Making Main Street Music Again

The holiday shopping season was much in the news this week, as the warmth of Thanksgiving quickly faded to Black Friday, followed in close succession by Small Business Saturday and Cyber Monday. The stuttering economy has put retail sales under the microscope, and consumer activity during the run-up to Christmas is occupying the center of attention for business journalists around the globe.

Thanksgiving 2011

Rain and drizzle fell softly this week over the fields and lawns of November, still green from a mild fall that has seen Islanders out in their shirtsleeves right through last weekend. That’s when gusty winds finally blew the last leaves off the trees and sent them skittering around the yard. Raking at last! The warm weather has served to take the urgency out of fall chores this year, as if these days might stretch on forever with no hard winter ahead.

Cup Talk

There are no bookmakers for this game whose storied rivalry goes back for more than six decades, and while we’ve got plenty of swagger in our walk this week, we can be big about it and admit that the odds are stacked against us.

The Vineyard team (Our Team) is four and six going into the Big Game while Nantucket (you know, that other island?) team is nine and one.

Sobering Statistics

On the fifth anniversary of its national campaign to eliminate drunk driving, the influential group Mothers Against Drunk Driving this week released a detailed, state-by-state report card on the effectiveness of laws to combat driving under the influence.

With three out of five stars, Massachusetts scored in the middle, earning points for its enforcement strategies including sobriety checkpoints and the adoption of Melanie’s Law, which makes car interlock devices mandatory for repeat convicted offenders.

Calling Comcast: Service for All, Please

Comcast reported another good quarter this month, announcing a 4.7 per cent increase in profits on revenues of $14.3 billion. Even though it lost 165,000 cable television customers nationwide, it gained 261,000 broadband Internet subscribers. In addition to being the nation’s largest cable TV provider, Comcast also happens to be its largest Internet services provider.

November Blooms

No doubt encouraged by the mild late fall weather, flowers are still blooming around the Island. Stray purple asters pop up in farm fields here and there, staying low to the ground as if to guard against Jack Frost’s incoming assault. Dahlias are down for the winter in Island gardens but a pot of chives recently divided thinks it might be springtime again and is making small purple flowers, perfect for a salad at suppertime after chopping wood for an evening fire.