Portland voters face 2 city ballot questions
By Tony Zeli
Two city ballot questions ask Portland voters to amend the city’s emergency wage and short-term rental ordinances.
Question 1 - An Act to Amend the City of Portland’s Emergency Wage Provision
Currently, Portland’s emergency wage provisions go into effect whenever the State of Maine declares a state of emergency. Portland businesses must pay 1.5 times the minimum wage, regardless of whether the City of Portland has declared an emergency. Question 1 asks Portland voters to amend the ordinance so that the city’s emergency wage only goes into effect after the City of Portland declares an emergency.
Proponents push for local control and are concerned that Portland businesses are burdened by high wages. Opponents say Portland workers who live outside the city could be impacted by emergencies even when Portland has not declared an emergency. They say this is an attempt to weaken the emergency wage ordinance.
Question 2 - An act to Amend Portland’s Short Term Rental Unit Registration Requirements
Question 2 seeks to amend shortterm rental rules to require owner-occupied rentals to register with both a proof of ID and proof of homestead exemption, as opposed to one or the other as is currently required. If the owner is not eligible
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Welcome to Dinosaur Park!
West End’s Clark Street Park gets new equipment, a playhouse, and dinosaur mural
Western Cemetery's Breakthrough Year by the Numbers
Stewards of the Western Cemetery thank the community for their support
By Jonathan P. Monro
By Rosanne Graef
One of the West End’s small neighborhood parks gets a gigantic makeover. Welcome Portland downtown’s newest attraction for young and old... the Clark Street Dinosaur Park.
Parks with acres of space are grand, but a tiny park can be HUGE! Especially, in the West End’s urban environment, neighbors cherish every acre of open space. So, the Portland Parks Department gave the playground at Clark Street Park a major remodel with new equipment this summer and a brightly colored dinosaur mural.
Despite all the uproar, some things don’t change, like the delight of children. Indeed, if you’re familiar with this little park and have heard children in the un-
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der-8 set shout, “Dinosaur Park!” and run to the Tyrannosaurus Rex riding spring toy, you’ll know the excitement.
And now Clark Street Park is even grander. Parks Department staff members – a.k.a. Tater, Frosty, and 802 – built a two-story orange Clark Street Playhouse complete with slide, sandbox, and rustic upstairs club room. The outer walls are decorated with wooden dinosaurs. Already, visitors have helped accessorize by moving small dinosaurs into the sandbox.
Next time you’re in the neighborhood, bring the family for some relaxing recreation. You can’t miss this fun spot with its new Jurassic period mural on the front retaining wall. Allison Villani, Re-
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Your fscal and physical support, dear readers, has made 2024 a breakthrough year for rehabilitating the neighborhood green space that is the historic Western Cemetery. By the numbers:
$175,000 collected in our Stewards capital fund drive.
This leaves only $75,000 to reach our
Page 7 Leona Oceania: You’re going to die. Why not die well?
Annual District Meetings Schedule Pages 10-11
Dinosaur Mural at Clark Street Park - designed by Allison Villani, painted by Lorie Dana, Brenda Gilliam, Oliver LaCasse-Moore, Catherine Nekoie, and Allison Villani. -Photo by Rosanne Graef.
Sam Wilson (in the green hat at right) and fellow volunteers re-setting a large gravestone plumb.
-Photo by Jonathan P. Monro
The West End News PO Box 10876 Portland, ME 04104 thewestendnews@gmail.com
Tony Zeli, Publisher & Editor Rick Ness, Sales
CONTRIBUTORS
Tom Berry, CCL Column
Nancy Dorrans, Travel & Adventure
Caitlin Marshall, Bright Ideas
Stephanie Miller, Book Short
Ben Taylor, Best Worst Trivia
Liz Trice, PelotonPosts
Layne V. Witherell, Layne's Wine Gig
Special Thanks to Jonathan P. Monro, Stewards of the Western Cemetery & Rosanne Graef
Contact Rick Ness: 207-577-7025 rickthewestendnews@gmail.com
WEN is a community newspaper and we need your voice! Share your submissions with: thewestendnews@gmail.com. or send to: The West End News PO Box 10876 Portland, ME 04104.
• Letters to the editor should be no more than 200 words. Include your name and town or neighborhood.
• WEN also accepts short poems, cartoons, and photo submissions.
Deadline for publication in the December Edition is Friday, November 22nd. Publication is not guaranteed and submissions may be edited for length.
The thoughts and opinions expressed in our pages belong solely to the authors and not necessarily to the publication.
City Ballot Questions
for the homestead exemption, they must provide a copy of the owner’s most recent tax return with fnancial information redacted.
Also, Question 2 would require short-term rentals on Peaks Island to verify whether the unit is seasonal or yearround.
vote
iche School’s art teacher, designed and painted the mural with help from neighbors Lorie Dana, Brenda Gilliam, Oliver LaCasse-Moore, and Catherine Nekoie.
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ELECTION DAY - Polls open at 7am. Close 8pm.
All polling locations are open from 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. on Election Day, Tuesday, November 5th. Residents may register to vote or make any changes to their registrations at their polling place on Election Day. Voters must provide photo identifcation and proof of residency.
For more information on polling places including precinct maps visit https://www.portlandmaine.gov/177/Polling-Places.
Ethan Hipple, Alex Marshall, and Tatyana Vashchenko from the Parks Depar tment joined residents for a ceremonial ribbon-cutting on September 27th. Now the park is open for all to run with the dinosaurs.
L to R: Brenda Gilliam and Catherine Nekoie (2 of the dinosaur mural painters), Alex Marshall (Director of Portland Parks Dept.), Tatyana Vaschenko and Keith Forest (Portland Parks Dept.). -Photo by Nancy English
Reiche Community Room City’s Annual District Meeting Schedule
The City of Portland’s Annual District Meetings began on Wednesday, October 30th with the District 4 meeting. The rest of the meetings will take place during November. Mayor Dion, City Councilors, City Manager Danielle West, and City staff will be available to discuss neighborhood issues and answer questions from the public.
New this year, the City Parks Dept. is offering free childcare assistance. The program will take place in adjacent spaces to the meeting from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. only. No pre-registration is required.
District 1 - VIRTUAL
Hosted by Councilor Anna Trevorrow
Wednesday, November 27, 6pm
District 2 - VIRTUAL
Hosted by Councilor Victoria Pelletier
Tuesday, November 26, 6pm
District 3 - IN PERSON
Hosted by Councilor Regina Phillips
Thursday, November 7, 6pm Amanda Rowe Elementary School, Cafeteria, 23 Orono Road, Portland
District 4 – Held October 30 at Presumpscot Elementary
District 5 - IN PERSON
Hosted by Councilor Kate Sykes
Wednesday, November 20, 6pm Casco Bay High School, Great Space 196 Allen Avenue, Portland, ME 04103
Annual Meeting of WENA
Wednesday, 11/13 - 6:30-8 p.m. - business meeting, election of board members, program TBA. You must be a member to vote! Life-time membership fee is $5 for individual, $10 for household. Cash or check at the meeting or credit card online at www.wenamaine.org.
Arts/Crafts/Games Grab Bag
Every Thursday - 4:15-6 p.m. - Informal socializing, bring your own project or help with ours, play board or card games, or just hang out and visit.
Learn to play cribbage with Gregory Farino & Rosanne Graef
Informal English practice for adult learners 4-4:30 p.m.
Die Well Death Education with Leona Oceania
Thursday, 11/14 - 6:30-8 p.m. - Session
Two: Film: Barbara Karnes’s “This is How We Die - Part Two: Natural Process of Dying from Disease & Old Age”
Elder Xercise (50+)
A.M. Xercise - Mon-Fri 8:15-9:15 a.m. - Videos for Strength, Balance, Stretch, Cardio. Mon., Wed., Thur.: light-moderate. Tues., Fri.: moderate-vigorous.
Pickleball! (50+)
Fridays Nov. 1, 8, 15, 22 - 6-8 p.m. in Reiche Gym - $5 Drop-in Fee for Portland residents, $10 for non-residents
Qigong/Tai Chi with Karen Morency Thursdays Nov. 7, 14, 21 - 3-4 p.m.
Join In Thursday, 11/7 - 6:30-8 p.m. - “Being a Pedestrian in Portland” - Share your story, walker, stroller-driver, mobility device user. Session 1 - What’s it like? More sessions to follow on how to make it better.
Magazine Readers
Monday, 10/7 at 6:30 p.m. - November’s articles are about JDEI programs. Contact hello@wenamaine.org for materials and to get on the e-mail list. We’re always glad to see new people!
Makin’ Music Ukulele with Kip DeSerres
Thursday, 11/21 at 6:30 p.m. - Learn to play or play better. If you have a uke, bring it. Some instruments will be available to borrow for the evening. No experience necessary.
Movies
Monday, 11/25 - 6:30 p.m. - Central Station - 1998 Brazilian drama of an unlikely friendship. “He was looking for the father he never knew. She was looking for a second chance.” Nominated for 2 Academy Awards: Best Actress and Best Foreign Language Film. 106 minutes, color, Portuguese with English subtitles. Doors open at 6 p.m. Popcorn &and fzzy water available, bring a snack to share if you wish.
Gladis House Cleaning
COMMUNITY EVENTS NOVEMBER
Film Fest for Casco Bay Returns
Sat, Nov. 2 / 3 – 6:10p (doors open 2p) / USM Abromson Ctr. / $35 adv.-$40 door
Friends of Casco Bay invites the community to an afternoon of inspiring flms at the 2024 Film Fest for Casco Bay on Saturday, November 2nd, at the University of Southern Maine’s Abromson Center, 88 Bedford Street, Portland. Tickets are $35 advance, $40 at the door.
This year’s event, hosted in partnership with the Maine Outdoor Film Festival, will feature a curated selection of nine flms celebrating nature, adventure, and the indomitable spirit of those who seek to connect with the world around them.
A highlight of the event is “An Extraordinary Place,” a 32-minute documentary by local flmmaker and former Portland Press Herald journalist, Tom Bell. This award-winning flm tells the story of Portland’s community radio station, WMPG, and the eccentric DJs who keep its human connection alive in the digital age. Attendees will have the chance to meet Bell and participate in a Q&A session.
This event supports Friends of Casco Bay’s mission. Get tickets or more info: cascobay.org/flm-fest.
2nd Annual Portland Poetry Festival
Sat. Nov. 9 / 11a – 6p
Odd Fellows Hall, Woodford’s Corner
The second annual Portland Poetry Festival is taking place on Saturday, November 9th at the Odd Fellows Hall at Woodford’s Corner. Join us for a great celebration of Maine poetry. The festival is FREE. There will be three panels and readings around the themes of WORK, WAR and JOY.The Festival will end with an open mic. Littoral Books is co-sponsoring with Back Cove Books. The 16 poets slated for the Festival include, among others, the current state poet laureate, Julia Bouwsma, and the former laureate, Betsy Sholl, as well as the former Portland laureate, Maya Williams. It’s going to be an exciting and wonderful day.
Cobblestone Quilters
Holiday Market & Quilt Sale
Sat, Nov. 16 / 9a – 3p Woodford Club, Portland
Cobblestone Quilters of Portland are hosting a Holiday Market and Quilt Sale at the Woodford Club, 179 Woodford Street, Portland, on Saturday, November 16th, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Maine Inside Out’s Broken Clock
Fri, Nov. 22 / 7pm
(doors open 6:30)
Mayo Street Arts, Portland
Broken Clock is an original play about incarceration, gun violence, grief, family, trust, and time. Chasing your mom’s car down the street… being given your frst gun… fnding brotherhood in the streets… fghting for a loved one to come home from prison… These are a few of the moments from Broken Clock expressed through theater, poetry, and dance. The play also features audio recordings of currently incarcerated Maine Inside Out (MIO) artists. Following the performance, the audience will be invited to dialogue with the performers about the themes of the play.
Broken Clock is created by and continually developed by the performing cast with facilitation by Amanda Huotari. The play was frst performed in June 2024 for the Lewiston Juneteenth Festival and later developed in residency at Celebration Barn Theater in South Paris, Maine. Admission is free (suggested donation is $15).
STATE STREET CHURCH
159 State St, Portland
Holiday Fair & Lunch
Sat. Nov. 9 9am - 2pm
Homemade lunch - soup, bread & apple crisp $10. Baked goods & cookie walk. Tag sale. Antiques. Used books, games & puzzles. Crafs & gifs. Jewelry. Silent auction.
Part of the State Street Holiday Stroll
Veteran's Day Parade
The Harold T. Andrews Post 17, Portland Maine invites ANY GROUP THAT WISHS TO PARTICIPATE to walk with us in the, Veterans Day Parade, Monday Nov, 11th. Start time is 10:30am at Longfellow Sq. to City Hall. For more information PLEASE CALL HAROLD T. ANDREWS POST 17, 23 DEERING ST.,PORTLAND. PHONE: 772-9141 or 773-8932 . Speak to Veteran Joseph Rich.
DEADGRASS
UPCOMING SHOWS
Angelikah Fahray’s RNB Jazz Soirée w/project ensemble & Melvin Gradiz
Nov 1 8:00 PM – 11:15 PM
Merther & Big Shrimp Collective (all-ages) Nov 2 8:00 PM – 11:30 PM
Portland Stands w/ Asheville | A Beneft Concert for Asheville Nov 3 6:00 PM – 9:00 PM
Organically Good Trio at Bayside Bowl (Zero Gravity Presents)
Nov 15 8:00 PM – 11:30 PM
An Evening with Gorilla Finger Dub Nov 16 8:00 PM – 11:30 PM
R.A. The Rugged Man w/s/gs akrobatik, OystahGutt, Ben Shorr, dj myth
Nov 23 8:00 PM – 11:30 PM
RONNIE EARL & THE BROADCASTERS
OPEN MIC NIGHT
THE WHISKEY TREATY ROADSHOW W/ SPECIAL GUESTS HIGH TEA
JIM LAUDERDALE & THE GAME CHANGERS W/ SPECIAL GUEST LILLIE MAE
BREAKIN’ STRINGS
THE EAST POINTERS
USM STUDENT JAZZ COMBO NIGHT
ALISA AMADOR W/ SPECIAL GUEST BEANE
THE STEEL WHEELS W/ SPECIAL GUEST HEATHER MALONEY
JONTAVIOUS WILLIS
CHRIS SMITHER & THE MOTIVATORS
THE PIE & WHISKEY ROOM - SONGWRITERS IN THE ROUND
MAGGIE’S WAKE + ROB FLAX’S BOOM CHICK TRIO
THE PORTLAND JAZZ ORCHESTRA
GARNET ROGERS W/ SPECIAL GUEST
Western Cemetery
goal of $250,000. The money will go to install a water line, construct a toolshed, fnish the modern fence along the Western Prom, and repair fve sections of historic wrought-iron fence.
1350 hours of volunteer work.
This is more than double the 600 hours volunteered in each of the past two years.
1132 biographies of the deceased.
Kip DeSerres and his helpers search old newspapers and other sources to reconstruct the lives and patterns of those buried in the cemetery. He has determined that tuberculosis (then called “consumption”) in the mid-1800s was the most common cause of death. Also, that ffty-fve percent of the Irish burials were children under the age of fve.
100s of Black Swallowwort vines & Garlic Mustard plants removed.
We are succeeding at pushing back these invasive plants.
102 monetary donors.
Most of you donated after Stewards President John Funk knocked on your door to describe our work. He is still at it! Thank you for your support!
71 grave markers repaired.
For the frst time this year, we have re-pinned marble tablets to their bases, cast new concrete bases where originals were missing, and re-mortared fattened tablets upright into their slotted bases.
54 grave markers cleaned.
This ongoing work turns blackened marble encrusted with lichens into bright white headstones throughout the cemetery.
44 hours of professional gravestone conservation.
Joe Ferrannini from Hoosick Falls, New York, returned for the third year in a row with his mobile equipment and technical expertise. For instance, he raised and re-attached the cemetery’s only table monument, memorializing James Bradley. It involved a gantry, an aluminum frame, and six person-days of work.
41 new volunteers.
Many came from the community groups listed below. And a regular cadre of volunteers is growing in skills.
25 hour-long tours given, every Sunday at 2 p.m.
7 city and neighborhood groups helped.
The Por tland Parks Conservancy, Maine Irish Heritage Center, Waynfete School (3 classes), BSA Scout Troop 1, First Parish Church, the Wild Seed Project, and Portland History Docents.
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5 lowbush blueberries planted. We are hoping to establish varied low-growing native plants in front of the hillside tombs.
2 grants received.
Maine Medical and the local Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) have contributed to restore the historic fence sections. The DAR also made a plaque for a Revolutionary War soldier and minister, Elijah Kellogg. City workers placed it near the grave marker we repaired.
1 website created: WesternCemetery.ME.
Donations can be made here
Events
In August, the Great Hunger Memorial in the Irish Catholic section was rededicated on its 25th anniversary by Bishop emeritus Robert Deeley with dozens of attendees. Also that month, a Life Scout oversaw a dozen Scouts cleaning stones as a project toward becoming an Eagle Scout. The year is not over and progress continues.
We borrowed a generator for the frst time—thank you Kris Clark and Friends of the Western Prom—to jackhammer apart a large block of unwanted concrete. We have yet to use a generator to core out bent or broken pins from fattened tablets. But we now have the angle grinder and diamond-tipped coring bits to do that work, too.
Matt Cyr of Cumberland Ironworks will remove the rusted, bent wrought iron fence to his shop for repairs. Gorham Flag recently arranged to have the fagpole removed and stored until the toolshed is built. A new cost estimate for the toolshed is being prepared, which will allow the city to request contract bids. Meanwhile , we are working with the city to place the water valves and pipes inside the toolshed once built.
Although new bases and mortar repairs require temperatures above 50 degrees and thus will end soon, fundraising, research, excavation, and removal of invasive species can continue into the cold weather.
And, by the frst of the year, the Western Cemetery should be listed on the National Register of Historic Places for the signifcance of its early geometric arrangement of family plots and concentric paths.
Thanks to all of you, neighborhood readers and supporters, for making this a breakthrough year indeed!
Jonathan Monro was a cofounder of the Stewards of the Western Cemetery in 2002. He is a retired landscape architect.
BOOK SHORT
‘The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek’
By Kim Michele Richardson
By Stephanie Miller
There really were blue-skinned people in Kentucky who carried a rare genetic condition that affected their skin color. They were treated as the lowest of social class, discriminated against to the point of abject poverty. By the 1930’s, Cussy Mary Carter is the last of her kind along with her father, a coal-miner who, conscious of the taint of his blue skin, signs up for the worst jobs (and in a coal mine, the worst jobs are pretty deadly) because he needs to keep his place and get his share of union benefts. Together they just barely eke out a subsistence living in Troublesome Creek.
Despite the scorn and sabotage of the assistant librarian in town, Cussy gets certifed to become a traveling librarian for FDR’s Kentucky Pack Horse Library Project. She rides hundreds of miles a week over rough mountain paths to bring donated books to remote homesteaders. She battles more than the elements to reach her book-thirsty clients. Prejudice runs deep, and her blue skin makes her a target for a gaggle of suspicious and bigoted townswomen and the lecherous sheriff.
I love learning about the courageous women of the various Pack Horse Library programs and how they changed lives through persistence, fortitude, physical strength, and a deep belief in the pow-
er of books. Richardson’s novel adds the extra layer of the blue skin and Cussy’s struggle to both accept herself and yearn for normalcy and acceptance. The result is a wonderful coming of age story set in a not-so-distant Appalachia. The love fows through this story in thick, luscious currents… nearly, but not quite, overwhelming the meanness, racism, and sadness.
As one of her clients—an intelligent 14-year-old— slowly starves to death, stories keep him from collapsing in despair. Another client’s husband tells her to stop coming as the books are distracting his family from their work. She subtly suggests cooking and farming manuals and earns his trust to keep stopping by. The doctor won’t come to treat a cantankerous man who was wounded while attempting to steal a chicken. So, she brings homespun medicines of honey and sassafras, along with fashion magazines for his devoted, pregnant, and sunny-dispositioned wife.
The stories of books bringing joy to people living in desperate conditions can easily slide into trope, but this novel keeps it real with characters who balance good sense along with scarcity. The characters are so well drawn, they stayed with me for weeks after I turned the last page.
Stephanie Miller is a voracious reader and local bibliophile..Find her online @StephanieSAM.
Looking for some peace and quiet?
Need a quiet beautiful space where you can sit and relax? Please join us –
A Liturgy of Contemplation
A lay-led service of meditation and Holy Communion held at 5:15 p.m. each Sunday at St. Luke’s Cathedral. The Liturgy invites you into stillness and quiet, with music, readings, and reflections in a personal, contemporary idiom. It is God’s hope to meet you here.
Emmanuel Chapel – St. Luke’s Episcopal Cathedral 143 State Street, Portland, Maine
Leona Oceania
Every month Liz Trice interviews a community member for The West End News. This month Liz caught up with Leona Oceania, the owner/ operator of Die Well Death Education, which provides information and courses on end-of-life preparation and options.
What does Die Well Death Education do?
I do community death education and offer End of Life (EOL)/Death Doula services, Home Funeral Guidance, Life Legacy Facilitator services, and Death Education. My sessions cover topics like: Why Talk about Death, Funeral and Body Disposition, the Importance of Legacy Work, Writing an Obituary, Medical Aid in Dying (MAID), Voluntary Stopping of Eating and Drinking (VSED), Home Funerals 101, and end of life related flms and documentaries.
I have found that if you offer and create a safe space where conversation about death is normalized, people very much want to talk about it and learn more.
What do you mean by “dying well”?
Dying well is to die in the environment and circumstances that you choose. We can express our wishes for what we want our dying experience to be like. For example, we can outline our health care wishes in an advance directive. It’s important to record and communicate if you would like to die at home, for hospice to be involved sooner than later, if you would like to be in a certain room, with certain music, scents, people, etc. Do you want to be touched or not touched? Would you like to be read to? Would you like to be outside if possible? Be as specifc as you can for those who will be caring for you.
What are a few options that most people aren’t aware of?
In Maine, you do not have to involve a funeral home on any level. It is possible to do a full home funeral. There are body disposition options available in Maine that are affordable and environmentally friendly: green burial, home burial, alkaline hydrolysis (water cremation). Natural Organic Reduction (human composting) was just legalized in Maine, but the state does not have a facility yet.
What in your background led you to this work?
I have always been fascinated with death – I was the kid who always wanted to talk about it and was confused that no one talked about this thing that happens to everyone. As an adult, I continued to learn all that I could and got trained as a Death Doula, Home Funeral Guide, and Death Educator.
In 2019, I took over the facilitation of the Portland Death Cafe, which is an open conversation about death (with cake!). It was apparent to me that folks were misinformed about their choices around death. I was invited to run an education series at the Reiche Community Center three years ago, and I now run several community death education series at local libraries, community centers (including Reiche Community Center!), and residential communities.
What is the heart of what you hope to give people?
Sweet Treats Breakfast Sandwiches Lunch
Special Occasions Cakes Phone Orders – Curbside Pick-up
181 Congress St., Portland, ME 207-771-0994 katiemadebakery.com
Homegrown Herb & Tea
Apothecary Style Bulk Herb and Tea Shop 195 Congress St, Portland
Making handcrafted, custom tea blends and herbal infusions in the traditions of the Old World Apothecary since 2006
Visit the tea shop W-F 11-4, Sat 9-2 or Order online: homegrownherbandtea.com
My primary goal is to normalize the conversation around death, educate people about their choices, and encourage them to take steps to prepare for their own death. Preparation for your own death is one of the greatest gifts you can give those who care about you. Many people are unaware of the affordable choices they have when it comes to funeral and body disposition.
What do you want everyone to know?
In short, talking about and preparing for their own death will not make death come any sooner, but it will, in all likelihood, provide them with the best chances of a good end-of-life and death experience for themselves and their families.
What’s on the horizon for you and your work?
I hope to offer additional Death Education series, one-off presentations, and Die Well Dinners. At Die Well Dinners I come to your location to present any of my death education presentations and/or flms to a private group of people.
What advice would you give to other people who feel inspired to create something new in their community?
“If you build it, they will come.” If you are offering something that there is a need or desire for, put it out there, be confdent, well-informed, kind, and available... and see what happens!
Die Well Death Education series at Reiche Community Center is on the second Thursday of the month from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. For more information visit www.diewelldeatheducation.com.
This interview was edited for brevity and clarity.
PelotonPosts is produced by PelotonLabs founder Liz Trice.
Leona Oceania, owner/operator of Die Well Death Education.
FOOD & DRINK
Little Wine Book Library
By Layne V. Witherell
As you know I don’t collect wine. I simply enjoy and drink the stuff, from the everyday to the rare, depending on the occasion. I have a weakness for wine books – some for research and others just to sit and read for a chuckle.
“The Grail: A year ambling & shambling through an Oregon vineyard in pursuit of the best pinot noir wine in the whole wild world,” by Brian Doyle
The grail, of course, refers to what the Oregon winemakers referred to as their quest for the “holy grail” of pinot noir – the world’s most elusive, fckle, and tricky grape. Yes, he trots alongside the people at the Lange Estate in Dundee, Oregon throughout their year seeing and learning about wine from the red dirt in the vineyard to the fnal bottle.
His information is solid, but the reason you add it to your library is because his deliriously great Jack Kerouac sentenc-
es turn into an entire page. This is one helluva fun read.
“So, you develop a 6th sense for the weather. Which drives you crazy. Of all the things in the universe that you haven’t the slightest control over, it’s the weather. So winemakers all go crazy in the end… Every winegrowing region should have a central facility to house and care for all the winemakers who went off their nuts making wine there.”
You want to be a writer? Read this guy.
“The World Atlas of Wine,” 8th ed., by Hugh Johnson and Jancis Robinson (Completely revised)
The original edition of 1970 contains the idea that wine writer Matt Kramer calls “somewhereness,” that a wine grape tastes like the place where it came from. Mr. Johnson showed you the world of maps with detail galore. This up-tothe-minute revision expands the maps and adds new places, commentaries, and thoughts. You don’t breeze through this book but absorb it a region and chapter at a time.
Since both authors are Brits, the chapters on Bordeaux are fresh, lively, and original. Wine books have never been breathtaking bestsellers. Over the years this book has sold millions of copies. An essential reference.
“Red Wine with Fish:The New Art of Matching Wine with Food,” by Joshua Wesson and David Rosengarten Today’s New York Times wisdom brings us “A Taste for Vibes and Maybe Wine,” October 13th, 2024. Welcome to the new mindless tasteless pre-prohibition culture. “Even some younger adults who avoid alcohol feel drawn to a certain bar culture.” In this Brooklyn-based idea of the new culture you simply admire the fashionable labels but really don’t drink the stuff. “It is simply a gorgeous space with a stunning French waitstaff.” Or in the immortal words of the late Frank Zappa, “Plastic people, oh baby, you’re such a drag.”
If you wish to immerse yourself in a
brilliant example of why wine and food culture has been around for, give or take, four thousand plus years, this is your book. My term for this tome is “cheeky erudite.” My inscribed copy: “To Layne: Never let the paper bag touch your lips -Josh Wesson.”
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-Photos courtesy of Layne Witherell
LAYNE’S WINE GIG PRESENTS
Little Wine Book Library
Cont'd from Previous Page
This is a how-to book on why food and wine pairings taste the way they do and the ways that you can experiment with them.
Some examples:
• SYNERGISM: Wine and food creating a new favor. Stilton bleu cheese and Port.
• CHARDONNAY WITH STEAK: Full bodied California with lots of oak.
• RED VS. WHITE:You can follow a red wine with a white if there is lots of oak favor present, as in a California chardonnay.
• RED WINE WITH FISH: Beaujolais is ideal as the fruit to acid balance won’t cause the favors of the fsh to go all metallic on you.
• OCCASIONALITY: My thoughts on this chapter... Do have a “Tuesday night wine” for your everyday enjoyment. Mood will affect the way you enjoy wine. Don’t drink a great bottle if you are unhappy; save it to share with your connoisseur neighbor who will appreciate it along with you.
• CELEBRATE A TRIP: Pick the foods and wines of the country to relive your journey. It will be a fun shop as well as the experience.
• EXPERIMENT: Don’t memorize. You
can do a drier Riesling or Beaujolais as your one wine “fts all” with Thanksgiving.
NOT RECOMMENDED: “The New French Wine,” by Jon Bonne, 2vols.
As I don’t get reviewers’ copies sent free from publishers, I can be more candid than most. At $85 plus shipping for this new oversized two volume set, I was skeptical and got an interlibrary loan. Glad I did.
The lavish photographic winemaker pictures in every section lack an index to identify who they are. Maybe you already know who they all are, I sure don’t. The photographer has her own copyright. By page two there is a note that “you can read more about those on page 6 in the narrative volume.” My writing desk is large but barely big enough to sit with volumes one and two side by side while I fipfop through them. Why am I supposed to fipfop through two volumes? I have the gigantic Jancis Robinson book on grapes and don’t have a problem lugging it around. Bonne, you are wasting my time.
Also, there is a clear agenda here toward the organic and super organic, a.k.a. the biodynamic. Looking up some of the producers and then researching back to actual prices on WineSearcher.com leads me to believe that the true audience for this book is a hipster living in a million-dol-
Monday - Samuel Adams Tuesday - 14 to choose from Wednesday - Fat Tire Thursday - Long Trail Weekends - 20oz. PBR & High Life $3.25 Mimosas $3.95 (Noon - 7pm)
lar condo in Brooklyn with a trust fund.
One last thing irks me. In every other wine book (and I have owned and read thousands over the years) Bordeaux as a region is always at the front and center. It is the largest fne wine growing region on earth. They have been shoved to the back of the book. Not biodynamic enough? Maybe his audience is those New York sommeliers searching for the latest $400 bottle from an unknown grape made by a winemaker living in a yurt in a total backwater in France. Then this is their book.
“What to Drink with What You Eat,” by Andrew Dornenburg and Karen Page
Thinking of taking out a mortgage for the next few decades paying off those sommelier classes you signed up for on a whim? Or what’s worse, all your snowbird relatives are feeing to Maine this year for Thanksgiving.This is the one stop shop for all of their culinary questions.
There is a convenient divide between the food and wine section. Some of its strengths are the enormous cheese pairings – in case the French relatives show up for dinner. And it is eclectic in their recommendations from barbecue to caviar to Domino’s Pizza (yes, Domino’s Pizza).
The wine section features examples of high tannin wines, herbaceous, oaky, and many more together with the foods that work and the ones that don’t.
I know that these books are a mere drop in the ocean of wine books, but in closing:
• “The Grail” - A great fall read.
• “The World Atlas of Wine” - Be sure to get the 8th edition.
• “Red Wine with Fish” - Long out of print with copies still available on abe. com.
• “The New French Wine” - I will be returning my interlibrary copy soon.
• “What to Drink with What You Eat” - Saves you when the relatives come to visit.
HAPPY THANKSGIVING!
Layne has been a professional in the wine business for many decades and was awarded the Master Knight of the Vine for his pioneering work in Oregon. He can be reached at lvwitherell@gmail.com.
Women, Walking and Wine Adventure to Catalonia
By Nancy Dorrans
Recently I received this message from a friend on Facebook:
including booking the transfers, accommodations, guides, excursions, and dining arrangements.
see the display of giant puppets that represent historical fgures of past kings and queens, mythical characters, noblemen, and peasants. One local woman eagerly pointed to the giants and explained to me (in Catalan) who they all represented! Even though I couldn’t understand what she was saying, her passion was evident. I could feel how proud these people are of their culture and history!
“I’m a bit jealous of your lifestyle, I get around a bit but you’re everywhere!”
Well I haven’t been everywhere, but earlier this fall I did head out again to Europe to escort a group of twelve women on an active adventure to the Catalonia region of Spain. Catalonia is part of Spain, but it is a distinct region that has its own customs and language that makes it oneof-a-kind.
This Women, Walking, and Wine Adventure to Catalonia was a long time coming. I frst explored the region in September 2019 as a guest of the Catalan Tourist Board. I was eager to add this lesser-known part of Spain with its extensive hiking trails and incredible food and drink to my Women, Walking & Wine small group series. Unfortunately, the original adventure, organized for September 2020, was postponed due to the pandemic.
Meritxell from El Brogit (a local Catalan guiding company specializing in ecotourism and wine tours) was my contact, guide, and tour operator in the region.We frst met when I was there in 2019 and she helped coordinate the entire itinerary,
Our tour included a combination of hiking, wine, and food to create an unforgettable experience. Imagine trekking from village to village on guided hikes on local trails, sipping Priorat wines (primarily reds made from Garnacha and Cariñena grapes), enjoying an olive oil tasting, a historical train ride, picnic lunches and other delicious meals that fuse Mediterranean and Spanish favors, incorporating fresh seafood, locally sourced meats, and seasonal produce. This is the Catalonia that I wanted to share.
We began with a taste of Barcelona, the capital city of Catalonia. Upon arrival our small group of women mixed and mingled with each other that frst evening, enjoying the city’s energy, style, tapas, and wine of course!
On day two, our only full day in Barcelona, we got to experience the La Mercè street festival with our local guide Oscar. The Mercè festival celebrates the patron saint of Barcelona, the Virgin of La Mercé.
The streets of this colorful city were abuzz with energy. Our group worked our way into a very crowded square to
We then witnessed a few Castells or human towers, a Catalan tradition that began in the 1700’s! The Pinya, or large group of the strongest people, set the foundation. Then the lighter ones climb to form the trunk, and the smallest climb up the trunk to the Pom de dalt or top of the tower. The highest Castells can reach up to ten foors high… Watching the littlest climb to the top literally took my breath away!
A series of miracles linked to the city of Barcelona are attributed to the Virgin of Mercé. As legend goes, on September 24, 1218, the Virgin appeared simultaneously to King Jaime I, Saint Pedro Nolasco,
and Saint Raimundo de Peñafort. In this apparition, the Virgin asked that they create a religious order to free Christians in the Holy Lands.
The next miracle came in 1687 when Barcelona was attacked by a plague of locusts. The people of Barcelona begged the Virgin for her assistance. When the plague ended, it was believed that it was La Mercé that vanished the locusts. What else could the city do but name La Mercé the patron of the diocese.
Perhaps we should turn to the Virgin for guidance today to help resolve ongoing global conficts and bring an end to the turbulent impacts of climate change. Why not? Just a thought… I’m with her.
Our next days were flled with walks through terraced vineyards and olive groves, delicious meals, jaw dropping views, winding trails, ripe fgs, and spontaneous moments with the friendly people of Catalonia. As always there is more to this adventure… I will take you along the rest of the way next month!
Till then take good care, be kind, listen (even if you don’t speak the language), and share your pride and passions! ~Nancy
3 Night *Escorted Tour from Portland, Maine to New York City during the Hap-Hap-Happiest time of the year! Why don’t you join us??
Castells, the human tower, a tradition in Catalonia. -Photos courtesy Nancy Dorrans
Women, Walking & Wine group adventure to Catalonia at La Mercè street festival, Barcelona. Nancy Dorrans is founder of Adventure Marketplace... Navigating travelers on authentic, nurturing, global and local adventures since 2014.
CLIMATE JUSTICE
Bright Idea: First Vote, Then Do This
By Caitlin Marshall
Hopefully, most readers of The West End News know by now that one very, very important action to take for a better climate future is to vote. Voting is the cornerstone of democracy. It is the fundamental way we show up and say: here are the issues that matter. The environmental coalition group, Maine Climate Action Now, has put together a great set of resources on where and when to vote along with questions to ask candidates about climate: https://www.maineclimateaction. org/voteclimatejustice2024.
But then what? Democracy does not stop at the ballot box. Here are a few ideas on how to expand your reach – and build community while you’re at it. Tell all your friends to vote and nail down a specifc plan. During the getout-the-vote campaign, those pesky canvassers and phone bankers (hello!) will ask you to think through your plan: Vote absentee? On election day, morning, or evening? How will you get there? Making a clear plan of how you will vote makes a meaningful impact on voter turnout, so have those conversations with your friends and family. Share a personal reason about why you are voting for climate advocates.
Support efforts to protect voting rights. Research by Yale shows that the American demographics most concerned about climate change are young, people of color, and lower income. (Perhaps pause for a moment to see how that matches
up to who you picture when you hear the word “environmentalist.”) These groups are also the most likely to be impacted by voter suppression measures.The ACLU and others have a wealth of resources to help ensure everyone gets their voice heard.
Submit public comments and testimony. Policies and projects are made year-round and don’t always get much input from the public. When we do weigh in, it can make a difference. For example, the controversial plan to build a new Gorham Connector highway is now back in a public review phase after loud opposition to the project. A decade ago, the Clear Skies Ordinance to block a tar sands oil pipeline passed the South Portland City Council after overwhelming public testimony.
Talk about climate… and not just the bad stuff. Many of us feel uncomfortable or uncertain about discussing our climate concerns with the people we know. But the more we talk, the more we normalize that the climate crisis is the reality of our times. And we can choose to talk about what inspires us! Solar and wind are growing faster than ever, Maine has surpassed goals on heat pump installations, and conservation of the Sebago Lake watershed is increasing. Let’s vote, and then let’s keep the conversation going.
Bright Ideas is by PCAT, who meet the four th Tuesday of the month, 6 to 7:30 p.m. FMI email Portlandclimate@gmail.com.
Carbon Dioxide Removal
By Tom Berry
Until recently, to tackle the climate emergency most of the attention has focused on curtailing carbon emissions. Without doubt, sharply reducing the amount of CO2 humans pump into the atmosphere is essential if we are to begin putting carbon back into balance. However, even if excess emissions were to cease, the problem would only be half-solved. The quantity of atmospheric “legacy” carbon that has been accumulating since the Industrial Revolution would keep us on a path of climate instability with continuing extreme weather-related events that are becoming all too familiar.
Despite modest progress in reducing emissions by some EU countries (and to a lesser degree by the US), global atmospheric CO2 has actually increased. As a result, the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) has begun explicitly stating that removing carbon from the atmosphere will be necessary if we are to limit global temperature increases to a level where we might avoid the worst effects of climate change.
To this end, increasing investment has begun fowing to carbon dioxide removal (CDR) efforts around the globe with hightech frms like Climeworks, Global Thermostat, Carbfx (and others) being prominent recipients of this support. These companies are working to scale their systems that essentially use huge fans to pull vast quantities of air through complex fltering processes where the CO2 is extracted. The carbon can then be stored underground or used in various products.
As encouraging as developments in this sector are, current operations are only just beginning to engage with this monumental problem. It’s estimated that there’s currently about 1 trillion tons of human-made “legacy” carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and capacities for hightech CDR currently stand at around 10,000 tons per year.
While these systems continue to ramp up, there are nature-based methods of CDR that deserve much more attention and support for two reasons:
1. These methods - when employed at scale - would provide a critical stopgap that could slow climate change and thereby provide more time for hightech systems to expand to effective capabilities.
2. Unlike high-tech systems, nature-based methods would offer a number of co-benefts including restoration of ecosystems and enhanced biodiversity. Also, these would continue to operate as signifcant elements of the necessary multi-pronged approach in dealing with this colossal challenge.
Generally speaking, natured-based methods for CDR include strategically restorative practices involving forests, agriculture, wetlands, and the ocean.
The task is daunting, but success is possible with determined collective effort – and one of these approaches could use your help. Remember: Action is the Antidote to Despair.
We’re All in this Together is provided by Citizens’ Climate Lobby.
“The Number Ten” Trivia
1. What’s the name for the first 10 amendments to the US Constitution, which were ratified together in 1791?
2. Out of the 10 Canadian provinces (not territories), how many have French as one of their o cial languages?
3. 1999’s 10 Things I Hate About You with Heath Ledger and Julia Stiles is a modernized retelling of what Shakespeare comedy?
4. “The Top Ten Words That Almost Rhyme With ‘Peas’” was the first of many top ten lists presented by what now-retired late night host who had shows on NBC and CBS? Find the answers online at thewestendnews.com/puzzle-solutions!
SLICE FROM THE PIE
Slices of the News for your enjoyment…
*Furniture Friends welcomes a team from the Portland Homeless Services Center to load 78 pieces of furniture to furnish 13 apartments for local neighbors coming out of homelessness and moving into Winter Landing...
*Ed Gardner with Gardner Real Estate Group in Portland is one of fve winners chosen as a recipient of the Natonal Associaton of Realtors Good Neighbor Awards for founding the Equality Community Center supportng 18 LGBTQ-focused nonprofts with below-market rent…
*East End Community School and the Maine Center for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing celebrate the life of former ed tech Joshua Seal who died in the October 2024 mass shootng in Lewiston with a beautful memorial bench
*Did you know that Maine has the most apple orchards per resident and the greatest number of weeks with fall foliage… Yet is ranked No. 9 Best State to Visit This Fall
*The Locker Project marks two milestones its 10th birthday and 3 million pounds of nourishing food shared with children and families…
*Bikers for Behavioral Health organize 185-mile beneft motorcycle ride to raise awareness and much-needed funds for behavioral health services across Maine and New Hampshire…*1 in 3 Americans plan to display a politcal campaign sign on their lawn this year… *Bayside neighborhood now has 153 new street trees afer a concerted plantng efort by the Parks Dept…
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November
Here comes our
and
After the meal it’s either a nap or a walk to help with digestion beforehand there might be a race or a parade
Black Friday is coming it’s the start of holiday spending which won’t end til next year I rarely get any good deals
There’s also a monumental election that will be decided in November at least four years will be determined A lot happens during a presidency
The fall is almost over for most there is a break it can be a chilly month heading for the conclusion of the year in December
-By Abram Gabriel, MD, MPH, Scarborough
thewestendnews@gmail.com
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