May 22-28, 2019
Summer Preview: The Museum of Everyday Life Runs With Scissors; Catching the Big Picture With Fly Fisherman and Author Peter Shea; Obstacle Course Racers Go for the Thrill; Good2Go Camping Pops Up With Family-Friendly Rentals
Obituary: Dorothy Leonard Bodette, 1915-2019
Dorothy Leonard Bodette passed away at her winter home in Fort Myers, Fla., on January 29, 2019, at the age of 103. She spent those 103 years making sure she left all the lives she touched better for having known her. Dot was born on May 27, 1915, in Shoreham, Vt., and grew up on…
Obituary: Sheryl “Sherry” Holland Worrall, 1926-2019
Sheryl “Sherry” Holland Worrall of Shelburne, Vt., died at Wake Robin on May 23, 2019. She was the mother of Persis Holland Worrall of Shelburne, Vt., and Winfield Scott Worrall III of South Carolina. She was the grandmother of Richard Worrall of South Carolina and Winfield Scott Worrall IV of North Carolina. She was born…
Obituary: Thomas Bayer Chauncey Little, 1981-2019
Thomas Bayer Chauncey Little was born in Burlington, Vt., on July 30, 1981, to Thomas Arthur Little and Susan Margaret Keelty Little. He died peacefully May 22, 2019, at his parents’ home in Shelburne, after a spirited, six-month battle with neuroendocrine cancer. He attended the Shelburne Nursery School and Shelburne Community School, and graduated from…
Birth: James Thomas Scott
On May 22, 2019, at Porter Medical Center, Latisha Moore and Isaac Scott welcomed a son, James Thomas Scott.
The Cannabis Catch-Up: Is Your CBD the Real Deal?
Much has been written about cannabidiol. Is it a miracle cure for all ailments? Snake oil? Something in-between? That’s all well and good. But there’s a more important question that should be asked first when evaluating a CBD product: Is there any CBD in it at all? The folks over at NBC Boston decided to…
Obituary: Sally A. Coppersmith, 1946-2019
Sally A. Coppersmith, 72, of Grand Isle, Vt., passed away on Saturday, April 20, 2019, in the comfort of her home and surrounded by her family. A celebration of Sally’s life will be held at her home at 1 Adams Landing Rd. Ext., Grand Isle, Vt., on Saturday June 8, 2019, starting at 3 p.m.…
Obituary: Duane K. (Duey) Myrick, 1933-2019
Duane K. (Duey) Myrick of Middlebury passed away peacefully in the early hours of Tuesday, May 14, surrounded by his family at Helen Porter, after a short illness. Duane was born at home in Bridport on October 2, 1933, to Kenneth W. and Frances Beatrice (Doane) Myrick. He was predeceased by his parents and his…
NOFA-VT Hires Grace Oedel as New Executive Director
Grace Oedel, executive director of Ohavi Zedek Synagogue in Burlington, will become executive director of Northeast Organic Farming Associaton of Vermont on July 1, the organization announced last week. Oedel will succeed Enid Wonnacott, who led NOFA-VT for more than 30 years and died last January at the age of 57. “It’s extremely humbling to…
Album Review: John Townsend, ‘Seattle Songs’
(Self-released, digital) John Townsend is perhaps best known for his work with the folksy Burlington instrumental trio Silver Bridget. There, he provides accompaniment for musical saw and Telecaster with an acoustic guitar and a drum kit. (Simultaneously, mind you.) With his new solo LP Seattle Songs, however, Townsend might become better known as a singer-songwriter…
The Museum of Everyday Life Opens an Exhibit of Scissors
Over the past few months, Clare Dolan has amassed hundreds of scissors, ranging from tiny surgical implements to Turkish sheep shears, crusted with dirt and still smelling warmly of wool. The scissors have arrived mostly by mail, in fat tawny parcels and, in one case, a blue plastic bin containing more than 30 United Nations…
Free Will Astrology (5/22/19)
GEMINI (May 21-June 20): If there were a Hall of Fame for writers, Shakespeare might have been voted in first. His work is regarded as a pinnacle of intellectual brilliance. And yet here’s a fun fact: The Bard quoted well over a thousand passages from the Bible. Can you imagine a modern author being taken…
Movie Review: ‘John Wick: Chapter 3 — Parabellum’ Is as Unwieldy as Its Title, but More Fun
If you think that releasing the feel-good flick A Dog’s Journey the same week as John Wick: Chapter 3 — Parabellum is “counterprogramming,” you are so wrong. Granted, one is rated PG (as in “suitable for all dog-loving kids”), and the other is rated hard R (as in “expect to see an eyeball stabbed close…
Quick Lit: ‘Lowest White Boy’ by Greg Bottoms
Greg Bottoms’ Lowest White Boy takes its title from a Lyndon B. Johnson quote that’s been getting a lot of play since the last presidential election. Explaining how racism works in politics, Johnson told a young Bill Moyers, “If you can convince the lowest white man he’s better than the best colored man, he won’t…
Vegan Food Cart the Little Green Wagon Launches in Barre
A vegan food cart will launch a lunchtime business in Barre on Thursday. The Little Green Wagon, owned and operated by husband-and-wife team Chris and Carol Brzezicki, will park at the city’s main intersection of Route 302 and Route 14. A mobile offshoot of the couple’s catering business, Vegan2U, the cart will visit the downtown…
Letters to the Editor (5/22/19)
Climate and Cannabis Another Seven Days cannabis-themed edition [The Cannabis Issue, May 15] … Meanwhile, the last time something related to carbon pollution was the theme for an issue was January 2015. That observation isn’t an outlier. The coverage of cannabis in the Vermont news media has far outweighed the coverage of climate change for…
Summer Preview — 2019
Recent snow notwithstanding, summer is almost here. And since it might be gone by the time you finish reading this issue, it’s wise to make the most of Vermont’s shortest but sweetest season. How? Cast your lot, and a line, with expert fly-fisherman Peter Shea. Rock out at one of the state’s many great music…
Album Review: Hallowell, ‘Hallowell’
(Great Comfort Records, digital, vinyl) When I was 7 years old, a singer-songwriter visited the church my parents took me to. As he sat in front of the Sunday school kids, he crooned about God and all things God-related. Maybe it worked for some of the other kids, but I was so turned off by…
Eat This Week, May 22 to 28, 2019: Birthday Beer
14th Star Brewing is throwing itself a birthday party — a tailgate bash to celebrate seven years of suds. Held in the St. Albans brewery’s side lot, the 14th Star Parking Lot Party will feature beer, of course, plus food (burgers, fries, salads and more), games, and music. Barbie-N-Bones are scheduled to play at 6…
Erik Nielsen to Present Musical Celebration of Late Brother Lars
For decades, Brookfield composer Erik Nielsen has contributed memorably to the Vermont music scene, with original compositions for chorus, instrumental ensembles and even the locally set opera A Fleeting Animal: An Opera From Judevine. For much of that time, Lars Nielsen, Erik’s younger brother, was wordsmithing a few miles down the road in Northfield, where…
Soundbites: The Green Is Greener
Howdy, folks! Did you miss me last week? Because I missed you! Before I go any further, I’d like to extend a special thanks to Seven Days’ former music editor and current assistant arts editor Dan Bolles for filling in for me last week while I was on vacation. Planning time off can be an…
Picture Imperfect: Photog Rebuts Altered Image of Woodstock Farm
Vernal Vermont has been slow to spring forth. But you wouldn’t know it from Kiel Patrick James’ Instagram page. On April 28, James, who runs a preppy Rhode Island-based clothing line, posted an image of Sleepy Hollow Farm in Woodstock that showed the place in full bloom, complete with cherry blossoms. Red, yellow and pink…
Nora Guthrie Speaks About Pete Seeger and Her Dad, Woody
It’s impossible to tell the story of American folk music without Woody Guthrie. And it’s impossible to tell the story of Woody Guthrie without Pete Seeger. Reams have been written on both folk singers’ influences on modern politics, activism and, of course, music. They’ve been canonized as figures of almost mythic proportions. But Nora Guthrie…
Cat’s Caucus: The Vermont Legislature in Vonnegut Land
On May 15, the Vermont Senate convened for a bit of vital business: a resolution honoring the 65th anniversary of Sen. Dick Mazza’s (D-Grand Isle) Colchester general store. The measure praised the “friendly service, great variety of products and delicious homemade offerings” available at this consumer oasis. The vote was unanimous. Mazza’s colleagues rose in…
Good2Go Camping Turns Old Pop-Up Campers Into Family-Friendly Rentals
A tent in the woods, a few friends and a campfire is the best thing about summer for some Vermonters, and the more rustic, the better. Others like the idea of camping, but with every passing year, sleeping on the cold, hard ground becomes something to avoid. (Hello, back problems.) What to do if you…
How Should Burlington Police Its Cops? In the Street, Activists Say
Four Burlington cops were gathered near the Whiskey Room last Friday, chatting casually during a calm moment before Church Street would swell with crowds celebrating the University of Vermont’s impending commencement. Five people, each young enough to be taken for a graduating UVM senior, approached the officers, cellphone cameras drawn. Jaz Mojica wielded a camcorder.…
Catching the Big Picture With Fly Fisherman and Author Peter Shea
When Peter Shea agreed to introduce me to fly fishing, he didn’t say we’d catch fish. I didn’t press the issue. I figured I’d picked up enough bad habits as a boy, fishing with a spinning rod and live bait, to make me a difficult student. Plus, early spring waterways can be cold and murky…
Previewing Seven Summer Music Festivals
Ask any Vermonter why they choose to live in the Green Mountain State, and they will likely mention summer as one of their top three reasons. The glory of late May through September makes sticking it out through a grueling winter and sluggish spring totally worth it. Good weather and an abundance of green space…
Obstacle Course Racers Go for the Thrill, the Punishment and the Mud
A cold drizzle fell on Caleb Vallencourt as he hustled through the mud carrying 80 pounds of cement. Jessica Hopper splashed through a puddle and edged past him — hugging her own 50-pound bucket of cement. They also hurled themselves over a 20-foot wall, shimmied 18 feet up a thick rope, jogged wearing a 40-pound…
Piss Poor: Burlington Mulls Proposals for More Public Bathrooms
When you gotta go, you gotta go. But if it’s in Burlington, you’ll need luck and a good sense of direction. In the days of yore, the Burlington Town Center provided a safe haven for tourists and transients alike to empty their bladders until 9 p.m. most nights. But the mall is now a hole…
Bill Fastiggi Keeps Vermont Sailors at Full Sail
Name: Bill Fastiggi, 56 Town: Winooski Job: Owner, Vermont Sailing Partners Bill Fastiggi calls the weeks leading up to Memorial Day weekend his “Christmas season.” That makes Memorial Day itself something like Christmas morning, at least for legions of eager sailors waiting to get out on Lake Champlain. Fastiggi, 56, is the owner of Vermont…
The Lamoille Valley Rail Trail Puts Small Businesses on the Path to Profitability
Matt Niklaus has been wrenching on bicycles since he was a teenager racing BMX bikes in central Pennsylvania. After college, he moved to Vermont and spent 12 years working as a plastics engineer at Husky Injection Molding Systems in Milton. Though he liked his employer, Niklaus missed his passion. So, in May 2016, he opened…
Why Were There 13 Animal Kidneys at the Intervale?
Our walk at the Intervale in Burlington was cut short one afternoon last week. It ended after our dog Johnny ate a mystery meal that was lying in wait on a log by the Winooski River just off the Rena Calkins Trail. Johnny ran ahead of me and detoured away from the river to a…
Art Review: Paul Bowen Sculpture, BigTown Gallery
Can an assemblage of found wood and old tools have a personality? If so, that might account for the otherwise inexplicable pleasure of viewing Paul Bowen’s creations. Four of his sculptures, along with five of his drypoint prints, are currently on view at BigTown Gallery in Rochester. The show, titled “Wood Ledge,” includes the latest…
Movie Review: Yoko Ono Rewrites John Lennon’s Legacy With ‘John & Yoko: Above Us Only Sky’
Imagine the fan ire that Cynthia Lennon would have faced if she had claimed cowriting credit on “She Loves You” because she was John Lennon’s wife and, you know, loved him. Something astonishingly similar actually is happening with respect to the ex-Beatle’s legacy. Yoko Ono is conducting a stealth campaign to recast the legend’s post-Fab…
Should I Send Thank-You Notes for Gifts Now or After the Wedding?
Dear Reverend, I’m getting married in July, and I’ve already started to receive gifts on my registry. Should I thank people as I receive them or wait until the wedding is over? Befuddled Bride (female, 31) Dear Befuddled Bride, First off, congratulations to you and your fiancé! I love love and have performed many a…
Health Hero Farm Promotes Awareness of Humane Certification
Breakfast service was a little delayed at Health Hero Farm in South Hero last Tuesday. It was about 10 a.m. on the cool, drizzly morning when Joan Falcao and Bob Fireovid switched off the electric fence and climbed into the pasture where their beef herd had been grazing overnight. The animals raised their heads with…
First Bite: Sampling Dinner Dishes at Poco
Last Friday, on opening night of the ArtsRiot Truck Stop, I headed past the Pine Street eating crowd for a destination that used to be a food truck. Poco, which opened in April on lower Main Street in Burlington, serves a lunch menu that will be familiar to its former outdoor diners: The restaurant grew…
Spot on the Dock Opening Delayed by Flooding
Flooding at the King Street ferry dock and the road leading to Spot on the Dock will delay the opening of the lakefront restaurant until June 12, general manager Shannon Lipkin said. The seasonal business had been scheduled to open for its third season in mid-May, before rainy weather and a rising lake intervened. The…
