Friday, July 31, 2009

We're into another soggy day here at Joe's Pond, but we've been promised a nice weekend - for the most part.

I was glancing through a stack of newspapers this morning, catching up on clipping sudoku puzzles and crosswords for when I'm watching TV, and checking through news items, when I came across a very nice item about Joe's Ponder Linda Garey receiving the first Dr. John Elliott Community Service Award at NVRH. Linda works in the operating room at Northeastern Vermont Regional Hospital. Sarah Garey, Linda's daughter who is also a nurse at NVRY received an award for 10 years of service. Congratulations to Linda and Sarah.

Linda and her husband, John, have a home on Otis Drive here at Joe's Pond.

I got my newsletter from Burr Morse at Morse Farm Maple Sugarworks today. Something Burr mentioned led me to do a little research on maple products, and in so doing I came upon "birch syrup" made in Alaska. I thought this was pretty interesting. It takes almost three times as much birch sap to make a gallon of syrup as it does maple, and sounds like the taste is different. I thought you might like to read about it, so here's a link: Birch Syrup

You know how it is when your mind starts to wander and you have a little time on your hands - so then I began to remember my father talking about "birch beer" folks used to make years ago. We used to make root beer every summer, but as I recall we bought a special syrup and mixed it with yeast, sugar and water and then set it in the cold water in our spring house. During haying, I was often the go-fer sent to fetch a few bottles my father and uncles on a hot day. We kids weren't allowed to drink it, but sometimes my mom would buy ZaRex - the concentrated flavored sugar syrup that came in glass bottles with a little handle on the neck. My favorite flavor was lime. I remember watching the transparent swirls of the syrup as it colored the cold spring water a lovely bright green.

Years later, when my own children were little, a huge treat for them was to stop at the root beer stand on the Barre-Montpelier Road for a "baby beer" whenever we were in the area. The stand was only open during the summer, and there were wails of disappointment if we got there too early in the spring or too late in the fall and found it closed. Having a soda of any kind was a treat for them. Being a farm girl, I made milk the rule for my family, and they never objected, but having any soda drink was a special event. I still drink milk at least twice a day, and miss it if I don't have it.

Jamie just came to get Fred to help him turn the Correct-Craft hull over so he can scrape and paint it. He and neighbor Luke Persons pulled the motor out of it the other day (it's an inboard) and Jamie is excited about refurbishing our family's 1962 woodie, "Raja" - again. I can't count how many times the boat has been re-done, but it's been quite a few. Jamie said it'll look great and be all set for next summer. It's a plywood hull and surprisingly light once the motor and shaft are out of it. We all still love that old boat, so I'm delighted he's taking such good care of it. A whole lot of kids learned to water ski behind it. With only 70 h.p., it worked perfectly, even towing five or six kids. That was before many people were using slalom skis. Now we have plenty of high-powered plastic boats around for water skiing, and "Raja" is used mainly for long, slow evening cruises around the pond. There's something special about the steady chug-chug-chug of the inboard motor as you take in the scenery and chat. A boat ride at that speed can take about two hours if you go around all three "ponds" and hit all the coves. That's not counting stopping to chat with other boaters or people out on their docks. Summer on Joe's Pond. Can't beat it.

Thursday, July 30, 2009

Here's a link to the article in the Times Argus about the fire in Cabot last week:
Times Argus

I reported 1.58 inches of rain this morning. When I signed up to monitor precipitation for CoCoRahS, I needed an "official" rain gauge. It's a 4-inch diameter cylinder with a smaller calibrated tube inside that measures up to one inch and the runoff from the smaller tube is collected in the four-inch cylinder so it can be measured. Long before I got involved with CoCoRahS, I purchased a V-shaped rain gauge that I stick in one of my flower boxes on our deck every summer. This morning Fred read that one as I was taking my official measurements, and the measurements were the same. My neighbor, Elizabeth, has one just like it, so she'll be pleased to know how accurate it is. We'll plan to compare the two often just to be sure, but I'm pretty impressed.

We're expecting someone to come to fix our overhead door today. Suddenly it has become really balky, and although Fred has tried everything he and I can think of to get it to quit doing it's own thing instead of our bidding, but nothing has worked. We can easily operate it manually, but when we're coming up our steep driveway in the winter, it's really nice not to have to stop, get out, and open the door. I know, we're spoiled, but after years with no garage at all when we lived at camp, we really do appreciate our garage - AND it's automatic door which we can usually open from the road as we turn into our drive so it's opening as we sail up and inside without losing momentum - perfect timing.

While we wait for the overhead door folks, we're going to take the wooden swing doors off our utility shed and re-hang them. We have to do this every few years as the building and ground shifts with weather and age. It's getting a nice new coat of paint this year but before we paint the doors, we need to adjust them. Fred's out there now - I'm on my way.

Wednesday, July 29, 2009


I just learned there were about 20 grave stones tipped over and broken at the Elm Street Cemetery in Cabot Village last night. It is always a mystery to me what possible fun or personal reward there could be for someone to do that. Unfortunately, this happens all too often in towns everywhere. Cabot has had its share of cemetery vandals over the years, and for a small town, more than its share of other crimes, as well. This is a photo taken some time ago of part of the Elm Street Cemetery, also known as the Village Cemetery. It's a lovely spot, very well kept, with some very nice grave stones and some that are very old and fragile. The section in this photo is a newer part of the cemetery. I don't know what section was vandalized.

Last week someone on the other side of town had a scare when an unknown man came to her door and claimed his car had broken down. She didn't let him in, but did let him use a telephone.
He asked if she lived alone - she doesn't - and he left, but then returned. There was no confrontation, but she was unnerved. A friend told me about the incident and warned me to keep my doors locked.

There was a fire at a seasonal camp last week on Coits Pond Road in Cabot that has been ruled suspicious. Although we live in a generally quiet and truly beautiful area, there are some incidents like these that mar our peaceful, bucolic existence. So despite your inclination,
because you're in Vermont, to leave your home or camp unlocked if you run to the post office or leave for a few hours, think again and lock up, please.

We're finishing off another summery day with some fairly heavy rain tonight. The temperature readings were well into the 80's again today, as predicted. Summer has come late, but we hope it remains for a while. We're over the half-way mark now, heading towards autumn. August is almost here and kids will be heading back to school - summer vacation over. For us at Joe's Pond this year, summer came during the last week of July, and we will now begin watching for the tell-tale signs of fall, the turning of the maples. We have a couple trees in back of our house that are showing signs of color, but I think it's stress from too much water. We haven't been able to walk in our woods all summer (?) because it's been so soggy.

Tuesday, July 28, 2009

I think we can call this a perfectly splendid day! Sunshine all day long and not a sprinkle to be had. Quite a change. Fred was saying at supper time we haven't had a fire in the wood stove for several days now. Usually about that time we have had a small fire to take the chill off during the evening.

You may have noticed on the Comments Page that Doug Hamilton has a runaway kayak. Keep an eye out for it - it's yellow and about 12 ft. long, and apparently floated off. Give Doug a call, 563-2177 or his son Bill, 563-2165, if you spot it. This seems to be the season for lost and found kayaks. Last year it seemed to be life preservers that got away . . . the year before it was docks.

I want to show you one of the items I inventoried at the historical soc
iety Sunday. We believe it to be an early pull toy. It is metal, probably tin, and very rusted. One wheel is missing, and we aren't sure if the figure of the young girl was originally part of it or not. It seems to be the same material and age, and there are spots that look as if she might have once stood on the wagon, soldered in place. It is only about six inches long - the doll is about six inches tall. We have no record of who this toy belonged to or who donated it, unfortunately.


Sunday, July 26, 2009

I don't know if this shows up on our new links to town news, but in case it doesn't, some of you may be interested in reading this: www.vermontbiz.com
Good morning (afternoon!) -
We went to St. Johnsbury to meet son Bill and his wife, Monika (below) to ha
ve breakfast. Anthony's, about the only place in town except McDonald's to have breakfast, was crowded as usual at 10 a.m., but we didn't wait long for a booth, and it was worth the wait. We saw Dave and Michelle Parker (Joe's Ponders) at Anthony's and they reported the Italian Dinner was well attended last night, with 218 served. Good work, Joe's Pond gang. Dave said after the dinner there was a great show of fireworks from the Hebert/Buttura cottages on Old Homestead Road. Their celebration is going to be an annual event, I guess. The weather was pretty good, so all went well.

Fred just passed this link on to me. After reading it, we were both left wondering how Rt. 2 will be "rerouted through Danville." Check it out and let us know what you think. Post a comment from home page.
Link

I also want to bring your attention to a new feature Fred has added to home page: Links to local news items from Cabot and Danville, with Walden coming soon. These links will take you directly to the lastest news items from these towns that appear in local papers. We hope this makes it more convenient for you to check late breaking news.

Saturday, July 25, 2009

The weather has been pretty nice most of the day. We went to Danville this morning. As we bopped around taking care of business, we bumped into several friends. We saw Bruce and Shirley Anderson, and that's always such a pleasure. Bruce worked at Social Security when we did and was the most consistently upbeat person I've ever known. We saw several other folks, too. Marty's First Stop was very busy and we saw people we knew there and in West Danville. A weekend
with (for us) good weather is a great combination and people were out and about.

I went to the cemetery in Danville to get pictures of the gravestones for my great grandparents whose photographs I posted a little while back. We found the stones quite quickly even though I wasn't sure where they were. I've only located them perhaps twice before, some years ago. I often go to the Cabot cemeteries to photograph grave markers for people who cannot come here to do it themselves, but hadn't thought to do it for my own family. Eventually I'll put the information together in case family members are interested, but for now I must concentrate on other Cabot families. I just received a very large box of papers, letters and photos from an elderly friend who used to live in Cabot, and I'm sure there's a wealth of history there we'll want to preserve.

Tomorrow I'll be working at the historical society building again, and that should actually finish up the inventory we've been doing. Then I can get back to the paper collection. Speaking of history, I noticed we had a nice comment today from someone in California who used to spend time at Joe's Pond as a child and had connections to Cabot. I believe the cottage she used to visit was owned back then by the Straubs, and is now owned by Ray and Cyndi Rouleau.

Tomorrow promises to be another rainy day. Those of us who stay here year around are hoping the weather pattern changes before winter sets in or we could be in for a heap of snow - again. Good for the ski industry, but hard on our backs and sometimes our fenders.




Friday, July 24, 2009

Another rainy day. Yesterday was quite nice, though! We appreciate when we have sunshine, for sure.

Fred and I went to St. Johnsbury yesterday. We got haircuts, some groceries, did some errands and Fred took a few pictures. Some of you know the hyd
ro electric dam in St. Johnsbury is presently being updated. It's located on the Passumpsic, just off Mill Street and Railroad Street, at the intersection of Concord Avenue. It's in the same area as Elements Restaurant and Reed's Supply Company. I hadn't realized the dam supplies a fair amount of power at that station. It's good that it's being taken care of and used.

Up on Main Street where the fire was a couple weeks ago, that block is still roped off to traffic. Things are getting done rapidly, but the buildings are so unstable after all the fire and water damage, it's taking longer than expected to bring them down. Meetings are already taking place to decide how to proceed after the cleanup. The town officials will want to retain the character of Main Street and at the same make the best possible use of the space.

I don't think I mentioned about going to the Beatrix Potter presentation on Wednesday night. That's "Beatrix" with the hat in the picture below being introduced by Bonnie Dannenberg, the Cabot Historical Society president. As you know, Beatrix Potter
(1866-1943) was a well known author and illustrator of children's books in early 1900's. It was a very interesting evening. Ms. Helene Lang did a very interesting and entertaining talk. She brought many props from the Beatrix Potter era, and told us she's visited the Potter farm in England no less than 14 times, having taken her students there as part of her literature courses at UVM. I thought it would have been very nice if children had been in the audience; however, that didn't happen. We had a very congeniel group of people who enjoy literature for all ages, and enjoyed meeting Mrs. Lang. This was a Vermont Humanities Council event, hosted by the Cabot Historical Society.

The Town of Cabot road crew paid us a visit yesterday and West Shore Road sure needed their attention. Several people had called them, including me, so I was happy that they responded. Tax bills recently arrived, and it wasn't a good thing to have pot holes to pound over going and coming. Folks really get riled up at tax time anyway, and bad roads just shake the worst out of us all.

BIG CHURCH AUCTION

• to benefit Cabot United Church • Info: (802) 563-2278

Saturday, July 25, 10 a.m. -Cabot School Gym in Cabot Village

Viewing from 9 a.m.

Antiques • Art • Porcelain Dolls • Oriental Screen • Beanie Baby Collection • 24' Alum. Ext. Ladder • Many Tools – some old • New Wood Chipper • Potato & Other Rakes • Furniture • Bentwood Caned Rocker • Tables • Chairs • Benches • Sofa Beds • Love Seat • Trunk • Mirrors • Antique Wood Sled and One-Horse Sleigh • Milk Jug • Exercise Equipment • Huge Spool of Heavy Rope • Variety of Lamps • 100-year-old Church Double Doors • Appliances • 2 Organs • Cabinet Sewing Machine • Vintage Coats (Fur and Cloth) • 1997 Honda Civic • 4 One-Week Scholarships to Camp Laughing Turtle • Huge Rubber Tree Plant • Many Boxed Lots • Old Wooden School Desk • Outdoor Basketball Stand • Rug • Bookcase • Old Brass Fire Extinguisher • Luggage • Card Tables • Cabinet-sized Humidifier • and much more!

• White Elephant Table • Food Available

• David Book, Auctioneer



Also - Don't forget the Italian Dinner is tomorrow night. (Saturday, July 25th.)
Perfect finish after spending the day at the auction!


Wednesday, July 22, 2009

Bonnie Dannenberg, Cabot Historical Society president, has asked me to post some photos we have been unable to identify. They are pictures of school children and their teachers, all in Cabot, we think, and mostly in the early to perhaps mid 1900's. Perhaps you, or someone you can think of can help us out. Here's the slide show:
School Children

If you think you might know even one of the children in any of these photos, it would be a start for us. Right now we don't know much about any of them. Contact me if you'd like me to e-mail a picture to you so you can study it more closely.

Tuesday, July 21, 2009

If you watch the Comments Page, you'll see that prescription glasses were found on Old Homestead road. Thanks, Karen, for posting that notice.

We also had a comment on the blog about the loons. I'll copy it here for you, or you can scroll down to see it:
Jane:

The picture of the loon gathering reminded me that we have seen this too on a couple of occasions over the years. The story I heard some place was that they fly in from neighboring ponds to visit and take turns as host! Don't know if that is true, but there are many less surprising things in the Wild Kingdom.

-Tom Morgan

I don't know about the hosting bit, but it's a cool story. Maybe they discuss travel plans getting ready for their fall migration . . . thanks, Tom, your message put a smile on my face, for sure!

This afternoon I finally got out to help Fred scrape the tractor garage to get it ready to paint. I had to work carefully around some bees that have nested either under or in the foundation. I heard them in time so I didn't get stung, and they weren't at all aggressive, but I kept an eye on them. I only worked about an hour when the rain came. We're wondering if we'll get a dry day to paint. It would be better to have two or thee dry days, but I guess that's asking too much.

I've been working on more old photographs from the historical society. Unfortunately, we don't know who most of them are, and many are nearly faded away. Many are tintypes, and some have been exposed to light too much and are pretty much lost. I've scanned all of them and perhaps we'll find out who some of them are. We think most of them came from the Smith family that lived in Lower Cabot. Two albums have the name, "Abbie Smith Babbitt" in them, and we know Abbie Babbitt very well. The photo here was when Abbie Smith was a little girl, and she grew up to be a very lovely lady.



Monday, July 20, 2009

I received this e-mail this morning:

Hello Jane,
My name is Lynda Poole. I am Peggy Brickett Hosmer's daughter at 136 Otis Drive. I have spent a few weeks of every summer of my life here at Joe's Pond. I am up from Naples, Florida on break from my teaching job. I got this very rare photo yesterday in front of John and Joe Hall's camp. 5 Loons all together!!!! Michelle Parker called Ray and he said to watch out there may be a Territorial fight start up! Just thought all might enjoy the pictures!
P.S. Hope you are enjoying the sunshine I brought with me! LOL, Lynda
Also thanks for all you do! It means a lot to me!

Many thanks to Lynda for the two pictures above AND for the nice weather she brought with her! Wish she had come in June . . . ! I think it's nice all our loons are getting along, though. That's Joe's Pond or you. It brings out the best in all of us.

Fred is working outside this morning and I'm making cookies. Can't get much more domestic than that. We're both taking a break for a few minutes to check our e-mail, and then back to work.

Sunday, July 19, 2009


I'm actually adding this bit of news after I'd written the blog below and signed out. I just found this notice in my mail:

Axel ("Father of Peace") James Pearl arrived around 10 PM Saturday, July 18, weighing in at 8 pounds and 22" long.Axel, Logan, and Isaac are doing well and thrilled.
We are off to see this new wonder...! Liz
Elizabeth A. Sargent, Danville and #3 Joe's Pond Island.

We send a big hug to baby Axel and best wishes to all his family. Liz later sent the photo above. What a cutie!
*****

We're optimistic about the weather - looks like we're headed for a really nice week ahead, with summer-like temperatures! Today is beautiful, nice breeze, not too hot, and best of all - bright sunshine. Well - most of the time.

Son Bob was just here on his mountain bike and heading for the rail trail. He was wondering if he'd beat the rain that seemed to be hovering over Walden. He connects to the trail by taking Brickett's Crossing Road and then Upper Harrington Hill Road and it's a few hundred yards down that road. He could also continue on Upper Harrington Hill Rd. to Pond View Road. I haven't been down that road recently, but it should intersect the rail trail. It used to connect what is now West Shore Road with Harrington Hill Road, but the bridge has been gone for years and the road was thrown up past the old McCormick farm (which was later owned by the Platts and is now owned by the Helfands), making Deeper Ruts Road a dead end. He will end his ride in St. Johnsbury.

Good news - the runaway buoy reported last week is back in place. Jamie and Bob (Dimick) rescued it from the cove by the Johnson cottage and got it back on Smith's Point. Bob said the snap hook had failed, but he thinks it should be okay now.

I'm headed for the historical society museum this afternoon. It's open from 2-4 p.m. every Sunday during the summer months. I'm hoping to finish photographing items for our inventory. It's been a long process, but I think we're finally finishing it up - today I'll be doing small, very old and very delicate items in three large display cases. Some are photographs, and I may bring them home to scan - although, I may be able to get good enough photos of the photos. We don't like to handle these things too much. I'll take my white gloves . . .

As I finish this posting, the sun has gone behind a lurking cloud - but I'm pretty confident the nice day will return. In the meantime, I hope everyone is able to get outside and enjoy.




Friday, July 17, 2009

Some news reporter I'd make - we (Fred) took pictures Wednesday of the block in St. Johnsbury where the fire was last week and I completely forgot about them. Here they are: Main Street, St. Johnsbury

I think the appearance of Main Street will be forever changed, but the new buildings erected after the fire a few years ago on Railroad Street are very nice and fit into the over all town design very well, so probably the same thing will happen this time.

Fred took advantage of what little sunshine we had today and mowed the lawn. We also had the septic tanks here and at camp pumped. B & B Septic came. We have used B & B before, and now they are under new ownership. The two young men who came today were very efficient and got both jobs done in no time. We will see them again in about three years, I guess.

Did you get the reports about the tornado last night in the Chelsea area? That's what I was hearing about on the scanner. Lots of wind and hail damage there. We had our usual afternoon/evening shower, only tonight it was pretty heavy rain for a little while. We seem to be spared the really violent storms so far, fortunately.

We learned last week that Jack and Jill Dowd have sold their cottage on Sandy Beach Road to Brad Rouleau of Barre. I believe Brad has already taken possession. We're sorry the Dowds are leaving, but I guess Joe's Pond was just one place too many for them to look after. We welcome Brad and will be getting in touch with him right away.

Tomorrow is the Stars and Stripes celebration in Lyndonville, if you are looking for something fun to do. I don't know what the weather is going to be like, but I hope there are at least a few hours without showers.

Thursday, July 16, 2009

I want to let folks know first of all, Homer Fitts is okay. If you heard he was taken to the hospital Tuesday night having chest pains, that's true. I heard about it late this afternoon and started checking. It seems when Homer began having pain he called Danville Rescue. They took him to NVRH where he was evaluated and decided he needed to go to Dartmouth Hitchcock or Fletcher Allen. He opted for Fletcher Allen where his doctors are, so Danville Rescue picked him up again and took him to Burlington. I think this all happened Tuesday night.

My sources said as of this morning Homer was feeling chipper as usual, so I decided to call him at the hospital. When I reached Fletcher Allen, they told me he'd been discharged around 2 p.m. Then I called his daughter Ellen, thinking he'd be there, only to find out he'd already come back to Joe's Pond! I finally reached Homer around six o'clock tonight and he told me he was fine, in fact, he said he was "feeling great."

It was his heart, and Homer said it was 13 years ago that he'd had a quad by-pass, and the trouble this time was that one artery was 90% closed. They inserted a stent and that fixed the problem. He said he wished they'd kept him a bit longer because he liked having all his meals prepared for him.

Don't you just love it when this kind of story has a happy ending?


Here's another story you'll no doubt hear more about and read about in the papers tomorrow. We had a weather warning this evening that there were heavy storms in the Williamstown and Orange area with very strong winds. There was a tornado warning and also they said to watch out for possibly damaging straight winds.

The air has been eerily still here at Joe's Pond so far tonight, but I've had the scanner on and crews were out in the Williamstown area cutting fallen trees out of the road and off power lines. I only get the chatter as crews are being directed to trouble spots, and generally don't get much about how much damage there is, but things have quieted down now, at least in the area that my scanner reaches.

This has certainly been an unusual "summer." Some folks who have been here at Joe's Pond and surrounding areas are probably ready to take issue with that term, being that most of us don't think we've had any "summer" at all yet. But 'tis the season, even though it doesn't feel like it. Every night feels like fall, and every day feels like we're in Seattle in the winter. We're getting used to the grayness and the coolness, though. We hail the infrequent bursts of sunshine with giddy pleasure, tumbling out of our soggy homes to take advantage of every fleeting minute of warmth and dispensation of rare vitamin D offered. We're getting used to turning on the heat at some point every day "to dry things out," and most of us have given up keeping lawns mowed and garden weeds pulled. If walking in the rain is romantic, we are the destination spot for lovers.

Yet, things go on about as normal every day. There are folks out on the pond fishing, kids in the pond swimming, bikers peddling along muddy roads, runners dodging the mud puddles - but you won't see a lot of sunbathing going on. I bet the tanning salons are doing a good business this "summer"!

I'm not complaining. I like it cooler. I don't even mind the rainy days. But I do feel sorry for the farmers who can't get their hay dried, the communities that plan summer festivals and the tourists who come to enjoy our views only to find clouds hanging low over the mountain tops and trails too wet to enjoy. I hope they take a deep breath of the clean, fragrant damp air and recognize the smell of clover, evergreen trees and new-mown hay tinged with just a hint of wood smoke.

A couple of reminders for you this morning. First, we hope you'll attend the Beatrix Potter presentation at the Cabot Historical Society next Wednesday. It's free, and Helene Lang does a nice job of story telling. It's at 7 p.m. and there will be light refreshments. Very informal, it's a nice way to spend a summer (?) evening. There are lots of things on display at the Historical Society Museum, and you may want to come a little early to see some of the artifacts. Hope to see you there.

I received the following message from Amanda Legare (Amanda's Greenhouse on Rt. 215 south of Cabot Village):

If your garden is failing you in some way, every Wednesday morning three miles from Joe's Pond the solution comes in the form of the Danville Farmers' Market. In addition to eight vendors offering all kinds of fresh picked vegetables and fruits in season, there are bakery chefs providing superb deserts and fine breads, and all kinds of bouquets and flower plantings. One person sells fresh caught trout and you can also find honey, meat and eggs. Of course there are also some crafts, jams and jellies, wood products, but this is primarily a true farmers' market with offerings from your neighbors. A person selling wine is scheduled to participate soon, and a woman selling wonderful cheeses should arrive July 22. Right now there are 22 vendors. To add to the enjoyment of a comfortable walk on the Danville Green there is usually entertainment from 10 am - noon. July 22 David Carpenter and a friend will provide traditional fiddle music and July 29 a quartet from the Barre Tones will entertain. If it's raining the entertainment is postponed, but the vendors are always there, rain or shine. The market is held Wednesdays from 9 am - 1 pm and is a great place to get the best vegetables and at the same time, enjoy a terrific Vermont experience.

Pictured above is Bill Half from Walden, and here on the right is Linda Farrow with her beautiful flowers, and Nicholas Forman of Newbury. We are fortunate to have such a nice, well organized farmers' market so close by. The produce you find here is fresh out of the garden and you'll notice the difference in taste, I'm sure. Stop by, check them out. There's something for everybody, and free entertainment in the bargain. Click on the pictures to enlarge them.

Our weather has deteriorated - again. We had a very nice day yesterday, although it never really got hot. Fred and I went to DMV in Montpelier to get our EDL (Enhanced Driver's License). We were prepared, with reading material and my sudoku puzzle, to spend at least the entire morning there; the Department of Motor Vehicles is noted for long waits. We got there at about 10:45, found parking right on State Street, a stone's throw from the DMV, and as we were getting change for the meter, a young woman parked ahead of us was just leaving and said, "Why don't you just pull up and use the remainder of time on my meter?"

That was cool! There were about 45 minutes left. We wondered if that it might be a good indicator since she'd come from the DMV - but decided she'd probably forgotten something and would need to come back again. When Fred had called about getting our EDL's he'd been warned to be prepared to wait because they are so busy.

Inside, the waiting room was nearly empty, but there was a short line and only one person at the counter. She moved things along well, though, and we were soon filling out forms. We got our numbered ticket and sat down to wait. We were there perhaps fifteen minutes, tops, when our number came up. We found the proper desk, and about 20 minutes later we were back in our car, headed home!
We each have a temporary "license" and our EDL's will come in about two weeks.

We were home in time for lunch as usual. We're still flabbergasted that things went so smoothly and quickly. Of course, it helped that we'd done our homework, as Claudia, our processor, mentioned, but we were impressed with the efficiency of the whole office. We have had long waits in the past at DMV, and I'm sure that still happens, but either things have improved or we were just plain lucky. Anyway, we're good to go to Canada (and get back into the U.S.) if or when we want to now.


Wednesday, July 15, 2009

The obituary for Garey Larrabee's sister, Shirley L. Brochu, was in the Caledonian Record yesterday. Shirley Brochu

Friends may send condolences to Garey and his family at: P. O. Box 58, W. Danville, VT 05873.
*****

The weather pattern remains intact, presenting a little sunshine in the mornings and then showers off and on. Farmers are having real difficulty getting their hay crop in. Hay may be in very short supply this year. Most of the big fields in our immediate area still have not been cut. We went to St. Johnsbury late yesterday afternoon and noticed several fields down that had been mowed along Rt. 2 south of Danville, and one had been raked ready for baling, so if they didn't get showers last night, they might get some of it in today.

I had .10 in. of precipitation in my gauge this morning, and again, the sun seems to be struggling to shine through the clouds. And it isn't very warm, either. Like last summer, we're having a small fire at some point every day "to take the chill off."

Yesterday was an eventful day for me. My cousin, Janice (Farrow) Morrill, brought two very large and very old pictures of my great grandparents, John and Harriet (Denison) Bolton - they would be Janice's great aunt and uncle. They were t
oo large to scan, so I photographed them. Of course, this isn't important except to families, but I was thrilled to finally see what my great grandparents looked like. They had moved to Minnesota for a time when their family was very young, but moved back to Vermont in the early 1860's, and John enlisted in Vt. Volunteer Infantry in July of 1862. He was mustered out in April of 1863, having been wounded twice. My grandfather used to tell the story that they treated his wound by having several men hold him down and running a rod with a salt-soaked rag through the wound. The story always ended with, "but it saved his life."


Monday, July 13, 2009


We want to alert you that a buoy, we think from Smith's Point, broke loose today. It was last seen floating past the Johnson cottage on North Shore Road. Fred went with Bob Dimick and Bill Rossi to try to retrieve it, but they weren't able to find it. If anyone has seen it or perhaps has already rescued it, please let us know. You can call me at 563-2381 and I'll alert the "crew" to pick it up. We aren't sure whether the chain has broken or what might have happened, but there have been high winds and the water level is up due to all the rain, all of which could be a factor. I think it looks something like this picture.

Here is another announcement:

The second bi-annual Myra Houston Memorial Auction to benefit the 208-year old Cabot United Church will be held Saturday, July 25th at 10 AM in the Cabot School gym with well-known local author, educator, and auctioneer David Book directing the sale.

We are still receiving donations of quality furniture, appliances, tools, crafts, jewelry, collectibles, machinery, valuable books, vintage clothing, silverware, and collections. Also goods and services are appreciated, as are assets such as artwork, fine antiques, vintage autos, etc.

If you are not sure, wish to discuss or arrange for a pick-up, just give us a call at 563-2278, or Erma Perry at 563-2257, Sandy Noyes at 763-6432, or Lynn Rockwell at 563-2990.

Meantime, mark the date: Saturday, July 25th at 10:00 a.m. , as we already have quite an eclectic array of items such as lamps, framed pictures, unframed old mirrors, an antique wooden sled, couches and sofa beds, a wood chipper, a 24-ft aluminum extension ladder, and many other tools both old and new. Also authentic old wooden church front double doors, porcelain dolls, an Oriental screen, old chairs, antique tables, an old trunks, a bathroom sink, clothes dryer, old shovels, potato and other rakes, old farm milk jug, exercise equipment, and many, many more items large and small too numerous to mention. “White Elephant” table items and food will also be available.

The Cabot School gym is located on Route 215 in Cabot Village just three buildings north of the historic Cabot Church . Thank you for your donations and interest.
We just learned that Garey Larrabee's sister, Shirley Brochu, died. We don't have details, but as soon as we do, I'll post them. Garey very recently lost a brother, Jim Larrabee. Our thoughts are with Garey and his family.

I'm also sad to report that long-time Joe's Pond Association member, Paul J. Shadroui, of Narrows Drive Joe's Pond and Barre, Vermont, passed away in June. He was 93. He was predeceased in 1984 by his wife, Madeleine (Romanos), as well as seven brothers and sisters. He is survived by a brother, Richard Shadroui of Barre, four children: Paula Frost of Richmond, Vt.; Marianna and Paul Boivin of Addison, Vermont, Joseph of Charlestown, MA, and Maggie and Stephen Sawyer of Vergennes; and many nieces, nephews and exptended family. We will miss Paul and extend condolences to his family and friends.



Some interesting activities coming up:

B. Festivus for the Restivus. July 17-19 234 Pransky Road. $10 off Sat-Sun pass and $25 off full weekend with Cabot ID.
For full information, go to: manifestivus.com




*****


The Cabot Historical Society and Vermont Humanities Council present "Beatrix Potter Revisited" by Helene Lang, Wednesday, July 22, at 7:00 p.m. at the Cabot Historical Society, Main Street.



*****


Cabot Youth Adventure Hour Presents "A Fish Story"
as adapted by Ellis Jacobson
Thursday, July 23rd, 7:00 pm ,
Willey Building

*****

FOR MORE AREA EVENTS, GO TO
THE FLASH


Saturday, July 11, 2009


If you weren't at the Bean Supper at the Joe's Pond pavilion tonight, you missed a really good meal and a congenial group. Here are some pictures:Bean Supper

During the evening there was a very hard rain storm with lots of wind. The rain pelted the roof of the pavilion and the side curtains billowed as gusts hit, but we stayed comfortable and dry - except that the rain ran under the curtains to wet the floor, but no harm done.

We had a beautiful warm, sunny day until late afternoon when the clouds settled in and eventually, as has been the pattern so far this summer, the rains came. Kate Chatot told me tonight the water in the pond is colder than usual, too. We've had a fire in the wood stove most nights and all too often, during the daytime, too. So far we haven't discovered any damage done by the wind tonight, I'm sure there were a few limbs broken off trees, and perhaps a few tipped over. I won't read my rain gauge until tomorrow morning, but we must have had a pretty good measure of rain. I'll be interested to see how much.

If some of you saw fire near Sandy Beach Road Friday night, it was the Bouchards and Rubalcabas enjoying a lovely evening around a "way bigger than normal camp fire" with friends. Sue Bouchard called yesterday to find out about getting a fire permit. Good thing, too. After the big fire in St. Johnsbury Thursday night, I expect the local fire departments would have taken a dim view of turning out for an unauthorized burning.

Think "sunshine" for tomorrow.







Friday, July 10, 2009

Fire has struck the beleaguered community of St. Johnsbury. Last night (Thursday, July 9th) fire broke out around 10 o'clock in a building on Main Street that housed Kennedy's Jewelery Store and The Convenient One. Although the fire department is just yards away, apparently there was little fire fighters could do to prevent the fire from spreading from one location to another along Main Street. The blaze was not fully contained until almost noon today. Four fire fighters were injured, but fortunately not too seriously, and there were no others hurt. WCAX reported 18 area fire departments were on hand to battle the six alarm fire.

St. Johnsbury has seen more than its fair share of devastating fires. In December of 2003, Railroad Street suffered a disasterous fire, and two people died. Another fire in 2005 destroyed the Dean Hale building on Main Street, not far from this latest fire that has wiped out four buildings. Reports are this fire started in an apartment over The Convenient One and spread to three more buildings before it was brought under control. Nine families lived in apartments over the stores in these buildings, and a total of 20 people are now homeless, in temporary housing.

I spoke with our son, Jamie, late this afternoon and he said he attended the "Two O'clock Meeting" - a gathering at North Church where officials and members of the community came together to make decisions and rally support in view of the huge loss now facing St. Johnsbury. Jamie said his offer of KATV's facilities to issue notices and news bulletins was gratefully accepted.

The 20 people who escaped the fire last night will not only need permanent housing, but will need clothing and furnishings, as well. The demands on the community will be great, but St. Johnsbury has rallied in the past and I'm sure they will deal with this newest blow.

Dinner and Concert

On Thursday, July 16 from 5:30 to 7 PM, the Cabot Church is sponsoring a steak and chicken community dinner, followed by its first of the season “Sing Away the Oil Man Blues” concerts. This concert features local and nationally acclaimed wood sculptor and artist Ken Klingler on 12-string guitar with his energetic mix of familiar hits and 70’s folk and rock tunes and will benefit the Church’s winter oil fund.

Everyone is welcome to attend this free-will donation musical event.

Cabot Church is located on the Common on Route 215 in Cabot Village. Please call 563-2278 for information, take-out reservations, or directions.

Wednesday, July 08, 2009

We aren't doing very well weather-wise so far this summer. Most folks wouldn't call what we have "summer" - in fact, nights feel much like autumn. No frost yet, though. Today my thermometers are close to agreement, front and back of the house, one at 58, one at 60. We have a small fire in the wood stove. Fred says it's too bad we can't burn grass pellets - the grass is growing very well. In fact, he finally got to mow the lawn this past weekend after a three-week "enforced by the weather" hiatus, and on Sunday his cousin from Rhode Island visited and wondered why the "big clumps" of hay were on our lawn. We don't bag the grass when we mow, we like to leave it to enrich the soil - that way we don't need chemical fertilizers. What we need to do now is rake those "windrows" out so there won't be any "big clumps." Maybe - if things dry out a bit.
It'll be time to mow again soon, and that will redistribute the clippings.

Speaking of grass pellets, we heard recently that someone in our area may have a portable pellet machine soon to make grass pellets for fuel. We think that would be a great fuel source. We would happily convert some of our lawn to grow the specific grass recommended. Beats chopping wood, and takes a lot less time to renew. We'll be anxious to learn if this was just a rumor if if someone will really go ahead with the pellet machine idea. It will be like harvesting corn or going to all the neighboring farms with a threshing machine was years ago.

There were a lot of people around over the ho
liday weekend in spite of the quirky weather, and most of our Joe's Ponders were here, either back for the summer or at least for the weekend. It's nice to see all the cottages around the pond lighted and people out and about. We bumped into people on our walks and at the village - always nice to chat a bit. Fred got some pictures.

We received photos of our little grand niece, Hannah, yesterday. She was trying out some new shoes . . . Looks like it was nice weather where she was, either in Guilford, CT, where she lives with her parents
, or in Laconia NH, if she was visiting her grandparents.

We managed a few sunny breaks yesterday, too. When th
at happens, all the boats appear as people take advantage of the all too short breaks in the weather. We've seen folks walking or running in the rain - we've done it, too. It's pretty nice, actually, because you don't get over heated, and if you don't mind being wet instead of just damp from the humidity, go for it.

We've been lucky so far this summer that no hard electrical storms have moved in on us. That's when it's time to get off the water, away from tall trees, towers or utility poles, fences or anything metal, and seek shelter in a substantial building, as soon as you hear it thundering. Stay inside, but keep away from corded telephones, any wiring or plumbing, and windows. A hard-topped metal vehicle with the windows closed is relatively safe.

Some summers we have hardly any thunder storms, and other years they can be ferocious. There have been some very hard storms, some with hail, in surrounding areas, but so far we haven't had that - just lots of clouds and showers. I'm pretty sure we'll get a break soon, though and have some real summer weather - and probably some whopping thunder storms along with it .
. . such is summer in Vermont.

Don't forget to get your tickets for the baked bean supper at the Joe's Pond Association pavilion Saturday evening. Tickets are on sale at Hastings Store.

Snow & Ice Report

 W e're through another March snowstorm, and as far as I can tell, we aren't expecting more snow this month. We'll probably have...