On Sunday, Claire Nichols was at the Grey Barn in West Tisbury. “My mom is the cheese maker here.

She’s making yogurt now. I like to play with the goats and walk around the farm.

We just moved here from New York and I like Martha’s Vineyard very much.”

Please Adopt Us

A very happy May to all the loyal readers of this column. As we begin our fourth year of operation, we would like to thank all who have adopted a dog, cat, kitten, bunny or guinea pig that you read about here, and also to those who have been so generous with donations of money, cleaning supplies, blankets, toys, food and just everything else that the Animal Shelter of Martha’s Vineyard needs to keep us going. We appreciate your kindness so much.

The statistics sketch a picture of the other Vineyard, the one rarely seen or understood by those who harbor images of the Island as an idyllic vacation spot. Substance abuse rates here are 21 per cent higher than the state average. There are high levels of depression and domestic conflict and violence. The Island has a significant Brazilian community whose people are often isolated and apart, and sadly sometimes targets of ugly acts of racisim.

The Vineyard’s annual appointment with spring, more often than not a fleeting affair, has stretched on endlessly this year, or so it seems. It began with extra warm weather in March — almost unheard of on an Island surrounded by frigid ocean water — that teased the daffodils into bloom earlier than at any time in recent memory. Islanders who were lucky enough to make mid-winter escapes returned to early spring flowers gone by and mayflowers already in bloom.

There’s no food on the streets of Vineyard Haven. At least not for long. And that includes anything that might resemble food. For each morning on my walk, at the end of the leather leash in my hand is a golden street sweeper. His name is Floyd. For more than 10 years, just about his entire life, he has lived with my wife, Paula, and me.

From past Gazette spring editorials:

Fog is our closest companion in these early days of spring when the air is warm and the water still cold. Fog conceals a message in the mist and in the tapestry it weaves. It tells us spring is trying to burst the barriers of these cloudy banks, that the season is struggling to slip in edgewise. And the barriers will burst in time.

TRUE COMPROMISE

Editors, Vineyard Gazette:

Steven Carter’s letter to the editor regarding dogs on Lambert’s Cove Beach was unfortunate in its tone and further heated up an already hot issue. A true compromise came out of the annual town meeting to allow summer days that include both time that is people only, and time when residents can share walks and water play with their dogs. The challenge now is to develop a plan to put it in action and enforce it effectively and sustainably.

Editor’s Note: The following is the text of an opinion written by the Aquinnah town counsel for the Aquinnah selectmen.

You have requested that I provide the Aquinnah board of selectmen with an opinion as to whether the Wampanoag Tribal Council of Gay Head, Inc. (Aquinnah) can operate a gaming casino in Aquinnah. The simple answer to the question is no.

When I was in second grade my teacher, Ms. Lipscombe, wore an ERA button to class every day. It was 1980 and the deadline for states to ratify the equal rights amendment was approaching. Ms. Lipscombe also had days where the girls and boys would switch gender roles and the boys had to serve the girls.

My friend Chris tapped on the flimsy clear plastic that separated the checkout counter from the entryway of Shirley’s True Value Hardware in Vineyard Haven.

“Is this bulletproof glass?” he joked with the woman behind the counter.

“Well . . . why don’t you stay on that side, I’ll get a gun and shoot at you, and we’ll find out.”

With that, the woman walked out from behind the register. She had gray hair, and wore thick, round glasses.