Martha's Vineyard Succumbs to Obamamania

The very blue state of Massachusetts may be one of the few places they can stand this guy any more. We'll see how much longer that lasts.

It's possible to spend an entire day on Martha's Vineyard eating and shopping your way through presidential memorabilia and hype.

And Oak Bluffs is a hub.

You can start the day at Martha's Vineyard Gourmet Café & Bakery, nibbling on a presidential sugar cookie for $3.50. The cookie is shaped like the island, iced with white frosting and blue and red stars. In the center: Obama's head.

"His face is edible paper," said bakery co-owner Rita Brown.

"It's special inks," adds co-owner Janice Casey. Their baker, Rafi Jabri, a new American citizen originally from Jordan, is thinking up other presidential confections in the back. Perhaps the first family's photo on apple fritters.

"We'll see what comes out of the kitchen," Casey said.

Walk a few steps beyond the bakery, and you can get a new brew, "Presidentiale," at Off Shore Ale Brewery. It's a pale ale — not too bitter — that's taking off with the informal name of "Ale to the Chief," said brewer Neil Atkins.

Seeking something stronger? At nearby Sharky's Cantina, you can order the mandarin Obamarita to accompany your Barak-O-Taco, filled with coconut shrimp and pineapple salsa.

If you're done eating for the moment, take a walk down Circuit Avenue. There's one T-shirt with Obama's face on it — and another and another and another. There's the $29.99 water-resistant Obama watch, sold with a lifetime guarantee. There's a $1,100 limited edition "Yes We Can" Giclee print by artist Harry Seymour, with the president and Michelle Obama facing each other, clicking knuckles.

Keep walking. You'll get to Good Dog Goods, where they're selling Edgartown residents John and Cynthia Farrington's "New Dog in Town" T-shirt for $18, with a Portuguese water dog on the front. The T-shirt is part presidential, since the Obamas have that breed. But it's also part local humor, according to John Farrington, referring to The Black Dog Tavern Inc. logos that have long been associated with the island.

"It could mean it's time for a change," he said.

If I were there it would mean it's time to catch the next ferry back to the mainland.