DaCapo Press sent over an advance copy of Toni Fiore's first cookbook, Totally Vegetarian, to be published in the fall. Fiore, a Portland resident, is the host of Delicious TV's Totally Vegetarian, which is broadcast on public access channels nationwide. Many of the recipes sound absolutely delicious -- Greek Stuffed Cabbage, Kasha Crunch Burgers, and Pumpkin-Bulgur Chili, for example.

The Maine Democratic Party still hasn't decided whether or not it will appeal the Secretary of State's decision to allow Independent US senate candidate Herb Hoffman's name to remain on the November ballot, according to spokeswoman Rebecca Pollard.

Reached by phone today, Hoffman -- who says he is "not a single-issue candidate, or even a two-issue candidate" -- expressed his doubt that an appeal would be successful.

Was food. So I stopped by the Local Sprouts open house suggested by Deirdre yesterday afternoon. Had some "bliss salad" - carrots, mesclun, beets, maple vinaigrette, and some other sliced/diced veggies - and some steamed kale with garlic, roasted chicken with a maple-herb glaze, and potatoes with arugula pesto. It was all very fresh, simple, and elegant.

What isn't happening tomorrow?

-- From 11 a.m.-1 p.m., the Local Sprouts Community Kitchen will host an open house in its new Public Market House digs.

-- At 2 p.m., outside of the Kennebunk Water District office, a coalition of water-rights activists will hold a rally and press conference to protest the proposed Nestle contract there

Gosh, Kathleen Parker's op-ed in today's PPH [I can't find it on their website, so I'm linking to the syndicated column from another paper] really set me straight. I'm totally just going to chill out about all this gender-equality bullshit. Us women should stop trying to explore gender-equity issues and point out lingering lopsidedness -- it's so tiresome.

The local creative group Port Veritas will release its first poetry anthology (which it hopes will come out quarterly) on the Fourth of July at the North Star.

From the press release:

"Safe Harbor is a quarterly collection of contemporary poetry, short stories and essays. This first installment is comprised of writers and artists who have appeared on the stage of the Port Veritas Spoken Word Series over the past five years.

I was remiss, when I wrote this week about today's Dyke March and after-party, in not mentioning all the great Southern Maine Pride 2008 events taking place on Saturday.

-- The parade starts at noon on Congress Street, and will make its way down to a festival in Deering Oaks Park

-- Said festival -- with music, food, etc.

It was with a smirk, and a bit of schadenfreude, that we read this email from Mike Hein today:

"Dear YES for Marriage Volunteers and Supporters,

It is with a heavy heart and reluctance that I inform you the YES for Marriage referendum effort has been canceled. The reasons are as simple as this: neither enough funds nor enough volunteer support to continue the effort

In front of a youngish crowd dressed as lobsters, Environment Maine and several public officials (including city councilors Jim Cohen and Nick Mavodones, and David Littell, the state's environmental commissioner) touted a new report this morning, full of practical ways to curb global warming. The report, "Global Warming Solutions That Work: Cutting-Edge Efforts to Curb Global Warming Pollution and the Lessons They Hold for America," includes case studies of successful strategies worldwide, such as transit-oriented development in Arlington, Virginia; pro-bike programs in Portland, Oregon; development of the renewable-energy industry in Spain; and widespread implementation of solar water heaters in Israel

Today, the Maine Supreme Court handed down a split decision in a case I've written about before (see "Government Secrecy is Fine with Maine's Attorney General," October 10, 2007), handing a victory to Maine Attorney General Steven Rowe - who kept himself conspicuously absent from the case.

Apparently, according to the three justices who voted in the majority in the 3-2 decision (not sure where the other two justices were), when Rowe wrote a formal letter on state letterhead asking three prominent Maine legal scholars to review the conduct of his office's investigation into a crime and report back to him, "in order to ensure continued public confidence" in his office, he created a review body outside the law that is not subject to the state's Freedom of Access Act.

New site, created to call out "projects that obviously were not vetted by the Maine Sensible Transportation Act...[which was] created to keep MDOT from completely paving over Maine, after Mainers were worn down and relented to allow the widening of Rt 95 south of Portland," according to an email sent out by webmaster Tim Sullivan.

The Maine Marijuana Policy Initiative is currently collecting signatures to get a question on the ballot that would better define who can access medical marijuana, and where they can get it. It would also establish registry cards and broaden protections for physicians. On Primary Day, signature-collectors gathered approximately 4000 John Hancocks, according to an email sent out by the organization today. They have about half the sigs they need so far.

Portland is the latest location to be featured on the Design*Sponge (a very popular blog for designers, craftsters, DIYers, etc.) regional round-up. Five artists (or pairs of artists) are highlighted in the first installment -- Karen Gelardi, Linda and John Meyers, Justin Richel, Lydia and Jeff Badger, and Jennifer Judd-Mcgee.

I spent a night in a replica of a Guantánamo Bay prison cell last week, time during which I reflected on the perilous status of the men held at the offshore prison even the president says he wants to close. They are held in legal limbo, not charged with anything, rarely, if ever, having seen a judge - and if so, then only a military judge whose chain of command starts at the president and works its way down (not an independent judge who is a member of the third branch of government).