Sharing from Gloucester Bites Facebook page regarding the Last Stop on East Main Street.

The re-construction underway at the Good Harbor Beach Inn on Salt Road seems to be progressing. They anticipate re-opening later summer this year.

June 7 will be the date for to Walk for Hope to support sufferers of Huntington’s Disease and Boston is the location but you can help by donating. This disease is devastating and is affecting at least one set of Gloucester grandparents. They have asked that I share this information with you:

Memorial Day weekend is nearly upon us and many visitors are expected over the course of the summer and fall months. For those who may not be aware, here are some parking tips (I am brushing up my spiel for the Visitor Center). If you plan to park at Stage Fort Park, Wingaersheek or Good Harbor Beach you will need to reserve your parking in advance using the Blinkay app. I am sharing an image of what it looks like in the App store (also available for Android). **”In advance** only requires that you purchase parking prior to entering**

Most visitors should be aware that most city parking is paid parking. You MAY find it easier to use the Flowbird app than be prepared to use the kiosks available. You might prefer the kiosks but be prepared with you license plate numbers. An image from the App store is also shown here. Welcome to Gloucester and stop by the Welcome Center at Stage Fort Park for additional tips starting Fri May 23.

We noticed a new sign on the former Essex Wine Exchange on Main St in Essex announcing that Marshview Farm General Store would be moving in soon! Sounds promising!

We happened to notice the Schooner Liberty Star, of the Liberty Fleet of Tall Ships out of Boston being assisted into Gloucester yesterday. We followed the progress from entering the harbor to the Marine Railways on Rocky Neck. I assume she’s in for some rehab and spiffing up. Welcome to Gloucester! I am always thrilled to see schooners in our harbor.

I don’t know about your school days, but we used to have to declare if we wanted to”hot lunch” or not each school day. I was reminded of those days on a recent cool and dreary day at the shop. So I went to Virgilio’s on Main St for a soothing hot lunch: American Chop Suey ( though we called it goulash in my house). PS and BTW, this was absolutely delicious and satisfying. There was enough left for another meal. Yes, I could make it myself….but…I don’t….(and Virgilio’s does)

From the City of Gloucester Facebook page:

Last week it was perfect on Monday for a frozen raspberry margarita at Jalapenos on Main St. It’s my favorite spot for a frozen margarita. We always enjoy the atmosphere there, where it feels like a neighborhood bar. The food is great, the service friendly…it’s a win-win for Margarita Monday.

We have been enjoying watching the Baltimore Orioles hang around in our backyard. There appear to be at least two pairs flitting back and forth doing oriole things. We put out oranges and grape jelly to attract and feed them. They also enjoy the nectar from the hummingbird feeder. I wouldn’t be suprised if one of these images became a new notecard for Pat D’s Photos. Comments on your favorites are welcomed.

Save the date for the Holy Family Spring Plant and Bake Sale:

Memorial Day Cemetery Baskets
Now Accepting Orders
Pick Up on May 24th

In prayerful preparation for Memorial Day Weekend, Our Lady’s Guild and the Holy Family Women’s Guild are working together with Cressey & Sons in Rowley to offer Memorial Day baskets in honor of our fallen heroes. A donation of $30 each is requested for each one of these beautifully decorated log shaped baskets.

We are now accepting orders! Baskets can be picked up on Saturday, May 24th from 9:00am until 1:00pm at the Spring Plant & Bake Sale (see above). To place an order, please contact Celia Gray at 978-281-2072; Jane Marshall at 978-283-5111; or Beth Fosberry at 978-790-0196. As always, thank you for your generous support!

Many of you are aware there’s an osprey nest in the marsh behind Lobsta Land that has live-cam coverage (link here). I check on the famous osprey pair Annie and Squam regularly and appreciate that the Essex Greenbelt has this available to the public. I further appreciate Dave Rimmer’s blog updates. Thanks to Dave and the live coverage, I can report that Annie and Squam are tending to 3 eggs which are expected to hatch around June 8-10. There have been reports of a second male hanging around which is not welcome company but I haven’t observed that yet.

I did get to catch what was likely the “changing of the guard” yesterday afternoon with one adult sitting on the nest as the other fed a short distance away. The sitting adult left briefly but before too long, the feeding adult brought food to the second adult and a feast was had. I got a quick look at the eggs which maybe you can see here in the screenshots taken from the Essex Greenbelt camera.

The Walgreens in Shaw’s Plaza on Eastern Ave has announced it is permanently closing June 23.

We recently took an Amtrak from Boston to Harrisburg PA for a family wedding and I have some thoughts to share if you are considering a similar trip. We were facing a 7 hour ride one way and had a travel credit in hand for Amtrak which was due to expire in a month or so. I decided we’d try an Amtrak trip. It was challenging to book the trip using the credit, but we finally booked it. We left from Boston South Station at 8 AM, changed trains in Philadelphia and arrived around 5 PM. A full day. It was even longer on the return trip.

We enjoyed arriving at our destination more rested and relaxed than we would have been otherwise especially since it was raining ALL DAY ALL THE WAY. We traveled coach class and the seats were quite comfortable. There was decent wifi and charging availability at each seat. The staff was helpful if a bit brusque. The stations were well marked and generally clean. Despite the long hours, it was overall a good way to take that trip.

As I mentioned earlier, it was a challenge to book the trip using the travel credit partly because an Amtrak vacation trip is different than a “commuter” style trip. We tried to change the return ticket to get back earlier but the agent told us we got really good prices on our tickets and didn’t advise changing them as the price would double. So, bottom line my recommendation would be to check Railbookers.com as they were the ones that booked these tickets for us as this very decent price. I would definitely consider a vacation package, but probably wouldn’t do a long distance commuter trip again due to the cost.

Submitted from John Abisamra:

“The Flower Moon Show”…I am not sure there is anything more spectacular in nature than to witness the full moon rise over the ocean on the horizon. Last night did not look very promising as there was a band of clouds on the horizon. But I waited and hoped for that special moment. I was able to position myself across from Thacher Lighthouse and witness the moon with its bright colors rise. Its colors were amazing and were even more brilliant than the light from the lighthhouse. I waited and timed my exposure to match when the light from the lighthouse came on and just stood in amazement at nature’s incredible show. Enjoy!

Some views from Eastern Point on a dreary afternoon a while ago. Even on a grey day, it’s impressive.

We took advantage of Machaca’s early Monday opening celebration of Cinco de Mayo by stopping in for Margarita Monday (naturally). It was jam packed in there with people celebrating this unofficial holiday but our service was on point, efficient and friendly. I had the Blood Orangita. I do love their sour mix! Gracias Machaca!

Did you know that the Hammond Castle offers free admission to Gloucester residents on Tuesdays? It happened to be rainy this past Tuesday, so we decided to take advantage of that offer to go take a look at the special vinyl records exhibit currently running at Hammond Castle (Hesperus Ave). We were not the only ones taking advantage of being inside during inclement weather as there were plenty of other visitors on hand while we were there. If you haven’t been in a while, maybe Tuesdays would work for you to plan a visit sometime soon! The vinyl record exhibit is fascinating.

Happy Mother’s Day to you all. Here you see my Gloucester grandmother and great grandmother. These women influenced by life in ways that can’t yet be entirely accounted for. My paternal grandmother Catherine Pierce was a beautiful woman inside and out her whole life. We did not get to see much of her as we lived in Western NY for most of my childhood, but her impact was great. I have many fond memories of her spoiling us all. I remember she was often smiling and laughing. It’s a comforting memory. I never knew her mother (Edna Handran Pierce) but I think the resemblance is very strong. Edna suffered difficulties throughout her life but demonstrated resilience as I’ve been told. These are admirable qualities from both women to pass down along the generations. I hope you’ll take a moment to recognize the mothers in your past and consider their influences on your daily life. From left to right: Catherine, Edna, Catherine with my dad Paul.

We were very happy to welcome the Baltimore Orioles back to the yard once again this spring. As we expected, the males came first followed shortly after by the females. We are hosting at least 2 pairs. Their bright colors, loud chirping and courting rituals have made the window to the backyard our favorite viewing spot.