Here's a great way to start your day - these two happy faces are our granddaughters, Tangeni Sierra, 13 weeks, and Jo-Ann Ann, 12 years. Their mom said they were playing "bad hair day."

Rainy day, but like we say here, a rainy day at Joe's Pond is better than a sunny day anywhere else. There's always something interesting to do, no matter what the weather. Already I've made several phone calls and answered some e-mails, and that gets my day started nicely!

Don't forget that the Apple Pie Festival is this Saturday at the Cabot School Gym. It is the Cabot Historical Society's only fund raiser, so we hope you'll join the fun and either enter a pie in the contest, make one for us to sell, or come buy one - or a piece, or lunch. Games, crafts, food and fun for the whole family, all day, and it's inside, so no need to worry about the weather!

I received this photo from Carol and Larry Byrd on Sandy Beach Road. It was taken yesterday morning - could there be anything more beautiful than sunrise on Joe's Pond? Click on the picture to enjoy.

We've had another beautiful day, but the temperatures both at night and in the daytime are gradually shifting downward. When I looked across the pond early this morning, there was a layer of smoke, from a single chimney I could see far up towards Walden on Rt. 15. We had a small fire first thing to take off the chill, but let it go out during the day. I'd been working outside most of the afternoon and was very warm when I came in, but by supper time I'd cooled down and again, a slow fire in the wood stove felt good. Besides, the fire lends ambiance to even a very ordinary meal.

We took Woody to see his veterinary this morning. He got all his shots and Dr. Hoppe pronounced him healthy. He remarked at how long Woody is - just his body is about 22 inches long, and today he weighed in at 14.9 lbs. He behaved very well at the doctor's, but he definitely doesn't like to ride in the car. We keep him in his carrier, and he's pretty good when we're heading down West Shore Road, but as soon as we get on Route 2 and pick up speed, he begins to complain - long and loudly. We find if we ignore him and keep our voices low, he seems to quiet down. Perhaps he's concentrating on listening to see if we're still in the car. When we got home, he had his lunch and went out onto the new stone patio to rest in the sunshine. I took this picture of him from the living room window.

Here's the just finished walkway leading from the patio - I finished the patio a couple weeks ago. This all evolved when I realized the flower beds were no longer flowers, but mostly a tangle of weeds. I have stockpiled stones forever, and move them around as the spirit moves to "redo" the outdoor space. We have lots of stones on the place. Every time I dig in the garden I unearth more. They sort of grow out of the earth - working their way to the surface where you least expect to find them. To finish the walkway yesterday, I went down into our cedar woods and found enough to finish the job among roots of the cedars, mostly clasped tightly in the roots, some on edge, having been tipped up by the growth of the trees. When I released one, there were others, mostly flat, underneath. I remembered that when we cut some of the big spruce trees on our lot, the logger knew I liked flat rocks, so when he piled them up on stumps for me. It's a little work to get them back to the house in the wheelbarrow, but Fred is a willing assistant. I noticed that after he'd brought up a couple loads for me he took the wheelbarrow to have the tire inflated more. With a load of stones, it was running pretty flat, and as anyone knows who's been on the business end of a wheelbarrow, it helps to have a well-inflated tire to roll on.

We stopped in West Danville on our way home to pick up the mail, and Fred took this picture. The foliage doesn't seem to be quite as bright as usual around here. We heard today that it's better in the Burlington area. We had some very nice early color, but most of those leaves have been whipped off the trees by the wind. There are a few Mountain Ash trees around our place. One of them, very small, toppled sometime during the time we were away last week. I noticed another one near our driveway that is kind of pretty, but the maple right beside it that had lots of color a couple weeks ago is bare now.

I moved my rain gauge onto the deck today. It's getting cold enough so dashing onto the back lawn in my bare feet every morning is no longer something I plan to do. Once cold weather comes, I move the gauge to the deck where I can just step outside to get the measurement. Once snow comes, the snow shovel is next to the door so I can shovel my way to the gauge. I have to say, it's a great way to greet the day every morning - and so far I haven't once said "to heck with it" and skipped because of the weather. I'll admit to not taking regular snow measurements once we get 3-4 feet of snow on the ground and the snow banks are higher than my head. The CoCoRaHS folks like to keep track of how deep the snow gets, but if I get that for them about once a month, I figure that's all they need. I measure the accumulation on my snow board every morning, and that's enough. It won't be long before there will be some to measure, I suppose, but I'm not in any hurry for that time to come. Oh, yes, here's a picture of the walkway I just finished. Now I can concentrate on putting a few plants along the edges . . . and the cycle begins all over again.

*****

For those of you who like to sing, here's a really nice way to get to know some of your neighbors --

"ALL YE WHO LOVE MUSIC"

Do you like to sing? Are you looking for a bit of fun?

Then come join the Cabot Chorus as we practice for the Annual Holiday Concert to be held December 3.

We meet every Thursday at 6:30pm at the United Cabot Church.

Come stretch your voice (and yourself!) by joining your neighbors for a weekly sing-along that's sure to cheer you any day!

Call Lynn McKinney, Chorus Director, at 274-7084 for details - or just join us at the church.

We'd love to have you! Help us make this year's concert the best ever yet!

*****

MEETING REMINDER:

Do you care about what Cabot looks like in 10 years? Are you concerned about property taxes? Do you have ideas for organizing,

planning or visioning for our community and its development?

Your input is valueable and important. Come join in the conversations and see what projects have already been started.

Everyone welcome.

_____________

Community and Economic Development Meeting

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 13th, 7:00 p.m.

Cabot Mason hall

Coffee and dessert will be served.

Agenda will include formalizing group, purpose and mission.

~ Everyone invited to join in the continued conversation and actions concerning

Cabot's Community and Economic Development ~

If you are interested in purchasing a Christmas wreath or swag please contact your local Cub Scouts.

**Sales are to begin October 24^th and delivery will be the week of November 20^th.

We will be decorating the wreaths at the Cabot Fire Station on November 20^th for last minute purchases.

Double-sided decorated 20in wreaths- $20

Decorated swags - $10

Any questions please contact:

James Lubas- 456-1361

Rebecca Nally- 563-3503

Rita Durgin – 563-2826

The Cub Scouts would like to thank you for your continued support!!

The next Inspired Dinner will be on Saturday November 5th at 6 pm in Danville. Our hostess chose a very 'quirky' movie called "Pieces of April" for her inspiration. Based on the movie, a 'quirky' Thanksgiving menu is planned:
APPETIZER/SOUP: Butternut Squash VT Maple Syrup Bisque
ENTREES: Roast Goose a la Asian
Braised Red Cabbage
Wild Rice Stuffing la Grucci
Sweet Potato Wedges
Creamy Spinach
Rolls
DESSERT Apple Pie - of course!

This will be our final offering of the season so hope you can make it! Seating is limited so get your reservations in early!
And Thank you again for your support of the Pope Memorial Library.

As always, you can call Henretta at 563-2478, or Susan at 684-3836; or call the Library at 684-2256 for reservations. The suggested donation for the dinner is $25 per person.

*****

We are very sorry to learn of the passing of Thelma Mills, wife of Henry Mills of Clubhouse Circle, mother of Henretta Splain on W. Shore Rd., and grandmother of our JPA liaison person with ANR, Kelli Merrell. Friends of the family may send condolences in care of Henretta at 632 W. Shore Road, Cabot VT 05647. At this writing, arrangements for memorial services have not been decided upon.

We are having a stretch of absolutely gorgeous weather. Today the temperature got into the 70's - unseasonal, but enjoyable. Fred and I have been taking advantage of the nice weather to get some wrapping up done before snow flies. Fred did some work on the pontoon boat at camp, getting it ready for winter storage, and I tried to finish the stonework I've been doing in my front flower garden - but I didn't quite make it, so I'm hoping for at least a couple more days like today. Hopefully, I can get the stone steps finished and cut back the rest of the flowers and get them mulched. Then I'll work on the vegetable garden. It's always a nice feeling when everything is mulched, staked and ready for winter.

Lots of you knew we went to Maine with Bill and Diane Rossi for a few days - a mini vacation. The weather there was great, too, but windy and a bit chilly out on the water, but we were dressed for it. We took the harbor cruise out of Portsmouth, N.H. Bill and Diane had sailed in that area some time ago, and Fred and I had taken the Isles of Shoals cruise, but none of us had done the harbor tour. Diane took this picture of Fred, Bill and me as we waited for the boat to load for the harbor cruise. The boat wasn't crowded at all - there were perhaps 20 or 25 people aboard. We took lots of pictures, and I've put some of them into a slide show you'll see further down the blog.

We left Joe's Pond on Wednesday morning in the rain, but by the time we got through the mountains, the weather was perfect. Not much foliage color out that way - it was much better here at home, but the summer-like temperatures and very few tourists wherever we went, made it a perfect time to go to the coast. Diane and I took a short walk before dinner.

On Thursday morning, Diane was up early and watched the sun rise from the porch outside their room. This is what she saw: Sunrise.

We had breakfast at a favorite spot Fred and I discovered one time when Elizabeth and Louise were with us. Then we poked around Cape Neddick, Ogunquit, and Wells, and also showed them some of York - the village, harbor and beach area, and of course, Nubble Light. We had lunch at Mike's Clam Shack - which is actually a very large and very nice restaurant, and by then it was time to head to Portsmouth for our harbor cruise. We had time to visit some of the shops in the harbor area - always fun to do. Here are the pictures we took, starting on Wednesday: Maine Mini Vacation

Diane sent me some of the pictures she'd taken, too. We all enjoyed sitting out on the porch for a glass of wine before dinner each evening. It was a little chilly, but we didn't mind. The view was great and the company good. On one of the pictures I've put an arrow to indicate which room and balcony Bill and Diane had; our room was just down the hall and our view was the beach and the village - the same room we've had on other trips there. Here are Diane's pictures: Slide Show

We stopped in Laconia and had lunch with Fred's brother and his wife at a T-Bones Restaurant, and then went on to the Weirs Beach area and on up the lake (Winnipesaukee) past the Squam Lakes to Route 93.

Woody was awfully glad to see us. He has often ignored us in the past when we've left him for a few days, but this time he seemed genuinely glad to see us, and has demanded lots of attention all weekend. Marie looked after him while we were gone and she said he was "very lovey" whenever she came in, so she stayed with him to keep him company for a little while each time. He normally can get out and back into the house through his kitty door, but this time we decided to keep him in for safety's sake. I'm sure he really missed getting outside, especially since the weather was pretty mild, but we felt better knowing he was inside and safe.

It's good to be home, but we had a very nice trip, even though it wasn't very long. We have too much to do, especially this time of year, to be gone for an extended period of time. As it is, we're just beginning to get caught up with computer stuff, and I have a pile of mail and newspapers to go through still. We'll get it done.

WE NEED PIES FOR THE APPLE PIE FESTIVAL NEXT WEEK!
You can either donate pies outright, or enter the contest. Call Mary
Beth Churchill at 563-2345 if you can donate a pie or pies, or to enter the adult pie contest ($5 entry fee) or the youth pie contest ($2.50 entry fee). Great prizes for the best pies. Cal 802-563-3396 for contest details. Contest and Apple Pie Festival is next Saturday, October 15, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

*****

Here's some good news for so many people locally -

Work Update

Danville Route 2 Project

Project: Danville FEGC 028-3(32)

WEEK OF 10/10/11

Due to the Columbus Day Holiday, no work will be performed on the project Monday, October 10^th, 2011. Crews will return to work on Tuesday, Oct. 11^th.

Night work has been suspended until further notice. [My highlighting, not Francine's]

DAY WORK:

HAMMERING - Tuesday – Crews will hammer rock on Route 2 in the Walden Hill Road area between the hours of 3:00 pm and 9:00 pm.

WATER LINE - work will continue on the water line including installing services along Route 2 between Peacham Road and Walden Hill Road throughout the week.

DUCT BANK - Crews will work along Route 2 between Park Street and Passumpsic Bank installing duct banks.

STORM DRAIN and DITCHING – Crews will continue working along Route 2 on storm drains and ditching between Marty’s and Highland Ave.

BLASTING – Blasting and ledge removal will continue on Route 2 near the school throughout the week.

Blasting Schedule (Tentative): Each day between the hours of 6:30 am and 6:30 pm crews plan to blast 4-5 times per day. Exact blasting times within the hours of 6:30 am and 6:30 pm are variable and may change each day.

Blasting Signals: Crews will sound a horn as follows:

Pre-Blast - 3 consecutive signals – 5 minute warning

2 consecutive signals – 1 minute warning

Post Blast - 1 signal – all clear to enter the blast zone

Blasting Traffic Control - Traffic within the blasting area will be held for 5 minutes before the actual blast and then continue to be held post blast until the roadway is cleared of debris and rebuilt for safe passage. Each blast will bring different results so the wait time after blasting is unknown at this time. Traffic delays will likely exceed 10 minutes.

Contact Francine Perkins, Public Relations Officer, FRP Enterprises, LLC with any questions or concerns with regard to this project at 802-479-6994 or for a more up to date schedule visit www.roadworkupdates.com.

*****

Marshfield, October 14, at 7 pm- Four Local Marshfield Authors Read at the Jaquith Library
Susan Thomas, Barry Goldensohn, Jack Pulaski, and Dan Chodorkoff will read selections from their works which have been recently published by Fomite Press. With this eclectic mix of authors you can be sure a lively discussion will take place after the reading along with delicious refreshments. At the Jaquith Public Library in the Old Schoolhouse Common,122 School Street, Marshfield. For more information call 426-3581 or e-mail: jaquithpubliclibrary@hotmail.com.