After 25 years, Daisy Kimberly's Alley Cat is about to sound its last purr as the eclectic Main street boutique in Vineyard Haven is set to close. Mrs. Kimberly said the store will close its doors for good on Jan. 31.

The few cats prowling around the animal shelter are patiently waiting for visitors and/or new owners.

Currently appearing nearly overhead in the night sky is Comet Lovejoy, last seen around these parts 11,000 years ago. Later this winter it will travel back out of our solar system and not return to Earth for another 8,000 years.

An Atlantic sturgeon, once common around the Vineyard but virtually unseen here since the late 1960s, washed up on the north shore on Friday. Fisheries and wildlife officials are investigating the rare find.

Boat line governors addressed a petition protesting fare increases at their regular meeting in Woods Hole on Tuesday, but took no action to roll back hikes. Public testimony addressed perceived problems, but also was peppered with praise for the SSA.

For the past 15 years Megan Carroll has commuted from the Island to her job at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. At a lecture sponsored by Sail MV, she discussed her work on deep-ocean submersibles.