Category: Green Mountain Blog

Bean me up Scottie:

“It’s not doubt, but certainty that drives one mad” …………………………………………………………………………………………………………Friedrich Nietzsche

“Kind woman…. don’t leave me lonely tonight” ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. Richie Furay

“Soon I will find the right words…. they will be very simple” …………………………………………………………………………………………………Jack Kerouac

It’s another Tequila Sunrise…. dark, damp Sunday morn on the Mount……been a lot of those in last three weeks……with intermittent glorious days of 70 degree no-humidity sunshine…. feels a bit like Oregon living…when the sun comes out, it is time to go…go…. go…

The deluge has been GOOD for The Pond- whose cup runneth over……and maybe the most pristine it has ever been….no algae, no scummy….no nuthin’……where did it all go? …. Took a dip for first time after grueling mowing (more on that later) yesterday….and it was P_E_R_F_E_C_T………

We are up to one and half working phones……which apparently is par for the course in the mountains…. but not all that much fun….

The rain has had us mowing 2-3 times a week since we got back….which ……predictably, led to our lil’ ol’ tractor blowing up (again) this week….no mas……drained out the oil to see status –and it was almost all gas….which is generally a pretty bad sign….Joe the Mower guy came to get it yesterday….and…of course…..I put in fresh oil, cleaned it up…and the fucker started right up and ran like charm…..I hate the “mechanic thing” when it happens…..he took it away just for good measure or to make me feel less woodchucky….

So…this week resulted in …. twice push mowing the whole property……which I can tell is no country for old men……can I get a witness?

On the bright side…. The Queen’s newest obsession is……. making little gardens around all the volcanic rocks in the yard…. which has led to our newest ritual…. collecting cardboard……allegedly used to kill the grass for the next lil’ garden…and cover the cardboard with clippings from the bagged push mower……see the symmetry of it all?…..And bonus…a few more weeks of little garden making…and there will be no need to mow at all…

Had our first dinner gatherings in two years this week……first at the hobbit-home of The Erstwhile Russian Spy and The World’s Greatest School Marm…. just the four of us, plus Bilbo and Frodo……then last night were graced at the Manse by the Jewish Pig Farmer and the Empress of Death…although we made the dinner, TJPF brought his ribs……he goes nowhere without his ribs…almost always stopping on the way here to munch a few…. THIS feels a wee bit normal…

I have re-entered the world of making live music –returning to the Monday night folk club…to sit in a circle and drone for a few hours…. though it lacks spontaneity (of any kind) …. still good to sit in a room and expectorate with others……and after all, it is Vermont…. not crazed Florida…. Also went to our first music on the Green in Mt. Holly on Thursday…. with local statue, Jeb…and his friends (that is their name) …. how cool is it to see a community return to their green on a warm summer night?

Speaking of which, The Bunty Band will start arriving for a week of music next Sunday……playin the Green, having the Tie- Dye fest and hitting the studio for a short recording session……all, of course….TGLWATCDR…..c’mon social media wonks, you can  figure that one out…..

Friday dawned a G_D day….so we hit the road….crossing the border in good fog, to cover our tracks ….over to the place where everyone is living free or dying (masks optional) hit the super duper State Liquor agency (wildly cheap, no tax-of course-rather die than pay tax)…picked up a bag o’ booze for the coming festivities…..found a dirt road with Sasquatch tracks….and on to the Grand Walmart in lovely (not) Claremont…..where they welcome  Lucy to shop the lower shelves with open arms (theirs, not hers)….muddled around Puerto Nuevo (Newport in mountain slang)  and found the reputedly worlds best grinder shop ….not quite, but passable….hit the Ludlow Farmers Mah-ket on the way home….gorgeous mid-summer late day sun wafting….a little music, a little meat, a few veggies…day complete….

Made my first run to The Dump yesterday…. too busy with phones and mowing until now….and The Dumpmaster could not conceal his glee (I think that’s what it was) …. got the Walrus-hug and a mottle of questions about The Queen…that involved her svelte figure, a 12 pack and a power outage…go figure….

Today is the annual Mt. Holly Daze….so gotta get a move on….to go man the sizzlin’…. which TQ had volunteered me for…. per chance for the sun to emerge and cover the algae filled brilliance of Star Lake…. but that is probably for next week’s edition….

So…another day gone deeper in debt….do you owe your soul to the company store?      Be good, be careful, make it better world….

Stu

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Bonjour:

“Give me those Green country mountains; give me that Green country air” ………………………………………………………………MacGuffy Lane

“Having no destination, I am never lost” ………Ikkyu

“You have come to the shore- there are no instructions” ………………………………………………………Denise Levertov

Strange week, filled with various obsessions……. No pictures this week……. too obsessed……No real Mojo……just some randoms……

1. Who’ll stop the rain?………………………seven of last nine days……may be the end of the world as we know it……………no climate change here……

• I’d love to see the Green, Green grass of home……………………. mowed and whacked five times in two weeks….is this semi-retirement?……with a fifty year old riding mower that will soon be likely seeking respite…..

• Into The Mystic…………………after a months long search, located a mystical Shaman- Osteopath up in Middlebury, and made the hour trek to see him…. pipe, classical music, dog in the treatment room…have had one of these mystics in the Heartland, never thought I’d find another…. keepin’ the torso nubile…

• Cheeseburger in Paradise…………it has become hard to find restaurants open much these days in the mountains, with the COVID induced worker shortage…. but had couple of jewels this week at local Paisanos Deli (hidden in the bowels of a raunchy carryout in downtown Rutland)- and the Café Provence bakery (in Brandon, on the way to The Mystic and the dispensary) …. (4A) you can get it if you really want it…

• I believe in you…………………the next to closest local library, in Ludlow, allows you to order books on line….and they put it out in a grocery bag for you to pick up whenever……. trust is a beautiful thing…. kind of the polar opposite of dealing with the postal service, the IRS, the phone and cable behemoths……

• Security, Yeah, Yeah……I want some security………………………how many times have you gotten a response online that required sending you a security code to your phone?……try dealing with that with no cell signal…  and the requisite fifteen-minute expiration time on the code……trust is a beautiful thing…

• It is the dawning of the Age of Aquarius……. Farmers’ markets in Vermont are like a trip to Woodstock or The Haight……naked, children, dogs abounding, patchouli in the air, hippie musicians….and a ton of Granola……it’s another sign of the return to some normalcy here in the 90% Vax state….

• I woulda followed all the way to the graveyard……………………………………wandering the verdant mountain landscape, we come upon another of the magical places that dot the Vermont mountain skyline…. rich with terraced levels of beauty, mountains above-valley below…..stones gently asleep in wonderfully precise formation….telling the stories of lives and times…..there is such a beauty off a back road in Ludlow….who knew?

• You’ve got a friend…….The queen went prowlin’ this week (takin’ a break from on line shopping, whacking  and volunteering)to find the Woolley man, who is the emperor of roads in our hamlet……and flirted enough to get him on our side on the issue of the replacement of our little bridge which lead to the Manoir…..state wants to update our backyard dirt path into a passable road, whilst they replace the bridge….which would turn our driveway into a super highway…..but, no…..The Bowbie says (9A) don’t worry, be happy…..he’ll nudge them to put in a temp replacement bridge instead…..once again The Queen Greases the Bowbie…..

1. Get yourself a little piece of watermelon, put it in your mouth, it tastes like heaven………bought a luscious watermelon this week at Hannaford….which was left on the counter when after a day at home,  it seemed to be a deflated melon…all squishy and stuff…..TQ felt like she needed to keep it in order to show the grocery bastards what they had done……woke this morning to three gallons of watermelon juice all over the counter, the pantry floor and down into the basement….must have been a juicy one in its prime….

1. Ring the bells-that still can ring……in four days we have switched from Sprint to AT&T and on to Verizon……worse than used car shopping……and still searching for a mountain dial tone…is it evil to want to have a flip phone?

If you’ve made it this far, there is now a bonus….A QUIZ……Match the creator below with the numbered phrase or lyric above……winner gets  four old cell phones with cords…

Carol King___

Etta James___

John Fogerty___

Leonard Cohen___

Halsey___

Bob Marley___

Eric Weisberg and Deliverance___

Merle Haggard____

Neil Young___

Hair____

Jimmy Buffett___

Van The Man___

Bobby McFerrin___

And that has got to be it………. Feliz Navidad………………………Ferlin’

Greetings Fellow Travelers:

“Tilling the field in the shadow of a hill. Not a bird sings” ………………Buson

“Little by little- one travels far” ……………………………Some Astute Spaniard

“Silence is so accurate” ……………………………………………Mark Rothko

“Don’t confront me with my failures- I have not forgotten them” ..Jackson Browne

“Well, the first days are the hardest days- don’t you worry anymore” ……Garcia/Hunter

GREEN is the color of the moun-tain lair……in the morning when I rise (Donovan-ish) ……I’m just wild about Saffron…………. First full week on The Mount produced many observations…….

Fourth of July………..first gathering around The Town Green in two years……..lots of hugging, hand slapping…..that’s what happens in a state with a near 90% Vax rate….in a state with a Republican governor, mind you…..though thankfully not named DeSantis, Abbott or Noel (the Unholy trio)…..still apparently a Plaque hoax in those places……..but, I digress…….the eight minute parade was magnificent….and The Queen….well you got to see the pix…nuff’ said……resumed Sunday rituals (what, if not rituals?)…and made the short mountain drive down trough Weston,  Londonderry, to Stratton mountain, for the call- in exotic sausages at Honeypie and a short dirt road walk….

Days spent whacking and whacking and whacking (machine induced whacking, that is) ……uncovered The Pond from its four-foot surround of weeds and got the poor man’s pump/fountain going…. got the 55-year-old mower running and slayed the yard…. posted on line for yard boy/girl……no takers…. just ol’ Nanna and Papi with the ancient power tools …. gonna need a better caretaker……

The gym at Okemo has fully reopened now…. but ONLY for hotel guests and condo owners …. locals left out…. ugghh….so got The Gym in the barn set up and back to cosmic, barnyard exercising (or exorcising?) …. but who’s complaining?

The Queen is reclaiming her throne with many planning events with the local Association yentas and starting up her multiple volunteering efforts……busy enough that after ten days we still have not vacuumed the house……but then again, who’s gonna know?

The Dumpmaster expressed great dissatisfaction, on our return, that we had said we would be back in June, and it was the first week in July……. which apparently left him more cantankerous than usual……

Made it down to Sal’s’ Red- Gravy dive for its many iterations of the same pasta dish on Thursday night…and on the way stopped in our tracks in Cuttingsville to check out the familiar looking Subaru for sale on the side of the road……which drew our eyes, because it was our Subaru that we just sold in January….we could tell by Lucy’s footprints embedded on the console…..guess our buyers (once were friends of friends- wanting to be our friends- but probably not anymore) did not care for the ol’ clunker- although did notice they were selling it for 2K more than they bought it….a bit surreal…

Friday, we geared up for a full day in the city (well, Rutland, which is as close as we get, but not to be confused with The Apple, or Boston or even Burlington)….Aside from shopping and lunch at Ernie’s Hand Carved (shockingly good corned beef and pastrami on rye for the hinterlands)….we bit the bullet and visited both the Verizon and AT&T phone emporiums……to me that is like used car shopping….but, what are you gonna do, when you’re going on ten days of no phones through Sprint….time for a change, no….The monopolizers were by far more professional and service oriented…..so hopefully we can make the jump this week and have some form of contact with the flatland..

During the shopping, I came close to having my first physical altercation in probably 45 years….when an Old Vermont codger took exception with my sliding by him to get milk, after he ignored my three “excuse- mes”…started yelling at me and got in my face…luckily a store manager intervened before I went for the KO…then he followed me around the store, giving me the stink-eye, while guzzling beer from one hand and maple syrup from the other…..I’m going to assume he was unvaccinated….

After a week of mostly cold and rain, Saturday dawned a perfect mountain day – 75, sunny, blue skies, zero humidity, so we headed into town early to hit the post office to see if our mail, which has been floating around since some time in April, had found us (it can wind up in any of the 3 post offices within two miles of us)….don’t get me started on the postal service unless you plan to give me a rifle and show me a bell tower (how many times can I use that?)…..suffice to say that no amount of funding will fix that venerable institution. After only having to visit two of the three offices, we got a few floaters, and made for Ludlow to pick up breakfast sandwiches at The Café-at –Delight ( it’s at the only light in Ludlow, get it?)…..calling in the order turned out to be a long term commitment, the young woman can only be described as resembling the woman from the Dr. Rick “how to not be your parents’” commercials…the one who has the no cussin’, no fussin’ sign)-had to tell her the simple two- sandwich order four times and literally spell out wheat toast for her…….

….After a protracted wait, we got our grub and stumbled on to the magnificent Ludlow Cemetery with many levels of ancient stones and beautiful view of the slopes and valley…..and….a phone signal….my phone rang for the first time in ten days…and I was so excited I talked to a robo-caller…..Satiated by the breakfast, views and a good walk….we continued on to Shrewsbury to impromptu visit the Trout King and pick up the annual bucket of Pond Elixir…he said he had no time for us, but let us go down to the tanks  anyway, and then yakked at us for a half hour, with the mantra “what Pond Sins shave you committed so far this year”?…… eventually we left with our $300 bucket…and on to see Farmer Jeff to buy three months worth of organic Yogi meats…thus stocked, we headed home, where The Queen engaged in hours of garden restoration, while Papi hit the couch….

And, so, here we are…another day, another dollar…what’s in your wallet?

Happy trails to you-until we met again.

Papi- Monster

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Greetings Fellow Travelers –and Happy Independence Day to all:

“Summer Lightning! Yesterday in the East, today in the West” …………………………………………………………………………………………………. Takari Kikaku

“After all, if I can’t be myself, who can?” ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………Patrick Dennis

“We WILL Survive” …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………Garcia/Hunter

Got back on Thursday after a uniquely uneventful two-day drive, with the animals all roaming about the packed cars. Overnight in Binghamton with classic Chinese from a dive near the hotel. Not a lot has YET happened, but thought to get in a little BLOG practice with quick hello to all……Welcome Back, Kotter………. thus, a simple few observations:

We left weeks of 90 degrees plus tropics in the Heartland to arrive to three straight days of all day rain and fifty degree temps………welcome to the mountains…

Already missing the three granddaughters (and the one due shortly) who we spent four plus months seeing a lot of…as Ohio began to return to some sense of normal….the birds came out….the Cicadas went nuts….had people in our house and even staying over for the first time in 15 months, actually got on plane and went to see The Prodigal for a glorious week in Paradise, went to TWO real baseball games, and The Band started to play again….so will be more jonesing than usual for the kids, grandkids and old friends

We may need a property management company if we are going to stay in the Heartland this late in the season. We had Ancient George mow for us, but clearly that is more like bush hogging, so the yard is a mess with four foot stalks surrounding THE POND, trees and rocks. May need triple chiropractic appointments after we get it all wacked……hard to tell what shape The POND is in, as can’t see it yet…but, MURKY, seems apparent……

Cable companies……. I’m looking for a rifle and bell tower…. Comcast promised a simple “plug it in, it will work” internet experience…which went fine until they then wanted a security check by sending me the ubiquitous security code via text……problem being no internet, no phones, no text, no nothin’…… Well, internet got up and running –after two trips to the closest mountaintop to get a one- bar -cell – signal if I stood on one leg and faced north by northeast with the wind at my back…just so I could call Comcast and tell them we could not get a security text code because we had no phones without the internet. Had to change all our security settings…spent hours and hours……. but now working……BUT phone booster not working –so still no phone service and no help from sprint…….so may be on non-speaking terms with the rest of the world…. Zoom, anyone?……………….Country livin’………

Aging does not boost moving- in experiences…seems like what used to take us a day, may be taking a week…even with our level of obsessiveness….175-year-old houses need lots of opening up love…. gettin’ there, but really need a yard/house boy badly…takers?

Have not left the manse except for the most expensive grocery trip in history, two trips to Rutland to find dam printer ink, and quick hitters to replenish at Ramuntos, Java Babas and Taco-Taco……the grand culinary trifecta for homeless people……………………

Today is first community event in Mt. Holly in two years…and The Queen is off to help get the Association float ready for the eight-minute parade at noon…. will be our first venture into a (mostly) maskless Vermont world (almost 90% Vax rate here)….so will see how much our friends and peeps have aged in two years….hoping for an exotic sausage run down to Londonderry later today…and a much needed dirt road walk….

And finally, now that Vermont is legalized and edibles are the rage…. date night has been re-dubbed “Cookie and Nookie”….only in Vermont….the Brave Little state…..

May the year ahead be a lot better than the year behind…. for all of us, I’ll be in touch…and we’ll keep the light n for you……..

Stu/Papi

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Last Dance version, my friends:

“Each day’s a new day, Confusin’ at best.

 We drive on unclear, though it all seems to test,

  Our feelings of strength, while we all stay oppressed.

  The truth remains….quite overdue.”……………

”Confusin’ at Best”………………Ferlin’ Norris

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Last Dance version, my friends:

“Each day’s a new day, Confusin’ at best.

  We drive on unclear, though it all seems to test,

  Our feelings of strength, while we all stay oppressed.

  The truth remains…. quite overdue.” …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….” Confusin’ at Best” ………………Ferlin’ Norris

The cars are getting packed……the house is getting stored up……the backs are achin’……the animals are going nuts with the activity ……. Time has come today……. Time………off tomorrow morning for the Heartland return…. little darlin’……it’s been a long and lonely winter……………………. after another 2-3 feet of snow this week in the mountain Snowbelt, hoping for a slightly greener pastures……so this short one is it for a while………………………

Got in one last drive/ride/hike last Sunday ……trudging and slip sliding through a snow covered dirt road….and then on to Honeypie for the exotic sausages……we had another 18 inches the night before, which simply adds to the biggest ongoing pile of snow I’ve ever seen……it’s no wonder people wear chains on their boots here………………

The Snow Queen finally got out on the slopes on Thursday……in sun and balmy 25 degrees (generally shorts and flip glop weather in the Greens)……she rounded up all borrowed equipment, and headed over to the next ridge  at Okemo……got in three runs…and came home exhausted, sore and with a sprained thumb…..ah, the sporting life……did not cost a fortune as she was gifted a daily VIP pass from our friend who works at local giant, GE…….but the price list for skiing??????……is this one of the ultimate forms of white privilege?????……Holy cow….

When we sold our Subaru, we took off the crossbars on the roof rack…imagining they were standard and would simply fit the roof rack on the new car…..NOT…..shamefully procrastinated checking until a few days ago, to learn they did not fit…..which would mean traveling back without the usual car top carrier……would not be that hard without three animals roaming loose through the car and schlepping all their gear……so had to spend three last minute hours in piles of snow and 15 degree temps (still can’t get into the snow blocked barn/garage) jury rigging the cross bars to fit the roof rack on the new Jeep……which, despite frostbitten toes and fingers, we managed to do together, without calling the police for a domestic……………………..

So…this is my requiem for a mountain Covid winter……..had one last dinner on the ground at the Jewish Pig Farmer and the Empress of Death Farm……lucked out for eating outside around the fire pit, with 35 and light snow….fine dining weather , even for standing around in three feet of snow…..and the JPF went whole hog (no pun) on an Indian (dots) feast…..the entertainment for the day consisted of watching them burn a three by three plastic tub’s worth of herbal delight from their bumper crop……I could not stop trying to estimate street value as they fed the fire…and wondered why the neighboring farmers kept drifting by to take a whiff……apparently surplus bud burnin’ is a thing in Vermont….

So……its’ off to packin, haulin’ and loadin’……have to fit in a run to see The Dumpmaster, who said he will forever curse our trash, if I don’t bring “the little lady” by before we leave…. apparently he remains our principle mountain obligation……so will be back somewhere on the other side….

Until then, remain vigilant, stay safe, wear you mask, love the ones you’re with….and stay in touch….

Your Humble Servant…or maybe it is Savant………, Stu

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It is the evening of the day:

“My life is my practice” …………………………………………………Ram Dass

“When it snows, you have two choices: shovel or make snow angels.”………………………………………………………………………………Unknown

“The Real Winter is coming.”………………………………………………………………………Ned Stark

“Don’t eat the yellow snow” ………………………………………Frank Zappa 

It is the evening of the day:

Well…. there has been good news and bad news this week on The Mount……we have now had two straight days without any significant snow (first time in two months) ……but it has not cracked 10 degrees in last three days, with wind chills of minus 30……. today is going to be like Carnival as it is snowless, sunny and going up to 20……. nibblin’ on sponge cake, watchin’ the sun bake…

Of course, reprieve is temp……as this morning received my frequent text message from the state (glad I don’t have data rates apply shit) ……” A winter storm watch has been issued for your area” ……I imagine some sadist in a mountain hideout on the Canuck border gets some form of perverted joy from issuing these almost daily……. but…. I, for one…. have had just about enough………

The Snow Queen (formerly The Queen)……is deep in preparation for the Mt. Holly Olympic Quaathalon Trials……skiing, snowshoeing, sledding, driveway shoveling……..while yours truly is working on world class cursing while he slips and slides to the car occasionally (on days he ventures to leave the solitude of closet and couch)……then spends an hour out cracking ice off the windshield, with occasional forays to try and get into the snow encased barn…………even tried getting out to jog this week on route 103…and had to go back to the house to put chains on my sneakers (I really do have shoe chains….but that is a later story)……

So…..All of this is to say….it is TIME…….Vermont winter- check……Snowbound for weeks- check……….not seeing another human being for days on end- check……no sign of grass or dirt for months- check……So next week, we head back to the Plaque infested heartland….to shelter at home, whatever exactly that means…..in some ways,  it will be leaving the sanctity of the mountains with heavy heart…..the simplicity of the quietude, the countless opportunities for reflection, the natural beauty……on the other hand……..there will be Chinese delivery…….

But…. alas, the next to last snowbound week, was not without highlights……. want ‘em or not……

IT’S a Girl– Tessa and Jake have arranged for granddaughter number four…. due in August……we will now need two sets of bunk beds ….and more Pond floaties……

COVID silver lining Redux– The prodigal has been guiding me through making on- line music……which has been an unexpected treasure…..even got me to use my gifted and long buried IPhone to record, which is far superior to the laptop method….and he has produced multiple efforts…..attached to the photos section is an MP3 of our version of Roseanne Cash’s take on the ubiquitous folk standard, “500 Miles” …from Max, The Nave and I (if you are reading this on the website, you may not be able to listen…..have to use the e-mail version to open it up)…..how cool is it to make music with your 40ish boy?

Finding the Banana Belt– last Sunday we decided to break out of the ice and go for our weekly drive, lunch, hike……headed east to Bellows Falls, and then over to the Live Free or Die State (the total lack of mask wearing seems to support the mantra) ……left the manse at 10 degrees to find an almost 40 across the border…. luckily had my shorts and flip flops in the car…it’s only 30 miles’ away for Chrissakes….

Channeling Judd Hirsch– if you’ve never seen “Ordinary People”- watch it……. I did my first counseling sessions in over 35 years this week, with my first two assigned clients for my on line, virtual “Just Ask Papi” therapy institute…. trying to remember what the words “diagnosis” and “treatment plan” mean…. how weird is it to Zoom about sexual dysfunction with someone you’ve never met before?

Socializing in COVID/Mountain winter- went over to have one more farewell event with The Erstwhile Russian Spy and The World’s Most Beloved School Marm…. which amounted to huddling around a fire pit, ten feet apart, for two and a half hours, in 12-degree weather (hey, there was bit of sun, though) …. hot tea and baked goodies, a short walk to the greenhouse….and came away with the gifts of shoe chains (this a thing) and two pairs of Arctic socks…how could it be any better than this?

Food Gifting in the Mountains– the Jewish Pig Farmer called this week to try and get us over for one more frozen outdoor lunch gathering……. declined for the cold…. but he insisted I come by to get the Indian (dots) delicacies he had been obsessively preparing all week….so stopped over Saturday morning and came home with Kosher infused lentil- something soup and samosas……he was not quite done preparing when I got there, so muddled around the barnyard with the dogs for 20 minutes on the windswept frozen plain…..with the sounds of the pigs blaring out “eat me”, “eat me”  in the nearby barn…who says there is no free lunch?

Lunching in the time of COVID– I’ve always been an inveterate luncher-finding places to sit for an hour or more (usually after the late beloved gym sessions) at some local joint with my sports page as company. For years, when I worked at the Court, that meant The Mill Café at Beuhlers (a now defunct Ohio grocery chain) …when I walked in my usual waitress would prepare my deluxe veggie baguette, side fruit, pitcher of ice water……..so, in my confinement, I have discovered the re-creation of this tradition, with frozen ciabatta rolls, horseradish cheddar, assorted green things and pesto…..eating and trolling the NBA boxcars on the internet…alas this is a poor substitute….but it is, what it is….and someday……

Marjorie Taylor Greene– are you kidding me?

And that is all she wrote……. gotta go do some packing…. put on six layers to go for Sunday walk….and contemplate that Chinese delivery….stay safe, be love, get vaccinated…….

Papi-san

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Plop. Plop, Fizz, Fizz……. Oh What a Relief it is:

“Don’t look for miracles. You are The Miracle” ………………………Henry Miller

“This is our historic moment of crisis and challenge. And unity is the way forward” ………………………………………………………………. Joe Biden

“Please don’t bury me, in this cold, cold ground……I’d rather that they cut me and pass me all around” …………………………………John Prine

Plop, Plop, Fizz, Fizz……. Oh What a Relief it is:

“Don’t look for miracles. You are The Miracle” ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………Henry Miller

“This is our historic moment of crisis and challenge. And unity is the way forward” ………………………………………………………………. Joe Biden

“Please don’t bury me, in this cold, cold ground……I’d rather that they cut me and pass me all around” …………………………………John Prine

Well….the mighty winter sun came out this morning….which makes ten degrees seem a bit more tolerable……Frankly, I surrender……May be way too old to fully experience my first Vermont winter…..not sure we have any global warming here (see I can have a mind melding with The Donald)….ten straight days of below 20 degrees….and astounding 2-4 inches of snow each day……a pile across the property of two feet regularly……..no grass or dirt in sight…..THIS is life in  the Snowbelt of Vermont….Heard a guy this week talking about ice fishing on the radio…and he said you had to be careful since in some places the ice may not be frozen, due to it being a mild winter ……..IS HE SHITTING ME?????????……certainly not living in the mountains, the motley fool…plus, we were not expecting to spend the COVID winter when we came back this summer….so we have an assortment of layer gaps…..done ok, but then again….I’m feeling kinship with Eskimos……Now mind you, I am not complaining….well, then again……..Astonishing…….

NEWSFLASH……it snowed again last night………for the 47^th straight day………We are blessed……

BIGGER NEWSFLASH……Nana and Papi expecting fourth granddaughter (gender only predicted/assumed) …. ….in August……Tess and Jake now catching up with Ry and Lauren on producing progeny……How cool is all that?

So what did we learn about our peeps this week?…………Uncle Joe has a sharp pen…………………Kamala has a staggering array of pants suits………Ol’ Mitch does not like being demoted…………Bernie seems to love mittens…… The Donald does not seem to know the NEW president’s name……Ivanka and Jared are fiercely protective of their toilet……you can apparently bring a concealed weapon to Congress, if you are elected………. Andrew decided it was a good idea to move upstate before declaring to run for Mayor……and The Queen has developed a new passion…laundry machines……………….

Had a zoom this week with all of my recently unearthed New York cousins……how cool is it to be once again the youngest……good find….

Despite the cold, ice and snow….got out on Friday for the drive/lunch/walk weekly…….picked up lunch at the now carry-out only Java Babas…first time this year, after years of thrice weekly visits….and drove through the dirt road mounds of fresh snow to the picture perfect hamlet of Grafton…..at which we discovered a wonderland of dozens of miles of well-groomed cross country/snowshoes trails…..up and through the foothills of The Greens…with very few brave souls about…..this was the astounding find of the year……absolutely Magnifico…

Getting to be time……making plans to return to the heartland in the next 23- weeks……surrendering……back to new house, vaccine availability, Door Dash, Grub Hub, next day Amazon delivery, Chinese, Grocery, Mart five minutes away, streets without snow…and eventually…. kids and grandkids……not without trauma to leave the mountain cocoon, but feeling like it’s time. Trying to pull off a coup, and get first dose of the love potion here before leaving……and manage to access the second dose back in Ohio……safe to say the vaccinators are not set up for this scenario…. but am willing to bribe……

And then……ruminating on The Year of Plague…………has it been all bad (good argument for the affirmative) ……but I’ve been ruminating on THE Gifts of forced exile….and arrived at the following:

Discovering the extraordinary array of streaming……who is not juggling five shows at a time for binging?

Rediscovering the magic of books……………just finished my 140th of the last 12 months…. I’ve got 12 libraries on call to find my muses.

Babies………seems like a lot of them coming……why might this be?

Take out…. who knew you could get so much to eat without ever coming in contact with another human being…. has some attraction….

Relationships……how may straight days have you spent in the company of your significant other…. without calling the police…

Refection……what an opportunity this has been to consider who you really want to be and try it out…. time is on my side, yes it is

Health…. never around anyone…. never get sick…my longtime doctor thinks have I’ve passed it’s been so long since I’ve seen him

S-L-O-W-I-N-G   D-O-W-N………. have you gotten off the train?

Spending…. what is there to spend money on….no movies, eating out, concerts, gym memberships…. just a little carry out, a few edibles, a lot of Amazon….

And…waking up each morning…to one more gifted day on the Plagued Planet……. we shall overcome….

And that, my friends, is one more Sunday Sermon…………………………smile on your brother….

Love from afar, Papi

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Salutations:

“Nothing is often a good thing to do….and always a clever thing to say” ……………………………………………………………………………………Will Durant

“Where are we always going?…….Always home” …………………………………………………………………………………Novalis

“What do I do when my love is away?……..(Does it worry you to be alone?)
  How do I feel by the end of the day?……(Are you sad because you’re on your own?)” ……………………………………………………………John and Paul

Salutations:

“Nothing is often a good thing to do….and always a clever thing to say” ………………………………………………………………………………………………. Will Durant

“Where are we always going?…….Always home” ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………Novalis

“What do I do when my love is away?……..(Does it worry you to be alone?)
  How do I feel by the end of the day?……(Are you sad because you’re on your own?)” ……………………………………………………………………………. John and Paul

White is the color of my true love’s eyes…. when I rise……when I rise……. Have we had enough yet……every day seems like another 3-6 inches overnight………. seems absurd to bother to even shovel our front walkway……give me more…. give me more……it’s a freakin’ winter wonderland …. shouldn’t we all be in The Keys about now, watching a sunset, sipping margaritas?

Well, it’s Sunday, which is usually the drive and walk day…. but it’s like a frozen tundra out there……so maybe another binge on the ol’ Netflix???!!!

After the chaos of last week lookin’ like some assassination attempt of the Austrio- Hungarian days……we got out of dodge for three days…. up to the less than tropical islands of Lake Champlain…said lake being frozen solid despite its massive size – and playing home to hundreds of lunatic ice fisherman…..stayed at our usual autumnal haunt….a quaint cottage with sunset deck over the lake, sunken living room (really) and a cozy gas fireplace…..hit all the state parks in  nowhere land for trudging snow hikes…and found our Happy Chicken…..a little organic farm in Isle LaMotte….way off the path of civilization….for Mrs. Chicken’s  house made behemoth of a smoked chicken pot pie and her maple ribs….so did not have to leave the confines of home away from home for vittles…..safe to say we barely saw another human for three days……good place to hide out in the winter of COVID…

We took the recuperating Beast (of course) who had a run in this past week with a herding dog, when TQ decided she needed a communion and a walk with the Sovereign of Caravan Gardens- her erstwhile organic employer…..Lucy came back bleeding prodigiously, missing a chunk of ear and head-wrapped like “when Johnny comes marching home”…I offered to go gather the offending mutt and drop her in a hole in The Pond ice, ….but TQ declined the offer….so Lucy now has 1 ¾ ears…

Aren’t we all hoping (even the republicans secretly?) that this week is the dawn of a new day……The new bosses may not be a panacea, but can it possibly get worse…. just a smidgeon of humanity and dignity will seem like a chicken soup for our wounded souls, no????…. I have personally sent a note to The Donald offering him the services of my personal family tailor…. Shlomo and Sons of the Lower East Side….to make him a custom fit orange jumpsuit for his next assignment……and, did anyone notice the article this week, that Ivanka and Jarred did not allow their secret service detachment to use the bathrooms in their house….my sense of irony is going to go cold turkey without these Numchucks around…

After months of no personal contacts, we got out for a lunch this week with the Jewish Pig Farmer and the Empress of Death at their Pine Hollow Farm..…..with a balmy 32 degree day…..the JPF set us up with a  fire pit and covered barn way to sit outside (maskless, mind you) and have his ribs and meatballs…..we spent two hours standing in a circle outside, hopping from one foot to the other, until we finally finished up with TQ’s ambitious flourless, sugarless, carb free chocolate cake (why bother?)….and came home to unthaw….but…human contact?…..Priceless….

The next to latest snowstorm on Friday night left us with 6-8 inches of snow so heavy  it came down off the trees in potentially crushing 50 pound lumps…so just getting to the car was like running the gauntlet….but TQ…undeterred…went to Belmont to spend the last of her 25 hours cleaning the manse of some crazed metaphysical doctor from New York who specializes in oxygen injections to cure cancer….no shit…..but they had not been there for two weeks-so seemed safe enough…and apparently TQ wanted some mad money to spend as she wishes (bedding on the way?)….the roads were so bad she could not get near the house, so I had to drop off and pickup…from which she trundled across their moat to attacks their dust mites….all the while we had no power for four hours…..so I went over to see The Dumpmaster, where they had power (“tell the little lady, she can come to my house to warm up,” he says, distraught that he got the wrong partner this week)…….stopped at the Belmont Mall to pick up a free fryer and sombrero…..just in case……and then The Beast, little Grace and even the spectral Saffron (formerly Malo and Mahalo) sat huddled around the raging fireplace…waiting for a sign from G_D….or at least from the Green Mountain Power….with no landline or cell service, power outages become particularly exciting here….but then again…..It is winter in Vermont……..

And that, my friend, should be more than enough……stay safe…. don’t go near a state capitol without body armor…. dream about injections……spread the love….

From Me to You, Papi

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Greetings- Shocked to get this in your box on Saturday night….me too…. but TQ, the Beast and I are escaping Dodge, up to The un-tropical Islands (such as they are) for couple of nights……. just need to escape from the drama of this week…ergo the early transmission………………………………………

“Wisdom is better than wit” ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………  Jane Austin

“We’re in a kind of repeat McCarthy era. Only this time, to borrow from that old-school communist Karl Marx, history is repeating itself not as tragedy but as farce.” ……………………Jonas Goldberg (conservative writer)

“This is how election results are disputed in a banana a republic…not in our democratic republic” ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………George W. Bush

Well, its really hard to talk about this week…and just go on with my usual Blog sermon…I mean, let’s face it……there was nothing usual about this week

In a few words (really)…..it was kind of like most Plague weeks here in Vermont…..Cold…Snow….More Cold….More Snow….a few bits of sunshine…a lot of ice…..keeping up with The Queens’ projects….getting out for rides, walks and a few take out lunches…..let’s face it….we are all really tired of this…..but now is not the time to let our guard down…like when the war ends, but you haven’t gotten home yet…that is not the time to get yourself shot….I am thinking about chaining my unmasked self to the frond door of the Rutland Regional Medical center until they give me both doses of the vaccine…..after which I plan to go out to eat, see a movie, get sloppy drunk in a bar, and hang out with random strangers up close….THIS is The Dream?

Now…this week in our country…that is another story…We followed a historic night in Georgia, in which a deep southern state elected a Black Man and young Jewish boy to the United States Senate……are you kidding me…… and then…. with images that will take many of us a lifetime to get rid of……it was like watching a real old fashioned lynching up close and persona. Even in the context of having spent the last four years riding a coaster of shock and embarrassment, but this……even though it seems hard not to have imagined that this was a predictable end result to this craziness…still, this is just another level altogether……

I’m not sure what has become of our national integrity that could possibly allow us to get to this point….…and I’m ashamed to admit that I have friends and family who have continued to support this small minded, heartless, deceitful, criminal idiot of a dictator….as well as his minions…. but I still never thought it could go this far…. who are these lunatics? Does anybody actually know any of them? Did they miss breast feeding…or bedtime stories…. or trips to the park………how can we breed so much hatred and ignorance……inspired by the most cowardly public figure of my lifetime…far surpassing Tricky Dick in very way……

Can we continue to think of this as a fair election issue….as a political conundrum…. liberal vs conservative…. Republican vs. Democrat…. I think and hope not

A reckless and despotic coward, and those who have, and continue to, enable him, have led us down a dangerous, primrose path. The new administration and the new congress, controlled by a different party, may not be a panacea……but they deserve a chance to help us return to the democratic ideals that have defined our nation, and all of us………………

I’m not saying this was a third world style Coup, though, in essence, it may have been…………

I’m not saying that getting rid of this very bad man, and his enablers, will make everything come up roses……

I’m not saying that those who disagree with me are all bad people…….

All I am saying….is give peace a chance……

Papi

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A New Day’s Risin’ on the Blues, mes amis:

“Year’s end, all corners of this floating world……swept” ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………Basho

“You can’t stop the waves…. but you can learn to surf” ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. Jon Kabat- Zinn

“If the FOO shits……wear it” ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………From the Country Jews’ Tall Tales

As this new year starts, we all have a lot of questions…………. here are mine:

These next four (with totally unbiased answers) could be culled from Stu’s Reviews- which shame on you if you don’t read thoroughly:

What was the best film of 2020?……Tie: Uncut Gems and 1917?

What was the best TV series you watched in 2020?………… The Wire

What was the best book you read in 2020?………………………When the Crawdads Sing?

What as the best album you heard in 2020?………………………….” Letter to You”- Bruce Springsteen and the E-Street Band

All my troubles seem so far away…Can “Yesterday” possibly be the Beatles all time best song (Sirius radio says yes in their annual top Beatles 100)?

Does anyone else wake up thinking about the phone number 281-8211…. which was the constant source for time and temp in the 70s?

Did anyone else get a care package of bagels form New Jersey from McConnell, Pelosi and Schumer?

What is the population increase going to be as result of stay-at –home, no contact, no nothing 2020?

Are we tired of going for walks yet?

Have you done more baking this past year than in the last 20 years combined?

How many pizzas have you eaten in 2020?

Has there been a general resurgence in midnight snacking? Did we gain weight?

Once you get the vaccine, can you do anything you want? Kiss strangers? Go to a “sex club”? Share a popsicle with someone on the street?

California sunset?………….How long to drive from Vermont to San Diego…. actually 2960 miles……thinking about it.

Can people go to any state they choose to get a vaccine…. goin’ back to the country…. baby don’t you want to go………

Does anyone have sense of power and control anymore?………… Good or bad thing?

That may be about ten questions too many….so on we go……what to do on a Covid Sunday……when another week of the virtual (no pun intended) same is about to start……Well, we get out every Sunday for an outing…..which means drive, walk, lunch, repeat……lately that has meant heading south to Stratton Mountain….Stu writes the Sunday Sermon…..we typically divert to see The Dumpmaster…then head down Route 155…past the Weston Priory, where strange doings are happening….down through Weston and the line of out –of- state crazies descending on the Vermont County Store…..on to Londonderry, past Mike and Tammy’s general store, with 850 flavors of soft serve,  with a typical stop at Grandma Miller’s bakery for more pastry than we should eat in a month…..past the world’s best remote shopping center in South Londonderry….on to the rolling hills approaching the ski area….Vermont 100 to 11…to 30…and back to 100….where The Honeypie sits……lunch in the car of the exotic sausages from Morocco and Thailand, hand cut fries and pickles….and on to find the dirt road walk…last week we found a wonderful dirt road with light dusting of snow….but as we strolled along with the mountains as backdrop on all sides …hit an underlay of black ice…and down went Papi…. in complete angel stance…out for a standing eight count as head hits ice…. then…. no one around as he falls and can’t get up…. but catches up with The Queen and The Beast….and finished the walk at snail’s pace…. poor. poor, sore boy…

And speaking of TV…. Papi a bit of a High-Brow snob……preferring heady dramas that transport our Covid selves to another place and another time…. but…. when I’m not looking…. TQ tends to watch things like “Lucifer” ……which I can identify from anywhere, since the devil sounds just like Vincent Price….

The bi-weekly dinner at Sal’s…which is our closest take out place, at a mere 12 minutes down the snowy mountain…. was quite good this week ……pasta fazzoul, eggplant parm, Baba Louie’s bread, chicken scaloppini……but just as you head down through White Rocks National Forrest into enchanting Wallingford…. you hit the 25 mph speed trap…usually unmanned…. but it’s a holiday…and TQ was singing really loud with her radio……so …Sal’s supper…. Priceless…. or $145 in reality….

Been a big week for drives…and on NY Eve Day we trekked for northern romp……up the Connecticut River Valley…Sirius radio fading in and out…can Sgt. Pepper really not be in the top 100 Fab Four songs?…..drove up past Norwich…where we found a magnificent Gold Coast series of dirt roads for the rich and famous……which led to a long hike –looking at Vermont style MacMansions….and being accosted by an ancient codger on an ancient tractor for parking on the side of the  road….TQ worked to apologize to him……while I drifted away, index finger in the air…..wound up at White River Junction where we found open Bar-B-que (Fatty’s) and bulked up for the cold…..found a place to sit and eat at Queeche Lake , where we watched the extraordinary art of  ice fishing……honing their craft………one guy was on laying the ice for half hour tying to roll himself up…and…..that…..was pretty much our new year’s celebration….. how old do you have to be to not care that it is New Year’s eve?

And…then …yesterday…. got the muse again…and went out to follow the sun……crossing two mountain ranges until we found it over by Hubbardton…and had midafternoon, very cold, but sun soaked walk on a fabulous dirt road…and a quick stop at Ramuntos for the requisite 2 slice cheese special……has anyone rediscovered Coke during The Plague?…

Is the “All-State man” really G_D? …………….and, TQ just got back from testing the latest 3-5 inches roads, feeding someone’s’ pig, flirting with The Dumpmaster, waving to her friends from an appropriate distance and taking out the slough bucket…so time to go…is it a new year yet?

Hope this is a much better year for us all…stay safe…cast an illegal vote in Georgia so Stacey Abrams will stop e-mailing me…….be vigilant a while longer……and be……Forever Young…….

Papi

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