Mary Oliver
The wind wags its many tails. And in the evening the piled firewood shifts a little, longing to be on its way. —Mary Oliver
July 31, 2012
Possible Veterans Fund-raising Scam
Dukes County Veterans Agent Jo Ann Murphy is cautioning Vineyarders to be wary of telephone solicitations to raise money for veterans. Ms. Murphy said that she’s heard from a few people who have received the phone calls, but she has not been contacted about any fund-raising endeavors that will go to Island veterans. “I haven’t…
Backyard Bash
Go to a party, eat great food, hang with neighbors and do good at the same time. It is, as the saying goes, a no-brainer. Or better known as the Chilmark Firemen’s Association Back Yard Bash. The bash, an annual event to raise money for the all-volunteer town fire department, takes place Wednesday, August 1,…
Sign of Times
The Gaymark barrel has hung out in front of our property for nearly 70 years, at least since the place was owned by the Balls and later their daughter. For years it was one of the items on scavenger hunt lists and some kid would swipe it for a day or two but it always…
Present Danger
It was one of those sunlit, breezy exquisite Monday afternoons driving down State Road in light traffic from up-Island near Lambert’s Cove Road in West Tisbury. Through my windscreen I observed four rather burly young guys approaching me from Vineyard Haven on their obviously rented mopeds.
Sengekontacket Closed to Shellfishing
Sengekontacket Pond has been closed to shellfishing through Friday, August 3 due to recent heavy rainfall. The pond will reopen to shellfishing on Friday at 7 a.m. The pond closure is marked by red flags flying by the Big and Little Bridges. The closures do not apply to boaters or swimmers.
Jabberwocky Remembers Helen (Hellcat) Lamb
Remembering Helen (Hellcat) Lamb is like remembering a comet. Something fiery and awe-inspiring, hardly comprehensible to the average person — and even in Hellcat’s case of 97 years — fleeting.
At 74 Strong, Round the Island Race a Sailing Sight to Behold
Fair winds and 74 sailboats with more than 300 sailors on board made for a spectacular sight at Saturday’s Round the Island Race. Beginning with its early morning start, the Edgartown Yacht Club race was quite a spectacle as the boats positioned themselves for eight starts. Winds prevailed for most of the race and all…
Twenty-Five Dancers, 25 Stories
On Janet Holladay’s nursery school report it read “Janet loves to move to the music.”
She began tap dancing at the age of five, but it wasn’t until she was an adult and newly-single that she started partner dancing.
Real Estate Referrals
Kelleher Real Estate announces five openings in a new referral program created to enable young adults over 18 to become referral agents for their business.
Any leads for either buyers or sellers that lead to a sale will result in a fee for the referral agents, according to a news release issued by…
Governor Signs Casino Compact for Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe
Gov. Deval Patrick signed a compact with the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe on Monday, cementing a deal to grant the Mashpee tribe an exclusive casino license for southeastern Massachusetts over the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah).
Search Begins Again For School Special Education Director
Two searches and one appointment later, the Martha’s Vineyard public school district is back to square one in its search for a new director of student support services, following the abrupt departure of the person chosen for the job.
Lynn Silva, a Maine educator who was appointed to the job in May, resigned…
New Community Services Fund Combats Depression, Stigma
In the memory of three well-known Vineyard residents who struggled with depression, a special fund has been established through Martha’s Vineyard Community Services to support mental health counseling services.
Called the Blues Brothers Fund, the fund honors humorist Art Buchwald, novelist William Styron, and journalist Mike Wallace, and is meant to raise money…
Vineyard Friends Lend Voice to Silent Epidemic of Military Rape
Military sexual assault seeps through the bonds of brotherhood and creeps into the bedtime sleep of victims, months and years after the fact. The Department of Defense estimates that 19,000 soldiers are raped or sexually assaulted annually, with less than 14 per cent coming forward to report it.
Possible Great White Spotted Near Noman’s
A charter fishing trip turned exciting Thursday morning when those aboard came within five feet of what they believed to be a surfacing great white shark.
Buddy Vanderhoop, captain of the charter boat Tomahawk III, was taking his charter customers out for a morning of fishing when they came upon the nearly-20-foot shark…
Morning Bliss on the Vineyard: It’s a (Tiny) Jungle Out There
The routine of an early summer morning goes like this: I come downstairs escorted to the porch door by two expectant cats, who trip up me and themselves in their eagerness. They have to wait while I check the outside temperature and open the skylights (it rained last night), and then we all emerge into…
Yonder Vineyard
From the Vineyard Gazette editions of 1933:
Who on Martha’s Vineyard has paid a visit to New Vineyard, Maine? Who, among the many thousands journeying to the Island every year and taking an interest in its scene, its history and its people, knows that there is a place named New Vineyard and that…
In Polly’s Garden: Summersweet In the Air
It is often said that our strongest memories are evoked through our sense of smell. For many, the delightful scent of our native summersweet, Clethra alnifolia, calls to mind summer on the Vineyard. At the peak of the season, summersweet’s scented white flowers perfume the air with their sweet fragrance. Adapted to flowering in deep…
A Blow to Chappy’s Rural Character
About 40 years ago my wife and I built a modest summer house on the high point of Chappaquiddick known as Samson’s Hill. We fell in love with Samson’s Hill due to its rural character and the serenity of the area. Since then, a number of thoughtful people have built modest homes around us and…
Writer Not Afraid to Visit New Forms
Author Jennifer Egan had a particularly memorable Vineyard visit three summers ago. While working on revisions to her novel, A Visit from the Goon Squad, she decided to add a chapter in the form of a PowerPoint presentation. As a result she spent her vacation pouring over computer slides, running from Aquinnah to Oak Buffs…
Junior Windsurfing Tourney
The Vineyard Haven Yacht Club is hosting the U.S. Junior Windsurfing National Championships in Vineyard Haven harbor on August 1 and 2. The tournament also includes Mexico and Canada. Windsurfers will be competing in four age groups from 11 to 19 years old.
The Vineyard will be represented by several sailors including Eli…
Banana, Danna Banana
Somewhere along the way — perhaps to the playground — former opera singer Dan Cohen changed his name to Danna Banana and began using his vocals to entertain children and adults with tunes like Jungle Gym, Dugak, and Don’t Touch the Glasses. He refers to his music as, “music for kids that parents can stand.”…
Four Alarm Barbecue in Chilmark
Go to a party, eat great food, hang with neighbors and do good at the same time. It is, as the saying goes, a no-brainer. Or better known as the Chilmark Firemen’s Association Back Yard Bash.
The bash is an annual event to raise money for the all-volunteer town fire department. And since…
Vineyard Othello
If while doing a bit of research on Othello, one checked in with Wikipedia, the following would be taken as fact: the first big screen adaptation of Mr. Shakespeare’s play that starred an African American man took place in 1995 with Laurence Fishburne in the lead role.
Martha’s Vineyard, however, proves once again…
Israel Inside
A new documentary about Israel forgoes the divisive political debate to focus on the daily lives of its inhabitants. Released in March of 2012, Israel Inside: How a Small Nation Makes a Big Difference features interviews with entrepreneurs, academics and politicians including Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat, Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, Sir Martin Gilbert, Prof. Alan…
Saltwater Gallery Exhibit
Ashley Medowski creates unique frames for her paintings with wood salvaged from barns or found on beaches. Her painting The Elizabeth Islands is a panoramic done on an old wooden waterski.
Rare Bird Nests At Norton Point
A bird not usually seen in Massachusetts — and very rarely on the Vineyard — has nested successfully for the first time among this year’s highly productive tern colony at Norton Point.
