At this time last year Mainers were in the middle of a 15-day lockdown that Gov. Janet Mills had ordered to flatten the coronavirus infection curve in hopes of preventing hospitals from being overwhelmed. It’s more than ridiculous, and somewhat Orwellian, that in March 2021 we are still in an emergency state. A recently filed […]
Lakes Region Weekly opinion
Posted inAmerican Journal, Forecaster Opinion, Lakes Region Weekly
Mainewhile: Giving back for the greater good
As we round the one-year anniversary of the global pandemic and the subsequent lockdown, there is no shortage of news programs recording individual markers of the year. One thing I wish to hear more about is how we can use what we’ve learned to shape a better collective future. Part of that, for me, has […]
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Posted inAmerican Journal, Forecaster Opinion, Lakes Region Weekly
Life Unwound: How sweet it is
As I write, I wear a bangle with three intertwined strands that my father’s mother gave me in 1967. They jangle on my wrist and remind me of Memere. What a honey she was, a real sweetie. I visited Memere often. Memere made candy. I’d break off edges of fudge and savor them, big ones, […]
Posted inAmerican Journal, Forecaster Opinion, Lakes Region Weekly
Through My Lens: Heal trauma from Black deaths with community support
This is the one-year anniversary of Breonna Taylor’s death, and soon it will be George Floyd’s one-year anniversary. The traumas American Blacks experienced from the 2020 events continue to ripple through Black houses this year. Young Black girls and women see Taylor in the mirror every day, and the Black men, including myself, see Floyd, […]
Posted inAmerican Journal, Forecaster Opinion, Lakes Region Weekly
Mainewhile: The end may be near for daylight saving time
“Beware the Ides of March” warned the soothsayer in Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar. For ancient Romans, the Ides (the 15th on the calendar) was bad luck because it was the day for paying off debts. For Caesar, it was a reckoning of another sort: he was assassinated. Changing up the clocks might not exactly equal Caesar’s […]
Posted inAmerican Journal, Forecaster Opinion, Lakes Region Weekly
Mainewhile: Exploring the joy of reading exceptional books
My big sisters took my education very seriously. They made sure I could identify every single Beatles song, taught me the proper way to talk mom and dad into keeping a stray pet, and kept my shelves full of really good books. I was a fortunate child. What’s more, although I certainly had the staples […]
Posted inAmerican Journal, Forecaster Opinion, Lakes Region Weekly
Here’s Something: ‘Oh dear,’ cancel culture is a shame
We’ve seen financial bubbles in the stock market, housing market and bitcoin, but until recently we’ve never seen a bubble when it comes to classic children’s books. That all changed last week when six books written by the late, great Theodor Seuss Geisel – aka. Dr. Seuss – were targeted by his own publishing company, […]
Posted inLakes Region Weekly
Letter: Limbaugh was hate-monger, Balentine’s in different universe
Regarding John Balentine’s column titled “Be Like Rush, a Happy Warrior” (Lakes Region Weekly, Feb. 26), I can only find agreement with Mr. Balentine’s statement that the late talk radio host Rush Limbaugh “never shrank from criticism or from speaking his exact mind.” Reading this column made me feel that Mr. Balentine and I exist in […]
Posted inForecaster Opinion
Through My Lens: Immigrants need more access to winter sports
Winter is so much fun in Maine. That is, only if you enjoy Maine winter sports. But these sports are not shared by Maine’s newest citizens or to-be citizens. It is an expensive sports season. If you’ve ever visited Portland’s Back Cove on summer afternoons, you may remember the crowd of diverse communities playing soccer […]
Posted inAmerican Journal, Forecaster Opinion, Lakes Region Weekly
Mainewhile: Be the change you want to see
Full disclaimer: I am not Danish. Not even a little bit. In fact, if the genetic profile company is to be believed, the closest I get is a small bit of Dutch on my mother’s side. (In all honesty, the coolest thing from that profile is that I am also a higher-than-average percentage of Neanderthal! […]