All Stories

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Girl Scouts Learn a Jeweler’s Craft

It was a quiet day in early March, but the Jewelry Studio of Wellfleet was buzzing with activity. Seven members of Girl Scout Troop 82548 were inside, soldering, hammering, and […]

Wellfleet Town Meeting Delayed by Financial Pickle

WELLFLEET — The town’s continuing financial fiasco has now prompted the select board to postpone the annual town meeting until Saturday, June 11. The town charter requires that the annual […]

Bylaw Changes Seem to Target Walsh Land

TRURO — Anne Greenbaum, chair of the planning board, presented the select board with seven articles for town meeting on March 8, ready to breeze through each one. “I don’t want […]

Two Seats but Just One Candidate

Editor’s note: Because of a fact-checking error, the print edition of this article, dated March 17, reported that the date of the annual town election had been changed to June […]

Beebe and Bienvenue Push for $500K Budget Override

EASTHAM — Town officials tried to persuade the finance committee on March 9 that a $500,000 budget override was still needed despite $220,000 in savings since a preliminary budget was […]

Supt. Clenchy Picks Patrick Clark for Principal

EASTHAM — Nauset Regional High School Assistant Principal Patrick Clark has been named principal and will start on July 1. School Supt. Brooke Clenchy announced her choice on March 14 […]

Outer Cape Towns Weigh Community Impact Fees

TRURO — In an effort to stem the loss of residential property from the year-round housing stock, three Outer Cape towns are considering the adoption of an additional fee on […]

Three Finalists Named for Wellfleet Town Administrator

WELLFLEET — The Town Administrator Screening Committee has identified three finalists for the job, according to a March 11 memo sent by committee chair Bruce Bierhans to the select board. […]

Dancing Their Way From Cape Cod to Ireland

EASTHAM — When Madeline Schnitzer was six years old, she participated in her first regional Irish step dance competition. “I had no idea what to expect and no idea how […]

On the Outer Cape, the ADA Doesn’t Change Much

WELLFLEET — When 84-year-old Carmen Castro had a major stroke in 2017 and needed full-time care, her daughter, Belinda, quickly stepped up, adjusting to the 24-hour routine of administering medication […]

Select Board Sponsors Bylaws to Address Housing Needs

WELLFLEET — The select board has proposed two articles for the June 11 annual town meeting aimed at addressing the town’s lack of both affordable and year-round housing. One would […]

Pies for Pi Day Winners

The 2022 Indie Pie Contest, in recognition of Pi Day, 3/14, produced two winners, who were interviewed by Taste Editor Teresa Parker. —Ed. Golden Goose Award Winner: Carolina Marseglia Making […]

Armed for Spring With a 15-Minute Workout

Two months ago, I wrote about how you can build strength in as little as 15 minutes a day. That piece covered the legs. Of course, you can’t just work […]

Stop & Shop Workers Ratify New Contract

PROVINCETOWN — After three months of negotiations, the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Union Local 328 secured a four-year agreement for Stop & Shop employees on Feb. 27. The […]

Full Moon in Virgo

This week’s full Moon in the orderly, nurturing sign of Virgo brings clarity to chaos, illuminating the imperfections we try so hard to subdue. Instead of trying to manage disorder, […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, March 15 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

PR for the Police Station

Some meetings in Provincetown are in person, some are online, and some are both. Click on the meeting you want to attend on the calendar at provincetown-ma.gov for a link to an […]

The Salty Market Farmstand

Most meetings in Truro are remote. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. The agenda includes instructions on how to join. Thursday, March 17 Climate […]

Human Resources

All meetings in Wellfleet are remote only and can be watched online. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch, then follow the instructions on the […]

Food for Veterans

Most meetings are being held in person, but some are still remote or virtual. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about meeting […]

Battling the Elements for Art’s Sake

As an elementary-school student in Virginia, Elizabeth Flood found a Civil War bullet while digging in the sand at recess. “It was on my radar at a very early age […]

Jon Richardson Composes an Ode to Gay Old Provincetown

“My first love is theater,” says Jon Richardson, a Provincetown musician known for his piano bar gigs at Tin Pan Alley and the Crown & Anchor. Or, perhaps, you may […]

Wandering the Topkapı Palace With Zeynep Özakat

“Narrative weaves through many aspects of our lives in ways we are often not even aware of,” says the Turkish-born writer Zeynep Özakat. Her first novel, which she is working […]

Rose Clancy’s Irresistible Irish Sessions

“All it takes is two people to have an Irish session,” says fiddler Rose Clancy of Chatham, who has been hosting Celtic jam sessions in pubs and restaurants on Cape […]

Arts Briefs

A Musical Embrace “It’s like a marriage with ups and downs,” says accordionist Vincent Peirani of his collaboration with soprano saxophonist Emile Parisien. The musical “odd couple” are performing a […]

Spring Cleaning

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Children’s Worries About War

Many of my friends in Poland have families from Ukraine in their homes now. One friend, Marta Shaw, a philologist at the Institute of Public Affairs at the Jagiellonian University […]

A Debate on Citizen Petitions

Basic issues of democratic process sometimes arise in the most apparently mundane proceedings. The Barnstable County Assembly of Delegates recently held a hearing on an ordinance proposed by the Cape […]

Letters, March 17, 2022

For a ‘Workers Village’ To the editor: Re Edward Ebert’s letter of March 10 [“Wellfleet’s ‘Financial Rotary’ ”]: Finally, a voice in the wilderness that makes sense. I wish to […]

Stepping Up in Wellfleet

A lot of readers of the Independent have been asking, “What can be done about Wellfleet?” I’m not sure what the answer is, but I have a few ideas. The […]

Anne MacAdam, 91, Automotive Designer and Landscape Painter

Anne MacAdam died in Provincetown on Feb. 25, 2022 after several months in hospice. Her death, at age 91, was confirmed by her daughter, Heather Dune Macadam. Anne was born […]

Peter Welker, 79, Brought His Trumpet to Cape Cod

Peter Welker died in Sun City, Ariz. on Jan. 12, 2022 from complications of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and Covid. The West Coast jazz musician, composer, arranger, producer, and sideman, […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

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Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from March 7 to March 11, 2022. PROVINCETOWN March 7. KCC Realty Group LLC [Claudio Gervasi and Kevin T. Moss, managers] to […]

Classifieds March 17- March 23, 2022

THE ARTS Two-session online workshop: Painting Through the Eyes of Hilma af Klint, Saturday, March 26, 10-2 and Saturday, April 2, 10-11:30 with Alana Barrett and Laura Shabott. Workshop includes […]

Indie’s Choice

Craic-ing Up (Thursday, March 17) Provincetown Dramatic Arts hosts a craic-filled St. Patrick’s Day celebration on Thursday, March 17, 6 to 9:30 p.m. at the Elks Lodge, 10 McKoy Road […]

Provincetown Legal Notices

Town of Provincetown Public Hearing Planning Board Proposed Zoning Bylaw Changes March 24, 2022 The Provincetown Planning Board will hold a public hearing pursuant to G.L. c. 40A in the […]

New Culvert Will Boost Tidal Flow to East Harbor

TRURO — The neat stacks of concrete pipes lined up along Route 6A in North Truro are not a public art project. They are being installed underground as part of […]

E.U. Markets Reopen to Outer Cape’s Shellfish

WELLFLEET — Shellfish from Outer Cape Cod may soon make its way to Europe again after a 12-year hiatus. What that means for local growers is not yet clear, but so […]

Police Station, Housing Efforts Top Provincetown Agenda

PROVINCETOWN — Voters at annual town meeting on April 4 may feel like they’re at the civic version of a double feature. The main attractions will be the police station proposal […]

Truro to Host Public Forum on Suicide Prevention

TRURO — A public forum on raising awareness of youth suicide and its causes and prevention will be held at the Truro Community Center from 6 to 7 p.m. on […]

Beach Rights Restored to Indigenous People

TRURO — The select board voted unanimously on Feb. 22 to waive beach fire and parking fees for Native American tribe members. Truro thus follows the lead of the town of […]

Wellfleet Couple Says Builder Swindled Them

WELLFLEET — John and Ella Grannis retired from their small bookselling business in Montclair, N.J. in 2019 and moved to the Outer Cape to renovate a family summer cottage. Now, […]

Nauset Boys Hockey Stays Alive

Update: The boys hockey team lost in the Round of 16 to Lynnfield by a score of 7-1 on Wednesday night.EASTHAM — The Nauset boys hockey team showed sheer […]

Radioactive Water From Pilgrim Would Flow to Outer Cape

PLYMOUTH — The company decommissioning the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station in Plymouth has not said much about where the radioactive water it proposes to release into Cape Cod Bay would […]

Sharks Patrol Shallow Waters Here

PROVINCETOWN — The presence of great white sharks on the Outer Cape’s shores may not be the shocking news it used to be, but just how much of the time […]

Colcannon Made With Kale

When my sister-in-law and brother invited Christopher and me to join them on a hiking trip across Ireland’s Dingle Peninsula, you might be surprised to know, I didn’t say yes […]

A Retreat for Artists Takes Shape at Edgewood Farm

TRURO — Turn toward the ocean at the sign for Edgewood Farm on Route 6 and follow the road up a short hill. There you’ll find a striking shingled barn, […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, March 8 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

The Lifesaving Legacy of Capt. David H. Atkins

Edward Rowe Snow, the master chronicler of New England sea stories, wrote a letter to the Provincetown Advocate in February 1964, seeking information about descendants of Capt. David H. Atkins, […]

Leopard-Look Double-Take

Sallyanne Austin (left) of Nantucket and Helena Gomes of Stoughton leave brunch on Bradford Street in Provincetown, warmed by their faux leopard-print coats and hats, on a cold late February […]

Town Meeting Tune-Up

Some meetings in Provincetown are in person, some are online, and some are both. Click on the meeting you want to attend on the calendar at provincetown-ma.gov for a link to an […]

Next Step at Council on Aging

Most meetings in Truro are remote. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. The agenda includes instructions on how to join. Thursday, March 10 Shellfish […]

New Town Accountant and Treasurer

All meetings in Wellfleet are remote only and can be watched online. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch, then follow the instructions on the […]

Select Board Changes

Most meetings are being held in person, but some are still remote or virtual. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about meeting […]

Nick Fagan’s Southern Comfort

Fine Arts Work Center visual fellow Nick Fagan knows the power of a good, weighty blanket. The bright colors and soft textures are a balm for troubled minds in turbulent […]

Blurring the Line Between Sculpture and Photography

Clint Baclawski’s installation Bound/ary at Room 68 is a welcome reprieve of light and color on a blustery winter day in Provincetown. The installation consists of a folding screen where […]

A Mixed Bag of Oscar Hopefuls

As fans of Spanish writer-director Pedro Almodóvar well know, his films combine personal narrative obsessions and familiar stylized production design with a kind of raw, emotional reality that we all […]

Writing of the Past, for the Future

Laura Cresté still has Mead notebooks full of the nature poems she started writing around age six. She wrote one after watching a seagull attack a crab while on the […]

Arts Briefs

Spring at Bakker Auctions Bakker Auctions will hold its spring fine arts auction on Saturday, March 12 beginning at 1 p.m. Women artists are well represented in the 145 lots, […]

Peak Cabin Fever

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Snowdrops

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Town Hall Love Affair

I have never written a love letter to a building before, but the spirit moves me now. Provincetown Town Hall is doubly beautiful, first for her physical attributes but even […]

Thinking Clearly About Brain Fog

A friend told me the other day that she doesn’t know if it’s post-Covid brain fog she’s suffering from, or if it’s undiagnosed Lyme disease or some other sinister condition […]

The Time for Communion and Compassion Is Now

Surfacing on the forward edge of the Aquarian Venus-Mars alignment that will bestow social graces upon us for the next month, the illuminating Sun and dream-weaver Neptune connect in the […]

Swan Lake

Last week, a young mayor in the Ukrainian town of Kopychyntsi sought out journalists in America. He knew that telling his town’s story, his country’s story, was as vital as […]

Letters, March 10, 2022

That House at Ballston To the editor: In the first week of February, the building that was the former Pamet River Life Saving Station was moved back under emergency order […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

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Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Feb. 28 to March 4, 2022.PROVINCETOWN Feb. 28. Erica D. Quitzow to Bryan E. Lasseter and Frederick J. Riccardi. 129A […]

Classifieds March 10- March 16, 2022

LEARNING Free computer class started March 7. In “Introduction to Digital Culture,” learn to connect to the internet more easily, avoid scams and fraud, identify reliable health resources, virtually attend […]

Charles P. Morton II, 74, Mainstay of Days Cottages

Charles Philip Morton II died peacefully on Feb 25, 2022 at his home in North Truro with his fiancée, Annie (Jordan) Appling, by his side. The cause of death was leukemia. He […]

Mosaic Artist Elizabeth S. Fleeson Dies at 65

Elizabeth Seward Fleeson, known as Libby, died peacefully of natural causes at her Provincetown home on Feb. 11, 2022, nine days before her 66th birthday. The cause of death was […]

Indie’s Choice

Reap What You Sow (Thursday, March 10) The Eastham Public Library, 190 Samoset Road, hosts its first Seed Swap on Thursday, March 10, 4 to 5:45 p.m. Bring any seeds […]

Provincetown Legal Notices

Town of Provincetown Public Hearing Annual Town Meeting – Building Committee Recommendations March 23, 2022 Per the Provincetown Charter 2-3-g, the Provincetown Building Commitee will hold a Public Hearing on Wednesday, […]

‘We Need to Stand Together’

In a one-hour conversation on Tuesday, Bogdan Kelichavyi had to relocate four times. He began our video call in his town hall office in Kopychyntsi, Ukraine but was interrupted almost […]

No Sprinklers Means Wellfleet School Might Be Shut

WELLFLEET — Three years ago, Fire Chief Richard Pauley raised an alarm about the nonexistent sprinkler system at the Wellfleet Elementary School — a violation of the state building code. […]

Truro Man Indicted for Selling Firearms

TRURO — A Truro man is facing a federal charge of illegally selling firearms after being indicted by a grand jury. A continuing investigation may result in additional charges, according to […]

Schools Set Varied Dates on Going Mask-Optional

An emotionally charged Feb. 23 meeting of all five school committees in the Nauset region ended with the members voting to relax the mask mandate that has been in effect […]

$10M in ARPA Cash May Arrive

Officials in nine of the 15 Barnstable County towns want to see the entire $41.37 million the county will get in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds distributed directly to […]

Foxes Are ‘Out and About’ for Mating Season

PROVINCETOWN — In winter, it’s not uncommon to see a red fox trotting down Commercial Street at dusk. Foxes here have grown used to living near humans, enticed by our […]

Eastham Police Budget Hit by Overtime Costs

EASTHAM — With less than two months to go until the May 2 town meeting, finance committee meetings have become a revolving door of department heads presenting their budgets. The […]

Three Nauset Teams Push for Playoff Run

EASTHAM — “They’re confident, determined, and focused.” That’s how Jake Pickard, interim head coach of the Nauset boys ice hockey team, described his skaters as they prepared for a first-round […]

Sticks and Stones Make for Good Curling

ORLEANS — Curling always mystified Ron Fancy. And so, he took up the sport. He had watched curling on TV, Fancy said, but “I just couldn’t understand how they did […]

In a Wellfleet Back Yard, One Family’s Maple Sugaring Tradition

The Outer Cape is known for many culinary delicacies: Eastham turnips, Wellfleet oysters, and Provincetown’s seafood-laden Portuguese stews. But maple syrup? That’s long been the pride of our neighbors to […]

Hugo Rizzoli’s Classic Marinara

It all started with the savory scent of slowly cooking garlic drifting up the street from Ciro and Sal’s restaurant. Working that summer of 1978 as a painter’s assistant in […]

Looking Back in Time and Space

The full moon you see rising in the east now actually rose 1.3 seconds ago. That’s how long it takes sunlight reflecting off the lunar surface to reach Earth. If […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, March 1 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Venus and Mars Walk Into Aquarius…

Get ready for a loosening of restrictions, cosmonauts. And if it’s not the abatement of pandemic-related rules — for which we are all desperately impatient — then it’s for a […]

Down and Dirty With Sewers

Some meetings in Provincetown are in person, some are online, and some are both. Click on the meeting you want to attend on the calendar at provincetown-ma.gov for a link […]

Growing ‘Weeds’

Most meetings in Truro are remote. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. The agenda includes instructions on how to join. Thursday, March 3 Economic […]

Town Hall Unmasked

All meetings in Wellfleet are remote only and can be watched online. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch, then follow the instructions on the […]

Mask Mandate Over

Most meetings are being held in person, but some are still remote or virtual. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about meeting […]

Capturing the Queer Collective Consciousness

In the stillness of the night, small creatures travel unseen through a rectangle of dust on the floor of the Provincetown Art Association and Museum. These “gallery ghosts” leave faint […]

The Internet as a Place of Fracture and Connection

Tracy Fuad was born the same month as the internet: March 1989. In her most recent poetry collection, about:blank, published in October, she describes the web as a bridge between […]

Portrait of an Artist on Fire

Richard Neal’s show at Wellfleet Preservation Hall, running through March 29, takes its title from an English colloquialism and album by The Who. “Odds and Sods” are 20 small works […]

De-Generalizing the ‘Native Experience’

“There’s very little legitimate literature about Native people,” says Fine Arts Work Center writing fellow Sterling HolyWhiteMountain, who grew up on the Blackfeet Reservation in Montana. “It wasn’t until I […]

Arts Briefs

It’s All About the Presentation Barry Katz is teaching a three-part online course on “Photographing Artwork” via Truro Center for the Arts at Castle Hill on Sundays beginning March 6, […]

Impatiens

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What Are Schools For?

A divided Eastham Select Board in January decided once again to put off for a year a decision on whether to adopt the residential tax exemption (RTE), which would shift […]

Letters, March 3, 2022

‘The RTE Is Unfair’ To the editor: Re “Select Board Tables RTE Until 2023” [Feb. 3, page A9]: In 1982, we built our house in North Eastham. For 40 years, we […]

Charles Morton Calling Hours

Charles Philip Morton died at his home in North Truro on Feb. 25, 2022. Calling hours will be held from 4 to 7 p.m. on Friday, March 4 at the […]

Albert Jakubowski, 92, Veteran, Artisan, and Raconteur

Albert George Jakubowski died peacefully in his sleep on Feb. 18, 2022 at his Provincetown home. His son, Jay Jakubowski, son-in-law Shawn Nightingale, and his beloved Havanese, Rosie, were by […]

Frederick Young, 72, Craftsman and Inn Owner

Frederick E. Young of Wellfleet’s Holden Inn died on Feb. 13, 2022 at Cape Cod Hospital. He had suffered for many years from inclusion body myositis, a degenerative muscle disease, […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

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Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Feb. 22 to Feb. 25, 2022. PROVINCETOWNFeb. 24. Hudson Harbor R.E. Properties LLC [Mitchel L. Klein, manager] to Iskren Georgiev. […]

Classifieds March 3- March 9, 2022

LEARNING Free computer class starting March 7. In “Introduction to Digital Culture,” learn to connect to the internet more easily, avoid scams and fraud, identify reliable health resources, virtually attend […]

Indie’s Choice

Saying Thanks (Thursday, March 3) Learn how to “Start a Gratitude Practice” with Gina Hamadey in a virtual talk via Wellfleet Preservation Hall on Thursday, March 3, 6 to 7 […]

Provincetown Legal Notices

Town of Provincetown Cape Cod Commission Provincetown Representative – call for nominees The Provincetown Select Board is seeking applicants for nomination as the Town of Provincetown’s representative to the Cape […]

Eastham Legal Notices

Town of Eastham PROPOSED FY23 FEE SCHEDULE Public Hearing March 7, 2022 The Eastham Select Board will hold a public hearing on MONDAY, MARCH 7, 2022 at 5:30 PM at […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

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EPA: Holtec Sows ‘Public Confusion’

PLYMOUTH — An Environmental Protection Agency official criticized Holtec International last week for misleading the public about its proposed dumping of radioactive water from the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station into […]

Truro’s ‘Little Jamaica’ to Become Worker Housing

TRURO — Before Covid-19, summer evenings at 104 Shore Road hummed with restaurant-goers at Terra Luna, and, later in the night, seasonal workers would return to the clapboard cottages on […]

Override to Cover Wellfleet Shortfall Grows to $1.3 Million

WELLFLEET — Town meeting voters will be asked to approve at least $1.3 million in Proposition 2½ overrides to fund last year’s budget shortfalls, maintain town services at their current […]

Assistant Principal Patrick Clark Is Lone Nauset Principal Finalist

EASTHAM — Less than six weeks after the search for a new Nauset Regional High School principal began, one of the school’s two assistant principals, Patrick Clark, has emerged as […]

Eastham House Demolished Illegally

EASTHAM — The owners of a historic Sears, Roebuck and Co. Craftsman house on Nan’s Way recently demolished their bayside cottage without permission. The 787-square-foot home was built in 1936, […]

Educators Walk a Fine Line in Addressing Suicide

HARWICH — “All schools should have suicide prevention protocols,” Maura Weir told a roomful of about 50 people at a public forum on suicide at the Brooks Free Library on […]

A Local Dentist Extracts Himself From the Profession

TRURO — Liz Lovati remembers the day one of her employees from Jamaica had an abscessed tooth. The first dentist she called would not help because the employee did not […]

Student Journalists Learn to Stay Curious

HARWICH — While some students may have landed in Scott Dalton’s journalism class by accident, they don’t regret it. Jacob DeFrancesco, a Cape Cod Regional Technical High School junior studying […]

In a Big Year for Nauset Basketball, a Video Star Emerges

EASTHAM — The Nauset High boys basketball team is having what could be a historic season, and senior JJ Alger is capturing it all on video. The Warriors are 16-3, […]

A Slice of Sunshine

My friend Kathy, who lives in California, recently sent me a box of Meyer lemons she had picked on her daily walk. I was thrilled — Meyers have a floral […]

Directions: The Way to Pie Day

I spent five years teaching in a professional cooking school in New York City and without a doubt everyone had the most fun on pie-making day. Many folks have serious […]

When It Was Pie Day All Day

The thing about being raised a Baptist in south Louisiana was that you ended up missing out on half the fun. Most of the idiosyncratic practices and traditions that gave […]

The Free Range Conundrum

When we started keeping chickens, we kept them in a fortress-like coop with a luxuriously large, protected run. I didn’t want our hens to be deprived of space. But I […]

Welcome, Cameron

Proud parents Todd Prada and Grace Ryder-O’Malley of Provincetown welcomed son Cameron Thomas Prada to the world on Jan. 30, 2022. The Blizzard of ’22 was beginning as his parents […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Feb. 22 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

How Not to Poison Your Best Friend

Christine Legere’s article in the Dec. 30 edition of the Independent about Provincetown’s approach to rat control triggered many memories for me. Some were traumatic, like the memories of wild […]

Winter Playoffs Set to Begin

EASTHAM — The Cape Cod Furies girls ice hockey team finished out its regular season with losses to Pembroke and Falmouth. But not to worry: the Furies’ 13-4-3 record is […]

New Moon Party in Pisces

Don your Babylon boots, stargazers. A planetary mashup of Sun, Moon, Jupiter, and Neptune in imaginative Pisces gives you the inspiration you need to let go and let luck. Maybe […]

Community Engagement on VFW

Some meetings in Provincetown are in person, some are online, and some are both. Click on the meeting you want to attend on the calendar at provincetown-ma.gov for a link […]

Rental Assistance

Most meetings in Truro are remote. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. The agenda includes instructions on how to join. Thursday, Feb. 24 Economic […]

A Legal Defense Fund

All meetings in Wellfleet are remote only and can be watched online. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch, then follow the instructions on the […]

Nauset’s Mask Policy May Loosen

Most meetings are being held in person, but some are still remote or virtual. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about meeting […]

From Black Resin Disco Balls to Cryptic Sky-Blue Paintings

Kevin Brisco Jr. paints too slowly, he says, for that to be his focus as a fellow at the Fine Arts Work Center. Instead, he is working mostly on conceptual […]

For Shastri Akella, Telling Stories Is a Labor of Love

Shastri Akella’s first novel, The Sea Elephants, begins with these lines: “My father left the country the year my sisters were born. He returned six months after I watched them […]

Here Come Provincetown’s Little Artists

“What do you see?” teacher Abraham Storer asks 15 eager young artists sitting on the floor, doodling in their sketchbooks. He points to some paintings by abstract expressionist Robert Beauchamp, […]

Mad Libs Poetry: A Starter Kit

Poets build poems within the shells of earlier work, caterpillar to moth. We learn to write by reading and echoing until something clicks that feels genuine and new. I love […]

Arts Briefs

Hope and Tenacity at the Commons It’s not too late to see Donna Pomponio’s show of portraits titled “Love, Trust, Support, Options = Change” at the Provincetown Commons. It runs […]

Year-Rounders Have No Regrets

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Crazy Times

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Ella Josephine Baker

Ella Baker grew up listening to her grandmother’s stories about life under slavery. Her grandparents bought and farmed land that was part of a North Carolina plantation where they had […]

Layering

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Closed on Wednesday

Last May I wrote about Frank Vasello, owner of the Provincetown deli and bakery Relish, who said he was so worried about finding employees in the housing crisis that he […]

Letters, February 24, 2022

Truro’s DPW Dilemma To the editor: Your Feb. 17 article [page A8] on the Truro DPW facility discussion is slightly misleading. First, while Mr. Alberti of Weston & Sampson did […]

Frances Biddle, Who Helped Elect Democrats, Dies at 101

Frances Edith Disner Biddle, who taught elementary school, helped her husband earn a Ph.D., raised two sons, doted on her grandchildren, enjoyed a half century of summers in Wellfleet, and helped elect […]

Albert David James, 89, Jet Engine Expert

Albert David James of South Wellfleet died peacefully on Dec. 12, 2021 at Seashore Point in Provincetown. The cause of death, confirmed by his nephew Chris James, was prostate cancer. […]

The Feisty, Insightful Mary Grace Smith Dies at 87

Mary Grace Smith, a founder and longtime board president of Wellfleet Preservation Hall, died suddenly and peacefully in her sleep at home in Wellfleet on Feb. 14, 2022. Her death […]

At Gracie’s Table, Friendship Was the Main Course

Mary Grace Smith, who died on Valentine’s Day at her home in Wellfleet, raised table-hospitality not just to an art form but to a kind of transcending act of commonwealth, […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Feb. 14 to Feb. 18, 2022. PROVINCETOWN Feb. 17. The Estate of John Dennis Eder (Mischa B. Richter and Lisa Ventre, […]

Indie’s Choice

Clay Time (Thursday, Feb. 24) Isabel Souza teaches the first session of “Thursday Night Clay” at Truro Center for the Arts at Castle Hill, 10 Meetinghouse Road, on Thursday, Feb. […]

Provincetown Legal Notices

Town of Provincetown Public Hearing Zoning Board of Appeals March 3, 2022 The Provincetown Zoning Board of Appeals will hold a Public Hearing at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday, March 3, […]

Classifieds February 24- March 2, 2022

LOVE Jessica Kent of Needham and Cody Edwards of Provincetown were engaged at Wequassett Resort and Golf Club last week. They plan a wedding there in May 2023. Cody runs […]

Winter Sunsets

Every evening, just before dark, a miracle occurs. You can go see it, and each time you do, it will be infinitely different from the last time you watched it. […]

Delgizzis Must Shape Up, Says Housing Court

TRURO — David and Carolyn Delgizzi of Weston, owners of the Truro Motor Inn, were rebuked by a judge at a Feb. 9 contempt hearing and ordered to find and […]

Nauset Hockey Coach Fired

Update: Nauset won 11-0 against Blue Hills Regional Technical School at Charles Moore Arena on Wednesday, Feb. 16 to clinch a spot in the postseason.EASTHAM — Nauset Regional High […]

Wellfleet’s Bond Rating at Risk in Accounting Quagmire

WELLFLEET — As April town meeting approaches, time is running out for the town to sort through its financial disarray. The Mass. Dept. of Revenue (DOR) has informed the town […]

Blizzard Review: Power to the Outermost People

PROVINCETOWN — The first large-scale battery backup system on Cape Cod is set to go online in Provincetown this summer. When it does, according to electric utility officials, power outages […]

Buy Down Pairs Generous Seller With Grateful Buyer

WELLFLEET — Nancy Lange wanted to sell her vacation house in Wellfleet to a local family instead of to the highest bidder. So, she agreed to sell her three-bedroom, one-bath […]

Truro Looks Again at a New DPW Building

TRURO — Plans for a new dept. of public works headquarters, which were put on a back burner in 2020, are heating up. On Feb. 8, the select board got an […]

12 New Condos Proposed for Nelson Avenue

PROVINCETOWN — Local developer Thomas Tannariello wants to build 12 condominium units on a .58-acre lot on Nelson Avenue. Two units would be deed-restricted as affordable dwellings. Tannariello’s company, Tri-T, […]

‘Archaic’ Policy Restricts Gay Men From Donating Blood

PROVINCETOWN — In need of a kidney transplant, Provincetown resident Bo Harris discovered that a rule blocked many of his friends from donating blood to show their support for him […]

Long-Pending ‘Cloverleaf’ Plan Will Move Forward

TRURO — A roadblock preventing progress on building a rental housing development here has been removed. The Truro Zoning Board of Appeals and affordable housing developer Community Housing Resource of […]

11 Nauset Swimmers Compete in Sectionals

EASTHAM — Three boys and eight girls from Nauset High’s swimming teams competed in the South Sectionals at Milford High School over the weekend. Among the boys, senior John Szucs […]

Satisfying Wanderlust With Homemade Naan

When my husband and I moved to Provincetown in 2014, we did it in pursuit of more time. We were tired of the constant grind of New York City, tired […]

How to Clean Up Your House Cleaning

Katie Scott started out helping people make their houses more beautiful. Now her mission is to make their surroundings healthier and greener, too. Growing up, Scott loved art. She felt […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Feb. 15 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Katz

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As the Sun Enters Pisces, a Time of Culmination

The Sun enters the waters of Pisces this week, the terminal sign of the zodiac, ruled by Jupiter and Neptune. Pisces is the culmination of all the other signs — […]

Mask and Vax Mandates Lifted

Some meetings are in person, some online, and some are both. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch to see if a remote option is available. Thursday, […]

Roads at Risk

Most meetings in Truro are remote only. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. The agenda includes instructions on how to join. Thursday, Feb. 17 Climate Action […]

Bumpy Briar Lane

All meetings in Wellfleet are remote only and can be watched online. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch, then follow the instructions on the […]

A ‘Community-Based’ Year

Most meetings are being held in person, but some are still remote or virtual. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about meeting […]

It’s Caucus Season

In late February and early March, voters registered as Democrats or Republicans have a chance to choose who will represent them at the state conventions where each party’s primary candidates […]

Repurposed Books Tell New Stories

When libraries grow tight on space, worn books are usually thrown out or given away. At the Eastham Public Library, they metamorphose into art. The fifth annual Repurposed Book Art […]

Complicated by Contradiction

Sitting in her studio in Provincetown, Ellen Akimoto says she has “a weird feeling of being at home and definitely not at home.” Originally from California, Akimoto arrived as a […]

In His Poems, Eduardo Martinez-Leyva Discovers Who He Is

“I was born and raised in El Paso, Texas,” says Eduardo Martinez-Leyva, a fellow at the Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown who will give an online poetry reading on […]

Arts Briefs

Art Demonstrations at Addison“Live Music and Art Demonstrations,” a benefit for Helping Our Women and the Cape Wellness Collaborative, will be held at Addison Art Gallery, 43 South Orleans […]

On the Edge

Sometimes the truth of a story is found between the lines, between the words, even. Not that the words are not true, but that there is a larger truth behind […]

Winter Sales

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Fannie Lou Hamer

“Righteousness exalts a nation. Hate just makes people miserable,” was one of Fannie Lou Hamer’s mantras. She fought passionately against attempts to deny Black people the right to vote. Born […]

The Death of Democracy and Capitalism

Our two most significant institutions, democracy and capitalism, exist today in name only. Our political system has abandoned us, and our economic system has consumed us. Politics and social media […]

The Fight for Housing

Last week we learned that the town of Eastham has taken possession of two duplex apartments whose owners, the Delgizzis of Weston, hadn’t paid property taxes on them for many […]

Stained-Glass Artist Christine Leigh Dies at 80

Christine Ann Leigh died at her home in Truro on Jan. 28, 2022. She had recently been released from Cape Cod Hospital, where she had been treated for pneumonia. She […]

World War II Combat Veteran Irvin Daubert, 101, Lived Life of Service

In Leslie West’s telling, her father, Irvin Daubert, “was born happy.” Which is how he got his nickname. Once, West explained, young Irvin was acting silly at a birthday party. […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

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Classifieds February 17- February 23, 2022

NEVER TOO LATE FOR LOVE To the center of my universe, my sun to warm my days, my moon to illuminate my nights, Jeanne Michaloski, your love fills me to […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Feb. 7 to Feb. 11, 2022. PROVINCETOWN Feb. 8. Nicklas Bengt Erik Oldenburg Revocable Trust (Nicklas Bengt Erik Oldenburg, trustee) and […]

Provincetown Legal Notices

Town of Provincetown Public Hearing Harbor Committee March 2, 2022 The Provincetown Harbor Committee will hold a Public Hearing on Wednesday, March 2, 2022 , at 5:00 P.M., in the […]

Indie’s Choice

Seal the Deal ( Thursday, Feb. 17) The Center for Coastal Studies hosts “Gray Seals Conservation & Fisheries” on Thursday, Feb. 17, 6 to 7 p.m. The webinar panel includes […]

Thoughts on Love

On a series of walks with my camera in the weeks before Valentine’s Day, I stopped the people I saw on our winter-quiet streets and beaches to ask them about […]

Four Eastham Properties on Housing Roster

EASTHAM –– The town could soon gain up to eight units of affordable or “workforce” housing, thanks to two sale agreements and two property takings for nonpayment of taxes. Town […]

Housing Is Top Priority for Truro CPC Funds

TRURO — Housing is this year’s top priority for the community preservation committee (CPC), which plans to recommend that annual town meeting voters allocate $440,000 to efforts related to affordable […]

Stop & Shop Union Negotiations Are Underway

PROVINCETOWN — Hazard pay is top of mind for members of the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) International Union Local 328 as they negotiate their new contract with Stop […]

Blizzard Blowback for Morse

PROVINCETOWN — The select board praised frontline responders for their work during the Jan. 29 blizzard but had tough questions for Town Manager Alex Morse, who they said was unreachable […]

Attorney General Says Permits Forbid Release of Reactor Water

PLYMOUTH — The Mass. attorney general’s office has doubled down on a recent statement saying that Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station’s permits prohibit the release of radioactive water into Cape Cod […]

Wellfleet ZBA Shuts Down GFM Operation

WELLFLEET — The zoning board of appeals has revoked the authorization given by an interim building inspector last fall for an excavating company to operate a contractor’s yard at the […]

How Stop & Shop Plays Monopoly

As the Independent has reported, Stop & Shop purchased the former T-Time driving range property on Route 6 in Eastham in 2013 for $1.3 million, not because the chain wanted […]

Firefighters Save Eastham Home

EASTHAM –– A home monitoring system helped firefighters save a home at 935A Cable Road from a basement blaze early Sunday morning. No one was home or injured, according to […]

Monoprints for Your One and Only

During a recent snowstorm, I made monoprint cards with my kids. It proved to be a fun, though messy, way to pass the time when the electricity went out. The […]

No Longer Dangling

TRURO — Before the last two winter storms on Jan. 17 and Jan. 29, the dune at 133 South Pamet Road had been eroding steadily, losing on average of 2.8 feet […]

Nauset Wins Numerous Medals at League Championship

EASTHAM — The Nauset track and field program has had much success in the last few years, and the state’s athletic association has taken notice. Last month, head track coach […]

Boys Top Cape Cod Academy, 62-56

EASTHAM — The Nauset boys basketball team got revenge on Monday. The Warriors defeated Cape Cod Academy 62-56 in a hard-fought battle. CCA had an 11-1 mark heading into the […]

Skiing Without Stress

I love the snow. Except for our recent blizzard, it’s been in short supply here on the Cape. Several times, my son and I got our hopes up when a […]

In Althea Boxell’s Pages, a Hidden History of Provincetown

As history buffs explore the Provincetown History Preservation Project’s collections online, one name, Althea Boxell (1910-1988), pops up repeatedly. But were it not for Provincetown artist John Dowd, we might […]

A Winter Version of Corn and Clams

My winter midweek meals used to be more about nourishment than deliciousness. But one benefit of this unrelenting work-from-home era has been the chance to start dinner in the afternoon. […]

Nauset High Students Learn to Be Citizens

EASTHAM — Taking a civics course isn’t a graduation requirement at Nauset Regional High School (NRHS), but graduates of Michael McNamara’s civics and government course say it is helping them […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Feb. 8 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

A Full Moon in Leo to Balance Aquarius

Take heart, star gazers, and welcome the Leo full Moon. It always occurs opposite the Sun in Aquarius — at the height of winter when we need it most. The […]

Free Winter Classes

Some meetings are in person, some online, and some are both. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch to see if a remote option is […]

Federally Funded Mud Pies

Most meetings in Truro are remote. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. The agenda includes instructions on how to join. Thursday, Feb. 10 Economic […]

Get Appointed

All meetings in Wellfleet are remote only and can be watched online. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch, then follow the instructions on the […]

Care to Run?

Most meetings are being held in person, but some are still remote or virtual. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about meeting […]

Why Lavaughan Jenkins Is Not a Sculptor

Fine Arts Work Center fellow Lavaughan Jenkins insists that his work is not sculpture. Even though it inhabits space in three dimensions, even though you can walk around it, he […]

Every Child Is an Artist (and Vice Versa)

There’s some serious art hanging in the kids’ section of the Wellfleet Public Library. A mural by Juliet Kepes features stylized animals cavorting on washy fields of color. It’s light […]

Don’t Quit Your Day Job

Naya Bricher grew up around creative people. Her father is an artist and graphic designer who freelanced — he worked when he could, and he had a kind of freedom. […]

A Selection of Musical Madeleines

For this first Indie Playlist of 2022, contributors were asked to pick songs that brought them back to a particular moment in their lives. Listen at tinyurl.com/wva345xe. ‘When It Rains,’ […]

Arts Briefs

Del Deo at the Vorse House The Provincetown Arts Society offers “A Closer Look at Salvatore Del Deo” at the Mary Heaton Vorse House, 466 Commercial St., Provincetown, through Sunday, […]

Ennui

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Missed Connections

“The winter is so very cold, and dark, and when the dog leaves the bed to bark at the extended squirrel family in the attic, it leaves me colder, and […]

Four-Legged Valentines, Plus Two Chickens

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Dividing the ARPA Millions

Forty-two million dollars sounds like a pile of money. Until it gets divided up. Across the Cape this month, the glint of federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds has […]

A Lesson in Civics

Michael McNamara, known affectionately by his Nauset Regional High School students as “Mr. Mac,” has a reputation as a talented civics and government teacher with high standards. He pushes students […]

Letters, February 10, 2022

Financial Stability in Wellfleet To the editor: From what I’ve read in the Independent, we are likely going to be asked at Wellfleet’s town meeting this April to approve a […]

Jon Scott Groves, Kind-Hearted Sportsman, Dies at 77

After a year of declining health, Jon Scott Groves of Provincetown died on Jan. 15, 2022 with his family at his side. The cause was lymphoma. He was 77. The […]

Classifieds February 10 – February 16, 2022

Love Thy Neighbor Hey Bruce, thank you for being an amazing boyfriend. Happy Valentine’s Day. —John I wanted to limerick with grace/ And send a note to your Baltimore place./ […]

Indie’s Choice

Starry Night (Thursday, Feb. 10) “The Wonder of Winter,” Mass Audubon’s online series, continues with “Stars and Constellations,” Thursday, Feb. 10, 7 to 8 p.m. Doug Lowry is the guide […]

Provincetown Legal Notices

Town of Provincetown Public Notice Citizen Petitioned Articles The Town of Provincetown will be hosting two informational sessions to assist citizens with drafting petition articles for the April 4, 2022, […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats. This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Jan. 31 to Feb. 4, 2022. PROVINCETOWN Feb. 1. 12 Winthrop Street Realty Trust (Mark Lee Phillips, trustee) to Mercury Hotel […]

Storm Stories

In Provincetown, Drifting Snow Trapped Many Indoors PROVINCETOWN — On narrow, tightly packed side streets, the winds whipped into curls and eddies and piled snow to the tops of some […]

Ballston Beach ‘Boathouse’ Still Stands After Blizzard

TRURO — Before last weekend’s blizzard, Coastal Engineering Co. had an urgent message for Thomas and Kathleen Dennis, owners of the house at 133 South Pamet Road, which sits precariously on […]

Brooke Clenchy Chosen to Lead Nauset Schools

ORLEANS — Expressing strong support for the candidate who has served as interim superintendent for the last seven months, school authorities chose Brooke Clenchy to be the next long-term occupant […]

Attorney General: Dumping Pilgrim Water Is Prohibited

Editor’s note: After this week’s Independent went to press, Mass. Attorney General Maura Healey’s office issued a statement about the release of radioactive water into Cape Cod Bay. The report below […]

Staffing Proposals Shape Provincetown’s New Budget

PROVINCETOWN — January is budget season in town government, and at back-to-back select board meetings on Jan. 24 and 25 Town Manager Alex Morse laid out new plans for the […]

Select Board Tables Residential Tax Exemption Until 2023

EASTHAM — Nonresidents now own more than half the homes here, but the select board has decided it is not yet time to adopt the residential tax exemption (RTE). On […]

Niggel’s Storage Expansion Gets Planners’ OK

EASTHAM — After two years of applications and revisions of plans, Willy’s Gym owner Barbara Niggel can expand her self-storage business. The planning board granted her a special permit during […]

State Changes Qualifying Times for Post Season

Update: During Thursday’s meet against Barnstable, boys swimmers John Szucs and Keith Gagnon qualified for Sectionals in the 100 backstroke and 100 breaststroke respectively. Szucs also qualified for States in […]

Early Warnings and Oatmeal Afterwards

Before weather reports bombarded us with storm tracking, our predecessors would observe their flocks or herds for changes in their behavior, noticing telltale signs that storms were on the way. […]

School Playground, Housing Are Top Priorities for Funding

WELLFLEET — The top priority for the Community Preservation Committee (CPC) in the upcoming funding cycle has been the Wellfleet Elementary School playground. Members of the group plan to recommend […]

Hockey Teams Drop Two Games to Sandwich

ORLEANS — Sandwich has had Nauset High’s number on the ice this season. There were just a few minutes remaining in regulation in the Nauset boys ice hockey game against […]

In Eastham, a Base Camp for Electrical Crews From Points South

EASTHAM — At least 60 trucks and some 200 emergency electrical workers were stationed at the Four Points by Sheraton hotel here last Friday waiting for Saturday’s winter storm to […]

Homemade Garlic Sausage, Spiked With Cognac and a Pinch of Nutmeg

Light fluffy snow swirls brightly as I head out for a walk on the rail bed where I see lots of coyote tracks. When I get back to the frost-covered […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Feb. 1 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Venus and Mercury Take Us Out of the Woods

With Venus having left her retrograde last week and Mercury stationing direct this week, we heartily welcome some emotional reprieve and levity. The tough lessons of the past weeks of […]

Hit the Tweet Spot

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Juliette Brown, 47, a ‘Free Spirit’ of the Outer Cape

When Juliette Brown began working at the Underground in Provincetown soon after it was founded in 2013, her coworkers found her tattoos a bit intimidating, but soon enough they marveled […]

Eastham Woman Dies in Single-Car Accident

WELLFLEET — A 47-year-old Eastham woman died when her 2008 Toyota Camry left Route 6 near Old Wharf Road sometime in the early morning of Sunday, Jan. 23. Local and […]

Virtual Support Groups

Some meetings are in person, some online, and some are both. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch to see if a remote option is […]

Eversource and Salt Marshes

Most meetings in Truro are remote. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. The agenda includes instructions on how to join. Thursday, Feb. 3 Climate […]

Mosquito Control

All meetings in Wellfleet are remote only and can be watched online. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch, then follow the instructions on the […]

Master Planner Plans

Most meetings are being held in person, but some are still remote. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about locations and any […]

Horror Movie Imagery Meets Indigenous Identity

“Noam Chomsky made the comparison that zombies are a reflection of fear and desperation, and that we in the United States try to make something that we’re oppressing into something […]

Joel Meyerowitz Comes Home

When Joel Meyerowitz started taking photographs of the Outer Cape in 1976, it was a break from the 35mm point-and-shoot work he was doing on the streets of New York. […]

Boston Lyric Opera Throws a Beach Wedding

Boston Lyric Opera’s production of composer Ana Sokolovic’s Svadba begins not with music but with the sound of the wind at Truro’s Ballston Beach where it was filmed in October. […]

Arts Briefs

‘Empowerment’ at the Cultural Center Curated by recently appointed Executive Director Molly Demeulenaere, “Empowerment vs. Exploitation” opens at the Cultural Center of Cape Cod, 307 Old Main St. in South […]

Daisy Bates

Daisy Gatson Bates was a newspaper publisher whose Arkansas State Press was dedicated solely to the coverage of the civil rights movement. In it, she and her husband, Lucius Christopher […]

Patchwork

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Waste Management

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White Christmas Dreams

In December, I kept hearing the familiar Irving Berlin tune: “I’m dreaming of a white Christmas, just like the ones I used to know….” Of course, what we had was […]

The Anatomy of a Peer-Reviewed Study

Reporting on local government, I lean on public records — meeting recordings, press releases, select board packets — to fact-check things I hear over the phone. Back on my home turf, […]

Letters, February 3, 2022

Robbing Peter to Pay Paul To the editor: I commend the Independent for the excellent coverage of the accounting mess in Wellfleet. As a lawyer who spent many years in […]

Classifieds February 3 – February 9, 2022

LEARNING 2022 drawing/painting classes with a model: Take one or all three one-day workshops from the virtual PAAM Collection Series, “The Figure.” Part One: Hans Hofmann; Part Two: Robert Beauchamp; […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Jan. 24 to Jan. 28, 2022. PROVINCETOWN Jan. 24. Thomas Jung to Suzanne A. Kriegsman and Hitesh P. Trivedi. 300A Bradford […]

Katherine Perry, 85, Cared for Many

Katherine Margaret (Gavin) Perry died on Nov. 23, 2021 at the Good Samaritan Hospital in Brockton. She was 85. The daughter of the late Katherine Jerome and Patrick Gavin, Kay […]

Roberta Eggart, Actress, Dancer, Stage Manager

Roberta Barber Eggart, stage manager for Provincetown Theater productions as the long-time personal assistant to Michael Sottile, died peacefully on Jan. 26, 2022. Her death was confirmed by her daughter, […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

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Indie’s Choice

Sketchy Sipping (Thursday, Feb. 3) Join artist and cartographer Mark Adams for “Drink & Draw” at the Provincetown Brewing Co., 141 Bradford St., on Thursday, Feb. 3, 6 p.m. There […]

Provincetown Legal Notices

Town of Provincetown Public Hearing Historic District Commission February 16, 2022 The Provincetown Historic District Commission will hold a Public Hearing at 3:30 P.M. on Wednesday, February 16, 2022, in […]

The Old Harbor Life-Saving Station

The Old Harbor Life-Saving Station was built in Chatham in 1897, one of a string of life-saving stations that dotted our coast before the Coast Guard took over maritime rescue. […]

Wellfleet Voters Will Face $750K Override

WELLFLEET — At the upcoming April town meeting, voters will be asked to approve a Proposition 2½ override of $750,000 to fund last year’s budget shortfalls and maintain town services […]

Wellfleet First Town on Cape to Use Police Body Cameras

WELLFLEET — The second smallest municipal police department on the Cape has become the first in the county to outfit all its officers with body cameras. Wellfleet town meeting voters […]

Shape of Bay Means Poisons Would Linger

PLYMOUTH — Cape Cod Bay is not a good place to dump one million gallons of radioactive effluent from systems at Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station, according to an expert on […]

Two Candidates Seek D.A. Post

BARNSTABLE — After almost 20 years in office, Cape and Islands District Attorney Michael O’Keefe will step down when his current term ends in January 2023, and, so far, two […]

Schools and Healers Try to Comfort the Grieving

School staff and parents at Nauset Regional High School in Eastham and Monomoy Regional High School in Harwich are struggling this week to support young people who are grieving the […]

Employment and a Tax Break for Those With Disabilities

TRURO — On her next birthday, Anna Rogers, a Truro resident with autism, will turn 22, making her ineligible for special education services through the state. But her mother, Amy, […]

Tiano Drops Out of School Search

Frank Tiano, one of three remaining finalists for the job of Nauset School Superintendent after the withdrawal of Sara Ahern last week, has also withdrawn his candidacy, leaving just two […]

Brooke Clenchy Wants to Make Education ‘Impactful’

Brooke Clenchy, one of two remaining finalists for the Nauset School Superintendent, set out to be a teacher before she even entered kindergarten. She and her brother played school at […]

Andrea Schwamb Wants to Foster Inclusiveness

When she was 14 years old, Andrea Schwamb moved to Orleans, and Cape Cod has been home ever since. Her family had moved from Alabama to Germany to Framingham, as […]

Boots, Wrenches, and Scissors That Launch Careers

HARWICH — At Cape Cod Regional Technical High School, about 60 percent of seniors will head straight into the work force after graduation. Many of those seniors are revving up […]

Locals Talk Hockey Safety

After a tragic accident on the ice during a high school hockey game in Connecticut on Jan. 6, members of the hockey world have been reflecting on the safety of […]

Soup for Breakfast, Abroad and at Home

I head downstairs for breakfast, round the corner of the first-floor landing, and find myself eyeball to eyeball with a water buffalo. Clearly, I’m not in Truro anymore. The buffalo […]

The Year of the Tiger Begins With the New Moon in Aquarius

The Chinese Lunar New Year takes place on Feb. 1, so if you’re heading to a festival of lights, don’t forget to wear red for luck. This is the year […]

Orion Embodies Millenniums of Legends in the Winter Sky

Winter is the season of Orion. As darkness falls, this constellation stands tall in the southeast, about halfway up the sky, and you’ll find it migrates higher and more southerly […]

Board by Board, the Detritus of Old Provincetown Becomes a Home

Daniil Zakharevich’s handcrafted house on a dirt road in Provincetown appears to grow out of the surrounding woods. Using found materials, he has designed, renovated, and built an eclectic space […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Jan. 25 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Girls Hockey Team in State’s Top 10

EASTHAM — Connor Brickley is sticking to his word in his first year as head coach of the Cape Cod Furies girls ice hockey team. Before the season started, Brickley […]

Fire and Police Staff Swelling

Some meetings are in person, some online, and some are both. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch to see if a remote option is available. Thursday, Jan. […]

Doomed on the Dune

Most meetings in Truro are remote. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. The agenda includes instructions on how to join. Thursday, Jan. 27 School […]

Financial Management Policies

All meetings in Wellfleet are remote only and can be watched online. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch, then follow the instructions on the […]

Town Warrant Is Open

Most meetings are being held in person, but some are still remote or virtual. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about meeting […]

A Family Portrait Lost and Then Found

The Eastham Room of the town’s library is brimming with archival records. But just outside the room hangs a trio of 19th-century portraits of residents whose lives were rich with […]

A Painter’s Workspace, Perfectly Preserved

David Maril lives year-round in the house on Bradford Street in Provincetown where his father, Herman Maril, painted every summer from 1958 until his death in 1986. David winterized the […]

In Unthinkable, Memory Is Vital

Congressman Jamie Raskin’s new memoir is about surviving the end of his world, and a warning about preventing the end of ours. On Dec. 31, 2020, his brilliant and empathetic […]

Digging Dugan

Poetry is an invitation to slow down and think more deeply about experiences, observations, perplexities, beauties, enragements, and delights. Good poetry helps us see more honestly and accurately. Sometimes poems […]

Arts Briefs

Pluhar’s Paintings at Preservation Hall “Andrea Pluhar: A Survey of Painting” opens at Wellfleet Preservation Hall, 335 Main St., on Friday, Jan. 28 and runs through March 1. Pluhar, who’s […]

Extra Cheese

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Suggestions From a Mail Enthusiast

I love my job. I get to deliver mail to people in the town where I live in all its splendor, all year round. The summer traffic is intense, and […]

Son of a Beach

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Are You Being Served?

We have periodically reported on the glacially slow progress of efforts to improve internet service on the Outer Cape. In her story last week, K.C. Myers again noted that the […]

Letters, January 27, 2022

‘Get in the Water,’ said Harry To the editor: Having read the recent reminiscences of the Poet of the Dunes, Harry Kemp, and now having read about the gentleman who […]

Classifieds January 27 – February 2, 2021

LEARNING 2022 drawing/painting classes with a model: Take one or all three one-day workshops from the virtual PAAM Collection Series, “The Figure.” Part One: Hans Hofmann; Part Two: Robert Beauchamp; […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Jan. 17 to Jan. 21, 2022. PROVINCETOWN Jan. 18. John Burrows to 12 Masonic Place LLC. 12 Masonic Place, Unit 1. […]

Folk Art Champion Gerard Wertkin Dies at 81

Gerard Charles Wertkin of New York City and Truro died due to complications from Parkinson’s disease on Jan. 11, 2022 at Beacon Hospice Care in Hyannis. He was 81. The […]

Interior Designer Dana Noble, 88

Dana Ashton Noble of Provincetown died on Jan. 16, 2022 at Seashore Pointe Wellness and Rehabilitation Center. He was 88. Born in Prentiss, Maine on April 6, 1933, Dana was […]

Marilyn Colburn, 95, Author of ‘Maudie and Sophie’

Marilyn Hazel Coburn died peacefully in her Provincetown home on Dec. 26, 2021. She was 95. Marilyn was born to Ethel and Fred B. Pilkington of Allendale, N.J. on June […]

Provincetown Legal Notices

Town of Provincetown Public Hearing Community Preservation Committee February 9, 2022 Community Preservation Funds The Provincetown Community Preservation Committee will conduct a hybrid public hearing on Wednesday, February 9, 2022, […]

Indie’s Choice

Crow Up (Thursday, Jan. 27) Mass Audubon’s virtual “The Wonder of Winter” series continues with “Winter Crow Roosts” on Thursday, Jan. 27, 7 to 8 p.m. Education coordinator Patti Steinman […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

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Bill Farmer, 68, a Proud Gemini

Bill Farmer died on Jan. 9, 2022 at sunrise in the peaceful bliss of morning light in his Provincetown home. His sisters Gale, Mary, and Martha, and his companion Jack Hudson […]

Falling Sands of Time

TRURO — Storm waters breached what’s left of the dune at Ballston Beach during this week’s nor’easter. Compare this picture, taken on Jan. 17, with one taken a year ago, […]

Wellfleet Puts Brakes on Contractor’s Yards for Now

WELLFLEET — The town was shocked a year ago when Great White Realty Group, owned by Donna and Steve DiGiovanni of Truro, with no permits in hand, cleared their newly […]

Directing Rescue Funds to Broadband

PROVINCETOWN — A plan to extend a fiber-optic broadband network to 1,528 customers got a tentative green light from the select board last July 26. The idea was to use […]

Two Towns May Collaborate on Finance Work

WELLFLEET — With ads posted seeking both a town accountant and a treasurer, Wellfleet’s interim Administrator Charles Sumner has been talking with Eastham officials about a shared two-town finance department. […]

Parsing the Possibilities in a $4 Billion Bill

PROVINCETOWN — Last fall, the state government combined $2.5 billion in federal Covid relief money from the American Rescue Plan Act and an unexpected surplus of $1.5 billion in tax […]

Covid Cancels Cape Air’s Provincetown Route

PROVINCETOWN — Cape Air won’t be offering flights out of the Provincetown Municipal Airport until April 1 because of a pandemic-related shortage of pilots as well as airport construction. This […]

Ahern Takes Superintendent Spot in Barnstable

ORLEANS — The Nauset School District’s Superintendent Search Committee announced on Tuesday the dates and times of public forums with three remaining finalists. The announcement followed Sara Ahern’s Jan. 12 […]

Two Winter Fellows Named by the Independent

PROVINCETOWN — The first recipients of a new journalism fellowship program created by the Provincetown Independent have been welcomed to town by the newspaper’s publisher, Teresa Parker, and staff. Lee […]

Intervention Before School Age Helps Children With Disabilities

TRURO — For parents of children with disabilities, the path from the first signs of a child’s developmental delay to a supportive school setting is a difficult one. The first […]

Eastham Fire’s Lisa Albino Is Now Deputy Chief

EASTHAM –– Lisa Albino has worked in the Eastham Fire Dept. under seven chiefs. With 34 years of service, she is the town’s longest tenured active firefighter. And as of […]

Fin Whale at Jeremy Point

International Fund for Animal Welfare scientists have not been able to determine a cause of death for this 57-foot endangered finback or fin whale discovered on Jan. 4 at Jeremy […]

When Paychecks and Housing Don’t Mix

PROVINCETOWN — As business owners begin to plan for the season ahead knowing both workers and workforce housing are in extremely short supply, many will try to wrap wages and […]

Learning Moderation From Marathons

EASTHAM — When he was in the seventh grade, Joe Navas, a 51-year-old Eastham resident who became one of Cape Cod’s best distance runners, began experimenting with caffeine pills. Sometime […]

The Light and Lemony Foundations of a Good Mezze

I was never a fan of hummus. I had been scarred by memories of too many tubs of the bland, cement-like commercial stuff, consumed on dry carrot nubs after my […]

The Long-Lived Gross Sisters of Wellfleet

“A most remarkable picture was taken yesterday” read an item in the Sept. 30, 1851 issue of the Boston Evening Transcript. The story announced that the artists Ormsbee and Silsbee […]

Herschenfeld and His Ushanka Brave the Current

It’s under 30 degrees out. The wind at Corn Hill Beach in Truro is cold enough to numb fingers and faces in a matter of minutes. Sunset colors glow on […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Jan. 18 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Hockey, Track Teams Take Advantage of Dennis-Yarmouth

EASTHAM — It’s been a grueling week for Dennis-Yarmouth, courtesy of the Nauset High Warriors. On Jan. 11, the Nauset boys and girls indoor track teams beat the Dolphins at […]

Uranus Gets Back Into Gear

Get ready for the shakedown, star chasers. On top of that Mercury retrograde in Aquarius you’ve probably been noticing in your day-to-day affairs (the neighborhood lost power in the storm, […]

Pickleball Pondered for East End

Meetings Ahead Some meetings are in person, some online, and some are both. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch to see if a remote option is […]

EMS Challenges, a Regional Study

Meetings Ahead Most meetings in Truro are remote. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. The agenda includes instructions on how to join. Thursday, Jan. […]

ZBA Delays GFM Case

Meetings Ahead All meetings in Wellfleet are remote only and can be watched online. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch, then follow the instructions […]

Nauset Trailers

Meetings Ahead Most meetings are being held in person, but some are still remote or virtual. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn […]

Three Months In, FAWC Fellows Have Been Prolific

Each year, the Provincetown Art Association and Museum welcomes the Fine Arts Work Center’s visual arts fellows with an introductory exhibition that gives a glimpse into their creative world three […]

The Art of Finding a Studio in a Shrinking Market

Years ago — before the 1998 fire that swallowed the Provincetown Theatre’s original structure, known then and now as Whaler’s Wharf — glassworker Christie Andresen lived in a different Provincetown. […]

Awards Season Movies Look Back in Angst

As a filmmaker, Paul Thomas Anderson has been compared to Orson Welles, and there’s a grain of truth to that hyperbole: both are fiercely creative and indulgent. Anderson, who exploded […]

A Life Full of Music, and More

Carol Procter was only the third woman cellist hired by the Boston Symphony Orchestra. The Boston Symphony Orchestra year was 1965, and Procter was in her early 20s, recently graduated […]

Arts Briefs

A ‘Beloved’ Art Show “Creating Beloved Community,” a youth art show about racial justice, runs through Friday, Jan. 28 at Wellfleet Preservation Hall, 335 Main St. The show, organized by […]

Bayard Rustin

“I ask that if you teach your children one new name from the heroes of black history, please let it be Bayard Rustin,” wrote Henry Louis Gates Jr. in The […]

Angry Birds

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No Shot Novak

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In an Outer Cape Bubble

I have never written a political column and do not intend to do so now. We will see if I succeed in that. Provincetown is one of the bluest dots […]

Letters, January 20, 2022

Paying for Power To the editor: Gas leaks from faulty lines not only cause explosions like the one in the Merrimack Valley a few years ago but also contribute to […]

‘Why America May Go to Hell’

I’m writing this on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, a national holiday since 1986, and thinking about what all the people born since then might know about the man. Elders […]

Michael Zarin, Former WHAT Board Member, Dies at 89

Michael Simon Zarin, who served for many years on the board of the Wellfleet Harbor Actors Theater, died on Jan. 9, 2022 on Long Island. He was 89. Michael was […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats.This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Jan. 10 to Jan. 14, 2022. PROVINCETOWN Jan. 10. Delwyn Lyn Trent to Scot J. Groteguth Family Trust (Scot J. Groteguth, […]

Classifieds January 20 – January 26, 2021

LEARNING 2022 drawing/painting classes with a model: Take one or all three one-day workshops from the virtual PAAM Collection Series, “The Figure.” Part One: Hans Hofmann; Part Two: Robert Beauchamp; […]

Indie’s Choice

Bleak Midwinter (Thursday, Jan. 20) Mass Audubon continues its online “Wonder of Winter” series with “Weather and Climate” on Thursday, Jan. 20, 7 to 8 p.m. Learn about seasonal weather […]

Provincetown Legal Notices

Town of Provincetown Public Hearing Historic District Commission February 2, 2022 The Provincetown Historic District Commission will hold a Public Hearing at 3:30 P.M. on Wednesday, February 2, 2022, in […]

Commonwealth of Massachusetts Legal Notices

MASSDEP NOTICE OF TIER CLASSIFICATION 110 Kelley Way, Wellfleet, MA RTN 4-28642 A release of oil and/or hazardous materials has occurred at this location, which is a disposal site as […]

Clam Dinner at Pamet Harbor

Mom Zella Swain and two-year-old Ceiba Chavez Swain of Truro, clamming at Pamet Harbor on Jan. 9. (Photo by Nancy Bloom) This page is available to subscribers. Click here to […]

Half-Acre Lot Will Allow More Units at VFW

PROVINCETOWN — A long-running effort to build affordable and community housing at the former VFW site on Jerome Smith Road received a big boost last week when the developer of […]

Abutters Fight Contractor’s Yard

WELLFLEET — Neighbors of a contractor’s yard at the corner of Route 6 and Old Wharf Road have asked the zoning board of appeals to reverse an interim building inspector’s […]

Finalists for Nauset Superintendent Include Clenchy

ORLEANS — The Nauset Regional School District Superintendent Search Committee has named four finalists after interviewing seven from among a field of 17 candidates. The district’s 15-member expanded search committee, […]

Nauset Bath Houses to Be Done by Summer, Says Carlstrom

EASTHAM –– After 14 months of work beleaguered by supply-chain disruptions, labor shortages, and a storm that overturned a mobile office trailer, the new bath houses at Nauset Light Beach […]

Comments Are Sought on Stellwagen Bank Plan

PROVINCETOWN — The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Office of National Marine Sanctuaries, which manages the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary (SBNMS) — an 842-square-mile stretch of ocean three miles north […]

Curley Proposes Using ‘Unbuildable’ Lots

WELLFLEET — Select board Chair Ryan Curley has proposed increasing the town’s affordable housing stock by allowing deed-restricted houses to be constructed on lots that are currently classified as unbuildable. […]

How to Keep Your Goats From Going South in the Winter

We were still new to goat herding when the first icy storm of 2019 blew in. I felt sure our Nigerian Dwarf herd could not survive it outdoors and insisted […]

Ballroom Dance Is Expressive — and Competitive

WELLFLEET — Daisy O’Neil has been dancing since she was very young. She began with ballet, but four years ago she took up what she says is a much more […]

Mass. Maritime’s Sea Term Departs, After Pandemic Delays

BUZZARDS BAY — Massachusetts Maritime Academy’s training vessel, the T.S. Kennedy, departed the dock on Jan. 10 for its annual winter Sea Term three days late and an undisclosed number […]

Strength Training Isn’t All or Nothing

Strength training is important because it makes you feel better. Its health-related virtues include decreased blood sugar and increased strength of bone, muscle, and other connective tissues, increased release of […]

Facing the Winter, Naturally

There are artisans of all kinds among us. You may know one who is spending the winter holed up in a garage building a wooden boat or bent over a […]

A Proper Bolognese, Simmered Until It’s Done

Even though she went to culinary school and has a stack of cookbooks as high as our ceiling, my mother does not use recipes. So, for me, moving away from […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Jan. 11 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Four Swimmers Qualify for State Competition

EASTHAM — Nauset swimmer Kaitlin Bohannon qualified to compete in the Sectionals tournament in the 200-meter individual medley and 50-meter freestyle by virtue of her performance at the Warriors’ meet […]

Moving Past the Moods of Mercury in Retrograde

Retrogrades aren’t all that bad. Sure, we might have to deal with interrupted travel plans, issues with technology, and communication breakdowns (Mercury rules these parts of our lives), but these […]

Water Commissioners Question Wellfleet’s ‘Poor’ Rating

WELLFLEET — A report issued in late December by the Association to Preserve Cape Cod (APCC) singled out Wellfleet’s municipal water system as the only one among 20 on Cape […]

Expanded PCR Testing

Some meetings are in person, some online, and some are both. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch to see if a remote option is available. Thursday, […]

Test Kits on the Way

Most meetings in Truro are remote. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. The agenda includes instructions on how to join. Thursday, Jan. 13 Cultural […]

Dredging It Up

All meetings in Wellfleet are remote only and can be watched online. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch, then follow the instructions on the […]

Vaunted Vault

Most meetings are being held in person, but some are still remote or virtual. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about meeting […]

What Julian Cardinal Wants to Paint

Painter Julian Cardinal will tell you straight up that he doesn’t like green. “It’s a difficult color to work with,” he says, without a hint of self-consciousness, as if expressing […]

Taking a Walk With Sensible Shoes

The Vermont- and Cape Cod-based band Sensible Shoes spent last summer gigging on the Outer Cape before quietly releasing its debut album, See It My Way, in August. Billed as […]

Humanizing the People Behind an Epic Case

Joshua Prager was hitting one dead end after another in 2010. A former senior writer for the Wall Street Journal and the co-founder of Provincetown’s Twenty Summers series, Prager was […]

Binge-Watching Without the Guilt

The White Lotus, HBO Max Although Mike White’s new series is set at the posh, isolated Hawaiian resort of the title (actually, the Four Seasons in Maui) and filled with […]

Arts Briefs

A Patron’s Collection at the CCMoA Donations from generous patrons are the lifeblood of regional art museum collections. A case in point is Ann F. Bengtson, a former Falmouth resident […]

Getting Away

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In Fashion

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Stuck in Virtual Reality

I’m a meeting guy. I have always been motivated to get together in a room with others and work to find collaborative solutions to the issues of the day. Serving […]

Alfred J. Pickard Sr., 82

Alfred Jacob Pickard Sr. of Joppa, Md. died on Dec. 25, 2021. He was 82. Born in Wellfleet on Dec. 14, 1939 to Floyd D. and Mary Pickard, he attended […]

‘Rising Tide’ Painter Ellen S. Junger Dies at 92

Ellen Sinclair Junger of Truro and Arlington was a painter who first came to Provincetown in the late 1950s to study with Henry Hensche. In the late 1980s, she was […]

Activist and Actor Ronald Weissenberger, 76

Ronald Earl Weissenberger of Orleans died peacefully at Plymouth Beth Israel Hospital on Dec. 20, 2021. He was 76. Born in Huron, Ohio, he was the son of the late […]

James Goodrich, 66, ‘Mayor’ of Eastham Transfer Station

Fondly known as the mayor of the Eastham Transfer Station, James Leo Goodrich died suddenly on Dec. 30, 2021 at Cape Cod Hospital in Hyannis. His family was at his […]

Painter and Singer Joan Pereira Dies at 94

The painter Joan M. (Senecal) Pereira of Provincetown died at Seashore Point on Dec. 29, 2021. She was 94. Joan was born on Jan. 19, 1927 in Buffalo, N.Y., the […]

Lucy Rich Keohan, 93, Grew Up in Wellfleet

Lucy S. (Rich) Keohan of Bedford died on Jan. 7, 2022. She was 93. Born on Dec. 29, 1928 in Hyannis, Lucy was the daughter of the late Katherine (Ball) […]

Classifieds January 13 – January 19, 2021

LEARNING Improve your boating skills in one day. The “Boat America” course for sailors, power-boaters, and paddlers is coming to the Orleans Police Station, Saturday, Jan. 15, 9:30 a.m. to […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Jan. 3 to Jan. 7, 2022. PROVINCETOWN Jan. 3. Robert P. Santos to James J. Scheske. 118 Commercial St. $2,000,000. Jan. […]

On Writing Obituaries

I started writing obituaries for the Independent last May, and in the months since I have written roughly 50. While I can’t say that the work gives me pleasure, I […]

Letters, January 13, 2022

Use ARPA Funds for Test Kits To the editor: Neither President Biden’s 500 million home test kits nor Gov. Baker’s gift of test kits to four Cape Cod towns (Barnstable, […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

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Provincetown Legal Notices

Town of Provincetown Public Hearing Licensing Board January 25, 2022 The Provincetown Licensing Board will hold a Public Hearing at 5:15 p.m. on Tuesday, January 25, 2022 in the Judge […]

Indie’s Choice

It’s a Wild Word (Thursday, Jan. 13) “Wilder Words,” the Fine Arts Work Center’s virtual reading series by 24PearlStreet faculty, will take place Thursday, Jan. 13, 6 p.m. The theme: […]

Goodbye 2021

Provincetown sent off the old year with a bang in rainbow colors as fireworks soared over the harbor last Friday evening. (Photo by Jamie Demetriou) This page is available to […]

Nauset Superintendent Pick Expected by End of January

ORLEANS — A new superintendent for the Nauset Regional School District is expected to be announced on Jan. 29 at a 9 a.m. meeting after finalists’ interviews are conducted in […]

Should Finance Committees Have Oversight Authority?

Wellfleet Finance Committee Chair Fred Magee says that the town’s financial crisis is motivating his committee to try to take on a “radically different” role in town management and oversight. […]

An Uptick in Cases at Outer Cape Schools

It’s been a tentative return to school for Outer Cape students after a nearly two-week-long holiday break. At the start of this week, school officials reported rising case counts and […]

An Abutter Will Sell, Easing the Way for Luxury Development

PROVINCETOWN — Developer Christine Barker’s plan to demolish the Old Reliable Fish House, replacing its ruins with a luxury hotel, restaurant, and condo development, has been stalled for the last […]

As Rooms Tax Booms, Budget Decision Looms

PROVINCETOWN — At its first meeting of the new year, Provincetown’s select board will have a pleasant problem on its agenda: more money than it expected. With $2.2 million in […]

Eastham Likely to Need Budget Override, Says Bienvenue

EASTHAM –– Property taxes are projected to rise by 3.48 percent in fiscal 2023 (or $177 for a property of average assessed value), Finance Director Rich Bienvenue told the select […]

Cape Air Copes With New Year’s Weekend Covid Spike

PROVINCETOWN — Over New Year’s weekend, Cape Air grappled with a spike in symptomatic Covid-19 cases among its work force. As of Monday, Jan. 3, the airline had 30 staff members […]

Baker’s Belvernon Enters a New Era

WELLFLEET — Jay and Allison Bombara love history. Jay is president of the historical society in Farmington, Conn., where the couple live most of the year in an antique house, […]

Snackdown: River Herring Versus Stripers and Snappers

WELLFLEET — In the summer, alewives and bluebacks — two species of herring that in spring migrate from the coastal marshes here to the Herring River’s kettle ponds — stay in […]

The Complex Stuff of Simplicity

Surfing exemplifies simplicity: a human, on a board, riding a wave. There is a presence and purity to it. When you are surfing, everything falls away and the only thing […]

Basketball and Hockey Teams Start Strong

EASTHAM — The Nauset Regional High School boys basketball team finally played a game on its home court for the first time this season on Dec. 28, notching a 65-46 […]

Eastham’s Ron Morissette Remembers His Minor League Days

EASTHAM — Hall of Famer Ted Williams was one of the greatest Red Sox players in history. The left fielder played from 1939 to 1960 (minus three years in military […]

Venus Is Retrograde, but Jupiter Saves the Day

While we may have come up against a few holiday hiccups — namely a pesky little thing called Covid canceling plans and flights — you can rest assured it’s not […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Jan. 4 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

The Alchemy of a Steamed Sweet Potato

I don’t know about you, but it’s going to take me a while to remember what true wanderlust feels like. The last two years, painful and disorienting as they have […]

County Government Prepares to Distribute ARPA ‘Pot of Gold’

Money from the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 is already flowing into most cities and towns across Massachusetts. But not on Cape Cod. That’s because most of the county […]

St. Mary’s Saturday Lunches

Some meetings are in person, some online, and some are both. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch to see if a remote option is available. Thursday, […]

In Search of Test Kits

All meetings in Truro are remote only. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. The agenda includes instructions on how to join. Thursday, Jan. 6 […]

Town Hall Office Hours Reduced

All meetings in Wellfleet are remote only and can be watched online. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch, then follow the instructions on the […]

Juice Stand Opens

Most meetings are being held in person, but some are still remote or virtual. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about meeting […]

For Stephen Wells, ‘The Sky’s the Limit’

If you’re ever in Pilgrim Framing admiring Stephen Wells’s paintings, be warned — the artist, who operates the shop out of his Old Firehouse Road home in North Truro, might […]

Delving Deeper Into Provincetown’s Musical History

Last summer, I received an intriguing Instagram message: “Hi, my name is also Saskia, but that’s not why I’m messaging you. I was Googling and came across your article on […]

Grace Hopkins’s Pristine Workspace

Grace Hopkins doesn’t maintain an artist studio in the traditional sense. It is more of a processing center where she uploads digital photographs before printing them on squares of canvas […]

Meditations on the Tangled Cords of Jewish History

Organizations including the Pew Research Center, Anti-Defamation League, and American Jewish Committee all report an increase in anti-Semitic incidents in the last several years. These incidents have ranged from Holocaust […]

Arts Briefs

‘Pulp’ Fiction at the CCMoA Jane Eccles is best known for sensitive and vibrant plein air paintings of the Cape. But she also makes art using colored paper pulp. This […]

First Steps, 2022

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On Being in the Presence of a Whale

It’s been more than a month since a juvenile humpback whale washed ashore, dead, on the inner beach near Long Point Light in Provincetown. News like this circulates and the […]

A Heritage of Nicknames

A small notice in the Nov. 18 edition of this paper caught my eye and started me thinking. It announced a memorial for Joe Corea, a good man. The notice […]

A Vigil for Democracy

If you are driving by the Orleans rotary on Thursday, Jan. 6 between 1 and 2:30 p.m. you will see the local edition of a nationwide “day of remembrance and […]

Letters, January 6, 2022

Pilgrim’s Progress To the editor: For decades, individuals and groups of concerned scientists and environmental and civic activists have been ringing the alarm about the use and promotion of nuclear […]

Classifieds January 6 – January 12, 2021

THE ARTS 2022 drawing/painting classes with a model: Take one or all three one-day workshops from the virtual PAAM Collection Series, “The Figure.” Part One: Hans Hofmann; Part Two: Robert […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Dec. 27 to Dec. 31, 2021. PROVINCETOWN Dec. 29. Todd A. Elmore and Susan M. Elmore to ACDC Partners LLC [Anthony […]

Rodolphe Gerald Bessette, 74, Salty ‘Washashore’ of Wellfleet Village Mobil

Rodolphe Gerald Bessette, who was known as Jerry, died peacefully at Cape Cod Hospital on Jan. 1, 2022, after a brief illness. His wife and daughters were at his side. […]

Robert Patrick, Founder of Marine Specialties, Dies at 93

Robert I. Patrick, the founder of the surplus and salvage story Marine Specialties, died in Provincetown on Dec. 21, 2021 after a long illness. He was 93. Bob was born […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats.This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.

Indie’s Choice

Speed Reader (Friday, Jan. 7) The first meeting of the “2022 Reading Challenge” will take place in person at the Provincetown Public Library, 356 Commercial St., or via Zoom, on […]

Provincetown Legal Notices

Town of Provincetown Public Hearing Historic District Commission January 19, 2022 The Provincetown Historic District Commission will hold a Public Hearing at 3:30 P.M. on Wednesday, January 19, 2022, in […]

Art and Photography for a New Year

The theme of this end-of-year art and photography edition is “The Divine Comedy,” after Dante Alighieri’s epic poem written in the first years of the 14th century. Its three sections […]

Bush-Whacking With AmeriCorps

On the afternoon of Monday, Dec. 13, the Wellfleet AmeriCorps cohort — a band of eight 20-somethings, fresh out of college — rolled up near the Shank Painter Wildlife Sanctuary, just off […]

Fishing Community Raises Alarm on Radioactive Water

PLYMOUTH — The Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station had slowly drifted out of the public’s consciousness in the years since the troubled reactor’s final shutdown in 2019. But the region’s residents […]

Town Eschews Poison in Favor of Education

PROVINCETOWN — Rats are both intelligent and resourceful, requiring those same traits in the humans who would like to get rid of them without also poisoning pets and wildlife. On […]

Nauset High Principal Will Not Be Back

EASTHAM — Nauset Regional High School Principal Chris Ellsasser announced last week that he was resigning as of the end of the school year. His replacement will be chosen by […]

Tracking the Tangled Web of Town Finances

WELLFLEET — The town’s interim administrator and accountants like to refer to the journals and records they are working to make sense of as a “ball of yarn” that is […]

2021 Saw a Growing Determination to Build

PROVINCETOWN — The Covid pandemic has been called the “great accelerator,” because it took existing trends, like working from home, and societal problems, like the spread of misinformation on social […]

Arnaud’s French 75 for 2021’s Twilight

I’m partial to rituals to mark the parameters of life, to give contour to my days and punctuate some moments as special, worthy of celebration. They remind me to pause […]

Life in the Slow Lane on Route 6 in Eastham

EASTHAM — If you hadn’t been paying such close attention, you might not know how much has changed on Route 6 in Eastham this year. The cars still barrel along, […]

Salt Marshes Through the Seasons, So Far

WELLFLEET — Throughout August, the Wellfleet Harbor Actors Theater spritzed the outdoor set of Nat Turner in Jerusalem with bug spray, so performers Ricardy Fabre and Robert St. Laurence could […]

The Year in a Sentence

Compiled by Cam BlairProvincetown Independent writers were asked to look back over the stories we published in 2021 and choose some of their favorite sentences. Here are the results. […]

The Problems in the Health-Care System Are Epidemic

What if you don’t have Covid — but you still need a doctor? This question became more urgent in 2021, when many people moved to the Outer Cape to escape […]

The Outer Cape’s Stories Range Far and Wide

There were times when it seemed like 2021 would be a year without sports. But coaches and athletes found ways to keep playing. I was glad for the chance to […]

A New Year’s Resolution for Car Owners

This week brought mixed reports from my customers on the season of gift giving. You really appreciate your new wool socks. They are very nice. But you are, understandably, a […]

An Acupuncture Clinic in Wellfleet Seeks to Dispel Despair

WELLFLEET — Dr. Margaret Tilton is out to change the ways people — both patients and physicians — approach treatment for depression and addiction. The starting point, she believes, is […]

Please Enjoy the Ride

Welcome, dear reader: here is your very own free ticket to the adventures ahead — the year 2022. All that’s required of you is to strap in, pay attention, and […]

Teams Deal With Postponements

EASTHAM — The Nauset High School boys basketball team was scheduled to play its first game of the season on Tuesday, Dec. 28 against Monomoy High School. This comes after […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Dec. 28 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

The New Moon Is in Pragmatic Capricorn

The new Moon is a time for creating purpose and pushing it forward into the future. The first new Moon of 2022 takes place in Capricorn this week, so let […]

Scouting Out Rapid, At-Home Covid Tests

The holidays brought a boom-and-bust cycle on availability of rapid, at-home Covid-19 tests. Town officials have been trying to hand out free kits to residents while pharmacies have been selling […]

Meetings Ahead in Provincetown

Some meetings are in person, some online, and some are both. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch to see if a remote option is […]

Meetings Ahead in Truro

All meetings in Truro are remote only. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. The agenda includes instructions on how to join. Wednesday, Jan. 5 […]

Meetings Ahead in Wellfleet

All meetings in Wellfleet are remote only and can be watched online. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch, then follow the instructions on the […]

Meetings Ahead in Eastham

Most meetings are being held in person, but some are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about meeting locations and […]

The Wild, the Innocent, and the 125th Street Shuffle

The title of Jane Campion’s haunting new film, The Power of the Dog (streaming on Netflix), comes from Psalm 22 in the Bible, which reads (in the King James version), […]

Contra Dancers Find Connection in Wellfleet

“Dance and swing. Turn your partner round and round! Chain across. Face your neighbor and do-si-do,” says John Alden over a microphone at Wellfleet Preservation Hall. “Looking good!” Alden is […]

Arts Briefs

Jessica Vosk at the Art House The Art House, 214 Commercial St. in Provincetown, welcomes vocalist Jessica Vosk for two nights: Friday, Dec. 31 and Saturday, Jan. 1 at 7 […]

Am I a Surfer?

I surf, but I hesitate to call myself a surfer. I have a complicated relationship with the sport — I love it, and I am terrified by it. It’s been […]

Happy New Year 2522

Hello, hello to 2522 from the year 2022. We have a saying: “How’s by you?” It’s a Jewish phrase that I like. How are you seeing the world these days? […]

Telemedicine Means Better Access to Early, Safe Abortions

For people living on Outer Cape Cod, the nearest abortion clinics are at least two hours away.That means a trip will likely require time off from work or school […]

Classifieds December 30 – January 5, 2021

THE ARTS 2022 Drawing/painting classes with a model: Take one or all three one-day workshops from the virtual PAAM Collection Series, “The Figure.” Part One: Hans Hofmann; Part Two: Robert […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Dec. 20 to Dec. 24, 2021. PROVINCETOWN Dec. 22. Robert D. Williams to Daniel R. McCormick, Joseph D. Mateer, and Mac […]

Looking Through Opera Glasses

For this year’s Divine Comedy-themed art and photography extra, most of the contributors chose Inferno. It’s not surprising, considering the hellish couple of years we’ve had. Not represented in this […]

Letters, December 30, 2021

Dredging the Estuary To the editor: Congratulations to the Eastham Select Board for having the courage, leadership, and vision to finally stop the folly of dredging the estuary [“Eastham Pulls […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats. This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.

Provincetown Legal Notices

Town of Provincetown Public HearingLicensing Board January 11, 2022 The Provincetown Licensing Board will hold a Public Hearing on Tuesday, January 11, 2022 at 5:15 p.m. in the Judge […]

Indie’s Choice

Pedal to the Metal (Friday, Dec. 31) Pedal Ptown hosts the sixth annual “Light Bright Bike Ride” on Friday, Dec. 31, 4:30 p.m. Meet outside the Provincetown Public Library, 356 […]

Town of Truro Legal Notices

Truro Central School Public Hearing Proposed School Budget January 13, 2022 In accordance with Chapter 71, Sec. 38N, of the Massachusetts General Laws, the Truro School Committee will hold a […]

Wellfleet Legal Notices

Town of Wellfleet Public Hearing Community Preservation Committee January 11, 2022 The Wellfleet Community Preservation Committee will hold a public hearing during the virtual Wellfleet Selectboard Meeting on Tuesday, January […]

Christmas Boats

Christmas comes to Provincetown Harbor, where boats are bedecked with trees. This week’s stories include how, for the Outer Cape’s immigrants, holiday traditions evolve, what it’s like to live with […]

Need for Rooms at Cape Cod Hospital Exceeds Capacity

HYANNIS — Cape Cod Hospital has been dealing with a triple threat: a recent swell in incoming Covid-19 patients, a backlog of inpatient discharges, and a pandemic-driven staffing shortage. The […]

Eastham Pulls Out of Nauset Dredging Plan

EASTHAM — At a joint meeting with the Orleans Select Board on Dec. 13, the Eastham Select Board voted unanimously to pull out of the Nauset Estuary Dredge permitting process. […]

1,000 Errors Fixed So Far, As Search Continues

WELLFLEET — More than a thousand errors have been corrected in the town’s books for fiscal year 2020, interim Town Administrator Charles Sumner announced to the select board at its […]

Towns, County Will Get Paltry Payouts From Opioid Suit

Payments from a massive class action lawsuit awarded to towns and counties hit by the opioid epidemic will be no more than a few thousand dollars a year. But the […]

Judge Rules Against Gloucester Clammer ‘Monte’ Rome

PROVINCETOWN — A Barnstable Superior Court judge last month ordered the North Shore owner of a 70-foot sea clam boat to pay $7,500 in docking fees and obtain a permit […]

Town Meeting Will Decide Funding and Possible Development Sites

PROVINCETOWN — The local housing crisis will be on the table repeatedly at the 2022 annual town meeting in a slate of warrant articles to allocate money for housing, to […]

Sergeant Major Spruce, the Christmas Goose

If our backyard farm were in my home country of Austria, we’d be trussing up a plump goose for our Christmas feast right about now. But here we are in […]

In Search of the Christmas Supernova

People have been telling stories about the stars for a long time. We have written accounts from the ancient Egyptians and Sumerians from 5,000 years ago and references to oral […]

For the Outer Cape’s Immigrants, Holiday Traditions Evolve

Kevin Hume, a Jamaican living in Truro, will be making a simple stewed chicken with rice and beans on Christmas Day. “I would not go out of my way to […]

Nauset Grads Step Up to College Hardwood

EASTHAM — Nauset Regional graduates Bobby Joy and Sunny Green were standout athletes in high school here. Now they’re playing college basketball and are learning that the transition is both […]

By Any Other Name

Attention is a form of prayer. —Simone Weil The season of gratitude is upon us. It’s plugged from every pulpit, platform, card, and commercial. It breathes down our necks as […]

Mexico’s Earthy, Smoky, Special Sauce

Eduardo Rios isn’t sure what he’ll be roasting for Christmas dinner. It might be a turkey. Or if he can find one, maybe a big fillet of cod. What he […]

High School Sports Calendar

Monday, Dec. 27 Boys wrestling: The Nauset wrestling team travels to the Marshfield Holiday Tournament beginning at 9 a.m. The tournament is a two-day event, Monday and Tuesday. Boys ice […]

Wellfleet’s Long-Awaited Solar Array Is Up and Running

WELLFLEET — After a two-year delay, Wellfleet’s solar array is “on.” The power company Eversource and the solar contractor Ameresco flipped the switch on Dec. 9, bringing online 2,400 solar […]

Who Should Pay to Repair an Aging Pier?

PROVINCETOWN — Twenty years after an $18-million reconstruction, MacMillan Pier — the town’s economic and cultural heart — needs work. All agree on that. What is disputed is who should […]

The Stars Awaken Idealism but Demand Persistence

If you think 2021 wasn’t as full of silver linings as 2020, you can thank the cosmic dance of Saturn and Uranus for making every molehill this year feel more […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Dec. 21 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Dark Times

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Mask Up in Provincetown

Some meetings are in person, some online, and some are both. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch to see if a remote option is available. Thursday, Dec. 23 […]

Mask Up in Truro

There are no meetings posted for Truro this week. Conversation Starters Mask Up Effective Tuesday, Dec. 21, the Truro Board of Health instituted a mask order for businesses and public […]

Mask Up in Wellfleet

There are no meetings posted for Wellfleet this week. Conversation Starters Mask Up Wellfleet has had a mask mandate in place since Nov. 18, according to the town’s website. Seasonal […]

Mask Up in Eastham

Most meetings are being held in person, but some are still remote or virtual. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about meeting […]

The Wondrous Words of Hilde Oleson

“I’m almost a hundred years old,” says poet Hilde Oleson from her room at Seashore Point in Provincetown. “I’m not going to make myself a famous author, and that doesn’t […]

Laurence Young Paints His Truth

For Laurence Young, each painting is a journey into the unknown. “What I put down first on the canvas has nothing to do with what I’m going to do later,” […]

Hiding in Plain Sight

Built in 1930, Provincetown’s U.S. Post Office is a bustling place, but not many know that the second floor is rented out by artists. A plaque at the top of […]

Turning Sheets of Metal Into Schools of Fish

The last oyster shack in Wellfleet was boarded up for around 50 years when metalworker and builder Steve Swain finished designing the Pearl restaurant across from the marina. Captain Higgins, […]

For Alan Cumming, Fame Is Part and Parcel

I remember reading long ago that actor Alan Cumming threw great parties. This bit of trivia tucked in my brain re-emerged as I dove into his second memoir, Baggage: Tales […]

Arts Briefs

‘Terra Form’ at the CCMoA Cape Cod Potters is celebrating 50 years with “Terra Form,” a juried exhibition at the Cape Cod Museum of Art, 60 Hope Lane in Dennis, […]

Family Holiday Visit

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Sometimes, Beauty Is Not Enough

I am not happy today. Don’t ask me why. I didn’t rest well last night; perhaps the magic balm of sleep did not take place. Or am I getting sick? […]

Wellfleet Needs to Intercept Passing of the Buck

The auditors’ 2020 management letter to Wellfleet town officials raised more questions than it answered. Auditors Powers & Sullivan of Wakefield headlined the letter “Material Weakness.” In summary, it indicated […]

Please Mr. Postman

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Sustaining the News

Many readers sent us a link last week to a fine piece by Boston Globe columnist Renée Loth, titled “Saving Democracy’s Front Lines — Local Newspapers.” “Local newspapers hold a […]

Letters, December 23, 2021

HIPAA Replacement? To the editor: The senior communications officer of Outer Cape Health Services, Gerry Desautels, cited no state or federal statute or regulation to justify his organization’s lack of […]

Alberta Romano, 81, Former Senior Citizen of the Year

Alberta M. Romano of Provincetown died on Dec. 15, 2021 at Cape Cod Hospital in Hyannis after a brief illness. She was 81. Born in New Haven, Conn., she was […]

Raymond E. Johnson, an Activist and Music Lover, Dies at 66

Raymond Johnson of Truro died unexpectedly of heart failure on Dec. 10, 2021 at Cape Cod Hospital in Hyannis. He was 66. Born in Washington, D.C., he was the son […]

Classifieds December 23 – December 29, 2021

THE ARTS 2022 Drawing/painting classes with a model: Take one or all three one-day workshops from the virtual PAAM Collection Series, “The Figure.” Part One: Hans Hofmann; Part Two: Robert […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Dec. 13 to Dec. 17, 2021. PROVINCETOWN Dec. 14. Richard E. Mayberry to Harriet Finkelstein. 100 Alden St., Unit 104. $395,000. […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats.This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.

Indie’s Choice

Go Fish (Thursday, Dec. 23) The Wellfleet Shellfishermen’s Association is having a special holiday farmers market on Thursday, Dec. 23, 10 a.m. to noon at the Wellfleet Marina, 255 Commercial […]

Provincetown Legal Notices

Town of Provincetown Public HearingHistoric District Commission The Provincetown Historic District Commission will hold a Public Hearing at 3:30 P.M. on Wednesday, January 5, 2022, in the Judge Welsh […]

‘Keep Truro Rural,’ Says Someone

When questioned by photographer Nancy Bloom, this calf at the Mooney Farm on South Pamet Road denied posting “Keep Truro Rural” stickers around town. (Photo Nancy Bloom) This page is […]

Masks Are Still Required for Winter Sports

EASTHAM — The Covid-19 pandemic continues to put up hurdles for student athletic teams. The Nauset High School boys basketball team had to suspend activities last week, said Athletic Director […]

County Boards Fighting Over ARPA Millions

Barnstable County officials are battling over who gets to decide on the distribution of $41.3 million in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds from the federal treasury. The three county […]

In Two Rulings, Opponents of Rental Developments Lose Out

Judges in two separate courts rendered rulings in the last week that buoyed developers of rental housing in Provincetown and Truro. In both cases, the state’s new Housing Choice Act […]

After Mandates, Few Cape Health Workers Remain Unvaccinated

Very few health-care workers on Cape Cod have been fired for refusing to comply with vaccine mandates, according to spokespeople at three major providers. The vaccination rates among staff at […]

Wellfleet’s Other Chamber of Commerce

Tucked in the magazine rack at the Wellfleet swap shop, a few reproductions of 17th-century Dutch paintings stand out among glossy periodicals. In one, a richly dressed figure commands the […]

Storms, Sanding, and the Slow Restoration of Sassamanesh Farm

ORLEANS — The Outer Cape has its wild cranberry patches, hidden in the dunes and alongside ponds. But it takes a road trip to Orleans to find a cultivated bog. […]

At Relish, Cookies Have a Season Unto Themselves

PROVINCETOWN — On a summer day around noontime you can locate Relish by the crowd of people waiting outside. In handsome tank tops or flowing beach gowns they gather, placing […]

Mr. Greenough’s Tea

In Wellfleet’s Duck Creek Cemetery, three remarkably well-preserved colonial headstones with classic iconography are a tangible reminder of the John Greenough family. The stones, like too many in Cape Cod’s […]

Spiritual Leaders Find ‘Adversity Can Make You Stronger’

When the churches on the Outer Cape had to suspend all in-person activities in March 2020, there was a period of uneasy quiet for both leaders and members. For a […]

The Joy of Cookie Chaos

Christmas movie marathons, finding the pickle ornament hidden in the tree, folding tamales, regifting fruitcakes — the holidays inspire all kinds of traditions. For almost 20 years, our son, Asher, […]

High School Sports Calendar

See related story about postponement of some Warriors boys basketball games. Thursday, Dec. 16 Girls basketball: The Warriors play at Norwell High School at 6:30 p.m. After losing the season […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Dec. 14 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

The Winter Solstice Invites Balance

As the days begin to wax again after the solstice, bringing longer light, we find ourselves at a turning point. Winter is settling in, and the full Moon in Gemini […]

Where to Find Free Groceries and Meals on the Outer Cape

PROVINCETOWN Inquiries and requests for assistance in accessing food programs in Provincetown should go to Mackenzie Perry, the community support liaison, at 508-237-7042 or [email protected] You can also visit her […]

Second Chance at Scholarships

Some meetings are in person, some online, and some are both. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch to see if a remote option is available. Thursday, Dec. 16 […]

Student Appointed to Walsh Committee

Most meetings in Truro are remote only and can be watched online. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch, then follow the instructions on the […]

Dredging Almost Done

All meetings in Wellfleet are remote only and can be watched online. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch, then follow the instructions on the […]

Transitional Trailer Transaction

Most meetings are being held in person, but some are still remote or virtual. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about meeting […]

Capturing ‘Our Provincetown’ in Words and Brushstrokes

Among the distinguished contributors to Our Provincetown: Intimate Portraits, a book of painted Polaroids by Barbara E. Cohen published last month by Provincetown Arts Press and edited by Dorie Seavey, […]

Heather Pilchard Looks Beyond the Horizon

“I have honed my visual sense,” says Heather Pilchard. “I notice patterns, changes in color. It’s all about observation. I’m always looking.” Pilchard could just as easily be describing her […]

Rob DuToit’s Off-Kilter, Modernist Workspace

Obscured by trees, Rob DuToit’s Provincetown studio is easy to miss. Approached from the side, it appears as an innocuous whitewashed structure with a single door. But the odd angle […]

A World on the Eve of Destruction

When Jerome Robbins — born Gershon Wilson Rabinowitz on New York’s Lower East Side — first came up with the idea in 1947 for what would become the musical West […]

Billboard Bob Takes Listeners on a ‘Charted Course’

An accountant and father of two, Bob Galvin, 67, leads a quiet, unremarkable life with his wife in Plymouth. That is, until you get him talking about music. Then his […]

Arts Briefs

A Chamber Music Festival ‘Encore’ The Cape Cod Chamber Music Festival relives part of its 42nd season with an “Encore Series” available for free throughout December at capecodchambermusic.org. The series […]

Solstice

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Provincetown Edition

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Public Health and Medicare for All

One of the clearest lessons of the Covid-19 pandemic is that, for society as a whole to be healthy, everyone needs access to health care. Untested and untreated people in […]

Rue Commerciale

A Provincetown scene in the not-too-distant future: Excitement mounts as crowds line up at the gate. The faint strains of “Mystere Rondo,” a Cirque du Soleil theme song, can be […]

Relativity

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At the Scene

It’s 9:40 a.m. Tuesday (deadline day) when an email comes from my editor. “This just came in. Can you get the story?” he asks. Attached is an email from a […]

Letters, December 16, 2021

Accounting Down To the editor: Regarding Wellfleet’s seemingly abysmal fiscal situation: if a new town administrator is hired before the town’s accounting mayhem is straightened out and before a competent […]

Classifieds December 16 – December 22, 2021

WAGS Affectionate best-friend type, loves sunset walks on the beach. Brody the dog has returned to Provincetown. Like his late owner, he was always happiest here. He’s only six, still […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Dec. 6 to Dec. 10, 2021. PROVINCETOWN Dec. 6. Francis H. Phillips and Herman Emerson Hendrix to 2 Georges LLC [Claudia […]

Jerrold Zindler, 85, Innovative Engineer and Dedicated Mentor

After four months of hospice care at home, Jerrold Zindler died peacefully on July 30, 2021, surrounded by his family. The cause of death was pancreatic cancer, said his son, […]

Velma O’Donnell, 97, Was Secretary for the Judges Welsh

Velma O’Donnell of Provincetown died peacefully in her sleep on Dec. 10, 2021 at Stevens Memorial Hospital in Norway, Maine. She was 97. Born in Provincetown on Jan. 15, 1924, […]

Provincetown Legal Notices

Town of Provincetown Public HearingPlanning Board The Provincetown Planning Board will hold a Public Hearing on Thursday, December 23, 2021, at 6:00 P.M. in the Judge Welsh Hearing Room, […]

Indie’s Choice

Kinda Blue (Thursday, Dec. 16) Those struggling with loss or seasonal stress can find support at “Coping with Holiday Blues” at the Wellfleet Adult Community Center, 715 Old King’s Highway, […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats. This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.

After Outcry, Holtec Says Pilgrim Effluent Won’t Be Dumped in 2022

PLYMOUTH — After public pushback on the proposed release of radioactive water into Cape Cod Bay from the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station, its new owner says it has decided to […]

The Off Season Is On

Shawn Quinlan of Maynard stands in the early morning light at Pilgrims’ First Landing Park in Provincetown with his catch of quahogs and oysters. (Photo Elizabeth G. Brooke) This page […]

Provincetown Boards Will Revisit Tax Revenue Split

PROVINCETOWN — The select board, community housing council, and year-round market-rate rental housing trust will reconvene on Dec. 15 to tackle, for the second time, a slate of housing proposals […]

Routine Financial Audits Don’t Tell the Whole Story

WELLFLEET — A half-dozen town officials have said no evidence of wrongdoing has been detected in a municipal accounting mess that dates back to at least July 2018 and has […]

Babe’s, a ‘Museum Restaurant,’ Loses Its License

TRURO — The owner of Babe’s Restaurant and Bakery at 65 Shore Road was denied a renewal of its seasonal common victualer license by the select board on Nov. 16 after […]

T-Time Plans: Housing and a Community Center

EASTHAM — The T-Time Development Committee is attempting to do it all. Its final recommendations for use of the 11-acre former driving range on Route 6 include housing for those […]

Wellfleet Picks Same Headhunter Hired by Provincetown

WELLFLEET — The select board has chosen consultant Richard White to lead the search for a new town administrator. The choice was made by a unanimous vote during the board’s […]

Barracks Appeal to Stay in Superior Court, Judge Rules

PROVINCETOWN — An appeal of the planning board’s approval of the workforce housing development known as the Barracks will remain in Barnstable Superior Court. Lawyers for the developer, Provincetown businessman […]

Barbie and Ken Get Dolled Up for Christmas

Celeste Hanlon sits in her Eastham studio surrounded by vintage Christmas ornaments and boxes of Barbies from the 1960s, ’70s, and ’80s — most missing those fabulous fashions Barbie collected […]

Audubon Volunteers Rescue More Than 400 Sea Turtles

WELLFLEET — By now, sea turtles, like hundreds of Outer Cape residents, have headed south to dodge the frost. Where these two seasonal populations diverge: reptiles actually paddle out of […]

Four Days Later, the Carrabassett Is Floated off Longnook Beach

TRURO — “There was a burst of spontaneous applause as the boat started to move,” said Brewster photographer and artist Steve Kennedy, who was among about 100 people at Longnook […]

Daily Fantasy Sports: It’s More Than a Game

Early on Sunday, I take my phone and open a daily fantasy sports betting app called DraftKings. I create a contest for the day and submit it to the 33 […]

Is Your New Year’s Fitness Plan Fab, or Just a Fad?

We all love a quick fix, including when it comes to our bodies. It seems to me we’re especially vulnerable to exercise gimmicks around the holidays, when our routines are […]

Homemade Granola Makes a Not-Too-Sweet Gift

Several years ago, we attended a memorable dinner at the famed New York restaurant Eleven Madison Park. This was before Covid shut down the world, and before the restaurant raised […]

Twelve Days of Christmas

Inflation has arrived at the worst possible time — the holidays. The costs associated with the traditional 12 days of Christmas gifts is up 5.7 percent from 2020, with this […]

9 Varsity Teams in Action This Week

The Nauset Regional High School winter sports season is in full swing starting with nine varsity basketball, ice hockey, swimming, indoor track, and wrestling teams in action this week. Thursday, […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Dec. 7 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

The Lobster Pot Tree Cometh

Some meetings are in person, some online, and some are both. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch to see if a remote option is available. Thursday, Dec. 9 […]

Town vs. Campground Settlement

All meetings in Truro are remote only. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. The agenda includes instructions on how to join. Thursday, Dec. 9 […]

School Playground Update

All meetings in Wellfleet are remote only and can be watched online. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch, then follow the instructions on the […]

Unlocked

Most meetings are being held in person, but some are still remote or virtual. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about meeting […]

A Love Letter to Provincetown at the Cape Museum of Art

Anyone who’s spent time out on the tidal flats of Cape Cod Bay can attest to their allure. Stretching a mile or more at low tide, they can feel like […]

John Best Takes Great Panes

John Best has studied every stained-glass window made by prolific late-19th-century designer Louis C. Tiffany. But one forever changed his outlook: Mermaid With Goldfish. The design is based on the […]

The Outer Cape Chorale Gleefully Returns

“I’m going to cry,” says an emotional Allison Beavan, director of the Outer Cape Chorale. “I’ve wanted to hear you for over two years.” The group’s Chamber Singers, standing arm-spans […]

Songs to ‘Make It Through December’

Between “Spotify Wrapped” and the omnipresence of holiday songs, the month of December is a busy time for listening. The staff at the Indie has some recommendations. Listen at tinyurl.com/47r387nk. […]

Sagittarius Invites Expansiveness

The Sun is halfway through Sagittarius, also known as the Archer. Unlike emotional, internally focused Scorpio, Sagittarius rules expansion of the mind via travel, philosophy, and a voracity for new […]

Arts Briefs

Seasonal Finds at Bakker Auction Bakker Antiques is holding its winter live online auction on Saturday, Dec. 11 at 1 p.m. On the block are 148 lots representing over 100 […]

Pumpkin Spice

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Lights

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The Strong, Thin Line of Remembrance

I am standing outside our beautiful town hall on a chilly, dark evening — late afternoon, actually, in this damnably short-day time of year. There are flickering candles all around […]

Native or Washashore — Who Cares?

Regarding Art Nickerson’s recorded statement at the end of Cam Blair’s “When Turnips Were King in Eastham” (Nov. 18, page B7), I seriously doubt that there’s anyone alive who knew […]

A Dastardly Deed

In our issue dated Aug. 19 of this year, Stephen Kinzer wrote a stirring essay about President Theodore Roosevelt’s visit to Provincetown in the summer of 1907 to lay the […]

Letters, December 9, 2021

Trash Cans Were Missed To the editor: Kudos to the town of Truro, which, on second thought, has put back the trash cans at Coast Guard and presumably other town […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats.This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Nov. 29 to Dec. 3, 2021. PROVINCETOWN Nov. 29. Stand5 Nominee Trust (William P. Dougal and Richard J. Murray, trustees) to […]

Linnell Nickerson, 75, Was Lifelong Truro Resident

Lifelong Truro resident Linnell Morris Nickerson died peacefully in her home on Nov. 6, 2021 after living with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. She was 75. Linnell was born and raised […]

Dowell Baten Multer, Choir Director and Piano Rebuilder, Dies at 88

Dowell Baten Multer died peacefully at Regal Care of Harwich on Nov. 22, 2021. The cause was Lewy body dementia, his wife Sarah Multer said. Dowell was 88. Although he […]

Classifieds December 9 – December 15, 2021

FOR SALE Shadow Boxes by Jill. Give a truly unique gift! Local Truro artist creates personalized shadow boxes to commemorate special people and occasions (weddings, baby showers, graduations, memorials to […]

Indie’s Choice

Just a Blip (Friday, Dec. 10) Payomet Performing Arts Center presents the next in its series “Remembrances of the North Truro Air Force Radar Station” at the Truro Community Center, […]

Provincetown Legal Notices

Town of Provincetown Public Hearing Licensing Board The Provincetown Licensing Board will hold a Public Hearing on Tuesday, December 14, 2021 at 5:15 p.m. in the Judge Welsh Room at […]

New Bedford Vessel Runs Aground on Longnook Beach

TRURO — Part-time Truro resident Lynda West went with her father-in-law, Jock West, to Longnook Beach on Tuesday to take photos of the calm waters with his drone at low […]

House on the Edge Sells for $5.5M

WELLFLEET — The Blasch house is no longer Mark and Barbara Blasch’s problem. Ownership of the 5,817-square-foot house perched atop “the Gut,” a rapidly eroding strip of steep coastal bank […]

Radioactive Water Could Be Dumped in Bay

PLYMOUTH — The Pilgrim nuclear station here, the only nuclear power plant left in Massachusetts — and among the worst performers in the country in its final years — was […]

Plans for Contractor’s Yard on Route 6 Frustrated by Town’s Constraints

WELLFLEET — A dispute over the use of a commercial parcel at the corner of Route 6 and Old Wharf Road has entered a new phase after the owner, Great […]

Outer Cape Kids and Parents Feel Relief About Pediatric Vaccine

PROVINCETOWN — With crayons and pages of coloring books scattered over the floor around them, Alaina and Kacey Vida sit in the waiting area of a Walgreens Pharmacy. It’s the […]

Chess Lives On at Nauset High

EASTHAM — A record 42 students participated in the Miles Tibbetts Chess Tournament that got underway at Nauset Regional High School on Nov. 23 — so many that the final […]

Shellfish Propagation Strategies Reap Promising Results

WELLFLEET — Sometime in June, a fleet of pickup trucks rumbled into the Dunkin’ Donuts parking lot and met for a handoff. Their drivers were “not making a drug deal,” […]

A Place for Hospice Will Open in Wellfleet

WELLFLEET — As president of the Friends of the Wellfleet Council on Aging, a home health aide with the Visiting Nurse Association (VNA), and a nursing home ombudsman for Elder […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Nov. 30 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

A Cook’s Search for Economy Leads to a Superior Snack

When I was in college, I liked to study in the uptown branch of the New Orleans Public Library on St. Charles Avenue. It occupied a sprawling, slightly decrepit mansion […]

Holidays Gifts That Reveal Hidden Talents

Maybe you’ve sworn off that day-after-Thanksgiving rush. Or was it that second round of pie that kept you from transitioning into the shopping season last weekend? Whatever the cause of […]

A Time to Balance Effort With Ease

New Moons can present the ripest moments in which to set intentions for the future. And a new Moon in Sagittarius would dare us to dream big. This week’s new […]

Winter Sports Begin

EASTHAM — The Nauset Warriors football team lost 14-0 to Dennis-Yarmouth in its final game of the season on Thanksgiving. It had been two years since the traditional rivals played […]

Buckle Up

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Eastham Police Discover Bomb Materials After Arrest

EASTHAM –– It started with a police officer attempting to serve a no-trespass order on Saturday, Nov. 27. That turned into a physical confrontation, with the officer getting punched in […]

Wellfleet Town Treasurer Miriam Spencer Resigns

WELLFLEET — After serving as town treasurer for almost three years, Miriam Spencer submitted her resignation on Monday, Nov. 15. “It’s been a long time coming,” she told the Independent. […]

Short-Term Rental Tax

Some meetings are in person, some online, and some are both. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch to see if a remote option is available. Thursday, Dec. 2 […]

Cloverleaf’s Septic System

All meetings in Truro are remote only. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. The agenda includes instructions on how to join. Thursday, Dec. 2 […]

Keeping Roads Above Water

All meetings in Wellfleet are remote only and can be watched online. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch, then follow the instructions on the […]

Tips From a Housing Expert

Most meetings are being held in person, but some are still remote or virtual. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about meeting […]

Layers of Rust and Paint

The first piece of copper that Michael Marrinan sold didn’t have much paint on it. The sheet — a scrap from a copper bar top he’d built for the Underground […]

During Covid, Michael Hartwig Turns to Writing Gay Romance Novels

Michael Hartwig is not one to let Covid cramp his style. During the pandemic, he and his partner, Steve Ridini, who split their time between Boston and Provincetown, chose to […]

With Eurydice, the Met Doesn’t Look Back

In the third act of Matthew Aucoin’s Eurydice, the stony guardians of hell’s gates instruct Orpheus, “You can’t sing here unless you sing in a dead language.” The libretto, which […]

Arts Briefs

Birds and Beasts at Wellfleet Preservation Hall Ben Achtenberg, a documentary filmmaker — his 1984 film, Code Gray, was nominated for an Academy Award — has a show of photographs […]

Mosquito Autumn

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Laughing Matters

The old woman brought her toddler grandson to the beach and watched placidly as he played in the sand at the water’s edge. Suddenly, a huge wave washed the child […]

The One Percent

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Letters, December 2, 2021

‘Let the Cloverleaf Proceed’ To the editor: In response to last week’s letter from Dan Katz [“Aggrieved by the Cloverleaf,” page A2]: Ted Malone does not build “monstrosities.” He builds […]

Schoolyard Fantasy

The Wellfleet Elementary School has not had a playground since March 2020, as staff reporter Jasmine Lu wrote in the Oct. 7 issue of the Independent. First, it was off-limits […]

Classifieds December 2 – December 8, 2021

FOR SALE Refills! Green Road Refill is a newly opened, Earth-friendly store on Route 6A in Brewster, in the Cumberland Farms Plaza. We offer refillable plant-based products for body, bath, […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Nov. 22 to Nov. 26, 2021. PROVINCETOWN Nov. 22. Timothy Alan Trani to Michael J. Bellante. 49 Commercial St. $2,100,000. Nov. […]

Patricia Jackson, 93, Was a Teacher, Nurse, and Goat Handler

After a long and active life that ended in a sad decline of her physical and cognitive abilities, Patricia Jackson died at the Lower Cape Fear Hospice in Bolivia, N.C. […]

Dan Wyatt, Psychiatrist Devoted to Patients, Dies at 63

Daniel Lynn Wyatt, who practiced psychiatry at Outer Cape Health Services for nine years, died suddenly but peacefully in his sleep at his home in Fayetteville, Ark. on Nov. 23, […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

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Provincetown Legal Notices

Town of Provincetown Public Hearing Cemetery Commission The Provincetown Cemetery Commission will hold a Public Hearing on Wednesday, December 8, 2021, 4:00pm in the Caucus Room, Town Hall, 260 Commercial […]

Indie’s Choice

Give a Little (Friday, Dec. 3) “’Tis the Season for Giving,” a benefit for the AIDS Support Group of Cape Cod, will take place at the Post Office Café, 303 […]

A Eulogy for 2 Truro Trees Felled by Nor’easter

TRURO — In the early morning hours of Oct. 27, the night of the recent nor’easter, a tremendous gust of wind came swooping down over the ocean, across the tops […]

The Ups and Downs of the Truro Sixth Grade Question

TRURO — When Caroline Townsend was finishing fifth grade at Truro Central School (TCS) in 2012, her parents asked her which sixth grade option she preferred: board the bus for Nauset […]

Eastham Police Learn How to Interact With the Disoriented

EASTHAM — Elaine Lipton got a call from an in-home aide who’d arrived to cook dinner for her 85-year-old dad and found his home empty. The car was gone, but […]

Pace of Sales Picks Up in Provincetown’s Business Sector

PROVINCETOWN — The sales of three important hotel and restaurant properties have been announced in recent days, with at least one more pending, as the frenzied real estate market on […]

With Cases Up, Wellfleet Again Imposes Masks

WELLFLEET — Town officials imposed an indoor mask order for the second time on Nov. 17, after a meeting at which the police chief cautioned that the on-again, off-again orders […]

At the Eastham Elks Lodge, Community and Charity Meat

EASTHAM –– Last Friday evening a dozen Elks galloped in and out of the kitchen of Lodge #2572 as they prepared the weekly fish fry. On the other side of […]

A Cook Learns One More Way to Do Thanksgiving

When I arrived at my mother’s with my cooler full of turkey stock, homemade cranberry relish, and cubed bread for stuffing, the food was not my worry. For a while […]

A Truro Farmer Talks Turkey

TRURO — Not far from Route 6 but seemingly worlds away, Drew Locke raises chickens, cows, pigs, and turkeys on an expanse of land that has been farmed for seven […]

What Color Was This Old House?

Edward Penniman, considered one of the most successful sea captains in New England, traveled the world hunting whales in the mid-19th century and amassed enough wealth to retire to Eastham […]

Girls Hockey and Basketball Teams Are Set to Grow

EASTHAM — The Nauset athletics program had a big announcement as the high school sports season turned from fall to winter. The Cape Cod Furies girls ice hockey team, which […]

A Garlicky Deviation From Hanukkah Tradition

As a kid, I wasn’t sure how I felt about Hanukkah in November. Whenever that happened, it meant we got presents before everyone else. That was fun. On the other […]

In View This Week

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The Astrology of Gratitude

In 1621, the year of the proverbial first Thanksgiving, and one year after the Pilgrims landed in Provincetown, Jupiter, the planet of purpose and of plenty, was in communicative air […]

Meet Leonard, a Visitor From Oort

As you read this, Comet Leonard is racing towards the Sun. It’s visible before sunrise with binoculars and small telescopes, and there’s a good chance it will become visible to […]

Charged With 4th OUI and Facing 2 Years in Jail

PROVINCETOWN — Sean P. Hallisey, 51, of Bradford Street crashed his ex-partner’s vehicle into the woods beside the entrance to the Old Colony Nature Pathway on Howland Street on Saturday, […]

Sign of the Times: Edibles and Pets

Some meetings are in person, some online, and some are both. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch to see if a remote option is available. Town Hall is […]

High Head Walking Trail

All meetings in Truro are remote only and can be watched online. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch, then follow the instructions on the […]

Shellfish Farmers Market Returns

All meetings in Wellfleet are remote only and can be watched online. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch, then follow the instructions on the […]

Fortified Food Exchange

Most meetings are being held in person, but some are still remote or virtual. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about meeting […]

Listen Along With Billy

Singer and songwriter Billy Hough estimates that, since his stage show Scream Along With Billy began its run in 2006, he and bassist Sue Goldberg have covered around 300 records. […]

Fine Arts Work Center Welcomes Its 2021-2022 Fellows

Nineteen writing and visual arts fellows arrived last month at the Fine Arts Work Center for seven-month residencies in Provincetown. One more fellow, Ellen Akimoto, is in Germany dealing with […]

The Complete Works of Bert Yarborough

From the outside, Bert Yarborough’s Truro studio, located in an industrial complex, doesn’t look like much. It is housed in a row of identical rented units, each with a windowless […]

Midnight in the Cinema of Good and Evil

The 2016 movie Jackie, which stars Natalie Portman as Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis and is directed by the Chilean filmmaker Pablo Larraín, was an unexpected gem. It delved into the mind […]

Turkey Dinner

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Starving for Art

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More Perfect Unions

In Michigan, the United Auto Workers was the quintessential labor union. We breathed cars and trucks, and our economy rose and fell in direct correlation to auto sales. Every family […]

A Local Newspaper With Benefits

Seven weeks ago, as we passed the two-year mark and began Volume 3 of the Independent, I wrote about our finances and where we stood in relation to our projections. […]

Letters, November 25, 2021

There Is No Alternative Bike Route To the editor: The Independent reports that the Dept. of Conservation and Recreation “continues to believe that the safest and best approach for users […]

Kathleen Gonsalves, 72, a Passionate Cook, Was Life of the Party

Kathleen Gonsalves of Truro died peacefully at her home on Nov. 11, 2021, surrounded by the love of her family. She was 72. Born in Hyannis, she was the daughter […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

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Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Nov. 15 to Nov. 19, 2021. PROVINCETOWN Nov. 16. Emmanuel J. Speare to Kenneth Hale. 33 Franklin St. $1,675,000. Nov. 17. […]

Classifieds November 25 – December 1, 2021

FOR SALE Refills! Green Road Refill is a newly opened, Earth-friendly store on Route 6A in Brewster, in the Cumberland Farms Plaza. We offer refillable plant-based products for body, bath, […]

Provincetown Legal Notices

Town of Provincetown Public Hearing Licensing Board The Provincetown Licensing Board will hold a Public Hearing on Tuesday, November 30, 2021 at 5:15 p.m. in the Judge Welsh Room at […]

Indie’s Choice

Cold Turkey (Thursday, Nov. 25) There will be an unofficial Turkey Trot on Thursday, Nov. 25, 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. Runners should meet at the Pilgrims’ First Landing Park, 1 […]

Arts Briefs

‘Gratitude’ at Addison Gallery Addison Gallery, 43 South Orleans Road in Orleans, is hosting “A Benefit Show of Gratitude,” running through Dec. 31, with work by Paul Batch, Paul Schulenburg, […]

Rot Puts a Bump in Plan to Fix Lieutenant Island Bridge

WELLFLEET — William Huss, the president of the Lieutenant Island Association, got an urgent call from DPW Director Jay Norton on Oct. 29. Coastal Engineering, the contractor making long-planned repairs […]

DOR’s ‘Plan B’ Enables Wellfleet to Send Fall Tax Bills

WELLFLEET — After telling the select board on Nov. 2 that property tax bills could not go out this fall, interim Town Administrator Charles Sumner returned a week later with […]

Truro Housing Plaintiffs Ordered to Post $25,000 Bond

TRURO — In what could be the first use of a new provision in the Housing Choice Act, a state Land Court judge has ordered residents appealing the town’s permitting […]

Judge Recognizes State Ownership of Intertidal Zone

PROVINCETOWN — The owner of Sal’s Place may not have to pay $78,499 in legal fees plus fines for putting restaurant tables on the beach behind her neighbor’s house. In […]

Cyr and Peake Direct Federal and State Relief at Housing Efforts

PROVINCETOWN — Spending bills being finalized in Boston this week will allocate $2.4 billion in federal relief money from the American Rescue Plan Act, which Congress passed in March, and […]

New Wellfleet Building Inspector Quits After 2 Days

WELFLEET — Wellfleet had a permanent full-time building inspector for two days last month. But he resigned after hitting the housing wall. Vincenzo Tirone, the former building commissioner in Monson, […]

DCR’s Route 6 Lot Is ‘Not a Parking Area’

WELLFLEET — The state Dept. of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) is finishing work on a new parking lot at 2520 Route 6 as part of its construction of a bike […]

Boys’ Soccer Season Ends With a Heartbreaker

EAST LONGMEADOW — One of the most thrilling high school soccer matches this season took place on Nov. 14 as the eighth-seeded Nauset boys played the top-seeded East Longmeadow Spartans […]

When Turnips Were King in Eastham

EASTHAM –– One hundred eleven years ago, the sandy fields of Eastham yielded 10,710 bushels of turnips, more than every other town from Provincetown to Yarmouth combined. When local farmers […]

Eleventh Hour: Veterans Day 2021 in Provincetown

Provincetown marked Veterans Day this year with a solemn gathering on MacMillan Pier, with Jim Keefe serving as master of ceremonies. It was the 103rd anniversary of the signing of […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Nov. 16 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Welcome, Geo

George Avery Downing, who is called “Geo,” was born on Oct. 26, 2021 at Cape Cod Hospital to elated parents Catherine Graciano and Vanessa Downing. The family lives in Brewster, […]

Eating Oysters, With Gratitude

I won’t blame you if you have your doubts when I tell you that your Thanksgiving dinner might be more authentic if you served fish instead of turkey. There’s not […]

To Prepare for the Holidays, Just Lie Down

In just four weeks, we’ll be celebrating the winter solstice, the shortest day and longest night of the year. Pre-pandemic, this time of year always felt frenetic. We were all […]

Pie Crust

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Amazing Grace: A Mother’s Legacy

A bronze tablet attached to a boulder in Eastham’s Cove Burial Ground is one of the few tangible reminders of the Ralph Smith (or Smythe) family, who arrived in Eastham […]

Diversity Audit Sets Direction for Future DEI Officer

PROVINCETOWN — The results of a town diversity audit are in: Provincetown year-rounders are mostly white and older, on average, than the rest of the state, and the community is […]

Turkeys Will Trot

Some meetings are in person, some online, and some are both. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch to see if a remote option is available. Thursday, Nov. 18 […]

Zoning Board of Appeals

All meetings in Truro are remote only. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. The agenda includes instructions on how to join. Thursday, Nov. 18 […]

Town Offices Reopen

All meetings in Wellfleet are remote only and can be watched online. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch, then follow the instructions on the agenda. Thursday, […]

Tiny Building, Big Cost

Most meetings are being held in person, but some are still remote or virtual. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about meeting […]

Chris Firger Gives Cape Landscapes an Early Modern Flair

“The root of a lot of what I do is the Group of Seven,” Chris Firger says, speaking by phone from his Salem studio after a long day’s work preparing […]

Frank Milby: Friend and Mentor

Katrina Walker first met Frank Milby in 1983 at Provincetown’s Café Edwige, now closed, where Milby’s wife, Karen, worked. “Frank came up to our table,” recalls Walker. “He looked at […]

Lizabeth Cohen Takes a Long View of Urban Renewal

Urban renewal today conjures images of destruction and displacement. But in her most recent book, Saving America’s Cities, historian Lizabeth Cohen brings readers into the post-World War II mindset that […]

Arts Briefs

AMZehnder Gallery’s Holiday Show AMZehnder Gallery, 25 Bank St. #3 in Wellfleet, is mounting a holiday art show through Jan. 1. There are paintings and small works by gallery staples […]

On Acorn Hill

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Over the Bridge

I believe I have mentioned my fierce love of Provincetown. I believe, too, that I am not unique in this respect. Indeed, one of the defining attributes of people on […]

Orange Season

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Silence of the Clams

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Paradise Dangled

As a boy growing up in the 1950s, paradise was a pine-paneled cottage in the Surfside Colony at Lecount Hollow Beach. A few of you cringed as you read that […]

Letters, November 18, 2021

‘Pain as Well as Joy’ To the editor: Coming into a nursing home is frightening when you are old and fragile. At least, that is what they tell you. Then […]

Classifieds November 18 – November 24, 2021

FOR SALE Refills! Green Road Refill is a newly opened, Earth-friendly store on Route 6A in Brewster, in the Cumberland Farms Plaza. We offer refillable plant-based products for body, bath, […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Nov. 8 to Nov. 12, 2021. PROVINCETOWN Nov. 8. Studio Realty Trust (Edward J. Kennedy and Robert E. Kennedy, trustees) to […]

Elaine Romagnoli, a Queer Pioneer and Legend, 79

A celebration of the life of Elaine Lillian Romagnoli will be held on Sunday, Nov. 21 at 11 a.m. at the Stonewall Inn, 53 Christopher St. in New York City. […]

Raymond Sawyer, a Stone Mason With a Quick Wit, Dies at 84

Raymond A. Sawyer died at home in Provincetown of natural causes, surrounded by his family, on Nov. 10, 2021. His death was confirmed by his daughter Shannon. He was 84. […]

Linda Christine McSweeney, 72

Linda Christine (Johnson) McSweeney of Eastham died peacefully at Seashore Pointe in Provincetown on Nov. 7, 2021. She was 72. Born on Aug. 23, 1949 to Ralph and Eleanor Johnson, Linda […]

Joe Corea Memorial Friday in Truro

A memorial celebration of the life of Joseph Corea, who died on Sept. 22, 2020, will take place at 12:30 p.m. this Friday, Nov. 19, 2021 at Montano’s Restaurant in […]

Nancy Boire, Whose Great Loves Were Family and Truro, Dies at 77

Nancy Kelley Boire of Truro and Hudson died peacefully from complications of Alzheimer’s disease on Oct. 20, 2021 at the Bridges, a memory-care assisted living facility in Mashpee. Her death […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

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Indie’s Choice

Once in a Lifetime (Thursday, Nov. 18) Lifetime Learning at Snow Library, 67 Main St. in Orleans, continues with “Slavery in Massachusetts Before the Civil War” on Thursday, Nov. 18, […]

Provincetown Legal Notices

Town of Provincetown Public Hearing Historic District Commission The Provincetown Historic District Commission will hold a Public Hearing at 3:30 P.M. on Wednesday, December 1, 2021, in the Judge Welsh […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

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Collecting Rubies in the Sand

The greens, golds, pinks, and reds of just a few weeks ago have given way to a sepia-toned world, awash in amber, russet, and ash. I pull up to my […]

Outer Cape Lives in Health-Care Limbo

Jenny Muschinske and her husband moved from New York to Wellfleet in March 2020. Then, she got pregnant. Suddenly, finding a local doctor became urgent. She had been “seeing” her […]

Task Force Backs POAH-CDP Affordable Housing Bid

WELLFLEET — The task force charged with recommending the best developer to build and manage 46 units of affordable rental housing on Lawrence Road has selected a national nonprofit organization […]

Benten Niggel Resigns From Eastham School Committee

EASTHAM –– Benten Niggel resigned from the Eastham Elementary School Committee on Oct. 15 after charges emerged that he had “promoted the use and sale of marijuana” to high school […]

Truro Fire Department Survives a ‘Staffing Crisis’

TRURO — The fire and rescue dept. has weathered what town officials called a “severe staffing shortage” last month when, according to an Oct. 12 press release, the department was down […]

If You See Something, Say Something

PROVINCETOWN — Police are investigating the disappearance of a white 2011 Chevrolet Star Crafter student activities mini-bus. It was apparently stolen sometime overnight on Thursday, Nov. 4 from the public […]

Judge Is Asked to Require $50K Bond in Barracks Suit

PROVINCETOWN — Lawyers for the developer of a proposed workforce housing project — known as the Barracks — and the town’s planning board, which approved the development, have asked a […]

T-Time Emails Give Insight Into a Community’s Thinking

EASTHAM — The T-Time Development Committee that has been studying the 11-acre former driving range for two years has wrapped up the public input phase of its work. At three […]

A Son of Provincetown Looks Back on His Service

Michael Cabral retired as a sergeant in the United States Army in 2013 with a chest full of medals. He also had PTSD. Cabral fractured his back twice in training […]

As Guest Houses Sell, Many Become Private Homes

PROVINCETOWN — For 10 years, Provincetown’s hotel and guest house industry has been characterized by two trends. The total number of hotel rooms has been gradually decreasing, as many properties, […]

Majoring in Dirt

Isabelle Nobili is a 2021 Nauset Regional High School graduate who has ambitious college plans. She’s going to Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. What she wants to study there is […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Monday, Nov. 8 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

After Five Years, a Locally Blended Rye Is Ready

The rain is coming down hard from a low, leaden sky, and the wind is whistling down Paradise Hollow so fiercely that we fear for the roof. On such a […]

Heading to Class on a Search for Motivation

Motivation has been a theme for me this fall — I find that’s true of a lot of people I work with. As the weather cools, most of us need […]

Boys Soccer Survives First Tourney Round

EASTHAM — It was a tough season for the Nauset Warriors football team. Like other teams, Nauset struggled to field enough players this fall. But on Friday, Nov. 5 it […]

A Would-Be Bull Fighter Has His First Rodeo

EASTHAM — Donald Sack, 69, remembers staring a rodeo bull in the face while standing just a few feet from the animal in an arena in Rome, Ga. in August […]

A Park by Any Other Name

Some meetings are in person, some online, and some are both. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch to see if a remote option is available. Tuesday, Nov. 16 […]

Suit Drops From $5.7M to $41

All meetings in Truro are remote only. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. The agenda includes instructions on how to join. Friday, Nov. 12 […]

Trees at Baker’s Field Removed

All meetings in Wellfleet are remote only and can be watched online. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch, then follow the instructions on the […]

Thrift Store Rescue?

Most meetings are being held in person, but some are still remote or virtual. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about meeting […]

For Susan Lyman, Art Doesn’t Just Grow on Trees

“I’m not a city person,” says the artist Susan Lyman, chatting in the far East End Provincetown home she designed and built in 1987 with her late husband, Doug Trumbo, […]

The Provincetown History Preservation Project Lives On

“Listen, we have a long, rich history,” says Stephen Borkowski, sitting in the Provincetown library’s Cape Cod room. “Provincetown saw the founding of American democracy. The origins of American theater. […]

Alexandra Marshall Puts Silence Into Words

Alexandra Marshall was just 26 when her husband, Tim Buxton, normally joyous and enthusiastic in the face of challenges, committed suicide. It was 1970 and the couple was in Ghana […]

Meet Wellfleet’s Historic Preservation Consultant

Lynn Smiledge began her career producing medical films in the pre-computer era of the late 1970s, creating educational animations and advertising for pharmaceutical companies. Back then, “It was all pen […]

Arts Briefs

Dennis Cunningham’s Poetic ‘Stations’ “Stations of the Peaked Hill Bars” is an installation by Wellfleet actor, filmmaker, and Renaissance man Dennis Cunningham. It’s based on the Roman Catholic tradition of […]

Heading South

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The Summer and Winter Wetus of Our Predecessors

We are moving deeply into November, the month now recognized as containing the National Day of Mourning for the Native Peoples of this land. Looking wistfully for optimism, or something […]

Let’s Change the Power Structure

The last week of October brought fierce winds, broken trees and poles, and power outages. In Provincetown, no one had electricity for the first day, and in large sections of […]

Look Back Before You Look Ahead

Take a breath before you look ahead, as November will culminate with series of notable celestial events, starting with a Full Moon and partial lunar eclipse in the sign of […]

A Humpty Dumpty Policy

Five weeks ago, we published a story with the headline “Truro and Wellfleet Will Fail to Meet Their Housing Goals.” It summarized the four Outer Cape towns’ affordable housing production […]

Letters, November 11, 2021

Truro’s Housing Plan To the editor: Thank you for your recent focus on housing production on the Outer Cape, including “Truro and Wellfleet Will Fail to Meet Their Housing Goals” […]

Classifieds November 11 – November 17, 2021

FOR RENT Space available for licensed independent mental health professionals. Large private corner office in Orleans. Office shared with two established practitioners. Shared overhead expenses, furnished waiting room. Storage space. […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Nov. 1 to Nov. 5, 2021. PROVINCETOWN Nov. 2. William K. Robinson to Mira Patel. 586 Commercial St., Unit 3. $525,000. […]

Ronald ‘Gus’ Martin, 83, of Provincetown Was Witty and Wise

Ronald E. Martin, known to many as “Gus” or “Gussy,” died at home in Palmyra, Va. on Oct. 16, 2021. He was 83. The family did not disclose a cause […]

Carolyn Crowell, Compassionate and Creative, Dies at 80

Carolyn H. Crowell of Wellfleet died on Oct. 25, 2021 at Cape Cod Hospital with her family at her side. The cause of death, confirmed by her husband, Chandler, was […]

Indie’s Choice

See the Light (Thursday, Nov. 11) The annual lighting of the Pilgrim Monument, commemorating their first landing in Provincetown, will occur on Thursday, Nov. 11, 6 p.m. Though there is […]

Provincetown Legal Notices

Town of Provincetown Position Openings DPW/Transfer Station & Recycling Center Working Foreman – AFSCME The Town of Provincetown is accepting applications for a Working Forman position in the Department of […]

Shellfishermen, Scientists Study Wellfleet’s Goo

WELLFLEET — Chopper Young was working on his oyster grant one day when a shrill note pierced Chipman’s Cove. Stranded in the mucky tidal flats was a woman in a kayak. […]

The Lagasses’ Marina Deal Required a Harbor Walk by 2019

PROVINCETOWN — When Chuck and Ann Lagasse bought Fisherman’s Wharf in 2016, the Chapter 91 license they secured from the state required them to construct a harbor walk on the […]

STM Is Put Off as Town Can’t Set Tax Rate

WELLFLEET — After meeting with a team from the state Dept. of Revenue (DOR) on Tuesday, interim Town Administrator Charles Sumner had more bad news about the town’s financial condition: […]

High Winds Leave Outer Cape Powerless After Latest Nor’easter

PROVINCETOWN — It sounds ironic, but the island of Nantucket is a good place to ride out a nor’easter like the one that struck on Oct. 27, bringing wind gusts […]

One of Two Historic Houses Will Be Demolished

EASTHAM — Threatened with demolition, two historic houses, one in Eastham and one in Wellfleet, were temporarily protected by local bylaws that delayed the destruction while alternatives could be explored. […]

Jack Martin, 14, Envisions Great Shots

EASTHAM — Before this fall’s high school golf season started, Nauset freshman Jack Martin had never heard of the New England Championship. On Monday, the 14-year-old was the only member […]

When East Winds Pummel Our Harbor

The Provincetown waterfront once again took a severe beating from a coastal storm which, other than Hurricane Bob, was probably as intense as any coastal storm we’ve experienced in recent […]

Eastham Thrift Shop Needs a New Home

EASTHAM — The thrift shop run by the Friends of the Eastham Council on Aging first opened in what had once been a general store on Massasoit Road in 1984. […]

In Search of the Elusive Perfect Beach Stone

EASTHAM — Kathleen Masterson-Lavalley doesn’t go to the beach for its waves or for its sunsets. Instead, her eyes sweep the sand for the perfect stones — flat, round ones […]

Citizen Scientists and Artists Report In After 4-Day Trash Tally

TRURO — After a four-day Outer Cape cleanup held in late September, the Marine Debris Team of the Provincetown Center for Coastal Studies (CCS) took a deep dive into the […]

Brewster Follows Provincetown’s Lead on Dog Park

BREWSTER — It took almost a decade of back-and-forth discussions and proposals, but there will finally be a place in town where dogs and their people can socialize. The acre-and-a-half […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Nov. 2 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Soccer Teams Heading to Playoffs

EASTHAM — The regular season is over, with Nauset High School boys and girls soccer teams both looking to the upcoming playoffs. Halloween proved to be a scary day for […]

There’s Togetherness in Surfers’ Small Transgressions

Surfers pee in their wetsuits. I’ve never met one who doesn’t. All those people you see out there in the ocean, looking calm and free? They are. They’re peeing. This […]

Expect Honesty With a New Moon in Scorpio

In the shadow of this week’s New Moon in Scorpio, truth’s clarion call rises from the depths of our hearts. Expect honest, emotional exchanges that spark unwanted but overdue transformation. […]

The Five Stages of Power Loss

1. Denial Tuesday, 4 p.m. Child 1: “My French teacher said we probably won’t have school tomorrow.” Parent 1: “OK… Wait, what? Why?!” Child 1: “A storm.” Parent 1: “That’s […]

Pears Are for Pies

If you are any kind of cook, chances are that in the weeks ahead you are going to be called on to make at least one pie. Showing up with […]

Orleans Will Fund Nauset Beach Project, Dredging, Free Preschool

ORLEANS — The Nauset Beach retreat project, dredging at Rock Harbor, and a preschool support program were among the articles passed at the Orleans special town meeting held on Oct. […]

VFW Demolition Set

Some meetings are in person, some online, and some are both. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch to see if a remote option is available. Thursday, Nov. 4 […]

Rental Assistance, Adapted

All meetings in Truro are remote only. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. The agenda includes instructions on how to join. Friday, Nov. 5 […]

Town Administrator Search Committee Expands

All meetings in Wellfleet are remote only and can be watched online. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch, then follow the instructions on the […]

Zoning Changes Incoming

Most meetings are being held in person, but some are still remote or virtual. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about meeting […]

The Quirky and Quotable Ellen Anthony

“I’m interested in weird,” says Truro artist Ellen Anthony. “So much of our culture is about ‘getting it right’ and ‘doing it well,’ and I’m just not into that. Take […]

Mike Parlante, the Collector, Walks in Frank James’s Steps

If you’re looking for treasure, Mike Parlante has some advice for you: “Look down.” That’s how he found the majority of the Native American artifacts currently on display at the […]

Rejecting ‘Pretty Pictures,’ an Artist Cuts a New Direction

“I think it grew out of my frustration as a painter,” Daniel Wagner says, looking around at the many canvases lying about his cluttered Provincetown Commons studio. “What do I […]

A First Peek Into FAWC’s New Heart

PROVINCETOWN — After more than five years, the renovation of the Fine Arts Work Center campus is nearly complete. “This is the beginning of our shakedown, to see what it’s […]

An Indie Playlist for November

Our playlists are often eclectic, as contributors are given musical free reign. This one is especially so. Listen to some unmasked rap, countertenor cabaret, Chinese pop, and classic Billy Joel […]

The Year of the Rat

CAMBRIDGE — Two days ago, while I sat on my bed talking on the phone, a rat scrambled across my bedcovers and slipped down between the mattress and the wall. […]

Blowers

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Storm’s a Brewing

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The tides

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Dog on a Beach

The British inventor Lord Kelvin famously said that if you can’t measure something, “your knowledge is of a meagre and unsatisfactory kind.” I heartily disagree. The most important things in […]

Content Creation

I’m glad E.B. White is dead. The New Yorker staff writer and author of Charlotte’s Web famously wrote an impassioned warning against sponsored content in 1976. I wouldn’t want him […]

Letters, November 4, 2021

Taking, and Not Taking, Positions To the editor: We have two responses to last week’s Letter From the Editor (“A Silver Lining,” Oct. 28, page A2). First, in response to […]

Rev. Jack Smith, Irreverent Preacher of Justice and Love, Dies at 86

The Rev. John Ferris “Jack” Smith, well known on the Outer Cape as a longtime leader of the Episcopal Chapel of St. James the Fisherman, died in his sleep at […]

Art Director Marguerite Dahl, 83, Pursued the Fabulous

Marguerite Paradise Dahl of Orleans, who was known as Peggy, died on Oct. 25, 2021 at the McCarthy Center Hospice in Sandwich. She was 83, and had faced cancer bravely. […]

Classifieds November 4 – November 10, 2021

MUSIC & ART Thank you to all the artists who took courses and submitted outstanding art to student shows. To view their work, go to www.shabottbarrett.com/gallery. Want to know about […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Oct. 25 to Oct. 29, 2021. PROVINCETOWN Oct. 25. Richard C. Holland Trust (Richard C. Holland, trustee) to Tony D. Origlio […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

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Arts Briefs

Workshops at 24PearlStreet The Fine Arts Work Center’s online writing program, 24PearlStreet, is hosting two workshops that run Nov. 8 through Dec. 2. June Sylvester Saraceno is teaching “Creating Unforgettable […]

Indie’s Choice

Double Dip at the CHO (Thursday, Nov. 4 – Friday, Nov. 5) Vinegrass presents Americana singer-songwriter Jeffery Foucault, performing live at the Centers for Culture and History in Orleans (the […]

Provincetown Legal Notices

Town of Provincetown Department of Public Works Public Notice General Bylaw Chapter 11-6-6, Trees & Shrubs Obstructions in the Public Ways: In order to preserve and promote the safety of […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

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Ninjas, Knights, Sharks, Goddesses, and Batgirls About Town

Naruto and a Lego Nexo Knight, characters from two different anime shows, fuel up an hour before Monday’s soccer practice with egg and bacon sandwiches and by climbing trees outside […]

In Provincetown, a Family Fights a Rare Ailment

PROVINCETOWN — For her family and friends, Veronica Silva’s 80th birthday party on June 15, 2012 was more of a living funeral than a celebration, recalled her son David Silva, […]

Select Board Picks TCB for VFW Project

PROVINCETOWN — The Community Builders, the Boston firm that built 50 apartments at Province Landing on Shank Painter Road 10 years ago, has won the bidding to construct affordable housing […]

6 Plaintiffs Are Dropping Out of Cloverleaf Suit

TRURO — Six residents who were suing the town and the developer in an attempt to halt the proposed Cloverleaf affordable housing project on Highland Road have decided to withdraw […]

A Death in Wellfleet, as Case Numbers Gradually Decline

WELLFLEET — The number of new cases of Covid-19 was down slightly this week, according to the town’s health agent, Hillary Greenberg-Lemos, following the emergence of a cluster of cases […]

Final East End Park Design Comes In at $2.3M

PROVINCETOWN — The final design of the East End Waterfront Park includes fewer trees but has that bathroom that people requested. The cost to turn the existing crushed-shell parking lot […]

The Nauset Booster Club Needs a Boost

EASTHAM — The concession stand was easy for Lisa Still and Dawn O’Neil to manage during the Nauset High homecoming football game on Oct. 15. That night, students at the […]

West End in a Pickle Over Popular Sport

PROVINCETOWN — How heated is the debate about the West End pickleball courts? If the swear words were left in everyone’s statements, this article would be two inches longer. “I’m […]

From the Mayflower to the Double Dragon

At Nauset Regional High School, says Way Yin Yuen, he was known as “that Asian kid.” But, the 1996 graduate says he was largely spared racial smears growing up — save […]

Beanies That Blanket Babies, Near and Far

Carolyn Souza first learned to knit when she was in the Girl Scouts in Truro, where she grew up. “We all knitted little squares,” she says. Then all the girls’ […]

A Sweet Bread for Remembrance and Reunion

One year after my mother died, she was with me again, vividly. I was walking through a maze of graves lit by a sea of beeswax candles in a cemetery […]

How to Scare Your Mechanic

Car prices are about the scariest thing I can think of in this Halloween week. It looks like we’re all going to have to settle in and get comfortable with […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Oct. 26 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Martin Qualifies for N.E. Golf Championship

EASTHAM — After finishing third in the Division 2 South Sectional tournament with a team score of 305, the Nauset Warriors golf team placed 11th out of 13 teams in […]

A New Library Director for Eastham

EASTHAM — Library Director Debra Dejonker-Berry announced in the spring that she would be retiring after seven years here and more than 15 years in the same job in Provincetown. […]

A Town-by-Town Halloween Guide

PROVINCETOWN Spook-tac-u-tour The Provincetown Recreation Dept. is offering a “spooky but family-friendly interactive tour of Provincetown.” QR codes the department has placed around town guide the way. Once you scan […]

Stranded Boat Could Delay Shellfish Season

All meetings this week are in person at Town Hall. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch to see if a remote option is available. Thursday, Oct. 28 […]

In Search of Babe’s

All meetings in Truro are remote only. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. The agenda includes instructions on how to join. Thursday, Oct. 28 Climate Action […]

Back to Normal Hours?

All meetings in Wellfleet are remote only and can be watched online. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch, then follow the instructions on the […]

Open Meeting Misstep Admitted

Most meetings are being held in person, but some are still remote or virtual. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about meeting […]

Salvatore Del Deo: Routine and Ritual

Salvatore Del Deo first came to Provincetown in 1946 to study painting with Henry Hensche. “When I drove to the Cape the first time, it took six hours from Providence,” […]

It’s Fun Being Trans

In November 1980, a journalist named D. Keith Mano wrote an article for Playboy titled “It’s No Fun Being a Girl.” The article — which I read thanks to a […]

Called Back by the Tide

I had sailed only twice before coming to Provincetown. I had always liked boating — I rowed in Central Park as a boy, and in time became a strong canoeist […]

Drop Dead Gorgeous

Brightly colored makeup palettes are spread across the bathroom counter as Mackenzie Miller puckers her lips while contouring her cheekbones. “When the makeup is done, you look in the mirror […]

A Time for Revelry, and, Maybe, Moderation

Happy Halloween, witches and wanderers! In the ancient traditions of the Celts, the Hindus, and the indigenous peoples of Mexico and Central America, ahead is a night reserved for reverent […]

Arts Briefs

‘Bewitching’ Show at Bowersock Gallery “Bewitching Affairs” opens at Bowersock Gallery, 373 Commercial St. in Provincetown, on Saturday, Oct. 30 and runs through Nov. 2. There will be a reception […]

New Neighbors

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A Gun Owner Reckons With the Costs of Our Compulsion

I’m a gun owner. I don’t fit the stereotype of a gun-toting Second Amender decked out in camouflage protesting in front of a state capitol — although having grown up […]

Close Encounters

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John Donahue, 92, Teacher and Former Nauset Athletic Director

John Donahue, who was known as “Coach D” across the Cape and served as athletic director at Nauset Regional High School for 40 years, died peacefully of natural causes on […]

Caroline Parlante of Wellfleet’s Bookstore & Restaurant Dies at 86

Caroline Jeanette Parlante, the founder and proprietor of the Bookstore & Restaurant on Wellfleet Harbor, died at Cape Cod Hospital on Oct. 17, 2021. Her death was confirmed by her […]

Classifieds October 28 – November 3, 2021

FOR RENT Space available for licensed independent mental health professionals. Large private corner office in Orleans. Office shared with two established practitioners. Shared overhead expenses, furnished waiting room. Storage space. […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Oct. 18 to Oct. 22, 2021. PROVINCETOWN Oct. 18. Provincetown Holdco LLC [Benjamin Berkowitz, manager] to Richard A. Bergman. 100 Alden […]

A Silver Lining

Just when I find myself in an especially bad mood — because I forgot to renew the car registration and ended up with the car towed, or my computer somehow […]

Letters, October 28, 2021

Speeding Through Eastham To the editor: I read with interest “Eastham Wants a Main Street, Not a Highway,” about the town’s struggles with Route 6 [Oct. 21, front page]. As […]

Provincetown Legal Notices

Town of Provincetown Public Notice Visitor Services Board VSB Announces Tourism Marketing Grant Opportunities for FY 2023 The Visitor Services Board is seeking grant proposals for events and marketing […]

Indie’s Choice

Cabinet Clearing (Thursday, Oct. 28) “Thursday Night at the Movies,” hosted by WOMR, wraps up on Thursday, Oct. 28, 7:30 p.m. with The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, the 1920 German […]

A Happy Homecoming

Students in every class and from across the Cape came together to celebrate at Nauset Regional High School’s first homecoming dance since 2019. The event was held outdoors in the […]

Cloverleaf Plaintiffs May Have to Post $50,000 Bond

TRURO — A group of residents who have filed suit to block the Cloverleaf affordable housing development at 22 Highland Road in North Truro may be required to post a […]

Eastham Wants a Main Street, Not a Highway

EASTHAM — Every driver who enters Eastham via Route 6 is greeted by an orange sign warning that the next 6.2 miles of highway are a “High Traffic Enforcement Area.” […]

Wellfleet Select Board: 80% of Revenue Should Go to Trust Fund

WELLFLEET — The select board has endorsed the idea of earmarking 80 percent of the revenue from the short-term rental tax to the town’s new affordable housing trust fund. “A […]

Morse Suggests Putting 26% of Rooms Taxes Into Housing Efforts

PROVINCETOWN — How much of the money collected from the new short-term rental tax should go to community housing efforts? That was the big question on the table at a […]

High School Football Teams Deal With Drop in Participation

EASTHAM — Nauset Regional High School’s football team won its Homecoming game against Martha’s Vineyard on Oct. 15, giving players and fans something to celebrate in a season rocked by […]

Progress on 8 Affordable Units First Proposed in 2006

WELLFLEET — Developer Ted Malone will be able to meet the Oct. 30 pre-application deadline to seek funding in 2022 for his plan to build eight units of affordable housing […]

Coastal Studies’ Rich Delaney Is Going to Glasgow

PROVINCETOWN — Center for Coastal Studies CEO Rich Delaney may sit in the driver’s seat of a small nonprofit working to save the whales in Provincetown, but he has a […]

Three Rescued From Capsized Sailboat in Wellfleet Harbor

WELLFLEET — Curt Felix says that if the wind had just stayed steady, he and two other sailors would have enjoyed a beautiful Sunday sail on Oct. 17. Instead, gusts […]

Mass Audubon Volunteers Release Record Number of Terrapin Hatchlings

WELLFLEET — The day after Hurricane Ida’s rainy remnants swept across the Cape on Sept. 2, Jessica Ciarcia of Massachusetts Audubon arrived on Lieutenant Island for a diamondback terrapin monitoring […]

An After-Hours Wedding

Bob Keary and Peter Sullivan tied the knot on Oct. 16, 2021 after 14 years together. “We prefer not to rush into things,” Keary said. The wedding was celebrated on […]

On a Tour, Glimpses of How Architecture Inspired a Way of Life

WELLFLEET — Down a sand road along the back of a kettle pond sits an austere one-story plywood-skinned rectangle on low stilts. Barely discernible from its surroundings, it was designed […]

Pork Butt, Bistro Style

Thoreau got lots right. An end-of-August journal entry he made in Concord in 1853 still resonates: “Live in each season as it passes; breathe the air, drink the drink, taste […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Oct. 19 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Nauset Celebrates Homecoming With Golf, Soccer, and Football Wins

EASTHAM — It was a busy Homecoming Weekend for Nauset sports across the board. The boys golf team finished in the runner-up spot in the MIAA South Sectional Championship at […]

Please Don’t Eat the Ivermectin

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration recently sent a notice to veterinary clinics and retailers and asked them to post it for the public. The sign said, basically, “People, please […]

Brace Yourselves. The Sun’s Heading Into Scorpio.

Brace yourselves, star grazers. The Sun enters the intense sign of Scorpio on Oct. 22. You’ll be feeling all the feels and uncovering truths about yourself you’ll wish you could […]

On Seeing Saturn’s Icy Rings

Saturn was a god of ancient Rome. According to myth, he was usurped by his son, Jupiter, and wandered across land and sea before founding a new kingdom and giving […]

Round and Round

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Delays Plague Eastham P.O. Once More

EASTHAM — A mail carrier at the Eastham Post Office has recently quit, resulting in service lapses for many residents, according to numerous sources. In recent weeks, mail trucks have […]

USPS Statement of Ownership, Management, and Circulation

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Health Director Says the Pandemic Didn’t Wear Her Down

PROVINCETOWN — After almost 10 years in the town health dept., including seven as health director, Morgan Clark is leaving town government. She’s going back to work for one of […]

Search for New Nauset Superintendent Begins

ORLEANS — If everything goes according to plan, the Nauset Regional Schools will name a new superintendent by Jan. 29, 2022. Thus far, the search committee has held four public […]

It’s Official: Selects Like Morse

Some meetings are in-person only, some are remote only, and some are a hybrid where you can go both ways. Go to provincetown-ma.gov, click on the meeting you want to watch, and follow […]

New Finance Director

All meetings in Truro are remote only. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. The agenda includes instructions on how to join. Thursday, Oct. 21 […]

Town Meeting Quorum Reduced

All meetings in Wellfleet are remote only and can be watched online. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch, then follow the instructions on the […]

Budget Bonanza

Most meetings are being held in person, but some are still remote or virtual. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about meeting […]

Vladimir Schuster Aims to Make a Distinct Impression

When we picture artists at work, we typically imagine them creating with their hands — drawing a figure, sculpting in clay. Printmaking brings the mechanical into the mix. That doesn’t […]

Seeing Fire in a Crowded Theater

Being back at the Metropolitan Opera in New York last Wednesday had a surreal quality. Masked faces peered across balconies through opera glasses. The sound of the orchestra warming up […]

Midge Ure Never Left

The name on the screen for our Zoom call says “James Ure.” But Ure is better known as Midge, a phonetic reversal of the name Jim. The nickname was originally […]

Arts Briefs

Fall Bakker AuctionBakker Antiques is holding its fall online auction on Saturday, Oct. 23 at 1 p.m. There are 148 lots with a selection of Provincetown art spanning over […]

In View this Week

The original three sisters lighthouses fell into the Atlantic in 1890. Their replacements ended up on Cable Road in Eastham. (Photo Nancy Bloom)A Danaus plexippus and a Buddleja davidii […]

Influencers

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Drinking in Provincetown

Roughly 80 percent of American adults drink alcohol. It is by far the most destructive drug in our society but also the most enjoyed, and many would agree its moderate […]

On Evolution

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Holding On to Town Centers

“Route 6 is horrible,” says Art Autorino, chair of the Eastham Select Board, in a report in this issue by Cam Blair. We’ve probably all had that same thought, while […]

Letters, October 21, 2021

Bartering With Klara To the editor: Regarding last week’s obituary for Klara Muller [page A16], I just wanted to say that I was able to experience a barter with her one […]

Classifieds October 21 – October 27, 2021

FOR RENT Space available for licensed independent mental health professionals. Large private corner office in Orleans. Office shared with two established practitioners. Shared overhead expenses, furnished waiting room. Storage space. $400 […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Oct. 12 to Oct. 15, 2021. PROVINCETOWN Oct. 15. Pantano Conroy Trust (Janice Maitino, trustee) to Robert D. Williams. 11 Bradford […]

Carl Sawyer, 92, a Proud Veteran of Korean War

Carl Melville Sawyer of Truro died peacefully in his sleep at home on Oct. 11, 2021. The cause of lung cancer, diagnosed six months ago. He was 92. Born in […]

Scott Czyoski, 50

Scott Czyoski, 50, of Brewster, formerly of Provincetown, died on Oct. 8, 2021 at Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital in Boston. He was surrounded by family and friends, according to an […]

Richard Cappotto, a Builder and Craftsman, Dies at 89

Richard J. Cappotto, who was known as Dick or “D.C.,” died peacefully in his sleep on Sept. 4, 2021. He had been in a memory care facility in Jacksonville, Fla. […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

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Indie’s Choice

Double Date (Thursday, Oct. 21) The Centers for Culture and History in Orleans is holding a series of fall history presentations at the Meetinghouse, 3 River Road in Orleans. On […]

Provincetown Legal Notices

Town of Provincetown Community Preservation GRANTS Due no Later than Thursday, December 30, 2021 Community Preservation Committee The Provincetown Community Preservation Committee is seeking funding proposals for projects that meet […]

Jane Paradise Shares Images of Alzheimer’s

PROVINCETOWN — Jane Paradise and her husband, Frank DiGirolamo, have dinner out at restaurants three times a week — at a minimum. They go to bed at midnight, and DiGirolamo […]

Crown & Anchor, a Gay Landmark, Is Under Contract

PROVINCETOWN — The current owners of the Crown & Anchor complex, Bill Dougal and Rick Murray, are in the final stages of selling the property to their longtime employee Jonathan […]

Wellfleet Casts Net for More Land to Buy

WELLFLEET — With the town having built far fewer affordable housing units than it promised the state it would create by 2022, the Affordable Housing Trust now plans to issue […]

Nauset Project Clears Hurdle Despite Hacked Meeting

EASTHAM — The Nauset Regional School Building Committee approved key budget modifications for the high school renovation project on Oct. 6, one week after being forced to abruptly adjourn a […]

Home Health Care Shortage ‘Critical’ on Outer Cape

WELLFLEET — A few years back, when Geovana Pinheiro worked as a certified nursing assistant (CNA) for a client in Wellfleet, she commuted down Cape from Centerville, where she lives. […]

Wellfleet Reinstates Mask Order Following Cluster of Cases

WELLFLEET — Less than one week after the board of health issued a “code red” mask order, the number of Covid-19 cases in town has doubled. There were 31 active […]

Reform Act Could Mean the End of Summer Reserves

PROVINCETOWN — Seasonal police officers arrive on these shores every year along with the tourists and the traffic, but the Mass. police reform law of 2020 may end that program […]

It’s Mostly Love: A Funk Bus Story

TRURO — On a sunny Saturday in early October, Kevin Clayton begins driving the Funk Bus at noon and doesn’t quit until 4 a.m. [or 16 hours later]. During the […]

Wentzle Ruml Is Along for the Ride

WEST HARWICH — Wentzle Ruml has many stories to tell. In the 1970s, he was a member of the legendary Zephyr skateboarding team, known as the Z-Boys, in Santa Monica, […]

Long-Delayed Affordable Development Takes a Step Forward

WELLFLEET — A longer driveway with a gentler slope, some beefed-up buffers, and a promise to sink new wells should there be water contamination issues are among the concessions that […]

Remixing the Basics

After 15 years of both classical and new-age yoga training, I still find my home practice beginning the same way. Somewhere in the first five minutes: tabletop, on hands and […]

Agostino DiBari Molds Beeswax Into Light

The air in Agostino DiBari’s shop on Main Street in Orleans smells slightly sweet. But not in that Jolly Rancher way that can make scented candles so fearsome. It’s a […]

Jazz and Oysters Bring Two Festivals Home

In south Louisiana, where I come from, if you can eat it or dance to it, there’s probably a festival for it. We have festivals celebrating crawfish, gumbo, catfish, soybeans, […]

Life on the Libra-Aries Axis

October 20 presents a full Moon in the sign of Aries. Because full Moons occur when the Sun opposes the Moon, it is often helpful to consider the polarity of […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Oct. 12 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

The Schooner Rienzi and the ‘Mystery Brig’

During Provincetown’s fishing and whaling heyday, the Bowly brothers — Joshua Elsbury (1813-1883) and Gideon (1816-1893) — were among the town’s most prominent owners and outfitters of vessels. In 1849, […]

In View This Week

A driftwood sculpture stands tall, face to the wind, at Newcomb Hollow Beach on Saturday, Oct. 9. (Photo Teresa Parker) This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign […]

Golfers Take on Nantucket to Kick Off Homecoming

EASTHAM — The Nauset Regional High School boys golf team improved to 13-3 on the season with an 80-157 win over the Dennis-Yarmouth Dolphins on Friday, Oct. 8. (Golf is […]

An October Guide to Pop-Ups

The Outer Cape is teeming with pop-ups this fall. Pop ups don’t typically post their hours because that would take the fun out of guessing when to go where. In […]

Final Choice of Developer May Be Delayed Until November

WELLFLEET — The committee charged with rating the would-be developers of 46 affordable apartments at 95 Lawrence Road hopes to clarify a few details with the three groups that submitted proposals […]

Labor Shortage by the Numbers

Some meetings are in-person only, some are remote only, and some are a hybrid where you can go both ways. Go to provincetown-ma.gov, click on the meeting you want to watch, […]

Severing Ties

All meetings in Truro are remote only. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. The agenda includes instructions on how to join. Thursday, Oct. 14 […]

Special Town Meeting Set for Dec. 4

All meetings in Wellfleet are remote only and can be watched online. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch, then follow the instructions on the […]

Signs to Say Slow Down

Most meetings are being held in person, but some are still remote or virtual. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about meeting […]

Hawk and Sierra Henries Create Beauty out of Wood

Hawk Henries has been making hand-carved wooden flutes since as long as his daughter Sierra, 34, can remember. “He’s one of a very small handful of people doing the work […]

A Different Kind of ‘Free Press’

“An overarching thesis of mine is that stodgy old P’town takes itself a bit too seriously and that the people who live there have gotten rather boring,” writes Sue Edge, […]

Turning Old Clothes into New Fossils

Erin Woodbrey’s Orleans studio overlooks her garden, now full of late-season vegetables and flowers. The garden provides food, inspiration, and the natural dyes that Woodbrey uses for her prints. Woodbrey […]

Whose Legacy Is It, Anyway?

Though he was an African American born into poverty in 1931 in rural Texas, picking cotton as a young child alongside his single mother, Alvin Ailey lived a life of […]

Just Passing Through

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Fall Treasures

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Pipe Dreams

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Human Rights Begin Here

“Where, after all, do universal human rights begin? In small places, close to home — so close and so small that they cannot be seen on any maps of the […]

Letters, October 14, 2021

Those Main St. Bike Lanes To the editor: It is unfortunate that your article “After 7 years, the Plan to Fix Route 6 at Main St. Is One-Fourth Done” [Oct. […]

Silence for the Trees

One of the strange things about being an editor in a small community is that, as the years go by, the news seems to repeat itself. Back in 2016, Russell […]

Klara Muller, Owner of Mayflower Cottages, Dies at 90

Klara Elfriede Muller, a longtime Provincetown resident, died peacefully of natural causes on Oct. 8, 2021 at Seashore Point in Provincetown. Her death was confirmed by her old friend Raymond […]

Arthur Patrick Mooney, 89, Stock Broker With a ‘Genius for Friendship’

Arthur Patrick Mooney of Truro, Boston, and Newport, R.I. died on Sept. 20, 2021 at Cape Cod Hospital following a brief illness. He was 89. Pat Mooney was born in […]

Tami Aronson Abelew, 80, Part of the Trio with Bonnie and Beth

Tami Aronson Abelew of North Truro died on Oct. 2, 2021 at Cape Cod Hospital after years of struggle with ovarian and breast cancer. Her death was confirmed by her […]

Classifieds October 14 – October 20, 2021

SEEKING Home needed in Wellfleet by 40-year Cape resident. Looking to buy a house, cottage, condo, or land and a pre-fab. Need 2 BR and 1 BA. Hoping for lots […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Oct. 4 to Oct. 8, 2021. PROVINCETOWN Oct. 4. Raul Medina Gomez and Bradley J. Ursillo to Richard D. Gallagher. 26 […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

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Indie’s Choice

It’s a Steele (Thursday, Oct. 14) New York City-based singer Anne Steele will be performing the best of the ’70s, ’80s, and ’90s in “The Remix” at the Crown & […]

Arts Briefs

Transgender Week in P’town Provincetown’s Fan Fair is a week-long transgender celebration running Sunday, Oct. 17 through Sunday, Oct. 24. The Fair is open to all members of the transgender, […]

Provincetown Legal Notices

Town of Provincetown PUBLIC HEARINGHuman Services Committee Human Services Grant Program & John A. Henry Trust Needs Assessments The Provincetown Human Services Committee will conduct a Public Hearing on Wednesday, […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

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CCS Teams Scour Half a Ton of Trash From Back Shore

PROVINCETOWN — The first group of beach walkers departed Coast Guard Beach in Eastham bound for Lecount Hollow in Wellfleet on Friday, Sept. 24. Buckets in hand, they scanned the […]

Provincetown ‘Pulls Out the Map’ to Look at Sites

PROVINCETOWN — There are many ingredients in the town’s housing crisis, but one of the simplest and most stubborn is geography. Commercial Street and Route 6 are only about a […]

Loss of a Playground Has Wellfleet Kids Imagining a New One

WELLFLEET — The Wellfleet Elementary School (WES) has not had a functioning playground since March 2020, first because the old playground was placed off-limits by Covid-19 precautions, and then, in […]

Permit Logjam Keeps Builders at a Standstill

WELLFLEET — Building contractor John Fitzgerald spent more than a year obtaining state Dept. of Environmental Protection and local conservation commission approvals to renovate a home surrounded by waving marsh […]

Outer Cape’s Covid Infection Rates Remain Low

PROVINCETOWN — Three months after a steep rise in Covid-19 cases tied to Provincetown’s 4th of July weekend crowds, the number of cases on the Outer Cape is low compared […]

Truro and Wellfleet Will Fail to Meet Their Housing Goals

The two Outer Cape towns with the poorest records of creating affordable housing — Truro and Wellfleet — will both surely fail to meet upcoming deadlines in their existing housing […]

After 7 Years, the Plan to Fix Route 6 at Main St. Is One-Fourth Done

WELLFLEET — Adding a sidewalk and bike paths along East Main Street is, in theory, a dream come true for many townspeople. But not everyone is thrilled about the plans. […]

Mind Over Matter (and Hundreds a Day) Win Shuck Offs

WELLFLEET — Six-time champion Chopper Young won Wellfleet’s Oyster Shuck Off last year, opening his 24 oysters in a penalty-adjusted time of 3 minutes and 15 seconds. Calen Bricault was […]

Without Enough Players, Nauset Football Forfeits a Game

EASTHAM — Just 11 players at a time take the field for each team in a football game. But behind them are the special teams and substitutes who provide the […]

Task Force, With Pencils Sharpened, Begins to Rate Proposals

WELLFLEET — The committee charged with recommending the best developer for 46 affordable rental units to be built on Lawrence Road has started rating the three proposals submitted, and the […]

How to Make a Fall Wreath for Stick Season

Wreaths aren’t just a Christmas thing. At different times in history, their circular form has suggested eternity, or feminine power, as in the floral wreaths atop a maypole, or victory, […]

An Umami-Rich Pasta for the Changing Season

That slight bite in the air — the one that makes you roll your shirtsleeves down, pull on a hat, and recognize the crunch of leaves as you walk — […]

So, You Want to Wean a Goat

When we bred our doe, Buttercup, for the first time, we were novice goat keepers. We rented a buck, Stinky Dan, whose musky aroma was nothing out of the ordinary […]

Why It Works to Work Out With a Friend

It’s 5 p.m. on a Friday, and I’m exhausted after a long work week. I spend all day motivating other people to move, but right now I feel like lounging […]

A Wedding on the Beach

Andrea McCatherin Sawyer and Dr. Brian O’Malley, both of Provincetown, were married on Sunday, Sept. 19, 2021 on the beach at the Beachcombers Club on Commercial Street. Guests from California, […]

Walled Gardens Can Put Us at Ease

On a recent trip to Philadelphia to visit friends, I had an opportunity to sit and think about space. My friends’ house is in a tightly packed neighborhood with narrow […]

Provincetown Tennis Club and Yacht Club Wrap Up Season

PROVINCETOWN — The Provincetown Tennis Club finished the season last month with its annual members tournament. Last year, the club had to rearrange the tournament to comply with Covid protocols, […]

Girls Soccer Bounces Back After Tough Loss

EASTHAM — The girls soccer team lost for the first time this season in a tough match against Bridgewater-Raynham last Thursday. The Warriors controlled possession for most of the game […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Oct. 5 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Restrooms and a Name

Some meetings are in-person only, some are remote only, and some are a hybrid where you can participate both ways. Go to provincetown-ma.gov, click on the meeting you want to […]

Walsh Committee to Shrink

All meetings in Truro are remote only. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. The agenda includes instructions on how to join. Tuesday, Oct. 12 […]

Select Board Seeks Headhunter

All meetings in Wellfleet are remote only and can be watched online. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch, then follow the instructions on the […]

A Plan for a Plan, in 2023

Most meetings are being held in person, but some are still remote or virtual. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about locations […]

Nancy Bowen Makes Intergenerational Amends

Walking through Spectral Evidence, Nancy Bowen’s installation at the Provincetown Art Association and Museum, is humorously odd and gravely unsettling in equal measure. Twenty squat grave markers with wings and […]

Donna Pomponio Paints the Human Experience

“I’m not a portrait painter,” says Donna Pomponio. “What I am trying to do is get under the forehead and into the psychology of the person — to peel back, […]

Poppy Champlin Cracks Nuts and Jokes

Poppy Champlin has problems. Girlfriend problems. Luckily, she’s got a plan to remedy that. “I have an ex in Provincetown that I’m scared to see,” she says from her home […]

Melissa Ferrick Comes Out to Provincetown

Melissa Ferrick is one of the few musicians who can claim to have written a “lesbian anthem.” The 2000 song “Drive,” from the album Freedom, doesn’t shy away from anything: […]

A Playwright Explores the Exits in the Game of Life

In Family Game Night, a new play by Peter Kennedy that will be given a staged reading at town hall on Saturday to benefit the Provincetown Theater, the Mortons are […]

Still Shucking After All These Years

WELLFLEET — The last OysterFest celebrated here drew an estimated 23,000 people to town, where they ate some 125,000 oysters, drank quantities of beer perhaps best left unestimated, and stayed […]

All Those Retrogrades Will Be Behind Us Soon

Cosmic cookies, star-grazers! Multiple planets that have been in retrograde are finally stationing direct this month, dropping even more celestial blessings from the busy October skies. First there’s Pluto, whose […]

Stairway To Heaven

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Knock, Knock

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Life Among Artists

I was born in Harrisburg, Pa. and grew up there around the middle of the last century. In my young life, I observed the adults around me: the women were […]

The Swan

I’d just left Chinatown after reclining in a chair for hours inside a state-of-the-art dental school. Each white cubicle featured an oversized nature photo, and all the while I’d been […]

On Turning Two

With this issue of the Independent, we begin Volume 3, having published two full years of weekly editions. It seems only right to pause and give you a report on […]

Letters, October 7, 2021

Do You Know Where Your Intertidal Zone Is? To the editor: While much ink has recently been devoted to “the intertidal zone,” most people don’t know what that is. It’s […]

Edward S. Carreiro Service Is Oct. 14

A Funeral Mass for Edward Scott Carreiro of Provincetown will be held at 10 a.m. on Thursday, Oct. 14 at St. Peter the Apostle Church, 11 Prince St., Provincetown. Scott […]

Geoffrey Larsson, a.k.a. ‘Swift Heron Hunting,’ Dies at 66

Geoffrey Larsson died at his home in Wellfleet on Sept. 25, 2021 after three and a half years fighting cancer. He was 66. Geoff was born on Dec. 11, 1954, […]

Classifieds October 7 – October 13, 2021

SEEKING Wanted: Artist’s easel and any assorted art supplies such as acrylic paints, canvases, etc. Please call 508-280-1829. [11-4] “What are we going to do with all these books?” Tim’s […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Sept. 27 to Oct. 1, 2021. PROVINCETOWN Sept. 27. SH Realty Holdings LLC [Dana Arvidson, authorized signatory] to Trevors Trail II […]

Arts Briefs

ArtProvincetown Festival ArtProvincetown is a three-day-long festival running Friday, Oct. 8 through Sunday, Oct. 10. The festival includes museum and gallery events along with live music. The first day will […]

Provincetown Legal Notices

Town of Provincetown PUBLIC HEARING Historic District Commission The Provincetown Historic District Commission will hold a Public Hearing at 3:30 P.M. on Wednesday, October 20, 2021, in the Judge Welsh […]

Indie’s Choice

Life Lessons (Thursday, Oct. 7) Lifetime Learning at Snow Library continues with “Fifty Years of Affirmative Action: Remedy for Oppression or Reverse Discrimination?” taught by Paul Kelleher. The Zoom course […]

Race to Rescue Oysters From Dredge’s Path

WELLFLEET — When the dense sea lettuce in Chipman’s Cove cleared up a few weeks ago, Nancy Civetta and Johnny “Clam” Mankevetch of the Wellfleet Shellfish Dept. strolled through at […]

To Stop Domestic Violence, ‘Just Keep Talking About It’

Shirley Smith, co-founder of the Outer Cape Committee Against Domestic Abuse (OCCADA), was in court helping a woman who had asked the judge to order additional child support from her […]

Eastham Housing Plan Finds Massive Unmet Need

EASTHAM — A draft of the town’s 2021 housing production plan has identified an affordable housing shortage of 380 home ownership units and 195 rental units. The plan was presented […]

Town Meeting OKs Buying Former Sea Camps Properties

BREWSTER — An overwhelming majority of the record 1,471 residents who turned out for last Sunday’s special town meeting at the Stony Brook Elementary School voted to have the town […]

Sextons File Suit Against ZBA in Clearcutting Case

WELLFLEET — David and Chellise Sexton, who clearcut a large swath of woods on their property next to Lecount Hollow Beach in June, have filed suit in Land Court against […]

Two Concepts Are Finalists for East End Park Design

PROVINCETOWN — The design for the East End Waterfront Park on a lot the town purchased in 2019 for $1.4 million is close to being chosen. Planners say the public’s […]

Provincetown Reboots Police Station Plans

PROVINCETOWN — Those who haven’t had the chance to see the notoriously scruffy conditions at the town’s police station, housed in a former funeral home since 1986, can now peek […]

Nauset Girls Are Ready for Recognition

EASTHAM — The Nauset Regional High School boys soccer program has been stellar for years. The team goes through undefeated streaks, accumulates league and state titles, and has pumped out […]

National Seashore Showcases Its Research Efforts

WELLFLEET — Attaching heart monitors to bay scallops, examining the fuzzy organisms on blades of seagrass, and counting sea stars. These are the kinds of things scientists from across the […]

Paul Townsend’s After-School Sewing Success Story

WELLFLEET — Sewing spans the generations in Paul Townsend’s family. His grandmother, Theresa Townsend, remembers how, as a toddler, he would sit on her lap while she sewed quilts, fascinated […]

An Italian Apple Cake That Doesn’t Have to Wait for Dessert

Dessert as a last after-dinner thing has never made a lot of sense to me. Pie for breakfast was something condoned by my grandmother — and she gardened and cooked […]

Center for Coastal Studies Chooses a New Leader

PROVINCETOWN — Unlike the stereotypical introverted scientist, Sarah Oktay, the new executive director of the Center for Coastal Studies (CCS), puts herself out there. “It has always been my M.O. […]

A Day to Remember at Fenway

BOSTON — For better or worse, sports venues across the country have welcomed back fans in full attendance in the last year or so. NBA fans were able to attend […]

Take It Slow: Mercury Is Retrograde in Libra

Despite the crossed wires and mysterious technological mishaps that are the hallmarks of a Mercury retrograde, there is more than mere mayhem to the planetary position affecting us right now. […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Sept. 28 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Isaiah Hatch and the Wreck of the Franklin

On his first excursion to Cape Cod in October 1849, Henry David Thoreau stopped in Cohasset to view the gut-wrenching aftermath of the wreck of the brig St. John, carrying […]

Fund to Give $30K to Outer Cape Health

WELLFLEET — The Beachcomber bar will hold the eighth annual Live for Lou gala on Oct. 2, a fundraiser for addiction counseling and athletic scholarships and for addiction treatment services. […]

Soccer Teams Look to Stay Undefeated

Thursday, Sept. 30 Boys golf: The Warriors host the Martha’s Vineyarders for a match at the Captains Golf Course in Brewster at 3:15 p.m. Girls soccer: The undefeated Warriors are […]

Three Staff Resignations

All meetings in Truro are remote only. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. The agenda includes instructions on how to join. Thursday, Sept. 30 […]

Town Boosters

All meetings in Truro are held remotely. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. The agenda includes instructions on how to join. Thursday, Sept. 30 Climate Action […]

Climate Change and Wellfleet’s Marshes

All meetings in Wellfleet are remote only and can be watched online. Go to Wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch, then follow the instructions on the […]

Wiley Park Renovations Slide Forward

Most meetings are being held in person, but some are still remote or virtual. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about meeting […]

Finding Inspiration in Negative Space

Around the start of the pandemic, Damion Silver was working on a sculpture in his studio when he noticed that the shadows cast on the floor made interesting patterns. That […]

The Monstrous Cost of Art

Seeing Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa at the Louvre in Paris is a less-than-contemplative experience. The Renaissance painting is housed in the high-ceilinged Salle des États, which is filled with […]

Boston Naturals Live for Lou

The funny thing about the Boston Naturals is that many of their gigs are on the Cape, not Boston. A lot are in Wellfleet. And that is where you will […]

Women Who Rocked the Boat

In Maiden Voyages: Magnificent Ocean Liners and the Women Who Traveled and Worked Aboard Them, Siân Evans provides a lively account of the experiences of female workers and travelers aboard […]

An Indie Playlist for Fall

For this new edition of the Indie Playlist, contributors were asked to write about songs they can’t get out of their heads. The results: indie rock, Australian psychedelic rock, Halloween […]

Richard Pickering, Man of Many Hats

“Did you see that guy’s sombrero?” incredulous drivers ask as they speed by Richard Pickering. “It’s huge!” He has sat under an umbrella outside his family’s 1875 Wellfleet home on […]

Mushroom Month

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The Real American Horror Story

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Don’t Wait to Make Improvements for Pedestrians

EASTHAM — The redevelopment of Town Center Plaza offers an exciting opportunity to create a new destination and a more pedestrian-friendly community, but pedestrian access to Eastham’s commercial district needs […]

Who’s in the ‘Workforce’?

I’ve noticed that, as the Outer Cape’s quest for housing alternatives intensifies, the term “affordable housing” seems to be muted. Insofar as it indicates that we have people in need […]

Letters, September 30, 2021

What Would Mr. Rogers Say? To the editor: I appreciate Christine Legere’s “One Word Might Change Beach Rights Debate” [Sept. 23, front page] and applaud Sen. Cyr and Rep. Fernandes […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

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Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Sept. 20 to Sept. 24, 2021. PROVINCETOWN Sept. 20. Dallas Sowers to John P. Sullivan. 58 Bradford St., Unit 1. $469,000. […]

Classifieds September 30 – October 6, 2021

SEEKING Wanted: Artist’s easel and any assorted art supplies such as acrylic paints, canvases, etc. Please call 508-280-1829. [11-4] Personal trainer/physical therapist sought by fit 72-year-old Truro woman with gym experience […]

Elaine Cabral of Provincetown’s Cabral’s Market Dies at 87

Elaine C. (Silva) Cabral of Eastham died unexpectedly on Sept. 13, 2021, at Cape Cod Hospital as a result of injuries she sustained in an automobile accident the previous evening. […]

Shirley Glasser, 90, Whose Home Was Her Domain

Shirley Glasser of Wellfleet died peacefully on Sept. 12, 2021 in her apartment at Maplewood at Brewster. She was 90 years old. Born and raised in Madison, Wisc., Shirley was […]

Neal Germain, 67, Restaurateur and Firefighter

Neal A. Germain died at his home in Ruidoso, N.M., surrounded by friends, on Sept. 12, 2021, after prolonged treatment for cancer. He was 67. The son of Howard Germain […]

Provincetown Legal Notices

Town of Provincetown PUBLIC HEARING Historic District Commission The Provincetown Historic District Commission will hold a Public Hearing at 3:30 P.M. on Wednesday, October 20, 2021, in the Judge Welsh […]

Indie’s Choice

Character Study (Thursday, Sept. 30) The Provincetown Public Library is hosting “Work and Place: A Creative Writing Workshop With Jeff W. Bens” on Thursday, Sept. 30, 6 to 7:30 p.m. […]

Arts Briefs

Kat Edmonson at Payomet The New York Times has called jazz vocalist Kat Edmonson’s tone “fresh as a spring bouquet.” Accompanied by piano, she will perform at the Payomet Performing […]

One Word Might Change Beach Rights Debate

More than 70 percent of the Massachusetts coastline is privately owned and essentially off limits to the public because of a law written 380 years ago and still on the […]

DMT, a Powerful Hallucinogen, Makes a Rare Appearance Here

EASTHAM — As people trickled out of the Eastham Public Library on Tuesday following a historical commission meeting, several could be overheard discussing the discovery last week by local police of […]

As Delta Wanes, So Do Easy Testing Options

PROVINCETOWN — The Delta variant of Covid-19 arrived in Provincetown like a hurricane. There was fear, economic devastation, a news camera on every corner, even a catchy name: the Provincetown […]

Tax Bills Will Be Late (Again), but Town Staves Off Receivership

WELLFLEET — Because of the ongoing mess in the town’s accounting department, property tax bills will be sent out late again this year. The fall bills will probably get mailed […]

As All Students Return to Class, Covid Cases Are Expected to Rise

None of the Outer Cape’s public schools had any Covid-19 cases in the state’s first report of positive tests, issued last Thursday. But as of Tuesday this week, cases were […]

Town and Sailing Club Weigh In on Sal’s Place Case

PROVINCETOWN — The Colonial Ordinances of 1641-1647 are getting a lot of attention lately, both statewide and in the West End, where Sal’s Place has been serving diners on the […]

Provincetown Moves to Formalize Its Equity Effort

PROVINCETOWN — When Nantucket’s first diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) director, Kimal McCarthy, got a complaint about the town’s athletic fields, he braced himself to hear about people using racial […]

A New Chick in the Flock

If you’re serious about raising chickens, the day will probably come when you want to add more birds to your flock. Most fledgling backyard farmers start out cautiously, with small […]

Janet Doub Erickson Dies at 97 With Ink on Her Hands

The artist Janet Ann Doub Erickson died at her home on Duck Creek in Wellfleet on Sept. 3, 2021. She was 97. Her death was confirmed by her son Andrew. She departed […]

A Study Designed for Haiku

J. Keith Vincent’s Wellfleet study is covered in felt, the ceiling, walls, and floor lined in a soft-to-the-touch oatmeal and gray. He didn’t choose it for himself. He lets his […]

When a Tomato and Mayo Sandwich Takes a Trip to Tuscany

I am seeing red! I don’t mean because of worldly triggers — anti-vaxers, Texas, or extreme climate events. The red I’m seeing right now is the cornucopia of tomatoes on […]

At a Scramble, Varied Strengths Come Into Play

EASTHAM — Thunder and rain filled the morning of Thursday, Sept. 16, leaving participants in the annual Eastham Chamber of Commerce Golf Tournament wondering if it would go on as […]

Celebrate on the Cape

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A Look Back at the Quirks of the Season

It’s that time of year once again. Charter boat captains are doing all those little projects on their boats that there was no time for in season. Boats are beginning […]

Lost on the Highway to Topeka

INTERSTATE 94 — Who knew there existed two Topekas? Certainly not I, fresh, in June, from my yearlong stint as the Independent’s crime-Dougie-dredging correspondent and 1,000 miles into a summer road […]

Girls Soccer Team Is Still Undefeated

EASTHAM — The Nauset Regional High School soccer teams haven’t missed a beat so far this season. The varsity boys outscored their opponents 14-2 in their first four games, with […]

Lessons From Looking at the Largest Planet

This is my favorite time of the year for astronomy. The air is clearer than in summer, and the nights aren’t nearly as cold as in winter, which, frustratingly, is […]

Clement A. Silva, 70, of Clem & Ursie’s Restaurant

Clement “Clem” Silva, formerly of Provincetown, died at his Yarmouth home of kidney failure on Aug. 27, 2021. His death was confirmed by his sister and business partner Debra, with […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Sept. 21 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Police Station Plans Back On

Some Provincetown meetings are in-person only, some are remote only, and some are hybrid where you can choose to participate in person or through a remote link. Go to provincetown-ma.gov, click on […]

A Two-Student 6th Grade

All meetings in Truro are remote only. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. The agenda includes instructions on how to join. Thursday, Sept. 23 […]

Time to Pick a Leader

All meetings in Wellfleet are remote only and can be watched online. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch, then follow the instructions on the agenda. […]

New Housing Plan

Most meetings are being held in person, but some are still remote or virtual. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about meeting […]

Karen Cappotto Brings Back Some Souvenirs

“My artwork is about telling stories,” says the artist Karen Cappotto. “I always thought that I would become a writer, but I discovered that telling my story visually works better […]

In the Woods, ‘The Witch’ Has Room to Fly

In a memorable scene from Thomas Middleton’s The Witch, three characters sing in a forest glade before flying off into the night. When audiences come to see the show as […]

Amythyst Kiah Bares Her Soul

“Wary and Strange” isn’t just the title of Amythyst Kiah’s new Rounder Records album — it’s a description of how she felt growing up in Tennessee facing issues of race, […]

Poet in Residence

One spring morning, my wife, Valerie, found a column in the San Francisco paper about Weed, Calif., which was getting ready to capitalize on its merchantable name. I e-mailed my […]

Landing in the Light of Libra

Now that fall has arrived, the light looks like liquid gold. There is a scientific explanation for this, of course, involving the tilt of the Earth’s axis and the increasing […]

The Music in Us

A wedding party celebrated on a large East End deck on a sunny Sunday afternoon and on into a moonlit evening, with a live local band — Steve Morgan and […]

The Catch

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Dear Friend

Dear ________ (friend / family member’s name), So sorry to have missed you in ________ (July, August)! Option A: I understand you were very disappointed that we couldn’t get together. […]

The Last One

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Radically Rural

As I write this week’s column, two of the Independent’s staff members are on their way to Keene, N.H. to take part in the fourth annual Radically Rural Summit. Paul […]

Letters, September 23, 2021

What Eastham Has Lost To the editor: I hope Eastham’s T-Time Development Committee acknowledges what anyone who reads the local news knows: Cape Cod has an overwhelming housing shortage. It’s never […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Sept. 13 to Sept. 17, 2021. PROVINCETOWN Sept. 13. Richard C. Mollineaux Revocable Trust (Richard C. Mollineaux, trustee) to the Trust […]

Classifieds September 16 – September 22, 2021

SEEKING Wanted: Artist’s easel and any assorted art supplies such as acrylic paints, canvases, etc. Please call 508-280-1829. [10-7] Personal trainer/physical therapist sought by fit 72-year-old Truro woman with gym experience […]

Memorial for Shirley Glasser, 90

Shirley Glasser, formerly of Wellfleet, died peacefully on Sept. 12, 2021 at Maplewood in Brewster, where she had been living. She was 90. Her death was confirmed by her son […]

James L. Moffitt, 91, Formerly of North Truro

James Leland Moffitt, 91, of Spearfish, S.D., formerly of North Truro, died on July 10, 2021. The son of Leland Edward Moffitt and Elizabeth Celestine (McCaffrey) Moffitt, Jim was born […]

Joseph Beaudry, 78, an ‘All-Purpose Storyteller’

Joseph Herbert Beaudry of Eastham, a.k.a. “Joedry” and “Papa Joe,” died peacefully at home, surrounded by family, on Sept. 18, 2021 after a two-year illness. He was 78. The son […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

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Provincetown Legal Notices

Town of Provincetown PUBLIC HEARING Historic District Commission The Provincetown Historic District Commission will hold a Work Session at 3:30 P.M. followed by a Public Hearing at 4:00 P.M. on […]

Indie’s Choice

Take Two (Thursday, Sept. 23) In a rescheduled event, Truro Center for the Arts at Castle Hill welcomes the Red Hawk Singers and Dancers to its outdoor stage at Edgewood […]

Arts Briefs

Farm Pop-Up With Hinton and Lapointe Farm Projects presents “Menagerie,” a pop-up show by artists and friends Megan Hinton and Lyne Lapointe, at The Barn, 96 Castle Road in Truro, […]

Town of Truro Legal Notices

TRURO CENTRAL SCHOOL REQUEST FOR QUOTES Air Condition Classrooms – FY22 The Truro School Committee is requesting quotes for the installation of Split Air Conditioning units in three classrooms at […]

Thwarting Par at Eastham’s Devilish Cedar Bank Links

EASTHAM — Resting beneath the National Seashore’s Salt Pond Visitor Center is what used to be the ninth hole of the Cedar Bank Links golf course. The Eastham Town Hall […]

The Eastham Superette Will Have New Owners

EASTHAM — The Eastham Superette will change hands in the coming months, but not much else may be different at the store on the corner of Route 6 and Samoset […]

Provincetown Tells Workers: Get Vaccinated or Be Tested

PROVINCETOWN — Town Manager Alex Morse announced a new health policy for town employees on Monday: either Covid-19 vaccination or weekly virus testing will be required. The policy will take […]

Unpacking an Outer Cape ‘Stigma’ Against Calling 911

TRURO — “It never occurred to me to call 911,” said Millie, recalling her medical emergency in April. “Having a ‘stroke’ — it wasn’t in my vocabulary of things that could […]

Cause of Cape Air Accident Yet to Be Determined

PROVINCETOWN — “It’s been a tough four days,” said Cape Air founder and CEO Dan Wolf on Monday afternoon. “This is incredibly hard.” He had just conducted a Zoom meeting […]

Police Raid Finds Eastham DMT Lab, Illegal Guns

EASTHAM — Around 2 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 7, Eastham Police Det. Andi Murphy sent a series of texts, attempting to rendezvous with a man she believed might be in […]

T-Time Committee Wants Opinions of Younger Residents

EASTHAM — After two years of study, surveys, and discussion, the committee charged with considering how three town-owned properties on or near Route 6 can best be used has made […]

Brewster May Take Sea Camps Properties

BREWSTER — A special town meeting in Brewster on Sept. 25 may determine the fate of the former Cape Cod Sea Camps (CCSC) properties. At a virtual public forum on […]

On This Waterfront, We Get It. You Can’t Do It Alone.

Fall is looming, as the days get shorter and the air and water temperatures drop a little more each week. September can be a tremendous month for fishing here. It’s […]

Horton’s Strikes Land Deal With Truro Conservation Trust

NORTH TRURO — The owner of Horton’s Campground has reached a tentative agreement with the Mass. Dept. of Fisheries and Wildlife (DFW) to donate nearly 10 acres of land to […]

The Swim Comes Back to Life

PROVINCETOWN — When 243 swimmers dove into the Swim for Life and Paddler Flotilla on Saturday, “It was a joyful return to the water,” said Jay Critchley, creator of the […]

Lisa Ventre Is Provincetown’s Accidental Hatmaker

“I call myself the accidental hatmaker,” says Lisa Ventre. Ventre is renowned in Provincetown — and beyond — for her original hat designs. But she never meant that to happen. […]

It’s a Big Year for Beach Plums, So Don’t Be Shy

People on the Outer Cape can be secretive about their go-to stands of beach plum. But not this year — one of abundance for the wild shrubs named Prunus maritima […]

Nauset Football Falls Hard to Pembroke

EASTHAM — It was a beautiful night for football at Nauset Regional High School on Friday, Sept. 10 — the first fall football game for the Warriors since 2019. The […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Sept. 14 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

How Janet Benjamins Became a Buffalo Bills Fan

EASTHAM — Sunday, Sept. 12 marked Week 1 of the 2021 National Football League season, so, naturally, many New Englanders were sitting in front of their televisions watching football. They […]

Zen and the Art of Raising Goats

SADIE HUTCHINGS / VETERINARIAN / WELLFLEET Sadie Hutchings is a native Wellfleetian, living with her husband and their toddler and baby in the house where she grew up. There’s a […]

A Full Moon Shines on Summer’s End

At summer’s close, a full Moon shines from the final degrees of Pisces, the last sign of the zodiac. Full Moons generally signify endings, and the finality of this one […]

95 Lawrence Road Task Force Is Set to Tally the Scores

WELLFLEET — With all the presentations done and many questions asked and answered, the task force charged with recommending the best developer to build 46 units of affordable rental housing […]

Fee Infusions

Some Provincetown meetings are in-person only, some are remote only, and some are hybrid where you can choose to participate in person or through a remote link. Go to provincetown-ma.gov, […]

Emergency Rental Assistance

All meetings in Truro are remote only. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. The agenda includes instructions on how to join. Thursday, Sept. 16 […]

The Week Ahead in Provincetown Drag

Crown & Anchor Uptown Girls, “Illusions,” Sat. at 6 p.m., $39 Dina Martina, “Chariots of Failure,” Sat. at 7:30 p.m., $44 Pilgrim House Paige Turner, “Joy Ride,” Fri.-Sat. at 7:30 […]

How Green Is Green?

All meetings in Wellfleet are remote only and can be watched online. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch, then follow the instructions on the […]

Vacancies in the Firehouse

Most meetings are being held in person, but some are still remote or virtual. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about meeting […]

Vernon Smith Returns to Provincetown

“It’s the sensibility that people relate to — the design. It’s very clever,” says Jim Bakker, unfolding some of Vernon Smith’s famed batiks — fabrics dyed with a wax-resist method […]

Francine Prose Reads Your Amazon Reviews

Simon Putnam, the young protagonist of Francine Prose’s newest novel, The Vixen, is still figuring out who he is. Fresh out of Harvard, having studied folklore and mythology, he has […]

The Unsinkable Tennessee Williams Fest Returns

Putting on a festival of live theater — both indoors and outdoors — while the pandemic continues to rage is a risky and frustrating process. Yet that’s exactly what the […]

Room 68 Sets Up Shop in Wellfleet

Brent Refsland and Eric Portnoy, who own Room 68 in Provincetown, and now in Wellfleet, too, are, in some ways, spur-of-the-moment people. Their Provincetown gallery started as a pop up. […]

Daniel Shevlin Shows His Versatility

Well-Strung, a string quartet known for its pop covers and hunky members, was founded in 2012 by second violinist Chris Marchant and producer Mark Cortale. Since the pandemic, with group […]

Back Home

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And Then There Was One

Plymouth County Sheriff Joseph McDonald announced last Friday that he was ending his 287(g) agreement with ICE — the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency. This marked the second 287(g) […]

Tastes Like

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Yes Wee Can: Aim for Trees, Not Toilets

I’m having dinner with a group of friends in a dark, woodsy back yard in Wellfleet. After a few glasses of wine, I feel the urge to pee. Should I […]

Bruce Cagwin, 73, Master Plumber

After a long illness, Bruce Douglas Cagwin of North Truro died peacefully at home surrounded by his family on Sept. 4, 2021. He was 73. Born and raised in Fayetteville, […]

Lorraine Hope, 84, Was a Lover of Nature

Lorraine Maren Hope died of natural causes at her home in Orleans with her family at her side on Aug. 26, 2021. She was 84. The daughter of Ingolf and […]

Edward Scott Carreiro, 55, of Tip for Tops’n

Edward Scott Carreiro of Provincetown died on Sept. 3, 2021 at Cape Cod Hospital in Hyannis after an illness related to his long struggle with diabetes. He was 55. Scott […]

Stephen P. Ryan, 63, Fisherman, Photographer, and Craftsman

Stephen Paul Ryan died on Sept. 9, 2021 at his home in North Truro. He was 63. His death, of natural causes, was confirmed by his sister Nancy. The son […]

Classifieds September 16 – September 22, 2021

MILESTONES September 19, 2021. Congratulations to the Poet Laureate of Foster Road on reaching this milestone birthday! I would have never guessed you were that old! Have a healthy, productive, word-filled year. Carpe […]

Bad at Math

Ambrose Bierce’s 1911 Devil’s Dictionary defines a lottery as “a tax on people who are bad at math.” That still sounds right. The chances of winning the Mega Millions jackpot, […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Sept. 6 to Sept. 10, 2021. PROVINCETOWN Sept. 8. William James Kemp Jr. and Whitney Benjamin Kelly to Scott Gortikov and […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

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Arts Briefs

Cross-Country Art Berta Walker Gallery presents “Learning/Medium/Opportunity,” an online exhibit of works by Laura Shabott’s and Alana Barrett’s students from across the country. It opens Saturday, Sept. 18 and runs […]

Indie’s Choice

Queen of Rock (Thursday, Sept. 16 & Saturday, Sept. 18-Sunday, Sept. 19) Debby Holiday performs “A Tina Turner Tribute” at the Post Office Café and Cabaret, 303 Commercial St. in […]

Truro Legal Notices

TRURO CENTRAL SCHOOL REQUEST FOR QUOTES Air Condition Classrooms – FY22 The Truro School Committee is requesting quotes for the installation of Split Air Conditioning units in three classrooms at […]

Provincetown Legal Notices

Town of Provincetown PUBLIC HEARING Planning Board The Provincetown Planning Board will hold a Public Hearing on Thursday, September 23, 2021, at 6:00 P.M. in the Judge Welsh Hearing Room, […]

Provincetown Legal Notices

Town of Provincetown PUBLIC HEARING Licensing Board Special Alcohol License The Provincetown Licensing Board will hold a Public Hearing on Tuesday, September 28, 2021 at 5:15 p.m. in the Judge […]

Provincetown Legal Notices

Town of Provincetown PUBLIC HEARING Provincetown Historic Commission Public Hearing October 6, 2021 The Provincetown Historic District Commission will hold a Work Session at 3:30 P.M. followed by a Public […]

The Istar Takes Second in Gloucester Schooner Race

GLOUCESTER — The crew of the Istar waited restlessly on Thursday through the aftermath of Tropical Storm Ida. That was the day they had planned to sail from Provincetown to […]

Fighting Mosquitos Hinges on Restoring the Herring River

WELLFLEET — For the Cape Cod Mosquito Control Project, late summer was all about whacking through shrubbery and spraying waterways with larvicide. But these measures have only nibbled at the edges […]

In Wellfleet, a YIMBY Effort Takes Shape

WELLFLEET — A funny thing happened when two dozen neighbors gathered on a patio here two weeks ago to talk about the affordable housing plans underway for land at the […]

Sale of Adjacent Land Will Affect VFW Housing Bids

PROVINCETOWN — A pending land sale will likely require two of the three companies wanting to build affordable housing here to adjust their plans downward. The town’s request for proposals […]

Three Towns Look at Codes of Conduct

Three of the four towns on the Outer Cape are adopting new or updated codes of conduct in reaction to concern about the ways members of boards and committees interact. […]

Select Board Supports Route 6 Improvements

WELLFLEET — It has taken years, but the plan to add turn lanes, bike paths, and sidewalks to the intersection of Route 6 and Main Street cleared the select board’s […]

For Napi’s Renters and Others Facing Eviction, Stakes Are High

PROVINCETOWN — Eileen Spence was racing to find a new home on the last day of August. She and four other former Napi’s Restaurant employees had until the end of […]

Wednesdays With Janis

It was in some ways not an unusual invitation, from one yoga teacher to another: “I have a really special client that I’d like you to meet,” my colleague wrote. […]

How to Milk a Goat, Maybe

I think goat kids are among the cutest creatures on Earth. But most backyard farmers are more interested in goat mamas — does. That’s what happens when you’re keeping goats […]

Initial Reviews Completed, Task Force Readies Its Questions

WELLFLEET — The three developers who have submitted affordable housing proposals for six acres at 95 Lawrence Road should be ready to be grilled on Friday by members of a […]

The Salty, Sweet Taste of a Wild Garden’s Possibilities

I tend to look at things and see not only what they are but what they might become. It drives Christopher a little crazy, since it means that the check […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Sept. 7 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

A Truro Bocce Ball Tradition Continues

TRURO — If there’s a red flag with a “B” waving in front of Maria Redo’s house off Old County Road on Sunday, it means there will be a bocce […]

Ken Merrill Has a Surfboard Museum in His Basement

Ken Merrill’s first encounter with a surfboard did not go well. He was at Eastham’s Coast Guard Beach, on a borrowed board. “I got sandbagged a few times,” he says. […]

Finding Flow on a Paddleboard

People always ask me, “What’s the best exercise?” That’s a tough one because “best” can mean many different things. Is it the one that burns the most calories? Works the […]

Annual Eastham Tourney Is Back This Year

EASTHAM — The annual Eastham Golf Tournament, which raises funds for scholarships and other community programs, returns next week after a one-year hiatus, the chamber of commerce has announced. The […]

Disaster Planning for Your Pets

After watching two people and their big dog being rescued by boat in New Jersey on CNN the other day, it seemed like a good time to write about disaster […]

Weathering the Weather and Keeping On Fishing

In a summer of relentless storms, the latest to hit the waterfront was what remained of Hurricane Ida. This one came racing up the East Coast and packed a much […]

Fall Sports Are Back to Normal

EASTHAM — Last year was difficult for high school athletes, especially those who play fall sports. Rule changes in soccer altered the game, forcing players to avoid contact. The football […]

Love Live Local

Some Provincetown meetings are in-person only, some are remote only, and some are both. Go to provincetown-ma.gov, click on the meeting you want to watch, and follow the instructions on the agenda. […]

Crunches & Lunches

All meetings in Truro are remote only. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. The agenda includes instructions on how to join. Thursday, Sept. 9 […]

Background Checks

Wellfleet are held remotely and can be watched online. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch, then follow the instructions on the agenda. Thursday, Sept. 9 Nauset Regional School […]

Harbormaster’s Building Costs

Most meetings are being held in person, but some are still remote or virtual. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about meeting […]

Zach Oren Gives Visibility to a Trans Nation

Zach Oren is not cagey about who he is. Even though there’s little biographical information available about him online, he’s forthright in explaining how he got to be the person […]

Walking Through — and on — History

What happens when you put maps in an art museum? First, one starts looking at them as art. A 1647 map depicting New England and New Netherland, for example, has […]

Meg Lowman’s View From the Treetops

By now, American field biologist Meg Lowman deserves to be a household name. In the 1980s, Lowman — sometimes known as “Canopy Meg” — pioneered the use of spelunking equipment […]

If Gulls Could Talk

First Prize: “It’s their mating season.” —Alexis Jetter, Thetford Center, Vt. Second Prize: “Look for the ones with the open sunroofs.” —Valerie Daniels, Wellfleet. Third Prize: “I told you […]

Buyer Is Found for Provincetown Bookshop

It didn’t take Barbara Clarke long to decide she wanted to buy the Provincetown Bookshop. The store has been a beloved fixture in the lives of Clarke and her two […]

As You Harvest, Cultivate the Future, Too

The Sun is in Virgo, and the harvest season is nigh. Virgo herself, in depictions of the constellation, wields a bundle of ripe wheat — a salient contradiction, since Virgo […]

For Rent

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The Week Ahead in Provincetown Drag

Crown & Anchor Dina Martina, “Chariots of Failure,” Thurs.-Sat. at 7:30 p.m., $44 Varla Jean Merman, “Little Prick,” Thurs.-Sat. at 9 p.m., $49 Uptown Girls, “Illusions,” Sat. at 6 p.m., […]

Swimming for Our Lives

Many years ago — 55, to be exact — I was on the island of Mykonos, in the Aegean Sea. I had met a young British woman there, and we […]

‘First, Do No Harm’

Should health-care providers be required to be vaccinated against Covid-19? “First, do no harm” is taught to medical school students early in their education. That ethical principle is the bedrock […]

In It Together?

Twenty years ago this week, time stopped as we watched the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. For weeks, we could think of little else but the […]

Letters, September 9, 2021

Renters: Another View To the editor: I sympathize with last week’s correspondent with an absentee landlord as a next-door neighbor [“Short-Term Rental Costs,” page A2], and I recognize that the […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Aug. 30 to Sept. 3, 2021. PROVINCETOWN Aug. 30. Carolynn Fischel to Michael Morris and Patrick Roth. 501 Commercial St., Unit […]

Classifieds September 9 – September 15, 2021

JOBS The Provincetown Film Society (PFS) is looking for a full-time, year-round manager for Water’s Edge Cinema. Responsibilities include programing, hiring and managing staff, overseeing the venue, accounting and reports, […]

Memorial for Cate Myers on Sept. 12

A celebration of the life of Catherine R. Myers, a retired professor of English literature and active Wellfleet volunteer, will be held at 1 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 12, at […]

Nichole Razinha, 54, Air Force Veteran and Mother of 6

Nichole Costa (Anderson) Razinha died suddenly on Aug. 18, 2021 at her home in Yarmouth. She was 54. The cause of death is undetermined at this time, said Brian Falvey […]

Tracy Tarvers, 59, Aesthetician and Brain Injury Advocate

In her early 20s, Tracy Tarvers loved to travel. Once she flew to Costa Rica and hitchhiked from the Gulf Coast to the Pacific. With a friend, she traveled throughout […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

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Arts Briefs

Sister Act “Two Sisters,” a show of works by Elizabeth Brooke and Tennille Dix, opens at the Commons, 46 Bradford St. in Provincetown, on Friday, Sept. 10 and runs through […]

INDIE’S CHOICE

Mind Wide Open (Thursday, Sept. 9) Conservative political commentator and provocateur Andrew Sullivan will read from his book, Out on a Limb: Selected Writing, 1989-2021, at East End Books Ptown, […]

Kim Powers Fights the Cape’s Overdose Crisis on Her Own

Kim Powers is a one-woman drug-addiction harm reduction brigade. She is waging a solitary campaign to stem the rising tide of drug overdoses and deaths on Cape Cod and the […]

Housing, Retail Could Replace 2 Derelict Spots

EASTHAM — Two derelict properties along Route 6 in the northern part of town, both considered eyesores for years, may soon be the subjects of development proposals, said their owner, […]

Pot Sales of $10 Million Net $610,000 for Provincetown

PROVINCETOWN — With three recreational marijuana shops now open, at least two more on the way, and an edibles production facility in the works on Court Street, Provincetown’s adult-use marijuana […]

Task Force on Tight Schedule to Pick Developer

WELLFLEET — The task force charged with reviewing the three proposals for the largest affordable housing development in the town’s history must limit its decision-making to what each would-be developer […]

Sextons Say Trees They Cut Down Weren’t ‘Timber’

WELLFLEET — The clearcutting of trees in the Cape Cod National Seashore next to Lecount Hollow Beach did not violate town bylaws because the trees were not “timber,” argued a […]

How Truro’s New Principal Handles Headaches

TRURO — According to Patrick Riley, Truro Central School’s new principal, directing an elementary school band is an undertaking that requires patience — and, when a headache strikes, “a fair amount […]

Haiti, I’m Sorry

Haiti I’m sorry We misunderstood you One day we’ll turn our heads And look inside you. —“Haiti,” David Rudder One night in January 2010, I woke to a severe trembling […]

Beach Buggies Return After Waiting for Plovers to Fledge

PROVINCETOWN — Kristine Weagle has been coming to Race Point with her family every summer for more than 60 years. They air down the tires on their camper and drive […]

Joan Nagle Is Outer Cape’s Swimming Guru

WELLFLEET — Buoyancy. That’s the key to being a good swimmer, according to Joan Nagle, the Outer Cape’s unofficial swimming guru. “A lot of people think they need their arms […]

Fixing Up a ‘Mini,’ the Kitchen Comes First

Her 600-square-foot house is not technically a “tiny house,” says Hannah Oakland. “But it’s a mini. I like to say it’s a house where expectation management comes into play.” The […]

Low Heat and Lots of Smoke Are Summer Magic for Meat

I’ve been trying to move our household in the direction of a plant-based diet, turning out dals and stir-frys and vegetable-stuffed tacos with gusto. I even made a seitan-based chili […]

Bluefish and Blue Crabs, Too

Happy days are here again. Bluefish are still solidly in our area, and catches have been fantastic. Can we officially declare the five-year bluefish drought over? I don’t think anyone […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Aug. 31 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Clear Your Slate by the Light of a New Moon in Virgo

If you felt like August was a bust, I’ve got good news for you. This week’s new Moon in Virgo is the perfect opportunity for cutting ties with the past. […]

Masks Advised

Some Provincetown meetings are in-person only, some are remote only, and some are a hybrid where you can choose to participate in person or through a remote link. Go to […]

Zap ’n’ Zoom

All meetings in Truro are remote only. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. The agenda includes instructions on how to join. Thursday, Sept. 2 […]

Paddleboard Permission

All meetings in Wellfleet are remote only and can be watched online. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Follow the instructions on the agenda. Tuesday, Sept. […]

Cyanobacteria Closes Moll’s Pond

Most meetings are being held in person, but some are still remote or virtual. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about meeting […]

Breon Dunigan Brings the Inanimate to Life

In her Truro home, the sculptor Breon Dunigan bends to calm her lively puppy while four of her majestic horned “trophy heads” observe the scene silently from above. “Much of […]

The Markets Are Alive With the Sound of Music

Covid kept music at bay at most of the Cape’s farmers markets last year. But this summer, guitars, fiddles, drums, and ukuleles — along with their beloved performers — were […]

Judy Pfaff Loves Surprises

Judy Pfaff is home after returning from Sweden two nights before. “I’m calling from Tivoli, N.Y., trying to get used to what time it is now,” she says brightly. If […]

David Dunlap Is Endlessly Building Provincetown

David W. Dunlap’s Building Provincetown is an ongoing project with a worthy aim: to create a comprehensive history of the town — that is, its residents, year-round and part-time, and […]

Welcome to the Whale’s World

On a still day in late March out at Herring Cove Beach, dozens of people faced the water. Low voices traveled over the sand. The crowd was hushed, as it […]

Lobster Dinner

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Shoulder Season

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Canaries on the Coastline

The ongoing pandemic has triggered all the so-called stages of grief in us (denial, anger, depression, bargaining, acceptance). Then came the United Nations climate change report on Aug. 9. Secretary-General […]

Letters, September 2, 2021

Short-Term Rental Costs To the editor: In response to your article on the impact of short-term rentals on property prices [“Surprises in Short-Term Rental Data,” Aug. 26, front page], there […]

Labor Day Reality

It’s almost Labor Day weekend, that giant exhalation that signals what is usually the most dramatic transformation of the year here. The last week of August is already quieter, calmer […]

Stephen Rome, Entrepreneur and Master of Chinese, Dies at 37

Stephen William Rome of Provincetown and Truro, who loved China and whose mastery of the language made him a celebrity there, died unexpectedly on Aug. 22, 2021. He was 37. […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

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Classifieds September 2 – September 8, 2021

JOBS The Soup Kitchen in Provincetown (SKIP) is looking for an experienced chef for its winter lunch program next season, Nov. 1 – April 29. Responsibilities include menu planning, ordering, […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Aug. 23 to Aug. 27, 2021. PROVINCETOWN Aug. 23. First Landing LLC [Clifford J. Schorer, John DeMatteis, and Kevin Bazarian, managers] […]

Arts Briefs for Sept 2 through Sept 8

Denison and Paradise at Alden Gallery Alden Gallery, 423 Commercial St. in Provincetown, presents a two-person show of works by Alice Denison and Jane Paradise opening Friday, Sept. 3 and […]

Indie’s Choice

Watch Like a Hawk (Thursday, Sept. 2) Truro Connections — a collaboration between Truro Center for the Arts at Castle Hill, the Truro Historical Society, the Truro Meeting House, and […]

Arts Briefs Archives

From August 7, 2020 through August 31, 2021, we used a different format for our Arts Briefs listings. To find the link to those archives, open this post.

Indie’s Choice Archives

From July 30, 2020 through August 31, 2021, we used a different format for our Indie's Choice listings. To find the link to those archives, open this post.

The Longboard Classic Is More Than a Contest

WELLFLEET — Carl Breivogel, a 73-year-old surfer, has been participating in the Cape Cod Oldtimers Longboard Classic since the 1990s. Standing on the dune at White Crest Beach on Sunday, […]

Wellfleet’s Accounting Nightmare Goes On, as New Issues Emerge

WELLFLEET — Untangling the mess of accounts that do not match and the unreconciled records dating back two years in the town’s books will take several more months. It may […]

Two Bills Aim to Boost Child Immunizations

There is not yet a Covid-19 vaccine for children under 12. But public awareness of the importance of vaccination has cast the Outer Cape’s low childhood immunization rates in a […]

Former Napi’s Workers Still Have Nowhere to Go

PROVINCETOWN — With seven days remaining before the Aug. 31 deadline on their eviction notices, five former employees of Napi’s Restaurant still had nowhere to go as of Tuesday this […]

Truro Parents File Complaints Against School Committee

TRURO — Beth Dietz and Christine Markowski, parents of eight-year-old twins at Truro Central School (TCS), have filed two complaints with the state over the school committee’s hiring earlier this year […]

Stewart Trial, Set for September, Probably Won’t Take Place

ORLEANS — The jury trial of William Stewart, the former Eastham restaurant owner accused of harassing and threatening his female employees, is scheduled for Sept. 28 in Orleans District Court, […]

Niggel’s Storage Expansion Rejected by Planning Board

EASTHAM — Barbara Niggel’s quest to expand her Stow Away self-storage business at 4730 Route 6 ended at the planning board’s Aug. 18 hearing, with board member Joe Manas casting […]

While Chain-Owned Newspapers Struggle, Many Independents Thrive

It’s a familiar story: “Hedge fund buys paper, guts newsroom.” Countering that narrative is another, much less familiar, but increasingly common one: “Local paper gains ground, wins subscribers.” The financial […]

Your Heart Plays the Music

ANDREA PLUHAR / FIDDLER / WELLFLEET Andrea Pluhar grew up in a family of writers and artists. She followed in the family tradition and went to art school to become […]

Surprises in Short-Term Rental Data

PROVINCETOWN — The conversion of year-round rental property to short-term rentals has played a starring role in the housing crisis here. But it’s not the only player. An Independent analysis […]

A Quiet Carnival Week

Provincetown hosted a quiet but still colorful Carnival this year. Costumed cowardly lions and other characters from Oz roamed the streets throughout last week. (Photo Edward Boches) This page is […]

How Do You Want Your Kaftan? ‘Flowy’ or ‘Extra Flowy’?

Eric Bomyea and Iryna Teixeira, who had met years earlier when they were working at the same marketing agency, were podded together in Quincy during the early months of the […]

Bacon, Corn, and Onion Flatbread

The late August wind has announced autumn, circling through the pine scrub. With fall beginning to overlap summer, every leisure moment counts. This is the time to ride the Atlantic’s […]

Here Be Dragons

You can always spot an amateur astronomer. When we step outside after sunset, we’re the ones who pause, look up, and turn slowly. We’re finding the Moon, noting its phase […]

Incoming!

PDF for Printing PUZ for Across Lite This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.

Leo’s Party Is Over, and the Sun Slides Into Virgo

With much ado about nothing — and plenty of lamenting by Leo now that “their birthday month” is over — the unstoppable Sun slides into Virgo, maiden of the zodiac. […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Aug. 24 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Henri’s Wallop Is More Financial Than Physical

The summer of big storms continues, with our first named storm rolling into the Provincetown waterfront over the weekend. Henri was initially predicted to hammer Cape Cod, but its sharp […]

Freeman Hatch, Eastham’s Captain of the Saucy, Wild Clipper

In Eastham’s Evergreen Cemetery where, last spring, the courageous service of the keepers of Nauset Beach Light Station was honored with a solemn ceremony, the nephew of keeper Henry Young […]

RTE to Remain 25%

Some Provincetown meetings are in-person only, some are remote only, and some are a hybrid where you can choose to participate in person or through a remote link. Go to provincetown-ma.gov, […]

RTE Goes to 25 Percent

All meetings in Truro are remote only. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. The agenda includes instructions on how to join. Thursday, August 26 Truro School […]

Dish on Mac’s Tables

All meetings in Wellfleet are remote only and can be watched online. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Follow the instructions on the agenda. Thursday, August […]

Nauset Light Beach Blues

Most meetings are being held in person, but some are still remote or virtual. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about meeting locations and […]

Robert Henry: Still Riffing After All These Years

In the fall of 2019, before the Covid lockdown, Robert Henry had a memorable solo show called “Ship of State” at the Cape Cod Museum of Art in Dennis. The […]

Christina Conklin and Marina Psaros Look to the Future

For nearly an entire week earlier this month, the global climate crisis managed to grab hold of headlines. The United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) had released its […]

‘Under the Radar’ Goes Above and Beyond

I’ve never been a fan of audience participation. I like to sit in the back, avoid eye contact with the actors, and enjoy the silent anonymity of a dark theater. […]

Bosq: From Cape Cod to Colombia and Back

Music producer, DJ, and Brewster native Ben Woods’s song “Can’t Seem to Hide” has close to three million streams on Spotify. With warm vocals by Megan Doherty and choppy guitar […]

James Balla Paints a Symphony of Color

In the text accompanying James Balla’s Into the blue again, the catalogue for his 2013 show at the Provincetown Art Association and Museum, he wrote, “Good art is always elegant. […]

What’s New at Newport?

The pandemic has surely dealt a blow to jazz, which, like a mythical beast, is prone to periods of obsolescence during which nearly everyone in the kingdom declares it dead. […]

The Week Ahead in Provincetown Drag

The Art House Ginger Minj, Thurs.-Sat. & Wed. at 9 p.m., $40 Crown & Anchor Varla Jean Merman, “Little Prick,” Thurs.-Sat. & Tues.-Wed. at 9 p.m., $49 Dina Martina, “Chariots […]

It Was A Good Summer

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Jewelweed and Old Ways

A friend’s day off earlier this month provided an excuse for the two of us to wander Provincetown, stopping to eat at Bubala’s like we used to do, and watching […]

If Gulls Could Talk

To enter the contest, send your proposed caption for this cartoon to [email protected] by Thursday, Sept. 2 at midnight. You may enter as many times as you like. This page […]

The Long Journey of Wellfleet’s Stages

The passing of Carol Green earlier this month brought to mind the long journey we took together at the Wellfleet Harbor Actors Theater and the subsequent birth of the Harbor […]

Harvey County Now

One of the goals we set for ourselves when we launched the Independent was to keep track of and regularly report on the state of local newspapers. We had talked […]

Letters, August 26, 2021

A Shocking Story To the editor: As a long-time vacationer on the Cape and, in recent years, as a summer home owner in Wellfleet, I have considered Napi’s one of […]

Classifieds August 26 – September 1, 2021

JOBS The Soup Kitchen in Provincetown (SKIP) is looking for an experienced chef for its winter lunch program next season, Nov. 1 – April 29. Responsibilities include menu planning, ordering, […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from August 16 to August 20, 2021. PROVINCETOWN Aug. 18. Lovinger Nominee Trust (Jeffrey I. Lovinger, trustee) to TNCO LLC [Tonn Q. […]

Memorial Set for Bruce Murphy, 73, Wellfleet Policeman and EMT

A celebration of the life of Bruce A. Murphy, a former member of the Wellfleet Fire and Police depts., will be held at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 18 at […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

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Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats.This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.

Cape Coyotes Are Emboldened by Human Negligence

PROVINCETOWN — Coyotes have been in the news here recently, and wildlife experts say the trouble they sometimes cause is the result of uninformed human behavior. A three-year-old girl was […]

2020 Census: Big Population Increases Here

PROVINCETOWN — The first tranche of data from the 2020 U.S. census was released last week, and it shows something new for the Outer Cape: substantial population growth. The 2010 […]

They Worked for Napi for Years; Now They’re Being Evicted

PROVINCETOWN — Anton “Napi” Van Dereck Haunstrup, the late art collector and owner of Napi’s Restaurant, had no children. But Ellis Wilson, he often told friends, was “the son he […]

Masks Likely to Be Required at Schools on Outer Cape

As vaccination rates ramped up last spring and the daily count of Covid-19 cases came down, many hoped this fall’s start of school could feel more like normal. That no […]

NRHS Completion Date Pushed Back a Year

EASTHAM — The estimated completion of the Nauset Regional High School building project has been moved out a year from August 2024, the date advertised by the building committee in […]

Temporary Moratorium Imposed on New Town-Owned Grants

WELLFLEET — The select board imposed a temporary moratorium on aquaculture grants on town-owned flats off Indian Neck on Aug. 16, pending a review by the town’s shellfish advisory board. […]

Mosquito Control Gets Approval to Cut Access Paths

WELLFLEET — Along Duck Harbor Road, a long-sleeved 100-percent cotton shirt didn’t cut it — much less, a pair of leggings. Mosquitos latched onto my clothes and plunged their proboscises […]

Towns Look at Numbers to Compare Competing Bids

When bids to build affordable housing were opened in the last two weeks, describing plans for the former VFW site in Provincetown and for 95 Lawrence Road in Wellfleet, a […]

Teddy Roosevelt’s Prescient Denunciation of Corporate Power

On a splendid August morning 114 years ago, a yacht carrying President Theodore Roosevelt glided into Provincetown Harbor. He was welcomed by what must have been the loudest boom the […]

Shark Mitigation Is Still an Uncertain Art

WELLFLEET — In the three years since a shark attack at Newcomb Hollow Beach — the first fatal attack on the Atlantic coast since 1936 — the debate about how […]

Jeff Peters Wants to Introduce You to the Writer Next Door

PROVINCETOWN — Jeff Peters is a bit of a name dropper. Eileen Myles, Michael Cunningham, Christina Clancy. “Do you know Christina?” he asks. “Well, she’s the author of The Second […]

The Childish Joy of a Shared Wave

Life’s essence is revealed more on some days than on others. Days when the roses reach so far out into your path that you can’t walk by without smelling them. […]

With His Plates, Michael Ceraldi Leaves It to the Materials

Before he sends a plate to the dining room, Michael Ceraldi makes sure it looks beautiful. If you have been to his Wellfleet restaurant, Ceraldi, you know his idea of […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Aug. 17 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Bluefish Reign, but Hypoxia Threatens South End of Bay

As the water heats up, the bluefishing just keeps getting better and better. I recorded some extraordinary surface water temperatures last week: 77 degrees in the harbor, and 75 degrees […]

Where Ninjas Fight, but Also Giggle

ORLEANS — Medieval Japanese warriors, known as Samurai, were renowned for their legendary swordsmanship. They also were trained to survive without their weapons by employing the traditional martial art of […]

Joel Shaw’s Selma Rose Takes Race Series

PROVINCETOWN — The Provincetown Yacht Club’s racing series was delayed on Saturday, Aug. 14 at the last minute by a short period of high winds from about 12:45 to 1:30 […]

Occupy August

August. The balmy bliss of sandy sheets. This month requires a certain je ne sais quoi when waiting to get a spot off Ocean View Drive with a pack of […]

Cold Soups for Settling Into Real Dinners

There was nothing wrong with the Green Monsta I drank for lunch last week. It was delicious. And I’m sure it was good for me, seeing as how it contained […]

Aug. 25 Deadline for Sal’s

Some Provincetown meetings are in-person only, some are remote only, and some are a hybrid where you can choose to participate in person or through a remote link. Go to […]

Steer Clear

All meetings in Truro are remote only. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. The agenda includes instructions on how to join. Thursday, August 19 […]

Masks Up

All meetings in Wellfleet are remote only and can be watched online. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Follow the instructions on the agenda. […]

Assessing an Assessment

Meetings are being held in person. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about meeting locations and any remote options that may be […]

The Indelible Life and Landscapes of Brenda Horowitz

“I’m always working,” Brenda Horowitz says, sitting in her North Truro studio with her right wrist wrapped in a tight bandage, the result of a recent fall. “I don’t stop. […]

Janice Redman Explores the Secret Life of Objects

“My work is always somehow connected to the body, to something that feels intimate,” says Janice Redman. In her Truro studio, she works surrounded by sculptures in various stages of […]

Dina Brodsky Finds Her Scale

“There are internal painters, and there are external painters. I’m very definitely external,” says Dina Brodsky from Falmouth, where she’s on vacation from New York City. “I’m interested in the […]

Redemption for an American Holy Warrior

It is said that history is written by the victors, and in the case of the slave rebellion led by Nat Turner in August 1831, a time of rising abolitionist […]

Brenda Withers Cooks Up a Delicious Dindin

As a fund-raiser, some Harbor Stage Company supporters watched an online table reading of Brenda Withers’s new play, Dindin, last fall. That may have offered a taste of Withers’s trenchant […]

Martha Minow’s Warning on the Future of a Free Press

Forty-five percent of U.S. newsroom jobs evaporated between 2008 and 2017. In 2016, less than a third of people in one survey trusted mass media. The doomsday facts about the […]

Provincetown Dance Festival Makes Its Live Return

Last winter, the Provincetown Dance Festival met viewers in their living rooms. Dancers emerged from the shadows, pirouetted, and leapt across the stage — but all within the confines of […]

The Week Ahead in Provincetown Drag

The Art House Ginger Minj, Thurs.-Sat. & Wed. at 9 p.m., $40 Crown & Anchor Varla Jean Merman, “Little Prick,” Thurs.-Sat. & Tues.-Wed. at 9 p.m., $49 Dina Martina, “Chariots […]

A Blue Moon in Offbeat Aquarius

Shining from the Piscean edge of Aquarius, Sunday’s full Moon is a seasonal “blue moon” — a phenomenon that occurs, well, once in a blue moon. Also known as the […]

Waiting Their Turn

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The Summer Invasion

I have been away from my desk. Instead of writing a column, I took a child for a walk on the beach. It was early morning low tide. She is […]

Doreen Mathilde Crow: Origins

I was surprised — and delighted — to see my scarecrow on the front page of the Provincetown Independent’s July 22 issue. Readers might enjoy the story behind the creation […]

The Things We Worried Would Ruin Truro

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Take This Personally

Tomorrow, after a visit to the press where the Independent is printed, our four college fellows will leave their summer assignments behind. We asked them for short reflections on their […]

Letters, August 19, 2021

A Call From Carol Green To the editor: When I read of Carol Green’s passing [Aug. 12, page A21] I was saddened, but also appreciative of knowing this extraordinarily intelligent and caring […]

Classifieds August 19 – August 25, 2021

JOBS The Soup Kitchen in Provincetown (SKIP) is looking for an experienced chef for its winter lunch program next season, Nov. 1 – April 29. Responsibilities include menu planning, ordering, […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Aug. 9 to Aug. 13, 2021. PROVINCETOWN Aug. 12. Ernest F. Gelineau to Paul S. Burke. 147 Commercial St., Unit L1. […]

Carol Dansky, 75, a Carpenter and Physician’s Assistant

Carol Dansky of Eastham died on Aug. 4, 2021 at Broad Reach Hospice in Chatham. She was 75. The cause was carcinoid, a type of neuroendocrine cancer, said Carol’s wife, […]

Betty Newman, 89, Impresario and Real Estate Broker

Betty Newman died at her home in Provincetown on Aug. 6, 2021. She was 89. Her death was confirmed by her longtime partner and wife, Phoebe Otis, who did not […]

Jamaican Business Owners Come to the Front of the House

PROVINCETOWN — When Omar Neil first arrived on the Outer Cape in 2001, he shared a three-bedroom house with 19 other Jamaican temporary visa holders. Every day, a truck picked […]

Truro Sees a Jump in Covid-19 Cases and Takes Action

TRURO — New Covid-19 infections here, some connected to the July Provincetown cluster, have led officials and business owners to reinstate pandemic protocols. At the beginning of July, Truro had […]

Year-Round Rental Housing Melts Away as Real Estate Booms

PROVINCETOWN — Early in the morning of June 11, seven Provincetown residents received the email that every renter here fears: “It’s been wonderful being your landlord, but I’m getting older […]

Restaurant Relief Fund Brings Almost $9 Million to Outer Cape

PROVINCETOWN — The Restaurant Revitalization Fund (RRF), created by Congress in March of this year to help restaurants and bars that suffered extreme loss of revenue due to the Covid-19 […]

Squidding With Ish and a Sea of Sweet Mystery

PROVINCETOWN — “Call me, Ishmael,” I said, as Ish walked to his parked car. “Otherwise, I will pick you up just before sunset.” “I’ll text ya,” he yelled over his […]

Stow Away Storage Expansion at Willy’s, Continued

EASTHAM — A proposal by Willy’s Gym owner Barbara Niggel to expand the number of storage units at 4730 State Highway has been scaled back after a Cape Cod Commission […]

Officials Differ on Whether to Call Truro ‘Rural’

TRURO — An open-ended discussion of the select board’s values last week exposed conflicting points of view on several questions, including whether the town should describe itself as “rural.” Another […]

Benches Are for Remembering

WELLFLEET — Each summer, thousands of people drive down Chequessett Neck Road from the center of town and bear right onto Griffin Island Road. They’re on their way to Duck […]

Behind the Housing Crisis, Anxiety

EASTHAM — Allie Dubois and her family had been renting their house in Eastham for almost four years when their landlord decided to take advantage of the booming real estate […]

Judge Awaits Facts Behind Sal’s Legal Argument

PROVINCETOWN — Judge Michael Vhay of Mass. Land Court told the owners of Sal’s Place last week that they needed to come up with some evidence soon to justify the […]

Nat Santoro’s American Soccer Journey

EASTHAM — Nat Santoro, who moved here from Connecticut 22 years ago, was born in Floridia, a small town in the Italian province of Sicily, in 1945. It’s where he […]

Sailors’ Valentines Were Seashell Souvenirs

Ever since Kevin Foley sailed the Wind Gypsy, his first charter boat, out of Wellfleet Harbor, he’s lived what he calls a nautical life. Foley — you may know him […]

A Citrusy Cool Custard for a Hot Summer Night

The thing about summer is that I want to cook in a way that leaves me turning pages in the hammock until the very last minute. There will be plenty […]

Saying Yes to a ‘Thrilling Adventure’ on a Boogie Board

I recently had a birthday. My son, Casey, wanted some ideas for a gift. And my practical suggestions, like oven mitts or kitchen knives, would not do. He insisted that […]

Stripers Are Scarce, as Blues and Squid Take Their Place

We have fallen into what used to be the normal summer pattern, but which we haven’t seen here in eight years: striped bass have all but disappeared in our local […]

It May Be Broke, But I Can’t Fix It

I like to fix things. So much so that, on the weekends, even after a week of 10-hour days at the garage, I might find time to take a carburetor […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Aug. 10 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

The Week Ahead in Provincetown Drag

The Art House Ginger Minj, Thurs.-Sat. & Wed. at 9 p.m., $40 Crown & Anchor Varla Jean Merman, “Little Prick,” Thurs.-Sat. & Tues.-Wed. at 9 p.m., $49 Dina Martina, “Chariots […]

Finding Your True North in a Tilting Cosmos

Astrology is a complex system that, while not meant to define us, does lend itself to our becoming. The position of the planets and their relational aspects to one another […]

Carnival, Vaxxed

Some Provincetown meetings are in-person only, some are remote only, and some are a hybrid where you can choose to participate in person or through a remote link. Go to […]

Life on the Edge

All meetings in Truro are remote only. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. The agenda includes instructions on how to join. Tuesday, August 17 […]

Please, Not the Hamptons

All meetings in Wellfleet are remote only and can be watched online. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Follow the instructions on the agenda. […]

Town Center Plaza

Meetings are being held in person. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about meeting locations and any remote options that may be […]

Han Feng’s Sculptural, Intimate Photographs

Stories abound of artists hunkering down in their studios during the pandemic, creating uninterrupted, as they did when art wasn’t a business — before they knew about galleries, commissions, or […]

Adam Ezra Group Builds Community

“There is nothing that can bring people together more effectively than music,” says Adam Ezra, who will be performing with his group at the Payomet Performing Arts Center on Friday, […]

Chamber Music Festival Returns, Forte

I’ve listened to the dirge-like second movement of Robert Schumann’s piano quintet in E-flat major — specifically, as played by the Beaux Arts Trio in their 1976 recording — so […]

Tennessee Williams Looks Back in Sorrow

As a tale of family dysfunction, Tennessee Williams’s The Glass Menagerie is shrouded in the cloud of memory. The play, which opened on Broadway in 1945, was Williams’s first critical […]

Mal Blum Returns to Live Music

When Mal Blum performs at Truro Vineyards this Saturday, hosted by Twenty Summers, it will be their first concert since the start of the pandemic. “I turned down other gigs […]

Rick Wrigley Has Entered Phase Three

It has been said that if you let an artist work long enough, he’ll eventually start working abstractly. If true, this certainly applies to Rick Wrigley, who says his career […]

Hermit Crab Housing Crisis

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Plan Bee

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Summer

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Jill Geier, Longtime Provincetown Resident, Was 81

Jill C. Geier of Atlantic Beach, N.Y., a longtime Provincetown resident, died of natural causes on April 3, 2021 at South Dennis Healthcare Senior Living. She was 81. Jill was […]

Rachel Hatch, 100, Owned Great Pond Cottages

Rachel Hatch, a longtime resident of Eastham, died peacefully of natural causes at the Pleasant Bay Nursing Home in Brewster on May 5, 2021. She was 100. Rachel was born […]

Stephen L. Wasby, 84, Teacher and Legal Scholar

Stephen L. Wasby of Eastham, who had a long career as a teacher and scholar of the law, died on Aug. 2, 2021. A professor emeritus of political science at […]

Philanthropist and Activist Carol Green of Truro Is Dead at 91

Carol Phillips Green of Truro died peacefully at home on Aug. 2, 2021 at age 91, as two hummingbirds hovered just outside her window. She was the daughter of the […]

Ilona Royce Smithkin, 101, Painter, Teacher, Cabaret Singer, and Star

Zoë Lewis recalled the first time they met. “It must have been 1998, or maybe 1997,” she said. A woman under five feet tall with flaming red hair, a flamboyantly […]

Apples and Shellfish

Two years ago, at its 2019 annual town meeting, Wellfleet bought 254 acres of tidal flats and salt marsh from the HDYLTA (How Do You Like Them Apples) Realty Trust […]

Letters, August 12, 2021

Killing the Pollinators To the editor: Re “Mosquito Population Stays High Despite Treatment,” Aug. 5, page A7: Your informative article confirmed my suspicion that mosquito spray with permethrin is toxic […]

Classifieds August 12 – August 18, 2021

HAPPINESS Happy 80th birthday, Jerry Costa! You’re a true Provincetown original. Wishing you a wonderful year ahead and many more to come! With love, from the Tufts Family. [8-12] JOBS […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from August 2 to August 6, 2021. PROVINCETOWN Aug. 2. Provincetown Holdco LLC [Benjamin Berkowitz, manager] to Richard Lacasse. 100 Alden St., […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats.This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.

Cycling Accidents Plague Outer Cape’s Bike Paths and Trails

PROVINCETOWN — “Most of the townies I know don’t have cars, they just have a bicycle,” says Ptown Bikes mechanic Silas Barrepski in between oiling a chain and pumping a […]

2 Years Later, Planning Starts on Those Indian Neck Tidal Flats

WELLFLEET — More than two years ago, town meeting voters bought 254.5 acres of shellfish flats for $2 million, with half the money donated by select board member Helen Miranda […]

Provincetown Businesses Reel After Outbreak of Virus Infections

PROVINCETOWN — Even though the number of new cases connected to July’s Covid-19 outbreak here continues to drop, businesses are seeing the booming sales of early summer take a nosedive. […]

Covid Cluster Puts Provincetown on the Bleeding Edge

PROVINCETOWN — The entire nation got a new universal indoor masking advisory last week, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention put Provincetown squarely in the middle of their […]

Local Businesses, Health Care Providers Resist Requiring Vaccine

Editor’s note: This story has been updated with new information since its publication in the Aug. 5 print edition. PROVINCETOWN — Since May, Patrick Patrick, head of the Provincetown Chamber […]

Lawrence Road Project Attracts Three Bids

WELLFLEET — Three organizations have submitted proposals to build affordable housing at 95 Lawrence Road, with price tags ranging from $14.6 million to $20.2 million. Two are familiar names on […]

Eastham Adopts New Rules on Noncommercial Farm Animals

EASTHAM — The board of health voted on July 29 to adopt a new set of noncommercial farm animal regulations. The rules require households to apply for permits to keep […]

Mosquito Population Stays High Despite Treatment

WELLFLEET — One month after the Cape Cod Mosquito Control Project began treating breeding areas in the Herring River basin, this year’s proliferating plague of mosquitos is proving more difficult […]

Three Bidders Offer Proposals for VFW Site

PROVINCETOWN — Housing Specialist Michelle Jarusiewicz, Town Manager Alex Morse, and Town Planner Thaddeus Soule unsealed the bids from three development companies proposing to build affordable housing at the VFW […]

Act Now If You Want a Passive House

If you haven’t heard the term passive house, Bob Higgins-Steele would like a word with you. As a member of the Truro Climate Action Committee, he is trying to spread […]

PFAS Testing of Wells in Truro and Wellfleet Set to Begin

Testing for the presence of PFAS — compounds linked to a broad array of harmful health effects — is set to begin in Wellfleet and Truro. The testing is part […]

Toys for Your Technokat

Cats always get the short straw. Drug companies don’t invest as much time and money in cats as they do in dogs. Maybe they know that owners don’t bring them […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Aug. 3 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Pop’s Savory Zucchini-Feta Pancakes

I’m resigned to the Outer Cape’s annual round of plagues: mosquitos, gnats, pollen, greenhead flies, black flies, tourists, drought. With climate change at our door, can frogs or a river […]

New Tuna Chasers Need an Etiquette Lesson

We finally got a week with somewhat normal summer weather, and fishing has been what it should be in midsummer. The bay seems very quiet right now; the cottages at […]

A New Moon in Leo Provides Courage

If you thought July was dramatic, hold on to your tinfoil hats! This week’s new Moon in Leo delivers an oversized portion of lionly courage — a useful quality, and […]

Bobby Dalbec Remembers His Firebirds Baseball Summers Fondly

ORLEANS — If you saw a college kid driving around town in a yellow Jeep during the summers of 2014 or 2015, it might have been Bobby Dalbec, now a […]

Vax Cards to Swim for Life

Some Provincetown meetings are in-person only, some are remote only, and some are a hybrid where you can choose to participate in person or through a remote link. Go to provincetown-ma.gov, […]

Selects to Reconsider Tabulator

All meetings in Truro are remote only. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. The agenda includes instructions on how to join. Thursday, August 5 Climate Action […]

Seashore Land Swap

All meetings in Wellfleet are remote only and can be watched online. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. The agenda includes instructions on how to join. […]

Meeting Videos Delayed

Meetings are being held in person. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about meeting locations and any remote options that may be […]

At Just 24, Qualeasha Wood Brings Textiles Into 2021

“I spent most of my early art practice and young adult life trying to escape from the inherited social constraints of Blackness,” says textile artist Qualeasha Wood. “My perception of […]

René Romero Schuler Goes Beneath the Surface

From a distance, René Romero Schuler’s paintings might be written off as decorative, fashionable, or pretty. And that wouldn’t be entirely wrong: they are pretty. But that’s only part of […]

A New Director Will Welcome Fellows to FAWC This Fall

“The profound thing that has happened over the past year is that we, as individuals in society, have realized that we can’t really go back to the way things were […]

Paul Wirhun Is the Eggman

“Eggman” is how Paul Wirhun signs all his emails. It’s also the name that’s displayed on his screen during a recent Zoom call from Jersey City, N.J., where he maintains […]

A Funny Thing Happened Inside the Harbor Stage

John Kolvenbach’s Stand Up if You’re Here Tonight, which is having its world premiere at the Harbor Stage Company in Wellfleet, is an extraordinarily intimate experience. The one-man show (with […]

The Week Ahead in Provincetown Drag

The Art House Ginger Minj, Thurs.-Sat. & Wed. at 9 p.m., $40 Crown & Anchor Varla Jean Merman, “Little Prick,” Thurs.-Sat. & Tues.-Wed. at 9 p.m., $49 Dina Martina, “Chariots […]

Fudge It!

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The Covid Cluster: What We Must Do Now

We had been so careful, keeping our distance, and doing all the right containment measures. Then came an explosive Delta-variant Covid outbreak in Provincetown. For a while, case counts doubled […]

Social Distancing

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Take Me Out

Take me out to the ball game Last week, for my wife’s birthday, we went to an Orleans Firebirds baseball game. It was a beauteous evening, the skies clear, with […]

Letters, August 5, 2021

Turning Against Ourselves To the editor: Edward Boches’s July 8 op-ed essay, “What We See in the Flag,” was thought-provoking. I am saddened by disparagement of the American flag. People […]

Covid Lies

A headline in Monday’s New York Times Business section jumped off the page at us: “Local News Aids Spread of Virus Misinformation.” Reporters Sheera Frenkel and Tiffany Hsu wrote that […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from July 26 to July 30, 2021. PROVINCETOWN July 26. Anthony R. Kushner to John Milligan and Robert Gravis. 170 Commercial St., […]

Richard Aiken, 90, the Priest Who Pumped Gas and Sold Firewood

The Rev. Richard Lloyd Aiken died on July 26, 2021 at his home on North Pamet Road in Truro of natural causes, said his son, Andrew. Rev. Aiken, who purchased […]

Classifieds August 5 – August 11, 2021

JOBS Would you enjoy teaching digital literacy and computer skills to older adults on the Outer Cape? Part-time contract employment available for patient, organized, tech-positive individual with flexible schedule, August […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats. This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.

Two Sunday Hours Offer Joy on the Pitch

WELLFLEET — Sunday mornings on the Outer Cape are, for many people, about relaxing at home or enjoying a leisurely walk on the shore. But for some 20 Jamaicans, Sunday […]

Abandoned Sears Houses Are Focus of Walsh Committee

TRURO — July 19 was a day of firsts for the members of the Walsh Property Community Planning Committee. That morning, they met each other in person for the first […]

Provincetown Brings Back Indoor Mask Mandate

PROVINCETOWN — The board of health and select board held their second emergency joint meeting in only seven days on July 25 and imposed an indoor mask mandate, effective immediately. […]

Part-Time Residents Say Tax Exemption Policy Is Unfair

PROVINCETOWN — “We just all want to be treated fairly,” said Patricia Miller during the open comment segment of the Provincetown select board meeting on July 12. Miller, who is […]

Misinformation on Covid Vaccines Abounds

A bitter rift has opened between those vaccinated against Covid-19 and those who have chosen to remain unvaccinated. Evidence of it is easy to find: just check out the comments […]

Community Center Gets T-Time Committee Endorsement

EASTHAM — The T-Time Committee has begun homing in on its recommendations for development of the town-owned 11-acre property at 4790 Route 6, agreeing at a July 20 meeting a […]

USPS Worker Shortages Slow Outer Cape Mail Delivery

PROVINCETOWN — Mail service on the Outer Cape has been plagued by delays in the past month, many customers report. Sources both inside and outside the post office say the […]

OysterFest Cancellation Hurts, but How Much?

WELLFLEET — The board of the nonprofit Shellfish Promotion and Tasting (SPAT) announced on June 25 that the annual Wellfleet OysterFest, scheduled for the weekend of Oct. 16 and 17, […]

On Outer Cape, Data Show Whites Have Lowest Vaccination Rate

PROVINCETOWN — The official statistics from the state Dept. of Public Health say that 114 percent of the residents of Provincetown have been vaccinated against Covid-19. Obviously, that is impossible. […]

Hotel Project Back in Court and Likely Headed to Trial

PROVINCETOWN — Christine Barker’s proposal for a mixed-use waterfront development on the former site of the Old Reliable Fish House is once again mired in Land Court, with two of […]

Swap Shop Finds

The Outer Cape’s swap shops are re-opening, and that’s welcome news for those whose anti-materialist leanings went unsatisfied during these long months of isolation. De-acquisitioning that odd lamp (still working), […]

Finding Beauty in a Globular Cluster

Since writing last month about the Milky Way, our home galaxy, I’ve wanted to take you deeper into its heart. That’s where you’ll find M4 — a beautiful and interesting […]

A Summer-Only Cape Cod Secret, With Thanks to Dr. Bluefish

Bluefish are misunderstood on the mainland. Detractors there moan about them being “too oily” or “fishy.” But Cape Codders wait hungrily for this season. What we know is that, handled […]

An Anxious Week on the Wharf

It certainly has been a strange week on the waterfront. First, we are getting some weird sunsets over the water, as the atmosphere is filled with smoke from the Western […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, July 27 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Four Firebirds Make All-Star Lineup

ORLEANS — The Orleans Firebirds had four players named to the 2021 Cape Cod Baseball League All-Star Team. Outfielder Chase DeLauter (James Madison U.) and utility player Peyton Chatagnier (Ole […]

Two Steps Forward, One Step Back

Well, summer was fun while it lasted! These are the lessons we have to learn to live with, I suppose, even with the Sun in frisky fire sign Leo, urging […]

Stroke of Genius

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Jasper’s Surf Shop Lingers in Memory

EASTHAM — The origin story behind the Outer Cape’s most storied surf shop is a simple one. One summer day in 1967, after Kevin “Foggy” Foley ran out of gas […]

Suit Filed Against Patrick’s ‘Barracks’ Plan

PROVINCETOWN — According to documents filed with the town clerk, four abutters have sued to overturn the permit issued by the Provincetown Planning Board to Patrick Patrick for his worker […]

Judge Fines Sal’s Place $1,000 a Day for Contempt

PROVINCETOWN — Seating on the beach is still an option for diners at Sal’s Place in the West End, despite the fact that a Mass. Land Court judge has ordered […]

Adams Sentenced to 14 Years

Some Provincetown meetings are in-person only, some are remote only, and some are a hybrid where you can choose to participate in person or through a remote link. Go to provincetown-ma.gov, […]

Indoor Mask Mandate Unlikely

All meetings in Truro are remote only. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. The agenda includes instructions how to join. Saturday, July 31 Climate […]

Herring River Wins State Climate Funds

All meetings in Wellfleet are remote only and can be watched online. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. The agenda includes instructions on how […]

HAWK Signal Eyed for Fixes

Meetings are being held in person. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about meeting locations and any remote options that may be […]

The Abstract, Atmospheric Art of Sarah Lutz

Sarah Lutz’s art elicits a rare response in the viewer, who not only enjoys looking at the paintings, but thinks that it might be enjoyable to meet the artist herself. […]

David Wojnarowicz: From Downtown to Our Town

Walking by 445 Commercial St. in Provincetown when the shades are pulled down, you’d hardly know there’s a priceless link to queer history inside. Once home to the Kiley Court […]

‘We Take a Step; the Audience Takes a Step With Us’

During the height of the pandemic, writers could write. Painters could paint. And even if they couldn’t perform live, musicians could play. But theater actors? Without a live audience, there […]

William di Canzio’s Alec Meets E.M. Forster’s Maurice

The Englishman E.M. Forster (1879-1970) wrote six novels and published five of these between 1905 and 1924. Best known and loved are A Room With a View, Howards End, and […]

Send In the Cowboys

Don’t come ’round Payomet Ranch looking for plot-driven drama. But do come, with or without your child, to enjoy masterful displays of acrobatic skill, a live score inspired by classic […]

Anne Hutchinson Is Provincetown’s Jezebel

In November 1637, Anne Hutchinson, pregnant with her 16th child, stood before an assemblage of 40 male judges. She was on trial — at the behest of Massachusetts Gov. John […]

Bumper Crop

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Idle Times, Good Trouble

I have the greatest respect for John Kerry, our former senator, presidential candidate, and now President Biden’s special envoy for climate. But I must disagree with him on one significant […]

Wellskeeters

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Edgar ‘Butch’ Francis, 78, Teacher and Businessman

Edgar Walter Francis III, known as Butch, died on July 21, 2021 at the McCarthy Care Center in Sandwich surrounded by loving family. He was 78. Born to Celeste […]

Stacie Enos, 48, Was a Provincetown All-Star

Stacie Lynn Enos of Eastham, a longtime Provincetown resident, died at home on July 16, 2021 surrounded by her loving family. She was 48. Born in Barnstable, she was the […]

Charles Zimmer Celebration Is Aug. 2

A celebration of the life of Charles W. “Chuck” Zimmer of Truro, who died on March 3, 2021, is planned for 11 a.m. Monday, Aug. 2 at the Gately Funeral […]

Letters, July 29, 2021

Being Nice Isn’t Enough To the editor: I am pleased that the Independent published Ellen G. Smith’s letter [July 22, page A2] proclaiming her support for Trump and insisting she’s […]

New RTE Math

Do any of you remember Tom Lehrer’s song “New Math” from back in 1965? It was his send-up of trendy math teaching of the time, in which he deftly pattered […]

Classifieds July 29 – August 4, 2021

JOBS Vorelli’s Restaurant is looking for a daytime Host/Busperson. We need you to join our team. Excellent hourly wage plus tips. No experience necessary. Stop by to apply at 226 […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from July 19 to July 23, 2021. PROVINCETOWN July 19. CHR RPR LLC [Edward Malone, manager] to Susan A. Bernstein. 43 Race […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats.This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.

Beauty and Quirkiness in Full Bloom in Eastham

Nearly 400 garden lovers turned out for the Eastham Garden Tour on July 13, which benefits the town’s public library. Visitors roamed six gardens that fit the event’s theme: Creative […]

Mosquito Boom Was Caused by Duck Harbor Overwash

WELLFLEET — Mosquitos, the biting, buzzing beasts, are back this year in unprecedented numbers that are terrorizing the Outer Cape. Some ask if the problem could have been avoided, and […]

‘Provincetown Cluster’ Now Has at Least 430 Cases, Officials Say

Editor’s note: This article has been updated with the latest information from local and county public health officials as of Saturday, July 24. We will continue to update as new […]

Tom Donegan, Who Fought for Police Accountability, Dies at 61

PROVINCETOWN — Thomas Neal Donegan, who chaired the Provincetown Board of Selectmen during the tumultuous period leading to the firing of Police Chief Jeff Jaran and who later steered the […]

Dispensary Owners Now Seek to Build Grow Facility in Truro

TRURO — The owners of cannabis dispensaries in Eastham and Wellfleet plan to build a 9,600-square-foot building to grow and manufacture marijuana products off Route 6 in North Truro, an […]

Marijuana Delivery Service Eyes Eastham

EASTHAM — The select board voted 4 to 0 at their July 12 meeting to pursue a host community agreement with KushKart LLC, a recreational marijuana home-delivery start-up that has […]

Legislation to Abolish 287(g) Agreements Gains Support

Barnstable County’s detention agreement with the Dept. of Homeland Security’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arm won’t expire. It’s in place permanently until either ICE or Barnstable Sheriff James Cummings […]

Lessons From the VaxBus in Provincetown

PROVINCETOWN — The state’s “Pittsfield to Provincetown” mobile vaccination tour made a full-day stop at Provincetown’s bus stop near the Municipal Parking Lot at MacMillan Pier last Thursday, July 15. […]

Moe Van Dereck and Jot Small’s Inuit Racing Boats

PROVINCETOWN — In 1959, a Provincetown teenager named George Van Dereck Haunstrup, more commonly known in town as Moe Van Dereck, breathed life into a storied sailboat on its last […]

Interest Is High in Provincetown Bookshop

PROVINCETOWN — In the past few weeks, Philip Swayze, who became the owner of the Provincetown Bookshop after inheriting the business from his uncle Joel Newman, has been getting a […]

Reports of Big Bluefish and Black Sea Bass

Fishing is settling into a typical summer pattern. Water temperatures have been up and down all season, but last week they were in the mid 60s to low 70s, which […]

Jet Ski Plan for MacMillan Pier Is Sunk by Pier Corp.

PROVINCETOWN — An application to operate a personal watercraft (PWC), or Jet Ski, rental business on MacMillan Pier was denied by the Public Pier Corp. board on July 14. The […]

Welcome, Atkins

Atkins Crowe Mayo, the newest resident of Atkins Mayo Road in Provincetown, was born at Cape Cod Hospital on July 17, 2021. His names are family ones — his parents […]

Going Back to the Gym, One Day at a Time

PROVINCETOWN — It’s early Monday morning at Mussel Beach Health Club and gymgoers are filing in and out. Some arrive on bikes, already warmed up. Some are wearing masks because […]

A Provincetown Classic Inspires Mac’s Zarzuela

I can’t remember the first time I got my hands on a very used copy of Howard Mitcham’s Provincetown Seafood Cookbook. It’s a classic, a book that has always been […]

A Week Illuminated by the Full Moon in Aquarius

Full Moons, as you are probably aware, can light the way to self-examination. When they occur in Aquarius, we are offered an opportunity to find the sweet spot between individualism […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, July 20 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

State Says to Take Down Bird Feeders

WELLFLEET — Mass. Wildlife and Mass Audubon have recommended that residents take down their bird feeders in an attempt to prevent the spread of an unidentified illness that has been […]

Blue Economy Installations to Go

Some Provincetown meetings are in-person only, some are remote only, and some are a hybrid where you can choose to participate in person or through a remote link. Go to provincetown-ma.gov, […]

Water Oversight Committee Gets Flushed

All meetings in Truro are remote only and can be watched online. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Follow the instructions on the agenda. […]

We Tell Ourselves Stories

All meetings in Wellfleet are remote only and can be watched online. Go to Wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Follow the instructions on the agenda. […]

Porta-Potties Need to Move

Meetings are being held in person. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about meeting locations and any remote options that may be […]

Larry Collins Cures the Pandemic With a Pencil

When the Covid lockdown hit in March 2020, Provincetown artist Larry Collins was living alone in his small condo in the middle of town. “Here I was, in my 70s, […]

Willie Little, the Alchemist

“I have always been moved by the structures of home,” says artist Willie Little, who grew up in North Carolina. “The metal tobacco barns, regular barns, things that are just […]

Ray Benson’s Back in the Swing

A semi-centennial is a long time coming, but Ray Benson had to wait a bit longer to start celebrating. Asleep at the Wheel — the Western swing band that Benson […]

Dina Martina’s Chaotic Spectacle

“It’s not really a drag show — it’s more like a train wreck,” says one audience member to another minutes before Dina Martina takes the stage at the Crown & […]

A Walk on the Wild Side

For those of us who have not seen the seedier side of town in a while, a stroll with Billy Hough and his “Wild West of the East” tour is […]

Screen Door and Vine

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Jet Set

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Tern on the Beach

We had just returned from voting in Wellfleet on the warmest day of the June heat wave. My wife and I voted for selectmen and for expensive new equipment for […]

Noisy Tribute to Annie Mahoney

A fireworks display in honor of Annie Mahoney of Truro and Cambridge, who would have been 60 years old this week, will take place in Provincetown at 9 p.m. on […]

Michael Houghton, 80, Founder of Jasper’s Surf Shop

Michael C. Houghton of East Orleans died on July 12, 2021 at Pleasant Bay Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Brewster. He was 80. Mike was born to Frances and Gerald […]

Diane Rose Memorial

A celebration of the life of Diane Alexis Brown Rose will be held at 1 p.m. on Sunday, July 25, 2021 at the Truro Community Center and Council on Aging, […]

Fitness Training

In June 2019, the Alcoholic Beverage Control Board of the District of Columbia considered a challenge to the renewal of a liquor license for the Trump International Hotel on the […]

Letters, July 22, 2021

Who Is to Blame? To the editor: On Saturday, July 3, I took a drive to Provincetown to get malassadas at the Portuguese Bakery. I parked at the pier for less than […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from July 12 to July 16, 2021. PROVINCETOWN July 15. Brian C. DeChane to William Craig Stern Living Trust (William Craig Stern, […]

Classifieds July 22 – July 28, 2021

JOBS The Soup Kitchen in Provincetown (SKIP) is looking for an experienced chef for its winter lunch program next season, Nov. 1-April 29. Responsibilities include menu planning, ordering, supervising volunteers and […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats. This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.

The Week Ahead in Provincetown Drag

Boatslip Beach Club and Resort Paige Turner hosts “Drag Bingo,” Sun. at 6 p.m., $40 Crown & Anchor Varla Jean Merman, “Little Prick,” Thurs.-Sat. & Tues.-Wed. at 9 p.m., $49 […]

Glory Days

The front page photo this week, taken by Nancy Bloom, offers a different point of view on a beloved high summer scene. You can find that in a few places […]

Lack of Child Care Afflicts Outer Cape’s Workers

A critical shortage of child care, worsened by the Covid-19 pandemic, remains a serious problem for many Outer Cape parents. Families found themselves stuck when schools and child-care centers closed. […]

Covid Returns, ‘Less Severe, More Manageable’

PROVINCETOWN — There is a new outbreak of detected Covid-19 cases in Provincetown. “Since the end of last week, they’ve been finding several cases a day” at Outer Cape Health […]

Dredging Project’s Effects on Nauset Dunes Feared

EASTHAM — A group called Saving Nauset Dunes, represented by Mackie Shea Durning PC, a Boston-based boutique law firm focused on environmental and land use law, has fired a shot […]

Sheriff Cummings’s Contract With ICE Is Renewed Again

Last summer, at the end of the fiscal year, Barnstable County Sheriff James Cummings’s detention agreement with the Dept. of Homeland Security lapsed. He renewed it. But this year, the […]

A Learning Curve on Green Burials in Outer Cape Towns

Efforts to accommodate those looking for a more back-to-nature form of burial, known as green burial, continue to move ahead on the Outer Cape, but there’s been a bit of […]

Questions Remain After Lecount Hollow Tree-Cutting Is Halted

WELLFLEET — One month ago, on June 15, then-Wellfleet Building Inspector Paul Fowler delivered a cease-and-desist order to David and Chellise Sexton of Eastham for clear-cutting trees on their property […]

Ebben Ryder-O’Malley Wins National Skills Competition

WELLFLEET — Ebben Ryder-O’Malley was out lobstering from 3 a.m. to 11 p.m. on June 13. He spent the next day at Cape Cod Regional Technical High School in Harwich, […]

A Stop at the Wellfleet Flea Market

It’s just after 8 a.m. on Sunday morning and the Wellfleet Flea Market has opened its gates to customers. Vendors are still setting up as a box truck pulls into […]

Farmers Find New Ways to Grow

TRURO — When the pandemic hit and restaurants closed, Uli Winslow, a mushroom farmer in Truro, expected his sales to take a nosedive, and for good reason: about half of […]

Pandemic’s Easing Opens Possibilities for Public Transit

The Cape Cod Regional Transit Authority has made its buses free on Fridays. Tom Cahir, the CCRTA administrator, said fare-free Fridays would help workers and tourists as the Outer Cape […]

Brewster Flats Foundation Partners With Hale

BREWSTER — A nonprofit group’s vision for purchasing the Cape Cod Sea Camps (CCSC) property on Route 6A has taken a significant step towards reality. The Brewster Flats Foundation (BFF) […]

Cold Sesame Noodles to Go

Christopher is a beach minimalist. He likes as little as possible between himself and the sun, sand, and surf. His towel, some water, and the No. 1 from Jams (turkey, […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, July 13 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Elsa Makes a Mess in the Harbor

Unrelenting storms continue to ravage the Cape this summer, with the latest being Tropical Storm Elsa, which blasted us last Friday afternoon, July 9. It was a really bad combination: the […]

Firebirds Beat Hyannis, Lose to Y-D and Falmouth

ORLEANS — The Orleans Firebirds got a taste of bad summer weather on the Cape last week. Their July 8 game was called after the sixth inning because of an […]

The Planets Are About to Make Your Summer Steamier

While the Sun continues to travel through sensitive Cancer, things are beginning to simmer in flirty fire sign Leo, where Mars and Venus are coming into a sweet celestial embrace. […]

The Illustrious Atwoods of Provincetown

Henry David Thoreau, enjoying his fourth and last visit to Cape Cod, wrote in his journal dated June 21, 1857 that he had “called on Mr. Atwood, the Representative of […]

Aronow and Hartley Claim Victories at Mayo Beach

WELLFLEET — The first Wellfleet Road Race took place on July 4th, 1975. It was the brainchild of the late Brewster Fox, who wanted to get more young people to […]

Drunk Driver Hits Pedicab, Runs Down Passenger

PROVINCETOWN — Police made seven arrests here between Thursday and Monday of July 4th weekend, and the rescue squad was kept busy as well. The incidents included a drunk driving […]

Willy’s Gets Its All-Alcohol License

EASTHAM — The select board granted an all-alcohol liquor license for Willy’s World Wellness & Conference Center, doing business as Grateful Café, on July 12, just days before a scheduled […]

Ousted Town Administrator Got Four Months of Severance

WELLFLEET — Maria Broadbent, the Wellfleet town administrator who lasted nine months from August 2020 to April of this year, received four months’ severance pay after her resignation. According to […]

A SOAP Program Designed to Keep Patients Clean

PROVINCETOWN — Outer Cape Health Services has begun offering a form of intensive outpatient treatment to help people with addiction disorders. The Structured Outpatient Addiction Program, or SOAP, provides group […]

Residential Tax Exemption

Provincetown will continue remote access to meetings, even though many meetings are now being held in person. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch for further instructions. […]

Beach Bouncers

Truro is transitioning to in-person meetings, but remote access to all meetings continues. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch for further instructions. Thursday, July […]

Some Opening Hours

Wellfleet’s meetings are still being held remotely. From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in […]

Farm Animal Regulations

Meetings are being held in person. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about meeting locations and any remote options that may be […]

Previously Unseen Works by Knaths and Weinrich

One of the first works that you see upon stepping off Commercial Street into the Bakker Gallery is a graphite drawing by the artist Agnes Weinrich. It shows a woman, […]

A Zen Priest Retreats to the Dunes

Douglass Dineen received a new name in 2004: Fugan. It’s his “dharma name,” given by a Buddhist teacher to a newly ordained priest. In Zen teaching, fugan means “universal vow,” […]

Truth in the Eye of the Beholder

As Louis de Rougemont, a real-life British adventurer of the Victorian era, Rodney Witherspoon II is an affable storyteller. He struts and frets for 90 minutes on the Garden Stage […]

Finding the Balance

One day in June, my wife and I left our cottage to walk straight out the mouth of the Herring River in Eastham. Low tide had exposed acres of sand […]

The Week Ahead in Provincetown Drag

The Art House Steven Brinberg, “Simply Barbra,” Thurs.-Sat., 7:30 p.m., $35 Boatslip Beach Club and Resort Paige Turner hosts “Drag Bingo,” Sun., 6 p.m., $40 Crown & Anchor Varla Jean […]

When a Flea Market Find Is a New Direction

“I love murdering people,” says Donna Walo Clancy in her Boston accent, letting out a slight giggle, twirling her ponytail with her left hand, wearing an apron. She is taking […]

Too Many Cars

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Our Conditioned Air

As I write this, it is hot, damned hot, insufferably hot. I can take a bit of heat in the daytime, but at night it is just too much. What […]

There’s No Good Reason to Dredge Nauset Estuary

Climate change has intensified storms over the past decade, shifting coastal dynamics and accelerating erosion of the Outer Beach. This has driven more sediment into the Nauset Estuary, affecting access […]

Consensual Errors of Judgment A pictorial and diagnostic, chapter 2

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Adeline R. Crave, 86

Adeline Rose Crave of Wareham, a long-time Provincetown resident, died on July 6, 2021 at Tobey Hospital in Wareham. She was 86. Born in Brooklyn, New York, on Sept. 24, […]

Mary Ann Powers, 68, of Wonderful Hands Massage

Mary Ann Powers died suddenly under the full Moon on June 24, 2021 at the Provincetown home of Jimmy McNulty and Raife Menold. The cause was cancer, diagnosed only weeks […]

Mary Feeley Memorial

A memorial service will be held to celebrate the life of Mary Therese Feeley at St. Peter the Apostle Catholic Church in Provincetown at 9:30 a.m. on Saturday, July 24. […]

Richard Scoullar, 89, Was VFW Post Commander

Richard A. Scoullar of Provincetown died at home on July 6, 2021 after months of failing health, with his wife, Eugenia, and daughter, April, by his side. He was 89. […]

Letters, July 15, 2021

America Is Not a Brand To the editor: As one who has never embraced what I call “flag idolatry,” I was taken aback by Edward Boches’s piece on the significance of […]

Hope Over Experience

Not long ago, a disgruntled reader of the Independent complained that I was “a typical washashore.” There’s some truth in that. I don’t have a long family history here. I […]

Classifieds July 15 – July 21, 2021

JOBS The Soup Kitchen in Provincetown (SKIP) is looking for an experienced chef for its winter lunch program next season, Nov. 1-April 29. Responsibilities include menu planning, ordering, supervising volunteers and […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from July 6 to July 9, 2021. PROVINCETOWN July 9. Mary Ellen Dwyer and Alison B. Dwyer to Brandon C. Hyatt. 2 […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats.This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.

Old Salts and Scallywags on Wellfleet’s Main Street

Pirates go way back in Wellfleet. And this year, even though there was no official Fourth of July parade, the pirates turned out for a walk to mark the day. […]

Outer Cape Towns Struggle to Fill Board Vacancies

Filling vacancies on municipal boards and committees is a challenge in all four towns on the Outer Cape. Part of the problem, most leaders agree, may be the sheer number […]

New Tax Yields Windfall, but Not for Housing

PROVINCETOWN — The tax on short-term rentals has generated a financial windfall for the four Outer Cape towns, newly released figures from the state show. The added revenue for the […]

Eastham Officials Question Benefits of Nauset Estuary Dredging Plan

EASTHAM — A mixed bag of concerns about the proposed dredging of the Nauset Estuary emerged from the first citizens’ forums on the project held on June 22 and 29. […]

John Wolf Wins Select Board Seat as Write-In and Will Replace Carlson

WELLFLEET — The town has a new select board member, John Wolf, who says he wanted to get on the board to address the severe accounting crisis at town hall. […]

Compostable Food Containers Have Nowhere to Go

Someone walks out of Snowy Owl Coffee Roasters in Brewster with a disposable cup of iced coffee, passing the compost bins, garden beds, and clucking chickens. Luckily, that cup is […]

Personal Watercraft Could Jet Into Provincetown Harbor

PROVINCETOWN — A proposal to bring a personal watercraft (PWC), or Jet Ski, rental business to MacMillan Pier will be considered by the Public Pier Corp. board at its next […]

In View This Week

Capt. Josh Rowan’s dog, Admiral Finn, a Staffordshire Terrier, enjoys the Bloodhound’s 70-foot teak deck. The cutter, now in Provincetown, is a 1990’s replica of an 1874 racing yacht. Rowan […]

Blue Economy Installations Raise Eyebrows

PROVINCETOWN — Two seals drift in the water, poking their heads above the surface and looking at one another. “I think they’re in love,” says a child’s voice, excitedly. The […]

A July 4 View of Provincetown, From Behind the Wheel

PROVINCETOWN — Need a ride to the Boatslip and a soliloquy about affordable housing? Call Cape Cab in Provincetown, and you can have it all from cabbie Louise Venden. She […]

Local Catholic Leaders Don’t See Bishops’ Vote as Political

PROVINCETOWN — Nearly three-quarters of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), the national organization of bishops, voted on June 17 to draft a new statement on the meaning of […]

A Sanctuary for Soaking In

The home is many things. At its barest, it is shelter. If we are lucky, it is more, fulfilling an array of our human needs beneath one roof. The kitchen […]

Early Summer in a Jar

The more I live into my life in Truro, the more amazed I am at the food I can find around me if I really look. I’m not talking about […]

Things Were Just Fine, and Then…

We take three steps forward and two steps back, which is an old story with fishing. Things were going very well, as striped bass fishing was consistently solid and bluefishing was […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, July 6 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

The Quest for a Local Queen

WELLFLEET — The bee yard bakes in the midday sun, redolent of honey and the faint spice of propolis. Workers dart from hive entrances, returning heavy with pollen and nectar […]

Slowly, Outer Cape Libraries Begin to Reopen

The orders from town officials came down suddenly and in quick succession: on March 13, 2020 for Provincetown, on March 14 for Eastham, on March 16 for Wellfleet, and on […]

At Nauset, Preventive Training Is the Name of the Game

EASTHAM — “Get in shape to play your sport — not play your sport to get in shape.” That’s something Michelle Pavlu, the head athletic trainer at Nauset Regional High […]

Firebirds Hit Seven Homers in One Game

ORLEANS — Something was in the air on the night of Friday, July 2 because the Orleans Firebirds managed to hit seven home runs in a 19-6 rout of the […]

Dol-Fin Diving Into Nelson Ave.

Provincetown will continue remote access to meetings, even though many meetings are now being held in person. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch for further instructions. […]

Walsh Property Update

Truro is transitioning to in-person meetings, but remote access to all meetings continues. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch for further instructions. Thursday, July […]

Be There or Be Square

Meetings are still being held remotely. From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to […]

Committee Commitment

Meetings are being held in person. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about meeting locations and any remote options that may be […]

The Charmed, Haunting Art of Laura Peturson

Once upon a time, there was an artist named Laura Peturson. She lived in a forest in northern Ontario with her husband, daughter, and son. The children spent their days […]

Finding Love Amid the Culture Wars

Della, the North Carolina baker at the center of Bekah Brunstetter’s play The Cake, is a deeply conflicted woman. She’s not a cultural punching bag — a Paula Deen or […]

Blair Thornley’s Emotional Clearinghouse

“What humans do on the Earth is fascinating to me,” says artist Blair Thornley from her home in San Diego. Her paintings feel theatrical — outdoor stage sets populated by […]

Guardian of the Courts

STEVE OLIVER / TENNIS CLUB OWNER / WELLFLEET As youngsters, Steve Oliver and his siblings spent summers sweeping the red clay courts on Route 6 in Wellfleet. It was […]

Painting Before and After the Stroke

Two paintings — Scenic New Mexico, which depicts a jagged butte seen from the perspective of someone standing farther back on its edge, and Mayo Beach Wellfleet, a view of […]

Re-evaluating the Guilt of Ethel Rosenberg

The American press largely supported Judge Irving Kaufman’s decision at the height of the Red Scare to sentence Julius and Ethel Rosenberg to death. In March 1951, a jury found […]

A Romance Set on the Outer Cape

Miranda Cowley Heller’s novel The Paper Palace tells the story of Elle, a woman whose life is both troubled and complicated. She must choose which man to share her life […]

Surfers X-ing

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What We See in the Flag

I remember a time before the Vietnam War when the American flag evoked only positive feelings in me. When JFK was president, when Neil Armstrong landed on the moon, I […]

We’ve Learned to Collaborate. Let’s Keep Going.

The more stories I hear from friends and colleagues, the more I am convinced that the numerous changes in our lives resulting from the pandemic response have not been all […]

Re-entry, a Quiz

Welcome back! Your entire face is a sight to behold, and it’s absolutely beautiful, but being with you — or any other person, outside of one’s own home — remains […]

Name That Thing

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Charles Welsh Service Saturday

A Funeral Mass for Charles F. Welsh, former first assistant clerk-magistrate of the Orleans District Court, will be celebrated this Saturday, July 10 at 10 a.m. at St. Peter the […]

Elizabeth Kelly, 94, Choral Conductor, Performer, and Teacher

Elizabeth Ellen Kelly of Wellfleet died on June 28, 2021 at Cape Cod Hospital after a brief illness. She was 94. Betty was born on Dec. 5, 1926 to the […]

Memorial for Rt. Rev. Morgan Porteus

A memorial service celebrating the life of the late Rt. Rev. Morgan Porteus, XI episcopal bishop of Connecticut and longtime Cape Cod resident, will be held on Saturday, July 17 […]

Susan E. Modrak, 74, Loved Theater and Music

Susan E. Modrak died unexpectedly in her Provincetown home on May 11, 2021. She was 74. Born on Sept. 19, 1946, Sue grew up in New Britain, Conn. and spent […]

Letters, July 8, 2021

A Unique Kind of Boat To the editor: Your reporter did a nice job on the obituary for my sister, June Finch [July 1, page A21], but I want to […]

What Makes Us Weep?

I feel sorry for the editors of big-city newspapers, and not just because so many of them now work for corporations that are constantly looking for ways to eliminate their […]

Classifieds July 8 – July 14, 2021

JOBS Bustling downtown P’town used bookstore seeks night clerk. Ability to lift 50 pounds required. Knowledge of literature a plus. You’ll be busy waiting on customers and shelving — high-energy […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from June 28 to July 2, 2021. PROVINCETOWN June 28. Brady Family Nominee Trust (John J. Brady, trustee) to Alison E. Gray […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

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Commonwealth of Massachusetts Legal Notices

MASS D.E.P. NOTICE OF TIER I CLASSIFICATION 30 Castle Road, Truro MA RTN 2-28349 A release of oil and/or hazardous materials has occurred at this location, which is a disposal […]

Ice Cream, Soft Serve, and Gelato: We Take Our Licks

By the Independent Staff On warm days, when things go slack, there are two possible remedies: a swim or an ice cream, or both — two dips are better than […]

Outer Cape Projects Attract Mostly Off-Cape Developers

Two large affordable housing projects proposed in Wellfleet and Provincetown have attracted the interest of several off-Cape developers. The Provincetown-based developer Community Housing Resource will not submit proposals for either […]

Housing and Child Care Get Voter Support

TRURO — Tensions between proponents of affordable housing and its detractors were on display at the annual town meeting Saturday, with the proponents ultimately winning the day. Voters approved all […]

Wellfleet Building Inspector and Media Manager Both Quit

WELLFLEET — Two key town staff members have resigned and will leave as of July 6. Paul Fowler, the building inspector, and Mia Baumgarten, the media operations manager, have both […]

Voters Back Estimated 13% Tax Increase

WELLFLEET — Town meeting on June 26 was costly and long, but voters approved the town budget and the purchases requested by officials during the six-and-half-hour session on the elementary […]

$33,315 Was Raised for Three-Way Select Board Race

PROVINCETOWN — The May 11 select board election in Provincetown, in which Leslie Sandberg, Oriana Conklin, and incumbent Lise King all ran for one seat on the board, generated the […]

Democracy and Dugouts

WELLFLEET — Take me out to the town meeting — if Wellfleet doesn’t win, it’s a shame. For it’s one, two, three motions to call the question and you’re out, […]

Committing to Water, Shelter, Bureaucracy-Free Farming

WELLFLEET — At the school ballfield on Saturday, voters showed they’re committed to dealing with two of the biggest issues facing the town: affordable housing and water sustainability. They elected […]

Outer Cape Senior Centers Slowly Reopen

EASTHAM — The directors of the Outer Cape’s four councils on aging all say their senior centers have been open for the past 15 months — it’s only the doors […]

Blasches List Their Endangered House for $5.5 Million

WELLFLEET — The controversial Blasch house at 1440 Chequessett Neck Road is on the market. Mark and Barbara Blasch, who built it in 2010, are asking $5.5 million for the […]

The Class of 1965 Looks Back on 56 Years

PROVINCETOWN — Stephen DeRiggs, a Provincetown High School junior, was getting off the ferry the day before the annual Nantucket-Provincetown football game when he heard the news. The president had […]

Gardening by the Moon

I’ve been paying attention recently to an old gardening proverb that goes like this: “With the waxing of the Moon, the Earth exhales. With the waning of the Moon, the […]

New Owner Sought for Provincetown Bookshop

PROVINCETOWN — The well-loved bookstore where Norman Mailer and Robert Motherwell could frequently be found browsing will soon close unless some bibliophile steps forward to carry on the business. The […]

The Bass Are Running in Huge Numbers

Striped bass fishing dramatically improved this past week, with huge numbers of mixed-sized fish moving into the area between Wood End Light and Race Point. Most of the fish ranged […]

A Summer Side Trip to the Milky Way

It’s wonderful how many things are visible in the night sky — things you can see with the unaided eye, without binoculars or a telescope. All you need to know […]

Nauset Baseball Falls in Quarterfinals

ORLEANS — The Nauset Regional High School baseball team was one out away from advancing to the Division 2 South Sectional semifinals. Junior Cam Beer was on the mound at […]

Tennis Club Resumes Wednesday Free Play

PROVINCETOWN — Many local businesses are having trouble staying open and fully staffed, but the Provincetown Tennis Club has been lucky. The club, whose season runs from mid-May through mid-October, […]

Welcome, Lucas Elias

Lucas Elias إلياس Dae Clemons was born on Nov. 28, 2020. His mother, Monirà Marzouki, dreamed she was holding a shining light on Herring Cove Beach in Provincetown, and some months […]

Telltale Signs of the Veterinary Worker

You can look at some people and know what they do for work. I think that’s true for those in the veterinary world. There are the standard clues: they’re covered […]

Is It Wrong to Be Horny?

Goats have horns. That’s something I always took for granted. I grew up seeing goats on mountaintops throughout my childhood in Austria, and every one of them had horns. But […]

Expect to Lose Your Rose-Tinted Glasses

Following along with Jupiter’s backwards dance from Pisces into Aquarius — an invitation to reel everything in and check for consistency en route to our goals — blue planet Neptune […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, June 29 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

The Knee Bone’s Connected

A lot of people complain about their knees. Some of the things that go wrong with this joint — the largest one in your body and one of the most […]

Select Board Sees Red

Provincetown will continue remote access to meetings, even though many meetings are now being held in person. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch for further instructions. […]

Voters Like Old Ballot Box

Truro is transitioning to in-person meetings, but remote access to all meetings continues. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch for further instructions. Tuesday, July […]

Independent Is ‘Paper of Record’

Wellfleet’s meetings are still being held remotely. From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in […]

Fireworks and Wildlife

Meetings are being held in person. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about meeting locations and any remote options that may be […]

For Josephine Halvorson, It’s All in the Details

A torn newspaper lies among fallen leaves. Tender weeds sprout inside the imprint of a coiled garden hose. “As a painter, there is no patch of ground that is uninteresting […]

A Walk Through ‘Hawthorne, Hofmann, and Hopper’

It’s convenient that three of the most influential artists in Provincetown history share the same initial. It makes for a catchy exhibition name. It’s also convenient that the Provincetown Art […]

Keeping Time With Antonia DaSilva

“People have this desire to control time, to record time,” says the Orleans painter and printmaker Antonia DaSilva. “For centuries, humans have tried to figure out time, but we can’t […]

Opening Up With Anne Peretz

“I knew I had to write this book because I’m the only one who knows the story from beginning to end,” says Anne Peretz from her Truro home. The book […]

Varla Jean Merman Gives Us a Chance to Breathe

The transition to a post-pandemic world happened at such breakneck speed that, to many, it didn’t feel like a transition at all. After spending 14 long months in quarantine, I […]

Summer Luncheon

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How Critical Race Theory Explains a Harvard Professor’s Error

In June 1935, Wellfleet summer resident Carleton Coons, a Harvard University professor and archeologist, helped supervise the excavation of Native American remains, stone weapons, and shell fragments in the Hemenway’s […]

Conservation

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Self-Editing

I was always taught that a good writer takes a complex topic and reduces it to its most essential elements. Working at the Independent, I’ve learned that a good editor […]

Letters, July 1, 2021

About Those CDC Data To the editor: Your June 10 Letter from the Editor [“The CDC’s Garbage Data”] could have benefited from more far-reaching explanatory and investigative journalism. Like all […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

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Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from June 21 to June 25, 2021. PROVINCETOWN June 21. Geoffrey Greenstein and Jeffrey Polson to Matthew Frigault and Joseph Parseghian. 39 […]

William ‘Billy’ Vannoy, 58, ‘Lived the Hell Out of Every Second’

William David “Billy” Vannoy died suddenly in West Hartford, Conn. on June 11, 2021. He was 58. A talented mechanic who trained in the U.S. Air Force in 1981 and […]

Mylan J. Costa, 86, Bank Manager and World Traveler

Mylan J. Costa, former owner of Provincetown’s Moors Restaurant and a longtime local bank officer and board member, died on June 18, 2021 at Cape Cod Hospital. He was 86 […]

Dancer and Teacher June Finch Is Dead at 81

June Finch, a celebrated member of the Merce Cunningham Dance Company with deep roots in Provincetown, died peacefully in New York City on June 18, 2021 after a short illness. […]

Classifieds July 1 – July 6, 2021

JOBS Bustling downtown P’town used bookstore seeks night clerk. Ability to lift 50 pounds required. Knowledge of literature a plus. You’ll be busy waiting on customers and shelving — high-energy […]

Juneteenth in Provincetown: Celebration and Education

PROVINCETOWN — Activists, vacationers, local residents, a handful of elementary school students, community elders, drag queens, religious leaders, business owners, and a few politicians gathered at the base of the […]

Leaders Issue Call to Action on Housing

PROVINCETOWN — State Sen. Julian Cyr and Cape Cod Chamber of Commerce CEO Wendy Northcross convened a panel of housing experts last week that focused on what individual towns can […]

Illegal Clearing in Seashore Halted by Town

WELLFLEET — Building Inspector Paul Fowler issued a cease-and-desist order at 420 Lecount Hollow Road on Tuesday, June 15 after reports of large-scale tree removal on the property in the […]

Voters Face 24% Budget Bump in Accounting Fiasco

WELLFLEET — Heading into the annual town meeting this Saturday, June 26, there is still a lot that town officials say they do not know, including exactly what the tax […]

T-Time Survey: Big on Recreation. The Economy? Not So Much.

EASTHAM — People in Eastham are enthusiastic about using the town-owned 11-acre T-Time property at 4790 Route 6 for recreation or a community center. According to the results of a […]

Provincetown’s Recreation Program Is Ready for Summer Fun

Last summer, organized recreational opportunities were scarce on the Outer Cape. Children didn’t have the daily social experiences with their friends at summer rec, and working parents scrambled to find […]

Lawsuits Stall Habitat Houses in Wellfleet and Truro

Habitat for Humanity of Cape Cod, whose efforts are generally welcomed by communities, has been embroiled in court battles for the last several years over plans to build four affordable […]

How Provincetown Became a Place That Welcomes All

PROVINCETOWN — On the eve of Portuguese Festival weekend, this year again severely curtailed because of the pandemic, a question that is central to Provincetown’s identity as a welcoming place […]

In Eastham, a Place for Give and Take Reopens

EASTHAM — The Swap Shop, regulars will tell you, offers much more than the junk within its walls. For one shopper, it’s a chance to find a “hidden treasure.” Another […]

Summer Baseball Returns to the Cape

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Emerging for a Summer of Reporting

The Independent is hosting four young journalists in its summer fellowship program this year. We asked them to introduce themselves by describing their experiences of emerging from the pandemic into […]

Local Opposition Kills Bike Path Link to Rt. 6

WELLFLEET — The state Dept. of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) will not extend the Cape Cod Rail Trail all the way to Route 6, at least not for the next […]

Firebirds Win 8-1 on Opening Day

ORLEANS — A total of 10,808 fans watched Cape League baseball’s opening day games on Sunday, June 20. That’s more than double the 2019 opening day total of 4,828 fans. […]

For Collectors, There Are No Rules About What Brings Joy

PROVINCETOWN — Tiny bottles, dried flowers, and pipe stems. Embroidered handkerchiefs, Pez dispensers, or art exclusively representing snails — the potential collections built from digging in thrift stores, scouring the […]

HPC Finds Unprecedented Housing Insecurity

PROVINCETOWN — As eighth-grader CJ Reid marched down Commercial Street through the West End of Provincetown, he explained his view of the root cause of homelessness on the Cape: housing […]

Day Boat Scallop Ceviche for Summer

Chris Merl’s life on the water started over 30 years ago, first diving for oysters, then farming them. Along the way, after learning the ropes from others, he segued into […]

Happy Father’s Day

Give up? Here’s the solution to the crossword puzzle, “Happy Father’s Day,” by Sophia Maymudes: This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.

The Trouble With the Bass Rules: Throwbacks Don’t Survive

Bass fishing exploded in our area this week. And the big fish have arrived. Capt. Nico Pace of the Cape Tip’n, Capt. Russ Zawaduk of the Lisa Z, Capt. Rich […]

Thomas Pitches Shutout in Warriors’ Playoff Win

EASTHAM — Senior Kurt Thomas has been pitching gems all season long for the undefeated Nauset High School baseball team. Monday’s playoff game against the Somerset-Berkley Raiders was no different. […]

Jupiter Is Retrograde in Mystical Pisces

As you were dancing around a sacred solstice bonfire with far-out friends and midnight familiars, Jupiter stalled momentarily in the sky. Then, it went retrograde in Pisces, where it has […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, June 22 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Welcome, Oso

Oso Nikomo Portnoy-Kim was born on April 25, 2021 at the BirthPlace at Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital in Plymouth to Eben Portnoy of Wellfleet and Shirley Kim-Ryu of Seoul and […]

Helen Miranda Wilson Is Not Worried

WELLFLEET — Helen Miranda Wilson, who has been a select board member for nine years, says the town’s current financial crisis and leadership vacuum does not worry her too much. […]

The Continuity Candidate Who’s Not on the Ballot

WELLFLEET — Ask her why she deserves another term on the Wellfleet Select Board and Justina Carlson preaches continuity. “I don’t think it’s time to switch horses in midstream,” she […]

John Wolf Says He Will Do His Homework

WELLFLEET — John Wolf pulls up to the Flying Fish in a massive Mercedes work van, fitted with disproportionately small magnetic campaign signs and a license plate that reads TRBONE […]

Are We Having Fun Yet?

Provincetown will continue remote access to meetings, even though many meetings are now being held in person. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch for further instructions. […]

Town Meeting Tune Up, Election Reminder

Truro is transitioning to in-person meetings, but remote access to all meetings (except town meeting) continues. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch for further instructions. Thursday, […]

Domicile Exception Approved

Meetings are held remotely. From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its […]

See How Their Gardens Grow

Meetings are being held in person. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to learn about meeting locations and any remote options that may be […]

Phyllis Ewen’s ‘Sonata’ for Troubled Times

When the world went into lockdown, Phyllis Ewen doubled down. She started a series of daily drawings on graph paper — a visual diary in response to the crisis. Taken […]

A New Foundation Takes Art to the Streets

Romolo Del Deo had an idea. In a town rich in art and art history, he thought that what Provincetown needed was even more art. Public art, to be exact. […]

My Own Private Stonewall

I’ve always best expressed my personal take on life through the movies I’ve watched — a quirk of memory rooted in my media-obsessed consciousness. For example, there’s a scene in […]

A Descending Spiral of Violence and Injustice

It’s uncomfortable to feel entertained at the expense of those sentenced to death. It is less uncomfortable when most of this entertainment is at the expense of police, prosecuting attorneys, […]

Dispatches From a Teacher’s Year

LISA BROWN / EDUCATOR / WELLFLEET When schools went largely online this year, teachers were faced with a daunting challenge: how to reach and connect with their students sitting at […]

Juneteenth in Provincetown

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Going Out Again

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Blessing the Fleet

The things we celebrate reveal a great deal about us: who we are or who we would like to be. This weekend is the Portuguese Festival and the Blessing of […]

Alloparenting and Survival

Surrounded by juveniles, that’s what we are. Whether it’s the ruffled chickadee balancing on the railing or the catbird that can’t stop singing. One of the thrilling things at this […]

Drama on the School Field

We have not one but two of our annual town meetings happening this Saturday, in Wellfleet and Truro, so fans of pure democracy will have to choose which one to […]

Letters, June 24, 2021

Don’t ‘Go Paperless’ To the editor: In the midst of the confusion caused by the Covid virus and Wellfleet’s financial muddle, someone in town government forgot to notice that the […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats. This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from June 14 to June 18, 2021. PROVINCETOWN June 14. The Estate of Amelia C. Silva (Kenneth J. Silva and Eleanor J. […]

Davina Parmet Memorial Saturday

A memorial for Davina Parmet, who died on March 25, 2021 at the age of 62 after a 10-year battle with lung cancer, will be held on Saturday, June 26 […]

Linda Coes, 75, Made Faces Light Up

Linda Leah (Chesler) Coes died on May 5, 2021 at the McCarthy Care Center in Harwich after a brief illness. She was 75. The daughter of Daniel and Florence Chesler, […]

Phyllis Patrick, 80, of Provincetown

Phyllis Mary Patrick, a longtime Provincetown resident, died peacefully on May 17, 2021 at the Regal Care Nursing Home in Harwich. She was 80. Born on July 3, 1940 and […]

Classifieds June 24 – June 30, 2021

LOST & FOUND Lost: Hand carved pine walking stick, with unique woven string handle. Great sentimental value. Left behind at Wiley Park, Eastham on Feb. 24, 2021. Please call 508-776-4450. […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from June 7 to June 11, 2021 PROVINCETOWN June 7. Michele Long and Margaret A. Keenan to Roberto D’Amore. 5-7 Washington Ave., […]

Goats Eschew Poison Ivy Duty for the Lure of Provincetown

PROVINCETOWN — A vegetation management project in Provincetown resulted in a community goat herding effort last Friday night, June 11. This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign […]

Town Meeting Endorses $3M Plaza Deal

EASTHAM — After a rain delay of one hour, Saturday’s annual town meeting overwhelmingly approved spending $3,080,000 to acquire the Town Center Plaza in North Eastham. The vote was 293 […]

After 20 Years, 8 Units May Be Built in Wellfleet

WELLFLEET — A court fight that has derailed the building of eight affordable rental units on Paine Hollow Road appears to be on the verge of resolution. Lawyers for the […]

On Being Inside a Whale: ‘I Didn’t Believe It at First, Either’

PROVINCETOWN — Mike Packard’s experience inside a humpback whale last week is the story that had everything: charismatic heroes, an adventurous setting, an enormous animal co-lead, a happy ending — […]

Walking Carnival Parade Nixed for This August

PROVINCETOWN — The theme for the 43rd Carnival parade, “Somewhere Over the Rainbow,” was supposed to evoke a return to the good life after the long pandemic. But the select […]

Putting Students Back Together Again

“It has been a unique and very difficult year for students,” admits Alison McLeod, the adjustment counselor at Nauset Regional High School in Eastham. “However, I would describe the graduating senior […]

At Flag Day Event, Trump Flags Outwave Stars and Stripes

EASTHAM — Two groups convened at the Windmill Green here on Monday, June 14. The larger crowd, some 30 people arrayed along Route 6, said they were members of the […]

Scenes From Graduation 2021

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A Time for Portraits of Togetherness

Amy Kandall teaches ceramics and painting at Nauset Regional High School. Last year, during the first months of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Provincetown Independent asked her to create an illustration […]

Step Inside Alex Brewer’s Magical ‘Dunegrass Tavern’

The musician and carpenter Alex Brewer has deep family roots in Wellfleet. His great-great-grandmother was Ada Freeman, daughter of Capt. Richard Rich Freeman, the first president of Wellfleet’s Mercantile Wharf. […]

Lilacs Tell a Story

In a recent conversation with a friend, the subject of lilacs growing in the wild came up. My friend had been on a walk in the woods of Wellfleet when […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, June 15 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Sailboat Race Series Begins June 26

PROVINCETOWN — There may be some tacking duels in Provincetown Harbor this summer. That’s when two or more sailboats are moving side to side, jostling for position toward the end […]

Bluefish, Bass, and Flounder Fishing Improves in the Bay

Fishing is heating up, with bluefish showing up in the bay and keeper-size striped bass being caught more and more. In the last week, striped bass keepers were taken off […]

Nauset Baseball Finishes Undefeated

EASTHAM — Nauset Regional High School’s baseball team finished its regular season with a perfect 12-0 record after a 5-1 victory over the Dennis-Yarmouth Dolphins on Monday. The team captured […]

Cold Carrot Soup for Don’t-Turn-on-the-Oven Days

For a moment, let’s reflect on what a lucky feeling it is to find yourself in a cookout rut. It means you have been able to get yourself good food, […]

Sal’s Beach Seats Get Reprieve

As of press time, Gov. Baker had not yet signed a law that would allow remote meetings to continue beyond June 15. However, town policy does allow for a remote […]

Truro to Offer Hybrid Meetings

Truro is transitioning to in-person meetings. A town remote policy allows for a remote option alongside the return to in-person meetings. Go to truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you […]

Take It From a Rainy Day

Meetings are held remotely, in hopes Gov. Baker will sign a law allowing that to continue. Wellfleet’s select board has not yet set a remote meetings policy. From the wellfleet-ma.gov […]

Easement Down the Road

Meetings are being held in person again. However, a town policy allows a remote option alongside the return to in-person meetings. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you’re […]

The Art of Adam O’Day Is Totally Bonkers

A vintage trailer is parked on a gigantic boulder that emerges out of a murky pond. Balanced on top is a small tugboat inhabited by a tentacled monster. A European […]

Richard Linklater Is Quite Comfortable on the Edge

For filmmakers honored by the Provincetown International Film Festival, John Waters is a dream date. Waters was dubbed Filmmaker on the Edge at the festival’s debut, in 1999, and he’s […]

Gaston Lacombe Comes Full Circle

Walking into Gaston Lacombe’s studio in Whaler’s Wharf feels like stepping into a rainbow. Brightly colored works hang on every wall, competing for attention. Many juxtapose black-and-white photography with incandescent […]

The Outer Cape’s Local Filmmakers Are a Fest Highlight

This year’s “hybrid” Provincetown International Film Festival — both live and virtual — marks the return of the annual event’s extraordinary bounty. There’s a rich collection of narrative and documentary […]

Lobsterman Roll

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Juneteenth: A True Story

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Grave Thoughts

The weather was strange that March day I first visited my future grave. The morning was clear and balmy, but by afternoon the sky had turned steel gray, and, as […]

Joy Riding Into the Future

I was a little taken aback this week when I read Dennis Minsky’s column about picking a grave site. He’s right, of course, about taking care of these things ourselves […]

Letters, June 17, 2021

The Facts on Pond Village Water To the editor: Since 2019, the Provincetown Independent has repeatedly misrepresented the facts on water quality in Truro’s Pond Village. In December 2019, it […]

Classifieds June 17 – June 23, 2021

FOR RENT Summer weekly rental in Provincetown. Waterfront efficiency/studio cottage, includes parking, deck, laundry onsite, near everything. Leave message at 860-739-8227. [7-1] HOUSING WANTED Housing sought. Rental/long-term lease or sale; […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

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Arthur ‘Butch’ Lisenby, 63, Managed Provincetown Airport

Arthur William “Butch” Lisenby died on May 10, 2021 at Liberty Commons, Chatham after a long illness. He was 63. Born on Sept. 20, 1957 in Hyannis, the fourth son […]

Birgitta Olson, 90, Was Wellfleet’s Committee Secretary

Birgitta V. Olson of Wellfleet died on April 30, 2021 at age 90. She was predeceased by her husband, Anders, and daughter Margret in 1956 and 1957. Born on Oct. […]

Frank J. Krkuc, 67

Frank J. Krkuc of Provincetown died at home on June 6, 2021. He was 67. Born in Johnstown, Pa., he was the son of the late Steve and Mary (Pavkovich) […]

George Flammer, 74

George Flammer, 74, died on May 24, 2021 in New Orleans, where he had relocated in 2005. He had previously lived in Provincetown for 25 years, working as a carpenter. […]

Bonnie McGhee Graveside Service Saturday

A graveside service for Bonnie Steele McGhee, a lifelong resident of Provincetown who died on Dec. 24, 2020, will be held on Saturday, June 19 at 10 a.m. in St. […]

Service for Phyllis Patrick Friday

A Funeral Mass will be celebrated for Phyllis Mary Patrick, who died on May 17, 2021, on Friday, June 18 at 10 a.m. at St. Peter the Apostle Church, 11 […]

The Ultimate Whale Tale

PROVINCETOWN — First of all, Mike Packard was not “gulped down” by a humpback whale, as the Boston Herald reported, nor was he “swallowed” by the whale, as the Cape […]

Surf Shops Ride Out the Slow Arrival of Gear

EASTHAM — At Nauset Light Beach, surfers show up in the early morning, chatting with each other as they paddle out into the surf. Riding the crests of the waves […]

Wastewater, Safety Needs Are Adding Up

WELLFLEET — Voters at the June 26 annual town meeting must prepare for a 53-article warrant that includes $3.3 million in Proposition 2½ overrides and debt exclusions. If all of […]

Town Center Plaza Price Set at $3.1 Million

EASTHAM — The select board has agreed to a purchase price of $2.8 million for the Town Center Plaza at 4550 Route 6, and will ask town meeting voters on […]

Three Key Town Boards May Be Chosen in New Way

TRURO — Three articles on the June 26 annual town meeting warrant, all submitted by citizens’ petition, call for changing the ways certain town board members are chosen. Each one […]

A Walk Down Commercial St. Reveals Current Conundrums

PROVINCETOWN — Kohi Coffee Co., at 199 Commercial St., set back from the sidewalk in a beachfront space, currently has a sign on its front door informing customers as they […]

Auditors Blame New Software and Staff Turnover

WELLFLEET — The adoption of new accounting software and the turnover of personnel were blamed by auditors this week as the causes of their finding a “material weakness” in the […]

‘Barracks’ Dormitory Proposal Could Get a Vote Thursday

PROVINCETOWN — The planning board will again consider Patrick Patrick’s seasonal worker dormitory proposal at its meeting on Thursday, June 10 and could offer a final clearance that would allow […]

This Summer, We’ll Be Feeling More Than Just the Heat

PROVINCETOWN — In the face of climate change and humans’ apparent inability to forestall what is becoming an increasingly irreversible disaster, drink water. Also, you’ll need to use more bug […]

Lynne Ready Packs Up Her Toolbox

TRURO — Lynne Ready says there is a sequence to teaching children how to use scissors. First, you must pick the right type of construction paper — not too floppy. […]

Welcome, Henry

Henry Frederick Waldo was born at 7:28 a.m. on May 1, 2021 at Cape Cod Hospital, weighing in at 5 pounds, 10 ounces and measuring 19 inches tall. His parents […]

Flag Day Is June 14

Gray Brown, left, and Jim Vesper prepare to raise the American flag in their Provincetown yard on June 8. When they do, it will fly above their Canadian and Pride […]

It’s Time to Put Out Your (Repurposed) Welcome Mat

“We are a family of repurposers,” says Alicia Morgan. That’s how she explains the accidental beginnings of their doormat business. Alicia had studied interior decorating and was working freelance in […]

Welcome Them With Ms. Nev’s Pimento Cheese

One advantage to being a gardener is that I don’t mind the rain. In fact, I spend most of the growing season in Truro worrying about drought and longing for […]

The One Day a Year When Golf Is Only a Game

WELLFLEET — Imagine playing a golf course backwards. Or using a putter to drive the ball off the tee. How about using a driver to putt the ball into the […]

The Bass Get a Bit Bigger

What a difference a week makes. We went from a November-like Memorial Day weekend storm to a blistering July-like heat wave. Fishing has improved somewhat. Striped bass are filtering in […]

Are You ‘Life Hacking’ or Living?

With the move to remote work for so many, the already tenuous lines separating work and life have pretty well dissolved. One result is a thriving productivity industry. It seems […]

Set Your Intentions by the Light of the Eclipse

There will be a partial solar eclipse tonight, June 10, which people in the northern reaches of planet Earth will have the thrill of seeing as a ring of fire […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, June 8 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

The Fates of Families

TRURO — The fog was thick on Monday night, April 19, 1852 — what sailors call “pea soup.” Gale winds blew from the east. At midnight, after making Cape Ann […]

Boat Owners Worry That Rock Harbor Parking Will Shrink

EASTHAM — Rock Harbor boat slip holders are asking if plans for the new harbormaster office will leave them and their guests high and dry with nowhere to park during […]

Two Women Charged With Assaulting Crown & Anchor Manager

PROVINCETOWN — Admittance at the Crown & Anchor’s May 30 evening show was by ticket or by reservation only, North Truro’s Keith Davis, an assistant manager who was working the […]

Car Hits Angel Foods

Due to the pandemic, meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, June 10 Planning Board, 6 p.m. Zoning Board of Appeals, 6 […]

Town Meeting Preview

Meetings are held remotely. Go to truro-ma.gov, click on the meeting you want to watch, and open its agenda for instructions on how to watch or take part online. Thursday, June 10 Climate […]

How to Be Hybrid

Meetings are held remotely. From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its […]

Select Board Reorganized

Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to read its agenda and find information on how to view and take part […]

Elise Kaufman Attempts the Impossible

“Memory and how we remember, what it looks like … it’s very elusive, very fleeting,” says the artist Elise Kaufman. “So much of what I think about is light and […]

Timothy DuWhite’s Message for the Hard to Love

What does it mean to be — as the poet, essayist, and playwright Timothy DuWhite puts it — “hard to love”? It’s being seen as “an impossible partner for people,” […]

Sarah Schulman’s Mesmerizing, Messy History of ACT UP

How do you tell the story of a movement without simply chronicling the lives of a few supposed leaders of that movement? Sarah Schulman tackles this question head-on in Let […]

A Cape-Shot Feature Launches the Provincetown Film Fest

“We all have loss,” says Paul Riccio, the director and co-writer of Give or Take, a new feature film shot here on Cape Cod — mostly in Orleans — that […]

The Weedy Garden

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Hope

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Turn Off

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Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

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Classifieds June 10 – June 16, 2021

FOR RENT Summer weekly rental in Provincetown. Waterfront efficiency/studio cottage, includes parking, deck, laundry onsite, near everything. Leave message at 860-739-8227. [7-1] Writing/art studio space. Good for small projects or […]

Juanita Macara, 97, Was Provincetown’s School Nurse

Juanita Rita (Michaud) Macara, retired nurse, World War II veteran, wife of the late Nobert N. Macara, mother of five, and grandmother of two, died peacefully at Cape Cod Hospital […]

Warren Roderick, 72, Reveled in Children and Tests of the Mind

Warren J Roderick, 72, of Truro died at his home on May 27, 2021. Born on Oct. 31, 1948 in Hyannis, he was the son of the late Warren and […]

Richard L. Haney, 75, Artist, Healer, and Friend

Richard L. Haney of Provincetown died peacefully in his home with his family by his side on June 2, 2021. He was the spouse of Edward Criscuolo. Born in Syracuse, […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from June 1 to June 4, 2021. PROVINCETOWN June 1. Paul O. Groipen to VanBergen-Stumpe LLC [Catherine Van Bergen, manager]. 11 Bradford […]

The CDC’s Garbage Data

An Independent reader who has been closely following news of the Covid-19 pandemic pointed out a strange fact some weeks ago: the federal Centers for Disease Control’s Covid Data Tracker […]

Letters, June 10, 2021

Buying the Plaza Is Smart To the editor: The Eastham T-Time Committee unanimously supports the purchase of 4550 State Highway, the Town Center Plaza, and urges Eastham residents to vote in […]

Pirates Move Out, Sharks Move In

PROVINCETOWN — Visitors to MacMillan Pier this summer are guaranteed a sighting of a great white shark — 12 feet long and with plenty of teeth. But the toothed creature […]

Eastham May Buy Town Center Plaza

EASTHAM — The final version of the annual town meeting warrant posted on May 28 has a surprising twist: voters at the June 12 meeting will be asked to authorize […]

The Complex Funding Behind Affordable Units

One of the reasons so few developers are interested in building affordable housing on the Outer Cape is the extreme complexity of funding such projects. Another reason: the profits are […]

Online Rental Scam Targets the Desperate

WELLFLEET — Gordon Kahn had spent an entire day searching online for an apartment for his daughter when he found a cute cottage on Craigslist. The 14 interior and exterior […]

Towns Pay Little to Develop Affordable Apartments

PROVINCETOWN — For Outer Cape communities that have been relentlessly squeezed by the housing crisis, producing new housing has been a primary policy response.In particular, affordable housing developments — […]

A Neighbor-to-Neighbor Rental Market Falls Short

PROVINCETOWN — Someone in the Facebook group “Provincetown: Housing for Rent” called finding housing here “an impossible dream.” The page is a trove of tales of housing plans that have […]

Truro, Down by 11 Employees, Faces Worker Shortage

TRURO — The town’s popular and affordable summer day camp will be able only to take children of Truro residents this year, the result of a failure to attract enough […]

Sherman Defeats Hastings in Brewster Vote

BREWSTER — Sarah Harlow Sherman won a one-year term on the Brewster School Committee in the May 25 town election by defeating Rheanna Hastings. The vote was 1,675 to 839. […]

Weekend Nor’easter Turns Waterfront Into Dead Zone

The Provincetown waterfront season certainly has gotten off to a less than auspicious start. We had a classic winter-like nor’easter for the holiday weekend. This one was in no hurry […]

Columnist Marguerite ‘Beata’ Cook, 96, Was Up-Front About Everything

PROVINCETOWN — The day before Beata Cook drew her last breath, her niece and caregiver asked her, “Auntie, are you getting ready to die?” To which Cook replied, “I don’t […]

A Sweet Celebration of Vanilla Cupcakes

Picture a plateful of little lemon and vanilla cakes, perfectly risen, and frosted with buttercream swirls strewn with sparkling sanding sugar. How can cupcakes not be the dessert of this […]

Vintage Clothing, Deconstructed, Acts Up With Style and Grace

Maureen Leavenworth takes a pantsuit (black with white lapels that puff up from the coat like unfurled scrolls) off a rack in her Orleans bridal shop and, using her hands, […]

Former Nauset Soccer Player Gets Hooked on a New Old Game

WELLFLEET — When she was at Nauset Regional High School, Allie Bezio didn’t pay much attention to lacrosse. Soccer was her game. Now finishing her sophomore year at Dean College […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, June 1 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Great White Realty and Zehnder Take Zoning Board to Court

WELLFLEET — The Great White Realty Group has filed suit in Mass. Land Court to overturn recent decisions by the zoning board of appeals that stopped the development of 1.3 […]

Running With Dogs

My friend Liberty Schilpp has progressed from taking short jogs to becoming a devoted runner. She started just last year, following a run/walk program I wrote about in these pages. […]

A Gemini Sun Means Scintillating Socializing

Happily heralding the impending season, the Sun’s transit through Gemini stimulates the social senses. Short trips and casual encounters — staples of Gemini’s spontaneous nature — ease us into post-pandemic […]

In View This Week

Wellfleet resident Walter Dorrell atop dune grasses at Race Point on May 19. (Photo Elizabeth Brooke) Fishermen at Pamet Harbor on Tuesday, June 1. (Photo Nancy Bloom) This page is […]

Girls Golf Team, 5-1, Gets Ready for League Tourney

Thursday, June 3 Coed sailing: The Nauset sailing team takes on Sandwich at Oakcrest Cove at 4 p.m. Friday, June 4 Softball: The Warriors host the Falmouth Clippers at 4 […]

A Skiff Is Lost — on Land — and Found

ORLEANS — Had he arrived at his own bench trial on time, May 20 might have marked the end of Kevin Berry’s two-year boat odyssey. But arrive on time Berry […]

Nauset High Graduation Set for Saturday

EASTHAM — Graduation will be held in person this year at Nauset Regional High School. The ceremony, scheduled for Saturday, June 5, will be held outdoors on campus at the […]

Should Pier Corp. Be Sunsetted?

Due to the pandemic, meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, June 3 Scholarship & Trust Administration, 2 p.m. Zoning Board of […]

The Library Is Open, but…

Meetings are held remotely. Go to truro-ma.gov, click on the meeting you want to watch, and open its agenda for instructions on how to watch or take part online. Thursday, June 3 Climate […]

A Grant License Moratorium

Meetings are held remotely. From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its […]

Open House at the Police Station

Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to read its agenda and find information on how to view and take part […]

Brian Vines Is Going In: This Time, to Provincetown

Brian Vines first learned to watch television — not just passively, but in an intellectually engaged way — from his grandmother who was blind. “I was her eyes,” he says. […]

From Brooklyn With Love

If thunder could sing, it would sound like Alexis P. Suter. The big-voiced blues belter from Brooklyn is a singer whose power and presence bring to mind Ma Rainey and […]

Songs That Embrace Imperfection

For this fourth installment of the Indie Playlist, contributors were asked to pick songs that are imperfect in some way. Perhaps they were recorded live. Or the singer’s voice breaks […]

Looking Back With Empathy

Much has been made of the Greatest Generation and World War II, mostly by Baby Boomers, looking back on the sacrifices of their parents. In the 1960s and ’70s, during […]

Waves

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A Day on the Wharf

Sometimes a day is more than a day. Sometimes the events and experiences of a single day transform it into something larger. I had such a day last week. First […]

The Funnel

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Dance Amnesia

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The Machine Guns on the Horizon

A well-worn definition of insanity is repeating the same mistake and expecting a different outcome. Seems like our Mass. Army National Guard never heard that one. They have lately resurrected […]

From Crisis to Disaster

“It’s the saddest thing,” said Jennifer Cabral to Paul Sullivan, our reporter working on a story about people looking for reasonably priced places to live. Cabral is the moderator of […]

Letters, June 3, 2021

High-Priced Movies To the editor: I was elated to see the recent email from the Provincetown Film Society with the roster of some of the most delightful movies of our time […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from May 24 to May 28, 2021. PROVINCETOWN May 26. Robert Canepa and Barry Murphy to Stephen M. Valocchi and Lazaros Papanikolaou. […]

Classifieds June 3 – June 9, 2021

FOR RENT Writing/art studio space. Good for small projects or as office space. For rent in a commercial building in Wellfleet. Space is 11 ft. x 10 ft.; heat and […]

Carmela Slattery Services June 8

A Funeral Mass for Carmela “Millie” Slattery will be celebrated at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, June 8 at St. Peter the Apostle Church in Provincetown. She died at age 90 […]

Frank Pantano Services June 18

A Funeral Mass will be celebrated for Frank J. Pantano at 10 a.m. on Friday, June 18 at St. Cecilia Roman Catholic Church, 18 Belvedere St., Boston. Relatives and friends […]

Mark Vincent, Wellfleet’s Longtime DPW Head, Is Dead at 67

Mark William Vincent of Eastham died peacefully at Cape Cod Hospital on May 27, 2021, surrounded by his family. He was 67. He had served Wellfleet as director of its […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

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Province Lands Bike Path

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Truro Adopts New Water Protection Rules

TRURO — The board of health approved a series of updated regulations on May 18 governing cesspools, septic systems, and well-water testing. The most significant change is that all cesspools […]

Who Builds Affordable Housing Here?

The list of developers expressing interest in a handful of affordable housing initiatives now in the works on Outer Cape Cod will likely be short. Taking on such a project […]

Hoort’s ‘Hands-Off’ Management Led to Financial Crisis

WELLFLEET — The problems with the town’s financial management, which two temporary accountants are now trying to untangle, began years ago and mushroomed during former Town Administrator Dan Hoort’s tenure. […]

Management Letter Finds Major Discrepancies in Accounts

WELLFLEET — While the town’s June 30, 2020 financial statements somehow passed muster, receiving what is known as an unqualified opinion in the independent auditor’s report from Powers & Sullivan […]

Wilson, Carlson, and Wolf Face Off in Wellfleet Select Board Race

WELLFLEET — When select board member Helen Miranda Wilson became the lone town resident to file election papers in April, she told the Independent that her unopposed status meant she’d […]

Joe Bones, Who Had a Million Stories, Is Gone

PROVINCETOWN — So, this is back in the early ’60s, down in Connecticut, in some kind of factory. A bunch of guys eat lunch every day at the same table. […]

Niggel Hits Roadblock in Storage Unit Review

EASTHAM — A new 4,800-square-foot storage unit building proposed by Barbara Niggel, the owner of Willy’s Gym, will be dropped from the project currently before the planning board after an […]

Chopper Young Can Take Care of Himself

WELLFLEET — Chopper Young is waiting on a fish. He’s knee-deep in Sally’s Bottom (from him, this guarantees a smirk), two poles planted, a headwind niggling his lines. Six feet […]

New Chapter in an Old Book

JODY MELANDER / EXPLORER & MAKER / TRURO In the ’80s, when Jody Melander arrived in Provincetown, it was love at first sight. But over the decades, P’town has changed. […]

The Civil War Memorial Reminds Us of Our Racist Past

I strolled through the Gifford section of the Provincetown Cemetery recently, reading the inscriptions on headstones I found intriguing. Many of the people named on those stones are not in […]

Lamb Chops and Artichokes on the Grill

There are some advantages to working in a vineyard. First, there’s the wine, though not until 5 p.m. Because I’m working. And, at this vineyard, there’s a food truck at […]

The Right Tools for the Job

TRURO — There are catalogs full of gardening toys to consider at this time of year. You can start to imagine that, if only you had the right apron, swivel-headed […]

Practice and Patience Pay Off for Nauset Baseball

EASTHAM — The Nauset High baseball team’s first game this season was on May 12, nearly two years since it last took the field in June 2019. “The kids are […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, May 25 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

By the Otherworldly Light of a Partial Eclipse

Over the winter, we’ve considered the Moon’s cataclysmic origins four billion years ago, its phases and visible surface features, and how it creates ocean tides. With a partial solar eclipse […]

A Puzzle: Huge Schools of Very Small Bass

Striped-bass fishing has gone from looking like it was going to develop earlier than usual to now looking like it will start a little later than usual. We are wondering […]

L’Optimisme Is in the Air

Baudelaire once famously counseled his readers on the need to enjoy life despite its pressures: “Whether it be with wine, poetry, or virtue — whatever suits you best, just get […]

Oceanfront Property

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Girls Track Is Unbeaten as Christopher Breaks 3 Records

Thursday, May 27 Girls golf: The Warriors take to the course against the Barnstable Red Hawks at the Hyannis Golf Club at 3:30 p.m. The team is 3-1 this season. […]

DeVasto Pleads for Broader ADU Bylaw

WELLFLEET — Select board chair Michael DeVasto told the planning board at its recent hearing on zoning bylaw changes that the need to allow more accessory dwelling units (ADUs) by […]

Preliminary Charges for Meth Possession in Provincetown

PROVINCETOWN — Dispatched to the Cumberland Farms parking lot on Monday morning to deal with a man asleep at the wheel of his car, Patrol Officer Jason Sullivan found Frederick […]

This Week In Provincetown

Due to the pandemic, meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, May 27 Planning Board, 6 p.m. Public Pier Corp. Board, 3 […]

This Week In Truro

Meetings are held remotely. Go to truro-ma.gov, click on the meeting you want to watch, and open its agenda for instructions on how to watch or take part online. Thursday, May 27 Climate […]

This Week In Wellfleet

Meetings are held remotely. From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its […]

This Week In Eastham

Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to read its agenda and find information on how to view and take part […]

Chanel Thervil Looks at How Creatives of Color Cope

“I believe that art is an important vehicle for discussion and reflection,” says the Haitian-American artist and educator Chanel Thervil. “My goal is to encourage people to think new thoughts, […]

There’s No Stopping Anne Stott

When actor and singer-songwriter Anne Stott first arrived in Provincetown in 2007, she wasn’t expecting to stay long. She had planned a four-month winter writing retreat as an escape from […]

Jay Critchley’s Banner Year

As Covid began its roller-coaster ride of infection in early 2020, causing panic, sickness, and death, much of the art world came to a halt. “I read one article after […]

Alison Bechdel Finds Enlightenment in Exercise

One of the pleasures of reading a memoir is witnessing a character make the same mistakes over and over again. Novels rarely leave room for this. By the last page, […]

Memorial Day Weekend Brings a Bonanza of Art

Memorial Day weekend is the unofficial start of summer and, with it, the gallery season. Opening Friday, May 28 at AMP Gallery is “these past few years,” a show of […]

Point of View

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My Little Sister, the Republican

My relationship with my sister, my only sibling, may have ended as a result of the Trump presidency. She was always a little strange. My parents thought it was due […]

Bare Faced

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Consensual Errors of Judgement

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They All Said Yes

A year ago, as we faced the lengthening shutdown and the disappearance of what we had thought would be our first big period of growth as a young newspaper, we […]

Letters, May 27, 2021

Something Missing To the editor: In the May 13 issue, on page A1, is an article about local fishermen who can’t afford housing in Wellfleet, thereby possibly imperiling their livelihood [“Select […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from May 17 to May 21, 2021. PROVINCETOWN May 17. Joseph D. Harris and Sandra C. Harris to Steven Joseph Zemo and […]

Classifieds May 27 – June 2, 2021

YARD & TAG SALES Yard sale. At 583 Commercial St., Provincetown, this Sat. 5/29 & Sun. 5/30. Starts 10 a.m. Antique & cottage furniture, antique artwork & frames, vintage fabrics & linens, […]

Joe ‘Bones’ Basine, 77, Knew ‘What It Means to Be Free’

Joseph Bogdan Basine Jr., the renowned Provincetown whale watch captain and musician known as “Joe Bones,” died suddenly at his home in Haiti on May 19, 2021 due to complications […]

Brian A. Reardon, 71, a Beautiful Voice at the Meeting House

Brian Andrew Reardon of Provincetown and Boston died unexpectedly of a heart attack at Cape Cod Hospital on May 18, 2021. He was 71. Brian was born in Quincy to […]

Kenneth Ferreira, 88, of Mr. Ken’s Barbershop

Kenneth E. Ferreira, 88, of Provincetown and Wellfleet died peacefully on May 22, 2021. He was a barber for 65 years, owning and operating Mr. Ken’s Barbershop at 64 Main […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

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Harriet Rubin, 83, Co-Founder of Blue Heron Gallery

Harriet Frances Rubin, 83, died on May 10, 2021 at her home in Seminole, Fla., with her love of 53 years, Del Filardi, by her side. The cause was multiple […]

A Life-Saving Beacon in the Fog of Politics

EASTHAM — The offshore waters of Outer Cape Cod, with their hidden sand bars, took so many vessels and lives that the stretch from Chatham to Provincetown came to be […]

Rental Tax Bonus Would Go to ‘Community Support’

EASTHAM — The select board has unanimously recommended Article 8 on the June 12 annual town meeting warrant, which would increase the short-term rental excise tax from 4 to 6 […]

Wellfleet Funds Not Certified by State Since 2018

WELLFLEET — The town’s “free cash” account has not been certified by the state Dept. of Revenue for the last three years. This is just one of the mind-bending problems […]

Critic of ‘Liberal Mob’ Recruits School Board Candidates

BREWSTER — Voters will have an array of school committee candidates to choose from at the May 25 town election, including one who wants to reduce the number of school-choice […]

Baker Ends Nearly All Pandemic-Related Restrictions

PROVINCETOWN — Citing a first-in-the-nation vaccine rollout and a plummeting count of Covid-19 cases, Gov. Charlie Baker moved the state’s “end of restrictions” date from the previously announced Aug. 1 […]

With Disclaimers, Select Board Signs Nauset Dredging Memo

EASTHAM — The select board voted on May 17 to sign the second memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Orleans on the Nauset Estuary Dredging Project, agreeing to continued coordination between […]

Brewster Voters Reject Move to Ditch School Choice

BREWSTER — The first of two citizen-petition articles seeking to reduce school choice enrollment in the Nauset Regional Schools was defeated by Brewster voters 144 to 75 at their May […]

Young Queer People Teach Their Teachers

EASTHAM — A weird and difficult and rarely-touched-upon part of being a young queer person is that, often, you have to take on the role of educator. Most obviously, there’s […]

Critical for Vaccine Production, Horseshoe Crabs Are Threatened

If you’ve gotten your Covid-19 vaccine, give a nod of thanks to the horseshoe crab (Limulus polyphemus). This animal is truly a “blue blood” — its blood contains copper instead […]

The Housing Crisis, Up Close and Personal

PROVINCETOWN — When Relish owner Frank Vasello opened his West End deli and bakery in 2001, attracting customers was his main concern. Now, it’s finding staff. The trouble, Vasello says, […]

155 Hours of Golf. 9,845 to Go.

There’s a so-called rule, popularized by Malcom Gladwell in his bestseller Outliers: The Story of Success, that it takes 10,000 hours of practice to become an expert at something. The […]

Nauset Baseball, Softball, Track Teams Are All Unbeaten

Thursday, May 20 Girls golf: The Warriors tee off against the Dennis-Yarmouth Dolphins at Blue Rock Golf Course in South Yarmouth at 3:30 p.m. The team is 3-1 so far […]

In Eastham, a Second-Amendment Session

EASTHAM — At the Nauset Rod and Gun Clubhouse in the Cape Cod National Seashore, Jon Green unhooked his mask, uncrossed his arms, and welcomed 18 women to what he […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, May 18 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Sorrow and Joy on Buttercup’s Birthing Day

Last summer our sweet Nigerian dwarf doe, Princess Buttercup, gave birth with remarkable ease, which is typical for her breed. I barely noticed that she was in labor before her […]

A Margarita That Stirs Memories

I’ve been thinking lately about the influence of the Southwest of the U.S. on my life. Having grown up in South Texas and spent tons of time in Southern Arizona, […]

Wellfleet’s First Pot Shop Doesn’t Look Like One

WELLFLEET — For the past month, since the Cape Cod Cannabis dispensary opened its doors at the old South Wellfleet General Store on April 20, Allan Kronfeld, the manager of […]

A New Season for Treasured Techniques and Tools

When Victor Powell handed her the reins of his 50-year-old Provincetown leather shop, Florence Mauclère felt “gratefulness and immense pride,” and, because the moment wasn’t one she’d actually anticipated, there […]

Fresh Air for Your Car

After a long winter, especially this one, it just feels right to air out your car. The weather warms up, you roll down your windows, people can hear you singing […]

Another OK for Old Reliable From Planning Board

Due to the pandemic, meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, May 20 Board of Health, 4 p.m. Zoning Board of […]

Fund Set Up for Patrolman Roda

Meetings are held remotely. Go to truro-ma.gov, click on the meeting you want to watch, and open its agenda for instructions on how to watch or take part online. Thursday, May 20 Housing […]

Books of Genesis

Meetings are held remotely. From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to learn how […]

Limited Parking at Nauset Light Beach

Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to read its agenda and find information on how to view and take part […]

The Cultural Memory of Deaf Spaces

When Jeffrey Yasuo Mansfield was eight years old, he “lost” his hearing aids — much to the chagrin of his parents. “They constantly buzzed whenever the batteries ran low,” he […]

Marga Vicedo Dismantles the Myth of the ‘Refrigerator Mother’

Teaching English to G.I.s returning to peacetime America after World War II, Clara Park wrote her mother of her frustration with Henry David Thoreau’s Walden. Her students, she noted, “had […]

Three Films That Alter Perceptions

It was a strange Academy Awards in 2021. Diversity was the most visible change in the world of Oscar glitz, but the pandemic, with its enforced social distancing and lack […]

We Call It Ink, but What Is the Stuff Squid Squirt?

“I already have plans.” I hear myself allow that particular evasive phrase to slip out more as the weather warms and the squidding season arrives. Especially when someone tries to […]

Get Lost, Get Lucky, and Stay Hopeful

Just when we were ready to resolve ourselves to an uncertain summer, the CDC’s announcement that fully vaccinated folks can look forward to a maskless future seems to have been […]

Common Touristicus Sighting

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Pollen Season

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Young Activists Want a Voice in Local Policymaking

A year of isolation and mask mandates has fostered a new appreciation for fresh air. Whether it’s to find peace and quiet or a place to safely reconnect with friends, […]

A Collective Maternity Leave

Sharing stories in a group of 15 friends and strangers on Mother’s Day revealed something to me about how we have been affected in different ways this past year. Let’s […]

Tax, Build, or Say Goodbye

In September 2000, I landed in Aspen as the first snow of the year dusted the Rockies and the Cape Cod Times was finishing a series on the Cape’s affordable […]

Letters, May 20, 2021

A Democracy Under Threat To the editor: Barbara Kennedy allowed, in her letter last week, that (1) “America is not a democracy but a republic,” and (2) that, whether you […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from May 10 to May 14, 2021. PROVINCETOWN May 10. Michael G. Powers and Judith M. Powers to Mikhail Glabets. 963 Commercial […]

Classifieds May 20 – May 26, 2021

YARD & TAG SALES Tag sale at Castle Hill. Stop by Castle Hill’s 10 Meetinghouse Rd. campus on Friday, May 21 to shop treasures of all kinds! Featuring homewares, artwork, furniture, […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats. This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.

Frances Weiner, 77, Never Left a Book Club Book Unfinished

Frances Frumin Weiner of West Hartford, Conn. and Truro died peacefully at home on May 9, 2021. The cause of death was pancreatic cancer. She was 77. Fran was born […]

Jean Rathgeber, 93, of the West End’s Seaside Deli

Jean Pauline Rathgeber of Jersey City, N.J. died peacefully in her sleep on May 12, 2021 at the Center of Hope Hospice House in Elizabeth, N.J. She was 93. The […]

Wellfleet Select Board to Hear Change in Residence Rule

WELLFLEET — For seven weeks, a proposed exception to the Wellfleet Shellfish Regulations’ domicile requirement has pinballed from the shellfish advisory board (SAB) to the select board and back. But […]

Rock Harbor Fight Goes On in Eastham

EASTHAM — The arguments over where to locate the new harbormaster building at Rock Harbor remain unresolved. After asking the planning board for its advice, the Rock Harbor Improvements Committee […]

3 Towns Consider Raising Short-Term Rental Tax Rate

Town meeting voters this spring in Truro, Wellfleet, and Eastham will be asked to raise the short-term rental tax rate from 4 to 6 percent, to maximize what state law […]

New Plan for Old Reliable Wins ZBA Approval Again

PROVINCETOWN — The zoning board of appeals has approved both special permits and a height variance needed for a major mixed-use development on the former Old Reliable Fish House property, […]

Sandberg Wins 3-Way Race for Provincetown Select Board

PROVINCETOWN — There were only one race for town office and five questions on the annual election ballot this year, but 1,354 people turned out to vote in one of […]

The Missing Summer Workforce, by the Numbers

PROVINCETOWN — Every spring, the Outer Cape’s population, and payrolls, swell, as about 5,000 people pick up seasonal jobs here, according to Cape Cod Commission data. Some of those 5,000 […]

Wellfleet Planners See Only Problems in ADU Petition

WELLFLEET — The planning board sees nothing but trouble if the town adopts a proposed bylaw allowing more accessory dwelling units, judging from its reaction at a May 5 public […]

At Home in Jay Critchley’s Cesspool

PROVINCETOWN — In 1997, Jay Critchley uncovered a backyard manhole, peered into a cesspool, and “discovered a new world.” He had always known about his property’s cesspit, a pre-Title 5 […]

Bonsai Brings Untamable Nature Close

My introduction to bonsai was an encounter with a collection of straggly little junipers in pots in a friend’s yard. The plants were root-bound and malnourished, and they had taken […]

A Short Course on Dorsal Fins

We’re getting closer to our local waters being invaded by striped bass. An abundance of 20-to-24-inch bass have been in and around the Race, being caught on SP Swimmers, yellow […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, May 11 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Pickleball Players Bring Their Passion, and Their Nets

PROVINCETOWN — The Outer Cape community likes its own local vibe. But some out-of-town trends might be healthy ones. Case in point: pickleball. The sport, which is a mix of […]

A Cook’s Conversion to the Side of Radishes

Radishes used to bug me. Why were these harsh bitter discs arbitrarily added to my salad? What was the point of carving them into “roses” that would only be left […]

With the Sun in Taurus, a Piña Colada

With the Sun and Uranus both in Taurus, you may be feeling the need to escape from the same old routine. No need to take out a personal ad, however. […]

The Post-Pandemic Classifieds

Provincetown: Six Williams-Sonoma loaf pans, gently used; one 50-lb. bag of Sir Galahad Artisan Flour; and a 32-oz. bottle of commercial-grade vanilla extract. All items available for $35. Buyer may […]

Whose Pose Is It Anyway?

Have you ever been in a yoga class and thought to yourself, “I don’t look like the teacher or the person next to me — I must be doing this […]

Walk-In Vaccine Clinics Now Available

PROVINCETOWN — Good news for the technologically challenged and the bad-at-planning: three vaccination sites on the Outer Cape are now offering the Covid-19 vaccine to walk-in patients. All you need […]

In View This Week

Wellfleet’s Main Street. (Photo Marnie Crawford Samuelson) On Commercial Street, May 8, 2021. (Photo Nancy Bloom) This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.

Spring Sports Are Back

Nauset Regional High School spring sports teams are taking to the field, track, course, and water for the first time since 2019 after the 2020 spring season was lost due […]

Kicking Off the Crime Season, an Alleyway Armed Robbery

PROVINCETOWN — Police Sgt. Kevan Spoor and Patrol Officer Michael McCauley went searching for a wanted man — Richard Neal II, 35, of Montana — on the morning of May […]

This Week In Provincetown

Due to the pandemic, meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, May 13 Water & Sewer Board, 2 p.m. Bicycle Committee, 2 […]

This Week In Truro

Meetings are held remotely. Go to truro-ma.gov, click on the meeting you want to watch, and open its agenda for instructions on how to watch or take part online. Thursday, May 13 Climate […]

This Week In Wellfleet

Meetings are held remotely. From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its […]

This Week In Eastham

Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to read its agenda and find information on how to view and take part […]

‘Hybrid’ Provincetown Film Fest to Honor Linklater

Closed since the Covid lockdown in March 2020, the Waters Edge Cinema in Provincetown is finally reopening. The reason: the 2021 Provincetown International Film Festival (PIFF), which will be running […]

The Tarnished Legacy of the Sacklers

“I like a well-turned story,” says Patrick Radden Keefe. “I try to write stories that are engaging, the kinds of stories that you might not have an interest in at […]

Dani ReStack Finds a Berth in Provincetown for Lesbian Art

“The world is so based in capitalism now,” says artist Dani ReStack, speaking from Columbus, Ohio, where she lives with her wife, photographer Sheilah ReStack. “I think we need to […]

Understanding The Man Who Ate Too Much

About a month ago, my husband Christopher and I were invited to dinner at my in-laws — our first dinner party since the world fell apart last year. While enjoying […]

Pot Town

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Going Back to Work

It’s spring, and the town comes more alive, with increasing numbers of visitors arriving. Perhaps, like me, you are coming out of the cloistered, monkish existence of the past six […]

Dog’s Life

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The Flawed Governance of the Herring River Restoration

An article in the April 22 Independent reminded us that the Herring River Restoration Project has progressed to the phase of seeking state and federal approval. The project’s nearly completed […]

The Cost of Misplaced Caution

“What the hell is going on in Wellfleet?” is what we’ve heard in recent weeks from various readers. It’s a good question. We’ve tried to look into the town’s financial […]

Letters, May 13, 2021

‘America Is Not a Democracy’ To the editor: In a letter published in the Independent on Jan. 21, Mr. David Bernstein wrote that he will “never again” eat at Arnold’s […]

Joan Roderick Service Friday

A Funeral Mass for Joan M. Roderick of Provincetown, who died on Dec. 9, 2020 at Seashore Pointe Wellness Center, will be celebrated at 10 a.m. on Friday, May 14 […]

Pamela Ann Hurley, 70, a Trusted Counselor

Pamela Ann Hurley, 70, of Truro and Berlin, Mass. died peacefully at home on April 30, 2021, surrounded by loving family and friends. Pam was born in Marlborough, the daughter […]

Classifieds May 13 – May 19, 2021

JOBS THE red INN is looking to hire: Housekeeper/laundry attendant, front desk agent, line cooks and bussers. May through October, good pay, exciting work environment. Some experience required. Apply to [email protected] […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from May 3 to May 7, 2021. PROVINCETOWN May 5. Stephen K. Channell and William J. Poirier to Jason Loder and Kevin […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats

Robert Menengas Service Friday

A service for longtime Wellfleet resident Robert “Bobby” Menengas will be held at 10 a.m. on Friday, May 7 at the Grace Chapel, Assembly of God, 25 Lieutenant Island Road […]

Eastham and Orleans Officials Will Meet on Estuary Dredging

EASTHAM — The select board stopped short of withdrawing its support for the Nauset Estuary dredging project at its May 3 meeting, voting instead to meet for discussions with Orleans […]

Truro School Board Votes to Add Pre-K Places

TRURO — The school committee on April 29 approved a plan to expand the town’s free preschool program so that it can accommodate all the three- and four-year-old children of […]

Smooth Sailing for Another Provincetown Town Meeting

PROVINCETOWN — Provincetown’s second outdoor, Covid-safe town meeting was held on Saturday, May 1 and it was relatively uncontentious, with nearly every article passing by large margins. Articles that added […]

Nauset’s Interim Superintendent Brings a ‘Tapestry of Experience’

About 1,000 miles separate Ontario, Canada, where Brooke Clenchy was born and raised, from the Outer Cape, where she will soon become the Nauset Regional School District’s interim superintendent. And […]

Wellfleet Taps Sumner as Interim Town Administrator

WELLFLEET — In three days last week, the select board held three meetings during which they delayed town meeting by three weeks, reviewed warrant articles, and decided to offer the […]

Pier Corp. Controversy Goes On as McKinsey’s Role Changes Again

PROVINCETOWN — Criticism of the board of the Provincetown Public Pier Corp., which led to an unsuccessful bid to dissolve the corporation at Saturday’s annual town meeting, grew intense in […]

And Then There Were Three: Another P’town Pot Shop Opens

PROVINCETOWN — Hennep opened its doors at 246 Commercial St. on Monday, May 3, becoming the third retail marijuana shop in Provincetown. Owner Andrew Koudijs decided to go into the […]

Sylvan Lane Land Owner Sues Neighbors Over Access

TRURO — The owner of property at the top of Sylvan Lane has sued her neighbors in Land Court to settle once and for all her right to use a long […]

Flower Power Is What People Need

“My mom is a lover of plants,” says Sophie Yingling. Her own proclivity for floral design was born, she’s sure, in the “room full of plants and sunshine” her mother […]

Right Whale Plankton Banquet Keeps Lobstering on Hold

This past week’s cooler weather has slowed down the striped bass migration a bit, as water temperatures have remained steady in the mid-40s, short of that 50-degree mark we need […]

Making It Back to Mosca’s

As soon as we cross the Huey Long Bridge, I begin to scan for the rambling white clapboard building — some call it a shack — that houses Mosca’s. I’m […]

To Lose Pandemic Pounds, Aim to Gain Strength

If you gained weight last year, you’re not alone. Studies show that, in America, more than half of us put on unwanted pounds. Chalk it up to a combination of […]

Batter Up! Cape Cod Baseball Is Back

The Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL) released a two-word statement on April 22 that had local sports fans excited. It read, “We’re back.” The league is returning to action this […]

Birthing Suite

Princess Buttercup, here in her birthing suite, is in good company, in spite of being separated by a fence from the other goats. Goldie Hen has stayed close by her […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, May 4 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

As Humans Venture Out, Pets Are Left With Separation Anxiety

Very slowly, our routines are becoming different from what they’ve been throughout this past year. We’re vaccinated, the summer season is approaching, and many of us are anticipating venturing out […]

This Week In Provincetown

Due to the pandemic, meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, May 6 Zoning Board of Appeals, 6 p.m. Monday, May 10 […]

This Week In Truro

Meetings are held remotely. Go to truro-ma.gov, click on the meeting you want to watch, and open its agenda for instructions on how to watch or take part online. Thursday, May 6 Climate […]

This Week In Wellfleet

Meetings are held remotely. From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its […]

This Week In Eastham

Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to read its agenda and find information on how to view and take part […]

Karl Stevens Turns His Penny Strip Into a Graphic Memoir

Most anyone who spends time with a cat will ask what goes on behind the impenetrable stare of its almond-shaped eyes. The Boston-based comic artist and painter Karl Stevens posits […]

Aziz Isham Leads Twenty Summers Into the Future

When the lockdown hit in March 2020, Twenty Summers, the popular program of talks, concerts, workshops, and artist residencies based at the historic Hawthorne Barn at the end of Miller […]

The Enchanting Art of Bunny Pearlman

Just inside the front door of Bunny Pearlman’s Provincetown apartment are stacks of small square fresco panels that she has been assembling in preparation for “The Last Leopard — Avoiding […]

As Live Performers Return, Covid Turns Venues Inside Out

The problem, as most producers of live entertainment will tell you, is planning. Though everyone is expecting indoor entertainment to return to the Outer Cape in the next few months, […]

Maxwell Keller Is New Indie Arts Editor

Saskia Maxwell Keller will succeed Howard Karren as arts editor of the Provincetown Independent, beginning with the issue of May 13, Publisher Teresa Parker announced this week. Karren is retiring […]

Outdoor Dining

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We Need a Stronger, More Integrated Public Health System

The daily Covid updates from the Barnstable County Health and Environment Dept. epidemiologist Vaira Harik continue to trend very favorably, with a few exceptions, and give us a genuine basis […]

Secret Garden

Viscosity etching by Linda Dujack. This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.

Sun in Patient Taurus

Taurus season is, on its own, a time for the slow and steady approach to life’s curious quandaries. Instead of rushing headlong like Aries, Taurus takes a step back and […]

Remembering Chuck Strum

Our friend Merrill sent us a kind note the other day about the things she enjoys in the Independent, including the obituaries. I’ve already written about why people shouldn’t have […]

Letters, May 6, 2021

The Case of the Canteen To the editor: I don’t know Rob Anderson or Loic Rossignon. I have eaten at Canteen, but they would not recognize me as a regular. What is […]

Mary Feeley, 71, Director of Hutson Gallery

Mary Therese Feeley, who ran the Hutson Gallery in Provincetown, died on April 29, 2021 in Houston, Texas, at age 71. She had suffered a stroke in late March. Mary […]

Phyllis Schlosberg, Former Owner of Post Office Café, Dies at 81

Phyllis Elaine Schlosberg, of Provincetown and New York City, a larger-than-life figure who gave many young performers their start, died on April 21, 2021. She was 81. Phyllis was born […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats

Classifieds May 6 – May 12, 2021

JOBS THE red INN is looking to hire: Housekeeper/laundry attendant, front desk agent, line cooks and bussers. May through October, good pay, exciting work environment. Some experience required. Apply to [email protected] […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from April 26 to April 30, 2021. PROVINCETOWN April 26. Terence J. O’Loughlin to Joshua Brock Butts. 29 Conant St., Unit 3. […]

Lobstermen Fish for ‘Ghost Gear’

PROVINCETOWN — Throughout April, a few hardy fishermen have been departing from MacMillan Pier most mornings not to haul in a bounty of fish but instead to haul in lost […]

Planning Board Pushes Back on Harbormaster Office Site

EASTHAM — Responding to the planning board’s advice that the site of the proposed harbormaster building at Rock Harbor ought to be moved closer to the water, Town Administrator Jacqui […]

Broadbent Out; Town Meeting Put Off 3 Weeks

WELLFLEET — It’s been a stunning week at town hall following the sudden departures of both the town administrator and town accountant on April 23, while next year’s budget remains […]

Covid Bumps for Juniors on College Hunt

EASTHAM — Twins Anders and Ella Grimm are, like many other juniors at Nauset Regional High School, just beginning the college admissions process — and they’re doing it as the […]

Legislators Are Pushed to File Pilgrim Safety Bill

WELLFLEET — Candace Perry still has a sticker on her Subaru Forester that reads: “Pilgrim Blows: Bridges Close!” Perry first stuck it on her bumper when the Pilgrim Nuclear Power […]

Conservation Commission Fines Canteen Owners

PROVINCETOWN — The owners of the Canteen restaurant on Commercial Street had to pay $900 in fines and another $450, double the usual application fee, for putting in an underground propane […]

Provincetown Considers an Office of Diversity

PROVINCETOWN — Voters at Provincetown’s annual town meeting on Saturday will be deciding a question with little precedent on the Outer Cape. Article 13, brought forward by a group of […]

Adams Pleads Guilty in Child Pornography Case

BOSTON — A decade after he appeared in Orleans District Court for sexual conduct towards a teenaged boy, Kerry Adams, 61, of Provincetown pleaded guilty in federal court on April […]

Candidates Night Exposes Similarities and Tensions

PROVINCETOWN — The three candidates running for select board in the May 11 election named pathways to create more year-round housing and to push the long-delayed construction of a new […]

Keepers Reach Canal and South Coast

Striped bass continue to swim northward at an earlier than usual pace. Keeper-size bass have reportedly been caught at the Cape Cod Canal, on the south coast of Massachusetts, and […]

Tending the Bottom

MIKE REGO / LOBSTERMAN / PROVINCETOWN Mike Rego sees the handwriting on the wall for lobstering out of Provincetown in the not too distant future. But for now, he’s in […]

Can the Cape Cod Sea Camps Be Saved?

BREWSTER — Archery, sailing, water skiing, wind surfing, kayaking, riflery, soccer, lacrosse, and tennis, as well as ceramics, copper enameling, woodworking, cooking, and science workshops — the list of sports […]

Venus Returns as the Evening Star

After a long absence, Venus has returned as the brilliant Evening Star. It spent some time this winter toughing it out in the frigid predawn sky in its other guise […]

A Woodworker Softens Her Edges

A “born puzzler,” Anneliese King has always been drawn to design work that involves putting intricate pieces together. She loves the improvisational problem-solving nature of woodworking, she says. King has […]

Eggs for Dinner

The early morning APB comes by text from our friend Ingrid. A farm at nearby Ryder Beach has a surplus of fresh eggs and the farmer is offering them for […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, April 27 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Mars Is Moody in Cancer the Crab

Hold your horses, star gazers. Last week we had Venus aligning with both Uranus and Mercury while all three were making a hard angle to stern Saturn. To top it […]

Crossword #20 Solution

The solution to last week’s crossword puzzle, “All Wrapped Up,” by Sophia Maymudes. This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.

The Sun Has Set on the Land Bank, but Bounty Remains

PROVINCETOWN — Town meeting on Saturday will include requests to use some of the town’s remaining Cape Cod Land Bank funds to buy two small pieces of land for $300,000 […]

Bradford St. Condos Get OK From Planning Board

PROVINCETOWN — A condominium development that initially faced significant resistance from neighbors got the go-ahead at an April 22 planning board meeting. The board granted a special permit to Jay […]

This Week In Provincetown

Due to the pandemic, most meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. This week, however, there is one exception. The Provincetown Town Meeting […]

This Week In Truro

Meetings are held remotely. Go to truro-ma.gov, click on the meeting you want to watch, and open its agenda for instructions on how to watch or take part online. Thursday, April 29 Climate […]

This Week In Wellfleet

Meetings are held remotely. From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to find information […]

This Week In Eastham

Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to read its agenda and find information on how to view and take part […]

Painting in the Key of Blue, à la Judith Rothschild

Like Robert Motherwell, Judith Rothschild was a member of Provincetown’s legendary Long Point Gallery. She lived part of the year in Wellfleet and studied with the modernist masters Hans Hofmann […]

Reassuring the First-Time Gardener

Sometime in the last year, as one does in a pandemic, I began cleaning drawers. Among the items that I found were unopened packets of seeds. Columbines I’d bought when […]

What Is Truly Fearless About Taylor Swift

From the start of her career 15 years ago, when she was just a 17-year-old with a cascade of blond curls writing her own lyrics about the pitfalls of high […]

Night Surf Fishing

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Educating Global Citizens

EASTHAM — I moved from Puerto Rico to New York City as an infant. My parents, like so many others, had made the difficult decision to leave their homeland and […]

Storming D.C., 50 Years Ago

In early May 1971, a year after six unarmed student war protestors were shot and killed by the National Guard (four at Kent State University and two at Jackson State […]

Abuttered Up

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Righting the Township

At the April 13 meeting of the Wellfleet Select Board, after observing that Town Administrator Maria Broadbent’s summary of a financial audit was “very alarming,” the board’s chair, Michael DeVasto, […]

Letters, April 29, 2021

The Health of Nauset Estuary To the editor: I join Kait Logan and Harrison Swift, who wrote letters [March 25] expressing their significant concerns about the proposed dredging of the […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from April 20 to April 23, 2021. PROVINCETOWN April 21. Amy L. D’Allessandro to Anthony Lewis Brown and Jason Matthew Zellmer. 288B […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats

Classifieds April 29 – May 5, 2021

JOBS THE red INN is looking to hire: Housekeeper/laundry attendant, front desk agent, line cooks and bussers. May through October, good pay, exciting work environment. Some experience required. Apply to [email protected] […]

Thirsty Burlington Prepares for a Post-Covid World

“It sounds like I’m singing in the bathroom and you’re singing way over in the kitchen,” says Scott Townsend — better known as the drag queen and Cher impersonator Thirsty […]

Rock Harbor Plans Alarm Neighborhood

EASTHAM — Plans to build a harbormaster office at Rock Harbor were met with suspicion by abutters at the project’s first regulatory hearing before the conservation commission last week, as […]

Many Historic Buildings Have No Protection

To a large degree, historic buildings define the beauty and charm of the Outer Cape’s villages and scenic roads. Yet a Cape Cod Commission study found that 691 of the […]

Abutter Joins Lawsuit Against Cloverleaf

TRURO — Christine Maxwell says she should have been the first, not the last, to sign onto a lawsuit appealing the zoning board’s granting of a comprehensive permit for an […]

Golf Club to Get $6.7M for Herring River Project

WELLFLEET — The town and the Chequessett Yacht & Country Club have reached an agreement that will allow the Herring River Restoration Project, the largest wetland restoration in New England, […]

New Pot Shop Flouted Host Community Agreement

WELLFLEET — A new cannabis dispensary called Terps is expected to open next month at the intersection of Route 6 and Cove Road in the Cove Corner building, right next […]

Outer Cape Leads Mass. in Vaccination Rates

PROVINCETOWN — The state’s April 15 Covid vaccination report has great news for the Outer Cape. The top-line numbers show that the four outermost towns have among the highest Covid […]

Nauset Cheers On Through a Short Season

EASTHAM — Cheerleading helped Lara Rouillard fulfill a dream — it brought her back to Nauset Regional High School. Rouillard graduated from Nauset in 2009 — back then, she was […]

Two Summer Programs for LGBTQ Youth Make Plans to Resume

PROVINCETOWN — After last summer’s shutdowns and shifts, Camp Lightbulb and Summer of Sass are both coming back to town this summer. For both programs, the hope is to provide […]

Modern Business Can Co-Exist With History

WELLFLEET — Mac Hay was standing at the sushi bar in his restaurant, Mac’s Shack, on Duck Creek. In the quiet of a preseason day, he paused to run his […]

Building a Better Pot Pipe

When they released their first pipe, designers Jess Baer and Zach Hastings were surprised to find it was a controversial object. Two years ago, noticing marijuana’s progress toward legalization, they […]

What to Expect When Your Goat Is Expecting

At first, it can be hard to tell whether your doe — your female goat, that is — has gotten pregnant. For those new to animal husbandry: don’t expect a […]

The Wave as a Quasi-Religious Presence

I spent a good part of my late teens and early 20s traveling and surfing in Central America. I followed word-of-mouth suggestions on where to find the next good wave […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, April 20 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Striped Bass Are on the Way Early

Spring in New England has come upon us in its usual manic fashion, vacillating between howling, cold, damp nor’easters and beautiful, warm, summer-like days. But the trend this spring has […]

Butter Things Up, Herbaceously

The mental and emotional thaw after a long, hard winter is always a relief, though it isn’t without its intricacies. Mainly, it’s easy to get overwhelmed by so much possibility […]

With the Sun in Earthy Taurus, a Time to Stop and Smell the Flowers

In contrast to the nonstop rush of Aries, Taurus prioritizes taking pleasure while also working mindfully toward goals. Taurus, symbolized by the bull, is a sensual sign, both grounded and […]

All Wrapped Up

Need some answers? Just ask and we’ll send them. This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.

Olde Townie Crossword Blowback

Find the solution to Mary DeAngelis’s Olde Townie Crossword here. This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.

Road Rage, With a Side of Potato Salad

TRURO — Could a potato salad, lap-bound on the passenger’s side of a Lincoln Navigator speeding south on Route 6 at 65 miles per hour, really have “accidentally” flown out the […]

This Week In Provincetown

Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, April 22 Public Pier Corp. Board, 2 p.m. Planning Board, 6 p.m. Monday, April 26 […]

This Week In Truro

Meetings are held remotely. Go to truro-ma.gov, click on the meeting you want to watch, and open its agenda for instructions on how to watch or take part online. Thursday, April 22 Climate […]

This Week In Wellfleet

Meetings are held remotely. From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in for its agenda […]

This Week In Eastham

Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to read its agenda and find information on how to view and take part […]

Hanif Abdurraqib Extols Black Performance

“I owe Provincetown a great creative debt,” says the poet and cultural critic Hanif Abdurraqib. He wrote most of his second book, They Can’t Kill Us Until They Kill Us, […]

Mira Schor and the Art of Misrepresentation

“This is not political,” the painting proclaims. Its flowing script, on an orangey background, is surrounded by a rectangular black frame, anchored by a vertical post. At first glance, the […]

As Covid Subsides, Theaters Push to Reopen

Few things in the life of the Outer Cape have been hit harder by Covid than theater. Live outdoor cabaret performances resumed after the lockdown, and the Provincetown Tennessee Williams […]

April in the Neighborhood

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The Hitchhiker, Then and Now

On an overcast spring afternoon in 1968, I stood on the shoulder of Route 6, outside Hyannis, with my thumb out. After about 20 minutes, the drizzle began, the sparse […]

I Sing the Auto Electric

There is an electric car in your future, and you’re going to buy it sooner than you may realize. How do I know this? I just bought one, after saying […]

Drones

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History Lessons

One of the Independent’s contributors whose work is especially enlightening is Amy Whorf McGuiggan, who writes the Graveyard Shift column. She never fails to come up with a good story […]

Letters, April 22, 2021

Lise King’s Experience To the editor: Local newspapers sometimes endorse candidates for elected positions based on their qualifications, experience, and demonstrated desire to work for the good of the community. […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from April 12 to April 16, 2021. PROVINCETOWN April 14. Richard L. Wein and Brian Cummings to Adam J. Stump. 244 Bradford […]

Nancy L. Stefani, 83, Served on Provincetown School Committee

Nancy L. (Salvador) Stefani died on April 13, 2021 at Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital in Plymouth. She was 83. Born and raised in Provincetown, she was the daughter of the […]

Peter Alan Blanchard, 66, Dentist and World Traveler

Peter Alan Blanchard died peacefully at age 66 on April 17, 2021 in his Provincetown home. He was born in Weymouth on March 10, 1955 and was a practicing dentist […]

John Michael Kelley, 82, Graphic Design Entrepreneur

John Michael Kelley, who was known as Mike, died on Easter Sunday, April 4, 2021, in his Wellfleet home, surrounded by his loving family. He was the husband of Evelyn […]

Patricia Mellow, 61, Fell in Love in Provincetown

Patricia “Patti” Mellow of Forest City, Pa. died on April 17, 2021 at age 61 in the loving arms of her wife of 29 years, Patricia McCabe. The cause was […]

Classifieds April 22 – April 28, 2021

JOBS THE red INN is looking to hire: Housekeeper/laundry attendant, front desk agent, line cooks and bussers. May through October, good pay, exciting work environment. Some experience required. Apply to [email protected] […]

Remembering Ramen, a Chef Gets Back in the Kitchen Again

PROVINCETOWN — The last year has hit the restaurant world hard. “I’m not sure other people can really grasp what it has meant for those of us in it,” says […]

Broadbent Cut Budgets at Will, Department Heads Charge

WELLFLEET — With seven weeks until this year’s annual town meeting, the fiscal 2022 operating budget proposed by Town Administrator Maria Broadbent and Town Accountant Heather Michaud shows a $331,000 […]

Tweaked Waterfront Hotel Plan Faces Uphill Fight

PROVINCETOWN — The future of the disintegrating Old Reliable Fish House property on the Commercial Street waterfront will once again be in the hands of the planning and zoning boards, […]

In Season Now: The Other Housing Crisis

PROVINCETOWN — The lack of affordable and available year-round housing is a crisis on the Outer Cape, but at least it’s one for which communities have tools — from federal […]

License for Neglected Nauset Marsh Grant Is Revoked

EASTHAM — A two-acre aquaculture grant in Nauset Marsh that has gone largely untended for several years will be offered to new stewards. At its April 5 meeting, the select […]

Voters to Be Asked for $3.5M to Fix Court Street Flooding

PROVINCETOWN — Dept. of Public Works Director Rich Waldo said it is possible to fix the flooding that has for decades impeded pedestrians, harmed businesses, and damaged cars at the […]

Before the ZBA, Great White Realty Is Now 0-3

WELLFLEET — “The zoning board is a good board,” said attorney Ben Zehnder in an April 6 interview with the Independent. “Next meeting, I’m sure the board will do the […]

Concrete Bowls Are a Study in Pure Form

Chris Nagle met Derek Oliver the same way a lot of people do — the two were standing in an unfinished kitchen where unconventional countertops were under discussion. Outside his […]

Bodybuilders Push Weights, and Themselves

PROVINCETOWN — Mike Flanagan has spent this pandemic year doing what he loves. Lifting weights five days a week, performing cardio exercises seven days a week, and eating a precisely […]

Peter Manso, 80, Biographer and ‘Controversy Personified’

Peter Manso, 80, author of best-selling biographies of Norman Mailer and Marlon Brando, died of an apparent heart attack that he suffered at home in Truro on April 7, 2021. […]

Season Updates

Warriors Watch Thursday, April 15Boys and girls indoor track: Both teams will travel to compete in a meet against Barnstable at 4 p.m. Cheerleading: The Warriors cheerleading squad will […]

Enter Venus, to Make the World More Beautiful

When Venus enters a new sign, especially one that she rules such as Taurus or Libra, the moment usually has the feel of Botticelli’s The Birth of Venus. Venus, arriving on […]

Cultivating Ease With Yoga Nidra

Western culture urges us to create lives that are outward facing. We measure the progress of our existence by external gains. We work, attain promotions, have families, perform chores; we […]

Oriana Conklin Wants to Solve a ‘Crisis of Community’

PROVINCETOWN — Oriana Conklin, 30, is running as a first-time candidate for select board. She believes she can bring some much-needed perspective: if elected, she said, she would be the […]

Leslie Sandberg Wants to Start a New Chapter

PROVINCETOWN — Leslie Sandberg has ideas to address the town’s housing crisis: dedicate to housing a portion of the short-term rental tax that currently goes into the general fund and […]

Lise King: ‘I Love Doing the Work’

PROVINCETOWN — In the three-way race for a single seat on Provincetown’s select board, Lise King, 56, is the incumbent. Her argument for a second term is that she loves […]

The Indie Takes 14 New England Press Awards in Its First Year

The Provincetown Independent won 14 awards for journalism, design, and photography in the annual Better Newspaper competition of the New England Newspaper and Press Association, announced in Boston last week. […]

Nauset Schools

Interim Superintendent Chosen After a four-hour joint meeting of the Nauset school committees on April 12, Brooke Clenchy, 62, was named Nauset’s interim superintendent to replace Tom Conrad, who is […]

This Week In Provincetown

Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, April 15 Public Pier Corp. Board, 2 p.m. Finance Committee, 2 p.m. Wednesday, […]

This Week In Truro

Meetings are held remotely. Go to truro-ma.gov, click on the meeting you want to watch, and open its agenda for instructions on how to watch or take part online. Thursday, April 15 Climate […]

This Week In Wellfleet

Meetings are held remotely. From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its […]

This Week In Eastham

Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to read its agenda and find information on how to view and take part […]

In ‘Sticks and Stones,’ Gershon Stark Explores Harmful Words

“In the Jewish tradition, the most harm one person can do to another is through lashon hara, which means ‘evil tongue or speech’ in Hebrew,” says Jonathan Gershon Stark, who […]

Updating the Outer Cape’s Town Seals

Last December, the Independent published the first in a series of articles on town seals of the Outer Cape. The iconography on these seals, created more than a century ago, […]

Finding Tranquility in Water, Wood, and Wild Things

Until the Meiji Restoration in 1868, the Japanese government made it difficult for outsiders to explore the country. Even with rapid industrialization and modernization, Japan remained a hard place for […]

Toms on the Town

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Olde Townie Crossword

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Vaccine Passports and Individual Rights

Vaccine passports are engendering a wide range of emotions and opinions. Gov. Cuomo has embraced them in New York. Gov. DeSantis has banned them in Florida. Gov. Charlie Baker has […]

The Lawyer’s Feint

Ben Zehnder is mad at me. He’s well known as the go-to lawyer around here if you need a variance, or if you have gotten into a fight with a […]

Letters, April 15, 2021

The Housing Crisis Affects All To the editor: Thank you for your many articles highlighting the very difficult housing situation on the Outer Cape. I read with great interest last […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from April 5 to April 9, 2021 PROVINCETOWN April 5. Randy DeFazio and Sherri Hayes to Todd J. Meier. 616 Commercial St., […]

Classifieds April 15 – April 21, 2021

JOBS Babysitting. We’re looking for a babysitter for our two children (4 and 6) for July, during business hours (Monday-Friday, 35-40 hours/wk, no nights or weekends expected). Ideally, you have […]

Deane (Bloomberg) Kellogg, 78, Artist and Free Spirit

Geraldine Anne Virginia Coniff Kellogg, an artist and gallerist in St. Augustine, Fla., died there on April 6, 2021 after a long struggle with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. She was […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats

Cape Tech Students Revive Bikes for Kids

HARWICH — They arrived rusty, dirty, and tired, but thanks to the efforts of a group of students, a fleet of buffed-up bicycles will soon roll off the campus at […]

Outer Cape Towns to Test Drinking Water for PFAS

Communities across the state — and on the Outer Cape — are beginning mandatory testing of their public water supplies for PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances), a group of compounds […]

Businesses Foresee Huge Season Ahead

PROVINCETOWN — Cape Cod’s business and political leaders say the stars are aligning for a record-breaking “biggest season ever” for summer tourism. A third of Americans have already received one […]

Kline House Cash Pays Walsh Land Interest

TRURO — When the drawn-out legal battle over a modern mansion on Stephens Way ended in 2016 with a settlement giving the town $3 million, it was called “dirty money” […]

ZBA Denies Two Appeals by DiGiovannis

WELLFLEET — Not since the Dunkin’ Donuts brouhaha of 2012, said zoning board of appeals chair Sharon Inger, had she seen a ZBA audience so large or so passionate as […]

Petitions Seek Diversity Office and End of the Pier Corp.

PROVINCETOWN — Two citizen-petitioned articles were added to the annual town meeting warrant before it closed on April 1. One is aimed at closing “equity gaps,” and the other proposes […]

Water Skiing Roils Eastham Pond

EASTHAM — What began as an effort to improve safety in tidal creek areas by revising boating bylaws has churned up discord among residents over water skiing and motorboat use […]

Nauset Football Comes Out of the Fog

EASTHAM — On a windy Wednesday afternoon, the last day of March, the Nauset football team practiced on its home turf. Head Coach Bruce Strunk was firm when he said […]

It’s Time to Start Planning and Planting

The earth is coming alive. Beneath the oak leaves that I pile on my garden plot every fall, I am beginning to see the first sprouts of green. Garlic is […]

Dunes 102.3 Goes Through Ch-ch-changes

TRURO — Dunes 102.3 FM is under new ownership, now that restaurateur and radio personality Ron Robin has sold the 5,000-watt classic rock radio station to Gary Hanna, owner of […]

Rediscovering Eastham’s Elijah Knowles

Excitement rippled through Eastham with the recent rediscovery in the archives of the historical society of a document signed by Samuel Adams. Adams, born in 1722, was one of the […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, April 6 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Time Traveling With a Torta Sbrisolona

“We’re bringing the sbrisolona,” our friend Brian told me. “Yes, the very same one. And it doesn’t look half bad, actually.” Spring cleaning is so important. Especially if your microwave […]

New Moon Eclipse in Aries

The new Moon in the first sign of the zodiac sets the tone for the year ahead. It is an invitation to begin again by refreshing your routine and cultivating […]

Answers to Your Most Vaxxing Questions

@heyfromptown asks: Sooo, I’m in my 20s, and it’s going to be forever until I’m, like, fully vaccinated. I heard young people are getting trounced by side effects because we […]

In View This Week

The witch hazel is in bloom. (Photo Edwin Butter) Front row seats are now ready for sunset worshippers at Great Hollow Beach in Truro. Left to right: Lee Russell, Jeff […]

This Week In Provincetown

Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, April 8 Bicycle Committee, 2 p.m. Public Pier Corp., 2 p.m. Finance Committee, […]

This Week In Truro

Meetings are held remotely. Go to truro-ma.gov, click on the meeting you want to watch, and open its agenda for instructions on how to watch or take part online. Thursday, April 8 School […]

This Week In Wellfleet

Meetings are held remotely. From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its […]

This Week In Eastham

Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to read its agenda and find information on how to view and take part […]

To Tattoo Artist Ephy Kurucz, the Body Is a Canvas

At the end of Bob Gasoi Memorial Art Alley, at 290 Commercial St. in Provincetown, as you descend the stairs to Coastline Tattoo’s small, underground shop, you enter an otherworld […]

Jane Lincoln Has Had ‘Enough’ of Gun Violence

“Enough is enough, and it’s time for us to take action,” said U.S. Rep. Joe Neguse after the March 22 shooting at the King Soopers grocery in Boulder, Colo. At […]

Songs for a Spring Awakening

For this spring edition of the Indie Playlist, contributors chose songs traversing the genres of country, rap, disco, funk, blues, and rock. Many of them, though undeniably feel-good, express something […]

Detectives

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April Tourists

A tourist here in early April is like a Christmas tree in July: nice looking, but oddly out of place. I am writing this during a spring school vacation week, […]

The Rising Tide of Hate

Four years ago, the Barnstable County Human Rights Commission appeared to be down for the count. Its proposed operating budget was simply missing from the budget book that the Assembly […]

Vested Interest

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The Art of Being Free

After we sent the paper off to the printer last week, I picked up the April issue of The Atlantic that somebody left on the kitchen counter. It was folded […]

Letters, April 8, 2021

Failed Oversight at Pilgrim To the editor: Christine Legere’s article on dangerous waste stored at Pilgrim provided citizens with important information [“United on Shutting Pilgrim, Advocates Differ on Nuclear Waste,” […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from March 29 to April 2, 2021 PROVINCETOWN March 29. Matthew L. Marcotte and Mario D. Pinho to Roswell C. Bottum. 8 […]

Classifieds April 8 – April 14, 2021

JOBS Weekly cleaning. We are looking for an experienced housekeeper to clean two small weekly rental cottages in Provincetown. Cleanings are mostly on Saturdays. Call Maryanne, 860-739-8227. [4-8] Dishwashers needed. […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats

Bertha Adams Service Set

Services for Bertha L. Adams, a lifelong Provincetown resident who died on Jan. 31, have been scheduled for next week. Calling hours will be Wednesday, April 14 from 4 to […]

Crystal Russell, 40, Provincetown Native

Crystal Lee Russell, 40, of Provincetown died on March 23, 2021 at Cape Cod Hospital in Hyannis. No cause of death was reported. Born in Hyannis, Crystal was the daughter […]

Vida R. DeMale, 94, Turned Roadsides Into Gardens

Vida Ritchie DeMale, who for 28 years managed the Eastham Friendly Flower Islands with her husband, Dan, died on March 30, 2021. She was 94. Vida was born in Hartford, […]

For Wild Turkeys, It’s Strutting Time

They came from New York — 37 of them, trapped with a cannon-net set by Massachusetts wildlife biologists — to the Berkshires, at first. Then new generations spread statewide. Some […]

United on Shutting Pilgrim Reactor, Advocates Differ on Nuclear Waste

PLYMOUTH — The Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station has been shut down, but the arguments over what to do with its highly radioactive spent fuel are heating up. A Navajo activist […]

Nauset High School Renovation Is Big Winner at Polls

EASTHAM — The Nauset Regional High School building project will move forward after winning approval from more than two-thirds of the voters in Tuesday’s district-wide election. Based on figures reported […]

Select Board Spot Attracts No Candidates

WELLFLEET — For the first time in recent memory, the ballot for this year’s town election lists fewer candidates for the town’s most important board than there are seats to […]

Rail Trail Extension Work Starts With an Arrest

WELLFLEET — Richard Blakeley said he’s ashamed of his behavior, which led to him being arrested for disturbing the peace and malicious destruction of property on Friday, March 26. “I […]

Eastham Water Hookups Hit 1,500 Mark

EASTHAM — The Water Dept. has reached a milestone of sorts, with 1,500 completed or pending connections to the town water system — enough hookups to cover the department’s annual […]

New Marijuana Business Hatching in Truro

TRURO — The owners of two planned cannabis retail shops, the Piping Plover in Wellfleet and the Salty Farmers in Eastham, are negotiating a community host agreement to grow and […]

Before the Deluge: Plans for Commercial Street

PROVINCETOWN — Floodwaters are a primal force, invading the landscape, insisting that things must change. In the January 2018 flood, for example, seawater coursed down Gosnold Street and filled a […]

Easter Chicks, the Easy Way

Though our “Cogsie,” a.k.a. Rooster Cogburn, has been proudly prancing and mounting, he and our hens have not yet succeeded in producing any new chicks. I know they’ll get there, […]

April Fools Issue

Price of Turnips Skyrockets EASTHAM — The celebrated Eastham turnip has always been a lucrative crop. Weighing about eight pounds each — the same as a golden retriever puppy — […]

Little League Takes the Field

BREWSTER — Little League baseball is back on the Lower and Outer Cape, as the Nauset Little League will be operating for the first time under its new name this […]

Good News, With Limits, for Summer Camps

WELLFLEET — Gov. Charlie Baker announced last month that day camps and overnight camps will be allowed to reopen this summer, but with significantly reduced capacity and in compliance with […]

From Wellfleet to Truro on Roads Less Traveled

WELLFLEET — One of the few people you’ll see on Wellfleet’s Main Street in the early morning hours, pandemic included, is Kevin Carroll. Chances are he’ll have a backpack strapped […]

Finding Charm in Things That Have Lived Past Lives

I recently bought my first-ever brand-new piece of furniture. It is a chartreuse sectional couch and I love it an unreasonable amount. I sit on it, I lie on it, […]

April Fools

I am not sure which is easier, to be a fool or make one. I’ll admit to my share of being one. The other kind of fool is a cloud-like […]

Le Deuxième Soufflé

Every Saturday afternoon, my mother used to make the dessert for Sunday — a ritual I enjoyed helping with. I grew up in the south west of France, in Bordeaux. […]

A Reason to Look Under the Hood

When was the last time you checked under the hood? More and more of my customers don’t even know how to open theirs. That’s not just because they’re not mechanically […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, March 30 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Buff Up Your Rotator Cuffs

Rotator cuff troubles. We hear about them all the time — everyone from famous pitchers, to house painters, to Aunt Myrtle seems to have them. What is the rotator cuff, […]

With the Sun in Aries, It’s a Time for Sacrifices

The history of Aries, which begins the zodiacal year, as a symbol of creation and sacrifice extends thousands of years into the past. The constellation of Aries (not to be […]

In View This Week

Three male common dolphins that stranded at Chipman’s Cove in Wellfleet on March 30 were transported and released at Herring Cove in Provincetown by the IFAW Stranding Team. IFAW volunteer […]

Warriors Lose Season Opener at Falmouth

EASTHAM — The Nauset Regional High School football team took the field last Saturday, March 27, to play its first game in more than a year against the Falmouth Clippers […]

$41 Million in Covid Relief Headed to County

PROVINCETOWN — The American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), which President Biden signed into law on March 11, will siphon a lot of money to Cape Cod’s local governments in the […]

Like Other Businesses, Outer Cape Funeral Homes Adapt

PROVINCETOWN — Funeral home directors are the last responders on the frontline of the pandemic. And the national news has brought troubling images of overburdened funeral homes in the hardest-hit […]

Selects Give Chair a Boost

WELLFLEET — The select board voted 4-0 on March 23 to approve Chair Michael DeVasto’s request that his two-acre aquaculture grant be enlarged by 1.3 acres, on two conditions: that […]

Cape Cod National Seashore

Beach fires will be returning to the Cape Cod National Seashore this summer, according to park Supt. Brian Carlstrom. “We anticipate standing up our fire permits program again this year […]

This Week In Provincetown

Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, April 1 Select Board, 3:30 p.m. Zoning Board of Appeals, 6 p.m. Wednesday, April […]

This Week In Truro

Meetings are held remotely. Go to truro-ma.gov, click on the meeting you want to watch, and open its agenda for instructions on how to watch or take part online. Monday, April 5 Conservation […]

This Week In Wellfleet

Meetings are held remotely. From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its […]

This Week In Eastham

Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to read its agenda and find information on how to view and take part […]

For Illustrator Neal Nichols Jr., Drawing Is Like Breathing

On an early spring day, Neal Nichols Jr. stands on Hamblen Island in Wellfleet, overlooking Duck Creek and Wellfleet Harbor. “I have a photographic memory,” he says, tracing the view […]

Finding Order in the Chaos of Fractals

I don’t know what I was expecting when I requested a reviewer’s copy of Oliver Linton’s Fractals: On the Edge of Chaos. The pocket-sized book, published in February, appeared to […]

When Personal and Political Spheres Explode

The testimony of Christine Blasey Ford during Congressional hearings for the confirmation of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh in 2018 was devastating. She was as believable as a victim of […]

Snappy Answers to Stupid Questions

On March 13, 2021, the irreverent Mad magazine artist , a part-time Provincetown resident, turned 100 years old. Jaffee is best known for his “fold-in” comic illustrations, which transformed one […]

Narcissus

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The Six Stages of Boredom

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The Weight of Prejudice

Hi Ellen, You probably don’t remember me. We attended Camp Amik together back in the summer of 1968 or 1969. I was working as an au pair and you were […]

Letters, April 1, 2021

Elected Vs. Appointed Boards To the editor: I was troubled by your March 18 front-page article on petitions that seek to empower Truro voters to elect the town’s health board […]

Madam, I’m Adam

Our once-a-month crossword, by the talented Sophia Maymudes, is very popular. And so, I have begun looking into the possibility of finding some new types of puzzles or word games […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from March 22 to March 26, 2021. PROVINCETOWN March 22. J&T Belle Realty Inc. [James Turner, agent] to Kris E. McMurray. 4 […]

Classifieds April 1 – April 7, 2021

JOBS Weekly cleaning. We are looking for an experienced housekeeper to clean two small weekly rental cottages in Provincetown. Cleanings are mostly on Saturdays. Call Maryanne, 860-739-8227. [4-8] Dishwashers needed. […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats

Davina Parmet, 62, Writer and Social Worker

Davina Parmet died on March 25, 2021 at her home in Williamsburg, Va. after a courageous 10-year battle with lung cancer. She was 62. Davina was born on July 28, […]

Charles W. Zimmer, 76, Found Dream Job in Truro

Charles W. Zimmer of Truro died on March 3, 2021 at Cape Cod Hospital in Hyannis. Known as Chuck, he was the husband of Janice (Cosker) Zimmer. He was 76. […]

Three Mother-Calf Pairs Are Bright Spot in Dismal Reality

PROVINCETOWN — The Center for Coastal Studies (CCS) March 3 sighting of Millipede, a 16-year-old North Atlantic right whale, and her newborn calf — the season’s first — in Cape Cod […]

Eversource to Use Glyphosate on Power Lines

Wellfleet and Eastham are among a dozen towns on the Cape and Martha’s Vineyard scheduled for herbicide application this year by Eversource along the company’s rights-of-way. Workers will be out […]

3 Vie for 1 Spot on P’town Select Board

PROVINCETOWN — Select board member Lise King, 56, will have two challengers in the May 11 annual town election. Leslie Sandberg, 58, a partner in the communications firm Rose, Sandberg […]

Truro Parents Beg for More Preschool

TRURO — Before the pandemic, housing and child-care access and affordability were concurrent crises for young families on the Outer Cape. The Truro Central School’s free preschool has been oversubscribed […]

Gribbin and Colton Get Pier Corp. Seats

PROVINCETOWN — The select board has appointed the owner of a fishing business and a former town administrator now living in Provincetown to the board of the Public Pier Corp., […]

All Seats Are Uncontested

TRURO — There are no contested races for the 11 town board seats up for election this spring, and no candidates on the ballot at all for two of those […]

Slowly But Surely, Vaccines

Everyone age 60 to 64 and many who work in public are now eligible for Covid vaccinations, including restaurant, retail, grocery, public works, transportation, and sanitation workers. There are several […]

As Stellwagen Visitor Center Takes Shape, Selects Take Notice

PROVINCETOWN — A sleeper project since 2016, the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary Visitor Center burst into the limelight on March 8 when the select board recommended a 9,500-square-foot building […]

The Eastham Herring Count Returns

EASTHAM — A scout was spotted by a natural resources dept. officer at the Bridge Pond run on March 12. A herring scout, that is — one of the individual […]

Alex Morse Believes Connection Is What Makes Government Work

PROVINCETOWN — Alex Morse will have been mayor of Holyoke for just over nine years when he resigns at the end of March to take up his new job as […]

Provincetown’s Retail Sector Gets Clean Bill of Health

PROVINCETOWN — An early and persistent fear about the pandemic was that small businesses in town would tumble, and Commercial Street would end up lined with shuttered storefronts. Another worry […]

Bethany Gregory’s Roasted Oyster Banh Mi

She had me with oyster banh mi. If that’s what chef Bethany Gregory was making for lunch at the Soup Kitchen in Provincetown (SKIP), I wanted to meet her. From […]

Marvelous Marvin Hagler’s Provincetown Training Days

PROVINCETOWN — Marvelous Marvin Hagler, the legendary middleweight champion boxer, died unexpectedly on March 13 at age 66 at his home in New Hampshire. Hagler was originally from Newark, N.J., […]

The Art of Darning

We all have at least one piece of clothing that we can’t bear to let go of, even though its state of repair limits its public appearances. Mine is a […]

Cape Cod Cinema

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The Star That Points the Way North, For Now

Last month, I encouraged you to venture outside just before sunrise to see the planet Mercury. By way of apology for such an outrageous suggestion about how to spend your […]

Full Moon in Libra Shines on Kindness

I heard someone say once that people on the West Coast are nice but not kind, while people on the East Coast are kind but not nice. Having lived on […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, March 23 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Football Kickoff Saturday

Thursday, March 25 Girls volleyball: The Nauset Warriors host the Barnstable Raiders at 5:15 p.m. Friday, March 26 Girls volleyball: Sturgis East Charter School takes on the Warriors at the […]

This Week In Provincetown

Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, March 25 Water & Sewer Board, 1 p.m. Pier Corp., 2 p.m. Select Board, 5 […]

This Week In Truro

Meetings are held remotely. Go to truro-ma.gov, click on the meeting you want to watch, and open its agenda for instructions on how to watch or take part online.Thursday, March 25 Climate […]

This Week In Wellfleet

Meetings are held remotely. From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its […]

This Week In Eastham

Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to read its agenda and find information on how to view and take part […]

Wellfleet’s Susan Wilson Tells of Shooting Stars

If you were to walk down Tremont Street in Boston, you’d come upon a digital show of photographs of women musicians on the marquee of the Boch Center. They’re by […]

Revealing the Intimacy of Sex With Strangers

“Intimacy is about the experience of saying to another person — not necessarily in words — ‘This is who truly I am and what I want. Who are you? What […]

Wired for Stories

TONY KAHN / STORYTELLER / TRURO Tony Kahn worked in public TV and radio for more than 40 years. He hosted a news program, pioneered podcasts, and told stories of […]

Once Behind Bars, Forever Barred Entry

Michelle Alexander changed conversations about race-based discrimination in 2010 when she published The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness. Alexander explained that four in five Black […]

Beach Finds: Megaptera Novaeangliae

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Taking Down the Wreath

“Shouldn’t the wreath come down now?” asks one voice inside my head each time I pull in the drive. “No, it still looks pretty,” says the other voice. The berries […]

Spring Awakening

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Skin In The Game?

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People, Not Numbers

My cousin David is a professional gambler. He fervently believes that every human problem can be expressed in mathematical terms, and thus solved with mathematical logic. He has been wildly […]

Letters, March 25, 2021

Volunteers Got Expert Help To the editor: I appreciate Tessera Knowles-Thompson’s article on the 95 Lawrence Road project to create affordable homes in Wellfleet as it makes its way through […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from March 15 to March 19, 2021. PROVINCETOWN March 15. James D. Russo Revocable Living Trust (James D. Russo, trustee) to Douglas […]

Kathleen B. White, 86, a Lifelong Resident

Kathleen Bernice White, a lifelong Provincetown resident, died on March 17, 2021 at the Windsor Skilled Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Yarmouth. She was 86. She was the wife of […]

Philip C. Wolf, 64, a Mentor and Inventor

Philip Clay Wolf of Truro died on March 16, 2021 surrounded by family at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston after a brief illness. He was 64. Born on July […]

Classifieds March 25 – March 31, 2021

JOBS Dishwashers needed. Jimmy’s Hideaway at 179 Commercial St. in Provincetown. Nights, Thursdays through Sundays. Call Jimmy at 508-237-6362. Farmhand needed for spring “kidding” season, April-May (starting ASAP — 20 […]

Wellfleet’s Big Plan Goes Out for Bids

WELLFLEET — The largest affordable housing initiative in the town’s history reached a milestone last week with the select board’s unanimous approval on March 9 of a request for proposals […]

Efforts Mount to End Sheriff’s Deal With ICE

Barnstable County Sheriff James Cummings continues to defend his partnership with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) as political and legal moves to overturn the controversial agreements, which deputize local […]

Petition Seeks Elected ZBA, Health Board

TRURO — The signers of two petitioned articles that will be on the June 26 annual town meeting warrant want the zoning board of appeals and the board of health […]

New Harbormaster Office Plans Move Forward

EASTHAM — The plan for a new harbormaster’s office and site improvements at Rock Harbor is scheduled to begin the permitting process next month, with hearings set for April 13 […]

More Plaintiffs Sign On to Fight Truro Housing

TRURO — The attorney for property owners suing the developer of the 39-unit Cloverleaf project and the Truro Zoning Board of Appeals has added 13 plaintiffs to the suit filed […]

Statewide Pre-Registration Is Now Available

People who are currently eligible for a vaccine, or who will be eligible later in phase two, can now put their names and contact information into a statewide pre-registration system […]

Audit Finds ‘Major Deficiencies’ in Wellfleet Accounts

WELLFLEET — Auditors have discovered “several major deficiencies in the town’s financial and accounting activities which will require immediate mitigation measures to correct,” Town Administrator Maria Broadbent reported to the […]

Birds Do It. But It’s Hard to Explain How

The days are getting longer and lighter at last, heralding the season of birds and bees. When it comes to those of us with yard birds, it is time to […]

Wellfleet Marina Fees to Go Up 15%

WELLFLEET — Marina mooring and slip fees will increase by 15 percent over the next three years, but commercial slip holders will get an additional year to prepare for the […]

‘The Second Grade Is the Place to Be’

TRURO — Truro Central School (TCS) head second-grade teacher Amelia Rose feels, she announces, as she hurries from teaching remote addition class in the library to delivering an in-person version […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, March 16 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

What’s Your Number?

“Meet me at 517 Commercial St.,” we say, or “I work at 186,” without a second thought about the complexity behind the system of numbers that guides us though our […]

Green Soup for Spring

The first official day of spring arrives this weekend. It took me many years of living in New England to realize that this is nature’s favorite joke. Here it’s picnic […]

Good Is Better Than Perfect

Spring is on the way. Covid is on the way out. And many people I know are in the grip of a tense kind of anticipation that is equal parts […]

Nauset Football Must Wait a Week

EASTHAM — The arrival of the long-awaited high school football season, now one of the state’s “Fall II” sports, has been delayed a week as the Nauset Regional High team […]

‘Tiger’: How Not to Wish Upon a Star

There is a certain tier of athletes I like to classify as “one-namers.” That means they’re recognizable by their first or last name only. LeBron, Brady, Jordan, Serena, Babe, and […]

This Week In Provincetown

Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, March 18 Board of Health, 4 p.m. Zoning Board of Appeals, 6 p.m. Monday, March […]

This Week In Truro

Meetings are held remotely. Go to truro-ma.gov, click on the meeting you want to watch, and open its agenda for instructions on how to watch or take part online. Thursday, March 18 Climate […]

This Week In Wellfleet

Meetings are held remotely. From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its […]

This Week In Eastham

Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to read its agenda and find information on how to view and take part […]

For John Choly, Art Has to Have Heart

“I paint like a child,” says John Choly with a smile and a twinkle in his eye. “And I own that.” In his Provincetown studio, he is surrounded by shelves […]

Binge-Watching: the Pandemic Addiction Continues

It’s a Sin Streaming on HBO Max (miniseries; 5 episodes) The British television import It’s a Sin follows a group of friends — four gay boys and a girl, Jill, […]

The Talented but Deplorable Patricia Highsmith

In most biographies, the subject begins as a larger-than-life figure. Then, after we learn about imperfect relationships and personal quirks, he or she becomes more human. That’s not the case […]

An Aries Sun Heralds Rebirth

Happy astrological new year! The Sun enters Aries this week on the day of the Spring Equinox. Light will overcome shadow, at last, and summer herself is no longer just […]

Signs of Spring

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The End of the Hammer

I hereby make a shameful confession: I don’t know which end of a hammer to pick up in order to use one. This leaves me in a predicament any time […]

It Was a Nice Spring

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Unassisted

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Spring Reawakening

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Sunshine Week for the Press

Two months ago, I wrote about a flap we had with the new Wellfleet town administrator, Maria Broadbent. She had given one of our reporters a hard time about releasing […]

Letters, March 18, 2021

‘L.A. Would Be Amazed’ To the editor: The tone of last week’s Letter From the Arts Editor about the recent American Horror Story filming in Provincetown was unnecessarily dismissive. I’ll […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from March 8 to March 12, 2021. PROVINCETOWN March 9. Paul Cronin Swalboski and Jon Swalboski to Mehri Badizadegan and Mohammad Moallem. […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats

Honoring Ann Rogers by Walking the Seashore

“You must live in the present, launch yourself on every wave, find your eternity in each moment. Fools stand on their island of opportunities and look toward another land. There […]

Carmela Slattery, 90, of Provincetown

Carmela “Millie” Slattery died on Feb. 28, 2021 at Seashore Point Wellness and Rehabilitation Center in Provincetown. She was 90. One of five sisters, she was born in Ozone Park, […]

Paul Endich, Memorable Owner of the Penney Patch, Dies at 72

“A life is not captured by a list of a person’s activities and accomplishments,” wrote Dennis Minsky of his old friend Paul Endich, who died at home in Eastham on […]

Sally H. Jennings, 77, Led a Grand, Itinerant Life

Sally Hamilton Jennings of Londonderry, Vt. died unexpectedly of apparent heart failure on March 7, 2021. She was 77. Fiercely independent, Sally led a rich, varied life by following her […]

Classifieds March 18 – March 24, 2021

JOBS Weekly cleaning. We are looking for an experienced housekeeper to clean two small weekly rental cottages in Provincetown. Cleanings are mostly on Saturdays. Call Maryanne, 860-739-8227. [4-8] Assistant manager […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from March 1 to March 5, 2021. PROVINCETOWN March 1. 3 Harbor Hill Land Trust (James M. McClure, trustee) to John A. […]

Chapel in the Pines Has Its Crowning Moment

EASTHAM — The Chapel in the Pines renovation was completed last Saturday as George Koeber and Paul Collins installed the final piece of the project — a copper steeple cap. […]

2 Pier Corp. Members Made to Step Down

PROVINCETOWN — In the wake of unpopular fee hikes by the board of the Provincetown Public Pier Corp., which manages MacMillan Pier, two members of that board have been forced […]

New 10-Year Comcast License Leaves Questions Unanswered

Two years after they began, cable license renewal negotiations between five Lower Cape towns and Comcast have come to a close. On Feb. 23, the Truro and Wellfleet select boards […]

Getting Vaccine Appointments Is Still Difficult

Scoring an appointment for a Covid-19 vaccination has become a little easier due to tweaks to the state registration sites, but it remains a time-consuming and frustrating task. And for […]

Unemployment Mess Threatens Coverage for Some

PROVINCETOWN — Unemployment insurance dates back to the New Deal, but it played a starring role in keeping Americans solvent during the Covid-19 pandemic. According to the Century Foundation, more […]

Three Arrested in Wellfleet Narcotics Bust

WELLFLEET — A three-month investigation into a Wellfleet narcotics operation came to a head late last week with the coordinated arrests of three Outer Cape residents. Wellfleet Police Sgt. Paul […]

Entertainment Venues Beg P’town to Let Them Reopen

PROVINCETOWN — Pilgrim House events manager David Burbank would usually be booking talent for the summer season by now. But he can’t do that, because he still has no idea […]

Eastham Looks Back at Its First Preacher

EASTHAM — The grave marker in the Cove Burying Ground is plain: “Rev. Samuel Treat died Mar. 18, 1716, aged 69 years,” it reads. But the story of Eastham’s first […]

The Portuguese Bakery Changes Hands

PROVINCETOWN — The Provincetown Portuguese Bakery has changed hands, but the same name and traditional Old World fare will remain as baked into Commercial Street as it has been for […]

Students Speak Up About Nauset High Renovation

EASTHAM — During her four years as a varsity lacrosse player, Nauset Regional High School senior Paige Flanagan, 18, has had plenty of experience with the infamous brown shower water […]

Cosmetic Surgery: It Does Happen Here

PROVINCETOWN — Cape Cod and, for that matter, New England are perhaps not the first places one thinks of when one hears the words “plastic surgery.” We value our old […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, March 9 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

The Surprising Evolution of Sports Card Collecting

People have collected sports cards for 135 years. The first set of baseball cards was released in 1886 by the Goodwin Tobacco Company. A Honus Wagner card from that set […]

Winter Sports All-Stars

EASTHAM — Nine Nauset Regional High School winter athletes were named Cape & Islands League All-Stars this season. Nauset boys basketball was represented by juniors Seth Asiimwe and Keleb Daniels. […]

A Spa Day for Your Wooden Countertops and Cutting Boards

Though wood craftspeople often finish their handmade work with oils made from plants or seeds — linseed or tung — mineral oil is often recommended for ordinary people to use […]

Sesame Macha and Salsa Verde From the Mercado de San Juan

I have learned not to take anything for granted. Not even simple things, like seeing a stranger’s smile, having a relaxed drink with a friend at a bar, or sitting […]

Pisces Hosts a Celestial Four-Body Party

Flip the switch on your self-expression, star gazers. A planetary mashup of Sun, Moon, Venus, and Neptune in imaginative Pisces illuminates your sectors of creativity and compassion. Such an orgiastic […]

Sharpen Your Pencils, Students, and Good Luck!

“The annual Mass. Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) tests, required of all students in public schools, will be administered this year, despite concerns from school administrators about what exactly the data […]

In View This Week

MacMillan Pier, Provincetown. (Photo Nancy Bloom) Crowds gathered in hopes of a glimpse of the cast, or maybe a chance to walk on, while the film crew for the television […]

Bienvenue’s Wireless Fix for OpenCape’s Inadequacy

EASTHAM — The OpenCape Corporation’s high-speed internet service has been tantalizingly close and yet out of reach for most Outer Cape residents since 2013, when the nonprofit technology company used […]

DOR Releases Numbers on Short-Term Rental Tax Revenue

PROVINCETOWN — After more than a year of telling town officials that it could not be done, the Mass. Dept. of Revenue has released data on the new tax on […]

This Week In Provincetown

Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, March 11 Finance Committee, 10 a.m. Public Pier Corp., 3 p.m. Open Space […]

This Week In Truro

Meetings are held remotely. Go to truro-ma.gov, click on the meeting you want to watch, and open its agenda for instructions on how to watch or take part online. Thursday, March 11 […]

This Week In Wellfleet

Meetings are held remotely. From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its […]

This Week In Eastham

Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to read it’s agenda and find information on how to view and take part […]

Local Artists Respond to Pandemic With a Show Called ‘When’

By Susannah Elisabeth Fulcher “When will this end? When will we go back to normal? When will we see each other again? These are questions we’ve been asking ourselves since […]

The Bold, Fantastic Art of Dorothy Loeb

If you want to see Dorothy Loeb’s paintings, the best place to go is not a museum but the Residences at Seashore Point, at 100 Alden St. in Provincetown. Specifically, […]

Hybrid Cinema: From Asia, With Love

Although it has much to recommend it, the film Nomadland, which is playing in theaters (not locally) and streaming on Hulu (free to subscribers), can attribute its extraordinary success, including […]

In Colonial America, Thomas Morton Took the Pure out of Puritan

In the book of Joshua, the ancient Israelites settle upon the land that God had promised them, a land called Canaan, and they do so without slaughtering any of the […]

Noise Complaint

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A Covid Anniversary Gift

We’re coming up on a year, now — a year of confusion, isolation, sadness, and readjustment. Anniversaries are a time of reflection. What does this one mean? There has been […]

Let’s Face It

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Common Hopes Lead to Consensus on Climate Action

With strident voices and violent clashes in the news at the highest levels of government, recent weeks brought a welcome dose of collaborative and functional governance on Cape Cod. The […]

The Horror! The Horror!

Perhaps the biggest illusion perpetuated by the movie business is that film shoots — the nuts and bolts of producing movies and television — are glamorous and fascinating. In fact, […]

Letters, March 11, 2021

Obstructed View of Harbor Hill To the editor: Thank you for Paul Benson’s piece on “The View From Harbor Hill” [March 4, front page]. It was wonderful to read the […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats

William von der Heydt, 78, Painter and Beachcomber

William Arthur von der Heydt, a painter who came to Provincetown over 40 years ago, died on Feb. 22, 2021 at home. He was 78. Born in Belleville, N.J., in […]

Writer Richard McCann, 71, a Transformative and Adored Teacher

Richard McCann, a beloved writer long associated with the Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown, died on Jan. 25, 2021 in Washington, D.C. He was 71. Richard was born on […]

Vivian Bower, 79, Whose Artwork Changed With Her

Vivian Bower, a long-time resident of New York City and Cape Cod, died peacefully at age 79 on Feb. 21, 2021 at her home in Truro. The cause of death […]

Classifieds March 11 – March 17, 2021

JOBS Assistant manager for art gallery. 40K to 50K. Year-round position with 3 weeks time off. Flexible hours during off season. Sales and supervisor experience preferred. Experience with picture framing a […]

Classifieds March 4 – March 10, 2021

JOBS Assistant manager for art gallery. 40K to 50K. Year-round position with 3 weeks time off. Flexible hours during off season. Sales and supervisor experience preferred. Experience with picture framing a […]

Holyoke Mayor Gets Nod for Town Manager

PROVINCETOWN — If negotiations are successful, Alex B. Morse, 32, a native son of Holyoke, the working-class city where he has been the mayor for 10 years, will become the […]

Covid Relief Targets Outer Cape’s Smallest Businesses

PROVINCETOWN — When much of the American economy was forced to shut down last March due to Covid, Congress passed trillions of dollars of relief spending in just weeks. There […]

Residents File Suit to Appeal Cloverleaf OK

TRURO — Two residents are appealing the town’s approval of the Cloverleaf, a 39-unit affordable housing development at 22 Highland Road. The legal challenge was filed in Barnstable Superior Court […]

FAWC Fellow Who Wouldn’t Leave Faces Eviction

PROVINCETOWN — Last year’s Fine Arts Work Center (FAWC) resident fellows accused the nonprofit that hosted them of racism. Then the pandemic hit, and several of those fellows had nowhere […]

Eastham Contemplates Solar Self-Sufficiency

EASTHAM — Eastham could have a surplus of energy should four new solar projects move forward. “The town of Eastham, with the completion of these projects — if they were […]

Study Finds Nutrients Increase Coastal Acidification

WELLFLEET — With a minus-0.6-foot low tide at 5:11 p.m. and the sun setting at 5:26, Bob Wallace and Mattias Christensen have no time to lose. Their oysters have been […]

Gay Catholics Seek Solace and Spirituality at St. Peter’s

PROVINCETOWN — Mike Dubour was in the process of converting to Judaism. He was tired of the lousy version of Catholicism he kept receiving — what he described as “hatred […]

The View From Harbor Hill

PROVINCETOWN — Harbor Hill was built as a time-share complex, to host people enjoying a week or two of vacation. After sitting vacant for years, then being bought by Provincetown’s […]

Outdoor Lighting That’s Warm and Inviting

A home speaks to its visitors before they even cross the threshold. Coming around the corner or reaching for the front gate, we take in a multitude of details, the […]

Soy Sauce and Butter Make a Secret Sauce for Mushrooms

I have a pile of dog-eared seed catalogs marked with checks and circles — a paper hope chest filled with my garden aspirations. They sit in a growing pile on […]

Land Owner Sues ZBA Seeking to Build on Small Lot

WELLFLEET — A 9th Street property was advertised as an “ideal building lot at the outermost area of majestic Lieutenant Island,” offering prospective buyers a vision of glorious sunsets with […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, March 2 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Sunday on the Pond, With Pickerel

Ice fishing? That was everyone’s first question. And then, in varied order: Won’t you fall through? But what if you do? Won’t you be cold? Will you catch anything? Or, […]

Avery Burns Ends Season Proud of Her Team’s Effort

EASTHAM — The Nauset Regional High School girls basketball season didn’t end the way the team wanted it to, but senior leader Avery Burns feels good knowing that she and […]

Lay Your Shoulder Burdens Down

Truly, our shoulders are overworked. They bear burdens, carry chips, and provide places upon which others may cry. If you have, at any point this winter, looked in the mirror […]

The Sun Crosses Paths With Mystic Neptune

Have you been having vivid dreams? Some so intense you could call them visions? The Sun’s approach toward Neptune climaxes this week with their conjunction — meaning they cross paths […]

Exterior: Provincetown

A film crew for the television series with the as-yet-unconfirmed-but-it’s-gotta-be American Horror Story, for which part-time Provincetown resident Ryan Murphy is executive producer, deals with drizzle in front of town […]

Residential Exemption Forms Due April 1

Residents of Provincetown, Truro, and Wellfleet who wish to claim the residential tax exemption (RTE) on their fiscal 2021 property tax bills must submit applications with supporting documents to their […]

Pit Bull v. Provincetown Will Go to Court

PROVINCETOWN — In his 20 weeks of state-standardized training at the Plymouth Police Academy, Sgt. Kevan Spoor, now a 14-year veteran of the Provincetown P.D., broke down doors. He shot […]

This Week In Provincetown

Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, March 4 Select Board, 4 p.m. Monday, March 8 Select Board, 7 p.m. Tuesday, March […]

This Week In Truro

Meetings are held remotely. Go to truro-ma.gov, click on the meeting you want to watch, and open its agenda for instructions on how to watch or take part online. Thursday, March […]

This Week In Wellfleet

Meetings are held remotely. From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its […]

This Week In Eastham

Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on a particular meeting to read its agenda and find out how to view and take part remotely. Thursday, March 4 […]

Erna Partoll’s Art Distills the Brilliant Colors of Her Emotions

“I think of painting as capturing time,” says artist Erna Partoll. In the sunny kitchen of her Provincetown home, where she has been holed up during the pandemic, Partoll points […]

Meet the Women DJs of WOMR

WOMR’s International Women’s Day celebration began in 1988, says Denya LeVine, one of its “founding mothers.” But only in the last 10 years has the station been doing it consistently, […]

The Mothers Behind the Civil Rights Movement

It is easy to pan Anna Malaika Tubbs’s The Three Mothers: How the Mothers of Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcolm X, and James Baldwin Shaped a Nation, released last month […]

Winter Illumination

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Ending Where You Began

…I am waiting to get some intimations of immortality by recollecting my early childhood and I am waiting for the green mornings to come again youth’s dumb green fields come […]

Rob Phelps Doesn’t Let a Pandemic Change His Focus

Provincetown was where you went to die. That was what everyone kept saying when Rob Phelps told them he was moving here in the mid ’90s. And, in fact, gay […]

Winter Wrap

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Waiting

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Un-Real Estate

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Across the Digital Divide

The saddest story to appear in these pages in many weeks was Jan. 28th’s “A ‘Sextortion’ Case Reveals Silent Crisis for Teens.” If you missed it, here is a brief […]

Good Business, Bad Faith

The Independent’s mission is to produce truth-seeking reporting on the Outer Cape. But we have another purpose that extends beyond the Orleans rotary: to help change what is happening to […]

Letters, March 4, 2021

Spending the Pot Tax Bounty To the editor: The pot shop owners have been granted a license to coin money from the town, which they have clearly done very handsomely. […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Feb. 22 to Feb. 26, 2021. PROVINCETOWN Feb. 22. Sebastian and Kelly E. Grasso to Francisco Adrian and Julie Ann Gavigan. […]

Diane Rose, 82, a Beloved Teacher of the Deaf

Diane Alexis Brown Rose died peacefully at her home on Atwood Road in Truro on Feb. 26, 2021 following a battle with cancer, in the company of her loving family […]

James Arlin Hildreth, 68

James Arlin Hildreth of Eastham died peacefully on Feb. 23, 2021 at the McCarthy Care Center in East Sandwich after a battle with cancer and related complications that he fought […]

Mary A. Rose of Wellfleet, 95

Mary A. Rose of Wellfleet died on Feb. 15, 2021 at Cape Cod Hospital, 12 hours after her 95th birthday, with the grace and dignity with which she lived her […]

North Pamet Home Owners Are in Retreat

TRURO — When Anne Peretz walked into her newly built home near Ballston Beach on North Pamet Road in 1991, there was 175 feet between the back porch and the […]

Three Finalists Come Out for Town Manager

PROVINCETOWN — None of the three finalists named this week for the job of town manager lives here, but all three say they love Provincetown. They are the 32-year-old mayor […]

2 Eastham Boards Back High School Renovation in Unanimous Votes

EASTHAM — The Nauset High School renovation gained the unanimous support of Eastham’s finance committee and select board when they voted on Feb. 17 and Feb. 22, respectively, to recommend […]

Privacy Protections Leave Gaps in Covid Death Reports

PROVINCETOWN — When it comes to Covid, Massachusetts is pro-data. The Dept. of Public Health (DPH) publishes a weekly Covid report, daily Covid updates, and a weekly report on vaccinations. […]

Giant Seawall Plan Is Turned Down Again

WELLFLEET — The conservation commission has again denied permission for the construction of a 241-foot rock revetment in front of the Blasch house on Chequessett Neck Road. The 5,817-square-foot house, […]

Wellfleet Planners Drop ADU Initiative

WELLFLEET — Citing what board member Beth Singer called “insurmountable” obstacles, the planning board officially ended its three-month effort to draft a joint bylaw regulating accessory dwelling units (ADUs) and […]

Peake Files Bills on Traffic Cams, Climate Change, Helium Balloons

PROVINCETOWN — As the deadline for filing legislation came into view last Friday, state Rep. Sarah Peake had turned in a number of bills to be considered by the Mass. […]

Glimmers of Hope for Vaccinations on the Outer Cape

PROVINCETOWN — When it comes to allocating Covid resources, Cape Cod has been treated like a distant afterthought. The state hasn’t opened a free Stop the Spread testing site here, […]

In a Rare Move, Commission OKs Demolition

PROVINCETOWN — The historic district commission and the zoning board of appeals have approved the demolition of a 140-year-old cottage in the historic district and its replacement with a new […]

Sledders of All Styles Take to Outermost Slopes

Photographs by Nancy Bloom This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.

Lichens: A Love Story

There’s a bend in the road on the way to the dump in Wellfleet. The road winds through a low, wet area, a tributary of the Herring River. As far […]

Garlic, Greens, and White Beans Make a Winning Dinner

It is mid-February of the pandemic winter, but even this one won’t last forever. It’s time for us to face a cold, hard fact: most of those dried beans we […]

On a Countertop Farm, Greens Spring Eternal

While summer vegetable gardens lie in wait under mulch and snow, some people are busy planting and harvesting miniature crops indoors. It doesn’t take much effort, say the devotees, to […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Feb. 23 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

A Good Look at the Smallest, Fastest Planet

Right now is a good time for seeing the planet Mercury, especially if you’re on the Outer Cape, with its wonderful unobstructed views to east on the ocean side. Astronomy […]

Chess Club Makes a Virtual Move

EASTHAM — Most high-school sports have struggled to maintain a playable season this year, due to strict safety regulations and rescheduled games in a shortened season. But one club sport […]

Full Moon in Virgo Brings Clarity to Chaos

Ever get the feeling that things might actually go your way if you could just let go and trust in the process of life? Well, now would be a good […]

In View This Week

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Nauset Basketball Racks Up More Wins

EASTHAM — The Nauset Warriors boys basketball team came away with a win at the buzzer against Barnstable on Monday in the first round of the Cape and Islands League […]

When It Comes to Hunger, Sometimes Transportation Is the Issue

As food insecurity has continued to grow across Cape Cod during the pandemic, a hidden issue has come into view alongside it. Sometimes, people go hungry not because there is […]

Committee Votes Down Grant for Schooner Hindu

PROVINCETOWN — The community preservation committee (CPC) voted down the Schooner Hindu’s application for $100,000 in Community Preservation Act funds at its meeting on Feb. 22. Had it been approved, […]

This Week In Provincetown

Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, Feb. 25 Select Board town manager interviews, 5 p.m. Joint meeting, Harbor and […]

This Week In Truro

Meetings are held remotely. Go to truro-ma.gov, click on the meeting you want to watch, and open its agenda for instructions on how to watch or take part online. Thursday, […]

This Week In Eastham

Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you’re interested in to read its agenda and find information on how to view and take part remotely.[…]

This Week In Wellfleet

Meetings are held remotely. From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its […]

Marianne A. Kinzer Catches the Flow of Life

“Water touches us in so many ways,” says painter Marianne A. Kinzer. “It travels around the globe in the form of oceans, clouds, and rain. It moves through the stems […]

The Secret of Ken Field’s Sax Appeal

It starts with long drawn-out notes forming a simple melody. The sound of the alto saxophone is warm and reedy. At first, you might wonder, where is this going? But […]

Remembrance of Serial Murders Past

Sixteen years ago, a nightmare Liza Rodman had been having for months suddenly got real. She finally recognized the face of the man who approached her in the dream — […]

Called to Surf

Dana Franchitto loves going to work as a substitute teacher at the Nauset Regional Middle School in Orleans. Even if he won $10 million in the lottery, he’d still want […]

Winter Beach, Fresh Snowfall

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Are We Like Other Towns?

A riot of culture spills forth from that hook at the end of the Cape. Provincetown is like no other place, and it seems incapable of containing itself. It expands, like […]

Why You Should Vote Yes on March 30

The opposition to the proposed Nauset Regional High School renovation is relying on a confusing series of calculations based on questionable assumptions. Their main argument is that we can save […]

Around the Fire

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Unfunicular

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These Data Are Ours

Our world is built on streams of data, beaming into headsets and printers and our ever-present phones. Twitter can predict what I will read; TikTok knows how to make me […]

Letters, February 25, 2021

The Vaccine Lottery To the editor: Here are some points that Cape Cod residents may wish to convey to Gov. Charlie Baker and his Covid-19 advisers: 1. Cape Cod residents […]

Joann M. Coats, 88, Was Famous for Her Cookies

Joann Merrell Coats of Harwich died peacefully on Feb. 13, 2021 at the Wingate at Harwich Nursing Home. She was 88. Joann was born on April 28, 1932 in Provincetown, […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Feb. 16 to Feb. 19, 2021. PROVINCETOWN Feb. 16. Kevin R. Kennedy and Edward H. Walsh to Bret A. Austhof. 4 […]

Classifieds February 25 – March 3, 2021

HELP WANTED Woodcutter. Woman or man with a chainsaw and skills wanted to cut up downed trees and logs into firewood at my property in Truro. Work the hours that […]

Funding Sought for Restoration of Schooner

PROVINCETOWN — A $100,000 grant request to help pay for the ambitious restoration of the Schooner Hindu is one of a handful of applications that will be up for discussion […]

Pandemic Intensifies Debate on MCAS and Inequity

The annual Mass. Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) tests, required of all students in public schools, will be administered this year, despite concerns from school administrators about what exactly the data […]

Cape Cod to Baker: Give Us Vaccine Now

PROVINCETOWN — Gov. Charlie Baker’s decision to prioritize six mass Covid-19 vaccination sites around the state, while sending hardly any vaccine at all to Cape Cod, has people here feeling […]

State Undercounts Outer Cape Covid Cases

PROVINCETOWN — The Covid testing program at Outer Cape Health Services (OCHS), which relies on rapid BinaxNOW tests provided by the state, has been a local success story. The tests […]

Easley Challenges Brewster Committee’s School Cost Numbers

EASTHAM — Members of the Nauset Regional School Committee have taken issue with a report on the high school building project that asserts that eliminating — or substantially reducing — […]

After 7-Year Legal Fight, Porter Gives Up P’town Home

PROVINCETOWN — Vernon Porter, the irrepressible “Lady Di” of WOMR-FM’s most popular show, Friday night’s Leggs Up and Dancing, has been forced to give up his home in Provincetown. It’s […]

A Deep Winter Outer Cape Survival Guide

EATS Deep Winter Dining A surprising number of restaurants (and markets that offer prepared meals) have kept on cooking this winter, some with well-spaced or outdoor-heated dining (B.Y.O. Blanket), others […]

Ducks in a Snowstorm

PROVINCETOWN — Within the silence of the snowstorm, I walk the frozen beach, boot-crunch the only sound accompanying me. The muffled white air swirls and eddies. And then I hear […]

Inclined Elevator Going Up at High Pole Hill

PROVINCETOWN — After years of planning and delays, the “inclined elevator” (which is close to, but not the same as, a funicular), arrived on Feb. 12 from Switzerland, following a […]

A Watercolored Return to Beginner’s Mind

I took a luxurious vacation last week into a world filled with lapis lazuli, burnt sienna, and yellow ochre paints; hake, dagger striper, and mop brushes; flat, graded, and variegated […]

An Accidental Collage, in New Colors

It’s a Sunday morning and we’ve logged onto Zoom for “Using Color With the Figure,” taught by Laura Shabott and Alana Barrett, via the Provincetown Art Association and Museum. Introducing […]

A New Cook Ventures Beyond the Kitchen Basics

Over the course of just two hours last Friday night, I used more pots and pans than I knew my kitchen had — more pots and pans than I think […]

Pier Corp. Approves Controversial Fee Hikes

PROVINCETOWN — The Public Pier Corp. has decided to raise the dockage rates at MacMillan Pier by 50 percent for commercial vessels over the next two years. At the second […]

National Park Fees for Filming Struck Down

PROVINCETOWN — A federal judge ruled on Jan. 22 that the collection of fees by the National Park Service (NPS) for commercial filming is a violation of free speech. This […]

Skiing the Slopes for the First Time

Snow sports are not my forte. I don’t ice skate, and I went snowboarding a couple of times on some golf course hills, but that’s about it. I’d never been […]

Truro Supt. Mike Gradone Will Retire

TRURO — Over four decades ago, Michael Gradone III accepted a job as the Wellfleet Elementary School principal. In June, Gradone, 73, will retire as superintendent of Truro’s one-school district. […]

Color Me February

February is a gray month — there’s no doubt about it. As the thrill of the first truly cold snap, complete with snow flurries, begins to fade, it can be […]

Nauset Basketball Keeps Up Its Winning Ways

EASTHAM — Nauset High School’s basketball players kept their success rolling on Saturday, Feb. 13, as both the boys and girls teams defeated the Dennis-Yarmouth Dolphins. The boys team made […]

Facing a Blue Knights Weekend

Thursday, Feb. 18 Girls basketball: The undefeated Warriors (9-0) travel to play the Falmouth Clippers (7-4) at 2:30 p.m. Girls ice hockey: The Cape Cod Furies (2-2-4) will play the […]

In Pisces, Opposing Forces Circle

The Sun enters the watery sign of Pisces, the final sign of the zodiac before the cycle begins again with Aries, herald of spring. Pisces is the culmination of all […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Feb. 16 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Summer Tuna, Packed in Oil, Comes to the Table for a Smorgasbord

There’s a funny thing about kids and food combinations. At our house, olives are good, and bread is good. But olive bread might as well be poison. Why? I have […]

This Week In Provincetown

Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, Feb. 18 Board of Health, 4 p.m. Zoning Board of Appeals, 6 p.m. […]

This Week In Truro

Meetings are held remotely. Go to truro-ma.gov, click on the meeting you want to watch, and open its agenda for instructions on how to watch or take part online. Thursday, […]

This Week In Wellfleet

Meetings are held remotely. From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its […]

This Week In Eastham

Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you’re interested in to read its agenda, and for information about how to view and take part remotely.[…]

SunMi Scheinler Is Inspired by the Outer Cape in Her Art and Life

On a sunny winter’s day, SunMi Scheinler leans against a weathered wood fence at Newcomb Hollow Beach in Wellfleet. Behind her, a calm ocean stretches to the horizon. She takes […]

The Music of Sophie Is Transcendent

Sophie — self-styled in all capital letters — a trans DJ and producer who died on Jan. 30, 2021 at age 34 from an accidental fall in Greece, sculpted and […]

The Survivors Is Jane Harper at Her Criminal Best

If you are in need of a particularly good escape that requires no travel this pandemic February, look no further than Australian crime writer Jane Harper’s latest whodunit, The Survivors, […]

Ice Weather for Ducks

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February Ennui

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Cabin Fever

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Letters, February 18, 2021

Clear-Cutting in Wellfleet To the editor: The unpermitted clear-cutting at 1065 State Highway in Wellfleet is a shocking story of entitlement run amok [“Town Orders DiGiovannis to Cease and Desist,” […]

Helping and Hurting

Twenty-three years ago, I spent a memorable long weekend at the J. Erik Jonsson Center in Woods Hole, a classic old Cape Cod mansion with commanding views of Quissett Harbor […]

Catherine Ann Spiegel, 85, Helped Others Find Happiness

Catherine Ann Spiegel died peacefully on Jan. 29, 2021 at St. John Paul II nursing home in Danbury, Conn. She was 85. She was born on June 7, 1935 in […]

Christina Davidson, 91, Who Drank With Dylan Thomas

Christina Nestor Pappas Davidson, former Time Life reporter and leading figure in Provincetown in the 1970s and 1980s, died at her home in Los Angeles on Jan. 31, 2021. She […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Feb. 8 to Feb. 12, 2021 PROVINCETOWN Feb. 8. 100 Bayberry LLC [Lester J. Murphy Jr., agent] to April Callahan. 417 […]

Classifieds February 18 – February 24, 2021

ONE LOVE RG— … to hear the quiet breathing that says/ I am alive, that means also/ you are alive, because you hear me… —HG [2-18] CLASSES Online: Painting Techniques […]

Fees to Nearly Double in Pier Corp. Proposal

PROVINCETOWN — The Public Pier Corp., which operates MacMillan Pier, is proposing fee hikes for this year of around 50 percent to commercial fishermen and recreational businesses like whale watch […]

A Prickly Bikeway Debate Is About to Resume in Wellfleet

WELLFLEET — On the same day almost a year ago that Gov. Charlie Baker declared a state of emergency, March 10, the select board, state officials, and more than 50 […]

Pot Produces $480K in New Tax Revenue

PROVINCETOWN — A long-anticipated source of new tax revenue was confirmed last week when Provincetown reported fourth-quarter payments from Curaleaf and b/well, the two cannabis dispensaries that opened here in […]

Provincetown Outlines Extensive Mental Health Plan

PROVINCETOWN — Health Director Morgan Clark presented a five-year plan to the select board last month that aims to dramatically increase access to mental health and substance abuse treatment. The […]

Delay in Vaccinating Educators Causes Outcry

School administrators and teachers’ unions are often at odds with each other, but on Cape Cod, both sides agree on the need for educators to get vaccinated against Covid-19 as […]

Nauset Supt. Conrad to Retire in June

EASTHAM — Nauset Regional School District Supt. Thomas Conrad announced on Feb. 3 that he will retire at the end of June after 29 years. “I have been truly blessed […]

Hussey Leads Warriors to Senior Night Win

EASTHAM — Drew Locke secured his first victory as head coach of Nauset Regional High School boys hockey when the team beat Barnstable 4-3 at the Charles Moore Arena on […]

Ode to a Chicken, or a Goat

How do you measure your love for a chicken? Or describe that warm-fuzzy you feel when your goat greets you with a headbutt? I’m not sure. But I want to […]

For Young Singles, a Bleak Winter

Reader, I swiped. Call it scholarship, sacrifice, pure self-indulgence. What matters is this: for nine days and eight nights, I swiped. Of the Outer Cape’s 12,370 residents, just over a […]

Two Activists Find a Good Cause: Each Other

In 2002, Jennifer Smith had four children to raise, a full-time job as an Eastham firefighter, and a slew of volunteer responsibilities. There were Fresh Air Fund children to host […]

Plant-Printed Paper for Your Love Note

The 1840s saw the introduction of the mass-produced valentine in the U.S. We can thank Esther A. Howland, known as the “mother of the valentine,” for that. But even with […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Feb. 9 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Looking at Brady From Both Sides Now

I am a New York Jets fan. I don’t know why it happened. My family is from New York and my dad is a huge Giants fan. Even though I […]

Separation Anxiety

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Valentine’s Day, Oy Vey

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A Dessert Drink That’s Bitter and Sweet

I am the first to admit to having mixed feelings about Valentine’s Day. This year, they may be more mixed than ever. The last time we raised a glass to […]

On Cue, Sex Toy Sales Rise

PROVINCETOWN — Buying flowers this Valentine’s Day? They’ll wilt. Chocolates melt; jewelry dulls; teddy bears de-plush. Here’s another idea. Each February, salespeople at certain specialty stores see a run on […]

How Breathing Control Can Improve Your Health

There is much that we can’t control. This has always been true, of course, but it’s never been more apparent than now, in both our personal sphere and in the […]

Dear Jennifer: Advice for the Lovelorn

The Quarrel: Maggie and Nora are currently single-ish former college roommates. In May 2019, the roommates had a Category Five argument over the Game of Thrones finale. They haven’t texted […]

This Week In Provincetown

Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, Feb. 11 Other Post-Employment Benefits meeting, 2:30 p.m. Planning Board, 6 p.m. Public Pier Corp., […]

This Week In Truro

Meetings are held remotely. Go to www.truro-ma.gov, click on the meeting you want to watch, and open its agenda for instructions on how to watch or take part online. Thursday, Feb. […]

This Week In Wellfleet

Meetings are held remotely. From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its […]

This Week In Eastham

Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you’re interested in to read its agenda and for information on how to view and take part remotely.[…]

Jesse Ceraldi’s Floral Paintings Blossomed Amid Covid

“Flowers and love are both timeless and fleeting,” says Jesse Ceraldi. “A flower is an emblem of nature’s continuity, yet a beautiful bouquet dies in front of your eyes. In […]

For Sallie Tighe, the Outer Cape Is Both Stage and Salvation

The thing that reassures Sallie Tighe the most about “The 24 Hour Plays” — the annual Presidents Day tradition at the Provincetown Theater — is that she doesn’t have to […]

From New York to Truro to Russia and Back

Beginning next week, writer Karen Dukess is hosting a series of virtual talks with authors of new fiction and nonfiction via Truro Center for the Arts at Castle Hill. On […]

Winter Break

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An Artist’s Vision Offers a Handhold in the Dark

After the riot at the Capitol, we were told on the one hand that now is the time for peace and unity, and, on the other, that the violence carried […]

Phasing Out School Choice Will Save Millions

The Independent’s Feb. 4 article on the proposed Nauset Regional High School reconstruction [“Supt. Claims School Choice Doesn’t Raise Costs,” page A6] contains inaccurate statements by Supt. Thomas Conrad and […]

Cold Turkey

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Candy Hearts and Golden Rules

Venus, the planet of pleasure and beauty, floats freely through humanitarian Aquarius this month. What that means is that, while romance is certainly afoot, the overall feeling of love will […]

Making Sense of the RTE

Every year, each of our select boards is required to conduct a tax classification hearing and decide how to allocate the town’s property tax burden. And every year, these hearings […]

Letters, February 11, 2021

‘Ashamed and Angry’ To the editor: I have spent the past two days assisting older Eastham residents with the upcoming vaccine clinic here in conjunction with our local council on […]

Bertha L. Adams, 82, a Lifelong Resident

Bertha Louise Adams died peacefully in her sleep on Jan. 31, 2021 at Seashore Point Wellness Center in Provincetown, where she had been residing for the past year. She was […]

Susan Brown Goldsmith, 89, Ran Whigg’s of Wellfleet

Susan Brown Goldsmith, a fighter for women’s rights and equal opportunity, died in San Francisco on Jan. 23, 2021. She succumbed to Parkinson’s disease and dementia at age 89. Susan […]

William C. Brewer Jr., 88, a Southern Gentleman

William Clarke Brewer Jr. died peacefully at Cape Cod Hospital on Feb. 4, 2021 at age 88. Billy — that’s what everyone called him — lived a good, fun-filled life. […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Feb. 1 to Feb. 5, 2021. PROVINCETOWN Feb. 1. Building Block Realty Trust (Silvestro S. and Margaret E. Schiavone, trustees) to […]

Classifieds February 11 – February 17, 2021

DEAR VALENTINE Who loves you baby? I do! Now and always, Mr. Guy. To my darling Adam — I love you a bushel and a peck! Happy Valentine’s Day! Xo, M […]

6 Questions Sane People Ask Winter Surfers

Being a surfer on Cape Cod in the winter invites a lot of questions. Willingly jumping into the ocean when the temperature dips below freezing and the waves are big […]

Heartburn and Heartache in Vaccine Rollout

PROVINCETOWN — Massachusetts had a plan for rolling out the Covid vaccine. First up would be the entire health-care industry, police and fire depts., and congregate living facilities where large […]

Nauset Supt. Claims School Choice Doesn’t Raise Costs

EASTHAM — The Nauset Regional High School building project committee has scheduled a series of Zoom meetings leading up to the March 30 district-wide vote on the renovation project. The […]

Eastham Select Board Shies Away From the RTE

EASTHAM — The controversial residential tax exemption (RTE) is off the table for fiscal year 2022. Eastham’s select board voted at its Jan. 25 meeting not to adopt the exemption […]

Barker Redoes Plan for Waterfront Hotel

PROVINCETOWN — Developer Christine Barker will return to the town’s permitting boards with a reconfigured plan for the Old Reliable Fish House property. It will have to proceed anew through […]

Developer Seeks to Raze House in Provincetown Historic District

PROVINCETOWN — A 140-year-old cottage on Commercial Street overlooking the harbor won’t make it to its 141st birthday if the new owner is given the go-ahead to knock it down […]

Cape Cod Commission Sends Out New Waves of Data

PROVINCETOWN — The Cape Cod Commission plays an unusual role in the life of the Cape.It’s a kind of hybrid — part technical adviser, part regulator, part community planning […]

Nick Minnerath’s Unlikely Path From Truro to Seoul

TRURO — Nick Minnerath was almost two years beyond high school when he and his dad, Michael Minnerath, drove from Truro to Nebraska to help his sister move in late […]

The Long and Winding Road to Restoring a Classic

For those of us who are pretty much swamped during the summer season, but not the kind to close up shop in the winter, this is no time to kick […]

Dougie Freeman Takes a Bow

PROVINCETOWN — Long story short: Dougie Freeman, who since 1982 has cut, colored, and charmed the Outer Cape, who was, he says, once young and gorgeous and 127 pounds and […]

Fall II Season Set to Begin Feb. 22

EASTHAM — High school football will be played in Massachusetts this year. The Mass. Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA) voted on Jan. 29 to adopt sport-specific modifications to the “Fall II” […]

The Accoutrements of a Cold-Weather Cookout

The drifts of snow last week confirmed the reality that is winter. And if there ever were a winter to dive under the covers and not come out until mid-May, […]

Twice Baked, the Humble Hero of a Winter Picnic

Since nearly a year ago, I’ve been cultivating a small, dedicated, cautious band of creative weirdos. We are, as they say, a “pod.” Keeping each other safe, (reasonably) calm, fed, […]

Walking the Walk

Caitlin Townsend of Truro, a senior in the Marine Science, Safety, and Environmental Protection Program at Mass Maritime Academy, has been walking the back shore as part of her research […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Feb. 2 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Yoga for Better Bones

We tend to think of the skeleton as an inert frame, but it is actually dynamic, living tissue. Bone cells are constantly breaking down the old and building up the […]

Provincetown Students Head Back to Classrooms

PROVINCETOWN — Students in pre-kindergarten through 8th grade are on track to return to school on Monday, after a staff member’s positive Covid test prompted a 14-day switch to remote […]

This Week In Provincetown

Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, Feb. 4 Public Pier Corp, 3:30 p.m. Zoning Board of Appeals, 6 p.m. […]

This Week In Truro

Meetings are held remotely. Go to www.truro-ma.gov, click on the meeting you want to watch, and open its agenda for instructions on how to watch or take part online. Thursday, Feb. […]

This Week In Wellfleet

Meetings are held remotely. From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its […]

This Week In Eastham

Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on a particular meeting to read its agenda. That document will provide information about how to view and take part remotely. […]

Eric Maul Is Provincetown’s Rebel With a Flute

“I moved here in the summer of 2019,” says Eric Maul, a Provincetown-based, classically trained flutist. “I’d been living in Boston for five years, and I just wasn’t getting what […]

Wellfleet’s Modern Houses Are Still Laboratories for Collaboration

A storm rolls toward the Outer Cape, stirring the ocean’s waves and sending shivers through the pine forest. Unperturbed, a lone figure dances on the deck of the Kugel/Gips House, […]

Stories That Straddle Fact and Fiction

How odd in an era of “fake news” accusations — usually a case of childish denial, or a con artist’s switcheroo — to see a movie called News of the […]

The Story of America Through Hand-Crafted Objects

Perhaps you are turned off by standard American histories, from expensive textbooks to doorstop-sized biographies of Important Men. You might find descriptions of the conflict between Thomas Jefferson and Alexander […]

New Year’s Resolution, Week 5

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Food for Thought

Only one of Donald Trump’s many actions in the four years of his presidency got my approval: his pardon for the Thanksgiving turkey. A local turkey was pardoned last year, […]

Regional Government: An Introduction

PROVINCETOWN — Recent events have made clear the deep well of discontent in our society, and what appears to be a yawning, unbridgeable division among us. The new president has […]

The Smell of Success

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Mercury Is Retrograde in Aquarius

This week’s column is brought to you by Mercury retrograde in Aquarius. While we usually associate this event with interrupted travel plans, issues with technology, and communication breakdowns (Mercury rules […]

The Research Is Done

Truro’s new town manager, Darrin Tangeman, started work last month, having arrived here from his previous home in Woodland Park, Colo., where he was the city manager. We’re looking forward […]

Letters, February 4, 2021

A View From the Right To the editor: Those on the far left speak endlessly about diversity. Ironically, those are often the same people shutting down or censoring those with […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Jan. 25 to Jan. 29, 2021. PROVINCETOWN Jan. 25. Francis X. and Margaret T. Neylon to Cavalier Donkey LLC [Karen A. […]

Journalist Ernest Dickinson, 101, Earned Two Honor Guards

Ernest Newton Dickinson, a journalist, saxophone player, and fisherman who hit the Cape Cod beaches at 4 a.m., died on Jan. 16, 2021 at Seashore Point in Provincetown, his home […]

Guillermo Chang, 60, of North Truro

Guillermo Chang of North Truro died on Jan. 27, 2021 at age 60. He was born in Havana, Cuba on July 16, 1960. His parents, the late Guillermo and Muy […]

Janis Johnson, 91, Was a Passionate Educator

Janis T. Johnson, 91, died peacefully at her home in Eastham of natural causes on Jan. 25, 2021, her 91st birthday. She had just enjoyed a morning nap. Born in […]

Joann Eldridge, 81, a Legacy Teacher and Webmistress

Joann D. Eldridge, 81, of Wellfleet died on Jan. 26, 2021 of Merkel cell carcinoma. She was born on Aug. 31, 1939 in Milford to Joe and Ethel Eldridge, and […]

Robert J. Silva, 88, Korean War Veteran

Robert J. Silva, a lifelong Provincetown resident, died on Jan. 3, 2021 at the Briarwood Rehabilitation and Healthcare Center in Needham. He was 88. Born in Provincetown, he was the […]

Anthony Jackman, 70, Loved Theater and Knew the Craft

Anthony Jackman of Provincetown died at Cape Cod Hospital on Jan. 22, 2021. He was 70. The cause of death was pneumonia, said Phoebe Otis, his best friend. Tony arrived […]

Catherine Myers, Fulbright Scholar and Generous Friend, Dies at 87

Catherine R. Myers, 87, a professor of English literature who retired to Wellfleet for a second act as a volunteer and grandmother, died at home on Jan. 27, 2021 of […]

Classifieds February 4 – February 10, 2021

HELP WANTED Woodcutter. Woman or man with a chainsaw and skills wanted to cut up downed trees and logs into firewood at my property in Truro. Work the hours that […]

Drew Carnelli’s Sculptures Grow From the National Seashore

Drew Carnelli sets off down the beach, a stick to ward off coyotes in one hand, a bait bag for collecting trash in the other. He wanders the Outer Cape […]

A ‘Sextortion’ Case Reveals Silent Crisis for Teens

EASTHAM — On Nov. 6, 2020, a girl walked into Eastham’s police station, alone. Like a growing share of her generation, she was facing a new digital form of sexual […]

Peake Comes Out Swinging on Rule Reform

PROVINCETOWN — State Rep. Sarah Peake won’t support rule changes being urged by a statewide activist movement as a way to bring more transparency to Beacon Hill. The measures would […]

Town Orders DiGiovannis to Cease and Desist

WELLFLEET — The Great White Realty Group LLC closed on the purchase of the 1.38-acre lot at the corner of Route 6 and Old Wharf Road on Friday, Jan. 8. […]

A Big Bill Targets Tiny Wellfleet Roads

WELLFLEET — The global pandemic has rained down calamities at every street corner, but residents of three rural roads in Wellfleet may see a nugget of gold from it. The […]

If Young Fishermen Learn Their Way In, Then What?

Along the American coastline, historic fishing communities — from the tip of Cape Cod to Alaska’s Bristol Bay — are plagued with a problem. This time, it’s not overfishing, complex […]

Wellfleet Solar Array Gets Closer to Going Live

WELLFLEET — The array of 2,400 solar panels on Wellfleet’s capped landfill, which was installed by the renewable energy company Ameresco more than a year ago in December 2019, is […]

Mapping the Trump Vote on Cape Cod

The editor of the Independent noted in his Jan. 14 editorial page column “that 2,144 citizens of Eastham, Wellfleet, Truro, and Provincetown voted for Trump on Nov. 3.” He didn’t […]

Be Prepared for Predators

Every backyard chicken farmer must face the fact that some animals around us see those friendly hens as prey. On the Outer Cape, our flocks are up against a long […]

Give Sports a Listen

Sports radio has gotten boring. But sports podcasts have taken its place, offering refreshing, serious, and educational listening. Here are some favorites: The Dan Le Batard Show With Stugotz Dan […]

When Chefs Go Home, It’s Simplicity They Seek

Those who work in professional kitchens have a multitude of tools to get them through the daily grind. Some are workhorses — a heavy-duty mixer or a deep stack of […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Jan. 26 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Boys Hockey Searches for First Win

EASTHAM — The Nauset boys ice hockey team was on the verge of losing its third game to start the season against the Dennis-Yarmouth Dolphins on Jan. 23. The Warriors […]

Wellfleet Oyster Fried Rice

Last year may have been the-year-that-cannot-be-named, but for Robert and me it was not entirely bad. It was the year we got our oyster mojo going. We became rookie recreational […]

Covid-19

Gov. Charlie Baker announced that Phase Two Covid-19 vaccinations would begin next week.Starting Wednesday, Jan. 27, those 75 years old and older could book vaccination appointments online at maimmunizations.org. […]

This Week In Provincetown

Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch.Thursday, Jan. 28 Public Pier Corp., 3 p.m. Planning Board, 6 p.m. Zoning Board of Appeals, […]

This Week In Truro

Meetings are held remotely. Go to www.truro-ma.gov, click on the meeting you want to watch, and open its agenda for instructions on how to watch or take part online. Thursday, Jan. […]

This Week In Wellfleet

Meetings are held remotely. From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its […]

This Week In Eastham

Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you’re interested in to read its agenda and find out how to view and take part remotely.Thursday, […]

Napi Van Dereck Exhibit Sequel Opens at PAAM

An exhibition of artworks from the collection of Napi and Helen Van Dereck opened last Friday at the Provincetown Art Association and Museum. The first installment of this show took […]

The Loneliest of Lombards

WELLFLEET — Deep in the woods of Wellfleet’s Bound Brook Island, a path padded with pine needles and slashed with filtered sunlight rises and dips, showing the way to a […]

How the Moon Pulls Us Into the Tidal Bulge

The tide comes in and out twice a day, sometimes a little higher, sometimes a little lower. It’s so much a part of our daily lives that it’s easy to […]

More Heart, Less Roar

The last time the Moon was full in Leo was in February of last year. Remember those days? How blissfully ignorant we were back then to the imminent and significant […]

Drive-in Sunset

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Use Rooms Tax Dollars for Housing

Over the past two decades, year-round rental apartments have all but vanished on the Outer Cape as their owners have discovered how much more lucrative it is to rent their […]

Anxiety, Aisle 9

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Covid Gets Me off the Hook

EASTHAM — Before the pandemic, I often led classes for the Registry of Motor Vehicles. The students had been cited for speeding and other infractions. The curriculum was supposed to […]

The End

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Letters, January 28, 2021

Please Vaccinate To the editor: I implore my neighbors to get a Covid-19 vaccination as soon as one becomes available. The reasons given to abstain range from “The pandemic is […]

A Lot of Work to Do

The pages of this newspaper are, as I write this, being assembled from various locations, including an Eastham basement, various Provincetown and Truro bedrooms, and our dining room table in […]

Abby Mary Orton, 74, a Woodstock and Crossword Fan

Abby Mary Orton, 74, of Truro died on Jan. 17, 2021 at Pleasant Bay Nursing Home and Rehabilitation Center in Brewster. No cause of death has been reported. Abby was […]

Bonnie Steele McGhee, 75, a Cheerful Free Spirit

Bonnie Gae Steele McGhee, a lifelong resident of Provincetown, died on Christmas Eve morning, Dec. 24, 2020, at Cape Cod Hospital following a lengthy battle with diabetes. She was 75 […]

Hilary H. Bamford, 83, Host of Friday Folk

Hilary H. Bamford of Provincetown died at home on Jan. 19, 2021 at age 83 after a lengthy illness. She was the widow of Sidney W. Bamford, who died in […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats

Classifieds January 28 – February 3, 2021

HELP WANTED Carpenters needed, skilled or semi-skilled. Own transportation and basic hand tools a must. If interested, call Winard Construction, 508-487-2538 or 508-789-8089. [2-18] Experienced editorial assistant needed. This newspaper needs […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Jan. 18 to Jan. 22, 2021. PROVINCETOWN Jan. 19. Property of Laurence De Freitas (Alissa Allen, conservator) to Betty Krier. 14 […]

Wellfleet Harbor’s ‘Black Custard’

WELLFLEET — Agnes Mittermayr, a marine ecologist at the Center for Coastal Studies (CCS) in Provincetown, has coined a new term to describe the dark, sludgy material that fills Wellfleet […]

A Push for Openness in State House Rules

At the start of each legislative session, Mass. State House lawmakers write their own rules for how bills will be introduced, studied, debated, and voted on over the next two […]

Police Reform Law Includes New Civilian Oversight

PROVINCETOWN — Massachusetts’s new police reform bill will change many aspects of policing, including training and certification, with new use-of-force rules, a duty to intervene and stop other officers from […]

Cloverleaf Is OK’d, but Foes May Appeal

TRURO — After more than a year of hearings, on Jan. 14, the Cloverleaf — which will give Truro 39 units of mostly affordable rental housing at 22 Highland Road […]

May 31 Deadline for Vote Called Into Question

EASTHAM — The Mass. School Building Authority (MSBA) has confirmed that the Nauset Regional High School renovation is eligible for a third extension of the deadline for qualifying for a […]

Short-Term Rental Tax Brings Outer Cape $3.8 Million

PROVINCETOWN — Even during the pandemic, the short-term rental tax is bringing in serious money to the four Outer Cape towns. The long-awaited tax — technically, an expansion of the […]

Truro Cesspools May Be Banned in 3 Years

TRURO — The 100 Truro residents who have cesspools will have three years to hire engineers, get permits, and install new Title 5 septic systems if a proposed board of […]

Warriors Win in Double Overtime

EASTHAM — John Piemontese, head coach of the Nauset girls basketball team, said before the season started that the team’s goal was to win the Cape and Islands League championship. […]

How to Write a Story That ‘Lands in People’s Hearts’

The quiet winter months on the Outer Cape call many to their desks to tell their stories in writing. And in this particularly dark winter, that call can seem more […]

Where Faith Leaders Find Solace

PROVINCETOWN — Kate Wilkinson is tired. Which is no surprise. Who isn’t? It’s hardly controversial to write that hardly anything is going well right now. (I ask Tom Ryan, former […]

Will Girls Keep Streak Going?

Friday, Jan. 22 Boys and girls swimming: Nauset hosts a virtual swim meet against the Barnstable Red Raiders at 4 p.m. Girls basketball: The Warriors are scheduled to play an […]

Why You Love the Mug You’re With

Odds are, you have a favorite mug. The one at the front of your cabinet or always on your drying rack, waiting to be picked up again. It fits your […]

Lessons of a Horrible Year

TRURO — Philosophy trains the mind to take the long view of things. You try to take yourself out of the picture and see things as they truly are, undistorted […]

The Sun Swings Us Into a New Age

The Sun enters the sign of Aquarius this week. Aquarius is the realm of brotherhood, of breaking boundaries, and of a bohemian approach to this bothersome thing called life. Even […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Jan. 19 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Stuffed Clams: Guarantee of Good Will

It is easy to forget how special it is to be able to find free seafood across the street. I’m a washashore from a landlocked desert state, so it still […]

Harbormaster’s Office Design Approved

EASTHAM — The Rock Harbor Capital Projects Committee voted on Jan. 11 to accept “design number two” for a harbormaster’s office, a shed-like, 563-square-foot building on eight-foot pilings. “I like […]

Singer Pays for Clear-Cutting Misdeed

TRURO — Ron Singer, a local plumber who admitted clear-cutting a swath of conservation land by his house on Francis Farm Road, has paid the Truro Conservation Trust to restore […]

This Week In Provincetown

Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch.Thursday, Jan. 21 Economic Development Committee, 1 p.m. Board of Health, 4 p.m. Zoning Board of […]

This Week In Truro

Meetings are held remotely. Go to www.truro-ma.gov, click on the meeting you want to watch, and open its agenda for instructions on how to watch or take part online. Thursday, Jan. […]

This Week In Wellfleet

Meetings are held remotely. From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its […]

This Week In Eastham

Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on a particular meeting to read its agenda. That document will provide information about how to view and take part remotely. […]

Lew Schwartz Turns His Eye to the Outer Cape

“Clear mind, tabula rasa, the four corners of the frame, calm breath,” photographer Lew Schwartz says as he prepares to shoot. “Someone on the street brushes away a mosquito, waves […]

Berger and Motherwell: An Artistic Friendship

A red sky is bisected by a darker red column, shadowed in black. Affixed are three paper fragments. The one at left is sheet music from Arthur Berger’s Trio for […]

Amber Ruffin and Lacey Lamar Tell It Like It Is

Under no circumstances should you crack the covers of Amber Ruffin’s and Lacey Lamar’s You’ll Never Believe What Happened to Lacey in a place you need to be quiet — […]

Circled Wagons

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The Bookworm’s Manifesto

Should I be so lucky as to reach old age, I imagine I will be asked what I did during the pandemic year, when a virus set fire to the […]

Winter Walk #3

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The Origins of Hatred

My last column (“The Bradford Street Wave”) came out on Jan. 7. In it, I decried the threat of violence that hung in the air and pled for reaching out […]

Letters, January 21, 2021

‘A Pitiful Display’ To the editor: My heart almost broke for the much maligned and persecuted Nick Nickerson and his “wife of two weeks” [“Nick Nickerson’s Day of Infamy,” Jan. […]

A Truth Flow Problem

I’ve been thinking about the relationship between local newspapers and town leaders and wondering if what happens in small towns bears any resemblance to what’s been going on (and not […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Jan. 11 to Jan. 15, 2021. PROVINCETOWN Jan. 11. Allan P. Dillabough and Jonathan Runge to William Clay Faquin. 93 Commercial […]

John Burgess, 74, a Globe Editor

John Burgess of Orleans died at Cape Cod Hospital on Jan. 8, 2021 following a stroke. He was 74 years old. A newspaper writer and editor in Boston for more […]

Peter Strom Goldstein, 91, Partner of Ralph Lauren

Peter Strom Goldstein of New York City and Truro died on Jan. 8, 2021 in New York. He was 91. Peter was born in Passaic, N.J. in 1929. After graduating […]

Classifieds January 21 – January 27, 2021

CONNECTIONS Let’s Correspond. Conservative, unattached, financially secure widower seeks lady with similar qualities as pen pal friend. I can best be reached via phone at 716-652-0142. [3-11] ART CLASSES Online: […]

Coloring In the White Space

PROVINCETOWN — Michael Cestaro’s short film White Space will screen on Sunday, Jan. 17 at 3 p.m. on Zoom. In it, four women of color — Mozelle Andrulot, Alejandra Cuadra, […]

Lawyer Is Hired to Face ZBA on Cloverleaf

TRURO — On the eve of the expected approval of what would be the town’s largest affordable housing development, a group calling itself Concerned Members of the Pond Village Watershed […]

Nauset Board Sets HS Vote for March 30

EASTHAM — The Nauset Regional School Committee voted 6 to 1 on Jan. 7 to set March 30 as the date for a district-wide vote on the $131.8-million renovation of […]

Nick Nickerson’s Day of Infamy

EASTHAM — Nathan “Nick” Nickerson III doesn’t regret going to the “rally” on Jan. 6 that turned into a violent storming of the U.S. Capitol, but he does wish that […]

Free Rapid Covid Testing Extended to Feb. 28

PROVINCETOWN — Free asymptomatic coronavirus testing will continue on the Outer Cape. The free rapid-testing program that began here on Dec. 23 was scheduled to end on Jan. 10 and […]

Planning Board Debates Changes in AADU Bylaw

WELLFLEET — The planning board voted 5 to 1 at its Jan. 6 meeting to draft a new umbrella bylaw regulating both accessory dwelling units (ADUs) and affordable accessory dwelling […]

Biden’s Advent Kindles Hope for Advisory Commission Revival

WELLFLEET — On March 4 last year, the Cape Cod National Seashore Advisory Commission hit another roadblock on the road to reauthorization. The acting deputy director of the National Park […]

Biden’s Advent Kindles Hope for Commission Revival

WELLFLEET — On March 4 last year, the Cape Cod National Seashore Advisory Commission hit another roadblock on the road to reauthorization. The acting deputy director of the National Park […]

A Nauset Runner’s Road to Success

EASTHAM — Last season, as a junior at Nauset Regional High School, Monique Malcolm placed first in both the 55-meter dash and 300-meter dash at the MIAA Division 4 track […]

Welcome, Thora and Eva

Annie Longley and Erik Hamnquist are delighted to introduce Eva Rose and Thora Lillian Longley Hamnquist. Thora is above at left; Eva is on the right. Born at 8:30 a.m. […]

Responding to Stranded Mammals

Tracks left by marine mammal rescuers were visible from the air after three common dolphins were found stranded at Bee’s River Marsh, near First Encounter Beach in Eastham on January […]

With Swap Shops Closed, the Giving Isn’t So Easy

As each new year begins, many people are motivated to purge their homes of clutter. “Everyone wants a fresh start,” says Diana Morgan, a professional organizer based in Brewster. But […]

Hydrangeas Offer More Than Summer Romance

There is a stillness that lays itself over our gardens during the winter months. Without the vibrant greens of leaves and pops of color from flowering plants, we are reminded […]

Kimchi Is Made of Spicy, Funky Kitchen Magic

Life in the upside down has pushed me into some kitchen adventures I might not otherwise have entertained. One of them is membership in an “ugly” fruit and vegetable delivery […]

The Planets Pit Chaos Against Enlightenment

Recalling the horoscope from the week of America’s national election, we knew even then that Uranus would play a disruptive role until just before Inauguration Day, when it will station […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Jan. 12, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Turn Up The Heat

Need some answers? Just ask and we’ll send them. This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.

New Accountant Takes On ‘Glaring Issues’

WELLFLEET ­— Nearly three months after the abrupt dismissal of the town accountant, the town has filled the position. The new accountant, Heather Michaud, began work on Dec. 14, Town […]

This Week In Provincetown

Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch.Thursday, Jan. 14 Water & Sewer Board, 1 p.m. Public Pier Corp., 3 p.m. Planning Board, […]

This Week In Truro

Meetings are held remotely. Go to www.truro-ma.gov, click on the meeting you want to watch, and open its agenda for instructions on how to watch or take part online. Thursday, Jan. […]

This Week In Wellfleet

Meetings are held remotely. From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its […]

This Week In Eastham

Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you’re interested in to read its agenda and find out how to view and take part remotely.Thursday, […]

In Provincetown, Learn to Shoot Your Story for Free

“Community television is about telling the story of a community directly through the voice of the residents,” says Amy Davies. “And that is very appealing to me.” Davies is executive […]

An Indie Playlist for the New Year

For this new edition of the Indie Playlist, the focus was specifically on music videos and filmed performances. The result? “Radiated country music,” Dante pop, psychedelic Baroque, three harpists with […]

A Trio of Movies That Revise Romance

Watching the superhero movie Wonder Woman 1984 in my living room was a decidedly underwhelming experience. It has big-budget action set pieces and a surfeit of CGI magic, but they […]

Postcards From the Pandemic

In the fall, after finishing a summer fellowship at this newspaper, I began a pandemic-induced leave of absence from college. I dreamed of a normal gap year, in which I’d […]

Uncaged

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The Chickens Come Home to the Coup

TRURO — By fomenting a violent uprising against democratic rule last week, President Trump did something unique in American history. He unleashed terror in his own country. Previous presidents have […]

Bending the Arc of the Moral Universe

Living in Provincetown is a unique experience. It seems as if we are at the end of the world, tucked away on a beautiful spit of land, surrounded by glorious […]

Time for Corrections

Mistakes were made, as they say. When newspapers make them (as we did last week, including getting the sponsor of the annual Martin Luther King Day breakfast wrong), we print […]

Letters, January 14, 2021

Truro Tempers To the editor: Off-season Cape Cod has always been my favorite time. People wave to each other on the roads, the traffic lessens, and the pace of things […]

Estelle Nadel, a Mah Jongg Ace, Dies at 94

Estelle Rose White Nadel died peacefully at home in Wellfleet on Dec. 18, 2020, just a few weeks shy of her 95th birthday. Her family was at her side. Every […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Jan. 4 to Jan. 8, 2021. PROVINCETOWN Jan. 4. Ben S. and Patricia F. Stone to Kyoko and David Gelber. 19 […]

Classifieds January 14 – January 20, 2021

THANK YOU On behalf of the Welsh family, thank you for your love and sympathy after the passing of our dear Charlie. He was truly a prince among men. We […]

With Recycling and Re-Use Rare, Glass Gets Downcycled

Garbage. It’s a story ripe with complexity. The Independent is dumpster diving into the subject to better understand where the Outer Cape’s garbage goes. In this second installment, we look […]

Health Care Giant Tackles Outer Cape

ORLEANS — The financial challenges that prompted Cape Cod Healthcare to temporarily shelve its $180-million hospital expansion plan last year and lay off more than 100 employees in late summer […]

Crabbing the Muck on the Codfish II

PROVINCETOWN — Spudded just east of MacMillan Wharf, the Codfish II is crabbing. Behind her, her pipe threads beneath two piers and floats. Ahead, her cutterhead sinks, spins. Her depth […]

Board Rejects Willy’s License Renewals

EASTHAM — The select board voted four to one on Jan. 4 not to renew Willy’s World’s all-alcohol retail license and common victualer’s license, saying 2018 changes at the facility […]

‘Rollout’ of Vaccine Gets to Cape Cod

PROVINCETOWN — The Outer Cape is getting vaccinated for Covid. Outer Cape Health Services has been inoculating its staff here and in Wellfleet with the Moderna vaccine. Seashore Point Wellness […]

Wellfleet Loses Bid to Extend Dredging

WELLFLEET — Throwing its weight behind the Balaenidae of Cape Cod Bay, the Army Corps of Engineers on Dec. 30 rejected the town’s last-ditch request for a two-week extension of […]

Proposed Eastham Budget Is Up 4.2 Percent

EASTHAM — Though there are still some moving parts, as Finance Director Richard Bienvenue called them, the town’s 2022 operating budget of $36,364,711, presented at the select board’s Jan. 4 […]

Eastham 911 Dispatcher Retires After 32 Years

EASTHAM — Firefighters get trucks and hoses; police officers, cuffs; EMTs, those screaming sirens. But 911 dispatchers? To them goes little glitz, little drama, still less recognition. The job may […]

Covid Halts Wellfleet’s MLK Walk

WELLFLEET — Following months of racial reckoning inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement, this was supposed to be a big year for Wellfleet’s 18-year-old Martin Luther King Day observance […]

Long-Awaited Covid Inoculations Begin for Health Workers

PROVINCETOWN — Dr. Andrew Jorgensen received a much-hoped-for gift just before Christmas this year, in the form of an initial dose of the Moderna Covid-19 vaccine. He’s on track for […]

The Art of the Handwritten Thank You

“Gratitude.” I feel like this word has taken on such power in recent times. I know I am not alone in trying to make being mindfully thankful a daily practice. […]

Acorn Flour-Thickened Beef Stew

Last fall, I taught a foraging class for Wellfleet Elementary School students. We gathered once a week, after school, rain or shine, and headed out into the woods with no […]

Nauset Winter Sports Teams Eager to Compete

EASTHAM — The Nauset Regional High School boys ice hockey team lost its first game of the season to the Nantucket Whalers 3-0 on Saturday, Jan. 2. Though it was […]

When There’s a New Moon in Conscientious Capricorn

The Sun and Moon meet in Capricorn this week for the first new Moon of the new year. When setting intentions for a new Moon, consider the qualities of the […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Jan. 5, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Could She, Would She Give You Goat’s Milk?

For some people, chickens are a gateway farm animal. You start out with a backyard flock. The fresh eggs are nice. So, you start thinking about producing something else, maybe […]

This Week In Provincetown

Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch.Thursday, Jan. 7 Town Manager Search Committee, 5 p.m. Zoning Board of Appeals, 6 p.m. Monday, […]

This Week In Truro

Meetings are held remotely. Go to www.truro-ma.gov, click on the meeting you want to watch, and open its agenda for instructions on how to watch or take part online. Thursday, Jan. […]

This Week In Wellfleet

Meetings are held remotely. From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its […]

This Week In Eastham

Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on a particular meeting to read its agenda. That document will provide information about how to view and take part remotely.[…]

The Paintings of Felipe Ortiz Explode With Life

Felipe Ortiz stands on the deck of Wellfleet’s Lechay House, the modernist former home of the late painter James Lechay. The view stretches across the pine forest all the way […]

A Secular Celebration of Love and the Earth

Editor’s note: Truro poet Brendan Galvin’s 19th volume of poems, titled Partway to Geophany, was published by Louisiana State University Press in November 2020. Galvin’s many awards include a Guggenheim […]

Alexis Pauline Gumbs Reveals Marine Mammals’ Radical Nature

Alexis Pauline Gumbs describes herself as a “queer Black feminist love evangelist and marine mammal apprentice” in Undrowned: Black Feminist Lessons From Marine Mammals, published this past November. The description […]

Winter Walk #2

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Governor’s Orders

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The Bradford Street Wave

PROVINCETOWN — Walking along Bradford Street with my dog, I see the DPW truck coming down the hill. I know many of the DPW guys, and one of them, Paul, […]

Winter Wanderland

Cheers, community, from the Lower Cape Outdoor Winter Activities Council! Oh, what a year we’ve wassailed! We hope your holidays were abundant, yet realistic, and that you rejoiced in a […]

Stopping by Woods in a Plague Year

Who hung this here I do not know. He must be from the village, though, And must have brought […]

Staying Curious

Late on a Tuesday night, with the paper close to being finished, I’m doing the final top edit — the last review, to find any gaffes that have gotten by […]

Ruth Trewhella, 65, Was AIDS Care Advocate

Ruth Trewhella, a former resident of Provincetown, died on Dec. 29, 2020 in Tucson, Ariz. from complications related to Covid-19. She was 65. Ruth was born on Sept. 19, 1955 […]

Rev. Robert K. Dixon, 84, Was an Activist Priest

The Rev. Robert Keith Dixon, who was known as Tim, died on Dec. 30, 2020 at the University of Connecticut John Dempsey Hospital in Farmington, Conn. He was 84. After […]

Letters, January 7, 2021

Parking Lot Relief To the editor: Regarding the plan for solar panels in Provincetown’s historic district that Michael Rodgers referred to in his letter in last week’s Independent: If not […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Dec. 28 to Dec. 31, 2020.PROVINCETOWNDec. 28. Carol Pineo to Kevin Buonaiuto Alcaraz. 501 Commercial St., Unit 16. $549,000. […]

What’s Past Is Prologue

We are grateful to the artists and photographers included here who have helped us create a New Year’s greeting card to the Independent’s readers. This page is available to subscribers. […]

Bill That Expands Free Testing Lands on Baker’s Desk

PROVINCETOWN — A long-running legislative effort to secure free asymptomatic Covid testing for many classes of frontline workers — particularly those employed in health care, restaurants, and retail and hospitality […]

Action Needed Now, Housing Authorities Say

PROVINCETOWN — With a real estate market rocket-fueled by the pandemic, housing officials here are calling for action and leadership to secure a larger supply of affordable homes for year-round […]

When ‘You’re Invited’ Really Means ‘Stay Away’

TRURO — Since purchasing their beachfront property at 42 Great Hollow Road in 2018, Susan and Wesley Chapman have sent out an annual email inviting their neighbors to be guests […]

Eastham Harbormaster’s Office Plan Downsized

EASTHAM — The Rock Harbor Improvements Capital Project Committee unveiled a new design concept for the harbormaster’s office at its Dec. 28 meeting. It involved a smaller footprint, lower roofline, […]

Provincetown Horticulture Students Are ‘Tough as Nails’

PROVINCETOWN — “We don’t sugarcoat anything,” said Dave Consalvi of the horticulture program at the Cape Cod Regional Technical High School in Harwich. When freshmen explore their options for career […]

Live From New York, It’s Scott Penn!

PROVINCETOWN — For some who move off Cape, it’s a challenge to stay away. Like a full-moon tide, the lure of the place pulls them back. This was true for […]

Outer Cape Gets First Taste of Septic ‘Layer Cake’

EASTHAM — The town and a volunteer property owner, Peter Dobyns, are participating in a wastewater treatment experiment that could alter the finances of controlling nitrogen contamination. The experimental […]

House to House on Bound Brook Island

Following the roads and paths of Wellfleet’s Bound Brook Island, you’ll find hillsides covered with bearberry and stands of winterberry along the now-still tidal brook below. There are houses, too […]

New Verse for the Ballad of the Color-Blind Squid

It seems fitting at the end of this year to find oneself humming “Suite: Judy Blue Eyes.” “Don’t let the past remind us of what we are not now….” Stephen […]

As Mass. Locks Down, Walks Are the New Squats

PROVINCETOWN — As statewide Covid-19 rates spiked last week, Gov. Charlie Baker tightened pandemic restrictions from the Boston State House. Designed to tamp down the carnage of the holiday season, […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Dec. 29, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Mussels for the New Year

The mussel stew we’ve been enjoying forever is a good one: Portuguese-style with linguiça, peppers, onions, and tomatoes. A Cape Cod staple. But over the years we’ve tinkered with the […]

The Real Elastic Fantastic

Surprise, surprise: working out at home is predicted to be one of the biggest fitness trends of 2021. Already in this year, finding strength training equipment has been a challenge. […]

The Full Moon Settles In at Home

Finally, this year of folly finishes with a full Moon in the watery sign of Cancer, the Moon’s zodiacal domicile. Ruler of the realms of home and family, Cancer is […]

The Brothers Dyer: A Provincetown Family of Captains

PROVINCETOWN — In January 1868, during the heyday of Provincetown’s whaling era, the Barnstable Patriot noted in a small item, halfway down column two on page two, that four whaling […]

This Week In Provincetown

Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch.Tuesday, Jan. 5 Conservation Commission, 6 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 6 Council on Aging, 5 […]

This Week In Truro

Meetings are held remotely. Go to www.truro-ma.gov, click on the meeting you want to watch, and open its agenda for instructions on how to watch or take part online. Monday, […]

This Week In Wellfleet

Meetings are held remotely. From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you are interested in to open its […]

This Week In Eastham

Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you’re interested in to read its agenda and learn how to view and take part remotely. Tuesday, Jan. […]

Racism, Corruption, and All That Jazz

August Wilson’s Pittsburgh cycle of 10 plays, one for each decade of the 20th century, is a towering achievement, chronicling the history of African-American life through powerful, personal storytelling. Now, […]

Bitch Is Back in Provincetown

“It’s a new year/ or about to be/ I wanna forgive/ everything that has harmed me.” These are the opening lyrics of the song “New Year,” by Bitch, formerly half […]

Judging Musical Performance on Film

As more and more music making goes online — with YouTube videos, pre-recorded concerts, and live-streams — music critics are having to become more like film critics. They are having […]

Annual Family Meeting

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Four Weddings and a Funeral

This fall, I designed four weddings and my best friend’s funeral. Planning a memorable gathering in a pandemic may sound impossible. In reality, all five events were experiences I will […]

A Global Pandemic Sparks Historic Worldwide Collaboration

The administration of the first safe and effective Covid-19 vaccines is reason for hope and celebration. The pandemic is global and the effort to combat its devastation must be international. […]

Playing for Keeps

In the same week that we were gathering the work of local artists for this special Art & Photography issue to kick off 2021, an article in the New York […]

Letters, December 31, 2020

Are More Hotel Rooms Needed? To the editor: I am writing in support of Mr. Scott Ravelson’s, Mr. Robert Anderson’s, and Mr. Patrick Patrick’s effort “to annul the variances and […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats

Frank Pantano, 65, Whose Passion Was Teaching

Part-time Provincetown resident Frank J. Pantano died suddenly on Dec. 20, 2020 at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. The cause was still unknown at press time. He was 65. Born […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Dec. 21 to Dec. 24, 2020. PROVINCETOWN Dec. 21. Sebastian J. and Dawn Snow to William Peter Forni Jr. 29 Alden […]

Classifieds December 31 – January 6, 2020

HELP WANTED Carpenters needed, skilled or semi-skilled. Own transportation and basic hand tools a must. If interested, call Winard Construction, 508-487-2538 or 508-789-8089. [1-7] Experienced editor needed. The Independent is ready […]

For Wellfleet Shellfishermen, Farmers Market Is ‘Pure Good News’

WELLFLEET — For local shellfishermen, good news this fall was in short supply. Covid’s shuttering of restaurants across the country had wreaked havoc on the wholesale distribution chain, usually a […]

Free Covid Testing Has Come to Outer Cape Health Services

PROVINCETOWN — Until this week, only people with symptoms of Covid-19 and those who have had direct contact with infected people have been able to get tested for the coronavirus […]

Eastham Pot Shop Hopes for February Opening

EASTHAM — The marijuana dispensary Emerald Grove is anticipating a February opening for adult-use retail sales, but it may have to delay launching its medical marijuana dispensary until later in […]

Last-Minute Change Delays Cloverleaf OK

TRURO — The development of the affordable housing project known as the Cloverleaf hit a snag on Dec. 17 that has delayed the approval of the 39-unit plan by the […]

Abutters’ Lawsuits Put Hotel Project on Hold

PROVINCETOWN — The multi-million-dollar mixed-use development proposed for the site of the former Old Reliable Fish House off Commercial Street, which sailed smoothly through the town’s permitting process last winter […]

Cliffhanger at the Blasch House

WELLFLEET — The long-running drama of the Blasch house continues, as the structure is now just 12 to 14 feet from the edge of the coastal bank high above Cape […]

Outer Cape Businesses Got $37 Million in PPP Loans

PROVINCETOWN — A review of records released by the Small Business Administration (SBA) on Dec. 1 shows that small businesses and independent contractors on the Outer Cape received $37 million […]

The Stay-at-Home School Vacation Week

On Christmas Eve, it will have been 286 days since social distancing became our new normal and our school, work, and home lives merged into one, sometimes overly close, space. […]

An Outer Cape Storybook Christmas

In winters past, Rudelle Falkenburg’s Storybook School was a regular Santa’s workshop of handmade ornaments. Many families still lovingly unpack these decorations each year, and, with them, sweet memories. “We […]

Encountering Santa in a Fraught Season

TRURO — Santa Claus is used to tough questions. How, demanded one junior superfan, did Santa know to bequeath him a Star Wars figurine? Well, said Glenn Enos, a sergeant […]

Local Pats Fans Face Losing Season

In a reality check for fans, the New England Patriots face an uncertain future. The Pats lost this past Sunday to the Miami Dolphins, 22-12, bringing the team’s record to […]

A Magical Winter Elixir for a Lazy Afternoon

If you were to stop by my kitchen (were stopping by still allowed), you’d likely find a pot of stock murmuring gently on a back burner. Last spring, when everyone […]

Tinkering and Improvisation Yield a ‘Perfect’ Drink

Was it just last year at this time that I wrote about that frisson that comes with the first sip of a cocktail enjoyed while flying home for the holidays? […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape for the week came in on Monday, Dec. 21, a day ahead of the usual report, which is prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

A Make-Believe Mantelpiece

“The fact that ‘hearth’ is synonymous with ‘home’ in so many tongues is sufficient argument for a fireplace,” writes Bradford Angier in his 1952 book How to Build Your Home […]

Gather Warmth and Cheer From the Sun’s Solstice Rebirth

Did you see the Great Conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn? The two planets were also conjunct (close together in the sky from our Earthly perspective) three times in the year […]

This Week In Provincetown

Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Town Hall will close at noon on Thursday, Dec. 24, and be closed all day Friday, […]

This Week In Truro

Meetings are held remotely. To watch live, go to truro-ma.gov and follow the “helpful link” to Truro Channel 18. Town Hall will be closed Thursday, Dec. 24 and Friday, Dec. 25 and […]

This Week In Wellfleet

Meetings are held remotely. From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its agenda. […]

This Week In Eastham

Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you’re interested in. The agenda provides provide information about how to view and take part remotely. Monday, Dec. […]

Cameron Barker Reveals Sweetness in Anonymous Sex

“There are far more similarities to human touch than there are differences, regardless of who you love,” says artist Cameron Barker. “Because of the need many people feel to reject […]

The Town Seals of the Outer Cape

This article is the first in a series on town seals. Massachusetts is finally close to changing its state flag and state seal, with its problematic image of a sword […]

How to Hold Animals Is a Book to Curl Up With

The cover of Toshimitsu Matsuhashi’s How to Hold Animals features an adorable sugar glider, a bug-eyed mouse-like creature, gently cupped between two human hands. Readers might therefore expect the book […]

Coyote Carol

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Christmas by Candlelight

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Ho! Ho! Huh?

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The Year We All Became Year-Rounders

PROVINCETOWN — Once upon a time there was come unto the land a plague of broad proportions, a pestilence that brought death, desolation, and disruption, and caused many in the […]

Christmas Yet to Come

With so many holiday traditions curtailed this year, the importance of memory and resilience has grown. And so, as we stay home, put up lights, and decorate the tree (if […]

Letters, December 24, 2020

A Disservice To the editor: I appreciate the Independent for the in-depth stories that are important to those of us who live on the Outer Cape. It is thoughtful, well-written, and […]

Joan Roderick, Whose Home Was Always Open, Dies at 89

Joan M. Roderick, 89, of Provincetown died on Dec. 19, 2020 at Seashore Point Wellness Center in Provincetown. She was the widow of James J. Roderick Sr., who died in […]

Katherine Stillman, 76, Created Salty Duck Pottery

The death of Katherine Stillman of Wellfleet on July 20, 2020 at Cape Cod Hospital was reported to the Independent this week. She was 76. She was born on Oct. 5, […]

Margaret Ward, 81, Was Devoted to Children

Margaret Elizabeth Ward of Wellfleet died on Dec. 11, 2020 at age 81. The cause was complications of lung cancer, said her son, Sean. Margaret was born in Brooklyn, N.Y. […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Dec. 14 to Dec. 18, 2020. PROVINCETOWNDec. 15. 2 Commercial Street Realty Trust (Clifford J. Schorer, trustee) to Miren Etcheverry […]

No Permit Needed for Six Geese a-Laying

EASTHAM — The board of health wanted to tighten the town’s regulations on the keeping of noncommercial farm animals. But blowback from the public has made the board think again. […]

Hospitals Can Be Flexible on No-Visit Policy

Among all the challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic, perhaps the greatest is not being able to visit elderly loved ones. In some cases, Covid patients have died in health-care facilities […]

District-Wide Vote Set on Nauset High Renovation

EASTHAM — In an effort not to lose a Mass. School Building Authority (MSBA) grant of $35.6 million that’s contingent on voter approval of the proposed $131.8-million renovation of Nauset […]

Wellfleet Looks at Changing Its Accessory Dwelling Bylaw

WELLFLEET — The planning board is discussing a new zoning bylaw that would loosen the rules governing accessory dwelling units by removing the requirement that they be “affordable.” The town’s […]

‘Docs for Safe Water’ Claim to Be Their Own ‘Peer-Reviewers’

TRURO — The 40-page “Report on Private Wells and Truro Safe Water” released in September by a group calling themselves Docs for Truro Safe Water has been promoted by critics […]

At the Holidays, Reframing Grief as Love

The holiday season is upon us and, for many, this is a time when grief hits hard. This year, as we continue to isolate from one another because of the […]

It’s a Marvelous Month for a Moondance

Beginning around mid-month, Earth’s one and only natural satellite will appear in the evening sky. Then, as the days run down to the end of the year, the Moon will […]

Free Groceries and Meals on the Outer Cape

Provincetown For assistance accessing programs in Provincetown, contact Alex, the Provincetown community support liaison, at 508-237-7042 or [email protected] Food Pantry, Council on Aging What: Pick up/delivery of nonperishables and personal […]

The Art of Doll Making

EASTHAM — Dolls are a special holiday gift many children hope for. But dolls really had their heyday about 150 years ago. Those who are intrigued by antique dolls know […]

Are Your Treads Ready for Winter?

There’s talk of the first big winter storm, so it’s a pretty good bet someone in your pod just told you to get your snow tires on for the season. […]

My Fantasy World of Football

I spent this past Sunday in front of a television, laughing, cheering, complaining, and getting emotional. No, I wasn’t watching a rom-com. I was watching football. It was an important […]

This Is the Dawning of the Age of Aquarius

We may have come around to Aquarius again, but the Moon is not in the Seventh House and Jupiter is definitely not aligned with Mars. Still, the winter solstice on Dec. 21 […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Dec. 15, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Overnight Cornmeal Waffles

Of all the things I inherited from my mother, including her special silver and the family china, the thing I cherish most is her waffle iron. It has no special […]

Community Fund Takes Off in Wellfleet

WELLFLEET — Dan Silverman’s years of responding to local emergencies with Wellfleet’s Fire and Rescue Dept. gave him a unique perspective on the town’s population, which barely tops 3,000. “You’re […]

Judy Brubaker, Beloved Chanteuse, Dies at 96

Judy Brubaker, a cabaret performer and actress whose singing voice thrilled Provincetown audiences for many years, died in Bath, Maine on Nov. 15, 2020. She was 96. Judy was born […]

This Week In Provincetown

Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, Dec. 17 Public Pier Corp., 4 p.m. Zoning Board of Appeals, 6 p.m. Conversation Starters[…]

This Week In Truro

Meetings are held remotely. To watch live, go to truro-ma.gov and follow the “helpful link” to Truro Channel 18. Thursday, Dec. 17 Zoning Board of Appeals, 5:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 18 Board […]

This Week In Wellfleet

Meetings are held remotely. From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its agenda. […]

This Week In Eastham

Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you’re interested in. The agenda provides information about how to view and take part remotely. Thursday, Dec. 17 […]

Siân Robertson Maps Out the Year 2020

There’s an obsessiveness to the art of Siân Robertson — multiple objects are organized, following rules and patterns. But an opposite impulse is also manifest — a relentless creativity. It’s […]

Good Morning, Provincetown!

The idea for Wake Up! In Provincetown, a talk show hosted by Harrison Fish and Bob Keary that streams on YouTube on Fridays at 9 a.m., started as an inside […]

The Many Faces of Adrienne Rich

Hilary Holladay’s The Power of Adrienne Rich is an accessible biography of the celebrated American poet. Published last month, it is the first comprehensive exploration of both the person and […]

Give Me Your Outsiders, Your Refugees, Your Rogues

It’s a sign of the times that in more and more movies with LGBTQ main characters, their queerness is just one of the things that define them. Monsoon, about a […]

The Sky Is Upside Down

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A Letter to Santa

Hey, Bro. We need to talk. It’s about the elves. I ran into Jingles last week. No, not the guy in Provincetown. The elf. It was all shop talk until, […]

Happy Holidays!

Joyous Season’s Greetings and Hello From the Durgans!. We hope our annual holiday newsletter finds our friends & family in great spirits alive. What a truly wonderful year it has […]

Dear Santa

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It’s Normal to Need Help

When I was a child, my family relied on SNAP at different times, but I was completely oblivious to this fact. We always had good, healthy food available. We purchased […]

Letters, December 17, 2020

A More Engaged America To the editor: To say that I was disappointed with the 2000 election, Bush vs. Gore, would be an understatement of epic proportions. But we survived […]

Calling Hours for Charlie Welsh

Calling hours have been set for Charles F. Welsh, former first assistant clerk magistrate of the Orleans District Court, who died at home on Dec. 5 of cancer at age […]

Constance ‘Dakota’ de Smet, 86

Constance de Smet of Brewster, who was known as Dakota, died at Cape Cod Hospital on Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 26, 2020, having just passed her 86th birthday. Dakota was a […]

Gregory W. Curtis, 55, Longtime Provincetown Server

Gregory W. Curtis of Provincetown and Vieques, Puerto Rico died on Dec. 1, 2020 at his home in Provincetown. He was 55. No cause of death was named. Gregg, known […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Dec. 7 to Dec. 11, 2020. PROVINCETOWN Dec. 7. Deborah V. Brome to Howard R. Hernandez and Eric S. Brown. 104A […]

Classifieds December 17 – December 23, 2020

SEEKING Garage needed. Looking to rent garage space for my 1972 Citroen. Preferably in Wellfleet. Call Cathy, 339-227-0874. [12-31] A good dog (though puppies need not apply). I would like […]

At Salty Market, Bagels Are a Family Affair

TRURO — “The ranking goes: New York bagels,” said Claire Adams, chef and owner of North Truro’s Salty Market, “and then Montreal bagels. And then….” Here, Ellery Althaus, Salty’s manager […]

Dunkin’ Owners Eye Drive-Through Again

WELLFLEET — The owners of the Route 6 doughnut emporium called Dunkin’ (“Donuts” was dropped from the name in January 2019) say they will revive a plan to add a […]

Cloverleaf OK Could Happen by Christmas

TRURO — Approval of a comprehensive permit for the 39-unit rental housing development known as the Cloverleaf on Highland Road in North Truro seems almost guaranteed. Counsel for the zoning […]

Disaster Loans a Quiet Lifeline for Outer Cape

PROVINCETOWN — The Covid-19 Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program was so bedraggled in its rollout and early execution, it’s hard to pick which sadsack metaphor to use for it. […]

Resident Tax Exemption Causes Friction on Eastham Select Board

EASTHAM — The select board began its annual deliberations on whether to adopt a residential tax exemption for the next fiscal year at its Monday, Dec. 7 meeting, and division […]

Document Signed by Sam Adams Found

EASTHAM — The Eastham Historical Society made a rare find last month while dusting and sorting items at the 1869 Schoolhouse Museum: a document signed by Samuel Adams. “Joe [Mistretta, […]

Funds for Child Care Are in the Works, but Where to Spend Them?

PROVINCETOWN — Jennifer Cortes is just the type of person policymakers have been trying to get to live in town for years: she’s a 2003 Provincetown High School graduate who […]

Extreme Makeover: School Edition

Photos by Nancy Bloom; text by K.C. Myers HARWICH — The newly renovated Cape Cod Regional Technical High School opened to students in September, but, because of the pandemic, even […]

Charlie Welsh, 75, the Heart of Orleans District Court

PROVINCETOWN — Charlie Welsh, who worked in Orleans District Court as an assistant clerk magistrate during the half century that his father, brother, and nephew all presided as first justices, […]

County to Open Affordable Testing Sites

PROVINCETOWN — Cape Cod’s struggle to get expanded access to Covid testing took a big step forward this week. Legislators and county leaders announced that drive-through testing sites will open […]

Sportsmanship and Lessons Sports Can Teach

Retired attorney Buddy Perkel remembers where he first learned to negotiate — on the basketball courts of New York City in the 1930s. “Pickup basketball taught me how to give […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Dec. 8, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Holiday Planters That Bring the Winter Landscape Home

Flower designer Kate Formichella is known for making bouquets and installations that are naturally beautiful. She uses local flowers and plants, mostly from her own flower farm in Orleans. She […]

Gravlax With Lemon, Mint, and Gin

I didn’t grow up eating salmon, although when we were kids, my grandfather did teach us how to smoke it. That was something he learned on his fishing trips to […]

Socializing a Puppy in a Pandemic

Getting a new puppy might sound like a great idea. But a puppy can suck everything out of you — they are adorable but exhausting. We are wiped out after […]

For a Cozy Coop, Hens Don’t Ask Much

We’re bundling up and our furry friends are growing thick coats, but what about our feathery flocks? How do domestic chickens get through the freezing winter months? I became a […]

Wrist Watch: Warm-Ups for Overworked Typists and Yogis

Wrist pain. Every yoga teacher hears about it, and from all kinds of students — seasoned athletes and deskbound writers alike. I’ve had it, too. I think we’ve all paid […]

This Week In Provincetown

Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, Dec. 10 OPEB (Other Post-Employment Benefits) Meeting, 10:30 a.m. Public Pier Corp., 2 p.m. Planning […]

This Week In Truro

Meetings are held remotely. To watch live, go to truro-ma.gov and follow the “helpful link” to Truro Channel 18. Thursday, Dec. 10 Human Services Committee, 1 p.m. Housing Authority, 4:15 p.m. Friday, […]

This Week In Wellfleet

From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its agenda. That document will provide […]

This Week In Eastham

Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you’re interested in. The agenda provides information about how to view and take part remotely. Thursday, Dec. 10 […]

You Can’t Take the Wellfleet Out of Paul Suggs

The first light of dawn casts shadows on the white walls of an Outer Cape home. At low tide on Wellfleet Bay, shimmering mudflats mirror the image of a moored […]

This Is Not an Interview With André Gregory

Preparing for my phone call with actor, playwright, and director André Gregory, I felt a bit like the socially anxious Wallace Shawn at the beginning of My Dinner With André. […]

Bach to the Drawing Board

The concept behind Dan Moller’s recently published The Way of Bach: Three Years With the Man, the Music, and the Piano, is a good one. It tells of the author’s […]

IT

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Tuna: A Little History

PROVINCETOWN — What a gorgeous monster! First, its size: over nine feet long and over 700 pounds. Then, its unreal color: dark steel blue with green reflections, merging into gun-metal […]

The Leaves Fight Back

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Optimism Gets Boost From Solar Eclipse in Sagittarius

This week’s solar eclipse energy overshadows the new Moon’s presence in Sagittarius. Normally, a new Moon would be a time for setting intentions. Considering the intensity of an eclipse, however, […]

Too Big to Be Small

The pandemic has raised questions about certain words and what exactly is meant when they are used. Take “small business.” When I think of small businesses, what comes to mind […]

Letters, December 10, 2020

Ways to Save the Planet To the editor: Today (11/23) my wife and I walked from the Salt Pond Visitor Center to Coast Guard Beach. Along the way, we saw […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Nov. 30 to Dec. 4, 2020. PROVINCETOWN Nov. 30. Kris E. McMurray and Barbara Norman to Kris E. McMurray. 368 Commercial […]

Classifieds December 10 – December 16, 2020

SEEKING Garage needed. Looking to rent garage space for my 1972 Citroen. Preferably in Wellfleet. Cathy, 339-227-0874. [12-31] ART CLASSES Sometimes, we just have to make art that feels larger […]

West End Salt Marsh Dieback Accelerates

PROVINCETOWN — On a Sunday morning in November, the low tide and lure of fresh foraged food drew many recreational shellfishermen to this season’s designated clamming area, the west side […]

Wastewater Testing Yields Messy Data

PROVINCETOWN — Testing wastewater for Covid was an unproved idea at the start of this pandemic. If it worked, it would be a way to cheaply test entire communities at […]

Educators Ask if the Kids Are All Right

HARWICH — With isolation, possible illness, and family economic crises looming, the counselors at Cape Cod Regional Technical High School had every reason to believe the 626 students enrolled at […]

Scholarships Keep P’town Kids in College

PROVINCETOWN — For Christina Reid, 18 — a freshman at Boston’s Suffolk University, a 2020 graduate of Nauset Regional High School, and a third-through-eighth-grade alumna of Provincetown Schools — receiving […]

At Tuna Negotiations, U.S. Rejects Advice of Scientists

In a decision being watched closely by Cape Cod fishermen, the U.S. is rejecting a proposal that calls for a reduction in the total catch limit of the Western Atlantic […]

In Provincetown, a Good Deed Backfires

PROVINCETOWN — Police Officer Thomas Radzik was parked at the CVS on Oct. 17 when a man — Brandon Czyoski, 39, of Truro — asked him for help. Czyoski said […]

Nauset Players Recognized for Skills and Sportsmanship

This year’s Cape and Islands League All-Stars for the fall sports season were announced last week. Nauset High was well represented with a total of 30 players on the All-Star […]

In a City Pod, Wellfleet Women Steadied by Small Town Roots

WELLFLEET — When Hanna Morse, Emer Valdez, Charlotte Goldberg, and Leah Puffer were kids in Wellfleet, they spent as much time together as they could. They made crafts, played dress-up, […]

The Duality of Being a Mayflower Descendant

PROVINCETOWN — Two things Provincetown’s Cheryl Andrews disliked as a child: history and Thanksgiving. History, she said, was “boring as dust” — with its rote memorization of dates, wars, and […]

Postcards From the Pandemic

In a year that seems to have brought as many visitors as ever to the Outer Cape, including some who say they’ve come to stay, we also heard from people […]

Home Made for the Holidays

While we won’t warm up shoulder-to-shoulder at artisan fairs as we have in holidays past, there are plenty of opportunities to support local shop owners, artists, and the creative community […]

Winter Sports Set to Begin Dec. 14

EASTHAM — The Mass. Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA) on Nov. 20 approved modified winter seasons for basketball, ice hockey, swimming and diving, alpine and Nordic skiing, and gymnastics. That means […]

Reliable, Not-Too-Sour New York Deli Rye

It is such a strange feeling to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat, take a triumphant inhale, and realize that — big exhale — everything around you is still […]

Notes to Santa

Need some answers? Just ask and we’ll send them. This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Dec. 1, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Massive and Magnificent, a Sea Turtle Succumbs

The Big Cc, a 350-pound loggerhead sea turtle who washed ashore — upside-down and cold-stunned — near Truro’s Great Hollow Beach on Nov. 20, died four days later in the […]

In Sagittarius, Expansiveness and Exploration

The Sun has entered the fiery sign of Sagittarius the Archer, ruled by Jupiter. Unlike emotional, internally focused Scorpio, Sagittarius tends toward self-expression and expansion. The motto, as it were, […]

Apple Pies on Thanksgiving

Calie Wotherspoon, Marla Rice, Anne Suggs, and Janet Lesniak (left to right) baked about 75 apple pies in the Wellfleet Preservation Hall kitchen to deliver to those in need over […]

When Waves Turn Minutes to Hours

Winter winds and cold temperatures might keep mere mortals inside, but the demand for seafood keeps our commercial fishermen offshore, working to provide for an insatiable market. Working at sea […]

This Week In Provincetown

Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, Dec. 3 Public Pier Corp., 2 p.m. Zoning Board of Appeals, 6 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. […]

This Week In Truro

Meetings are held remotely. To watch live, go to truro-ma.gov and follow the “helpful link” to Truro Channel 18. Thursday, Dec. 3 Zoning Board of Appeals, 5 p.m. Truro School Committee, 5:15 […]

This Week In Wellfleet

From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its agenda and find out how […]

This Week In Eastham

Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on any meeting to read its agenda and learn how to view and take part remotely. Thursday, Dec. 3 Council on […]

With an Eye on the Surf, Colin McGuire Paints Provincetown

“The ocean is both beautiful and terrifying to me,” says Colin McGuire. An emerging local artist, he finds “limitless inspiration” in the seascapes of the Outer Cape and their “variety […]

Lili Taylor on the Craft of Empathy

Provincetown first welcomed critically acclaimed actor Lili Taylor, best known for her work in independent films and on TV in Six Feet Under and American Crime, in the 1990s, when […]

The Indie Playlist

Compiled and edited by Saskia Maxwell Keller Contributors to our first-ever Indie Playlist were given minimal instructions: choose a song or music video that you love and tell us about […]

In the Ravages of Ebola, Paul Farmer Finds Pandemic Roots

Dr. Paul Farmer and three friends toured an Ebola treatment unit (E.T.U.) in Monrovia, Liberia, in October 2014. They watched as two brothers vomited and soiled themselves with diarrhea as […]

Winter Trails #1: Brush Hollow

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My Hoary, Helmeted Head

When I was in my early teens, in Pennsylvania, I worked: I had a paper route, was a stable boy, did door-to-door sales, and I saved my money. Finally, I […]

Nuts and Bulbs

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Letters, December 3, 2020

From a Mayflower Descendant To the editor: In regard to your Nov. 12 front-page article on Mayflower history, yes, the Wampanoag tribe did help the Pilgrims with hunting, fishing, and […]

Monetizing the Dead

Here at the Independent, we are diverse, age-wise. But we have some old-fashioned ideas. We’re serious about proofreading and fact-checking. We think classified ads are fun. We want our website […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Nov. 23 to Nov. 27. PROVINCETOWN Nov. 23. AR Franklin LLC [Ronald L. Reil, manager] to Steven James Hatch. 65 Franklin […]

Barbara Lacombe Grant, 92, Antique Dealer

Barbara Lacombe Grant, who blazed a trail of friendships throughout her long life, died on Nov. 19, 2020 at Rosewood Manor in Harwich. Her death at 92 was caused by […]

Rev. Henry Dahl, 79, Former Priest of St. Peter the Apostle

The Rev. Henry J. Dahl died on Nov. 22, 2020 in Sun City, Ariz. a week after suffering severe brain injuries in an auto accident, said his friend Pat Pichette, […]

A. Paul Filiberto, 72, Artist and Cortile Gallery Owner

Anthony Paul Filiberto, of Provincetown and Jacksonville Beach, Fla., died on Nov. 25, 2020, after an 11-month battle with glioblastoma brain cancer. He was 72. Born on Sept. 22, 1948 […]

Beverly Ann Brazil, 82, Provincetown Postal Worker

Beverly A. Brazil of North Truro died peacefully on Nov. 25, 2020 at Cape Cod Hospital in Hyannis after an illness. She was 82 and was the partner of Edgar […]

Dan Mullin, a Generous Host and Friend, Dies at 78

Dan Mullin, a Boston real estate broker who hosted fundraisers for major political figures at his waterfront home in Provincetown’s West End, died on Nov. 26, 2020, at age 78. […]

Classifieds December 3 – December 9, 2020

ART CLASSES Sometimes, we just have to make art that feels larger than life. Please join Laura Shabott and Alana Barrett for “Online: Creating Volume and Monumentality through the Figure” […]

Outer Cape Gets Season’s First Wave of Strandings

Thanksgiving week is a busy time for the sea turtle team at the Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary and some 200 volunteers who work to rescue cold-stunned turtles on the Outer […]

Wellfleet Sets Tax Rate After Weeks of Delay

WELLFLEET — After a four-and-a-half-month delay in the annual town meeting and the still unexplained dismissal of the town accountant, Wellfleet has finally set its property tax rate for fiscal […]

Herridge Is Censured by Select Board

TRURO — The select board has sent a letter of censure to planning board member Peter Herridge for violating town policies on honesty, integrity, and civility, suggesting that his actions […]

Economist Resigns From Provincetown FinCom

PROVINCETOWN — A member of the finance committee has resigned because of the behavior of the chair, Mark Hatch, which she described as “condescending, dismissive, and even shaming.” Dorie Seavey […]

Outer Cape Expects More Testing in December

PROVINCETOWN — Resources are arriving to expand Covid testing on Cape Cod — at about the same time as the coronavirus itself is arriving. The timing wasn’t exactly planned, but […]

Alice Brock Dishes Up Warmth on Thanksgiving

PROVINCETOWN — Alice Brock came of age in the 1960s, which everyone knows because one of the most famous songs of that era was named after her. The song, of […]

The Many Moods of Monsieur Dinde

Goodness, there are turkeys everywhere! We Outer Cape dwellers watch as ever-growing flocks, or rafters, of these wild birds boldly wander across our lawns and streets. We are also surrounded […]

’Tis the Season for Getting a Bird

EASTHAM — It’s an unusually warm Saturday in November. The noontime sun shines, and the air is still, when Jim McGrath lets out a turkey call in a remote, wooded […]

Create a Palette of Colors From Nature

As winter draws near, we lose more leaves to the wind each day. The ones that remain give the landscape a patina of russet, sienna, ochre. The ground is covered […]

Fall’s Last Apples Go Into a Soup

When we first moved into our cottage in Truro several years ago, one of my first acts (after setting a great many mousetraps) was to scout out a place for […]

For Local Fishermen, Change Is a Way of Life

WELLFLEET — For a few days of each week this summer, Will Barrio hung up his waders and went out to wire electrics. Normally, Barrio would wait to grab his […]

Feeling the Full Moon’s Effects, in Gemini Terms

November ends with a lunar celebration, marked by a full Moon and lunar eclipse in the sign of Gemini. The Moon, of course, is the second most influential celestial body […]

Congratulations, Indie!

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Put Your Best Foot Forward

Feet are unsung heroes. They carry you for thousands of steps a day. And when you walk or run, every time your foot hits the ground, it’s loaded with an […]

Nantucket Paper Returns to Local Ownership

The weekly Nantucket Inquirer and Mirror, owned by a series of corporate chains for the last 30 years, has returned to the ranks of independent and locally owned newspapers. A […]

Select Board Proposes Zoning Task Force

EASTHAM — Town officials are looking to create a zoning task force to examine and make recommendations on residential zoning and regulation issues, including the protection of historic homes and […]

This Week In Provincetown

Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Wednesday, Dec. 2 Historic District Commission, 4 p.m. Conversation Starters Covid-19 Update As of Nov. 23, […]

This Week in Truro

Meetings are held remotely. To watch live, go to truro-ma.gov and follow the “helpful link” to Truro Channel 18. Tuesday, Dec. 1 Board of Health, 4:30 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 2 Planning Board, […]

This Week In Eastham

Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on a meeting to read its agenda and get information about how to view and take part remotely.Monday, Nov. 30 Eastham 400 Commemoration Committee, […]

Timothy Horn Turns a Passion for Jewelry Into Monumental Art

Imagine traveling in a Cinderella carriage made of crystalized rock sugar. Or dancing under a translucent silicone chandelier, nine feet wide, in the shape of an enormous glowing jellyfish. These […]

The Joy of Watching A Far Cry

A Far Cry may be one of the most democratic ensembles out there. This Boston-based orchestra is “self-conducted,” meaning that the players, who call themselves “criers,” take turns leading the […]

Looking Back, at 1968, to the Future

It might have been called Vietnam, Mon Amour. Those of us who lived through the Vietnam War era and its political upheaval — government lies and repression, youth rebellion and […]

The Only Show in Town

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Wamsutta Frank James Made Good Trouble

One story surfacing this Thanksgiving tells of a search party from the Mayflower, anchored in Provincetown Harbor, raiding a gravesite near Corn Hill in Truro. About 10 bushels of corn […]

Thanksgiving 2020

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‘More Gravy Please’

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Peter Rich, 80, Wellfleet Native

The death of Peter H. Rich of Colchester, Conn., on April 4, 2020, after an extended illness complicated by Covid-19, has been reported to the Independent. He was 80. Peter […]

Kathy Sullivan of Truro, 66, Telecommunications Designer

Kathleen Marie (McCarthy) Sullivan, 66, died on Oct. 31, 2020, while holding hands with her devoted husband, Richard, of 41 years. They lived year-round in Truro. Kathy, as she was […]

Classifieds November 26 – December 2, 2020

BASKETS OF LOVE The Wellfleet Farmers Market is holding our 1st Annual Baskets of Love online auction. Bidding will start Dec. 1 at 10 a.m. and end Dec. 7 at […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Nov. 16 to Nov. 20, 2020. PROVINCETOWN Nov. 16. Michael B. Ekman to Douglas M. Sherk and Michael C. Goins Sherk. […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats

Letters, November 26, 2020

On Town Managers’ Leaving To the editor: I have thoroughly enjoyed my subscription to the Independent and look forward to all the interesting subjects and news that it covers. The […]

Thanksgiving Song

Everyone must be thinking about the things they will miss this year on Thanksgiving. At our house, it’s a weekend-long gathering of old friends who come here from the city […]

This Week In Wellfleet

From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its agenda and see how to […]

Rock Harbor Panel Mulls Change of Plan

EASTHAM — The Rock Harbor Improvements Committee will not recommend moving an antique half Cape from 60 Dyer Prince Road and turning it into the harbormaster’s new office. Instead, the […]

What’s Behind Revolving Door of Managers

The smallest town on Cape Cod, Truro, with 2,000 residents, will be paying its new town manager $172,000 a year, about the same as the Barnstable County district attorney’s $175,000 […]

As Others Act, Outer Cape Still Lacks Asymptomatic Testing

PROVINCETOWN — In the popular children’s book Stone Soup, the soup is started with no great resources — in fact, it’s just a large pot of water with one stone […]

State Releases Partial Data on Covid Deaths in Assisted Living

Since late May, the state has provided detailed reports on fatalities from Covid-19 in nursing homes, but for assisted living facilities, the same information is hard to come by. The […]

Former Medical Building Will Become Condos

PROVINCETOWN — The former Provincetown Medical Group building on Shank Painter Road has been sold and will be redeveloped into a three-story building with eight condominiums. This story would not […]

It’s a Bird! It’s a Plane! No, It’s Eversource.

“It was so loud I could not hear myself think,” said Elena Ruehr, a composer who splits her time between Brookline and Wellfleet. “I felt like there was a giant […]

For Some, It Wasn’t a Pilgrimage but Pure Hustle

On Nov. 11, 1620, the Mayflower arrived in Provincetown Harbor. Four hundred years later, we — most of us, anyway, on the Outer Cape and all across the nation — […]

Continuing the Family Legacy, Local Lobsterman Gets a Big Upgrade

PROVINCETOWN — Jeff Souza came in hot one quiet November evening at MacMillan Pier. He was at the helm of his brand-new lobster boat, Crash, a custom-made Provincial 45’, which […]

Painting Without a Brush

WELLFLEET — I am an artist who “paints” with fiber. Inspired by my grandmother’s skilled needlework and embroidery and a lifelong desire to paint, I developed my own technique by […]

Eastham Turnip Festival Week

Just because we can’t hang out in person to taste treats like the famous (or infamous) turnip whoopie pie doesn’t mean we have to miss a day of celebrating Eastham’s […]

Nauset Boys Take Title; Girls Fall Just Short

EASTHAM — After finishing the regular season first in its conference with an impressive 7-1-2 record, the Nauset Regional High School girls soccer team felt like they still had something […]

The Relish Tray

When I was a kid, and my mother set out her oval cut-glass platter and assembled a relish tray, we knew a celebration was at hand. Arranged artfully on the […]

Like Onions, Only Better

In the early ’80s, the local Hamptons farmers around the restaurant where I was cooking used to pay us for our used cooking grease. This was before biodiesel was a […]

The ‘I Am Not Bitter’ Salad

Thanksgiving’s indulgent dishes — stuffing, mashed potatoes, candied yams, and cranberry — might feel like well-earned rewards after this crazy year. But all the rich and sweet sides weighing down […]

The Urge to Merge

In the shadow of last week’s new Moon in Scorpio, truth’s clarion call rises from the depths of our hearts — in animus veritas. Scorpio energy doesn’t tolerate shallow anything, especially […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Nov. 17, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Wellfleet’s Congo Church Clocks the Day

For many in Wellfleet, the sound of bells from the First Congregational Church, at 200 Main St., from around 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., frames their day. It is part […]

Proposed Downtown Fitness Studio Seeks Parking Relief

WELLFLEET — Myya Beck-Baum and Thor Baum are going through the town’s permitting process to demolish a historic downtown home and rebuild it to house a fitness studio with three […]

This Week in Provincetown

Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, Nov. 19 Board of Health, 4 p.m. Licensing Board, 5:15 p.m. Zoning Board of Appeals, […]

This Week in Truro

Meetings are held remotely. To watch live, go to truro-ma.gov and follow the “helpful link” to Truro Channel 18. Thursday, Nov. 19 Historical Commission, 2 p.m. School Committee, 5:15 p.m. Friday, Nov. […]

This Week in Wellfleet

From wellfleet-ma.gov, on the calendar, click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its agenda. That document will provide information about how to view and take part remotely. Thursday, […]

This Week in Eastham

Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on a meeting to read its agenda. That document will provide information about how to view and take part remotely. Thursday, Nov. 19 Affordable Housing […]

Provincetown DJ Chris Racine Wants to Wow You

“I’ve liked playing with lights since I was a kid,” says Chris Racine, one of Provincetown’s most sought after DJs and lighting-effect designers. Racine and his collaborator, Shelley Jennings, are […]

A Provincetown Rarity up Your Alley

At 242 Commercial St. in Provincetown, hidden at the end of a long alley that runs between a furniture store and a psychic’s office, there is a kind of enchanted […]

Dolly Parton as a Natural Woman

Dolly Parton, 74, has been singing and performing as a self-described “backwoods Barbie” for over half a century. With chart-topping hits such as “Jolene,” “I Will Always Love You,” “Here […]

Provincetown Arts Regroups and Moves Forward

When Christopher Busa died suddenly at age 73 on June 20, of a congenital heart defect that had gone undetected, it was two days before the scheduled printing of the […]

More Year-Rounders

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Clamming: Opening Day

PROVINCETOWN — Friday morning, Nov. 6, 2020. Under a serene and cloudless wide blue sky, with a temperature in the high 50s, a scene reminiscent of the work of Breughel: […]

Xtreme Dining

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Alternative Transitions

As Jan. 20, 2021, creeps closer, and with experts describing the atmosphere at the White House as “tense,” it is looking like it may be time to get beyond alternative […]

A Thick Skin Isn’t Enough

What are the most important attributes to look for in a potential town manager or administrator? Judging from the comments (and reluctance to comment) of recent occupants of those positions […]

Letters, November 19, 2020

Cloverleaf Apprehensions To the editor: In Kevin Grunwald’s op-ed column in your Nov. 12 edition [“Where Cloverleaf Stands After a Year of Review,” page 3], referring to the potential impacts […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Nov. 9 to Nov. 13, 2020. PROVINCETOWN Nov. 9. Jay C. Anderson to Steven Kane. 139 Commercial St., Unit A. $2,685,000. […]

Lawrence D. Riley, 81, Artist and Actor

Lawrence D. “Larry” Riley of Provincetown died of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease on Nov. 4, 2020, at Seashore Point Wellness and Rehabilitation Center in Provincetown. He was 81. Provincetown has […]

Lillian DeCroce, 83, Loved Her Work as a Nurse

Lillian DeCroce, who was known as Lilli, died on Nov. 7, 2020, at her home in Wellfleet, surrounded by family. The cause was small-cell lung cancer, said her daughter, Christina. […]

Ernest E. Tesson, 91, Lover of Cape Cod History and Ecology

Ernest E. Tesson died at his Wellfleet home on Oct. 28, 2020, with his wife, Katherine, holding his hand. He was 91. They were listening to Symphony Sid. Ernie, as […]

Nuclear Physicist Kosta Tsipis Dies at 86

TRURO — The Outer Cape is one of the few places on the East Coast where the setting sun is visible over a water horizon. For Kosta Tsipis, enjoying the […]

Classifieds November 19 – November 25, 2020

SEEKING Looking for artist’s studio to paint in. Will be using during winter months. Prefer Provincetown or Truro. Max $400/per month. Call or text Simone, 845-653-1002. [12-3] Man’s best friend […]

For Indigenous People, a Different Kind of Mayflower Story

PROVINCETOWN — On Nov. 11, 1620, 130-odd sea-weary Brits stepped off the Mayflower and onto Provincetown’s sandy shores — into a new world, barely inhabited and ripe with possibility. Then […]

Select Board Is Ready for a Conduct Code

PROVINCETOWN — They say politics in Provincetown is a blood sport. In an effort to try to change that, the select board is poised to adopt a code of conduct. […]

Cyr Calls Out Gov. Baker on Testing Funds

PROVINCETOWN — In a recent press call, state Sen. Julian Cyr sounded an alarm about coronavirus testing on Cape Cod. “We see the cases coming south and east towards Cape […]

Outer Cape Still Seeks Justice From Big Pharma

The U.S. Dept. of Justice last month announced a settlement estimated at over $8.3 billion of its case against Purdue Pharma, the makers of OxyContin. The settlement is opposed by […]

Indigenous Artifacts Found at 1869 Schoolhouse Museum

EASTHAM — While working to create a display as part of this year’s 400th anniversary of the Mayflower’s arrival on Cape Cod, volunteers at Eastham’s 1869 Schoolhouse Museum unearthed a […]

The Moderator

DAN SILVERMAN / TOWN MODERATOR & WOODWORKER / WELLFLEET Just out of college, Dan Silverman drove to Wellfleet in 1972 for a job interview with a local builder. He’s never […]

Turnip Time in Eastham

EASTHAM — As the nights chill, the leaves fall, and the holidays approach, our thoughts turn to, yes, the turnip — that ancient crucifer that has, for too long, been […]

Scientists Pick Up Effort to Study Ponds

WELLFLEET — With a growing number of cyanobacteria blooms occurring in ponds across Cape Cod, researchers are expanding their efforts in hopes of better understanding toxic algal blooms and how […]

Making Stellwagen Bank More Than ‘a Line on the Map’

PROVINCETOWN — One of the Outer Cape’s greatest assets is its proximity to Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary, a federally protected swath of ocean whose southernmost boundary is just three […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Nov. 10, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Nauset’s Riley and Nobili Take First in 5K

EASTHAM — When the Mass. Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA) announced that competition in fall high school sports season would take place under new guidelines, Nauset High cross country coach Moira […]

O Bliss and Despair, Wherefore Art Thou Scorpio?

Alas, poor Scorpio, we know you well. Temperamental, unpredictable, intelligent, determined … sounds like a character from Shakespeare. Indeed, the zodiac’s most complicated sign is aptly represented by the prince […]

Chili With Cornbread

Here is something I am reminded of by the small cooks in my house: we all need more comfort food. Kids do not make obligatory salads. They follow their pleasure […]

Set It Like You Mean It

Thanksgiving is a time to tend your table in such a way that it will bring on a smile. Kevin O’Shea, who knows from hosting — he and his partner, […]

Gym Owner Pays Widow of Tennis Pro

EASTHAM — It took 15 months, a boycott of Willy’s Gym, and civil citations from the attorney general’s office, but Barbara Niggel has paid back wages to the widow of […]

Did You Feel That?

PROVINCETOWN — On Sunday morning, the Outer Cape lit up with variations of the question “Did you feel that?” At 9:10 a.m. on Nov. 8, a 3.6 magnitude earthquake shook […]

This Week in Provincetown

Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, Nov. 12 Water & Sewer Board, 1 p.m. Planning Board, 6 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 17 […]

This Week in Truro

Meetings are held remotely. To watch live, go to truro-ma.gov and follow the “helpful link” to Truro Channel 18. Thursday, Nov. 12 Climate Action Committee, 10 a.m. Truro Housing Authority, 4:15 p.m. […]

This Week in Wellfleet

From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its agenda. That document will provide […]

This Week in Eastham

Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on a meeting to read its agenda. That document will provide information about how to view and take part remotely. Thursday, […]

The Cape Youth Orchestra Plays On

A dozen or so students watch, intently, as Paige Wayner, a flutist in the Cape Youth Orchestra, prepares to play Ernest Bloch’s Suite Modale in a master class for Zachary […]

The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Writer

Sarah Anne Johnson’s new novel, The Last Sailor, explores the profoundly personal ways we deal with — or avoid — mourning, and the struggles we go through as we piece […]

Grace Freundlich Is Healing in Truro

Grace Freundlich is a survivor in our midst. Retired and now 80, she lives in Truro year-round and counts it as a blessing. She has written a memoir of her […]

Poulenc’s Les Dialogues des Carmélites Has Drama, Nuns, and Guillotines

The Metropolitan Opera will be streaming Les Dialogues des Carmélites by Francis Poulenc for free next Friday, Sept. 20, starting at 7:30 p.m. You won’t want to miss it. The opera is […]

Broken Wing

Three days in a row, in late September, I went out to Race Point Beach in search of a couple of rare gulls. Three days in a row I failed […]

There Were Trees Clear Down to the Sea

Over his breakfast of toast and eggs smothered in ketchup one morning, my father told me, “I’m having those trees cut down,” motioning to the mature white pines framed by […]

It’s just one earthquake after another

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Where Cloverleaf Stands After a Year of Review

Approximately 2.4 percent of the year-round housing in Truro is classified as affordable. This translates to 27 homes or apartments that are affordable for residents earning up to 80 percent […]

Whitman: The War Is Over

A poem by Whitman has to be the one to celebrate the Biden-Harris victory — only Whitman expresses the sheer joy that democracy can give the spirit. When I looked […]

Letters, November 12, 2020

On County Government To the editor: I wish to thank the many Provincetown voters who gave me their votes and the prospect of my fourth term as your delegate to […]

Get the Story Right

One thing last week’s election revealed is how fond we are of the stories we want to believe. How else to explain the fact that so many voters believe that […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Nov. 2 to Nov. 6, 2020. PROVINCETOWN Nov. 2. Nina S. Harrison 2014 Trust (Nina S. Harrison, trustee), Majorie R. Bullock […]

Classifieds November 12 – November 18, 2020

SEEKING Looking for artist’s studio to paint in. Will be using during winter months. Prefer Provincetown or Truro. Max $400/per month. Call or text Simone, 845-653-1002. [12-3] Man’s best friend […]

It’s an Outer Cape Biden Landslide

The Democratic ticket of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris swept the Outer Cape in Tuesday’s presidential election, defeating Donald Trump and Mike Pence by margins ranging from 42 percent in […]

Baker Issues New Covid Rules, Curfew

PROVINCETOWN — Gov. Charlie Baker announced three new executive orders on Monday, Nov. 2, and a 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. curfew, all of which will go into effect on […]

Worries Stall Rock Harbor Building Plan

EASTHAM — The Rock Harbor Improvements Committee, a subgroup of the Capital Projects Committee, has hit pause on a plan for a new harbormaster’s building while town staff try to […]

Provincetown Adds In-Person Hours for Older Students

PROVINCETOWN — Sixth- through eighth-graders will be invited back to school for four more hours per week starting Thursday, Nov. 5, as the school slowly moves toward in-person learning. The […]

Truro Town Manager Signs 3-Year Contract

TRURO — It took about a year to find him, but the smallest town on Cape Cod finally has a town manager, who will begin work in January. Darrin Tangeman, […]

Where to Get Your Flu Shot on the Outer Cape

Although the much-trumpeted vaccine for Covid-19 vaccine is still unavailable, flu shots can be had at multiple locations on the Outer Cape. And this year, just like every other year, […]

3 Towns Wait to See What Comcast Will Deliver

WELLFLEET — Thanks to a new contract with five Lower and Outer Cape towns, Comcast may soon provide broadband internet connections to residents of Truro, Wellfleet, and Eastham who live […]

Spicy Village Soup

Is it possible that this week some of us might feel something like relief? I’m writing this before any of us know. What I do know for certain is that […]

Eating Out in the Off Season

There’s hope for those wanting to dine out. The restaurants listed here have confirmed they are open. We’ve listed their current schedules, though many told us they are still undecided […]

At the Pearly Gates

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Mapping Your Center

I’ve been sitting on the couch a lot, looking at my phone, and balancing my laptop on my knees. In the past, I probably would have felt bad about this, […]

Plastics Prove Difficult to Recycle

Garbage. It’s a story ripe with complexity. The Independent is dumpster diving into the subject to better understand where the Outer Cape’s garbage goes. In this first installment, we look […]

Drag Me Out to the Ball Game

PROVINCETOWN — Drag queens are part of the fabric of Provincetown. In a normal year, they can be seen performing at various clubs in town or parading down Commercial Street […]

What Is the Moon?

The Moon is always with us. Even when we can’t see it, it’s there, gently tugging on our oceans and causing our tides. It hasn’t always been with us; the […]

The Time Is Right for a Hangover Cure

I have no idea if, by the time this column is in your hands, dear reader, the election will be decided and accepted, or whether the streets will be on […]

Making Wreaths and Garlands

The days are shorter. We move inside and want to bring the landscape with us. We start with dried bouquets, then move to wreaths, garlands, and soon, maybe, the tree. […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Nov. 3, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

What to Do When Uranus Is in Retrograde

This week’s major planetary transit is brought to you by Uranus retrograde in Taurus. Uranus, which rules humanitarian Aquarius, is a “generational” planet — its transits last longer and tend […]

A Monumental Occasion

Sophia Maymudes has history on her mind.Need some answers? Just ask and we’ll send them. This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get […]

Wealth of Census Numbers Excludes LGBTQ Data

PROVINCETOWN — With the counting stage of the 2020 census having drawn to its abrupt close, the Census Bureau’s next step is to release its final report, which will contain […]

A Sunday Drive in Truro, Foiled

TRURO — Driving north on Route 6 around midnight last Sunday, Shelby Zawaduk passed a car she could’ve sworn she recognized. Stopped by police just shy of Truro’s Stotts Crossing […]

Cross Country and Field Hockey Enter Postseason

Thursday, Nov. 5 Boys soccer: The undefeated Warriors (8-0) will play a home game against the Sandwich Blue Knights at 4 p.m. Girls soccer: The Warriors (6-0-2) travel to play […]

Seashore Prepares for Bound Brook Land Swap

WELLFLEET — Driving northbound on Bound Brook Island Road in Wellfleet last week, travelers were greeted with a peculiar sight: a number of workers in reflective vests sifting through buckets […]

This Week In Provincetown

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, Nov. 5 Harbor Committee, 5 p.m. Zoning Board of Appeals, 6 p.m. Tuesday, […]

This Week In Truro

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. To watch live, go to Truro-ma.gov and follow the “helpful link” to Truro Channel 18. Thursday, Nov. 5 Charter Review Committee, 4 p.m. Zoning Board of […]

This Week In Wellfleet

Meetings Ahead From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its agenda. That document […]

This Week In Eastham

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on a particular meeting to read its agenda. That document will provide information about how to view and take […]

Rich Blundell Connects the Cosmos to Art on Cape Cod

“Everything I do, I do because I love nature, because I want to be connected to nature. That guides every decision in my life,” says Rich Blundell. He has come […]

Provincetown’s Forgotten Symphony Orchestra

Did you know that Provincetown used to have a symphony? The Provincetown Symphony Orchestra, sometimes called the Provincetown Symphony Society, was founded in 1955 by the conductor Joseph Hawthorne. The […]

Journeys of Self-Acceptance, in Words and Pictures

“We believe we make our choices, but no — they make us,” writes the late Daniel Menaker in his poem, “Last Will and Testament.” Though our choices add up to […]

Peace in America

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A Reckoning With Evil

I meant to write this in time for last week’s paper, but I missed the deadline. That means you will be reading these words on Nov. 5. Between this day […]

Ballston Beach

“I took a collage class from Michael Walczak at Truro Center for the Arts at Castle Hill, and one of the assignments was to use print to create a picture. […]

An Ofrenda to All Souls

This past week, as the days began to shorten and the nights became cooler, my thoughts drifted to All Souls Day, Dia de los Muertos. I have been trying to […]

Where the Power Lies

One of our correspondents this week, Michael Spielman, was provoked by my last column to unleash his own set of language beefs, which have him screaming at his TV, he […]

Letters, November 5, 2020

For a Brighter Future To the editor: I highly recommend the new movie David Attenborough: A Life on Our Planet (Netflix). It is at once full of beauty, achingly sad, […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Oct. 26 to Oct. 30. PROVINCETOWN Oct 26. Nicole M. Peterson to Daniel Alan Escola. 54 Bradford St., Unit A. $590,000. […]

Paulo Alexandre Dalomba, 42, a Provincetown High Graduate

Paulo Alexandre Dalomba, 42, died in his home in Plymouth on Oct. 27, 2020. The cause of death is unknown, said his sister, Natalia. Born in Hyannis on Feb. 18, […]

Classifieds November 5 – November 11, 2020

HELP WANTED Carpenters needed, skilled or semi-skilled. Own transportation and basic hand tools a must. If interested, call Winard Construction, 508-487-2538 or 508-789-8089. FIREWOOD Seasoned firewood for sale. Free local delivery. […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats

A Town-by-town Plan for Finding Halloween Fun

Before we get into this week’s news, here’s an update from each town about what trick-or-treating will look like this year. From Eastham to Provincetown, you’ll find “reverse” set ups, […]

Big Early Vote Count in Outer Cape Towns

PROVINCETOWN — The Outer Cape likes to vote. Turnout in the 2016 presidential election ranged from 81 percent in Provincetown to a staggering 87 percent in Eastham. This year, early […]

Truro Takes a Shot at Restoring Tidal Flow to the Pamet

TRURO — George Mooney couldn’t recognize his farm on South Pamet Road. His pasture and vegetable gardens were completely submerged under two feet of salt water during three consecutive nor’easters […]

Cloverleaf Plan Gets 5 of 12 Zoning Waivers

TRURO — The so-called Cloverleaf development, an affordable housing complex on South Highland Road at Route 6, received about half the approvals it needs for full permitting last week, while […]

Soup Kitchens Face a Season of Want and Worry

PROVINCETOWN — It is the season of Outer Cape soup kitchens, community kitchens, food banks, and food pantries. “There’s just always need here,” said Philip Franchini, board chair of the […]

Planning Board OK’s Doane Rd. Project

EASTHAM — A plan to demolish three dwellings and a garage in the Cape Cod National Seashore and build a 3,481-square-foot house and garage in their place received site plan […]

Pandemic Journal: An Escape From Isolation

PROVINCETOWN — Bernice Burchman is 92 and has Stage 4 lung cancer, and yet her son Howard said his mom has been thriving ever since he took her out of […]

Black Bean Tacos

In September, my two girls, ages six and nine, became responsible for dinner once a week. We’re home schooling, and a little kitchen responsibility seemed like a good way to […]

Figure Skaters Squeeze In a Cyber Competition

In only its second year, the Nauset Figure Skating Club is having a lot of new experiences, including cyber skating. The club participated in the first-ever Fall Cyber Challenge through […]

In Wellfleet Harbor, Dredge-Watching Catches On

WELLFLEET — “Look,” said Carin Pierce, standing on the marina in Wellfleet, one hand on her poodle and the other pointing waterward. “It’s scooping!” Since the long-awaited Wellfleet Harbor dredging […]

Bad Feather Days for the Birds

The weather is getting colder, the days shorter, and your chickens are laying fewer and fewer eggs. Soon there will be none at all for your breakfast table. (That’s because […]

Salt Sea Air Eats Brakes for Breakfast

People complain a lot when they bring their cars in for brake work. “I just had my car inspected and they’re telling me I need new brakes,” they say. “Didn’t […]

How to Carve a Modern Day Jack-o’-lantern

Its light was said to mislead travelers at night, flickering over peat bogs, swamps, and marshes, resembling a lantern shining in the dark. Where scientists now see bioluminescence, storytellers saw […]

Sticky Situation on Truro Center Road

As the presidential election enters its final week, it has colored even crime on the Outer Cape. On Monday, Oct. 26, Cory Mcculloch, 33, of Eastham, was arraigned in Orleans […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Oct. 27, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Golfers to Finish Season at League Championship

A word to fans: according to league rules, fans may only attend home games. Masks are required and physical distancing rules will apply. Thursday, Oct. 29 Boys soccer: The undefeated […]

This Week In Provincetown

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, Oct. 29 Economic Development Committee, 1 p.m. Public Pier Corp., 2 p.m. Harbor […]

This Week In Truro

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. To watch live, go to Truro-ma.gov and follow the “helpful link” to Truro Channel 18. Thursday, Oct. 29 Climate Action Committee, 1:30 p.m. Housing Authority, 4:15 […]

This Week In Wellfleet

Meetings Ahead From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its agenda. That document […]

This Week In Eastham

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on a particular meeting to read its agenda. That document will provide information about how to view and take […]

Eco-inspired Artist Jamie Levine Was Hit Hard by Covid

“I came to Truro to create cremation urns,” says sculptor Jamie Lehrhoff Levine, one of five resident artists who recently arrived at Truro Center for the Arts at Castle Hill. […]

‘Art From the Heart,’ Fund-raiser for HOW

Provincetown’s Jim Broussard had the idea of getting artists to paint cigar boxes as a fund-raising effort, which he’s dubbed “Art From the Heart.” He hopes to make it an […]

Marge Piercy Keeps the Light On

Marge Piercy’s latest poetry collection, On the Way Out, Turn Off the Light, is an ode to a life lived big and full. In these direct, earthy poems, Piercy reflects […]

The Joy of Dahlias

STORMY MAYO & LAURA LUDWIG / DAHLIA GARDENERS / PROVINCETOWN Stormy Mayo grew up in Provincetown; his family has been here since the mid 1600s. Stormy is a founder of […]

A Visual Commentary

Editor’s note: Maybe it’s anxiety about the election ahead. It seems as if worry has quieted the usual clamor of civic and community life here. With so many of us […]

At the Balancing Point Between Light and Dark

Happy Halloween, witches and wanderers! This week’s full Moon in Taurus occurs on All Hallow’s Eve. In the ancient traditions of the Celts, the Hindus, and the indigenous peoples of […]

Concerning That Word

I’m concerned about the word concerning. Not worried, really; just concerned. People keep using that word, and, as Mandy Patinkin said in The Princess Bride, I do not think it […]

Real Estate Transactions

Real Estate Transactions Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Oct. 19 to Oct. 23, 2020. PROVINCETOWN Oct. 19. Christina Pazzanese to Michael and Maura Canny. 23 Bradford […]

Classifieds October 29 – November 4, 2020

FIREWOOD Seasoned firewood for sale. Free local delivery. Large pickup truck load of nicely split locust/oak, seasoned firewood, delivered locally for $220. Let us know the length you want. Leave a […]

Among Outer Cape Republicans, Consensus Is Elusive

Four years ago, 2,282 citizens of the four Outer Cape towns voted for Donald Trump: 208 in Provincetown, 361 in Truro, 515 in Wellfleet, and 1,198 in Eastham. (Hillary Clinton […]

Health Board Wants Masks at Town Hall

WELLFLEET — The board of health is considering a set of mandatory safety standards for municipal workplaces after a visit to town hall set off alarms last week. Health Agent […]

Vote Will Settle County Race and 2 Questions

PROVINCETOWN — It’s not easy sharing a ballot with the president. Presidential elections always hoover up the attention, even in a normal year, even when the contest is boring. This […]

Eastham Student Is First in District to Get Virus

EASTHAM — The fifth-grade class at Eastham Elementary School will be quarantined for 14 days and educated remotely after a student tested positive for Covid-19 last week. Principal William Crosby […]

New Company Bets on Multiple Owners of Luxury Cape Homes

A new California-based real estate company that packages one-half to one-eighth ownership shares in luxury homes is eyeing Cape Cod as part of its opening strategy, which includes 26 cities […]

Antique House Could Become Harbormaster’s H.Q.

EASTHAM — Abutters to the harbormaster’s building project at Rock Harbor were expected to weigh in at a Wednesday, Oct. 21, Zoom meeting on two alternate proposals for the project: […]

A Network of Local Friends of a Funny Looking Fish

WELLFLEET — After a mysterious flopping in the water, a large dorsal fin emerges. You think: “shark!” But it turns out to be an ocean sunfish, Mola mola, leisurely swimming […]

‘Chopper’ Young Takes Another Shuck Off Prize

The shuck off was the main event at the virtual version of the Wellfleet OysterFest on Saturday. In a production filmed on the stage at the Wellfleet Harbor Actors Theater […]

Provincetown’s Beth Donovan Stitches Together Life’s Fabric

If you happened by the Wellfleet Farmers Market this past summer, you might have seen Beth Donovan’s handiwork along your stroll. Her handmade quilts, aprons, masks, and totes consist almost […]

Wood-look Plank Tile Flooring

If you are considering renovating your worn wood floor, upgrading from vinyl, or installing flooring in a new home, you might have seen something new since the last time you […]

Gumbo Is for Sweater Weather

I think of the suddenly cool days this time of year as “gumbo and sweater” weather. Where I come from, which is rural south-central Louisiana — much in the news […]

Plan Your Cold Weather Workouts Now

Although we’ve had a lovely fall, winter is surely on its way. If you find that with the first brisk breeze you’ve already started giving in to the idea that […]

Boys and Girls Soccer Start Undefeated

A word to fans: according to league rules, fans may only attend home games. Masks are required and physical distancing rules will apply. Thursday, Oct. 22 Boys golf: The Warriors […]

Roundball Players Contemplate a Bleak Winter

With a chill in the evening air, now is the time of year when the Outer Cape’s pickup basketballers normally move indoors. On weeknights throughout the winter, the elementary school […]

A Time for Transformation as the Sun Enters Scorpio

The Sun enters the sign of Scorpio this week. Deeply passionate and resourceful, Scorpio’s intense energy has no patience for the superficial. It’s an all-or-nothing sign committed to digging deep […]

Register to Vote Now

The last day to register to vote on Nov. 3 is Saturday, Oct 24. You can register online at sec.state.ma.us/OVR/. You can also verify that you’re properly registered at that […]

Morning After

Irving Puffer at work on his grant in Wellfleet Harbor on a perfectly calm Monday morning after OysterFest weekend. Working with him, but not in this photo was Jake, his […]

Suspect in George’s Pizza Attack Arraigned

Angel Gomez Gonzalez, the Springfield man accused of assaulting George Kraniotakis, 81, of Provincetown, owner of George’s Pizza, was arraigned in Orleans District Court on Oct. 9 on charges of […]

Tax Rates Set in 3 Towns

Three of four Outer Cape towns have set their fiscal year 2021 tax rates; Provincetown and Eastham taxpayers face 7-percent and 5-percent increases, respectively, while Truro’s rate is just slightly […]

This Week In Provincetown

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, Oct. 22 Public Pier Corp., 4 p.m. Planning Board, 6 p.m. Monday, Oct. […]

This Week In Truro

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. To watch live, go to Truro-ma.gov and follow the “helpful link” to Truro Channel 18. Thursday, Oct. 22 Human Services Committee, 11 a.m. Commission on Disabilities, […]

This Week In Wellfleet

Meetings Ahead From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its agenda. That document […]

This Week In Eastham

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on a particular meeting to read its agenda. That document will provide information about how to view and take […]

Jane Fleishman’s Stonewall Generation Gives Voice to LGBTQ Elders

“I have been an activist and organizer from my teenage years onwards,” says Jane Fleishman, author of The Stonewall Generation: LGBTQ Elders on Sex, Activism, and Aging. “As Mandy Carter, […]

O Say Can You Stream?

These days, new films are difficult to track. Miranda July’s Kajillionaire, for example, premiered at Sundance in January, then opened in theaters on Sept. 25, but not locally on the […]

Marilynne Robinson’s Prodigal Son Returns

Jack Boughton, the protagonist of Marilynne Robinson’s much-anticipated novel, Jack, is a thief, a liar, and an alcoholic. He is also exquisitely sensitive, self-deprecatingly funny, and finely attuned to the […]

Mwalim DaPhunkee Professor Won’t Let Covid Slow Him Down

“I grew up in both the Bronx and Mashpee,” says Morgan James Peters, also known as Mwalim DaPhunkee Professor, in his recording studio, Polyphonic Studios, in Buzzards Bay. “My mom’s […]

Cape Cod Fall Foliage

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Alleyway

In every soul there is an alleyway. And every town has one: at least one place like this. Even in beautiful Provincetown, full of narrow winding lanes, lovely gardens, charming […]

Leaves

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Connectivity Is a Necessity

The Independent has published articles about the problem of internet connectivity on the Outer Cape, and we are currently waiting to see the results of the latest round of negotiations […]

Letters, October 22, 2020

Questions on Cloverleaf To the editor: Before the Truro Zoning Board of Appeals discusses and votes on approval or denial of the 20 or more waivers sought by the Cloverleaf […]

Newspapers and Democracy

On Monday the New York Times published a front-page article about “a fast-growing network of nearly 1,300 websites that aim to fill a void left by vanishing local newspapers across […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats

Real Estate Transactions

Real Estate Transactions Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Oct. 12 to Oct. 16, 2020. PROVINCETOWN Oct. 13. Margo Ether Reyes Revocable Trust (Margo Ether Reyes, trustee) […]

Dorothy Fitzsimmons, 89, Registered Nurse

Dorothy M. (Mannato) Fitzsimmons, 89, of Fairhaven died on Oct. 13, 2020, at St. Luke’s Hospital in New Bedford, following a long illness. Born in Boston, Dorothy was raised in […]

Kristin Thomas Verde, 55, Was a True Townie

Kristin Thomas Verde, a Provincetown native, died suddenly of pneumonia caused by Covid-19 in New Bedford on Sept. 20, 2020. She was 55. Kristin was born and raised here, the […]

Classifieds October 22 – October 28, 2020

KUDOS Kevin and Stephanie, you’re the best. From one happy Neighborhood Auto customer who says thank you, for your skills and for your big hearts. [10-22] BACK ROADS Enjoy a […]

Restaurant Owners Re-imagine Winter Dining

PROVINCETOWN — Anticipating a higher-than-normal off-season population in residence coupled with the need to restrict indoor occupancy, local restaurants are looking for creative solutions to staying open this winter. Many […]

Water Quality Issues? Check Your Septic, Says Beebe.

TRURO — Health and Conservation Agent Emily Beebe had a lot of things to say about water quality and the Cloverleaf affordable housing proposal, both in a letter to the […]

Nauset District Loses Students at All Levels

In early October each year, all of the state’s public schools finalize their enrollment numbers for the new school year, and school aid from the state follows. At the Nauset […]

While Cape Air Struggles, Local Airport Reaps a Bonanza

PROVINCETOWN — In February 2019, the Provincetown Municipal Airport Commission stated that the airport’s revolving account would be empty by the fiscal year 2021-2022. The commission wrote, “We are working […]

Baker Withholds Funds for Outer Cape Broadband

PROVINCETOWN — Gov. Charlie Baker signed a bill in August authorizing up to $1.8 billion in infrastructure investment, including $1.7 million to expand broadband coverage in Provincetown via the OpenCape […]

Census Bureau Claims 100% Response Rate

PROVINCETOWN — After a slow start that saw all four Outer Cape towns lagging behind in 2020 census self-response rates, the U.S. Census Bureau now claims that every single household […]

Chefs and Shuckers Take to the Stage for the 20th Annual Wellfleet OysterFest

WELLFLEET — Like almost everything else in 2020, the Wellfleet OysterFest will look very different this year. The town’s signature celebration, which in 2019 hosted about 23,000 visitors and routinely […]

Behind the Scenes at OysterFest 2020

There will be a shuck off at the 20th annual OysterFest. But there will be no competitive parking, no pressing through crowds on Main Street, and no lines under the […]

In Provincetown, Silence Speaks Louder Than Words

PROVINCETOWN — Though passers-by were chatting, bicycle bells were ringing, and the sounds of cars, strollers, and dogs filled the air, the silence from protesters still felt audible, as if […]

School in the Time of Covid

TRURO — In a school across from Truro’s vines, stood 113 children in nearly straight lines. It was a scene that evoked the melodious words of Ludwig Bemelman’s Madeline. The […]

‘I’m Still Moving’

Richard Blakeley has been growing clams and oysters on the Wellfleet flats since the 1980s. A year ago, he spoke of slowing down, perhaps even getting ready to pass the […]

What to Drink With Oysters

As OysterFest rolls around, it’s time to talk about what you should drink with those briny, sparkling Wellfleets. The classic wines to go with oysters have lively acidity and pronounced […]

A Warm Welcome With Wiffle Ball

PROVINCETOWN — What do you get when a group of Provincetown locals have Tuesdays off in the middle of the summer of the pandemic, when social distance is required? A […]

Savory Squash and Apple Galette

Winter squash was legend in my house growing up. One Halloween, my mother wouldn’t let my sisters trick-or-treat until they ate their acorn squash. No squash, no candy. Ultimately, she […]

There Is No Wrong Way to Eat an Oyster

Oyster plates were a Victorian-era idea that became part of the evolution of oysters from inexpensive street food to coveted delicacy, a shift that happened in the early 1900s, when […]

A Gathering of Riches

TRURO — In June 1872, John Fairfield Rich, a journalist living in Ware, in central Mass., realized the fulfillment of a dream he had had a decade earlier, when he […]

Your Dog Just Ate What?

Halloween is a terrifying time of year when you treat animals who struggle with portion control. Maybe not as nerve-wracking as Thanksgiving, but still anxiety-inducing. We hold our breath waiting […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Oct. 13, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

A Week for Negotiating Skills and Patience

The final week of Libra season is highlighted, so to speak, by the new Moon. While the new Moon isn’t a time to begin anything — you should wait until […]

Finding Amato Dangerous, Judge Denies Bail

ORLEANS — At an Oct. 8 dangerousness hearing, Orleans District Court Judge Robert A. Welsh ordered Joseph Amato, 45, of Provincetown, held without bail at the Barnstable County Correctional Facility […]

They’re Out There, Digging

WELLFLEET — “Well,” said Dan Conroy, a field engineer-slash-hydrographic surveyor at Cashman Dredging and Marine Contracting, a Quincy-based company working under the supervision of the Army Corps of Engineers, “I […]

This Week In Provincetown

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, Oct. 15 Board of Health, 4 p.m. Zoning Board of Appeals, 6 p.m. […]

This Week In Truro

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. To watch live, go to Truro-ma.gov and follow the “helpful link” to Truro Channel 18. Thursday, Oct. 15 Climate Action Committee, 10 a.m. Housing […]

This Week In Wellfleet

Meetings Ahead From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its agenda. That document […]

This Week In Eastham

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on a particular meeting to read its agenda.That document will provide information about how to view and take […]

An Exhibit Makes Waves in Provincetown

Political protest art is not new, as anyone who has seen Delacroix’s Liberty Leading the People, about an 1830 anti-royalist uprising in France, or Picasso’s Guernica, depicting the merciless bombing […]

Classical Crossover: Hawthorne, Dickinson, and Music

The viewer is immediately drawn to the eyes. This is true of many paintings by Provincetown art colony founder Charles Webster Hawthorne. They are dark brown and serious. The glint […]

A Personal Assistant’s Postcard From the Edge

“Do a lot of people call you Cockring?” So begins the relationship between Charlie Besson and movie star Kathi Kannon in Byron Lane’s hilarious debut novel, A Star Is Bored. […]

Genie Morrow Sings of the Past and of Renewal

Sitting at the top of a set of weathered wooden stairs overlooking the ocean, Genie Morrow seems to belong in Wellfleet’s wild, windswept landscape. “I believe we can access creativity […]

Late Summer

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What Has Happened to the Cape Cod Times?

Readers must have noticed that Cape Cod’s only daily newspaper has gotten much slimmer in the last few months. It’s no accident. According to the Brookings Institution, over 2,000 U.S. […]

Not Very Coy-Wolf

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Policing People’s Words

It was just about a year ago that I suggested that readers of the Independent observe “Writing Thursday,” because we wanted to get more letters to the editor. Sure enough, […]

Letters, October 15, 2020

On Naming Names To the editor: After reading the letter from the editor in last week’s issue [“The Bloody Facts,” page A2], I understand why you included several articles about […]

Real Estate Transactions

Real Estate Transactions Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Oct. 5 to Oct. 9. PROVINCETOWN Oct 5. John Hardin Carroll and John L. Lofton to Peter F. […]

Classifieds October 15 – October 21, 2020

BACK ROADS Enjoy a private Hopper House tour, on back roads and hidden spaces. You follow the Guide’s car using a provided walkie-talkie. Art, architecture, history, and the environmental changes […]

Joseph Corea, 78, of Provincetown’s ‘Chip Hill Gang’

Joseph Corea, who died at home in Truro on Sept. 22, 2020, loved family, hunting, and fishing. He was 78. The cause was cancer, which he had fought long and […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats

Researchers Worry More About Geese Grazing Than Pooping

Though there are no hard numbers for the population of Canada geese on the Outer Cape, it’s not hard to infer that they are growing. And there’s little argument about […]

Seashore Point Residents Say Condo Agreement Is Fraudulent

PROVINCETOWN — The owners of two units at the Residences at Seashore Point are about to file suit against the company that controls the senior living community and its adjoining […]

Confusion Is on Tap in Cloverleaf Fight

TRURO — Out West, the saying goes that “Whisky’s for drinkin’, and water’s for fightin’.” In Truro’s ongoing debate about affordable housing at the Cloverleaf parcel, the water is for […]

Teardown and Rebuild Gets a Green Light

EASTHAM — The owners of a property in the Cape Cod National Seashore who want to demolish three dwellings and a garage and build a new residence and garage with […]

Wellfleet: Minus One Town Accountant

WELLFLEET — One of the first tasks of new Town Administrator Maria Broadbent was to fire the town accountant. Gene Ferrari Jr. said he was dismissed on Sept. 22, the […]

Willy’s Owner Appeals Restitution Order

EASTHAM — The owner of Willy’s Gym is appealing a state order to pay fines and restitution for various wage law violations, while friends of the gym’s late tennis pro […]

A Decade-long Pattern of Abuse Continues

PROVINCETOWN — The call came last Wednesday night, just over halfway into Police Officer Emmett Catanese’s 3 to 11 p.m. shift. On the line was Christian Peters, 50. He was […]

Hiking Away From the Pandemic

The pandemic has shattered routines, shrunken social circles, and shut most of us off from the world outside our immediate radius. But I learned last week that a little training […]

Walsh Committee Includes Housing and Conservation Advocates

TRURO — After digging deep for year-round workers and young families, the Truro Select Board has found 16 people to serve on the Walsh Property Community Planning Committee. The group […]

At Womencrafts, Michelle Axelson Listens

PROVINCETOWN — Michelle Axelson came to town in November 2010, for a break. A Boston-based social worker by training, she had loved working at Mass. Correctional Institution — Framingham, a […]

Rest Can Be Part of Your Resistance

It feels like just yesterday that we were all holed up, arguing on Facebook about opening up for the summer season and wondering what would happen. And then it did. […]

Edna Lewis’s Chicken for Between the Seasons

Something ridiculous always happens when the seasons change. I find myself excited for the foods I associate with the new season, and immediately nostalgic for the foods of the season […]

Going Against the Grain Has Its Rewards

With Women’s Week in view, the Independent asked three Outer Cape women to tell us what it’s like to make themselves at home working in what is still seen as […]

Let’s Call This an Optimistic Midpoint

Fresh off a full Moon in Aries, many of us may have noticed a weekend full of headaches, heartaches, and a rather edgy disposition. The best way to balance aggression […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Oct. 6, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Wellfleet’s Abbe Seldin Made Tennis History in 1973

WELLFLEET — If you search for Abbe Seldin in the archives of the New York Times, you’ll find four articles. The first, by Leslie Oelsner, appeared on Feb. 1, 1972, […]

Businesswomen in the News

PROVINCETOWN — The staff at the Lobster Pot sent word on Oct. 3 to the restaurant’s customers and friends: Mary Joy McNulty, “our beloved owner, leader, and inspiration,” is retiring. […]

No Update on Status of Arrested Eastham Teacher

EASTHAM — Nauset Regional School District Supt. Thomas Conrad would not comment this week on the termination process for James Saidnawey, a fourth-grade teacher at Eastham Elementary School who was […]

This Week In Provincetown

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, Oct. 8 Scholarship & Trust Administration Committee, 3 p.m. Public Pier Corp., 2 […]

This Week In Truro

Meetings Ahead Thursday, Oct. 8 Zoning Board of Appeals, 5:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 9 Community Preservation Committee, 4:15 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 13 Council on Aging Board, 10 a.m. Select Board, […]

This Week In Wellfleet

Meetings Ahead From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its agenda. That document […]

This Week In Eastham

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on a particular meeting to read its agenda. That document will provide information about how to view and take […]

Despite New Guidelines, Indoor Venues to Remain Mostly Shut

Theater and music lovers were overjoyed last week when Gov. Charlie Baker announced that lower-risk communities may move to “step two” of phase three reopening guidelines, as of Monday, Oct. […]

How Truro’s Isabel Souza Cultivates a Life in Art

“The Cape is where I want to be as an artist,” says ceramicist Isabel Souza. “The direction of my art is very influenced by my roots and my family history […]

Becoming a Teacher: The Perils of Success

What is the likely career trajectory of an inventive, gifted Teacher of the Year who is passionate about racial and social justice and who works in an urban public school? […]

Renowned Baroque Cellist Performs in Cotuit

“This is the first indoor [musical] event that anyone on the Cape can experience since February,” said David Kuehn, executive director of Cotuit Center for the Arts, introducing a solo […]

October Moons

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Almost Cut My Hair

PROVINCETOWN — I have not had a haircut in at least seven months. My hair is almost as long as it was 50 years ago. It doesn’t really matter; I […]

Behind Bar

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Let It Fly

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The Bloody Facts

“If it bleeds, it leads” is an old saw in the news business. Stories of crime and violence sell, and in newsrooms driven by competition for viewers and readers, the […]

Letters, October 8, 2020

A Nice Guy To the editor: Todd Silva’s letter in last week’s Independent [“Noises of the Waterfront”] was the most restrained, polite, and neighborly reply imaginable to a jerk. Imagine complaining about […]

Real Estate Transactions

Real Estate Transactions Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Sept. 28 to Oct. 2. PROVINCETOWN Sept. 28. BPJC LLC [Christopher D. Wise, manager] to Paulo Martini. 350 […]

Classifieds October 8 – October 14, 2020

YARD SALE Huge yard sale in North Truro. Moving and downsizing. This Sat., Oct. 10 and Sun., Oct. 11 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. No early birds! Masks required. 50 […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats

Tide Charts

Know when to hit the flats

Dredging of Federal Channel Begins at Last

WELLFLEET — It took a town-wide effort, a federal campaign, and 26 years, but the dredging of Wellfleet Harbor’s federal channel is set to begin on Oct. 1. “It’s just […]

Cloverleaf Foes Question Funds for Housing

TRURO — It was a short but not sweet town meeting on Saturday, Sept. 26. All 17 warrant articles passed, the weather was balmy, and 243 people (or 12 percent […]

Eastham Moves Forward on Family Support

EASTHAM — The voters were in an agreeable mood at last Saturday’s town meeting, approving every warrant article presented and agreeing to postpone two. Three of the adopted articles will […]

State Questions Provincetown Schools on Staying Shut

PROVINCETOWN — Provincetown Schools Supt. Suzanne Scallion has received a letter from state Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education Jeffrey Riley questioning her decision not to reopen the school for […]

Outer Cape Workers Could Be Denied Unemployment This Winter

PROVINCETOWN — Unemployment insurance dates back to 1935 and the same New Deal law that created Social Security. This year, however, unemployment benefits were radically expanded and repurposed as coronavirus […]

Vandalism, Alcohol Blemish Weekend Perfection

WELLFLEET — An employee at Bay Sails Marine on Route 6 was flushing out his boat Saturday evening at the end of a beautiful late September day when he noticed […]

Five Towns Force Comcast to Expand Broadband Access

TRURO — More residents in areas currently without broadband service will soon be able to get connected, following a breakthrough in negotiations with Comcast — though exactly how many will […]

Assemblage Artist Varujan Boghosian, 94, Was a Magician and Poet

PROVINCETOWN — In his poem “Chariot,” Stanley Kunitz, a founder of the Fine Arts Work Center, wrote of Varujan Boghosian, “In my friend’s studio, where curiosity runs the shop, and […]

Strandings Are Now Year Round, but Survival Rate Improves

WELLFLEET — Cape Cod is known as a global stranding hot spot for whales and dolphins. Probably no one knows that better than the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) […]

Mary Trump Skewers Uncle Donald in LPAC Event

PROVINCETOWN — Mary L. Trump’s book Too Much and Never Enough: How My Family Created the World’s Most Dangerous Man sold more copies in one week than her uncle Donald’s […]

Autumn Is at the Door

Masses of mums have arrived at local garden stores, ready to be shepherded to our dooryards to replace summer’s now-bedraggled geraniums. Natalie Van Staden stands surrounded by what seems like […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Sept. 29, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Warriors Look Toward February Football

EASTHAM — “Unfortunately, the kids are getting used to disappointment right now,” said Head Coach Bruce Strunk of the Nauset Warriors football team. Friday nights in September would normally bring […]

E. Coli Found in Wellfleet’s Town Water System

WELLFLEET — The discovery of E. coli bacteria in the town’s public water supply led to a “boil water order” from the state on Saturday evening, Sept. 26. Occupants of […]

On Tap For OysterFest

Elle Simone Scott took delivery last week on 72 Wellfleet oysters at America’s Test Kitchen in Boston, where she is a test chef and stylist. The oysters were courtesy of […]

Accidental Tomato Soup

Sometimes recipes come from friends, relatives, or a cookbook. But sometimes, they happen by accident. They all start with some kind of inspiration. Just as those final slicing tomatoes of […]

In Libra, Balancing Light and Darkness

It should be noted for transparency’s sake that this astro-columnist is himself a Libra, born Oct. 9, 1985. For me, writing about Libra poses a challenge. How to turn the […]

The Indie’s Prize Winners

The staff of the Provincetown Independent celebrated the completion of Volume 1 of the newspaper on Friday, Sept. 25 with a series of surprise awards, announced by the editor, Ed […]

You Are Here

Sophia Maymudes created this month’s puzzle with a special place in mind. Need some answers? Just ask and we’ll send them. This page is available to subscribers. Click here to […]

Eastham Turnip Festival Goes Virtual

EASTHAM — The Outer Cape’s annual fall festivals have all taken a hit during 2020, thanks to Covid-19. “What’s next?” you might be asking. “No Eastham Turnip Festival this year?” […]

Kurtzman Nominated For ‘Artists Under the Dome’

Susan Kurtzman, who owns Jobi Pottery in Truro, with state Sen. Julian Cyr, who nominated Jobi for inclusion in Artists Under the Dome, an annual State House event. “It was […]

This Week in Provincetown

Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, Oct. 1 Recycling & Renewable Energy Committee, 10 a.m. Public Pier Corp., 1 p.m. Select […]

This Week in Truro

Meetings are held remotely. To watch live, go to truro-ma.gov and follow the “helpful link” to Truro Channel 18. Thursday, Oct. 1 Climate Action Committee, 10 a.m. Monday, Oct. 5 Conservation Commission, […]

This Week in Wellfleet

From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its agenda. That document will provide […]

This Week in Eastham

Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on any meeting to read its agenda. That document will provide information about how to view and take part remotely. Thursday, […]

Mimi Gross Reframes the Mayflower Story

“It’s historical; it’s interactive; you walk through it,” Mimi Gross says. She is describing how museum-goers will experience The Arrival, 1620, her site-specific installation that is opening on Friday, Oct. […]

Queer Romance and Musical Obsession in The Piano Student

Next Wednesday, East End Books Ptown is holding a virtual book event on the The Piano Student, with author Lea Singer and translator Elisabeth Lauffer. The novel, newly translated from […]

A Show of Bill Evaul’s ‘Expressions of Life’

“That’s the life force we get from being present in the moment, experiencing what is happening around us,” says Bill Evaul in his North Truro home, leaning forward in an […]

Ptown Gallery Stroll Launches ‘Hope Project’

The Ptown Gallery Stroll, a nonprofit organization of more than 30 art galleries in Provincetown, was formed in the spring in response to the Covid-19 pandemic and the threat it […]

Now Streaming: Cape Cod Chamber Orchestra

Samuel Barber’s Adagio for Strings is a warhorse — a piece of classical music that is played so repeatedly, it ought to get old. But it doesn’t. Partly because of […]

Small Talk

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The Moment When the Tide Turns

EASTHAM — It started as a quick trip down the steps to the pond, with sandwich in hand, before a run into town to fetch bird seed from the Bird […]

High School

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Questioning Rock Harbor Plans

EASTHAM — One of the reasons my husband and I decided to move back to Eastham from Orleans was its scenic beauty. When I lived in Orleans, I was a […]

Letters, October 1, 2020

Noises of the Waterfront To the editor: I am a commercial lobsterman fishing out of Provincetown, as my father and grandfather did before me. After a week of unfishable weather, […]

The Meetings Are Adjourned, for Now

Now that all four of the Outer Cape towns have held their annual town meetings, gathering outdoors on athletic fields and in a parking lot, maintaining safe distancing and observing […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats

Classifieds October 1 – October 6, 2020

JOBS Vacation rental coordinator. Part-time year-round vacation rental coordinator for busy Wellfleet real estate office. Excellent organizational and computer skills essential. Current MA real estate license, or obtain one within […]

Real Estate Transactions

Real Estate Transactions Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Sept. 21 to Sept. 25, 2020. PROVINCETOWN Sept. 21. Debora Lyn Charpentier and Christine Erin Smith to Thomas […]

E. Coli Found in Wellfleet Town Water

WELLFLEET — The discovery of E. coli bacteria in the town’s public water supply led to a “boil water order” from the state on Saturday evening. Occupants of the 290 […]

Why Wellfleet Elementary School Has No Sprinklers

WELLFLEET — At the Sept. 12 annual town meeting voters agreed to spend $110,000 to design a sprinkler system for the Wellfleet Elementary School, because, the fire chief said, one […]

There’s Financial Help for Tenants and Landlords Hurt by Covid

PROVINCETOWN — First, the good news: checks of up to $5,000 are available to help vulnerable Cape Cod tenants with up to three months of rent payments. The Housing Assistance […]

Cold Hands, Warm Hearts at Town Meeting

PROVINCETOWN — The long-delayed annual town meeting moved at a brisk pace on Monday, Sept. 21, with the chilly weather perhaps encouraging voters gathered in the parking lot at St. […]

Fighting Racism With More Civic Engagement

WELLFLEET — About 100 people marched from the pier to the First Congregational Church in support of the Black Lives Matter movement on Sept. 20. The crowd on Sunday was […]

Gravestone Work Is Substandard, Says Restoration Expert

WELLFLEET — Three days after town meeting voters agreed to spend another $10,000 to continue a years-long cemetery restoration and repair project, an independent historic gravestone conservator delivered her report […]

Truro Wants Coloradan to Be Town Manager

TRURO — After heaping praise on Darrin Tangeman, 46, a former Green Beret with municipal and medical experience, the select board on Sept. 22 unanimously picked him to be the […]

MassHealth Clients Find No Dental Care on Outer Cape

WELLFLEET — Liberty Schilpp’s middle-school-age children have already had four different dentists and are about to meet number five, this one in South Dennis. The problem is not a dearth […]

The Last Tomato

What are you going to do with that last sun-warmed tomato from the garden, the one that’s waiting on the counter right now? Here’s how a few of the Outer […]

Getting to Know Your Flock

WELLFLEET — Most chickens on the Outer Cape are, like the rest of us, among the fortunate on this Earth. Instead of inhabiting large-production poultry farms, our backyard babies live […]

The Outer Cape’s Own Early Morning Joe

EASTHAM — When Joe Rossetti was a kid, back in the 1960s, his family spent summers at a cottage in North Truro, just steps away from Highland Light and Coast […]

North Winds Portend Cooling Waters

There is no mistaking it: the fall season is upon us. Unrelenting winds from northerly quadrants have been buffeting us for days on end, and, as of this writing, the remnants […]

Goldenrod for a September Salve

September, the golden month on Cape Cod. Sunrises and sunsets that linger in the mind’s eye with color and light. Solidago sempervirens, seaside goldenrod, is just beginning to open at […]

Nauset Team Is Off to the Races

EASTHAM — “I’m glad that we’ll be able to have some sort of season,” said Izzy Nobili, senior captain of the Nauset Regional High School cross country team. Normally, cross […]

Mars Attacks? Not Anytime Soon

In the very first issue of the Independent, I wrote about Jupiter and Saturn, which were prominently in view at the time. After making their way across the sky and […]

Football Dreams

AIDAN HANDVILLE / HIGH SCHOOL SENIOR, ATHLETE / EASTHAM Aidan Handville is captain of the Nauset Regional High School football team. This fall, because of Covid, there’s no regular football […]

How I Survived the Bullies at School

The first time I was bullied, I was in second grade. It was a classic case. A kid my age with a scary, tough way about him stole money from […]

Car Repair Starts With the Senses

People ask me what I think of Question One, which will be on the ballot in the Commonwealth on Nov. 3. My answer is that, while it may not be […]

A Time to Balance Cosmic Forces and Tip the Scales for Good

All rise for Libra season. Perched between high-minded Virgo and sub-conscious Scorpio, Libra seeks to balance the cosmic forces of good and evil by delivering an equalizing light to their […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Sept. 22, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

This Week in Provincetown

Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, Sept. 24 Public Pier Corp., 2 p.m. Planning Board, 6 p.m. Monday, Sept. 28 […]

This Week in Truro

Meetings are held remotely. To watch live, go to truro-ma.gov and follow the “helpful link” to Truro Channel 18. Thursday, Sept. 24 School Committee, 9 a.m. Shellfish Advisory Committee, 2 p.m. Zoning […]

This Week in Wellfleet

From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its agenda. That document will […]

This Week in Eastham

Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on a meeting to read its agenda. That document will provide information about how to view and take part remotely. Saturday, […]

Tennessee Williams Fest Stays Live and Distant for 2020

The view from the Grace Hall parking lot #3 of the dune and water tower above it would not be part of a Provincetown promotional flyer. But the sky was […]

To Muralist Arnold Charnick, the World Is His Canvas

Many visitors to Provincetown have admired the funky, colorful Bob Gasoi Memorial Alley beside Shop Therapy at 290 Commercial St. Few, however, are familiar with Arnold Charnick, the artist who […]

PAAM and Pilgrim Monument Host Art Exhibit

The Provincetown Art Association and Museum has joined forces with the Pilgrim Monument and Provincetown Museum for “Members’ Juried: Provincetown 400,” an exhibit of artwork by PAAM members that is […]

In x + y, Eugenia Cheng Envisions a World Without Gender

Watch a video clip of mathematician Eugenia Cheng making puff pastry with Stephen Colbert, and you’ll quickly appreciate why her students at the Art Institute of Chicago surely consider themselves […]

Marco Calvani Finds a Haven in Provincetown

As residencies go, Marco Calvani’s time in Provincetown has been productive and reflective. It culminated with a fund-raiser at the Mary Heaton Vorse House on Thursday, Sept. 17, presented by […]

From a Distance, Trying to Connect

The summer came and went. And against all odds, we had live music, cabaret, and drag. Performers and venues acclimated to an entirely new way of performing — outdoors and […]

Remembering RBG

“Tzedek, Tzedek Tirdof: Justice, Justice you shall pursue. This quote hung in her office. I’ve given her a gold pin inscribed with it.”—Traci Harmon-Hay This page is available to subscribers. […]

R.B.G.

I stare at this photograph The setting of the sun Over the ocean the dunes My world Luminous So alive Without her body She pours her love Upon us Dare […]

Hope Is the Thing With Flowers

I aspire to be a writer. My two young granddaughters, though, ages four and seven, would not care if I never wrote another word. They are staying with us now, […]

Cheers?

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Celebrating A Year Of The Independent

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Letters, September 24, 2020

Playing With Space and Time To the editor: Marnie Crawford Samuelson’s interview with and portrait of my brother, Miah Nate Johnson, were sensitive and wonderful [“Laugh! Laugh Out Loud,” Sept. […]

A Lot Of Life Left

Things go wrong sometimes. That’s always of interest to reporters and editors. We’re tuned to ask what happened and tell the story of how things came apart. It’s good to […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats

Real Estate Transactions

Real Estate Transactions Recorded at the Barnstable Country Registry of Deeds from Sept. 14 to Sept. 18, 2020. PROVINCETOWN Sept. 14. Cheryl A. Bready to Robert Parisi. 531 Commercial St. […]

Classifieds September 24 – September 30, 2020

JOBS Vacation rental coordinator. Part-time year-round vacation rental coordinator for busy Wellfleet real estate office. Excellent organizational and computer skills essential. Current MA real estate license, or obtain one within […]

Anne Elizabeth Mahoney, 59, Devoted Educator

Anne Elizabeth Mahoney, 59, of Truro and Cambridge, died of complications from heart surgery on Sept. 15, 2020, at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston. She was the wife of […]

Artemis Warburton, 97, Innkeeper and Artist

Artemis Diana Warburton of Eastham died peacefully on Sept. 3, 2020 at Pleasant Bay Nursing and Rehab Center in Brewster at the age of 97. Artemis, who was known as […]

Joseph Jay Buteau, 70, Physical Therapist

Joseph Jay Buteau of North Truro died at home on Sept. 12, 2020, surrounded by his wife and daughters. Born on Aug. 2, 1950, in Heidelberg, Germany, he was the […]

Varujan Boghosian, 94

Varujan Boghosian, a towering figure among Provincetown artists, died of complications of a hip fracture at his home in Hanover, N.H., on Monday, Sept. 21, 2020. He was 94. His […]

Drive Carefully: It’s Terrapin Hatchling Season

WELLFLEET — She pulled up to the gas pump at the Mobil station on Route 6, but I knew she wasn’t there to fill up her tank. She was a […]

Soccer Players Face a New Game

As high school sports seasons progress, the Independent will be reporting regularly on how the pandemic is affecting the games, players, coaches, and fans. PROVINCETOWN — “I thought it would […]

How the Outer Cape Dodged the Covid Bullet

TRURO — Summer 2020 came and went with nearly the usual influx of tourists, many of them from metropolitan areas with far higher incidence of Covid-19. But the infection rate […]

Warrant Articles on Housing and Flood Prevention Face Voters

PROVINCETOWN — Like much of the summer season this year, town meeting in Provincetown is going to arrive later, leaner, and al fresco. Originally scheduled for early April, at the […]

Wellfleet OK’s Water Main and Firefighters

WELLFLEET — Standing on the pitcher’s mound at the Wellfleet Elementary School ballfield, Moderator Dan Silverman pitched a no-hitter on Sept. 12, with voters approving all the articles that came […]

Eastham Will Vote on Family Support and Water System Fund

EASTHAM — The warrant for the Sept. 26 annual town meeting has arrived in mailboxes and is now available on the town’s website at eastham-ma.gov. Voters will be asked to […]

In Seashore Policing, Racial Bias Is off the Radar

As U.S. police forces face a reckoning, issues of transparency and racial equity are on the table at the State House in Boston. A conference committee works on a bill […]

Bob Seay’s Community Education

EASTHAM — Over the last five decades, if you turned on your radio on Cape Cod or in the Boston-Providence area, chances are you’d hear the voice of Bob Seay. […]

More Warm-water Fish Are Showing Up Here

This past week saw more evidence of the effects of global warming on our oceans. We continue to see more warm-water fish moving up into our area. Charter boats out of […]

A House on the Marsh Is ‘Unbuilt’

EASTHAM — Usually, when a basement floods, the home owner starts planning to get rid of the water. When Joanna Buffington’s basement was inundated, she started planning to get rid […]

End-of-summer Italian Plum Pie

When there are raspberries and then blueberries, you can tell yourself you’ve got all kinds of time. You can go for a swim tomorrow. Or read a book. You have […]

Must Be the Season of the Itch

The passing of Labor Day marks the end of our cut-pad-on-an-oyster-shell season and the beginning of the itchy-dog-and-cat season here on the Cape. (This will be followed by pancreatic inflammation […]

Fences for ‘Where There Are No Cows’

All of us on the Outer Cape are in some way or another living in a national park. Even if our homes are not within its boundaries, we are surrounded […]

The End of Virgo Season Is Good for New Beginnings

Here at the tail end of Virgo season, the New Moon in the sign of the Virgin gives birth to new beginnings. The orderly and analytical nature of Virgo would […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Sept. 15, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Does Your Home Work Station Need a Check-up?

Back in March, you set up your laptop on the dining room table and the kids took to the couch with their devices. You figured you could make do — […]

Man Doing Landscaping Found 9 Bombs

WELLFLEET — While doing landscaping chores on Sept. 12, Donald Thimas came across nine World War I-era bombs, including six powerful anti-tank devices that later rocked neighborhoods when they were […]

Gelato Sparks Joy in Wellfleet

WELLFLEET — “It’s nut day,” says Sandy Valli. I look around, confused. The shop, Gelato Joy, is busy for sure, but not particularly crazy. It is 4 p.m. on the […]

Photo of the Week

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Nauset High May Re-open Oct. 15

EASTHAM — The Nauset Regional High School ventilation system turns out not to be as bad as expected, with the majority of classrooms expected to be ready for an Oct. […]

Scallion Plans ‘Hybrid/Outdoor’ and ‘In-person/Remote’

PROVINCETOWN — The Provincetown Schools superintendent has penciled in the date of Oct. 5 for some students to return to school, but not inside the building. “We’re not going to […]

This Week in Provincetown

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, Sept. 17 Scholarship & Trust Administration Committee, 3 p.m. Board of Health, 4 […]

This Week in Truro

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. To watch live, go to truro-ma.gov and follow the “helpful link” to Truro Channel 18. Thursday, Sept. 17 Climate Action Committee, 10 a.m. Friday, Sept. 18 […]

This Week in Wellfleet

Meetings Ahead From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its agenda. That […]

This Week in Eastham

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you’re interested to read its agenda and find information about how to view and take part […]

Markey Takes the Outer Cape

Ed Markey, who soundly defeated Joe Kennedy in the U.S. Senate Democratic primary on Sept. 1, was the winner in every town on the Outer Cape. Looking at results across […]

Gelato Sparks Joy in Wellfleet

WELLFLEET — “It’s nut day,” says Sandy Valli. I look around, confused. The shop, Gelato Joy, is busy for sure, but not particularly crazy. It is 4 p.m. on the […]

Edie Vonnegut Paints to Elevate the Everyday

The painter Edith (“Edie”) Vonnegut sits in the sand on Mayo Beach in Wellfleet, gazing at sailboats floating by in the sunshine. Her slender figure and natural beauty defy any […]

Varujan Boghosian’s Art Is the Stuff of Poetry

“Unity: Exploring Freedom and Democracy in 2020,” an exhibit on view at Berta Walker Gallery at 208 Bradford St. in Provincetown through Election Day, includes about 20 works by Varujan […]

Matthew Yglesias Envisions a Better, Much Bigger America

Faced with impending climate doom, extreme housing shortages, and a global pandemic that spreads through close human proximity, most people hope Americans will get fewer and farther between. In his […]

Amid a Pandemic, Revisiting Dancer From the Dance

A million years ago, back in 2016, I sat on a panel at a literary conference in New Orleans. At the time, I was working on my second novel, and […]

Kahn & Selesnick’s Performance of a Lifetime

The art of Kahn & Selesnick — otherwise known as Nicholas Kahn and Richard Selesnick, who met at Washington University in St. Louis in the ’80s, moved to the Cape […]

Thea Hopkins Creates Her Own Americana

This Friday, singer-songwriter Thea Hopkins will be performing on the Payomet Performing Arts Center’s Drive-in stage, offering the rare pleasure, these days, of experiencing a live musician in concert on […]

Underwater

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Hummingbird

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Writers Against Trump

In the middle of August, a group of eight writers, prompted perhaps by chants of “12 more years!” at the Republican National Convention, began an online discussion about finding ways […]

New Ways to Observe the Days of Awe

The year 5781 in the Jewish calendar begins this Friday evening, Sept.18. The season is called the Days of Awe, beginning with the two days of Rosh Hashanah, the “head […]

A Meeting to Remember

Wellfleet was the first of the Outer Cape towns to conduct its long-delayed annual town meeting this past Saturday, and as Provincetown, Truro, and Eastham have also chosen, it was […]

Letters, September 17, 2020

Native American Stereotypes To the editor: People in Truro who are unhappy with the Massachusetts seal [“State Flag and Seal Question Is on Wellfleet, Truro Warrants,” Sept. 10, page A8] […]

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors

Know when to hit the flats

Real Estate Transactions

Real Estate Transactions Recorded at the Barnstable Country Registry of Deeds from Sept. 7 to Sept. 11, 2020. PROVINCETOWN Sept. 8. Benjamin I. Dobson and Timothy C. Harrington Jr. to […]

Rev. Manuel P. Ferreira, Provincetown Native, 90

The Rev. Manuel Peter Ferreira, 90, died on Sept. 6, 2020, at Charlton Memorial Hospital in Fall River, after a period of declining health. Father Ferreira was ordained as a […]

Helen Duberstein Lipton, 94, Writer and Artist

Helen Duberstein Lipton died peacefully on Sept. 2, 2020, in North Truro. She was surrounded by her daughters, Jackie and Irene, and close family at Irene’s home, where she had […]

Kathleen F. Connors, 75, Was a Loving, No-nonsense Nurse

Kathleen Forrest Connors, 75, died peacefully on Sept. 13, 2020, at her Wellfleet home, surrounded by family and friends. Born in Bridgeport, Conn., in 1945, she was the eldest daughter […]

Classifieds September 17 – September 23, 2020

JOBS Truro Central School, health office assistant. Assist the school nurse with administrative work, student care, and implementing school-wide health and safety protocols. Health-care and/or child-care experience preferred. Send letter, […]

A Campground for Camaraderie

WELLFLEET — Back in 1949, Maurice and Ann Gauthier of New Bedford were in search of a better lifestyle for their growing family. They eventually found it in the woods […]

Real Estate Booms, but Not School Rolls

WELLFLEET — Every Cape Cod real estate agent seems to have a story of this summer’s pandemic home-buying bonanza: homes going under contract the day they are listed, often with […]

The Pot Profit Puzzle, Part One

PROVINCETOWN — When b\well opened here on Friday, Sept. 4, it became the second recreational (or “adult-use”) marijuana dispensary on Cape Cod. Nine more dispensaries are on a path to […]

Looming Deadlines and Low Response Rates Raise Concerns

As the current deadline of Sept. 30 for completing the 2020 census draws near, low self-response rates and misconceptions about filling out the census questionnaire are lowering hopes for a […]

To Some, It’s Kitsch; Others See ‘Eyesore’

EASTHAM — The old Nickerson Service Center property on Route 6 in North Eastham took a bashing at the select board’s Aug. 31 meeting, as the board considered the idea […]

Wellfleet Voters Will Be Asked to Spend $23 Million

WELLFLEET — The annual town meeting is set to kick off at 10 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 12, five months after it was initially postponed because of the Covid-19 pandemic. […]

Truro Pulls Firefighter Override off Warrant

TRURO — Town meeting may feel more like recess this year, as voters gather outdoors at the Truro Central School ballfield at noon on Saturday, Sept. 26. Even the warrant […]

Laugh! Laugh Out Loud

MIAH NATE JOHNSON / PAINTER, SEWER, CREATOR / WELLFLEET In the 1980s, Miah began traveling the world as a photojournalist, working with major photo agencies and clients like National Geographic. […]

Stripers Add That Crucial Extra Inch

I have always said the summer season goes by in three blinks of the eye. The first time you blink, Memorial Day is gone; the second time, the Fourth of July […]

The Tiny Pricks Project Is a Stitch

The Tiny Pricks Project began in 2018 when Diana Weymar, a Canadian-born, Princeton-educated textile artist, heard the current president say, “I am a very stable genius,” and found herself stitching […]

Provincetown Tennis Closes Out Tournament

PROVINCETOWN — The Provincetown Tennis Club (PTC) finished up its members tournament last week. Maria Cirino defeated Judy Mencher in two sets, 6-2, 6-3, in the women’s singles final, while […]

Memories of Citrus Season Stir a Paloma

There have been years, like the ones when we had our restaurant in Provincetown, when I did not think a lot about the Rio Grande Valley of South Texas, where […]

You’ve Got Gail

Fail Gail. The epithet strikes fear in the hearts of high schoolers, yet no one seems to know her real name. I am speaking, of course, of the infamous road […]

PYC Season Crown Rides on Last Race

PROVINCETOWN — The Provincetown Yacht Club crammed three races and a party into Labor Day Weekend — and with just a week left in the summer racing season, the PYC […]

John Y. Newcomb, Wellfleet’s Most Famous Oysterman

Even before there was a written Wellfleet history, there were Wellfleet oysters. We know that indigenous peoples savored them raw, smoked, roasted, steamed, and dried, because of the massive shell […]

In the Spirit of Sangha, Don’t Go It Alone

“See you Friday night at Sangha!” Hugh said to me on the way out the door. I looked at the schedule on the back of my manual and sure enough: […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Sept. 8, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

When Action Stalls, Check Your Motivation

As the summer begins to wane, so, too, can our sense of motivation, especially now, as Mars goes retrograde. A rarer celestial event than Mercury’s three or four retrogrades a […]

Fall Sports to Play in Two Seasons

EASTHAM — Nauset fall sports will be a completely different game this year. The Cape & Islands League Executive Board voted last week to allow boys golf, cross country, boys […]

Truro Hopes No. 4 Is the Charm

TRURO — After Robert Wood, the top town manager candidate, and the select board could not agree on salary and benefits, the board met on Sept. 4 to weigh its […]

State Flag and Seal Question Is on Wellfleet, Truro Warrants

For more than 100 years, Massachusetts has used as its state seal a colonial swordsman’s disembodied arm brandished over a Native American. The same coat of arms has also been […]

This Week in Provincetown

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, Sept. 10 Animal Welfare Committee, 12 noon Public Pier Corp., 2 p.m. Provincetown […]

This Week in Truro

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. To watch live, go to truro-ma.gov and follow the “helpful link” to Truro Channel 18. Thursday, Sept. 10 Climate Change Action Committee, 10 a.m. Housing Authority, […]

This Week in Wellfleet

Meetings Ahead From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its agenda. That […]

This Week in Eastham

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on a particular meeting to read its agenda. That document will provide information about how to view and take […]

This All Happened

Wasn’t it a great summer? Like the others before? But this year! There was that first show — remember how thrilling it was to get back to the Harbor after […]

Alvin Ross, Provincetown’s Man for All Seasons

“Alvin Ross was a real bon vivant, whose life, loves, interests, and connections were complex and often intertwined,” says James Bakker. Bakker, a local gallerist, auctioneer, and art historian specializing […]

Greg Salvatori Finds Joy in Unexpected Places

“I like dramatic, show-stopping images,” says Greg Salvatori. “When I ask you to look at an artwork I created, I want to offer you something that is worthy of your […]

Berta Walker Show Honors Native American Artists

“Contemporary Cape Artists of Native American Heritage,” a new exhibit at Berta Walker Gallery, 208 Bradford St. in Provincetown, features artwork with local indigenous connections. Running concurrently (through Election Day) […]

Hugh Raffles’s Relentless Riffs in a Book of Unconformities

A long sentence careens through Hugh Raffles’s The Book of Unconformities: Speculations on Lost Time. At 458 words, the sentence zigzags from a description of a helicopter ride gone wrong […]

Goethe’s Tortured Hero, Set to Massenet’s Music

Jules Massenet’s music has never moved me. It’s too thickly orchestrated, and his choice of dramas too extreme. Werther, easily Massenet’s best opera, filled with romantic melodies and dissonant outbursts, bears the […]

Wild Turkeys

Wild Turkeys by Mary DeAngelis

Heading South

Heading South by Daniel Dejean

Dear Thomas Jefferson

Dear Thomas Jefferson by Linda Dujack

You’re Sure to Fall in Love

Plan are underway to build a machine gun range at a Cape Cod base used for training by the Massachusetts Army National Guard. The proposal for Camp Edwards at Joint […]

The Globe Gets It Wrong

The Boston Globe published a disturbing piece this week about the experiences of urbanites going on vacation in rural New England this summer. It was titled “Dirty looks, threats, and […]

Letters, September 10, 2020

The Town Manager Shuffle To the editor: Once again, the Outer Cape town manager shuffle occurs, this time in Truro [“Robert Wood and Truro Part Ways,” Sept. 3, page A4]. […]

Classifieds September 10 – September 16, 2020

MUSIC Fiddler/singer ready to play and will travel. Live music for Covid-19-safe events including weddings, parties, memorial services. Celtic, Jewish, folk and world music. Performing solo or with accompanist. Contact: [email protected] […]

Real Estate Transactions

Real Estate Transactions Recorded at the Barnstable Country Registry of Deeds from Aug. 31 to Sept. 4, 2020. PROVINCETOWN Aug. 31. Jeffrey I. Lovinger Revocable Living Trust (Jeffrey I. Lovinger, […]

One Year and Counting

This week marks a year since we sent our very first edition to press. It was a “preview” edition, full of hope that we’d find the support to develop into […]

Schools to Offer Child Care in Gym

PROVINCETOWN — Twenty-five children of working parents will be offered free child care in the Provincetown Schools gym as part of the school administration’s plan for completely remote learning when […]

Dormitory-style Housing Faces ZBA Review

PROVINCETOWN — Both supporters and opponents of the dormitory-style housing project scheduled for review by the zoning board of appeals at its Sept. 17 meeting agree on one thing: it’s […]

Robert Wood and Truro Part Ways

TRURO — The candidate selected to become the new town manager taking Rae Ann Palmer’s place turned out to be the wrong man for the job when negotiations over salary […]

Eastham Again Nixes Resident Tax Exemption

EASTHAM — While the select board once again decided not to adopt a residential tax exemption (RTE) this year, the controversial measure will be back on the table for 2022, […]

Two Wellfleet Pot Shops Hope to Open Within Months

Updated on Sept. 30, 2020 WELLFLEET — The former South Wellfleet General Store sits vacant with tarped windows and dilapidated shingles, guarded by a chain-link fence and construction tape. A […]

Coalition Calls for Action on Child Care

For years, child-care centers have survived by paying workers minimum wage and offering a service that is, for working parents, still just barely affordable. It is this reality that reveals […]

Kerry Reid’s World of Birds

EASTHAM — Three years ago, several Eastham residents began noticing a small flock of blue jays making the rounds about town. These birds weren’t just poking around yards and bird […]

Shark Alerts Have Become Routine for Bathers

PROVINCETOWN — The latest news on the waterfront is the dramatically increased number of beach closures that occurred last week. Alerts were coming into my cell phone via the Atlantic White […]

Provincetown Town Crier Ken Lonergan Retires

PROVINCETOWN — Hear ye, hear ye! Kenneth Lonergan, Provincetown’s beloved town crier, announced his retirement last week, after 13 years of bell-ringing and proclamation-making. The spirited and affable Lonergan, 74, […]

Orr Makes Surprise Visit to Wellfleet PD

WELLFLEET — The Wellfleet Police Dept. received an unexpected visitor on Monday, Aug. 24. Boston Bruins legend Bobby Orr stopped by the police station on Lawrence Road unannounced to thank […]

New Technology for Dog Days and Three Dog Nights

So many memories get made in a summer on Cape Cod. But if one of them is of that musty cottage smell, maybe it’s time to tackle the humidity problem […]

Two Schools of Fluke

I haven’t had much luck fishing this summer. There have been a few bluefish, sure. As for striped bass, I haven’t caught one keeper. They say the fluke are in […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Sept. 1, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Get Schooled

The September puzzle from Sophia Maymudes should be done on dry land. Need some answers? We send out the solution in our Friday newsletter. You’ll find the signup for our […]

Paddling Through the Pandemic

Some sports require specialized equipment and conditions, such as the ability to get to the mountains for skiing. Baseball requires a diamond field and multiple players, which presents a problem […]

Fine Arts Work Center Director Will Resign

PROVINCETOWN — The Fine Arts Work Center’s executive director has announced his resignation by June 2021 following charges of classism and racism by this year’s fellows and one staff member. […]

Wellfleet Ballot Includes $3.8 Million for Water Main

WELLFLEET — A special town election taking place on Tuesday, Sept. 8 features 10 ballot questions, all involving budget overrides and exemptions from Proposition 2½ limits. Large purchases that involve […]

Nauset High Will Stay Closed After All

EASTHAM — Following a dismal report on the aging high school’s ventilation system, the Nauset Regional School Committee voted unanimously on Aug. 31 to keep the building closed to most […]

Building Inspector Leaves Wellfleet for Eastham

WELLFLEET — Justin Post finished his last day as Wellfleet’s building inspector on Friday, Aug. 28. He will take over as Eastham’s building inspector on Sept. 15 after three years […]

Commission on Local Newspapers Passes House Vote

An amendment to an economic development bill calling for a statewide commission to look at what’s happening to local newspapers passed the Mass. House of Representatives on July 28 and […]

This Week in Provincetown

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, Sept. 3 Personnel Board, 4:30 p.m. Zoning Board of Appeals, 6 p.m. Tuesday, […]

This Week in Truro

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. To watch live, go to truro-ma.gov and follow the “helpful link” to Truro Channel 18. Thursday, Sept. 3 Climate Change Committee, 10 a.m. Finance Committee and […]

This Week in Wellfleet

Meetings Ahead From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover your mouse over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen, and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its […]

This Week in Eastham

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on a particular meeting to read its agenda.That document will provide information about how to view and take […]

Gail Mazur’s Ode to Provincetown

“I knew it was going to make a person uncomfortable the minute they heard I was a poet,” Gail Mazur says. “I was really quite modest in my ambitions. I […]

Discovering Thelma Given, Provincetown’s Paganini

It begins with the crackling sound of vinyl. The violin strums its highest strings, then tunes to the piano. An audience member coughs. These are the opening sounds of a […]

Corinne Demas and Artemis Roehrig Help Families Learn Together

Many children’s book writers find inspiration in their own offspring. Wellfleet resident Corinne Demas, the award-winning author of five novels, two short-story collections, a poetry collection, a memoir, and numerous […]

A Gallery Grows in Eastham

Though a pandemic may not be the easiest time to open an art gallery, Christopher Kelly and Keith MacLelland are handling it with aplomb. “We started the lease back in […]

For Bailey Bob Bailey, You Are What You Create

“A year ago, I became an orphan,” says Bailey Bob Bailey on the back deck of his Truro home. “Dad died on Aug. 25, 2019. He was 89. Mom had […]

Meditations on Manhood, Past and Present

We live in an era in which adolescent fantasies of masculinity are being lived out in a grotesque and outsized way. Even more than Bush fils, Donald Trump seems caught […]

Wellfleet, 7:30 p.m.

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The Summer of Our Discontent

PROVINCETOWN — Nothing in life is perfect. I woke up this morning unrefreshed. The weather has been too damn hot, even at night. I ran out of full-strength coffee and […]

Walking the Cape Cod Camino

WELLFLEET — In the middle of the current racism pandemic, many of us who are not black or brown — who do not worry that our sons will be murdered […]

A Lot Gets Revealed by the Light of the Corn Moon

Have you ever heard the wolf cry to the blue corn moon? Or a coyote, maybe? Named by the Algonquin tribe to mark the corn husking season, the Corn Moon, […]

One Year and Counting

I received a nice note this evening from Sadie Hutchings, the Provincetown veterinarian (and our new “Animal Clinic” columnist). “I think you guys must have just had a birthday for […]

Classifieds September 3 – September 9, 2020

YARD SALE Yard sale this weekend in Provincetown. Saturday, Sept. 5, and Sunday, Sept. 6, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Good stuff! Outdoors and duly distanced at 584 Commercial St. […]

Letters, September 3, 2020

FinCom Chair’s Conduct To the editor: You were right to question the Outer Cape’s perception of itself as an “enlightened community” [Aug. 27, Letter From the Editor, page A2], and […]

Real Estate Transactions

Real Estate Transactions Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Aug. 24 to Aug. 28, 2020. PROVINCETOWN Aug. 24. Manaia Holdings LLC to Peter W. L. Picard and […]

Tide Charts

Know when to hit the flats

Spotter Pilots Help Scientists Study Sharks

On a hot summer day in 2008, Wayne Davis was flying his Citabria, a single-engine two-seat propeller plane, off the shores of Cape Cod, looking for bluefin tuna. With nearly […]

What Back to School Looks Like This Year

After months of missed classes, child care, sports, and summer camps, the question of when children can return to school is a pressing concern for many Outer Cape families. High […]

Cyr Nearly Alone in Speaking Out Against Morse Smear

PROVINCETOWN — A Democratic congressional primary race in Western Massachusetts wouldn’t normally make the news on Cape Cod. But the race for the nomination in the rural 1st district, covering […]

Willy’s Owner Fined $101,000 for Wage Law Violations

EASTHAM — Barbara Niggel, the owner of Willy’s World Wellness & Conference Center, has been fined $101,466 by the state attorney general’s office for a litany of labor law violations. […]

A Cottage in The Colony Is for Sale

WELLFLEET — A home listed for sale off Chequessett Neck Road has raised the blood pressure of preservationists because it is part of a cottage colony that has for 72 […]

Outer Cape Outage Revives Osprey Debate

Over 100 years ago, in an agrarian Massachusetts, farmers began training ospreys to nest — not in trees, but on man-made platforms. The intent was to use the birds of […]

Black Lives Matter Signs Provoke Vandals

When Barbara Rushmore’s “Black Lives Matter” sign was stolen from in front of her house on Commercial Street in Provincetown’s East End around July 4th, she assumed that someone from […]

Bats Take Over Town Hall

EASTHAM — Bats took over town hall last week, displacing town employees and moving last weekend’s early voting for the Sept. 1 primary election outdoors. Town Administrator Jacqui Beebe said […]

A Noble Rite of Passage Lives On

One of the biggest heartbreaks for me through the years living here every summer is watching this classic fishing village become less and less of that. Families who could no longer […]

Is Awareness Just a Sometime Thing?

WELLFLEET — A familiar foe still lurks in the summer waters, but the unfamiliar foe floating in the air may be distracting from it. With Covid-19 keeping beachgoers vigilant about […]

Eastham Looks to Set the Record Straight at 400th

EASTHAM — Since 1620, the English side of the story of the Pilgrims’ landing at First Encounter Beach, and then Plymouth, has been the version most people learn in these […]

Golf Holds New Appeal and Old Lessons

Early on in the coronavirus “quarantine,” many people began new hobbies and activities, or revived old ones that they hadn’t participated in for years. Some people have exercised more or […]

Those Chicks You Got in April Will Be Laying Soon

When we became backyard chicken farmers five years ago, I had oodles of enthusiasm, but very little actual knowledge of chickens. I didn’t know, for example, that our six brand-new […]

‘White Bronze’ Monuments Speak of a Forgotten Fashion

When the sun is shining, they glow with a bluish hue, standing out from the luminous white marbles, polished granites, and matte-black slates. There are not many of them in […]

Mailboxes, Straight to Your Heart

When we moved to Wellfleet, my daughters considered it a major upgrade that we’d be getting a mailbox. We had gone from one remote village to another, but this one […]

Sweet But Subversive Maple Walnut Pull-apart Bread

Two years ago, after watching the Kavanaugh hearings, Katherine Alford chose one of the first recipes she would contribute to the Rage Baking collective: Maple Walnut Pull-apart Bread. Like other […]

To Peter Watts, Who Captured Wellfleet’s Timeless Luminosity

Thank you, Peter Watts. The loss of any artist is a double shock, as it dawns on us what has ended. Not only will we never again catch his eye, […]

Mercury and Virgo Raise the Bar on Practicality

When a planet spends time in the sign it rules, it is said to be in its domicile, one of the five “dignities” that determine the level of influence it […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Aug. 25, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

This Week in Provincetown

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, Aug. 27 Water & Sewer Board, 1 p.m. Planning Board, 6 p.m. Friday, […]

This Week in Truro

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. To watch live, go to truro-ma.gov and follow the “helpful link” to Truro Channel 18. Thursday, Aug. 27 Historical Commission, 4 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 1 Board […]

This Week in Wellfleet

Meetings Ahead From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover your mouse over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen, and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its […]

This Week in Eastham

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you’re interested in to read its agenda. That document will provide information about how to view […]

Justin Vivian Bond: The Eyes Have It

In an essay accompanying the exhibit “69 Witch Eyes,” Justin Vivian Bond, who uses the pronouns they/them, asks a pertinent question for life during the pandemic: “How do we care […]

Megan Hinton Assembles a New Voice

In the fall of 2018, Wellfleet artist Megan Hinton entered Mills College in Oakland, Calif., to get an M.F.A., a fine art degree unlike the master’s she’d gotten years ago […]

Mischa Richter’s Paintings: Nothing Cartoonish About ’em

Though Mischa Richter was widely celebrated as a cartoonist, at The New Yorker and elsewhere, he painted fine art canvases seriously and steadily throughout his life. He said of his […]

Mark Brennan Paints a Monumental Watercolor

Over the last seven weeks, while painting Edge of the Continent/Center of the World, a 64-foot-long watercolor of the Outer Cape dunes, Mark Brennan has been listening to Beethoven. “I […]

Met’s Falstaff Is a Feast for Eyes and Ears

Giuseppe Verdi was 77 when he began work on Falstaff, his last and arguably his greatest musical achievement, and his only successful comedy. More than 50 years earlier, he had lost […]

Carl Hiaasen to Trump: Squeeze Me

Leave it to satirist Carl Hiaasen to name the house band at Casa Bellicosa “The Collusionists.” Casa Bellicosa, a thinly disguised stand-in for Mar-a-Lago, is the Palm Beach setting at […]

Sunset: August’s Sweet Ritual

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Final Round

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Right On Time

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Reasons to Reopen the Provincetown Schools

The Provincetown Schools plan to open next month with online learning only — at least, for the foreseeable future. At the same time, other Outer Cape schools are opening with […]

USPS Protest

Laurie Veninger stands up for “de-mail” at the North Truro Post Office with Ira Brodsky and Mark Enright. Veninger said other members of Indivisible Outer Cape gathered at post offices […]

Classifieds August 27 – September 2, 2020

ART The Truro Historical Society Art Sale. Presenting an outdoor art sale at the Highland Museum next to the lighthouse. Featuring paintings by seven local Truro and Provincetown artists: Saturday, […]

Letters, August 27, 2020

Don’t Compare Bottles to Bags To the editor: A comparison of plastic bags and plastic bottles, as was suggested by a letter to the editor in the Aug. 20 edition […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Aug. 17 to Aug. 21, 2020. PROVINCETOWN Aug. 17. John H. Basile Living Trust (John H. Basile, trustee) to Thomas W. […]

She’s Not Backing Down

At least three Outer Cape residents who chose to make a statement about racial justice have found their front yard “Black Lives Matter” signs stolen or defaced (see story on […]

Stanley Martin, 90, Helped Launch Martin House and Martin’s Market

Stanley J. Martin of Turners Falls died on July 23, 2020, surrounded by loved ones. He was 90. His wife, Virginia, died on Dec. 15, 2019. Stanley was born Dec. […]

Tide Charts

Know when to hit the flats

Bird Watching

Paco, a scarlet macaw, was at First Encounter Beach on Monday to watch the sunset with his owner, Larry “Fish” Mackin of Eastham. For a report on others keeping watch […]

Truro Trust Sues Singer for Clearing Its Land

TRURO — The Truro Conservation Trust filed suit on July 1 against a local resident for allegedly clearing trees and creating an illegal dump on two acres of conservation land […]

How, When, Where to Vote on Outer Cape

PROVINCETOWN — While the U.S. Postal Service is being hobbled by national political forces that aim to privatize it and perhaps sabotage the upcoming federal elections during a pandemic, there’s […]

Outermost Schools to Start With 2 Weeks at Home

PROVINCETOWN — Citing fears about tourists bringing the coronavirus here and the large number of parents who are hospitality workers, the Provincetown Schools administration has opted for the most conservative […]

Texan Chosen as Next Truro Town Manager

TRURO — Robert Wood, a Texan, will become the next town manager here, succeeding Rae Ann Palmer, who chose not to seek a renewal of her contract this year. Though […]

Peter Watts, 86, Wellfleet Painter

Peter Watts, longtime Wellfleet resident and renowned landscape painter, died on Aug. 17, 2020, at age 86. He succumbed to esophageal cancer, just two days after attending a reception in […]

Shoreline Management Is a Four-Town Effort

Protecting the Outer Cape shoreline is a continuous project, so much so that “there is no end goal” to the work, said Rex McKinsey, Provincetown’s marine coordinator. “These are living […]

A Belly Full of Sand Is No Picnic for Your Dog

As a veterinarian on Cape Cod in the summer, I sometimes feel as if I am spying on visitors who are probably here for a short time and trying to […]

A Chill Arrives and Fish Stop Biting

We got our first hint of fall this past weekend as a tropical storm passing to our east ushered in a much cooler and damp air mass from the north. Relentless […]

To Market, to Market in Eastham?

EASTHAM — For several years, the outer reaches of Cape Cod have been home to weekly farmers markets, where a wide variety of locally grown fresh fruits and vegetables, dairy, […]

A Lot of Neglected Service

“I’m driving my parents’ 2008 Subaru to college in Ohio.” The daughter of some regular customers was pretty excited when she told me about the drive she’ll be making next […]

Performing in a Pandemic Requires Improvisation

TRURO — Teddy Ment and Eleanor Getz, the two halves of the acrobatic performing duo Teddy and Eleanor, have spent the past six summers at the helm of Payomet Performing […]

A Tour of Outer Cape Mini Golf

It’s a sport that requires strategy, patience, mental fortitude, and an ever-gentle touch. It’s one of Cape Cod’s most popular and traditional summer activities, one that can either boost budding […]

Right Whales Are Now ‘Red Listed’

Population trajectory is very simple, so simple a fourth-grader could calculate the formula, according to Center for Coastal Studies scientist Stormy Mayo. Take the number of animals born and subtract […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Aug. 18, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

How to Watch the Earth Spin Through This Summer’s Stardust

A few nights ago, I stood on a deck in Truro that looked east over the National Seashore. In the distance, I could hear the Atlantic surf; from the opposite […]

In Virgo Season, Be Ready for a Half Sweet, Half Salty Harvest

Virgo season is upon us, and with it, the season of the harvest. Virgo’s crop is mainly nightshades, like potatoes, tomatoes, eggplant, and peppers. Their genus, Solanum, may refer to their […]

Combing the Beaches for Art

I found it along the shoreline: a wooden board with blue paint flaking off to reveal layers of underlying paint colors. With a long and triangular shape, it couldn’t be […]

Summer Is for All Stripes

On a walk down Commercial Street, the horizon line of Cape Cod Bay meets the sky in such a way that a demarcation of blue lines is the whole town’s […]

Mail Slowdown Is Political, Say Critics

Third in a series of reports on the local effects of the crisis in the U.S. Postal Service. The Trump administration’s unprecedented assault on the Postal Service, which has affected […]

Cape Votes May Decide Markey-Kennedy Primary Race

Less than two weeks away from the U.S. Senate Democratic primary, progressive incumbent Sen. Ed Markey and current Congressman Joe Kennedy III are still fighting to see who will be […]

This Week in Provincetown

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, Aug. 20 Public Pier Corp., 1 p.m. Water & Sewer Board, 2 p.m. […]

This Week in Truro

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. To watch live, go to truro-ma.gov and follow the “helpful link” to Truro Channel 18. Thursday, Aug. 20 Climate Action Committee, 10 a.m. Zoning Board of […]

This Week in Wellfleet

Meetings Ahead From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover your mouse over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen, and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its […]

This Week in Eastham

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on a particular meeting to read its agenda.That document will provide information about how to view and take […]

Feds Appeal Ruling Protecting Native Land

The Trump Administration on July 31 appealed the ruling of a federal district court in its case against the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe. The Dept. of Interior’s March attempt to disestablish […]

Chet Jones Looks Beyond the Material World

The painter Chet Jones normally doesn’t talk to journalists about his art. “I’m very unpromoting,” he says. “I know that’s a sacrilege to say, because so much art is built […]

Francis Olschafskie Develops Antique Negatives to Surreal Effect

“I loved the darkroom, but the world changes,” photographer Francis Olschafskie says, a light wind scattering his raspy voice. “These prints were sort of an end for me.” Olschafskie, whose […]

At PAAM, Tessa Bry Taylor Makes Sure the Kids Are All Right

“We are seeing unprecedented challenges in youth and art education,” says Tessa Bry Taylor, the Provincetown Art Association and Museum’s new curator of youth education. She took over the position […]

Coronavirus Shutdown Inspires Cynthia Packard

Before the pandemic, celebrated and influential Provincetown artist Cynthia Packard was blocked for two years — she hardly painted. Every time she tried, she would feel the urge to wipe […]

What’s Real About Robert Goldstrom’s Art Is His Unerring Style

“I am generally a rather high-strung, tense person, anal retentive,” Robert Goldstrom says, speaking from his home in Claverack, N.Y., near Hudson, in the Hudson River Valley. “Compared to most […]

Andrew Jacob Keeps the Spirit of Graffiti Art Alive

When Wellfleet artist Andrew Jacob was a teenager, he painted freight trains and abandoned buildings. “At night we would sneak out,” he says. “There was kind of a ‘code of […]

The Mermaid’s Grange

JULIA SALINGER / ARTIST, WRITER & ACTOR / WELLFLEET When she was in New York City, Julia Salinger worked in art galleries and the music business. She produced records and […]

Virtual Carnival

Virtual Carnival by A. Crock

The American Dream

PROVINCETOWN — The American Dream rides high out on the gray waters of Provincetown Harbor this morning in the form of an immense yacht. Actually, I can see five yachts […]

Quahogs and Culture Change

EASTHAM — The quahog fritters were sensational. In the kitchen of this house I’d known for 68 years and had quietly rattled about in for three and a half months, […]

Meteor Shower

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Covering Schools Can Make You Batty

On Aug. 6, when the Nauset Regional School Committee met with all four elementary school committees in the district, nearly 100 people were on the Zoom meeting. That’s the size […]

Letters, August 20, 2020

Cloverleaf and Climate Change To the editor: In “We Must Act Locally on Climate” (Aug. 6, page A3), Dick Elkin clearly explains the reasons why significant building projects must, from […]

Classifieds August 20 – August 26, 2020

MUSIC Fiddler/singer ready to play and will travel. Live music for Covid-19-safe events including weddings, parties, memorial services. Celtic, Jewish, folk and world music. Performing solo or with accompanist. Contact: [email protected] […]

Real Estate Transactions

Real Estate Transactions Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Aug. 10 to Aug. 14, 2020. PROVINCETOWN Aug. 10. Curtis M. McClay Revocable Trust Dated March 2, 2011 […]

Tide Charts

Know when to hit the flats

Young Voices

In our weekly marathon of trying to keep up with what’s going on in town halls and virtual committee meetings about schools and budgets, health and housing, we stop now […]

Nauset PreK-8th Grade Plan: Back in Buildings Sept. 16

EASTHAM — Nauset Regional High School students will attend school twice a week and stay home for remote learning on the other three days, while the plan for preschool through […]

Covid Infection Patterns Shift

PROVINCETOWN — Look closely, and Barnstable County’s graphs of new Covid cases and deaths tell a story. There’s an upward swell of discovered cases that begins a couple weeks after […]

3 Democrats Compete to Unseat Beaty

In the Sept. 1 primary election, three Democratic candidates for the Barnstable County Commission are vying for two places on the Nov. 3 ballot. They’re hoping to replace Mary Pat […]

Withering Heights: Dying Pines Tell a Complex Tale

TRURO — From her house on a hill near Higgins Hollow and Longnook Beach, Melinda Krasting has a clear view of a patch of pitch pines that are slowly turning […]

Pandemic Forces Students to Make Difficult Choices

For local students just about to begin college or preparing to return to university, the pandemic summer of 2020 presents unique and daunting choices. CDC guidelines say the lowest-risk option […]

Young People’s Participation in Politics Is Growing

The day Nauset High senior Garrison Guzzeau went to take his driver’s test, he left the Registry of Motor Vehicles with both his license and his completed voter preregistration, so […]

Covid Changes Connections Across Generations

Every Monday night, Sue Eldredge meets her daughter and granddaughter over Zoom for dinner. In a way, that’s a lot more togetherness than they had before the pandemic, when she […]

Nonprofit Groups Adapt and Persevere in a Crisis

Updated Aug. 18, 2020. When the lockdowns of mid-March first hit, the Cape’s nonprofits were faced with a series of questions. Organizations like the AIDS Support Group of Cape Cod […]

A Decision Well Beyond Their Years

For Jen Rhodes of Wellfleet, it was obvious where her eighth-grade son, Jack, should attend high school in the fall. She’d sent two daughters to technical schools, and knew that […]

The Chocolate Sparrow Flies Away

WELLFLEET –– On Main Street, there isn’t much to do if you’re under 10 years old. Sure, there are art galleries, coffee shops, and clothing stores, but those are pretty […]

On Outer Cape Cod, Legends Buzz

From pirate ships to alien sightings, folklore is part of life on the Outer Cape. The tales have long traveled from person to person, and it’s a tradition to bring […]

Hope For Local Journalism

Student stories in this week’s issue: We’ve written about how local businesses and town governments are coping with the coronavirus pandemic, but Garrison Guzzeau reached out to nonprofits from Eastham […]

Wild Cherry Cough Syrup

Earlier this summer, I discovered a wild cherry tree growing off my back porch. I noticed one variety, then a second, and learned from a friend and Cape Cod National […]

Chair Caning for the Generations to Come

My great-grandmother Bernice Newcomb did chair caning out of her home in Wellfleet in the 1920s and ’30s. I grew up in that house, where my mother did chair caning, […]

Late Summer Jobs for Field Bees

Most people know that honey bees collect nectar and pollen from flowers. But field work for honey bees is much more diverse than that. Field bees suck nectar from the […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Aug. 11, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

A Good Bite on the Backside

The dog days of summer blaze on, bringing water temperatures up to the mid to high 70s. The lack of rain also contributes to the almost tropical feel of our […]

Provincetown Tennis Serves Up a Tourney During Covid

PROVINCETOWN — The Provincetown Tennis Club members’ tournament is underway this month, and the format looks a little different this year due to coronavirus protocols. Usually, the tournament would be […]

Swim at Your Own Risk

The Atlantic White Shark Conservancy reported 25 separate ocean beach closures because of shark sightings on the Outer Cape in the week ending Tuesday: 5 in Provincetown, all at Race […]

‘Fake News’ Cry Is Fake

“Fake news” has become President Trump’s favorite counterpunch when challenged by reporters doing their jobs. He uses that phrase when he is caught with nowhere to hide. Any piece of […]

Don’t Riot, Dance

Some folks are legends, some are magic, some magnificent. Terry and Jo Harvey Allen, longtime residents of Santa Fe, N.M., are all that and more. A brilliant songwriter, Terry has […]

Friends of Willy’s Coach Press Niggel to Pay His Widow

EASTHAM — About 50 people gathered outside Willy’s World Wellness & Conference Center on Aug. 7, marking one year since the death of tennis coach Joe Abbott, who collapsed at […]

Larceny Suspect Blames Long-lost Identical Twin

PROVINCETOWN — The goods cluttering his BMW convertible might have been stolen, David Sprindzunas admitted to Provincetown Police Officer Tyler Dow on Aug. 5. But according to Dow’s report, Sprindzunas […]

This Week in Provincetown

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, Aug. 13 Board of Health, 4 p.m. Planning Board, 6 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. […]

This Week in Wellfleet

Meetings Ahead From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover your mouse over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen, and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its […]

This Week in Eastham

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on a particular meeting to read its agenda. That document will provide information about how to view and take […]

A Master Class With Paul Resika

Paul Resika’s studio in Truro is strewn with clam shells that he uses to mix his paints — orange ones, turquoise ones, mustard yellow ones. They are like little distillations […]

Paul Bowen Washes Back Ashore in Provincetown

“The beach used to smell like hell,” sculptor Paul Bowen says. He is seated at a workbench in his studio on the top floor of a rugged barn that was […]

PAPA’s Got a Brand New Gig

In the summer season of Covid-19, there’s more drama playing out in the Capitol and White House than on the stages of the Outer Cape. That role reversal is not […]

Cooper Lee Bombardier Turns His Transgender Story Into Art

“Before I knew I was a human being and not a dog, my earliest sense of myself was male. I am just a funny sort of guy. I don’t hate […]

In Memorial Drive, Poet Natasha Trethewey Revisits Her Mother’s Death

In “Monument,” a poem in Native Guard, Natasha Trethewey describes watching ants bring soil up from her mother’s grave. “Believe me when I say/ I’ve tried not to begrudge them/ […]

Get Ready to Baroque and Roll

PROVINCETOWN — Boston may be a mecca for it, but there is authentic Baroque music happening right here on the Outer Cape. Great Music on Sundays @5 is presenting two […]

KARMA AND DOGMA

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Taking Stock of What We’ve Done to Young Children

A friend who used to do a lot of substituting in Outer Cape schools once described a scene in a classroom for four-year-olds that was well-designed for all kinds of […]

Summer Tan

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A New Moon in Leo Can Get You Loved and Lauded

The momentum of this week culminates in a New Moon in Leo. Who doesn’t revel in extended moments of admiration and praise? Yet what becomes of such gaudy lauding when […]

Young Reporters Wanted

In our weekly marathon of trying to keep up with what’s going on in town halls and virtual committee meetings about schools and budgets, health and housing, we stop now […]

Letters, August 13, 2020

A Net-Zero School To the editor: Re “We Must Act Locally on Climate” [Aug. 6, page A3], the Nauset School Building Committee and the architectural firm for the proposed school […]

Classifieds August 6 – August 12, 2020

JOBS Local news reporter needed. To cover government, the environment, access to health care, and other issues that matter in our Outer Cape communities. Year-round, purpose-driven work. Must be good […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from August 3 to August 7, 2020. PROVINCETOWN Aug. 7. William T. Realty LLC to Team Slap LLC. 421 Commercial St., Unit […]

Tide Charts

Know when to hit the flats

Danville Brown, 39, Provincetown Chef

Danville Rowan Brown, 39, of Provincetown, died on Aug. 5, 2020, at Cape Cod Hospital in Hyannis. The cause is unknown, though the preliminary finding was respiratory failure; he had […]

Leo ‘Skip’ Childs, 69, Took Care of Everybody

Leo Anthony Childs III, 69, of Truro, who was known as “Skip,” died Aug. 7, 2020, in a mowing accident at St. Peter the Apostle Cemetery in Provincetown. Tending the […]

Ranches and Covid Add to Tuna Market Troubles

PROVINCETOWN — On a calm, sunny day, the word was out among fishermen: big schools of Atlantic bluefin tuna were active and feeding just a few miles off the backside […]

‘Please Talk,’ Say Coronavirus Contact Tracers

PROVINCETOWN — Massachusetts is ramping up efforts to find positive cases of coronavirus. Asymptomatic screening programs are being expanded around the state, and Provincetown recently announced it will begin a […]

Two Eastham Covid Cases Linked to Chatham Party

EASTHAM — Two town residents tested positive for Covid-19 after a house party in Chatham that resulted in at least 13 positive cases, according to Health Agent Jane Crowley. Crowley, […]

Planning Board Continues Its Campaign Against Cloverleaf

TRURO — Health and Conservation Agent Emily Beebe told the zoning board of appeals last week that the proposed treatment system at the 39-unit Cloverleaf development would reduce nitrogen in […]

Rumors Swirl Over Closing of Restaurants

Rumors started to circulate last week that a rash of Wellfleet restaurants had closed due to positive Covid-19 tests among staff. According to public notices from restaurateurs, Mac’s Shack closed […]

As Life Moves Online, Lack of Access Vexes

While debates about in-person schooling rage and doctor visits go virtual, Outer Cape towns are negotiating the next decade of internet coverage in the area. Contracts between the individual towns […]

Blue-green Algae Blooms Again, but Only Up Cape So Far

With summer well underway, higher temperatures coupled with nutrient overload in kettle ponds and lakes brings the dangerous return of cyanobacteria blooms, also known as blue-green algae. As of Tuesday, […]

Wind Cooperates, at Times, and PYC Gets Back to Racing

PROVINCETOWN — It’s been a while, but the Provincetown Yacht Club’s summer racing season is back on course. The hiccups started July 11, when excess wind postponed the third leg […]

‘Who Have I Doomed?’

TRURO — As my close friend and neighbor calmly explained to me on the phone that he had a high fever and was showing potential coronavirus symptoms, my eyes drifted […]

The Poet of the Dunes Brought Down to Earth

Fewer and fewer people these days have a clear idea of who Harry Kemp was. Some might recognize his name from Harry Kemp Way, the road in Provincetown where Outer […]

Practice Makes Practice

“Practice makes perfect” or “10,000 hours to become an expert” — we like to believe that if we do something long enough, we conquer it. Then we can set it […]

Wellfleet, Taking Cue from Provincetown, Dials In on Mental Health

Editor’s note: In the Aug. 6 print edition of the Independent the Well Line’s phone number was incorrect. The correct number has been substituted below. WELLFLEET — “We all have to go […]

New Guidelines for Fall Sports Offer No Guarantees

Fall sports will most likely be much different than ever before this coming season. The Mass. Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA) officially voted on July 15 to move the start date […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Aug. 4, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Oblivious Whale Nearly Takes Out My Friend

In last week’s column, I wrote that I thought I had seen it all, only to watch a man with a scuba mask dive off his paddleboard to swim with […]

With Gyms Reopened, Fitness Buffs Work Off Their ‘Covid-19’

PROVINCETOWN — It happened just weeks ago, when he was shopping: Lorenzo Wigfall pulled on a pair of jeans and realized — to his horror — that it was too […]

Blueberry Lemonade With a Bite

The fleeting joy of summer is something we wait for all year here on the Outer Cape and, yet, it is almost gone before we know it. Right now, August […]

Plant Matter to Dye For

Solar dyeing starts with a gathering: deadheaded blooms, freshly unfurled petals, bright green leaves. Dyer’s Coreopsis, Queen Anne’s lace, and Rudbeckia. My garden shears make quick work of the task. […]

Hustle and Flow

Collaboration among innovators, designers, builders, and television executives built the 2020 This Old House Idea House, the first of its kind on Cape Cod. It started with a design by […]

This Week in Provincetown

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, Aug. 6 Board of Assessors, 9 a.m. Public Pier Corp., 11 a.m. Zoning […]

This Week in Truro

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. To watch live, go to truro-ma.gov and follow the “helpful link” to Truro Channel 18. Thursday, Aug. 6 Climate Action Committee, 10 a.m. Tuesday, Aug. 11 […]

This Week in Wellfleet

Meetings Ahead From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover your mouse over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen, and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its […]

This Week in Eastham

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on a particular meeting to read its agenda. That document will provide information about how to view and take […]

For Michele Harvey, Watercolor Is Creative Renewal

In 2007, painter Michele Harvey, whose breathtaking oil landscapes of forests in the early morning mist commanded high prices at her galleries in New York City and Provincetown, found her […]

Christopher Sousa Paints Male Figures His Way

Painter Christopher Sousa, whose exhibit, “All the Time in the World,” will be at William Scott Gallery from Friday, Aug. 7, through Aug. 19, does not paint what he considers […]

Patrick Webb and the Art of Punchinello

“Since 1990, Punchinello has always been included as the primary actor in the narrative of my paintings,” Patrick Webb says. Though Punchinello is a classic commedia dell’arte character, Webb depicts […]

Origami Independent

Editor’s note: 75 years ago this week,the United States became the only country in the world to deploy nuclear weapons against civilians, dropping atomic bombs on the cities of Hiroshima(Aug.6, […]

We Must Act Locally on Climate

Climate change is a clear and present danger to our community and to humanity as a whole. We are digging a hole for ourselves by continuing to produce greenhouse gas […]

Piping Plovers Hatched

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Seasonal Divinity

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Finding Your True North in a Tilting Cosmos

Our Sun signs, along with the rest of our charts, are imprinted at birth in that first moment of independent existence. We are free to begin the process of personality […]

The Sooner the Better

People get annoyed when they don’t get their paper. I guess it’s good to be up there with coffee in our neighbors’ hierarchy of needs. While there are some things […]

Letters, August 6, 2020

The Virus and FedEx To the editor: In recent weeks, as the temperatures have spiked and the streets have filled to whatever extent they have this year, I have noticed […]

Tide Chart

Provincetown and Wellfleet Harbors High tide Low tide The Sun A.M. ft. P.M. ft. A.M. ft. P.M. ft. Rise Set Thu P’town 1:41 10.3 2:14 9.3 7:59 -0.1 8:11 0.6 […]

Real Estate Transactions

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from July 27 to July 31, 2020. PROVINCETOWN July 29. Scott A. Allegretti and James B. McNeilly to Ross J. and April […]

John Kaschak, Who Thought of Lighting the Pilgrim Monument, Dies at 74

John Kaschak, 74, who spent over 50 years on Cape Cod, died on July 14, 2020, in Harwich. The cause was lung cancer, said his brother, Frank. The son of […]

Classifieds August 6 – August 12, 2020

JOBS Provincetown Tennis Club front desk staff member needed. Answer phones, make reservations using our computer system, answer member questions. 10-15 hours a week, $20/hour. Call the club to arrange […]

Arts Briefs for August 6 through August 12

Jessica Brilli’s ‘Idle Time’ A show of new work by artist Jessica Brilli, “Idle Time,” will open on Friday, Aug. 7, at Kobalt Gallery at 366 Commercial St. in Provincetown. […]

Tempting Fate

Fishing heated up with the weather this past week. Striped bass have not gone into their summer doldrums and are feeding during the day in large concentrations all along Beach Point […]

Wait Time for Covid Test Results Presents Challenge

PROVINCETOWN — The goal is clear and workable: at some point, we’ll be able to systematically screen for coronavirus, identify asymptomatic carriers early, and effectively squelch community spread. What we […]

Lack of Data Makes Profiling Hard to Gauge

Sorting out the truth about racial profiling and policing on the Outer Cape is no easy assignment. But the explanation given last month by local police for disproportionate arrest statistics […]

Summer Food Program Takes a Hit From Covid-19

After a kitchen worker tested positive for Covid-19 on Friday, the region’s entire federally supported free lunch program, which spans Harwich to Provincetown, was shut down on Monday. Thirteen staffers […]

No Word Yet on How School Will Work

A group of anonymous women have sewn two masks for every Provincetown student for their return to school in September. But whether students will actually come back to wear them […]

Rock Harbor Expected to Reopen Next Week

EASTHAM — The Rock Harbor parking lot and boat ramp are expected to be accessible at last next week, according to Harbormaster Scott Richards. “The project is near completion and […]

Meet the Three Finalists for Truro Town Manager

The public will have its first chance to meet the three Truro town manager candidates, who are profiled below, at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 4, in a virtual meeting. […]

The Making of Two New Habitat Houses in Wellfleet

The July 21 dedication ceremony for two new Cape Cod Habitat for Humanity homes in Wellfleet was virtual, but still celebratory, marking the culmination of a construction effort that started […]

Bee Yard Basics

Deep into summer, beekeeping on the Outer Cape is mostly a waiting game. The queen has been laying since April; the hive population is perhaps 60,000. Though we’re in a […]

How to Make a Fish Face

Growing up in Oklahoma I could never have imagined eating a fish with the head still on. Like most Americans in landlocked states, when I was a kid, I expected […]

Race to the Finish

The July puzzle from Sophia Maymudes. Need some answers? We send out the solution in our Friday newsletter. You’ll find the signup for our newsletter right here on our home […]

Just One Novel

CLEMENTINE VALTZ / STUDENT & WRITER / WELLFLEET Clementine Valtz decided, as a junior, to apply to college. If accepted, she would skip her senior year at Nauset Regional High […]

Dan Okrent Is the Father of Fantasy

Major League Baseball (MLB) returned to play last week with no fans in the ballparks but plenty of people watching on TV from their living room couches. Some of those […]

Will a Full Moon in Aquarius Help Love Steer the Stars?

Every 29½ days, the Moon goes full in the sign directly opposite the Sun, currently in Leo. Full Moons are an exercise in self-examination and this full Moon, in Aquarius, […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, July 28, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

The Power of Being in the Water

While plenty of people here are devoted to daily swims, I meet many who haven’t gone in the water for years. They’re too busy. They think it’s a vacation thing, […]

Eastham Moderator to Remain T-Time Committee Chair

EASTHAM — Despite concerns about potential conflicts of interest, Scott Kerry, Eastham’s town moderator, will remain chair of the town’s T-Time Development Committee. The T-Time committee voted unanimously to maintain […]

Outer Cape Town Budget Stories Begin to Emerge

Eastham Eastham Is ‘Well Positioned Going Into This’By Ryan Fitzgerald EASTHAM — The town’s finance director, Rich Bienvenue, presented a revised fiscal year 2021 budget proposal to the select […]

Are We Having Fun Yet? Not in Some Facebook Spaces

Five years ago, Andrea Sawyer was asked to be a moderator of the Provincetown Community Space (PCS) Facebook page by a friend who was giving up the position. Sawyer thought […]

This Week in Provincetown

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Wednesday, Aug. 5 Historic District Commission, 4 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 6 Board […]

This Week in Truro

Truro Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. To watch live, go to truro-ma.gov and follow the “helpful link” to Truro Channel 18. Thursday, July 30 Zoning Board of Appeals, 5:30 […]

This Week in Wellfleet

Meetings Ahead From wellfleet-ma.gov, hover your mouse over a date on the calendar on the right of the screen, and click on the meeting you’re interested in to open its […]

This Week in Eastham

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on a particular meeting to read its agenda. That document will provide information about how to view and take […]

Forrest Williams Paints Poetic Images of Gay Life

“It sort of annoys me when people say, ‘I don’t want to be seen as a gay artist,’ ” Forrest Williams says. “There’s an incredible tradition of homoerotic art.” Williams […]

In Provincetown, Lorraine DeProspo Is ‘Enveloped by Blue’

Since Lorraine DeProspo moved to Provincetown year-round almost two years ago — for nearly two decades, she split her time between here and Montclair, N.J. — she has noticed a […]

Cacophony Daniels Celebrates Her Own Family Values

“Cacophony is all about enjoying the moments we have,” Courter Simmons says of his drag persona, Cacophony Daniels. “I’ve always wanted her to be the kind of person you get […]

Rachel Eliza Griffiths Trades in Words and Images

Even before her mother, Michele Antoinette Pray-Griffiths, died in the summer of 2014, writer-photographer Rachel Eliza Griffiths was shooting black-and-white self-portraits, positioning herself in locations that resonate with history, memory, […]

The Wild, Weird, Witty Way of Birds

Long ago, my children and I celebrated at the library whenever we came across a favorite picture book by Arnold Lobel. No matter how many times we read it, The […]

Chamber Music Ensembles Attune to the Pandemic

Could this be a new age for chamber music? With small ensembles and limited audiences, chamber music certainly seems more Covid-friendly than, say, Mahler’s “Symphony of a Thousand.” But what […]

Back to the Future?

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What Makes a Story Important?

Look at what you are holding in your hands (or reading online). It is the creation of a group of people dedicated to bringing you the stories of the Outer […]

A Great Leader Has Left Us

Every day, some ridiculous or explosive or dangerous or miraculous thing happens with our teenagers. I wish I could sit them all down and tell them about John Lewis. A […]

Gossip Superspreader

Gossip Superspreader by A. Crock

Mother Duckie

Mother Duckie by Daniel Dejean

Nonopinions for Nincompoops

Several readers sent us an article published this week in CommonWealth magazine titled “As local news withers, we’re losing sense of identity.” The author, Bruce Mohl, reports the stories of […]

Letters, July 30, 2020

Cloverleaf Won’t Help Seasonal Workers To the editor: Re last week’s two op-ed columns [July 23, page A3]: Sen. Julian Cyr, perhaps the best elected official in the state, beats […]

Indie Classifieds July 30- August 5, 2020

JOBS Provincetown Tennis Club front desk staff member needed. Answer phones, make reservations using our computer system, answer member questions. 10-15 hours a week, $20/hour. Call the club to arrange […]

Thomas ‘T’ Gandolfo, 75, of Provincetown’s Northern Lights Leather

Thomas “T” Gandolfo of Provincetown and Gulfport, Fla., died on July 19, 2020, in Gulfport following a short illness. He was 75. Born in Methuen in 1945, Gandolfo combined the […]

Frank Hogan, a ‘Dealer’s Dealer,’ Dies in New Mexico

Frank Hogan, a Provincetown native who was an accomplished collector of art and antiques and had an art gallery in Orleans until about a decade ago, died early in the […]

Real Estate Transactions July 20 to July 24, 2020

Real Estate Transactions Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from July 20 to July 24, 2020. PROVINCETOWN July 20. Emanuel D. Berger and Nicholas P. Klesaris to Kenneth […]

Tide Charts

Know when to hit the flats

Indie’s Choice

Outer Cape Calendar An Artist’s Lot The Arts Foundation of Cape Cod is hosting an online silent auction starting on Thursday, July 23, at noon through Sunday, Aug. 9, at […]

Arts Briefs for July 30 through August 5

Now Screening: ‘Clay,’ Short Film on Potter Steve Kemp Michael Cestaro was born and raised in Eastham, graduated from Nauset Regional High School in 2004, and left for college in […]

Sunken Yacht Nearly Sinks Schooner Hindu

PROVINCETOWN — An evening aboard the schooner Hindu, watching the sun slip behind the monument and clouds light up like giant hydrangeas, has been a Provincetown tradition since 1946. Generations […]

Crystal Meth Surges in More Potent Form

PROVINCETOWN — Though crystal meth has long been a fixture in Provincetown’s drug scene, the rest of the Cape is experiencing its first big brush with the extremely addictive stimulant. […]

Cloverleaf Developer Addresses Wastewater and Accessibility Issues

TRURO — As opposition to the design of the affordable housing project known as the Cloverleaf continued last week, the developer responded to wastewater concerns and objections by the disability […]

With Few Positives, Gaps in Reporting Remain

WELLFLEET — There were no positive Covid-19 tests among the 987 people tested in Provincetown and Wellfleet during a two-day period in June, the Independent has learned. The tests, administered […]

The Postal Service Is a Lifeline for Local Businesses

As the future of the U.S. Postal Service, which President Trump has called “a joke,” continues to be ominously clouded, a key group of the service’s users on the Outer […]

Life on Sally’s Way, 7 Years Later

TRURO — Janice Sommers and Janice Walk have called Sally’s Way home from its beginnings — going back to 2012 when Truro’s long-awaited affordable housing development was just a sandy […]

A Jersey Kid in Wellfleet

Legendary music agent Elliot Roberts, who died a little more than a year ago, was the best kind of friend, wickedly funny, warm and engaged, and always with the most […]

Summertime and the Jigging Is Easy

WELLFLEET — I parked at Newcomb’s, front row for a surf check, and had not yet left the car when my friend Al walked over, rubbing the head of his […]

Welcome, Rugi

Olya Lowen Belmer was born on July 11, 2020, at the Montreal Royal Victoria Hospital in Canada. She gestated in Wellfleet, though, where her father, Aaron Richmond, was in residence […]

Entrances to Adore

Besides providing a first impression, the front door of your home can also establish its aesthetic. And if you believe in feng shui, the front door provides the portal for […]

A Jeweler’s Hidden Gems

TRURO — On a sunny hill overlooking Cold Storage Beach in North Truro, Gunter Hanelt, a jeweler by profession, tends to more organic treasures. His overflowing vegetable garden boasts sugar-snap […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, July 21, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

All Those Short Bass Bode Well for Future Fishing

The dog days of summer are certainly upon us, and summertime fishing and whale watching are in full swing. Striped bass have been biting despite the July heat, which typically […]

Beach Games in the Age of Covid-19

Many arriving on Outer Cape beaches this summer are bringing beach games with them — a reflection of people’s widespread but pent-up need to interact. Several popular beach games are […]

Flowerpots and Pans and Rusty Cans

Container gardening doesn’t have to be traditional. Clay pots filled with tomato plants and geraniums are just fine, but a few blossoms or mosses set in castoff containers can be […]

Time for Midsummer Magic and Mischief

The Sun has entered Leo, the fifth sign of the Zodiac, which spans the midsummer weeks and the heights of the season. As Leo is also ruled by the Sun, […]

Remembering Rosilla: The Pilgrim Monument’s Sole Victim

PROVINCETOWN — On Aug. 5, 1910, after three years of construction, Provincetown’s Pilgrim Monument, commemorating the first landing place of the Mayflower Pilgrims, was dedicated by President William Howard Taft […]

Mass Appeal Is Open Again

WELLFLEET — The local source of free clothes is available again. Mass Appeal reopened on July 14 after months of being closed because of the coronavirus. Mass Appeal’s hours are […]

OCHS Resumes Routine Appointments

PROVINCETOWN — Outer Cape Health Services, which operates urgent and primary care clinics in Provincetown, Wellfleet, and Harwich, is encouraging its primary-care patients to schedule routine health care appointments previously […]

Fishing for Public Comment

The Friends of Herring River has a new survey for the public about the Herring River Restoration Project in Wellfleet and Truro. The survey is part of the project’s permitting […]

Wellfleet Town Meeting Moved Up to Sept. 12

WELLFLEET — Plans for the 2020 annual town meeting are at last set. Almost five months after the meeting was originally to have taken place, it will be convened at […]

This Week in Provincetown

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, July 23 Visitor Services Board, 10 a.m. Public Pier Corp., 3 […]

This Week in Truro

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. To watch live, go to truro-ma.gov and follow the “helpful link” to Truro Channel 18. Thursday, July 23 Climate Change Action, 10 a.m. Friday, July 24 […]

This Week in Wellfleet

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you are interested in for instructions on how to participate. Thursday, July 23 Natural Resources Advisory […]

This Week in Eastham

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on a particular meeting to read its agenda. That document will provide information about how to view and take […]

Dave Laro Celebrates the Mystery of Found Objects

“We’re here to communicate,” says Dave Laro. “We are all trying to make sense of this world we were born into.” As an artist, Laro tells stories by collecting old […]

Laura Shabott Finds Virtual Inspiration for Her Paintings

What would Hans Hofmann think of Zoom? That may sound like a silly question, but it’s one that is conjured up by Laura Shabott’s paintings at the Berta Walker Gallery […]

William Ciccariello’s Paintings Play Ball With Lost Time

If you’re a baseball fan, William Ciccariello’s paintings of players will soar like a home run sailing over the Green Monster, up into the light and then gone, into the […]

Sylvia Harvey Shines a Light on The Shadow System

Sylvia A. Harvey, in her book The Shadow System: Mass Incarceration and the American Family, offers a crash course on the gruesome realities of American prisons. Beginning with her own […]

Angela Russo Sees Provincetown Through a Unique Lens

“I love this place,” Angela Russo says of Provincetown. Russo is a photographer and the gallerist of Angela Russo Fine Art/Karilon Gallery, the cozy art-bedecked space at 447 Commercial St. […]

John Lewis, Good Trouble, 1940-2020

John Lewis, Good Trouble, by Mark Adams

Racial Inequity in Our Back Yard

TRURO — In early June, many Outer Cape Codders joined in our shared reckoning over the crisis of white supremacy and racial inequity in this country. After the protests, many […]

Mockingbird

Vignette by Daniel Dejean

The Bias Against ‘Pit Bulls’

PROVINCETOWN — The Independent’s July 9 front-page story on the effects of the coronavirus crisis on dogs, “Pandemic Is No Treat for the Four-Legged,” fell into a common and unfortunate […]

News That’s Fit to Print

Last week, Publisher Teresa Parker wrote about the financial challenge of launching and sustaining a high-quality newspaper without sufficient start-up capital, and then finding ourselves smack in the middle of […]

Letters, July 23, 2020

Visiting Truro While Black To the editor: We appreciate the Independent’s attention to race-based discrimination and reports of racial profiling on the Outer Cape [July 2 and July 16]. In […]

Indie Classifieds July 23- July 29, 2020

JOBS Provincetown Tennis Club front desk staff member needed. Answer phones, make reservations using our computer system, answer member questions. 10-15 hours a week, $20/hour. Call the club to arrange […]

Henrietta ‘Hy’ Jakubowski, 91, Was Social ‘Beyond Measure’

Henrietta L. Jakubowski, 91, of Provincetown and Jupiter, Fla., has been called “Hy” for as long as she could remember, and the moniker certainly fit her infectiously happy personality. She […]

Real Estate Transactions July 13 to July 17, 2020

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from July 13 to July 17, 2020.PROVINCETOWN July 13. Christopher T. Kenyon and Steven R. Poyner to Brown Street Cottage LLC. […]

Tide Charts

Know when to hit the flats

Indie’s Choice

Outer Cape Calendar The Pearl Can’t Help It Music at the Wellfleet Pearl is back! The Aaron Norcross Trio performs Sunday, July 26, at 3 p.m. at 250 Commercial St. […]

Arts Briefs for July 23 through July 29

Supremely Nostalgic Group Show at Albert Merola The Albert Merola Gallery will present a new group show, “Reflections of…,” opening Friday, July 24, and on view through Aug.12. Featured are […]

It’s Not a Moonshot

We went to press with our first weekly issue on Oct. 7, 2019, a little over nine months ago. Our business plan said we needed $375,000 in the bank.We had […]

After 6 Months, New Town Manager Quits

PROVINCETOWN — Robin Craver was hired as Provincetown’s town manager by the select board on Jan. 13, 2020. Her contract included a six-month probationary period, after which, if she were […]

A Missed Deadline, a Year’s Delay

TRURO — The zoning board’s review of the proposed 39-unit Cloverleaf affordable housing project will not be completed in time for developer Ted Malone to apply for state funding before […]

Race-based Incidents Do Happen Here

TRURO — Last July, N.K., a University of Chicago professor here on vacation, took a right at the entrance to Corn Hill Beach in Truro, put her towel down, and […]

How Much Is a Covid Test? Who Can Get One?

PROVINCETOWN — Health care is rarely simple. The question of who can access it, where, when, and for how much often gets a conditional and specific answer that’s different for […]

Assembly Vote on Covid Rules Shows East-West Divide

PROVINCETOWN — The Barnstable County Assembly of Delegates adopted a resolution on June 17 questioning the legality of Gov. Charlie Baker’s Covid-19 response. The Outer Cape’s delegates opposed the resolution, […]

New Questions About FAWC’s MacMillan Emerge

PROVINCETOWN — When accusations of discrimination and failure to address racially charged incidents at the Fine Arts Work Center became public last month, the organization’s board responded with a letter […]

At Local Bike Shops, Demand Outstrips Supply

“Bikes are the new toilet paper,” said Bill Meadows, who owns Ptown Bikes. That’s the big joke in his business. The national surge in interest in biking has definitely found […]

What’s Here and What’s Not

The fish seem to be settling into a fairly normal summer pattern lately, unlike most of their human counterparts. Striped bass can be found in good numbers from the Cottages […]

All Eyes on Commercial Street

On a hot Sunday in July, a walk down Commercial Street in Provincetown brought photographer Edward Boches mask-to-mask with a slow summer-paced wave of humanity. Whether seated in the shade, […]

Bowled Over

I learned the basics of turned wood bowls in junior high school wood shop, and the challenge of it has fascinated me ever since. But college, then family, and my […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, July 14, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Reviving a Smoked Bluefish Ritual

TRURO — Like many men of his generation, my father was not much of a cook. He was good with burgers and steaks and made a fine tuna salad. But […]

Before 1620: Who Was Here?

WELLFLEET — On the official seal of the town of Wellfleet, a party of pilgrims rows ashore in a dinghy as a crowd of indigenous people wait on the beach. […]

Highland House Serves Up History on a Plate

TRURO — A new virtual exhibition opening Friday, July 17, at the Highland House Museum celebrates Truro’s history through paintings on a surprising kind of canvas: ceramic plates. “Looking Back, […]

Eleanor Dubinsky’s Songs Speak Volumes, in Several Languages

Eleanor Dubinsky is a polyglot in every sense of the word. She sings in four languages: French, Spanish, Portuguese, and English. She plays the cello and the guitar. She’s lived […]

High School Renovation Decision Gets an Extension

While Massachusetts students may return to the classroom in some form in 2020, it is looking like approval for the Nauset Regional High School building project will have to wait […]

Key to Select Board Race Is Hard to Find

PROVINCETOWN — Thirty percent of registered Provincetown voters cast ballots in the June 30 annual town election, in which incumbent select board members Robert P. Anthony and Louise Venden squared […]

This Week in Provincetown

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, July 16 Board of Health, 4 p.m. Zoning Board of Appeals, 6 p.m. […]

This Week in Truro

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. To watch live, go to truro-ma.gov and follow the “helpful link” to Truro Channel 18. Thursday, July 16 Climate Action Committee, 10 a.m. Town […]

This Week in Eastham

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on a particular meeting to read its agenda. That document will provide information about how to view and take […]

In Her Painting, Midge Battelle Thinks Outside the Box

Painting is the sole focus of artist Midge Battelle’s work these days. Known as a photographer and respected curator in the Provincetown art scene, she considers her current artwork the […]

PAAM Reopens, Featuring Two Shows on Historic Provincetown

Returning to the Provincetown Art Association and Museum, after several months without setting foot in an art museum, feels like coming home: white walls sprinkled with paintings, the sound of […]

Mya Taylor Is the Provincetown Film Fest’s Next Wave

Mya Taylor, who is receiving this year’s Next Wave Award at the Provincetown International Film Festival, has a burgeoning career as a transgender performer in Hollywood. But before her breakthrough […]

The Contrasts and Convergence of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr.

In 1972, James Baldwin wrote “The Shot That Echoes Still,” a painful and personal essay for Esquire magazine reflecting on the assassinations of Malcolm X in 1965 and Martin Luther […]

One Way

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Watercolor Lesson

Watercolor lesson on the bank of a Great Pond. Massachusetts common law tradition says that any pond over 20 acres is a Great Pond and is a Commons, held by […]

Ode To That Something In The Air

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Letters, July 16, 2020

‘Redeem the Dream’ To the editor: Dennis Minsky’s column in the July 9 Independent [“A Higher-Stakes July 4th, ” page A3] spoke to me. This past July Fourth, being like […]

Indie Classifieds July 9 – July 15, 2020

TOURS Hopper House Tours reopen. You stay safe in your car, following the guide’s car, using a provided two-way radio. This unique experience takes you on back roads and to […]

Real Estate Transactions July 6 to July 10, 2020

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from July 6 to July 10, 2020. PROVINCETOWN July 7. Kevin Bazarian and Jose Perez to Matthew and Joseph Chartier Petrells. 446 […]

The Moon in Leo Finds Fresh Perspective

The new moon on the cusp of Cancer and Leo clears the air for fresh perspective. It’s time to forgive and forget what’s past and focus on what’s to become […]

Tide Charts

Know when to hit the flats

Indie’s Choice

Outer Cape Calendar Streaming Readings The Wellfleet Public Library is hosting a virtual poetry reading on Zoom with Heather Corbally Bryant, Tzynya Pinchback, and Lynne Viti, on Thursday, July 16, […]

Arts Briefs for July 16 through July 22

In-Person Classes Return to Castle Hill Following its success with virtual classes this summer, Truro Center for the Arts at Castle Hill is reintroducing in-person instruction, starting in August. Classes […]

Shaping Local Knowledge and Activism

This is the third and final article in a series on the Cape Cod National Seashore’s science program. It explores why science matters at the Seashore and why it’s at […]

Chief Golden Takes Heat on Plan for the 4th

PROVINCETOWN — As the crowds of visitors grew larger and tensions mounted last week, the select board held an emergency meeting on July 2 at which Police Chief James Golden […]

Last Call at 11 p.m. in Provincetown

PROVINCETOWN — Gov. Charlie Baker’s reopening plan puts restaurants on one side of a line and bars on another. Restaurants can be open now for outdoor dining, indoor dining, and […]

T-Time Could Become Commercial or Community Center

EASTHAM — The 11 acres of town-owned property on Route 6 that once was the T-Time driving range might become a regional swimming pool, community center, commercial kitchen, affordable housing, […]

Truro Motor Inn Tenants Must Leave

TRURO — Following years of noncompliance with its orders, the board of health took decisive action on June 30 against the owners of the Truro Motor Inn by not renewing […]

Fourteen Graduate from Middle Years I.B. Program

PROVINCETOWN — Fourteen eighth-grade students celebrated their completion of the Provincetown Schools International Baccalaureate Middle Years Program on June 22. They walked down the front steps of the school, past the […]

Marching Fourth

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Pandemic Is No Treat for the Four-Legged

WELLFLEET — Though canines won’t be receiving a stimulus check, that doesn’t mean they haven’t been affected by the coronavirus crisis. Because of your dog’s acute ability to sense stress […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, July 7, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

A Surreal Fourth on the Waterfront

This Fourth of July on the waterfront was certainly different than any other I have experienced in all my years here. The vibe was low-key, and it was very sad […]

Discovering the Joy of Ping Pong

With team and televised sports fading out over these past four months, determined athletes have sought out new activities. Marla Rice and her husband, Kevin, who live in Wellfleet, decided […]

Patios for Outdoor Living

The question: I’d love to create a patio in my yard. Can I do it myself? While you can do some of the work toward putting in a patio, you’re […]

Outdoor Showers Beyond the Box

It seems no Cape Cod home is complete without an outdoor shower. Coming home from the beach with sandy feet and wind-strewn hair and heading straight for it is a […]

Nauset Students Recognized by Cape Cod Modern House Trust

“It is unusual for a high school to have an architecture program,” says Peter McMahon, the founding director of the Cape Cod Modern House Trust (CCMHT) and co-author of Cape […]

Mercury Offers a Reprieve

With the full moon behind us and Mercury stationing direct this weekend, we heartily welcome some emotional reprieve and levity. But not so fast! The tough lessons of the past […]

Crispy Homemade Potato Chips

Potato chips were practically invented for this moment in history. They are an irresistible escape from everything difficult about responsible grown-up life. But salt- and fat-wise, it can’t be entirely […]

White Sangria Is the Essence of Summer

It was the year of the Chicken Dance and I was studying abroad in the old university town of Salamanca, Spain. Dictator Francisco Franco had been dead just a few […]

Curley Joins Select Board in Wellfleet

WELLFLEET — There is a new select board member in town, and he comes from a long line of Wellfleet civic leaders. Ryan Curley, 36, says he is a 15th-generation […]

Four Nauset Grads Win SEA Prizes

The Swapshop Ecology Action (SEA) Prize, awarded by the Wellfleet-based nonprofit Cape Cool, goes to graduating Cape Cod seniors who have demonstrated dedication to environmentalism both inside and outside the […]

This Week in Provincetown

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, July 9 Planning Board, 6 p.m. Public Pier Corp., 3 p.m. […]

This Week in Truro

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. To watch live, go to truro-ma.gov and follow the “helpful link” to Truro Channel 18. Thursday, July 9 Zoning Board of Appeals, Cloverleaf hearing, […]

This Week in Wellfleet

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you are interested in for instructions on how to participate. Thursday, July 9 Dredging Task Force, […]

This Week in Eastham

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on a particular meeting to read its agenda. That document will provide information about how to view and take […]

The Art of Anne Lilly Is Kinetic in Any Medium

Visiting the Rice Polak Gallery in Provincetown after three months without live art is a surreal experience, from being presented with hand sanitizer and plastic gloves at the door to […]

The Provincetown Film Festival Returns

According to Lisa Viola, artistic director of the Provincetown International Film Festival (PIFF), she and her staff and the Provincetown Film Society’s new CEO, Rachael Brister, were halfway through preparations […]

Resurrecting Hervé Guibert’s Invisible Ink

In the introduction to Written in Invisible Ink: Selected Stories, by Hervé Guibert, the late queer literary hero of the AIDS era, translator Jeffrey Zuckerman writes that in French, “invisible […]

‘Ambassador’ Job Description

Wanted: Gender-nonspecific “soft butch” having most qualities of a classic soft butch (you know what they are). In addition, applicant must be mature, firm but kind, must like people, but […]

A Higher-Stakes July 4th

The Fourth of July has come and gone and I am not quite sure what to make of it. There was celebration and merriment — always a good thing, I […]

Rumblebee

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Buggin’ Out

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The Seashore Beat

What’s the most fun part of starting a newspaper? Thinking about what to put in it. We knew from the start that our home territory was the Outer Cape, four […]

Letters, July 9, 2020

Parking and Elitism in Wellfleet To the editor: Your letter from the editor in the July 2 issue misrepresents the intention and impact of the policy to restrict parking at […]

Indie Classifieds July 9 – July 15, 2020

FOR SALE 2005 Toyota Camry. High mileage but runs well. Body condition fair. One owner, asking $1,900. Please call (508) 487–4225, or email [email protected] [7-30] Complete set of law books. Dated 1874 to 2014 and in […]

Josephine ‘Joie’ Deall, 84, of Womencrafts

Josephine “Joie” Deall was born Oct. 4, 1935, in Brooklyn, N.Y., and spent her childhood in various neighborhoods in Brooklyn and Long Island. After living with dementia for the last […]

George Ralph Bertrand, 73, Devoted Grandfather

A loving father, grandfather, and friend, George Ralph Bertrand died on June 19, 2020, at age 73. He was born in Cherry Hill, N.J., and raised in Springfield. He moved […]

Mary Louise Rose, 88, Had 9 Children, 22 Grandchildren

Mary Louise “Mary Lou” (Ferreira) Rose, 88, died at her home in Truro surrounded by family on July 2, 2020 after a brief illness. She was the wife of Austin […]

Damian J. Silva, 20, NRHS Graduate

Damian Joseph Silva, 20, of Wellfleet, died unexpectedly on June 24, 2020. No cause of death was given. He was the son of Cassandra Silva and the older brother of […]

Anthony Brill, 55, Chef and Eternal Optimist

Anthony Philip Samuel Brill, of New York City and North Truro, died on June 30, 2020 at the age of 55 after a four-year battle with colon cancer. Known to […]

Real Estate Transactions June 22 to June 26, 2020

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from June 29 to July 2, 2020. PROVINCETOWN June 29. CHR RPR LLC to Melanie L. Reveal. 43 Race Point Rd., Unit […]

Tide Charts

Know when to hit the flats

Indie’s Choice

Outer Cape CalendarMixed Media Maleness Catch the “Modern Male II” show at Steve Bowersock Gallery at 373 Commercial St. in Provincetown, featuring artworks of all media submitted from across […]

Arts Briefs for July 9 through July 15

Show of Eight Women Artists at AMP A group show of eight artists — Dianne Ayott, Midge Battelle, Barbara E. Cohen, Anne Corrsin, Phyllis Ewen, Kathi Robinson Frank, Nancy Rubens, […]

It’s the Time of the Season for Ice Cream

The warm temperatures and the parade of cars could mean only one thing. It was time to stop standing at the kitchen counter eating ice cream straight out of the […]

Willy’s Gym Owner Is Accused of Identity Fraud

EASTHAM — Virginia Reynolds was working in the summer of 2018 at Bayside Consignment, a now-defunct shop on Route 6, when, she says, Barbara Niggel, the owner of the building, […]

Racial Profiling and Outer Cape Police Practice

As conversations about racism and police brutality have spread to every corner of the country, including the Outer Cape, police data have been at the root of efforts to expose […]

State Boosts Telehealth for Drug Therapy

Gov. Charlie Baker signed an executive order on March 15 expanding access to telehealth services for the duration of the Covid-19 crisis. His action has the potential to make Medication […]

Phase Three Businesses Wait for the Green Light

PROVINCETOWN — Many of Provincetown’s most iconic experiences are phase three businesses that could, if statewide indicators stay on the right track, be reopening on Monday, July 6. Phase three […]

Truro Turns Down New Firefighters

TRURO — Voters said no to hiring four new firefighter-paramedics and purchasing a heavy-duty tractor trailer for the DPW at the June 30 town election. Only 469 or 24 percent […]

Cloverleaf Plan Adds Cedar Shingles, Wastewater Treatment

TRURO — The proposed affordable housing complex known as the “Cloverleaf” will have the cedar shingles and painted trim that have typified other housing developments by the Provincetown-based Community Housing […]

The Cottages at the End of the Continent

NORTH TRURO — The very first time I drove into Provincetown I took the shore road, of course. Right away, I knew I was entering another reality. At first, I […]

Ingenuity on the Flats

NANCY CIVETTA / SHELLFISH CONSTABLE / WELLFLEET In early July, things are different on Wellfleet’s shellfish flats. Even as restaurants begin to open more fully across the commonwealth and country, […]

This Fleet Is Blessed

The harbormaster’s launch returns to the pier on Sunday after a sunny midmorning on the rounds with the Rev. Hugh McCullough, affectionately known as Father Mick. Though the event was […]

Young People Discover Their Political Power

Massachusetts had the ninth-highest turnout of voters ages 18 to 29 in the U.S. in the 2018 midterms — a 17.3-percent increase over their participation in 2014. While that’s good […]

Are We Becoming Pool People?

The ocean defines the Outer Cape, but by some reckonings, swimming pools are beginning to come in a close second. That would be an exaggeration, but whether it’s for fear […]

Worries Over Illegal Fireworks Not Sky High Here

With social distancing regulations yielding no town-organized fireworks shows, local authorities expect to work extra hard this July Fourth to defuse illegal ones. In Wellfleet and Truro, particularly, the police […]

Giant Jellyfish Keep Scientists Guessing

The fictional detective Sherlock Holmes investigates a suspicious incident involving a jellyfish in “The Adventure of the Lion’s Mane,” a short story by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle published in 1926. […]

The Lost Crew: A Truro Mystery

Residents of and longtime visitors to Truro are surely familiar with a grisly, dark chapter of the town’s recent past involving Pine Grove Cemetery. Even now, decades later, just reading […]

Wellfleet’s Most Famous Son and a Fateful Partnership

On a July day precisely 150 years ago, a Wellfleet sea captain unloaded a cargo that would shape the course of history. By bringing the first bananas into the U.S., […]

Big Stripers Are Caught — and Thrown Back

Things are beginning to look a little more normal on the waterfront. More and more boats are starting to open up and operate. The Bay Lady began sailing tours, and […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, June 30, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

In Nod to Normalcy, PYC Kicks Off Racing Season

When the Covid-19 pandemic touched down in full force, it made quick work of the Provincetown Yacht Club’s summer calendar. Spring meeting? Canceled. Season kickoff? Canceled. Sailboat racing clinic? Zoom-ified. […]

Beauty and the Beast

The stars of summer have returned! Step outside after dark and look east, about halfway up the sky. You’ll see three bright stars that form a triangle. If you’re not […]

It’s a Sad Summer With (Almost) No Baseball

In the first round of this year’s Major League Baseball (MLB) draft, 35 percent of the players selected were alumni of the Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL). June 13 would […]

Take Home on the Road

Remote work and distance learning have chained us to our devices and Zoom rooms. But now that it’s summer, camping offers outdoor low-tech liberation. Campgrounds are, by nature, well designed […]

More Condos, Less Impact

EASTHAM — There’s been a meeting of the minds between Tim Klink and the residents of Wiley Lane, the cul-de-sac behind the Route 6 property he wants to develop. Rather […]

Keeping the Postal Service Alive

In the current round of local town elections, it appears that about 90 percent of the votes were sent in by mail. And if the Covid-19 pandemic continues into the […]

Cyclist Injured on Route 6

WELLFLEET — Kathleen Kusiak, 55, of West Newton was struck by a car when she turned north on Route 6 from Main Street at 1 p.m. Sunday, June 28, according […]

Unruly Tourist Assaults Elderly Restaurateur

PROVINCETOWN — The 80-year-old owner of George’s Pizza, who was punched in the face Saturday night by an allegedly unruly customer, still had ringing in his ears days later, according […]

Missing Kayaker Confirmed Dead

TRURO — The body that washed up on beach in North Truro on June 9 has been identified through dental records to be that of Marc-Olivier Czarnecki, a 51-year-old math […]

Marla Perkel Tells of Overnight Ordeal

PROVINCETOWN — When her red convertible got stuck in the mud on a dirt road on the Truro-Wellfleet line, Marla Perkel, 84, survived the night by walking, napping, and finally […]

This Week in Provincetown

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, July 2 Scholarship & Trust Administration Committee, 3:30 p.m. Zoning Board […]

This Week in Truro

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. To watch live, go to truro-ma.gov. From there, follow the “helpful link” to Truro Channel 18. Thursday, July 2 Truro Energy Committee, 8:30 a.m. […]

This Week in Wellfleet

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you are interested in for instructions on how to participate. Thursday, July 2 Housing Authority, 10 […]

This Week in Eastham

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on a particular meeting to read its agenda. That document will provide information about how to view and take […]

Vicky Tomayko Gives the Forms of Nature an Edge

Down a long, winding dirt road, deep in the woods of South Truro, lies the studio and home of printmaker Vicky Tomayko. She has lived and worked there surrounded by […]

Local Performers Are in the Dark on Reopening Rules

Currently in Massachusetts, you can dine indoors at a restaurant, you can attend church and even sing there, but you’re still not officially permitted to attend an outdoor performance of […]

In Why Fish Don’t Exist, Lulu Miller Finds Truth in Taxonomy

Lulu Miller calls David Starr Jordan, the protagonist of her book Why Fish Don’t Exist: A Story of Loss, Love, and the Hidden Order of Life, “David.” Born in the […]

Mischa Richter Has Provincetown on His Mind

“I Am a Town” would sound like a boast from almost anyone but photographer Mischa Richter. Modest and soft-spoken, Richter has long regarded Provincetown as his home. The subjects of […]

Independence Day

Naturists by Daniel Dejean

What Work Is

The first time I really focused on the story of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, I was about eight years old. The rabbi explained that the two […]

Gazed and Confused

Gazed and Confused by A. Crock

Feeling Dutiful

The Fourth’s familiar festivities yield to more practical and sober affairs. Instead of fireworks and fanfare, the lunar eclipse in Capricorn casts a pragmatic light upon limitations in terms of […]

Mark Stevens, 51, of Provincetown

Mark Stevens died on June 15, 2020, at the Wichita Falls, Texas, home of his brother Brian Stevens, surrounded by family. He was 51.Mark had fought a brave battle […]

Evalyn M. Wood, 101, Watercolor Painter

Evalyn Margaret Wood of Orleans died on June 15, 2020, holding the hand of her devoted daughter, Margaret “Peggy” McClellan of Wellfleet. She was 101. A remarkable, talented, and humble […]

An Unhealthy Restriction

“The coronavirus pandemic has provided an opportunity for communities to act on their most exclusionary impulses,” writes Andrew W. Kahrl in an essay titled “Who Will Get to Swim This […]

Letters, July 2, 2020

For a 24-Hour Mask Rule To the editor: The best defenses we have against the coronavirus are mask wearing, social distancing, and hand washing. Yet as businesses open and more […]

Indie Classifieds July 2 – July 8, 2020

RETAIL & OFFICE SPACE Wellfleet office/studio spaces with a view. Two year-round side-by-side 10’ x 11′ office/studio spaces; adequate privacy for separate businesses or open the door for collaboration. Great view […]

Real Estate Transactions June 22 to June 26, 2020

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from June 22 to June 26, 2020. PROVINCETOWN June 23. Michael MacIntyre Living Trust Agreement Dated April 2, 2008 (Michael MacIntyre, trustee) […]

Tide Charts

Know when to hit the flats

Indie’s Choice

Outer Cape Calendar Party to Go-Go The Crown & Anchor in Provincetown, in collaboration with Live From Provincetown, will be celebrating Independence Day online with its Freedom Virtual Beach Party […]

Arts Briefs for July 2 through July 8

Impressions of Cape Cod: Local Color Photographer Lee Glickenhaus has a decidedly unpretentious take on his artistic vision. He may be inspired […]

The Women Behind Cookie’s Tap: Valentina and Her Nana

TRURO — Valentina Cook-Wheeler isn’t one to talk about herself. But she does have some stories to tell. Although she lives in Truro now, she is not only a third-generation […]

Portable Toilet Businesses Are on a Roll

While much of the Cape economy is in the crapper due to coronavirus-related shutdowns and restrictions, porta-potty companies are flush. That’s because in a summer when Covid-19 has heightened fears […]

No Cases but Lots of Questions

PROVINCETOWN — For four weeks now, Provincetown has detected zero new cases of coronavirus. Memorial Day weekend came and went. Phase two of the statewide reopening was announced; lodgings, retail […]

Lecount Hollow Parking Restricted to Taxpayers

WELLFLEET — For those who don’t own property here, the chances of finding a parking spot at an oceanside beach have just gotten smaller. The select board voted unanimously on […]

Chris Busa of Provincetown Arts Dies at 73

PROVINCETOWN — As the 35th-anniversary issue of Provincetown Arts, the glossy and scholarly annual journal of Outer Cape art and literature, was preparing to go to press on June 20, […]

Welcome, Gili

Giligilao “Gili” Peregrine Portnoy was born on May 5, 2020 to Galiguy “Akay” Inariki Yan of the Taromak Rukai tribe of Taiwan and Caleb Portnoy of Wellfleet. Gili’s grandparents are […]

Gardens That Contain Summer’s Charm

A window box filled with flowers can give a plain clapboard exterior a season’s worth of charm. Settie Dixon, owner of Gardens by Settie, has good advice about planting container […]

Farmers Markets Are Back, for Food and Connection

After a pre-season full of uncertainty and adjustment, welcome seeds of normalcy are sprouting at the Provincetown and Truro farmers markets, though at both, new restrictions and guidelines have reconfigured […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, June 23, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Biking Back to That Free and Easy Feeling

Do you remember your first bike? Mine was blue, big banana seat, flowered basket perched on the handlebars. I remember that feeling of freedom it gave me. I could go […]

Journaling With Flowers: Creating an Herbarium

By the time Emily Dickinson was 14 years old, she had compiled a collection of over 400 pressed flowers and leaves. “Have you made an herbarium yet?” she wrote to […]

Water’s Edge

Need some answers? We send out the solution in our Friday newsletter. You’ll find the signup for our newsletter right here on our home page! This page is available to […]

Balancing the Books

What aspect of life pre-Covid do people miss the most? Extroverts might say bars and clubs, but more introverted types might yearn for the hours they leisurely spent among bookstore […]

Jellyfish Added to Watch-Out-For List

The big news on the waterfront is Gov. Baker’s extending phase two to July 6, which keeps most passenger-carrying vessels, including our whale watch boats, tied to the dock for […]

Say, It’s Only a Supercharged Moon

Sister Moon, herald of intuition and emotion, is supercharged following the solar eclipse in Cancer. Her angles to the other planets this week will be extra challenging for some and […]

The New Roadside Trash

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PMPM Exhibit Revises Story of First Encounters

PROVINCETOWN — This year marks the 400th anniversary of the Pilgrims’ landing in Provincetown and the first encounters between the newly arrived Europeans and the indigenous people who lived here. […]

After Dip, Market Is Hot

After a pandemic-induced crash in spring real estate sales, brokers now report that the market has come roaring back. May statistics for Cape Cod and the Islands, released on June […]

With Plenty of Headaches, Relief Money Is Flowing

PROVINCETOWN — The $2 trillion CARES Act turns three months old this week, and the relief programs it created have all had rough rollouts. The payroll loans, disaster loans, and […]

Early Test Results Look Good

WELLFLEET — The 449 free Covid-19 tests conducted at Outer Cape Health Services here on June 17 and 18 have so far showed zero positive results. Wellfleet’s clinic was one […]

The Heroic Struggle to Be Out in Central Pennsylvania

The history of the gay liberation movement is usually told from the point of view of those at the center of the action, from the Mattachine Society and Daughters of […]

This Week in Provincetown

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, June 25 Charter Compliance Commission, noon Planning Board, 6 p.m. Public […]

This Week in Truro

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. To watch live, go to truro-ma.gov. Thursday, June 25 School Committee, 5:15 p.m. Zoning Board of Appeals Cloverleaf Hearing, 5:30 p.m. Friday, June 26 […]

This Week in Wellfleet

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you are interested in for instructions on how to participate. Thursday, June 25 Natural Resources Advisory […]

This Week in Eastham

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on a particular meeting to read its agenda. That document will provide information about how to view and take […]

The Flags of Provincetown

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Racism in My Body

“Lock your door.” That was the first insidiously racist thing my body remembers hearing. There were other words, heard earlier. Subtle, belittling generalizations. Words that didn’t match up with what I knew […]

If Not Now, When?

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Keeping Watch

In 1872, Congress authorized the reorganization of the U.S. Life-Saving Service and the refurbishing of old and building of new stations along the Atlantic Coast. The waters off Cape Cod […]

The Souls on Ice in Joseph Diggs’s Paintings

“This isn’t new to me, and I’m tired of it,” says painter Joseph Diggs, a Cape Cod native. He’s referring to the recent killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Diggs […]

Rite of Passage: Hawthorne’s ‘His First Voyage’

At four by five feet, His First Voyage, by Charles Webster Hawthorne, is an imposing painting. Its figures are roughly life-size. The subject is, seemingly, just a domestic scene. A […]

Reflections on Gay Pride

Pride, being one of the seven deadly sins, has good and bad sides to it. It’s like patriotism. To the extent that it means self-love and self-respect, it’s essential and […]

For Duane Slick, the Coyote Is Transcendent

In his career-long exploration of the coyote in Native American storytelling, painter Duane Slick often takes the image of a coyote head and obscures it. In the process, he explores […]

A Tale of Two Fire Departments

I am perplexed that the Lower Cape Ambulance Association (LCAA), a regional nonprofit that has existed since 1937, is losing support and no one seems to be fighting to preserve […]

Letters, June 25, 2020

Charting the Epidemic To the editor: Sunday, June 21, marked the 100th day of the Covid-19 epidemic on Cape Cod. The first confirmed case was reported on March 14 and […]

Indie Classifieds June 18 – June 24, 2020

FOR SALE 2002 Toyota Tacoma pickup. Reliable, comfortable, automatic, 4-cycle truck with only 37,000 miles. Silver, 2-dr. 4-seat, 2 front buckets, upholstered, sliding back window. Short bed w/snap cover. No […]

Richmond R. Bell, D-Day Veteran, Dies at 95

Richmond Randolph Bell, beloved Wellfleet patriarch, died in his sleep at his second home in Norwich, Vt., on June 14, 2020, of lymphoma. He was 95. Rich was born on […]

Robert Dale Richardson III, 86, Biographer Who Won High Praise

Historian and biographer Robert Dale Richardson III died on June 16, 2020 at Cape Cod Hospital from complications suffered after a fall. He was 86. He was born in 1934 […]

Real Estate Transactions June 8 to June 12, 2020

Real Estate Transactions Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from June 15 to June 19, 2020. PROVINCETOWN June 18. Stephen J. Madden Jr. Trust of 2005 (Dean Ross […]

Tide Charts

Know when to hit the flats

Indie’s Choice

Outer Cape Calendar Super Bollen East End Books Ptown is hosting a virtual book event with Christopher Bollen, writer of A Beautiful Crime, a twisty, Ripley-esque grifter novel, on Friday, […]

Arts Briefs for June 25 through July 1

AMP Gallery Reopens With Group Show AMP Gallery is opening its first show of the season with a reception on Friday, June 26, 6 to 8 p.m. at 432 Commercial […]

Truro Asks for 4 More Firefighters

TRURO — Voters here will be asked to permanently increase the town budget on June 30 so it can hire four new firefighter-paramedics, a move that would beef up the […]

Six People, 12 Jobs, One Bathroom

PROVINCETOWN — Short-term rentals bring in visitors and help pay the town’s bills. Year-round rentals are the endangered species that we keep trying to preserve and expand. Seasonal rentals are […]

Cumby’s Bid to Sell Alcohol Gains Steam

Cumberland Farms, along with other convenience stores, is one step closer to selling alcohol and upending the current system of liquor sales licenses. The Mass. Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) on […]

FAWC Is Accused of Discrimination and ‘Complacency’

PROVINCETOWN — This should have been a banner year for the Fine Arts Work Center, one of the town’s most important cultural institutions, with its faculty of renowned writers and […]

The Heart of the Town Is Still Beating

EASTHAM — If you live here, you’re tired of hearing it: “This town has no center.” Except, of course, it does. Its formal name is the Eastham Center Historic District, […]

Wellfleet Proposes New Rental Regulations

WELLFLEET — Short- and long-term rentals might look very different next summer, and it has nothing to do with Covid-19. The town’s health and conservation dept. has drafted regulations that […]

There Will Be International Workers, but Not as Many

PROVINCETOWN — The Outer Cape is not a highly diverse place. When it comes to sexual orientation, Provincetown has a higher concentration of LGBTQ people than almost anywhere — but […]

Federal Judge Rules for the Wampanoags

A federal judge ruled in favor of the Wampanoag Tribe of Mashpee on June 5 in a suit the tribe filed against the Dept. of the Interior, which had attempted […]

Home Repair Aid for the Asking

Laurence Young of Provincetown had windows in his condominium dating back to the early 1980s, and electric heat upstairs that was expensive no matter how sparingly used. That changed in […]

While Waiting for Fish, We Count Sharks, Deer, and Coyotes

The Provincetown waterfront remains quiet, as commercial fishing boats go about their business of lobstering and scalloping, but the rest of the fleet is essentially tied to the dock waiting for […]

More Grads From the Class of 2020

Editor’s note: The profiles of some of this year’s Outer Cape high school graduates were missing from our June 4 special section. Here are a few of them. Anna Rogers […]

Designing a Driveway to Enhance Curb Appeal

The question: We’ve been living with a dirt driveway for a while now. We like the natural look of it, but it requires a lot of maintenance. It’s time to […]

The Backyard Bar of Dad’s Dreams

Fathers Day marks a migration from the man cave into the great outdoors. The traditional time to set up a gathering space around the grill, this year it’s more about […]

Rec Sails Away This Summer

Summer recreation programs are fun for local kids, but also important because they provide jobs for teenagers and child care that helps working parents get through the summer months. But […]

An Introduction to a Summer of Reporting

This week the Independent welcomes five young journalists from across the country to its first summer fellowship program, made possible by donations and grants to its nonprofit Local Journalism Project. […]

Lessons in Foraging for a Father’s Love

TRURO — When Michael Holt was growing up in New York City, his summer weeks in Truro were “like a trip to the Garden of Eden.” It was here that […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, June 16, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

The Sun Crosses Into Cancer: Feel It

The Sun crosses into Cancer, heralding the start of summer with an abundance of solstice light. It’s a time of rooting, nurturing, and feeling … quite a change from Gemini’s […]

Spinning Carrot Tops Into Supper

If you don’t get out to the garden to thin your row of carrots right now you will end up with runty twisted results, carrots unsuitable for prizes at the […]

Charting Courses on the Outer Cape

It wouldn’t be summer on the Outer Cape without courses. And, fortunately, though indoor courses in art and writing are not in the offing at this stage of the coronavirus […]

A Visit to Peter Watts

WELLFLEET — “A Norse god,” his wife, Gloria, said of him — sometimes with a wry smile. With a tall, straight physique and a leonine head, handsome at 88 years, […]

Covid-19 Takes a Toll on LGBTQ Youth

For many in the LGBTQ community, annual pride events commemorating the Stonewall uprising of June 28, 1969, have constituted their first euphoric moments of connection, of celebration, of feeling recognized […]

High School Project Votes May Wait Until Spring

EASTHAM — The four towns of the Nauset Regional School District may not have to vote on the high school building project until next spring. Last week, the regional school […]

24-Hour Changeover Pause Is Only ‘Suggested’

With the statewide ban on short-term property rentals lifted on June 8, Outer Cape vacationers and property owners must adjust to new safety guidelines. Massachusetts requires proprietors of lodgings — […]

Willy’s Gym Gets Closer to Reopening

EASTHAM — Willy’s Gym claims it is now eligible to reopen when all gyms and fitness centers are permitted to do so under phase three of Gov. Charlie Baker’s reopening […]

Packages Sit Undelivered as Customers Fume

WELLFLEET — The UPS Customer Center at 131 Ansel Hallet Road in West Yarmouth, once busy shipping packages all around the Outer Cape, now houses halted conveyor belts, silenced machines, […]

This Week in Provincetown

Meetings Ahead Thursday, June 18 Board of Health, 4 p.m. Zoning Board of Appeals, 6:30 p.m. Monday, June 22 Select Board, 7 p.m. Tuesday, June 23 Public Landscaping Committee, 4 […]

This Week in Truro

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. To watch live, go to truro-ma.gov. Friday, June 19 Board of Library Trustees, 11:30 a.m. Monday, June 22 Zoning Board of Appeals, 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, […]

This Week in Wellfleet

Meetings Ahead Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you are interested in for instructions on how to participate. Friday, June 19 Wellfleet COVID-19 Needs Response Task Force Community […]

This Week in Eastham

Meetings Ahead Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on a particular meeting to read its agenda. That document will provide information about how to view and take part remotely. Thursday, June […]

A Dead Seal

The immense corpse lay on its back on the upper beach, eyes heavenward, although unseeing.Its full abdomen, up-thrust chin, bristly whiskers, and jowly throat suggested a human quality; if […]

Gray Seal Pup

Mark Adams Sketchbook

Table for Phase 2

Table for Phase 2 by A. Crock

Metamorphosis

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Confession of a Former Southern Gentleman

“Remember, son,” he said with an earnestness that boggled my 10-year-old brain, “girls love it when you open the door for them.” It was my friend’s dad, and he was […]

Deb Mell Paints With Objects

“I love processes,” Truro artist Deb Mell says. “I keep thinking of more complicated and time-consuming ones. That makes me happy.” Which is not to say that Mell’s work appears […]

Racism and The Broken Heart of America

In the months after the murder of black teen Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo., in 2014, historian Walter Johnson began work on The Broken Heart of America: St. Louis and […]

Alex Brewer Explores the Poetry of Cape Musicians

Wellfleet singer-songwriter Alex Brewer’s new album, Unquoted, is a tribute to his community. Brewer is fascinated by artistic scenes — Paris in the ’20s, Laurel Canyon in the ’60s — […]

Mona Awad Masters the Fine Art of Horror

In her latest book, Bunny, Mona Awad has crafted a darkly funny horror story about female friendships, class anxiety, art, and academia that has been likened to Heathers, Mean Girls, […]

When Ads and News Collide

This week we were confronted with a tough choice at our less- than-nine-month-old newspaper. We were offered a full-page ad that we decided we had to turn down. Full-page ads, […]

Letters, June 18, 2020

Start the Conversations To the editor: When I was 12 I began to sit in on civil rights protests every Saturday with our local NAACP Youth Council. On Monday evenings […]

Indie Classifieds June 18 – June 24, 2020

RETAIL SPACE Wellfleet retail space available. Two-room, seasonal retail space in an excellent location at 326 Main St. Was the iconic Chocolate Sparrow candy store. Call for details: 508-349-1372. [7-2] SUMMER […]

Real Estate Transactions June 8 to June 12, 2020

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from June 8 to June 12, 2020.PROVINCETOWN June 11. David J. Elliott to Katherine, Elizabeth, John, and Sam Mullan. 37D Court […]

Tide Charts

Know when to hit the flats

Indie’s Choice

Outer Cape Calendar Island Treasure The Friends of Herring River invite you to take a free virtual tour of Wellfleet’s Bound Brook Island on their website, herringriver.org/Videos. Originally created for […]

Arts Briefs for June 18 through June 24

Encaustic Show at Bowersock Gallery The ancient medium of encaustic jumps into the 21st century with the live-stream opening of the “Mesdames of Wax” from the Bowersock Gallery in Provincetown. […]

Seeking a Fair and Balanced Relationship With the Wild

PROVINCETOWN — Carrie Medina Notaro first noticed the female red fox in her East End neighborhood in early January and began having “conversations” with her. This page is available to […]

Broadbent Is Picked to Lead in Wellfleet

WELLFLEET — Maria Broadbent, the town manager of Berwyn Heights, Md., will be Wellfleet’s next town administrator. The 54-year-old was picked over current Dartmouth Town Manager Shawn MacInnes in what […]

Contact Tracing Could Be a Challenge for Reopened Businesses

PROVINCETOWN — The Outer Cape’s economy is opening back up. The streets are showing signs of life, as lodging, outdoor dining, and retail resume after a three-month hiatus. Workers and […]

Between Septic and Groundwater, Inches Count

EASTHAM — Stephen and Mimi Henning own a small house off Steele Road on about a third of an acre. Built in 1935, it has two bedrooms and a bathroom, […]

Willy’s Looks to Reopen

EASTHAM — A final inspection by the town’s health, fire, and building depts., scheduled for Wednesday, June 10, could lead to the reopening of Willy’s World and Conference Center, which […]

Truro Marchers Plan New Protest

A quickly organized protest sparked by the death of George Floyd in police custody in Minneapolis drew about 15 people to the Children’s Garden in Truro last Sunday. The group […]

NRHS Graduates Take to the Big Screen

Photos by Nancy Bloom Teacher Alexis Mathison takes a picture of a picture. That’s graduate Kara Moore on the outdoor screen at the Wellfleet Drive-In. Friends found each other for […]

Opening of Marine Sanctuary Confounds Scientists and Fishermen

President Trump announced on Friday, June 5 that he would allow commercial fishing in a conservation area 130 miles southeast of Cape Cod. Scientists and fisheries advocates here agree the […]

Swarming Is a Sign of Success

A honey bee colony’s plans and those of its beekeeper often diverge, and those disparate intentions of bee and keeper can confuse and confound the objectives of both. At no […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, June 9, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Finding the Woods on a Search for a Bird

There is a little bird that lives in the woods. It nests low to the ground, at the edges of clearings. It is about the size of a sparrow. The […]

Powers of Positivity Come Into Play

The Gemini Sun is square to a Mars-Neptune conjunction in Pisces, amplifying your powers of positivity for all to behold. Careful! Good vibes are honey to negative flies and you […]

A Bittersweet Cake for a First Careful Cookout

I know June is pretty much the end of the line for oranges. But I am sure that there are still a few to be rummaged up on countertops across […]

Remnants and Rock Collections Come to the Table

As you prepare outdoor living spaces for the summer, it’s a good time to be on the lookout for materials that might be repurposed into tabletops. Marble and granite slabs, […]

Curb Your Enthusiasm

All four Outer Cape libraries began curbside services last week, although Provincetown library staff are calling it “street-side,” because they don’t have a curb. Directors Amy Raff of the Provincetown […]

What Not to Eat, or Be Eaten By

PROVINCETOWN — The hot news on the waterfront this week is that the seals are back, and so are the white sharks. A gray seal with a rather large shark […]

Tennis and Pickleball Return

Pickleball is helping Sheila Garry get back to a sense of normalcy. She says that’s what almost everyone who’s coming back to the sport is talking about. On June 1, […]

Cramped Quarters Led to Shutting AmeriCorps Site

WELLFLEET — AmeriCorps member Corrine Losch received an email on May 15 telling her she had two weeks to move out of the Wellfleet house where she had been lodging […]

Eastham Residents React to Roadway Study

EASTHAM — There are 350 property owners who live along Bridge Road, Smith Lane, Samoset Road, and Dyer Prince Road in Eastham. Nearly 40 residents participated in a virtual public […]

Moderator Defends FinCom Pick and Facebook Rants

PROVINCETOWN — David Panagore, the former town manager, has been appointed as an alternate on the finance committee, raising the ire of part-time resident taxpayers once again. Panagore, the town […]

Attorney for Fishermen Goes After Pier Corp.

PROVINCETOWN — An attorney for two fishermen whose dockage fees were raised this year is charging the Public Pier Corp. with Open Meeting Law violations and with changing the rules […]

Body on Beach Thought to Be 2nd Kayaker

TRURO — A body found on the bayside beach here early Monday, June 8, is thought to be that of Marc-Olivier Czarnecki, 51, who was missing for 17 days following […]

Incumbent Wants a Larger Vision for the Town

PROVINCETOWN — After three years on the finance committee and three years on the select board, Louise Venden is running for a second term. Venden owned a nine-room guest house […]

Former Police Chief Wants to Lead Through a Crisis

PROVINCETOWN — Bobby Anthony, 74, a retired police chief and native of Provincetown, hopes to win a third term on the select board in the June 30 election. A Vietnam […]

Austin Knight Favors Baker’s Orders in Pandemic

PROVINCETOWN — As the one new candidate running against two incumbents in this year’s town election, Austin Knight has some criticisms of the current select board. Knight and incumbents Louise […]

This Week in Provincetown

Meetings Ahead All meetings are held remotely. To watch a meeting, go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, June 11 Planning Board, 6 p.m. Wednesday, […]

This Week in Truro

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. To watch live, go to truro-ma.gov. Thursday, June 11 School Committee, 5:15 p.m. Tuesday, June 16 Cemetery Commission, 10 a.m. Board of Health, 4:30 p.m. […]

This Week in Wellfleet

Meetings Ahead Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you are interested in for instructions on how to participate. Thursday, June 11 Cape Cod Commission, 3 p.m. Nauset Regional […]

This Week in Eastham

Meetings Ahead Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on a particular meeting to read its agenda. That document will provide information about how to view and take part remotely. Thursday, June […]

We Should Not Have to Be Afraid

I am outraged and I am terrified. I am outraged by the deaths of George Floyd in Minneapolis, Breonna Taylor in Louisville, and so many other black American citizens. We […]

Pollen

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Charlene

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Pier Dispute Calls for Mediation

The Provincetown Public Pier Corp. board, all volunteers, is trying to bring consistent application of rules and regulations to the pier, as well as rate increases that will meet the […]

Ray Wiggs Brings a Touch of Classical Italy to Provincetown

“I am constantly drawn back to the figure,” says Ray Wiggs. “There are many subjects that I enjoy painting. However, the figure has always been alluring to me, because no […]

A Reader’s Journey Into ‘A Long Petal of the Sea’

With so much reading time between gardening days and walks to the bay in my privileged Eastham world, I was fortunate to have picked up Isabel Allende’s newest work of […]

Christina Clancy Writes of Her Second Home

Wellfleet comes vividly to life in Christina Clancy’s The Second Home, a gripping novel about a family and second chances. The story centers on an inheritance dispute, which, for a […]

Binge-watching Unusual Suspects

The Last Dance The 10-episode documentary miniseries is available to stream on espn.com or ESPN apps. There’s much to learn in The Last Dance, the ESPN miniseries on Michael Jordan’s […]

The Sound of Music Was Silenced

All through the month leading up to their final realization that The Sound of Music, this year’s musical at Nauset Regional Middle School, would not be performed, the members of […]

White People Need ‘the Talk’

In 2014, after the shooting death of Michael Brown, 18, by a Ferguson, Mo., police officer who was not indicted for the killing, Elenita Muñiz, a blue-eyed Puerto Rican and […]

Letters, June 11, 2020

‘El País Esta Vivo’ Al editor: Desde España estámos mirando y no sólo es espantoso, es también contagioso. Aquí la extrema derecho, PP y Vox, sigue subiendo y siguen descaradamente […]

Indie Classifieds June 11 – June 17, 2020

RETAIL SPACE Wellfleet retail space available. Two-room, seasonal retail space in an excellent location at 326 Main St. Was the iconic Chocolate Sparrow candy store. Call for details: 508-349-1372. [7-2] SUMMER […]

R. Bruce Corea, 76, of Provincetown’s West End

Robert Bruce Corea died on June 3, 2020, at Harbor Point in Centerville, where he had been in hospice care for four months. He was 76. Bruce was a native […]

Elena Hall, 74, Ran Parking Lot With Aplomb

Provincetown native Elena Curtis Hall, 74, died on June 2, 2020, at Cape Cod Hospital in Hyannis after a prolonged illness. Elena was the daughter of the late Preston and […]

Real Estate Transactions June 1 to June 5, 2020

Real Estate Transactions Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from June 1 to June 5, 2020. PROVINCETOWN June 1. David K. Mattila to Lawrence M. Barat. 343 Bradford […]

Betty Godwin Balch, 96, Presided at Captain Higgins

Betty Godwin Balch, 96, died peacefully in her sleep at her assisted living home in Bradenton, Fla., on May 25, 2020. She and her late husband, John Louis Balch, had […]

Tide Charts

Know when to hit the flats

Indie’s Choice

Outer Cape Calendar Art of Social Distancing Artists Megan Hinton and Paula Erickson found a rusty metal office desk at the Wellfleet Dept. of Public Works yard off Pole Dike […]

Arts Briefs for June 11 through June 17

Diane Messinger’s Art Is Contagious A painting by Truro artist Diane Messinger has been accepted in a juried virtual show, “We Are All Contagious,” presented by the UMass Dartmouth University […]

At Protests Here, There Is Solidarity

WELLFLEET — Protests against police brutality following the May 25 murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis were not confined to America’s major cities. About 150 people marched through Wellfleet last […]

Pier Corp. Cleans House, Hires PR Firm

PROVINCETOWN — The Public Pier Corp. has raised the slip fees on seven MacMillan Pier tenants and rescinded permission for the Mayflower II to land here in September. The Pier Corp. board also […]

Education Is ‘on Pause’ at Seashore

This is the second in a series of articles on the Cape Cod National Seashore’s science program. It explores why science matters at the Seashore and why it’s at risk. […]

Eastham’s Beach Plan Is Ready

EASTHAM — The town has mapped its beaches, ponds, and landings and their parking areas with an eye to allowing socially distanced fun this summer. The exercise revealed that “we […]

Provincetown Adopts New Policies, but No New Mask Law

PROVINCETOWN — Outdoor dining for restaurants, new picnic areas on town property, an experimental car ban on Commercial Street, and extra oversight of the excursion fleet were all approved at […]

For Some, Outdoor Alcohol May Save Season

WELLFLEET — The Beachcomber, the Pearl, and Mac’s Shack will ask the select board on June 9 to be allowed to serve alcohol outdoors. Each restaurant hopes to set up […]

Seasonal Permits Are Banned in Wellfleet

WELLFLEET — Vacationers and visitors received another blow from the select board last week — a ban on seasonal recreational shellfishing permits. On top of the short-term rentals ban through […]

Nauset High’s Class of 2020 Celebrates With a Motorcade

2020 class advisers Jennifer Stevens, Kate Blascio, and Jessica Reeves hand out caps and gowns, supervised by Savannah Stevens, age five. (Photos Nancy Bloom)Libby Chase arrived by […]

The Outer Cape’s Class of 2020

Editor’s Note: For the beautiful cover illustration to this section of the paper, by NRHS art teacher Amy Kandall, and an introduction to this collection of pictures and words collected […]

A Graduation in Quarantine

I am the ceramics and painting teacher at Nauset Regional High School. Normally, each day, 125 students come to my classroom studio, where I try to create a […]

Strolling by Scrolling: Provincetown Galleries Launch Website

PROVINCETOWN — As of this week, art lovers can stroll past many of Provincetown’s galleries without getting up from their living room couches. A new website, ptowngallerystroll.com, was launched by […]

Taking a G&T Over the Top

Memorial Day, marking the unofficial start of summer, has come and gone this year in a way unlike any before: no crowds, no traffic, no large gatherings. Only the middling […]

An Artist’s Weaving Retreat

My studio was a gift from my parents. It was built in 2017 with an inheritance I received after my mom and dad both died within four months of each […]

Redecorating Isn’t Just for Grownups

Leaving Wellfleet for her freshman year at UMass Amherst, Kenna Valli packed hundreds of pictures of family and friends, painstakingly arranging them in her dorm room with the approved adhesive. […]

Isolation Workarounds

I’ve learned some things navigating this new normal as a single person living in a one-bedroom apartment. One is that there are things we can do to adapt and get […]

A Guide to Socially Distanced Basketball

There is one good thing about life without professional basketball to watch. Memories of driveway and schoolyard games come along to fill the void. Playing five-on-five basketball is not advisable […]

The Claws Have It

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A Lunar Eclipse Affects Your Quest

Friday, June 5, brings a lunar eclipse in the sign of Sagittarius. Eclipses speak to the relationships between different areas of our lives and any lack therein. The sign of […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, June 2, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Get Your Voting Done Early

All citizens are encouraged to vote by mail this year. To do that, however, a registered voter must fill out and mail in an absentee or early voting application, and […]

Women of the Hour: Our Health Agents

PROVINCETOWN — The Outer Cape’s health agents’ duties range from enforcing food and water safety to supporting emotional connection. Their jobs touch on sex, rats, and sewers. And that was […]

This Week in Provincetown

Meetings Ahead All meetings are held remotely. To watch a meeting, go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Thursday, June 4 Public Pier Corp., 3 […]

This Week in Truro

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. To watch live, go to truro-ma.gov. Thursday, June 4 Select Board, 9 a.m. Tuesday, June 9 Select Board, 5 p.m. Wednesday, Jun 10 Planning […]

This Week in Wellfleet

Meetings Ahead Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you are interested in for instructions on how to participate. Thursday, June 4 Coastal Resiliency Grant Listening Session, 10 a.m. […]

This Week in Eastham

Meetings Ahead Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting agenda for information about how to view and take part remotely. Thursday, June 4 Zoning Board of Appeals, 5 p.m. […]

George Floyd

The late George Floyd, against a background of all the states’ flowers. This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.

Beech Forest Drama

They were feathered jewels moving through the trees, gifts from the Southern Hemisphere and our Southern states, most on their way north, here on the Cape for a few days […]

How Chuck White Organized Julie Heller’s Art Collection

If ever there were a match made in heaven, it was six years ago, when Chuck White walked into Angel Foods in the East End of Provincetown and asked for […]

In High Tide, Ed Meek Writes of Surging Joy and Danger

Ed Meek’s fourth book of poetry is all about cycles. High Tide, which Aubade Publishing will put out in July (its May launch was postponed due to the coronavirus), takes […]

Friends Virtually Celebrate a Joe Cocker Classic

Every September since 2014, a group of friends — Malcolm Pollack, Kemp Harris, Carl Sturken, Ray Castoldi, Gary Lue, and others — journey to Star Island, one of the Isles […]

The Artist as Whistleblower

To understand why Larry Kramer was a great artist and a singularly influential activist, you have to examine how much the world has changed from plague to plague, HIV to […]

The Promise of June

The first weekend in June is traditionally when our local public high schools — Nauset Regional High in Eastham and Cape Cod Regional Technical High in Harwich — hold graduation […]

Letters, June 4, 2020

A Hard Look at Ourselves To the editor: What do we do when confronted with the terrible news of the actions and inactions of the Minneapolis police officers that led […]

Indie Classifieds June 4 – June 10, 2020

THANK YOU The children of Bernard N. Santos thank our family and friends for the prayers and cards of sympathy on the passing of our Dad. We appreciated the little […]

Sheila E. Silva, Who Performed 594 Weddings, Dies at 77

Sheila E. (Lussier Costa) Silva, 77, of North Truro died peacefully on May 27, 2020, at Harbor Point in Centerville, where she resided for the last year. She was the […]

Real Estate Transactions May 26 to May 29, 2020

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from May 26 to May 29, 2020. PROVINCETOWN May 26. Equity Trust Company Custodian (Robert A. Newell IRA, trustee) to 3 Harbor […]

Tide Charts

Know when to hit the flats

Indie’s Choice

Outer Cape Calendar Pier Pressure The Addison Art Gallery in Orleans will make a donation to the Eastham, Wellfleet, and Truro public libraries for every Paul Schulenburg painting sold through […]

Arts Briefs for May 28 through June 3

Film and Wine Paired in Virtual Series Marc Strauss, Michael Rose, and Wellfleet Preservation Hall are presenting the virtual series “Film & Wine” on Zoom every other Tuesday through July […]

Out-of-State Arrivals Still Told to Lie Low

PROVINCETOWN — On March 27, Gov. Charlie Baker issued an advisory that travelers into Massachusetts from other states should self-quarantine for 14 days. At that time, New York State was […]

Recovery Without Rooms

For the past eight years, John has made coffee, opened doors, and greeted people as they entered the Wellfleet First Congregational Church for the weekly Saturday night Alcoholics Anonymous meetings. […]

The Doctor Is In, but Mostly Virtually

Outer Cape Health Services, the major provider of health care for the four Outer Cape towns, continues to operate its three clinics with reduced hours, staffing, and salaries, a result […]

Meeting Attendance Zooms Upward

WELLFLEET — The number of people viewing and participating in virtual select board meetings here in recent weeks is breaking the board’s attendance records. Since the Wellfleet Select Board began […]

Coyote Shot at Herring Cove Beach

PROVINCETOWN — Memorial Day weekend may have been quiet for some, but Herring Cove Beach was the scene of almost daily drama caused by at least one aggressive coyote, which […]

Kayaking Excursion Ends in Nurse’s Death

PROVINCETOWN — Carole Madru of Hyannis, whose body was found on the beach in North Truro on Saturday, May 23, had parked her car at Elena Hall’s waterfront parking lot […]

Niggel’s Storage Saga Continues

EASTHAM — After an informal poll of the planning board revealed that four of six voting members — one short of the needed supermajority — would approve Barbara Niggel’s application […]

Swipe Nope

Swipe Nope by A. Crock

Swimming in the Pandemic: Fear and Reality

Scientists have reassuring news for Outer Cape residents and visitors who are worried about contracting coronavirus from swimming in ponds and in the ocean and Cape Cod Bay. There is […]

Memorial Day Presages a Long, Complicated Summer

PROVINCETOWN — This week and next, town governments on the Outer Cape will be rolling out changes to traffic flow, restaurant rules, bathroom arrangements, and dozens of other adjustments to […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

on Tuesday, May 26, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary. A late Bufflehead was reported in North Truro. A King Rail was […]

Stories From a Little Eastham Cottage

“Buy your second home first” is a popular piece of advice. For Jenny Shaw and Matt Bowman, who live in Quincy, purchasing their first home in Eastham made a lot […]

Tilting Toward the Summer Solstice

This month we reach the summer solstice. June 20 will be the longest day of the year and start of summer in the Northern Hemisphere. In the Southern Hemisphere, it’s […]

A Slow Start for a Better Protected Harbor

Memorial Day weekend has come and gone, and all the questions about how busy the waterfront would be have now been answered. It’s not looking good. On top of the Covid-19-related […]

Dissent, Disorder, and a Whiff of Witchcraft in Wellfleet

WELLFLEET — In a pretty little corner of town, there is a small, ancient burial ground, its scattering of headstones nestled amid the scrub oak leaves and pine needles. In […]

Virus Forces Local Hiker off Appalachian Trail

In March, Susan Goodspeed set out to hike the Appalachian Trail for the first time in her life. “I researched the heck out of it,” Goodspeed says. “I don’t have […]

Interior Dept. Presses Threat to Wampanoag Lands

A U.S. district court judge has chastised attorneys for the Dept. of the Interior for filing an “incomprehensible” memorandum in a case that threatens the tribal sovereignty of the Mashpee […]

Finding New Ways to Worship

“New occasions teach new duties,” James Russell Lowell declared in a poem from which was drawn a familiar hymn, “Once to Every Man and Nation.” That sentiment is providing a […]

Drive-in Graduations Are a Go

WELLFLEET — Gov. Charlie Baker’s Covid-19 recovery guidelines, issued on May 18, stated that “drive-in theaters are allowed to operate only for the purpose of showing movies.” That left some […]

Eastham Roadway Study Shows Flooding Is Imminent

EASTHAM — In a few decades, some of Eastham’s most used roads could be underwater. The town, in coordination with environmental consultants from the Woods Hole Group (WHG), has studied […]

Flex Bus Maintains Flexibility in Pandemic

Even during the Covid-19 pandemic, the Cape Cod Regional Transit Authority (RTA) is providing rides to 600 to 800 people a day. As one of the only public transit options […]

This Week in Provincetown

Meetings Ahead All meetings are held remotely. To watch a meeting, go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Follow the link to the agenda for […]

This Week in Truro

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. To watch live, go to truro-ma.gov and find meetings on the lower right of the home page. Click on the agenda of the meeting […]

This Week in Wellfleet

Meetings Ahead All meetings are held online. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the meeting you are interested in for instructions on how to participate. Tuesday, June 2 Select Board […]

This Week in Eastham

Meetings Ahead Meetings are being conducted remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on a particular meeting to read its agenda. That document will provide information about how to view and […]

No You Go

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A Time for Safe Communities

Both the federal government and the state of Massachusetts are waging a heartless war on immigrants. While the Trump administration actively blocks asylum seekers, imprisons families, deports unaccompanied children, and […]

Until Further Notice

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Earthlings, We’re in a Cosmic Dance

In terms of astrology, the planets can be seen as dynamic reference points. The angles, or aspects (square, conjunction, etc.), they make to one another create shapes of energy across […]

How Evan James Realized I’ve Been Wrong Before

In his moving and beautiful collection of essays, I’ve Been Wrong Before, Evan James reflects on the time he spent in a myriad of places around the world — San […]

A Whodunit at Whaler’s Wharf

The Matinée Murders, the newest in Jeannette de Beauvoir’s Sydney Riley series of mystery novels, may be a work of fiction, but it is full of real people and takes […]

The Cinema of Women Grows Up

Goodbye, Wendy Darling, Tiger Lily, and Tinkerbell. In Benh Zeitlin’s Wendy, a fantasy riff on J.M. Barrie’s iconic literary creation, Peter Pan, the restlessness of young Wendy (Devin France), a […]

Weekly News Is Different

People often ask us why the Independent doesn’t always cover certain stories that fill the daily papers and TV news — stories that punctuate everyday life and can be exciting. […]

Letters, May 28, 2020

‘This Planetary Moment’ To the editor: In only a little over six months, the Provincetown Independent has managed to establish itself as an indispensable lifeline and anchor to this extended […]

Indie Classifieds May 28 – June 3, 2020

THANK YOU The children of Bernard N. Santos thank our family and friends for the prayers and cards of sympathy on the passing of our Dad. We appreciated the little […]

J. Austin Pinkham Jr., 89, loved Wellfleet

J. Austin Pinkham Jr. of Harwich died on May 2, 2020, at Cape Cod Hospital following years of multiple health issues. He was 89. J. was born on Dec. 12, […]

Real Estate Transactions May 11 to May 15, 2020

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from May 18 to May 22, 2020. PROVINCETOWN May 18. Kathleen McGinley to Steven Sean Timothy Vojtasko. 616 Commercial St., Unit 2, […]

Tide Charts

Know when to hit the flats

Indie’s Choice

Outer Cape Calendar Animal Magnetism As part of Payomet Performing Arts Center’s “Early Stages” series, on Friday, May 29, at 10 a.m., Wellfleet musician and poet Alex Brewer, the host […]

Arts Briefs for May 28 through June 3

Swim for Life Does More Than Tread Water Instead of having a crowd of people running into the bay at Provincetown’s beach, this year’s Swim for Life & Paddler Flotilla, […]

Memorial Day Launch

Some Memorial Day rituals have not been canceled. Here’s Jen Nichols, at the launch at Pamet Harbor in Truro last Sunday. For families, the rules are easy to follow; click […]

Tourist Economy Can’t Open Till Mid-June

PROVINCETOWN — Phase one of the governor’s reopening plan began on Monday, but for the Outer Cape’s hospitality-driven economy, the big changes will come with phase two. That’s when renting […]

Short-term Rental Ban Is Extended

Gov. Charlie Baker’s extension of the ban on short-term rentals until at least June 8 takes a bite out of one of the biggest pieces of the Outer Cape’s economic […]

Wellfleet’s Beaches May Be Plenty Big

WELLFLEET — Gov. Charlie Baker said Monday, without providing evidence, that social distancing at beaches means blankets must be 12 feet apart — at least during phase one of the […]

Nauset Hopes to Have June in July

Keep those corsages and graduation cards handy. Nauset Regional High School is planning a prom and a graduation ceremony for the Class of 2020. “The last week in July, we’re […]

Town Hall Ravens

In March, a pair of ravens built a large nest under the eves at Provincetown Town Hall, but then abandoned it — and their eggs –– after a major storm […]

Recycling Tales

LENNY FEDERICO / RECYCLER & TEACHER / WELLFLEET Lenny Federico has just returned to Wellfleet to begin his eighth summer on the job at the town’s recycling bins. Here’s Lenny […]

Lilli Osowski Goes All In for Veterans

You may not know her by name, but Lilli Osowski is one of Provincetown’s busiest residents. A senior studying health technology at Cape Cod Regional Technical High School, she works […]

Keep Your Distance

The May puzzle from Sophia Maymudes should be done on dry land.Need some answers? We send out the solution in our Friday newsletter. You’ll find the signup for […]

Excursion Bars

These are the bars I’ve been making. They’re from what was supposed to be the May “travel” issue of Bon Appétit — an issue they seem to have hastily renamed “Recipes […]

Living Small

Lilacs are in bloom and hummingbirds have returned. A catalog arrives showing vast outdoor rooms, outfitted with weatherproof versions of every indoor luxury. But keep on the sunny side: it […]

Precision Woodworking

The question: I’m thinking of buying an old house. It will need a lot of work, and I want to do much of it myself. I’m especially interested in whether […]

Growing Stronger

Gardening is good for the soul. But if you don’t pay attention to good body mechanics, it can be hard on your back — or your knees, wrists, and elbows. […]

Opening Day in Wellfleet

Photos and text by Edward Boches It was a windy but gloriously sunny opening day at the Wellfleet Farmers Market last Wednesday, May 13. Shoppers and vendors alike wore masks, […]

Isolation and Neptune Have Us Questioning Reality

As the Sun enters the sign of Gemini, things begin to look light and bright — um, seasonally speaking. For us mere mortals who must endure the whims of unseen […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, May 19, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Drive-in Concerts? Honk Once for Yes, Twice for No

Tupelo Music Hall in Derry, N.H., hosted a public concert last Saturday that was safe enough for a sizable audience to be there live during the pandemic. How was that […]

Open Enrollment Ends May 25

After multiple extensions, open enrollment for health insurance is set to end on Monday, May 25. It’s not too late to get help with signups for health insurance, and people who […]

Town Meeting Update

Provincetown: The April 6 annual town meeting is now scheduled for Sept. 21 at 6 p.m. The town election will be held June 30. Truro: The April 28 annual town […]

This Week in Provincetown

Meetings Ahead All meetings are held remotely. To watch a meeting, go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Follow the link to the agenda for […]

This Week in Truro

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. To watch live, go to truro-ma.gov and find meetings on the lower right of the home page. Click on the agenda of the meeting […]

This Week in Wellfleet

Meetings Ahead All meetings are held online. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the individual meetings for instructions. Thursday, May 21 Dredging Task Force, 11 a.m. Local Housing Partnership, 4 […]

This Week in Eastham

Meetings Ahead While town hall is closed to the public, meetings are being conducted remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on a particular meeting to read its agenda. That document […]

With Poppies, We Remember

Even in our current predicament, there’s no stopping nature. The daffodils have come and gone, and now the beach plum is fully abloom. The lilacs have begun to release their […]

What I Will Miss

I will miss the throngs on Commercial Street in the center of town: the hubbub, the chatter, the flow of people, the animated wave of humanity — young and old, […]

Margot, week 9…

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Hightown? More like CSI: Provincetown

You can take Jerry Bruckheimer to Carnival, but you can’t take the Hollywood out of Jerry Bruckheimer. The blockbuster producer (Beverly Hills Cop, Top Gun, Flashdance, Bad Boys, Pirates of […]

Amid a Pandemic, Robert Cardinal Finds Peace in Painting

The current work of Truro-based artist Robert Cardinal is a solid series of mature paintings, simple scenes of manmade objects in nature. His harmonious compositions blend complementary colors with definite, […]

Artistic Collaborations Illuminate Nick Flynn’s Stay

The writer Nick Flynn, whose work has been published in the New Yorker, Esquire, Paris Review, and a dozen books, came of age as a poet in Provincetown. He was […]

Ted Vitale, 56, Performer to the End

Edward G. Vitale of Wellfleet, known to all as Ted, died on May 1, 2020, at age 56, after his second valiant battle with cancer. Ted was a professional actor […]

James Kevin Stinson-Johnson, 61

James Kevin Stinson-Johnson, 61, died peacefully in his Provincetown home on May 11, 2020, after struggling with multiple system atrophy. Kevin’s smile and easygoing nature charmed one and all. He […]

Jacqueline Ann Enos, 52, Cherished Sister and Aunt

Jacqueline Ann Enos, a loving sister and aunt, died on April 25, 2020. She was 52. Born on Dec. 23, 1967, at Cape Cod Hospital, Jackie grew up in Provincetown. […]

Walter A. Bingham Jr., Celebrated Sports Lover, Dies at 89

Walter Adams Bingham Jr., known to all as Bing, died on May 13, 2020, in Duxbury from chronic lymphocytic leukemia. He was born on Aug. 27, 1930, in Orange Memorial […]

Marie Rogers, 75, Loved Teaching Children to Read

Marie Carnevale “Ann” Rogers, 75, a compassionate noni, mother, teacher, and friend, died on May 13, 2020 at her home in Eastham after managing cancer for over 15 years. Born […]

Charles G. Munroe, 77, Electrician for 50 Years

Charles Gibbs “Charlie” Munroe, 77, of Wellfleet, died on April 29, 2020, after a battle with cancer. He was born on March 12, 1943, at Cape Cod Hospital and was […]

Where We Get Our Stories

The most surprising thing about this newspaper, for someone outside it, is probably how we pick what to write. The process shocked me when I first saw it, and I continue […]

Letters, May 21, 2020

Dealing With Our Own Failures To the editor: Secretary of State Mike Pompeo recently claimed there was “enormous evidence” that Covid-19 originated in a lab in China. Few would dispute […]

Indie Classifieds May 21 – May 27, 2020

CRAFT Signs and Graphics from P’town to the Berkshires! Hand-carved signs and complete graphic design services. Shop signs. Storefront and window banners. Decals. Vehicle lettering. Covid-19 sign specialists. Carved and […]

Real Estate Transactions May 11 to May 15, 2020

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from May 11 to May 15, 2020. PROVINCETOWN May 15. Vasilios Patrinos to George Tobin. 15 Cottage St., Unit 4. $370,000. May […]

Tide Charts

Know when to hit the flats

Indie’s Choice

Outer Cape Calendar Single Lutz Starting off its 2020 season virtually, the Schoolhouse Gallery is offering an online show of small works by painter Sarah Lutz, at galleryschoolhouse.com/small-paintings-sarah-lutz/. Lutz is […]

Arts Briefs for May 21 through May 27

Chevy Wins a Bevy of Awards The Independent’s staff photographer, Nancy Bloom of Truro, shot this image of a 1961 bubble-top Chevy last October in front of the Bluebell, one […]

Adjusting to the New Normal

Gov. Charlie Baker had his reopening update news conference on Monday, May 18, and a lot of strict limitations on boats for hire are still in place. As I understand […]

Let’s Do Launch

With a strong crew, a family sets out on an excursion around Truro’s Pamet Harbor. In Provincetown, Mike Winkler’s crane service places Flyer’s shuttle in the water. Boating is allowed […]

Gauging Town’s Population Key to Reopening

PROVINCETOWN — The town’s Recovery Coalition is working on a phased reopening of Provincetown’s economy that depends on knowing how many people are here. That won’t be easy. This page is […]

No July 4 Fireworks; Parade Permits Are Rescinded

PROVINCETOWN — With a flat tone and zero arguments, the select board on Monday rescinded parade permits and banned the use of town property through Dec. 31, in effect canceling […]

Outer Cape Census Response Is Among Lowest in State

The self-reported response to the U.S. Census from the Outer Cape has been extremely low so far — under 25 percent for all four towns. Truro’s rate is the second […]

Wellfleet Theaters Postpone Live Shows Till 2021

WELLFLEET — After the Wellfleet Harbor Actors Theater announced on May 5 that it was postponing its entire 2020 season of productions until 2021 due to the Covid-19 epidemic, the […]

Wellfleet Board Sets Beach Restrictions

WELLFLEET — In an effort to reduce crowding on town beaches, Wellfleet is moving the start date for requiring beach parking stickers forward 30 days, to May 20. And only […]

DMF Lifts Gear and Speed Restrictions in Bay

PROVINCETOWN — The much quieter than normal waterfront businesses are anxiously waiting to see what Gov. Baker does with the current stay-at-home and social distancing policies. It has given boat […]

Farmers Markets Open, Gingerly

This season, the Wellfleet Farmers Market is going to be one of those places where life’s new rules seem weirdest. The place to go to get your hands-on local produce […]

At the Beach

Vignette by Daniel Dejean

OysterFest Is off the Table

WELLFLEET — This town’s signature day will be missing in 2020 due to fears about the spread of Covid-19. The select board voted on April 28 to ban public uses […]

Small Businesses Seeking to Reopen Face Obstacles

PROVINCETOWN — Bringing a business back from a dead standstill is hard enough. But the problems surrounding that effort during the Covid epidemic are so fiendishly interwoven, they resemble the […]

Eastham Elementary Works to Maintain Connections

EASTHAM — Elementary students and teachers won’t be returning to school this year, but the community is trying to help make the most of the situation. There were cheerful waves […]

Fore! Golf Is Back

Golfers can rejoice, as their green canvases have reopened. Gov. Charlie Baker announced on May 7 that golf courses, which had previously been required to close, could begin reopening across […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, May 12, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

High Schools Plan to Celebrate Their Seniors

WELLFLEET — Schools are shut for the rest of this term, at least, but that doesn’t mean Outer Cape high school seniors and their families won’t have a chance to […]

A Process That Connects Viewer and Art

When it comes to framing art, my goal is always to enhance the piece and not distract from it. What’s fun about my job is that I never know who’s […]

Art Collections Make Themselves at Home

Different from artworks in galleries, our home collections are more personal and varied. And in a gallery, little distracts from the art, while at home, it has to contend with […]

Postcards From the Pandemic

As we move toward a new normal, locally and globally, strict lockdowns are being modified, masks have become a fashion trend, and the Outer Cape enters the season that once […]

ZBA Backs Commissioner’s Duplex Ruling

EASTHAM — Developer Tim Klink of Coastal Companies failed to persuade the zoning board of appeals on May 7 to overrule the building commissioner’s decision that Klink’s proposed 16-unit Route […]

Town Meeting Delay Stalls Housing Progress

WELLFLEET — Officials are pumping the brakes on the 95 Lawrence Road affordable housing project due to the delay of town meeting. The use of town-owned land at that location, […]

Curbside Pickup for Books Is Coming

EASTHAM — The town’s library closed to the public exactly two months ago, but staff have been busy providing online options for patrons and planning for the day when the […]

This Week in Provincetown

All meetings are held remotely. To watch a meeting go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Follow the link to the agenda for instructions on […]

This Week in Truro

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. To watch live: go to the town website, truro-ma.gov and find meetings on the lower right of the home page. Click on the agenda […]

This Week in Wellfleet

Meetings Ahead All meetings are held online. Go to Wellfleet’s town website wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the individual meetings for instructions. Thursday, May 14 Nauset Regional School Committee, 6 p.m. Friday, May […]

This Week in Eastham

Meetings Ahead Meetings are being conducted remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on a particular meeting to read its agenda. That document will provide information about how to view and […]

We Live in a Stream of Moments

The moment: a slice of time of uncertain length, liberated. A sampling of the river, defined not by length but by its content and significance. The internet says a moment […]

Clouds

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From the Daily Journals of Provincetown Students

For the first 10 minutes of each school day, the Provincetown Schools Middle Years students — grades six, seven, and eight —write in their journals about their experiences living through […]

Scissors (for Max)

Slip a pair of scissors in your pocket, my son. Lace your thumb and pointer through the hand holds. Steady! Leave the realm of your home, out the front door, […]

The Pull of Planets in Retrograde

With Venus, Jupiter, Saturn, and Pluto gone retrograde this week, our collective momentum might stall out in the midst of adjusting to a new (temporary?) normal. Meanwhile, the Moon’s tryst […]

Sky Power’s Abstract Dreamscapes: Emotions in Oil

When we enter this world as newborns, we experience our surroundings visually as forms, shadows, and, gradually, shades of color. We recognize our mother’s face before all else, then become […]

Broto Conference Arrives Just in Time

The 2020 Broto Art-Climate-Science conference will take place virtually on Saturday, May 16, and Sunday, May 17. This year’s theme is “Time Sensitive: Exploring the Nexus of Art-Climate-Science & Deep […]

Something New From the B.J.Q.

One day a few years back, during a particularly snowy winter, jazz musician Bert Jackson sat on the couch in his Brewster home, picked up his guitar, and composed a […]

The Real Killers

If you want to know what’s really killing America’s newspapers, read the May 7 report in the New York Times titled “Push for Profits Left Nursing Homes Struggling to Provide […]

Letters, May 14, 2020

Context Is Important To the editor: I found the headline “Day-trippers Uninvited to Wellfleet Beaches” in your May 7 edition [page 5] misleading and hyperbolic. I think context is important. […]

Indie Classifieds May 14 – May 20, 2020

THANK YOU Mama Mia, Michael. Thank you for delivering deliciousness to our door. And the lemon tart. We think you’ve finally found a dessert that’s up there with your pastas […]

Real Estate Transactions May 4 to May 8, 2020

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from May 4 to May 8, 2020. PROVINCETOWN May 4. Marion Serelis to Robert B. Sieban Jr. Trust (Robert B. Sieban Jr., […]

Tide Charts

Know when to hit the flats

Indie’s Choice

Outer Cape Calendar Four Memorial Trees Last week, Margaret Murphy and Trees Provincetown, with the help of Ken MacPhee of Bartlett Tree Experts, planted a paperbark maple at the Provincetown […]

Arts Briefs for May 14 through May 20

When Sheltering Is Not So Safe Playwright Candace Perry writes that “a portion of the Clothesline Project has been hanging in our yard in Wellfleet. We take in the shirts […]

Seashore’s Scientists Search for the Way Forward

This is the first in a series of articles on the Cape Cod National Seashore’s science program. It explores why science matters at the Seashore and why it’s at risk. […]

Rental Rules for Short Term Still Unknown

PROVINCETOWN — Memorial Day weekend is two weeks away, but there is no official guidance yet on whether anyone will be allowed to come here. Since March 31, a standing […]

FAWC Cancels Entire Summer Program

PROVINCETOWN — The Fine Arts Work Center notified participants in its summer workshops by email on April 29 that the entire program had been postponed until 2021 due to the […]

Day-trippers Uninvited to Wellfleet Beaches

WELLFLEET — Summertime is coming but the living is far from easy. The expansive Outer Cape beaches may seem the perfect social distancing paradise, but the Wellfleet Select Board is […]

The Cape’s Undocumented Workers on the Margins

PROVINCETOWN — The coronavirus-induced collapse of the economy has people everywhere reaching for lifelines, from unemployment to SBA loans to MassHealth. At the edge of this scene is a group […]

Ice Cream at a Distance

A mask gets pushed aside, though six feet of separation were kept, for a taste of summer on a sunny Saturday. (Photo Nancy Bloom) This page is available to subscribers. […]

Commemoration Evolution

EASTHAM — As a gallery of works by the Eastham Painters Guild rolls by on the screen, your eyes are held by those of Aspinet, the Nauset sachem who befriended […]

A Short Fishing Season Grows Shorter

PROVINCETOWN — The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is no closer to opening up nonessential businesses and relaxing social distancing rules than it was a week ago. Last week, I wrote about how […]

Books Give an Old Lamp New Light

I discovered one of my favorite floor lamps in a barn, coated in dust and dirt. I took it home and cleaned it up. All it needed was a coat […]

Look for the Greenhouses

While new gardeners are just now considering what to plant for the season ahead, their more experienced neighbors are already tending tomato seedlings in the greenhouse. Fluctuating temperatures and blustery […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, May 5, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

A Sunday Brunch Standard, Spiced Up

The possibility of facing a virtual Mother’s Day celebration certainly adds a layer of complexity to a day that, for many of us, already carries heightened emotions, from poignancy to […]

Radishes Fit for Jack Sprat’s Wife

Dinner at Prune was supposed to be a big deal. The kind of thing certain types of freelancers in New York saved for. So it was a bit disappointing to […]

Cape League Baseball Is Called Out

The boys of summer will not be coming to the Cape this year. The Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL) canceled its 2020 season on April 24. The news, though expected, […]

Love Is Good for Anything That Ails You

EASTHAM — Most young couples start their journey together in excellent physical health. Making a promise to support each other “in sickness” comes at a time when serious illness feels […]

They Brought Paris to Truro

Sisters Violet and Hazel Yingling of Truro were going to go all the way to Paris, France, on an extra-special vacation this spring. They had to put their trip on […]

Slow Down and Send a Card to Mom

The energy of the Full Moon in Scorpio this week will linger for days to come. You may feel like a pressure cooker of emotions. Instead of blowing your lid, […]

WHAT Cancels Season

WELLFLEET — The Wellfleet Harbor Actors Theater announced on May 5 the cancellation of its 2020 summer season, in recognition of “the need to take a proactive stance to slow […]

Schools, at a Distance, Diverge in Use of Grades

The Provincetown Public Schools and the Cape Cod Lighthouse Charter School in Harwich both have middle school programs, but they have taken different approaches to grading since the schools were […]

The County

Three Dems and Two Felons on County Ballot Three Democrats are expected to be on the ballot for county commission in the Sept. 1 primary. Provincetown resident Cheryl Andrews, 60; […]

Wellfleet Farmers Market to Open

The Wellfleet Farmers Market will be the first to open on the Outer Cape this season, on Wednesday, May 13, from 8 a.m. to noon. Like other local greenmarkets across […]

This Week in Provincetown

Covid-19 Update As of May 4, 2020, Provincetown had one confirmed active case of coronavirus and one death from complications related to Covid-19; 26 additional cases were considered recovered and […]

This Week in Truro

Meetings Ahead Meetings are held remotely. To watch live: go to the town website, truro-ma.gov and find meetings on the lower right of the home page. Click on the agenda […]

This Week in Wellfleet

Meetings Ahead All meetings are held online. Go to Wellfleet’s town website wellfleet-ma.gov and click on the individual meetings for instructions. Thursday, May 7 Housing Authority, 10 a.m. Dredging Task Force, 11 […]

This Week in Eastham

Meetings Ahead Town Hall is closed to the public. Meetings are being conducted remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on a particular meeting to read its agenda. That document will […]

Devastation Must Inform Action

The howling wind against my window reminds me of the coronavirus. Ruthless and breathtaking, neither storm nor plague has a master. Mindless and amoral, they go about their business with […]

Caught in the Eye of the Storm

It was the 2 a.m. deck watch change. I looked up to see a 40-foot wall of water just before it came crashing over us. In that instant, I knew […]

Newshounds Gotta Eat Too

Dune Town by JAK

The Real You

The Real You by Ellen LeBow

Picturing Mom

On the Outer Cape, Mother’s Day, on the second Sunday of May, is typically the time when stores and restaurants reopen and the spring thaw starts in earnest. Snowbirds, both […]

Science Meets Art in Dan Ranalli’s Compositions

In the course of an artist’s lifetime, a recurrent theme may emerge almost of its own accord, with an urgency that cannot be ignored. That has certainly been the case […]

Jamie Brenner Finds the Perfect Setting in Provincetown

Provincetown takes center stage in Jamie Brenner’s latest novel, Summer Longing, a follow-up to The Forever Summer, which is also set here. Brenner writes novels about families and relationships, page-turners […]

An Artistic Haven for Essential Workers’ Children

Among the institutions stepping up in the Covid-19 crisis, like hospitals, police and rescue squads, schools, and grocery stores, you might not think of a music conservatory. But the Cape […]

Real-life Moral Tales and Fantasies

The circus of ironies, secrets, revelations, redemptions, and moral victories in the documentary Circus of Books is dizzying, especially since it’s the story of a gay porn emporium that opened […]

The News Is Not Good

The response of the federal government and of our local institutions to the greatest health and economic crisis of our lives has revealed many fascinating stories. One is the government’s […]

Letters, May 7, 2020

Alone No Longer To the editor: When I read K.C. Myers’s story about domestic violence [April 30, page 4], I thought to send mine to you. I was sexually and […]

Indie Classifieds April 30 – May 6, 2020

TAKING CARE Free Love for Your Hair. Rising Organics Hair is offering free FaceTime and phone consultations with advice on caring for your hair. Learn which color kits to buy, […]

Real Estate Transactions April 27 to May 1, 2020

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from April 27 to May 1, 2020. PROVINCETOWN April 27. 446 Commercial Street LLC to Robert J. Harms and Bradley L. Horner. […]

Tide Charts

Know when to hit the flats

Indie’s Choice

Outer Cape Calendar Power Pointe Along with the Metropolitan Opera, another major Lincoln Center institution, the New York City Ballet, has gone virtual as well. Now through May 29, the […]

Arts Briefs for May 7 through May 13

Virtual Drag Race With Mackenzie It’s become something of a Provincetown tradition: RuPaul’s Drag Race screened live on a big TV at Pilgrim House or the Crown & Anchor Cabaret, […]

John Hopkins, ‘Wild in a Good Way,’ Dies at 71

John Brewster Hopkins, 71, of Truro died on April 23, 2020, in San José, Costa Rica, after holding on for weeks following a bodysurfing injury on Valentine’s Day at one […]

Claudia Jean Martin, 74, of Pisces Beauty Parlor

Claudia Jean Martin of Provincetown died on May 1, 2020, after a brief illness, following a stay at Bourne Manor for rehabilitation. She was 74. She was born in Provincetown, […]

The Role of Local Farms Gets Attention

Even with the new emphasis on handwashing, some people can’t wait to get their hands dirty again. This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get […]

Local Banks Rush to Get Funds for Small Businesses

Editor’s note: This story has been updated as of Saturday, May 2. PROVINCETOWN — The $310 billion that was added to the Payroll Protection Program (PPP) by Congress last week […]

Rock Harbor Construction Is Delayed

EASTHAM — The project to repave the parking lot and replace the boat ramp at Rock Harbor is not going to be done until June 30, according to Doug Cameron, […]

Masks Must Be Worn Downtown

PROVINCETOWN — The select board has ordered the wearing of face masks starting Friday, May 1, in all Provincetown businesses and by everyone outdoors on Commercial Street between Bangs and […]

Wellfleet Inches Closer to Recycling Solution

WELLFLEET — When it comes to recycling, each Outer Cape town does it a bit differently. This has made the need to adapt systems in response to the coronavirus vary […]

Heart Up, Twist, Breathe

“I’m exhausted. I’ve done absolutely nothing.” This is what I hear from friends, students, and family. I say it, too. We’re exhausted, but worried we’ve somehow missed the mark. Why […]

Hairdresser

Hairdresser by Daniel Dejean

Local Golfers Impatiently Wait to Tee Off

Golf has always been a game of patience. During the coronavirus crisis, it still is, but in a different sense: local golf courses have been closed since Gov. Charlie Baker’s […]

Salt Hay, Biochar, and Other Secrets

Outer Cape gardeners can get restless counting the days until they can safely set out their tomato seedlings. But seasoned local growers have some advice on what to do right […]

A Fresh Look at Your Project List

The Question: Now that we’re inside these four walls all day, I’m noticing so many things we ought to fix up. Our list is long and we can’t decide where […]

Can Commercial Boats Survive Social Distancing?

Another week has gone by, and we are still living in a world where social distancing is very much a part of our day-to-day lives. At this point, it’s time […]

The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Comet

I no longer know what day of the week it is. I have friends and family across the street, or right upstairs, that I haven’t seen in weeks. My wife […]

Grow Your Own Elixir

EASTHAM — My garden is popping with bright green life as perennials wake: lemon balm, mint, oregano, chamomile, echinacea. The sight is soothing, and it brings to mind the ways […]

Homemade Cream of Tomato Soup

If soup is comfort food, cream of tomato must be the comfiest. Grilled cheese with tomato soup has been the number one requested meal at our house for the last […]

The Mysterious Cape Cod Epidemic of 1816

If town records offer little detail about the “fearful and fatal sickness” on Cape Cod during the late winter and early spring of 1816, the cemeteries are a melancholy testament […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, April 28, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Postcards From the Pandemic

Several weeks after U.S. states have gone into lockdown, the Independent continues to follow friends and family across the globe as they cope with the challenges of living through the […]

Teachers Show Support

Preschool teacher Nancy O’Connell joined a crowd of Eastham Elementary School teachers, students, and parents, who gathered at drive-by distance to wave and cheer one another at First Encounter Beach […]

Cape Cod Tech Class of 2020

Teachers from Cape Cod Regional Technical High School honored all nine seniors from the Outer Cape with a surprise house-to-house parade on April 28. (Photo Nancy Bloom)This page […]

Planets Move, Tempers Flare

As we languish in lockdown, tempers and temperatures rise alike. Meanwhile, certain planetary motions stoke our emotional fires. Will internal friction lead to combustion? As our frustration builds, it is […]

Coalition to Advise on Reopening Policies

PROVINCETOWN — The Provincetown Recovery Coalition created by Town Manager Robin Craver had its first meeting on April 22. Its goal is to move from creative thinking on distancing-while-open to […]

When Staying at Home Is Dangerous

After Gabbe Rowland escaped a violent, abusive boyfriend, the police and courts got involved. The man who terrorized her is serving a six-year sentence in state prison. But the only […]

Funicular Going Up

PROVINCETOWN — Construction on the long-planned inclined elevator that will link the Bas Relief Park to the base of the Pilgrim Monument is set to begin on May 18. The […]

Eastham COA Delivers

EASTHAM — Dorothy Burritt, director of the Eastham Council on Aging, is looking on the bright side. “I think the best thing I’ve seen is how our entire community is […]

Earth Day Marks 50th Anniversary Despite Crisis

Celebrating the 50th Earth Day last week required environmental organizations across the Outer Cape to get creative. Both the Center for Coastal Studies in Provincetown and the Eastham Conservation Foundation […]

John Hopkins Dies in Costa Rica

TRURO — Vietnam veteran, peace activist, construction worker, and farmer John Hopkins died on April 23, 2020, at Hospital CIMA in San Jose, Costa Rica. He was 72. Hopkins, who […]

This Week in Provincetown

Meetings Ahead All meetings are held remotely. To watch a meeting go to provincetown-ma.gov and click on the meeting you want to watch. Follow the link to the agenda for […]

This Week in Truro

Meetings Ahead All meetings are being held remotely. Go to the town’s website, select “remote meeting information,” then follow an additional link for instructions on watching and participating. Monday, May […]

This Week in Wellfleet

Meetings Ahead All meetings are held online. Go to Wellfleet’s town website and click on the individual meetings for instructions. Thursday, April 30 Town Administrator Screening Committee, 2 p.m. Cape […]

This Week in Eastham

Meetings Ahead Meetings are being conducted remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on a meeting to read its agenda. That document will provide information on how to view and take […]

Launch Day

WELLFLEET — We built her in a garage in Syracuse, N.Y., a 23-foot cat ketch dory, small for a cruising boat. Ignoring Capt. Nat Herreshoff’s dictum that the only suitable […]

The Real Locals

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Philosophical Stuff

Molly Shafnacker has been making lemonade stands with friends since she was 11 years old. Here’s Molly in her own words, recorded last fall. Listen to the recorded interview here. […]

Unearthing the Corporate Misdeeds Behind ‘Death in Mud Lick’

Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter Eric Eyre braids together two riveting stories in Death in Mud Lick: A Coal Country Fight Against the Drug Companies That Delivered the Opioid Epidemic. Numbers are […]

Nancy Burkert’s World of Wondrous Imagery

Picture yourself taking an unhurried walk through a wildflower garden with a small child. You slow down as the child examines the curve of a leaf, the shape of a […]

Where Does the Outer Cape Begin?

A few months ago, I wrote in this space about why we put “Provincetown” in the title of our new publication rather than call it the “Outer Cape” Independent. That […]

Indie Classifieds April 30 – May 6, 2020

TAKING CARE Free Love for Your Hair. Rising Organics Hair is offering free FaceTime and phone consultations with advice on caring for your hair. Learn which color kits to buy, […]

Bernard ‘Barshie’ Santos, 91, Was Lifelong Resident

PROVINCETOWN — Bernard N. “Barshie” Santos of Provincetown died on April 22, 2020, at Wingate of Harwich. He was 91. Born in Provincetown, the son of the late Antone and […]

Real Estate Transactions April 20 to April 24, 2020

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from April 20 to April 24, 2020. PROVINCETOWN April 21. Friedrich Pangratz and Albert Martinez to Fadi G. Hanna. 82 Commercial St. […]

Tide Charts

Know when to hit the flats

Indie’s Choice

Outer Cape Bulletin Home Plates The Truro Historical Society, with the help of Jobi Pottery, is hoping to auction off hand-painted plates made by local artists during its gala this […]

Arts Briefs for April 30 through May 6

Three Days of Virtual Love A three-day-long virtual arts festival, “Home Is Where the Art Is,” is a benefit for the Cape Cod Arts Relief Fund, hosted by the Arts […]

Science Research Is Cut to the Essentials

With the ongoing pandemic, scientific research has been interrupted across Cape Cod. Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary has placed five staff members on partial furlough due to funding freezes, […]

Covid, HIV, and Cancer: Mulling the Relative Risks

PROVINCETOWN — The novel coronavirus threatens us all — but not equally. Since the earliest days of the outbreak, scientists and ordinary people alike have hunted for information about who […]

Hold Town Meeting at the Drive-in? Not Likely.

WELLFLEET — Town Moderator Dan Silverman was supposed to be calling the annual town meeting to order this coming Monday evening, April 27. Instead, Wellfleet’s town government is trying to […]

Dentists on the Front Lines

Dentistry is one of the most high-risk professions when it comes to disease exposure, but Outer Cape dentists are still finding emergency work to sink their teeth into. Dr. Scott […]

School Shutdown to Continue Through June

EASTHAM — “School’s out forever,” Alice Cooper declared. Not exactly, but the new normal for learning in Massachusetts — virtual lessons via the internet — will now continue through the […]

With Fishing on Hold, a Bivalve Bonus Appears

Spring has been a very confused season so far. As I write this, snow is falling in the western hills of Massachusetts as well as my winter home in the […]

During Crisis, Fewer Options for Animal Care

People with pets that need veterinary care will find limited services and new protocols in place at Outer Cape clinics during the Covid-19 crisis. Most of what’s new will feel […]

Creative Business Ideas for Summer Survival

PROVINCETOWN — Business owners are getting creative with plans for surviving what has been a devastating spring and will be a slow summer. This page is available to subscribers. Click […]

The Right Place, the Right Time

Newspaperman Roger Hawthorne presented a letter to the Provincetown Board of Selectmen in November 1961, urging the board to recognize the 100th anniversary of the “Trent Affair” with a proclamation […]

A Banana Baron’s Summer Home

We wonder about the season ahead and what we’ll find at the other side. There are surely lessons to be learned from the historic houses around us and the people […]

Walter Bingham Was Born to Run, and to Write

It’s Monday, Oct. 8, 1956, and New York Yankees pitcher Don Larsen is throwing a perfect game against the Brooklyn Dodgers in Game 5 of the World Series. A 26-year-old […]

Apitherapy for Anxiety

Connecting with nature is one benign, widely practiced, and evidently very effective way of coping with anxiety. In Herman Melville’s Moby-Dick, Ishmael, instead of “stepping into the street, and methodically […]

This Week’s Bird Sightings

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, April 21, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Beyond the Lawn

The lawn. A tightly cropped, cleanly edged area of neat green. An outdoor carpet for lying on and looking at. A lawn is deeply ingrained in our culture as an […]

Nesting

Wild Care, the wildlife rescue center in Eastham, is open, but due to the Covid-19 crisis, staff are working remotely and the organization’s capacity is limited, according to a press […]