It’s finally happened. I am still busy with my fall clean-ups of the gardens and Christmas and winter are rapidly approaching. I was dismayed last week to hear about winter storm Cleon dropping three feet of snow on Duluth, Minn.

David Smith and his father Steve Smith, who was visiting from Cape Elizabeth, Me., emailed a note which stated that they had seen and photographed a snowy owl next to the Aquinnah Shop in Gay Head on Nov. 21! That beats the Nov. 29 record and adds to the question: Just how many snowy owls are there on Martha’s Vineyard and Chappaquiddick? Actually, I guess I should ask how many snowy owls there are in Dukes County?

The long-discussed bypass road system off the Edgartown-Vineyard Haven Road was rejected for a third time Tuesday during a well-attended special town meeting.

An Oak Bluffs man has been charged with stealing more than $5,000 worth of copper wiring from an Island electric company. Edgartown Det. Michael Snowden led the investigation.

In preseason scrimmages both home and away, the boys' and girls' hockey squads have been skating well. The puck drops for the boys' first home game on Saturday. The girls will not play at home until January.

Reduced funding for a new piling project in Menemsha harbor was approved. A new floor for the community center will wait for another day. The meeting lasted just over 20 minutes.

Announced Monday, the news from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration was hailed as a boost to protection efforts for the critically endangered right whales.

With the temperature in the low 30s and a wintry mix blowing in off the East River, it was a morning fit for neither man nor beast. And yet a calm but energized feel pervaded as the Beach Plum crew got down to work creating the pop-up restaurant Fish and Rose.

Located in the Oak Bluffs arts district, this condominium most recently housed Dragonfly Gallery and is the home of the gallery owners.

New pilings for Menemsha harbor, a new office for the harbor master and a new wood floor for the Chilmark Community Center are all decisions for voters. The meeting begins at 7:30 p.m. in the Community Center.