Dec 27, 2017 – Jan 2, 2018
The Year That Was: Reporters Share Their Backstories on the News; Twelve Months of Protest Art; The Good, Bad and Ridiculous in Cinema; Our Favorite Eating Experiences of 2017
The Cannabis Catch-Up: States Just Say No to Jeff Sessions
It was a big deal when the Vermont House on Thursday passed its version of a marijuana legalization bill. The Senate gets the bill next,…
The Parmelee Post: To Attract Workers, Economists Suggest Ban on Meteorology in Vermont
State economists wasted no time formulating plans to help Gov. Phil Scott achieve his pledge for a “bold” campaign to attract more workers to Vermont….
Memoriam: Eric H. Charbonneau
January 6, 1963-March 10, 2015 My birthday gift to you will be Days go by and turn to years. Every step I take, a memory…
Obituary: Leonard W. McDonald, 1943-2017
Leonard W. McDonald of Colchester went home to be with his heavenly Father on December 24, 2017, in the arms of his beloved wife, Emily,…
Obituary: Florence Saucier, 1919-2017
Florence Saucier, who has been called a “Queen of Winooski,” passed away peacefully at the Converse Home in Burlington, on December 21, just shy of…
Obituary: Stephen J. Cain, 1952-2017
Stephen J. Cain, age 65, passed away of natural causes on Christmas Eve of 2017. Steve was born on May 18, 1952, in Burlington, Vt.,…
![Remembering Will Knight, the Spider Web Guy [SIV516]](https://sevendaysvt-test.newspackstaging.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/episode516-1200x900.webp)
Remembering Will Knight, the Spider Web Guy [SIV516]
Willet (Will) Knight was known to the thousands who visited his Spider Web Farm in Williamstown over the last four decades, as the Spider Web…
Backstory: Story That Gave Me the Most Headaches, Literally
When I agreed to look into how many studies the Vermont legislature commissioned during the 2017 session, I assumed someone kept track. Several trips to…
The Final Countdown: The Year’s Best Local Recordings
One of the best things about year-end lists is the inevitable criticisms they receive, especially when they pertain to the arts. “Why wasn’t X included?…
Free Will Astrology (12/27/17)
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Hungarian psychiatrist Thomas Szasz dismissed the idea that a person should be on a quest to “find himself” or “find herself.”…
Backstory: Best — and Worst — Interview Setting
Game wardens are usually good interviews. They have great stories and, perhaps as a result of spending so much time alone, tend to be thoughtful…
Ask Athena: I Don’t Really Enjoy My Boyfriend’s Company
Our special double issue brings you two questions in one column. These letters are similar but required opposite advice. Enjoy! Dear Athena, I’ve been with…
Backstory: Most Wine Consumed While Reporting
I don’t normally drink while interviewing people, but this particular story demanded it. I was writing about state lawmakers who rent houses together during the…
Letters to the Editor (12/27/17)
Dynamic Duo I was happy to read Rachel Elizabeth Jones’ article on the exciting art of Rueben Vidrio and Ross Sheehan at the Flynndog gallery…
Kat Wright Reflects on 2017
The last time we checked in with Kat Wright, the Burlington soul singer had just released By My Side, the first record put out under…
Backstory: Toughest Reporting Moment
Mark Davis had recently written a cover story about a murder-suicide in Maidstone. Molly Walsh had interviewed Ron Ryan, whose daughter, Rebecca, died while rock…
Backstory: Sketchiest Source
After weeks of reporting a profile of Republican operative and part-time Stowe resident Stuart Stevens, I was finally ready to sit down and write. I…
Backstory: Story That Got the Quickest Results
It was a steamy day in August when I first met recovering opiate addict William McGuinness. We ordered coffee from Uncommon Grounds Coffee and Tea…
Backstory: Story With the Longest Gestation Period
Forgive me if I don’t remember all the details; this story dates back 37 years. Ronald Reagan had not yet ousted Jimmy Carter from the…
Battle of the Sexes: The Good, Bad and Ridiculous in 2017 Cinema
It was the wire heard round the world. On October 5, the New York Times broke the Harvey Weinstein story, and, five days later, the…
Backstory: Scariest Moment in a Space-Age Car
While reporting a story this fall on the rise of electric-car ownership in Vermont, I took a spin with photographer Todd Lockwood in his 2016…
Our Seven Favorite Vermont Art Shows of 2017
It’s said that Vermont has more artists per capita than any other state. We don’t know if that’s true, but this is: Original artwork is…
Twelve Months of Protest Art in Vermont
2017 started with a bang: The day after President Donald Trump’s inauguration, tens of thousands of protesters descended on Washington — and Boston, New York,…
Backstory: Assignment That Made Me Love My Neighbor
To be a good journalist, you have to keep an open mind. That’s because investigating the facts of a story may change your assumptions. Mine…
Soundbites: 2017 Year in Review
Will you look at that? 2017 is all but over. That means it’s time to recap some of the most newsworthy music events of the…
In Montpelier, ‘SiteTime’ Installation Honors Cordwood
Before this fall, the Vermont Arts Council Sculpture Garden was a place where passersby on Montpelier’s State Street could see outdoor artwork — the static…
Backstory 2017: What Seven Days Reporters Didn’t Tell You the First Time
“There’s always more to a story than a body can see from the fence line,” observed writer Barbara Kingsolver. That’s what motivated Mark Davis to…
Life Stories: Remembering Vermonters Who Died in 2017
Glass artist Toby Ruth Schwartz is one of thousands of Vermonters whose lives ended in 2017. We chose eight of them for this package of stories reflecting on Vermonters who died this year — an annual exercise since Seven Days began publishing obituaries in 2014. We looked for individuals whose lives were remarkable in some…
Backstory: Story That Hit the Closest to Home
Since I moved to Vermont two years ago, people occasionally ask me when I became a citizen. I explain that I’m in the U.S. on…
Backstory: Most Grueling Reporting Trip
I drove two hours to North Hudson, N.Y., to report on the Boreas Ponds, an expansive wilderness tract in the Adirondacks. Conservationists want to keep…
Hackie: Flatty BBQ
Ray Nolan relaxed in the back of my taxi with his wife, Sheila, as we rolled down the highway. He was a big man, both…
Backstory: Most Haunting Story
I had a feeling that 2016 was a record year for fatal opiate overdoses in Vermont. In January, long before the health department released its…
Under the Radar: Themes From the Vermont Political Beat
There were issues that occupied a lot of space around the Statehouse in 2017. There were others that didn’t get as much attention — themes…
Backstory: The Most Quotable Subject, Thom Lauzon
Late last summer, I traveled to Barre, where longtime Mayor Thom Lauzon was pitching a $30 million downtown development to a city council he controls….
Freedom of Screech: Our Favorite Reader Comments of 2017
We like to imagine that commenters on the Seven Days website think before they post. Do I have something witty or useful to say? Will…
Backstory: Most Nutritious Assignment
I spent weeks thinking that “Sally’s” was a Burlington diner I’d never heard of — until a source, a formerly homeless man, suggested we eat…
Backstory: Most Pleasant Dressing-Down
Helene Lang was unhappy with my story about the late writer Dorothy Canfield Fisher and wanted to tell me why — in person. When I…
Backstory: Best Inaccurate Story Tip
Last winter, I heard from a source that a retired Vermont judge, Ed Cashman, was working as an Uber driver. It wasn’t exactly Watergate material,…
Backstory: Story With the Longest Legs
Some stories won’t quit. For example: the Rebels sports mascot debate in South Burlington. After the school board voted in February to drop the name…
Backstory: Stopped at the Border
Snowdrifts melted in the sunshine, and Québec DJs chattered in French on the radio. It felt good to be on a reporting road trip as…
Backstory: Most Uncomfortable Night
In July, Seven Days sent me across the lake to write a “being there” piece on the casting call for “Escape at Dannemora,” a Showtime…
Food Writers Discuss Their Favorite Eats of 2017
The woman over there snapping pictures of her quotidian spaghetti and meatballs at the neighborhood dive … yep, that’s me. Such photographic evidence allowed me…
