Up Portland July 2019

JULY 2019

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Joe Bornstein’s Arrive Alive Contest Gives Awards, But Biggest Prize Is Safe Drivers On Maine Roads

There were a lot of happy students, proud parents and friends, plus some very recognisable names present at the Old Port offices of attorney Joe Bornstein on a recent evening as well-deserved recognition was given to area students who took part in the firm’s annual Arrive Alive Creative Contest.

The contest is open to graduating high school seniors throughout the state of Maine, who are invited to submit a creative project of their choice that sends a message to their peers about the dangers of drinking and driving and/or distracted driving. In other words: Hang Up and Drive!

Past winners have submitted essays, poems, paintings, videos, original songs, public service announcements, t-shirt designs, board games, video games, drawings, and more as the contest sponsors at the Bornstein Law Firm noted, “The more creative, the better!”

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Something not feeling quite right?

In pain and want a professional opinion?

Struggling with ongoing injury or chronic pain?

First place winners receive a new laptop, second and third place get new iPads, and everyone who enters wins prizes from the Law Offices of Joe Bornstein, where the top 20 finishers are invited to an awards ceremony to be honoured and receive their prizes. And big prizes those are as in the past 15 years, the firm has given away over $140,000 in awards to graduating high school seniors who have helped educate their peers on safe driving practices.

Since its humble beginnings with just two participating schools, the competition has also grown to be state-wide, as teachers include the contest in their curriculum and driving schools have long educated their students, but there’s so much more to be done.

Joe told Up Portland, “As a personal injury lawyer and parent, I am aware of the dangers of distracted driving and have repeatedly urged my children to make wise decisions while driving.

“The goal of the Arrive Alive Creative Contest is to educate teenagers in their most formative driving years and help keep the roadways safe for Mainers of all ages for generations to come. This is one way that my law firm gives back to the communities in which we live and work, and I am truly touched to see how the contest has grown.”

And grown it has, as over 900 entries from more than 125 high schools in Maine have been logged.

Want to see the winning concepts? Bornstein is proud to showcase the winning artwork and has gathered 60 of the top paintings and drawings to create a travelling exhibit that depicts the decisions teenagers face when behind the wheel.

To date, it’s been to the Portland Public Library, Bangor Public Library, Bangor Mall, Auburn Mall, Boys and Girls Club of Southern Maine, Maine Mall, Coffee by Design, Portland City Hall, Portland Bureau of Motor Vehicles, Scarborough Bureau of Motor Vehicles, and the Portland Public Market House at Monument Square, where it was on show as of last week.

Nathan Bergeron, the firm’s director of marketing and PR noted, “The creativity that these teenagers have and the impact their messages make are quite powerful. Each year, we are more and more impressed by the submissions and we’re really proud to be able to reward these graduating seniors for their lasting efforts.”

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Beyond The Forecast

By Jack Sillin / Weatherman & Meterology Student Hello everyone!

We’re now moving deeper into the Summer here in Maine, which means that we’re in the heart of severe thunderstorm season. Other recent columns have discussed severe weather here on the coast of Maine in the broad sense, including what you need to get a thunderstorm, and why storms so often die out as they approach us on the coast.

This month, however, I’d like to take a look at one of the specific impacts that can make some storms very impactful: large chunks of falling ice known as hail.

Hail is a relatively rare phenomenon here in Maine, but when it happens, it can be quite impactful. Even hailstones as small as an inch across can be quite damaging. Shattered windows, dented cars, and ruined crops are all possible when an area is pelted with hail. So what does a storm need to produce hail, and what conditions are most favourable for it?

Hail’s long journey to the ground begins when supercooled water droplets (drops of liquid water with a temperature below freezing) encounter a particle known as a hail nucleus.

Hail nuclei can be bits of dust, grains of sand, or even small insects. Once the supercooled droplets hit the nucleus, they freeze into a small icy sphere, and a hailstone is born. At this point the hailstone is extremely small, barely visible with the naked eye. To survive the trip through above-freezing air near the surface and make it to the ground, it needs to get a lot bigger.

Hail growth occurs in the rapidly rising current of air known as the updraft at the centre of the storm. As the hail rises through the updraft, it runs into more supercooled water droplets, which then freeze to the outside of the hailstone, thus increasing its size. This process continues until the hail is too heavy to be supported by the updraft, at which point it falls to the ground.

If this sounds a little bit different from what you learned in earth science class, that’s because hail forms slightly differently depending on the setup of the atmosphere. If the storm is tall enough and there’s enough change in wind speed and direction with height, the hail can cycle through the storm many times.

After initially forming and rising through the updraft, the hailstone would then be kicked out into the downdraft where it would fall towards the surface. Just before it arrived, it would get kicked back into the updraft for another trip. This cycle would continue until the stone got too heavy. This is how the giant hail you see out in the Plains is formed.

How do we tell the difference? If you cut open a Great Plains hailstone you’ll see rings much like those inside a tree trunk. Each ring represents one trip through the storm. Try this in Maine and you’re almost certain to find just one slightly translucent colour.

Now that we know how hail forms, we can discuss what atmospheric setups might be conducive to hail. First of all, you need a strong updraft. That means all the ingredients for a thunderstorm I mentioned in last month’s column

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(moisture, instability, and lift) need to be present. But not all thunderstorms produce hail, so what else do we need?

One key ingredient is a low freezing level. If a hailstone, especially the relatively small ones we see in Maine, is faced with a 20,000 foot descent through temps above freezing, it will melt before it can hit the ground. That’s why despite all the thunderstorms, you’ll almost never see hail in Florida.

In Maine, we routinely get pockets of cold air aloft that drop our freezing levels to 10,000 feet or below, which makes it much easier for hail to survive the trip to the ground. This is especially common early in the season; some of our most widespread hail events have occurred in April and May. It’s also important to know how tall the thunderstorm is. The more of the updraft that is below freezing, the more room there is for hail to grow. The top of a thunderstorm is determined by the point at which a rising air parcel is no longer warmer, and thus less dense, than its surroundings. The warmer and moister a parcel is initially, the higher up this point will be. A warmer overall environment will also push this point higher.

These two factors almost always point towards opposite outcomes. The colder the overall environment is, the lower the freezing level will be (good for hail), and the shorter the updraft will be (bad for hail). The opposite would be true for a warm environment.

To get hail, you usually need the two factors to balance out somewhere in the middle. There is one exception though, and it is responsible for producing the biggest hail seen out on the Plains. Occasionally, we get a much-diluted version of this feature in Maine, which is when we have the best chance of seeing hail larger than an inch in diameter (the criteria for a severe thunderstorm warning).

The feature I’m talking about is known as an Elevated Mixed Layer or EML for short. It has its origins out in the high deserts of Northern Mexico, where strong sunshine and dry ground combine to produce a very deep layer of hot and dry air with temperatures in the high 90’s or low 100’s and dew points in the 10’s.

If the winds are set up just right, this layer of hot dry air begins to move off the desert and onto the Plains without losing much of its initial elevation. If there aren’t any storms to modify this air, it can even drift all the way to us in Maine.

So why is the EML good for hail? It’s a way of making both of the parameters discussed above favourable for hail production. When an EML is present (and there’s enough moisture/lift for thunderstorms), the environment is very warm and unstable. That means updrafts are very tall and very strong. The environment is also very dry. That means that as a storm begins to condense water vapor into liquid water droplets, there’s a lot of evaporation. That evaporation (change from liquid back to gas) takes energy from the surrounding air, which subsequently drops in temperature. This process drops the freezing level for only the area immediately surrounding the updraft. The storm still has access to large amounts of very warm air for fuel, but now it also has a lower freezing level to help the hail form and reach the ground.

Now that you know how hail is formed and what conditions are favourable for hail development, keep your eyes peeled for those early season thunderstorm days and any time we might have an EML on the way. Those would probably be good days to keep the car in the garage. Speaking of cars and hail, if you’re in the market for a new ride and can tolerate some dents here and there, a hailstorm could get you a big discount. Back in August of 2015, York County car dealerships held “hail sales” with 25% price cuts after a storm put sizeable dents in their inventory.

I’ll be back next month with another look at Maine’s weather.

-Jack

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Jack’s Weather Terms Tropical Wave --- A tropical wave is a small disturbance in the tropics that can, under the right conditions, act as a seed for tropical cyclone development. The waves are characterised by a disorganised region of showers and thunderstorms loosely focused around an axis of shifting winds.

The waves originate as ripples in the African Easterly Jet, a stream of winds blowing from east to west along the southern edge of the Sahara Desert. While most tropical waves never develop into tropical cyclones, those that do can be particularly intense because they have thousands of miles travelling over the open Atlantic to strengthen.

Tropical Cyclone --- While this one may seem very intuitive, there is a set of criteria used to determine whether a storm system in the tropical regions is actually a tropical cyclone.

A tropical cyclone has a well-defined and closed centre of circulation, and has its warmest temperatures at the centre of the storm. Tropical cyclones are given more specific names, such as tropical storm and hurricane, based on the strength of their maximum sustained winds.

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Layne’s Wine Time

style in the guise of pinot noir flavour. A prime accompaniment with bubble gum. Your 15 bucks just went “bye-bye”.

Castle Rock Pinot Noir, Mendocino, 2016, $10. Delicious, silky smooth pinot from a cool climate in Northern California. Lighter chicken dishes or Chinese fare. Always bang for the buck as a winery.

Layne V. Witherell / Up Portland Wine Critic

QUIRKY PINOT NOIR It has been dubbed “The Heartbreak Grape” because it wants to behave the way it wants to, grow where it wants to and taste like it wants to, irrespective of your miserable, puny wishes; it is both quirky and elusive. The resulting wine can run the gamut from “Jolly Rancher-bubble gum” to “potentially haunting essences of place” (thank you, Jancis Robinson) with a world of wines in between. “He is the tortured child genius of the varietal world”, (thank you, Kathryn Borel). The wine-grower must choose just the right spot and the right technique to enable the grape to become magic. These are wines to try and think about.

Look up “flavour of pinot noir” on your smart phone and you are bombarded with a cascade of crowd-sourced comments masquerading as the wisdom of the ages --- mostly dealing with the “proper” glass with which to inhale the perfume of this illusive grape. And you thought this shit was easy?

CALIFORNIA Red Rock Pinot Noir, California, 2016, $15. The secret is finding a cool climate that the grape likes --- this isn’t it. A perfect example of the “jolly rancher”

Castle Rock Pinot Noir, Russian River Reserve, 2013, $15.99. Russian River is cooler yet, bringing out that elusive “game bird” and wild mushroom character moving in the direction of the flavour of singular sites. Salmon with a side of al dente pasta. This is older, quality pinot noir at a ridiculously good price.

The three-glass photo is your ascending progression of aroma of enlightenment.

Far left is the Willi’s Wine Bar favourite. Next to it a classic Bordeaux, and on the right is the “fishbowl” special for pinot noir. If you don’t have one, just dig around the cupboard and wash one out. The Buddha fountain in our backyard is the serenity of you alongside your pinot noir.

OREGON The sages from California predicted this place to be too cold and too wet to ripen pinot noir: sorry sages. There are now 800 wineries here. Too many? Just Google up “wineries and vineyards for sale in Oregon” and you make the call.

There are masterpieces still grown and produced here but the dark specter of tourism, crowd-sourced opinions and rank amateurism (not to mention just plain, old fashioned greed) has led to many duds in your bottle. These are good examples of wine quality for the money.

Firesteed Pinot Noir, 2016, Willamette Valley, $12. Oregon veers toward the metaphysical, in place, consciousness and wine. This is a mini ride in that world for few bucks. Dark cherry, schrooms (no, not those schrooms!) and silkysmooth violets. Hot damn.

Sharecropper’s Pinot Noir, 2017, Oregon, $20. We’re getting there. Moving

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EUROPE In this case it is that little stretch 30 miles long in France called Burgundy that is the home to the most famed, most esteemed, most exasperating, most difficult pinot noir to buy at a reasonable price (much less getting totally ripped off).

You are buying a place name, a vintage, a producer and scarcity, all at the same time. Burgundy is the “Holy Grail” that you search for and seldom find.

Why? An antiquated inheritance system where thousands of small vineyards get more subdivided each generation. Too much money chasing scarcity. The fallacy of the small obscure vineyard being the greatest is simply that: a fallacy.

Faiveley Bourgogne Rouge, 2016, $50 - $65. (the average wine list price on lots of local wine lists). I like Faiveley as a producer and Burgundy as a place, but I would rather spend my $50 in a restaurant on a zinfandel or cabernet, knowing that I will be getting much more for my money.

Our one stop for well selected Burgundy in Portland is Petite Jacqueline. Their list will always have an example of a “real Burgundy”, tasted by a buyer who knows their stuff. The two fashionable words from the rookie set are “minerality” and “terroir (flavour of place)”. There should be a flavour of there --- not just the grape but each vineyard expressing its own personality. Get together several people and share one of these masterpieces. closer. As you spend more, the flavours should get more interesting, or at least they are supposed to. These people have a winery in Newberg, Oregon, and one in Washington (where they make a killer cabernet sauvignon). Herbs, gamebird, violets and a velvety cloak, all equal squeals of delight from the gallery. Pinot noir is the grape that you think about as opposed to most roses or pinot grigios, the wines that you throw down.

Sunday brunch at Chaval: Huevos Rancheros with chorizo and a bottle of Maison Roi “Petite Incline”, 2015, Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, $56. Earth, mushrooms, sour cherries, whew, with the view of a freshly painted back deck with an awesome mural and a nice day (I repeat, a nice day). And a big assed balloon glass. Great service. Wine is about occasionally. This is the reason why wine tastes SO GREAT in Europe. We were in Europe, it just happened to be Europe on the West End of Portland, Maine.

Louis Jadot Santenay, 2013, $70. A bolder version, earthier yet. Have with a duck confit crepe. The two best friends alongside of pinot noir are salmon (especially in the form of sushi) and duck. Pinot noir is a life-long search. Favourite books are: Burgundy by Anthony Hanson and The Heartbreak Grape by Marq De Villiers.

(EDITORS NOTE: Layne is a professional in the wine business with over 30 years’ experience. He can be reached at lvwitherell@gmail.com for talks and consulting.

His website is //http:winemaniacs.wordpress.com. Layne is also hosting an event “Layne’s Wine Gig” every third Friday of the month from 4.30 to 5.30 p.m. at Port City Blue, 650A Congress St. $12 gets you four three-ounce pours and a rollicking schtick of a good time. Be there!).

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Mark: My Words

By Mark Gatti / Mark’s Hotdogs Monday, 13 June 1983. It is a sunny day in Portland, Maine, and the temperature reaches 85°. A nervous young man sets up his hotdog stand at Tommy’s Park. It is his first day in business and he is scared to death.

What else is going on that day around the world?

---The U.S. Embassy in Beirut is bombed. Go figure: strife in the Middle East.

---Famine reaches tragic levels in Ethiopia as millions have starved to death. A catastrophic cycle that keeps repeating.

---Cruise missiles are deployed by U.S. in Europe. Oh yeah, we used to be a strong NATO ally for Europe.

---Pioneer 10 becomes the first man-made object to leave our solar system and enter outer space. No matter how you feel about space exploration, a pretty amazing accomplishment.

---The person first convicted of failing to register for the new “stand by” draft is ordered to serve a two-year sentence volunteering at a food bank. It’s easy to forget that we had segments of our population under daily food stress 36 years ago.

---Presidential Democratic hopeful Mondale stumps Maine for support, claims under Reagan the higher income classes get more tax relief. Some things never change.

---Pres. Reagan presses ahead with a proposal to develop atomic reactors. He states it could play a key role in future U.S. military strategy. This idea had been nixed by the Carter Administration when a nuclear fueled USSR spy satellite crashed in northern Canada in 1978, scattering nasty radioactive debris. File under: Yikes!

---Red Sox 29 – 29 and in 5th place out of the seven teams in the AL East. Our hero, Carl Yastrzemski’s last season, too bad a mediocre year by the Olde Towne Team.

---Could not pinpoint actual day, but 1983 saw the beginning of the Internet and the first cellular phone call. File under: jury still out, will these technologies save us or kill us!

What was going on that day locally?

The Maine State legislature decided on four items on the docket, the first being the tourism promotional programme was trimmed. I remember us being in a recession then and the state budget under duress, but trimming the tourism budget? Without tourism Maine tanks like Greece has in the EU. The Lewiston University campus nixed. Times were kind of tough.

Thirdly, property tax relief shot down. Once again, some things never change.

new McDonald’s store proposal. I remember all the hub-bub about this. The citizens opposition failed but if I’m remembering correctly a compromise was that the store had to blend in with the surrounding neighborhood. It was housed in a stately looking large white home at the end of the main drag. I ate there once with my dad and felt like I was having an out-of-body and time experience. The food didn’t taste any different, though.

Now back to this point in time at Tommy’s Park --- my very first day as a food vendor. As earlier referenced, I was nervous and scared. Generally speaking, any first day at a new job brings trepidation. These feelings are ratcheted up when you are on your own in a self-employed venture. It took a long while to get organised that day, so I arrived just before lunch time. Within 10 minutes or so a small line of customers formed. I hadn’t even had time to “de-link” my hotdogs --- they had been hurriedly placed in the streamer in strings of ten. My hands shaking with nervousness, I clumsily tried to un-snap each hot dog from its links, breaking most in half. Most of those first customers were middle-aged businessman and I remember how patient and nice they were to me. They easily sensed my nervousness and I remain ever thankful of their kindness to this day!

After this first rush of several customers I had a lull in business and was able to get properly organised. Starting to calm down, things were going smoothly until a customer with a beautiful dress ordered a hot dog with mustard. As I attempted to squeeze the mustard out, the top popped off the bottle and a huge explosion of mustard landed on her dress! I wanted to run away and hide. After the initial shock, her eyes filled with empathy as she told me not to worry about it. I offered to pay any dry cleaning bills, but she sweetly declined my offer. I remain ever grateful to this day, although I never remember her patronizing my stand again.

There is one more embarrassing moment that day. During a rush of business, a high-pitched voice behind me placed an order. “Thank you very much ma’am” I sweetly replied as I turned around, my eyes at chest level of a huge burly man standing about 6 foot 4 inches. If looks could kill! And must have looked so scared to him, he mercifully paid for his order without any calamitous events to yours truly. Obviously, I remain eternally grateful to this large man as well: lesson learned, never assume anything!

Other memories of past 13th June anniversary moments: My 25th anniversary was a well-planned event carried out primarily by my wife.

A beautiful sunny day; much fun was had by all. Part of the celebration included the giving away of commemorative coffee mugs to the first 100 customers. I’ve heard some of these mugs are still being enjoyed. Just the other day a young mom with a child in tow mentioned her dad, now retired, continues to fill his Mark’s mug with his morning brew. The gentleman, a long-time regular in the past, told his daughter to come down and give me his regards and have lunch with me – continuing a family tradition.

The 30th anniversary was a washout. It rained so hard that I end up leaving around noon. A baker friend of mine had kindly baked 30 delicious peanut butter/chocolate cupcakes that I was going to pass out to the first 30 customers. The weather was so ghastly poor that there were no customers that day, so much happiness occurred for my youngest son and his friends as they happily snacked on copious amounts of delicious cupcakes.

Finally, the state decides to remain in the liquor retail business. I’ve only shopped in the state liquor stores a handful of times. On each occasion it felt like I was shopping at a state-controlled store in one of the former Soviet satellite countries – circa 1950.

The 13th of June this year: a dark, dank, and dripping wet day. I felt obligated to open-up in honour of the stand’s 36th anniversary. The ample idle time gave me pause to reflect on past events and friends of seasons long past. Also, I realise how lucky I am to have the current crop of friends and customers, who keep me young and paid. And, of course, how can I forget about the great friends I haven’t met yet?

Also, on this day, a Freeport Citizens group, “Freeport Mac Attack” opposes the

Thank you for the first 36 years, Portland! Love, Mark G.

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Food For Thought...

Got a closet in your house you might not be using? You might just want to open a restaurant there, assuming you can fit in the stove, a sink, a couple tables and room for a staffer. Never mind the customers.

I know that’s a huge exaggeration, but it’s sadly not as far from the truth as what we are finding with too many of the spots we’ve been going to eat lately. It’s sadly especially true of JP’s Bistro at 496 Woodford Street.

We had a wonderful meal with great friends at JP’s and the food, service and menu were all super, but the place, as is the case with so many restaurants --- on and off the Peninsula --- was so “nuts to butts” tiny that it took away from the wonderful experience.

The same is true of the Crooked Mile Coffee House and Café, where we and a friend went for lunch on a recent weekday at 8 Milk Street in the heart of the Old Port.

More of both in a second, but with rents being astronomical, and the city having a plethora of neat, mostly older, classic buildings, we can understand why most any space is becoming what’s often an award-winning eatery, but there are limits… and in our way of thinking these two personify that problem. Great everything, but where to put one’s feet or elbows and how to go in and out without stepping on and over a half-dozen others trying for the same goal: to have a wonderful meal.

OK, so we have made that point. Now for the good and great news: Both of these, plus places like Royale Lunch we reviewed last month are great. We had nothing but good food, great staffs and fun times, and the “teller” is we would

definitely go back to all or any of them.

We do like to concentrate on what’s on the plates and both our spots this time have a lot of good things. They also are pretty divergent as far as cost, so for those who say we concentrate only on pricy spots, we say head over to Crooked Mile and do lunch. You will come away smiling and with change in your pocket from a ten, guaranteed.

But JP’s first. We were invited for a dinner there (they open at 4, so no lunch nor Sunday, so no brunches) because the friends who asked us are regular readers and they wanted to make a point that not every great place is on the Peninsula.

We agree, and the visit to JP’s Bistro confirmed it happily.

Housed in a really cute storfront on Woodford Street in the Rosemont neighbourhood, it’s easy to pass right by JP’s without noticing it. It’s back from the road, tucked behind a huge gas station/convenience store and with almost no parking out front.

Fortunately, once you do find it (and parking on the street was also very easy) you are in for a treat. That’s not only what comes on the plates, but the folks who bring them: both first class.

The restaurant does have an Italian bent, but the main menu (they hand you a small one, but for the real deal check the chalkboard) is filled with everything from Chicken Cordon Bleu to Salmon, steak and French Onion Soup. It’s kinda one of those places we all visit where we wish we had stomach space and cash to order four or five things, because so many of them look and sound good. That’s the hallmark of a place we not only can recommend, but one which you can expect us to be visiting again and again.

So what did we have (once we finally slid between tables and over and around other diners to get to the seats our friends had reserved)? We had the Chicken Cordon Bleu (right) and our partner did the Parm (at top). They had eggplant, veal, chicken and seafood parmesans the night we visited, and nothing there looked like or tasted like it would be anything but delicious.

It needs noting that like the Parm, the restaurant offers classics like Marsala with differing meats and thus different pricing. One recent night they even had

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Despite all of the above (and not a parking spot anywhere close to be found) the food is good and they line up at noontime most weekdays to get a taste. I went with a neighbour and we both came away smiling, which is a good sign of a decent menu, for while every place has their specialties, if everything is passable and more, things are good in the kitchen and smiles are on diners’ faces.

I picked a Jersey Joe Italian. Menu says, “Ham, Salami, pepperoni, provolone, lettuce, tomato, mayo/mustard, oil/vinegar and oregano,” while my dining companion opted for a salad humourously named “The Beatnick. Beets, grilled chicken, roasted almond slivers and red onion with arugula and topped with red wine vinaigrette.” That’s both at left.

The neatest thing here is that most (not all, but most) of the sandwiches and salads are a very affordable $6.95, and that includes a choice of chips or an apple. We had to laugh, however, as we both chose the chips and could not open the bags… neither of them. Seems, the friendly staffer told us, they’d been sent a couple cases of chips which had no “notch” installed at the factory.

That’s the notch to help customers in opening the bags. Thank goodness a quick visit by Crooked Mile’s scissors in able staffer’s hands remedied the problem, though I know a good number of folks whose names I shall not mention who would have opted for biting the bags open!

The entire lunch was a good experience, despite the rather cramped (Have we mentioned that previously?) space. Folks were friendly and the mix eating was everything from kids with skateboards to businessmen in suit and tie. It’s a friendly crowd and one which seems to consist of a lot of regulars, which is also a great sign in the case of a restaurant seeking longivity.

Between the fair pricing, the fun staff, the mix of folks eating and, most vital, what was on the plates, we are sad we have not “discovered” The Crooked Mile sooner. It might be because our travels don’t take us down Milk Street, or because it’s so low-key looking that we have walked by but never stopped before. I have no clue. I do know we plan to remedy whatever the issue is/ was and go back to eat here often. Oh, and two lunches were under $20 total, which makes this our bargain of the month. Just remember you will have to walk as little parking is available in the area or else stroll in from your home or office if you live or work nearby. You’ll get some great steps in on your Apple watch or FitBit and a dose of Summer sunshine, too. You might say it’s more than worth walking a Crooked Mile to eat here!

For more info, and menus --- including breakfast, which is only served till 11 a.m. --- visit www. thecrookedmilecafe.com And don’t forget the Brighton Avenue location will soon be back, or might be already… and they do Saturdays 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.), which Old Port doesn’t. a Scallop Marsala alongside the traditional chicken and veal varieties, so indeed the folks back in the kitchen are not at all afraid to be innovative… another mark of a very good restaurant.

So what did we think overall? Good food, looking at about $20-25 a person (remember we were the guests of friends so I have no ticket to look back at), reservations mandatory (we did have them) and plan on dressing, especially if it’s warm out, for comfort because all those folks in the small space did make for a bit of a warm evening for us… even though it was one of those cooler nights we had a few weeks ago.

Will we go back? Yes, for sure. Will we try more of the things we love on the chalkboard and menu.. things like Veal Constantine and Rigatoni or that Onion Soup? Absolutely. But we will arrive with eyes open and with awareness that we will dine a bit cramped… which even with the best food and service slightly (to this reviewer, anyway) diminishes the overall experience.

To find out more, check JP’s out on Facebook or online, but the last time we checked, the www.jpsportland.com site we were sent to was filled with question marks, and the links to the menu came up as “not found” so maybe now that they have great kitchen and wait staff they should search for some webmasters. The current ones are lacking, but fortunately that’s the only thing that falls short (aside from space) at JP’s Bistro. Give it five stars and check it out very soon.

As far as our other spot this month, we did not, for the longest time, know there was an Old Port Crooked Mile Coffee House & Cafe. We only knew the one at 428 Brighton Avenue (at Stevens) which was flattened by an out-ofcontrol vehicle a year or more back and which has been undergoing demo and rebuilding ever since. It’s due to reopen shortly after these words hit print, which is good news.

Meanwhile, the Old Port location, while slightly more commodious than JP’s is cramped, but in a fun way. It’s hidden over by the Portland Regency Hotel and not far from Le Petite Jacqueline, but sadly it’s only open weekdays from 7.30 till 5.

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The Standard Reviewer

By Randy Dankievitch — TV Critic / TVOvermind Te recent news of The Avengers: Endgame “re-release” into theatres (only to beat Titantic’s two-decade old box office record) has sparked an interesting discussion about the strange state of the current film industry. This summer’s been a particularly interesting case study... a microcosm of film’s current state, where nothing exists between micro budget indies and $200 million franchise tent poles, itself a diminishing state of sequels, reboots, remakes, and “revisitings” putting the most troubling sign of the industry on full display: the death of the modestly budgeted film, and the increasing feeling Hollywood is trying to replicate the recent success of the television industry, and failing.

Take a look at the current slate of theatrical offerings, and it almost becomes laughable: outside of Endgame, the most popular movies this summer are Toy Story 4, Men in Black: International, Aladdin, X-Men: Dark Phoenix and Child’s Play – in a year where we’ve already seen a Dumbo remake, another Godzilla sequel, and a third John Wick film in five years (and remakes of The Lion King, along with a ninth entry in the now-extended Fast & Furious franchise). And the returns aren’t promising: domestically, ticket sales are down 7% --- a number that only slows to 6% internationally.

A major factor in this is audience fatigue: Avengers: Endgame is the 18th film in the Marvel cinematic universe, sandwiched between the 17th (Captain Marvel, this spring), and the 19th, July’s Spider-Man: Far From Home (the second sequel in a franchise rebooted twice already... this decade). While these movies certainly have their own individual creative merits (have you seen Thor: Ragnorak?), the exercise is getting a bit... dull, as evidenced by the meteoric falloff of Endgame’s box office numbers a mere month after its release.

There are certainly other factors: the speed at which the internet burns through critical conversations on film certainly doesn’t help, and the immediacy of conversation demanded by streaming culture and social media front-loaded a lot of its box office potential. But the unavoidable truth is audiences are beginning to wear out on these expensive, creatively safe films: what’s missing is the films Americans used to watch between those summer tent poles: the romantic comedies and buddy action films that kept audiences in the theatres between Will Smith’s July 4th blockbusters, and whatever terribly loud, explosive film Michael Bay was working on at the time (in the case of the Bad Boys franchise, America was even able to enjoy both things at the same time).

In 2019, movies with budgets between $20 and $70 million have all but vanished from theaters; save for horror

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films, which have a surprisingly resilient audience (Prime example: Annabelle Comes Home, the 6th film in the Conjuring franchise, is expected to top over $100 million at the box office this summer). But the movies we’d typically see during the summer, are no longer coming to theatres: outside of occasional examples like 2018’s Crazy Rich Asians or 2017’s The Big Sick, the low-to-mid budget films companies like 20th Century Fox made their bread and butter in previous decades are relegated to streaming services.

Last week, Netflix released the Adam Sandler/Jennifer Aniston rom-com Murder Mystery on their service – and brought in the equivalent of a $120 million with its massive audience. Last summer’s fantastic To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before adaptation experienced similar viral success; from Triple Frontier to Velvet Buzzsaw, star-driven films without super hero costumes or abundant CGI are becoming a disappointing rarity.

On some level, it seems Hollywood’s forgotten how to market these movies: take 2017’s Game Night or last summer’s Late Night, two ensemble comedies hampered by some gawdawful marketing campaigns. Though executives will point to these failures as emblematic of the industry, they’re missing the point that people still want to go to the theatre to experience cinema in a shared space outside of one’s own living room: it’s the inherent advantage film’s always had over TV, but a proposition the industry is increasingly afraid to pursue.

At this point, there may be no stopping the streaming train: though Amazon occasionally offers their films a theatrical release, Netflix has shown no sign of debuting their films in the theatre, in a pointless, ultimately regressive display of their power. The consolidation of so many film companies under Disney’s tutelage in recent years hasn’t helped, either. Will the industry realise its mistake, and bring back the S.W.A.T.’s, Old School’s, and Equilibirum’s of the world back to their former glory? This summer’s slate – and knowing the future (which holds five Avatar sequels, another Star Wars trilogy, and of course, more Transformers debacles) – is not a promising sign for the future of the theatre experience: the element of surprise, the ability of a movie to express passion, to be creative around financial restraints, to take creative risks that may or may not pay off. Mainstream cinema needs to remember how to surprise its audiences again – and I’m not talking with a big, third-act cliffhanger demanding a three-and-a-half hour long sequel – or it’s going to continue losing its soul to the streaming behemoths of the 21st century.

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Hackin’ The Net

By Ted Fleischaker / Publisher Now that we are in peak season here in Maine, I get to do one of my favourite things: Play tourguide and “local” when I see folks at corners either staring at a map, their phone or pointing, undecided, literally which way to turn. Over the years since I relocated to Portland, I probably have walked up to close to a thousand people and just said “Directions?”

Usually the responses are great and I get to meet someone from Minneapolis, France or New Zealand, all while promoting some of my fave restaurants, shops and offering some (hopefully) easily-followed directions.

The above is why it was such a total disappointment last week when I did my routine on a guy I’d put at somewhere close to 30 on Middle Street in the Old Port. I happily stopped on my walk, smiled and said, “Directions?” as he was looking dazed and staring at his phone.

Instead of the usual, “here’s where I’m trying to go” or a “no thanks” I got, “Why would I want to talk to you or anyone? I have my phone!” Turns out he was from Germany and wandered off without saying much else, which was fine as no help wanted or needed is OK by me, but it got me to thinking about GPS and what we have done, where we have come from and where we might be going with it.

It also reminded me why on most trips, I carry along an old fashioned atlas or roadmap. In my “old man way of thinking,” GPS still is not quite there in many spots.

I turn on my British TV news and hear the occasional story about a semi following GPS and ending up stranded on a village lane too narrow to even turn around. Or a trucker staring so intently at his GPS that he drives into the side of a building. Or someone following their GPS and landing in the sea or a river.

I can’t see how, if one has common sense and watches at all, that this could happen (I mean can’t you spot a building ahead or an ocean or lake or river, right?), but I will admit to one day last year following my Google Maps and ending up on a dead end with nothing but a field and woods ahead down in the Berwicks somewhere. And to make it worse, the dot that was me on the map on my iPhone was right on the route. Too bad the road ahead did not exist. In fact, there was no road anywhere ahead, so we navigated ourselves out with our trusty Maine Tourism paper map, and got where we’d intended to go in the first place with phone in pocket and no car in water.

GPS also has issues in places where development is more rapid than here in Maine. Once in Florida we were on a road not far from Orlando, and the map showed us in the middle of a field. And that obnoxious GPS voice (which I later learned to turn off) kept telling us it was “recalculating.” It did not need to recalculate as I was right where I wanted to be, just on a road they apparently never heard of and one which was newer than the TomTom map I was following in a rental car.

There’s also that issue of whose GPS and maps one wishes to use. As an Apple family one would think Apple maps (native to the so-called “I devices”) would be my answer, but I find that Google maps are my GPS of choice on my iPhone, because I like the look, layout and the more current updates I sense they do. I may be wrong, but I always use the Google app and I usually also switch on the “hybrid” view which shows a map and satellite together.

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Find your JOY at the new gem of Old Port 191 Middle Street, Portland

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But the bigger question is what are we all missing when we depend upon GPS? Often it shows the road we are on, or the route we are supposed to be driving, but little else. You likely will still need to ask a local “Where do they have the best lobster rolls?” Or “Is this where I go to get to the lighthouse and if so, when do they close?”

Have I mentioned that several things are in play here and to me they really take the fun out of GPS? One is that while the GPS can point you to Dock’s Seafood, the Maine Diner or the Eastland Hotel, they can’t tell you like a local how the rooms, food or other things there are. And while I know there’s Yelp and any number of other “ratings” services, I feel those usually aren’t as useful as asking someone standing there what you want to know.

Plus, if you read about the rating firms, you might find they are accused often of not being as non-biased as we have all been led to believe when it comes to rating those stars and adding those comments… but that’s for the lawyers and another day.

So sure, we all have biases. If I ask readers right now “Where do I go for the best lobster rolls?” I likely will get 57 different answers --- depending on things like whose uncle owns a restaurant, where a waiter spilled an iced tea on you in 1987, how much do I want to spend and which places will accept Discover Card and which won’t.

But you can chat to a real, live person. Try telling GPS that you wanna go to that lobster place “with the striped awnings” your cousin raved about and see what that gets you! Likely not to Highroller over on Exchange Street.

GPS is also often a battery hog. I find that leaving it going on a fairly long trip eats up my battery, even if I turn off or dim my screen. Plus it bugs me when I get a message at the top of any other screen advising that the GPS function is operating in the background somewhere.

We put the GPS on Google Maps to the test on a recent weekday trip from Portland to Wilson’s Drug Store on Front Street in Bath. The GPS got us there, but was not able to tell us they have a free parking lot in back of the store and what time they’d be open. Can we say almost, but no cigar?

Moral: if you do choose to use GPS, remember when you are done with it or reach your destination to quit the app. And for heaven’s sake, if you are transporting me somewhere, please switch off that obnoxious voice function.

Also, there’s a new issue in town. Actually all over Maine: The use of hand-held phones is about to become illegal, as is a device blocking or obstructing any bit of the driver’s field of vision. That includes a holder like that which many of our friends use to hang onto their phone when it’s being used as a map.

To us, the new law makes 100% good sense. How often have we yelled in futility at someone who nearly takes our bumper off or who almost hits us while we are daring to walk in the Old Port: “HANG UP AND DRIVE!”?

So the law is about to come into play now, too, making that old fashioned map or atlas seem all the better to us… but remember distracted driving is distracted driving, so pull over if you plan to check a route or map and never mind if that’s paper or on a screen if it means taking your eyes off the road.

Finally, remember that GPS is not, and in our way of thinking never will be, as good as asking a local. We recall all the jokes back in the day about men never asking directions, while women will, but regardless of your sex, or which voice you might choose for that GPS, do keep in mind that to have a fighting chance to get from A to B safely you will need an accurate, up-to-date map, backed up with some traffic reports (either from the GPS app or on the radio) and giving full attention to the road ahead. That might be why it’ll always pay to have a navigator or the living, breathing variety. Unless, of course, you are a German guy wandering around in the Old Port!

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Up Portland is edited in Portland and printed the last week of every month in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. We may be contacted at the e-mail or phone number below. While every effort is made to ensure accuracy and fairness, the publisher assumes no responsibility for errors. Liability is limited to the cost of said ad. Ads not cancelled by published deadlines may be billed at agreed-upon price.

Ads may be edited or rejected for content at the discretion of the publisher. All items appearing in Up Portland, as well as the name, logos and design are copyright 2019 by BBS, A division of High Speed Delivery Fork Ltd. & Ted Fleischaker and may not be reproduced in any form without prior written approval.

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By Randy Dankievitch — TV Critic / TVOvermind

Seven to Play this Summer Summer’s here, which means its time to hit the beach, the golf course, the grill, and the lake – and of course, to curl up on the couch and play a bunch of video games during rainy days and humid nights. With that in mind, here are the best games to enjoy while the cooling hum of the air conditioner chugs along in the background: Apex Legends Season 2: Battle Charge (PC, PS4, Xbox One) – The first four months of Apex Legends, the biggest battle royale game to launch since Fortnite, has been a mixed bag. The first official season of content, titled Wild Hunt, offered players a meager (and disappointing) amount of new content - which combined with some controversial balance changes to characters and weapons, felt like a wasted opportunity of the game’s massive early momentum. Season two, Battle Charge, looks to right those wrongs, with a completely revamped season progression, a new character, the introduction of lore and mythology to King’s Canyon – and most importantly, what appear to be some massive changes to the game’s map, an exciting proposition for what remains the most enjoyable, satisfying multiplayer FPS experience available.

Crash Team Racing Nitro Fueled (PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, available now) – the latest in the recent rejuvenation of the “HD remaster” genre sees the return of Crash Bandicoot to the race track, in the first true entry in the genre since 2003’s Crash Nitro Kart. Packed to the absolute brim with unlockable characters, cart customisations, and modes to enjoy, with up to four players.

Long remembered as the “best Mario Kart clone,” Crash Team Racing Nitro Fueled makes a strong case for the franchise’s underrated place in gaming history, a tight, challenging kart racing experience beautifully (and faithfully) rebuilt for the current era of 4K, HDR-enhanced gaming.

Dr. Mario World (iOS, July 10th) – Nintendo’s success with mobile games is a mixed bag: though Fire Emblem Heroes and Pokemon Go have both enjoyed large audiences, games like Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp and Super Mario Run haven’t landed as well as most expected. Dr. Mario World is a chance for Nintendo to right the ship of their mobile brand, in what appears to be a match made in heaven: there’s no better place than phones for puzzle games, and the recent lack of innovation in the genre offers them a huge opportunity to revitalise – and evolve – the genre.

Out of the Park Baseball 20 (PC) – Out of the Park Developments mark an important anniversary with the latest iteration of their baseball management simulation game, the 20th in the franchise’s storied history. Recent years have seen the text-based game - which place players in the role of general manager of any modern/historical, or fictional baseball team - with some modern trappings, like 3D in-game simulations, an official MLB license, and Perfect Team, an online team-building mode (in the vein of FIFA’s Ultimate Team). OOTP 20 doesn’t necessarily introduce anything revolutionary to this ever-evolving formula, but the franchise’s continued attention to detail and polish shine through in this year’s Please Continue On Page 23

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Crystal Joys Knows How To Spread Joy...

Things are not always as they appear, even when they should be crystal clear, so if you have strolled by the newest shop in Portland’s Old Port, Crystal Joys at 191 Middle Street, and not yet stopped by, you might want to make time to do so next time you are in the area.

Not only do they have some really unusual stones, geodes, home decor and jewellery, but under the cover of “just another store” in the Old Port they are working hard to give back to the Portland community in some very unique ways, so do read on.

The store is owned by a Colorado couple and is corporately named Sample Supports, after the founder, Carmen Sample. Asking about why the mission and why here, when the rest of their operations are in Colorado, Andrew Diggins, below, the firm’s marketing manager, told Up Portland a tale which validates everything about the seemingly small shop with a huge desire to give everyone a place in the community.

But first things first: Sample Supports began almost a decade ago with one women: Sample, and her belief that indeed, every single person deserves a place in the community. The firm also believes that doing good should not be relegated just to non-profits, but can be a part of — and a large part, at that — of both helping people and turning a profit at the same time. The firm is not nonprofit, but that does not mean they are only in this for the cash.

Put simply, Diggins noted, “Carmen is all about nobody being left behind, so we take everyone — people off the streets, out of institutions and more — and we give them an opportunity.”

He noted that the firm is currently working thru the Maine paperwork and soon hopes to hold a social services license here, just as they do in their native Colorado. “We call what we do fashion with a passion and we specialise in understanding that everyone has a worth… that includes individuals with developmental disabilities.

Ribbon cutting photo courtesy Portland Regional Chamber of Commerce @portlandregionalchamber

theirs was named Colorado’s best craft beer, too. Oh, and they also help staff homes in Colorado for seniors, operate day programmes and a whole lot more.

Also, don’t for a minute think that the above did not get lost on the founders in their choice to skip most of the continent and open the first store outside Colorado here in this foodie city.

“Our goal is not only great jewellery and stones, but putting money back into the system. We plan to help set up state support contracts, where the state says someone needs help and we play the bridge helping set up contracts with other companies and provide that opportunity,” he noted.

Meanwhile, until the actual jewellery and other items can be made at the Middle Street store (which is in the plans for later this year) items made at the firm’s Colorado locations, where at last report some 600 people were employed, is on the shelves. And it’s not just about jewellery and stones in Colorado, either.

Sample Supports, the firm behind Crystal Joys, is also in the top five restauranteurs and craft beef brewers in the Golden State, and they’ve been featured in such high profile places as Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives. Last year,

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In A Special Way! Diggins picks up the story, “Carmen’s husband spent his summers at Sebego Lake and the couple, about to have their fourth child, came to Maine. They also came to Portland, where they loved the Old Port. It reminded them of their Colorado vibe, where all of their stores are in old town locations, including one building dating to 1874, which was about the time much of the Old Port was built, following the fire of 1866.”

The couple also read where Portland is one of the top metaphysical cities in the country, and while they’d looked elsewhere, it seemed to be a perfect fit to locate the first Crystal Joys east of the Rockies in the Old Port, so they leased the space, formerly occupied by Oh Bag near Tommy’s Park, then flew out to make sure the build-out was good and things would be in place for their recent early June grand opening / ribbon cutting, seen in the photo on the adjoining page.

The shop, now in full operation, uses stones and materials from Argentina, Brazil and Morocco, and is in the midst of sourcing Tourmaline from here in Maine.

With the stones and other items, their staff make everything from home decor to gemstone jewellery, so it’s not at all abnormal to find anything from earrings to agate coasters, salt lamps and bowls… and everything in between in the airy, pleasant shop.

And while the final permitting to accomplish the giving-back goal is still in process here, Diggins and store manager Carrie London are confident it will happen sooner, not later. Meanwhile, drop by on Middle Street, see some neat items, meet some fun and fantastic people and check out more about the firm behind it all at www.samplesupports.com It’s all pretty unique. What was that we said about things not always being what they appear?

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Maker 2, on first impressions, appears to right that ship, offering dozens of new elements for players to build in their own levels – and more importantly, more streamlined ways for people to share that content with the millions of other Mario fans and level makers of the world. If Nintendo can continue to build useful tools encourage the shared online experience of Super Mario Maker 2 (which also includes a single-player campaign, and full co-op building and playing modes) could explode, and make Super Mario Maker 2 the breakout hit of 2019.

By Randy Dankievitch — Continued From Page 20 edition, reinforcing its position once again as the best business management sim available on any platform, sports or otherwise.

Super Mario Maker 2 (Nintendo Switch, available now) – Super Mario Maker was the most ingenious game to release in 2016 – unfortunately, due to the Wii U’s premature death and Nintendo’s mismanagement of the Mario Maker community, it never felt like the game reached its full potential. Super Mario

Slay the Spire (PC, Nintendo Switch – available now) – one-part Hearthstone and one-part Dead Cells, the deck-building card game/dungeon crawler recently made its way from the PC onto the Nintendo Switch. A rogue-like (run-based) game where players take control of one of three unique characters, Slay the Spire is the “one more round” game of the summer, an extremely addictive mix of random deck building elements and fantastic turn-based combat mechanics.

The Switch’s portability is a perfect fit for Slay the Spire, as well, the perfect morning commute or “enjoying”-a-long-family-ride title – and at $25, it is an absolute steal.

Maine Jewish Museum

Exhibition: July 11, 2019 to September 6, 2019 Opening Reception: Thursday, July 11, 2019 5pm-7pm Artist Talk with Marjorie Moore: Thursday, July 18, 7pm First Friday Art Walk: August 2 and September 6, 2019 5pm-8pm

Global Warnings

Carving Out Meaning

Fineberg Family Community Room

Spiegel Gallery

Marjorie Moore

Lynne Shulman

Queens usa: A Global Collection Audrey Gottlieb

Third Floor Sanctuary

Photography Curator - Nanci Kahn

Maine Jewish Museum

267 Congress Street, Portland, ME 04101 (207) 773-2339 Monday - Friday 10am-4pm + Sundays 1pm - 5pm or by appointment mainejewishmuseum.org Nancy Davidson, Curator in Residence

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Good coffee and delicious treats always start the day off right!

Come see us in South Portland or Portland on your way to work.

Portland — 47 India Street 207.347.5144 Tuesday–Saturday 8am-5pm Sunday 8am-4pm

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South Portland — 740 Broadway 207.536.7713 Tuesday–Saturday 8am-5pm

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