Habib Koite, a singer and guitar player who lives in Bamako, Mali, in west Africa, will play at the Iron Horse Music Hall on March 21. He will be accompanied by Bamada, his five-member band. Koite (pronounced KWA-tee) possesses an unusually warm voice and guitar skills that inspired Bonnie Raitt to famously tell him after one concert, "I would drink your sweat."

Aside from a few icebergs, the Connecticut River is clear of ice. This photo was taken in Brattleboro on March 6. The warm, sunny weather is predicted to continue into next week. To enlarge the photo, please click on it, then scroll down and click "see full size image."

Dozens of activists spent the night in the cold on the Amherst town common February 20 - 21 to call for action on global warming. More than 150 people attended a rally in support of the campers. The event was organized by The Leadership Campaign www.TheLeadershipCampaign.org The first photo was taken February 20 in Amherst. The second was taken at another recent "camp out" organized by the Campaign.

About 500 people attended a march and rally to close the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant February 21 in Brattleboro. Organizers asked people to contact their legislators in advance of a key vote in the Vermont senate on February 24. One anti-nuclear group is seeking donations so it can run a television commercial about the vote. Details are at www.vpirg.org

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This photo shows the February 21 march. Please click on the photo to enlarge it. photo by Eesha Williams

Janitors in Springfield and community supporters on February 18 visited management at the MassMutual Center to ask the company to recognize the janitors' union. Managers refused to meet with the workers, but accepted a letter. The company has not yet responded to the workers' request.

"We will continue the fight until we get justice," said Jesse Martin of Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 615.

This photo, taken in Keene on February 15, shows Mount Monadnock. To enlarge the photo, please click on it. The mountain, including thousands of acres of land, was protected from development by the collective action of ordinary citizens. Hiking trails lead to the summit. From there, one can see all six states in New England. A trail map is at:

www.NHstateparks.org/uploads/MonadnockHikingTrailsWeb.pdf

On February 13, the head of the USDA, U.S. senators Bernie Sanders and Patrick Leahy, and congressman Peter Welch all praised organic farmers in speeches at the annual conference of the Vermont chapter of the Northeast Organic Farming Association (NOFA).

There was a brown door in a modest kitchen, scuffed by the onslaught of time, children and life's general maneuvers. It guarded a staircase leading down to a basement, spacious enough and made congenial, such that it was often strewn about with middle-aged men.

When closed, this door allowed a generous amount of space between it and the floor, and was not the most efficient muffler of sound. If one crouched by its bottom, the world it attempted to conceal came spilling forth like the secrets of some giddy deluge.

Following the current thaw, the weather is expected to get cold again on Friday. This photo was taken on January 27 on Old Ferry Road in Brattleboro. To enlarge it, please click on the photo, then scroll down and click "see full-size image."

More than 150 people walked to the Vermont statehouse on January 13, completing a 122-mile march that began in Brattleboro on January 2. The protesters were calling on the state legislature to close the Vermont Yankee nuclear power reactor. The reactor is owned by Entergy Corporation of Louisiana.

"We are tired of Entergy and their toxic waste," said a jubilant Chad Simmons of Brattleboro, one of the marchers.