by Gloria Vanderbrick, Bricklyn Eagle People in the New correspondent
A Rogue Schoolers couple considering the day’s travel plans during their visit to the Realm of Alsbrique in France. Note: all photos based on design and content input from W. Senville with assistance from Dall E-3 AI.
After last year’s integration of the Realm of Bricklyn into the French Republic (as part of France Outre-Mer) there has been a surge in Bricklynites traveling to the French Inland Realms. In part this has been the result of efforts by the non-profit Rogue Schoolers organization.
According to Hans Brickelmann, CEO of Rogue Schoolers, “we’re meeting the demand of Bricklynites from all walks of life to learn more about our new French friends.”
The new generation of Brick Air overseas jets. Photo courtesy of Brick Air.
Brickelmann also noted that “Rogue Schoolers has opened its trips to France to people of all ages, expanding on our traditional base of travelers over 50 years of age.”
Another important factor in the travel boom has been the roll out of Brick Air’s new high speed jet planes, which have cut travel time from Bricklyn to Strassbrick in half — from 30 hours to just under 15.
Thanks to assistance from Bricklyn’s Office of Outland Affairs, Rogue Schoolers has informally paired several of its itineraries with those of the Outland “Road Scholars” organization.
Several Bricklynites walking between canal locks, led by their guide Sammy Brickner (wearing her everyday hat and neck wrap).
➤ As reporter on this story, I have to acknowledge my bafflement about the name “Road Scholars,” as participants in Road Scholars travel programs are rarely scholars of transportation, let alone of vehicular transportation.
One of the recent Rogue Schooler programs involved a trip to the Alsbrique region of France. As a group of Road Scholars followed almost the identical itinerary, we encourage you to read the informative, yet engaging, trip reports by tour participant Wayne Senville that the Vermont chapter of The Alliance Française has posted on its website. The name Senville should sound familiar to our Bricklyn readers as Mr. Senville also serves as the Vermont-based Outland Liaison to Bricklyn’s Office of Outland Affairs.
Vermont Bricklynites had several opportunities during their trip to meet up with new friends from the Realm of Alsbrique, France. In this initial meeting the Alsbriqueastians wore traditional attire, while the Bricklynites also wore their own traditional attire.
Bricklynites looking up at Alsbrique’s famous Petit Château Brickingsbourg.
We caught up with Mr. Senville yesterday, shortly after his daily afternoon siesta.
Senville told us he was able to meet up with the Bricklyn Rogue Schoolers group several times because of his status as Outland Liaison. But, as he explained, “because of Bricklyn privacy laws, I was not able to share knowledge of these rendezvous during my trip with anyone in our Road Scholars group other than my spouse, Lila. I hope others in our group understand that while I would have liked to have had them meet the Bricklynites, this was just not possible.”
However, as Senville noted, “now that the trip is over, I can share some of the photos I took of the Bricklyn Rogue Schoolers, led by their excellent guide, ‘Sammy’ Brickner.” We’ve inserted several of Senville’s AI-assisted photos into this post.
Fourteen Bricklyn Rogue Schoolers say farewell to the Mad Elaine and several of its crew. The Mad Elaine served as the Bricklynites’ “péniche-croisière” during most of their time in Alsbrique.
Bricklyn Alliance Française members celebrate the dedication of the organization’s completely renovated offices, classrooms, and cinema/theater.
We should also note the active role that both the Bricklyn Chamber of Commerce and the Bricklyn Chapter of the Alliance Française has played in strengthening links between the Realm of Bricklyn and several French realms, including the Realm of Alsbrique.
by Paul B. Macro, Bricklyn Eagle Business & Economics Correspondent
After lengthy negotiations with Bricklyn Eagle publisher Jeff Brickzos, The Bricklyn Eagle’s staff of 20 full-time and 12 part-time employees voted to adopt an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) that will transfer ownership and control of The Eagle from the Brickzos Family Trust to the newspaper’s employees. It will be the first ESOP implemented in Bricklyn under the Realm’s “Employee Stock Ownership Plan Review Act” (ESOP-RA) enacted in 2023.
While most Outland readers will only be familiar with the selection of Bricklyn Eagle articles posted here at BricklynVT.com, The Eagle’s primary market consists of the more than 65,000 residents of the Tripartite Realm of Bricklyn.
The Bricklyn Eagle is the only daily paper serving the Realm’s three cities, and currently has a print circulation of just under 11,000, down from a 2015 peak of 13,500. The Eagle, however, has a growing digital subscriber base of over 17,000. This includes print subscribers who automatically receive access to The Eagle’s online edition.
The Eagle also serves as the “newspaper of record” for legal postings made by the League of Inland Cities, which is headquartered in Bricklyn.
Bricklyn Eagle publisher Jeff Brickzos (left) and Bricklyn Eagle editor Walt Brickman (right) discussing details of the transition to an ESOP. Credit: Eagle photographer Ann Tiler Anderson, with help from Dall E-3 AI.
The Eagle’s ESOP, as required by Bricklyn’s ESOP Review Act, needed approval from the Federal Council of the Realm of Bricklyn, which the Council gave by unanimous vote at its meeting last night.
The Bricklyn Eagle’s ESOP will, over the next three years, transfer the Brickzos Family’s ownership and control into a new trust held on behalf of The Eagle’s employees.
For the coming fiscal year (starting this July 1st), the Brickzos Family Trust will remain the paper’s principal owner. But over the following two years, the balance will shift until The Eagle is fully owned by its employees.
“I have always said The Eagle is run by a dedicated and talented staff,” Jeff Brickzos told members of the Federal Council, “and now they will also own the paper they proudly work for.”
Practical Idealism
Both full-time and part-time staff members will begin accumulating ownership stakes through the ESOP trust, without purchasing shares directly. Instead, the newspaper itself will fund the transition over time.
A new board of directors will also be seated on July 1st, including three members selected by the Brickzos Family Trust, and two by vote of the paper’s employees. For the following fiscal year (2027-2028) the Family Trust will hold just two directors’ seats, while three will be filled by Eagle employees. Finally, for FY 2028-2029 and beyond, the board will be comprised only of directors selected by The Eagle’s employees.
Editor Walt Brickman (left) discussing proposed ESOP with reporter Samantha B. Fortune (center) and office manager Diane Plater Jensen (right). Fortune and Jensen were elected by the Eagle staff to serve as their representatives on the new Board of Directors to be seated on July 1, 2026. Credit: Eagle photographer Ann Tiler Anderson, with help from Dall E-3 AI.
Bricklyn Eagle editor Brickman called the employee stock ownership plan “a wager that the people closest to the work will also be closest to the newspaper’s purpose.”
As Brickman added, “we had a vote of confidence when over three-quarters of our staff gave their thumbs 👍👍👍 up to adopting the ESOP.”
“One very important factor behind the strong support for the ESOP,” continued Brickman, “was the solid financial analysis — really a stress test of The Eagle — conducted by a team from Brickwell Financial Services, showing the paper’s capacity to thrive under employee ownership, while highlighting pitfalls to avoid. This analysis was vital to building confidence, and was done very early in our process of thinking through whether the ESOP option made sense.”
While still rare, employee ownership in newspapers has gained renewed attention as local outlets search for alternatives to hedge-fund consolidation and closure.
“This is not nostalgia,” said Professor Nora Tiler Tipton of Bricklyn University’s School of Civic Media. “It’s a forward-looking approach. The question is whether you can successfully steer a local newspaper through an employee-run board.”
“The transition also raises a number of tough questions,” Tipton added, “some brought up during the Federal Council’s hearing, such as whether employee-owners can make difficult budget cuts, for instance those that might result in staff layoffs, and whether the paper’s reporters would pull punches when covering actions of the newspaper they have become part owners of.”
To address these and other concerns, both Walt Brickman and Jeff Brickzos pledged that an “Editorial Independence Policy” will be drafted by The Eagle’s new Board of Directors soon after they are seated.
What will the future hold for The Bricklyn Eagle? It’s too early to tell, but one thing is clear, it will be in The Eagle’s employees’ hands. ✥
To the Editor: Hey Bricklyn Eagle. How come you didn’t mention Seven Days, that top-notch newspaper just across the border from you in Burlington, Vermont. While I don’t think they have an ESOP, I thought some of their employees were also part-owners of the paper. I double-checked on their website and here’s what they say: “Founded in 1995 by Pamela Polston and Paula Routly, Seven Days is now owned and run by Routly and a group of longtime employees.” Seven Days also says it gets financial support “from grateful “Super Readers” who make one-time or monthly contributions.” — Brandy D., Burlington, VT.
Reply from the Editor: We regret that due to article length constraints we were unable to include mention of not just Seven Days, but the Barton Chronicle, as well as thriving nonprofits (another ownership model) such as VTDigger and Vermont Public, both of which offers excellent local statewide news coverage, as well as the CCTV Center for Media & Democracy, which covers Burlington and Chittenden County. There’s truly a cornucopia of great news reporting being done by nonprofits and small community newspapers in Vermont — and there are many more than those I just named!
To the Editor: Did your reporter use AI to write this story? Sure sounds to me like he did. And how much of an “employee” share will you be giving to Mr. or Ms. ChatGPT, or to their friends Gemini, Perplexity, and Claude? It won’t be long before they end up owning, operating, and writing all the “news” you publish in The Bricklyn Eagle. — Charlie B., South Bricklyn, VT.
Reply from the Editor: I discussed your concerns with Paul B. Macro, our long-time business correspondent who authored this article. He indicated that he used ChatGPT AI as an aid in conducting research, while also independently verifying sources noted by ChatGPT. This is in keeping with Bricklyn Eagle, as well as Realm of Bricklyn, policies for dealing with AI. For more on this, see On the Use of Generative Artificial Intelligence by The Bricklyn Eagle (Dec. 8, 2025) and Preliminary Guidance on the Use of Generative AI by Media & Government Agencies (Mar. 1, 2024).
I should note that prior to publication we also run all articles through an AI detection check by Pangram. Here is a screenshot of the summary we received for Mr. Macro’s 726 word article (note the final word count varies from this due to some changes in my editing of his article).
by Gloria Vanderbrick, Bricklyn Eagle People in the News Correspondent
Introductory note from Bricklyn Eagle Editor Walt Brickman:
As we promised you, our highly capable People in the News correspondent Gloria Vanderbrick is interviewing nine past Brickardy contestants. They’re a cross-section of Bricklyn residents with a wide range of occupations, not celebrities like Federal Council President Hilma Plater Zybrick, or Dunk Them Donuts mogul Dave Tiler Broffman. Our aim in this is to give you, our Outland readers, a better feel for daily life in Bricklyn.
Today, we’re publishing the first of Vanderbrick’s nine interviews. Her conversation is with Meredith B. Days, manager of the Bricklyn Brick Spa.
On Peach Street in downtown Bricklyn Jct.Merrry B. Days scrubbing a client.
Meredith B. Days brushing a client with a specially designed circular motion hand brush. All photos in this article taken by Eagle photographer Ann Tiler Anderson, with assistance from Dall E-3 AI.
By an interesting coincidence, we recently reported on “Clean Day Bricklyn.” Just as Bricklyn’s streets and buildings periodically need to be cleaned washed and scrubbed, so too do the LEGO people who live here.
The Bricklyn Eagle Interviews Spa Manager & Former Brickardy Champ, Merry B. Days
Gloria Vanderbrick for The Bricklyn Eagle: Hi, Meredith. We’re glad to speak with you as both a past Brickardy champion, and as one the people in our Realm whose job is to keep Bricklynites sparkling clean.
Merry Days: Thanks, Gloria. I always love reading your columns for The Eagle. But please call me Merry Days. Not everyone is going to realize who I am if you use the name “Meredith.”
Gloria Vanderbrick: No problem. Well, let’s start by talking about your job, which is really quite fascinating. Then we can end with a couple of questions about your being on Brickardy.
Steps in the Cleaning Process at the Bricklyn Brick Spa
Gloria Vanderbrick: Let’s turn to your job. As everyone in Bricklyn knows, getting cleaned regularly is key to good health, as well as to looking attractive. A large number of Bricklynites now go to cleaning spas, such as yours, instead of trying to thoroughly clean themselves at home.
Can you tell us what the steps in the spa cleaning process are, especially for our Outland readers who aren’t as familiar with what Bricklyn spa workers do?
1. The Hot Tub
All photos in this article were taken by Bricklyn Eagle photographer Ann Tiler Anderson, with assistance from Dall E-3 AI. All LEGO individuals shown in this and other photos in this article have given us permission to use thåe photo(s).
Merry Days. Of course, Gloria. First of all, and I think most importantly, is creating a relaxing environment for our clients.
That’s why the first step on entering the Brick Spa is spending several minutes in one of our hot tubs. It’s a great way to unwind, especially for our many clients who come to the Brick Spa directly from work.
Gloria Vanderbrick: I could use one of those hot tubs right now! What’s next in your cleaning process?
2. The Sauna Room
Merry Days: Sometimes it’s a bit hard to move our clients out of the hot tub! But everyone loves the next stop, our sauna room. We use radiant heat. Usually clients stay here for just five minutes or so.
Again one of the main goals is relaxation, but the radiant heat also provides benefits such as improved circulation and relief from body aches — and, yes, LEGO people can have aches and pains!
3. The Scrubbing Room
After the sauna room, our clients head over to our scrubbing room. We use either a long flat brush or a circular motion brush. [See the photo of a circular brush near the start of this article]. Scrub brushing by hand is key to making sure all the dust and fine particles are removed from our clients’ bodies. In that photo below I’m in one of our scrubbing rooms with a client.
As an aside, I assume all your readers know that Bricklyn is located in an Outlander’s basement. Even though this Outlander — whose name I don’t know — does occasionally clean his basement, it’s not very thoroughly done. That’s one reason why Bricklynites need to take their own cleaning seriously. I strongly recommend that Bricklynites stop by a spa — whether ours or someone else’s — at least every other month. It’s really essential for good health and hygiene.
Gloria Vanderbrick: Thanks, Merry, for that suggestion. Full disclosure: I’ve been to your spa a number of times for cleanings, so I’m quite sure there are two more rooms left, right?
4. The Paint Coloring Room
Merry B. Days: That’s right, Gloria. The fourth step in the spa cleaning process is the magic of the paint coloring room.
Stylists at work in the Bricklyn Brick Spa
This is where our clients’ clothing and body colors get touched up. For an extra fee, they can get the color or style of their hair, or the patterns of their clothing, changed.
A growing number of Bricklynites have been asking for changes, sometimes making one or two changes each time they’re here! You know, some now like a change for every season.
Sometimes Bricklynites will splurge on new attire, or a change in hair style, for their birthday or anniversary, or even for their child’s high school prom or graduation.
Before on the lieft; after on the right. of each image.
Sometimes even the lyrics of a song can influence someone to want to change the color of their clothes. This was the case for an 18 year old young man who, after hearing this song, wanted to start wearing purple. With our equipment, repainting to a purple outfit (with some touches of white and blue) only took about ten minutes — and not a bad result I’d say!
Our stylists can offer suggestions, and — using our proprietary computer program — show our clients how changes they’re considering will look.
I should note that Brickcare insurance currently will cover the cost of modifications made during just one spa visit per year, so multiple modifications can get costly. I also need to add, for those who don’t know, that Bricklyn law prohibits spas from making any facial or skin color changes. This law has been challenged, but I’m not a lawyer and can’t really speak to that.
We use a special paint removal and application process to remove the old colors and then paint on the new colors. [See photo above]. As with our roller, the equipment we use was developed in coordination with LEGO master technicians.
Our stylists will then add, by hand, final touches to achieve just the final look the customer was hoping for.
A spa stylist using the newest variable pitch hair styling brush.
As you can imagine, paint coloring is often the most time-consuming part of the spa cleaning process. It also calls for skilled stylists.
We require all our stylists to have a certificate from the Bricklyn Health Department attesting to successful completion of BHD’s three month course in LEGO hair and clothing styles, and demonstrate complete knowledge of the LEGO color palette.
Our spa also has an additional three month apprenticeship requirement, during which our new stylists work under the direct supervision of a senior member of our team.
I should also point out that any Bricklynite 16 years of age or younger requires parental permission for a change of attire or hair style. We know that many young people find the age limit repressive or stifling of their identity, but that’s what the law requires. Our spa is also licensed by the Realm of Bricklyn to print out new identification cards for anyone changing their attire or the color or style of their hair.
5. The Polishing Room
Gloria Vanderbrick: We’re nearing the end of our tour.
Merry Days: Yes, Gloria. After having finished in the paint coloring room, our clients head over to their last stop, our polishing room. They lie down on an adjustable platform next to a large, but soft, specially designed spinning roller.
The roller is then lifted off its base and slowly moved over all of the body. It truly bring out the sheen in each Bricklynite’s plastic.
I do want to add that the roller we use has been developed by LEGO to ensure just the right amount of firmness, as we don’t want to mar our plastic-based bodies.
So that’s an overview of what we do at the Bricklyn Brick Spa. I should add that while I’ve worked at all stages of the cleaning process, I’m now one of the spa’s managers. I usually oversee our staff; work on training; and fill in when someone is out sick.
After Hours:
Gloria Vanderbrick: What do you like to do after work? Can i guess it has something to do with Brickardy?
Merry B. Days: You got it. When I’m done work I often head over to the public library and pull out a volume of the Bricklyn Encyclopedia to learn more about different aspects of Bricklyn, from literature to music, from geography to history.
Gloria Vanderbrick: What first got you interested in Brickardy?
Merry Days: When I was growing up, just about every evening my parents, and me and my older brother watched Brickardy. My brother used to get mad when I got more answers right than he did. From the start. Brickardy is great for people like me who love all sorts of topics — and there sure are plenty in the Bricklyn Encyclopedia!
Gloria Vanderbrick: If you had to give one tip to someone who wants to be a Brickardy winner, what would that be?
Merry Days: For me, it’s knowing when to buzz in. If you buzz before host Zen Brickthings finishes reading the clue, you’ll be locked out of buzzing again for a brief period. You need to be quick, but if you aren’t very sure of your answer, it’s better to hold off and let the other contestants buzz in first. A wrong answer can be costly, as it was on my final Brickardy appearance!
Gloria Vanderbrick: Thanks so much for the tour, Merry. But before I leave, I’d like to book my next appointment!
A smiling (and why not?) Bricklyn Eagle Editor Walt Brickman seen inside a one-person hot tub at the Bricklyn Brick Spa. Photo by Merry B. Days, with assistance from Dall E-3 AI. ✥
We welcome Letters to the Editor. How do your own experiences at spas compare to those described in Vanderbrick’s interview? Please email to: bricklynvt@gmail.com
To the Editor: The Pastries by Patsy team has arranged for reciprocal discounts with the Bricklyn Brick Spa. In fact, Pastries by Patsy has recently expanded its product line to include freshly made vegetable juices, rich in electrolytes, which are essential when using the infrared sauna. Look forward to seeing Bricklynites at our café for some pre- or post- spa beverages. — Patsy Brickerson, Bricklyn, VT.
