“Nine-one-one, what’s the address you’re calling from,” asks Regan Pearce, a dispatcher at the Lincoln County Communications Center in Wiscasset. 

As we approach August on the cusp of a steamy July, cold soups become welcome partners in planning refreshing meals. On hot days, a cold soup can remarkably revive flagging appetites, while remaining light and satisfying. Many of them require minimal cooking and are perfect for meals that can be made ahead.

Samantha Mehlhorn, SNAP educator, popping into your column this week as a guest writer to invite you to join us at the Damariscotta Farmers Market.

“There is often a single shadowy figure among the pantheon of family elders whose influence seems to leap out of the past and touch one with special intensity.”

It all started one fine summer afternoon. My mom has a couple of doggie clients that she lets out to run around and do their “business” several days a week while their people are at work. One particular set are the duo of Tuckerman, a year-old retriever and his very opinionated bud Piper, (affectionately called Pipes by my mom, who has said she loves this guy way too much) a 15-year-old Pug.

The relativity few insects that produce light have long attracted attention. Fireflies, also known as lightning bugs are common in this country. About 50 species are known here and they are widely distributed in the tropics. They are not a fly or a bug, but a soft-bodied beetle and in the families of Lampyridae and Cantharidae.

As summer heats up in July, the home cook loves simplified meals. Grilled meats and green salads are wonderful, but we all crave variety and look for other options. Pork tenderloin, that lean, and relatively inexpensive cut of meat can be a quick solution for cooler times of the year, but in summer it requires a different approach that does not require heating up the oven.