There are no statistics to show how many Islanders actually leave the Island during the winter school break, which falls this week, one week after most of the rest of public schools in Massachusetts take their winter break. The Martha’s Vineyard Commission does not track the numbers nor does the Steamship Authority, at least with any precision, when it comes to Islanders and their travel habits.

Boating Skills Course

The Vineyard detachment of the Coast Guard Auxiliary is offering a 10-week boating skills and seamanship course beginning Wednesday, March 7. The course will meet weekly from 6 to 8 p.m. through May 16 at the Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School.

JANE N. SLATER

508-645-3378

(slaterjn@comcast.net)

JOHN S. ALLEY

508-693-2950

(alleys@vineyard.net)

It sure has been like a ghost town all week; this is school winter vacation and many people have left Dodge for a warmer climate while others have gone up north to ski.

Even the usually busy Reliable Market down in Oak Bluffs has suffered a slowdown.

Daylight is getting longer each day. Thoughts of spring, just a few weeks away, are giving us hope for even milder temperatures.

KATHIE CASE

508-627-5349

(kathleencase@comcast.net)

Once again Mother Nature is throwing us a loop. I watched three channels for the weather reports; two said rain and one said snow, so when the storm started I thought for sure we would see snow in some amount. Then it started pouring and brought slush.

I saw Peter Herrmann in the post office the other day and as he went by me he whispered that his crocuses beat mine in blooming.

Margaret Knight

508 627-8894

(margaret02539@yahoo.com)

This is one of my favorite weeks on the Island. Anywhere you want to park, there’s a space. Roads are uncrowded; if you need to get somewhere at 3 p.m., you won’t find yourself stuck behind 20 cars and a school bus. Just don’t try to get any business done, because half the Island is away on school vacation.

On Tuesday, March 6 beginning at 5 p.m. the West Tisbury Library is
hosting a talk by Virginia Carmichael, coauthor of The Albatross and
the Fish (University of Texas Press, 2011).

The albatross family is currently the most threatened bird group in
the world and in their extensively researched book, Robin W. Doughty
and Virginia Carmichael tell the story of how its potentially
catastrophic extinction has been interrupted by an unlikely alliance of governments, conservation groups, and fishermen.

Atlantic sturgeon, an ancient fish that once swam in local waters and has since become scarce, has been listed by the federal government as an endangered species, setting in motion a long-term effort to restore the fish to previous levels.

By the end of the grand opening night last Friday, it was standing room only at the Pit Stop.

The newest Oak Bluffs music venue that’s housed in a converted Dukes County avenue garage echoed with jazz, folk and rock and roll as Vineyard musicians took the stage to celebrate the first official concert. The past mingled with the present — old concert posters lined the walls from the garage’s previous incarnations — but the pulse was new.

Storm Arrives

Kristina Almelda and Chris Pierson of Oak Bluffs announce the birth of a son, Storm Ryder Pierson, born on Feb. 24, 2012 at the Martha’s Vineyard Hospital. Storm weighed 7 pounds, 10 ounces at birth.