News and More

 I have a variety of notes and announcements for you this morning. 

It was a busy weekend - Danville Fair, the dedication of Col. Preston's uniform at the Danville Historical Society were the fun and most interesting things of note; then in the Caledonian Record this morning I'm reading about shootings in St. Johnsbury and Danville over the weekend, an accidental electrocution in West Burke, a side-by-side rollover, and a state trooper rolling his vehicle when answering a call. So much happening in one short weekend!

There was some ill-advised activity witnessed here at Joe's Pond this weekend, as well. Nancy Buttura sent this troubling message to me last night:  

Nancy Buttura - I was talking to several people from the second pond about an incident that happened last night involving the loon family.  There were two people on one jet ski circling the loons too fast. People who saw this yelled to the operator to stay away but for whatever reason, they kept harassing the [loon] family.  The color of the jet ski was a dark blue and white.  One of the campers on shore did get some pictures of the incident.

This sort of incident should be reported to the game warden - it is against the law to harass wildlife in the State of Vermont.

One hundred years ago, the following was considered newsworthy, and rightly so:

From the Caledonian Record, Aug. 6, 1923: -- Thought to be one of the biggest fish ever caught at Joe’s Pond, the story of Dr. W.B. Fitch and his son Perry’s record-breaking black bass was no fish story. The newspaper notes, “when Dr. Fitch flopped the monster onto the boat he found he had a 19 inch black bass that tipped the scales at four pounds.” No one familiar with Joe’s Pond fish could recall a bigger fish, the paper notes. “It would appear that this fish was probably one of the original Indian Joe tribe for whom the pond was named.”

What a difference 100 years makes!

This came from Marti Talbot this morning: 

 

I am selling my sailing dingy. It is called a Vanguard Pram. I am adding oars and oar locks. It is in great condition and I am looking to sell it for $800.

Marti Talbot
West Shore Rd
892-563-3335

That is about it for today, although there may be more news cropping up as the new week gets under way. I enjoyed the nice weather this weekend and got some outside work done, although my "work" outside really doesn't amount to much these days. I did get the lawn trimmed with the electric mower that will reach the tight places that a riding mower won't fit into. That includes my stone-paved walkway and a small area near the porch, also paved - with stones removed when I had the pond dug a couple years ago. I have always enjoyed working with stones, but now my aging joints let me know very quickly that wrestling with heavy flat rocks is not a good idea. My last big project was a few years ago when I replaced the pressure-treated steps in front of my house with stone steps.

I still "pick" stones when I'm walking - they seem to appear magically from the earth around my pond as time passes, so every now and then when I'm walking out there I find treasures and carry them back to the house. The small terrace off the new porch is a "work in progress" where I have stones set aside to finish the job - if and when the spirit moves! And it's always good to have a variety of sizes and shapes at hand. No shortage of them here in Vermont!

The photos above are the steps soon after I finished them and below, the walkway last fall after Susan Socks finished working in my flower beds and also "de-grassed" my walk. It was beautiful, and wraps around the front of the house. She will no doubt have more of the same to do this fall. In the meantime, my garage is torn up waiting for a new foundation and floor, so it will be well into fall before things begin to look nice around here again!