The Lincoln Squirrel – News, features and photos from Lincoln, Mass.

Storm-chaser to share experiences in Feb. 25 talk

February 22, 2013

Tornadoes as seen from a storm-chasing van. (Photo courtesy Chris Curtis)

Tornadoes as seen by storm-chasers. (Photos courtesy Chris Curtis)

By Brett Wittenberg

The van barreled down I-44, its occupants’ excitement reaching a fever pitch. The chase that had started that morning in Oklahoma had traveled a serpentine route across much of Kansas, and by the time they crossed the Missouri border, the chasers had almost caught up with their prey—a giant tornado.

One of the “storm chasers” in the van was Concord resident Chris Curtis, who will give a talk about his experiences on Monday, February 25 at 12:30 p.m. in Bemis Hall.

On that day in May 2011, Curtis and his team could tell by radar that their prize was only a few blocks to their north, but in the limited visibility of the accompanying rainstorm, they had yet to actually see the Class EF5 multiple-vortex tornado. But the radar clearly showed a huge tornado with a cloud of swirling debris, and it looked like it had stopped on top of Joplin, Missouri.

Bingo Night nets big bucks for PTO

February 16, 2013

With an expanded array of bingo and raffle prizes, Bingo Night netted about $3,500 for the Lincoln PTO earlier this month.

Hundreds of people packed the Brooks gym on February 1 to compete for a roster of prizes topped by an iPod Touch. The PTO sold 440 bingo cards and more than 1,500 raffle tickets. “After the initial push, two ‘floaters’ walked between tables and sold additional tickets. The crowd also devoured 65 pizzas (though the last few were sold near the end of the evening at a discount).

Lincoln groundhog prediction comes true in spades

February 12, 2013

Looking back from the vantage point of the Blizzard of ’13, it looks Ms. G. was right when she predicted six more weeks of winter.

Ms. G, Drumlin Farm’s resident groundhog, emerged from her carrying crate on February 2 and saw her shadow, a prediction contradiction with her better-know fellow woodchuck, Punxsutawney Phil. But the dozens of observers gathered around her on the bare frozen ground didn’t mind — they showed their appreciation in the usual way, though the applause was considerably muffled by mittens and gloves. Before her pronouncement, some even briefly chanted, “Six more weeks! Six more weeks!”

Ms. G clambers aboard her stump as she prepares to make her prediction. (Photo: Alice Waugh)

The crowd, some with “Ms. G for State Groundhog” signs, wait for her pronouncement. (Photo: Alice Waugh)

Mish Michaels, Ms G’s campaign manager. (Photo: Alice Waugh)

The morning was also a campaign event for Ms. G., who is running hard for the post of Official State Groundhog with the backing of former local TV meteorologist and environmental reporter Mish Michaels of Wellesley. Michaels is helping children at the Hunnewell School as they try to move a bill through the state legislature that will, if approved, give statewide stature to the Lincoln groundhog.

“I’m her campaign manager at this point,” said Michaels, who sported a groundhog hat and campaign sign.

In addition to her political/rodential work, Michaels is creating on a children’s book with her young daughter called “A Groundhog’s Shadowy Road to Fame” and running an online children’s clothing business called Natural Cloud Cover (“organic clothing for the weather watcher in every kid!”).

After a few minutes of watching Ms. G. clamber over a tree stump in the frigid air, many of the children and their parents trooped inside to get their weather questions answered by a panel of local meteorologists. Inevitably, one of the kids asked whether we would have any more snow this year — a reasonable question during what had been an almost snowless season.

The short answer, said WBZ-TV’s Joe Joyce, was yes, though neither he nor his colleagues could predict when. “We keep getting it inch by inch. It’s been a frustrating season,” he said. Little did he know…

Library closed; extra police on duty

February 8, 2013

This is from the Lincoln Police Department’s Facebook page:

“Residents are advised to remain in their homes and off the roads for the duration of the blizzard. Your home is the safest location to ride out the storm. In the event your home becomes unsafe or uninhabitable, contact the police station (781-259-8111) and we will assist you. Both the Police and Fire Departments have additional staff at the ready to ensure the safety and security of Lincoln’s residents. In the event of a power outage, contact NStar at 800-592-2000. Please check on elderly/disabled family and neighbors.”

Police also noted that the Lincoln Public Library will be closed on Friday and Saturday, February 8-9. “There will be a dispensation on overdue books for 48 hours but not one minute more,” the post says. No word yet on possible arrest warrants for massively overdue books 🙂

Events rescheduled as blizzard bears down

February 8, 2013

Not Lincoln, but China in the aftermath of the Japanese earthquake and tsunami in March 2011. People were trying to buy salt in the belief that it would ward off the effects of radiation from the damaged Fukushima nuclear power plant. (Source: tinyurl.com/b35vhw8)

OK, so the crowds weren’t quite this bad at Donelan’s on Thursday, but the store was certainly doing a brisk business for a weekday afternoon. Store manager Jason Deveau said Friday morning that he had gotten a warehouse delivery a day early and that there was plenty of bread, milk, water and other staples on the shelves.

“Everyone seems like they’re getting what they need,” he said.

Donelan’s will close by 6 p.m. on Friday and possibly earlier, depending on conditions, Deveau said. They hope to reopen at 10 a.m. on Saturday.

The Lincoln schools robo-called parents early Thursday evening to tell them that school would be cancelled on Friday. Other weather-related postponements:

Drumlin Farm’s “Stew and Brew” event scheduled for Friday night will take place on Sunday, Feb. 10, according to Christy Foote-Smith, sanctuary director. Because of the schedule change, the previously sold-out event now has some seats available, so attendees can register online until 3 p.m. on Sunday.
An open house at the Birches School has been rescheduled for March 2 from 2-4 p.m.
The Lincoln Democratic Town Committee platform hearing and collection of senatorial nomination paper signatures that was scheduled for February 10 has been postponed until February 17 and/or February 24 depending on availability of speakers and venues. Call Gary Davis, chair of the Lincoln DTC, at 781-259-0318 for more information.

Stay tuned to the Lincoln Squirrel for more storm coverage — and please tell us how it’s going where you are and send photos!

Modified school proposal discussed at charette

February 6, 2013

The L-shaped proposal discussed at the charettes.

The L-shaped proposal discussed at the charrettes (click to enlarge).

At the second of two charrettes to discuss design alternatives for the school building project, residents considered the pros and cons of a modified proposal dubbed the “L-Shaped Plan” that would maintain the current footprint while demolishing and rebuilding the older portion of the Smith building.UpThe proposal retains the existing layouts for roadways, parking, and parent and bus drop-off locations, but it features a new cafeteria that would link the Brooks building to the Reed gym. It also includes a block of four new classrooms sited about where the southern half of the paved Brooks circle is now.

What the new proposal does not require is demolishing of the entire Smith building and building a new wing of 22 classrooms just south of the current Brooks entrance. Instead, it calls for keeping the southern half of the Smith wing, including the gym, while tearing down the older section and replacing it with new connecting space that would be slightly wider than the current structure.

Lincoln’s groundhog in today’s Boston Globe!

January 31, 2013

Boston Globe columnist Yvonne Abraham seems to be on the Ms. G bandwagon in the drive to have Drumlin Farm’s resident groundhog named as the official groundhog for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. You can read her column here (which we will note appeared after two stories in The Lincoln Squirrel here and here).

Monthly open-mic event spotlights musical pros and amateurs

January 31, 2013

By Brett Wittenberg

In Spanish, “loma” means rising ground in the midst of a plain. In Lincoln, LOMA means Lincoln Open Mic Acoustic, and once a month at the Lincoln Public Library, a small hill of musical talent rises.

LOMA has its origins in the annual Lincoln Winter Carnival, where residents have been demonstrating their acoustic musical skills for years. This coffeehouse-type performance has been a Lincoln favorite for the better part of a decade.

Over the years, more musicians performed and larger audiences listened, and three years ago, LOMA outgrew Winter Carnival. “It was hard to find space for all the people who actually wanted to attend—we were getting over 200 people,” said current LOMA organizer Rich Eilbert. It was clear that to continue, LOMA was going to need a bigger space and some dedicated management. Help came in the form of Rich Eilbert, a Lincoln resident for nearly 25 years and seasoned open mic’er as both an audience member and performer. Eilbert (who has a PhD in physics and has worked on designing X-ray equipment for airport security) offered to organize the events moving forward, and the Lincoln Public Library was settled on as the new venue.

Under Eilbert’s management, LOMA has continued to expand, even bringing in some professional acts to generate more buzz, including internationally known folk musician Geoff Bartley.

“We were really glad to get Geoff Bartley. We had a big crowd for him—maybe the biggest crowd ever. He’s a very fine musician,” said Eilbert.

Of the musician’s newest CD, folk legend Tom Paxton wrote, “Geoff Bartley has hit another one out of the park.”

Whether it’s an internationally known musician or your neighbor’s kid, what makes open-mic performances like LOMA special is audience involvement. LOMA is a community-sponsored event, and it’s the community that keeps it going. No promises can be made for the quality of the music, but the performers and the audience are guaranteed to have fun.

“There are a lot of talented people in this town,” Eilbert said, and some of them can be found at the library on the second Monday of each month. The next Lincoln Open Mic Acoustic night will be February 11 and will feature Nancy Beaudette. Other performers and spectators are welcome, and free refreshments will be served.

Brett Wittenberg is a resident of Lexington, Mass.

Lincoln groundhog basks in media attention, hopes for future stardom

January 30, 2013

Drumlin Farm’s resident groundhog, Ms. G.

By Alice Waugh

Will there be six more weeks of winter? Only the shadow knows—Ms. G’s shadow, that is. Come to Drumlin Farm on Saturday, Feb. 2 to see Drumlin’s resident groundhog — the potential future Groundhog of the Commonwealth.

The festivities kick off at 10:00 sharp at Drumlin’s main entrance, where WBZ-TV meteorologist Joe Joyce will be broadcasting the weather report live starting at 7 a.m. After everyone gets the long-term forecast from Ms. G and learns a bit about woodchuck behavior, there will be coffee, crafts and treats provided by Whole Foods Market of Wayland and Wellesley.

Groundhog Day at Drumlin actually features several TV weather experts. From 10:30 a.m.to noon, Mish Michaels, Joe Jones of WBZ-TV, Terry Eliasen (executive weather producer at WBZ), and Cindy Fitzgibbon (a former Fox-25 meteorologist) will be on hand to answer weather-related questions—and Ms. G will also be available for photos form her adoring public (see below for a full rundown of the day’s activities). Learn more about Ms. G and other groundhogs as well as the origins of Groundhog Day here.

Thursday is the last chance for resident input on school building proposal

January 30, 2013

(Below is an unedited version of an email sent out to Lincoln School parents by the Lincoln PTO.)

Been hearing bits and pieces of what’s happening with a potential Lincoln School building project since the November 3rd Town Meeting, but haven’t been following very closely since the big meeting? Parents were noticeably absent at the first of two charettes to give the Lincoln School Committee guidance about a future school building project for our town. Please plan to participate in the final input session on Thursday, January 31 from 7-10 p.m. in the Brooks gym, and spread the word to fellow parents so they know the importance of parental voices in the process.

First, a bit of catching up and contexting since November…