Category: Green Mountain Blog

Greetings to all and happy springtime at last:

I know you have all waited with baited breath for the “blog” to return…and your wait is now over; we have returned to the majesty of the Greens in time for the annual greening of Vermont. I hope you are all well, have been fruitful and multiplied many times over…and look forward to our correspondence this summer and deep into the fall.

We finally left Delaware on May 9th after weeks of lists and details and anticipation. Packed the car on Thursday night and got ready to leave on Friday morning, when I noticed the car top carrier did not have straps on it to hold it down. Jen had graciously gotten it packed up while I was away in Baltimore that week- but neglected to strap it down, and now the straps were buried deep under 1000 pounds of luggage and shit. Glee does not fully describe my emotions at this awareness…so unloaded it and got straps put on, an then got in to start it up and go…and found that door had been left open overnight while packing the car(who did this one, Jen?)…no big deal right, just needed a jump…and cables also buried in car under 1000 pounds of shit……..we left late.

The ride went pretty well. We had learned that Lucy did great on the long haul when we drove back last November…she was so quiet the whole time that I did not notice that she had systematically chewed up the front passenger seat belt I had attached to stop the bells from going off from her weight on front seat…so spent $150 on a new seat belt and clipped it on BEHIND the seat…she did great. I tried to switch off and take the two cats for a while, but they howl the entire trip –which was somewhat disruptive during conference calls I had scheduled for the road. We stayed the night in Oneonta at Ryan and Lauren’s’ empty place and arrived at our beloved mountain home early Saturday to meet the plumber and cable guy. Pulling in, our neighbors, the Manual family gathered outside to greet us with the news that they were packing up to leave to go back to Carolina and family, after some unfulfilling job situations here. For those of you who have been here and have seen the general chaos of their place, imagine it five times worse. Aside from that revelation, we got things going in the house with no problems and were set up and ready to do most business that night.

Sunday dawned bright, sunny and beautiful (it has been in 75-80 range most of time we have been here…quite a Vt. Heat spell)… and I got out to inspect THE POND. I have attached several pictures her….take it in and love it , it is the last time it will look this good for the year, as the algae have not yet moved back from Florida for the summer. We got a lot done that first day- inside and out. I did the all the manly stuff in the garage and barn- getting all the machines ready and running with ease…until I serviced the tractor and got distracted with several visits form the Manuals (they had lots to tell us) and Jen…and started it up beautifully, but with the oil drained and not replaced. Now, I’m from the city, but still it appears a tractor does not run well without any oil…..about three minutes it seems. This led to ten days of PTSD for Stu. So, while I fumed, Jen cleaned and the animals’ embraced their mountain home- see photos. The cats have many more places to hide from Lucy and Lucy believes she owns the mountain and is steadily patrolling the property and beyond- requiring many more baths resulting from her explorations.

So- some of our first two weeks Vermont learnings and re-awakenings:

Country living and Repairs- results in many leaky pipes, especially when they sit unheated all winter, and requires special tools, like that used trying to get off the furnace oil filter that not been changed for five years. It is good to have neighbors with tools and skills. We placed a call for help on the local “Newsflash” e-serve list and found a new find, Steve, who came over and helped us to get our new tractor running (the Manuals gifted us their junker in sympathy after the ruination, and I got it about 70% there) AND he applied his much better technique to get off the oil filter without bursting the pipes as I was about to do. Prior to finding Steve-we stopped at Gil’s off route 7B, who has fifty used tractors in his yard to see if he could fix it. He said he’d be glad to if we brought it to him, as he had not left his yard for ten years except to go to the doctor……. Then, our old friend, Scott, showed up, who had cut down a tree for us last year for beer money, to tell me he could do it, except he had trouble getting out of his truck when he stumbled over the pile of open beer cans. Eventually, to get Steve to fix it, we had to go up to Brandon to get a deck cable from the GUY WHO HAS EVERYTHING……which led us to….

“The worst road in Vermont:- Jen decided we could take a scenic short cut back from Brandon to get to route 7…which led us to a 20 mile dirt road so rutted I had to stop along the way for the Subaru to rest in between ruts. The shortcut took us about an hour and has led to many loose parts on the undercarriage of the car.
While we were gone Josh was taking his pictures for the Prom, which we were excited to see and once again delighted to find they had been taken at our house while we were away. I keep wondering why we get a lot of the Manuals’ local mail…

So- we are back to our activities with Jen going to Yoga several times a week (Kevin at the town dump tells me I should really appreciate the flexibility that produces…), regular hiking (see Lucy on the trail photos), my re-involvement at the folk club (I walked in the first night and they were playing one of my songs). We discovered the “other” side of the Appalachian Trail which is ten minutes from us. The side we usually walk is a gently sloping walk along a river bank and up into the hills; we found the other side to go straight up from the road to hand and knee trail in about a half hour- we will come back to that one. We made our first trips this week to both Montpelier and Groton. Stu was appointed by the Governor to be on the states’ Family and Children Board so went to a meeting this week for the 1st time….much better than expected and Jen and Lucy shopped in the capitol- which pretty much allows dogs in all places. I will bring her to the next meeting. Then on to Groton, to the house of horrors, which stood up to the winter as well can be expected. We did some cleaning and fixing and convinced Spencer to let the realtor in to show the apartment, rather than stand on the other side of the front door with a gun and a ball bat…which has presented some barrier to people wanting to buy the house, we think. We have actually had some increased viewing action in last three months –though nary an offer yet. We keep hoping Max will buy it….

I just took a break from this tomb (excuse the length, will get shorter in next installment) to chase Lucy out of the massive pile of limbs that someone (I can’t say who) thoughtfully placed in front of the entrance to the logging road behind our house, effectively barring any trucks from using it. She, of course, believes it is a gift from the Heavens, of big ol’ sticks to pull off and drag around the property.

It’s been a good Memorial Day weekend. Spent Friday trying to organize forty years’ worth of Walter and Karin’s tools and tchotchkes in the garage/barn- since I believe it is the cause of my PTSD. Gil, the man who does not leave his yard, sent his hired hand, Tom the sleeping giant, to take the blown engine tractor away…a little on the remedial side, it took me ten minutes to wake him up from his pickup truck slumber. On Saturday, while Jen went to yoga (limbering up for me, says Kevin) Lucy and I took the 40 year accumulated garage stuff to the dump….then we went to Fair Haven for the spring fling, which had neglected to be flung. But it’s a nice drive. We went that night to the first community supper of the year and did our fist volunteering gig- serving and clean up, mingling with the town whos- who. We brought home a ten pound tub of cole saw which we had agreed to gte rid of via dump in our compost pile…it was gone the next day- we think there must be a really sick bear in the woods. Sunday was the semiannual Open Studio tour across Vermont, and we headed southeast to Chester, Townsend, Saxon’s River and Bellows Falls to see nine artisan studios. We found a great glass blower, who had the finest tables of “seconds” we have yet seen. For me this is like a pile of fresh shit to a beagle- check out the great vase we bought for a pittance in the pix. Lucy made many friends, kissed many babies and rode several big dogs she apparently thinks are horses. Most studios in Vermont are so far in the woods- you would never find them without a detailed map, so they are really happy when people come and they talk A LOT. We discovered the original Celtic Buddhist Center on the way home on tiny route 121…I always thought Irish and Buddhist was an oxymoron?

Well, I think you have had enough. Be well, be in touch, do good work, blah, blah, blah. Have a great spring and GO CAVS!!!

Love,
Stu

 

 

 

 

Happy Stick Season from the Green Mountains:

“ Zen IS your life, Appreciate YOUR Life”- Taizan Maezumi

So- now it’s time to say goodbye to all our family (MIC-KEY………..). A magnificent autumn has turned into the grey of stick season here in the mountains as we prepare to head back to Ohio in a week…a very bittersweet time of year for us. We have decided not to come back this winter with the ongoing drama and burden of the house of horrors in Groton, which we will be maintaining (and praying for no disasters) this winter…as I’ve said , we have TOO many houses. So, away we go…should be an interesting trip home-packed to the gills with two cats and Lucy aboard.

But today, we are still here…light snow is falling along with the last of the leaves and pine trimmings. We are in the 20s at night and looking at low 40s high this week. We had our first snow on Halloween and many dustings since then, with the mountain peaks covered and the snow machines working at night at Okemo and Killington.

Jenn is in Cleveland for Ry and Lauren’s wedding shower and sent me an emergency e-mail this morning to make sure to water the Wheat Grass- a process that involves bending each plant aside to gently spray each root (no shit!). Wheat grass is one of the staples of our life in Vermont. We start every morning with a shot glass of the sickly sweet nectar to correct whatever we have eaten in the previous 24 hours and make us whole. Jen is heavily engaged in learning the art of growing and studies at the foot of our local master, Peter, who is a Communist who claims to be hiding from the state department and is the bearer of all things wheat grass. We broke into his house one night while he was gone to retrieve an unclaimed container of peek ready wheat grass that would have apparently gone to waste had we not rescued it. Such is life in the organic , no “GMO” state.

We have spent a lot of time in Groton lately; overseeing the preparations for winter- including the erection of a new room; a 6×10 shanty to cover and insulate the basement water pump that provides water for the apartment- so that after we drain the house system and shut it down there will still be water for the apartment in winter…please make it stop! So now we  can list the house on MLS as 24 rooms instead of 23- which should really jack up our showings.

One benefit of stick season is that all the algae in THE POND is now dead , and it looks great…reborn in fact. I’m thinking we just need a refrigeration unit out there all summer and it will be crystal clear…really, see the pictures.

We got up to the Northeast Kingdom the week before last for our final leaves trek of the year. It was grey and wet but we saw 3 or 4 trees with nice leaves on them. Lucy got to stay in her first Country Inn and made lots of new friends everywhere she went. We went to some of our favorite Vermont remote classics- like Brownington and Craftsbury Common to play in the fallen leaves and we found a diner in Coventry that a Boston paper said has the best southern fried chicken north of the Mason-Dixon line (well, not really, but good anyway). We kept seeing sunshine in the distance- so our trip was based on trying to catch up with it-we caught it several times- for about 5 minutes. All in all, we had a great leaf chasing Fall-the locals say it was the best foliage in 20 years, and I think we caught almost every tree in the state(and some in NY and NH)- before they shed. But now….gone….and…STICKS!!!

Out trips also led us to a bunch of wildlife sightings including mountain rams, lots of wild turkeys and chickens, exotic birds heading south (like us, but further) and maybe even a Beefalo, though it may have been a developmentally disabled cow.

We have continued to walk up our two road hills to catch the diminishing view- which Lucy really likes and she and I did a bit on the Appalachian Trail yesterday; I suppose stick season has its own kind of beauty…but not all that much.

So, I’m sad to say, this will be my last missive until the Spring. Some of you have asked me to continue when back in the flatland, but who wants to know about life in the Midwest, anyway? But, I’m glad to have shared with you every few weeks and hope you continue to find this amusing.

If you did not hear the Car Talk tribute to brother Tom (by brother Ray), who died this week- it is one for the ages. I laughed and cried for an hour. I’m including a link you can access it with.

http://www.cartalk.com/content/1445-tommy-riposa-pace

Be well, do good work and stay in touch.

Love, STU

Happy Autumn from the Green Mountains:

“ This Autumn, why do I get old? In clouds a bird.” BASHO

I have been SO delinquent in my composing- it has gotten behind me and is now overwhelming. Lots of visitors, lots of leaves, lots of Lucy…all keeping me from my assigned duties. So- this version will be a Zen of happenings- with lots of pictures because they tell a story, no? Visits from all our kids plus my niece and family from Florida left me with ridiculous amount of once in a lifetime photo ops- so I have included a substantial tasting here. If you want to see more of the photos from the two family visit- you can go to Shutterfly links below:

Kids visit- http://share.shutterfly.com/share/received/welcome.sfly?fid=a6343aa70ae3a880&sid=2CauG7RyxZMok
Florida Juban visit- http://share.shutterfly.com/share/received/welcome.sfly?fid=f0dba6dd3f463006&sid=2CauG7RyxZMpC

THE ZEN……………………………………………..

The Kids come to Vermont- how many 20-30 somethings does it take to screw in a light bulb? They came, they conquered, they went. Theme of the week established when we picked them up at Manchester airport and as they came out of terminal and I greeted them with a booming “Welcome to New England” a fellow passenger walking out with them commented “they don’t look too enthusiastic?” There was a lot of smart phone bonding, we learned Ryan wants to kill wild turkeys with his bare hands, we dragged them all over Vermont to see the foliage, Jake found out he is bigger than he thought in our low ceilinged kitchen and is the master of “selfies”, the boys are not afraid of diving into an icy Fall quarry of water, and we found that the family that Yogas together….”

The Pond- has defeated me; I am turning in my strainer and filling it with dirt…

Lucy- is growing in leaps and bounds, is a mighty traveler who goes everywhere with us, hikes for miles with her short little legs, hates water but likes Kayaks, had her first ham bone and then shit for four days straight all over the house, and cannot go anywhere without the paparazzi chasing her (and me!) . We were on a fall outing and waiting outside Singletons’ wonderful store in Proctorville for Jenn to bring us breakfast sandwiches- when a truck full of deer hunters pulled up with carcasses on the roof and deer blood all over them….Lucy thought this might be a sign from Heaven and behaved accordingly- trying to get the deer off the roof and the clothes off the hunters….

The Jubans visit from Florida…if you don’t know what a Juban is-you’ll have to look it up. Likes: shopping, the Vermont Country Store (we had to drag them out), fried food and sugar (Lena), unlimited pictures of my great niece- 17 year old Lena, who dresses for the part multiple times daily, being out of Florida, autumn leaves, any place that looks like Asheville.

Dislikes: interrupted shopping, wheat grass and outdoors (except Omelio), cold houses, my driving. They were here on Columbus Day weekend- so activities were boundless and they got to go to our local Cider Days Festival , in Belmont, see the 200 year old Cider press in action, shop and watch me play a set of music on the green in frigid morning temps. We made our first ever trip to a Mickey D drive through to get Lena the requisite chicken tenders and fries (I believe this is a misdemeanor in Vermont)…a whirlwind of three days.

Autumn is HERE- we have been chasing THE PEAK for over three weeks- as it shifts around the state- a tradition amongst the mountain folk. We are way past foliage peak here- but still looking. Spent a couple of nights in the Islands two weeks ago (yes- there are Islands in Vermont- see the sunsets) and last week in the Adirondacks (we found Frank Zappa to be alive). Lucy likes staying in strange places with strange eating to be had. This week will be our last ditch effort as we head up to the Northeast Kingdom. We’re trying to figure out where there may be foliage still (what hemisphere?) to keep the dream alive.

Plans afoot to head back to the Heartland mid-November

More Blog to come….maybe…. STU

Hello to all from the Green Mountains:

“ Renunciation is not giving up the things of the world, but accepting that they go away” Shunryu Suzuki

Music in Vermont- our local folk club did the last Music on the Green performance in Belmont of the season last week- 15 of us on and around a little gazebo stage as the late day sunshine turned into autumn chill. Got to lead on a few songs –while Lucy ran around like a bat out of hell chasing dogs and kids. There is little crazy video of the proceedings on You Tube you can take a gander at – http://youtu.be/AFqN8XXtueA. We’ve been getting out some to the local outdoor music scene and made a visit to Weston last Sunday to see Gypsy Reel- the local legends (one of whom plays with the folk club). Fair to say- we were the poorest people in attendance at this ritzy little town- but lots of big dogs for the pup to engage with. We also went to annual Pittsfield picnic (about 45 mites away up route 100) and were welcomed to a very small town event with local potluck extravaganza; old timey music, horseshoes, politicos stumping before the primary election and an African family (a jackpot to our count on people of color in Vermont). The little girls had braided hair- which Lucy latched on to  and would not let go of- luckily they were good humored about it. I also had to find a music store to put a pick-up in my new mandolin (Max birthday gift)- which turned out to require an hour’s drive to New Hampshire (surreptitiously crossing the border at night)- when I went back to retrieve it they had mysteriously closed for the day with no notice- so had to go aback a second time- all told six hours of trips to amplify the sound…….. not everything is so close in Vermont.

Saw the last play of the season at Weston Playhouse- a rendering of Chekhov’s Uncle Vanya- set in modern day Vermont- not really sure the Russian satire fits that well in the Green mountains- but it was entertaining. Sad to see the end of the season

Energy in Vermont- costs a damn lot…our electric bills are twice that of Ohio (further from the sun??)- so we are considering becoming part of a solar family (don’t ask) and owning a bunch of panels to undermine the super conglomerate utility collective (like the Russians in Uncle Vanya) and also doing a bunch of energy updates around the house to make the wind go around rather than through our 150 year old structure. So- Vermont (as you might imagine) really supports and subsidizes these improvement (GREEN Mountains!) and we get a number of incentives for doing this ( a bag of pot, I think) and on top of that they had a “find the flock” contest- where you had to spot a moving group of wooden geese on the road somewhere…and Jenn won the contest for a $1000 in improvement ; who knew wooden geese were worth that much…

The Pond…what a mess. I clean it for hours (up to 6000 now) and the scum comes back in a week. I really need a bigger strainer, and Lucy is not much help when she is out staring at me (see photo). We need to rob a bank or something (maybe find another flock?)so we can pay the pond guy to come and start over. We did decide that when we start doing our bed and breakfast the obvious name for it would be The Inn at Scum Pond. On the matter of  waters- we have continued our weekly kayaking-exploring the long and winding sections of Echo Lake for our water lunches.

Hiking and Indian food – we found a really nice trail that was recently finished that goes from downtown Rutland over the Library Pass to nearby Proctor (the marble capitol of the world-all buildings are made of marble)- so last Sunday we packed up Lucy and did the Reynolds Reservoir trail from Proctor- a really nice walk around 3 miles round trip up to the waters. Beautiful day on way up- got soaked from thunderstorm on way back- but found what might be the worlds’ first Indian restaurant in a gas station….better than you might think- so had our lunch while soaked in the car….Lucy didn’t even notice we were eating as she had passed out after her arduous walk on those tiny legs. (bonus- two more people of color- up to 49 now since May)..to top it off- they had cheap gas to go along with the Indian food.

Church- to conserve funds- Larry and Rachel have closed down the weekly services at the Quality Inn in Rutland and moved them to their house (next door)-so every Sunday we now have the Vermont Southern Baptists singing and praying down the driveway….and they have put up their signage on the way to our house(see pix). The evangelical pull is beginning to ferment our minds while we sleep.

That’s it for now- off to pack for the flatlands.

Be well and happy coming of autumn.

Stu

 

Happy Sunday from the Green Mountains:

“ Is the money you make worth the price that you pay, when you’re laying your soul on the line” Graham Nash

Been lollygagging on getting the blog done- and realized it was going to be overwhelmed by Lucy at 13 weeks…so we are like new parents and you have to look at all our damn pictures. Decided to send these separately- since some of you may (shockingly) have no interest at all in our progeny.

Lucy spends most of her time either helping Jenn with her house chores (very little help) or gnawing on Stu’s arms- but occasionally gets out for an adventure. We took her on her fist kayak- and she immediately tried to jump in the lake- so had to take her to a beach and throw her in 4-5 times to see if she floats. After that- she did not try to jump in- but established herself as a hood ornament- but she slipped off and had to be towed in by a lucky Stu who had her leash wound around his wrist.

She did her fist major hike-about 3 miles- with her little legs going overtime…came home and slept for six hours.

She also went to her fist community picnic- and found a group of little African girls (in Vermont, no less) with braids- that she spent hours climbing all over the little girls and chewing on their braids (a crowd favorite). Stu took her away for a walk-and found that she is quite a magnet for meeting girl- people (hmmm…)

Hope you like the pix- the rest of the blog will be coming shortly.

Stu

Happy Sunday from the Green Mountains:

“ If you do not find God in the next person you meet, it’s waste of time looking for him further” Gandhi

It’s been an exciting time in the mountains- new kayak routes, more house guests, the first signs of autumn, black bears …and the arrival of little Lucy. Kept the pix down to a minimum this week to reduce your workload……

Lucy- after a month long search, in which Jenn spent all her waking hours looking at dogs on line, we found a keeper, little Lucy, who joined our household yesterday. She’s a little fur ball of half beagle/dachshund and half black lab/Sheppard. The father was the beagle- so we have been trying to imagine the logistics of that particular mating. Dogs are not easy to come by in our parts- most are rescue dogs that are shipped up from the heat of the south-looking for more progressive heath care no doubt. We found Lucy on Craig’s List- a rare puppy offering around here- and made the trek to Port Henry, NY to gather her. On the way home- we stopped at the Farmer’s Market in Rutland to see our friend Robin to see if she had a crate we could borrow and she did- so stopped at her and Scott’s farm to pick it up-where Lucy was chased all over by their two much bigger dogs. Scott is a 65 year old hyper Long Island Jew who has taken up organic pig and turkey farming in Vermont and is clearly Miscpucha (look it up and get current with your Yiddish)

Recreation in Belmont- we went to the annual square dance in Belmont last Saturday night; usually happens in the middle of town, but a lot of rain- so it took place on the tiny elementary school gym. Sixty five people showed up- many of them kids who were summer camping nearby and we had 12 groups of eight …actually learned to do the whole shebang from an 85 year old caller who has been hosting these dances since the 70s. Jenn and I got to dosey-do with two little girls who were so embarrassed to be promenading with a couple of old hippie types…we may now take up the northern square dance circuit.

Wildlife and Kayaking in the mountains- in addition to our frog community, have recently had a massive doe hang out in our backyard and I am slowly making friends with a local hummingbird (she stands in front of me treading air and twirping) and chipmunk (she eats the hummingbird’s food- brazen as all get up). This week , I was coming back from the gym Ludlow (in the armory in a room half the size of my living room) and barely missed hitting an adolescent black bear as it scurried across the road- on its way to visit the Crowley Cheese Factory, I assumed. And of course, the birds are quite fantastic on our kayak trips…the most recent taking place this week along splendid route 100 (prettiest road in Vermont) on Echo Lake…check out the flowers in the lily pads there. Our kayaking trips are all about the same- we kayak for a half hour- attach our boats on the middle of the lake where we eat lunch and doze and then kayak for another half hour and go home…luckily we have a new method for getting boats in and out of Subaru trunk that is pretty efficient and does not result in violence between us.

Plus- I did my first fishing expedition this week. Since Josh next door hangs round all summer with nothing to do- I asked him to go fishing with me to nearby Spring Lake. Josh has bedazzled me with stories of his fishing skills- so I thought I would be in good hands. I brought my new rod and tackle that Steve and Sue bought me last year for our foray into Vermont living. Got to the spot and walked halfway around the remote lake to discover my rod needed line put in…(I’m from the Bronx, what do I know from stringing a fishing rod- I know from guitars and tractors and spark-plugs as I have adjusted to being a country boy, but fishing has thus far escaped me) but Josh says no problem- so we spend two hours trying to get my pole set up…clearly he knows less than I do, and sit around sweating and cursing. Finally a young woman comes down the trail with her dog and nephew and takes on the challenge-also failing, until she finds a spot for her smart phone to work and googles instructions, which work splendidly. She leaves- we get ready and Josh has brought a tin full of worms he dug up for the occasion- but somehow is it just dirt, so I tie on (is that the right phrase? Sounds like getting drunk)this nifty looking fly I find in my box (says it is the best fly ever made- guaranteed to sang every fish in the pond) and do a mighty cast- immediately hooking the largest volcanic rock in the lake….well, let’s just say we caught a lot of rocks, lost a lot of line and went home hungry . A nice gent strolling by us advised he had been fishing that spot for almost 60 years- during which time he had caught three fish…but I’m ready for the next time now.

More Guests at the Mount- we had overnight guests again this week. My old friend, Mark Begin, and his son Miles stopped by on joint motorcycle trip. Mark had driven out from Madison, Wisconsin and Miles drove up from the West Village to meet him. We greeted them after they had a long wet drive through the green mountains and had a nice dinner in town , good catch up and the traditional hearty breakfast before they again left in the rain. We baby sat for Miles a lot when he was a tyke so it is pretty weird to hang with this very adult 33 year old man who is making his way in NYC. Miles mom, Deb, was Max’s delivery nurse and she was 8 months pregnant at the time- so Max’s protracted arrival helped bring about Miles arrival and they were inseparable for the first five years of their life. While he was here, Mark, who is a design fabricator (look it up) took a look at our broken window crank that has no apparent fix, without going on an overseas journey to find a 1970’s part- and proclaimed several fixes- which would be the demise of our two month project to find someone with such a trinket in their basement pile…another of our never ending projects. All in all, another  nice visit and if you look on Trip Advisor, I think you’ll find we are again rated as New England’s’ best bed and breakfast.

Autumn is coming- and we woke on August 15th to see leaves changing outside our bedroom window…the foliage season is not far behind. See the pretty leaves in the pix.

I have to go back out to the Pond- as the scum never sleeps…and is coming back in force-so the daily kayak straining trip is in order…and we have to take Lucy out and wear her out, so we can take a nap.

Enjoy the end of summer,
Love,

Stu

Well-it’s been a about a year and 4000 hours –for those of you who have been religiously following the pond EPIC…check out THE POND pix …the Kayak turned out to be the trick- though I doubt it will stay this way. One small step for Stu, one giant step for the frogs….

Hello all from the Green Mountains:

“ When the wooden man begins to sing, the stone woman gets up to dance” Zen Saying

Lots of good pictures attached to accompany this week’s narrative- so keep up with the program, please. It’s pretty cold out this morning- starting to see hints of Fall in drives around the area-will not be long until the reds and gold are everywhere. Finally got home for some time after three straight weeks of traveling- Indy, Big Easy and Birmingham- pretty damn hot in all those places- so nice to be back in our temperate world of summer. Been a busy time at the Mount- so let’s get to it.

Mega organic farms- took a trip to Dartmouth a few weeks ago to put up flyers for selling the house of horrors…not having much luck with that..and stopped at Cedar Circle Farms in East Thetford, Vt.- acres and acre of organic vegs and tomato plants from Mars- see pictures of their gardens- had to drag Jenn away kicking and screaming as she just wanted to play around in their dirt. Made it a night with walk around Dartmouth campus, stop at the King Arthur Flour Company (since 1790!) and dinner at our favorite second floor Thai restaurant.

Guests at the Mount- we had our second dinner party at the homestead with 5 other couples attending –none of whom had ever laid eyes on each other before- it was a potluck and we had our first dinner on the great porch- with 12 people all jammed around our table. We had pulled pork from our friends Robin and Scotts’ farm- from a pig they had just slaughtered (that is Vermont!) and an amazing time was had by all- the noise level of talk at dinner was pretty amazing and then we all went down to study the pond situation. Then , my old friend Phil and his wife Maux and daughter, Phoebe came by for an overnight on way back from a week in Maine. We had pizza at our fave, Ramontos, in Rutland and spent Sunday morning in Weston, visiting the Priory (like from DaVinci Code) and the Vt. Country Store… they left with purchases. The Priory, which is a Benedictine monastery in the woods on 500 acres, has a gift shop, and apparently features the art of African- American artists- as it said “Brother’s Art downstairs” (Phil said it was the “monks” art- bit I think it is “the Brothers”). They also spent some time assessing the pond situation as you can see from the pix- and also communed with our vast frog population. After sending them off from Weston- we headed to Spring Lake- our new favorite kayak locale- to take a quick walk around the lake trail. Three and half hours later we found ourselves fully lost on the Appalachian Trail and wandering in circles. None of the backpackers we ran into had any idea about a lake- but we ran into a kid with flip-flops who pointed us in the right direction and our car was actually around a ¼ mile away. No water, no compass, no snacks…practicing good hiking habits, no? Another questionable Jenn idea..

We also had our expected visit from Karin- our benefactress and the former house owner; she was visiting family back east stopped by while I was out of town(BUMMER) and immediately told Jenn we needed to cut the grass – though she was undoubtedly kidding- it has left us traumatized at not meeting her standards for maintaining the house…. She did give kudos on the shape of the Hostas in the garden, for which we then had a celebratory dinner. She also noted that the POND was always in good condition until Hurricane Irene; at which point the algae and scum set in…providing me with my new life’s work.

Community supper- You know we never miss these extravaganzas at the ”Oddfellows Hall” (Really!) in Belmont- they happen every two weeks in summer –each to benefit a different local organization. This week’s was roast pork, and we get to sit with local strangers and learn more about living in the mountains. We wound up with two Vermont state legislators and heard about the tales of woe of Vermont’s economy and the pressure to legalize pot, socialize medicine and bum out the gun control lobby. After everyone left I found Jenn deep in wheat grass conversation with Peter from my music group (Jenn thinks has name is Pierre and I’m not correcting her), who says he has been on the FBIs most wanted list for years of communist leanings and trips to Russia and is essentially hiding out in Belmont…we are now drinking shots of wheat grass daily…

So it’s afternoon now- took a break from this missive to go play in the POND for three hours; my new strategy being to attack the vermin with a super-sized strainer, and from inside the kayak. Have made amazing progress and hope to have it done in next day or two- which will result in a special edition of this “blog” to show the world what one man and strainer can do. After my next time in the kayak- it will be clean enough to treat with some magic substance from outer space which will make all the algae recede into the ground and go to a neighbor’s pond…stay tuned for pictures in next few days. There are a few good pix of our frog family included here- by the way they are pretty unhappy with my clean up and are bellowing at me to stop..they apparent really like the scum. We did have a pond man come out and tell us how he could make it like new for about 5K- which we will most likely spend after all the shit comes back despite my 4000 hours of pond straining.

Projects and Theater- my cousin Sherry tells me the right way to do house projects is to call someone- but she lived her whole life in the Bronx, before moving “upstate” and I went out to the Midwest as young man – to learn about self-sufficiency, the protestant work ethic and man overcoming nature…so we do a lot of projects. I do them because I feel compelled to be a house mensch; Jen does them because she gets some form of perverse pleasure for being more manly than I am- so this week we have been painting our deck rail, re-staining the deck, putting in new glass in broken windows and generally playing “this old house”…luckily we had out monthly theater tickets – so we had to stop for a few days (prep for the show, see the show, savor the show). The latest production at the Weston Playhouse was another one of those unlikely choices for a small theater- Chorus Line- which they again pulled off as if we were on Broadway (without any perverts, hawkers, noise, lights or traffic- and lots of free parking…) the show was great and there is only one left for this season- so will be bummed once it over, and the winds of autumn begin to descend.

So that’s about if for now. Have a big social calendar coming up with a wedding trip back to Ohio in early September , then our kids descending here for a week in late September, and the “Jubans” coming from Florida for a fall foliage visit…that’s a lot of house cleaning, bedding to procure and wheat grass to get mixed up…Talk again soon.

Love,

Stu

Hello all from the glory of the 31st floor of the Indianapolis JW Marriott (Really!):

“Dream as if you’ll live forever; Live as if you’ll die today”- James Dean

Well, we made it back to the mountains after our whirlwind two weeks surrounding the wedding spectacular in Ohio…awfully good to be back in the mountains- even glad to see the scummy pond (more later). But, first a word, about Indianapolis. Here for work- goal to get in and get out; nice hotel but really, it’s Indy. Best you can hope for is race cars and steak. But, no- I am finding another side of this long forgotten Midwest mecca while being here without any colleagues during mid-summer…it’s a pretty cool place. Downtown is bordered by the White River State Park river walk area- with a real river (who knew?) that has all kinds of hiking/running paths, museums, gardens, zoo, live music and people biking, seqway-ing, carriage-ing, and strolling all over the place- it’s really alive- and I have been jogging around it for days plus I can see it all (including a Queen tribute band …REALLY…from my picture room’s window.) And to top it off, Indy has a real Jewish deli- with real Jewish people behind the counter- a place where you can get a corned beef sandwich, matzo ball soup and latkes for about the cost of a NY hot dog (but you have to walk through the hood first). So- don’t all run to make your Indy vacation plans- but if you come, they will build it.

Addendum: after I wrote the above- I went out in search of dinner and went wandering towards the sound of music. It took me to all things- a series of canals…yes CANALS..with al fresco dining, murals and glass sculptures, shops, apartments, little half round bridges AND singing gondoliers (in ITALIAN)…so apparently Indianapolis is the Venice of the Midwest…

So- I really think a picture is worth a 1000 words- and the attached pix kind of tells the story of last few weeks- but I know you, my very discriminating audience, will be irate if I don’t include a few illuminating words- so I will endeavor to keep it brief (how am I doing so far?):

You can’t leave for too long- without a lot going on…Check out Karen’s’ (now Jenn’s) flower gardens- wow- they are blooming wild despite the fact that the neighbors’ forgot to water them for 2 weeks (while they were busy sleeping in our beds at night- all of the three bears together..)and the pond…ughh.. I have returned to the kitchen strainer and am determined to make it a clear blue like the Caribbean before anyone comes. I did some work in it this week- and keep finding algae in hidden places on my body when I shower- which I believe is good for me, no?. Plus, our garage entry small door has become a giant spider web of glass- never seen one spider across the whole door- it’s really too pretty to fix, at least I think so. Unfortunately- our giant lawn rocks are now covered with their own kind of accumulated crud- so Jenn thinks we need to clean them (sorry- I missed the picture of her scrubbing rocks with a gas grill cleaning brush)

And the search for a good yard-boy (man): with trying to make sure the property is in good enough shape to not be publicly flogged should Karin show up for a visit- we have tried for 2 years to find a good yard helper. Put an ad in the local e-serve and got a number of response- so this week we met Collin, an 18 year old Zen mystic who “loves our land”…and he was willing to join me in straining out the pond inch by inch- so we had our first experience with him, and all we keep saying is “He’s not Marcus”…a mantra if ever there was one…but he is pretty cool and he lets me call him Dylan instead.

Preparing the house for guests…is very important to us. So the day after we got back we spent all day scrubbing everything to perfection for a visit from George an Connie- who wound up having to cancel….but the house is quite clean for now, and Jenn continues to move around furniture that she finds country-offensive. I then move it back to assure everything stays exactly the way we found it- and this goes on for a number of days until someone gives up ..I did find a very cool little wooden box with Norwegian rose maul painting on it hiding in a corner of the spare bedroom. The whole prep for guests will get a double whammy for the ages this week when we have a dinner party for all the couples we have met in the last two years…and on top of that have been told by her daughter, Christine, that we may have a visit from our benefactress, Karin, who is coming back EAST for few weeks…that is the visit of all visits and will require 36 hours of non-stop cleaning and then staying somewhere else until she comes. And by the way, we have now settled on our new Persian rug in the remodeled den- to go with our new furniture- after having lived with alternating 3 rugs for two weeks- to find Jenn’s absolute best match (we chose the red one by default)

The cat room- is actually our year round enclosed porch which is an amazingly lovely room surrounded by windows and with our inherited wicker furniture… great place to sit and have lunch or listen to the bullfrogs lament at the pond….but honestly we very rarely have sitting rights to it and the cats have squatted there and despite not paying any property tax have made it their own. Oh well- we get to visit.

The weekly trip north- we made one last week to work on the house of horrors in Groton and visit Connie and George in Brookfield. The horror is getting better all the time; we finished last of outside painting and cleared out last two rooms and of course added to Spencer’s donut supply…seems ready to sell if only someone would come and maybe look at it. From there- we went over the mountain and down to Brookfield for dinner with Connie and George- always a noteworthy event. Turned into a beautiful night and they had all the rooms occupied at the B&B- so we stayed at the old family cottage (Roundtop) up on a hill outside of town. Owned by Connie’s family since the 1930s- it’s a magnificent spot with generations of family tchotchkes and a sweeping view of the hillside below. Spent a very peaceful night unhampered by the family ghost…chilly up there and we slept in separate twin beds –which was a good brief separation for us. I read the better part of a novel lounging around in the quaint family room and got to take some cool pix before we left the next day

And another great performance happened the night we returned at the great Weston Playhouse, a very funny takeoff on a Chekhov play –called Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike. Always well done and well-staged- but missed the band in the basement as not much music in this one. Since the band was not around, they served dinner in the basement before the play-which was actually quite nice in a great setting with views of the old mill and falls right out the window. I saw an African –American at the show- which brings our total sightings of people of color this year (in Vermont) to 26; we are planning a trip to Burlington which undoubtedly will double our number in one day. Speaking or people of color- was returning an item to Walmart last week ( we never miss a week of returns) and saw the astounding sight of a family of eight Hasidim Jews walk out…no, really ,and no drugs…there are apparently Hasidic Jews in Rutland, Vermont. But I can’t imagine where they eat.

Finally (I know this was supposed to be short- but a lot happened in my mind as I was writing)- we spent last Sunday afternoon at beautiful Chittenden Dam-just north of Rutland….what a spot; will be back there soon with the kayaks, if we can still fit them in the trunk, now that Jeep has been replaced by Subaru.). Took a nice hike and enjoyed a sunshine filled day in the brief summer of the green mountains.

So-enough, she said. See you soon?

STU