On Feb. 19, at 5 p.m. at the Southport Town Hall, the Selectmen will conduct on hearing on an ordinance change on the land donated to the Southport Methodist Church. The change asked for is from a residential area to a growth area. Look for more information on this meeting elsewhere in this paper and on notices posted around town.

Be sure and stop by the Southport Town Hall during office hours to say hello to our new Administrative Assistant, Brittany Burns. I am sure many of you know Brittany as a familiar face around town, and now she is behind a desk helping to keep the town running smoothly. Thanks, Brittany!

Many of us enjoyed not only delicious homemade soups and breads, but also seeing many folks we had not seen for awhile at the Southport Island Association’s “Souper Bowl” at the Southport Town Hall last Saturday. Pots of soup covered the counters in the town hall’s kitchen, and breads, cookies, and cake decorated the table in the middle of the room. The process was to choose your soup, a tough decision, pick up accompaniments, and then decide which friend you had not seen in the longest while to sit beside and catch up. After eating and talking you could return to the kitchen and choose some soup to take home. All of this was free of charge, courtesy of Eden Climo and her gang of volunteers. In a bucket in the kitchen you could put a monetary donation, which I hope most of us did. Thanks to everyone who made this event possible.

One of the persons at the lunch whom I had not seen for a while was Anne Gobes. She caught me up on happenings at the Alpaca Farm where they now also have three sheep. The sheep are a great addition for their wool, but also because they are more willing to let people pat and snuggle with them than are the alpacas. Anne told me if you are looking for a special gift to give to your loved one for Valentine’s Day, contact the alpaca farm to shop. They have all sizes of cozy alpaca socks made in the U.S.; soft yarns from the animals they raise; local soaps and salves made on the farm, beeswax glass candles with hand pressed flowers, and all kinds of alpaca hats and mittens made in Peru. Contact Mike and Anne at the farm 633-0416 to set up time to shop, and while you are there, greet the alpaca ladies who are the fluffiest this time of year, and perhaps the sheep too.

I received a card on Saturday from Susan Quimby. Many of you remember Susan, who is still a Southporter after many years of owning a cottage on Newagen and running the Rowgatta. On the phone Sunday she asked me to share a thought. Those of us may, in a later years, find our Christmas card list has expanded beyond time and energy to send so many cards, so why not divide our card list up into sections. Rather than send about 100 cards to friends at Christmas, try sending cards to 25 people at Christmas, 25 people on Ground Hog Day, 25 cards on Valentine’s Day, and a birthday card when appropriate. Worth a try? I got a Ground Hog Day card! Thanks, Susan!

On Saturday, Feb. 21, the Southport General Store will host a second Bean and Weiner Supper from 5 until 7 p.m. Those who chowed down at the first supper can tell you how good the food was and what fun you can have to eat with friends. No need to reserve ahead of time.

Remember the creation of a knitting group at the store that will have a day and time set by the end of this month. If you would like to attend, please note your preferences either when you stop by the store or on line at Annie@SouthportGeneralStore.com.

As those of you on the island know, winter has definitely come to Southport. A series of snow falls with little melt between has caused the snow pack to rise. I had a lesson in home maintenance last Saturday when a knock on my door by the driver of the oil delivery truck, Ken Curtis, told me he could not get through the wall of snow left by the plow truck to attach the delivery hose. After being willing to check the oil tanks in the basement and finding that I really did need oil, he asked for a shovel and made his own pathway to the attachment point. Many, many thanks to him.

The Southport school children may have been thanking the snow on Thursday, Feb. 6, when school was closed, giving them time to sled ride, skate, and roll in the light, fluffy white stuff.