We've had another beautiful day here at Joe's Pond. This picture was taken today - pretty typical of a summer day here. It was not as hot as it has been, but warmer than usual for late May. I think we are at least two weeks ahead of "schedule." We noticed on our way to Waterford (VT) last night a farm on Rt. 18 was well into haying. The director of CoCoRaHS, Nolan Doesken in Colorado, writes in his latest newsletter that out there they are about two weeks behind and are just now getting lilacs. They have also been having some harsh weather with severe hail storms.

We were in Waterford last evening to attend a Spring Concert at the Waterford Elementary School where our granddaughter, JoAnn is in fifth grade. Everyone did a very nice job and we enjoyed the hour and a half program. There were skits and drills, dancing and rhythm routines. In this picture, JoAnn (middle) and two classmates do a jump-rope routine. All the students seemed to enjoy being "on stage." KATV filmed the concert and you can hear and see it by going to www.katv.org". Click on "Video on Demand" on the menu at the top of the page and you'll find the Waterford concert along with others.

As we were leaving, we noticed the huge thunderclouds to the south and west of us. As we were driving home, we could see strong lightning in the western sky and later on heard about the severe storms that rumbled through Rutland County and through the southern part of the state.

There was a big fire yesterday at what used to be the Bellevance Farm on the road to Cole's Pond in Walden. One of the big barns burned to the ground and 160 head of cattle perished in the fire. Very sad. The farm is now apparently owned by Mike Michaud. We stopped there to see the alpacas they keep. Fortunately, they were in pasture so weren't hurt by the fire.

Don't forget, Joe's Pond people - Saturday is Spring Meeting at the pavilion, 10 a.m. We hope to see everyone there.