JANE N. SLATER

508-645-3378

(slaterjn@comcast.net)

Chilmark woke up to a chilly morning on Wednesday last as our impending winter sent us a warning of things to come. For some, it was a reminder of the holidays that will soon be here and the rush to prepare for them. Hopefully, you all have your ducks . . . no, turkeys . . . in line for next week’s festivities.

Best wishes from all his Chilmark friends go to Andy Goldman who was hospitalized earlier this week. We all hope he is on the mend and on the way home soon.

The Chilmark planning board has received 366 survey responses so far, 227 of them from seasonal residents and 139 from year-round residents. The board wants us all to know that they will be happy to receive more and we are encouraged to fill out a survey and submit it. Forms are available at town hall, or e-mail me and I will see that you get one. The year-round folks should let the board know how they want things to go in Chilmark.

There are lots of notices of exciting events to keep us busy and active in the coming days. Make note of these dates on your calendars. It should be a cheery holiday season.

Chilmark Chocolates tells us they will be open on Tuesday and Wednesday before Thanksgiving and through the weekend following. Their hours are 11:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. I will tell you what the Christmas hours will be soon.

All are invited to the home of Ted and Judy Mayhew in Menemsha on Dec. 10 for a trunk show. Rebecca Mayhew will offer her homemade bath and body products, candles, handcrafted leather goods and her beaded jewelry. Kati Johnson will be selling her Mollygoggles children’s sweaters, felted bags, alpaca wraps and accessories. Patti Linn will have her gourmet chocolate covered caramel apples and more. The Mayhews will offer refreshments and welcome shoppers from 5:30 to 8 p.m. at their home, 467 North Road. Extra parking will be in front of their house on Mayhew Lane.

The West Tisbury Library will host author Charles Parton on Nov. 28. He will tell us about his new book, The Fork Once Taken, about his Peace Corps adventures in Borneo. He is well known to Vineyarders as a previous owner of Alley’s Store. The Partons now live in western Massachusetts but return often. The author talk will begin at 4 p.m. and will be followed with refreshments.

Norman and Diana Freed enjoyed one of the treats of the 21st century this week. Their son, Andy, is a professor at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Ind. and recently traveled to New Zealand to lecture. While there, he was able to talk directly to his parents and to show them the locale as he filmed, while online with them. You wonder what some of the Chilmark whalers who were out there 100 years or so ago would think of this technology!

The Friends of the Chilmark Library are planning the annual holiday party at the library on Dec. 17 from 4 to 6 p.m. The Dunkl family will play music and there will be food and drink for all.

You also may want to make note of the West Tisbury Congregational Church’s annual Christmas sale on Dec. 13.

Here’s a date to note: French Cooking Lessons with Chef Jean-Marc Dupon of Le Grenier will begin on Wednesday, Dec. 3, at 6 p.m. at the library. He will teach us the fine art of making cream sauces. He will continue the sauce lessons on Wednesdays, Jan. 7 and Feb. 4. Recipes and tastings will be included in each class and we are all invited free of charge.

Steve McGhee is home after a five-day visit with his son, Geoff, in Paris.

The Chilmark library will make December amnesty month for library fines, if you bring in a contribution to the food drive.

Marsha Winsryg offers us an alternative shopping experience. The African Artists Community Development Project will hold a Cultural Survival Craft Sale on Friday, Nov. 28 at the Charter School in North Tisbury. All sorts of African crafts, jewelry, baskets and textiles will be offered for sale, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Remember that the Harbor Craft Shop and Menemsha Blues shops are open weekends on Basin Road. Pandora’s Box will have a final sale weekend over the Thanksgiving holiday.

There is not much people news this week but all these upcoming events offer us a chance to get out and get the news!