Jenny Brook Bluegrass at Tunbridge, Vermont

This June we'll all be heading to Tunbridge, Vermont for the Jenny Brook Bluegrass festival for some great music, jamming, renewing friendships, and of course some wonderful food. What too many of us miss out on is seeing the iconic Vermont village that surrounds the fairgrounds. If you venture up the hill to Rt. 110 you'll find an old country store opened in 1830 it's a great place to sit with a coffee and snack and watch small town life.

Putnam Friday Night

Even on a frigid evening the restaurants in Putnam, CT are packed,take a ride with me.

Blue Ridge Escape

Sitting here on a freezing night surrounded by snow I began remembering a wonderful trip along the Blueridge Parkway in the fall of 2021. We were following the Crooked Road, Virginia's Heritage Music Trail. We visited numerous music venues and had a blast hearing bluegrass and traditional music for hours. By chance we came across Mabry's Mill on the parkway in Meadows of Dan, Virginia. Built in 1905 by Ed and Lizzie Mabry with the help of neighbor Newton Hylton. The gristmill, waterwheel and flume were built with hand tools. All of these buildings have been restored to show a slice of rural life in the 1900's. Below are the mill, sluiceway and the Mathews cabin which sits on the approximate site of the Mabry's farmhouse which was dismantled after his death in 1938.

Danielson's New Vibe

For many years downtown looked as if on the verge of becoming a ghost town, the vibrant shopping sites of the 70's and 80's seemed to disappear one by one and the borough began to be void of activty. Good news is a new group of entrepenuers have jumped in to bring a sense of renewal to the empty streets with a couple of restaurants slated to open soon, a coffee shop and other retail sites newly opened that are bringing folks back to the borough. I wish them well and hope more people come out to support them. Danielson and the town of Killingly have a good vibe going, check it out.

Tiffany and Company, the humble beginnings.

In 1837 Charles Lewis Tiffany borrowed 1.000 dollars from his father who owned a cotton mill on Tiffany Street in Brooklyn, CT. He and a friend, John B. Young used the money to buy a small stationary store in New York City. As they expanded they added glassware, porcelain, clocks and jewelry. They built a reputation for selling top quality items and in 1848 began manufactoring their own jewelry. They now have over 300 stores worldwide and revenue of over 4 billion dollars and it all began with a thousand dollars on Tiffany Street in Brookly, CT.