By Polly Lynn Friday morning smoke could still be seen coming out of the Rutland Plywood building on Ripley Road in Rutland. A fire that broke Wednesday afternoon, Aug. 20, was thought to be contained but another broke out at a different location later that evening — a spark from the previous fire is thought to…

Killington Classic Motorcycle Rally, Hay Festival,  and Cooler in the Mountains concert featured this weekend KILLINGTON — Visitors to Killington this fall will once again be greeted by large hay sculptures. Amid the mountain vistas and fall foliage, they may find themselves face-to-face with a 25-foot bear or 30-foot moose! A Vermont Chamber of Commerce Top…

By Rachel Sargent Imagine you’re an insect cruising through the air. Suddenly, you realize you’re heading straight for a spider web. You’re doomed. But wait – you can still escape by slipping through one of the gaps. Spider webs are, after all, more gaps than web. You aim between the sticky threads – it’s going…

By Kate Robitello Did you know that some of the most he spices in the world are already in most kitchen cabinets? That’s right, there’s no need to trek through the Sri Lankan forests to obtain the healthiest baking spice. Instead, just look for them sitting modestly next to your nutmeg and allspice. Many cooks,…

By Brett Yates I don’t know whether the gifted actor and comedian Robin Williams was himself especially attracted to schmaltzy, uplifting films, or whether his irrepressible stage persona simply conveyed to movie producers such a powerful joie de vivre as to make them insist that he – and only he – could show a bunch…

Thursday, Aug. 28 at 7 p.m. — PAWLET — The Pawlett Historical Society is very happy to be hosting “The Idea of Vermont,” a presentation by Green Mountain College professor Laird Christensen, on Thursday, Aug. 28 at 7 p.m., at Pawlet Public Library. Professor Christensen will explore Vermont’s evolution, shaped both by the idea of Vermont and…

Thursday, Aug. 28 at 8 p.m. — HUBBARDTON — Head to the Hubbardton Battlefield State Historic Site in Hubbardton Thursday, Aug. 28 from 8 - 11 p.m. for “Deep Space Night.” Take a good look at satellites, the stars, and planets of deep space with members of the Green Mountain Alliance of Amateur Astronomers. If the weather is inclement,…

Thursday, Aug. 28 at 12:30 p.m. — CASTLETON —  The Christine Price Gallery at Castleton College will feature the works of local Middletown Springs artist Mareva Millarc running from Aug. 25 through Oct. 3, with an artist reception scheduled for Thursday, Aug. 28 at 12:30 p.m. Entitled “Absolutely Abstract” the exhibit will feature a variety of…

RUTLAND — The Castleton Downtown Gallery in Rutland is featuring the works of local Vermont artist Carolyn Enz Hack currently running, through Sept. 20. Entitled “Power and Energy” the exhibit features paintings, large drawings and paper sculptures, including both abstract and representational imagery. Each piece is a meditation on the nature of change and the mystery…

Friday, Aug. 29 at 7 p.m. — BRANDON — Members of Lake Dunmore’s Point CounterPoint faculty will perform a chamber music concert at Brandon Music on Aug. 29 at 7 p.m. to benefit the Compass Music and Arts Foundation. Performing are, Anton Miller (violin), Rita Porfiris (viola), Lawrence Zoernig (cello), Gili Sharett (bassoon) and Arielle Levioff (piano).…

Friday, Aug. 29 at 3 p.m. — ROCHESTER — The Nothing Is Not Ready Circus is for the not yet existing upriser masses and their kids who need to practice their upriser skills by teaming up with butterflies, cockroaches and elephants. Lions, horses and dogs are also employed to invent the correct rhythmical patterns that fight planetary…

Friday, Aug. 29 at 7 p.m. — CASTLETON — Castleton presents Ethiopian music group Debo Band on Friday, Aug. 29 at 7 p.m. in the Casella Theater. Debo Band, an 11-member group from Boston, takes traditional Ethiopian music to a new level.  Before Ethiopia entered a difficult period of military rule and civil war, the 1960’s and…

Friday, Aug. 29 at 7:30 p.m. — TINMOUTH — Tri-Polar, a newly re-formed group of veteran Vermont singers, will open the fall season at the Old Firehouse in Tinmouth Friday night Aug. 29 at 7:30 p.m. Darcie Gannon, Melissa Chesnut-Tangerman, and Don Martin have a long history of making music together. They first formed an electric rock…

Friday, Aug. 29 at 6 p.m. — LUDLOW — Okemo Mountain Resort will host its final free concert of the season on Aug. 29, featuring 2ADAM12 as part of the Jackson Gore Summer Music Series presented by Vermont Properties and Development, Inc. The concert is scheduled from 6 to 9 p.m. in the courtyard at the Jackson…

Aug. 29-Sept. 7 — RUTLAND — This Friday, Aug. 29, the 168th annual Vermont State Fair will be held at the fair grounds off Route 7 south in Rutland. This year’s entertainment, events and agricultural displays will be similar to other years with a few omissions (some due to cost constraints) and additions (among which…