Arlene Cole points to the platforms she uses to measure snowfall.

Working Waterfront

How’s the weather? Arlene Cole will tell you

[caption id="attachment_36880" align="alignnone" width="600"] Arlene Cole has been recording data for the National Weather Service for 58 years.[/caption] Ask Arlene Cole what the weather was on May 13, 1965, and she’ll tell you the high was 62, the low was 43, and 0.19 inches of intermittent rain fell at her… SEE MORE

Maine Seacoast Mission’s Sunbeam docked in Northeast Harbor with the Planet Pan steel drum band.

Working Waterfront

Sunbeam heads south

[caption id="attachment_36825" align="alignright" width="600"] Maine Seacoast Mission’s Sunbeam anchored in Cape Split Harbor.[/caption] At the end of July, Maine Seacoast Mission’s flagship vessel, the 74-foot Sunbeam, will host two open houses in the Falmouth-Portland and Boothbay Harbor regions. Both events are open to the public. Visitors can tour the boat… SEE MORE

Umpire Pete Rand poses on the Maine coast. PHOTO: SOPHIE PAYSON-RAND

Working Waterfront

The summer game, as played offshore

When my son was 8, he asked me to stop coaching him in baseball. I didn’t ask him why. Instead, I swallowed my pride and simply informed the head coach of his minor league team that I could no longer help out. The coach took it well. In fact, in… SEE MORE

A rendering of the apartment building planned for Peaks Island.

Working Waterfront

Portland to sell building to island group

An affordable housing advocacy group has unveiled renderings of a building with three apartments that it plans to have constructed and occupied by next June on Peaks Island. Home Start, a nonprofit dedicated to expanding the pool of affordable housing on Peaks, has entered into a purchase-and-sales agreement with the… SEE MORE

From left, Allison, Ben, and Beverly Edwards, who own and operate Schoppee Farm.

Working Waterfront

Machias is on the move

[caption id="attachment_36197" align="alignright" width="560"] Bill Kitchen, Machias town manager.[/caption] If you ask Bill Kitchen what’s going well in Machias, you’ll need to sit back because you’ll be listening for a while. Kitchen is a passionate booster for the shire town of Washington County. In fact, five years ago, during his… SEE MORE

Stephen Etnier’s “Inside Haskell’s” (1969), oil on canvas.

Working Waterfront

Stephen and David Etnier: A legacy of place

In his autobiography Overworked Guardian Angel, published posthumously in 2009, the painter Stephen Etnier (1903-1984) paid homage to the stretch of the Maine coast around South Harpswell where he lived and which he haunted for a good part of his life. This “series of coves and inlets with fingers of… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

‘Here we go!’ time

In mid-March, the early afternoon sun was streaming through my kitchen window as I caught up with my friend Mary over a cup of tea. The warmth was appreciated but the angle of the sun meant “cozy time” would soon come to an end. “I’m not ready for winter to… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

The care that backs up caretaking

My husband Bill went off-island to visit family during Vinalhaven’s two-week March break, so naturally Penrose and I both got sick. Pen came down with it first, an upper-respiratory crud that had made the rounds through the high school before filtering down to the younger kids. She spent a delightful… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Vinalhaven’s volunteer of the year

[caption id="attachment_36116" align="alignnone" width="500"] Peter Richards, center, works with (from left) students Bryson Lane, Maevis Bryant, Faith McCarthy, and Noah Hufsey.[/caption] PHOTOS BY SHERI ROMER Peter Richards, a retired teacher from Georgia who has been living on Vinalhaven the last several years, was named by the Maine Principals Association as… SEE MORE

Laura Doran and David McDougal, seen here with daughter Marigold, are the new owners of North Haven Grocery and Inn. PHOTO: WILLIAM TREVASKIS

Working Waterfront

The island grocery’s essential role

Buying groceries is always on the minds of islanders. Mainland trips often end with a carload of fresh fruits and vegetables and specialty items. Planning meals ahead becomes paramount. And the island store can be both a lifeline and source of anxiety. The “For Sale” sign at North Haven Grocery… SEE MORE