Month: July 2015

If You Have Water Bugs, You Should Have One of These

Posted on by Nichole S.

If your kids are water bugs, like mine, then you need to check out these new KYPADS.  I did a quick blog post about them earlier this spring, but would be remiss to not follow up now that we’ve had the awesome opportunity to demo these incredible boards for a few weeks.

We were lucky enough to take two KYPADS with us to Nantucket back in June and then were thrilled to hang on to them a bit longer so as to hit the beaches around Cape Ann too!

These boards were designed by a some local peeps who had the vision to create boards that are super kid friendly, easy to manage, and up to the challenge of some kid wear and tear.

My humble review of the boards?  Well, first of all, they couldn’t have been easier to get on and off my Jeep…which I might add, is pretty high.  I was able to put them up and strap them on by myself after having gotten the hang of the ratchet straps.  Once the boards were off the Jeep most of the kids that we were traveling with (ages 6-12) had no trouble carrying them down to the beach with no help whatsoever!  That is a HUGE plus!  My absolute FAVORITE thing about the boards?  Each and every child, without exception, quickly mastered how to maneuver the boards and took to the water with no fear, no assistance, and no difficulty. More importantly than that…each child, without exception, came off the water feeling proud of the independence they had just demonstrated…and pretty psyched that they had become so darn good at something so quickly.

My boys can’t get enough of the water.  They are happiest when they are at the beach or on a boat.  To be able to hit the water solo and with such confidence in such a cool way was so excellent for them.  They were so proud of themselves and I couldn’t have been happier.

Check out the KYPADs HERE and learn about how they were created and how fabulous they truly are.

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Row, Row, Row Your Boat … the Blackburn Challenge is Saturday, July 25th.

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

Karen Pischke BSN, RN's avatarCape Ann Wellness

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Row, Row, Row Your Boat …  The Blackburn Challenge is Saturday, July 25th. 

A Marathon for Rowers and Paddlers – the Blackburn Challenge is a ‘marathon’ for rowers is named after famed adventurer Howard Blackburn who demonstrated courage, endurance and perseverance against the odds. Originally from Nova Scotia, Howard Blackburn was fishing out of Gloucester for halibut from the schooner Grace L. Fears. A winter storm came up suddenly, stranding Blackburn and another fisherman in their dory. Blackburn lost his heavy fisherman’s mittens overboard. Knowing that his hands would freeze, he held them in a curved position that would allow him to slip his frozen hands back over the oars. Five days later-days virtually without food, water or sleep, Blackburn had rowed back to shore. His dorymate died en route. Blackburn lost all of his fingers, thumbs, and toe due to frostbite.

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The Blackburn Challenge is a 20+ mile open water circumnavigation of Cape Ann. For…

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Kim Smith Lecture Tuesday Evening at the Chelmsford Public Library

Posted on by Kimsmithdesigns

Please join me Tuesday evening  at 7pm at the Chelmsford Public Library for my lecture The Pollinator Garden. The event is free and open to the public. I hope to see you there!

11a. Pipevine EggsPipevine Swallowtail Butterfly Eggs, East Gloucester

GREAT EGRET: HUNTED TO NEAR EXTINCTION

Posted on by Kimsmithdesigns

Great Egret Gloucester airgrettes ©Kim Smith 2015During the breeding season, Great Egrets grow long feathers from their back called airgrettes.

Great Egret airgrettes ©Kim Smith 2015The airgrettes were the feathers sought by the 19th and early 20th century plume-hunters for the millinery trade.

The magnificent Great Egret was very nearly hunted to extinction during the “Plume Bloom” of the early 20th century. Startling, cumbersome, and hideous, hats were fashioned with every manner of beautiful bird feather. Europeans were partial to exotic birds that were hunted the world over and they included hummingbirds, toucans, birds of paradise, the condor, and emu. The American milinery trade favored herons for their natural abundance. The atrocities committed by the murderous millinery led to the formation of the first Audubon and conservation societies however, what truly led to saving the birds from extinction was the boyish bob and other short hairstyles introduced in about 1913. The short cuts could not support the hat extravaganzas, which led to the popularity of the cloche and the demise of the plume-hunters.

banned-egretsConfiscated dead egrets

humming-birds-rzsThousands of hummingbird pelts at 2 cents apiece

kate-middleton-2-435As absurdly ridiculous now as then

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MISSING EAST GLOUCESTER KITTY

Posted on by Kimsmithdesigns

Have you seen this sweet little kitty anywhere in the neighborhood? Please contact us with any leads. He went missing several days ago. His name is Carlos and he is super sweet and friendly. Carlos has yellow/green eyes and is wearing a blue collar with his name and phone number. Thank you for any information provided.

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Don’t Miss This Photographic Fundraiser for The Cabot Theater by Thom Adorney

Posted on by James Eves

Captivating Moments: Music, Dance, and the American Landscape

The exhibit dates: July 1 – 27
Where: Beverly Public Library, 32 Essex St., Beverly, MA 01915

Photographer Thom Adorney of Beverly, MA will have a photography exhibit at the Beverly Public Library during the month of July. The exhibit will feature photographs of artists, such as Angie Miller, Livingston Taylor, Steve James, and Comedian Patty Ross, who have performed at The Cabot Theater, as well as landscapes from across America.

“I love capturing artists in that exquisite moment when they are lost in the act of creating,” says Thom. “There’s a purity in that.”

A New England native, Thom spent 35 years in Colorado and traveling the West. He’s photographed in the canyon lands of Utah and Arizona, the Colorado Rockies, and the Grand Tetons and Yellowstone in Wyoming. “There’s something supernatural about the vast spaces and dramatic landscapes in the West,” he says. “But the North Shore, with it’s rocky coastline, marshes, and towering woods, is no less beautiful. I’m delighted to have a new palette to work from.”

The photographs in the exhibit, as well as those on his website, will be available to purchase, with a portion of the profits being donated to renovating The Cabot Theater. “Volunteering at The Cabot is truly gratifying,” says Thom. “I feel that I am helping re-create a cultural hub for Beverly and the North Shore.”

 

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James Eves, owner of Cape Ann Giclée, Fine Art Printing and Gallery, is GMG’s Arts Enthusiast and the Calendar Guy. To submit arts related press releases, photos of arts events or any arts related posts email: james@capeanngiclee.com.
To add an event to the GMG Cape Ann Calendar go here to see how to submit events.

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Edited: I Should Have Done Some Research And Planned My Day Better To Be able To Check Out These Awesome Rockport Shops

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

Saturday morning and there had been a couple of shops we discovered on Instagram that we’d been dying to get to.   Got into town around 9 and the Farmer’s Market was in full swing.  Spoke with Lisa “That Nutty Redhead” and Sandy Farrell and a few other cool vendors and then made a great discovery in The Blue Lobster Grille which served up delicious homemade hash with poached eggs over English muffins and hollandaise for only $7.95.  Tremendous discovery that was (we will be back I can assure you).

We took our time and headed down Bearskin Neck after but all the joints we wanted to check out were still closed at 10:00.  They looked cool as hell though.

Sea Again Is a consignment store that often has designer handbags-

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Saltwater Designs-

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Folly Cove Art and Sea-

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It’s on me that I didn’t realize that most of the stores wouldn’t be open by 10:00AM. Next Time I’ll Do My Research Better.

We went to Gloucester and had my eyeglasses repaired at Parrelli Optical on Railroad Ave- just dropped in, had them repaired in like two minutes and then hit up Lynzariums on East Main Street  where I was able to get that awesome plant for the Big Jabroni.  We were really eager to check out those shops in Rockport so we actually drove back in and did 5 loops around from 5 Corners down to Dock Square and around and couldn’t find a parking spot so we gave up and drove to Linens and  Things to get some K Cups and then saw the new Amy Schumer movie Trainwreck  (highly recommended).  Our Rockport mission ended with some highs though in finding Blue Lobster Grill for breakfast and it’s always a nice walk down Bearskin Neck.

We will be back and can’t wait to finally get into these shops as well as some others.

Rolled My First Fatty Today…

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

For More Guy Stuff-
http://www.thehomiecast.com

Joey Ciaramitaro's avatarThe Homie Cast

Made a Bacon Weave On A Piece Of Tin Foil Doubled Over

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Slapped The Ground pork straight From The Package At Stop and Shop Onto The Middle Of The Bacon Weave and Flattened It Out a Bit

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Added Some Sweet Onion And Jalepeno Slivers

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Next Up Some Three Cheese Blend And A Little Rub

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Roll That Fatty Up And Form It With Your Hands (None of This Is Rocket Science BTW)

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Add More Rub

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Set Up The Grill For Offset Cooking. A Chimney Full Of Coals All On One Side Unlit, Half A Chimney That Are Gray and Going On Top, Vents Half Way Closed. – This Is To Cook Low And Slow.

That’s Where I’m At Right Now. Check Back In A Couple Hours…

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Reinhold Niebuhr quote of the week

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

The Quoter is somewhere off the coast of Maine. Please accept this classic from my collection.
Sent from my iPhone

God, grant us the serenity to accept the things we cannot change, the courage to change the things we can, and the wisdom to know the difference.

Reinhold Niebuhr  1892-1971

A theologian claimed as an influence by Martin Luther King, Madeline Albright, John McCain, Hilary Clinton, and Barack Obama, Niebuhr was the principal proponent of Christian Realism and was alternately attacked and supported by both liberals and conservatives during his most active period of ministry between the First and Second World Wars. A major component of his work centers on the idea that pride is the root of much of the evil in the world. His books include The Children of Light and the Children of Darkness (1944) and The Irony of American History, (1952). He was awarded the Medal of Freedom in 1964.

Greg Bover

Hungry Horrors

Posted on by Nichole S.

This hungry tree that has seemingly swallowed its street sign has intrigued me for years.  I think it screams “children’s book”….I might just have to get on that.

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