— Photos by Jeffrey Shwom

By Jeffrey Shwom

With the TVs turned off, and the horns and brass held high, the crowd at Sally O’Brien’s ,  took in the BT / ALC Big Band (www.btalc.com) for two sets of big band funk and soul. A 12-piece band led by Brian Thomas and Alex Lee Clark, every Second Thursday. The bar and music venue features residencies of long time Somerville and Cambridge bands like The White Owls (Dennis Brennan), Dub Apocalypse (a former mainstay at the since closed Bull McCabe’s) and the Gravel Project (every third Thursday). Visit www.sallyobriensbar.com for showtimes and menu.

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This is a great recipe if you have a craving for a rich, dairy free, yet cheesy, and delicious substitute for the real thing. It’s so satisfying that you will want to go back for seconds!

The President’s Day holiday puts us in mind of those great leaders who governed throughout our country’s tumultuous history: The American Revolution, the Civil War, two world wars, the Great Depression, the Civil Rights movement, Vietnam, and so on.

Greatness was thrust upon certain holders of that office by events that shaped their legacies, while others are relegated to general obscurity due to a lack of conflict and controversy during their times in office. Each one’s tenure in office should be regarded as equally important. In as much as big events could have elevated their place in history at a moment’s notice.

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Review by Off the Shelf Correspondent Dennis Daly

Use of the third person plural in poetry not only draws the writer away from the overly fashionable confessional style of versifying but adds a sense of universality and transcendence to the wordcraft. The ability to connect the emotions and thoughts of a multitude suggests either deep arrogance (in bad poetry) or collective insight and consciousness (in good poetry). There are obvious pitfalls. For instance, “we” could simply be used as a metaphor for “I.” Or the writer may project his revelations onto others without any real sapience. Eric Greinke’s masterfully edited anthology entitled Speaking For Everyone avoids the pitfalls of this genre and, in his inspired choices of good poetry, bonds together the fears and hopes and commonalities inherent in the nature of mankind.

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Carolynn Kingyens was born and raised in Northeast Philadelphia. She’s the author of two poetry books, Before the Big Bang Makes a Sound (2020) and Coupling (2021), both published by Kelsay Books. In addition to poetry, Carolynn writes essays, reviews, and short fiction. Two of her short stories were selected for Best of Fiction 2021 and 2023 by Across the Margin, a Brooklyn arts and culture webzine. Her essay There’s A Tiffany In Every Dysfunctional Family, about Somerville’s own Tiffany Sedaris, the youngest sister of David and Amy Sedaris, can be read on her Medium page along with more essays ranging from true crime to The Royal Family.  This poem was first published in Red Eft Review.

Sink your teeth into award-winning pizza at June Bug.~Photo by Bobbie Toner

By Cathleen Twardzik

Somerville restaurant June Bug is one winner of an eating spot.

In fact, they were just crowned “The Best of Somerville: Winner of Best Pizza.”

In recognition of Black History Month, Somerville community members are invited to join the City’s Department of Racial & Social Justice and the Somerville Museum for a panel discussion on the Black diaspora, how Black history has influenced the arts and culture, and the imperative of preserving Black history in our community. The panel will consist of community organizers, activists, and City library staff.

City buildings will be closed Monday, February 17, in observance of Presidents’ Day. Trash and recycling collection will be delayed by one day.