Something to Talk About

Sometimes, Norwich residents need a little help in the conversation department. In our house, we use “chatting topics” to beat away boredom or silence – Heaven forfend there should be a lull in the conversation! – and to steer us onto common ground. Our boys particularly like food, travel, and sports-based discussions. It usually goes something like this: “Chatting topic: Where is the best ice cream in the Upper Valley? Youngest to oldest. Go.” When the topic is a winner, 20-30 minutes pass unnoticed as we debate the pros and cons of soft serve, whipped cream, sprinkles, and cake cones.

As the end of the year approaches, and darkness envelops more of our waking hours than we’d care to acknowledge, it occurred to me that some chatting topics might aid your efforts to counter the winter doldrums. All of them are based on life here in Norwich, where, to the observant eye, Mother Nature and humankind have created an infinite number of subjects to explore. Use them liberally, stash away a couple for when that intimate dîner à deux shows signs of conversational stress, and bring them out when you meet someone new who also resides in our hamlet. Most of all, have fun. No one wants a chatting topic à la Festivus, where we take turns airing our grievances. The best part about a chatting topic – as opposed to a “power round”, which has definite winners and losers – is that there are no right or wrong answers. It’s just for fun, a way to concentrate and flex your intellectual muscles. Best of all, chatting topics serve as a launch pad, helping build friendships, love, and bonds across generations and neighborhoods throughout our town.

Ready?

Let us start with the mundane. Nature calls. Which public restroom would you choose in our town? What is the best parking spot in all of 05055? Have you ever noticed the names of the different houses in the village…not to mention the tenants in those spaces? List all the activities one can engage in at Huntley Meadows. What is the most interesting car or license plate you see on our roads?

Now, let’s go inside for a spell. What’s the story with the moose head in the Norwich Inn? What is interesting about the electric doors at Dan and Whit’s? If you were to procure an entire meal at one of our 24/7 farm stands, what would you pick and from where? What is your preferred entrance to the Norwich Bookstore, King Arthur Baking Company, Crossroads Farm Stand, or Tracy Hall?

Speaking of Tracy Hall, it’s our civic center. What do you think the procedure is for changing the fire hazard warning sign in front of the building? How many people can you name on the Wall of Olympians located in the stairwell? How many annual events can you name that take place in Tracy Hall?

If you’re more of an explorer, it might be fun to spend a winter afternoon driving to the end of dead-end roads just to see what’s there. Where would you start? It just snowed. How many places can you name where the sledding is good in Norwich? Which is the creakiest: Dan and Whit’s back-room floors, the Norwich Public Library original building floor, the white Church steps to the balcony, or somewhere else? If you had to pick your favorite sign or historical marker in town, what would you choose? Where is the best view in Norwich that is fully open to the public? Quick: name five hiking trails in Norwich. What is your favorite dirt road in town and why? How many different ways can you find your way from the Norwich Farmers’ Market to Union Village? Where can you take a 10-, 15-, or 30-minute walk and not see a car?

How about we examine some of our traditions. If you could bottle and sell a Norwich tradition, which one would you choose and why? What are your favorite periodic events in town (public or private) where more than 50 people congregate? Which events feature the gazebo on the town green in a normal year? Who do you think should be the Citizen of the Year?

The possibilities for discussion are endless. What is your favorite food or beverage at one of our restaurants/stores? What is the most dangerous curve in town? Which house do you love but would never want to live in? Who is your favorite Norwich-based musician? How many of your children’s teachers have become your friends? Which specific tree is your favorite during foliage season? If you had to advise a flatlander on the best place to kill a half hour, where would you steer them? Whose landscaping do you most admire? How many books written by Norwich residents have you read or do you know about? Who is, ahem, the most attractive person in town? (You can navigate this one however you want, but I have found that this one is usually best attempted with the disclaimer, “Present company excluded.”). Of the many reasons I believe Norwich is superior to Hanover, I particularly like __________.

There may be too many good reasons to live here to count. One surefire way to discover another’s reasons is to go to the best chatting topic of all:

What do you like most about living here?

I’ll start. The people, of course, and the love they bring to our 45 square miles in the brave little state of Vermont.