Grand Illumination Night, scheduled for Wednesday evening, has been postponed due to the threat of thunderstorms, the Martha’s Vineyard Camp Meeting Association board of directors has announced. The annual lighting of the lanterns at the Campground will instead take place Thursday evening.

The event will follow the same format, beginning with a performance by the Vineyard Haven Band at 7:30 p.m., a Community Sing at 8 p.m., and the lighting of the lanterns at 9 p.m.

Following a call by Massachusetts legislators to formally declare the New England fishery a disaster, Gov. Deval Patrick this week urged the federal government to take quick action to provide direct economic relief to Massachusetts commercial fishermen.

“The need for a disaster declaration is more critical than ever,” Governor Patrick wrote in a letter Monday to U.S. Department of Commerce Secretary Rebecca Blank.

Closed again. That was the word on Seth’s Pond from the West Tisbury health agent Wednesday morning, one day after the freshwater pond had been reopened for swimming.

Town health agent John Powers said in an e-mail Wednesday that the pond was closed again due to water test results from Monday.

The popular swimming pond off Lambert’s Cove Road has been closed for most of the summer due to high levels of enterococcus bacteria.

Seth’s Pond in West Tisbury has been reopened for swimming, town board of health agent John Powers confirmed Tuesday morning.

The popular freshwater swimming pond off Lambert’s Cove Road had been closed since July 3 due to high levels of enterococcus bacteria.

On August 9 Mr. Powers said he had five clean water samples that met the state criteria for a geometric mean of levels at or below 33 colony forming units (CFU) per 100 milliliters of water.

It is unknown what the winner of this year’s Chilmark Road Race — Hugh Parker of New York city with a time of 16:07:29 — did to prepare for the race. He ran fast and shirtless in the morning downpour, crossing the tape nearly 30 seconds ahead of his closest competitor, David Melly of Newton, and the women’s winner Nnenna Lynch, also of New York city, who finished with a time of 19:21.27. Perhaps Hugh woke early, stretched and ran eight or nine miles just to warm up. He looked that fit and that youthful on Saturday morning.

Standing before the Enter sign at the Agricultural Society fairgrounds the week before the annual fair, there is a strong sense of anticipation. There’s not much to see. Foot-tall pink flags mark the spots for the vendors that will sell food and goods on the lawn. A few rides sit folded in the corner of the property. People drift in and out of the hall, submitting entries. The commotion is only beginning.

A New York woman is facing a cocaine trafficking charge in what Edgartown police are calling one of the biggest drug busts in recent memory late last week. Police said the arrest is connected to a larger operation bringing cocaine to the Vineyard.

On the morning that Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney announced that Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan will be his running mate, Martha’s Vineyard Democrats focused on a more local political decision as they heard from the two candidates they will choose between in the congressional primary on Sept. 6.

Looming thunderstorms and ominous skies did not detract from the excitement at the Boch family estate in Katama on a recent Thursday night. A core group of volunteers who had worked selflessly behind the scenes for weeks to produce what was one of the best Water Tastings by the Sea in 15 years, a benefit for Vineyard House, stood together in anticipation. We were not disappointed.

Years ago I was standing in the Red Sox clubhouse speaking with Bruce Hurst, the nicest guy I ever met in baseball and a Mormon. We moved from topic to topic until a female reporter entered the room. Then Mr. Hurst’s jaw clenched and he let out an unintelligible howl of protest. On another occasion, asked if he had one recommendation for baseball, he said it was to keep women out of the clubhouse.