Over the last month as we’ve walked our little black dog around the neighborhood each morning, we’ve rarely been out of earshot of the trilling songs of either dark-…
Columns
Joe's Journal
Thousands of miles east of Boothbay’s Ocean Point, Russians troopers are being slaughtered in a conflict that was supposed to be a cake walk for Russia.
But is it?
Russia’s four-year…
Salt ’n Spar
If you’re reading this, you’re likely a loyal reader of the Boothbay Register/Wiscasset Newspaper. And that matters. Your engagement strengthens local journalism and…
Home repairs are inevitable—whether from everyday wear and tear or unexpected damage. But when you’re looking for help, the wrong contractor can make matters worse. Some promise quick, low-cost…
Imagine if you can, a 118-foot, 12,000-pound tree lying on the ground with all sorts of branches dangling from the top one third of its length. Now, visualize lifting…
Joe's Journal
With all the bombast going on in the Maine Senate race, the strangeness of Washington, D.C., the not really a war in the Middle East, and our local town meetings and elections, last week Columbia…
Gift cards are popular and convenient for consumers—and for criminals who favor them as easy and hard-to-trace forms of payment.
They may claim the fastest way to fix an urgent financial…
'Round Town
I know it is ancient history but so much community fun! Events with a focus on what makes the region a community. No great fanfare, no fireworks, nothing but a real treat to celebrate special…
Joe's Journal
Working through my usual morning routine early Saturday, I glanced out the window and saw Bambi. He/she had wandered over the stone wall that delineates my ground from that of my neighbor, Joey…
Reports of sweepstakes scams to the AARP Fraud Watch Network™ Helpline are on the rise. The prospect of a big financial windfall or amazing vacation plays on our emotions. Criminals count on our…
Community of Hope
Income inequality and domestic…
Joe's Journal
While driving down Townsend Avenue the other day, my watch buzzed. I shut it off, and it buzzed again. So, I pulled into the Y parking lot and opened my phone/watch thingie.
“Don’t you…
Criminals steal billions by promoting fake investment opportunities that promise quick, guaranteed, or low‑risk returns. They may sound professional and convincing, but they exist for one reason:…
Salt ’n Spar
With March set aside for Women’s History, and April given over to poetry, I found myself wandering back to the words of Hannah Augusta Moore and Annette Hubbard Hobson, poets of yesteryear who…
Joe's Journal
Driving around last week, you might have noticed a scattering of yard signs plugging Graham Platner’s candidacy for the U.S. Senate. To be fair, supporters of Gov. Janet Mills, who is seeking the…
The next public supper will be on May 6. The meal will be broccoli cheese soup, salad, herb rolls, baked haddock, vegetable couscous salad, and cottage pudding with lemon sauce. The cost of…
Joe's Journal
Is spring here, finally?
Last week, the random patches of white cold stuff vanished from the hillside rhododendron patch, a line of daffodils emerged from somewhere south of Hades, and…
The next public supper will be Wednesday, May 5. The meal will consist of broccoli cheese soup, salad, herb rolls, baked haddock, vegetable couscous salad, cottage pudding with lemon sauce. The…
The AARP Fraud Watch Network™ Helpline (877-908-3360) is hearing from more people about misleading “free trial” offers. These schemes make cancellation difficult, if not impossible.
In many…
'Round Town
What a pleasant surprise to see our shadows during a late afternoon walk with our newest best friend Leica the wonder dog. We wonder if she is a dog! What a piece of work.
…
Joe's Journal
For thousands of years, Easter has been a symbol of hope, a day of joy, a time to gather together to celebrate the miracle of rebirth.
The Good Book, no matter which version sits upon your…
Joe's Journal
Were you one of the several hundred Lincoln County folks who stood on the Sheepscot River bridge on Saturday morning? Did you join other national anti-Trump White House protesters who tried to…
'Round Town
Moore’s Rock is right behind the house where we used to live at the top of Sherman Street in the Harbor. At the suggestion of Bernard Coady, my barber for what little hair I had, we bought his…
The AARP Fraud Watch Network™ Helpline (877-908-3360) has seen a spike in “recall scams.” In these schemes, perpetrators send a message claiming that a product you purchased has been recalled…
Column
Maine winters are the most beautiful in New England, but they take a serious toll on our infrastructure. We’re all too familiar with the large potholes that can pop a tire, or the work commute…
Joe's Journal
Of course, she called as I was writing this missive. She always does.
It was Ms. Pigette, and she began to grouse as the winter’s melting snow pack was being replaced with Sunday morning’s…
'Round Town
Well, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, I was close, but no cigar!
Our pond de-iced this past weekend but no ducks. It seems many of the island ducks have taken…
Scams are everywhere today—from fake texts and emails to nonstop phone calls—and the damage is devastating. According to the Federal Trade Commission, Americans lost as much as $196 billion to…
'Round Town
In the past several years, the village ducks have returned to our pond by now and are happily paddling around quacking as they scurry off to…
Joe's Journal
On Sunday, the nation’s energy secretary stared out of my TV set and said the Iran war was going forward according to a “meticulous” plan. The Secretary, Chris Wright, said the White House and the…
