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150 Years Ago (1863 10/29)

by BusyMom | History

Brattleboro, Oct. 29th, 1863

Dear Abiah, –

I wrote to you last Saturday, and promised in that to write you Monday but I did not keep my promise. I could not get a chance to write. I wrote to Mr. Cole, but I had to write with a pencil, but today I have a chance and mean to improve it. I went to Hinsdale Sunday found Mary Ann better but Susan’s little girl very sick. Poor little thing she suffered very much. She died Sunday night about 6 o’clock. Mr. Ballard came over Monday and told me yesterday. I got a pass and went to the funeral. It was at the house at 10 o’clock. I got leave to stop until after dress parade. I staid until evening. Fred came and brought me over to the Camp. I like him very much. He is a quiet, social intelligent man. he is heartily sick of farming. Is determined to sell his farm. He now thinks of getting some business near home where he can go home Saturday nights.

Friends of Brooks Library Holiday Book Sale

by RobertOeser | Books

The Friends of Brooks Memorial Library Holiday Book Sale

Friday, December 6 – 10AM to 6PM and

Saturday, December 7 – 10AM to 2PM

 All books are gift quality including fiction, children’s books and non-fiction titles ranging from history, art, cooking, gardening and many more subjects. A collection of 400 music CDs, mainly jazz, will also be on sale.

Russian Duo to Play in Grafton

by Not Signed In | Entertainment

GRAFTON, VT—The critically acclaimed Russian Duo will play at the White Church in Grafton on Sunday, December 1 at 3 p.m.

Featuring vocals and Russian percussion, the Duo will perform Russian folk music, romances, dances, classical music, gypsy melodies, and interpretations of favorites from around the world. Oleg Kruglyakov is a balalaika virtuoso originally from Siberia; Terry Boyarsky is an American concert pianist. The balalaika, with its three strings and a triangular body, is the instrument of choice for traditional Russian folk melodies.

Joule Thieves

by tomaidh | Sci-Tech

I recently read an article about the wasted energy resulting from charging electrical and electronic devices beyond the point where they have fully charged. The article used a play on words to call attention to this waste.

In this age of modern technology, more and more devices rely on electricity to function. Gadgets like cell phones, laptops, MP3 players, tablets and lately, cars, are plugged every day to have their batteries recharged. Most of the time, we allot recharging time whenever we sleep so we can make sure that these batteries are fully charged. But what we don’t always realize is by doing this, we consume much more energy than needed.

BCTV Channel 8 & 10 Schedules for the Week of 11/25/13

by BCTVProg | Media

BCTV CH.8 Schedule for the week of 11/25/13

                   Monday November 25              

12:00 am      Vermont Arts Summit – Getting To Market

1:18 am       That Was the Week That Was- Malayaka House Uganda

2:00 am       FSTV Overnight

4:00 am       Green Mountain Vets For Peace – Ep. 126

5:00 am       Dartmouth CMS: Protection from Melanoma

5:15 am       Dartmouth CMS: Protection from Melanoma Pt. 2

5:45 Live: 11/22/13

by BrattleboroTV | Media

5:45 Live connects with BUHS Social Studies teacher Bill Holiday as he broadcasts live over Google Hangout from Dealey Plaza for the 50th Anniversary of JFK’s assassination, delves into what happened with the search for a new Bratt Town Manager, gets the latest from Entergy reps themselves on where decommissioning stands, and much more.

Brattleboro Union High School Board Meeting Agenda

by Not Signed In | Education

BRATTLEBORO UNION HIGH SCHOOL BOARD
53 Green Street
Brattleboro, VT 05301
www.wssu.k12.vt.us

NOTICE OF COMMITTEE MEETINGS

The BUHS #6 Finance Committee will meet at 5:00 p.m. on Monday, November 25 in the WSESU Central Office Conference Room, 53 Green Street (Warrants).

The BUHS #6 Budget Committee will meet at 5:00 p.m. on Monday, November 25 in the WSESU Central Office Conference Room, 53 Green Street.

Tix On Sale Now for The Nutcracker at NEYT, Dec 20-22

by Not Signed In | Arts

COMPANY OF MUSES PRESENTS THE NUTCRACKER AT NEW ENGLAND YOUTH THEATER, DECEMBER 20-22.

Brattleboro, VT — (November 18, 2013) — Tickets are on sale now for the Company of Muses presentation of Brattleboro School of Dance’s The Nutcracker at New England Youth Theater. Show time is 7:00pm on Friday, December 20 and Saturday, December 21, with matinee performances at 1:00pm and 5:00pm on Sunday, December 22.

This marks the first time in seven years that Brattleboro School of Dance students, alumni and faculty will perform a full-scale production of the holiday classic. Since that time, BSD has only presented “Excerpts from the Nutcracker” for friends and family members of its students.

Town School Board Grapples With Public Outreach Process

by Lise | Education

The Town School Board discussed their public outreach efforts again on Tuesday night and found that even deciding on topics was more complicated than they’d expected.  A small group of citizens attended the meeting to participate in that discussion and what emerged was that the issues raised at the first meeting, held in October at the Brattleboro Co-op, needed to be clarified and expanded on before focus topics could be decided.  In short, the board might have to do more outreach before they can properly do outreach.

After the October meeting, the School Board assigned the outreach issue to a subcommittee consisting of David Schoales and Jill Stahl-Tyler who were tasked with determining an outreach process.  Schoales and Stahl-Tyler looked at issues raised at the first meeting, listed and categorized them, and brought them back to the board to decide on next steps.  After nearly an hour of  discussion, it was decided that the subcommittee would need to be expanded and topics decided.  Public meetings centered around the topics are expected to begin in January.

BCTV Video Calendar: 11/21/13 – Sandglass Theater, Brattleboro Women’s Chorus, and more!

by BrattleboroTV | Media

This week’s edition of the video calendar launches BCTV into the 2013 holiday season with Guilford’s Holiday Art Show, the highly anticipated Fall Concert from the Brattleboro Women’s Chorus, and the acclaimed experimental original production ‘Beyond the Light’ as it makes its way to the Sandglass Theater in Putney.

Attaining The Heavens and The Earth – Latchis Campaign Reaches Goal

by Not Signed In | Arts

Ladies and Gentlemen, The Campaign for The Heavens and The Earth has reached the $550,000 goal!

Recent support from Against the Grain Gourmet, Trust Company of Vermont, and the Cherry Street community – who got together to buy a chair (great idea!) – gave the final push that landed us over the top. Enormous thanks!

What a marvelous accomplishment for our small town, with most of the funding coming from right here at home. And of course, we had help from great friends around the corner in Boston (Thomas Thompson Trust), up the road in Montpelier (State of Vermont, Vermont Arts Council and Vermont Cultural Facilities Coalition), through the woods in Grafton (Windham Foundation)…and a little spur to the south, USDA out of Washington, DC.

Circus Arts and Puppetry Come Together at Sandglass Theater This Weekend!

by SandglassTheater | Entertainment

Sandglass Theater’s New Visions series presents, Leila Ghaznavi with Pantea Productions: Beyond the Light. This new work, a theatrical exploration of dance, aerial acrobatics, light effects, and puppetry, was conceived by Leila Ghaznavi, a 2012 recipient of the Leeway Foundation Art and Change Grant and the 2012 Puffin Grant.  Beyond the Light is an elegant hybridization of dance, puppetry, shadow work, aerial acrobatics, lighting effects, all set to the poetry of Walt Whitman and Emma Lazarus.  Creator Leila Ghaznavi blends these media to create an epic journey of a soul that is torn in two, seeking to reunite itself.

McLean Book Sparks Available

by DonInGuilford | Books

We had a great book publication event in Guilford Nov. 2 for my just-issued Sparks, the collected writing of my mother, Jean Stewart McLean, on the 50th anniversary of her death.  (In fact, BCTV recorded the program and it’s being shown several times this week on the cable station.)

The book came out really nicely; its 368 pages include short stories, poems, four one-act plays and other of my mom’s writings, not to mention extensive editorial commentary and notes by her son (that’s me.)

Old-Time Gospel Hour at Dummerston Community Center

by Dummerston Community Center | Music

An old-time Gospel Hour is planned in West Dummerston on Sunday Dec. 1st.,from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the Dummerston Community Center. Guitar and vocals will be by GinMillBill.

There will be no preacher and no preaching, just music and singing. Songbooks will be available. Light refreshments will be available. Donations will be accepted for the Community Center’s heating and maintenance fund.

Learn How To Videoconference at Brooks Memorial Library

by Brooks Memorial Library | Education

Brooks Memorial Library is one of fourteen Vermont libraries across the state that now is offering videoconferencing, thanks to a grant from Google. The Library will be offering monthly orientation sessions on the new equipment beginning on Wednesday, November 20, at 7 PM in the Library’s Meeting Room.

It will be taught by the library’s e Vermont computer intern, Justin Polnack. There is no registration necessary and the workshop is free and open to the public. The 90 minute session will demonstrate steps on setting up the equipment and using Google hangout. There is no charge to use the equipment, but people wanting to reserve the equipment must register for a Google+ account, attend a workshop, or schedule a one-on-one session with the trainer.

From the Principal’s Office: Kurn Hattin Gets it Right for Kids

by KurnHattin | Education

Kurn Hattin Homes for Children’s School Principal, Scott Tabachnick, recently wrote an op-ed piece for the local paper, the Brattleboro Reformer (published Friday, November 8), to share a few of the reasons why he feels thankful to be a part of the Kurn Hattin community. In the spirit of the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday, we thought we’d share Scott’s letter with you!

Kurn Hattin Homes for Children: Getting it Right for Kids

by Scott Tabachnick

Coke-Is-It

by tomaidh | History

“Wealthy eccentric” Fred Koch of Guilford, tired of “cotch” pronunciation, legally changes name to “Coke-is-it.”

I remember this guy getting into the papers every so often for erratic behavior. One time, if I remember correctly, he was arrested for giving away $20 bills on Main Street. When he got before the Judge, the Judge scolded the cop with some pithy remarks.

The Claire Lynch Band w/ Hot Mustard at Next Stage on Friday, November 22

by Not Signed In | Music

Next Stage Arts Project and Twilight Music present an evening of bluegrass and Americana music with the award-winning Claire Lynch Band and double banjo bluegrass quartet Hot Mustard at Next Stage on Friday, November 22 at 7:30 pm.

The Claire Lynch Band – Claire (guitar, vocals), Matt Wingate (guitar, mandolin, vocals), Mark Schatz (bass, clawhammer banjo, percussive dance) and Bryan McDowell (mandolin, fiddle, vocals) has the innate ability to perfectly interpret the beauty, subtlety and genre-defying sophistication of Claire’s music. By any measure, the quartet is high on the bluegrass world’s A-List, with musicians whose accolades include three International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) Female Vocalist of the Year awards and two Grammy nominations for Best Bluegrass Album (Claire), two IBMA Bass Player of the Year awards (Mark), MerleFest Doc Watson Guitar Champion (Matt ) and an unprecedented first-place win in three instrument categories at the Walnut Valley National Flatpicking Championship (Bryan).