Author: Pat D

We had a comfortably relaxed dinner at the new Office at George’s. The former ice cream spot is nicely transformed into pub style dining. Sandwiches, wraps and dinner platters are served by friendly staff in a welcoming atmosphere.

I couldn’t resist trying the margarita flight offered by bartender Michael. There are two sweeter versions (Cherry Ice and Blue Hawaiian) and two citrus selections ( Apple Lemon and Orange). Michael is tracking everyone’s favorites for future cocktail selections. It’s nice to know customer preferences are being taken into account!

Jim ordered the mountainous Breakfast burger and I tried out the Buffalo wings. The wings were great:saucy and meaty. The Buffalo sauce did not disappoint.

The place was busy, but appropriately distanced and sparkling clean. Prices are reasonable. At a nearby table, dessert was clearly a big hit. We will return. Thanks Rachelyn and Michael!

When visitors ask where they should go, I always recommend the Harbor Loop. I think it’s beautiful in so many ways and tells one of the stories of our fair city. So, I took a ride down for a look around recently.

I had lunch with my favorite aunt at Seaport Grille this week. Now that Labor Day is behind us, we were able to get seated inside quickly and efficiently for a weekday lunch. Tables are distanced and all protocols appear to be in place. Jennifer served us in a friendly manner taking our order for a fish sandwich and a cheeseburger. I talked my aunt into my favorite dessert there: Seaport Coffee….yummmmm……Thanks Seaport Grille for a lively lunch experience.

Just when we need a little extra kindness, the fifth MosiacGloucester panel was installed a few days ago on the Americold Building. Like its four other companions, it is named after Dogtown Boulders: Kindness joins Use Your Head, Never Try Never Win, Help Mother and Courage. More information about the panels and the project can be found here.

These panels are designed to tell some of the stories of Gloucester so I am including some close-ups that contain just a few of the local references. They are quite beautiful and I encourage you to take a closer look.

Several surfers were taking advantage of the waves earlier this week at Good Harbor Beach. It’s always fun to watch the surfers, but I kept getting distracted by how magnificent the waves were!

The City of Gloucester recently posted the following alert for Friday Sept 18- Monday Sept 21:

Gas Main Work at Maplewood Ave Railroad Crossing

National Grid is committed to delivering safe, reliable natural gas service to its customers.  To make improvements to their gas distribution system, they will be replacing a section of the gas main that runs underneath the railroad crossing on Maplewood Avenue.

For their crews to work in this area safely, it will be necessary to close the railroad crossing to vehicular traffic.  The roadway will be closed beginning on Friday, September 18th through the early morning hours on Monday, September 21st.

Although the roadway will be closed, care will be taken to provide access to the businesses and residences in this area.  Detour signs will be placed in advance of the closure.

We regret the temporary inconvenience.  Should you have any questions, please contact National Grid’s Customer Service at 1-800-233-5325.

Thank you for your cooperation and understanding.

Image copied from City Alert and available in pdf format here.

There’s always a lot going on down at the back shore and yesterday was no exception. I thought some of you “from away” might enjoy a reminder.

Seen at McDonalds in rural upstate New York recently, I was gratified to see someone has a sense of humor about all the floor markers we are living with these days. I’d like to send coronavirus to the corner to think about what it’s done……

We are surely blessed with beautiful skies and dramatic cloud formations. Sometimes the sky is the very star of the show! Or as Mark Twain said: “The air up there in the clouds is very pure and fine, bracing and delicious. And why shouldn’t it be?–it is the same the angels breathe.”

Scenes from the docks:

September 11 2001. Where were you when you heard the news?

I love the working vesssels and I especially love the opportunity to photograph them on the water from the water…….I took these during our recent sail aboard the Thomas E. Lannon:

CB (crystal ball) has been visiting the sights around town as summer comes to an unofficial close. Now that Labor Day has gone by once again, we can turn our attention to fall and back-to-school!

We were driving up the highway on our way to meet our newborn grandson when we saw a large nest in an unexpected place. It turned out to be an osprey nest with 2 birds in it, squawking away to beat the band.

I was so delighted to find these unexpected osprey that I decided the check the Essex Greenbelt Osprey Cam one more time to see if “Liz” was still hanging around and (to my surprise) yes! There is still an osprey in the Lobsta Land nest as you will see below, also seemingly squawking!

I found some roosting egrets in the trees near the marsh by Gloucester Cinema on Essex Ave recently as well as some additional ones near the river seemingly watching the Lori B head out. There’s something about these beautiful birds that makes it hard for me to drive by without taking some pictures. Surround by egrets on Essex is a pretty nice place to be!

The Cupboard of Gloucester located at Stage Fort Park has the following offer for this Tues and Wed (Sept 8-9) in support of the community food drive:

Bring one of the following items with you to The Cupboard on 9/8 and 9/9for the community food drive get a free kiddie cone!

🍦100% juice or juice boxes
🍦Cereal
🍦Tuna
🍦Peanut Butter

Image borrowed from The Cupboard of Gloucester Facebook page

We chose the holiday weekend to make our first COVID era trip to Cape Ann Brewing Co. I had been missing the fries and the friendly atmosphere so it seemed a perfect place to take visitors for lunch. We were glad we made reservations as it was hopping.

We ordered fish tacos, haddock sandwich, and a steak bomb but I guess I was so excited I forgot to take a picture of the food! Yummy as always. I had the Sundog cocktail and we ordered a flight for the table. GMG Jim likes the Reel Easy tall. We were not disappointed and our visitors thoroughly enjoyed the experience.

I hope everyone enjoys the holiday weekend. Stay safe.

Exciting news from the Cape Ann Museum Facebook page: BIG NEWS! We look forward to welcoming you back in person very soon! CAM Members may reserve timed tickets to visit the Museum Thursday–Sunday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. starting September 24. Tickets will be available to the general public starting October 1. The new CAM Green campus and the Janet and William Ellery James Center located at 13 Poplar Street will be open for free to the public with timed tickets starting September 17.
All visitors are required to make a reservation for a specific arrival time; please note reservations cannot be made onsite.
Visit https://www.capeannmuseum.org/ for more information about reopening plans and new protocols for visitors.

I, for one, am very excited by this news……..Image borrowed from the Cape Ann Museum Facebook page.

CAM staff in the James Center at the CAM Green campus

See you all soon!

Maybe it’s my coronavirus-strained brain, but the sunflower field on School Street in Ipswich looked especially spectacular during our visit one afternoon earlier this week. If you need some extra sunshine, I suggest you purchase your timed entry tickets here. There are also ticket options for a season pass or for professional photographers. The field offers easy walking paths through the large field, along with occasional signs speaking to the theme of Transcendentalism. The timed entry guarantees control the the number of visitors and there’s plenty of room to distance yourself. The field is obviously well kept and lovingly planned. I may return for a sunset visit!

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Well worth the short ride, theFox Creek Tavern on High Street in Ipswich hit it out of the ballpark with dinner options during our recent visit. Alex T., the left handed server, was informative and efficient. We were seated safely distant from others after making online reservations.  We have had a number of wonderful takeout experiences here as well as 3-4 meals now. The Fox Creek Tavern has made it onto our list of go-tos for company.

We had the Irish Nachos for an “appetizer” but could easily be an entire meal.  You may know I am not really a fan of potatoes, but this dish is irresistible to me. I had blackened fish tacos, Jim had the seafood sliders (awesome) and my sister had the steak tips.  The desserts were tempting, but I ate too much appetizer for that! Thank you again Fox Creek Tavern and Alex for a wonderfully relaxed meal.