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
March 9, 2012
News Update: Wednesday, March 14 – Erika Van Pelt Returns to Idol Stage Tonight
For current American Idol contestant Erika Van Pelt, last week moving into the top twelve, handling the pressure of performing in front of an audience of millions should be a walk in the park.
For current American Idol contestant Erika Van Pelt, last week moving into the top twelve, handling the pressure of…
News Update: Wednesday, March 14 – Ferry Reservations Up Over Last Year
After a profitable 2011, the Steamship Authority has started the year on a high note.
Vineyard and Nantucket summer reservations are up six per cent from a year ago as of the end of February, Steamship Authority general manager Wayne Lamson announced at Tuesday’s meeting of the board of governors in Woods Hole. “I think…
News Update: Tuesday, March 13 – Former Chairman Promises Legal Fees for Improper Use of Dredge
The former Edgartown dredge committee chairman who took heat for using the town dredge to do work on a private project without proper permits has apologized and offered to pay the town’s legal fees.
Town counsel Ron Rappaport said at Monday’s selectmen meeting that Norman Rankow, the former dredge committee chairman, has offered…
Free Digital Videography Workshop
Pathways Projects Institute will present an evening of videography, Digital Visions/Creating Reality, on Thursday, March 14 from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. at the Pathways Gathering Space in the Chilmark Tavern. The event, the second in the Digital Vision/Creating Reality series, will focus on video storytelling that incorporates digital effects.
News Update: Monday, March 12 – Plane Crash Trial Begins at Edgartown Town Hall
A civil trial started today stemming from a 2005 plane crash at Katama Airfield, with jurors hearing from one of the crash survivors and taking a trip to the airfield to look at the plane’s wreckage.
The plane’s pilot, Alec Naiman, and his passengers, Jeffrey and Jessica Willoughby, are suing Cessna Aircraft Company…
News Update: Monday, March 12 – Bone Discovered at New Museum Site Temporarily Halts Groundwork
By MARK ALAN LOVEWELL
Groundwork at the site of old Marine Hospital, the future home of the Martha’s Vineyard Museum, remains suspended after a worker discovered a bone at the site last week, shutting down operations.
The bone was at first thought to be a human remain, but has since been…
Shark Savers Are Coming
Shark fins and fans are returning to Vineyard waters this summer. But before they get here a noted scientist will be making her way to the Island to educate us on what we can do to save these misunderstood, threatened animals.
Marine conservation biologist Samantha Whitcraft will speak at public schools and present…
Spring Ahead
Remember to turn your clock ahead one hour before you go to sleep. Daylight Saving Time begins at 2 a.m. on Sunday.
News Update: Saturday, March 10 – Boys’ Basketball Team Falls to Wareham in South Section Finals
BOSTON — The Vineyard boys’ basketball team’s successful season came to a close Saturday, as the team came back from an early 16-point deficit but fell just short, losing 70-65 to undefeated Wareham in the division 3 south section championship game at UMass Boston.
The loss also ended a dream year for all…
Vineyarders Fall to Wareham
Just in from Boston: The Vineyarders fought hard to the finish, but fell 70-65 to undefeated Wareham in the MIAA baskebtall state section finals this afternoon. A full report will follow shortly.
Basketball Team Heads to Finals Today
The Vineyarders boys’ basketball team takes on Wareham at noon in the MIAA state tournament section finals, played at UMass Boston. We wish them lots of luck!
News Update: Friday, March 9 – Commission Approves Tisbury Farm Market Expansion
The Martha’s Vineyard Commission has approved the expansion of Vineyard entrepreneur Elio Silva’s new grocery store planned for State Road. Last year the commission approved Mr. Silva’s plans to consolidate his two businesses, Vineyard Grocer and Tisbury Farm Market, at the location that most recently housed Island Home Furnishings. There are two buildings on the…
Vineyarders Triumph, Advance to Finals
As the second week of postseason sports draws to a close, one Vineyard team remains in the hunt for a championship title. The boys’ basketball team traveled to Taunton Wednesday evening, defeating Westwood 89-69 to advance to the final round of the MIAA division 3 south section tournament, where they will play number-one seed Wareham,…
Noise from Wind Farms Is Subject for Detailed Study
With Cape Wind hoping to break ground in the coming years and a huge new swath of ocean opened for wind farm development south of the Vineyard, the impact of turbine noise on fisheries is still poorly understood.
“The long-term impacts of these wind farms are just totally unknown,” said Woods Hole Oceanographic…
Drug Abuse Forum
Drug Abuse Forum
Martha’s Vineyard Community Services and the Youth Task Force will host a community forum on prescription drug abuse at 5 p.m. on March 21 at the regional high school library conference room.
Guest speaker Dr. Charles Reznikoff, a world-renowned expert on addiction medicine at the University of Michigan…
Welcome Lucas
Welcome Lucas
Lucas Parsons Westover was born on Jan. 10 at Newton-Wellesley Hospital in Newton. He weighed 6 pounds 9 ounces, and was 19 and 3/4 inches long. He is the first son of Jeffrey and Brenna (Parsons) Westover of Norwood. Proud grandparents are Gerald and Coleen Westover of Wolfeboro, and David and…
Afternoon Fire Destroys Oak Bluffs Home
Fire destroyed a two-story home in the Sea Glen neighborhood of Oak Bluffs Thursday afternoon. The cause of the blaze is now under investigation, said Oak Bluffs fire chief Peter Forend. No significant injuries were reported.
More than 80 firefighters from Oak Bluffs, Edgartown and Vineyard Haven responded to the call, which…
Donation Saves Oak Bluffs Fireworks
The annual fireworks display in Oak Bluffs will continue this August, thanks to a substantial donation from the cable network Black Entertainment Television (BET).
The future of the long-standing Ocean Park show was called into question last October when the Oak Bluffs Firemen’s Civic Association, the sponsor of the event, said it could…
Plum TV Purchase Proves Fruitful for Network
Plum TV, the lifestyle cable television network that abruptly went bankrupt last year, is expected to see some kind of revival this spring under new ownership.
Political Donations on Island Span States, and Party Lines
Former Gov. Mitt Romney is popular among Edgartown donors, while people in Chilmark tend to donate to President Barack Obama more than other Islanders. Minnesota Sen. (and former Saturday Night Live star) Al Franken has pockets of support on Martha’s Vineyard, as do politicians from Texas to Wisconsin.
Island Republicans Back Mitt Romney
Mitt Romney can count Martha’s Vineyard among his Super Tuesday victories.
The Island, like the rest of Massachusetts, overwhelmingly voted for Mr. Romney in the Republican primary on Tuesday, with the former governor receiving 64 per cent of the Republican vote. Mr. Romney won 72 per cent of the vote statewide in Massachusetts,…
Science Whiz Takes Talents To Menemsha
The waters around Menemsha Pond are a bit cleaner today thanks to the efforts of a regional high school sophomore, Isabel Smith, of West Tisbury, who was scouting for a science fair project she could do last month. Miss Smith did a project on Creating the Most Effective Catch Basin that is already yielding some…
Wampanoag Chairman Presses For Tribal Seat at Casino Table
The Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah) has jumped into the casino game again, with the tribe’s chairman requesting a referendum vote from three southeastern Massachusetts towns to test public support for a casino.
Fall River mayor William Flanagan confirmed on Monday that he had received a request from tribal chairman Cheryl Andrews-Maltais…
Matter and Gas
Physicists announced this week that they may be closing in on finding the Higgs boson particle. Also known as the God particle, the Higgs boson would be definitive evidence that the universe as we understand it is, well, the universe as we understand it. Scientists assume the Higgs exists because, in theory, it represents the…
Please Adopt Us
Please Adopt Us
The Animal Shelter of Martha’s Vineyard is pleased to report that it has a lot of empty cages. Many of our cats have been adopted in recent weeks, and they are happily in their new homes for which we are so thankful.
We still have several cats, all…
Raise the Shellaleigh, Edgartown Hosts Saint Patrick’s Day Parade
Boston has its famous St. Patrick’s Day parade and revelry. This year, Edgartown will have its own, smaller, celebration of all things Irish.
On Monday, the Edgartown selectmen approved the Kelley House Inn’s proposal for the first annual St. Patrick’s Day parade on Saturday, March 17. The parade route is small enough for…
High School Drop-Out Rate Remains Low
The dropout rate at Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School remains lower than the state average, with 1.2 per cent of the school’s students failing to complete high school.
According to data presented at this week’s high school committee meeting, the school’s dropout rate in the 2010-2011 school year was unchanged from the 2009-2010…
Please Mr. Postman, Look and See, Is That a Letter for West Tisbury
Is West Tisbury a vanishing postal address?
Town resident Ashley Hunter told the selectmen this week that he had strong concerns about his mailing address being recognized as a Vineyard Haven address instead of West Tisbury and urged the board to try to do something about it.
No Discharge Zone Possible For Cape and Islands’ Waters
Boaters may soon be prohibited from dumping or discharging effluent from their boats in most state waters around Martha’s Vineyard. On Monday, the state office of environmental affairs secretary Richard K. Sullivan Jr., submitted an application to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), designating most waters around Martha’s Vineyard, Nantucket and southern Cape Cod as a…
Out of the Woods, Into the Kitchen Edgartown Approves New Eatery
There are signs of life in downtown Edgartown: Two new dining options received the green light Wednesday night.
The zoning board of appeals approved Patrick Courtney’s proposal to open a 49-seat seafood restaurant at 55 Main street, the former In the Woods store, and Bryan MacPhail’s proposal to serve food and ice…
Norton Point Breach May Close, Good News for Small Boaters
With growing evidence the Norton Point breach is appearing to close — lessening the current running through the harbor—there is buzz on the waterfront that the summer ahead will be easier for a lot of visiting boaters, particularly the local fleet of day sailboats.
No Flow Vote for Tisbury Beer and Wine Expansion
By PETER BRANNEN
The bylaw that allows beer and wine sales in Vineyard Haven will not be expanded — at least not this year.
Tisbury selectmen announced on Tuesday that a special town meeting article asking voters to allow wine sales at the Tisbury summer farmers’ market failed to gain the…
Oak Bluffs Race Heats Up
Oak Bluffs Race Heats Up
The race is on in Oak Bluffs for two selectmen seats on this spring’s town ballot.
Roger W. Wey is challenging incumbent selectmen Gregory Coogan and Kathleen Burton for a three-year terms on the board. Both incumbents are facing reelection.
Mr. Coogan, a teacher…
Edgartown Elections
Edgartown Elections
There will be two contested races in Edgartown town elections this spring.
Megan E. Anderson, Carlene Gatting, and Alexander K. Rentumis are all running for one open three-year term on the school committee, a seat left vacant by committee member Leslie Baynes, who is not running for reelection.
…
No Contest Up-Island
No Contest Up-Island
Chilmark voters will elect a new selectman next month.
Four-term selectman Frank Fenner has decided not to seek reelection, and William Rossi will run for the seat. Mr. Rossi, a real estate agent in Edgartown and owner of the Chilmark Store, ran against selectman Jonathan Mayhew and lost…
Zephrus Open
Zephrus Open
Zephrus restaurant in Vineyard Haven opened Thursday for dinner after a spring cleaning. The restaurant is serving a full dinner menu nightly, seven days a week from 5 p.m. Chef Benjamin deForest will offer nightly specials and a tasting menu.
The Vineyard’s Own Indiana Jones
David Bramhall was my friend for a very long time. The first time I ever saw him was in Menemsha. He had a pack of Luckies rolled up in his T-shirt, was drop-dead gorgeous and had just come back from swordfishing with Danny Bryant. He always had this aura of mystery about him, being a…
Time Passages Aboard Steamship Ferry
I found an old ferry schedule yesterday, in the drawer of a tall china cabinet in the living room where it had been for years. The faded coral-colored picture of the ferry and the darkened print of this little piece of paper came into focus. It had been living, half visible, under a lot of…
Day in Life of Martha’s Vineyard Ice Arena
It’s nine in the morning on a recent Saturday, and if you look closely at the group on the ice of the Martha’s Vineyard Arena, you can see the future.
Their jerseys, helmets, pads, and skates are pint-size — as are the players themselves, as if a full-size hockey player was put in…
Temperatures
Temperature: Precip.
Day Max. Min. Inches.
Fº Fº
March 2 43 33 .19
March 3 46 33 .16
March 4 51 38 Trace
March 5 42 30 Trace
March 6 43 22 .00
March 7 48 26 .00
…
Marching Again for Women’s Rights
The first time I marched in Washington, D.C., for women’s rights I was in a stroller being pushed down the National Mall. The next time I was 16 years old, in a wheelchair with a broken foot, but still determined to participate in the March for Women’s Lives, the same rally for reproductive rights I…
Something Stinky This Way Comes
Suspended in that hazy frontier between sleep and awareness, I came awake at 3 a.m., not with the realization that something didn’t smell right, but rather that I am dying. I had been skunked. Inside my apartment, from under the floorboards.
Between rubbing my burning eyes into a bloodshot jelly and struggling to…
Moon
A gibbous moon appears near the bright planet Saturn on Saturday night. The two rise in the eastern sky after 9 p.m. The bright star Spica, in the zodiacal constellation Virgo, is nearby. The three celestial objects form a triangle. The moon is roughly 225,000 miles away, Saturn is 837 million miles away and Spica…
Sunshine for All
Information is the currency of democracy, Thomas Jefferson famously said.
And open access to government records is key to obtaining information, a requirement so basic we sometimes take it for granted.
In fact, various state and federal laws, including the Freedom of Information Act, are the tools ordinary citizens and the…
Vineyard Changes
From a 1958 essay by Onslow Robinson:
Where was the Oyster Shell Road? What part of Vineyard Haven was known as Down the Neck? And did you ever hear of the Pine Tree Club?
Aquinnah
JUNE D. MANNING
508-645-2574
(lthslnks2004@yahoo.com)
Many Aquinnah residents are returning from their travels. As a matter of fact, there were more residents out of town during the month of February than those that voted at the primary on Tuesday. Everyone is returning from exotic places like Taiwan, Nicaragua, Mexico,…
Ernie May Named Coach
Ernie May Named Coach
The Martha’s Vineyard Sharks have signed Ernie May as head coach for the 2012 baseball season, general manager Jerry Murphy announced this week.
The Sharks will be running personal and group clinics this summer that will be supported by the players and Mr. May’s coaching staff, starting…
Chilmark
JANE N. SLATER
508-645-3378
(slaterjn@comcast.net)
Chilmark, as I write, sits serene and warm under a beautiful full moon that is rising out of what, to me, is West Tisbury. Our town seems so lively now that the vacationers are returning and the sun has come out again with the…
West Tisbury
JOHN S. ALLEY
508-693-2950
(alleys@vineyard.net)
Well, the month of March came in with some rain, wind and a touch of snow. It was cold earlier this week, but as we approach spring in just 11 days we are sure to get even milder temperatures and warmer sun. The daylight…
Tisbury Breakfast
Tisbury Breakfast
On Friday, March 16, the Tisbury Business Association is holding a business breakfast at the Black Dog Tavern located on Beach Road extension. The breakfast is between 8 and 9:30 a.m.
No word yet on whether green eggs and ham will be served.
The cost is $15…
David Welch Art Show
David Welch Art Show
Photographer David Welch is the featured artist for the month of March at the Vineyard Haven Public Library’s Art of the Stacks series.
Mr. Welch is an Island native whose work explores social issues using large-format photography steeped in conceptual influences from art history and economic theory.…
Edgartown
KATHIE CASE
508-627-5349
(kathleencase@comcast.net)
Even though the temperature never reached above 60 degrees Wednesday as it did off-Island, we had a beautiful sunny day and the crocuses were in full bloom. I even noticed that my dwarf irises had opened. It gives you such a great feeling and a…
Oak Bluffs
HOLLY NADLER
508-274-2329
(hollynadler@gmail.com)
Julian Robinson, 82, of Oak Bluffs, the wildlife photographer who died on Friday, Feb. 24, was one of those men with an air of subtle wisdom, and of silences filled with insights that he shared with you in his pictures.
Morgan Freeman would…
Hello Jackson
Hello Jackson
Melissa and Bill Callahan of Oak Bluffs announce the birth of a son, Jackson Thomas Callahan, born on Feb. 24, 2012, at the Martha’s Vineyard Hospital. Jackson weighed 6 pounds, 14 ounces at birth and joins big brother Griffin.
New Arrivals
Crow blackbirds have arrived on Island. They run and hop around the yard and fields holding their head and keel-shaped tails high. In the right light the feathers on their heads and necks are an iridescent purple-blue and their backs bronzy. I am used to these common grackles arriving around St. Patrick’s Day or the…
Thinking of Seeds
I finally sat down and perused a few seed catalogues. I went ahead and ordered peas from Pinetree Gardens out of New Gloucester, Maine. It is my favorite for several reasons. It has simple, non-glossy paper. They don’t give too many seeds. The prices are reasonable and the package arrives within two days. I like…
Charming Worms
Rick Bausman, the well-known Island musician, will not be the only one diligently drumming this spring. His penchant for percussion is shared by other creatures that have their own rhyme and reasons for rhythm.
While Rick drums for fun, wildlife drums for food. Woodpeckers may be the first bird to spring to mind…
Body Talk
Body Talk
Good for your body and your soul — that’s the theme this month at Curves of Vineyard Haven, where a donation to the food pantry not only helps out the community, but also could save you money.
The exercise center will waive the joining fee for new members who…
Putting the Art in Martial Arts
Dan Waters set the scene with a medley of Brazilian songs, Valci Carvalho shared stories of adapting to Vineyard life and Bruno Oliveira provided a visual tour of Brazil from Rio to Sao Paulo at the cultural luncheon sponsored by the Martha’s Vineyard Center for Living at the Grill on Main on March 3. But…
Herbal Tea Talk
Herbal Tea Talk
Some think green beer for St. Patrick’s day. Others go for a spot of tea.
If you’re in the latter camp, head to the Bunch of Grapes Bookstore on Main street in Vineyard Haven to sip tea with Island herbalist Holly Bellebuono, who will be discussing her new…
Boston Flower Show
Boston Flower Show
This year there was not much winter to speak of and already some flowers and blossoms are popping up around the Island. But the landscape is still drab and could use a bit of color. But why wait until the height of spring to reconnect with the bounty of nature’s…
Contemplative Retreat
Contemplative Retreat
On Saturday, March 10, Grace Episcopal Church in Vineyard Haven is holding mini-retreat on contemplative living and meditative prayer led by Ethel Fraga.
Build a Book
Build a Book
Teenagers have all the fun. It’s not enough that the young adult book genre has become the go-to read for adults (Harry Potter, The Hunger Games anyone) now teens have the chance to actually make the physical book too. Who said print was dead.
On Wednesday, March 14…
Civil War Poetry
Civil War Poetry
On March 14 at 7 p.m., the Vineyard Haven Public Library hosts the Martha’s Vineyard Poetry Society’s presentation of Civil War Poetry.
Walt Whitman, Herman Melville and many others, including some bards of Martha’s Vineyard, penned odes to express their views on America’s Civil War.
Bringing…
Fiery Flamenco Fuels Music Renaissance
Alberto de Almar, Friday night at the Pitstop in Oak Bluffs. The notes came off his guitar in a flurry, his hands a blur — Flamenco — throbbing, twanging, pinging off the walls, carrying a message of joy and sorrow, and just plain good fun.
Short Stuff Shakespeare, Big Fun
Short Stuff Shakespeare, Big Fun
Cowardly braggarts, stuffy old men, soldiers in funny hats speaking nonsense, devious ingenues, elegant aristocrats, Marvin Gaye; just another night down at Cumberland Farms in Vineyard Haven you say?
Make that the Pit Stop, by way of William Shakespeare, that is.
Film Festival Mission; Stories that Matter
When speaking with Thomas Bena, the founder and creative director of the Martha’s Vineyard Film Festival, there is no hesitation when he talks about his guiding principle. The films shown at the festival are always diverse in subject matter, a mixture of documentary and feature, and representative of many cultures. The common denominator is good…
Students Capture Decisive Moment
Last Sunday at Featherstone Center for the Arts, visitors watched a claymation video where two balls of clay magically morphed into dancers performing a quiet waltz before finally collapsing into each others arms. It was a mere minute-long clip, but the human emotion resonated long after.
The film was part of a photography…
