https://simplecast.com Rumble Strip Good conversation that takes its time, hosted by Erica Heilman. Copyright © 2018 en-us Thu, 9 Apr 2026 17:17:53 +0000 Thu, 9 Apr 2026 17:18:05 +0000 https://rumblestripvermont.com Rumble Strip https://image.simplecastcdn.com/images/b358754e-6ba8-41e0-b039-137c170284d4/38ffb566-95c6-4513-a376-b123f3f19334/3000x3000/rumble-strip-1400x1400-hs.png?aid=rss_feed https://rumblestripvermont.com Good conversation that takes its time, hosted by Erica Heilman. Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip, Erica Heilman false https://feeds.simplecast.com/QhjMcSa3 Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip rumblestripvermont@gmail.com 6e40babd-4ba7-4c2e-b96c-c74678c78b43 I Eat the Marshmallow This is a same-day reaction to this morning’s story called: A springtime show about how about the economy that partly explains why we feel ashamed. That story features a wonderful listener in Scotland who is a money manager and made some fascinating comments about the last class series. I asked her if she’d be willing to share some of these thoughts on the phone, and she was willing, and that was this morning’s story.

A couple hours later I got a reaction audio from one of the people featured in the class series who we talked about in this morning’s story. So I’m playing it. Because it’s great and because the point of the class series is to talk about these things and this is almost like a real goddamn conversation!

What Class are You? is a series I make for Vermont Public. 

]]> Thu, 9 Apr 2026 17:17:53 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Kaye Phipps, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com This is a same-day reaction to this morning’s story called: A springtime show about how about the economy that partly explains why we feel ashamed. That story features a wonderful listener in Scotland who is a money manager and made some fascinating comments about the last class series. I asked her if she’d be willing to share some of these thoughts on the phone, and she was willing, and that was this morning’s story.

A couple hours later I got a reaction audio from one of the people featured in the class series who we talked about in this morning’s story. So I’m playing it. Because it’s great and because the point of the class series is to talk about these things and this is almost like a real goddamn conversation!

What Class are You? is a series I make for Vermont Public. 

]]> I Eat the Marshmallow Kaye Phipps, Erica Heilman 00:13:30 This is a same-day reaction to this morning’s story called: A springtime show about how about the economy that partly explains why we feel ashamed. That story features a wonderful listener in Scotland who is a money manager and made some fascinating comments about the last class series. I asked her if she’d be willing to share some of these thoughts on the phone, and she was willing, and that was this morning’s story. A couple hours later I got a reaction audio from one of the people featured in the class series who we talked about in this morning’s story. So I’m playing it. Because it’s great and because the point of the class series is to talk about these things and this is almost like a real goddamn conversation! What Class are You? is a series I make for Vermont Public. This is a same-day reaction to this morning’s story called: A springtime show about how about the economy that partly explains why we feel ashamed. That story features a wonderful listener in Scotland who is a money manager and made some fascinating comments about the last class series. I asked her if she’d be willing to share some of these thoughts on the phone, and she was willing, and that was this morning’s story. A couple hours later I got a reaction audio from one of the people featured in the class series who we talked about in this morning’s story. So I’m playing it. Because it’s great and because the point of the class series is to talk about these things and this is almost like a real goddamn conversation! What Class are You? is a series I make for Vermont Public. false full 324 65b0ec9a-640c-4e3c-8f36-7a94e74f80d4 A Springtime Show about the Economy that Partly Explains why We’re Ashamed Thu, 9 Apr 2026 11:40:57 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com A Springtime Show about the Economy that Partly Explains why We’re Ashamed Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:20:18 This is a conversation with a money manager in Scotland who has given a great deal of thought to why many of us feel confused and ashamed about our financial lives. After the What Class are You? shows, I often receive interesting commentary, and I’m always frustrated that this commentary can’t become part of a wider conversation. So after receiving two fascinating comments from EM in Scotland, I asked her if she’d be willing to share some of her thoughts on the economy on the phone. She said yes, and then we had a conversation longer than she ever could have imagined. EM responded primarily to two shows. One featured a woman called Trudy, who worked all kinds of jobs in her life, and toward the end of her working years, she realized that she was not going to have enough money for a comfortable retirement, but she would have a little too much to qualify for services that would make her retirement more comfortable, so she made sure that she retired with little enough money that she could qualify for services. The other story that EM responded to was about Kaye, who talks about how not having money makes her feel like a child, and that all the people with money seem like the adults. Fair warning, I ask a lot of dumb questions in this show, because I don’t know much about the economy. But I’m figuring that maybe there are some people out there like me. And even though I don't know much about economics, most of what she says here has deep resonance. She is naming something I feel but don’t understand.   This is a conversation with a money manager in Scotland who has given a great deal of thought to why many of us feel confused and ashamed about our financial lives. After the What Class are You? shows, I often receive interesting commentary, and I’m always frustrated that this commentary can’t become part of a wider conversation. So after receiving two fascinating comments from EM in Scotland, I asked her if she’d be willing to share some of her thoughts on the economy on the phone. She said yes, and then we had a conversation longer than she ever could have imagined. EM responded primarily to two shows. One featured a woman called Trudy, who worked all kinds of jobs in her life, and toward the end of her working years, she realized that she was not going to have enough money for a comfortable retirement, but she would have a little too much to qualify for services that would make her retirement more comfortable, so she made sure that she retired with little enough money that she could qualify for services. The other story that EM responded to was about Kaye, who talks about how not having money makes her feel like a child, and that all the people with money seem like the adults. Fair warning, I ask a lot of dumb questions in this show, because I don’t know much about the economy. But I’m figuring that maybe there are some people out there like me. And even though I don't know much about economics, most of what she says here has deep resonance. She is naming something I feel but don’t understand.   false full 323 06ceac3a-5074-42a8-80d3-31aac587bcff Hold On This is a story about a song.

Six years ago, seventeen-year-old Finn Rooney killed himself in his home in Walden, Vermont. A couple days later, his community held a bonfire in the parking lot of Hazen Union High school in Hardwick. Hundreds of people came. Tom Gilbert, who organized the bonfire, asked his friend Heidi Wilson to write a song for the occasion. The song was called Hold On. She made sure it was a song everyone could sing. And they did.

Now people are singing this song all over the world. People in Minneapolis have been singing it to ICE agents. They’re singing it for their neighbors who are afraid to leave their houses. They’re singing it in Wales and Australia and Iralend in solidarity with the people of Minneapolis. Peole are singing it all over, to give each other some comfort and some courage.

This is a story about where that song came from and where it’s gone.

]]> Fri, 6 Mar 2026 14:48:12 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman, Heidi Wilson, Tara Reese) https://rumblestripvermont.com This is a story about a song.

Six years ago, seventeen-year-old Finn Rooney killed himself in his home in Walden, Vermont. A couple days later, his community held a bonfire in the parking lot of Hazen Union High school in Hardwick. Hundreds of people came. Tom Gilbert, who organized the bonfire, asked his friend Heidi Wilson to write a song for the occasion. The song was called Hold On. She made sure it was a song everyone could sing. And they did.

Now people are singing this song all over the world. People in Minneapolis have been singing it to ICE agents. They’re singing it for their neighbors who are afraid to leave their houses. They’re singing it in Wales and Australia and Iralend in solidarity with the people of Minneapolis. Peole are singing it all over, to give each other some comfort and some courage.

This is a story about where that song came from and where it’s gone.

]]> Hold On Erica Heilman, Heidi Wilson, Tara Reese 00:16:33 Six years ago, seventeen-year-old Finn Rooney killed himself in his home in Walden, Vermont. A couple days later, his community held a bonfire in the parking lot of Hazen Union High school in Hardwick. Hundreds of people came. Tom Gilbert, who organized the bonfire, asked his friend Heidi Wilson to write a song for the occasion. The song was called Hold On. She made sure it was a song everyone could sing. And they did. Now people are singing this song all over the world. People in Minneapolis have been singing it to ICE agents. They’re singing it for their neighbors who are afraid to leave their houses. They’re singing it in Wales and Australia and Iralend in solidarity with the people of Minneapolis. Peole are singing it all over, to give each other some comfort and some courage. This is a story about where that song came from and where it’s gone. Six years ago, seventeen-year-old Finn Rooney killed himself in his home in Walden, Vermont. A couple days later, his community held a bonfire in the parking lot of Hazen Union High school in Hardwick. Hundreds of people came. Tom Gilbert, who organized the bonfire, asked his friend Heidi Wilson to write a song for the occasion. The song was called Hold On. She made sure it was a song everyone could sing. And they did. Now people are singing this song all over the world. People in Minneapolis have been singing it to ICE agents. They’re singing it for their neighbors who are afraid to leave their houses. They’re singing it in Wales and Australia and Iralend in solidarity with the people of Minneapolis. Peole are singing it all over, to give each other some comfort and some courage. This is a story about where that song came from and where it’s gone. rumblestrip, minneapolis, rumble strip, finn and the bell, heidi wilson false full 322 0e9bf261-971d-46df-96f8-9498988520f8 What class are you, Habib and Arwa? I met Arwa and Habib Meiloud because they’re Anne’s kids and Anne works at the post office in the village here in East Calais. They live in the house right across the road from the post office. Arwa and Habib’s father is from Mauritania and lives out of the country, but both Arwa and Habib were born in the US, and their mother Anne grew up in Vermont. Arwa is 17 years old, Habib is 18. In this conversation, we talk about the roles that race and class have played in their lives.

]]> Thu, 29 Jan 2026 12:28:50 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (habib, what class are you, Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip, rumble strip, Erica Heilman, Arwa) https://rumblestripvermont.com I met Arwa and Habib Meiloud because they’re Anne’s kids and Anne works at the post office in the village here in East Calais. They live in the house right across the road from the post office. Arwa and Habib’s father is from Mauritania and lives out of the country, but both Arwa and Habib were born in the US, and their mother Anne grew up in Vermont. Arwa is 17 years old, Habib is 18. In this conversation, we talk about the roles that race and class have played in their lives.

]]> What class are you, Habib and Arwa? habib, what class are you, Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip, rumble strip, Erica Heilman, Arwa 00:07:46 A conversation about the roles of race and class in the lives of two biracial teenagers in Vermont. A conversation about the roles of race and class in the lives of two biracial teenagers in Vermont. vermont, class, vermont public, arwa, what class are you, habib, rumble strip false full 321 649e5f2f-bf9c-414b-a399-c731dba273fe What class are you Kaye? Kaye Phipps lives in Montpelier, Vermont. Right now she works as a custodian at a local grocery store. She’s also been a florist, a housekeeper, and a house cleaner. But even though she’s sometimes working multiple jobs, she often comes up short. In this episode, Kaye talks about how having a limited income makes her feel like a child, long into adulthood.

]]> Wed, 28 Jan 2026 13:26:41 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Kaye Phipps, Erica Heilman, rumble strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Kaye Phipps lives in Montpelier, Vermont. Right now she works as a custodian at a local grocery store. She’s also been a florist, a housekeeper, and a house cleaner. But even though she’s sometimes working multiple jobs, she often comes up short. In this episode, Kaye talks about how having a limited income makes her feel like a child, long into adulthood.

]]> What class are you Kaye? Kaye Phipps, Erica Heilman, rumble strip 00:15:14 Kaye Phipps lives in Montpelier, Vermont. Right now she works as a custodian at a local grocery store. She’s also been a florist, a housekeeper, and a house cleaner. But even though she’s sometimes working multiple jobs, she often comes up short. In this episode, Kaye talks about how having a limited income makes her feel like a child, long into adulthood. Kaye Phipps lives in Montpelier, Vermont. Right now she works as a custodian at a local grocery store. She’s also been a florist, a housekeeper, and a house cleaner. But even though she’s sometimes working multiple jobs, she often comes up short. In this episode, Kaye talks about how having a limited income makes her feel like a child, long into adulthood. vermont, class, what class are you, kaye, rumble strip true full 320 63b31a87-4068-4b2e-bc6a-7f862eef272a What class are you Jules? Jules Guillemette grew up on their family farm in Lamoille County, Vermont, which has been in the family nearly 100 years. Since then, Jules has worked as a chef, a meat cutter and now they're an electrician. In this episode, we talk about what it means to own land of enormous value but always be struggling to save enough money.

]]> Tue, 27 Jan 2026 15:54:42 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Jules Guillemette, Erica Heilman, rumble strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Jules Guillemette grew up on their family farm in Lamoille County, Vermont, which has been in the family nearly 100 years. Since then, Jules has worked as a chef, a meat cutter and now they're an electrician. In this episode, we talk about what it means to own land of enormous value but always be struggling to save enough money.

]]> What class are you Jules? Jules Guillemette, Erica Heilman, rumble strip 00:09:22 Jules Guillemette grew up on their family farm in Lamoille County, Vermont, which has been in the family nearly 100 years. Since then, Jules has worked as a chef, a meat cutter and now they're an electrician. In this episode, we talk about what it means to own land of enormous value but always be struggling to save enough money. Jules Guillemette grew up on their family farm in Lamoille County, Vermont, which has been in the family nearly 100 years. Since then, Jules has worked as a chef, a meat cutter and now they're an electrician. In this episode, we talk about what it means to own land of enormous value but always be struggling to save enough money. vermont, class, erica heilman, what class are you, rumble strip false full 319 aef839f5-f143-4424-8f0f-91aab296bc4f What class are you Trudy? What Class are You? is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public, which started back in 2022. I wanted to talk with people about growing political and cultural divides without talking about politics or cultural divides. I had no idea how to do it. Then one day I just drove around and asked people what class they are. And what I found was that as dumb and offensive as this question is, people have a lot to say about it. Socioeconomic reality is one thing we all share. Some of us have a lot, some have a little, and most of us fall somewhere in between, but it’s a big common denominator.

Trudy Richmond lives in subsidized senior housing in Burlington. She’s  educated and worked all her life, but at a certain point, Trudy realized that she had too little money to pay for a comfortable retirement and too much to qualify for services that might make her retirement more comfortable. In this episode of What Class are You, Trudy talks with reporter Erica Heilman about how she negotiated a comfortable retirement for herself.

 

I make this series for Vermont Public. Thank you Vermont Public for letting me share these stories with Rumble Strip listeners! 

]]> Mon, 26 Jan 2026 15:46:33 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman, rumble strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com What Class are You? is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public, which started back in 2022. I wanted to talk with people about growing political and cultural divides without talking about politics or cultural divides. I had no idea how to do it. Then one day I just drove around and asked people what class they are. And what I found was that as dumb and offensive as this question is, people have a lot to say about it. Socioeconomic reality is one thing we all share. Some of us have a lot, some have a little, and most of us fall somewhere in between, but it’s a big common denominator.

Trudy Richmond lives in subsidized senior housing in Burlington. She’s  educated and worked all her life, but at a certain point, Trudy realized that she had too little money to pay for a comfortable retirement and too much to qualify for services that might make her retirement more comfortable. In this episode of What Class are You, Trudy talks with reporter Erica Heilman about how she negotiated a comfortable retirement for herself.

 

I make this series for Vermont Public. Thank you Vermont Public for letting me share these stories with Rumble Strip listeners! 

]]> What class are you Trudy? Erica Heilman, rumble strip 00:08:53 Trudy Richmond lives in subsidized senior housing in Burlington. She’s educated and worked all her life, but at a certain point, Trudy realized that she had too little money to pay for a comfortable retirement and too much to qualify for services that might make her retirement more comfortable. In this episode of What Class are You, Trudy talks with reporter Erica Heilman about how she negotiated a comfortable retirement for herself. Trudy Richmond lives in subsidized senior housing in Burlington. She’s educated and worked all her life, but at a certain point, Trudy realized that she had too little money to pay for a comfortable retirement and too much to qualify for services that might make her retirement more comfortable. In this episode of What Class are You, Trudy talks with reporter Erica Heilman about how she negotiated a comfortable retirement for herself. vermont, trudy, class, what class are you false full 318 7754e97e-02f3-44a0-bc8a-32d478dc1298 The Thanksgiving Show This is a show about Thanksgiving, and what it sounds like. It is made entirely of your recordings. 

Thank you everyone for sending me recordings. We have made a show  that sounds like the whole damn country. Or a lot of it.

]]> Tue, 9 Dec 2025 03:40:59 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com This is a show about Thanksgiving, and what it sounds like. It is made entirely of your recordings. 

Thank you everyone for sending me recordings. We have made a show  that sounds like the whole damn country. Or a lot of it.

]]> The Thanksgiving Show Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:20:28 This is a show about Thanksgiving, and what it sounds like. It is made entirely of your recordings. This is a show about Thanksgiving, and what it sounds like. It is made entirely of your recordings. podcast, vermont, rumble strip, thanksgiving false full 317 21af3154-c3d8-4120-b595-174df8d8e24d Thanksgiving show SAMPLER A couple days ago I asked you to send me some recordings from Thanksgiving. I figured I'd give you a little better sense of what I'm looking for. 

Happy Thanksgiving all!

 

Erica

]]> Wed, 26 Nov 2025 16:59:24 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com A couple days ago I asked you to send me some recordings from Thanksgiving. I figured I'd give you a little better sense of what I'm looking for. 

Happy Thanksgiving all!

 

Erica

]]> Thanksgiving show SAMPLER Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:03:03 Hello all. Here's a little sample of the show I'm trying ot make with YOU this Thanksgiving... Hello all. Here's a little sample of the show I'm trying ot make with YOU this Thanksgiving... false full 316 47017771-1311-481f-bfbf-7eae15d3fc7e Let's Make a Show about Thanksgiving Let's make a show about Thanksgiving. I have always wanted to do this, and the time has come.

Anyone who is willing, I would love you to record a voice memo this week about your holiday. Stories, anecdotes, songs...I don't know. You don't have to speak in complete sentences. It doesn’t have to be organized. It doesn't have to be funny or important. 

If you're willing to record some of the holiday ambience, that would also be great. The tv room, the kitchen, the dinner table, the drive or flight to your destination, the door greetings and departures. Anything you feel like recording.

Send me the recordings by Sunday, to rumblestripvermont@gmail.com and I will make a show that tries to capture just SOME of our complex feelings and experiences during this DAY OF THANKS. 

Thank you all so much in advance!

Erica 

]]> Tue, 25 Nov 2025 08:00:00 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman, rumble strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Let's make a show about Thanksgiving. I have always wanted to do this, and the time has come.

Anyone who is willing, I would love you to record a voice memo this week about your holiday. Stories, anecdotes, songs...I don't know. You don't have to speak in complete sentences. It doesn’t have to be organized. It doesn't have to be funny or important. 

If you're willing to record some of the holiday ambience, that would also be great. The tv room, the kitchen, the dinner table, the drive or flight to your destination, the door greetings and departures. Anything you feel like recording.

Send me the recordings by Sunday, to rumblestripvermont@gmail.com and I will make a show that tries to capture just SOME of our complex feelings and experiences during this DAY OF THANKS. 

Thank you all so much in advance!

Erica 

]]> Let's Make a Show about Thanksgiving Erica Heilman, rumble strip 00:02:53 This is me imploring YOU to make some recordings this year about your Thanksgiving. This is me imploring YOU to make some recordings this year about your Thanksgiving. false full 315 dc5fbfd6-7884-4a86-8d0e-a1d136bf6af9 An American Life Music for this show is by Brian Clark, who is awesome. 

]]> Tue, 11 Nov 2025 06:00:00 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Vaughn Hood, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com Music for this show is by Brian Clark, who is awesome. 

]]> An American Life Vaughn Hood, Erica Heilman 00:29:20 Vaughn Hood was an 118-pound barber in his late teens when he was drafted and sent to Vietnam, and in Vaughn’s war, most men didn’t survive their first three month tour. I met Vaughn through my sister. He was her hairdresser in St. Johnsbury, and he mentioned his time in Vietnam while he was cutting her hair. They didn't talk much about it, but she recommended him to me. We sat down in the back of his salon one day and I turned my recorder on, and we had one of the most remarkable conversations I've had in my life. Vaughn Hood was an 118-pound barber in his late teens when he was drafted and sent to Vietnam, and in Vaughn’s war, most men didn’t survive their first three month tour. I met Vaughn through my sister. He was her hairdresser in St. Johnsbury, and he mentioned his time in Vietnam while he was cutting her hair. They didn't talk much about it, but she recommended him to me. We sat down in the back of his salon one day and I turned my recorder on, and we had one of the most remarkable conversations I've had in my life. vermont, vietnam, rumble strip, war true full 314 4cacc25e-3bf7-4a72-a3c9-f20ddafd4dd6 The Party Thank you Phil Edfors of Vermont Public for cleaning up the whale recordings. This was no small feat and I am grateful.

The whales were recorded for an oceanic soundscape project at the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute. 

]]> Mon, 3 Nov 2025 14:10:23 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com Thank you Phil Edfors of Vermont Public for cleaning up the whale recordings. This was no small feat and I am grateful.

The whales were recorded for an oceanic soundscape project at the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute. 

]]> The Party Erica Heilman 00:14:25 My friend Jesse had a birthday party. I attended but spent the entire time lying down upstairs in the guest room. I asked people who attended the party to send me voice memos about the party. This is a show comprised of these recordings. And whales. Happy birthday Jesse. My friend Jesse had a birthday party. I attended but spent the entire time lying down upstairs in the guest room. I asked people who attended the party to send me voice memos about the party. This is a show comprised of these recordings. And whales. Happy birthday Jesse. rumblestrip, vermont, plainfield, party, whales, rumble strip true full 313 f901003b-b702-44dc-a5f9-4980f660c676 Joslyn House Revisited Credits

Thanks to all the residents who talked with me, and the beautiful Arlene and Becky Wright, managers of the house.

My friend Kelly Green produced this show with me. She’s great at this PLUS she’s a great defense attorney! If you're in trouble, call Kelly.

Click here for more information on the Joslyn House

The song for this show is A Wave in the Air by The Imperfectionists, from their latest album, Universal Consent.

And my frickin ALL TIME FAVORITE IMPERFECTIONIST SONG: Astroplane.

]]> Tue, 21 Oct 2025 12:26:27 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip, Kelly Green, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com Credits

Thanks to all the residents who talked with me, and the beautiful Arlene and Becky Wright, managers of the house.

My friend Kelly Green produced this show with me. She’s great at this PLUS she’s a great defense attorney! If you're in trouble, call Kelly.

Click here for more information on the Joslyn House

The song for this show is A Wave in the Air by The Imperfectionists, from their latest album, Universal Consent.

And my frickin ALL TIME FAVORITE IMPERFECTIONIST SONG: Astroplane.

]]> Joslyn House Revisited Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip, Kelly Green, Erica Heilman 00:26:42 People often assume the Joslyn House is a nursing home, probably because a lot of old people live there. But it’s not a nursing home. It’s not assisted living. There’s no anonymous art on the wall. It’s a house. It’s a a place where up to twenty older people live independently together…in a huge, elegant house furnished with their own things. It is a place where you don’t have to worry about cooking, where if you’re lonely at night there‘s someone to talk to, or sit with. In other words, a civilized, safe place where love is evident. People often assume the Joslyn House is a nursing home, probably because a lot of old people live there. But it’s not a nursing home. It’s not assisted living. There’s no anonymous art on the wall. It’s a house. It’s a a place where up to twenty older people live independently together…in a huge, elegant house furnished with their own things. It is a place where you don’t have to worry about cooking, where if you’re lonely at night there‘s someone to talk to, or sit with. In other words, a civilized, safe place where love is evident. housing, elderly, vermont false full 312 1cbaccd9-9f68-4791-8278-5b7fbe24144f A Barn Update with Forrest Foster I stopped in to visit with Forrest Foster about his barn project. Here's our conversation.

]]> Wed, 8 Oct 2025 18:00:08 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com I stopped in to visit with Forrest Foster about his barn project. Here's our conversation.

]]> A Barn Update with Forrest Foster Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:11:41 I stopped in to visit with Forrest Foster about his barn project. Here's our conversation. I stopped in to visit with Forrest Foster about his barn project. Here's our conversation. false full 311 9d48e1f9-96b2-4bdf-abe6-d67cdf246603 Tractor Pull Williams Family Field of Dreams Tractor Pulls

 

]]> Thu, 25 Sep 2025 18:37:16 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Ralph Rockwell, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com Williams Family Field of Dreams Tractor Pulls

 

]]> Tractor Pull Ralph Rockwell, Erica Heilman 00:12:57 My friend Ralph Rockwell is a mechanic in Wolcott, Vermont, and he runs a tow truck business. He's been rebuilding old vehicles since he was 15. Now he's 72 and he restores old tractors. I don't know anything about tractors, but I love listening to Ralph talk about them. Each story contains the tractor's history as far back as he can go. This begat this begat that. It's almost Biblical. This summer I sat and talked with Ralph in his shop next to a 1953 Ford Jubilee. Then I tagged along to a tractor pull. My friend Ralph Rockwell is a mechanic in Wolcott, Vermont, and he runs a tow truck business. He's been rebuilding old vehicles since he was 15. Now he's 72 and he restores old tractors. I don't know anything about tractors, but I love listening to Ralph talk about them. Each story contains the tractor's history as far back as he can go. This begat this begat that. It's almost Biblical. This summer I sat and talked with Ralph in his shop next to a 1953 Ford Jubilee. Then I tagged along to a tractor pull. vermont, tractors, ralph rockwell false full 310 89702f87-0450-4f30-b04d-633b45ef185f Susan Randall. Hold the Line A couple weeks ago my friend Susan Randall came to visit. She’s a private investigator and we’ve been friends for thirty years and every  now and then we get together and compare notes on our lives, and on what the hell is going on. Sometimes we talk about her work, sometimes our kids, once we made a show about a dead owl.

This has been a very difficult year for Susan. In this  conversation, we talk about her health...and the federal government.

]]> Sat, 13 Sep 2025 20:35:28 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Susan Randall, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com A couple weeks ago my friend Susan Randall came to visit. She’s a private investigator and we’ve been friends for thirty years and every  now and then we get together and compare notes on our lives, and on what the hell is going on. Sometimes we talk about her work, sometimes our kids, once we made a show about a dead owl.

This has been a very difficult year for Susan. In this  conversation, we talk about her health...and the federal government.

]]> Susan Randall. Hold the Line Susan Randall, Erica Heilman 00:22:00 A couple weeks ago my friend Susan Randall came to visit. She’s a private investigator and we’ve been friends for thirty years and every now and then we get together and compare notes on our lives, and on what the hell is going on. Sometimes we talk about her work, sometimes our kids, once we made a show about a dead owl. This has been a very difficult year for Susan. In this conversation, we talk about her health...and the federal government. A couple weeks ago my friend Susan Randall came to visit. She’s a private investigator and we’ve been friends for thirty years and every now and then we get together and compare notes on our lives, and on what the hell is going on. Sometimes we talk about her work, sometimes our kids, once we made a show about a dead owl. This has been a very difficult year for Susan. In this conversation, we talk about her health...and the federal government. vermont, private investigator, susan randall false full 309 9b4e3d6f-ed2c-4d08-b349-b0f3ce089420 Zombie Snails Bryan's substack, Chasing Nature 

Bryan's article about the zombie snails and some wicked video

]]> Thu, 4 Sep 2025 17:48:17 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Bryan Pfeiffer, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com Bryan's substack, Chasing Nature 

Bryan's article about the zombie snails and some wicked video

]]> Zombie Snails Bryan Pfeiffer, Erica Heilman 00:15:43 My friend Bryan Pfeiffer is a writer and field naturalist in Montpelier, Vermont. And recently he published an article about his discovery of these crazy zombie snails…whose eye stalks have been taken over by these long, wet, pulsing technicolor appendages. They are amazing. So we talked about them. My friend Bryan Pfeiffer is a writer and field naturalist in Montpelier, Vermont. And recently he published an article about his discovery of these crazy zombie snails…whose eye stalks have been taken over by these long, wet, pulsing technicolor appendages. They are amazing. So we talked about them. snails, zombie snail, bryan pfeiffer false full 308 95b195e1-a079-4e94-96db-3c7f5c0c018d Jay Allison on Why We Should Save Public Radio Links:

Adopt a Station: Where you can donate to your local public radio station or find stations to support

Transom: The place where good radio begins

Recent New York Times interview with Bill Siemering about the fate of public radio

Information on Transom story trainings

Rumble Strip episode w Jay called Fishing with Jay

]]> Wed, 30 Jul 2025 16:58:07 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Jay Allison, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com Links:

Adopt a Station: Where you can donate to your local public radio station or find stations to support

Transom: The place where good radio begins

Recent New York Times interview with Bill Siemering about the fate of public radio

Information on Transom story trainings

Rumble Strip episode w Jay called Fishing with Jay

]]> Jay Allison on Why We Should Save Public Radio Jay Allison, Erica Heilman 00:23:22 This is a conversation with Jay Allison about the recent attack on the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Recently, Congress passed a rescission bill that eliminates $9 billion in previously allocated funding, including $1.1 billion for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), which effectively defunds public media, which includes NPR, PBS and member stations around the country. This is a conversation about what that means and what we stand to lose. Jay Allison has been working in and around public radio since it’s beginnings a half century ago. He's been an independent public radio producer, journalist, and teacher since the 1970s. He is the founder of Transom, where I learned to make radio, and 25 years ago he founded WCAI, a public radio station in Woods Hole, Massachusetts. Jay's work has won most of the major broadcasting awards, including six Peabodys. He produces The Moth Radio Hour and was the curator of This I Believe on NPR. This is a conversation with Jay Allison about the recent attack on the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Recently, Congress passed a rescission bill that eliminates $9 billion in previously allocated funding, including $1.1 billion for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), which effectively defunds public media, which includes NPR, PBS and member stations around the country. This is a conversation about what that means and what we stand to lose. Jay Allison has been working in and around public radio since it’s beginnings a half century ago. He's been an independent public radio producer, journalist, and teacher since the 1970s. He is the founder of Transom, where I learned to make radio, and 25 years ago he founded WCAI, a public radio station in Woods Hole, Massachusetts. Jay's work has won most of the major broadcasting awards, including six Peabodys. He produces The Moth Radio Hour and was the curator of This I Believe on NPR. radio, transom, jay allison, public radio, npr, erica heilman, rumble strip false full 307 294a8b2a-e060-4948-b7b7-031d6a358dad Ladies' Pond The women in this show are: Clare Dolan, Holly Rae Taylor, Alison Bechdel, Deb Fleischman, Annie Greensfelder, Rosana Vestuti and Tamar Cole. 

Thanks to all the kids and families and dogs and loons and crows that were there that day on the pond. And the trumpet guy.

Huge thanks to Chelsea Edgar for your edits. 

]]> Mon, 28 Jul 2025 17:43:59 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com The women in this show are: Clare Dolan, Holly Rae Taylor, Alison Bechdel, Deb Fleischman, Annie Greensfelder, Rosana Vestuti and Tamar Cole. 

Thanks to all the kids and families and dogs and loons and crows that were there that day on the pond. And the trumpet guy.

Huge thanks to Chelsea Edgar for your edits. 

]]> Ladies' Pond Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip, Erica Heilman 00:17:06 No. 10 Pond is where I go swimming in the summer. All kinds of people go there. Kids, grownups, grandparents, mothers and fathers, dogs. But ALWAYS there is a group of ladies....standing thigh deep in the pond, talking together. All over the world since the beginning of time, ladies of a certain age have been standing thigh deep in water together, talking. It’s a scientific fact. So here in my town, for hundreds of years--even before recorded history--pieces of these ladies conversations have been drifting around on the pond. This is a show about No. 10 Pond, and the ladies who stand in it. No. 10 Pond is where I go swimming in the summer. All kinds of people go there. Kids, grownups, grandparents, mothers and fathers, dogs. But ALWAYS there is a group of ladies....standing thigh deep in the pond, talking together. All over the world since the beginning of time, ladies of a certain age have been standing thigh deep in water together, talking. It’s a scientific fact. So here in my town, for hundreds of years--even before recorded history--pieces of these ladies conversations have been drifting around on the pond. This is a show about No. 10 Pond, and the ladies who stand in it. rumblestrip, pond, vermont, ladies, calais, swimming, rumble strip true full 306 c122227a-c045-42a2-a638-958317aca611 What class are you Susan Ritz? This is the last episode in season 6 of What Class are You?, a periodic series I make for Vermont Public.

Susan Ritz grew up in a wealthy family in Minnesota. For the past 36 years, she's lived in central Vermont, where she writes books and is an active philanthropist. In this episode of "What class are you?" we talk about the surprising complexities of having more than most.

]]> Fri, 18 Jul 2025 15:04:03 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Susan Ritz, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com This is the last episode in season 6 of What Class are You?, a periodic series I make for Vermont Public.

Susan Ritz grew up in a wealthy family in Minnesota. For the past 36 years, she's lived in central Vermont, where she writes books and is an active philanthropist. In this episode of "What class are you?" we talk about the surprising complexities of having more than most.

]]> What class are you Susan Ritz? Susan Ritz, Erica Heilman 00:08:24 This is the last episode in season 6 of What Class are You?, a periodic series I make for Vermont Public. Susan Ritz grew up in a wealthy family in Minnesota. For the past 36 years, she's lived in central Vermont, where she writes books and is an active philanthropist. In this episode of "What class are you?" we talk about the surprising complexities of having more than most. This is the last episode in season 6 of What Class are You?, a periodic series I make for Vermont Public. Susan Ritz grew up in a wealthy family in Minnesota. For the past 36 years, she's lived in central Vermont, where she writes books and is an active philanthropist. In this episode of "What class are you?" we talk about the surprising complexities of having more than most. class, what class are you, rumble strip false full 305 41d4b5c8-6924-44f0-8f7b-6dcaa132af33 What Class are You Kytreana Patrick? Today, episode 4 of season SIX of What Class are You?, a periodic series I make for Vermont Public about living in the American class system. In today’s episode, we revisit Kytreana Patrick, who was a guest from the first class series back in 2022. Back then, Kytreana was working as a cashier at Olney’s general store in Orleans, Vermont. Since then, Kytreana’s gotten a job at a factory that manufactures combat helmets. She’s got a small apartment in Newport, and this past January she gave birth to her first child, a daughter, Emberlyn.

 

Thank you Vermont Public!

]]> Thu, 17 Jul 2025 13:26:59 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Kytreana Patrick, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com Today, episode 4 of season SIX of What Class are You?, a periodic series I make for Vermont Public about living in the American class system. In today’s episode, we revisit Kytreana Patrick, who was a guest from the first class series back in 2022. Back then, Kytreana was working as a cashier at Olney’s general store in Orleans, Vermont. Since then, Kytreana’s gotten a job at a factory that manufactures combat helmets. She’s got a small apartment in Newport, and this past January she gave birth to her first child, a daughter, Emberlyn.

 

Thank you Vermont Public!

]]> What Class are You Kytreana Patrick? Kytreana Patrick, Erica Heilman 00:07:52 Today, episode 4 of season SIX of What Class are You?, a periodic series I make for Vermont Public about living in the American class system. In today’s episode, we revisit Kytreana Patrick, who was a guest from the first class series back in 2022. Back then, Kytreana was working as a cashier at Olney’s general store in Orleans, Vermont. Since then, Kytreana’s gotten a job at a factory that manufactures combat helmets. She’s got a small apartment in Newport, and this past January she gave birth to her first child, a daughter, Emberlyn. Today, episode 4 of season SIX of What Class are You?, a periodic series I make for Vermont Public about living in the American class system. In today’s episode, we revisit Kytreana Patrick, who was a guest from the first class series back in 2022. Back then, Kytreana was working as a cashier at Olney’s general store in Orleans, Vermont. Since then, Kytreana’s gotten a job at a factory that manufactures combat helmets. She’s got a small apartment in Newport, and this past January she gave birth to her first child, a daughter, Emberlyn. vermont public, kytreana patrick, erica heilman false full 304 05f0e4a0-e672-45af-b064-ee72716ac11c What Class are You Dan Sedon? Dan Sedon has been working as a criminal defense attorney in Vermont, where he works with poor people and rich people and all the people in between. In this latest episode of What Class are You?, reporter Erica Heilman talks with Dan about what this line of work has taught him about the American class system.

What Class are You? is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public. Thank you Vermont Public for letting me share this series with the Rumble Strip audience. 

]]> Wed, 16 Jul 2025 11:50:53 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Dan Sedon, Erica Heilman, Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Dan Sedon has been working as a criminal defense attorney in Vermont, where he works with poor people and rich people and all the people in between. In this latest episode of What Class are You?, reporter Erica Heilman talks with Dan about what this line of work has taught him about the American class system.

What Class are You? is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public. Thank you Vermont Public for letting me share this series with the Rumble Strip audience. 

]]> What Class are You Dan Sedon? Dan Sedon, Erica Heilman, Rumble Strip 00:15:33 Dan Sedon has been working as a criminal defense attorney in Vermont, where he works with poor people and rich people and all the people in between. In this latest episode of What Class are You?, reporter Erica Heilman talks with Dan about what this line of work has taught him about the American class system. Dan Sedon has been working as a criminal defense attorney in Vermont, where he works with poor people and rich people and all the people in between. In this latest episode of What Class are You?, reporter Erica Heilman talks with Dan about what this line of work has taught him about the American class system. dan sedon', what class are you, dan sedon false full 303 cc35c5a5-beb5-4b65-8c0c-a578897dede8 What Class Are You Sharon Plumb? What Class Are You? is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public about our lives in the American class system.

Sharon Plumb works for a statewide nonprofit in the outdoor recreation sector. She lives in East Montpelier with her husband and daughter.

In this conversation,  Sharon talks about the advantages she sees in the lives of people whose parents are able to help their kids financially all the way into adulthood.

]]> Tue, 15 Jul 2025 12:27:11 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Sharon Plumb, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com What Class Are You? is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public about our lives in the American class system.

Sharon Plumb works for a statewide nonprofit in the outdoor recreation sector. She lives in East Montpelier with her husband and daughter.

In this conversation,  Sharon talks about the advantages she sees in the lives of people whose parents are able to help their kids financially all the way into adulthood.

]]> What Class Are You Sharon Plumb? Sharon Plumb, Erica Heilman 00:07:48 What Class Are You? is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public about our lives in the American class system. Sharon Plumb works for a statewide nonprofit in the outdoor recreation sector. She lives in East Montpelier with her husband and daughter. In this conversation, Sharon talks about the advantages she sees in the lives of people whose parents are able to help their kids financially all the way into adulthood. What Class Are You? is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public about our lives in the American class system. Sharon Plumb works for a statewide nonprofit in the outdoor recreation sector. She lives in East Montpelier with her husband and daughter. In this conversation, Sharon talks about the advantages she sees in the lives of people whose parents are able to help their kids financially all the way into adulthood. class, erica heilman, what class are you, rumble strip, sharon plumb false full 302 558a7d0e-c3bb-4e59-ac73-62ff8a869c81 Ralph Figures He Might Have to Work til he's Dead This is a series I make for  Vermont Public. Thank  you to Vermont Public for allowing me to run this series on Rumble Strip.

]]> Mon, 14 Jul 2025 19:09:03 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman, Vermont Public) https://rumblestripvermont.com This is a series I make for  Vermont Public. Thank  you to Vermont Public for allowing me to run this series on Rumble Strip.

]]> Ralph Figures He Might Have to Work til he's Dead Erica Heilman, Vermont Public 00:08:18 Ralph Rockwell lives in Wolcott, Vermont with his wife Carol and about 28 tractors. He runs a towing service part time and sells some of the tractors he restores, but he’s 72 and he’s mostly retired from a long career as a mechanic. In this episode of the occasional series "What Class Are You?" Ralph and I sit next to one of Ralph's tractors and talk about class. Ralph Rockwell lives in Wolcott, Vermont with his wife Carol and about 28 tractors. He runs a towing service part time and sells some of the tractors he restores, but he’s 72 and he’s mostly retired from a long career as a mechanic. In this episode of the occasional series "What Class Are You?" Ralph and I sit next to one of Ralph's tractors and talk about class. vermont, class, ralph rockwell, what class are you false full 301 4c2f9d89-aebf-4086-84e7-60086aa9b0ec What Now Sounds Like: The Rapture This is the fourth episode of What Now Sounds Like, a periodic series comprised entirely of your recordings from all over the world, in which we try to capture these strange times in audio. 

In this show you hear from Bryce in New York City, Stephanie in middle Appalachia, Tobin making eggs in Santa Rosa, California, George in New York City, Allison in Vermont, the Utah symphony warming up, gongs in Tacoma, Washington, a school meeting about AI in the classroom, Early in Arkansas, Jenn in London, coyotes in Middlesex Vermont, Rachel in Tonga, horns celebrating Tibetan New Year in Kathmandu, Marlo in Washington, and Amelia humming in Durham North Carolina. 

]]> Mon, 2 Jun 2025 15:19:00 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (rumble strip, Erica Heilman, rumble) https://rumblestripvermont.com This is the fourth episode of What Now Sounds Like, a periodic series comprised entirely of your recordings from all over the world, in which we try to capture these strange times in audio. 

In this show you hear from Bryce in New York City, Stephanie in middle Appalachia, Tobin making eggs in Santa Rosa, California, George in New York City, Allison in Vermont, the Utah symphony warming up, gongs in Tacoma, Washington, a school meeting about AI in the classroom, Early in Arkansas, Jenn in London, coyotes in Middlesex Vermont, Rachel in Tonga, horns celebrating Tibetan New Year in Kathmandu, Marlo in Washington, and Amelia humming in Durham North Carolina. 

]]> What Now Sounds Like: The Rapture rumble strip, Erica Heilman, rumble 00:13:56 This is the fourth episode of What Now Sounds Like, a periodic series comprised entirely of your recordings from all over the world, in which we try to capture these strange times in audio. This is the fourth episode of What Now Sounds Like, a periodic series comprised entirely of your recordings from all over the world, in which we try to capture these strange times in audio. vermont, what now sounds like, erica heilman, rumble strip false full 300 82517375-7881-4bd4-9f4f-e2bcea1f9d0f Hardwick State This was the inaugural year of Hardwick State, a weekend long university in Hardwick, Vermont, organized by the Civic Standard, and designed to take place during the awfulest time of the year. People from around Hardwick become professors and students. Classes are free, and everyone’s welcome to teach at Hardwick State. Maybe you teach something you do in your regular job. Maybe it’s just something you’re good at. Maybe it’s something you’re not very good at but you love it and you’re better than most.

Here are some highlights from Hardwick State. 

 

Visit the Civic Standard

Photos by Terry J. Allen. For a steady stream of great photos and essays, visit Terry's substack here. It's free.

]]> Fri, 9 May 2025 13:57:11 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (rumble, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com This was the inaugural year of Hardwick State, a weekend long university in Hardwick, Vermont, organized by the Civic Standard, and designed to take place during the awfulest time of the year. People from around Hardwick become professors and students. Classes are free, and everyone’s welcome to teach at Hardwick State. Maybe you teach something you do in your regular job. Maybe it’s just something you’re good at. Maybe it’s something you’re not very good at but you love it and you’re better than most.

Here are some highlights from Hardwick State. 

 

Visit the Civic Standard

Photos by Terry J. Allen. For a steady stream of great photos and essays, visit Terry's substack here. It's free.

]]> Hardwick State rumble, Erica Heilman 00:12:49 This was the inaugural year of Hardwick State, a weekend long university in Hardwick, Vermont, organized by the Civic Standard, and designed to take place during the awfulest time of the year. People from around Hardwick become professors and students. Classes are free, and everyone’s welcome to teach at Hardwick State. Maybe you teach something you do in your regular job. Maybe it’s just something you’re good at. Maybe it’s something you’re not very good at but you love it and you’re better than most. Here are some highlights from Hardwick State. This was the inaugural year of Hardwick State, a weekend long university in Hardwick, Vermont, organized by the Civic Standard, and designed to take place during the awfulest time of the year. People from around Hardwick become professors and students. Classes are free, and everyone’s welcome to teach at Hardwick State. Maybe you teach something you do in your regular job. Maybe it’s just something you’re good at. Maybe it’s something you’re not very good at but you love it and you’re better than most. Here are some highlights from Hardwick State. hardwick state, civic, erica heilman, rumble strip false full 299 cbc84d1f-4e57-4468-b3eb-9230b19dfa0c Death in Venice Death in Venice is a story Larry Massett produced in the early 80s. Joe Frank narrates, and Larry wrote and performed all the music.

]]> Mon, 5 May 2025 12:33:34 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Larry Massett) https://rumblestripvermont.com Death in Venice is a story Larry Massett produced in the early 80s. Joe Frank narrates, and Larry wrote and performed all the music.

]]> Death in Venice Larry Massett 00:28:44 Death in Venice is a story Larry Massett produced in the early 80s. Joe Frank narrates, and Larry wrote and performed all the music. Death in Venice is a story Larry Massett produced in the early 80s. Joe Frank narrates, and Larry wrote and performed all the music. larry massett false full 298 75af8c96-e1db-4860-87b9-ab52813b0f15 A New Old Barn for Forrest Foster We're raising money to rebuild Forrest Foster's barn. This is a very short story (plea) about it. And here is the GoFundMe!! 

 

]]> Sun, 4 May 2025 15:20:05 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Forrest, Forrest Foster) https://rumblestripvermont.com We're raising money to rebuild Forrest Foster's barn. This is a very short story (plea) about it. And here is the GoFundMe!! 

 

]]> A New Old Barn for Forrest Foster Forrest, Forrest Foster 00:05:45 We're raising money to rebuild Forrest Foster's barn. This is a very short story (plea) about it. We're raising money to rebuild Forrest Foster's barn. This is a very short story (plea) about it. forrest foster, forrest false full 297 aee39d12-36b2-49f5-aeee-b3a7c4639b06 A Night on Mount Shasta Larry Massett was driving up through northern California toward Oregon and ended up spending a little more time at Mt. Shasta than he'd had in mind. Thankfully he had his flashlight in his trunk.

]]> Thu, 1 May 2025 16:38:38 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Larry Massett) https://rumblestripvermont.com Larry Massett was driving up through northern California toward Oregon and ended up spending a little more time at Mt. Shasta than he'd had in mind. Thankfully he had his flashlight in his trunk.

]]> A Night on Mount Shasta Larry Massett 00:25:20 Larry Massett was driving up through northern California toward Oregon and ended up spending a little more time at Mt. Shasta than he'd had in mind. Thankfully he had his flashlight in his trunk. Larry Massett was driving up through northern California toward Oregon and ended up spending a little more time at Mt. Shasta than he'd had in mind. Thankfully he had his flashlight in his trunk. larry massett false full 296 fe0fe9b4-5118-49fe-ba42-febd006eb256 Drag Out This is the second show for LARRY MASSETT TRIBUTE WEEK.

Larry Massett owned two Porsches, and he talked about them all the time. His friend, Joe Frank, in addition to being one of the greatest radio producers of all time, was a BMW guy. They decided to argue about this, and then have a drag race that would decide things. 

]]> Wed, 30 Apr 2025 12:51:29 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (larry massett, joe frank) https://rumblestripvermont.com This is the second show for LARRY MASSETT TRIBUTE WEEK.

Larry Massett owned two Porsches, and he talked about them all the time. His friend, Joe Frank, in addition to being one of the greatest radio producers of all time, was a BMW guy. They decided to argue about this, and then have a drag race that would decide things. 

]]> Drag Out larry massett, joe frank 00:13:32 This is the second show for LARRY MASSETT TRIBUTE WEEK. Larry Massett owned two Porsches, and he talked about them all the time. His friend, Joe Frank, in addition to being one of the greatest radio producers of all time, was a BMW guy. They decided to argue about this, and then have a drag race that would decide things. This is the second show for LARRY MASSETT TRIBUTE WEEK. Larry Massett owned two Porsches, and he talked about them all the time. His friend, Joe Frank, in addition to being one of the greatest radio producers of all time, was a BMW guy. They decided to argue about this, and then have a drag race that would decide things. joe frank, larry massett true full 295 a8898a42-1db6-4df2-85c1-afa89fa564c3 The Eyes of Sibiu Larry Massset died last week. He was my mentor and my favorite radio producer. His stories was insane and brilliant and heretical and sublime. I wouldn’t have become a radio producer without his guidance and his stories to inspire me. I’m going to run a series of his shows as a tribute to him. This first show is The Eyes of Sibiu, about a trip to Romania with Romanian-American poet and novelist Andrei Codrescu.

]]> Tue, 29 Apr 2025 15:11:22 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Larry Massset died last week. He was my mentor and my favorite radio producer. His stories was insane and brilliant and heretical and sublime. I wouldn’t have become a radio producer without his guidance and his stories to inspire me. I’m going to run a series of his shows as a tribute to him. This first show is The Eyes of Sibiu, about a trip to Romania with Romanian-American poet and novelist Andrei Codrescu.

]]> The Eyes of Sibiu Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:18:29 Larry Massset died last week. He was my mentor and my favorite radio producer. His stories was insane and brilliant and heretical and sublime. I wouldn’t have become a radio producer without his guidance and his stories to inspire me. I’m going to run a series of his shows as a tribute to him. This first show is The Eyes of Sibiu, about a trip to Romania with Romanian-American poet and novelist Andrei Codrescu. Larry Massset died last week. He was my mentor and my favorite radio producer. His stories was insane and brilliant and heretical and sublime. I wouldn’t have become a radio producer without his guidance and his stories to inspire me. I’m going to run a series of his shows as a tribute to him. This first show is The Eyes of Sibiu, about a trip to Romania with Romanian-American poet and novelist Andrei Codrescu. larry massett, rumble strip, andrei codrescu false full 294 4dae892d-0fd6-48b4-854e-abb8a133b24b The Haskell Library. A Story about Awful Behavior at the Canadian Border The Haskell Free Library and Opera House was intentionally built to straddle two nations and two communities. Three quarters of the building is in Stanstead, Quebec and one quarter is in Derby Line Vermont, and it's been the local library for both communities for over a century.  The main entrance to the library is in the U.S., and for as long as anyone can remember, Canadians have been allowed to walk the 70 feet of sidewalk around the building to that front entrance.

But in late January of this year, the U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem paid a surprise visit to the library while she was up touring some of the Vermont border crossings, and she did a little show for everyone there. And starting in October, Canadians will no longer be able to visit their local library without passing through a border crossing.

This is a show about it. 

]]> Fri, 25 Apr 2025 00:18:31 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com The Haskell Free Library and Opera House was intentionally built to straddle two nations and two communities. Three quarters of the building is in Stanstead, Quebec and one quarter is in Derby Line Vermont, and it's been the local library for both communities for over a century.  The main entrance to the library is in the U.S., and for as long as anyone can remember, Canadians have been allowed to walk the 70 feet of sidewalk around the building to that front entrance.

But in late January of this year, the U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem paid a surprise visit to the library while she was up touring some of the Vermont border crossings, and she did a little show for everyone there. And starting in October, Canadians will no longer be able to visit their local library without passing through a border crossing.

This is a show about it. 

]]> The Haskell Library. A Story about Awful Behavior at the Canadian Border Erica Heilman 00:12:46 The Haskell Free Library and Opera House was intentionally built to straddle two nations and two communities. Three quarters of the building is in Stanstead, Quebec and one quarter is in Derby Line Vermont, and it's been the local library for both communities for over a century. The main entrance to the library is in the U.S., and for as long as anyone can remember, Canadians have been allowed to walk the 70 feet of sidewalk around the building to that front entrance. But in late January of this year, the U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem paid a surprise visit to the library while she was up touring some of the Vermont border crossings, and she did a little show for everyone there. And starting in October, Canadians will no longer be able to visit their local library without passing through a border crossing. This is a show about it. The Haskell Free Library and Opera House was intentionally built to straddle two nations and two communities. Three quarters of the building is in Stanstead, Quebec and one quarter is in Derby Line Vermont, and it's been the local library for both communities for over a century. The main entrance to the library is in the U.S., and for as long as anyone can remember, Canadians have been allowed to walk the 70 feet of sidewalk around the building to that front entrance. But in late January of this year, the U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem paid a surprise visit to the library while she was up touring some of the Vermont border crossings, and she did a little show for everyone there. And starting in October, Canadians will no longer be able to visit their local library without passing through a border crossing. This is a show about it. derby line, vermont, haskell free library, canada, kristi noem, stanstead, border false full 293 d6bb6e2c-ee99-4ad6-a5a3-e7eb191ef773 Health Insurance is Hard This is a show about the challenges of getting health insurance and understanding health insurance and paying for health insurance and using health insurance…even for those of us without major medical challenges. It stars my friends Justin Lander and Kaye.

The show is sponsored by East Hill Tree Farm, a tree nursery in Plainfield, Vermont.  The nursery opens on April 18th with bare-root trees and shrubs for sale. They're awesome. Go there. 

]]> Tue, 15 Apr 2025 11:36:54 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Justin Lander, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com This is a show about the challenges of getting health insurance and understanding health insurance and paying for health insurance and using health insurance…even for those of us without major medical challenges. It stars my friends Justin Lander and Kaye.

The show is sponsored by East Hill Tree Farm, a tree nursery in Plainfield, Vermont.  The nursery opens on April 18th with bare-root trees and shrubs for sale. They're awesome. Go there. 

]]> Health Insurance is Hard Justin Lander, Erica Heilman 00:18:25 This is a show about health insurance and how hard it is. This is a show about health insurance and how hard it is. blue cross blue shield, vermont, vermont health connect, health insurance false full 292 94a65903-dbfc-403e-a42b-15fcaee91b6a What Now Sounds Like, the AI Isn't Smart Edition Recordings: In this show you hear from Carolyn and her neighbors on Coits Gore Road in Vermont, Amanda in the Blue Mountains in New South Wales, dogs in Atlanta, Jeff Sharlet interviewing Pastor Pete in Holiday City, Ohio, Heather’s kids in Washington DC, Jarod in West Philly, Susan and Stella in Pittsburgh, a xylophone on the Thea Foss Waterway in Tacoma. You heard my  mom Barbara on my couch, Devon in Gladstone Missouri, the train in Melbourne Australia, Aaron in Shediac New Brunswick, night insects in South Africa, Zack in Lafayette, Indiana, Beverly and her mom in Toronto, Alice in Los Angeles, Mathhew in Glasgow, Scotland, Christina breastfeeding her one week old daughter in Lostine Oregon, Kelly and Dan in Randolph Vermont, basketball dribbling in East Montpelier Elementary in Vermont, and Miles, Stan and Deirdre in New Mexico playing the ngombi and talking about Johannesburg.

 

]]> Sun, 2 Mar 2025 19:38:35 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Recordings: In this show you hear from Carolyn and her neighbors on Coits Gore Road in Vermont, Amanda in the Blue Mountains in New South Wales, dogs in Atlanta, Jeff Sharlet interviewing Pastor Pete in Holiday City, Ohio, Heather’s kids in Washington DC, Jarod in West Philly, Susan and Stella in Pittsburgh, a xylophone on the Thea Foss Waterway in Tacoma. You heard my  mom Barbara on my couch, Devon in Gladstone Missouri, the train in Melbourne Australia, Aaron in Shediac New Brunswick, night insects in South Africa, Zack in Lafayette, Indiana, Beverly and her mom in Toronto, Alice in Los Angeles, Mathhew in Glasgow, Scotland, Christina breastfeeding her one week old daughter in Lostine Oregon, Kelly and Dan in Randolph Vermont, basketball dribbling in East Montpelier Elementary in Vermont, and Miles, Stan and Deirdre in New Mexico playing the ngombi and talking about Johannesburg.

 

]]> What Now Sounds Like, the AI Isn't Smart Edition Rumble Strip 00:20:43 Here is the third installment of What Now Sounds Like. It occurred to me the other day that this show is more like a long song, or even ambient sound. You can listen in the shower or washing dishes or even while you’re going to sleep. The goal is to keep each other company in a strange time. Here is the third installment of What Now Sounds Like. It occurred to me the other day that this show is more like a long song, or even ambient sound. You can listen in the shower or washing dishes or even while you’re going to sleep. The goal is to keep each other company in a strange time. rumblestrip, what now sounds like, rumble strip false full 291 ec95737e-322f-4df6-b874-b3f4219843e3 2 Seconds of Peace T.O. got out of prison in Rutland a couple weeks ago, after a six and a half year bid.  I met T.O. through my private investigator friend Susan Randall in May, 2017. He’d been a client of hers in a federal public defender case. T.O.’s been in and out of jail his whole adult life, and it’s become a kind of tradition for us to get together and talk when he gets out of jail. We don’t talk about his crimes. Mostly we talk about what it’s like to start over…over and over. Now T.O. is in his mid forties, and this time he was released in the middle of a Vermont winter. 

]]> Fri, 14 Feb 2025 15:59:52 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (T.O., Rumble Strip, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com T.O. got out of prison in Rutland a couple weeks ago, after a six and a half year bid.  I met T.O. through my private investigator friend Susan Randall in May, 2017. He’d been a client of hers in a federal public defender case. T.O.’s been in and out of jail his whole adult life, and it’s become a kind of tradition for us to get together and talk when he gets out of jail. We don’t talk about his crimes. Mostly we talk about what it’s like to start over…over and over. Now T.O. is in his mid forties, and this time he was released in the middle of a Vermont winter. 

]]> 2 Seconds of Peace T.O., Rumble Strip, Erica Heilman 00:14:24 T.O. got out of prison in Rutland a couple weeks ago, after a six and a half year bid.  I met T.O. through my private investigator friend Susan Randall in May, 2017. He’d been a client of hers in a federal public defender case. T.O.’s been in and out of jail his whole adult life, and it’s become a kind of tradition for us to get together and talk when he gets out of jail. We don’t talk about his crimes. Mostly we talk about what it’s like to start over…over and over. Now T.O. is in his mid forties, and this time he was released in the middle of a Vermont winter. T.O. got out of prison in Rutland a couple weeks ago, after a six and a half year bid.  I met T.O. through my private investigator friend Susan Randall in May, 2017. He’d been a client of hers in a federal public defender case. T.O.’s been in and out of jail his whole adult life, and it’s become a kind of tradition for us to get together and talk when he gets out of jail. We don’t talk about his crimes. Mostly we talk about what it’s like to start over…over and over. Now T.O. is in his mid forties, and this time he was released in the middle of a Vermont winter. rumblestrip, vermont, rumble strip, t.o., prison true full 290 896308a3-e296-47db-9c69-18b197811116 What Now Sounds Like Episode 2 Here is episode 2 of What Now Sounds Like, a show I make that is entirely comprised of your recordings. Desperate times call for desperate show methods. I'm hoping that shows made up of all of us will help us all feel less alone. 

 

In this show you hear from: Blake in New York City, James in Sussex England, the Niagara Frontier Radio reading service (thank you Papageorgiou in Brussels...), River in Portland, Oregon, Alice in Fletcher, Virginia, Naomi Hodde in Middlebury, Vermont, Howard in Woodstock Vermont, bells recorded by Melanie in Merida, Mexico, and a fricking amazing recording James made at a professional wrestling even in London. 

Send me more recordings as they occur to you. You can send them to my email at rumblestripvermont@gmail.com

 

]]> Wed, 29 Jan 2025 15:39:29 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Here is episode 2 of What Now Sounds Like, a show I make that is entirely comprised of your recordings. Desperate times call for desperate show methods. I'm hoping that shows made up of all of us will help us all feel less alone. 

 

In this show you hear from: Blake in New York City, James in Sussex England, the Niagara Frontier Radio reading service (thank you Papageorgiou in Brussels...), River in Portland, Oregon, Alice in Fletcher, Virginia, Naomi Hodde in Middlebury, Vermont, Howard in Woodstock Vermont, bells recorded by Melanie in Merida, Mexico, and a fricking amazing recording James made at a professional wrestling even in London. 

Send me more recordings as they occur to you. You can send them to my email at rumblestripvermont@gmail.com

 

]]> What Now Sounds Like Episode 2 Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:15:13 Here is episode 2 of What Now Sounds Like, a show I make that is entirely comprised of your recordings about the strange and desperate times we're living in. I'm hoping that shows made up of all of us will help us all feel less alone. Here is episode 2 of What Now Sounds Like, a show I make that is entirely comprised of your recordings about the strange and desperate times we're living in. I'm hoping that shows made up of all of us will help us all feel less alone. false full 289 7dc85400-69b6-4cff-9f74-2dee83878960 What Now Sounds Like What Now Sounds Like is made by all of us. You send me recordings that sound like this time we're living in, and I make shows with them. It could be an argument, your thoughts in the middle of the night, your songs and  hummings....a recording of being on hold with your insurance company...whatever. And tell your friends to send their recordings too. Just email me at rumblestripvermont@gmail.com. 

In this show, Leonie from South Africa, Alicia from Los Angeles,  Michael from North Carolina, Deanna in Vermont, Arthur and Jeff Sharlet on the Swannanoa River, Amelia in Los Angeles, Anna in Toronto, Susan in Houston, Ben from Nebraska, and my mom, Barbara, on my couch. 

Music: This is the Northern New England Ensemble, thanks to Tim Garrity. 

Thank you to EVERYONE who sent recordings. I really do want to use all of them but these shows fit together like puzzles so i need more recordings to make more shows and make more puzzles. So if you’re out there listening, pull out your phone and record something and send it to me, and I’ll make shows as the puzzle pieces come together. You can send them to me at rumblestripvermont@gmail.com. Also, tell me where you are, and if you can send me a picture that seems to go with the recording in some way, that would be great. 

I also want to thank Tobin and Chelsea and Vermont Public and I especially want to thank my mom for all her help this week. 

]]> Thu, 23 Jan 2025 18:46:29 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com What Now Sounds Like is made by all of us. You send me recordings that sound like this time we're living in, and I make shows with them. It could be an argument, your thoughts in the middle of the night, your songs and  hummings....a recording of being on hold with your insurance company...whatever. And tell your friends to send their recordings too. Just email me at rumblestripvermont@gmail.com. 

In this show, Leonie from South Africa, Alicia from Los Angeles,  Michael from North Carolina, Deanna in Vermont, Arthur and Jeff Sharlet on the Swannanoa River, Amelia in Los Angeles, Anna in Toronto, Susan in Houston, Ben from Nebraska, and my mom, Barbara, on my couch. 

Music: This is the Northern New England Ensemble, thanks to Tim Garrity. 

Thank you to EVERYONE who sent recordings. I really do want to use all of them but these shows fit together like puzzles so i need more recordings to make more shows and make more puzzles. So if you’re out there listening, pull out your phone and record something and send it to me, and I’ll make shows as the puzzle pieces come together. You can send them to me at rumblestripvermont@gmail.com. Also, tell me where you are, and if you can send me a picture that seems to go with the recording in some way, that would be great. 

I also want to thank Tobin and Chelsea and Vermont Public and I especially want to thank my mom for all her help this week. 

]]> What Now Sounds Like Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:15:49 What Now Sounds Like is made by all of us. You send me recordings that sound like this time we're living in, and I make shows with them. It could be an argument, your thoughts in the middle of the night, your songs and hummings....a recording of being on hold with your insurance company...whatever. And tell your friends to send their recordings too. Just email me at rumblestripvermont@gmail.com. song, a conversation, a middle of the night thought, a call to your insurance company....I don't know. Youthis what I hope is the first of a series. What Now Sounds Like is made by all of us. You send me recordings that sound like this time we're living in, and I make shows with them. It could be an argument, your thoughts in the middle of the night, your songs and hummings....a recording of being on hold with your insurance company...whatever. And tell your friends to send their recordings too. Just email me at rumblestripvermont@gmail.com. song, a conversation, a middle of the night thought, a call to your insurance company....I don't know. Youthis what I hope is the first of a series. false full 288 31e519b3-8da8-4d87-9c51-3ebd10290c96 Diffuse Despair The world is chaotic. Systems are failing, towns are burning. If you need to make an appointment with your doctor you may have to wait til July. So it's time to make a show about it all. I implore you to record moments of your day and send me the audio and I will try to make a show that sounds like RIGHT NOW. Email the recordings to me at rumblestripvermont@gmail.com.

 

]]> Sat, 18 Jan 2025 15:35:31 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com The world is chaotic. Systems are failing, towns are burning. If you need to make an appointment with your doctor you may have to wait til July. So it's time to make a show about it all. I implore you to record moments of your day and send me the audio and I will try to make a show that sounds like RIGHT NOW. Email the recordings to me at rumblestripvermont@gmail.com.

 

]]> Diffuse Despair Erica Heilman 00:15:50 The world is chaotic. Systems are failing. Towns are burning. If you need to make an appointment with your doctor you may have to wait til July. So it's time to make a show about it all. I implore you to record moments of your day and send me the audio and I will try to make a show that sounds like RIGHT NOW. Email the recordings to me at rumblestripvermont@gmail.com. The world is chaotic. Systems are failing. Towns are burning. If you need to make an appointment with your doctor you may have to wait til July. So it's time to make a show about it all. I implore you to record moments of your day and send me the audio and I will try to make a show that sounds like RIGHT NOW. Email the recordings to me at rumblestripvermont@gmail.com. our show, despair false full 287 8b5d8a0d-16ed-4414-ad7f-fae763d1c131 What Class are you Tankhun? What Class Are You? is a periodic series about the ways that socioeconomic class shapes our lives.

Thankun Thongjunthoug’s parents each moved alone to the United States from Thailand in their early twenties to make a new life for themselves. They met in Los Angeles, and started a restaurant there, and a family. But Thankun’s father wanted a safer place for his family, so in 2008 they moved to Vermont, where they had to work their way back to owning a business. Their restaurant in Montpelier, Pho Thai Express, has been open since 2015. In this episode of What Class are You?, we talk about what it was like to grow up in an immigrant family, and how Tankhun experienced the undercurrents of the American class system.

]]> Fri, 10 Jan 2025 09:00:00 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com What Class Are You? is a periodic series about the ways that socioeconomic class shapes our lives.

Thankun Thongjunthoug’s parents each moved alone to the United States from Thailand in their early twenties to make a new life for themselves. They met in Los Angeles, and started a restaurant there, and a family. But Thankun’s father wanted a safer place for his family, so in 2008 they moved to Vermont, where they had to work their way back to owning a business. Their restaurant in Montpelier, Pho Thai Express, has been open since 2015. In this episode of What Class are You?, we talk about what it was like to grow up in an immigrant family, and how Tankhun experienced the undercurrents of the American class system.

]]> What Class are you Tankhun? Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:09:11 A first generation experience of the American class system. A first generation experience of the American class system. false full 286 101042ea-d766-40d1-a8ce-10835af3e298 What Class Are You Katrin? What Class Are You? is a periodic series about the ways that socioeconomic class shapes our lives. Today, Episode 4.

Katrin Tchana lives in Lyme, New Hampshire, right next to Dartmouth College. Katrin is a social worker, and currently works as a therapist. She grew up in the house where she currently lives, and in this show we talk about her childhood in Lyme, and how that area has changed in her lifetime. 

 

]]> Thu, 9 Jan 2025 09:00:00 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Katrin Tchana, Erica Heilman, Vermont Public) https://rumblestripvermont.com What Class Are You? is a periodic series about the ways that socioeconomic class shapes our lives. Today, Episode 4.

Katrin Tchana lives in Lyme, New Hampshire, right next to Dartmouth College. Katrin is a social worker, and currently works as a therapist. She grew up in the house where she currently lives, and in this show we talk about her childhood in Lyme, and how that area has changed in her lifetime. 

 

]]> What Class Are You Katrin? Katrin Tchana, Erica Heilman, Vermont Public 00:06:33 Katrin Tchana on the gentrification of her hometown. Katrin Tchana on the gentrification of her hometown. vermont, class, vermont public, erica heilman, what class are you, upper valley false full 285 6bc8546d-7147-468a-8659-807e6d328479 What Class Are You Ingrid? What Class Are You? is a periodic series about the ways that socioeconomic class shapes our lives. Today, Episode 3...Ingrid Jonas. 

I met Ingrid Jonas through my friend Marilyn. Ingrid is a retired Vermont state police trooper. She started on patrol, but worked as a detective for most of her career. I’m actually working on a longer story about her now that will come out soon, but at the end of our conversation, I asked her to talk about class in law enforcement, which she did. 

]]> Wed, 8 Jan 2025 09:00:00 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Ingrid Jonas, Vermont Public, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com What Class Are You? is a periodic series about the ways that socioeconomic class shapes our lives. Today, Episode 3...Ingrid Jonas. 

I met Ingrid Jonas through my friend Marilyn. Ingrid is a retired Vermont state police trooper. She started on patrol, but worked as a detective for most of her career. I’m actually working on a longer story about her now that will come out soon, but at the end of our conversation, I asked her to talk about class in law enforcement, which she did. 

]]> What Class Are You Ingrid? Ingrid Jonas, Vermont Public, Erica Heilman 00:07:26 Retired police detective Ingrid Jonas on class in law enforcement. Retired police detective Ingrid Jonas on class in law enforcement. vermont, class, ingrid jonas, vermont public, erica heilman, what class are you, rumble strip true full 284 a4db8e86-e42c-4d94-b0e0-5e514d9de3d7 What Class Are You Mark? What Class Are You? is a periodic series about the ways that socioeconomic class shapes our lives, even though we don’t like to talk about it. I make this series for Vermont Public and I’ll be running the new shows on RS all this week.  

Mark LaRouche is the the Director of Shelters and Facilities at Good Samaritan Haven in Barre, which serves unhoused people in central Vermont. Mark has also had a lot of experience working with people with addiction issues, and he’s good at it. He understands it. Mark lived with severe addiction from his early teens through his late thirties. He was in and out of jail in those years, and we talked about how addiction is its own sort of class. 

]]> Tue, 7 Jan 2025 08:00:00 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Mark Larouche, Vermont Public, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com What Class Are You? is a periodic series about the ways that socioeconomic class shapes our lives, even though we don’t like to talk about it. I make this series for Vermont Public and I’ll be running the new shows on RS all this week.  

Mark LaRouche is the the Director of Shelters and Facilities at Good Samaritan Haven in Barre, which serves unhoused people in central Vermont. Mark has also had a lot of experience working with people with addiction issues, and he’s good at it. He understands it. Mark lived with severe addiction from his early teens through his late thirties. He was in and out of jail in those years, and we talked about how addiction is its own sort of class. 

]]> What Class Are You Mark? Mark Larouche, Vermont Public, Erica Heilman 00:07:59 Mark LaRouche, on the comforts of 'lower class', and addiction as a class all its own. Mark LaRouche, on the comforts of 'lower class', and addiction as a class all its own. mark larouche, vermont, addiction, class, vermont public, erica heilman, rumble strip true full 283 343c0263-1c35-4c04-8a92-dc94cf4e4ede What Class Are You Damian Renzello? What Class Are You? is a periodic series about the ways that socioeconomic class shapes our lives, even though we don’t like to talk about it. I make this series for Vermont Public and I’ll be running the new shows on RS all this week.  

First up, Damian Renzello. Damian lives one town over from me and he’s the owner of  and inventor of Porta Rinks, which is a portable ice rink kit. Damian is who you call if you want your own personal hockey rink, and everything that goes with it. He also happens to be exactly  my age. So Damian and I sat in his shop at Porta Rinx headquarters behind his house, and we compared notes on class. 

]]> Mon, 6 Jan 2025 09:00:00 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Damian Renzello, Vermont Public, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com What Class Are You? is a periodic series about the ways that socioeconomic class shapes our lives, even though we don’t like to talk about it. I make this series for Vermont Public and I’ll be running the new shows on RS all this week.  

First up, Damian Renzello. Damian lives one town over from me and he’s the owner of  and inventor of Porta Rinks, which is a portable ice rink kit. Damian is who you call if you want your own personal hockey rink, and everything that goes with it. He also happens to be exactly  my age. So Damian and I sat in his shop at Porta Rinx headquarters behind his house, and we compared notes on class. 

]]> What Class Are You Damian Renzello? Damian Renzello, Vermont Public, Erica Heilman 00:08:12 Damian talks about the difference between white collar and blue collar, and we compare notes on our lives because we are exactly the same age and we both grew up in Vermont and then I went to college and took tap dancing and he joined the army. Damian talks about the difference between white collar and blue collar, and we compare notes on our lives because we are exactly the same age and we both grew up in Vermont and then I went to college and took tap dancing and he joined the army. podcast, damian renzello, class, vermont public, erica heilman, what class are you, rumble strip false full 282 df249935-1344-4ee1-9e15-b881cf3e515b Thanks for Sharing Forrest Foster found a new old truck, thanks to you listeners. We drove around and talked about the truck and about Forrest's new job and I complained about feeling old. Happy Holidays and thank you for your generosity. Happy Holidays to all!

 

]]> Tue, 17 Dec 2024 01:57:24 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica, Forrest Foster, Erica Heilman, Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Forrest Foster found a new old truck, thanks to you listeners. We drove around and talked about the truck and about Forrest's new job and I complained about feeling old. Happy Holidays and thank you for your generosity. Happy Holidays to all!

 

]]> Thanks for Sharing Erica, Forrest Foster, Erica Heilman, Rumble Strip 00:10:14 Forrest Foster found a new old truck, thanks to you listeners. We drove around and talked about the truck and about Forrest's new job and I complained about feeling old. Happy Holidays and thank you for your generosity. Happy Holidays to all! Forrest Foster found a new old truck, thanks to you listeners. We drove around and talked about the truck and about Forrest's new job and I complained about feeling old. Happy Holidays and thank you for your generosity. Happy Holidays to all! hardwick, farming, forrest foster, erica heilman, rumble strip, truck false full 281 b6856637-1e2e-44b6-8127-88467b464b88 Erika Bruner, Midwife for Pets at the End Things have been pretty grim around here. I lost my cat Zu Zu and she was only two and a half and she left behind her brother Kenny and Kenny and I aren’t doing so great. So. I’m going to play a story I made for Vermont Public about Erika Bruner, a veterinarian who specializes in end of live care for pets. She does at-home euthanasia…in barns, in basements, in fields.  I didn’t think I’d need her services so soon. But I did. She’s remarkable and she made a very difficult day a little less difficult

 

To learn more about Erika, click here.

]]> Wed, 11 Dec 2024 20:33:14 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erika Bruner, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com Things have been pretty grim around here. I lost my cat Zu Zu and she was only two and a half and she left behind her brother Kenny and Kenny and I aren’t doing so great. So. I’m going to play a story I made for Vermont Public about Erika Bruner, a veterinarian who specializes in end of live care for pets. She does at-home euthanasia…in barns, in basements, in fields.  I didn’t think I’d need her services so soon. But I did. She’s remarkable and she made a very difficult day a little less difficult

 

To learn more about Erika, click here.

]]> Erika Bruner, Midwife for Pets at the End Erika Bruner, Erica Heilman 00:09:15 Things have been pretty grim around here. I lost my cat Zu Zu and she was only two and a half and she left behind her brother Kenny and Kenny and I aren’t doing so great. So. I’m going to play a story I made for Vermont Public about Erika Bruner, a veterinarian who specializes in end of live care for pets. She does at-home euthanasia…in barns, in basements, in fields.  I didn’t think I’d need her services so soon. But I did. She’s remarkable and she made a very difficult day a little less difficult. Things have been pretty grim around here. I lost my cat Zu Zu and she was only two and a half and she left behind her brother Kenny and Kenny and I aren’t doing so great. So. I’m going to play a story I made for Vermont Public about Erika Bruner, a veterinarian who specializes in end of live care for pets. She does at-home euthanasia…in barns, in basements, in fields.  I didn’t think I’d need her services so soon. But I did. She’s remarkable and she made a very difficult day a little less difficult. death, vermont, pets, euthanasia false full 280 42f5dc95-4e7b-4262-b0fa-22ee35275f3b Thank you For the Best Birthday Present Ever We raised ALL the money for Forrest's new old truck and we are so GRATEFUL!!! 

]]> Sat, 16 Nov 2024 15:36:06 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com We raised ALL the money for Forrest's new old truck and we are so GRATEFUL!!! 

]]> Thank you For the Best Birthday Present Ever Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:01:18 We raised ALL the money for Forrest's new old truck and we are so GRATEFUL!!! We raised ALL the money for Forrest's new old truck and we are so GRATEFUL!!! false full 279 2173255e-ec73-4326-9e40-2ca750929fbf Help Forrest Foster Get a New Old Truck After the last show, a lot of people asked me how they might help Forrest Foster. So I called his friend Steve Gorelick and we set up a Go Fund Me....

]]> Wed, 13 Nov 2024 15:29:51 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com After the last show, a lot of people asked me how they might help Forrest Foster. So I called his friend Steve Gorelick and we set up a Go Fund Me....

]]> Help Forrest Foster Get a New Old Truck Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:06:21 Forrest really needs a new old truck. Will you pitch in a few bucks? Forrest really needs a new old truck. Will you pitch in a few bucks? false full 278 55b1a432-ee89-4d89-8e2d-db667413bd43 Forrest Foster is getting done...for now. Forrest Foster is a dairy farmer in Hardwick, Vermont. Two months ago he sold his cows. He didn't want to do it. But his barn doesn't meet code so he lost his license. He can't keep the wood furnace burning in the house while he's doing chores. And like so many families, he's dealing with the profound complications of drug addiction in his home. 

]]> Mon, 4 Nov 2024 20:53:49 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman, Forrest Foster) https://rumblestripvermont.com Forrest Foster is a dairy farmer in Hardwick, Vermont. Two months ago he sold his cows. He didn't want to do it. But his barn doesn't meet code so he lost his license. He can't keep the wood furnace burning in the house while he's doing chores. And like so many families, he's dealing with the profound complications of drug addiction in his home. 

]]> Forrest Foster is getting done...for now. Erica Heilman, Forrest Foster 00:15:47 I’ve made lots of stories about my friend Forrest Foster, a dairy farmer in Hardwick. He prides himself on being an ‘independent dairyman’. But a couple months ago, Forrest sold the cows. The last couple years have been hard on him. He lost his wife Karen. His barn isn’t up to code so he recently lost his insurance and he can’t keep the wood furnace burning in the house while he’s doing chores in the barn. But hardest of all, and like so many families, Forrest has a son with an addiction problem, which is expensive and terrifying and fills his life with uncertainty. So. This is a story about why Forrest is getting done with dairy farming…at least for now. I’ve made lots of stories about my friend Forrest Foster, a dairy farmer in Hardwick. He prides himself on being an ‘independent dairyman’. But a couple months ago, Forrest sold the cows. The last couple years have been hard on him. He lost his wife Karen. His barn isn’t up to code so he recently lost his insurance and he can’t keep the wood furnace burning in the house while he’s doing chores in the barn. But hardest of all, and like so many families, Forrest has a son with an addiction problem, which is expensive and terrifying and fills his life with uncertainty. So. This is a story about why Forrest is getting done with dairy farming…at least for now. opiates, farming, rumble strip, dairy, drugs false full 277 dc66a6cf-b0aa-4e15-a4d9-ea9b063c988d Heartbreak Hotel. End of an Era This summer, a one-in-a-thousand-year flood hit the village of Plainfield, Vermont. A local apartment building, which everyone called the Heartbreak Hotel, collapsed and washed away down the Great Brook. Twelve people were living there at the time, and they all survived. Most of their cats did not.

We talk a lot about the importance of affordable housing and community and village revitalization. For over a century, the Heartbreak provided all three. This is a story about what was lost that night, and what it might suggest about how we move forward.

]]> Mon, 14 Oct 2024 15:47:55 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Vermont Public, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com This summer, a one-in-a-thousand-year flood hit the village of Plainfield, Vermont. A local apartment building, which everyone called the Heartbreak Hotel, collapsed and washed away down the Great Brook. Twelve people were living there at the time, and they all survived. Most of their cats did not.

We talk a lot about the importance of affordable housing and community and village revitalization. For over a century, the Heartbreak provided all three. This is a story about what was lost that night, and what it might suggest about how we move forward.

]]> Heartbreak Hotel. End of an Era Vermont Public, Erica Heilman 00:27:08 This summer, a one-in-a-thousand-year flood hit the village of Plainfield, Vermont. A local apartment building, which everyone called the Heartbreak Hotel, collapsed and washed away down the Great Brook. Twelve people were living there at the time, and they all survived. Most of their cats did not. We talk a lot about the importance of affordable housing and community and village revitalization. For over a century, the Heartbreak provided all three. This is a story about what was lost that night, and what it might suggest about how we move forward. This summer, a one-in-a-thousand-year flood hit the village of Plainfield, Vermont. A local apartment building, which everyone called the Heartbreak Hotel, collapsed and washed away down the Great Brook. Twelve people were living there at the time, and they all survived. Most of their cats did not. We talk a lot about the importance of affordable housing and community and village revitalization. For over a century, the Heartbreak provided all three. This is a story about what was lost that night, and what it might suggest about how we move forward. housing, heartbreak hotel, villages, vermont, floods, affordable housing, flooding false full 276 e310f8ed-337f-41fe-abe9-3a74325e9887 The World Under the World This is a story about active drug addiction.  

Last year I made a story about my private investigator friend Susan Randall, after her office was robbed in the middle of the day in downtown Burlington by a woman with a heroin addiction. She walked into Susan’s office while people were working there and loaded a bag with electronics, and left.  I couldn’t stop thinking about the woman. Where was she coming from that day and where was she going? The world of active addiction is a kind of world underneath the world, with its own rules and relentless demands. But to most people it’s invisible.  

All four of the people in this story are in recovery, but they spent years in the world of active drug addiction. They’re aware of it in ways that most of us are not, and they agreed to describe it to me—what it feels like day to day, and its endless demands.

Warning: This story contains explicit descriptions of active addiction. It might not be for everyone.

]]> Tue, 10 Sep 2024 13:29:39 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Rumble Strip, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com This is a story about active drug addiction.  

Last year I made a story about my private investigator friend Susan Randall, after her office was robbed in the middle of the day in downtown Burlington by a woman with a heroin addiction. She walked into Susan’s office while people were working there and loaded a bag with electronics, and left.  I couldn’t stop thinking about the woman. Where was she coming from that day and where was she going? The world of active addiction is a kind of world underneath the world, with its own rules and relentless demands. But to most people it’s invisible.  

All four of the people in this story are in recovery, but they spent years in the world of active drug addiction. They’re aware of it in ways that most of us are not, and they agreed to describe it to me—what it feels like day to day, and its endless demands.

Warning: This story contains explicit descriptions of active addiction. It might not be for everyone.

]]> The World Under the World Rumble Strip, Erica Heilman 00:29:36 All four of the people in this story are in recovery, but they spent years in the world of active drug addiction--a kind of world underneath the world. They’re aware of it in ways that most of us are not, and they agreed to describe it to me—what it feels like day to day, and its relentless demands. All four of the people in this story are in recovery, but they spent years in the world of active drug addiction--a kind of world underneath the world. They’re aware of it in ways that most of us are not, and they agreed to describe it to me—what it feels like day to day, and its relentless demands. vermont, addiction, opiates, active addiction, heroin, drugs true full 275 838c6a8c-7cb0-4782-a2a6-0bcb41ef9f6b Mark Utter Revisited Mark Utter was born with a form of autism that makes it impossible for him to say what he's thinking. For the first thirty years of his life, Mark did not have access to the world of words, except as a listener. An observer. When he was thirty, he was introduced to supported typing, and for the first time in his life, with the help of a facilitator and a typing pad, Mark started his life as a writer of words. This is an interview about what it's like inside the life and mind of Mark Utter.

 

]]> Tue, 20 Aug 2024 17:57:37 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Mark Utter, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com Mark Utter was born with a form of autism that makes it impossible for him to say what he's thinking. For the first thirty years of his life, Mark did not have access to the world of words, except as a listener. An observer. When he was thirty, he was introduced to supported typing, and for the first time in his life, with the help of a facilitator and a typing pad, Mark started his life as a writer of words. This is an interview about what it's like inside the life and mind of Mark Utter.

 

]]> Mark Utter Revisited Mark Utter, Erica Heilman 00:23:18 Mark Utter was born with a form of autism that makes it impossible for him to say what he's thinking. For the first thirty years of his life, Mark did not have access to the world of words, except as a listener. An observer. When he was thirty, he was introduced to supported typing, and for the first time in his life, with the help of a facilitator and a typing pad, Mark started his life as a writer of words. This is an interview about what it's like inside the life and mind of Mark Utter. Mark Utter was born with a form of autism that makes it impossible for him to say what he's thinking. For the first thirty years of his life, Mark did not have access to the world of words, except as a listener. An observer. When he was thirty, he was introduced to supported typing, and for the first time in his life, with the help of a facilitator and a typing pad, Mark started his life as a writer of words. This is an interview about what it's like inside the life and mind of Mark Utter. mark utter, utter, supported typing, autism false full 274 ce5de161-a194-4a04-b389-7b76c56e1ac3 Allison after the Flood On the one-year anniversary of a 100-year flood, Vermont experienced another devastating flood. This is the story of one Plainfield, Vermont resident, who lost everything.

 

Thank you Vermont Public for letting me run this show on Rumble Strip.

]]> Mon, 22 Jul 2024 14:07:09 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Allison, Vermont Public, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com On the one-year anniversary of a 100-year flood, Vermont experienced another devastating flood. This is the story of one Plainfield, Vermont resident, who lost everything.

 

Thank you Vermont Public for letting me run this show on Rumble Strip.

]]> Allison after the Flood Allison, Vermont Public, Erica Heilman 00:07:00 On the one-year anniversary of a 100-year flood, Vermont experienced another devastating flood. This is the story of one Plainfield, Vermont resident, who lost everything. On the one-year anniversary of a 100-year flood, Vermont experienced another devastating flood. This is the story of one Plainfield, Vermont resident, who lost everything. flood, vermont, plainfield, vermont public false full 273 80ee6ba9-711a-4dc0-9809-4034b91fa769 The Aphasia Choir There are about 15 million people in this world having thoughts and ideas that they can't put into words. People who have had had strokes or traumatic brain injuries often live with aphasia, or difficulty talking or using language. Their thoughts are intact, but the language gets stuck. But music mostly originates in the undamaged hemisphere of the brain. People with aphasia can often sing. This is a story about a choir comprised of people with aphasia, and what it's like to struggle for words.

The Aphasia Choir of Vermont

]]> Wed, 19 Jun 2024 18:03:48 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com There are about 15 million people in this world having thoughts and ideas that they can't put into words. People who have had had strokes or traumatic brain injuries often live with aphasia, or difficulty talking or using language. Their thoughts are intact, but the language gets stuck. But music mostly originates in the undamaged hemisphere of the brain. People with aphasia can often sing. This is a story about a choir comprised of people with aphasia, and what it's like to struggle for words.

The Aphasia Choir of Vermont

]]> The Aphasia Choir Erica Heilman 00:20:01 There are about 15 million people in this world having thoughts and ideas that they can't put into words. People who have had had strokes or traumatic brain injuries often live with aphasia, or difficulty talking or using language. Their thoughts are intact, but the language gets stuck. But music mostly originates in the undamaged hemisphere of the brain. People with aphasia can often sing. This is a story about a choir comprised of people with aphasia, and what it's like to struggle for words. There are about 15 million people in this world having thoughts and ideas that they can't put into words. People who have had had strokes or traumatic brain injuries often live with aphasia, or difficulty talking or using language. Their thoughts are intact, but the language gets stuck. But music mostly originates in the undamaged hemisphere of the brain. People with aphasia can often sing. This is a story about a choir comprised of people with aphasia, and what it's like to struggle for words. tbi, vermont, aphasia choir, aphasia, strokes false full 272 d4ee97df-aac8-4774-a14c-2562d2691bdc Tara This is a follow-up show to Finn and the Bell. If you haven't heard that story, you might want to start there.

At Bread and Puppet in Glover, Vermont, there is a magical pine forest full of small homemade buildings and shrines to memorialize dead puppeteers and friends. It’s a place where my friend Tara Reese’s sons Finn and Lyle spent a lot of time when they were little, running around in the woods in the summer. Now there is a memorial here for Finn in the pine forest, built by some of the kids he used to play with here. Finn died by suicide on January 3rd, 2020. In 2021, Tara and I made a story about him called Finn and the Bell. People all over the world listened, and we received hundreds of emails and texts and artwork and poetry. Tara received letters that were addressed to ‘Finn’s Mom, Hardwick’, with no address.

But this is a story just about Tara, and about her evolution of grief. About what happens after the worst thing happens.

We recorded this conversation on Mother’s Day, at Finn’s memorial in the pine forest.

 

This show ends with a song. The Bell was written by Jim Terry of Napa, California. He plays music with his sons, Graham and Clark and they’re called The Terry Family Band. Jim wrote this song after listening to Finn and the Bell. Thank you so much Jim!

]]> Wed, 22 May 2024 23:57:14 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (rumble stirp, tara reese, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com This is a follow-up show to Finn and the Bell. If you haven't heard that story, you might want to start there.

At Bread and Puppet in Glover, Vermont, there is a magical pine forest full of small homemade buildings and shrines to memorialize dead puppeteers and friends. It’s a place where my friend Tara Reese’s sons Finn and Lyle spent a lot of time when they were little, running around in the woods in the summer. Now there is a memorial here for Finn in the pine forest, built by some of the kids he used to play with here. Finn died by suicide on January 3rd, 2020. In 2021, Tara and I made a story about him called Finn and the Bell. People all over the world listened, and we received hundreds of emails and texts and artwork and poetry. Tara received letters that were addressed to ‘Finn’s Mom, Hardwick’, with no address.

But this is a story just about Tara, and about her evolution of grief. About what happens after the worst thing happens.

We recorded this conversation on Mother’s Day, at Finn’s memorial in the pine forest.

 

This show ends with a song. The Bell was written by Jim Terry of Napa, California. He plays music with his sons, Graham and Clark and they’re called The Terry Family Band. Jim wrote this song after listening to Finn and the Bell. Thank you so much Jim!

]]> Tara rumble stirp, tara reese, Erica Heilman 00:19:35 This is a follow-up show to Finn and the Bell. If you haven't heard that story, you might want to start there. At Bread and Puppet in Glover, Vermont, there is a magical pine forest full of small homemade buildings and shrines to memorialize dead puppeteers and friends. It’s a place where my friend Tara Reese’s sons Finn and Lyle spent a lot of time when they were little, running around in the woods in the summer. Now there is a memorial here for Finn in the pine forest, built by some of the kids he used to play with here. Finn died by suicide on January 3rd, 2020. In 2021, Tara and I made a story about him called Finn and the Bell. People all over the world listened, and we received hundreds of emails and texts and artwork and poetry. Tara received letters that were addressed to ‘Finn’s Mom, Hardwick’, with no address. But this is a story just about Tara, and about her evolution of grief. About what happens after the worst thing happens. We recorded this conversation on Mother’s Day, at Finn’s memorial in the pine forest. This show ends with a song. The Bell was written by Jim Terry of Napa, California. He plays music with his sons, Graham and Clark and they’re called The Terry Family Band. Jim wrote this song after listening to Finn and the Bell. Thank you so much Jim! This is a follow-up show to Finn and the Bell. If you haven't heard that story, you might want to start there. At Bread and Puppet in Glover, Vermont, there is a magical pine forest full of small homemade buildings and shrines to memorialize dead puppeteers and friends. It’s a place where my friend Tara Reese’s sons Finn and Lyle spent a lot of time when they were little, running around in the woods in the summer. Now there is a memorial here for Finn in the pine forest, built by some of the kids he used to play with here. Finn died by suicide on January 3rd, 2020. In 2021, Tara and I made a story about him called Finn and the Bell. People all over the world listened, and we received hundreds of emails and texts and artwork and poetry. Tara received letters that were addressed to ‘Finn’s Mom, Hardwick’, with no address. But this is a story just about Tara, and about her evolution of grief. About what happens after the worst thing happens. We recorded this conversation on Mother’s Day, at Finn’s memorial in the pine forest. This show ends with a song. The Bell was written by Jim Terry of Napa, California. He plays music with his sons, Graham and Clark and they’re called The Terry Family Band. Jim wrote this song after listening to Finn and the Bell. Thank you so much Jim! tara reese, finn and the bell false full 271 f55248c2-9b25-434c-8c5d-947ae53d4df3 Will Staats, Hunting Biologist...Redux! Will Staats worked for both Vermont and New Hampshire for forty years as a wildlife biologist. He’s also a passionate hunter. He knows the back country of the Kingdom right up through Maine and into Labrador. One day in October he took me bird hunting deep in the unorganized town of Ferdinand. We talked about birds. And we talked about the growing divide between traditional hunting culture and people who don't like certain kinds of hunting here in Vermont. But it was more interesting than that...it was also about how people harden against each other then alienate each other...something we do a lot of these days.

]]> Mon, 6 May 2024 15:09:03 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Will Staats, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com Will Staats worked for both Vermont and New Hampshire for forty years as a wildlife biologist. He’s also a passionate hunter. He knows the back country of the Kingdom right up through Maine and into Labrador. One day in October he took me bird hunting deep in the unorganized town of Ferdinand. We talked about birds. And we talked about the growing divide between traditional hunting culture and people who don't like certain kinds of hunting here in Vermont. But it was more interesting than that...it was also about how people harden against each other then alienate each other...something we do a lot of these days.

]]> Will Staats, Hunting Biologist...Redux! Will Staats, Erica Heilman 00:25:18 Will Staats worked for both Vermont and New Hampshire for forty years as a wildlife biologist. He’s also a passionate hunter. He knows the back country of the Kingdom right up through Maine and into Labrador. One day in October he took me bird hunting deep in the unorganized town of Ferdinand. We talked about birds. And we talked about the growing divide between traditional hunting culture and people who don't like certain kinds of hunting here in Vermont. But it was more interesting than that...it was also about how people harden against each other then alienate each other...something we do a lot of these days. Will Staats worked for both Vermont and New Hampshire for forty years as a wildlife biologist. He’s also a passionate hunter. He knows the back country of the Kingdom right up through Maine and into Labrador. One day in October he took me bird hunting deep in the unorganized town of Ferdinand. We talked about birds. And we talked about the growing divide between traditional hunting culture and people who don't like certain kinds of hunting here in Vermont. But it was more interesting than that...it was also about how people harden against each other then alienate each other...something we do a lot of these days. rumble, will staats, erica heilman, rumble strip false full 270 777d6c06-a8c6-43af-b77d-40804967748c Sugaring with Forrest Foster I hung out with Forrest Foster in his sugarhouse a few weeks ago. Sugarhouses are the best because they’re full of warm, sweet steam and there’s nothing to do but hang around and make sure the pan doesn’t burn. Also, if sugaring is happening it means that winter is almost over and that is a joyous time for me. I love the hell out of April. So here are a few happy minutes with Forrest in his sugarhouse.

]]> Thu, 25 Apr 2024 16:13:12 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman, rumble strip, Forrest Foster) https://rumblestripvermont.com I hung out with Forrest Foster in his sugarhouse a few weeks ago. Sugarhouses are the best because they’re full of warm, sweet steam and there’s nothing to do but hang around and make sure the pan doesn’t burn. Also, if sugaring is happening it means that winter is almost over and that is a joyous time for me. I love the hell out of April. So here are a few happy minutes with Forrest in his sugarhouse.

]]> Sugaring with Forrest Foster Erica Heilman, rumble strip, Forrest Foster 00:11:12 A conversation with dairy farmer Forrest Foster in his sugarhouse in the blessed, FINALLY almost springtime in Vermont. A conversation with dairy farmer Forrest Foster in his sugarhouse in the blessed, FINALLY almost springtime in Vermont. vermont, forrest foster, sugarhouse, erica heilman, rumble strip, maple syrup false full 269 49ce5979-b6c6-45b8-b395-3834d8e88c4d Fifty: A Phoenix Moment. REDUX! Wed, 10 Apr 2024 12:57:46 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Bianca Giaver, Scott Carrier, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com Fifty: A Phoenix Moment. REDUX! Bianca Giaver, Scott Carrier, Erica Heilman 00:21:18 This is a show I made a few years ago that very significantly involves Total Eclipse of the Heart, which is my favorite song. I am playing it again now because it is ECLIPSE WEEK. I hope you enjoy it. This is a show I made a few years ago that very significantly involves Total Eclipse of the Heart, which is my favorite song. I am playing it again now because it is ECLIPSE WEEK. I hope you enjoy it. total eclipse, rumble strip, eclipse, bonnie tyler false full 268 d6f3b895-1894-4044-ac7d-78af29031a82 Kasey is Figuring it Out Kasey Phipps is transgender and has always been transgender. But Kasey didn’t grow up in a place where the word transgender was well understood. Or understood at all. It’s only in the last four years that Kasey’s put a name to this lifelong experience of living life in the wrong gender. This is just one story about the experience of being trans. 

Credits:

Linda Young plays the harp in this show, for which I am eternally grateful. Here is a link to her excellent TRIO.

There is also a song in the show from one of my favorite artists, Carla Kihlstedt and the Tin Hat Trio. Here is a link to them performing this song, little i.

My thanks to Amelia Meath, Tobin Anderson, Chelsea Edgar and Serena Matt.

]]> Tue, 26 Mar 2024 19:21:13 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (erica heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com Kasey Phipps is transgender and has always been transgender. But Kasey didn’t grow up in a place where the word transgender was well understood. Or understood at all. It’s only in the last four years that Kasey’s put a name to this lifelong experience of living life in the wrong gender. This is just one story about the experience of being trans. 

Credits:

Linda Young plays the harp in this show, for which I am eternally grateful. Here is a link to her excellent TRIO.

There is also a song in the show from one of my favorite artists, Carla Kihlstedt and the Tin Hat Trio. Here is a link to them performing this song, little i.

My thanks to Amelia Meath, Tobin Anderson, Chelsea Edgar and Serena Matt.

]]> Kasey is Figuring it Out erica heilman 00:34:29 Kasey Phipps is transgender and has always been transgender. But Kasey didn’t grow up in a place where the word transgender was well understood. Or understood at all. It’s only in the last four years that Kasey’s put a name to this lifelong experience of living life in the wrong gender. This is just one story about the experience of being trans. Kasey Phipps is transgender and has always been transgender. But Kasey didn’t grow up in a place where the word transgender was well understood. Or understood at all. It’s only in the last four years that Kasey’s put a name to this lifelong experience of living life in the wrong gender. This is just one story about the experience of being trans. vermont, transgender, kasey phipps, trans, erica heilman, kasey false full 267 d5b44fef-c00c-4359-8750-cca66422c414 What Class Are You Ashley? What Class Are You is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public. Thank you Vermont Public for letting me share the series on Rumble Strip.

]]> Fri, 15 Mar 2024 12:20:05 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (ashley messier, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com What Class Are You is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public. Thank you Vermont Public for letting me share the series on Rumble Strip.

]]> What Class Are You Ashley? ashley messier, Erica Heilman 00:08:11 Ashley Messier grew up in Essex, Vermont with an abusive father and with little money, and she found herself repeating the cycle in early adulthood. This is a story about multi-generational poverty and abuse, and the temporary relief of opiates. Ashley Messier grew up in Essex, Vermont with an abusive father and with little money, and she found herself repeating the cycle in early adulthood. This is a story about multi-generational poverty and abuse, and the temporary relief of opiates. class, erica heilman, what class are you, rumble strip false full 266 44953ea7-0d8b-4f7f-a109-7bcbe6665599 What Class Are You Ashton? What Class Are You is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public. Thank you Vermont Public for letting me share the series on Rumble Strip.

]]> Wed, 13 Mar 2024 18:01:06 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (rumble strip, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com What Class Are You is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public. Thank you Vermont Public for letting me share the series on Rumble Strip.

]]> What Class Are You Ashton? rumble strip, Erica Heilman 00:07:46 Ashton runs a concrete business and in his free time he makes community meals at the American Legion in Hardwick. We sat down to talk about class, which then turned into a conversation about eating, and how eating together as a community seems to blur boundaries between people of different backgrounds. Ashton runs a concrete business and in his free time he makes community meals at the American Legion in Hardwick. We sat down to talk about class, which then turned into a conversation about eating, and how eating together as a community seems to blur boundaries between people of different backgrounds. ashton allen, erica heilman false full 265 60562bd8-7ba2-482e-9956-8a65b5dfdc41 What Class Are You Kathleen? What Class Are You is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public. Thank you Vermont Public for letting me share the series on Rumble Strip.

]]> Mon, 11 Mar 2024 12:20:00 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Kathleen Patrick, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com What Class Are You is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public. Thank you Vermont Public for letting me share the series on Rumble Strip.

]]> What Class Are You Kathleen? Kathleen Patrick, Erica Heilman 00:05:51 Kathleen lives in Derby, Vermont in a subsidized apartment with two cats, two pugs, and about 400 clocks. She was working as a home health aide until COVID hit. She received COVID funding and rent assistance until she didn't. And now she's working at the deli at Price Chopper. And she's months behind on her rent. And she's facing eviction. Kathleen lives in Derby, Vermont in a subsidized apartment with two cats, two pugs, and about 400 clocks. She was working as a home health aide until COVID hit. She received COVID funding and rent assistance until she didn't. And now she's working at the deli at Price Chopper. And she's months behind on her rent. And she's facing eviction. vpr, northeast kingdom, class, what class are you false full 264 f3bbdf1d-db79-4e5e-9097-e619e8bb44c5 Revisiting Isaac Many of you got in touch with me after Isaac's story aired in the first week of What Class Are You. Isaac's on his way to Columbia in the fall, on a full scholarship, and you came up with amazing ideas for how you might be helpful, so I went back up to Newport to discuss it all with Isaac. And it turned into a really interesting conversation on a number of fronts. 

]]> Sun, 10 Mar 2024 17:59:25 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (what class are you, erica heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com Many of you got in touch with me after Isaac's story aired in the first week of What Class Are You. Isaac's on his way to Columbia in the fall, on a full scholarship, and you came up with amazing ideas for how you might be helpful, so I went back up to Newport to discuss it all with Isaac. And it turned into a really interesting conversation on a number of fronts. 

]]> Revisiting Isaac what class are you, erica heilman 00:19:30 Many of you got in touch with me after Isaac's story aired in the first week of What Class Are You. Isaac's on his way to Columbia in the fall, on a full scholarship, and you came up with amazing ideas for how you might be helpful, so I went back up to Newport to discuss it all with Isaac. And it turned into a really interesting conversation on a number of fronts. Many of you got in touch with me after Isaac's story aired in the first week of What Class Are You. Isaac's on his way to Columbia in the fall, on a full scholarship, and you came up with amazing ideas for how you might be helpful, so I went back up to Newport to discuss it all with Isaac. And it turned into a really interesting conversation on a number of fronts. class, what class are you false full 263 d86a7052-ab3a-425c-942e-a3f0c34438ea What Class Are You Ethan? What Class Are You is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public. Thank you Vermont Public for letting me share the series on Rumble Strip.

]]> Fri, 8 Mar 2024 14:20:11 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (ethan perry, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com What Class Are You is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public. Thank you Vermont Public for letting me share the series on Rumble Strip.

]]> What Class Are You Ethan? ethan perry, Erica Heilman 00:09:53 When I met Ethan Perry, he was taking a break from his job at Family Dollar in Orleans VT. At the time he was 29. When I asked him what class he is, he said he grew up lower-middle class. His mother was a teacher and his father a carpenter. He said that now he considers himself lower class, but not impoverished. We talked for a few minutes and then I drove back up to Orleans, and we sat in my car up on the hill that overlooks the Ethan Allen Furniture mill and we talked. When I met Ethan Perry, he was taking a break from his job at Family Dollar in Orleans VT. At the time he was 29. When I asked him what class he is, he said he grew up lower-middle class. His mother was a teacher and his father a carpenter. He said that now he considers himself lower class, but not impoverished. We talked for a few minutes and then I drove back up to Orleans, and we sat in my car up on the hill that overlooks the Ethan Allen Furniture mill and we talked. ethan perry, nek, northeast kingdom, vermont, class, poverty, erica heilman, erica, what class are you false full 262 df09af34-3e00-46e6-87c2-7b285c141cca What Class Are You Mike? What Class Are You is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public. Thank you Vermont Public for letting me share the series on Rumble Strip.

]]> Wed, 6 Mar 2024 13:05:02 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Mike Donofrio, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com What Class Are You is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public. Thank you Vermont Public for letting me share the series on Rumble Strip.

]]> What Class Are You Mike? Mike Donofrio, Erica Heilman 00:07:57 Mike Donofrio moved to Vermont with his family when he was two years old. He grew up, he left Vermont for college and law school, then he moved back and worked in the attorney general's office. Now he's in private practice in Montpelier. And he plays bass in a few bands. I asked him what class he is. Here is some of what he said. Mike Donofrio moved to Vermont with his family when he was two years old. He grew up, he left Vermont for college and law school, then he moved back and worked in the attorney general's office. Now he's in private practice in Montpelier. And he plays bass in a few bands. I asked him what class he is. Here is some of what he said. vermont, class, mike donofrio, what class are you, rumble strip false full 261 1b091ca5-0d2f-4712-b4e2-faef6473dd15 What Class Are You John? What Class Are  You is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public. Thank you Vermont Public for letting me share this series with Rumble Strip. 

]]> Mon, 4 Mar 2024 12:51:23 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman, John Rodgers) https://rumblestripvermont.com What Class Are  You is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public. Thank you Vermont Public for letting me share this series with Rumble Strip. 

]]> What Class Are You John? Erica Heilman, John Rodgers 00:08:11 John Rodgers runs a construction business up in West Glover, Vermont most of the year. He runs a plow business in the winter. He rents properties, he runs a cannabis farm with his son, he's a stonemason. He's one of the busiest guys I know. And for sixteen years John served in the Vermont Legislature — eight years in the Senate and eight in the House. I met him on his farm, which has been in his family for about 200 years, and we talked about what it costs to be in the Vermont legislature, and some of the cultural tensions that he’s feeling in the state right now, as people with more money move to the state. John Rodgers runs a construction business up in West Glover, Vermont most of the year. He runs a plow business in the winter. He rents properties, he runs a cannabis farm with his son, he's a stonemason. He's one of the busiest guys I know. And for sixteen years John served in the Vermont Legislature — eight years in the Senate and eight in the House. I met him on his farm, which has been in his family for about 200 years, and we talked about what it costs to be in the Vermont legislature, and some of the cultural tensions that he’s feeling in the state right now, as people with more money move to the state. vermont, class, erica heilman, what class are you, john rodgers false full 260 1fe7d206-df98-4fc6-9ba8-426b18b7d9c1 What Class Are You? A Conversation with Garret Keizer What Class is a periodic series I produce for Vermont  Public. Thank you Vermont Public for allowing me to share this series with Rumble Strip. 

]]> Fri, 1 Mar 2024 13:04:09 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Garret Keizer, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com What Class is a periodic series I produce for Vermont  Public. Thank you Vermont Public for allowing me to share this series with Rumble Strip. 

]]> What Class Are You? A Conversation with Garret Keizer Garret Keizer, Erica Heilman 00:22:12 In this episode I talk with one of my favorite poets and writers, Garret Keizer. Garret has written extensively on the history of labor unions and for this show we drove around and talked about the obscene class inequality in our country, the power of labor movements, and what happens when you address gender and race equity, but ignore income inequality. And…other things. Like jazz. In this episode I talk with one of my favorite poets and writers, Garret Keizer. Garret has written extensively on the history of labor unions and for this show we drove around and talked about the obscene class inequality in our country, the power of labor movements, and what happens when you address gender and race equity, but ignore income inequality. And…other things. Like jazz. vermont, class, vermont public, erica heilman, what class are you, garret keizer false full 259 7cd58ab2-9781-4352-ae7d-bdf1e18f0705 What Class Are You Kytreana? What Class Are You is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public. Thank you Vermont Public for allowing me to share the stories with Rumble Strip.

]]> Wed, 28 Feb 2024 12:12:49 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Kytreana Patrick, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com What Class Are You is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public. Thank you Vermont Public for allowing me to share the stories with Rumble Strip.

]]> What Class Are You Kytreana? Kytreana Patrick, Erica Heilman 00:09:35 This is episode 5 of What Class Are You. Kytreana was one of the first people I interviewed for this series. I was driving around the Northeast Kingdom and my last stop was Olney’s General Store in Orleans, right across the road from the Ethan Allen furniture mill. There were some people sitting out in the front of the store talking and vaping. And when I walked up and asked if I could ask an awkward and probably offensive question, Kytreana Patrick said, "absolutely, pull up a chair." This is episode 5 of What Class Are You. Kytreana was one of the first people I interviewed for this series. I was driving around the Northeast Kingdom and my last stop was Olney’s General Store in Orleans, right across the road from the Ethan Allen furniture mill. There were some people sitting out in the front of the store talking and vaping. And when I walked up and asked if I could ask an awkward and probably offensive question, Kytreana Patrick said, "absolutely, pull up a chair." northeast kingdom, vermont, class, kytreana patrick, what class are you false full 258 6ecd3fab-f6b5-484f-a4b0-115bb8ed1c5c What Class Are You Kate? What Class Are You is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public. Thank you Vermont Public for allowing me to share these stories with Rumble Strip.

]]> Mon, 26 Feb 2024 12:55:33 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com What Class Are You is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public. Thank you Vermont Public for allowing me to share these stories with Rumble Strip.

]]> What Class Are You Kate? Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:08:03 This is episode 4 of a special series called What Class Are You, wherein I drive around asking people to talk about class and privilege and power and money and how much or little of it they've got. Kate is forty-three. She lives in the woods here in central Vermont. She's part of a community of young people around here who live frugally and often communally, in yurts, and tents and buses. Kate lived this way for 20 years, saving up money to buy this piece of land...but it's gotten harder to find affordable land here in Vermont after the great Covid migration. When I asked Kate what class she is, she said 'lower middle class by unconventional means.' This is episode 4 of a special series called What Class Are You, wherein I drive around asking people to talk about class and privilege and power and money and how much or little of it they've got. Kate is forty-three. She lives in the woods here in central Vermont. She's part of a community of young people around here who live frugally and often communally, in yurts, and tents and buses. Kate lived this way for 20 years, saving up money to buy this piece of land...but it's gotten harder to find affordable land here in Vermont after the great Covid migration. When I asked Kate what class she is, she said 'lower middle class by unconventional means.' false full 257 74f28a18-40db-457d-9960-4389da891ada What Class Are You Irfan? Irfan Sehic and his family fled the war in Bosnia when he was seventeen, and landed in Barre, Vermont. Irfan did a lot of jobs when he got here, then went to college, and now runs an insurance company out of his house. I’ve interviewed Irfan for Rumble Strip before, about the war, which you can find on this site somewhere, but in this story, Irfan talks about the American class system as he sees it, starting with the middle class.

This is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public. Thank you Vermont Public for letting me share the shows with Rumble Strip. 

]]> Fri, 23 Feb 2024 13:40:08 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Irfan Sehic, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com Irfan Sehic and his family fled the war in Bosnia when he was seventeen, and landed in Barre, Vermont. Irfan did a lot of jobs when he got here, then went to college, and now runs an insurance company out of his house. I’ve interviewed Irfan for Rumble Strip before, about the war, which you can find on this site somewhere, but in this story, Irfan talks about the American class system as he sees it, starting with the middle class.

This is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public. Thank you Vermont Public for letting me share the shows with Rumble Strip. 

]]> What Class Are You Irfan? Irfan Sehic, Erica Heilman 00:07:09 Irfan Sehic and his family fled the war in Bosnia when he was seventeen, and landed in Barre, Vermont. Irfan did a lot of jobs when he got here, then went to college, and now runs an insurance company out of his house. I’ve interviewed Irfan for Rumble Strip before, about the war, which you can find on this site somewhere, but in this story, Irfan talks about the American class system as he sees it, starting with the middle class. Irfan Sehic and his family fled the war in Bosnia when he was seventeen, and landed in Barre, Vermont. Irfan did a lot of jobs when he got here, then went to college, and now runs an insurance company out of his house. I’ve interviewed Irfan for Rumble Strip before, about the war, which you can find on this site somewhere, but in this story, Irfan talks about the American class system as he sees it, starting with the middle class. irfan, class, what class are you, rumble strip false full 256 51adf0cb-56ba-4f22-8592-366851a5fa93 What Class Are You Isaac? Isaac lives in Newport, Vermont, which is as far north as you get in Vermont. It’s a town in the Northeast Kingdom with a beautiful lake. It’s also a town with a state prison and a lot of drugs and poverty.

I met Isaac at a writers group in town, which meets once a week in town at the amazing Nevermore Bookstore. Isaac is eighteen. He loves to read and write and this spring he’s graduating form Lake Region High School. I asked if he’d be willing to talk with me about class, and he was.

What Class Are You is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public, and I want to thank them for letting me share these stories on Rumble Strip.

]]> Wed, 21 Feb 2024 07:16:00 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Isaac, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com Isaac lives in Newport, Vermont, which is as far north as you get in Vermont. It’s a town in the Northeast Kingdom with a beautiful lake. It’s also a town with a state prison and a lot of drugs and poverty.

I met Isaac at a writers group in town, which meets once a week in town at the amazing Nevermore Bookstore. Isaac is eighteen. He loves to read and write and this spring he’s graduating form Lake Region High School. I asked if he’d be willing to talk with me about class, and he was.

What Class Are You is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public, and I want to thank them for letting me share these stories on Rumble Strip.

]]> What Class Are You Isaac? Isaac, Erica Heilman 00:11:37 What Class Are You is a series about money and privilege and how much or little of it you've got. This story is about Isaac, an 18-year-old in Newport, Vermont. What Class Are You is a series about money and privilege and how much or little of it you've got. This story is about Isaac, an 18-year-old in Newport, Vermont. money, poverty, what class are you, kids, youth false full 255 fc580886-9090-482b-96dc-6ab05462f4b1 What Class Are You Susan? Today is the first episode of What Class Are You, a periodic series I make for VP. 

This series started as an experiment a few years ago. I wanted to have conversations with people about the terrible cultural divides that keep growing in our country, without ending up in boring conversations about politics…so I drove around asking strangers ‘what class are you’, which is a kind of stupid and offensive question, but it turns out people have a lot to say…about money, education, opportunity…power. 

The very first shows I made about class I already ran on RS as a single show…you can find it on my website….but these next episodes in the series I’ll run one at a time, every couple days, for a few weeks. 

We’re going to start the series with my old friend Susan Randall, the private investigator I interview a lot for Rumble Strip. She talks about what it was like to grow up upper-middle class. 

]]> Mon, 19 Feb 2024 11:57:50 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Today is the first episode of What Class Are You, a periodic series I make for VP. 

This series started as an experiment a few years ago. I wanted to have conversations with people about the terrible cultural divides that keep growing in our country, without ending up in boring conversations about politics…so I drove around asking strangers ‘what class are you’, which is a kind of stupid and offensive question, but it turns out people have a lot to say…about money, education, opportunity…power. 

The very first shows I made about class I already ran on RS as a single show…you can find it on my website….but these next episodes in the series I’ll run one at a time, every couple days, for a few weeks. 

We’re going to start the series with my old friend Susan Randall, the private investigator I interview a lot for Rumble Strip. She talks about what it was like to grow up upper-middle class. 

]]> What Class Are You Susan? Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:06:32 First episode in a series called What Class Are You? This time...Susan Randall, a private investigator in Vermont, talks about growing up upper-middle class. First episode in a series called What Class Are You? This time...Susan Randall, a private investigator in Vermont, talks about growing up upper-middle class. vermont, class, what class are you, susan randall false full 254 34636533-efca-41be-a90c-8fa73e578424 Makeup For Special Occasion Valentines Day Redux! This is a rerun of what could be called a VALENTINE’S DAY SPECIAL, and I hope you enjoy it.

Last year on Hardwick's Front Porch Forum, someone called Tiana asked if there was anyone who could help her with her hair and makeup for an important date with her boyfriend. Front Porch Forum is an online, daily community forum, which is like a bulletin board at a local general store. You can find secondhand tires there. Or read complaints about the Selectboard. Every Vermont town’s got a Front Porch Forum and you have to be from that town to be on it.

Since Tiana's new to town, she thought she might have luck finding someone to help her get ready for her date through the Forum. And she did.

Here is her original posting:

Makeup for Special Occasion Tiana • Hardwick 

I'm looking for someone who'd be willing to do my makeup (and possibly hair?) on the 23rd of this month. Just something simple with my eyes and something to hide some red spots. Is there a way to make an illusion of a skinner face? I think thats a thing, right? I understand it's a long shot and I don't have much money. I usually don't like anything thats considered "girly". However I want to surprise my boyfriend for our first anniversary. I have a nice dress picked out with matching press on nails. The issue is I have no clue how to do makeup. YouTube tutorials have never done me any good considering I don't own any makeup and I have a very round, chubby face.

Thank you for reading!

 

Credits

Music by Brian Clark

Thanks to Tara Reese for finding the posting

Thanks to Tobin and Mike and Rose

Welcome the Civic Standard!

Thanks to Aubrie St. Louis at the Rehair Shop

]]> Tue, 13 Feb 2024 18:37:59 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Tiana, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com This is a rerun of what could be called a VALENTINE’S DAY SPECIAL, and I hope you enjoy it.

Last year on Hardwick's Front Porch Forum, someone called Tiana asked if there was anyone who could help her with her hair and makeup for an important date with her boyfriend. Front Porch Forum is an online, daily community forum, which is like a bulletin board at a local general store. You can find secondhand tires there. Or read complaints about the Selectboard. Every Vermont town’s got a Front Porch Forum and you have to be from that town to be on it.

Since Tiana's new to town, she thought she might have luck finding someone to help her get ready for her date through the Forum. And she did.

Here is her original posting:

Makeup for Special Occasion Tiana • Hardwick 

I'm looking for someone who'd be willing to do my makeup (and possibly hair?) on the 23rd of this month. Just something simple with my eyes and something to hide some red spots. Is there a way to make an illusion of a skinner face? I think thats a thing, right? I understand it's a long shot and I don't have much money. I usually don't like anything thats considered "girly". However I want to surprise my boyfriend for our first anniversary. I have a nice dress picked out with matching press on nails. The issue is I have no clue how to do makeup. YouTube tutorials have never done me any good considering I don't own any makeup and I have a very round, chubby face.

Thank you for reading!

 

Credits

Music by Brian Clark

Thanks to Tara Reese for finding the posting

Thanks to Tobin and Mike and Rose

Welcome the Civic Standard!

Thanks to Aubrie St. Louis at the Rehair Shop

]]> Makeup For Special Occasion Valentines Day Redux! Tiana, Erica Heilman 00:09:08 This is a rerun of what could be called a VALENTINE’S DAY SPECIAL, and I hope you enjoy it. Last year on Hardwick's Front Porch Forum, someone called Tiana asked if there was anyone who could help her with her hair and makeup for an important date with her boyfriend. Front Porch Forum is an online, daily community forum, which is like a bulletin board at a local general store. You can find secondhand tires there. Or read complaints about the Selectboard. Every Vermont town’s got a Front Porch Forum and you have to be from that town to be on it. Since Tiana's new to town, she thought she might have luck finding someone to help her get ready for her date through the Forum. And she did. This is a rerun of what could be called a VALENTINE’S DAY SPECIAL, and I hope you enjoy it. Last year on Hardwick's Front Porch Forum, someone called Tiana asked if there was anyone who could help her with her hair and makeup for an important date with her boyfriend. Front Porch Forum is an online, daily community forum, which is like a bulletin board at a local general store. You can find secondhand tires there. Or read complaints about the Selectboard. Every Vermont town’s got a Front Porch Forum and you have to be from that town to be on it. Since Tiana's new to town, she thought she might have luck finding someone to help her get ready for her date through the Forum. And she did. vermpont, hardwick, vermont, makeup false full 253 b14bff03-bb79-4095-acdf-8218c735ba7d A 100 Year Flood The Anair story was produced for Vermont Public.

]]> Thu, 25 Jan 2024 23:07:47 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com The Anair story was produced for Vermont Public.

]]> A 100 Year Flood Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip, Erica Heilman 00:12:08 These are some stories from Vermont's 100 year flood last July in Vermont. It devastated our state. In my hometown of Calais, we had dirt roads that were so destroyed, with holes so big that people were down there digging for gold. Moscow Woods Road disappeared off the side of a cliff. At the head of Singleton Road someone put up a handpainted sign that just said, ‘Road Gone.’ These are a couple stories from those first few days after the flood. These are some stories from Vermont's 100 year flood last July in Vermont. It devastated our state. In my hometown of Calais, we had dirt roads that were so destroyed, with holes so big that people were down there digging for gold. Moscow Woods Road disappeared off the side of a cliff. At the head of Singleton Road someone put up a handpainted sign that just said, ‘Road Gone.’ These are a couple stories from those first few days after the flood. flood, vermont, 2023 flood, vermlont false full 252 ab6fd138-ad21-4747-bcfd-4d8b0b0b4e45 Little League Playoffs This is one of my all time favorite shows. I made it for Vermont Public in 2019 and I think about these guys all the time. It was the little league playoffs in St. Johnsbury in 2019, before the pandemic, recorded in a simpler time. Let's play some good D out there. 

]]> Thu, 11 Jan 2024 17:16:35 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com This is one of my all time favorite shows. I made it for Vermont Public in 2019 and I think about these guys all the time. It was the little league playoffs in St. Johnsbury in 2019, before the pandemic, recorded in a simpler time. Let's play some good D out there. 

]]> Little League Playoffs Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:08:13 This is one of my all time favorite shows. I made it for Vermont Public in 2019 and I think about these guys all the time. It was the little league playoffs in St. Johnsbury in 2019, before the pandemic, recorded in a simpler time. Let's play some good D out there. This is one of my all time favorite shows. I made it for Vermont Public in 2019 and I think about these guys all the time. It was the little league playoffs in St. Johnsbury in 2019, before the pandemic, recorded in a simpler time. Let's play some good D out there. false full 251 7f58f14b-3e7e-4ec4-9498-75ee871d47c6 East Hill Tree Farm Please Buy Their Trees East Hill Tree Farm is awesome. Honestly. It's just the best.  

]]> Fri, 15 Dec 2023 18:33:44 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman, Justin Lander) https://rumblestripvermont.com East Hill Tree Farm is awesome. Honestly. It's just the best.  

]]> East Hill Tree Farm Please Buy Their Trees Erica Heilman, Justin Lander 00:04:18 East Hill Tree Farm is my new sponsor. It’s the place where I buy all my trees and berry bushes so it’s easy to wax poetic about them. Also it’s a barter. Nicko Rubin is planting some trees here and giving me gardening advice in exchange for the sponsorship. I like this arrangement. So I wrote a song about it with my friend Justin Lander, which I think you will enjoy. East Hill Tree Farm is my new sponsor. It’s the place where I buy all my trees and berry bushes so it’s easy to wax poetic about them. Also it’s a barter. Nicko Rubin is planting some trees here and giving me gardening advice in exchange for the sponsorship. I like this arrangement. So I wrote a song about it with my friend Justin Lander, which I think you will enjoy. vermont, sponsor, trees, gardening, landscaping false full 250 3027db54-ea49-465a-8376-1d4cb0daffce Forrest and I Sit in the Truck and Talk About Pain I got in a car accident. For some reason I thought it would make me feel better to talk with Forrest Foster about all the accidents he’s had and how he thinks about pain.

]]> Sun, 10 Dec 2023 17:53:22 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Forrest Foster, Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com I got in a car accident. For some reason I thought it would make me feel better to talk with Forrest Foster about all the accidents he’s had and how he thinks about pain.

]]> Forrest and I Sit in the Truck and Talk About Pain Forrest Foster, Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip, Erica Heilman 00:12:34 I got in a car accident. For some reason I thought it would make me feel better to talk with Forrest about all the accidents he’s had and how he thinks about pain. I got in a car accident. For some reason I thought it would make me feel better to talk with Forrest about all the accidents he’s had and how he thinks about pain. forrest foster, erica heilman, rumble strip false full 249 14f80d5c-6308-4b95-be1d-d05d47a4d8d3 John Rodgers Weed Farmer Music for this show is by Justin Lander

John's company is called Farmers Underground, based in West Glover, VT

]]> Thu, 30 Nov 2023 18:22:38 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (John Rodgers, Justin Lander, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com Music for this show is by Justin Lander

John's company is called Farmers Underground, based in West Glover, VT

]]> John Rodgers Weed Farmer John Rodgers, Justin Lander, Erica Heilman 00:24:03 John Rodgers is a stonemason in West Glover. He also runs a construction business, plows driveways and rents properties, and for sixteen years he served in the Vermont Legislature in both the House and the Senate. He works seven days a week, and a huge reason he works so hard is so he can hold onto the farm that's been in his family for 200 years. It was a dairy when he was growing up there. Now he's growing weed for Vermont retailers. I've always been really curious about weed culture in Vermont before it was legal, which John knows a thing or two about. And in a time when so many farms are going out in this state, I wanted to talk with someone who's finding creative ways to keep his farm in farming. John Rodgers is a stonemason in West Glover. He also runs a construction business, plows driveways and rents properties, and for sixteen years he served in the Vermont Legislature in both the House and the Senate. He works seven days a week, and a huge reason he works so hard is so he can hold onto the farm that's been in his family for 200 years. It was a dairy when he was growing up there. Now he's growing weed for Vermont retailers. I've always been really curious about weed culture in Vermont before it was legal, which John knows a thing or two about. And in a time when so many farms are going out in this state, I wanted to talk with someone who's finding creative ways to keep his farm in farming. marijuana, vermont, weed, pot, farming true full 248 64753720-c887-4dac-95a2-e2a7be4d1315 Ode to Village Life A lot of people in rural America live near small towns or villages. Here in Vermont, a lot of small village schools and general stores and post offices are closing for all kinds of reasons. And this isn’t unique to here. Small town centers are struggling all over the country. But when these little downtown areas lose a store, or a school, everything changes.

 

Danny Sagan is an architect in Montpelier and I like to hear him talk about how buildings work on us, how they slow us down or speed us up. A couple weeks ago I asked him if he’d drive around with me and talk about what villages ARE. What makes them feel like they do. And what happens if they disappear.

 

Credits:

A shorter version of this story was produce for Vermont Public. Thank you Vermont Public for allowing me to air the story here!

Danny Sagan's design firm, DS Architects

 

]]> Mon, 30 Oct 2023 15:04:25 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Danny Sagan, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com A lot of people in rural America live near small towns or villages. Here in Vermont, a lot of small village schools and general stores and post offices are closing for all kinds of reasons. And this isn’t unique to here. Small town centers are struggling all over the country. But when these little downtown areas lose a store, or a school, everything changes.

 

Danny Sagan is an architect in Montpelier and I like to hear him talk about how buildings work on us, how they slow us down or speed us up. A couple weeks ago I asked him if he’d drive around with me and talk about what villages ARE. What makes them feel like they do. And what happens if they disappear.

 

Credits:

A shorter version of this story was produce for Vermont Public. Thank you Vermont Public for allowing me to air the story here!

Danny Sagan's design firm, DS Architects

 

]]> Ode to Village Life Danny Sagan, Erica Heilman 00:11:19 A lot of people in rural America live near small towns or villages. Here in Vermont, a lot of small village schools and general stores and post offices are closing for all kinds of reasons. And this isn’t unique to here. Small town centers are struggling all over the country. But when these little downtown areas lose a store, or a school, everything changes. Danny Sagan is an architect in Montpelier and I like to hear him talk about how buildings work on us, how they slow us down or speed us up. A couple weeks ago I asked him if he’d drive around with me and talk about what villages ARE. What makes them feel like they do. And what happens if they disappear. Credits: A shorter version of this story was produce for Vermont Public. Thank you Vermont Public for allowing me to air the story here! A lot of people in rural America live near small towns or villages. Here in Vermont, a lot of small village schools and general stores and post offices are closing for all kinds of reasons. And this isn’t unique to here. Small town centers are struggling all over the country. But when these little downtown areas lose a store, or a school, everything changes. Danny Sagan is an architect in Montpelier and I like to hear him talk about how buildings work on us, how they slow us down or speed us up. A couple weeks ago I asked him if he’d drive around with me and talk about what villages ARE. What makes them feel like they do. And what happens if they disappear. Credits: A shorter version of this story was produce for Vermont Public. Thank you Vermont Public for allowing me to air the story here! false full 247 deeeccef-a3e1-4786-b36b-b957527bd017 Taylor Swift Music for the End My friend Kelly Green is a defense attorney who represents people accused of murder. She spends a lot of time reading autopsies and driving around talking with witnesses and worrying. She’s got a lot going on at the moment. A couple weeks ago she asked me if I wanted to go to the opening of the new Taylor Swift movie in Barre. I did. This is a show about it.

]]> Fri, 20 Oct 2023 21:42:07 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Kelly Green, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com My friend Kelly Green is a defense attorney who represents people accused of murder. She spends a lot of time reading autopsies and driving around talking with witnesses and worrying. She’s got a lot going on at the moment. A couple weeks ago she asked me if I wanted to go to the opening of the new Taylor Swift movie in Barre. I did. This is a show about it.

]]> Taylor Swift Music for the End Kelly Green, Erica Heilman 00:11:20 My friend Kelly Green is a defense attorney who represents people accused of murder. She spends a lot of time reading autopsies and driving around talking with witnesses and worrying. She’s got a lot going on at the moment. A couple weeks ago she asked me if I wanted to go to the opening of the new Taylor Swift movie in Barre. I did. This is a show about it. My friend Kelly Green is a defense attorney who represents people accused of murder. She spends a lot of time reading autopsies and driving around talking with witnesses and worrying. She’s got a lot going on at the moment. A couple weeks ago she asked me if I wanted to go to the opening of the new Taylor Swift movie in Barre. I did. This is a show about it. kelly, music, kelly green, taylor, taylor swift true full 246 e903f9fc-3bdd-41a7-85ca-b77c6fa4b917 Susan on the Train Tracks Susan’s been a private investigator in Vermont for 24 years. She defends people who are accused of crimes, which often involve drugs in one way or another. This summer she was robbed by a person with a terrible heroin addiction, and it made her really angry, and really tired. This is that story. And if you haven't heard any of the Susan shows before, I recommend listening to some of the others first. There are at least four, and the very first one is called Vermont Private Eye.

]]> Wed, 4 Oct 2023 12:17:04 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com Susan’s been a private investigator in Vermont for 24 years. She defends people who are accused of crimes, which often involve drugs in one way or another. This summer she was robbed by a person with a terrible heroin addiction, and it made her really angry, and really tired. This is that story. And if you haven't heard any of the Susan shows before, I recommend listening to some of the others first. There are at least four, and the very first one is called Vermont Private Eye.

]]> Susan on the Train Tracks Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip, Erica Heilman 00:16:11 Susan’s been a private investigator in Vermont for 24 years. She defends people who are accused of crimes, which often involve drugs in one way or another. This summer she was robbed by a person with a terrible heroin addiction, and it made her really angry, and really tired. This is that story. And if you haven't heard any of the Susan shows before, I recommend listening to some of the others first. There are at least four, and the very first one is called Vermont Private Eye. Susan’s been a private investigator in Vermont for 24 years. She defends people who are accused of crimes, which often involve drugs in one way or another. This summer she was robbed by a person with a terrible heroin addiction, and it made her really angry, and really tired. This is that story. And if you haven't heard any of the Susan shows before, I recommend listening to some of the others first. There are at least four, and the very first one is called Vermont Private Eye. vermont, addiction, robbery, private investigator, burlington, susan, heroin, susan randall true full 245 6f01f792-218f-4f00-a34d-0bc1238acddd Forrest Foster Lays Karen to Rest Forrest Foster is a dairy farmer in Hardwick, Vermont and a friend of mine. This past spring, on Memorial Day, Forrest’s partner, Karen Shaw, died after a long illness. They were together 43 years. The day after she died, Forrest built her coffin with his friends Steve and Butch, and a couple days later Karen was buried in a field behind the barn under a maple tree, with a few family and friends present. 

As always with Forrest, I’m struck by the combination of pragmatism and love in everything he does. Burying Karen was no different. 

]]> Mon, 4 Sep 2023 14:22:00 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com Forrest Foster is a dairy farmer in Hardwick, Vermont and a friend of mine. This past spring, on Memorial Day, Forrest’s partner, Karen Shaw, died after a long illness. They were together 43 years. The day after she died, Forrest built her coffin with his friends Steve and Butch, and a couple days later Karen was buried in a field behind the barn under a maple tree, with a few family and friends present. 

As always with Forrest, I’m struck by the combination of pragmatism and love in everything he does. Burying Karen was no different. 

]]> Forrest Foster Lays Karen to Rest Erica Heilman 00:24:28 Forrest Foster is a dairy farmer in Hardwick, Vermont and a friend of mine. This past spring, on Memorial Day, Forrest’s partner, Karen Shaw, died after a long illness. They were together 43 years. The day after she died, Forrest built her coffin with his friends Steve and Butch, and a couple days later Karen was buried in a field behind the barn under a maple tree, with a few family and friends present. As always with Forrest, I’m struck by the combination of pragmatism and love in everything he does. Burying Karen was no different. Forrest Foster is a dairy farmer in Hardwick, Vermont and a friend of mine. This past spring, on Memorial Day, Forrest’s partner, Karen Shaw, died after a long illness. They were together 43 years. The day after she died, Forrest built her coffin with his friends Steve and Butch, and a couple days later Karen was buried in a field behind the barn under a maple tree, with a few family and friends present. As always with Forrest, I’m struck by the combination of pragmatism and love in everything he does. Burying Karen was no different. podcast, death, hardwick, vermont, farming, forrest foster, burial, rumble strip, dairy false full 244 0e44085c-6608-4f27-8a41-06313d8f8241 The Homesteading Game Music by Justin Lander

Originally produced for Vermont Public 

]]> Wed, 16 Aug 2023 18:57:21 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Justin Lander, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com Music by Justin Lander

Originally produced for Vermont Public 

]]> The Homesteading Game Justin Lander, Erica Heilman 00:12:36 I am a terrible vegetable gardener. And I have friends who are GREAT vegetable gardeners, who also raise their own animals for milk and eggs and meat, and they put up enough food from the garden to get through the winter. For years, I have felt inadequate in their midst. So I was very happy when Justin Lander offered up a kind of primal scream about the challenges and frustrations of homesteading in Vermont. This is a show I made for Vermont Public at the beginning of the summer. So thanks Vermont Public for letting me play it here! I am a terrible vegetable gardener. And I have friends who are GREAT vegetable gardeners, who also raise their own animals for milk and eggs and meat, and they put up enough food from the garden to get through the winter. For years, I have felt inadequate in their midst. So I was very happy when Justin Lander offered up a kind of primal scream about the challenges and frustrations of homesteading in Vermont. This is a show I made for Vermont Public at the beginning of the summer. So thanks Vermont Public for letting me play it here! rumblestrip, homesteading, vermont, puppets, erica heilman, rumble strip false full 243 62e6e6c3-a068-463d-9a5d-cea30c65fde0 The Civic Standard in the 100 Year Flood Special Note: 

Hill Farmstead, the best beer in the world, just named a beer after the Civic Standard. Which is fricking VERY COOL. Here's a link to it. 

]]> Thu, 27 Jul 2023 20:07:39 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Rose Friedman, Tara Reese, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com Special Note: 

Hill Farmstead, the best beer in the world, just named a beer after the Civic Standard. Which is fricking VERY COOL. Here's a link to it. 

]]> The Civic Standard in the 100 Year Flood Rose Friedman, Tara Reese, Erica Heilman 00:15:08 We just had a massive, devastating flood here in Vermont. And Hardwick got hit pretty hard. This all happened exactly a week after I launched the show about mystery dinner theater in Hardwick, put on by the Civic Standard. As soon as the flood started, the Civic started working with the town to set up a shelter and provide meals and organize volunteers....while still doing trivia night at the diner and karoaoke at the Legion. Rose and Tara are doing something so simple and so fundamental, but also incredibly RARE, and it makes the hair on my neck stand up to hear them talk about it. I stopped in and talked with them yesterday about the flood response and wanted to share it with you here. We just had a massive, devastating flood here in Vermont. And Hardwick got hit pretty hard. This all happened exactly a week after I launched the show about mystery dinner theater in Hardwick, put on by the Civic Standard. As soon as the flood started, the Civic started working with the town to set up a shelter and provide meals and organize volunteers....while still doing trivia night at the diner and karoaoke at the Legion. Rose and Tara are doing something so simple and so fundamental, but also incredibly RARE, and it makes the hair on my neck stand up to hear them talk about it. I stopped in and talked with them yesterday about the flood response and wanted to share it with you here. true full 242 bd2b9b9c-e6fc-4e0c-98b6-02bc4e8bf8de The Civic Standard Rose Friedman and Tara Reese were in the early stages of starting the Civic Standard, an organization that gives the people of Hardwick excuses to get together. Rose and Tara were explaining this idea to Brenda at a baseball game and Brenda said that what she really wanted was for them to make a mystery dinner theater show. Nobody really thought that this would happen.

But Rose couldn't stop thinking about it. Most mystery dinner theater shows are a little like the game CLUE, which isn’t very interesting. But then Rose had an idea. What if the murder mystery was set in Hardwick? Actually, what if it was set at a really boring development review board meeting in Hardwick, which is the sort of meeting everyone around here feels totally at home in, including people who have never been to a play?

This is a show about the making of Developed to Death, a play that was written by people around Hardwick, about the community of Hardwick, and for the people of Hardwick. It is part theater, part social science project, and in it someone gets murdered.

And special bonus…right after the show is a followup interview with Civic Standard co-founders Rose Friedman and Tara Reese.

 

Credits

This story was supported in part by the Vermont Humanities Council. This story is also a Transom Radio Special, which has support from the National Endowment for the  Arts. You can read about the making of the show at: https://transom.org/2022/the-civic-standard/

This show was mixed by Jay Allison

Music for this show is by Justin Lander and Charlie Lander

Special thanks to these people for their advice and patience: Amelia Meath, Tobin Anderson, Chelsea Edgar, Jay Allison, Howard Norman, Gordon Grunder, my family, and of course Rose and Tara.

 

]]> Thu, 6 Jul 2023 13:42:49 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com Rose Friedman and Tara Reese were in the early stages of starting the Civic Standard, an organization that gives the people of Hardwick excuses to get together. Rose and Tara were explaining this idea to Brenda at a baseball game and Brenda said that what she really wanted was for them to make a mystery dinner theater show. Nobody really thought that this would happen.

But Rose couldn't stop thinking about it. Most mystery dinner theater shows are a little like the game CLUE, which isn’t very interesting. But then Rose had an idea. What if the murder mystery was set in Hardwick? Actually, what if it was set at a really boring development review board meeting in Hardwick, which is the sort of meeting everyone around here feels totally at home in, including people who have never been to a play?

This is a show about the making of Developed to Death, a play that was written by people around Hardwick, about the community of Hardwick, and for the people of Hardwick. It is part theater, part social science project, and in it someone gets murdered.

And special bonus…right after the show is a followup interview with Civic Standard co-founders Rose Friedman and Tara Reese.

 

Credits

This story was supported in part by the Vermont Humanities Council. This story is also a Transom Radio Special, which has support from the National Endowment for the  Arts. You can read about the making of the show at: https://transom.org/2022/the-civic-standard/

This show was mixed by Jay Allison

Music for this show is by Justin Lander and Charlie Lander

Special thanks to these people for their advice and patience: Amelia Meath, Tobin Anderson, Chelsea Edgar, Jay Allison, Howard Norman, Gordon Grunder, my family, and of course Rose and Tara.

 

]]> The Civic Standard Erica Heilman 00:57:46 Rose Friedman and Tara Reese were in the early stages of starting the Civic Standard, an organization that gives the people of Hardwick excuses to get together. Rose and Tara were explaining this idea to Brenda at a baseball game and Brenda said that what she really wanted was for them to make a mystery dinner theater show. Nobody really thought that this would happen. But Rose couldn't stop thinking about it. Most mystery dinner theater shows are a little like the game CLUE, which isn’t very interesting. But then Rose had an idea. What if the murder mystery was set in Hardwick? Actually, what if it was set at a really boring development review board meeting in Hardwick, which is the sort of meeting everyone around here feels totally at home in, including people who have never been to a play? This is a show about the making of Developed to Death, a play that was written by people around Hardwick, about the community of Hardwick, and for the people of Hardwick. It is part theater, part social science project, and in it someone gets murdered. And special bonus…right after the show is a followup interview with Civic Standard co-founders Rose Friedman and Tara Reese. Rose Friedman and Tara Reese were in the early stages of starting the Civic Standard, an organization that gives the people of Hardwick excuses to get together. Rose and Tara were explaining this idea to Brenda at a baseball game and Brenda said that what she really wanted was for them to make a mystery dinner theater show. Nobody really thought that this would happen. But Rose couldn't stop thinking about it. Most mystery dinner theater shows are a little like the game CLUE, which isn’t very interesting. But then Rose had an idea. What if the murder mystery was set in Hardwick? Actually, what if it was set at a really boring development review board meeting in Hardwick, which is the sort of meeting everyone around here feels totally at home in, including people who have never been to a play? This is a show about the making of Developed to Death, a play that was written by people around Hardwick, about the community of Hardwick, and for the people of Hardwick. It is part theater, part social science project, and in it someone gets murdered. And special bonus…right after the show is a followup interview with Civic Standard co-founders Rose Friedman and Tara Reese. theater, podcast, civic standard, hardwick, vermont, experimental theater, tara reese, rumble strip true full 241 c4777361-85fe-419e-be1a-c328d9e2d207 Let's Talk about Guns Thanks to Brave Little State and Vermont Public for letting me run this episode on Rumble Strip. You can find Brave Little State wherever you listen to podcasts, and you can read more about them by visiting Vermont Public, at vermontpublic.org. Thanks to Myra Flynn, who worked with me on this show, and the rest of the Brave Little State team: Angela Evancie, Mae Nuguskey and Josh Crane.

 

]]> Wed, 31 May 2023 16:38:10 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Thanks to Brave Little State and Vermont Public for letting me run this episode on Rumble Strip. You can find Brave Little State wherever you listen to podcasts, and you can read more about them by visiting Vermont Public, at vermontpublic.org. Thanks to Myra Flynn, who worked with me on this show, and the rest of the Brave Little State team: Angela Evancie, Mae Nuguskey and Josh Crane.

 

]]> Let's Talk about Guns Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:48:13 This is a show about guns. I made this story for Brave Little State, a podcast of Vermont Public, which invites listeners to create story ideas and then vote on them. I was excited to make a story about guns but I also dreaded it. It's nearly impossible to talk about guns without causing anger or heartbreak or both. I wondered what would happen if I made a show about guns where no one was allowed to say, ‘We should’ or ‘I believe.’ What would happen if we just talked personally about guns? That's what I tried here. And I was surprised by what I heard. This is a show about guns. I made this story for Brave Little State, a podcast of Vermont Public, which invites listeners to create story ideas and then vote on them. I was excited to make a story about guns but I also dreaded it. It's nearly impossible to talk about guns without causing anger or heartbreak or both. I wondered what would happen if I made a show about guns where no one was allowed to say, ‘We should’ or ‘I believe.’ What would happen if we just talked personally about guns? That's what I tried here. And I was surprised by what I heard. true full 240 2a80f954-9ffe-418b-99e8-816c7e02601b Nightwalking 1, from Constellation Prize Credits: Music by Ishmael Ensemble, John Caroll Kirby, Riley Mulherkar and Elori Saxl

Edited by Daniel Guillemette & Daniel Gumbiner

Sound mix / sound design by John Delore

]]> Mon, 8 May 2023 20:54:05 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Credits: Music by Ishmael Ensemble, John Caroll Kirby, Riley Mulherkar and Elori Saxl

Edited by Daniel Guillemette & Daniel Gumbiner

Sound mix / sound design by John Delore

]]> Nightwalking 1, from Constellation Prize Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:29:46 This is a guest episode by my friend Bianca Giaever, producer of the podcast Constellation Prize. This is the first of a 4 part series called Nightwalking. This is a guest episode by my friend Bianca Giaever, producer of the podcast Constellation Prize. This is the first of a 4 part series called Nightwalking. false full 239 55fa561d-6ef1-42c5-900f-77588e3beb0d What Class are You? For years I've been wanting to make a show about the terrible cultural divides growing in our country, but I couldn't figure out how to do it without getting into boring conversations about politics. So I backed into an experiment. I asked my editor at Vermont Public if I could drive around and ask people, 'what class are you?', just to see what would happen. And he said, 'uh...sure.' So I did. This is the series that came of that experiment. And even though these conversations took place in rural Vermont, I think they are indicative of what people are thinking and feeling all over the country. And maybe we should all be having these conversations? I don't know. You tell me. And here is the series,  What Class Are You?

 

This series was produced for Vermont Public, and I am grateful to them for allowing me to share it with the Rumble Strip audience.

]]> Thu, 30 Mar 2023 15:52:55 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Vermont Public, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com For years I've been wanting to make a show about the terrible cultural divides growing in our country, but I couldn't figure out how to do it without getting into boring conversations about politics. So I backed into an experiment. I asked my editor at Vermont Public if I could drive around and ask people, 'what class are you?', just to see what would happen. And he said, 'uh...sure.' So I did. This is the series that came of that experiment. And even though these conversations took place in rural Vermont, I think they are indicative of what people are thinking and feeling all over the country. And maybe we should all be having these conversations? I don't know. You tell me. And here is the series,  What Class Are You?

 

This series was produced for Vermont Public, and I am grateful to them for allowing me to share it with the Rumble Strip audience.

]]> What Class are You? Vermont Public, Erica Heilman 00:29:56 For years I've been wanting to make a show about the terrible cultural divides growing in our country, but I couldn't figure out how to do it without getting into boring conversations about politics. So I backed into an experiment. I asked my editor at Vermont Public if I could drive around and ask people, 'what class are you?', just to see what would happen. And he said, 'uh...sure.' So I did. This is the series that came of that experiment. And even though these conversations took place in rural Vermont, I think they are indicative of what people are thinking and feeling all over the country. And maybe we should all be having these conversations? I don't know. You tell me. And here is the series, What Class Are You? This series was produced for Vermont Public, and I am grateful to them for allowing me to share it with the Rumble Strip audience. For years I've been wanting to make a show about the terrible cultural divides growing in our country, but I couldn't figure out how to do it without getting into boring conversations about politics. So I backed into an experiment. I asked my editor at Vermont Public if I could drive around and ask people, 'what class are you?', just to see what would happen. And he said, 'uh...sure.' So I did. This is the series that came of that experiment. And even though these conversations took place in rural Vermont, I think they are indicative of what people are thinking and feeling all over the country. And maybe we should all be having these conversations? I don't know. You tell me. And here is the series, What Class Are You? This series was produced for Vermont Public, and I am grateful to them for allowing me to share it with the Rumble Strip audience. vermont, class, cultural divides, what class are you false full 238 815b1f2c-e378-4ee0-aabd-d6dce4ba8e05 Mary Lake Sheep Slaughterer Mary Lake is a sheep farmer and sheep shearer and itinerant slaughterer. She is a tall, muscular woman in bib overalls and a baseball hat and dangly earrings she carved out of a ram’s horn. She wears a chain around her waist with a scabbard full of knives. And she loves sheep, which is one reason she participates in their slaughter. This is a story about where food comes from.

** The first version of this story aired on Vermont Public. I am grateful to Vermont Public for allowing me to share this story with Rumble Strip Listeners!

Mary Lake's business is Can-Do Shearing in Tunbridge, Vermont

]]> Wed, 15 Mar 2023 12:35:15 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Vermont Public, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com Mary Lake is a sheep farmer and sheep shearer and itinerant slaughterer. She is a tall, muscular woman in bib overalls and a baseball hat and dangly earrings she carved out of a ram’s horn. She wears a chain around her waist with a scabbard full of knives. And she loves sheep, which is one reason she participates in their slaughter. This is a story about where food comes from.

** The first version of this story aired on Vermont Public. I am grateful to Vermont Public for allowing me to share this story with Rumble Strip Listeners!

Mary Lake's business is Can-Do Shearing in Tunbridge, Vermont

]]> Mary Lake Sheep Slaughterer Vermont Public, Erica Heilman 00:15:17 Mary Lake is a sheep farmer and sheep shearer and itinerant slaughterer. She is a tall, muscular woman in bib overalls and a baseball hat and dangly earrings she carved out of a ram’s horn. She wears a chain around her waist with a scabbard full of knives. And she loves sheep, which is one reason she participates in their slaughter. This is a story about where food comes from. Mary Lake is a sheep farmer and sheep shearer and itinerant slaughterer. She is a tall, muscular woman in bib overalls and a baseball hat and dangly earrings she carved out of a ram’s horn. She wears a chain around her waist with a scabbard full of knives. And she loves sheep, which is one reason she participates in their slaughter. This is a story about where food comes from. false full 237 2bac0279-b6f0-488b-af20-3ca5d76309cc It's Town Meeting Again It's town meeting day here in Vermont.

In most of New England, town citizens become legislators for one day a year. They get together in school gyms and town halls and vote in person, and in public. This centuries long practice of towns doing the slow and hard work of disagreeing and arguing and compromising on how to govern themselves—this has a profound impact on a place, and what it means to be from a place.

Sometimes it’s contentious. Sometimes it’s boring. But it’s always the most interesting and authentic and civilized social event of the year. Always.

 

 

]]> Tue, 7 Mar 2023 13:37:31 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Kelly Green, SUSAN CLARK, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com It's town meeting day here in Vermont.

In most of New England, town citizens become legislators for one day a year. They get together in school gyms and town halls and vote in person, and in public. This centuries long practice of towns doing the slow and hard work of disagreeing and arguing and compromising on how to govern themselves—this has a profound impact on a place, and what it means to be from a place.

Sometimes it’s contentious. Sometimes it’s boring. But it’s always the most interesting and authentic and civilized social event of the year. Always.

 

 

]]> It's Town Meeting Again Kelly Green, SUSAN CLARK, Erica Heilman 00:30:35 It's town meeting day here in Vermont. In most of New England, town citizens become legislators for one day a year. They get together in school gyms and town halls and vote in person, and in public. This centuries long practice of towns doing the slow and hard work of disagreeing and arguing and compromising on how to govern themselves—this has a profound impact on a place, and what it means to be from a place. Sometimes it’s contentious. Sometimes it’s boring. But it’s always the most interesting and authentic and civilized social event of the year. Always. It's town meeting day here in Vermont. In most of New England, town citizens become legislators for one day a year. They get together in school gyms and town halls and vote in person, and in public. This centuries long practice of towns doing the slow and hard work of disagreeing and arguing and compromising on how to govern themselves—this has a profound impact on a place, and what it means to be from a place. Sometimes it’s contentious. Sometimes it’s boring. But it’s always the most interesting and authentic and civilized social event of the year. Always. town meeting, vermont, democracy, slow democracy, local false full 236 48af47f8-d4fe-45c7-a976-997aebd7dc7c Winter's Bear Sheila LaPoint wrote a post in Front Porch Forum asking if there was anyone in town who could turn her grandmother's fur coat into a teddy bear. She didn't want to spend a lot of money. She can't wear the coat anymore. But she wants something that will help her remember her German grandmother. My friend Clare Dolan lives down the road from Sheila, and when she read Sheila’s post about the teddy bear, it called to her.  Clare is the maker of the Museum of Everyday Life, which celebrates the many critical and underappreciated objects we use in our daily lives. Clare loves well used and long loved objects, so it seemed like a good idea to help Sheila turn one loved object into a new object to love.  

]]> Tue, 21 Feb 2023 18:52:39 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com Sheila LaPoint wrote a post in Front Porch Forum asking if there was anyone in town who could turn her grandmother's fur coat into a teddy bear. She didn't want to spend a lot of money. She can't wear the coat anymore. But she wants something that will help her remember her German grandmother. My friend Clare Dolan lives down the road from Sheila, and when she read Sheila’s post about the teddy bear, it called to her.  Clare is the maker of the Museum of Everyday Life, which celebrates the many critical and underappreciated objects we use in our daily lives. Clare loves well used and long loved objects, so it seemed like a good idea to help Sheila turn one loved object into a new object to love.  

]]> Winter's Bear Erica Heilman 00:16:15 Sheila LaPoint wrote a post in Front Porch Forum asking if there was anyone in town who could turn her grandmother's fur coat into a teddy bear. She didn't want to spend a lot of money. She can't wear the coat anymore. But she wants something that will help her remember her German grandmother. My friend Clare Dolan lives down the road from Sheila, and when she read Sheila’s post about the teddy bear, it called to her. Clare is the maker of the Museum of Everyday Life, which celebrates the many critical and underappreciated objects we use in our daily lives. Clare loves well used and long loved objects, so it seemed like a good idea to help Sheila turn one loved object into a new object to love. Sheila LaPoint wrote a post in Front Porch Forum asking if there was anyone in town who could turn her grandmother's fur coat into a teddy bear. She didn't want to spend a lot of money. She can't wear the coat anymore. But she wants something that will help her remember her German grandmother. My friend Clare Dolan lives down the road from Sheila, and when she read Sheila’s post about the teddy bear, it called to her. Clare is the maker of the Museum of Everyday Life, which celebrates the many critical and underappreciated objects we use in our daily lives. Clare loves well used and long loved objects, so it seemed like a good idea to help Sheila turn one loved object into a new object to love. teddy, teddy bear, vermont, stuffed animal, teddybear, museum of everyday life, fur coat, clare, clare dolan, sheila lapoint true full 235 1d1a0270-6c6a-4eb1-b545-37c9a1233942 Speaking Whale Tom Mustill is a conservation biologist and he makes beautiful films about where nature and people meet. He’s worked with Greta Thunberg and David Attenborough, he’s been shat on by bats in Mexico, and recently he finished a book called How to Speak Whale.  It describes the very real possibility that someday, maybe even in my lifetime, we’ll begin to understand the complex language of whales--and all this would imply.

I interviewed Tom for hours and I didn't want him to stop until he’d told me every last thing he’s learned about whale behavior and every story he could remember. He was polite about it. I don’t know why I felt this insatiable need to hear every story. Maybe it seems that if we could understand whale culture a little bit, everything would make a little more sense? Anyway I recorded Tom for as long as he'd let me.

]]> Thu, 26 Jan 2023 00:55:25 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Tom Mustill, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com Tom Mustill is a conservation biologist and he makes beautiful films about where nature and people meet. He’s worked with Greta Thunberg and David Attenborough, he’s been shat on by bats in Mexico, and recently he finished a book called How to Speak Whale.  It describes the very real possibility that someday, maybe even in my lifetime, we’ll begin to understand the complex language of whales--and all this would imply.

I interviewed Tom for hours and I didn't want him to stop until he’d told me every last thing he’s learned about whale behavior and every story he could remember. He was polite about it. I don’t know why I felt this insatiable need to hear every story. Maybe it seems that if we could understand whale culture a little bit, everything would make a little more sense? Anyway I recorded Tom for as long as he'd let me.

]]> Speaking Whale Tom Mustill, Erica Heilman 00:36:09 Tom Mustill is a conservation biologist and he makes beautiful films about where nature and people meet. He’s worked with Greta Thunberg and David Attenborough, he’s been shat on by bats in Mexico, and recently he finished a book called How to Speak Whale.  It describes the very real possibility that someday, maybe even in my lifetime, we’ll begin to understand the complex language of whales--and all this would imply. I interviewed Tom for hours and I didn't want him to stop until he’d told me every last thing he’s learned about whale behavior and every story he could remember. He was polite about it. I don’t know why I felt this insatiable need to hear every story. Maybe it seems that if we could understand whale culture a little bit, everything would make a little more sense? Anyway I recorded Tom for as long as he'd let me. Tom Mustill is a conservation biologist and he makes beautiful films about where nature and people meet. He’s worked with Greta Thunberg and David Attenborough, he’s been shat on by bats in Mexico, and recently he finished a book called How to Speak Whale.  It describes the very real possibility that someday, maybe even in my lifetime, we’ll begin to understand the complex language of whales--and all this would imply. I interviewed Tom for hours and I didn't want him to stop until he’d told me every last thing he’s learned about whale behavior and every story he could remember. He was polite about it. I don’t know why I felt this insatiable need to hear every story. Maybe it seems that if we could understand whale culture a little bit, everything would make a little more sense? Anyway I recorded Tom for as long as he'd let me. artificial intelligence, whale song, vermont, whale research, tom mustill, whales, ai, bio acoustics false full 234 04aa1139-7a8b-4f6d-b636-640db97d3bd8 Police Log: The Fanny Pack Edition This show is about crime. Really crimey crime.

]]> Mon, 23 Jan 2023 00:55:54 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Scott Carrier, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com This show is about crime. Really crimey crime.

]]> Police Log: The Fanny Pack Edition Scott Carrier, Erica Heilman 00:03:14 This show is about crime. Really crimey crime. This show is about crime. Really crimey crime. scott carrier, police false full 233 01375198-baf1-4c21-b9cf-1e6e6b94a373 Fishing with Jay Transom Bio: 

Jay Allison has been an independent public radio producer, journalist, and teacher since the 1970s. He is the founder of Transom. His work has won most of the major broadcasting awards, including six Peabodys. He produces The Moth Radio Hour and was the curator of This I Believe on NPR. He has also worked in print for the New York Times Magazine and as a solo-crew reporter for ABC News Nightline, and is a longtime proponent of building community through story. Through his non-profit organization, Atlantic Public Media, he is a founder of The Public Radio Exchange, PRX.org, and WCAI, the public radio service for Cape Cod, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket. More about Jay, more than you'd reasonably need to know, is available at www.jayallison.org.b. 

]]> Sat, 7 Jan 2023 06:45:04 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman, Amelia Meath) https://rumblestripvermont.com Transom Bio: 

Jay Allison has been an independent public radio producer, journalist, and teacher since the 1970s. He is the founder of Transom. His work has won most of the major broadcasting awards, including six Peabodys. He produces The Moth Radio Hour and was the curator of This I Believe on NPR. He has also worked in print for the New York Times Magazine and as a solo-crew reporter for ABC News Nightline, and is a longtime proponent of building community through story. Through his non-profit organization, Atlantic Public Media, he is a founder of The Public Radio Exchange, PRX.org, and WCAI, the public radio service for Cape Cod, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket. More about Jay, more than you'd reasonably need to know, is available at www.jayallison.org.b. 

]]> Fishing with Jay Erica Heilman, Amelia Meath 00:23:40 Jay Allison makes the kind of radio that made me want to make radio. It isn’t news, and it doesn’t really have a beginning middle and end but it’s personal and surprising and you get to fall in love with strangers and that’s what I wanted to do. We got together and talked about getting old and irrelevant, because that's what I think about a lot. We also talked about what radio stories can do in a time when people are inclined to hate each other, or what we really hope stories can do. Jay Allison makes the kind of radio that made me want to make radio. It isn’t news, and it doesn’t really have a beginning middle and end but it’s personal and surprising and you get to fall in love with strangers and that’s what I wanted to do. We got together and talked about getting old and irrelevant, because that's what I think about a lot. We also talked about what radio stories can do in a time when people are inclined to hate each other, or what we really hope stories can do. podcast, radio, audio, jay allison, public radio, documentaries false full 232 b0f3639d-30f6-4b71-ae4a-69a13adeda3f Nature's Top Deck, with Forrest Foster Forrest Foster was loading up the tractor with kindling for deer camp. It was two days before deer season. I was over there visiting and helping him with his night chores. I like Forrest. I like being around him, and I always learn something from him. Like last week he told me that you should always plant your garlic with the long rounded side facing north and the flat side facing south. Anyway, I took my recorder over a couple days before rifle season and a couple hours before milking. This is some sound from that day.

 

]]> Fri, 2 Dec 2022 20:43:34 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Forrest Foster, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com Forrest Foster was loading up the tractor with kindling for deer camp. It was two days before deer season. I was over there visiting and helping him with his night chores. I like Forrest. I like being around him, and I always learn something from him. Like last week he told me that you should always plant your garlic with the long rounded side facing north and the flat side facing south. Anyway, I took my recorder over a couple days before rifle season and a couple hours before milking. This is some sound from that day.

 

]]> Nature's Top Deck, with Forrest Foster Forrest Foster, Erica Heilman 00:17:44 Forrest Foster was loading up the tractor with kindling for deer camp. It was two days before deer season. I was over there visiting and helping him with his night chores. I like Forrest. I like being around him, and I always learn something from him. Like last week he told me that you should always plant your garlic with the long rounded side facing north and the flat side facing south. Anyway, I took my recorder over a couple days before rifle season and a couple hours before milking. This is some sound from that day. Forrest Foster was loading up the tractor with kindling for deer camp. It was two days before deer season. I was over there visiting and helping him with his night chores. I like Forrest. I like being around him, and I always learn something from him. Like last week he told me that you should always plant your garlic with the long rounded side facing north and the flat side facing south. Anyway, I took my recorder over a couple days before rifle season and a couple hours before milking. This is some sound from that day. death, deer, vermont, farming, hunting, dairy false full 231 d87e1215-d229-4965-b36d-a82e0a1875d1 Nick Paley and a Very Small Shell Nick Paley is a writer, editor and director for film and TV, and a co-writer on the recent film, Marcel the Shell with Shoes On, which stars an adorable one-inch tall shell who wears shoes and is looking for his long lost shell family. Nick is from Vermont, and he's working on a new TV series set here, so when he was in town I dragged him to a matinee of Marcel the Shell...the same movie theater where he used to clean the bathrooms. And then afterwards he let me ask him ten million questions about what it's like to work in the film industry. This show is a bit of both.

 

]]> Mon, 21 Nov 2022 20:46:14 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Nick Paley, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com Nick Paley is a writer, editor and director for film and TV, and a co-writer on the recent film, Marcel the Shell with Shoes On, which stars an adorable one-inch tall shell who wears shoes and is looking for his long lost shell family. Nick is from Vermont, and he's working on a new TV series set here, so when he was in town I dragged him to a matinee of Marcel the Shell...the same movie theater where he used to clean the bathrooms. And then afterwards he let me ask him ten million questions about what it's like to work in the film industry. This show is a bit of both.

 

]]> Nick Paley and a Very Small Shell Nick Paley, Erica Heilman 00:23:23 Nick Paley is a writer, editor and director for film and TV, and a co-writer on the recent film, Marcel the Shell with Shoes On, which stars an adorable one-inch tall shell who wears shoes and is looking for his long lost shell family. Nick is from Vermont, and he's working on a new TV series set here, so when he was in town I dragged him to a matinee of Marcel the Shell...the same movie theater where he used to clean the bathrooms. And then afterwards he let me ask him ten million questions about what it's like to work in the film industry. This show is a bit of both. Nick Paley is a writer, editor and director for film and TV, and a co-writer on the recent film, Marcel the Shell with Shoes On, which stars an adorable one-inch tall shell who wears shoes and is looking for his long lost shell family. Nick is from Vermont, and he's working on a new TV series set here, so when he was in town I dragged him to a matinee of Marcel the Shell...the same movie theater where he used to clean the bathrooms. And then afterwards he let me ask him ten million questions about what it's like to work in the film industry. This show is a bit of both. nick, directing film, directing tv, vermont, marcel, editing, erica heilman, television editing, marcel the shell, film, nick paley false full 230 1a32e80a-d02c-415b-a2a4-c895cfd94321 An American Life Vaughn Hood was a 118-pound barber when he was drafted into the Vietnam War. And in Vaughn’s war, most men didn’t survive their first three-month tour. In honor of Veteran's Day, here is the story of an extraordinary American life.

This story is co-produced by Larry Massett and Erica Heilman. It first ran in...I can't remember what year. About five years ago.

]]> Thu, 10 Nov 2022 15:56:47 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Larry Massett, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com Vaughn Hood was a 118-pound barber when he was drafted into the Vietnam War. And in Vaughn’s war, most men didn’t survive their first three-month tour. In honor of Veteran's Day, here is the story of an extraordinary American life.

This story is co-produced by Larry Massett and Erica Heilman. It first ran in...I can't remember what year. About five years ago.

]]> An American Life Larry Massett, Erica Heilman 00:32:18 Vaughn Hood was a 118-pound barber when he was drafted into the Vietnam War. And in Vaughn’s war, most men didn’t survive their first three-month tour. In honor of Veteran's Day, here is the story of an extraordinary American life. This story is co-produced by Larry Massett and Erica Heilman. It first ran in...I can't remember what year. About five years ago. Vaughn Hood was a 118-pound barber when he was drafted into the Vietnam War. And in Vaughn’s war, most men didn’t survive their first three-month tour. In honor of Veteran's Day, here is the story of an extraordinary American life. This story is co-produced by Larry Massett and Erica Heilman. It first ran in...I can't remember what year. About five years ago. rumblestrip, hood, american life, vietnam, vaughn, erica heilman, rumble strip, war true full 229 cef7529c-2c19-44b6-af7b-f71e319c513d Armand's Garden Armand Patoine sat with me in his tea house, deep inside his garden, which leads down to a stream. He has been creating this garden for 49 years. We talked about gardening, and what God has to do with his gardening, which it turns out is everything.

]]> Wed, 14 Sep 2022 15:43:03 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com Armand Patoine sat with me in his tea house, deep inside his garden, which leads down to a stream. He has been creating this garden for 49 years. We talked about gardening, and what God has to do with his gardening, which it turns out is everything.

]]> Armand's Garden Erica Heilman 00:17:59 Armand Patoine sat with me in his tea house, deep inside his garden, which leads down to a stream. He has been creating this garden for 49 years. We talked about gardening, and what God has to do with his gardening, which it turns out is everything. Armand Patoine sat with me in his tea house, deep inside his garden, which leads down to a stream. He has been creating this garden for 49 years. We talked about gardening, and what God has to do with his gardening, which it turns out is everything. armand, garden, vermont, gardening, patoine, god false full 228 976a186c-9f50-4dcb-b2d1-657d8a3fb3a1 The Neighborhood My son is leaving for his freshman year of college in a week and I am feeling maudlin. I listened to this show I made years ago and it made me feel better. So before August is really, really over, here are the kids of Hospital Hill.

Description: The kids of Randolph, Vermont describe their neighborhood as a place with three purple houses. They tell me there’s a shortcut through the woods down to Dunkin’ Donuts, and they say it’s pretty close to three graveyards. The kids run in twos and threes and sometimes in one big pack for a game of hide and seek tag.

I spent an afternoon talking with them and following them around. This show is a little taste of that day. It’s a postcard from childhood, a place we remember but can’t visit anymore.

]]> Fri, 26 Aug 2022 14:49:10 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com My son is leaving for his freshman year of college in a week and I am feeling maudlin. I listened to this show I made years ago and it made me feel better. So before August is really, really over, here are the kids of Hospital Hill.

Description: The kids of Randolph, Vermont describe their neighborhood as a place with three purple houses. They tell me there’s a shortcut through the woods down to Dunkin’ Donuts, and they say it’s pretty close to three graveyards. The kids run in twos and threes and sometimes in one big pack for a game of hide and seek tag.

I spent an afternoon talking with them and following them around. This show is a little taste of that day. It’s a postcard from childhood, a place we remember but can’t visit anymore.

]]> The Neighborhood Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:11:27 My son is leaving for his freshman year of college in a week and I am feeling maudlin. I listened to this show I made years ago and it made me feel better. So before August is really, really over, here are the kids of Hospital Hill. Description: The kids of Randolph, Vermont describe their neighborhood as a place with three purple houses. They tell me there’s a shortcut through the woods down to Dunkin’ Donuts, and they say it’s pretty close to three graveyards. The kids run in twos and threes and sometimes in one big pack for a game of hide and seek tag. I spent an afternoon talking with them and following them around. This show is a little taste of that day. It’s a postcard from childhood, a place we remember but can’t visit anymore. My son is leaving for his freshman year of college in a week and I am feeling maudlin. I listened to this show I made years ago and it made me feel better. So before August is really, really over, here are the kids of Hospital Hill. Description: The kids of Randolph, Vermont describe their neighborhood as a place with three purple houses. They tell me there’s a shortcut through the woods down to Dunkin’ Donuts, and they say it’s pretty close to three graveyards. The kids run in twos and threes and sometimes in one big pack for a game of hide and seek tag. I spent an afternoon talking with them and following them around. This show is a little taste of that day. It’s a postcard from childhood, a place we remember but can’t visit anymore. false full 227 9b793c34-1937-4ba2-a0ce-5f4811a11a32 Leland is Moving On Leland is my neighbor and for the last seven years, we’ve been getting together in the spring to talk about his year, and things like God and space and pork shortages. This year Leland graduated from high school and I figured it was time to hear pieces from all of the years with Leland, all together, and all at once.

]]> Mon, 15 Aug 2022 15:20:14 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com Leland is my neighbor and for the last seven years, we’ve been getting together in the spring to talk about his year, and things like God and space and pork shortages. This year Leland graduated from high school and I figured it was time to hear pieces from all of the years with Leland, all together, and all at once.

]]> Leland is Moving On Erica Heilman 00:19:50 Leland is my neighbor and for the last seven years, we’ve been getting together in the spring to talk about his year, and things like God and space and pork shortages. This year Leland graduated from high school and I figured it was time to hear pieces from all of the years with Leland, all together, and all at once. Credits Music for this show by Brian Clark and Carla Kihlstedt. Thank you to Leland, who has been so patient with  me all these years. Leland is my neighbor and for the last seven years, we’ve been getting together in the spring to talk about his year, and things like God and space and pork shortages. This year Leland graduated from high school and I figured it was time to hear pieces from all of the years with Leland, all together, and all at once. Credits Music for this show by Brian Clark and Carla Kihlstedt. Thank you to Leland, who has been so patient with  me all these years. vermont, calais, leland, leland kennedy, kids false full 226 8f090594-08b6-499b-aa98-f9d24c0c3425 Makeup for Special Occasion A couple weeks ago on Hardwick's Front Porch Forum, someone called Tiana asked if there was anyone who could help her with her hair and makeup for an important date with her boyfriend. Front Porch Forum is an online, daily community forum, which is like a bulletin board at a local general store. You can find secondhand tires there. Or read complaints about the Selectboard. Every Vermont town’s got a Front Porch Forum and you have to be from that town to be on it.

Since Tiana's new to town, she thought she might have luck finding someone to help her get ready for her date through the Forum. And she did.

 

Here is her original posting:

Makeup for Special Occasion

Tiana• Hardwick

I'm looking for someone who'd be willing to do my makeup (and possibly hair?) on the 23rd of this month.

Just something simple with my eyes and something to hide some red spots. Is there a way to make an illusion of a skinner face? I think thats a thing, right?

I understand it's a long shot and I don't have much money.

I usually don't like anything thats considered "girly". However I want to surprise my boyfriend for our first anniversary.

I have a nice dress picked out with matching press on nails.

The issue is I have no clue how to do makeup. YouTube tutorials have never done me any good considering I don't own any makeup and I have a very round, chubby face.

Thank you for reading!

 

Credits

Music by Brian Clark

Thanks to Tara Reese for finding the posting

Thanks to Tobin and Mike and Rose

Welcome the Civic Standard!

Thanks to Aubrie St. Louis at the Rehair Shop

 

]]> Wed, 27 Jul 2022 12:44:15 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Brian Clark, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com A couple weeks ago on Hardwick's Front Porch Forum, someone called Tiana asked if there was anyone who could help her with her hair and makeup for an important date with her boyfriend. Front Porch Forum is an online, daily community forum, which is like a bulletin board at a local general store. You can find secondhand tires there. Or read complaints about the Selectboard. Every Vermont town’s got a Front Porch Forum and you have to be from that town to be on it.

Since Tiana's new to town, she thought she might have luck finding someone to help her get ready for her date through the Forum. And she did.

 

Here is her original posting:

Makeup for Special Occasion

Tiana• Hardwick

I'm looking for someone who'd be willing to do my makeup (and possibly hair?) on the 23rd of this month.

Just something simple with my eyes and something to hide some red spots. Is there a way to make an illusion of a skinner face? I think thats a thing, right?

I understand it's a long shot and I don't have much money.

I usually don't like anything thats considered "girly". However I want to surprise my boyfriend for our first anniversary.

I have a nice dress picked out with matching press on nails.

The issue is I have no clue how to do makeup. YouTube tutorials have never done me any good considering I don't own any makeup and I have a very round, chubby face.

Thank you for reading!

 

Credits

Music by Brian Clark

Thanks to Tara Reese for finding the posting

Thanks to Tobin and Mike and Rose

Welcome the Civic Standard!

Thanks to Aubrie St. Louis at the Rehair Shop

 

]]> Makeup for Special Occasion Brian Clark, Erica Heilman 00:09:08 Tiana and I talk about what she has planned for her 1-year anniversary with her boyfriend. Tiana and I talk about what she has planned for her 1-year anniversary with her boyfriend. date, front porch forum, civic standard, hardwick, tiana, anniversary false full 225 93e0d028-e269-4103-b498-1b58c7f59ff4 The Farm from THE BIG PONDER Ira Karp lives on a farm in Vermont's Northeast Kingdom, surrounded by music, puppets, and a family of incredible storytellers. Over his brief lifetime, he has become a ‘story keeper’ himself, collecting epic tales from his everyday life.

This is a story I made for THE BIG PONDER, a podcast series produced by the Goethe-Institut. They work with radio stations and independent producers in the U.S. and Germany, and the programs reflect on abstract ideas and phenomena through hyper-local stories. They also explore dynamics between the the United States and Germany. I loved working with them, and I encourage you to subscribe to the show. You can find THE BIG PONDER wherever you get your podcasts.

For more information about this show, and a transcript, visit THE BIG PONDER.

]]> Mon, 18 Jul 2022 16:13:53 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (The Goethe-Institut, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com Ira Karp lives on a farm in Vermont's Northeast Kingdom, surrounded by music, puppets, and a family of incredible storytellers. Over his brief lifetime, he has become a ‘story keeper’ himself, collecting epic tales from his everyday life.

This is a story I made for THE BIG PONDER, a podcast series produced by the Goethe-Institut. They work with radio stations and independent producers in the U.S. and Germany, and the programs reflect on abstract ideas and phenomena through hyper-local stories. They also explore dynamics between the the United States and Germany. I loved working with them, and I encourage you to subscribe to the show. You can find THE BIG PONDER wherever you get your podcasts.

For more information about this show, and a transcript, visit THE BIG PONDER.

]]> The Farm from THE BIG PONDER The Goethe-Institut, Erica Heilman 00:28:14 Ira Karp lives on a farm in Vermont's Northeast Kingdom, surrounded by music, puppets, and a family of incredible storytellers. Over his brief lifetime, he has become a ‘story keeper’ himself, collecting epic tales from his everyday life. This is a story I made for THE BIG PONDER, a podcast series produced by the Goethe-Institut. They work with radio stations and independent producers in the U.S. and Germany, and the programs reflect on abstract ideas and phenomena through hyper-local stories. They also explore dynamics between the the United States and Germany. I loved working with them, and I encourage you to subscribe to the show. You can find THE BIG PONDER wherever you get your podcasts. For more information about this show, and a transcript, visit THE BIG PONDER. Ira Karp lives on a farm in Vermont's Northeast Kingdom, surrounded by music, puppets, and a family of incredible storytellers. Over his brief lifetime, he has become a ‘story keeper’ himself, collecting epic tales from his everyday life. This is a story I made for THE BIG PONDER, a podcast series produced by the Goethe-Institut. They work with radio stations and independent producers in the U.S. and Germany, and the programs reflect on abstract ideas and phenomena through hyper-local stories. They also explore dynamics between the the United States and Germany. I loved working with them, and I encourage you to subscribe to the show. You can find THE BIG PONDER wherever you get your podcasts. For more information about this show, and a transcript, visit THE BIG PONDER. glover, vermont, stories, ira karp, grimm, puppet, tales, big ponder, bread and puppet, grimm fairy tales, goethe, goethe institut false full 224 442ba540-8a96-4fe1-8884-a3669082f609 Bell Rising This show is a kind of coda to Finn and the Bell....

At long last, the bell is in its tower at Hazen Union High School. The final installation happened right before the Hardwick Memorial Day Parade. I stopped by and recorded some of the volunteers as they constructed the tower, hoisted the bell, and rang in its new life up on the hill over Hardwick.

]]> Thu, 7 Jul 2022 20:31:09 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com This show is a kind of coda to Finn and the Bell....

At long last, the bell is in its tower at Hazen Union High School. The final installation happened right before the Hardwick Memorial Day Parade. I stopped by and recorded some of the volunteers as they constructed the tower, hoisted the bell, and rang in its new life up on the hill over Hardwick.

]]> Bell Rising Erica Heilman 00:10:43 This show is a kind of coda to Finn and the Bell.... At long last, the bell is in its tower at Hazen Union High School. The final installation happened right before the Hardwick Memorial Day Parade. I stopped by and recorded some of the volunteers as they constructed the tower, hoisted the bell, and rang in its new life up on the hill over Hardwick. This show is a kind of coda to Finn and the Bell.... At long last, the bell is in its tower at Hazen Union High School. The final installation happened right before the Hardwick Memorial Day Parade. I stopped by and recorded some of the volunteers as they constructed the tower, hoisted the bell, and rang in its new life up on the hill over Hardwick. hardwick, finn, vermont, baseball, finn and the bell, bell false full 223 8a832374-b390-4ce6-bfc7-3b57dc584417 More than a Dog Tara Wray is a photographer. And a dog person. She takes pictures of dogs which are haunting and beautiful, and every bit as distinctive as pictures of individual people. I interviewed her shortly after the death of her beloved dog, Nighthawk. Then my friend Tobin’s dog died, and he told me that he sometimes felt ashamed for feeling so much about the death of a dog--a dog who had been his only companion throughout the pandemic. 

It seems that a lot of people feel like they have to hide the amount of grief they experience when their dogs die. But the death of a dog can be just as painful--sometimes more painful--than the death of a human family member. This is a show about dog love...and grief at their loss. And there is absurd singing.

 

More about These People

Learn more about Tara Wray and her beautiful work.

Learn more about Tobin Anderson

Learn more about musician Brian Clark's band, The Anachronist

]]> Tue, 31 May 2022 13:34:58 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Tara Wray is a photographer. And a dog person. She takes pictures of dogs which are haunting and beautiful, and every bit as distinctive as pictures of individual people. I interviewed her shortly after the death of her beloved dog, Nighthawk. Then my friend Tobin’s dog died, and he told me that he sometimes felt ashamed for feeling so much about the death of a dog--a dog who had been his only companion throughout the pandemic. 

It seems that a lot of people feel like they have to hide the amount of grief they experience when their dogs die. But the death of a dog can be just as painful--sometimes more painful--than the death of a human family member. This is a show about dog love...and grief at their loss. And there is absurd singing.

 

More about These People

Learn more about Tara Wray and her beautiful work.

Learn more about Tobin Anderson

Learn more about musician Brian Clark's band, The Anachronist

]]> More than a Dog Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:23:36 It seems that a lot of people feel like they have to hide the amount of grief they experience when their dogs die. But the death of a dog can be just as painful--sometimes more painful--than the death of a human family member. This is a show about dog love...and grief at their loss. It seems that a lot of people feel like they have to hide the amount of grief they experience when their dogs die. But the death of a dog can be just as painful--sometimes more painful--than the death of a human family member. This is a show about dog love...and grief at their loss. grief, death, dogs, nighthawk, larue, tobin anderson, tara, tara wray, dog, tobin true full 222 e8f47064-c8f5-4cd3-b75a-0af3dd72b0d9 Puppy Diaries Wed, 11 May 2022 13:27:00 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Christopher Attaway, Beth Lewis, Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com Puppy Diaries Christopher Attaway, Beth Lewis, Erica Heilman 00:32:27 I've been thinking of getting a dog for years but even though I have an eighteen-year-old son, I've never felt mature enough to have a dog. So when my friend Chris told me he and his partner Beth were getting a puppy, I asked if he'd chronicle the event, and for the next seven months, he sent me recordings of what it was like to have a puppy. It was hilarious and weird and harrowing. Here are the Puppy Diaries. I've been thinking of getting a dog for years but even though I have an eighteen-year-old son, I've never felt mature enough to have a dog. So when my friend Chris told me he and his partner Beth were getting a puppy, I asked if he'd chronicle the event, and for the next seven months, he sent me recordings of what it was like to have a puppy. It was hilarious and weird and harrowing. Here are the Puppy Diaries. puppies, puppy, dogs true full 221 https://rumblestripvermont.com/?p=7229 Forrest Foster, Independent Dairyman

Forrest Foster is a farmer in Hardwick, Vermont. It’s an organic dairy farm, seventy cows total and about forty milking at any given time. I spent an afternoon following Forrest around the barn, his sugarshack, we took a long ride in his tractor, out past his deer camp. He took me to the place where he cuts cedar and hemlock boughs for deer in the winter, and dispatches his old animals to feed the bear and the deer and the coyotes and the ravens.

Forrest would rather trade services than exchange money. He’ll give you meat if you can’t afford it, and he’ll expect you’ll do some chores in exchange. What I love about Forrest Foster is that he’s always practical and always generous, and these things are always the same thing.

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Forrest Foster is a farmer in Hardwick, Vermont. It’s an organic dairy farm, seventy cows total and about forty milking at any given time. I spent an afternoon following Forrest around the barn, his sugarshack, we took a long ride in his tractor, out past his deer camp. He took me to the place where he cuts cedar and hemlock boughs for deer in the winter, and dispatches his old animals to feed the bear and the deer and the coyotes and the ravens.

Forrest would rather trade services than exchange money. He’ll give you meat if you can’t afford it, and he’ll expect you’ll do some chores in exchange. What I love about Forrest Foster is that he’s always practical and always generous, and these things are always the same thing.

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Helena de Groot grew up in Belgium and is now a radio producer living in New York City. When I found out she was about to take her citizenship test, I asked if she’d be willing to record herself talking about what it feels like to become an American…and she agreed.

Helena is the host and producer of the Poetry Foundation podcast Poetry Off the Shelf and senior producer of The Paris Review Podcast, and she teaches at Columbia University and the University of Michigan. Once a year she goes home to Belgium, and then comes back home to New York. Ten years after they first met, she still thinks David is the most beautiful man on the entire planet.

]]> Fri, 4 Feb 2022 17:12:49 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

Helena de Groot grew up in Belgium and is now a radio producer living in New York City. When I found out she was about to take her citizenship test, I asked if she’d be willing to record herself talking about what it feels like to become an American…and she agreed.

Helena is the host and producer of the Poetry Foundation podcast Poetry Off the Shelf and senior producer of The Paris Review Podcast, and she teaches at Columbia University and the University of Michigan. Once a year she goes home to Belgium, and then comes back home to New York. Ten years after they first met, she still thinks David is the most beautiful man on the entire planet.

]]> Helena Becomes an American Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:20:30 Helena is taking her citizenship test. I asked her to record what it feels like to become an American. Helena is taking her citizenship test. I asked her to record what it feels like to become an American. false full 215 https://rumblestripvermont.com/?p=7166 It’s New Years. Remember Grant Owen.

I am home alone on New Years, cleaning and listening to music, and suddenly I remembered Grant Owen, a kid I interviewed at the beginning of the pandemic, and I realized he is exactly the company I needed. So as you’re getting ready for your dinner party or dance party or if you are stuck in a cab or a subway on the interminable trip to The New Years Place, I think you will find that Grant Owen is good company.

]]> Sat, 1 Jan 2022 00:51:54 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

I am home alone on New Years, cleaning and listening to music, and suddenly I remembered Grant Owen, a kid I interviewed at the beginning of the pandemic, and I realized he is exactly the company I needed. So as you’re getting ready for your dinner party or dance party or if you are stuck in a cab or a subway on the interminable trip to The New Years Place, I think you will find that Grant Owen is good company.

]]> It’s New Years. Remember Grant Owen. Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:08:41 I was cleaning and listening to Foreigner and I thought of Grant Owen. The perfect company for New Years. I was cleaning and listening to Foreigner and I thought of Grant Owen. The perfect company for New Years. false full 208 https://rumblestripvermont.com/?p=7146 Awful Sisters Christmas. Pandemic Year Two.

It’s been another challenging year of the pandemic, and families across the nation are trying to figure out how to be together for the holidays. For some, this is hard. Really hard.

Welcome to Problems, a series about comfortable, upper middle class people who have a lot to complain about. This year, sisters Andrea and Amanda have managed to get to their childhood home in Massachusetts to spend Christmas with their parents, but sister Pam and her daughter River are unable to get there. This is disappointing, and challenging.

On Christmas Eve, the sisters get together for a zoom call, and to share their yearly tradition of New Years Noticings.

Credits

Sarah Miller is a writer in Nevada City, California. Here is her biomass article in the New Yorker and here is her substack.

Amelia Meath is one half of the band Sylvan Esso, which has been nominated for a Grammy for best electronic/dance album. They will win if I have anything to say about it. Which I don’t. But they will.

Sedsel is my son Henry’s sister and she lives on a small farm in a place that is hard to get to. Thanks to her mother Stacey for coaching her on some spectacular whining.

Sedsel and chicken

]]> Mon, 20 Dec 2021 12:43:31 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

It’s been another challenging year of the pandemic, and families across the nation are trying to figure out how to be together for the holidays. For some, this is hard. Really hard.

Welcome to Problems, a series about comfortable, upper middle class people who have a lot to complain about. This year, sisters Andrea and Amanda have managed to get to their childhood home in Massachusetts to spend Christmas with their parents, but sister Pam and her daughter River are unable to get there. This is disappointing, and challenging.

On Christmas Eve, the sisters get together for a zoom call, and to share their yearly tradition of New Years Noticings.

Credits

Sarah Miller is a writer in Nevada City, California. Here is her biomass article in the New Yorker and here is her substack.

Amelia Meath is one half of the band Sylvan Esso, which has been nominated for a Grammy for best electronic/dance album. They will win if I have anything to say about it. Which I don’t. But they will.

Sedsel is my son Henry’s sister and she lives on a small farm in a place that is hard to get to. Thanks to her mother Stacey for coaching her on some spectacular whining.

Sedsel and chicken

]]> Awful Sisters Christmas. Pandemic Year Two. Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:15:32 It's been another hard year for Pam and Andrea and Amanda. It's been another hard year for Pam and Andrea and Amanda. false full 210 https://rumblestripvermont.com/?p=7143 Will Staats, Hunting Biologist

Will Staats worked for both Vermont and New Hampshire for forty years as a wildlife biologist. He’s also a passionate hunter. He knows the back country of the Kingdom right up through Maine and into Labrador. One day in October he took me bird hunting deep in the unorganized town of Ferdinand. We talked about birds. And we talked about the growing divide between traditional hunting culture and people who don’t like certain kinds of hunting here in Vermont. But it was more interesting than that…it was also about how people harden against each other then alienate each other…something we do a lot of these days.

Here is a recent article from Will that ran in VTDigger.

]]> Fri, 17 Dec 2021 17:49:57 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

Will Staats worked for both Vermont and New Hampshire for forty years as a wildlife biologist. He’s also a passionate hunter. He knows the back country of the Kingdom right up through Maine and into Labrador. One day in October he took me bird hunting deep in the unorganized town of Ferdinand. We talked about birds. And we talked about the growing divide between traditional hunting culture and people who don’t like certain kinds of hunting here in Vermont. But it was more interesting than that…it was also about how people harden against each other then alienate each other…something we do a lot of these days.

Here is a recent article from Will that ran in VTDigger.

]]> Will Staats, Hunting Biologist Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:24:14 A hunter and wildlife biologist takes me bird hunting. A hunter and wildlife biologist takes me bird hunting. false full 211 https://rumblestripvermont.com/?p=7017 Finn and the Bell

Finn Rooney killed himself on January 3, 2020 in the afternoon after school. No one predicted it. There were no signs. All that can be said for sure is that there was a flash of high emotion that comes with youth, and there was a gun nearby, and bullets.

This isn’t a story about suicide. It’s a story about a boy called Finn who loved to fish and play baseball and write poetry and embroider…and what happens to a small Vermont community as it staggers forward after an unspeakable tragedy.

Make comment at bottom of this page. Because we really want to hear from you. And we want you to be able to hear from each other.

An interview with Rob Rosenthal for How Sound, on the making of Finn and the Bell

Thanks

My profound thanks to Tara Reese for her insights, her candor and her time.

Thank you to my friends: Amelia Meath, Tobin Anderson, Clare Dolan and Mark Davis.

I also want to thank every single person who talked with me for this show. You didn’t really want to but you did anyway. Thank you to Arron and Alleigh and Butch and David and Illia and Mike and Kim and Mirko and Alex and Mac and Allison and Dave and Jack and Dante and Bob and Ben and the Bread and Puppet Band.

#ftg-2222 .tile .icon { color:#ffffff; }#ftg-2222 .ftg-items .loading-bar i { background:#666; }#ftg-2222 .ftg-items .loading-bar { background:#fff; }#ftg-2222 .tile .icon { font-size:12px; }#ftg-2222 .tile .icon { margin: -6px 0 0 -6px; }#ftg-2222 .tile .caption-block .text-wrapper span.text { font-size:12px; }#ftg-2222 .tile .caption-outside .text-wrapper span.text { font-size:12px; }#ftg-2222 .tile .caption-block .text-wrapper span.title { font-size:14px; }#ftg-2222 .tile .caption-outside .text-wrapper span.title { font-size:14px; }#ftg-2222 .tile { background-color: transparent; }#ftg-2222 .tile .caption-block .text-wrapper span.text { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-2222 .tile .caption-block .text-wrapper span.title { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-2222 .tile .caption-outside .text-wrapper span.text { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-2222 .tile .caption-outside .text-wrapper span.title { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-2222 .tile .ftg-social a { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-2222 .tile .caption-block { transition-duration:0.25s; }#ftg-2222 .tile .tile-inner:before { background-color: #000000; }#ftg-2222 .tile .tile-inner:before { background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8); }#ftg-2222 .tile:hover img {-moz-transform: ;-webkit-transform: ;-o-transform: ;-ms-transform: ;transform: ;}Screen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.15.48 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.15.48 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.14.49 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.14.49 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.14.07 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.14.07 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.12.57 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.12.57 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.12.33 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.12.33 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.11.53 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.11.53 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.11.12 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.11.12 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.10.49 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.10.49 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.09.23 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.09.23 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.07.59 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.07.59 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.07.27 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.07.27 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.06.43 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.06.43 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.06.16 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.06.16 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.05.42 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.05.42 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.03.36 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.03.36 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.03.11 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.03.11 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.02.38 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.02.38 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.01.39 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.01.39 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 5.59.51 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 5.59.51 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 5.58.57 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 5.58.57 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 5.55.12 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 5.55.12 PMIMG_0420IMG_0420IMG_0709IMG_0709Screen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.08.45 PMScreen Shot 2021-11-01 at 6.08.45 PMScreen Shot 2020-01-17 at 10.28.44 AMScreen Shot 2020-01-17 at 10.28.44 AMMay List(1)May List(1)Finns Xmas 2014(1)Finns Xmas 2014(1)bucket list(1)bucket list(1)jQuery('#ftg-2222 img.item').removeAttr('src');jQuery(document).ready(function () {setTimeout(function () {jQuery('#ftg-2222').finalTilesGallery({minTileWidth: 250,margin: 10,loadMethod: 'sequential',nonce: '78b426ba1e',galleryId: '22',setupFilters: true,layout: 'final',debug: false,gridSize: 25,disableGridSizeBelow:800,allowEnlargement: true,imageSizeFactor: [ [4000, 0.3],[1024, 0.3],[768, 0.2],[640, 0.3],[320, 0.2]],selectedFilter: 'n-a'});jQuery(function () {(function () {var rel = '';jQuery('#ftg-2222 .ftg-lightbox').click(function (e) {rel = jQuery(this).attr('rel');jQuery('#ftg-2222 .ftg-current').removeClass('ftg-current');jQuery('#ftg-2222 [rel="'+rel+'"]').addClass('ftg-current');});})();});}, 0);}); ]]> Tue, 2 Nov 2021 14:01:19 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

Finn Rooney killed himself on January 3, 2020 in the afternoon after school. No one predicted it. There were no signs. All that can be said for sure is that there was a flash of high emotion that comes with youth, and there was a gun nearby, and bullets.

This isn’t a story about suicide. It’s a story about a boy called Finn who loved to fish and play baseball and write poetry and embroider…and what happens to a small Vermont community as it staggers forward after an unspeakable tragedy.

Make comment at bottom of this page. Because we really want to hear from you. And we want you to be able to hear from each other.

An interview with Rob Rosenthal for How Sound, on the making of Finn and the Bell

Thanks

My profound thanks to Tara Reese for her insights, her candor and her time.

Thank you to my friends: Amelia Meath, Tobin Anderson, Clare Dolan and Mark Davis.

I also want to thank every single person who talked with me for this show. You didn’t really want to but you did anyway. Thank you to Arron and Alleigh and Butch and David and Illia and Mike and Kim and Mirko and Alex and Mac and Allison and Dave and Jack and Dante and Bob and Ben and the Bread and Puppet Band.

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I heard recently that Peter Dunning died.  I want to play this again, in tribute. He was an amazing man.

Peter Dunning’s farm was a Vermont hill farm. A hundred and thirty-six acres of forest and orchards and wet spots and steep, rocky pasture, picked over by farmers for hundreds of years.

Peter farmed here, mostly alone, for nearly forty years. When he was getting done, we spoke at his kitchen table,  as the farm was growing up around him.

Credits

I learned of Peter Dunning from a documentary, Peter and the Farm. It’s stunning. Watch it if you can….

Music for this show by David Schulman and Quiet Life Motel

Thank you Geof Hewitt for your help with the poetry!

This show also features the last verse of a remarkable poem called Marshall Washer, by Vermont poet Hayden Carruth. Here’s the full text.

]]> Thu, 28 Oct 2021 21:22:31 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

I heard recently that Peter Dunning died.  I want to play this again, in tribute. He was an amazing man.

Peter Dunning’s farm was a Vermont hill farm. A hundred and thirty-six acres of forest and orchards and wet spots and steep, rocky pasture, picked over by farmers for hundreds of years.

Peter farmed here, mostly alone, for nearly forty years. When he was getting done, we spoke at his kitchen table,  as the farm was growing up around him.

Credits

I learned of Peter Dunning from a documentary, Peter and the Farm. It’s stunning. Watch it if you can….

Music for this show by David Schulman and Quiet Life Motel

Thank you Geof Hewitt for your help with the poetry!

This show also features the last verse of a remarkable poem called Marshall Washer, by Vermont poet Hayden Carruth. Here’s the full text.

]]> Hill Farm. A Tribute to Peter Dunning Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:20:00 After forty years farming this land, Peter Dunning is getting done. After forty years farming this land, Peter Dunning is getting done. false full 213 https://rumblestripvermont.com/?p=6988 The Defense.

In cases where a defendant seems unjustly accused, the defense attorney is our hero. But if they seem guilty…or if it’s an especially violent crime, we look at these lawyers and wonder…how can they do that?

This is a show about the people who stand with the accused.

You’ll hear five perspectives on the art of criminal defense, and you’ll hear some great stories. Which makes sense because telling great stories is part of the job description.

Hear the Full Interviews

Here are the (relatively) unedited interviews with the attorneys. I’ve removed redundancies, overly personal material, and questions of my own that were too wandering and obtuse. Sadly, the interview with Scott Williams was too damaged to include. I salvaged small sections for the show, but most of the interview suffered from ‘faulty microphone.’

Dan Sedon:

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Kelly Green:

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Kerry DeWolfe Part 1:

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Richard Rubin Part 1:

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Richard Rubin Part 2:

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The Lawyers

Richard Rubin Esq., Rubin, Kidney, Meyer & Vincent

Kerry B. DeWolfe, Esq., Appellate Division, Office of the Defender General

Dan Sedon, Esq., Sedon and Ericson, P.C., Chelsea, Vermont

Kelly Green, Esq., Staff Attorney, Prisoner’s Rights Office, Office of the Defender General

Scott R. Williams, Esq., Williams Law Group, LLC

Special Thanks

This show was mixed by the wonderful Colin McCaffrey. The featured photo is another great contribution by Josh Larkin. Thanks too to David Schulman for his music!

And thanks to Colin Dickerman, G, RSH, Larry Massett and especially Tamar Cole for all the help and feedback.

]]> Mon, 4 Oct 2021 13:57:32 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

In cases where a defendant seems unjustly accused, the defense attorney is our hero. But if they seem guilty…or if it’s an especially violent crime, we look at these lawyers and wonder…how can they do that?

This is a show about the people who stand with the accused.

You’ll hear five perspectives on the art of criminal defense, and you’ll hear some great stories. Which makes sense because telling great stories is part of the job description.

Hear the Full Interviews

Here are the (relatively) unedited interviews with the attorneys. I’ve removed redundancies, overly personal material, and questions of my own that were too wandering and obtuse. Sadly, the interview with Scott Williams was too damaged to include. I salvaged small sections for the show, but most of the interview suffered from ‘faulty microphone.’

Dan Sedon:

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Kelly Green:

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Kerry DeWolfe Part 1:

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Kerry DeWolfe Part 2:

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Richard Rubin Part 1:

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Richard Rubin Part 2:

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The Lawyers

Richard Rubin Esq., Rubin, Kidney, Meyer & Vincent

Kerry B. DeWolfe, Esq., Appellate Division, Office of the Defender General

Dan Sedon, Esq., Sedon and Ericson, P.C., Chelsea, Vermont

Kelly Green, Esq., Staff Attorney, Prisoner’s Rights Office, Office of the Defender General

Scott R. Williams, Esq., Williams Law Group, LLC

Special Thanks

This show was mixed by the wonderful Colin McCaffrey. The featured photo is another great contribution by Josh Larkin. Thanks too to David Schulman for his music!

And thanks to Colin Dickerman, G, RSH, Larry Massett and especially Tamar Cole for all the help and feedback.

]]> The Defense. Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:57:31 A show about the people who stand with the accused A show about the people who stand with the accused false full 203 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=806 The Defense

In cases where a defendant seems unjustly accused, the defense attorney is our hero. But if they seem guilty…or if it’s an especially violent crime, we look at these lawyers and wonder…how can they do that?

This is a show about the people who stand with the accused.

You’ll hear five perspectives on the art of criminal defense, and you’ll hear some great stories. Which makes sense because telling great stories is part of the job description.

Hear the Full Interviews

Here are the (relatively) unedited interviews with the attorneys. I’ve removed redundancies, overly personal material, and questions of my own that were too wandering and obtuse. Sadly, the interview with Scott Williams was too damaged to include. I salvaged small sections for the show, but most of the interview suffered from ‘faulty microphone.’

Dan Sedon:

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Kelly Green:

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Kerry DeWolfe Part 1:

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Kerry DeWolfe Part 2:

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Richard Rubin Part 1:

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Richard Rubin Part 2:

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$('#wp_mep_15').mediaelementplayer({
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	,features: ['playpause','current','progress','duration','volume','tracks','fullscreen']
	,audioWidth:400,audioHeight:30
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The Lawyers

Richard Rubin Esq., Rubin, Kidney, Meyer & Vincent

Kerry B. DeWolfe, Esq., Appellate Division, Office of the Defender General

Dan Sedon, Esq., Sedon and Ericson, P.C., Chelsea, Vermont

Kelly Green, Esq., Staff Attorney, Prisoner’s Rights Office, Office of the Defender General

Scott R. Williams, Esq., Williams Law Group, LLC

Special Thanks

This show was mixed by the wonderful Colin McCaffrey. The featured photo is another great contribution by Josh Larkin. Thanks too to David Schulman for his music!

And thanks to Colin Dickerman, G, RSH, Larry Massett and especially Tamar Cole for all the help and feedback.

]]> Mon, 4 Oct 2021 13:25:47 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman) https://rumblestripvermont.com

In cases where a defendant seems unjustly accused, the defense attorney is our hero. But if they seem guilty…or if it’s an especially violent crime, we look at these lawyers and wonder…how can they do that?

This is a show about the people who stand with the accused.

You’ll hear five perspectives on the art of criminal defense, and you’ll hear some great stories. Which makes sense because telling great stories is part of the job description.

Hear the Full Interviews

Here are the (relatively) unedited interviews with the attorneys. I’ve removed redundancies, overly personal material, and questions of my own that were too wandering and obtuse. Sadly, the interview with Scott Williams was too damaged to include. I salvaged small sections for the show, but most of the interview suffered from ‘faulty microphone.’

Dan Sedon:

jQuery(document).ready(function($) {
$('#wp_mep_10').mediaelementplayer({
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	,features: ['playpause','current','progress','duration','volume','tracks','fullscreen']
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Kelly Green:

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Kerry DeWolfe Part 1:

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Kerry DeWolfe Part 2:

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Richard Rubin Part 1:

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Richard Rubin Part 2:

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	,features: ['playpause','current','progress','duration','volume','tracks','fullscreen']
	,audioWidth:400,audioHeight:30
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The Lawyers

Richard Rubin Esq., Rubin, Kidney, Meyer & Vincent

Kerry B. DeWolfe, Esq., Appellate Division, Office of the Defender General

Dan Sedon, Esq., Sedon and Ericson, P.C., Chelsea, Vermont

Kelly Green, Esq., Staff Attorney, Prisoner’s Rights Office, Office of the Defender General

Scott R. Williams, Esq., Williams Law Group, LLC

Special Thanks

This show was mixed by the wonderful Colin McCaffrey. The featured photo is another great contribution by Josh Larkin. Thanks too to David Schulman for his music!

And thanks to Colin Dickerman, G, RSH, Larry Massett and especially Tamar Cole for all the help and feedback.

]]> The Defense Erica Heilman 00:57:15 In cases where a defendant seems unjustly accused, the defense attorney is our hero. But if they seem guilty...or if it’s an especially violent crime, we look at these lawyers and wonder…how can they do that? This is a show about the people who stand with the accused. You’ll hear five perspectives on the art of criminal defense. You'll hear about what drew these attorneys to criminal law, preparing for trial and cross examinations, and how this work colors their views on our state of Vermont. And you'll hear some great stories. In cases where a defendant seems unjustly accused, the defense attorney is our hero. But if they seem guilty...or if it’s an especially violent crime, we look at these lawyers and wonder…how can they do that? This is a show about the people who stand with the accused. You’ll hear five perspectives on the art of criminal defense. You'll hear about what drew these attorneys to criminal law, preparing for trial and cross examinations, and how this work colors their views on our state of Vermont. And you'll hear some great stories. true full 73 https://rumblestripvermont.com/?p=6943 Susan Asks, For Who? For What?

Susan is a private investigator and I interview her a lot for my show. Last week she hit an owl with her car and it died. She didn’t want to leave it on the side of the road so she took it home and put it in the freezer and started calling around the state to see who could use a dead owl and it turned out the Fairbanks Museum in St. Johnsbury could. So she drove up. The owl joined its raptor brethren in the museum cooler and then Susan came over to my house to eat sandwiches and talk…mostly about Covid, and about how it has changed us utterly.

Music for this show is by Brian Clark and Mike Donofrio

Susan’s private investigation business is called VTPrivateye

]]> Sun, 5 Sep 2021 03:22:32 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

Susan is a private investigator and I interview her a lot for my show. Last week she hit an owl with her car and it died. She didn’t want to leave it on the side of the road so she took it home and put it in the freezer and started calling around the state to see who could use a dead owl and it turned out the Fairbanks Museum in St. Johnsbury could. So she drove up. The owl joined its raptor brethren in the museum cooler and then Susan came over to my house to eat sandwiches and talk…mostly about Covid, and about how it has changed us utterly.

Music for this show is by Brian Clark and Mike Donofrio

Susan’s private investigation business is called VTPrivateye

]]> Susan Asks, For Who? For What? Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:22:39 Susan delivers a dead owl to the Fairbanks Museum and then we talk about Covid. Susan delivers a dead owl to the Fairbanks Museum and then we talk about Covid. false full 207 https://rumblestripvermont.com/?p=6927 Virtual Justice

At the onset of Covid in March, 2020, the Vermont Supreme Court declared a judicial emergency, suspending all non-essential court hearings. Hearings have resumed, but many are still being held remotely, including arraignments, which are ground zero for all criminal cases.  An arraignment is the first time that defendants appear in front of a judge. They’re informed of their charges and they enter a plea. And for defendants working with a public defender, it’s often the first time they meet their attorney, or even see their attorney. But since Covid, nobody’s seeing much of anyone in person. The judge might be at home, the defense attorney’s in his office, the state’s attorney’s in another office, and the defendant on the phone, or lodged in jail, as the case may be. Instead of appearing in court, they meet on a scratchy channel called WebEx. So what does justice lose when human contact is lost?

Credits

Attorneys Dan Sedon and Mike Shane, Sedon and Ericson

George Contois, court officer at Orange County Courthouse

Music by Brian Clark

Thanks

Thanks to Kelly Green and Tobin Anderson

]]> Fri, 27 Aug 2021 16:11:46 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

At the onset of Covid in March, 2020, the Vermont Supreme Court declared a judicial emergency, suspending all non-essential court hearings. Hearings have resumed, but many are still being held remotely, including arraignments, which are ground zero for all criminal cases.  An arraignment is the first time that defendants appear in front of a judge. They’re informed of their charges and they enter a plea. And for defendants working with a public defender, it’s often the first time they meet their attorney, or even see their attorney. But since Covid, nobody’s seeing much of anyone in person. The judge might be at home, the defense attorney’s in his office, the state’s attorney’s in another office, and the defendant on the phone, or lodged in jail, as the case may be. Instead of appearing in court, they meet on a scratchy channel called WebEx. So what does justice lose when human contact is lost?

Credits

Attorneys Dan Sedon and Mike Shane, Sedon and Ericson

George Contois, court officer at Orange County Courthouse

Music by Brian Clark

Thanks

Thanks to Kelly Green and Tobin Anderson

]]> Virtual Justice Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:22:26 What does justice lose when human contact is lost? What does justice lose when human contact is lost? false full 204 https://rumblestripvermont.com/?p=6901 Camp Zeno

Zeno Mountain Farm is a camp for people with and without disabilities, which is a super reductive way to describe it. Most other camps are places where people with disabilities are not. They’re missing. Zeno is a camp where everyone…is.  And a camp that includes everybody is way more fun. Exponentially more fun. At Zeno, everyone is a camper and everyone is a counselor and nobody pays to be there and nobody gets paid. It’s just friends who come back year after year to this mountain in Lincoln, Vermont, which looks out over the Champlain Valley. I spent a day talking with people there and capturing the sound of a day at Camp Zeno.

Credits and Links

Thank you Laurel Sager for introducing me to Zeno!!!

Link to Zeno Mountain Farm

Zeno’s latest film, Best Summer Ever

#ftg-2020 .tile .icon { color:#ffffff; }#ftg-2020 .ftg-items .loading-bar i { background:#666; }#ftg-2020 .ftg-items .loading-bar { background:#fff; }#ftg-2020 .tile .icon { font-size:12px; }#ftg-2020 .tile .icon { margin: -6px 0 0 -6px; }#ftg-2020 .tile .caption-block .text-wrapper span.text { font-size:12px; }#ftg-2020 .tile .caption-outside .text-wrapper span.text { font-size:12px; }#ftg-2020 .tile .caption-block .text-wrapper span.title { font-size:14px; }#ftg-2020 .tile .caption-outside .text-wrapper span.title { font-size:14px; }#ftg-2020 .tile { background-color: transparent; }#ftg-2020 .tile .caption-block .text-wrapper span.text { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-2020 .tile .caption-block .text-wrapper span.title { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-2020 .tile .caption-outside .text-wrapper span.text { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-2020 .tile .caption-outside .text-wrapper span.title { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-2020 .tile .ftg-social a { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-2020 .tile .caption-block { transition-timing-function:linear; }#ftg-2020 .tile .caption-block { transition-duration:0.25s; }#ftg-2020 .tile .tile-inner:before { background-color: #000000; }#ftg-2020 .tile .tile-inner:before { background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8); }IMG_2294IMG_2294bus shotbus shotwinooski 1winooski 1winoos 2winoos 2w3w3ALKY4232ALKY4232jQuery('#ftg-2020 img.item').removeAttr('src');jQuery(document).ready(function () {setTimeout(function () {jQuery('#ftg-2020').finalTilesGallery({minTileWidth: 250,margin: 10,loadMethod: 'sequential',nonce: '78b426ba1e',galleryId: '20',setupFilters: true,layout: 'final',debug: false,gridSize: 25,disableGridSizeBelow:800,allowEnlargement: true,imageSizeFactor: [ [4000, 0.3],[1024, 0.3],[768, 0.2],[640, 0.3],[320, 0.2]],selectedFilter: 'n-a'});jQuery(function () {(function () {var rel = '';jQuery('#ftg-2020 .ftg-lightbox').click(function (e) {rel = jQuery(this).attr('rel');jQuery('#ftg-2020 .ftg-current').removeClass('ftg-current');jQuery('#ftg-2020 [rel="'+rel+'"]').addClass('ftg-current');});})();});}, 0);}); ]]> Fri, 13 Aug 2021 23:37:07 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

Zeno Mountain Farm is a camp for people with and without disabilities, which is a super reductive way to describe it. Most other camps are places where people with disabilities are not. They’re missing. Zeno is a camp where everyone…is.  And a camp that includes everybody is way more fun. Exponentially more fun. At Zeno, everyone is a camper and everyone is a counselor and nobody pays to be there and nobody gets paid. It’s just friends who come back year after year to this mountain in Lincoln, Vermont, which looks out over the Champlain Valley. I spent a day talking with people there and capturing the sound of a day at Camp Zeno.

Credits and Links

Thank you Laurel Sager for introducing me to Zeno!!!

Link to Zeno Mountain Farm

Zeno’s latest film, Best Summer Ever

#ftg-2020 .tile .icon { color:#ffffff; }#ftg-2020 .ftg-items .loading-bar i { background:#666; }#ftg-2020 .ftg-items .loading-bar { background:#fff; }#ftg-2020 .tile .icon { font-size:12px; }#ftg-2020 .tile .icon { margin: -6px 0 0 -6px; }#ftg-2020 .tile .caption-block .text-wrapper span.text { font-size:12px; }#ftg-2020 .tile .caption-outside .text-wrapper span.text { font-size:12px; }#ftg-2020 .tile .caption-block .text-wrapper span.title { font-size:14px; }#ftg-2020 .tile .caption-outside .text-wrapper span.title { font-size:14px; }#ftg-2020 .tile { background-color: transparent; }#ftg-2020 .tile .caption-block .text-wrapper span.text { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-2020 .tile .caption-block .text-wrapper span.title { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-2020 .tile .caption-outside .text-wrapper span.text { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-2020 .tile .caption-outside .text-wrapper span.title { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-2020 .tile .ftg-social a { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-2020 .tile .caption-block { transition-timing-function:linear; }#ftg-2020 .tile .caption-block { transition-duration:0.25s; }#ftg-2020 .tile .tile-inner:before { background-color: #000000; }#ftg-2020 .tile .tile-inner:before { background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8); }IMG_2294IMG_2294bus shotbus shotwinooski 1winooski 1winoos 2winoos 2w3w3ALKY4232ALKY4232jQuery('#ftg-2020 img.item').removeAttr('src');jQuery(document).ready(function () {setTimeout(function () {jQuery('#ftg-2020').finalTilesGallery({minTileWidth: 250,margin: 10,loadMethod: 'sequential',nonce: '78b426ba1e',galleryId: '20',setupFilters: true,layout: 'final',debug: false,gridSize: 25,disableGridSizeBelow:800,allowEnlargement: true,imageSizeFactor: [ [4000, 0.3],[1024, 0.3],[768, 0.2],[640, 0.3],[320, 0.2]],selectedFilter: 'n-a'});jQuery(function () {(function () {var rel = '';jQuery('#ftg-2020 .ftg-lightbox').click(function (e) {rel = jQuery(this).attr('rel');jQuery('#ftg-2020 .ftg-current').removeClass('ftg-current');jQuery('#ftg-2020 [rel="'+rel+'"]').addClass('ftg-current');});})();});}, 0);}); ]]> Camp Zeno Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:25:20 A camp for people with and without disabilities that is the funnest ever. A camp for people with and without disabilities that is the funnest ever. false full 201 https://rumblestripvermont.com/?p=6872 Chris and Beth Sing

Chris and Beth sing a lot. You’ve heard them before, if you listened to the show Sing your Job. They were the ones singing Game of Thrones, which I could not stop listening to. When I wrote to Chris to say that I couldn’t stop listening to them sing Game of Thrones, he told me that he and Beth sing a lot. They make up songs about whatever they’re doing at the moment, and lucky for us, they record themselves periodically.

Nobody really knows a marriage except for the two people in it. It’s a very private institution. I’ve never been married but I’d like to think that this is what marriage sounds like. Some of the time…

Credits:

Chris Attaway and Beth Lewis are moving to Birmingham in August and they want to get a dog. Beth is a writer and performer and Chris makes a podcast called Left of the Dial

The music video for Squash in My Shop – https://www.instagram.com/p/CMAipXznoCg/

Beth Tapes:  https://anchor.fm/bethlewis

Beth’s Tiny Letter – https://tinyletter.com/BethLewis/archive

]]> Tue, 20 Jul 2021 14:51:37 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

Chris and Beth sing a lot. You’ve heard them before, if you listened to the show Sing your Job. They were the ones singing Game of Thrones, which I could not stop listening to. When I wrote to Chris to say that I couldn’t stop listening to them sing Game of Thrones, he told me that he and Beth sing a lot. They make up songs about whatever they’re doing at the moment, and lucky for us, they record themselves periodically.

Nobody really knows a marriage except for the two people in it. It’s a very private institution. I’ve never been married but I’d like to think that this is what marriage sounds like. Some of the time…

Credits:

Chris Attaway and Beth Lewis are moving to Birmingham in August and they want to get a dog. Beth is a writer and performer and Chris makes a podcast called Left of the Dial

The music video for Squash in My Shop – https://www.instagram.com/p/CMAipXznoCg/

Beth Tapes:  https://anchor.fm/bethlewis

Beth’s Tiny Letter – https://tinyletter.com/BethLewis/archive

]]> Chris and Beth Sing Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:17:33 A show about Chris and Beth singing. Made from home recordings. A show about Chris and Beth singing. Made from home recordings. false full 195 https://rumblestripvermont.com/?p=6845 Herschel’s Song

Alexis Harte is out biking on a chilly afternoon last November when a new song pops into his head and mesmerizes him. It doesn’t seem strange at first — he’s a musician, after all. But when he discovers what was happening to a cherished relative at the moment the song sprang into his brain, he begins to wonder if he’s the target of a practical joke from the hereafter.  Herschel’s Song is one part tribute to a dear friend, and to a life well-lived, and one part meditation on the songwriting/creative process.

Producer Bio:

Producer Alexis Harte is a singer-songwriter and composer and is the co-founder and creative director of Pollen Music Group. His latest musical short film, Thirsty, premiered at the 2021 Tribeca Film Festival. This is his first audio story.

Credits:

Story, narration, song, and sound design: Alexis Harte

The Bonobo Band:

Alexis Harte: Guitars/Vox/Harmonica

Jon Evans: Upright Bass

Matthias Bossi: Drums

Additional music:

“Wedding Waltz” | “Bandon” by Gunnar Madsen (respectively, from the albums “Spinning World: 13 Ways of Looking at a Waltz” and “Two Hands”

“This Old House” by Jayme Pohl

“Sunrise” | “Different Farm” | “The Story”  by  Pollen Music Group

“Nocturne” Opus 27 no. 2 in Db Major (Lento sostenuto) by Frédéric Chopin. Performed by Frank Levy

(…with my humble thanks to Sir Paul McCartney, who can always be counted on for a good “perfect example”)

]]> Mon, 28 Jun 2021 17:49:01 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

Alexis Harte is out biking on a chilly afternoon last November when a new song pops into his head and mesmerizes him. It doesn’t seem strange at first — he’s a musician, after all. But when he discovers what was happening to a cherished relative at the moment the song sprang into his brain, he begins to wonder if he’s the target of a practical joke from the hereafter.  Herschel’s Song is one part tribute to a dear friend, and to a life well-lived, and one part meditation on the songwriting/creative process.

Producer Bio:

Producer Alexis Harte is a singer-songwriter and composer and is the co-founder and creative director of Pollen Music Group. His latest musical short film, Thirsty, premiered at the 2021 Tribeca Film Festival. This is his first audio story.

Credits:

Story, narration, song, and sound design: Alexis Harte

The Bonobo Band:

Alexis Harte: Guitars/Vox/Harmonica

Jon Evans: Upright Bass

Matthias Bossi: Drums

Additional music:

“Wedding Waltz” | “Bandon” by Gunnar Madsen (respectively, from the albums “Spinning World: 13 Ways of Looking at a Waltz” and “Two Hands”

“This Old House” by Jayme Pohl

“Sunrise” | “Different Farm” | “The Story”  by  Pollen Music Group

“Nocturne” Opus 27 no. 2 in Db Major (Lento sostenuto) by Frédéric Chopin. Performed by Frank Levy

(…with my humble thanks to Sir Paul McCartney, who can always be counted on for a good “perfect example”)

]]> Herschel’s Song Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:17:57 A practical joke from a loved one in the hereafter... A practical joke from a loved one in the hereafter... false full 179 https://rumblestripvermont.com/?p=6790 Growing Up in a War

Irfan Sehic grew up in Bosnia and spent most of his childhood living in a civil war. One day the kids across the street were his best friends, the next day they were enemies. His father would fight in the war a few days a week and then be back for dinner. It was complicated. He told me I couldn’t understand war because I had not experienced it, which is true.  But I kept asking him to explain it to me anyway.

Here’s a link to the Robby and Irfan show, wherein I admit that I do not know who Joe Rogan is.

Credits
Irfan owns an insurance agency and you’d be super lucky to have him as your insurance agent because he is radically honest and loves to save you money but he doesn’t need more clients. But you can read about his agency here.

Episode Sponsor!

This episode is sponsored by Dobbs Maple, making small batches of locally sourced granulated maple sugar, which happens to be the best maple sugar in the world. I know this because I eat a lot of maple products even in the middle of the night.

]]> Thu, 3 Jun 2021 23:14:07 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

Irfan Sehic grew up in Bosnia and spent most of his childhood living in a civil war. One day the kids across the street were his best friends, the next day they were enemies. His father would fight in the war a few days a week and then be back for dinner. It was complicated. He told me I couldn’t understand war because I had not experienced it, which is true.  But I kept asking him to explain it to me anyway.

Here’s a link to the Robby and Irfan show, wherein I admit that I do not know who Joe Rogan is.

Credits
Irfan owns an insurance agency and you’d be super lucky to have him as your insurance agent because he is radically honest and loves to save you money but he doesn’t need more clients. But you can read about his agency here.

Episode Sponsor!

This episode is sponsored by Dobbs Maple, making small batches of locally sourced granulated maple sugar, which happens to be the best maple sugar in the world. I know this because I eat a lot of maple products even in the middle of the night.

]]> Growing Up in a War Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:40:12 Irfan tells me I can't understand war. I asked him to tell me about it anyway. Irfan tells me I can't understand war. I asked him to tell me about it anyway. false full 202 https://rumblestripvermont.com/?p=6760 Bird Man


My friend Bryan Pfeiffer is a writer, educator and field naturalist. He used to be a professional birding guide. He knows all about birds and dragonflies and moths. He knows where they live and what they eat and what it smells like where they live and eat. And even though we’ve been friends for a long time, Bryan has never taken me birding because I’ve never been interested in birds. Then I turned fifty and became interested in birds and I think that my sudden interest has more to do with my growing desire to know these places where birds live–and be absorbed in them.

So Bryan took me birding.

Some writing by Bryan:

The Extinction of Meaning

On Bogs
Butterflies and Joy

Bryan’s website: where there is much good writing and many amazing pictures of flying things

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]]> Fri, 21 May 2021 02:21:43 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com


My friend Bryan Pfeiffer is a writer, educator and field naturalist. He used to be a professional birding guide. He knows all about birds and dragonflies and moths. He knows where they live and what they eat and what it smells like where they live and eat. And even though we’ve been friends for a long time, Bryan has never taken me birding because I’ve never been interested in birds. Then I turned fifty and became interested in birds and I think that my sudden interest has more to do with my growing desire to know these places where birds live–and be absorbed in them.

So Bryan took me birding.

Some writing by Bryan:

The Extinction of Meaning

On Bogs
Butterflies and Joy

Bryan’s website: where there is much good writing and many amazing pictures of flying things

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]]> Bird Man Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:17:46 Bryan Pfeiffer takes me birding and we talk about nature and a little about death. Bryan Pfeiffer takes me birding and we talk about nature and a little about death. false full 199 https://rumblestripvermont.com/?p=6743 An Interview About Interviewing with Jane Lindholm

Jane Lindholm recently left her position as host of Vermont Edition, VPR’s midday public affairs show. In her fourteen years on the show, Jane interviewed governors, senators, authors, wildlife biologists…she interviewed me once, which was awful because I couldn’t think fast enough. I have no idea how she does it, which is why I wanted to talk with her. What is it like to be live every day with a different person? And what is it like to be a regular fixture in the lives of Vermonters every day? And then…not?

Mostly this is a show for those of you who’ve been listening to Jane for fourteen years. To hear about what’s actually going on in that studio, and in her mind during Vermont Edition. We sat in her garage, in foldout chairs, between her husband’s bee keeping equipment and her kids old bikes.

Where is Jane now?? 

She’s focusing on her podcast, But Why: A Podcast for Curious Kids, which she produces with Melody Bodette, and plans to produce special projects with VPR. And that will be awesome.

Music for this show is by my excellent friends Brian Clark and Mike Donofio.

Thanks to Tobin Anderson for his help, as always.

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Jane Lindholm recently left her position as host of Vermont Edition, VPR’s midday public affairs show. In her fourteen years on the show, Jane interviewed governors, senators, authors, wildlife biologists…she interviewed me once, which was awful because I couldn’t think fast enough. I have no idea how she does it, which is why I wanted to talk with her. What is it like to be live every day with a different person? And what is it like to be a regular fixture in the lives of Vermonters every day? And then…not?

Mostly this is a show for those of you who’ve been listening to Jane for fourteen years. To hear about what’s actually going on in that studio, and in her mind during Vermont Edition. We sat in her garage, in foldout chairs, between her husband’s bee keeping equipment and her kids old bikes.

Where is Jane now?? 

She’s focusing on her podcast, But Why: A Podcast for Curious Kids, which she produces with Melody Bodette, and plans to produce special projects with VPR. And that will be awesome.

Music for this show is by my excellent friends Brian Clark and Mike Donofio.

Thanks to Tobin Anderson for his help, as always.

#ftg-1717 .tile .icon { color:#ffffff; }#ftg-1717 .ftg-items .loading-bar i { background:#666; }#ftg-1717 .ftg-items .loading-bar { background:#fff; }#ftg-1717 .tile .icon { font-size:12px; }#ftg-1717 .tile .icon { margin: -6px 0 0 -6px; }#ftg-1717 .tile .caption-block .text-wrapper span.text { font-size:12px; }#ftg-1717 .tile .caption-outside .text-wrapper span.text { font-size:12px; }#ftg-1717 .tile .caption-block .text-wrapper span.title { font-size:14px; }#ftg-1717 .tile .caption-outside .text-wrapper span.title { font-size:14px; }#ftg-1717 .tile { background-color: transparent; }#ftg-1717 .tile .caption-block .text-wrapper span.text { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-1717 .tile .caption-block .text-wrapper span.title { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-1717 .tile .caption-outside .text-wrapper span.text { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-1717 .tile .caption-outside .text-wrapper span.title { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-1717 .tile .ftg-social a { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-1717 .tile .caption-block { transition-duration:0.25s; }#ftg-1717 .tile .tile-inner:before { background-color: #000000; }#ftg-1717 .tile .tile-inner:before { background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8); }#ftg-1717 .tile:hover img {-moz-transform: ;-webkit-transform: ;-o-transform: ;-ms-transform: ;transform: ;}IMG_0472IMG_0472Sanders and Zupan Debate at VPRSanders and Zupan Debate at VPRPHOTO BY HERB SWANSON- October 29, 2018- The VPR Senatorial debate between Senator Bernie Sanders, (Independent) and challenger Lawrence Zupan (Republican) Monday in Colchester, Vermont.IMG_6990IMG_6990IMG_5860IMG_5860IMG_1059IMG_1059jQuery('#ftg-1717 img.item').removeAttr('src');jQuery(document).ready(function () {setTimeout(function () {jQuery('#ftg-1717').finalTilesGallery({minTileWidth: 250,margin: 10,loadMethod: 'sequential',nonce: '78b426ba1e',galleryId: '17',setupFilters: true,layout: 'final',debug: false,gridSize: 25,disableGridSizeBelow:800,allowEnlargement: true,imageSizeFactor: [ [4000, 0.3],[1024, 0.3],[768, 0.2],[640, 0.3],[320, 0.2]],selectedFilter: 'n-a'});jQuery(function () {(function () {var rel = '';jQuery('#ftg-1717 .ftg-lightbox').click(function (e) {rel = jQuery(this).attr('rel');jQuery('#ftg-1717 .ftg-current').removeClass('ftg-current');jQuery('#ftg-1717 [rel="'+rel+'"]').addClass('ftg-current');});})();});}, 0);}); ]]> An Interview About Interviewing with Jane Lindholm Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:33:18 I ask Jane Lindholm all the questions I've been wanting to ask for years. In her garage. I ask Jane Lindholm all the questions I've been wanting to ask for years. In her garage. false full 190 https://rumblestripvermont.com/?p=6731 Police Log: Don’t Park Too Close Edition

It’s been too long since I’ve reported on police activity here in Vermont and it’s been a challenging time for law enforcement. Calls to police are countless, and complex. I asked Scott Carrier to read from recent police logs, as reported in the Barre Montpelier Times Argus, and the Lamoille County News and Citizen.

Scott Carrier is the producer of my favorite podcast, Home of the Brave.

]]> Fri, 7 May 2021 17:42:40 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

It’s been too long since I’ve reported on police activity here in Vermont and it’s been a challenging time for law enforcement. Calls to police are countless, and complex. I asked Scott Carrier to read from recent police logs, as reported in the Barre Montpelier Times Argus, and the Lamoille County News and Citizen.

Scott Carrier is the producer of my favorite podcast, Home of the Brave.

]]> Police Log: Don’t Park Too Close Edition Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:03:57 Police here in central Vermont have been overrun with calls...and the cases are complex. Here is a special report. Police here in central Vermont have been overrun with calls...and the cases are complex. Here is a special report. false full 181 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1524 An American Life

Vaughn Hood was a 118-pound barber when he was drafted into the Vietnam War. And in Vaughn’s war, most men didn’t survive their first three-month tour.

Now Vaughn Hood runs a hair salon in St. Johnsbury with his wife, Bev. For a couple days, I sat and talked with him in the back of his salon. We talked about war, about hard work, about survival, and hairdressing.

Here is the story of an extraordinary American life.

This story we featured here was co-produced by Erica Heilman and Larry Massett.

Some Kudos:

Click here for an interview with Erica about the show, by the excellent people at The Third Coast

50 Best Podcasts of 2015, The Atlantic Monthly…#16

]]> Wed, 5 May 2021 15:28:48 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

Vaughn Hood was a 118-pound barber when he was drafted into the Vietnam War. And in Vaughn’s war, most men didn’t survive their first three-month tour.

Now Vaughn Hood runs a hair salon in St. Johnsbury with his wife, Bev. For a couple days, I sat and talked with him in the back of his salon. We talked about war, about hard work, about survival, and hairdressing.

Here is the story of an extraordinary American life.

This story we featured here was co-produced by Erica Heilman and Larry Massett.

Some Kudos:

Click here for an interview with Erica about the show, by the excellent people at The Third Coast

50 Best Podcasts of 2015, The Atlantic Monthly…#16

]]> An American Life Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:32:13 A story about war and hairdressing. A story about war and hairdressing. false full 135 https://rumblestripvermont.com/?p=6708 Leland First Responder
I met Leland when he was in school with my son Henry at Calais Elementary. I interviewed him when he was over playing at our house when he was in fourth grade, and I’ve been interviewing him every spring ever since. We’ve talked about deep space, death, girls…sometimes we don’t talk much at all. Leland’s a junior in high school now. He spends most of his time at a technical school working on carpentry. He has his license and his own truck, which doesn’t have much of a muffler.

We sat and talked out by his barn, which overlooks a field and a vernal pool full of spring peepers which is there because of a stuck culvert.

]]> Thu, 29 Apr 2021 15:42:39 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com
I met Leland when he was in school with my son Henry at Calais Elementary. I interviewed him when he was over playing at our house when he was in fourth grade, and I’ve been interviewing him every spring ever since. We’ve talked about deep space, death, girls…sometimes we don’t talk much at all. Leland’s a junior in high school now. He spends most of his time at a technical school working on carpentry. He has his license and his own truck, which doesn’t have much of a muffler.

We sat and talked out by his barn, which overlooks a field and a vernal pool full of spring peepers which is there because of a stuck culvert.

]]> Leland First Responder Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:09:20 Leland joined the volunteer fire department and I got a ride in his really loud truck. Leland joined the volunteer fire department and I got a ride in his really loud truck. false full 189 https://rumblestripvermont.com/?p=6691 Sing Your Job

Here is a little musical about the beautiful minutia of your lives. And I just keep adding to it because our lives just keep going on and on and on. So just keep sending songs and now and then I’ll add them to the Longest Song.

]]> Thu, 8 Apr 2021 18:58:14 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

Here is a little musical about the beautiful minutia of your lives. And I just keep adding to it because our lives just keep going on and on and on. So just keep sending songs and now and then I’ll add them to the Longest Song.

]]> Sing Your Job Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:18:00 A little musical about not very much. A little musical about not very much. false full 193 https://rumblestripvermont.com/?p=6670 Han’s Brain

The first time I meet Han MeiMei, we were standing on my deck in Vermont. She looked at the fields around my house and she said, ‘That’s a lot of fields. Have you ever thought of writing messages to airplanes?’ I had not thought of this.

Han is a brain scientist. She studies the nature of memory, and she’s one of the smartest people I’ve ever met. She grew up in a state-run factory compound in Guilin, in southeast China’s Guangxi province. Everyone who worked there lived there, and shopped there, and the children were educated in schools there. Han was born in 1984, soon after China had decided to open itself to more economic engagement with the international economy. But she was also a second child when second children were not allowed in China.

We talked about growing up in China, and what she learned about China after she left. And why she’s chosen to spend her life asking questions that may never be answered in her lifetime.

Notes

Thank you as always to Tobin Anderson.

Music credits I cannot pronounce:

jQuery(document).ready(function($) {
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An excellent Little Tiger Team video that you must watch:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c7hbYLaD-FY

Han is not her real name. A lot of what she says in this conversation would be considered censorable in China, and she wanted to protect her privacy.

Playlist from show:

1. “Fly, butterfly!” by The Little Tigers Team
2. “Our life is full of sunshine” by Yu Shuzhen
3. “Songs and smiles” by The Milkyway Youth Art Troupe
4. “Flowing water ” by Guan Pinghu
5. “The waters and clouds of Xiaoxiang” by Wu Jinglue
6. “For ten years, the river runs east; for ten years, the river runs west” by Wutiaoren

]]> Tue, 23 Mar 2021 14:23:40 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

The first time I meet Han MeiMei, we were standing on my deck in Vermont. She looked at the fields around my house and she said, ‘That’s a lot of fields. Have you ever thought of writing messages to airplanes?’ I had not thought of this.

Han is a brain scientist. She studies the nature of memory, and she’s one of the smartest people I’ve ever met. She grew up in a state-run factory compound in Guilin, in southeast China’s Guangxi province. Everyone who worked there lived there, and shopped there, and the children were educated in schools there. Han was born in 1984, soon after China had decided to open itself to more economic engagement with the international economy. But she was also a second child when second children were not allowed in China.

We talked about growing up in China, and what she learned about China after she left. And why she’s chosen to spend her life asking questions that may never be answered in her lifetime.

Notes

Thank you as always to Tobin Anderson.

Music credits I cannot pronounce:

jQuery(document).ready(function($) {
$('#wp_mep_7').mediaelementplayer({
m:1

	,features: ['playpause','current','progress','duration','volume','tracks','fullscreen']
	,audioWidth:400,audioHeight:30
});

});

An excellent Little Tiger Team video that you must watch:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c7hbYLaD-FY

Han is not her real name. A lot of what she says in this conversation would be considered censorable in China, and she wanted to protect her privacy.

Playlist from show:

1. “Fly, butterfly!” by The Little Tigers Team
2. “Our life is full of sunshine” by Yu Shuzhen
3. “Songs and smiles” by The Milkyway Youth Art Troupe
4. “Flowing water ” by Guan Pinghu
5. “The waters and clouds of Xiaoxiang” by Wu Jinglue
6. “For ten years, the river runs east; for ten years, the river runs west” by Wutiaoren

]]> Han’s Brain Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:32:25 A scientist on growing up second born in a one-child policy China. And we talk about the brain. And fish. A scientist on growing up second born in a one-child policy China. And we talk about the brain. And fish. false full 188 https://rumblestripvermont.com/?p=6654 Free Soup. Come.

Rose Friedman and some friends decided to start making free meals on Wednesday nights for anyone who wants them. They set up outside the East Hardwick Grange Hall. A lot of people around here are making food for neighbors during Covid. But Rose isn’t making food because of Covid. Or not exactly. She wants to see what will happen. Who will come and get the food and what will it be like when they come to get the food and if a lot of really different kinds of people come to get the food, what will they all talk about in front of the grange hall? It’s like a combination of science project and putting on a show, which is one reason why I like Rose, and why I wanted to watch her make soup.

VPR show about Rose and Justin and Modern Times Theater

Modern Times Theater

Music for this show by Brian Clark

Thanks to Tobin Anderson and Amelia Meath

]]> Thu, 4 Mar 2021 19:38:11 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

Rose Friedman and some friends decided to start making free meals on Wednesday nights for anyone who wants them. They set up outside the East Hardwick Grange Hall. A lot of people around here are making food for neighbors during Covid. But Rose isn’t making food because of Covid. Or not exactly. She wants to see what will happen. Who will come and get the food and what will it be like when they come to get the food and if a lot of really different kinds of people come to get the food, what will they all talk about in front of the grange hall? It’s like a combination of science project and putting on a show, which is one reason why I like Rose, and why I wanted to watch her make soup.

VPR show about Rose and Justin and Modern Times Theater

Modern Times Theater

Music for this show by Brian Clark

Thanks to Tobin Anderson and Amelia Meath

]]> Free Soup. Come. Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:10:09 Even if you don't like soup. Just come. Even if you don't like soup. Just come. false full 191 https://rumblestripvermont.com/?p=6621 Marriage in the Time of Covid

We’re a year into Covid and in Vermont we’re almost into the last stretch of winter and I’ve been thinking a lot about married people, or people partnered with other people living in houses and apartments day after night for days and months and now a year. I wonder what goes on in those houses and what they talk about and how they get on day after day, night after night. I found a young couple willing to talk with me about how they’re doing. They live in an old farmhouse in central Vermont that they’re renovating…

(((Note: This is not ‘real’. Some people get really mad if they don’t know in advance. So here I am to say it’s not real. Not ENTIRELY real. I mean there’s a lot here that is real. But not all of it.)))

Credits

  • Thank you Jesse and Serena for excellent cocktails and your insights about condiments
  • Thank you Brian Clark for your music. And your beautiful woodwork.
  • Thank you Tobin Anderson for your constant help
  • A link to Jesse’s work.

Here are some pictures of Jesse and Serena and their awesome house in Plainfield:

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We’re a year into Covid and in Vermont we’re almost into the last stretch of winter and I’ve been thinking a lot about married people, or people partnered with other people living in houses and apartments day after night for days and months and now a year. I wonder what goes on in those houses and what they talk about and how they get on day after day, night after night. I found a young couple willing to talk with me about how they’re doing. They live in an old farmhouse in central Vermont that they’re renovating…

(((Note: This is not ‘real’. Some people get really mad if they don’t know in advance. So here I am to say it’s not real. Not ENTIRELY real. I mean there’s a lot here that is real. But not all of it.)))

Credits

  • Thank you Jesse and Serena for excellent cocktails and your insights about condiments
  • Thank you Brian Clark for your music. And your beautiful woodwork.
  • Thank you Tobin Anderson for your constant help
  • A link to Jesse’s work.

Here are some pictures of Jesse and Serena and their awesome house in Plainfield:

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In most of New England, town citizens become legislators for one day a year. They get together in school gyms and town halls and vote in person, and in public. This centuries long practice of towns doing the slow and hard work of disagreeing and arguing and compromising on how to govern themselves—this has a profound impact on a place, and what it means to be from a place.

Sometimes it’s contentious. Sometimes it’s boring. But it’s always the most interesting and authentic and civilized social event of the year. Always.

This is a show about where I live, which is maybe not where you live, but we’re all living through a time of awful division. There aren’t a lot of opportunities anymore to disagree civilly, in public, or to make decisions with people who are hugely different from ourselves. And maybe there should be. So I made this show to inspire us all. And you’ll hear a lot about trash removal.

Credits

Music by Brian Clark. In addition to being a fine musician, he is also a fine woodworker.

Featured photos by Terry J. Allen

Endless thanks to Tobin Anderson, Kelly Green and Amelia Meath for their help on this show.

Susan Clark is the co-author of Slow Democracy, a wonderful book on self governance and rediscovering community.

Thanks to Brattleboro Community TV and Mount Mansfield Community TV for their recordings of town meeting and all the brave people who get up and talk in those meetings

Moderators in this show are: Stephen Magill, Moretown. Paul Doton, Barnard. Gus Seelig, Calais. John McLaughry, Kirby. Bobby Starr, Troy. Susan Clark, Middlesex. Kelly Green, Randolph

Click on images below for better view. Most of the good pictures here are by Terry J. Allen of East Montpelier.

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]]> Fri, 5 Feb 2021 17:05:39 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

In most of New England, town citizens become legislators for one day a year. They get together in school gyms and town halls and vote in person, and in public. This centuries long practice of towns doing the slow and hard work of disagreeing and arguing and compromising on how to govern themselves—this has a profound impact on a place, and what it means to be from a place.

Sometimes it’s contentious. Sometimes it’s boring. But it’s always the most interesting and authentic and civilized social event of the year. Always.

This is a show about where I live, which is maybe not where you live, but we’re all living through a time of awful division. There aren’t a lot of opportunities anymore to disagree civilly, in public, or to make decisions with people who are hugely different from ourselves. And maybe there should be. So I made this show to inspire us all. And you’ll hear a lot about trash removal.

Credits

Music by Brian Clark. In addition to being a fine musician, he is also a fine woodworker.

Featured photos by Terry J. Allen

Endless thanks to Tobin Anderson, Kelly Green and Amelia Meath for their help on this show.

Susan Clark is the co-author of Slow Democracy, a wonderful book on self governance and rediscovering community.

Thanks to Brattleboro Community TV and Mount Mansfield Community TV for their recordings of town meeting and all the brave people who get up and talk in those meetings

Moderators in this show are: Stephen Magill, Moretown. Paul Doton, Barnard. Gus Seelig, Calais. John McLaughry, Kirby. Bobby Starr, Troy. Susan Clark, Middlesex. Kelly Green, Randolph

Click on images below for better view. Most of the good pictures here are by Terry J. Allen of East Montpelier.

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]]> Town Meeting Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:30:09 Where we make our own damn decisions. Civilly, and in person. Where we make our own damn decisions. Civilly, and in person. false full 185 https://rumblestripvermont.com/?p=6524 Party is Everything

This is a FUN show to celebrate FRICKIN’ INAUGURATION DAY which we’ve been waiting for for 1000 years!!!!!!  It’s from the Shaking Out the Numb, a series I made with Amelia Meath and Nick Sanborn of Sylvan Esso. The show is called Party Is Everything. It’s about being young and getting ready to go to parties and then going to parties. And all of the things you think about when you’re getting ready to go to a party and then when you’re at a party.

The song you hear is Ferris Wheel, from Sylvan Esso’s new album, Free Love.

In this show you’ll hear Alexandra Sauser-Monnig, Amelia Meath and Molly Erin Searle, who together have a band called Mountain Man, which is an amazing band.

There’s some swearing. A lot of young people swear. They’re good at Instagram and they swear a lot.

]]> Wed, 20 Jan 2021 18:00:24 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

This is a FUN show to celebrate FRICKIN’ INAUGURATION DAY which we’ve been waiting for for 1000 years!!!!!!  It’s from the Shaking Out the Numb, a series I made with Amelia Meath and Nick Sanborn of Sylvan Esso. The show is called Party Is Everything. It’s about being young and getting ready to go to parties and then going to parties. And all of the things you think about when you’re getting ready to go to a party and then when you’re at a party.

The song you hear is Ferris Wheel, from Sylvan Esso’s new album, Free Love.

In this show you’ll hear Alexandra Sauser-Monnig, Amelia Meath and Molly Erin Searle, who together have a band called Mountain Man, which is an amazing band.

There’s some swearing. A lot of young people swear. They’re good at Instagram and they swear a lot.

]]> Party is Everything Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:19:46 To celebrate Inauguration Day...a show from Shaking out the Numb...PARTY IS EVERYTHING. To celebrate Inauguration Day...a show from Shaking out the Numb...PARTY IS EVERYTHING. false full 192 https://rumblestripvermont.com/?p=6499 Problems: The Awful Sisters Christmas Special

It’s been a challenging year. Families are trying to figure out how to be together for the holidays when they can’t be together physically. Welcome to Problems, a Christmas special. Problems is a series about comfortable, upper middle class people who have a lot to complain about. This year, Pam and her two sisters, Andrea and Amanda, are planning a Christmas caroling zoom call to their parents. In a series of zoom calls they plan and practice.

But it’s just really hard.

Credits

Amanda is played by writer Sarah Miller, of Nevada City, California and a reasonably regular contributor to this show. You can find a link to her essay, Why Cooking Sucks…below.

Andrea is played by Amelia Meath of Durham, NC, singer/songwriter in Sylvan Esso and Mountain Man. I’ve done a bunch of shows for and with Sylvan Esso, some of which are below.

Pam is me.

]]> Wed, 23 Dec 2020 00:00:07 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

It’s been a challenging year. Families are trying to figure out how to be together for the holidays when they can’t be together physically. Welcome to Problems, a Christmas special. Problems is a series about comfortable, upper middle class people who have a lot to complain about. This year, Pam and her two sisters, Andrea and Amanda, are planning a Christmas caroling zoom call to their parents. In a series of zoom calls they plan and practice.

But it’s just really hard.

Credits

Amanda is played by writer Sarah Miller, of Nevada City, California and a reasonably regular contributor to this show. You can find a link to her essay, Why Cooking Sucks…below.

Andrea is played by Amelia Meath of Durham, NC, singer/songwriter in Sylvan Esso and Mountain Man. I’ve done a bunch of shows for and with Sylvan Esso, some of which are below.

Pam is me.

]]> Problems: The Awful Sisters Christmas Special Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:24:38 Three awful sisters plan a Zoom Christmas for their parents. Three awful sisters plan a Zoom Christmas for their parents. false full 184 https://rumblestripvermont.com/?p=6473 Surviving COVID, a Fever Dream


Daniel Kirk is a children’s book author and illustrator and he lives with his wife in New Jersey, about twelve miles outside of Manhattan. They were both infected with COVID last March, before it had spread in the United States. They still don’t know where they got it. By now we know a lot more about COVID. We know the symptoms. We can recite the symptoms. But what does it actually feel like to struggle to breathe? And for those who become deathly ill–who slip into some state between waking and dreaming–where do they go?

As Daniel’s wife recovered, Daniel’s temperature climbed to 104, and eventually he ended up in the hospital. Here is his story.

Credits

Information about Daniel Kirk

Music for this show is by Mike Donofrio and Brian Clark, two excellent people.

As always, my thanks to Tobin Anderson who helps me with all things.

]]> Tue, 15 Dec 2020 22:01:31 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com


Daniel Kirk is a children’s book author and illustrator and he lives with his wife in New Jersey, about twelve miles outside of Manhattan. They were both infected with COVID last March, before it had spread in the United States. They still don’t know where they got it. By now we know a lot more about COVID. We know the symptoms. We can recite the symptoms. But what does it actually feel like to struggle to breathe? And for those who become deathly ill–who slip into some state between waking and dreaming–where do they go?

As Daniel’s wife recovered, Daniel’s temperature climbed to 104, and eventually he ended up in the hospital. Here is his story.

Credits

Information about Daniel Kirk

Music for this show is by Mike Donofrio and Brian Clark, two excellent people.

As always, my thanks to Tobin Anderson who helps me with all things.

]]> Surviving COVID, a Fever Dream Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:22:59 Daniel Kirk's story about surviving COVID, one fever dream at a time. Daniel Kirk's story about surviving COVID, one fever dream at a time. false full 186 https://rumblestripvermont.com/?p=6458 A Talk About the F-Word, with Bill Schubart

Bill Schubart is a writer and a cultural and political commentator. He’s chaired a lot of important boards here in Vermont. He’s really smart and he talks a lot and a lot of people listen to him. What he talks less about is that he’s struggled with being fat his entire life. He’s not averse to talking about it. In fact he wrote a brilliant collection of stories called Fat People in 2010. But it’s not the sort of thing that comes up in conversation.

In this show, we talk about it.

For more about Bill Schubart

A link to Bill’s book, Fat People

Credits:

Music for this show by Brian Clark, who is awesome.

Thank you Tobin Anderson, as always

Headshot by Bill’s brother, Michael Couture

Biker photo by Erik Borg ]]> Thu, 3 Dec 2020 19:37:21 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

Bill Schubart is a writer and a cultural and political commentator. He’s chaired a lot of important boards here in Vermont. He’s really smart and he talks a lot and a lot of people listen to him. What he talks less about is that he’s struggled with being fat his entire life. He’s not averse to talking about it. In fact he wrote a brilliant collection of stories called Fat People in 2010. But it’s not the sort of thing that comes up in conversation.

In this show, we talk about it.

For more about Bill Schubart

A link to Bill’s book, Fat People

Credits:

Music for this show by Brian Clark, who is awesome.

Thank you Tobin Anderson, as always

Headshot by Bill’s brother, Michael Couture

Biker photo by Erik Borg ]]> A Talk About the F-Word, with Bill Schubart Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:23:38 A conversation with Bill Schubart about love and fatness. A conversation with Bill Schubart about love and fatness. false full 182 https://rumblestripvermont.com/?p=6448 Shaking out the Numb
I first interviewed them when they played in Vermont in 2017 and we became friends. In fact Amelia is the only person with whom I have two-hour phone conversations that start like this:

‘Hey. What are you doing?’
‘Nothing. What are you doing?’
‘Nothing.’

This podcast was an experiment. The interviews were all recorded over the phone during Covid….on back porches at night, by rivers, in fields, and sometimes in closets. Nick and Amelia weren’t interested in a standard set of questions about how they make their songs or what their songs are about. Instead…they told stories that cause songs.

The series is called Shaking Out the Numb.

I love them. I hope you will too.

Photo Credits: Above picture by Nick and Amelia. Banner picture by Shervin Lainez.

More Information about Sylvan Esso

Sylvan Esso has unveiled a new podcast today called Shaking Out The Numb. The experimental six-episode series is a revealing exploration of the creative heartbeat of this duo, and the impulses and experiences that led them to make their new album Free Love.  Sylvan Esso has partnered with NPR Music to share the episode entitled “Make It Easy,” and all six episodes of Shaking Out The Numb are available now via all major podcast distributors and YouTube.

The podcast was created from hours of unadorned conversations that Amelia Meath and Nick Sanborn of Sylvan Esso had with their friend, Rumble Strip producer Erica Heilman, shortly after completing Free Love.  Both focused and freewheeling, each episode has a different scope, mixing together found sounds, reflections and discussions that celebrate the sheer thrill of the very essence of creativity.  From a visit to a decommissioned particle collider to the electric feeling of getting ready for a party, Shaking Out The Numb opens a window into the soul of Sylvan Esso.  The podcast was produced by Erica Heilman and Sylvan Esso.

This past weekend, Sylvan Esso performed three songs from Free Love on CBS Saturday, from a roof in their home city of Durham, NC.  Watch them perform “Ring,” “Ferris Wheel,” and “Rooftop Dancing.”  Since May they’ve also performed for The Late Show with Stephen Colbert and on Full Frontal with Samantha Bee, where Amelia sang “Ferris Wheel” from the bed of a moving flatbed truck.

Last week, Sylvan Esso also shared a remix of their summer bop “Ferris Wheel,” transformed into a “woozy headtrip” (Stereogum) by celebrated producer/multi-instrumentalist Terrace Martin (Kendrick Lamar, Snoop Dogg, Travis Scott) and featuring Robert Glasper (Kanye West, Erykah Badu, JAY-Z).

The duo has also been hosting a virtual concert series throughout the fall called FROM THE SATELLITE – which will conclude December 1 at 9PM ET with a performance titled WITH LOVE.

]]> Mon, 23 Nov 2020 20:23:02 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com
I first interviewed them when they played in Vermont in 2017 and we became friends. In fact Amelia is the only person with whom I have two-hour phone conversations that start like this:

‘Hey. What are you doing?’
‘Nothing. What are you doing?’
‘Nothing.’

This podcast was an experiment. The interviews were all recorded over the phone during Covid….on back porches at night, by rivers, in fields, and sometimes in closets. Nick and Amelia weren’t interested in a standard set of questions about how they make their songs or what their songs are about. Instead…they told stories that cause songs.

The series is called Shaking Out the Numb.

I love them. I hope you will too.

Photo Credits: Above picture by Nick and Amelia. Banner picture by Shervin Lainez.

More Information about Sylvan Esso

Sylvan Esso has unveiled a new podcast today called Shaking Out The Numb. The experimental six-episode series is a revealing exploration of the creative heartbeat of this duo, and the impulses and experiences that led them to make their new album Free Love.  Sylvan Esso has partnered with NPR Music to share the episode entitled “Make It Easy,” and all six episodes of Shaking Out The Numb are available now via all major podcast distributors and YouTube.

The podcast was created from hours of unadorned conversations that Amelia Meath and Nick Sanborn of Sylvan Esso had with their friend, Rumble Strip producer Erica Heilman, shortly after completing Free Love.  Both focused and freewheeling, each episode has a different scope, mixing together found sounds, reflections and discussions that celebrate the sheer thrill of the very essence of creativity.  From a visit to a decommissioned particle collider to the electric feeling of getting ready for a party, Shaking Out The Numb opens a window into the soul of Sylvan Esso.  The podcast was produced by Erica Heilman and Sylvan Esso.

This past weekend, Sylvan Esso performed three songs from Free Love on CBS Saturday, from a roof in their home city of Durham, NC.  Watch them perform “Ring,” “Ferris Wheel,” and “Rooftop Dancing.”  Since May they’ve also performed for The Late Show with Stephen Colbert and on Full Frontal with Samantha Bee, where Amelia sang “Ferris Wheel” from the bed of a moving flatbed truck.

Last week, Sylvan Esso also shared a remix of their summer bop “Ferris Wheel,” transformed into a “woozy headtrip” (Stereogum) by celebrated producer/multi-instrumentalist Terrace Martin (Kendrick Lamar, Snoop Dogg, Travis Scott) and featuring Robert Glasper (Kanye West, Erykah Badu, JAY-Z).

The duo has also been hosting a virtual concert series throughout the fall called FROM THE SATELLITE – which will conclude December 1 at 9PM ET with a performance titled WITH LOVE.

]]> Shaking out the Numb Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:12:56 The first show in an experimental series with Sylvan Esso. About everything. The first show in an experimental series with Sylvan Esso. About everything. false full 214 https://rumblestripvermont.com/?p=6431 Officer Clemmons

François Clemmons was born in Birmingham, Alabama in 1945 on the plantation where his great great grandmother Laura May’s family had been slaves, then he moved with his mother and siblings and aunts and cousins to Youngstown, Ohio during the Great Migration. Youngstown is where he started singing, and he never stopped singing. He sings in the middle of sentences, he sings on the way to the bathroom, he sings like the world depends on it, which maybe it does.

But you know him already. Or those of you who are of a certain age. For twenty-five years François played Officer Clemmons on Mr. Rogers Neighborhood. And recently he wrote a book about it, called Officer Clemmons.

Now he lives in Middlebury, Vermont. I drove over there to talk with him about his life in the South and about Mr. Rogers, one of the great loves of his life.

Credits and More

François Clemmons’ Website

Clemmons’ memoir, Officer Clemmons

Additional music by Brian Clark

Article in Seven Days about François Clemmons by Dan Bolles. Thank you Dan for writing it.

]]> Fri, 13 Nov 2020 04:41:09 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

François Clemmons was born in Birmingham, Alabama in 1945 on the plantation where his great great grandmother Laura May’s family had been slaves, then he moved with his mother and siblings and aunts and cousins to Youngstown, Ohio during the Great Migration. Youngstown is where he started singing, and he never stopped singing. He sings in the middle of sentences, he sings on the way to the bathroom, he sings like the world depends on it, which maybe it does.

But you know him already. Or those of you who are of a certain age. For twenty-five years François played Officer Clemmons on Mr. Rogers Neighborhood. And recently he wrote a book about it, called Officer Clemmons.

Now he lives in Middlebury, Vermont. I drove over there to talk with him about his life in the South and about Mr. Rogers, one of the great loves of his life.

Credits and More

François Clemmons’ Website

Clemmons’ memoir, Officer Clemmons

Additional music by Brian Clark

Article in Seven Days about François Clemmons by Dan Bolles. Thank you Dan for writing it.

]]> Officer Clemmons Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:41:47 We talk about his childhood in the South, and one of the great loves of his life--Mr. Rogers. We talk about his childhood in the South, and one of the great loves of his life--Mr. Rogers. false full 194 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1888 I Am In Here [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/230694656″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /] Mark Utter was born with a form of autism that makes it impossible for him to say what he’s thinking. For the first thirty years of his life, Mark did not have access to the world of words, except as a listener. An observer. When he was thirty, he was introduced to supported typing, and for the first time in his life, with the help of a facilitator and a typing pad, Mark started his life as a writer of words. This is an interview about what it’s like inside the life and mind of Mark Utter.

Kudos and Credits

50 Best Podcasts of 2015, The Atlantic Monthly…#38

Mark Utter lives in Colchester, Vermont. He receives services that assist his day to day ventures with negotiating a world that functions differently than he does. The more you read about him the more you will realize that we are more alike than different.

Emily Anderson is trained to support people who type to communicate. She was the producer of “I am in here.” She has a background in social/political theater and uses it to assist creative projects that bring odd people more positively into the limelight.

Mark’s Web site: www.utterenergy.org

To view the “I am in here” trailer or purchase the DVD: http://www.utterenergy.org/iaminhere/

Mark’s Blog: http://www.utterenergy.org/blog/

For more information on the form of communication Mark uses: http://www.utterenergy.org/supported-typing/

Music for this show by Podington Bear, and the Free Music Archive

Kudos

Best in Show from The Timbre!

]]> Thu, 29 Oct 2020 21:56:01 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/230694656″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /] Mark Utter was born with a form of autism that makes it impossible for him to say what he’s thinking. For the first thirty years of his life, Mark did not have access to the world of words, except as a listener. An observer. When he was thirty, he was introduced to supported typing, and for the first time in his life, with the help of a facilitator and a typing pad, Mark started his life as a writer of words. This is an interview about what it’s like inside the life and mind of Mark Utter.

Kudos and Credits

50 Best Podcasts of 2015, The Atlantic Monthly…#38

Mark Utter lives in Colchester, Vermont. He receives services that assist his day to day ventures with negotiating a world that functions differently than he does. The more you read about him the more you will realize that we are more alike than different.

Emily Anderson is trained to support people who type to communicate. She was the producer of “I am in here.” She has a background in social/political theater and uses it to assist creative projects that bring odd people more positively into the limelight.

Mark’s Web site: www.utterenergy.org

To view the “I am in here” trailer or purchase the DVD: http://www.utterenergy.org/iaminhere/

Mark’s Blog: http://www.utterenergy.org/blog/

For more information on the form of communication Mark uses: http://www.utterenergy.org/supported-typing/

Music for this show by Podington Bear, and the Free Music Archive

Kudos

Best in Show from The Timbre!

]]> I Am In Here Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:23:13 A journey into the life and mind of Mark Utter A journey into the life and mind of Mark Utter false full 217 https://rumblestripvermont.com/?p=6381 I Hate Google Meet

I’ve been doing a couple freelance jobs for extra money. One requires a great deal of video conferencing. I have learned that I do not excel at video conferencing and at the moment I knew this with certainty, my recorder was close by, so I recorded some thoughts on the subject. Then an audio producer in London heard it and did a remix version of it. So here is a short dip into my state of mind during this election season, this world burning, this age of video conferencing. There is some justifiably strong language.

Credits

Arlie Adlington, Audio producer for podcasts and radio

Maya Goldberg-Safir, an excellent person who also happens to be the artistic director of The Third Coast Festival

]]> Thu, 29 Oct 2020 17:46:51 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

I’ve been doing a couple freelance jobs for extra money. One requires a great deal of video conferencing. I have learned that I do not excel at video conferencing and at the moment I knew this with certainty, my recorder was close by, so I recorded some thoughts on the subject. Then an audio producer in London heard it and did a remix version of it. So here is a short dip into my state of mind during this election season, this world burning, this age of video conferencing. There is some justifiably strong language.

Credits

Arlie Adlington, Audio producer for podcasts and radio

Maya Goldberg-Safir, an excellent person who also happens to be the artistic director of The Third Coast Festival

]]> I Hate Google Meet Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:06:16 I am not fond of video conferencing. I learned this last week. I am not fond of video conferencing. I learned this last week. false full 187 https://rumblestripvermont.com/?p=6320 Karl Hammer and the Donkeys

Karl Hammer is the founder and president of the Vermont Compost Company in East Montpelier, right up the hill from Montpelier, the state capital. I first heard about Karl from my friend Rosana, who used to be married to him. She told me about how they had puppies one winter, and Karl decided to compost their poop on the floor in the house, which he sweetened with donkey manure and hardwood bark and hay.

Karl started as a vegetable and dairy farmer on a hill farm in Vershire Vermont. He had a business card that said, ‘Have fun. Make money. Save the world.’ How do you make more land better land to make more food for more people? I think it was that question that finally made him leave farming and get into compost production, long before composting was a virtue.

Recently, Karl’s been running a donkey cart into town to pick up food scraps at restaurants and the local coop. Karl has always had donkeys. He loves donkeys, especially the American Mammoth jackstock, which is endangered. And Karl figures the only way to protect them is to give them a useful job to do…to make them indispensable.

I tried to interview Karl a few years ago and failed. He has a mind that connects politics and history and feces and he talks about them all at once and he’s impossible to corral into any one subject at a time. I figured this time I could keep him on the subject of donkeys. But I couldn’t. But it didn’t matter. Karl knows a lot of things I wish I knew.

Pictures and video by Sid Hammer, except the less good pictures, which are mine.

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Karl Hammer is the founder and president of the Vermont Compost Company in East Montpelier, right up the hill from Montpelier, the state capital. I first heard about Karl from my friend Rosana, who used to be married to him. She told me about how they had puppies one winter, and Karl decided to compost their poop on the floor in the house, which he sweetened with donkey manure and hardwood bark and hay.

Karl started as a vegetable and dairy farmer on a hill farm in Vershire Vermont. He had a business card that said, ‘Have fun. Make money. Save the world.’ How do you make more land better land to make more food for more people? I think it was that question that finally made him leave farming and get into compost production, long before composting was a virtue.

Recently, Karl’s been running a donkey cart into town to pick up food scraps at restaurants and the local coop. Karl has always had donkeys. He loves donkeys, especially the American Mammoth jackstock, which is endangered. And Karl figures the only way to protect them is to give them a useful job to do…to make them indispensable.

I tried to interview Karl a few years ago and failed. He has a mind that connects politics and history and feces and he talks about them all at once and he’s impossible to corral into any one subject at a time. I figured this time I could keep him on the subject of donkeys. But I couldn’t. But it didn’t matter. Karl knows a lot of things I wish I knew.

Pictures and video by Sid Hammer, except the less good pictures, which are mine.

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A GUEST SHOW from one of my favorite radio producers….Bianca Giaever.

During a period of personal loneliness, radio-maker Bianca Giaever set out into New York City, hoping to connect with another lonely stranger. She began visiting Catholic churches, and eventually, she met Sophia — a school crossing guard. In this piece, Bianca documents Sophia’s life for many months… weaving between the ordinary life of a school crossing guard, and larger themes of loneliness, God, and the quest to live a meaningful life.

This piece is the first episode in a new podcast by Bianca and The Believer Magazine called Constellation Prize, which you can find in the iTunes store or wherever you get your podcasts. In this series, Bianca talks to subjects about their daily existential problems, both big and small.

If you like Rumble Strip, you will like Bianca’s show. It never fails to surprise me.

Music in this episode is by Zubin Hensler and Stellwagon Symphonette. It was written and produced by Bianca Giaever, and edited by Hayden Bennett. Special thanks to Andrew Leland and Laura Irving.

Artwork by Sludge Thunder

]]> Mon, 24 Aug 2020 15:31:29 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

A GUEST SHOW from one of my favorite radio producers….Bianca Giaever.

During a period of personal loneliness, radio-maker Bianca Giaever set out into New York City, hoping to connect with another lonely stranger. She began visiting Catholic churches, and eventually, she met Sophia — a school crossing guard. In this piece, Bianca documents Sophia’s life for many months… weaving between the ordinary life of a school crossing guard, and larger themes of loneliness, God, and the quest to live a meaningful life.

This piece is the first episode in a new podcast by Bianca and The Believer Magazine called Constellation Prize, which you can find in the iTunes store or wherever you get your podcasts. In this series, Bianca talks to subjects about their daily existential problems, both big and small.

If you like Rumble Strip, you will like Bianca’s show. It never fails to surprise me.

Music in this episode is by Zubin Hensler and Stellwagon Symphonette. It was written and produced by Bianca Giaever, and edited by Hayden Bennett. Special thanks to Andrew Leland and Laura Irving.

Artwork by Sludge Thunder

]]> Crossing Guard Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:39:07 A guest show from Bianca Giaever about loneliness, God, and the quest to live a meaningful life. A guest show from Bianca Giaever about loneliness, God, and the quest to live a meaningful life. false full 169 https://rumblestripvermont.com/?p=6281 Winnie

Winnie Wilkinson is originally from Jamaica but she spent half her life in New York City before moving up to St. Albans, Vermont, where black people make up 2.52 percent of the population. Winnie has family all over the country, and she has a lot of family members who’ve been harassed by the police, which is what I went to talk with her about. But it’s not what we talked about. Instead, we talked about God and about slavery–two things that have a profound impact on how Winnie thinks about everything else, including police brutality.

Thank you David Glidden for introducing me to Winnie. And thank you Winnie for going to look for my glasses. And thank you Tobin for bearing with me.

To learn more about Winnie’s seasonings, spices, hot pepper sauce and African products, visit her here.

]]> Tue, 11 Aug 2020 19:30:27 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

Winnie Wilkinson is originally from Jamaica but she spent half her life in New York City before moving up to St. Albans, Vermont, where black people make up 2.52 percent of the population. Winnie has family all over the country, and she has a lot of family members who’ve been harassed by the police, which is what I went to talk with her about. But it’s not what we talked about. Instead, we talked about God and about slavery–two things that have a profound impact on how Winnie thinks about everything else, including police brutality.

Thank you David Glidden for introducing me to Winnie. And thank you Winnie for going to look for my glasses. And thank you Tobin for bearing with me.

To learn more about Winnie’s seasonings, spices, hot pepper sauce and African products, visit her here.

]]> Winnie Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:19:22 In her sixty years, Winnie has learned that not all Christians are actually Christian. In her sixty years, Winnie has learned that not all Christians are actually Christian. false full 175 https://rumblestripvermont.com/?p=6254 Knots and Pandemics
Clare is the curator of the Museum Of Everyday Life, which lives in a barn on Route 16, about eight miles from Glover, Vermont, population 2000. Over the years, the Museum of Everyday Life has given us the toothbrush, the mirror, bells and whistles–celebrations of objects we use everyday in our unglamorous everyday lives. This year’s exhibit features the knot. It’s not quite finished, because as Clare was preparing the exhibit, she was also working her other job as a nurse at a small rural hospital, in the middle of a pandemic.

She showed me the exhibit, which is not quite done but which is already strange and brilliant, and we talked about knots, and  about her work as a nurse, in a pandemic and beyond…

THANK YOU to Bianca Giaever for her insights on this show. She just launched a podcast and it’s really frickin good…

More

Visit the Museum of Every Life

Images from the new exhibit:

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Clare is the curator of the Museum Of Everyday Life, which lives in a barn on Route 16, about eight miles from Glover, Vermont, population 2000. Over the years, the Museum of Everyday Life has given us the toothbrush, the mirror, bells and whistles–celebrations of objects we use everyday in our unglamorous everyday lives. This year’s exhibit features the knot. It’s not quite finished, because as Clare was preparing the exhibit, she was also working her other job as a nurse at a small rural hospital, in the middle of a pandemic.

She showed me the exhibit, which is not quite done but which is already strange and brilliant, and we talked about knots, and  about her work as a nurse, in a pandemic and beyond…

THANK YOU to Bianca Giaever for her insights on this show. She just launched a podcast and it’s really frickin good…

More

Visit the Museum of Every Life

Images from the new exhibit:

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I met my friend Leland when he was in first grade and he came over to play with my son Henry. For six years now, we’ve been having a yearly conversation about how he’s doing and what he’s thinking about. He just finished his sophomore year at the Central Vermont Career Center in Barre, which is a technical education school. He was never big on regular school, even though he knows more about geography than I’ll ever know. Leland lives in an old farmhouse on a dirt road looking down over Pekin Brook in Calais. I drove over and I sat in my car and he sat in his truck and neither of us had a lot to say, in that way that a lot of us don’t have a lot to say right now, with so much that’s so uncertain…

]]> Mon, 22 Jun 2020 22:12:24 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

I met my friend Leland when he was in first grade and he came over to play with my son Henry. For six years now, we’ve been having a yearly conversation about how he’s doing and what he’s thinking about. He just finished his sophomore year at the Central Vermont Career Center in Barre, which is a technical education school. He was never big on regular school, even though he knows more about geography than I’ll ever know. Leland lives in an old farmhouse on a dirt road looking down over Pekin Brook in Calais. I drove over and I sat in my car and he sat in his truck and neither of us had a lot to say, in that way that a lot of us don’t have a lot to say right now, with so much that’s so uncertain…

]]> Leland in a Pandemic Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:10:45 Leland just finished 10th grade in the middle of a pandemic. We sat in separate cars and talked things over. Leland just finished 10th grade in the middle of a pandemic. We sat in separate cars and talked things over. false full 176 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=6145 1900 Cars

Last month a friend of mine sent me a picture of miles and miles of cars lined up waiting for food that was being distributed by the National Guard here in Vermont. Nineteen hundred cars. I’d never seen anything like it, and it took me a minute to even believe it. And when I told a friend about it…a perfectly smart and thoughtful friend…he said,  “Well, they probably don’t really need it. I mean, those are pretty nice cars…”

It turns out there are lot of ways to be food insecure, and they’re all invisible, and they’re growing all the time. I went and talked with some people working on the front lines of hunger about this big federal food distribution program that’s all over the news, and we talked about the chronic problem of stigmatizing people who don’t have to enough to eat.

((Check out a gallery of pictures from this event below…))

In this show

Robert Ostermeyer, Director of Franklin/Grand Isle Community Action at the Champlain Valley Office of Economic Opportunity

Nicole Whalen, Vermont Foodbank

Faye Longo, Vermont Foodbank

Music

Brian Clark, Calais, Vermont

Links to Information about Food

How to find your local Foodbank

Vermont Foodbank

How to find your local food pantry

The following pictures were taken by Terry J. Allen of East Montpelier, Vermont, at the Newport food distribution event in June, 2020. She’s great, and you can see more of her work here.

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]]> Wed, 3 Jun 2020 19:34:16 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

Last month a friend of mine sent me a picture of miles and miles of cars lined up waiting for food that was being distributed by the National Guard here in Vermont. Nineteen hundred cars. I’d never seen anything like it, and it took me a minute to even believe it. And when I told a friend about it…a perfectly smart and thoughtful friend…he said,  “Well, they probably don’t really need it. I mean, those are pretty nice cars…”

It turns out there are lot of ways to be food insecure, and they’re all invisible, and they’re growing all the time. I went and talked with some people working on the front lines of hunger about this big federal food distribution program that’s all over the news, and we talked about the chronic problem of stigmatizing people who don’t have to enough to eat.

((Check out a gallery of pictures from this event below…))

In this show

Robert Ostermeyer, Director of Franklin/Grand Isle Community Action at the Champlain Valley Office of Economic Opportunity

Nicole Whalen, Vermont Foodbank

Faye Longo, Vermont Foodbank

Music

Brian Clark, Calais, Vermont

Links to Information about Food

How to find your local Foodbank

Vermont Foodbank

How to find your local food pantry

The following pictures were taken by Terry J. Allen of East Montpelier, Vermont, at the Newport food distribution event in June, 2020. She’s great, and you can see more of her work here.

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]]> 1900 Cars Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:19:42 It turns out there are a lot of ways to be food insecure and they're all invisible. It turns out there are a lot of ways to be food insecure and they're all invisible. false full 200 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=6055 Our Show Seven

Here’s our last show, which also happens to be show number seven.

  • In this show you heard
  • Cheering healthcare workers in Barcelona and Toronto
  • Greg’s son practicing trumpet on a rainy night in Plainfield, VT
  • Brooke in Denver Colorado
  • Rob on the accordian in Adamant, VT
  • Bianca in Brooklyn, NY
  • Gideon and his mother Kathryn in High Falls, NY
  • Liv singing in Los Angeles, CA
  • Toria in Boulder, CO
  • Edward and his daughter in Forth Worth, TX
  • Shane singing about dinosaurs in Minnesota
  • The 5pm one song concert in Ditmas Park, Brooklyn
  • Ali cheering the healthcare workers on her porch in Putney, VT
  • And this is Mary and her dad Ted in Lincoln, VT

The incomparable associate producer for this series is Samantha Broun. Thank you to Larry Massett and Scott Carrier and Tobin Anderson. Our Show is made in collaboration with Transom, the birthplace of excellent radio.

I think this is our last show everybody. I’m not getting the same volume of recordings as I was a month ago. I think maybe we’re into a new stage of this pandemic experience, and maybe it’s more internal, where people don’t want to talk as much. If that changes again, and people suddenly have lots they want to say, and the recordings start building up again, then I can always make more. But for now I think we should congratulate ourselves for making an amazing thing together.

Thank you ALL for the remarkable privilege of listening to your recordings from all over the world. It has carried me through this time and I am so grateful.

]]> Thu, 16 Apr 2020 15:44:22 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

Here’s our last show, which also happens to be show number seven.

  • In this show you heard
  • Cheering healthcare workers in Barcelona and Toronto
  • Greg’s son practicing trumpet on a rainy night in Plainfield, VT
  • Brooke in Denver Colorado
  • Rob on the accordian in Adamant, VT
  • Bianca in Brooklyn, NY
  • Gideon and his mother Kathryn in High Falls, NY
  • Liv singing in Los Angeles, CA
  • Toria in Boulder, CO
  • Edward and his daughter in Forth Worth, TX
  • Shane singing about dinosaurs in Minnesota
  • The 5pm one song concert in Ditmas Park, Brooklyn
  • Ali cheering the healthcare workers on her porch in Putney, VT
  • And this is Mary and her dad Ted in Lincoln, VT

The incomparable associate producer for this series is Samantha Broun. Thank you to Larry Massett and Scott Carrier and Tobin Anderson. Our Show is made in collaboration with Transom, the birthplace of excellent radio.

I think this is our last show everybody. I’m not getting the same volume of recordings as I was a month ago. I think maybe we’re into a new stage of this pandemic experience, and maybe it’s more internal, where people don’t want to talk as much. If that changes again, and people suddenly have lots they want to say, and the recordings start building up again, then I can always make more. But for now I think we should congratulate ourselves for making an amazing thing together.

Thank you ALL for the remarkable privilege of listening to your recordings from all over the world. It has carried me through this time and I am so grateful.

]]> Our Show Seven Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:18:13 Pots and pans in Barcelona, in Toronto, in Putney, Vermont. Your recordings of the pandemic. Pots and pans in Barcelona, in Toronto, in Putney, Vermont. Your recordings of the pandemic. false full 170 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=6037 Our Show Six


This is Our Show, number six. Your recordings about the pandemic.

In this show you heard from:

  • Alicia and Liv in Los Angeles, CA
  • Ada in Marfa, Texas
  • Anna in Bennington, Vermont
  • The sound of rain in a woodstove from Bruce in Montreal
  • Bill in New York City
  • Morten in Southampton, United Kingdom
  • Eli in Philadelphia, PA
  • Katz in Amsterdam, The Netherlands
  • Shana in Auchterarder, Scotland
  • Samantha, somewhere in South Africa
  • Jen in East London
  • Bev and her mother Marj and her father Bill, in Toronto.

Samantha Broun is the associate producer for this series, and she’s producing an amazing series right now about an ER nurse in Queens. You can find the latest episode here.

The picture above is Morten’s beautiful daughter in their garden in Southampton, UK.

Transom is my partner in this series, for which I feel extremely lucky.

Keep sending your stories, from wherever you are. Sing a song. Record a phone call, or an argument, or your thoughts in the middle of the night. Say the location and the date at the beginning. And tell your friends to send their tape too. I’m hoping we make something that sounds like what’s happening. Send me your recordings at rumblestripourshow@gmail.com, and if you cant figure out how to do it, just email and we’ll figure it out together.

Katz in Amsterdam

Jen and kids in East London

Anne Frank’s church bells in the distance, in Amsterdam

]]> Sat, 11 Apr 2020 04:24:26 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com


This is Our Show, number six. Your recordings about the pandemic.

In this show you heard from:

  • Alicia and Liv in Los Angeles, CA
  • Ada in Marfa, Texas
  • Anna in Bennington, Vermont
  • The sound of rain in a woodstove from Bruce in Montreal
  • Bill in New York City
  • Morten in Southampton, United Kingdom
  • Eli in Philadelphia, PA
  • Katz in Amsterdam, The Netherlands
  • Shana in Auchterarder, Scotland
  • Samantha, somewhere in South Africa
  • Jen in East London
  • Bev and her mother Marj and her father Bill, in Toronto.

Samantha Broun is the associate producer for this series, and she’s producing an amazing series right now about an ER nurse in Queens. You can find the latest episode here.

The picture above is Morten’s beautiful daughter in their garden in Southampton, UK.

Transom is my partner in this series, for which I feel extremely lucky.

Keep sending your stories, from wherever you are. Sing a song. Record a phone call, or an argument, or your thoughts in the middle of the night. Say the location and the date at the beginning. And tell your friends to send their tape too. I’m hoping we make something that sounds like what’s happening. Send me your recordings at rumblestripourshow@gmail.com, and if you cant figure out how to do it, just email and we’ll figure it out together.

Katz in Amsterdam

Jen and kids in East London

Anne Frank’s church bells in the distance, in Amsterdam

]]> Our Show Six Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:23:13 Your recordings about the pandemic. Your recordings about the pandemic. false full 171 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=6016 Our Show Five

Here’s Our Show, number five…your recordings about the pandemic.

In this show you hear from:

  • Niels in Copenhagen, Denmark
  • Thomas singing in El Cerrito, CA
  • Rachel in Olympia, Washington
  • Rob and his kids from Olympia, Washington
  • Louisa in Brittany, France
  • Another meditation from Cali in Florida
  • Tomas in Berlin, Germany
  • Molly’s bells in Las Cruces, NM
  • Esther in Amsterdam, The Netherlands
  • Ada and Mathew in Marfa, TX
  • Carlos, in Bethesda, MD

The Associate Producer for this series is the excellent, gifted Samantha Broun. The partner for this series is Transom.

Above is a picture of Tomas’ plant.

Keep sending your stories, from wherever you are. I listen to every one of them. And I love them. Sing a song. Record a phone call, or an argument, or your thoughts in the middle of the night. Say the location and the date at the beginning. And tell your friends to send their tape too. I’m hoping we make something that sounds like what’s happening. Send me your recordings at rumblestripourshow@gmail.com, and if you cant figure out how to do it, just email me and we’ll figure it out together.

This pandemic is changing. In a lot of places, it’s becoming more dire. There are more people who are sick. More people have loved ones who are sick. Healthcare workers are overworked and scared and tired. And a lot of us are really worried about paying our bills.  And in order to do as much justice to as many people as possible, we need to hear from these people on the front lines. If you know someone who is struggling, and may find it USEFUL to talk about it in a recording, tell them about the project. We want to hear from them.

We’re making this show together, and it’s for all of us. Thank you for doing this with me.

]]> Tue, 7 Apr 2020 19:40:57 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

Here’s Our Show, number five…your recordings about the pandemic.

In this show you hear from:

  • Niels in Copenhagen, Denmark
  • Thomas singing in El Cerrito, CA
  • Rachel in Olympia, Washington
  • Rob and his kids from Olympia, Washington
  • Louisa in Brittany, France
  • Another meditation from Cali in Florida
  • Tomas in Berlin, Germany
  • Molly’s bells in Las Cruces, NM
  • Esther in Amsterdam, The Netherlands
  • Ada and Mathew in Marfa, TX
  • Carlos, in Bethesda, MD

The Associate Producer for this series is the excellent, gifted Samantha Broun. The partner for this series is Transom.

Above is a picture of Tomas’ plant.

Keep sending your stories, from wherever you are. I listen to every one of them. And I love them. Sing a song. Record a phone call, or an argument, or your thoughts in the middle of the night. Say the location and the date at the beginning. And tell your friends to send their tape too. I’m hoping we make something that sounds like what’s happening. Send me your recordings at rumblestripourshow@gmail.com, and if you cant figure out how to do it, just email me and we’ll figure it out together.

This pandemic is changing. In a lot of places, it’s becoming more dire. There are more people who are sick. More people have loved ones who are sick. Healthcare workers are overworked and scared and tired. And a lot of us are really worried about paying our bills.  And in order to do as much justice to as many people as possible, we need to hear from these people on the front lines. If you know someone who is struggling, and may find it USEFUL to talk about it in a recording, tell them about the project. We want to hear from them.

We’re making this show together, and it’s for all of us. Thank you for doing this with me.

]]> Our Show Five Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:23:13 Our fifth show, made with your recordings about the pandemic Our fifth show, made with your recordings about the pandemic false full 172 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=5991 Our Show Four


Here is Our Show 4, your recordings during the pandemic. Thank you for sending me remarkable recordings from all over the world, and the intense privilege of making shows with them.

In this show you hear from:

  • Bill in New York City
  • Clive in Toronto
  • Tim in Durango, Colorado
  • Bianca in New York City
  • Andrew’s son reading Pi in Northhampton, Mass.
  • Kelly in New Braunfels, Texas
  • Ralph in North Wolcott, Vermont
  • Amelia in Durham North Carolina

Music by hand habits and Amelia Meath.

Your Recordings!

Keep sending your stories, from wherever you are. I listen to every one of them. And I’m pulling from ALL of them to make these new shows. Sing a song. Record a phone call, or an argument, or your thoughts in the middle o fthe night. Say the location and the date at the beginning. And tell your friends to send their tape too. I’m hoping we make something that sounds like what’s happening. Send me your recordings at rumblestripourshow@gmail.com, and if you cant figure out how to do it….

I’m happy to say that Transom is now a collaborator on Our Show. Transom is sort of where new radio gets born, and I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t have become a radio producer if they didn’t exist back when I started. Thank you so much to Jay Allison and to Scott Carrier for support, and to Samantha Broun for support and editing.

]]> Thu, 2 Apr 2020 18:57:16 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com


Here is Our Show 4, your recordings during the pandemic. Thank you for sending me remarkable recordings from all over the world, and the intense privilege of making shows with them.

In this show you hear from:

  • Bill in New York City
  • Clive in Toronto
  • Tim in Durango, Colorado
  • Bianca in New York City
  • Andrew’s son reading Pi in Northhampton, Mass.
  • Kelly in New Braunfels, Texas
  • Ralph in North Wolcott, Vermont
  • Amelia in Durham North Carolina

Music by hand habits and Amelia Meath.

Your Recordings!

Keep sending your stories, from wherever you are. I listen to every one of them. And I’m pulling from ALL of them to make these new shows. Sing a song. Record a phone call, or an argument, or your thoughts in the middle o fthe night. Say the location and the date at the beginning. And tell your friends to send their tape too. I’m hoping we make something that sounds like what’s happening. Send me your recordings at rumblestripourshow@gmail.com, and if you cant figure out how to do it….

I’m happy to say that Transom is now a collaborator on Our Show. Transom is sort of where new radio gets born, and I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t have become a radio producer if they didn’t exist back when I started. Thank you so much to Jay Allison and to Scott Carrier for support, and to Samantha Broun for support and editing.

]]> Our Show Four Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:15:46 Our show....made of your recordings about the pandemic Our show....made of your recordings about the pandemic false full 173 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=5967 Our Show Three

This is Our Show number three…made from your recordings during the pandemic.

Keep that tape coming. Let’s keep making damn shows.

  • In this show you hear from:
  • Elliott in Brooklyn and his mother Roberta who’s outside of Chicago
  • Carlos in Bethesda
  • Ryan in West Virginia
  • Katy in New York City
  • Darren in the middle of the south coast of England
  • Silvia in Barcelona
  • Jessica in Minneapolis
  • Alicia and Liv in Los Angeles
  • Scott in Streatham, London
  • Greta in Los Angeles
  • Karen on an island near Stockholm
  • Sarah and Hannah in Essex, Vermont

THANK YOU to Samantha Broun at Transom for all her help on this project.

Picture above from Silvia in Barcelona.

Recordings

Send me your stories, from wherever you are. Sing a song. It doesn’t have to sound good. Record a phone call, or an argument, or whatever you like. Say the location and the date at the beginning. And tell your friends to send their tape too. Send it to me at rumblestripourshow@gmail.com, and if you cant figure out how to do it, email me at that address and we’ll figure it out.

Jay Allison at Transom has posted ideas about how to record, and why. They are great, and more articulate than what I’ve written. Have a look and send to friends if they’re interested in recording.  And better at communication than me.

Darren, England

Simone, San Francisco

Sarah and Hannah, Vermont

]]> Sun, 29 Mar 2020 21:51:51 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

This is Our Show number three…made from your recordings during the pandemic.

Keep that tape coming. Let’s keep making damn shows.

  • In this show you hear from:
  • Elliott in Brooklyn and his mother Roberta who’s outside of Chicago
  • Carlos in Bethesda
  • Ryan in West Virginia
  • Katy in New York City
  • Darren in the middle of the south coast of England
  • Silvia in Barcelona
  • Jessica in Minneapolis
  • Alicia and Liv in Los Angeles
  • Scott in Streatham, London
  • Greta in Los Angeles
  • Karen on an island near Stockholm
  • Sarah and Hannah in Essex, Vermont

THANK YOU to Samantha Broun at Transom for all her help on this project.

Picture above from Silvia in Barcelona.

Recordings

Send me your stories, from wherever you are. Sing a song. It doesn’t have to sound good. Record a phone call, or an argument, or whatever you like. Say the location and the date at the beginning. And tell your friends to send their tape too. Send it to me at rumblestripourshow@gmail.com, and if you cant figure out how to do it, email me at that address and we’ll figure it out.

Jay Allison at Transom has posted ideas about how to record, and why. They are great, and more articulate than what I’ve written. Have a look and send to friends if they’re interested in recording.  And better at communication than me.

Darren, England

Simone, San Francisco

Sarah and Hannah, Vermont

]]> Our Show Three Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:13:55 Here is Our Show 3 ... your recordings during the pandemic. Here is Our Show 3 ... your recordings during the pandemic. false full 174 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=5952 Our Show Two

This is the second installment of Our Show, which is about all of us during this pandemic, and is made from all the recordings you’re sending to me from wherever you are in the world, in whatever isolated circumstance. I’m in St. Johnsbury, Vermont, in a third floor walk-up, with my son Henry. I have plenty of time to edit. So keep sending your stories.

Here’s Show Two.

  • In this story you hear from:
  • Bianca and Matt in New York City
  • My sister Missy in Damariscotta, Maine
  • Craig and his wife and son in Madison, Wisconsin
  • Desiree in Los Angeles
  • Gary in Singapore
  • Malcolm and Shana in Auchterarder, Scotland
  • John in Seattle, Washington, who is not a teacher but is teaching the meaning of circumference
  • Nick in Los Angeles, singing  an Arthur Russell song

Auchterarder, Scotland

]]> Fri, 27 Mar 2020 13:37:17 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

This is the second installment of Our Show, which is about all of us during this pandemic, and is made from all the recordings you’re sending to me from wherever you are in the world, in whatever isolated circumstance. I’m in St. Johnsbury, Vermont, in a third floor walk-up, with my son Henry. I have plenty of time to edit. So keep sending your stories.

Here’s Show Two.

  • In this story you hear from:
  • Bianca and Matt in New York City
  • My sister Missy in Damariscotta, Maine
  • Craig and his wife and son in Madison, Wisconsin
  • Desiree in Los Angeles
  • Gary in Singapore
  • Malcolm and Shana in Auchterarder, Scotland
  • John in Seattle, Washington, who is not a teacher but is teaching the meaning of circumference
  • Nick in Los Angeles, singing  an Arthur Russell song

Auchterarder, Scotland

]]> Our Show Two Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:11:58 Our Show Two. Featuring...you during the pandemic. Come listen. Our Show Two. Featuring...you during the pandemic. Come listen. false full 183 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=5937 Our Show One

It’s amazing. An entire planet of people living mostly in isolation…or those of us lucky enough to be well. It’s the darkest thing to happen in my lifetime, but also strangely the most unifying. We’re all experiencing the very same thing at the same time, but not together. Which is why I wanted to make this show.

I asked you to send me recordings from where you are so we could make a show about all of us.  And you did. And they are remarkable, and there are too many to make just one show. So I’m going to just keep making this show, called Our Show, for as long as you want to to send me your recordings from wherever you are in isolation. And we can keep each other company. So here goes.

More!

Keep sending recordings! Your handwashing, your arguments, your thoughts in the middle of the night…your songs and  hummings….whatever. And tell your friends to send their recordings too. Just email me at rumblestripvermont@gmail.com, or send files via wetransfer.com.

Credits:

In this show you hear from Tristan from Tasmania, Helena DeGroot in New York City, Cali from Florida and her friend Keri from Durham North Carolina, Clark from Atlanta, Georgia, Tom and Liam from Columbus, Ohio, and Deb and Gary in Montpelier, Vermont. Also birds and Aoife the cat from Woodbury, Vermont.
Picture by Helena DeGroot

Liam, Columbus, OH

Sponsor (TAKEOUT FROM HONEY ROAD!!!)

This show is sponsored by the excellent people at Honey Road, making the best food in Burlington on the corner of Church and Main. They are now serving takeout. Please order up from them, ok? Click on the picture and check out the menu…

]]> Wed, 25 Mar 2020 03:02:45 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

It’s amazing. An entire planet of people living mostly in isolation…or those of us lucky enough to be well. It’s the darkest thing to happen in my lifetime, but also strangely the most unifying. We’re all experiencing the very same thing at the same time, but not together. Which is why I wanted to make this show.

I asked you to send me recordings from where you are so we could make a show about all of us.  And you did. And they are remarkable, and there are too many to make just one show. So I’m going to just keep making this show, called Our Show, for as long as you want to to send me your recordings from wherever you are in isolation. And we can keep each other company. So here goes.

More!

Keep sending recordings! Your handwashing, your arguments, your thoughts in the middle of the night…your songs and  hummings….whatever. And tell your friends to send their recordings too. Just email me at rumblestripvermont@gmail.com, or send files via wetransfer.com.

Credits:

In this show you hear from Tristan from Tasmania, Helena DeGroot in New York City, Cali from Florida and her friend Keri from Durham North Carolina, Clark from Atlanta, Georgia, Tom and Liam from Columbus, Ohio, and Deb and Gary in Montpelier, Vermont. Also birds and Aoife the cat from Woodbury, Vermont.
Picture by Helena DeGroot

Liam, Columbus, OH

Sponsor (TAKEOUT FROM HONEY ROAD!!!)

This show is sponsored by the excellent people at Honey Road, making the best food in Burlington on the corner of Church and Main. They are now serving takeout. Please order up from them, ok? Click on the picture and check out the menu…

]]> Our Show One Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:13:28 Your pandemic stories, arguments, songs, middle of the night thoughts, grocery runs. Let's make some damn shows. Your pandemic stories, arguments, songs, middle of the night thoughts, grocery runs. Let's make some damn shows. false full 212 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=5830 Announcement

Hi all,

My father died a couple weeks ago. He died peacefully at the UVM Medical Center in Burlington. My mother and sister and I spent six days and nights with him, the last 4.5 in comfort care. It was quiet. We had a room we could all camp out in together. The death was a surprise but not a shock.

I’m putting out this announcement because work on the show is going slowly at the moment. Also because the show is very personal and it would seem odd not to tell you all.

My father was a brilliant, curious, funny man of enormous integrity. He taught me that everyone is an expert in their own life, and knows something you’d be better for if you knew it too. He was my first teacher in interviewing. He was also a terrible eavesdropper in restaurants.

Here’s his obituary if you want to read it.

Thanks for your patience everyone,
Erica

]]> Thu, 20 Feb 2020 22:06:15 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

Hi all,

My father died a couple weeks ago. He died peacefully at the UVM Medical Center in Burlington. My mother and sister and I spent six days and nights with him, the last 4.5 in comfort care. It was quiet. We had a room we could all camp out in together. The death was a surprise but not a shock.

I’m putting out this announcement because work on the show is going slowly at the moment. Also because the show is very personal and it would seem odd not to tell you all.

My father was a brilliant, curious, funny man of enormous integrity. He taught me that everyone is an expert in their own life, and knows something you’d be better for if you knew it too. He was my first teacher in interviewing. He was also a terrible eavesdropper in restaurants.

Here’s his obituary if you want to read it.

Thanks for your patience everyone,
Erica

]]> Announcement Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:01:24 A quick announcement about my dad. A quick announcement about my dad. false full 164 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=5775 Susan on the Brown Couch
Susan Randall is a private investigator here in Vermont and she’s been my friend for twenty five years. If you listen to the show, you already know that I interview her periodically for Rumble Strip. We talk in her car, in her backyard…mostly we talk about her work as a private investigator, but lately we’ve been talking about all the complicated things that seem to start happening when you turn fifty. In our last conversation, she was just finishing treatments for breast cancer. And on New Year’s Day this year, she had a terrible medical incident that was a reaction to her cancer medication. So I went over to her house and we lay on the brown couch in her living room. We talked about her work, and some of the benefits of getting older.

Credits

For more information about Susan and her work, visit her site here.

Music for this show is by the excellent Brian Clark

Sponsor!

This show is sponsored by the excellent people at Honey Road, making the best food in Burlington on the corner of Church and Main. Click on the picture and check out the menu…

]]> Tue, 11 Feb 2020 16:43:38 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com
Susan Randall is a private investigator here in Vermont and she’s been my friend for twenty five years. If you listen to the show, you already know that I interview her periodically for Rumble Strip. We talk in her car, in her backyard…mostly we talk about her work as a private investigator, but lately we’ve been talking about all the complicated things that seem to start happening when you turn fifty. In our last conversation, she was just finishing treatments for breast cancer. And on New Year’s Day this year, she had a terrible medical incident that was a reaction to her cancer medication. So I went over to her house and we lay on the brown couch in her living room. We talked about her work, and some of the benefits of getting older.

Credits

For more information about Susan and her work, visit her site here.

Music for this show is by the excellent Brian Clark

Sponsor!

This show is sponsored by the excellent people at Honey Road, making the best food in Burlington on the corner of Church and Main. Click on the picture and check out the menu…

]]> Susan on the Brown Couch Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:17:07 Susan and I lie on the couch and talk about her PI work, and some of the benefits of getting older. Susan and I lie on the couch and talk about her PI work, and some of the benefits of getting older. false full 197 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=5656 Joslyn House


People often assume the Joslyn House is a nursing home, probably because a lot of old people live there. But it’s not a nursing home. It’s not assisted living. There’s no anonymous art on the wall. It’s not licensed by the state. It’s a house. It’s a a place where up to twenty older people live independently together…in a huge, elegant house furnished with their own things. There’s socializing when you want it, silence when you don’t, there’s sociable silence… there are three beautiful meals served a day. Residents are given a room, and rent is 1500 dollars a month.

I can’t believe every town doesn’t have a Joslyn House…a place in your own town where you can help each other as you get older. Where you don’t have to worry about cooking, where if you’re lonely at night there‘s someone to talk to, or sit with. In other words, a civilized place. A place where love is evident…

Credits

Thanks to all the residents who talked with me, and the beautiful Arlene and Becky Wright, managers of the house.

My friend Kelly Green produced this show with me. She’s great at this PLUS she’s a great defense attorney! If you’re in trouble, call Kelly!

Click here for more information on the Joslyn House

The song for this show is A Wave in the Air by The Imperfectionists, from their latest album, Universal Consent.

More of their music

And my frickin ALL TIME FAVORITE IMPERFECTIONIST SONG: Astroplane.

Sponsor!

This show is sponsored by the excellent people at Honey Road, making the best food in Burlington on the corner of Church and Main. Click on the picture and check out the menu…

]]> Wed, 15 Jan 2020 17:57:33 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com


People often assume the Joslyn House is a nursing home, probably because a lot of old people live there. But it’s not a nursing home. It’s not assisted living. There’s no anonymous art on the wall. It’s not licensed by the state. It’s a house. It’s a a place where up to twenty older people live independently together…in a huge, elegant house furnished with their own things. There’s socializing when you want it, silence when you don’t, there’s sociable silence… there are three beautiful meals served a day. Residents are given a room, and rent is 1500 dollars a month.

I can’t believe every town doesn’t have a Joslyn House…a place in your own town where you can help each other as you get older. Where you don’t have to worry about cooking, where if you’re lonely at night there‘s someone to talk to, or sit with. In other words, a civilized place. A place where love is evident…

Credits

Thanks to all the residents who talked with me, and the beautiful Arlene and Becky Wright, managers of the house.

My friend Kelly Green produced this show with me. She’s great at this PLUS she’s a great defense attorney! If you’re in trouble, call Kelly!

Click here for more information on the Joslyn House

The song for this show is A Wave in the Air by The Imperfectionists, from their latest album, Universal Consent.

More of their music

And my frickin ALL TIME FAVORITE IMPERFECTIONIST SONG: Astroplane.

Sponsor!

This show is sponsored by the excellent people at Honey Road, making the best food in Burlington on the corner of Church and Main. Click on the picture and check out the menu…

]]> Joslyn House Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:30:02 It's not a nursing home. It's not assisted living. It's a house...where love is evident. It's not a nursing home. It's not assisted living. It's a house...where love is evident. false full 198 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=5531 One more thing about Ben Kilham…

An outtake with bear biologist Ben Kilham, about living with dyslexia, and how it informs the way he thinks about bears.

]]> Thu, 19 Dec 2019 18:42:33 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

An outtake with bear biologist Ben Kilham, about living with dyslexia, and how it informs the way he thinks about bears.

]]> One more thing about Ben Kilham… Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:04:54 An outtake with Ben Kilham about living with dyslexia. An outtake with Ben Kilham about living with dyslexia. false full 162 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=5480 Bear Man

Ben Kilham and his sister Phoebe are the only licensed bear rehabilitators in the state of New Hampshire. For over twenty-five years, the Kilham Bear Center has taken in orphaned or injured black bear cubs and successfully released them back into the wild. And Ben has conducted arguably the longest scientific study of black bear behavior in history.

Until Ben Kilham, black bears were studied mostly using tracking collars. But Ben has spent decades following bears in the woods, sometimes for nine hours at a time. As his orphan cubs acclimate to their natural environment, he watches them. He naps when they nap, he moves when they move, and he studies their complex social behaviors. One of his very first cubs, Squirty, is twenty-four years old this year. She lives in woods near his home, and he’s watched her become a mother, and now a grandmother. Bear biologists have generally assumed that black bears were solitary animals. Ben Kilham has proven them very wrong.

Links

Kilham Bear Center: the place for all information on the rehabilitation program, Ben’s research, videos and books for sale….

Cubs Video: I could not figure out how to attach more video. For more, go to Ben’s website above…

The photos below are lent to Rumble Strip by Ben. Please don’t copy. Thank you!….:

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]]> Mon, 16 Dec 2019 23:23:12 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

Ben Kilham and his sister Phoebe are the only licensed bear rehabilitators in the state of New Hampshire. For over twenty-five years, the Kilham Bear Center has taken in orphaned or injured black bear cubs and successfully released them back into the wild. And Ben has conducted arguably the longest scientific study of black bear behavior in history.

Until Ben Kilham, black bears were studied mostly using tracking collars. But Ben has spent decades following bears in the woods, sometimes for nine hours at a time. As his orphan cubs acclimate to their natural environment, he watches them. He naps when they nap, he moves when they move, and he studies their complex social behaviors. One of his very first cubs, Squirty, is twenty-four years old this year. She lives in woods near his home, and he’s watched her become a mother, and now a grandmother. Bear biologists have generally assumed that black bears were solitary animals. Ben Kilham has proven them very wrong.

Links

Kilham Bear Center: the place for all information on the rehabilitation program, Ben’s research, videos and books for sale….

Cubs Video: I could not figure out how to attach more video. For more, go to Ben’s website above…

The photos below are lent to Rumble Strip by Ben. Please don’t copy. Thank you!….:

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]]> Bear Man Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:37:50 Ben Kilham knows black bears better than anyone you know. And I could listen to him talk forever. Ben Kilham knows black bears better than anyone you know. And I could listen to him talk forever. false full 163 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=5423 Fifty. A Phoenix Moment.


For many years I have privately loved the song Total Eclipse of the Heart, by Bonnie Tyler. I started to love it when it came out in 1983, when I was fourteen.

This month I’m turning fifty. And for some reason, every time I think about turning fifty, I think about singing this song that I’ve loved for over over thirty years, and making other people listen to me sing it. I guess in a way it’s a kind of phoenix moment I’m hoping for. That I’ll burn up in some exquisite shame and then I’ll be born again into the second chapter of a century.

So I asked my friends Mike and Brian and Tobin to record the song with me in the  East Calais community center at the back of the post office.

I knew they didn’t like the song and they didn’t really want to do it, so I felt really bad asking them to do it, which in a way seemed like part o the phoenix moment I was looking for.

I feel ambivalent about turning fifty. I don’t know what’s supposed to happen next. So I recorded conversations with some friends about getting older. I talked with my son Henry, who’s 16. Bianca Giaever is 29. Scott Carrier is 60-something. And Clare Dolan is around my age.

Here’s a show about turning fifty and recording Total Eclipse of the Heart.

Credits

Thank you to Scott Bassage for helping me secure the best recording studio in central Vermont at the back of the East Calais post office

Thank you to the band: Brian Clark, Mike Donofrio and Tobin Anderson (pictures below)

Thank you to my friends who talked with me for this show: Scott Carrier, Clare Dolan, Bianca Giaever and Henry Heilman

Sponsor!

This show is sponsored by the excellent people at Honey Road, making the best food in Burlington on the corner of Church and Main. Click on the picture and check out the menu…

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]]> Wed, 20 Nov 2019 19:34:42 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com


For many years I have privately loved the song Total Eclipse of the Heart, by Bonnie Tyler. I started to love it when it came out in 1983, when I was fourteen.

This month I’m turning fifty. And for some reason, every time I think about turning fifty, I think about singing this song that I’ve loved for over over thirty years, and making other people listen to me sing it. I guess in a way it’s a kind of phoenix moment I’m hoping for. That I’ll burn up in some exquisite shame and then I’ll be born again into the second chapter of a century.

So I asked my friends Mike and Brian and Tobin to record the song with me in the  East Calais community center at the back of the post office.

I knew they didn’t like the song and they didn’t really want to do it, so I felt really bad asking them to do it, which in a way seemed like part o the phoenix moment I was looking for.

I feel ambivalent about turning fifty. I don’t know what’s supposed to happen next. So I recorded conversations with some friends about getting older. I talked with my son Henry, who’s 16. Bianca Giaever is 29. Scott Carrier is 60-something. And Clare Dolan is around my age.

Here’s a show about turning fifty and recording Total Eclipse of the Heart.

Credits

Thank you to Scott Bassage for helping me secure the best recording studio in central Vermont at the back of the East Calais post office

Thank you to the band: Brian Clark, Mike Donofrio and Tobin Anderson (pictures below)

Thank you to my friends who talked with me for this show: Scott Carrier, Clare Dolan, Bianca Giaever and Henry Heilman

Sponsor!

This show is sponsored by the excellent people at Honey Road, making the best food in Burlington on the corner of Church and Main. Click on the picture and check out the menu…

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]]> Fifty. A Phoenix Moment. Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:20:26 A show about turning 50 and recording Total Eclipse of the Heart. A show about turning 50 and recording Total Eclipse of the Heart. false full 209 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=5335 Bobcat Hunter

Patrick Soniera has been hunting and tracking bobcats in Vermont for fifty years, and he has a diary entry about every single hunt–the weather, the birds or the bears, the behavior of the cat tracks he followed–his diaries fill one whole wall of his office. And for the majority of those days out in the woods, Patrick never even saw a bobcat. You almost never see them, which is why Patrick is so fascinated by these cats.

Last year Patrick went out tracking cats with his hounds a hundred and fifty times and he shot one bobcat. He says it isn’t about the killing. And that’s what all good hunters say. And when you ask, ‘Well then why not just take a camera?’, the answer is always the same.

‘Because I’m a hunter.’

After years of interviewing good hunters, I’m beginning to understand the tautological logic of this. Part of Patrick’s love for bobcats is the fact of the hunt. And part of why he’s able to share years’ worth of knowledge with Vermont Fish and Wildlife is because now and then he kills one.

Thank you to Louis Porter of Vermont Fish and Wildlife for recommending Patrick to me. I love the state where I live…

This show is sponsored by Honey Road, my all time favorite restaurant in Vermont. Make a reservation. Go. Eat. Report back. And click on the image below for more information.

]]> Thu, 17 Oct 2019 17:01:53 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

Patrick Soniera has been hunting and tracking bobcats in Vermont for fifty years, and he has a diary entry about every single hunt–the weather, the birds or the bears, the behavior of the cat tracks he followed–his diaries fill one whole wall of his office. And for the majority of those days out in the woods, Patrick never even saw a bobcat. You almost never see them, which is why Patrick is so fascinated by these cats.

Last year Patrick went out tracking cats with his hounds a hundred and fifty times and he shot one bobcat. He says it isn’t about the killing. And that’s what all good hunters say. And when you ask, ‘Well then why not just take a camera?’, the answer is always the same.

‘Because I’m a hunter.’

After years of interviewing good hunters, I’m beginning to understand the tautological logic of this. Part of Patrick’s love for bobcats is the fact of the hunt. And part of why he’s able to share years’ worth of knowledge with Vermont Fish and Wildlife is because now and then he kills one.

Thank you to Louis Porter of Vermont Fish and Wildlife for recommending Patrick to me. I love the state where I live…

This show is sponsored by Honey Road, my all time favorite restaurant in Vermont. Make a reservation. Go. Eat. Report back. And click on the image below for more information.

]]> Bobcat Hunter Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:16:06 Patrick Soniera loves bobcats more than most anyone else, and every now and then he kills one. Patrick Soniera loves bobcats more than most anyone else, and every now and then he kills one. false full 156 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=5276 Problems, Episode 5: Vacation

This is the fifth episode of Problems, a radio drama about Pam and Joel, two old friends who support each other through their problems. In this episode, Joel’s just come back from a long vacation in British Colombia, where he had a lovely time mountain biking with friends. But…there were some problems.

This show is sponsored by Honey Road, my all time favorite restaurant in Vermont. Make a reservation. Go. Eat. Report back. And click on the image below for more information.

]]> Mon, 30 Sep 2019 18:40:13 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

This is the fifth episode of Problems, a radio drama about Pam and Joel, two old friends who support each other through their problems. In this episode, Joel’s just come back from a long vacation in British Colombia, where he had a lovely time mountain biking with friends. But…there were some problems.

This show is sponsored by Honey Road, my all time favorite restaurant in Vermont. Make a reservation. Go. Eat. Report back. And click on the image below for more information.

]]> Problems, Episode 5: Vacation Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:12:56 The 5th episode of the radio drama, Problems. Joel just came back from vacation. But of course...there were problems. The 5th episode of the radio drama, Problems. Joel just came back from vacation. But of course...there were problems. false full 155 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=5216 A Perfect Drive with Garret Keizer

Garret Keizer and I stood together in a field, in the late summer, in the Northeast Kingdom, and he read poems from his new book, The World Pushes Back.

I first heard of Garret a few years ago when I read his book, Getting Schooled, about his years as a high school teacher up here in the Kingdom. He described this place more honestly and more humanely…than anything I’d ever read about the place before. And his stories about his own experience teaching are almost brutally honest. I’ve never read an account of teaching quite like it.

Garret’s one of the only writers where I find myself copying whole passages down from his work, as if I’ll need them later. They’re not always easy or nice things I copy down. Garret Keizer is one of the most critical and also most contemplative people I’ve ever met. I write these passages down because they remind me of something fundamental about being human that I don’t want to forget.

He’s just come out with his first book of poetry, so we drove around and talked in his car until we found the perfect field to read poetry in. It was some of the best, and most surprising conversation I’ve had in a long time.

Links and Credits

For more of Garret’s work, visit his site here.

One of my favorite articles he’s written for Harper’s is called Requiem for the Private Word….

Garret will be the headlining reader at the opening ceremony of the Burlington Book Festival on September 27th at 7:00. For more information, go here.

Music for this show is by Vermont musician Brian Clark

And thanks also to my wonderful sponsor, Honey Road. The best restaurant in Burlington. Click below to read about the menu…

]]> Mon, 9 Sep 2019 12:48:41 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

Garret Keizer and I stood together in a field, in the late summer, in the Northeast Kingdom, and he read poems from his new book, The World Pushes Back.

I first heard of Garret a few years ago when I read his book, Getting Schooled, about his years as a high school teacher up here in the Kingdom. He described this place more honestly and more humanely…than anything I’d ever read about the place before. And his stories about his own experience teaching are almost brutally honest. I’ve never read an account of teaching quite like it.

Garret’s one of the only writers where I find myself copying whole passages down from his work, as if I’ll need them later. They’re not always easy or nice things I copy down. Garret Keizer is one of the most critical and also most contemplative people I’ve ever met. I write these passages down because they remind me of something fundamental about being human that I don’t want to forget.

He’s just come out with his first book of poetry, so we drove around and talked in his car until we found the perfect field to read poetry in. It was some of the best, and most surprising conversation I’ve had in a long time.

Links and Credits

For more of Garret’s work, visit his site here.

One of my favorite articles he’s written for Harper’s is called Requiem for the Private Word….

Garret will be the headlining reader at the opening ceremony of the Burlington Book Festival on September 27th at 7:00. For more information, go here.

Music for this show is by Vermont musician Brian Clark

And thanks also to my wonderful sponsor, Honey Road. The best restaurant in Burlington. Click below to read about the menu…

]]> A Perfect Drive with Garret Keizer Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:19:03 'What good is a poem? Maybe the good lies in the fact that there’s no easy answer to that question...' 'What good is a poem? Maybe the good lies in the fact that there’s no easy answer to that question...' false full 219 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=5136 Summer Musical
It’s the summer musical in Randolph, Vermont…one day before showtime. It’s been an annual event at Chandler Music Hall for over twenty years, and this year they’re putting on Footloose. And honestly? It feels like the whole town is involved. Like it takes every last person in Randolph to pull this thing off…again. To put on a full musical with up to 120 kids, in three weeks? It’s a miracle.

I spent an afternoon talking with some of the kids backstage, about their lives in musical theater. And even though we were sitting on the floor in a Xerox room, they were willing to sing songs from the show…from their hearts. This is theater magic. Welcome.

Thank you SO MUCH to Kelly Green, associate producer on this show. Also Ramsey Papp for her help and guidance. And thanks also to my wonderful sponsor, Honey Road. The best restaurant in Burlington. Click below to read about the menu…

Toj Marceau as Cranston

Reagan Papp as Willard

]]> Wed, 7 Aug 2019 15:31:51 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com
It’s the summer musical in Randolph, Vermont…one day before showtime. It’s been an annual event at Chandler Music Hall for over twenty years, and this year they’re putting on Footloose. And honestly? It feels like the whole town is involved. Like it takes every last person in Randolph to pull this thing off…again. To put on a full musical with up to 120 kids, in three weeks? It’s a miracle.

I spent an afternoon talking with some of the kids backstage, about their lives in musical theater. And even though we were sitting on the floor in a Xerox room, they were willing to sing songs from the show…from their hearts. This is theater magic. Welcome.

Thank you SO MUCH to Kelly Green, associate producer on this show. Also Ramsey Papp for her help and guidance. And thanks also to my wonderful sponsor, Honey Road. The best restaurant in Burlington. Click below to read about the menu…

Toj Marceau as Cranston

Reagan Papp as Willard

]]> Summer Musical Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:13:25 Pulling off a full musical with 120 kids in three weeks. It is a fricking miracle. Pulling off a full musical with 120 kids in three weeks. It is a fricking miracle. false full 205 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=5043 Leland Will Figure It Out

Leland lives over the hill from me in East Calais. We’ve been friends since he was in first grade, and every year around this time we get together and he tells me what he’s thinking about, worried about, what his plans are. He got his driver’s permit two weeks ago so he drove me over to Number 10 Pond and we sat and talked about the ups and downs of his first year of high school, about girls, about avocado toast…

Credits

Music for this show is by Vermont musician Brian Clark, who is the lead singer and songwriter for the band Anachronist. Which is awesome.

Rumble Strip is sponsored by the best restaurant in Burlington, Vermont. It’s called Honey Road. Click on the image below to read about their menu of Eastern Mediterranean small plates…

]]> Tue, 9 Jul 2019 21:56:43 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

Leland lives over the hill from me in East Calais. We’ve been friends since he was in first grade, and every year around this time we get together and he tells me what he’s thinking about, worried about, what his plans are. He got his driver’s permit two weeks ago so he drove me over to Number 10 Pond and we sat and talked about the ups and downs of his first year of high school, about girls, about avocado toast…

Credits

Music for this show is by Vermont musician Brian Clark, who is the lead singer and songwriter for the band Anachronist. Which is awesome.

Rumble Strip is sponsored by the best restaurant in Burlington, Vermont. It’s called Honey Road. Click on the image below to read about their menu of Eastern Mediterranean small plates…

]]> Leland Will Figure It Out Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:13:31 Leland and I drove to Number 10 Pond and talked about high school. And girls. And avocado toast. Leland and I drove to Number 10 Pond and talked about high school. And girls. And avocado toast. false full 157 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=5012 Logging By Hand

If you drive around rural Vermont, you see logging skidders parked in people’s dooryards. You see them working in smaller woodlots and residential woodlots, felling trees with a chainsaw at twenty below zero, dragging cables through waist deep snow. It’s dangerous work, and they’re a resilient lot. And they prefer logging by hand.

This story is about them.

Credits

This show is part of The Resilient Forest series produced by Northern Woodlands and first aired on NEXT, a weekly radio show and podcast about New England. The Resilient Forest Series is supported by the Davis Conservation Foundation and the Larson Fund. Most of the loggers you heard are part of the landscape of the vast working forest of Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom, the subject of a special report in the Summer 2019 issue of Northern Woodlands magazine. You can find that reporting HERE.

Rumble Strip is sponsored by the best restaurant in Burlington, Vermont. It’s called Honey Road, and I ate there a couple weeks ago and honestly it was the best meal I’ve had in years. Plus the place is wicked fun. Ask for the drink that comes in two glasses….you won’t regret it.

Original music for this series is produced by Vermont musician and Rumble Strip collaborator and friend Brian Clark. In fact, here is a picture of his band, Anachronist, looking very serious:

]]> Fri, 28 Jun 2019 16:11:16 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

If you drive around rural Vermont, you see logging skidders parked in people’s dooryards. You see them working in smaller woodlots and residential woodlots, felling trees with a chainsaw at twenty below zero, dragging cables through waist deep snow. It’s dangerous work, and they’re a resilient lot. And they prefer logging by hand.

This story is about them.

Credits

This show is part of The Resilient Forest series produced by Northern Woodlands and first aired on NEXT, a weekly radio show and podcast about New England. The Resilient Forest Series is supported by the Davis Conservation Foundation and the Larson Fund. Most of the loggers you heard are part of the landscape of the vast working forest of Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom, the subject of a special report in the Summer 2019 issue of Northern Woodlands magazine. You can find that reporting HERE.

Rumble Strip is sponsored by the best restaurant in Burlington, Vermont. It’s called Honey Road, and I ate there a couple weeks ago and honestly it was the best meal I’ve had in years. Plus the place is wicked fun. Ask for the drink that comes in two glasses….you won’t regret it.

Original music for this series is produced by Vermont musician and Rumble Strip collaborator and friend Brian Clark. In fact, here is a picture of his band, Anachronist, looking very serious:

]]> Logging By Hand Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:17:47 A story about the loggers who still cut with a chainsaw. A story about the loggers who still cut with a chainsaw. false full 154 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=4975 Gamelan and Subjects of Consequence

Gamelan Sulukala is a group of fifteen people in central Vermont who come together at the dead end of a dirt road in the basement of the Goddard College library, to play Indonesian music on an ornate, court gamelan made on the island of Java.  There is no harmony. Instead, each sound is part of an intricate layering of patterns. No one instrument, or musician stands alone.

Except the people in gamelan are people who very much stand alone. Writers and strawberry farmers and scientists and Renaissance music lovers…I guess what I’d say they have in common is they all seem to need to be alone a lot…which describes most central Vermonters I know. Also…they come here with a common purpose….to get lost in something that’s more than the sum of their parts…

Thanks so much to Steven Light and Kathy Light, who lead and inspire this group. Thank you Tobin for all your help on this show. And thanks also to all the gamelan players who talked with me.

Here’s a great article in Seven Days about Gamelan Sulukala.

This show is sponsored by the best restaurant in Burlington, Honey Road, at the corner of Church Street and Main Street. It is amazing. Go eat there and tell them I sent you! And click below to learn more….

]]> Wed, 19 Jun 2019 16:12:59 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

Gamelan Sulukala is a group of fifteen people in central Vermont who come together at the dead end of a dirt road in the basement of the Goddard College library, to play Indonesian music on an ornate, court gamelan made on the island of Java.  There is no harmony. Instead, each sound is part of an intricate layering of patterns. No one instrument, or musician stands alone.

Except the people in gamelan are people who very much stand alone. Writers and strawberry farmers and scientists and Renaissance music lovers…I guess what I’d say they have in common is they all seem to need to be alone a lot…which describes most central Vermonters I know. Also…they come here with a common purpose….to get lost in something that’s more than the sum of their parts…

Thanks so much to Steven Light and Kathy Light, who lead and inspire this group. Thank you Tobin for all your help on this show. And thanks also to all the gamelan players who talked with me.

Here’s a great article in Seven Days about Gamelan Sulukala.

This show is sponsored by the best restaurant in Burlington, Honey Road, at the corner of Church Street and Main Street. It is amazing. Go eat there and tell them I sent you! And click below to learn more….

]]> Gamelan and Subjects of Consequence Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:11:53 One instrument comprised of thirty instruments, played by a unique collection of individuals in central Vermont. One instrument comprised of thirty instruments, played by a unique collection of individuals in central Vermont. false full 167 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=4926 Senior

When I was in high school I remember being amazed by how much grownups seemed to forget about being young. But as it turns out….you do forget. A lot of it. And a lot of it’s important, and funny, and sometimes scary.

I do remember that I hated high school graduation. Not because I didn’t want to graduate, but because I knew I was supposed to be excited but I didn’t know how to be excited about a future that didn’t exist yet and that I couldn’t imagine.

So a couple weeks before graduation, I went to St. Johnsbury Academy and I talked with nine high school seniors…about what they’re afraid of, what they’re excited about….and also, prom. We talked about prom.

Credits

Thank you to the students: Jack Luna, Fiona Sweeney, Hope Reeve, Riley Taylor, Grace Nadeau, Ce Ce Jones, Shawn Guckin, Lucas Masure and David George.

Music is by Vermont musician Brian Clark.

Thanks to Phoebe Cobb and Melissa Burroughs for their help and patience setting all these interviews up!

Sponsor!

This show is sponsored by the excellent people at Honey Road, making the best food in Burlington on the corner of Church and Main. Click on the picture and check out the menu…

]]> Wed, 29 May 2019 17:58:10 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

When I was in high school I remember being amazed by how much grownups seemed to forget about being young. But as it turns out….you do forget. A lot of it. And a lot of it’s important, and funny, and sometimes scary.

I do remember that I hated high school graduation. Not because I didn’t want to graduate, but because I knew I was supposed to be excited but I didn’t know how to be excited about a future that didn’t exist yet and that I couldn’t imagine.

So a couple weeks before graduation, I went to St. Johnsbury Academy and I talked with nine high school seniors…about what they’re afraid of, what they’re excited about….and also, prom. We talked about prom.

Credits

Thank you to the students: Jack Luna, Fiona Sweeney, Hope Reeve, Riley Taylor, Grace Nadeau, Ce Ce Jones, Shawn Guckin, Lucas Masure and David George.

Music is by Vermont musician Brian Clark.

Thanks to Phoebe Cobb and Melissa Burroughs for their help and patience setting all these interviews up!

Sponsor!

This show is sponsored by the excellent people at Honey Road, making the best food in Burlington on the corner of Church and Main. Click on the picture and check out the menu…

]]> Senior Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:15:09 A show about graduating from high school. Excitement, plans, fears, and...prom. A show about graduating from high school. Excitement, plans, fears, and...prom. false full 158 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=4877 Victim Advocate

The criminal justice system is not designed to answer to the needs of crime victims. It’s designed to figure out if there’s enough evidence to bring a case. If there is, a defense attorney builds a case for the defendant and a prosecutor builds a case for the state of Vermont. The alleged victim in the case becomes a witness in their own story. They may have felt the impact of a crime, but they play no direct role in how the crime is adjudicated. For most people brand new to the system, this comes as a shock.

In every Vermont prosecutor’s office, in the Vermont State Police, in the Department of Corrections, there are people who see to the needs of these victims, from the time a crime is reported until long after the attorneys have gone home. It’s not their job to build cases or determine guilt or innocence. Their job is to support the victims in their cases. And that can mean a million different things. But always it’s complex and deeply personal.

This is a story about the victim advocates.

This show features:

Kate Brayton, victim advocate for Vermont’s Major Crime Unit

Amy Farr, victim advocate for Vermont’s Attorney General’s Office

Val Gauthier, victim specialist at the FBI covering Vermont and the Plattsburgh area

Aimee Stearns, victim witness coordinator at Vermont’s U.S. Attorney’s office

Danielle Levesque, victim service specialist at Vermont’s Department of Corrections

Kelly Woodward, victim advocate at the Franklin County State’s Attorney’s Office and victim advocate at the Northwest Unit for Special Investigations

Big Thanks to Toni Monsey for introducing me to these women, and to Jessica Dorr, Corrections Services Director.

Music for this show by Vermont musician Brian Clark and Kai Engel

This show is sponsored by Honey Road, the best restaurant in Burlington, Vermont. Click below for menu and accolades….

]]> Fri, 10 May 2019 14:00:38 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

The criminal justice system is not designed to answer to the needs of crime victims. It’s designed to figure out if there’s enough evidence to bring a case. If there is, a defense attorney builds a case for the defendant and a prosecutor builds a case for the state of Vermont. The alleged victim in the case becomes a witness in their own story. They may have felt the impact of a crime, but they play no direct role in how the crime is adjudicated. For most people brand new to the system, this comes as a shock.

In every Vermont prosecutor’s office, in the Vermont State Police, in the Department of Corrections, there are people who see to the needs of these victims, from the time a crime is reported until long after the attorneys have gone home. It’s not their job to build cases or determine guilt or innocence. Their job is to support the victims in their cases. And that can mean a million different things. But always it’s complex and deeply personal.

This is a story about the victim advocates.

This show features:

Kate Brayton, victim advocate for Vermont’s Major Crime Unit

Amy Farr, victim advocate for Vermont’s Attorney General’s Office

Val Gauthier, victim specialist at the FBI covering Vermont and the Plattsburgh area

Aimee Stearns, victim witness coordinator at Vermont’s U.S. Attorney’s office

Danielle Levesque, victim service specialist at Vermont’s Department of Corrections

Kelly Woodward, victim advocate at the Franklin County State’s Attorney’s Office and victim advocate at the Northwest Unit for Special Investigations

Big Thanks to Toni Monsey for introducing me to these women, and to Jessica Dorr, Corrections Services Director.

Music for this show by Vermont musician Brian Clark and Kai Engel

This show is sponsored by Honey Road, the best restaurant in Burlington, Vermont. Click below for menu and accolades….

]]> Victim Advocate Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:23:11 Stories from the people who stand with victims of crime, from investigation through conviction. Stories from the people who stand with victims of crime, from investigation through conviction. false full 150 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=4811 Problems Episode 4: Coffee and Public School

Welcome to the fourth episode of Problems, a radio drama about Pam and Joel, two old friends who support each other through their problems…because no problem is too small to complain about.

In this episode, Joel pays a visit to Pam at her house and brings her a small gift. Joel’s daughter, Whitney, has started at public school. Pam’s daughter River had a harder time at public school, and now she’s back at the local private school.

Welcome.

]]> Wed, 10 Apr 2019 22:07:28 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

Welcome to the fourth episode of Problems, a radio drama about Pam and Joel, two old friends who support each other through their problems…because no problem is too small to complain about.

In this episode, Joel pays a visit to Pam at her house and brings her a small gift. Joel’s daughter, Whitney, has started at public school. Pam’s daughter River had a harder time at public school, and now she’s back at the local private school.

Welcome.

]]> Problems Episode 4: Coffee and Public School Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:09:10 A radio drama about two friends who support each other through their problems...in this episode, coffee and public school. A radio drama about two friends who support each other through their problems...in this episode, coffee and public school. false full 145 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=4769 Captain JP Sinclair

Captain JP Sinclair has been at the center of over five-hundred death investigations and a hundred-and-one homicides in the state of Vermont. He served as the state’s chief criminal investigator and he led the Vermont State Police’s Bureau of Criminal Investigations. He was also instrumental in forming a major crime unit in the state of Vermont to handle the state’s most egregious cases.

And we used to play little league together.

JP and I went to Charlotte Central School together from Kindergarten through eighth grade. And when you go to a school as small as ours, you remember each other. And what I remember about JP is just that he was just a decent kid. He helped Mrs. Atkins clean up the cafeteria after lunch.

JP retired from the Vermont State Police in September, 2018.

We talked about his life in the VSP. We don’t get into the explicit details of homicides, but I do want to warn people that we talk about the Melissa Jenkins case. Jenkins was a mother and teacher here in the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont, and she was raped and murdered by a married couple in 2012. So if you don’t want to be reminded of this story, you might want to skip that section.

JP Sinclair now runs a mill and works as a logger in the Northeast Kingdom. You can find him at Sinclair Millworks and Timber Harvesting

Credits and Sponsors

Thank you to writer and editor Mark Davis for his excellent feedback on this show.

Thanks also to Brian Clark who wrote the music for this show.

This show is sponsored by Honey Road, the best restaurant in Burlington, Vermont. Click below for menu and accolades….

]]> Fri, 29 Mar 2019 15:04:56 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

Captain JP Sinclair has been at the center of over five-hundred death investigations and a hundred-and-one homicides in the state of Vermont. He served as the state’s chief criminal investigator and he led the Vermont State Police’s Bureau of Criminal Investigations. He was also instrumental in forming a major crime unit in the state of Vermont to handle the state’s most egregious cases.

And we used to play little league together.

JP and I went to Charlotte Central School together from Kindergarten through eighth grade. And when you go to a school as small as ours, you remember each other. And what I remember about JP is just that he was just a decent kid. He helped Mrs. Atkins clean up the cafeteria after lunch.

JP retired from the Vermont State Police in September, 2018.

We talked about his life in the VSP. We don’t get into the explicit details of homicides, but I do want to warn people that we talk about the Melissa Jenkins case. Jenkins was a mother and teacher here in the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont, and she was raped and murdered by a married couple in 2012. So if you don’t want to be reminded of this story, you might want to skip that section.

JP Sinclair now runs a mill and works as a logger in the Northeast Kingdom. You can find him at Sinclair Millworks and Timber Harvesting

Credits and Sponsors

Thank you to writer and editor Mark Davis for his excellent feedback on this show.

Thanks also to Brian Clark who wrote the music for this show.

This show is sponsored by Honey Road, the best restaurant in Burlington, Vermont. Click below for menu and accolades….

]]> Captain JP Sinclair Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:28:59 Captain JP Sinclair has investigated Vermont's most notorious homicides. Plus we used to play little league together. Captain JP Sinclair has investigated Vermont's most notorious homicides. Plus we used to play little league together. false full 153 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=4719 Brand New Life

I interviewed T.O. back in the summer of 2017. He’d just gotten out of prison, where he’s spent the majority of his adult life, and he was trying to figure out what to do next. After we met, he found employment and he enrolled at the Community College of Vermont. Things were going well. But what does it feel like to start a brand new life? It’s hard. And it’s complicated.

Credits

Music by Brian Clark

T.O.’s Poetry

Patience

Peep dis…
What’s patience??
What’s life w embracing trials and TRIBULATIONS without…
Patience???
Like…ppls ignorance… judgements…n gossiping…
Without patience.. there is no
Betterment!!!
I can’t reach my goals(10 folds)..
Until I reflect or resurrect..”my new from my old!!”
Looking back only seems
To subtract..&..
I find myself on da WRONG tracks..
Blinded by what..
I COULDN’T KEEP INTACT!!!
I initiate All I make…
Bcause it’s a fact…
“ONLY WEAKLINGS BREAK!!!”
God disciplines…
So with each reprimand…
Im grow into thicker skin..
Which brings into existence…
A GREATER MAN!!!
My physical is living proof…
How PATIENCE..is da key
which could ONLY..
Strengthen me..
2 b a wiser me!!!
So PATIENCE…
How I love thee…
I’m not single..
But damn bitch..
“Would u marry me??”

Peace…
Triple OMEGA

What’s Love?

What’s love?
Y is it so much pain??
Y does it shone lite on my soul..
Regardless 2 my darkest rains???
Y can’t I c past it??
Y won’t it allow me 2 4 get?
Y do I admire it as if..it’s my twin bastard??
How can it tug on my mind??
Y do it give me visions..when I think I’m blind?(what am I??)
Y do I continue to bust thru shittyations?
Y does it give me strength..n all I’m facing?
Beauty b the name!!!
Victorious n all life’s Lane’s..
But 1 thing…will always remain..
Dis motherfucka… won’t Eva get tired of GAIN..
It will make a sane person turn..INsane.
It’ll also mend a 💓..dats been crushed & broken..ova n OVA again…
It’s ONLY 1 rule 2 dis game..
Which is Neva/EVA rush…
Or u will find yaself in da repetitive position…!!!!!!!

P.e.a.c.e.!!!
I’m TripleOmega

It’s EZ

It’s EZ..2 have friends..
When ur tricking..or spending dividends!!
It’s EZ…2 smile@ life..
When it’s breezy, smooth or nyce!!
It’s EZ…2 have sights..
When Ur tunneled visioned..
Thru what U swore defined..
Da right life!!!
It’s jus EZ…to say..I Love U!!!..
When U don’t reflect on da issues..
Or da shit dat made u!!
So…if U ask me..
PERSONALLY… I don’t agree…w Any1
Or Anything dat respects…EZ!!!
TRIALS N TRIBULATIONS…
bring mental n spirit-u-all..
PERSEVERANCE..
Bcause da True key to being PROSPEROUS..is when Ur @
Peace…w PATIENCE!!!
What dey eat… WON’T…
make u SHIT!!!
SO…what dey drink..
CAN’T make u piss!!(get it?)
It’s a lesson…(less w/n)
Jus ask yaself a question…
WHO DROPPING U JEWELZ
4 DA PROPER DIRECTION?
All hugs n smiles.. don’t come w blessings…
So..b on point w who u have in close sections!!!
Ya enemies..are truly ya friend…
Bcause they teach u 2 manifest…morals..like..HOW?? WHERE?? WHEN??
So..I ask u my FRIENDS…(lol)..
Is having it EASY…
Defining a win????
If so..u Betta think 3x again..

Peace n blessings…T.O.

]]> Wed, 13 Mar 2019 18:04:18 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

I interviewed T.O. back in the summer of 2017. He’d just gotten out of prison, where he’s spent the majority of his adult life, and he was trying to figure out what to do next. After we met, he found employment and he enrolled at the Community College of Vermont. Things were going well. But what does it feel like to start a brand new life? It’s hard. And it’s complicated.

Credits

Music by Brian Clark

T.O.’s Poetry

Patience

Peep dis…
What’s patience??
What’s life w embracing trials and TRIBULATIONS without…
Patience???
Like…ppls ignorance… judgements…n gossiping…
Without patience.. there is no
Betterment!!!
I can’t reach my goals(10 folds)..
Until I reflect or resurrect..”my new from my old!!”
Looking back only seems
To subtract..&..
I find myself on da WRONG tracks..
Blinded by what..
I COULDN’T KEEP INTACT!!!
I initiate All I make…
Bcause it’s a fact…
“ONLY WEAKLINGS BREAK!!!”
God disciplines…
So with each reprimand…
Im grow into thicker skin..
Which brings into existence…
A GREATER MAN!!!
My physical is living proof…
How PATIENCE..is da key
which could ONLY..
Strengthen me..
2 b a wiser me!!!
So PATIENCE…
How I love thee…
I’m not single..
But damn bitch..
“Would u marry me??”

Peace…
Triple OMEGA

What’s Love?

What’s love?
Y is it so much pain??
Y does it shone lite on my soul..
Regardless 2 my darkest rains???
Y can’t I c past it??
Y won’t it allow me 2 4 get?
Y do I admire it as if..it’s my twin bastard??
How can it tug on my mind??
Y do it give me visions..when I think I’m blind?(what am I??)
Y do I continue to bust thru shittyations?
Y does it give me strength..n all I’m facing?
Beauty b the name!!!
Victorious n all life’s Lane’s..
But 1 thing…will always remain..
Dis motherfucka… won’t Eva get tired of GAIN..
It will make a sane person turn..INsane.
It’ll also mend a 💓..dats been crushed & broken..ova n OVA again…
It’s ONLY 1 rule 2 dis game..
Which is Neva/EVA rush…
Or u will find yaself in da repetitive position…!!!!!!!

P.e.a.c.e.!!!
I’m TripleOmega

It’s EZ

It’s EZ..2 have friends..
When ur tricking..or spending dividends!!
It’s EZ…2 smile@ life..
When it’s breezy, smooth or nyce!!
It’s EZ…2 have sights..
When Ur tunneled visioned..
Thru what U swore defined..
Da right life!!!
It’s jus EZ…to say..I Love U!!!..
When U don’t reflect on da issues..
Or da shit dat made u!!
So…if U ask me..
PERSONALLY… I don’t agree…w Any1
Or Anything dat respects…EZ!!!
TRIALS N TRIBULATIONS…
bring mental n spirit-u-all..
PERSEVERANCE..
Bcause da True key to being PROSPEROUS..is when Ur @
Peace…w PATIENCE!!!
What dey eat… WON’T…
make u SHIT!!!
SO…what dey drink..
CAN’T make u piss!!(get it?)
It’s a lesson…(less w/n)
Jus ask yaself a question…
WHO DROPPING U JEWELZ
4 DA PROPER DIRECTION?
All hugs n smiles.. don’t come w blessings…
So..b on point w who u have in close sections!!!
Ya enemies..are truly ya friend…
Bcause they teach u 2 manifest…morals..like..HOW?? WHERE?? WHEN??
So..I ask u my FRIENDS…(lol)..
Is having it EASY…
Defining a win????
If so..u Betta think 3x again..

Peace n blessings…T.O.

]]> Brand New Life Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:21:31 A second conversation with T.O. about starting a new life after prison. Which is complicated. A second conversation with T.O. about starting a new life after prison. Which is complicated. false full 168 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=4615 Deer Camp


I spent the night before deer season at Jim Welch’s deer camp in Chelsea, Vermont. His camp is an old school bus, outfitted with a woodstove and a couple pallets in the back for sleeping. To get to it you have to drive through Mr. Bradshaw’s barnyard and then about a half mile across a field. The bus has been there for as long as Jim can remember and Mr. Bradshaw lets him use it.

So a bunch of Jim’s friends were coming out to the bus to do what they always do the night before deer season, which is mostly drink beer, tell deer stories, eat burned hamburgers, bitch about hunting permissions and land use and give each other a hard time. And no surprise, there was plenty of profanity. And since there’s no movie theater, no bowling alley or much cell service in this valley, fun is something you have to make up together as you go along….

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I spent the night before deer season at Jim Welch’s deer camp in Chelsea, Vermont. His camp is an old school bus, outfitted with a woodstove and a couple pallets in the back for sleeping. To get to it you have to drive through Mr. Bradshaw’s barnyard and then about a half mile across a field. The bus has been there for as long as Jim can remember and Mr. Bradshaw lets him use it.

So a bunch of Jim’s friends were coming out to the bus to do what they always do the night before deer season, which is mostly drink beer, tell deer stories, eat burned hamburgers, bitch about hunting permissions and land use and give each other a hard time. And no surprise, there was plenty of profanity. And since there’s no movie theater, no bowling alley or much cell service in this valley, fun is something you have to make up together as you go along….

#ftg-55 .tile .icon { color:#ffffff; }#ftg-55 .ftg-items .loading-bar i { background:#666; }#ftg-55 .ftg-items .loading-bar { background:#fff; }#ftg-55 .tile .icon { font-size:12px; }#ftg-55 .tile .icon { margin: -6px 0 0 -6px; }#ftg-55 .tile .caption-block .text-wrapper span.text { font-size:12px; }#ftg-55 .tile .caption-outside .text-wrapper span.text { font-size:12px; }#ftg-55 .tile .caption-block .text-wrapper span.title { font-size:14px; }#ftg-55 .tile .caption-outside .text-wrapper span.title { font-size:14px; }#ftg-55 .tile { background-color: transparent; }#ftg-55 .tile .caption-block .text-wrapper span.text { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-55 .tile .caption-block .text-wrapper span.title { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-55 .tile .caption-outside .text-wrapper span.text { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-55 .tile .caption-outside .text-wrapper span.title { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-55 .tile .ftg-social a { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-55 .tile .caption-block { transition-timing-function:linear; }#ftg-55 .tile .caption-block { transition-duration:0.25s; }#ftg-55 .tile .tile-inner:before { background-color: #000000; }#ftg-55 .tile .tile-inner:before { background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8); }DSC06713DSC06713DSC06708DSC06708DSC06717DSC06717DSC06755DSC06755IMG_0501IMG_0501jQuery('#ftg-55 img.item').removeAttr('src');jQuery(document).ready(function () {setTimeout(function () {jQuery('#ftg-55').finalTilesGallery({minTileWidth: 250,margin: 10,loadMethod: 'sequential',nonce: '78b426ba1e',galleryId: '5',setupFilters: true,layout: 'final',debug: false,gridSize: 25,disableGridSizeBelow:800,allowEnlargement: true,imageSizeFactor: [ [4000, 0.9],[1024, 0.8],[768, 0.7],[640, 0.6],[320, 0.5]],selectedFilter: 'n-a'});jQuery(function () {(function () {var rel = '';jQuery('#ftg-55 .ftg-lightbox').click(function (e) {rel = jQuery(this).attr('rel');jQuery('#ftg-55 .ftg-current').removeClass('ftg-current');jQuery('#ftg-55 [rel="'+rel+'"]').addClass('ftg-current');});})();});}, 0);}); ]]> Deer Camp Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:14:32 First night at deer camp. In a snowstorm. First night at deer camp. In a snowstorm. false full 178 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=4548 Susan and I Talk About Cancer

A lot of you who listen to the show regularly already know Susan Randall. She’s a private investigator and an old friend and I interview her now and then for the show. A couple months ago Susan was diagnosed with breast cancer. It’s important to say right off that I think Susan’s going to be fine. The cancer hasn’t spread. She doesn’t need chemotherapy, and she’s almost done with her radiation therapy. But the diagnosis has made her think differently about her life. We got together at the hospital and talked about parenting, about aging, and mortality.

Credits:

Thank you to the great people at Radiation Oncology at The University of Vermont–Kate and Lena, Heather and Dr. Nelson. Also thanks to the University of Vermont Breast Care Center and to Michael Carrese and Annie Mackin. To read more about Susan’s private investigation business, go to vtprivateye.com. And for more shows with Susan on Rumble Strip, just go to the episodes listed below.

Susan’s private investigation business is called VTPrivateye

Music: Ticket to Ride, by the Carpenters.

]]> Mon, 28 Jan 2019 20:29:23 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

A lot of you who listen to the show regularly already know Susan Randall. She’s a private investigator and an old friend and I interview her now and then for the show. A couple months ago Susan was diagnosed with breast cancer. It’s important to say right off that I think Susan’s going to be fine. The cancer hasn’t spread. She doesn’t need chemotherapy, and she’s almost done with her radiation therapy. But the diagnosis has made her think differently about her life. We got together at the hospital and talked about parenting, about aging, and mortality.

Credits:

Thank you to the great people at Radiation Oncology at The University of Vermont–Kate and Lena, Heather and Dr. Nelson. Also thanks to the University of Vermont Breast Care Center and to Michael Carrese and Annie Mackin. To read more about Susan’s private investigation business, go to vtprivateye.com. And for more shows with Susan on Rumble Strip, just go to the episodes listed below.

Susan’s private investigation business is called VTPrivateye

Music: Ticket to Ride, by the Carpenters.

]]> Susan and I Talk About Cancer Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:19:43 Almost 50. The kids almost launched. Susan has a treatable cancer. We talk about what happens next. Almost 50. The kids almost launched. Susan has a treatable cancer. We talk about what happens next. false full 161 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=4449 Game Warden

I spent a day riding around with game warden, Jeff Whipple, on the second weekend of deer season…just when some hunters are getting frustrated they haven’t got their deer yet.

Exciting things happened.

Game wardens are like nature’s cops. They’re trained in law enforcement, but they’re also conservationists. Their job is to look after the wilderness areas and forests that make up 75 percent of Vermont. They’re spread thin across the state, so in order to respond quickly to calls, they have to work in the districts where they live. That means that their neighbors are also their constituents.

What’s most interesting to ME about game wardens is they come into contact with just about every kind of Vermonter, and they have to be able to talk with anyone. I love people like that.

Jeff lives in Chelsea, Vermont. His district includes areas of Orange and Windsor counties. His district is crazy beautiful.

]]> Thu, 10 Jan 2019 20:18:01 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

I spent a day riding around with game warden, Jeff Whipple, on the second weekend of deer season…just when some hunters are getting frustrated they haven’t got their deer yet.

Exciting things happened.

Game wardens are like nature’s cops. They’re trained in law enforcement, but they’re also conservationists. Their job is to look after the wilderness areas and forests that make up 75 percent of Vermont. They’re spread thin across the state, so in order to respond quickly to calls, they have to work in the districts where they live. That means that their neighbors are also their constituents.

What’s most interesting to ME about game wardens is they come into contact with just about every kind of Vermonter, and they have to be able to talk with anyone. I love people like that.

Jeff lives in Chelsea, Vermont. His district includes areas of Orange and Windsor counties. His district is crazy beautiful.

]]> Game Warden Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:22:45 I spent a day with game warden Jeff Whipple during deer season. It was exciting. I spent a day with game warden Jeff Whipple during deer season. It was exciting. false full 146 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=4281 Christine


What most people outside Vermont know about Christine Hallquist is that she was the country’s first transgender gubernatorial candidate. But it’s not what she ran on–and it’s not even what was most interesting about her campaign.

The day before election day, Christine and her team had just finished a fourteen-county Road to Victory Tour,  which involved going to places like Lunenburg, Vermont, population 1302. And this wasn’t her first visit to Lunenburg. Christine’s campaign focused on rural Vermont, on people in small towns in far flung places, and many of the towns she visited over the course of the campaign had never even seen a gubernatorial candidate before.

In my book, that’s what made her candidacy special. Not to mention the fact that the odds were against her–no ones beaten a gubernatorial incumbent in VT in 56 years.

I asked her if I could follow her around in the days leading up to the election. She said yes. And I did. I watched her planting Christine signs along Route 2. While she was at it, she righted a few sandwich board signs for Sunday night bingo that had blown over. She made countless calls and took credit card numbers from donors on the phone.

I guess it’s possible that other gubernatorial candidates do all this. But I doubt it.

Here’s Christine Hallquist in her final push for governor. Welcome.

Thank Yous

Thank you Teddy Waszazak, David Glidden, and Cameron Russell.

Thank you Mark Davis for producing this show with me.

Thank you John Van Hoesen for giving me the idea for this story.

Phone by Cameron Russell.

]]> Thu, 6 Dec 2018 03:25:38 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com


What most people outside Vermont know about Christine Hallquist is that she was the country’s first transgender gubernatorial candidate. But it’s not what she ran on–and it’s not even what was most interesting about her campaign.

The day before election day, Christine and her team had just finished a fourteen-county Road to Victory Tour,  which involved going to places like Lunenburg, Vermont, population 1302. And this wasn’t her first visit to Lunenburg. Christine’s campaign focused on rural Vermont, on people in small towns in far flung places, and many of the towns she visited over the course of the campaign had never even seen a gubernatorial candidate before.

In my book, that’s what made her candidacy special. Not to mention the fact that the odds were against her–no ones beaten a gubernatorial incumbent in VT in 56 years.

I asked her if I could follow her around in the days leading up to the election. She said yes. And I did. I watched her planting Christine signs along Route 2. While she was at it, she righted a few sandwich board signs for Sunday night bingo that had blown over. She made countless calls and took credit card numbers from donors on the phone.

I guess it’s possible that other gubernatorial candidates do all this. But I doubt it.

Here’s Christine Hallquist in her final push for governor. Welcome.

Thank Yous

Thank you Teddy Waszazak, David Glidden, and Cameron Russell.

Thank you Mark Davis for producing this show with me.

Thank you John Van Hoesen for giving me the idea for this story.

Phone by Cameron Russell.

]]> Christine Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:26:54 I followed Christine Hallquist in the last days of her gubernatorial campaign. She was fun. I followed Christine Hallquist in the last days of her gubernatorial campaign. She was fun. false full 151 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=4364 Problems, Episode 3: A Celebrity Interview

Welcome to another episode of Problems–a series about Pam and Joel, two old friends who support each other through their problems. Because no problem is too small to complain about.

This is a special episode, featuring special celebrity guest, Steve McFadden. McFadden is an acclaimed performance artist from Chicago, and old friend of Pam’s. His work is extreme, and always dangerous. Pam was conducting the interview on behalf of her daughter River, who was uncomfortable conducting the interview herself, which was a problem.

]]> Thu, 22 Nov 2018 17:54:22 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

Welcome to another episode of Problems–a series about Pam and Joel, two old friends who support each other through their problems. Because no problem is too small to complain about.

This is a special episode, featuring special celebrity guest, Steve McFadden. McFadden is an acclaimed performance artist from Chicago, and old friend of Pam’s. His work is extreme, and always dangerous. Pam was conducting the interview on behalf of her daughter River, who was uncomfortable conducting the interview herself, which was a problem.

]]> Problems, Episode 3: A Celebrity Interview Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:09:05 An interview with acclaimed performance artist Steve McFadden An interview with acclaimed performance artist Steve McFadden false full 142 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=4146 They Are Us, Part 1: Sarah
Sarah Holland had no history of mental illness. She was a full-time R.N., she had three kids and a small farm. She was busy. Then suddenly she started to experience symptoms of depression. She didn’t have a name for it. No one in her world had ever talked about mental health. But pretty soon Sarah was having a hard time working, and parenting.

This is a story of one woman’s struggle with major depression, and her recovery.

This show is the first in a seven-part series I produced for Vermont Public Radio called They Are Us, which features personal stories from inside the state’s mental healthcare system.

Comments: Please make a comment or share a story if you’ve got one. Comments and conversation are part of the point!

Credits:

Series Advisor: Dillon Burns, mental health services director at Vermont Care Partners

Series Associate Producers: Clare Dolan, Mark Davis

Series Executive Director: Sarah Ashworth

VPR Advisors: Franny Bastian and John Dillon

Mixing: Chris Albertine

Digital Producer: Meg Malone

Series Logo: Aaron Shrewsbury

Music for this series is by two excellent Montreal-based bands:

Godspeed You! Black Emporer and Esmerine. Special thanks to the awesome Bruce Cawdron

Sarah Holland’s awesome landscape company: River’s Bend Design

For more information about the series, visit VPR. You’ll find the series schedule and resources.

Very big thanks to the following people for their knowledge, time and advice: M.T. Anderson, Melissa Bailey, Gretchen Brown, Seleem Choudhury, Anne Clement, Jimmy Dennison, Isabelle Desjardins, Laurie Emerson, Deb Fleischman, Laura Flint, Al Gobeille, Alix Goldschmidt, Gary Gordon, Keith Grier, Heather Houle, Jenniflower, Karen Kurrle, Lt. Maurice Lamothe, Sabrina Leal, Fran Levine, Martie Majoros, Jack McCullough, Mark McGee, Megan McKeever, Betsy Morse, Bess O’Brien, Roxanne Pearson, Julie Potter and her beautiful daughter, Malaika Puffer, Michael Rousse, Marla Simpson, Montpelier Senior Activity Center, Sandy Steingard, Tony Stevens, Cindy Tabor, Gloria Vandenberg, Konstantin von Krusenstiern.

]]> Tue, 20 Nov 2018 20:19:44 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com
Sarah Holland had no history of mental illness. She was a full-time R.N., she had three kids and a small farm. She was busy. Then suddenly she started to experience symptoms of depression. She didn’t have a name for it. No one in her world had ever talked about mental health. But pretty soon Sarah was having a hard time working, and parenting.

This is a story of one woman’s struggle with major depression, and her recovery.

This show is the first in a seven-part series I produced for Vermont Public Radio called They Are Us, which features personal stories from inside the state’s mental healthcare system.

Comments: Please make a comment or share a story if you’ve got one. Comments and conversation are part of the point!

Credits:

Series Advisor: Dillon Burns, mental health services director at Vermont Care Partners

Series Associate Producers: Clare Dolan, Mark Davis

Series Executive Director: Sarah Ashworth

VPR Advisors: Franny Bastian and John Dillon

Mixing: Chris Albertine

Digital Producer: Meg Malone

Series Logo: Aaron Shrewsbury

Music for this series is by two excellent Montreal-based bands:

Godspeed You! Black Emporer and Esmerine. Special thanks to the awesome Bruce Cawdron

Sarah Holland’s awesome landscape company: River’s Bend Design

For more information about the series, visit VPR. You’ll find the series schedule and resources.

Very big thanks to the following people for their knowledge, time and advice: M.T. Anderson, Melissa Bailey, Gretchen Brown, Seleem Choudhury, Anne Clement, Jimmy Dennison, Isabelle Desjardins, Laurie Emerson, Deb Fleischman, Laura Flint, Al Gobeille, Alix Goldschmidt, Gary Gordon, Keith Grier, Heather Houle, Jenniflower, Karen Kurrle, Lt. Maurice Lamothe, Sabrina Leal, Fran Levine, Martie Majoros, Jack McCullough, Mark McGee, Megan McKeever, Betsy Morse, Bess O’Brien, Roxanne Pearson, Julie Potter and her beautiful daughter, Malaika Puffer, Michael Rousse, Marla Simpson, Montpelier Senior Activity Center, Sandy Steingard, Tony Stevens, Cindy Tabor, Gloria Vandenberg, Konstantin von Krusenstiern.

]]> They Are Us, Part 1: Sarah Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:13:23 The story of one woman's struggle with major depression, and her recovery. The story of one woman's struggle with major depression, and her recovery. false full 140 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=4189 They Are Us, Show 4: They Are Us

How should people live long-term in our state if they have a serious mental illness? The hope is that they’ll find ways to integrate into their communities with support, but that’s proven tough to accomplish. In this show we look at the challenges in our community mental health care system.

Featuring:

  • Ken Libertoff, former director of the Vermont Association for Mental Health
  • Anne Donahue, state representative from Northfield and Berlin, editor of Counterpoint
  • Greg Mairs, operational director of adult services at Counseling Service of Addison County
  • Mary Moulton, executive director of Washington County Mental Health Services
  • Michael Hartman, adult mental health director at Lamoille County Mental Health
  • Connie Stabler, mother and Howard Center board member
  • Louis Josephson, president and CEO of Brattleboro Retreat

This show is part of a seven-part series I produced for Vermont Public Radio called They Are Us, which features personal stories from inside the state’s mental healthcare system.

Comments: Please make a comment or share a story if you’ve got one. Comments and conversation are part of the point!

Credits:

Series Advisor: Dillon Burns, mental health services director at Vermont Care Partners

Series Associate Producers: Clare Dolan, Mark Davis

Series Executive Director: Sarah Ashworth

VPR Advisors: Franny Bastian and John Dillon

Mixing: Chris Albertine

Digital Producer: Meg Malone

Series Logo: Aaron Shrewsbury

Picture: Anne Donahue knockin it out of the park

Music for this series is by two excellent Montreal-based bands:

Godspeed You! Black Emporer and Esmerine. Special thanks to the awesome Bruce Cawdron

For more information about the series, visit VPR. You’ll find the series schedule and resources.

Very big thanks to the following people for their knowledge, time and advice: M.T. Anderson, Melissa Bailey, Gretchen Brown, Seleem Choudhury, Anne Clement, Jimmy Dennison, Isabelle Desjardins, Laurie Emerson, Deb Fleischman, Laura Flint, Al Gobeille, Alix Goldschmidt, Gary Gordon, Keith Grier, Heather Houle, Jenniflower, Karen Kurrle, Lt. Maurice Lamothe, Sabrina Leal, Fran Levine, Martie Majoros, Jack McCullough, Mark McGee, Megan McKeever, Betsy Morse, Bess O’Brien, Roxanne Pearson, Julie Potter and her beautiful daughter, Malaika Puffer, Michael Rousse, Marla Simpson, Montpelier Senior Activity Center, Sandy Steingard, Tony Stevens, Cindy Tabor, Gloria Vandenberg, Konstantin von Krusenstiern.

]]> Tue, 20 Nov 2018 19:01:02 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

How should people live long-term in our state if they have a serious mental illness? The hope is that they’ll find ways to integrate into their communities with support, but that’s proven tough to accomplish. In this show we look at the challenges in our community mental health care system.

Featuring:

  • Ken Libertoff, former director of the Vermont Association for Mental Health
  • Anne Donahue, state representative from Northfield and Berlin, editor of Counterpoint
  • Greg Mairs, operational director of adult services at Counseling Service of Addison County
  • Mary Moulton, executive director of Washington County Mental Health Services
  • Michael Hartman, adult mental health director at Lamoille County Mental Health
  • Connie Stabler, mother and Howard Center board member
  • Louis Josephson, president and CEO of Brattleboro Retreat

This show is part of a seven-part series I produced for Vermont Public Radio called They Are Us, which features personal stories from inside the state’s mental healthcare system.

Comments: Please make a comment or share a story if you’ve got one. Comments and conversation are part of the point!

Credits:

Series Advisor: Dillon Burns, mental health services director at Vermont Care Partners

Series Associate Producers: Clare Dolan, Mark Davis

Series Executive Director: Sarah Ashworth

VPR Advisors: Franny Bastian and John Dillon

Mixing: Chris Albertine

Digital Producer: Meg Malone

Series Logo: Aaron Shrewsbury

Picture: Anne Donahue knockin it out of the park

Music for this series is by two excellent Montreal-based bands:

Godspeed You! Black Emporer and Esmerine. Special thanks to the awesome Bruce Cawdron

For more information about the series, visit VPR. You’ll find the series schedule and resources.

Very big thanks to the following people for their knowledge, time and advice: M.T. Anderson, Melissa Bailey, Gretchen Brown, Seleem Choudhury, Anne Clement, Jimmy Dennison, Isabelle Desjardins, Laurie Emerson, Deb Fleischman, Laura Flint, Al Gobeille, Alix Goldschmidt, Gary Gordon, Keith Grier, Heather Houle, Jenniflower, Karen Kurrle, Lt. Maurice Lamothe, Sabrina Leal, Fran Levine, Martie Majoros, Jack McCullough, Mark McGee, Megan McKeever, Betsy Morse, Bess O’Brien, Roxanne Pearson, Julie Potter and her beautiful daughter, Malaika Puffer, Michael Rousse, Marla Simpson, Montpelier Senior Activity Center, Sandy Steingard, Tony Stevens, Cindy Tabor, Gloria Vandenberg, Konstantin von Krusenstiern.

]]> They Are Us, Show 4: They Are Us Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:13:54 In this show we look at the challenges in our community mental health care system. In this show we look at the challenges in our community mental health care system. false full 137 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=4197 They Are Us, Show 7: Work

Both Alexis and Steve were diagnosed with schizophrenia. This is the story about how meaningful, paid work plays a role in their recovery.

Featuring:

  • Paul Miller, co-coordinator of the Green Mountain Workforce, Washington County Mental Health
  • Louis Josephson, president and CEO of Brattleboro Retreat
  • Alexis Kyriak, artist
  • Steve, culinary worker

This show is part of a seven-part series I produced for Vermont Public Radio called They Are Us, which features personal stories from inside the state’s mental healthcare system.

Comments: Please make a comment or share a story if you’ve got one. Comments and conversation are part of the point!

Credits:

Series Advisor: Dillon Burns, mental health services director at Vermont Care Partners

Series Associate Producers: Clare Dolan, Mark Davis

Series Executive Director: Sarah Ashworth

VPR Advisors: Franny Bastian and John Dillon

Mixing: Chris Albertine

Digital Producer: Meg Malone

Series Logo: Aaron Shrewsbury

Music for this series is by two excellent Montreal-based bands:

Godspeed You! Black Emporer and Esmerine. Special thanks to the awesome Bruce Cawdron

Photo of Alexis by Diana Gonsalves

For more information about the series, visit VPR. You’ll find the series schedule and resources.

Very big thanks to the following people for their knowledge, time and advice: M.T. Anderson, Melissa Bailey, Gretchen Brown, Seleem Choudhury, Anne Clement, Jimmy Dennison, Isabelle Desjardins, Laurie Emerson, Deb Fleischman, Laura Flint, Al Gobeille, Alix Goldschmidt, Gary Gordon, Keith Grier, Heather Houle, Jenniflower, Karen Kurrle, Lt. Maurice Lamothe, Sabrina Leal, Fran Levine, Martie Majoros, Jack McCullough, Mark McGee, Megan McKeever, Betsy Morse, Bess O’Brien, Roxanne Pearson, Julie Potter and her beautiful daughter, Malaika Puffer, Michael Rousse, Marla Simpson, Montpelier Senior Activity Center, Sandy Steingard, Tony Stevens, Cindy Tabor, Gloria Vandenberg, Konstantin von Krusenstiern.

]]> Tue, 20 Nov 2018 18:48:45 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

Both Alexis and Steve were diagnosed with schizophrenia. This is the story about how meaningful, paid work plays a role in their recovery.

Featuring:

  • Paul Miller, co-coordinator of the Green Mountain Workforce, Washington County Mental Health
  • Louis Josephson, president and CEO of Brattleboro Retreat
  • Alexis Kyriak, artist
  • Steve, culinary worker

This show is part of a seven-part series I produced for Vermont Public Radio called They Are Us, which features personal stories from inside the state’s mental healthcare system.

Comments: Please make a comment or share a story if you’ve got one. Comments and conversation are part of the point!

Credits:

Series Advisor: Dillon Burns, mental health services director at Vermont Care Partners

Series Associate Producers: Clare Dolan, Mark Davis

Series Executive Director: Sarah Ashworth

VPR Advisors: Franny Bastian and John Dillon

Mixing: Chris Albertine

Digital Producer: Meg Malone

Series Logo: Aaron Shrewsbury

Music for this series is by two excellent Montreal-based bands:

Godspeed You! Black Emporer and Esmerine. Special thanks to the awesome Bruce Cawdron

Photo of Alexis by Diana Gonsalves

For more information about the series, visit VPR. You’ll find the series schedule and resources.

Very big thanks to the following people for their knowledge, time and advice: M.T. Anderson, Melissa Bailey, Gretchen Brown, Seleem Choudhury, Anne Clement, Jimmy Dennison, Isabelle Desjardins, Laurie Emerson, Deb Fleischman, Laura Flint, Al Gobeille, Alix Goldschmidt, Gary Gordon, Keith Grier, Heather Houle, Jenniflower, Karen Kurrle, Lt. Maurice Lamothe, Sabrina Leal, Fran Levine, Martie Majoros, Jack McCullough, Mark McGee, Megan McKeever, Betsy Morse, Bess O’Brien, Roxanne Pearson, Julie Potter and her beautiful daughter, Malaika Puffer, Michael Rousse, Marla Simpson, Montpelier Senior Activity Center, Sandy Steingard, Tony Stevens, Cindy Tabor, Gloria Vandenberg, Konstantin von Krusenstiern.

]]> They Are Us, Show 7: Work Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:11:47 The role that meaningful work plays in the lives of those with serious mental illness The role that meaningful work plays in the lives of those with serious mental illness false full 132 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=4194 They Are Us, Show 6: I Could Be Well

Leslie Nelson has heard voices for as long as she can remember. She sees things other people don’t see. This is a conversation about what it’s like to be normal, from Leslie’s point of view, and the incredible power of finding people like herself to talk with about their normal lives with mental illness.

Featuring:

  • Leslie Nelson, START Team Leader, Howard Center

This show is part of a seven-part series I produced for Vermont Public Radio called They Are Us, which features personal stories from inside the state’s mental healthcare system.

Comments: Please make a comment or share a story if you’ve got one. Comments and conversation are part of the point!

Credits:

Series Advisor: Dillon Burns, mental health services director at Vermont Care Partners

Series Associate Producers: Clare Dolan, Mark Davis

Series Executive Director: Sarah Ashworth

VPR Advisors: Franny Bastian and John Dillon

Mixing: Chris Albertine

Digital Producer: Meg Malone

Series Logo: Aaron Shrewsbury

Music for this series is by two excellent Montreal-based bands:

Godspeed You! Black Emporer and Esmerine. Special thanks to the awesome Bruce Cawdron

For more information about the series, visit VPR. You’ll find the series schedule and resources.

Very big thanks to the following people for their knowledge, time and advice: M.T. Anderson, Melissa Bailey, Gretchen Brown, Seleem Choudhury, Anne Clement, Jimmy Dennison, Isabelle Desjardins, Laurie Emerson, Deb Fleischman, Laura Flint, Al Gobeille, Alix Goldschmidt, Gary Gordon, Keith Grier, Heather Houle, Jenniflower, Karen Kurrle, Lt. Maurice Lamothe, Sabrina Leal, Fran Levine, Martie Majoros, Jack McCullough, Mark McGee, Megan McKeever, Betsy Morse, Bess O’Brien, Roxanne Pearson, Julie Potter and her beautiful daughter, Malaika Puffer, Michael Rousse, Marla Simpson, Montpelier Senior Activity Center, Sandy Steingard, Tony Stevens, Cindy Tabor, Gloria Vandenberg, Konstantin von Krusenstiern.

]]> Tue, 20 Nov 2018 18:34:20 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

Leslie Nelson has heard voices for as long as she can remember. She sees things other people don’t see. This is a conversation about what it’s like to be normal, from Leslie’s point of view, and the incredible power of finding people like herself to talk with about their normal lives with mental illness.

Featuring:

  • Leslie Nelson, START Team Leader, Howard Center

This show is part of a seven-part series I produced for Vermont Public Radio called They Are Us, which features personal stories from inside the state’s mental healthcare system.

Comments: Please make a comment or share a story if you’ve got one. Comments and conversation are part of the point!

Credits:

Series Advisor: Dillon Burns, mental health services director at Vermont Care Partners

Series Associate Producers: Clare Dolan, Mark Davis

Series Executive Director: Sarah Ashworth

VPR Advisors: Franny Bastian and John Dillon

Mixing: Chris Albertine

Digital Producer: Meg Malone

Series Logo: Aaron Shrewsbury

Music for this series is by two excellent Montreal-based bands:

Godspeed You! Black Emporer and Esmerine. Special thanks to the awesome Bruce Cawdron

For more information about the series, visit VPR. You’ll find the series schedule and resources.

Very big thanks to the following people for their knowledge, time and advice: M.T. Anderson, Melissa Bailey, Gretchen Brown, Seleem Choudhury, Anne Clement, Jimmy Dennison, Isabelle Desjardins, Laurie Emerson, Deb Fleischman, Laura Flint, Al Gobeille, Alix Goldschmidt, Gary Gordon, Keith Grier, Heather Houle, Jenniflower, Karen Kurrle, Lt. Maurice Lamothe, Sabrina Leal, Fran Levine, Martie Majoros, Jack McCullough, Mark McGee, Megan McKeever, Betsy Morse, Bess O’Brien, Roxanne Pearson, Julie Potter and her beautiful daughter, Malaika Puffer, Michael Rousse, Marla Simpson, Montpelier Senior Activity Center, Sandy Steingard, Tony Stevens, Cindy Tabor, Gloria Vandenberg, Konstantin von Krusenstiern.

]]> They Are Us, Show 6: I Could Be Well Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:15:20 Leslie hears voices. This is a story about what it’s like to be normal, from Leslie’s point of view. Leslie hears voices. This is a story about what it’s like to be normal, from Leslie’s point of view. false full 134 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=4183 They Are Us, Show 3: Parents


Connie’s son was diagnosed with schizophrenia when he was nineteen, just as he was becoming independent. He didn’t believe there was anything wrong with him. He did not want to seek treatment. And since he was legally an adult, his parents stood by and watched his life fall apart.

Ron’s story was much the same.

One in 100 adults is diagnosed with schizophrenia, and for most, the onset is around this time, in late adolescence, and parents often play a critical role in their care. As caregivers, crisis responders, money lenders…and often they end up having to figure out for themselves which services are available to them, in the complex network of programs that make up the community mental health system.

This is a story about what it’s like, day to day, year to year, to be the parent of an adult child with schizophrenia.

I’d love to hear your comments. Just go to the show page and scroll to the bottom and you’ll find a comment box there.

Featuring:

  • Connie Stabler, a mother and Howard Center board member
  • Ron, a father (note: we are only using Ron’s first name)

This show is part of a seven-part series I produced for Vermont Public Radio called They Are Us, which features personal stories from inside the state’s mental healthcare system.

Comments: Please make a comment or share a story if you’ve got one. Comments and conversation are part of the point!

Credits:

Series Advisor: Dillon Burns, mental health services director at Vermont Care Partners

Series Associate Producers: Clare Dolan, Mark Davis

Series Executive Director: Sarah Ashworth

VPR Advisors: Franny Bastian and John Dillon

Mixing: Chris Albertine

Digital Producer: Meg Malone

Series Logo: Aaron Shrewsbury

Music for this series is by two excellent Montreal-based bands:

Godspeed You! Black Emporer and Esmerine. Special thanks to the awesome Bruce Cawdron

For more information about the series, visit VPR. You’ll find the series schedule and resources.

Very big thanks to the following people for their knowledge, time and advice: M.T. Anderson, Melissa Bailey, Gretchen Brown, Seleem Choudhury, Anne Clement, Jimmy Dennison, Isabelle Desjardins, Laurie Emerson, Deb Fleischman, Laura Flint, Al Gobeille, Alix Goldschmidt, Gary Gordon, Keith Grier, Heather Houle, Jenniflower, Karen Kurrle, Lt. Maurice Lamothe, Sabrina Leal, Fran Levine, Martie Majoros, Jack McCullough, Mark McGee, Megan McKeever, Betsy Morse, Bess O’Brien, Roxanne Pearson, Julie Potter and her beautiful daughter, Malaika Puffer, Michael Rousse, Marla Simpson, Montpelier Senior Activity Center, Sandy Steingard, Tony Stevens, Cindy Tabor, Gloria Vandenberg, Konstantin von Krusenstiern.

]]> Tue, 20 Nov 2018 17:46:53 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com


Connie’s son was diagnosed with schizophrenia when he was nineteen, just as he was becoming independent. He didn’t believe there was anything wrong with him. He did not want to seek treatment. And since he was legally an adult, his parents stood by and watched his life fall apart.

Ron’s story was much the same.

One in 100 adults is diagnosed with schizophrenia, and for most, the onset is around this time, in late adolescence, and parents often play a critical role in their care. As caregivers, crisis responders, money lenders…and often they end up having to figure out for themselves which services are available to them, in the complex network of programs that make up the community mental health system.

This is a story about what it’s like, day to day, year to year, to be the parent of an adult child with schizophrenia.

I’d love to hear your comments. Just go to the show page and scroll to the bottom and you’ll find a comment box there.

Featuring:

  • Connie Stabler, a mother and Howard Center board member
  • Ron, a father (note: we are only using Ron’s first name)

This show is part of a seven-part series I produced for Vermont Public Radio called They Are Us, which features personal stories from inside the state’s mental healthcare system.

Comments: Please make a comment or share a story if you’ve got one. Comments and conversation are part of the point!

Credits:

Series Advisor: Dillon Burns, mental health services director at Vermont Care Partners

Series Associate Producers: Clare Dolan, Mark Davis

Series Executive Director: Sarah Ashworth

VPR Advisors: Franny Bastian and John Dillon

Mixing: Chris Albertine

Digital Producer: Meg Malone

Series Logo: Aaron Shrewsbury

Music for this series is by two excellent Montreal-based bands:

Godspeed You! Black Emporer and Esmerine. Special thanks to the awesome Bruce Cawdron

For more information about the series, visit VPR. You’ll find the series schedule and resources.

Very big thanks to the following people for their knowledge, time and advice: M.T. Anderson, Melissa Bailey, Gretchen Brown, Seleem Choudhury, Anne Clement, Jimmy Dennison, Isabelle Desjardins, Laurie Emerson, Deb Fleischman, Laura Flint, Al Gobeille, Alix Goldschmidt, Gary Gordon, Keith Grier, Heather Houle, Jenniflower, Karen Kurrle, Lt. Maurice Lamothe, Sabrina Leal, Fran Levine, Martie Majoros, Jack McCullough, Mark McGee, Megan McKeever, Betsy Morse, Bess O’Brien, Roxanne Pearson, Julie Potter and her beautiful daughter, Malaika Puffer, Michael Rousse, Marla Simpson, Montpelier Senior Activity Center, Sandy Steingard, Tony Stevens, Cindy Tabor, Gloria Vandenberg, Konstantin von Krusenstiern.

]]> They Are Us, Show 3: Parents Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:15:40 What it's like day to day, year to year, to be the parent of a child with schizophrenia. What it's like day to day, year to year, to be the parent of a child with schizophrenia. false full 138 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=4174 They Are Us, Part 2: Home

There are Vermonters who experience psychiatric crises for years — and repeated visits to emergency rooms and psychiatric hospitals. Where do they go when they leave the hospital? And why do they keep coming back? This is a story about the role housing plays in mental health.

Featuring:

  • Ken Libertoff, former director of the Vermont Association for Mental Health
  • Louis Josephson, president and CEO of Brattleboro Retreat
  • Brian Lincourt, night charge nurse at Brattleboro Retreat
  • Connie Stabler, mother and Howard Center board member
  • Karl Jeffries, unit chief for adult inpatient unit at Brattleboro Retreat

This show is part of a seven-part series I produced for Vermont Public Radio called They Are Us, which features personal stories from inside the state’s mental healthcare system.

Comments: Please make a comment or share a story if you’ve got one. Comments and conversation are part of the point!

Credits:

Series Advisor: Dillon Burns, mental health services director at Vermont Care Partners

Series Associate Producers: Clare Dolan, Mark Davis

Series Executive Director: Sarah Ashworth

VPR Advisors: Franny Bastian and John Dillon

Mixing: Chris Albertine

Digital Producer: Meg Malone

Series Logo: Aaron Shrewsbury

Music for this series is by two excellent Montreal-based bands:

Godspeed You! Black Emporer and Esmerine. Special thanks to the awesome Bruce Cawdron

For more information about the series, visit VPR. You’ll find the series schedule and resources.

Very big thanks to the following people for their knowledge, time and advice: M.T. Anderson, Melissa Bailey, Gretchen Brown, Seleem Choudhury, Anne Clement, Jimmy Dennison, Isabelle Desjardins, Laurie Emerson, Deb Fleischman, Laura Flint, Al Gobeille, Alix Goldschmidt, Gary Gordon, Keith Grier, Heather Houle, Jenniflower, Karen Kurrle, Lt. Maurice Lamothe, Sabrina Leal, Fran Levine, Martie Majoros, Jack McCullough, Mark McGee, Megan McKeever, Betsy Morse, Bess O’Brien, Roxanne Pearson, Julie Potter and her beautiful daughter, Malaika Puffer, Michael Rousse, Marla Simpson, Montpelier Senior Activity Center, Sandy Steingard, Tony Stevens, Cindy Tabor, Gloria Vandenberg, Konstantin von Krusenstiern.

]]> Tue, 20 Nov 2018 15:16:36 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

There are Vermonters who experience psychiatric crises for years — and repeated visits to emergency rooms and psychiatric hospitals. Where do they go when they leave the hospital? And why do they keep coming back? This is a story about the role housing plays in mental health.

Featuring:

  • Ken Libertoff, former director of the Vermont Association for Mental Health
  • Louis Josephson, president and CEO of Brattleboro Retreat
  • Brian Lincourt, night charge nurse at Brattleboro Retreat
  • Connie Stabler, mother and Howard Center board member
  • Karl Jeffries, unit chief for adult inpatient unit at Brattleboro Retreat

This show is part of a seven-part series I produced for Vermont Public Radio called They Are Us, which features personal stories from inside the state’s mental healthcare system.

Comments: Please make a comment or share a story if you’ve got one. Comments and conversation are part of the point!

Credits:

Series Advisor: Dillon Burns, mental health services director at Vermont Care Partners

Series Associate Producers: Clare Dolan, Mark Davis

Series Executive Director: Sarah Ashworth

VPR Advisors: Franny Bastian and John Dillon

Mixing: Chris Albertine

Digital Producer: Meg Malone

Series Logo: Aaron Shrewsbury

Music for this series is by two excellent Montreal-based bands:

Godspeed You! Black Emporer and Esmerine. Special thanks to the awesome Bruce Cawdron

For more information about the series, visit VPR. You’ll find the series schedule and resources.

Very big thanks to the following people for their knowledge, time and advice: M.T. Anderson, Melissa Bailey, Gretchen Brown, Seleem Choudhury, Anne Clement, Jimmy Dennison, Isabelle Desjardins, Laurie Emerson, Deb Fleischman, Laura Flint, Al Gobeille, Alix Goldschmidt, Gary Gordon, Keith Grier, Heather Houle, Jenniflower, Karen Kurrle, Lt. Maurice Lamothe, Sabrina Leal, Fran Levine, Martie Majoros, Jack McCullough, Mark McGee, Megan McKeever, Betsy Morse, Bess O’Brien, Roxanne Pearson, Julie Potter and her beautiful daughter, Malaika Puffer, Michael Rousse, Marla Simpson, Montpelier Senior Activity Center, Sandy Steingard, Tony Stevens, Cindy Tabor, Gloria Vandenberg, Konstantin von Krusenstiern.

]]> They Are Us, Part 2: Home Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:12:54 Housing for people with serious mental illness is in short supply... Housing for people with serious mental illness is in short supply... false full 139 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=4191 They Are Us, Show 5: My Pad

A story about Vermont’s only permanent, supervised housing for people with serious mental illness.

Featuring:

  • Anne Donohue, state representative from Northfield and Berlin, editor of Counterpoint
  • Graham Parker, MyPad director
  • Connie Stabler, mother and Howard Center board member

This show is part of a seven-part series I produced for Vermont Public Radio called They Are Us, which features personal stories from inside the state’s mental healthcare system.

Comments: Please make a comment or share a story if you’ve got one. Comments and conversation are part of the point!

Credits:

Series Advisor: Dillon Burns, mental health services director at Vermont Care Partners

Series Associate Producers: Clare Dolan, Mark Davis

Series Executive Director: Sarah Ashworth

VPR Advisors: Franny Bastian and John Dillon

Mixing: Chris Albertine

Digital Producer: Meg Malone

Series Logo: Aaron Shrewsbury

Music for this series is by two excellent Montreal-based bands:

Godspeed You! Black Emporer and Esmerine. Special thanks to the awesome Bruce Cawdron

For more information about the series, visit VPR. You’ll find the series schedule and resources.

Very big thanks to the following people for their knowledge, time and advice: M.T. Anderson, Melissa Bailey, Gretchen Brown, Seleem Choudhury, Anne Clement, Jimmy Dennison, Isabelle Desjardins, Laurie Emerson, Deb Fleischman, Laura Flint, Al Gobeille, Alix Goldschmidt, Gary Gordon, Keith Grier, Heather Houle, Jenniflower, Karen Kurrle, Lt. Maurice Lamothe, Sabrina Leal, Fran Levine, Martie Majoros, Jack McCullough, Mark McGee, Megan McKeever, Betsy Morse, Bess O’Brien, Roxanne Pearson, Julie Potter and her beautiful daughter, Malaika Puffer, Michael Rousse, Marla Simpson, Montpelier Senior Activity Center, Sandy Steingard, Tony Stevens, Cindy Tabor, Gloria Vandenberg, Konstantin von Krusenstiern.

]]> Tue, 20 Nov 2018 12:53:47 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

A story about Vermont’s only permanent, supervised housing for people with serious mental illness.

Featuring:

  • Anne Donohue, state representative from Northfield and Berlin, editor of Counterpoint
  • Graham Parker, MyPad director
  • Connie Stabler, mother and Howard Center board member

This show is part of a seven-part series I produced for Vermont Public Radio called They Are Us, which features personal stories from inside the state’s mental healthcare system.

Comments: Please make a comment or share a story if you’ve got one. Comments and conversation are part of the point!

Credits:

Series Advisor: Dillon Burns, mental health services director at Vermont Care Partners

Series Associate Producers: Clare Dolan, Mark Davis

Series Executive Director: Sarah Ashworth

VPR Advisors: Franny Bastian and John Dillon

Mixing: Chris Albertine

Digital Producer: Meg Malone

Series Logo: Aaron Shrewsbury

Music for this series is by two excellent Montreal-based bands:

Godspeed You! Black Emporer and Esmerine. Special thanks to the awesome Bruce Cawdron

For more information about the series, visit VPR. You’ll find the series schedule and resources.

Very big thanks to the following people for their knowledge, time and advice: M.T. Anderson, Melissa Bailey, Gretchen Brown, Seleem Choudhury, Anne Clement, Jimmy Dennison, Isabelle Desjardins, Laurie Emerson, Deb Fleischman, Laura Flint, Al Gobeille, Alix Goldschmidt, Gary Gordon, Keith Grier, Heather Houle, Jenniflower, Karen Kurrle, Lt. Maurice Lamothe, Sabrina Leal, Fran Levine, Martie Majoros, Jack McCullough, Mark McGee, Megan McKeever, Betsy Morse, Bess O’Brien, Roxanne Pearson, Julie Potter and her beautiful daughter, Malaika Puffer, Michael Rousse, Marla Simpson, Montpelier Senior Activity Center, Sandy Steingard, Tony Stevens, Cindy Tabor, Gloria Vandenberg, Konstantin von Krusenstiern.

]]> They Are Us, Show 5: My Pad Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:10:01 A story about Vermont’s only permanent, supervised housing for people with serious mental illness. A story about Vermont’s only permanent, supervised housing for people with serious mental illness. false full 136 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=4072 Cheerleader

We didn’t have cheerleading at my school. Or pep rallies. I think we would’ve made fun of cheering and cheerleaders at my school. Because we were scared and cruel and had no idea what we were missing.

My son just started high school and I snuck into the gym for his first pep rally. I almost wept. Seeing all those kids—the freshmen and the seniors and the football players and the shy kids—kids at a stage in life that can be so self conscious and horrible—seeing them all clapping and cheering together and ‘moving to the left and shaking to the right’….it was ridiculous and beautiful and unlike anything I’ve ever seen.

And right at the middle of all of it were the cheerleaders. So I went and talked with them. They talked about why they love cheerleading and what they’re afraid of and what they’re proud of and what they want to be with they grow up. And school spirit…

Thanks to all the girls on the St. Johnsbury Academy Cheerleading team for talking with me, and coaches Deb Priest and Chrissy Carr. For more pictures and info on the team, click here.

Thanks also to Mark Davis for his great advice. As always.

Our Generous Sponsor:

This show is sponsored by Honey Road, one of Burlington’s most popular restaurants down on Church and Main. It serves Eastern Mediterranean small plates. And it’s the kind of restaurant where you want everything on the menu. You share, you eat, they take away the finished plates and bring new ones. In other words, it’s episodic and fun. It’s also woman owned, woman run, and Allison and Cara have made a sane and happy work environment. You can even buy the kitchen staff a bucket of beer…

]]> Thu, 4 Oct 2018 14:45:14 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

We didn’t have cheerleading at my school. Or pep rallies. I think we would’ve made fun of cheering and cheerleaders at my school. Because we were scared and cruel and had no idea what we were missing.

My son just started high school and I snuck into the gym for his first pep rally. I almost wept. Seeing all those kids—the freshmen and the seniors and the football players and the shy kids—kids at a stage in life that can be so self conscious and horrible—seeing them all clapping and cheering together and ‘moving to the left and shaking to the right’….it was ridiculous and beautiful and unlike anything I’ve ever seen.

And right at the middle of all of it were the cheerleaders. So I went and talked with them. They talked about why they love cheerleading and what they’re afraid of and what they’re proud of and what they want to be with they grow up. And school spirit…

Thanks to all the girls on the St. Johnsbury Academy Cheerleading team for talking with me, and coaches Deb Priest and Chrissy Carr. For more pictures and info on the team, click here.

Thanks also to Mark Davis for his great advice. As always.

Our Generous Sponsor:

This show is sponsored by Honey Road, one of Burlington’s most popular restaurants down on Church and Main. It serves Eastern Mediterranean small plates. And it’s the kind of restaurant where you want everything on the menu. You share, you eat, they take away the finished plates and bring new ones. In other words, it’s episodic and fun. It’s also woman owned, woman run, and Allison and Cara have made a sane and happy work environment. You can even buy the kitchen staff a bucket of beer…

]]> Cheerleader Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:14:39 It turns out there really is something called school spirit. Now I’m a believer. It turns out there really is something called school spirit. Now I’m a believer. false full 206 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=3986 Graffiti Photographer
Steve Grody has dedicated his life to his passions. He’s an accomplished swing dance teacher. He’s a self defense instructor. And in the last twenty-eight years, he’s taken tens of thousands of photographs of graffiti in his hometown of Los Angeles. This is a conversation about the decades he’s spent wandering alleyways, climbing under bridges and through tunnels,  documenting this ephemeral art.

This program is produced by Bianca Giaever. She’s a writer, filmmaker, artist and radio producer, and recently I heard a story she made with Jay Allison that was sublime. It’s called Two Years with Franz, about the Pulitzer-winning poet Franz Wright. It’s beautiful and I highly recommend it. Her college film, the Scared is scared was named Web Video of the Year by USA Today but more importantly, it’s awesome.

More about Steve

You can see Steve Grody’s photos in his book,  Graffiti L.A., Street Styles and Art, and he has curated and contributed to graffiti art shows at MOCA LA and the Pasadena Museum of California Art.

Steve Grody’s blog

Ted Talk with Steve

Music

A Day At The Racetrack, by the musician Julian Lynch

Additional music by Zubin Hensler and Jacob Blumberg







]]> Fri, 28 Sep 2018 17:05:56 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com
Steve Grody has dedicated his life to his passions. He’s an accomplished swing dance teacher. He’s a self defense instructor. And in the last twenty-eight years, he’s taken tens of thousands of photographs of graffiti in his hometown of Los Angeles. This is a conversation about the decades he’s spent wandering alleyways, climbing under bridges and through tunnels,  documenting this ephemeral art.

This program is produced by Bianca Giaever. She’s a writer, filmmaker, artist and radio producer, and recently I heard a story she made with Jay Allison that was sublime. It’s called Two Years with Franz, about the Pulitzer-winning poet Franz Wright. It’s beautiful and I highly recommend it. Her college film, the Scared is scared was named Web Video of the Year by USA Today but more importantly, it’s awesome.

More about Steve

You can see Steve Grody’s photos in his book,  Graffiti L.A., Street Styles and Art, and he has curated and contributed to graffiti art shows at MOCA LA and the Pasadena Museum of California Art.

Steve Grody’s blog

Ted Talk with Steve

Music

A Day At The Racetrack, by the musician Julian Lynch

Additional music by Zubin Hensler and Jacob Blumberg







]]> Graffiti Photographer Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:11:37 Steve has spent decades wandering alleyways, climbing under bridges...documenting graffiti. Steve has spent decades wandering alleyways, climbing under bridges...documenting graffiti. false full 124 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=3949 Let’s Pull the Damn Woman Card

This is a show about women running for office. It’s not about issues or policies. You won’t learn where these women stand on public education or healthcare. It’s just about being a woman…running for office.

The truth is I’m tired of hearing about women running for office. I think there’s a liberal assumption that I already understand why that’s a good thing. But we’re not really supposed to talk explicitly about how being a woman, and not being a man, can be a value in and of itself.

So I figured it would be interesting to talk explicitly about it with some women running for office in Vermont. And it turns out they had plenty to say. It also turns out they’re all people I’d want to have a beer with…that gold standard of good male political candidates.

In this program you’ll hear from:

Kathleen James, running for the Vermont House in the Bennnington-4 District.

Becca White, running for the Vermont House in Hartford.

Christine Hallquist, the Democratic nominee for governor in Vermont.

Ruth Hardy, running for State Senate in Addison County. She is also the executive director of Emerge Vermont, which recruits and trains women to run for office in Vermont.

This show is sponsored by Honey Road, one of Burlington’s most popular restaurants down on Church and Main. It serves Eastern Mediterranean small plates. And it’s the kind of restaurant where you want everything on the menu. You share, you eat, they take away the finished plates and bring new ones. In other words, it’s episodic and fun. It’s also woman owned, woman run, and Allison and Cara have made a sane and happy work environment. You can even buy the kitchen staff a bucket of beer…

Thank you to my excellent and smart journalist friend Mark Davis.

I want to thank The Athanaeum in St. Johnsbury for allowing me to conduct an interview in their beautiful building.

Music for this show by Blue Dot Sessions from the Free Music Archive

Becca and Christine

Kathleen James

Becca White

]]> Tue, 11 Sep 2018 17:10:03 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

This is a show about women running for office. It’s not about issues or policies. You won’t learn where these women stand on public education or healthcare. It’s just about being a woman…running for office.

The truth is I’m tired of hearing about women running for office. I think there’s a liberal assumption that I already understand why that’s a good thing. But we’re not really supposed to talk explicitly about how being a woman, and not being a man, can be a value in and of itself.

So I figured it would be interesting to talk explicitly about it with some women running for office in Vermont. And it turns out they had plenty to say. It also turns out they’re all people I’d want to have a beer with…that gold standard of good male political candidates.

In this program you’ll hear from:

Kathleen James, running for the Vermont House in the Bennnington-4 District.

Becca White, running for the Vermont House in Hartford.

Christine Hallquist, the Democratic nominee for governor in Vermont.

Ruth Hardy, running for State Senate in Addison County. She is also the executive director of Emerge Vermont, which recruits and trains women to run for office in Vermont.

This show is sponsored by Honey Road, one of Burlington’s most popular restaurants down on Church and Main. It serves Eastern Mediterranean small plates. And it’s the kind of restaurant where you want everything on the menu. You share, you eat, they take away the finished plates and bring new ones. In other words, it’s episodic and fun. It’s also woman owned, woman run, and Allison and Cara have made a sane and happy work environment. You can even buy the kitchen staff a bucket of beer…

Thank you to my excellent and smart journalist friend Mark Davis.

I want to thank The Athanaeum in St. Johnsbury for allowing me to conduct an interview in their beautiful building.

Music for this show by Blue Dot Sessions from the Free Music Archive

Becca and Christine

Kathleen James

Becca White

]]> Let’s Pull the Damn Woman Card Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:22:33 Candid conversation about being a woman and not being a man running for office. Candid conversation about being a woman and not being a man running for office. false full 148 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=3835 One of Those Teachers


Daphne Kalmar was a school teacher for over twenty years. She taught in California, Massachusetts and then in a small school in Vermont. She was one of those teachers. One of the exciting and inspiring ones you never forget…one of the teachers who sees every kid.

Daphne is now a children’s book author and she’s just published her first book, A Stitch in Time. We sat in her kitchen by an open window. It had that late summer sound to it, the sound I associate with the beginning of school in Vermont. We talked about her new book, but mostly we talked about what it’s like to fall in love with a new batch of kids every September, and then let them go.

Credits

Daphne Kalmar’s Website

Music by Esmerine

More Esmerine

Esmerine Facebook

Additional music by Brian Clark and Mike Donofrio

]]> Thu, 23 Aug 2018 15:42:46 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com


Daphne Kalmar was a school teacher for over twenty years. She taught in California, Massachusetts and then in a small school in Vermont. She was one of those teachers. One of the exciting and inspiring ones you never forget…one of the teachers who sees every kid.

Daphne is now a children’s book author and she’s just published her first book, A Stitch in Time. We sat in her kitchen by an open window. It had that late summer sound to it, the sound I associate with the beginning of school in Vermont. We talked about her new book, but mostly we talked about what it’s like to fall in love with a new batch of kids every September, and then let them go.

Credits

Daphne Kalmar’s Website

Music by Esmerine

More Esmerine

Esmerine Facebook

Additional music by Brian Clark and Mike Donofrio

]]> One of Those Teachers Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:19:39 A show about the love and art of teaching elementary school. And 6th grade mating rituals. A show about the love and art of teaching elementary school. And 6th grade mating rituals. false full 129 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=3748 Amelia Drives Around

I picked Amelia up at The Shelburne Museum the other day. It was a few hours before her soundcheck so she had some time to kill and we took a slow drive down by the lake. She drove. She’s a good driver.

Amelia is one half of the band Sylvan Esso. Nick Sanborn is the other half. I’m not great at music genres but I’ve heard their music described as ‘electro-pop’, as ‘glitchy metropolitan folk’ (what??). Anyway, their music is incredibly fun, bent, smart, and they can turn the end of the world into a dance party. Their show moves like a train. Non-stop dancing and a stunning light show.

Last time I talked with Amelia was about a year and a half ago. Since then, Sylvan Esso has entered the drinking water. It’s everywhere. They’ve gotten famous, which I figure must be a really strange thing to be. Amelia and I drove around and I asked her what it’s like to be famous, which is one of those things that you’re not really supposed to talk about, but I wanted to know what it feels like, and how fame affects her life. And also we talked about other things…and she sang a little.

Here’s a show. It’s driving around with Amelia. And lots of great music.

And there’s some swearing.

Sylvan Esso’s latest music video: Parade.

Sylvan Esso official website

]]> Fri, 10 Aug 2018 17:09:11 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

I picked Amelia up at The Shelburne Museum the other day. It was a few hours before her soundcheck so she had some time to kill and we took a slow drive down by the lake. She drove. She’s a good driver.

Amelia is one half of the band Sylvan Esso. Nick Sanborn is the other half. I’m not great at music genres but I’ve heard their music described as ‘electro-pop’, as ‘glitchy metropolitan folk’ (what??). Anyway, their music is incredibly fun, bent, smart, and they can turn the end of the world into a dance party. Their show moves like a train. Non-stop dancing and a stunning light show.

Last time I talked with Amelia was about a year and a half ago. Since then, Sylvan Esso has entered the drinking water. It’s everywhere. They’ve gotten famous, which I figure must be a really strange thing to be. Amelia and I drove around and I asked her what it’s like to be famous, which is one of those things that you’re not really supposed to talk about, but I wanted to know what it feels like, and how fame affects her life. And also we talked about other things…and she sang a little.

Here’s a show. It’s driving around with Amelia. And lots of great music.

And there’s some swearing.

Sylvan Esso’s latest music video: Parade.

Sylvan Esso official website

]]> Amelia Drives Around Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:24:56 Amelia Meath of Sylvan Esso takes a slow drive before soundcheck. She's a really good driver. Amelia Meath of Sylvan Esso takes a slow drive before soundcheck. She's a really good driver. false full 152 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=3691 Thomas Talks About Coming Out. Twice.
Thomas Caswell has autism. Which doesn’t tell you very much about him.

Autism doesn’t describe a person. If you’ve met one person with autism, then you’ve met one person…with autism. But over the last couple years Thomas has been coming out of the closet, in stages. And along with the common difficulties of coming out, there are some special difficulties if you’re a person with a disability. In this show, Thomas talks about growing up with autism, and growing into his life as a gay man.

Credits and Links

Thank you to the amazing Emily Anderson, the advocacy facilitator and Bridging coordinator, at Champlain Community Services, which focuses on career development for people with intellectual disabilities and autism. The Bridging Program helps students negotiate the transition from high school to adulthood. Thomas is working on a Sartac fellowship through Green Mountain Self Advocates. Champlain Voices encourages people to express themselves through self-advocacy.

Music for this show is by Brian Clark and Mike Donofrio.
Also, Blues Arrangement for Toy Piano and Piano Margaret Leng Tan

Reviews
Here’s a lovely review of the show by my favorite podcast reviewer, Ben Cannon.

]]> Fri, 20 Jul 2018 18:34:27 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com
Thomas Caswell has autism. Which doesn’t tell you very much about him.

Autism doesn’t describe a person. If you’ve met one person with autism, then you’ve met one person…with autism. But over the last couple years Thomas has been coming out of the closet, in stages. And along with the common difficulties of coming out, there are some special difficulties if you’re a person with a disability. In this show, Thomas talks about growing up with autism, and growing into his life as a gay man.

Credits and Links

Thank you to the amazing Emily Anderson, the advocacy facilitator and Bridging coordinator, at Champlain Community Services, which focuses on career development for people with intellectual disabilities and autism. The Bridging Program helps students negotiate the transition from high school to adulthood. Thomas is working on a Sartac fellowship through Green Mountain Self Advocates. Champlain Voices encourages people to express themselves through self-advocacy.

Music for this show is by Brian Clark and Mike Donofrio.
Also, Blues Arrangement for Toy Piano and Piano Margaret Leng Tan

Reviews
Here’s a lovely review of the show by my favorite podcast reviewer, Ben Cannon.

]]> Thomas Talks About Coming Out. Twice. Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:14:26 Thomas talks about growing up with autism, and growing into his life as a gay man. Thomas talks about growing up with autism, and growing into his life as a gay man. false full 130 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=3628 Leland. It’s a Porcupine!

It’s time again for another conversation with my neighbor Leland. He’s fourteen now. He just finished eighth grade. He’s got big plans for the summer.

This is the fourth year I’ve interviewed Leland about what he’s doing and what’s on his mind, and what’s on his mind is always pretty interesting.

This year he took me out to his fort, in a pine forest about a half mile from his house. It’s a tarp held up by two beams, and covered with brush piles. There’s a firepit. We sat in a couple lawn chairs and talked about his year, about cow skulls and bear turds and North Korea…

Credits

This show is sponsored by Honey Road, one of Burlington’s most popular restaurants down on Church and Main. It serves Eastern Mediterranean small plates. And it’s the kind of restaurant where you want everything on the menu. You share, you eat, they take away the finished plates and bring new ones. In other words, it’s episodic and fun. It’s also woman owned, woman run, and Allison and Cara have made a sane and happy work environment. You can even buy the kitchen staff a bucket of beer…

Music for this show is by Brian Clark, Mike Donofrio and Peter Cressy, my talented friends here in central Vermont.

]]> Thu, 28 Jun 2018 12:42:46 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

It’s time again for another conversation with my neighbor Leland. He’s fourteen now. He just finished eighth grade. He’s got big plans for the summer.

This is the fourth year I’ve interviewed Leland about what he’s doing and what’s on his mind, and what’s on his mind is always pretty interesting.

This year he took me out to his fort, in a pine forest about a half mile from his house. It’s a tarp held up by two beams, and covered with brush piles. There’s a firepit. We sat in a couple lawn chairs and talked about his year, about cow skulls and bear turds and North Korea…

Credits

This show is sponsored by Honey Road, one of Burlington’s most popular restaurants down on Church and Main. It serves Eastern Mediterranean small plates. And it’s the kind of restaurant where you want everything on the menu. You share, you eat, they take away the finished plates and bring new ones. In other words, it’s episodic and fun. It’s also woman owned, woman run, and Allison and Cara have made a sane and happy work environment. You can even buy the kitchen staff a bucket of beer…

Music for this show is by Brian Clark, Mike Donofrio and Peter Cressy, my talented friends here in central Vermont.

]]> Leland. It’s a Porcupine! Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:11:20 The fourth season of Leland, my neighbor on the next hill over. This year...survival, cow skulls and North Korea... The fourth season of Leland, my neighbor on the next hill over. This year...survival, cow skulls and North Korea... false full 120 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=3588 Problems, Episode 2: Open Mic

Welcome to the second episode of Problems, an occasional mini-series of  Rumble Strip. Problems. Because no problem is too small to complain about.

Problems stars Pam and Joel, old friends who support each other through their problems. We left off with Joel, who was in the midst of a pretty inconvenient bathroom renovation in his house, and Pam, who’s been dealing with some issues with her daughter River. River’s been biting other kids at school.

Here is a very special addition to the song from listener James Roggenbeck. So many of you don’t understand River and what she goes through as a sensitive child. But James? He does. Here is his tribute.

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]]> Thu, 7 Jun 2018 16:59:56 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

Welcome to the second episode of Problems, an occasional mini-series of  Rumble Strip. Problems. Because no problem is too small to complain about.

Problems stars Pam and Joel, old friends who support each other through their problems. We left off with Joel, who was in the midst of a pretty inconvenient bathroom renovation in his house, and Pam, who’s been dealing with some issues with her daughter River. River’s been biting other kids at school.

Here is a very special addition to the song from listener James Roggenbeck. So many of you don’t understand River and what she goes through as a sensitive child. But James? He does. Here is his tribute.

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]]> Problems, Episode 2: Open Mic Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:08:16 Pam and Joel plan a song for open mic. They're excited but there are always hurdles. Pam and Joel plan a song for open mic. They're excited but there are always hurdles. false full 133 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=3567 Police Log, Gancy’s Cows Edition

It’s almost summer here in central Vermont, and as it gets hotter, it seems to get more dangerous. Law enforcement is working hard behind the scenes to keep people safe. Also to keep cows safe. Here’s the police log, read by Scott Carrier.

]]> Thu, 24 May 2018 15:29:35 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

It’s almost summer here in central Vermont, and as it gets hotter, it seems to get more dangerous. Law enforcement is working hard behind the scenes to keep people safe. Also to keep cows safe. Here’s the police log, read by Scott Carrier.

]]> Police Log, Gancy’s Cows Edition Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:03:27 It's getting warmer here, and things are heating up at local police departments. It's getting warmer here, and things are heating up at local police departments. false full 128 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=3519 Shaggs’ Own Thing: The Story of the Wiggin Sisters

Depending on who you talk to, The Shaggs were either one of the best bands from the ’60s, or one of the worst bands of all time.

Helen, Betty and Dot Wiggin grew up in Fremont, New Hampshire. They had no interest in music, no natural talent for music, and in the late ’60s, their father forced them to drop out of school and start a rock band. In their living room. And then he forced them to record an album.

Decades later, The Shaggs became a cult classic….beloved by the likes of Frank Zappa, Sonic Youth and Kurt Cobain. And the sisters were suddenly in a spotlight they never expected, or desired.

In this show, The New Yorker’s Susan Orlean talks about her reporting on the origins of The Shaggs.

This show was produced for a FANTASTIC series out of KCRW, called Lost Notes. I highly recommend checking it out.

I produced this show with:

Susan Orlean of The New Yorker

Nick White of KCRW

Myke Dodge Weiskopf of KCRW

The present day interview with The Shaggs was by Avishay Artsy

]]> Thu, 10 May 2018 16:15:20 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

Depending on who you talk to, The Shaggs were either one of the best bands from the ’60s, or one of the worst bands of all time.

Helen, Betty and Dot Wiggin grew up in Fremont, New Hampshire. They had no interest in music, no natural talent for music, and in the late ’60s, their father forced them to drop out of school and start a rock band. In their living room. And then he forced them to record an album.

Decades later, The Shaggs became a cult classic….beloved by the likes of Frank Zappa, Sonic Youth and Kurt Cobain. And the sisters were suddenly in a spotlight they never expected, or desired.

In this show, The New Yorker’s Susan Orlean talks about her reporting on the origins of The Shaggs.

This show was produced for a FANTASTIC series out of KCRW, called Lost Notes. I highly recommend checking it out.

I produced this show with:

Susan Orlean of The New Yorker

Nick White of KCRW

Myke Dodge Weiskopf of KCRW

The present day interview with The Shaggs was by Avishay Artsy

]]> Shaggs’ Own Thing: The Story of the Wiggin Sisters Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:30:42 Either one of the best bands from the '60s, or one of the worst bands of all time. Either one of the best bands from the '60s, or one of the worst bands of all time. false full 123 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=3488 Carl. A Different Breed of Cat Directions to Carl Blaisdell’s house: Go about seven miles down this road. Then there’s a road that kind of goes up to a Jersey farm on the left and then there’s a pond. But there’s no sign to the pond. So after the pond, drive past the pull-off and Carl’s trailer sits way up in a field at the top of that hill. There’s a lot of pipes. And a lot of cars and trucks. And lots and lots of hounds.

But Carl wasn’t home. And so I went back the next day and we sat in his truck and talked. Carl’s trailer looks out over the farm he ran for most of his life, then sold. After farming, Carl seemed to make a smooth transition to being a mountain man, which is how he described himself, and the name pretty much fits. He’s private. He only goes to town to get something he needs. His life is close to the ground, to his dogs, and to the outside.

Larry Massett was inspired by the hounds and made this short piece. It’s called Where’s Carl.

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Credits

This interview was conducted while I was reporting for an episode about the Northeast Kingdom, by Brave Little State, which you can find HERE.

Music for this episode is by Emily Kueppers

And here’s a link to Caplan’s Army Store, where I have bought a LOT of socks.

]]> Tue, 24 Apr 2018 01:23:32 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Directions to Carl Blaisdell’s house: Go about seven miles down this road. Then there’s a road that kind of goes up to a Jersey farm on the left and then there’s a pond. But there’s no sign to the pond. So after the pond, drive past the pull-off and Carl’s trailer sits way up in a field at the top of that hill. There’s a lot of pipes. And a lot of cars and trucks. And lots and lots of hounds.

But Carl wasn’t home. And so I went back the next day and we sat in his truck and talked. Carl’s trailer looks out over the farm he ran for most of his life, then sold. After farming, Carl seemed to make a smooth transition to being a mountain man, which is how he described himself, and the name pretty much fits. He’s private. He only goes to town to get something he needs. His life is close to the ground, to his dogs, and to the outside.

Larry Massett was inspired by the hounds and made this short piece. It’s called Where’s Carl.

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Credits

This interview was conducted while I was reporting for an episode about the Northeast Kingdom, by Brave Little State, which you can find HERE.

Music for this episode is by Emily Kueppers

And here’s a link to Caplan’s Army Store, where I have bought a LOT of socks.

]]> Carl. A Different Breed of Cat Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:16:41 A conversation with one of Vermont's last mountain men. A conversation with one of Vermont's last mountain men. false full 118 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=3434 A Tribute to Greg Sharrow

This is a show I made back in 2008. I’m running it as a tribute to my friend Greg Sharrow. Greg was one of the first people I met when I came back to Vermont in 2003. I didn’t have many friends, I didn’t have a job or really any plans, and it was the middle of winter. And then I met Greg at his office in the old Vermont Folklife Center building in Middelbury. It was crammed with books, and we sat down and talked for two hours, and it was that kind of talk where you’re almost gulping each other down. And he became one of the funnest, and maybe one of the most important friends of my life.

Greg Sharrow died two days ago at his home in North Carolina, with Bob and their dear friend Brian at his bedside.

This is a story about Greg, and his husband Bob, and Greg’s mother, Marjory. Marjory had dementia in the years before her death. This is a show about what remained for them, after the forgetting. Welcome.

For a longer version of this show, and an additional interview with Greg, click here

Photos by Evie Lovett

Music by Karinne Keithley Syers and Doris Day

]]> Wed, 4 Apr 2018 16:21:34 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

This is a show I made back in 2008. I’m running it as a tribute to my friend Greg Sharrow. Greg was one of the first people I met when I came back to Vermont in 2003. I didn’t have many friends, I didn’t have a job or really any plans, and it was the middle of winter. And then I met Greg at his office in the old Vermont Folklife Center building in Middelbury. It was crammed with books, and we sat down and talked for two hours, and it was that kind of talk where you’re almost gulping each other down. And he became one of the funnest, and maybe one of the most important friends of my life.

Greg Sharrow died two days ago at his home in North Carolina, with Bob and their dear friend Brian at his bedside.

This is a story about Greg, and his husband Bob, and Greg’s mother, Marjory. Marjory had dementia in the years before her death. This is a show about what remained for them, after the forgetting. Welcome.

For a longer version of this show, and an additional interview with Greg, click here

Photos by Evie Lovett

Music by Karinne Keithley Syers and Doris Day

]]> A Tribute to Greg Sharrow Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:10:10 What happens to love after memory is gone? A tribute to Greg Sharrow. What happens to love after memory is gone? A tribute to Greg Sharrow. false full 122 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=3408 Driving Around With Susan. Again!

Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing
and rightdoing there is a field.
I’ll meet you there.

–Rumi

This winter Susan Randall worked with the defense on a sentencing case for a high profile multiple-murder here in Vermont. A sentencing is the time for considering the pain caused by a crime. It’s also a time to ask, How did we get here? What happened in the life of this person that led her to do what she did?

For months, Susan worked closely with the woman who committed these murders, creating a profile of her life, her history, and her family. It’s a story of almost unimaginable, multi-generational abuse…abuse which started two generations before her birth. In the end, the perpetrator received a sentence of life without parole. I’m not going to name her here because it’s a very sensitive case in Vermont, and this story is not about her. It’s about what it’s like to work closely on cases like these as a private investigator, and what happens after the cases are closed.

Susan’s private investigation business is here.

The music for this show was made by Emily Kueppers. Thank you Emily!

]]> Thu, 29 Mar 2018 21:56:04 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing
and rightdoing there is a field.
I’ll meet you there.

–Rumi

This winter Susan Randall worked with the defense on a sentencing case for a high profile multiple-murder here in Vermont. A sentencing is the time for considering the pain caused by a crime. It’s also a time to ask, How did we get here? What happened in the life of this person that led her to do what she did?

For months, Susan worked closely with the woman who committed these murders, creating a profile of her life, her history, and her family. It’s a story of almost unimaginable, multi-generational abuse…abuse which started two generations before her birth. In the end, the perpetrator received a sentence of life without parole. I’m not going to name her here because it’s a very sensitive case in Vermont, and this story is not about her. It’s about what it’s like to work closely on cases like these as a private investigator, and what happens after the cases are closed.

Susan’s private investigation business is here.

The music for this show was made by Emily Kueppers. Thank you Emily!

]]> Driving Around With Susan. Again! Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:12:27 Private investigator Susan Randall talks about preparing a life story for a sentencing...then moving on. Private investigator Susan Randall talks about preparing a life story for a sentencing...then moving on. false full 131 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=3388 Problems, Episode 1: Grout and the Contra Dance
[Uhm…..satire. In case that wasn’t evident….]

Some of life’s inevitable problems are big and some are quite small. But no problems are too small to complain about.

Welcome to the first installment of Problems…a periodic radio drama about…problems. Joel and Pam’s problems.Pam and Joel, who you’ll hear from in this show, are old friends and they support each other through their problems, and even if you don’t think their problems are very problematic, for Pam and Joel…they are.

In this first episode, we hear about Pam’s daughter, River, who’s having a hard time getting her needs met at school. Also, this Friday is the contra dance school benefit at the grange hall, and Joel’s facing some challenges with his bathroom renovation.

Welcome.

Thanks to Sarah Miller.

Music: The Aurora Principle, by Chris Wortmann, Enough Records

]]> Wed, 21 Mar 2018 11:38:50 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com
[Uhm…..satire. In case that wasn’t evident….]

Some of life’s inevitable problems are big and some are quite small. But no problems are too small to complain about.

Welcome to the first installment of Problems…a periodic radio drama about…problems. Joel and Pam’s problems.Pam and Joel, who you’ll hear from in this show, are old friends and they support each other through their problems, and even if you don’t think their problems are very problematic, for Pam and Joel…they are.

In this first episode, we hear about Pam’s daughter, River, who’s having a hard time getting her needs met at school. Also, this Friday is the contra dance school benefit at the grange hall, and Joel’s facing some challenges with his bathroom renovation.

Welcome.

Thanks to Sarah Miller.

Music: The Aurora Principle, by Chris Wortmann, Enough Records

]]> Problems, Episode 1: Grout and the Contra Dance Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:10:49 Pam and Joel help each other through their problems. We listen. Pam and Joel help each other through their problems. We listen. false full 119 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=3356 Son Lux

Son Lux is a band that doesn’t live comfortably in any genre. Their sound is massive, anthemic, but it’s also strangely intimate. The rhythms are incredibly complex, and it’s shot through with these bright details of sound. The project started in Ryan Lott’s brain in Cleveland, and then it grew by two–guitarist Rafiq Bhatia and drummer Ian Chang. They’re all composers and producers and improvisers. I think it’s fair to say they’re all wicked smart.

I interviewed Ryan Lott just two days before he went out on tour for their new album, Brighter Wounds. We had a really interesting conversation about where music comes from, and how he makes it. Or where he finds it…

LINKS

Image of Ryan by Zenith Richards

Band image by Lisa Wassmann

Website for Brighter Wounds

A lot of Son Lux Music

NPR review of Brighter Wounds

]]> Sat, 3 Mar 2018 01:52:54 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

Son Lux is a band that doesn’t live comfortably in any genre. Their sound is massive, anthemic, but it’s also strangely intimate. The rhythms are incredibly complex, and it’s shot through with these bright details of sound. The project started in Ryan Lott’s brain in Cleveland, and then it grew by two–guitarist Rafiq Bhatia and drummer Ian Chang. They’re all composers and producers and improvisers. I think it’s fair to say they’re all wicked smart.

I interviewed Ryan Lott just two days before he went out on tour for their new album, Brighter Wounds. We had a really interesting conversation about where music comes from, and how he makes it. Or where he finds it…

LINKS

Image of Ryan by Zenith Richards

Band image by Lisa Wassmann

Website for Brighter Wounds

A lot of Son Lux Music

NPR review of Brighter Wounds

]]> Son Lux Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:22:18 Ryan Lott, founder of Son Lux, talks about where he goes looking for music in his brain. Ryan Lott, founder of Son Lux, talks about where he goes looking for music in his brain. false full 117 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=3309 Learning the Trade
The Northeast Kingdom is mostly small towns separated by miles and miles. Sometimes it’s featured in trout fishing magazines. It also has some of the highest unemployment and lowest wages in the state. Its beautiful place. And it’s a hard place to live.

I was up at the St. Johnsbury Academy a couple weeks ago, which is one of the gateways to the Kingdom. My sister and brother in law both work there. And I’ve always been curious about the career and technical classes at the school. They have  the most incredible CTE facilities I’ve ever seen (pictures below), and what makes them really special is they’re all on campus. In a lot of places, ‘tech kids’ are bused off to other campuses…which, when you’re in high school, can’t help but send the message that kids in English class don’t need to know what those tech kids are doing, and the tech kids don’t need to bother much with English classes. But at the Academy, it’s all in one place, and 80% of the general school population takes CTE classes at least once in their high school careers.

After spending some time with students and teachers, I had that rare experience when you know you’re seeing something important…something that’s so obvious and right, that it’s almost hiding in plain sight.

If you listen to Rumble Strip, you know that I’ve been spending a lot of time thinking about problems. Big, complicated problems. So when I  watched 19 kids in hard hats rewiring a building on their own school campus, I didn’t think, ‘well isn’t that nice?’ Instead, I felt like I was looking way upstream of all the problems, and seeing a solution. Not the only solution. Just…a solution. One solution.

This show is a kind of valentine to all the people learning to work in the world and learning to make things. And the people who are helping them to get there….

Credits

Music by Vermont musicians Brian Clark and Mike Donofrio

Thank you Emily Kueppers for your beautiful logging!

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The Northeast Kingdom is mostly small towns separated by miles and miles. Sometimes it’s featured in trout fishing magazines. It also has some of the highest unemployment and lowest wages in the state. Its beautiful place. And it’s a hard place to live.

I was up at the St. Johnsbury Academy a couple weeks ago, which is one of the gateways to the Kingdom. My sister and brother in law both work there. And I’ve always been curious about the career and technical classes at the school. They have  the most incredible CTE facilities I’ve ever seen (pictures below), and what makes them really special is they’re all on campus. In a lot of places, ‘tech kids’ are bused off to other campuses…which, when you’re in high school, can’t help but send the message that kids in English class don’t need to know what those tech kids are doing, and the tech kids don’t need to bother much with English classes. But at the Academy, it’s all in one place, and 80% of the general school population takes CTE classes at least once in their high school careers.

After spending some time with students and teachers, I had that rare experience when you know you’re seeing something important…something that’s so obvious and right, that it’s almost hiding in plain sight.

If you listen to Rumble Strip, you know that I’ve been spending a lot of time thinking about problems. Big, complicated problems. So when I  watched 19 kids in hard hats rewiring a building on their own school campus, I didn’t think, ‘well isn’t that nice?’ Instead, I felt like I was looking way upstream of all the problems, and seeing a solution. Not the only solution. Just…a solution. One solution.

This show is a kind of valentine to all the people learning to work in the world and learning to make things. And the people who are helping them to get there….

Credits

Music by Vermont musicians Brian Clark and Mike Donofrio

Thank you Emily Kueppers for your beautiful logging!

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People having mental health crises are visiting emergency rooms in record numbers. But emergency room nurses are not trained to treat mental illnesses. This problem isn’t unique to Vermont. In fact it’s an acute problem all over the country.

For this show I interviewed nine nurses and one sheriff, in three settings around the state. This isn’t a show that explores where the problem came from, or where the solution lies. This show is about what it looks like right now in emergency rooms across the state.

Thanks to Clare Dolan, Seleem Choudury and Mark Davis for their help with this show

]]> Tue, 16 Jan 2018 16:42:31 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

People having mental health crises are visiting emergency rooms in record numbers. But emergency room nurses are not trained to treat mental illnesses. This problem isn’t unique to Vermont. In fact it’s an acute problem all over the country.

For this show I interviewed nine nurses and one sheriff, in three settings around the state. This isn’t a show that explores where the problem came from, or where the solution lies. This show is about what it looks like right now in emergency rooms across the state.

Thanks to Clare Dolan, Seleem Choudury and Mark Davis for their help with this show

]]> Emergency Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:26:55 An up-close look at the mental healthcare crisis in our emergency rooms. An up-close look at the mental healthcare crisis in our emergency rooms. false full 144 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=3257 Hitchhiker

This is another guest show from radio producer Scott Carrier, which he produced when he was twenty-six. He hitchhiked across the United States, interviewed people along the way, and ended up at the door of NPR in Washington, DC with an armful of tape. This is Scott’s first story.

Scott produces my favorite podcast. It’s called Home of the Brave.

]]> Wed, 10 Jan 2018 20:56:16 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

This is another guest show from radio producer Scott Carrier, which he produced when he was twenty-six. He hitchhiked across the United States, interviewed people along the way, and ended up at the door of NPR in Washington, DC with an armful of tape. This is Scott’s first story.

Scott produces my favorite podcast. It’s called Home of the Brave.

]]> Hitchhiker Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:34:35 At 26, Scott Carrier hitchhiked across the US and ended up at NPR's front door. This is the story. At 26, Scott Carrier hitchhiked across the US and ended up at NPR's front door. This is the story. false full 116 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=3240 Seasons Greetings From Liz and Jerry! Here is our annual season’s greetings card, this year from Liz and Jerry Danforth. Fair warning…they had a pretty rough year.

Credits

Script by writer Tal McThenia

The show is a co-production of Rumble Strip and Pod Planet.

Music

Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy • United States Navy Band

Clouds Pass Softly Deux • Podington Bear • Free Music Archive

I Am A Man Who Will Fight For Your Honor • Chris Zabriskie • Free Music Archive

Little Drummer Boy • Field recording of Christmas carolers.

]]> Thu, 21 Dec 2017 02:51:28 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Here is our annual season’s greetings card, this year from Liz and Jerry Danforth. Fair warning…they had a pretty rough year.

Credits

Script by writer Tal McThenia

The show is a co-production of Rumble Strip and Pod Planet.

Music

Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy • United States Navy Band

Clouds Pass Softly Deux • Podington Bear • Free Music Archive

I Am A Man Who Will Fight For Your Honor • Chris Zabriskie • Free Music Archive

Little Drummer Boy • Field recording of Christmas carolers.

]]> Seasons Greetings From Liz and Jerry! Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:10:43 An annual season's greetings card from the Danforths. Fair warning, they had a rough year. An annual season's greetings card from the Danforths. Fair warning, they had a rough year. false full 112 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=3213 A Good Death

My friend Tim Kasten died two weeks ago.

Ever since I met Tim, he’s been preparing for his own death. Partly because he had significant medical issues. But I think mostly he was preparing for his death because he wanted to. Thinking about the impermanence of life gave his life meaning. He was one of the most spiritually curious people I’ve ever met.

In this show, we hear from Tim, on death and dying. And we also chronicle the building of his casket…or his simple pine box…built by family and friends. Vermont style.

This show is sponsored by The Alchemist Brewery in Stowe and Waterbury, Vermont. Some of the world’s best beer. You can click on the logo to check out this stellar brewery, and please crack one for me. You won’t be sorry.

More Tim Music:

I couldn’t figure out how to embed a soundcloud link here, but here’s a link to Tim singing

We Shall Overcome

Lord Lord Lord

Tim doing the crossword.

]]> Thu, 14 Dec 2017 21:27:38 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

My friend Tim Kasten died two weeks ago.

Ever since I met Tim, he’s been preparing for his own death. Partly because he had significant medical issues. But I think mostly he was preparing for his death because he wanted to. Thinking about the impermanence of life gave his life meaning. He was one of the most spiritually curious people I’ve ever met.

In this show, we hear from Tim, on death and dying. And we also chronicle the building of his casket…or his simple pine box…built by family and friends. Vermont style.

This show is sponsored by The Alchemist Brewery in Stowe and Waterbury, Vermont. Some of the world’s best beer. You can click on the logo to check out this stellar brewery, and please crack one for me. You won’t be sorry.

More Tim Music:

I couldn’t figure out how to embed a soundcloud link here, but here’s a link to Tim singing

We Shall Overcome

Lord Lord Lord

Tim doing the crossword.

]]> A Good Death Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:14:39 Tim Kasten's words on death and dying, and building a pine box for Tim, after his death. Tim Kasten's words on death and dying, and building a pine box for Tim, after his death. false full 165 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=3205 Scott’s Nature

I’ve been reading the news too much. I read every version of the same story in every news outlet, and sometimes I forget I’ve read them and I read them again. I think a lot of people are feeling concerned and even scared. But I thought it would be good to remember some of the important things that are not the news.

I asked Scott Carrier to tell me about a place in the wilderness, in a high meadow, far, far away from the news.

It’s a musical.

Credits

Willie Tobin provided the nature sound for this show. It was recorded on a September day in a clearing on the southwest side of Gillespie Mountain in Hancock, Vermont. I am so grateful to have these recordings. Thank you Willie!

Thank you Larry Massett and Tobin Anderson.

]]> Tue, 5 Dec 2017 15:52:39 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

I’ve been reading the news too much. I read every version of the same story in every news outlet, and sometimes I forget I’ve read them and I read them again. I think a lot of people are feeling concerned and even scared. But I thought it would be good to remember some of the important things that are not the news.

I asked Scott Carrier to tell me about a place in the wilderness, in a high meadow, far, far away from the news.

It’s a musical.

Credits

Willie Tobin provided the nature sound for this show. It was recorded on a September day in a clearing on the southwest side of Gillespie Mountain in Hancock, Vermont. I am so grateful to have these recordings. Thank you Willie!

Thank you Larry Massett and Tobin Anderson.

]]> Scott’s Nature Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:10:25 Scott Carrier tells the story of a place in the wilderness far, far away from the news. It's a musical. Scott Carrier tells the story of a place in the wilderness far, far away from the news. It's a musical. false full 121 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=3189 Rowell This fall my friend and I were going for a walk and as we walked past a small barn set down off the Upper Road in Calais, we heard someone from the barn call up to us and say, ‘You wanna come see some pigs?’

Of course we wanted to see some pigs.

John Rowell showed us his new piglets and I went back a few weeks later to hang out with John and his brother Eddie and record a conversation. Here’s a few minutes from that night.

]]> Tue, 14 Nov 2017 19:16:28 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com This fall my friend and I were going for a walk and as we walked past a small barn set down off the Upper Road in Calais, we heard someone from the barn call up to us and say, ‘You wanna come see some pigs?’

Of course we wanted to see some pigs.

John Rowell showed us his new piglets and I went back a few weeks later to hang out with John and his brother Eddie and record a conversation. Here’s a few minutes from that night.

]]> Rowell Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:09:39 A few minutes in the barn with John and Eddie Rowell. A few minutes in the barn with John and Eddie Rowell. false full 114 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=3135 The Museum of Everyday Life
The mission of The Museum of Everyday Life is “a heroic, slow-motion cataloguing of the quotidian–a detailed, theatrical expression of gratitude and love for the miniscule and unglamorous experience of daily life in all its forms.”

The museum’s home is in a barn on Route 16 in the Northeast Kingdom. It is my favorite museum. This is a show featuring the museum’s creator, Clare Dolan.

Credits

This show is co-produced by Erica Heilman and Mark Davis. Mark is my friend and a very good journalist at Seven Days. Here are some of my favorite articles from Mark:

Feuding in Victory

Death by opiates in 2016

Final conversations with overdose victims

A fond rembrance of Howard Frank Mosher

Game warden

Pictures from the Museum of Everyday Life, in summer and winter

   

One of my favorite things in the toothbrush exhibit.

 

]]> Sat, 28 Oct 2017 13:40:57 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com
The mission of The Museum of Everyday Life is “a heroic, slow-motion cataloguing of the quotidian–a detailed, theatrical expression of gratitude and love for the miniscule and unglamorous experience of daily life in all its forms.”

The museum’s home is in a barn on Route 16 in the Northeast Kingdom. It is my favorite museum. This is a show featuring the museum’s creator, Clare Dolan.

Credits

This show is co-produced by Erica Heilman and Mark Davis. Mark is my friend and a very good journalist at Seven Days. Here are some of my favorite articles from Mark:

Feuding in Victory

Death by opiates in 2016

Final conversations with overdose victims

A fond rembrance of Howard Frank Mosher

Game warden

Pictures from the Museum of Everyday Life, in summer and winter

   

One of my favorite things in the toothbrush exhibit.

 

]]> The Museum of Everyday Life Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:16:13 Clare Dolan's mission of glorious obscurity. Clare Dolan's mission of glorious obscurity. false full 125 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=3120 Catastrophe and Grace Rob Mermin had a career as a mime clown for forty years, then in 1987 he started a circus company here in Vermont called Circus Smirkus. Three years ago he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease.

This is a story about movement, the loss of control of movement…catastrophe and grace.

About Rob

Rob Mermin trained in classical mime with Etienne Decroux and Marcel Marceau and has performed in European circus, theater, TV and film for forty years.  He is an author, director, university lecturer, former Dean of Ringling Bros. Clown College, and founder of the award-winning international company Circus Smirkus (www.smirkus.org).

Rob’s awards include Copenhagen’s Gold Clown; the Bessie Award; Best Director Prize at the former Soviet Union’s International Festival on the Black Sea; the Lund Family Center’s “It Takes A Village Award”;  the Vermont Arts Council Award of Merit, and the 2008 Governor’s Award for Excellence, Vermont’s highest honor in the arts.  Rob lives in central Vermont.

To learn more about Rob Mermin, click here.

Thank you Tobin Anderson for your help.

And here’s a link to a book about Marceau written by an awesome central Vermont author, Leda Schubert!

]]> Mon, 16 Oct 2017 19:17:48 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Rob Mermin had a career as a mime clown for forty years, then in 1987 he started a circus company here in Vermont called Circus Smirkus. Three years ago he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease.

This is a story about movement, the loss of control of movement…catastrophe and grace.

About Rob

Rob Mermin trained in classical mime with Etienne Decroux and Marcel Marceau and has performed in European circus, theater, TV and film for forty years.  He is an author, director, university lecturer, former Dean of Ringling Bros. Clown College, and founder of the award-winning international company Circus Smirkus (www.smirkus.org).

Rob’s awards include Copenhagen’s Gold Clown; the Bessie Award; Best Director Prize at the former Soviet Union’s International Festival on the Black Sea; the Lund Family Center’s “It Takes A Village Award”;  the Vermont Arts Council Award of Merit, and the 2008 Governor’s Award for Excellence, Vermont’s highest honor in the arts.  Rob lives in central Vermont.

To learn more about Rob Mermin, click here.

Thank you Tobin Anderson for your help.

And here’s a link to a book about Marceau written by an awesome central Vermont author, Leda Schubert!

]]> Catastrophe and Grace Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:22:30 A story about mime and Parkinson's Disease A story about mime and Parkinson's Disease false full 113 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=3103 Hill Farm Peter Dunning’s farm is a Vermont hill farm. It’s a hundred and thirty-six acres of forest and orchards and wet spots and steep, rocky pasture, picked over by farmers for hundreds of years. It’s the kind of place that does not lend itself to the industrial production of anything. Instead it lends itself to the production of…everything.

Peter has farmed here, mostly alone, for nearly forty years. Now he’s getting done. The animals are gone. The farm is growing up around him.

Here’s his story.

Credits

I learned of Peter Dunning from a documentary, Peter and the Farm. It’s stunning. Watch it if you can….

Music for this show by David Schulman and Quiet Life Motel

Thank you Geof Hewitt for your help with the poetry!

This show also features the last verse of a remarkable poem called Marshall Washer, by Vermont poet Hayden Carruth. Here’s the full text.

]]> Sun, 24 Sep 2017 14:55:08 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Peter Dunning’s farm is a Vermont hill farm. It’s a hundred and thirty-six acres of forest and orchards and wet spots and steep, rocky pasture, picked over by farmers for hundreds of years. It’s the kind of place that does not lend itself to the industrial production of anything. Instead it lends itself to the production of…everything.

Peter has farmed here, mostly alone, for nearly forty years. Now he’s getting done. The animals are gone. The farm is growing up around him.

Here’s his story.

Credits

I learned of Peter Dunning from a documentary, Peter and the Farm. It’s stunning. Watch it if you can….

Music for this show by David Schulman and Quiet Life Motel

Thank you Geof Hewitt for your help with the poetry!

This show also features the last verse of a remarkable poem called Marshall Washer, by Vermont poet Hayden Carruth. Here’s the full text.

]]> Hill Farm Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:19:26 After forty years farming this land, Peter Dunning is getting done. After forty years farming this land, Peter Dunning is getting done. false full 111 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=3085 Waitress My mother used to say that everyone should waitress at least once.

So I did. And I failed.

In this program, I talk with some of the finest waitstaff in central Vermont about life in the business of serving your food.

Appreciation:

Thanks to Jay at Sarducci’s and Brian at the Wayside Diner for lining up interviews in these two fine establishments. Additional interviews with Josh Larkin and Jodi DeGuzman.

]]> Fri, 1 Sep 2017 16:34:24 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com My mother used to say that everyone should waitress at least once.

So I did. And I failed.

In this program, I talk with some of the finest waitstaff in central Vermont about life in the business of serving your food.

Appreciation:

Thanks to Jay at Sarducci’s and Brian at the Wayside Diner for lining up interviews in these two fine establishments. Additional interviews with Josh Larkin and Jodi DeGuzman.

]]> Waitress Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:46:49 Stories from the people who serve your food. Stories from the people who serve your food. false full 107 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=3045 Mind Windows Mind Windows is a public radio program that gives your mind a chance to open its windows. Open them and then…see what happens!

Our guest today is Morgantha Prentiss, a director with New York’s off Broadway Lynx Throttle Theatre. Last year, she co-created and directed the musical, Lambs and Order, in which actors re-create the classic police procedural but as a musical, and with a cast wearing paper-mache lamb masks. The musical was a hit. It was extended several times, and transferred to New York’s Public Theater where it got was nominated for an OBIE for Best New Musical.

Credits

Mind Windows is written by Sarah Miller. It might become its own podcast but for now it will make periodic appearances on Rumble Strip, and I have no doubt it will open your mind. The part of Morgantha was read by my friend Kate Gleason, an actor and director who lives in Denver Colorado with her dog Emerson. Sarah Miller is a writer who lives in Nevada City California. She has a dog called Merle. Recording studio and technical support by Ms. Tara Falk with the help of her dogs, Trout and Kate.

The music for this show was purchased from a stock music house. It’s called Starlit Landscape.

]]> Fri, 28 Jul 2017 14:23:41 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Mind Windows is a public radio program that gives your mind a chance to open its windows. Open them and then…see what happens!

Our guest today is Morgantha Prentiss, a director with New York’s off Broadway Lynx Throttle Theatre. Last year, she co-created and directed the musical, Lambs and Order, in which actors re-create the classic police procedural but as a musical, and with a cast wearing paper-mache lamb masks. The musical was a hit. It was extended several times, and transferred to New York’s Public Theater where it got was nominated for an OBIE for Best New Musical.

Credits

Mind Windows is written by Sarah Miller. It might become its own podcast but for now it will make periodic appearances on Rumble Strip, and I have no doubt it will open your mind. The part of Morgantha was read by my friend Kate Gleason, an actor and director who lives in Denver Colorado with her dog Emerson. Sarah Miller is a writer who lives in Nevada City California. She has a dog called Merle. Recording studio and technical support by Ms. Tara Falk with the help of her dogs, Trout and Kate.

The music for this show was purchased from a stock music house. It’s called Starlit Landscape.

]]> Mind Windows Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:11:44 A public radio program that gives your mind a chance to open its windows. Open them and then...see what happens! A public radio program that gives your mind a chance to open its windows. Open them and then...see what happens! false full 106 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=3024 Plain Life

A few weeks ago I got a call from my friend Susan Randall, the private investigator you might remember from previous shows. She said that ‘T.O.’–a former client in a federal public defender case–had just been released from prison seven days before, after serving a six year bid. He was trying to figure out what to do next and also clearly trying to figure out how to manage the world outside prison. Where people are just walking around.  Susan said she and T.O. were having lunch and she asked me to join them. After lunch, T.O. and I drove down to the waterfront in Burlington to talk in my car.

I wanted to try to understand what it’s like to be seven days out of jail, with no housing, no money, and no family. I wanted to know what it’s like to adjust to freedom after years of confinement.

Here’s what he said.

]]> Sat, 8 Jul 2017 15:06:05 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

A few weeks ago I got a call from my friend Susan Randall, the private investigator you might remember from previous shows. She said that ‘T.O.’–a former client in a federal public defender case–had just been released from prison seven days before, after serving a six year bid. He was trying to figure out what to do next and also clearly trying to figure out how to manage the world outside prison. Where people are just walking around.  Susan said she and T.O. were having lunch and she asked me to join them. After lunch, T.O. and I drove down to the waterfront in Burlington to talk in my car.

I wanted to try to understand what it’s like to be seven days out of jail, with no housing, no money, and no family. I wanted to know what it’s like to adjust to freedom after years of confinement.

Here’s what he said.

]]> Plain Life Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:17:44 He's seven days out of federal prison, and looking for a plain life. He's seven days out of federal prison, and looking for a plain life. false full 147 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=3007 Sylvan Esso is a Good Band

The first time I learned of Amelia Meath was in an email exchange. She’d written me a nice note about Rumble Strip and at the end she wrote–in rather an understated way–‘P.S. I’m in a band. It’s called Sylvan Esso.’ And because I’m old, I’d never heard of Sylvan Esso.

So I looked her up online and I spent the rest of that night listening to every version of every Sylvan Esso song I could find, really loud and over and over. If there had been an album cover, I would have been clutching it to my breast.

Ever since their first single in 2013, Sylvan Esso has gotten famous pretty fast, and they tour all over he world. Last month they played in Burlington, and I spent a rainy day talking with Amelia and Nick in their tour bus before the show. We talked about their music, touring, and the complexities of success. And there’s a lot of music in the show.

It’s like a musical.

Links

For links to their albums, tour schedule, and all various and sundry, visit sylvanesso.com

]]> Thu, 29 Jun 2017 03:08:02 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

The first time I learned of Amelia Meath was in an email exchange. She’d written me a nice note about Rumble Strip and at the end she wrote–in rather an understated way–‘P.S. I’m in a band. It’s called Sylvan Esso.’ And because I’m old, I’d never heard of Sylvan Esso.

So I looked her up online and I spent the rest of that night listening to every version of every Sylvan Esso song I could find, really loud and over and over. If there had been an album cover, I would have been clutching it to my breast.

Ever since their first single in 2013, Sylvan Esso has gotten famous pretty fast, and they tour all over he world. Last month they played in Burlington, and I spent a rainy day talking with Amelia and Nick in their tour bus before the show. We talked about their music, touring, and the complexities of success. And there’s a lot of music in the show.

It’s like a musical.

Links

For links to their albums, tour schedule, and all various and sundry, visit sylvanesso.com

]]> Sylvan Esso is a Good Band Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:31:00 A conversation about life on tour, musical collaboration, and church. Sort of. A conversation about life on tour, musical collaboration, and church. Sort of. false full 160 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2995 Police Log, Burning Lawn Chairs Edition It’s been some time since we’ve heard reports from the police about criminal activity here in Vermont. And I’m sorry to say that so far this summer, it’s been…busy. There’s pretzel-related violence and lawnmower theft. And more trouble at Dunkin’ Donuts.

Here’s your summer report from Vermont police, reported by Scott Carrier, producer of Home of the Brave.

]]> Mon, 19 Jun 2017 18:05:11 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com It’s been some time since we’ve heard reports from the police about criminal activity here in Vermont. And I’m sorry to say that so far this summer, it’s been…busy. There’s pretzel-related violence and lawnmower theft. And more trouble at Dunkin’ Donuts.

Here’s your summer report from Vermont police, reported by Scott Carrier, producer of Home of the Brave.

]]> Police Log, Burning Lawn Chairs Edition Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:03:05 Pretzel-related crime and more trouble at Dunkin' Donuts. The police have been busy. Pretzel-related crime and more trouble at Dunkin' Donuts. The police have been busy. false full 110 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2973 Crime and Punishment Under Trump Last month, Attorney General Jeff Sessions sent a memo to all federal prosecutors, with new directives for charging and sentencing in criminal cases. He’s directed federal prosecutors to charge defendants with the most severe penalties possible and pursue mandatory minimum sentences where they’re available. We’re headed back into the war on drugs from the 80s and 90s…a war that did not end drug use or make anyone safer. Instead it ripped apart families, packed American prisons and resulted in long sentences for a lot of non violent drug offenders. Everyone seemed to agree that it was a disaster. Hell, even the Koch brothers agreed.  During the Obama administration, there was bipartisan support for sentencing reform. And for the first time in decades, federal inmate numbers were down, and the Justice Dept made plans to stop sending inmates to private prisons.

But last month, Sessions decided to relaunch the war on drugs.

This is a show about a new dawn, a new day…crime and punishment in the Trump era.

Credits

This show is produced in collaboration with Seven Days. Click here for Mark Davis’ article on Jeff Sessions’ new charging directives.

Dan Sedon, Mark Kaplan, and Lisa Shelkrot are some of the smartest, most accomplished attorneys in Vermont. If ever you’re in trouble, I highly recommend calling one of them. You will be in excellent hands. For more information on each of them, click on their names below.

Dan Sedon, Esq., Sedon and Ericson, P.C., Chelsea, Vermont

Lisa Shelkrot, Esq., Langrock Sperry & Wool, Burlington, Vermont

Mark Kaplan, Esq., Kaplan and Kaplan, Burlington, Vermont

Music for this show is from Vermont musicians Peter Cressy, Brian Clark, and Mike Donofrio

Many thanks to Susan Randall, Mark Davis and former U.S. Attorney Charles Tetzlaff for their help on this show.

]]> Wed, 7 Jun 2017 01:32:06 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Last month, Attorney General Jeff Sessions sent a memo to all federal prosecutors, with new directives for charging and sentencing in criminal cases. He’s directed federal prosecutors to charge defendants with the most severe penalties possible and pursue mandatory minimum sentences where they’re available. We’re headed back into the war on drugs from the 80s and 90s…a war that did not end drug use or make anyone safer. Instead it ripped apart families, packed American prisons and resulted in long sentences for a lot of non violent drug offenders. Everyone seemed to agree that it was a disaster. Hell, even the Koch brothers agreed.  During the Obama administration, there was bipartisan support for sentencing reform. And for the first time in decades, federal inmate numbers were down, and the Justice Dept made plans to stop sending inmates to private prisons.

But last month, Sessions decided to relaunch the war on drugs.

This is a show about a new dawn, a new day…crime and punishment in the Trump era.

Credits

This show is produced in collaboration with Seven Days. Click here for Mark Davis’ article on Jeff Sessions’ new charging directives.

Dan Sedon, Mark Kaplan, and Lisa Shelkrot are some of the smartest, most accomplished attorneys in Vermont. If ever you’re in trouble, I highly recommend calling one of them. You will be in excellent hands. For more information on each of them, click on their names below.

Dan Sedon, Esq., Sedon and Ericson, P.C., Chelsea, Vermont

Lisa Shelkrot, Esq., Langrock Sperry & Wool, Burlington, Vermont

Mark Kaplan, Esq., Kaplan and Kaplan, Burlington, Vermont

Music for this show is from Vermont musicians Peter Cressy, Brian Clark, and Mike Donofrio

Many thanks to Susan Randall, Mark Davis and former U.S. Attorney Charles Tetzlaff for their help on this show.

]]> Crime and Punishment Under Trump Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:19:24 Jeff Sessions is bringing back the war on drugs. Why should I care? Jeff Sessions is bringing back the war on drugs. Why should I care? false full 104 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2938 Leland is Almost Done Seventh Grade It’s spring in Vermont, and it’s been a full year since we heard from my friend Leland. When we left him last year, he was just about to graduate from Calais elementary school and move up to the big union middle school.

Leland is my neighbor. And this will be my third year talking with him on tape…about what he’s doing, and what he’s thinking about. He talks about revolutionary war reenactments and friend groups and grief… he takes me around and shows me all the places I forgot about in the thirty years since I was thirteen.

This year we decided to meet down in the valley between our two houses. We crouched in a stand of dead reeds by Pekin Brook, which runs through our town…and Leland gave me some highlights from his year.

The music for this show is by Vermont musicians Brian Clark, Mike Donofrio and Peter Cressy, and was recorded in my living room. I feel so lucky to have such talented and awesome friends.

To hear the other Leland shows, look below for links…!

]]> Thu, 11 May 2017 19:02:01 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com It’s spring in Vermont, and it’s been a full year since we heard from my friend Leland. When we left him last year, he was just about to graduate from Calais elementary school and move up to the big union middle school.

Leland is my neighbor. And this will be my third year talking with him on tape…about what he’s doing, and what he’s thinking about. He talks about revolutionary war reenactments and friend groups and grief… he takes me around and shows me all the places I forgot about in the thirty years since I was thirteen.

This year we decided to meet down in the valley between our two houses. We crouched in a stand of dead reeds by Pekin Brook, which runs through our town…and Leland gave me some highlights from his year.

The music for this show is by Vermont musicians Brian Clark, Mike Donofrio and Peter Cressy, and was recorded in my living room. I feel so lucky to have such talented and awesome friends.

To hear the other Leland shows, look below for links…!

]]> Leland is Almost Done Seventh Grade Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:12:15 It's been a year since we've heard from my neighbor, Leland. Here's what's on his mind. It's been a year since we've heard from my neighbor, Leland. Here's what's on his mind. false full 97 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2921 We Are Sending You Light The Eventide Singers are a volunteer hospice choir based in Greenfield, Massachusetts. They aim to comfort people who are ill, homebound, or actively dying. There are a number of these groups of bedside singers in Vermont and all over the world. They sing to be of service to people who are straddling the edges of life and death, or who are lonely and need a little light. They sing to comfort the caregivers and give them a little break from all they must attend to. They are intimate strangers providing a unique service–temporarily healing the weary through song.

We Are Sending You Light is produced by  Sara Brooke Curtis.

Thanks and Links

For more of Sara’s work, click HERE.

Sarah wishes to thank Barbara Buschner, Alexa Berton, Judith Williams, Joe Toritto, Loren Kramer, Walt Cudnohufsky, Sandra Platt, and Kelsey O’Brien. Thanks also to the Farren Care Center and Poet Seat Nursing Home.

Sara is a fellow member of The Heard, a collective of awesome independent podcast producers around the country.

]]> Fri, 28 Apr 2017 16:52:50 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com The Eventide Singers are a volunteer hospice choir based in Greenfield, Massachusetts. They aim to comfort people who are ill, homebound, or actively dying. There are a number of these groups of bedside singers in Vermont and all over the world. They sing to be of service to people who are straddling the edges of life and death, or who are lonely and need a little light. They sing to comfort the caregivers and give them a little break from all they must attend to. They are intimate strangers providing a unique service–temporarily healing the weary through song.

We Are Sending You Light is produced by  Sara Brooke Curtis.

Thanks and Links

For more of Sara’s work, click HERE.

Sarah wishes to thank Barbara Buschner, Alexa Berton, Judith Williams, Joe Toritto, Loren Kramer, Walt Cudnohufsky, Sandra Platt, and Kelsey O’Brien. Thanks also to the Farren Care Center and Poet Seat Nursing Home.

Sara is a fellow member of The Heard, a collective of awesome independent podcast producers around the country.

]]> We Are Sending You Light Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:18:09 Temporarily healing the weary through song. Temporarily healing the weary through song. false full 100 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2890 Robert Ford Last Ambassador

Robert Ford served as the last U.S. Ambassador to Syria. He arrived in the country right before the protests began there in 2011 and he was witness to the beginnings of the civil war. In 2012 he was pulled out over security concerns, but he continued to work on the crisis in Syria back in DC until 2014, when he left the Foreign Service. Robert Ford now lives with his wife Alison in the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont, which is about as far from the Middle East as you can get. We met in his living room on a rainy day last week, right after the chemical attack in Syria and right before Trump’s military response. We talked about his personal experience in Syria and the role of diplomacy in the Middle East.

Kudos

Delicious Ingredients: The Best Podcasts for April 15-21, 2017

]]> Thu, 13 Apr 2017 16:01:22 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

Robert Ford served as the last U.S. Ambassador to Syria. He arrived in the country right before the protests began there in 2011 and he was witness to the beginnings of the civil war. In 2012 he was pulled out over security concerns, but he continued to work on the crisis in Syria back in DC until 2014, when he left the Foreign Service. Robert Ford now lives with his wife Alison in the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont, which is about as far from the Middle East as you can get. We met in his living room on a rainy day last week, right after the chemical attack in Syria and right before Trump’s military response. We talked about his personal experience in Syria and the role of diplomacy in the Middle East.

Kudos

Delicious Ingredients: The Best Podcasts for April 15-21, 2017

]]> Robert Ford Last Ambassador Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:34:23 The last U.S. Ambassador to Syria arrived in the country just in time for the civil war to begin.... The last U.S. Ambassador to Syria arrived in the country just in time for the civil war to begin.... false full 143 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2874 Hunger is Boring

This is a show about how the charitable food system works and how it’s not working.

The topic of hunger is not very exciting. Stories about problems that have always been problems are generally not very exciting. And since there’s enough food to feed everyone in this country ten times over, hunger is obviously a systems problem. So I think I’ve figured it would get solved any day now. By systems people.

But it’s not getting solved. In fact the lines at food shelves are getting longer while the volunteers running the food pantries are getting older. All over the country, food shelves and food banks are struggling to keep up with growing numbers of people who need them. In 2014, according to the USDA, 14% of all US households were food insecure. And if the federal government makes more cuts to food programs, that number will certainly grow.

So I made a show about it. And and as it turned out, the people I talked with for this story were not boring. They’re tired, but they’re not boring. You’ll hear from Ernie LaRock and Marj Taylor of the Swanton Food Shelf. You’ll hear from Lisa Pitcher, who manages Our Place, the community meal site down in Bellows Falls. And you’ll hear from Judy Stermer, formerly of the Vermont Foodbank, the largest supplier to food shelves and meal sites around the state.

Credits

The music for this show is by Vermont musicians Brian Clark and Mike Donofrio

The picture for this show is from the Heavenly Food Pantry in Essex Junction, Vermont

]]> Mon, 3 Apr 2017 17:41:23 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

This is a show about how the charitable food system works and how it’s not working.

The topic of hunger is not very exciting. Stories about problems that have always been problems are generally not very exciting. And since there’s enough food to feed everyone in this country ten times over, hunger is obviously a systems problem. So I think I’ve figured it would get solved any day now. By systems people.

But it’s not getting solved. In fact the lines at food shelves are getting longer while the volunteers running the food pantries are getting older. All over the country, food shelves and food banks are struggling to keep up with growing numbers of people who need them. In 2014, according to the USDA, 14% of all US households were food insecure. And if the federal government makes more cuts to food programs, that number will certainly grow.

So I made a show about it. And and as it turned out, the people I talked with for this story were not boring. They’re tired, but they’re not boring. You’ll hear from Ernie LaRock and Marj Taylor of the Swanton Food Shelf. You’ll hear from Lisa Pitcher, who manages Our Place, the community meal site down in Bellows Falls. And you’ll hear from Judy Stermer, formerly of the Vermont Foodbank, the largest supplier to food shelves and meal sites around the state.

Credits

The music for this show is by Vermont musicians Brian Clark and Mike Donofrio

The picture for this show is from the Heavenly Food Pantry in Essex Junction, Vermont

]]> Hunger is Boring Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:18:30 How feeding hungry people works. And how it's not working. How feeding hungry people works. And how it's not working. false full 101 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2842 The Wildlife In the concrete jungle, it all starts out innocently enough: especially if you live in a high-rise.

It was a blustery Tuesday morning, when two pigeons, named Cody and Megan, were house hunting on the balcony of my apartment.

As you’d expect, they put in an offer.

Beyond the holiday turkey or roast chicken here and there, I wasn’t fond of birds.  When Cody and Megan appeared, I shooed them away, closed the balcony door and left for work.

When I came home, I was in for a surprise. Cody was dancing on the railing and Megan was huddled in a shabby nest.

Megan had laid some eggs.  I wanted the birds to leave. I had no idea how difficult this would be.  It was war.

So off to war I went.

Credits

The Wildlife was written and produced by Peter McHugh and Clive Desmond for Pod Planet, a podcast that is so damn good. Here is a logo, which is also a fancy link:

Additional Credits: Lisa Dalbello as City Animal Control Lady, Carter Hayden as Carlo the Civil Servant and Ali Rojas.

Producer Biographies

Pod Planet is written and produced by chronic multi-media experimenters, Peter McHugh and Clive Desmond. It’s the first podcast created by the international team, both of whom have worked across a wide variety of media formats.

Clive Desmond, who has lived in Toronto and New York, also serves as the narrator for Pod Planet. He has produced audio books for Harper Collins Digital, including Bruce McCall’s “Thin Ice”, and the best-selling “Pinkerton Files” by author Bruce Luchuk.

He’s also written and produced numerous syndicated radio documentaries on popular music and is a presently an on-air contributor to Canada’s top-rated talk/news radio show on CFRB in Toronto.

 Peter McHugh, having lived and worked in Chicago, Toronto, Amsterdam, Los Angeles and, now, Minneapolis, has been acclaimed in a wide variety of media formats, as well. Along the way, he’s produced an RIAA-certified, multi-platinum boxed set for Eric Clapton, that also yielded a Grammy-finalist song. Sadly, the song did not win.

Other projects he’s worked on are display in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York, and Le Musée de la Publicité at the Louvre in Paris (France, not Texas.)

He also created the social media-driven, public activism effort, “Book Burning Party”. As a result, the closing of an award-winning library was saved from the clutches of anti-tax activists. The work drew international media acclaim, and was nationally recognized by the American Library Association.

]]> Wed, 22 Mar 2017 15:47:29 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com In the concrete jungle, it all starts out innocently enough: especially if you live in a high-rise.

It was a blustery Tuesday morning, when two pigeons, named Cody and Megan, were house hunting on the balcony of my apartment.

As you’d expect, they put in an offer.

Beyond the holiday turkey or roast chicken here and there, I wasn’t fond of birds.  When Cody and Megan appeared, I shooed them away, closed the balcony door and left for work.

When I came home, I was in for a surprise. Cody was dancing on the railing and Megan was huddled in a shabby nest.

Megan had laid some eggs.  I wanted the birds to leave. I had no idea how difficult this would be.  It was war.

So off to war I went.

Credits

The Wildlife was written and produced by Peter McHugh and Clive Desmond for Pod Planet, a podcast that is so damn good. Here is a logo, which is also a fancy link:

Additional Credits: Lisa Dalbello as City Animal Control Lady, Carter Hayden as Carlo the Civil Servant and Ali Rojas.

Producer Biographies

Pod Planet is written and produced by chronic multi-media experimenters, Peter McHugh and Clive Desmond. It’s the first podcast created by the international team, both of whom have worked across a wide variety of media formats.

Clive Desmond, who has lived in Toronto and New York, also serves as the narrator for Pod Planet. He has produced audio books for Harper Collins Digital, including Bruce McCall’s “Thin Ice”, and the best-selling “Pinkerton Files” by author Bruce Luchuk.

He’s also written and produced numerous syndicated radio documentaries on popular music and is a presently an on-air contributor to Canada’s top-rated talk/news radio show on CFRB in Toronto.

 Peter McHugh, having lived and worked in Chicago, Toronto, Amsterdam, Los Angeles and, now, Minneapolis, has been acclaimed in a wide variety of media formats, as well. Along the way, he’s produced an RIAA-certified, multi-platinum boxed set for Eric Clapton, that also yielded a Grammy-finalist song. Sadly, the song did not win.

Other projects he’s worked on are display in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York, and Le Musée de la Publicité at the Louvre in Paris (France, not Texas.)

He also created the social media-driven, public activism effort, “Book Burning Party”. As a result, the closing of an award-winning library was saved from the clutches of anti-tax activists. The work drew international media acclaim, and was nationally recognized by the American Library Association.

]]> The Wildlife Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:21:55 "Two pigeons, named Cody and Megan, were house hunting on the balcony of my apartment..." "Two pigeons, named Cody and Megan, were house hunting on the balcony of my apartment..." false full 93 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2799 Judge Cashman Ed Cashman spent twenty-five years on the bench, presiding over drunk driving cases and murders and everything in between. After a while, he started to question whether the American criminal justice system was actually achieving justice. The kinds of sentences that the public demanded and that lawyers accepted often felt more like vengeance than fairness. Judge Cashman tried to give defendants—even those charged with heinous of crimes—a chance to redeem themselves. It was a philosophy that some people didn’t understand. And Cashman eventually paid a terrible price for it.

Life Sentence: Eleven Years After Being Tried in the Court of Public Opinion, Former Judge Ed Cashman Defends Himself

By Mark Davis

The beautiful photo of Judge Cashman is by Matthew Thorsen of Seven Days.

The music for this show was made by Vermont musicians Brian Clark and Mike Donofrio and Peter Cressy.

]]> Wed, 8 Mar 2017 15:05:49 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Ed Cashman spent twenty-five years on the bench, presiding over drunk driving cases and murders and everything in between. After a while, he started to question whether the American criminal justice system was actually achieving justice. The kinds of sentences that the public demanded and that lawyers accepted often felt more like vengeance than fairness. Judge Cashman tried to give defendants—even those charged with heinous of crimes—a chance to redeem themselves. It was a philosophy that some people didn’t understand. And Cashman eventually paid a terrible price for it.

Life Sentence: Eleven Years After Being Tried in the Court of Public Opinion, Former Judge Ed Cashman Defends Himself

By Mark Davis

The beautiful photo of Judge Cashman is by Matthew Thorsen of Seven Days.

The music for this show was made by Vermont musicians Brian Clark and Mike Donofrio and Peter Cressy.

]]> Judge Cashman Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:21:17 Retired Vermont judge Ed Cashman talks about 25 years on the bench, and why punishment is never enough. Retired Vermont judge Ed Cashman talks about 25 years on the bench, and why punishment is never enough. false full 96 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2778 Your Neighbor

For the last four and a half years, Victor’s been working on dairy farms in the Northeast. Like 11 million other people in this country, he’s undocumented. I’m embarrassed to say that I’ve always assumed I knew this story already…like it was some kind of composite story of the ‘Mexican migrant farm worker experience’. The worst part is, I didn’t even know I was assuming this. I guess I didn’t really have to think about it. The story didn’t have a lot to do with me.

But last week President Trump started making good on his promises to ramp up deportations of undocumented people in this country–people who pay 12 billion dollars in US taxes every year–but don’t have US documents.

Victor’s a friend of a friend of mine, and I won’t say where he works but these friends of friends are my neighbors, and yours. My friend, we’ll call her ‘T’, agreed to do some translating, along with her brand new baby. We visited Victor at his apartment on the dairy farm where he works. This is his story.

Credits

The music for this show was made by the amazing Amelia Meath, and her band Sylvan Esso. Thank you so much Amelia for humming in your bathroom, your car and on the street. Her other group is a trio of women called Mountain Man. Music that will make your hair stand up.

I want to thank all the excellent farm workers I met in making this show. And thanks so much to A and A, and T for her wonderful presence and a memorable drive.

]]> Fri, 24 Feb 2017 16:13:25 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

For the last four and a half years, Victor’s been working on dairy farms in the Northeast. Like 11 million other people in this country, he’s undocumented. I’m embarrassed to say that I’ve always assumed I knew this story already…like it was some kind of composite story of the ‘Mexican migrant farm worker experience’. The worst part is, I didn’t even know I was assuming this. I guess I didn’t really have to think about it. The story didn’t have a lot to do with me.

But last week President Trump started making good on his promises to ramp up deportations of undocumented people in this country–people who pay 12 billion dollars in US taxes every year–but don’t have US documents.

Victor’s a friend of a friend of mine, and I won’t say where he works but these friends of friends are my neighbors, and yours. My friend, we’ll call her ‘T’, agreed to do some translating, along with her brand new baby. We visited Victor at his apartment on the dairy farm where he works. This is his story.

Credits

The music for this show was made by the amazing Amelia Meath, and her band Sylvan Esso. Thank you so much Amelia for humming in your bathroom, your car and on the street. Her other group is a trio of women called Mountain Man. Music that will make your hair stand up.

I want to thank all the excellent farm workers I met in making this show. And thanks so much to A and A, and T for her wonderful presence and a memorable drive.

]]> Your Neighbor Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:16:49 Victor is an undocumented Mexican farm worker whose future is increasingly uncertain. What is it like to never feel safe? Victor is an undocumented Mexican farm worker whose future is increasingly uncertain. What is it like to never feel safe? false full 102 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2745 Deep Stealth Mode When Marlo Mack’s son was three and just learning to talk, he informed his mother that he was not a boy. He said that something had gone wrong in her tummy that made him come out as a boy instead of a girl.

Today, a guest show from two of my favorite podcasts…

Marlo Mack’s podcast, How to Be a Girl, is a riveting, funny, sometimes heartbreaking account of her life raising a transgender daughter. It has some of the best interviewing with a child I’ve ever heard. It’s also one of the most interesting chronicles of parenting I’ve heard. And the show offers listeners an intimate introduction to what it means to be transgender.

Marlo Mack is not her real name. She has decided to keep their identities secret until her daughter is old enough to decide if she wants to use their real names.

This episode was re-edited and re-mixed by Jeff Emtman, for another podcast called Here Be Monsters, from KCRW. He had help from Bethany Denton and Nick White. Here Be Monsters is a show that explores our fears and all that’s unknown. It’s always surprising and always beautifully made and what I love most is that they’re not afraid to take risks–with their subjects, their format and their exquisite editing.

This show is just two great things that go great together.

The music for the show is by The Black Spot.

]]> Tue, 14 Feb 2017 21:32:48 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com When Marlo Mack’s son was three and just learning to talk, he informed his mother that he was not a boy. He said that something had gone wrong in her tummy that made him come out as a boy instead of a girl.

Today, a guest show from two of my favorite podcasts…

Marlo Mack’s podcast, How to Be a Girl, is a riveting, funny, sometimes heartbreaking account of her life raising a transgender daughter. It has some of the best interviewing with a child I’ve ever heard. It’s also one of the most interesting chronicles of parenting I’ve heard. And the show offers listeners an intimate introduction to what it means to be transgender.

Marlo Mack is not her real name. She has decided to keep their identities secret until her daughter is old enough to decide if she wants to use their real names.

This episode was re-edited and re-mixed by Jeff Emtman, for another podcast called Here Be Monsters, from KCRW. He had help from Bethany Denton and Nick White. Here Be Monsters is a show that explores our fears and all that’s unknown. It’s always surprising and always beautifully made and what I love most is that they’re not afraid to take risks–with their subjects, their format and their exquisite editing.

This show is just two great things that go great together.

The music for the show is by The Black Spot.

]]> Deep Stealth Mode Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:20:22 "When my son was three and just learning to talk, he informed me that 'he' was a 'she'." "When my son was three and just learning to talk, he informed me that 'he' was a 'she'." false full 95 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2723 Dunkin’ Donuts It’s really dark here in Vermont this time of year. And every year, by the third week in January, I feel like I’m seeing everything through the wrong end of a telescope. A dirty telescope. I stop wanting to answer the phone. I have a hard time picking out a cereal at the store. Most mornings it just seems easier to wear what I wore to bed.

After Trump’s first week in office, I feel worse than most years. And actually the whole world seems on edge. It seems like no one can decide how to help or what to do. Or how much to look or look away.

Dunkin’ Donuts and the library are the last two public places in most towns around here where everyone’s welcome and no one wonders how long you’ll be there. For about a dollar you can stay at Dunkin’ Donuts as long as you want. I went there to talk with people. Not about Trump necessarily. But about how their lives are going, and whether they fit into the famous middle class we keep hearing so much about. Also I went there because in January in Vermont, it’s good to sit in a bright place with a cup of coffee and talk with strangers.

Credits and Thanks
My thanks to John Dillon and Scott Carrier. The music in the end of this show is by Vermont musician Peter Cressy.

]]> Tue, 31 Jan 2017 17:22:34 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com It’s really dark here in Vermont this time of year. And every year, by the third week in January, I feel like I’m seeing everything through the wrong end of a telescope. A dirty telescope. I stop wanting to answer the phone. I have a hard time picking out a cereal at the store. Most mornings it just seems easier to wear what I wore to bed.

After Trump’s first week in office, I feel worse than most years. And actually the whole world seems on edge. It seems like no one can decide how to help or what to do. Or how much to look or look away.

Dunkin’ Donuts and the library are the last two public places in most towns around here where everyone’s welcome and no one wonders how long you’ll be there. For about a dollar you can stay at Dunkin’ Donuts as long as you want. I went there to talk with people. Not about Trump necessarily. But about how their lives are going, and whether they fit into the famous middle class we keep hearing so much about. Also I went there because in January in Vermont, it’s good to sit in a bright place with a cup of coffee and talk with strangers.

Credits and Thanks
My thanks to John Dillon and Scott Carrier. The music in the end of this show is by Vermont musician Peter Cressy.

]]> Dunkin’ Donuts Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:16:49 Seasonal depression, Dunkin' Donuts, and learning about civic engagement in middle age. Seasonal depression, Dunkin' Donuts, and learning about civic engagement in middle age. false full 115 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2676 Benedict Arnold’s Leg


Steve Sheinkin is an award-winning writer of  stories for kids about American history. When he started out, he was a writer of boring textbooks for kids about American history. When he started, he was young and ambitious and he wanted to bring new energy to textbook writing, to mine American history for fresh new details and anecdotes that could capture the interest of fifth graders…!

This is an interview about how he failed.

And he shares stories about the awful push and pull of priorities for teaching our origin stories to American children.

It’s also a story about Benedict Arnold’s leg.

Credits

Steve thinking about history.

Steve Sheinkin is an award-winning author of history books for young adults. You can visit him at http://stevesheinkin.com

Thanks to MT Anderson for introducing me to Steve, and helping me with this show.

Music and sounds for this show were found on freesound.org

Articles

How Texas Inflicts Bad Textbooks on Us, New York Review of Books, 2012

Texas Textbook Massacre, Huffington Post, 2010

Texans on Review Panel Push for Creationism in Science Textbooks, Huffington Post, 2013

]]> Tue, 3 Jan 2017 23:19:32 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com


Steve Sheinkin is an award-winning writer of  stories for kids about American history. When he started out, he was a writer of boring textbooks for kids about American history. When he started, he was young and ambitious and he wanted to bring new energy to textbook writing, to mine American history for fresh new details and anecdotes that could capture the interest of fifth graders…!

This is an interview about how he failed.

And he shares stories about the awful push and pull of priorities for teaching our origin stories to American children.

It’s also a story about Benedict Arnold’s leg.

Credits

Steve thinking about history.

Steve Sheinkin is an award-winning author of history books for young adults. You can visit him at http://stevesheinkin.com

Thanks to MT Anderson for introducing me to Steve, and helping me with this show.

Music and sounds for this show were found on freesound.org

Articles

How Texas Inflicts Bad Textbooks on Us, New York Review of Books, 2012

Texas Textbook Massacre, Huffington Post, 2010

Texans on Review Panel Push for Creationism in Science Textbooks, Huffington Post, 2013

]]> Benedict Arnold’s Leg Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:29:15 Steve Sheinkin talks about boring textbook writing, the politics of American origin stories, and Benedict Arnold's leg. Steve Sheinkin talks about boring textbook writing, the politics of American origin stories, and Benedict Arnold's leg. false full 108 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2657 Seasonal Update from the Keens!

Ho ho ho! It’s time again for the annual seasonal update from the Keen family!

In certain American subcultures, there’s a long holiday tradition of sending out end-of-year family update letters to far-flung relatives, friends and acquaintances. They can be wonderful. They can also be spectacularly bizarre. Could it be that this year the tradition comes to an end? Here is the Keen family report….

The Season Update is written by Tal McThenia. Tal is a writer of books and articles and screenplays. To learn more about Tal, you can visit his website:  talmcthenia.com.

]]> Tue, 20 Dec 2016 15:32:07 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

Ho ho ho! It’s time again for the annual seasonal update from the Keen family!

In certain American subcultures, there’s a long holiday tradition of sending out end-of-year family update letters to far-flung relatives, friends and acquaintances. They can be wonderful. They can also be spectacularly bizarre. Could it be that this year the tradition comes to an end? Here is the Keen family report….

The Season Update is written by Tal McThenia. Tal is a writer of books and articles and screenplays. To learn more about Tal, you can visit his website:  talmcthenia.com.

]]> Seasonal Update from the Keens! Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:09:45 Ho ho ho! It's time again for the annual seasonal update from the Keens! Ho ho ho! It's time again for the annual seasonal update from the Keens! false full 90 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2648 Nicholas is Waiting As some of you may remember, last year I did a pledge drive. It was called the Shwag Pledge Drive. I gave away a number of prizes to extremely lucky pledgers. There was a pair of boiled wool mittens that my sister made, a box of kindling that my boyfriend cut up, a VPR pledge drive mug, and one of the prizes was going to be an interview with me in my car in the Dunkin’ Donuts parking lot in Montpelier, Vermont. Nicholas won the interview, but he lives in London. So we did the interview by Skype. Nicholas and his wife, Sarah, were just about to have a baby when we spoke, they were looking for the baby trend expedition jogger stroller online for their baby. So today’s show is a CHRISTMAS MIRACLE.

Here is a few minutes from our conversation…the speculations and special anxieties that come with the long wait for a brand new person to arrive.

Thanks to producer Mary Wesley for her remarkable production work on this show!

]]> Fri, 16 Dec 2016 18:04:29 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com As some of you may remember, last year I did a pledge drive. It was called the Shwag Pledge Drive. I gave away a number of prizes to extremely lucky pledgers. There was a pair of boiled wool mittens that my sister made, a box of kindling that my boyfriend cut up, a VPR pledge drive mug, and one of the prizes was going to be an interview with me in my car in the Dunkin’ Donuts parking lot in Montpelier, Vermont. Nicholas won the interview, but he lives in London. So we did the interview by Skype. Nicholas and his wife, Sarah, were just about to have a baby when we spoke, they were looking for the baby trend expedition jogger stroller online for their baby. So today’s show is a CHRISTMAS MIRACLE.

Here is a few minutes from our conversation…the speculations and special anxieties that come with the long wait for a brand new person to arrive.

Thanks to producer Mary Wesley for her remarkable production work on this show!

]]> Nicholas is Waiting Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:08:23 A short visit into the mind of Nicholas, who waits patiently for his first child to make an appearance. A short visit into the mind of Nicholas, who waits patiently for his first child to make an appearance. false full 91 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2622 Lentils Suck

“That’s the thing about lentils, if they were going to soften, they would have already fucking softened. Honestly, you’d be better off waiting for someone who didn’t find you remotely attractive to fall in love with you.”

This show is from an article by writer Sarah Miller, and it appeared in FoodandWine.com. The title is self explanatory. Welcome.

Sarah Miller lives in Nevada City, California. She’s the author of Inside the mind of Gideon Rayburn and The Other Girl. She also has a series called the Nevada City Wine Diaries, in which she does not use the word ‘buttery’ and sometimes only tangentially writes about wine. Here is a link to the full lentils essay in foodandwine.com.

The music for this show is made by David Schulman of Quiet Life Motel, and is from his new album, Anhinga.

]]> Wed, 30 Nov 2016 21:45:15 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

“That’s the thing about lentils, if they were going to soften, they would have already fucking softened. Honestly, you’d be better off waiting for someone who didn’t find you remotely attractive to fall in love with you.”

This show is from an article by writer Sarah Miller, and it appeared in FoodandWine.com. The title is self explanatory. Welcome.

Sarah Miller lives in Nevada City, California. She’s the author of Inside the mind of Gideon Rayburn and The Other Girl. She also has a series called the Nevada City Wine Diaries, in which she does not use the word ‘buttery’ and sometimes only tangentially writes about wine. Here is a link to the full lentils essay in foodandwine.com.

The music for this show is made by David Schulman of Quiet Life Motel, and is from his new album, Anhinga.

]]> Lentils Suck Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:11:29 That’s the thing about lentils, if they were going to soften, they would have already fucking softened. That’s the thing about lentils, if they were going to soften, they would have already fucking softened. false full 83 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2585 Hot Bird. Again. Happy Thanksgiving everyone. Here is hunter Barry Forbes talking about turkey hunting again. I could listen to Barry Forbes talk about turkey hunting all day, but in this case he only talks about it for about three and a half minutes. Welcome.

Credits

I made that show with tape from the Vermont Folklife Center.

]]> Thu, 24 Nov 2016 14:44:30 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Happy Thanksgiving everyone. Here is hunter Barry Forbes talking about turkey hunting again. I could listen to Barry Forbes talk about turkey hunting all day, but in this case he only talks about it for about three and a half minutes. Welcome.

Credits

I made that show with tape from the Vermont Folklife Center.

]]> Hot Bird. Again. Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:03:27 'You work each bird as an individual...' 'You work each bird as an individual...' false full 88 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2551 Charlie Hunter Paints Outside  

Charlie Hunter is a plein air painter, which is a fancy way of saying he paints outside. His paintings of Vermont are stark and evocative and mostly the color of mud (Charlie calls it murk, which I think is a fancy way of saying mud). But his paintings capture the light and the feeling of this place in a way that’s totally uncanny and unique. He has a special love for painting trains and garages and industrial places in decline, and his hometown of Bellows Falls is his favorite subject. It’s an old mill town where the industry pretty much atomized years ago. And like a lot of poor towns that are out of the sight line of tourists, it specializes in Section 8 housing and low income assisted living. Bellows Falls is not a tourist destination. And because it’s not right off the interstate, it sort of feels like an outpost. But outposts are fun. People’s plot lines mix up in interesting ways, and at outposts, people know and consort with other people who are not exactly like them. It really feels like are are somewhere when you’re in Bellows Falls. I checked out a kiosk in the middle of town and there was an event called Swill, Swine and Swing. Which sounds pretty awesome.

I talked with Charlie about how he makes paintings, or actually more about what he thinks about making paintings. We also drove around town and visited places he likes to paint, in a town that he loves.

Credits and Links

Charlie’s website

Information about Charlie’s Roots on the Rails, where awesome musicians and audiences ride around on trains and enjoy great music.

Music by Brian Clark

Thank you Mark Bushnell and Erica Housekeeper for introducing me to Charlie.

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]]> Thu, 10 Nov 2016 16:45:51 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com  

Charlie Hunter is a plein air painter, which is a fancy way of saying he paints outside. His paintings of Vermont are stark and evocative and mostly the color of mud (Charlie calls it murk, which I think is a fancy way of saying mud). But his paintings capture the light and the feeling of this place in a way that’s totally uncanny and unique. He has a special love for painting trains and garages and industrial places in decline, and his hometown of Bellows Falls is his favorite subject. It’s an old mill town where the industry pretty much atomized years ago. And like a lot of poor towns that are out of the sight line of tourists, it specializes in Section 8 housing and low income assisted living. Bellows Falls is not a tourist destination. And because it’s not right off the interstate, it sort of feels like an outpost. But outposts are fun. People’s plot lines mix up in interesting ways, and at outposts, people know and consort with other people who are not exactly like them. It really feels like are are somewhere when you’re in Bellows Falls. I checked out a kiosk in the middle of town and there was an event called Swill, Swine and Swing. Which sounds pretty awesome.

I talked with Charlie about how he makes paintings, or actually more about what he thinks about making paintings. We also drove around town and visited places he likes to paint, in a town that he loves.

Credits and Links

Charlie’s website

Information about Charlie’s Roots on the Rails, where awesome musicians and audiences ride around on trains and enjoy great music.

Music by Brian Clark

Thank you Mark Bushnell and Erica Housekeeper for introducing me to Charlie.

Click on image to enlarge and launch slide show.#ftg-11 .tile .icon { color:#ffffff; }#ftg-11 .ftg-items .loading-bar i { background:#fff; }#ftg-11 .ftg-items .loading-bar { background:#fff; }#ftg-11 .tile .icon { font-size:12px; }#ftg-11 .tile .icon { margin: -6px 0 0 -6px; }#ftg-11 .tile .caption-block .text-wrapper span.text { font-size:12px; }#ftg-11 .tile .caption-outside .text-wrapper span.text { font-size:12px; }#ftg-11 .tile .caption-block .text-wrapper span.title { font-size:14px; }#ftg-11 .tile .caption-outside .text-wrapper span.title { font-size:14px; }#ftg-11 .tile { background-color: transparent; }#ftg-11 .tile .caption-block .text-wrapper span.text { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-11 .tile .caption-block .text-wrapper span.title { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-11 .tile .caption-outside .text-wrapper span.text { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-11 .tile .caption-outside .text-wrapper span.title { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-11 .tile .ftg-social a { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-11 .tile .caption-block { transition-timing-function:linear; }#ftg-11 .tile .caption-block { transition-duration:0.25s; }#ftg-11 .tile .tile-inner:before { background-color: #000000; }#ftg-11 .tile .tile-inner:before { background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8); }#ftg-11 .tile:hover img {-moz-transform: ;-webkit-transform: ;-o-transform: ;-ms-transform: ;transform: ;}jQuery('#ftg-11 img.item').removeAttr('src');jQuery(document).ready(function () {setTimeout(function () {jQuery('#ftg-11').finalTilesGallery({minTileWidth: 100,margin: 10,loadMethod: 'sequential',nonce: '78b426ba1e',galleryId: '1',setupFilters: true,layout: 'final',debug: false,gridSize: 25,disableGridSizeBelow:800,allowEnlargement: true,imageSizeFactor: [ [4000, 0.9],[1024, 0.8],[768, 0.7],[640, 0.6],[320, 0.5]],selectedFilter: 'n-a'});jQuery(function () {(function () {var rel = '';jQuery('#ftg-11 .ftg-lightbox').click(function (e) {rel = jQuery(this).attr('rel');jQuery('#ftg-11 .ftg-current').removeClass('ftg-current');jQuery('#ftg-11 [rel="'+rel+'"]').addClass('ftg-current');});})();});}, 0);});

 

]]> Charlie Hunter Paints Outside Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:20:30 Painter Charlie Hunter talks about what it feels like to make paintings, and we drive around in his Honda Element. Painter Charlie Hunter talks about what it feels like to make paintings, and we drive around in his Honda Element. false full 84 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2527 The Special Olympics Are Awesome

A couple weeks ago my son and I volunteered at the soccer Special Olympics in Northfield, VT. The athletes came from all over the state and the teams were all ages, and both sexes. So there were fifty-five year old women teaming up with thirteen year old boys and seventeen year old girls and you’ve never seen so much team spirit or felt such intense excitement. About all of it. Everything. The games, the cheering, the lunch…it was like the feeling of Christmas and birthdays and Chariots of Fire at all once. All day long.

This show is a sample of that day.

Welcome!

Credits and Stuff

Thanks to Liza Reed at Special Olympics Vermont for her help, and photographer Heather Glenn for letting me use her images on my website.

If you’ve never participated in the Special Olympics or volunteered at an event, I encourage you to check it out. It’s serious fun. Go here to search for events in your area.

]]> Tue, 25 Oct 2016 19:48:19 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

A couple weeks ago my son and I volunteered at the soccer Special Olympics in Northfield, VT. The athletes came from all over the state and the teams were all ages, and both sexes. So there were fifty-five year old women teaming up with thirteen year old boys and seventeen year old girls and you’ve never seen so much team spirit or felt such intense excitement. About all of it. Everything. The games, the cheering, the lunch…it was like the feeling of Christmas and birthdays and Chariots of Fire at all once. All day long.

This show is a sample of that day.

Welcome!

Credits and Stuff

Thanks to Liza Reed at Special Olympics Vermont for her help, and photographer Heather Glenn for letting me use her images on my website.

If you’ve never participated in the Special Olympics or volunteered at an event, I encourage you to check it out. It’s serious fun. Go here to search for events in your area.

]]> The Special Olympics Are Awesome Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:17:59 Excerpts from my day at the Fall Special Olympics. Excerpts from my day at the Fall Special Olympics. false full 159 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2507 Jim Rooney Today, an interview with songwriter and Grammy winning record producer Jim Rooney. He and his wife Carol live in an old farmhouse in Sharon, Vermont, but Jim is still back and forth to Nashville, where he spent thirty years playing music, writing songs, and producing some of my all time favorite records with artists like John Prine, Nanci Griffith, Iris Dement, and Townes Van Zandt. Record producers are the people responsible for getting great performances from singers and session musicians in the weird, blank atmosphere of a recording studio. I’ve always wondered how they do that. I also wonder how they know when a record is ‘cooked’…and when to let it go.

I sat with Jim at his kitchen table and we talked about all these things. And more. Welcome.

Credits and Links

Link to Jim’s blog, his books and his music is here.

Additional music for this show by Vermont musician, Brian Clark

 

 

]]> Tue, 18 Oct 2016 17:45:54 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Today, an interview with songwriter and Grammy winning record producer Jim Rooney. He and his wife Carol live in an old farmhouse in Sharon, Vermont, but Jim is still back and forth to Nashville, where he spent thirty years playing music, writing songs, and producing some of my all time favorite records with artists like John Prine, Nanci Griffith, Iris Dement, and Townes Van Zandt. Record producers are the people responsible for getting great performances from singers and session musicians in the weird, blank atmosphere of a recording studio. I’ve always wondered how they do that. I also wonder how they know when a record is ‘cooked’…and when to let it go.

I sat with Jim at his kitchen table and we talked about all these things. And more. Welcome.

Credits and Links

Link to Jim’s blog, his books and his music is here.

Additional music for this show by Vermont musician, Brian Clark

 

 

]]> Jim Rooney Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:25:49 Record producer Jim Rooney talks about how to make something great, then let it go. Record producer Jim Rooney talks about how to make something great, then let it go. false full 82 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2457 When the Food Runs Out
More and more Vermonters can’t afford groceries by the end of the month. The paycheck isn’t enough. The food stamps won’t stretch. And they’re looking to community meals and food shelves for regular help. The trouble is, food shelves weren’t designed to provide sustainable food. They were set up for emergencies. For fires, for floods. But every day, an army of volunteers–mostly women between the ages of 55 and 70–hustle food from area stores and local farmers and the Vermont Foodbank….to feed people.

This is a show about what it feels like when you don’t have enough to eat.

“The fields were fruitful, and starving men moved on the roads.”
― John Steinbeck, The Grapes of Wrath

Interview with Food Shelf Director Lisa Pitcher

Here is an unedited interview with Lisa Pitcher, the awesome Executive Director of Our Place, a community drop-in center in Bellows Falls, Vermont. She talks about the charitable food system in Vermont…how it works, and how it’s not working.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/284556745″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Credits

Music for this show was made by the excellent Mike Donofrio

Thanks to Lisa Pitcher, Mark Davis, Judy Stermer, Tobin and Peter, Pam Smart, Sharon Fannon, Robin Bradley, Evie Lovett, and the great people who put on Monday lunches at the Unitarian Church in Montpelier, VT.

Too Much Month at the End of the Money is a country western song by Marty Stuart.

]]> Sat, 24 Sep 2016 18:47:09 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com
More and more Vermonters can’t afford groceries by the end of the month. The paycheck isn’t enough. The food stamps won’t stretch. And they’re looking to community meals and food shelves for regular help. The trouble is, food shelves weren’t designed to provide sustainable food. They were set up for emergencies. For fires, for floods. But every day, an army of volunteers–mostly women between the ages of 55 and 70–hustle food from area stores and local farmers and the Vermont Foodbank….to feed people.

This is a show about what it feels like when you don’t have enough to eat.

“The fields were fruitful, and starving men moved on the roads.”
― John Steinbeck, The Grapes of Wrath

Interview with Food Shelf Director Lisa Pitcher

Here is an unedited interview with Lisa Pitcher, the awesome Executive Director of Our Place, a community drop-in center in Bellows Falls, Vermont. She talks about the charitable food system in Vermont…how it works, and how it’s not working.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/284556745″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Credits

Music for this show was made by the excellent Mike Donofrio

Thanks to Lisa Pitcher, Mark Davis, Judy Stermer, Tobin and Peter, Pam Smart, Sharon Fannon, Robin Bradley, Evie Lovett, and the great people who put on Monday lunches at the Unitarian Church in Montpelier, VT.

Too Much Month at the End of the Money is a country western song by Marty Stuart.

]]> When the Food Runs Out Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:31:15 Conversations with Americans who don't have enough to eat. Conversations with Americans who don't have enough to eat. false full 141 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2432 Jubal. Tail End of the Old School.

I met Jubal Durivage through my boyfriend, Gordon. Gordon and his two partners, Robby and Hilton, own a small hydroelectric plant way up near the Canadian border. It was pretty rundown when they bought it, and over the years they’ve hired a lot of people to work on it, mostly from the Northeast Kingdom. Crane operators, engineers, and Jubal Durivage, one of the few certified bridge welders in Vermont. I heard a lot about Jubal before I met him from Gordon and Robby. They respect his work and the care he takes in his work. So with a little bit of arm twisting, Jubal agreed to talk with me at his house in Eden, Vermont.

In this show, Jubal talks about an important teacher in his life as a welder, and mostly he talks about hunting–one of the great passions of his life. But in my mind this show isn’t about hunting or welding, and I can’t name what it is exactly. Maybe you can tell me.

Welcome.

]]> Fri, 9 Sep 2016 14:25:54 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

I met Jubal Durivage through my boyfriend, Gordon. Gordon and his two partners, Robby and Hilton, own a small hydroelectric plant way up near the Canadian border. It was pretty rundown when they bought it, and over the years they’ve hired a lot of people to work on it, mostly from the Northeast Kingdom. Crane operators, engineers, and Jubal Durivage, one of the few certified bridge welders in Vermont. I heard a lot about Jubal before I met him from Gordon and Robby. They respect his work and the care he takes in his work. So with a little bit of arm twisting, Jubal agreed to talk with me at his house in Eden, Vermont.

In this show, Jubal talks about an important teacher in his life as a welder, and mostly he talks about hunting–one of the great passions of his life. But in my mind this show isn’t about hunting or welding, and I can’t name what it is exactly. Maybe you can tell me.

Welcome.

]]> Jubal. Tail End of the Old School. Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:15:27 A conversation about hunting, then welding, then hunting again. A conversation about hunting, then welding, then hunting again. false full 81 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2405 Driving around with Susan Last summer I interviewed my friend Susan Randall, a private investigator. Susan trained me as an investigator, and we’ve spent whole days driving around the state of Vermont, working on cases and talking. We never run out of things to talk about. So I figured it was time to do another show with her. In this conversation, we talked about the criminal justice system more generally than before, and we ended up talking a lot about parenting…single parenting in particular. Come drive around with us.

If you haven’t heard the other interview with Susan, you might want start there. It’s called VT Private Eye.

Here is a picture of Susan and my boy Henry and her girl Lena, a zillion years ago.Screenshot 2016-09-01 10.29.23

]]> Mon, 22 Aug 2016 23:56:40 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Last summer I interviewed my friend Susan Randall, a private investigator. Susan trained me as an investigator, and we’ve spent whole days driving around the state of Vermont, working on cases and talking. We never run out of things to talk about. So I figured it was time to do another show with her. In this conversation, we talked about the criminal justice system more generally than before, and we ended up talking a lot about parenting…single parenting in particular. Come drive around with us.

If you haven’t heard the other interview with Susan, you might want start there. It’s called VT Private Eye.

Here is a picture of Susan and my boy Henry and her girl Lena, a zillion years ago.Screenshot 2016-09-01 10.29.23

]]> Driving around with Susan Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:32:43 Private investigator Susan Randall and I drive around and talk about criminal justice and single parenting. Private investigator Susan Randall and I drive around and talk about criminal justice and single parenting. false full 103 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2389 Police Log, Bunk Bed Dispute Edition It’s hot here in central Vermont, and there’s a whole lot of crime going down. Here’s a sampling of calls to the police, as reported in the Times Argus, the Stowe Reporter, and the Caledonian.

Read by Scott Carrier, producer of my favorite podcast, Home of the Brave.

Music from Joey Truman, a Brooklyn-based writer and musician. His two recent books, Killing the Math and Postal Child, are available from Whiskey Tit Press. His band is called Um, and they rock.

]]> Wed, 10 Aug 2016 18:12:23 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com It’s hot here in central Vermont, and there’s a whole lot of crime going down. Here’s a sampling of calls to the police, as reported in the Times Argus, the Stowe Reporter, and the Caledonian.

Read by Scott Carrier, producer of my favorite podcast, Home of the Brave.

Music from Joey Truman, a Brooklyn-based writer and musician. His two recent books, Killing the Math and Postal Child, are available from Whiskey Tit Press. His band is called Um, and they rock.

]]> Police Log, Bunk Bed Dispute Edition Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:03:48 A stolen garage door clicker and a growling female. Here's your summer police report from central Vermont. A stolen garage door clicker and a growling female. Here's your summer police report from central Vermont. false full 87 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2336 Peter Schumann, Advisor General

This is a conversation with Bread and Puppet founder and director, Peter Schumann…a conversation in which I ask him over and over again to answer questions that don’t really have answers, about what makes a great performance. And about what is a great performance…

Peter Schumann is a driven, prolific artist who makes huge outdoor theater performances with giant paintings and puppets and sculptures. There is music. There are people making animal sounds. Everything seems to be made of paper mache, twigs, twine and cardboard. The theater company lives in an old farmhouse in Glover, Vermont, when it’s not performing around the country and the world. And what Peter Schumann makes isn’t always good, but it’s always great.  There’s a wild current that runs through all that he does, and it all seems to be alive long after he’s done with it. ((If you haven’t been to the museum, housed in a huge barn behind the house in Glover….I would highly recommend it…))

Bread and Puppet is one of the oldest, nonprofit, self-supporting theatrical companies in the country. To learn more about the company and its strange and illustrious history, I recommend going HERE to read more.

Please leave a comment or a story at the bottom of this page! It’s always good to hear from you….!

Thanks and Other Things and Pictures

The music for this show is Peter on the fiddle, and his grandson, Ira Karp, on the drums. Pictures from their epic session below. Also, the show features Sinfonia number 15 in B Minor,  from the 1955 Goldberg Variations, performed by Glenn Gould.

Thanks to Clare Dolan, Jennifer Miller, Larry Massett, Scott Carrier and Marc Estrin for their help on this show. And to Elka Schumann for her patience.

Thank you Donna Bister for sending me beautiful pictures!#ftg-22 .tile .icon { color:#ffffff; }#ftg-22 .ftg-items .loading-bar i { background:#fff; }#ftg-22 .ftg-items .loading-bar { background:#fff; }#ftg-22 .tile .icon { font-size:12px; }#ftg-22 .tile .icon { margin: -6px 0 0 -6px; }#ftg-22 .tile .caption-block .text-wrapper span.text { font-size:12px; }#ftg-22 .tile .caption-outside .text-wrapper span.text { font-size:12px; }#ftg-22 .tile .caption-block .text-wrapper span.title { font-size:14px; }#ftg-22 .tile .caption-outside .text-wrapper span.title { font-size:14px; }#ftg-22 .tile { background-color: transparent; }#ftg-22 .tile .caption-block .text-wrapper span.text { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-22 .tile .caption-block .text-wrapper span.title { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-22 .tile .caption-outside .text-wrapper span.text { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-22 .tile .caption-outside .text-wrapper span.title { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-22 .tile .ftg-social a { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-22 .tile .caption-block { transition-timing-function:linear; }#ftg-22 .tile .caption-block { transition-duration:0.25s; }#ftg-22 .tile .tile-inner:before { background-color: #000000; }#ftg-22 .tile .tile-inner:before { background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8); }#ftg-22 .tile:hover img {-moz-transform: ;-webkit-transform: ;-o-transform: ;-ms-transform: ;transform: ;}jQuery('#ftg-22 img.item').removeAttr('src');jQuery(document).ready(function () {setTimeout(function () {jQuery('#ftg-22').finalTilesGallery({minTileWidth: 100,margin: 10,loadMethod: 'sequential',nonce: '78b426ba1e',galleryId: '2',setupFilters: true,layout: 'final',debug: false,gridSize: 25,disableGridSizeBelow:800,allowEnlargement: true,imageSizeFactor: [ [4000, 0.9],[1024, 0.8],[768, 0.7],[640, 0.6],[320, 0.5]],selectedFilter: 'n-a'});jQuery(function () {(function () {var rel = '';jQuery('#ftg-22 .ftg-lightbox').click(function (e) {rel = jQuery(this).attr('rel');jQuery('#ftg-22 .ftg-current').removeClass('ftg-current');jQuery('#ftg-22 [rel="'+rel+'"]').addClass('ftg-current');});})();});}, 0);});

]]> Sat, 30 Jul 2016 15:27:14 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

This is a conversation with Bread and Puppet founder and director, Peter Schumann…a conversation in which I ask him over and over again to answer questions that don’t really have answers, about what makes a great performance. And about what is a great performance…

Peter Schumann is a driven, prolific artist who makes huge outdoor theater performances with giant paintings and puppets and sculptures. There is music. There are people making animal sounds. Everything seems to be made of paper mache, twigs, twine and cardboard. The theater company lives in an old farmhouse in Glover, Vermont, when it’s not performing around the country and the world. And what Peter Schumann makes isn’t always good, but it’s always great.  There’s a wild current that runs through all that he does, and it all seems to be alive long after he’s done with it. ((If you haven’t been to the museum, housed in a huge barn behind the house in Glover….I would highly recommend it…))

Bread and Puppet is one of the oldest, nonprofit, self-supporting theatrical companies in the country. To learn more about the company and its strange and illustrious history, I recommend going HERE to read more.

Please leave a comment or a story at the bottom of this page! It’s always good to hear from you….!

Thanks and Other Things and Pictures

The music for this show is Peter on the fiddle, and his grandson, Ira Karp, on the drums. Pictures from their epic session below. Also, the show features Sinfonia number 15 in B Minor,  from the 1955 Goldberg Variations, performed by Glenn Gould.

Thanks to Clare Dolan, Jennifer Miller, Larry Massett, Scott Carrier and Marc Estrin for their help on this show. And to Elka Schumann for her patience.

Thank you Donna Bister for sending me beautiful pictures!#ftg-22 .tile .icon { color:#ffffff; }#ftg-22 .ftg-items .loading-bar i { background:#fff; }#ftg-22 .ftg-items .loading-bar { background:#fff; }#ftg-22 .tile .icon { font-size:12px; }#ftg-22 .tile .icon { margin: -6px 0 0 -6px; }#ftg-22 .tile .caption-block .text-wrapper span.text { font-size:12px; }#ftg-22 .tile .caption-outside .text-wrapper span.text { font-size:12px; }#ftg-22 .tile .caption-block .text-wrapper span.title { font-size:14px; }#ftg-22 .tile .caption-outside .text-wrapper span.title { font-size:14px; }#ftg-22 .tile { background-color: transparent; }#ftg-22 .tile .caption-block .text-wrapper span.text { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-22 .tile .caption-block .text-wrapper span.title { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-22 .tile .caption-outside .text-wrapper span.text { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-22 .tile .caption-outside .text-wrapper span.title { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-22 .tile .ftg-social a { color: #ffffff; }#ftg-22 .tile .caption-block { transition-timing-function:linear; }#ftg-22 .tile .caption-block { transition-duration:0.25s; }#ftg-22 .tile .tile-inner:before { background-color: #000000; }#ftg-22 .tile .tile-inner:before { background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8); }#ftg-22 .tile:hover img {-moz-transform: ;-webkit-transform: ;-o-transform: ;-ms-transform: ;transform: ;}jQuery('#ftg-22 img.item').removeAttr('src');jQuery(document).ready(function () {setTimeout(function () {jQuery('#ftg-22').finalTilesGallery({minTileWidth: 100,margin: 10,loadMethod: 'sequential',nonce: '78b426ba1e',galleryId: '2',setupFilters: true,layout: 'final',debug: false,gridSize: 25,disableGridSizeBelow:800,allowEnlargement: true,imageSizeFactor: [ [4000, 0.9],[1024, 0.8],[768, 0.7],[640, 0.6],[320, 0.5]],selectedFilter: 'n-a'});jQuery(function () {(function () {var rel = '';jQuery('#ftg-22 .ftg-lightbox').click(function (e) {rel = jQuery(this).attr('rel');jQuery('#ftg-22 .ftg-current').removeClass('ftg-current');jQuery('#ftg-22 [rel="'+rel+'"]').addClass('ftg-current');});})();});}, 0);});

]]> Peter Schumann, Advisor General Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:33:49 A conversation with Bread and Puppet founder and director, Peter Schumann. And some fiddling and drumming. A conversation with Bread and Puppet founder and director, Peter Schumann. And some fiddling and drumming. false full 166 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2310 The Neighborhood

The kids of Randolph, Vermont describe their neighborhood as a place with three purple houses. They tell me there’s a shortcut through the woods down to Dunkin’ Donuts, and they say it’s pretty close to three graveyards. The kids run in twos and threes and sometimes in one big pack for a game of hide and seek tag.

I spent an afternoon talking with them and following them around. This show is a little taste of that day. It’s a postcard from childhood, a place we remember but can’t visit anymore.

Thanks
Thanks so much to Kelly Green for introducing me to the kids and letting us camp out upstairs for an entire afternoon. Thanks also to Tally Abecassis, Mike Donofrio, John Schak and Larry Massett.

]]> Sat, 2 Jul 2016 15:27:12 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

The kids of Randolph, Vermont describe their neighborhood as a place with three purple houses. They tell me there’s a shortcut through the woods down to Dunkin’ Donuts, and they say it’s pretty close to three graveyards. The kids run in twos and threes and sometimes in one big pack for a game of hide and seek tag.

I spent an afternoon talking with them and following them around. This show is a little taste of that day. It’s a postcard from childhood, a place we remember but can’t visit anymore.

Thanks
Thanks so much to Kelly Green for introducing me to the kids and letting us camp out upstairs for an entire afternoon. Thanks also to Tally Abecassis, Mike Donofrio, John Schak and Larry Massett.

]]> The Neighborhood Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:09:40 A postcard from childhood, that place we remember but can't visit anymore... A postcard from childhood, that place we remember but can't visit anymore... false full 149 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2277 Last Chapter

Rob Mermin and Bill Morancy lived in neighboring apartments in Montpelier, Vermont. They were best friends.  And when Bill was diagnosed with terminal cancer, he asked his best friend to help him die.

In 2013, Vermont passed the The Patient Choice and Control at End of Life Act, or Act 39…our version of Death with Dignity. The legislation allows eligible Vermonters with terminal diseases the option to be prescribed medication that will hasten the end of their life. In 2015, Bill elected to use Act 39 to end his life, and he asked Rob to help him. This is a story primarily about their friendship–and the months, days and moments leading up to Bill’s death.

To learn more about Rob Mermin and his illustrious career as a mime and the founder of Circus Smirkus, visit here.

The music for this show was made by Vermont musicians Brian Clark and Mike Donofrio. And you heard from the original film soundtracks of South Pacific and Carousel, both by Rodgers and Hammerstein. The piano licks in this show were made by Vermont pianist Marie Helene Belanger

Kudos for Show

The 2019 movie, Paddleton,  from the Duplass Brothers, was based on this episode and story.

Notable podcast, AV Club, June 13, 2016, for Last Chapter

Audible Feast, June 11-17, 2016

rob smile

Rob Mermin

]]> Thu, 9 Jun 2016 15:54:50 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

Rob Mermin and Bill Morancy lived in neighboring apartments in Montpelier, Vermont. They were best friends.  And when Bill was diagnosed with terminal cancer, he asked his best friend to help him die.

In 2013, Vermont passed the The Patient Choice and Control at End of Life Act, or Act 39…our version of Death with Dignity. The legislation allows eligible Vermonters with terminal diseases the option to be prescribed medication that will hasten the end of their life. In 2015, Bill elected to use Act 39 to end his life, and he asked Rob to help him. This is a story primarily about their friendship–and the months, days and moments leading up to Bill’s death.

To learn more about Rob Mermin and his illustrious career as a mime and the founder of Circus Smirkus, visit here.

The music for this show was made by Vermont musicians Brian Clark and Mike Donofrio. And you heard from the original film soundtracks of South Pacific and Carousel, both by Rodgers and Hammerstein. The piano licks in this show were made by Vermont pianist Marie Helene Belanger

Kudos for Show

The 2019 movie, Paddleton,  from the Duplass Brothers, was based on this episode and story.

Notable podcast, AV Club, June 13, 2016, for Last Chapter

Audible Feast, June 11-17, 2016

rob smile

Rob Mermin

]]> Last Chapter Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:23:09 When Bill was diagnosed with terminal cancer, he asked his best friend to help him die. When Bill was diagnosed with terminal cancer, he asked his best friend to help him die. false full 218 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2243 Six Parents. Six DCF Stories Last winter I made a show about working for the Department of Children and Families and I’d promised to make a show about what it’s like to be a parent whose had to work with this state agency, which is responsible for the safety of Vermont children. It’s no secret that DCF is currently understaffed and overworked. The opiate epidemic is one major factor in the growing number of kids taken into temporary custody by the state, and the growing number of TPR’S, or terminations of parental rights.

This show offers a close look at what it’s like to be a parent inside the DCF system. To have your choices, your lifestyle, your living circumstances under the microscope of a state agency that’s capable of taking away your children.

DCF is an intensely private agency, and there’s no way to corroborate the details of these cases. The truth about these cases is always elusive and complicated. And I’m not looking for good guys or bad guys here.

This is a show about six parents with six very different stories from all over the state of Vermont.

There is a transcript below, thanks to Jennifer Jorgenson at UVM!!

Credit and Gratitude

Music by Marie Helene Belanger and Isha Love.

My thanks to all the parents who shared their stories with me by phone, email, and in person. Thanks to all the DCF caseworkers who have spoken with me over these months. Thanks to Mark Johnson, Bess O’Brien, Elsa Ingpen, Michael Chorney, Diane Zeigler, Mark Davis, Dillon Burns, the Aldrich Public Library and the Milton Public Library.

Show Reviews:

Kudos from 7 on 7 for 5/28/2016

SHOW TRANSCRIPT

Speaker 1: Having to prove to DCF that you are good enough to be a parent is definitely a very challenging thing.

Erica Heilman: I’m Erica Heilman. This is Rumble Strip, Vermont. Last winter, I made a show about people who work for the Department of Children and Families and I promised to make a show about what it’s like to be a parent [00:00:30] who’s had to work with this state agency, which is responsible for the safety of Vermont children. It’s no secret that DCF is currently understaffed and overworked. The opioid epidemic is one major factor in the growing number of kids taken into temporary custody by the state and the growing number of TPRs or terminations of parental rights. Addiction, multi-generational abuse, lack of education problems with housing, and transportation, and maybe the mother of all problems, [00:01:00] poverty. If you ask any DCF case worker, they’ll tell you the source of the problems is way upstream from where they work and this isn’t a show that’s going to solve any of those problems.

What this show does do, is give you a very close look at what it’s like to be on the wrong side of DCF as a parent, to have your choices, your life of style, your living circumstances under the microscope of a state agency, that’s capable of taking away your children. [00:01:30] DCF is an intensely private agency and there’s no way to corroborate the details of these cases. The truth about these cases is always elusive and always complicated and I’m not looking for good guys or bad guys here. This is a show about six parents with six very different stories from all over the State of Vermont. Fair warning, there’s graphic language and descriptions of violence in this show. Welcome.

Speaker 3: My memories of parenting [00:02:00] Brianna was that, “I’m going to be there for you. I’m going to talk to you. I have an education, so I will be able to teach you things.” Whereas compared to my mother, who was always working and then having a father who liked girls, I’m just going to say. They were both alcoholics, came from a family of alcoholics. Very uneducated, did not graduate high school either one of them. So [00:02:30] my thought was I was not going to put her in that situation, it was going to be, I was going to be the mom that I didn’t have or we’ll have the family that I was supposed to have.

Erica Heilman:What did your home look like? Where? What [crosstalk 00:02:45]-

Speaker 3:It was look like where, what I lived in a trailer park across from what used to be Jennifer’s restaurant. There was a little tiny trailer park there, trailer was very nice, very well maintained and I had one of the very last trailers in the park. So behind [00:03:00] the trailer was a really cute clothes line for clothes to hang out clothes, because it did come with a washer and the previous tenants had left a swing set there and there was a big, large field behind it.

I think she was probably a or old when she knew all of her ABCs, probably at a year and a half was when she was starting to learn Spanish, because we would watch Nickelodeon Dora The Explorer. So she [00:03:30] could say five or six colors in Spanish and count to 10 in Spanish. And I knew it was because of me being there with her and being present with her, not putting her off a playpen, like I used to with my other kids and go outside and smoke pot with my friends. But I started using again. I thought I am a much better parent than what I was the first time around. And I’m like, “So now I know what I can’t do,” and basically it came into me just using when she was sleeping is what [00:04:00] I thought and how I tried to justify it, “I’m only doing it when she’s sleeping.” And then of course addiction, it progresses.

It was her birthday. I wanted to go. I was planning on having a part of the next day for her. So I had brought her to the neighbor’s house where I got my drugs and left her with them. I borrowed their car and I went to the store to buy her birthday stuff. And when I’d come back, she was in this [inaudible 00:04:28] of the trailer and [00:04:30] Brianna had a little baggy in her hand, which I knew was the corner from a cocaine bag, what they sold. So I took her home. It wasn’t into till the next day when they all came over for the party and we had the kids playing in the other room, windows were open and we were smoking drugs and we thought that that was okay. That later on that afternoon, evening she began to get sick, could barely stay awake.

So I brought her to the emergency room and [00:05:00] she tested positive for her cocaine. I knew, I said, “Yeah. It’s bad. I said, “I’m not going to get her back.” I was in a room talking with them, I want to say it was a state trooper. So Brianna was in her room and they said, “Yeah. We’re going to have a foster family come.” So we have that conversation and I go into the room and Brianna was already gone, so I did not get to see her. [00:05:30] Yeah. That was awful to me. So it’s hard.

Speaker 1: Well, when I got pregnant, I found out the night before my high school graduation, it was totally not planned at all. It was a difficult pregnancy. I gained a lot of weight and had a lot of health problems. Everything was good for a little while and then the domestic [00:06:00] happened. It started, I think the week before I had my first child. I was 39 weeks pregnant and my boyfriend at the time called me a fat whore, pushed me down on the bed. That was when it started. And then, we ended up having a child together years later down the road and that is what [00:06:30] now resulted in my DCF case.

Definitely one of the hardest parts of a domestic is the actual act of leaving the domestic. There’s control over what you’re doing, who you’re with, who you’re talking to, where you’ve been, how long you’ve been gone, there can be control issues over money and finances. When a child is involved, it’s not your safety, it’s [00:07:00] your children’s safety. When you leave, a lot of times you leave with none of your belongings, you pretty much escape whenever you feel you have a safe time to get out and then having to deal with DCF after getting up the courage to leave the abusive situation. In a lot of cases, DCF doesn’t understand what it does to [00:07:30] a mother or a parent if they leave a domestic that takes a lot out of them and then to take their child, the whole reason of why they left was to protect the child that they no longer can protect.

Speaker 4: They end up showing up at my door. My living situation wasn’t appropriate, which I knew ahead of time anyways. [00:08:00] But we were living in the camper because the housing that we had ended up being condemned, so we had to move and we had really nowhere to go and it was towards the winter time and whatnot, so we technically shouldn’t have been in the camper with two children. So then they showed up, they said that there was allegations of abuse towards my children. And when they looked into it, it came to be the children’s father. They found out that their father was unsafe [00:08:30] to be around them because he was an alcoholic and abusive towards me verbally and physically, so then they helped me. Basically, they gave me an ultimatum to either lose my children or move with my children.

And I ended up finding housing in Wilder and for me and my children and then I found out in 2009, that I was pregnant again. So then, I ended up with three children and I had their father [00:09:00] move back in with me through the housing unit that I was in and DCF was still involved.

Erica Heilman: Same father for all three?

Speaker 4:Yes. Same father for all four, actually. But we were good for a little while, even though DCF was involved, my daughter then was born in 2011 and I actually filed for a divorce in 2012 and kicked him out. So it took a while, but I ended up divorcing him and whatnot because I mean, beforehand [00:09:30] DCF was telling me, “Oh, you can’t get married. You shouldn’t marry him. You should separate from him. He shouldn’t be around the kids. He’s not safe, he’s not fit.” And it felt like I was being told how to live my life and they weren’t living my life, so that’s why I pretty much was going against them because it just didn’t feel right.

But I understand now because I’ve gone through some counseling with my children and I’ve also had testing done on one of my children [00:10:00] and it opened my eyes the most, because it was based on children with abusive homes and whatnot to see where their brain actually lies and growth. And a lot of stuff that I was doing wrong really affected one of my children and his brain growth, so he’s having a lot of difficulties and behavior issues due to that. He is showing through a violent behaviors, he’s showing through lack [00:10:30] of sleeping, so there’s a lot of different areas that are not where he should be as far as his age.

Erica Heilman: Is that something you feel responsible for?

Speaker 4:Some of it, yes, it does follow me because I didn’t see the wrongs that were occurring in that time.

Speaker 5: I got pregnant very young. I had my kids at 18, so I was young to have children of my own at that age. And [00:11:00] then when my son was 3-months-old, I started hanging out with friends and that’s where my addiction started. I think I was just trying to escape what had gone on between the father of my children and I, and he had ended up going to jail for a domestic on me when I was pregnant with my son. And when the dad got out of jail, I ended up going back. We got back together. No one knew outside of my mom that I had a problem, [00:11:30] but it got to a point that when their father came back from jail, she came over to the house and he had hit me before she had come in, my nose wasn’t broken, but he had hit me in the nose, so I had had my son in my arms and I was hurt, I was injured and she could tell and she had had enough.

And so she took him home and called DCF at that point. [00:12:00] I was very angry. I was so pissed. I drove over to her house and tried to get in. I knew what was coming, but you try to not have that happen and the cops met me when I got there and said, “You need to go to rehab, you need to do something because he’s not coming back.” And [00:12:30] my addiction went from bad to 10 times worse at that point. I had nothing. I felt like I had lost the purpose for getting up. So you go and there’s three judges. You’ve got the state’s attorney, you’ve got DCF, you’ve got a guardian ad litem and my mom and they talk about what brought you in. You’re listening to this woman who [00:13:00] you’ve never met, explain how you’re a drug addict and you can’t care for your child and that there needs to be custody taken. And it’s out of your control, you have no control at this point.

You met your attorney for the first time five minutes ago. He has no idea what’s going on and all you can do is sit and listen, I knew I had a drug problem and it wasn’t affecting my son, that’s how I looked at it because I was still doing what I needed to do to take care of my son. [00:13:30] Not understanding at the time that being abused in front of my child was neglectful, that’s something that you see later on. So the court hearing happened, my mom got temporary guardianship of him at that point and I then met the case worker.

Speaker 6:  DCF has been involved in our life two times and while in both cases, the claims were found not to be [00:14:00] true. That process of having the claims found to be untrue is something that I get the impression and so [inaudible 00:14:07], but I get the impression happens much quicker for certain kinds of families. And in our case, these things were very drawn out and very horrible. I don’t know if there’s a better word, but in public when you’re talking about it with friends or family, it’s your very indignant about it and you know, “Oh my gosh, how could they treat us this way? Or, or think this about us as parents,” but in the moment [00:14:30] when you’re in it, it’s really fucking scary.

This is an agency that can physically take my children away from on me. And that is you’re acting like you’re indignant, but really you’re facing losing the most important thing in your entire universe. And between us as a couple, it was really stressful, but I don’t think either of us really wanted to reveal our fear to the other one because we’re trying to be strong for each other, so that’s just an emotion that I think we each [00:15:00] carried separately knowing the other one had it through the whole thing, just being scared and really sad, really sad that this is happening, that there is this threat, this possibility looming out there.

The moment that I’m most ashamed of as a mother is I remember being on the phone with the case worker when she was needing to get me to agree to the safety plan. [00:15:30] For them, while an investigation is open, they have to have a safety plan in place and I just remember trying to say to her, “Well, I don’t agree with this plan. I don’t think this plan is necessary. This is not a safety plan for my family. This isn’t what’s [inaudible 00:15:45],” because they were asking that that my husband not be alone with the children at all while the investigation was pending, which of course is not logistically feasible for any family, either, for me to have done all the daycare pickups [00:16:00] and drop offs, it just, it wouldn’t have worked for our family, but more importantly, it just, it wasn’t necessary.

And I just remember trying to be assertive and to say, “This isn’t okay. I don’t agree with this,” and saying, “Well, what are my rights? Do I have to agree to this?” And she said, “Well, if you don’t, then we have the right to remove the children from the home.” And that’s when I crumbled and let them put my name on the line and I wish I hadn’t done that. I really wish I had just said, ” [00:16:30] No.”

Speaker 7:I got the impression that they already had me pegged as the abusive stepfather. Mom doesn’t know how to choose a mate that is safe for her family, so she chose me and I’m coming in here and all I do is abuse her, beat the kids and everything else. That’s exactly lead impression I got from the intake supervisor. I felt that once again, because of my size and being in this neighborhood, [00:17:00] in this part of the country and not being of the general makeup of the population up here, that I’m just getting judged unfairly once again. I mean, I’ve been here before and it’s not a good feeling.

Erica Heilman:  Since it’s audio and not video. What is your size? Where are you from?

Speaker 7:I’m a native New Yorker. I lived and grew up in Upper West Side of Manhattan up until I was 41- [00:17:30] years-old. I’m currently 295 pounds, six foot two. Yeah. And I’m brown skinned. My mother is of German descent. My father is from Barbados, so I’m a mixed person. Yeah. I’m not the brownish skinned person on the face of earth, but I’m not the palest skinned person either, some like to call it beige.

Erica Heilman:  I call it caramel.

Speaker 7:Yeah. Caramel. Yeah. And [00:18:00] I learned during this experience, not being the biological father of these children, it’s automatically, “It’s stepdad and yeah, he could only care, but so much for these kids.” Yeah. Which is so far from the truth. But yeah, that’s the impression I got. And I do understand that they have a difficult job and they see a lot of ugly things, but it’s a tough line to walk, to not [00:18:30] come into a household expecting to see certain things that aren’t there and then writing them down on a legal document as such as if they were there. Every family’s different but to look at it as, “Okay. We know this happened now we just have to look for the evidence to point to it,” this is why a lot of people get swept up in the system that really shouldn’t be there.

Then sometimes you have some families that DCF needs to be in their life and then they miss the whole thing entirely. If I ever saw some [00:19:00] of the ugly things they may have seen, I don’t know if I would lose the ability to do that, either. I don’t know. But I think that’s being on the other side of what happened, I can tell you that’s exactly what they came into here. For instance, they tried to say the kids didn’t have access to nutritious food. That was one of the things that were written down. There’s always fruit sitting there, always, the kids are welcome to it at any time. But the case worker wrote down, “They don’t have access to nutritious food.”

Why? Because when they went through the pantries, we don’t have fruit roll ups, [00:19:30] we don’t pizza, bagel bites in the freezer and all that other stuff, we don’t have that. So it’s, you come in here looking for a certain thing and you’ll find it. You’ll find something wrong if you’re going to look hard enough.

Speaker 5: She was young. Yeah. She’s younger than me walking to my house, going to tell me what I’m going to do. Has no kids of her own because I asked and when she said, “No,” I was all over, “You’re going to come into my house and try to tell me about a situation you know nothing about and you’re younger than me. You have no [00:20:00] idea what this is like, you have no idea what I’ve been through.” She didn’t say a whole lot that first visit. I’m sure to this day, I’m sure she probably thinks about that first visit because I was awful. But if you’re going to send somebody out to somebody’s house, that’s going through abuse and addiction, the worst thing you could do is send someone that has no life experience.

I was awful to her for the year and a half that she [00:20:30] was supervising my case. I had given up. I had actually come to the conclusion that my son was going to be adopted by my mom. And as painful as that was, I knew he was going to be okay and you have to change the relationship with a child. I was able to spend time with him, with my mom, but the relationship had changed for me. It’s almost like you have to grieve a loss of [00:21:00] child to break the bond so that you can survive because you know you’re not going to be a parent anymore.

So when (beep) was going to be born, well, when I got pregnant with her, I knew there had to be a change because they were going to take her right from the hospital from me. So I on April 23rd of ’06, packed up my [00:21:30] car and left their dad, not knowing what I was doing or how I was going to do it. But I called the case worker at the time and said, “I’m done. I’m done. I need to figure this out because I don’t want to lose my daughter.”

Speaker 4:I know that every parenting style is going to be different anyways. My parenting styles [00:22:00] are from when I was growing up because that’s what I was shown, that’s what I went through. My pants were pulled down, my underwear down, I had bare hand, bare ass slaps depending on the behaviors. And then I also remember one occurrence where I said that my sister was a bitch, my mouth got slapped. That’s the way I was growing up. My parenting now, I’ve slapped them on the asses and so [00:22:30] what I was shown. And I was also told in one case, “If you kept having a nasty mouth, it was going to get washed out with soap.” So a dab was soap in your mouth, on your tongue. And then of course my second son, he was very vocal once he got his words and would speak and whatnot.

Well, they were inappropriate words, a lot of swear words, a lot of cuss words and so hot sauced, [00:23:00] just not even a raindrop full on his tongue, he would scream at you and then he would stop. And I got yelled at for doing that, the dab of hot sauce on his tongue by DCF saying it was inappropriate. It’s a food item. Yeah. It’s a little hot on the tongue. Yeah. It made him ugly at me, but it got my point across to him, but I can’t do that. [00:23:30] It’s hard for me not to do what was done to me as a kid because now it’s wrong. Nothing happened to my mother when she was doing that to me or my siblings when they got the hand on their asses and whatnot. When I was growing up, if we bit somebody we would get bitten back, so I mean, that’s how I was showed to deal with biting.

And my oldest son did bite me, so I did bite him back, [00:24:00] but not to the point where I left any kind of a mark. So I mean, that’s what I was taught when I was growing up. So therefore that’s the only discipline I knew of as far as with biting, then you have DCF step in the picture, all of a sudden and, “Oh, you’re doing this all wrong.” Here he is kicking me, slapping me, I’ve actually got him to stop swearing at me. I’m telling him to get in the chair, he’s refusing to get in the chair, how am I supposed to get him to do the time out if I can’t get him in the chair?

Erica Heilman:Well, what’s your [00:24:30] instinct?

Speaker 4: I mean, there’s times when he’s gotten me to the point where I would just want to bend him over my knee, slap his ass. But if I do that, it’s going to get reported and then I’m going to get in trouble again. What am I supposed to do? I don’t know what to do.

Speaker 1: So once DCF has been involved with you once, whether it is an assessment, or [00:25:00] an accusation, or an investigation, it’s you’re guilty until proven and innocent, you have to go and jump through hoops. Shortly after my daughter was born, we were still in the hospital and I actually had a visit from DCF, an emergency visit. So I had a 3-day-old daughter. I had DCF in my hospital room and two [00:25:30] cops stationed outside of my door at the hospital. Having to prove to people that you can handle your child is one of the hardest things ever.

One of the nurses called DCF because they said I had gotten upset with her over breastfeeding and [00:26:00] that her father had gotten upset because some poop got on his shoe, which never even happened, she was always changed in her little bassinet thing that the hospital provides you with. Because of my previous involvement with DCF, the anxiety building up to when they actually come and see you is the hardest part, having to impress so to speak someone who doesn’t know you [00:26:30] or your situation. The DCF worker who came out cleared me after my meeting saying that it wasn’t a emergency and that they didn’t need to take my daughter, but I had to follow up with DCF because it was still an assessment. So shortly after we got to leave with my daughter, I had to have a home visit with another DCF worker and then he [00:27:00] was supposed to close the case in 45 to 60 days.

My daughter is almost 3-months-old, so she’s almost 90-days-old. I have been playing phone tag with this person, they are either on vacation, they don’t return your phone calls. You have to sit and wait and wait. They say, they’re going to send you something in the mail, telling you if your case is closed or what you need to do. You sit and you wait [00:27:30] for the mail, you wait for the phone call. And I don’t think that DCF really understands how much control that puts on someone having to find out if other people think that you can handle your child.

Speaker 4:The case worker I have in regards to my second child right now, because I mean, that’s pretty much the only one she’s dealing with. [00:28:00] I can call her three different times in a day, I can’t reach her. I can call her three different times in a day for a week straight and I don’t get no calls back. Contact as far as when you want to get a hold of them is ridiculous. But if they want to get a hold of you, you better return their call within that day, otherwise, they’re going to hunt you down.

Speaker 6:When we first dealt with them, we [00:28:30] thought about getting a lawyer, but knew that realistically, that was not financially possible and went in there on our own. We felt judged, we felt vulnerable, we felt very vulnerable, we felt scared, we felt angry, we felt sad. And going into it the second time with a lawyer, which was not something, I mean, bills didn’t get paid because we hired the lawyer. I mean, it’s not like it was an easy decision, but we just felt we could not risk, we couldn’t put our family at more risk and we did. We were in the position [00:29:00] where we had the money. And when you go in with a lawyer, you feel safer.

There were three people in the room for our interviews because there was the case worker assigned to our case, but then her supervisor was also present for all of it, which I’m sure is because we had a lawyer and she was a younger, newer caseworker, so her supervisor was also there. And the supervisor and the lawyer were shooting the shit beforehand. And he’s like showing her pictures of kids and talking about where they went on vacation [00:29:30] and I’m thinking, “Well, we’re fine because look at this, they’re telling us that we may be harming our children, but obviously they’re not really telling us this, or they wouldn’t be talking about their vacations together.” And you can be well sure that, that would not have had when we went in on our own, they wouldn’t have said, “Oh, how’s the beach this summer.” No way.

Erica Heilman:When you’re in that room and you’re witness to kind of the chit chat between the DCF supervisor and your lawyer who you’ve hired and they’re talking about their kids and their vacation, was that [00:30:00] objectionable to you?

Speaker 6: No.

Erica Heilman:Or was it was comforting to you?

Speaker 6: Yes.

Erica Heilman: Interesting.

Speaker 6:Yeah. Because I’m thinking, if they have this relationship with each other, because they’re obviously, we’re trying to play like we’re middle class and here’s people who are much further beyond than that, and they see each other as peers I felt like, “Okay. That I’m sure this is going to be okay. And I think that it’s not necessarily the lawyer itself [00:30:30] as being seen in a certain light and the stories we were talking about where people have very minor and quick involvements with DCF, because something reported by a jealous neighbor or whoever, and they have to look into it, but then it’s wrapped up very quickly. I think that that maybe because people are seen in a certain way. And because of our past involvement with DCF and our history in general, we had to take [00:31:00] a big step to say, “Hey, we’re not those people, we’re these people.”

Speaker 7: The outcome with DCF is that the kids were removed from the house for approximately nine months and then it was three months until the case was finally closed, so it was almost to a year to the day. What has changed since then, I guess the couple of the kids have access to some of the mental health facilities they may need, but [00:31:30] in getting there, there was a whole lot of trauma, a whole lot of damage was done to this family that we’re still repairing with the children. And within my wife and my relationship behind this, you can’t be angry, you can’t show that you’re angry because then they will say, “Hey, you have an anger issue.” You just have to grin, bare it, and jump through everything they ask you to do and hope that at the end of the day, the kids wind up back home.

Speaker 3: [00:32:00] It was just my lawyer. She was like, “Cindy, so they’re going to push for TPR and they’re probably going to get it. I don’t think you should fight because you can’t beat DCF. And they do have all this information about you, your past, your charges and, the slips that I’d had.” But so, yeah, they’re like, “I mean, I will go to the hearing,” I said, “but I do think I would like to fight.” She’s like, “You’re not going to have a chance. You’re not, you can’t win against DCF. [00:32:30] And then you hear that and you believe it. And maybe I also believe that I wasn’t deserving to be her parent because of what had happened. And even if you would’ve got Brianna back and not come to jail, I can definitely say now that I probably would’ve gone back to using drugs.

And then, I also thought she’s probably to myself, she’s better off there. She’s got a mother and a father. [00:33:00] They’re a very good family and that’s kind of what drove my decision was what was in the best interest of her. I think it was the most unselfish thing I’d ever done in my life.

Speaker 5:So at the point that I gave birth to my daughter, we were at the point where, when I knew that they were going to be trying to take my rights away from my son. At this time, the case worker had become [00:33:30] a support system as well. She saw me doing what I needed to do and the guardian ad litem that I had had for my son, I was in contact with faithfully. And they all collectively the case worker, the Easter Seals worker and the guardian ad litem petitioned the court and said, “No. This needs to stop. She’s doing it.” So they got rid of the TPR. And I just remember looking at my attorney and he was like, “Thank God you figure [00:34:00] it out because you were so close.”

\And I just remember feeling at that point that the case worker had my back, she fought for me, they understood I was ready to do it, to be a mom on my own and I was okay. And I remember the day that we went into the courtroom to have them transfer custody to [inaudible 00:34:24] and the state’s attorney was like, “You [00:34:30] are one of the only ones I have actually seen do this, that I have actually seen get that close to losing your children and you pulled it together. And I’m really happy that I could be the one to get them back to you.” She only had me as a successful case at that point. I was the only one,

Speaker 4:The discussion was brought up saying, “Well, you’re not having contact with him. You’re not staying in contact face-to-face. You’re not doing this, you’re not doing that, [00:35:00] so we’re going to be requesting to go through and terminate parental rights.” And in one of the counseling sessions, before we had talked about where he wanted to live, as far as if he wanted to live with me live where he was, which is the foster placement or live with his father. And by talking to him about that helped me sign away because I was doing what he [00:35:30] wanted.

Erica Heilman: He wanted to stay with the foster family?

Speaker 4:Yes. He wanted to stay there. And I think because of all the fighting back and forth, he didn’t want to choose between his parents. So when we ended up actually going to the court, I signed away my rights, but [00:36:00] he also knows that I am here, he knows that he can write to me and talk to me. We get pictures and letters.

Erica Heilman: Where are things now? What do you see now, when you look forward?

Speaker 1: I had another [00:36:30] child two months ago, a little girl and I’m living with my husband. I see my oldest child every day. At this point, I have decided that in the situation with my middle son that, I really don’t have any control of the situation right now, I have come to the conclusion [00:37:00] that, I just have to wait it out till he’s old enough to come find me.

Erica Heilman:You’ve been listening to Six parents. Six DCF Stories. I want to thank all of the parents who’ve shared their stories with me in writing, on the phone and in person. [00:37:30] These are hard stories to tell and I’m really grateful to all of you. I also want to thank all the case workers at DCF for the hard work they do. If you have a story or a comment on the show, then please write it down at the bottom of the show page at rumblestripvermont.com. Comments are really important, comments are part of the point. Music for this show is by Marie Helene Belanger and Isha Love. There are links to their work on my website, rumblestripvermont.com. This show runs on a kind [00:38:00] of Bernie donation model. So if you like what you’re hearing, please donate and I will send you my thanks and a really sweet bumper sticker. There’s a donate button on the website, in the upper right corner, it’s green. This is Erica Heilman. Thanks for listening.

]]> Fri, 20 May 2016 00:30:09 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Last winter I made a show about working for the Department of Children and Families and I’d promised to make a show about what it’s like to be a parent whose had to work with this state agency, which is responsible for the safety of Vermont children. It’s no secret that DCF is currently understaffed and overworked. The opiate epidemic is one major factor in the growing number of kids taken into temporary custody by the state, and the growing number of TPR’S, or terminations of parental rights.

This show offers a close look at what it’s like to be a parent inside the DCF system. To have your choices, your lifestyle, your living circumstances under the microscope of a state agency that’s capable of taking away your children.

DCF is an intensely private agency, and there’s no way to corroborate the details of these cases. The truth about these cases is always elusive and complicated. And I’m not looking for good guys or bad guys here.

This is a show about six parents with six very different stories from all over the state of Vermont.

There is a transcript below, thanks to Jennifer Jorgenson at UVM!!

Credit and Gratitude

Music by Marie Helene Belanger and Isha Love.

My thanks to all the parents who shared their stories with me by phone, email, and in person. Thanks to all the DCF caseworkers who have spoken with me over these months. Thanks to Mark Johnson, Bess O’Brien, Elsa Ingpen, Michael Chorney, Diane Zeigler, Mark Davis, Dillon Burns, the Aldrich Public Library and the Milton Public Library.

Show Reviews:

Kudos from 7 on 7 for 5/28/2016

SHOW TRANSCRIPT

Speaker 1: Having to prove to DCF that you are good enough to be a parent is definitely a very challenging thing.

Erica Heilman: I’m Erica Heilman. This is Rumble Strip, Vermont. Last winter, I made a show about people who work for the Department of Children and Families and I promised to make a show about what it’s like to be a parent [00:00:30] who’s had to work with this state agency, which is responsible for the safety of Vermont children. It’s no secret that DCF is currently understaffed and overworked. The opioid epidemic is one major factor in the growing number of kids taken into temporary custody by the state and the growing number of TPRs or terminations of parental rights. Addiction, multi-generational abuse, lack of education problems with housing, and transportation, and maybe the mother of all problems, [00:01:00] poverty. If you ask any DCF case worker, they’ll tell you the source of the problems is way upstream from where they work and this isn’t a show that’s going to solve any of those problems.

What this show does do, is give you a very close look at what it’s like to be on the wrong side of DCF as a parent, to have your choices, your life of style, your living circumstances under the microscope of a state agency, that’s capable of taking away your children. [00:01:30] DCF is an intensely private agency and there’s no way to corroborate the details of these cases. The truth about these cases is always elusive and always complicated and I’m not looking for good guys or bad guys here. This is a show about six parents with six very different stories from all over the State of Vermont. Fair warning, there’s graphic language and descriptions of violence in this show. Welcome.

Speaker 3: My memories of parenting [00:02:00] Brianna was that, “I’m going to be there for you. I’m going to talk to you. I have an education, so I will be able to teach you things.” Whereas compared to my mother, who was always working and then having a father who liked girls, I’m just going to say. They were both alcoholics, came from a family of alcoholics. Very uneducated, did not graduate high school either one of them. So [00:02:30] my thought was I was not going to put her in that situation, it was going to be, I was going to be the mom that I didn’t have or we’ll have the family that I was supposed to have.

Erica Heilman:What did your home look like? Where? What [crosstalk 00:02:45]-

Speaker 3:It was look like where, what I lived in a trailer park across from what used to be Jennifer’s restaurant. There was a little tiny trailer park there, trailer was very nice, very well maintained and I had one of the very last trailers in the park. So behind [00:03:00] the trailer was a really cute clothes line for clothes to hang out clothes, because it did come with a washer and the previous tenants had left a swing set there and there was a big, large field behind it.

I think she was probably a or old when she knew all of her ABCs, probably at a year and a half was when she was starting to learn Spanish, because we would watch Nickelodeon Dora The Explorer. So she [00:03:30] could say five or six colors in Spanish and count to 10 in Spanish. And I knew it was because of me being there with her and being present with her, not putting her off a playpen, like I used to with my other kids and go outside and smoke pot with my friends. But I started using again. I thought I am a much better parent than what I was the first time around. And I’m like, “So now I know what I can’t do,” and basically it came into me just using when she was sleeping is what [00:04:00] I thought and how I tried to justify it, “I’m only doing it when she’s sleeping.” And then of course addiction, it progresses.

It was her birthday. I wanted to go. I was planning on having a part of the next day for her. So I had brought her to the neighbor’s house where I got my drugs and left her with them. I borrowed their car and I went to the store to buy her birthday stuff. And when I’d come back, she was in this [inaudible 00:04:28] of the trailer and [00:04:30] Brianna had a little baggy in her hand, which I knew was the corner from a cocaine bag, what they sold. So I took her home. It wasn’t into till the next day when they all came over for the party and we had the kids playing in the other room, windows were open and we were smoking drugs and we thought that that was okay. That later on that afternoon, evening she began to get sick, could barely stay awake.

So I brought her to the emergency room and [00:05:00] she tested positive for her cocaine. I knew, I said, “Yeah. It’s bad. I said, “I’m not going to get her back.” I was in a room talking with them, I want to say it was a state trooper. So Brianna was in her room and they said, “Yeah. We’re going to have a foster family come.” So we have that conversation and I go into the room and Brianna was already gone, so I did not get to see her. [00:05:30] Yeah. That was awful to me. So it’s hard.

Speaker 1: Well, when I got pregnant, I found out the night before my high school graduation, it was totally not planned at all. It was a difficult pregnancy. I gained a lot of weight and had a lot of health problems. Everything was good for a little while and then the domestic [00:06:00] happened. It started, I think the week before I had my first child. I was 39 weeks pregnant and my boyfriend at the time called me a fat whore, pushed me down on the bed. That was when it started. And then, we ended up having a child together years later down the road and that is what [00:06:30] now resulted in my DCF case.

Definitely one of the hardest parts of a domestic is the actual act of leaving the domestic. There’s control over what you’re doing, who you’re with, who you’re talking to, where you’ve been, how long you’ve been gone, there can be control issues over money and finances. When a child is involved, it’s not your safety, it’s [00:07:00] your children’s safety. When you leave, a lot of times you leave with none of your belongings, you pretty much escape whenever you feel you have a safe time to get out and then having to deal with DCF after getting up the courage to leave the abusive situation. In a lot of cases, DCF doesn’t understand what it does to [00:07:30] a mother or a parent if they leave a domestic that takes a lot out of them and then to take their child, the whole reason of why they left was to protect the child that they no longer can protect.

Speaker 4: They end up showing up at my door. My living situation wasn’t appropriate, which I knew ahead of time anyways. [00:08:00] But we were living in the camper because the housing that we had ended up being condemned, so we had to move and we had really nowhere to go and it was towards the winter time and whatnot, so we technically shouldn’t have been in the camper with two children. So then they showed up, they said that there was allegations of abuse towards my children. And when they looked into it, it came to be the children’s father. They found out that their father was unsafe [00:08:30] to be around them because he was an alcoholic and abusive towards me verbally and physically, so then they helped me. Basically, they gave me an ultimatum to either lose my children or move with my children.

And I ended up finding housing in Wilder and for me and my children and then I found out in 2009, that I was pregnant again. So then, I ended up with three children and I had their father [00:09:00] move back in with me through the housing unit that I was in and DCF was still involved.

Erica Heilman: Same father for all three?

Speaker 4:Yes. Same father for all four, actually. But we were good for a little while, even though DCF was involved, my daughter then was born in 2011 and I actually filed for a divorce in 2012 and kicked him out. So it took a while, but I ended up divorcing him and whatnot because I mean, beforehand [00:09:30] DCF was telling me, “Oh, you can’t get married. You shouldn’t marry him. You should separate from him. He shouldn’t be around the kids. He’s not safe, he’s not fit.” And it felt like I was being told how to live my life and they weren’t living my life, so that’s why I pretty much was going against them because it just didn’t feel right.

But I understand now because I’ve gone through some counseling with my children and I’ve also had testing done on one of my children [00:10:00] and it opened my eyes the most, because it was based on children with abusive homes and whatnot to see where their brain actually lies and growth. And a lot of stuff that I was doing wrong really affected one of my children and his brain growth, so he’s having a lot of difficulties and behavior issues due to that. He is showing through a violent behaviors, he’s showing through lack [00:10:30] of sleeping, so there’s a lot of different areas that are not where he should be as far as his age.

Erica Heilman: Is that something you feel responsible for?

Speaker 4:Some of it, yes, it does follow me because I didn’t see the wrongs that were occurring in that time.

Speaker 5: I got pregnant very young. I had my kids at 18, so I was young to have children of my own at that age. And [00:11:00] then when my son was 3-months-old, I started hanging out with friends and that’s where my addiction started. I think I was just trying to escape what had gone on between the father of my children and I, and he had ended up going to jail for a domestic on me when I was pregnant with my son. And when the dad got out of jail, I ended up going back. We got back together. No one knew outside of my mom that I had a problem, [00:11:30] but it got to a point that when their father came back from jail, she came over to the house and he had hit me before she had come in, my nose wasn’t broken, but he had hit me in the nose, so I had had my son in my arms and I was hurt, I was injured and she could tell and she had had enough.

And so she took him home and called DCF at that point. [00:12:00] I was very angry. I was so pissed. I drove over to her house and tried to get in. I knew what was coming, but you try to not have that happen and the cops met me when I got there and said, “You need to go to rehab, you need to do something because he’s not coming back.” And [00:12:30] my addiction went from bad to 10 times worse at that point. I had nothing. I felt like I had lost the purpose for getting up. So you go and there’s three judges. You’ve got the state’s attorney, you’ve got DCF, you’ve got a guardian ad litem and my mom and they talk about what brought you in. You’re listening to this woman who [00:13:00] you’ve never met, explain how you’re a drug addict and you can’t care for your child and that there needs to be custody taken. And it’s out of your control, you have no control at this point.

You met your attorney for the first time five minutes ago. He has no idea what’s going on and all you can do is sit and listen, I knew I had a drug problem and it wasn’t affecting my son, that’s how I looked at it because I was still doing what I needed to do to take care of my son. [00:13:30] Not understanding at the time that being abused in front of my child was neglectful, that’s something that you see later on. So the court hearing happened, my mom got temporary guardianship of him at that point and I then met the case worker.

Speaker 6:  DCF has been involved in our life two times and while in both cases, the claims were found not to be [00:14:00] true. That process of having the claims found to be untrue is something that I get the impression and so [inaudible 00:14:07], but I get the impression happens much quicker for certain kinds of families. And in our case, these things were very drawn out and very horrible. I don’t know if there’s a better word, but in public when you’re talking about it with friends or family, it’s your very indignant about it and you know, “Oh my gosh, how could they treat us this way? Or, or think this about us as parents,” but in the moment [00:14:30] when you’re in it, it’s really fucking scary.

This is an agency that can physically take my children away from on me. And that is you’re acting like you’re indignant, but really you’re facing losing the most important thing in your entire universe. And between us as a couple, it was really stressful, but I don’t think either of us really wanted to reveal our fear to the other one because we’re trying to be strong for each other, so that’s just an emotion that I think we each [00:15:00] carried separately knowing the other one had it through the whole thing, just being scared and really sad, really sad that this is happening, that there is this threat, this possibility looming out there.

The moment that I’m most ashamed of as a mother is I remember being on the phone with the case worker when she was needing to get me to agree to the safety plan. [00:15:30] For them, while an investigation is open, they have to have a safety plan in place and I just remember trying to say to her, “Well, I don’t agree with this plan. I don’t think this plan is necessary. This is not a safety plan for my family. This isn’t what’s [inaudible 00:15:45],” because they were asking that that my husband not be alone with the children at all while the investigation was pending, which of course is not logistically feasible for any family, either, for me to have done all the daycare pickups [00:16:00] and drop offs, it just, it wouldn’t have worked for our family, but more importantly, it just, it wasn’t necessary.

And I just remember trying to be assertive and to say, “This isn’t okay. I don’t agree with this,” and saying, “Well, what are my rights? Do I have to agree to this?” And she said, “Well, if you don’t, then we have the right to remove the children from the home.” And that’s when I crumbled and let them put my name on the line and I wish I hadn’t done that. I really wish I had just said, ” [00:16:30] No.”

Speaker 7:I got the impression that they already had me pegged as the abusive stepfather. Mom doesn’t know how to choose a mate that is safe for her family, so she chose me and I’m coming in here and all I do is abuse her, beat the kids and everything else. That’s exactly lead impression I got from the intake supervisor. I felt that once again, because of my size and being in this neighborhood, [00:17:00] in this part of the country and not being of the general makeup of the population up here, that I’m just getting judged unfairly once again. I mean, I’ve been here before and it’s not a good feeling.

Erica Heilman:  Since it’s audio and not video. What is your size? Where are you from?

Speaker 7:I’m a native New Yorker. I lived and grew up in Upper West Side of Manhattan up until I was 41- [00:17:30] years-old. I’m currently 295 pounds, six foot two. Yeah. And I’m brown skinned. My mother is of German descent. My father is from Barbados, so I’m a mixed person. Yeah. I’m not the brownish skinned person on the face of earth, but I’m not the palest skinned person either, some like to call it beige.

Erica Heilman:  I call it caramel.

Speaker 7:Yeah. Caramel. Yeah. And [00:18:00] I learned during this experience, not being the biological father of these children, it’s automatically, “It’s stepdad and yeah, he could only care, but so much for these kids.” Yeah. Which is so far from the truth. But yeah, that’s the impression I got. And I do understand that they have a difficult job and they see a lot of ugly things, but it’s a tough line to walk, to not [00:18:30] come into a household expecting to see certain things that aren’t there and then writing them down on a legal document as such as if they were there. Every family’s different but to look at it as, “Okay. We know this happened now we just have to look for the evidence to point to it,” this is why a lot of people get swept up in the system that really shouldn’t be there.

Then sometimes you have some families that DCF needs to be in their life and then they miss the whole thing entirely. If I ever saw some [00:19:00] of the ugly things they may have seen, I don’t know if I would lose the ability to do that, either. I don’t know. But I think that’s being on the other side of what happened, I can tell you that’s exactly what they came into here. For instance, they tried to say the kids didn’t have access to nutritious food. That was one of the things that were written down. There’s always fruit sitting there, always, the kids are welcome to it at any time. But the case worker wrote down, “They don’t have access to nutritious food.”

Why? Because when they went through the pantries, we don’t have fruit roll ups, [00:19:30] we don’t pizza, bagel bites in the freezer and all that other stuff, we don’t have that. So it’s, you come in here looking for a certain thing and you’ll find it. You’ll find something wrong if you’re going to look hard enough.

Speaker 5: She was young. Yeah. She’s younger than me walking to my house, going to tell me what I’m going to do. Has no kids of her own because I asked and when she said, “No,” I was all over, “You’re going to come into my house and try to tell me about a situation you know nothing about and you’re younger than me. You have no [00:20:00] idea what this is like, you have no idea what I’ve been through.” She didn’t say a whole lot that first visit. I’m sure to this day, I’m sure she probably thinks about that first visit because I was awful. But if you’re going to send somebody out to somebody’s house, that’s going through abuse and addiction, the worst thing you could do is send someone that has no life experience.

I was awful to her for the year and a half that she [00:20:30] was supervising my case. I had given up. I had actually come to the conclusion that my son was going to be adopted by my mom. And as painful as that was, I knew he was going to be okay and you have to change the relationship with a child. I was able to spend time with him, with my mom, but the relationship had changed for me. It’s almost like you have to grieve a loss of [00:21:00] child to break the bond so that you can survive because you know you’re not going to be a parent anymore.

So when (beep) was going to be born, well, when I got pregnant with her, I knew there had to be a change because they were going to take her right from the hospital from me. So I on April 23rd of ’06, packed up my [00:21:30] car and left their dad, not knowing what I was doing or how I was going to do it. But I called the case worker at the time and said, “I’m done. I’m done. I need to figure this out because I don’t want to lose my daughter.”

Speaker 4:I know that every parenting style is going to be different anyways. My parenting styles [00:22:00] are from when I was growing up because that’s what I was shown, that’s what I went through. My pants were pulled down, my underwear down, I had bare hand, bare ass slaps depending on the behaviors. And then I also remember one occurrence where I said that my sister was a bitch, my mouth got slapped. That’s the way I was growing up. My parenting now, I’ve slapped them on the asses and so [00:22:30] what I was shown. And I was also told in one case, “If you kept having a nasty mouth, it was going to get washed out with soap.” So a dab was soap in your mouth, on your tongue. And then of course my second son, he was very vocal once he got his words and would speak and whatnot.

Well, they were inappropriate words, a lot of swear words, a lot of cuss words and so hot sauced, [00:23:00] just not even a raindrop full on his tongue, he would scream at you and then he would stop. And I got yelled at for doing that, the dab of hot sauce on his tongue by DCF saying it was inappropriate. It’s a food item. Yeah. It’s a little hot on the tongue. Yeah. It made him ugly at me, but it got my point across to him, but I can’t do that. [00:23:30] It’s hard for me not to do what was done to me as a kid because now it’s wrong. Nothing happened to my mother when she was doing that to me or my siblings when they got the hand on their asses and whatnot. When I was growing up, if we bit somebody we would get bitten back, so I mean, that’s how I was showed to deal with biting.

And my oldest son did bite me, so I did bite him back, [00:24:00] but not to the point where I left any kind of a mark. So I mean, that’s what I was taught when I was growing up. So therefore that’s the only discipline I knew of as far as with biting, then you have DCF step in the picture, all of a sudden and, “Oh, you’re doing this all wrong.” Here he is kicking me, slapping me, I’ve actually got him to stop swearing at me. I’m telling him to get in the chair, he’s refusing to get in the chair, how am I supposed to get him to do the time out if I can’t get him in the chair?

Erica Heilman:Well, what’s your [00:24:30] instinct?

Speaker 4: I mean, there’s times when he’s gotten me to the point where I would just want to bend him over my knee, slap his ass. But if I do that, it’s going to get reported and then I’m going to get in trouble again. What am I supposed to do? I don’t know what to do.

Speaker 1: So once DCF has been involved with you once, whether it is an assessment, or [00:25:00] an accusation, or an investigation, it’s you’re guilty until proven and innocent, you have to go and jump through hoops. Shortly after my daughter was born, we were still in the hospital and I actually had a visit from DCF, an emergency visit. So I had a 3-day-old daughter. I had DCF in my hospital room and two [00:25:30] cops stationed outside of my door at the hospital. Having to prove to people that you can handle your child is one of the hardest things ever.

One of the nurses called DCF because they said I had gotten upset with her over breastfeeding and [00:26:00] that her father had gotten upset because some poop got on his shoe, which never even happened, she was always changed in her little bassinet thing that the hospital provides you with. Because of my previous involvement with DCF, the anxiety building up to when they actually come and see you is the hardest part, having to impress so to speak someone who doesn’t know you [00:26:30] or your situation. The DCF worker who came out cleared me after my meeting saying that it wasn’t a emergency and that they didn’t need to take my daughter, but I had to follow up with DCF because it was still an assessment. So shortly after we got to leave with my daughter, I had to have a home visit with another DCF worker and then he [00:27:00] was supposed to close the case in 45 to 60 days.

My daughter is almost 3-months-old, so she’s almost 90-days-old. I have been playing phone tag with this person, they are either on vacation, they don’t return your phone calls. You have to sit and wait and wait. They say, they’re going to send you something in the mail, telling you if your case is closed or what you need to do. You sit and you wait [00:27:30] for the mail, you wait for the phone call. And I don’t think that DCF really understands how much control that puts on someone having to find out if other people think that you can handle your child.

Speaker 4:The case worker I have in regards to my second child right now, because I mean, that’s pretty much the only one she’s dealing with. [00:28:00] I can call her three different times in a day, I can’t reach her. I can call her three different times in a day for a week straight and I don’t get no calls back. Contact as far as when you want to get a hold of them is ridiculous. But if they want to get a hold of you, you better return their call within that day, otherwise, they’re going to hunt you down.

Speaker 6:When we first dealt with them, we [00:28:30] thought about getting a lawyer, but knew that realistically, that was not financially possible and went in there on our own. We felt judged, we felt vulnerable, we felt very vulnerable, we felt scared, we felt angry, we felt sad. And going into it the second time with a lawyer, which was not something, I mean, bills didn’t get paid because we hired the lawyer. I mean, it’s not like it was an easy decision, but we just felt we could not risk, we couldn’t put our family at more risk and we did. We were in the position [00:29:00] where we had the money. And when you go in with a lawyer, you feel safer.

There were three people in the room for our interviews because there was the case worker assigned to our case, but then her supervisor was also present for all of it, which I’m sure is because we had a lawyer and she was a younger, newer caseworker, so her supervisor was also there. And the supervisor and the lawyer were shooting the shit beforehand. And he’s like showing her pictures of kids and talking about where they went on vacation [00:29:30] and I’m thinking, “Well, we’re fine because look at this, they’re telling us that we may be harming our children, but obviously they’re not really telling us this, or they wouldn’t be talking about their vacations together.” And you can be well sure that, that would not have had when we went in on our own, they wouldn’t have said, “Oh, how’s the beach this summer.” No way.

Erica Heilman:When you’re in that room and you’re witness to kind of the chit chat between the DCF supervisor and your lawyer who you’ve hired and they’re talking about their kids and their vacation, was that [00:30:00] objectionable to you?

Speaker 6: No.

Erica Heilman:Or was it was comforting to you?

Speaker 6: Yes.

Erica Heilman: Interesting.

Speaker 6:Yeah. Because I’m thinking, if they have this relationship with each other, because they’re obviously, we’re trying to play like we’re middle class and here’s people who are much further beyond than that, and they see each other as peers I felt like, “Okay. That I’m sure this is going to be okay. And I think that it’s not necessarily the lawyer itself [00:30:30] as being seen in a certain light and the stories we were talking about where people have very minor and quick involvements with DCF, because something reported by a jealous neighbor or whoever, and they have to look into it, but then it’s wrapped up very quickly. I think that that maybe because people are seen in a certain way. And because of our past involvement with DCF and our history in general, we had to take [00:31:00] a big step to say, “Hey, we’re not those people, we’re these people.”

Speaker 7: The outcome with DCF is that the kids were removed from the house for approximately nine months and then it was three months until the case was finally closed, so it was almost to a year to the day. What has changed since then, I guess the couple of the kids have access to some of the mental health facilities they may need, but [00:31:30] in getting there, there was a whole lot of trauma, a whole lot of damage was done to this family that we’re still repairing with the children. And within my wife and my relationship behind this, you can’t be angry, you can’t show that you’re angry because then they will say, “Hey, you have an anger issue.” You just have to grin, bare it, and jump through everything they ask you to do and hope that at the end of the day, the kids wind up back home.

Speaker 3: [00:32:00] It was just my lawyer. She was like, “Cindy, so they’re going to push for TPR and they’re probably going to get it. I don’t think you should fight because you can’t beat DCF. And they do have all this information about you, your past, your charges and, the slips that I’d had.” But so, yeah, they’re like, “I mean, I will go to the hearing,” I said, “but I do think I would like to fight.” She’s like, “You’re not going to have a chance. You’re not, you can’t win against DCF. [00:32:30] And then you hear that and you believe it. And maybe I also believe that I wasn’t deserving to be her parent because of what had happened. And even if you would’ve got Brianna back and not come to jail, I can definitely say now that I probably would’ve gone back to using drugs.

And then, I also thought she’s probably to myself, she’s better off there. She’s got a mother and a father. [00:33:00] They’re a very good family and that’s kind of what drove my decision was what was in the best interest of her. I think it was the most unselfish thing I’d ever done in my life.

Speaker 5:So at the point that I gave birth to my daughter, we were at the point where, when I knew that they were going to be trying to take my rights away from my son. At this time, the case worker had become [00:33:30] a support system as well. She saw me doing what I needed to do and the guardian ad litem that I had had for my son, I was in contact with faithfully. And they all collectively the case worker, the Easter Seals worker and the guardian ad litem petitioned the court and said, “No. This needs to stop. She’s doing it.” So they got rid of the TPR. And I just remember looking at my attorney and he was like, “Thank God you figure [00:34:00] it out because you were so close.”

\And I just remember feeling at that point that the case worker had my back, she fought for me, they understood I was ready to do it, to be a mom on my own and I was okay. And I remember the day that we went into the courtroom to have them transfer custody to [inaudible 00:34:24] and the state’s attorney was like, “You [00:34:30] are one of the only ones I have actually seen do this, that I have actually seen get that close to losing your children and you pulled it together. And I’m really happy that I could be the one to get them back to you.” She only had me as a successful case at that point. I was the only one,

Speaker 4:The discussion was brought up saying, “Well, you’re not having contact with him. You’re not staying in contact face-to-face. You’re not doing this, you’re not doing that, [00:35:00] so we’re going to be requesting to go through and terminate parental rights.” And in one of the counseling sessions, before we had talked about where he wanted to live, as far as if he wanted to live with me live where he was, which is the foster placement or live with his father. And by talking to him about that helped me sign away because I was doing what he [00:35:30] wanted.

Erica Heilman: He wanted to stay with the foster family?

Speaker 4:Yes. He wanted to stay there. And I think because of all the fighting back and forth, he didn’t want to choose between his parents. So when we ended up actually going to the court, I signed away my rights, but [00:36:00] he also knows that I am here, he knows that he can write to me and talk to me. We get pictures and letters.

Erica Heilman: Where are things now? What do you see now, when you look forward?

Speaker 1: I had another [00:36:30] child two months ago, a little girl and I’m living with my husband. I see my oldest child every day. At this point, I have decided that in the situation with my middle son that, I really don’t have any control of the situation right now, I have come to the conclusion [00:37:00] that, I just have to wait it out till he’s old enough to come find me.

Erica Heilman:You’ve been listening to Six parents. Six DCF Stories. I want to thank all of the parents who’ve shared their stories with me in writing, on the phone and in person. [00:37:30] These are hard stories to tell and I’m really grateful to all of you. I also want to thank all the case workers at DCF for the hard work they do. If you have a story or a comment on the show, then please write it down at the bottom of the show page at rumblestripvermont.com. Comments are really important, comments are part of the point. Music for this show is by Marie Helene Belanger and Isha Love. There are links to their work on my website, rumblestripvermont.com. This show runs on a kind [00:38:00] of Bernie donation model. So if you like what you’re hearing, please donate and I will send you my thanks and a really sweet bumper sticker. There’s a donate button on the website, in the upper right corner, it’s green. This is Erica Heilman. Thanks for listening.

]]> Six Parents. Six DCF Stories Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:38:22 A close look at what it's like to be a parent inside the DCF system. A close look at what it's like to be a parent inside the DCF system. false full 94 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2229 Aunties Here’s another show from my friend Larry Massett’s brain. The story is called Aunties, and it’s from his soon-to-be-released podcast, Lick The Crickets. Lick the Crickets is a podcast that’s been coming soon for quite some time. The problem is, Larry can’t stop making shows for Lick the Crickets long enough to launch Lick the Crickets. But he will. Oh, he will. And it will be found at Lickthecrickets.com, and I will let you know when it’s up.

Aunties is performed by Paul Kiernan.

Art for this show is made by Charles Hope.

]]> Sun, 8 May 2016 22:20:40 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Here’s another show from my friend Larry Massett’s brain. The story is called Aunties, and it’s from his soon-to-be-released podcast, Lick The Crickets. Lick the Crickets is a podcast that’s been coming soon for quite some time. The problem is, Larry can’t stop making shows for Lick the Crickets long enough to launch Lick the Crickets. But he will. Oh, he will. And it will be found at Lickthecrickets.com, and I will let you know when it’s up.

Aunties is performed by Paul Kiernan.

Art for this show is made by Charles Hope.

]]> Aunties Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:05:09 I'm Aunt Bea. This is Aunt Lil. Both musty with penciled in moustaches and the stodgy good breeding of cauliflowers... I'm Aunt Bea. This is Aunt Lil. Both musty with penciled in moustaches and the stodgy good breeding of cauliflowers... false full 70 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2217 Leland, the Almost Middle School Edition Leland Kennedy lives one hill over from me in East Calais, Vermont. I interviewed Leland last year when he was ten, and I’ve received some letters from listeners wondering what he’s up to and what he’s been thinking about since then. Leland’s pretty busy in the afternoons after school. You can usually find him biking up and down the road or working on survival techniques in the woods, or watching television. But he agreed to come over and talk with me about what’s on his mind these days. We talked about building fires, parachutes failing to deploy, and where he has his most interesting thoughts. Here’s an update from Leland.

Music for this show by Noveller and Kai Engel, from the Free Music Archive.

]]> Tue, 26 Apr 2016 19:58:10 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Leland Kennedy lives one hill over from me in East Calais, Vermont. I interviewed Leland last year when he was ten, and I’ve received some letters from listeners wondering what he’s up to and what he’s been thinking about since then. Leland’s pretty busy in the afternoons after school. You can usually find him biking up and down the road or working on survival techniques in the woods, or watching television. But he agreed to come over and talk with me about what’s on his mind these days. We talked about building fires, parachutes failing to deploy, and where he has his most interesting thoughts. Here’s an update from Leland.

Music for this show by Noveller and Kai Engel, from the Free Music Archive.

]]> Leland, the Almost Middle School Edition Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:11:49 He's about to graduate from elementary school. He's got a lot on his mind. He's about to graduate from elementary school. He's got a lot on his mind. false full 78 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2207 Police Log, Stolen Pie Edition I have been remiss in reporting on calls to the local police. I apologize. Here is a sampling of reports to the Barre and Montpelier police in the last few months. Reported by Scott Carrier.

Music by Peter Cressy of Plainfield, Vermont

Scott Carrier produces the excellent Home of the Brave.

]]> Thu, 21 Apr 2016 21:00:51 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com I have been remiss in reporting on calls to the local police. I apologize. Here is a sampling of reports to the Barre and Montpelier police in the last few months. Reported by Scott Carrier.

Music by Peter Cressy of Plainfield, Vermont

Scott Carrier produces the excellent Home of the Brave.

]]> Police Log, Stolen Pie Edition Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:03:12 Recent calls to the Barre and Montpelier city police Recent calls to the Barre and Montpelier city police false full 75 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2189 Jesse [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/257971136″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /] 

For most of Jesse’s early childhood, her mother was addicted to crystal meth. She called it her ‘high functioning addict period’. She kept a spotless house, worked a regular job and had four well behaved kids. Then Jesse’s mom started using opiates, and everything changed. She lost the job, lost the money, and it became harder to keep a car.  The eviction notices started coming. For a time, with the help of Suboxone, she got clean. Then in 2010, her youngest son died in a car accident. He was seven at the time. After that she relapsed and everything got a whole lot worse. She never agreed to go to the Knoxville substance abuse treatment center that was suggested numerous times. Things were getting worse faster than we could build up hope.

In this show, Jesse talks about what it was like to grow up at the mercy of her mother’s addictions. Her home life, her school life, and her thoughts about her own future.

Music for this show is by Peter Cressy, of Plainfield, Vermont

]]> Fri, 8 Apr 2016 14:35:44 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/257971136″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /] 

For most of Jesse’s early childhood, her mother was addicted to crystal meth. She called it her ‘high functioning addict period’. She kept a spotless house, worked a regular job and had four well behaved kids. Then Jesse’s mom started using opiates, and everything changed. She lost the job, lost the money, and it became harder to keep a car.  The eviction notices started coming. For a time, with the help of Suboxone, she got clean. Then in 2010, her youngest son died in a car accident. He was seven at the time. After that she relapsed and everything got a whole lot worse. She never agreed to go to the Knoxville substance abuse treatment center that was suggested numerous times. Things were getting worse faster than we could build up hope.

In this show, Jesse talks about what it was like to grow up at the mercy of her mother’s addictions. Her home life, her school life, and her thoughts about her own future.

Music for this show is by Peter Cressy, of Plainfield, Vermont

]]> Jesse Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:23:40 Growing up in a family where drug addiction is a fact of life. Growing up in a family where drug addiction is a fact of life. false full 72 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2170 Muskrat Trapper [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/255017739″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Barry Forbes lives on Route 116, five miles east of Middlebury and eight miles south of Bristol, Vermont. He says if you’re trying to find the place, just slow down and his hounds will let you know where he is. Barry lives in a double wide trailer directly behind the house where he spent his entire childhood, and he’s never been away from this place for longer than thirteen months, when he was in Vietnam. Across the road from his house is a mountain where he’s been fishing and hunting and trapping since he was seven years old.

March is muskrat season in Vermont and Barry took me out and showed me a few muskrat lodges. But the truth is, muskrat season was just an excuse to be around him for awhile, and talk with him about his lifelong passion for hunting.

Music for this show by Peter Cressy of Plainfield, Vermont.

Thank you Mark Davis.

Thank you to The Vermont Folklife Center for introducing me to Barry years ago….

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]]> Fri, 25 Mar 2016 17:52:30 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/255017739″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Barry Forbes lives on Route 116, five miles east of Middlebury and eight miles south of Bristol, Vermont. He says if you’re trying to find the place, just slow down and his hounds will let you know where he is. Barry lives in a double wide trailer directly behind the house where he spent his entire childhood, and he’s never been away from this place for longer than thirteen months, when he was in Vietnam. Across the road from his house is a mountain where he’s been fishing and hunting and trapping since he was seven years old.

March is muskrat season in Vermont and Barry took me out and showed me a few muskrat lodges. But the truth is, muskrat season was just an excuse to be around him for awhile, and talk with him about his lifelong passion for hunting.

Music for this show by Peter Cressy of Plainfield, Vermont.

Thank you Mark Davis.

Thank you to The Vermont Folklife Center for introducing me to Barry years ago….

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]]> Muskrat Trapper Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:13:52 Barry Forbes talks about hunting, trapping, and a life lived on Route 116. Barry Forbes talks about hunting, trapping, and a life lived on Route 116. false full 76 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2137 A Beer with Ben Hewitt [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/249825433″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]Twenty years ago, Ben Hewitt and his wife Penny bought forty acres of land in Cabot, Vermont and started their first homestead. In Vermont, the word ‘homestead’ generally refers to people who build their own houses and live self sufficiently to one degree or another…with varying degrees of success. One of the most important characteristics of the homesteaders I’ve known is a deep affinity for the physical world. Knowing how it works, and how to live in it.

Ben and Penny and their two boys are some of the most committed homesteaders in this state. They run a small hill farm and raise ninety percent of their own food. Ben makes a living writing about this life they’ve made. I visited him at his new homestead in Stannard, and we sat and talked by the woodstove that currently doubles up as the cookstove. And we drank some really good beer.

Welcome.

If any of you out there are homesteaders and you have a picture from your homesteading life, I’d love to feature it at the bottom of this page. My friend Robby sent me a CLASSIC, which you’ll see below…and I’d love to add more…

Credits

Ben Hewitt’s blog is HERE.

Music for this show was made by Brian Clark of Calais, Vermont. You can listen to more of Brian’s music HERE.

ben knife

Robby Porter, Calais VT 1973. Photo by Alex MacPhail

Robby Porter, Calais VT 1973. Photo by Alex MacPhail…for bettter resolution, click here.

Hunting is an important part of putting meat on the table on my homestead. This is my big game animal. Robin Follette

“Hunting is an important part of putting meat on the table on my homestead.” –Robin Follette

​Shivani Arjuna's homestead, Coulee Meadow Farm

​Shivani Arjuna’s homestead, Coulee Meadow Farm

Doug Welch and his oxen, Buster and Bud, in the northern Adirondack foothills.

Doug Welch and his oxen, Buster and Bud, in the northern Adirondack foothills.

]]> Wed, 2 Mar 2016 14:47:22 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/249825433″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]Twenty years ago, Ben Hewitt and his wife Penny bought forty acres of land in Cabot, Vermont and started their first homestead. In Vermont, the word ‘homestead’ generally refers to people who build their own houses and live self sufficiently to one degree or another…with varying degrees of success. One of the most important characteristics of the homesteaders I’ve known is a deep affinity for the physical world. Knowing how it works, and how to live in it.

Ben and Penny and their two boys are some of the most committed homesteaders in this state. They run a small hill farm and raise ninety percent of their own food. Ben makes a living writing about this life they’ve made. I visited him at his new homestead in Stannard, and we sat and talked by the woodstove that currently doubles up as the cookstove. And we drank some really good beer.

Welcome.

If any of you out there are homesteaders and you have a picture from your homesteading life, I’d love to feature it at the bottom of this page. My friend Robby sent me a CLASSIC, which you’ll see below…and I’d love to add more…

Credits

Ben Hewitt’s blog is HERE.

Music for this show was made by Brian Clark of Calais, Vermont. You can listen to more of Brian’s music HERE.

ben knife

Robby Porter, Calais VT 1973. Photo by Alex MacPhail

Robby Porter, Calais VT 1973. Photo by Alex MacPhail…for bettter resolution, click here.

Hunting is an important part of putting meat on the table on my homestead. This is my big game animal. Robin Follette

“Hunting is an important part of putting meat on the table on my homestead.” –Robin Follette

​Shivani Arjuna's homestead, Coulee Meadow Farm

​Shivani Arjuna’s homestead, Coulee Meadow Farm

Doug Welch and his oxen, Buster and Bud, in the northern Adirondack foothills.

Doug Welch and his oxen, Buster and Bud, in the northern Adirondack foothills.

]]> A Beer with Ben Hewitt Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:35:58 A conversation with one of Vermont's most committed homesteaders. A conversation with one of Vermont's most committed homesteaders. false full 71 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2129 Berned in Reno [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/249471566″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]In celebration of the day before Super Tuesday, here’s a story from writer Sarah Miller called Berned in Reno. It’s an account of her deep feelings for Bernie, and canvassing for his campaign in Nevada before the caucus.

Sarah Miller writes for theawl.com, newyorker.com, time.com, thecut.com and others. This story appeared last week on the website, The Awl and you can read the full version here.

]]> Mon, 29 Feb 2016 14:20:56 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/249471566″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]In celebration of the day before Super Tuesday, here’s a story from writer Sarah Miller called Berned in Reno. It’s an account of her deep feelings for Bernie, and canvassing for his campaign in Nevada before the caucus.

Sarah Miller writes for theawl.com, newyorker.com, time.com, thecut.com and others. This story appeared last week on the website, The Awl and you can read the full version here.

]]> Berned in Reno Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:11:30 Sarah Miller writes about her love for Bernie, and canvasing for Bernie in Nevada. Sarah Miller writes about her love for Bernie, and canvasing for Bernie in Nevada. false full 67 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2106 The Test [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/245930720″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]This week, a special guest show from Scott Carrier, producer of Home of the Brave.

Years ago, Scott was hired to conduct interviews for a mental health research project. He drove around Utah administering a test to possible schizophrenics. The test was comprised of 100 questions, and took approximately an hour to complete.  This is the story about it.

]]> Sun, 7 Feb 2016 21:01:13 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/245930720″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]This week, a special guest show from Scott Carrier, producer of Home of the Brave.

Years ago, Scott was hired to conduct interviews for a mental health research project. He drove around Utah administering a test to possible schizophrenics. The test was comprised of 100 questions, and took approximately an hour to complete.  This is the story about it.

]]> The Test Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:15:28 Scott Carrier spent a summer administering an hour-long mental health test with individuals in Utah. This is his story about it. Scott Carrier spent a summer administering an hour-long mental health test with individuals in Utah. This is his story about it. false full 68 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2075 Inside DCF It has been a very troubling few years at Vermont’s Department of Children and Families. In 2014 there was a string of child deaths in Vermont–children in families involved with DCF. These deaths prompted intense anger and at least four investigations into the department.

Then on August 7, 2015, Lara Sobel, a caseworker at DCF, was shot as she left the DCF offices in Barre, Vermont. She was shot and killed by a woman who was angry after losing custody of her daughter to DCF the month before.

The Department of Children and Families flares up in the news, then the news subsides. We hear from the governor, from the DCF commissioner, from legislators and journalists and commentators. But the people we never hear from are the people who actually do the work. And this is by design. The work that DCF caseworkers do is intensely private, and in order to protect the privacy of parents and children, caseworkers are not allowed to talk publicly about their cases. In a way, their silence shields us from some of the darkest, most complex, most intractable problems in our state.

In this show you’ll hear from three DCF caseworkers from three different areas of Vermont. For their own safety, I’ve chosen not to use their names. They talk about what it’s like to have a job where the lives of children and families are at stake.

TRANSCRIPT below thanks to Jennifer Jorgenson of UVM!

Credits and Thanks

Music for this show by Brian Clark and Peter Cressy

I would like to thank Luciana at DCF, and all the caseworkers who gave me such generous time in the making of this show.

Thanks also to Tally Abecassis, Mark Davis, Scott Carrier, Kelly Green, and Colin McCaffrey for various and sundry and important support.

TRANSCRIPT

Erica Heilman:               Welcome to Rumble Strip Vermont, I’m Erica Heilman. On the afternoon of Friday, August 7th, 2015, Lara Sobel, caseworker at the Department of Children and Families was shot as she left the DCF offices in Barre, Vermont. She was shot and killed by a woman who was angry after losing custody of her daughter to DCF the month before. In the aftermath of this killing, there was a rash of truly disturbing commentary in social media [00:00:30] from people expressing sympathy with Lara’s killer, people who look on DCF case workers as home wreckers, baby snatchers. But there’s a whole different contingent that believes DCF doesn’t intervene in families enough. In 2014, there was a string of child deaths in Vermont. Children in families involved with DCF. These deaths prompted intense anger and at least four investigations into the department.

[00:01:00] DCF flares up in the news, then the news subsides. We hear from the governor, we hear from the DCF commissioner from legislators and journalists and commentators. But the people we never hear from are the people who actually do the work. And this is by design. The work that DCF case workers do is intensely private. And in order to protect the privacy of parents and children, case workers are not allowed to talk [00:01:30] publicly about their cases. And in a way, their silence shields us from some of the darkest, most complex, most intractable problems in our state. These are the problems and the stories that DCF case workers live with every day. In this show, you’ll hear from three DCF case workers from three different areas of Vermont. For their own safety, I’ve chosen not to use their names. They’ll talk about what it’s [00:02:00] like to have a job where the lives of children and families are at stake. Welcome. I figured we would start just by talking about what does DCF do? Because I don’t know that everybody knows that really what it is, and also what it isn’t.

Speaker 2:                    So family services, our primary role is to ensure the safety [00:02:30] and care of children in the state of Vermont. We are not baby snatchers. We are not police. Our main objective is to work with families that have children and to ensure that their children are safe and working with them, connecting them with different services within the community, and ensuring basically that [00:03:00] the care or the risk that there is for the children in the home is either eliminated or mitigated in some way. When we receive reports of abuse and neglect of children, poverty is pretty much what we see all the time, but that is not to say that child abuse and neglect doesn’t occur in middle class or upper class homes. We just don’t get that many reports from there.

Erica Heilman:               Can you [00:03:30] give people a kind of a… If you can just give people a sense for what kinds of worlds you enter into in this work?

Speaker 3:                    Yes, I can try to answer that. So this work does bring me to all walks of Vermont and even beyond. Our district, the Hartford district is the largest of the 12 district offices. We cover the larger towns of Randolph, Bradford, and White River [00:04:00] Junction. And we also cover all of the rural towns in between that. We do home visits on back dirt roads. Sometimes they’re not even real roads. And we do these visits in the winter in our state cars, and we hope the tires are going to get us to where we need to go. And we’re usually doing these visits alone. We sometimes team if we feel there’s a safety concern, but generally if I’m doing a home visit, I go out and do these home visits alone, [00:04:30] and they can be anywhere from right here in town in White River to sometimes an hour and a half away. I have currently 25 children in custody on my caseload. I also serve, I think, about 10 additional children under conditional custody orders. So I have approximately 35 children that I am assessing safety for on sometimes a daily basis.

Speaker 2:                    Primarily we’re working with families that are really impoverished [00:05:00] and that there’s mental health issues and/or drug related issues. Some families are living with a known untreated sex offender, so we get calls from anybody from the next door neighbor to a doctor to teachers reporting that they have concerns about the kids or the kids have disclosed that they’ve been physically abused or sexually [00:05:30] abused. So we meet with the families and try to sort it out. So this is a mental health issue, so how can we connect a person to a local agency. If it’s a substance misuse issue, again, having them participate in a drug and alcohol assessment, developing safety plans around, “Okay, so if you lapse, then is there somebody that’s clean and sober [00:06:00] that can care for your child while you’re using? And is that person safe to be around children too?”

Erica Heilman:               And how would you characterize most of your relationships with those parents? Are most positive and amicable or how would you describe them?

Speaker 2:                    I would say most are positive. There’s definitely tension in the relationship, because I’m pushing them to follow through with their substance [00:06:30] misuse program or trying to extract them from a relationship that’s not healthy for the children or for them. So there’s tension in those things. But I feel like I’m kind of like a coach, kind of like a life coach pointing in the direction. So there’s this road and this road and this road, and you can take any of these paths you want. You’re the one that’s in control here. [00:07:00] And it’s up to you to do this.

Speaker 4:                    I think one of the hardest parts about this job is that we all have our own set of values, our standards of living, and each of us is very different. And when we meet with families, it’s really important that we not put our own value judgment on these families, because we’re all different. I can’t stand dirt on the floor and all those kind of things, and when I walk into someone’s house and there’s dirt on the floor, [00:07:30] that’s my value. That’s not theirs. And that doesn’t constitute a right for DCF to come in and remove children. And I know I hear that all the time. You’re going to take my kids because I have a dirty house. We’re not the dirt police. We are there because there’s a risk to the children, either from an external source or from something that the parent has done, not based on the fact that you have dirt on your floor.

Do we get involved? Yes. If there’s something on the floor or something that the children can have access to that can cause them harm, absolutely. Dried dog feces [00:08:00] on the floor left all over with a baby crawling is not safe. We are there for imminent risk into concerns about the child’s safety and wellbeing. We are not there to criticize you because you don’t have enough money to pay for your heat.

Erica Heilman:               You’ve been here long enough to see the way that people respond to the work as they come in. Looking at the social workers around you, what do you notice happen happens?

Speaker 3:                    I think what’s most difficult for myself and [00:08:30] for coworkers that I have seen leave, having difficult relationships with our clients is expected. Having difficult relationships with other professionals can be incredibly wearing. I do hear DCF is not doing enough. Why can’t you get involved with this child? And people don’t necessarily understand that DCF is a child protection agency, not a quality of life agency. When teachers contact me because a child has not come to school having breakfast or having [00:09:00] a jacket, those are horrible things, but that’s not necessarily a reason for DCF to become involved with them. And I think that a lot of people don’t know that.

Speaker 2:                    Unless there are objects in the home that are hazardous, then we have no call to pull children out of that. So the condition of the home doesn’t immediately affect the child. [00:09:30] That’s not child abuse. Does it tell you something about how the people in that home are living? Is it a picture of depression? Yeah, absolutely. There is a lot of stuff in people’s houses and it’s filthy, and sometimes a whole family is just living in one room, just mattresses and [00:10:00] beat up couches and just really chaotic and animals, and I didn’t want to sit down and there were just things crowding in, it’s just claustrophobic. It’s almost always dark. There’s always blankets across the windows. And most of the stuff is just broken down, like broken toys and [00:10:30] garbage and debris and clothing.

It is really hard to describe what you go into. I don’t know, it’s… But you don’t want to judge them for that. And we’ve been asked by state’s attorneys, “Well, take pictures.” And I just won’t, because I feel [00:11:00] like that’s such an invasion. I’m already invading and now I’m recording how they are living in their homes. Poverty is just the key issue. I don’t know who said this, but I totally agree with it. They said that poverty is the worst form of violence that there is. And I totally agree with [00:11:30] that.

Erica Heilman:               So if someone is concerned about a child and makes a call to family services, DCF may or may not investigate. We don’t know. Because after that phone call, the case becomes a private matter between DCF and the family. This privacy is endlessly frustrating to the accused, to teachers, to defense attorneys and journalists, really anyone who wants to know [00:12:00] what’s going on and isn’t DCF, and it’s impossible to hold the state accountable for its handling of these cases if we can’t see them. On the other hand, this privacy protects children and can protect people who are falsely accused. And because of this privacy, we don’t really know what these case workers do. In this next segment, case workers talk about some of the problems they work with. And this is not easy to listen to, but in order to understand the nature [00:12:30] of their work, we have to hear about some of the challenging situations they face.

Speaker 3:                    Kids being physically abused because their parents don’t know any other way to parent them. Kids being exposed to substantiated sex offenders. Substance abuse is an epidemic in Vermont right now. That’s not a secret to anybody. How that relates to child safety is [00:13:00] parents not waking up until noon. Three year olds taking care of their six month old baby brother. Children not eating because their parents can’t get out of bed. Children not getting to school because their parents can’t get them there or can’t get them on the bus. Kids are being left outside while the parents are inside doing drugs on a winter day. Situations where children are seeing [00:13:30] their mothers being abused by their mother’s partners. Those are some of the situations that I have come across and what I am experiencing, or what I know about the family is probably the tip of the iceberg that the children are actually being exposed to. The children that I am involved with, this has been their life for years before I have become involved with them.

Speaker 4:                    [00:14:00] I used to have a majority of my investigations or assessments would involve sexual abuse or physical abuse. Now a majority of them involving risk of harm, because these pregnant moms who are using in utero, using while pregnant, and we’re opening assessments before the child’s birth to determine whether or not they’re safe. I mean, that’s the stuff that we here as the office is seeing right now. I mean this explosion of infants who have parents [00:14:30] who are using. The example I could think about is when I was, technically by the legal terms, assaulted by a mother. She spit in my face during a removal of her children. Got information that she was using, and we went to her house and she was completely out of it. She was slurring her words. She was not able to stand appropriately. She was argumentative, combative to the point that the police had to put her in handcuffs.

The house was an absolute disarray compared to what it used to be. [00:15:00] There was dirty diapers all over the floor. The baby was left in a crib with just a diaper on and the feces had exploded out of the diaper and they were caked onto the baby. I mean, she had runny nose that was crusty and was screaming because she was so hungry. And mom had been passed out on the couch, not able to take care of her. She had a sibling there that was trying to get her a bottle who was like three, four years old. And mom was erratic, [00:15:30] combative, aggressive, just out of control.

Speaker 2:                    I’ve seen bruises on children, scratches, welt marks, child pornography. Something you want to kind of just scrub your brain of once you see it. I’ve read an autopsy report on a four month old baby. You just see the fear [00:16:00] in kids’ eyes, their confusion and desperation in parents’ faces. It’s really hard work. You try not to think about it too much or to take it in too much because you couldn’t possibly do your job if you did.

Speaker 3:                    [00:16:30] Some families that I am currently working with I was working with six years ago, and every service under the sun has been into these homes, sometimes on numerous occasions, because more children have been born into these homes that warrant different services coming into place. And there’s not always a positive outcome. There is situations where children are remaining in homes that may not to you or I be a [00:17:00] safe or adequate home, but that’s also how this family is choosing to live, and it’s not unsafe for the child. The ideal would be to have service providers go into the home and work with these families, and they come out and everybody’s happy and everybody’s needs are getting met. But they can not always make the changes that are being recommended because there are incredibly complex issues that we’re working with, especially when children are still placed [00:17:30] at home.

That’s when the agency sits with the highest risk. And that’s when I personally feel like I sit with risk. When children are still in the home of parents that are struggling with substance abuse, unresolved mental health, yet the risk does not warrant the child coming into custody, but does warrant that I remain involved, but changes are not being made, and the family is doing the best that they can. We are going in and saying, “This is [00:18:00] what you need to do. This is what you should do. This is what your child needs you to do.” And sometimes all that mom can do is get up and make sure that her kid has a piece of toast that day.

Speaker 2:                    The other day I was working, and I want to be careful here that I don’t give away too much information so it can be identified. But I was working with these two other service providers, met with this mom and her infant. And we all had [00:18:30] a conversation with her concerned that I’m going to have to make that next move and write an affidavit. If she’s not following through the safety plan. She leaves the room to take a smoke break and me and these two other people are talking, and they’re a like, “God, I just don’t understand her attitude. Why is she using again? She’s only going to use again. You know that, right?”

[00:19:00] Yeah, I know that. But look at their situation. She’s in this motel room, she doesn’t have a partner. She doesn’t drive. She doesn’t even have a car. She’s thousands of dollars in debt for medical bills. Who wouldn’t use? This person, she was a foster child too. She has family, but [00:19:30] they’re involved with us as well. There is no one in her life that she can lean on. No one. She’s got a couple friends that seem to be okay, but they’re struggling too. Very similar situations. What is she going to do is going to go to CCV and ask for an application to go to school and [00:20:00] go out, get a job.

And that’s part of the problem too, is, “Okay, so where does the child go?” Oh, childcare. Well, everybody knows how expensive that is. It’s about $300 a week, with the reach up grant that they’re getting it’s around $1,000 a month. Pull yourself up by the bootstraps? How? How are you going to manage all of that? [00:20:30] You don’t. And you find yourself in a motel using. I understand it, but the child’s still at risk. So work with what we got.

Speaker 3:                    I talked a little about the gray areas of this work and doing home visits, usually [00:21:00] weekly, if it’s a high risk case, and leaving with the feeling that something is just not right. I don’t have facts to write an affidavit, but something doesn’t feel right. And then something happens. For example, a child went to school with bruises and had clearly been physically abused as determined by a medical professional. And I write an affidavit outlining all of my experiences with this family, [00:21:30] and I ask the judge for this child to come out of this home and to come into foster care. And that request is denied. I may have one incident where something happened that shouldn’t have, but the majority of what I’m reporting are things that don’t reach a level of removal. So not a only is this child remaining in this home, but I now have to continue to work with the family that I have just asked a judge to remove their child from their care.

What small amount of safety may [00:22:00] have been created between the relationship of social worker and parent is now completely gone. I still have to go in week after week to make sure that the child is not at imminent risk, and those are the cases that keep me up at night. Those are the cases where I feel like something bad is going to happen to this child. And then something does happen. Then the public says that DCF didn’t do enough. What the public doesn’t know [00:22:30] is that I was in that home every single week, week after week, trying to make things better, even requesting custody and having it been denied. And people say that social worker didn’t do her job, that social worker didn’t do enough, this baby got hurt because DCF didn’t do their job.

Speaker 2:                    You always worry. I’m not alone. We all worry. We all have bad dreams. [00:23:00] There is a tremendous amount of responsibility. And the last two years, it just made it harder. And I’m grateful to be in the current position I am. I’m helping out the Barry district office temporarily, ever since Lara was shot, killed. But honestly, I’ll be glad to be done with this work in mid-November. I’m scared to death [00:23:30] that a child’s going to die on my watch, and I really can’t prevent that. There’s so much outside of our control.

Erica Heilman:               What don’t people understand about that?

Speaker 2:                    I think there’s a misconception that DCF family services is just… They get a report and we’re just going to waltz in and pull that child or the children right out of [00:24:00] the home. And that people think that’s what we should be doing. And that’s the last thing we need to do. We cannot possibly do that. Our resources are tapped out. We cannot do that, and it’s not the right thing to do either. It doesn’t solve the problem. Just a quick illustration. We go in and remove children because they’re unsafe, and then that family has more children. [00:24:30] We’re there in the hospital when they’re giving deliveries sometimes. We’re there a few months after they’re born. And those children come into custody and then another child’s born.

We’re not addressing the problem with the issues. We’re not working with the family as much as we need to, to really address the real causes that’s creating the instability, the safety issues in the home, in the social work, [00:25:00] school, we talked about upstream practice versus downstream. And most of our work is downstream. We’re not looking into the real causes of poverty and how that leads to mental illness or how that leads to substance misuse. And that’s what we need to do more of. And it’s not just up to DCF family services. It’s the community, everybody [00:25:30] to step up to the plate.

Erica Heilman:               I spoke with eight family services case workers while I was making the show, and they all said, not surprisingly, that morale isn’t great. But what they said that did surprise me and even, admittedly, confounds me, is that they really like this job. They like working with families and they believe in what they do, but they said that they don’t have time to do good work. Their caseloads are too big, the opiate epidemic [00:26:00] in Vermont is out of control, and there’s a near Soviet amount of paperwork involved in this job. They said they don’t have to time to do social work anymore.

Speaker 4:                    I have workers right now, ongoing workers who have a caseload of 35 kids. How do effective case work with 35 children? You can’t. And I watch my staff fry. I watch them… And these families deserve better than that. They deserve to have a [00:26:30] social worker who has her wits about her, who has the ability and the time to spend to work with them and to engage rather than a social worker who they can’t get ahold of because she’s jumping from one fire to another. I still have kids from when I started 20 years ago coming to see me and checking in. I have those relationships because I had the time back then to create those relationships. And I just feel sad for the new workers now because they’re not having a… They’re not being able to make those connections with clients.

Speaker 2:                    [00:27:00] The best part of the job is meeting with families and meeting with kids. That’s the enjoyable part, at least it is for me. But it’s amazing how much of the other stuff gets in the way of really doing that face to face work. Spend a lot of time in court and just waiting. Just waiting for the hearing to start and [00:27:30] just trying to track down other service providers who can vouch that the families followed through on X, Y, or Z. Yeah, they’re going to their therapy sessions. Yeah, they got their daily dose every day this week. So children do slip through the cracks and children have died while we were intervening.

Speaker 3:                    Families deserve to have a social [00:28:00] worker that has face time with them on a regular basis, that they’re able to access on the phone, that they need to know what is expected of them, why we’re involved. I’ve had families come to me and say, “I don’t even know why you’re work working with me. I don’t even know why you’re involved with me.” So the families that we work with deserve to know why a state child protection agency is involved with them. And in order for them to feel respected and in order for them to feel like their cases are moving forward, they need to have contact with their social worker. And unfortunately [00:28:30] with the numbers that we have right now, that doesn’t always happen to the degree that I want it to. That’s probably the hardest thing that I sit with personally. When I leave at the end of the day, I think, “Should I have made this extra phone call? Could I have done this extra report? Could I have done this extra check-in.”

And I can speak to the difference from six years ago to now. I was able to do what I would call kitchen table social work six years ago. Sitting with families [00:29:00] at their kitchen table, really laying out, “These are the issues. This is what we got to work on. This is how we’re going to do it. Let’s pull up our sleeves. Let’s get to work. Let’s make things better. Now it’s crisis response to a situation that’s already happened because I haven’t had the time to sit with that family at their kitchen table and to talk about what the issues are. I am then responding after something has happened. So it does feel like triage work at times.

Erica Heilman:               [00:29:30] In cases where a judge believes a child is at imminent risk of harm, she will order that the children be removed from the home and placed in a foster home or kinship home. For most kids in foster care, the initial goal is reunification with their parents. The social workers keep working on their case plans with the parents, and they oversee the kids who are now in foster care. But as soon as kids are removed from the home, a clock starts ticking. The parents have to prove [00:30:00] to the state that they can safely parent the children. And if they can’t do that quickly enough, the state will seek to terminate their parental rights.

Speaker 3:                    So the hardest decision that I have made and that I feel really any social worker can make is that decision that you are going to file, in court, a petition to terminate parental rights. I, as the social worker have made that decision with, with my management team, with our legal team, and I don’t make it alone, [00:30:30] but I am the one that sits at the round table with mom and dad and says, “This is the direction we’re going in.” And that is incredibly difficult. Sometimes it is met with an understanding that the parent says, “You’re right. I haven’t done what I need to do. I’m not surprised you’re doing this. Okay.” That is one example. Another is screaming and yelling and storming out, attacking me personally. [00:31:00] I usually have my supervisor sitting in with me to have these conversations, but working with a family for so long and then having to sit with them and sometimes saying, “You have made some amazing changes for yourself, but that does not equate to your child being able to come back into your home safely.”

And that’s probably the most difficult conversation. Parents who are making changes, parents who have gained sobriety for three months. [00:31:30] That’s incredible. Congratulations to you. But in the permanency timeline for a child, we need to be making those decisions sooner rather than later. So parents that I see starting to make changes, but just not soon enough or just not great enough, those are the difficult conversations. A parent who has completely blown off everything I’ve asked them to do, that conversation is less difficult. A parent who is showing some progress [00:32:00] but still having to make that decision in the best interest of the child. That’s a difficult conversation to have.

And I have had plenty of cases where I have had to go through a termination of parental rights trial, termination was granted, that family has had another child. For continuity of care they come back onto my case and I have to work with that family again. And [00:32:30] I’m the woman that took their first kid away. So I’m going to take their second kid away. Because we want reunification to be our primary goal, that can be very difficult, because in order for reunification to happen, there needs to be a trusting relationship between social worker and parent. They have to trust me this time around, even though I took their first kid away from them.

Speaker 2:                    Even in the worst cases, [00:33:00] cases where there’s just overt abuse physical, sexual abuse, emotional abuse, even in the worst cases you just don’t come away like, “Woohoo, I did my job and we won.” Lawyers feel that way. We don’t. [00:33:30] And sometimes you’re glad. “Oh, good, these children are going to be safe. They’re in a good foster home. And foster parents are going to adopt them.” And you’ve been watching them for the last year or two, just thriving and overcoming all kinds of deficits, from a child that’s three years old, it’s not speaking, or a child that’s not potty trained, [00:34:00] or a child that’s so insular, all of a sudden they’re doing so well and schools are reporting how their behavior has changed and how they’re blossoming and they’re coming into themselves. And all that, of course, feels good, and to see that and to witness that. But there’s real trauma for those kids. They’re separated from their family. I can’t even begin to think of what that might feel [00:34:30] like. That’s real trauma. That’s like death. In some ways worse than death, I think.

One case in particular there were two children involved, pretty dysfunctional family, was a case where mental instability was a major [00:35:00] issue. Really impoverished family. The children are in foster care, sibling group. And the dad was pretty much a sober person. The mom is abusing all kinds of substances, so that’s what brought them into our custody. I became their case worker. We developed a case plan and both the parents needed to do A through Z [00:35:30] of things to ensure the safety and care of their children. And they needed to demonstrate that over a period of time and show us that they could sustain that level of safety. So months go by, and in that time you’re meeting with them, you have a six month case plan review, you’re having treatment team meetings, but by the time their anniversary, in which the children come into custody.

The question comes up for the social worker, [00:36:00] what is the permanent plan for these children? Are they going to be returning home or are they going to be adopted? So with this family, nothing has changed. Things actually got worse. So the parents weren’t pulling it together. So I, through our attorneys, petitioned the court to terminate the parents’ rights to both of their children. [00:36:30] And there’s no doubt in my mind these parents don’t love their children. They absolutely love their children, but they just don’t know how to care for their children. And the parents had split up and the dad, who was sober, but had significant delays, cognitive delays, so neither one of them were addressing issues that were outlined in the case [00:37:00] plan. So I thought we had enough where both of the parental rights should have been terminated so that both of those children could be adopted.

But going through that process is excruciating because you have to testify for a lengthy period of time and justify your opinion, your recommendation for the TPR to go through. [00:37:30] Up until you file that petition for the TPR, you’re coaching that family, you’re supporting them, you want to see them succeed, you’re rooting them on. But then the federal mandate comes in that there has to be a permanency option for this child. And then all of a sudden, you flip everything on the family. And then your relationship is just distraught. [00:38:00] So you have to recount all the agencies and supports you had put in place so that they could be successful, and all of a sudden, they’re your adversaries. And I liked the father. I thought he was a good man, and he really loved his children, but I didn’t think he was competent to raise his children.

And that really hurts. That’s devastating. [00:38:30] And I remember being in that court and seeing him afterwards, and I just felt compelled, I had to say something, because I felt I really betrayed him, just like, “I’m sorry. I had to do my job.” And [00:39:00] he wouldn’t look me in the eye. He stood there for a moment and he brushed past me and I fell apart. I got back from courts and I shared my experience with my coworkers and I just started wailing. It just was [00:39:30] horrible.

Erica Heilman:               Does it feel sometimes like playing God?

Speaker 2:                    Yes. Yes. It feels like… I don’t know the Bible well, but that parable, I think it was king David, with the two women in saying, “This is my child.” “No, it’s my child.” And he’s about to split the baby [00:40:00] in half with a sword. You feel like king David.

Speaker 3:                    I do this work because I see that it’s possible for people to change. And I know if I had a smaller caseload and had more [00:40:30] time to sit with my families, we could be doing better work together. I do still have the cases where real change is being made, despite not having a social worker that can be at their house every week, despite having months of wait lists for a therapist or a substance abuse counselor, they’re making changes. But the job has become in your face more dangerous. So workers have left. Social workers have left our office. [00:41:00] Social workers have left many of the offices because there’s a real fear that something dangerous could happen. I have myself received threats, and what happened to Lara is a tangible thing, and some of the people that I work with defend what happened.

Speaker 4:                    I had a recent incident where I had an old client who happened to be at my child’s daycare. She had been at the daycare previously, bad mouthing me, saying negative things about me. [00:41:30] And then she showed up at my child’s daycare and asked which child was mine. And there was nothing I could do. It didn’t meet stalking requirements, nothing. My kid stood up and said, “This is my mom. That’s my mom.” And there was nothing I could do. I came into this job knowing that I wanted to be a social worker, I wanted to do this work. I knew the risk that it came with this job. My child does not. So how do I keep her safe when I have clients telling me they know where I live? [00:42:00] I mean, how do we keep our family safe?

Speaker 2:                    When Lara was murdered, none of us expected this would ever happen to any one of us in the state of Vermont. And for me, it was like, “Wow, I can’t believe that happened, and I can’t believe that happened to Lara. That doesn’t make any sense. None of this makes any [00:42:30] sense.” That seal has been broken and now it’s open for anybody. There’s different points where I thought the Berry district office is just going to just totally break down. It’s strange to work in that office and see those other social workers and just [00:43:00] look into their faces and their expressions are so unique. I don’t know how to describe them. I guess that’s what faces look like after something like that happens.

Erica Heilman:               There have been [00:43:30] 125 death threats at DCF since Lara Sobel’s murder. This show is dedicated to Lara Sobel and to her colleagues at DCF. I’d like to say one last thing. There’s a silence at the heart of this show, and it’s the voices of parents involved with DCF. Over the next few months, I’ll be looking for parents who want to share their perspectives about working with [00:44:00] family services. If you have thoughts about this, you can email me at rumblestripvermont@gmail.com, or if you have thoughts about the show in general, I encourage you to make a comment on the website. The music you heard in the show is by my friends Peter Cressie and Brian Clark. I’m Erica Heilman. Thanks for listening.

]]> Sun, 24 Jan 2016 16:06:46 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com It has been a very troubling few years at Vermont’s Department of Children and Families. In 2014 there was a string of child deaths in Vermont–children in families involved with DCF. These deaths prompted intense anger and at least four investigations into the department.

Then on August 7, 2015, Lara Sobel, a caseworker at DCF, was shot as she left the DCF offices in Barre, Vermont. She was shot and killed by a woman who was angry after losing custody of her daughter to DCF the month before.

The Department of Children and Families flares up in the news, then the news subsides. We hear from the governor, from the DCF commissioner, from legislators and journalists and commentators. But the people we never hear from are the people who actually do the work. And this is by design. The work that DCF caseworkers do is intensely private, and in order to protect the privacy of parents and children, caseworkers are not allowed to talk publicly about their cases. In a way, their silence shields us from some of the darkest, most complex, most intractable problems in our state.

In this show you’ll hear from three DCF caseworkers from three different areas of Vermont. For their own safety, I’ve chosen not to use their names. They talk about what it’s like to have a job where the lives of children and families are at stake.

TRANSCRIPT below thanks to Jennifer Jorgenson of UVM!

Credits and Thanks

Music for this show by Brian Clark and Peter Cressy

I would like to thank Luciana at DCF, and all the caseworkers who gave me such generous time in the making of this show.

Thanks also to Tally Abecassis, Mark Davis, Scott Carrier, Kelly Green, and Colin McCaffrey for various and sundry and important support.

TRANSCRIPT

Erica Heilman:               Welcome to Rumble Strip Vermont, I’m Erica Heilman. On the afternoon of Friday, August 7th, 2015, Lara Sobel, caseworker at the Department of Children and Families was shot as she left the DCF offices in Barre, Vermont. She was shot and killed by a woman who was angry after losing custody of her daughter to DCF the month before. In the aftermath of this killing, there was a rash of truly disturbing commentary in social media [00:00:30] from people expressing sympathy with Lara’s killer, people who look on DCF case workers as home wreckers, baby snatchers. But there’s a whole different contingent that believes DCF doesn’t intervene in families enough. In 2014, there was a string of child deaths in Vermont. Children in families involved with DCF. These deaths prompted intense anger and at least four investigations into the department.

[00:01:00] DCF flares up in the news, then the news subsides. We hear from the governor, we hear from the DCF commissioner from legislators and journalists and commentators. But the people we never hear from are the people who actually do the work. And this is by design. The work that DCF case workers do is intensely private. And in order to protect the privacy of parents and children, case workers are not allowed to talk [00:01:30] publicly about their cases. And in a way, their silence shields us from some of the darkest, most complex, most intractable problems in our state. These are the problems and the stories that DCF case workers live with every day. In this show, you’ll hear from three DCF case workers from three different areas of Vermont. For their own safety, I’ve chosen not to use their names. They’ll talk about what it’s [00:02:00] like to have a job where the lives of children and families are at stake. Welcome. I figured we would start just by talking about what does DCF do? Because I don’t know that everybody knows that really what it is, and also what it isn’t.

Speaker 2:                    So family services, our primary role is to ensure the safety [00:02:30] and care of children in the state of Vermont. We are not baby snatchers. We are not police. Our main objective is to work with families that have children and to ensure that their children are safe and working with them, connecting them with different services within the community, and ensuring basically that [00:03:00] the care or the risk that there is for the children in the home is either eliminated or mitigated in some way. When we receive reports of abuse and neglect of children, poverty is pretty much what we see all the time, but that is not to say that child abuse and neglect doesn’t occur in middle class or upper class homes. We just don’t get that many reports from there.

Erica Heilman:               Can you [00:03:30] give people a kind of a… If you can just give people a sense for what kinds of worlds you enter into in this work?

Speaker 3:                    Yes, I can try to answer that. So this work does bring me to all walks of Vermont and even beyond. Our district, the Hartford district is the largest of the 12 district offices. We cover the larger towns of Randolph, Bradford, and White River [00:04:00] Junction. And we also cover all of the rural towns in between that. We do home visits on back dirt roads. Sometimes they’re not even real roads. And we do these visits in the winter in our state cars, and we hope the tires are going to get us to where we need to go. And we’re usually doing these visits alone. We sometimes team if we feel there’s a safety concern, but generally if I’m doing a home visit, I go out and do these home visits alone, [00:04:30] and they can be anywhere from right here in town in White River to sometimes an hour and a half away. I have currently 25 children in custody on my caseload. I also serve, I think, about 10 additional children under conditional custody orders. So I have approximately 35 children that I am assessing safety for on sometimes a daily basis.

Speaker 2:                    Primarily we’re working with families that are really impoverished [00:05:00] and that there’s mental health issues and/or drug related issues. Some families are living with a known untreated sex offender, so we get calls from anybody from the next door neighbor to a doctor to teachers reporting that they have concerns about the kids or the kids have disclosed that they’ve been physically abused or sexually [00:05:30] abused. So we meet with the families and try to sort it out. So this is a mental health issue, so how can we connect a person to a local agency. If it’s a substance misuse issue, again, having them participate in a drug and alcohol assessment, developing safety plans around, “Okay, so if you lapse, then is there somebody that’s clean and sober [00:06:00] that can care for your child while you’re using? And is that person safe to be around children too?”

Erica Heilman:               And how would you characterize most of your relationships with those parents? Are most positive and amicable or how would you describe them?

Speaker 2:                    I would say most are positive. There’s definitely tension in the relationship, because I’m pushing them to follow through with their substance [00:06:30] misuse program or trying to extract them from a relationship that’s not healthy for the children or for them. So there’s tension in those things. But I feel like I’m kind of like a coach, kind of like a life coach pointing in the direction. So there’s this road and this road and this road, and you can take any of these paths you want. You’re the one that’s in control here. [00:07:00] And it’s up to you to do this.

Speaker 4:                    I think one of the hardest parts about this job is that we all have our own set of values, our standards of living, and each of us is very different. And when we meet with families, it’s really important that we not put our own value judgment on these families, because we’re all different. I can’t stand dirt on the floor and all those kind of things, and when I walk into someone’s house and there’s dirt on the floor, [00:07:30] that’s my value. That’s not theirs. And that doesn’t constitute a right for DCF to come in and remove children. And I know I hear that all the time. You’re going to take my kids because I have a dirty house. We’re not the dirt police. We are there because there’s a risk to the children, either from an external source or from something that the parent has done, not based on the fact that you have dirt on your floor.

Do we get involved? Yes. If there’s something on the floor or something that the children can have access to that can cause them harm, absolutely. Dried dog feces [00:08:00] on the floor left all over with a baby crawling is not safe. We are there for imminent risk into concerns about the child’s safety and wellbeing. We are not there to criticize you because you don’t have enough money to pay for your heat.

Erica Heilman:               You’ve been here long enough to see the way that people respond to the work as they come in. Looking at the social workers around you, what do you notice happen happens?

Speaker 3:                    I think what’s most difficult for myself and [00:08:30] for coworkers that I have seen leave, having difficult relationships with our clients is expected. Having difficult relationships with other professionals can be incredibly wearing. I do hear DCF is not doing enough. Why can’t you get involved with this child? And people don’t necessarily understand that DCF is a child protection agency, not a quality of life agency. When teachers contact me because a child has not come to school having breakfast or having [00:09:00] a jacket, those are horrible things, but that’s not necessarily a reason for DCF to become involved with them. And I think that a lot of people don’t know that.

Speaker 2:                    Unless there are objects in the home that are hazardous, then we have no call to pull children out of that. So the condition of the home doesn’t immediately affect the child. [00:09:30] That’s not child abuse. Does it tell you something about how the people in that home are living? Is it a picture of depression? Yeah, absolutely. There is a lot of stuff in people’s houses and it’s filthy, and sometimes a whole family is just living in one room, just mattresses and [00:10:00] beat up couches and just really chaotic and animals, and I didn’t want to sit down and there were just things crowding in, it’s just claustrophobic. It’s almost always dark. There’s always blankets across the windows. And most of the stuff is just broken down, like broken toys and [00:10:30] garbage and debris and clothing.

It is really hard to describe what you go into. I don’t know, it’s… But you don’t want to judge them for that. And we’ve been asked by state’s attorneys, “Well, take pictures.” And I just won’t, because I feel [00:11:00] like that’s such an invasion. I’m already invading and now I’m recording how they are living in their homes. Poverty is just the key issue. I don’t know who said this, but I totally agree with it. They said that poverty is the worst form of violence that there is. And I totally agree with [00:11:30] that.

Erica Heilman:               So if someone is concerned about a child and makes a call to family services, DCF may or may not investigate. We don’t know. Because after that phone call, the case becomes a private matter between DCF and the family. This privacy is endlessly frustrating to the accused, to teachers, to defense attorneys and journalists, really anyone who wants to know [00:12:00] what’s going on and isn’t DCF, and it’s impossible to hold the state accountable for its handling of these cases if we can’t see them. On the other hand, this privacy protects children and can protect people who are falsely accused. And because of this privacy, we don’t really know what these case workers do. In this next segment, case workers talk about some of the problems they work with. And this is not easy to listen to, but in order to understand the nature [00:12:30] of their work, we have to hear about some of the challenging situations they face.

Speaker 3:                    Kids being physically abused because their parents don’t know any other way to parent them. Kids being exposed to substantiated sex offenders. Substance abuse is an epidemic in Vermont right now. That’s not a secret to anybody. How that relates to child safety is [00:13:00] parents not waking up until noon. Three year olds taking care of their six month old baby brother. Children not eating because their parents can’t get out of bed. Children not getting to school because their parents can’t get them there or can’t get them on the bus. Kids are being left outside while the parents are inside doing drugs on a winter day. Situations where children are seeing [00:13:30] their mothers being abused by their mother’s partners. Those are some of the situations that I have come across and what I am experiencing, or what I know about the family is probably the tip of the iceberg that the children are actually being exposed to. The children that I am involved with, this has been their life for years before I have become involved with them.

Speaker 4:                    [00:14:00] I used to have a majority of my investigations or assessments would involve sexual abuse or physical abuse. Now a majority of them involving risk of harm, because these pregnant moms who are using in utero, using while pregnant, and we’re opening assessments before the child’s birth to determine whether or not they’re safe. I mean, that’s the stuff that we here as the office is seeing right now. I mean this explosion of infants who have parents [00:14:30] who are using. The example I could think about is when I was, technically by the legal terms, assaulted by a mother. She spit in my face during a removal of her children. Got information that she was using, and we went to her house and she was completely out of it. She was slurring her words. She was not able to stand appropriately. She was argumentative, combative to the point that the police had to put her in handcuffs.

The house was an absolute disarray compared to what it used to be. [00:15:00] There was dirty diapers all over the floor. The baby was left in a crib with just a diaper on and the feces had exploded out of the diaper and they were caked onto the baby. I mean, she had runny nose that was crusty and was screaming because she was so hungry. And mom had been passed out on the couch, not able to take care of her. She had a sibling there that was trying to get her a bottle who was like three, four years old. And mom was erratic, [00:15:30] combative, aggressive, just out of control.

Speaker 2:                    I’ve seen bruises on children, scratches, welt marks, child pornography. Something you want to kind of just scrub your brain of once you see it. I’ve read an autopsy report on a four month old baby. You just see the fear [00:16:00] in kids’ eyes, their confusion and desperation in parents’ faces. It’s really hard work. You try not to think about it too much or to take it in too much because you couldn’t possibly do your job if you did.

Speaker 3:                    [00:16:30] Some families that I am currently working with I was working with six years ago, and every service under the sun has been into these homes, sometimes on numerous occasions, because more children have been born into these homes that warrant different services coming into place. And there’s not always a positive outcome. There is situations where children are remaining in homes that may not to you or I be a [00:17:00] safe or adequate home, but that’s also how this family is choosing to live, and it’s not unsafe for the child. The ideal would be to have service providers go into the home and work with these families, and they come out and everybody’s happy and everybody’s needs are getting met. But they can not always make the changes that are being recommended because there are incredibly complex issues that we’re working with, especially when children are still placed [00:17:30] at home.

That’s when the agency sits with the highest risk. And that’s when I personally feel like I sit with risk. When children are still in the home of parents that are struggling with substance abuse, unresolved mental health, yet the risk does not warrant the child coming into custody, but does warrant that I remain involved, but changes are not being made, and the family is doing the best that they can. We are going in and saying, “This is [00:18:00] what you need to do. This is what you should do. This is what your child needs you to do.” And sometimes all that mom can do is get up and make sure that her kid has a piece of toast that day.

Speaker 2:                    The other day I was working, and I want to be careful here that I don’t give away too much information so it can be identified. But I was working with these two other service providers, met with this mom and her infant. And we all had [00:18:30] a conversation with her concerned that I’m going to have to make that next move and write an affidavit. If she’s not following through the safety plan. She leaves the room to take a smoke break and me and these two other people are talking, and they’re a like, “God, I just don’t understand her attitude. Why is she using again? She’s only going to use again. You know that, right?”

[00:19:00] Yeah, I know that. But look at their situation. She’s in this motel room, she doesn’t have a partner. She doesn’t drive. She doesn’t even have a car. She’s thousands of dollars in debt for medical bills. Who wouldn’t use? This person, she was a foster child too. She has family, but [00:19:30] they’re involved with us as well. There is no one in her life that she can lean on. No one. She’s got a couple friends that seem to be okay, but they’re struggling too. Very similar situations. What is she going to do is going to go to CCV and ask for an application to go to school and [00:20:00] go out, get a job.

And that’s part of the problem too, is, “Okay, so where does the child go?” Oh, childcare. Well, everybody knows how expensive that is. It’s about $300 a week, with the reach up grant that they’re getting it’s around $1,000 a month. Pull yourself up by the bootstraps? How? How are you going to manage all of that? [00:20:30] You don’t. And you find yourself in a motel using. I understand it, but the child’s still at risk. So work with what we got.

Speaker 3:                    I talked a little about the gray areas of this work and doing home visits, usually [00:21:00] weekly, if it’s a high risk case, and leaving with the feeling that something is just not right. I don’t have facts to write an affidavit, but something doesn’t feel right. And then something happens. For example, a child went to school with bruises and had clearly been physically abused as determined by a medical professional. And I write an affidavit outlining all of my experiences with this family, [00:21:30] and I ask the judge for this child to come out of this home and to come into foster care. And that request is denied. I may have one incident where something happened that shouldn’t have, but the majority of what I’m reporting are things that don’t reach a level of removal. So not a only is this child remaining in this home, but I now have to continue to work with the family that I have just asked a judge to remove their child from their care.

What small amount of safety may [00:22:00] have been created between the relationship of social worker and parent is now completely gone. I still have to go in week after week to make sure that the child is not at imminent risk, and those are the cases that keep me up at night. Those are the cases where I feel like something bad is going to happen to this child. And then something does happen. Then the public says that DCF didn’t do enough. What the public doesn’t know [00:22:30] is that I was in that home every single week, week after week, trying to make things better, even requesting custody and having it been denied. And people say that social worker didn’t do her job, that social worker didn’t do enough, this baby got hurt because DCF didn’t do their job.

Speaker 2:                    You always worry. I’m not alone. We all worry. We all have bad dreams. [00:23:00] There is a tremendous amount of responsibility. And the last two years, it just made it harder. And I’m grateful to be in the current position I am. I’m helping out the Barry district office temporarily, ever since Lara was shot, killed. But honestly, I’ll be glad to be done with this work in mid-November. I’m scared to death [00:23:30] that a child’s going to die on my watch, and I really can’t prevent that. There’s so much outside of our control.

Erica Heilman:               What don’t people understand about that?

Speaker 2:                    I think there’s a misconception that DCF family services is just… They get a report and we’re just going to waltz in and pull that child or the children right out of [00:24:00] the home. And that people think that’s what we should be doing. And that’s the last thing we need to do. We cannot possibly do that. Our resources are tapped out. We cannot do that, and it’s not the right thing to do either. It doesn’t solve the problem. Just a quick illustration. We go in and remove children because they’re unsafe, and then that family has more children. [00:24:30] We’re there in the hospital when they’re giving deliveries sometimes. We’re there a few months after they’re born. And those children come into custody and then another child’s born.

We’re not addressing the problem with the issues. We’re not working with the family as much as we need to, to really address the real causes that’s creating the instability, the safety issues in the home, in the social work, [00:25:00] school, we talked about upstream practice versus downstream. And most of our work is downstream. We’re not looking into the real causes of poverty and how that leads to mental illness or how that leads to substance misuse. And that’s what we need to do more of. And it’s not just up to DCF family services. It’s the community, everybody [00:25:30] to step up to the plate.

Erica Heilman:               I spoke with eight family services case workers while I was making the show, and they all said, not surprisingly, that morale isn’t great. But what they said that did surprise me and even, admittedly, confounds me, is that they really like this job. They like working with families and they believe in what they do, but they said that they don’t have time to do good work. Their caseloads are too big, the opiate epidemic [00:26:00] in Vermont is out of control, and there’s a near Soviet amount of paperwork involved in this job. They said they don’t have to time to do social work anymore.

Speaker 4:                    I have workers right now, ongoing workers who have a caseload of 35 kids. How do effective case work with 35 children? You can’t. And I watch my staff fry. I watch them… And these families deserve better than that. They deserve to have a [00:26:30] social worker who has her wits about her, who has the ability and the time to spend to work with them and to engage rather than a social worker who they can’t get ahold of because she’s jumping from one fire to another. I still have kids from when I started 20 years ago coming to see me and checking in. I have those relationships because I had the time back then to create those relationships. And I just feel sad for the new workers now because they’re not having a… They’re not being able to make those connections with clients.

Speaker 2:                    [00:27:00] The best part of the job is meeting with families and meeting with kids. That’s the enjoyable part, at least it is for me. But it’s amazing how much of the other stuff gets in the way of really doing that face to face work. Spend a lot of time in court and just waiting. Just waiting for the hearing to start and [00:27:30] just trying to track down other service providers who can vouch that the families followed through on X, Y, or Z. Yeah, they’re going to their therapy sessions. Yeah, they got their daily dose every day this week. So children do slip through the cracks and children have died while we were intervening.

Speaker 3:                    Families deserve to have a social [00:28:00] worker that has face time with them on a regular basis, that they’re able to access on the phone, that they need to know what is expected of them, why we’re involved. I’ve had families come to me and say, “I don’t even know why you’re work working with me. I don’t even know why you’re involved with me.” So the families that we work with deserve to know why a state child protection agency is involved with them. And in order for them to feel respected and in order for them to feel like their cases are moving forward, they need to have contact with their social worker. And unfortunately [00:28:30] with the numbers that we have right now, that doesn’t always happen to the degree that I want it to. That’s probably the hardest thing that I sit with personally. When I leave at the end of the day, I think, “Should I have made this extra phone call? Could I have done this extra report? Could I have done this extra check-in.”

And I can speak to the difference from six years ago to now. I was able to do what I would call kitchen table social work six years ago. Sitting with families [00:29:00] at their kitchen table, really laying out, “These are the issues. This is what we got to work on. This is how we’re going to do it. Let’s pull up our sleeves. Let’s get to work. Let’s make things better. Now it’s crisis response to a situation that’s already happened because I haven’t had the time to sit with that family at their kitchen table and to talk about what the issues are. I am then responding after something has happened. So it does feel like triage work at times.

Erica Heilman:               [00:29:30] In cases where a judge believes a child is at imminent risk of harm, she will order that the children be removed from the home and placed in a foster home or kinship home. For most kids in foster care, the initial goal is reunification with their parents. The social workers keep working on their case plans with the parents, and they oversee the kids who are now in foster care. But as soon as kids are removed from the home, a clock starts ticking. The parents have to prove [00:30:00] to the state that they can safely parent the children. And if they can’t do that quickly enough, the state will seek to terminate their parental rights.

Speaker 3:                    So the hardest decision that I have made and that I feel really any social worker can make is that decision that you are going to file, in court, a petition to terminate parental rights. I, as the social worker have made that decision with, with my management team, with our legal team, and I don’t make it alone, [00:30:30] but I am the one that sits at the round table with mom and dad and says, “This is the direction we’re going in.” And that is incredibly difficult. Sometimes it is met with an understanding that the parent says, “You’re right. I haven’t done what I need to do. I’m not surprised you’re doing this. Okay.” That is one example. Another is screaming and yelling and storming out, attacking me personally. [00:31:00] I usually have my supervisor sitting in with me to have these conversations, but working with a family for so long and then having to sit with them and sometimes saying, “You have made some amazing changes for yourself, but that does not equate to your child being able to come back into your home safely.”

And that’s probably the most difficult conversation. Parents who are making changes, parents who have gained sobriety for three months. [00:31:30] That’s incredible. Congratulations to you. But in the permanency timeline for a child, we need to be making those decisions sooner rather than later. So parents that I see starting to make changes, but just not soon enough or just not great enough, those are the difficult conversations. A parent who has completely blown off everything I’ve asked them to do, that conversation is less difficult. A parent who is showing some progress [00:32:00] but still having to make that decision in the best interest of the child. That’s a difficult conversation to have.

And I have had plenty of cases where I have had to go through a termination of parental rights trial, termination was granted, that family has had another child. For continuity of care they come back onto my case and I have to work with that family again. And [00:32:30] I’m the woman that took their first kid away. So I’m going to take their second kid away. Because we want reunification to be our primary goal, that can be very difficult, because in order for reunification to happen, there needs to be a trusting relationship between social worker and parent. They have to trust me this time around, even though I took their first kid away from them.

Speaker 2:                    Even in the worst cases, [00:33:00] cases where there’s just overt abuse physical, sexual abuse, emotional abuse, even in the worst cases you just don’t come away like, “Woohoo, I did my job and we won.” Lawyers feel that way. We don’t. [00:33:30] And sometimes you’re glad. “Oh, good, these children are going to be safe. They’re in a good foster home. And foster parents are going to adopt them.” And you’ve been watching them for the last year or two, just thriving and overcoming all kinds of deficits, from a child that’s three years old, it’s not speaking, or a child that’s not potty trained, [00:34:00] or a child that’s so insular, all of a sudden they’re doing so well and schools are reporting how their behavior has changed and how they’re blossoming and they’re coming into themselves. And all that, of course, feels good, and to see that and to witness that. But there’s real trauma for those kids. They’re separated from their family. I can’t even begin to think of what that might feel [00:34:30] like. That’s real trauma. That’s like death. In some ways worse than death, I think.

One case in particular there were two children involved, pretty dysfunctional family, was a case where mental instability was a major [00:35:00] issue. Really impoverished family. The children are in foster care, sibling group. And the dad was pretty much a sober person. The mom is abusing all kinds of substances, so that’s what brought them into our custody. I became their case worker. We developed a case plan and both the parents needed to do A through Z [00:35:30] of things to ensure the safety and care of their children. And they needed to demonstrate that over a period of time and show us that they could sustain that level of safety. So months go by, and in that time you’re meeting with them, you have a six month case plan review, you’re having treatment team meetings, but by the time their anniversary, in which the children come into custody.

The question comes up for the social worker, [00:36:00] what is the permanent plan for these children? Are they going to be returning home or are they going to be adopted? So with this family, nothing has changed. Things actually got worse. So the parents weren’t pulling it together. So I, through our attorneys, petitioned the court to terminate the parents’ rights to both of their children. [00:36:30] And there’s no doubt in my mind these parents don’t love their children. They absolutely love their children, but they just don’t know how to care for their children. And the parents had split up and the dad, who was sober, but had significant delays, cognitive delays, so neither one of them were addressing issues that were outlined in the case [00:37:00] plan. So I thought we had enough where both of the parental rights should have been terminated so that both of those children could be adopted.

But going through that process is excruciating because you have to testify for a lengthy period of time and justify your opinion, your recommendation for the TPR to go through. [00:37:30] Up until you file that petition for the TPR, you’re coaching that family, you’re supporting them, you want to see them succeed, you’re rooting them on. But then the federal mandate comes in that there has to be a permanency option for this child. And then all of a sudden, you flip everything on the family. And then your relationship is just distraught. [00:38:00] So you have to recount all the agencies and supports you had put in place so that they could be successful, and all of a sudden, they’re your adversaries. And I liked the father. I thought he was a good man, and he really loved his children, but I didn’t think he was competent to raise his children.

And that really hurts. That’s devastating. [00:38:30] And I remember being in that court and seeing him afterwards, and I just felt compelled, I had to say something, because I felt I really betrayed him, just like, “I’m sorry. I had to do my job.” And [00:39:00] he wouldn’t look me in the eye. He stood there for a moment and he brushed past me and I fell apart. I got back from courts and I shared my experience with my coworkers and I just started wailing. It just was [00:39:30] horrible.

Erica Heilman:               Does it feel sometimes like playing God?

Speaker 2:                    Yes. Yes. It feels like… I don’t know the Bible well, but that parable, I think it was king David, with the two women in saying, “This is my child.” “No, it’s my child.” And he’s about to split the baby [00:40:00] in half with a sword. You feel like king David.

Speaker 3:                    I do this work because I see that it’s possible for people to change. And I know if I had a smaller caseload and had more [00:40:30] time to sit with my families, we could be doing better work together. I do still have the cases where real change is being made, despite not having a social worker that can be at their house every week, despite having months of wait lists for a therapist or a substance abuse counselor, they’re making changes. But the job has become in your face more dangerous. So workers have left. Social workers have left our office. [00:41:00] Social workers have left many of the offices because there’s a real fear that something dangerous could happen. I have myself received threats, and what happened to Lara is a tangible thing, and some of the people that I work with defend what happened.

Speaker 4:                    I had a recent incident where I had an old client who happened to be at my child’s daycare. She had been at the daycare previously, bad mouthing me, saying negative things about me. [00:41:30] And then she showed up at my child’s daycare and asked which child was mine. And there was nothing I could do. It didn’t meet stalking requirements, nothing. My kid stood up and said, “This is my mom. That’s my mom.” And there was nothing I could do. I came into this job knowing that I wanted to be a social worker, I wanted to do this work. I knew the risk that it came with this job. My child does not. So how do I keep her safe when I have clients telling me they know where I live? [00:42:00] I mean, how do we keep our family safe?

Speaker 2:                    When Lara was murdered, none of us expected this would ever happen to any one of us in the state of Vermont. And for me, it was like, “Wow, I can’t believe that happened, and I can’t believe that happened to Lara. That doesn’t make any sense. None of this makes any [00:42:30] sense.” That seal has been broken and now it’s open for anybody. There’s different points where I thought the Berry district office is just going to just totally break down. It’s strange to work in that office and see those other social workers and just [00:43:00] look into their faces and their expressions are so unique. I don’t know how to describe them. I guess that’s what faces look like after something like that happens.

Erica Heilman:               There have been [00:43:30] 125 death threats at DCF since Lara Sobel’s murder. This show is dedicated to Lara Sobel and to her colleagues at DCF. I’d like to say one last thing. There’s a silence at the heart of this show, and it’s the voices of parents involved with DCF. Over the next few months, I’ll be looking for parents who want to share their perspectives about working with [00:44:00] family services. If you have thoughts about this, you can email me at rumblestripvermont@gmail.com, or if you have thoughts about the show in general, I encourage you to make a comment on the website. The music you heard in the show is by my friends Peter Cressie and Brian Clark. I’m Erica Heilman. Thanks for listening.

]]> Inside DCF Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:44:35 A rare look inside Vermont's most private and most troubled state agency. A rare look inside Vermont's most private and most troubled state agency. false full 92 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2030 Day Before Christmas Police Log [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/238953388″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /] It’s the day before Christmas, and like a Christmas miracle, I received this report from Scott Carrier on recent police activity here in central Vermont. Here are a selection of calls to local police as reported in the Times Argus and Stowe Reporter.

Happy Holidays everyone.

Music by Hayvanlar Alemi. The song is titled Crossroad Metamorphosis

Photo Credit: This is just a small portion of an inspired murder scene diorama by my friend Colin Dickerman. Here is the whole scene:

Screenshot 2015-12-24 09.46.08

]]> Thu, 24 Dec 2015 14:50:10 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/238953388″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /] It’s the day before Christmas, and like a Christmas miracle, I received this report from Scott Carrier on recent police activity here in central Vermont. Here are a selection of calls to local police as reported in the Times Argus and Stowe Reporter.

Happy Holidays everyone.

Music by Hayvanlar Alemi. The song is titled Crossroad Metamorphosis

Photo Credit: This is just a small portion of an inspired murder scene diorama by my friend Colin Dickerman. Here is the whole scene:

Screenshot 2015-12-24 09.46.08

]]> Day Before Christmas Police Log Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:03:23 Shampoo was stolen. Grapes were thrown. The police have been busy. Shampoo was stolen. Grapes were thrown. The police have been busy. false full 60 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=2008 Seasonal Update [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/237865316″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]How time flies! The holidays are such a nice time to catch up with friends and family. Here’s a waspy little roundup of highlights from a year in the Becht family. Happy Holidays!

Credits

Seasonal Update was written by Tal McThenia, a writer of books and articles and screenplays. To learn more about Tal, you can visit his website:  talmcthenia.com or check out his book website: www.acaseforsolomon.com

The Music

The Handbell Choir at Memorial Baptist Church in Pulaski, Virginia from their Christmas concert in 2012.

The guy who sings Oh, Holy Night. If you know who this is, please, please write to me at rumblestripvermont@gmail.com

NEWS FLASH: Listener/Investigator Patrick Freebern did some digging and discovered the original singer of the song, Steve Mauldin of Tennessee. On YouTube. (Duh?). And here is a video featuring Steve  of Tennessee, speaking at great length about how he is the original singer on this recording.

The Dogs

TANGY

Augie

DOT

]]> Wed, 16 Dec 2015 19:52:18 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/237865316″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]How time flies! The holidays are such a nice time to catch up with friends and family. Here’s a waspy little roundup of highlights from a year in the Becht family. Happy Holidays!

Credits

Seasonal Update was written by Tal McThenia, a writer of books and articles and screenplays. To learn more about Tal, you can visit his website:  talmcthenia.com or check out his book website: www.acaseforsolomon.com

The Music

The Handbell Choir at Memorial Baptist Church in Pulaski, Virginia from their Christmas concert in 2012.

The guy who sings Oh, Holy Night. If you know who this is, please, please write to me at rumblestripvermont@gmail.com

NEWS FLASH: Listener/Investigator Patrick Freebern did some digging and discovered the original singer of the song, Steve Mauldin of Tennessee. On YouTube. (Duh?). And here is a video featuring Steve  of Tennessee, speaking at great length about how he is the original singer on this recording.

The Dogs

TANGY

Augie

DOT

]]> Seasonal Update Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:07:57 Here's a seasonal roundup of highlights from a year in the Becht family. Happy Holidays! Here's a seasonal roundup of highlights from a year in the Becht family. Happy Holidays! false full 89 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1988 A Conversation with M.T. Anderson

M.T. Anderson is the author of Feed, winner of the Los Angeles Times Book Prize, as well as The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, which won the National Book Award. Whether it’s crafting a dystopian future, writing vampire fiction, or, in the case of his latest book, Symphony for the City of the Dead, chronicling the life of the composer Dmitri Shostakovitch, his books are meticulously researched and vividly told.

I first met Tobin (his middle name) when he came over with my friend Peter this past September to watch the eclipse…or  the SUPER Moon. The three of us sat and talked in my front yard in an old wicker couch until it collapsed, and the conversation carried on horizontally from there. We talked about astronomy, about words we hate (slacks, homemade) and what we were like in high school. It was the kind of voracious conversation you have with a brand new friend.

We got together recently at my house to talk about his new book Symphony for the City of the Dead: Dmitri Shostakovich and the Siege of Leningrad.  We also talked about….other things. His writing habits, God, demonic possession, and middle age. A little something for everyone.

Welcome.

Credits:

Music by Noveller, of the Free Music Archive

Thanks to Tally Abecassis for her thoughts on this show. If you haven’t listened to her podcast, First Day Back, I recommend you check it out. Cuz it’s great. Also thanks to Colin Dickerman.

Links to Tobin’s work and articles about his illustrious career:

Click here for Symphony for the City of the Dead

Click here for FeedSymphony_Final

Click here for The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing

M.T. Anderson’s blog

Profile in The Washington Post

Interview about Feed in Boing Boing

]]> Wed, 9 Dec 2015 21:43:13 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

M.T. Anderson is the author of Feed, winner of the Los Angeles Times Book Prize, as well as The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, which won the National Book Award. Whether it’s crafting a dystopian future, writing vampire fiction, or, in the case of his latest book, Symphony for the City of the Dead, chronicling the life of the composer Dmitri Shostakovitch, his books are meticulously researched and vividly told.

I first met Tobin (his middle name) when he came over with my friend Peter this past September to watch the eclipse…or  the SUPER Moon. The three of us sat and talked in my front yard in an old wicker couch until it collapsed, and the conversation carried on horizontally from there. We talked about astronomy, about words we hate (slacks, homemade) and what we were like in high school. It was the kind of voracious conversation you have with a brand new friend.

We got together recently at my house to talk about his new book Symphony for the City of the Dead: Dmitri Shostakovich and the Siege of Leningrad.  We also talked about….other things. His writing habits, God, demonic possession, and middle age. A little something for everyone.

Welcome.

Credits:

Music by Noveller, of the Free Music Archive

Thanks to Tally Abecassis for her thoughts on this show. If you haven’t listened to her podcast, First Day Back, I recommend you check it out. Cuz it’s great. Also thanks to Colin Dickerman.

Links to Tobin’s work and articles about his illustrious career:

Click here for Symphony for the City of the Dead

Click here for FeedSymphony_Final

Click here for The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing

M.T. Anderson’s blog

Profile in The Washington Post

Interview about Feed in Boing Boing

]]> A Conversation with M.T. Anderson Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:31:28 We talk about his new book. And writing. And middle age. And demonic possession...something for everyone. We talk about his new book. And writing. And middle age. And demonic possession...something for everyone. false full 74 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1967 Hot Bird [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/234650376″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]Today…Hot Bird.

This is a short show in celebration of the season of turkeys, and catching them. Then eating them.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone. And for those of you listening outside the United States, I hope you happen to have a really great meal planned with good friends. With or without a hot bird.

This show features Barry Forbes, a hunter in Middlebury, Vermont, and I made that show with tape from the Vermont Folklife Center.

]]> Wed, 25 Nov 2015 13:30:43 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/234650376″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]Today…Hot Bird.

This is a short show in celebration of the season of turkeys, and catching them. Then eating them.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone. And for those of you listening outside the United States, I hope you happen to have a really great meal planned with good friends. With or without a hot bird.

This show features Barry Forbes, a hunter in Middlebury, Vermont, and I made that show with tape from the Vermont Folklife Center.

]]> Hot Bird Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:03:49 "Believe it or not, a turkey's not a lot different than people." "Believe it or not, a turkey's not a lot different than people." false full 62 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1943 Our School The recent school consolidation bill promised to lower our taxes. Then it promised equal opportunity for all kids. It’s unclear how it will deliver on either of these promises, but one thing is sure. It could radically change culture in small town Vermont. This is a show about some of the long-term political and cultural effects of Act 46.

Comments: To make a comment or to see comments, scroll to the bottom of this page.

THE SHOW: Click here to listen to the show.

THE OUTTAKES: For a more in-depth review, here is a rough edit of my full interview with Superintendent John Castle:

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/234201298″ params=”auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true” width=”300″ height=”200″ iframe=”true” /]

Credits

Lincoln Petell is the chairman of the school board in Holland, Vermont

Susan Clark is a facilitator, educator, and the co-author of “Slow Democracy: Rediscovering Community, Bringing Decision Making Back Home.” She is also Town Moderator of Middlesex, Vermont.

John Castle is the superintendent of the North Country Supervisory Union.

Articles about Act 46

School Consolidation is Anti-Democratic: Eric Davis, December 17, 2015, VTDigger

If Vermont Were A School: Commentary by John Castle, April, 2015, VTDigger 

Deliberate Speed on Education Governance by Susan Clark, April, 2015, VTDigger

Design for a 21st Century School Governance System, by Margaret MacLean, May, 2014, VTDigger

Vermonters for Schools and Community advocate for local control of education, VTDigger, January 2015

]]> Thu, 19 Nov 2015 21:29:34 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com The recent school consolidation bill promised to lower our taxes. Then it promised equal opportunity for all kids. It’s unclear how it will deliver on either of these promises, but one thing is sure. It could radically change culture in small town Vermont. This is a show about some of the long-term political and cultural effects of Act 46.

Comments: To make a comment or to see comments, scroll to the bottom of this page.

THE SHOW: Click here to listen to the show.

THE OUTTAKES: For a more in-depth review, here is a rough edit of my full interview with Superintendent John Castle:

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/234201298″ params=”auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true” width=”300″ height=”200″ iframe=”true” /]

Credits

Lincoln Petell is the chairman of the school board in Holland, Vermont

Susan Clark is a facilitator, educator, and the co-author of “Slow Democracy: Rediscovering Community, Bringing Decision Making Back Home.” She is also Town Moderator of Middlesex, Vermont.

John Castle is the superintendent of the North Country Supervisory Union.

Articles about Act 46

School Consolidation is Anti-Democratic: Eric Davis, December 17, 2015, VTDigger

If Vermont Were A School: Commentary by John Castle, April, 2015, VTDigger 

Deliberate Speed on Education Governance by Susan Clark, April, 2015, VTDigger

Design for a 21st Century School Governance System, by Margaret MacLean, May, 2014, VTDigger

Vermonters for Schools and Community advocate for local control of education, VTDigger, January 2015

]]> Our School Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:22:55 What school consolidation means for small town life in Vermont... What school consolidation means for small town life in Vermont... false full 98 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1911 In Case of Emergency [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/232885186″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

In Case of Emergency is another show from Larry Massett’s new podcast series, as yet unnamed.  The series isn’t out yet, and I have no idea how to describe what it is. It’s not like any podcast series I’ve ever heard. And it’s gonna be good.

Here is….In Case of Emergency.

Credits (links to recordings below)

My Heart’s in the Highlands, Arrangement by Arvo Part, sung by Stephen Wallace

Fire Trail, Antonio Sanchez

The picture is from Japanese designer Maiko Takeda, a show of spike-embellished, wearable art, from the website called BeautifulNow

]]> Fri, 13 Nov 2015 12:29:19 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/232885186″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

In Case of Emergency is another show from Larry Massett’s new podcast series, as yet unnamed.  The series isn’t out yet, and I have no idea how to describe what it is. It’s not like any podcast series I’ve ever heard. And it’s gonna be good.

Here is….In Case of Emergency.

Credits (links to recordings below)

My Heart’s in the Highlands, Arrangement by Arvo Part, sung by Stephen Wallace

Fire Trail, Antonio Sanchez

The picture is from Japanese designer Maiko Takeda, a show of spike-embellished, wearable art, from the website called BeautifulNow

]]> In Case of Emergency Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:05:40 Take a moment to locate the emergency exit, situated in the ceiling right above your seat... Take a moment to locate the emergency exit, situated in the ceiling right above your seat... false full 80 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1914 The Schwag Raffle Draw! [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/231822021″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]The time has come to draw names for the Schwag Membership Pledging and Sustaining Campaign Event Raffle. This is the first consolidated shilling campaign I’ve done and I’ve learned a lot. I’ve learned that you’re listening as far away as Arthur’s Pass in New Zealand and I’ve learned that there are listeners right here in my town who are willing to dig into their public radio fund to support this podcast. I’ve received letters with great show ideas and stories about your lives and what you’re thinking about these days….I’m humbled in a way I can’t describe.

Thank you for your generosity, your letters and emails, and your ears. I am your biggest fan.

]]> Fri, 6 Nov 2015 13:17:33 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/231822021″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]The time has come to draw names for the Schwag Membership Pledging and Sustaining Campaign Event Raffle. This is the first consolidated shilling campaign I’ve done and I’ve learned a lot. I’ve learned that you’re listening as far away as Arthur’s Pass in New Zealand and I’ve learned that there are listeners right here in my town who are willing to dig into their public radio fund to support this podcast. I’ve received letters with great show ideas and stories about your lives and what you’re thinking about these days….I’m humbled in a way I can’t describe.

Thank you for your generosity, your letters and emails, and your ears. I am your biggest fan.

]]> The Schwag Raffle Draw! Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:06:15 The time has come to draw names for the Schwag Pledging and Sustaining Membership Campaign Event Raffle.... The time has come to draw names for the Schwag Pledging and Sustaining Membership Campaign Event Raffle.... false full 58 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1872 The Green River Stories [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/229606253″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /] It’s almost November. It’s getting cold here. The days are getting shorter. I’m already missing the colors and sounds of summer and fall. So today I’m going to play one of my all-time favorite stories, which just happens to be a story that’s filled with the sound of summer. It’s called Stories from the Green River, and it’s by my friend Scott Carrier, who produces Home of the Brave…and if you haven’t subscribed to it yet, you should. There is nothing like it…anywhere.

Scott tied a canoe to his station wagon and drove north from his home in Salt Lake City, to the Green River Lakes in the Wind River Mountains.  That’s where the Green River–and this story–begins.

Credits

These stories originally aired on Weekend All Things Considered back in 1991. The music was written and performed by Pat King.  To subscribe to Scott’s podcast, Home of the Brave, visit homebrave.com.

]]> Thu, 22 Oct 2015 18:14:38 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/229606253″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /] It’s almost November. It’s getting cold here. The days are getting shorter. I’m already missing the colors and sounds of summer and fall. So today I’m going to play one of my all-time favorite stories, which just happens to be a story that’s filled with the sound of summer. It’s called Stories from the Green River, and it’s by my friend Scott Carrier, who produces Home of the Brave…and if you haven’t subscribed to it yet, you should. There is nothing like it…anywhere.

Scott tied a canoe to his station wagon and drove north from his home in Salt Lake City, to the Green River Lakes in the Wind River Mountains.  That’s where the Green River–and this story–begins.

Credits

These stories originally aired on Weekend All Things Considered back in 1991. The music was written and performed by Pat King.  To subscribe to Scott’s podcast, Home of the Brave, visit homebrave.com.

]]> The Green River Stories Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:25:43 Here is the best canoe story. It's by Scott Carrier. I listen to it over and over. Here is the best canoe story. It's by Scott Carrier. I listen to it over and over. false full 54 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1854 Schwag [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/228542605″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]Dear Listeners,

I love making this show and I am endlessly grateful to those of you have donated. These donations keep my car running and give me time to work on the show. So recently I was listening to the pledge drive on my local public radio station and I thought, I’m going to do that. Except my pledge drive will only be seven or eight minutes long and there will be inspirational music AND excellent prizes.

So here is my version of a pledge drive, with very special schwag for five lucky winners of the Schwag Show Raffle. The raffle will be drawn at 5:00PM Eastern Time on Thursday, November 5th.

Good luck everyone, and once again….thank you for making this show possible.

Erica

]]> Thu, 15 Oct 2015 18:26:53 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/228542605″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]Dear Listeners,

I love making this show and I am endlessly grateful to those of you have donated. These donations keep my car running and give me time to work on the show. So recently I was listening to the pledge drive on my local public radio station and I thought, I’m going to do that. Except my pledge drive will only be seven or eight minutes long and there will be inspirational music AND excellent prizes.

So here is my version of a pledge drive, with very special schwag for five lucky winners of the Schwag Show Raffle. The raffle will be drawn at 5:00PM Eastern Time on Thursday, November 5th.

Good luck everyone, and once again….thank you for making this show possible.

Erica

]]> Schwag Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:08:20 My very own eight minute pledge drive and SCHWAG RAFFLE, with inspirational music. My very own eight minute pledge drive and SCHWAG RAFFLE, with inspirational music. false full 66 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1837 Pretend You’re the Grownup [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/227656999″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]My friend Brett Berk got a very early start as a teacher, and by the time he was twenty-five, he was the director of a progressive preschool in the East Village in New York City. Blocks, clay, and instead of costumes, the kids had scraps of fabric they could adorn themselves with. There were occasional guest appearances from a gay, pink haired Cherokee performance artist. There was a lot of rolling around in Tompkins Square Park.

So by the time he was thirty and his friends started having kids, Brett had been working professionally with kids for a long time. And after watching us flail around for a few years as early parents, he figured he’d write a book about us, and for us. The Gay Uncle’s Guide To Parenting was born. In this conversation we talk about some of the hilarious choices he’s seen parents make, and what he makes of them. We talk about poop and sleep and food and what, in his mind, the job of parenting is all about. Welcome.

About Brett Berk

Brett Berk, M.S. Ed., has worked professionally with young children and families in New York City for almost twenty-five years, holding positions as a classroom teacher, a preschool director, and an educational consultant and evaluator. He is a widely published writer on issues pertaining to parenthood and child development, with articles appearing in Babble, Cookie, Momlogic, The Chicago Tribune, Time Out New York Kids, Parenting, Yahoo! Shine, and Vanity Fair, among others. He is also the author of the humorous instructional non-fiction book “The Gay Uncle’s Guide to Parenting” (Crown, 2008)

In addition to his work in early childhood, Brett publishes widely on cars and the auto industry. Foremost among his outlets, he is the automotive columnist for Vanity Fair, and Writer At Large for Time Inc.’s newly launched site The Drive, where he writes about cars and their relationship to our larger culture. keep up with him at brettberk.com.

Here’s a picture of Brett and a sheep.

Brett and Sheep

]]> Fri, 9 Oct 2015 16:42:35 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/227656999″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]My friend Brett Berk got a very early start as a teacher, and by the time he was twenty-five, he was the director of a progressive preschool in the East Village in New York City. Blocks, clay, and instead of costumes, the kids had scraps of fabric they could adorn themselves with. There were occasional guest appearances from a gay, pink haired Cherokee performance artist. There was a lot of rolling around in Tompkins Square Park.

So by the time he was thirty and his friends started having kids, Brett had been working professionally with kids for a long time. And after watching us flail around for a few years as early parents, he figured he’d write a book about us, and for us. The Gay Uncle’s Guide To Parenting was born. In this conversation we talk about some of the hilarious choices he’s seen parents make, and what he makes of them. We talk about poop and sleep and food and what, in his mind, the job of parenting is all about. Welcome.

About Brett Berk

Brett Berk, M.S. Ed., has worked professionally with young children and families in New York City for almost twenty-five years, holding positions as a classroom teacher, a preschool director, and an educational consultant and evaluator. He is a widely published writer on issues pertaining to parenthood and child development, with articles appearing in Babble, Cookie, Momlogic, The Chicago Tribune, Time Out New York Kids, Parenting, Yahoo! Shine, and Vanity Fair, among others. He is also the author of the humorous instructional non-fiction book “The Gay Uncle’s Guide to Parenting” (Crown, 2008)

In addition to his work in early childhood, Brett publishes widely on cars and the auto industry. Foremost among his outlets, he is the automotive columnist for Vanity Fair, and Writer At Large for Time Inc.’s newly launched site The Drive, where he writes about cars and their relationship to our larger culture. keep up with him at brettberk.com.

Here’s a picture of Brett and a sheep.

Brett and Sheep

]]> Pretend You’re the Grownup Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:29:52 When friends potty trained at the dinner table, childhood educator Brett Berk figured it was time to write a book. When friends potty trained at the dinner table, childhood educator Brett Berk figured it was time to write a book. false full 69 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1827 Press 4 [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/226435328″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]My friend Larry Massett sent me this weird story he wrote, which I’m hoping will be the beginning of a whole new weird podcast. It’s hard to say what it is, which in my book is a good thing.

Here’s Press 4.

]]> Thu, 1 Oct 2015 14:48:15 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/226435328″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]My friend Larry Massett sent me this weird story he wrote, which I’m hoping will be the beginning of a whole new weird podcast. It’s hard to say what it is, which in my book is a good thing.

Here’s Press 4.

]]> Press 4 Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:05:31 Larry Massett sent me this weird story. I’m hoping it's the beginning of weird new podcast... Larry Massett sent me this weird story. I’m hoping it's the beginning of weird new podcast... false full 57 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1816 Jessamyn West. Technology Lady. [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/225531902″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]Jessamyn West is a library activist and computer technology savant who lives in central Vermont. She’s also kind of Internet famous. Jessamyn was one of the original moderators for the community blog MetaFilter—which is like the civilized version of Reddit. She was recently contacted by the White House for her thoughts on their choice for the next Librarian of Congress, and she speaks internationally about the digital divide. She’s also got WAY more Twitter followers than me. And probably you. No offense.

Jessamyn has worked as a technology consultant in libraries all over the state, and she holds open hours at a local tech center helping people with their computer problems. In this interview, we talk about her passion for public libraries and the role of the modern librarian. And we talk about how different people manage their personal relationships with their personal computers. Which, as we all know, is complicated.

Jessamyn Links

Jessamyn has a long bio. Wikipedia says it best…

A link to other links by and about Jessamyn

Librarian.net: Site where Jessamyn writes about library related things

Jessamyn’s exhaustive and awesome Donald Barthelme fan page

Here’s a transcript version of our interview, on Medium.

Some great clips and commentary from the interview, on MetaFilter

]]> Fri, 25 Sep 2015 15:14:30 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/225531902″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]Jessamyn West is a library activist and computer technology savant who lives in central Vermont. She’s also kind of Internet famous. Jessamyn was one of the original moderators for the community blog MetaFilter—which is like the civilized version of Reddit. She was recently contacted by the White House for her thoughts on their choice for the next Librarian of Congress, and she speaks internationally about the digital divide. She’s also got WAY more Twitter followers than me. And probably you. No offense.

Jessamyn has worked as a technology consultant in libraries all over the state, and she holds open hours at a local tech center helping people with their computer problems. In this interview, we talk about her passion for public libraries and the role of the modern librarian. And we talk about how different people manage their personal relationships with their personal computers. Which, as we all know, is complicated.

Jessamyn Links

Jessamyn has a long bio. Wikipedia says it best…

A link to other links by and about Jessamyn

Librarian.net: Site where Jessamyn writes about library related things

Jessamyn’s exhaustive and awesome Donald Barthelme fan page

Here’s a transcript version of our interview, on Medium.

Some great clips and commentary from the interview, on MetaFilter

]]> Jessamyn West. Technology Lady. Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:39:57 She mucks about at the intersection of libraries, technology and politics. Then reports back... She mucks about at the intersection of libraries, technology and politics. Then reports back... false full 48 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1792 Farewell Mark Johnson [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/223397407″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]For twenty-five years Mark Johnson hosted The Mark Johnson Show, first up in Burlington at WKDR, then at WDEV here in central Vermont. Last month he retired from the show.

Mark kept us company on our commutes, in our kitchens and on job sites all over central Vermont. And if you live around here, you’ve either called the show, known the guest, or known some of the callers. The show was smart and relaxed and personal and Mark was very much…himself. I always felt like maybe the show was happening right across the road from my house. That’s how ‘local’ it felt.

I invited Mark over to talk about how he produced a two-hour public affairs show for twenty-five years all by himself. He shares some high points, a few low points, and you’ll also get to hear a little from Governor Shumlin. And a caller named Marsha. Welcome.

Next month Mark’s heading back to his native tribe of print journalists, and will be working with the online news site, VTDigger, as a senior reporter/editor.

COMMENTS WELCOME: If you have a comment or a story about Mark’s show, there’s a comment box below. That would be nice. To hear your stories. Your comments.

PHOTO CREDIT: The banner image of Mark Smith and Shap Smith was taken by the Vermont Press Bureau.

]]> Fri, 11 Sep 2015 15:56:48 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/223397407″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]For twenty-five years Mark Johnson hosted The Mark Johnson Show, first up in Burlington at WKDR, then at WDEV here in central Vermont. Last month he retired from the show.

Mark kept us company on our commutes, in our kitchens and on job sites all over central Vermont. And if you live around here, you’ve either called the show, known the guest, or known some of the callers. The show was smart and relaxed and personal and Mark was very much…himself. I always felt like maybe the show was happening right across the road from my house. That’s how ‘local’ it felt.

I invited Mark over to talk about how he produced a two-hour public affairs show for twenty-five years all by himself. He shares some high points, a few low points, and you’ll also get to hear a little from Governor Shumlin. And a caller named Marsha. Welcome.

Next month Mark’s heading back to his native tribe of print journalists, and will be working with the online news site, VTDigger, as a senior reporter/editor.

COMMENTS WELCOME: If you have a comment or a story about Mark’s show, there’s a comment box below. That would be nice. To hear your stories. Your comments.

PHOTO CREDIT: The banner image of Mark Smith and Shap Smith was taken by the Vermont Press Bureau.

]]> Farewell Mark Johnson Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:31:12 After 25 years of interviewing for the Mark Johnson Show, Mark Johnson gets interviewed about interviewing. After 25 years of interviewing for the Mark Johnson Show, Mark Johnson gets interviewed about interviewing. false full 65 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1777 Police Log Summer 2015 [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/222225987″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Summer is coming to a close here in central Vermont. It’s been awhile since we’ve heard from the local police logs. This summer there were some problems with odors and stuck squirrels. A machete also was seen.

Here’s Scott Carrier reading a sampling from the last couple months’ reports to the Times Argus and the Stowe Reporter.

Music by Hayvanlar Alemi. The song is titled Crossroad Metamorphosis

]]> Thu, 3 Sep 2015 20:39:35 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/222225987″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Summer is coming to a close here in central Vermont. It’s been awhile since we’ve heard from the local police logs. This summer there were some problems with odors and stuck squirrels. A machete also was seen.

Here’s Scott Carrier reading a sampling from the last couple months’ reports to the Times Argus and the Stowe Reporter.

Music by Hayvanlar Alemi. The song is titled Crossroad Metamorphosis

]]> Police Log Summer 2015 Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:02:40 Some calls in to the police in central Vermont this summer. There were odors. A machete was seen. Some calls in to the police in central Vermont this summer. There were odors. A machete was seen. false full 59 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1758 Love Life [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/220715911″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Steve Fugate roams the roads of America, walking thousands of miles with a sign stuck over his middle-aged head that reads “Love Life” — because of what happened to his son. This story was recorded by Mark Baldwin and produced by Larry Massett. It originally aired on NPR’s Hearing Voices.

You can follow Steve’s writing and walking at Trail Therapy.

Steve

]]> Mon, 24 Aug 2015 21:15:39 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/220715911″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Steve Fugate roams the roads of America, walking thousands of miles with a sign stuck over his middle-aged head that reads “Love Life” — because of what happened to his son. This story was recorded by Mark Baldwin and produced by Larry Massett. It originally aired on NPR’s Hearing Voices.

You can follow Steve’s writing and walking at Trail Therapy.

Steve

]]> Love Life Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:23:31 Steve Fugate roams the roads of America with a suggestion over his head... Steve Fugate roams the roads of America with a suggestion over his head... false full 53 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1739 Fred Webster

If you throw a rock from Fred’s porch and you have a pretty good arm, you can almost hit Canada. He lives way up in Coventry, Vermont, and when I drove up to his place, I found him covered in paint, in one of his barns. He was just finishing building his fifth stage coach, parts of which he’d painted bright yellow and cherry red.

Most of his barns—and there are a lot of them—are filled with old farm equipment. He says he’s trying to show the evolution of farm machines in New England from as far back as he can go, up through the 1960s. He says he figures someone else can carry on after that.

To be honest, historical collections don’t interest me very much. But Fred’s collection does. We picked our way together through miles of plows and cultivators and buggies and logging sleighs, in barns that mostly Fred built or shored up himself. We didn’t talk very much. If there was hayseed still in the back of a sleigh by the time he hauled it home and up into the hay mow, it’s still there, and to Fred that’s part of the story. In other words, this is not a clean or polished collection. There’s still the feel of use on these objects. And my guess is, there are a lot of ghosts of old farmers in those barns at night, and they all know each other.

Fred and I talked for a couple days in the front parlor of his house, downstairs from the room he was born in ninety-four years ago. We talked about a lot of things. His father, his farm collection, the women in his life, his nine children, and some more ephemeral things. I guess we talked about the past, but to me these are not stories about the past at all. These stories come up out of a blood connection to a place.

Welcome.

Thank you to listener Lou Snyder for writing to me with stories about Fred. I love it when stories happen that way. See this

You can actually see Fred’s collection in this story from WCAX News.

To make a donation to Fred’s collection, send money to:

Fred Webster, 378 Webster Road, Coventry, Orleans, VT 05860

DSC04611

]]> Sat, 15 Aug 2015 20:19:46 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

If you throw a rock from Fred’s porch and you have a pretty good arm, you can almost hit Canada. He lives way up in Coventry, Vermont, and when I drove up to his place, I found him covered in paint, in one of his barns. He was just finishing building his fifth stage coach, parts of which he’d painted bright yellow and cherry red.

Most of his barns—and there are a lot of them—are filled with old farm equipment. He says he’s trying to show the evolution of farm machines in New England from as far back as he can go, up through the 1960s. He says he figures someone else can carry on after that.

To be honest, historical collections don’t interest me very much. But Fred’s collection does. We picked our way together through miles of plows and cultivators and buggies and logging sleighs, in barns that mostly Fred built or shored up himself. We didn’t talk very much. If there was hayseed still in the back of a sleigh by the time he hauled it home and up into the hay mow, it’s still there, and to Fred that’s part of the story. In other words, this is not a clean or polished collection. There’s still the feel of use on these objects. And my guess is, there are a lot of ghosts of old farmers in those barns at night, and they all know each other.

Fred and I talked for a couple days in the front parlor of his house, downstairs from the room he was born in ninety-four years ago. We talked about a lot of things. His father, his farm collection, the women in his life, his nine children, and some more ephemeral things. I guess we talked about the past, but to me these are not stories about the past at all. These stories come up out of a blood connection to a place.

Welcome.

Thank you to listener Lou Snyder for writing to me with stories about Fred. I love it when stories happen that way. See this

You can actually see Fred’s collection in this story from WCAX News.

To make a donation to Fred’s collection, send money to:

Fred Webster, 378 Webster Road, Coventry, Orleans, VT 05860

DSC04611

]]> Fred Webster Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:39:07 Stories from a life in the Kingdom. Stories from a life in the Kingdom. false full 64 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1717 Bison Selfies This summer there have been five bison attacks in Yellowstone National Park, the result of visitors taking selfies with bison in the background. Today on Fresh Air, an interview with author Sarah Miller. Her recent book, Bison Selfies, is a brave exploration into this new phenomenon. In this interview we discuss selfies, bison, and the American consciousness.

Credits

This article originally appeared in Jezebel in July, 2015. Sarah Miller writes for theawl.com, newyorker.com, time.com, thecut.com and others. She is not actually writing a book about bison selfies.

The Fresh Air music is by The Microscopic Septet

After after reading Miller's book, this listener was careful to follow safe bison-selfie procedures.

After reading Miller’s book, this listener was careful to follow safe bison-selfie procedures.

]]> Fri, 7 Aug 2015 14:58:02 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com This summer there have been five bison attacks in Yellowstone National Park, the result of visitors taking selfies with bison in the background. Today on Fresh Air, an interview with author Sarah Miller. Her recent book, Bison Selfies, is a brave exploration into this new phenomenon. In this interview we discuss selfies, bison, and the American consciousness.

Credits

This article originally appeared in Jezebel in July, 2015. Sarah Miller writes for theawl.com, newyorker.com, time.com, thecut.com and others. She is not actually writing a book about bison selfies.

The Fresh Air music is by The Microscopic Septet

After after reading Miller's book, this listener was careful to follow safe bison-selfie procedures.

After reading Miller’s book, this listener was careful to follow safe bison-selfie procedures.

]]> Bison Selfies Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:10:24 Today on Fresh Air, an interview with the author of a new book, Bison Selfies. Today on Fresh Air, an interview with the author of a new book, Bison Selfies. false full 52 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1708 A Long Day on the Road “In the cathedral, priests with long black beards and scarlet robes are gliding through the shadows…I feel faint. It’s the heat, the fatigue, frustration — whatever, but there’s a lump in my throat and my eyes are filling with tears. The cop is starting to make big signs of the cross in the air. If w don’t get out of here quick, we’re going to convert.”

This is a story from Larry Massett about a very, very long day in Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia, in 2002.

This story aired originally on The Savvy Traveler in 2002, and on NPR’s Hearing Voices.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/217213591″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

]]> Fri, 31 Jul 2015 17:17:56 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com “In the cathedral, priests with long black beards and scarlet robes are gliding through the shadows…I feel faint. It’s the heat, the fatigue, frustration — whatever, but there’s a lump in my throat and my eyes are filling with tears. The cop is starting to make big signs of the cross in the air. If w don’t get out of here quick, we’re going to convert.”

This is a story from Larry Massett about a very, very long day in Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia, in 2002.

This story aired originally on The Savvy Traveler in 2002, and on NPR’s Hearing Voices.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/217213591″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

]]> A Long Day on the Road Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:15:38 A mind bending day in Tbilisi with Larry Massett. A mind bending day in Tbilisi with Larry Massett. false full 51 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1695 Vermont Private Eye

This is an interview with a very old friend of mine, and the person who trained me as a private investigator. She taught me everything from basics like how to look up criminal records to the very advanced skills I learned. Susan Randall has been a PI in Vermont for fifteen years. She works on the some of the biggest cases in the state…and she’s really good. Susan can find anyone, and she can get them to talk about anything. And most of the time she’s working on fifty to seventy-five cases at the same time.

Last week I went over to her house. We lay in deck chairs in her back yard and we talked about the job. About crime, lawyers, and what it means to give so much of your life to exploring dark stories.

Susan Randall does criminal defense work in both federal and state court. She also does civil litigation. In the past ten years she’s started to focus on creative storytelling that’s necessary in sentencing mitigation work. She works primarily in Vermont but has worked all over the country. She runs Vermont Private Eye.

]]> Sun, 26 Jul 2015 02:52:03 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

This is an interview with a very old friend of mine, and the person who trained me as a private investigator. She taught me everything from basics like how to look up criminal records to the very advanced skills I learned. Susan Randall has been a PI in Vermont for fifteen years. She works on the some of the biggest cases in the state…and she’s really good. Susan can find anyone, and she can get them to talk about anything. And most of the time she’s working on fifty to seventy-five cases at the same time.

Last week I went over to her house. We lay in deck chairs in her back yard and we talked about the job. About crime, lawyers, and what it means to give so much of your life to exploring dark stories.

Susan Randall does criminal defense work in both federal and state court. She also does civil litigation. In the past ten years she’s started to focus on creative storytelling that’s necessary in sentencing mitigation work. She works primarily in Vermont but has worked all over the country. She runs Vermont Private Eye.

]]> Vermont Private Eye Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:26:43 Susan Randall talks about 15 years as a private investigator in Vermont. Susan Randall talks about 15 years as a private investigator in Vermont. false full 126 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1678 Homeless [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/215213074″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Kevin DeMars estimates he’s been homeless ten times in his 58 years. I met with him in his apartment in Rutland, Vermont and we talked about why he’s been homeless so many times, and what it was like to live in the woods. It’s a difficult and raw conversation at times, and Kevin struggles with some mental health issues that he’s been working through in counseling for years. But he talks very clearly about what it’s like to be someone who can’t always live comfortably in the world of people.

Thanks

Big thanks to Scott Carrier for all his help.

Thanks to Joyce Cloutier of Veterans, Inc. for introducing me to Kevin and for all the great work she does.

Thanks to Freesound for the clock sounds I used in this show.

]]> Sat, 18 Jul 2015 01:05:11 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/215213074″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Kevin DeMars estimates he’s been homeless ten times in his 58 years. I met with him in his apartment in Rutland, Vermont and we talked about why he’s been homeless so many times, and what it was like to live in the woods. It’s a difficult and raw conversation at times, and Kevin struggles with some mental health issues that he’s been working through in counseling for years. But he talks very clearly about what it’s like to be someone who can’t always live comfortably in the world of people.

Thanks

Big thanks to Scott Carrier for all his help.

Thanks to Joyce Cloutier of Veterans, Inc. for introducing me to Kevin and for all the great work she does.

Thanks to Freesound for the clock sounds I used in this show.

]]> Homeless Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:27:09 Kevin is uneasy in the world of people. That's why he keeps his tent close by. Kevin is uneasy in the world of people. That's why he keeps his tent close by. false full 77 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1488 Kendall Wild, A Toast kuKendall Wild worked for nearly half a century at the Rutland Herald and he’s a legend in Vermont journalism. He died on April 2, 2015. By all accounts he was eccentric, competitive, and utterly committed to getting the story…and getting it first. Wild was the paper’s managing editor all through the sixties and seventies. There was a whole generation of journalists who came up through the ranks under Kendall and they went on to become formidable journalists, writers and political heavies in their own right. I invited a few of them who are still in the area to come sit on Bill Porter’s couch in Montpelier and tell some stories.  So they did. They talked about the wild ride of working under Kendall, and they talked about what it was like to work in journalism during one of Vermont’s most exciting and tumultuous chapters in politics. They also talk about beer. Come listen.

If you have a story of your own, or a comment you’d like to make, just go to the bottom of the show page and comment there. It’s always nice to hear from you.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/200789117″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Story Contributors:

Bill Porter worked with Ken Wild for 20 years, first at the Rutland Herald and later at the Times-Argus in Barre, and remained an admiring friend until Kendall’s death.

Nick Marro worked as a reporter at the Rutland Herald from 1967 to 1972 and then moved to the Barre Times-Argus when Bill Porter became managing editor.  He went to the Vermont Press Bureau as a reporter in 1974, was Bureau Chief from 1980 to 1983, and then he was a reporter in the Press Bureau in the 1990’s.

Howard Coffin was a reporter for the Rutland Herald from 1996 to 1978, hired by Kendall. After that he acted as news director for Dartmouth College and UVM, and press secretary for U. S. Senator James Jeffords. Howard has written nine books, including four on Vermont’s Civil War history. He lives in Montpelier.

Glenn Gershaneck worked with the Rutland Herald from 1970 – 1978, then at the Times-Argus from 1983 – 1985. He went on to work as press secretary for Senator Robert Stafford, Governor Richard Snelling and Governor Howard Dean. He’s acted as both the secretary and deputy secretary for the Agency of Transportation, the deputy secretary for the Agency of Administration, and the deputy state auditor.

Ruth Porter is a fiction and writer and is married to Bill Porter.

Irene Racz worked for the papers from late 1974 until 1985. She and Allen Gilbert then became partners in a consulting business called PressKit, which offered writing, editing, media relations, and related services to clients in mostly the government and nonprofit sectors. In 1997, she left PressKit to become public affairs director at Vermont Student Assistance Corporation. She has been enjoying retirement since 2013.

Tom Slayton worked as reporter and editor for the Rutland Herald and Times-Argus for 20 years, from 1964 to 1984. For 10 years during that time, he was Vermont correspondent for the Boston Globe. For the subsequent 21 years, he was editor-in-chief of Vermont Life magazine. He’s been awarded honorary doctorates from the University of Vermont, Southern Vermont College, and Sterling College. He was awarded the Franklin Fairbanks Award, which recognizes those making a significant contribution to the cultural life of the state.

Allen Gilbert worked with Kendall at the Rutland Herald from 1976 to 1983. He served as a reporter, city desk editor and assistant Sunday editor. He went on to teach for three years at a German university with other former journalists, then partnered with Irene Racz to establish PressKit, a policy writing and research firm. In 2004, Allen became executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union in Vermont, where he still works today.

Thanks also to Robby Porter.

Thanks also to A.J. Marro and the Rutland Herald for letting me run photos from their archive.

Screenshot 2015-04-14 08.48.01

Kendall and Bill Porter at Nick Marro’s wedding. Drinking Schlitz.

]]> Sat, 11 Jul 2015 17:32:16 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com kuKendall Wild worked for nearly half a century at the Rutland Herald and he’s a legend in Vermont journalism. He died on April 2, 2015. By all accounts he was eccentric, competitive, and utterly committed to getting the story…and getting it first. Wild was the paper’s managing editor all through the sixties and seventies. There was a whole generation of journalists who came up through the ranks under Kendall and they went on to become formidable journalists, writers and political heavies in their own right. I invited a few of them who are still in the area to come sit on Bill Porter’s couch in Montpelier and tell some stories.  So they did. They talked about the wild ride of working under Kendall, and they talked about what it was like to work in journalism during one of Vermont’s most exciting and tumultuous chapters in politics. They also talk about beer. Come listen.

If you have a story of your own, or a comment you’d like to make, just go to the bottom of the show page and comment there. It’s always nice to hear from you.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/200789117″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Story Contributors:

Bill Porter worked with Ken Wild for 20 years, first at the Rutland Herald and later at the Times-Argus in Barre, and remained an admiring friend until Kendall’s death.

Nick Marro worked as a reporter at the Rutland Herald from 1967 to 1972 and then moved to the Barre Times-Argus when Bill Porter became managing editor.  He went to the Vermont Press Bureau as a reporter in 1974, was Bureau Chief from 1980 to 1983, and then he was a reporter in the Press Bureau in the 1990’s.

Howard Coffin was a reporter for the Rutland Herald from 1996 to 1978, hired by Kendall. After that he acted as news director for Dartmouth College and UVM, and press secretary for U. S. Senator James Jeffords. Howard has written nine books, including four on Vermont’s Civil War history. He lives in Montpelier.

Glenn Gershaneck worked with the Rutland Herald from 1970 – 1978, then at the Times-Argus from 1983 – 1985. He went on to work as press secretary for Senator Robert Stafford, Governor Richard Snelling and Governor Howard Dean. He’s acted as both the secretary and deputy secretary for the Agency of Transportation, the deputy secretary for the Agency of Administration, and the deputy state auditor.

Ruth Porter is a fiction and writer and is married to Bill Porter.

Irene Racz worked for the papers from late 1974 until 1985. She and Allen Gilbert then became partners in a consulting business called PressKit, which offered writing, editing, media relations, and related services to clients in mostly the government and nonprofit sectors. In 1997, she left PressKit to become public affairs director at Vermont Student Assistance Corporation. She has been enjoying retirement since 2013.

Tom Slayton worked as reporter and editor for the Rutland Herald and Times-Argus for 20 years, from 1964 to 1984. For 10 years during that time, he was Vermont correspondent for the Boston Globe. For the subsequent 21 years, he was editor-in-chief of Vermont Life magazine. He’s been awarded honorary doctorates from the University of Vermont, Southern Vermont College, and Sterling College. He was awarded the Franklin Fairbanks Award, which recognizes those making a significant contribution to the cultural life of the state.

Allen Gilbert worked with Kendall at the Rutland Herald from 1976 to 1983. He served as a reporter, city desk editor and assistant Sunday editor. He went on to teach for three years at a German university with other former journalists, then partnered with Irene Racz to establish PressKit, a policy writing and research firm. In 2004, Allen became executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union in Vermont, where he still works today.

Thanks also to Robby Porter.

Thanks also to A.J. Marro and the Rutland Herald for letting me run photos from their archive.

Screenshot 2015-04-14 08.48.01

Kendall and Bill Porter at Nick Marro’s wedding. Drinking Schlitz.

]]> Kendall Wild, A Toast Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:25:45 Come sit on the couch and hear stories about a Vermont legend. Come sit on the couch and hear stories about a Vermont legend. false full 56 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1663 Drag Out [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/214270716″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Here’s a show from Larry Massett about cars. And honor.

Larry owns two Porsches, and he talks about them a lot. In fact it’s almost all he ever talks about. His friend, Joe Frank, is a BMW man.

Which is the superior car? The Porsche? The BMW?  Joe and Larry have agreed to decide this with a race. But in the meantime, they’re just going to go on and on and on about their cars. Welcome.

Joe Frank is a writer, producer, and story savant. Like if you were making a pyramid of all the great storytellers you’ve ever heard, he’d be floating just a little above the top of the pyramid. Which his pretty high up there. You can hear he work here….

Thank you to Lisa Miller for filming the race, which you can see below.

Music for this show is by Redvers West-Boyle and Dark Fire

]]> Sat, 11 Jul 2015 16:42:45 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/214270716″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Here’s a show from Larry Massett about cars. And honor.

Larry owns two Porsches, and he talks about them a lot. In fact it’s almost all he ever talks about. His friend, Joe Frank, is a BMW man.

Which is the superior car? The Porsche? The BMW?  Joe and Larry have agreed to decide this with a race. But in the meantime, they’re just going to go on and on and on about their cars. Welcome.

Joe Frank is a writer, producer, and story savant. Like if you were making a pyramid of all the great storytellers you’ve ever heard, he’d be floating just a little above the top of the pyramid. Which his pretty high up there. You can hear he work here….

Thank you to Lisa Miller for filming the race, which you can see below.

Music for this show is by Redvers West-Boyle and Dark Fire

]]> Drag Out Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:13:53 Larry Massett and Joe Frank talk about the supremacy of their cars. It's like debate club except without facts. Larry Massett and Joe Frank talk about the supremacy of their cars. It's like debate club except without facts. false full 50 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1628 Soccer Mom [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/213298322″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

This was my first year as a soccer mom and I’m here to tell you, it’s harder than it looks. I never played team sports, I still don’t really understand soccer, and I spent an entire season screaming ‘GET IT IN THE BASKET!’

Being a soccer mom is weirdly emotional in ways I hadn’t anticipated. I’ve experienced exultation and shame and misery and anger. There are long periods of waiting around. And lots of stinky socks. And sometimes it’s so beautiful to watch the game that it’s made me cry. Secretly. In my Walmart foldout chair.

This show features two area experts—my son’s coach and my sister, a veteran soccer mom. It’s a show about a beautiful sport and it’s also about parenting and shame and humility. And cow bells.

More about the Experts and the Music

Craig Stone is a native of Newcastle, England. He came to the USA as a college student, playing four years of college soccer at the Division 1 University of Evansville, Indiana.  Following school, Stone coached in the Washington D.C area for 10-years –as well as moonlighting as an online editor, producer and manager with Education Week, a national publication focusing on K-12 education–before moving to Vermont in 2009 and joining the state’s Olympic Development Program staff; he also coached with Capital Soccer Club, a community-based travel club based in Montpelier, Vermont.

Stone is a staff coach with the U.S. ODP Region 1 Boys U13 team–the Vermont Olympic Development program, and also Head Coach & co-founder of the Vermont ODP U-12 Academy. He also still attempts to play the game as often as possible, but with a continual decline in quality. He is married to Alison Milbury Stone, and has one son, Ned.

Melissa Burroughs is a soccer mom and teacher at St. Johnsbury Academy in St. Johnsbury, Vermont. She no longer employs the cowbells at games, though she doesn’t rule it out.

 Jeff Burroughs is the Assistant Headmaster at St. Johnsbury Academy in St. Johnsbury, Vermont, and he coaches the girls Varsity team at the Academy. He holds a Premier Diploma from NSCAA. He is famously quiet at games.

Music for this show is from The New Year, an awesome band. You’ll find links to where you can purchase the music below. Mike Donofrio is the bass player and he is my friend and he is so good.

]]> Sun, 5 Jul 2015 01:50:42 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/213298322″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

This was my first year as a soccer mom and I’m here to tell you, it’s harder than it looks. I never played team sports, I still don’t really understand soccer, and I spent an entire season screaming ‘GET IT IN THE BASKET!’

Being a soccer mom is weirdly emotional in ways I hadn’t anticipated. I’ve experienced exultation and shame and misery and anger. There are long periods of waiting around. And lots of stinky socks. And sometimes it’s so beautiful to watch the game that it’s made me cry. Secretly. In my Walmart foldout chair.

This show features two area experts—my son’s coach and my sister, a veteran soccer mom. It’s a show about a beautiful sport and it’s also about parenting and shame and humility. And cow bells.

More about the Experts and the Music

Craig Stone is a native of Newcastle, England. He came to the USA as a college student, playing four years of college soccer at the Division 1 University of Evansville, Indiana.  Following school, Stone coached in the Washington D.C area for 10-years –as well as moonlighting as an online editor, producer and manager with Education Week, a national publication focusing on K-12 education–before moving to Vermont in 2009 and joining the state’s Olympic Development Program staff; he also coached with Capital Soccer Club, a community-based travel club based in Montpelier, Vermont.

Stone is a staff coach with the U.S. ODP Region 1 Boys U13 team–the Vermont Olympic Development program, and also Head Coach & co-founder of the Vermont ODP U-12 Academy. He also still attempts to play the game as often as possible, but with a continual decline in quality. He is married to Alison Milbury Stone, and has one son, Ned.

Melissa Burroughs is a soccer mom and teacher at St. Johnsbury Academy in St. Johnsbury, Vermont. She no longer employs the cowbells at games, though she doesn’t rule it out.

 Jeff Burroughs is the Assistant Headmaster at St. Johnsbury Academy in St. Johnsbury, Vermont, and he coaches the girls Varsity team at the Academy. He holds a Premier Diploma from NSCAA. He is famously quiet at games.

Music for this show is from The New Year, an awesome band. You’ll find links to where you can purchase the music below. Mike Donofrio is the bass player and he is my friend and he is so good.

]]> Soccer Mom Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:24:14 Being a soccer mom is harder than it looks. Being a soccer mom is harder than it looks. false full 55 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1604 Three Weeks For the last couple years, in addition to producing this show, I’ve also been doing interviews for an organization called The Wake Up to Dying Project. The basic goal of the project is to encourage people to think and talk more about the fact that we die, and at the heart of the project is a sound exhibit that features audio stories–lots and lots of them. Last month I did an interview for this project with a mother who had lost a baby after three weeks of life. I was incredibly nervous about this interview, and I realized that I was worried that by talking about the loss of this child, I’d feel even more afraid of it than I already do with my own son. I didn’t want to be that close to something that scared me so much.

But when I left the interview I felt strangely comforted. There is something comforting in talking about this thing we try so hard not to think about. And though there’s much sadness, and confusion, and grief in this story, there’s also tremendous resilience and love.

This is Susan Wahlrab. She’s a painter and she lives with her family in the deep woods of Calais Vermont. Eighteen years ago she lost her son, Grayson, to a virus after three weeks of life. Here are excerpts from our conversation.

The painting you see featured on this page is by Susan Wahlrab. It’s called What Are You Opening To

]]> Wed, 24 Jun 2015 10:31:56 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com For the last couple years, in addition to producing this show, I’ve also been doing interviews for an organization called The Wake Up to Dying Project. The basic goal of the project is to encourage people to think and talk more about the fact that we die, and at the heart of the project is a sound exhibit that features audio stories–lots and lots of them. Last month I did an interview for this project with a mother who had lost a baby after three weeks of life. I was incredibly nervous about this interview, and I realized that I was worried that by talking about the loss of this child, I’d feel even more afraid of it than I already do with my own son. I didn’t want to be that close to something that scared me so much.

But when I left the interview I felt strangely comforted. There is something comforting in talking about this thing we try so hard not to think about. And though there’s much sadness, and confusion, and grief in this story, there’s also tremendous resilience and love.

This is Susan Wahlrab. She’s a painter and she lives with her family in the deep woods of Calais Vermont. Eighteen years ago she lost her son, Grayson, to a virus after three weeks of life. Here are excerpts from our conversation.

The painting you see featured on this page is by Susan Wahlrab. It’s called What Are You Opening To

]]> Three Weeks Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:31:28 An intimate conversation about the loss of a baby. What happens after the hardest thing happens? An intimate conversation about the loss of a baby. What happens after the hardest thing happens? false full 105 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1591 Cats on Boats [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/209841412″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Here’s a story from Otto Trautz of Cabot, Vermont. It takes place in 1966 and starts with a phone call and a very compelling proposition.

This story was originally told at extempo, central Vermont’s live storytelling event produced by the wondrous Jen Dole. You can find more stories at: www.extempoVT.com.

]]> Thu, 11 Jun 2015 18:18:28 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/209841412″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Here’s a story from Otto Trautz of Cabot, Vermont. It takes place in 1966 and starts with a phone call and a very compelling proposition.

This story was originally told at extempo, central Vermont’s live storytelling event produced by the wondrous Jen Dole. You can find more stories at: www.extempoVT.com.

]]> Cats on Boats Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:07:24 Sometimes the world's hottest villain calls you on the phone.... Sometimes the world's hottest villain calls you on the phone.... false full 49 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1576 Another Day Older I was meeting a friend at a coffee shop and a song came on the radio that I hadn’t heard since I was in my late twenties. It reminded me of a time when I’d stay up all night long with friends, talking and drinking around bonfires. It was before children and spouses, and before everyone moved to wherever it is they went. It was a time when we had endless amounts of time.

So when I heard this song after so long, I remembered this time. And it hadn’t occurred to me until right then, twenty years later, standing in this coffee shop, that that time was over. And twenty years had passed.

It all happened so…gradually.

In this show, you’ll hear from women of all ages, from five to eighty-five. They talk about how they imagine their lives will be, how their lives are, and how their lives have been.

Welcome!

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/208648637″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Credits

I produced this program with my great friend Tamar Cole, who is a screenwriter, playwright and writing coach. She lives in Montpelier, Vermont

Many thanks to these great people for their time and their insights:

Mary Wesley

Lee Casagrande

Bess O’Brien

Mary Jacobsen

Leda Schubert

Marilyn Skoglund

Helen Rose Warshovsky (photographed above…)

Brenna Christianson

Aine Fannon

]]> Wed, 3 Jun 2015 18:46:42 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com I was meeting a friend at a coffee shop and a song came on the radio that I hadn’t heard since I was in my late twenties. It reminded me of a time when I’d stay up all night long with friends, talking and drinking around bonfires. It was before children and spouses, and before everyone moved to wherever it is they went. It was a time when we had endless amounts of time.

So when I heard this song after so long, I remembered this time. And it hadn’t occurred to me until right then, twenty years later, standing in this coffee shop, that that time was over. And twenty years had passed.

It all happened so…gradually.

In this show, you’ll hear from women of all ages, from five to eighty-five. They talk about how they imagine their lives will be, how their lives are, and how their lives have been.

Welcome!

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/208648637″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Credits

I produced this program with my great friend Tamar Cole, who is a screenwriter, playwright and writing coach. She lives in Montpelier, Vermont

Many thanks to these great people for their time and their insights:

Mary Wesley

Lee Casagrande

Bess O’Brien

Mary Jacobsen

Leda Schubert

Marilyn Skoglund

Helen Rose Warshovsky (photographed above…)

Brenna Christianson

Aine Fannon

]]> Another Day Older Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:16:03 What we imagine our lives will be, what our lives have been, and discussion of age appropriate clothing. What we imagine our lives will be, what our lives have been, and discussion of age appropriate clothing. false full 99 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1551 Police Log, May 2015 It’s time again for a sampling from the Barre and Montpelier police logs, as reported in the Times Argus. This month there were a number of disturbing animal reports. Sick raccoons, catatonic woodchucks, and more. Also, a number of naked children. Come listen if you dare.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/206723347″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Scott’s podcast, Home of the Brave, is great, and I highly recommend you subscribe to it. He’s one of the most interesting radio producers in this dimension.

Music by Hayvanlar Alemi. The song is titled Crossroad Metamorphosis

]]> Fri, 22 May 2015 16:55:27 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com It’s time again for a sampling from the Barre and Montpelier police logs, as reported in the Times Argus. This month there were a number of disturbing animal reports. Sick raccoons, catatonic woodchucks, and more. Also, a number of naked children. Come listen if you dare.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/206723347″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Scott’s podcast, Home of the Brave, is great, and I highly recommend you subscribe to it. He’s one of the most interesting radio producers in this dimension.

Music by Hayvanlar Alemi. The song is titled Crossroad Metamorphosis

]]> Police Log, May 2015 Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:03:35 A person didn’t return DVDs. A person didn’t return DVDs. false full 47 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=304 Private Investigator Radio production and private investigation have a lot in common. You ask questions, find out what happened, and try to figure out why. This is a show I made with Larry Massett for NPR’s Hearing Voices in 2011. None of the people you hear in this story were investigation clients of mine where they did pardons according to https://nationalpardon.org/pardons-canada/. They were all young men on furlough, putting their lives together after doing time in prison. Also, all of the case stories you hear have been fictionalized to protect the privacy of legal clients. In addition, Working with a car accident lawyer Maryland can make a significant difference in your ability to successfully file your claim, deal with aggressive insurance companies, and pursue your.

Warning: There are references to sex and violence in this story, and it may not be appropriate for children.

]]> Wed, 6 May 2015 17:02:24 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Radio production and private investigation have a lot in common. You ask questions, find out what happened, and try to figure out why. This is a show I made with Larry Massett for NPR’s Hearing Voices in 2011. None of the people you hear in this story were investigation clients of mine where they did pardons according to https://nationalpardon.org/pardons-canada/. They were all young men on furlough, putting their lives together after doing time in prison. Also, all of the case stories you hear have been fictionalized to protect the privacy of legal clients. In addition, Working with a car accident lawyer Maryland can make a significant difference in your ability to successfully file your claim, deal with aggressive insurance companies, and pursue your.

Warning: There are references to sex and violence in this story, and it may not be appropriate for children.

]]> Private Investigator Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:12:12 Life as a private investigator in Vermont. Not all covered bridges. Life as a private investigator in Vermont. Not all covered bridges. false full 46 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1544 Three Things I Learned at School [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/205325448″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

A commentary from Marc Estrin about the three things he learned in twenty-five years of school.

The only three things.

Marc Estrin is a writer, cellist, and political activist who lives in Burlington, Vermont. His most recent book, And Kings Shall Be Thy Nursing Fathers, features the ruminations of Tchaikovsky’s corpse. You can find it on Amazon here, or order it from a local bookstore.

Marc Estrin’s Novels
The Prison Notebooks of Alan Krieger (Terrorist)
When the Gods Come Home to Roost
Tsim-tsum
The Good Doctor Guillotin
The Annotated Nose
Skulk
The Lamentations of Julius Marantz
Golem Song
The Education of Arnold Hitler
Insect Dreams, the Half Life of Gregor Samsa

Marc Estrin’s Memoir
Rehearsing With Gods: Photographs and Essays on the Bread & Puppet Theater (with Ron Simon, photographer)

]]> Mon, 13 Apr 2015 19:14:18 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/205325448″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

A commentary from Marc Estrin about the three things he learned in twenty-five years of school.

The only three things.

Marc Estrin is a writer, cellist, and political activist who lives in Burlington, Vermont. His most recent book, And Kings Shall Be Thy Nursing Fathers, features the ruminations of Tchaikovsky’s corpse. You can find it on Amazon here, or order it from a local bookstore.

Marc Estrin’s Novels
The Prison Notebooks of Alan Krieger (Terrorist)
When the Gods Come Home to Roost
Tsim-tsum
The Good Doctor Guillotin
The Annotated Nose
Skulk
The Lamentations of Julius Marantz
Golem Song
The Education of Arnold Hitler
Insect Dreams, the Half Life of Gregor Samsa

Marc Estrin’s Memoir
Rehearsing With Gods: Photographs and Essays on the Bread & Puppet Theater (with Ron Simon, photographer)

]]> Three Things I Learned at School Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:04:22 Marc Estrin shares his pearls of wisdom from school. There were only three. Marc Estrin shares his pearls of wisdom from school. There were only three. false full 45 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1482 A Night on Mount Shasta Larry Massett was driving up through northern California toward Oregon and ended up spending a little more time at Mt. Shasta than he’d had in mind, thankfully he had his flashlight in his trunk. Was it coincidence? Was it fate that drew Larry to one of the country’s most famous destinations for the spiritually curious?

In this story you’ll hear from some naked meditators, UFO solicitors, and there’s some howling at the moon. Leave a comment if you’ve got one.  It’s always nice to hear from you.

Thanks to Barrett Golding of Hearing Voices for letting me run this show, and also for spending time on the audio before sending it to me.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/199999886″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

]]> Thu, 9 Apr 2015 14:25:14 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Larry Massett was driving up through northern California toward Oregon and ended up spending a little more time at Mt. Shasta than he’d had in mind, thankfully he had his flashlight in his trunk. Was it coincidence? Was it fate that drew Larry to one of the country’s most famous destinations for the spiritually curious?

In this story you’ll hear from some naked meditators, UFO solicitors, and there’s some howling at the moon. Leave a comment if you’ve got one.  It’s always nice to hear from you.

Thanks to Barrett Golding of Hearing Voices for letting me run this show, and also for spending time on the audio before sending it to me.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/199999886″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

]]> A Night on Mount Shasta Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:25:24 Larry visits Mt. Shasta...destination for the spiritually curious. Larry visits Mt. Shasta...destination for the spiritually curious. false full 44 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1271 Michael Chorney, Music Inventor
Michael Chorney is a self taught musician, arranger and composer. If you asked me what genre of music he makes, I’d have no idea. All of them? None of them?

He spent years mastering different musical genres in both guitar and baritone sax. He’s played British Isles-inspired folk music, improvisational jazz, soul, rock. And over the years, in his own music, the lines between these genres have gotten really blurry. And that’s how he wants it, an ambiguous audio interface is a fun one, he says. Michael has been the bandleader of some of the most lush, uncategorizable music in this state. Bands like viperHouse, Magic City, Orchid, the So Called Jazz Sextet, and Hollar General.

I talked with him at his house, a renovated goose coop in Lincoln Vermont, and one of the quietest places on earth—or so he says. We talk about his music and growing up in Buffalo and driving to gigs with a blownout muffler. He talks about his collaboration with Anais Mitchell on the 2010 folk opera, Hadestown.

And he sings. You’ll hear a lot of music this hour, some of it from his upcoming album with Hollar General.

The photo here by Jay Sansome. Black and white photo of Michael is by John M Moyers.

]]> Thu, 2 Apr 2015 20:30:32 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com
Michael Chorney is a self taught musician, arranger and composer. If you asked me what genre of music he makes, I’d have no idea. All of them? None of them?

He spent years mastering different musical genres in both guitar and baritone sax. He’s played British Isles-inspired folk music, improvisational jazz, soul, rock. And over the years, in his own music, the lines between these genres have gotten really blurry. And that’s how he wants it, an ambiguous audio interface is a fun one, he says. Michael has been the bandleader of some of the most lush, uncategorizable music in this state. Bands like viperHouse, Magic City, Orchid, the So Called Jazz Sextet, and Hollar General.

I talked with him at his house, a renovated goose coop in Lincoln Vermont, and one of the quietest places on earth—or so he says. We talk about his music and growing up in Buffalo and driving to gigs with a blownout muffler. He talks about his collaboration with Anais Mitchell on the 2010 folk opera, Hadestown.

And he sings. You’ll hear a lot of music this hour, some of it from his upcoming album with Hollar General.

The photo here by Jay Sansome. Black and white photo of Michael is by John M Moyers.

]]> Michael Chorney, Music Inventor Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:50:50 An interview with one of Vermont's finest musician composers. Plus? He sings. An interview with one of Vermont's finest musician composers. Plus? He sings. false full 79 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=118 After the Forgetting This is a show about love, family and dementia. Part one features a show I made in 2008 about one family’s experience living with an elderly mother’s progressive dementia. Part two features an interview with one of the story’s main characters, Greg Sharrow, about what’s changed, and what he’s learned, in the five years since we made After the Forgetting.

After the Forgetting features Greg Sharrow, Bob Hooker, and Marjorie Sharrow. Greg did a lot of marvelous interviews with his mother for this show.

marj-and-bob-e1338058619961

Bob and Marj

forgetting-episode

Greg and Marj

]]> Thu, 2 Apr 2015 17:48:25 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com This is a show about love, family and dementia. Part one features a show I made in 2008 about one family’s experience living with an elderly mother’s progressive dementia. Part two features an interview with one of the story’s main characters, Greg Sharrow, about what’s changed, and what he’s learned, in the five years since we made After the Forgetting.

After the Forgetting features Greg Sharrow, Bob Hooker, and Marjorie Sharrow. Greg did a lot of marvelous interviews with his mother for this show.

marj-and-bob-e1338058619961

Bob and Marj

forgetting-episode

Greg and Marj

]]> After the Forgetting Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:58:47 A show about love, family and dementia. In two parts. A show about love, family and dementia. In two parts. false full 86 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1516 Why Cooking Sucks This is an essay about cooking and all the shame and rage and frustration that can accompany this art. Writer Sarah Miller describes her desire to be loved and appreciated for her fig galettes, and her decision to quit cooking altogether.

Sarah is the author of the novels Inside the Mind of Gideon Rayburn and The Other Girl, and she contributed to the bestseller The Bitch in the House. She has written for Details, Lucky, Marie Claire, The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times and The Guardian.

Also thanks to Ralph Henson of KVMR in Nevada City California for recording the story.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/202423959″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

]]> Thu, 2 Apr 2015 00:39:44 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com This is an essay about cooking and all the shame and rage and frustration that can accompany this art. Writer Sarah Miller describes her desire to be loved and appreciated for her fig galettes, and her decision to quit cooking altogether.

Sarah is the author of the novels Inside the Mind of Gideon Rayburn and The Other Girl, and she contributed to the bestseller The Bitch in the House. She has written for Details, Lucky, Marie Claire, The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times and The Guardian.

Also thanks to Ralph Henson of KVMR in Nevada City California for recording the story.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/202423959″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

]]> Why Cooking Sucks Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:10:14 Cooking...the art that yields profound shame and frustration. Cooking...the art that yields profound shame and frustration. false full 43 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1458 Shannon Today, a true story about two strangers who meet and talk very late one night on a northbound NYC subway. The story is from Otto Trautz, and was originally told live on stage at extempo, central Vermont’s totally excellent live storytelling event.

And if my name were Otto Trautz, I’d have great stories too.

Welcome.

To hear more true stories live onstage, visit extempo’s website here.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/197472681″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

]]> Tue, 24 Mar 2015 18:38:43 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Today, a true story about two strangers who meet and talk very late one night on a northbound NYC subway. The story is from Otto Trautz, and was originally told live on stage at extempo, central Vermont’s totally excellent live storytelling event.

And if my name were Otto Trautz, I’d have great stories too.

Welcome.

To hear more true stories live onstage, visit extempo’s website here.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/197472681″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

]]> Shannon Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:09:33 Two strangers meet and talk very late one night on a northbound NYC subway... Two strangers meet and talk very late one night on a northbound NYC subway... false full 41 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1433 Eyes on the Sky

Into Tuesday we’ll see gusty winds, an early morning cold front east of Route 2 and a massive low pressure system delivering winter-like temperatures and moderate rain east of the Greens. Here are Eyes on the Sky.

Eyes on the Sky was written by Montpelier resident Linda Coble.

And thank you to the brave meteorologists at Eye On the Sky, who have delivered so much bad news, so well, for so long. Winters wouldn’t be the same without you.

]]> Thu, 19 Mar 2015 20:59:09 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

Into Tuesday we’ll see gusty winds, an early morning cold front east of Route 2 and a massive low pressure system delivering winter-like temperatures and moderate rain east of the Greens. Here are Eyes on the Sky.

Eyes on the Sky was written by Montpelier resident Linda Coble.

And thank you to the brave meteorologists at Eye On the Sky, who have delivered so much bad news, so well, for so long. Winters wouldn’t be the same without you.

]]> Eyes on the Sky Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:03:30 Flurries will stick around, possibly turning to wet snow east of Route 2. Here is...Eyes on the Sky. Flurries will stick around, possibly turning to wet snow east of Route 2. Here is...Eyes on the Sky. false full 39 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=982 The Oligarchy of Participation Welcome to The Mudroom. This is a commentary from Hilton Dier of Middlesex, Vermont. He proposes that much of Vermont politics is really about who has enough time and money to…show up.

Please fling us your comments at the bottom of this page! We love to hear from you.

Hilton is a renewable energy consultant and author of the incomparable blog, Minor Heresies using Advance Systems.

The Mudroom is a joint commentary series by Rumble Strip Vermont and The Dooryard.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/168333850″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

 

 

]]> Wed, 4 Mar 2015 21:05:59 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Welcome to The Mudroom. This is a commentary from Hilton Dier of Middlesex, Vermont. He proposes that much of Vermont politics is really about who has enough time and money to…show up.

Please fling us your comments at the bottom of this page! We love to hear from you.

Hilton is a renewable energy consultant and author of the incomparable blog, Minor Heresies using Advance Systems.

The Mudroom is a joint commentary series by Rumble Strip Vermont and The Dooryard.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/168333850″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

 

 

]]> The Oligarchy of Participation Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:04:24 Vermont's democracy. It's not for everybody. Vermont's democracy. It's not for everybody. false full 38 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1373 Ed Epstein, A Life in Art Ed Epstein is a portrait artist of some renown in these parts. But painting has comprised only a fraction of Ed’s artistic life. As a kid in the fifties he hitch hiked across the country with only a banjo and a few bucks.  He fell in love with the Bach cello suites and spent the next twenty years mastering the cello so he could play them. Ed has designed and built woodstoves, houses, and when his son showed interest in fishing, Ed built a boat so they could get out to that stand of reeds…where the bass are. Ed Epstein’s whole life has been an art project.

In this hour, we talk about the mysterious process of portrait painting…it’s difficulties and occasional satisfactions. But mostly in this hour, we talk about boats. Building them, sailing them for years, and what became of Ed’s beloved thirty foot schooner, Ruby.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/193910049″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

The beautiful photograph of Ed Epstein was taken by photographer Andrew Kline. More of his work can be seen here.

More of Ed Epstein’s work can be seen here.

Music this hour: The Cello Suites, by J.S. Bach, performed by Jan Vogler.

Unedited audio from the interview

There is a whole section of our interview that is not in this show, but well worth listening to, particularly if you’re interested in folk music. In it, Ed talks about his first forays out of New York City, and hitchhiking across the country in the early fifties with his banjo and I realized if I want my kid to have any sort of musical interests, my kid needs that, to see a few real live music legends himself, in person. Here it is:

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/193900956?secret_token=s-haoca” params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Portrait of the Artist at the Side of the Road, Route 40 Indiana August 1953

Self portrait from a picture taken of Ed in the early fifties.

The Sally Rubin

The Sally Rubin

Jimmy the Iceman De Piro

Jimmy the Iceman De Piro

Pan Trio

Pan Trio

Scan 1

The Juniper Island, an 18′ standing lug yawl

Scan 4

Ed and Aryeh on the Sally Rubin, @1988

]]> Mon, 2 Mar 2015 22:34:30 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Ed Epstein is a portrait artist of some renown in these parts. But painting has comprised only a fraction of Ed’s artistic life. As a kid in the fifties he hitch hiked across the country with only a banjo and a few bucks.  He fell in love with the Bach cello suites and spent the next twenty years mastering the cello so he could play them. Ed has designed and built woodstoves, houses, and when his son showed interest in fishing, Ed built a boat so they could get out to that stand of reeds…where the bass are. Ed Epstein’s whole life has been an art project.

In this hour, we talk about the mysterious process of portrait painting…it’s difficulties and occasional satisfactions. But mostly in this hour, we talk about boats. Building them, sailing them for years, and what became of Ed’s beloved thirty foot schooner, Ruby.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/193910049″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

The beautiful photograph of Ed Epstein was taken by photographer Andrew Kline. More of his work can be seen here.

More of Ed Epstein’s work can be seen here.

Music this hour: The Cello Suites, by J.S. Bach, performed by Jan Vogler.

Unedited audio from the interview

There is a whole section of our interview that is not in this show, but well worth listening to, particularly if you’re interested in folk music. In it, Ed talks about his first forays out of New York City, and hitchhiking across the country in the early fifties with his banjo and I realized if I want my kid to have any sort of musical interests, my kid needs that, to see a few real live music legends himself, in person. Here it is:

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/193900956?secret_token=s-haoca” params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Portrait of the Artist at the Side of the Road, Route 40 Indiana August 1953

Self portrait from a picture taken of Ed in the early fifties.

The Sally Rubin

The Sally Rubin

Jimmy the Iceman De Piro

Jimmy the Iceman De Piro

Pan Trio

Pan Trio

Scan 1

The Juniper Island, an 18′ standing lug yawl

Scan 4

Ed and Aryeh on the Sally Rubin, @1988

]]> Ed Epstein, A Life in Art Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:49:11 "The beauty of the boat is in the concept not the details." "The beauty of the boat is in the concept not the details." false full 37 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1472 Here’s a Song For You Tonight I was driving home from Montpelier with my son, and we were both happy because today really did feel like maybe spring will come this year, and we were listening to Miriam Bernardo sing. It was a recording I made of a house show a couple years ago. There’s something so beautiful to me about this live recording, and  I figured I’d share one of the songs with you. Here’s Miriam, and Michael Chorney on guitar and Rob Morse on bass. This is Love Came Here, by Lhasa de Sela.

Welcome to spring everyone.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/197716442″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Upcoming Miriam shows:

April 4, Steady Betty at the lamp shop, Burlington. 9pm
April 17, Magic City at the Haybarn. 8-10pm
May 1, Waking Windows music festival in Winooski. Steady Betty 7:30pm
May 9, Betty Brew fest  at the big picture in Waitsfield. 10pm steady b.
June 4,6,7, Soloing with the Montpelier Chamber Orchestra. Unitarian Church. 7pm.

]]> Mon, 2 Mar 2015 03:20:33 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Tonight I was driving home from Montpelier with my son, and we were both happy because today really did feel like maybe spring will come this year, and we were listening to Miriam Bernardo sing. It was a recording I made of a house show a couple years ago. There’s something so beautiful to me about this live recording, and  I figured I’d share one of the songs with you. Here’s Miriam, and Michael Chorney on guitar and Rob Morse on bass. This is Love Came Here, by Lhasa de Sela.

Welcome to spring everyone.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/197716442″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Upcoming Miriam shows:

April 4, Steady Betty at the lamp shop, Burlington. 9pm
April 17, Magic City at the Haybarn. 8-10pm
May 1, Waking Windows music festival in Winooski. Steady Betty 7:30pm
May 9, Betty Brew fest  at the big picture in Waitsfield. 10pm steady b.
June 4,6,7, Soloing with the Montpelier Chamber Orchestra. Unitarian Church. 7pm.

]]> Here’s a Song For You Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:04:23 I'm so happy it's spring. Let's take a minute and listen to some awesome music. I'm so happy it's spring. Let's take a minute and listen to some awesome music. false full 36 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1416 Police Log, March 2015

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/195178661″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

The sock went missing in November, was encased in ice in someone’s driveway, and yesterday it was released. The end of winter is nigh everyone. This is for real.

It’s time again for a sampling from the Barre and Montpelier police logs, as reported in the Times Argus. This month saw a disproportionate number of shovel incidents. There were keys lost and found. A juvenile was out of control on Crest Street. Come listen.

The police log is read by radio producer Scott Carrier. Scott’s new podcast, Home of the Brave, has LAUNCHED, and I highly recommend you subscribe to it. He’s one of the most interesting radio producers anywhere. I’ve spent whole days binge-listening to his shows. It’s  time well spent.

Music by Hayvanlar Alemi. The song is titled Crossroad Metamorphosis

]]> Sun, 1 Mar 2015 16:16:19 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/195178661″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

The sock went missing in November, was encased in ice in someone’s driveway, and yesterday it was released. The end of winter is nigh everyone. This is for real.

It’s time again for a sampling from the Barre and Montpelier police logs, as reported in the Times Argus. This month saw a disproportionate number of shovel incidents. There were keys lost and found. A juvenile was out of control on Crest Street. Come listen.

The police log is read by radio producer Scott Carrier. Scott’s new podcast, Home of the Brave, has LAUNCHED, and I highly recommend you subscribe to it. He’s one of the most interesting radio producers anywhere. I’ve spent whole days binge-listening to his shows. It’s  time well spent.

Music by Hayvanlar Alemi. The song is titled Crossroad Metamorphosis

]]> Police Log, March 2015 Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:03:09 A thawed sock was found... A thawed sock was found... false full 42 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1366 More Poopy Old People A couple months ago I ran a commentary by Marc Estrin called Poopy Old Man. In this commentary, he talks about feeling increasingly invisible to the people around him as he gets older. It’s a rather dark perspective on aging.

This is a response to that commentary, and offers a somewhat different perspective on getting older. Here’s a conversation between Larry Massett and Marianne Ross of Washington DC.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/191968300?secret_token=s-k0Tt1″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Who are they?

Larry Massett is one of the world’s most interesting radio producers. He lives in Cabin John, MD.

Marianne Ross is the director of a multimedia company called Concerts in the Country, in Washington DC. She spends much of each summer in the Northeast Kingdom, working with Bread and Puppet Theater. Here’s Marianne:

Marianne Banner

]]> Mon, 23 Feb 2015 15:42:26 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com A couple months ago I ran a commentary by Marc Estrin called Poopy Old Man. In this commentary, he talks about feeling increasingly invisible to the people around him as he gets older. It’s a rather dark perspective on aging.

This is a response to that commentary, and offers a somewhat different perspective on getting older. Here’s a conversation between Larry Massett and Marianne Ross of Washington DC.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/191968300?secret_token=s-k0Tt1″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Who are they?

Larry Massett is one of the world’s most interesting radio producers. He lives in Cabin John, MD.

Marianne Ross is the director of a multimedia company called Concerts in the Country, in Washington DC. She spends much of each summer in the Northeast Kingdom, working with Bread and Puppet Theater. Here’s Marianne:

Marianne Banner

]]> More Poopy Old People Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:07:49 Old, but still letting air out of people's tires. Old, but still letting air out of people's tires. false full 35 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1327 Object of My Affection [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/191291077″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

This is a conversation about love and objects. It’s from a late night conversation with my friend Clare Dolan. In the week leading up to Valentine’s Day, we sat on my couch and talked about a special kind of love that exists between people and objects. The conversation starts with Clare’s first friend in childhood…a small stuffed creature called Binny.

Clare is the curator at The Museum of Everyday Life in Glover, Vermont. It is a self-service museum located in her barn, and it ‘dedicates itself to deteriorating objects of no monetary value, but of immense ordinary-life consequence.’ The current exhibit is called Toothbrush from Twig to Bristle In All Its Expedient Beauty. Clare recently got so mad at her broken snowblower that she was moved to create a small, impromptu exhibit called Broken and Useless Snow Removal Devices of the Northeast Kingdom. I am including a couple pictures of the exhibit here, and some other pictures I like. If you have not been to the museum, do not dally. Do not wait. Put it on your bucket list. It will make you happy. Directions and more exhibit pictures are on her website.

Clare and her donkey, Nikolai.

Clare and her donkey, Nikolai

MOEL February1

MOEL February8

MOEL February2

Ann & Binny

Raggedy Ann and Binny

One of my favorite things in the toothbrush exhibit.

One of my favorite exhibits in the toothbrush show.

A large, stabbed bear in the museum

A large, stabbed bear in the museum

]]> Sun, 15 Feb 2015 20:03:00 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/191291077″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

This is a conversation about love and objects. It’s from a late night conversation with my friend Clare Dolan. In the week leading up to Valentine’s Day, we sat on my couch and talked about a special kind of love that exists between people and objects. The conversation starts with Clare’s first friend in childhood…a small stuffed creature called Binny.

Clare is the curator at The Museum of Everyday Life in Glover, Vermont. It is a self-service museum located in her barn, and it ‘dedicates itself to deteriorating objects of no monetary value, but of immense ordinary-life consequence.’ The current exhibit is called Toothbrush from Twig to Bristle In All Its Expedient Beauty. Clare recently got so mad at her broken snowblower that she was moved to create a small, impromptu exhibit called Broken and Useless Snow Removal Devices of the Northeast Kingdom. I am including a couple pictures of the exhibit here, and some other pictures I like. If you have not been to the museum, do not dally. Do not wait. Put it on your bucket list. It will make you happy. Directions and more exhibit pictures are on her website.

Clare and her donkey, Nikolai.

Clare and her donkey, Nikolai

MOEL February1

MOEL February8

MOEL February2

Ann & Binny

Raggedy Ann and Binny

One of my favorite things in the toothbrush exhibit.

One of my favorite exhibits in the toothbrush show.

A large, stabbed bear in the museum

A large, stabbed bear in the museum

]]> Object of My Affection Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:15:21 Not all true love gets a holiday. Not all true love gets a holiday. false full 85 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1314 Police Log [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/189626294″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

You can learn a lot about a place from the local police log. A couple weeks ago I was reading the Times Argus, and I read a police log that I was sure held some kind of message for me. There was a lost key, a found wallet, and a woman in yoga pants seen walking down Sumner Street. There was a dead deer missed by a car and a living deer hit. What could it mean?

I’m going to start running periodic police log shows. If you know of small newspapers around the state that run good police logs, leave a message at the bottom of the show page here. I’d love to hear about them.

This police log comes to you from the Barre Police, as published in the Times Argus. It is read by writer and radio producer Scott Carrier. Scott is coming out with a podcast of his own pretty soon, which is very good news. I will let you know when and where you can find it when it starts.

Here is a picture of Scott in sunglasses.

IMG_6612-2

Music by Hayvanlar Alemi. The song is titled Crossroad Metamorphosis

]]> Mon, 2 Feb 2015 17:39:51 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/189626294″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

You can learn a lot about a place from the local police log. A couple weeks ago I was reading the Times Argus, and I read a police log that I was sure held some kind of message for me. There was a lost key, a found wallet, and a woman in yoga pants seen walking down Sumner Street. There was a dead deer missed by a car and a living deer hit. What could it mean?

I’m going to start running periodic police log shows. If you know of small newspapers around the state that run good police logs, leave a message at the bottom of the show page here. I’d love to hear about them.

This police log comes to you from the Barre Police, as published in the Times Argus. It is read by writer and radio producer Scott Carrier. Scott is coming out with a podcast of his own pretty soon, which is very good news. I will let you know when and where you can find it when it starts.

Here is a picture of Scott in sunglasses.

IMG_6612-2

Music by Hayvanlar Alemi. The song is titled Crossroad Metamorphosis

]]> Police Log Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:02:37 Some calls to the Barre Police in recent days. Some calls to the Barre Police in recent days. false full 63 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1303 Leland From my house, if you take a left through the woods, then a right up a dirt road, and then another right up another dirt road, you come to a really old farmhouse. That’s where Leland lives, and where he’s thinking things over. Last week he agreed to talk with me about some of these things. Death, deep space, and Revolutionary War reenactments. Welcome.

The music in this show is from the remarkable Carla Kihlstedt. Learn more about her HERE.

reenactors

Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec reenactment. Three generations of Kennedys.

 

]]> Tue, 27 Jan 2015 21:11:03 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com From my house, if you take a left through the woods, then a right up a dirt road, and then another right up another dirt road, you come to a really old farmhouse. That’s where Leland lives, and where he’s thinking things over. Last week he agreed to talk with me about some of these things. Death, deep space, and Revolutionary War reenactments. Welcome.

The music in this show is from the remarkable Carla Kihlstedt. Learn more about her HERE.

reenactors

Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec reenactment. Three generations of Kennedys.

 

]]> Leland Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:09:34 Leland. On death, deep space, and Revolutionary War reenactments. Leland. On death, deep space, and Revolutionary War reenactments. false full 40 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1298 Piano Practice [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/187185013″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Here’s a short story about my son and piano practice and parental rage.

]]> Wed, 21 Jan 2015 20:11:26 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/187185013″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Here’s a short story about my son and piano practice and parental rage.

]]> Piano Practice Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:04:55 A short story about piano practice and parental rage. A short story about piano practice and parental rage. false full 34 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1261 Solidod, An Apache Original This is a show produced by Larry Massett, for NPR’s Hearing Voices. It features remarkable stories from Solidod, the last remaining member of her village of Mescalero Apache who lived on the edge of Death Valley. Here’s Larry’s introduction….

“When I first met Solidod she was living alone in a tiny room in a rather depressing subsidized-income apartment complex in Florida. She herself was anything but depressing, though. A few minutes after we met she showed me the little knife she carries with her in her buckskin purse. “But Solidod,” I said, “that’s kind of a dangerous knife, isn’t it?” I said- meaning, dangerous for an 80-year woman. “Yeah, it’s sharp, it came with a good knife sharpener” she laughed, “but it would be better if it was rusty. So the cut would get infected in case I stab somebody.”

Wow, tough lady. Tough, but also funny, curious, brimming with energy, and a world-class storyteller. As she told me about the adventures of her life I realized she’s been everywhere and done just about everything: horse-trainer, bodyguard, trans-Atlantic sailor, carpenter, gardener, artist, you name it. And she’s busy. She spends her days zipping around town selling the t-shirts she paints and the jewelry she makes, checking on old friends and chatting up new ones. Most people her age seem to be winding down; Solidod’s just getting started…”

Thank you Hearing Voices for allowing me to air this show. It’s a favorite.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/185108606″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Here is a link to Solidod’s book.

]]> Thu, 8 Jan 2015 19:54:17 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com This is a show produced by Larry Massett, for NPR’s Hearing Voices. It features remarkable stories from Solidod, the last remaining member of her village of Mescalero Apache who lived on the edge of Death Valley. Here’s Larry’s introduction….

“When I first met Solidod she was living alone in a tiny room in a rather depressing subsidized-income apartment complex in Florida. She herself was anything but depressing, though. A few minutes after we met she showed me the little knife she carries with her in her buckskin purse. “But Solidod,” I said, “that’s kind of a dangerous knife, isn’t it?” I said- meaning, dangerous for an 80-year woman. “Yeah, it’s sharp, it came with a good knife sharpener” she laughed, “but it would be better if it was rusty. So the cut would get infected in case I stab somebody.”

Wow, tough lady. Tough, but also funny, curious, brimming with energy, and a world-class storyteller. As she told me about the adventures of her life I realized she’s been everywhere and done just about everything: horse-trainer, bodyguard, trans-Atlantic sailor, carpenter, gardener, artist, you name it. And she’s busy. She spends her days zipping around town selling the t-shirts she paints and the jewelry she makes, checking on old friends and chatting up new ones. Most people her age seem to be winding down; Solidod’s just getting started…”

Thank you Hearing Voices for allowing me to air this show. It’s a favorite.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/185108606″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Here is a link to Solidod’s book.

]]> Solidod, An Apache Original Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:50:47 The life and times of Solidod, an Apache original. The life and times of Solidod, an Apache original. false full 33 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=147 Big Job This week’s episode is about one of life’s hardest and most humbling jobs. Parenting. You’ll hear stories about potty training, power struggles, living with teenagers, character-driven parenting, and negotiating new relationships with grown children. Plus some stories about beaches and dead birds.

The hour features two interviews. Melissa Burroughs is a mother and teacher, and has worked extensively with families. The show also features an interview with a mother of two grown daughters. She talks about how parenting changes when the kids have grown and gone. She prefers to go unnamed.

]]> Fri, 26 Dec 2014 13:17:44 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com This week’s episode is about one of life’s hardest and most humbling jobs. Parenting. You’ll hear stories about potty training, power struggles, living with teenagers, character-driven parenting, and negotiating new relationships with grown children. Plus some stories about beaches and dead birds.

The hour features two interviews. Melissa Burroughs is a mother and teacher, and has worked extensively with families. The show also features an interview with a mother of two grown daughters. She talks about how parenting changes when the kids have grown and gone. She prefers to go unnamed.

]]> Big Job Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:59:37 A show about the hardest, most humbling job. Parenting. A show about the hardest, most humbling job. Parenting. false full 32 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1001 Truck We live in a place where trucks are a kind of passion. It’s not overt. It’s an understated, Vermont kind of passion. According to TheCarStarter.com, Vermonters sometimes heat up when you get them talking about Ford vs. Chevy vs. Dodge. So I drove around and talked with some guys about trucks. Here’s what they said.

Leave a comment or story at the bottom of this show page!  We love to hear from you.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/169932294″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Photo by Josh Larkin

]]> Fri, 26 Dec 2014 03:54:19 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com We live in a place where trucks are a kind of passion. It’s not overt. It’s an understated, Vermont kind of passion. According to TheCarStarter.com, Vermonters sometimes heat up when you get them talking about Ford vs. Chevy vs. Dodge. So I drove around and talked with some guys about trucks. Here’s what they said.

Leave a comment or story at the bottom of this show page!  We love to hear from you.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/169932294″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Photo by Josh Larkin

]]> Truck Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:07:47 Guys talking about their rigs. Guys talking about their rigs. false full 109 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1239 Poopy Old Man We are all busy getting older, for better and for worse. Here is an unvarnished perspective on aging by author Marc Estrin.

Marc Estrin is a writer, cellist and political activist who lives in Burlington, Vermont. His most recent book, And Kings Shall Be Thy Nursing Fathers, features the ruminations of Tchaikovsky’s corpse. You can find it on Amazon here, or order it from a local bookstore.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/183023161″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Marc Estrin’s Novels
The Prison Notebooks of Alan Krieger (Terrorist)
When the Gods Come Home to Roost
Tsim-tsum
The Good Doctor Guillotin
The Annotated Nose
Skulk
The Lamentations of Julius Marantz
Golem Song
The Education of Arnold Hitler
Insect Dreams, the Half Life of Gregor Samsa

Marc Estrin’s Memoir
Rehearsing With Gods: Photographs and Essays on the Bread & Puppet Theater (with Ron Simon, photographer)

]]> Wed, 24 Dec 2014 21:17:19 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com We are all busy getting older, for better and for worse. Here is an unvarnished perspective on aging by author Marc Estrin.

Marc Estrin is a writer, cellist and political activist who lives in Burlington, Vermont. His most recent book, And Kings Shall Be Thy Nursing Fathers, features the ruminations of Tchaikovsky’s corpse. You can find it on Amazon here, or order it from a local bookstore.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/183023161″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Marc Estrin’s Novels
The Prison Notebooks of Alan Krieger (Terrorist)
When the Gods Come Home to Roost
Tsim-tsum
The Good Doctor Guillotin
The Annotated Nose
Skulk
The Lamentations of Julius Marantz
Golem Song
The Education of Arnold Hitler
Insect Dreams, the Half Life of Gregor Samsa

Marc Estrin’s Memoir
Rehearsing With Gods: Photographs and Essays on the Bread & Puppet Theater (with Ron Simon, photographer)

]]> Poopy Old Man Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:06:00 An unvarnished perspective on aging by a poopy old man. An unvarnished perspective on aging by a poopy old man. false full 31 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1224 Buy Nothing Day Welcome to The Mudroom, a joint commentary series of Rumble Strip Vermont and The Dooryard.

In time for the holidays, we bring you a commentary about Buy Nothing Day, an annual day of protest against buying stuff.

Jessamyn West is a writer, blogger, librarian, and knower of many things technological and digital. She lives in Randolph, Vermont, and here she is standing on a bed.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/182121652″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

A Wiki link to Jessamyn…

A link to other links about Jessamyn

]]> Thu, 18 Dec 2014 17:53:40 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Welcome to The Mudroom, a joint commentary series of Rumble Strip Vermont and The Dooryard.

In time for the holidays, we bring you a commentary about Buy Nothing Day, an annual day of protest against buying stuff.

Jessamyn West is a writer, blogger, librarian, and knower of many things technological and digital. She lives in Randolph, Vermont, and here she is standing on a bed.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/182121652″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

A Wiki link to Jessamyn…

A link to other links about Jessamyn

]]> Buy Nothing Day Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:06:31 In this season of holidays, we bring you a celebration of...Buy Nothing Day! In this season of holidays, we bring you a celebration of...Buy Nothing Day! false full 29 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1215 A Vermonter’s Lament I don’t know what you’d call this. A commentary? A riff? An agricultural lament?

This is how Alan LePage started his show a few weeks ago, and I wanted to share it with you all.

Alan LePage is a legend around here in central Vermont. He’s a fourth generation Vermont farmer, mentor to many up and coming market gardeners, and he’s the host of one of WGDR’s most popular shows, The Curse of the Golden Turnip. For the past few months, we’ve been working on getting his show out into the world as a podcast. This means I’ve been editing a two hour show down to one hour, which is no easy task. I’m either cutting a fascinating bit about the history of broccoli in North America, or some offhand advice about how to build a cold frame out of junk in your garage. Alan gets great guests and the show is always packed with great information and stories. If you’re at all interested in gardening, I encourage you to tune in. And if you want to be apprised of our podcast progress, join the show’s Facebook page and we’ll let you know when the podcast becomes available.

Be confident in your decisions by checking out your provider’s top areas of care, education, patient reviews and more. Look for Dr. Matthew Galumbeck for more details.

You can also listen to an interview I did with Alan last year.

The beautiful photo you see above is by Josh Larkin.

]]> Fri, 12 Dec 2014 17:27:59 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com I don’t know what you’d call this. A commentary? A riff? An agricultural lament?

This is how Alan LePage started his show a few weeks ago, and I wanted to share it with you all.

Alan LePage is a legend around here in central Vermont. He’s a fourth generation Vermont farmer, mentor to many up and coming market gardeners, and he’s the host of one of WGDR’s most popular shows, The Curse of the Golden Turnip. For the past few months, we’ve been working on getting his show out into the world as a podcast. This means I’ve been editing a two hour show down to one hour, which is no easy task. I’m either cutting a fascinating bit about the history of broccoli in North America, or some offhand advice about how to build a cold frame out of junk in your garage. Alan gets great guests and the show is always packed with great information and stories. If you’re at all interested in gardening, I encourage you to tune in. And if you want to be apprised of our podcast progress, join the show’s Facebook page and we’ll let you know when the podcast becomes available.

Be confident in your decisions by checking out your provider’s top areas of care, education, patient reviews and more. Look for Dr. Matthew Galumbeck for more details.

You can also listen to an interview I did with Alan last year.

The beautiful photo you see above is by Josh Larkin.

]]> A Vermonter’s Lament Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:05:00 A monologue from a 4th generation Vermont farmer. A monologue from a 4th generation Vermont farmer. false full 28 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1196 The Eyes of Sibiu This is a story produced by my friend Larry Massett. A few years ago Larry took a trip with public radio personality Andre Codrescu. Andre grew up in Romania in times of hardship. After twenty years as an American citizen, he feels he’s lost the local taste of the land where he spent his youth. Larry Massett records the story of a man now in the role of “tourist” in his radically changed native land.

THANKS TO HEARING VOICES

This program originally aired on Hearing Voices, and airs on Rumble Strip Vermont with permission by Larry Massett and Barrett Golding. Thank you both for letting me share this. It’s one of my favorite stories and it’s one I listen to over and over.

And over.

And over.

Larry wearing a hat in Montana

Larry wearing a hat in Montana

]]> Sun, 7 Dec 2014 18:07:07 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com This is a story produced by my friend Larry Massett. A few years ago Larry took a trip with public radio personality Andre Codrescu. Andre grew up in Romania in times of hardship. After twenty years as an American citizen, he feels he’s lost the local taste of the land where he spent his youth. Larry Massett records the story of a man now in the role of “tourist” in his radically changed native land.

THANKS TO HEARING VOICES

This program originally aired on Hearing Voices, and airs on Rumble Strip Vermont with permission by Larry Massett and Barrett Golding. Thank you both for letting me share this. It’s one of my favorite stories and it’s one I listen to over and over.

And over.

And over.

Larry wearing a hat in Montana

Larry wearing a hat in Montana

]]> The Eyes of Sibiu Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:17:30 Larry Massett travels back to Romania with Andrei Codrescu. And the ghosts are watching. Larry Massett travels back to Romania with Andrei Codrescu. And the ghosts are watching. false full 27 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=414 Gold, Frankenstein and Myrrh From the Saviour’s conception to offerings of gold, Frankenstein and myrrh, six year old Erin Magill of Moretown, Vermont tells her version of the Christmas story, with help from her creche figures.

I made this story some years ago. NOW Erin Magill is a COMPOSER, and you can hear her work HERE. Go Erin!!!

]]> Sun, 7 Dec 2014 03:21:09 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com From the Saviour’s conception to offerings of gold, Frankenstein and myrrh, six year old Erin Magill of Moretown, Vermont tells her version of the Christmas story, with help from her creche figures.

I made this story some years ago. NOW Erin Magill is a COMPOSER, and you can hear her work HERE. Go Erin!!!

]]> Gold, Frankenstein and Myrrh Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:05:05 The Christmas story. As told by a six-year-old. The Christmas story. As told by a six-year-old. false full 26 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1168 Magic: The Gathering

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/179849504″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

This is a show about a game my son loves that I don’t understand. At all. It’s called Magic: The Gathering, and it’s a card game that’s sort of a cross between Dungeons and Dragons and chess. It involves spells and enchantments and creatures and math and strategy. The game was born in 1993, and millions of people play it around the world.

And even though I don’t understand the game, I appreciate that it happens between real people, in person. Hugely enthusiastic players, ranging in age from around seven to forty-five, get together and battle it out, trade cards, and talk about creature powers. I’ve been taking my son to a Friday night game in Montpelier, Vermont–held at the Book Garden. Last time we went, instead of sitting in a foldout chair for 3 hours, I recorded interviews with some of the players.

This show won’t explain the game. That is a task far beyond my skill. Instead, it will introduce you to some of the culture around this game, and the passion of its players. Game. ON.

Thanks

Big thanks to the Book Garden in Montpelier, and to Keith McCusker for setting me up in a comfortable room to do some interviews. And thanks to all the generous players who shared their stories with me.

]]> Wed, 3 Dec 2014 23:52:16 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/179849504″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

This is a show about a game my son loves that I don’t understand. At all. It’s called Magic: The Gathering, and it’s a card game that’s sort of a cross between Dungeons and Dragons and chess. It involves spells and enchantments and creatures and math and strategy. The game was born in 1993, and millions of people play it around the world.

And even though I don’t understand the game, I appreciate that it happens between real people, in person. Hugely enthusiastic players, ranging in age from around seven to forty-five, get together and battle it out, trade cards, and talk about creature powers. I’ve been taking my son to a Friday night game in Montpelier, Vermont–held at the Book Garden. Last time we went, instead of sitting in a foldout chair for 3 hours, I recorded interviews with some of the players.

This show won’t explain the game. That is a task far beyond my skill. Instead, it will introduce you to some of the culture around this game, and the passion of its players. Game. ON.

Thanks

Big thanks to the Book Garden in Montpelier, and to Keith McCusker for setting me up in a comfortable room to do some interviews. And thanks to all the generous players who shared their stories with me.

]]> Magic: The Gathering Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:11:08 Wizards, elves, zombies, math and strategy. You won't understand it. But they do. Wizards, elves, zombies, math and strategy. You won't understand it. But they do. false full 25 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1154 Rock Lottery [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/176331320″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

When my son was four I joined a temporary rock band. It was humiliating and terrible and I was middle aged and didn’t know what to do with my arms. I wanted to quit. This is a commentary about why I didn’t quit, and why it’s important to risk failure as an example for our kids.

]]> Tue, 11 Nov 2014 02:49:58 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/176331320″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

When my son was four I joined a temporary rock band. It was humiliating and terrible and I was middle aged and didn’t know what to do with my arms. I wanted to quit. This is a commentary about why I didn’t quit, and why it’s important to risk failure as an example for our kids.

]]> Rock Lottery Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:03:25 A commentary about risking intense shame in the name of good parenting. A commentary about risking intense shame in the name of good parenting. false full 24 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=321 Raw Tape

This is an unedited interview I did with a young man in Barre, Vermont in 2011. He gave me permission to use this tape, but I’ve chosen not to use his name in order to protect his privacy. I’ll call him ‘O’.

I had interviewed O once before, when he was on furlough and living in Barre. About a year after that first interview I interviewed him again. I was curious about how he was doing after having maxed out his jail sentence. We met at the apartment he was living in with his girlfriend and daughter.

According to O, many in his family–his dad, grandfather, uncle, cousins–have been in and out of jail for as long as he can remember. I wanted to know how this family history affected his thoughts about his own life prospects.

I go back to this tape over and over. Pieces of it show up in other stories I’ve made, but there is more ‘content’ in this raw tape than any story I could write or edit.

Warning: There are references to sex and violence in this interview.

]]> Fri, 7 Nov 2014 15:07:15 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com

This is an unedited interview I did with a young man in Barre, Vermont in 2011. He gave me permission to use this tape, but I’ve chosen not to use his name in order to protect his privacy. I’ll call him ‘O’.

I had interviewed O once before, when he was on furlough and living in Barre. About a year after that first interview I interviewed him again. I was curious about how he was doing after having maxed out his jail sentence. We met at the apartment he was living in with his girlfriend and daughter.

According to O, many in his family–his dad, grandfather, uncle, cousins–have been in and out of jail for as long as he can remember. I wanted to know how this family history affected his thoughts about his own life prospects.

I go back to this tape over and over. Pieces of it show up in other stories I’ve made, but there is more ‘content’ in this raw tape than any story I could write or edit.

Warning: There are references to sex and violence in this interview.

]]> Raw Tape Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:18:32 An unedited interview with a young man in Barre, starting life after jail. An unedited interview with a young man in Barre, starting life after jail. false full 23 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1127 Peace, Love and Occupation? [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/175689933″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Welcome to the Mudroom, a joint commentary series of Rumble Strip Vermont and The Dooryard.

Israel has been a substantial recipient of US foreign aid since the state’s inception. According to Mark Hage, Israel is also the recipient of some of Vermont’s finest ice cream, which is sold in Israeli settlements. Do we have a social responsibility to rally against Ben & Jerry’s presence in the Israeli occupied territories?

Mark Hage is a Palestine solidarity activist with Vermonters for a Just Peace in Palestine/Israel. He lives in Montpelier, Vermont. You can learn more about VTJP and its Ben & Jerry’s campaign, click on the link below.

]]> Thu, 6 Nov 2014 21:41:49 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/175689933″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Welcome to the Mudroom, a joint commentary series of Rumble Strip Vermont and The Dooryard.

Israel has been a substantial recipient of US foreign aid since the state’s inception. According to Mark Hage, Israel is also the recipient of some of Vermont’s finest ice cream, which is sold in Israeli settlements. Do we have a social responsibility to rally against Ben & Jerry’s presence in the Israeli occupied territories?

Mark Hage is a Palestine solidarity activist with Vermonters for a Just Peace in Palestine/Israel. He lives in Montpelier, Vermont. You can learn more about VTJP and its Ben & Jerry’s campaign, click on the link below.

]]> Peace, Love and Occupation? Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:05:21 Do we have a social responsibility to rally against Ben & Jerry's presence in the Israeli occupied territories? Do we have a social responsibility to rally against Ben & Jerry's presence in the Israeli occupied territories? false full 22 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1067 Jamie Cope in Black and White [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/173664668″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Jamie Cope’s house is filled with pictures of people…pictures so beautiful you practically want to lick them. Or at least I do. They are all black and white, and all printed with exquisite attention to light and shadow. There is an amazing intimacy in her portraits, as though she’s looking INTO the people she’s photographing, and they’re letting her. I couldn’t help wondering how she did it. What were they talking about? How did she catch them being so much…themselves?

We sat on her couch one long, sunny fall day in Montpelier and talked for the better part of an afternoon–about photography, marriage, and eating tacos on Olvera Street in Los Angeles. Come listen…

The photographs we talk about in the interview are all featured below, in the order in which we speak about them.

Thank you!

A very special thanks to John Snell and Jamie Cope for allowing me to feature these photographs! Thank you also to Rob Spring.

This program is brought to you in part by a grant from WGDR, Goddard College and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

Also big thanks to David Schulman for allowing me to feature a track from his new album, Raise It Up, which you can find here.

Maud Morgan, artist

Maud Morgan, artist

 

Harold Edgerton, Scientist, inventor of the strobe, MIT

Harold Edgerton, Scientist, inventor of the strobe, MIT

 

Giselle

Giselle

President of Raytheon

President of Raytheon

Wisconsin Friends

Wisconsin Friends

Jamie Cope

Jamie Cope

]]> Fri, 24 Oct 2014 17:30:59 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/173664668″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Jamie Cope’s house is filled with pictures of people…pictures so beautiful you practically want to lick them. Or at least I do. They are all black and white, and all printed with exquisite attention to light and shadow. There is an amazing intimacy in her portraits, as though she’s looking INTO the people she’s photographing, and they’re letting her. I couldn’t help wondering how she did it. What were they talking about? How did she catch them being so much…themselves?

We sat on her couch one long, sunny fall day in Montpelier and talked for the better part of an afternoon–about photography, marriage, and eating tacos on Olvera Street in Los Angeles. Come listen…

The photographs we talk about in the interview are all featured below, in the order in which we speak about them.

Thank you!

A very special thanks to John Snell and Jamie Cope for allowing me to feature these photographs! Thank you also to Rob Spring.

This program is brought to you in part by a grant from WGDR, Goddard College and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

Also big thanks to David Schulman for allowing me to feature a track from his new album, Raise It Up, which you can find here.

Maud Morgan, artist

Maud Morgan, artist

 

Harold Edgerton, Scientist, inventor of the strobe, MIT

Harold Edgerton, Scientist, inventor of the strobe, MIT

 

Giselle

Giselle

President of Raytheon

President of Raytheon

Wisconsin Friends

Wisconsin Friends

Jamie Cope

Jamie Cope

]]> Jamie Cope in Black and White Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:36:49 Where do great photographs come from? Where do great photographs come from? false full 21 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1032 Town Town is a sound exhibit that I produced for the Kent Museum in Calais, Vermont. It weaves together personal stories and memories about growing up in Calais, and natural sounds recorded around town.

There’s no start or finish to these stories. It’s meant to be a kind of sonic wallpaper. In this audio, you hear reference to the former owner of the Kent Museum building, Louise Andrews Kent, and you hear her granddaughters talk about concerts once held upstairs in the ballroom, and her creation of the small dioramas downstairs. You also hear stories about mill fires, walking barefoot in summer, marriage proposals and God…

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/171496420″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

THANKS: I’d like to thank the Calais area residents who shared their time and stories with me. They are: Geraldine Gilman, Don Singleton, Erlene Leonard, Janet Ancel, Olivia Gay, Stanley Fitch, Elaine Fitch and Elliott Morse.

The photos of the Kent you see here are provided by Nel Emlen. Thank you Nel!

And finally, all praise to the People of Kent! Over the past seven years, a team of hugely dedicated folks have brought art to this old, historical tavern and general store in the heart of our town. There’s a magic about that building. Ghosts and brilliant late afternoon light. Exposed lath and old plaster, weird pink closets and teal floors and bowls of plastic grapes in tucked away places, notes to self written on the wall from 1921, ancient wallpaper and lots and lots of clip lamps to light the art. (I’m a special fan of the clip lamps…)

The love these folks at the Kent feel for the building comes through in the way they present the artwork, and it’s palpable…which just makes the whole experience more fun than most art exhibits. So thank you People of Kent. We’ll see you next year.

IMG_2297

IMG_2299

IMG_2905

IMG_2295

2014-04-21 16.30.06

]]> Fri, 10 Oct 2014 17:07:28 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Town is a sound exhibit that I produced for the Kent Museum in Calais, Vermont. It weaves together personal stories and memories about growing up in Calais, and natural sounds recorded around town.

There’s no start or finish to these stories. It’s meant to be a kind of sonic wallpaper. In this audio, you hear reference to the former owner of the Kent Museum building, Louise Andrews Kent, and you hear her granddaughters talk about concerts once held upstairs in the ballroom, and her creation of the small dioramas downstairs. You also hear stories about mill fires, walking barefoot in summer, marriage proposals and God…

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/171496420″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

THANKS: I’d like to thank the Calais area residents who shared their time and stories with me. They are: Geraldine Gilman, Don Singleton, Erlene Leonard, Janet Ancel, Olivia Gay, Stanley Fitch, Elaine Fitch and Elliott Morse.

The photos of the Kent you see here are provided by Nel Emlen. Thank you Nel!

And finally, all praise to the People of Kent! Over the past seven years, a team of hugely dedicated folks have brought art to this old, historical tavern and general store in the heart of our town. There’s a magic about that building. Ghosts and brilliant late afternoon light. Exposed lath and old plaster, weird pink closets and teal floors and bowls of plastic grapes in tucked away places, notes to self written on the wall from 1921, ancient wallpaper and lots and lots of clip lamps to light the art. (I’m a special fan of the clip lamps…)

The love these folks at the Kent feel for the building comes through in the way they present the artwork, and it’s palpable…which just makes the whole experience more fun than most art exhibits. So thank you People of Kent. We’ll see you next year.

IMG_2297

IMG_2299

IMG_2905

IMG_2295

2014-04-21 16.30.06

]]> Town Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:22:03 Sounds and stories from a town. Sounds and stories from a town. false full 20 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=966 My Son Teaches Me a Game This is a raw recording of my son teaching me how to play a card game called Magic. Does anyone know what he’s talking about? Please advise.

And featuring a picture of a cruel pinata in Hancock, Vermont, crafted by my friend Stacey at The Dooryard.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/167881968″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

]]> Mon, 15 Sep 2014 22:41:27 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com This is a raw recording of my son teaching me how to play a card game called Magic. Does anyone know what he’s talking about? Please advise.

And featuring a picture of a cruel pinata in Hancock, Vermont, crafted by my friend Stacey at The Dooryard.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/167881968″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

]]> My Son Teaches Me a Game Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:04:35 What is he talking about?? What is he talking about?? false full 30 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=944 The Taxidermists Rodney and Theresa Elmer are a taxidermy power duo in Northfield, Vermont. In this interview, they talk about the art and psychology of mounting animals, and why they hunt.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/167267083″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Credits:
Photos by Josh Larkin.
Music for this show from Katie Trautz and Julia Wayne of the Vermont duo Mayfly. Links to more of their work below.
Link to Mountain Deer Taxidermy website below….

And please write a comment on this show if you have one!! Comments and STORIES are always welcome. Just go to the bottom of this page, and write in the ‘Leave a Reply’ box. Thank you!

20140910--theresaRodney-2

theresaRodneyWork3

another good one

]]> Fri, 12 Sep 2014 02:22:40 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Rodney and Theresa Elmer are a taxidermy power duo in Northfield, Vermont. In this interview, they talk about the art and psychology of mounting animals, and why they hunt.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/167267083″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Credits:
Photos by Josh Larkin.
Music for this show from Katie Trautz and Julia Wayne of the Vermont duo Mayfly. Links to more of their work below.
Link to Mountain Deer Taxidermy website below….

And please write a comment on this show if you have one!! Comments and STORIES are always welcome. Just go to the bottom of this page, and write in the ‘Leave a Reply’ box. Thank you!

20140910--theresaRodney-2

theresaRodneyWork3

another good one

]]> The Taxidermists Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:22:53 Power duo Rodney and Theresa Elmer talk taxidermy... Power duo Rodney and Theresa Elmer talk taxidermy... false full 61 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=917 Strange Days The farther you go from home, the stranger things get.

Here is a story by Larry Massett about the life and work of Paul Bowles.

This program originally aired on Hearing Voices, home to some of the best radio anywhere….

]]> Mon, 25 Aug 2014 19:38:40 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com The farther you go from home, the stranger things get.

Here is a story by Larry Massett about the life and work of Paul Bowles.

This program originally aired on Hearing Voices, home to some of the best radio anywhere….

]]> Strange Days Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:22:27 The farther you go from home, the stranger things get. A story about Paul Bowles. The farther you go from home, the stranger things get. A story about Paul Bowles. false full 19 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=975 Vermont Health Disconnect Jessamyn West studies and writes about the digital divide and she solves technology problems for a living. This summer she found herself unemployed, and forced to use some of the same state agency websites she’d been helping others to use–namely, Vermont Health Connect, and the Department of Labor.

The results were not pretty. Here’s a commentary about it.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/168089366″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

The Mudroom is a joint commentary series of Rumble Strip Vermont and The Dooryard.

Photo of Jessamyn by Liz West.

A Wiki link to Jessamyn…

]]> Sun, 17 Aug 2014 03:45:36 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Jessamyn West studies and writes about the digital divide and she solves technology problems for a living. This summer she found herself unemployed, and forced to use some of the same state agency websites she’d been helping others to use–namely, Vermont Health Connect, and the Department of Labor.

The results were not pretty. Here’s a commentary about it.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/168089366″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

The Mudroom is a joint commentary series of Rumble Strip Vermont and The Dooryard.

Photo of Jessamyn by Liz West.

A Wiki link to Jessamyn…

]]> Vermont Health Disconnect Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:07:07 Vermont Health Disconnect: a commentary about two Vermont state websites in need of repair Vermont Health Disconnect: a commentary about two Vermont state websites in need of repair false full 18 http://www.loadedwithprotein.com/?p=610 Thunder Road For generations of Vermonters, Thursday nights in the summer have meant one thing….Thunder Road.
This quarter mile short track opened in 1960 and it’s home to some of the most passionate drivers and fans you’re likely to find anywhere. In these shows and outtakes, you’ll hear from some of the drivers and from Thunder Road co-owners and ring leaders, Ken Squier and Tom Curley. There are thrills and heartbreaks and heated coils and a lot of history. There’s even some opera. Welcome.

Shows (in the box above)
Thunder Road: Features Donny Yates, Tommy Thunder, Dave Campbell, Dave Pembroke, Ken Squier, and Tom Curley
Milk Bowl: Tom Curley talks about the culminating race of the season, the Milk Bowl.
An Interview with Tom Curley: I thought he’d give me five minutes. Turns out he let me stay longer and he said some remarkable things…about his work, his co-conspirator Ken Squier, and lots more. Plus there’s sound recorded from the booth during the Milk Bowl, 2013. This is the conversation from which I pulled tape for the other stories, so you’ll hear some familiar riffs, but I figured folks might like to hear Tom’s full interview.

Outtakes (in the box below)
Great segments from the interviews, and sounds recorded at Thunder Road. Enjoy!

Thanks:
A big thanks to Larry Massett. He was the editor for both Thunder Road and Milk Bowl and he is the greatest.

Also big thanks to Colin McCaffrey, who mixed these shows so expertly. And to Tread Hunter for best tires. And patiently…..

Thanks to you both.

 

 

]]> Sat, 19 Jul 2014 01:16:34 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com For generations of Vermonters, Thursday nights in the summer have meant one thing….Thunder Road.
This quarter mile short track opened in 1960 and it’s home to some of the most passionate drivers and fans you’re likely to find anywhere. In these shows and outtakes, you’ll hear from some of the drivers and from Thunder Road co-owners and ring leaders, Ken Squier and Tom Curley. There are thrills and heartbreaks and heated coils and a lot of history. There’s even some opera. Welcome.

Shows (in the box above)
Thunder Road: Features Donny Yates, Tommy Thunder, Dave Campbell, Dave Pembroke, Ken Squier, and Tom Curley
Milk Bowl: Tom Curley talks about the culminating race of the season, the Milk Bowl.
An Interview with Tom Curley: I thought he’d give me five minutes. Turns out he let me stay longer and he said some remarkable things…about his work, his co-conspirator Ken Squier, and lots more. Plus there’s sound recorded from the booth during the Milk Bowl, 2013. This is the conversation from which I pulled tape for the other stories, so you’ll hear some familiar riffs, but I figured folks might like to hear Tom’s full interview.

Outtakes (in the box below)
Great segments from the interviews, and sounds recorded at Thunder Road. Enjoy!

Thanks:
A big thanks to Larry Massett. He was the editor for both Thunder Road and Milk Bowl and he is the greatest.

Also big thanks to Colin McCaffrey, who mixed these shows so expertly. And to Tread Hunter for best tires. And patiently…..

Thanks to you both.

 

 

]]> Thunder Road Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:11:57 For generations of Vermonters, Thursday nights in the summer have meant one thing....Thunder Road. For generations of Vermonters, Thursday nights in the summer have meant one thing....Thunder Road. false full 17 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=900 Night Dreams of Another Life
Welcome to The Mud Room, a joint commentary series from Rumble Strip Vermont and The Dooryard.

A late night shopping cart reminds Marc Estrin of a song from Schubert’s song cycle, Winterreise (Winter Journey).

Marc Estrin is a writer, cellist and political activist who lives in Burlington, Vermont.

Marc Estrin’s Novels
The Prison Notebooks of Alan Krieger (Terrorist)
When the Gods Come Home to Roost
Tsim-tsum
The Good Doctor Guillotin
The Annotated Nose
Skulk
The Lamentations of Julius Marantz
Golem Song
The Education of Arnold Hitler
Insect Dreams, the Half Life of Gregor Samsa

Marc Estrin’s Memoir
Rehearsing With Gods: Photographs and Essays on the Bread & Puppet Theater (with Ron Simon, photographer)

]]> Mon, 14 Jul 2014 16:37:34 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com
Welcome to The Mud Room, a joint commentary series from Rumble Strip Vermont and The Dooryard.

A late night shopping cart reminds Marc Estrin of a song from Schubert’s song cycle, Winterreise (Winter Journey).

Marc Estrin is a writer, cellist and political activist who lives in Burlington, Vermont.

Marc Estrin’s Novels
The Prison Notebooks of Alan Krieger (Terrorist)
When the Gods Come Home to Roost
Tsim-tsum
The Good Doctor Guillotin
The Annotated Nose
Skulk
The Lamentations of Julius Marantz
Golem Song
The Education of Arnold Hitler
Insect Dreams, the Half Life of Gregor Samsa

Marc Estrin’s Memoir
Rehearsing With Gods: Photographs and Essays on the Bread & Puppet Theater (with Ron Simon, photographer)

]]> Night Dreams of Another Life Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:06:23 A late night shopping cart reminds Marc Estrin of a song.... A late night shopping cart reminds Marc Estrin of a song.... false full 16 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=882 A Man of Wealth and Taste [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/158099219″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Welcome to The Mud Room, a joint commentary series from Rumble Strip Vermont and The Dooryard.

This is A Man of Wealth and Taste, a commentary in response to Dick Cheney’s editorial in the Wall Street Journal on June 17, 2014. It is written by Robby Porter. Robby is a woodworker and hydro plant operator and lives in Adamant, Vermont.

Please post and sling your comments at the bottom of this page. We love to hear from you.

]]> Thu, 10 Jul 2014 13:07:13 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/158099219″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

Welcome to The Mud Room, a joint commentary series from Rumble Strip Vermont and The Dooryard.

This is A Man of Wealth and Taste, a commentary in response to Dick Cheney’s editorial in the Wall Street Journal on June 17, 2014. It is written by Robby Porter. Robby is a woodworker and hydro plant operator and lives in Adamant, Vermont.

Please post and sling your comments at the bottom of this page. We love to hear from you.

]]> A Man of Wealth and Taste Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:03:23 If the devil walked this earth in human form, who might he look like? Robby Porter has a couple ideas... If the devil walked this earth in human form, who might he look like? Robby Porter has a couple ideas... false full 15 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=821 The 17 Dollar Tomato Welcome to The Mud Room, a joint commentary project of Rumble Strip Vermont and The Dooryard.

In this first commentary we bring you Walt Amses, a writer and former educator in North Calais, Vermont. The essay is called The 17 Dollar Tomato, and it welcomes us to the special tyranny of gardening season in Vermont.

Send us  your tired and poor

We want to hear your stories of gardens past and present. Your failed attempts, your bolted greens. Tell us about your woodchuck problems,  your canning burns, your rotten tomatoes, your garden rock collections. Or maybe some trick of equanimity you know, that might help us all. Comment below. We love to hear from you.

]]> Tue, 10 Jun 2014 20:56:32 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Welcome to The Mud Room, a joint commentary project of Rumble Strip Vermont and The Dooryard.

In this first commentary we bring you Walt Amses, a writer and former educator in North Calais, Vermont. The essay is called The 17 Dollar Tomato, and it welcomes us to the special tyranny of gardening season in Vermont.

Send us  your tired and poor

We want to hear your stories of gardens past and present. Your failed attempts, your bolted greens. Tell us about your woodchuck problems,  your canning burns, your rotten tomatoes, your garden rock collections. Or maybe some trick of equanimity you know, that might help us all. Comment below. We love to hear from you.

]]> The 17 Dollar Tomato Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:05:43 Face it. Gardening in Vermont can be a tyranny. Walt Amses tells us why. Face it. Gardening in Vermont can be a tyranny. Walt Amses tells us why. false full 14 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=797 The Milk Bowl For generations of Vermonters, Thursday nights in the summer have meant one thing….Thunder Road.
This quarter mile short track opened in 1960 and it’s home to some of the most passionate drivers and fans you’re likely to find anywhere. In this show, owner Tom Curley talks about the culminating race of the season, the Milk Bowl.

]]> Fri, 2 May 2014 11:22:54 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com For generations of Vermonters, Thursday nights in the summer have meant one thing….Thunder Road.
This quarter mile short track opened in 1960 and it’s home to some of the most passionate drivers and fans you’re likely to find anywhere. In this show, owner Tom Curley talks about the culminating race of the season, the Milk Bowl.

]]> The Milk Bowl Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:11:23 For generations of Vermonters, Thursday nights in the summer have meant one thing….Thunder Road. This quarter mile short track opened in 1960 and it’s home to some of the most passionate drivers and fans you’re likely to find anywhere. In this show, owner Tom Curley talks about the culminating race of the season, the Milk... Read the rest... For generations of Vermonters, Thursday nights in the summer have meant one thing….Thunder Road. This quarter mile short track opened in 1960 and it’s home to some of the most passionate drivers and fans you’re likely to find anywhere. In this show, owner Tom Curley talks about the culminating race of the season, the Milk... Read the rest... false full 13 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=868 Boring Man Everyone’s heard about Burning Man, the counter-cultural festival held every summer in Black Rock City Nevada. Sex, drugs, monumental installations….you know all about it. But you may not know about Boring Man, the counter-counter-cultural festival that’s sort of a mirror image of Burning Man. Here’s Larry Massett with a report from last year’s Boring Man.

]]> Tue, 1 Apr 2014 16:25:04 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Everyone’s heard about Burning Man, the counter-cultural festival held every summer in Black Rock City Nevada. Sex, drugs, monumental installations….you know all about it. But you may not know about Boring Man, the counter-counter-cultural festival that’s sort of a mirror image of Burning Man. Here’s Larry Massett with a report from last year’s Boring Man.

]]> Boring Man Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:10:11 Everyone's heard about the counter-cultural festival called Burning Man. But you may not know about Boring Man... Everyone's heard about the counter-cultural festival called Burning Man. But you may not know about Boring Man... false full 12 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=754 Woodstove I went to a friend’s house the other night and she led me into her den where her best wood stove was and she sighed and said, ‘And this is where I live.’

It’s been a long winter and a lot of us have spent the better part of four months huddled around our stoves. I walked around Calais and asked people to talk about their firebuilding methods, their stoves, and their moods.

]]> Thu, 27 Mar 2014 21:21:47 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com I went to a friend’s house the other night and she led me into her den where her best wood stove was and she sighed and said, ‘And this is where I live.’

It’s been a long winter and a lot of us have spent the better part of four months huddled around our stoves. I walked around Calais and asked people to talk about their firebuilding methods, their stoves, and their moods.

]]> Woodstove Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:13:32 It's been a long winter. Let's talk about our woodstoves. It's been a long winter. Let's talk about our woodstoves. false full 11 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=462 Dry Wall A dry wall is built with no mortar. The stones are carefully selected and they interlock and gravity holds them in place. The Great Wall of China was built this way. Scott Carrier’s wall was built this way too. Here is his story.

]]> Wed, 5 Feb 2014 21:27:10 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com A dry wall is built with no mortar. The stones are carefully selected and they interlock and gravity holds them in place. The Great Wall of China was built this way. Scott Carrier’s wall was built this way too. Here is his story.

]]> Dry Wall Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:10:59 The Great Wall of China was built with no mortar. Scott Carrier's wall was also built with no mortar. Here's his story. The Great Wall of China was built with no mortar. Scott Carrier's wall was also built with no mortar. Here's his story. false full 10 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=417 Mortality Tales For the last year I’ve been conducting interviews about death and dying for The Wake Up to Dying Project–a project that encourages people to think, and talk about death and dying.  The goal is to help people be a little more prepared, both practically and emotionally, for our own deaths, and the deaths of loved ones.  Today’s show features segments from an interview with Tim Kasten of Middlesex, VT. Tim has experienced more death in his family than many of us and he has significant medical conditions of his own. Death has become a pressing consideration for him, and as both a Buddhist and scientist, he approaches the subject with intense curiosity. Here are segments from our conversation.

]]> Mon, 20 Jan 2014 21:32:21 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com For the last year I’ve been conducting interviews about death and dying for The Wake Up to Dying Project–a project that encourages people to think, and talk about death and dying.  The goal is to help people be a little more prepared, both practically and emotionally, for our own deaths, and the deaths of loved ones.  Today’s show features segments from an interview with Tim Kasten of Middlesex, VT. Tim has experienced more death in his family than many of us and he has significant medical conditions of his own. Death has become a pressing consideration for him, and as both a Buddhist and scientist, he approaches the subject with intense curiosity. Here are segments from our conversation.

]]> Mortality Tales Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:24:13 An interview about death and dying with someone whose seen his share....Tim Kasten. An interview about death and dying with someone whose seen his share....Tim Kasten. false full 9 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=402 Jack’s Buck Here is one final deer story, recorded this year after youth hunting weekend. Jack Fannon, 12, went out hunting on his parents’ land in Calais, with friend, mentor, and hunter safety instructor Bob Raskevitz. Here’s what happened….

]]> Thu, 28 Nov 2013 15:00:54 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Here is one final deer story, recorded this year after youth hunting weekend. Jack Fannon, 12, went out hunting on his parents’ land in Calais, with friend, mentor, and hunter safety instructor Bob Raskevitz. Here’s what happened….

]]> Jack’s Buck Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:10:26 Here is one final deer story, recorded this year after youth hunting weekend. Jack Fannon, 12, went out hunting on his parents’ land in Calais, with friend, mentor, and hunter safety instructor Bob Raskevitz. Here’s what happened…. Here is one final deer story, recorded this year after youth hunting weekend. Jack Fannon, 12, went out hunting on his parents’ land in Calais, with friend, mentor, and hunter safety instructor Bob Raskevitz. Here’s what happened…. false full 8 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=288 Alan LePage Alan LePage has been an organic vegetable gardener in central Vermont for over thirty years–long before anyone cared much about organic farming–long, long before words like ‘sustainable’, ‘local’, ‘artisinal’ started being used, ad nauseam. His family has farmed the same piece of land since the civil war. Alan is also an expert mushroom forager, mentor, activist and philosopher. He has a voracious mind and he’s impossible to categorize, except perhaps as an event. I had to interview him twice. I hope you enjoy this interview. I sure did.

You can hear Alan LePage every Sunday morning on WGDR, 91.1, from 6:00 – 9:00 AM. The show is called The Curse of the Golden Turnip. You’ll hear music, and endlessly great advice and stories about agriculture, foraging, and agricultural policy.

[Amazing] photos are by Josh Larkin. Link to more of his work below.

Alan 5

Alan 4

Alan 3

]]> Wed, 9 Oct 2013 20:26:52 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Alan LePage has been an organic vegetable gardener in central Vermont for over thirty years–long before anyone cared much about organic farming–long, long before words like ‘sustainable’, ‘local’, ‘artisinal’ started being used, ad nauseam. His family has farmed the same piece of land since the civil war. Alan is also an expert mushroom forager, mentor, activist and philosopher. He has a voracious mind and he’s impossible to categorize, except perhaps as an event. I had to interview him twice. I hope you enjoy this interview. I sure did.

You can hear Alan LePage every Sunday morning on WGDR, 91.1, from 6:00 – 9:00 AM. The show is called The Curse of the Golden Turnip. You’ll hear music, and endlessly great advice and stories about agriculture, foraging, and agricultural policy.

[Amazing] photos are by Josh Larkin. Link to more of his work below.

Alan 5

Alan 4

Alan 3

]]> Alan LePage Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:39:34 Interview with central Vermont organic gardening icon Alan LePage. Interview with central Vermont organic gardening icon Alan LePage. false full 7 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=257 Geof Hewitt An interview with poet, teacher, and reigning Vermont poetry slam champion, Geof Hewitt. In this interview, Geof talks about a lifetime of writing and what it means, to him, to be successful. He talks about his early years as a Vermont homesteader from New Jersery, and slowly becoming a Vermonter. And of course we hear lots of poetry.

Geof has published three books for teachers and four collections of poetry. His books are available at Bear Pond Books in Montpelier, in libraries, and online.

]]> Thu, 12 Sep 2013 18:59:06 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com An interview with poet, teacher, and reigning Vermont poetry slam champion, Geof Hewitt. In this interview, Geof talks about a lifetime of writing and what it means, to him, to be successful. He talks about his early years as a Vermont homesteader from New Jersery, and slowly becoming a Vermonter. And of course we hear lots of poetry.

Geof has published three books for teachers and four collections of poetry. His books are available at Bear Pond Books in Montpelier, in libraries, and online.

]]> Geof Hewitt Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:49:37 An interview with poet, teacher, and reigning Vermont poetry slam champion, Geof Hewitt. An interview with poet, teacher, and reigning Vermont poetry slam champion, Geof Hewitt. false full 6 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=224 That Song This is a show about songs, and stories about songs. You’ll  hear about sack races, summer camp, love lost and found–and the songs that marked these events. There is some Meat Loaf this hour. There is brave singing and humming. There is blood and there are guitar solos. It’s an hour of music you’re sure to love and hate, and I encourage you to dance.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/196839664″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

My mom singing a song using her hands:

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$('#wp_mep_16').mediaelementplayer({
m:1

	,features: ['playpause','current','progress','duration','volume','tracks','fullscreen']
	
});

});

 

]]> Wed, 14 Aug 2013 13:44:27 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com This is a show about songs, and stories about songs. You’ll  hear about sack races, summer camp, love lost and found–and the songs that marked these events. There is some Meat Loaf this hour. There is brave singing and humming. There is blood and there are guitar solos. It’s an hour of music you’re sure to love and hate, and I encourage you to dance.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/196839664″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]

My mom singing a song using her hands:

jQuery(document).ready(function($) {
$('#wp_mep_16').mediaelementplayer({
m:1

	,features: ['playpause','current','progress','duration','volume','tracks','fullscreen']
	
});

});

 

]]> That Song Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:30:40 A show about songs and stories about songs. Shame, heartbreak, love, summer camp. A show about songs and stories about songs. Shame, heartbreak, love, summer camp. false full 5 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=216 Prisoner of Zion This week features radio producer and writer Scott Carrier, reading from his book, Prisoner of Zion. This program was produced by Larry Massett for Hearing Voices, and ran nationally in 2011. The great folks there have given me permission to air it on Rumble Strip Vermont.

Shortly after the World Trade Center fell in autumn 2001, it became clear the United States would invade Afghanistan. Producer Scott Carrier decided he ought to go there too. Why? To see for himself: that’s what writers do. Who are these fanatics, these fundamentalists, the Taliban and the like? And what do they want?

In this program, Carrier narrates his trip to Afghanistan. With his young guide and translator, Najibulla, they tour the horrors of war.

Years later Naji tells Scott he must leave his homeland — the dangers for a translator have become extreme. Scott gets Najibulla accepted at Utah Valley University. Naji, it turns out, handles the Mormons quite well, while Scott, teaching at the same school, has a hard time with them. At the end Naji is graduating, about to get married, and start a new job; while Scott wonders whether he can stand teaching another year — or if he’ll wind up on the street like Naji.

Thanks:

Big thanks to Barrett Golding, Scott Carrier, and Larry Massett for giving me permission to air this show. Thank you to Larry for sending me tracks….over and over….

]]> Sat, 3 Aug 2013 17:23:43 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com This week features radio producer and writer Scott Carrier, reading from his book, Prisoner of Zion. This program was produced by Larry Massett for Hearing Voices, and ran nationally in 2011. The great folks there have given me permission to air it on Rumble Strip Vermont.

Shortly after the World Trade Center fell in autumn 2001, it became clear the United States would invade Afghanistan. Producer Scott Carrier decided he ought to go there too. Why? To see for himself: that’s what writers do. Who are these fanatics, these fundamentalists, the Taliban and the like? And what do they want?

In this program, Carrier narrates his trip to Afghanistan. With his young guide and translator, Najibulla, they tour the horrors of war.

Years later Naji tells Scott he must leave his homeland — the dangers for a translator have become extreme. Scott gets Najibulla accepted at Utah Valley University. Naji, it turns out, handles the Mormons quite well, while Scott, teaching at the same school, has a hard time with them. At the end Naji is graduating, about to get married, and start a new job; while Scott wonders whether he can stand teaching another year — or if he’ll wind up on the street like Naji.

Thanks:

Big thanks to Barrett Golding, Scott Carrier, and Larry Massett for giving me permission to air this show. Thank you to Larry for sending me tracks….over and over….

]]> Prisoner of Zion Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:45:46 The US invaded Afghanistan. Scott Carrier decided he ought to go there too. To see for himself. Who are these fanatics, these fundamentalists, the Taliban and the like? What do they want? The US invaded Afghanistan. Scott Carrier decided he ought to go there too. To see for himself. Who are these fanatics, these fundamentalists, the Taliban and the like? What do they want? false full 4 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=176 Prisoners of War [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/140254783″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]This hour features four Vermont soldiers captured at the Battle of the Bulge in World War II. The program weaves together their stories of capture, internment, and the challenges of returning to civilian life.

Credits:

This program features Vermont veterans Cliff Austin, Harrison Burney, Bill Busier, and Robert Norton.

It has aired on public radio affiliates across the country and on NPR’s Hearing Voices and on SoundPrint

Produced in collaboration with Greg Sharrow of the Vermont Folklife Center.

]]> Fri, 19 Jul 2013 20:26:10 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/140254783″ params=”color=ff5500&inverse=false&auto_play=false&show_user=true” width=”100%” height=”20″ iframe=”true” /]This hour features four Vermont soldiers captured at the Battle of the Bulge in World War II. The program weaves together their stories of capture, internment, and the challenges of returning to civilian life.

Credits:

This program features Vermont veterans Cliff Austin, Harrison Burney, Bill Busier, and Robert Norton.

It has aired on public radio affiliates across the country and on NPR’s Hearing Voices and on SoundPrint

Produced in collaboration with Greg Sharrow of the Vermont Folklife Center.

]]> Prisoners of War Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:56:01 The story of four Vermonters captured at the Battle of the Bulge. The story of four Vermonters captured at the Battle of the Bulge. false full 3 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=86 Road Scholars This week’s episode of Rumble Strip is about the high art of Vermont road maintenance, and the diplomacy required to (almost) please everyone.  It features interviews with East Montpelier road foreman Mike Garand and retired state highway dispatcher Ray Burke.

PLEASE LEAVE A COMMENT IF YOU HAVE ONE!  Also, if you subscribe to the site, you’ll receive automatic announcements on upcoming shows. Thanks!

My thanks to Andy Kolovos of the Vermont Folklife Center for his help with archival material for this program. Thanks also to Calais Selectboard member Scott Bassage for supplying audio from Calais Town Meeting.

]]> Fri, 7 Jun 2013 14:24:31 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com This week’s episode of Rumble Strip is about the high art of Vermont road maintenance, and the diplomacy required to (almost) please everyone.  It features interviews with East Montpelier road foreman Mike Garand and retired state highway dispatcher Ray Burke.

PLEASE LEAVE A COMMENT IF YOU HAVE ONE!  Also, if you subscribe to the site, you’ll receive automatic announcements on upcoming shows. Thanks!

My thanks to Andy Kolovos of the Vermont Folklife Center for his help with archival material for this program. Thanks also to Calais Selectboard member Scott Bassage for supplying audio from Calais Town Meeting.

]]> Road Scholars Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:49:42 The high art of Vermont road management. Featuring Mike Garand and Ray Burke. The high art of Vermont road management. Featuring Mike Garand and Ray Burke. false full 2 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=42 Miriam Bernardo Singer Miriam Bernardo talks about what can go right, and wrong—onstage. She talks about how she puts a life together as a musician in central Vermont, and what it feels like to sing, and live—wide open. And? We get to hear her sing.

The show also features radio documentary producer Larry Massett, reading from the Barre police log.

Photographs of Miriam by Josh Larkin

Show music credits:

Ribbon Bow: Writer unknown. Performed by Foley Artist

Secret Words: Paul Bowles. Performed by Foley Artist

Is Anything Wrong: Lhasa De Sela. Performed by Foley Artist

They’ll Come Back: Sun Ra. Performed by Magic City/led by Michael Chorney

]]> Thu, 23 May 2013 20:00:25 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com Singer Miriam Bernardo talks about what can go right, and wrong—onstage. She talks about how she puts a life together as a musician in central Vermont, and what it feels like to sing, and live—wide open. And? We get to hear her sing.

The show also features radio documentary producer Larry Massett, reading from the Barre police log.

Photographs of Miriam by Josh Larkin

Show music credits:

Ribbon Bow: Writer unknown. Performed by Foley Artist

Secret Words: Paul Bowles. Performed by Foley Artist

Is Anything Wrong: Lhasa De Sela. Performed by Foley Artist

They’ll Come Back: Sun Ra. Performed by Magic City/led by Michael Chorney

]]> Miriam Bernardo Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 01:01:59 Singer Miriam Bernardo talks about making a life in music in central Vermont. And she sings. Singer Miriam Bernardo talks about making a life in music in central Vermont. And she sings. false full 1 https://rumblestrip.wpengine.com/?p=1 Colin McCaffrey Talks Shop In the maiden voyage of Rumble Strip Vermont, musician and producer Colin McCaffrey discusses the expectation of inspiration in a cup of tea, music as a career, and mushroom foraging…   Photo by Will Forest

]]> Thu, 9 May 2013 21:56:36 +0000 rumblestripvermont@gmail.com (Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip) https://rumblestripvermont.com In the maiden voyage of Rumble Strip Vermont, musician and producer Colin McCaffrey discusses the expectation of inspiration in a cup of tea, music as a career, and mushroom foraging…   Photo by Will Forest

]]> Colin McCaffrey Talks Shop Erica Heilman / Rumble Strip 00:58:47 Musician and producer Colin McCaffrey talks about finding inspiration, music as a career, and mushroom foraging... Musician and producer Colin McCaffrey talks about finding inspiration, music as a career, and mushroom foraging... false full 0