These recalls recently have been announced: . About 142,000 Toshiba AC adapters sold with portable DVD players manufactured in China and distributed by Toshiba America Consumer Products LLC, because the adapter can fail and cause the DVD player to overheat. This poses a burn hazard. Read More
    It’s baseball playoff season, and around here that means Red Sox madness. The hats, sweat shirts, bumper stickers, banners and gas station conversations let us all know that when the Sox are this close to the World Series, Mainers see red. Being a member of the Penobscot Nation,… Read More
    Repeatedly in recent years, the White House has convinced lawmakers that preventing terrorist attacks is more important than legal rights and clear oversight. That was the case when Congress hastily passed the Protect America Act, which broadened the government’s authority to eavesdrop on electronic communications. Rather than make… Read More
    A Portland middle school has been the focus of news stories for more than a week because a health center there received permission from school officials to offer birth-control prescriptions. But the focus on that action misses the more important story, which is the process by which children… Read More
    There were lots of horses in Washington County when I was a kid. There were factories, clothing stores, shoe stores and jewelry stores in Machias, Eastport and Lubec. Now the Native people who have been in Maine for thousands of years and have had little… Read More
    After attending the second public meeting about what Surry faces with the new school consolidation law, I know no more than I did when this law was first proposed by Gov. Baldacci. Our school superintendent did an excellent job in his basic presentation, but with most of his… Read More
    Just so we are clear, it is now considered “protective” by some parents to make available and distribute birth control including the pill and condoms to children as young as 11 who are having sex. Eleven-year-old girls don’t “have sex.” They can be raped, sodomized,… Read More
    In reference to the proposed plan for the Portland King Middle School to provide prescription birth control and morning after pills to 11- to 13-year-old children: It is an outrage to consider such an inappropriate program. We do not know the health consequences associated with these drugs on… Read More
    If you believe that every military dollar spent is justified, stop reading here. But if there is a scintilla of doubt in your mind, hear me out. I recently joined hundreds of women from across the nation at a conference in Washington, D.C., to examine… Read More
    Maine consumers enjoy some of the safest, freshest products in the world, with locally raised meat and poultry slaughtered in state-inspected facilities. The regulatory programs of the Maine Department of Agriculture, Food and Rural Resources play a critical role in assuring that our food supply is safe, wholesome,… Read More
    There you are, sitting in a too-small plastic chair, and the teacher of your child says, “I’ve talked with the reading teacher and with the speech-language pathologist. All of us agree that the reason your child is having difficulty learning to read is because he doesn’t have a… Read More
    AUGUSTA – A state law encouraging high school seniors to continue their education by completing at least one postsecondary school application took effect last month, but Maine’s top education official is looking to take the approach a step further. Education Commissioner Susan Gendron proposes that… Read More
    Essex Street bridge Essex Street bridge will be closed from Monday, Oct. 22, to July 2008. Essex Street is closed to through traffic from Stillwater Avenue to Burleigh Road. Traffic will be detoured onto Burleigh Road, left onto Broadway, then left onto Stillwater Avenue. Follow… Read More
    BLUE HILL – The Bagaduce Music Lending Library is now accepting student compositions for its 12th annual Young Composers’ Competition and Festival. The competition, which is open to all Maine students through high school age, encourages young musicians to submit their compositions which will be… Read More
    FRANKFORT – The Pine Tree Chapter of the American Red Cross will offer an 11-session Emergency Response training course Tuesday, Oct. 30, through Saturday, Dec. 1, at the West Frankfort Fire Department. The course will provide people with knowledge and skills necessary to act as a first responder… Read More
    VERONA ISLAND – The Verona Island Christmas Craft Fair will be held from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 27, at the town hall. The Verona Island Women’s Club also will host a luncheon, bake sale and raffle. Craft tables are still available for… Read More
    BLUE HILL – Blue Hill Memorial Hospital is sponsoring a Halloween celebration for young revelers on Wednesday, Oct. 31. Area preschool-age children are invited to gather in the lobby at 10 a.m. to be escorted throughout the hospital campus for trick-or-treating. For information call Mary… Read More
    UNITY – The Unity Barn Raisers will hold their “Halloween Spooktacular” from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday, Oct. 27, at the Unity Community Center. Children will be treated, not tricked, to events including bobbing for apples, face painting, a doughnut-eating contest, snacks and pumpkin carving. Read More
    UNITY – Unity Barn Raisers is holding its annual pie-baking contest in conjunction with the Harvest Supper Community Meal. Interested bakers should submit their pies by 4 p.m. Friday, Nov. 2, at the Unity Community Center. Judging will begin at 5 p.m. The submitted pies… Read More
    CASTINE – The board of trustees of Maine Maritime Academy will hold a regular quarterly meeting at 8:30 a.m. Friday, Nov. 9, in the Holmes Alumni Heritage Room on the lower level of the Harold Alfond Student Center on the college campus. Read More
    UNION – The Union Historical Society will hold its annual meeting at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 7, in the Old Town House on Town House Road. The meeting will be preceded by a potluck supper at 6 p.m. Members and guests are asked to bring a casserole or… Read More
    BELFAST – The Belfast Dance Studio continues its Ethnic Dance Program with Turkish Romani dance 6-7:30 p.m. Thursdays, Nov. 8 through Dec. 20. Helena Melone teaches the lively and playfully saucy folkloric dance which blends elements of core-centered belly dance with looser limb-oriented movements. Turkish… Read More
    Army National Guard Pvt. Joshua L. Leftwich, son of Lynanna Leftwich of Milo, has graduated from basic combat training at Fort Sill, Lawton, Okla. Read More
    LINCOLN – William J. Flagg is the town’s new police chief and will start his new job within the next two weeks, Town Manager Glenn Aho said. Flagg, 40, of Milford passed his physical and psychological examinations and will be paid $49,500, Aho said. Flagg… Read More
    Penobscot County Superior Court Cases Aug. 1-31, 2007 googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var i = 0; i < slot_sizes.length; i++) { if (isMobileDevice()) { if (slot_sizes[i][0] googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define… Read More
    LINCOLN – Rheta Hickey already cares for cows, chickens and cats. Soon she’ll be caring for brides, bridesmaids and businesswomen, too. Hickey, 46, of Burlington will be opening Avanti, a full-service bridal salon and women’s sportswear shop, by early November with a grand opening in… Read More
    BREWER – When the Brewer Public Library moved to its new home at 100 South Main St., the decision was made to “leave a lot of old friends behind,” Donna Rasche, library director, said at the time. Those books will be on sale during a… Read More
    ORONO – The registrar of voters will be in open session from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on the following dates to register and enroll new voters and to correct the voting list for the Nov. 6 referendum election. . Tuesday, Oct. 30. googletag.cmd.push(function ()… Read More
    SANGERVILLE – Tickets to win a painting by Sangerville artist Sae Hee Martin are being sold as a fundraiser for the Sangerville Public Library. The library needs to raise $6,000 and the proceeds from this drawing will help toward that end. The drawing will be held on Nov. Read More
    United Cerebral Palsy of Maine, which raises money to assist children and adults living with disabilities, is hosting Pumpkins in the Park from 3:30 to 7 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 27, at the Bangor Auditorium. This community Halloween party for children and families will feature a… Read More
    ELLSWORTH – When local voters go to the polls early next month, they will have the chance to reshape nearly half of the Ellsworth City Council. Three positions on the city’s seven-member panel are open, and five candidates will vie for those seats on Nov. Read More
    BELFAST – Farmers who suffered quantity losses to their crops in recent years can now enroll in the Crop Disaster Program 2005-2007, according to officials at Waldo County USDA Farm Service Agency. Subject to final rules, the program provides benefits to farmers who suffered losses… Read More
    BLUE HILL – A benefit supper and country western show to benefit Blue Hill resident Corey Nevells will be held at 5 p.m. Friday, Oct. 26, at the Halcyon Grange in North Blue Hill. Nevells is recuperating at his home after surgery in Portland. googletag.cmd.push(function… Read More
    ELLSWORTH – Shaye Sumner spoke emotionally in court Friday about the car accident that crippled her once-athletic body almost two years ago to the day. She talked about the hospital stays, the many surgeries and the physical therapy that robbed her of her senior year… Read More
    ROCKLAND – The point man in the drive to oust Mayor Brian Harden said that he has no problems with the mayor and that he was distributing the recall petition as a favor to some friends. “I have nothing against Mr. Harden or anybody,” Albert… Read More
    SEARSPORT – The Penobscot Marine Museum will host its 2007 Regional History Conference this weekend with the program, “Picturing Maine: Sharing Our State’s Photographic History.” The conference will be held in the Searsport Congregational Church vestry and will include an opening reception Friday evening at… Read More
    Bangor Hydro-Electric Co. crews worked Saturday to restore power to 1,200 customers affected by outages caused by heavy wind and rain. Early Saturday morning there was a problem at the Hampden substation affecting about 103 customers in Hancock County, 337 customers in Penobscot County and… Read More
    STONINGTON – The Maine Biotechnology Bureau has launched the state’s first bio-technology blog that will feature columns and commentary on biotech-related developments in the state. BioBlog, which can be found on the Internet at http://bioblog.mainebioinfo.org, began publishing on Oct. 11. BioBlog also is linked to… Read More
    Executive director Bev Shumaker has announced that Families and Children Together will host its fourth annual fundraising dinner and auction beginning with hors d’oeuvres at 5:30 p.m. and the silent auction at 6 p.m. followed by dinner and a live auction Friday, Oct. 26, at the Black Bear… Read More
    SOUTH PORTLAND – A high school English teacher was presented a Milken Family Foundation National Educator award at a school assembly. Brian Jandreau, who has taught in South Portland for six years, was one of dozens of teachers nationwide who were given the award Friday. Read More
    ORONO – The Orono Public Library and The Orono Parks and Recreation Department will present the annual Halloween Party at Asa Adams Elementary School from 5 to 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 31. Activities will include a spooky storytelling tent, Halloween crafts, bounce house, haunted hayrides,… Read More
    ELLSWORTH – A man who was found earlier this year with nearly $30,000 worth of heroin at his home was sentenced Friday to serve four years in prison. Forrest “Randy” McMillan, 51, of Eastbrook had been charged with aggravated trafficking because of the volume of… Read More
    CRYSTAL – A Patten man is dead after a motorcycle accident on Route 159 in Crystal on Thursday evening. Sgt. Forrest Dudley of the Aroostook County Sheriff’s Department said Friday that the accident that killed Carroll Miller, 57, occurred at 5:40 p.m. googletag.cmd.push(function () {… Read More
    BANGOR – The Brain Injury Association of Maine and Eastern Maine Medical Center will co-host the association’s third annual conference on brain injury next month. The conference, titled “Connecting the Dots After Brain Injury,” will be held from 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Friday, Nov. Read More
    PORTLAND – Maine’s school consolidation law, hailed as a way to hold down the costs of school administration, is slated to trigger pay increases for some teachers. School districts that are preparing to merge as a result of the Baldacci administration initiative enacted in June… Read More
    ORONO – The University of Maine’s varsity women’s soccer team kicked off several weeks of community events organized by the school’s athletic teams with a skills clinic Sunday morning. Activities ranging from cleanup at the Bangor Area Homeless Shelter to free ice skating on Halloween… Read More
    STONY BROOK, N.Y. – Chris Brevi intercepted an Adam Farkes pass on the University of Maine’s second play of the second overtime period Saturday, securing Stony Brook’s 30-23 football victory at LaValle Stadium. The Seahawks erased two 10-point deficits, including one in the fourth quarter. Read More
    THORNDIKE – Briana Curry couldn’t have been in a better position to lift the Belfast field hockey team into the Eastern Maine Class B final. Curry’s goal after 60 minutes of regulation, 16 minutes of overtime and almost three full sets of penalty corners was… Read More
    HAMPDEN – The third meeting of the season between schoolgirl soccer rivals Hampden Academy and Bangor had many of the same characteristics as its predecessors – particularly skilled play and high intensity. One difference? This time Hampden never trailed en route to a 2-0 victory… Read More
    ORONO – Any time you receive a goal from a checking line, it’s considered a bonus. The University of Maine’s men’s hockey team received a huge bonus from its checking line of freshman left wing Glenn Belmore, senior center Wes Clark and junior right wing… Read More
    College At Machias googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var i = 0; i < slot_sizes.length; i++) { if (isMobileDevice()) { if (slot_sizes[i][0]… Read More
    College At Bangor googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var i = 0; i < slot_sizes.length; i++) { if (isMobileDevice()) { if (slot_sizes[i][0] googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes =… Read More
    Defending state champion Lawrence of Fairfield will take the No. 1 seed into the Eastern Maine Class A football playoffs that begin last weekend. Lawrence, 8-0 this season and winner of 19 straight games overall, will host No. 8 Mt. Blue of Farmington (3-5) in… Read More
    ORONO – Laura Harper and Hannah Breton scored second-half goals 3:21 apart to lift the University of Maine to a 2-0 America East women’s soccer victory over Binghamton Sunday. Harper headed home a Kim Stephenson corner kick at the 54:58 mark for the 5-6-3 Black… Read More
    ALFRED, N.Y. – Quarterback Paul Keeley completed 14 of 28 passes for 288 yards and five touchdowns to lead undefeated Alfred University to a 53-21 football victory over Husson College of Bangor Saturday. Jared Manzer scored four touchdowns for the Saxons. He caught three TD… Read More
    EASTERN MAINE REGIONALS At Belfast, 5K googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var i = 0; i < slot_sizes.length; i++) { if (isMobileDevice()) { if (slot_sizes[i][0] googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot… Read More
    CASTLETON, Vt. – Carolyn Griggs scored the tying and winning goals to lift Castleton State College to a 3-2 overtime win over Husson College of Bangor in a college field hockey game Saturday. Griggs scored the winner off a Meghan Konowich assist at the 73:34… Read More
    WESTON, Mass. – Britt Oxley had a pair of goals and an assist and Sarah Estes added a pair of goals to lead Thomas College to a 9-0 field hockey victory over Regis College Sunday. Alyssa Audie and Kellie Martel each had a goal and… Read More
    CASTINE – At first glance, Tyler Angell doesn’t exactly strike fear into the hearts of opposing defenses. Maine Maritime Academy’s 5-foot-8, 185-pound quarterback can even be hard to see at times operating behind the big guys on the offensive line. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define… Read More
    LEICESTER, Mass. – Quarterback Ryan Minns passed for three touchdowns and a two-point conversion to lead Mass Fury to a 22-6 victory over the UMaine Black Bears Football Club Sunday. Minns completed two first-quarter touchdown passes to Shawm Phillips for Mass Fury. Rayshawn Link caught… Read More
    Earlier this year, Joe Hill exploded onto the publishing scene with his debut novel, “Heart-Shaped Box,” about a merciless ghost and an aging rock musician. The novel itself, an instant best-seller, has plenty of suspense for many readers. But another mystery soon was solved shortly… Read More
    Sharon DeBartolo Carmack has a wonderful article titled “The Tree Doctor” in the November issue of Family Tree Magazine, which you can find in bookstores now. She covers such ailments as Genealogist’s Chorea, where a researcher – or an ancestor – fudges the facts; Lineagaires’… Read More
    “Yeah, man, well, like we got to step up to the plate, you know, make some big plays, get some points on the board, you know what I mean?” – spoken on TV on game day by a multimillion-dollar athlete googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define… Read More