Monday night, as I was trying to get to sleep and wondering what to write in this space this week, I thought about this newspaper and what I would miss if it suddenly ceased to exist … perhaps setting myself up for a nightmare!

First off, I would be out of a job that I have held for 39-plus years. Secondly, I have lived most of my 69 years here in the region and known five of the publishers, from Roy Kelley to A.R. Tandy (Dan DeRepentigny, Howard Cowan and Marylouise Cowan being the other three). In retrospect, I have seen many, many issues of this wonderful broadsheet land on the newsstands over the years … as have many of our supportive and elder readers.

I also got thinking of how I could convince readers to help keep this 150-year-old institution on the newsstands, or at least online, for many more years.

Now, any support will do – from paying the dollar to read the physical product to waiting for the issue to arrive through the mail (another nightmare?) with a subscription.

My wife and I like to dine at local restaurants once a week and, despite the prices of the meals and drinks, we spend $100 or more each time. Taking that into perspective, I think if I needed to help keep my hometown newspaper alive, I would certainly skip a weekly night out. Would you?

There are many ways readers can assist the newspaper: You can go online and click on our “Support the Boothbay Register” and become an online supporter (a One-Time, Monthly, Annual or outright donation), or join our historical project of saving the 150 years of the newspaper through digitization, “Your History, Your Story.”

For more information or for  assistance, email membership@maineokent.com or call 207-633-4620.

Spare me another scary night of trying to get to sleep and support our ongoing news coverage today.