On Monday morning the ferry Martha's Vineyard will arrive at the Oak Bluffs Steamship Authority terminal. The landing will be without fanfare, although it marks a milestone on the path to a new Island summer.

When the Oak Bluffs dock workers and crew of the vessel exchange lines for the first time, the season of summer can be said to begin. The Steamship Authority's new summer schedule opens, and with it come seasonal fare hikes for travelers to and from the Island.

Aquinnah voters have much to talk about before their annual town meeting on Tuesday, May 13. There is a race for selectman between the incumbent Karl Burgess and a challenger, Jim Newman, 65, a former educator. Both candidates have a history with the finance committee.

After a period of lying fallow, Katama Farm will be traditionally farmed again. The Edgartown Conservation Commission on Wednesday night agreed to lease the historic property to FARM Institute.

Their decision brings the 180-acre farm back into the Island farming community. It also allows FARM Institute the opportunity to expand its role of helping young people learn the ways of agriculture.

The lobster fishery in the waters around Martha's Vineyard has collapsed. Today a new minimum size for lobsters goes into effect. The increase, a tiny fraction of an inch, it is being imposed in an effort to protect juvenile lobsters. Another increase will take place on July 1, but many fisheries experts concede these steps are too late, the horse is already out of the barn.

War with Iraq was the top subject in class and on the minds of regional high school students and teachers on Wednesday. Close to 600 students gathered in the school Performing Arts Center to express their opposition to the war.

They are the Island's most beloved bridges. The Big Bridge and the Little Bridge are going to be rebuilt in concrete, if the state has its way.