Stephanie Greene

Decades ago, my kindergarten class memorized Robert Frost's Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening. I recall that we performed it several times, gap-toothed, cheerfully yelling the verses to general audience approval. The interesting thing is that the poem has stayed with me all these years, popping up at odd moments to warm my imagination.

With the senate passing a bill (S84) exempting almost a quarter of Vermont vehicles from emissions testing, we have to tighten up other sources of emissions – including one that might be less painful fix. We have a no-idling law in Vermont designed to prevent those emissions from being released into our already overburdened atmosphere. But it turns out the law is pretty forgiving.

Thirty years ago Mary Hepburn saw the need for a town arts center in Saxtons River. And her vision was comprehensive. The arts building would include performance and gallery space, and it would offer education for all levels of arts enthusiasts, from Crayolas to musical theater. Today Main Street Arts – or MSA - owns two buildings.

I was dismayed but not surprised to see the third Women’s March on Washington fracture over political differences. With accusations of anti-Semitism and other biases flying, women opted out of the march in droves.

Stories, as much as anything, root us to place. We’re narrative creatures, after all. So when The Brattleboro Words Project came to my attention more than a year ago, I was all in. Since then, historians have given fascinating talks about literary luminaries in the Brattleboro area.

A Yankee Swap can bring out the worst in people. Tact and generosity go out the window; bald greed and selfishness climb gleefully in.

Over the past few years, I’ve been joining a group of friends for a holiday craft afternoon during which each person brings a project to share and sets up a station with clear instructions and materials.

I’ve been talking to some people who didn’t vote in the 2016 election. One young man summed up his disinterest by saying he didn’t feel the two party system represented him. Neither candidate thrilled him, so he boycotted the election.

You’re watching a production of an American Musical theater classic. The melodies are glorious, but the dated stereotypes are so intrusive they feel like a stone in your shoe. Racist or sexist bias makes it impossible to enjoy the play.

When Baltimore born and raised Alia Malek entered law school in 1997, she wanted to be an Arab face helping people of all groups defend their civil rights.

I guess I shouldn’t be surprised to learn that the ACLU considers panhandling free speech – because in a healthy society, free speech should promote dialogue. Whether upsetting or repellant, it should provoke people to think … and eventually answer.

I recently requested a recommendation on Front Porch Forum for a good plumber who was creative and had dealt with old houses.

In light of suspected tampering with 2016 election, it’s easy to be jittery around voting innovations involving the internet. But new machines for voters with disabilities, called The Accessible Voting System, enable the homebound to vote by touch screen, joystick, keypad, or breath controlled sensor.

Vermont Life Magazine was founded in 1946 to attract visitors by celebrating the state’s culture and natural beauty.

Historiography, or the study of who gets to write history and why, is usually taught as a college course, as is the use of original sources.

All eyes are on Pyeongchang right now, but preparing athletes for elite contests begins locally.

Wikipedia, operated by the non-profit Wikimedia Foundation, is arguably one of the first stops anyone makes in online research.