Winter's a quiet season

Just a quick note of apology for the recent absence of posts. I've been doing tons of research and writing at work -- compelling research and, I think, good writing -- and my batteries are depleted by the time I get home.  Mix in a personal life that's a little more chaotic than usual and an unusually persistent case of the winter blahs, and you've got a decent recipe for Blogging Malaise.

I've got a couple of job postings that really should go up soon, an almost-finished post about Beyoncé (yes, Beyoncé) that I hope to wrap up sometime this weekend, and a whole laundry list of interesting things that I want to share with you.  Given that Albany, New York is slated to have 10-14 inches of snow on the ground by tomorrow morning, I'll probably alternate between shoveling snow and shoveling away at least a little bit of the blog backlog.

And, of course, the 22nd New York in Bloom is almost here.  Those of you who are familiar with this blog know that I'm a huge fan of this New York State Museum event, but I usually manage to keep my enthusiasm in check until right before it opens.  Not this year.  All I want is to be surrounded by blooms and the smell of fresh-cut greenery.

If you're currently in the northeastern United States, I hope that you're someplace safe and warm and that you don't have to go anywhere for quite some time.  And if you're anywhere else, I hope that you are safe, warm, and having a nice weekend.

Image:  View of snowy path through Washington Park, Albany, New York, 26 November 1923.  New York State Education Dept., Division of Visual Instruction, Instructional lantern slides, 1911-1925, New York State Archives series A3045-78, lantern slide DnAkD8. Image courtesy of the New York State Archives.