Working Waterfront

A radio reporter’s bad static

Where Gillian Burnes got the name “Coralie Threlfell” for the narrator of her novel, Soft Features, I don’t know. But it rings exactly true for a public radio reporter. SEE MORE

Gregory Dunham’s Eaton’s Boatyard, 2015; watercolor, 15 inches by 22½ inches (now in a private collection).

Working Waterfront

Gregory Dunham paints Eaton’s Boatyard

In 1980, inspired by friend and mentor, the famed lithographer Stow Wengenroth (1906-1978), painter Gregory Dunham and his wife-to-be Pat McGrath decided to go on a “pilgrimage” to some of the Maine towns the artist had frequented in his lifetime. From their home in Rockport, Mass., they drove straight to… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

How to determine the degrees of ‘Away’

Away happens and it comes in many forms as does the process of making an accurate determination of whether one is from here, from here only to a degree, or from elsewhere. The means-testing that has emerged is quite sophisticated and, when applied carefully, reveals relative nativeness with uncanny accuracy.… SEE MORE

A boat underway powered by an electric outboard in Bristol, R.I. PHOTO: JACK SULLIVAN

Working Waterfront

Fast-forward: Electric outboards are here

Aboard a rigid inflatable boat traveling upwards of 40 knots, experiencing acceleration I’d previously associated with drag racing, it was clear the electric motors at Flux Marine in Bristol, R.I. pack a punch. The goal of my visit was to shoot photos and videos of the outboard motors in action,… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Letters to the editor: Arts, memory, and enthusiasm

Arts Downeast To the editor: Thank you for the Field Notes column by Lisa Mossel on Passamaquoddy Bay communities (“Eastport, Lubec banking on the arts,” The Working Waterfront’s September issue). Your column is a touchpoint of the necessity of the arts in our lives: encouraging creativity, stimulating, and a meeting… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Hosting a lobster party for a cause

On July 8 I received an e-mail from the Maine Lobstermen’s Association (MLA) asking if Bruce and I knew someone who would be interested in hosting an informative fundraising cocktail party on Islesford in August. The federal government is threatening the Maine lobster fishing industry with escalating regulations that will… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Convenience may be the enemy of connection

Seeking convenience almost always sacrifices connection, something pointed out to me by my wise niece, Sarah. By that standard, I have a very connected kitchen. For instance, no dishwasher occupies space here. Sarah, and occasionally our young friend and occasional co-habitant Brynn and I wash dishes. I love being connected… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Growth, fear, and ferry line anxiety

By the time you read this, it’ll be pretty close to October, or as some people call it, spooky season. Fear and anxiety are part of my day-to-day life, so I tend to say “no thank you” to recreational fear. Those fears gave way to anxiety around air travel and… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Beyond the illusion

The Midcoast By Adam White (Random House Books, 2022) Review by Tina Cohen Adam White’s debut novel, The Midcoast, is set in Damariscotta, a town familiar to him from his childhood. This is contemporary Maine, with a close-up look at several families, including Andrew’s, who is the book’s narrator, and… SEE MORE

Lobster landing in Vinalhaven. FILE PHOTO: TOM GROENING

Working Waterfront

Pay attention to women-owned businesses

I daydream about becoming a farmer. My vegetable garden last year would warn against it, and this year I didn’t even try to grow a tomato plant in a pot. Instead, I daydream of working on the water, farming scallops. I want to be an aquaculturist in my next life… SEE MORE