Blue is the colour

The Man writes...a glorious day in the Capital District, with dark blue skies and temperatures in the high 60sF.  I remarked to someone at a party this evening about the oddity of driving around with the air conditioning cranked up and non-stop holiday classics on the radio. He had just come back from taking his family skiing at Jiminy Peak, where their opening weekend, on snow freshly made on the recent cold nights, had turned into a bit of a soggy affair.

After shooting a few hoops in the yard, the kids and I enjoyed a short, relaxed hike at Five Rivers:

Then it was on to the party I mentioned, which was at the house of some Hindi friends, and in celebration of Diwali, the Festival of Lights.  The highlight was an all-vegetarian feast of sumptuous Indian food.

Albaniana is flying back tomorrow, when - jetlag permitting - normal service will be resumed, and your stand-in will stand down.