JUNE D. MANNING

508-645-2574

(lthslnks@gis.net)

Congratulations to the Vineyard Gazette for their numerous awards at the New England Newspaper and Press Association annual meeting and awards presentation. Toast — to another great year!

The Aquinnah community programs committee flea market will be held at the Aquinnah town hall on Saturday, Feb. 13 from 10 to 3 a.m. Lots of great sales for the day: jewelry, books, antiques, collectibles, and more. Be sure to stop by.

It will be tough, but for anyone with an unobstructed view of the southwestern sky tonight, there is a show to be seen shortly after sunset. The planets Jupiter and Venus appear close together with a thin crescent moon. The three, forming a triangle, will appear amid the glow of twilight.

Kudos to Andrew Woodruff and the laborers at Whippoorwill Farm. I went to the final community supported agriculture pickup of the season last Friday. I don’t belong to CSA as I grow plenty of food myself. I wanted to support the farm last week and check out what was being offered. It was a chilly day especially in the shady open farm stand. Other customers went about their weighing and measuring hastily with no time for idle chitchat. Those heated vehicles were calling to them.

MARGARET KNIGHT

508-627-8894

(margaret02539@yahoo.com)

Lots of people don’t like February, but I think it’s the nicest winter month. It’s much lighter than December, warmer than January, and more sunny than March – generally speaking. By now, we’re well past the halfway point, which means the rebirth period is already happening. The birds know it, and sing out on sunny mornings like it’s spring. It feels as if the sun is rising at a more acceptable hour, and sunset seems almost reasonable as well.

JANE N. SLATER

508-645-3378

(slaterjn@comcast.net)

Chilmark is enduring yet another northeaster as I write tonight. The wind is howling and snow is blowing and the power went off for an hour and a half this evening. We enjoyed a dark and mysterious dinner as we tried to find our mouths in the dark . . . the batteries are always dead when you need them. Tomorrow will be white but light! I am sure others besides my guests had to adjust travel plans. They are happy to be extending their midwinter vacation for a few days.

Kathleen Case>

508-627-5349

(kathleencase@comcast.net)

If we were in Delaware we would be a little upset with the 21 inches of snow plus the 12 more inches they got on Wednesday, but, no, we are in New England and we are happy to have our little bit of snow. So this is just another day to write in our winter logs of how we spent our winter.

A reminder:  The Great Backyard Bird Count starts today, Feb. 12, and continues through Monday, Feb.15. For details on the count, visit birdcount.org,

Temperature: Precip.

Day Max. Min. Inches.

Fº Fº

Feb. 5 33 17 .00

Feb. 6 37 28 .00

Feb. 7 31 16 .00

Feb. 8 33 19 .00

Feb. 9 34 22 .00

Feb. 10 38 26 Trace

Feb. 11 33 30 1.23*

*Melted Precipitation

The Animal Shelter of Martha’s Vineyard has a few nice animals who need good homes.

“Forget love . . . I’d rather fall in chocolate!”

  While no one owned up to that quote, I say, whychoose? Enjoy both this Valentine’s Day.

On Sunday there will be lots of love and lots of chocolate, and though some may thank Cupid for finding them love, the chocolate fans should be worshipping Hegemone. Hegemone is the Goddess of Plants and is responsible for making sure that plants bloom and bear fruit.