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Archive for March, 2010

By J. DeVoy
New facts about the Tea Party movement emerge in a recent Quinnipiac University poll.

74 percent are Republicans or independent voters leaning Republican;
16 percent are Democrats or independent voters leaning Democratic;
5 percent are solidly independent;
45 percent are men;
55 percent are women;
88 percent are white;
77 percent voted for Sen. John McCain in 2008;
15 percent voted [...]

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How bout some stories in the comments of this post as to how all my peeps are holding up in this latest round of rain.
I follow Matt Noyes on Twitter and he had been harping all week about the severity of the flooding from this latest deluge. He pretty much nailed it. Gotta give [...]

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Today the ground is saturated,basement pumps are working overtime as we are again pelted with heavy rains. On Monday an oxygen tank and acetylene tank caught fire inside the Carter’s Yacht Yard building at the Rose’s Marine property. Another “good stop” by the Gloucester Fire Department prevented a major explosion and fire.”Gillian Anne” passes Carters Yacht Yard building.Hauling out damaged

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So wrong!

irritated lobster, originally uploaded by trappedinabay.

Filed under: lobster Tagged: Cat, Cat outfit, lobster, Lobster costume

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By J. DeVoy
Public employees in political jobs often walk a difficult line when they speak about current affairs.  Historically, this speech was protected by the Pickering-Connick test, established in Pickering v. Board of Education of Township High School District, 391 U.S. 563 (1968), and Connick v. Myers, 461 U.S. 138 (1983).  Under that test, courts [...]

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Cathy Writes-
There is so much to see from this view – the lights reflecting on the water, the houses on the hills in East Gloucester, the steeples of Our Lady of Good Voyage Church and Our Lady herself, watching over the city.

Our Lady of Good Voyage, originally uploaded by ~ cathy ~.

Filed under: [...]

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Condomania apparently did an extensive survey of cock sizes throughout the United States. This article, from the Phoenix New Times, proudly boasts the Grand Canyon State’s fifth place finish.
According to the study, New Hampshire has the biggest average penis size in America. That makes sense, what with all that self-confident “Live [...]

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Ashley Muise with her grandma Vickie Morgan painted birdhouses at the Art Haven table this weekend. Good to see you both!
Filed under: gloucester Tagged: Art Haven, Cape Ann Chamber of Commerce, Sharon Lowe

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Join us for…
Cherylann Parker Day at

Franchised by: G.F. Vasey Holdings, LLC
Located in the Gloucester Crossing Plaza.
(Black Burn Circle)
978-281-1811
On Tuesday, March 30, 2010
From 12:00 noon to 8:00pm

10% of the sales generated by the participants during the Feature Day will go directly to the Cherylann Parker Fund. The Franchise will match the funds [...]

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Just added the dates for this year’s Block Parties-  make note, there is an all day Block Party the Day of August 8, 2010 from 1PM-11PM.  It coincides with the Gloucester Triathlon.  That is going to be a serious celebration.   If you are planning to have relatives come in for one weekend during the summer [...]

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Filed under: Beautiful Industry, gloucester, Working Boats Tagged: Cape Ann, gloucester, Herring Boats, herring fleet, http://www.frontierogallery.com

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A few weeks ago I was talking to my brother-in-law Andy and he mentioned he was reading a book that he just loved. I’d never heard of it, Peace Like A River by Leif Enger but, based on Andy’s recommendation, I decided to order it. For the last few days I’ve been somewhat felled by a combination of a sore back and some kind of chills/body ache thingy so it was a good time to lay low and savor this book. Savoring is the best way to read a book like this.


We live in an era when people seem bizarrely proud to declare, “Oh, I never read fiction!” like that says something positive about them. We also live in an era where genre fiction tends to make that tendency among some to be somewhat more forgivable. Formula novels for romance, mystery, sci-fi, or whatever have rendered those genres so lame and predictable I can understand why many readers give up on fiction. But the popular alternatives, celebrity and political bios and the deplorable miz-lit chief among them, are equally lame and predictable. But then there is the literary novel. Peace Like A River is a luminous example of those.

The first thing you notice beginning this novel is the language. Enger writes with a style that is both hard-scrabble, mid-Western plainness and lilting poetics at the same time. There were passages that were a little challenging until I caught on to the flow of his language and then the lilt and flow added seamlessly to the experience of living in Minnesota, traveling through North Dakota and into the Badlands searching for one’s beloved son.

The story, told from the point of view of Reuben Land, the 11 year old son of Jeremiah Land, a widower rising his three children alone, is simple. In the 1960s Jeremiah is a school janitor doing his best to raise his kids. His feisty but romantic, poetry-writing 9 year old daughter Swede has a frightening encounter with two teenage school bullies. Later that night the two break into the Land’s house and are both shot dead by the older Land son, 16 year old Davy. What follows is a trial in which the young shooter is convicted of second degree manslaughter and sentenced to prison. But Davy manages to escape the jail before being carted off to prison and takes off into the Badlands. Jeremiah packs his two younger children into an Airstream trailer and goes off in search of his son.

Throughout the journey there is the constant presence of the awe and wonder of a time that cannot help but seem more innocent and yet more frightening. There are mysteries, signs, wonders and the haunting presence of the unexplained, the miraculous. These are things I love and appreciate in story-telling because, in my opinion, these are things that make stories integral to human experience and eternal. Jeremiah Land is the real hero of the story because he is a good man who loves all his children and wants to do right by them but he is an honest man torn between protecting Davy and doing the right thing.

Our modern era is so full of technology and scientific advancements and media and constant information overload that it is something of a relief to slip back to a time, not all that long ago, when communication was often problematic and life was more mysterious. People could just disappear. Using one’s instincts and heightened perception and bonds of love were integral to an adventure such as the one Jeremiah Land takes his children on. This is a book that haunts even days after you finish the last page there are scenes that linger and feelings that stir. This is a novel that has more truth than any non-fiction is capable of. I’ve always said that a good novel tells the truth while being unencumbered by the facts. Peace Like A River is an excellent example of that.

Thanks for reading.

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Click on the photo above to go to Blueslvr’s Blog. Thank you again Joanne!!
Filed under: GMG Music Schedule Tagged: Blueslvr’s Blog, GMG Local Music, Joanne Silva

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A bunch of folks met each Saturday morning last year to spend a little time outdoors and clean up City Streets that could use a little trash pick up.  Our very own very good buddy Donna Ardizzoni fills folks in on where to meet and everyone sets off to clean up a [...]

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Willow Rest Scene

I spy Snoop Maddie Mad sportin’ her pink bows and chomping down on a chocolate chip cookie.

Willow Rest, originally uploaded by captjoe06.

Filed under: Eats, Family Tagged: Eats, Family, Snoop Maddie Mad, Willow Rest

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