Whether you're a Chatham resident, a summer visitor, or a resident of any other Cape Cod town, we've got one last errand for you to do before the big holiday weekend begins. Before the end of the day Friday, we'd like you to consider adding your signature to the town's petition that seeks to reverse the land claim by the Monomoy National Wildlife Refuge. Specifically, the petition asks Gov. Charlie Baker ...

Time To Reassess W. Chatham Project Editor: I recently read an article that stated that the Massachusetts State budget will be $400 to $500 million short of what is required when the fiscal year ends on June 30. This opens up the question of how priorities are reviewed to fund the most urgent needs in the state since not all needs can be met. This immediately brings into focus the $4 million-plus West Chat...

I had a visit last week from my favorite centenarian. Juliet Bernstein, who turns 104 next month, dropped by The Chronicle office to give me a copy of a new book, “We The Resilient: Wisdom for America from Women Born Before Suffrage.” The book features profiles of women who are all 97 years of age or older; women, in other words, born before the Nineteenth Amendment to the Constitution gave women the right to ...

Where the river is windin’, big nuggets they’re findin’ North to Alaska go north the rush is on [mush] North to Alaska go north the rush is on. [mush]. In 1960, Mike Phillips wrote it and Johnny Horton sang it, and “North to Alaska” became an all-time great country hit. The song topped the country and western charts from Jan. 9 to Feb. 13, 1961. The lyric tells of Sam McCord and his partners and h...

They're here. Like clockwork, they arrived the same time as last year. While there are just a few of them now, in a short time they'll proliferate in our waters and force large numbers of year-rounders to seek higher ground. We refer, of course, to great white sharks. The Atlantic White Shark Conservancy confirmed that a receiver in Shark Cove, off Monomoy Island, detected a signal from Scratchy, who tag...

I've been watching with interest the trial involving Michelle Carter, a young woman who made the disconcerting decision not only to encourage Conrad Roy III to commit suicide, but upon realizing he was following through with the act, did nothing to stop him. Today (Friday) she was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter. Something big that I take away from this verdict? Your words and deeds matter, especially wh...

It's one of the hallmarks of life in New England. Even the tiniest towns seem to have historical societies and museums, testifying to the value we place on our own heritage. Chatham, Harwich and Orleans are home to lots of preservationists and history buffs. A glimpse in the windows of the workshop at the Coast Guard station shows that finishing touches are being put on the Orleans Historical Society's CG36500...

A few weeks ago my rent was raised. While a financial setback for me, I realized after pondering it for a time that it would be, and is likely, a nightmare for others. It's no secret that Cape Cod has a housing problem, and it's time to fix it. But it starts in a place most might not have considered: the mind. For as long as I've lived on this beautiful but complex peninsula there has been a stigma attached to...

Try This To Flush With Success Editor: Regarding the May 18 article on extreme water use at Liberty Commons and Chatham Bars Inn due to toilet flushing, we would make the point that toilets are designed to use specific amounts of water per flush to get the job done. Toilet water use can vary significantly.  Older toilets can use three, 3.5, or even up to seven gallons of water for every flush.  Federal plu...

Affordable housing is emerging as the most serious issue facing Cape towns. It's the chief topic of the June 23 session of the Cape Cod Commission's One Cape Summit, where experts will weigh in on the impact the lack of housing is having, and will have, on the region's economy. Understanding the impact of the lack of housing that's affordable to workers in the Cape's dominant industries – retail, construction,...

Sick of all those pills you take to treat your blood pressure, diabetes, anxiety and heart disease? Struggling with depression, hostility or metabolic syndrome? There’s another way to go, and it’s free! Try Shinrin-yoku, the Art of Japanese Forest Bathing, no disrobing or soap required. How difficult is it? Like a walk in the park, or in this case, the woods. The Japanese have been wandering their fores...

We hear a lot of talk these days about mindfulness. Basically, mindfulness means being there, right where you are, in body, mind, and spirit. But there is something that often prevents people from actually being mindful and it's time to get real about it. That something is technology, more specifically, smartphones. I can't tell you the number of events I've been to, professional and personal, at which the maj...