9th
July/August 2013 •2013 Volume 9 • Number 4 September /October • Volume 9 • Number 5
LOOKING tO staY YOUNG sIGNs
Of aGING aUtUmN
GardeNs ceLL phONe
savINGs
pLUs...
News, vIews, & fUN
As the U.S. population ages, our housing needs also change. There are many alternatives in the market place such as condominiums, assisted living, etc. The multi-generational home is one of those alternatives where a mother and father can live under the same roof with children and grandchildren. The home presented here allows three generations to live together, but also independently, helping each other as needed and providing a positive attitude for all generations without traveling miles to help a loved one or child for a short period of time. We designed this house for two available lots in Dartmouth, MA owned by R.P. Valois & Company. This concept is permitted in Dartmouth up to 850 s.f. In other towns there are varying zoning by-laws. There are many iterations of this concept. Call us if you have a lot and wish to explore the possibilities.
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T O A DV E R T I SE I N S OU T H C OA S T PR I M E T I M E S C A L L 50 8 - 677-30 0 0
september/october 2013
contents 16
11
22 6 I n e very issue
5
From the publisher
32 Extra! Extra! Local news and views By Elizabeth Morse Read
12 P rime se ason
6
How does your garden grow? Preparing for autumn By Elizabeth Morse Read
12
From dream to reality: Tiverton’s Four Corners By Jay Pateakos
22 A Renaissance woman 16 Cutting your
By Mel Yoken
28 Retire, renew, recycle, revive By Michael J. Vieira
The South Coast Prime Times welcomes letters to the editor on any subject. Please keep your letters brief and to the point. No name-calling or libelous attacks will be published, and we ask that all letters be signed. Writers who wish to remain anonymous will have their names withheld on request. Send your letters to The Editor, South Coast Prime Times, PO Box 3493, Fall River MA 02722 or send us an email at editor@coastalmags.com.
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P rime living
S ou th C oast P r ime T imes
S ep tember /O c tober 2013
cellphone bill By Dan Logan
18 You know you’re
aging when… By Elizabeth Morse Read
G ood times
10 Back to school
–for fun By Joyce Rowley
11 Sharing a love
of music By Patrice Hagan
26 The virtue of idleness
By Paul Letendre
40 Muddling along,
with love By Paul Kandarian
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From The Publisher September/October 2013 n Vol. 9 n No. 5 Published by
Coastal Communications Corp. Publisher and Editor-in-Chief
Thank you for choosing to read this latest issue of
Ljiljana Vasiljevic
“Prime Times,” the only magazine dedicated to
Editor
the South Coast and those of us living here who
Greg Jones
are in our “prime years,” retired or nearly so and
Contributors
ready to reap the rewards.
Patrice Hagan, Paul Kandarian, Paul Letendre, Dan Logan, Jay Pateakos, Elizabeth Morse Read, Joyce Rowley, Michael J. Vieira and Mel Yoken
August is like that; it is the month when we reap the rewards of summer, with fresh fruits and vegetables in abundance, warm weather and the easy summer lifestyle. For an active life, keep an active mind. The folks at Second Half Lifelong
South Coast Prime Times is published bi-monthly.
Learning Institute in Fall River, one of the few schools for adults, have classes that revolve around the arts. Or maybe you want something
Copyright ©2013
more practical . . . stop by the Greater New Bedford Regional Vocational
Coastal Communications Corp. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be
Technical School to sign up for courses that range from lawn mower
reproduced, by any means, without written permission
repair to quilting. Joyce Rowley has the scoop on things educational
from the Publisher. All information contained herein is
starting on page 10.
believed to be reliable. Coastal Communications Corp. does not assume any financial responsibility for typographical errors in advertisements, but will reprint that portion of an advertisement in which the typographical error occurs.
A second career is the chance to finally do what you want to do. Michael J. Vieira talks with Annie and Frank Prescott who are doing just that with Annie’s Artifax, their high-end consignment shop in Somerset that doubles as custom jewelry atelier. The story starts on page 28.
Next issue
And, as always, we have the region’s most complete listing of things to
October 16, 2013
do, spiced with bits of news that didn’t make it to the front page of the
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prime season
Fall
gardening:
to everything there is a season Fall: it’s not just for raking leaves anymore! The season may not begin officially until September 21, but once the kids go back to school and the summer people are gone, it’s time to start your fall gardening chores. Out of habit, we think of spring as the time to
plant anything outside, fast-growing annuals Eliz abeth Morse Read and vegetables, especially. But if you’re think-
ing long-term, like trees and perennial flowers and fruit-/flower-bearing bushes, fall is the best time for outside planting. Here’s a helpful checklist of chores and projects you need to tend to in the coming weeks.
Plant a final batch of vegetables If you start right away, you can plant a last batch of fast-growing vegetables. Find out when your area’s first frost is predicted, subtract two weeks and work backwards from there to find your planting time. You can have a bumper crop of salad greens in less than 45 days. For instance, if your first frost date is November 15,
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go back two weeks to November 1. If the seed packet says it take 40 days from planting to harvest, then count back another 40 days from November 1. Your last best planting date is around September 20. Many of your summer-planted vegetables will continue to grow long into the cold months–kale, cabbage, broccoli and many root vegetables. But if you want to squeeze more produce from your garden before winter, pull out any no-longer-producing plants, add some of the compost you started last year to the soil, and plant your new seeds. You need to plant them a little deeper than you would in spring; the shorter days, increased precipitation and lower temperatures of the season make for different growing requirements in the fall than what’s printed on the (spring) seed packet.
Fast-growing vegetables include spinach, arugula, lettuce, cauliflower, mustard greens, turnips and radishes. If you plant carrots, beets or turnips, plan on harvesting them just before the first frost when they’re very small and very tender. And try super-fast growers like the Asian greens tatsoi or mizuna: they’re ready for stir-fry and soups just three weeks after sowing!
Get your equipment ready for winter It’s also the time of year to give your gardening equipment and tools an overhaul. If you haven’t used it or can’t afford to maintain it, get rid of it. If it’s electrical, gas-powered or needs professional sharpening, find a good place to have it cleaned, sharpened and/or tuned up and ready for winter storage; don’t just put it all off until spring. It’s well worth the cost to keep your gardening equipment well-maintained. To find a professional, ask around at local gas stations, landscaping companies or nurseries. For the less-complicated equipment that you can sharpen yourself, clean and then rub with old motor oil all of your trowels, shovels and hedge-clippers, and put them each in a plastic bag along with a few charcoal briquets to prevent rusting. Drain and coil all your hoses and store them where they won’t freeze, and turn off the inside valves for all your outdoor spigots. (And make sure you clear out your roof gutters and downspouts of leaves before the cold weather, too.)
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Plantings for fall color To extend your flower garden’s color for as long as possible, consider ornamental cabbages and hardy mums. The cabbages are cold-loving plants and come in a riot of colorful varieties. Because they grow wider than they grow tall, they’re great for filling in bare spots or on sloping ground.
To extend your flower garden’s color for as long as possible, consider ornamental cabbages and hardy mums Mums, too, come in many colors, but don’t plant the potted grocery-store “florist” mums you’d put on your porch–you want the hardy, perennial mums from a reputable nursery. Chrysanthemums are “photoperiodic,”i.e., they bloom in response to the shorter days and longer nights of fall, so don’t plant them near street lamps or bright outside lighting. They don’t like to be crowded, either, so divide them every three years to keep them healthy and happy. As with all fall perennials, they must be planted two months before the first frost date in order for them to establish healthy roots before winter. Ornamental grasses and ivies can also liven up a fading fall garden. And don’t forget the traditional fall perennials like aster,
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Continued on next page S ou th C oast P r ime T imes
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Continued from previous page coneflowers, black-eyed Susan, phlox and Russian sage. And if you’ve got dying annuals in your porch containers and hanging pots, throw them in the compost pile and start a “cool-weather” display with those florist mums.
Plant a tree or two Early spring may be the best time of year to plant a sapling, but fall is fine, too–and a lot cheaper because nurseries and gardening stores are selling off their stock to make room for pumpkins, mums and Christmas trees. Once you’ve chosen where you want to plant your saplings, dig the holes right away: you don’t want to try doing this after a frost. Plant the saplings as early as possible, keep them watered and give them a good layer of mulch to protect them over the winter. Think of fall as the “goldilocks” season for planting trees and shrubs–not too hot, not too dry–just right for healthy root growth. All plants grow more roots in fall than at any other time of year. Deciduous (leaf-shedding) trees like Japanese maple are best planted when they are in dormancy (when their leaves have fallen off and before they bud in spring). Coniferous (evergreen) trees like pine can be planted at any time except in hot, dry summer months.
get raked up with the leaves. Look for some straw or add a layer of the compost you started last year. Think of shredded leaf mulch as the “raw” version of compost. Compost is what you get when you mix nutrient-rich materials from your kitchen (vegetable scraps, eggshells, coffee grounds, etc.), and carbon-rich shredded newspapers (or paper towel rolls or coffee filters, etc.) with rotting leaves and then you let them “cook” for a while outside. It’s very easy to create your own compost pile and there are many books and websites that can teach you how. If prepared carefully, your homemade compost can provide you with 100 percent organic (and free!) fertilizer for your vegetable gardens, lawns and flower beds. Don’t waste your money on toxic chemical gardening products.
Get a head start on your spring
garden If you want to awaken in spring to walkways lined with tulips, allium, anemones and irises or artful clusters of daffodils, hyacinths and crocus, you need to plant the bulbs before the first frost. Dig a shallow trench, rather than individual holes, for the bulbs–your back and knees will thank you. Bulbs for some lilies, too, are best planted in the fall, even though they won’t blossom until summer. Bulbs need to “harden” over a winter, in order to establish themselves and take root. And, because they’re perennial plants, you only have to plant them once! It’s time to divide and conquer! In addition to pulling out non-performing or dying plants and planting new bulbs for spring, fall is the best time for many mature perennials to be carefully divided to create multiple new plantings (Iris and peonies should be split by late August.). Not only does this prevent unhealthy overcrowding in your gardens, but it gives you new plants for no cost! Fall is also the best time to split and transplant fast-spreading perennials like hosta, fern and daylily. Spread the wealth and trade your splittings with friends!
Fall is when
you do a judicious pruning and thinning of your deciduous (woody) trees, bushes and vining Time to clean up, plants - Early bloomers compost and mulch The above doesn’t sound very like lilac and sexy, I’ll admit. But if you skip this step in your fall gardening, you may as well skip all the other forsythia steps, too. How you schedule it along with all the other fall gardening chores are is up to you, but cleaning, composting and mulching is a must-do before the deep freeze rolls best in. Much of what you clean up will become your compost for next year and instant mulch for the winter garden beds, which will save you a lot of money. left It’s not a good idea to let soggy fallen leaves cover your lawn for more than three or four days; they’ll smother alone and wreak havoc on the grass. If you’re trying to sprout a new lawn, get those leaves up ASAP! A leaf-blower is probably a better tool in that situation. until Run your lawn mower over dry leaves a few times to shred them into leaf mulch: use the bag late spring attachment on your mower to collect it. If your lawnmower doesn’t have a bag, just stuff the raked leaves into a garbage can and stick in a weed whacker, like using a blender. Decomposing leaves tend to be acidic, but that’s exactly what blueberry bushes, roses, azaleas and rhododendrons love. Three to four inches of leaf mulch is the perfect winter “insulation” for new or transplanted flowers, shrubs or trees. It creates a protective frost barrier for the fragile young roots below. It’s not a good winter mulch for vegetable gardens, though, because so many weed seeds
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Take care of shrubs and bushes
You don’t want to go all kamikaze and cut down everything in your path, okay? Learn about the characteristics and needs of the flowering bushes and evergreen shrubs on your property. You obviously don’t want to be trimming your azalea bushes in springtime, when they’re covered with green shoots and flower buds. Fall is when you do a judicious pruning and thinning of your deciduous (woody) trees, bushes and vining plants (climb-
ing hydrangea, wisteria, etc.). If you’ve got a wild rose patch that’s run amok or a “burning bush” that’s taken over the patio, now’s the time to cut them back. Early-spring bloomers like lilac and forsythia are best left alone until late spring. A carefully nurtured and tended yard can bring you great enjoyment. Mishandling shrubs and bushes can kill them and create a gaping eyesore along your foundation or property line.
Doing the lawn yawn? Now, I personally don’t have or want much lawn space, but a lot of people do, and they need to know that fall is the prime time for lawn care. Fall is when you aerate your lawn, thatch your lawn, and plant new seed (well ahead of frost) or add commercial sod. When you cut it for the last time in fall, give it a real Marine cut, close to the ground, and spread out the clippings and leaf mulch. You’ll have a greener lawn with fewer dandelions come spring if you do. If your lawn is patchy with bald spots, you can overseed with a cool-weather seed (like Kentucky bluegrass) after adding some topsoil, then fertilize and water liberally for several weeks. If more than 50 percent of your lawn is weed-ridden, burnt or barren, it’s time to start over with all new seed or sod (you may want to get your soil tested first) or switch to hardy ground cover plantings. And if you don’t relish the thought of mowing a big lawn next year, consider turning some of it into new garden beds, a wildflower meadow, or you can plant creeping ground cover perennials like pachysandra, vinca or ivy. It’s also the best time of year to renew or negotiate a new lawn care contract. Business is slower at this time of year, and contractors are more likely to give you a better deal than they would in the spring.
from Garden to Table
Cedars residents enjoy fresh, organic produce straight from our garden to their tables. Several varieties of lettuce, peppers, tomatoes, herbs and mint are gathered and used in the preparation of our home-cooked meals. Eating healthy is our top priority! Call to schedule a complimentary Garden to Table lunch followed by a tour of the community. Southeastern Massachusetts Finest Assisted Living & Memory Care! THE CEDARS 628 Old Westport Rd. Dartmouth, MA 02747
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Put some green in your pocket! Back in the day, January was “white sale” month, when your mother would buy new bed linens and towels for the year. Likewise, fall is bargain time for gardening supplies, equipment and plantings. Summer landscaping crews might be selling off almostnew lawnmowers, rakes, and bags of lime. Area nurseries and greenhouses are eager to sell off their spring and summer perennial stock at bargain-basement prices. Fair-weather gardeners will put their equipment on eBay, Craigslist and freeycle.com. And don’t forget to check out yard sales. Likewise, big-box stores and online/catalog merchants want to get rid of gardening-related inventory. The sales war is on! Mulch is on sale everywhere, and you might even be able to get a tree-trimming crew to give you their shredded wood chips for free. A well-maintained and healthy landscape adds tremendous resale value and curb appeal to your property. It provides you with year‘round enjoyment, fresh veggies and flowers, and some exercise for a minimal investment, and also provides a home for birds and beneficial insects. If you do a good job in the fall, you’ll have a lot less to do in the spring – so get started now! Elizabeth Morse Read is an award-winning writer, editor and artist who grew up on the South Coast. After 20 years of working in New York City and traveling the world, she came back home with her children and lives in Fairhaven.
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good times
by Joyce Rowley
Ahhh, the smell of crisp fall leaves on a clear sunny day, with a just a hint of cool weather to come, sharpens the mind. Fall has always signified time to go back to school, see old friends and meet new ones. And now there are more reasons to pick up a class or two. As we get older it becomes more important to learn new things to keep mentally fit. It can have physical and social benefits: going to a class gets you out of the recliner and into a classroom where you can meet people who share your interests. And learning a new skill or craft can be parlayed into a side business that can augment your income in retirement. The best part? You no longer have to worry about passing grades. It’s all about learning.
Learn a New Trade Maybe this is the time to pick up where you left off when you embarked on building a family and career. Now that the kids are out of the house, you can do the things you wanted to explore as a young adult but didn’t have time. Greater New Bedford Regional Vocational Technical School (“VOC”) offers a full array of adult education evening classes at its campus on Ashley Boulevard in New Bedford. Registration begins August 26 and runs through September 3 with late registration the
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day classes begin on September 9. You can learn a trade or simply learn how your house wiring works. VOC offers carpentry and woodcarving at several levels of expertise so you can whittle your winter away—and make gifts for the family, too. Or learn how to fix that lawn mower, snow blower or weed whacker at a small engine repair class and save on repair bills. Feeling artistic? Try the floral design or basic stained glass classes. Bring that old chair in for a new rush or cane seat in the chair recaning class. Why not try quilting, jewelry making or crocheting classes? With a little talent and luck, your craft could turn into a business. They’re also looking for instructors to teach a trade or craft. So if teaching was something you always wanted to try, here’s a great opportunity to share a special skill with other adults. Tuition for the classes ranges from less than $100 to several hundred dollars, depending on the topic and the length of the class.
Class lengths are typically four weeks to 14 weeks.
Learning for the fun of it Nothing is sadder than hearing a colleague say that retirement is going to be awful because “there was nothing good on TV.” And he’s already in his 60s. He had money—finances weren’t going to be a problem in retirement. But he had no clue what to do to make his life interesting. The Second Half Lifelong Learning Institute in Fall River can fix that. It is a 13-year-old community-based member organization created to provide intellectual stimulation and social interaction, the two key components to staying mentally fit. Second Half offers seminar-style study groups, interest groups, lectures and special events. They have quality instructors to engage the class in exploring topics that members help select. This fall, Second Half offers 30 courses Ellen Christie, TSH A dministrative A ssistant, and workshops focusing on the arts. and Beverly S tevens, Director of T he Second H alf With topics like “Just What is Film Noir Anyway?” and “Theater: Up Close and the schedule for the latest date to register. Most classes run for six Personal” you can explore the performing arts. Or choose from a weeks. wide range of writing genres in nonfiction book discussions, short Learn a second career now to phase in when you retire. Staystory seminars, and poetry and English lyric poetry workshops. ing active in a part-time job during retirement can also keep you Want to dabble in art? Take a workshop on Impressionism and interactive while earning extra vacation money. socially late modern art and artists, or digital photography. Pick up a new language, learn local history, or find a new tennis partner at a tenJoyce Rowley is a freelance writer and regular contributor to nis class. “The South Coast Insider” and “South Coast Prime Times.” And it’s convenient. Classes are held throughout the South Coast at nine satellite locations in addition to their main campus at 139 South Main Street, Fall River. The film noir class will be held in the movie theater at the Sakonnet Bay assisted living community For class catalogues, costs in Tiverton. Poetry seminars are held at the Mattapoisett Library. and registration information: There’s even a cooking class at Dartmouth Building Supply. It’s also inexpensive. One to two classes plus membership is only Greater New Bedford Regional $145; additional courses are $30 per course.
Online On Your Time Although being in a classroom with other people has its benefits, the “Ed2go” classes at the Upper Cape Cod Tech Adult and Continuing Education allow you to learn on your time schedule at home. Ed2go has over 300 classes online in health, business and legal fields. Add to your existing professional development or start something new. You can sign on anytime, which makes it ideal to increase your current earning power or plan for a retirement second career. Or take a class for fun on a topic you’ve always wanted to learn about. If you live on the east end of the South Coast, they also have 200 adult education classes ranging from the culinary arts, certification for health and legal paraprofessionals, and business classes at their Bourne campus. Registration for onsite classes doesn’t end until the class is full or when the class begins. Since classes start at different times, check
Vocational Technical School
1121 Ashley Boulevard, New Bedford, MA 508-998-3321 x 195 www.gnbvt.edu
Second Half Lifelong Learning Institute 139 South Main Street, Fall River, MA 508-677-4694 www.umassd.edu/secondhalf
Upper Cape Regional Technical School 220 Sandwich Road, Bourne, MA 508-759-7711 www.uppercapetech.org
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good times
Thomas C. Sargent, sr
Living a life set to music Patrice H agan
Thomas C. Sargent, Sr. retired in 2000 from the Providence, Rhode Island School Department as Music Director of Classical High School. His formal education includes degrees in church music from Boston University and master of music education from UMASS Lowell. Additional post-graduate study in ESL was done at Brown and Providence College.
Sargent is known to many in our region for his role as the music director and organist of St. Anthony du Padua Church, located at 1359 Acushnet Avenue in New Bedford, where he plays for three to four Masses each weekend, directs two choirs and supervises seven cantors. He also helps he helps manage the Music at St. Anthony program. In addition to the weekly demands on his schedule he is currently preparing to facilitate a course offered by The Second Half: Lifelong Learning Institute, entitled, “Stravinsky–His Life and Music.” Asked, “Why Stravinsky?” he responded, “Stravinsky is widely regarded as the most original and influential composer for the
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20 century.” Igor Stravinsky’s “Rite of Spring,” which was first performed in 1913, was as important to the 20th century as Beethoven’s “Ninth Symphony” was to the 19th century. Stravinsky’s powerful, highly original music continues to challenge the world’s best symphonies and music listeners alike. Sargent has nurtured his love of music throughout an impressive career while sharing it with others, in the classroom and in church. He admits teaching a course helps him continue to delve into the lives and works of significant composers. He has taught courses in the past on Bach and Handel. He hopes others will join his search into Stravinsky’s life and works by enrolling in this eight-week course, which begins September 19.
Sargent hopes his class will help others appreciate and understand this composer’s work. The class will include listening to DVD presentations supplemented with information from “Grove’s Dictionary of Music and Musicians,” CD performances and discussion about form and composition techniques. The main thrust will be on listening and better enjoyment of Stravinsky’s music.
Register now for “Stravinsky– His Life and Music.” This eight-week course, consisting of weekly two-hour sessions starts Thursday, September 19 at 2:30 p.m.
Special Events
The music has influenced many of the 20th century’s leading composers and is one of the most recorded works in the classical repertoire. Rhythmic motifs and layering of harmonies had never been done before this composition.
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Pipe organ and chorus Sargent is also active in the management of “Music at St. Anthony’s Concert Series.” The concerts originated as a fundraising effort to restore the historic 1912 Casavant Frères Opus 489-pipe organ at Saint Anthony of Padua church. The organ is one of the largest Casavant organs in New England and adds to the cathedral-like atmosphere of the church, which was modeled after an Italian cathedral. Donations are welcomed. In addition to organ recitals, The Spirit of St. Anthony Choir brings together over 60 singers and musicians from almost 30 different area churches in two concerts each year. The Old Colony Southeastern Massachusetts Chapter of the American Guild of Organists provides four expert recitalists throughout the year, who demonstrate the tonal variety and capabilities of this magnificent instrument. Together, the recitals and concerts make up the Music at St. Anthony’s program, performing for well over 10,000 people over the past eight years. These concerts are gaining popularity. The program is committed to having freewill offering events, without any set price. This way, anyone can attend and enjoy the church and the music, regardless of ability to pay for a ticket. This is a prime objective, and is particularly important while so many people are out of work or struggling to make ends meet. The next organ recital in the 2013-2014 series will be on Sunday, September 27, 2013, at 3:00 p.m. The recitalist will be Daria Burlak, a young Russian organist currently residing in Germany. Her program will be an exciting combination of traditional and contemporary organ literature. Patrice H agan is a board member of The Second Half, co-chair of
their Publicity Committee and an active community volunteer.
*Trolley and Free Parking at the Whale’s Tooth Ferry Parking Lot Sponsored by: St. Anthony of New Bedford Federal Credit Union
Adult Classes Register Today! Fall Semester begins September 16
u 30 daytime class offerings
u Classes held at Second Half
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Contact the Director:
Beverly Stevens, secondhalf@umassd.edu
(508) 677-4694
www.umassd.edu/secondhalf
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photo by Alyssa Wood
A career just around the (four) corners Every story has a beginning and the origins of Tiverton Four Corners go back nearly three decades and the efforts of architect James Weir and his wife, Rosalind. Jay Pateakos
Q: Take us back to the beginning. What are the origins of your involvement with the creation of Tiverton Four Corners? Almost 30 years ago, as an architect, I was contacted by the owners of the Provender, Cindy and Scott Burns, to explore the possibility of making a bed-and-breakfast in the Wilcox house adjacent to the Provender. I quickly concluded that the building was not large enough to create enough bedrooms and bathrooms to make the property economically feasible. Soon afterwards, the Soule-Seabury House went on the market, and, togetherwith the owners of the Provender, my wife, Roz, and I purchased the property, hoping that it would become a bed-and-breakfast or even a small inn. As it turned out, our civil engineer felt that, although the property had the septic capacity for a small inn, it would be prefer-
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able to subdivide the three-acre portion in the limited commercial zone to create three more buildings–a strategy we eventually followed. Since that time, various other properties came on the market, including the Benjamin Seabury House, now Roseberry Winn Pottery, a former Sunoco station, now The Cottage, and the restaurant, now the Four Corners Grille. These were also purchased in a partnership with the owners of the Provender, Cindy and Scott Burns.
Q: Why did you feel this area had such potential long before everyone else seemed to? From the beginning my wife and I felt that Tiverton Four Corners offered an unusual opportunity for the revitalization of a “historic village,” one that could be made to be economically sustainable. We were familiar with Plymouth Plantation, Sturbridge Village, and Strawberry Bank, all of which
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were funded by philanthropists. Here, however, we hoped that there might be a way that the extra costs of maintaining historic buildings and landscapes could be sustained by businesses that might inhabit the buildings, unlike creating house museums which occurred in the other historic villages. We had also briefly looked at the possibility of creating an historic village at a location near Fitchburg, Massachusetts, where a
Tiverton Four Corners has had excellent demographics with its proximity to Newport, Providence, Boston, the South Coast communities, and Cape Cod
many other possibilities for retail stores no longer existed. Book stores, hardware stores, stationery stores–many disappeared during the growth of the Internet and corresponding growth of “big box” stores. With the success of the Virginia Lynch Gallery, however, we began to see the possibility of creating a village of art galleries as well as artisan studios–a strategy that seemed to work. We found a glass blower for one building; a weaver, Amy Lund, who set up working looms in another building and still works at Four Corners; and we had hoped that Roseberry-Winn would begin making pottery in a new studio behind their house. As another part of our plan, in the early 1990s we also founded the Tiverton Four Corners Center for Arts and Education, a non-profit to serve as a catalyst for the village. In addition, we built The Meeting House which was used to host a variety of cluster of historic buildings were for sale arts events, including annual sculpture exaround a village green. In hindsight, hibits, theater, concerts, films, poetry, and Tiverton Four Corners has had excellent modern dance. In order to fund the nondemographics with its proximity to Newprofit arts events, we also began hosting port, Providence, Boston, the South Coast weddings at The Meeting House beginning communities, and Cape Cod. To this day, in 1998. the site near Fitchburg remains moribund At certain points and unchanged. during this period, my we began to see Q: What are some wife, Rosalind, and I of the things that repurchased several of the possibility of were done there these properties from creating a village of our partners. that make it the success it is today? During the period art galleries as well 1984-2000 all of our Originally, we went smoothly; thought the village as artisan studios work we were personally excould become a hilarated, and we had a strategy that cluster of antique comfortable relationstores, such as some ships with the Town of seemed to work of the destinations Tiverton and the DEM. outside New York We were especially City in Connecticut. pleased that the work at Tiverton Four CorWe found, however, that this market did ners wove together many of our personal not work since most antique dealers at that interests in architecture, landscape design, time preferred going to weekend antique history, art, and culture. shows rather than owning a store. photo by Alyssa Wood
–
During the 1980s it became clear that
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Continued from previous page photo by Alyssa Wood
women’s clothing stores, decorative accessories, and home furnishings now offer a better a chance for economic success. Last year, a new store, Salt, has taken over the space previously occupied by the consignment store, Rummage, which previously was occupied for many years by the Toy Mill. Also, Moon Tide Dyers has opened a summer shop above the Twisted Yarn store. Together with existing stores such as Tiffany Peay, the Cottage, Gallery 4, and Twisted Yarn, these provide for a new synergy that recognizes that most of the buyers at Tiverton Four Corners are women with discretionary incomes.
Q: With nearly 30 years in, what does your future look like in regards to Tiverton Four Corners? Q: What accomplishments are you most proud? And why?
the years? What happened to make it change? What were the hurdles?
One of our other notable achievements that have helped the businesses at Tiverton Four Corners is the development of the concept of “FarmCoast.” As an outsider, from Cleveland, Ohio, I had always been struck that the various nearby towns were largely isolated from each other and further divided by allegiance to two different states. Despite this, there was a commonality in the environments of Tiverton, Little Compton, Westport, and Dartmouth with picturesque farmland, historic villages, and salt marshes. In 1997 we had helped to organize a meeting of businesses from all four towns, which adopted the name “Coastal Villages” to describe the area. That moniker lasted for several years although it became confused with a different “Coastal Villages” area in Alaska. In 2005, we re-discovered the name “FarmCoast”–used earlier by the Westport Rivers Vineyard–and found that its domain name was available. FarmCoast today serves to create over 30,000 web page visits to the various businesses in each of the four towns. Tiverton Four Corners, as the largest retail cluster in the area, benefits from the many far-away visitors that are attracted to this entire area.
Beginning in 2000, many things began to change, some of which have appeared to threaten our vision of an economically sustainable historic village. In spite of the general opinion that our development was tasteful and of a historic scale, some residents began to question the potential for further growth and the possible development of unwanted buildings. Further, although the Mill Pond Shops and Sakonnet Purls had been instrumental in starting the renaissance of new businesses at Four Corners, and had been operating since the early 1980s, the town did not include these businesses in a new “Village Commercial” zone, thus diminishing their prospects for growth and change as well as creating an unequal “playing field” for all of the businesses at Four Corners.
Q: How has the business changed over
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Q: What have you learned from these changes? With respect to change, we have also learned over the years is that markets for retail activities are subject to change, and, in order to keep the retail stores economically sustainable, it is important to change with the times. Although art is always a significant attraction, together with the charm of the historic buildings, it also appears that
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In 2002, at age 60, I had vowed to retire from Tiverton Four Corners by the time I was age 70. (Last year!) During this decade we interviewed with several real estate advisors, all of which felt our properties could be sold, but that it would take a long time to find the right “passion” buyer. Accordingly, in early 2012 we decided to put our properties up for sale looking for a single buyer. To date, we have not yet found a buyer, and we are now considering selling the properties as individual parcels.
Q: What are your hopes for the future of Four Corners? At this point we are optimistic about the future of Tiverton Four Corners. Today there are significant signs of an economic recovery. We are pleased that there appears to be support for Historic District Zoning which has been proven to be good for the economic values of properties. It also appears that more of the citizens understand the difference between encouraging controlled growth vs. discouraging change altogether. Jay Pateakos has been a freelance writer for more than 10 years including daily and weekly newspapers and monthly magazines. A native of New Bedford, he currently lives in Marion and has three children.
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prime living
You Know You’re Getting Older When…
Eliz abeth Morse Read
If you thought going gray was the true sign of getting older, think again. Some people never go gray, others start sporting gray hairs in high school. It’s the same way with wrinkles. People who live in hot, sunny places or who work on the ocean or the farm tend to wrinkle faster than do people who spend a lot of time indoors. Duh.
Physical changes are as much a matter of chance, genetics or lifestyle as they are of your chronological age. And they’re a poor measure of your mental age. But there are universal attitude changes that we all go through as we get older. It doesn’t matter where you’re from or who you are or when you were born–everyone reaches a point where they experience the following in some form or fashion on a daily basis.
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That’s when you know you’re getting older. We’re all on the same journey, so we may as well laugh. Here are my favorite 50 signs along the way:
✱ You stop making fun of “large print” editions of anything. ✱ You wake up feeling like the morn-
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ing after the night before, but there was no night before. ✱ You think your TV remote is the height of high tech, and you still wear a watch. ✱ Your landline phone rings at 7:00 p.m. and someone asks, “Did I wake you?”
You play The Weather Channel (aka “old folks MTV”) all day for background noise
✱ You insist on paying your bills with checks so that you can keep a paper record. ✱ You hear the Muzak version of your favorite song from high school playing in an elevator. ✱ Your kids start looking middle-aged. ✱ You worry about your whiz-kid doctor’s level of experience. ✱ You sign up for cable so you can watch The Weather Channel, CNN and town meetings.
You throw a big party and none of the neighbors complain ✱ You grow hair in all the wrong places. ✱ You sink your teeth into some corn- on-the-cob and some of them stay there. ✱ You finally admit that those bean sprouts on your plate really do look like lawn clippings. ✱ You help a very old lady cross the street and realize she’s your kindergarten teacher. ✱ You send money to PBS, NPR, WWF and ecoRI. ✱ You know the sodium content of everything that goes into your mouth. ✱ You no longer wear plunging necklines because you’re afraid of catching a cold. ✱ You keep your glasses on a lanyard
around your neck because you keep misplacing them. ✱ You become obsessed with gardening, bird-feeding, recycling and eating enough fiber. ✱ You dress for comfort and the weather, not for style.
303 State Road n Westport, MA
✱ You feel you’re allowed to shoot your mouth off even if what you say isn’t very PC. ✱ You grow a lot of houseplants but can’t smoke any of them. ✱ You fall asleep after one glass of wine. ✱ You no longer think of a $4 jug of Boone’s Farm Apple Wine as “really good sh-t.”
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✱ You realize that your children have no clue who General Westmoreland, Twiggy, Corita Kent, Rudi Geinrich, Patty Hearst, Peter Maxx, Daniel Ellsberg, Jefferson Airplane or the Black Panthers are.
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✱ You have no idea who the top ten bands are, nor do you care.
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You still get morning delivery of the newspaper, and you read the obituary page first
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✱ You believe that real music died about 30 years ago, and you own the T-shirts to prove it.
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✱ You dread getting down on your hands-and-knees unless it’s a matter of life or death. Continued on next page
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Continued from previous page ✱ You have random aches and pains, and parts of your body just don’t work right anymore.
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✱ You fear people using expressions like “spry” and “sharp-as-a-tack” when introducing you.
nostalgic and reminisce about the joys of raising teenagers
✱ You remember when everyone agreed never to trust anyone over 30; now, it’s the ones under 30 you worry about.
✱ You hear more conversations about hip replacement surgery than you do about being hip.
✱ You accept that gravity trumps exercise.
✱ You willingly spend more time with your remaining elderly relatives, even though you accept that they’re no easier to deal with now than they were when you were a kid. ✱ You now get up at 6:00 a.m., instead of get home at 6:00 a.m., and your alarm clock is so old it doesn’t have a snooze button. ✱ You no longer resent speed limits. ✱ You suspect that you have no clue what your children are talking about. ✱ You still buy Christmas and birthday cards, and send handwritten thank-you notes. ✱ Your dream car is a restored Karmann Ghia.
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You get
You’re the only person in the room who knows how to translate Roman numerals
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✱ You think “dinner and a movie” is the whole date. ✱ You turn the lights low to save money instead of to make nooky.
Your car insurance payments go down, but your life insurance payments go up ✱ You quit trying to hold in your stomach because it no longer matters and you no longer care. ✱ You still cook like you’re feeding a crowd, then you get depressed when nobody calls to come over and eat it. ✱ You say “back in the day” instead of “when I was a kid” because it sounds way cooler. ✱ You are the one calling the police at midnight to complain about the loud party next door. ✱✱✱✱✱✱
Fall into theatre
Michael J. Vieira
It seems like there’s always “another opening, another show” in the South Coast, and that’s not a bad thing. Here’s a quick look at where the curtain’s going up this fall.
A pplause Academy
Little Theatre of Fall River
Your Theatre
This Taunton youth theatre program will be rehearsing “Annie, Jr.” starting in September for a show in January. They also are offering “Broadway Kids” in November, with rehearsals also starting in September.
The Little Theatre of Fall River opens their 2013-14 main stage season with “Oklahoma!” in October. It continues in March with “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” and in May with “Spamalot.”
New Bedford’s Your Theatre has an ambitious fall schedule. Look for “Biloxi Blues” opening on September 12, “Love Lots” and “What I Wore” starting October 3, and “Henry Flamethrowa” on November 14.
Visit www.applauseacademyma.com for more information.
For auditions and ticket information both for main stage and Firebarn shows, visit www.littletheatre.net.
Visit www.yourtheatre.org for audition, show schedules and more.
Youth Musical Theatre This Fall River youth theatre program for kids five to 18 will present Disney’s “Beauty and the Beast” on September 4 and 5 at their studio on Cove Street. For more information about shows and classes, visit www.ymtc.org.
Attleboro Community Theatre The first show of the Attleboro Community Theatre (ACT), “That’s the Spirit!” opens on October 11 and runs for three weekends. Beginning in September, auditions will be held for “A Christmas Carol” with performances for another three weekends starting December 6. Audition for “Twelve Angry Men” on December 9 and 10. The show is in the spring along with “Sylvia” and “Love Letters.”
Rogue Theatre Company The Rogue Theatre Company, a relatively new group, is made up of theatre veterans. The company will offer “The Fox on the Fairway” at Roseland Ballroom in Taunton starting on September 14 with three shows on two weekends. Visit www.roguetheatrecompany.com for information about tickets and other information.
For more information, go to www.attleborocommunitytheatre.com.
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Viva Lillian!
Mel Yoken
Lillian Lamoureux, mother of two, grandmother of four, and great-grandmother of nine, is the quintessential Renaissance woman. Now 93 years old, the Dartmouth resident continues to be interested and participate in activities related to music, language (especially the French language) and culture.
Always thoughtful, affable, intelligent, engaged and upbeat, Mrs. Lamoureux is vigorously enthusiastic in her inveterate devotion and unparalleled commitment to the arts, and to the intellectual growth of the community around her–and herself. The entire region of southeastern Massachusetts truly looks up to Lillian, actually Dr. Lillian Lamoureux, as she received an honorary doctorate from the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth in 2000.
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î Ž
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Succinctly, Lillian Lamoureux is a truly wonderful person and a very good friend to so many. In spite of her advanced age, she is one of the busiest people I know, and never turns down an invitation or the chance to speak and be with people. Her joie de vivre is amazingly contagious and her altruism, integrity and first-rate intellect continue to inspire and enthuse all those with whom she comes in contact. She is just a remarkable human being, and we all owe her an enormous debt of gratitude.
The following interview took place during the first three weeks of July, 2013. m
What do you feel are your greatest accomplishments?
My husband and I wished to educate our son and daughter according to their God-given talents. We always liked to be helpful in moving a community musical ensemble to a highly respectable symphony orchestra, presenting masterpieces of the classical and contemporary repertoire and featuring national and international artists in the Zeiterion Performing Arts Center, church venues, public and private schools as well as open-air UMD July 4th concerts, etc. L
m
Who in your life who has influenced you the most and why?
My mother had a great influence on me. She was a 35-year old piano-playing widow with five children who, with her young family and with a limited education, had a preponderance of common sense, faith and discernment. My sisters and I received our bilingual education in a boarding school-setting in Canada.
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Her joie de vivre
is amazingly contagious and her altruism, integrity and first-rate intellect continue to inspire
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At my high-school graduation, with the title of “tres grande distinction“ from l’Institut Musical du Canada in Montreal and despite a full scholarship, my mother enrolled me in Bryant College to learn business skills with a degree in Executive Secretarial Science. I never realized then that these studies would serve me well with the NBSO [New Bedford Symphony Orchestra]. Secondly, my first high-school piano and organ teacher, Dr. (Sister) Cecile of the Angels, head of the music department at Rivier College in Hudson, New Hampshire, guided me in 1938 into winning the gold medal against college students in a one-month learning of Rimskey-Korsacoff’s “l’Hymne au Soleil” (Hymn to the Sun).
E
meritus at Dartmouth Village offers quality care for quality of life!
Our goal is to have you live as independently as possible while enjoying our many amenities, outings and activities. Emeritus at Dartmouth Village currently has availability in both our Assisted Living and Memory Care apartments. Please feel free to contact Kathy Givens, Community Relations Director, at 508-999-0404 to set up an appointment to visit today!
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— EVENTS — Sun., Sept. 8, 1:30 PM Grandparents Day with Billy Couto & Band
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Continued from previous page m
Do you have any advice to aspiring musicians?
Aspiring musicians must have the “heart and soul” love of classical and contemporary music, persevering in perfecting their musical art. What is needed also is minoring in other skills such as computer savvy, and other technologies to earn a livelihood other than teaching. L
m
What have been your major activities over the years?
Volunteering in the NBSO for the last 34 years as well as an active board member of La Ligue des Franco-Americains, the NB Arts Council under three mayors, secretary of Catholic Financial Life Chapter 3, Le Richelieu, past-president of the Patronnesses of Sacred Heart Home, and others as well as receptionist at in the family-owned funeral home. L
doctorate has compensated me for years of devotion par excellence to the great pianists, composers and masterpieces of the world, and having been inspired by the Letters of Mme de Sevigne, works of La Rochefoucauld, Lamartine, Handel’s “Messiah,” Leonard Bernstein’s works and the beauty of the French language. It validates my mother’s insight into a woman’s need for self-sufficiency. You have been an exemplary leader in the Franco-American community for so many years. What strategies have you employed to preserve and defend the French language? m
If I were free of family obligations, I would consider helping retired teachers start small French classes at local libraries for middle-aged Francophiles, especially in large Portuguese demographics such as New Bedford. The French language must be preserved! L
I would consider helping retired teachers start small French classes at local libraries for middle-aged Francophiles m m
You have devoted your life to improving your community. Has this been a challenge for you?
A challenge certainly, particularly the NBSO, finding a competent music director to reshape the orchestra by auditions, resources to pay musicians, building loyalty for competent players and connecting with UMD’s Music Department, Dr. Josef Cobert and Dr. Eleanor Carlson. L
I am currently rereading historical biographies such as “No Apologies” by Mitt Romney, Ronald Regan, Bob Woodward and many others. I am reading the many books set aside for my complete retirement. Just recently, I acquired the newly published “Picture History of New Bedford 1602-1925” and anticipate book 2 in 2014. L
m m
Tell me how you view the southeastern Massachusetts region presently.
We must introduce young children to popular musicals, light classical concerts in nurseries, pre-school and even listening to singing while in the womb. L
How do you relax? What books are you currently reading?
Who are your favorite authors/composers?
Brahms, Debussy, Saint-Saens, Rachmaninoff and Beethoven as composers. In addition, I esteem greatly my daughter’s recorded senior recitals and concerti with orchestra. L
Mel B. Yoken is Chancellor Professor Emeritus of French Language
and Literature at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth m
What does your honorary doctorate from UMD mean to you?
L
My first loves are piano and orchestra, and that’s why I primarily received such an outstanding accolade. The
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Should I give my home to my children? by Michelle D. Beneski
C
lients often ask if they should give their home to their home to their children. My answer is always NO! I know that your children are wonderful and would never kick you out of your home. But what if one of your children got in a bad accident, was sued and owed the other person a large settlement? You could lose your house! What if your child dies? Your daughter- or sonin-law could end up owning your home. What if your child divorces? Your home may be lost in the divorce settlement. What if your child goes bankrupt? Or has bad creditors? Your home could be lost settling your child’s debts. As you can see, giving your home outright to your children can be dangerous. If you give your home to your children, there is a chance you may not have a place to live in the future. So what should you do if you are concerned about losing your home if you have to go into a nursing home? See an experienced elder law attorney, who can help you and your family figure out the best way to reach your goal. There are several different methods of protecting the home that also guarantee you a place to live for the rest of your life. An elder law attorney should be able to help you figure out which method suits your family If you are interested in learning more about protecting your home please go to our website www.MyFamilyEstateplanning.com for many informative articles. You can also call our office for a consultation at 508-994-5200. This article is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. For specific questions you should consult a qualified attorney. Michelle D. Beneski is an Attorney at Surprenant & Beneski, P.C. For specific questions call her at 508-994-5200 or send an e-mail to mdb@nbelderlaw.com
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good times
The art
of idleness
Most of us are pretty busy folks. We have appointments, must-do lists, want-to-do and should-do lists: we even have bucket lists. When summertime rolls around, our lists get longer. Paul Letendre
We have summer activities that we tell ourselves are relaxing…I just love getting outside and working in the garden and cutting the grass, I enjoy cleaning the pool…and yes, these things might be relaxing, but over time, when they make the move from the “can’t wait to do” to the “got to do” list, they become a chore. Yes, work. That’s the summertime dilemma: there is so much to do, but it’s such a perfect time to do nothing. You don’t even need to break a sweat to do nothing, but for some of us, it’s not so easy. For some of us, it just seems impossible. We New Englanders, no matter where we originated from, seem beholden to that old Yankee tradition of just staying busy. To us,
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busy is the opposite of lazy, and there is nothing worse than lazy—not here in New England. For us, sloth is atop the list of the
busy is the
opposite of lazy, and there is nothing worse
than lazy— not here in New
England
S ep tember /O c tober 2013
seven deadly sins. It’s kind of like marijuana; in itself it’s not so bad, but we know how it leads to that other evil stuff. Yes, we have an unhealthy attraction to busy. Even our relaxation is filled with busy. Take boating, for example, another favorite local summer pastime. Who owns a boat that doesn’t spend hours fretting over the mechanical and aesthetic intricacies of trying to outwit the ultraviolet power of the sun and the saline corrosiveness of the sea? As much as we know that the sun and sea are mightier than any vessel, we gladly exchange scores of hours of elbow grease for a few hours of relaxation. No, we can’t seem to escape this Yankee aversion to sloth. What to do? Mindless slothfulness?…that’s just plain lazy. We seek an enhanced sloth, laziness with a purpose. But our problem with doing nothing is that as soon as we start doing nothing, we start thinking about what we ought to be doing. This is self-defeating lazy. What’s the
point of doing nothing if we’re just going to sit around worrying about doing stuff? What can we do about it? Is there a cure? New England: it’s our problem, and our blessing. To be truly lazy one has to be alone, away from work and home, away from smartphones and computers, away from iPods and earphones, onto a place that is easily found in the South Coast area. We all have one or more of these places; they are in the woods near a brook, or on an abandoned beach, a seldom-visited area of a state park or local preserve, or perhaps a little path that only you and the local deer know about. Go there, find a rock or a tree stump and sit. Do nothing but sit and watch and smell and listen. No, don’t listen to the internal voices of our busy minds and hectic internal worlds—those are the voices that are saying “stay busy.” We are here to escape from this stuff. Listen to those things around us that we are normally too busy to listen to; nature’s real world. You will hear some birds chirping, maybe some frogs croaking, maybe a brook running or the ocean roaring. You’ll see some birds, if you are lucky a turtle or a fox, if not so lucky you’ll see a snake. Worry not, that snake is busy going from one place to another, probably didn’t even notice you. And the aromas: pay attention to the details of those faint smells that we so often ignore. It’s all part of the indescribable pleasures of sloth. This will take practice, hard work: it’s not easy to be perfectly lazy. Ten seconds into it and our minds will wander; we’ll look at our watch and think about stuff to do and places to be. We’ll need to acquire discipline so we can temporarily forget about our responsibilities, promises and commitments. Leave them—they will still be there in another hour or so. This is the time to practice being perfectly lazy. Your only tasks are to see, smell, hear—nothing else. Repeat: see; smell; hear. When you tire of doing nothing, then that other busy stuff just might feel worthwhile again. Now isn’t that so much more rewarding than washing the car?
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photo by Michael J. Vieira
prime season
Better the second time around Just about everything in Annie’s Artifax, jewelry, accessories and high-end women’s consignment shop in Somerset has been repurposed–including the owners. Michael J. Vieira
“I’ve never been happier,” the eponymous Annie said, adding, “we’re giving everything a new life.” Annie and Frank Prescott are both retired: she from 35 years of teaching, most of it at B.M.C. Durfee High School of Fall River, and he after 37 years in financial services. Her retirement didn’t last long. She retired in June of 2008 and the same month opened a studio in the Narrows Center for the Arts in Fall River. Even before she retired, the former English teacher decided to go back to her early days as an art student at the University of Mas-
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sachusetts Amherst, and made clay jewelry. It was a way to ease the stress of teaching. Beginning in 1998, she worked in her home and sold her colorful, lightweight polymer clay pendants, earrings, bracelets, rings and other items at craft fairs and other shows around the region. And before Frank retired, he was already involved with the marketing and recordkeeping side of the business, and says his title is, “Vice President in Charge of Everything but Making the Stuff.” When he retired in 2010, he became more active, especially in producing what Annie calls, “an irreverent newsletter.”
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The email newsletter, Facebook page, website and soon-to-be-expanded Pinterest board, have their fans. Annie points out that people ask if Frank’s okay if the newsletter is late. Frank downplays his skills. “With my technological savvy, I’d be better with smoke signals.”
Time to expand Between the craft shows and the space at the Narrows, where Annie also taught at what Frank named “The University of Anniechusetts” in a shout-out to her alma mater, things were going fine. The two had talked about opening a store, but had planned to wait one more year to see which shows were worth keeping and which were worth skipping. It changed in November of 2012 when Frank drove past an empty storefront on busy County Street in Somerset just south of the post office and near the pie shop and
services on the south coast drug stores where the road merges with Buffington Street. “It was pretty much in move-in condition,” Frank said, admitting that it was twice the space for three times the rent. Still, for the Somerset residents, it seemed like a good move. They kept both locations open in December, and had a grand opening in Somerset in January of 2013. At the Narrows, they could only sell what they made, but at the new store they could mix Annie’s art with high-end consignments, accessories from New York City, and more. “It’s like the perfect mix of things,” she said. And, she suggested, her customers agree. A veteran consignment shopper, she realized there were no similar shops in Somer-
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that a contribution was made to Being a Vietnam Wounded Warriors Vet, appreciate set. She also take just anything. It in myI doesn’t name. a contribution be gently used and from stores like has tothat was made to -Paul W. | Middletown, RI Express and others. Chico’s, J. Jill, Gap, Wounded Warriors When if she ever got anything weird inasked my name. like old, dead animal coats. Annie put on Bill & Linda – her “teacher voice” -Paul W. | Middletown, RI and said she doesn’t Your immediate take stuff likeresponse that, but Frank did recall one I’ve been pleased to my with everything unusual request. situation was WOW! Home Healthsmith Bill & Linda – done. wife can “Wehas had aMy woman come innow once looking Your immediate come home from the for tires,” he said. response to my rehab hospital. No auto parts, butwas sometimes there are situation WOW! Being a Vietnam My wife can nowRIa really some real treasures. Annie recalls -John W. | Wakefield, Vet, I appreciate home from the bag that thathand-tooled acome contribution old, Mexican leather was made to rehab hospital. somebody brought in. Wounded Warriors knees say, in myMy name. “That sold right away,” she said. “You just -John W. | Wakefield, RI thanks!
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Continued from previous page season. “We’re really flexible,” she said, explaining that some items need a little more time. Currently they have about 90 consigners. In the beginning, considering the size of the store, they were a little worried about having enough items to sell. Turns out that wasn’t a problem. “It started filling up right away,” she recalled, but she stressed that they really try not to pack it full of consignment stuff. That’s one reason they focus on high-end women’s clothing.
A dditional artists In addition to their consignment items and Annie’s handcrafted items, they have added homemade items like those by one person who makes denim skirts, another who creates scarves and someone who designs handbags. There are also currently artists who sell photographs and notecards. Each month, they also try to get a guest artist to come in. They’ve had folks who make Nantucket baskets, watercolorists, stained glass artists and a dye-maker who colors silk scarves in pigments that are all natural. The area where classes are usually held is transformed into a miniature studio with display and work space. The Prescotts take no commission on these sales. “It brings people in,” Annie pointed out. She also shops in New York City for accessories like hats, bangles, cuff bracelets and scarves. Sometimes, she noted, they buy
jewelry, but only to pop out the stones and replace them with her art. “I do that a lot,” she admitted. The mix of her jewelry and other artists’ work, consignment items and some bought accessories seems to be finding a receptive audience.
The mix of her jewelry and other artists’ work, consignment items and some bought accessories seems to be finding a receptive audience Many of her older customers just don’t want to buy from the big stores or malls that all carry the same things. Especially when gift shopping, they want to find something unique. And, Annie says, they find that in her shop where their motto is “Where art meets style.” It’s also a fun, quirky shop with signs
photo by Michael J. Vieira
made of corks that Frank collects with the help of a local restaurant, an antique cash register, and owners with a sense of humor.
Their little friends Although they are basically a two-person show, they do have some unique helpers. Take Shorty, for example. This mini-manikin, who stands in front of the store when they’re open, is not only their mascot of sorts, but a good salesperson. “We’ve sold outfits right off her,” Frank said. Annie admits that they get a lot of mileage from Shorty. She appears frequently on their Facebook page, often celebrating special days like Flag Day or the Fourth of July, but also in her Red Sox outfits or other spirit clothes. Shorty is not alone. They have the “Twisted Sisters,” black tube manikins with no features but who have movable arms and legs. “They’re flexible,” Annie said, adding that they found them in Providence. Thelma and Louise, their newest manikins, came from a boutique in Plymouth that was closing. They also got some “rounders,”–circular racks and headless necklace displays. “You should have seen the car,” Annie said recalling their vehicle filled with arms, legs and other dismembered body parts, “It was like some creepy horror movie.” But her cast of characters the job of displaying not only consignment clothes but also of matching jewelry. “People see the clothes with the jewelry and say, ‘Hey, I think I need that too,’” she said.
Creating custom orders Another benefit to the unique shop is she can create her own accessories. So, if a person comes in and wants a bracelet to match an outfit, she can make it. Annie has made custom items like the ones for bridal parties who needed four regular “slinky bracelets” and two smaller ones for kids. She’s also helped meet the need for a matching ring or pendant to go along with a bracelet that somebody already had. Customers can also make their own stuff. The area where classes are usually held does double duty as a miniature studio with display and work space for the guest artists. The Prescotts take no commission on these sales. “It brings people in,” Annie pointed out.
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Steward. The New Health Care.
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Since they’ve been in the new space, they’ve offered more classes than ever before. For $40, including materials, anyone seven years or older can learn to make something and leave wearing it. If two or more sign up for the class together, the price drops to $35 each. Recently, a group of girls came in to celebrate a birthday by making friendship bracelets. Annie also has some older ladies who come in once a month. For the first time, she has a group who’ve not only passed the introductory lessons but are now are saying that they want to make bottle stoppers or do some wire wrapping. “That’s really different,” she said of their continuing interest in taking lessons. Another expanding area is the teens who are shopping there. “Recently, we just started a junior section.” Although they always had some “little kid” stuff for the youngsters to look at while their grandmothers or mothers shop, three consigners came in just about the time they had decided to try reaching a younger market. Thanks to Frank, they also have something for guys: the “Annie Cave.” As Frank describes it on their website: “Our version of a Man Cave with a recliner and reading material for the reluctant or less-than-enthusiastic shopping companion. Kick back in the recliner and read the paper or just take a siesta while the serious shopper gets her fix.” And you don’t find that in the mall or the big box stores. That might be worth the trip to beautiful, downtown Somerset where you can also say “hi” to Shorty. Consignments can be brought in during their regular business hours on Friday, Saturday or Sunday. The store is located at 1049 County Street and is open Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., on Thursday from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. and Sunday from noon to 5:00 p.m. For more information, visit www. anniesartifax.com or like them on Facebook. MICHAEL VIEIRA, Ph.D. is the associate vice president for academic affairs at Bristol Community College. Mike has written for several newspapers and magazines and is a regular contributor to “The South Coast Insider” and “South Coast Prime Times.”
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prime living
Prepaid wireless phone service:
Can it save you money? I pay $86.57 a month for my Verizon Wireless smartphone plan, and that ticks me off. So you’re snickering because you pay $150, or $250 a month for your wireless service and I’m getting off easy. But I know you’re ticked off, too, because you’re locked into contracts that will never end and that promise only to get more costly.
My two-year Verizon contract is half-done. So over the next year I’m researching cell phone strategies to see what I can do to cut my bill Dan by $50 a month. At the L ogan moment I’m favoring the approach that got me into cell phones back in 2000: the TracFone (TracFone.com).
A few ideas that worked for me Here’s my developing phone service strategy; perhaps you can pull some ideas from it to save money or your phone bill. My computer is central to my communications and I prefer to connect with people via email. My phone needs are fairly primitive. Especially now that my only phone is a thin, rectangular lump that doesn’t cradle against my ear, I want to spend as little time on it as I can. My primary goal when the phone rings seems to be to get through the call as quickly as humanly possible. I bought a smartphone believing it would serve my business well as I began making use of relevant apps. In fact, I’ve added a few useful apps, but nothing I would miss. Each month I make some calls, use street navigation and send a few text messages. I use WiFi in my laptop and tablet where I
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can. So, the smartphone has proved to be overkill. I don’t care much if I’m locked into a contract plan, so long as it’s a reasonably priced contract plan. I don’t consider $86.57 a month reasonable. For this I get 450 anytime minutes a month (I average less than 100 minutes a month on the phone), 1,000 text messages (at least 990 per month more than I need) and two GB of data (I feel hemmed in but actually use only a gig per month). Roughly half my minutes take advantage of the unlimited nights and weekends and mobile to mobile features. If I went over my 450 minutes I would pay a punishing 45 cents a minute for my loquaciousness.
My primary goal when the phone rings seems to be to get through the call as quickly as humanly possible So if I shed the smartphone when the contract is up, what do I face? Well, basic cell phone service now includes phone calls, some texting, and web access. Thus, if you look carefully at how you use your smartphone, you’re likely to find out you’re not missing much by changing to basic cell phone service. For example, the apps I use I can access on my tablet via WiFi.
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Nothing fancy Which leads me to TracFone. In the seven years I originally used a TracFone I was able to keep my phone expenses low and had good call quality on its network. The TracFone is meat-and-potatoes phone service, aimed at simplicity, flexibility and reliability. You don’t go to TracFone for supercool state-of-the-art hardware and cutting edge service. According to Wikipedia, TracFone is a subsidiary of a large Mexican phone company. According to the Hoovers business web site, TracFone buys access to the networks of roughly 30 different wireless carriers nationwide, including the big guys like Verizon Wireless and AT&T Mobility. TracFone claims 19 million users. To get started with TracFone, you buy one of their phones online or at a retail store, and you buy some airtime. You can visit Walmart, Target, Radio Shack or other retail outlets and pick from what they’ve got, or go to TracFone.com to scope out their entire phone inventory. The phones aren’t smartphones, but they’re also relatively inexpensive, starting around $15, with the priciest models going for about $80. One of the most popular TracFones is the LG 840G (about $60). It features 3G connectivity, a touchscreen, WiFi capability, a two-megapixel camera and a two GB MicroSD card. It also comes with Triple Minutes for Life, so every airtime card you buy in the future gets its airtime tripled (though you don’t get a lengthened service period).
The WiFi capability lets you use the Web for free when you can connect to a WiFi network. While Web surfing on a really tiny screen is less than ideal, there are times when that’s all you need to find out a baseball score or navigate to a street address.
Flexibility and airtime
for $199.99, which works out to $16.67 per month (and less than 14 cents a minute). I might have to buy another 400 minutes toward the end of the year, which would cost $99.99, but it adds another year of service. If I considered that $299.98 outlay as my cost of airtime for a year, that works out to $25 a month. That’s a far cry from the $1,038.84 a year ($86.57 a month) I’m paying Verizon Wireless phone if I don’t exceed any of the plan limits. TracFone offers a lot of versions of its airtime cards, plus it makes frequent promotional offers. This means that with planning I could squeeze month quite a bit out of that $25 a month.
When you choose a phone you’ll also have to decide on your phone strategy– meaning how much airtime to buy. This is where you can save money compared to the big guys’ contract plans. As we’ll see, TracFone enables a more flexible approach to airtime. When you buy airtime you’re also usufor a ally buying a period of you have basic Nothing’s perfect access. For example, at the rock-bottom, you cell phone access You may have to plan ahead several months can get a 30-minute airtime card for $9.99 for the times when to get your existing cell number switched that lasts 30 service you really need it phone to your new service. The days, meaning you process for transferring have to buy a 30-minyour phone number is detailed on the ute card a month to keep your TracPhone TracFone website. You’ll probably have to service active. But for that $10 a month you have basic cellphone access for the times re-enter your contacts, though I’ve seen when you really need it. This is about as hints that there are ways around that. minimal a commitment as you can get for Some additional TracFone tips. TracFone’s a cell phone with your own phone number. SIM cards work by their own rules and Obviously this is pricey on a per-minute can’t be used in other phones. If you don’t basis, but if your primary objective is infrekeep your TracFone service going, you can quent, low-cost access, it looks terrific. pay a fee to restart it. Texting is charged However, the more minutes you buy, the at the rate of 0.3 minutes per message; in lower the per-minute cost of your phone other words you will be charged about one service and the longer your service period. minute of airtime for every three messages It became something of a nuisance to buy you send. And TracFone says it charges the a new airtime card every month in order to same rate for domestic calls, international keep my service active. So I began buying calls and roaming. cards with more minutes which also have There are other possible service providers the carrot of longer service periods (say 60 to explore. I’ve heard Virgin Mobile operates in much the same way as TracFone. days, or 120 days, or a full year). You can There are other options like Verizon buy more airtime online, via the phone Prepaid Wireless, but as I’ve dug into them or by buying a card in a store. Also, your they appear to be an apples-and-oranges minutes roll over from one service period comparison to the TracFone and they to the next–you don’t lose them the way require more research. you do with a Verizon contract. I’m not trying to do a sales pitch for TracWith a TracFone you can easily plan this Fone here. For some cell phone users it’s a ahead. If you look over your cell phone good way to control phone expenditures bills for the last year you can characterize without sacrificing much in the way of your phone habits. What is the average capability. For me it beats being locked into number of minutes you use per month? a pricey contract. What is the most minutes you’ve used per month? When does your usage tend to peak? Dan Logan is a freelance writer and photogFor example, my peak in the last year has rapher from Fairhaven, MA. He also teaches been 150 minutes of calls in a month. I classes about Nikon cameras and software at could buy TracFone’s 1,500-minute card the Learning Connection in Providence. E-mail (which also comes with 365 service days) him at dlogan@thegrid.net.
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Special Events September PUPPY SPLASH Dartmouth ∙ 9/7 THE GREAT CHANGE HARVEST Dartmouth ∙ 9/7 DARTMOUTH 5K/10K ROAD RACE Dartmouth ∙ 9/21 THE FAMILY FALL FESTIVAL Dartmouth ∙ 9/21 CLAM BOIL BY THE SEA Mattapoisett ∙ 9/21
October LOBSTER RACES New Bedford ∙ 10/13 WINE TASTING Fall River ∙ 10/17 Wareham ∙ 10/18 6th ANNUAL HAUNTED BARN & HAYRIDE Dartmouth ∙ 10/18 & 10/18 PUMPKIN SPLASH New Bedford ∙ 10/19 HAUNTED FOREST Wareham ∙ 10/25 PUMPKIN SPLASH Wareham ∙ 10/26 HALLOWEEN HAYRIDE & PARTY Mattapoisett∙ 10/26
Contact the branch for information and event times. For a listing of more events visit ymcasouthcoast.org.
DARTMOUTH 508.993.3361 FALL RIVER 508.675.7841 GLEASON FAMILY 508.295.9622 MATTAPOISETT 508.758.4203 NEW BEDFORD 508.997.0734
YMCA SOUTHCOAST ymcasouthcoast.org
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E xtra! E xtra!
In brief… It’s hurricane season, tick and mosquito season, shark and Portuguese man-o’-war season, so listen up and be prepared: slather on the sunscreen and get outdoors for all the festivals, fairs, concerts and special events along the South Coast. You don’t have to get stuck in tourist traffic to find something to do. Eliz abeth Morse Read
And get out your canning equipment and freezer bags and take advantage of the bumper crop of local seafood and produce! Before you know it, schools will open again, the traffic jams will melt away and the temperatures will start going down… Regional Highlights Ridership on the SRTA buses in New Bedford and Fall River has risen dramatically since evening hour service was in-
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troduced in the spring. Even day ridership is up since then. This uptick will generate more funding opportunities and further expansion of bus routes and services.
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After voting to delay tolls on the new Sakonnet River Bridge until February, RI lawmakers reversed themselves after only one week to impose a 10-cent toll. East Bay residents and businesses were not pleased.
The recent MA state budget allows all UMass campuses to freeze tuition and fees for the new school year, and a continued freeze for the following year may be in the works. Seventy-five percent of UMass students graduate with an average $28,000 loan debt. Only five years ago, that figure was $21,000.
two wind turbines were sometimes in violation of the allowed noise levels, the town’s Board of Health ordered the turbines shut down between 7:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m., even though the violations had only occurred between midnight and 4:00 a.m. when the wind was blowing from a certain direction in the winter months.
The finishing touches are being made on the renovations to Route 18 along New Bedford’s waterfront, many months ahead of schedule. However, repairs on the New Bedford/Fairhaven Bridge will continue until fall of 2014.
One of the Fairhaven Wind owners, who can control the turbines via his cell phone, became so engrossed in a Bruins game that he forgot to turn them off on time the first night. Then, Fairhaven Wind refused to turn them off at all on subsequent nights because the town hadn’t put the order in writing. Meanwhile, they have made it clear that they intend to recover from the town any profits lost due to any shutdowns. And a new grassroots group called “Friends of Fairhaven Wind” has been formed to counter the anti-turbine activities of “Windwise.” Meanwhile, the new voting date is September 9 for the contested Board of Health position that resulted when the April 1 town elections got totally botched up.
Strange But True Back in June, a tsunami appeared in Falmouth Harbor, astonishing long-time residents who’d never seen anything like it before. The US Geological Survey confirmed that it was a rare meteo-tsunami, triggered by sudden changes in atmospheric pressure, rather than by earthquakes or landslides. When a Barrington resident recently had her chimney cleaned, a male wood duck plopped down from his accidental hiding place and was later released, healthy and unharmed. A Rehoboth teenager recently stole a golf cart from the country club and went for a joy ride. He was tootlin’ around East Providence before police finally caught up with him. A grand jury indicted a Fall River man who allegedly beat his pregnant girlfriend– with a pogo stick. When the state Department of Environmental Protection found that Fairhaven’s
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A Sight to Behold Ride a free trolley between galleries in Bristol and Warren on Art Nights! August 29. For details, go to www.artnightsbristolwarren.org.
Check out “Creative Waters,” the South Coast Artists Open Studio Tour 2013 on August 17 and 18 – local artists in Little Compton, Dartmouth, Tiverton and Westport! For info, visit www.southcoastartists.org.
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Continued from previous page Don’t miss the “Hurricane of 1938” exhibit at the Mattapoisett Museum, opening September 7. Call 508-758-2844 or visit www.mattapoisetthistoricalsociety.org.
Theatre “Les Cage” September 25; Connecticutt River wine and rail tour Oct. 3; and the South New Hampshire mystery tour October 16. Call 508-991-6171.
Check out the Film Festival August 16-18 at the Dedee Shattuck Gallery in Westport. For details, go to www.dedeeshattuckgallery.com.
Grab your partner and head for the “Barn Bash” Square Dance at Sylvan Nursery near Horseneck Beach on August 24. Call 508-991-2289 or visit www.dnrt.org.
There’s always something to see or do at Tiverton Four Corners.! There’s the film “Gesualdo: Death for Five Voices” August 22 at the Meeting House. For info, visit www.tivertonfourcorners.com.
The Fall River Historical Society, 451 Rock St., is hosting special exhibit titled “Echoes of Lizzie II”, running through October. There will be guided tours on the hour from 10a.m. to 4 p.m. The Coast is $8 for adults and $6 for children.
Photo by dnrt
South Coast Stars Check out the Huffington Post article “New Bedford, Mass: A Whale of a Good Time.” Woohoo! You can’t get much better publicity than that!
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Amanda Narciso of Fall River, competing as Miss Cranberry Country, was chosen as Miss Massachusetts 2013. She will compete in the Miss America pageant in Atlantic City in September.
New Bedford is one of only three cities in the country recognized for its energy efficiency efforts by the U.S. Department of Energy, along with Savannah GA and San Antonio TX.
Seniors are eligible for a free parking pass at Horseneck Beach, thanks to the state’s Senior Citizens Parks Pass program. Fees are also waived for vehicles displaying a handicapped or wounded veteran license plate. Passes are available at the main building.
If you’re 62 or older, check out the trips sponsored by the New Bedford Senior Travel Program: the Provincetown Carnival Parade Aug. 15; George’s of Galilee & Mohegan Sunday, August 21; Whalewatch and Plymouth Winery August 28; Warren’s Lobster House and Kittery outlets September 11; Lank Winnipesaukee Luncheon Cruise September 18; Northshore Music
Spinner Publications has released a limited edition of “A Picture History of New Bedford: 1602 to 1925.” Visit www. spinnerpub.com or call 508-994-4564.
“New England Boating TV,” a new show on the New England Sports Network, recently filmed an episode along New Bedford’s waterfront and historic district. The TV show previously highlighted Mattapoisett.
Get involved in the 8th Annual St. Vincent’s Motorcycle Run in Fall River on August 18. Call 508-235-3470 or visit www.stvincentshome.org.
On the Road Again
Small Business of the Year by the NB Area Chamber of Commerce.
The Lobster Pot of East Wareham was chosen by AAA’s Phantom Gourmet as one of the “Great 8” lobster restaurants in New England! Allexia Barros, a 2012 graduate of New Bedford High School, will be playing basketball on the Cape Verde National Team . Main Street Formals in Acushnet has been named the 2013 New Bedford Area
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“Waynestock 2013,” a multi-stage benefit concert held in Fairhaven for Rochester musician Wayne Ferreira, raised muchneeded funds for his recovery after a hoped-for double-lung transplant. Support the cause at www.wayneferreirabenefit. com. The iconic Whaleman statue in front of the New Bedford Public Library recently celebrated its 100th birthday! Former Fall River mayor Ed Lambert will soon become the vice chancellor for government relations and public affairs at UMass Boston. New Bedford High School sophomore Georgia Kyriakidis is gaining national recognition for her “Eco-Card,” which allows users to log and organize their receipts, while also reducing wasted paper. She will present her concept at the National Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge in New York City in October. Seventeen-year old Sara Goulart of Freetown, who was born in Russia and is partially deaf, recently served as an American Sign Language Ambassador at a school for the deaf in China. Sara attends the Learning Center for the Deaf in Framingham.
The UMass Dartmouth Public Safety Department has been named the best small community police department in New England by the New England Association of Chiefs of Police.
School Daze Educators at the Fall River Marine Museum recently taught a class of first-graders in Duluth, Georgia, about the Titanic via Skype.
in New Bedford shut down suddenly in July.
The state has decided to keep 45 inpatient beds open at Taunton State Hospital until at least June, 2014.
Beginning in the fall, Boston-based Bay State College will begin offering classes at the Myles Standish Industrial Park in Taunton. Likewise, Bristol Community College will be offering daytime classes at the Cohasset School.
Students at the Sippican School in Marion were treated to a very special presentation about space exploration and the International Space Station by Mr. Chris Edelen, the NASA Flight Director at the Johnson Space Center in Houston. Mr. Edelen’s nephew is a second grader at the school.
Bizz Buzz A walk-in urgent care clinic at Riverside Landing in New Bedford is in the planning stages, and will be completed by fall 2014. It will be a Hawthorn Medical satellite of St. Anne’s Hospital in Fall River. Men’s clothing manufacturer Joseph Abboud of New Bedford was purchased by The Men’s Warehouse for $97.5 million. Shaw’s Supermarkets has thrown in the towel, and will close two of its stores in Rhode Island and six in Massachusetts, including the stores in Fairhaven, Taunton and Fall River. The very popular The Celtic coffeehouse
In a very surprising move, the Board of Trustees of the Zeiterion Theatre eliminated the CEO position formerly held by the much-admired Katherine Knowles.
What would New Bedford Harbor look like without the iconic Butler Flats Lighthouse?? It’s on the auction block because the US General Service Administration no longer needs it and because the city can’t afford to restore it.
Full-day kindergarten in Rochester will be free starting in September. However, there will no longer be mid-day bus service home for half-day kindergarteners.
Bristol Community College has scrapped plans to build a 250-foot high wind turbine on its Fall River campus. Instead, BCC will be installing a 2.5 megawatt solar canopy over its campus parking lots, which could provide 50 percent of the Fall River campus’ electricity.
munity, and is asking for more information before the Taunton hospital goes ahead and shuts it down as planned.
Four Kings LLC has proposed a new development for the vacant King Lumberyard in South Dartmouth. It would include a multi-building arrangement of apartments, restaurants, retail stores, offices, a storage facility and a Crossfit gym. Bristol Community College will be installing a 2.5 megawatt solar canopy over its campus parking lots, which could provide 50 percent of the Fall River campus’ electricity.
Hmmmm… New Bedford’s new South Terminal has always been identified as Cape Wind’s planned staging area, but the offshore wind developer recently filed for federal permits naming Quonset Point RI as the staging area! Taunton’s Galleria Mall was recently sold for $22 million to a Dallas-based shopping mall developer. Freetown’s Town Meeting recently approved allowing a medical marijuana dispensary to be located in the Industrial 2 Zone of town. The state’s Department of Public Health has deemed Morton Hospital’s pediatric unit “essential” for the surrounding com-
New Bedford officials plan to apply for a downtown “cultural district” status, possibly freeing up state cultural funding – and attracting more tourism.
When the Kiddies Visit Bring your own frog for the race at the Rochester Country Fair Aug. 15-18. Visit www.rochesterma.com. Let the kids “Express Yourself!” at New Bedford’s ArtWorks! children’s workshops through Aug. 23. Call 508-984-1588 or go to www.artworksforyou.org/programs/ kids.
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Continued from previous page Stop by the free Community Fair at the Dartmouth Grange Hall September 6-7. Call 508-636-1900. Visit the Adirondack Petting Farm in Westport. Call 508-673-3065 or go to www.thepettingfarm.org.
Get out the pirate costumes and join the gang of pirates who will be landing at Frerichs Farm in Warren, RI, the weekend of September 7 and 8. It’s the third annual Fantasy Faire, a family-friendly, kid-oriented event with rides on Snap the Dragon and the Pumpkin Coach. Music, craft vendors, make-yourown scarecrow activities are all part of the fun. Contact Frerichs Farm at 401-245-8245 or go to www.frerichsfarm. com for directions.
What could be better than live jazz and wine on a Saturday afternoon? Enjoy the Jazz Tastings at Greenvale Vineyards in Portsmouth through November. Call 401-847-3777 or visit www.greenvale.com. Photo by Greenvale Vineyards
The free “Summer of Love” concerts at Onset Bay in Wareham run through August 28. Call 508-295-7072 or go to www. onsetvillage.org. Don’t miss “The Queen Extravaganza” September 15 at the Zeiterion in New Bedford. Call 508-994-2900 or visit www. zeiterion.org. Cranberry Coasts Concerts will be performed in Attleboro (August 22 and 29), Wareham (August 23 and 30) and New Bedford (August 25 and September 1). For info, call 508-491-8888 or visit www. cranberrycoastconcerts.com.
The Tucker Road branch of the Dartmouth Free Library is now open on Saturdays and hopes to add more weekday hours in the fall.
Listen to the Music Pack a blanket and a picnic for “Music at Sunset” at Blithewold in Bristol on August 21; play croquet and bocce, too! For a concert schedule, go to www.blithewold.org or call 401-253-2707.
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newportwaterfrontevents.com. Enjoy the Summer Concert Series and Classic Auto Cruise Night at Apponagansett Park in Dartmouth: Craig DeMelo August 20; and Wild Nites August 27. Advance tickets are available at the Parks and Recreation Office. Through August 29, enjoy free “Thursday Evenings in the Park Concerts” at the Whaling National Historical Park garden in New Bedford. Call 508-996-4095 or visit www.nps.gov/nebe. And on Friday nights, there’s free music under a tent at the “Pier Summer Music Concert Series.”
The Narrows Center for the Arts in Fall River has a great line-up: there’s Carolyn Wonderland August 22; The Pousette-Dart Band August 23; Leon Redbone August 24; Albert Lee Band August 29; the free Narrows Festival of the Arts September 8; Tom Rush September 13; NRBQ September 14; Moonalice September 26 and UFO October 14. For complete details, visit www.narrowscenter. com, www.ncfta.org or call 508-324-1926.
The Sandywoods Center for the Arts in Tiverton will present The Homegrown String Band August 17, Mayfly August 31, The Smile Makers September 13, Rory Block September 18, The Gnomes October 5 and Tropical Island Steel October 11. Go to www.sandywoodsmusic.com or call 401-241-7349. Don’t miss any of the Newport Waterfront Events at the Newport Yachting Center. There’s Styx August 22, Celtic Rock Fest August 24, Tony Bennett August 28, Pat Benatar August 31, the International Boat Show September 12 and the International Oktoberfest October12. Call 1-800745-3000, 401-846-1600 or go to www.
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A lbert Lee Band
Fairs! Feasts! Festivals! Mark your calendars for New Bedford’s Working Waterfront Festival September 28 and 29! Visit www.workingwaterfrontfestival.org. And plan ahead for the New Bedford Chowder Festival on Oct. 13! Call 508-990-2777 or visit www.downtownnb. org. Don’t miss the annual Feast of Our Lady of Angels in north Fairhaven 8/30- 9/2. Call 508-990-0502. Get ready for the Great Feast of the Holy Ghost in Fall River August 22-25. For info, call 508-675-1368 or go to www.grandesfestas.org. Head for Madeira Field in New Bedford on August 16-18 for the Senhor da Pedra Feast. Stop by the free Community Fair at the Dartmouth Grange Hall September 6-7. Call 508-636-1900.
Mansions Wine and Food Festival September 20-22. Learn more at www.newportmansionswineandfood.org.
All the World’s a Stage Get ready to laugh! Don’t miss “Menopause: The Musical” August 20-21 at the Zeiterion in New Bedford. Call 508-9942900 or visit www.zeiterion.org. New Bedford’s Your Theatre presents “Biloxi Blues” September 12-22 and “Love, Loss and What I Wore” October 3-13. Visit www.yourtheatre.org or call 508-9930772.
The Little Theatre in Fall River will perform “How the Other Half Loves” August 1525 and “Oklahoma!” October 10-13. For details, call 508675-1852 or visit www.littletheatre.net.
Mark your calendars for the Newport
Don’t miss the International Boat Show September 12 at the Newport Yachting Center. Call 800-745-3000, 401-846-1600 or go to www.newportwaterfrontevents. com. It’s “1950s Night” on Purchase Street in New Bedford on August 24! Call 508-9912289.
July’s “Buzzards Bay Swim” raised $95,000 for the Coalition for Buzzards Bay’s education programs.
The Onset Bay Association in Wareham is already planning a Street Painting Festival for next year. To get involved, call 508295-7072 or visit www.onsetvillage.org.
Head for New Bedford for Buttonwood Park Zoo’s “Feast in the Wild” on August 17, featuring food from area restaurants and entertainment. Call 508-991-4556 or www.buttonwoodparkzoo.org.
Enjoy free family fun and entertainment at AHA! Night in New Bedford. The September 12 theme is “It Came From a Book,” and the October 10 theme is “Walkabouts.” Go to www.ahanewbedford.org or call 508-996-8253 x 205.
K a-Ching!!
Don’t miss the “Spirit of Somerset” festival on September 21.
Chow down at the West Island (Fairhaven) Improvement Association’s Clambake on August 18. Call 508-994-8751.
Fun for the Whole Family
It’s free admission at the Whaling Museum in New Bedford on Aug. 23! Learn more at www.whalingmuseum.org or call 508-997-0046.
Join the fun at Marion’s annual Town Block Party on August 24. Contact the Recreation Department at 774-217-8355.
Get ready for the New Bedford Seaport Chowder Festival under the tent on Pier 3 on October 13. Call 508-990-2777 or visit www.downtownnb.org.
Don’t miss “The Grapes of Wrath” at Providence’s Trinity Rep September 5- October 13. Call 401-351-4243 or go to http:// www.trinityrep.com/.
Check out the family-friendly activities and programs at the Taunton Public Library. Call 508-821-1410 or visit www. tauntonlibrary.org. ust
Prosit! Don’t miss the International Oktoberfest October 12 at the Newport Yachting Center. Call 1-800-745-3000, 401-846-1600 or go to www.newportwaterfrontevents.com.
Food Adventures
“Ghost: The Musical” October 22-27. Call 401-421-2787 or visit www.ppacri.com.
Enjoy “The Mousetrap” through August 30, and “The Murder Room” through September 1 at the 2nd Story Theatre in Warren. For details, call 401-247-4200 or go to www.2ndstorytheatre.com. Head for the Newport Playhouse’s performance of “The Hallelujah Girls” through August 18, “The Love List” August 22 to September 29, and “A Perfect Wedding” October 1- November 17. Go to www.newportplayhouse.com or call 401848-7529. Catch “Evita” September 8-14 and “Once” October 1-6 at the Providence Performing Arts Center. Plan ahead for
New Bedford’s Whaling Museum has received a whopping $1.8 million gift–the largest in the museum’s history–from Dr. Irwin and Joan Jacobs. The money will be used to construct a new building on Johnny Cake Hill and to expand the museum’s educational offerings. When former Swansea resident Toby Weiser died in September at age 103, she bequeathed a $97,000 trust to the town, to be used for recreational purposes. Artworks! in New Bedford received a $10,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Arts to host a communitybased “Big Read” program next year. Artworks! also received a $5,000 grant from the Peabody Foundation to support their ceramics program.
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good times
Muddling along, with love Funny thing about fathers and children. If you’re a father, you worry endlessly about your children. You’re a child with an aging father, you worry endlessly about Paul K andarian him. My dad is 85, his health failing and with it his outlook on what’s left of his life. My mom has Alzheimer’s disease and is in a nursing home, unable to come home but begging to do so, and that weighs on him heavily as he endures her confusion and desperation. His back has long been bad and he walks stooped and worn, a posture personifying his mental as much as physical state. I ache for him and do what I can. But there’s only so much I can do. My son is 24, a recent Army infantry veteran who served in Afghanistan, surviving physically but bearing the mental scars of seeing things no one should ever see, friends getting maimed and killed, leaving their literal blood on his hands. He lives with me now, trying to find work, and thinking about school as he tries to find his way in a life forever altered. He has his own pain, and I ache for him and do what I can. But there’s only so much I can do. And there I am, father and son in the middle, pushing 60 this year, looking one way to all those years behind me with my father, and the other to all those still ahead for my children. Call me part of Generation Muddle. We’re in the center of that often-claustrophobic generational divide, muddling to get through it. We get advice throughout our lives on how to be a better father or son. But there’s scant little for those in the middle, so we take the best of what we are on both sides
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and try to apply what we’ve learned. What I’ve learned from my dad is far too much to list, but chief among them was following your heart, embracing wholeheartedly the passion you have for what you do. Among other things, I’m a writer and actor, both things my father always wanted to be. I also play hockey and travel the world, both filling him with worry about my safety.
So there I am in the middle, muddling through it all, worrying as father and child about father and children Worrying is, after all, a dad’s domain, no matter his age. I’m always there for my son and daughter, and in their way, they are for me, just by their enduring love. My son and I had been through some horrific times during the days he fought his demons a few years ago, both of us saying things to each other in the heat of father-and-son battles we’d never dream of saying otherwise. But beneath
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it all was the unconditional love we have for each other. It got us through. Understandably, it’s my kids I worry about most, including my daughter, 26, who’s always been fiercely independent and a worker, but who is still, and will always be, my little girl. My father nears the end of his road, but my son’s days stretch before him, clouded for now by youthful uncertainty, always with more questions than answers. He doesn’t know yet, but will, that there will always be more questions than answers, that the journey’s the thing, not the destination. There’s a great picture in my office of my dad when he was about my age now, a bearded, robust face, cigar clamped between his teeth, looking out over the Maine woods he’s loved forever, a gleam in his eye now sadly long gone. It’s how I will always remember him. I also have pictures of my kids when they were little, a gleam in their eyes that hopefully will burn brighter as their hearts lead them wherever they need to be. So there I am in the middle, muddling through it all, worrying as father and child about father and children. I look at those pictures and a warming flood of memories washes over me as I mine them for some hint I’ve done all right by my father, my children, that I’ve honored the gift of being son and father. Knowing that perhaps I have, the greatest gift of all. Paul Kandarian is a lifelong area resident and has been a professional writer since 1982, as columnist, contributor in national magazines, websites and other publications.
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To schedule tours please call 508-998-1188
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Retreat a day of inner peace Caring for a mentally or physically disabled family member can be an emotional or financial concern. If your loved one is currently on MassHealth Standard or Commonhealth insurance, you may qualify for financial assistance from Beacon Adult Foster Care. As a caregiver you are eligible for a monthly, tax-free payment while you provide the care your loved one needs in the comfort of your own home.
For more information call 774-202-1837 or visit our website www.beaconafc.com
October 12
10am–4pm Peace of Mind Day Retreat
with American Buddhist Monk, Kelsang Pawo This special one-day retreat is designed to help you relax, renew, and revitalize your life. You will learn beneficial responses to daily stresses, relax your mind, and experience a profound sense of inner peace. Discover the power of simple meditation practices and return home refreshed and inspired!
Cost: $25 | $15 Students & Seniors
Serlingpa Meditation Center 514 Pleasant Street New Bedford, MA 02740 phone: 508.979.8277 register online today:
www.MeditationInMass .org
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Southcoast Hospitals perform more orthopedic surgeries than any other hospital in the region. When you need surgery, volume and experience are what you want to find in an orthopedic program. Southcoast has it. Performing more than 4,000 orthopedic procedures a year, including more than 800 joint replacements and 2,000 outpatient procedures, our surgeons are the most experienced in the area. With advanced technology, minimally invasive techniques and experienced physicians, Southcoast is the best place for your orthopedic care.
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Clifton
HEALTHCARE CAMPUS
WILBUR AVENUE, SOMERSET, MASSACHUSETTS
You Have A Choice in Your Care…Ask for Clifton
CLIFTON REHABILITATIVE NURSING CENTER 508-675-7589
CLIFTON ASSISTED LIVING COMMUNITY 508-324-0200
Compassion Dignity Comfort CLIFTON OUTPATIENT REHABILITATION CLINIC 508-675-0328
Transitional Care Short-Term Rehab Assisted Living
CLIFTON HOSPICE SERVICES (A community hospice agency) 508-675-7583
Outpatient Rehab Long-Term Care Hospice Care
Need Short Term Rehab? For preferred booking status, call our admissions coordinator at 508-675-7589. Clifton is a fourth generation local family organization that, since 1954, has been providing the highest quality of healthcare services to your community, which is also our community.
Proud to be Celebrating Over 50 Years of Dedication to Excellence.