The native Lobelia cardinalis was named for its intense cardinal color, which in turn was derived from those certain Catholic clerics (who for centuries have fancied frocks of the brightest […]
Visual Stories
MORNING FLIGHT
Birdbaths and Other Ways Birds Stay Cool in Hot Weather
As heat waves worsen, some species might not stick around here for summer
The beginning of August is just about the hottest point of the year on Cape Cod. This year has already proved to be a warm one: a mid-June heat dome […]
CAPE BASEBALL
Rain Causes Calendar Crunch for the Firebirds
There are more games than days left in the Cape Cod League regular season
ORLEANS — The Firebirds will have to slog through a tough schedule of back-to-back games to secure a playoff spot in the final days of the Cape Cod Baseball League’s […]
ENVIRONMENT
Cape Cod’s Coral Gardens (Yes, We Have Corals Here) Are in Trouble
NOAA expands its research into deeper waters from Maine to North Carolina
If you were to picture coral right now, your mind’s eye would surely see tropical reefs with crystal-clear turquoise water. But that image is incomplete: the temperate seas around the […]
RARA AVIS
This Week’s Bird Sightings
Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, July 30 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]
ASTRAL PROJECTIONS
Bada Bing, Bada Boom
When Jupiter joins the party, it’s time to give things your all
Last week we talked about avoiding blowups. This week we’re seeking them out. The precarious placement of the Sun sextile Mars is changed when Jupiter joins the party. Jupiter, the […]
SEASIDE GARDENER
Know Your Enemy
How I went from ignoring my weeds to getting to know them on a first-name basis
Determining whether a plant is a weed is a subjective thing. Most gardeners define them as plants that just happen to be in the wrong place. But there’s another layer […]
THE ESSENTIALS
A Summer Skillet Dinner of Peaches, Zucchini, and Chicken
Cooking brilliantly for the season starts with a book from the 1970s
As soon as I spot peaches ripening on the little tree in a corner of our yard, I count them. If there are enough to eat straight off the tree […]
ENVIRONMENT
Cape Cod’s Coral Gardens (Yes, We Have Corals Here) Are in Trouble
NOAA expands its research into deeper waters from Maine to North Carolina
If you were to picture coral right now, your mind’s eye would surely see tropical reefs with crystal-clear turquoise water. But that image is incomplete: the temperate seas around the […]
ON THE BEACH
Learning to Read the Chop
On the back shore, a father’s lessons reveal the bounty under the ocean’s surface
On Father’s Day I pick the meat off a big lobster in honor of my father, who spent his winters dreaming about getting back to Provincetown and eating freshly cooked […]
FROM THE DUCHESS OF SANDWICH
Rebecca Orchant’s Memoir Simmers and Sears
The queer kitchen stories of one steamy Provincetown sandwich maker
Rebecca Orchant had me with grilled cheese sandwiches for breakfast. Her father made her one every morning in the kitchen of their house on Quixote Drive when she was growing […]
SURFING
The Small Wave Days
Finding the joy in a knee-high swell
Coffee spilled from our mugs as we drove over the big tree root at the end of the driveway. It happens every time Eli and I go to check the […]
THE SCUTTLEBUTT
Summer Weather Brings On the Blues
Pacific tuna are rebounding; here’s hoping that’s true in the Atlantic, too
Fishing around the Outer Cape is heating up with this summer weather, which has been ideal; we are getting a fraction of the heat they’ve been feeling on the mainland. Striped […]
CENTENNIALS
The Provincetown Tennis Club’s 100-ish Years of Fun and Games
Celebrating a clubhouse that has long put old, young, gay, straight, artists, and business types together
PROVINCETOWN — With its reggae clam dances and its groovy homemade posters by the likes of comic artist Al Jaffee, the Provincetown Tennis Club has long had a reputation as […]
PROJECT RUNWAY
The Tiger Swallowtail’s Favorite Show
The conspicuous red-orange blooms of the wood lily are runway lights to certain overhead fliers, guiding them in for landing like air traffic control. Lilium philadelphicum requires a large vehicle […]
