During my teenage years in the 50s and 60s there were a couple of opportunities in Rutland to get dressed up in a gown and attend a formal event open to the public. One of these was the Cotillion. It began in 1949 and was considered a charity dance to benefit the Rutland Hospital. You…

By Carolyn Lorié Few things seem as remote as the January sun in northern New England. We see the light, but we feel almost no heat. In this way, winter can feel like a kind of exile – there’s a sense that the Earth has been flung to the farthest reaches of its orbit. The…

Living in sync with our true selves and being guided by the spirit within allows us to follow whatever unfolds in its natural sequence. Without trying to control the chaos of life with the left brain’s overthinking, our right brain flows from thing to thing, perceiving, sensing, and connecting. When given the time, the right…

By David Moats Economic stagnation in Vermont is not new. For decades, it has defied the efforts of political leaders, Republican and Democrat, to solve it. What’s new is a growing awareness that the problem is a widespread condition, animating protests from Paris to London, from Oklahoma to Arizona, West Virginia to Vermont. A new…

By Rep. Jim Harrison In addition to the dawn of a new year, we are also on the eve of a new legislative session. The first few days of a new biennium are filled with a number of procedural items. The newly elected legislature will be sworn in on Wednesday, Jan. 9. Gov. Phil Scott…

By Susie Spikol Some people keep lifelong birding lists. I’ve tried, but birds and I have never really hit it off. Too many colors, too many species, and I’m tone deaf, so birding by ear is completely beyond me. I do keep a lifelong weasel list. I can tell you exactly where I was when…

By Leonard Perry Most people associate mistletoe with kissing, as it’s customary for anyone caught standing under a sprig of this plant (often strategically placed in a doorway) to receive a kiss. But did you know that mistletoe, now considered a Christmas plant, was used as a religious symbol in pagan rites centuries before the…

By Marguerite Jill Dye It’s a time for new visions, hopes, and dreams, and to focus attention on the New Year. It’s a time to reassess our lives, and raise our vibrations to attract more joy. I want to invite newness into my life, and let go of old ways that are not beneficial. Out…

By DJ Dave Hoffenberg This Friday, Dec. 28, the place to be is the Clear River Tavern at 9 p.m. for the hip hop stylings of rapper Jarv. He is definitely the biggest act to ever hit the floor of the Clear River Tavern. With over 45,000 Facebook likes, he probably has more “Likes” than…

By Dom Cioffi The New Year is upon us and with it comes the inevitable pressure to make an annual resolution. This is the time of year when smokers vow to quit (or at least cut back), foodies resolve to lose weight (or at least eat healthier), and couch potatoes decide to get in shape…

By Cal Garrison a.k.a. Mother of the Skye This week’s horoscopes are coming out under the light of a Cancer Moon that turned void of course for a couple of hours until it entered Leo at around noon on Christmas Eve. With the winds of change bearing down on us like gangbusters, the usual holiday…

By Cal Garrison a.k.a. Mother of the Skye This week’s horoscopes are coming out under the light of an Aries Moon, a few days ahead of the 2018 Winter Solstice. I was born with the Moon in Aries, and on top of the power of the Solstice, this week is a big milestone for me.…

Last weekend (Dec. 14-16), I got the pleasure of covering the WinterWondergrass Festival at Stratton Mountain. The festival started in Colorado and is in it’s seventh year there, and also goes to Lake Tahoe. This was its first time on the East Coast. For a first-year festival I was impressed with the setup and layout…

By Cal Garrison a.k.a. Mother of the Skye This week’s horoscopes are coming out under the light of an Aries Moon, a few days ahead of the 2018 Winter Solstice. I was born with the Moon in Aries, and on top of the power of the Solstice, this week is a big milestone for me.…

By Dom Cioffi So, here we are in the home stretch of the holiday season. With only days to go, the intensity of this glorious annual event is heating up. As I mentioned a few columns ago, this is the part of the holiday rush that I love. Not because I inherently like chaos in…