South Coast Prime Times - April - May 2012

S o u t h

C o a s t

Prime timeS A pr i l /M a y 2 012 • Volum e 8 • Num ber 2

TA new ake a ride AAA and car show tips

make a change Spring cleaning Taxing opportunities Estate planning

Food

Cod and olive oil Plus…

Things to do, book picks, and senior moments

We set the standard for what a Vision Center should be.

Stephen F. Sullivan, MD

General Ophthalmology and Cataract Surgery

Kenneth R. Kenyon, MD

Cornea, Cataract and Refractive Surgery

alan S. GelleR, MD Stephen F. Sullivan, MD

Kenneth R. Kenyon, MD

Alan S. Geller, MD

General Ophthalmology

Daniel J. townSenD, MD

Oculoplastic and Lacrimal Surgery

leonaRDo J. velazquez, MD

General Ophthalmology and Cataract Surgery

JoRGe J. RiveRa, MD Daniel J. Townsend, MD

Leonardo J. Velazquez, MD

Jorge J. Rivera, MD

Cornea, Glaucoma, Cataract and Refractive Surgery

CoRey weSteRFelD, MD

Retina, vitReouS anD DiabetiC eye DiSeaSe

Kayla b. baKeR, o.D.

Optometry and Contact Lenses

Renee b. ReiS, oD Corey Westerfeld,, MD

Kayla B. Baker, O.D.

Renee B. Reis, OD

Optometry and Contact Lenses

anDRea F. FauStino-oDle, oD Optometry and Contact Lenses

Steven w. SantoS, oD

Optometry and Contact Lenses

CaRloS R. DeFReitaS, oD Andrea F. Faustino-Odle, OD

Steven W. Santos, OD

Carlos R. DeFreitas, OD

Optometry and Contact Lenses

• Eye Health VISION CENTER is the largest freestanding eye-care facility in New England and offers the most advanced ophthalmic services in the region.

philbRooK S. MaSon, JR., oD

• Eye Health VISION CENTER has been providing routine eye exams and eye glasses to Southeastern Massachusetts residents for over 35 years having its own optical surfacing laboratory and five regional optical shops.

Optometry and Contact Lenses

• Eye Health VISION CENTER has the only in-office surgery center that offers the full range of ophthalmic procedures including: • CustomVue “Bladeless” LASIK • Cataract, glaucoma, cornea and eyelid surgery • Retinal surgery, Lucentis and Avastin treatments for macular degeneration

Optometry and Contact Lenses

liSa a. MaRqueS, oD

RonalD J. MaStRolia, JR., oD Philbrook S. Mason, Jr., O.D.

Lisa A. Marques, OD

Ronald J. Mastrolia, Jr., OD

Optometry and Contact Lenses

SuSan p. pRewanDowSKi, oD Optometry and Contact Lenses

MaRGueRite M. quinn, oD Optometry and Contact Lenses

MaRC. h. DoDSon, oD Susan P. Prewandowski, OD Marguerite M. Quinn, OD

Marc. H. Dodson, OD

Optometry

aRthuR M. GolDMan, oD

Optometry and Contact Lenses

• Eye Health VISION CENTER Walk-In Eye Clinic is open six days a week: Monday through Saturday.

All insurances are accepted including MassHealth.

RoDney l. iMMeRMan, oD Low Vision Specialist

• Eye Health VISION CENTER has native Portuguese and Spanish speaking eye doctors and staff.

JeFFRey S. Kenyon, oD Arthur M. Goldman, OD

Rodney L. Immerman, OD

Jeffrey S. Kenyon, OD

Optometry and Contact Lenses

autuMn h. JaCKSon, oD

Optometry and Contact Lenses

bRian D. MuRphy, oD

Optometry and Contact Lenses

niCole M. RabiDeau, oD Autumn H. Jackson, OD

Brian D. Murphy, OD

Nicole M. Rabideau, OD

Optometry and Contact Lenses

www.eyehealthvision.com

Rena JaCobSon, Ma, CCC-a

64 Winthrop St., (Rte. 44) Taunton . . . . . . . . . . . . . 508-823-5536 70 Huttleston Ave., (Rte. 6) Fairhaven . . . . . . . . . . . . 508-994-2020 73 Valley Road, Middletown . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 401-845-2020 51 State Road (Rte. 6) Dartmouth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 508-994-1400 933 Pleasant St., Flint Village Plaza , Fall River . . . 508-673-2020

waDe S. ChubbuCK, bC/hiS

Clinical Audiologist

Hearing Instrument Specialist

Rena Jacobson, MA, CCC-A Wade S. Chubbuck, BC/HIS

We are

relief.

Back pain doesn’t always mean back surgery.

At the Southcoast Brain & Spine Center, you’ll find comfort knowing our spine care experts offer a full range of treatment options to relieve your pain.

The Southcoast Brain & Spine Center.

Total. Expert. Care.

Focused on you.

If surgery is the answer, know that we have some of the most skilled surgeons in the region who are able to offer the most advanced minimally invasive surgical options.

Locations in Fall River, Dartmouth and Wareham.

For you, that means faster recovery and, above all, relief,

855-778-0088 (toll free)

so you can get back to doing what you love.

www.southcoast.org/brainandspine

fe

el

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ter

The latest technology with on time personalized service Permanent Crowns in ONE Visit! • Digital X-Rays • Root Canal Specialist ON SITE • Accepting New Patients All Patients Approved for 6-18 Months in Office • Interest Free Financing Office Participates with Most Insurance Companies

Dr. Elina Fooks D.M.D.

Dr. J.P. Van Regenmorter, D.D.S.

401-624-9177 dutchmandental.com

1359 Main Road, Tiverton, RI

n n n n n

www.newbedfordrehab.com

4499 Acushnet Ave. • New Bedford, MA • (508) 995-6900

Dr. Aaron Campini, D.M.D.

n n

90 Bed Long-term acute care hospital Specializing in rehab of chronic critically ill patients Extended care of ventilator dependency Pulmonary rehab Complex medical management and wound care Outpatient and inpatient services 24 hour physician coverage

T O A DV E R T I SE I N S OU T H C OA S T PR I M E T I M E S C A L L 50 8 - 677-30 0 0

FALL RIVER HIGHLANDS – Classic victorian offering beautiful period details throughout. 5 bedrooms, 3.5 baths, formal living & dining rooms, 3 fireplaces, hardwood floors, wet bar, butlers pantry, leaded glass, 2 stall garage, beautifully landscaped. $425,000.

SOUTH Westport – Great 4 redroom antique colonial offering 4 bedrooms, 3 full baths, 2 fireplaces, Brazilian mahogany floors, custom granite & cherry kitchen, central air, 2 stall garage, great south westport location close to area beaches & area attractions. $459,000.

WESTPORT – Meticulously maintained 4 bedroom, 1.5 bath Colonial on a quiet cul-de-sac offering new windows, new roof, fireplace, hardwood floors, modern kitchen & baths, formal dining, 1 stall garage, maintenance free siding & deck with beautiful above ground pool. Located on a park-like 1/2 acre lot. $295,000.

SOUTH Westport – Underwood Farm - Great 1 bedroom, 1.5 bath unit at Underwood Farms offering over 1,200 s.f. of living space & 650 s.f. loft area, hardwood floors, den, central air, natural gas, custom granite kitchen, & deck. Close to area beaches & attractions. $269,000.

Berkley – First Offering - Bright & spacious 3 bedroom, 2.5 bath Colonial in quiet, young, convenient neighborhood. This home boasts a newly designed kitchen and family room/bonus room over the garage. Family friendly with room to grow! $379,000.

Westport – 2 bedroom Ranch in excellent condition w/seasonal water views & deeded pond rights for boating & fishing. Spacious, sprawling and neat as a pin! Brand new septic installed in 2011. $248,000.

SOMERSET – Well built Cape offering 3 bedrooms, oak floors, newer roof, furnace & electric. Established neighborhood – corner lot. 2 blocks from Elementary School! $175,0000.

Westport – Striking 3 bedroom, 2.5 bath Tudor Style home in park-like setting complete w/cobblestone drive & stone patios. Gleaming hardwood floors throughout, 2 fireplaces, Cherry kitchen PLUS new furnace & electric. Nothing to do but move in! $342,000.

APRIL/MAY 2012

contents 16

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34

F e atures

Prime S e ason

Prime L iving

G ood T imes

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12 Spring cleaning

22 Cod & olive oil

16 Try AAA

18 Join a CSA

28 Taxing opportunities 26 Drive to a show

30 Estate planning

32 Disappearing lobsters 40 Senior moment

34 A sad goodbye

O n the cover

In brief…

By Elizabeth Morse Read

24 Technology:

Simple digital video

by Dan Logan and Robin LaCroix

38 Book Picks:

Garden goodies

by Magoo Gelehrter

By Elizabeth Morse Read

By Phillip Burgess

By Michelle Beneski

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By Jay Pateakos

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By Paul Letendre

By Sherri Mahoney-Battles

By Joyce Rowley

By Joyce Rowley

By Paul Letendre

By Paul E. Kandarian

On a sunny spring day, there’s nothing like a cool ride in a hot car.

Imagine the view from this classic 1968 Shelby Mustang GT 350.

Photo courtesy of Hot Rides. Visit them at www.hotridesinc.com or check them out at their free car show this fall.

“Autumn Glen is where my father regained his independence and I found peace of mind.”

• Private, spacious apartments e Brain Gym®, a unique memory strengthening program ree delicious meals served daily • Assistance with medications and personal care 239 Cross Road N. Dartmouth, MA 02747 ering Assisted Living with a new Program for those with Memory Impairments

The

technology

you

There are many advantages of having Live In Care:

• • • •

The client may remain in their own home in their community near friends and family Live In Care is a less expensive option than facility based care Live In Care is provided by a Certified Home Health Aide for ongoing care and supervision Live In Care provides Ongoing Registered Nurse Supervision and a Customized Care Plan All professionals are extensively screened and specially trained in Alzheimer’s and dementia care prior to placement

www.autumnglenatdartmouth.com

WE’RE BRINGING THE

Premier Live In Advantage •

508.992.8880

NEED Excellence

in Live-In Care

Live-In Comfort Live-In Safety Live-In Confidence What is Live In Care?

Live In Care is 24-hour care and supervision in the home provided by a trained certified home health aide.

The Live In aide completes client care, meal preparation and household tasks during the day time hours and then remains overnight for safety and supervision.

pREMIER

home health care of massachusetts, inc.

For a free assessment or for more information please contact us at:

1-800-675-8339 • www.premierhomehealthcare.com

TO THE

KNEE OR HIP PAIN?

Get relief with innovative robotic-arm guided partial knee resurfacing or total hip replacement known as MAKOplasty.

Our surgeons can now treat patients more precisely and less invasively using this exciting robotic-guided technology.

At Saint Anne’s, we are proud to be the first health care organization to bring this state-of-the-art treatment to Massachusetts. Please take the time to learn more about these procedures and what they can mean to you.

community

MAKOplasty. ®

WHERE

you

LIVE. Call 1-855-Go2-MAKO or visit steward.org/makoplasty to learn more about a FREE TALK near you!

W O R L D - C L A S S H E A LT H C A R E WHERE YOU LIVE

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From The Publisher April/May 2012 n Vol. 8 n No. 2 Published by

Coastal Communications Corp.

Publisher and Editor-in-Chief

There’s no time like the present…to embrace change.

Ljiljana Vasiljevic

Elizabeth Morse Read shares some spring cleaning tips,

Editors

Michael J. Vieira, Ph.D. Joe Murphy

Sherri Mahoney-Battles offers some opportunities for tax savings, and Michelle Beneski suggests ways to plan your

Contributors

estate.

Michelle Beneski, Phillip Burgess, Paul Kandarian, Robin LaCroix, Paul Letendre, Dan Logan, Sherri Mahoney-Battles, Jay Pateakos, Elizabeth Morse Read, and Joyce Rowley

It’s a great time to go for a drive, and Joyce Rowley tells about the new AAA. Paul Letendre describes the magic of car shows, and Dan Logan and Robin LaCroix provide tips on how to video your travels.

South Coast Prime Times is published bi-monthly.

Want the benefits of fresh produce without the work? Join a CSA. Philip Burgess

Copyright ©2012 Coastal Communications Corp.

tells you how. Looking for a great summer dinner? Paul Letendre provides an easy recipe for cod and olive oil.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, by any means, without written permission from the Publisher. All information contained herein is believed to be reliable. Coastal Communications Corp. does not assume any financial responsibility for typographical errors in advertisements, but will reprint that portion of an advertisement in which the typographical error occurs.

Plus there’s more: Paul Kandarian describes his jolting senior moment and Richard Clark offers ways to rethink the past.

Don’t forget to support our advertisers and to visit our new and improved website at www.coastalmags.com or just settle in with a good gardening book thanks to

Next Deadline

Magoo Gelehrter.

June 1, 2012

Circulation

Enjoy,

25,000

Subscriptions $14.95 per year

Ljiljana Vasiljevic

M ailing A ddress South Coast Prime Times P.O. Box 3493 Fall River, MA 02722

Publisher and Editor-in-Chief

Phone (508) 677-3000

Website http://www.coastalmags.com

E-mail editor@coastalmags.com

Our advertisers make this publication possible —please support them 4

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facebook.com/thesouthcoastinsider

Join us!

C

oastal Communications Corporation exuberantly invites you to join us in our new online adventure.

Between our ever-growing Facebook page and our newly designed website, our web presence has never been stronger.

Our goal is to create our own version of the “social network,” one that ties the South Coast community together, from artists to bankers, from librarians to chefs.

Hospice isn’t what you think.

Some people think that choosing hospice care means they’ve given up on living. In fact, the opposite is true. Southcoast VNA’s hospice program is for people who decide they want to feel better and enjoy being with their family and friends in the days, weeks or months ahead. Our compassionate caregiving team provides the physical and emotional support it takes to make that possible. If you’re wondering whether you’re ready for hospice, consider what our clients tell us every day: “I just wish I’d started this sooner.”

Your care. Your comfort.Your way.

To accomplish this feat, we need your help.

If you have a photo you’d like to have published, a blog you’d like to plug, a story you’d like to tell or a community you’d like to reach out to, then email us at editor@coastalmags.com or call 508-677-3000.

If you would like to search an event or submit yours visit www. coastalmags.com. This is a monumental undertaking for our region. We believe that together, we can create something we’ll all be proud of.

www.Facebook.com/ thesouthcoastinsider

www.southcoastvna.org 800-698-6877 Southcoast VNA is a not-for-profit charitable organization.

Affordable Cars & Premium Motorcycles

Karen S. Hambleton

Swansea Auto Center

Homer protects me...

YOU can count on ME to fight for your rights!

610 GAR Highway • Swansea, MA • 508-675-4125

www.swanseaautoctr.com www.swanseacycles.com

— The Law Offices of —

Workers Comp Social Security Disability Personal Injury

34 Welby Road • New Bedford, MA kshambleton@yahoo.com 508-207-0282

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E xtra! E xtra!

In brief…

It’s time for Spring cleaning, gardening—and another school vacation week. It’s also the 100th anniversary of the Titanic disaster. Don’t forget that the tax deadline has been pushed Eliz abeth Morse Read up to April 17, but beware of tax-related scams (and jury duty scams!). Well, the dolphins continue to strand on Cape Cod, and there’s been unusual right whale activity in the bay, possibly due to higher water temperatures. And keep an eye out for coyotes (it’s mating season)—secure your pets indoors at night. It’s going to be a bad season for allergies and winter moths.

K a-ching! K a-ching! Good news/bad news Calling all fishermen! Cast your lines for a million-dollar prize June 15 & 16 at the “Fishing for a Cause” tournament sponsored by the Schwartz Center for Children. For details, go to ffac@schwartzcenter.org or call 508996-3391 x392.

Uh, oh—a first-class stamp may soon cost fifty cents—and now they’re predicting that a gallon of gas could hit $5 by summer! But NSTAR has cut its rates for natural gas, so customers may see a savings of up to 9% a month.

Hooboy!

There may be a resort casino in Taunton’s future! The Mashpee Wampanoag tribe is in negotiations with the city to build at the intersection of Routes 140 and 24. (If you thought that intersection was a traffic black-hole before, just wait…). The Wampanoag of Gay Head (Aquinnah) are making inquiries throughout the South Coast, too, so stay tuned…

Neighbors of the solar farm at Hixville and Old Fall River Roads in Dartmouth were none too pleased when construction began with no advance warning to them. But the Fairhaven wind turbines have been built after all.

They are expected to generate more than 7 million kilowatt hours of energy every year. Yippee!—no more robocalls!

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A recent FCC ruling prevents telemarketers and pollsters from driving you crazy with unsolicited calls or text messages. (if you want to stop other annoying calls, sign up for the “do not call” registry at 1-888-382-1222 or www.donotcall.gov.)

After 23 years in business, Baker Books on Rt. 6 in Dartmouth will close its doors. (Farewell!) But Phew!

The campgrounds at Horseneck Beach will stay put.

It’s official—the U.S. Postal Service will shut down Wareham’s processing facility any day now (keep your fingers crossed for Acushnet’s P.O.).

Rochester residents had no place to go for breakfasts when the bakery burned down last summer—but the new café at Plumb Corner Plaza is open for business.

St. John the Baptist Church in New Bedford, the oldest Portuguese parish in North America, is closing. And the old St. Hedwig’s church building is for sale.

Kudos! Congrats!

Hats off to Harelick Dental Associates of Fairhaven for hosting a free Saturday dental clinic. People started lining up at 6:30 a.m. from as far as the Vineyard, and they were greeted with chairs, coffee-and-donuts, and outside porta-johns.

Cheers for the Wareham High School Vikings for the boys’ basketball team’s first undefeated regular season (20-0)— the only undefeated team in the state, which assured them top seed in the state tournament.

Congrats to The Town of Lakeville, which was named one of “The Best Places to Live” by Boston Magazine in its March issue.

UMass Dartmouth was ranked sixth of 4,500 educational institutions in the country for its support of civic engagement, service learning and volunteer work. It was the only educational institution in the state to win this recognition from the Corporation for National and Community Service and the U.S. Department of Education. In addition, UMass Dartmouth’s College of Nursing’s graduate program has been named as one of the nation’s Top 100 colleges of nursing by U.S. News & World Report.

The bridge(s) to nowhere

The New Bedford/Fairhaven Bridge was shut down for three weeks in March, but given the speed of highway repairs and rail lines around here, you might want to check the work status come April. Don’t hold your breath for the scheduled May opening of the Sakonnet River Bridge in Tiverton. The RI DOT now projects late summer (or early fall…).

‘All politics is local’ ( Tip O’Neill )

Joe Kennedy III, grandson of the late Robert Kennedy, is campaigning for the 4th Congressional District seat

currently held by Barney Frank. Other Democratic hopefuls are Paul Heroux of Attleboro and Herb Robinson of Newton.

Republican hopefuls are Sean Bielat and Elizabeth Childs. Meanwhile, Bristol County District Attorney Sam Sutter is running for the newly configured 9th Congressional District, which covers Cape Cod, part of the South Shore and part of the South Coast. He will be running against incumbent William Keating. And rumor has it that former New Bedford mayor Scott Lang is considering a run for the U.S. Senate or the governor’s seat in 2014.

U.S. Rep. James McGovern got arrested, alongside actor/activist George Clooney, while protesting outside the Sudanese Embassy in Washington, DC back in March.

Senator Scott Brown (R-MA) blasted the NOAA on the U.S. Senate floor for purchasing a luxury power boat with money from “asset forfeiture funds” (fines levied against fishermen), supposedly to be used for undercover work, but actually used for NOAA staff “booze cruises” in the Pacific northwest.

Finally, thumbs up for Fall River’s Mayor Flanagan for making a pitch to tech giant Google to move their Cambridge operations to the biotech park. No response yet from Google, but there’s no harm in trying!

Get involved in your community!

What’s summertime without baseball?? Be a host family for a Bay Sox player this summer! For info, contact Bob Quirk at 508-961-7224 or at Continued on next page

Special Events May CINCO DE MAYO ZUMBA NIGHT Wareham | 5/5 HEALTHY KIDS DAY Mattapoisett | 5/12 10TH ANNUAL 5K ROAD RACE Wareham | 5/19

June APPLIANCE COLLECTION DAY Wareham | 6/2 CAMP OPEN HOUSE 6/9 Dartmouth | Mattaposiett | Wareham

July FARM TO TABLE DINNER Dartmouth | 7/28 CAMP MASSASOIT 50TH CELEBRATION Mattapoisett | 7/28

August SHARING SUNDAES FOR THE FARM Dartmouth | 8/9 BIRD ISLAND CHALLENGE Wareham | 8/12

Contact the branch for information and event times. For a listing of more events visit ymcasouthcoast.org.

DARTMOUTH FALL RIVER GLEASON FAMILY MATTAPOISETT NEW BEDFORD

508.993.3361 508.675.7841 508.295.9622 508.758.4203 508.997.0734

YMCA SOUTHCOAST ymcasouthcoast.org

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Continued from previous page

ADVERTISE! rbq52@comcast.net. Find out what’s good for you at your local YMCA. Check out the YMCA Spring Program Guide for all locations at www.ymcasouthcoast.com. Now’s a good time to register the kids for summer camp!

GET RESULTS and…

Grow your BRAND Grow your PRESENCE Grow your BUSINESS Grow PROFITABILITY

— QUICK FACTS — • 16 years in the market • Covers the South Coast and targets the 25+ demo • Available at 750 locations • 125,000 monthly readers • Affordable and customized • Professional and promotes health/wellness • Informational and educational • Entertaining

Call 508-677-3000 editor@coastalmags.com

Talk to us Letters may be edited for length and clarity, and may be published in any media.

Email to: editor@coastalmags.com

Volunteers are needed to make this summer’s 225th anniversary in Westport happen!

Call 508-636-1003 or go to www.wpto@yahoo.com for more information. And the Westport Fire Department is soliciting contributions from town residents to build an indoor 9/11 memorial, incorporating a steel beam from the World Trade Center.

Go to the Spring Fling at McGovern’s on the Water in Fall River on April 19 —enjoy Steve Lopes, “the Portuguese Fireman” and help support families of children with cancer, sponsored by the Devin Laubi Foundation. For info, go to www.mydevin.org. or call 508-6367369. The foundation is also sponsoring a 5K road race on May 6.

South coast stars Ann Partridge has been named director of the Adult Survivorship Program and the Lance Armstrong Foundation Clinic at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston. Dr. Partridge is married to New Bedford’s mayor, Jon Mitchell.

Read us online or to find/post events visit www.coastalmags.com Join us on Facebook: facebook.com/thesouthcoastinsider

Lizzie Borden’s in the news again. The personal journals of her trial attorney, Andrew Jennings, were recently given to the Fall River Historical Society. In 8

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addition, two of the Society’s curators, Michael Martins and Dennis Binette, have published Parallel Lives: A Social History of Lizzie Borden and Her Fall River, which was awarded honorable mention for non-fiction by the New England Book Festival. For more information, go to www.lizziebordenparallellives.com or call 508-679-1071.

Fall River resident Erika Van Pelt made it to American Idol’s Top 10 and will participate in the shows “Idols Live” tour.

Somerset’s swimming icon Shirley May (France) Setters, has died at 79. She was a worldwide sweetheart after WWII for her three determined attempts to become the youngest female to swim the English Channel.

(Oddly enough, she was also Erika Van Pelt’s [see above] great-aunt!)

South Coast biz buzz The inconsistencies and conflicting permitting processes from town to town throughout the South Coast hinders economic development and burdens small businesses and independent contractors. But a pilot online permitting process in New Bedford may signal a change. A recent report released by the Chamber of Commerce and the UMass Dartmouth Urban Initiative urges all municipalities to standardize permit requirements and move to online processing.

NSTAR has awarded UMass Dartmouth $1.5M to conduct an energy-saving overhaul and conservation project that will result in an annual savings of $1M and 4.6 million kilowatt hours.

Southcoast Hospital Group was awarded more than $3M in federal incentive funds to facilitate making the transition from paper documents to electronic records. And Southcoast Health System has entered into collaboration with Children’s Hospital Boston, which will provide 24/7 inpatient pediatric specialist services, based at St. Luke’s and coordinated with the emergency departments at Charlton Memorial and Tobey Hospitals.

A proposed food-to-energy plant at the SouthCoast Life Sciences and Technology Park in Fall River would convert 55,000 tons of food waste into biogas to generate electricity. The plant would create @ 100 new jobs.

Despite efforts by politicians and community leaders, Meditech has officially abandoned plans to build its new facility in Freetown—but they’ll be looking for another site on the South Coast.

UMass Dartmouth’s College of Nursing received a $150,000 gift from former dean Dr. Elisabeth Pennington for a “Virtual Hospital” SimLab, which will provide nursing students with realistic hands-on training.

All the dolphins beaching on Cape Cod have a greater chance of survival thanks to New Bedford manufacturer Edson International. They make special rescue carts for marine creatures featuring inflatable wheels that can maneuver on sand. They also manufacture pole-mounted knives for freeing animals caught in nets.

The state has budgeted an initial $35M for the construction of New Bedford’s proposed Marine Commerce Terminal, which will be the staging site for Cape Wind. With deep water access and 20 acres of surface space, the terminal is poised to become a

high-density cargo port. An aquaculture license was granted for a ½ acre oyster farm in Marion’s outer harbor.

The owners, brothers Christopher and Benjamin Bryant, said their goal was not so much as to make a profit, but to improve the harbor ecologically, and “as a nice thing to pass along to [their] grandchildren.”

On the road Again…

If you’re 50 or over, check out the day trips sponsored by the New Bedford Senior Travel Program: Art Garde Theatre (April 17), Clock Museum (April 25), Vicki Lawrence at Foxwoods (May 2), Lancaster PA (May 7-10), Cap’t.

Jack’s and Mohegan Sun (May 30).

Call 508-991-6171.

E xercise your brain for cheap!

If you have a library card from a South Coast library, you can use it to get discounted tickets for performances at the Zeiterion Theatre in New Bedford! The Z and area libraries are collaborating on special events like “Library Nights at the Z.” Enjoy a free performance of the U.S. Air Force Band at the Z (call/ visit for tickets) April 15. Call 508-9942900 or go to www.zeiterion.org.

Enjoy concerts, lectures, exhibits and plays at the Marion Arts Center. For details, go to www.marionartcenter. org. or call 508-748-1266. Enjoy the Speaker’s Series at New Bedford’s Whaling Museum! Call 508-997-0046 or go to www.whalingmuseum.org.

On the west of the South Coast, attend a lecture “Paskamansett Bird Watching” on April 11, or the Wind Sync concert on the 21st, or the Climate RealityProject presentation on April 22 at Tiverton Four Corners.

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Adult communities for 55+ Call for a private showing Safe, secure living with activities and on-site management Newly remodeled apartments with stainless and new counters/flooring $250 off first month’s rent in April & May Offering 1 and 2 year leases

Oakwood

– Swansea – 508-324-1279

North Farm – Somerset – 508-676-9700

OakwoodSeniorEstates.com NorthFarmSeniorEstates.com

— Equal Housing Opportunity —

Go to www.tivertonfourcorners. com for complete details. Catch Phil Ochs Night on April 14 or Tom Rush May 17 at Common Fence Music in Portsmouth RI. For information, call 401-683-5085 or go to www.commonfencemusic.org.

At New Bedford’s Your Theatre, Moon Over Buffalo starts May 10. Along with the Bridgewater Credit Union, Your Theatre will be sponsoring New Bedford’s Jazzfest at Custom House Square on May 18. Go to www.yourtheatre. org or call 508-993-0772 for details.

After hours…

Enjoy an evening of free fun at New Bedford’s AHA! Night on the second Thursday of every month. April 12’s theme is “Sustainable SouthCoast,” and May 10’s is “City View.” Go to www.ahanewbedford.org or call 508996-8253 for a full schedule of events —and don’t forget that there’s plenty to do, enjoy and eat at AHA! After Nine.

Don’t overlook what’s going on in Rhode Island! There’s lots at Trinity Rep; Sparrow Grass runs through May 13, Love Alone through May 27, The Mourners’ Bench through May 24, and the comedy Boeing-Boeing starts April 13. Call 401-351-4242 or go to www. trinityrep.com.

And get discount tickets for performances of the RI Philharmonic, too!

For a schedule, call 401-248-7000 or visit www.ri-philharmonic.org.

There’s a LOT happening at the Narrows Center for the Arts in Fall River!!

Los Lobos (4/6), Jake Shimabukuro (4/21), James McMurty (4/26), Commander Cody (May 5), Ottmar Liebert (May 6), Dala (May 18) and more.

Go to www.ncfta.org or call 508-3241926.

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And there’s lots going on at the Zeiterion in New Bedford. There’s a free performance of the US Air Force Band (call/visit for tickets) April 15, Gregg Lake on the 17th, Doo Wop: Rock and Remember on April 20, and “Skippyjon Jones” for the kiddies April 29, the Young @ Heart Chorus May 5, Boyz II Men May 18 and The Velveteen Rabbit May 20. Call 508-994-2900 or go to www.zeiterion.org.

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Get in the act at the Providence Performing Arts Center! Listen to The Moody Blues on April 19 or Bring It On: The Musical April 24-29. For more information, call 402-421-2787 or go to www.ppacri.org.

Check out the Spring Performing Arts Series at Rhode Island College in Providence. Dance! Music! Theatre!

Vox Lumiere: Metropolis on April 25 —and more. Go to www.ric.edu/pfa or call 401-456-8144 for complete details.

When the kiddies come to visit…

During vacation week, head for Fall River’s waterfront and Battleship Cove! Cape Cod Railroad’s “Hobo Express” will run from State Pier along the city’s waterfront from April 14-19.

Admission includes ½ price tickets for children and free rides on the Carousel April 16-19. The new interactive Pearl Harbor exhibit opens the same week. For details, go to www.massbayrre.org/trips/fallriverextra or call 978-470-2066.

While you’re there, check out what’s scheduled at the Children’s Museum of Greater Fall River at www.cmgfr.org.

Or find out what’s happening at New Bedford’s Buttonwood Park at www. bpzoo.org or 508-991-6178, or the Ocean Explorium at www.oceanexplorium.org or at 508-994-5400, or the Whaling Museum at www.whalingmuseum.org or 508-997-0046.

There are also children’s museums in Easton (www.childrensmuseumineaston.org or 508-230-3789) and in Providence (www. childrenmuseum. org or 401-273-5437.)

Elizabeth Morse Read is an award-winning writer, editor and artist who grew up on the South Coast. After twenty years of working in New York City and traveling the world, she came back home with her children and lives in Fairhaven.

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The family team of Attorney Robert L. Surprenant, Attorney Michelle D. Beneski and Attorney Daniel M. Surprenant are resolute in their goal of providing the highest quality of services to their clients.

This also includes presenting free educational talks in the community on topics of Medicaid, Estate Planning, Veterans Benefits and Elder Care.

All you need to do is call us at our toll free number 1-800-929-0491 and request which guide you need us to send you.

We are members of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys and the Bristol County Estate Planning Council.

Attorney Beneski is a Certified Elder Law Attorney (CELA) and she also has her Masters in Taxation (LLM).

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prime season

The ultimate

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spring cleaning Spring is the time for cleaning out the cobwebs and the mustiness. But before you load up on cleaning products and drive your family crazy by shooing them from room to Eliz abeth Morse Read room, consider a new approach—detoxifying your home, being more systematic year‘round about house-cleaning, and changing your habits and attitudes. Cleanliness may be next to godliness, but that doesn’t mean you have to have to be a martyr.

The abc’s of dust Okay, let’s get scientific here. What, exactly, is dust, the sparkly stuff you see in a beam of sunlight? The stuff that settles everywhere, that makes you sneeze and clogs up your screens and filters? The average American home produces 40 pounds of dust each year, willy-nilly.

Much of it comes in from the outside, but then it’s compounded by what’s floating around on the inside—like moisture from the shower, cooking grease, mold spores, fumes from toxic commercial cleaning products, pet dander, paint chips or insect droppings…

Start by eliminating the sources of dust.

Put away all those dust-catching knickknacks, books and framed family photos in glassed-in cabinets—and get rid of that feather-duster—all it does is rearrange the dust. And, if budget allows, get rid of wall-to-wall carpeting, which is nothing more than a big sponge for contaminants, chemicals, mold, etc. Don’t use anything “shiny-making” on wood, tile or linoleum floors—it’s slippery and traps dust etc. that can’t be easily mopped or vacuumed.

Buy a package of microfiber cleaning cloths (you’ll find them in automotive departments) and splurge on a HEPA-filter vacuum cleaner with all the attachments— and use it on everything—mattresses, draperies, baseboard heaters, the top of the

refrigerator—regularly, not just once a year.

If you vacuum the floors throughout the house before you start attacking individual rooms for cleaning, dusting and polishing, you’ll save yourself some time and elbow grease.

And seeing as dust follows the law of gravity, always start your vacuuming from the top of a room and work your way down—ceiling fans, window sills, lampshades, picture frames, chair rails, then the furniture and floors again. And don’t forget that heat attracts sticky dust—lightbulbs, nightlights,TV screens, electronics. No matter the weather, always open windows or doors and turn on the vent fans, whenever you clean (and wear rubber gloves).

Minimize moisture Every time you take a shower or open the dishwasher, hot moist air escapes and helps create a breeding ground for bacteria, mold and mildew (and bugs)—and turns dust into a sticky grime.

Keep your de-humidifier set to maintain a 50% humidity environment inside your home (and clean the filter regularly).

Insist that everyone turn on the bathroom vent fan when they shower and close the toilet lid when they flush. Repair “minor” leaks and drips immediately and wipe down your toilet tank if it “sweats” in hot weather.

Don’t let damp towels or laundry pile up anywhere—and make sure your clothes dryer vents to the outside. Get rid of old cardboard boxes or stacks of newspapers— they are “wicks” for random moisture and are popular with earwigs, silverfish, spiders and other unpleasant creepy-crawlies. Your home’s value could plummet if you let mold, mildew and insects take over!

Dispose of toxic products Americans are obsessed with cleanliness and are absolute suckers whenever a new cleaning product comes out that promises to sanitize, de-odorize or make our “cleaning experience” easier (It’s a $17 billion industry, by the way).

The bad news is that all of these products contain non-regulated (and fat-soluble) chemical compounds that can kill you.

Duh. When you use a lot of them together over time, they’re guaranteed to make you sick, create untold damage to the environment, and turn your spic-and-span home into a toxic waste site.

Petrochemicals, chlorine, phosphates, lye, hydrochloric acid, benzene—they’re carcinogenic, mutagenic, neurotoxic—and you’ve been using them to clean your oven, unclog your sink, sanitize your toilet bowl, shampoo your rugs.

Gather them up from your kitchen, bathroom, laundryroom and find out where you can dispose of them safely (call your town’s Board of Health—don’t flush them down the toilet or sink!).

There are far healthier and less-expensive products you can buy or make yourself for every cleaning need. Don’t forget that whenever you use one of these nasty cleaning products, the toxic fumes mix in with the dust that settles on every surface of your house—countertops, pillows, dishes, doorknobs, drawer handles.

According to the EPA, indoor air pollution in a typical American home is at least

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Dust-busting tips Do not allow tobacco smoking indoors.

n

If you have an attached garage, don’t run the engine inside the garage.

n

Groom and wash your pets outdoors.

n

Put doormats outside and inside all access doors and encour age everyone to take their shoes off when they enter the house. n

Clean screens, fans, filters and curtains/blinds regularly.

n

Use the over-stove fan whenever you cook or wash dishes.

n

There’s a fungus among us Spray white vinegar on shower tiles and doors after you shower, then use a squeegee.

n

Soak your shower curtain liner in warm water with some vinegar every month.

n

Replace sponges monthly (and never use the same sponge in both the kitchen and the bathroom!); dry your mops, cleaning cloths, toilet brushes and buckets outside.

n

Your grandmother’s cleaning tips

To hide scratches on leather or wood, rub them with peanut butter or mayonnaise.

If wood drawers or windows “stick,” rub the runners with Ivory soap or a candle.

Wash all hanging glass globes or sconces in the top rack of your dishwasher.

Put a drop of an essential oil on each exposed lightbulb.

S wipe everything people touch regularly with hydrogen peroxide—keyboards, remotes, light switches, faucet/toilet/doorknobs, telephones.

Use a nail brush to clean out the grime in shower door tracks, window tracks, tile grout.

Sprinkle baking soda on carpeting and upholstery 30 minutes before you vacuum.

Rent a non-toxic steam-cleaner

All-natural products

for your carpets, upholstery, and draperies.

Polish silverware and get rid of scuffmarks on linoleum with toothpaste.

All of these products are safe, inexpensive, easily-found and can be safely mixed at home to create a multitude of cleaning solutions for the kitchen, bathroom and laundry.

White Vinegar (de-greaser, deodorizer, sanitizer)

n

Baking Soda (mild abrasive, deodorizer)

n

Washing Soda (removes grease, grime, wax)

Burnt pans, oven crud or bathtub scum?—coat with moistened baking soda, then scrub off with coarse salt and elbow grease. Rinse with vinegar.

n

Castile Soap (Dr. Bronner’s) (a plant-based all-purpose cleaner, even shampoo!)

n

Lemon juice (cleanser, de-greaser, deodorizer)

n

Essential oils (peppermint, lavender) (plant-based deodorizer, insect repellant, anti-microbial)

n

Coarse salt (sea salt, kosher salt) (abrasive, disinfectant)

n

Borax (cleanser, disinfectant)

n

Hydrogen peroxide (bleach, disinfectant)

n

If you prefer to buy already-made non-toxic cleaning products, find products made by Seventh Generation (seventhgneration.com) or Mrs. Meyers (mrsmeyers.com) or method (methodhome.com).

If you’re tempted to buy a new product made by the likes of Clorox, Lysol, Glade, Febreze or Drano with bunnies and flowers on the packaging, you can assume it’s not safe for children or other living things. There are many websites on the internet for non-toxic cleaning solutions. And read Naturally Clean by Jeffrey Hollender and Make Your Place by Raleigh Briggs.

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bottle —cleans window, surfaces, tubs, mirrors, glassed pictures/ TV screens. (Tip: to avoid streaking, clean windows on a cloudy day.)

Sprinkle baking soda in trash cans, recycle bins, laundry hampers, pet beds regularly.

Vacuum mattresses whenever you change the linens. Hang pillows, blankets and comforters outside in the sun or tumble them in the dryer for a few minutes on low with no dryer sheets.

Scrub greasy stove ranges and countertops with lemon slices

Elbow grease (ask your mother.)

n

14

Mix vinegar, some lemon juice and water in a spray

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or vinegar.

Empty your pantry cabinets, drawers and closets, vacuum and sprinkle with baking soda and insect-repelling herbs. Wash all dishes, glassware, cookware, silverware, and wipe down cutting boards, cooking/counter surfaces, crocks, canisters, with diluted vinegar.

Continued from page 13 twice as high (and sometimes 100 times higher) than outdoor air pollution. And commercial cleaning products are partly to blame for that—the same chemicals that are used to make pesticides and industrial solvents.

Asthma, rashes, chronic organ diseases (liver, kidneys, lungs), learning disorders and cancers have been implicated with prolonged exposure to unregulated cleaning chemicals and the witch’s brew that results when their residues are mixed during cleaning frenzies. Activists/actors John Travolta and Kelly Preston are convinced that their late son Jett’s disorder (Kawasaki disease) was triggered after he crawled on carpets that had been commercially cleaned with such dangerous substances. If you accidentally mix chlorine bleach with ammonia, you produce a lethal gas (think WWI or “weapons of mass destruction”).

There is a better way.

Combine your auto and home insurance for maximum discount

Let’s clear the air If you can keep your indoor air clean, you won’t have to clean your house so much. You can buy carbon-filter air cleaners and such, but just opening your doors and windows regularly year‘round can work wonders. In warm weather, put window fans (exhausting out) in every room. Keep your kitchen and bathroom fans on throughout the day or overnight.

overtime trying to purge all those artificial products you’ve inhaled, touched, ingested or absorbed.

If you’ve got stinky kitchen odors (cabbage, fish, smoke), leave a bowl of white vinegar on the counter overnight.

Fill your house with houseplants—Mother Nature’s air filters! (just don’t over-water them.) Hang sheer curtains in the windows —they act like air filters—and wash them regularly. Tip: after hand-washing them, dip them in a sinkful of warm water and a cup of milk (yes, milk—it’s an all-natural starch), then hang them outside to dry.

Oooo, what’s that smell?

Now for the really bad news. You’ve been led to believe that you can make up for haphazard house-cleaning by buying chemicallyscented cleaning products, plug-in deodorizers, “air freshener” sprays, dryer sheets, and candles. But if you can smell only the “good” scent and not the chemicals, it’s not good for you or your home.

These artificial scents only cover up unpleasant household odors—you need to get rid of the source of the odor, not just overwhelm it with phony pine or “Hawaiian Breeze” or baby-blanket aroma. These products contain VOCs (volatile organic compounds) made from unpronounceable (and poisonous) chemicals.

Simmer a pot of cinnamon, cloves, vanilla extract and/or orange slices instead, while you clean.

Your liver and kidneys are working overtime trying to purge all those artificial products you’ve inhaled, touched, ingested or absorbed through clothing and bedding.

Todd Baptista’s

Your liver and kidneys are working

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good times

These weary travelers could have used AAA.

Not your father’s AAA

by Joyce Rowley

Think AAA and you think of road maps sent in the mail for a family vacation. But the American Automobile Association has come a long way from its roots during the birth of the automobile era as a means to take a vacation. Although “drive-travel” still plays a central role in the AAA’s services, the Club offers a wide range of travel services up to and including arranging your dream trip to Tahiti.

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And despite high gas prices, drive travel is up 35%, said Mary Maguire, Massachusetts spokesperson for AAA Southern New England and director of Public and Legislative Affairs. “There’s so many destinations that you can get to on a tank of gas—Lakes Region in New Hampshire, Newport, R.I., New York City,” she said.

Fairhaven Branch Manager Dino Aguiar said the recent Travel Marketplace at Gillette Stadium that AAA sponsored had over 200 travel vendors, and people were still stopping in at local AAA branches to take advantage of the discounts AAA and its partners offered.

“Sometimes we have a line out the door.

Good weather brings them in,” he said,

looking at the eight busy travel agents and people in the waiting area.

TripTiks®—the modern version of route maps—and book your room, but it also offers discounts on tickets to local attractions. Going to Nashua, New Hampshire?

How about park tickets to Canobie Lake amusement park, a long-time family favorite?

TripTiks® are computer based now, of course, so not only do you get up to date routes, but also current road construction information that will keep you out of traffic tie-ups. You can also get scenic versus direct routes, with attractions, too.

“One of the advantages to using AAA to book your trip is the human interaction,” said Maguire. “Many of the agents have stayed in the places they suggest. They can tell you their favorite hotel, and what

Entertainment discounts pay for themselves. For example, Aguiar said that last season, tickets to Six Flags New England in Agawam were just $27 compared to $49.99 for adults and $29.99 for children. Likewise the parking at Six Flags for AAA members was just $13, a $7 savings. Movie tickets to Flagship Cinemas in Wareham and New Bedford are just $21 for four tickets—a $13 savings, said Aguiar. And they make a great gift for kids and grandkids.

Get help from the AAA staff. Customers Nuria Moreno (front left ) and A ngela Correia (front right ) get help from AAA travel agents Suzanne M atias (back left ) and Lucy Correia ( back right )

Dino Aguiar, Fairhaven AAA

Celebrating its 110th year Here on the South Coast, one of the first automobile clubs started in Newport, Rhode Island in 1900 as the Rhode Island Automobile Club. In 1902, it was one of nine auto clubs that met in Chicago to form AAA. Back then not only were there fewer than 23,000 automobiles on the roads nationally, but 17 million horses.

From a club that demonstrated the fun side of travel, holding “hill climb” contests and “reliability runs,” it grew into one of 50 clubs in the AAA national federation.

Today, AAA SNE has 34 branches in an area that covers Connecticut, southeastern

Massachusetts, and all of Rhode Island.

The Fairhaven branch began in the old New Bedford Hotel as the New Bedford Auto Club in 1925. It moved to what is now the CVS Plaza on Route 6/Huttleston Avenue in Fairhaven in 1970. And again in 1999, AAA SNE Fairhaven moved to its current location at 32 Fairhaven Commons Way off Alden Road.

Places to go, things to do The top destination this spring is the cherry blossoms in Washington, D.C., with visits to the museums and monuments. This summer, cool spots for drive travel are Bar Harbor, Maine and Prince Edwards Isle in Canada.

Not only does AAA give you

to expect when you get there.” And said Maguire, “I happen to prefer to work with a human being.”

Discounts, discounts, discounts AAA has long offered Roadside Assistance as part of its membership. And they’re famous for their discounts on everything from restaurants to retail to vehicle maintenance on national brands.

But there’s a practical side to AAA discounts, too. Four major vision companies offer 30% off a complete pair of eyewear, including sunglasses. There’s an AAA prescription savings program for up to 24% off prescriptions. And Newport Audiology Centers offer 40% off hearing aids, a twoyear battery supply with purchase, and a complimentary hearing evaluation.

Speaking of kids AAA’s INsider program for 13- to 15-yearolds offers the same AAA retail and service discounts—for free. But more importantly, the quarterly newsletter about safety, seatbelt use, defensive driving, and drinking

branch manager

and driving so they get started on smart driving early on.

And when they turn 16, they get a free year of AAA associate membership, including roadside assistance. That’s free battery jump starts, free flat tire changes, free lockout service, and free fuel delivery—and free peace-of-mind to you.

So whether you’re looking for help booking that weekend getaway, heading to the movies, or filling a prescription, think AAA. It’s not your parents’ automobile club anymore.

Joyce Rowley is a contributing writer to The South Coast Insider/Prime Times magazines on health, education and the environment. She has a bachelor of science degree in geology and a masters in community planning.

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prime season

T urn your yard into an outdoor room and garden.

Community supported agriculture

Change a farmer’s life...and your own!

Phillip B urgess

18

Like any serious South Coast home vegetable gardener, on or about midFebruary, when spring first teases us with a few days of the sun shining just a little bit warmer, my excitement and anticipation of another year in the garden begins to take hold.

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Plans for the new season start to come together and farmer wannabes struggle to recall the many changes they were determined to make based upon last year’s successes and failures. The crush of seed company emails and catalogues has begun—decisions and purchases need to be made.

“Should I dig some new beds?

Should I plant more flowers in with the vegetables? The rototiller needs fixing. My cabbages looked like lace curtains by last fall. No cruciferous veggies this year. What companies should I buy my seed from? Should I put that electric fence in?

Wait a second, this is going to cost some real money again this year!”

These questions are just some of the myriad decisions, small and large, that go into the planning and budgeting of any home vegetable grower.

What originally started out as the fantasy of having a small kitchen garden, or potager, has somehow morphed into what now seems more like an industrial agricultural operation.

Ask anyone who’s got one and they’ll tell you—it’s a labor of love, but it’s lots of hard work and it gets very expensive.

When the season is over and

you realize those beautiful Brandywine tomatoes cost about $15 each, or when a friend confesses they dove behind their couch every time they saw you walking up the driveway with yet another armload of kohlrabi or some other alien vegetable they had no idea how to use, well, that’s just about the time you start wondering if all that work and money was worth it.

For the truly obsessed, there’s no time for such trivial analyses such as cost-planning, for next year has already begun!

For the rest—for those who have only had a vegetable garden for a year or two and are already questioning the sanity of their decision, or for those who once tried and have already given up, I have good news—there may actually be a better way. A way where a fallen farmer can still feel part of the

to The French Laundry.

Somewhere, the reality of local and sustainable got lost in the race to capitalize on the buzz.

I might not have travelled everywhere in this country, but I’ll take a risky stand here and bet that the majority of restaurants in this country (never mind our supermarkets) don’t have coops, pens, gardens and orchards outside their doors.

You just can’t do local and sustainable everywhere in the world, but fortunately for us, you can with ease here in the South Coast.

If you have ever read (and if you haven’t, I heartily recommend you choose at least one book from each author) any books by Joel Salatin (he of Polyface Farm in VA fame), or Lisa Hamilton, or Bill McKibben, or Eliot Coleman, or America’s pop star (and

s

It’s good for you, for your family, for a farmer and for your community. sowing, growing and harvesting; a way where they can eat as though the garden was still steps from their door; a way where they will know that one particular week’s fresh harvest will not consist solely of rutabagas, parsnips, celery root and salsify.

In short, a way to farm within a firm budget and without getting your hands dirty.

The way is CSA. Anyone who hasn’t been hiding in a root cellar for the past decade has been awash in the mantra of sustainability. It is so ubiquitous now it has become more background noise than call to arms. Restaurant menus featuring dishes using chickens supposedly raised next door, free-range, pasture-fed, hormone-free, humanelytreated and of above-average intelligence can now be found everywhere from McDonalds

great writer) of sustainability, Michael Pollan, then I’m sure you’re already well-versed in the Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) universe.

It’s a concept that originated in Europe decades ago, was brought to the U.S. in the early 1980s and slowly took root in such areas as the Northern California, Oregon, Washington and Vermont, as well as in other psychically-similar farming communities. Starting in the early 2000s, the concept began to proliferate exponentially and the USDA now estimates there are more than 20,000 CSA farm programs across the country.

CSA is many things to a farmer.

It’s revenue when there otherwise wouldn’t be any; it’s insurance against the upcoming year’s weather; it’s great

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Continued from previous page

VISIT FAIRHAVEN

Shop for unique gifts and home accessories.

Enjoy a delicious breakfast, lunch or dinner.

See unique architecture or a seacoast fort.

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advertising, it’s higher sale prices than could be achieved otherwise and it’s a big help in getting a good night’s sleep.

The annual dilemmas, decisions and costs I face in the execution of my simple backyard potager pale in comparison to those of the commercial farmer.

I used to feel sorry for myself when I’d occasionally come out in the morning and see every single fava bean plant had been chewed away during the night, or when it rained for a week and washed out my seeds. I’d think of all the work I put into my garden having been for naught.

Now, when something like that happens, instead I think about the farmers whose fields I drive-by every day. I don’t depend on growing vegetables to make my living. Farmers do.

I don’t feel so sorry for myself any more. I feel sorry for the farmers.

The single most expensive time of year for a farmer is the season of least revenue. When it’s the time of year to make huge pre-orders and purchases of seed, fertilizer and equipment, it’s also the time of year when the snow is about to fly.

Annual revenues won’t begin again until the crops are planted, fertilized, watered, tended and harvested. Unfortunately, payment for all those things required to make all the magic happen is needed first.

How a CSA can help CSA members become oneyear virtual shareholders of whatever farm they choose. In return for an up-front payment in the late fall or winter, the customer receives a weekly share of produce for a defined period of time. Depending upon what that farm grows and/or raises, tit could be a 13-week CSA contract, or a 6-month commitment, or in the case of some of the new greenhouse-insideof-a-greenhouse operations, a year-round deal.

Fresh eggs all year, or just the bounty of mid-summer—it’s your choice. Your weekly “share” consists of a standardized vegetable box (about the size of any empty case of wine) filled with that week’s best-ofthe-best.

Generally (and infinitely preferable for the farmer), the customer swings by the farm on the same day each week to pick up their share, but in some fancier operations, a delivery is made right to the doorstep of the customer. The shareholder receives all of the benefits of the home vegetable garden at far less cost and without the time and effort.

Intangibles There are other less tangible yet equally important benefits of joining a CSA program beyond finding fresh vegetables on your doorstep each week:

Get healthy Under the heading of “it goes without saying, but...” virtually all of the farms you might sign up for a CSA program with are either operating under biodynamic or organic farming practices, or increasingly, both.

Thus, not only are you guaranteed vegetables at the height of their nutritive and taste profiles, you are consuming nothing which was not already in the land it was grown in. Very often you will be eating something pulled from the ground that very day.

Connect to the land This is a very important benefit of CSA, especially for children.

Go to the farm to sign-up, or go back for a visit. Every person in the world remembers the first time they visited a farm (if they ever been fortunate enough to do so). Show your child where their food comes from and show them how it gets to them.

Show them all cherries don’t come from Chile and that

a tomato from Westport in August is a whole lot better than a green one that was bowled here from California and forceripened in January. Watch the wonder in their eyes when that box shows up each week. Watch them follow the story of their farm. They might even surprise you and eat something new.

Empathy Blight, drought, infestation or too much rain. Any one of these can spell financial ruin for a farmer. A season’s worth of financial investment and work can be wiped out in a night.

These occasional disasters can make the difference between a farming family earning a living, or losing their farm.

CSA helps protect against all of these hazards. Implicit in the CSA contract is shared risk.

If disaster strikes, the customer has lessened the farmer’s exposure and loss. If disaster strikes, the weekly share box may contain far less produce than usual, or some of your favorite vegetables might not be in there at all. In that case, your weekly share will also include a valuable life lesson for everyone in the family, a lesson about risk, loss and perseverance. The farmer cannot stop no matter what befalls him along the way and needs to make due with what he has.

Spillover effect The simple act of joining a local farm’s CSA program can change your life. There’s no university study or scientific survey I can cite here to back that statement up, but it’s another one of those seemingly small “stop and smell the roses” steps that can be truly transformative.

By being more connected to the land, to your food, to the people who grow it for you, and to the animals which farmers raise to put on your table, you cannot help but gain a respect and understanding of things you hadn’t probably even considered before.

Things like the rhythm of the seasons and the great circle of life—a couple of fairly basic concepts that have made the world go round for a whole long time—and have unfortunately been weaned from the lives of far too many of us.

At this point you’re probably saying to yourself “So Phil, how do I go about getting fresh vegetables delivered to my doorstep, become connected and empathetic, and watch all of this good stuff permeate the remainder of my life through the spillover effect?”

Well, here you go.

My favorite source for all things farm for our region is the SEMAP (Southeastern Massachusetts Agricultural Partnership) website at SEMAPonline. org.

That site contains a comprehensive listing of South Coast farms, along with links to farm websites when they exist. Those farms offering CSA programs are clearly identified and you can contact them directly.

Unlike the balance of our state, we here in the South Coast are fortunate to live in a Zone 7 and we are also fortunate to have an incredible number of farms we pass every day. There’s a farm and a CSA program to fit most everyone’s schedule, desires and location.

There are few things as simple which can have as profound an effect upon your life as joining a local farm’s CSA program. It’s good for you, for your family, for a farmer and for your community. It saves you money vs. growing your own and your participation may very well help save a farm.

CSA—It’s not just for hippies anymore.

Phillip Burgess is a Westport resident and part-time farmer wannabe. He tends a 4,000 SF vegetable garden, a small fruit orchard and a 75-vine vineyard when he isn’t really working.

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prime living

Cod ‘n olive oil Paul L etendre

There is perception and there is reality.

If you happen to be a politician or a salesperson, perception is reality. When we shop and examine a label, we trust that the product behind the label is as described. It usually is—but…

Gene Connors, now in his early 70s,

operated fishing boats out of

New Bedford, and spent his life in the seafood industry.

A n old seafood guy, long ago deceased, once told me, “Only God knows how much a fish fillet really weighs.” He was trying to educate me, teach me some of the realities of the seafood industry. It’s a complex industry; there are enormous pressures to keep prices low.

Sometimes a seafood processor will soak a product in a sodium tri-poly solution for a few hours. It helps enhance the scale weight of the finished product. Sound fishy? It is.

I had lunch recently with Gene Connors.

Now in his early 70s, Gene has spent a lifetime in and around the seafood industry. I’ve known him for thirty years or so; he has always been my go-to when I need seafood info.

Quality at sea Gene operated fishing vessels out of New Bedford for 20 years and spent a number of years as the on on-board coordinator for the Fisheries Development Foundation’s “Quality at Sea” project in the early 80s.

Their goal was to improve the quality of seafood being landed in New England by applying Scandinavian methods of at-sea seafood handling. When he left there he became the guru for a national food service distributor’s seafood program. He retired last year.

A passion for quality In the business world, Gene had one fault …he has a passion for quality. In the business world price often trumps quality. Gene will compromise price, he won’t compromise quality.

I had recently re-read Cod, A Biography of the Fish that Changed the World, by Mark Kurlansky (Random House, 1997). I wanted Gene’s take on the book. It’s a history of cod. Dried cod (baccala) was a primary source of protein in Europe for over a thousand years; it was also the primary commodity…it was even used as legal tender for centuries at a time in Western Europe. This once abundant species was almost fished to extinction.

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Cod recovering Cod is now making a remarkable recovery.

The experience has taught us much about the importance of managing our catch and addressing sustainability.

It turns out that Gene is a longtime fan of the book. Over lunch, Gene explained the state of the now tenuous seafood industry, not just in the U.S. but worldwide. The industry has a dilemma; it needs product now to survive and is consequently over-fishing certain species, guaranteeing that future struggles will worsen. There are thousands of species that could also be fished, but the market (you and I are the market) demands familiar species. The market also demands lower pricing…” the price is always too high” is what the industry hears.

Gene always makes a strong argument for frozen at sea product, which is almost always fresher than what we call “fresh.”

Often “fresh” product can spend a number of days in a boat’s hold, then a few more days making it to the “fresh” market. Gene reminds me that stale, not frozen, is the opposite of fresh.

Fish consumers have a difficult choice: how fresh is the fresh? Has it been treated with sodium tri-poly? Making it even more difficult is the fact that some not-so-scrupulous sellers will market thawed as fresh, often soaking it to give it that fresh look.

Labels are not much help since U.S. labeling regulations are often contradictory and not always adhered to or policed. It can be difficult to know what is real.

Confused? I think that might be the goal …we are supposed to be confused.

Olive oil What got me into this Cod state of mind was a book on olive oil, Extra Virginity, the Sublime and Scandalous World of Olive Oil, by Tom Mueller. The history of olive oil is very similar to that of cod; it goes back as far as humans have recorded history. This fruit oil (it is not vegetable oil) has not only been a food, but also been a major source of heating and lighting, a lubricant for machinery, a medicine and a body-oil with claimed aphrodisiac effects (…and I thought I knew a lot about olive oil).

The author, who resides in Italy, began by saying that we in the United States can buy extra virgin olive oil for less money than a grower in Italy can produce it.

But in short, we

really can’t. Federal labeling regulations are often contradictory and not always adhered to or policed, so the probability is very high, regardless of what we pay for our “extra virgin olive oil,” that it ain’t what it says it is.

Far from run-of-the-mill

Beware of blends Whole industries have formed to create oils, predominately vegetable oils blended with olive oil that smell like, behave like, and even can taste like olive oil.

Much of the extra virgin olive oil on the market is blended, fake or altered. It is difficult and expensive to detect the fraudulent products. For those growers and processors who are selling the real thing, its a difficult market. Many are being forced to sell their business to the larger industrial processors.

So what’s the big deal? It smells and tastes the same and it has similar cooking properties. It is difficult to perceive a difference. The real thing, olive oil, has enormous health benefits, contains powerful antioxidants and anti-inflammatories. The imposters don’t.

K aren’s Baccala

(salted cod cooked in olive oil) My wife’s recipe for dried cod cooked in olive oil is likely very similar to what many southern Europeans were preparing a thousand years ago. Karen is from a predominately Portuguese heritage, but is a great cook (a beautiful great cook) of Italian dishes. This recipe probably borrows from both the Portuguese and the Italian.The salted cod needs to be soaked in cold water for 2-3 days. Keep the container covered and regularly change the water (3-5 times each day). n

1½ -2 lbs. salted cod.

n

½ cup of extra virgin olive oil

n

2-3 stems fresh chopped parsley

n

1 clove fresh chopped garlic

n

½ tsp. pepper (to taste)

n

1 medium size fresh lemon

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Cut the fish into strips, 4 to 6 inches.

Towel-dry the fish and hand rub a little oil onto each side. Pre-heat the olive oil a large cast iron skillet, then place the fish in the skillet and brown well on both sides. Now sprinkle with the parsley, garlic and pepper. Squeeze the lemon over the fish. Now cover the pan and cook for 10 more minutes over very low heat. Serves 4.

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APPLE INC.

Prime Living

digital video short + sweet

You may have long-since given up on shooting what was once called home video.

“Video” may bring to mind that numbing, start-to-finish, unedited documentary of your first child’s first birthday. Which no one, including you, has even seen in its entirety.

Endless footage of succeeding birthdays, anniversaries, weddings and births got even less face time.

These days home video is part of our daily lives. Smartphones make it easy to shoot and instantly share short video clips. Tiny point and shoot cameras can be used to create high quality videos as well as still photographs. And even digital SLRs will shoot video these days—and produce pro quality HD video even in poor light.

Teenagers and young adults love this stuff. Their short, candid videos pour out over the Internet in a steady stream--the clips are possibly the only thing that can cause them to put aside texting for a few moments. And parents proudly feature their kids in short videos (for example, a video making the rounds of the family shows Robin’s five year old grandson doing 21 legit one-armed pushups).

It’s easy for everyone If you’re trying to find something in common with a member of a younger generation, understand that smartphones are what younger generations do. Advancing technology makes them a convenient means of communication and entertainment.

For a parent or grandparent a smartphone is the way to stay involved in the daily lives of family and friends. If you’re waiting for

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a phone call or a letter, you may wait a long time.

Videos have become a much bigger part of the communication process because they can take you into the action as it’s happening. Get out of the mindset of epic home movies. Think short clips, quick takes. Ten or 15 seconds can be enough to convey the story or capture the essence of the event, be it a cruise ship moment or an urban battle in a bloody revolution.

Small, capable tools Smart phones are the tool of choice for short videos. Shoot a video on a smart phone and you can immediately send it to a friend or upload it to Facebook for all your friends to see. (Yes, always keep in mind that a lot of people might see your video; that could be a bad thing.)

Apple’s wildly popular iPhone and Android phones from the major service providers such as AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile and Verizon are spreading like viruses, and they’re all capable of producing better video with each new model.

The iPhone has spawned an entire new industry for iPhone accessories, including gear to turn an iPhone into a capable camera. The

Tips for the novice Keep it simple. Aim for good exposure and sharp focus.

Don’t re-focus while shooting a short clip.

Try to avoid zooming and panning, at least while you’re learning. Especially if done too quickly, zooms and pans can be annoying or even give viewers a queasy stomach.

Use a tripod. Again, be sympathetic to the viewer’s stomach.

iPhone 4S has video stabilization and 1080p HD video—the good stuff. Third-party vendors offer tiny tripods and tiny telephoto lenses, and there are apps galore available for manipulating footage.

But while smart phones offer unparalleled connectivity, unfortunately they add roughly $30 a month to your cell phone bill.

For the person who doesn’t want that extra cost, a point and shoot camera may do the trick. Besides not commanding a monthly bill, a point and shoot is also likely to produce better quality video.

Gone are the days when your video camera was such a big barge that you only hauled it out once or twice a year. Point and shoot cameras drop into your pocket or bag for instant use. You can upload your clips from your computer.

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One popular outlet for all the video that’s being produced is YouTube (YouTube.com). If the smart phone plus Facebook is the king of the hill for candid video, YouTube reigns supreme for somewhat more formal efforts. Sure, there’s plenty of crazy stuff on YouTube, but it’s also home to hundreds of thousands of movies produced with an aim to educate or inform.

This is home to the how-to video run amuck. If you want a better idea of how to deal with some aspect of the universe that’s standing in your way, there’s probably several videos on YouTube that will help you past the obstacle. “How to Ride a Skateboard Longboard.” “Highlights of Calculus.” “How to Prepare for a Tongue Piercing.” “Replace Your Ice Maker.” You get the point.

Not only can you leapfrog all the trial-and-error annoyance by watching the right YouTube video, you can help other people do the same. If you have a bent toward pedagogy, you can create and upload your own YouTube videos to help people out.

YouTube is addictive; millions of viewers are racking up tens of millions of hours of watching these videos, learning new stuff.

over 16 years old. He is currently accepting new patients.

The “big tools” are small too The third leg of the consumer video triumvirate is the digital SLR. Digital SLRs like the Nikon D5100 or Canon Rebel T3i go beyond their ancestors’ still photography roots and offer even better video capability than the smart phones and point and shoots (and if you’ve invested in a video-capable DSLR, you can go to YouTube to find videos that will teach you to operate your new camera).

The digital SLRs have much larger sensors and can be used with interchangeable lenses with narrower depth of field. This enables the videographer to isolate the subject from the background, make it stand out from everything else.

Point and shoot cameras and smart phones have tiny sensors, which result in a lot of depth of field, which means just about everything in frame is in focus--not necessarily a good thing in an image or video.

Ambitious shooters are now using digital SLR cameras to produce very high quality video. Some prime-time TV shows have already been shot with digital SLRs. So, Shoot it—Show it—Send it. You don’t have to belabor the editing unless you enjoy doing that. A compelling subject trumps mediocre video and lousy audio. Have a blast.

Dan Logan and Robin L aCroix are freelance writers and photographers who partner in Tightrope Photography, a Rehoboth-based company specializing in family history.

Board certified in family medicine, Dr. Jakhro completed his training at Brown Medical School.

His clinical interests include diabetes, high blood pressure, obesity and pediatric care.

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Prime Living

Auto obsessive Paul L etendre

It’s a guy thing—I know. We get obsessed and even fall in love (or is it lust?) for the wrong reasons. It might be a left brain/right brain domination thing; it seems to encapsulate virtually all versions of us male types. What causes us to fall into this obsessive gawking?

What drives this insatiable desire?

You’ve seen one, you’ve seen them all… wrong. They are all so different—from the surface to the underpinnings. We are surrounded by them and at a moment’s notice they capture our attention and supplant thought with longing.

Irrational? Yes Logic and cognitive capability are not terms that we associate with this voyeurism. It must have something to do with unfulfilled desires. It can affect life altering decisions. Do I choose reliability, frugality, safety and practicality or do I get obsessed with mechanical abundance, body tones and types-glitz? Perhaps we can even get to imagining what’s underneath the pretty

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coverings …how she performs when the heat is on.

We love to study the statistics, are always impressed with the timed zero to sixty runs, horsepower, torque, and lateral coefficients: we do all of that logical stuff …but none of it makes any difference if we don’t like the profile or color.

Cars, with their shiny parts glistening will alter a man’s self-image. They are the most ostensible symbol of status and pecking order in our society. Powerful machines can lift our machismo. Pragmatic econo-boxes can make us feel socially responsible.

Put an idiot behind the wheel of an SL series Mercedes and he appears to be brilliant. Put a wimp into a Corvette and he is powerful. Put a successful television

A pr il / M ay 2012

producer into a Toyota Prius and he is emasculated.

It must have something to do with testosterone levels. That stuff has been known to alter decision making. But even as we grow old and testosterone levels off, we continue to be voyeurs. We love to look and admire.

Is there a cure?

A scant hundred years ago, there really weren’t any car shows. They didn’t have antiques or classics yet. Detroit would hold a “show” once a year basically to give Henry Ford a chance to see what some of the other guys might be doing. The attendance at these was limited to a few designers and investors, maybe a few curious local farmers.

Car lovers have more flocks than birds do species. We have unrestored, restored, American (pre-World War 2, 50’s, muscle cars, funny cars, hot rods, custom cars, street racers, track cars…), European cars, sports cars, English sports cars, German cars, Italian cars, Japanese cars, amphibious cars…

“Custom” cars are modified for performance or style, usually both. Most of the notable Custom shows are on the West Coast. It’s more of a California thing.

General and specific

I can’t stop looking

The shows have evolved into generic and specialty. The Portsmouth Abbey show listed below is a good example of a well-represented generic show: there will be “horseless carriages” probably a new Bentley or Maserati, and a good representation from each period and genre in between.

Antique shows are generally limited to cars 45 years or older. Many antique shows will be combined with Classic Car shows.

The “Classics” are generally aged 20 to 45 years. Most cars built before 1919 are “Brass Era” cars; many of their components, interior and exterior, were brass.

You’ll see headlights and “hold-ons” on these beauties that are shiny brass. Cars built from 1919 until 1930 are considered “Vintage Era.” The shows at Lars Anderson, also listed below, are more specialty. They have a number of “badge” shows: Cadillac show, Porsche show, even a Studebaker show.

Lars also holds origin shows: British Car day, German Car Day and Tutto Italiano.

Don’t ask me why, but I like ‘em all. I’m always fascinated with the blend of mechanical expertise and aesthetic genius, the compromise of the practical and the lure of the excessive, how some meld into masterpieces, and others become nothing more than interesting failures that have led to financial disasters.

My current obsession is a red Audi TT. It’s not logical for an old bald-headed arthritic.

It’s red so it looks Italian. Yes, it’s German, but you know it had to be designed by an Italian; Germans don’t do compound curves or red cars. It’s underpowered and it has a standard transmission. I stopped driving standards because my sciatic was killing me (I’ll take ibuprofen). I’ll tell my wife how great she’ll look driving it (on every other Monday).

I’ll be sooo cool driving this; I’ll feel like I’m nineteen again. Maybe I’ll buy a comb…

Or maybe I’ll just continue driving my Jetta Wagon. Left brain logic or right brain lust…take your pick.

Escape the ordinary, indulge your inner gourmet…

Ride the rails!

Local car shows We’ll be listing more car shows on our website, www.coastalmags.com calendar, but the following are always some of my favorites:

Romantic dinners Elegant brunches

A pril 15-October 13 - Seekonk Speedway, in addition to their races, holds swap meets and flea markets on various Sundays from April to Sept. On May 5th they are holding an all-day event with a classic car show in the morning and drag racing in the afternoon. Check their website at Seekonkspeedway.com

A pril 21 - The Cape Cod British Car Club will hold a Safety Fast Inspection at 2 Fieldstone Drive in Lakeville. This free event is open to all and is free of charge. capecodbritishcarclub.org

M ay 5 - The Good Shepherd Parish Car Show and Swap meet will be held in Fall River, 1598 South Main Street.

M ay 19 - Airport Fun Day at the New Bedford

Brookline, MA, about 40 minutes north of Taunton. Their schedule and directions can be found at Larzanderson. org.

M ay 20 – Cadillac Day at Lars Anderson.

If you’ve never gotten close to a Caddy from the 20’s or 30’s, then you can’t appreciate the Cadillac heritage.

June 17 – Newport Motor Car Festival at Portsmouth Abbey School in Portsmouth, RI. Sponsored by the Portsmouth Rotary Club.

This show has been held for over 50 years on Father’s Day on the grounds at the Abbey. This is a beautiful setting overlooking Narragansett Bay. www.portsmouthrirotary.com

M ay 19-October 28 – Lars Anderson

June 21 – The Marion Classic Antique Auto Show will hold their highly esteemed event.

Ford Model A’s will be featured. Their web site is at Themarionclassic.com

Auto Museum, America’s Oldest Car Collection will hold concourse events from May 19 until Oct. 28. My favorite is always “Tutto Italiano,” which will be held on August 8th this year.This is a fascinating and beautiful setting for auto events; the museum is in

July 7 – Newport Naval Station Car Show, Dewey Field. This show is hosted by Newport Naval Station. Details are still sketchy, but this show traditionally gets a great turnout of pre- and post-World War 2 American and European Autos.

Airport. This is a car show and an aircraft show. Their web address is Newbedford-ma. gov/airport/nbair.html

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prime living

Opportunities

in a taxing world Sherri MahoneyBattles

The 2011 tax season ended in mid-March, and many people filed their tax return copies away and pushed all thoughts of taxes away until the next filing season. I welcome April 15th with open arms, and I extoll the virtues of working in a profession where the piles of work diminish just as the spring flowers begin to lift their faces towards the sun.

After April 15th I am overjoyed to be able to leave my office at 3 or 4 in the afternoon, don my gardening gloves and head for the dirt.

Unlike many of my clients, though, I do this with an eye towards the next tax season. The downtime that I enjoy after the filing season is wonderful, but it is also filled with opportunities as I help clients to navigate towards their next tax return.

I recognize that most people have a hard time putting the words opportunities and taxes in the same sentence, but that is where my edge as a tax professional best serves my clients.

There are a number of things that clients can do during the year that will make their future tax filings less stressful. Typically, when I meet with clients we discuss changes in income that they anticipate in the future year(s). If a client knows that their social security benefits will increase or they will be withdrawing additional funds from a retirement account, we will discuss how to have the taxes paid in from these sources in order to avoid a large tax bill at filing time.

are not currently having enough tax withheld from your retirement distributions.

Some clients will elect to file and pay estimated payments in lieu or in addition to having taxes withheld. When we prepare the 2011 tax return we provide estimated payment vouchers for the following year based on the 2011 tax.

Clients who don’t pay sufficient tax during the year will be penalized, and estimated payments are a way of avoiding

A nticipating taxes Most people don’t realize that they can have federal taxes withheld from their social security benefits. Additionally, filing a W4-P with the plan administrator for a retirement account will provide for taxes to be withheld from retirement distributions.

You can also complete a new W4-P if you

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these penalties. Additionally, a client can increase or decrease these estimated payments based on an anticipated increase or decrease in income.

Estimating Estimated payments are exactly that; estimated payments. You can adjust the amounts as necessary if you know you will have more income or decrease the payments if you know your income will be lower than you originally estimated. In order to avoid the penalty for not having enough tax paid in during the year you need to pay either one hundred percent of the previous year’s tax or ninety percent of the current year’s tax. If you know that your income will increase you can avoid the penalty by paying in at least the same tax that you owed the year before without incurring a penalty, but you will be writing out a check at tax time for the additional tax.

Some people prefer to do this adopting

the position that they prefer to have the use of their money for as long as possible.

Others will pay the additional tax during the year feeling more comfortable knowing that they will not have to write a check at filing time.

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H ave a plan I encourage clients to have taxes withheld whenever possible or make estimated payments. Experience has taught me that most people prefer not to have to write out large checks to the government for any reason!

Also, it’s not only the income items that should be discussed. We often employ strategies for deductions so that we maximize their impact. Medical expenses are only deductible to the extent they exceed 7.5% of adjusted gross income so it may be better to lump expenses in one year if there is a chance you may exceed the threshold.

Clients contemplating charitable contributions may want to make those contributions in years that they have income in a higher bracket thus lowering the tax at a higher rate versus a lower rate. Clients who have stock losses may elect to sell investment property or stocks with gains in order to use the losses to offset the gains.

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Know the math Knowing when the tax bracket changes is critical for future planning purposes. For 2012, the federal tax bracket changes from 15 to 25% at $70,700. So, a client who has taxable income in higher bracket will get more “bang for their buck” when they make deductions that lower the income at the higher rate. For example, a $6,000 Traditional IRA deduction made by a taxpayer with income in the higher bracket will reap a tax savings of $1,500 while a taxpayer in the lower bracket will save only $900.

I strongly advocate with clients for a relationship that continues after the filing season. Life doesn’t stop just because the tax season ends. Clients will buy houses, sell houses, sell stocks, get divorced, get married, etc., and if we discuss these changes as they occur we can plan for and minimize the impact these changes will have. Clearly, the tax world is full of opportunities for those that choose to take advantage of them!

Sherri M ahoney-Battles, of Taxing Matters, specializes in income tax preparation for small business owners. She lives on a farm in Westport with her husband, a plumbing and heating contractor, and their two daughters.

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prime season

Family estate planning

by Michelle Beneski

It is said that we never stop being a parent even after our children are fully grown.

I‘m a partner in a law firm, and often clients come to us asking if there is any way that we can help them protect the inheritance they plan on leaving their children.

They have a number of fears: possible loss due to divorce, lawsuits, bad money management, etc.

We hear it all the time, “Susie’s a great kid but she can’t say no to her husband and he spends money like it’s water.” Or, “I love all my daughters-in-laws but you don’t know what will happen in the future and I don’t want half my son’s inheritance lost in a divorce.”

Or, “Joe’s a great kid but he’s in a risky business and has gone bankrupt twice. Is there any way to protect his inheritance so he won’t lose it?”

The short answer is “Yes” With proper planning, you and your family can work together to ensure, as much as possible, that the family wealth will not

be lost. You can create a trust to receive the inheritance and hold it for the benefit of your child. This Trust could be used to protect the inheritance from bad spending habits, divorce, bankruptcy, etc.

It used to be only the super rich had trusts but in the current era many middle class families are choosing to design trusts to meet their family’s needs and protect family wealth for future generations.

A “spendthrift” trust A spendthrift trust is one created by parents to hold and manage money for a child. A third party such as a bank or responsible relative could be the trustee to properly manage the trust for the benefit of that child.

If the inheritance is in a spendthrift trust, creditors could not take the money. The cash could be used to support the child, so that you would know the child would always have the necessities in life—a place

to live, food, clothing, etc.

We never know what the future might hold. If an inheritance is left to a Trust rather than outright, the trust could contain standby provisions so that if your child needs government benefits in the future (because she became disabled) the Trust property would not disqualify her from receiving the benefits but would be available for extras to supplement her benefits.

A trust can make sure that your spouse can benefit from your assets during his or her lifetime but at your spouse’s death the property goes to your children and not a new spouse or an entirely different beneficiary.

Avoid double taxation If your child is wealthy your inheritance could be subject to estate taxes at both your death and then your child’s death. This could reduce the inheritance significantly.

You can avoid the second estate tax at your child’s death? It is possible with a trust that plans for multiple generations. Your child can control his inheritance and yet it may not have to be part of his taxable estate at his death.

If you have concerns about your children or grandchildren’s ability to manage an inheritance, or worry that the inheritance could be lost to a divorce, re-marriage, bankruptcy or creditors, then you should explore the appropriateness of leaving your child’s inheritance to a trust rather than outright.

If you have questions about trusts talk with an estate planning attorney in your area. The laws are complex and change often, but asset protection is possible with the proper guidance.

Attorney Michelle Beneski is a partner in Surprenant & Beneski, P.C. Her firm specializes in Estate, Tax, Medicaid and Special Needs Planning. For locations and more visit www. myfamilyestateplanning.com

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31

PRIME LIVING

a young lobster in the hand of lobsterman

L obsters and climate change

Passive postlarval collector

Divers suction sampling

by Joyce Rowley

As the days grow even warmer and we start thinking about summer, what could be more New England than a nice lobster boil?

So when I first read the report by the Division of Marine Fisheries, it seemed impossible that in a search for “young of the year” lobsters in 2010, only two were found in 196 collectors placed throughout Buzzards Bay, Martha’s Vineyard Sound, Rhode Island Sound, Narragansett Bay, and Block Island Sound. Just two.

In 2011, they found only one. And that was in deep water off the coast of Martha’s Vineyard Sound. None were found in Rhode Island waters.

What’s going on?

“American lobsters, the ones we know and love, have lived in our coastal waters for tens of thousands of years, and even survived the last glacial period,” said according to Rick Wahle, professor of marine biology at the Darling Center for Marine Sciences at the University of Maine School of Marine Sciences. Wahle has been studying American lobsters for over twenty years.

Lobsters are temperature dependent.

When water goes above about 20ºC or 68ºF, lobsters move away to cooler waters.

Temperature also controls how lobster larvae develop. Lobster eggs hatch into larvae

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that float along in the upper three feet of water—surface water that usually stays at just the right temperature for them to grow.

After three to six weeks, they settle down to the rocky bottom of shallow waters in the bays and nearshore shoals as “crickets” or young of the year. For the next two to three years, they continue to grow, using the rocks to hide. The shallows are also where they find their food—mostly smaller crustaceans and the occasional tiny mussels.

Without young of the year to replenish the stock, the lobster stock will die off.

A larming answers Commercial Fisheries Research Foundation, a non-profit research organization in Kingston, Rhode Island formed by commercial fishermen to study fisheries, funded a study of post-larval lobster settlement in coastal waters off Rhode Island and southern Massachusetts to find out where the young were settling and how many were surviving the first year.

Researchers measured temperatures, used specialized instruments called “drifters” to track ocean currents to determine where the lobster larvae would settle, and then

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positioned over 200 wire mesh rock tray “collectors” to count the young lobsters that settled. They also used divers to vacuum the seafloor into mesh bags to find the ½ inch-long young of the year at 17 locations that had been sampled historically.

The results were dismal. From a peak of 15 young of year lobsters per 90 square feet suctioned in 1990, the count dropped to 0 in the same areas in 2011.

Bob Glenn, principal investigator in the study, and senior marine biologist at the Division of Marine Fisheries in New Bedford, has predicted that in five to seven years, the stock will be even further depleted.

Glenn points to climate change as the culprit. Other stresses on lobsters such as two major oil spills in the past fifteen years—Bouchard’s spill off the Massachusetts coast in 2004 and the North Cape oil spill off the coast of Moonstone Beach, RI in 1995—were localized. Likewise shell disease, an attack on the lobsters’ shells, that appeared in RI waters in 1996 is present only in some areas but not others.

However, water temperatures throughout the area between Long Island Sound to Martha’s Vineyard Sound have exceeded 68ºF for 13 of the past 16 years, according to the report. Not in the 75 years of temperature measurement have such prolonged high surface temperature been measured. Higher water temperatures are now found in the bottom waters of Buzzards

Bay and Narragansett Bay, the nursery grounds for lobsters.

Not a surprise to some In 2006, the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), a leading science-based non-profit organization, recognized that lobsters would be a harbinger of climate change. In their Northeast Climate Impact Assessment (NECIA), they predicted that lobsters would be particularly hard hit. But they estimated that it would be mid-century before ocean water temperatures would be inhospitable to lobster.

“It’s almost unthinkable that the New England lobster would disappear from nearshore waters,” said Wahle who contributed to the UCS study. and was a co-investigator in the southern New England study led by Glenn.

Increased predation on newly settled lobster seems a less likely explanation for the lobster collapse because the leading predators, groundfish, have not become more abundant in southern New England, said Wahle. As those fish stocks get smaller, they are less likely to gobble up the young lobsters.

“It’s a real disturbing milestone after more than 20 years of sampling,” said Wahle.

“Emerging evidence suggest that climate change effects are progressing more rapidly than expected.”

Declines in southern New England lobster populations may be more strongly linked to the frequency of extreme warm events rather than the long-term change in average conditions, Wahle said. The 1999 lobster die-off in Long Island Sound may be a prime example of such an extreme event.

Both scientists said that adaptation of settling post-larval lobsters to offshore deep water would be difficult, if not impossible.

Wahle cited studies that show as the tiny lobsters drop through the water column to settle out, they tend to swim away from the bottom water layer if it is too cold.

What can be done If you haven’t already done so, watch An Inconvenient Truth, by former Vice-president Al Gore. It is an excellent primer on how greenhouse gases are affecting the world’s climate.

Regardless of political leanings, everyone from the Vatican to the U.S. Department of Defense are preparing for climate change resulting from greenhouse gases, says Mary Jane Sorrentino, an sustainability energy consultant. Trained by Gore’s Climate

Reality Project, she offers free lectures on climate change. (See sidebar).

Clearly, reversing the trend and cooling the ocean will take everyone’s help.

In Massachusetts, buildings account for 40% of the energy consumption leading to greenhouse gases, while motor vehicle emissions contribute another 30%.

Southeastern Environmental Education Alliance (SEEAL), a consortium of 22 organizations, launched the South Coast Energy Challenge in August 2011. Their goal is to reduce fossil fuel-based energy consumption by 15% among 15% of the households (that’s about 35,000 households) on the South Coast over the next three years.

“People really want to make a difference from right away,” said Jennifer Marshall Grantham, acting project manager of New Bedford Energy Now, a component of the South Coast Energy Challenge.

To make it interesting, they are now holding community “friendly” competitions among the 27 South Coast towns. According to Grantham, New Bedford is in the lead with 180 households signed on, with Dartmouth close behind at 120. Westport, Fall River and Fairhaven have also signed up for the challenge.

The easiest way towards the 3% reduction is through having a free home energy audit. MassSaves, a 30-year old State energy program pays for the audits, which are conducted by Next Step Living, a Boston firm that will soon be opening an office in New Bedford. Homeowners can see a 3% to 5% savings on their utilities bills in short order.

MassSaves also pays for the air sealing of homes—closing the gaps and holes that lead to heat loss in the winter and cool air loss from air conditioning in the summer.

MassSaves will pay for up to $2,000 in insulation upgrades.

Another way for the South Coast to hit the 3% mark is to go solar, says Grantham.

A solar worthy roof can save money and make money for a homeowner. Real Good Solar has partnered with SEEAL to offer assessments for free. Panels are installed and maintained by Real Good Solar.

Homeowners get a portion of the electricity generated and a reduced rate on their bills. Real Good Solar has been installing the photovoltaic panels since 1978 in California.

Migrating State Climate Changes in average summer heat index, a measure of how hot it actually feels given temperature and humidity, could strongly affect quality of life in the future of residents of the Northeast. Red arrows track what summers could feel like in Massachusetts over the course of the century under the higheremissions scenario. Yellow arrows track what summers in Massachusetts could feel like under the lower-emissions scenario.

Photos by Richard Wahle, Darlington Center for Marine Sciences at University of Maine S ou th C oast P r ime T imes

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Prime season

St. John the Baptist Parish closing When the news came about three years ago that the St. John the Baptist Church in New Bedford would potentially close, I Jay took the news with a grain of salt. Being a Pateakos reporter for many years, I’ve heard plenty of stories like this. But this one was personal.

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I grew up down the street from the church and was baptized and confirmed at the church. I was even an altar boy there for many years. But while my mother and sister still went to Sunday mass each week, I became a statistic of my generation and one that inevitably hurts many churches like St. John’s. I moved away, never to return to the church as a parishioner. My only visits there have been for three funerals of family members since 1997.

I know a lot of painstaking work went on behind the scenes to save the church after the initial announcement in 2009, but about a month ago, the Diocese of Fall River announced St. John’s would close after all, merging with Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, down the street.

There are parishioners still in denial, who still hope the church can be saved; others are angry and feel that the diocese had its mind made up long ago. Either way, there will be hundreds of devoted people who

will need to look for a new parish.

The diocese plans to put a task force together of five Mt. Caramel parishioners and five from St. John’s that will decide when the church will close. No easy task for any group, indeed.

“The decision to close any parish is never easy or made without careful deliberation and consultation. In the case of St. John the Baptist Parish, the decision followed a more than two-year-long study of its viability and concentrated efforts aimed at its renewal,” said Diocese of Fall River spokesman John Kearns. “In late 2008, Fall River diocesan Pastoral Planning staff and its building consultant began a series of meetings with the St. John the Baptist Parish Pastoral and Finance Councils to address the future of the parish. It was apparent that action was needed.”

end in October 2009 to 488 persons each weekend in November 2011. In contrast, in the year 2000, registered households in the parish numbered 1,410 and weekend Mass attendance averaged 730.

In essence, the church was averaging about 120 people in each of its four masses each weekend despite its capacity to hold 900 people per mass.

Financial needs But all was not bad. During the same time, St. John’s was able to pay its current bills and a few of its outstanding ones, but in the end was still carrying a $200,000 debt. The parish’s capital campaign, with a goal of $750,000, had received pledges of $300,000 of which $129,000 had been collected. In 2009, necessary repairs to the church were estimated at $1.5 million.

“Though the members of the Parish Pastoral and Finance Councils worked very hard in their drive for parish renewal, the process had not produced significant progress toward its stated goals,” said Kearns.

Some

History and decline

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The oldest Portuguese Church in the nation and dating back to 1871, the present St. John the Baptist Church was built in 1913 after the original church was lost to fire in 1908.

Kearns said it was clear the number of St. John’s parishioners had declined significantly over the previous decade, reflecting demographic shifts in New Bedford. As a result, parish registrations, Mass attendance and sacramental statistics were down; parish income was insufficient to meet ordinary expenses, and necessary repairs to the church, particularly the roof, had been delayed.

In late 2009, Bishop George W. Coleman granted an extended time through 2011 to implement programs to build membership and steady finances at the church. Reverend John J. Oliveira, pastor of St. John’s from 1994-2001, was brought back to the church in the dual role of running both St. John’s and Mt. Carmel in 2009 to oversee the efforts to revive the church.

During the next nearly two years, the parish had been able to boost its number of registered families by 52 for a total of 1,065 households. Mass attendance, however, fell from an average of 565 persons per week-

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bers The potential closing of St. John’s is not an isolated incident. Since 2002, twenty parishes in the Fall River Diocese have closed.

“The problem at St. John’s is a problem of many urban cities and the changing of demographics which have gone on over the last 30 years, not only happening in New England but in the midwest and other parts of the country,” said Reverend Oliveira. “These churches, built more than 100 years ago, need significant maintenance and it’s a struggle for these parishes, and the maintenance then gets deferred. And over the years, the congregation changes, people move out of the city and people who move in aren’t necessarily Catholic. There are also many people who are living without the Eucharist, who are not regular parishioners.”

Reverend Oliveira said those factors combined to put an overwhelming task on the

trying to handle it

with faith.

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people of St. John’s Church to save a ship with a massive tear in its side.

News of the church’s impending closing came to the congregation in the form a letter from the Bishop read by Rev. Oliveira after his St. Patrick’s Day Homily.

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“Obviously people are very sad. It’s a great loss, especially to those most committed to the parish. Some are very distraught or angered by the decision; others are trying to handle it with faith,” said Rev. Oliveira.

“This was not due to only one factor, and the diocese takes no pleasure in closing parishes. They want to increase interest and help to strengthen communities.”

Kearns said parishes and diocesan ministries are regularly trying new initiatives to reach out, to evangelize and to draw Catholics into a deeper and more active life of faith, creating a stronger parish community with additional resources and participation for vibrancy and continued growth, he said.

“There is a program—or more accurately a process—in place each year to assist those adults who are interested in joining the Church,” said Kearns. “It is known as the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA), and through it last year almost 300 were welcomed into the Church in the Fall River Diocese in rites during the Easter Vigil.”

But none of this will help St. John’s.

Many of the long-time parishioners don’t exactly know yet what they will do when their lifetime church closes. George Ladino, 86, of New Bedford, was baptized, married 64 years ago, and saw all five of his children baptized within the church’s walls. Ladino, who was part of the Capital Campaign Committee, said part of the problem in struggling to raise money for the church repairs was that people were hesitant to give because they were unsure of the church’s future.

Other problems included having no new apartment buildings or houses being built around the church and the constant park-

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ing woes which never helped the church’s chances of securing new members.

With no specific date to close yet, Ladino still has hope his church can be saved.

“No specified date is a good thing. It means maybe this can be reconsidered,” said Ladino, who has no idea where he would go if the church closes. “We just need a little more time and we can make this work. St. John’s is a part of my life and all of us are one big family. We’re not about to break that up.”

Tradition and memories Jesse Santos, 82, of New Bedford was baptized and married in the church. Both of his sons and grandchildren are still heavily involved in the church.

“When the Bishop talked to us about the amount of money needed to help the church, I knew it would be difficult. People just don’t go to church anymore.

When we were kids, that’s what we did; we all went to church on Sundays, but that’s not the case anymore,” said Santos, who plans to go to Mt. Carmel or Holy Name if St. John’s closes.

“You can build the Taj Mahal of churches and you still wouldn’t get any parishioners. The younger generation is just not going to church. It’s not just in New Bedford, it’s everywhere.”

“And with this church closing, there will be people who will never go to church again. People we will never see again,” added Santos. “These are people we have known our whole life. It’s heartbreaking.”

The sad part

here is the history behind this church.

It’s such a strong history and the diocese should have done more to help us.

Uncertain information Representing the next generation, Isabel Pimental, 52, a member of St. John’s since 1970, said the Pastoral Council and Finance Committee, of which she was a part, had heard rumors for years leading up to the 2009 announcement. Pimental and other members of the church drew up a letter to the diocese requesting a look at the church’s total financial picture. Two months later, a meeting was convened with

the diocese. The group learned that the church was more than $250,000 in debt.

“Our jaws dropped. We never knew anything about the debt. We would never have let it get to that point if we had known,” said Pimental.

As part of the group which petitioned the diocese for more time to raise funds and clear debt, Santos said the diocese was never clear of the exact benchmarks they were looking for to keep the parish open and never gave the group a specific time they would need to raise the money by.

“The problem was it took us six months to get it going, and they did give us more time but never told us how much time. When we pushed them, they wanted a three percent increase each quarter,” said Pimental.

“I asked them if any church in the diocese had seen that kind of increase. No. How about the east coast? No. They told me it was a national average, but how can we get those figures? Really?”

Pimental said her group was able to pay down the debt and keep current on their bills, while bringing in 52 new families, but with the dark cloud of a potential closing hovering over their heads, many families were apprehensive to join the parish.

Still reeling from the closing announcement, Pimental said her parents took the news as if there was a death in the family.

Her feelings are that the diocese knew back in 2009 that the church was going to close, and the two plus years of efforts on the congregation’s part was all for nothing.

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Jay Pateakos has been a freelance writer for more than 10 years including daily and weekly newspapers and monthly magazines. A native of New Bedford, Mr. Pateakos currently lives in Marion and has three children.

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Unhappy ending She said no matter what, because of all that went down and how this church closing was handled, the diocese will never see another penny from her family.

“The sad part here is the history behind this church. It’s such a strong history and the diocese should have done more to help us,” said Pimental, who plans to go “church-hopping” to find the right church for herself and her 19-year-old daughter.

“I don’t think we ever had enough time or had the chance to make this work. We were done before we began.”

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Book Picks by Baker

by M agoo Gelehrter

Courtesy of Baker Books – www.bakerbooks.net

Spring has come at last, but after such a mild winter conditions are already very dry. But don’t give up on your garden yet! There are plenty of ways to reduce water consumption and still sustain a vibrant garden full of beautiful flowers and plenty to eat. Read any or all of the following books for some great ideas that will help life blossom all around you.

PARADISE UNDER GLASS: EDUCATION OF AN INDOOR GARDENER

BULB GARDEN: COLORFUL BLOOMS & LUSH FOLIAGE

by P. Allen Smith IPG $14.95 card deck

by Ruth Kassinger Harper Collins $15.99 paperback

The box this set of cards comes with is well fashioned and the cards within it tell you everything you need to know about spring and summer bulbs. The beautifully composed photograph of the flowers on each card renders all the beauty of the flowers save for the scent. The individual flower bulb cards each present the information you need regarding the type of soil, amount of sunlight, how deep to plant the bulb and when to plant it, when it blooms, the growing zone, well conceived project ideas, and more!

Ruth Kassinger was at an emotional crossroads. Confronted with the death of a beloved sister, her children’s departure for college, and her own recent battle with breast cancer, she was searching for a way forward. Then one cold, gray evening, she wandered into the U.S. Botanic Garden’s conservatory—and a dream was born.

Dazzled by the vast and dense tangle of greenery, Kassinger decided to create a verdant sanctuary in her own home, even though the sum total of her previous indoor gardening experience was one neglected houseplant at the top of her basement stairs. In Paradise Under Glass, Ruth chronicles her journey from brown thumb to green, while sharing the knowledge and insights that creating and sustaining her fabulous garden has bestowed—lessons of loss and letting go, nurturing and rebirth, challenge and change, love and serenity.

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THE OUTDOOR ROOM

by Jamie Durie Harper Collins $25.99 paperback Jamie Durie, international award-winning horticulturalist and landscape designer, reveals the secrets behind his incredible designs on the ever-popular HGTV series The Outdoor Room, now viewed in over twelve countries. With dynamic photography, including Jamie’s personal travel photographs and a sneak peek of his private garden, this information-packed companion to his smash-hit t.v. show is as hardworking as it is stunning. Complete with detailed site plans, zonal plant lists, and helpful eco-tips, it covers everything from the basics of landscape design to practical, hands-on information, such as how to design your own private garden using Jamie’s philosophy. From an exotic Balinese-inspired dining pavilion to a private English-style garden with an adjoining children’s play area, Jamie shows you how to incorporate his techniques and design principles to create a personal and truly unique garden, giving you and your family and friends the opportunity to reconnect with nature in the privacy of your very own outdoor room.

THE SUSTAINABLE LANDSCAPE: TEN PROJECTS WITH WATER EFFICIENCY & RECYCLED MATERIALS

by Damon Lang Schiffer $29.99 hardcover

THE HEIRLOOM LIFE GARDENER: THE BAKER CREEK WAY OF GROWING YOUR OWN FOOD NATURALLY

by Jere & Emilee Gettle Hyperion $29.99 hardcover Tired of genetically modified food Every day, Americans are moving more toward eating natural, locally grown food free of pesticides and preservatives—and there is no better way to ensure this than to grow it yourself. Anyone can start a garden, whether in a backyard or on a city rooftop; but what they need to truly succeed is The Heirloom Life Gardener, a comprehensive guide to cultivating heirloom vegetables.

In this invaluable resource, Jere and Emilee Gettle, cofounders of the Baker Creek Heirloom Seed Company, offer a wealth of knowledge to every kind of gardener—experienced pros and novices alike. In his friendly voice, complemented by gorgeous photographs, Jere gives planting, growing, harvesting, and seed saving tips. In addition, an extensive A to Z Growing Guide includes amazing heirloom varieties that many people have never even seen. From seed collecting to the history of seed varieties and name origins, Jere takes you far beyond the heirloom tomato. This is the first book of its kind that is not only a guide to growing beautiful and delicious vegetables, but also a way to join the movement of people who long for real food and a truer way of living.

RHS HOW TO GROW PLANTS IN POTS

by Martyn Cox DK $19.95 paperback Whether you want to bring impact and beauty indoors or dress up your patio with flowers or productive plants, RHS Grow Plants in Pots is packed with inspirational ideas that explore the full range of plants that can be grown in containers. With gorgeous photography, information on growing fruits and vegetables in containers, and plants organized by growing conditions and key qualities for ease of reference, Grow Plants in Pots features exciting combinations and design ideas, showing plants in situ in the home and on patios and roof terraces.

This is the essential guide to growing plants in small spaces, indoors and out.

Dress up your patio with flowers, create your own vegetable patch on a balcony or bring impact and style to your conservatory with RHS How to Grow Plants in Pots.

Packed with exciting ideas for design and practical growing tips, plants have been organised by growing conditions and key qualities to direct you to just what you need. Troubleshoot any problems that you may encounter using the handy help section and find solutions for common plant diseases and pests to keep your pots looking perfect. No matter how large or small your space, RHS How to Grow Plants in Pots will give you all the information you need to create your own Garden of Eden.

528 beautiful color photos detail 10 projects that are diverse in style and taste.

Each incorporates recycled materials and principles of water efficiency. A valuable resource for homeowners, landscape designers, contractors, and architects, this idea book will help you transform your yard into a personal and ecologically responsible paradise.

BIRD BEE & BUG HOUSES: SIMPLE PROJECTS FOR YOUR GARDEN

by Derek Jones Guild of Master Craftsman Publications $17.95 paperback Transform any garden into a wildlife haven by creating perfect nesting places for birds, bats, bees, butterflies, lacewings, and ladybugs. All that’s needed are a few basic woodworking techniques, tools, and materials (some recycled or scavenged) to complete these 18 projects. Every project comes with an exploded diagram and cutting list, and there’s information on choosing locations, maintenance, species habits, and nesting requirements.

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39

P rime S e ason

My senior moment Paul K andarian

Ah, April, ‘tis spring, when a young man’s fancy lightly turns to thoughts of love.

And a middle-aged man’s fancy turns to thoughts of disemboweling store clerks offering senior discounts.

Sigh.

You just can’t turn back the clock I guess.

Might be best to just not look at it.

I knew it had to happen sooner or later, hearing someone utter the two words I feared the most as I hit my late 50s, more even than hearing my doctor utter “Viagra helps.” Those would be “senior discount,” and it happened at The Market at Pinehills in Plymouth, a terrific if not pricey store with great food and a straightforward name. The Market. Tells it like it is. Sort of like “Viagra helps.”

I was in there one blue-sky day when all was bright and my normally dour journalistic personality was lightened considerably because of the sunshine chasing away any remnants of seasonal affective disorder.

I went in, browsed, marveling at the variety of stuff, the friendliness of the staff, how clean the store was, in short, I was feeling good. I got to checkout and was met by a bright, smiling young man, whose thoughts were presumably turning to love given the weather, but who turned my world upside down with: “Do you want the discount?”

I froze. I knew, instinctively, what he meant. You don’t live 58 years on Planet Earth without developing a keen sense of intuition about such things you’d prefer to ignore.

“What…what discount?” I responded cleverly, words being my life and all.

He smiled—and pointed to a little square of paper glued to the card scanner right in front of my face, a sign I was apparently blind to, subconsciously, much like I’m blind to the signs in my body telling me it’s

40

time to slow down and stop acting like a 12 year old.

There it was, a sign that read: “You’re very, very old. You’re going to die very, very soon. You’ll probably snap a hip just reading this sign. Don’t even think about the fact your life is three quarters done, that you’ve got way, way WAY more years behind you than ahead of you. Are you having chest pains? Different things hurt every day? Prepare to meet your maker. It won’t be long. He’ll be waiting. But until then, did you know we’re having a sale on Depends?”

OK, it didn’t say that. It just said “Tuesday is Senior Citizen Discount day! 10 percent off!!”

Oh. That sign.

I didn’t know what to make of it. And in fact, I actually did tell the poor kid, “You know, I’ve wondered exactly what I’d do the first time anyone asked me that question. And congratulations, you’re the first.”

I looked at the lady bagging and smiled a sad smile. She was about my age. She knew. Very nicely she explained that she trains the young worker to ask customers… my age…God…about the discount, but politely. I’ll give the kid that, he was very polite about it, though I wouldn’t have really cared if he snarled, “Hey old man, want your 10 percent or what?”

I had to ask: What is the age you get a discount? Fifty five, I was told. Fifty five?

Seriously, 55? That’s “senior” age, fifty freakin’ five? Fifty five used to be the speed limit—when I was 21. And now it’s old enough to consider moving into the Wait-

S ou th C oast P r ime T imes  A pr il / M ay 2012

ing To Die Acres Retirement Community on Future Cadaver Road? Are you yanking my arthritic leg????

I mean really, what’s next, AARP invites?

Oh, crap, what am I saying, I’ve been getting those for years, since I turned 50, for criminy’s sake. Are those godless SOBs that hard up for customers, they’re robbing the 50-year-old cradle? Can’t they wait until I’m closer to Betty White’s age?

Honestly, it hit me hard, and I worried about succumbing to my demographic. I resisted the urge to peruse magazine ads to buy Sansabelt slacks and then complain they’re too short as I pull them up to my nipples. I called my kids and told them that the second I start to really turn into an old man, the instant I start babbling about being on a fixed income, please, please shoot me.

How about next Thursday, they said. I love my kids.

For the record, I did not take the discount.

I figure if I don’t take it, I’m not a senior citizen. OK, twisted logic, but so is thinking nipple-high Sansabelt slacks look cool.

I shambled out of the store, dejected. The sun was still out. It was still a bright, sunshiny day. Then it hit me: There are so few of these days left. I vowed to cherish each and every one, each and every moment, to love my loved ones with all my heart, to be kind to strangers and stray dogs, to embrace every second, to raise my hands to the sky and tell the world how happy I am to be alive.

Oh, and to take the damn discount. Hey, I’ll be on a fixed income soon enough, and 10 percent here, 10 percent there…

Paul Kandarian is a lifelong area resident and has been a professional writer for the past 23 years whose work has appeared in Yankee, Banker and Tradesman, American History, a variety of alumni magazines and many other publications. He writes regularly for The Boston Globe, and is a contributing editor and columnist for Rhode Island Monthly magazine.

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