Jul 9-15, 2014
IBM: Does it Have a Future in Vermont?; Burlesque Dancers Hit the Drawing Class; At Zeno, Everyone Is Able; A Play Explores Rural Gay Life
Cover Story
The Chips Are Down: Does IBM Have a Future in Vermont?
What we’re looking at is a city,” Frank Cioffi says, nodding at a sprawling landscape of industrial buildings, electrical transformers and storage tanks on the banks of the Winooski River. The 59-year-old economic development guru steers his black Nissan Maxima toward a guard shack that stands sentry at the northeastern entrance to IBM’s Essex Junction…
Obituary: Steven Wayne Thompson
Steven Wayne Thompson, age 62 years, a lifelong resident of the Swanton community died Sunday July 13, 2014, at his Lasnier Road residence. Born in St. Albans on December 29, 1951, he was the son of William Lee Sr., and Lorraine Elsie (Deso) Thompson. He graduated in 1970 from Swanton High School and on March…
Obituary: William J (Bill) Edwards, 1967-2014, Burlington
William J (Bill) Edwards, 47, passed away at Fletcher Allen Health Care on July 8, 2014. He was born in Burlington, VT on January 4, 1967 to Gloria and Donald Edwards. Bill proudly served his country in the US Navy, enlisting at the young age of 17. He worked as a Vermont Department of Correction…
Obituary: Allen Micheal Robertson, 1993-2014
Allen Micheal Robertson, a star athlete with a smile that lit up the room, passed away July 9, 2014, in his home. He was 21. He was born in Boulder, Colo., on May 21, 1993, and grew up with his aunt, father, and extended family in Winooski, Vt., where he was baptized at New Alpha…
Obituary: Shirley Jane (Brown) Paul, 1931-2014, Weatherford, TX
Shirley J. Paul, 83 of Weatherford, TX, formerly of Burlington/South Burlington, VT passed away peacefully in her sleep on July 8, 2014 due to complications from Alzheimer disease. Shirley was born in Burlington, VT on July 5, 1931, the daughter of Harry and Grace (Quebec) Brown. She was a member of St. Stephens Catholic Church…
Where Have All Vermont’s Line Cooks Gone?
“We used to get bombarded with résumés, and it would be overwhelming,” recalls Crystal Maderia, chef-owner of Kismet in Montpelier. “Now, I don’t get any. Now, it’s not even that I get bad ones.” For the past two months, Maderia has had three full-time jobs sitting open at her farm-to-table restaurant: two line-cook positions and…
![Independence Day Naturalization Ceremony [SIV360]](https://i0.wp.com/www.sevendaysvt.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/naturalizationceremony7.webp?resize=1200%2C900&ssl=1)
Independence Day Naturalization Ceremony [SIV360]
7/4/14: Last Friday, 10 people, each from different countries, took an oath of citizenship at the Ethan Allen Homestead Museum in Burlington. Candidates originated from Canada, United Kingdom, Haiti, Ireland, Brazil, Japan, Somalia, Poland, Ukraine and Sweden. Mayor Miro Weinberger welcomed the new citizens and Chief U.S. District Judge Christina Reiss administered the Oath of…
Art Review: ‘Rachael’s New York Postcards at 100,’ Rokeby Museum
The Rokeby Museum in Ferrisburgh was once home to several generations of the Robinson family, from the late 18th century until the place became a museum in 1961. Even Vermonters who have never been there likely know that the homestead was an integral part of the Underground Railroad — a refuge for fugitive slaves well…
We Get Together Whenever We’re Single — Should We Give It a Go for Real?
Dear Athena, I’m sort of seeing this guy I have dated on and off for years. We always seem to end up together any time we are single. Part of me feels like maybe I should just stay with him, since we keep ending up back together. But then also I sort of feel like…
Short Takes on Film: ‘Walking the Camino’; Iraqi Film; Vermont Movie
A young mother does it to get closer to God, toting her 3-year-old with her. A Canadian widower does it to honor his wife. A young Portuguese athlete does it for the physical challenge. A depressed thirtysomething Brazilian just wants to experience a sense of “forward motion” in her life. They’re all Walking the Camino…
Mad Taco Leaves Waterbury; New Cooking App; King’s Deli Opens in Burlington
Craving Mexican food in Waterbury? You’ll need to drive. Last month, the Mad Taco closed its location inside the town’s Blackback Pub & Flyshop; the restaurants in Waitsfield and Montpelier remain open. Original Blackback owner Rick Binet sold the business to Lynn and Dave Mason in May. Last week, a new eatery called Maggie’s Kitchen…
Science Writer David Dobbs Talks Genetics and Environment
Science writer David Dobbs is obsessed with orchids, but not because of any love for the plants themselves. Those fickle flowers provide an apt metaphor for a genetic theory that he believes explains a great deal about human adaptability. “The orchid hypothesis,” as it’s come to be known, holds that most human beings are like…
Zeno Mountain Farm Attracts Campers and Volunteers of All Abilities
On Independence Day, the streets of downtown Bristol were lined with bystanders braving a cloudy morning to watch the parade. Gov. Peter Shumlin ambled down the streets waving, as did dignified contingents from local fire departments, veterans’ associations, scout troops and others. Floats from local businesses passed, tossing candy to kids. On the corner of…
A Single Pebble Founder Goes to Portland, Ore.
The United States’ first Chinese brewpub opens on July 18. The bad news: It’s in Portland, Ore. The good news: Tuesday night will always be Vermonter Night. That’s because BTU Brasserie is owned by Vermonters, a growing population in the West Coast’s Burlington equivalent. The people behind the new restaurant — which Eater National named…
Book Review: ‘Cycling in Plato’s Cave’ by David Cavanagh
What jumps to mind when you hear the phrase “bike poetry”? Probably it’s the old refrain “Daisy, Daisy, give me your answer, do…” But bicycles built for two aren’t the only ones that inspire verse, as Burlington poet David Cavanagh demonstrates deftly in his new book, Cycling in Plato’s Cave Poems. The title may sound…
A New Life Drawing Class Brings in Burlesque
For about 150 years, burlesque performers have had a tough time convincing critics and patrons that what they do is more than just striptease. Since the form emerged from earlier music-hall traditions, it has endured moral judgments and has even been outlawed. But burlesque is nothing if not resilient, and a contemporary wave of performers…
Letters to the Editor (7/09/14)
Who Pays? Brian Garen writes with righteous indignation about the 15 percent increase in the cost of his health insurance under Obamacare [Feedback: “$ame Old Health Care” June 18]. He attributes this directly to the greedy insurance companies lining their pockets with green. He chooses to ignore the fact that free or subsidized insurance is…
A Biodiesel Business is Opening in Plainfield
When Jim Malloy and Peter Young started scouting locations for a biodiesel company, they had the perfect spot in mind: Plainfield’s former Red Store, a one-time gas station and convenience store that was on the auction block in 2012. Young planned to purchase the building for Malloy’s biodiesel station. But the proponents of recycled veggie…
Agent Slacker, Agent Slacker
(Jenke Records, digital download) On their eponymous debut EP, Agent Slacker provide an example of why, according to Huffington Post, Burlington’s Jenke Records is “an expression of rebellion in a society that is trapped within institutional conformities and down-the-road retirement plans.” A hip-hop project helmed by a folk artist — that would be Jenke founder…
A Vermont Production of ‘Farm Boys’ Explores Gay Rural Life
In the spring of 1992, Milwaukee writer Will Fellows began interviewing 75 gay men, ages 25 to 84, who’d grown up in farm families throughout the Midwest. Fellows, himself a gay man raised on a Wisconsin dairy farm, knew that many males like himself, who’d subsequently fled to larger metropolitan areas, felt like outsiders among…
Kin & Learic, Unusual Subjects
(Self-released, CD, digital download) Late last year at ArtsRiot, the rap duo of Kin & Learic put on a show that totally silenced a room full of rappers. Many months later, the material they unleashed upon an awestruck group of MCs has been released as the mixtape Unusual Subjects. The recording offers a strong dose…
Yestermorrow Students and Instructors Build for Public Good
The coinage “yestermorrow” conjures up a magical world outside of time, and in some respects Yestermorrow Design/Build School in Waitsfield actually creates one. Take its summer course, Design/Build for Public Interest. In less than two weeks, a dozen students take a concept — a pedestrian bridge, a composting privy, a trail shelter — and design,…
A Shot at the Sheriff: McLaughlin Faces a Challenge
Chittenden County Sheriff Kevin McLaughlin was practically born in the county jail. No, really. When his dad, Earle “Buzz” McLaughlin, became sheriff in 1955, 3-year-old Kevin moved to the old Burlington jailhouse at 220 Main Street with a family that would eventually include 11 children. He spent his formative years sleeping in a converted jail…
Emerging Architects and Designers Get a Read on the Library
What kind of public library addition, renovation or satellite structure would you design if you had a limit of 2,000 square feet and an unlimited budget? How about an inflatable plastic walk-in bubble containing computer stations? Or a mobile foldout maker space where library patrons can use welding tools or a sewing machine? Or an…
Tammy
I’m still shaking off the shock, but there’s no getting around it: This is a road movie in which Melissa McCarthy — one of the planet’s funniest people — takes her audience down a dead end. That’s something you’d never guess from the film’s opening, which is pure spit-out-your-Pepsi genius: McCarthy’s character, is late for…
Free Will Astrology (7/09/14)
ARIES (March 21-April 19): What are the sources that heal and nourish you? Where do you go to renew yourself? Who are the people and animals that treat you the best and are most likely to boost your energy? I suggest that in the coming week you give special attention to these founts of love…
Deliver Us From Evil
Deliver Us From Evil is one Nicolas Cage short of candidacy for camp-classic status. An attempt to out-exorcize The Exorcist that bears the indelible mark of producer Jerry Bruckheimer, this film is more silly than scary. But, as today’s horror retreads go, it gets points for having a discernible plot and building to a climax…
Benways, No More
The news still hasn’t quite sunk in: Benways Taxi is no more. In the blink of an eye, a full 20 percent of the Burlington taxi fleet — some 40 cabs — has vanished from the city streets. In the early ’80s, I drove for Benways for about a year before leaving to launch my…
TURNmusic Puts A Contemporary Spin On Chamber Music
A new kind of chamber concert experience is coming to Burlington and Waterbury this month. With the launch of the TURNmusic series, casual and fanatic music fans alike will be able to experience classical chamber music infused with modern composition and current trends, ranging from acoustic folk to electronica. Anne Decker, 39, the visionary behind…
Arborcide: In Burlington, Vandals Target Trees
When Burlington arborist Warren Spinner came back from vacation last week, his inbox held upsetting news: Vandals had snapped the branches and trunks of four saplings. The city’s chief tree doctor made the rounds, inspecting the damage: On Loomis Street, someone had maimed a crabapple and lopped off a Japanese lilac at its base. On…
Many Elected Prosecutors Facing Challenges in Vermont
Though they hold elected office, Marc Brierre and Alan Franklin could be forgiven for not seeing themselves as politicians. They are the state’s attorneys in Rutland and Orleans counties, respectively, holding positions that rarely generate vigorous contests and usually provide incumbents a job until they no longer want it. Not this year. Of Vermont’s 14…
News Quirks (7/09/14)
Curses, Foiled Again Three Seattle teenagers tried to steal a woman’s car at gunpoint but failed because none of them could operate a manual transmission. “I got a five-speed in there,” victim Nancy Frederickson said, “and they couldn’t figure out how to get it going.” Surveillance cameras showed the suspects running away. (Seattle’s KOMO-TV) When…
Soundbites: Section Sign Records Debuts
In last week’s column we wrote a quick bit on the debut self-titled record from Pours, the collaboration of ex-Parmaga front man Bryan Parmelee and drummer Chris Shar, the latter formerly of Man Man and Santigold. In a related story, from perusing various things written about the band lately, I’m pretty sure it’s against rock-scribe…
Taste Test: Mi Casa Kitchen & Bar
In the dusty, litter-strewn streets of Tijuana, tacos typically come from a stall or stand. A sole tortilla cradles gristly, grilled mystery meat all a-sizzle, perhaps topped with a bit of cabbage or pico de gallo and a squirt of soured cream. The salsa is thin and mostly spice and vinegar. But somehow it all…
ArtsRiot’s Truck Stop Heads to Montpelier
This coming Saturday, July 12, Montpelier will get its first food-truck rally. Trucks will converge on the downtown lot at 60 Main Street and serve food from 5 to 10 p.m. — an occurrence that will repeat on four consecutive weekends, through August 2. Burlington’s ArtsRiot, the Vermont Department of Tourism & Marketing and Montpelier…
