New Wednesday Editions! This allows me to keep the emails shorter while still giving you things that I feel are worth knowing about around this great little city. Monday and Friday are reserved for news and events. Reply to this email and give me your thoughts on this new format.

Here’s two active ones I choose to highlight:

Volunteer for End-of-Year Mailers at the Community Sailing Center

Help the Lake Champlain Community Sailing Center on the Burlington waterfront by stuffing, stamping, and sending their end-of-year mailers. This family-friendly opportunity includes holiday-themed snacks and movies. Volunteers are welcome for any amount of time during the shifts. All sessions are in the 2nd-floor classroom at the Community Sailing Center (505 Lake Street).

Upcoming Dates: Thursday, November 6 (5pm-8pm). Monday, December 8 (4pm-7pm). Tuesday, December 9 (5pm-8pm)

Sign up here: https://app.amilia.com/store/en/community-sailing-center/shop/programs/117065?subCategoryIds=6274040

Help Local Seniors: Volunteer with Age Well

Age Well is looking for volunteers to support older Vermonters in their homes. Opportunities include friendly visits, grocery shopping, running errands, helping with medical appointments, delivering Meals on Wheels, and giving respite to caregivers.

The time commitment is flexible, usually 2-3 hours, one or two days a week or month (Monday-Friday, 8am-4pm). City Market Member Workers can also earn 7-12% off their grocery bill by volunteering.

To learn more or sign up, contact the Age Well Volunteer Department at 802-662-5249 or [email protected].

I beefed up the volunteer page recently so check out this volunteer page for links to find volunteer opportunities all around Burlington.

This Week’s Food & Drink Picks

Working on updating the list with even more days over the next couple of days. View the full list of food & drink deals here.

I’ll share my finds from both FB and Reddit. There’s FB group called The Dine In/To Go Tour. They have people posting and asking about food, especially in the Chittenden area.

Someone posed the question “I am craving a smash burger! Who has a great one???????!” It received 104 comments. Here were the top recommendations (each like and/or mention counted as one vote)

Do you agree? If not, send me your favorite recommendation by replying to this email!

Five fall favorites to help you lean into the season:

Take a drive through Smugglers’ Notch where the winding road and colorful canopy make for one of Vermont’s best foliage routes. Visit Shelburne Farms when the air turns crisp and the hills glow with color, then stop by their farm store for cheese or cider. Spend a morning at Adam’s Berry Farm in Charlotte where you can pick the last of the season’s berries or just enjoy the quiet fields. Walk the trails at Red Rocks Park and listen to the leaves crunch underfoot while the lake stays calm and blue. End your day with a hot cider and cider donut at Cold Hollow Cider Mill in Waterbury before heading home through the golden light of late afternoon.

Transitioning from Summer Activities to Fall Activities. Updating the list in the next couple of days: 202+ Things to Do (Summer)

Sometimes you don’t want to read, you want to listen. So if you enjoy local podcasts about Vermont, you might enjoy this recent episode:

On News Talk WVMT's Morning Drive, hosts Anthony and Dan sit down with UVM political scientist Alex Garlick to unpack his explosive new book, "Pre-existing Conditions: How Lobbying Makes American Healthcare More Expensive." Garlick reveals how lobbyists killed the ACA's public option, exempted blockbuster drugs like Keytruda from price negotiations, and enabled hospital monopolies across Vermont and beyond; with healthcare costs rising fastest in states where insurance lobbyists outnumber legislators. From why insulin that was patented for $1 now costs $1,400/month to how Vermont's citizen legislature becomes dependent on lobbyist "expertise," this conversation exposes the hidden machinery inflating your premiums to over $3,000 monthly. Give it a listen by clicking here.

Here’s a snapshot of what local podcasts were talking about recently. WVMT's The Morning Drive was packed with local figures, featuring State Rep. Angela Arsenault on the upcoming session, author Alex Garlick on his new book, and the teams from Citizen Cider and Great Dane Rescue.

Meanwhile, in-depth state news was a major theme. The Frequency delivered quick updates on the juvenile detention center project and a new energy battery plan for the former Vermont Yankee site. Vermont Edition took a deep dive into Vermont's unique policy of allowing incarcerated people to vote. On the greener side, the Net Zero Energy podcast talked with Drive Electric Vermont about the state of EVs, while Happy Vermont shared a great story about the Beetlejuice landmark in East Corinth being turned into a new community hub.

Find all the different podcasts by visiting this page I made of local Vermont podcasts

Let’s look a little further out and see what events are worth keeping on your radar:

For those looking to get creative, a Hat Burning Workshop at Buck Ridge Barns in Hinesburg this Sunday is drawing significant interest, offering an instructor-led class to create your own custom-designed hat. The music scene is also buzzing, with A Night with 8084 at the T-Rex Theater on November 8th shaping up to be a major draw. And for a fun night out, the Ladies Night Dance Party in Essex Junction on November 15th is also high on the community's list. Finally, for those ready to kick off their holiday shopping, the massive Williston Craft Show returns this Saturday, November 1st, an annual tradition that remains one of the area's most popular gatherings.

Share this newsletter with everyone you know that’s interested in all things Burlington! 5 referrals gets you your own shoutout on the newsletter.