Dylan Thomas
The birds of the winged trees flying my name Above the farms and the white horses I rose in rainy autumn And walked abroad in a shower of all my days. – Dylan Thomas
September 12, 2008
Evening with Rose Styron Reading Poetry at Library
The Vineyard Haven Public Library’s special author series continues on Monday, Sept. 15 at 7 p.m., with An Evening with Rose Styron. Rose Styron is a poet, journalist and human rights activist. She is the author of By Vineyard Light, a collection of poems centered on Martha’s Vineyard, where she and her husband, the late…
Good News at Sengekontacket: Bacteria Levels Show Decline
With bacteria levels in Sengekontacket Pond lower than anticipated this summer, Edgartown shellfish constable Paul Bagnall is advocating that parts of the pond reopen to shellfishing as soon as next summer. “I am pushing for the reopening of certain areas of the pond,” Mr. Bagnall told the Friends of Sengekontacket at their annual meeting this…
Chilmark
JANE N. SLATER 508-645-3378 (slaterjn@comcast.net) Chilmarkers were happy that hurricane Hanna went elsewhere, but there were many who enjoyed the high surf on the south side last weekend. The Squibnocket beach parking lot was crowded as spectators and surfers enjoyed the remnants of the storm. It was reported by some of the spectators that there…
Point Counterpoint on Bradley Square
Not What It Seems Editors, Vineyard Gazette: I suspect that many of your readers perceive the Bradley Square project as just another version of a classic Island tale: a nonprofit organization wants to build much-needed affordable housing and is opposed by disgruntled abutters and neighbors who fear that bringing in “these people” will disfigure the…
Day by Day Guide to Weekend Film Festival: What’s on Where
All tickets available at the box office from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Sunday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. located at the Mansion House on Main street. All seats that are not claimed 10 minutes before show time will be sold on a first come, first served basis. For details, call 774-392-2972 or check…
Festival Film Calls Water the New Oil, As Profits Bottle Up a Public Resource
If you had to pick the worst example of marketing defeating morality, it would be hard to go past the bottled water industry. People spend some $7 billion buying the product each year. According to the Beverage Marketing Corporation, Americans consumed some 31.2 billion liters of it in 2006, mostly packaged in plastic.
Jerry Goodale Captains Moffett Winner
The 31st running of the George Moffett Race sponsored by the Holmes Hole Sailing Association took place on Saturday, Sept. 6, with the start and finish off East Chop in Vineyard Haven harbor.
Jonathan and Joel Cristea Win Pistol Championships
Jonathan Cristea of Edgartown captured the small caliber division of the annual Martha’s Vineyard Pistol Championships held on Sunday, Sept. 8 with a score of 270 out of 400, while brother Joel captured the large bore caliber division with a score of 340 in that class. Competitors had to fire from different distances, positions and…
Craft Works Up-Island
Craft Works Up-Island The Friends of the Chilmark Library are trying to organize a fiber hand craft group to meet one night a week at the Chilmark Library from 7 to 9 p.m. All knitters, crocheters, quilters, needlepointers, spinners — hand stitchers of all descriptions — are welcome. The purpose is to share our composite…
A Quiet Gathering At Unitarian Church Remembers Sept. 11
The blue Vineyard sky on Sept. 11, 2001 was cloudless and bright. And everyone still remembers that searing blue sky.
Expensive Environmental Issues Face Oak Bluffs Waste Planners
Faced with mounting evidence that nitrogen loading from septic systems and failed cesspools are seeping into environmentally sensitive coastal waterways like Sengekontacket and Farm ponds, the Oak Bluffs wastewater district has begun developing a long-range wastewater management plan.
Camp Ground Cottage Work Prompts Reader Reaction
Good Old Boys Editors, Vineyard Gazette: Jeremiah Pease must be rolling over in his grave. How could this historic home on the lane named after him be cut down in a matter of minutes? Why were the Martha’s Vineyard Camp Meeting Association construction rules not followed by all that were involved?
Laundry Cart Makes Green Start for Betty Wolfson’s Cleaner Art
“Whose underwear is this?” asks artist Betty Wolfson with a laugh. “Usually I ask permission to photograph and then paint someone’s laundry line, but I didn’t get the chance when I snapped this one somewhere in Vineyard Haven. Now I’m hoping the owner will recognize her silky panties and step forward.” Surely the unknown laundry-hanger…
Stocks of Striped Bass Healthy, But Still the Fishermen Worry
The striped bass is fun to catch and good to eat. It’s also enigmatic, historically prone to wild fluctuations in numbers and to inexplicable disappearances from area waters. And with the annual Island fishing derby opening Sunday, the old question is being asked again: where are all the fish? Cooper Gilkes 3rd, an Island fisherman…
New Library Hours
New Library Hours The Chilmark Public Library has gone back to their off-season hours. They are: Mondays and Saturdays, 10:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Tuesdays, 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Wednesdays, 10:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Thursdays, 3:30 to 6:30 p.m. Closed Fridays and Sundays.
Letters to the Editor
STORM APOLOGY Editors, Vineyard Gazette:
Dance Away
Dance Away Two benefit New England Contra Dances for Island resident and musician Kerry Elkin are coming up off-Island: one is on Saturday, Sept. 13, at 8 p.m. at the Greenfield Grange in Greenfield. Mass.; the other is Friday, Sept. 19, at 7:30 p.m. at the Scout House in Concord. All proceeds will go to…
Husky Hearings Come to End; Dogs Will Not Be Put to Sleep
A pair of Siberian huskies who got loose last month and killed several chickens were spared from humane euthanization on Tuesday after the Oak Bluffs selectmen agreed to instead ban one of the dogs from town and ordered the other one housed in a secure pen made of concrete and chain-link fence.
Harvest Moon
For a sign of autumn in the night sky look at next week’s full moon. Monday night’s harvest moon appears in the zodiacal constellation Pisces. The full moon is close to the astronomical equator. Just as the sun will cross the equator later this month on the first day of fall, so too the full…
Blooming Algae in Edgartown Great Pond
Tracing the Problem The algal bloom in Edgartown Great Pond has prompted much well-justified discussion and concern.The following is intended to provide a little additional detail on prospective solutions to improve the health of the pond.
Plein Air Painters to Come in for Oak Bluffs Exhibition
The opening reception for the Plein Air Invitational Show will be held on Saturday, Sept. 13, from 4 to 7 p.m. in Oak Bluffs at both the Dragonfly Gallery, 91 Dukes County avenue, and at Pik Nik, 99 Dukes County avenue. The show runs through Sept. 19.
Employees Drove School Van to Cape Wedding
Several Island school employees have been punished for improper use of a school vehicle, using an off-Island school van to drive to a wedding on the Cape. They were caught red-handed by Jeffrey (Skipper) Manter, a frugally-minded Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School committee member and West Tisbury police officer.
Temperatures
Temperature: Precip. Day Max. Min. Inches. Fº Fº Sept. 5 80 67 .00 Sept. 6 82 68 .29 Sept. 7 79 69 .59 Sept. 8 83 58 .00 Sept. 9 80 60 .00 Sept. 10 77 61 .27 Sept. 11 71 56 .00
Water temperature in Edgartown harbor: 72º F.
Moonshine
Moonshine On Monday there will be a full harvest moon. Hopefully the sky will be clear so the moon can be seen in all its glory. Ordinarily, the moon rises fifty minutes later each day, but around the time of the autumnal equinox, which this year occurs September twenty second, the moon comes up only…
Evening of Mystery and Scandal in Chilmark
Author Thomas Dresser will speak about his book Mystery on the Vineyard: Politics, Passion and Scandal on East Chop, a true story of the shocking 1940 murder of an elderly visitor to the Island, on Wednesday, Sept. 17 at 5:30 p.m. at the Chilmark Public Library. Mr. Dresser has previously self-published five booklets featuring favorite…
Oak Bluffs
BETTYE FOSTER BAKER 508-696-9983 (bdrbaker@comcast.net)
Drug Prevention Funds
Drug Prevention Funds The Dukes County Health Youth Task Force has received $125,000 in federal monies to support its drug prevention programs. Announced August 29 by Senators John Kerry and Edward Kennedy, the money is part of $1.1 million awarded to nine Massachusetts organizations from the national Drug Free Communities Support Program.
State Primary
State Primary The Massachusetts state primary is Tuesday. Polls will be open in every Island town from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Polling places by town are as follows: Aquinnah, town hall; Chilmark, community center; Edgartown, Baylies Room at the Old Whaling Church; Oak Bluffs, public library; Tisbury, American Legion Hall; West Tisbury, public safety…
Holmes Hole Sailors See End of Summer For Thursday Night Harbor Race Series
The Holmes Hole Sailing Association concluded its summer season of handicap sailboat racing from Vineyard Haven harbor with a Thursday night race on August 28 and two harbor races on August 31.
Habitat Needs Help
Habitat Needs Help Habitat for Humanity is seeking volunteers, skilled and unskilled, to assist in the construction of the house located at 21 11th street in Edgartown, off the Edgartown-Vineyard Haven Road. The group is working today and Saturday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on framing. If you would like to help, call Bill…
Tribe Prints Blue Pages Guide to Green Resources in Portuguese
The Natural Resources Department of the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah) has announced that it has received a new printing of 15,000 copies of the Island Blue Pages: A Guide to Protecting Martha’s Vineyard Waters. The new printing includes 2,500 copies in Portuguese to distribute to the Vineyard’s Brazilian population.
Amish Barn Builders Raise the Roof For Agricultural Society’s Latest Digs
The Martha’s Vineyard Agricultural Society has a new barn. It took only two days for dozen Amish craftsmen, working alone, to raise it. The traditionally built barn makes a perfect sister to the agricultural society’s other barns, though in this case all the wood is new.
Episcopal Preacher Speaks of Need for Global Unity
On Sunday, Sept. 14, The Rev. Dr. Ian T. Douglas will be the preacher and celebrant at the final service of the season at Trinity Episcopal Church in Oak Bluffs. The church is located in Oak Bluffs across the street from the Steamship Authority Wharf. The morning service begins at 9 a.m.
Out-of-State Consumer Files Complaint Against an Oak Bluffs Auto Repair Shop
Oak Bluffs selectmen on Tuesday agreed to forward a complaint about Ben David Auto Refinishing to the state office of consumer affairs after an allegation surfaced that shop owner Eric Ben David may have forged a customer’s signature on a check from an insurance company and then cashed it. Yvonne Harding of Valley Stream, N.Y.,…
Welcome, Jackson
Welcome, Jackson Brianna Smith and William Munson of Edgartown announce the birth of a son, Jackson Joseph Munson, born on Sept. 7, 2008 at the Martha’s Vineyard Hospital. Jackson weighed 6 pounds, 11 ounces at birth.
Wee Farmers
Wee Farmers The Farm Institute will offer three Saturday sessions this fall for tots (ages 2 to 4) on Sept. 13, Sept. 20 and Oct. 11 from 9:30 to 11 a.m. Sign up for one or all three. Each Wee Farmer session will offer a different garden and/or animal focus. Developed to engage young eaters…
Kings of the Insect Jungle
This lion won’t roar, but it could be considered king of the insect jungle. Antlions are neither true ants nor are the little bugs lions. In fact, they are not yet even adults, but rather predacious insect larvae that have a big head and sharp spiny jaw. These terrorizing teenagers resemble a pill bug in…
Vineyard Conference Prospect Brightens
Just as high school athletics season kicks off comes the potentially good news that the Eastern Athletic Conference — a sports league made up of predominantly parochial schools from the south shore — has invited the Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School to join its ranks. Several Vineyard sports teams have been without a conference since…
Cultural Council to Hold Grant-Writing Workshop
The Martha’s Vineyard Cultural Council, which serves the six Island towns, is calling for funding proposals from organizations, schools and individuals. Council grants support a variety of arts, science and humanities projects; awards in 2007 ran the gamut, from the Native Americans Artisans Festival at the Aquinnah Cultural Center to the Martha’s Vineyard Chamber Music…
Ag Fair Votes Don Sibley’s Japanese Maple Best Bonsai
Members of the Martha’s Vineyard Bonsai Society asked visitors to their display at the Agricultural Fair to choose their favorite bonsai. The clear first place winner was a Japanese maple grown by Don Sibley. The number of votes for the following honors was very close; in second place was a cedar forest grown by Jeff…
Western Kingbird Anecdote
I really wowed her with my aerial flight and super sputtering call. Sometimes I get dizzy flying that zig zag pattern, but it gets me a mate every time. It was a nice nest we built, on top of a utility pole in the open country in Idaho. My spouse helped me collect weeds, twiglets…
Soirées Seek Solvent Recycling Machine for Island Auto Shop
They are proud to be a vehicle-free Vineyard household: instead of using a car to get around the Island, Rebekah Blu and her husband Adam Thibodeau — owners of the Midnight Mermaid gallery in Edgartown — bike, walk and take the Vineyard Transportation Authority. So when regular summer visitor Deidre Moncy and her boyfriend Dennis…
Announcing Mylee
Announcing Mylee Lindsey BenDavid and Tad Medeiros of Edgartown announce the birth of a daughter, Mylee Elizabeth Medeiros, born on Sept. 9 at the Martha’s Vineyard Hospital. Mylee weighed 6 pounds, 15 ounces at birth. Mylee is sister to Landon Medeiros and Joshua Brown.
The Vineyard Gardener
By LYNNE IRONS Let me get a couple of business items out of the way. I hate it when I tell a lame joke and no one gets it but me. To wit: last week I meant to call my old donkey an asinine along the lines of equine, bovine, porcine, feline and canine but…
Tiptoe Through Circuit Avenue on Tivoli Day
Tomorrow the 31st annual Tivoli Day festivities begin and Oak Bluffs will be the center of the Island for at least a day. “I don’t want to call it a fair, but in Oak Bluffs it is a fair. People can come out from across the Island, have a lunch and stroll the streets,” said…
Striped Bass: Taking Stock
Striped Bass: Taking Stock
Ferrying Fish
Alec Gale had a great summer. With the economic engine in the country not powering, his entrepreneurship is helping to propel the Island’s oldest industry; Mr. Gale helped a number of Menemsha-based commercial fishermen make a living this summer.
West Tisbury
John S. Alley 508-693-2950 (alleys@vineyard.net) The ducks and geese have begun their long trek southward that for years has included a brief rest stop in the Mill Pond to relax and refresh. People have been busy making jelly from the vast amount of beach plums, grapes and chokecherries. There seems to be a bumper crop…
Gazette Chronicle: Narrow Escape
Narrow Escape From the Vineyard Gazette editions of September, 1958: A Navy all-weather attack bomber making an emergency landing at the Martha’s Vineyard Airport figured in what might have been a serious accident, but the skill of the pilot from the Quonset Point Naval Air Station saved the situation completely. The bomber was brought to…
Mrs. Miller Does Her Thing for First Real Reality Show
Elva Miller cut a most unlikely figure for a strumpet to celebrity.
Sept. 5: Bright and Sunny Summer Day
Friday, Sept. 5: Bright and sunny summer day. Temperature in the 80s. A perfect beach day without the crowds at State Beach in Edgartown. Solitary strollers search the shoreline for shells. Sailboats under tow are taken from Edgartown harbor as preparations for approaching storm pick up speed. Increasing clouds in the afternoon.
Chappy
Jo-Ann Tilghman 508-627-7669 (Tilghmanjb@aol.com)
Second Life for the Home Port
Second Life for the Home Port Chilmark voters face an important decision when they convene for a special town meeting later this month: whether to buy the Home Port restaurant for two million dollars in order to tear it down and build a parking lot and more public bathrooms. The plan has been crafted principally…
Chapter 17: Something Fishy This Way Comes
In this serialized novel set on the Vineyard in real time, a native Islander (“Call me Becca”) returns home after many years to help her eccentric Uncle Abe keep his landscaping business, Pequot, afloat. Abe has a paranoid hatred of Richard Moby, the CEO of an off-Island wholesale nursery. Convinced that Moby wants to destroy…
Fish Are In, Rods Are Out and Derby Is Ready
The fishermen will begin lining up with their fish well before the 8 a.m. Sunday opening of the weigh station at the foot of Main street in Edgartown. Many of the anglers will be sleep deprived, having not slept but a few hours overnight.
Edgartown
KATHIE CASE 508-627-5349 (kathleencase@comcast.net) We have survived and missed Hanna, the small storms have passed us over but at least we can say it hasn’t been an uneventful start of September. Happy birthday to all who celebrated their day this past week. Big balloons go out to Sam Leighton who celebrated his day Sept. 7.…
East Chop
RICK HERRICK 508-693-8065 (herricklr@verizon.net) I owe Les Woodcock a debt of gratitude for something that took place long before I met him. Les wrote the stories on the back of baseball cards that so enchanted our son as a young boy. Les changed the look of baseball cards by replacing the statistical summary on the…
Creative Drama Classes for Children Begin Soon
Phyllis Vecchia will be holding a fall creative drama workshop for four-and-a-half to ten-year-olds at the Oak Bluffs School in the home economics room. Classes will be held on Thursday afternoons from 3:30 to 4:45 p.m. The series of classes will begin on Thursday, Oct. 2, and run weekly until Dec. 4.
Stumping on Party Lines, Fives Candidates Speak On Eve of State Primary
More binds the five candidates running in next Tuesday’s Democratic primary for state representative than separates them. They are unanimous in their support of Barack Obama for President. Gay marriage gets a thumbs-up across the board. They all wear suits. On the issues that will face the incoming state representative, there is a lot of…
Aquinnah
JUNE MANNING 508-645-2574 (lthslnks@gis.net)
Not Your Grandmother’s Summer Holiday
I don’t think the statute of limitations for many of my adventures this summer has quite yet passed. Thus an autobiographical essay published in a community I’ve come to know over the last three months and to which I plan to one day return naturally has to be somewhat censored. As I write this, I…
