Most high school seniors have already made post-graduation plans which may include college in September, entering the workforce, or perhaps a career in the military. By this time in the…

Fashionable.Most folks try to be “fashionable,’’ depending upon their age, job, friends and other factors. Some want to dress like everyone else, with no desire to be conspicuous. On the…

I was glad to hear Superintendent of Schools Heather Wilmot’s upcoming departure had nothing to do with politics. Based on her track record here, I didn't think it would.

When talking…

If you are lucky enough to have a sibling, you know he or she can be a lifelong, built-in best friend. They may be more like you than anyone in the world in looks and outlook. And they may have…

A couple of weeks ago, I asked readers to suggest places to live if you didn’t live in Maine and I received several responses – verbally and via our Disqus commenting feature and Facebook page.…

Back when we were setting up housekeeping on our own, in the early 1960s, most homes had a set of encyclopedias.Growing up, we had access to those in my parents’ home so when a salesman…

There are two things you need to know about newspapers.

Newspapers are important to community life and democracy. Always have been. We at the National Newspaper Association think it is…

March Madness is about over (insert a tear) and when it is, I expect to be called out of my recliner to begin some spring cleaning. Yes, the dusting, window cleaning, rug shampooing, dog bathing…

If our cool weather the first week of spring didn’t put a spring in your step, maybe Easter will.

A buffet of many of the other…

There are many types of religions in the world, with most folks convinced that “theirs’’ is the only “real’’ one. Every generation, we’re hopefully getting a bit more tolerant of religious…

Now that we’ve outlasted another winter and seen the first sunset of a hopefully merciful spring, here are a few final thoughts on the dark season just ended.

Frozen in thought is no…

A friend of mine who owns a home in Maine and a place in Massachusetts told me this week that he has had enough — he is seriously considering moving to another state south of New England. He cited…

Eat your fruits and vegetables. Choose lean meats and fish. Limit your sugar and salt intake. We all hear these messages daily, and have for many years. There’s only one big problem: It…

The weather has been the major topic of discussion this past week, with a brutal nor’easter dumping 15-plus inches of snow on our peninsula, and as we prepared our column, forecasters were…

Central Maine Power is being investigated by the Public Utilities Commission regarding metering, billing and customer communications after the PUC received hundreds, possibly thousands, of…

Most of us have no idea whatsoever what goes on behind closed doors except our own, and generally tend to mind our own business. It’s not a bad philosophy. Running our own lives is usually…

Leave it to sports to give us something to cheer about when politics local and elsewhere are running hot over referendums, lawsuits and more; and sometimes in the sports arena, there is respite…

Here’s a thought: If you are pregnant, don’t smoke cigarettes. If you want to risk shortening or lowering the quality of your life, as long as you avoid spreading the smoke secondhand, that’s your…

The potholes aren’t showing today, as we write this column; it’s snowing. However, the weatherman promises very little accumulation and a quick melt, so we’ll all be able to SEE the potholes…

Another school shooting massacre, this time in Florida. Let’s wake up, America, and do something about stopping this senseless violence. Even President Trump seems ready to get serious about…

The other day, my mother saw the first robin of the year, continuing that rite of spring or near spring for my mother, my sister and me. We each try to be the first to spot one. We got that from…

Why is it that so many elected officials, company heads, and others who don’t have to answer to higher-ups,  find it so tempting to waste someone else’s money? If they don’t…

It’s about time, say many of us, that L.L. Bean will no longer quietly let some unscrupulous customers take advantage of them and hurt their bottom line.The company is discontinuing its long…

February is a good month for thinking. The days are getting longer – yeah – and with 321 days left in the year – as of Tuesday – this week seemed like a good time to ponder over what has…

I saw a Facebook post this week of an eagle standing on ice and looking down. Its reflection was there, and at first glance I thought the bird of prey was eying its image. But I kept looking and…

I have been lost in the middle.

I’ve known about the “baby boomers,” because I am one, but ask me about who is a “Generation X” or a “millennial” and I am lost. Not that it’s really…

I’m glad Judy Flanagan addressed Wiscasset selectmen Tuesday night, about the disgusting storefront sign that tried to insult and perhaps shame her and Chairman Judy Colby over their lack of…

Every time we watch one of the TV shows on hoarders, we breathe a sigh of relief that we’re not that bad yet, but we do feel guilty that we save far more than we should. Some folks can claim…

It’s Super Bowl week and our beloved (depending on who you talk to) New England Patriots are in it again. For a record 10th time! They’ve won five and lost four — and if it wasn’t for a couple of…

I still enjoy watching Punxsutawney Phil prognosticate on Groundhog Day morning to Pennsylvanians. It’s edge of your seat television or radio or computer. Whether you believe he will get it right…

Being a celebrity can have its drawbacks.  Take “The Price is Right” television game show host Drew Carey, who found himself on the floor of the stage a couple of weeks ago,…

One of my favorite columns, a duty I have done for two and a half years now, was about the various neighborhoods in Boothbay Harbor while I was growing up and the families living in those…

Good for Woolwich for proposing the state pave shoulders while it’s repaving Route 127 this year. It sounds like it would be smart for the reasons Phil Di Vece reports in his story on the town’s…

 The next time you’re inching your way from one side of Wiscasset to the other due to unusually heavy traffic, or you’re stopped on Oak Street behind eight or ten cars waiting…

Turned on the radio before shaving Monday morning and Don Henley’s “Dirty Laundry” was playing. I’ve listened to that song probably 500 times and it still rings true — most of the evening news is…

“Where is everybody? ‘’ We overheard this question last week as a local resident remarked that it seemed to be quiet everywhere – precious few pedestrians on the sidewalks, empty parking…

I doubt anyone except those in Hawaii Saturday morning could fully grasp what they felt after their phones reported there was a threat of an inbound ballistic missile, and that this was not a…

We didn’t have the winning numbers in the Mega Millions, Powerball, or Tri State lotteries this past weekend, which is quite understandable:We didn’t buy any tickets.Lotteries wouldn’t fare…

Heading into the week of Jan. 8, all of Wiscasset’s high school basketball teams, varsity and junior varsity, boys and girls, were still looking for their first wins. And some of the margins they’…

We’re off and running in a brand new year which will, once again, bring changes we may never have imagined, including in the field of medicine. We’re all living longer, thanks in part to…

It has been a long time since I've had any use for snow other than writing about it. But the cold we’ve been having is far worse than snow. If you have to be outside, and we all do, some of us…

Wiscasset’s political plate is filling up fast for 2018. The main course so far is Main Street, as Maine Department of Transportation moves toward its downtown project that near year’s end was…

Happy New Year!

Wow, another year is upon us. Seems like only a few months ago that 2017 began. As we get older, time goes faster and faster. And I can feel those years in my bones and…

2017 has brought lots of changes to our local communities, our state, country and elsewhere around the world.  We constantly have to adapt to new concepts, philosophies and…

I have been thinking all week about what my Christmas message will be and on Tuesday night, it came to me.

I have been trying to figure out why I sometimes get melancholy around Christmas…

Although it has a religious origin, the message Peace on Earth, goodwill toward men is now a popular saying the world over, especially during the Christmas season when we all tend to be a…

I tried all week to get a picture of Kendall Chick. I wanted us all to be able to see the little girl in life whose death has left a weight on Wiscasset’s heart over the past week.

I…

Hats off to Edgecomb for premiering its Charlie Brown Christmas tree-decorating contest, with “sorriest tree” and other categories that befit the Peanuts classic holiday special so many of us grew…

Christmas decorations hold a special place in our hearts, especially the traditional wreaths, swags, garlands and other greenery offset by bright red ribbons and bows.They’re perfect symbols…

I was a David Cassidy fan. I liked his voice and his looks, and I can still hear him singing, “Wah think I love you.” And then there was the theme song that started each episode of “The Partridge…