Here's an old English fairy tale with a lot of magic in it and certainly worth a good conversation. It's the old story of Jack, who overcame the giant to bring home to his mother three treasures, "one of the past, one of each day, and one of the music and beauty of the art and the truth of what that music could do for them all."Story Traveler is an occasional series of stories told by Gioia Timpanelli, widely considered to be one of the world's foremost storytellers. Her unscripted stories, both contemporary and world folktales, come from everywhere and blend ancient and modern themes. They speak to the heart and the imagination.Image: frontispiece illustration, "The lively history of Jack & the beanstalk," 1846. Artist: Harriet Hardy Taylor Mill.

Keene Central School has canceled its spring theater production of "To Kill a Mockingbird."The play, based on the renowned book by the same name, includes the N-word. The director said the word made students uncomfortable, so he changed the word in the script. But that led to copyright issues and potential fines.

This week, Governor Andrew Cuomo made it official. He added 25,000 acres of forest, rivers and lakes to the High Peaks Wilderness in the Adirondack Park.Brian Mann skied to the newly-added Boreas Ponds tract, sending back photos and an audio postcard.

Military retirees can camp, golf, and fish at hundreds of military bases. It costs less than civilian resorts, making the bases popular vacation spots for thousands of former service members.

Plattsburgh is trying to heal from a racist Snapchat message that surfaced last month - in which a SUNY Plattsburgh freshman used the N-word and referred to lynching African Americans - and other recent incidents that have made many people of color feel unsafe. Community members led a march across the SUNY Plattsburgh campus Thursday night to show students that they're welcome in the city. Hundreds of students and local residents participated in the event, called We Walk Together. Rabbi David Kominsky was one of the organizers.

Scattered snow showers are expected through Saturday, with summit temperatures in the teens and wind chills near zero all weekend. Before entering the back-country be sure you check the latest forecast.

Washington, DC is expecting huge crowds of students demonstrating in the "March for Our Lives," It's an anti-gun violence rally planned by survivors of the deadly Parkland, Florida school shooting last month.

A teenager who was allegedly driving with two AR-15 rifles and two 30-round magazines in his car is due in court Thursday morning. 19-year-old Maxwell Grimard is from Plattsburgh and was arrested in the city on March 5th. He's pleaded not guilty to felony charges of criminal weapons possession.

The bitcoin boom in the North Country may be faltering before it's started. A cryptocurrency mining company that wanted to invest $600 million in a plant in Massena announced it's scrapping those plans. That's because New York State is putting the brakes on the industry over concerns it sucks up too much energy without creating enough jobs.

A big crowd turned out yesterday in Saranac Lake for an old-fashioned homecoming parade. Adirondackers were welcoming and honoring local Olympians who competed in South Korea. They were also honoring the long tradition of sport and winter competition that has shaped life in the North Country for generations.