Month: March 2016

For more information go to:
www.annisquamarts.com

More Cape Ann Wellness News –
http://www.capeannwellness.com

  
Gloucester Crossings Market Basket Managers set up a display of St. Joseph Feast Key Ingredients at the Main Entrance! A  special thank you to all the store managers for including my St. Joseph Pasta recipe in their display again this year and for their outstanding customer service and support they show towards our communities Feast of  St. Joseph Tradition! 

Viva San Gisueppe! 

So many people ask me “what camera and lens do you use?” or “What settings did you use on that photo?”.   I’m always happy to tell everyone I use a Nikon D610 full frame camera and my everyday lens is a 28-300, but telling people what you use is like a carpenter telling someone I used a stanley hammer and nails.   The equipment doesn’t get you very far if you don’t hone your craft.   A carpenter becomes a craftsman after absorbing and practicing as much as he can about the art of carpentry.    Same goes for Photography.  Whether you want to take up photography as a business or just as a “photo hobbyist ” (as I like to call myself), you need to put the time in behind the camera until everything about that camera becomes second nature to you.   When I got my first camera I stopped at Hunts in Melrose at their annual camera show and spoke to a very enthusiastic Don Toothaker.  Don and Robert Ring of New England Photo Workshops run some awesome Photography Workshops all over New England.  If you want to hone your skills of photography, they are the guys to do it with.   I’ve had some great experiences with Bob and Don, visiting places around New England that I probably wouldn’t venture to on my own.   They love what they do and willing to share their vast experience, whether you’ve just taken the camera out of the box or have been shooting for years, they have a wealth of knowledge for all skill levels.   The above photo was taken on Cape Ann a few years back on Half Moon Beach in Gloucester at on one of their Workshops.  Why would I take a Workshop on Cape Ann since I live here?  You’d be surprised what you aren’t “seeing” when you look through a lens.   I used to just look at the beach as a whole…now I look at the flow of the water, the shadows of the sand, the uniqueness of the scene.   That’s something you can’t get with buying the best equipment.   Bob and Don at NEPW happen to be running another one-day Cape Ann Workshop next month and have many other awesome Workshops lined up this year, so check them out if you are looking to hone your craft!

Six ten minute plays written by 6 local playwrights who are participants in M. Lynda Robinson’s workshop at the Gloucester Writers Center will be given a Staged Reading performed by professional actors at the Cultural Center of Rocky Neck on Sunday, March 20, at 5pm with a reception to follow. The Audience is encouraged to participate with feedback which will be given to each playwright. The six playwrights are Cape Ann’s:  Linda Finigan, Carole Frohlich,, Steven A. Levy, Nick Neyeloff, Rory O’Connor, and M. Lynda Robinson. The actors include David McCaleb, David Adams, Debbe Lewis, Tess Deegan, Phil Thompson, and Rebecca Lerman.

The GWC welcomes this opportunity to bring together writers and audience as a community event.  The writers and professional local actors, with Lynda’s direction, will present a lively show and are looking forward to response and feedback from the audience as part of developing their works from page to stage.  Providing a space in the community for voices to be heard through writing, dialogue, and the artistic process is a big part of the GWC’s mission.

 Suggested donation for the event is $10, $5 for students, and no one turned away for lack of funds.

Kate representing the 01930 In Cozumel (Get the shirt at Pop Gallery)

At its meeting of March 3, 2016, the Gloucester Board of Health voted unanimously to change the minimum age for the purchase of tobacco and nicotine products in the community from 18 years old to 21. In doing so, Gloucester becomes the 100th community in Massachusetts to raise the age for the purchasing for tobacco and nicotine products.

Discussion regarding the possibility of raising the purchase age began at the Board of Health meeting of November 2015 when Board members asked then Health Director, Noreen Burke, to invite Joyce Redford, director of the North Shore/Cape Ann Tobacco Control Program, to inform the Board on the issue.

Ms. Redford appeared before the Board at their meeting of January 7, 2016 and presented information including other area communities, such as Salem, Saugus, Swampscott, Danvers, and Peabody, had recently raised their purchase age to 21, as had Boston. Nearly 42% of the population in Massachusetts live in communities where the purchase age for tobacco and nicotine delivery products is now 21.

A March 2015 report by the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies stated that “…the committee concludes that raising the minimum age of legal access to tobacco products in the United States, particularly to ages 21 and 25, will likely lead to a substantial reduction in smoking prevalence. If the MLA (minimum legal age) were raised now, the models projected that by the time today’s teenagers were adults, there would be a 3 percent decrease in prevalence of tobacco use among those adults if the MLA were raised to 19, a 12 percent decrease if raised to 21…”

The Board then set a public hearing for its meeting of February 4, 2016 to discuss changing its tobacco regulation to include raising the minimum purchase age to 21 years, as well as requesting restaurants that have outdoor seating areas where smoking is permissible, post a sign stating whether or not they allow patrons to smoke in those areas.

The 32 businesses holding tobacco permits with the Health Department, as well as restaurants with outdoor seating, were sent a notification of the hearing by mail.

After discussion, review of information and public comment, the Board closed its hearing on the matter and voted on adoption of the proposed changes at its meeting of March 3rd.

“This is an important step in our efforts to prevent teens from starting to smoke,” said Rich Sagall, MD, chair of the Board of Health. “Gloucester is joining many other communities, both in Massachusetts and around the country, in limiting teenagers access to tobacco products.”

Enforcement of the new minimum age limit will begin June 1, 2016. A notice will be sent to all businesses notifying them of the changes in the regulations, with copies being available at the Health Department and the Department’s page of the City website:

http://www.gloucester-ma.gov/index.aspx?nid=183