Puppets in Paradise, Performances, Music, Food and Animals!

Puppets in Paradise, Sandglass Theater’s most beloved community event and biennial fundraiser, returns for its 8th edition. Now in partnership with Retreat Farm in Brattleboro, this year welcomes an exciting roster of first-time and returning performers including Joshua Holden, Chad Williams, Finn Campman, Liz Joyce, Faye Dupras, Rose Friedman and Justin Lander, Honey Goodenough, Cynthia Parker-Houghton, Eva Lansberry, Elena Day, Julia J. Slone and Sandglass co-founders Eric Bass and Ines Zeller Bass. Each company will perform four times and the puppet parade will process three times throughout each day. Please allow 2 hours to experience all of the shows.


Butterfly Season

Cabbage Butterfly on Zinnias

One of the consolations of the late summer season is the abundance of butterflies who flock to the open fields and gardens to enjoy the sunshine, sip the dew, and drink the nectar from the last of the summer flowers. We’ve had butterflies all summer long, but not in the numbers or variety that we have now. Earlier, Tiger Swallowtails prevailed, fluttering on their exotic yellow wings to the daisies and phlox where they made a long zig-zagging circuit of every promising flower. We saw at least one Zebra Swallowtail, bigger than its cousin the Tiger, out browsing red clover in the field next door. Silver Spotted Skippers were ubiquitous in midsummer. And later, I was happy to see a few Monarchs, with whom I have a long friendship going back to when I raised one from an egg as a child.


VFW $6.50 Lunch Specials open to the Public 9-9 to 9-13

The Brattleboro VFW located at 40 Black Mountain Road is open to the public for lunch. Lunch is served Mon-Fri from 11:30 – 1:30. Specials listed below are only $6.50 a plate. Hand made burger, fries, sweet potato fries, wings, onion rings, soups and sandwiches are also available. Take outs available by calling 257-0438

Mon – homemade meatball grinder w/ salad


Martha O’Connor Memories

I once had a discussion with Martha O’Connor about fence viewing. I had applied and been appointed to the position, and ran into Martha at the grocery store (a frequent spot for us to run into one another). The topic was always related to Brattleboro or governing, and today it was Fence Viewing.


A Shooting a Day!

Thus far, there has been more than a mass shooting somewhere in the USA every day.
September 1, the 244th day of the year, marks the 283rd such shooting.

The nonprofit Gun Violence Archive tracks every mass shooting in the country. They define a mass shooting as any incident in which at least four people were shot, excluding the shooter. The GVA said there have been 37,662 total shooting incidents, resulting in 9,932 gun deaths and 19,868 injuries as of yesterday. 37 thousand incidents! That’s not self-defense, folks.


VFW $6 Lunch Specials Open to the Public 9-2 to 9-6

The Brattleboro VFW located at 40 Black Mountain Road is open to the public for lunch. Lunch is served Mon-Fri from 11:30 – 1:30. Specials listed below are only $6.50 a plate. Hand made burger, fries, sweet potato fries, wings, onion rings, soups and sandwiches are also available. Take outs available by calling 257-0438


Oak Street Tree Removal

 On Wednesday, September 4th, the Highway Division will be working with Green Mountain Power to remove a tree near the corner of Oak St. and Chapin St. 

In preparation of an upcoming paving project, this tree was inspected by the tree warden to consider trimming. Upon inspection, it was determined that the tree is in poor health with significant rot. Due to the concern for nearby utilities, buildings, and traffic it was determined that the tree should be removed. 


No News is Good News? — On Going News-Free

After the latest round of shootings earlier this month, I had a moment of nausea that led me to think it might be a good time for a news hiatus. The weather was gorgeous — high summer in Vermont — and an array of family were due to visit. So rather than read depressing headlines all summer, I decided to take a couple weeks off from the news. Maybe, I thought, it will make me happier and less anxious if I just don’t hear any of it.


Dinners at Dosa Kitchen at the Retreat Farm

If you’re a fan of the Food Truck Roundup, you can have fun on another night at the Retreat Farm with Dosa Kitchen! Enjoy our tented seating with a view of the Retreat Meadows, Thursdays-Saturdays 5-8 through September.


VFW $6 Lunch Specials Open to the Public 8-26 to 8-30

The Brattleboro VFW located at 40 Black Mountain Road is open to the public for lunch. Lunch is served Mon-Fri from 11:30 – 1:30. Specials listed below are only $6 a plate. Hand made burger, fries, sweet potato fries, wings, onion rings, soups and sandwiches are also available. Take outs available by calling 257-0438


VFW $6 Lunch Specials Open to the Public 8-19 to 8-23

The Brattleboro VFW located at 40 Black Mountain Road is open to the public for lunch. Lunch is served Mon-Fri from 11:30 – 1:30. Specials listed below are only $6 a plate. Hand made burger, fries, sweet potato fries, wings, onion rings, soups and sandwiches are also available. Take outs available by calling 257-0438


VFW $6 Lunch Specials Open to the Public 8-12 to 8-16

The Brattleboro VFW located at 40 Black Mountain Road is open to the public for lunch. Lunch is served Mon-Fri from 11:30 – 1:30. Specials listed below are only $6 a plate. Hand made burger, fries, sweet potato fries, wings, onion rings, soups and sandwiches are also available. Take outs available by calling 257-0438


Wild Blueberries on Wantastiquet in late July

It’s a good year for wild blueberries on Wantastiquet. A week ago, I picked a cup of blueberries at the lower lookout. The photo is from July 30 with downtown Brattleboro in the background. There were plenty still ripening, so there should be a modest crop of ripe blueberries about now.

To get to the lower lookout, just go straight at the sixth hairpin turn. The spur trail is a quarter mile and pretty easy to follow. The view is historic and much better than the view from the summit. The ripe berries are in the sunniest spots, so you’ll have to explore the outcrops a bit to maximize the harvest. There is no poison ivy on Wantastiquet, but do take tick precautions. Don’t forget the binoculars.


VFW $6 Lunch Specials open to the Public 8-5 to 8-9

The Brattleboro VFW located at 40 Black Mountain Road is open to the public for lunch. Lunch is served Mon-Fri from 11:30 – 1:30. Specials listed below are only $6 a plate. Hand made burger, fries, sweet potato fries, wings, onion rings, soups and sandwiches are also available. Take outs available by calling 257-0438

Aug. 5th – Aug. 9th
Mon – meatloaf, baked potato, veg


VFW $6 Lunch Specials Open to the Public 7-29 to 8-2

The Brattleboro VFW located at 40 Black Mountain Road is open to the public for lunch. Lunch is served Mon-Fri from 11:30 – 1:30. Specials listed below are only $6 a plate. Hand made burger, fries, sweet potato fries, wings, onion rings, soups and sandwiches are also available. Take outs available by calling 257-0438

Mon – chicken fried steak, macaroni salad, veg