Somerville City Hall,  Saturday, October 29, 2016 ~ Photos by Kevin Dickinson

Somerville voters have been taking advantage of the early voting opportunity over the past couple of weeks. According to the Election Dept., by end of day Monday  some 9,165 voters have already cast early ballots for the General Election set for November 8. Early voting will continue in Somerville until Friday, November 4 in the Board of Aldermen Chambers at City Hall: Wednesday and Thursday, November 2 and 2, 8:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., and Friday, November 4, 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Go to http://www.somervillema.gov/departments/elections for more info, sample ballots, and polling places.

The national and state election is this coming Tuesday, November 8. Please go out and vote. And let’s put an end to the ads, opinions, and nasty wisecracks made about individuals. Actually, thank God this month of November has Thanksgiving, and who knows, maybe after the election is finally over we can all sit down and break bread together once again and enjoy other conversations that are less troubling. Christmas is only 54 days away! Peace!

One thing’s for certain in this crazy, mixed up political season: a lot of people are liking and taking advantage of the opportunity to vote early in this year’s general election.

If there’s one thing that most of us can agree on, it’s that not being tied down to one particular day of the year to get out and vote is a good thing for many of us.

This is my take on a dish I had while visiting the café at the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City. The combination of flavors, sweet and tangy and a mixture of textures go very well together. It makes for a beautiful presentation if you’re having a dinner party. You can place these on an individual dish or on a platter for a buffet. Either way, your guests will be impressed with the presentation.

(The opinions and views expressed in the commentaries and letters to the Editor of The Somerville Times belong solely to the authors and do not reflect the views or opinions of The Somerville Times, its staff or publishers)

The people of Massachusetts have a wonderful opportunity this election to stand up against egregious animal cruelty. It is currently legal in Massachusetts to raise and sell animals for food that have been locked in tiny cages their entire lives, virtually immobilized. It is legal to treat pigs, cows, and chickens in ways that would be felony animal cruelty if done to cats and dogs. We would never even consider treating the most dangerous criminals in ways that are perfectly legal to treat farm animals.

~Photos by Claudia Ferro

Last Friday, students from East Somerville Community School paraded over to the Pearl Street Center and sang for the elderly for Halloween dressed in book character costumes. The audience of seniors was greatly pleased by the performance.

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Sharon Shaloo is putting literature on the map – literally. This executive director for the Mass Center for the Book has been working on creating a literary map of Massachusetts, among her many other projects.

Lee Varon is a social worker and a member of Somerville’s Bagel Bards.

Arrests:
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Benjamin Warren, of  Arlington, October 24, 4:56 a.m., arrested at Beacon St. on a charge of operation of a motor vehicle under the influence of liquor.

Christopher Capone, of  Winthrop, October 24, 9:31 a.m., arrested at Washington St. on warrant charges of armed assault in a dwelling and impersonating a police officer.

Due to high interest in the Solarize Somerville program, Somerville residents and businesses now have more time to take advantage of free solar energy consultations and discounted solar panel purchases being offered for a limited time through the program. Site visits are now extended through November 23 and participants have until December 16 to decide if they would like to go solar. The program uses bulk purchasing to lower the cost of installing solar panels generally by up to 20 percent.