Vermont's 23 Things - Recently Updated Pages

Favorite Library

Anonymous — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 16:20:37 CST

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Favorite Blogs

Anonymous — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 17:05:20 CDT

Add your blog to this list to let us know that you've made it here. To do this: Click on 'Easy Edit' at the top of this page. Add the name of your blog to the list. To link your blog to its URL, click on the Link icon and a popup box will appear. Type the URL in the 'Link to' box and click on 'Add Link'.
What is she Thinking
Vermont's 23 Things

Another Pot of Tea
Great Books
RoyaltonLibrary
Anna's Blog
Solo Librarian
PlloggerE
My 23 Thingz
Jane's Blog
Merriapple
Cheryl's 23 Things
Doodah's revenge
Wordsabunch
Ridgefield Ruminations
Jen Dooley's Blog
V's Voice

Read Between the Lines
MrsLibrarian
buchlady's blog
Online Library Learning

Favorite Restaurants

Anonymous — Fri, 01 May 2009 08:11:19 CDT

Blask Sheep Bistro, Vergennes, VT My husband and I go here when we are looking for a really good meal. And now that the Bobcat in Bristol is now under their management we will be going there. (What is she Thinking)

Waterworks, Winooski, VT. I am lamenting the loss of this great place. It disappeared when the facelift/rotary began for Winooski. The Champlain Mill was too tough to get to with the construction and businesses folded including this one. My husband and I had many a great meal there. Always reasonably priced and great ambience.

Tin Pan Galley Sackets Harbor, NY
I used to live in the Madison Barracks apartments, right around the corner from this restaurant. Whenever we had house guests we would take them here for breakfast. The Stuffed French Toast is to die for. After 10 years of living away from Sackets Harbor, I have finally perfected the recipe and I made it for my husband on Father's Day. mrslibrarian

The Alpine Inn, Hill City, SD
Where else can you go in the US for a filet mignon for $8.95? The dinner menu has two items--a small filet and a large filet. Of course, you need to save room for dessert, because. hard as it is to believe, they are even better than the filet/baked potatoe/wedge of lettuce and Texas toast main course. So, if you are ever out west in real mountains (the Black Hills of South Dakota, where this Vermont flatlander is from), stop by the Alpine, but be prepared to wait in line if you aren't there by 4:30 for the opening of doors at 5pm! PLLoggerR.

Culinary Conspiracy, Ottawa, Ontario
Not a restaurant, exactly, though they do have tables in their tea room, but a place to get THE BEST "take out," pre-prepared food you could imagine. Soups, casseroles, baking, salads, etc. They have different menus every day and special menus for special occasions - tortieres at Christmas come to mind - and it is always, always good. PlloggerE

Tiny Thai
My favorite dish is the Pad Kee Maow, or "drunken noodles". It has very wide noodles, in a tangy spicy sauce, tossed with vegetables like tomatoes, mushrooms, green peppers to name a few; with your choice of meat or tofu. The restraunt in Essex is very small, but worth the wait (if any). It's also BYOB (or BYOW(ine)), so it makes the perfect economical dinner out. For a real treat, try the fried banana and icecream! (My 23 Thingz)

Tiny Thai is also in Winooski, right over the bridge. (Ridgefield Ruminations)

Soups and Greens, Barre, VT
My favorite place to go for a quick breakfast on Saturday mornings. The coffee is great and a bottomless cup. (u32businessdepartment)

Chow Bella, St. Albans, VT
Fantastic food and great atmosphere. My favorite place to go for a night out, or to bring friends. Save room for dessert, the Maple Creme Brulee rocks (and so does everything else)! (Amanda)

Tanglewoods, Waterbury Center, VT
Dine in a cozy wood-paneled converted barn with yummy Vermont-focused meals. A great date place! (V's Voice)

Favorite Vacation Spots

Anonymous — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 13:39:43 CDT

My youngest daughter moved to Portland, Oregon about a year ago. I've been out one time to visit and am looking forward to a trip in June. Loved the Japanese gardens and the Bluebird Guest House in the Southeast quarter was delightful place to stay.

Last summer we went on an Alaskan cruise, so now cruising is one of the favorite vacations and Skagway one of my favorite spots. Seattle was also a wonderful/beautifyl city, great coffee shops and wonderful seafood. Very similar feel to Burlington but on a larger scale--

Long Trail or Appalachain Trail - hiking anywhere

Penninsula Lake, Ontario; Emerald Lake, BC; Bermuda in the "off season," which, surprisingly, is our winter.

Montreal is a favorite place for us to go -- even in the winter! It's much cheaper, they have the very cool underground system for walking and shopping, and it's an international flavor for my children without having to fly or spend a huge amount. Really interesting museums for families and you can get a deal with unlimited metro and museum admission for a reasonable price. We can drive there in 3 hours. Now it will be a bit more of an ordeal because we don't have passports but it's still a lot of fun.

Favorite Websites (other than your blog)

Anonymous — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 08:23:36 CST

http://www.kerpoof.com/teach
This site is another option for kids to make their own videos, drawings, cards, etc. Very user-friendly, with excellent tutorials for you to practice before you introduce it to students. Funded in part by the National Science Foundation. Contains lesson plans.

National Geographic
A great website with access to article summaries, news, photos and more.

http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/introduction/index.html

A wonderful website for those of us who never grew out of fairy-tales. Fascinating!

http://www.designspongeonline.com/

Fun, creative stuff -- great contests for design-y things to do around your house with old lampshades and the like.

Vermont's 23 Things Home

Anonymous — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 03:51:07 CST

Favorite Blogs
Favorite Books
Favorite Restaurants
Favorite Vacation Spots
Favorite Websites (other than your blog)

Favorite Books

Anonymous — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 17:03:37 CST

Why is it so hard to choose favorites? When most of us inhale books? Well, it is for me anyway. I did just read No Great Mischief by Alistair McCleod with my book group and liked it a lot - a beautiful, profound book with language like poetry and incredible stark images that were great to process with a group. An amazing book that takes place mostly in Cape Breton and has a lot to say about class, culture, character and the incredible lives people live. And I just reread Nick Hornby's book High Fidelity which absolutely cracks me up on almost every page - every time I read it - one of the few books I've read more than twice. Come to think of it, I really should be a master at picking out "favorites" as the lead character spends so much of the book doing just that!

Impossible by Nancy Werlin - I just finished this book and it is Brilliant!! I am a big fan of YA Fiction anyway, but this one blew me away. Usually my favorite books are ones where I had very low expectations and was pleasantly surprised. However, with this book I was almost afraid to read it as my expectations were so high, and I was still impressed.

I really enjoyed Water for Elephants by Sarah Gruen last year, and often recommend it at the library. This year so far my fav. is People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks, which I listened to on audio. I also enjoy Sue Grafton, P.G. Wodehouse (Jeeves and Wooster), or Dick Francis on audio in the car. (Nothing too deep, or too sad while driving, please!) Debbie from Montgomery Town Library

I can't believe a Favorite Books page with no entries, from librarians????
One of my favorite books has to be The Five People You Meet in Heaven
by Mitch (Jane)

I love Jennifer Crusie-- contemporary chick lit. "Bet Me" is probably my favorite. An insurance executive refuses to fall for a way too charming dyslectic educator. Dysfunctional families, solid friendships, and a major salute to Chicken Marsala. Amy

My favorite is Pilot's Wife by Anita Shreve. She has several great books but this is my favorite. onedixie

We Took To The Woods by Louise Dickenson Rich inspired me in my twenties to buy land, build a log house, raise some chickens and children and swing on a tire swing at an "inappropriate age". wordsabunch

Angle of Repose by Wallace Stegner has been one of my top 5 favorites for 30 years. Deservedly won the Pulitzer Prize. (Ridgefield Ruminations)

1. Les Miserables by Victor Hugo is by far not only my favorite book, but also a book that has impacted my life in countless ways. DON'T cheat yourself by reading the abridged version. Skim read if you must, but be sure to go back to the parts you skipped.

2. The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Orczy is another priceless literary gem! This SHOULD be required reading- never mind stuffy old Dickens. http://www.blakeneymanor.com/series.html T.L.A.C.

Whoredom in Kimmage, by Rosemary Mahoney

Austen is my constant companion. Whenever it's time for bed and I have nothing going in the book department, I turn to my collected works. Usually falls open to the same passages. Sometimes I force myself to venture out of my favorite areas to parts less well-loved (Emma, for instance, when she rains on Harriet's parade concerning Robert Martin - so annoying.) Sometimes I find references in other books to particular Austen passages and go crazy until I can find and confirm the citations. Nothing beats her language, her style, or her insight....Megan

Christmas in Vermont

Anonymous — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 04:11:05 CST

January 8, 2009
Dear Family and Friends,

The subtitle of this piece might be "home is an exotic location." You know Vermont, our beautiful state, is visited by millions of tourist each year. John and I went to Vermont for Christmas. It was fabulous and we loved many things. I loved driving a car. No car in Cairo, so it felt great to slide behind the wheel of a rental. We’d arrived in NYC in a snowstorm and waited hours for a delayed Burlington flight. Once on the plane we sat an hour, and then another for de-icing, finally taking off at 2 AM. Liz had called the car rental guy at Burlington airport and he promised to wait. That sweetheart man handed over car keys at 3:30 AM and we drove through a silent nighttime landscape deep in new snow, stars just appearing after the storm.

We drove to Shelburne where Jake and Liz each live in one of the tiny apartments in our pink house. Kissing goodnight in the parking area, I snuggled into bed with Liz while John slid into bed with Jake. How many times when they were little did they insinuate themselves into our bed? OK, kids, move over, Mom and Dad need to crash and sleep after a long journey.

John's sister, Judy, had arranged for us to stay in the house of a friend who'd gone off to warmer climes for the winter. She'd put up a Christmas tree in this perfect little gingerbread house in a forest clearing south of Shelburne. The wood box was full. The house was outfitted with the newest Ina Garten cookbook, best lemon squeezer, and a sensational
garlic press. The bed was comfee and the snow was eighteen inches deep. Having such a nifty house allowed u s to host parties. We had a Middle Eastern dinner (moussaka with all the fixi n’s) for Christmas Eve. This party has a thirty-year tradition. Three couples and our five children and, for the first time in five years, everyone made it!

Our kids stayed overnight and next morning opened presents and pulled gifts from stockings while we peeled tangerines and nibbled chocolates. It seemed almost like Christmas twenty years ago in our old farmhouse in Ferrisburgh.

In Vermont we had the pleasure of bumping into old friends and acquaintances in the grocery store, in the bookshop. We dropped in on friends, went out for dinner, shoveled snow, threw snowballs, and cross-country skied. We had the profound pleasure of being active, outdoors in the snow and cold.

Driving - I love Vermont's interstate highway, Route 89, that traverses the state from northwest to southeast. Grabbing bagels and coffee to go, John and I hopped on the interstate heading south from Burlington, a drive we've made hundreds of times to ski races and track meets and to my family in Massachusetts. I love my interstate an d its beautiful curves: the sweeping turn with a vista of Mount Mansfield just north of Richmond, the giant S-curve between Sharon and Randolph, and the long gentle arc along the Connecticut River north of Brattleboro. I love the snowy mountains. I loved driving.

My four siblings, spouses, assorted children, friends, and my parents packed my sister Patrice's house for a weekend-after-Christmas party. It was a Mackey feast of over the top food and drink, lots of noise. Partying carried on for three-ish days before families headed home to Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, and us to Vermont. It was another great drive north on our interstate.

The last few days in Vermont whizzed by – a couple more parties in the gingerbread house, time with Liz and Jake and his girlfriend Helen. And then it was over. Bags packed. House cleaned. Rental car returned at the airport. Boarding passes. A long layover at JFK followed by an overnight flight to Cairo. We stepped out into the Egyptian sunshine. It did, indeed, seem like we'd visited an exotic land of snow and cold. What a great place to call home!

Love,
Beth and John

Text by Beth; photos by John