All Stories

RESILIENCE

TRURO — Townspeople were lined up outside the gift shop at Truro Vineyards and South Hollow Spirits on Shore Road on Saturday, respecting the social distance and patiently waiting their […]

CLOSING DOWN

PROVINCETOWN — Town officials were notified of the first two positive tests for coronavirus on Sunday, March 22. Later that evening, the select board declared a state of emergency, and […]

PANDEMIC

WELLFLEET — Outer Cape Health Services must reduce its hours and possibly close one of its three clinics at least temporarily because of the financial pressure imposed on the organization […]

CORONAVIRUS

PROVINCETOWN — Last Friday, March 20, Seashore Point condominium owner Bruce Mason had just returned from a meditation class with other residents. At the same time in Yarmouth Port, Fran […]

HEALTH

As cases of COVID-19 begin to be diagnosed in our towns, Cape residents are taking social distancing seriously. “We’ve been really rigorous about it. No play dates. No socializing with […]

The Pilgrim Monument shelters in place. This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.

DISPATCHES

During the COVID-19 pandemic, we have truly become, despite all the fear and barriers, a global family. Near or far, we are facing the same risks and many of the […]

Sketchbook by Mark Adams

LOST AND FOUND

I am going to miss the chaos of a good estate sale during this time of distancing. My strategy at such gatherings is to stand in one place, ignoring the […]

GALLERY

Now is the time to find ways to take comfort in being at home. Here we can surround ourselves with what’s most familiar. And look at these things anew: a […]

CAREGIVING

I turned to old cookbooks for comfort last week, wondering what my American foremothers had done in times of crisis and scarcity. Given that our best strategy at slowing the […]

RARA AVIS

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, March 24, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

CREATIVE ISOLATION

Making a memory book is something like writing a memoir, but much more free-form. To make one, you gather stories and images that don’t have to fit together to recreate […]

BODY/MIND

Amid news reports of climbing infection rates, hospital bed shortages, and people ignoring guidelines during this unprecedented time, I can feel myself contracting. Lack of control has never been my […]

GAME OFF

Sports fans across the country are itching to watch, play, place bets, and argue. Just when it seems the world of sports has gone totally dark, along come some good […]

MILLION-YEAR PICNIC

I have never met a pessimistic astronomer.” A New York Times reader recently posted this comment, inspired by another reader’s delighted account of looking through a telescope. I haven’t either. […]

NAVIGATING BY THE STARS

  Time to rewrite the social contract for modern times. The Sun in Aries in the 7th House of Relationship places scrutiny upon our interpersonal connections. Meanwhile, a massive conjunction […]

HOUSING

EASTHAM — Two projects have been proposed for the Transition Commercial District, designed for small-scale commercial and residential development on Route 6 outside the Core Commercial Area. But neighbors have […]

SOCIAL SERVICES

PROVINCETOWN — Both the lives and finances of many on the Outer Cape have been rapidly undone by the coronavirus. With movement restricted and the economy at a halt, new […]

CORONAVIRUS

TRURO — Thomas Garran has left his apartment complex in Beijing only three times in the last two months. Those times he did leave, he had his temperature taken upon […]

ESSENTIAL SERVICES

Editor’s note: This list will be updated online regularly. Send additions and corrections to [email protected] Updated as of Saturday, March 28 at 2 p.m. Provincetown Community Kitchen Soup Kitchen in […]

currents

Provincetown is conducting virtual regulatory town board public hearings through an online live stream. Follow the instructions below to watch and participate in the meetings. Go to the Provincetown website […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Truro, as of the Independent’s deadline, was in the testing phase for a platform that can broadcast regulatory meetings and incorporate viewer input remotely. The town does not […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Wellfleet is holding virtual regulatory town board public hearings through Zoom conference calls. To access the meetings and participate, follow the instructions below. Go to the Wellfleet website […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Town Hall is closed to the public. The meetings listed below are still posted but may change. Eastham is holding virtual regulatory town board public hearings through online […]

STEAMERS

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OP-ED

IRVINGTON, N.Y. — New York is well stocked with uncertainty this week. I am sheltering in place and wish I were somewhere else. I covered wars in the Middle East […]

THE YEAR-ROUNDER

I drove to the Evergreen Cemetery in Eastham the other day to try to see the rare clay-colored sparrow that has been reported there. I didn’t find it, but it […]

The new mantra Find a shelter How easily demanded by those in power Stay there Open yourself to alone Become someone else now Someone who can live Without order Or […]

ARTISTS AT WORK

Hiroyuki Hamada arrived in Provincetown on March 1 to spend the month as a mid-career artist-in-residence at the Fine Arts Work Center. Now, though FAWC is closed to the public […]

BOOKS

Christopher Bollen has written a seductive and cold-blooded tale of deception with his latest book, A Beautiful Crime, published by Harper Books in late January. As he did in The […]

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

Amy Whorf McGuiggan’s marvelous story in last week’s Independent about the young man from Provincetown for whom V.F.W. Post No. 3152 was named — Lewis Armstrong Young — noted that […]

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Advice for Second-Home Owners To the editor: The Wellfleet Seasonal Residents Assoc. (formerly Wellfleet Nonresident Taxpayers Assoc.) has been keeping members apprised of the effect of the coronavirus on the […]

CLASSIFIEDS

HELLO OUT THERE Mom & Dad: We miss our visits, dinners, games, outings, and laughs. We will see you on your birthday, Dad, even if it’s got to be through […]

HOME

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from March 16 to March 20, 2020.  PROVINCETOWN March 16. Richard B. Smith Trust of August 25 2003 (David J. Smith, trustee) […]

Know when to hit the flats

film

All movie theaters are closed in an effort to prevent the spread of COVID-19. This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.

Arts Briefs and Listings

Doors Are Closed, but Libraries Still Offer Services The library is a lifeline for people who need internet access, public information, books, movies, or social contact. So, with all four […]

our picks for the week of March 26 through April 1

Outer Cape Bulletin The Metropolitan Live in HD series that was showing at the Wellfleet Harbor Actors Theater has been canceled for the remainder of the season (along with all […]

PUBLIC HEARING Wellfleet Historical Commission Hearing Date:  Wednesday, April 8 – 6:15 p.m. In accordance with Wellfleet General Bylaws, Article 13 Section 3.4., the Wellfleet Historical Commission will hold a […]

THE PANDEMIC

Updated at 4 p.m. Tuesday, March 24. PROVINCETOWN — Outer Cape Health Services will test patients for the coronavirus, but they must first call one of the OCHS health clinics […]

COVID-19 Q & A

The Independent asked some commonly heard questions of medical authorities this week. Here are their answers. Is the severity of the situation being overblown? “No. This is an incredibly serious […]

CIVICS

PROVINCETOWN — The annual town meeting is unlikely to take place on its scheduled date, Monday, April 6. Gov. Charlie Baker issued an emergency order on Sunday limiting gatherings to […]

CORONAVIRUS

PROVINCETOWN — We are in uncharted territory with the coronavirus pandemic. The problems and stresses of “social distancing” and possible quarantine are intimidating. Many of our friends and loved ones […]

ESSENTIAL SERVICES

Editor’s note: This list will be updated regularly. Send additions and corrections to [email protected] Provincetown Community Kitchen Soup Kitchen in Provincetown at the United Methodist Church, 20 Shank Painter Road: […]

AFFORDABLE LIVING

EASTHAM — It takes more than affordable housing to keep a young working family in town. Child care for preschoolers takes a big bite out of paychecks, and school lunch […]

NATURA VIVA

"Helleborus" by Natalie Van Staden

PLANTCRAFT

Outer Cape winds can be unruly, knocking trees down in a tantrum. On the days following a storm, the sound of chainsaws rings through the neighborhood. But when the trees […]

VIGNETTE

"Ark" by Daniel Dejean

KITCHEN TABLE

We’re hunkered down, working through one big shopping binge and the supplies in our pantry. We’re eating simple meals, but we’re still trying to keep them interesting. This red lentil, […]

GALLERY

Basketball fans won’t be filling out brackets this year. Instead, March Madness is taking on a whole new meaning. Meanwhile, Provincetown’s antique facades remind us of the town’s endurance. Intricate […]

View from the Hive

Probably the most common image that comes to mind when someone mentions honey bees are those tidy (classically white) wooden hive boxes set out in a field, orchard, or country […]

MOVEMENT

Some things we do mainly because we’ve always done them. For me, stretching is one. When I was a 12-year-old aspiring gymnast, I stretched before class because the coach told […]

RARA AVIS

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, March 17, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

MARCH MADNESS

Editor’s note: This article has been updated since the publication of the March 19 edition of the Independent. EASTHAM — The local sports schedule has been put on hold due to […]

HISTORY

PROVINCETOWN — In the 60 years since the Lewis A. Young V.F.W. Post 3152 was constructed on Jerome Smith Road, how many visitors to Provincetown have turned off Route 6 […]

PROJECTS

PROVINCETOWN —Jay Critchley invited members of the community — artists, writers, veterans — to join him on Wednesday, March 11 for a walk-through of the Veterans of Foreign Wars building […]

CREATIVE ISOLATION

Many of us — parents, grandparents, and others — are finding ourselves in isolation with children home from school, probably for an extended period. Play dates are out, and no […]

FOOD SECURITY

As the coronavirus pandemic increasingly disrupted everyday life here in the past week, Outer Cape schools, community organizations, and businesses began looking for ways to make sure children and neighbors […]

ECONOMY

WELLFLEET — The “Coming Attractions” marquee at the Wellfleet Cinemas is empty, an indication that nobody knows what’s coming next. Spring is a time for preparation and planning for the […]

CIVICS

EASTHAM — There’s nothing casual about the way this community seeks volunteers to serve on its boards and committees. In 1982, the home rule charter created a standing search committee […]

REGIONAL SCHOOLS

BREWSTER — The Nauset Regional School Committee was considering the possibility of a district-wide shutdown in response to the coronavirus pandemic when it met on March 12. Since then, the […]

PUBLIC SAFETY

WELLFLEET — The state Dept. of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) and Dept. of Transportation (MassDOT) presented updated plans on March 12 for a two-mile bike path extension ending at Route […]

HOUSING

TRURO — An independent review of the Cloverleaf, the largest single affordable housing development in Truro’s history, found it needs a more powerful septic treatment system than was originally proposed. […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Town officials are working on providing conference phone-in capability for board and committee meetings. When available, a phone number will be listed on the meeting agenda. During the […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Truro is working on remote capacity to enable people to participate in public meetings. “We don’t have that in place yet,” said Town Manager Rae Ann Palmer. “So […]

currents

Meetings Ahead The coronavirus has taken a toll on civic involvement, but you can still watch and call in to the meetings that have not been canceled. Town offices and […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Town Hall is closed. The meetings listed below are still posted but may change. Check the town’s website, www.eastham-ma.gov, for information on meeting schedule changes and how to […]

"Suggestion Box" by MDA.

THE YEAR-ROUNDER

I have been invited to participate in a (virtual) panel discussion at Ian Edwards’s Art-Science-Climate Broto conference scheduled for May 16-17 in Provincetown. The topic is “Deep Time and Climate […]

OP-ED

Looking for inspiration as we approach the end of Lent? Try L.B.J. for a change: “Sometimes you just have to hunker down and take it like a jackass in a […]

TEACAKE’S TAKE

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NAVIGATING BY THE STARS

  The Sun leaves behind the dreamworld of Pisces for an awakening in Aries, herald of the spring and ruler of new beginnings. A New Moon in Aries in the […]

CERAMICS

Editor’s note: As we went to press with this issue we learned that the opening of the sculpture show by the artists profiled in this article, which was scheduled for […]

BOOK REVIEW

Forty-seven years ago this month, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Lewis Powell concluded that the state of Texas did not have to remedy inequalities in school funding across deeply segregated school […]

INDIE SCREEN

The great Spanish filmmaker Pedro Almodóvar is often celebrated for his outlandishly passionate heroines, in everything from Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown to Volver. But in films […]

ARTS LISTINGS

As the week progressed, it became clear that all venues for art and other kinds of creative engagement on the Outer Cape were closing. Here’s a round-up of the state […]

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

At the beginning of this surreal week, as the chilling news reports piled one upon another, I read an unusually comforting email from Brian and Monila Junkins, the owners of […]

CLASSIFIEDS

GROWTH INDUSTRY Provincetown gardener needs horse manure. Call Rose, 508-487-2347. [4-23] FREE Two upholstered swivel and rocking chairs (blue & white), available for pick up in Eastham. Free! Picture available. […]

Obituaries

Poet, linguist, and teacher Nell Husted, a longtime resident of the Outer Cape, died at Cape Cod Hospital on March 12, 2020, at age 87 after complications of an injury. […]

Obituaries

Lawrence Lee “Larry” Smith died on March 12, 2020, at Cape Cod Hospital after a lengthy illness with his loving family at his side. He was 58. Born in Hyannis […]

HOME

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from March 9 to March 13, 2020. PROVINCETOWN March 11. Bank of New York Mellon to Andrew Armstrong Beardsley and John Herbert […]

Know when to hit the flats

film

All movie theaters are closed in an effort to prevent the spread of COVID-19. This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.

BUSINESS

EASTHAM — It appears that Willy’s World Wellness & Conference Center, closed since Dec. 12 because of serious health and safety code violations, could reopen in a matter of weeks, […]

NATIONAL SEASHORE

EASTHAM — It will cost you more to park at a Cape Cod National Seashore beach this summer, and less — in fact, nothing — to participate in ranger-led programs. […]

CIVICS

WELLFLEET — The select board voted 3-2 on Feb. 28 not to adopt a policy requiring the videotaping of all regulatory town board meetings. The vote perpetuated Wellfleet’s status as […]

ENVIRONMENT

PROVINCETOWN — Dragon, a female right whale who gave birth to a calf as recently as 2016, was spotted two weeks ago entangled in rope 50 miles south of Nantucket. […]

RESTORATION

WELLFLEET — Speakers lined up at microphones at the Council on Aging Monday to support the Herring River Project, which over 20 years could repair 570 acres of a salt […]

STEAMERS

"Clamelot" by A. Crock

SHELLFISHING

EASTHAM — Mussels are a wild fishery on Cape Cod. That is, if you’re eating a locally harvested mussel, nature did the planting and cultivation. Some are wondering if shellfish […]

AQUACULTURE

Some of us, tired of winter, are starting to daydream about lazy afternoons, cold beers, and oysters. But for the oyster farmers of Wellfleet, now begins the spring cycle of […]

PAIRINGS

A lively white wine with crisp acidity fits the bill with these mussels. Sauvignon blanc is always a good bet and it is widely available across the price spectrum. Sauvignon […]

CHEF AT HOME

We serve local mussels whenever we can get them. I like how substantial and flavorful they are compared to some of the farmed ones. When they come in really large, […]

IN AND OUT

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BAKEOFF

We’re adopting Pi Day (March 14 = 3.14) as our own here at the P.I. with a pie recipe roundup. Everybody loves pie, we’re pretty sure. Here, local bakers offer […]

ON THE LANDSCAPE

Hacking. Butchering. Murdering. These are all terms we hear when the subject of pruning comes up. These words betray a widely held belief that pruning is an act of brutality. […]

GALLERY

A few principles guided the planning for the Independent’s new office on the first floor of Provincetown’s Whaler’s Wharf: simplicity, versatility, and cost. The challenge was to create quiet work […]

BLADE RUNNERS

EASTHAM — In just its first year of competition, the Nauset Figure Skating Club came in first overall in the New England series of U.S. Figure Skating high school competitions. […]

RARA AVIS

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, March 10, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

CHEER PEERS

Nauset Cheerleading finished fifth of 13 teams that competed at the Game Day State Championship on March 8 at Shephard Hill Regional High School in Dudley and received a plaque […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Thursday, March 12 Bicycle Committee, 2 p.m., Maushope Community Room Planning Board, 6:30 p.m., Town Hall Tuesday, March 17 Conservation Commission, 6 p.m., Town Hall Wednesday, March 18 […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Thursday, March 12 Housing Authority, 4:15 p.m., Town Hall Zoning Board of Appeals, 5:30 p.m., Town Hall Tuesday, March 17 Cemetery Commission, 10 a.m., Town Hall Board of […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Thursday, March 12 Local Comprehensive Planning, 8:30 a.m., Council on Aging Dredging Task Force, 1 p.m., Town Hall Nauset Regional School Committee, 6 p.m., Brewster Town Hall Zoning […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Thursday, March 12 Nauset Regional School Committee, 6 p.m., Brewster Town Hall Saturday, March 14 Board of Library Trustees, 9 a.m., Greg Turner Room, Eastham Public Library Monday, […]

CIVICS

CANDIDATES DEMOCRAT Provincetown Truro Wellfleet Eastham Deval Patrick 4 2 4 6 Amy Klobuchar 26 18 25 56 Elizabeth Warren 365 230 311 347 Michael Bennet 6 1 1 0 […]

WELLFLEET — Jack Stetson died peacefully at home on Feb. 28, 2020, after a long illness. He was 80 years old. He was born and raised in Newton and spent […]

ESSAY

Norman Mailer’s new suit was hanging up in the Provincetown home of my employer, Molly Malone Cook, and her partner, the poet Mary Oliver. Molly and Mary were at that […]

DUNE TOWN

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NAVIGATING BY THE STARS

In the wake of the Full Moon’s passage through Virgo in the 12th House of Undoing, the spirit of release permeates our lives this week. The motivation to clean house, […]

PAINTING

It’s unusual for an accomplished artist to want to share with the public not only completed, polished work but also works-in-progress and even notes, sketches, and inspirations, offering an intimate […]

BOOK REVIEW

Perched on stilts, the Weidlinger house on Wellfleet’s Higgins Pond peers out from the surrounding green like a wide pinhole camera. This camera-like impression echoes the Marcel Breuer house nearby, […]

THEATER

With coronavirus jitters everywhere, as well as talk of cancellations, from the Olympics to South by Southwest, it’s hard to be optimistic about the months to come. But Christopher Ostrom, […]

READINGS

In her new book, In the Dream House: A Memoir, Carmen Maria Machado flips the discussion of domestic abuse on its ear. She writes of her own traumatic experience in […]

CLASSIFIEDS

GROWTH INDUSTRY Provincetown gardener needs horse manure. Call 508-487-2347. [4-23] FREE Two upholstered swivel and rocking chairs (blue & white), available for pick up in Eastham. Free! Picture available. Call […]

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

This is not the easiest time to be in the newspaper business, as most people know by now. The consolidation of ownership of local papers into giant groups like Digital […]

Know when to hit the flats

film

PLAYING NOW: MARCH 12-18 The Call of the Wild (PG13). Wellfleet Cinemas: daily: 4:10 & 7:10 p.m.; Saturday-Sunday: 1:10 p.m.  Emma (R). Waters Edge Cinemas: Friday-Saturday & Wednesday: 1, 4 […]

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Pot Profits Should Stay Here To the editor: After reading about Provincetown’s financial woes it dawned on me: why couldn’t this town and others run the marijuana distribution business instead […]

HOME

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from March 2 to March 6, 2020. PROVINCETOWN March 2. John B. Livingstone Living Trust dated February 25 2015 (John B. Livingstone, […]

our picks for the week of March 12 through March 18

Outer Cape Calendar Thursday, March 12, 6 p.m. Fiction fellow Nora Corrigan and poetry fellow Francisco Márquez will read from their work at Fine Arts Work Center, 24 Pearl St. […]

Arts Briefs and Listings

Cape Cod Natural History Conference at 4Cs Organized by the Mass Audubon Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary, the 25th annual Cape Cod Natural History Conference will take place on Saturday, March […]

Public Hearing Year Round Market Rate Rental Housing Trust Annual Update March 31, 2020 The Provincetown Year Round Market Rate Rental Housing Trust will conduct a public hearing on Tuesday, […]

ENERGY

WELLFLEET — The array of 2,400 solar panels atop the transfer station’s landfill is ready to start making electricity. But the town is awaiting clearance from the Mass. Land Court […]

HEALTH

Last year, 600 to 700 calls to the Wellfleet Police Dept. resulted in police reports. Of those, half involved mental health or substance abuse issues. Providing crisis intervention is now […]

TECHNOLOGY

The Eastham, Wellfleet, and Truro town websites were unreachable for much of last Monday and Tuesday, forcing the last-minute cancellation and rescheduling of at least four local board meetings. The […]

RENOVATION

BREWSTER — There are two contrasting views of the $131,825,665 Nauset Regional High School renovation and addition project. One supports the multiyear effort to design a 905-student school with significant […]

CIVICS

WELLFLEET — The conservation commission has struggled in recent months to do its work with fewer than a full complement of seven members. According to interviews with several current commissioners, […]

EASTHAM 400

EASTHAM — History will be docking at Rock Harbor this summer. Tying up next to the Coast Guard boat that rescued 32 sailors from the Pendleton shipwreck in 1952 will […]

HEALTH

With recent cases in Rhode Island and Washington state, coronavirus disease (COVID-19) will eventually reach us. “It’s not a matter of if this comes to Cape Cod, it’s a matter […]

SURFING

Often, when I am sitting out in the ocean, snug in my thick wetsuit, warm against the ripping wind and salt spray, I think about all the souls that have […]

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RARA AVIS

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, March 3 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]

Crossword

The March puzzle from Sophia Maymudes should be done on dry land. Need some answers? We send out the solution in our Friday newsletter. You’ll find the signup for our […]

DIY

Some people think of these indoorsy months as a time for cocooning. That sounds lovely. But if you’re surrounded by clutter and your closets are overflowing, you may have noticed […]

MEET THE MAKER

My work as an upholsterer weaves together many threads of my past: an education in art history, fine art, and printmaking; a passion for patterns in wallpaper and fabric; and […]

DOVETAIL JOINT

The Question: I’m renovating my cottage and considering going from clapboard to shingles on the exterior. I know it will mean we won’t have to paint anymore. But is there […]

WARRIORS WATCH

The winter sports season at Nauset Regional High has come to an end. Here are some end-of-season highlights. Boys basketball: After finishing the regular season with a record of 11 […]

PUBLIC ART

PROVINCETOWN — It’s a project Jay Critchley had been contemplating for a while: he knew that the town had bought the Veterans of Foreign Wars building at 3 Jerome Smith […]

STEAMERS

"Clam-splaining" by A. Crock

currents

Meetings Ahead Thursday, March 5 Recycling & Renewable Energy Committee, 9 a.m., Caucus Hall, Town Hall Economic Development Committee, 11 a.m., Room 93, Veterans Memorial Harbor Committee & Provincetown Public […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Friday, March 6 Dialogue with the Director, 10 to 11 a.m., Truro Council on Aging Tuesday, March 10 Select Board, 5 p.m., Truro Town Hall Thursday, March 12 Truro Housing […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Thursday, March 5 Housing Authority, 10 a.m., upstairs meeting room, Town Hall Recycling Committee, 2 p.m., Wellfleet Public Library Monday, March 9 Cape Cod Commission Development of Regional […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Thursday, March 5 Affordable Housing Trust, 8:30 a.m., Small Meeting Room, Town Hall Board of Health, 3 p.m., Small Meeting Room, Town Hall Zoning Board of Appeals, 5 […]

THE YEAR-ROUNDER

You are three years old. You’ve just had a good dinner and some milk and cookies, brushed your teeth, been tucked into bed, and now Mom or Dad pulls up […]

IF THESE WALLS COULD TALK

Ken Fulk speaks of his loving restoration of the Vorse House in Provincetown — a house, he says, that “we couldn’t afford to lose.” I write of one that was […]

NAVIGATING BY THE STARS

The hard-boiled ego softens this week under the Sun’s conjunction with empathic Neptune in Pisces. A Virgo Full Moon in the 12th House of Endings and Intuition, ruled itself by […]

MUSIC

With a new single on the market and an album on the way, Tianna Esperanza is moving forward along the path that she started on two years ago. Born and […]

BOOK REVIEW

There are but 29 words to the 19th amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which was formally adopted on Aug. 26, 1920: “The right of the citizens of the United States […]

PAINTING

When encountering Autumn Wallace, one is reminded of a young Frida Kahlo, with her elegant poise, fiercely intelligent eyes, gender-fluid beauty, and determination not to let herself or her art […]

It’s not surprising that Fine Arts Work Center poetry fellow Francisco Márquez has a background in film. There’s something of the filmmaker’s eye in his work, especially in his experiments […]

FICTION

The year 2020 promises to be an exciting one for Nora Corrigan. She completed her first novel, about a female oil worker on a rig in a North Dakota boomtown, […]

Know when to hit the flats

REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK

The “story” broke on capecodtoday.com: a man rolled into Provincetown in a military truck adorned with Trump campaign signs, thin blue line flags, and the driver’s own campaign banners. The […]

OBITUARIES

Suzanne Mary O’Loughlin died peacefully on Feb. 4, 2020 at her home in Slingerlands, N.Y. after a short illness. She was 67. Born in Methuen on August 27, 1952, she […]

Anne Brinton, 83, died on Dec. 28, 2019, at Thompson House in Brattleboro, Vt., her home, following a severe stroke. She was 83. She was born May 21, 1936, to […]

CLASSIFIEDS

GROWTH INDUSTRY Provincetown gardener needs horse manure. Call 508-487-2347. [4-23] LOST & FOUND Searching for circa 1961 James Wingate Parr painting Nonnie’s Trap Boat. Once hung behind the bar at […]

film

PLAYING NOW: MARCH 5-11 The Call of the Wild (PG13). Wellfleet Cinemas: Thursday-Sunday: 1:10, 4:10 & 7:10 p.m.; Monday-Wednesday: 4:10 & 7:10 p.m. Jojo Rabbit (PG13). Wellfleet Cinemas: Thursday: 7 […]

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

An Experiment on the River To the editor: Your front-page article “How Restored River Will Alter Wellfleet Views” (Feb. 27) leaves unanswered many questions about the Herring River Restoration Project. […]

HOME

Real Estate Transactions Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Feb. 24 to Feb. 28, 2020. PROVINCETOWN Feb. 27. Dieter Groll to Bank of New York Mellon, New […]

our picks for the week of March 5 through March 11

Outer Cape Calendar Thursday, March 5, 5-6:30 p.m. An artist’s reception for the exhibit “Richard Perry: Scapes (land, sea, tree, and sky),” will take place at Eastham Public Library, 190 […]

Arts Briefs and Listings

Susan Anthony Collages A show of collages by Wellfleet artist Susan Anthony will have an opening on Sunday, March 8, from 3 to 5 p.m. at the Great Pond Gallery […]

WELLFLEET — After two decades of planning, the official review of the massive Herring River Restoration Project will begin on March 9 when the Cape Cod Commission considers the first […]

URGENT CARE

TRURO — John Hopkins went to Costa Rica to do yoga, meditate, and otherwise boost his immune system. He has ended up fighting for his life in a private hospital […]

DEVELOPMENT

EASTHAM — As sunset approached Monday, a figure emerged from the trees and began to cross Eastham’s field of dreams. It seemed to glide through the knee-high brush. On closer […]

CIVICS

PROVINCETOWN — When it comes to making appointments to the finance committee, the town moderator is clear that she won’t appoint a nonresident taxpayer. “I don’t have anything against nonresidents, […]

MILITARY HONORS

EASTHAM — Harold Hall Jr., a 95-year-old World War II veteran and Eastham resident, feels he should receive a Purple Heart for the severe concussion he suffered in a reconnaissance […]

VIGNETTE

Sun Globes by Daniel Dejean

OBITUARIES

WELLFLEET — Helen G. Purcell, an energetic Wellfleet Historical Society and Museum volunteer for decades, died on Feb. 20, 2020 at the Manor on the Hill, an assisted-living facility in […]

GALLERY

Winter on the Outer Cape is a time to reset. While most people focus that effort on their inner lives, some of us go for an easier kind of reorganization, […]

TRACK

EASTHAM — The Nauset Regional High School girls indoor track team ran right through its regular season this winter, going 4-0 in league meets and then taking home the Cape […]

WARRIORS WATCH

Thursday, Feb. 27 Co-ed cheerleading: The Warriors will compete in the Blackhawk Invitational at Bellingham High School at 5:30 p.m. The team placed second at the Game Day Cheer at […]

HEALTH

Tooth decay is preventable but it’s still the most common chronic disease of children and adolescents, according to the Centers for Disease Control. With February being Children’s Dental Health Month, […]

DOVETAIL JOINT

The Question: I want to bring more light into my house without losing wall space. I’m thinking of installing skylights, but I have heard they can create more problems than they […]

RECIPE BOX

For a time in the 1990s I lived in San Diego — in the Windansea neighborhood in La Jolla, to be precise. I had known nothing about San Diego, but […]

PAIRINGS

This midnight pasta recipe is basically a version of spaghetti aglio e olio — spaghetti with garlic and olive oil.  The dish is said to have originated in Naples, though […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Friday, Feb. 28 Public Landscape Committee, 12 p.m., Lopes Square Tuesday, March 3 Conservation Commission, 6 p.m., Town Hall Wednesday, March 4 Historic District Commission, 4 p.m., Town […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Monday, March 2 Conservation Commission, 5:30 p.m., Town Hall Tuesday, March 3 Board of Health, 4:30 p.m., Town Hall Wednesday, March 4 Planning Board, 5 p.m., Town Hall […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Tuesday, March 3 Board of Water Commissioners, 6 p.m., Town Hall Wednesday, March 4 Conservation Commission, 4 p.m., Town Hall Board of Health, 5:30 p.m., Council on Aging […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Monday, March 2 Select Board, 5:30 p.m., Earle Mountain Room, Town Hall Tuesday, March 3 Charter Review Committee, 5:30 p.m., Small Meeting Room, Public Library Wednesday, March 4 […]

SKETCHBOOK

In the deep January nights, when the light of the Wolf Moon falls like ringing iron through the trees, from Tom’s Hill and Cathedral Hill on either side of the […]

Suggestion Box by Mary DeAngelis

NAVIGATING BY THE STARS

The Sun illuminates psychic Neptune’s depths in intuitive Pisces while the Moon waxes poetic across sensual Taurus into expressive Gemini in the 9th House of Wisdom, ruled itself by Neptune. […]

PAINTING

Large, brightly colored canvases, some spanning an entire wall, layered with images of figures, birds in flight, a fox, or flowers, greet the viewer entering Hannah E. Morris’s studio at […]

METAFICTION

“I have a preoccupation with locations and the landscape,” says Susan Choi, “almost to a fault.” She recalls her time as a writing fellow at the Fine Arts Work Center […]

BOOK REVIEW

Garth Greenwell’s 2016 debut novel, What Belongs to You, which was on the long list for the National Book Award, is a story of love, lust, and loss, centered on […]

AT THE LIBRARY

According to Jenn Shapland, the problem with biographies of authors is that they fix the author in time and place. Layering on the biographer’s understanding of the author’s body of […]

Know when to hit the flats

EDITORIAL

An aura of futility surrounds the presidential primary in Massachusetts this Tuesday, March 3. On the Democratic side, there’s a feeling that no matter who ultimately wins the primary, this […]

CLASSIFIEDS

JOBS M.A. Frazier Disposal is seeking a full-time office person to help manage daily operations. Customer service, sales, answering phones, taking orders, social media, in a fast-paced environment. Our busy […]

film

PLAYING NOW: FEB. 27-MARCH 4 The Call of the Wild (PG13). Wellfleet Cinemas: daily: 1:10, 4:10 & 7:10 p.m.; Tuesday: 10 a.m. Downhill (R). Waters Edge Cinemas: Thursday: 2:30, 5 […]

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Voting Security To the editor: As the recently retired Beverly city clerk, subscriber to the Independent, and part-time resident of Provincetown, I was quite interested in your Feb. 13 letter […]

HOME

Real Estate Transactions Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Feb. 17 to Feb. 21, 2020. PROVINCETOWN Feb. 18. Provincetown Partners LLC to Nobelrose LLC. 178 Bradford St. […]

our picks for the week of February 27 through March 4

Outer Cape Calendar Friday, Feb. 28, 2-5 p.m. Join the community volunteers at Boomerang Bags Cape Cod in sewing bags for re-use and distributing them free at Wellfleet Public Library, […]

Arts Briefs and Listings

In and Around Town With Alex Brewer Alex Brewer is a local singer-songwriter and carpenter who recently released an album, Unquoted, featuring interpretations of Brewer’s songs by such local musicians […]

CLASSIFIEDS

JOBS M.A. Frazier Disposal is seeking a full-time office person to help manage daily operations. Customer service, sales, answering phones, taking orders, social media, in a fast-paced environment. Our busy […]

HOME

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Feb. 10 to Feb. 14, 2020. PROVINCETOWN Feb. 10. Frank D. Yamrus and Lucas Delabos to Rebecca L. Sander and Mary […]

Arts Briefs and Listings

Cori Redstone’s Art of Protest Artist Cori Redstone, who was born in Salt Lake City, Utah, and got her M.F.A. from the California Institute of the Arts, organized her first […]

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

An Antidote for Despair To the editor: Most of us know that America is deeply divided. We’ve seen it in our families and communities. It is not just the chasm […]

Know when to hit the flats

reporter's notebook

Getting insurance coverage for mental health services is difficult. So is talking about mental illness. That is why state Senator Julian Cyr, a Democrat from Truro, and other legislators are […]

RESTORATION

PROVINCETOWN — The Mary Heaton Vorse House, at 466 Commercial St., is the informal epicenter of town history. Vorse, a journalist and civil rights activist, spent most of her adult […]

film

PLAYING NOW: FEB. 20-26 Birds of Prey (R). Wellfleet Cinemas: Thursday: 1:20 & 4:20 p.m. The Call of the Wild (PG13). Wellfleet Cinemas: Thursday: 7:10 p.m.; Friday-Wednesday: 1:10, 4:10 & […]

our picks for the week of February 20 through February 26

Outer Cape Calendar Friday, Feb. 21, 10:30 a.m. The Seashore Point Book Club, in conjunction with the Provincetown Public Library, will discuss Talking to Strangers: What We Should Know About […]

CIVICS

TRURO — “Farmer Stephanie” Rein is the newest select board member after a spirited race against planning board member Karen Tosh to succeed the late Maureen Burgess. Tuesday’s special election […]

RENOVATION

EASTHAM — The Mass. School Building Authority (MSBA) approved funding for the renovation of Nauset Regional High School (NRHS) on Feb. 13 to the tune of $35.6 million — representing […]

ENVIRONMENT

WELLFLEET — The huge pile of sand dumped over the edge of the bayside bluff next to the Blasch house in November has entirely washed away, adding sediment to the […]

65-AND-OVER TENNIS

EASTHAM — The Outer Cape Stripers, the men’s tennis team normally based at Willy’s Gym in Eastham, won the United States Tennis Association 65-and-over national invitational tournament over the Feb. […]

STEAMERS

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BARDS

EASTHAM — When to the sessions of sweet silent thought she summons up remembrance of things past, Molly Shafnacker may well be thinking about the last two summers that she […]

NATURA VIVA

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HISTORY

In Time and the Town, her 1942 chronicle about Provincetown, Mary Heaton Vorse lovingly recounts her experience with this changeable “end of land” surrounded by sea. Far from quaint, this […]

MILLION-YEAR PICNIC

Betelgeuse — the star with the funny name. Maybe you know it from the 1988 movie Beetlejuice, about the eponymous poltergeist-for-hire. Or maybe you’ve heard the name in the news […]

BODY/MIND

For as long as I can remember, there’s been a raucous dialogue in my head. Do this. Definitely don’t do that. Is that thing I said okay? Do they like […]

GALLERY

“We prefer to say that we’ve curated a collection rather than decorated a house,” Robert Rindler says about the Wellfleet home he shares with his husband, James Connors. To wander […]

DOVETAIL JOINT

The Question: I need additional storage in my home. I’m tired of the bins and baskets I’ve been piling things into. But the truth is I don’t have a lot […]

Rara Avis

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

GRAVEYARD SHIFT

Until summer returns, the art galleries in Provincetown are mostly quiet, though surely planning for next season’s traditional Friday evening strolls. That’s when everyone takes to the streets, zigging and […]

off the avenue

  PROVINCETOWN — Finding buried treasure, the pearl in the oyster, or spinning gold out of straw — this is what gets me out of bed in the morning. The […]

BABYCAKES

Harper Rose Richter was born on Nov. 25, 2019 to parents Vida and Raphael Richter and big brother Mica of Truro. She is the fourth generation of women in the […]

early learning

TRURO — The school committee, which agreed last spring to completely eliminate tuition for preschool at the Truro Central School, decided on Feb. 13 not to enlarge the program to […]

CIVIL RIGHTS

BOSTON — A bill that would allow Massachusetts residents without legal immigration status to apply for drivers’ licenses is up for debate in the state house. An Act Relative to […]

learning

EASTHAM — A few days a week, students in Crissy O’Hara’s seventh-grade science class at Nauset Regional Middle School (NRMS) start by sitting in a circle and answering a “question […]

RECIPE BOX

When I was in college in the 1990s, there was a restaurant in Harvard Square called Iruña — which is the Basque name for the city of Pamplona. A friend’s […]

warriors watch

Note: Team records are listed as of the Independent’s deadline Thursday, Feb. 20 Girls ice hockey: In its last game of the regular season the Cape Cod Furies will play […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Thursday, Feb. 20 Animal Welfare Committee, 12 p.m., Veterans Memorial Community Center Harbor Committee, 5 p.m., Town Hall Board of Health, 4 p.m., Town Hall Historic District Commission, […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Thursday, Feb. 20 Commission on Disabilities, 3:30 p.m., Town Hall Monday, Feb. 24 Zoning Board of Appeals. 5:30 p.m., Town Hall Tuesday, Feb. 25 Select Board, 5 p.m., […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Thursday, Feb. 20 Local Housing Partnership, 4 p.m., Town Hall Saturday, Feb. 22 Nauset Regional School Negotiations Subcommittee, 9 a.m. Central Administration Building, 78 Eldredge Parkway, Orleans Conversation […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Thursday, Feb. 20 Affordable Housing Trust, 8:30 a.m., Small Meeting Room, Town Hall Board of Assessors, 4:30 p.m., Earle Mountain Meeting Room, Town Hall Dog Owners Association, 6 […]

the year-rounder

Henry David Thoreau’s residency, starting in 1845, in a 10-by-15-foot shack next to Walden Pond for two years, two months, and two days is generally considered by scholars as a […]

Summer of '43

little joe gould has lost his teeth and doesn’t know where to find them(and found a secondhand set which click)little gould used to amputate his appetite with bad brittle candy […]

Metaphysics

Places that matter can help define us. For much of my life, the Outer Cape has molded a substantial piece of my inner being. My folks were renters, then residents […]

NAVIGATING BY THE STARS

  A winter retreat to warmer climes may be in the cards as the Sun, idling on the cusp of fun-loving Aquarius and escapist Pisces, shines in the 5th and […]

MIXED MEDIA

The world is not necessarily a kind place, says multimedia artist Johannes Barfield, suggesting that there were obstacles to overcome between his childhood artistic ambitions and the studio space he […]

AT THE LIBRARY

If you’ve ever chosen a title for your book group, you know how hard it is to find one that everyone enjoys. But that did happen in our Eastham group […]

indie screen

When Bong Joon Ho’s Parasite won Best Picture (as well as Best Director, Best Screenplay, and Best International Film) at the Academy Awards on Feb. 9, upsetting the odds-on favorite, […]

WHALEWATCH

WELLFLEET— A juvenile humpback whale that was stranded on Saturday, Feb. 8, inside the sandbar known as “the gut” by the Herring River was found dead on Monday afternoon. The […]

ENVIRONMENT

WELLFLEET — Jake McGrath of Eastham counts the number of days when the temperature stays below freezing. He’s not counting down to summer. He’s hoping it will stay cold enough […]

ENVIRONMENT

WELLFLEET — Back in 1970 the Wesley’s Swamp Drainage Committee installed a pump in a wetland to prevent flooding downtown. Fifty years later, the pump in Wesley Swamp (now called […]

DEVELOPMENT

EASTHAM — The three town-owned landings — Hemenway, Salt Pond, and Collins — along with Rock Harbor, Town Cove, and Nauset Marsh all need fixing, according to a draft harbor […]

CIRCUS

PROVINCETOWN — Select Board Member Lise King and the Provincetown Independent were blamed by some members at the board’s Monday, Feb. 10 meeting for the collapse of a promoter’s seven-month […]

TEACAKE’S TAKE

"Teacake's Take on Romance" by Ellen LeBow

THIS THING CALLED LOVE

On Dec. 10, 1960, Marla Perkel arrived at a party in Manhattan with a date named Charlie. There she met Bertram “Buddy” Perkel, a labor lawyer whose blind date had […]

VIGNETTE

Vignette by Daniel Dejean

THIS THING CALLED LOVE

The sun brightens the table at the front window of Liz’s Café in Provincetown as Anne Stott, an actor and musical performer, and her girlfriend, production designer Ellen Rousseau, chow […]

LOST & FOUND

Being an artist is a messy business. After a day of work, I end up with paint on me, the ceiling, the floor, the dog, and every doorknob in the […]

ON THE LANDSCAPE

The woods are a thousand tans, reds, and browns. Furrowed bark every shade of charcoal. Snowfall in the woods, in the low winter light, a cast of blue. The muted […]

DOVETAIL JOINT

The Question: I’d love to build a chicken coop in my yard so we can have fresh eggs, but I’m afraid of rats — not to mention foxes, coyotes, and […]

THIS THING CALLED LOVE

Casey Clark grew up in Provincetown, and Desirée Revoir is from the other end of the Cape: Sandwich. He left Cape Cod to pursue a career in acting and filmmaking […]

OUTER CAPE PORTRAIT

JODI BIRCHALL | MUSICIAN & TEACHER | WELLFLEET Text based on interviews with Jodi Birchall; listen to Jodi here:   This is a really special place to me because I […]

SCHOOL BREAK

In nature, seeds get dispersed by wind or rain or they get eaten and then pooped by animals. Seed balls are probably an ancient farming idea. But these seed balls […]

AT THE LIBRARY

We asked Outer Cape school librarians for some good reads for next week’s school vacation. Their recommendations span preschool to grade nine — and there are some grown-ups will like, […]

REC ROUNDUP

Provincetown Programs for children from Pre-K through Grade 6, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Veterans Memorial Community Center. Registration forms can be found at provincetown-ma.gov. Tuesday, Feb. […]

KITCHEN TABLE

Making pasta can teach you a lot about love. Like relationships, fresh pasta requires both enthusiasm and patience. It certainly can be frustrating. Primarily, though, pasta’s lessons concern the development […]

GALLERY

Saudade is a Portuguese word that roughly translates as “yearning for a lost time.” Marisa Felton uses the word as she describes gatherings at her childhood home in Provincetown, now […]

RARA AVIS

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

WARRIORS WATCH

Note: Team records are listed of the Independent’s deadline Thursday, Feb. 13 Boys basketball: The Warriors (9-7) host Senior Night against the Cape Cod Academy Seahawks at 6:30 p.m. Saturday, […]

FAST LANES

EASTHAM — The Nauset High swimming and diving team has been without its home pool at Willy’s Gym for most of the season, but that hasn’t stopped it from competing […]

MOVEMENT

One way I cope with February is to plan an annual trip up north for skiing. This time, I had a moment of doubt as I recalled day two of […]

BUSINESS

EASTHAM — At a contentious zoning board of appeals meeting on Feb. 6, several residents spoke out against a proposal by Barbara Niggel and her companies, Goeroe’s Goldens and Stow […]

PUBLIC SAFETY

EASTHAM — Fire Chief Kent Farrenkopf is looking to add a ladder truck to his department’s resources. Twenty-three years ago, one saved his life. In 1997, when he was a […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Thursday, Feb. 13 Bicycle Committee, 2 p.m., Maushope Community Room, 44 Harry Kemp Way Planning Board, 6:30 p.m., Town Hall Visitor Service Board, 9:30 a.m., Town Hall Water […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Thursday, Feb. 13 Select Board, 3 p.m., Truro Public Library Housing Authority, 4:15 p.m., Town Hall School Committee, 5:15 p.m., Truro Central School Friday, Feb. 14 Community Preservation […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Thursday, Feb. 13 Local Comprehensive Planning Committee, 8:30 a.m., Council on Aging Nauset Regional School Committee, 6 p.m., Brewster Town Hall Zoning Board of Appeals, 7 p.m., Council […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Thursday, Feb. 13 Nauset Regional School Committee, 6 p.m., Brewster Town Hall Tuesday, Feb. 18 Charter Review Committee, 5:30 p.m., Small Meeting Room, Town Hall Wednesday, Feb. 19 […]

NAVIGATING BY THE STARS

Romantic shakeups — and even breakups — set the mood for Valentine’s week. The Sun shines in the 5th House of Love and Expression while lover Venus conjuncts healer Chiron […]

LOOKING BACKWARD

Edmund Burke, among others, warned that those who don’t know history are doomed to repeat it. So a bit of history is in order in these times when many people […]

METAPHYSICS

Squid appeared maybe 700 million years ago. They predate everything we think of as ancient — sharks, fish, and even trees. But they don’t predate sex. That invention happened about […]

EXPEDITIONS

Longtime Truro resident Elizabeth Bradfield travels in far-reaching yet compatible directions. She’s a published poet, photographer, environmentalist, and associate professor of English and co-director of the creative writing program at […]

MIXED MEDIA

As an artist and as a person, the Fine Arts Work Center fellow Antonius-Tín Bui (they/them) hopes to remain in motion, in flux, ever-changing, questioning, evolving, challenging expectations, and resisting […]

BOOK REVIEW

In her biography of Rachel Maddow (published last month by Thomas Dunne Books), Lisa Rogak writes that the top-rated MSNBC anchor, who has a home in Provincetown with her partner, […]

Know when to hit the flats

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

There’s a lot of irony in the news these days. On Jan. 28 the Truro Select Board voted to replace the town’s 56-year-old hand-crank ballot boxes with the ImageCast electronic […]

OBITUARIES

Paul James Ward, 69, of Provincetown, died on Jan. 21, 2020 at Cape Cod Hospital in Hyannis due to heart failure. He was the spouse of Titus Ulrich of Provincetown. […]

Obituaries

Patricia Ann “Patty” Rocha, 86, died peacefully in her sleep at Windsor Skilled Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Yarmouth on Feb. 3, 2020. Patty was born in Provincetown on Dec. […]

Obituaries

John Steven Crowell, 70, of Provincetown, died peacefully at home on Feb. 5, 2020, surrounded by his devoted partner of 20 years, Marlene Sawyer, and her two daughters, Laura Parker […]

CLASSIFIEDS

VALENTINES From 48 to 19 to 45, love you JCF! xo —MCF  To my Valentines, my beautiful friends who grace my life with such beauty, and brilliance. Yes, this Valentine’s […]

film

Movie Clock PLAYING NOW: FEB. 13-19 Birds of Prey (R). Wellfleet Cinemas: daily: 1:20, 4:20 & 7:20 p.m.; Tuesday: 10 a.m. Bombshell (R). Waters Edge Cinemas: Thursday: 2, 4:30 & […]

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

What Kind of Nation? To the editor: With national politics dominating both print and electronic media these days, three important issues have generally escaped popular scrutiny: Guantanamo. The prison’s annual cost […]

HOME

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Feb. 3 to Feb. 7, 2020. PROVINCETOWN Feb. 4. Denise and Vincent Costabile to Joseph D. Hospodar. 501 Commercial St., Unit […]

our picks for the week of February 13 through February 19

Outer Cape Calendar Thursday, Feb. 13, 2:30 & 4 p.m. Winter Reading with Linda Ohlson Graham: She’ll discuss Henry David Thoreau’s Walden at 2:30 p.m. and pseudoscientist Erich von Däniken’s […]

Arts Briefs and Listings

‘Sea Change’ Film Series Returns  The “Sea Change” environmental film series is back for its eighth season at the Wellfleet Harbor Actors Theater at 2357 Route 6, presented in collaboration […]

PRESIDENTIAL RACE

DES MOINES — Political involvement among Nauset High students is not a given. While some of us are in what you might call a political bubble, and a few might […]

CIRCUS

Editor’s note: This story has been updated from the version published on February 6 because of late-breaking developments. PROVINCETOWN — A proposal by Truro promoter Eric Martin to mount a […]

ENVIRONMENT

EASTHAM — The select board sent two proposed bylaws banning plastic bottles and bags back to the conservation commission for revisions on Monday instead of placing them as articles on […]

ENVIRONMENT

TRURO — Recent research at the Center for Coastal Studies in Provincetown has documented the current state of East Harbor’s benthic communities — species that live in the sediments on […]

HEALTH

PROVINCETOWN — Recreational marijuana stores are coming to the Outer Cape in a big way, but it’s not clear that any of them will provide medical formulations of the drug […]

STEAMERS

Gumshoe Crab by A. Crock

RARA AVIS

Confirmed rare bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the seven days preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Feb. 4 included the following, recorded on the Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s […]

GALLERY

                        “I hang the wallpaper — I don’t take it down,” says John Golden, who has worked in Provincetown […]

DIY

If you have a T-shirt obsession like we do, the truth is you probably have too many of them. They stack up, they multiply, but it’s really hard to let […]

DOVETAIL JOINT

The question: It’s February, and I’m tired of seeing gray. I’d love to add some color to my house, and I love turquoise. I’m considering painting the trim in a […]

Crossword

The February puzzle from Sophia Maymudes should be done on dry land. Need some answers? We send out the solution in our Friday newsletter. You’ll find the signup for our […]

ART WORKS

PROVINCETOWN — The current crop of Fine Arts Work Center fellows expressed their displeasure at their $750 monthly stipend in a letter now on display at the annual FAWC exhibit […]

ART OF DYING

PROVINCETOWN — Thirty plots in the town cemetery may soon be available for “green burial,” in which a body is placed in the ground without a metal casket, cement vault, […]

LAND USE

EASTHAM — The documents that the T-Time Development Committee collected for its second meeting on Jan. 28 included the North Eastham Village Center plan created back in 2007. The 11 […]

TRURO SELECT BOARD

TRURO — A standing-room only crowd listened to the two select board candidates — Stephanie Rein, a farmer, and Karen Tosh, an attorney — during candidates’ night on Feb. 4. […]

REC ROUNDUP

Outer Cape recreation departments offer a slew of programs throughout the winter and spring. Here is a sampling. Provincetown Youth basketball is offered for boys and girls in grades K-6 […]

WARRIORS WATCH

Note: Team records are listed as of the Independent’s deadline. Friday, Feb. 7 Girls basketball: The Warriors (11-4) host the Nantucket Whalers at 3:30 p.m. The Warriors fell to the […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Thursday, Feb. 6 Harbor Committee, 5 p.m., Town Hall Other Post-Employment Benefits, 10:30 a.m., Town Hall Recycling & Renewable Energy, 9 a.m., Town Hall Shellfish Committee, 5 p.m. […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Thursday, Feb. 6 Planning Board/Select Board ADU Ad Hoc Subcommittee Work Session, 4 p.m., library Friday, Feb. 7 Finance Committee with Select Board Budget Task Force, 2 p.m., […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Thursday, Feb. 6 Housing Authority, 9:15 a.m., Town Hall Parking Task Force II at Wellfleet Forum, 7 p.m. Council on Aging Saturday, Feb. 8 Nauset Regional School Committee […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Thursday, Feb. 6 Zoning Board of Appeals, 5 p.m., Earle Mountain Room, Town Hall Nauset Regional School Committee, 6 p.m., Brewster Town Hall Saturday, Feb. 8 Board of […]

SKETCHBOOK

East Harbor, North Truro by Mark Adams

UNIMPEACHABLE

Photography by Jamie Demetriou

YES WE CANNABIS

After months of riveting social media debates about oligarchs and the forthcoming invasion of “dumb stoners,” legal weed has arrived on Cape Cod. Curaleaf, Provincetown’s first recreational marijuana dispensary, opened at […]

THEATER

BREWSTER — The room is abuzz as everyone waits to hear what their parts will be in the upcoming show. Young actors, ages 13 to 18, sit on folding chairs […]

INDIE SCREEN

This year, there are more than a few shoo-ins to win Academy Awards. The show itself, which is still the most glamorous spectacle of the year on good old broadcast […]

ART EXHIBITS

Provincetown in winter has been a different experience for Fine Arts Work Center visual arts fellow Anina Major. From Nassau in the Bahamas, Major is interested in the sense of […]

MUSIC

Where others only hear sounds, Tim Eriksen hears music. “I’ve always been interested in the most elemental sounds,” he says. “It could be train sounds, as well as crickets and […]

AT THE LIBRARY

As a child my love of reading sent me into a wide range of book-related obsessions that oscillated from the common to the esoteric. The first and most enduring of […]

BOOK REVIEW

Two tragedies have shaped the fortunes of the family of Sa’adi Besalel Ashkenazi a-Levi, an iconoclast and printer: the catastrophic fire in Salonica in 1917 and the Nazi Holocaust. Readers […]

Know when to hit the flats

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

In September 1973 Kathleen Cushman and I launched the Harvard Post, a weekly newspaper for the town of Harvard, Mass., population circa 3,000. I was 24. Kathleen was 23. We […]

CLASSIFIEDS

SERVICES Eco Effect does yard, home, basement, and job-site clean-ups with an eye to recycling and donating as much as possible. Call for help with your home maintenance and spring […]

film

PLAYING NOW: FEB. 6-12 Birds of Prey (R). Wellfleet Cinemas: Thursday: 7:20 p.m.; Friday-Wednesday: 1:20, 4:20 & 7:20 p.m.; Tuesday: 10 a.m. Bombshell (R). Waters Edge Cinemas: Friday-Sunday, Tuesday-Wednesday: 2, […]

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Harbor Hill: A ‘Failed Project’ To the editor: I read with interest Paul Benson’s article on Harbor Hill [Jan. 30, page 8], which was purchased with great fanfare in 2017. I’m […]

HOME

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Jan. 27 to Jan. 31, 2020. PROVINCETOWN Jan. 27. Jacob E. Taylor and Norman T. Ernst to Oliver Kendall and James […]

our picks for the week of February 6 through February 12

Outer Cape Calendar Thursday, Feb. 6, 2:30 & 4 p.m. Winter Reading With Linda Ohlson Graham: She’ll discuss Henry David Thoreau’s Walden at 2:30 p.m. and Erich von Däniken’s Chariots […]

Arts Briefs and Listings

Jennifer Moller at Higgins Gallery at 4Cs The Higgins Gallery at Cape Cod Community College and director Nathalie Ferrier are holding a reception for Jennifer Moller’s show, “pools, mighty plenitude […]

our picks for the week of January 30 through February 5

Outer Cape Calendar Thursday, Jan. 30, 4 p.m. Children’s Community Garden with Sustainable CAPE is having an opening for its art exhibition, “Seeding Our Future,” at Truro Public Library, 7 […]

RISING WATERS

PROVINCETOWN — The Old Reliable Fish House property at 227R Commercial St. may be getting rebuilt on piers, and in the applications there’s an eye-popping number for their height: 17 […]

THREE RINGS

PROVINCETOWN — The circus is coming to town, maybe. A company calling itself 66 Days LLC agreed on Jan. 23 to pay the town recreation commission $150,000 to rent Motta […]

THRIFT

WELLFLEET — Just nine days before the landlord’s deadline for vacating their longtime home, the volunteers at Mass Appeal got the good news that they can stay at the Cove […]

housing

EASTHAM — As the first tenants begin moving into the Village at Nauset Green off Brackett Road, officials have acknowledged that the demand for housing by people at the lowest […]

THE HOUSING PUZZLE

The housing crisis is so widely recognized on the Outer Cape that it feels elemental, like the sun, wind, or tide. It’s behind the second question most employers ask in […]

FLIGHT

WELLFLEET — The Outer Cape’s beaches are desolate this time of year. The only sign of human life may be the brave souls who trek the beaches on days that […]

VIGNETTE

"I'm Flying" by Daniel Dejean

GALLERY

Grace Hopkins and her daughter Gigi moved to Wellfleet from Portland, Maine in 2012 after the death of Grace’s father, the artist Budd Hopkins, one of the founders of the […]

PLANTCRAFT

Outside my window, the garden is asleep, the trees a tangle of brown against the gray sky. Yet signs of life appear in colors muted by winter’s breath. The lavender […]

Winter Wednesdays runs from Feb. 5 through March 25: eight Wednesday evenings from 6 to 8 at the Provincetown Schools at 12 Winslow St. Classes are free, with no registration […]

DOVETAIL JOINT

The question: We’ve been looking for the right house for a long time and just can’t find something that satisfies everyone in the family. Now we are thinking of building. […]

WARRIORS WATCH

Note: Team records are listed as of the Independent’s deadline. Friday, Jan. 31 Boys and girls swimming: The Warriors will compete in the Cape & Islands Diving Championships at Sandwich […]

CIVICS

PROVINCETOWN — Since 2005 the board of health has required landlords who rent their property year-round, seasonally, or short-term (fewer than 30 days) to have a rental certificate. These certificates […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Thursday, Jan. 30 School Committee, 5 p.m., High School Tuesday, Feb. 4 Conservation Commission, 6 p.m., Town Hall Airport Commission, 2 p.m., Airport Conference Room Wednesday, Feb. 5 […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Friday, Jan. 31 95 Lawrence Road Rental Housing Task Force, 8 a.m., Town Hall Board of Assessors, 9:30 a.m., Town Hall Wednesday, Feb. 5 Conservation Commission, 4 p.m., […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Thursday, Jan. 30 Recycling Committee, 5 p.m., Small Meeting Room, Eastham library  Monday, Feb. 3 Select Board, 5:30 p.m., Earle Mountain Meeting Room, Town Hall Tuesday, Feb. 4 […]

THE YEAR-ROUNDER

I have always loved Provincetown. From my very first day here, well over 50 years ago, I knew I belonged. I remember a long-ago conversation with the (late) cartoonist Howie […]

SUGGESTION BOX

"Things You Can do in February" by Mary DeAngelis

teacake's take

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EXHIBITIONS

In Raul De Lara’s studio at the Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown, there’s a striking discrepancy between the maturity and polish of the sculpture on display and the youth […]

READINGS

Esther Lin’s poetry is full of places — Alexandria, Va.; Mozambique; Madagascar; Hong Kong; Cape Town — all locations from her family’s complex legacy of migration. “It’s like I have […]

READINGS

Callie Collins is that rare species of writer who exudes sheer enjoyment in her work. As she sits on the sunny porch of the Canteen in Provincetown, describing the projects […]

LIFE AND DEATH

“I’ve had many lives,” Dawn Walsh says, and she’s not exaggerating. She’s been a kindergarten teacher and a massage therapist, worked with nonprofits, studied creative writing. Having moved to the […]

Know when to hit the flats

EDITORIAL

Before a rare midwinter election, on Feb. 18, voters in Truro will get to hear from two select board candidates this Tuesday, Feb. 4, at 6 p.m. at town hall. […]

OBITUARY

Ronald A. Wichowski, 83, who served as Truro’s police chief from 1980 until he retired in 1993, died on Jan. 22, 2020 at Liberty Commons Nursing Home in Chatham after […]

CLASSIFIEDS

JOBS Office Assistant wanted for year-round employment at local restaurant. Good hours/pay.  Must be computer proficient. References required. Please call 508-487-1145 for appointment. [2-20] Executive/Head Chef wanted for year-round employment […]

film

PLAYING NOW: JAN. 30-FEB. 5 Bombshell (R). Wellfleet Cinemas: Thursday: 1:05 & 7:05 p.m.; Friday-Wednesday: 4:05 p.m. Dolittle (PG). Wellfleet Cinemas: Thursday: 1 & 4 p.m. Ford v Ferrari (PG13). […]

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

‘Needlessly humiliated’ To the editor: I was disappointed to read your hastily written and poorly researched article “Does OCHS Have a Problem With M.D. Turnover?” (Nov. 28, page 1), in […]

HOME

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Jan. 21 to Jan. 24, 2020. PROVINCETOWN Jan. 21. Doris A. Nitti to Christopher E. Bartick. 177 Bradford St., Unit B. […]

Arts Briefs

Catfish Row Sings Out at WHAT The Metropolitan Opera’s new production (by James Robinson) of George and Ira Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess, set on Catfish Row in Charleston, S.C., with […]

ENVIRONMENT

TRURO — Since the once-thriving salt-marsh ecosystem called East Harbor was partially reopened to tidal flow in 2002, ocean organisms have been rapidly recolonizing the estuary. Researchers now hope to […]

CANNABIS

PROVINCETOWN — When Curaleaf opens the first recreational marijuana store on Cape Cod at 170 Commercial St. — perhaps next Wednesday, Jan. 29 — it will be a cash-only business. […]

CIVICS

EASTHAM — At any beach cleanup, the haul of trash is fairly predictable: plastic, in the form of beverage bottles, shopping bags, straws, netting, and more. Because much of the […]

ECONOMY

PROVINCETOWN — After a year of commotion and confusion, the expansion of the rooms occupancy tax to cover short-term rentals is beginning to produce its intended dividends. In the first […]

CURRENTS

EASTHAM — The cost estimate for the Nauset Regional High School (NRHS) renovation project has dropped to about $131.8 million, according to Greg Levasseur, chair of the Nauset School Building […]

SKETCHBOOK

"Storm Wave" by Mark Adams

SURFING

You’ve heard a lot about the wholesome, soulful side of surfing. That’s what draws most of us in. It is the current that runs strongest through surfing. It is the […]

RARA AVIS

Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the seven days preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Jan. 21 included the following, compiled at Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary, […]

BABYCAKES

Wellfleet’s New Year’s baby is Charles Dylan Emmons, who was born on Jan. 10 at Cape Cod Hospital at 10:51 a.m. to parents Nina Picariello and Alexander Emmons. Nina teaches […]

THEATER

“It was deliberate,” David Drake, the artistic director of the Provincetown Theater, says of his schedule of new productions for 2020, his third year at the company. “Doing this season […]

GRAVEYARD SHIFT

TRURO — Everyone who drives to Provincetown along Route 6 in North Truro travels across one of the town’s highest elevations, called in the old custom the “Hill of Storms.” […]

STEAMERS

"Bong Appetit" by A. Crock

KITCHEN TABLE

We didn’t start drinking Manhattans at our house until after the election of 2016. After that, for a while, anyway, we’d mix up one cocktail, late at night, pour it […]

COCKTAIL HOUR

As winter settles in for the long haul, thoughts turn to the warming properties of brown liquors. Such tipples include Scotch whisky (blended or single-malt); Irish whiskey (on a tear […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Monday, Jan. 27 Board of Health, 10 a.m., Earle Mountain Meeting Room, Town Hall Eastham 400 Commemoration Committee, 10:30 a.m., Public Library Eastham Elementary School Committee, 5:30 p.m., Earle […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Thursday, Jan. 23 Local Comprehensive Planning Committee, 8:30 a.m., Council on Aging Local Housing Partnership, 4 p.m., Town Hall Tuesday, Jan. 28 Select Board, 6 p.m., Council on […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Thursday, Jan. 23 Conservation Commission, 1 p.m., Town Hall Pamet Harbor Commission, 7 p.m., Truro Public Safety Facility Monday, Jan. 27 Select Board and Finance Committee Budget Task […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Thursday, Jan. 23 Economic Development Committee, 11 a.m., Veterans Memorial Community Center Planning Board, 6:30 p.m., Town Hall Public Pier Corp., 4 p.m., Town Hall Recreation Commission, 5:30 […]

WARRIORS WATCH

Note: Team records are listed of the Independent’s deadline Friday, Jan. 24 Boys basketball: The Warriors (6-4) will play an away game against the Barnstable Red Raiders at 5:30 p.m. […]

ON THE COURT

January on the Cape: the temperature cold, the days short, and the options for physical exercise limited. Getting outside is tough at this time of year and one of the […]

BABY COUNT

The number of babies born to Eastham residents in 2019 was up compared to the last couple of years, while Wellfleet recorded fewer births than in recent years. But overall […]

OBITUARIES

Roger D. Skillings died peacefully on the night of Jan. 15, 2020, with his wife and daughter beside him. He was 82 years old and had been suffering from dementia […]

"Charlie" by Mary DeAngelis

Throughout Barnstable County, the Commonwealth, and the country, municipalities are struggling with the very real issue of too much trash with no place to put it, and the accompanying increase […]

OP-ED

Corporations may be run by people, and employ people, and be answerable to shareholders, but corporations are not people. For one thing, they command masses of cash and other assets […]

INDIE SCREEN

I approached Joker (now available for streaming and on DVD) with a fair measure of trepidation. The film, a rethought origin story of one of Batman’s most notorious villains, has […]

BOOK REVIEW

There is much sex but little love in the first volume of writer and activist Larry Kramer’s The American People, subtitled Search for My Heart. It contains episodes of imagined […]

WRITING LIFE

The opening scene of Cynthia Newberry Martin’s first published novel, Tidal Flats, takes place in Provincetown, where the two main characters, Cass and Ethan, begin their love story. Martin, who […]

Know when to hit the flats

EDITORIAL

When Wellfleet Town Administrator Dan Hoort, 65, submitted his resignation this month he explained, “There are times when this position can be very demanding and negative. At this time in […]

OBITUARIES

Lorraine L. Adams of Provincetown died at Seashore Point Wellness and Rehabilitation Center on Jan. 5, 2020 at age 90. She was the wife of the late Richard E. Adams, […]

CLASSIFIEDS

JOBS Club Manager. The Provincetown Tennis Club wrote to say they found great candidates through their classified ad in the Independent. They don’t need this space anymore. What about putting […]

film

Movie Clock PLAYING NOW: JAN. 23-29 Bombshell (R). Wellfleet Cinemas: Friday-Wednesday: 1 & 7 p.m.; Tuesday: 10 a.m. Dolittle (PG). Wellfleet Cinemas: daily: 1, 4 & 7 p.m.; Tuesday: 10 […]

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Towns Should Buy Willy’s To the editor: Regarding what has been happening at Willy’s Gym [Jan. 16, page 1], which has been going on for years: employees not being paid […]

HOME

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Jan. 13 to Jan. 17, 2020.  PROVINCETOWN Jan. 13. Building Men LLC to Leslie H. Packard. 286 Bradford St. $745,000. Jan. […]

our picks for the week of January 23 through January 29

Outer Cape Calendar Thursday, Jan. 23, 2-4 p.m. Letter Writing to Voters: ask citizens in other states to vote and tell them why it’s important. Materials and forms are provided […]

Arts Briefs

Two New Shows Open at PAAM On Friday, Jan. 24, at 6 p.m., the Provincetown Art Association and Museum will host an opening reception for two new shows in its […]

PUBLIC SAFETY

EASTHAM — The Dec. 12 order shutting down Willy’s World Wellness & Conference Center is the latest chapter in a long and troubled history of the popular gym. Eastham Building […]

EXITS

WELLFLEET — Town Administrator Dan Hoort announced Friday that he is resigning from his job after four years, effective June 30. Hoort, a Provincetown innkeeper, holds a degree in accounting […]

LEADERSHIP

PROVINCETOWN — Robin Craver led her first meeting as town manager at 9 a.m. Tuesday, just hours after the select board announced on Monday night that they had agreed to […]

CIVICS

PROVINCETOWN — Cheryl Andrews, a veteran elected official in Provincetown, is the first challenger to declare her candidacy for the Barnstable County Commission race this fall. The commission is the […]

WAYS AND MEANS

EASTHAM — Town Administrator Jacqueline Beebe presented the select board with a fiscal year 2021 budget totaling nearly $32 million on Jan. 6, representing an increase of 4 percent over […]

VIGNETTE

"Drones" by Daniel Dejean

MLK WEEKEND

Though the great civil rights leader, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., was born on Jan. 15, 1929, his birthday is memorialized on a federal holiday on the third Monday in […]

MILLION-YEAR PICNIC

Stargazing in winter is not for the faint of heart. Who would choose to stand out in the freezing cold for hours, staring up at the sky for a glimpse […]

Cafe

"Cafe" by Mary DeAngelis

BABYCAKES

Mila Fae Davies became the first Outer Cape baby of the new decade on Jan. 8, 2020. Mila’s parents, Justine Ives and Edward Davies, braved snowy conditions on Route 6 […]

RARA AVIS

Confirmed rare bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the seven days preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Jan. 14 included the following, recorded on the Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s […]

WARRIORS WATCH

Note: Team records are listed as of the Independent’s deadline Friday, Jan. 17 Girls basketball: The Warriors (6-3) will take the ferry to Martha’s Vineyard to play the Vineyarders at […]

TENNIS

EASTHAM — The Outer Cape Stripers are about three weeks away from competing in the United States Tennis Association (USTA) National Invitational tournament in Orlando, Fla. This will be their […]

CIVICS

PROVINCETOWN — Thaddeus Soulé, the new town planner, said that he’s out to cast a wide net and bring as many people as possible into Provincetown planning. In a recent […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Thursday, Jan. 16 Animal Welfare Committee, 12 noon, Council on Aging Community Housing Council, 3 p.m., Town Hall Harbor Committee, 5 p.m., Town Hall Year-Round Market-Rate Rental Housing […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Thursday, Jan. 16 Housing Authority, 4:15 p.m., Town Hall Zoning Board of Appeals, 5:30 p.m., Town Hall Friday, Jan. 17 Commission on Disabilities, 3:30 p.m., Town Hall Monday, […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Thursday, Jan. 16 Herring River Executive Council, 3 p.m., Council on Aging Monday, Jan. 20 Town Hall closed for Martin Luther King Jr. Day  Tuesday, Jan. 21 Community-wide […]

currents

Meetings Ahead Monday, Jan. 20 Town hall closed in observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Tuesday, Jan. 21 Historical Commission, 4 p.m., Eastham Room, Public Library Charter Review Committee, […]

ON THE LANDSCAPE

When I was a little kid, the first snowfall of the year meant something more than the arrival of winter. It signified the beginning of the season for a quiet […]

THE YEAR-ROUNDER

I have written about the centrality of MacMillan Wharf to Provincetown. I would get no argument in the summer, certainly, or even the shoulder seasons. Ferries first disgorge people, who […]

OP-ED

I commend reporter Sophie Ruehr for her incisive story on state Sen. Julian Cyr’s December trip to Israel (“Cyr Defends Trip Funded by Pro-Israel Group,” Jan. 9). I also commend the […]

POETRY

“In the labyrinth,” writes Oliver de la Paz, “there is constantly the problem of proximity: how what is understood about where you stand depends on where you stand.” A poet […]

AT THE LIBRARY

How to Be an Antiracist By Ibram X. Kendi One World/Penguin Random House: 2019 “There is no neutrality in racism.” That point is central to Ibram X. Kendi’s proposals in […]

MUSIC

But for a papal decree, singer-songwriter Susan Werner might not be who she came to be. “I owe my entire career to Pope John XXIII,” Werner says, “because Pope John […]

QUEER ‘I’

After the General Conference of the United Methodist Church (UMC) in February 2019 upheld the so-called Traditional Plan, which affirms the church’s ban on hosting and officiating same-sex marriages and […]

REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK

Seven years ago voters sat sweating in the Nauset Regional High School gym for a rare June special town meeting that lasted four hours and resulted once again in a […]

CLASSIFIEDS

JOBS Club Manager. The Provincetown Tennis Club seeks a responsible manager to oversee business operations May 15 to Oct. 15. Duties include customer service, inventory control, basic accounting, staffing schedules […]

film

PLAYING NOW: JAN. 16-22 Dolittle (PG). Wellfleet Cinemas: Thursday: 7 p.m.; Friday-Wednesday: 1, 4 & 7 p.m.; Tuesday: 10 a.m. Just Mercy (PG13). Wellfleet Cinemas: daily: 1:05, 4:05 & 7:05 […]

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Who’s Really for Peace? To the editor: I am writing to express concern over your characterization of the Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) as a “pro-Israel lobbying group” set against […]

HOME

Open Houses SATURDAY, JAN. 18 Berkshire Hathaway Cape Shores Real Estate 12 Ridge Court, Brewster 11 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. 3BD, 2BA Cape with deeded beach rights $634,900 175 Gingerplum Lane, […]

HOME

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Jan. 6 to Jan. 10, 2020. PROVINCETOWN Jan. 6. David A. High to 50 Commercial St. LLC. 50 Commercial St., Unit […]

our picks for the week of January 16 through January 22

Outer Cape Calendar Thursday, Jan. 16, 1 p.m. The second half-hour drop-in session on National Geographic Photography is “Guide the Eye” at Provincetown Council on Aging, 2 Mayflower St. Free. […]

Arts Briefs

‘In a Quiet Time’ at Four Eleven Gallery Galleries in Provincetown are in winter mode during January, and new shows are few and far between. But Four Eleven Gallery, at […]

Know when to hit the flats

REGATTA REDUX

PROVINCETOWN — The year 2020 will see the 19th annual Great Provincetown Schooner Regatta, starting on Labor Day and running for four days, as long as somebody steps forward to […]

ECONOMY

PROVINCETOWN — The rooms occupancy tax and the meals tax draw attention every year for two reasons — they are a reliable indicator of how the tourist industry is doing, […]

HOUSING

TRURO — Dana Del Gizzi said he’s been in the construction business since the age of 12. “We worked incredibly hard,” he said. “Most kids looked forward to the weekend […]

HOUSING

WELLFLEET — The 11-member task force that has been planning for affordable rental housing across from the Wellfleet Elementary School presented its work so far to a receptive audience of […]

THE WORLD

TRURO — State Sen. Julian Cyr (D-Truro) was among six Massachusetts senators on a 10-day study tour of Israel in December. He defended his participation, paid for by a pro-Israel […]

VIGNETTE

"Warm Suit" by Daniel Dejean

CEPHALOPODS

“They showed up early and left quickly,” said a Provincetown harbormaster. “Shortfin squid are everywhere,” said Owen Nichols of the Center for Coastal Studies. “For longfin, the Nantucket Sound fishery […]

STEAMERS

"The Outermost Unaffordable House" by A. Crock

KITCHEN TABLE

It seems like nobody suggests dinner at our place these days. But I’ve got a great mushroom bisque from the old days that is definitely company-worthy. It came originally from […]

ICE HOCKEY

EASTHAM — The Cape Cod Furies started out five years ago as a co-op ice hockey club for girls from three Lower Cape high schools: Nauset, Monomoy, and Cape Cod […]

Crossword

The January puzzle from Sophia Maymudes spotlights the year in review. Need some answers? We send out the solution in our Friday newsletter. You’ll find the signup for our newsletter […]

MOVEMENT

Of all the ways to begin a new year, fitness-wise, there is one I think deserves to be at the top of the list. It’s simple and central. And it’s […]

BODY/MIND

Lose weight. Get a new job. Exercise more. These goals have been on my New Year’s resolutions list over the years, and maybe yours, no? Personal development and improvement seem […]

About 50 people gathered on Provincetown Harbor on January 7 to let go of their material and metaphysical stockpiles at the annual Re-Rooters Day ceremony organized by Jay Critchley. This […]

DEPT. OF COMMERCE

Provincetown residents Patrick Lamerson, Curt Sharp, and Johnny Butero (left to right), wait for their turns to be interviewed for perhaps a dozen jobs at Curaleaf on Commercial Street, which […]

Doing Good

A balmy 38-degree day brought a sunny mood to the Provincetown Polar Bear Plunge on Jan 1. Organizer Steve Katsurinis said this year’s event, sponsored by the Harbor Lounge, Yolqueria, […]

Doing Good

What was a Christmas tree has become a nice spot for Nickerson, one of the educational Eastern screech owls at Wild Care in Eastham. The tree was one of 14 […]

CURRENTS

Provincetown Meetings Ahead Thursday, Jan. 9 Bicycle Committee, 2 p.m., Maushop Community Room, 44 Harry Kemp Way Economic Development Committee, 11 a.m., Veterans Memorial Community Center, 2 Mayflower Lane Planning […]

ECONOMY

EASTHAM — A local resident’s attempt to overturn the special permits awarded to two marijuana businesses was dismissed by Barnstable Superior Court Judge Thomas Perrino on Dec. 23. Eastham’s Steve […]

WARRIORS WATCH

Note: Team records are listed of the Independent’s deadline Friday, Jan. 10 Girls basketball: The Warriors (4-2) host the Dennis-Yarmouth Dolphins. Tipoff is at 6:30 p.m. Boys basketball: The Dennis-Yarmouth […]

UPDATE

WELLFLEET — Mass Appeal, a nonprofit that has given away donated clothing at Cove Corner for the last 23 years, still has no place to go following a Nov. 1 […]

ENVIRONMENT

WELLFLEET — Kristian Sexton, who says he is developing an aerial imaging system using drones to detect sharks, claims that there are “a number of serious problems” with the Woods […]

WINTER HOURS

Every restaurant is a fiefdom, each with its own miniature culture and specifics so particular that it’s difficult to write about a lot of restaurants at once. Yet we Outer […]

'Freddie and Napi' by Mary DeAngelis and Ryan McMenamy

SURFING

The waves were perfect for learning to surf. Knee to waist high, soft and gentle, breaking slowly over an old flat reef now buried in fine white sand. The water […]

OP-ED

A “global conversation” has just been launched by the United Nations with a universal invitation to people all over the world to join. It’s called UN75, and it marks the […]

MUSIC

Americana music covers a lot of territory, and Ethan Robbins and Ariel Bernstein seem determined to explore it all. Known collectively as Cold Chocolate, the drum and guitar combo, who’ll […]

BOOK REVIEW

I enjoyed watching an adorable mother fox and kits last summer in my South Wellfleet neighborhood. I considered myself privileged to witness their antics and also to catch glimpses of […]

AT THE LIBRARY

I read to escape. Not that I have the kind of life one would want to escape — I have a great job and I live in one of the […]

Know when to hit the flats

OBITUARY

PROVINCETOWN — Frederico Pedro Rocha Jr. of Provincetown, known as “Freddie,” died on Dec. 29, 2019 at Cape Cod Hospital in Hyannis after falling ill on Shank Painter Road. He […]

OBITUARY

Paul R. Joseph, 77, known as “PJ,” died in his sleep at Cape Cod Hospital on Dec. 28, 2019. He was 77. Paul had two children, Patty and Paul, from […]

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

The news lately, both locally and at a distance, has been filled with drones. Kristian Sexton of Wellfleet says that he is developing the technology to spot great white sharks […]

OBITUARY

PROVINCETOWN — Services for Donald John Thomas, best known as Provincetown’s legendary “Dancing Cop,” will begin on Friday, Jan. 17. Thomas died peacefully in his favorite chair at home in […]

CLASSIFIEDS

JOBS Club Manager. The Provincetown Tennis Club seeks a responsible manager to oversee business operations May 15 to Oct. 15. Duties include customer service, inventory control, basic accounting, staffing schedules […]

film

PLAYING NOW: JAN. 9-15 Ford v Ferrari (PG13). Wellfleet Cinemas: Thursday: 1 & 4 p.m. Jumanji: The Next Level (PG13). Wellfleet Cinemas: Thursday: 1:05 (3D) & 4:05 p.m. (2D). Just […]

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

The Kindness of the Van Derecks To the editor: Back in the early 1970s during the off-season a number of us hippie types tried living in tents or teepees hidden […]

our picks for the week of January 9 through January 15

Outer Cape Calendar Thursday, Jan. 9, 2 p.m. Letter Writing to Voters: ask citizens in other states to vote, with materials and forms provided, at the Provincetown Public Library, 356 […]

Arts Briefs

Jim Rohrer Photographs at Wellfleet COA A show of work by photographer Jim Rohrer, “Cryin’ Holy!: Looking for Salvation,” will be at the Wellfleet Council on Aging at 715 Old […]

Art and Photography: 2020 Special Section

OBITUARY

PROVINCETOWN — Anton “Napi” Van Dereck Haunstrup, 87, who held onto the town’s rustic, bohemian past with his vast art collection, his stock of employee housing, and his 45-year-old restaurant, […]

UNLIT LIGHTHOUSE

WELLFLEET — The Lighthouse Restaurant, a bright spot for 40 years on this town’s dimming Main Street, is gone. What was a restaurant is now being renovated to become a […]

BUDGETING

TRURO — The select board went into “sticker shock” at the price of a proposed dept. of public works facility next to the police and fire station: $20 million. While […]

ART AND PHOTOGRAPHY SPECIAL

"Another Year in Nature" by Mark Adams

ART & PHOTOGRAPHY SPECIAL

"A Toast" by Mary DeAngelis

ART & PHOTOGRAPHY SPECIAL

"Slacktide" by Robert S. Johnson

ART & PHOTOGRAPHY SPECIAL

"Time Travelers" by Marian Roth

ART & PHOTOGRAPHY SPECIAL

"Outer Cape Portraits" by Marnie Crawford Samuelson

ART & PHOTOGRAPHY SPECIAL

"How to Save the World" by Teacake the Dog

ART & PHOTOGRAPHY SPECIAL

"This is My Primal Landscape" by Jane Paradise

ART & PHOTOGRAPHY SPECIAL

"Now What" by Jamie Demetriou

ART & PHOTOGRAPHY SPECIAL

"Constellation" by Daniel Dejean

ART & PHOTOGRAPHY SPECIAL

"Will We Be There?" by Edward Boches

ART & PHOTOGRAPHY SPECIAL

"Remembering" by John Andert

ART & PHOTOGRAPHY SPECIAL

"Sherbet Six Ways" by Marcia Geier

REMEMBERING NAPI

Jamie Demetriou pays homage to Napi in black and white

ART & PHOTOGRAPHY SPECIAL

"That's News to Me" by JAK

ART & PHOTOGRAPHY SPECIAL

"The Jack Cheez Journal: Truth is Lost" by A. Crock

ART & PHOTOGRAPHY SPECIAL

"Untitled (The End is Over)" by Chris Kelly

Know when to hit the flats

OBITUARY

PROVINCETOWN — Frederico “Freddie” Rocha Jr. died on Dec. 29, 2019 after suffering an apparent heart attack on Shank Painter Road on his way to buy his morning coffee at […]

REMEMBERING NAPI

Napi Van Dereck’s Single-Minded Pursuit Peppery, garrulous, ebullient, discerning, resourceful, crafty, steeped in local lore, and deeply rooted on the Outer Cape, Napi Van Dereck may have looked like an […]

BABYCAKES

  Essie Van Staden was born on Dec. 25, 2019 at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston. She weighed six pounds and measured 17 inches. Her parents, Natalie and […]

CRAFT

Myrica pensylvanica, also known as bayberry, candleberry, and wax myrtle, is a native species that has long grown across the dunes and woods of the Outer Cape. Unfussy, it tolerates […]

KITCHEN TABLE

We lived in Japan for 10 years, and that is where we whetted our taste for sushi. For 20 years now we have lived on Cape Cod, and making sushi […]

THE YEAR-ROUNDER

Back in 1969 we acquired a street dog named Napi. He was a real son of a bitch. I wanted to call him Walt (Whitman), but the name just wouldn’t […]

REMEMBERING NAPI

As a boss Napi Van Dereck was a terror. At least in the old days when I bussed at the restaurant. Each evening would find him hunched like a hawk […]

READINGS

The dazzling sunshine is deceptive: not many would find Provincetown’s windswept Race Point Beach inviting on this freezing mid-December day. Kevin Fitchett ambles up the beach and offers a winsome […]

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

We collected a lot of advice while researching the possibility of a new newspaper here. What we heard inspired us to go ahead and dive in, but every now and […]

CLASSIFIEDS

JOBS Club Manager. The Provincetown Tennis Club seeks a responsible manager to oversee business operations May 15 to Oct 15. Duties include customer service, inventory control, basic accounting, staffing schedules […]

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Truro Is ‘Heaven’ To the editor: I am writing to express my concerns regarding the Dec. 19 letter from the editor entitled “Heart of Darkness” [page 2]. The editorial begins […]

HOME

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Dec. 23 to Dec. 27, 2019. PROVINCETOWN Dec. 23. Vincent Garmo to Richard D. Welch and Brian M. Donovan. 432 Commercial […]

our picks for the week of January 2 through January 8

Outer Cape Calendar Friday, Jan. 3, and Monday, Jan. 6, 1:30-3 p.m. Post-holiday Reset & Recuperation is a small group workshop to process holiday experiences, facilitated by Deborah Smulian and […]

Arts Briefs

‘Sounds of Siberia’ in Wellfleet Sample an earful of Siberian music, performed with a khomus (a kind of Jew’s harp) by Yuliyana Krivoshapkina, along with the Tuvan throat vocals of […]

our picks for the week of December 19 through December 26

Thursday, Dec. 19, 2-4 p.m. Helping Our Women (HOW) is holding its annual Holiday Open House at the HOW office at 34 Conwell St. in Provincetown. There will be gift […]

PUBLIC SAFETY

PROVINCETOWN — Fire Chief Michael Trovato says this town needs its own emergency medical service to replace the Lower Cape Ambulance (LCA) Association, the nonprofit that has provided backup service […]

LEARNING

EASTHAM — Nauset Regional High School (NRHS) opened its doors in 1972, and few alterations have since been made to its ahead-of-its-time open-campus design. Now the district is planning a […]

PUBLIC SAFETY

TRURO — Police Chief Jamie Calise has denied a request from the Independent for more information about the number, types, and present whereabouts of the firearms and ammunition that were […]

LEARNING

Lisa Brown, a veteran teacher at Nauset Regional High School in Eastham, has a popular class with a curriculum of her own making called Exploring and Respecting Differences (EARD). Brown […]

ELECTIONS

TRURO — If voters don’t know Stephanie Rein, a candidate for select board in the Feb. 18 special election, chances are all the kids in town do. Rein, 49, has […]

SKETCHBOOK

"Beech Forest" by Mark Adams

FARM AND GARDEN

Salvatore Del Deo sits in his kitchen on a snowy December afternoon, holding a jar of dried beans. “My favorites of all the favorites,” he says, holding them up to […]

Solstice

An annual bonfire celebrates the solstice, the longest night of the year, with firelight, candles, and toasts. This year midwinter came on Dec. 21. As the sun set, a crowd […]

COCKTAIL HOUR

There have recently been a spate of quasi-reverential articles in food and wine publications about making “batch cocktails.” Now “batch cocktails” are really nothing more than making drinks in quantity, […]

TECHNOLOGY

Sixty-nine percent of kids have their own smartphones by age 12, up from 41 percent in 2015. And on average, 8-to-12-year-olds in the U.S. consume just under five hours’ worth […]

STEAMERS

"'Tis The Season" by A. Crock

GRAVEYARD SHIFT

In life, they (the men, at least) enjoyed a raucous, bawdy bonhomie every Saturday night at the Beachcombers Club in Provincetown. In death, many are still together, resting peacefully with […]

      Saskia Maxwell Keller was awarded a master of music with distinction from the University of Edinburgh. The ceremony, held on Nov. 29, included graduates being tapped on […]

DEPT. OF COMMERCE

The Community Development Partnership (CDP) has increased the maximum amount that can be borrowed through its small business loan program from $40,000 to $50,000. Loans are available to both startup […]

DEPT. OF COMMERCE

  The first retail marijuana store on the Cape was cleared to open in Provincetown after receiving final approval from the Mass. Cannabis Control Commission on Dec. 19. Curaleaf will […]

OBITUARIES

Melville Peter Coté of Provincetown died on Nov. 27, 2019 at the Kaplan Family Hospice House in Danvers. He was 82. His death came as a result of the combined […]

WARRIORS WATCH

Note: Team records are listed as of the Independent’s deadline.  Friday, Dec. 27 Boys wrestling: The Warriors (0-1) will play in the Marshfield Holiday Tournament at Marshfield High School, beginning […]

I am dreaming of a Commercial Christmas, just like the one we have every year. You are a hard one to shop for: you have everything, maybe two of everything. […]

ROAD POET

This is for my second hometown I said this poem is for my second hometown Metter, Ga. It’s OK if you have to google it The first time I went […]

PROVINCELANDS

The driving rain and howling winds hardly registered as we moved towards our rendezvous at Race Point beach. Our excitement was too strong; no amount of inclemency could put a […]

PLAYERS

Tony Award-winner Rachel Bay Jones was born into a theatrical family. But her parents, who were both professional actors in New York City, gave up performing after they had her […]

ARTS LISTINGS

Trip the Light Fantastic You can watch Provincetown’s First Light Fireworks off MacMillan Pier for free on Town Beach — the dazzlement begins at 5:30 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 29. […]

KITCHEN TABLE

Latkes, which of course are potato pancakes, are right up there with horseradish-on-homemade-matzo sandwiches among my favorite Jewish holiday foods. There are at least as many theories about how to […]

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

This is the 13th edition of the Independent, which means we have now produced exactly one-quarter of a year’s worth of newspapers. It’s been fun, but we’ve had quite enough, […]

PROVINCETOWN — Long-time Provincetown resident Jo Lynne Hohl died on Dec. 5, 2019 of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. She was 62. Jo Lynne was born […]

OBITUARIES

PROVINCETOWN — John Michael Petti died at his home here as a result of cardiac arrest on Dec. 13, 2019. He was 61, and had suffered from AIDS as well […]

CLASSIFIEDS

JOBS Club Manager. The Provincetown Tennis Club seeks a responsible manager to oversee business operations May 15 to Oct 15. Duties include customer service, inventory control, basic accounting, staffing schedules […]

film

PLAYING NOW: DEC. 26-JAN. 1  Cats (PG). Wellfleet Cinemas: daily: 1:15, 4:15 & 7:15 p.m.; Tuesday: 10 a.m.  Jumanji: The Next Level (PG13). Wellfleet Cinemas: daily: 1:05 (3D), 4:05 (2D) […]

home

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Dec. 16 to Dec. 20, 2019. PROVINCETOWN Dec. 16. Matthew P. and Joseph E. Chartier Petrelis to John H. Vonmohr. 7 […]

our picks for the week of December 26 through January 1

Friday, Dec. 27, 9-11 a.m. Participants in the Lower Cape Outreach Council’s Foods to Encourage program will receive an extra bag of fresh fruits and vegetables, recipes, food samples, and […]

Arts Briefs

Marti Gould Cummings Is Done With 2019 Enjoy “2019 Is So Over!” — an evening of stories, songs, and drag with Marti Gould Cummings and Blake Allen on piano on […]

NATIONAL SEASHORE

NORTH TRURO — In the Outer Cape’s collective memory, the fear associated with living and working at an Air Force station built to listen for incoming Soviet atomic bombs has […]

GOVERNMENT

PROVINCETOWN — How do you build consensus on a vision for the future in a town that needs workforce housing, a year-round economy, sustainability in the face of climate change, […]

CIVICS

TRURO — The select board has set Feb. 18 as the date for a special election to fill the seat left open by the death of Maureen Burgess. At least […]

LAND USE

EASTHAM — The select board has chosen nine members and two alternates for the committee charged with making recommendations for developing the former T-Time parcel on Route 6 and identifying […]

FACT CHECK

TRURO — Some statements made at the Dec. 5 zoning board of appeals hearing related to groundwater nitrogen levels expected to be produced by the proposed “Cloverleaf” housing development did […]

SOCIAL JUSTICE

PROVINCETOWN — The Rev. Brenda Haywood received the Tim McCarthy Human Rights Champion Award on Dec. 10. This week, she welcomed a reporter to her home to talk about that […]

CLIMATE

PROVINCETOWN — Cape Air founder and CEO Dan Wolf says he is excited about the future of his fleet. At the same time that his company is replacing its aged […]

DOMESTIC UNEASE

My son’s school sent home a flyer. It said: “Come Celebrate Your Culture & Heritage! You are encouraged to bring a dish that reflects your family’s traditions.” The organizers of […]

KITCHEN TABLE

An Early Taste Memory Reading Ed Miller’s Dec. 12 Kitchen Table column about rye bread took me back to my own attempt to recreate a childhood treat. My grandma Dora […]

VIGNETTE

"Delivery" by Daniel Dejean

ECONOMY

On Outer Cape Cod, mom-and-pop shops famously reflect their owners’ personalities. That’s true, say local liquor store owners, even when what’s for sale — beer, wine, and spirits — is […]

HEALTH

PROVINCETOWN — The AIDS Support Group of Cape Cod board has named Dan Gates as president and CEO. Gates, 47, replaces Joe Carleo, who resigned in late October. Spokeswoman Leslie […]

CONSUMER WATCH

Letters advertising low electricity rates seem to fill my mailbox every few months. These come-ons are from companies with innocuous and confusingly similar names, such as Think Energy, Direct Energy, […]

WARRIORS WATCH

Note: Team records are listed as of the Independent’s deadline. Thursday, Dec. 19 Girls ice hockey: The Cape Cod Furies (1-1) is a co-op girls ice hockey team representing Nauset, […]

PUBLIC SAFETY

EASTHAM —Willy’s World Wellness and Conference Center on Route 6 was temporarily shut down on Dec. 12 after Eastham Building Commissioner Thomas Wingard found the facility “unsafe.” Wingard’s notice, posted […]

CIVICS

PROVINCETOWN — The VFW building at 3 Jerome Smith Road was built entirely by veterans, says VFW post member Paul Mendes — volunteers who donated their skills as carpenters or […]

VIEW FROM THE HIVE

WELLFLEET — On this farm we have Wellfleetian honey bees — although not really; their origins are more likely Ukrainian. Honey bees were never native to North America. With the […]

SKETCHBOOK

"Winter Trees" by Mark Adams

OP-ED

The holiday season surrounds us with all kinds of lights: from the soft glow of candles to colorful bulbs and pyrotechnics shot into the midnight sky. They embody the spirit […]

THE YEAR-ROUNDER

I love my library. It is a beautiful building in a beautiful town. A beautiful building that happens to be full of books — rooms and rooms of books, shelf […]

NATURA VIVA

"Juniperus Virginiana (Eastern red cedar)" by Natalie Van Staden

FILM

For the past year Rachael Brister has operated her own public relations company, which specializes in reaching the LGBTQ community. Though she’s based in Seattle, one of her clients has […]

INDIE SCREEN

From the moment the grisly Manson murders occurred in March 1969, they took on metaphoric significance. A band of hippie nobodies living in Los Angeles as a cult in the […]

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

Here we are heading into the week of the winter solstice, the dark time, and I must confess that I see signs of that encroaching shroud almost everywhere I turn. […]

Historian and longtime Wellfleet resident William S. McFeely died on Dec. 11, 2019, in Sleepy Hollow, N.Y. He was 89 years old. Born in New York City, Bill, as he […]

PROVINCETOWN — Robert J. Bednarek of Truro died on Dec. 7, 2019, at Seashore Point Wellness Center. He was 91. Robert was born on Nov. 24, 1928, in Berlin, Wis., […]

Mary Jane Kelman, who was known as “Kelly,” died on Dec. 13, 2019 at Cape Cod Hospital, where she was being treated for complications from heart disease. Born on Nov. […]

CLASSIFIEDS

SERVICES Energy Clearing. Jane Celia Hatch (Bethesda Star), a shaman from Santa Fe, N.M., is available now for private healings at the Healing Arts Collective in Orleans. Healings may involve […]

film

PLAYING NOW: DEC. 19-25 A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood (PG). Waters Edge Cinema: Thursday, 4 p.m.; Friday: 4:30 & 7:15 p.m.; Saturday-Sunday: 2, 4:30 & 7:15 p.m. Cats (PG). […]

home

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Dec. 9 to Dec. 13, 2019. PROVINCETOWN Dec. 9. Carl David Gilmore and James E. Heskett to Michael Keyes and Stephen […]

HOLIDAY

Having returned to the Wellfleet Harbor Actors Theater, the annual Yule for Fuel benefit concerts — host Stephen Russell and Chandler Travis, above, at last weekend’s jamboree — will have […]

THRIFT

WELLFLEET — After 23 years in the same location on Route 6, Mass Appeal must find a new home. The nonprofit that gives out free used clothes to residents of […]

TAXES

EASTHAM — The select board is considering making Eastham the seventh Cape Cod and Islands town to implement a residential tax exemption [RTE] that could give an estimated 90 percent […]

HEALTH

Two bills being promoted by the Outer Cape’s representatives in the Massachusetts legislature would expand minors’ access to medical care without the consent or knowledge of their parents. One concerns […]

CIVICS

TRURO — A local lobsterman feels vindicated after a judge reversed two conditions that the Truro Planning Board had imposed on his building proposal. Orleans District Court Judge Robert Welsh […]

OBITUARY

PROVINCETOWN — The man responsible for the longest running show in Provincetown died at home in his sleep on Dec. 7, 2019. Donald “the Dancing Cop” Thomas, who lived with […]

DEVELOPMENT

PROVINCETOWN — The zoning board of appeals on Dec. 5 granted a variance and the special permits necessary for a new hotel, bar, restaurant, and pier to be constructed at […]

QUEER ‘I’

For older LGBT people, the rise of Pete Buttigieg to the front ranks of Democratic candidates for president inspires awe. Having grown up at a time when homophobia was the […]

CHESS

EASTHAM — To understand the story of the Miles Tibbetts Chess Club at Nauset Regional High School you must first know who Miles Tibbetts was. “He started playing chess when […]

KITCHEN TABLE

When I was a kid, growing up in Teaneck, N.J., my favorite bread was the sour rye with caraway seeds from Gratzel’s, the German bakery on Cedar Lane. To paraphrase […]

CLIMATE

PROVINCETOWN — The Jan. 4, 2018, nor’easter brought a storm surge with it that seemed to lift water out of Provincetown harbor and pour it down Gosnold Street like a […]

ECONOMY

CHATHAM — The Cape Cod Commercial Fishermen’s Alliance (CCCFA) plans to offer a six-day course to teach people the basic skills needed to work on a commercial fishing boat. That […]

HOUSING

TRURO — Several residents, including three members of the Truro Planning Board, objected to the so-called Cloverleaf affordable housing development during a zoning board of appeals hearing on Dec. 5. […]

DEAR INDIE

Dear Indie, When I go home for the holidays, I find myself among friends who are more conservative than my Cape Cod ones. I usually try to avoid political talk. […]

Crossword

The December puzzle from Sophia Maymudes should be done on dry land. Need some answers? We send out the solution in our Friday newsletter. You’ll find the signup for our […]

VIGNETTE

"Winter Hunting" by Daniel Dejean

BODY/MIND

You’re anxious about being able to afford gifts for everyone on your list. The company party sounds like the worst idea in the world. Someone you loved recently died and […]

ISLAND NOTEBOOK

On an island that has never seen snow and is considered cold if the temperature hits 60, having a white Christmas means purchasing lots of cotton to decorate the front […]

IN AND OUT

In and Out: observations of humans as they come and go from our town

Newcomers to the Outer Cape often ask year-rounders, “Don’t you get bored in the winter?” The answer is often no, because of all the volunteer groups and homegrown music, art, […]

BOOK REVIEW

“Whatever is in him,” the critic Joan Acocella wrote of Mark Morris in her 1993 biography, “out it comes. This goes for his dances — he creates with extraordinary ease […]

MILLION-YEAR PICNIC

I do a lot of my stargazing in New York City. That’s where I watched the transit of Mercury last month. I set up my telescope (with a solar filter) […]

WARRIORS WATCH

Thursday, Dec. 12 Girls ice hockey: The Warriors will play the Barnstable Red Raiders at the Hyannis Youth Community Center at 5:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 13 Girls basketball: The Nauset […]

DOING GOOD

Doing Good: a column celebrating those who give back.

CURRENTS

PROVINCETOWN — The state fire marshal and Provincetown Fire Chief Michael Trovato have determined the cause of the Nov. 21 fire that killed John Eder was accidental. According to an […]

Hired

PROVINCETOWN — After a national search, Rachael Brister has been hired as the new CEO of the Provincetown Film Society (PFS), the umbrella organization for the Provincetown International Film Festival, […]

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Climate Is a Class Issue To the editor: Sophie Ruehr’s concerns about climate change are admirable (“The Kids Aren’t All Right,” Dec. 5). Unfortunately, her argument simply echoes self-serving corporate […]

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Dec. 2 to Dec. 6, 2019. PROVINCETOWN Dec. 2. Robert Thomas to KCC Realty Group LLC. 945 Commercial St., Unit A. […]

CLASSIFEDS

INVITATIONS A Holiday Party in Truro. As part of the Ho Ho Ho Truro holiday stroll, Salty Market invites you to our neighborhood holiday party on December 13, kicking off […]

Animation Shorts at Preservation Hall The newest edition of animated shorts from around the world, The 21st Annual Animation Show of Shows, will screen at Wellfleet Preservation Hall at 335 […]

film

PLAYING NOW: DEC. 12-18  A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood (PG). Waters Edge Cinema, Friday-Sunday and Tuesday-Wednesday: 4 & 6:30 p.m.; Saturday-Sunday: 1:30 p.m. Wellfleet Cinemas, daily: 1:15, 4:15 & […]

our picks for the week of December 12 through December 19

Outer Cape Calendar Thursday, Dec. 12, 5 p.m. An artist reception for the Julia Salinger show, “What Now,” will be at Wellfleet Preservation Hall at 335 Main St. The exhibit […]

editorial

I had the good fortune the other day to talk with Marshall Smith, the owner of the Wellfleet Marketplace. We were having a little trouble finding the right place in […]

SPECIAL TOWN MEETING

PROVINCETOWN — By a margin of just 19 votes, 157 in favor, 176 against, Monday’s special town meeting rejected Fire Chief Mike Trovato’s plan for the former VFW site on […]

LIFE & DEATH

PROVINCETOWN — Ever since Dawn Walsh arrived in Provincetown she has been working to take fear and ignorance out of the experience of death. She founded the Day of the […]

ENVIRONMENT

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) moved to protect herring on Nov. 19 when it approved a new rule restricting the operation of trawlers. Amendment 8 to the Atlantic […]

DEVELOPMENT

NORTH TRURO — A water line will be coming to Highland Road to service the 40-unit Cloverleaf housing project and bring new economic development to the scrappy commercial area here. […]

HEALTH

PROVINCETOWN — Massachusetts had universal health care before it was cool. Even before Obamacare, local residents were able to get insurance regardless of their work situation, income level, or pre-existing […]

ON THE LANDSCAPE

I used to rent a small house with large windows. The windows overlooked a meadow of grasses and wildflowers framed at its edges by low oaks and autumn olive. In […]

PUBLIC ART

PROVINCETOWN — The larger-than-life photographs of five Portuguese women on Fisherman’s Wharf are now down to only three images, but that will change this spring. The installation “They Also Faced […]

CIVICS

TRURO — Town officials have hired a Cambridge consulting firm to help figure out what to do with the 70-acre Walsh property, whose purchase for $5.1 million was approved by […]

ARTS LISTINGS

The Canteen’s Holiday Market and Winter Lodge, which returned on Thanksgiving weekend, will be operating weekends through New Year’s. The lodge is a pop-up chalet-style restaurant, in front of and […]

steamers

"#Stuffed" by A. Crock

SKETCHBOOK

"Squid" by Mark Adams

EASTHAM

EASTHAM — The select board voted 3-1 on Nov. 25 to approve the renewal of the liquor license for Stewart’s Restaurant on Route 6 despite questions about the character of […]

COUNTING

Census packages won’t arrive in mailboxes across the country until mid-March, but officials and community groups on Cape Cod are strategizing now about how to make sure everyone here is […]

MOVEMENT

This is either the most wonderful time of the year or the hardest and most stressful. Either way, for most of us, it’s a time when exercise routines lag. It’s […]

DOING GOOD

Wellfleet Bay Audubon teams have begun their season of rescuing cold-stunned sea turtles. That’s staff member Jacey Corrente, above, collecting a live Kemp’s ridley at Campground Beach in Eastham. November’s […]

DOVETAIL JOINT

The question: We renovated our modest cottage in Wellfleet to make it our year-round home. But now that the job is done, we are wishing we had thought more about […]

DEAR INDIE

We made it! Thanksgiving has been conquered. Now retailers large and small are bombarding us with snowy cheer, picture-perfect Douglas firs dressed up in color-coordinated balls and tinsel, and the […]

SQUID PRO QUO

England vs. Argentina (2012). South Korea vs. Japan (2019). These matchups read like a history of World Cup competitions, but in fact they were clashes where countries have gone to […]

POETRY

The first anonymous baying from those backlit hills petitions a single greeny-blue winter star. It silvers as I watch, tuning its sharpness. Deep January in the natural dark, and now […]

CLIMATE CRISIS

The older generation has taken to saying how sorry it is to leave behind a climate crisis that young people will have to fix. I’ve been the recipient of this […]

POETS

Last spring, Joy Priest had some big decisions to make. The Kentucky native, who had recently completed her M.F.A. in poetry at the University of South Carolina, was accepted to […]

WRITERS

A man with high cheekbones and translucent-frame glasses sits alone by the waterfront on a sunny late November day. The waves before him ripple onto the sandy shore in Provincetown’s […]

SCREENINGS

The story of the Wampanoag nation, the confederation of Native American tribes who lived in what is now Cape Cod and the Islands, southeastern Massachusetts, and Rhode Island, is a […]

FESTIVALS

EASTHAM — The 16th annual Eastham Turnip Festival was a groovy one. Crowds enjoyed music, crafts, food, and all things turnip. Twelve restaurants vied for the top turnip recipe as […]

BACKYARD FOOTBALL

EASTHAM — Thanksgiving is about celebrating traditions with family and friends. Each family and group of friends is unique, but it’s clear that for many of us, these time-honored rituals […]

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

It’s “Giving Tuesday” as I write this, and I can see from looking at the online posts of local nonprofits that people really are giving. We know firsthand about this […]

OBITUARY

PROVINCETOWN — Elspeth Halvorsen Vevers, an icon of Provincetown’s art community and a resident since the mid-1950s, died peacefully at home on Nov. 17, 2019, her daughters Stephanie and Tabitha […]

LOCAL COLOR Hopper House Tours Gift Certificates. A great holiday gift solution. $69 per person. Tour takes you to hidden places to see more than 50 locations painted by Edward […]

PLAYING NOW: DEC. 5-11 A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood (PG). Wellfleet Cinemas, daily: 1:15, 4:15 & 7:15 p.m.; Tuesday: 10 a.m. Dark Waters (PG13). Wellfleet Cinemas, Friday-Wednesday: 1, 4 […]

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Nov. 25 to Nov. 29, 2019. PROVINCETOWN Nov. 25. Jerome A. and Nancy K. Goedken to Timothy A. Maher. 963 Commercial […]

our picks for the week of December 5 through December 12

Outer Cape Calendar Thursday, Dec. 5, 2 p.m. Join a “Trip Talk” with Nauset Regional High School junior Anna Shantz, who traveled to Kenya and Tanzania. Wellfleet Council on Aging, […]

Gifts of David Murphy Collection at PAAM The exhibit “Recent Gifts From the David Murphy Collection” will have an opening reception at the Provincetown Art Association and Museum at 460 […]

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Perfect Inefficiency To the editor: Regarding the note in your e-mail newsletter apologizing for subscribers’ copies being delayed in the mail last week, rest assured that it wasn’t your fault. […]

home

Real Estate Transactions  Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Nov. 18 to Nov. 22, 2019.  PROVINCETOWN  Nov. 19. Center Brook LLC and Lexvest Group LLC to Scott […]

provincelands

Atlantic to the left, Race Point behind us, we hauled our buckets and baskets and red and yellow plastic beach pails over dune-tops, into hollows, and along the overgrown sand […]

FOWL PLAY

As upland game season wraps up on Nov. 30, many local hunters worry that a longstanding tradition of pheasant hunting will soon be ending. Following a 2002 court challenge by […]

editorial

There are reasons to fear the Dec. 2 special town meeting in Provincetown. On its face, it pits public safety against housing; neighbors with quiet backyards against people who are […]

theater review

The 1946 Frank Capra movie It’s a Wonderful Life is a touchstone of Americana. The title evokes thoughts of Christmas, moral reassurance and sentiment, small towns and loved ones, Jimmy […]

health

PROVINCETOWN — Jonathan Sperber of Truro moved to Cape Cod last spring. On Oct. 7, he filed his new patient paperwork with the Outer Cape Health Services (OCHS) clinic in […]

development

PROVINCETOWN — A hotel that’s taller than Whaler’s Wharf and would include a nearly 264-foot pier was heralded as “bold” and derided as “ugly” on Nov. 21 at a zoning […]

SPECIAL TOWN MEETING

PROVINCETOWN — The 1.3-acre parcel of town-owned land that was the former VFW post is once again the subject of debate. A petitioned article from Fire Chief Mike Trovato and […]

civics

EASTHAM — Four of the youngest members of our local select boards, all elected for the first time in the last two years, met for a conversation about the future […]

sketchbook

"Wild Turkey" by Mark Adams

craft

ORLEANS — You’re 16 years old, into metalwork, and a fan of “Rambo.” Choosing your first project at welding school is easy. “You make a knife,” says Lucas Burnley of […]

books

  Eighty-one-year-old Joel Meyerowitz, éminence grise among Provincetown photographers, was in Manhattan in late October. The occasion was a narrated slide show and book signing hosted by Aperture, his publisher, […]

loss

PROVINCETOWN — A fire at 86 Atkins Mayo Road on Thursday, Nov. 21 killed the home owner, John Eder, the sole occupant of a house set far back in the […]

on the sheet

ORLEANS — “It’s chess on ice.” That’s how Bill Fragaszy of Yarmouth Port describes the intricate sport of curling. Fragaszy and other members of the Lower Cape Curling Club take […]

Watercolor

"At the Table" by Traci Harmon Hay

THE SEARCH

PROVINCETOWN — There are times when consensus is impossible, according to Robin Leal Craver, who is one of three finalists for the town manager’s position. In her case, one of […]

graveyard shift

EASTHAM — We can probably thank Hollywood (and maybe Dickens) for the creepy reputation of burial grounds. What would a horror film be without a desolate graveyard overgrown with weeds, […]

HOLIDAY TABLE

Even in these chilly gray days of November we find color everywhere on the Outer Cape. Marsh and beach grasses are golden fire. Junipers are deep green, their bright berries […]

cocktail hour

From Thanksgiving through New Year’s Eve (or Day for that matter), drinking Champagne really adds an extra dash of joy. The problem is many people are intimidated by it, seeing […]

AT THE LIBRARY

Braiding Sweetgrass By Robin Wall Kimmerer Milkweed Editions: 2015 In Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants, author Robin Wall Kimmerer asks readers to “imagine raising […]

SURFING

The sun is warm on my shoulders. The salt is starting to pinch the skin at the corners of my eyes as it dries. A small white cup of coffee […]

DEAR INDIE

Dear Indie, I put a lot of effort into my Halloween trick-or-treating and came home with a major haul of candy. Way more than my older sisters, who are now […]

COURSES

“I started taking classes at Castle Hill when I was 15 years old,” Paul Wisotsky says in his comfortable Truro living room. “I’m 57, and now I’m teaching there in […]

PLAYERS

When Spencer Keasey picked his porn name, Spencer Quest, it was because he felt as if he were actually on a quest — for sexual and spiritual freedom. For a […]

classifieds

LOCAL COLOR Hopper House Tours Gift Certificates. A great holiday gift solution. $69 per person. Tour takes you to hidden places to see more than 50 locations painted by Edward […]

Garrow Throop’s Painted Photographs “Garrow Throop: Vignettes From the Outer Cape,” is an art exhibit of photographs shot and painted by Garrow Throop, which will be on view at the […]

film

PLAYING NOW: NOV. 28-DEC. 4 A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood (PG). Wellfleet Cinemas, daily: 1:15, 4:15 & 7:15 p.m.; Tuesday: 10 a.m. Frozen II (PG). Wellfleet Cinemas, daily: 1:05 […]

our picks for the week of November 27 through December 5

Outer Cape Calendar Wednesday, Nov. 27, 5-7 p.m. This year’s Lighting Ceremony of the Pilgrim Monument kicks off the one-year countdown to Provincetown 400’s fireworks show, which commemorates the anniversary […]

Teacake's Take

"A Dog's Thanksgiving" by Ellen LeBow

classifieds

INVITATIONS  Salty Market invites you to two Grand Holiday Tastings: Friday, Nov. 22 and Wednesday, Nov. 27. Come sample impressive selections of wine to pair with your Thanksgiving meal and […]

home

Real Estate Transactions Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Nov. 12 to Nov. 15, 2019. PROVINCETOWN Nov. 12. Dol-Fin Development LLC to Christopher Martin Deiser and Keith […]

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Chief Trovato’s Vision To the editor: Fire Chief Mike Trovato’s vision for the VFW site as a police station and first-responder housing and substation actually sees our needs. This vision […]

letter from the editor

The New York Times reported on Monday that 47 percent of Americans say it’s hard for them to know whether the information they encounter is true. Many people have simply […]

OBITUARIES

PROVINCETOWN — Richard David Salvador, Sr., 73, of Provincetown died unexpectedly on Nov. 11, 2019 at Cape Cod Hospital in Hyannis, surrounded by his family. The community is mourning the […]

OBITUARIES

WELLFLEET — Martin “Marty” Alexander Buckosh died in his sleep on Nov. 5, 2019 while recovering at his Wellfleet home from a bicycle accident. He was 62. Marty, the youngest […]

film

PLAYING NOW: NOV. 21-27  A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood (PG). Wellfleet Cinemas, Thursday: 4:30 & 7:15 p.m.; Friday-Wednesday: 1:15, 4:15 & 7:15 p.m.; Tuesday: 10 a.m. Frozen 2 (PG). […]

LAND USE

TRURO — The Truro Conservation Trust closed on a bayside property on Nov. 1 for $250,000 — far below the original asking price for the 1.1-acre parcel next to Great […]

civics

PROVINCETOWN — The select board will choose among three women who have been named finalists in the search for the next town manager. All three will be interviewed by the […]

HOUSING

PROVINCETOWN — Two of the most acute needs this community is facing, according to multiple studies, surveys, and the town’s own economic development plan, are year-round rental housing and seasonal […]

climate crisis management

EASTHAM — If a severe storm or flood hit the Outer Cape forcing residents to evacuate, it would cause a major traffic backup. Route 6 is the main evacuation route […]

OBITUARIES

TRURO — Maureen Alana Burgess, who was serving her second term on the Truro Select Board, died on Nov. 11, 2019 of a stroke that resulted from a brain arteriovenous […]

washashores

WELLFLEET — Before Kathy Fletcher and David Simpson founded a nonprofit to help inner-city kids go to college, as many as seven teenagers were living with them in their three-bedroom […]

ROOTS

EASTHAM — By the time this story goes live, the library’s countdown clock for the Eastham Turnip Festival will reach two days, eight hours, and counting. You can watch the […]

economy

EASTHAM — The trade war with China is reshaping East Coast lobster sales. Whether local lobstermen feel the burn depends, for now, on where they’re fishing. But with Canada stepping […]

ON ICE

ORLEANS — It is Friday night, Nov. 15 and the Charles Moore Arena is filled with family members and fans cheering on the Lower Cape Coyotes. The Coyotes Squirt 1 […]

VIEW FROM THE HIVE

Hive entrances are eerily vacant and quiet this frigid November morning, but an ear to the boxes reveals lots of life inside. A healthy cluster of wintering honey bees emits […]

steamers

"Call Me Salty" by A. Crock

HOUSING

PROVINCETOWN — Providing affordable rental housing here for one underserved income group — those making 60 to 80 percent of the area median — is going to be a challenge. […]

climate crisis

WELLFLEET — Fifteen concerned citizens gathered at the Flying Fish Café in Wellfleet on Nov. 15 to discuss bills now in play at the State House that aim to curb […]

DOVETAIL JOINT

The question: Now that the weather has turned and the wind picked up, a lot of people notice that their casement windows are getting older. Cranks are tough to turn, […]

WARRIORS WATCH

The Nauset High School fall sports season is coming to an end as all Warriors teams have completed regular season and postseason action except for football (6-4), which will play […]

Giving

RAICES–RAISING FUNDS TO REUNITE IMMIGRANT FAMILIES Andrew and Alyssa Staker of Wellfleet at their most glamorous at the Ball at the Hall, a fundraiser for RAICES now in its second […]

Arts Briefs

Present: As its end-of-the-year holiday treat, the Provincetown Theater and artistic director David Drake are offering It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play, a theatrical version of Frank Capra’s […]

OUTER CAPE PORTRAIT

MIKE WRIGHT  |  SCULPTOR  |  PROVINCETOWN I’ve been making sculpture with old found painted wood for 30 years now. In the mid-’90s I would be walking on the beach and […]

in and out

In and Out: Observations of humans as they come and go from our town

VIGNETTE

"Leaves" by Daniel Dejean

GALLERIES

“I never thought the bottom line would be numbers,” Shirl Roccapriore says, sitting back in the cozy space that is her Oils by the Sea Gallery at 437 Commercial St. […]

MUSIC

Lisa Bastoni is having a great year. The Northampton native, who’ll be the featured artist at Monday evening’s Coffeehouse at the Mews open mic in Provincetown, was one of six […]

our picks for the week of November 21 through 28

Outer Cape Calendar Thursday, Nov. 21, 12:30-2 p.m. “Civics 101”: The Provincetown Independent presents a panel discussion with select board members from the Outer Cape. Discuss their role in town […]

Grace Hopkins’s Abstract Photography Grace Hopkins’s evocative abstract photography — she scours the world for just the right color and surface texture — is featured in a show at the […]

health

WELLFLEET — A large number of children who visit the Outer Cape Health Services clinic here are “under-vaccinated” — having not received a full series of standard immunizations against infectious […]

ECONOMY

PROVINCETOWN — The tourism industry brings about $200 million into Provincetown every year, according to Tony Fuccillo, Provincetown’s director of tourism. It’s an enormous economic engine that touches nearly everyone in […]

ECONOMY

Close brushes with death are common for Outer Cape fishermen. Rick Marvin of Eastham, who fishes for lobster, bluefish, and crab, knows from experience that a routine move can quickly […]

CIVICS

PROVINCETOWN — The most consequential vote at Tuesday’s select board meeting came after most of the audience had left: a unanimous decision not to recommend Fire Chief Mike Trovato’s petitioned […]

CANNABIS

PROVINCETOWN — It turns out the marijuana industry and the end of communism have a lot in common. U.S.-born investor Boris Jordan, the major shareholder of Curaleaf, helped the Russian […]

MILLION-YEAR PICNIC

With the end of daylight savings time, it’s suddenly darker much earlier in the evening. You may notice that the night sky has changed since those beach bonfires back in […]

BODY/MIND

Ever walked out of a yoga class feeling peaceful? Even-keeled? Like you had hit the reset button? Same here. It was what first hooked me. I reluctantly walked into a […]

ECONOMY

Some people, like Shawn Vecchione, are tired of talking about sharks. The constant chatter about great whites caused Vecchione, who owns Vec Surfboards in Orleans, to close the retail side […]

NATURA VIVA

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OP-ED

I do not doubt Fire Chief Michael Trovato’s list of needs required to keep the community safe. Those needs include a new fire substation, new trucks, more bunks, and more […]

SKETCHBOOK

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THE HOMELESS

HYANNIS — Freddie Rocha greeted David Chick with his usual questions: “When are we going home?” and “Did you come to take me home?” Chick smiled and asked if he […]

AT THE LIBRARY

Educated Tara Westover New York: Random House, 2018 Family dynamics can range from quirky to full-blown dysfunctional even at the best of times, but holidays have a way of putting […]

HOUSING

EASTHAM — What would we do differently if we saw affordable housing as a human right? That’s the key question Andrea Aldana, director of housing advocacy for the Community Development […]

ELECTIONS

WELLFLEET — The select board voted 3-2 on Oct. 22 to “retire the horse and buggy,” as board member Kathleen Bacon put it, and replace the town’s 95-year-old hand-crank ballot […]

THEATER

For their first seven years, the four actor-founders of the Harbor Stage Company — Robert Kropf and Stacy Fischer, Brenda Withers and Jonathan Fielding — who run the small Wellfleet […]

ENVIRONMENT

WELLFLEET — The Blasch property is receiving another massive amount of “sacrificial sand” in an effort to stall the mansion’s collapse over the edge of a coastal bank. The 5,817-square-foot […]

THE YEAR-ROUNDER

There are heroes living among us, men and women who struggle and prevail every day with the demon of addiction. You may know one of these heroes; you may not. […]

IN AND OUT

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PROVINCELANDS

Watching a shorebird is like watching a comet: you have to trick your eye into detecting it. To find a comet, you look sideways at the sky until your peripheral […]

PHOTOGRAPHY

The Provincetown Art Association and Museum is known for its collection and shows of work by world-renowned painters, sculptors, and printmakers who have lived and made art here. Oil painting, […]

BOOK REVIEW

After a two-decade absence, author Michael Nava’s award-winning Henry Rios mystery series returns with its eighth installment, Carved in Bone. (This volume fits chronologically between the first and second books […]

INDIE SCREEN

In a recent op-ed piece in the New York Times, Martin Scorsese bemoaned the Marvel Universe takeover of Hollywood. He’s right to do so, but it’s a process that has […]

HEALTH

The Cape Cod Regional Transit Authority, Cape Cod Healthcare, and the Peter Pan bus company have partnered to create a bus route to bring patients from Provincetown to the hospitals […]

WARRIORS WATCH

Note: Team records are listed as of the Independent’s deadline. Thursday, Nov. 14 Boys soccer: The Warriors (18-0-2) will play the Oliver Ames Tigers (15-3-0) in a Division 2 South […]

home

Real Estate Transactions Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Nov. 4 to Nov. 8, 2019. PROVINCETOWN Nov. 7. Tracy Hawkins to Timothy Grafft and David Hacin. 606 […]

film

PLAYING NOW: NOV. 14-20 The Good Liar (R). Wellfleet Cinemas, Thursday-Wednesday 4 & 7 p.m.; Saturday-Sunday 1 p.m.; Tuesday 10 a.m. Harriet (PG13). Waters Edge Cinemas, Thursday 4:30 & 7:30 […]

letter from the editor

“Why did you call it the Provincetown Independent?” That’s probably the question we are asked most frequently at our Open Newsroom sessions at the town libraries and in casual conversations […]

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Where Are the Doctors? To the editor: In light of your front-page story on Oct. 31 about the restoration of nurse midwife services at Outer Cape Health Services, I’d like […]

classifieds

PROVISIONS Organic Turkeys for Thanksgiving. The East End Market at 212 Bradford St. in Provincetown is taking preorders for Mary’s Organic Turkeys for Thanksgiving. We have limited birds. Sign up […]

our picks for the week of November 14 through 20

Outer Cape Calendar Thursday, Nov. 14, 2 p.m. “Protect Yourself From Fraud,” a talk about financial scams with officers from Seamen’s Bank, is at the Wellfleet Council on Aging at […]

this week

BRIEFS Badland Film’s a Fund-raiser for HOW and PFS It’s an interesting idea for a Western: a bounty hunter who goes after Confederate war criminals. Badland, a feature film starring […]

CIVICS

Every town on Cape Cod is encouraged to have a local comprehensive plan, developed in accordance with its residents’ expressed priorities, updated every 10 years, and certified by the Cape […]

CANNABIS

U.S. Attorney Andrew Lelling has questions for towns that have issued host community agreements to marijuana businesses.  Provincetown, Wellfleet, and Eastham town administrators all received subpoenas last month ordering them […]

health

EASTHAM — The current e-cigarette ban and recent cases of vaping-related illness have affected the number of students using vaping products on campus at Nauset Regional High School. Assistant Principal […]

economy

WELLFLEET — The town’s taxpayers now own over 162 acres of shellfish flats on Indian Neck, the most productive part of the harbor, after purchasing the acreage from the How […]

civics

PROVINCETOWN — The select board will hear from the Pier Corp. on Nov. 12 about the harbormaster’s budget, money that the town has paid to the Pier Corp. for years. […]

HEALTH

Laurie Veninger of Truro is organizing Cape Cod women to lobby lawmakers on Beacon Hill on Thursday, Nov. 14 in support of a bill aimed at protecting and expanding abortion […]

CROSS-COUNTRY

EASTHAM — After ending the regular season with a 9-0 record and a first-place finish in the league championship meet on Oct. 26, the Nauset High girls’ cross-country team aims […]

Halloween 2019

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VETERANS DAY 2019

PROVINCETOWN — The pride with which this town has always acknowledged the sacrifices of its veterans is evident in the many tributes one sees here. Keeping vigil over Commercial Street […]

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performance

By Susannah Elisabeth Fulcher |  Photographs by Marcia Geier Walk down Commercial Street in Provincetown pretty much any time of year and, if you’re lucky, you might encounter a tall, […]

Crossword

  The November puzzle from Sophia Maymudes should be done on dry land. Need some answers? We send out the solution in our Friday newsletter. You’ll find the signup for […]

POLITICS

WELLFLEET — State Rep. Sarah Peake and Sen. Julian Cyr appeared before a friendly crowd of shellfishermen at Preservation Hall on Nov. 1 and told them what they wanted to […]

dovetail joint

The question: We have two grandchildren and a third on the way, so we are thinking of adding a playroom space to our home. The problem is, we can’t add […]

economy

EASTHAM — Rock Harbor is in line to receive additional upgrades starting in March. Shana Brogan, the town’s conservation agent, told the harbor planning committee on Oct. 17 that the […]

island notebook

Elmas Gustauvos Bowlin — or Dadda Bowlin — was a man respected by the entire community for his resourcefulness and way of life, and he was my own hero and […]

ON THE LANDSCAPE

Frost etches the margins of the grass in the early morning. You can see your breath when you step outside at night. The bin of winter clothing has been pulled […]

the observer

I think we all can agree that Sophie’s Choice was a great movie, but no one wants to be Sophie. At Provincetown’s upcoming special town meeting, however, the year-round community […]

EASTHAM CURRENTS

The public will hear the final proposed cost of the Nauset Regional High School building project in February, according to Greg Levasseur, chairman of the building committee. Levasseur told the […]

Poetry

  “Senzo” is also the title of a Cape Jazz album by Abdullah Ibrahim, the anti-apartheid activist who once described improvisation as a life-preserving skill. Alluding already to ancestor in […]

book review

In the 2007 novel Call Me by Your Name, André Aciman created a beautiful and sensual love story about two young men — Elio, a 17-year-old American piano prodigy spending […]

VETERANS DAY 2019

PROVINCETOWN — Veterans and volunteers have organized a number of activities to commemorate Veterans Day on Monday, Nov. 11. The first event honors those who served in seagoing services and […]

steamers

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OBITUARY

Willie Fenichel, known as “Farmer Willie,” of Truro, died on Oct. 9, 2019 after a brief illness. He was 47. Willie grew up in Watertown and graduated from Watertown High […]

PROVINCETOWN CURRENTS

Developer Christine Barker’s plans to redevelop a long-shuttered restaurant include rebuilding Benjamin Lancy’s Wharf. Her proposal, which goes before the zoning board of appeals on Nov. 21, includes a 264-foot […]

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

The Rift at Provincetown Arts To the editor: As the Independent can attest, when the subject of an article about the dramatic changes at Provincetown Arts came up, I expressed strong resistance to the idea. Close […]

WARRIORS WATCH

Note: Team records are listed as of the Independent’s deadline. The regular season has ended; only a few teams are left competing in postseason action. Results Boys golf: The Warriors […]

MOVEMENT

It’s too bad so many of us are taught about good posture as merely a matter of virtue or aesthetics. Good posture is actually a matter of good health, starting […]

letter from the editor

Everyone makes mistakes. Sometimes they’re big. I received an email from a reader who signed himself “Tim C.” complaining about a variety of blunders in the last two issues. “Need […]

home

Recorded at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds from Oct. 28 to Nov. 1, 2019. PROVINCETOWN Oct. 28. Rosemarie Consoli and Stephen Brackett to Jonathan Cade Cowan. 9 Bangs St. […]

our picks for the week of November 7 through 13

Thursday, Nov. 7, 6 p.m. Open Newsroom — Local Journalism Project, Truro Public Library, 7 Standish Way. The Provincetown Independent invites community members to join in making local news more […]

this week

BRIEFS Sparky and Rhonda Rucker Perform at First Encounter Sparky and Rhonda Rucker — musicians, authors, and teachers — will perform a variety of folk songs, spirituals, and historical ballads […]

classifieds

DO GOOD Casino Night Returns. Helping Our Women’s popular Casino Night returns to Montano’s on Saturday, November 16 from 6:00 pm to 10:00 pm.  Join HOW for an evening of […]

film

PLAYING NOW: NOV. 7-13 The Current War (PG-13). Wellfleet Cinemas, Thursday 4:15 & 7:15 p.m. Harriet (PG-13). Waters Edge Cinemas, Thursday 4 & 6:45 p.m.; Friday 4:30 & 7 p.m.; […]

music

When, in the 1930s and ’40s, Cuban musicians such as trumpeter Mario Bauzá and percussionist Chano Pozo introduced the American jazz world to Afro-Cuban rhythms, they kicked off a cultural […]

metaphysics

Ghost hunter Joni Kosmach points a hand-held infrared camera into the shadows. Black, metallic, and blinking with strange energy, it looks like something a Navy SEAL might wield — or […]

book review

A book on the oil and gas industry, Russia, and government corruption? Sounds a bit daunting. But Rachel Maddow, host of MSNBC’s The Rachel Maddow Show, author of The New […]

dia de los muertos

That which frightens us makes us feel more alive. Politics, sex, death, the unforeseen: all things outside our control serve this purpose. It’s the end of October, the season for […]

CIVICS

PROVINCETOWN — Longtime Fire Chief Mike Trovato has turned in a petition with 203 signatures on the future of the VFW site, enough to trigger a special town meeting now […]

HOUSING

PROVINCETOWN — Development of the town-owned VFW site on Jerome Smith Road, long envisioned as a likely spot for affordable housing, appears to be moving forward with a plan for […]

health

Outer Cape Health Services will restore its nurse midwife practice following a year with no prenatal or postpartum care available here, OCHS CEO Pat Nadle said this week. Certified nurse […]

them apples

WELLFLEET — “We got the money, baby!” crowed Edward Englander, the Boston attorney who represents the HDYLTA Trust, on Tuesday following the closing of the sale of the trust’s shellfish […]

civics

PROVINCETOWN — Artists, gallery owners, and retailers gave resoundingly bad reviews to Ray Wiggs’s attempt to have the town ban the sale of fine art in restaurants, bars, and inns […]

LEARNING

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HALLOWEEN

PROVINCETOWN — Say the words “Nelson Avenue” to local kids in October and watch their eyes light up. For years, this small neighborhood off Race Point Road has made up […]

sketchbook

Northern Long-Eared Bat (threatened, endangered). Scientists know them by their calls, and catch them in mist nets. These guys frequent kettle ponds. Across the dunes and forests of Cape Cod […]

provincelands

I’ve bought time, the most beautiful thing for which we pay. Time to act out an old monkish dream of a spare cell facing out over water. Time apart, a […]

STEAMERS

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COCKTAIL HOUR

We’re deep into harvest season — although some people might say we’re heading into the holiday season, since it now seems to start with Halloween rather than Thanksgiving. Either way, […]

OUTDOORS

HOLDEN — I’m sitting in a tree stand 15 feet off the ground. I’ve been here since 6 a.m. and it’s now 8:45. I believe I saw a deer at […]

FIRST RESPONSE

EASTHAM — The town’s police station was built 30 years ago and has stayed virtually unchanged ever since. But now some much needed exterior and interior renovations are under way. […]

IMMIGRANTS

TRURO — Fall hasn’t yet hit Down Home Farm: devoid of the expected autumnal colors, its fields glow green. The growing season isn’t over, and the farm’s cozy stand on […]

dovetail joint

The question: When we had our deck built, we were told it would last forever. But each year a few more boards crack or rot and they’re expensive to replace. […]

ENVIRONMENT

BOSTON — The Boston Globe’s multimedia reporting project “At the Edge of a Warming World,” published with much fanfare last month, held few surprises for Cape Codders. Most of it […]

WINTER WATCH

In the wake of the Thursday, Oct. 17 nor’easter with winds of up to 90 mph Eversource received over 100,000 Cape Cod power outage reports. According to Eversource representative Reid […]

WHISTLE-BLOWER

WELLFLEET — Barbara Jacobs is demanding a refund of $256 after members of the Wellfleet Fire Dept. ordered Silver Cloud Towing to take away her disabled car rather than the […]

GETAWAYS

I live in Truro, she lives in Connecticut. We’ve both been to New York City many times. For me, it’s been about work. I could tell you what’s on exhibit […]

HOUSING

TRURO — It was no surprise to any board of health member that the Delgizzi family had not complied with the latest orders to clean up their property and submit […]

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

Our reporter Sophie Ruehr followed up this week on her August 29 story about tenant farmers in Truro by writing about Bhala and Digree Rai, the Nepalese immigrant couple who […]

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Saving Provincetown Arts To the editor: Your Oct. 17 article “Eight of 11 Board Members Quit Provincetown Arts” [page 9] was one-sided and didn’t present a complete and balanced account of […]

Our picks for the week of October 31 through Nov 7

Thursday, Oct. 31, 2 p.m. On the Trail with the Classics: Wyman Richardson. Salt Pond Visitor Center, 50 Nauset Road, Eastham. These 45-minute programs are set in locales that inspired […]

OBITUARIES

Susan A. Wheelan of Provincetown died peacefully at Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital in Plymouth after a long struggle with Alzheimer’s disease. S