November mornings are dark and quiet. Birds move without sound and the trees that still hold their leaves drop them silently, one by one, or in a rush with a gust of wind. We are entering a time of muted colors and a dormant landscape. There is still life afoot and in the air and sea, but it is not generally life that announces itself. We have to look and listen for it. On a recent walk through a meadow once g...

          Home is a concept most of us hold dear, especially as the weather begins to cool and the holidays approach. For some, however, home is a place that is no longer safe. For these people, both individuals and families, leaving the familiar behind and making the difficult journey to a new home is the only way to find safety and security.           On Sunday, Nov. 20 at 3 p.m. at the South Harwich Meetingh...

Recently I was chatting with a woman who seemed star struck by nature. She insisted she loved everything about it because nature was so beautiful, so benevolent, so giving and selfless. I wondered after a while what nature she’d actually experienced. Even people that only put up a bird feeder in a corner of their yard know nature can be brutally neutral and neutrally brutal. She’s not always easy. The phrase “...

There’s something about the cooling temperatures and lengthening shadows of November which conjure a craving for mystery. On Nov. 11, Chatham Drama Guild will fulfill the hunger for an autumnal whodunnit as “Murder on the Nile,” the final mainstage show of the season, which runs through Dec. 4. Beauty. Wealth. The newly married couple seem to have it all as they embark on a honeymoon voyage down the Nile...

          Spooky season is upon us, and if you’re searching for a fun evening out with a costume contest, great food, and a digitally remastered horror classic that’s never looked better, the Chatham Orpheum is your Halloween party destination this Saturday, Oct. 29.           The fun will begin at 8 p.m. with a reception in the Orpheum’s haunted lobby. Put together your best zombie costume, and you just ...

As I stood on the beach the other day, a huge flock of double crested cormorants flew over the water in a long, long skein heading south. They were silent but the small flock of snow buntings that recently arrived from farther north was not. One of the dune rabbits, which I swear is twice the size of a normal cottontail rabbit, sat under a prickly rosa rugosa, smugly chewing on some leaves, getting even fatter an...

          The Creative Arts Center (CAC) in Chatham is holding a members show through Nov. 14, showcasing the talent of current CAC members.             Prizes will be awarded in all categories with 10 or more participants. First prizes will be $100 and second prizes will be $50 in each category. The categories are oil, acrylic, watercolor, pastel, photography, pottery, jewelry, sculpture and a new category in th...

Early voting begins Saturday, one of several options Massachusetts residents have for casting a ballot in the Nov. 8 mid-term elections. Town clerks were busy last week preparing and sending out requested mail-in ballots to local residents. Many people asked for ballots for the November election when they sent in ballot requests for the primary election in September, said Chatham Town Clerk Julie Smith. “I ...

Of all the miracles of life, a seed may be one of the most wondrous. Usually tiny and unassuming, each seed holds the potential of a fully grown new life. Inside that small, humble package is everything a plant needs to grow, mature, and prosper before it sets its own seeds. Imagine that. Can we really imagine that? It’s pretty mind boggling. The truth is each tree, each flower, each grass plant puts forth a m...

          The Galley West Art Gallery will celebrate its first anniversary at its Orleans location on Sunday, Oct. 16 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.           The cooperative community art gallery in the restored historic Galley West on the campus of Church of the Holy Spirit has shared the work of 50 artists from the Lower and Outer Cape Cod towns of Brewster, Chatham, Harwich, Orleans, Eastham, Wellfleet, Truro and P...

          Bank Street Beach was the setting. “Forever Summer” was the song, and it was lights, camera, action on Aug. 31 when local singer and actor Susanna Creel took to the shoreline with videographer Joseph Santangelo, actor Brendan Prentiss and songwriter, producer and video editor Maureen Condon to shoot a music video, drawing the attention of interested onlookers who were there for a day of fun in the sun....

“They’re creepy and they’re kooky. Mysterious and spooky. They’re all together ooky. The Addams Family…” Snap your fingers and join the fun at the Cape Cod Theatre Company/Harwich Junior Theatre’s musical production this October. “The Addams Family, A New Musical” is the perfect Halloween treat. It’s silly, ghoulish fun with an incredible array of talented folks. They’re all here: Morticia and Gomez, Wednesday...