July 2016 | Cape Cod Life

Great teamwork—it’s a cause for celebration!

Cape Cod Life  /  July 2016 / ,

Writer: Brian Shortsleeve / Photographer: Jason Michaud, Josh Shortsleeve, and Tyler Fields 

Great teamwork—it’s a cause for celebration!

July 2016 | Cape Cod Life

Cape Cod Life  /  July 2016 / ,

Writer: Brian Shortsleeve / Photographer: Jason Michaud, Josh Shortsleeve, and Tyler Fields 

June issue Cape Cod LIFE

Aerial drone photograph of the Knob courtesy of Jason Michaud of skyflik.com • June cover photo by Tyler Fields

The June issue of Cape Cod LIFE was the 25th since we introduced our annual “Best of the Cape & Islands Readers’ Choice Awards” issue back in 1992. In my opinion it is our best “Best of” awards issue in 25 years. I would hereby like to thank the Cape Cod LIFE readers, our staff and many freelancers, the finest businesses serving the Cape & Islands who so proudly display their “Best of” awards, our distributors and retailers, and WCVB TV Channel 5’s Chronicle program, plus WMEX Radio in Boston. Together, this whole team has contributed to the great success of this issue. Thank you.

We are most fortunate to have the constant contribution, diligent and devoted effort of our very talented, year-round staff. They interface with a band of equally talented and diligent freelance photographers, writers, and artists. Plus, this year we have the generous help of 10 very capable seasonal interns. Thanks guys.

However, we would be nowhere without our loyal readers. When you take the number of Cape Cod LIFE paid readers and factor in the average pass-along readership per paid copy, you reach a total of a little more than 167,000 readers. To give you an idea of what that looks like: our average total of readers per issue would fill Gillette Stadium in Foxboro approximately two and a half times. If you prefer baseball, our readers would fill the seats of Fenway Park about four and a half times.

These wonderful readers cast a total of 65,295 votes in our 2016 “Best of” contest. Amy Masters, an executive producer for Chronicle, told me the Chronicle team particularly appreciated the fact that it is the “Cape Cod LIFE readers” who decide the award winners.

Magazine “printer extraordinaire” RR Donnelly has printed all of our magazines for years. You be the judge. Our primary wholesale distributor, Hudson RPM, increased the allotments to retailers for this year’s “Best of” issue. In particular, Hudson placed extra copies in pretty much all the major chain stores across Eastern Massachusetts. Among our subscribers whose primary homes are located in Eastern Mass., not including the Cape & Islands, 53 percent own a vacation home on Cape Cod, Martha’s Vineyard, or Nantucket.

A member of our top-notch sales and marketing staff, Julie Wagner, worked with WCVB to make possible the resounding promotion of the “Best of” issue on Chronicle on May 23rd.  At the end of every week Chronicle chooses one of its programs from that week to be re-broadcast on Saturday evening. Chronicle re-ran the Cape Cod LIFE “Best of” program on the Saturday of Memorial Day Weekend. You can’t buy that kind of publicity. Our editor, Matt Gill, was primarily the one interviewed by Chronicle. That’s his first time on TV; around the office, we have since nicknamed him “Star!”

Also, Julie and Matt were both interviewed on WMEX Radio in Boston in May, in a discussion of Cape Cod LIFE’s “Best of” issue. This summer, WMEX will be broadcasting a “Cape Cod Life Minute” every week with “Star” Gill reminding visitors headed for the Cape and Islands of events and activities taking place that coming weekend. He will call in to the show around 11:30 a.m. every Wednesday. My brother Joe and Diane McNamara host a talk show from 10 a.m. to noon on weekdays. Tune in to the “Shortsleeve and Mac” show! on WMEX at 1510 on the AM dial.

Thousands of amateur photographers annually submit captivating photos for our annual photo contest. The winning photos run as an integral part of our “Best of” report. Thank you to all who entered!  Jason Michaud, an aerial videographer, provided the aerial video of the strikingly beautiful nature trail, The Knob in Falmouth, which Chronicle showed during the show’s opening and closing moments. Chronicle staff reported to us that Jason’s video was the “most watched” video of any that Chronicle has run in the program’s 35 years of broadcasting! Learn more about Jason and his work at skyflik.com.

Chronicle ended the half-hour program saying, “We have just scratched the surface” of what you can find in the Cape Cod LIFE “Best of” issue.” Marvelous job, everybody. Thank you.

My Best,

Brian Shortsleeve

Beach Glass Lantern

Photo by Joshua Shortsleeve

P.S. I STAND CORRECTED

In my last column, in the June issue, I wrote about my wife Judy’s collection of “Beach Glass.” I told how I made a “Beach Glass Lantern” for her with small white lights mixed with the colorful glass. I told of her collecting this “Beach Glass” on many oceanfront beaches around the Cape & Islands.

When the issue came out I received an email from my younger brother, Kevin. He was very complimentary about the look of the “Lantern” but told me it is a “Sea Glass Lantern,” not a “Beach Glass Lantern.” He went on to explain that “Beach Glass” is found on the shores of freshwater lakes and rivers; and “Sea Glass” is found on the shores of saltwater oceans and bays.

I think because he has a Ph.D. from Oxford University in England he feels he can be persnickety. These professorial types! Let’s see if he gets a free subscription to Cape Cod LIFE any longer. Sincerely Kev, thanks for the correction.

       Love, Brian

Brian Shortsleeve

Brian Shortsleeve is the owner, publisher, and founder of Cape Cod Life Publications. His personal column, “Gunkholing,” has appeared in all issues of Cape Cod LIFE since the very first issue in 1979.