When I meet someone new to Maine, my advice is always the same: Embrace the winters! This winter, that mantra is all the more important since – thanks to the worldwide pandemic – some of us have already spent the spring and summer more isolated than usual. And as the effects of COVID cabin fever […]
Forecaster opinion
Posted inForecaster Opinion
Over Easy: War and peace
I first laid eyes on Bhikkhu Danassaro, or Bhikkhu Dan as he called himself, when he showed up at one of our fortnightly Buddhist Meditation for Westerners classes. Classes took place on Monday evenings in a small room in Bangkok’s notable temple, Wat Bowonniwet, led by a small American woman dressed only in a white […]
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Posted inAmerican Journal, Forecaster Opinion, Lakes Region Weekly
Mainewhile: Secretary of State Matt Dunlap leaves big shoes to fill
Maine is about to get a new secretary of state. This is a big deal. Secretaries of state matter. If you’ve been watching the national news, you’ve probably gained a new appreciation for the job. Brad Raffensperger, the Republican Secretary of State in Georgia, has been rather heroically holding the line on truth down there, […]
Posted inAmerican Journal, Forecaster Opinion, Lakes Region Weekly
Life Unwound: How we start the day matters
“Once upon a time, when women were birds, there was the simple understanding that to sing at dawn and to sing at dusk was to heal the world through joy. The birds still remember what we have forgotten, that the world is meant to be celebrated.” – Terry Tempest Williams When I read this, I […]
Posted inAmerican Journal, Forecaster Opinion, Lakes Region Weekly
Here’s Something: ’Tis the season for Maine status symbols
Don’t know what to get your difficult-to-buy-for loved ones this Christmas season? Why not a gift that will help elevate their social status within the Pine Tree State? Every culture down through the ages has had status symbols. Everything from tanned skin to powdery white skin, a fat belly to a Twiggy-thin waist, a castle […]
Posted inAmerican Journal, Lakes Region Weekly, The Forecaster
Mainewhile: Out of the mouths of babes
If this was a “normal” year, this week I would be surrounded by a wild, tangled clutter of colored strips of paper. On each one would be a “gratitude” written by a student, often in a near-unintelligible scrawl. I would be grabbing the glue stick and, with a practiced rhythm, swipe the glue across one […]
Posted inAmerican Journal, Forecaster Opinion, Lakes Region Weekly
Guest Column: An immigrant and Thanksgiving
How often do you hear about Eid, or Ramadan? Probably not that many times, unless you are reading about it or have a neighbor who celebrates them. In the six years I have been in the U.S. I can barely remember going through the week without hearing the word Christmas or Easter; they are on […]
Posted inForecaster Opinion
Over Easy: Giving thanks for Thanksgiving
“Thanksgiving: Where Hunger Goes to Die” is upon us. It’s been almost a full year since the first cases of COVID-19 were reported in China and the situation is horrendous. We’ve spent almost a year in lockdown, trying to remember our face masks, our gloves and not to give or receive hugs, while staring out […]
Posted inAmerican Journal, Forecaster Opinion, Lakes Region Weekly
Mainewhile: Sacrifice now to celebrate the future
We’re doing Thanksgiving a little differently in my family this year. Well, OK, a lot differently actually. Like you (I hope), we are staying apart in order to be able to be together once this virus is under control. Ethical qualms about the origins of the holiday aside, I love Thanksgiving. Love it. I know […]
Posted inAmerican Journal, Forecaster Opinion, Lakes Region Weekly
Here’s Something: Don’t lock ME down
There’s been a lot of talk of renewed lockdowns as coronavirus cases rise here in Maine and around the nation. For all our sakes, let’s hope it’s just mere talk. Joe Biden’s prediction of a “dark winter” during the final presidential debate was one of the bleakest things the Democrat said during the never-ending campaign. […]