Here it is, mid-Hunting Season. Be sure to wear items of blaze orange if you are out and about anywhere near the woods, and avoid white caps and mittens! It is too bad to be so stockaded during this beautiful late fall month, an abridgement of freedom for the sake of a few.

We enjoyed tracking the eclipse of the moon last week, but we missed the spectacular red northern lights. How could we have done that? Did anyone in Edgecomb happen to see them? Please tell me!

Our deepest sympathies go to Kevin McQuaid on the River Road, and to his brother Kim, for the lost of their mother Maggie, who died Oct. 17.

Duncan Slade has been involved in a Great Salt Bay 8th grade art project, creating international signal alphabet flags by a process of dyeing, cutting and transferral to fabric. Slade and Gayle Fraas are working on a series of quilts also inspired by the signal flag alphabet, part of which will be on display in the "20/20 Envision" exhibit at Colby College Museum of Art in Waterville, Dec. 7 to Jan. 25.

Ah, the Holiday Season approaches. Early warning is the notice from the Edgecomb Congregational Church about their annual sale of balsam fir wreaths! Double-faced, 22-inch diameter, undecorated $12, decorated $15. Call 882-4060 or 563-5236 now to reserve. Leave a message; you will be called back to confirm the details. The wreaths will arrive in Edgecomb Nov. 20, and can be picked up on Saturday the 22nd, from 9:00 a.m. to noon. "Shipping boxes and shipping service are available for anyone who wants to send a bit of Maine to loved ones who live ‘away'."

These traditional Christmas decorations are made by Downeast Wreathmakers, people in Hancock County who depend on the seasonal income to provide for food and fuel for the winter. The funds from the wreath project are particularly important this year since the traffic diversion caused by emergency work on the Waldo/Hancock Bridge reduced the area's summer income.

Oh, and if you would like to help decorate the wreaths, let them know at the above numbers. Communal fun, refreshments, a neat way to get into the holiday spirit!

The Edgecomb Eddy School is now collecting canned foods for the Food Pantry run by the Boothbay Harbor Congregational Church. Their aim is to replenish the food supplies for after the Thanksgiving holiday, when the Pantry will be pretty well cleaned out. Therefore, donors, your donations need not be holiday-specific! There will be two big boxes placed in the school's front lobby. Anyone can drop their donations off during school hours.

Congratulations to Lea Wait and Bob Thomas! They were married in late October in a civil ceremony. J.D. and Barbara Neeson and daughter Johanna made up the wedding party. Lea and Bob will be living in the Marie Antoinette House on the Eddy Road.

The Center for Teaching and Learning is looking for a pianist who would like to accompany their students in a school musical this spring. Interested musicians should call the CTL at 882-9706 and ask for Pam.

Chipmunks and squirrels chase about, harvesting before the snows come. The turkey flock is so companionable, it stays around while I am cutting up dead apple branches. Juncos are back at the feeder, but difficult to see against the still-green grass. Bruce has dug up the beets, the last crop in the 2003 garden. Great just with butter and a little caraway sprinkled over! Battening the hatches at 234 River Road, 633-2978, bonesukl@midcoast.com. This column appears in The Boothbay Register, The Lincoln County News, The Wiscasset Newspaper, and at www.Edgecomb.org.