Obama-Mania Rises in Martha's Vineyard

Obama-mania is hitting Martha's Vineyard, especially Oak Bluffs, the African American enclave very close to Blue Heron farm, where the Obama family will reside, later in August.

 Sharky's Obamarita is made with real mandarin orange puree, rumored to be President Obama's favorite fruit. Martha's Vineyard Times reports strong sales of Obamaritas at Sharky's. The drink is made with mandarin oranges, rumored to be POTUS's fav fruit. (Canned oranges, Mr. President?) Mandarin organges are pureed with 100 percent real lemon and lime sour mix, triple sec, Sauza tequila, and a splash of pineapple juice in honor of Hawaii.

Check out Good Taste: Care for a drink? Part two on Martha's Vineyard Times for more libations waiting for the Obama drowd.

To their credit, The Martha's Vineyard Times doesn't have Obama-mania from what I can see. It remains a newspaper for the people of Martha's Vineyard.

President Obama will arrive on Aug. 23 to the house at Blue Heron Farm. Michelle and the girls will come earlier.

Martha's Vineyard merchants and service providers hope to make up for the dreadful loss of business, during June's 25 days of rain.

Politically, Martha's Vineyard is Obama Country. Seventy-five percent of MV voters went for Obama.

A woman wearing a T-shirt that reads "Relax It's All About the Vineyard" in the town of Oak Bluffs on Martha's Vineyard. via NYTimesT-shirts with slogans like “Summer White House ’09” and “Barackin’ the Vineyard Summer ’09” hang in stores, posters welcoming the family are selling for $3.99 and an oil painting called “Yes We Can — Fist Bump” is on sale in a local gallery for $1,100.

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Undaunted, the O-Fashionistas Focus on Michelle's Summer Vacation in Martha's Vineyard

Writing for Telegraph UK, Hannah Betts gives Michelle a hand in selecting outfits for her upcoming holiday on Martha's Vineyard. POTUS says that he can wander around without shaving. We all agree that the First Lady will be heavily scrutinized.

For starters, the First Lady's style is already good-to-go for Martha's Vineyard. Oak Bluffs as their residence remains unconfirmed.

Betts writes that Michelle must be sharp and stylish, in a nonchalant, effortless kind of way. This is her 'natural' style and shouldn't be difficult. I would add that the First Lady dresses with wit and whimsy at times. It's at these moments that her self-expressive style draws controvery.

Based on last week's low-profile 'spouse' profile, let's see if Michelle stays classically modern or retains a bit of rebellious whimsy in her wardrobe.

Betts recommends that Michelle take a look beyond J Crew, into Ralph Lauren's 'Lauren' label, launched exclusively in London At House of Fraser.

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The Life and History of Oak Bluffs Will Be Rewritten Forever

via kmcryer at FlickrPolitico says that indeed the Obamas are headed for Oak Bluffs, a primarily African American enclave on Martha's Vineyard for an August vacation. AP agrees and Huff Po picked up the story.

(See my April 8, 2009 posting Are the Obamas Headed to Oak Bluffs on Martha's Vineyard? It features the PBS Independent Lens presentation A Place of Our Own, and the history of Oak Bluffs, as an African American vacation enclave.)

Unlike the 'fact' that the Obamas have finally settled on a church at Camp David, this news seems fit to print in our fast-moving digital world.

On the ground, writing for Martha's Vineyard Magazine on June 25, 2009, Kate Feiffer says the rumors are exhausting. The other big 'will she or won't she' gossip is that Chelsea Clinton will be married on Martha's Vineyard in August. Denials persist, but people in the know say 'yes'. A Google search for the past week only brings up the false church story, so we're neutral on this one.

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Are the Obamas Headed to Oak Bluffs on Martha's Vineyard?

Updated on Wednesday, July 1, 2009 at 8:16AM by Editor

The Boston Globe is reporting that the First Family will vacation in Oak Bluffs, the enclave on Martha's Vineyard's northeast shore that is very popular with African Americans like Spike Lee, former presidential advisor Vernon Jordan, Charles Ogletree and Oprah.

In a PBS Independent Lens presentation A Place of Our Own, we learn that people of African descent first came to Martha’s Vineyard in the 1600s, when West African slaves worked on the farms of early settlers. After slavery was abolished, the island became a popular destination for freed blacks, who came to work in the fishing industries, in turn attracting black residents from the Massachusetts mainland, who came and started businesses to serve the Vineyard’s growing population.

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