It is good to see the Bristol Board of Selectmen were willing to reconsider a blanket policy they previously adopted, closing the town’s fire stations to any group other than the local fire department.

I have spent the better part of my life living in Midcoast Maine. Personal circumstances necessitated a couple of relocations to other parts of the US, but I always knew I would end up back here in Lincoln County. I became disabled (lung cancer) nearly five years ago and moved back for good in the fall of 2005.

Damariscotta region can breath easy…the Fisherman’s Catch on Main St. Damariscotta has been sold.

The new owner will be opening the doors soon to provide the town with fresh seafood once again. The new owner will also accept your Fisherman’s Catch gift certificates.

Often, all too often, the really riveting stories; the ones that get people talking and keeps people talking are the ones that ultimately involve a tragedy or hardship of some kind for someone. Whether it’s a fatal accident, a significant fire, or a murder, it titillates and amazes.

It warms my heart that in today’s world so many great people have come together in a community to help us out. It started April 13 when a 10-year-old boy (Dakota) was burned in a flash fire.

First I would like to address the constant abuse you have put on me as a volunteer fire fighter. I have been a volunteer since high school, started at age 16, leaving the department briefly to move to Texas. Volunteers protect and rescue the public on a daily basis. They receive very little monetarily but enjoy helping others.

Until Dakota Boutte was seriously burned three weeks ago, it’s likely few people outside his circle of friends and family in Jefferson knew who he was.

Hybrid wolves off Bristol’s Poor Farm Road is not a good fit for Bristol. Though a beautiful animal, hybrids are notorious escape artists. Wolves by nature are predatory and travel in packs. Therefore, the hybrids should not be in a residential area without a sufficient buffer between the wolves and the families with children, and domestic pets.

This time of year is the best time to live in Lincoln County. This is different of course from the best of the summer season, and the best of fall and even the highlights of winter.

In fact, is there ever a bad time to live in Lincoln County?

It was interesting to see the reaction last week when outgoing Commissioner of the Dept. of Education Susan Gendron announced her resignation.

As of this date, it is uncertain whether there will be a National Day of Prayer. Since so much of the population already prays, in churches, synagogues, and mosques, in restaurants before meals, in hospitals, etc., it seems rather unnecessary, and perhaps dreamed up so that both elected officials and clergy might share a lavish breakfast at taxpayers’ expense.

The second winter season of Simply Suppers kicked off Jan. 12. Simply Suppers are a January-April invitation for anyone to come to the Bremen Union Church for a free home-cooked meal. The idea of Simply Suppers began as a way to reach out to those who may feel isolated during the long Maine winters or just like the idea of getting together to eat with others in the community.

There was a time, back before professional wrestling became the ‘roided up, sleazed out spectacle it is today – it was more or less family entertainment. As late as the early 1980s, before the WWE became the 800-lb. gorilla it is today, fathers and sons could still take in a big time wrestling promotion at the local middle school.

In the early 1980s my aunt, the late Cathy Zecchino Farrell, brought something new to the town of Damariscotta: the submarine sandwich. Sure, other shops in town offered sandwiches, but none could compare to the fine quality and tradition that came with a real submarine. Cathy opened Zecchino’s Submarine Sandwiches with 16 subs on the menu. Her hard work paid off and in no time business was booming.