Plywood came off buildings, terra cotta pots were returned to porches and Labor Day weekend business resumed as usual Saturday morning after Hurricane Earl, downgraded to a tropical storm by the time it reached the Island late Friday night, left the Island unscathed. The storm kicked up high surf along beachfront areas and delivered more than six inches of rain overnight. By early Saturday morning Earl was near Nova Scotia.

Labor Day weekend on the Vineyard usually means bustling harbors, shoppers scouring sale racks and crowded beaches. But Thursday afternoon, Edgartown Harbor was empty, save a few dinghies and commercial boats. A mannequin displaying a raincoat outside of Island Outfitters in Edgartown said it best with its advertisement: “Are you ready for Earl?”

Michele Norris is taking back pancakes. She’s putting down the boxed mix, stepping away from the cupboard and taking on the task of making homemade pancakes with her children. She understands the convenience factor, the ease of adding milk, water or orange juice to the powder to create pancakes in minutes, and was a frequent buyer for one of her son’s favorite foods. But when Ms. Norris found out that her grandmother was a traveling Aunt Jemima, representing the slave cook stereotype that was advertised, the act of buying pancake mix suddenly became complicated.