West Tisbury: Signs of autumn, Council on Aging, Falls Prevention Month, and Fossil Day
The wind has been blowing all day. I can feel it at my back as I sit on my sofa, writing, with the windows open behind me, watching branches whip back and forth. Mike...
West Tisbury: Old town dump, ‘Becoming Gandhi,’ Human Recovery Library, and Paul Doherty
It feels like we are back in time to July, and summer’s hot, humid days and nights. What a miserable week this has been. This week’s weather is expected to be more of the...
West Tisbury: Beloved cat, Climate Book Club, lobster picnic, and emergency preparedness
I have already noticed the light changing. The sky starts to quiet by 6 and, if Mike gets home closer to 7, I will have turned on the lights for him. Trying to read...
West Tisbury: Cherry tree, ‘Nancy’ cartoon, autism book, rock painting, and bubble party
Longtime readers of this column may recall references to the ‘Hally Jolivette’ cherry tree that has bloomed in my yard for many years. I have described its petals as delicate, the palest pink that...
West Tisbury: Giant squash, Community Preservation, author talk, and documentary
It was mostly perfect weather for the fair. The first day was overcast, and the fairgrounds were crowded. It did rain on and off on Friday, but the sun shone brightly on Saturday and...
West Tisbury: Nighttime sky, Agricultural Fair, author talks, and Climate Book Club
Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow,
Creeps in this petty pace from day to day,
To the last syllable of recorded time;
And all our yesterdays have lighted fools
The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!
Life’s but...
West Tisbury: From the Athens of the Island
Cooler temperatures this past week have made life truly idyllic in “the Athens of the Island,” as Polly Murphy often referred to West Tisbury. I have had my doors and windows open. It is...
West Tisbury: Books and more books
“Books, books, books!”
That’s how Iyla Bohan rhapsodizes over the piles of books and overfilled book shelves at my house when she visits and we choose a book to read together. I heard her voice...
West Tisbury: Daylilies, Library Book Sale, Davis House, author talks, and cyanobacteria
A lovely afternoon here. It feels a little cooler outside, not a lot, but enough to be noticeable. There is a bit of a breeze, too, and that always helps. As does eating crispy,...
West Tisbury: Fireflies, M.V. Rug Hookers, collage poetry, mushrooms, and Lizzie Stark book
Just as I was ready to complain about our lack of rain, the heavens opened. Thunder and lightning sent Abby pacing, and Mike spent the night running back and forth to alarm calls and...
West Tisbury: Swans and turtles, Human Library, family concert, book talks, and up-Island art
I know there are people who love the summer heat, who happily spend days at the beach baking themselves under a relentless sun. So there must be many who are enjoying the weather of...
West Tisbury: Dionis Riggs book, Ted Mayhew, Turpentine Gallery, and outdoor markets
Happy birthday, Alvida. I am beginning to write my column on June 28, thinking about Alvida Jones. Today would have been her 100th birthday. Sadly, she died in May, and instead I am going...
West Tisbury: Rural life, Arboretum open house, library celebration, and Timeless exhibit
We were sitting on Alley’s porch at coffee time when we saw a man riding a cow. He was wearing a cowboy hat, sitting astride a Western saddle, heading up State Road toward the...
West Tisbury: Howes House art show, local galleries, Archaeology ID Day, and author talk
No complaints about a lack of rain this week. I don’t know how much we had, but it definitely was enough to be spared from watering every day. Gardens are growing and thriving, producing...
West Tisbury: Garden design, Polly Hill Arboretum, Blooming Art, and Featherstone exhibit
It’s been another lovely week, although even here we have been affected by the wildfires burning in Canada. I haven’t noticed anything, but Mike has mentioned smelling smoke, and I have heard it from...
West Tisbury: Farmers Market, Lambert’s Cove Beach, Bloomsday, and being unplugged
The cool days and nights have been lovely. We even had a little rain. Not enough, but something. I’m afraid that the wind just dries everything out in no time. Still, our world is...
West Tisbury: Lullaby video, Tom Thatcher, Music Street concert, and Lyme disease
Cool days and cool nights. Trees are mostly leafed out, leaves already darkening in color, and obscuring the view as they blow across my windows. I’m still writing upstairs in my aerie that reminds...
West Tisbury: Flower garden, shadbush trees, Library of Things, Tom Dresser, and movie group
It’s been another beautiful spring week. Lots of sunshine, then much-needed rain over the weekend. It’s been cool enough that the lilacs are still gorgeous. Remember last year when they bloomed and disappeared in...
West Tisbury: Shirley Mayhew, mother figures, Heather Cox Richardson, and Merry Farm Pottery
I am writing this column for Mother’s Day, having attended the Mayhew family’s memorial celebration for their matriarch, Shirley. It was fun to see the photographs of her life with John, to hear the...
West Tisbury: Spring season, Shirley Mayhew, poetry programs, and Alvida Jones
When Ginny Jones and I spoke the other day, she asked me to be sure to mention what a beautiful spring this has been, that bulbs and flowering trees have been exceptional. There are...