In early 2012, needing a job, I went to work at a small newspaper in nearby Granville, NY. It was eye-opening. My adopted hometown of Rutland, VT, has a reputation, well-earned, for having a problem with petty crime caused mainly by abusers of recreational drugs, largely prescription but also pot, heroin, coke and the rest … Continue reading
You might think that after 40 years of watching baseball I would be used to the average fan’s (or sportswriter’s) complete inability to understand basic statistics. But watching the meltdown around this year’s underachieving Red Sox is yet another reminder that not all baseball fans can do long division. The consensus is that the Sox’ … Continue reading
So on Monday I finally got my American citizenship at a ceremony in Montpelier, so no more green card. It was a nice ceremony. The speech from Judge William Sessions was heartfelt, but it rather missed the point for me and most of my fellow emigres, or at least the ones to whom I spoke. … Continue reading
I saw the police’s radar/speed warning trailer on Woodstock Ave. on Saturday. It seemed to be having issues with the traffic flow (hint: we were all doing more than 27 mph). Did anybody else notice that when it was set up on West Street a few days ago, they had the speed limit wrong? It … Continue reading
When your email address is out on the interwebs, you get used to odd things coming across the itransom. Just not this weird: Help! I am Allah, God of The Religions, am now here on Earth, and asking the Press to help Me locate an organization, community or nation to receive Me. Here is all you have … Continue reading
Chloramine. There’s a small but vocal group of city residents fighting to prevent Rutland from switching its water disinfectant from chlorine to chloramine (a compound of chlorine and ammonia). They have an active Facebook presence. I can’t remember if it’s an open or closed group right now (its status has moved back and forth), but … Continue reading
My friends over at the NeighborWorks of Western Vt. Heat Squad were pondering the question, “What would make you complete home energy improvements?” I think they aren’t getting a full picture of the results of their work. We had a home audit done through them, which suggested half a dozen worthwhile projects, ranging from replacing … Continue reading
This just in from Greg Wyshynski, aka PuckDaddy on Yahoo! Sports, about the clock not starting after a faceoff late in last night’s Caps-Bruins game: ‘Patrice Bergeron and Brooks Laich came set for a faceoff with the clock reading 9.5 seconds left in the third period. The puck was dropped, the Capitals won the draw, … Continue reading
I’m guessing a lot of folks got an exhortation to plant a rain garden in the junk mail in the last couple of weeks, just like chez Cooke-Smathers (link is to the full-blown piece, not the pocket-sized mailer). Why the junk mail is there is as simple as following the money: Lake Champlain is getting … Continue reading
Just got a press release advising us that NY State Sen. Roy McDonald is to be honored as the Saratoga County Citizens Committee for Mental Health citizen of the year. I’m sure we are delighted to join in recognizing not only the senator’s work in mental health but in open government. The picture accompanying the … Continue reading
