thread magazine EARLY FALL | 2011 ISSUE #2
burlington.vt
OUR INTERVIEWS WITH
MYRA FLYNN &
LAZERDISK PARTY SEX MUSHPOST PRESENTS BURLINGTON TWENTYSOMETHINGS DANIEL & SARA
THE GREAT MIGRATION
OUR NEW TRAVEL SECTION
LOCAL ART CREATIVE WRITING AND SO MUCH MORE...
10% of proceeds from this issue go to VT Flood Relief Fund
cover image: Myra Flynn photo by Ben Sarle
THREAD MAGAZINE threadvt.com Issue #2 Early Fall 2011 PUBLISHER/EDITOR Ben Sarle editor@threadvt.com COPY EDITORS David Scherr Elaine W. Jennings CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Christopher Brown KC Orcutt Kara Brown Meghan Miller Marni Salerno Seth Hurley Jordan Rosenberg RF Larkin CONTRIBUTING ARTISTS/PHOTOGRAPHERS Bobby Bruderle DJ Barry Marni Salerno Makasi Seeko Siriwayo Gregory Forber Nick Heilig Laren Mazzotta Carrie Bagalio Torrey Valyou Monica Donovan Amanda Rose Anthony Boccio SOCIAL MEDIA Sean Hurley Jon Torrey Kyle Girard Hearforward COMMUNICATIONS & MARKETING REP Porter Sperry | porter@threadvt.com Special Thanks to: Kerri Macon/Burlington City Arts, Lazerdisk Party Sex, Allison Pacelli/Bonjour-Hi!, American Flatbread, ‘Ditto’, Myra Flynn, Junior’s, Manhattan Pizza, New Duds 3
Welcome to Thread Magazine | Issue #2 When we launched issue #1 of Thread Magazine in August, we could not have predicted the overwhelming response full of support and enthusiasm from the Burlington community. Thank you, you have made this issue possible. And a very big thanks to all of our advertisers who helped double our print circulation and make this issue free for all to read. If this is your first time picking up the publication - Thread is a collaboration of the area’s most talented journalists, creative writers, and visual artists – Burlington’s new editorial syndicate. The magazine is online as well as here in print, and will strive to be a dynamic, professional, and aesthetically pleasing arts & culture magazine for Burlington to enjoy and shape. A 100% independent publication, Thread is an evolving and creative beast, bringing together many different facets of the city and we truly try to connect with every aspect of Burlington… We also want to play our part in social responsibility within our local community, so we are donating 10% of proceeds from every issue to a different charitable cause each month. That is our pledge. Flip to page 24 to read about the current recipient, VT Irene Flood Relief Fund. We would absolutely love to have you contribute, pitch, or advertise; so please don’t hesitate to contact us at info@threadvt.com, or email the editor directly at editor@threadvt.com Thank you, we are proud to present issue #2, our early fall edition… Sincerely, Ben Sarle | Publisher/Editor & The Thread Magazine Team
look: threadvt.com like: facebook.com/threadvt follow: @threadvt 4
illustration by torrey valyou newduds.net
THANK YOU BURLINGTON
CONT THREAD MAGAZINE | ISSUE #2 | EARLY FALL 2011
39
31
THIS MUST BE THE PLACE
LAZERDISK PARTY SEX
6
MYRA
20
14
36
THE GREAT MIGRATION
ENTS* 40
8 BURLINGTON TWENTYSOMETHINGS | DANIEL MUSHPOST PRESENTS
ASK MEGO
27 BURLINGTON TWENTYSOMETHINGS | SARA
45
49 7
mushpost
8
presents
by KC Orcutt photos by Ben Sarle
A
month ago, at approximately 6:30 am, Nick Concklin burst into his living room, grinning, and carrying a banner that was ripped in two pieces, splitting the word “Mushpost” directly in half, above the tagline “curators of fine bass” and Mushpost’s website in an attractive font face. The printed banner was worn at the edges and was brought to its current condition of physical demise at the conclusion of an event at North End Studios, where Mushpost hosted Bristol-based producer Addison Groove. For Concklin, saving the crumbled banner was of the utmost importance - as it had survived over 20 events prior - pinning it on his wall as a symbolic labor of love equally representing hard work and late nights during the past year and beyond. The name Mushpost is derived from the song “Mushroom Compost” by IDM producer μ-Ziq and the Burlington-based crew of event curators and electronic music aficionados is a collaborative effort that grew out of friendship and blossomed into a mutual sense of responsibility to expose quality, forwardthinking bass music to Burlington. “Mushpost is a meaningless term, which is entirely the point,” says Concklin. “This is something entirely unfamiliar to you but we are going to bring it to you through means which you already are familiar if possible.” It’s as simple as that; or as complex as the premise that events of the Mushpost
flavoring aim to inspire a cerebral connection in addition to providing a forum for dancing and showcasing a wide-range of genres under the progressive umbrella of today’s electronic music. With the same common denominator being about the music, the minds behind Mushpost are greatly inspired and influenced by the musical balancing act that is mathematically and intellectually progressive, as well as melodically sensational. “I was never a fan of simple pop music,” says Concklin, “It was progressive or grunge rock that inspired me because it had elements of classical music but at the same time was using new sounds at the time. It was about rock ‘n roll and jazz and fusing them together into this one cohesive whole that was still complex, and telling this story. The sense of narrative is the point -- In everything, you have to be able to tell a story.” Concklin is a co-founding DJ and manager at Mushpost, alongside Sycofont, DirtStax, Thelonious X and the help from various others on the scene, including bringing national and international headlining guests to play out, as well as working with other promoters in Burlington such as 2kDeep and Bonjour-Hi!. Each group of event curators has its
own niche with their own goals and aesthetics, with some overlap from the Burlington audience. Mushpost has emerged onto the scene as being focused on alternative electronic music with the underlying goal to trigger the senses and expose diverse, accessible, new sounds to the masses, occupying an innovative space between the already-existing indie and rave scenes.
“...different senses being triggered simultaneously is what appeals to us” Concklin, who DJs under the moniker, The Orator, riffed on his first event playing out, called Braindance, prior to the concept and evolution of Mushpost. He pinned the term as a source of personal inspiration, detailing how the phrase was coined roughly by electronic
composer Aphex Twin, and how the ideology is that as music gets your body moving, the question then presents itself as how does one trigger ones intellect simultaneously. “We don’t want to distract you so much that you have to stand still and think about it,” says Concklin. “But that your brain can weave into the mix as you are dancing. There’s always going to be distractions and things going on. You’re busy doing whatever it is you do, so let us bring it to you.” The accessibility is directly juxtaposed with the raver mentality – the notion that people want to hear music that they can dance to. Mushpost aims to take that notion a bit further, sparking an intellectual investment to the music. “It’s the same way that with bass you hear and feel it at the same time and multiple, different senses being triggered simultaneously is what appeals to us,” says Concklin. Mushpost has since evolved out of its early form as Concklin’s former college radio show title on station 90.1 WRUV, into a multifaceted production company that showcases new talent and touring DJs in the form of a free monthly event at Nectar’s, called Select, a weekly grime brick mix series on WRUV on
Mondays, a weekly show hosted by Thelonious X called The Quiet Storm and additionally assists with several events a month, either in curating or providing support as billed DJs. This past Labor Day weekend, Mushpost teamed up with WRUV and the various partners of the South End Arts and Business Association to present its contribution to Burlington’s 19th annual Art Hop. The annual affair is a two-day event that attracts over 30,000 visitors to BVT and combines art, local businesses and music in a family-friendly, public forum. “It’s not too far of a cry to call the music that stimulates both your mind and your body art because art is ultimately an expression of self, through various forms of mediums,” says Concklin. “There are the more artistic forms of live music. There is noise and experimental sounds or more avant-garde stuff, but that removes the physical element, the music, it’s just mental. For Art Hop, primarily the function is to display art. For us, it was about turning people onto this music; people who I know would enjoy this music if they were shown it. I want them to focus on this great art dance music. This music that will stimulate. The beauty of it is that if you don’t want that, if you want to just dance, you can. If you want to focus on what the DJ is doing, it’s there.” With dubstep being oversaturated in the year 2011, Mushpost now focuses on highlighting live producers and music beyond the confines of one particular genre, and aims to help get an audience invested in DJs and producers showcasing his or her form of live art through sound without any objectives geared towards making a profit. For this year’s Art Hop, Mushpost brought Chrissy Murderbot who also fit the aesthetic of simply wanting their music and talents heard. In blending a public art event with the sounds of Brooklyn-based producer Machinedrum and Chicago-based encyclopedic DJ Chrissy Murderbot, a capability arose between the indie and art scenes that were mutually beneficial to the community. “The main benefit that I see is that I get to play my music for a lot of people who might not normally be interested in dance music,” says Chris Shively, aka Chrissy Murderbot, “And likewise, there are a lot of party kids who couldn’t care less about visual art, and if they expand their horizons a little then that’s great too.” So much of these events have to do with the energy of the crowd. It’s not about numbers, or figures, or any other logistics out of the audience’s control; it’s about the moments the music generates. “I love what I do, I live for it, I want to expose as many people as I can, and I want to protect and advance this dance music culture that I’ve grown up in, but at the end of the
f
day it’s just party music,” says Shively. “We’re not curing cancer here. Surgeons have a responsibility, firefighters have a responsibility, I’m just having fun. I love playing for a really excited audience packed into a space that is slightly too small for them. There’s something about that heat and that overcrowding that just makes the energy level that much higher. I’d rather play for 150 people in a 100 person venue than 500 people in a 1000 person venue, you know?” That emotion and drive that both Murderbot and Machinedrum emit, is a mentality that Mushpost also advocates for. With this
year’s Art Hop being another successful event under their belt, there’s nowhere for the collective to go besides onto the next. Well, that, and to go about replacing their banner.
Convenient Location and Great Selection • Over 1,200 Vermont products • Extensive beer & wine department • Large variety of wellness products • Hot and cold food bar • Deli sandwiches • Fresh local produce • Artisan cheese • Fresh cut meat • Friendly staff
Voted Best Chinese Restaurant in Burlington, VT
Lunch & Dinner - Open 7 Days 133 Bank St. Burlington, VT Tel: 802-865-5200 Lunch Monday-Friday 11:30-1:45 Saturday 11:30-3pm Sunday Dim Sum 11:30-1:45 Dinner Nightly from 5pm
MYRA 14
photos (left & right) ben sarle
Myra Flynn and Zack & Chad of Lazerdisk Party Sex - the story of these local Vermont artists and what it’s like to be killing it...
LAZERDISK PARTY SEX
INTERVIEWS BY BEN SARLE PHOTOGRAPHY BY BEN SARLE & BOBBY BRUDERLE 15
MYRA SEPTEMBER, 2011 Ben Sarle: Thanks so much for taking the time to sit down with Thread today. First, where are you from? Myra Flynn: West Brookfield, Vermont. Ben: When did you come to Burlington?
16
Myra: [Referring to her Chihuahua, Polo, jumping up onto the couch:]. …Oh you can put him on the floor if you want. I moved to Burlington 6 years ago. Ben: How did your music career start? Myra: When I was in college I worked with some people in New York doing some singing when I was really young. And when I came back to Vermont I was like ‘Eh, I’m pretty much done singing.’ And then on my 21st birthday, I had a couple drinks and went out and saw this band playing and thought I really wanted to sing with them. So I got up on stage and sang a song, and Paul Boffa was a part of that, who is now my musical partner, and he kid-
napped me and said ‘we need to start something’. So I did it for fun, and then it kind of started to outweigh everything else, take over my life. I’ve been doing it professionally for 6 years, and full time for almost 3. Ben: So before you were full time what were you doing for a “day job?” Myra: Before that, I was a full time staff reporter for The Burlington Free Press. Ben: I think I’ve heard of it... Myra: Ha, and before that I was a full time editor for Letters to the Editor. And before that I was a full time sales rep for the BFP advertising department.
p. bobby bruderle
Ben: That’s awesome. Did you study journalism? Myra: Yep, journalism, English, and communications. I went to Dickinson College for 3 years, and then Norwich University, which my mom is the dean at, for my final year. Ben: How did you get involved with the Free Press originally? Myra: I just walked in. I remember one day I was like ‘Oh! This is the Free Press’. I walked in said ‘Uh, I want a job here...’ and Helen, who is still the coolest boss ever, she waited for me to get my act together over a couple months and then hired me as like, the bitch of the bitch of the bitch of the advertising department. It was really cool. But then I got promoted 5 times. Ben: That’s a quick climb. Myra: Yea, basically it went like making no money to making a ton of money in sales, to being like ‘I wanna write’ and going back to making no money. Just a lot of different job positions but it was cool. Ben: Then 3 years ago, what was that transition like going from music as your side work to having it as your full time profession? Myra: I was laid off from the Free Press, they were doing tons of rounds of them, and on the third round I was cut. But I’m not entirely sure it didn’t have to do with the fact that I was singing so much already, I’m kind of like a walking conflict of interest for most press publications. And at the same time, that’s also kind of why they hired me for the arts & entertainment position, so it was a catch 22,
‘I felt like I couldn’t balance the two, and music was inevitably winning.’
p. ben sarle
So when I got laid off, I remember the day, I just kind of sat there thinking ‘what am I gonna do now?’, I thought ‘I got this far with music without actually trying, I wonder if I put some effort into it, what would happen.’ And it was a lot of work, really crazy, it’s like starting your own business, learning how to write invoices, learning how to be an LLC, learning how to file your taxes differently. And at the same time somehow create the stuff that you’re trying to sell
and find the time to write songs. I take it very seriously. It’s been crazy but it’s been good. Ben: In that time period, what have been the milestones for you? Didn’t you have a song on a popular television show? Myra: Haha yes! Oh, yes, milestones. Well definitely, Ashton Kutcher used my song Feels Like the Sunshine on the
CW show The Beautiful Life, which was the weirdest thing in the world... Ben: I bet, was he a producer on that show? Myra: Yes, he was, but it’s been cancelled. Yea don’t worry, you can’t hear it. But the way that came about is that Grace Potter’s manager Justin Goldberg, his company Measurement Arts Entertainment is paired now with CBS records, so I signed a licensing deal with them. And it was through them that Ashton found me, and that was a very cool thing for me. And working with Gregory Douglas has been a milestone for me, somebody I idolize a lot. He’s been quite the mentor. Ben: How did you meet Gregory, you were in a band at some point with him too, right?
p. bobby bruderle
Myra: I was last summer, yea, Side Pony. Gregory is my producer, and he is the guy that writes the book on being the independent artist, ya know, it’s no nonsense. And so to feel like I’ve studied under him is an understatement. He is so brilliant and outside of the box. I feel like some artists are so brilliant sometimes to their own detriment but he is not, he puts it to good use. And we met bitching about the music industry on Church Street. We were like ‘and then this! and then that!’ and then ‘we need to get cocktails and do this’. So we did that, and it just turned into awesomeness, we have kind of a really crazy relationship. Ben: So cool. How many albums have you put out? Myra: Two. Ben: And this last one that just came out, when was that? Can you tell us about it, and process of its creation?
p. ben sarle
Myra: August 5th. Yeaaa, well I have a particular battle in my life, and that is that everyone wants to hear a black girl sing like a black girl. Maybe that means Aretha Franklin, maybe that means
something big and belting, Whitney Houston, whatever it may be. I’m half Irish, and I grew up in Vermont, and I have two very distinct sides of me that I try to really represent in my music and feel like I’ve never been able to fully capture until this album. This album is called, in my opinion, indie-soul. The guitars are louder than the vocals for once, and I’ve used The Strokes as an influence as much as I’ve used Corrine Bailey Rae. If you like TV on the Radio, or How to Dress Well, or bands like that, you might really like this album. But maybe if you like Joni Mitchell you’ll really like this album too, ya know? Ben: What’s touring and your time on the road like for you?
Ben: What’s the tour schedule going to be like in the spring? Myra: I have a couple shows I’m trying to base it around, so I’ll have more information soon, stay tuned. www.myraflynn.com is where you can find it all. Ben: So besides that, what’s coming up for Myra? Myra: Well, October 15th at Higher
p. bobby bruderle
Ground I’m going to share a bill with Gregory Douglas in support of him, and it’s going to be my farewell party. Ben: Oh no! Where are you going? Myra: I’m going to Brooklyn. I’m moving there. It’s been a recent decision, I’ve had some personal stuff go awry and I think it could be time. But I’ve already booked so many shows back here in Vermont that I feel like I’m just changing the place I hang my clothes. Like I’m just everywhere and nowhere, not really ‘from’ anywhere anymore. Ben: Awesome, where in Brooklyn? Myra: Greenpoint... Yea, we’ll see, I’m going to try it for a year and then come back. Ben: We’ll be looking forward to your return. Thanks again for chatting today! Myra: Thank you!
myraflynn.com facebook.com/myra.flynn @MyraFlynn
Myra: I tend to not tour in the sense that I go out for months at a time, because I don’t have a trust fund, ya know, so I keep coming back to Vermont, making some money, and then going back out on the road. That’s pretty much what August entailed for me, promoting this album, having a bunch of CD release shows. And then I’ll do a West Coast tour in the spring, and I just kind of take it by region. I really love singer/songwriter venues where people are quiet and it’s usually ticketed and it’s just a very different experience, I’m kind of addicted to it. Places like Club Passim in Cambridge, Mass has been a great place for that. Obviously the FlynnSpace is great for CD release shows, and Rockwood Music Hall in New York City. Those are really great places. And when I go out West I’ll do more festivals and things like that, it’ll be a bigger band, bigger production.
LAZERDISK PARTY SEX SEPTEMBER, 2011 Ben Sarle: Let’s dive right into it. This feature is about you guys and Myra Flynn; two examples of local artists, from very difference scenes, who are having some great success doing what you love both here in Burlington and reaching a broader audience touring around the country... Zack Johnson: Well, the word ‘tour’ gets tossed around a lot, we’ve done and are doing a group of shows is maybe a better way to put it. We’ve done that a couple times, and we’re doing another one soon. Ben: Before we jump right into that, to get some
perspective, what were you guys both doing before LDPS? Zack: Before Lazerdisk, I was working at The Lab, which is a DJ music production school; I was coowner. And I was also DJ’ing solo gigs around town and in the Burlington area, which is also where I’m from originally. Chad Bechard: And I was... I don’t know if I was interning or if I was teaching at The Lab that point... Zack: You were teaching at the point I think. Chad: Oh I was? Ok, well so I was teaching at The Lab, I had just started DJ’ing downtown Burlington
at Rasputin’s and that’s pretty much it. But I’m from Maine originally, Cape Elizabeth. Ben: When did you come to Burlington? Chad: Well I went to Champlain College, got there in 2006. Ben: And how old are you guys? Zack: I’m 29. Chad: 23. Ben: How did you meet? Zack: I was working at Steez clothing part-time and Chad came into Steez, I think he was... not shopping, but maybe you were. I dunno, what were you doing? Chad: Ha, I was hustling mixtapes around town. Zack: Hustling mixtapes, that’s right. And we got to talking about the scene in general, like downtown DJ’ing, the DJ scene I should say, music scene, and I think that’s when I told Chad I was co-owner of The Lab but he thought it was Turntable Lab at first? But then he figured out it was the DJ school, and correct me if I’m wrong, but he didn’t know about it at the time, right? Chad: Well I had heard about it but I didn’t really know anything about it.
p. bobby bruderle
20
p. ben sarle
Zack: Chad gave me a mix tape, and I listened to it, and I remember really enjoying it, it was like a mashup - a multi-genre mixtape, it was fun. And then a mutual friend, Brad, came to The Lab looking for an internship. Chad: No I was looking for the internship. Zack: Ha right, well Brad was there too. And they both got an internship at The Lab for that summer of 2010... right? Chad: I think it was 2009, yea. Zack: Yea yea, summer 2009. Ben: When did the idea for LDPS happen, and what was that process like? Zack: Well we both had opportunities to play at the UVM Springfest 2010, and that was with MSTRKRFT. There were like 5 DJs that were opening... Chad: Side stage, it was a side stage offer, wasn’t main stage or anything. Zack: Right, and the sets were really short and we decided to play together at the same time, like it would be cool - two DJs mixing tracks over tracks over tracks ya know, instead of just one. Like join forces. And I am into the theatrics, maybe do something loud like fire off confetti or something. But I said let’s wear like donkey suits, like horse or donkey suits so people don’t even know it’s us, come up with a different name that isn’t ZJ & Pres, it’s something else. So Chad said nah, I’m not really feeling the donkey idea, let’s think of something
else, and then he was like ‘how about Storm Trooper helmets with tuxedos from Men’s Warehouse’? And the whole bow-tie and tie thing came about because Men’s Wearhouse messed up our orders we were supposed to both have bowties, but they wound up giving us a bow-tie and a necktie so we just rolled with it. Chad was playing around with the word ‘Lazerdisk’, the old technology, and minutes before we go on stage it was just Lazerdisk. And our friend George, who also interned at The Lab and was part of SA concerts at UVM, he was like ‘you guys should have something else, maybe spice it up’... Chad: Well I wanted it to be ‘Lazerdisk something something’, because I didn’t want people to think we thought the word ‘Lazerdisk’ was, like, really cool, so I wanted something else at the end of it. The fact of the matter is it’s like a dead technology, like it’s not that cool. Zack: Yea, cliche. Chad: Yea, so I wanted something else after it, I didn’t know what it could be, like ‘thunder fist’ or something. Whatever, I didn’t care, and I told George and he said he’d come up with something.. Zack: He came up with ‘party sex’. Ben: And this was moments before you went on stage in front of the huge crowds at Springfest? Zack: Yea, and George was hosting, and was like ‘Ok, I’m going to introduce you guys, so, it’s Lazerdisk Party Sex?’ And I remember Craig Mitchell coming up to me after saying like, ‘So, what is your name, is it Sex Party? Or Party Sex?’ because it
was being tossed around the whole time, and we were like yea, it’s ‘ Lazerdisk Party Sex’ let’s stick with that. Ben: So how did your success evolve from that point only a little over a year ago? Zack: After that set, we both had a blast, had a really good time, and thought ‘let’s keep doing this’. We liked the concept of four turntables, two mixers, and we were doing a residency at Red Square on Sunday nights together, so we decided to keep that element. Anytime Chad and I play together, we’ll we use two turntables now, but we mix together four channels. And then somehow, I’ve always wanted to play down in Martha’s Vineyard, because I used to vacation there when I was younger and I remembered it being a really lively scene. We wanted to experiment because we had such positive feedback from the shows, so we wanted to do more shows outside of Burlington and we kind of set up what we called a “tour” in Martha’s Vineyard for 5 days, wearing these storm trooper helmets under the name Lazerdisk Party Sex. We had a mutual friend hook us up and act as our booking agent, my friend Ally, and she had never booked shows at the time. And I used to book shows a long time ago with Lotus Entertainment and everything I learned from that I gave to her and said ‘look you’re a booking agent this is what you say to them’ and stuff, and she set it up. And at first we were like ‘what are we doing’, we got to Martha’s Vineyard, totally surprised that these people actually booked us and the first show we were so nervous we didn’t even wear the helmets. It wasn’t until the last show we wore the helmets the entire time. Even our second show we put them on for five minutes and were like ‘uhh, ok let’s take them off now’.
Chad: Yea, and we can’t forget that we had gotten a lot of attention through blogs, music blogs and the Hype Machine, that have posted our original tracks. That’s what’s really helped open us up to so many different areas around the country. That’s how we were able to play our first music festival in Colorado. And we’ve been able to expand that way thanks to the internet and music blogs and people downloading our music for free, we don’t sell any of our music, we just give it out and it’s been pretty rewarding even though the initial response from some people is like ‘why are you giving away your music when you spend this much time making it?’ Zack: People would be able to figure out how to download it even if you don’t give it away for free. Chad: And at the point we had the three first remixes out, we had ‘Like a Prayer’, ‘Pony’, and maybe the ‘Dirty Talk’ one out? Maybe, probably, it’s hard to remember. But we had three remixes and no original tracks yet, but we had remixes that were appropriate especially for the types of gigs we were getting, so it was nice to see the response to those. Ben: Tell us about your growth after that. Zack: Well, Chad can tell the story about ‘Lemonade’, but we didn’t do any Lazerdisk shows around here for a while, right? Chad: We started off kind of doing a bunch of little, like 3-day weekend type things, Halloween we’d do a show, and do some shows around Burlington, and we started thinking we didn’t want to tire out Lazerdisk, we didn’t want it to stop being special. Because a Lazerdisk show is a little bit more of a spectacle, there’s a little more performance than just us DJ’ing. So we’d been working on this track, wasn’t a remix, fully original, and we finally got it done. And we finished the track 3 or 4 days before we played a show at Higher Ground, so what we did was submit it to a bunch of blogs, it got on the Hype Machine, and it got up to #3, and then a couple days later we had our show, and we had a film crew there to film it, and give us a good promo reel. And then I had talked to my friend in Colorado, it was actually my ex-girlfriend’s cousin’s boyfriend, who was working at Snowball festival and I had said I’d just like to go to it, not even play at it, and he put in the word for us and then once they saw that the track was getting so much viral publicity, they contacted us to see if we’d be interested and we said yes. Then we built off of that one day at this music festival and that’s how we got the ball rolling for the tour. Ben: And in case people don’t know, what’s Snowball? Zack: It’s a three day festival in Vail, Colorado. It’s actually a town right next to it called Avon. And it was their first year doing it, but they had some pretty big acts this last winter, Flaming Lips, Bassnectar, Pretty Lights, Diplo, bunch of people. Ben: Do you think you can attribute some of your success since that point to the festival? Zack: Oh, definitely. We had to drive ourselves out there, we didn’t get paid for the festival, for us it was just such a great opportunity. But that was the catalyst for doing this tour, because we couldn’t afford to just go out there so let’s book some shows along the way and the way back. But at Snowball, there’s two different tents and a main stage. We were in the
smallest tent. And we had a really excited crowd, and people didn’t know who we were, they were just walking by. We noticed that after doing that show we gained a lot of fans from Colorado. And we’ve gone back once already, and we’re going back in October. And it’s just a lot of fans from Boulder and Denver. And in September we’re doing a week long Midwest tour, like 5 or 6 different cities later in September. We’ve bounced around a lot, like driving after playing in Colorado to Miami, and back up to Vermont. Ben: At what point were you able to do this for a living? Zack: Haha, are we doing this for a living? Ben: Ha, maybe I’m jumping the gun a little bit then, but you’re no longer with The Lab right? And do you guys have day jobs? Zack: Mmm, no. Chad: No. Zack: Well I give private lessons still. But the main focus is Lazerdisk. When did we decide to become full-time? Then I would say back in December 2010, when we released Lemonade. Actually ya know what, for me I think it was after we did Martha’s Vineyard, I was like ‘Ok, we survived that, some of the bars we played in actually liked us’ and for
me it helped build confidence that we were doing something people liked, because we like it too. And then ‘Lemonade’ came out and the buzz for that was overwhelmingly awesome, and it’s still popular, our first original single. Chad: I feel like once I started to see that there was a good response to the remixes we were putting out, around the time Martha’s Vineyard tour, as soon as fans on Hype Machine or in general wanted us to play this or that or the other thing, I was like ‘ok, we’re doing something right’, I wanted to keep doing it, that’s what sort of did it for me. Zack: With blogs and actual fans,
‘people who aren’t just your friends say they like what you’re doing, it’s like ok maybe we are doing something right.’ And I think when we played at UNH, we had college students come up to us and and be like ‘hey we love what you guys do, who are you?’, it was an awesome feeling. Ben: So how many original tracks are out now, and where can people find your music, Soundcloud?
Zack: Soundcloud. Yea, with Soundcloud that’s where we host our music, but if we’re getting ready for a release we’ll send it out to blogs who have posted our stuff in the past. So we have two originals, and five remixes, right? Chad: I’m counting... I don’t know what you’d call ‘Tiger Blood,’ it’s kind of a remix of a ringtone... Zack: It’s hard because I treat the Bonjour-Hi! remix as an original almost, but it is a remix. Chad: I don’t know, as of now we have two unreleased original tracks that we just are finishing up and we’re working on a bunch more. Ben: So when people see you performing, can you explain how you’re mixing and what you’re actually doing on the tables? Chad: At the moment, they’re just DJ sets, that we’ll rehearse so we can mix more quickly. But we’re currently working on the live performance style set that would be much more dynamic, more like creating music right in front of the audience. Zack: Yea, we’re doing DJ sets, but like Chad was saying, doing stuff on stage, like we’ve come to realize we can do more with our set up, we want it to flow like you’re listening to a DJ but we’re actually playing the parts out on a midi controller or something. That’s what we’re working on, revamping our p. bobby bruderle
set up. Ben: What do you guys see in the future for Lazerdisk?
Ben: So you have 3 out?
Zack: We’re planning on moving to Miami, to work on music and DJ part-time. Pretty much what we’re doing here in Burlington except Chad and I will get a place together. And then work on tracks and do festivals in spring and summer. Ben: Are you going to split your time between here and there, or just be in Miami?
Zack: Mm no. Well ‘Don’t Touch My Mustache’, we play that out, but we actually haven’t “released” it yet.
Zack: Nah we’d split the time, as of right now, the plan is to be in Miami for the winter, do festivals in the Spring and the Summer, and then... retire. Just kidding.
Zack: Well if you’re in Chicago... no just kidding. We talked about a show, with the idea of it being free, but as of right now we don’t have anything concrete. So, just be on the lookout, check listings and your local newspapers...
Ben: That is awesome. Are you going to release those two unreleased original tracks anywhere, maybe on SoundCloud, for people to find? Zack: Yes. Well actually, maybe I’m speaking too soon, but we hope to release at least one of them on turntable.fm, but that’s in the works. It’s an idea, something we’d like to do. Chad: Yea we might do a debut on turntable.fm, but we talked about that a while ago though. Zack: Oh! Oh nevermind, nevermind. I was gonna say, I forgot about ‘Don’t Touch My Mustache’ track. Chad: Oh wait, yea I guess we have 3 original tracks!
Ben: Got it, well people should stay tuned for that. Anything else you want to promote for the people reading this?
Chad: We don’t do anything in the newspaper... Zack: I know, just joking. But yea check us out on Facebook, ‘like’ us... a lot. Twitter, you can follow us on Twitter, on the Twitter machine.
facebook.com/lazerdiskpartysex soundcloud.com/lazerdisk-party-sex lazerdiskpartysex.com lazerdiskpartysex.tumblr.com @LAZERDISK
Chad: Not just festivals, but the idea is for us to spend time and accumulate enough original materials where a full live set would be an option. At the moment, we’re coming up with the live set but we only have so much original stuff, so the idea with Miami is to get it all in one space, keep DJ’ing out but at the same time preparing for, ya know, a larger scale tour.
p. bobby bruderle
Zack: 3, 3 tracks.
23
10% to VT Irene Flood Relief Thread Magazine’s social responsibility pledge is to donate 10% of proceeds from each issue to a local charitable cause. Hurricane Irene devastated the state of Vermont, and the long term damage from flooding is still affecting the lives of our neighbors in the hardest hit areas. That is why we are going to play our small part by donating at least 10% of our proceeds from our advertising, events, and t-shirt sales this month to the VT Irene Flood Relief Fund. The VT Irene Flood Relief fund donates 100% of donations to small businesses impacted by Irene’s flooding. Small businesses are the beating heart of our communities here in VT, and are still struggling to rebuild. You can make a donation at http://www.vtirenefund.org The images appearing on these pages were taken two days after the storm hit in Wilmington, VT, one of the hardest hit communities in the state. We were given access to document the disaster area by The United States Humane Society and The American Red Cross before the public was allowed into the center of town. Wilmington is one of the communities that will be helped tremendously through the support of the VT Irene Fund.
25
26
“waterfall” by nick heilig | FlatLineInk.com | Heiligart.com
My Barrel Full of Fish Dragged up from the bottom Tricked to believe what’s best Convinced by tradition To smile through it all Custodians of bad taste And advocates of boredom Zero effort put forth Cancel my subscription And firebomb the future Entitlement always wins Sold out for a small fortune Destined to become nothing Dim stars Searching for a bright future Call it what you will But I’ll call it the status quo R.F. Larkin
27
New Duds handmade in Vermont
Oringinal hand screen printed apparel. 10% off your purchase at www.newduds.net with promo code THREADVT
find us: online at www.newduds.net Growing Vermont in the UVM Davis Center
28
www.newduds.net /// facebook.com/newduds /// newduds@gmail.com
‘Instantaneous’ DJ Barry / djbarryart.com
A word from the artist about the piece When the curator sent me an email inviting me to be a part of a historical exhibit in a NYC gallery, I thought it was to good to be true. I had no idea what was coming. The show titled “Fall: Rising Above 9/11” involved 12 different artists asked to submit one piece of work on their individual feelings of 9/11. This was a huge challenge! Instantaneous represents the unity that formed in America on 9/11/2001. The Twin Towers were represented by two towers of people holding each other up. I also wanted to show the instantaneous nature in which this event took place, so I had them breaking through the cross section of earth, electrical conduits, plumbing, subways, sidewalk and into the night sky. It would have been wrong to not also show the horror that took place, so most of the 63 faces I created have terrifying expressions. It took 62 hours to create it and my step father framed it. My friend Paul, a blacksmith, forged custom brackets in order for me to attach the frame to the painting. The Gallery selected the piece to be front and center of the show.
‘Gramps’ mixed media painting by Makasi Seeko Siriwayo seeko.tumblr.com
This Must Be the Place by Kara Brown
When you tell people that you are moving to Vermont on Wednesday, they tend to react with disbelief. I was living in a small town, the town I grew up in. I was living with my parents. I was teaching where I had gone to undergrad. My sister was off for her turn at grad school. My best friend moved to Korea to teach English to kids. Most of my friends had moved away. Hell, I had moved away and come back. I still felt like a kid in so many ways, locked into old habits and mindsets. The town was full of specters—memories, good and bad, that had gone on repeat and gone stale. None of my three part-time jobs since graduating with a master’s in literature and film were panning out. As much as there is to enjoy about Georgia (there are some things...), I was surrounded by backward people and encroaching suburban sprawl--a Wal-Mart was opening in my hometown. I needed to get the fuck out. And the question gets asked: Why Vermont? And truly, I have no answer. It was a whim. People tell me that I was brave; I don’t feel that way—there was nothing else for me to do. So what was appealing about Vermont? As a 20-something leftist stuck in a gorgeous but conservative, Christian, complacent state, Vermont’s liberalness was an obvious appeal. (I once told my ultra-conservative aunt that I was thinking about moving to Vermont. She said, “You need to be careful.” I thought she might have meant the rough winters. I asked, “Why?” Her answer: “It’s pretty liberal up there.” My only reply: “Well, I’m pretty liberal myself.” The conversation ended there.) I was told Burlington was similar to Athens, Georgia, so there was that connection. I had a friend at Vermont Law School in South Royalton who said Burlington was cool. As the biggest city there, Burlington seemed to have the most options, yet was small enough to be manageable. Though I’d
never been to Vermont, I’d loved every time I’d visited New England. Civil unions (and now gay marriage) were legal there. Howard Dean used to be governor. I think Bernie Sanders is awesome. None of these are reasons to move to a place; like I said, there was no reason. Why reason? These are simply whiffs of whims of appeals. So I found a room to rent on Craigslist. Furnished, check—since I barely owned any furniture and certainly couldn’t bring any in my tiny 1993 Honda Accord. The owner of the room, who needed a six-month sublet (perfect), grilled me on music, movies, books, and drinking habits. I passed. And if those were the important things in this house, I knew I would fit in. I fell in love with Vermont on the drive up. North on I-89, I saw the snow-covered Green Mountains and tears came to my eyes. Dramatic, yes, but I was moved by their foreign yet familiar appearance. Vermont seems to be the best parts of Georgia--a mix of urban and rural--without all the aspects that drove me up the wall. I stopped at a small gas station around the Windsor/Hartland area for some caffeine and a bathroom. It was small and quaint and sold homemade pastries and had country music playing on the radio. The deja vu was not depressing, but rather reassuring. I have lived in cities and in the countryside, and I enjoy both for their own qualities. But this place seems to have struck the perfect balance. I love walking to work, to the store, to the bar. Sometimes I actually resent having to drive my car. I love having interesting places to eat and music venues and art galleries within a minute’s reach. But I’m also surrounded by trees and mountains and water and sky. I can see the stars at night while sitting on the hood of my car in front of my house. And I am under no illusion that Vermont is some
fairytale homogeneous utopia of a modern liberal Eden: that would be boring and silly. But it’s the little things that make the difference: no one freaks out or feels personally affronted when they find out I don’t eat meat; saying you’re an atheist doesn’t carry some heavy stigma; eating local is seen as a virtue; worrying about the environment doesn’t automatically make you a delusional softie; broad denunciations made against high-fructose corn syrup and bottled water are usually met with agreement instead of confusion. Of course the downside to all this tolerance is that I worry I’m losing my edge, becoming an actual liberal softie. I also worry about wasting my time, of taking my two degrees in the humanities and briefly serving as a 29-year-old intern who isn’t even in school and also working in a co-op. Some days I think my job is futile: what am I doing putting cans on shelves? It can be endless, tedious. Yet most days, I like it. I work with my hands. I help supply food to people. All the tedium and time gives your mind time to expand, to think, to be with itself (for better or ill some days). It makes me tired, but not exhausted. It doesn’t come home with me. And I get a discount on groceries. Those first months here, as I settled in with roommates and job and newness, winter turned into spring. I could invoke T. S. Eliot--”April is the cruelest month”--because for someone who despairs of too much cold and grey, spring was an unfulfilled promise, even as everyone around me was assuring me that summer would be amazing. The official first day of spring made me cry. I saw March 22 on the calendar, clearly labeled “First Day of Spring,” and I looked out the window to still-chilly temps. “Disheartening” is not a strong enough word. The broad swings between pleasant and miserable weather didn’t help. But on the first sunny, slightly warm day, people went nuts; I did, too. It was like the world was new. People smiled on the streets. You saw grass instead of frozen dog shit. You went without a hoodie in the evening, though you huddled into your chest a bit at the end, because you were determined to enjoy the not-freezing fresh air. Drinking beer seemed a celebration rather than distraction. Even as I loved so much about Burlington and Vermont, I found myself being miserable, without reason. The violent upswings and downturns of transitions--the ones, try as you might, you cannot completely wrap your head around as they are actually happening to you. The only thing that consoled me was that there were leaves on the trees, a fact that amazed me every single day. One day in May it seemed I just woke up and there were
green things outside on the trees; I think I did a double-take. There was a month when I was determined to move back to Georgia at the end of the summer. The best thing about my life was my job. Not only is that surprising in itself, but compound it by the fact that I was stocking groceries. I had friends. I had things to do. I had places to go. But I hated all of it. Hate is too strong a word--I simply felt disconnected from this town. I remember walking down the waterfront in late spring and watching the sparkling water in front of the Adirondacks. I knew it must be beautiful, but I was unmoved. It’s odd to feel the baking sun when the only heat is from the rays themselves and not the air around you. One small cloud could make it cold again. Then somehow weather redeemed Vermont again for me: the summer that everyone promised. Where every day seems new and magical (I know, I know...). But how else are you supposed to feel when you are addicted to bike rides and sunsets and farmers markets? Every day that I can, I sit in Battery Park and gaze over the water. The lake is beautiful. The lake is always beautiful. ******** I have already started to dread the winter--the cold, the length. I’m going to have to find a winter activity to keep me occupied. (I don’t ski, which is apparently a shocking thing to tell a Vermonter.) But the other day I had a minor epiphany: maybe the beginning of winter will hold its own magic and beauty, just like the beginning of spring and summer did. The ups and downs of living in a temperate climate: you’re never bored by the weather. So the fall will be gorgeous, and then ease into the desolate white beauty of winter, and I’ll see what more Burlington holds for me, including specters later on, I’m sure. Soon, more than likely. Good and bad. But what’s life but a little bit of longing? ******** Most places are pretty much the same. I could have been in Georgia. It was a summer day. I was across the street from an auto parts store eating softserve from a redneck rip-off ice cream joint, sitting next to a boy. And I was right where I was supposed to be.
I dreamt of colors I couldn’t describe to you photo by Lauren Mazzotta / laurenmazzotta.com
My current shower soap produces a weak lather, in fact, really no lather at all. It’s such a fucking pathetic excuse for soap. Hands down the worst soap I’ve ever used and I bought it at the co-op in the fancy soap section, so I had high hopes for it. Certainly it has pure and organic ingredients, but it produces no lather, no suds whatsoever. It’s the first time soap has ever made me legitimately angry, and hopefully the last. Seth Hurley
I just bought and drank an iced coffee from a fucking McDonald’s without realizing it because it was called a fucking Cafe Metro. Kara Brown
oil painting by Greg Forber gforber@hotmail.com 35
The Great Migration
*A note from the editor, Introducing Thread Magazine’s new travel section. With this new addition, we will explore the adventures and environmental & cultural pursuits of local Vermonters abroad. We hope to bring a new story and dynamic perspective with each issue through the words and lenses of our contributors. This month, we bring you Marni Salerno’s travels to the African Serengeti. Have a great potential addition to our travel section? We want to hear it, email editor@threadvt.com 36
The Great Migration is the largest movewords & photography by Marni Salerno
ment of land mammals on earth. National Geographic’s Patrick Kiger reports that: “Each year, one of the most magnificent spectacles in nature takes place in the African Serengeti, when 1.5 million wildebeest, zebras and other ungulates migrate in search of food and water. Scientists say that Serengeti migration, the greatest remaining mass movement of animals on the planet, is critical to the survival of what remains an ecosystem that has lost over 50 percent of its area to human encroachment since the early 1900s.� Currently this migration faces a new human intrusion. The Tanzanian government has proposed the construction of a highway that would cut through the Serengeti National Park. This would block natural migration in the northern region and prevent the animals from moving in
and out of Kenya’s Masai Mara Natural Reserve. This proposed highway is unnecessary; an alternate route along the southern brim of the park already exists. Developing nations have the opportunity to learn from the mistakes of developed nations. The North American buffalo migration was similar to the current migration of the wildebeest. In the nineteen-century, the construction of railroads destroyed the buffalo migration. The Smithsonian Friends of the National Zoo states that “The American bison population is estimated to have been between 30 and 60 million in 1830. By 1889, the vast herds that once roamed the prairies of the United States had been reduced to fewer than 1,000 animals.� The bison population had been so large that Americans of the era did not believe their actions could harm the herds. They were wrong. Introducing automobile traffic into the heart of the Serengeti would similarly disrupt access to food and water and increase the accessibility of vulnerable animals to poachers.
to read more: www.savetheserengeti.org
As Vermonters, the critical movements of wildebeest, zebras and giraffes on the other side of the planet are only seen on screens and in dreams. However, there is much that an average Vermonter can do to prevent environmental degradation locally and globally. Educate yourself and share with others, and read about what is happening. Many ecological acts of destruction are preventable. If you go to the Serengeti, support sustainable tourism and talk to locals about the issues they face.
Presenting the winning images of our...
MUSIC PHOTOGRAPHY CONTEST
Photographer Monica Donovan took this photo of James Murphy of LCD Soundsystem at Burlington’s Memorial Auditorium last fall. Congratulations to Monica for winning the contest and our prize of tickets to the Conspirator show at Higher Ground on 9/30! Check her out at monicadonovan.com Big thanks to all who entered, more contests in the near future...
Runners-up (Left) Amanda Rose snapped this photo of John Holland at The Monkey House. roseartdesigns@gmail.com (Right) Anthony Boccio shot this of a street performer in Downtown Burlington. fish1out@comcast.net presented by 39
Documenting the lives, careers, and challenges of Burlington’s most dynamic demographic the ‘twentysomething’ BurlingtonTwentySomethings.com “B20” is an online editorial project founded by Randall Morey, Deborah Pereira, Christopher Brown, and Benjamin Sarle. Each issue will contain a B20/Thread collaboration to bring you another investigation into the life of the Burlington Twentysomething. like: facebook.com/burlingtontwentysomethings follow: @b20somethings In the last issue we brought you David on the farm and Natalie on the stage. This month, we present Daniel and Sara...
by Christopher Brown photos by Benjamin Sarle
40
Daniel
Sara 41
Daniel L. Burlington | September 2011
I was chatting with Daniel (@dlut-
trel for all you Twitter folks) the other day on my back porch and the topic of our careers and future plans came up. I feel like the quintessential millennial when I look back on the past five years since graduation and analyze the path (or lack of) that I’ve taken, career wise, to get me where I am today. Daniel has a great job as an RN at Fletcher Allen but has bigger dreams of continuing his education. Its funny how our generation is plagued by trying to find jobs and begin careers while Daniel here started working a month after graduation, yet still has
38 40
the desire to keep growing and trying out new things. I guess the grass is always greener? And thus my interest in interviewing Daniel for B20 (Burlington Twentysomethings) sparked and he agreed to sit down with me for a formal interview. Daniel and I planned to meet at his apartment at 9:30 on an unassuming Wednesday morning. Given that he works exclusively evenings and overnights, the time suited his schedule well. We situated ourselves in his living room and started to chat. I love to begin my interviews by saying ‘so tell me about how you got to be where you are today.” And so his story begins. Daniel, 23, hails from Bethel, VT, a small town of about 1800, roughly 70 miles South of Burlington. Growing up, he hated being in the small town
and had his sights set on getting out as soon as he could. Convinced he was going to head to Boston for college, he made what he considers a surprisingly mature decision at age 17 to head to UVM to pursue his degree in Nursing. Choosing UVM allowed him to leave school debt free, something that many of us fellow millennials could only dream of. Post college, Daniel realized that Vermont wasn’t so bad after all and both Burlington and his hometown of Bethel had a lot to offer. Being away from home gave him an appreciation for what a small town could offer, especially after seeing the recent effect of Hurricane Irene on his old stomping grounds. “Everyone generally cares about each other. Especially after the flood, I’ve seen that so much more. Neighbors helping neighbors, whether they like them or not.” A sense of
community and the simplicity of the town really resonates with him today. After finishing school, Daniel was convinced he was going to leave Burlington before realizing “I really didn’t have any money to move anywhere and I wasn’t really making the effort to apply to jobs anywhere else, mainly because I was pretty confident I was going to get a job at Fletcher Allen”. The recession hit nurses hard causing jobs to be scarce, so Daniel acknowledges he was lucky to be offered any position at all. As a result, he decided to stick around Burlington for a little while.
thing new, gain a different sense of perspective, some more culture, meet new people.” “Burlington is comfortable. It’s something I’ve known for a while. I’ve found my little niche here, I understand
what I’m doing here, I have a job here that’s very good to me and allow me to do good things.” One of the niches that Daniel has found is the work that he does with HOBY, the Hugh O’Brian Youth Leadership Seminar. The international program, founded by
“Burlington is comfortable. It’s something I’ve known for a while. I’ve found my little niche here, I understand what I’m doing here...” As a nurse on Fletcher Allen’s Baird 6 Floor (General Surgery), Daniel works per diem, which he is the first to tell you has its ups and downs. He is able to set his schedule and ends up working exclusively evening or overnight shifts. “I really love those shifts at work but its incredibly hard on my social life because most of my friends who aren’t in nursing do work 9 to 5 jobs and don’t work on the weekends whereas I do work on the weekends and work pretty much every hour but 9 to 5.” Since his schedule is not consistent, it means that work only comes when the patients are there, so planning for expenses takes a good deal of forethought and can be challenging. The trade off is that his schedule allows for a lot of flexibility in how he decides to spend his free time. Much of this time is devoted to traveling and exploring. “Life in Burlington is not always that exciting [but having this job] allows me to take time every month or so to go out and explore some-
39
actor Hugh O’Brian aims to educate students on three kinds of leadership: personal leadership, group leadership and leadership for society. The yearly 4-day conference targets over 100 Vermont high school sophomores and strives to inspire them to become stronger leaders in their communities. While in high school, Daniel was a participant of HOBY and reconnected with them as a volunteer during his days at UVM. Last year he stepped up and became the Leadership Seminar Chairperson and helps to oversee the year long operations and planning of the conference, from finding a location, overseeing staff, planning panels and helping fundraise. “Its funny, all year long we stress and plan to make sure the seminar goes off perfectly and even during the seminar we’re stressed out to make sure things are still happening. But on the last day when you can see the change that you’ve made in these 110 lives in 4 days times its just amazing and nothing feels like that.” Daniel’s pride for the work he does with HOBY is transparent, but has also kept him connected to his VT roots. “You’re es-
sentially changing 100 lives of some of the most influential young people in the state.”
“It’s funny because...I have a professional degree and I don’t know if thats what I want to do for the rest of my life” For now, living in Burlington works, but Daniel is getting the itch to get out and try something new. “Will I leave Burlington? Probably at some point, yes. Within the next 3 years is the goal.” He is the first to admit, however, that if he leaves, the goal would be to return to the area within the next 10 years. To Burlington? Maybe. But most likely to someplace a little outside of the hubbub of this Queen City. “The speed of Burlington can really drive me nuts sometimes, you know, it’s bigger, there are people here all the time, its hard to get away from people, there’s traffic, its crowded. Coming from a small town, Burlington
is the city in Vermont.” And if he’ll stick to nursing? Well, that’s up in the air as well. “It’s funny because...I have a professional degree and I don’t know if thats what I want to do for the rest of my life. You know I have a well paying job as a nurse right out of college, which is great. But do I want to do nursing for the rest of my life, I’m really not sure.” Perhaps returning to school for his degree in education, Daniel mentions “there’s a lot of benefit in molding young minds and I love kids and think I would do pretty well at it.” Lastly, Daniel has a few bits of advice he’s picked up from living here for the past five years. “Sitting around and doing nothing in the winter is the best way to make you hate Burlington. He adds, “I would also suggest that you find a good landlord and find an apartment with cheap rent and never let go of it. Stay in that apartment until you want to leave, there’s no sense in leaving.”
Sara C. South Burlington | September 2011
I was excited to have a chance to sit down with Sara and chat. I’ve known her for my entire life—we grew up together as neighbors, growing up as neighbors in Burlington’s the New North End of Burlington. Being a few years older, she was always someone that I looked up to someone I looked up to. I was intrigued by the choice she had made a few years to go into law enforcement and was excited to ask her about the who, how and the why it all happened. When I showed up at her place, I stepped inside, we hugged and immediately started talking excitedly and catching up. Then, it was down to business. Not only was I interested in hearing her story, but so was B20 & Thread Magazine. Sara,
was born and raised in Burlington. She studied Psychology at the University of Vermont, and she never felt the need to leave the state. Sara realized that Burlington had a lot to offer— her friends, family, the mountains, the festivals, the familiarity. After graduation, she snagged a job in a dental office as a billing coordinator, but after a mere six months , she was unhappy and moved on. She got a job working in her field of study as a behavioral interventionist, serving children on the autism spectrum. “That was a great job. It was very rewarding—the kids were amazing. But it was $20,000 a year and in Vermont the cost of living is so high you can’t make a living off of it, and you can’t live comfortably.” After a while Sara returned to the local grocery store where she had worked growing up, taking an HR position in Middlebury. Her commute wore on her, but eventually she managed to
move the job back into Burlington. She loved the work and the people, but as a young twenty-something, she was less-than-enthused about pursuing a career in the grocery world. During a casual conversation, a friend mentioned that she should look into law enforcement. “I actually thought it was a really bad idea, but I researched it and talked to different people that I knew that were already in law enforcement. Then one summer day, I was bored and I printed off the application and filled it out and handed it in.” The process, she learned, is a long one. Sara submitted her application in July of 2007 and wasn’t officially hired until January 2008. Shortly thereafter, she attended the Police Academy. Only then did she begin to look at the risks involved with the job, but she is quick to acknowledge that she now takes them very seriously. 45
they learn that I can be approachable. I can give them a more positive experience and hopefully they’ll be able to come to me if they’re having an issue.” Working for the Burlington Police Department, Sara appreciates the diversity among her colleagues. While she is only one of six women on the squad, she points out the variety of ages, ethnicities, and experiences. Shehas realized that being a younger woman comes with ups and downs. On patrol, “some people can underestimate what I can do. Being female, being small, being younger, they kinda look at me as being naive and don’t really take it seriously. It works to my advantage because I can get more information from them then they would have given me otherwise, I think.” “If I can help even one of the students I work with, maybe not go down the path where they’re going ...that reward is good enough.” On the flip side her age gives her an advantage when working with kids in the school system. “I’ve actually had students come up to me and say ‘I’m glad that you’re here. It’s good to talk to you because you are so young, you can understand what’s going on and you’re easy to approach.’”
After leaving the academy, Sara started out working on patrol. “Patrol was actually very entertaining. It was never boring. Calls were always different. You go from one extreme to the next.” But soon after, she applied to work in Youth Services and now works as a School Resource Officer in a local area high school. “Youth Services is very different - you interact
with people in a very different way.” “My favorite part of the job is just kind of hanging out, talking to the kids. It kinda breaks down the stereotypes of police officers because a lot of times the kids that I talk to, they... maybe [are] not always having good experiences with police officers. Being a school resource officer in the school,
Beyond her job, Sara focuses on personal balance. She maintains close friendships with people both in- and out- of law enforcement. “I make it a point to hang out with friends who are not in law enforcement because you can get jaded. A lot of times on patrol you’re dealing with people in a negative manner and you [can] get a really bad outlook on people.” Sara also likes to stay active by running and hiking. Having a healthy lifestyle benefits her both personally and professionally. “It’s really hard to do this job if you’re unhealthy.” So if
heading out on a long run or training for a race makes it easier for her to do her job, its definitely worth while. Being out of school for few years and trying out a few different career paths helped Sara figure out where she should be. And she’s okay with that. She recognizes that “this job is not for someone who is coming right out of high school, to be applying when you’re 18.” She recommends that anyone who’s interested in persuing law enforcement get a little life experience under their belt before committing. “If you don’t want to go to college, get a job doing something or join the military. Do something in between so that you can live your life, figure out who you are, get that stuff out of the way and then when you come back, when you’re ready to apply to the police department, you know who you are, you know where you want to be, you know this is what you want to be doing.”
Psychology. Returning to her grocery store roots is always an option, but as she explains, “my plan is to stay alive ‘til I’m at least 120 - that’s a lot of groceries.”
maybe, not go down the path where they’re going to just get themselves in trouble and be a career criminal, even just one person, I mean, that reward is good enough.”
Working in law enforcement is a difficult job. Sara stays motivated by considering the risk versus the reward. “We can help people, we can keep people safe. If I can help even one of the students I work with,
“You can see that you are making a difference. It doesn’t happen all the time and it definitely doesn’t happen a lot, but when it does, it’s definitely a good feeling.”
Sara also keeps in the back of her mind that most departments retire at age 50, begging the question: what next? For Sara, she plans on getting her Masters Degree in Applied
39
Ask Mego Dear Mego,
Dear Mego, I recently took a substantial time off from the dating scene. Now that I’ve thawed my heart out and have fresh feelings, apart from the feeling of the swelling of my loins... what advice can you give to a sensitive heart new to the Burlington dating scene? Sincerely, Swollen Loins/heart/but mostly loins
Dear SL/H/BML, According to maletofemale.com, there are nearly 1,300 more females than males in Burlington. That is a 6.81% higher ratio of chicks than dudes. Hooray for you!! Unfortunately, I’m sure these stats include women well into the years where knitting circles are the highlight of their social lives, and include ladies whose booties are knitted by these said women. But on average, let’s say for your age group, there are about 75-150 females in Burlington who are utterly alone (and likely scared). Could you potentially feed off this fear and exploit this emotion in the pursuit of reducing the swelling in your loins? I say yes!! Or, if you are on the market for something a little or a lot more long-term, no exploitation is necessary. All that ladies ask is that you not be too readily available, not too eager, not too desperate. Those are disgusting qualities that I personally despise, plus we love the chase. As far as meeting these ladies in the first place, go where your intentions lie. Loins? Clubs. Heart? Art galleries, volunteering events, farmer’s markets etc. The best of luck, dear friend!
Your awesomeness, Mego Need advice? Email Mego at advice@threadvt.com
“Grabbing a Drink” oil painting by Carrie Bagalio | CarrieBagalioArt.com
49
CaleNDAR
THEBURLINGTONE.COM’S PICKS FOR UPCOMING MUST-SEE LOCAL SHOWS
BY JORDAN ROSENBERG
NECTAR’S The Flynn
October 13, Snarky Puppy Doors 9pm $12 adv. / $15 d.o.s 21 + October 28, Wyllys & The NYC Hustlers w/ Seth Yacovone Solo 7pm-9pm free 9pm $5 21 +
October 9, “Goodnight Irene” Flood Relief Benefit featuring: Grace Potter & The Nocturnals 7pm $250 gold circle / $45/$25 advance / $48/$28 d.o.s all ages October 18, Tedeschi Trucks Band 8pm Ranges from $47-$79 all ages October 26, Gillian Welch 8pm $36 adv. / $39 d.o.s. All ages October 19, The Bounce Lab w/ Dirk Quinn 9pm $5. 21+
METRONOME
Every Friday is : “No Diggity” 90’s Night Free with College Id. Until 11:30pm Free from 9pm-10pm $5 21+ Every Saturday is: “Retronome” 80’s Night Free from 9pm-10pm $5 21+
THE MONKEY HOUSE radio bean Skinny Pancake
October 6, Angioplasty Media Presents: State Champion w/ Hello Shark, Animal City, Hume, Moon Key 9pm $5 18+ October 14, MSR & 102.9 Farm Fresh Radio Present: Pokey Lafarge & The South City Three 8:30pm $10 18+ November 3, Amida Bourbon Project w/ Canadian Lesbian Twins, & Aaron Flinn 9pm $5 18+ October 14, Marco Benevento w/ Josh Glass (7pm) & Nuda Veritas (8pm) 10pm (free) Please Donate all ages Every Tuesday is: “Honky-Tonk” Tuesdays 10pm $3 cover starts at 9:30pm all ages
October 28, Vandaveer w/ john Swift opening @ 7pm 8pm free all ages November 12, Joe Fletcher & The Wrong Reasons 8pm free all ages October 11, Jackie Greene w/ Truth & Salvage Co. / Show @ 7:30 pm 13 adv. / 15 dos. All ages
HIGHER GROUND 50
October 19, MURS w/ Tabi Bonney, Ski Beatz & the Senseis, McKenzie Eddy, Sean O’Connell + Da$h show @ 8:30pm $15 adv. / $17 d.o.s all ages October 28/29 Soulive & Lettuce / Show @ 8:30pm $16 adv. / $18 d.o.s / $25 two-day pass all ages November 6 Chamberlin w/ Wildlife + The Milkman’s Union / show @ 8pm $10 adv. / $ 12 d.o.s all ages
Mon-Sat 10-8, Sun 11-6 40 Church Street Burlington 802 862 5051 sweetladyjane.biz
Featuring work from local artist, Jennifer Kahn‌ 32 1/2 Church Street Burlington, Vt 05401 802.861.3035 trinket-vermont.com 51
threadvt.com
facebook.com/threadvt @threadvt