The highway is dark as I head west, now clear of Pennsylvania and slipping quickly through Ohio. I'm on my way to Nebraska for another Bruce Springsteen concert. I think it'll be number 100-something, but I never wanted to count and so that's just a guess.
The tires of my Subaru thump along a tired stretch of broken concrete, sounding out the miles between my home and the stage and reminding me of the distance I've traveled since first being touched by the music of Bruce Springsteen and by the man himself.
The story of this long road trip begins on a hot August night in 1975 when I was a teenager wasting the summer between my junior and senior years of high school.
I was sitting in my bedroom, which was in the attic of a three-story house in a comfortable New York suburb. I remember the heavy heat in that room and how impossible it was to find relief through the summer.
Obituaries • Celia M. Carley, 100, formerly of West Brattleboro. Died Nov. 10 at Vernon Hall, where she had been a resident for the past seven years. Wife of the late Marvin Carley for 38 years. Mother of Marvin F. Carley Jr. and his wife, Georgina, of Hinsdale, N.H.;
It's been nearly two decades since Larry Smith and George Haynes started a holiday food drive to help needy residents in Windham County. That initial effort in 1994 by Smith, then the news director of WTSA, and Haynes, then the president of Brattleboro Savings & Loan, has grown into...
Windham Child Care Association is spearheading a new child care needs assessment study for Windham County. The last report, published in 2002, provided important information for businesses, town officials, and other community members on the need for quality, affordable child care. This study will provide important information that will help community stakeholders and partners understand the need for, and impacts of, child care services in the community. Four key elements of this child care needs assessment study have been identified:
Town announces Thanksgiving closures BRATTLEBORO - In observance of the Thanksgiving holiday, all Brattleboro Town offices will be closed on Thursday and Friday, Nov. 22 and 23, with the exception of emergency services. Brooks Memorial Library will close at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 21, and will be closed on Thanksgiving Day. It will be open for regular hours on Friday and Saturday, Nov. 23 and 24. Parking is free at all metered spaces and in the pay-and-display lots on...
The Dover School has announced its application for a $1,000 theater grant in support of a student production of “Yes, Virginia the Musical” has been approved, and the show will go on. The production will be presented on Thursday, Dec. 20, at 5:30 p.m. at The Dover School. The community is welcome to attend. Admission is free, and donations are appreciated. The student-run production is based on the animated, nonmusical television special, “Yes, Virginia,” which CBS has aired annually since...
David Sanger, chief Washington correspondent for The New York Times, will discuss the Obama administration's use of American power in a talk at First Baptist Church at 190 Main St. on Wednesday, Dec. 5. His talk, “Confront and Conceal: Obama's Secret Wars and the Surprising Use of American Power,” is part of the Vermont Humanities Council's First Wednesdays series and takes place at 7 p.m. Sanger's talk will offer a revealing look inside the current administration's aggressive use of innovative...
This November, the Windham Regional Commission (WRC) will begin updating its regional plan. The Windham region consists of the 23 towns of Windham County, plus Readsboro, Searsburg, and Winhall in Bennington County, and Weston in Windsor County. This will begin the almost two-year process through which the plan policies, the underlying information (including statistics that describe the status of the region), and the plan text itself, will be reviewed and updated based on current information and developing values and trends...
How many times have you watched the holiday movie It's a Wonderful Life in recent years? I never tire of watching this revealing and moving film that - thank goodness - has such a firm grip on the American brand. Ironically, the entire movie was filmed on a set near Hollywood during the hot summer months of 1946. When the film came out, the critics and the general audience didn't think much of it, and what fun that here we...
Christmas Bazaar at First Congregational Church WEST BRATTLEBORO - The 34rd Annual Christmas Bazaar at the First Congregational Church, 880 Western Ave., will be held Saturday, Nov. 24, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. All proceeds benefit church projects. A wide variety of handcrafted and homemade items, including plain or decorated wreaths, partridge berry bowls, Christmas tree ornaments, house decorations, knitted or crocheted gloves, mittens, hats and sweaters, and doll clothing that will fit American Girl Dolls. Fourteen items are...
Employees at the Brattleboro Food Co-op voted on Nov. 14 to be represented by Local 1459 of the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW). The tally was 74-45 in favor of the union, with seven challenged votes. Of the Co-op's 160 workers, 140 were eligible to say yes or no to joining Local 1459, and 126 cast ballots. The election was supervised by the National Labor Relations Board, as well as by representatives of the Co-op and Local 1459, which...
Ten sixth-graders, one seventh-grader, and two eighth-graders from The Grammar School are working on their entry compositions for the Opus 25 competition sponsored by Music COMP (Composer Online Mentoring Program), formerly the Vermont Midi Project. They are composing for brass instruments, piano, percussion, and voice. Working with their teacher, Alli Lubin, with online support from mentors statewide , the students will have final entries submitted in early December. Pieces selected will be played in a live concert by professional musicians...
Looking for a fun way to stay fit? Starting Tuesday, Nov. 27, Grace Cottage Hospital will offer three different Zumba classes each week. The Zumba workout combines easy-to-follow moves with invigorating Latin music, creating a fitness program that's both effective and fun. Appropriate for all ages and fitness levels, the only requirements are comfy clothes, low tread sneakers, and a water bottle. An eight-week series of standard-style Zumba will be offered on Tuesdays, starting Nov. 27. A Zumba toning class...
The winter season is just about upon us, and with that comes winter tourism and winter traffic. One intersection that is particularly affected by seasonal influxes of traffic is the Route 9-100 intersection. The town and the Windham Regional Commission (WRC) will hold a public meeting on Monday, Nov. 26 from 6 to 7:45 p.m. at the Wilmington Town Offices at 2 East Main St., to discuss the intersection. The Route 9-100 intersection is the major gateway to the ski...
Stone Church Arts in Bellows Falls presents folk artist Elizabeth Rogers as part of its 2012-13 concert series. Look for Rogers to accompany herself on guitar as she performs her own songs, focusing on life, love and longing, this Saturday, Nov. 24, at 7:30 p.m., at the chapel of Immanuel Episcopal Church, 20 Church St., Bellows Falls. “I tell stories of my life,” Rogers says. “My songs are a search for a way to feel at home.” Tickets range from...
The shelves were emptying fast at the J.J. Nissen outlet store on Old Ferry Road on Saturday morning. Bread was marked down to 50 cents a loaf. Boxes of Devil Dogs and Ring Dings were three for $3. The Twinkies were long gone. The markdowns were part of a nationwide liquidation of Hostess Brands products, including the Nissen bread and Drake's cakes that were staples of the store since it opened in the 1980s. Hostess shut down its bakeries on...
I started smoking when I was 15 years old, back when almost everybody smoked, shortly after the Surgeon General's Advisory Committee on Smoking and Health confirmed a causal relationship between cigarettes and lung cancer. The committee's 400-page report claimed that an average smoker was 9 to 10 times more likely to die of lung cancer than the average non-smoker (and a heavy smoker was 20 times more likely), that while the risk increased with the duration of smoking, it diminished...
Cherry Street Artisans announce the group's fifth annual Holiday Sale & Café, a community oriented, family-friendly holiday fair, to be held Saturday, Dec. 1, from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., and Sunday, Dec. 2, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., at 44 Cherry St. off Maple Street near the Brattleboro Memorial Hospital and Esteyville. The sale showcases the work of 11 professional artisans, eight family members and two chefs. Collectively, they have designed a unique and festive emporium, taking place...
Building a Better Brattleboro (BaBB) and Youth Services announce a chance for area residents to show off their baking and decorating skills and compete for valuable baking prizes from King Arthur Flour. On Sunday, Dec. 2, at 3 p.m., judges will announce winners of the first annual Brattleboro Gingerbread Baking Competition at the River Garden on Main Street. The event kicks off BaBB's Decemberfest, a month-long celebration of downtown Brattleboro's merchants and restaurants. There are three gingerbread contests scheduled: •
Do you ever open the refrigerator on the morning after Thanksgiving and look with horror at what's left of your turkey, greasy and cold, wing joints piercing the aluminum foil you hastily wrapped it in at 10:30 p.m. after oh-so-many pieces of pie? That sad carcass seems to be screaming for attention and wants you to make it into something that will extend its brief shining life as the center of your holiday meal. This moment always fills me with...
Spring has sprung early. On Nov. 10, volunteers planted 1,000 daffodils at Exit 1 in Brattleboro in an effort organized by the Exit 1 Gateway Project. Some 25 volunteers, including six students from Kurn Hattin School, worked enthusiastically to dig a good home for each Narcissus bulb on the slope on the east side of the Exit 1 overpass. It is expected that the daffodils, which bloom in spring, will take over the hill for years to come. “Since everyone...
I waited for the traffic lights on the busy avenue to turn red, and for the traffic to clear. Then I hurried across the four lanes, the bike paths, the median strip, and the bus lanes. I eased into the woods and began to pick my way down the rocky path, descending into 1,800-acre Wissahickon Gorge. At the bottom of the path is the river; I followed the roadway upstream. The steep sided valley of the Wissahickon River was Philadelphia's...
Program cuts announced on Nov. 14 during union contract negotiations have some Brattleboro Retreat workers concerned that an already rising problem of patients' assaults against staff at the psychiatric hospital could escalate. The Retreat announced last week that 31 of its staff would lose their jobs as the hospital cuts two programs: Therapeutic Activities Services (TAS) and inpatient chemical dependency councilors. The number of teachers in the Meadows Educational Center, the Retreat's private school, will also be reduced. A handful...
The American Cancer Society (ACS) marked its 37th Great American Smokeout last week by encouraging smokers to use the date to make a plan to quit, or to plan in advance and quit smoking that day. According to ACS, by committing to quitting - even for one day - smokers will be taking an important step towards a healthier life, one that can lead to reducing cancer risk. For the technology-savvy smoker, there are reinforcements via social media and smart...
Villagers will get a chance to vote on Dec. 4 at the Masonic Temple, from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., on the final draft of the Bellows Falls Village Corporation Charter, which has undergone scrutiny and suggested amendments over the past year by committee. Two public hearings held this fall garnered suggestions from the public. The final draft is available online at the www.rockbf.org town and village website. Voters must approve or reject the revised charter in its entirety. Several...
The Brattleboro Retreat announced sweeping changes Nov. 14, which met with scorn during contract bargaining from the union representing the psychiatric hospital's employees. The union called foul at the Retreat's decision, pointing to a disconnect between two years of profits on the one hand and management cutting staff and programs on the other. The Retreat, one of Windham County's largest employers, is a not-for-profit mental health and addictions treatment hospital providing inpatient and outpatient services. The hospital announced plans to...
Two months ago, a group of concerned village residents calling themselves the Better Environment to Reside made an appearance at a public health and safety ordinance discussion during a Village Trustees meeting. Seth Baldasaro told the Trustees on Sept. 25 that he represented about 35 residents who had come together to discuss “what steps can be taken to make homeowners more accountable for the condition of their property,” adding that the homeowners are taxed more than multi-family properties. At that...
The Windham Orchestra is accepting entries for its 27th annual Concerto Competition. Auditions are Sunday, Feb. 10, 2013, at the Brattleboro Music Center, 38 Walnut St. The concerto competition is open to serious music students in grades nine through 12 who live in Windsor, Windham, and Bennington counties in Vermont; Cheshire, Sullivan, and Grafton counties in New Hampshire; and Berkshire, Franklin, and Hampshire counties in Massachusetts. Contestants may play any concerto (or other accompanied solo piece) within the limits of...
Jandee Lee Porter, local country singing ingenue, will perform Saturday, Nov. 24, at the new Windham Ballroom in the Square in Bellows Falls. Doors open at 8 p.m., and the show starts at 9. Porter's performance is the third in the Popolo Music Series, which also features international cult rock pioneer Kristin Hersh and new folk veteran Peter Mulvey. Porter's country set fits neatly between these and progressive bluegrass “nu-grass” sensations Hot Day At The Zoo, who perform Dec 1.
Robert Burch and Nancy Gagnon of Brandywine Glassworks are preparing for 1,000 guests at their studio this coming weekend. They say that's typical traffic - and a delight to see - during the Putney Craft Tour, which has taken place every Thanksgiving weekend for the past 33 years. This year marks the 34th Annual Putney Craft Tour, scheduled for the weekend of Nov. 23-25. It will feature the works of 28 new and returning artists and craftspeople, including blacksmiths, glass...
Some see autumn as an invitation, voluntary or not, for our thoughts to turn inward. Spring and summer have slipped away, and winter's not so distant. Marking that moment within and without, and continuing an annual arts tradition, is Sandglass Theater's Eric Bass, who is set to present his award winning solo puppeteering performance, Autumn Portraits, this Friday and Saturday, Nov. 23-24, at 8 p.m. Autumn Portraits is a compelling evening-long solo puppet-and-mask performance, a series of five interconnected vignettes,
The Vermont Theatre Company announces its next production, Ken Ludwig's Moon Over Buffalo, the final weekend in November and the first weekend in December at the Evening Star Grange in Dummerston Center. Moon Over Buffalo tells the story of a jaded family of traveling actors struggling to make it from the stage to the silver screen. Their big chance comes in Buffalo, where they are performing Cyrano de Bergerac, but when they hear Frank Capra is considering them for roles...
A public information meeting on wind power will be held at Grafton Congregational Church and Chapel, Main Street, on Monday, Nov. 26, at 6 p.m. Organized by Friends of Grafton's Heritage, this is the first public information meeting in Grafton about the Stiles Brook Wind Project, a proposed large-scale industrial wind farm. Pizza and other refreshments will be served. Iberdrola Renewables, operating as Atlantic Wind LLC, has requested Vermont's permission to erect three test towers - two in Windham and...