“Kindness Matters is a campaign designed to change the way people interact with each other. It is the legacy of a 13-year old who took his own life after years of bullying,” says the Kindness Matters website, kindness-matters.org.

And the winter continues on… Even so, resident Vern can be seen walking the streets of Damariscotta, in and out of shops and Yellowfront, and getting his daily dose of health.

Hello, friends and neighbors!

I am sure you have noticed that the weather seems more unpredictable than ever. Snow, rain, sleet, freezing rain, wicked cold, unusual warmth — we get it all, and sometimes within the same day! If you love playing in the snow, take advantage when it is here. Last week, we managed several nice days of skiing before the big melt and rain came again. We also enjoyed hiking in both of our local preserves and are grateful that we can drive to them in about 10 minutes.

The prolonged bitter cold snap over the holidays has affected 139 million Americans. Still, this weather effect was localized — the U.S. comprises less than 2 percent of Earth’s surface area. Many other parts of the planet were much warmer than normal.

Sometimes I don’t have a story. Usually everything goes well when I’m pet sitting. Nobody gets sick, runs out the door, or brings in a fuzzy creature for me to chase. Considering how often I spend time with other peoples’ pets, this is probably a good thing. It doesn’t make for a very good story, however. Instead, I thought it might be helpful to understand the human taking care of your beloved pets.

Happy new year to us all! Here’s hoping for health, happiness, and prosperity in the year before us. It does sound nice.

Recent Nor’easters, ice, whiteouts, and Arctic temperatures have most of us hunkering down at home. The kitchen becomes a place of warmth and comfort, and for the cook presents both challenge and opportunity to try new things. Some of us will even reluctantly admit that it is a way to relieve that encroaching “cabin fever” feeling.