RABBIT RABBIT, UPPER VALLEY!
Looks like late fall has just hit us. It was in the 60s a few hours ago, it's about 50 now, and we'll be in the 40s by the time you head out for the day. Which is pretty much where we'll stay for a bit. Today, the rain's ended, the sun will come out, the winds will howl: some serious breezes from the southwest with gusts into the 40 mph range. Clear tonight, down into the low 30s.Power's been out here, as it is in lots of places. So a somewhat shorter Daybreak than usual today. Link takes you to GMP's outage map. Here's Liberty Utilities'.Fire last night at Eaton's Sugarhouse in Royalton may have been arson. A passerby spotted flames at the landmark restaurant near Exit 3 on 89 at about 8 pm last night and managed to get the fire under control. But about two hours later, the building was in flames again and "911 lines again lit up reporting that a vehicle had been seen fleeing the area," reports Eric Francis.Police shoot massive pig on I-91. A pig estimated at between 500 and 600 pounds escaped its farm and was spotted by motorists yesterday morning walking along I-91 near Newbury. Finding it in a grassy area near Exit 17, troopers shot it as it headed back toward the highway. The owner has donated it to the butcher who processes meat for the Bradford game dinner.Prices at Hartford transfer station to rise next week. A punch card for 10 bags of household waste will cost $40 starting Tuesday, up from $33.50. Single-use cards for non-residents will be $4.95, up from $4.30. The town is dealing with rising costs at the facility and the loss of revenue from construction debris, and is casting about for ways to avoid raising taxes. (VN)The criminal career of Mikel Brady, who was just sentenced to death in NC. Eric Francis is a walking encyclopedia of Upper Valley crime, and he's been writing about Brady for a decade. After Brady's sentencing he posted a long piece recapping the ins and outs of Brady's many crimes, gift for charming juries and law enforcement officers, flight to Mexico, and prison breakout attempt that left four officers dead. I've been kicking myself for not pointing you to it yesterday. There's no one else out there who could write this story. Bernie was in Claremont yesterday. “This state has played a profound role in transforming the political conversation,” he told a crowd of about 100. The VN's Anna Merriman was there and has the details.WCAX's owners buy Claremont's WYCU. The Burlington TV station's parent company, Gray Television (based in Atlanta), has just bought WYCU, the low-power station in Claremont that broadcasts YCN Your Local View, and another station in Saranac Lake, NY. WCAX will manage the stations once the sale's complete. A striking pic of Fairfax Falls at sunset. It's a fair piece from here, north and east of Burlington, but this is a fantastic pic of masses of water almost caressing the rocks it's rushing over. As always with reddit, click on the photo to see it in its full glory.Say it ain't so Ben, Jerry! A clean-water activist has filed a federal class-action lawsuit against Ben & Jerry's and its parent, Unilever, for misleading marketing. James Ehlers contends the use of milk from "factory farms" that contribute to pollution in Lake Champlain belies the company's claims. "Ehlers, like other reasonable consumers who see Unilever’s representations about milk and cream sourced exclusively from ‘happy cows’ on ‘Caring Dairy’ farms, did not expect the products to be made with dairy produced on regular factory-style, mass production dairy operations," says the suit.VT won't be selling Nazi memorabilia after all. Remember yesterday's item about the stockpile of guns that Vermont is trying to offload? It includes two World War II-era bolt-action rifles embossed with the Nazi emblem of an eagle clutching a swastika. Yesterday, Gov. Phil Scott directed the general services department to cancel the pending sale of the first of them. He "doesn't want the state promoting this kind of symbolism," says his spokesperson.VT state police score 11 new drones. They'll be used primarily for mapping accident scenes and for search and rescue. The state's been debating the privacy considerations of drone use by law enforcement for years, and the state police have put in place their own policies. These drones, in use for a couple of weeks, have already shown they can map a car accident scene in 30 or 40 minutes, compared to the hours it takes without them.Vermonter sets world record for finger pushups while balanced on three pumpkins. 166 ten-finger pushups, to be exact. Resting on only one foot. Why? Because he could. And no, Guinness hasn't verified it yet.
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SO, FRIDAY, WHAT'CHA GOT?
The Trumbull Hall Troupe, with actors from a dozen schools around the region, is tackling this exuberant, near-gymnastic musical about the newsboys' strike of 1899. Directed by Dothan Brook teacher Lanni Luce West, music directed by Dothan Brook's Alicia Dale, choreography by The Dance Collective's Allyson Weiner-Sawyer. No set ticket price, just a donation that'll go to CHaD, the Haven, and the Zienzele Foundation. Reserve your spots at the link, then make your donation when you get to the Opera House. Tonight and tomorrow at 7, Sunday at 3.
. Edward Mast's athletic adaptation of the Tolkien classic manages to condense the story — and Middle Earth — into a manageable length while using most of the main characters (but skipping the trolls and Mirkwood's spiders). Director David Wilson commissioned a professional mask-maker to help with costuming; Smaug ascends from the school's art department. At 7 pm tonight and tomorrow.
. This is more TedX than let-me-tell-you-about-my-art... Or as she describes it, "An inspirational and uplifting story about biodegradable waste and how it can be a metaphor for, well, just about everything." Talk starts at 5.
. Shelburne Vineyard samples at Revolution, silent auction at Two Rivers, sale at Flourish, and of course music all over town.
It's a "competitive regional showcase of Northeast America," with films from VT, NH, MA, ME, and Quebec. Tonight, a work-in-progress screening of a film about photographer Dan Higgins, plus a collection of five "Unusual and Unique Cinematic Visions." The Higgins is at 5, the five are at 7:30. Continues all day tomorrow and Sunday.
Okay. It's November and....
It is time to walk to the cider-millThrough air like apple wineAnd watch the moon rise over the hill,Stinging and hard and fine.It is time to cover your seed pods deepAnd let them wait and be warm,It is time to sleep the heavy sleepThat does not wake for the storm.Winter walks from the green, streaked WestWith a bag of Northern Spies,The skins are red as a robin’s breast,The honey chill as the skies.
— Stephen Vincent Benét, from “John Brown’s Body”. Thanks, SD!
Though maybe don't head out for the cider mill until the wind dies down. See you Monday.
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