Red berries and a cow’s tooth

Each December I look for the red berry bushes along our local roadsides. The berries stand out on leafless branches against the new snow.

As goldenrod signals the coming autumn, the brilliant berries tip us into winter. Move me into the frenzied weeks before Christmas with the quiet excitement of an Advent candle.

Plus, as you might have guessed, they make great arrangements and beautiful wreathes. No fuss for decoration-challenged people such as myself—clutter being my main motif.

Tomorrow we will buy a Christmas tree, a Frasier fir, from one of the local stands. Ours is a family that would never consider an artificial variety.

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Shopping local: A few of my favorite things

Forget raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens— it’s time to shop—and what better place to spend our hard earned dollars—than here at home, in the Hudson Valley.

Since I spend a great deal of my time on the road, I am fortunate enough to discover great shopping opportunities along the way and am loathe to pass up an opportunity to browse. Herewith are a few of my favorite destinations which are (in my humble opinion) well worth a visit, especially at this time of year.

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