Vermont | Ghost of Midnight

Debating the school budget BEFORE Town Meeting

Posted on Sunday, February 7, 2010 by Michael • No comments yet

The people of Westford, VT continue to do amazing things with Front Porch Forum… lots of voices weighing in about lots of topics. Here’s a comment about one topic gleaned from a blog today…

Principals like feedback, right? Well, we need feedback but it can be difficult to deal with at times. I’ve been thinking a lot about a new web 2.0 type of feedback has affected my school. Our little town in northern Vermont has a web forum called the “Front Porch Forum” and folks have been using it to discuss our upcoming school budget. There have been a wide range of opinions voiced on this forum. It has seemed a bit divisive to me with a range of opinions from “Teachers make too much money, they should take a pay cut” to “Our teachers work hard and deserve their pay.” So why does this seem different to me? People have always held these kinds of opinions. We used to have an annual meeting where people would openly discuss the budget before casting their vote. In my years as a Vermont principal, I have heard many similar comments go back and forth at the annual meeting, but comments stopped when the meeting broke for lunch. Now the comments go on for days in an open forum. And the comments seem a bit sharper – perhaps because you are not looking at your neighbors when you are typing on your keyboard. My superintendent and I have been talking about the urge to respond to these comments. Certainly, some erroneous information needed to be corrected, but many of the comments took care of themselves. When one person insinuated that we spent too much money on busing high school students, another person chimed in to say that she has to drive her child to high school every day because there is no bus. The conversations have died down now and I kind of miss them. We vote on our school budget in a few weeks and I want to know what people are thinking. Reading the forum was like lurking and listening to conversations at the gas pump or the parking lot after a ball game. While I didn’t like everything I heard, it was better to know what people were thinking and saying.

And my response…

Glad to hear that Front Porch Forum is proving valuable in your town. My wife and I started it about three years ago in the South End of Burlington where we live, and now it serves 25 northwest Vermont towns by hosting 140 online neighborhood forums (the one you mention is but one of them). Remarkably (to us at least!), 17,000 area households subscribe with more joining every day. Nearly half of your town subscribes to FPF now. And, as you know, each posting comes from a clearly identified nearby neighbor (not anonymous or distant folk). It’s our hope that this kind of communication helps neighbors connect and build community locally… that comments on our virtual front porch lead to real face-to-face conversations on actual front porches (and country stores, town libraries, sidewalks, etc.). Best wishes with the upcoming vote… hopefully more discussion up front (via FPF as well as face-to-face around town) will lead to the best results.

Help give FPF neighbor-connection work big boost

Posted on Monday, February 1, 2010 by Michael • 1 comment

Please take a moment to vote for Front Porch Forum‘s proposal to the Knight News Challenge. The Knight Foundation awards about $5 million each year to promising projects in the local news arena.

FPF’s application made it through the first round of judging and is now among about 200 finalists… exciting!

Click here to vote… then click on the right-most star… and leave a comment at the bottom.

Local Vermont Media Polling Citizens’ Needs

Posted on Monday, January 25, 2010 by Michael • No comments yet

I’m looking forward to participating in a local media conversation in Bennington this week…

Shires Media Partnership Inc., the non-profit owner of radio station WBTN is convening a regional meeting at the Bennington (Vt.) Free Library on Thurs. Jan. 28 to gather public comment and advice on how it can meet the information needs of Southwestern Vermont. The session is inspired by the work of the Knight Commission on the Information Needs of Communities…

Amy Garmer, who heads journalism initiatives for the Aspen Institute, will attend the Bennington meeting, along with Michael Wood-Lewis, of Burlington, Vt., who runs Front Porch Forum, local online news sites, and gave testimony at the commission’s first public hearing, June 24, 2008.

UPDATE: Event organizer Bill Densmore provided these follow-up links…

VBSR Networking Get-Together Jan. 27 in Burlington

Posted on Wednesday, January 20, 2010 by Michael • No comments yet

Front Porch Forum is glad to be co-sponsoring this upcoming Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility event. Looking forward to seeing lots of folks there.

VBSR Networking Get-Together
Date: Wednesday Jan 27th, 2010
Time: 5:30 PM – 7:30 PM
Location: Magnolia Bistro
Address: One Lawson Lane, Burlington, VT 05401
Cost: FREE and open to the public
To Register: Please RSVP to info@vbsr.org or call 802-862-8347; RSVPs appreciated, but walk-ins also welcome
For More Info: Call 802-862-8347 or email info@vbsr.org

Ten Words for 2010 Raffle Winners!

Posted on Wednesday, January 13, 2010 by Michael • 3 comments

We’ve got raffle winners! Nearly 1,000 Front Porch Forum members posted entries to their neighborhood forums for the Ten Words for 2010 Raffle. Thanks to our sponsors and to all who entered. Congratulations to our lucky drawing winners…

Tamra & Tony Augostino, Milton: One-night stay at The Essex Resort and Spa ($269 value)
Steffen & Kathryn Parker, Williston: Solio portable solar charger for iPod/digital camera/etc. from Seventh Generation ($100 value)
Olga Vrana, Burlington: $100 gift certificate toward any youth or adult art class at Davis Studio
Roger Kohn, Hinesburg: Three-month membership to Hammerfit Athletic Club and Motion Studio ($100 value)
Alida Duncan, Burlington: $100 opening deposit for a Power Saver CD at Opportunities Credit Union
Carol Ode, Burlington: Great Harvest Bakery “Year of Free Bread” – one loaf/month for a year ($70 value)
John and Debbie McMahon, Isle La Motte: One pair of tickets to Higher Ground Comedy Battle Jan. 17 ($30/pair value)
Rob Stumler, Burlington: One pair of tickets to Higher Ground Comedy Battle Jan. 17 ($30/pair value)
David Gray, Essex Junction: Five-class pass to South End Studio ($60 value)
Sherridan Beyer, Winooski: $100 gift certificate from 1-800-GOT-JUNK?
Deena Frankel, Burlington: Personal Training Session at Greater Burlington YMCA ($65 value)
Jane Agran, Richmond: An assortment of 20 greeting cards from Sweet Basil Cards ($60 value)

See some of the many, many entries from FPF members.

FPF Members Prove a Clever Lot

Posted on Monday, January 11, 2010 by Michael • 15 comments

I love this contest! Last year’s Nine Words for 2009 was such fun, and now the entries are pouring in for Ten Words for 2010. Enter by posting a ten-word item to your FPF neighborhood forum between Jan. 10 and 12, 2010. Ten great prizes worth $1,000 to be raffled off. Here are some samples from across Chittenden and Grand Isle Counties, plus Starksboro…

No boredom On the Forum, Seasonal expression’s Our new anthem!
Let’s remember how lucky we are to have each other.
Christmas cookies, bread and pie. Mega bakings made oven die.
Front Porch Forum, best way to get your neighborhood news!
I have always struggled to achieve the art of brevity.
Eloquence, utilitarianism, humor, appreciation, neighborliness, information, wishes, silliness, poetry ~ WOW!
Did you know that Chuck Norris counted to infinity – twice?
hockeY rink, pig rOast laUghiNG, — familieS, cookouTs, fRiEndships, bonfirEs, Trust
Five cardinal couples are hanging out here, who’s visiting you?
2010: Where are all the flying cars and moon shuttles?
Vermont in the snow. Get the skis! Ready to go! Lynne Robbins
Front Porch friends extend an electronic handshake, our 2010 salute.
The setting sun shimmers on the smooth silvery snowy surface.
Alpenglow in the west Cross country skiing at its best!
Sometimes I long for the simpler life, but with FPF.
2010 can be 3 or 30 depending on your addition.
The magic of a Sunrise is inspiring for the soul
Great seeing so much FPF activity. Incentives do work!
Pillowcase of dreams shakes snowflakes deep over old sorrow ground
National Gorilla Suit Day is one of my favorite holidays!
Front Porch Forum, Agent of Gentrification? You can’t be serious.
raw milk available thru Family Cow Farmstand, local pick up
Who came to visit? The snow tracks let me know.
Getting warmed up isn’t just for athletes, musicians; also writers!
Keep Conan and Let Jay Go, Hallelujah (tune Michael Row…)
All righty – here’s my ode to trash sheds (and a bid for some sweet local loot): Creaky doors, scurries, squeaks: a “trashy” deposit for squirrel feasts.
Horrified children, Lifeless garden, excrement. Leashed dogs make my day.
An awesome aardark advanced across Arizona and ate amazing apples.
Neighbors are poets, now I know it, thanks to FPF! (I love these contests – makes me want to meet all these neighbors who are so literate and creative! Coffeehouse in the NNE, anyone?)
Sun-soaked, elongated days knead the soul of Winter’s harshness…
THE 2. NORTH 3. WILLISTON 4. NEIGHBORS 5. TALK 6. TO 7. EACH 8. OTHER 9. IN 10. PERSON
…now funemployed. surfing the web now gives me no joy…
Always love to see informative posts on Front Porch Forum!
Meet your neighbors. Remember your neighbors. Make them friends forever.
small condo, tossing son’s baseball cards vintage nineties, want them?
Stimulus Money has paved the way to the Unemployment office.
Draw connections, not conclusions. Have the wisdom to join FPF!!!
More members make a meatier matrix- nudge a neighbor now!
One snowman says to the next, “Do you smell carrots?”
ORIGAMI . all ages, individuals, groups . so much fun . no failure.
Oh Barometer, Rise! Rise! Lift the ceiling of our skies!
The pristine snow brightens January, an otherwise cold, dark month.
Snow falls, kids sled, woodstove cranks, yep, this is winter.
Filled my house with plants. Free on front porch forum!
Please help build better neighborhoods by unrequested service to others.
Ah, January. Clean slate and fresh snow. Mind the ice.
Bliss; have book, haven’t read. Cosy, warm in feather bed.
Local is good. Farmer’s Market and FPF equal fantastic neighbors.
Snowflakes suspended in speckled sky Scaredy squirrels stare in silence
Deep within the compost heap, zucchini schemes to rise again.
There is no way to happiness, Happiness is the way.
In case you are curious, our chickens are doing fine.
Winooski for work, Alburg Springs for my heart and soul.
Surprising deep winter sight: Six baffled bluebirds quiver in birches.
Finally! Took 2 years Druggies gone Neighborhood returned? We hope.
Vibrating foot rest On my bed, The gray cat sleeps.
Snow comes, Snow goes, I wish we had more Snow!
Minimal sun, snow blankets, soup is simmering, must be January.
Here is my entry: Be yourself – everyone else is taken.
Have love to share, health to spare, friends who care.
How do I love FPF? Let me count the ways!
Where does the time go? Oh, one does not know!
“Listening more, talking less may be the path to mindfulness.”
Have a cervix? Protect it! Free Screening Day 2010. http://freepap.org.
“may two thousand and ten be your new best friend!”
Those silly, slippery skis kept me from work again today!
“Two thousand ten?” “Twenty ten?” Either way, like science fiction.
Luxuriating at the Essex Resort and Spa… Sounds like bliss.
Second Vermont winter, first one with wife… gotta love seconds.
The world wide web gets local? Why it’s about time!
Dwelling of truth, transparency, presence, vision, restoration… curing communities – 2010!
Shoveled two hours. Street plow. Shoveled again. Sidewalk plow. Cursed.
Can’t wait for the snow to melt at North Beach!
Miss Christmas tree pickup? Take it to McNeill. Create electricity!
Telecoms, crosswalks, apts. and such, FPF fun each day, much!
Kids bickering, dark 4:00, need vacation, settle for entering raffle.
January 11th is a numerical palindrome… backwards and forwards… 011110.
Just my two cents today, Stressed is desserts spelled backwards.
Oh please, oh please grant the wish of Don Slish.
Winter, a little hard, but living life in a postcard!
Here’s my entry: Cold January mornings turn hot coffee into warm java love.
FPF is a great invention: thank you Michael and crew!
Never go to a doctor whose office plants have died
smile, dance, hug, laugh – it makes a world of difference!
Ice age hits southern US. Frozen orange juice on trees.
Thanks, Front Porch Forum for all you do for Huntington.
My Honda Civic, cracked rear bumper and light, any info?
Snow’s deep, Frogs sleep, Phones peep, Many weep. Promises? Keep.
Stringing words together shamelessly to win big prizes, that’s me.
Front Porch rocks, from your hat down to your socks!
Why a whole porch–just the front step will do!
Bee, Ewe, Are, Ell, Eye, En, Gee, Tee, Oh!, En
Let’s finally shut down Vermont Yankee! Call your legislators today!
What’s a bird that flies over a bay? – A bagel
PLEASE post, Your words mean most! Write ten, Hit send!!
I was born at night, but it wasn’t last night. Mike Egan
Celebrate small victories, ignore negative people, look for the lesson.
Have you seen my barn roof? Godzilla ripped it off
2010, here we go, Front Porch Forum’s In the know!
“Be The Change You Wish To See In The World!” -Mahatma Gandhi
Do first things first, and second things not at all.
Please watch out for evil skunks that lie in wait.
Plip, plop. Dependable expert needed, To make ceiling leak stop.
Need firewood? Extra hens? Noise? Snows? Front Porch Forum knows!
Every year we all wish for the same thing, Peace.
I am very grateful that FPF is in my life:)
Teenage son moving back home. Need bed, bureau, and earplugs!
Life is full of sunshine – let a little more in.
Fabulous forum: message sent, published, received reply in five hours.
Almost Haiku, can’t find my shovel, guess I’ll go south. Take Care, Tawny
Shaker Hill listens. Barred owls call “who cooks for you?”¹
Live, love, laugh, labor, lounge, leap, look, learn, be present!
In need of styrofoam peanuts?Â  Perfect for your styrofoam elephant!
Sacrifice? Lonely Guard wife seeks answers on “War on Terror.”
Must turn our Country to positive light with World following!
“Jericho Tea, a pleasant event meeting friends, glad I went”
Spaces between fingers were created so another’s could fill them.
Is it time to swim at Maple Street Park yet?
Desi meows outside come to visit bringing a dead mouse.
Without Great neighbors, Great men would remain in the shadows.
woodworking tools desired: sanders, clamps, power tools, shop vac, vice.
Gauthier trash can remains unclaimed at George and Peru Streets.
Does the title count? I used numerals to be safe…
Seeking… peace, justice, joy, laughter, compassion, respect. Please reply all.
Borrow a ladder? A brick? A shovel? Forum for leeches…
Oh what the heck, it’s a raffle, so here goes: 2009 ended in night. 2010 holds the promise of light. Wendy
Discarded Christmas trees roll on greenways, making headless snow angels.
Haiku five seven five frigid night raffle entry ten words snuggled up: Starksboro forum rural Vermont cyber seeds news, sales, friendships bloom
Second son Sam shovels snow. Five S’s in a row!
Raffle entry: snow for sale; seeking cat removal; lost car?
gentrification inevitable with changing demographics — communication the heart of community.

P.S. Posting a comment to this blog will NOT enter you in the raffle! You must post to your FPF neighborhood forum to enter the drawing.

UPDATE: Raffle winners announced!

Ten Words for 2010 – Enter FPF Raffle!

Posted on Sunday, January 10, 2010 by Michael • 29 comments

To celebrate 2010 and have a little fun, we invite Front Porch Forum members (this means you!) to submit postings to their neighborhood forum between January 10 and 12, 2010. Any message that has EXACTLY ten words will be entered into a raffle for the following ten prizes…

One-night stay at The Essex Resort and Spa ($269 value)
Solio portable solar charger for iPod/digital camera/etc. from Seventh Generation ($100 value)
$100 gift certificate toward any youth or adult art class at Davis Studio
Three-month membership to Hammerfit Athletic Club and Motion Studio ($100 value)
$100 opening deposit for a Power Saver CD at Opportunities Credit Union
Great Harvest Bakery “Year of Free Bread” – one loaf/month for a year ($70 value)
Two pairs of tickets to Higher Ground Comedy Battle Jan. 17 ($30/pair value)
Five-class pass to South End Studio ($60 value)
$100 gift certificate from 1-800-GOT-JUNK?
Personal Training Session at Greater Burlington YMCA ($65 value)
An assortment of 20 greeting cards from Sweet Basil Cards ($60 value)

Don’t delay! Post your “car for sale,” “seeking snow removal” or “lost cat” message today… or share a neighborhood resolution, poem, joke, hope for your town… you decide. Any ten-word posting received by Front Porch Forum between Jan. 10 and 12 will be entered in the raffle! An individual may enter the drawing up to twice a day.

Thanks to our raffle sponsors and happy 2010!

P.S. Trouble posting? Just hit reply to an FPF email, or post via our website.

P.P.S. Posting a comment to this blog will NOT enter you in the raffle! You must post to your FPF neighborhood forum to enter the drawing.

UPDATE 1: See sample entries from FPF members.

UPDATE 2: Raffle winners announced!

The decade’s Vermonters who know how to get things done

Posted on Friday, January 1, 2010 by Michael • No comments yet

Thanks to the Burlington Free Press for including a Front Porch Forum co-founder in its list of the decade’s Vermonters “who know how to get things done!”

UPDATE: Now the Freeps has the story online too.

Shihtzu fends off Shovel Man Robber!

Posted on Wednesday, December 30, 2009 by Michael • 1 comment

Residents of Burlington’s New North End have been reporting on Front Porch Forum break-ins and scams targeting the elderly this past week. Looks like one FPF member has found a solution…

Just another voice to add to the neighborhoods re. the shoveling robber. On Monday, the 28th, a man approached our home on Grey Meadow Drive. My husband was in the backyard and Odin, our 22 lb Shihtzu was with him playing ball. Odie took off barking like the fierce Tibetan Temple guard dog he is and next we know he was in front barking furiously while chasing a man who was running for life, out of our open garage. He had expletives for our good good dog while yelling to us “I only was trying to shovel!”…. well, we knew him for what he was! These are hard times for many people…so neighborhood watches and neighborly communication about these events are good prevention. Also recommended: get a fierce Tibetan Shihtzu: small but fierce!!

Neighbor inspired to knit for homeless… currently 12°F

Posted on Thursday, December 17, 2009 by Michael • 1 comment

From ebebee crafts blog…

I read a posting in Front Porch Forum just now about a collection of warm hats and gloves and socks for homeless people on December 21st, which is apparently National Homeless Persons’ Memorial Day, in honor of those who have died homeless. An important cause! I passed a guy sitting in a doorway today on Church Street, and I felt really bad that I didn’t have any spare change to give him. It’s really cold out there tonight! I hope everyone has found space in a shelter or somewhere else warm to sleep.

So, anyway, it inspired me to start knitting a wool hat to bring to the collection drive. I’ve completed a couple of inches already. Plenty of time before the 21st to finish it. Maybe I’ll go buy some wool socks from the “sox market” too. And Uncommon Grounds, where you’re supposed to bring donations, is also giving out free coffee, which is really nice of them. And they have yummy coffee.

So, yeah. It feels good to be inspired by this, and I hope that the hat I make will end up on someone’s head and that it will keep their ears warm.

Here’s the original post…

Give the Gift of Warmth and Get a FREE Hot Coffee! Across the nation, December 21st is recognized as the National Homeless Persons’ Memorial Day. This day serves as a time to remember our neighbors who have died homeless during the year.

On this first day of winter and the longest day of the year, the Community Health Center of Burlington (CHCB) and Uncommon Grounds have partnered to take action and to not only remember those who have died, but to help ensure that those who continue to struggle with homelessness have at least a warm pair of socks, gloves and a hat.

Bring in a new pair of warm/wool socks, gloves, or a hat to Uncommon Grounds, located at 42 Church Street, between 7 am – 8 pm on Monday, December 21st and receive a free small coffee. Hot, freshly brewed coffee, donated by Uncommon Grounds, will also be served to CHCB’s homeless patients during the day at the Safe Harbor Clinic.

Please take the time on Monday when you drive down Main Street and see the big purple ribbon on the memorial tree on the lawn of the Fletcher Free Library to pause and remember those who have died homeless this year; and if you’re on Church Street finishing up your holiday shopping, please stop by Uncommon Grounds to donate a new pair of socks/gloves/hat and warm up with a free cup of coffee.

For more information about the Community Health Center or their Homeless Health Care services visit http://www.chcb.org Thank you!

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Ghost of Midnight is an online journal about fostering community within neighborhoods, with a special focus on Front Porch Forum (FPF). My wife, Valerie, and I founded FPF in 2006... read more

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