The Quest

When I wrote that title just now, I decided settle might have a bad connotation. I don't mean settle for less than the best;  I mean come to rest . So I went to thesaurus.com for some alternatives. I had to laugh out loud when one of them was "plop." A season to plop. Mmmmkay. We've just enjoyed a long visit with my parents, who decided that fall was a much better time to come to New York than Christmas. On the plus side, they came early enough that we could celebrate dad's birthday together. On the unfortunate side, the fall colors really haven't peaked yet. So they didn't get a fall color fix, even though we tried. It is, however, very definitely autumn. The temperatures are much cooler; the heater even kicked on when it got down to 37 degrees the other night. Every day when I go to work, there are new trees starting to display the tell-tale golden hues of letting go. I, too, am starting another season... one of settling in. At the end of the mo...

Today I was back in Troy to go on a tour of the Emma Willard School campus before I begin work. This was my first introduction to an "Emma Girl" as well. The young woman who showed me around, a senior day student, was excited to tell me everything about her school, her interests, her projects, her friends' projects, what she's learned and what she hopes to learn. At the same time, I got to see the inside of each of the original buildings on campus, as well as the new additions over the years. I also got to see my office, which is ready and waiting for me to show up next Thursday! When I left Emma Willard, I drove through the surrounding neighborhoods to see whether I might like to live in any of them. There are several houses for sale that are within a few minutes of the school, and even some that might be in my budget. That will be another upcoming adventure! On my way to the school, I had passed a sign that said "Welcome to Troy - Burden Pond." I have ...

Here it is... the moment we've all been waiting for! Many of you have been as eager as I to discover where I'll land next... and probably just as many are ready for me to get on with it already. I'm overjoyed to say that we're all getting what we want! I'm starting a new job and you all get a reprieve from reading about the in-between! So, the winner is.... Emma Willard School ! I am amazed beyond reason that I'm going to be working on the communication team at the "first women's higher education institution in the United States" ( Wikipedia ). It started out as higher education in 1814, and is now an all-girls high school. The girls can board or be day students. There are many students from other countries as well. Growing up in a small town in West Texas, I never knew about boarding schools. I didn't have the benefit of Harry Potter to fuel my imagination about what going away to school might be like... at least not as a teenager. I did,...

I spent this afternoon in Troy, the Collar City. It is so named because of the detachable collars that were first imagined and then manufactured there. The purpose of my visit was primarily to visit the campus of the Emma Willard School for a job interview. Emma Willard was a pioneer in education for women, and felt there was no reason women could not be as well-educated as men. She was right. Over 200 years ago, she started a school for women and it is still going strong (although it has moved locations over time). The campus is stunning, and the staff are friendly and engaging. In addition to the advancement of education for women, Troy was also the home of Kate Mullany, the first woman to organize a labor union. She was a young Irish immigrant who took issue with the dangerous conditions and low wages paid to laundresses who washed and ironed the detachable collars Troy was known for. Kate organized her co-workers into the Collar Laundry Union in 1864. After my intervi...

I've been working on a new brochure for the Troy Irish Genealogy Society . In the process, I've been looking at old photos of Troy. This city is one of the most interesting ones in this area, in my opinion. Looking at the skyline from the Hudson River is like stepping back in time. The church spires tower above a crowded matrix of row houses and historical 19th century buildings. It looks much like this, even today. View of Troy from Mount Ida (I think) This afternoon, I was going over to Troy to register for a drawing class at the Arts Center of the Capital Region , a gift from Kef. As I was sitting at the stop light to turn right onto River Street, my eyes were drawn to the Market Block building rising up at the corner of River and Fulton. The light changed, so I couldn't take a photo, but you can see it here on a Google Map street view . This amazing structure is characteristic of many buildings in the Central Troy Historic District . The Wikipedia article on this...