Dear Sun Spots: I heard a beautiful song sung in a recent television advertisement for Nova Scotia. What language was it in? Who sang it? – No Name, No Town.

Answer: Sun Spots took some time trying to locate this with so little to go on, but after much searching, Sun Spots received a kind e-mail response from Laura Patrick at the Nova Scotia Department of Tourism, Culture and Heritage. Patrick says the song you are seeking is called E Horò and sung by Mary Jane Lamond. It recounts an immigrant’s lament, in simple but poignant poetry, on the numbing experience of Gaels compelled to leave Scotland and settle in the New World. The verses convey potent impressions of the conditions of starving refugee Highlanders. You might like to check out the words, posted online at www.maryjanelamond.com, where you will also learn more about this beautiful singer. In the meantime, the song appears on the CD Suas e! You might check with your local Bull Moose or other music store for this. You might also be interested in noting that in March, Lamond was a double winner at the East Coast Music Awards held in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. She was presented with a matching set of pewter song notes for female artist of the year as well as best solo album for her most recent recording, Storas, (Gaelic meaning “a treasure”). Storas is described as a beautiful interpretation of some of the Scottish Gaelic songs that have become part of Nova Scotia’s Gaelic tradition. Winning the female artist of the year was a broad recognition from across the industry of the Gaelic vocalist’s talent and presence.

And for more on visiting Nova Scotia, check out www.novascotia.com. Sun Spots has many, many fond memories of her trips to Nova Scotia, her husband’s proposal along the Cabot Trail, and her honeymoon a year later in Halifax, Yarmouth and surrounding areas. She’s still smiling almost 16 years later! In fact, she believes it’s time for another camping trip.

Dear Sun Spots: I am very disappointed that Channel 6 took the show Joey off the air. I miss the show already. I looked for the shows of 8 Simple Rules for weeks and weeks but new shows were on instead. What is the address for Channel 8 so that I can write to them? Who is in charge? – A.L., Lewiston.

Answer: Contact ABC’s audience relations via post at ABC TV Networks, 77 West 66th St., New York, N.Y. 10023, or via e-mail at netaudr@abc.com.

Dear Sun Spots: Can someone please tell me how to care for Bee Balm? Mine did beautiful for two years but this year very few plants have come up. – J.D., Canton.

Answer: Sun Spots checked in with gardening columnist Jody Goodwin, who kindly responded to your question. Goodwin says without knowing what might have occurred in this situation, here is a generic answer for you. Bee balm, monarda, is a fairly short-lived perennial that tends to grow well in full sunshine and in normal soil. The problem with the plant sometimes tends to be that when it comes up it can look a lot like many weeds, she says. It comes up in individual stems, as opposed to clumps, and many gardeners – yes, including Goodwin – in their haste to get spring chores done, pull it. It is also overcome quite easily by the roots of other plants. It likes a steady diet of fertilizer and good air circulation. It does NOT like wet soil. If you have planted it where moisture retention is a problem, or where a tree has grown and is now shading it or where other plants have become large, these could all be problems.

This column is for you, our readers. It is for your questions and comments. There are only two rules: You must write to the column and sign your name (we won’t use it if you ask us not to). Letters will not be returned or answered by mail, and telephone calls will not be accepted. Your letters will appear as quickly as space allows. Address them to Sun Spots, P.O. Box 4400, Lewiston, ME 04243-4400. Inquiries can also be posted at www.sunjournal.com in the Advice section under Opinion on the left-hand corner of your computer screen. In addition, you can e-mail your inquiries to sunspots@sunjournal.com.

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