Living

Living story sections

Vermont Values

by SK-B | Spiritual

When my wife and I relocated to this area from New York City 40 years ago, we found that we did not always “fit in.” People whose values we shared and with whom we had hoped to be friends were often cliquish and unwelcoming. Contrary to stereotypes, it was more often native-born Vermonters who seemed not to judge us by where we came from or how we talked, but would size you up and accept you if you had a good heart and a good character.

Dosa Kitchen’s 10th Season Starts May 10!

by Dosa Kitchen | Food

Dosa Kitchen food truck has been offering the Authentic Dosa Experience since 2014. Fans travel from Boston and beyond to Brattleboro for what they call “the best dosas in the USA.” The dosa, South India’s version of the crepe, has a seductively sour, tangy flavor, and airy, crisp texture. It’s gluten-free, vegan, and one of HuffPost’s “10 Foods to Try Before You Die.” Dosa Kitchen’s original Dosa Batter, a premade, ready-to-pour sourdough-style batter is produced on the premises and is available at the factory store behind the food truck and stores throughout New England. We hope to see you this season!

The Cannabis Story

by RDavis | Health

I still have trouble believing that I will not be arrested if I carry marijuana in my pocket or in my car. I came of age at a time when the drug was considered to be on par with heroin and other deadly substances. Some people were even making reference to the 1936 movie Reefer Madness when they tried to show how bad they thought marijuana was.

If you smoked it in your college dorm room you had to make sure you put a towel at the bottom of the door so no one would know what was happening inside. You risked expulsion from school and possible arrest.

No one could have predicted that this psychoactive substance that really is in a class all it’s own, would someday become legal for recreational use in 24 states and in D.C. Society has changed a lot and the federal government is moving to reclassify cannabis so it is not in the same class as heroin. Federal legalization is still not on the radar.

April Precipitation Report

by local | Nature

Monthly precipitation of 5.04” compared to a NOAA normal of 3.85”. A couple larger storms in the first half brought most of the moisture with a much dryer second half of April. For the calendar year the total is 21.00” compared to the NOAA average of 14.3” or 148% of normal. All numbers are from my location in the S.E. corner of Brattleboro and can vary from one location to another. My snow total for the season is 40.4” compared to my yearly average of 62.8”.

Brattleboro and VT COVID-19 Regional Dashboard Summary – May 2024

by cgrotke | Health

Here’s the April 2024 dashboard summary. We continue semi-regular COVID-19 dashboard numbers from the Vermont Department of Health, and MA and NH counties that surround Brattleboro, as long as they continue providing them. Scroll down the new comments for the latest.

VT, NH and MA do weekly updates, near the end of the week, so we update on Fridays usually. All three have changed their dashboards since the start, so it is now tough to easily compare how things have changed. Variant updates are every two weeks.

DÉJÀ VU 1969

by RDavis | Activism

It’s starting to look like the late 60’s and early 70’s across America and the world. An unpopular war is raging, thousands of people are dying and the people who are making this war happen are not listening to the rest of the world, asking them to put a stop to the madness.

This time the war is in Gaza and the state of Israel is incurring the wrath of much of the civilized world. The U.S. has become an enabler and many people feel that Biden is not doing enough to prevent Israel from killing more Palestinians and destroying their land. Senator Bernie Sanders is calling for the withholding of support to Israel if there are not strict conditions on how the aid is used, but his common sense pleas are falling on deaf ears.

It seems that although people of all ages are outraged at the behavior of Israel, it is mostly the young people of the world who are showing their displeasure at events and putting themselves at risk by protesting on college campuses. This is similar to what happened during the Viet Nam War.

Medicare Advantage Fraud In Plain Sight

by RDavis | Activism

The federal government may be finally realizing just how fraudulent the insurers are who provide Medicare Advantage policies. According to the Physicians for a National Health Plan (PNHP)”… federal administrators stood by their initial 3.7% increase, sending a message to corporate insurers that the Medicare Advantage gravy train may finally be slowing down.”

That would be something close to miraculous considering that many Advantage insurers have been found to be acting fraudulently and that most studies indicate that the Advantage program is draining money from the Medicare program at an alarming rate.

Five of the top 10 Advantage insurers have been accused of fraud by whistleblowers as well as the federal government.

No Pain, No Gain

by RDavis | Health

Weight loss is one of the more difficult issues that people have to deal with. You would be hard pressed not to find a few people who have struggled with their weight many times during their life. Until now there has been no simple solution to weight loss and, in my opinion, that is a good thing.

I was considered a “fat” child growing up and I took a lot of bullying and name calling during my public school years. My teachers even called me by a derogatory nickname from junior high and all through high school and I had to live with it until I went to college and heard people address me by my real name.

One of the reasons I was not accepted for the military during the height of the Viet Nam War was because I was overweight. I lost 50 pounds when I was 20 and travelling, but I have always struggled to keep my weight below what I consider an acceptable level.

Brattleboro and VT COVID-19 Regional Dashboard Summary – April 2024

by cgrotke | Health

Here’s the April 2024 dashboard summary. We continue semi-regular COVID-19 dashboard numbers from the Vermont Department of Health, and MA and NH counties that surround Brattleboro, as long as they continue providing them. Scroll down the new comments for the latest.

VT, NH and MA do weekly updates, near the end of the week, so we update on Fridays usually. All three have changed their dashboards since the start, so it is now tough to easily compare how things have changed. Variant updates are every two weeks.

Simon Renault on “Here We Are”

by Wendy O'Connell | Living

Take a look!  Simon talks about the good will that comes from life on the land, hard cider & sweet, the bounty of 150+ varieties of apples in one orchard, AND the dry stone walling center, farm market, cafe, crepe nights – all at Scott Farm, a stone’s throw from Naulahka on Kipling Rd.

Brattleboro Winter Weather Advisory Beginning April 2

by Not Signed In | Nature

The National Weather Service is forecasting a prolonged storm beginning Tuesday, April 2, and continuing into Thursday. The storm will initially bring rain before transitioning to snow Tuesday night through Wednesday, where it will potentially turn back to sleet and rain.

The shift to snow will occur first in higher elevations followed by the valleys. The Weather Service is predicting heavy snowfall in higher elevations and moderate amounts in the valleys. The accumulation of wet, heavy snow could lead to downed trees and power lines, which may cause power outages.

Can’t Impeach-Prosecute Joe Biden For Illegally Continuing to Supply Bombs Dropped on Homes in Gaza

by jay janson | Activism, Op/Ed

Biden has been guilty of breaking a U.S. law against providing U.S. weapons to a nation using them against a civilian population as Israel has been doing openly for five months.

“When the President of the United States becomes aware of the possibility of violations of the Arms Export Control Act (AECA), the law mandates specific actions:

Prompt Notification to Congress: The President is required to promptly notify Congress about the potential violations.”