EXTRA...

Stop 'n Shop prepares for strike; 200 mile Cape Relay Race; Dennis man charged with growing pot in his house; Store owner convicted of sexual assault; The Elizabeth Islands explained; Cape Cod gave the world Sunroots

TODAY's quote: "We are making contingency plans that include placing ads in local newspapers for temporary workers in order to continue business operations in the event there is a work stoppage." - Stop 'n Shop spokeswoman Faith Weiner.

The ad in local newspapers reads: Stop&Shop Now Hiring Temporary Replacement Workers for Cashier and Clerk Positions. The temporary employment would occur in the event there is a strike or lockout because of a labor dispute. Full-time $15.00/hour • Part-time $12.00/hour, 18 years old and older. Bring proof of identity and work authorization. Apply in person at teh store on Route 28 in South Yarmouth.

Stop 'n Shop hit on ‘strike' hiring

Stop & Shop is hiring temporary replacement cashiers and clerks in case contract talks break down with the union representing some 36,000 New England employees.

The Quincy-based supermarket chain has been advertising for full- and part-time workers "in the event there is a strike or lockout because of a labor dispute."

But a union official for one of five United Food and Commercial Workers locals negotiating new three-year contracts called the move "bad theater" and an attempt by Stop & Shop to persuade workers to accept its contract offers... Herald.

The Provincetown Banner reported last week that the union representing workers at Stop & Shop grocery store (in Provincetown) is girding for a battle with management that could send many of the store's almost 100 employees out on strike in two weeks.

Union contracts with 14,000 Stop & Shop workers in Southeastern Massachusetts are set to expire Feb. 20. Store managers have begun advertising in several local newspapers for temporary cashiers and clerks. In addition, the company held several job fairs, including one in South Yarmouth, on Monday to interview prospective workers.
_____

Dennis man charged with cultivating marijuana

Derek Pitcher, 23, is charged with cultivating marijuana at his home at 110 Acorn Rd., South Dennis. Pitcher also faces charges related to two default warrants.
   Just before 10:30 Sunday morning, police received a 911 call from the Acorn Road address, where they had previously responded to domestic disturbances. Officers found marijuana growing in two rooms, including a child's bedroom.
   Pitcher was found hiding behind a child's bunk bed... The Register.

Former Dennisport store owner convicted of sexual assault

A Dennisport man has been found guilty of indecent assault and battery on a child under 14 and sentenced to 2 ½ years in the Barnstable County Correctional facility.
   Richard Macaruso, 58, was convicted after a three-day trial in Orleans District Court. Macaruso operated F.I.T. Games in Dennisport where the incidents that led to the charges against him took place in 2006. Macaruso was convicted of having sexual contact with a then 12-year-old boy... The Register.

Relay race will take runners 200 miles from Quincy to Provincetown

The race course winds its way more than 200 miles from the shores of Boston Harbor to the tip of Cape Cod. Competitors in the inaugural Cape Relay on May 1 and 2 won't be running alone, but as part of six- or 12-member teams...

Teams need to average 11-minute miles to be able to finish the course within the 36-hour time limit, he said. The top teams will finish in 22 to 23 hours, he said... So far, more than 200 teams of runners have registered for the overnight event... Patriot Ledger.
_____

History of Elizabeth Islands shared

Raised on the shores of Buzzards Bay, Seth Mendell had sailed past the Elizabeth Islands countless times.

He was always curious about their history.

So he did what any good history teacher would do: He researched the subject himself... He described how Gosnold sailed "to the New World" from England aboard the Concord with 20 colonists and 12 sailors.

Although Gosnold's original destination was Virginia, he missed his target and landed on Cape Cod in 1602 with four other men, making them the first Englishmen to set foot in New England... Standard-Times.
_____

Foodie Freak: Sunroots
They were discovered by Champlain on Cape Cod

Sunroots are a potato-like tuber that grows underground and looks like really fat ginger. They are a great food for diabetics because sunroots store their starch in the form of inulin (a polysaccharide) and not carbohydrates.

Diabetics can eat sunroots all day long without having blood sugar problems.

You might not be familiar with this vegetable because they've gone through a little identity crisis. For a long time sunroots went by the name "Jerusalem Artichokes" but the title just confused people since they aren't from Jerusalem and they aren't anything like an artichoke. They're actually a variety of sunflower.

Sunroots were "discovered" in a tribal garden in Cape Cod by Samuel de Champlain (in 1605 ACE) who sent them to his homeland, France. He called them "Canadian Artichokes" since he thought they tasted like artichoke hearts.A Swedish Naturalist then renamed them "Topinambour" after a cannibalistic tribe from Brazil (that's a long, dull story) and they are still called that in France today... Lake County News.