The Bridge, July 17, 2013

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Connecting Montpelier and nearby communities since 1993 | JULY 18–JULY 31, 2013

IN THIS ISSUE

F-35’SLook, up in the sky!

Booming editorials on jets

23

FIRE BOXESCouncil pawns antiques

10

BARS ON THE STREET?Sheir on Parklets

10

REMEMBERING JOHN WIRES

A remarkable man

22

Summer is a comin’! The rains have cleared, and Vermonters are heading out to swim-ming holes and theater events and on day trips, dog walks and hikes. It’s the time of year that we pined for all winter and that we cherish, soaking up each ray of sun.

Come with us, as we explore Vermont in the summer with local photographer and writer Michael T. Jermyn, as he day trips around the state (see page 8); with Ken Russell and Nat Frothingham, who indulge in illustrious nearby theater offerings (see pages 6–7); and with Amy Brooks Thornton, who shows us the various ways we engage with the outdoors, with our dogs (page 3) and on kayaks and mountains (page 9). Also, enjoy the mud and the adrenaline of off-road motorcycle racing with first-time Bridge writer Anna Svagsdys (page 9). Summer has been wet, and it has been dry. Thornton explores the reasons for all the rain and its effects on farmers and of ball players (pages 4–5). But now, perhaps we can all wring out and head outside. Summer is here!

Tucker Purchase, co-owner of Fairmont Farm, grapples with the rain damage and extra work created to feed his dairy cows.

Wringing Out…Vermonters Weather the Wet

see page 4

PAGE 2 • JULY 18 – JULY 31, 2013 THE BR IDGE

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JUNO AND THE PAYCOCKby Sean O’Casey

7:30 PM July 18, 19, 20, 24, 25, 26, 27 August 1, 2, 3

HEARTBREAK HOUSEBy George Bernard Shaw

7:30 PM July 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 27, 31 August 1, 2, 3

Come visit our new festival theater!

East Calais, VT

Montpelier Rec

MONTPELIER RECREATION DEPARTMENT 55 Barre St., Montpelier, VT 05602 • 1-802-225-8699 www.montpelierrec.org

FRIDAY, JULY 26 • 8:15 PMFEATURE PRESENTATION: UP

UP has a running time of 1 hour & 30 minutesFREE

Montpelier Recreation Fields @ the Pavilion by the Montpelier Pool.Rain date Saturday, July 27

Pack a picnic, a blanket and bring the family out for a night at the movies IN THE PARK! Concession will be available for purchase.

In consideration of all viewers we ask that families leave pets at home.

THE BR IDGE JULY 18 – JULY 31 2013, • PAGE 3

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Published every first and third Thursday

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Copyright 2013 by The Montpelier Bridge

In Accord

Hunger Mountain Coop and its employee union, the U.E. Local 255, have reached a two-year contract agreement. According to General Manager Kari Bradley, the co-op

will pay 100 percent of the medical insurance premiums paid for full-time staff working 32 hours a week and four to seven weeks of paid time off annually.

District Heat Paving Delay

Due to construction logistics, coordination with other related projects (work on the heat-ing plant itself and a parking project near the State House) and wet weather, the repav-

ing of State Street after district heat pipe laying will now occur next spring.

Creemee Crown

From our friends at Morse Farm: “The editors at Food Network Magazine have named the Maple Creemee from Morse Farm Maple Sugarworks the most delicious in Vermont.”

Morse Farms was one of 50 establishments featured in Food Network Magazine’s story, “50 States 50 Ice Cream Treats.”

Bringing the Food

Youth Conservation Corps (VYCC) are supplying local, farm-grown vegetables to “food insecure” Vermonters in central Vermont through the Health Care Share program.

These fresh vegetables are grown at a VYCC farm in Richmond, and then distributed to 150 recipients at a number of different locations, such as Central Vermont Medical Center itself and doctors’ offices and clinics, such as Barre Internal Medicine, Green Mountain Family Practice in Northfield, Waterbury Medical Associates and the Health Center in Plainfield.

Barre Bash

The Barre Heritage Festival and Homecoming Days are July 24 to 28. This five-day celebration of community, culture, history and the arts, features live music, comedy, en-

tertainment, exhibits, food, vendors, workshops and community interaction. For more infor-mation visit barreheritagefestival.org. At the same time, Saturday, July 27, the Youth Rising Project will host an open house for the Metro Way Community Garden, featuring a medicine wheel with edible plants and an open mic. Also, the Vermont Worker Center, on Elm Street in Barre, will host a health screening event on Friday, July 26, from 3 to 6 p.m. The clinics will provide visitors with biometric screenings and education and information about social determinants of health and empower people to work together to meet community needs.

New Owners at Yankee Spirits

Brent Marcellus and Scott Cameron recently purchased Yankee Wine and Spirits, a Ver-mont liquor store that offers liquor, craft beers, locally produced distilled products such

as Dunc’s Mill and Barr Hill gin and Vermont-made gift products.

Moretown Landfill Plans

Moretown Landfill, Inc. and the state of Vermont have reached a settlement that calls for closure of the facility and submittal of final closure, odor and groundwater plans.

The order included discontinuation of waste acceptance on Monday, July 15, pending other conditions.

American Legion Student Support

Local American Legion posts sponsored several local students as law cadets during a week-long session at the Vermont Police Academy in Pittsford. Students atteding: Emilie J. Os-

good, Waterbury Post 59; Chandler M Potter, Montpelier Post 3; Eric T Schnabel, Rochester Post 43; and Tylar S. Smith, Barre Post 10.

Can It

VPIRG activists are going door to door to enlist support for GMO labelling of food. Ac-cording to organizer Leah Marsters, it will include, “every washboard road creating the

strongest grassroots movement we have ever built. We’ve sent them on camping trips.” The effort comes to central Vermont later in the summer.

They’re Making More Laws

Move along, folks; nothing to see here. The Agency of Natural Resources reminds that there’s a new law forbidding idling for more than five minutes in an hour, except for

special circumstances. And another law now in effect, forbids feeding bears, as the outcome of that activity is virtually always bad for the bears.

WHAT’S IN pooch journeys

Summer in Vermont: it’s hard to leave your dog at home even if you need to push it in a stroller or carry it in a pouch. Photos courtesy of Amy Brooks Thornton.

ADVERTISE Our next issue, which comes out Thursday, August 1, will explore education. Advertising deadline: Friday, July 26.

Call 223-5112 for Carolyn (x11) or Ivan (x12) or Rick at 479-0970.


by Amy Brooks Thornton

Last week George Gross of Dog River Farm, located just south of Montpe-lier, looked at his newly purchased

irrigation system. Massive loops of black hose on a metal frame waited impatiently in a large puddle next to his greenhouse. Refer-ring to the near-record-breaking rainfall Ver-monters experienced in May and June, Gross commented, “It’s easier to put water into the ground than to get water out.” With a confi-dent grimace, he pointed to the contraption and added, “I’ll be using that in two weeks.” With the recent and very welcome sunshine, it looks like he might be right.

Just seven days ago, large puddles spread throughout waterlogged rows of vegetables at local farms, patches of yellowed and stunted corn blemished normally deep green fields and machinery waited field-side. Bugs, disease and weeds were literally having a field day, and the Vermont Moun-taineers had pulled out the rain tarp 23 times—many more than they’d like. The rain’s aftermath still persists.

The National Weather Service, record-ing at the Burlington Airport, reported the

heaviest rainfall for May and June com-bined since 1922. And although in mid-May, Montpelier precipitation was only at 50 percent of the norm, as of July 8 the year-to-date precipitation was 20.84 inches, more than 3 inches greater than the normal value averaged over the last 30 years.

The problem was the weather patterns got stuck. And for much longer than we are used to. Most weather systems that move west to east, such as storms and precipita-tion, come—and then go.

Meteorologist Lawrence Hayes explains that a strong, high-pressure ridge over the Atlantic and a very deep trough in the jet stream, which had been semi-permanently located over the center of the country, had created an unusual effect. He describes the jet stream over the United States for much of May and June as “very serpentine,” mov-ing south to north, rather than the more typical west to east airflow. This persistent undulating pattern associated with more ac-tive weather brought the relentless tropical air up from the warm ocean waters of the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean.

Alan K. Betts, climatologist and atmo-spheric researcher from Pittsford, Vermont, explains that on a “grand scale, the patterns of the jet stream are slowing down and am-plifying.” When the ground is wet, there is more evaporation, he explains. This creates more clouds and a lower cloud base, which produces more rain. It is a seemingly endless loop—more soil water, more evaporation, more thunderstorms, more rain. The “fro-zen, slowly moving [global] patterns” keep our local weather in place—wet or dry.

However, “the whole pattern could shift,” says Betts. Remember that streak of cloud-less, California days we had back in early May? Drought, too, could lock in and self-amplify a cycle of drier soil, less water evapo-ration, fewer clouds and little precipitation.

For the foreseeable future, we’ve got rain.

Referring to the well-above-average rainfall in Vermont for nine out of the last 10 years, Betts observes that “what we [in Vermont] have seen in terms of climate patterns in the last few years is outside of our experience in the last 30.”

He suggests that to build resilience we need to be willing to manage our water. If he were a farmer, he’d create a reservoir to create some storage for a backup irrigation system. Moreover, Betts urges our urban planners to consider ways to let water soak into the ground.

Over at Dog River Farm, Gross and his farm staff just started harvesting the first week of July. He counts on and lost the first three weeks of sales to his customers: buy-ers at his farmstand, Deep Roots Organic Co-op, and Whole Foods in south Florida. Their first shipment to Whole Foods in south Florida will be only a quarter of the usual.

With the wet, come bugs, disease and weeds. Gross says that farmers from north-ern to southern Vermont are reporting a really bad bug year. Flea beetles, which commonly decimate the brassica family of vegetables—like collard, Brussels sprouts, and broccoli—are now eating other crops. And adding to this insect devastation, dis-ease flourishes with wet soils. The organic, pyrethrum-based controls that Gross uses wash away with the rain—along with the fertilizer meant to nourish. It’s too expen-sive to reapply either frequently.

Weed control and cultivation is also dif-ficult since tractors can’t get out onto the muddy fields. And if you do get out on the field and expose the weed roots, Gross says, “It just re-roots.”

“I have a lot of stuff I’m going to plow down and replant,” Gross says. “I’m just going to . . . start again.” But this concerns Gross because it takes a toll on the farm em-ployees. “Now is when I really, really need

them to work, when the sun is shining,” Gross says. “We need to work Saturday and Sunday.” Keeping morale high and covering payroll are foremost on his mind.

But Gross is developing hedges against the risk weather brings. He just put in four acres of raised beds to allow for more drainage and plans at least two more. He’s switching strategies and planting shorter season crops, storage crops in particular such as beets, carrots and rutabagas.

Like Gross, Joey Klein, owner of Little-wood Farm, is trying new approaches and says that with the more extreme and un-usual weather he’ll just “have to be quick on his feet.” Because two-thirds of his fields are sandy loam, which drain well, he’s had a pretty successful growing season thus far. However, his greenhouse sales have been down 5 percent since customers can’t get into their gardens to plant.

Klein realizes his sandy loam is precious. He warns that “if it’s going to continue raining like this, those of us who want bet-ter drained soils better not build houses on those better draining soils . . . well-drained agricultural land may become an increas-ingly important resource.”

Tucker Purchase and Richard Hall, own-ers of Fairmont Farm, a large dairy farm in East Montpelier, are also implementing long-term practices to reduce risk. It’s been a rough spring and early summer. Normally, they finish the first cut of hay the first week of June and the second one 28 days later before the Fourth of July. This year, by the same time, they’d only cut one-tenth, or 300 out of the 1,900 acres.

Quantity is not all that’s been hurt. The quality of the hay suffers when it’s too wet, Purchase explains. You need about 35 per-cent of dry matter to make it tasty—low in butyric acid—for the cows. The hay they are harvesting is about 25 percent. Get-ting the harvesting machinery out onto

Farms and Ballplayers Manage the Rain Throughout the month of June storm clouds created dramatic views from upper North Street. Photo by Amy Brooks Thornton.

Dog River Farm irrigation system in a pool of water. Photo by Amy Brooks Thornton.

Beyond Wet


Jet Streams 101

Unequal heating of the earth gen-erates the jet streams, bands of

fast-moving air running the gauntlet between hot and cold air masses about 23,000 to 52,000 feet above sea level. The polar jet stream, which flows west to east across the United States, moves in a relatively straight line and across the northern part of the country during the summer months

However, in winter when the temper-ature difference is greatest from south to north, the polar jet stream becomes wavelike and builds strength and, thus, creates more forceful storms. Powerfully undulating across the U.S., it forms high-pressure ridges and low-pressure troughs. Under a ridge, the weather on the ground is sunny and fair, but find yourself under a trough and be prepared for clouds, rain or snow.

the fields “tears them up and creates ruts” when it’s wet, Purchase continues, but wait too long and the cellulose and lignin in the hay increase, making it indigestible for the calves. Corn, the other source of feed, is growing unevenly and stunted in many places. Purchase and Hall will replant about 70 acres.

Fairmont Farm has put some “green” practices into place that help with the rain. Of their 1,300 acres of cornfields, 85 percent is “no till,” says Hall. When you don’t “work up the soil,” you don’t get soil erosion. He adds that when you don’t till, “you don’t ruin your soil structure, so it can drain better and hold water better.” In addition, Fairmont Farm grows cover crops, which both help with soil erosion and also decreases the amount of nitrogen needed. Then again, Hall shrugs, this rain “is so extreme some of these benefits we might get, we’re not seeing them.” Future plans to create more resilience to the rains include tile drainage dug into the fields. It’s expensive, Hall says. But, he adds, “Rain is expensive.”

Brian Gallagher, vice president and man-ager of the Vermont Mountaineers, under-stands the burden of the rain all too well. “When it’s raining out, people tend to stay at home and wait for a better night,” or there’s no game at all. As of July 10, they only had two nights with decent weather and three consecutive games; July 8, 9 and 10 were rained out.

The rain-outs are unfortunate, particu-larly because this season the Mountaineers are consistently ranked in the top 14 out of over 300 summer collegiate baseball teams countrywide: in first place in the New England collegiate league, three games over their closest competitor, the Saratoga Bri-gade of Saratoga, New York, and ahead of most of the notoriously formidable Cape Cod League teams.

Luckily, Gallagher says, the Mountain-eers budget is “primarily . . . made up of

sponsors, vendor fees and baseball camp fees. We don’t rely on the ticketing as much as you would think.”

Still, the vendors have felt the hit, and sales are down. Food shelf life compounds the problem. Gallagher points out, “When you get three rain-outs in a row, you have to use up that food, or freeze it to keep from spoiling.” And sponsors aren’t thrilled when fewer people are scanning the ads that line the outfield wall. Despite the loss of sales and views, Gallagher is grateful that both vendors and sponsors have been under-standing and “great sports” about nature’s torrential gift.

The Mountaineer volunteers worked hard through the rains, removing and replacing the rain tarps and spreading sand in the outfield. “The field is so saturated with water,” Gallagher acknowledges. “It’s a lot of work . . . to get the field ready.”

Making the summer special for the ball-players who just want to play ball also con-cerns him. To compensate, the Mountain-

eers are holding special team events to shore up morale; they planned a night for the movies and another for pizza at Angeleno’s.

Gallagher knows that the best antidote is getting back on the field. But he worries that the doubleheaders the Mountaineers are bound to play to make up for the loss of games may exhaust the players. “That’s when people get hurt,” he says.

To address the problems too much rain brings, next year Gallagher hopes to install some curtain drains beneath the field sur-face to remove water off the field. Mayor John Hollar and Lieutenant Governor Phil Scott both visited the field and offered their advice and support.

Ultimately, our community may supply the most enduring resilience. All of our local businesses adversely affected by the deluge—farms and ballplayers alike—may recover sooner with our support. Over at Dog River Farm, Gross urges, “If there is a time to support your local farmers, it is now.”

Persistent rain kept the Mountaineers off the field. Photo by Amy Brooks Thornton.

July 1,2013 jet stream undulates over the U.S. Photo by National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration.

Stunted Corn growth due to soggy soils will frorce farmers to replant many acres.Photo by Amy Brooks Thornton.


New Ensemble at Goddard College Performs Body Politicby Ken Russell

Haybarn Summer Theatre Ensemble (HaSTE) inaugural performance took place at Goddard on Saturday

July 13 with a staged reading of Body Politic, by Jessica Goldberg. In one week, actors went from script to performance of Goldberg’s one-act play, which portrays the relationship be-tween a vet of the Iraq War and a reporter.

According to Producer Kristina Lear, “This is not a protest, this is not anti or for the war, this is about a relationship between two different people who are comfortable with their own perceptions of the world, a veteran military professional, and a liberal-minded writer. They have a connection, and they have an opportunity to challenge their perspectives. They get to intimately know somebody who holds ideas and experiences they’ve never come in contact with before that differ so greatly from their own.”

One audience member raved, “Even as a staged reading, Body Politic was professional theater at its best. We are lucky to have such talent in our neighborhood!”

The ensemble is the dream child of central Vermont native Lear and her husband David Warshofsky of the School of Dramatic Arts at the University of Southern California (USC), who wanted a place to incubate new work. The ensemble brings together the visions of the two with Goddard president Barbara Vaccar and her Goddard Art Institute.

According to Lear, “We want to create a place to incubate work, to create new plays. It’s also an opportunity for actors when they get out of school. We like being a space for ideas and creativity, a space where ideas have a chance to grow into the unexpected. We’d like to be able to offer full productions, and to work with Goddard to offer classes. we have a Grotowski-trained teacher (Jerry Grotowski was a Polish experimental theatre director) and a concentrative elective to be offered to the community. We have a film expert at USC and hope to bring in different professionals for four-to-six-week courses. It is a thinking crowd up here, who have an interest in good writing, good storytelling, and good acting.”

by Nat Frothingham

For its 50th anniversary, the Bread and Puppet Circus in Glover is performing a show titled The Total This and That

Deathlife Circus in Two Parts. Part one is “This” and part two is “That.” The Bread and Puppet Circus was founded in 1963 on New York’s Lower East Side by Peter Schumann.

On the theater’s website, Schumann writes about the early days in New York City with these words, “Besides rod-puppet and hand puppet shows for children, the concerns of the first productions were rents, rats, po-lice, and other problems of the neighbor-hood. More complex theater pieces followed, in which sculpture, music, dance and lan-guage were equal partners. The puppets grew bigger and bigger. Annual presentations for Christmas, Easter, Thanksgiving and Memo-rial Day often included children and adults from the community as participants. Many performances were done in the street. During the Vietnam War, Bread and Puppet staged block-long processions and pageants involving hundreds of people.”

Bread and Puppet moved to a farm in Glover in 1974, and a 140-year-old barn was transformed into a museum for veteran pup-pets. A two-day outdoor festival called the Domestic Resurrection Circus was presented annually through 1998. The company con-tinues to earn its keep from touring old and new productions on the American continent and overseas.

This summer’s circus continues the small- and large-puppet tradition with beguilingly beautiful animal creatures—horses, giraffes, cows and gorgeously dressed stilt walkers.

In one theater piece, a man with a huge white head dressed in a formal suit and tie took his seat on a metal fold-up chair and carefully crossed his legs. A sign with the word intelligence was held up to identify this man. Then someone cranked a noise machine behind his head as if to suggest the sound of his brain working—or was it not working?

Standing in two rows were a group of people. Each person held a death shape of his person. Then a sign with the word result was held up over one person and after the “intel-ligence” man had finished his thought, that

person fell down dead. Then the “result” sign was held up over a few more people and again the “intelligence” man indulged his thought. Again those few people instantly fell down dead. Finally the “intelligence” man got his brain in motion again and the “result” sign was flashed, and the balance of the people fell down dead. The theater piece ended when the “intelligence” man had his head severed from his body, but when his head emptied there was nothing inside it.

In another piece, a group of actors unfurled a horizontal view of the Green Mountains and sang a song about the windmills that had come and destroyed the ridgeline to provide electricity that wasn’t even needed.

In a third piece, a woman who could have been a mother or a cook appeared with a phone in her hand. She was surrounded by puppet figures who were using long scoop-like instruments to listen to her conversation. Then a very severe God-like puppet with a grim look on his face produced his own listening scoop. The woman on the phone was talking in a foreign language. She ended the piece by explaining, “That’s French for a

fruitcake recipe.”As the circus closed, a Daffodil Attack

Force led the way up toward an immense rod puppet of a Mother Earth figure with a completely benign look on her face. At Bread and Puppet the monsters can be overcome. The monsters can be driven off the stage, and an attack force of daffodils or a procession of dancing horses can triumph over the sullen faces of the corporate dwarves.

The Bread and Puppet Theater will be per-forming its The Total This and That Deathlife Circus in Two Parts every Sunday afternoon this summer beginning at 2 p.m. in Glover through Sunday, August 25. On Saturday, September 14, the Theatre Department of Bos-ton College will be presenting a scholarly sym-posium celebrating and analyzing the Bread and Puppet Theater at it 50th anniversary. For further information about the symposium, go online to breadandpuppet.org.

Bread and Puppet Celebrates Their 50th Anniversary

A recent Sunday afternoon crows watches a perfomance of Bread and Puppet Theater’s “The Total This and That Deathlife Circus in Two Parts. Photo by Nat Frothingham.

Goddard Summer Ensemble took Jessicca Goldberg’s play from script to performance in one week. Photo by Kristina Lear.


Bill Blachly’s New Festival Theatreby Ken Russell

Unadilla Theatre mastermind Bill Blachly opens his new arena-style venue, the Festival Theatre, on July

18 with a production of George Bernard Shaw’s Heartbreak House.

Heartbreak House is a witty comedy that addresses sex, scandals, and complex charac-ters in a British society coming apart in the face of World War I. The play reflects Shaw’s own bitterness toward a British society that had angrily responded to his critiques of the politics of the time. The production features

actors Clarke Jordan, Mary Wheeler and Matthew Winston.

Blachly started his first 100-seat theater in 1983, housing it in his Quonset hut dairy barn. The theater was named after the hut’s rafters, which were made in Unadilla, New York, by the Unadilla Silo Company.

Why a second theater? “Why not?,” re-sponded Blachly. “It gives us a different kind of space, which seemed a good idea. We have arena seating on three sides. The Elizabethan theater does away with the need for scenery, which makes a more flexible space.”

The Festival Theatre is based on Tyrone

Guthrie’s theater in Stratford, Canada, and on the Tyrone Guthrie Theater in Min-neapolis, Minnesota—a 1,441-seat thrust stage designed by Tanya Moiseiwitsch for the Guthrie. Multiple levels give the stage variety, and there is a backstage area on the lower and upper floors.

This summer, Unadilla Theatre is pro-ducing seven plays altogether: four plays at the original theater [Princess Ida, Juno and the Paycock, Abduction of the Seraglio and The Birthday Present] and three at the new Festival Theatre [Heartbreak House, Present Laughter and Shaw’s Don Juan in Hell].

Central Vermont theatre legend, Bill Blachly is renowned for theatre and pastoral pursuits, with two theatres, two dozen sheep, and a dozen head Scottish highlander cattle.


by Michael T. Jermyn

It’s summertime, and time to get out with the family and see the great American sights. The Grand Canyon, the Alamo

and Yosemite come to mind, but wait—save your money! I can tell you of dozens of sites right here in Vermont that are fun for the whole family. I have chosen six places close to central Vermont, ideal destinations for a “day-cation.” So pack up the picnic basket, load up the car, grab your map and let’s go.

1. The Shelburne Museum, ShelburneThis is one of the most amazing museums in the country, bar none. It still surprises me how many Vermonters have not been there yet. From the humongous steamship, the USS Ticonderoga, built in 1906 and moved to museum property on 1955, to the round barn full of antique circus carousels, this mu-seum is nothing short of astonishing. Hats off to Electra Havemeyer Webb who had the foresight and energy (let alone the means) to scour the countryside collecting relics and old buildings that were slated for demolition, move them, plank and nail, to the museum and resurrect them onsite for future genera-tions to enjoy. In the Webb Gallery, art lov-ers will be in heaven with paints by Monet, Degas, Cassatt and—the grandfather of the impressionist movement—Jean-Baptiste-Ca-mille Corot. Also, on view until October 31, for the first time in Vermont, my favorite American painter, Andrew Wyeth, is on display alongside works by his famous dad, N.C. Wyeth, and his equally gifted son, Jamie.

2. The Stone House Museum, BrowningtonRecently, I discovered this gem while on a photo flâneur up in the Northeast Kingdom. I was riding around looking for relics to photograph, and I came around a turn and all of a sudden—wham! The 21st century disintegrated, and I found myself back in the early 19th century. Inquiring, I found out that I was in the Brownington Village His-toric District, on the old stage route between Boston and Montreal. The site is dominated by a huge stone building, built by one Mr. Alexander Twilight in 1836 as a college dor-mitory. He was the first African American college graduate in America (Middlebury, 1823) and its first African American leg-islator. With other outbuildings and barns perfectly preserved as they were in the 1800s, it really feels like you have stepped back in time. In the summer and fall, all sorts of activities are demonstrated on the grounds, including granite cutting, spinning, quilt-ing, decorative painting, blacksmithing and more. Much smaller than the Shelburne Mu-seum, this old American site is no less fasci-nating than its bigger cousin to the west.

3. Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park, Billings Farm & Museum,Woodstock This is Vermont’s only national park. Here you’ll find 20 miles of hiking trails, 500-year-old hemlock trees, and Vermont’’s big-gest white pine. This is the ancestral home of George Marsh, whose seminal book Man and Nature, published in 1864, was one of the first works to document the ef-fects of human action on the environment and helped launch the modern conserva-

tion movement. Explore one of the finest operational dairy farms in the country and see what life was like in Vermont a century ago. Don’t miss a tour of the mansion, most recently occupied by Laurance Rockefeller and his wife, Mary. The house has an un-derstated elegance that suits the countryside perfectly. Inside is a collection of Hudson River School paintings not to be rivaled anywhere in the United States. All in all, a very historic farmstead and a true legacy of American conservation.

4. Bread and Puppet Theater and Museum, Glover.The theater was founded in New York City’s Lower East Side in 1963 by Peter Schumann and this year celebrates its 50th anniversary! It is one of the oldest, nonprofit, self-sup-porting theatrical companies in the United States. In the 150-year-old barn is an incred-ible collection of masks and giant puppets from parades past. This is one of the most unique collections anywhere in the world. Walking around in the spacious barn with all the masks peering out at you makes you feel like you have stepped into a scene from an Ingmar Bergman film—very surreal. Stay for the Sunday show and sample Mr. Schumann’s famous homemade sourdough rye. Surely a sight to see is Mr. Schumann himself, approaching 80 years of age, stroll-ing around the grounds on a pair of 25-foot stilts with the limberness of someone half his age.

5. Lake Willoughby, WestmoreWhen I first moved to Vermont in 2001, I started hearing rumors of a fabulous lake up in the north country. A crystal-clear, bottomless lake, lying fiordlike at the base of two towering cliffs. A lake that even had it’s own version of the Loch Ness monster, with a gigantic eel-like creature nicknamed Willy. So a few years ago on an ominous spring day, I grabbed my camera and went up to investigate. As luck would have it, as soon as I rounded a corner and approached the lake, the skies opened up, and a tempest of unparalleled fury was unleashed from the heavens, and I could not see a thing. So I waited, and I waited—and finally, the storm blew over and suddenly I could see the entire lake in all its shimmering majesty. Instantly, I realized that the rumor was true. In fact, it was even more beautiful than the hype.

If you are looking for that quintessential New England experience, just head up to the beach on the north side of the lake on a hot summer day, bring a comfortable lawn chair, a cheese-and-cucumber sandwich, a copy of War and Peace and some ice cold lemonade and just sit back and watch the Norman Rockwell-esque scene unfold in front and all around you as the locals take to the waters.

6. The Hill Farms of Danville, Peacham and Barnet Area This is more of a free-form summer destina-tion, no major museums or attractions to visit per se, but the whole area should be a museum of what America used to look like. You’ll see sheep farms, old stone walls, eerie graveyards, meandering brooks, end-less fields of green and galloping horses. Take notice of the antique farmsteads with barns dating from the early 19th century. Travel along winding dirt roads through beautiful countryside while you enjoy one of Vermont’s, and America’s, last havens of pure and unspoiled countryside.

Michael T. Jermyn is a writer, singer, poet, photographer, storyteller and part-time storm chaser. He lives with his Scottish wife and three circus children in a rambling Victorian house in Montpelier with a trapeze in the backyard. He can be reached at [email protected]

Photo by Michael Jermyn.




Six Day Trips Around Vermont


Despite the Deluge, Outdoor Adventurers Carry On

Riding Dreams of Fire and Metal

by Anna Svagsdys

Welcome to the sport of off-road motorcycle racing! It is 8 a.m. on Sunday morning, and you have

been driving since dawn to get here. At the end of a rural driveway, a cheerful woman collects ten dollars and your signature on a waiver, then wishes you luck.

Now you’re nervous. The driveway leads to a large field crowded with trucks and tents. Everyone is dressed like a Power Ranger; bikes are rolling off trailers, warm-ing up, zipping around. You put on your gear: knee pads, elbow pads, chest protec-tor, ripstop nylon pants and jersey, knee-high plastic boots, full-face helmet, goggles, gloves. Don’t complain: it’s for when you crash, not if you crash. You look great. Go register for your race.

If you are having trouble imagining your-self in the circumstance described, let me step in for you: I am 24 years old and I’ve been riding for one year. Most people here have been riding since they were kids, un-less they’re still kids: I’m about to get my butt kicked, and that’s OK. Masochism is essential in this sport. My bike weighs 230 pounds, puts out 30 horsepower from its one-cylinder, 220-cc, two-stroke engine and runs on 93-octane gas and human sweat. Everything I break on it this morn-ing I will lovingly repair. It will not repay the favor for anything it breaks on me.

After going through sound check (the bike must be no louder than 96 dB), I jockey to the start. This kind of race is called a hare scramble. The course is six miles long, a handlebar wide and as rough as the trail boss could make it: whoever completes the most laps in two hours wins. The race be-gins in waves. Everybody kills their engines, a green flag drops and the first line, about

20 riders, kick-starts and takes off. Thirty seconds later, the flag drops again and the second line follows. When the line in front of me goes, I get ready—one foot on the kickstart lever, the other toe on the ground, quarter turn of throttle.

A shockwave of noise carries me to the first corner, through the resulting bottle-neck and into the woods. Now the work begins. If you’re wondering why dirt biking is tiring, think about skiing moguls: pro-pulsion is effortless, but you turn, balance and absorb shock by bending your knees and moving your body. By the third lap, I am so exhausted that I can no longer pick the bike up after I crash. No matter. Volun-teer course workers are ready to help. After I totter across the finish line and return to my car, I sit in the shade and babble to myself while my boyfriend pours cold water on my head. Then we drive home. Time to rest, rehydrate and fix the bike for next Sunday.

If this whole scene has escaped your no-tice, there are several reasons why. In New Hampshire, dirt bikers can access certain state parks and designated ATV and snow-mobile trails for a fee; not so in Vermont. Here, if you want to ride off road legally, you must either own a track or know someone who does. Also, confessing a love of power sports in environmentally conscious Mont-pelier seems to risk a public execution.

So why am I sticking my neck out? In a word, flow—that silent place where body and machine move faster than the speed of thought. Maybe the century of the internal combustion engine is over and maybe it’s just as well, but before they disappear, appreciate how they work, and how we work with them. If your grandkids ask you why you sold the world, tell them, “When I was young, we rode dreams made of fire and metal.”

Clockwise: Paddleboarding right side up or upside down on Blueberry Lake in Warren, VT. Photos by Amy Brooks Thornton. Kayakers enjoy high waters throughout June & early July. Photo courtesy of clearwater sports. Cyclocross riders take a break from good times on muddy trails. Photo courtesy of Onion River Sports. Due to extra slippery conditions, this journalist chooses to hike Mt. Hunger barefoot. Photo by Juklian Kelly.

Anna Svasgdys learns the ropes on a summers day. Photo courtesy of Anna Svasgdys.


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by Richard Sheir

Montpelier Alive has prepared its prelimi-nary recommendations for parklets in the city’s streets. They received applications from five businesses. Julio’s and Kismet are seek-ing to locate a parklet in the same parking space on the south side of East State Street, in front of Kismet. Positive Pie is seeking two parking spaces on the south side of East State Street in front of the restaurant, imme-diately west of the loading zone/turning lane designation. Asiana is requesting to use two parking spaces on the north side of East State Street. Charlie-O’s is seeking two spaces im-mediately in front of the bar.

Montpelier Alive submitted the proposals to Montpelier’s Public Works Department for comment. Public works flagged the propos-als from Julio’s and Kismet because the space they both seek has a storm sewer, and the city

will not allow structures to be constructed that would impede the city’s sewers.

Asiana has the same potential problem across the street, as one of the two parking places it sought to use has a storm sewer. If Asiana moves its parklet east by one parking spot, the parklet would substantially be in the space in front of another restaurant—the North Branch Tea Room—which would then be blocked from a potential parklet, as the tea room is bordered on the east by the State Street bridge. There was discussion between Montpelier Alive and those who submitted Asiana’s request about moving the restaurant’s parklet to the sidewalk. No de-cision was made on the exact siting of the Asiana parklet as of press time.

The parklets will be in place on the streets from April through September, with the city

First Parklet Proposals Being Considered

City Council MeetingJULY 10, 2013

by Ivan Shadis

On July 10 the Montpelier City Council assembled. Among the first orders of business were pass-

ing a consent agenda granting permission to close Summer Street for their 26th An-nual Block Party on Saturday, July 27, and awarding Engineers Construction, Inc., its bid of $489,893 to repair Montpelier’s streets.

Bids for work on a damaged Barre Street culvert and a Wilder Street retaining wall remain to be awarded. The councilors rati-fied an earlier poll vote and set the fiscal year 2014 municipal tax rate at $0.9634 and the downtown improvement district tax rate at $0.0515. Josh O’Hara and Dan Richardson were reappointed to the Development Re-view Board.

Tim Shea, representing the National Life Group, successfully lobbied the city that they write a letter of support to the Public Service Board promoting National Life’s plan to mount a 500-kW photovoltaic system into company ground off the I-89 overpass near Northfield Street.

New parking was created on East State Street between the Hubbard Street intersec-tion and existing parking at the bottom of the hill. “Pacing it off it looks as if it would add about 14 spaces,” said Guerlain. “With the talk of parklets elsewhere . . . it will be appreciated to have more all-day parking.” However, these spots cannot be used until six days after a published notice from the city.

Amendments deigned “largely technical” to vendor licensing ordinances were passed, sparking some scrutiny of Montpelier Alive for taking liberties in licensing during its July 3 event. City Clerk John Odum noted, “They gave sort of a roving permit for the Boy Scouts to sell water up and down Main Street, it did put me in an awkward situa-tion.” Such unbounded permits are at mu-nicipal discretion.

Sprinkler requirements were relaxed. Small residential additions have become exempt from sprinkler requirements, and larger ones or those where “insufficient water supply would cause an undue hardship” may, in lieu of standards, file an alternate fire safety compliance plan with the fire chief.

With Fire Chief Robert Gowans present at the meeting, the opportunity was taken to address proposed removal of fire depart-ment pull boxes. The 77 boxes festooning telephone poles around the city contain spring-loaded wheels that, when triggered, tap out a signal on a telegraph wire indicat-ing the box’s number to the fire department. The boxes installed during the 1940s are still mostly operable but “have not been used to warn of a fire in over 20 years” ex-plained Gowans.

Hollar called the boxes “anachronistic” and asked Gowans if the fire department had any objection to their being pulled down. Gowans said that the department had none but that some members of the public were not in agreement, citing, for example, that not everyone had a phone handy, and oth-erwise the boxes may still serve the hearing impaired. In 2011 a federal judge thwarted a similar plan by New York City to retire their boxes, ruling it discriminatory against the deaf and hearing impaired.

But given two decades of inactivity, these considerations did not seem to weigh heavily on the councilors’ minds. The council seemed to be leaning toward auctioning them locally with proceeds potentially benefiting the li-brary but deferred on making such plans as the boxes were voted to be taken down.

The council next discussed Front Porch Forum and how it might be used by the city, as well as the city website being mod-ernized. Finally, the councilors weighed the $3,000 cost of a potential special election put on in November so changes in the town charter could be voted on by the constitu-ency in time to get it to the state legislature for approval before April 4.

Street Repair, Vendor Licensing and the Fate of Fire Boxes Discussed

continued on page 11


She knows what’s going on because she reads The Bridge

being reimbursed for the estimated lost rev-enue from the parking meters during those months. Montpelier Alive has established design standards for the parklets, such as width (six and a half feet), water drainage, accessibility, railing height and reflective vis-ibility. Planters are a required part of the design. The cost of the parklets and their maintenance will be paid for by the busi-nesses who own the parklets.

The city’s Planning Department considers the parklets to be temporary in nature and akin to vendors. Because of this designa-tion, the usual due process measures of the Development Review Board—such as formal notification of neighboring businesses and

residents and of decision-making meetings—were waived. However, there will be time for an open public discussion by adjoining neighbors and others.

Establishments such as Asiana and Char-lie-O’s have preliminary permission to build into parking spaces in the streets, but they do not have permission to serve alcohol outdoors. They can apply for such permis-sion from the state, but it has to go through Montpelier City Council for approval, and the council will consider local environmental conditions, including the potential impact of noise on neighbors. It is anticipated that the council will address such applications at their scheduled meeting of August 14, 2013.

continued from p. 15

by Jeremy Lesniak

Printers are a funny thing. They feed on paper and some form of ink and then return marks on that paper. If

you’ve ever had to buy supplies for a printer, though, you might think they feed on money, because operating a printer is expensive.

Whenever I consider printers, I’m re-minded of a comic from The Oatmeal where an ink cartridge is compared to a pen – both being small pieces of plastic containing a small amount of ink. Yet, of course, they vary wildly in price. Printer manufacturers have continued to confuse us by not provid-ing accurate figures for cost per page. That’s why we need to develop our own!

Our first step is to add up all of the one-time costs. These would include the printer, accessories, installation, maintenance plan and any other items that won’t be used up. I’m going to use the example of a Brother MFC-9970CDW. This is a color, multifunction printer that I found at staples.com for $699.99. I’m not endorsing this printer or Staples in any way, simply offering it as an example.

Second, we make a list of the consum-ables. You’ve got paper, four toner cartridges (black, cyan, yellow and magenta) as well as a drum. Some printers don’t use sepa-rate drums, but this one does. Many larger

printers require accessories such as a waste toner bottle, maintenance kits and more. The specifics of the parts don’t matter; we just need a list.

Third, we need a list of all the costs and page counts for the consumables. Once we have that, we can divide the cost by the number of pages. Our example printer has a drum that costs $164.99 and is good for (up to) 25,000 pages. That yields a per-page cost of less than 0.7 cents per page. High-yield black toner, on the other hand, is $102.99 and good for up to 6,000 pages, or a bit over 1.7 cents per page.

I find it best to do these calculations in a spreadsheet, as most of the numbers will end up carrying out a few decimal places. Sure, one 100th of a cent doesn’t sound like much, but when you’re printing 30,000 pages a month, it can add up.

Now you add those numbers to get a more accurate cost per page than the manufacturer provides. I’ve seen these calculations, which tend to be closer to real-world outcomes, vary quite a bit from the manufacturer’s marketing materials. I don’t know how they develop their figures, honestly, but I’d like to live in their fantasy land. Our example printer costs 2.7 cents per black page and 14.8 cents per color page—and that’s with the high-capacity cartridges. I spent some time researching and couldn’t even find an official claim from Brother as to the “offi-cial” cost per page.

For some larger and more complicated printers, you may find it easier to download a copy of the manual and locate all of the part numbers for the printer there. Even larger online outfits might not list all of the consumables with the printer. After all, that might scare you out of buying it! Our example printer falls into this category—re-quiring a waste toner bottle and belt unit that Staples.com doesn’t list as accessories.

Jeremy Lesniak is the founder of Vermont Computing, Inc., of Randolph. He lives in Duxbury. Read his blog at jeremylesniak.com/blog.

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Summer FareMontpelier’s Tea Rooms and the Recipes They Inspire

by Lisa Masé

As a foodie and a folk herbalist, I feel grateful to be able to access deli-cious, healing food in Montpelier. In

a world where, as Michael Pollan elucidates, “corporations cook for us,” it is fortunate to have café options for artfully prepared, real food. Both Tulsi Tea Room (34 Elm Street) and North Branch Café (41 State Street) pro-vide these choices in their own unique ways, where ingredients and preparation techniques reflect the owners’ preferences.

Solenne Thompson, who owns both the Tulsi Tea Room and her own business, Amai Bijoux, brings healing foods to the table. I tried the daily special for $9, a spinach and potato dish served with a turmeric-spiced flat-bread. Although the bread was a bit burned on the edges, the coconut cilantro chutney served on the side harmonized my meal.

Staple menu items include macrobiotic meals of vegetables, rice and creamy tahini sauce for $10.25 or vegetarian sushi: rice, tempeh, and vegetables rolled in a seaweed wrapper for $6.75. Almost all fare is vegan and gluten-free. Dishes are well spiced and delicious in their simplicity.

The Tea Room shares space with Green Mountain Medicinals, an herbal apothecary and home of Grian Herbs. In this small, fra-grant space, owner Iris Gage offers medicinal herbal extracts, oils, salves and bulk tea herbs for purchase. The apothecary and healing foods café complement each other. Thomp-son and Gage both have young daughters, who can often be found playing nearby as their mothers assist customers.

When visiting the tea room, be prepared to linger. Food service requires a wait, and there are so many teas, smoothies and raw, vegan treats from which to choose that you

will want to save room for dessert. The Blue Moon Cake, a decadent bite of chocolate, coconut and blueberries, is my favorite taste sensation. The Tulsi Tea Room is open Tues-day to Saturday from 7 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. and Sunday 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. (223-0043).

The North Branch Café, a family-oper-ated business, strives to create a tea and wine learning environment. When I en-tered, I found myself facing innumerable loose tea leaf sampling jars, from green and black to herbal tisane and guayusa.

The café also features a wine service called Enomatic. This system keeps wine fresh, maintains the perfect temperatures and allows customers to choose a one-ounce, half-glass or full-glass tasting of any of the eight featured wines. Owners Wes, Lauren and Becky Parker explained that they strive to encourage a sense of adventure to their clientele.

In addition to tea, I sampled light fare, which is elegantly presented and well pre-pared. The olive tapenade, $5 for 2 ounces, paired perfectly with creamy hummus and delectable dried figs. The house-made garlic scallion kale chips, although a bit pricy at $5, offered an intriguing depth of flavor. I was pleased to see the wide array of local treats for sale, including shortbreads, raspberry al-mond cookies and gluten-free goodies.

North Branch also offers computer ser-vices and classes. The café is open Monday to Wednesday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Thursday to Saturday 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. (552-8105).

Both the Tulsi Tea Room and North Branch Café share the goal of serving high-quality food and beverages. They accom-plish this aim in very different ways: Tulsi’s vibe feels casual, as though I had stepped into a friend’s living room; North Branch’s atmosphere is more refined, reminding me

of a Cambridge café.Both establishments serve with a friendly

smile and a keen interest in educating cus-tomers about their products. After my tea room visits, I was inspired to make my own versions of some of the foods I sampled. Try these recipes and compare them to your experience at these tea rooms.

Walnut and Olive PatéMy spin on the rich, satisfying tapenade at the North Branch.

2 yellow onions5 tablespoons olive oilWhite or red wine1 tablespoon fresh thymeSea salt and black pepper to taste1 ⁄2 cup walnut halves and pieces 1 ⁄2 cup green and black olives, pitted (I chose Cerignola and Kalamata)

Chop onions. Heat two tablespoons olive oil in a skillet that has a matching lid. When oil is hot, add onions, stir briefly with spatula and turn burner down to me-dium low. If you have leftover red or white wine, add a couple splashes. If not, just add a splash of apple cider vinegar. Then, cover the skillet. Simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add thyme, salt and black pepper. Simmer for 15 more minutes, until onion starts to brown. Add water if onion is sticking to the bottom of the skillet.

While onions are cooking, place 1/2 cup walnut halves or pieces in a skillet. Toast on medium heat, tossing often with a spatula, for about three minutes or until walnuts are lightly browned. Set aside. Once onions and walnuts are cooked, place them in a food processor. Add three tablespoons olive oil and the olives, with pits removed. Blend at highest speed for two minutes.

This makes a lovely appetizer with nut and seed crackers or sweet potato bread.

Sweet Potato BreadThis wholesome, gluten-free bread resembles those offered at North Branch.

1 1 ⁄2 cups rice flour 1 teaspoon each: baking powder & baking sodapinch salt 1 ⁄2 teaspoon each: nutmeg and cinnamon 1 heaping spoonful nut butter (I like almond butter)2 tablespoons coconut oil1 cup steamed, mashed sweet potatoes

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease 8- or 9-inch pan with vegetable oil. Chop one large sweet potato into chunks. Steam or boil it for about 15 minutes, or until it is fork tender. If boiling, drain any remaining water before adding it to the mixing bowl.

In a mixing bowl, combine rice flour, powder and soda, salt, nutmeg, and cin-namon.

Make a well in the center and add nut butter, coconut oil, and sweet potatoes. You can mash the sweet potatoes once you add them to the bowl.

Incorporate wet and dry ingredients until they are well combined. Pour batter into greased pan and bake for 50 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the center tests clean. Allow to cool completely, about 20 minutes. Turn out onto a cutting board, slice and serve.

This makes a delicious appetizer or a great summer breakfast with a smear of nut butter and fresh berries.

For more recipes visit harmonizedcookery.com.


Hands-On Gardenerby Miriam Hansen

Don’t be misled by the dire title. Things really are starting to look up in the vegetable garden. The onions

are looking perky. Garlic is a couple of weeks from harvest. We’ve been eating and freezing peas, kale and chard for a couple of weeks and thinning beets and carrots to add crunch to the salad. ‘Sun Gold’ tomatoes and Eng-lish cucumbers are ready in the greenhouses, and raspberries and blueberries are ripening.

Still, I wouldn’t classify this as a normal productive year. Most of the spring broc-coli buttoned, which means they developed undersized heads on somewhat immature plants. Buttoning can be caused by a variety of stress factors, such as nitrogen deficiency, cold temperature shock to young transplants or drought stress. Since we had both drought and a sudden cold snap, I’m blaming it on the weather.

Still, both ‘Green King’ and ‘Blue Wind,’ the two varieties I planted in the spring, should produce a good crop of side shoots. We’ll see. The fall broccoli and cauliflower are slowly growing under row cover, and I’m gratified that despite their small size, a regimen of BT to combat cabbage moths and Sluggo to combat slugs and snails did produce gorgeous tight clean little broccoli heads.

But what a spring and early summer! In talking to gardening friends I’ve discovered that like me, they have couch grass (Elymus repens) carpeting their garden beds. This weed, which looks a bit like corn in the two-leaf stage, quickly develops laterally with wiry underground stems that can colonize a garden. After years of wondering why folks find weeding so tedious, I’ve joined their ranks. In normal years our garden weeds are lamb’s quarters, red amaranth, sorrel, clover and a bit of plantain in the paths. I’ve never seen couch grass so prevalent until this year. A bit of online research revealed the reason why. Couch grass thrives in both drought and flood conditions. Bingo!

Lamb’s quarters (Chenopodium album) is a garden weed we’ve long enjoyed, eaten and prepared the way you’d eat spinach or chard. But I have a friend who claims red amaranth or pigweed (Amaranthus hybridus) as her favorite vegetable. Unlike lamb’s quarters, the entire plant is edible—stem, leaves and all. Much sought after in Jamaica, she claims folks there just grind up the whole plant with garlic and eat it slathered on anything sub-stantial enough to take slathering.

I’ve had more than my usual problems with spotty germination, particularly with peas and carrots. Again, I’m pretty sure this had to do with exceptionally dry conditions followed by frost followed by muggy satu-rated conditions. Then, too, the excessive rain fall has been kind not only to couch

grass but also to the host of noxious pests like earwigs, snails, slugs and flea beetles that can literally kill vulnerable seedlings and have turned the napa cabbage leaves into plant facsimiles of the wings on a lace fly.

The photo this month illustrates a brief tussle with my paste and full-size tomatoes, which have sprawled to about six feet and were waving rather tousled-looking growing tips in the air. On closer inspection I dis-covered the leaves at the growing tips were curling. Since luxuriant growth and curled growing tips can be symptoms of excess nitrogen in tomatoes, we gave the plants a light feeding of Sul-Po-Mag, also known as sulfate of potash-magnesia. Sure enough, the leaves have uncurled and the fruit set has im-proved. Adding a little bonemeal or colloidal phosphate is also recommended to neutralize this problem.

We’ve been taking the row cover off the peppers for a couple of days every other week or so, to make sure blossoms get pollinated. Until peppers are literally butting their grow-ing tips against the row cover, I leave them on for this heat-loving plant.

With all the rain we’ve been having, nutri-ents can be leached out of the soil. In addi-tion to that, when the soil is saturated, as it has been in most gardens, you begin to get anaerobic instead of aerobic decomposition, and this can lead to nutrients being unavail-able despite being in good supply.

If leaves are yellowing or streaked or just failing to grow robustly, now is a good time to give them a foliar feed with sea/fish emul-sion or a quick feed with compost tea. You can make compost tea by filling a five gallon bucket about a quarter full of compost and then filling it up to the top with water. Let it sit for a couple of days (out of the rain!), and then use it to water around deep feeders or plants that need a pick me up.

Mid-July is the time to start fall beds of carrots and beets. For the first time in 35 years I’ve been able to grow sizable, sweet radishes. I think they like the rain. So I’ve been marking rows of carrots with the odd radish popped in here and there. Now that spring spinach is done, I’ll dig a little com-post into that part of the bed and plant more radishes. They only take three weeks from seeding to harvesting, so I should be able to grow two to three more harvestable crops before the season is over.

We’re going into a couple of sunny cooler days, which should make all of our gardens sparkle! Happy gardening!

—Miriam and her husband grow all their own food on less than one-quarter of an acre.

They also sell lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, raspberries and herbs out of their greenhouses

and gardens. Questions and comments are most welcome. You can reach Miriam at

[email protected].

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Brown BagCONCERT SERIES j 2013Free concerts every Thursday at noonChrist Church Courtyard, 64 State St., MontpelierMontpelierAlive.org/brownbag | This is a smoke-free event

JUL 25 Anything Goessponsored by Capitol Grounds & Montpelier Pharmacy

AUG 1 Michele Fay Bandsponsored by Washington Electric Coop and Central Vermont New Directions Coalition

SERIES SPONSOR: MEDIA SPONSOR:


JULY 18Food and Music at the Watershed Divide. Music by Colin McCaffrey, farm stand and tours, guided nature walk and demos of ways to manage stormwater runoff. A la carte picnic dinner available for purchase. 3:30–7 p.m. Green Mountain Girls Farm, Northfield. Free. 828-8276. winooskiriver.org. eatstayfarm.org.

JULY 19Council on Aging Free Appointments. CVCOA staff answer questions about health insurance and other senior services. By appointment. 9 a.m.–noon. Montpelier Senior Activity Center, 58 Barre St. To make an appointment call 479-4400.

West Coast Swing Dance. 7–9 p.m. Community Room, Montpelier Senior Activity Center, 58 Barre St. 223-2518.

JULY 19–20Tar Sands Free Kingdom Walk. Vermonters and allies walk the route of the potential tar sands pipeline to raise awareness of the threat of Canadian tar sands crude to Vermont and New England. 9 a.m. North Troy. 999-5275. 350vt.org.

JULY 20Wildcrafting in the Wilderness Medicinal Plant Hike. With Rebecca Dalgin, clinical herbalist, and Mary Murphy, wilderness guide. Learn about edible and medicinal plants growing in the mountain forests during a 4-mile hike in the Worcester range. 10 a.m. $30. Directions sent upon registration. Register at 552-0727 or mountainsongexpeditions.com.

JULY 21Tunbridge World’s Fair Seventh Annual Meeting. Members and interested parties invited to attend potluck dinner. 11:30 a.m.–1:30 p.m. Followed by duck race at the beach by the cattle barns. Pavilion building, Tunbridge fair grounds, Tunbridge.

Poetry Reading. Plainfield poet Maaein reads her work. 4 p.m. Cutler Memorial Library, Rte. 2, Plainfield. 454-8504.

JULY 23Making Local Food Affordable Workshop. Vermont Center for Integrative Herbalism. Cost includes a shared meal and materials. 5:30–8:30 p.m. 250 Main St., Montpelier. $30 members; $35 nonmembers. Preregistration: 224-7100 or [email protected]. Visit vtherbcenter.org for class descriptions.

Guided Partner Thai Bodywork. With Lori Flower. Learn a few basic techniques. Wheelchair-accessible community room at Hunger Mountain Coop, 623 Stone Cutters Way, Montpelier. $10 member-owners; $12 nonmembers. To preregister, 223-8000 x202, [email protected] or sign up on the co-op workshop bulletin board.

Author Kane Gilmour Book Signing. Book signing and discussion on independent publishing in the 21st century. 7 p.m. Next Chapter bookstore, 158 N. Main St., Barre. Free.

Bug Walk. Bring a net and discover bugs. Arrive anytime between 3:30 and 5 p.m. North Branch Nature Center, 713 Elm St., Montpelier. 229-6206. $5 adults; $3 children.

MusicVENUESAdamant Music School Concerts and Classes. Piano concerts, master classes with André Laplante, John O’Conor and Menahem Pressier and granite sculptures and paintings on display. Concerts: $10 adults; $6 students and seniors. $50/day audit classes. 223-3347. Schedule at adamant.org.

Bagitos. 28 Main St., Montpelier. 229-9212. bagitos.com.

July 18: The Trailer Blazers 6–8 p.m.July 19: Sanayit Band (alt. rock/folk) 6 p.m.–closeJuly 20: Irish Session 2-5 p.m. and The Neptunes (high-energy folk/Americana) 6 p.m.–closeJuly 21: Brunch with Eric Friedman (folk ballads) 11 a.m.–1 p.m.July 23: The People’s Cafe 6–8 p.m.July 25: Montpelier Community Jazz Band 6–8 p.m.July 27: Irish session 2–5 p.m.July 28: Brunch with Eric Friedman (folk ballads) 11 a.m.–1 p.m.

Bandstand in Marshfield. Sponsored by Jaquith Public Library, 7 p.m. 122 School St., Marshfield. Free. 426-3581. marshfield.lib.vt.us.

July 18: Sky Blue Boys. Dan and Willie Lindner (ballads, parlor songs, heart songs, sacred numbers). July 25: Cold Country Bluegrass followed by the Zeichner Family Trio (Irish tunes, old-time music, klezmer).

Brown Bag Series. Thurs. Noon–1 p.m. Christ Church courtyard, 64 State St., Montpelier. Free. montpelieralive.org/brownbag.

July 18: Starline Rhythm Boys (rockabilly)

Charlie O’s. 70 Main Street, Montpelier. 223-6820.

July 18: Victim of Metal, DJ Crucible (metal) 9 p.m.July 19: Wave of the Future, Happy Lives (electro) 10 p.m.July 20: Lake Superior, Boomslang, Concrete Rivals (rock, hip-hop,surf) 10 p.m.

July 24: Dan Zura, Eric Clifford, Ben Roy (indie) 8 p.m.July 27: Vicious Gifts, Yacht Rocket, King Pedestrian (punk) 10 p.m.July 31: Brian Clark (solo) 8 p.m.

Morrisville Wednesday Night Live. 5:30-7:30 p.m. Oxbow Park, Morrisville. Free. morristownvt.org.

Nutty Steph’s Chocolaterie. 6 p.m.–midnight. Rte. 2, Middlesex. 229-2090. nuttysteph.com.

July 18: David Langevin.July 25: Duke Aeroplane & the Wrong Numbers.Aug. 1: Lauren Hooker (jazz)Aug. 8: Andric Severence (ragtime/blues/jazz)

Positive Pie 2. 22 State Street, Montpelier. 10:30 p.m. 229-0453. positivepie.com.

July 19: Funkwagon (gospel-infused funk).July 20: Madman3 (live electronica/jam/dub).

The Skinny Pancake. 6 p.m. 89 Main Street, Montpelier.262-2253. skinnypancake.com.

July 28: Max Garcia Conover (folk).Aug. 4: Mountain Ride (Americana).

Whammy Bar. 6 p.m. Free. Maple Corner Store, 31 W. County Rd., Calais. 229-4329.

July 18: Parts Unknown (jazz)July 19: Laura Molinelli.July 25: Lewis Franco & the Brown Eyed GirlsJuly 26: Bramblewood

ARTISTS & SPECIAL EVENTSCapital City Band. Performing every Wed., 7 p.m. State House lawn beside the Pavilion Office Building, Montpelier. Free. 223-7069.

July 18: Summit School Potluck Featuring Sattuma. A family folk music group from Petrozavodsk, the republic of Karelia, northwest Russia, performs traditional music from Karelia and Finland. 6–8 p.m. Kellogg-Hubbard Library, 135 Main St., Montpelier. 917-1186. [email protected].

July 19: Lewis Franco & The Missing Cats. With Lewis Franco, Will Patton, Clyde Stats and guest cat Colin McCaffrey. 7–10 p.m. Town of Barnet

250th Anniversary Celebration. Pavilion building near beach at Harvey’s Lake, Barnet.

July 19: Eef Barzelay. Proceeds benefit Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. 8 p.m. Bird’s Nest Bistro, Bridges Resosrt, 202 Bridges Circle, Warren. By donation. 583-2922.

July 23: Waterbury Community Band. Concert in the park. 7 p.m. Rusty Parker Memorial Park. S Main St., Waterbury. Free. 223-2137. [email protected].

July 23–Aug. 3: Lyra Summer Music Workshop Concerts. Chandler Music Hall, 71–73 Main St., Randolph. Admission by suggested donation. 728-6464. lyrasummermusic.com. cvcmf.org.

July 23: Guest artists Nicholas Canellakis (cello) and Melissa White (violin). 7:30 p.m.July 25: Faculty Concert. 7:30 p.m.July 29: Guest artist Inesa Sinkevych (piano). 7:30 p.m.Aug. 3: Student gala concert. 1 p.m.

July 23–Aug. 6: Summer Music from Greensboro. All concerts 8 p.m. United Church of Christ, Greensboro. $20; under 18 free. [email protected]. summermusicfromgreensboro.net.

July 23: Midsummer Moon. A celebration of midsummer with The Formosa String Quartet. July 30: Genticorum. Traditional band from Quebec. Aug. 6: Ravel, Handel and More. Jaime Laredo violin, Sharon Robinson cello, Karen Kevra flute.

July 24: The Kick ’em Jenny String Band. 6:30 p.m. Middlesex Bandstand Summer Concert Series. Martha Pellerin & Andy Shapiro Memorial Bandstand next to Rumney School, Shady Rill Road, Middlesex. Middlesexbandstand.com.

July 24–Aug. 1: Craftsbury Chamber Players Summer Music Festival. 8 p.m. Concerts held Wed. at UVM Recital Hall, Burlington; Thurs. at Historic Hardwick Town House. $25 adults; $10 students; children 12 and under free. 800-639-3443. craftsburychamberplayers.org.

July 24–25: Handel, Fauré, Brahms.July 31–Aug. 1: Mozart, Prokofiev, Ravel.

July 24–Aug. 8: Craftsbury Chamber Players Summer Music Festival. 8 p.m. Concerts held Wed. at UVM Recital Hall, Burlington; Thurs. at Historic Hardwick Town House. $25 adults; $10 students; children 12 and under free. 800-639-3443. craftsburychamberplayers.org.

July 24–25: Handel, Fauré, Brahms.July 31–Aug. 1: Mozart, Prokofiev, Ravel.Aug. 7–8: Debussy, Hindemith, Beethoven.

July 24: Reginald and Olga Pineda. Performing music by Mozart, Wieniawski and Filipino composers Silos-Romero, Nicanor Abelardo and Ernesto Vallejo. 6 p.m. Moose Mountain Lodge, 207 Crossett Hill Rd., Waterbury. 244-8354. [email protected]. elevachamberplayers.org.

July 25–Aug. 8: Jaquith Library Summer Concert Series. All shows 6:30 p.m. Old Schoolhouse Common, 122 School St., Marshfield. 426-3581. [email protected]. marshfield.lib.vt.us.

July 25: Cold Country Bluegrass and the Zeichner Family Trio.Aug. 1: Ira Friedman Quartet (funk/jazz).Aug. 8: Michele Fay Band (folk/swing/bluegrass).

July 27: Barre-Tones Women’s Chorus. Performing at Barre Heritage Festival. 8:45 a.m. Barre. BarreTonesvt.com. BarreHeritageFestival.org.

July 31: Village Harmony. 7:30 p.m. Unitarian Church, Main St., Montpelier. Suggested donation $10 adults; $5 seniors and students. 426-3210.

Aug. 3: Counterpoint. Choral group performs “My Spirit Sang All Day Long.” 7:30 p.m. United Church of Christ, 4335 Main St., Waitsfield. $20 adults, $15 seniors, $5 students. 540-1784. Counterpointchorus.org.

Aug. 5: Scrag Mountain Music. An innovative performance by world class musicians featuring baroque violinist Julie Leven and harpsichordist Lynette Combs. Phantom Theater, Edgcomb Barn, Warren. 496-5997. phantomtheater.com.

Submit Your Event!Send listings to [email protected]. The deadline for our next issue, August 1, is Friday, July 26.

Photo by Lauren Stagnitti.continued on page 16

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Shape Note Sing. All welcome, no experience necessary. 7:30 p.m. Paper Mache Cathedral, Bread & Puppet Farm, Rte. 122, Glover. Free. 535-6972.

JULY 24Author N. Griffin Reading. Griffin Reads from her debut young adult novel The Whole Stupid Way We Are. 6 p.m. Aldrich Public Library, Barre. 476-7550.

Good Beginnings New Parent Workshop. Baby wearing, breastfeeding and soothing your baby. 6–8 p.m. Good Beginnings, 174 River St., Montpelier. Space is limited. RSVP [email protected]. 595-7953.

Nature at Night: Mesmerizing Moths. In honor of the 2nd annual National Moth Week, NBNC will host a family-friendly moth night. 8:30–10:30 p.m. North Branch Nature Center, 713 Elm St., Montpelier. $5 adults; $3 children.

229-6206.

JULY 26Kirtan Soul Revival. 7–10 p.m. Yoga Mountain Center, 7 Main St., Montpelier. yogamountaincenter.com.

2013 Family Movie in the Park. Feature presentation: UP. 8:15 p.m. Pavilion at Montpelier Recreation Fields by the pool. Rain date July 27. Free. 225-8699.

JULY 26–27Summer Book Sale. Thousands of used books, DVDs, audios and more. 7:30 a.m.–2 p.m. Aldrich Public Library, 6 Washington St., Barre. 476-4185.

JULY 2710th Annual Onion River Century Ride. Riders can choose from three different loops: 35-mile Dirt Road Climber Challenge loop, 110-K Metric Century, or 111-mile Century Ride.

8:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m. Ride ends with a barbeque. Montpelier Recreation Field. $60 before July 21; $70 day of event. Register at onionriver.com/events-results/century.

Humane Heroes Meeting. For children and their parents. 10 a.m.–noon. Central Vermont Humane Society Adoption Center, 1589 Rte. 14, East Montpelier. 476-3811.

Kitten Shower. Bring a gift from our wish list, enjoy party treats, games and socializing with kittens. Noon–3 p.m. Central Vermont Humane Society Adoption Center, 1589 Rte. 14, East Montpelier. 476-3811 x110.

Creating an Herbal Tea Garden. With Rebecca Dalgin, clinical herbalist. easy-to-grow plants that offer medicinal qualities applicable to every day well-being. Wheelchair-accessible community room at Hunger Mountain Coop, 623 Stone Cutters Way, Montpelier. $5 member-owners; $7 nonmembers. To preregister, 223-8000 x202, [email protected] or sign up on the co-op workshop bulletin board.

Bird Banding Demonstration. Get a behind the scenes glimpse of banding in action. Arrive anytime from 7–11 a.m. North Branch Nature Center, 713 Elm St., Montpelier. 229-6206.

Harvesting and Preparing Wild Edibles. Come and learn how to identify, harvest, and prepare common wild edibles that grow at the North Branch Nature Center. Led by Sage Zelkowitz, community herbalist and educator. 10 a.m.–2 p.m. North Branch Nature Center, 713 Elm St., Montpelier. $40 members; $45 nonmembers.229-6206.

Central Vermont Roller Derby: “I Love Block and Roll.” Doubleheader with Vermont Men’s Roller Derby: CVRD’s Twin City Riot vs. Bay State Brawlers and VMRD’s Mean Mountain Boys vs. The Quadfathers. Doors 3:30 p.m.; whistle 4 p.m. Benefits the Barre Heritage Festival. B.O.R., Barre Civic Center, 25 Auditorium Hill, Barre. $10 advance; $12 door.centralvermontrollerderby.com.

Visual Arts EXHIBITSOngoing: Glen Coburn Hutcheson, Talking Portraits and Two-Part Inventions. An evolving show of experimental drawings, paintings and the occasional sculpture. Storefront Studio Gallery, 6 Barre St., Montpelier. Hours: 8–10 a.m., Tues.–Fri. Sat. 10 a.m.–3 p.m., or by appointment. 839-5349. gchfineart.com.

July 13–14: Liz Le Serviget, A Dog’s World. Paintings, stone assemblage, fiber art, painted ceramics and furniture celebrating dogs. 11 a.m.–5 p.m. The Inky Dinky Oinkink Gallery and Tea Garden, 117 Adams Mill Rd., Moscow. 253-3046.

Through July 27: Julia Purinton, Wetlands and Woodlands. Impressionistic oil paintings. Festival Gallery, 5031 Main St., Waitsfield. 496-6682.

Through July 28: Nicole Grubman, Moments on the Road. Photography and book excerpts. Green Bean Visual Art Gallery, Capitol Grounds, State St., Montpelier. [email protected].

Through July: Matthew Chaney. Fourteen 11-by-14 oil pastel drawings on paper on display. Bee’s Knees, 82 Lower Main St., Morrisville.

Through July: Green Mountain Watercolor Exhibition. Hours: Thurs.–Sun noon–9 p.m. Annual exhibit promoting the art of watercolor. Red Barn Gallery, Lareau Farm Inn, Waitsfield.

Through July: Jim Thompson, James Secor, Peggy Watson. ARA members exhibit at City Center, Montpelier.

Through July: Hugh Townley, Masterworks. Group show exploring the personal collections of the late sculptor and printmaker. Hours: Wed.–Fri. 10 a.m.–5 p.m., Sat. noon–5 p.m. Big Town Gallery, 99 North Main St., Rochester. 767-9670. [email protected]. bigtowngallery.com.

Through July: Sylvia Walker. Oil, pastel, watercolors and pen and ink. Vermont landscapes and other works. Montpelier Senior Activity Center, 58 Barre St.

July 22–Dec. 20: Round. An exhibition of objects of circular shape, from the Sullivan Museum collection. Sullivan Museum and History Center, Norwich University, 158 Harmon Dr., Northfield. 485-2183. Norwich.edu/museum.

Through Aug. 25: Camille Johnson, The Rawing. A poetic and photographic exhibit by recent U-32 graduate. Contemporary Dance and Fitness Studio, 18 Langdon St., Montpelier. 229-4676. cdandfs.com.

Through Aug. 31: Almuth Palinkas. Art textiles and paintings. Hours: Daily, 9 a.m.–4 p.m. Westview Meadows, 171 Westview Meadows Rd., Montpelier.

Through Aug.: American Dream. Artists explore the driving forces for the American Dream today. Main floor gallery, Studio Place Arts, 201 N. Main. St., Barre. Hours: Wed.–Fri. 10 a.m.–5 p.m. Sat. noon–4 p.m. 479-7069. studioplace arts.com.

Through Aug.: The Aviary by Beth Robinson. Discover what happens to birds that become comfortable living outside of their natural habitats. Second floor gallery, Studio Place Arts, 201 N. Main. St., Barre. Hours: Wed.–Fri. 10 a.m.–5 p.m. Sat. noon–4 p.m. 479-7069. studioplace arts.com.

Through Aug.: ART-Artifact. Fascinating stories unfold via transformed chards and remnants. Hours: Wed.–Fri. 10 a.m.–5 p.m. Sat. noon–4 p.m. Third floor gallery, Studio Place Arts, 201 N. Main. St., Barre. 479-7069. studioplace arts.com.

Through Aug.: Donna Ellery. Funky 3-D mixed-media art, using salvaged and recycled materials. Reception Aug. 2, 4–8 p.m. The Cheshire Cat, 28 Elm St., Montpelier. 223-1981. cheshirecatclothing.com.

Through Aug.: Lori Hinrichsen. Photographs, prints and stitching. First floor reading room and second floor. Kellogg-Hubbard Library, Main St., Montpelier. 223-3338.

Through Aug.: Plowing Old Ground: Vermont’s Organic Farming Pioneers. Photographs and interviews. Vermont History Museum, 109 State Street, Montpelier. Hours: Tuesday–Saturday, 10 a.m.–4 p.m. 828-2291. vermonthistory.org.

Through Sept. 1: Lark Upson, Structural Integrity: Portraits in Oil. Hours: Thurs. 2–6 p.m., Fri.–Sun. 10 a.m.–6 p.m. Blinking Light Gallery and Co-op, 16 Main St., Plainfield. 454-0141. blinkinglightgallery.com.

Through Sept. 2: Bennett, Horse Drawn. Large-scale charcoal drawings. Hours: Mon.–Fri., 10 a.m.–2 p.m.Gallery at River Arts, 2F, River Arts Center, 74 Pleasant St., Morrisville. 888-1261. riverartsvt.org.

Through Sept. 2: Gabriel Tempesta, The Bumblee Bee Series. Charcoal paintings. Hours: Mon.–Fri., 10 a.m.–2 p.m. Copley Common Space Gallery, River Arts Center, 74 Pleasant St., Morrisville. 888-1261. riverartsvt.org.

Through Sept. 8: Best of the Northeast Master of Fine Arts 2013 Exhibition. Helen Day Art Center, 90 Pond St., Stowe.

Through Sept. 30: Laura Hamilton. Photographs. Reception Aug. 2, 4–8 p.m., during Art Walk. Tulsi Tea Room, 34 Elm St., Montpelier.

Through Sept.: Pat Musick, The Instant of It All. Paintings and sculptures of trees. The Governor’s Gallery, Pavilion Building, Montpelier.

Through Oct. 15: Exposed 2013. Group exhibit of sculpture. Hours: Wed.–Sun. noon–5 p.m. and by appointment. Helen Day Art Center, 90 Pond St., Stowe. 253-8358.

Through Oct. 31: Bread and Puppet Museum. One of the largest collections of some of the biggest puppets in the world. Hours: Daily, 10 a.m.–6 p.m. 525-3031. Bread and Puppet Farm, Rte. 122, Glover. breadandpuppet.org.

Through Dec. 20: These Honored Dead: Private and National Commemoration. Stories of Norwich alumni from both sides of the Civil War conflict in 1863. Sullivan Museum & History Center, Norwich University, Northfield. 485-2183. norwich.edu/museum.

SPECIAL EVENTSCall to Artists. A graffiti tag contest. Winner receives urban art supplies from The Drawing Board. Multiple submissions OK. Deadline Aug. 17. Winner picked Aug. 31. Mail or drop off submissions at The Drawing Board, 22 Main St., Montpelier. For more information, 223-2902 or drawingboardvt.com.

July 28: The Art of Being Human-A Collaboration. Artist talk by Jackie Brookner, who discusses her ecological art practice. 7 p.m. Haybarn Theatre at Goddard College, 123 Pitkin Rd., Plainfield. Free. goddard.edu.

Finding Circles. Photo by Nicole Grubman. On display at Green Bean Gallery, Capitol Grounds, Montpelier.

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JULY 28Author Reading and Signing. David Book portrays Abel Morrill, early Cabot settler, farmer and maple sugar producer, and how the Civil War affected him and his family in A High Price to Pay, A Heavy Burden to Bear: One Family’s Civil War Story. 7 p.m. Cabot Historical Society, Main St. museum building, Rte. 215, Cabot. 518-563-3396. [email protected].

End of July Plant Walk. With Rebecca Dalgin, clinical herbalist. Learn about plants that are widely distributed throughout the area and simple ways to incorporate their medicinal values into daily life. Afterward, enjoy a cup of iced herbal tea. 1–2:30 p.m. Flanders/EarthWalk building, Goddard College, 123 Pitkin Rd, Plainfield. Sliding scale $4–$10. 552-0727. wildheartwellness.net.

JULY 29Northern Borders. New film by Jay Craven based on the novel by Howard Mosher. All screenings at 7:30 p.m. Additional showing on July 30. Town Hall Theater, 67 Main St., Stowe. $12 adults; $10 over 65; $6 under 18. [email protected].

Falling Away. With Robert Kest. Exploring moving beyond a western view of self, relationship, and psychotherapy. Wheelchair-accessible community room at Hunger Mountain Coop, 623 Stone Cutters Way, Montpelier. Free. To preregister, 223-8000 x202, [email protected] or sign up on the co-op workshop bulletin board.

JULY 29–AUG. 1Vacation Bible School: God’s Superheroes. Discover four of God’s superheroes through song, stories and crafts. Age 3–11. 9 a.m.–noon. St. Augustine Church Hall, 16 Barre St., Montpelier. By donation. 223-6561. [email protected].

JULY 30Film Showing and Discussion. Filmmaker Craig Summerville will discuss and screen his recent documentary Household: Four Stories of Kinship and Curiosity. 5 p.m. Montpelier Senior Activity Center, 58 Barre St. 223-2518.

Performing ArtsDANCEJuly 25: Danielle Selby Dance Performance. 6 p.m. Helen Day Art Center, 90 Pond St., Stowe. 253-8358.

July 25: Solo Dancing with Polly Motley. Dance workshop. Contemporary Dance and Fitness Studio, 18 Langdon St., 3F, Montpelier. 5:30–7 p.m. $15 or three punches. 229-4676. cdandfs.com.

July 19–20: Emerging Choreographers. Young choreographers present new work. 8 p.m. Phantom Theater. Edgcomb Barn, Warren. 496-5997. phantomtheater.info.

Aug. 5: Polly Motley Open Rehearsal. Public is invited to watch the final rehearsal for a work to be performed for the Helen Day Art Center’s Exposed sculpture show. 5–7 p.m. Contemporary Dance and Fitness Studio, 18

Langdon St., 3F, Montpelier. $90 student; $60 professional. 229-4676. cdandfs.com.

Aug. 8: Polly Motley Dance Performance. 6 p.m. Helen Day Art Center, 90 Pond St., Stowe. 253-8358.

THEATERBread and Puppet Theater. Performances at Bread and Puppet Farm, Rte. 122, Glover, unless otherwise noted. 525-3031. breadandpuppet.org.

July 12–July 27: Piero Della Francesca’s Legend of the True Cross (Exultation Manufacture with Crucifixion Oppositionists). 7 p.m. Chelsea Town Hall, 296 Rte. 110. July 21, 28, Aug. 3: The Total This and That Deathlife Circus in Two Parts. Followed by guest performers Papel Machete. 2:30 p.m. Donations appreciated.July 26: A Thing Done in a Seeing Place. 7:30 p.m. Paper Mache Cathedral, Bread and Puppet Farm. Donations appreciated.

Chandler Music Hall. 71-73 Main Street, Randolph. 428-6464. chandler-arts.org.

July 12–July 21: Third Annual Summer Pride Festival. Three dramatic readings: Gross Indecency: The Three Trials of Oscar Wilde, July 12 & 21; Hannah Free, July 13 & 19; and Directions for Restoring the Apparently Dead.July 20. Talk-back discussion. Reception at Chandler Gallery. 7:30 p.m. $17 advance; $20 door; $12 student advance; $15 door.

The Greensboro Arts Alliance and Residency. All shows 7:30 p.m. 156 Breezy Ave., Greensboro. 533-7487. [email protected]. greensboroartalliance.com.

July 23, 24, 27, 31/Aug. 2, 3: The Music Man.July 25, 26, 30/Aug. 1, 4: Our Town.

Lost Nation Theater. Montpelier City Hall, 39 Main St. $25 Thurs., $30 Fri.–Sun. (seniors and students $5 off); $10 children under 12. 229-0492. [email protected]. Schedule at lostnationtheater.org.

July 11–28: The Cemetery Club. Poignant, heartfelt comedy by Ivan Menchall. Aug. 1–11: My Buddy Bill. Dogs, politics and stand-up comedy by Rick Cleveland.

Phantom Theater. Edgcomb Barn, Warren. All shows 8 p.m. 496-5997. phantomtheater.info.

July 24: Travels with Franny: A True and Faithful Account of Our Road Trip with Franz Kafka. Don Gropman presents a theatrical reading of his novel-in-progress.July 26: Stop Drop and Roll! Ramsey Brown premieres her new one-woman show.July 31, Aug. 1–3: Pure Gold: A Phantom Reunion. Ten alumni gather for an evening of off-the-grid, handcrafted theater for the head, heart and funny bone.

Unadilla Theatre. All shows 7:30 p.m. 501 Blachly Rd., Marshfield. Shows at both the Unadilla Theatre and the new nearby Festival Theatre. $20 adults; $10 children 12 and under. 456-8968. [email protected]. Schedule at unadilla.org.

July 18–Aug. 3: Juno and the Paycock.July 18– Aug. 3: Heartbreak House.Aug. 7–30: The Abduction of Seraglio.Aug. 8–30: Present Laughter.Aug. 8–31: The Birthday Party.

Waterbury Festival Players. All shows 7:30 p.m. Waterbury Festival Playhouse, 2933 Waterbury-Stowe Rd., Waterbury Center. $25 advance (must be purchased by 5 p.m.); $27 door. Tickets: WaterburyFestivalPlayhouse.com or 498-3755. Schedule at website.

July 25–Aug. 10: The School for Lies.

The Cemetery Club Photo by Bob Eddy.

Support GroupsBEREAVEMENTBereavement/Grief Support Group. For anyone who has experienced the death of a loved one. Every other Mon., 6–8 p.m. Every other Wed., 10–11:30 a.m. Central Vermont Home Health & Hospice (CVHHH), 600 Granger Rd., Berlin. Ginny or Jean 223-1878.

Bereaved Parents Support Group. Facilitated by CVHHH. Second Wed., 6–8 p.m. CVHHH, 600 Granger Rd., Berlin. Jeneane Lunn 793-2376.

CANCERLiving with Advanced or Metastatic Cancer. Lunch provided. Cancer Center resource room, Central Vermont Medical Center. Call for meeting times. 225-5449.

Cancer Support Group. First Wed., 6 p.m. Potluck. For location, call Carole Mac-Intyre 229-5931.

Man-to-Man Prostate Cancer Support Group. Third Wed., 6–8 p.m. Conference room 2, Central Vermont Medical Center. 872-6308 or 866-466-0626 (press 3).

DISASTERHurricane Irene Support Group for Recovery Workers. Get peer support and help processing emotions, strengthen relationships and learn coping skills. Every other Mon., 3:30 p.m. Unitarian Church, 130 Main St., Montpelier. 279-4670.

Hurricane Irene Support Group. Share your story, listen to others, learn coping skills, build community and support your neighbors. Refreshments provided. Wed., 5:30 p.m. Berlin Elementary School. 279-8246.

HEALTHBrain Injury Support Groups. Open to all survivors, caregivers and adult family members. Evening group facilitated by Marsha Bancroft; day group facilitated by Kathy Grange and Jane Hulstrunk. Evening group meets first Mon., 5:30–7:30 p.m. DisAbility Rights of Vermont, 141 Main St., Suite 7, Montpelier, 800-834-7890, x 106. Day group meets first and third Thurs., 1:30–2:30 p.m. Unitarian Church, 130 Main St., Montpelier. 244-6850.

NAMI Vermont Family Support Group. Support group for families and friends of individuals living with mental illness. Fourth Mon., 7 p.m. Central Vermont Medical Center, room 3, Berlin. 800-639-6480 or namivt.org.

Celiac and Food Allergy Support Group. With Lisa Masé of Harmonized Cookery. Second

Wed., 4:30–6 p.m. Conference room 3, Central Vermont Medical Center. [email protected].

Diabetes Discussion Group. Focus on self-management. Open to anyone with diabetes and their families. Third Thurs., 1:30 p.m. The Health Center, Plainfield. Free. Don 322-6600 or [email protected].

Diabetes Support Group. First Thurs., 7–8 p.m. Conference room 3, Central Vermont Medical Center. 371-4152.

KIDSGrandparents Raising Their Children’s Children. First Wed., 10 a.m.–noon. Barre Presbyterian Church, Summer St. Second Tues., 6–8 p.m. Wesley Methodist Church, Main St., Waterbury. Third Thurs., 6–8 p.m. Trinity United Methodist Church, 137 Main St. Child care provided in Montpelier and Waterbury. Evelyn 476-1480.

RECOVERYOvereaters Anonymous. Twelve-step program for physically, emotionally and spiritually overcoming overeating. Fri., noon–1 p.m. Bethany Church, 115 Main St., Montpelier. 223-3079.

Sex Addicts Anonymous. Mon., 6:30 p.m. Bethany Church, 115 Main St., Montpelier. Call 552-3483 for more information or to leave a confidential message.

Turning Point Center. Safe, supportive place for individuals and their families in or seeking recovery. Open daily, 10 a.m.–5 p.m. 489 North Main St., Barre. 479-7373.

Sun.: Alchoholics Anonymous. 8:30 a.m.Tues.: Making Recovery Easier workshops. 6–7:30 p.m.Wed.: Wit’s End Parent Support Group. 6 p.m.Thurs.: Narcotics Anonymous. 6:30 p.m.

SOLIDARITY/IDENTITYWomen’s Group. Women age 40 and older explore important issues and challenges in their lives in a warm and supportive environment. Faciliatated by Amy Emler-Shaffer and Julia W. Gresser. Wed. evenings. 41 Elm St., Montpelier. Call Julia, 262-6110, for more information.

Men’s Group. Men discuss challenges of and insights about being male. Wed., 6:15–8:15 p.m. 174 Elm St., Montpelier. Interview required. Contact Neil 223-3753.

National Federation of the Blind, Montpelier Chapter. First Sat. Lane Shops community room, 1 Mechanic St., Montpelier. 229-0093.

Families of Color. Open to all. Play, eat and discuss issues of adoption, race and multiculturalism. Bring snacks and games to share; dress for the weather. Third Sun., 3–5 p.m. Unitarian Church, 130 Main St., Montpelier. Alyson 439-6096 or [email protected].

continued on page 18

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Wild Edible and Medicinal Plant Walk. With Annie McCleary and Geroge Lisi. Explore the wealth of herbaceous plants, shrubs, trees, edibles and medicinals in this richly diverse landscape. 6–7:30 p.m. Wisdom of Herbs School, 1005 County Rd., Woodbury. Preregister: 456-8122 or [email protected]. $1–$10 sliding scale.

JULY 31Northern Borders. New film by Jay Craven based on the novel by Howard Mosher. All screenings at 7:30 p.m. River Arts, Morrisville. $12 adults; $10 over 65; $6 under 18. [email protected].

Free Film Showing. All of Me. Free popcorn. 6:30 p.m. Montpelier Senior Activity Center, 58 Barre St. 223-2518.

Sociodrama: Healing Society Through Creativity. With Herb Propper. Explore common concerns and issues through spontaneous group role playing. Wheelchair-accessible community room at Hunger Mountain Coop, 623 Stone Cutters Way, Montpelier. Free. To preregister, 223-8000 x202, [email protected] or sign up on the co-op workshop bulletin board.

New England Ticks and Lyme Disease. Come hear about tick ecology, life history and identification, prevalent tick-borne diseases, and current research on the tick explosion. Presented by Alan Giese. 6:30–8 p.m. Kellogg-Hubbard Library, Main St., Montpelier. 223-3338.

Waterbury Historical Society’s Summer Picnic. Potluck picnic 6 p.m. Business meeting 7 p.m. followed at 7:30 p.m. with presentation of local dairy farms, their history and current state. Wallace Farm, Blush Hill Rd., Waterbury. 244-8089. waterburyhistoricsociety.org.

Eat on the Wild Side. With Annie McCleary. Harvest wild edibles and prepare several dishes. 6–8 p.m. Wisdom of Herbs School, 1005 County Rd., Woodbury. $20. Preregister: 456-8122 or [email protected].

Bernd Heinrich. Author of books on behavioral ecology, Summer World, Winter World and Life Everlasting, discusses his work. 6 p.m. Aldrich Public Library, Barre. 476-7550.

AUG. 1Millstone Mountain Bike Race Series. Weekly mountain bike training race series. 1, 2, 3 and 4 lap options. Come race and bring something to grill afterward. Registration 5 p.m. Race 6 p.m. Millstone Trails, Little John Road, Barre. $10. 229-9409. [email protected].

Submit Your Event!Send listings to [email protected]. The deadline for our next issue, July 18, is Friday, July 12.

Drawing by Alysa Bennett. Gallery at River Arts, Morrisville.

Weekly EventsBICYCLINGCycling 101. Train for a summer of riding with Linda Freeman and Onion River Sports. Build confidence, strength, endurance, road-riding skills and a sense of community with relaxed rides on local paved roads. For all abilities. Tues., 5:30 p.m., Montpelier High School. Drop-ins welcome until July 2. 229-9409 or onionriver.com.

Open Shop Nights. Volunteer-run community bike shop: bike donations and repairs. Tues., 6–8 p.m.; Wed., 5–7 p.m. Freeride Montpelier, 89 Barre St., Montpelier. By donation. 552-3521 or freeridemontpelier.org.

BOOKS & WORDSEnglish Conversation Practice Group. For students learning English for the first time. Tues., 4–5 p.m. Central Vermont Adult Basic Education, Montpelier Learning Center, 100 State St. Sarah 223-3403.

Lunch in a Foreign Language. Bring lunch and practice your language skills with neighbors. Noon–1 p.m. Mon. Hebrew, Tues. Italian, Wed. Spanish, Thurs. French. Kellogg-Hubbard Library, 135 Main St., Montpelier. 223-3338.

Ongoing Reading Group. Improve your reading and share some good books. Books chosen by group. Thurs., 9–10 a.m. Central Vermont Adult Basic Education, Montpelier Learning Center, 100 State St. 223-3403.

CRAFTSBeaders’ Group. All levels of beading experience welcome. Free instruction available. Come with a project for creativity and community. Sat., 11 a.m.–2 p.m. The Bead Hive, Plainfield. 454-1615.

DANCEEcstatic Dance. Dance your heart awake. No experience necessary. Sun., 5:30–7:30 p.m., Christ Church, State St., Montpelier. First and third Wed., 7–9 p.m., Worcester Town Hall, corner of Elmore and Calais roads. Second and fourth Wed., 7–9 p.m., Plainfield Community Center (above the co-op). $10. Fearn, 505-8011. [email protected].

Dance or Play with the Swinging’ over 60 Band. Danceable tunes from the 1930s to the 1960s. Recruiting musicians. Tues., 5:30–7:30 p.m., Montpelier Senior Activity Center, 58 Barre St., Montpelier. 223-2518.

FOOD Barre Farmers’ Market. Local produce, meats, poultry , eggs, honey, crafts, baked goods and more. Wed., 3–6:30 p.m. City Hall Park, Barre.

Capital City Farmers’ Market. 50-plus farmers, food producers and craftspeople, plus live music and cooking demos. Sat., 9 a.m.–1 p.m., through October. 60 State St., Montpelier. Carolyn, 223-2958 or [email protected].

Community Meals in Montpelier. All welcome. Free.

Mon.: Unitarian Church, 130 Main St., 11 a.m.–1 p.m.Tues.: Bethany Church, 115 Main St., 11:30 a.m.–1 p.m.Wed.: Christ Church, 64 State St., 11 a.m.–12:30 p.m.Thurs.: Trinity Church, 137 Main St., 11:30 a.m.–1 p.m.Fri.: St. Augustine Church, 18 Barre St., 11 a.m.–12:30 p.m.Sun.: Last Sunday only, Bethany Church, 115 Main St. (hosted by Beth Jacob Synagogue), 4:30–5:30 p.m.

Noon Cafe. Soup, fresh bread, good company and lively conversation. Wed., Noon. Old Meeting House, East Montpelier. By donation. oldmeetinghouse.org.

Senior Meals. For people 60 and over. Delicious meals prepared by Chef Justin and volunteers. Tues. and Fri. Noon–1 p.m. Montpelier Senior Activity Center, 58 Barre St., Montpelier. Free. Under 60: $6. Reservations and information: 262-2688.

Takeout and Café Meals. Proceeds benefit MSAC. Thurs., 11 a.m.–1 p.m. Montpelier Senior Activity Center, 58 Barre St., Montpelier. $4–$8. Reservations appreciated: 262-6288.

HEALTH & WELLNESSAffordable Acupuncture. Full acupuncture sessions with Chris Hollis and Trish Mitchell. Mon. and Wed., 2–7 p.m.; Fri., 9 a.m.–2 p.m. 79 Main St., Suite 8 (above Coffee Corner), Montpelier. $15–$40 sliding scale. Walk in or schedule an appointment at montpeliercommunityacupuncture.com.

Herbal Clinics. Student clinic: Mon., 1–5 p.m. and Tues., 4–8 p.m. $0–$10. Professional clinic: Tues.–Fri. $0–$100. Vermont Center for Integrative Herbalism, 252 Main St., Montpelier. Consultations by appointment only: 224-7100 or [email protected]. vtherbcenter.org.

HIV Testing. Vermont CARES offers fast oral testing. Thurs., 2–5 p.m. 58 East State St., suite 3 (entrance at the back), Montpelier. Free. 371-6222. vtcares.org.

KIDS & TEENSCub Capers Story Time. Story and song for children age 3–5 and their families. Led by Carrie Fitz. Sat., 10 a.m. Children’s room, Bear Pond Books, 77 Main St., Montpelier. Free. 229-0774 or [email protected].

The Basement Teen Center. Cable TV, PlayStation 3, pool table, free eats and fun events for teenagers. Mon.–Thurs., 3–6 p.m.; Fri., 3–11 p.m. Basement Teen Center, 39 Main St., Montpelier. 229-9151.

Mad River Valley Youth Group. Sun., 7–9 p.m. Meets at various area churches. Call Ben, 497-4516, for location and information.

MUSICBarre-Tones Women’s Chorus. Open rehearsal. Find your voice with 50 other women. Mon., 7 p.m. Alumni Hall, Barre. 223-2039. BarretonesVT.com.

Community Drum Circle. Open drumming. All welcome. Fri., 7–9 p.m. Parish House, Unitarian Universalist Church, Main and Church streets, Barre. 503-724-7301.

Monteverdi Young Singers Chorus Rehearsal. New chorus members welcome. Wed., 4–5 p.m. Montpelier. Call 229-9000 for location and more information.

Ukelele Group. All levels welcome. Thurs., 6–8 p.m. Montpelier Senior Activity Center, 58 Barre St. 223-2518.

RECYCLINGAdditional Recyclables Collection Center (ARCC). Bring in odd and sundry items for reuse, upcycling and recycling, including toothbrushes, bottle caps, cassette tapes, books, textiles, batteries and more. Mon. and Fri., 12:30 p.m.–5:30 p.m. ARCC, 3 Williams Ln., Barre. $1 per car load. Complete list of accepted items at 229-9383, x 106, [email protected] or cvswmd.org.

Free Food Scrap Collection. Compost your food waste along with your regular trash and recycling. Wed., 9 a.m.–5 p.m.; Sat. 6 a.m.–1 p.m. DJ’s Convenience Store, 56 River St., Montpelier. cvswmd.org.

SPIRITUALITYChristian Meditation Group. People of all faiths welcome. Mon., Noon–1 p.m. Christ Church, Montpelier. Regis 223-6043.

Christian Science. God’s love meeting human needs. Reading room: Tues.–Sat., 11 a.m.–1 p.m.; Tues., 5–8 p.m.; and Wed., 5–7:15 p.m. Testimony meeting: Wed., 7:30–8:30 p.m., nursery available. Worship service: Sun., 10:30–11:30 a.m., Sunday school and nursery available. 145 State St., Montpelier. 223-2477.

Deepening Our Jewish Roots. Fun, engaging text study and discussion on Jewish spirituality. Sundays, 4:45–6:15 p.m. Yearning for Learning Center, Montpelier. Rabbi Tobie Weisman, 223-0583 or [email protected].

Noon Hike and Walking Meditation. Join Alicia Feltus, integral yoga Instructor, for a walk from Tulsi Tea Room to Hubbard Park for guided walking meditation. Meet at Tulsi Tea Room. Wed., Noon–12:40 p.m. 917-4012 or [email protected].

Shambhala Buddhist Meditation. Group meditation practice. Sun., 10 a.m.–Noon; Tues., 7–8 p.m.; Wed., 6–7 p.m. Shambhala Meditation Center, 64 Main St., 3F, Montpelier. Free. 223-5137. montpeliershambala.org.

Zen Meditation. Wed., 6:30–7:30 p.m. 174 River St., Montpelier. Free. Call Tom for orientation, 229-0164. With Zen Affiliate of Vermont.

SPORTS & GAMESApollo Duplicate Bridge Club. All welcome. Partners sometimes available. Fri., 6:45 p.m. Bethany Church, 115 Main St., Montpelier. $3. 485-8990 or 223-3922.

Roller Derby Open Recruitment and Recreational Practice. Central Vermont’s Wrecking Doll Society invites quad skaters age 18 and up. No experience necessary. Equipment provided: first come, first served. Sat., 5–6:30 p.m. Montpelier Recreation Center, Barre St.. First skate free. centralvermontrollerderby.com.

Standup Paddleboard Demos. Come try a new and exciting sport on the water. Wed. 5–7 p.m. June: Blueberry Lake, Warren. June and July: Wrightsville, Middlesex, dates TBD. Clearwater Sports 496-2708.

YOGAYoga with Lydia. Build strength and flexibility as you learn safe alignment in a nourishing, supportive and inspiring environment. Drop-ins welcome. Mon. 5:30 p.m., River House Yoga, Plainfield (sliding scale). Wed., 4:30 p.m., Green Mountain Girls Farm, Northfield (sliding scale). Tues. and Fri., Noon, Yoga Mountain Center, Montpelier. Rates and directions at 229-6300 or saprema-yoga.com.

Parent/Kid Yoga. With Lori Flower and Aura Zee. Wed. 1:45–2:30 p.m. The Confluence, 654 Granger Rd., Barre. $13 drop in. karmiconnection.com.

Yoga and Wine Thursday. With Lori Flower. All levels welcome; bring your own mat. Wine bar open after class. Thurs., 5:15–6:30 p.m. Fresh Tracks Farm, 4373 Rte. 12, Montpelier. $8. 223-1161 or freshtracksfarm.com.

Acro Yoga Summer Series. Thurs. 7–8:30 p.m. Sliding scale. Call Lori Flower for information and location: 324-1737. karmiconnection.com.

Community Yoga. All levels welcome to this community-focused practice. Fri. 5–6 p.m. Yoga Mountain Center, 7 Main St., 2F, Montpelier. By donation. 223-5302 or yogamountaincenter.com.

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Class listings and classifieds are 50 words for $25; discounts available. To place an ad, call Carolyn, 223-5112, ext. 11.

ClassifiedsSERVICESARTIST, MUSICIAN STUDIOS Solo or to share starting at $150 monthly. Larger spaces of vari-ous sizes available full-time or time-shared. Join us as we transform a historic convent and school at 46 Barre Street, Montpelier, into a unique center for the arts, music and learning. Call Paul for a tour at 802-223-2120 or 802-461-6222.

HOUSE PAINTER Since 1986. Small interior jobs ideal. Neat, prompt, friendly. Local refer-ences. Pitz Quattrone, 229-4952.

BOOTH RENTALHAIR SALON BOOTH RENTAL Th e Family Hairloom on the Barre-Montpelier Road has an opening for a booth renter, must have own clien-tele! Contact Liz Provencher @ 8024984816.

HELP WANTEDP/T HOUSEKEEPER WANTED at historic B&B in Waitsfi eld beginning 8/18 for approxi-mately 10-15 hours per week. Must be able to work Sundays at 11am and Monday or Tuesday (hours fl exible). Rate $12-15/hour DOE. contact Sarah at 496-7555 X1 or [email protected]

ARTISANS HANDContemporary Vermont Crafts

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CraftsburyChamber Players

BURLINGTONWednesdays 8:00pmUVM Recital HallRedstone CampusJuly 17 - August 21

HARDWICKThursdays 8:00pmHistoric HardwickTown HouseJuly 18 - August 22

TICKETS AVAILABLE AT VENUES AND ONLINE!

Adults ..............................$25Students ..........................$10Children 12 and under FREE!

FREE mini concerts for children and their friends. Same dates as above. For times and venues call1-800-639-3443 or visit our website atwww.craftsburychamberplayers.org

QUALITY REMODELING & BUILDING

Conscientious contractingInt./ext. makeovers & paintHealthy whole-home solutionsDeep energy retrofitsKitchens, baths, additionsDoors, windows, roofs

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SELLER BUYER ADDRESS DATE PRICE TYPE

Kraus, W. David Brown, Jody W. & Raymond L. 1 Winter Street 4/5/13 192,500 Condo

Dwinell, Margaret M. Estate Ruffle, Mathew & Michelle 1 Liberty Street 4/19/13 191,000 Single

Thayer, Katheran L. & Lehmann, Douglas K. Monahan, Daniel & Dawn 34 Deerfield Drive 5/1/13 284,000 Single

Murray, Helen C. Demartino, Jeffrey A. & Kerry A. 282 Main Street 5/9/13 4,000 Land: 0.22 AC +

Ohlsson, Wayne G. & Janice G. Trainor, Andrew J. 215 Barre Street Unit A109 5/15/13 162,000 Condo

Fortman, Elizabeth D. ET AL Pitt, Andrew S. & Celia F. 330 Cityside Drive Unit 68 5/10/13 230,000 Condo

Taylor, Richard M. & Andrea G. Blouin, James C. 35 Marvin Street 5/17/13 252,500 Single

Grundy, Matthew D. Tait, Colin C. & Deborah B. 4 Deerfield Drive 5/22/13 238,800 Single

Murray, Helen C. Hohn, Charles S. & Schutz, Rebecca A. 282 Main Street 5/22/13 237,500 Single

Sloan, James F. Brown, Kurtis & Anna 1 North College Street 5/22/13 165,000 Single

Moore, Christopher M. Carvey, Kathryn A. 311 State Street Unit 3 5/29/13 126,900 Condo

Cano, Edmund M. Cummings, Bonita & Kotkes, Flower 285 Elm Street 5/31/13 158,000 Single

Elias, Gretchen & Bakeman, Eric Heine, Christopher A. 211 Main Street 6/17/13 176,000 Single

Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation Kite, Kim A. & Donlan-Kite, Kiley A. 2 Dunpatrick Circle 6/17/13 237,000 Single

Landau, Georgia C. Stonorov, Otto & Tolya 6 Tremont Street 6/19/13 210,000 Multi (2)

Lescher, Nita C. & Kent, Peter O. Foulkes, Patricia 17 Cliff Street 6/24/13 265,000 Single

Valentine, Madeline H. Estate Blanchard, Margaret M. 9 Moonlight Terrace 6/26/13 135,000 Single

Dwyer, Lawrence & Carolyn Earle-Cruickshanks, Jacqueline & Sirotkin, Allan 329 Murray Hill Drive 6/25/13 412,000 Single

Sneyd, Ross & Hathaway, Warren Soccodato, David B. & Alison J. 4 Loomis Street 6/28/13 340,000 Multi (3)

Real Estate Transactions

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Pat Musick Exhibit at Governor’s Gallery

by Joyce Kahn

Manchester, Vermont, artist Pat Musick’s exhibit, The Instant of It All, has turned the Governor’s

Gallery into a place of quiet repose, peace and harmony. Musick is the 2013 recipient of the Governor’s Gallery Award, and amidst her environmental paintings of trees and 3-D sculptures, one can meditate on the journey all beings take after birth or simply experi-ence wonderful art inspired by nature.

The exhibit is comprised of six works on paper and six accompanying sculptures, all crafted from natural materials: kozo paper, charcoal, beeswax, maple and bronze. Mu-sick is 86 years old, and her work reflects the perspective of one who has lived long and experienced much, whose journey as artist, naturalist, environmentalist, student of philosophy, mother, wife, teacher, art therapist and author all inform and culmi-nate in this extraordinary exhibit.

Instantly enamored of her work, I was filled with questions about Musick’s pro-cess, her influences and the exhibit itself. She graciously answered them all when I interviewed her by phone the next day.

One often wonders where inspiration comes from. When Musick was invited last fall by curator David Schutz to exhibit, she already had the visual images for this series in mind. While installing a large outdoor sculpture two years ago, Musick had ob-served the trees in their autumn splendor and the falling of their colorful leaves. This octo-genarian views the trees as a metaphor for her own life: “The slowing down and shedding of the outer skin of life and concentrating on the inner core or spirit are represented by the tree trunk and branches; the realizing that while the outer appearance changes, the inner spirit really stays strong and vibrant and full of life.” Boris Pasternak’s poem “The Wedding,” which she has quoted all her life, became the title and theme for this exhibit. Pasternak writes:

For life is only an instant. The dissolving of oneself into the selves of othersas if bestowing a gift.Musick’s process is an interesting one.

For the large wall pieces, she used Japanese kozo paper from the mulberry bush. This creamy, handmade white paper has flecks of actual tree bark in it, which nicely accent the falling leaves. According to Musick, it gives

the “effect of a misty snowfall surrounding the tree.” The leaf collage is composed of six colors of kozo paper in muted tones of fall colors, cut in strips and odd shapes. Though based on photos of trees found on the com-puter, Musick put the photos aside, relying on her keen sense of design.

She first drew the tree trunks and branches with charcoal, her favorite medium since the late 1950s, when she studied with Paul Sample at Dartmouth College. Musick loves the immediacy of the medium, the feel of the charcoal crushing under the pressure of her hand and the emotion it allows artists to convey, as in the well-known and sensitive drawings of an artist she loves, Kathe Koll-witz. When she discovered that light faded the kozo paper, Musick did some research, and then coated each leaf with three coats of clear acrylic.

Musick repeats the theme of the large pieces with smaller, rectangular wall sculp-tures. Abstractions of the trees drawn on paper, they are segments of a tree. Musick thoroughly approved of my interpretation of the twigs as dancers. When I asked about the symbolism of the trees, Musick told me that it is up to each person to relate to images and find his or her own meaning. Some of the trees stretch up, some encircle and enclose, some look windswept, some have healed over places from lost limbs. All are expressions of the fall season of life.

Musick’s work is a consideration of the full spectrum of life. Integral to the theme are the nest sculptures, inspired by a wild turkey’s nest on the forest floor. Begun as chunks of wooden logs, they were then hol-lowed out and cast in bronze, with twigs added from Musick’s collection of roots. The alabaster eggs within each nest come from Italy, where Musick has spent 45 years off and on. These nests look so real that it is only by touching a delicate-looking tendril of a twig that one realizes it is metal.

Musick explained how she and husband, Jerry Carr, used the forest. They would always find a fallen tree and explore around it until they found a cavity. Carr would chain-saw the log into manageable sized pieces, which he drove back to the studio. Carr would also bring back to the studio a barrel of “wiggly twigs,” tree roots from pine and oak trees so Musick could com-pose with them.

Carr, affectionately referred to by Musick as her “co-conspirator in this art business,”

is a retired astronaut, whom she met in Texas. Carr does all the metal and wood fabrication. Talented in his own right, his artistry is responsible for the simple, yet elegant, metal stands made specifically for each of the nest sculptures. The beautiful patterns on them result from putting them outside to rust by exposing them to rain. Musick, herself, did the patinas on the stands as well as the designs.

Musick’s work has an Asian flavor. When I remarked that the stands were soothing to the eye, she told me that the designs are based loosely on Frank Lloyd Wright’s work. She noted that for the past 25 years, since the time she lived in the forest in Arkan-sas, her work has had a meditative quality. From meditation, it was an easy flow into Asian art, which is very much a meditation. She acknowledged that the “work is Asian in feeling but not in visual encounter.” Ac-cording to Musick, the “simple line, design of space, the emotional impact of it, are all related to meditation.”

How she arrived at meditation for herself is an interesting story. Musick directed the art therapy program at the University of Houston. In the late 1970s, while pursuing a postdoctorate in psychology at the Univer-sity of Texas Medical School, she was work-ing with cancer patients. Her professor told her that she couldn’t help her patients to be calm while facing death without being calm herself. And so she learned to meditate and taught her clients to meditate as well.

Birth to life has been Musick’s theme, her philosophy, ever since her three daughters were young. As she worked her way through this philosophy, it became a part of her art. Reminding me of words spoken by Kahlil Gibran in The Prophet, Musick noted that a child or a piece of art is yours only during the gestational period.

“Once it is born, it belongs to the world., and it’s not complete until it has interaction with the world,” she said. ”In the case of art, the world is the viewer, and the piece is only complete when it has an interaction with the world, when someone looks at it and offers their own feeling and interpretation. Then the piece has its own life.”

To view more work and read about Our Fragile Home, Musick’s current traveling exhibit, inspired by the commonality of language about earth expressed by space travelers from different countries, go to camusart.com.

The Instant of It All

New Work by Pat Musick

The Governor’s GalleryPavilion Office Building, fifth floor

MontpelierJuly through September 2013

Photo ID required

Sculpture by Pat Muscick Wright. All photos coutesty of the artist.


LettersBeing Present with John Wires

Destructive Visitors to Berlin PondTo the Editor:I am writing to express my disgust of the

behavior of some of the visitors to Berlin Pond. While we in the area welcome the great many quiet visitors (people who come to the pond to walk, run, bike, and bird-watch), there are currently many visitors to the pond who have a total lack of respect for this beautiful, peaceful, unique place. The destructiveness by people using (and abusing) the pond is horrendous. There seems to be a certain population of people who visit the pond, the south end par-ticularly, who exhibit such self-righteousness that they feel it is their privilege to intentionally harm the wildlife that inhibit the pond. Dead duck, turtles and geese have all been found on Mirror Lake Road right near the culvert being used to access the water. There have been people fishing inside the markers that are there to protect a pair of nesting loons. And there are fresh deposits of trash around the pond daily. Why is it that some people feel it necessary to exhibit the very worst of human nature, without the least bit of concern for the damage they are causing? If you are going to visit Berlin Pond, your stewardship of the area should be of vital importance.

—Martha Clelia, Berlin

Vote for CVABE AppropriationsTo the Editor:This July 23, I ask fellow residents to

join me in voting to renew Berlin’s long-standing support for Central Vermont Adult Basic Education’s (CVABE) free education instruction for our neighbors. For many years, Berlin town residents have consis-tently committed $1,200 in town meeting appropriations to support the free adult basic education and literacy services provided to Berlin community members by CVABE.

This past March, although CVABE had provided all of the required documenta-tion in advance of the town’s submission deadline, the organization’s special appro-priations request was inadvertently omitted from the Berlin town ballot. As a result, town residents were not able to act upon the CVABE appropriations request at that time. To rectify this oversight, the Berlin Town Select Board has added the CVABE appro-priations request to the ballot on Tuesday, July 23, when the town will also be voting on zoning regulations.

As a fellow Berlin resident and CVABE’s ex-ecutive director, I assure you the town of Ber-lin’s past allocations to the organization have always supported Berlin residents. CVABE, a nonprofit organization, helps an average of 16 Berlin residents per year—teaching reading, writing, math, computer literacy skills and English as a second language. CVABE helps adult and young adult students who are work-ing to achieve a high school credential and prepare for employment, college or technical training. In addition to a small, highly quali-fied paid teaching staff, CVABE engages and supports community volunteers in providing services to Berlin residents.

For more than a decade, Berlin voters have granted CVABE’s $1,200 request, which rep-resents a modest fraction of the organization’s cost of providing education services to people in our town. As a result of CVABE’s pro-gramming, many residents in Berlin are now living more independently and have gained or improved employment. Many who are parents have been able to better support their children’s academics, reducing inter-genera-tional illiteracy.

CVABE is most grateful for the town of Berlin’s support.

—Carol Shults-Perkins, executive director CVABE, Berlin

by Bryan Pfeiffer

My outing with John Wires three weeks ago was unlike most oth-ers we had shared for the better

part of three decades. John didn’t usually go for creemees. But when I called that steamy evening he didn’t hesitate.

So as we sat on a bench along the Winooski River, with raspberry goop dripping toward his forearm, John held court on nature and war, on books and travel, on postmodernism and Goethe. I harassed him about the post-modernism. He winced and smiled.

Our drive back to John’s apartment in Montpelier was also unusual. That’s be-cause John walked. He walked into rail-road yards to hop freights and discover America. He walked with peasants on the bloody dirt of Chiapas. He walked with goats in the American Southwest. John walked to chamber music in Montpelier and to supper at the food co-op. He walked up Spruce Mountain in Plainfield, perhaps more than anyone ever. When we met in the woods sometime in the 1980s, some-where in Groton State Forest, John led the way on a bushwhack to his land on Levi Pond. I don’t recall a compass other than John’s own good sense in those woods.

John Wires, who died July 1, spent a life-time at the fertile intersection of mind and nature. A reader, writer, philosopher and field naturalist, John never gave up trying to understand himself, his place in the world and how to make the world a better place. Many of us will offer fitting tributes to John, to a varied and bumpy life well lived. But I’ll instead reflect on the wisdom John leaves to me and perhaps to those who never had the good fortune of knowing him.

The first is the virtues of slowing down. It wasn’t only that walking with a 91-year-old man is intrinsically an exercise in slow-ing down. Walking with John brought me to a slower pace of body and of mind. It forced me to set aside my nagging mental list of what’s next—my unfinished book, the damn inbox, my blog, the nature yet undiscovered. On a walk with John, we would dwell with a lonely aster still f lower-ing near cold pavement in November or discuss Hannah Arendt’s writings on the Nazis or waste time talking about sports. Being with John was about being pres-ent—a practice I hope to expand now that John is gone.

Another of John’s lessons is the beauty and force of thought. For John it came from his family, from a family of friends and from a family of great minds. John thought a lot about his parents and siblings and how they shaped him as a person. He thought about his marriage to Ruth and about their chil-dren. The painful moments and mistakes he shared during our walks lead to discus-sion and introspection. Into that crucible of thought came books. John read everything, and if you mentioned one he hadn’t, he would often say, “No, I haven’t read it, but I’d like to.”

John always seemed to be searching for some way to weave together his parents and childhood, his posttraumatic stress from World War II, the philosophers he read and a life close to nature into some sort of unified field theory for his own place in the world. He never discovered that theory. But it kept his verdant mind busy and lively until the end.

Three more lessons from John are humor, honesty and humility. A few weeks before he died, I drove John (walking would have taken the entire day) to an appointment with a new doctor. John asked me to join him during the exam to take notes. They discussed John’s medical history, which in-cluded nothing serious except for the shrap-nel he took in the war. Then the doctor asked, “So, any other medical problems?”

“Yeah—doctors,” John replied.The three of us lost it. On one walk some years ago, with John

lecturing me about Rudolf Steiner (he re-ally liked Steiner), I stopped us cold on the trail and said, “John, I don’t have a clue what you’re talking about.” He laughed and thanked me for not humoring him about Steiner.

John sometimes took himself and life too seriously. And when I’d challenge his ideas or notions, never did he object or get defensive. He received it with the humility of Gandhi, fed it into the machinery of his active mind, all in pursuit of that unified theory of life.

After his bad car accident about 10 years ago, John lost not intellect but some of his sharpness. During discussions at our Thurs-day-morning guy breakfasts in Plainfield, for example, he sometimes couldn’t recall books or people he had wanted to cite on the spot. But in these last several years here in Montpelier—spent walking, reading, sing-ing at Heaton House, calling on friends, speaking Spanish, discussing philosophy and religion and life with my partner Ruth Einstein over her soup and cookies—John’s mind grew sharp again. Really sharp, ever curious, still expanding.

As it turns out, that creemee wasn’t our last date. On the next day, before I left Montpelier for a two-month road trip, I found John lounging on the steps of the Unitarian Church in Montpelier, a kind woman by his side, waiting to attend a lecture on permaculture. “You know, I was planning to stop by your place again before leaving,” I said, “because that good-bye yes-terday wasn’t enough.”

“That was a great visit at the creemee stand,” he said. And at that moment John appeared content, reclining with an ease no 91-year-old had any business displaying on concrete steps. “I want to hear all about your trip when you get home.”

Bryan Pfeiffer is a writer, educator and field naturalist who lives in Montpelier. Find him outside somewhere or at bryanpfeiffer.com.

CORRECTIONIn our June 27 profile of Dorothy Helling, we mistakenly said she served as an acting judge in Orleans County. In fact, she served in Caledonia and Washington counties. We also omitted mentioning that Helling served in VISTA as a youth, which presaged her decision to join the Peace Corps. The Bridge regrets these errors.

Parking near Parklets Hazardous to Patrons

To the Editor:Aside from the issues about parklets raised

in the article in the June 27 issue of The Bridge, we would like Montpelierites to con-sider just what a parklet would be.

In the article, it is described as a parking space that is converted to, perhaps, a fenced-in area, somehow fenced in, with, we imagine, some seating and perhaps a table or two. No more than two in a parking space, and even if it were an area two parking spaces wide, what do we have here? At one end or conceivably both ends, cars are parking and leaving. The car may even parallel park, which involves both pulling up right next to the parklet and then backing and turning in, then settling into the space. Some people have trouble getting that right, but it could be entertaining if not a little risky to the patrons in the parklet. Aside from the parkers, there is traffic both driving by one or two feet from the traffic edge of the parklet, and cars in stopped traffic idling right next to the people inside the parklet. People with small children will have to concern themselves with the proximity of the traffic next to their table.

Some stores on Main street do not have spaces parallel to the sidewalk, such as the Three Penny Taproom, Rivendell Books, Main Street Grill and Bar. Could a parklet be constructed in one (or two) of those spaces? It’s hard to understand the benefit of parklets to non-food-vending businesses, and it’s hard to see how this would be fair to those food businesses with unsuitable parking spaces.

We think Montpelier is wonderful in its parkletless state, and we’re sure it can and will get better. Food vendors have busy times and slow times, but the parklet will occupy parking space throughout the day (or else need to be set up and taken down between busy times). The parklet issue needs to be thought over.

—Bob and Deborah Messing, Montpelier

Renewable Energy Can Stabilize the GridTo the Editor:I read with shock the letter by Guy Page last

week defending Vermont Yankee. Page makes the case that we can’t provide more than 20 percent of our power from renewables, and that renewables can’t be the backbone of our electric grid or it will be unstable. The 20 percent limit is a myth. Denmark has already exceeded that amount. Last year, wind energy provided 35 percent of their electricity. Grid stability is pos-sible because wind turbines and solar arrays can provide instantaneous reaction and support for the grid in the case of instabilities. In many Eu-ropean countries, renewable sources must have the ability to stay online and provide power if the grid voltage drops and must reduce power if the grid voltage or frequency rises. These grid events often happen when a power line is lost in a storm. Northern Power Systems, in Barre, recently announced a new turbine meeting this interconnection standard. Ironically, it can’t be sold in the United States. Similar turbines in the United States must disconnect completely dur-ing a grid instability. If we want to get serious about renewable energy, we need to get smarter about our grid and its interconnection standards. We don’t need more nuclear power plants.

My goal as a human and engineer is to leave the planet in good shape for the generations to follow. It is my sorrow that I see little real progress. Leaving our descendants with nuclear waste to clean up is no better than leaving them with a hot and stormy climate or a giant pol-luted hole in Alberta where the tar sands were. By reducing our collective energy use through conservation and efficiency, closing down pol-luting power plants and switching to renewable energy, we will at least mitigate the damage.

—Dan Costin, Montpelier


EditorialThe F-35

“Train Wreck”

At an Air National Guard press briefing in Colchester on July 11, and after a

review of additional information, the follow-ing points became abundantly clear.

First, the federal government’s decision to build and equip this nation’s military – and indeed the military establishments of friendly allied nations - with the F-35 joint striker fighter jet, is a decision that has been made and is irreversible.

Second, the F-35 jet, developed by Lock-heed Martin over a period of about 10 years and subject to continuous delays and cost overruns, could over the entire lifetime of this project cost around $500 billion; the largest ever cost for a single weapons sys-tem.

Third, based on remarks at the July 11 press briefing, the Vermont Air National Guard strongly favors basing up to 24 jets in Vermont because the current F-16 jets are due to be retired.

Finally, the F-35s are going to be built, are going to be based somewhere and Vermont has been identified as a preferred location.

What’s more, the entire Vermont Con-gressional delegation, that includes Sena-tor Patrick Leahy, Senator Bernie Sanders, and Congressman Peter Welch – along with Governor Peter Shumlin stand together in support of basing the F-35s in Vermont.

As to timing, a public commentary period closed on July 15. That comment period was largely devoted to pro and con arguments about whether the F-35s would be substan-tially noisier than the F-16 jets. At the press briefing, Air Guard spokespeople insisted that noise levels of the new jet would be es-sentially indistinguishable from noise levels of the old F-16s. But F-35 opponents dispute this finding.

There is also controversy about whether or not the F-35 noise levels would have dan-gerous health effects on people in an area affected by the noise levels of takeoffs and landings. The Air Guard spokespeople said that current research was indecisive on the issue of health effects. Some studies claim damage and other studies, no damage on health effects.

A final Environmental Impact Statement for the F-35 could be produced as early as October. And a final basing decision could be locked in place as early as November.

Five hundred billion dollars – and this at a time when Republicans as well as Demo-crats are wringing their hands about deficits. Even a military hawk like Senator John Mc-Cain has likened the F-35 project to a “train wreck.”

Although the F-35 has been developed and partly tested, Senators Leahy and Sanders, Congressman Welch and Governor Shum-lin cannot disassociate themselves from the “train wreck” of the fighter jets. By pushing hard to have F-35s based in Vermont, our congressional delegation and governor have allied themselves to this costly and wasteful project.

We can’t afford college tuitions. We can’t keep the postal service from going bankrupt. And the U.S. House of Representatives has just stripped out of the current farm bill a critical anti-hunger Food Stamp program. Look at the priorities these actions represent. This is why Congress is flunking out with Americans and why politicians, generally, are failing us.

by William Boardman

Editor’s note: This article was written before the public meeting on July 8. It accurately predicted the outcome of that meeting which drew about 250 people and lasted almost four hours. Most of the postmeeting coverage elsewhere has less detail, background and context than the following. A report of the outcome appears at the end.

F-35, At $400 Billion and Counting, Is a Symptom of

Much Greater DiseaseWhen the city council in a city of just

18,000 people reverses a vote it took a year earlier, it’s not usually of national signifi-cance, but if the South Burlington City Council votes as expected on July 8, in support of basing the F-35 strike fighter in Vermont, it will illustrate how deep the tentacles of national power reach into local government in this country.

The F-35 nuclear-capable bomber, de-signed for aggressive war, is one of the more obvious tumors of the military-industrial-po-litical cancer that has metastasized through-out the American system, from Congress and the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., all the way, now, to the five member city council in South Burlington.

In 2012, the city council was led by a retired Air Force colonel who at first sup-ported having the F-35 as a noisy neighbor—until she researched it carefully. After Col. Rosanne Greco, a former Pentagon planner, presented her findings to the council (and the public), the council voted on two sepa-rate occasions—4-1 and 4-0—that the F-35 should be based elsewhere.

F-35 Boosters Bought the Government They Wanted in

South BurlingtonAnd then there was an election in March

2013 in which councilor Pam Mackenzie—who had been the lone vote in favor of the F-35—helped bankroll perhaps the most expense local election ever, supporting two candidates who are now poised to vote with her and in favor of basing the world’s most expensive weapons system in a city where it will have significantly destructive effects on the civilian population. If it happens, this will be a deliberate and callous vote in favor of inevitable collateral damage, without re-deeming social importance.

According to the Air Force’s own study, the F-35 is much louder than the F-16s pres-ently based at Burlington International Air-port, and those quieter planes have already made more than 200 homes uninhabitable. The F-35 would render another 1,300 or more homes uninhabitable because of noise – a wholesale destruction of affordable hous-ing in a market where affordable housing is already scarce enough.

None of the public officials who support basing the F-35 in Vermont’s most densely populated area—not the Air Force, not Ver-mont’s Democratic Sen. Patrick Leahy or independent Sen. Bernie Sanders, nor Dem-ocratic Rep. Peter Welch nor Democratic Gov. Peter Shumlin, nor Democratic Mayor of Burlington Miro Weinberger, nor any other statewide elected official—not one of them has even expressed serious concern over the destruction of housing for lower income Vermonters, much less put forward a serious plan to mitigate the destruction.

It’s Military Pork, It’s a Career Boost, Why Should We Talk About It?

Most Vermont political office holders duck the issue entirely, or, like Democratic Speaker of the House Shap Smith, hide be-hind the fiction that the decision is up to the feds—at the same time the feds are inviting

public comment. Smith and his allies have been able to block those House members who oppose the F-35 from getting a serious vote on the issue.

And now the city council of South Burl-ington includes people who, like Sen. Leahy’s relatives, stand to gain personally from an Air Force decision in their favor.

As soon as Pam Mackenzie, daughter of an Air Force veteran, had funded the success-ful election of two allies, she enjoyed their support in replacing Greco as council chair, with herself. In May 2012, when Mackenzie was trying to block public discussion of the F-35, a reporter described her publicly stated reasoning this way: “Pam said that she sup-ports the guard in anything they want to do because her dad was in the air force. That’s it. She voted against providing the public with a forum to question and discuss the impacts of the F-35 because of personal bias.”

Conflicts of Interest Outweigh the Harm the Public Will Suffer

Mackenzie is the CEO of the DeckerZinn management consulting firm. Although she has Air Force ties and spent lavishly to elect allies to the council, she has not apparently made any formal disclosure of conflicts of in-terest, nor has she apparently recused herself from involving her official duties with her personal interests.

One of her new allies was an opponent when Mackenzie was first elected in 2012. But this time she supported Chris Shaw who describes himself on Twitter as a “hus-band, hockey dad, teacher, city councilor, justice of the peace, lax bro and responsible renegade—just your average brainy, brawny, balding badboy!”

Shortly after his election, Shaw said: “I don’t have a specific policy change agenda. My agenda is to be a respectful listener.”

What These People Say Has Little Relevance to What They Do

Shaw ran as a supporter of local basing of the F-35, as did the other Mackenzie ben-eficiary, Pat Nowak, an investment advisor who refused to disclose her party affiliation during the campaign. But they ran as a team, with Mackenzie’s largesse and support of the F-35 in common.

By all accounts, significant outside money also helped make this campaign roughly ten times more expensive than the usual city council races, but Vermont’s campaign re-porting laws are such that demonstrating the exact dimensions of a candidate’s spending is difficult.

According to Seven Days, “Shaw and Nowak are representative of a South Burlington ‘old guard’ aligned closely with developers and other business interests.” The Burlington Free Press reported that Nowak and Mackenzie “agreed, for instance, that a new vote on the F-35 is not high on their agenda.

During the campaign, Nowak said in an interview: “The single most pressing concern for our city is the degree of divisiveness that has entered the everyday processes of opera-tion and decision making. It could be said

that great issues are at stake and disagree-ment is normal and healthy. I don’t believe the atmosphere derives from the issues. They could be settled with research, analysis and civil discussion.”

With an Opportunity to Hear

New Health Information, Council Stonewalls

At the July 1 council meeting, four women, three of them elderly and living at a facility within the zone the F-35 will make uninhab-itable, asked the council to delay its July 8 meeting for 48 hours. As reported in Vermont Commons: “All four of the women who ad-dressed the South Burlington city council where soft spoken, polite and brief . . . These women were petitioning for a delay because they wanted citizens to have the opportunity to attend another public meeting, this one regarding the effects of aircraft noise on the health of children, before making up their minds on the F-35 basing. This July 9th pub-lic meeting will feature doctors and research-ers sharing their knowledge of the health effects of airplane noise on children’s physical and mental health and learning ability.”

At that July 1 meeting, Nowak was absent and unable to support any further “research, analysis and civil discussion.”

Shaw showed little capacity for being “a respectful listener,” as he made personal at-tacks on his fellow council member, Greco. He adamantly opposed hearing any new information about the F-35 and refused to discuss it rationally, according to the tran-script of the meeting.

Mackenzie and Shaw refused to postpone the July 8 meeting. Their minds were appar-ently made up, their decision made, informa-tion of any sort would just waste their time.

As Mackenzie put it, “I don’t have to jus-tify my reasons.”

Postscript: Predetermined Vote

Plays Out as Prescripted More than 200 people turned out for

the meeting in the stifling local elementary school gym located a quarter mile from the airport runway.

Most of the audience opposed basing the F-35 in their small city. For reasons that are unclear, people in favor of the F-35 got to speak first. Some 70 people in all spoke, overwhelmingly opposed to the $400 billion strike fighter, but council chair Mackenzie called for a vote before all the speakers were heard. Greco objected to this as a violation of the rules of order. Mackenzie plowed ahead.

Mackenzie continued to refuse to explain to her constituents why she was voting as she was. He refused to explain why she was the only council member who wasn’t explaining her vote. She said she would explain some-thing later.

The council voted three to two in sup-port of the F-35, as had been decided well in advance.

With the exception of “Postscript,” this article originally appeared in Reader Supported News, an Internet news site: readersupportednews.org. Permission to republish was freely granted.

Vermont Government Rots from the TopA Weapon of Mass Destruction, F-35 Also Destroys the Democratic Process

Ballplayers warm up before a double header July 16th. In the top 14 of the summer collegiate baseball league teams, The Vermont Moiuntaineers are grateful for the community support.


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Documents

The Bridge, July 17, 2013