Cavendish Update 4/15/20: Gov's Conf/News/Bread
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Normally the vet trimmed Edna’s claws; in quarantine, it was Mano a Mano. Jane Hart
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4/15/20
1. What’s Been Happening
2. Sanity Break: No-knead bread
3. Events
We’re staying home today for the Shaw’s staff in Ludlow, who are working to keep shelves stocked and attitudes friendly. Please observe senior hours Tuesday and Thursday from 7-9 am.
In the scope of things, the amount of news coming out that is impacting our daily lives has slowed down quite a bit, so starting next week, we’ll drop back to Monday & Friday updates.
From Monday’s Governor’s press briefings, it appears Vermont is plateauing and depending on how fast the numbers come down, the Gov. Scott continues to hint that the “spigot” could open sooner than May 15, the most recent date given for lifting the “Stay at Home” order.
"The number of new cases every day is getting smaller and it's leveling off," Mark Levine, Vermont’s Health Commissioner said at Monday’s, April 13, press conference. "We seem to be approaching a plateau. We will see if that is a sustained phenomenon, or a just a trend for several days. We are, in the general population of Vermont, not recording major outbreaks or spikes in our data." Most new cases of the virus have been occurring in closed settings, like nursing homes, elder living facilities and prisons.
Vermonters are doing an incredible job. Yesterday, there were only four new cases, which is the lowest we’ve seen in a month.
Does the President get to decide when to reopen the country? No he doesn’t, and as if to prove a point, coalitions of state governors are working to bring their respective states out of quarantine together based on science and the public good. Right now VT is not part of one of the coalitions, but today’s press conference may change that.
On Monday, Scott stated, "We will open up the economic spigot a quarter turn at a time. Many just want to get this over with right now. And others are worried we will move too quickly. I will continue to act based on... data and science." However, as Scott starts to reopen businesses, social distancing measuring and wearing masks sound like they will be the “new normal.”
Thank you to all who have responded to the Internet survey for the Knapp Pond area. We have supplied that information to the state and are working on a two phased approach-addressing immediate need and long term solutions. Hopefully we will have more information for you by Friday and it appears we may be able to work something out with ECFiber for the long term solution.
Masks and social distancing will be with us for a while. If you need masks, please e-mail cavendishconnects@gmail.com We will be having masks for children, with distribution being coordinated with the school.
For those of you who have asked me for my bread recipe, I’ve included my version below of no-knead bread. Enjoy!
If you need help with shopping, a transfer station run, TP or something else, please call the Cavendish Town Office, M-F from 9-5 226-7291 or 7292.
2. WHAT’S BEEN HAPPENING
• Gov. Phil Scott has appointed a new task force charged with opening businesses and getting people back to work. The governor says the state will determine its own timeline for reopening, despite what President Donald Trump says.
• Special enrollment period for uninsured Vermonters extended to May 15
• Lieutenant governor calls for new guidance to reopen farmers markets
• Thousands of Vermonters still waiting on unemployment checks
• The VT Folklife Center Listening in Place Project focuses on three responses to the COVID-19 emergency: the creation of a crowd-sourced Sound Archive to document our daily experiences during the pandemic, a series of online Virtual Story Circles, where Vermonters can gather remotely to listen and share during these challenging times, and Show Us Your Masks! a project to document homemade face masks created by Vermonters. Learn more
• While the Green Mountain National Forest is open, visitors are being asked to protect themselves, others, and avoid environmental impacts by not using soft trails and following the guidelines below:
Avoid visiting the forest if you are sick.
Follow the CDC guidance for cloth masks and social distancing of six feet apart.
Dogs need to be on a leash and close to you.
Be cautious and choose low-risk activities to avoid injury.
Stay out of closed areas and check www.fs.usda.gov/main/gmfl/home to see if your destination is open before you visit.
What ever you bring in take out.
Use the restroom before or after your visit to the forest. Unmanaged waste creates a health hazard for our employees and for other visitors.
If an area is crowded, look for a less occupied location or return at a later time. Consider avoiding the forest during high-use periods.
2. SANITY BREAK: No Knead Bread: This is my version, which differs in that I don’t do a second rise. Yields one 1 1/2 pound loaf
3 cups all-purpose or bread flour, more for dusting
1⁄4 teaspoon instant yeast
11⁄4 teaspoons salt
Cornmeal .
1. In a large bowl combine flour, yeast and salt. Add 1 5/8 cups cold water, (a little over a cup and a half) and stir until blended; dough will be shaggy and sticky. Cover bowl with plastic wrap. Let dough rest at least 12 hours, preferably about 18, at warm room temperature, about 70 degrees. Can leave as long as 24 hours as the longer it rises the better the flavor.
2. Dough is ready when its surface is dotted with bubbles.
3. At least a half-hour before dough is ready, heat oven to 450 degrees. Put a 6- to 8-quart heavy covered pot in oven as it heats.
4. Remove pot from oven and sprinkle bottom of pot with cornmeal. Then add the dough from the bowl to the pot, scraping down the sides. Shake pan once or twice if dough is unevenly distributed; it will straighten out as it bakes.
5. Cover with lid and bake 30 minutes, then remove lid and bake another 15 to 30 minutes, until loaf is beautifully browned.
Cool on a rack.
3.. UPCOMING EVENTS: Go to dgBody Works for classes that are being posted via Facebook live. Take a new one, do an old one. Stay fit and healthy.
April 16 (Thursday): GMUSD board meeting, 6 pm via Zoom. See the agenda for zoom instructions.
April 17 (Friday): Proctorsville Volunteer Fire Department is hosting a community solidarity event at 8 pm. Come together to show your support for Cavendish Citizens working the frontlines at area hospitals, nursing homes and rescue squads. We are asking for the community to join us with your vehicle (do not get out) by parking along Main Street, at CTES or around Svec Park in Proctorsville on Friday April 17th at 8pm. At that time we will have our apparatus outside with emergency lights activated, and will do a one minute blast on the building siren. We ask that at that time you join in with your car horn and lots of cheering from your vehicle. If you live on Main Street or close by please participate from your yard. If you walk to Main Street, please remain with your household members 6ft or more away from others and don’t forget your mask. Let’s come together and let our local healthcare professionals know that we are proud of them and appreciate everything they do for us.
Staying home for Patty, Bob Kirkbride, Singletons, Dave Norton, Deb Hryckiewicz, Ludlow Ambulance Service and the Cavendish Water/Waste Water Treatment Team, Rocky and the Cavendish Transfer Station Crew, Cavendish Town Crew, Mt. Ascutney Hospital, Cavendish/Proctorsville firefighters & first responders, Mack Molding employees, and Shaw’s Ludlow employees.
Have a Heart -stay home or 6 feet apart wearing a cloth mask or scarf.
Stay healthy to protect yourself and Cavendish.