Talk

Lyme Time

Reminder: Ticks do not die in winter

I’m just going to say it — ticks are still active. They do not die off in the winter. They hibernate until temperatures warm up and then they resume seeking out their blood meals. As winter...
A Bird’s Tale

Turning the Audubon Page at Bowdoin College

Last week we had the delight and honor of being part of a wonderful event at the Hawthorne-Longfellow Library at Bowdoin College. That event is the monthly Turning of the Page of the library’s copy (...
Live, laugh and love!

Cuties dipped in chocolate

It was a busy weekend in the Harbor with all of the festivities, including Santa and Mrs. Claus coming by boat at the Whale Park. It’s always so much fun. I saw families having horse rides to the...
’Round Town

Ginger and the Bear

It has been a while since I ventured over town to take in the seasonal festivities and the arrival of The Claus Family boat. Figured it might be time to uplift my spirits before going to bed at 5:30...
From the editor

Cheers and a suggestion

Cheers to everyone involved in spreading cheer before the holidays in the Boothbay and Wiscasset regions. The events over the past weekend brought out residents and visitors to the towns to celebrate...
From the assistant editor

Can’t stop singing ‘Last Christmas’!

You know the one, the 1984 Wham! song that’s had one remake after another, none as good, but still such a catchy tune and lyrics. Area radio stations are filling up with holiday music and I am drawn...
Where It’s At

Yule: The winter solstice

The scent from the small pine tree is filling the air while being adorned with tiny white lights, sprigs of holly, pine cones, and deer, owl and bird ornaments, topped with a small pentacle sun or...
Joe’s Journal

Holiday thoughts

Let's turn off our TV sets and let the impeachment smackdown simmer for a minute, and take a pretend journey back in time to the early 1960s. It was a time when our AM radios (no FM, no earbuds, no...
letter to the editor

Carbon neutral?

Dear Editor: Maine has neither a large population nor many industries that release large amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Maine does have 12 million acres of forest that remove carbon...
letter to the editor

Joyous event

Dear Editor: Hats off to the Westport Community Association for a splendid holiday event in our old church. The decorations and ambiance take one back to an era of taste and simplicity. The choir...
Lyme Time

O Christmas Tree (please) Be Tick-Free

It’s the question on everyone’s minds this holiday season: Should I cut down a real Christmas tree or buy a fake one? Freshly cut evergreen trees are beautiful and make your home smell amazing,...
From the editor

Mr. Winter Hater

Oh, the weather outside is frightful … You know me, Mr. Winter Hater! As I type away, we’re having our first big snowstorm of the season. Every year, I try to not get discouraged with...
From the assistant editor

Holiday hustle

We all get busy this time of year, whether it’s busy having fun here and there, or, if you work for the paper, running around covering the fun, which can also be fun. Sprinkle with early press dates...
Bananaquits and Troupials Await on Aruba, Bonaire, and Curaçao

As we gaze out on a newly white landscape coated with the snow from our first significant winter storm of the season (and incredibly beautiful it is!), we find our minds wandering back to a short,...
Joe’s Journal

A Christmas hint

Dear friends, If you are scouring your brain trying to think of what to give me for Christmas, forget about it. I don’t need anything, and I don’t want anything. I have too much stuff. My sock...
Live, laugh and love!

Homemade turkey pie

First off, I’m so happy Mr. Deetjen, one of my favorite schoolteachers, reads my column. He wasn’t shy about telling me that I forgot to tell you guys how long to cook last week’s Rangers cookie...
letter to the editor

A different Constitution

Dear Editor: How does this Constitution sound? In lengthy and exacting detail it provides every right you could possibly hope for. It promises the “inviolability of the person” and the “privacy of...
’Round Town

Paul and Bobby

Despite their competitive employers, Paul and Bobby are good friends, and I caught up with them during a lunch break recently at Capers, downtown Boothbay Harbor. Breaking news! I learned that Bobby...
Pemaquid Chapter, DAR draws attention to state-wide support of Maine veterans at monthly meeting

On Nov. 19, Regent Audrey Miller called the monthly chapter meeting to order at 11:08 a.m. at the Lincoln Home Library in Newcastle welcoming eight members, one associate member and nine guests. The...
LYME TIME

In All Things, Give Thanks

Holidays can be a difficult time for some people because seeing what others have is a remind of what they have lost. Last week, I was in Sturbridge, MA at a Lyme conference and one of the speakers is...
Collecting signatures for petition

Dear Editor: We were able to get the questions on the ballot in Woolwich, and won the vote. Now we are faced with a new issue. The letter that is proposed to be submitted in opposition to the...
Ranger cookies ... gooey and delish

Hope lots of people put a dent in their Christmas shopping last Saturday … I saw so many friends that I hadn’t seen in a long time it was nice to catch up with every one of you. Thanksgiving, I’m...
From the assistant editor

More fun with lights: The dark side

Nothing ruins a good photo like bad lighting. I’m not saying Wiscasset and its neighbors or all of Lincoln County are full of bad indoor lighting for picture-taking. Some of our best pictures happen...
Remember Burnt Island Giving Tuesday

Dear Editor: Giving Tuesday, a global day of giving, takes place the Tuesday after Thanksgiving. This day kicks off the charitable season and encourages people to focus on holiday and end-of-year...
Lincoln County Republicans

The Lincoln County Republican Committee held its monthly meeting on Nov. 20 at the Newcastle Fire Station. The meeting was very well attended, with many familiar faces and a number of new faces. This...
Walk

For as long as we have lived here in Maine I have visited the small loop back road that circles beyond Hendricks Head beach along the Sheepscot River salt marsh connecting to Dogfish Head Road...
From the editor

Take the time to get outside

This week I read the following on the Environmental Protection Agency's website which makes me want to change my habits: "Americans, on average, spend approximately 90 percent of their time indoors...
Searching for George Ord’s ‘Philadelphia Tern’ (AKA Bonaparte’s Gull)

Turkeys may be the bird on the minds of most people during Thanksgiving week, but we find ourselves instead considering a small, dainty gull (imagine calling any gull “dainty”!) that can be found...
A Bird’s Tale

Tales of Maine’s Favorite Birds

Just recently we saw a social media post from a New York City birder who showed a photo of a black-capped chickadee and commented that it was the first one of the season at the Central Park compost...
Where It’s At

Holiday theater and concerts

Just hear those sleigh bells ring-a-ling, ting-ting-tingling too ... Well, maybe not just yet, but Thanksgiving is just one week away and then, before you can say Old St. Nick, it’s Black Friday, the...
’Round Town

November

I’m a little embarrassed to share this week’s adventure. It wasn’t a location I came upon in my usual haphazard way. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not too self conscious, but there is more to this image...
From the editor

Time for my staycation

A staycation, a stay-at-home vacation — it's that time again for me. The third or fourth week of November is a good time for me to take a break from work. It is between local high school sports...
From the assistant editor

Lights downtown and all through our towns

The new traffic lights will take getting used to, like the ones at Routes 1 and 27 have. But those are old hat now and the ones near the bridge eventually will be, too. Patience with the state and...
Joe’s Journal

Dick Lugar: A grown-up

As our nation watched the bloody political cage match between the Republicans and Democrats last week, many of us were turned off by the partisan invective, snarky quips and just plain hate that...
Live, laugh and love!

One-pan turkey stuffing

Busy, busy, busy week. I want to thank the downtown businesses; they look beautiful. We are fortunate to live on the best little peninsula. I want to make sure people from away look online to find...
Lyme Time

After the Fire

When talking to people about tick-borne disease, I find myself using analogies, making comparisons to things that make it easier to understand. Like when I get asked why some people get better after...
letter to the editor

Due process

Dear Editor: If even the president of the United States is not allowed to confront his accusers and not afforded due process in accordance with the Constitution, do we, as ordinary citizens, have...
A personal view

A salute to Maine’s public lands

Back in early spring, when we were still coming out of the stark weather we’re now entering again, two things came into my life that didn’t seem, at a glance, to amount to a confluence:1. Our little...