MARGARET KNIGHT
508-627-8894
Even people who live on the Vineyard and take ferries regularly wonder how we deal with a ferry on a daily basis. The Chappaquiddick ferry is an everyday part of life, but it also adds a little excitement. For a couple of minutes we’re at sea with one or a few other people, and anything could happen. Luckily, most of the time, nothing does, but a ferry trip makes life more interesting.
After all these years, taking the ferry into consideration is pretty much second nature for me. If I need to reach a destination at a certain time, the various factors pop into my head: time of year, time of day, weather, one ferry or two, On Time II or III, what errands I might do if I’m early for the appointment, and my willingness to risk being late. My brain automatically computes all the information and spits out a departure time. It’s a bit more complicated than most people’s departures, but it doesn’t take a lot of time to figure out. One reason I don’t think about the ferry more is because it’s so reliable, which has a lot to do with the ferry captains’ willingness to take us across in all kinds of weather.
Driving the boat is the ferry captains’ work, but it’s more than just a job. They have to deal with us Chappaquiddickers, who tend to be independent types. They see everyone who lives on Chappy, because even the near-hermits have to come across sometime. They probably know a lot more of the year-rounders than most of us do. They may know more about all of us than they’d like to know — but they’re very discreet. And we know nearly nothing about them — we’re just grateful they take us home. This past week, the Chappy Community Center held an appreciation potluck in honor of the ferry captains and crew. More about the proceedings will appear in next week’s column.
On Saturday, Jan. 23 in Vineyard Haven, there will be an all-day benefit for the victims of the earthquake in Haiti. A silent auction at the Mansion House will have items donated by many Vineyard businesses. Also, many Tisbury merchants will donate either a percentage of Saturday’s sales, or a fixed amount per sale. All proceeds will go to Doctors Without Borders.
The Adult and Community Education program (ACE MV) is offering two courses for graduate and undergraduate credit from Northeastern University starting this Saturday, Jan. 23. Ten per cent discount scholarships are available by preregistering ASAP: e-mail lynn@acemv.org, or leave a voice mail message at 508-693-1033 extension 240. The two courses are Irish History taught by Elaine Cawley Weintraub, and Teaching Language and Literature through the Arts and Media taught by Lynn Ditchfield, two longtime Island educators. Another credit course pending is Human Communications. The winter catalog and course flyers are available online at acemv.org or at schools and libraries.
Whippoorwill Farm has vegetables for anyone to buy at the last CSA pickup on Friday, Jan. 22 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., or Saturday, Jan. 23 from 9 a.m. to noon. This pickup includes a large bag of salad greens, celeriac, cabbage, three-plus pounds of onions, three pounds of potatoes, and three-plus pounds of carrots. The cost is $20.
Island Theatre Workshop announces open auditions Saturday, Jan. 23 from 1 to 4 p.m. for the 2010 One Act Play Festival at their new Music street location, the former West Tisbury library.
According to Susan Whiting’s bird news in last week’s Gazette, the two Chappy osprey, Bea and Caley, that were fitted with transmitters by Rob Bierregaard, have been lost. Caley was in Guyana and Bea in Venezuela. Rob is getting Bea’s transmitter back, but only one tagged bird from this group of first year osprey is still alive, in Venezuela. There are four osprey from the previous year that should be making the return trip for the first time this spring. (Remember spring?)
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