“Soaring Through the Matrix” – a retrospective exhibition and sale of the work of the late Magnus Johnstone – runs through Sunday, August 19.

Magnus Johnstone paintings at the Nave
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Magnus Johnstone, known to many Bostonians from his tenure in town from the ‘70s through the ‘90s as a trailblazing radio DJ (on WZBC 90.3 FM and WMBR 88.1 FM) as well as a visual artist – passed away on February 22, 2013, after a full life filled with art, music and community.

It seems like a complete no-brainer, that we should want to work towards assurance that our local and regional waterways remain clean and uncluttered.

Still, year after year, we turn to the generous volunteer clean-up crews, such as those from Environment Massachusetts collaborated and the Mystic River Watershed Association, to pull out the trash and give the magnificent Mystic River a fresh start once again.

Somerville Pop Warner Football is looking for support from the community through AmberRose Osiris’s GoFundMe campaign.

This is an all-volunteer run organization that supports children in our community by providing them with an opportunity to join organized sports. While costs have been steadily rising they support the children in our community, 2/3 of which receive free or reduced lunch, by keeping their fees low and offering scholarships to those who simply cannot pay but have a passion to play.

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As you know, my usual home away from home is in the Bloc 11 Cafe in Union Square, Somerville. But on this day I was to meet with an old friend, Timothy Gager, at the Diesel Cafe in Davis Square.

The Diesel, although a sister store of the Bloc, has a decidedly different vibe. The space is larger and the crowd seems more eclectic. The baristas seem to dress more radically, and there is almost a friendly but militant sensibility to them, pardon the oxymoron.

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Once in a great while I publish a poem of my own in the column. I was inspired to write this poem after having my car inspected at Aris Auto in Somerville.

Arrests:
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Rodrigo Sette-De Aguiar, of 160 Broadway, August 6, 8:31 p.m., arrested at Bonair St. on charges of negligent attaching wrong motor vehicle, failure to stop for police, assault and battery on a police officer, license revoked as HTO, and resisting arrest.

Cody Domings, of 82 Gilman St., August 8, 8:16 p.m., arrested at McGrath Hwy. on charges of resisting arrest and possession of a class A drug, and on a warrant charge of possession of a class A drug.

Peace Corps volunteer Meg Bolger (right) holds a packet of letters from the Cambridge Citywide Senior Center. Bolger recently organized a letter swap with Cambridge Council on Aging Director Susan Pacheco (left), to help her students in Panama learn English.

By Nathan Lamb

Older adults at the Cambridge Senior Center recently helped Panamanian children practice their English, though a letter exchange organized by a Peace Corps volunteer with local ties.

The swap was conceived by Meg Bolger, a former case manager at Somerville-Cambridge Elder Services (SCES). Bolger is now in her second year in Panama with the Peace Corps, and said the idea came up while teaching Panamanian children a second language.

“What a Circus” taken by Jean-Baptiste Morand from
Joliette, Quebec, Canada. 400 speed film in Diana F+ w/35mm back.]

Since 2013, the Somerville Toy Camera Festival (STCF) has celebrated the quirky and creative results that can happen when photographers are compelled to loosen their controls, submit to the light, and embrace the accidental. Each year since, the Festival jurors have selected work from a wide range of toy camera photographers, both US and international, who will exhibit their work in simultaneous gallery shows throughout Somerville. STCF also features related programming, including artist talks, panel discussions, workshops, social events and a darkroom day.

In July, 4 groups from Somerville community organizations including the Somerville YMCA, Mystic Learning Center, and The Welcome Project, climbed aboard the Bay State Cruise Company’s flagship Provincetown II to Georges Island, for one of Save the Harbor/Save the Bay’s free All Access Boston Harbor cruises.

These youths started the trips cruising the cool, clean waters of the Boston Harbor, learning sea chanteys and history about the Harbor cleanup. Once on Georges Island, these Somerville groups spent the day fishing, crabbing, and exploring Boston’s spectacular urban natural resources.