I arrived on the Island as a twenty-something in the early 1980s and found a fledging art scene and stunning, unlimited beauty. There were a handful of galleries, one of which accepted me, but the bulk of my work was sold in New York. Little by little, independent art shows sprang into existence along with more permanent galleries. The all-Island art show was one such show, and the Family Planning art show was another.

What an amazing job everyone did to beautify the Triangle in Edgartown! I am very fortunate to live in the beautiful little town of Edgartown and I adore it. What an amazingly beautiful welcome for all our visitors.

Joe’s sign is absolutely gorgeous and all the plantings are breathtaking.

How did a good faith effort on the part of a committed group of dog owners to work with the town of West Tisbury to keep Lambert’s Cove Beach clean and safe morph into a proposal for a year-round, townwide leash law? I am a member of that group — the Friends of Lambert’s Cove Beach — and I ask myself that question every day.

It’s not July, but it seems like July. It used to be that some things that happen only began to happen in mid-summer, but not this year, no sir. Things are happening now. We can remember when the masses were blooming in the seventh month of the year, while this year, in the fifth month, they are congregating. From the Skiff avenue end of Lagoon Pond they have arrived — massive influxes of what appear to be brown clouds of death. The algae blooms are here.

Remember the Citizens United resolution at spring town meetings? In all six towns, we voted to support Massachusetts Senate Bill 772, restoring free speech. It calls for the U.S. Congress to move to amend the U.S. Constitution to affirm that money is not speech, and that human beings, not corporations, are persons entitled to constitutional rights.

The relationship between Network of Neighbors and Edgartown public relations specialist Danielle Pendergraft continued to unravel this week when Mrs. Pendergraft and her husband resigned from the nonprofit board hours before the remaining members voted to oust them.

The group may be small, but their impact is not.

Nine students from the Martha’s Vineyard Public Charter School will graduate Sunday, some headed to college, others embarking on adventures abroad. They’ll leave behind a legacy of community service, and carry with them memories of their tight-knit school community.

“This group really represents who we are at the charter school of Martha’s Vineyard,” school director Bob Moore said of the 11th graduating class.

Extra money to cover the cost of building a parking lot at the new town library and more fine tuning in the controversial rules for dogs on Lambert’s Cove Beach are the issues that top a special town meeting warrant in West Tisbury on Tuesday.

A new parking lot connecting the library and Howes House will cost $145,000 more than originally planned for the new $6 million library, and voters will be asked to pay $46,000, or one third of the bill.

The Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah) hit another roadblock in its effort to build a casino this week after Freetown voters overwhelmingly opposed a tribal gambling facility in their town.

The nonbinding special election vote was 954 to 308 on the question of whether to allow a Class III casino. A total of 1,262 voters turned out to the polls, about 22 per cent of those registered. Freetown assistant town clerk Diane Souza said the annual town election in April saw a 13 per cent turnout.

The Edgartown Lighthouse, the prominent beacon overlooking the outer Edgartown harbor that has long been a symbol of the town, is going to be put up to bid by the federal government, with the town and the Martha’s Vineyard Museum expressing interest in taking stewardship of the landmark.