Rumble Strip
Rumble Strip is an independent, interview-driven podcast hosted by Erica Heilman and produced in Vermont. It features unhurried, intimate conversations with ordinary people about their lives, work, and communities. The show is known for its quiet, thoughtful storytelling and its attention to the voices of people who are rarely heard on national media. Episodes often blend documentary audio with personal reflection.
Episodes
The Last Chapter
Rob Mermin and Bill Morancy lived in neighboring apartments in Montpelier, Vermont. They were best friends. And when Bill was diagnosed with terminal cancer, he asked his best friend to help him die. In 2013, Vermont passed the The Patient Choice and Control at End of Life Act, or Act 39…our version of Death with Dignity. The legislation allows eligible Vermonters with terminal diseases the
Summertime and dead batteries
This is the third episode in a periodic series called Life of Kaye, which is about the life of Kaye, but also about what life mostly sounds like and feels like, day after day after day. This episode is called Summertime and dead batteries.CreditsThis show is recorded by Kaye Phipps, and edited by me, Erica Heilman. Thanks very much to Chelsea Edgar and Amelia Meath for their enormous support on th
Places Go
Credits:
"Places Go" was produced by Chris Attaway and Cristal Duhaime. The story editor was Mira Burt-Wintonick. The piece originally aired on CBC's Love Me.
More episodes of Love Me are available everywhere you get your podcasts, and here: https://link.mgln.ai/LMxRS
Rest in Peace Bonnie Tyler
A few days ago we lost a power ballad hero. Bonnie Tyler is gone. She wrote my favorite song, Total Eclipse of the Heart. Years ago I forced people to listen to me sing this song and then I made a show about it and forced MORE people to listen to me sing it, and talk about turning fifty. So I'm playing it again in honor of Bonnie Tyler.
Life of Kaye: Healthy Dollars
Credits
Life of Kaye is produced by me and Kaye Phipps.
Thank you karaoke singers! For more information about monthly karaoke in Montpelier, I think you can find information here. Otherwise, do an internet search for Saphen Von Cabbage karaoke and hunt around. Otherwise ask me and I’ll figure it out and get back to you.
Life of Kaye: Some kind of a speaker
Welcome to a new, periodic series called Life of Kaye.
This first episode is called: Some Kind of a Speaker.
The series is produced by me and Kaye Phipps.
Send us your comments if you have them and thank you so much for listening.
A Day on the Road with a Visiting Nurse
Home health and hospice nurses provide all kinds of healthcare to people in their homes...day and night, and in mud and snow.
I knew of these folks because I met some of them after my father came home from the hospital. A nurse came to help with his medications. A VNA therapist came to give him physical therapy. But I wasn’t really aware of these nurses and therapists UNTIL my family really needed
Ladies' Day at Vermont Quick Lube
Vermont Quick Lube is where I've been getting my oil changed for years, because I love it there. They are fast and nice and they offer coffee. Everyone at Vermont Quick Lube is always in a good mood, even in November or January. Recently I went on a Wednesday and Mike, who runs the register, told me it was Ladies' Day and handed me a red carnation and a ticket for a free car wash. It was the excus
A Requiem for Larry Massett
From The Kitchen Sisters Presents:
Pioneering radio artist Larry Massett, a producer's producer, who led listeners into unexpected worlds and influenced so many in public radio and beyond, died last year at the age of 80.
The Kitchen Sisters were fortunate to work with Larry on our NPR series Lost & Found Sound and Soundprint. He was a friend and colleague.
We learned of Larry's passing last s
I Eat the Marshmallow
This is a same-day reaction to this morning’s story called: A springtime show about how about the economy that partly explains why we feel ashamed. That story features a wonderful listener in Scotland who is a money manager and made some fascinating comments about the last class series. I asked her if she’d be willing to share some of these thoughts on the phone, and she was willing, and that was
A Springtime Show about the Economy that Partly Explains why We’re Ashamed
This is a conversation with a money manager in Scotland who has given a great deal of thought to why many of us feel confused and ashamed about our financial lives.
After the What Class are You? shows, I often receive interesting commentary, and I’m always frustrated that this commentary can’t become part of a wider conversation. So after receiving two fascinating comments from EM in Scotland, I
Hold On
This is a story about a song.
Six years ago, seventeen-year-old Finn Rooney killed himself in his home in Walden, Vermont. A couple days later, his community held a bonfire in the parking lot of Hazen Union High school in Hardwick. Hundreds of people came. Tom Gilbert, who organized the bonfire, asked his friend Heidi Wilson to write a song for the occasion. The song was called Hold On. She made s
What class are you, Habib and Arwa?
I met Arwa and Habib Meiloud because they’re Anne’s kids and Anne works at the post office in the village here in East Calais. They live in the house right across the road from the post office. Arwa and Habib’s father is from Mauritania and lives out of the country, but both Arwa and Habib were born in the US, and their mother Anne grew up in Vermont. Arwa is 17 years old, Habib is 18. In this con
What class are you Kaye?
Kaye Phipps lives in Montpelier, Vermont. Right now she works as a custodian at a local grocery store. She’s also been a florist, a housekeeper, and a house cleaner. But even though she’s sometimes working multiple jobs, she often comes up short. In this episode, Kaye talks about how having a limited income makes her feel like a child, long into adulthood.
What class are you Jules?
Jules Guillemette grew up on their family farm in Lamoille County, Vermont, which has been in the family nearly 100 years. Since then, Jules has worked as a chef, a meat cutter and now they're an electrician. In this episode, we talk about what it means to own land of enormous value but always be struggling to save enough money.
What class are you Trudy?
What Class are You? is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public, which started back in 2022. I wanted to talk with people about growing political and cultural divides without talking about politics or cultural divides. I had no idea how to do it. Then one day I just drove around and asked people what class they are. And what I found was that as dumb and offensive as this question is, people hav
The Thanksgiving Show
This is a show about Thanksgiving, and what it sounds like. It is made entirely of your recordings. Thank you everyone for sending me recordings. We have made a show that sounds like the whole damn country. Or a lot of it.
Thanksgiving show SAMPLER
A couple days ago I asked you to send me some recordings from Thanksgiving. I figured I'd give you a little better sense of what I'm looking for. Happy Thanksgiving all! Erica
Let's Make a Show about Thanksgiving
Let's make a show about Thanksgiving. I have always wanted to do this, and the time has come.Anyone who is willing, I would love you to record a voice memo this week about your holiday. Stories, anecdotes, songs...I don't know. You don't have to speak in complete sentences. It doesn’t have to be organized. It doesn't have to be funny or important. If you're willing to record some of the holiday am
An American Life
Music for this show is by Brian Clark, who is awesome.
The Party
Thank you Phil Edfors of Vermont Public for cleaning up the whale recordings. This was no small feat and I am grateful.The whales were recorded for an oceanic soundscape project at the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute.
Joslyn House Revisited
CreditsThanks to all the residents who talked with me, and the beautiful Arlene and Becky Wright, managers of the house.My friend Kelly Green produced this show with me. She’s great at this PLUS she’s a great defense attorney! If you're in trouble, call Kelly.Click here for more information on the Joslyn HouseThe song for this show is A Wave in the Air by The Imperfectionists, from their latest al
A Barn Update with Forrest Foster
I stopped in to visit with Forrest Foster about his barn project. Here's our conversation.
Tractor Pull
Williams Family Field of Dreams Tractor Pulls
Susan Randall. Hold the Line
A couple weeks ago my friend Susan Randall came to visit. She’s a private investigator and we’ve been friends for thirty years and every now and then we get together and compare notes on our lives, and on what the hell is going on. Sometimes we talk about her work, sometimes our kids, once we made a show about a dead owl.This has been a very difficult year for Susan. In this conversation, we tal
Zombie Snails
Bryan's substack, Chasing Nature Bryan's article about the zombie snails and some wicked video
Jay Allison on Why We Should Save Public Radio
Links:Adopt a Station: Where you can donate to your local public radio station or find stations to supportTransom: The place where good radio beginsRecent New York Times interview with Bill Siemering about the fate of public radioInformation on Transom story trainingsRumble Strip episode w Jay called Fishing with Jay
Ladies' Pond
The women in this show are: Clare Dolan, Holly Rae Taylor, Alison Bechdel, Deb Fleischman, Annie Greensfelder, Rosana Vestuti and Tamar Cole. Thanks to all the kids and families and dogs and loons and crows that were there that day on the pond. And the trumpet guy.Huge thanks to Chelsea Edgar for your edits.
What class are you Susan Ritz?
This is the last episode in season 6 of What Class are You?, a periodic series I make for Vermont Public.Susan Ritz grew up in a wealthy family in Minnesota. For the past 36 years, she's lived in central Vermont, where she writes books and is an active philanthropist. In this episode of "What class are you?" we talk about the surprising complexities of having more than most.
What Class are You Kytreana Patrick?
Today, episode 4 of season SIX of What Class are You?, a periodic series I make for Vermont Public about living in the American class system. In today’s episode, we revisit Kytreana Patrick, who was a guest from the first class series back in 2022. Back then, Kytreana was working as a cashier at Olney’s general store in Orleans, Vermont. Since then, Kytreana’s gotten a job at a factory that manufa
What Class are You Dan Sedon?
Dan Sedon has been working as a criminal defense attorney in Vermont, where he works with poor people and rich people and all the people in between. In this latest episode of What Class are You?, reporter Erica Heilman talks with Dan about what this line of work has taught him about the American class system.What Class are You? is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public. Thank you Vermont Publ
What Class Are You Sharon Plumb?
What Class Are You? is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public about our lives in the American class system.Sharon Plumb works for a statewide nonprofit in the outdoor recreation sector. She lives in East Montpelier with her husband and daughter.In this conversation, Sharon talks about the advantages she sees in the lives of people whose parents are able to help their kids financially all the
Ralph Figures He Might Have to Work til he's Dead
This is a series I make for Vermont Public. Thank you to Vermont Public for allowing me to run this series on Rumble Strip.
What Now Sounds Like: The Rapture
This is the fourth episode of What Now Sounds Like, a periodic series comprised entirely of your recordings from all over the world, in which we try to capture these strange times in audio. In this show you hear from Bryce in New York City, Stephanie in middle Appalachia, Tobin making eggs in Santa Rosa, California, George in New York City, Allison in Vermont, the Utah symphony warming up, gongs i
Hardwick State
This was the inaugural year of Hardwick State, a weekend long university in Hardwick, Vermont, organized by the Civic Standard, and designed to take place during the awfulest time of the year. People from around Hardwick become professors and students. Classes are free, and everyone’s welcome to teach at Hardwick State. Maybe you teach something you do in your regular job. Maybe it’s just somethin
Death in Venice
Death in Venice is a story Larry Massett produced in the early 80s. Joe Frank narrates, and Larry wrote and performed all the music.
A New Old Barn for Forrest Foster
We're raising money to rebuild Forrest Foster's barn. This is a very short story (plea) about it. And here is the GoFundMe!!
A Night on Mount Shasta
Larry Massett was driving up through northern California toward Oregon and ended up spending a little more time at Mt. Shasta than he'd had in mind. Thankfully he had his flashlight in his trunk.
Drag Out
This is the second show for LARRY MASSETT TRIBUTE WEEK.Larry Massett owned two Porsches, and he talked about them all the time. His friend, Joe Frank, in addition to being one of the greatest radio producers of all time, was a BMW guy. They decided to argue about this, and then have a drag race that would decide things.
The Eyes of Sibiu
Larry Massset died last week. He was my mentor and my favorite radio producer. His stories was insane and brilliant and heretical and sublime. I wouldn’t have become a radio producer without his guidance and his stories to inspire me. I’m going to run a series of his shows as a tribute to him. This first show is The Eyes of Sibiu, about a trip to Romania with Romanian-American poet and novelist An
The Haskell Library. A Story about Awful Behavior at the Canadian Border
The Haskell Free Library and Opera House was intentionally built to straddle two nations and two communities. Three quarters of the building is in Stanstead, Quebec and one quarter is in Derby Line Vermont, and it's been the local library for both communities for over a century. The main entrance to the library is in the U.S., and for as long as anyone can remember, Canadians have been allowed to
Health Insurance is Hard
This is a show about the challenges of getting health insurance and understanding health insurance and paying for health insurance and using health insurance…even for those of us without major medical challenges. It stars my friends Justin Lander and Kaye.The show is sponsored by East Hill Tree Farm, a tree nursery in Plainfield, Vermont. The nursery opens on April 18th with bare-root trees and s
What Now Sounds Like, the AI Isn't Smart Edition
Recordings: In this show you hear from Carolyn and her neighbors on Coits Gore Road in Vermont, Amanda in the Blue Mountains in New South Wales, dogs in Atlanta, Jeff Sharlet interviewing Pastor Pete in Holiday City, Ohio, Heather’s kids in Washington DC, Jarod in West Philly, Susan and Stella in Pittsburgh, a xylophone on the Thea Foss Waterway in Tacoma. You heard my mom Barbara on my couch, De
2 Seconds of Peace
T.O. got out of prison in Rutland a couple weeks ago, after a six and a half year bid. I met T.O. through my private investigator friend Susan Randall in May, 2017. He’d been a client of hers in a federal public defender case. T.O.’s been in and out of jail his whole adult life, and it’s become a kind of tradition for us to get together and talk when he gets out of jail. We don’t talk about his c
What Now Sounds Like Episode 2
Here is episode 2 of What Now Sounds Like, a show I make that is entirely comprised of your recordings. Desperate times call for desperate show methods. I'm hoping that shows made up of all of us will help us all feel less alone. In this show you hear from: Blake in New York City, James in Sussex England, the Niagara Frontier Radio reading service (thank you Papageorgiou in Brussels...), River in
What Now Sounds Like
What Now Sounds Like is made by all of us. You send me recordings that sound like this time we're living in, and I make shows with them. It could be an argument, your thoughts in the middle of the night, your songs and hummings....a recording of being on hold with your insurance company...whatever. And tell your friends to send their recordings too. Just email me at rumblestripvermont@gmail.com.
Diffuse Despair
The world is chaotic. Systems are failing, towns are burning. If you need to make an appointment with your doctor you may have to wait til July. So it's time to make a show about it all. I implore you to record moments of your day and send me the audio and I will try to make a show that sounds like RIGHT NOW. Email the recordings to me at rumblestripvermont@gmail.com.
What Class are you Tankhun?
What Class Are You? is a periodic series about the ways that socioeconomic class shapes our lives.Thankun Thongjunthoug’s parents each moved alone to the United States from Thailand in their early twenties to make a new life for themselves. They met in Los Angeles, and started a restaurant there, and a family. But Thankun’s father wanted a safer place for his family, so in 2008 they moved to Vermo
What Class Are You Katrin?
What Class Are You? is a periodic series about the ways that socioeconomic class shapes our lives. Today, Episode 4.Katrin Tchana lives in Lyme, New Hampshire, right next to Dartmouth College. Katrin is a social worker, and currently works as a therapist. She grew up in the house where she currently lives, and in this show we talk about her childhood in Lyme, and how that area has changed in her l
What Class Are You Ingrid?
What Class Are You? is a periodic series about the ways that socioeconomic class shapes our lives. Today, Episode 3...Ingrid Jonas. I met Ingrid Jonas through my friend Marilyn. Ingrid is a retired Vermont state police trooper. She started on patrol, but worked as a detective for most of her career. I’m actually working on a longer story about her now that will come out soon, but at the end of our
What Class Are You Mark?
What Class Are You? is a periodic series about the ways that socioeconomic class shapes our lives, even though we don’t like to talk about it. I make this series for Vermont Public and I’ll be running the new shows on RS all this week. Mark LaRouche is the the Director of Shelters and Facilities at Good Samaritan Haven in Barre, which serves unhoused people in central Vermont. Mark has also had a
What Class Are You Damian Renzello?
What Class Are You? is a periodic series about the ways that socioeconomic class shapes our lives, even though we don’t like to talk about it. I make this series for Vermont Public and I’ll be running the new shows on RS all this week. First up, Damian Renzello. Damian lives one town over from me and he’s the owner of and inventor of Porta Rinks, which is a portable ice rink kit. Damian is who y
Thanks for Sharing
Forrest Foster found a new old truck, thanks to you listeners. We drove around and talked about the truck and about Forrest's new job and I complained about feeling old. Happy Holidays and thank you for your generosity. Happy Holidays to all!
Erika Bruner, Midwife for Pets at the End
Things have been pretty grim around here. I lost my cat Zu Zu and she was only two and a half and she left behind her brother Kenny and Kenny and I aren’t doing so great. So. I’m going to play a story I made for Vermont Public about Erika Bruner, a veterinarian who specializes in end of live care for pets. She does at-home euthanasia…in barns, in basements, in fields. I didn’t think I’d need her
Thank you For the Best Birthday Present Ever
We raised ALL the money for Forrest's new old truck and we are so GRATEFUL!!!
Help Forrest Foster Get a New Old Truck
After the last show, a lot of people asked me how they might help Forrest Foster. So I called his friend Steve Gorelick and we set up a Go Fund Me....
Forrest Foster is getting done...for now.
Forrest Foster is a dairy farmer in Hardwick, Vermont. Two months ago he sold his cows. He didn't want to do it. But his barn doesn't meet code so he lost his license. He can't keep the wood furnace burning in the house while he's doing chores. And like so many families, he's dealing with the profound complications of drug addiction in his home.
Heartbreak Hotel. End of an Era
This summer, a one-in-a-thousand-year flood hit the village of Plainfield, Vermont. A local apartment building, which everyone called the Heartbreak Hotel, collapsed and washed away down the Great Brook. Twelve people were living there at the time, and they all survived. Most of their cats did not.We talk a lot about the importance of affordable housing and community and village revitalization. Fo
The World Under the World
This is a story about active drug addiction. Last year I made a story about my private investigator friend Susan Randall, after her office was robbed in the middle of the day in downtown Burlington by a woman with a heroin addiction. She walked into Susan’s office while people were working there and loaded a bag with electronics, and left. I couldn’t stop thinking about the woman. Where was she
Mark Utter Revisited
Mark Utter was born with a form of autism that makes it impossible for him to say what he's thinking. For the first thirty years of his life, Mark did not have access to the world of words, except as a listener. An observer. When he was thirty, he was introduced to supported typing, and for the first time in his life, with the help of a facilitator and a typing pad, Mark started his life as a writ
Allison after the Flood
On the one-year anniversary of a 100-year flood, Vermont experienced another devastating flood. This is the story of one Plainfield, Vermont resident, who lost everything. Thank you Vermont Public for letting me run this show on Rumble Strip.
The Aphasia Choir
There are about 15 million people in this world having thoughts and ideas that they can't put into words. People who have had had strokes or traumatic brain injuries often live with aphasia, or difficulty talking or using language. Their thoughts are intact, but the language gets stuck. But music mostly originates in the undamaged hemisphere of the brain. People with aphasia can often sing. This i
Tara
This is a follow-up show to Finn and the Bell. If you haven't heard that story, you might want to start there.At Bread and Puppet in Glover, Vermont, there is a magical pine forest full of small homemade buildings and shrines to memorialize dead puppeteers and friends. It’s a place where my friend Tara Reese’s sons Finn and Lyle spent a lot of time when they were little, running around in the wood
Will Staats, Hunting Biologist...Redux!
Will Staats worked for both Vermont and New Hampshire for forty years as a wildlife biologist. He’s also a passionate hunter. He knows the back country of the Kingdom right up through Maine and into Labrador. One day in October he took me bird hunting deep in the unorganized town of Ferdinand. We talked about birds. And we talked about the growing divide between traditional hunting culture and peo
Sugaring with Forrest Foster
I hung out with Forrest Foster in his sugarhouse a few weeks ago. Sugarhouses are the best because they’re full of warm, sweet steam and there’s nothing to do but hang around and make sure the pan doesn’t burn. Also, if sugaring is happening it means that winter is almost over and that is a joyous time for me. I love the hell out of April. So here are a few happy minutes with Forrest in his sugarh
Fifty: A Phoenix Moment. REDUX!
This is a show I made a few years ago that very significantly involves Total Eclipse of the Heart, which is my favorite song. I am playing it again now because it is ECLIPSE WEEK. I hope you enjoy it.
Kasey is Figuring it Out
Kasey Phipps is transgender and has always been transgender. But Kasey didn’t grow up in a place where the word transgender was well understood. Or understood at all. It’s only in the last four years that Kasey’s put a name to this lifelong experience of living life in the wrong gender. This is just one story about the experience of being trans. Credits:Linda Young plays the harp in this show, for
What Class Are You Ashley?
What Class Are You is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public. Thank you Vermont Public for letting me share the series on Rumble Strip.
What Class Are You Ashton?
What Class Are You is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public. Thank you Vermont Public for letting me share the series on Rumble Strip.
What Class Are You Kathleen?
What Class Are You is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public. Thank you Vermont Public for letting me share the series on Rumble Strip.
Revisiting Isaac
Many of you got in touch with me after Isaac's story aired in the first week of What Class Are You. Isaac's on his way to Columbia in the fall, on a full scholarship, and you came up with amazing ideas for how you might be helpful, so I went back up to Newport to discuss it all with Isaac. And it turned into a really interesting conversation on a number of fronts.
What Class Are You Ethan?
What Class Are You is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public. Thank you Vermont Public for letting me share the series on Rumble Strip.
What Class Are You Mike?
What Class Are You is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public. Thank you Vermont Public for letting me share the series on Rumble Strip.
What Class Are You John?
What Class Are You is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public. Thank you Vermont Public for letting me share this series with Rumble Strip.
What Class Are You? A Conversation with Garret Keizer
What Class is a periodic series I produce for Vermont Public. Thank you Vermont Public for allowing me to share this series with Rumble Strip.
What Class Are You Kytreana?
What Class Are You is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public. Thank you Vermont Public for allowing me to share the stories with Rumble Strip.
What Class Are You Kate?
What Class Are You is a periodic series I make for Vermont Public. Thank you Vermont Public for allowing me to share these stories with Rumble Strip.
What Class Are You Irfan?
Irfan Sehic and his family fled the war in Bosnia when he was seventeen, and landed in Barre, Vermont. Irfan did a lot of jobs when he got here, then went to college, and now runs an insurance company out of his house. I’ve interviewed Irfan for Rumble Strip before, about the war, which you can find on this site somewhere, but in this story, Irfan talks about the American class system as he sees i
What Class Are You Isaac?
Isaac lives in Newport, Vermont, which is as far north as you get in Vermont. It’s a town in the Northeast Kingdom with a beautiful lake. It’s also a town with a state prison and a lot of drugs and poverty.I met Isaac at a writers group in town, which meets once a week in town at the amazing Nevermore Bookstore. Isaac is eighteen. He loves to read and write and this spring he’s graduating form Lak
What Class Are You Susan?
Today is the first episode of What Class Are You, a periodic series I make for VP. This series started as an experiment a few years ago. I wanted to have conversations with people about the terrible cultural divides that keep growing in our country, without ending up in boring conversations about politics…so I drove around asking strangers ‘what class are you’, which is a kind of stupid and offens
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