Working Waterfront

Moons, little islands, big names and tragedy

In the Great Green Room The Brilliant and Bold Life of Margaret Wise Brown By Amy Gary New York: Flatiron Books, 2017 Different things draw us into writing projects. Sometimes it’s a great story or a narrative that instructs or informs in some unique or unusual way. Sometimes it’s a… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Confronting a simple truth, a word at a time

I’ve been struggling with a simple truth visited on me recently, something that came much sooner than anticipated. It’s been suggested that writing about it might help me cope. I’ll try it one word at a time. The first word is “I’m,” short for “I am,” and “I am” is,… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Vinalhaven college student served in French refugee camp

Resettling refugees is one of the biggest hot-button issues of our time. Here and in other countries, many fear an influx of refugees, citing heightened risk of terrorism and overpopulation. Vinalhaven's Izza Drury, 22, sees the issue differently. After taking a Brown University class on capitalism, colonialism, and the systems… SEE MORE

Chris Rich with his rebuilt boat engine.

Working Waterfront

The engine and the iPhone

When Beverly Johnson and David Hill founded Chebeague.net, Chebeague Island’s internet provider, their primary goal was to provide islanders with a faster alternative to dial up. Little did they know it would become an important tool for lobstermen. Lobstermen use the internet to call home, receive lobster orders, check the… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Chebeague voters consider solar array for town use

Short of slashing municipal services, a plan to reduce property taxes is often just a politician’s hollow promise. But what about doing so by cutting a substantial expense the town faces, year after year? Chebeague Island residents will vote on a plan that aims to achieve just that at their… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Nothing simple about four walls and a roof

The 35-year-old recovering alcoholic living in his car as he gets his life back together and the $4 million, seasonally occupied house blocking views of the water illustrate just part of the range of Maine’s housing issues. But however broad and complex, we would do well to understand these matters,… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

The art of serving your community

The first time I visited Ashley Bryan’s home on Little Cranberry Island, also known as Islesford, I knew I’d met an extraordinarily special person. I still feel that way every time Ashley and I meet. When asked to describe it at the time, I said it was like walking into… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

The ticks don’t care

In the 1980s and 1990s when I was teaching at Unity College, the outdoor recreation professors drilled a memorable sentence into every generation of student: “The woods don’t care.” It meant that along with being remarkably beautiful, the forest is remarkably dangerous. The oaks and cathedral-like firs do no more… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Weather, The Great War and a homeward bound schooner

Let’s start with the weather. It’s April, that often cruelest of months, as this is being written. In Maine, April is a flirt, flashing a warm, beckoning smile one day, and spitting snow the next. This winter followed the pattern of last year’s, easier on the snow and cold—though in… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Islands on the mind and a beer in hand

Maine and the country have seen amazing growth in the craft brewing business. This evolution began over 25 years ago, and there are now over 80 breweries in Maine. People appreciate a better tasting product and are willing to seek it out. The brewing community is a passionate group that sees… SEE MORE