Dog Sledding [110]

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 12/20/08: Ken Haggett and his 18 Peace Pups are a home-grown dog sledding team in Lake Elmore.  For years now they have been pulling dog-lovers through the wintry wonderlands of Vermont.

Exxon is the alpha dog (left), Dubois is the lead dog who almost died as a pup, and Muddy is a little jumpy.  Each Siberian Husky is a complete individual with unique markings, a distinct bark and an urge to RUN.

Music: Lowell Thompson: Lowell Thompson, "Let Go"

Location: Lake Elmore, Vermont

Winter Musings

Today I trudged to my sister's house along un-plowed sidewalks lugging my sister's half of our CSA. Winter fought my every step, lashing angrily in my face, causing my clumsy feet to slip and slide beneath me, daring me to give up and return to the safety of home.

Refusing to relent, my feet continued to trudge along in slow motion through the heavy snow, as though encased in syrupy molasses. What is normally a 10 minute walk dragged into 30 minutes. Dark was falling and I was the only person silly enough to be out in the storm. I felt small and fragile next to the fury of winter.

I longed for Oakland and those endlessly sunny days, wearing shorts-n-flip flops, and easy unencumbered 80 mph movement from place to place.

Hours later I was shoveling my driveway for the 6th time this weekend (I am so not kidding, the snow has been relentless) and my cell rang. It was Jen Hing in Richmond, CA. We haven't talked in ages and I started laughing like an idiot. How did I end up here in the midst of a snowstorm fighting desperately to keep my driveway clear while Jen is across the country in the land that is forever sunny?

Life is funny that way. Who the hell knows where you will end up and why?

After a nice talk I went in to get cozy in my lovely and odd, old Vermont house. I am not really sure how I ended up back here in this winter wonderland but I do think I am supposed to be here. And having grown up with this relentless snow, there is a part of me that will always be enchanted and awed by it, despite its ferocity.

Maybe it is good to feel small and humble 10 months out of the year?

These are some photos of our snowy wonderland that I took two years ago when I was walking around in a state of confused shock. The blankets of snow comforted me then. It was a sure sign of beauty and goodness that I desperately needed at that dark time in my life.

And then came Stuck in Vermont and a warm home of my own strong enough to be battered by a winter thick with storms. In short, I am a very lucky and humble girl this winter holiday who needs to get outside to start shoveling again.

Alison Bechdel [109]

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12/13/08: Vermont-based cartoonist Alison Bechdel talks about fame, her 25-year old comic Dykes to Watch Out For and her celebrated novel Fun Home while explaining why the personal has always been political for her.

Featured: http://www.dykestowatchoutfor.com/index.php

Music: Antara, Harbor All The Strays, "Paint"
http://www.littleweirdgirl.com/

Location: Bolton, Vermont

The Bobbin [108]

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PLEASE WATCH IN HIGH QUALITY!

12/7/08: Mommy-owned and operated The Bobbin Sew Bar & Craft Lounge welcomes nursing moms, kids, crafters, novices and community members to take part in the fun.

Whether you are knitting, crocheting, sewing, shopping, hanging out or just observing, The Bobbin will keep you entertained.

So why should you pledge to buy locally-produced handmade goods this holiday season?  Meet some of the artists and decide for yourself.

Featured:
http://www.thebobbin.com/
http://www.happyfantastic.com/
http://www.urbanfarmgirl.etsy.com

Music:
The Smittens
"Baby, Don't You Know"
The Coolest Thing About Love

LOCATION:
The Bobbin Sew Bar
& Craft Lounge
Burlington
Vermont

Moffatt's Tree Farm [107]

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11/29/08: The Moffatts have been growing Christmas trees since the 1930s.  For three generations they have been patiently cultivating their 700+ acres of land and shipping their trees across New England.

Organizations like Vermont Land Trust and
Vermonts Use Value Appraisal Program, also called Current Use, help family farmers like the Moffatts keep their land undeveloped and au natural for years to come.

Featured:
http://www.vlt.org/
http://www.vtfpr.org/resource/for_forres_useapp.cfm

Music:
Pariah Beat
Pariah Beat Radio
"Don't You Think About Me Anymore"
http://pariahbeat.com/

Greg Davis
Curling Pond Woods
"Curling Pond Woods"
http://www.autumnrecords.net/

Location: Moffatt's Tree Farm, Craftsbury, Vermont

I'm Alive!

Oh bloggy, I am so sorry for having forsaken you all these weeks. The lure of Facebook is so strong though. Why post here when I can post on FB and automatically reach out to hundreds of friends across the globe? My little online diary just pales by comparison, feign to deny it.

And to think that one year ago Facebook meant nothing to me. That status updates were not my hourly source of amusement. That I was not able to easily click on over to see photos of friend's of friends Halloweens and Thanksgivings.

Facebook is the brightly lit window on a cold winter's night that I love to peak into. Only I get to peak into windows across the world! Croatia, England, Denmark, Belgium and all over the USA - it is a Voyeur's Delight!

My old Stuck in VT blog got a face lift thanks to Don at 7 Days. For some reason people keep going to it despite its long ago retirement (turns up high in google searches for some reason or other) so we are resuscitating it. Happy days!

This weekend I learned that I need to buy some real boots. If I am going to live in VT, I need to be prepared. After a 5 hour shoot in the freezing cold (pics here), I was frozen through and through thanks to my stoopid fashion boots. This week, I search out some Mucks. It is time to embrace being a VTer, long underwear and all.

Stunt Nite [106]

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11/24/08: Rice Memorial High School's annual talent competition Stunt Nite has been pitting classes against one another since 1929.

Almost all of the 400+ private school students sing, dance, act and perform and the winners become legendary.

Who will take the prize this year?  

Eva attends their dress rehearsal to learn more about this unique tradition.

Featuring:
http://www.ricehs.org/riceweb/SN_web/

Location: Flynn Center, Burlington Vermont

Facebook Killed My Blog

It's true. That shit is dangerous.

Beyonce and her Ladies

This girl just gets better and better with age. I love her all girl band and the dancing in Single Ladies is jaw dropping.

VT Independence Convention [104]

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11/7/08: FREE VERMONT FROM THE EVIL EMPIRE! 

The Vermont Independence Convention, sponsored by The Second Vermont Republic, was held at the VT Statehouse in Montpelier on Friday.

Attendees discussed the possibility of VT seceding from the USA and forming its own republic.

Featured:
http://www.vermontrepublic.org/

Music:
Pete Sutherland and Friend
Bread & Puppet Band

Location: Vt Statehouse, Montpelier, Vermont

People!? Ffft, who needs 'em?

"If I'm working very hard, which is seldom, the last thing i want to do in order to relax is to be with people and babbling away and so forth.

So I go to the movies or read a book or watch any of my thousands of tapes upstairs...

Social events - foof. You know."

- Edward Gorey, Edward Gorey and the Tao of Nonsense, 1992

Gory Daze [103]

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11/1/08: The 7th Annual Gory Daze parade takes over the deserted streets of White River Junction with a bagpiper, draft horses, a flame organ and hundreds of costumed participants.

What is it about WRJ that makes it so damn cool?

Featuring:
http://gorydaze.blogspot.com/

Music: The Pariah Beat
http://www.myspace.com/pariahbeat

Location: White River Junction, Vermont
 

Quidditch World Cup [102]

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10/26/08: BROOMS UP!  

The 2nd Annual Quidditch World Cup was held on the Middlebury College campus this weekend.  Teams came from across the country (and even from Canada) to compete for the prestigious title.

Whether you come to it for your Harry Potter fix or treat it as a legitimate sport, quidditch is a jolly good time for all.

Featured:
http://www.collegequidditch.com/
http://midd-blog.com/2008/10/26/liveblogging-quidditch-world-cup-2008/
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=33823486919

Location: Middlebury College, Middlebury VT

Intercollegiate Quidditch Association

Middlebury Musings

Whenever I go to Middlebury, I can't help but think about Nicholas Garza.

I wonder if in some alternate universe Nick is still alive and it is his sophomore year. And as I am going around interviewing kids at the Quidditch World Cup, he is there in the crowd somewhere having a good time with his friends. Laughing jauntily and eating a crepe, watching the matches from the sidelines, throwing out sarcastic remarks and strolling to the library later to study.

And the beauty of it would be that I would never know him. His name would not have been splashed all over the TV and internet. Nick would just be another intelligent, motivated Middlebury kid starting out on his life's adventure.

I prefer to imagine him there still, walking to classes, enjoying the change of seasons, DJing at the local radio station and entertaining others with his wit. In a way, a part of him will always remain at Middlebury, even if his body is gone.

Nick's memorial is 4pm, November 8th at Middlebury College. He is very loved and very missed.

Motherfracking Madonna

Kat and I made the trek up to Montreal for Madonna on Thursday. In all of the many, many years that I have been listening to her, imitating her and shaking my butt to her music, I never once got around to seeing her live. WTF???

Luckily for me, I never throw ANYTHING away so it only took a little bit of digging to come up with my lace black cut off gloves (my sister got these for me in Paris when I was a freshly converted Madonna-phile), striped slutty mall dress (and yes, I can still cram into it), bright orange hair bow (the one they made fun of me for wearing to a Lamoille HS dance) and ripped up Sex Pistols t-shirt.

When she first came out on stage, my heart almost stopped. Then I recovered and danced the rest of the show which was a blur of colors, spectacle, poorly remixed old hits, crotch shots and a musty walk down memory lane.

That chick is 50. Seems like only yesterday I was mesmerized by her gyrating on Night Tracks and copying every move she made.

Love you Madge, more pics on Facebook.

James Kochalka [101]

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10/16/08: Local artist and rock star James Kochalka has been drawing his daily comic book strip, American Elf, for 10 years this Sunday.

American Elf is about James' daily life so we went to his house and followed him around for a day to see how his characters behave in real life.

Editor's Note: James Kochalka was the main feature of the very first Stuck in VT vlog.  It seems fitting that he should be both the 1st and the 101st Stuck in VT.

Featuring:
http://www.americanelf.com/

Music: James Kochalka, http://www.americanelf.com/

Location: Burlington, VT

Editor's Note: James Kochalka was the main feature of the very first Stuck in VT vlog.  It seems fitting that he should be both the 1st and the 101st Stuck in VT.

Pillows for VTers

Lovely Parisa of Pillows for the People fame brought the sassy charms of Manhattan to VT this weekend. We zombie walked, drank lots of strange elixirs, ate food from many countries, consumed massive amounts of Halloween candy, visited Howard's End, soaked up the scenery and talked a blue streak.

WHo would have thought I would ever meet someone more energetic and expressive than me and with a similar quirky boho style (not to mention dark curly hair!?)?! Nick of Shelburne Orchards was sure we were sisters and I wonder if he is right?!

Fly safe Miss P and come back soon to visit your family in VT!

"BRAINZZZZZ, WE WANTZZZZ BRAINZZZZZ!!!!"

100th Episode of Stuck in VT

Last week was sort of like Stuck in VT's birthday. To celebrate, I threw a party for myself which, as my friend Freddy pointed out, can seem both "lame and desperate," but also very, very fun.

Thanks Seven Days for giving me a job AND these colorful happy flowers! I'm not worthy!!!

My Ideal Man

Just equal parts of each please.

Lord, I do love to procrastinate!

Lovely Lesh

What is the best remedy for a broken heart? Her name is Lesh and I wish she could have stayed longer. I will be knocking on your door real soon sweet sister. Thanks for letting me cry buckets about my dead baby mouse. You are the best of the best and my Mac misses your Mac.

Tigger Dearest

Today I fell in love again.

On our trip to Johnson, we went walking at what was once called Married Student Housing near JSC. This was our first home in VT when we moved here from NYC and I was 7. Luckily, the craptastical apartments are surrounded by wild massive woods which we loved exploring as kids.

On our way into the woods we met this little flea of a cow cat who looked like Crawford's body double.

He bounced along after us into the woods and followed along side at an erratic pace.

We were being stalked! Hunted by Tigger!

He bounded up trees, bunny-hopped to keep up and dive-bombed us out of nowhere.

I have heard of these kind of dog-like cats that follow you around on walks but never had the pleasure of meeting one until today.

By the time we got back we were both smitten. Tigger had no collar but he looked fed and cared for. I asked some people if he had an owner and they were clueless. So we left Tigger in his woodsy paradise. I hope he has a warm home. What a champ.

Pretty Day

Today was just what I needed.

Nothing says Fall to me like a relaxing drive down Route 15 to my hometown of Johnson, Vermont. My sister was my co-pilot and we stopped at old haunts along the way to do some filming for my 100th episode of Stuck in VT.

Hearty lunch in Johnson, a cemetery stop over, a woods walk at our old apartments, apple cider and donuts...it just does not get any better.

If you wanna see more foliage, check it out on Facebook!