The West End News - July Edition 2023 - Vol. 23 No. 07

MMC Employees Cause Parking Pains

By Tony Zeli

In a growing city, available on-street parking is a limited resource. For the past two years, the neighbors near Maine Medical Center (MMC) in downtown Portland have had a particularly tough time fnding parking near their homes. The problem they say: MMC employees.

The evidence is the stickers in the front windshield that allow employees to park in the employee garage. Also, it isn’t hard to spot employee badges and scrubs as people come and go. Some cars stay parked for entire shifts. Some employees take breaks to move their cars or wipe chalk off marked tires.

MMC has about 7,500 people working at the hospital at any given time, with 2,000 to 3,000 people parking at any one time. That is a lot of pressure in a congested neighborhood. It’s not surprising to hear neighbors are also fnding it to be a safety issue. Rushed employees – instead of walking half a mile up the hill from the employee garage or grabbing an employee shuttle – rush through the neighborhood, blowing past stop signs and being a “menace.” Respecting the work they do, neighborhood representatives ask hospital employees to respect their neighborhood and use the 13-story employee garage on St. John Street.

“We gave up land in the neighborhood to have that garage built,” said Moses Sabina, representing neighborhood concerns as a representative for St. John Valley on the MMC Neighborhood Advisory Committee (NAC), “We deserve to have a place to park.”

MMC parking policy prohibits parking on public streets. But enforcement is not easy, and the problem is ongoing.

NEIGHBORHOOD CONCERNS

Representatives for the surrounding neighborhoods have been raising concerns at the advisory committee meetings since at least March 2022. Even then, they noted in meeting minutes that overnight parking by MMC staff had been on the increase for the past two years. Also noted, “Staff parking on the street was seen when the employee garage was full.”

Later in September 2022, neighborhood reps reported, “Vaughn Street had been full of cars lately,” and “People in scrubs have been seen passing there.” In March of this year, “Night shift staff are taking up on-street parking spaces needed by residents without off-street parking.”

They recognized the convenience of on-street parking. They noted that most MMC employees don’t - and can’t afford - to live on the peninsula.

MMC RESPONSE

As of April, MMC said they were documenting who is parking in the neighborhoods and acting against repeat offenders, including notifying managers and MMC Human Resource Department of repeat occurrences within 12 months.

MMC said they periodically send reminders of parking policy to employees via e-newsletters. Also, there is a new plan for MMC security to provide one written

notice to those violating parking policy. That notice had not been drafted as of print.

Despite the response, there are diffculties in enforcement. For instance, it’s easy not to display an employee sticker on a car. Also, violators may be undeterred by a $35 ticket.

According to an email from MMC communications director Matt Wickenheiser, “MMC Security’s role and authority on public streets is extremely limited; MMC enforces its policies to the best of its abilities but defers to the proper authorities for parking violations on city parking, that being the city parking department.”

Meanwhile, city parking has been dealing with staffng issues. John Peverada, Portland Parking Division Director said, “We try to have two offcers assigned to the area every day, but sometimes there are staffng challenges. Another challenge is some people parking on the street attempt to wipe chalk off their tires, but we also use LPR (License Plate Recognition).” LPR is technology that allows parking offcers to image license plates.

MORE IDEAS

Neighborhood representatives recently discussed other options to help alleviate the problem. Some want a way to

report problem cars. But there needs to be a process and so far no one has shown interest in collecting the information.

Another idea is to fyer cars. Ideally, said Moses Sabina, any communication to the health care workers would thank them for the work they do and ask them to please respect the neighborhood.

Tony Zeli is publisher and editor. Reach him at thewestendnews@gmail.com.

City parking offcial on Brackett St. near MMC Bramhall campus on a weekday mid-afternoon this June.

-Photo by Tony Zeli

Page 7

Chris Miller: Bringing a Carousel of Animals to Western Prom

The Portland Gothic House & Cuba Connection Part II

Page 17

Layne's Wine Gig presents the true story behind 'Four Writers'

NOW ACCEPTING NEW PRIMARY CARE PATIENTS!

FAMILY PRACTICE ON THE RIVER-KENNEBUNK

62 PORTLAND ROAD, SUITE 47 KENNEBUNK • (207) 502-7386

Accepting

Maine Care, Medicare, & most Commercial Insurances

100% Handicapped-Friendly Building (inside & out)

Plenty of parking

With hundreds of surveys completed by our patients, we have a 98% happiness rating!

www.FamilyPracticeOnTeRiver.com

Like Us On Facebook!

Family Practice on the River

INSIDE THIS EDITION

Best Worst Trivia.........................................14

Book Short.....................................................4

City News & Info ..........................................3

Climate Justice.............................................13

Crossword...................................................14

Events..............................................................6

Gothic House Series....................................5

La Vida Local..................................................4

Layne's Wine Gig ..................................10-11

PelotonPosts..................................................7

Poetry............................................................15

Puzzle Page...................................................14

Sudoku..........................................................14

Travel..............................................................12

SUBMISSIONS

WEN is a community newspaper and we need your voice! Share your submissions with thewestendnews@gmail.com or send to: The West End News, 795 Congress Street, Portland, Maine 04102.

• Letters to the editor should be no more than 200 words. Include your name and town or neighborhood.

• Op-eds should be no more than 750 words and include a brief biography of 1-2 sentences.

• WEN also accepts poetry, cartoons, and photo submissions.

Deadline for publication in the August Edition is Friday, August 28th. Publication is not guaranteed and submissions may be edited for length and content.

The thoughts and opinions expressed in our pages belong solely to the authors and not necessarily to the publication.

Nancy Dorrans, Travel & Adventure Rosanne Graef, La Vida Local

Allice Haidden, We're All in

Stephanie Miller, Book Short

Marta Morse, Gothic House Series

Ben Taylor, Best Worst Trivia Liz Trice, PelotonPosts

Thank you fo reading!

Letters to the Editor

Readers Respond to ‘Abandonment of Pain Patients’

I have always enjoyed your newspaper, but I am unsure of why you would allow essentially an op-ed piece be your lead article, written by a very biased source.

I reviewed a number of articles about Dr. Norris and the charges against her. Not surprisingly, the author of your article failed to mention any of the charges related to Medicare fraud, the routing of urine tests to a single California lab, the number of patient deaths of people in Dr. Norris’s care, etc.

I am all for innocent until proven guilty, but this article is so over the top in its bias that it makes me very wary of The West End News.

I have no emotional connection to the issues covered in the article - I have no axe to grind. I just fear the increasingly biased sources of news that everyone is being subjected to these days.

-Brian Walker, Portland

Thank you for calling attention to the deeply cruel abdication of today’s cowardly MDs in your article, “Abandonment of Pain Patients,” (June Ed., 2023). What happened to “frst, do no harm?”

I’m one of the victims. Dr. Merideth Norris is a hero, and her indictment is a perversion of our legal system and an indicator of our cultural decline. Again, thank you to Kelly Merrill and West End News.

-Helen Zuelow, Falmouth

Thank you for this article. Nothing I have read before even indicated any of the information you provided.

-Sallie Smith, Freeport

Send letters to: The West End News 795 Congress St. Portland, ME 04102

thewestendnews@gmail.com

Kathleen McKeon, CNP

Caroline Wilmot, CNP

Summer Meals Program for Children, Teens

The Portland Public Schools operates various summer meal sites across the city of Portland during the summer. Sites post meals and times and the schools distributed maps to students in June. School sites began operation on June 26th or July 5th, and continue through August 4th, and some through August 11th, most operate Monday through Friday. Community sites will operate from June 26th to August 18th, Monday through Friday.

All children and teens 18 years and younger may receive a meal free of charge. Meals will be provided on a frst-come, frst-serve basis, at any of the meal site locations. There is no meal service on Tuesday, July 4th.

To get more information about sites and times, you may dial 2-1-1, text “Summer Meals” to 97779, or go online to https://www.maine.gov/doe/hotlunchsummer.

Program information may be made available in languages other than English. Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, American Sign Language), should contact USDA’s TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TTY) or contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339.

PORTLAND

OPEN

MEAL SITES

Currently Open (Mon. - Fri.)

East End Community School

Rowe Elementary School

Deering High School

Portland High (M-Th) (Ends July 27)

King Middle School

BGC Cumberland Ave

BGC Sagamore Club House

BGC Riverton Club House

Study Center at Kennedy Park

Munjoy South Playground

North Deering Garden

Opens July 5 (Mon. - Fri.)

Moore Middle School

Fire at 59 Bramhall St.

The Portland Fire Department answered an alarm for a building fre at 59 Bramhall Street at 4:41 a.m. on June 2nd. Crews arrived to fnd fre coming from multiple top foor windows in a nine-unit multi-family apartment building. There were working smoke alarms throughout the building. The bulk of the fre was knocked down by 4:57 a.m. A second alarm was transmitted at 4:58 a.m. for additional personnel to assist with extensive overhaul related to the size of the building.

There were no injuries to residents or frefghters, though two occupants of the building were evaluated on scene. Eleven people have been displaced from the building and were being assisted by the Red Cross. Roads were shut down in the area during operations.

The fre was investigated, and the cause was determined to be accidental.

Offcial Results June 13th Portland Municipal

QUESTION A - NO

Portland voters overwhelmingly rejected Question A, “An Act to Amend Rent Control and Tenant Protections,” with 66.5% of the vote (3872 Yes / 7740 No) rejecting the proposed changes to rent control.

The Southern Maine Rental Housing Alliance (RHA), formerly known as the Southern Maine Landlord Association, advanced the citizen initiative to the ballot. RHA’s proposed amendment would have eliminated rent increase limits when a tenant voluntarily terminates their lease. Under the current rent control ordinance, if a tenant terminates their lease, the landlord may only increase rent by 5% of their base rent.

SCHOOL BUDGET - YES

Also on June 13th, voters resoundingly approved the proposed school budget for another fscal year with 75.7% approving (8811 Yes / 2428 No).

TURNOUT

The total number of voters in this June election was 11,640 or 23.7% of Portland’s 49,168 registered voters.

Portland Police Report Body Found in Presumpscot River

On Sunday, June 25th, around 3:00 p.m., police arrived at the banks of the Presumpscot River near the Riverside Golf Course to investigate a report of a body in the river. A man and a woman were foating on the river when they discovered the body and notifed police.

Divers from the Portland Police Department removed the body from the river. The deceased appeared to have been in the water for an extended period.

At the time of printing, the Offce of the Chief Medical Examiner had made a tentative identifcation of a 50-year-old male based on an out-of-state identifcation that was found. The cause of death is listed as drowning but is pending results of a toxicology test. Investigators ask anyone who has any information to call them at (207) 874-8575.

67 Grams of Fentanyl Seized in Arrest

On June 5th, at 3:52 p.m., Portland Police stopped Martin Benjamin (DOB: 1/1/85) for suspicion of illegal drug activity near 55 Portland Street. A search revealed that Benjamin, a Portland resident, was in possession of 67 grams of fentanyl - a massive quantity. Police made the arrest and charged Benjamin with Aggravated Traffcking of Scheduled Drugs, Unlawful Possession of Scheduled W Drug, and Violating Conditions of Release.

Drug overdose statistics for January through May show an increase of 24.7 percent from 2022 (178) to 2023 (222). Despite the substantial increase, this number is signifcantly lower than the 89.4% increase seen from 2021 (94) to 2022 (178).

La Vida Local: Irregular Notes on West End Life Singin’ in the Rain

By Rosanne Graef

This past winter was tough on many plants around the West End. There were few blossoms on cherry trees and my 15-year-old rose bush that had a spectacular display last summer gave up the ghost. Although they got off to an early start, our lilacs bloomed profusely and fragrantly despite the expanding longitudinal splits in the bark of some bushes. I had thought the jack-in-the-pulpit, descendants of a colony that my mother started in Wayne 65 years ago, didn’t make it and was delighted when they reappeared.

There’s nothing like spring weather in Maine to test one’s dedication to outdoor activities. Several hot, dry, windy days kicked off the vegetable gardening season, predictably followed by a rainy spell that invited every slug in southern Maine into the newly planted lettuce and green beans.

The day-long rain on Saturday, June 17th, certainly didn’t dampen the enthusiasm of the many who turned out for two enthusiastically anticipated events: the Pride Parade in Portland and Maine Audubon’s Native Plant Sale. You may not burst into song, but getting soaked or slogging through mud to participate in something meaningful to you can make the experience especially rewarding.

See You in September (if not before)

A.M. Exercise - Most of the West End Neighborhood Association’s (WENA) activities in the Reiche Community Room are on hiatus for the summer — except for A.M. Exercise which will continue Monday,Wednesday, and Thursday from 8:15 to 9:15 a.m. – either in the gym at Reiche or in the pine grove on the Clark Street side of the building by the entrance to the Reiche Community Room.

‘The Island of Missing Trees’

by Elif Shafak

Sunset Concert Series - WENA is pleased to be a supporter of the Sunset Concert Series on the Western Prom. Enjoy an hour of music, take in the sunset view, and meet old and new friends every Wednesday from July 12th through August 16th.

WENA Annual Picnic - Tuesday, August 8th, save the date for WENA’s Annual Picnic! Bring your own picnic. We’ll provide dessert. Meet 5:30 p.m. at Harbor View Park on York Street. Live entertainment by the Flukes.

Reiche Community Room - In September, WENA’s evening activities will resume in the Reiche Community Room. These include Magazine Readers, Classic Movies, Speakers Series, Animated Movies, Die Well Death Education (formerly Memento Mori). A.M. Exercise will be back in the Community Room with live instruction for Tai Chi Chih (Tuesdays) and Yoga (Thursdays), as well as balance, strength, and fexibility DVDs on Mondays,Wednesdays, and Fridays.

WENA Meeting - The next general WENA meeting is on Wednesday, September 13th, from 6:30 to 8 p.m. The program will feature Alex Marshall, director of the Parks Department and Nan Cumming from the Portland Parks Conservancy. They’ll be talking about Project Canopy and the effort to plant more trees, more equitably throughout the city. You’ll also learn more about how you can participate in WENA’s efforts to help make our city healthier, more beautiful, and livable for all.

Rosanne Graef lives in the West End and is a regular volunteer contributor. Email her at lavidalocalwen@gmail. com.

Review by Stephanie Miller

Do the trees, fora, and insects of Cyprus have anything to teach citizens torn apart by civil war and colonialism? The answer is a resounding yes - despite most of the people’s refusal to listen - in this fantastic and mystical novel by the prolifc and politically astute Elif Shafak, “The Island of Missing Trees.”

Two young lovers - one Greek, one Turkish - meet in secret in a taverna where a fg tree grows through a cavity in the roof. Not only different ethnicities, but they are also different religions. Neither family would support even a friendship with “the other.” Through their surreptitious relationship and eventual discovery and separation by his mother, the novel covers a generation of Greek and Turkish neighbors who move from mutual animosity to secret terrorism to outright war, in the process reducing much of the island to ashes, rubble, and graveyards.

Exhausted, those still alive emerge like sleepwalkers into the war’s oppressive aftermath. Separated over many years and by widely different experiences, the lovers meet again.

In London, a fg tree grows in the backyard of the house where teenaged Ada Kazantzakis lives. It is the only connection she has to Cyprus, an island she has never visited and the relatives she has never known. Especially since her mother’s

death, she suspects the never discussed and troubled history of her parents and why their families never visit is a clue to discovering her own identity. Sometimes she suspects that her father loves the fg tree more than his family. When her mother’s long estranged sister shows up, Ada is angry at frst, but then realizes her aunt may be her frst good chance to learn something of the mysterious past.

In a stroke of brilliant mysticism, the fg tree narrates much of the story, providing a kind of ombudsman view from the perspective of a wise, all-seeing elder. Trees live a lot longer than humans, and the fg tree is a witness often avuncular and amused by humans’ ability to love and honor each other. Also, the tree is frequently horrifed at the human capacity for murder and destruction.

Shafak weaves a beautiful story about love and tragedy in many forms, illustrating how connected we are not just to each other, but to nature. “The Island of Missing Trees” is heartbreaking and tragic, but also hopeful. It is a tribute to the troubled but impassioned history of Cyprus. After discovering her work here, I immediately bought several other of her novels, and recommend “The Forty Rules of Love” as well.

Bayside resident Stephanie Miller is a voracious reader and bibliophile. Find her online @StephanieSAM.

The Portland Gothic House & Cuba Connection

Part II: Horatio Fox & the Spanish Colony of Cuba

By Marta Morse

Portland has an illustrious past. Before the American Revolution, ships were already carrying trade from the Caribbean and bringing wealth to the city. The Fox family, once residents of my home, the Portland Gothic House, played a role in this history in a variety of ways.

Horatio Fox Sails to Cuba

Charles Fox (1782-1845), Portland merchant, married Eunice (1784-1837) daughter of Hugh and Abigale McLellan (owner of Maines largest shipping feet) in 1805 at the McLellan mansion. As their family grew 19-year-old son Horatio (1815-1902) was encouraged to enter a business trade based in Cuba.

Back Home, War Breaks Out

Carlito (1849) and Enrique (1850), oldest of the Fox boys, were attending school in Portland, living in the Gothic House with Aunt Sarah Jane (1809-83). Answering Carlito’s letter Anne asks, “… lack of desire but because you were so devoted to your studies … time to learn to play the fute … how is it about French?”

I began researching connections between the Fox and McLellan families at the Maine Historical Society’s library. Sarah Jane Brown was a granddaughter of Abigail and Hugh McLellan. The Browns built the Portland Gothic House across the street from the McLellans.

Why in this style? British architect, Henry Rowe advertised: “…can supply gentlemen in any style and taste, from the most elaborate Gothic…” And money was no object for J.J. Brown: Stock Exchange & Money Broker, 43 Exchange Street. My further study found the dwelling emerging as a connecting link to Cuba. In fact, by 1783 trade between the newly independent USA and Cuba already had history...

He arrived in Trinidad de Cuba at about 1837. He likely sailed aboard one of his uncle’s ships carrying diverse types of lumber, including broken down timber staves to be formed into casks for the return voyage bringing sugar and molasses. Trinidad de Cuba already had streets paved from Portland ships’ ballast.

After ten years Horatio had established himself as a successful businessman and landholder. In 1846, he married Mercedes Yurubi, a Cuban born Spaniard.

Fox Family Correspondence

There is little insight into life in Trinidad for this growing family. A brief view came through Horatio’s sister Anne. She arrived January 1865, during the height of sugar production in Trinidad’s Valley of the Sugar Mills… Valle de los Ingenios. While

with the family, her letters share insight with distant Portland relatives, especially six little girls. She wrote about time spent in the nearby hills, cooling in streams “…if you could only come here and enjoy this beautiful climate would I know it would give you renewed strength as I know it is giving me…”

Mail was sporadic, dependent on cargo ship arrivals and departures. Anne replies to her sister, “… try to answer as they come but Sunday I received six by one mail and only that one day to answer in, for Horatio must have them to take down by six the next morning.… see by the New York papers milk men are charging ffteen cents a quart…”

An early morning drive in horse and buggy to the plantation where “it is the frst day of grinding, a great day on an estate. We saw the whole operation from the cutting of the cane to the fnal fnishing of the sugar except putting it in the barrels.

“Horatio is here for the day and night and when he returns to the city in the morning Mercedes will go too. She likes to go down once in a while to see about the house…” Reference is likely to the family home in Trinidad de Cuba. Horatio was kept busy in the sugar export business and his duties as American Council (from 1868 until leaving Cuba in 1878). Where the family was during time at the “estate” is unclear. Did he actually have a plantation or was he a member of the larger West India Trade?

The American Civil War (1861-65) was distant and the many unsettling disputes occurring in Cuba were not much discussed, not for disinterest but more to lack of information.

In Anne’s last letters: “Is not the news in regard to the war glorious, are you not all delighted. I see Sherman does not wish for any new soldiers … in four months he expects to send them all home. Can you realize it ... if ever the Stars and Stripes ought to be given to the breeze it is at this time. I trust I shall be at home when peace is declared.”

In another letter, reaction to Lincoln’s assassination, fve days after Lee’s surrender, was noted with shock.

Indeed, 1865 was a busy year. Letters sister Anne writes to family in Portland open a glimpse into family life abroad. Cuban-born Spaniards were fghting for independence from Spain (1868-78), until the inevitable recall of American citizens “home.” But somehow, it was still “business as usual” with trade!

Next Month...

Marta’s tale of the Portland Gothic House and its past residents continues with the Fox family feeing the fght for Cuba’s independence and returning to life in late 19th Century Portland.

Previously...

Read Part I about the Portland Gothic House’s big move saving it from urban renewal online at https://thewestendnews. com/portland-gothic-house-saved-fromurban-renewal.

Marta Morse is a freelance photographer who has shown prints at galleries and diverse venues around the country. She has lived at the Gothic House since 1986.

Horatio Fox, family photo given to Marta Morse by Rosa and Elisabeth Corey, great granddaughters of Horatio Fox.

WHAT'S

GOING ON

COMMUNITY EVENTS JULY

MUSIC. COMEDY. THEATER. DANCE.

Join us on The Hill for amazing performing arts!

The Hill Arts (formerly St. Lawrence Arts) has a new name, look and feel! However, the mission and commitment remain the same:

Arts & Culture

Neighborhood & Community

Historic Preservaton

7/1-7/2 Slemons Theater Productons Presents: Lockdown

7/7 Balderdash Academy Presents: Improv LIVE (monthly)

7/8 Dragology: Competton 5 - The Finale

7/9 Snowlion Repertory Company Presents: Christmas in July

7/13-30 Portland Theater Festval: The Thin Place

7/18 Balderdash Academy Presents: On The Air! (monthly)

7/19 Sunfower South, LIVE Acoustc Soul Music

7/25 Balderdash Academy Presents: IMPROV Jam (monthly)

8/4-8/6 Vivid Moton Dance: Vivid Moton Dance Greatest Hits

8/11-8/13 Slemons Theater Productons Presents: Firebringer

8/17-9/3 Portland Theater Festval Presents: Sanctuary City

10/7 Dirty Cello LIVE in Concert

10/12 - 10/29 Good Theater Presents: Firefies

10/17 Hey Party People - Sketch Comedy at its funniest!

and so much more... 76

MUSIC + EVENTS

Fourth of July Fireworks Information in Portland

Tues., Jul. 4 / Fireworks at 9:15 p.m. / Eastern Prom

The City of Portland is once again hosting freworks for the Fourth of July. The display will be held on Tuesday, July 4th, in its usual spot on the Eastern Promenade with the freworks set to go off around 9:15 p.m. A rain date is scheduled for Wednesday, July 5th. Food trucks will be available on the Eastern Prom roadway.

Fireworks will be launched from the East End Trail. The trail will need to be closed from Cutter Street to the Water Treatment Plant from 6:00 a.m. until deemed safe by City Staff (approximately 11:00 p.m.). In the event of rain, these trail closings would be in effect until Wednesday, July 5th (same times would apply). Also, residents and visitors should be aware that the City will close streets on Munjoy Hill throughout the day. For more information: https://www.visitportland. com/event/fourth-of-july-freworks.

Other Spots to View Portland’s Fireworks

WESTERN PROM SUNSET CONCERT SERIES

Free concerts starting every Wednesday evening, one hour before sunset at the Western Promenade Park between July 12th through August 16th.

July12th - 7:30 p.m. - GINA ALIBRIO w/ special guests Max Cantlin, Colin Windsor & Chris Swan

July 19th - 7:30 p.m. - THE TONESHIFTERS

JULY 26th - 7:00 p.m. - TBD

LoveLincolnPark Summer Concerts

Friends of Lincoln Park are once again presenting a free concert series on Tuesdays, 6 to 7:30 p.m., July 18th to August 8th. Concerts are free to all. The local bands participating are:

July 18: Wayne Street Band, an acoustic roots band playing originals, pop, country, and bluegrass.

July 25: Zoot Jumpers playing hot jump, blues, and cool swing.

August 1: Blues Prophets - good times blues for dancing and having fun.

August 8: The Renovators play original rootsy-rock, blues, soul, swing, country, and a lot more.

HISS GOLDEN MESSENGER - SOLD OUT!

PRESENTS: THE GAWLER FAMILY BAND AT CONGRESS SQUARE PARK - FREE!

THE LADLES W/ LOUISA STANCIOFF

PETE KILPATRICK BAND

THE PORTLAND JAZZ ORCHESTRA

MR. SUN

KAT WRIGHT

BILLY KEANE & THE WAKING DREAM

TOM DIMENNA SINGS GORDON LIGHTFOOT

MAIA

Chris Miller: Bringing a Carousel of Animals to Public Spaces

Every month PelotonLabs co-founder Liz Trice interviews a local community member. This month, Liz caught up with Chris Miller, a public artist and sculptor who recently was chosen by TempoArts to create seven animal sculptures for the Western Promenade.

Tell me about the seven animal sculptures you recently installed at the Western Prom.

They are all animals that at some point lived on, near, or above the Western Prom, or on a prehistoric location like Pangea, or the sea above it, when there were oceans above this land... Some are based on inaccurate historical representations, like the dragon is based on an illustration of the constellation Draco based on a 9th century manuscript from Persia, and a sea monster known as a steipereidur.

We made a whale, a walrus, a polar bear, a saber tooth cat, a rhynchosaur, a dragon, and a protocetid, an ancestor of whales that used to walk on land. There was an ancestor of whales that used to walk on land? And there were saber tooth cats here?

Yeah! There aren’t many fossils in Maine because of glaciers and soil types, but there was a mammoth found in Saco, and saber tooth cats were generally found

to be predators of mammoths. So, it’s an educated guess that there were saber tooth cats here at the end of the last ice age.

And there are fossil records that show that 60 million years ago animals known as Protocetids - that looked something like dogs - started living in the water and gradually became whales. They’ve been found everywhere that had shallow coastal waters. It’s counterintuitive that animals might have frst evolved in water, then moved to land to become mammals, and then gone back into the water. That said, whales are doing a lot better than dinosaurs, so going back to the water was probably a good idea.

What kind of projects would you love to create in the future?

I’m interested in designed space –buildings, interiors, landscapes, any kind of material or size mural, sculpture, or space design. The common thread of my projects that I love the most are things that al-

low people to exercise their curiosity and cultivate a sense of wonder, or to point out the everyday magic of living together on earth in the here and now.

What are you most excited about reading right now that inspired you?

There’s a book called “The Bear” by Andrew Krivak. It’s meant to be a biography of the last person on earth, living in the wild, after some unmentioned apocalypse several generations ago, and about her relationship with some animals that may or may not be imagined. More importantly, it’s a story about someone who is trying to be a good person, living in a graceful way in harmony with nature, totally alone. It’s very uplifting.

Another book, “Grief is the Thing with Feathers,” by Max Porters. It’s about a family that is grieving, and their grief is personifed by a crow, which is a literary reference to a book of poems by Ted Hughs, Silvia Plath’s widower. Fascinating and very sad, but also uplifting in surprising ways.

You’re also the public artist for the Bramhall Square redesign. Tell me about that. Why bears?

It was my frst public art proposal. I grew up around a lot of bears, saw bears very frequently, and had recurrent dreams, sometimes nightmares, about bears. Growing up in rural Minnesota, in the afternoon, black bears would come and soak up the heat on our driveway like giant cats. I remember my mom waking me up to show me a black bear standing on its hind legs about fve feet away on the other side of a sliding patio door chewing on one of our bird feeders. I nev-

er had any really scary experiences, but actual bears made an impression on me.

I’ve even used bears as illustrations in architectural drawings. I drew people sleeping safely inside a building while bears went through their trash. It was meant to be silly but only half!

My oldest child recently pointed out that everything I do is a little silly– and that’s intentional. I like where the Bramhall Square sculpture proposal landed because it’s at least 80% imaginary. That’s also a good budget strategy.

Your next project is a mural on the ceiling of South Portland Middle School. Tell me about that.

It will be my frst public art project outside the West End! The Middle school community voted overwhelmingly to have their mascot be sharks, and my mural will be of huge indigo sharks on the ceiling of a corridor about 12 feet wide by 100 feet long.

More Information

Carousel Cosmos Art Website: http:// npdworkshop.com/carousel-cosmos

Tempo Arts: https://tempoartmaine.org

PelotonLabs is a coworking space in the West End of Portland, Maine, with a mission to connect and encourage people working on their own to manifest their visions without fear.

PelotonPosts is produced by PelotonLabs and WEN provides free column space. Publisher-editor Tony Zeli is a coworking memeber at PelotonLabs.

Chris Miller is a local artist who created these animal sculptures for the Western Promenade. -Photo courtesy of Chris Miller

Layne's Wine Gig Presents FOUR WRITERS

By Layne V. Witherell ANTHONY BOURDAIN

(1956-2018) ‘KITCHEN CONFIDENTIAL’

Most of us know Anthony Bourdain as the lanky, adorable ex-chef traveling the planet’s backwater, third world, swampy countries, observing and contemplating with the locals in context along with their lives. All the while he was conversing through a kumbaya, “We are the World,” styled CNN travelog.

There is another, earlier, gnarlier Anthony Bourdain, author of “Kitchen Confdential,” a chef tell-all published in the year 2,000. You can purchase a used paperback for around six bucks on abe.com. Or save up and wait for a signed hard cover - for around $1,000.00 per copy - to show up. Your choice.

You need to read this book, not so much for tips about roasting bones for stock or the woes and hierarchies of ghastly unsustainable life in the kitchens (manned by lots of undocumented immigrants), while working in major New York restaurants. You can as well experience a

cast of “cunning, manipulative, mercurial… and terrifying people.” But you will also see how much the world has changed in twenty-three short years. This book is a revelatory ride.

Frankly, I don’t see how “Confdential” could be published today. It is sexist, racist, profane, misogynistic, totally politically incorrect, outrageous, drug fueled, and a major work of artistic writing achievement.The book is not only brilliant, but in today’s world it reads more like Jonathan Swift, a ferce biting satire in rebuttal to our universal attempts at inclusivity. Talented, with a quirky, driven work ethic, and sheer tenacity, this was his vocabulary. We won’t see the likes of him again.

RICHARD OLNEY (1927-1999), ‘REFLEXIONS’

“He could be absolutely charming if you treated him to be the genius he considered himself to be,” said Julia Child.

If Anthony Bourdain was the master of the vernacular, then Richard Olney had to have been a reincarnation of French royalty. Although he was born in Iowa to a wealthy family, he lived in the tiny French

Come visit today!

Our Portland market is open! 262 Commercial St, Portland Tues – Sat: 10 am – 5 pm Closed: Sunday-Monday

hamlet of Sollies-Toucas near Provence for his entire life.

On the plus side: His French was fawless, as were his cooking, teaching, and writing skills.

The wines tasted in this book together with the “Who’s Who” of the wine and food world would require either winning the billion-dollar lottery or the sale of a ton of Microsoft stock to afford. He was a connoisseur with a capital “C,” also a major organizer of tastings of cellars and meals. You left his dinners in a “vapor of ecstasy.” He freely admits that “wines were not that expensive then.” The list of mid-19th and early 20th century wines he drank is mind blowing.

He edited the 28-volume series on food by Time Life books. He also wrote the hugely popular “Simple French Food,” wrote books on cooking in Provence, and did the authoritative research and production for the book on the world’s greatest wine, Romanee Conti.

So… why is it the James Beard Award and not the Richard Olney Award?

On the minus side: He lived in a virtual shack in an out of the way spot in the south of France. “Where he could live and work in solitude.”

He never lived in New York and didn’t

Layne explores the work of wine writers such as Anthony Bourdain, Richard Olney, and Jim Harrison. -All photos courtesy of Layne Witherell

LAYNE'S WINE GIG: Camp

would go on to become one of America’s most important wine importers. This, and his book on Romanee Conti, are Richard Olney’s legacy.

“Refexions” is more of a diary with menus and wines tasted - wines that are among those enjoyed by the wine gods or people who have just won the big lottery. It is also a delicious, and bitingly gossipy read.

BRETT ANDERSON

cial justice, the #MeToo movement, Black Lives Matter, fair wages, etc. Meanwhile, in the words of a former contestant, during a scandal the owners stepped in to “Protect the brand at all costs.” There is nothing quite like that good old nondisclosure agreement to make unpleasantness go away.

JIM HARRISON (1937-2016)

‘A REALLY BIG LUNCH’

do the television chef circuit with a tribe of little apprentice chefs, ala Julia Child and James Beard.

Olney preferred to choose his people and chose contempt toward James Beard (the frst of America’s major celebrity chefs), “It was hate at frst sight. Jim held forth with banal pronouncements and cliches. He had arrived at the period in his career when he expected listeners to bow in silence to his superior wisdom.”

Referring to James Beard as a pompous buffoon would not get you on the awards short list.

His legacy: Olney tutored a young wine merchant from Berkeley, California named Kermit Lynch, writing the preface to his book “Adventures on the Wine Route.” The book has been continuously in print since 1988. Kermit, brilliantly,

‘INSIDE THE “TOP CHEF” INDUSTRIAL COMPLEX,’ THE NEW YORK TIMES, March 9, 2023

Unfortunately, little of our wisdom comes from books today. Well, not to worry, because this article takes you inside the minds of the producers of the wildly popular series on Bravo called “Top Chef,” who turn 200 hours of footage into 54 minutes of “compelling television.” They invent story lines, spin a narrative, and sprinkle a heavy dose of “Michelin star and James Beard Award” references with the drama of “The Real World.” Brought to us, of course, through the skills and well-crafted charisma of the top chefs. This is reality television meets cooking with $250,000 as frst prize - along with an extra helping of fame.

It was all well and good except for their wading into the deep waters of so-

It is time to get off that social media device and see what a real curmudgeon writer looks like, up close and personal and in print. Wisdom from Jim Harrison:

“Iwas handed a glass of cheapish California Chardonnay and said, ‘this might be good on pancakes if you were in the wilderness.’

“Any fool knows that red wine is the best energy drink if you keep it within two bottles.”

“The total check for the Iraq war and restoration will be six hundred billion dollars. If only this much money had been spent on French wines for our entire populace, there would never have been a war, only well-oiled diplomacy.”

“The free-market economy is a leash-less Labrador who will eat everything.”

Layne has been a professional in the wine business for many decades and was awarded the Master Knight of the Vine for his pioneering work in Oregon. He can be reached at lvwitherell@gmail.com.

“Wine crawls into the windows of your life and never leaves.”

“We are delightfully trapped by our memories. I can’t drink a bottle of Chateauneuf-du-Pape Vieux Telegraphe without revisiting a hotel bistro in Lucerne, Switzerland, where I ate a large bowl of peppery baby goat stew. A sip and a bite. A sip and a bite.”

Jim Harrison nailed it. His life was: “A sip and a bite. A sip and a bite.” And some damned fne writing to boot.

Maine’s Shortest, Sweetest Season

By Nancy Dorrans

What adventures have you planned this summer? If you’re visiting or new to the state, welcome to Maine’s shortest, sweetest season of the year! Graduations, gardens, live music, camping, hiking, kayaking, and cycling are all part of my summer plans and it’s only just begun!

An extraordinary graduating class...

Readers may recall, while travel was hibernating during the pandemic, I spent two and a half years as a dedicated substitute at Deering High School here in Portland. Luckily, a few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to usher at Deering’s graduation at the Merrill Auditorium.

The graduating students had all four years of their high school experience interrupted due to the pandemic. Their freshman year ended early. Their sophomore year was remote until the middle of April. Last year, they were all in school but wearing masks. This year was a slow return to normal... whatever that means when you’re in high school.

The co-principal Alyson Dame spoke at graduation and quoted from the children’s book, “Miss Rumphius,” the Lupine Lady. Miss Rumphius (Alice) grew up by the sea. She adored her grandfather, and he told her many stories of faraway places. She told him, “When I grow up, I too will go to faraway places and when I grow old, I too will live beside the sea.”

Her grandfather added a third thing,

“You must do something to make the world more beautiful.”

Ms. Dame told the students that they are prepared for what’s next. Already, they have done two of the three things that Miss Rumphius set out to do. They live by the sea and have traveled to faraway places. Some have traveled away from Maine for vacations, and many have traveled from far away to be here in Maine.

Next, she told them, they should be like Miss Rumphius and strive to “do something to make the world more beautiful!” They were on their way, and it was a very joyful day.

Make the world more beautiful!

After graduation, I traveled to East Tennessee to help my father celebrate his 90th birthday. Most of our extended family is in Michigan and they wanted him to come for a party, but my dad is most comfortable at home now. So, we had a small get-together with my sister’s family. Our dear family friends Marilyn Trapp (also 90) and her daughter, Carol, joined us from Pittsburgh for a long weekend. We went to Pickin’ and Grinnin’ at the Bradbury, a local social center around the corner. They have bluegrass jams every week.

Lately my dad has been hanging out at the New Brewery in Kingston, TN. It is neither new nor a brewery, but they do serve beer and play poker on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Since I don’t play poker, he gave me a quick lesson on how to play

Texas Holdem before we joined the fun. I saw how much joy playing cards with these old boys brought my dad. Then, he got a straight fush on the third hand!

On Tuesday, the night before I few home, we both played. He came in third in the frst game, and I won the second. Beginners luck? Good clean fun? Maybe… I warned them I’d be back in September.

Summer Adventure in Maine

So now, I’m back in Maine for the rest of the summer and striving to make the world more beautiful by planting gardens in Portland and native seeds and seedlings up on my lot in Waltham, just north of Ellsworth.

My friends from the Maine Outdoor Adventure Club (MOAC.org) have organized several camping trips to state parks this summer: Lamoine State Park over the Fourth of July, Rangeley State Park in mid-July, and Lily Bay on Moosehead Lake in August.

I’ll also be enjoying live outdoor music. The Western Prom will have live music Wednesday evenings from July 12th to August 16th. Brother’s Osborne, the country music duo from Nashville, will be playing at Thompson’s Point on Friday, August 18th. My nephew Luke is their tour manager.They put on a great show, and I’m excited to see them again. I hope to get a chance to see my nephew, too!

In early September, I’m heading to Hokkaido, Japan to attend the Adventure Travel Trade World Summit. I’m back to Tennessee for a few weeks, and then taking two small groups on adventures to the Emilia Romagna Region of Italy.

I’m now accepting registrations for the New York City Rockettes’ Spectacular weekend motorcoach tour the frst weekend in December. And we’re heading back to Quebec City for Winter Carnival in February. This year for three nights, February 2nd through February 5th, 2024. Won’t you join us? See my website for details, https://adventure-marketplace.com/ adventures.

Nancy plays Texas Holdem with her father at New Brewery in Kingston, TN.

What adventures have you planned this summer? Summer may be Maine’s shortest season, but there is still time to enjoy everything you want and more.

When a friend of mine asked me, “Do you ever do nothing?” I just shook my head. Nothing is boring! When there are so many faraway places to go, so much natural beauty we can enjoy, and so many ways to make the world more beautiful, why do nothing? Especially during the sweetest season of the year!

205 Lincoln Street, South Portland 767-3773 Complete Auto Service State Inspection Foreign & Domestic Rigby Auto Repair $100 LABOR RATE All major credit cards accepted • Mufers • Brakes • Diagnostics • A/C Service • Windshields • Tune Ups • Rust Repair • Tire Service • Auto Detailing & Reconditioning • Shuttle Service • Towing Available

Main St,

Sweet

Breakfast

181 Congress St. Portland, ME 207-771-0994

Nancy Dorrans Travel Group Expert

Nancy Dorrans is founder of Adventure Marketplace... Navigating travelers on authentic, nurturing, global and local adventures since 2014.

-Photo courtesy of Nancy Dorrans

By Allice Haidden

Recognizing our present position in human history and taking to heart the teachings of all the spiritual traditions, I boarded a train to Washington, D.C.There I joined more than 800 other volunteers to lobby Congress about upcoming climate initiatives.We came from every state, every generation, and every life situation. The robust nature of the information, support, and fellowship available in the Citizens’ Climate Lobby (CCL) conference on June 11th and 12th prepared us all for June 13th, our lobby day.

The core values of CCL are optimism, focus, relationship, integrity, diversity, non-partisanship, and personal power. Each one is a practical challenge as well as a spiritual practice.The conference itself was a clear demonstration of all these values at work. Inspiration was everywhere, in the dedication of the staff and interns, the power and passion of the presenters, and in the presence and humanity of my fellow volunteers.

We heard sobering and direct messages from Congressional climate champions from both sides of the aisle, the UN, and academia.

Citizens Climate Lobby brings clear constituent voices directly into legislators’ offces. Well prepared by two days of intensive training we stressed the importance of reforming the permitting process to rapidly feed clean energy onto the grid; we emphasized the pivotal role of pricing carbon at the source and distributing those revenues directly back to the American people; and we reinforced the importance of leveling the international market

CLIMATE JUSTICE

for the cleaner and more expensive carbon produced in the US.

Because relationships move only at the speed of trust, we were trained in the principles of refective listening. We practiced applying the advice of E. B. White to bring our minds not only to what we want to save but to what we savor. Savoring opens our hearts and strengthens our resolve.

On June 13th, our teams carried focus and inspiration into the Congressional offces. I was privileged to participate in three different well-prepared and well received lobbying teams. We brought our messages to both the senate and congressional members of congress and their staffers.

We, as citizen climate lobbyists, went to Washington to offer our members of congress our support and to present to them our best solutions for a livable world. As one of the few non-partisan climate groups we were able to achieve more than four hundred meetings based on mutual respect.

June thirteenth was a good day on Capitol Hill.

Allice Haidden and her young family moved to Maine from Boston in 1979. She has maintained a busy astrological counselling practice in Portland ever since.

PFAS left our headlines, but not our homes. Take steps today!

By Jade Christensen

Forever

chemicals, PFAS, or per-

and

substances are a group of chemicals with over a thousand different varieties. These chemicals have been linked to serious health conditions, most notably cancer, and they have scared many about the future health of our lands and farms.

polyfuoroalkyl

• Maine has found 700 sites that have been deemed as high risk of contamination. The goal is to have all of these sites tested by 2025 to determine the soil concentrations.

• In 2022, Maine passed LD 2023 which included a $60 million budget for farmer support for those suffering from PFAS contamination.

Alongside farms, PFAS pollution impacts our wildlife and fsheries through bioaccumulation, meaning high levels can be found in many fsh species and shellfsh. In Maine’s past, areas frequently applied biosolids from municipal sewage and contaminated irrigation water to help farmland.

What has been done?

• In 2019 the Department of Agriculture, Conservation, and Forestry (DACF) began testing Maine produced pasteurized milk. Most of the milk that was studied is safe for consumption, and those with more concerning amounts of PFAS are working with (DACF) to create plans to reduce the levels.

• To reduce PFAS, it is recommended to increase crop management on forage grass and legumes with the highest uptake of PFAS and move away from corn silage and grain with a lower PFAS uptake.

What can you do?

• Test your tap water and drinking water for contamination and install fltration systems to assist in mitigating the issue.

• Reduce the use of PFAS-covered products at home. For example, switching out nonstick pans with stainless steel.

• Advocate for in-state renewable energy programs on PFAS contaminated farmland where remediation is not possible.

• Support smaller local farms or organizations that work with farmers like Maine Farmland Trust or MOFGA.

• Start taking these steps today!

Bright Ideas is brought to readers by the Portland Climate Action Team (PCAT) which meets the Third Tuesday of the month, 6-7:30 p.m. All are welcome to join: portlandclimateaction@gmail.com.

ANSWERS Online at TheWestEndNews.com/Puzzle-Solutions

Japanese Loan Words Trivia

1. 7 letters: The traditional Japanese art or technique of folding paper into a variety of decorative or representational forms, as of animals or flowers?

2. 7 letters: An unusually large sea wave produced by a seaquake or undersea volcanic eruption?

3. 8 letters: A small, two-wheeled cart-like passenger vehicle with a fold-down top, pulled by one person?

4. 5 letters: The blurry quality in the outof-focus parts of a photograph, regarded as an aesthetic e ect rendered by a particular lens?

Mondays at Foulmouthed Brewing, Lazzari

Tuesdays at Ri Ra, Brookside F+D

Wednesdays at Wilson County BBQ, Elsmore BBQ in SoPo

Thursdays at Arcadia, Locally Sauced, Goodfire online @bestworsttrivia

Find the answers online at thewestendnews.com/puzzle-solutions!

HILLTOP SUPERETTE’s

SLICE FROM THE PIE

WHERE WE THROW SLICES OF NEWS THAT DIDN’T FIT ANYWHERE ELSE…

St. Lawrence Arts rebrands to The Hill Arts and unveils expansion plans for a state-of-the-art performing arts venue…

Weekly Paddles for Locals from Portland Paddle are back for confdent sea kayakers on Tuesday mornings and SUPs on Thursdays… Parks & Rec celebrates completion of the new Dougherty Field Playground which features a natural playground and new basketball court Skate park construction is expected to be completed later this summer… Parkside wins the distinction of being Portland’s frst Sustainable Neighborhood under a new city program… Wallethub names Maine the 10th Best State for Summer Road Trips but mostly because of the low cost of car repairs and low number of car thefts rather than scenic roadways… And Portlanders only rarely take EVs on those roadways being ranked #65 out of 82 US metro areas for miles driven by EV… Portlanders with EVs are mostly driving the Kia Niro with Tesla Model 3 coming a close second…

Portland Trails opens a new mile-long Clark Brook Trail in Westbrook connecting with existing Stroudwater Trail… York River watershed community celebrates the river’s long-sought “Wild and Scenic” designation…

Open 365 Days 7am - 9pm

Best Pizza on Munjoy Hill!

Huge selection of Spirits, Grocery, Wine, Local Beer & Artisanal Frozen Pizza.

24-hr Outdoor Ice Vending!

135 Congress St, Portland - (207) 773-8000 - hilltopsuperette.com

First Lobster of Summer

Middle English, from Old English loppestre, from loppe spider 1100s

I see a lobster on my plate

The frst lobster of the summer

I feel bad about its fate

That’s a bummer

But I’m really happy

It’s on my plate

It’s a Maine lobster to be exact

The best there is

And that’s a fact

Hard shell or soft shell

Hard to tell

Both are delicious

And nutritious

So don’t wait

Summer doesn’t begin

Until a bib is around your neck

Lobster cracker and pick in place

Drawn butter and lemon standing

ready

And a lobster is on your plate

-Susan Bassler Pickford

SUBMISSIONS

Share your submissions with thewestendnews@gmail.com or send to: The West End News, 795 Congress Street, Portland, Maine 04102.

Letters to the editor should be no more than 200 words. Include your name and town or neighborhood. We also accept poetry, cartoons, and photo submissions.

Deadline for publication is the fourth Friday of every month.

-Courtesy Pingree's Offce

*Please drink responsibly.

Happy Hour Specials

Tuesday - Thursday 3 - 6 pm

Taco Tuesday: All a-la-carte tacos..........$3.00 ea. Burrito Thursday: All burritos...............$10.95 ea.

Prepared Fresh Daily to Order

Tacos – Burritos – Quesadillas – Enchiladas –Sopes – Pozole – Goat Birria – Fajitas –Cocteles de Marisco – Chile Rellenos – Carne Asada –Lamb Shanks in Adobo & much more!

Dine In or Take Out with El Corazon!

190 State Street, Portland Across from Longfellow Square Open Tues-Thurs 11am-9pm Fri-Sat 11am-10pm (207) 536-1354

Casita Corazon*

158 Benjamin W Pickett St, South Portland Open Tues-Sat 11am-8pm (207) 808-8317

*Reservations are not available at South Portland location.

www.elcorazonportland.com

“To know how to eat is to know enough”