Clear the air

Spring is glorious. We’ve spent the winter months poring over gardening catalogs, and now our seeds are sprouting under grow lights, and plans for planting are in full swing. It might also be a good time to think about placing plants inside your home.

Newer homes are often tightly sealed to trap climate-controlled air inside and avoid energy loss. But when heated or cooled air stays inside, so do harmful chemicals, resulting in what is often called “sick building syndrome.”

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Poplarville, Mississippi

I’m back in the city after a three-week stint in Poplarville, MS as the assistant director on a low-budget feature. It’s strange to be back. Here my cell phone works and I can check my e-mail. No one asks me where they are supposed to be or what they are supposed to be doing. I’m not even wearing a watch.

It feels like summer here and I’m slightly disappointed that I missed spring in New York, though a friend who was here for the past month says she feels the same way.

It was hot during the day in Mississippi and I spent almost the entire three weeks outside.

The heat is different there; it’s thicker and I can feel the moisture in the air.

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