It took long days and nights, but the Legislature has wrapped up our work for the time being. Maine’s citizen Legislature means that we’re only…
Columns
Cribbage scores for the week of June 13 are as follows:
Tuesday, June 15: 9:30 a.m., 15 present: First, Blanche Johnson and Howard Nickerson, tie 832; third, Arlene Steen, 827; high hand (…
A Bird’s Tale
A cute little black dog joined our family about a month ago. He came from a shelter a few hours away who had described him as a three-year old chug (pug-chihuahua cross) named Loki. Loki has been…
’Round Town
In all my years on the planet I have never known anyone with the name Isabel. Through 12 years of public school, four years of college, some graduate school and five years of teaching, no one has…
Joe’s Journal
They gave out this year's Pulitzer prizes for journalism the other day.
They honored the New York Times (surprise) with the Public Service Award for their stories of the COVID-19 pandemic…
In November of 2019 when I started working at the Y as the marketing director, I immediately recognized Knickerbocker Lake as a great spot to learn to fish. In our area, fishing has a place in…
A Bird’s Tale
These early June days of temperatures in the 90s and high humidity are far from comfortable for those of us remembering the “old days.” We much prefer high temps in the 60s and low 70s at this…
’Round Town
May's last weekend was a bit dreary, chilly and damp. The end of May can be like that.
But, nonetheless, people turned out to pay their respects on Memorial Day. During the gatherings for…
Joe’s Journal
Last week, as Barry Sherman barked out the command, "Veterans Attention,” the 2021 Boothbay Region Memorial Day parade stepped off.
As usual for the event, former Sgt. Barry wore a Vietnam…
A Bird’s Tale
Steve Kress came to Maine to teach at the famous Hog Island Audubon Camp in Bremen in 1969, when we were just toddlers. He has been working to restore and manage seabird populations in the state…
’Round Town
I suspect there are manuals for everything. If I were to resume my interest in the rebuilding of motorcycle engines, it would be pretty easy to find, online or otherwise, lots of guidance for “How…
Joe’s Journal
Ready or not, spring has sprung and summer is here. And summertime in the Boothbay region is a perfect getaway from the city, suburbia and the rest of the nation we love so dear.
And…
Have you ever experienced climbing a high ladder and zip-lining back to the ground? How about balancing on a moving log beam while walking across to the other side? Did you know that the Boothbay…
A Bird’s Tale
Ospreys are big birds. They make big nests that very often sit out in the open so that the birds on the nest are visible to all. Brother Andrew and his spouse Nina have one of these osprey nests…
’Round Town
The yellow-flowered “Magnolia Elizabeth” (pictured above) was planted by Welles and Molly Moore 21 years ago. The tree, the result of a breeding program to create a yellow-flowered variety, at the…
Joe’s Journal
In a moment of weakness, I promised Gloria Taliana and Bonnie Ginger I would write a plugger column to help draw attention to the plant sale that benefits the Boothbay…
Salt 'n Spar
Her name was Rosalie. Sorry, I don’t have a last name for her and can’t positively say that Rosalie was her real name. It’s possible she was using a pen name, a common practice when she was the…
Joe’s Journal
It is no secret that something is happening out in the Gulf of Maine.
No, I will not dive into the pending political food fight over floating windmills v. fighting fishermen. That is…
Every year, the state of Maine spends millions of dollars building or improving public buildings and on public works projects. Each of these projects requires the state to buy materials and hire…
If you live near a river, you may be able to tell when an amazing biological miracle is underway each spring, by the sights and sounds of birds. In spring, as the days grow warmer, fish that have…
This time of year daylight creeps into places around the region which stay shadowed for a large part of the year, especially in the evening. Parts of the Harbor become visible, so to speak, as we…
Group 2 plus Roadrunners
88.5FM Modifieds (40 laps - spotlight)
* Chadbourne 2-time reigning Modified Champ - first win of…
A Bird’s Tale
For years we have read about and had acquaintances tell us stories about birds that would attack their reflections in windows, shiny hubcaps, and car mirrors. We had never experienced it ourselves…
’Round Town
For anyone who visits the YMCA regularly, Pat Fraker is no stranger. During my visit with her at the Y, people of all ages checked in for various uses of the facilities – the pool…
Joe’s Journal
Stories about immigrants seem to fill our newspapers and TV screens.
They tell of refugees trying to enter the USA after walking thousands of miles to escape violence, poverty, oppression…
Wiscasset Senior Center cribbage scores for the week of May 2 are as follows:
…
A Bird’s Tale
After a week of seemingly nonstop Zoom meetings, the weekend arrived, and spring beckoned us outside. We love our home and neighborhood, and we see some amazing birds right here. That includes a…
’Round Town
I've dug for a clam.
I was a curious soul upon my second arrival in Maine. It was me and Betty Ford, my 1967 Twin I-beam Ford pick up. We were ready and I…
Joe’s Journal
In other years, it wouldn't merit a notice.
After all, it was just a Sunday afternoon brunch with two other couples at a camp by a lake. We enjoyed hot dogs over an open fire, chips and…
It’s May, Hooray! The daffodils are blooming, the birds are singing. And, the customers are lining up at the Big Gray Rotary Barn every Saturday morning before we open at 8:30. The word is out! We…
Salt ’n Spar
The town of Edgecomb, “in the southern part of Lincoln County, is situated upon the peninsula formed by the Sheepscot and Damariscotta Rivers, having Newcastle on the north and Boothbay upon the…
A Bird’s Tale
For years we had been saying to each other, “When will it be our turn to find a rare bird in our backyard?”
Last week it finally happened.
A white-winged dove, a bird of the…
’Round Town
I met the nicest lady from Rockland on Saturday. It was a spectacular spring day and we met on the Department of Marine Resources lawn. This was our vantage point from which we…
Joe’s Journal
Southport’s Ham Meserve is used to big numbers. After all, he is a retired international banker, and big numbers are a way of life in that racket.
Since being elected as the only…
Where It’s At
What in our environment creates a sense of peace? Places, sounds in nature, music?
How many times have you been outdoors on a windy day to find yourself entranced by the movement of trees…
An excellent dinner was enjoyed Wednesday evening, April 14.
The next supper is Wednesday, May 12. The doors will open to masked, vaccinated individuals at 4:30 p.m. The entree is corned…
A Bird’s Tale
A small island only about a third larger than Maine’s own Mount Desert Island is the entire world home for one of the world’s most beautiful and uniquely colored parrots. Bright yellow on the tail…
’Round Town
It’s not every day that we get to introduce a new word to the world. I do not take this opportunity lightly. It seems more likely to find old words being given new meaning. Take “pivot” for…
Joe’s Journal
Like most launchings, it started with a groan as gravity, and a pull from a tug, began to pull the steel vessel from the shed where she was born. Slowly at first, then a bit quicker, she slid down…
Lyme Time
Hearing a lot of screams of tick encounters and I even got a phone call asking if they're active earlier this year.
Remember: Ticks become active when temps are above freezing — 32F+ — and…
Our first cribbage game Tuesday, April 13 at Wiscasset Senior Center was enjoyable for those who attended. Thursday evening games may resume soon.
There were 17 present. Scores were as…
’Round Town
First off, let me say that Kevin Burnham's photograph of the Maine State Ferry launch at Washburn & Doughty's shipyard is better than mine. But we were in attendance for different reasons.…
Joe’s Journal
I took a chance on Saturday.
After all it was a warm sunny day, the perfect day to begin the outdoor chores season. It just seemed to be the right thing to do.
So, I gathered up…
A Bird’s Tale
On a recent early evening the family was out in the yard enjoying the spring sunshine and singing birds while shooting hoops on the driveway basketball court. To be entirely accurate, we were…
A Bird’s Tale
The pure joy of discovery. As children we often felt that joy, as we found something we had never seen or learned about something wondrous that we had only dreamed of or heard stories about.…
’Round Town
Since last week's (April Fool’s Day) adventure involving a fake snowstorm went over like a lead balloon, I figured I'd try to redeem myself with a view from a real balloon. Our wonderful neck of…
Joe’s Journal
Here is a column that I just wanted to get off my chest.
I dreamed I was talking to a guy and asked him what he thought about the school's proposal to spend nearly $50 million on needed…
