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Hilltown Families Isn’t the Only One Turning 5!

Happy New Year & Happy Birthday Now we are in the hammock week of the year. You start out the year in January and, well, the year is like an egg. You start out January first on the top of the egg, just off center, and you slide down it. June is at the bottom of the egg, and then you kind of climb back up it until you get to Christmas,… Read More

Category: Ashfield, Contributing Writer, HF Contributing Writer, Notes from Nan Tags: Ashfield, Elmer's Store, Nan Parati

The Further Adventures of Mr. Justin Jones

Back to Our Story… And now it’s time to tell the further adventures of Mr. Justin Jones! As you may recall, last year at this time, Justin was fourteen years old and living in a homeless shelter with his mother, Regina Jones, in New Orleans. I wrote of his plight and a very good many of you responded with deep-hearted wishes of a good life for him, and brought me money with… Read More

Category: Ashfield, Contributing Writer, Notes from Nan Tags: Ashfield, Elmer's Store, Nan Parati

Big Name in a Small Room Concert Series Continues in the Hilltowns

Strange Coincidences I have a friend named Dave Taylor who I worked with in New Orleans. Dave now lives in New York. His best friend is named Seth Bernard. Seth lives in Michigan and his girlfriend is named May Erlewine. Dave Taylor’s mom was in the hospital having surgery in Florida. While she was recovering from surgery, a young woman came in to sing to her as part of the hospital’s new… Read More

Category: Ashfield, Contributing Writer, Notes from Nan, Suggested Activity Tags: Ashfield, Berkshires, concert, Elmer's, Hilltowns, music, Nan Parati, Pioneer Valley, western massachusetts

Scary Trees in Ashfield

Just in Case You Were Wondering … One day a few weeks ago, while walking down the sidewalk towards Elmer’s, I thought, “It’s almost Halloween! I should make bark-like faces to put on the trees on the Common!” I could use the same technique many of the float-builders use at Mardi Gras in their Papier Mache—same words, completely different process from what others think of as Papier Mache. I proposed it to the… Read More