Once upon a time, there was a nice man who lived in a nice town called Middlebury. He lived in a quiet little house on a quiet little street, which he shared with a dog named Princess, who was also little, but not always quiet. The man’s name was François Clemmons. That’s a fun name,…
A “friend to everyone” is remembered for her loving support
In this episode, Bryan catches up on some Vermont news from the turn of the year. CREDITS Written, filmed and edited by: Bryan Parmelee Artwork/photography courtesy of: Paul Heintz, Derek Brouwer, David Junkin, Courtney Lamdin, Luke Awtry, Jeb Wallace-Brodeur, Stefan Hard, Bryan Parmelee, Dreamstime Logo/art direction: Don Eggert Audio: Bryan Parmelee, Freesound Related Stories
Seven Days reviews two albums per week. By the end of the year, we’ve reviewed more than 100 and written about scads more in other ways. But even this level of coverage doesn’t fully capture the prolific output of Vermont’s music community. There’s always more to discover. The following roundup includes four local albums from…
Back in Action Welcome to 2020. To borrow words once made famous by the legendary Nina Simone, “It’s a new dawn, it’s a new day, it’s a new life for me. And I’m feeling good.” I just got back from a much-needed vacation, during which I primarily binge-watched animated Disney movies via Disney+. Actually, I…
Vermont is amply stocked with local fishing opportunities. Whether fly fishing for rainbow trout on the Battenkill River, bass fishing on Lake Memphremagog, hooking walleye on the Connecticut River or pulling salmon from Lake Champlain, anglers can catch more than 20 freshwater species in the Green Mountain State. But sharks? Not likely. One Seven Days…
At a November selectboard meeting, Gwynn Zakov issued an ominous warning to Barre Town officials about cannabis: Act before it’s too late. “We are 100 percent dependent on the legislature to take care of us,” the lobbyist for the Vermont League of Cities & Towns said. “This is your one time to speak up and…
(Self-released, CD, digital) It’s midnight, and I’m driving past Philadelphia, fleeing like a fugitive from a holiday down south and toward a snowstorm waiting for me in Vermont. All the podcasts in the world can’t keep my attention at this point, so I take a gamble and put on the new Roost EP, Basic Phases.…
The disconnect between humans and other living creatures is not a new theme, nor is humanity’s headlong destruction of the planet. Along with scientists, philosophers, politicians and writers, artists have long addressed the hubris of people more motivated by profit — or at least convenience — than conscience. Within this realm, we seem to grant…
(Self-released, CD, digital) Old North End — usually abbreviated, like the Burlington neighborhood itself, as O.N.E. on flyers and among fans — are a band of hardcore metal disciples from the Queen City. There aren’t a lot of Vermonters still flying the hardcore flag in 2020. When I was growing up, though, you could catch…
After a morning of searching, Kason Hudman finally found what he was looking for. Attached to a utility pole beside Burlington’s Riverside Avenue was a sticker reading “Infowars.com” in capital letters. Hudman reached into his backpack, pulled out some Windex and a razor, and got to work removing it. “Let’s see what we can do…
Name: Stanley Blicharz Job: Driver’s education teacher Town: Rutland Stanley Blicharz spent decades as an elementary school jack-of-all-trades, including working as an assistant principal, a guidance counselor and a sports coach. During summers, he painted houses. “Then, about the time I turned 50, my wife said, ‘Find another summer job,'” he recalled. But Blicharz’s career…
Since 2016, Montpelier-based artist Hilary Ann Love Glass has put out an annual calendar featuring plants, wildlife and fantastical creatures. For her 2020 calendar, she produced detailed pen-and-ink studies of birds — but the statement on the back of the calendar is just as interesting as the art itself. Glass wrote that every bird featured…
Early in Terrence Malick’s A Hidden Life, an Austrian farmer named Franz Jägerstätter (August Diehl) chats with a painter busy decorating a church with scenes from scripture. The artist laments that he must offer the faithful a “comfortable Christ” because he can’t capture the more unsettling qualities that he intuits in Jesus’ sacrifice. “How can…
In the late 1970s and early ’80s, the “Star Trek” franchise was lost in space. It had floundered since the original TV series ended in 1969, and a movie intended to rekindle public interest, Star Trek: The Motion Picture, was a cosmic flop in 1979. Many wondered whether there was still an audience for the…
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Let’s get 2020 started with a proper send-off. According to my reading of the astrological omens, the coming months will bring you opportunities to achieve a host of liberations. Among the things from which you could be at least partially emancipated: stale old suffering, shrunken expectations, people who don’t appreciate you…
Vermont or California? Your article about the family that moved to Vermont from Santa Rosa brings back memories [“The Backstory: Burned Out,” December 25]. In 2017, my wife and I went from Vermont to California to volunteer with the American Red Cross, assisting people in shelters after the Napa Valley fires. I, too, lived near…
Two recent arrivals to Winooski have released a music video of themselves singing about how much they like going to school. That’s right — Twende Shuleni means “Let’s Go to School” in Swahili. First-year students Rachid Muzaliwa and Bonne-Idee Kasindi wrote the tune to document their journeys from hardscrabble upbringings in Africa to a better…
Off the main thoroughfare of Vermont Route 100 in Washington County, Katherine Arden’s soft-yellow house stands on a small hill scattered with birch trees. Inside, large windows capture a view of the Green Mountains and fill the rooms with natural light. In Arden’s office, floor-to-ceiling built-in bookcases cover a wall — one of her primary…
Dear Reverend, Every year I make resolutions — to be healthier, to be in better financial shape, that sort of thing. Nothing ever sticks, and I wind up depressed and mad at myself for not making any changes. How do people do it? Wilted Willpower (male, 45) Dear Wilted Willpower, I’m not sure who came…
There was something in the bushes. I was the first person down the trail, so I saw the flutter of motion first. I crouched to peer between the branches, my walking companions gathering behind me, until finally we spotted our prize: a tiny brown bird, different from any of the other tiny brown birds we’d…
After an inmate at Vermont’s women’s prison complained last April that a guard had called her a derogatory name, the state launched a formal investigation and placed him on leave. He waited. And waited. And waited. Finally, eight months later, the guard learned that he had been fired. “You would think an investigation would take…
After years of watching Greta Gerwig play variously clueless, direction-free characters — several with artistic ambitions but not enough talent to realize them — isn’t it a total treat to see her come into her own as a writer and director? Lady Bird (2017) was fun and promising, but her second solo foray behind the…
Vermont legislative leaders say they have much to accomplish this session, including modernizing Act 250, reducing vehicle emissions and reforming the state’s troubled prison system. But one thing they don’t plan to do is repeat the House-Senate impasse that dashed their hopes last session of enacting two top Democratic priorities: increasing the minimum wage and…
Chef Matt Birong Position: Chef-owner at 3 Squares Café, state representative (D-Vergennes) Location: Vergennes Age: 42 Cuisine type: Eclectic American Culinary training: New England Culinary Institute (culinary arts) Experience: Working in restaurants in New York, Boston and Burlington. Elected state delegate for Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) by the Vermont Democratic Party in 2016. Partner in…
After almost 40 years, including a decade as an owner, Bob Conlon retired last week as general manager of Leunig’s Bistro & Café, a mainstay of Burlington’s Church Street dining scene. Donnell Collins, his co-owner for the past six years and the restaurant’s executive chef, is now sole owner. The affable, now white-haired Conlon started…
The latest sign of shifts in Vermont’s agricultural landscape appeared on social media on December 28: A North Ferrisburgh dairy farm announced that it will no longer produce milk. Instead, Kimball Brook Farm will focus solely on growing hemp and continuing to make its CBD-infused iced teas and lemonades. The 250-acre family farm has been…
