I went off Island Sunday for Mother’s Day, to have lunch with my cousin Sally at Heritage in Falmouth. The boat over was crowded, and the lines for the boat coming home that afternoon were unbelievable. The Steamship Authority parking lot was filled with more people than I ever remember, and it’s only early May.
Complaining to my friend Joanne Scott this morning, she told me her story: Her daughter Tabor called her Saturday morning with a surprise request: “Meet me in Falmouth.” So she did. They spent a lovely day together, an early Mother’s Day outing. When Joanne got to Woods Hole to come home, she told me there were so many people that there was a standby area for walk-on passengers. Neither of us ever remember such a thing. And it’s only early May.
Ann Burt got an early Mother’s Day present — a shiny new green garden cart, so light she can “move it with just a finger.” Her daughter Prudy and son Percy were coming on Sunday for dinner and to help with the gardening chores. I know Ann does a lot herself, and her garden is resplendent with daffodils along the Tiasquam River that crosses the back of her yard, lovely boxwoods, the biggest contorted hazel I have ever seen, which Ann “whacks down” periodically, and the most perfect and productive vegetable garden fenced at the top of the hill.
The shadbush are gorgeous all around town, as are the pear trees at the cemetery and new leaves on maples. Edgartown Road looks particularly pretty with the Garden Club’s new plantings in the Triangle. They have settled in their first year, and extend the daffodil display from Brandy Brow down across the road. With the greening-up of shrubbery along the marsh and the Mill Pond, it is all fresh and beautiful.
Polly Hill Arboretum horticulturist and arborist Ian Jochems is offering a workshop this Saturday, May 16, 10 to noon. It’s called “The Finest Cut: Taking the Fear Out of Pruning.” He will cover different techniques, as well as tool maintenance, with demos and hands-on practice. Participants will take a tour to observe how plants in the arboretum’s collection have responded to their pruning program. Preregistration is required. The cost is $20, or $10 for PHA members.
Habitat for Humanity is having a sale of construction materials on Saturday from 8 am to 2 pm behind Carroll’s Trucking at 475 Edgartown Road. You may find just the right thing to finish your project. New and antique hardware, windows, cabinets, toilets, and tools will all be for sale. If you have materials to donate, or would like to volunteer to help out, call 508-696-4646, or email houses@habitatmv.org.
You can also get rid of stuff, farther down Edgartown Road, at Martha’s Vineyard Community Services Spring Electronics Disposal Day. For fees from $2 to $30 (10 percent discount for a full carload), bring your old air conditioners, cell phones, computers, etc. between 9 am and 2 pm, and help support Community Services.
For fun, the Vineyard Montessori School second annual Flyin’ MV and Fly Me to the Moon is also this Saturday. Come to Katama Airport between 11 am and 2 pm for a flight around the Island. Then grownups are invited to an evening event at the Dunes from 7 to 10. Call Head of School Deborah Jernegan, 508-693-4090, for more information.
Then there’s the 2015 Bird-a-Thon to raise money for Felix Neck Wildlife Sanctuary. They are looking for birders and sponsors for their two-day event, which starts at 6 pm on Friday, May 15, and runs through 6 pm on Saturday. Call Felix Neck at 508-627-4850 or visit massaudubon.org/birdathon to sign up to count or make a pledge.
Mary Wilson and Pitter Patter Puppets will perform at the West Tisbury library Saturday morning at 10:30 for 2- to 7-year-olds. It’s free. Afterward, from noon to 2 o’clock, Mary will lead a puppetry workshop for adults.
Paula Martin will be at the library at 3 pm, to talk about “Spring Cleaning and Organizing.”
The YMCA is the place for the 2015 After Prom Party for juniors and their dates this Saturday night. From 10 pm to 5 am, enjoy music with a DJ at poolside, good food, games, etc. For information, call Rachel Araujo, 774-310-0027, or Debbie DeBettencourt, 774-836-6448.
This Sunday, May 17, will be the last Sunday the library is open. Sunday hours will resume in mid-October.
West Tisbury painter and printmaker Marie-Louise Rouff will open her new studio/gallery this Saturday, May 16, between noon and 4 pm. You will see her sign on State Road across from Ghost Island Farm. Turn in, and you will see the gallery entrance on the right. The gallery will be open Saturdays and Sundays, noon to 4, and by appointment through the summer. Marie-Louise’s phone number is 508-693-2072, and her website is mlrouff.com.
Clare Boland, sophomore at Cornell University, was awarded the Corson-Browning Poetry Prize by the Department of English. The prize includes an award of $1,000. Clare is an English and Performance & Media Studies major. Her parents, Tim Boland and Laura Coit, are very proud.
I end with the sad news that Bob Henry died on Saturday at his home in Bethesda, Md. Bob was a well-known summer visitor, especially with the bridge players, golfers, and beachgoers he regularly spent his time with. Dinner parties with Bob and his wife, Dorothy Barthelmes, were special occasions, made extra-special by the host and hostess, with good conversation and good food. We who loved Bob had hoped he would have one more summer in the Slocum House.
