Hay-laden pickup trucks headed to the fair, kids and parents eating their lunch on the bench, cyclists stopping for a cool drink of water. It was a regular August afternoon on the porch of Alley’s General Store in West Tisbury yesterday, all save for the fact that this crowd was waiting for President Obama’s motorcade to go whizzing past.

Warren Doty stood atop a small blue cooler, beckoning the crowd at the West Tisbury Farmers’ Market over to the side of the Grange Hall last Saturday like a ringmaster at the circus. As the crowd grew larger, people peered over each other’s shoulders, curious as to what the secret ingredient would be. Home Port chef Johnny Graham stood on Mr. Doty’s left, and Sidecar chef Kyle Garell on his right. The two were about to cook head-to-head in the first challenge of its kind on the Vineyard: a seafood throwdown.

As a four-piece horn band serenaded the crowd to the tune of America the Beautiful yesterday morning, kids hurried over to the booth to buy ride tickets, parents applied sunscreen and food vendors began to fire up the grills. With a clear blue sky backdrop, the 149th annual Martha’s Vineyard Agricultural Society fair opened for fun times and long-lasting memories.

All or none. That’s what is listed under religion on Nora Guthrie’s birth certificate. Even with folksinger Woody Guthrie as a father and a famous Yiddish poet for a grandmother in a densely populated Jewish neighborhood in Brooklyn, N.Y., Ms. Guthrie grew up in a household where religion was understood to be a personal connection for each individual.

The night Brad Tucker approached saxophonist Brian Nelson at the Ritz Cafe in Oak Bluffs, guitar slung over his shoulder, Mr. Nelson rolled his eyes. “Oh no, not another guitar player,” he thought to himself. Mr. Tucker only had to strum a few strings and sing a few bars for Mr. Nelson to understand that he meant business.

Fit to win: Coach Philip Dwayne led the Celtics to a 2-1 victory on Wednesday over Monto Orthopedics in the Martha’s Vineyard Football Association competition. The game, a mid-season championship contest, was hard-fought. Eduardo DaSilva scored on a penalty kick early to put Monto ahead 1-0 at half-time. But the Celtics came back with two goals, both completed by Sam Griswold, in the second half to finish the match. The Island offers friendly and competitive leagues for soccer, softball for men and women, basketball and more, plus open tennis tournaments and a host of fun runs, including one this Saturday and another next.