end shopping opportunities. Want one of a kind, artist-designed jewelry? Check. Want exotic garden accessories? Check. How about some scrumptiously colorful designer clothes - like Nina Mclemore's showstopping summer collection? Check and check again. It all can be found right there at the Flower Show.

All of Newport turns out for the fun, and for one glorious weekend social divisions fall by the wayside. Ladies who lunch rub elbows with tattooed bikers. Baileys Beach mixes it up with Broadway. Even the chauffeurs chat with the bus drivers. Everybody goes, and all go for the same reason - to step out of the confines of their usual day-to-day, to marvel at the returning miracle of summer, and to mingle on the empyrean lawns of Rosecliff. Down in front of the balustrade that divides the fairgrounds from the foaming Atlantic, the band strikes up. And another summer begins.

Water, water everywhere.......

Give me a nice, crushed gravel or crushed clam shell driveway any day.

I have always disliked black asphalt driveways. In addition to their being aesthetically very unpleasant, now I have found another reason to dislike them.

When the ground is left in an unpaved state, rainwater seeps into the ground and replenishes the aquifer beneath us. Rainwater running off blacktop and other paved surfaces, runs into the streets and down into storm drains and out to sea.

In addition to diverting water from our aquifer system, this runoff water is the biggest source of pollution to our precious and beloved oceans.

In my town of North Kingstown, diverting even one inch of rainfall and allowing it to seep into the ground would save 52 million gallons during just one rainstorm! Incredible! If your roof gutter downspout flows onto your paved driveway, try using a downspout extender and diverting it to a landscaped area instead. Just keep it at least 4' from your house foundation.

Like every summer, soon we will be on odd/even watering system. So, please, get yourself a

rain barrel to catch some rainwater for watering gardens, maybe even start a rain garden in your yard, and whenever possible - no more blacktop!

Thanks to the North Kingstown Water Department for the info!

I started thinking about all this when, on the news recently, I heard that the next big shortage on earth will be water. A very sobering thought.

Hanging Rock and Other Marvels

Hanging Rock while it is no Haynesville Shale and we will never find any natural gas here, it is a geographical marvel. And I'm not talking about Marvel Comics, creator of Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk and The Fantastic Four....did I leave out the Silver Surfer?.....

that's enough of that, however we do have great surfing at Second Beach, at the foot of St. George's School, one of our great local prep schools, another being Portsmouth Abbey, right next door to Carnegie Abbey Club, where footpaths well worn by the sandals of Benedictine monks wind through historic coastal trails, where, during the Revolutionary War, the Battle of Rhode Island was fought.

Hanging Rock… a vast conglomerate ledge frequented by Bishop Berkeley (the noted eighteenth-century Age of Enlightement philosopher), was formed some 300 million years ago, from glacial erosion. This ridge is an amazing conglomeration of sedimentary rock called puddingstone.This area of outcropping conglomerate rocks with bold rock faces has a series of parallel ridges, which include Paradise Rocks, Hanging Rock, and Purgatory Chasm are among the most interesting and important geological features of Rhode Island. The glaciers also left us with wonderful beaches.

Our special places

When we live in areas like Newport, Jamestown, Watch Hill or Narragansett it is very easy to forget some of the very unique things that drive thousands of visitors to visit our community. We can get stuck in our ruts of going to the same places and avoiding those spots that we think will swell with visitors when the tourist season arrives.

After a sun drenched weekend with my family my wife and I were thinking of taking a break from cooking and taking the family out to eat. I wanted to go to a place where you put on a lobster bib, clean up with a wet nap and enjoy the sites and sounds of a coastal landmark. One such place is Aunt Carries Restaurant in Point Judith. We arrived at 6:30 and the weather had cooled slightly so we were able to secure a table with only a few minutes wait. I then proceded to enjoy a great cup of chowder, the best clam cakes I have had in ages and some succulent lobster. I hadn't had clam cakes in years and I have to tell you that they were excellent. This eating establishment is only 10 minutes from my house but I haven't been there in years and I have no idea why. For all of us who live in these great coastal communities with a rich tradition and legacy we must always remember to stop for a moment and visit some of those fantastic spots that make our area so interesting!

Shelter Harbor

DOES ANYONE LIKE TRIVIA?

What former 19th century summer musical colony has streets that bear the names of prominent composers and musicians such as Wagner, Gounod, Rossini, Donizetti, Rossini, Grieg, Handl, Gershwin, Schumann, Verdi and Brahms.

If you guessed SHELTER HARBOR – you are right!!!

SHELTER HARBOR has come a long way from its origin as a 19th-century summer colony for musicians. SHELTER HARBOR , or Music Colony, brought many singers and artists to Rhode Island and would become an ideal place for musicians and their families to relax between the summer performing season in Newport and winter in New York City. By the early 1920's, the Music Colony had grown to include many non-musicians and the community changed its named to Shelter Harbor. Today, the peninsula boasts lovely homes in a secluded, peaceful coastal environment bordering Quonochontaug Pond.

SHELTER HARBOR is situated on Quonochontaug Pond and overlooks a pristine, undeveloped barrier beach. Quonnie Pond has wonderful sailing, boating, clamming, fishing and swimming. It is short sail off into the Atlantic Ocean and over to Block Island. SHELTER HARBOR residents enjoy several docking facilities, life guarded swimming at Grove Dock on Quonnie Pond and the private Weekapaug Beach. In addition, residents have private beach privileges with parking as well as a neighborhood shuttle bus, tennis courts, basketball courts, 52 acres of nature trails and simply an overwhelming sense of community.

Best of all….. this sought-after community is located in Westerly, about 5 miles to the Village of Watch Hill…….the train station is less than 5 miles away, New York City is a mere two and half hours away while Boston is about an hour and a half at best.
Life is just better in Rhode Island. Take a breath and enjoy life’s finest treasure…coastal perfection in Rhode Island.

Unsung heroes

Everybody has their own personal heroes, people who go largely unsung by the rest of the world. Mine is Newport's Kathy MacPherson, a neighbor & former co-worker at NYYC who, in her non-existant spare time, founded Pawswatch, now the largest volunteer cat rescue organization in the state.

It started like this...

Fifteen years ago, Kathy heard about a large colony of feral cats living out in the wild over at Newport Shipyard on Washington Street. There were dozens of them. They were frightened, hungry, sick & totally on their own - no reliable food source, no medical care, no shelter from the raw New England winters. Some had been born into the wild, while others were strays or had been abandonded. Some had missing limbs, broken bones, feline AIDS, leukemia. Some were covered with open sores. Others were blind or deaf. Most were riddled with parasites. All were living the most miserable existance imaginable. Kathy took it upon herself to feed, trap, spay/neuter, vaccinate & treat as many of those cats as she could, then got to work finding homes for as many of them as possible, mainly by dint of making a total nuisance of herself to anyone who would listen.

Since then Kathy has been responsible for rescuing THOUSANDS of abandoned & feral cats from the wild here in RI. She tames & finds homes for the kittens and more socialized cats, and she spays/neuters & vaccinates the rest before returning them to controlled, volunteer-supervised colonies, where they are fed and monitered on a regular basis. This effort has taken over her life - and in fact, has become her life. What started 15 years ago as a one-woman crusade has morphed into a statewide tax-exempt animal rescue organization, with hundreds of volunteers and chapters all over the state. So - next time you're confronted with an apparently hopeless situation and you think to yourself, "oh, what can I do about it?", do what I do. Think of Kathy MacPherson.

Ode to the Bicycle

Something really good is going on here.

A few years ago, I got a new bicycle and rode around the block and down to the sea. I must have looked like I was having fun because the next thing you know, a man in the neighborhood had taken out his old clunker and was touring around, too! Then, another and now it is a regular sight. We don't go far. One man sings cantatas at the top of his lungs. It gives my spirit a little boost whenver he glides by.

Here's what it is not - the 25-mile bike ride with the skid-lid, or ergonomically correct helmet, Italian racing shirt, lycra shorts, hard, bike shoes, toe clips, 2 water bottles, skinny little tires that keep blowing out, and handle bars that are horizontal to the pavement. I did all that stuff years ago and it was great fun but now I am into more leisurely rides where I can take in the scenery.

You can see the looks of recognition peoples' faces - they remember the fun and freedom of riding a bike while the wheels turn on the pavement beneath, occsionally sending little rocks and stones flying out from the tires. Even the sound is wonderful. It is very liberating and really fun. It's being a kid again and just riding for the fun of it. No particular place to go - just the ride itself and living in the moment.

My daughter calls my bike an "old lady bike". Well, OK, maybe it is. But it is not an age thing, it is a state of mind thing. It is not a racing bike. My bicycle has upright handle bars, wide tires for exploring unpaved paths, and a wicker basket for collecting seashells, special rocks I may find along the shore, and maybe a wildflower or two for the vase on the front porch.

Works for me!

A League of Extraordinary Gentlemen

Every community has their leaders, people who step up to the plate, even when their own plate is very full. This is a tribute to coaches and a league of extraordinary gentlemen who come to Newport, this City-by-the-Sea, as part of their military career. They arrive here with their families, reunited, sometimes for the first time in years, for a tour of duty at the US Naval War College. Officers in the Marines, Army, Navy and every branch of the military.

Proudly wearing the military uniform of our country, they also wear a uniform to lead our cub scout pack and coach our little league. They patiently teach not only their own kids, but bunch of strangers kids how to run, hit, pitch and catch. Joining in with our community of year round residents with ease, they coach along side the dedicated dads that live here year- round who organize and manage the t-ball, minors and major leagues.


And when these families leave us, we pray for them, our list has gotten long over the years, and we will miss everyone who has served our Fort Adams Cub Scout Pack 2, and 5th Ward Little League. These men are calm, patient, prepared, dependable, they serve with humor and are great role models.


Living in the south end of Newport we are blessed with the natural beauty of a stunningly pictuesque shoreline, the Ocean Drive, beautiful sandy beaches, open farmland fields with grazing sheep, llamas and cows and goats, where every day the drive home is like driving to a favorite vacation spot. We are equally blessed with the military families that enhance our lives.

City Girl Moves To The Coast

As a child I often thought how great it would be to grow up near the beach. Instead I spent my childhood in the country or the city. When I married, my husband and I decided to move to a home he had been using as a rental in South Kingstown. My first visit there brought mixed emotions. Yes, the beaches were beautiful. It was clean, peaceful, and you could actually SEE the stars at night! The other things I noticed were, where would I shop? Is there a Starbucks? What in the world do you do all winter long? Well I said "let's try it". Seven years later I have fallen in love with life here. Many people say it is God's country. It is so nice to walk into a store, coffee shop or market and people actually know who you are and seem glad to see you.

Morning commutes are made up of waterviews, trees and no traffic. Sometimes I like to listen to the traffic reports of jams on the Washington bridge in Providence. I used to be stuck in that mess day after day. South County has so much to offer. Since moving I had a son Brady. He is 2 1/2 and loves his home. Now he will grow up near the beach, enjoy all the beautiful parks and the wonderful people. Living here is truly like being on vacation all year. We don't miss the rushed life of living in the city and of course I have found some great shopping.

Smith's Castle

Talk about a treasure, hidden away and out of sight, and mostly out of mind. You may have seen as small sign along Post Road, on the outskirts of Wickford that reads "Smith's Castle"

Richard Smith built this home, the first so called "English house", in the area at the same time that Roger Williams came ashore and bought a parcel of land from the Narragansetts. A grand and gabled house, heavily fortified, soon enough it earned the nickname "Smith's Castle".

Eventually Smith purchased more land, including the land that Roger Williams originally purchased, and farmed the land as Cocumcussoc Plantation. Burned to the ground during King Philip's War in 1676, Richard Smith rebuilt 2 years later on the original foundation. This is the home, a saltbox, that still stands and is now a museum and open to the public.

Roger Williams preached to the Indians here. One of the first military burial grounds in the country is located here. A mass grave holding 40 colonists killed during the Great Swamp Battle of 1675 is located here. A tragic event of epic proportions, the Great Swamp Battle nearly annihiliated the Narragansetts and ended King Philip's War.

This truly Colonial home is remarkable for its location on the Wickford Cove, its recreated gardens using only plants that were originally grown and native to the area, and the volunteers who recreate life there in authentic, period dress. (Do not call them 'costumes' - I made that mistake once!) It is a wonderful place to take children. They will even show you how to make butter!

On Saturday, June 21 (rain date is Sunday, June 22) the annual Smith's Castle Strawberry Festival will take place from

12 noon - 4 pm.

Why not visit this treasure in your own back yard?

And don't forget the Wickford Art Festival on the weekend of July 12 & 13. I love living here - maybe you would like it, too!

To Save A Mocking Bird

On a balmy spring day, I was gazing out of the window at my place of work on Ocean Road in Narragansett, Rhode Island. The sparkling ocean was luxuriating in the bright intense afternoon sunlight.

There is a large evergreen tree outside of our office that spreads its limbs like latticework partially obstructing my water view, however providing vital shade. A movement like an unfurling fan caught my eye. Looking more intently, I realized that there was a diminutive bird helplessly dangling from one of the branches. Hearing me gasp, several of my associates rushed over to see what event could be unfolding outside. Within minutes, two of these compassionate souls were on the scene under the tree attempting to reach the hapless victim with a pole, however, they could not free it. Suddenly, out of nowhere, two more heroes materialized with a ladder! The ladder was instantly set up and tenuously climbed by one of them. Again, this attempt to liberate the bird was futile. As I sat there mesmerized, witnessing this kind act of humanity, the rescuer carefully snapped off the branch with the trapped bird still bound to it and tender footedly descended back down the ladder to terra firma.



With a surgeon’s fine tuned touch, the Good Samaritan swiftly extricated the little creature from the thread that had been wrapped around its talon and which had snagged on the branch. He cradled it in his hands with tender loving care, gently stroking the head to reassure the trembling bird. Then, with arms extended above his head, the bird was given the opportunity to take flight and soar away. However, it dropped to the ground unable to fly. A box was quickly emptied of its contents, temporarily providing sanctuary to the small bird, and a call was made to a local veterinarian. Within the hour, the bird was being lovingly chauffeured to the vet who treats untamed birds and animals, by yet another caring person.

A tiny life saved by some altruistic beings whose only collective intent was to rescue a young mocking bird.

the relatively affordable price of happiness

Anybody who thinks that money can't buy happiness has obviously never shopped at Down Under Jewelry on Newport's Lower Thames Street. That little store has the most comprehensive selection of affordable happiness I've ever encountered - necklaces made up of chunks of yellow jade the color of marigolds, rings made out of brilliant fire-streaked antique glass buttons from Czechoslovakia, bracelets of watery aquamarines so clear and limpid that you can almost feel those hard knots in your soul start to dissolve...Everything in there is individually designed, hand made, unique, beautiful. Much of it is very affordably priced (under $200) and some of it is downright cheap (under $25).

My boyfriend calls me an shallow materialist & a shopaholic. You know what I tell him? SO WHAT. Why is it that everybody pretends to have so much contempt for THINGS? People forget that there's a power in beautiful, well-made things - be those objects jewels, paintings or houses - that verges on the supernatural. Beautiful things have the power to heal, to soothe, to bring joy and ease. These strike me as being no small achievements in this difficult world. But I suggest you go over to Down Under Jewelry and decide for yourself. Bring your wallet. Open it. And get happy!

Make a List

I am a list maker - mostly a To Do list maker. Anyone else out there that suffers from this affliction will know exactly what I am talking about.

All these things that have to be done are all bouncing around inside my head! When I write them down in a neat and orderly list, I feel so much better. It is much more manageable.

The best part is crossing off stuff. But I am getting ahead of myself.

I make lists for everything - household chores, shopping trips, work mostly, phone calls, projects, e-mails, you name it. Mostly everything is list-able. But I have to warn you that once you start, it is hard to stop.

There are a couple of rules to my list making, too - I have to write them in pencil ( no reason I just like it better) and it is fair game to write something I already did so I can cross it off right away.

I also have my clients and customers make lists, too - I have the sellers make lists of features in their homes and tradesmen they have used and buyers make lists of things they are looking for in a home, I find that they are happy to do it - everyone likes lists!

I could actually go on and on about this but I think that in this case less is more. All I know is it keeps me organized and alleviates some anxiety. Any other list makers out there? Hello??

Flower Envy

How would you know that the grass is greener if you can’t see over the fence?

One of the nicest, not-to-be-missed events in Newport in the spring/summer is the Secret Garden Tour. This June 20-22, the tour is in The Point section, one of our most beautifully preserved historic neighborhoods. Even if you live here and pass through The Point regularly, you’ll be surprised at what you see. Not only are the gardens delightful, but very varied and surprisingly large. You’ll see larger gardens than you ever thought would fit in such a dense neighborhood and you’ll see petite gardens that make the most of a tiny courtyard.

What a treat to be invited in to smell the roses, wander the paths and, of course, take home new ideas and a list to bring to the nursery!

This spring I’m a guest in a house on the Historic Hill and am enjoying my host’s garden as it springs to life. My question is…why have I never planted poppies? Even the buds are wondrous works of art.

Have you fallen in love with The Point? While you're there take a look at some homes that could be yours: waterfront with a dock at 100 Washington Street, a gracious Victorian B&B at 49 Washington Street, or a stylish contemporary loft condo in a converted schoolhouse at 11 Willow Street.

More time-travel in Newport

Another one of my favorite totally free things to do in Newport is to wander through the Common Burying Ground, which is located on a soft grassy hillside along Farewell Street just as you drive into town. I COULD claim that I love it there for the historical interest - with over 8000 internments in total, it contains more intact colonial-era gravestones than any other cemetery on the East Coast - but the truth is that I find a sense of peace and ease there that I seldom manage to achieve anyplace else.

The entire right hand side of the graveyard consists entirely of colonial stones, with the earliest of them dating to the 1680s. Name after name, date after date, stone after stone, march up the hill. Some of the stones have weathered into unreadability, but many are as as crisp & clear as if they'd been cut yesterday. Every stone there stands for a life lived, felt, breathed. The air always smells like cut grass and dirt. Bees and butterflies abound all summer.

Over towards the back fence, under a stand of magnificent & ancient cherry trees, lie numerous menbers of Newport's 18th century African-American slave population. It is about as far away experientially as you can get from the bars and the t-shirt shops, the wharves with their Black Pearls and Candy Stores, the whole frantic reality we depend upon to distract us from the slow unrelenting truths to be found on quiet New England hillsides such as these, where nothing ever lies to you.

A Prehistoric Encounter

Several weeks ago I had an enlightening encounter. I walked out of my home on Great Island in Narragansett, Rhode Island and came face to face with an enormous snapping turtle. It was prodigiously wending its way back to Teal Pond on the south side of my home from the marsh on the north side of my home. Briefly our eyes met, two alien worlds totally, irrevocably unbridgeable. As we sized each other up momentarily, the turtle abruptly retracted its head, legs and tail. Out of compassion I respectfully retreated back into the house. Watching from my covert vantage point with utter fascination, it cautiously poked its head, legs and tail back out of its protective shell and slowly determindedly continued to move forward. The turtle's head was resolutely set with a conviction created by thousands of years of genetic stamping.

Every spring the female snapping turtles dig themselves out of the mud in Teal Pond and make their arduous journeys across my neighbors’ and my front yards to reach the marsh where they lay their eggs. Once these obligatory reproductive tasks have been completed the turtles return along the same path.



While pondering the thought that the turtle was intruding on my territorial turf, it suddenly occurred to me that, in fact, the intruder was I. There was a new healthy respectful thought process being hatched within me. These noble reptiles had been replicating this process many thousands of years before human beings ever existed on this island. I wondered if the turtle had considered me a temporary annoyance, a giant unknown threat, or both.

It continued on with a single minded determination returning to the pond. As the turtle reached the fringes of my lawn, it considered its options, there was only one, the path that had once been open to the pond but was now blocked by an enormous pile of lawn cuttings, compliments of my landscaper. The turtle looked to the right and to the left then proceeded on the course which it had always taken. As a voyeur, I watched with a sense of awakening respect, it took the most difficult way, the one programmed into it. There were several futile attempts, but some how this marvelous awkward creature made its way to the top with tremendous dignity. I watched until the last second as the turtle breached the top and then, I’m certain with a sense of relief on some primeval level, it disappeared out of sight into the underbrush. The turtle was home in the security of its pond. Yet again, the turtle had exposed itself to a dangerous and potentially fatal situation in the name of procreation in a world that had overtaken it, but not defeated it.

I stood there dumbfounded and realized that I had been taught a valuable life story. All creatures, great and small, should be accorded the same common dignity and a huge healthy respect.


Submitted by a humbled human being who was taught a graphic lesson by a simple snapping turtle.

The Glamorous Life

It always makes me laugh when people say being a Realtor is easy, it is a glamorous job, or that we are paid too much for what we do. I say come and sit in our office for a few days. See all the happenings that go on behind the scenes. See if you think it is easy work. In the six years I have been selling real estate, I have had some moments that have truly been wonderful and some that have been a bit trying.

Let me give you a few examples. How about calls late at night (10pm or later) that are not even close to being an emergency, calls that wake a baby you have been trying to get to sleep for two hours. Or the BRISK walks on the beach in the middle of January in snow up to your knees with out of state clients. The homeowners you have to tell the many problems with their property that they just don't see. How about the many walks through vacant land? I seem to have a gift for rain, mud and briers. One time I almost had to be cut out of brush and briers that had wrapped themselves around me. My favorite story is just hours after giving birth to my son by c-section, I was trying to reach for my cell phone from the hospital bed to calm down angry sellers and buyers that were threatening to walk away from the closing on the property in just a few days. They did ask how I was feeling and if I had a girl or a boy!!

Anyway, my Dad always taught me to "see what is good, not what is bad" He was a wonderful man and always had a smile, kiss, song or joke to brighten my day. When things go wrong or I have a tough day, I think of what he was saying. I do love being a Realtor. And I love helping clients find their dream home or to help someone turn a page and sell their home. Take a look at our website for some truly wonderful homes, or call me if you are thinking of selling.

My motto as a Realtor has been professional, personalized service with a positive attitude.

Tree Weather

When the weather is perfectly heavenly, we walk in clouds and listen to the long deep bellow of the fog horns.

No ocean in sight, no coastal vistas to behold, just the sound of the ocean coming ashore, this is the Newport that I adore.

So many things to do on a gray rainy day, when the sun goes under cover, that's the time to explore!


"I think that I shall never see a poem as lovely as a tree", the poet Joyce Kilmer (1886-1918) maintained a summer residence here in Newport. He may have walked under a canopy of magnificent trees similar to these at The Elms and was inspired to write this beautiful poem. Newport is an arborists paradise, a playground for the tree enthusiast, the mature elm, copper beech, weeping beech, tulip trees take on even more romantic form, when silhouetted against a background of white.



Walk, and walk and walk, take any side street in Newport, and see a doorway, a gate, a gable, a stable! Perhaps you will even find a home you did not know you knew, but something has moved you to take a closer look and once inside you'll feel like settling in and reading a book. A gray day has the power to make a house a home.





And when you are ready for a rest from your adventures afoot, take a stroll to the Aquidneck Lobster Company for lobster or the day's catch, unloaded right here at the dock, and take it home, perhaps even, to enjoy in the warmth of your new home.

Cave Paintings and such

With a degree in Fine Arts, I have had my share of art history classes. They were some of my favorites. One of the subjects that touched me greatly was the study of the cave paintings at Lascaux.

The purposes of these paintings is not known. How could it be? There are no eyewitnesses! However, scholars agree that the paintings were probably for ceremonial purposes; others were religious, and some perhaps were decorative.

Ever since I became a Realtor, I have felt it was an honor and a privilege that people invite buyers and me into the privacy of their homes to have alook around.

I find it fascinating that we all have the same tendencies toward making our homes unique. We try to make them comfortable, put things up on the walls, make little tableaus on tabletops. Some of us add religious icons, ceremonial diplomas, certificates, paintings, photographs of those we love, flowers. Books. People become house-proud and I find it endearing. Did it all start with the cave paintings?

People do have different tastes in decor, but I tend to concentrate on the similarities. There are not too many homes with completely bare and unadorned walls. Fascinating.

By the way, one of my favorite modern artists is Susan Rothenberg. Hmmm........

Plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose.