giant eels thomaston maine
American Eel - a person may fish for or take for personal use up to 50 per day from the coastal waters of the state by spear gun, harpoon, trap, or hook andWhile many folks find eels quite ishy, and would no doubt welcome any industry that would take them out of the running for things-one-might-find-around-one's-ankles-when-wading, eels are not without friends. Please take a gander at this nifty site that really brings home the plight of the American Eel, threatened in Maine and elsewhere by turbines and other industrial encroachement of waterways: http://www.glooskapandthefrog.org/eel%20challenge.htm
line and may possess and transport the eels that person has taken. It is unlawful to fish for, take, possess or transport more than 50 eels per person per day.
American eel are among the longest-living animals in North America and one of longest-living fishes of North America. Female American eel in northern latitudes reach ages of 20-50 years old before their sole spawning migration to the Sargasso Sea. A record exists of an American eel living 88 years in captivity (Gail Wippelhauser, Maine Department of Marine Resources, personal communication to Douglas Watts, 1996).The Maine fact sheet for them is short and sweet, and gives us a good idea of how big they get normally -- males never seem to get much past two feet, but the ladies grow up to 6 feet in length (just more of them to cuddle, folks)! So how big is "giant," anyways???
PRESS RELEASE
www.emptyhousefilm.com
For Immediate Use
For more information:
Contact -- Andy Davis, emptyhousefilm(AT)gmail.com
Motion Media/Emptyhouse Film unleash interactive games and the
official trailer for horror film I'M SORRY.
www.emptyhousefilm.com just turned a brand new leaf -- an interactive leaf, if you will. With the inception of the new website for their horror film I'M SORRY, the team of Motion Media and Emptyhouse Film invite you to try out interactive flash based games based on characters from I'M SORRY, as well as vote on the official poster art and view the official movie trailer for I'M SORRY."We have been heading towards this for a long time now. After jumping leaps and bounds in the corporate training world, we just felt we had to up the ante," said Motion Media President Olin Smith.
In addition to the interactive games, poster contest and trailer, a new forum is now open to the public and future additions will include a 30 minute "behind the scenes" featurette, as well as a downloadable video featuring world famous cryptozoologist Loren Coleman discussing the argument of "mind vs. haunting."
"I'M SORRY is our second full length feature and our first real horror film in awhile, we wanted to really come back with everything we had in us, to really put our creative juices to work…and I think with I'M SORRY, we really did that." Said writer/director Andy Davis.
I'M SORRY asks the questions "What is paranormal and what is just abnormal?" Both Davis and Olin Smith (MUD), the film's producer/cinematographer had previously worked on several paranormal "ghost hunting" shows and knew they wanted to incorporate one of the most important factors in any case they studied…the capabilities of the human mind.
Filming in a stone mansion that was built in 1907 certainly set the stage for this gothic thriller. "I'm scared just looking at some of the dailies, seeing the emotion drip off of Nanette, it's freaky stuff." said producer/cinematographer Smith.
"Going into this, we were certainly inspired by films like THE SHINING, THE CHANGELING and REPULSION, among others, we set out to make a film about one woman's insanity living in a spooky old house by herself and from looking at the final cut of the film, we did not fail to deliver the goods," said Davis.
As well as being busy with I'M SORRY, Motion Media and Emptyhouse film are getting positive feedback from their first feature MUD. "It's really been a wild ride, we've gotten such great feedback from most everyone who watches it…they just relate to it in so many ways," said producer/cinematographer Smith.
More information on I'M SORRY and MUD can be found at www.emptyhousefilm.com.
Emptyhouse Film, a film production company based in Porter, Maine, and Boston, is owned by Andy Davis and Scott Morabito. Their credits include MUD, TV Nation (Best Music Video, Best of Show AIP Video Awards), Mechanazoid (*** -Film Threat Magazine, The Pumpkin Man, The Dark, Beneath the Frost Line (Commended – Festival of Fantastic Film, England).www.emptyhousefilm.com Motion Media Film & Video is a full service video/web production company in Portland, Maine, owned by Olin Smith. Credits for Smith, a
media producer for over 20 years, include Miramax Films, The Discovery Channel, MTV, VH1, The History Channel, and Extreme Makeover Home Edition. www.motionmediafilmandvideo.com
"I didn't mind so much having to give up our home," said one of the flooded-out inhabitants. "What I did not like was having to move the bodies of my father and mother to another graveyard."Photo of Flagstaff Village from the Maine State Archives.
"We were one happy family and now we're scattered all over the place," another former citizen of Flagstaff mourned. "Did someone tell you about Captain Wing's idea of a Noah's Ark, so that we could all still be together?"
Well, I just went over to get a coffee and see if I could wrest my mom away from her work (she's an advisor), and found all of USM is closed due to a bomb threat.
UPDATE:
March 6, 2:45am -- A suspicious vehicle was reported along Windham Center Road near St. Anne's Episcopal Church. Officer Edward Dubie investigated to find the subject was delivering newspapers.Yes, we are very suspicious about bearers of news these days, aren't we?
Most of the details of the hunt have now been worked out and are expected to be announced at Saturday’s press conference.If indeed this is the "call of the wild llama," even the most ardent PETA member should support the extermination of the species.
But two key questions are still the focus of hot debate: How many permits will be issued? And how long will the hunt last?
Local biologists had recommended that no more than 100 permits be granted and the hunt limited to the first week in November.
[snip]
But 100 permits were far too few to sate the feeding frenzy that ensued — soon the proposed number of permits for, and days in, the hunt were ballooning faster than the federal budget deficit.
At this point, insiders’ best guesses are that on Saturday the Forest Service will announce a plan to issue 1,000 permits, for a hunt that will last from Halloween to the Saturday after Thanksgiving.
And because the National Forest is regarded as a national resource, awarding of all permits will be handled from Washington. There will be no local allocation.
Chris D. reports over on All Things Maine that there was a potato-peeling fracas in Augusta on Sunday (March 26).Officers were called to the Eastern Avenue home at about 9 a.m. When they arrived, they said a man confronted them, wielding the deadly spud-skinner.Tasers were used to subdue the fellow. Too bad he didn't have any potatoes on hand, they could have tried the tasers on them and gotten some fries out of the deal.
Apparently realizing that he was no match for the police, the man dropped the peeler and ran into a nearby apartment. Police said he then came out, this time holding a knife.
Speaking of frost heaves...
On Maine Nature News, the following intriguing entry was posted:Monday, March 13. Poland (Map 5) I thought my cat had tangled with a skunk. But the smell was not really strong. I found a dead critter in our drive. At first I first thought it was an albino squirrel. But upon closer inspection it seemed more like a ferret: all white except black tail, pink nose, black eyes. A friend told me to check out the web and I found you. My February 22 journal seems to match. Can you offer any photos or sites for info. G.Elsewhere online, on ctfisherman.com, I found the following description, posted by fishy1 (Member # 1139) on April 23, 2005:
An earlier post on Maine Nature News from 20032 mentions another sighting:In the same area of Maine, had a weasel in winter, Ermine, jump up on a log and look at me. Beautiful creature, black eyes and black tip on the tail, and pure white fur.
Tuesday, January 21, 12:25 pm. Orono (Map 23) While cross-country skiing in the University of Maine's forest I observed an ermine cross the trail in front of me. Except for pictures I've never seen an ermine before but knew immediately that this small weasel with a white coat and black tipped tail was an ermine in its winter coloration. The coat was not pure white but more of an ivory color as it contrasted a bit with the snow. It was about 20 feet in front of me when it darted across the trail. On the opposite side of the trail it paused and stood up on its hind legs. At this point I noted it had something dark in its mouth that was about the size of a walnut. M.M.L.The ermine, otherwise known as the short-tailed weasel or stoat, is a special favorite of William T. Stands, who has an excellent account of them on his page, where he requests any sightings or stories about the critters be sent to him (address given on page).
A rare opinionated piece from your editor. Be forewarned!!!
According to Haunted New England by Mary Bonte, back in 1801 Pond Island, Maine, was host to an early grifter, "The Professor" by name, who convinced local Harpswell men that he was perfectly able to turn dew into silver.Dew was collected and taken out to Pond Island where it was put in a kettle and set on an outdoor fire. The pot boiled, the steam rose, and the silver failed to materialize. Claiming that the dew had been subject to deleterious handling, "The Professor" conducted a second experiment, this time surreptitiously slipping a handful of melted-down silver into the boiling pot. Finding the silver in the bottom of the kettle, the citizens were convinced that dew could indeed be turned to silver and they gladly paid a handsome fee to "The Professor," who promptly vanished very much like morning dew.Harpswell isn't the only Maine town to fall for swindlers' stories. A goodly number of Portland businessmen in the 1800s lost substantial funds to another huxter in a gold hoax. More on this later.
I just blogged at All Things Maine about the latest project of director Gunnar Hansen—a short film about the Passamaquoddy tribe. You might remember Hansen from his first film role: Leatherface in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.“The kids will stop and look at me, and then finally, one of them — the one kid who has a little courage — will come to me and say, ‘Oh, Mr. Hansen, were you in ‘Chainsaw Massacre?’ And I’ll say, ‘yes.’ And he’ll turn and yell out, ‘See, I told you so.’Hansen said he never learned to use a chainsaw with confidence, even after moving back to Maine. He revels in the notoriety of his first screen role, and takes time away from his writing to appear at horror conventions. Best of all, he has a rear license plate holder that reads, "What Would Leatherface Do?"
According to Charles Skinner's Myths and Legends of Our Own Land (1896), the waters of Biddeford Pool were a good place to be at the very least once a year:Biddeford Pool, Maine, was a miracle pond once a year, for whoso bathed there on the 26th of June would be restored to health if he were ill, because that day was the joint festival of Saints Anthelm and Maxentius.Of course, like many of Skinner's folkloric asides, there is little online to back up this tale, beyond accounts of the saints whose names are attached to the date mentioned. Anthelm and Maxentius are not alone -- there are at least 16 saints, all told, who are remembered on that date.
Not generally famous for its scientific masterminds, Maine occasionally surprises the rest of the world with inventions and improvements seemingly from out of the blue (it's our little secret -- there are a lot of smartypants living here).
As The Skeptic reported, "Instead of the pair of curved horns typical of Ayrshires, this animal grew a single, very straight horn, curving slightly upwards at its tip. And, this horn was pale gray at its base and black at its tip. The similarity to the ancient descriptions of mythical Unicorns was uncanny." (Volume 14, No. 1, 1994)Dr Dove's Unicorn bull became the leader of its herd and was very rarely challenged by other males. Which is not altogether surprising if you think about it. When bulls charge each other the main aim (as with male deer) is to crack skulls until one or other can take no more. Charging towards an enemy who has a spike aimed right between your eyes is a different game altogether. So effective was the single horn that one almost wonders why evolution did not do Dr Dove's work for him. An interesting side effect of the experiment was the nature of the bull's temperament. Being secure in his strength led him to become unusually gentle and mild mannered, echoing what has so often been said of the true Unicorn's nature.
Just a reminder to any fellow maple maniacs out there -- SUNDAY, MARCH 26th is Maine Maple Syrup Sunday!!!
According to Charles M. Skinner's old folklore compendium, Myths and Legends of Our Own Land (1896), Sysladobsis Lake (known affectionately to some vacationers as "Dobsey") is home to a lake monster:Sysladobosis (sic) Lake, in Maine, has a snake with a head like a dog's, but it is hardly worth mentioning because it is only eight feet long -- hardly longer than the name of the lake. More enterprise is shown across the border, for Skiff Lake, New Brunswick, has a similar snake thirty feet long.Trails.com summarizes the neighborhood thusly, with no mention of monsters: "The loop comprised of Pocumcus, Junior, and Sysladobsis lakes in the heart of eastern Maine’s lake country offers one of the best extended quiet-water loop trips in the state, especially when one detours for a few days into Scraggly Lake. These lakes flow into the St. Croix River, which forms the southeastern border between Maine and New Brunswick. Because you can end up where you started, the trip requires just one car. But be aware that these are large lakes; under breezy conditions, large waves can build up quickly, making paddling difficult and, at times, quite dangerous."
Portland police say that Nicholas Foley, 27, became sick at the Cumberland County Jail on March 12th and threw up 31 bags of heroin. Police also found nine bags of heroin hidden in Foley's cigarette pack. Foley was in the process of being relased from the jail after being involved in a dispute with another man over money. He was taken to the Maine Medical Center.Wow, that's some homecooked dinner! Bleah...
It's funny, in all my years in Portland I never thought of this stuff in this way, but it's an interesting approach. Somehow I missed the fact that "not only can the Lobsterman be viewed as the spirit of Casco Bay as well as the guardian of our fishing industry, but his inherent numinous power seems to have been recognized independently by a variety of young people in Portland, as there is a widespread custom of leaving spare change as an offering in his cupped hand and making a wish." I never knew. Although I did leave him and the lobster an easter egg last year... I hope they liked it.Coming back on Vaughan St. towards intown, take a right down Congress St. A few blocks down you'll come to the Fire Station, and right in front there is a plaque commemorating a hanging. Hanging sites are sacred to the Norse god Odin, who was hung on a tree for nine days and nights to learn the secrets of the runes.
Who knew that the University of Maine had its own Skulls society? The Maine Senior Skulls were founded almost a hundred years ago, on December 14, 1906. Do they have any relationship to the now infamous Yale secret society of Skull and Bones, founded long before in 1832? If they do, they haven't mentioned it in their brief history given on their website.
"...a second guest was brought in to ice the cake and fulfill their metal fantasies. Jason called his friend, Frank Aresti who had just returned from touring Europe with Fates Warning, & asked if he would contribute his one of a kind flare to their original song, "The Ghost Of Xavior Holmes." Once Frank got a hold of the track and delved into its murky themes of a haunted New England ship wreck, he was hooked & went above & beyond playing a solo to actually contribute several ideas to what has become one of the album's highlights."
As he sailed into the shadows of darkness
He prayed to once again see the light of day
[July, 1807]
The Ghost of Xavier Holmes
In the vessel's log a dying man had written;
"I've lost my captain & crew to a darkened and watery grave...
I'm so alone, trying to stay alive"
Xavior Holmes, fighting to survive
Heading out into the uncharted regions of the sea
"I'm so alone, eternally sailing into the night"
Xavior Holmes, now realizing he had died
Never to find his resting place near the Inn By The Sea
Among the crew, brave mariners and friends
With the passengers, the captain's wife, and a bride to be
Why is he the only one left, drifting forever on?
It seems like it's been midnight since the time of the storm
...since that storm
In the vessel's log the long dead man had written:
"What should have been a routine trip has cost the lives of sixteen"
Just off the coast of Richmond's Island the craft tipped on to one side
Xavior Holmes, never made it to Portland that night
Yet the Schooner Charles still sails on and out of sight...
On the road leading from Standish Corner to the lake is the home of the poet Shaw, built in 1774, where the first settlement was made by Ebenezer Shaw. The ballads of Thomas Shaw, the son, were well-known along the coast of Maine for many years, and date back to the Revolutionary war. Conspicuous among his productions was the "Shipwreck of the Schooner Charles," on Richmond's Island, July 12, 1807. The ballad was headed by sixteen black coffins, to represent the number of victims, and surrounded with a heavy border.
His verse was indeed "unlernt," lamentably bad, worthless today, except that it indicates the isolation of mind and poverty of vision that was inevitable in those days of material and political struggle. Yet the "mournful songs" of Thomas Shaw supplied a demand of the time. Thousands of these "broadsides" were sold in Portland and in the numerous villages of Cumberland County. One song, at least, went into a second edition, and the "poet" must have found his writing profitable, selling thousands of his "Broadside Ballads" at six and a quarter cents a piece.
Look for the grave of Lydia Carver in a small, hidden Cape Elizabeth graveyard. She perished returning from a trip to Boston to purchase her wedding trousseau when the schooner, Charles, crashed and broke up on the foggy reefs off Richmond Island in Cape Elizabeth. Research the story of Captain John Deane’s 1710 shipwreck off Boon Island... and the survivors’ cannibalism! (Source)
These things only really work when they are unplanned. We had been visiting with Brendan, and he offered us his somewhat the worse for wear mannequin torso (she is missing part of her nose and in general has a haphazard skintone). Apparently she was freaking his girlfriend out (as opposed to the giant furry spider that forms another staple of the store's customary decor, shown here). So we adopted her and gave her a new home. But we were on foot, so what other way to get her home than carry her, naked and worn? Yep.A mysterious design in the snow appeared early this week on the Quad and left members of the Bowdoin community baffled as to how it got there. While some wrote it off as the work of student pranksters, others suggested that extraterrestrial forces might be involved.The phenomena melted before an in-depth study could be undertaken.
The large design consisted of three multi-colored concentric circles.
Stephens proved himself a first-class showman in presenting this bear to the public, so he decided that the amusement world was his forte and commenced adding to his attractions. What to offer the public was never a problem with him, as he emulated the efforts of P. T. Barnum, and in the early years the attractions Barnum was exhibiting in his American Museum would find a counterpart in the Stephens' show.I knew from his gravestone in Bryant Pond that Stephens died July 6, 1899, but until today I wasn't aware of how he died. I ran across this item in a scrapbook kept by my great-great-grandfather:
The article describing his death was not attached, so I can't say how Stephens managed to mistakenly drink wood alcohol. If he really was "The Barnum of Maine," I wonder if he charged admission.
Chris W and I went out to take photos in the freezing windy-ness (doesn't she look cold?) of Saturday February 19th. Brrr!!!
Here are some of the fruits of my labor. Hopefully Chris will get a chance to post hers soon too. Shown here are from left to right: the Portland Observatory on Munjoy Hill, a turret of the St. Lawrence Church also on the Munjoy Hill, and view of the bay from the Eastern Promenade. Up at the top of this post, over Chris' head, is one of the old brick buildings off of the trail around the Eastern Prom.
Back in January, Chris D reported on the new remake of the famous "Wicker Man" movie, which is placed in Maine (although filmed in Vancouver). For those of you feeling out of the loop, it stars Nicholas Cage as a rosary and self-help tape bearing investigator who is allergic to bees (this will make only slightly more sense as the article goes on), and Ellen Burstyn as the leader of the now-matriarchal pagan society on the island.
Nicholas Cage was very pleased to play his part in the remake, because the original disturbed him greatly when he first saw it, and the impressions from the film lasted for weeks. He was introduced to the film by his friend, the late Johnny Ramone. (Source) Please note how confused he looks in this photo. This should allow moviegoers a sense of identification with his character as they too will most likely be terribly confused all through the movie.
There's an AP story out today reporting mysterious events in Somerset County. House-shaking tremors were felt in Solon last week, and "in a 15-mile radius in Anson, Madison, Skowhegan and Norridgewock" a few days ago. It's been established that they weren't caused by earthquakes, quarry blasting, or Dumpsters falling off the back of trucks. Says County Emergency Management Director Robert Higgins, "It's just unexplainable, I guess."
August 2, 1923. Former VP Hannibal Hamlin, who served under Lincoln and died in 1891, is moved from his resting place in a Bangor, Maine, cemetery to an ancient Indian burial ground, for some reason. He instantly zombifies and starts attacking the townspeople before retreating into seclusion. Some people think that entire region of Maine is haunted, and there may be big bucks there for the storyteller who can put some of the grisly tales on paper. [Link]I can't confirm this story, but when I was a kid in Oxford County (in the next town over from Hamlin's hometown of Paris) I did hear one story about the Vice President. When he was an infant, he became ill and the local Abenaki healer, Mollyockett, was called in to consult. She administered a native remedy that saved the boy's life, giving him the chance to grow up and become zombified.
Sad news passed quickly through the grapevine Monday night, as we received word of the death of Geno D’Alessandro Sr., owner of Geno's.
This bird is in fact a subspecies that is held up as one of the main wildlife characters of Bermuda, and has featured on their stamps repeatedly, the most recent being the August 2005 release of stamps depicting the island's most unique habitats. (see image, upper righthand stamp)Bermuda’s Rocky Shores would not be the same without the White-tailed Tropicbird (Phaethon lepturus catesbyi). Locally called Longtail, this ‘harbinger of spring’ arrives in March to perform spectacular aerobatic courtship displays, and eventually to rear a single chick in cliff crevices, high above the tides. Both parents and offspring leave by October to spend the winter on the open Sargasso Sea where they feed mostly on squid.Mmm... squid.
For your further enjoyment, I present a photo of Portland Head Light during the 1938 storm backwash from the historic hurricane (known in some quarters rather flippantly as the Long Island Express).In February 1972 Coast Guardsman Robert Allen reported to the Maine Sunday Telegram that a storm had torn the 2,000 pound fog bell from its house, ripped 80 feet of steel fence out of concrete and left the house a "foot deep in mud and flotsam, including starfish." A wave had broken a window in the house 25 feet high.
