WINTER
Again it is winter
Everywhere it is snow.
Some people so love it,
Others wish it would go.
Maybe a “White Christmas”
About some…
Columns
Stylin’ Maine
On a rainy Sunday in November, as late autumn prepares us for the holidays, I popped into an antique store. Looking for a couch I ended up with a handful of sweaters and red seemed to be the theme…
Take the time to invest in your health. You have one chance at living this life
Holiday celebrations are here. To many, this is a time of worry, anxiety and tension which affects our mental and physical well-being.
We have a choice in the decisions we make every day…
In a recent casual conversation, a friend mentioned that he’d seen a news item about a drone equipped with a flamethrower. Well, of course that got my…
It’s serious; but it’s fun, too
The veterans of World War II are in their 90s now. There is a monument in Washington, D.C., recognizing their efforts to basically save the world from tyranny, and a great many of these veterans…
always keep an eye out for berries, the wild gems of our forests
The first snow fell recently on the summit of Mount Battie in Camden Hills State Park. Although wind had blown much of the snow off the exposed ledges when I arrived that morning, a light dusting…
Lyme Time
A pitfall is a hidden danger or unsuspected difficulty. Often, we are blinded by trust or our desire to just feel better and so we are not really seeing how things are, until we…
A Bird’s Tale
Great blue herons are one of the better known of Maine birds even if not always by that name. Many’s the time we have also heard them referred to as “cranes,” “egrets,” and the even occasionally…
monarch butterfly roosts high in some of the spruces and pines
When I visited Monhegan, a small island about 10 miles off the coast of Maine, this past Labor Day weekend, I witnessed a heartening number of monarch caterpillars, chrysalides, and flying adult…
A very familiar landmark in Camden is the Archway on Union Street. It was placed there in July 1926 by the Board of Trade, before we had a Chamber of Commerce. The members felt that in many towns…
Weekend nights, the Bag was the place to be. No bands, just good friends, good company
I enjoy some light reading in bed before turning out the lights and finishing with Fulghum, I looked through my library and decided to revisit Everyone Is Entitled to My Opinion. You’ve…
Autumn is a time of contemplation, a time to be still
Many of us have noticed there is less daylight time, giving us shorter days to be outdoors.
Darkness arrives sooner on our doorstep.
A…
‘He said the meat is fake, but the movement is real’
Sometimes I stumble onto news items that make me scratch my head. I see it all the time, but only see a few that prompt me to write about it.…
The chipmunk was once called “chitmunk” from the native Ottawa word meaning “red squirrel.” Nothing is any cuter than a chipmunk, unless it’s two chipmunks. Everyone will not agree with me on that…
a bountiful summer for monarchs in Maine
During my annual fall pilgrimage to Monhegan Island to enjoy the spectacle of bird migration, I’ve found myself paying more and more attention in recent years to butterflies—especially the…
Down by the sea
It was 113 years ago on August 30 that Camden saw one of its largest parades. The date was August 30, 1906, when the town paid tribute to William Conway, a Civil War veteran, who had been dead…
Someone will always produce a study to substantiate the result you want
Several years ago, I wrote a piece about “studying” and how I thought I would be pretty good at it. I would be willing to study anything for anyone and give them the answer they were looking for.…
By late summer, birdsong has quieted. Shorebirds’ southward migration is underway. Fledged birds—from sparrows to hawks—are newly on their own. Robins are considering a third nesting. And…
Down by the sea
How much thought have you given to the “Soldiers' Monument” that stands to attention in Harbor Park, as you pass by it whenever you go through Main Street in Camden? It took only eight women to…
Down East, periwinkles, called ‘wrinkles,’ are harvested for food
Who here on the coast of Maine doesn't have their handful of shells, mussel shells on a windowsill, or little jar of periwinkles? Who doesn't pick up one or two from the beach each summer, to be…
Where It’s At
Twenty-five.
There are 25 journeys to be taken through the paintings of Belfast-based artist David Estey at Studio 53 Fine Art through July 28. The works were created between 2015 and 2019…
‘that is what you drive if you are not in a nursing home’
After purchasing at least 25 automobiles of all makes, models, and colors, I retired and decided to trade my van in for a sporty car. The salesman, with whom I had traded many years, said, “I have…
Politics and ice cream
I like ice cream. Back when the cholesterol scare was in full force, I had some tests as part of regular screening and there was concern about my cholesterol levels. My mother always worried…
June is the month when we recognize the many students who have spent 13 years studying to prepare for college or work. Many students have sent in their applications and made the decision for the…
Industrial Arts
On Sunday, June 23, at about 9:30 a.m., about 40-some residents of (and a few regular visitors to) Matinicus Island assembled at the harbor, waiting for the arrival of a small group of lobster…
Jupiter is currently 14 times brighter than the planet Saturn
While we were driving home to the Midcoast from an event in central Maine recently, just past sunset, fields of lush green grass glowed on either side of the car. As the passenger, I kept watch…
It’s hard to leave your house without hearing about the epidemic brown tail moth, but it takes a special community to stand comparing rashes in the grocery store while scrambling for the next…
The stories make us who we are
I’m going to state right off the bat that I want something from you readers. Nothing for me, but something important for you.
I arrived very late…
I certainly do not want to start a Revolution
People keep asking, “Why don't you write about James Richards, because he was the first settler of Camden.”
Well I thought everyone knew about him, but because my paternal grandmother was…
As the trees begin to leaf out, songbirds are slowly but surely returning. Waking in the morning to birdsong feels like the renewal of some kind of blessing. Even on a bleak and chilly day in May…
The “sentinels of the Maine Coast” are numerous, with a lot of history, and they come in various sizes, shapes, colors and vary in height. All are very popular with tourists and Mainers alike.…
Transformations
This week, four local writers, all students of Kathrin Seitz, reflect on the seasons, and matters of life.
Flint
by Gabrielle Attra
Scraps. Dust.…
An excellent source of protein, eggs are a sought-after wild food
In J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit, Bilbo Baggins gets into a riddle competition with Gollum in their first fateful meeting. One of Bilbo's riddles is this:…
One night, I was parked with my girlfriend and some Camden guys came by...
That was the thing to do. Before American Graffiti, here in the Midcoast, cruising was a popular pastime. There were several routes that were popular back in the 1960s.
Main…
Other animals
The time of year has come to shuffle off the carapace of winter and greet the spring. Our part of the world is tilting towards the sun and the days are lengthening; snow has melted, and…
‘Sit, be still and listen’
A clinical trial funded by the National Cancer Institute developed a program to improve the health of spousal family caregivers. In reviewing it, I found it to be valuable for all caregivers. This…
This week in Lincolnville... errh.... Louisiana
“Well folks, we made it.” That was our pilot speaking as our plane taxied to a stop on the runway, wind-driven rain lashing at the windows. The past hour’s “turbulence” had left us all a bit tense…
Eva Murray: Part 2: Truck calls, the opiate crisis, August as the cruelest month, and the importance of eating together
Sharon Daley, RN is the first and to date the only nurse associated with the telemedicine program on the Maine Seacoast Mission vessel Sunbeam, which makes regular visits to many of Maine’s…
According to the calendar, it's now officially spring. As those of us in Maine know full well, however, we could just as easily experience a blizzard at this point as a beautiful spring day. But…
Meeting tonight
ROCKPORT — The Select Board in Rockport will convene at 7 p.m., this evening, March 25, for a meeting that will be drawing many interested citizens and committees to the Geoffrey C. Parker Meeting…
You need a break from the articles about the 1900s. But a big event happened in 1969 that needs to be remembered, because the first settler, James Richards, arrived in Camden by boat in 1769. Two…
Eva Murray: Industrial Arts
Part 1: A discussion with the captain and the engineer about breaking ice, the needs of a steel boat, and the substitute mission vessel Moonbeam
For over a century the Maine…
Growing up in Camden surrounded by caring adults
During a good natured recent ribbing on Facebook, Dave Dickey mentioned several people who supported him in his youth growing up in Camden. There is talk…
‘I have heard a lot of tourists say that nowhere they have traveled was there a prettier ride than up the Old Penobscot River’
No, I never did have a ride on the “Boston Boat,” but I do remember going to meet it when my grandfather came back from Boston. He was private captain for Charles Dana Gibson, one of the five top…
if you keep them in water until the leaves emerge, rooted cuttings can be easily transplanted into soil
A friend once told me that when he first moved to Maine years ago, to try homesteading in the boonies of Montville, his 80-year old neighbor told him that every winter she counted down the days…
The wildlife around us
Since writing my last article I’ve gotten several interesting questions about wildlife, so I figured I’d answer them together and all at once.
…
Industrial Arts: A reply to ‘How’s your winter been?’
A few out-of-state friends have asked how things are going. I enjoy this time of year, but they don’t believe me.
I don’t like the cold rain we are getting as I write (and yes, that was…
A lot has happened on this tiny Camden street: industry, romance, business
There have been many changes in all of the business district of Camden-by-the-Sea since its first days of incorporation in 1771.
One section that has come to mind is Tannery Lane. As it is…
Lyme Time with Paula Jackson Jones
If you are struggling and feeling hopeless, please read this.
I just got off the phone with a 29-year-old woman who has two young children and…
How are caregivers surviving?
One in seven middle-aged adults provides physical, emotional or financial support to an aging parent, child or other family member. They are unpaid and are considered the “sandwich generation” who…
