Late afternoon, June 17, 1994. I was just three months into my spanking new journalism career when I walked into the newsroom to an unsettling sight. All of the editors, typically splayed out at manageable distances around the newsroom, were standing in one spot in the middle of the room. Managing editors, copy editors, daytime […]
Mark LaFlamme
Posted inbPlus, sj-web
Catch the craze: HQ Trivia
Every night, at 9 p.m. sharp, Phoebe Chamberlin, Spencer Emerson and their crew answer the call. The call is just a simple phone alert, letting the gang of six know that it’s time to play HQ Trivia. For the next 10 or 15 minutes, the four young men and two young women will work together, […]
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Posted inLewiston-Auburn, Mark LaFlamme
Street Talk: No prescription necessary
The woman was a ragged mess, her nerves jangled, her guts in a knot. She was having problems with one of her grown children and it left her frantic. Unsettled. Paralyzed at times with gnawing fears of the creeping unknown. A few years beyond 80, she went in desperation to her local pharmacist, in search […]
Posted inLewiston-Auburn, Mark LaFlamme
Street Talk: The old man and the streetwalkers
Hardly a day goes by when I’m not asked one question or another about the working girls of downtown Lewiston. You know the working girls. They stand on the corners along Pine and Ash, trying to look sexy in five layers of winter garb. They offer a sly glance as you drive by in the […]
Posted inMark LaFlamme, sj-web
Talk of the town: Don't look at me in that tone of voice
Comfortably numb So, some young lady claims she was ordered by an airline to flush her comfort hamster down an airport toilet. That’s sad. It reminds me of the time years ago when I was forced to flush my comfort Pabst under similar circumstances. Broke my heart to do it. Tsunami! Nope. Sorry. False alarm. […]
Posted inLewiston-Auburn, Mark LaFlamme
Street Talk: A trip to Cooper Spring
Every month, like clockwork, we make the journey north — or possibly west — to fill our water jugs at the Cooper Spring in Buckfield. Or possibly South Paris, it depends on which map you’re using. The ride to the spring is half the fun. The journey takes us down the winding roads of Minot, through bucolic […]
Posted inMark LaFlamme, sj-web
Talk of the town: Hits from the '70s
Lights out The previous weekend was marked by repeated and sustained power outages across large sections of Lewiston. I should point out that in the case of an electrical outage, a battery-powered toilet light faithfully remains working, saving God only knows how many people from accidentally doing their business in bathtubs and sinks. Not to […]
Posted inbPlus, sj-web
From atop Auburn's slippery Goff Hill, Bill Hamilton sees all
AUBURN — A word of advice for wintertime driving: If you see Bill Hamilton standing at the side of Goff Hill and waving his arms at you, mind your driving. He’s not just being friendly — Hamilton is trying to keep you from slipping and sliding into oblivion. Trust us, he knows plenty about the […]
Posted inLewiston-Auburn, Mark LaFlamme
Street Talk: A gift of inches and seconds is the difference between life and death
To this day, I’m not sure if the Trans Am rolled once or twice before rocking back onto its tires in the middle of that field in Oakland. We had been trucking down Fairfield Street at twice the speed limit, beers between our legs, when some fool suddenly slowed in front of us. Brakes screamed. The […]
Posted inMark LaFlamme, sj-web
Let's blame the shadowy figures
What evil lurks in the hearts of men? Police were sent to East Avenue in Lewiston last week after a woman reported she came home and spotted a “shadowy figure” moving around at one of her windows. Nothing much came of the call, likely because the correct terminology was not used. It has always been […]