Projo Offbeat Blog

If you follow the coverage of President Obama's vacation on Martha's Vineyard, you're likely to learn that Vineyarders claim they aren't so impressed by the presence of celebrities.

While the rest of us plebeians might shriek and fumble for our cameras in the presence of the rich and famous, most Vineyarders claim they wouldn't even lift their Ray-Bans for a closer look.

After all, they've lived with celebs like Spike Lee and Carly Simon for years. To believe the legend, Lee might as well be some kid who uploads video to YouTube, and Simon could be an American Idol wannabe.

On its Web site, the Martha's Vineyard Chamber of Commerce boasts about the island's "miles and miles of beach," its "quaint" New England villages and its "respect for celebrity."

But, with President Obama and family on the island, those ultra-cool Vineyarders are apparently finding their nonchalance tested the same way it was tested when President Clinton visited in the 1990s.

Hundreds of people are filling the streets to catch a look at the Obamas, just as they did when the Clintons visited. On Tuesday night, 400 to 500 people gathered for a glimpse when the Obamas went to dinner in Oak Bluffs, according to the Cape Cod Times.

But, hey, maybe those crowds are full of day-trippers from the mainland.

And maybe the people behind these ideas aren't real islanders. But, in addition to all the Obama T-shirts for sale on the Vineyard, you can buy a Barack Obama watch. You can eat a Barack-O-Taco and wash it down with an Obamarita, according to the Cape Cod Times. For dessert, you can walk down the street and buy a Vineyard-shaped cookie that carries a picture of the president.

Vineyarders like to call their island "The Rock." As far as I can tell, nobody has suggested renaming it "The Barock."

But just wait.

 Tags  Martha's Vineyard Obama

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