My View of Life on the Dock
Update to the Restaurant Update: No takeout meals, but Tonno Gloucester is offering produce boxes ($45 each for a fruit box or a vegetable box) as well as rigatoni, bolognese and tomato sauce. I also noticed they were offering their wine and rocks glasses (nice!). Wednesday June 3 pickup 4:30 PM to 6 PM. (Mixed fruit pickup Thursday) Order online here: https://www.toasttab.com/TONNO/v3 Thank you Tonno!
Ospreys seem to be plentiful this year, including the pair in the marsh behind Lobsta Land. There are 3 eggs in that nest and you can watch progress on the osprey cam (link: https://ecga.org/Osprey-cam) The Essex Greenbelt website reports that “Annie” and “Squam” are tending to three eggs, the first of which is expected to hatch around June 15.
We have been keeping an eye on them from the road, but watching on the webcam is much much better! A screenshot from the webcam taken today May 31. One appeared to be feasting in the nest while the other watched from a safe distance.
Here’s another I took earlier this season before the eggs appeared. Obviously the webcam is a much better view.
And another taken in flight recently. They are magnificent.
Sharing information that might be helpful. I urge you to do your own research with sources that are reliable and that you trust.
Several reliable news agencies are reporting that people are receiving postal mail from the Money Network Cardholder Services that looks like junk mail but contains a stimulus debit card! If you have not received expected stimulus money, check your mail delivery carefully for a plain white envelope from the Money Network Cardholder Services in Omaha Nebraska. It does indicate Presorted First Class mail.
Some of the news services covering this include NBC News, Forbes, and the link the IRS provides: https://www.eipcard.com/
Images provided borrowed from wwitv.com and wrcbtv.com
Art Haven staff decorated the outside of the building in an effort to cheer everyone up. It worked!
They are working on their summer classes (pending the virus situation) potentially to begin late June. Classes under consideration include Clay, Comics, Tie-Dye, Whale Week and many others. More information will appear on their website: arthaven.org so stay tuned! Thanks for the extra beauty boost!
Today, May 30, is considered now to be “traditional” Memorial Day. As I am a traditional kind of girl, I consider May 30 to be the “real” Memorial Day so I’d like to pay another tribute to a Gloucester man killed in action during World War II at the tender age of 19.
Gordon A. Tyne, son of Everett and Mary Ambrose Tyne, joined the Merchant Marines in June of 1942 as was a Deck Cadet aboard the MS American Leader. The ship was carrying “general cargo of war” and was sailing from New York to the Persian Gulf for Russia.
According to the Kings Pointers of World War II website: At about 1930 on September 10th, the American Leader ran afoul of the German Navy commerce raider, Michel, a converted merchant ship that had been operating in the South Atlantic. The Michel, disguised as a neutral merchant ship, fired on the American Leader, with deck guns and then launched two torpedoes. The Michel’s crew managed to destroy two of the lifeboats as the crew attempted to launch them, forcing the crew to abandon in life rafts. The American Leader sank in about 25 minutes, and ten crew members, including Deck Cadet Gordon Tyne and Engine Cadet Joseph C. DiCicco, were killed in the attack and went down with the ship. The 39 crew members and nine Naval Armed Guard who survived the sinking were taken prisoner by the Michel.
Gordon Tyne was a member of the Class of 43 at Kings Point but sadly prior to then when he was only 19 years old.
The story of the MS American Leader is a pretty interesting read and you can find an account here by its Captain George Duffy. The POW tales seem particularly grim.
It’s interesting to note that Gordon Tyne was a cousin to Jeffrey Gordon Tyne, whom I profiled in this post for Monday’s Memorial Day observation. Since Gordon died in 1942, and Jeffrey was born in 1945, I can only imagine his middle name was to honor his cousin. This is one Gloucester family that paid a very high price in service to country. I am pleased to share his story and honor his memory.
The story of Gordon Tyne, the MS American Leader and other Merchant Marines who died during World War II is told in the book Braving the Wartime Seas: A Tribute to the Cadets and Graduates of the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy and Cadet Corps Who Died During World War II by the American Maritime History Project is available at Amazon if you are interested. Book cover image borrowed from Amazon.
We took a little drive around and this is some of what made me smile. I hope the same for you.
There’s just something about goslings and ducklings that screams “How cute is this?”
Follow is our updated list (May 28) of available online information shared by Gloucester restaurants offering groceries, pantry items, essentials in addition to take out menu items. As always, call ahead to confirm availability.
It’s that time of year when we start to look forward to the local farmers’ markets; Magnolia Community Farmers Market (usually held on Lexington Avenue) and the Cape Ann Farmers Market (usually held at Stage Fort Park). Each organization has made changes to cope with the virus and to also allow us to access the usual array of goods.
The Magnolia Community Farmers Market has gone virtual with weekly online shopping and curbside pickups starting this Sunday May 31. Pickup times are from 10 AM to 1 PM. Online shopping Monday thru Friday at noon each week. Call 978-335-8475 or check their website at www.magnoliacommunityfarmersmarket.com I believe our friend Donna has posted about this previously so thanks for the heads-up!
The Cape Ann Farmers Market has also made changes which will include moving to the O’Maley Innovation Middle School parking lot for drive-through market Thursdays starting June 4 3 PM – 6:30 PM. More information can be found at www.capeannfarmersmarket.org Drive through and pre-order only…no walkups . Vendors are listed at the website so be sure to check there first!
Images and information obtained from their websites as well as from DiscoverGlouceter.com
The minute I noticedEn Vogue Salon announce their re-opening date, I contacted my favorite hair stylist Josie. She slotted me in for noon yesterday (Tuesday) and it turns out I was her first client in the reopening phase. I was so happy to see her! And it looked like she was happy to see me too, even if my hair wasn’t showing off her best skills by then…..
In case you are wondering, staff is making extra efforts to sanitize, distance and be safe. I waited outside until Josie was ready for me. My temperature was taken at the door and I used the hand sanitizer. I was asked for contact information which was recorded in case needed in the future. I was also asked a couple of screening questions about my current health. Those introductory measures only took a very few minutes.
Josie washed my hair and sent me to her chair while she santitized the shampoo chair. We each wore our masks throughout. I will advise you to think about your mask choice carefully. The “gaiter” style makes the hair cutting more difficult. Anything that ties behind your head would do the same so you want one that is secured by your ears instead of around your head. All her cutting equipment was going into its own container for sanitization. Then off I went with my new, refreshed, Phase 1 in Reopening hair!
After:
Before:
I know it might not look very different to you, but I am feeling pretty snazzy. Thank you Josie and En Vogue staff! 978-281-8870
They looked especially poignant in the sun and fog.
The Cape Ann Chamber’s list of restaurants updated as of May 22 :
Cape Ann Retailers updated May 19:
Pharmacies, Grocery Stores, Markets, Farm Stands and Convenience Stores updated May 22:
Banks and USPS updated May 21:
I like to sit on the wall by the cove and watch the vessels return to port. I picture myself as part of the welcome home team.
From the Tonno Gloucester Facebook page, we read with regret that Tonno has decided to forgo takeout after this upcoming weekend (wed-Sat May 27-30)
It was great to see everyone as we tried takeout over the past few weeks. It was pretty fun to come up with some out of the box ideas like virtual wine dinners and market items to sell. Unfortunately takeout was not as busy as we hoped and at this time just does not make sense for us to continue. Next week will be our last week doing takeout as we have decided to close down and reopen when the time is right. Next week we will continue with our menu and Market items (produce boxes as well). As always we promise to try as hard as we can and always serve you right. We felt obligated to extend these services to our community for another week because we truly believe it is a safe convenient way for people to access great food in tough times. Check back soon for updates. Love you all, be safe Cape Ann.
We look forward to their return!
Memorial Day is intended to honor those who died in service and this is just one of those stories. It reflects one Gloucester family’s sacrifice. These themes run through each and every military loss of life so our hearts are with all the families out there who have suffered such loss.
This is Jeffrey Gordon Tyne’s 1964 Gloucester Flicker yearbook entry. He looks suitably “adult” here, though the listed interests and activities seem to reflect how young he really was even on the brink of high school graduation.
Less than 2 years after his graduation, he was killed in Vietnam on May 29 1966. Here’s the account from the Boston Record American (obtained from GenealogyBank.com) June 3 1966:
The Vietnam War Memorial Wall of Faces shares further remembrances of “Doc Tyne”, who, by all accounts had been home in Gloucester for Mother’s Day and dead in Vietnam by the end of the same month. This link includes this touching memory:
Jeff and I went through training together at Camp lajune NC. We landed in Viet Nam on 29 May 66 and took a jeep from the airport in Denang out to our company’s outpost. The chief that we met said that a corpsman was needed in the field right away so we flipped a coin to see who would go out to the field and Jeff wound up going out that night. The next morning the chief the chief woke me up informing me that Jeff had gotten killed and that I was needed in the field.
His parents, Frank and Mary and his younger siblings were left with whatever memories they held in their hearts for the remainder of their lives. In fact, his father Frank (himself a World War II veteran) outlived another son, Frank “Billy” Tyne who was lost in the sinking of the Andrea Gail in 1991. This family’s story seems to personify the history of Gloucester and should be shared on an occasion such as Memorial Day. God Bless the Tyne family and all other affected families for their sacrifices.
In addition to the breathtaking display of red, white and blue on the Boulevard, military flags are also on display to honor the Army, Navy, Marines, Coast Guard and Air Force. What a majestic display of patriotism!
Gloucester Elks 892 organized a group to help place flags to honor veterans at the Oak Grove Cemetery yesterday morning. We were able to join the other volunteers like Jill, Steve, Robyn, Maureen, Margaret, Patty and Jerry, Brandon, Evan and Venus, Patty and Dan. These cemetery flags don’t appear by magic, but rather by the efforts of volunteer efforts such as there. Thanks to all assisting with honoring our veterans all over the city, state and country.
I was excited to notice the Cupboard at Stage Fort Park is now serving food as well as ice cream. However, their Facebook page reports their phone lines weren’t working as of Saturday May 23 so please use the alternate number listed there. I don’t want to post a personal cell number on the blog, so please feel free to click the link for the number.
Patiently waiting.
