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b"Ernie DeRaps at Monhegan Lighthouse in 2007. Photo by Jeremy D'Entremont.\\n\\n\\n\\nThis is a special edition of Light\\nHearted, featuring an extended interview with a former lighthouse keeper. Ernie DeRaps, a native Mainer, spent several years\\nin the 1950s and \\u201860s as a Coast Guard lighthouse keeper at four Maine\\nlighthouses \\u2013 Monhegan, Fort Point, Heron Neck, and Browns Head. After\\nretirement he took up painting at the age of 80.\\xa0 Ernie is now in his early 90s, and he has\\ncompleted portraits of all 65 lighthouses on the Maine coast.\\n\\n\\n\\nA book by Ernie DeRaps and his wife, Pauline, was published by Foghorn Publishing in 2006. Ernie\\u2019s half of the book was called Lighthouse Keeping. If you turn the book over and upside down, the other half of the book, by Pauline Fitzgerald DeRaps, was called Light Housekeeping. \\n\\n\\n\\nErnie and Pauline were married for 64 years and had six children. Pauline passed away in 2015 and is, of course, greatly missed, but Ernie is staying busy with his painting, as well as his children, nine grandchildren, and two great grandchildren. Ernie celebrates his 92nd birthday this month.\\n\\n\\n\\nL to R: Jeremy D'Entremont, Ernie DeRaps, Bob Trapani, Jr., in February 2019\\n\\n\\n\\nErnie's painting of Pemaquid Point Lighthouse\\n\\n\\n\\nThe book Lighthouse Keeping / Light Housekeeping by Ernie and Pauline DeRaps is available from Foghorn Publishing. You can see some of Ernie\\u2019s paintings of Maine lighthouses at pigmentartstudio.com. You\\u2019ll see his Lighthouses of the Maine Coast series as well as some nature paintings and seascapes.\\n\\n\\n\\nNote from producer/host Jeremy D'Entremont: I visited Ernie DeRaps at his home in Richmond, Maine, last February. With me was my friend Bob Trapani, Jr., executive director of the American Lighthouse Foundation. Bob took part in the conversation with Ernie. The reason I waited until now to post this interview is that there was a problem with the sound. We recorded the conversation at Ernie\\u2019s kitchen table. As we spoke, Ernie kept tapping his fingers on the table. I was aware of it at the time, but I didn\\u2019t ask him to stop because I was afraid it might interrupt his thought process. I didn\\u2019t think the sound the tapping was making was very significant. It wasn\\u2019t until I listened to the recording later that I realized the tapping went right to the microphone stands and was recorded as a loud \\u201cboing\\u201d every time. For that reason, I shelved the interview for almost a year. But I recently listened to it again and I decided that it would be best to release it in spite of the problem. You can hear everything that\\u2019s said clearly, and Ernie\\u2019s great to listen to and I hated the thought of not using it because of a few little \\u201cboings.\\u201d"