Author: Pat D

It’s a very busy place on a recent Friday. Guess we aren’t the only ones thinking Friday night fun = Sebastian’s and a movie! 

These teens had 4 minutes to dial a particular number on a rotary phone. If you are of a certain age, you cannot help but smirk a little as you watch them figuring it out. I admit to laughing out loud. It’s interesting though to think about what this says about how teens problem-solve today.

We recently took a ride to Parker River Wildlife Refuge, expecting to see some effects of the government shutdown. However, it was business as usual. The window at the gate was manned and I saw no evidence of neglect or damage as has happened in some other federal locations.

We did see this hawk looking at us a little bit like “You lookin’ at me?” I see only one leg here which I found interesting.

There are so many geese! These seemed to be marching across the hilltop.

The presence of birders alerted me to these guys. They might be Dunlins (?). I’d be happy for someone to verify or correct this. It was lots of fun to watch them scurry and scrounge.

News you might be able to use:

We were taking some pictures with Boston on the horizon as the sun was just starting to think about setting:

And, bonus, we got to welcome the Pisces home again.

I did not think it was possible to feel alone on the boulevard but it was pretty quiet yesterday morning. Great job DOW with the clean up barely 12 hours after storm ended.

The CAYH Mites held a scrimmage prior to the Gloucester vs Lynn game. Congrats to the Fishermen on the 6-5 win! It’s fun to watch the future of ice hockey in Gloucester develop. It looks promising!

We were watching the receding tide erode the sand in its rush back to the ocean. Fascinating.

From Pauline Bresnahan to accommodate my earlier Conomo Clamming Post. It’s something she found in her twin brother’s stuff and I’m delighted to share it. The date appears to be July 95, but don’t hold me to that.

An article in a recent Gloucester Daily Times informed me that clam beds had recently opened back up on Conomo Point, Joe’s Creek, Jehu and America Bank and are expected to remain open until April conditions permitting. Since I had never seen clamming in action, we went out to Conomo Point to check it out.

The birders were watching, well, you know….birds;  but I was watching the morning sun play on the buildings down at the pier. One bird did catch my eye as it appeared he was standing on water.

How lucky are we to have such a unique collection of lighthouses right here on Cape Ann? Here are a couple of photos taken on a sunny day recently.  They seemed to be standing taller in the sun, showing off. I captured both of these within a short distance of each other.

Straitsmouth Island Lighthouse–I like the effect of the horizon running along the paint line of the lighthouse, creating a kind of underwater effect.

Thacher Island just gorgeous against the blue sky and ocean.

It’s very pretty at Plum Cove Beach even on a blustery January day. I see it has been designated for the perpetual use of the people of Gloucester….how fortunate!

Some pictures from this morning’s live Facebook video and podcast. Nate Cahill showed us all around and answered all our questions with confidence and good humor. It’s shaping up to be a great space for work, research and networking. Contact Nate for a tour via this link to Wheelhouse. You won’t regret it!

The vault lock and door handle that Kim thought was so intriguing!

I caught a re-tweet from Sefatia Romeo Theken last night which contained very exciting news for Gloucester from Adventureman Jamie McDonald, who is running 6000 miles across the United States to raise money so that no child will have to forgo medical treatments due to financial concerns. He has decided to end his run right here in Gloucester, in part due to the fact that his hometown is Gloucester England.  At the moment, he thinks he might cross his finish line sometime in March. He’s on his way up the East Coast after starting in northwest Washington state.

You can follow him on this link as well as on Facebook by searching for Adventureman. Donations can be made at SuperheroFoundation.org. This is very exciting news for our city! Thanks to the Mayor for sharing the information!

Some scenes taken on a sunny day at Dunfudgin Ramp. Of course, I needed to do a little research on this and imagine my surprise to learn that Dunfudgin means pretty much exactly what it sounds like! From A Guide to the Maximus Poems of Charles Olson by George F. Butterick available on Google Books: “When a boat was brought through the Cut three hundred years ago, the crew had to fudge it along with poles. As soon as they reached deeper water, however, with broader steerageway, they could ship their poles and hoist their sail; they were done fudging. Hence that became the name of the spot, a name which suggests welcome relief from tiresome struggles against tide and wind.”

Buswell’s Pond beginning to freeze over and providing interesting reflections: