By Charlie Straut '05

After years of enduring the long, cold New England winters, English teacher James Marksbury is ready for a change in climate. At the end of this year, he will be retiring from teaching at Deerfield to enjoy the charms of North Carolina's Raleigh-Durham region. He has been considering his retirement at length and knew from the first minute "that I would not move one degree of latitude north, or one demographic point more rural [than Deerfield]."

A laid-back, unassuming personality, one equally comfortable discussing Shakespeare's obscure allusions to Elizabethan dance and the fortunes of pro football teams, Mr. Marksbury is eagerly anticipating the free time for "learning and leisure" that retirement will allow him. He hopes to continue being a fairly regular free-lance writer for Delta Airlines' Sky Magazine, and to begin syndicating his writing to other periodicals as well.

Mr. Marksbury made the decision to retire near Raleigh because he can live close to friends while enjoying the perfect marriage of climate, culture, and college sports the area provides. As he will be in close proximity to Duke, Chapel Hill, and Wake Forest Universities, Mr. Marksbury is anticipating taking classes, attending concerts, and otherwise taking advantage of the region's cultural opportunities, not to mention "hanging out in coffee shops with other old geezers." An avid fan of both football and basketball, he will certainly enjoy the competitive atmosphere of the South's ACC.

Though he seems eager to settle down in North Carolina, Mr. Marksbury is planning to continue his world travels, now with an emphasis on seeing more of Eastern Europe, and, in particular, the former Soviet-bloc countries. High on his list of places to visit include the old cities of Eastern Europe like Prague and Budapest.

After his tenure of teaching sophomore English here at Deerfield is completed, Mr. Marksbury knows that he will miss the school, but is excited for the future.