BALTIMORE -- Red Sox legend Carl Yastrzemski underwent triple bypass surgery at Massachusetts General Hospital, and was said to be doing well when the procedure was finished at roughly 8 p.m. ET on Tuesday.

Yastrzemski's family released the following statement: "Carl Yastrzemski arrived at Massachusetts General Hospital on Monday after experiencing chest discomfort. After numerous tests and evaluations, it was determined that he needed triple bypass surgery, which was performed this afternoon. The surgery was a complete success and he is resting comfortably. We are most grateful for all of the prayers and support we have received." Story continues..

The invaders are nearly invisible -- even from a short distance -- but they're lurking in trees, such as maples, in Worcester's Greendale section. Their damage is obvious, but the extent of it is uncertain.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (U.S.D.A.), says they threaten billions of dollars in losses to lumber, maple syrup, nursery and tourism industries. Story continues..

DURHAM (AP) - On a recent scorching-hot summer day, workers at Reed's Firewood used heavy equipment to cut and split logs into firewood until it was too dark to see.
Despite its relentless pace, the family-run business is failing to keep up with demand as homeowners shellshocked by the price of heating oil look to old-fashioned firewood as a way to lower their bills this winter. story continues..

See article ---> »Massachusetts Signs New Broadband Law

They're getting ready to christen a new lobster cooker that'll serve up thousands of pounds at the Maine Lobster Festival.

The festival has replaced its well-worn, decades-old cooker with a new one that features eight stainless steel cooking tubs, each of which can cook 150 pounds of lobster at a time.

A stunning Navy decision to abort a $20 billion plan for a new fleet of destroyers yesterday threw into question the future of Raytheon Co.'s largest defense program and renewed longstanding concerns about the fate of the Bath Iron Works shipyard in Maine.

Waltham-based Raytheon is the prime contractor for the ship's combat systems, which are being developed at its Tewksbury and Andover plants. Assembly work on the guided-missile destroyers was to have been divided between the 124-year-old Bath shipyard, owned by General Dynamics Corp., and a yard in Mississippi. story continues..

CONCORD, N.H. (AP) _ Two years ago, New Hampshire refused to accept heating oil from Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, the pro-Castro U.S. critic who once called President Bush "the devil." But with fuel prices rising, well, free oil is free oil.

With the state's blessing, New Hampshire residents will be receiving some of the fuel this winter. Story continues..

The intense fire started around 9:30 a.m., and black smoke could be seen from the bridge linking Wiscasset and Edgecomb, about 10 miles away.

"I've never seen smoke like that," said Kristina Ford, who lives near the boatyard.

Bostonians eagerly awaiting Independence Day may have something to look forward to in the heart of the Charlestown Navy Yard.

A new, 8,500-square-foot, $3.3 million visitor center, commemorating 174 years of Boston’s naval history, will open its doors to the public in Building 5 Thursday morning. story continues..

MILLINOCKET, Maine - Mainers call the black fly the state bird.

Residents and tourists have long steeled themselves against the flies' annual warm-weather onslaught, sometimes duct-taping pant legs and wearing screened hoods to keep the deceptively small bugs from delivering bloody bites or crawling into seemingly every body crevice. story continues..

ORLEANS — Recreational fishermen were not happy with the announcement yesterday by the National Marine Fisheries Service that, as of Jan. 1, 2009, they will need to register with the federal government to catch striped bass and other saltwater species.

While filing with the registry is technically not a license, recreational fishermen will not be allowed to fish in federal waters without first registering their name, address and phone number with the National Marine Fisheries Service. Federal waters are generally set from 3 miles to 200 miles from shore.

Cape Cod Times article:
»www.capecodonline.com/apps/pbcs.···/NEWS01

Red tide halts shellfish harvesting

Red tide forced state public health officials yesterday to close Boston Harbor to shellfishing for the first time in 36 years, making this year's outbreak one of the worst.

The single-celled algae carry toxins that concentrate over time in shellfish, such as soft-shell clams and mussels, making them poisonous, even lethal. Red tide often occurs in late spring and summer, when algae grow rapidly. Crabs, lobsters, fish, and shrimp are not affected. story continues..

WELLFLEET, Mass. - Local historians for decades thought the 30-foot tall lighthouse that once overlooked Wellfleet Harbor had been taken down and destroyed in 1925.

Turns out, it had just been moved to the California coast.

Wellfleet historian Helen Purcell says the discovery of the lighthouse at Point Montara, 25 miles south of San Francisco, was a genuine shock.

»news.yahoo.com/s/ap/odd_lighthouse_located

Even as swank steel and glass office buildings rose up around it, the squat, wooden James Hook & Co. lobster warehouse remained near Rowes Wharf in downtown Boston, a modest, even grubby reminder of Boston's seafaring soul.

Operated by four successive generations of Hook family members since 1925, the company kept its homespun feel even as it grew to become one of the country's largest lobster distributors. Relatives could often be found serving lobster rolls at the lunch counter, packing lobsters for shipping, or crunching numbers in the office. story continues..

More than 60,000 pounds of live lobsters - worth more than a half-million dollars - were lost in the blaze.

PORTLAND, Maine—Bath Iron Works hasn't built a Coast Guard ship since the 1930s, but it's made the list of finalists vying to build a fast-response cutter, a contract that could provide stability for workers while developing new markets for the company.
more stories like this

The Coast Guard winnowed the number of applicants this month based on their ability to meet its demands. Because of secrecy surrounding the competitive bidding process, it's unknown how many other competitors made the cut. The winner is to be announced in July. story continues..

US Senator Edward M. Kennedy left Massachusetts General Hospital today and returned to Hyannis Port, heading home a day after the world learned that the last surviving brother of the famed Kennedy clan had been diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor.

By JERRY HARKAVY

BATH, Maine - The Navy's newest guided missile destroyer was christened Saturday with the name of a fighter pilot who spent 7 1/2 years in captivity in North Vietnam, received the Medal of Honor and served as presidential candidate Ross Perot's running mate.

Four Medal of Honor recipients and seven former prisoners of war attended the ceremony at Bath Iron Works that marked a milestone in construction of the 9,200-ton ship named for Vice Adm. James Stockdale.

»news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080510/ap_···stening

By JOHN RICHARDSON

But Matt Sargent and his friends couldn't wait for the prizes. Not with gas prices shooting up 71 cents per gallon in the past year -- 37 cents in the past month alone.

JONESPORT — For the first time in 24 years of building lobster boats, Wayne Beal doesn't have any job orders.

In Maine, where lobster is king, Beal and other lobster boat builders are braving tough times. With the lobster catch down and fishermen feeling an economic squeeze, boat sales have hit the skids.

"There's not a lot of guys making the move to take on a new boat. And the economy is on its face, too."

»pressherald.mainetoday.com/story···c=PHnws

HANOVER, N.H. — A former Dartmouth College teacher and medical school researcher sent e-mails to some of her former students saying she plans to sue them because they "harassed, compromised, abused or discriminated against" her.

Priya Venkatesan, 39, who received her bachelor's degree from Dartmouth in 1990, last week e-mailed the former students in her Science, Technology and Society course with the news that she is pursuing a federal civil-rights lawsuit against some of them. story continues..