Sometimes the simplest of conversations reveal the most beautiful complexities.
A brief chat between Alice Chicoine and Steve Wright many years ago paints a colorful portrait of a woman typically dressed all in black. Alice was a cornerstone at Jay Peak. And she'd probably have a wisecrack remark if she knew we said that. Alice died this week after 88 years of working her butt off. We all have a lot to learn from a human like Alice.
I recently had a conversation with Alice Chicoine—a Jay Peak Housekeeper, bed-maker, and Raised-Jayer for the better part of 35 years. I spoke to her in my office one Spring morning roughly 30 minutes before the start of a shift that would send her into The Tram Haus Lodge for the beginning of Annual Cleans. Alice neither looked forward to, nor dreaded this effort— “It is what it is,” she offered when I asked if it was something she either dreaded or looked forward to. This unconsciously ambivalent tone would be interpreted as unconsciously ambivalent coming from just about anyone else. From Alice, though, the reading was literal; an answer, albeit an economic one, to a question. A life of child raising, farm tending and annual cleaning doesn’t leave much room for adverbs, for adjectives-for anything else, really, but the quick and critical.
She suffered my questions with the patience probably reserved for her 25 grand and great grandchildren and, when we had finished, shook my hand, turned and went to start her shift.
| Steve Wright | Someone told me you just had a birthday. |
|---|---|
| Alice chicoine | Yup, just turned 79. And my shift starts in 30 minutes. You can have 25 of them. |
| SW | Did you do anything to celebrate? |
| AC | I went to the East Side. I had french toast. Then I talked to a few of my kids and grand kids who called. |
| SW | Then what? |
| AC | What do you mean then what? What’s wrong with French toast? When you get to my age, you stop expecting so much and enjoy regular stuff more. |
| SW | Like French toast? |
| AC | Yes like French toast. And sitting down. I don’t do it much but, when I do, I really enjoy just sitting down. |
| SW | When did you start standing up so much? |
| AC | My first job was at a Fisherman's store in Newport. I made .40 an hour and worked 10 hours a day. That's 4 bucks a day. |
| SW | Makes this place seem generous. |
| AC | That was 65 years ago. |
| SW | What other interesting things can you tell me? |
|---|---|
| AC | Well, my husband and I used to run a dairy farm. Up in Westfield, about 50 cows or so. Maybe there was more, I can’t remember. Rake, bale, chop, milk—these are things I know. |
| SW | So making beds and making this place shine—these are easy in comparison? |
| AC | Some ways yes, because I have help. Some ways no, because this place is bigger than my dairy farm. Smells better too. Mostly. |
| SW | Brochure copy. |
| AC | Sure, if you want. |
| SW | Where was the last place you took a vacation? |
| AC | Dunno. Niagra, NY. I think. It was a while ago. |
| SW | Was that waterfall thing there back then? |
| AC | Yes, wiseacre, it was. I went on a bus tour with my husband. Wherever the bus went, we went. Went on that boat that goes under the falls. I guess it was pretty impressive. |
| SW | What about the kids? |
| AC | They weren’t there. Jeez, there’s like 7 of them. |
| SW | Like? |
| AC | There’s lots of them, let’s say that. Grandkids too—15 of those. Oh and 10 great Grandkids too. And been married almost 60 years. Lots of work in and around all of that, let me tell you. |
| SW | So how do you make it all work? |
| AC | I really have no idea. All kids are different. Gotta do different things. I can’t remember what the heck I did to be honest. They’re all doing pretty good though, so whatever it was, it must of worked. My Dad died at an early age so we figured out how to get it goin’ on our own. I think we showed our kids how to do that too. |
| SW | Do you stay in touch with all of them? |
| AC | Sure. They got me an iPad and I use that. Except the first time I hopped on that thing, I used Skype, and I was dressed in my all-black work clothes and my kids thought someone had died. |
| SW | So you Skype? |
| AC | That’s about it. Oh and Words With Friends-hooked on that too. Oh and your question about advice for making it all work? Folks should shut up once in a while. |
| SW | It’s difficult for me to not take that personally. |
| AC | Then go ahead. |
| SW | How long have you been at Jay Peak? |
| AC | How should I know. Don’t pay attention to that stuff—go ask Linda Starr-she’s been here longer ‘n me. Shoot don’t tell her I said that. |
| SW | No worries. You’ve seen us go from then to now. What do you think of it all? |
| AC | I’ve cleaned everything here. There’s definitely more to clean now. So many buildings. So many employees. And so many more guests. I like having more people to meet. I understand and speak French pretty fluently, so talking to our French guests, in French, is fun. |
| SW | How much time do I have left? |
| AC | About a minute. |
| SW | Best part of your day? |
| AC | Early, early morning. My car knows the way. Sun’s barely up. I think about where I’ve come from and everything that’s happened in my life. And I’m always happy. Pretty much have been since way back. I’m lucky. |
| SW | This is where I shut up. |
| AC | Seems about right. |
