A few weeks ago, in early August, we were lucky.
Without having glanced at a tide chart, we happened to stop by Wharton Point in Brunswick just as the tide was receding from its high point…
Columns
’Round Town
The plans for our next annual family gathering on Monhegan Island begin on the boat ride back to the mainland after our stay. We so look forward to this event that little time is wasted planning…
Joe’s Journal
The other day, while at Hannaford's, I helped a young mother push her overloaded cart as she wrestled with a 2-year-old.
Thanks, she said. Then she noticed my USMC cap and added – Thanks…
Hello Islanders. Have you noticed that ever so slight nip in the air? Too soon! It's hard to decide what I love more, a hot Maine summer, or a beautiful Maine fall. They always seem to go too fast…
From the House of Representatives
On July 27, 2024 the Arleigh Burke-class Destroyer (DDG 127) was christened the Patrick Gallagher, in honor of Marine Corporal Patrick Gallagher, a 23-year-old Irish immigrant working…
From the Senate
Aug. 18, 2024 marked the 104-year anniversary of women earning the right to vote…
“Jurassic Park” - (PG-13; 2 hours, 6 minutes) - The final film in our 2024 Summer Blockbuster series. A select group is chosen to tour an island theme park populated by dinosaurs…
Olympic athletes aren't the only ones after gold this summer. Criminal scammers are increasingly trying to steal your savings through gold bar schemes.
Criminals may impersonate…
“Janet Planet” - (PG13; 1 hour, 53 minutes) - In rural Western Massachusetts, 11-year-old Lacy (Zoe Ziegler) spends the summer of 1991 at home, enthralled by her own imagination…
A Bird’s Tale
On cooler, early evenings these August days, we have been out sitting comfortably on our porch, our little black dog happily beside us sniffing the air. We haven’t been using our noses but instead…
Joe’s Journal
Dear Reader,
Well, the Olympics concluded with a fitting ending as the U.S. women’s basketball team pulled off a come-from-behind win in grand fashion.
If you don’t think it was a…
’Round Town
To me, one of the more fascinating things about folks who perform at the Opera House is their observations about visiting Maine and Boothbay Harbor in particular. People come from far and wide to…
The next public supper will be Aug. 21. The menu will consist of gazpacho, salad, rolls, BBQ chicken, corn on the cob, potato salad, and ice…
Artificial Intelligence (AI) has captured the world's attention, but it has also captured the attention of criminal scammers. One area where AI scams are particularly dangerous is celebrity…
Salt ’n Spar
It’s with a heavy heart I note the recent passing of Dean Shea, an old friend and Wiscasset neighbor. I’ll miss his charm, wit, story-telling and commonsense advice. Dean was a great deal of help…
Where It’s At
The first time I wrote about Jaap Eduard Helder’s fabulous art was in 2020 and his solo show at Studio 53, “The Wordless Stories of …” and I had a wonderful time viewing and writing about the…
A Bird’s Tale
On one of the oppressively hot and humid summer days we have been experiencing lately, we had the good fortune to be at the cool, shady camp of brother Andy and sister-in-law Nina on the shore of…
Joe’s Journal
Well, we survived another week of sweltering summer weather, sort of.
I never thought I would write that sentence while living on the Maine coast. It looks like some climate change is…
’Round Town
For some reason, Leica the wonder dog (it’s a wonder she’s a dog!), made several executive decisions recently.
About six months ago Leica abandoned her crate. She gave us no notice, no…
Boothbay Region YMCA Community Catalyst for Good
If you’ve ventured to Barters Island, you know it’s a spectacularly unique place along our peninsula. Sweeping views of sea and horizon. The ever-present tide reminding us of the bountiful gift of…
In 2023, post-disaster fraud cost Americans over $9.3 billion, according to the National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB). With hurricane and wildfire season in full swing, it’s important to remind…
Over the weekend we decided to join in the birding fun that we wrote about in…
’Round Town
The storms of this past winter did a lot of damage throughout the region but the east-facing shore of Southport took a serious hit. I am most familiar with the waterfront from Gray Homestead to…
Joe’s Journal
Dear Reader:
Does your head hurt?
Is your neck sore after being whipped back and forth as the political bombshells cascade down from Niagara-on-the Potomac?
Is your brain…
Where It’s At
Mushrooms have long been a subject of fascination for writers – fiction and non-fiction; and their healing properties in their natural state raw or cooked, in powder and capsule form around the…
A Bird’s Tale
We might be far from the tropics, but the temperature sure has felt downright tropical here in Maine (and across much of the nation) over the last few weeks. Maine and much of the country also got…
’Round Town
Mamie Louise Anderzohn grew up on a small farm in the Midwest. How she ever landed at the small state school in western Pennsylvania which I attended is beyond me. She taught a “methods” course in…
Hello Islanders – Wow, what a summer! It's that time of year when we should be relaxing, but every relative, friend and distant acquaintance wants to come visit us. Make the most of it, and come…
With today’s tight real estate market there is often pressure to act quickly when you find that perfect place. Scammers know this and are waiting to pounce. Here are three things to be aware of…
Where It’s At
When I was a kid holiday movies played once a year right in your living room, they weren’t rented, bought for home watching, or on YouTube. You watched them with your family, the big, old-…
Where It’s At
When I first saw David Dupree’s colorful, detailed paintings at Studio 53, I was blown away. The energy produced by the techniques this self-taught artist used including pointillism (painting…
A Bird’s Tale
We may have a recent preoccupation with swifts. They seem to have been finding their way into these columns a disproportionate number of times lately as compared to other birds. But we make no…
Joe’s Journal
We all dodged a bullet Saturday night.
Yes, we watched in horror as the leading Republican presidential candidate escaped an assassination attempt.
Yes, even the most diehard…
’Round Town
According to some local history, the Bridge House, located at the center of Boothbay Harbor’s famous Footbridge, was built in 1902 by bridge tender William F. Foster. At that time, my guess is,…
Boothbay Region YMCA Community Catalyst for Good
Here at the Y, we love celebrating our members, our children, and the spirit of reciprocity that supports all our initiatives. There are countless volunteers who lend their time and…
Community of Hope
The topic of domestic abuse often evokes images of violence between young or middle-aged partners, however, abuse is frequently used against people of all ages including elders. All of the forms…
Last year the Federal Trade Commission recorded $10 billion in reported fraud from U.S. consumers. Because fraud is underreported, we know that actual losses are much higher.
While…
A Bird’s Tale
June in Maine is when the miracle of new life abounds in birds. Most of the birds that breed in Maine—build nests, lay eggs, nurture their young—do so in June. This year, we have been happy to see…
Where it (was) at
The breeze was as strong as the sun during 2024’s Windjammer Days’ Artists Alley down to Whale Park June 27 and 28. Coordinating this event the past two years, is Friends of Windjammer Days member…
’Round Town
During our luxury cruise with Captain Mark Stover as we watched boats arriving in the harbor for the Windjammer Days Festival, I noticed a lot of barrels. There were barrels stacked in dories,…
Joe’s Journal
For most of the political season, the focus has been more on the two old geezers, Grandpa Don, who is 78, and Grandpa Joe, who is 81.
The younger grandpa saw his business hauled into court…
Salt ’n Spar
This time last year I wrote a column asking whether there might be any takers for Wiscasset’s Boston Post Cane. You know, the time-honored tradition of passing a ceremonial walking stick to the…
Criminals love to impersonate big businesses and the bigger the better. One of the largest targets of impostor scams last year was Amazon. According to the Federal Trade Commission, 44,000 reports…
A Bird’s Tale
There are two birds in particular that are so striking, so tropical-looking, that most people think they’re rare here in Maine.
But they aren’t.
In fact they’re quite widespread and…
