This was started on Thursday evening, but interrupted by a power outage. The weather, however, remains very much the same today (Friday), so I'll simply finish up what I started and post it.

Another rainy day (Thursday) at Joe's Pond. It's been restful sort of day with gentle, misty rain off and on, a perfect time for reading, contemplating the quiet of the water from a sheltered porch, or browsing at Hasting's Store, the Joe's Pond Craft Shop, or catching up with friends at the Joe's Pond Country Store over a cup of coffee.

Actually, I didn't do any of those things. Grocery shopping this morning, and this afternoon Fred and I went to Helen Morrison's to see "Tuxedo" - the black and white stray cat that's been hanging out in the neighborhood for the past couple of months. He had been to the vet's for a punctured paw and a few other necessary adjustments, plus shots. He's a sweet cat and we and Helen want to be sure he stays healthy. He's visited just about everyone - sometimes getting food, sometimes only some much needed human companionship, but so far no one has claimed him. He went to see Lawrence and Carol Byrd on Sandy Beach Rd. recently and all went well until he noticed a stuffed bear's head displayed on the wall. They said he left abruptly and hasn't been back. We guess he saw something frighteningly familiar about that bear's head. He really likes being at Helen's, but we think he's also very social and after he's fully recovered, will probably continue to make the rounds of the neighborhood. He'll make someone an exceptional pet, from what we've seen so far. We'd take him in, but "Woody" has already expressed his disapproval of another cat in his territory . . .

I know lots of people around the pond enjoy going to Cabot Plain Cemetery for the spectacular views. It's one of my favorite spots, too. Last Sunday we took some friends for a little tour and decided to go down Dubray Road. That's a left turn past the Spaulding Farm instead of turning right past the cemetery. We hadn't been down that road in several years and were amazed at the new homes there. The views along that road are most impressive. It's the same general westerly outlook as from the cemetery, but because you're surrounded by trees and on a slightly lower level, the layers of hills and mountains that spread out seem closer and awsome, in the true sense of the word. I hope you'll venture down that road sometime this summer. It is a dead end road, but the sign on the gate says hikers are welcome, so park your car and take a walk. If you go far enough you'll come out at Henry Menard's farm, and visiting Henry's gardens is always a pleasure.

I'm not sure if I mentioned that we now have on our web site David Book's recently published book about the men from Cabot who served in the Civil War. To read about it, go to "Other" or "Links" on the home page. You'll find it under "Authors and Artists" in "Links", and it's about three up from the bottom of the list when you click on "Other". The book is available at the Cabot Creamery Gift Shop, so look for it when you go there - a great way to spend an hour or so on a rainy day is to browse the gift shop and take a tour about cheese making. Helen Morrison is one of the tour guides working there this summer.

While I was volunteering at the Cabot Historical Society museum on July 4th, my cousin, Marilyn Bolton Perrin and her husband, David, stopped by with some very interesting news. They had visited an historical museum in Pierre, South Dakota recently with a Lewis and Clark Elderhostel group, and while there Lyn noticed a friendship quilt on display that had names familiar to Cabot. When they returned to Vermont, Lyn and David began researching and found 38 of the 48 names on the quilt correspond to Cabot families who lived here at the time the quilt was made, in 1855. Friendship quilts were traditionally given to people who were leaving the area, and this one had been given to a young Mary Bickford of East Cabot when she married Charles Howe on February 5, 1856 and left to settle in the west.

Much more research is needed to verify who these people were who painstakingly sewed quilt squares, each with a friend's name embroidered on it, and the Perrins will continue their search before handing over their findings to the Cabot Historical Society. The great grandaughter of Janet Howe Townsley gave the quilt to the South Dakota Historical Society, and wrote a book, Dakota Dreams, based on a diary written by Mary and Charles Howe's daughter, Sabra. The Perrins have donated a copy of Townsley's book to the Cabot Historical Society, and we are looking forward to having the book, along with the Perrin's account and documentation of the quilt, on display shortly at CHS.