Vacations are short, and their reviving effects often seem to evaporate before we’re done unpacking. Yet change of pace, place, routines and habits may offer clues for enriching our back-at-home lives.

Here are some personal takeaways from two weeks in a tiny rented boathouse on Cape… Read full post »

From cabbie Cockney to the Queen’s English, the run-up to the London Olympics has showcased British accents of all flavors. “Accents” heads the list of 12 British peculiarities explained in the BBC News Magazine’s Rules Britannia: A 12-part guide to the UK (http://www… Read full post »

I strode into the garden on a recent morning, armed with pruners, shears and secateurs, determined to tame the wild green wall that had somehow sprung up where neatly clipped bushes used to stand.

Not… Read full post »