Vermont's Town Meeting Day

Most of the rest of the country probably isn't even aware of Vermont's Town Meeting Day vacation and traditions. Today is Town Meeting Day in Vermont. Schools are closed and it gives the kids an extra 2 days of vacation tacked on to their week of mid-winter vacation at the end of February. For over 200 years town meetings have been where the business of the towns has been conducted. The tradition is democracy in its truest sense. Everyone meets at the town hall - or as was done in Essex Junction last night at the school - to hash over the town budget and other items of interest. Everyone and anyone can speak and many usually do.

My most memorable meeting was in Colchester many years ago when the voice vote was very close. After a couple of attempts to get it right, with each side yelling their vote louder and louder. The moderator asked for a show of hands. There were so many people and all the hands didn't stay up the whole time they were counting that someone called for a "division of house", meaning "yeas" went to one side of the room and "nays" went to the other side. That way the numbers could be counted for certain. By then people's feelings were on edge and each side stood there glaring at each other across the room. When the vote was finally determined, the moderator told everyone to take their seats. My, was that uncomfortable for a lot of people to go back and sit next to the people they had just been glaring at across the room.

So where is the real estate in all this. Last night our town voted to sell two lots acquired througha tax sale. I might have buyers for them.