Tom Waits: Closing Time

This week I have been listening to Closing Time, by Tom Waits.  

I really like Tom Waits a lot, and I think this is my favorite album of his.  I've been able to listen to this in the car, on my ipod when I am working, in the background when I am reading, and in the background when there is company.  My mood has a lot to do with my enthusiasm for this album right now.  I find it to be sincere, introspective, and very melo. In particular, I like I Hope I Don't Fall in Love With You, Martha, Ice Cream Man, Grapefruit Moon, and the album ends with Closing Time.  I have been playing it over and over.  Check it out.

J

The Lake

This is the story of the Tepper family, as recalled from a few family members at my Grandmother's memorial service a few weeks ago.

After the Revolutionary war, Janius Josselyn moved to Plymouth, Vermont to farm on a piece of land he received as compensation for his service.  He started a farm on 80 acres of land on Echo Lake.  At the time Revolutionary War veterans could choose to be compensated with land or money.  Many of the soldiers traveled through Vermont from Massachusetts on their way to battles in Upstate, NY.  The land was fertile and plentiful.

I am not sure where Janius lived, but I know that his son, my great great grandfather, Frank, was a carpenter, and he built this house and a barn at the head of the lake.  Although there have been some renovations, this is the same structure that was built in the middle- late 1800's.  Frank was a Civil War veteran, and the father of Charlie.  Charlie was raised on this farm, but as a man he owned a home in near by Ludlow where my Grandmother was raised.  The land and house was eventually passed down to my Grandmother.

Frank also built this church, and this inn (below).  The church was built in 1898, and my Grandmother was the first baby baptised there in 1910.  The church still hold services in the summer (for vacationers).  Plymouth/ Tyson is located between Ludlow and Killington, in southern VT, so it is a hot spot for summer and winter vacationers.  My grandmother moved to Massachusetts when she was married, but she spent every summer of her life in Vermont until she was too old to do it.  As a result, my mother and her siblings, as well as my grandmother's grandchildren, have spent millions of hours on this land.

My Grandmother passed away this spring at the age of 97 (a month shy of 98).  We had a memorial service for her at the church on Echo Lake where she was baptised.  We the traveled to the family burial site in Woodstock to lay her to rest with her husband, her brother, and countless generation of Josselyn's.  The land and the house remains in the family, although it is know as the Tepper compound today (that was my Grandmother's married name).  My Aunt converted the barn into a beautiful home, and my uncle has built a house in one of the back fields.  

As a kid I used to come to the lake with friends to swim, boat and fish.  We would boat to the island and camp over night, or camp in one of the back fields.  We would go swimming at midnight, and the bats would buzz our heads as we stood on the docks, or flirt with danger by swimming during thunderstorms.  I hope to have the chance to share this place with my friends, and my family, and give the next generation of kids the chance to have the same experiences (minus the swimming in lightning storm thing).

Here is most of the Tepper family today (some had already left for home when the picture was taken). 

JEFF