The Joint Committee on Consumer Protection will hold a public hearing in Boston next week on the town of Tisbury's home rule petition to license the sale of beer and wine. The hearing will begin at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 9 at 10 a.m. in room B1 at the State House.

The public is welcome to attend and offer testimony. Cape and Islands Rep. Eric T. Turkington suggests that people interested in speaking contact the committee in advance at 617-722-2030.

January tears were replaced by October smiles welcoming U.S. Marine Lieut. Col. Michael Halt back to West Tisbury on Monday.

Better known as school principal Mr. Halt to 283 students at the school, Mr. Halt was welcomed home with simple heartfelt words by his peers and was serenaded by the student body and by the faculty after an eight-month tour of active duty, including seven and a half months based in Seleucia, Iraq.

Parking illegally will cost you more in Aquinnah next year, but the roads you use to get your ticket may be better.

The selectmen Tuesday approved a $50 fine for most tickets, up from a range of $10 to $15, and maintained $100 fines for parking in handicapped spots and for parking on the beach and dunes. They also approved a plan to file for federal highway funding available for roads used by tribal members.

Show Up, Winners

Martha Smith, major domo of the derby weigh-in stations, has issued a call to winners to show up at the weigh-in. “We need to remind daily and weekly winners to come in and pick up their prizes,” she said, noting that prizes are available immediately at the end of competition each week.

The legal battle over an affordable housing initiative on Chappaquddick ended quietly late last month when a group of abutters who want to block the housing allowed a deadline to pass for a final appeal to the state Supreme Judicial Court.

No petition for further appellate review was filed, which means two young families may now build their homes on Sandy Road.

A Vineyard Haven man is scheduled to face trial in Dukes County Superior Court later this month for allegedly raping a New Hampshire woman in the summer of 2004. Richard J. Skrypczyk, 60 was indicted by a grand jury last April on a charge of rape following an incident that occurred after a wedding three years ago.

Mr. Skrypczyk’s trial is set to begin Oct. 15.

There are four basic food groups: milk chocolate, dark chocolate, white chocolate and chocolate truffles.

You therefore can count on a square meal (of the chocolate box sort) when the fourth annual Chocolate Festival opens tonight, October 5, with a preview party at Featherstone Center for the Arts on Barnes Road in Oak Bluffs.

The film Alice Neel, Portrait Painter, a documentary about one of the great portrait painters of the 20th century, will screen on Saturday, Oct. 6, at 7:30 p.m. at Katharine Cornell Theatre on Spring street in Vineyard Haven.

M.J. Bindu Delekta’s sacred Circle of Yoga studio in Vineyard Haven begins its fall season with free classes.

Chair yoga, which uses the support of a chair and stretches the entire body, is appropriate for seniors and anyone with physical limitations. This class will meet on Monday, Oct. 8 at 9 a.m.

Yoga on the Ball combines the wisdom of yoga with the support and core-building of the exercise ball. This class meets on Tuesday, Oct. 9 at 5:30 p.m.

For details, call 508-696-4513 or see online sacredcircleofyoga.com.

On Saturday, Oct. 6, everyone is invited to join the fourth annual Justin Coleman Memorial Hike-a-thon. The 10-mile hike begins at the Coleman’s house on 150 South Road in Chilmark. This year, the hike also will be in memory of Alex Cohen, a friend of Justin’s who died in an automobile accident driving from Martha’s Vineyard to Duke University at the age of 19.