A thin crescent moon appears tonight low in the southwestern sky, near the bright planet Venus. The moon is above Venus, and underneath the star cluster Pleiades.

Gail Barmakian has been elected to the Oak Bluffs board of selectmen, but Oak Bluffs voters rejected 11 or the 12 override questions on Thursday’s ballot.

The only Proposition 2 1/2 question to pass was one with a $37,500 price tag, to fully fund the Oak Bluffs School budget for the next fiscal year.

Spending on fire department increases, lifeguards and road maintenance were among those that failed.

The 100 voices that make up the Island Community Chorus will fill the warming spring air of Edgartown with two performances this Saturday and Sunday, April 17 and 18, at the Old Whaling Church.

Food Yoga

Talk on Perennials

The Martha’s Vineyard Garden Club will hold its monthly meeting on Tuesday, April 20, at 1 p.m. at the Wakeman Center off Lambert’s Cove Road in Vineyard Haven. The topic is Integrating Perennials Into Your Landscape by Peggy Schwier. A hospitality hour with refreshments will follow the talk. All are welcome to attend.

The cost is $5 for guests; there is no charge for garden club members. For details, call the garden club hotline at 508-693-5334.

By LYNNE IRONS

Every task seems to come with its own set of problems. I ordered a sling bag of Vermont composted manure from SBS. It is a huge plastic burlap bag filled with two yards of weed-free compost. I use a small amount in my garden rows and in the bottom of seed trays. It is an enormous amount for a small garden but very in high quality.

“Who would have thought it possible that a tiny little flower could preoccupy a person so completely that there simply wasn’t room for any other thought?”

This quote was attributed to Sophie Scholl, a German woman whose public resistance to the Nazi occupation cost her life. The ability to focus on flowers during such a desperate time speaks volumes of the power of nature’s beauty to distract and provide pleasure in even the most dire situations.

The bird of the week is a purple martin. The largest of North America’s swallows, this glossy blue black martin is a casual visitor to the Vineyard, and then only in very small numbers. The Vineyard has not been able to lure the purple martins into staying and breeding on the Vineyard for the past 24 years. This seems strange to folks further south as practically all you have to do is put up a gourd or two and the martin will nest right next to your house or busy street.

Gallery Closure

The Belushi Pisano Gallery, established in 2005, will be closing its doors. The gallery started in Vineyard Haven and was opened by Jessica Pisano, Judy Belushi Pisano and Victor Pisano. They represented over 35 talented local and regional artists. After more than four years and two different locations, they made the difficult decision to close.

Alpaca Birthday Challenge

Island Alpaca has announced a Birthday Challenge, inviting the public to predict which female in the herd will be the first to give birth this season. Guess closest to the date and time of birth, as well as the gender of the newborn cria, and win a $100 gift certificate to the Island Alpaca farm. For hints, information on alpaca gestation and details on the contest, visit islandalpaca.com.