Mr. Republician, Meet Mr. Obama.

Two issues ago, we ran a cover story on new arrivals on the East Side. Whereas this area was typified by old family homes that were passed on from parents to children, that clearly isn't the case anymore. Estimates are about a quarter of the East Side has moved in within the last five years. Perhaps one of the more interesting examples of the changing of the guard is observable if you drive down Prospect Street in College Hill. One of the most recognizable estates is the old mansion that was shared by Fred Lippitt and his sister Mary. When they passed away a few years back, the great old brick house and carriage house was left to Brown which then sold it this past year. Fred was known as "Mr. Republican," serving as the minority leader in the House of Representatives for decades before retiring and dedicating himself to a wonderfully wide range of public service, most notable his work on the Providence Plan. Wonder what his thoughts are as one drives by his house now and sees the new owners have an Obama sign perched prominently in the front yard. Probably no big deal, since Fred always had a delightful sense of humor.

Readers, Throw Us A Bone: We Need Local East Side Pet Stories!

We're already planning next month's cover story and we could use the help of all our loyal readers. We recently received a phone call at the office from a Fox Point resident who complained about a dead skunk in his backyard and the difficulty he was having finding anyone to remove it for him. That led to our decision to try and collect the best East Side animal stories we can find on local critters, be they wild or domesticated. We've already got a bunch, but certainly could use more. Please let us hear yours. Call us at the office (521-0023) or email them in to esm@providenceonline.com, whichever is easier. Assuming you're well-trained enough to follow our simple directions, arf arf, we just might have a prize for the best ones.

And This Year's Lecturers Will Be…

Brown graduation is coming up this month, and we assume they will continue their wonderful tradition of bringing in exciting speakers to conduct lectures during the Saturday morning of graduation weekend (Memorial Day weekend as always). We say "assume" because, per usual, Brown doesn't finalize or release the names of the speakers until the eleventh hour. So with that in mind, keep checking with Brown and then wander over to check it out yourself. Town/gown can produce some nice things, not just controversy. So take advantage of what is always one of the nicest weekends on the East Side.

One Man's Wickle Is Another Man's Pickle

While we're on the subject of graduations, one of the timeless Brown traditions will be the opening of the Van Wickle Gates on Prospect Street to allow the graduates through during commencement. Except for the first day of class, the gates remain closed for the rest of the year. Nice tradition, that. Now that Johnson & Wales has established an impressive campus presence downtown with spiffy wrought iron gates of its own, we suggest they might try to emulate this wonderful tradition themselves. However, given their commitment to all things culinary, though, our suggestion is that they rename their entranceway the Van Pickle Gates instead.

Honor Thy Neighbors.

We would be remiss if we didn't mention in passing that two of our favorite East Siders will be honored by VIPS (Volunteers in Public Schools) for their contributions in helping improve education opportunities for Providence school students. Pearl Nathan, an East Side resident seemingly forever, will be awarded VIPS first ever "Knowledge is Power" award. Outgoing RISD President Roger Mandle will be receiving a well-deserved Lifelong Learning Award. The event is a big one and will be held, appropriately, at R.I. Convention Center on Thursday, June 5 at noon. Call 274-3240 for tickets. And congrats to Roger and Pearl for jobs well done.

Baby Greens at Your Doorstep.

We know there are a variety of items that can be delivered direct to your door... pizza of course, milk, dry cleaning. Well, given the East Side's commitment to healthy eating, it seems especially appropriate one innovative RISD grad has begun a service that delivers organically grown salad greens to your home once a week for ten weeks. Grown in Exeter on a year-round basis, the greens come from Jeffrey Kamminga, who has a masters from RISD in landscape architecture and maintains four large greenhouses in Exeter. He now delivers to over 150 subscribers in Edgewood (where he lives) and the East Side, including restaurants. Called Baby Greens, his company has been greening the area since 1993. For more info email him at babygreensri@cox.net or call him at 440-9088. It promotes a healthier lifestyle, it supports local farmers, and you gotta admit, it's very funky.