To a music lover scanning the list of American standards to be heard later this month at “Symphony at the Seashore” in Cape Cod, most of the composers are instantly recognizable. Who doesn’t know George Gershwin, or marching band maestro John Philip Sousa, or country music’s Lee Greenwood, or national anthem author Francis Scott Key? Among the marquee names, however, there are a couple of other songwriters on the program who stand out. Take Steve Schaefer, for example. His name commands your attention, as in, ...

A few weeks ago, some of the girls in the office were craving fro-yo and invited me along. I think I may have had frozen yogurt in my past but it didn’t leave enough of an impression for me to actually be sure. However, they were raving about it and I’m game for trying almost anything and then of course, talking about it. After the hilarious adventure of “tasting” the flavors of the day (some of the fro-yo did make it into the miniscule little paper cups, more on our hands; all gloriously delicious) we made our picks ...

Dear Dr. Linda, I am in second grade and have a problem about math. My teacher just keeps giving me homework and it’s driving me crazy. Because she keeps giving it to me on weekends and spring and summer breaks. And it’s only one level and it’s too hard. But the other people who have special needs get to be moved into a higher or lower group and they learn even more because it’s their level. I’m feeling very overwhelmed. Emi Dear Emi, It’s not that often that a second-grader writes to me. Thank ...

One of the things I do actually love about the suburbs is the quiet. Of course, the quiet mostly happens in short spurts between clamorous bouts of home construction, lawn mowers, garbage trucks, cicadas, and dogs barking. But when I do get it, it’s glorious. So, naturally, as I was having one of those brief, late afternoon quiet moments on my deck, a bird suddenly landed on my deck railing and started to yell at me. It wasn’t a nice little bird tweet like the helpful birdies in a Disney movie. It was a large bird caw like ...

As a public service to my readers I like to go to a place I’ve never been before, spend a couple days, see the sights and file a full report so you can decide for yourself if you want to go there. And since I’m not there any more, this would be a great opportunity for you to go. This time we visited New Hope, a quaint and historic borough in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, less than three hours away. Here, you can cruise Main Street and stop into some of the eclectic shops that feature vintage clothing, books and records.

As I was driving north on Route 123 toward the traffic light, my peripheral vision caught an unexpected sight on my right. A set of freshly constructed wooden stairs and handrails had magically appeared, seemingly overnight, leading into the woods. How delightful! My imagination conjured up a group of forest sprites who must have worked overnight with tiny saws and hammers to entice passersby into the unknown. I was intrigued. Just like opening the closet door to Narnia, I wanted to know what waited on the other side of those new wooden ...