March 14 was the magical day when several signs of spring flew in, even though they were accompanied by a tad of snow in the afternoon. Fortunately, the snow did not stick around, but the signs of spring will.

I accept most of the responsibility for the typographical errors in this column. My editors are willing to pick up my hand written ramblings at my house weekly

The science of bacteria provides one instance of how quickly our knowledge can change. Our understanding about the importance of bacteria has changed dramatically since 1975. A standard college-level biology textbook written in 1975 says that there are about 3,000 species of bacteria, and presents material about bacteria on 25 of its 1,000 pages.

The Martha’s Vineyard Land Bank envisions a new campground as part of its management plan for its 234-acre Southern Woodlands Preserve. Dan Feeney, the owner of the Vineyard’s only currently operating campground, envisages problems with that.

At Tuesday night’s public hearing to consider the draft management plan, Mr. Feeney emerged as the only person with significant objections to it.

Don’t tell my wife, but lately I’ve been frequent ing a strip joint. It’ll sound even kinkier when she finds out that the joint is a dental center, the stripper is an orthodontist named Michael and his best customer is a patient who happens to be me.

The following is an edited version of a letter sent to the federal Bureau of Ocean Energy, Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE) from state senator Dan Wolf (D-Cape & Islands) and state representative Timothy Madden (D-Barnstable, Dukes and Nantucket)

Her name was Maile Malama Kamehameha. It was a long moniker and it pretty well summed her up. Maile is a kind of Hawaiian vine used as a ceremonial lei and worn mostly by men ­— she loved ceremonies and always gravitated to male “two-legs” (as she called human beings). Malama means “to take care of,” and that was her goal in life, which she did perfectly. Kamehameha is the name of Hawaii’s first king, the chief who united all the islands, which suggests her strength in adversity.

Catching Up on Daylight Saving

Daylight Saving Time is upon us again. On Sunday, March 13, most of the United States will spring forward and enjoy an extra hour of daylight at the end of the day. Hawaii and most of Arizona abstain; the Navajo Nation residing in the state observes the tradition.

Sifting Through the Muck

Following the rules can start to seem like a fool’s game when many in society begin to tout that regulations — any inconvenient regulations — are an affront to freedom and an obstacle to prosperity. Nevermind that a free market depends on a well-regulated system. This is true whether dealing with home loan approvals, oil rig safety procedures or scrutinizing investment results (Madoff, anyone?). The penalties for recklessness must be severe for the market to make sense.

TALE OF TWO CITIZENS

Editors, Vineyard Gazette: