LOOKING PRETTY: Joan Chaffee, of Clinton, captured this male cardinal perched in a tree.
COOLING HIS FEET: Michael Bilinsky, of China Village, snapped this great blue heron soaking its feet in China Lake.
NOT A FLOWER: Joan Ferrone, of China, photographed this flower wannabe. It’s actually a mushroom.
Jake Warn, a Thomas College junior, in Waterville, sits on a snowmobile. (contributed photo)
A new website launched by a Thomas College student is modernizing snowmobile trip planning for resident and out-of-state riders. SledTRX.com aims to advance the economic impact of a legacy outdoor recreation industry and attract new riders by removing barriers to identifying routes, finding amenities, and enjoying points of interest.
A $600 million industry in Maine, snowmobiling still relies on traditional mail distribution of paper maps to interested riders. Each of Maine’s approximately 280 volunteer-based clubs maintain their own trails, requiring riders to contact multiple clubs to plan a trip. Trail maps may be uploaded to a club’s website, available via mail for a small fee, or simply posted at the trailhead. The inconsistent, time-consuming process can deter even veteran resident riders like Jake Warn, of Winslow, who saw an opportunity to simplify trip-planning and make Maine’s snowmobile trails more attractive to resident and non-resident riders.
“I’d spend six hours planning a trip to a new region. It’s really important to support snowmobile clubs all over Maine, and I wanted to make it easier for veteran and first-time riders to explore new areas across our state,” explains Jake Warn, founder of SledTRX.com. “Plus, an online presence helps snowmobile clubs expand their membership and seasonal businesses can connect directly with a large customer base.”
A junior at Thomas College, in Waterville, Warn was inspired by fellow student entrepreneur Dylan Veilleux, who built Tree Free Heat. With a passion for snowmobiling but little technical expertise, Warn connected with Mike Duguay, executive director of the Harold Alfond Institute for Business Innovation, at Thomas College, who encouraged him to enroll in a free Tortoise Labs course to learn how to turn his idea into a business. Warn enrolled in July 2020, and launched SledTRX.com in December. As part of the course, Warn conducted consumer research; he found that industry experts and longtime riders shared his challenge of gathering accurate trail information, and that snowmobile clubs and related businesses would derive significant value from one statewide consolidated online trail map.
“The snowmobile community is in need of an innovative change,” explains John Raymond, president of the Northern Timber Cruisers Snowmobile & Crosscountry Ski Club in Millinocket. “Snowmobiling has such a big impact on our communities, and it has needed something like this to help preserve this seasonal pastime.”
According to the Maine Snowmobile Association, nearly 30 percent of Maine’s 85,000 registered snowmobiles belong to non-resident riders, who contribute a significant portion of the $210 million in direct spending that supports over 3,000 jobs in Maine. By combining 10,000 miles of trails with amenities and points of interest in an easy-to-use website, SledTRX.com positions the industry to attract additional out-of-state riders and expand their economic impact across Maine as they explore new regions.
Take an active role in managing your chronic kidney disease to live a longer, healthier life.
(NAPSI)—Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a serious condition, affecting 15% of U.S. adults—an estimated 37 million Americans. Kidney disease can get worse over time and may lead to kidney failure and other serious complications.
Early-stage CKD has few or no symptoms. In fact, many people with CKD don’t know they have the disease. Ask your doctor if you are at risk and get tested. Early diagnosis can make a big difference.
Managing CKD may be challenging, but it is key to preventing or delaying serious health problems such as heart disease. The earlier you get involved in your kidney care, the better your chances of slowing disease progression and living longer and healthier.
Take an active role in managing your kidney disease by following these healthy lifestyle tips.
•Meet regularly with your health care team. Stay connected with your doctor, either in person or via telehealth. Meet with your health care team for help managing CKD, keep appointments even if you feel OK and create a care plan. Ask your doctor to explain test results and bring a list of questions or concerns to appointments.
•Manage blood pressure. Work with your health care team to develop a plan to meet your blood pressure goals. Steps to meet those goals may include eating heart-healthy and low-sodium meals and being active.
•Monitor blood glucose levels. Check your blood glucose level regularly if you have diabetes. Use the results to guide decisions about food, physical activity and medicines.
•Take medicines as prescribed. Your pharmacist and doctor need to know about all the medicines you take, including over-the-counter medicines. Tell your doctor about any side effects before stopping or changing how you take your medicine.
•Avoid nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as ibuprofen and naproxen. NSAIDs are sold under many different brand names, so ask your pharmacist or doctor if the medicines are safe for you to use.
•Stay up to date on vaccinations. The COVID-19 vaccine is especially important for people who may be more likely to get very sick from COVID-19, including people with certain medical conditions such as kidney disease.
•Aim for a healthy weight. If you are overweight or have obesity, work with your health care team to create a weight-loss plan.
•Develop a healthy meal plan. Create a meal plan that contains kidney-healthy foods and beverages. Ask your doctor about finding a registered dietitian who can help.
•Find ways to reduce stress and make physical activity part of your routine. Consider healthy, stress-reducing activities and get at least 30 minutes of physical activity daily.
•Get enough sleep. Aim for 7 to 8 hours of sleep per night. Try establishing a bedtime routine if you have trouble sleeping.
•Quit smoking. Smoking cigarettes can make kidney damage worse.
If you have financial or resource challenges that make it difficult to start or maintain these behaviors—such as difficulty paying for medicines, providing enough food for you and your family or finding a safe place for physical activity—ask your health care team about support programs that may be available to help.
The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) spearheads research to help improve kidney disease management and treatment. “It’s important to educate patients and their health care providers about ways to treat and manage chronic kidney disease,” said NIDDK Director Dr. Griffin P. Rodgers. “People should know their risk factors, like underlying health conditions. And they should know that, if diagnosed, chronic kidney disease is manageable. Staying engaged and managing the disease’s progression protects the kidneys.”
For more information on managing CKD, visit the NIDDK website at www.niddk.nih.gov.
For your health’s sake, give vaccination a shot.
Maine residents age 60 and older are now eligible for vaccination against Covid-19 as part of Phase 1b.
Because Maine’s supply of vaccine is limited, appointments may not be immediately available and will be scheduled on a rolling basis.
There is no charge for the Covid-19 vaccine, but you should be prepared to provide any insurance information and proof of eligibility at the vaccination site. Additional vaccination sites will be added in the coming weeks.
If you are currently eligible under, contact your employer or professional association about vaccination.
The Covid-19 vaccine requires two doses. You must receive a vaccine from the same provider, either Pfizer or Moderna, for both doses. When scheduling your second dose, make an appointment with the same vaccination site where you received your first dose and follow their process for signing up for the second dose.
The Johnson & Johnson vaccine is also available at some sites.
Some locations are now accepting or preparing to accept appointments for Maine residents age 60 and over. Appointment availability is dependent on vaccine supply. These listings are subject to change and will be updated regularly. A complete list of vaccination location can be found at https://www.maine.gov/covid19/vaccines/vaccination-sites.
The Town Line presents the STUDENT WRITERS PROGRAMDo you want to be happy? Most people will answer yes to this question, which is good. Unfortunately, we often try to simplify happiness, and lose sight of what being happy really means. Nathaniel Hawthorne described happiness as, “like a butterfly which, when pursued, is always just beyond your grasp; but which, if you will sit down quietly, may alight upon you.” It is easy to blame the world and the evil in it for a lack of happiness. If so, then why do we look to the world with all the evil in it for happiness? However, many people believe that happiness comes from something less worldly. Christianity is a beautiful example of finding happiness in a way that relies on no one but oneself and God. Christians believe God is love, and being loved is one of the most important things in the world when it comes to filling our soul and making us happy. Victor Hugo went as far as to say, “The supreme happiness of life is the conviction that we are loved.”
There is a dichotomy to happiness, which makes it so hard to describe. On one hand there is materialistic pleasure, and on the other there is spiritual happiness. We catch glimpses of happiness through materialism, but that type of happiness is always temporary and goes away. Everybody has highs and lows, as suffering is inherently part of the human experience. Christianity has a unique view on happiness, almost a sort of paradox. “The Christian faith makes sense of the rawness we feel in the face of suffering because it says there is something wrong with the world … God is good but evil is also real and has influence in the world for now … It is only if God exists that our outrage at suffering finds a home.” The idea of humans making human civilization a utopia is never going to happen because of the evil that is an inherent part of free will. It is through our suffering that we find God, and that He wants us to serve Him here on Earth, knowing that the best is yet to come. We catch glimpses of this pure happiness in our lives, but we will never achieve that perfect state of happiness and tranquility until we reach heaven. Christians find peace because they have hope and they have faith.
In fact, Jesus speaks about the topics of happiness and fulfillment in John 6:26-35.
“Very truly I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw the signs I performed but because you ate the loaves and had your fill. 27: Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on him God the Father has placed his seal of approval.'” 28: Then they asked him, “‘What must we do to do the works God requires?'” 29: Jesus answered, “‘The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.'” 30: So they asked him, “‘What sign then will you give that we may see it and believe you? What will you do? 31: Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written: ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.”” 32: Jesus said to them, “‘Very truly I tell you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. 33: For the bread of God is the bread that comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.'” 34: “‘Sir,'” they said, “‘always give us this bread.'” 35: Then Jesus declared, “‘I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. 36: But as I told you, you have seen me and still you do not believe. 37: All those the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away. 38: For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me. 39: And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all those he has given me, but raise them up at the last day. 40: For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.”
It is in this passage that Jesus addresses the importance of spiritual fulfillment above everything else. Jesus spoke to the disciples in the passage after he had just performed the miracle with the bread and the fish, with which he fed thousands. And these people, who want to be fed again, are reminded that it is not food that will ever truly fulfill us. They are told that if they believe in Jesus Christ they will find the “bread of life.”
In today’s society, we have a cancel culture and one of the things that has been canceled is people’s faith. When we look back at America, we see all the things we as a nation did wrong and we cancel everything that the people who did these things believed in.
When looking back at America’s connection to religion, it can be very easy to blame Christianity for some of America’s greatest failures as a nation. But is it fair to totally cancel religion because of the terrible things done by people who totally misunderstood the foundation of the religion: To love God and to love your neighbor? Was God not a driving source of happiness for the people who created America, many of whom lived lives of incredible hardship? Despite all the benefits of technology and the glory of success, people in today’s world still lack happiness. So is it possible that being religious really makes you a happier person? It turns out that there is research done on this by the Pew Research Center.
According to their statistics, “Actively religious people are more likely than their less-religious peers to describe themselves as “very happy” in about half of the countries surveyed.” In the U.S., where 11 percent of actively religious people described themselves as “very happy” compared to others surveyed in the U.S. This illustrates that people who do practice their faith are generally happier.
The absence of religion in Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World depicts the dichotomy of happiness. The people in the new world delighted in materialism and in sex and in soma. Mustapha Mond, one of the World Controllers, shared that he believed God manifested himself in the World through His absence.
Ultimately, though, the quest for stability in the New World was not perfect because people whose minds refused to conform to the system were sent to islands. The soma was only temporary. There was happiness in the New World, but there was not true happiness. There was no God, and there was no unconditional love. And while the New World may have succeeded in solving many of the evils of the world such as aging, disease, poverty, and hunger, the people in the world still lacked true happiness. In fact, John the Savage claimed the right to suffer in all of those evils.
I believe the reason for this is that it is in suffering that we can see the beauty and glory of God. The experience John had when he lived on the Savage Reservation and went off by himself into the mountains depicts the peace and the comfort that we experience in our suffering, because we can feel God’s presence. It is in the simple things in life that we find true happiness. I think that is because during these times we feel God’s presence; We feel the peace of His presence and we feel the hope of knowing that the best is yet to come.
Student Writer’s Program: What Is It?
The Town Line has many articles from local students under the heading of the “Student Writer’s Program.” While it may seem plainly evident why The Town Line would pursue this program with local schools and students, we think it’s worth the time to highlight the reasons why we enthusiastically support this endeavor.
Up front, the program is meant to offer students who have a love of writing a venue where they can be published and read in their community. We have specifically not provided topics for the students to write on or about, and we have left the editing largely up to their teachers. From our perspective this is a free form space provided to students.
From the perspective of the community, what is the benefit? When considering any piece that should or could be published, this is a question we often ask ourselves at The Town Line. The benefit is that we as community are given a glimpse into how our students see the world, what concerns them, and, maybe even possible solutions to our pressing problems. Our fundamental mission at the paper is to help us all better understand and appreciate our community, our state, and our nation through journalism and print.
We hope you will read these articles with as much interest and enjoyment as we do. The students are giving us a rare opportunity to hear them out, to peer into their world, and see how they are processing this world we, as adults, are giving them.
To include your high school, contact The Town Line, townline@townline.org.
Emily Poulin, of South China, photographed this snowflake on the hood of her car one morning this past winter. Surely, a magnificent display of Mother Nature’s beauty.
by Debbie WalkerMy hope is as you read our columns that you sometimes find information of use in your daily life. Some of the columns are aimed at giving you a chuckle. Some columns are designed to give you information we have heard and you may not have yet, so we pass it along. Some are just as the title says, just our opinions.
Some weeks you may read an opinion and totally agree with it. You may in some way feel validated knowing someone else carries the same opinion you do. That same column may strike someone else completely different, they may absolutely disagree. And still others may read it and it gives them something to mull over as to how they feel about the subject.
Some weeks a column may give you something to laugh about. For at least a few minutes you forgot something weighing heavy on your mind and have a little chuckle and possibly something you feel was positive enough to share with others.
There are times we are very serious about subjects like politics of many levels. Again the information may be general or it may be quite detailed, all of which is presented for you to consider. (Very seldom do I tackle this subject. You would shortly find out I have a healthy disrespect for the subject!)
Sometimes we write about health issues as I did with “Ticks and Bumps“. I re-run it once a year because it is about a little known skin cancer, that’s the “bump”, little known and yet it is cancer. If you had seen mine you probably would have thought like I did, “It’s nothing”, however I was wrong.
Some writers give you a bit of history of the area. Local history is always interesting to me. When people are new to an area they often appreciate this info. If you have your own memories of the area it may be a trip down memory lane. If you know a local story of earlier years pass it on.
It’s my understanding that the biggest newspapers are slowly on their way out. A friend of mine, a long time newspaper man explained to me that we now have access to the subjects we are most interested in instantly with internet and hand-held devices.
Newspapers are becoming obsolete as we are driven more and more into the “tech” world. He believed the small local papers would continue for quite some time. Most people like to see local folks in their papers; local kid’s sports, celebrations, honors, obituaries, police beat; all things local, good and bad. And if anyone is like me I still prefer flipping paper pages.
I believe each of the writers for any paper hopes to please the readers with information of interest to the community. You can play a role in a local paper, as well, if you know something you think should be printed, give the paper a call! See what happens.
I’m just curious if you noticed that I have printed this article before.
Contact me with questions and comments to DebbieWalker@townline.org. I’ll be waiting.
Raymond Burr as Perry Mason
by Peter Cates(see previous article: TV Show: Perry Mason)
Producer Gail Patrick Jackson saw actor William Talman (1915-1968) as the serial killer in 1953’s The Hitch Hiker, directed by Ida Lupino, and immediately knew who she wanted for the role of District Attorney Hamilton Burger on the Perry Mason TV show. Talman was also one of five escaped killers in 1955’s The Big House starring Broderick Crawford, Charles Bronson, Ralph Meeker and Lon Chaney Jr., and appeared in other similar roles during the fascinating film noir years. He was scarily convincing in the sulfuric venom he exuded in those films, particularly the deranged eyes.
In his portrayal of Burger, the courtroom encounters with defense attorney Mason frequently brought on a look of outrage at a contentious eye contact level when Mason scored points for the defendant, raised objections to Burger’s examination of witnesses on the stand or insisted that certain testimony was irrelevant and immaterial. And he gave the same tit for tat.
However, both characters, sometimes begrudgingly, respected each other, both upheld the integrity of the law and both were in pursuit of justice and the truth. Burger himself stated a few times that, when he lost a case, it was a win because an innocent person didn’t go to prison or the gas chamber.
In 1960, Talman was found smoking marijuana with a group of friends and was fired from the show for a few months, until a vociferous letter writing campaign and the high pressure lobbying of CBS by producer Jackson, Burr and other cast members got Talman reinstated .
Talman came down with lung cancer in 1968 after decades of chain smoking and filmed a public service announcement on the dangers of cigarettes not to be shown until after he died. It can be seen on YouTube.
Ray Collins (1889-1965) in his role as Lieutenant Arthur Tragg almost stole the show time and again, not only with his formidable presence as Chief of Homicide, but also with his infectious sense of humor in many scenes. At one murder scene, Tragg cuts Mason some slack with the gathered evidence but states that District Attorney Burger would have his own head if the latter ever found out. And just about every time Mason would show up even at the most out of the way locations to help his client, Tragg would appear with his usual “Good morning, Counselor,” and an arrest warrant.
Collins worked often with Orsen Welles and was in the cast of the original radio broadcast of War of the Worlds that caused a nationwide panic. He too was a chain smoker and passed away from emphysema, at the age of 74, on July 11, 1965.
The many actors and actresses who made guest appearances included some memorable ones:
Angie Dickinson (1931-) was the defendant when a man who was blackmailing her wound up dead in an episode from the 1957 first season.
Joan Camden (1929-2000) appeared twice during the 1957-58 season as two different variants of the scorned woman, the first a collaborator/girlfriend with an extortionist who winds up dead and the second as a defendant whose ex-boyfriend is found dead and her fingerprints are on the gun. She brought a spitfire bitterness that reminded me of such actresses as Joan Crawford, Katherine Hepburn, Susan Hayward and Maureen Stapleton at their best.
Douglas Kennedy (1915-1973) was a gifted character actor who also appeared twice during the first season and as the actual killer – in one as a detective who murdered another detective, tries to kill Mason in the lawyer’s office but is caught by Lt. Tragg and his men who are hiding in the next room. A later episode has him as a corrupt lawyer who helps his girlfriend in the murder of her husband. He conveyed a nasty hot-tempered edginess that compelled attention.
Henderson died in 1973 in Honolulu after he suddenly came down with cancer while filming episodes with Jack Lord in Hawaii Five O.
Judy Tyler (1932-1957) played a delightfully sultry chorus line girl in a December 1957, episode seen six months after she was killed with her husband in an automobile accident . She was most famous for a starring role with Elvis Presley in Jailhouse Rock.
Ben Wright (1915-1989) played a jeweler who kidnapped his business partner and assisted in the murder of a second one when an embezzlement scheme goes awry. He was most “fondly” remembered for his role as the Nazi Gestapo representative Herr Zeller in the 1965 Sound of Music and conveyed the dubious ambiguity of both roles.
Vassalboro Community School (contributed photo)
High honors: Brooke Blais, Sofia Derosby, Allison Dorval, Greta Limberger and Taylor Wright. Honors: Noah Bechard, Brady Desmond, Kaylene Glidden, Ava Kelso, Ava Picard and Emma Waterhouse. Honorable mention: Evan Brochu, Echo Hawk, Kailynn Houle, Seth Picard and Victoria Rancourt.
High honors: Emily Almeida, Jacob Lavallee, Ave Lemelin and Hannah Polley. Honors: Quinn Coull, Madison Estabrook, Aiden Hamlin, Kaiden Morin and Mylee Petela. Honorable mention: Mason Decker, Taylor Neptune and Addison Witham.
High honors: Adalyn Glidden and Taiya Rankins. Honors: Madison Burns, Tyler Clark, Sophie Day, Ryley Desmond, Madison Field, Jack Malcolm, Josslyn Ouellette, Natalie Rancourt and Bryson Stratton. Honorable mention: Emma Charleston, Eilah Dillaway, Kiley Doughty, Wyatt Ellis, Bailey Goforth, Kylie Grant and Mason Lagasse.
High honors: Benjamin Allen, Tristyn Brown, Dylan Dodge, Ryleigh French, Jasmine Garey, Drake Goodie, Drew Lindquist, Caleb Marden, Judson Smith, Landon Sullivan and Reid Willett. Honors: Logan Cimino, Zoey DeMerchant, Jennah Dumont, Katherine Maxwell, Brandon Neagle, Ryder Neptune-Reny, Paige Perry, Bentley Pooler, Brooke Reny, Leigha Sullivan, Jannah Tobey, William Trainor and Alana Wade. Honorable mention: Austin Devoe, Timothy Knowles, Cooper Lajoie, Abigail Prickett and Jade Travers.
High honors: Emily Clark, Keegan Clark, Basil Dillaway, Fury Frappier, Allyson Gilman and Cheyenne Lizzotte. Honors: Kaleb Charlebois, Harlen Fortin, Baylee Fuchswanz, Zoe Gaffney, Lillyana Krastev, Kaitlyn Lavallee, Elizabeth Longfellow, Mia McLean, Elliot McQuarrie, Mackenzy Monroe, Kaylee Moulton, Weston Pappas,, Randel Phillips, Grace Tobey and Ava Woods. Honorable mention: Caylie Buotte, Preston Duenne, Bayleigh Gorman and Jack LaPierre.
High honors: Aliyah Anthony, Sophia Brazier, Samanta Carter, Grace Clark, Kaylee Colfer, Dekan Dumont, Mariah Estabrook, Riley Fletcher, Camden Foster, Kaylee Pease, Olivia Perry, Haven Trainor and Cameron Willett. Honors: Zander Austin, Lukas Blais, Xainte Cloutier, Twila Cloutier, Wyatt Devoe, Dawson Frazer, Aubrey Goforth, Jade Lopez, Agatha Meyer, Addison Neagle, Austin Pease, Elliott Rafuse, Juliahna Rocque, Cassidy Rumba and Bryce Sounier. Honorable mention: Lucian Kinrade, Sarina LaCroix, Landon Lagasse, Arianna Muzerolle and Henry Quirion.
She Can’t RememberShe reaches out to me
with that same, sweet smile
Takes my hand and says, “It’s been a while.”
Though there’s a lot of pain.
I know she’s not to blame.
She can’t remember.
She’s been changing
for a couple of years.
We’ve watched her laughter
turn to tears.
As she stands in front of me,
It’s plain to see.
She can’t remember.
No, she can’t recall the nights,
we held each other tight,
as our bodies melded into one,
until we made another one.
She can’t remember.
We have to leave her here.
They’ve made it clear,
their care is best,
she needs the rest.
As we leave, we pray,
That someday,
She may, remember.