Author: Pat D

Sharing information regarding National Vietnam Veterans’ Day Wreath Laying Ceremony March 29 at 9 am rain or shine.

We took a ride north, as we often do to see what we might see. On this wonderful day, Jim found me 2 long eared owls resting within a bunch of bushes and small trees. One was very hard to see well but the other one was sitting there like he was waiting for me. They are really quite beautiful. I appreciate the helpful nature of birders as there was one helpful kind soul who helped us out quite a bit. For additional photos and story details, check out Pat D’s Photos and Adventures on Facebook.

In the final segment of random and occasional Irish Coffee posts for 2025, I conclude with a logical choice: 525 Tavern in Magnolia on Lexington Ave. We stopped by after having been away for a while because it’s like joining a group of good friends for a relaxed evening. Who could resist it when Chrissy, our server, said to as we were seated: “Should I start the coffee for your Irish coffee?” YES please. This is the result with the very well placed creme de menthe top-off! It’s a “sturdy” Irish coffee served in my preferred style of mug. A perfect end to my meal AND this series for 2025. Slainte!

Today is our daughter’s birthday and this post is for her. Perhaps many of you could use the helpful information presented here. I wrote this in 2013 but it has aged well. (*Longer than usual post ahead*) Many in the younger generations use the Post Office services much less than we did throughout our lives, so these tips might help. Here’s the link to the actual post in case you’d rather not scroll through it here: https://dalpiazryan.blogspot.com/2013/12/snail-mail-for-millenials.html

PS Happy Birthday Amy!

It has come to my attention that we failed our children in at least one life lesson: how to use the United States Postal Service (USPS or “snail mail”).  There is ample evidence that we did not cover this life skill and I thought you might be in the same boat.  If it hasn’t become apparent to you yet, I promise you–it will.  My gift to you this Christmas is this 2013 Snail Mail for Millenials.  Share this with your children if you feel they might benefit.  There will be a test later.

The USPS is an independent agency of the federal government.  It moves paper and packages from your house to mine.  It’s pretty efficient and cost effective especially when you consider what its customers ask of it sometimes.  However, for many people, going to the post office personally can be challenging–like spending Thanksgiving night with your parents.

Despite current technologies, there will be a need for this service for the foreseeable future.  So buckle down and learn how to use it.  Stop calling your mother while she is in the cemetery to ask “how do I send this phone back again?  I’m at the post office and the lady says she can’t help me.  I have the phone right here in my hand.  What’s the problem?”

Sorry, I wandered a little bit there.  When you need to send mail out–like a birthday card to your father or a wedding invitation — you’ll need envelopes, addresses and stamps.  An envelope needs to be addressed to the desired recipient.  Put this in the middle of the envelope when it is in landscape format.  Usually you want the back flap on top but it doesn’t really matter.

There should be 3 lines: the first is the person’s name (first AND last is helpful).  The 2nd is the street address and the 3rd is City State Zip.  It’s a little like sharing on Facebook–you have to find the person by name with whom you want to share that crazy link.   This information should be clearly written to be legible by your most elderly aunt.  The print should be in contrast to the envelope (white envelope: blue or black ink creates contrast).  Avoid using gold ink on a gold envelope for example.

You MUST add postage.  One Forever stamp per envelope is generally sufficient.  Put the stamp in the upper right hand corner without obliterating any portion of the TO address.

This is a “Forever” stamp.  You can use it Forever, I guess.  Currently they cost 46 cents each.  It will not go down.  You can pay 46 cents for this bonsai stamp today and use it a year or two from now when the cost of a stamp is 48 cents.  As millenials, you will not have that precious experience of looking across the table at a friend and saying “Remember when we stamps were 6 cents?” while smiling fondly and shaking your head.  You’ll never know how much it cost to send that envelope because the stamp won’t tell you.  Back in the olden days, looking at the stamp could tell you quite a story:

Yes, this was in my lifetime thank you very much.

A third item on an envelope is the return address found in the upper left corner.  Contrary to popular opinion, a return address is not mandatory but is quite helpful if you haven’t followed USPS guidelines to the T.  The return address is your name, street address and city state zip.  You’ll get the envelope back if you fail one of the postal guidelines.

The USPS has a great deal in common with the TSA in that the rules change regularly and you never quite know what new thing will be disallowed (and it’s always something new that you CAN’T do–never something new that you CAN do).  If  you send a sister pin out without a return address because you want to surprise your sister, it can’t come back to you because you aren’t allowed to send pins through the mail and you’ll never know your sisters did not get theirs unless they come back to you with a nasty note from our friends at the post office.

Then you have to put the letter in a mailbox or give it to the person manning the desk at the post office.

 That’s what these blue boxes are for–you can drop your letters in these to mail them OR

 use your own mailbox.  It helps to put the little flag up to let the carrier know there’s something in there for him to pick up.  It’s also a good way for you to tell if your own mail has been delivered yet since the postman will put the flag back down after he picks up your mail.

Mailing packages follow similar guidelines.  You need postage, an address and a properly sealed package.  You may re-use boxes you might already have if you scribble out any barcodes and do your best to remove any labeling that might cause confusion.

Seal it up really well –the kind of sealing up that makes people nuts when they try to open it.  The USPS designed the rules that way.  Usually you put the name and address on the top of the box–I like to use a clean sheet of paper so it stands out.

Then you’re probably going to have to take the package to the post office to pay the postage and have them put it on their trucks.  This can be tricky sometimes as postal hours can be a little finicky:

Ha Ha!  Just kidding, USPS!  I’m feeling like the NSA might be lurking in blog posts so …..

There are so many favorite places to go for a meal that it’s not uncommon for us to find ourselves saying “Let’s go to (favorite place), we haven’t been there in a long time”. Destinos is a great example. We stopped by for lunch. You can’t really beat the dine-in option of having the daily soup/salad available as part of your meal. I like the Buffalo chicken dinner and Jim ordered a tuna sub. I brought some of the tenders home with me for another meal. They are efficient and prompt with their service which the many customers seem to appreciate. I’m glad we went back…..now on to the next “I forgot about that place!”

I impulsively decided to try an Irish Coffee while I was at the Beauport Hotel on Rogers St. recently. I don’t know why, but it’s not the first place that pops into my head for an Irish Coffee but this one was delightful. It gets big points for the vessel it arrives in, as well as the whipped cream. I can take or leave the Bailey’s depending on my mood but, in this case, it hit the spot 100%. And you can see our friends Pam and Nichole also enjoying the sight of this one! This one makes it to the top three. Slainte.

As many you know, we went to Erie PA for a couple of weeks to welcome our new grandchild to the world. As I unpacked my cables, it occured to me that it certainly takes a lot of wires to live wirelessly.

Continuing the Irish Coffee series, I ordered one at Calas in Manchester when we had dinner with friends there recently. Another example in the “plain and simple” category…..it was simple and kind of perfect, though I have to admit I miss whipped cream……that’s becoming kind of a mandatory addition to make it into my top 3! The mason jar isn’t my favorite serving choice but I’ll allow it. These nights have been so cold though that these warm drinks are making a real difference in my attitude. Slainte.

We happened to be driving by to see that the famous Pink House in Newburyport has been demolished.

An event some of you may be interested in:

Well, March is marching on toward St. Patrick’s Day and we have several Irish Coffee reports in the wings. Today’s features Oak to Ember on Rogers St. This version was very satisfying with the generous dollop of whipped cream (came without asking which was fine by me) and Bailey’s. Perfectly smooth and creamy. I’ve had my share of Irish Coffee in a wide range of places, but have never been offered a big spoon as accompaniment. I always appreciate extras with my servings, so thanks a bunch Oak to Ember! Slainte!

Our Magnolia backyard was the stage for quite the eagle show recently. We had not seen eagles around our home recently so it was a lovely surprise to welcome them back to the neighborhood, even if only for a brief hunt and meal. One eagle with some brown plummage still remaining (so not a full adult yet–perhaps 4+ yrs old) settled in our “resting tree” but soon took off and circled over the marsh until it caught its prey. It returned to the tree to enjoy in peace but an agitated hawk did not allow the peace to remain. The hawk caused the eagle to pick up its prey and depart. After a short time, both this eagle and a second juvenile eagle returned to circle over the marsh on the hunt. It was a majestic sight to see two eagle circling and hunting right from the comfort of our deck. I hope they return soon. For additional pictures and story details check out Pat D’s Photos and Adventures on Facebook.

We were driving through Essex and decided to stop by Googans Galley on Martin St. Jim got himself a bakery treat (their own version of Pop Tart) and I got an Italian sandwich (delicious!!!). We hadn’t been there in a while and it seems they have stepped up the game a little bit in their offerings. There are some provisions, some souvenirs, sandwiches, baked goods and more. We seated ourselves at the window to watch Essex go by and enjoyed the atmosphere. We noticed some local vendors like our friends at Cape Ann Sea Salt have product available on the shelves, so kudos to both the staff at Googans and Cape Ann Sea Salt!! Great stop if you’re in the area. Check out the catering options as well if you find yourself in need.

Continuing the Irish Coffee series, I tried one at the Hart House in Ipswich after a recent dinner there. I kind of smiled to myself when it was served as you see here. Plain and simple. And I realized that kind of sums up the entire 1640 Hart House experience. The atmosphere, the food, the whole set up is “plain and simple” which is very comforting! The coffee itself was generously imbued with Irish whiskey and topped off the evening perfectly. Slainte!

Take note of the following update:

Some of you may be aware that we’ve been away for a couple of weeks. We went to Erie PA to welcome a new grandson with our daughter Amy. The youngest “Ranger” joins his older brother “Schooner”. Ranger made his appearance 2 weeks early and threw all of our travel plans into disarray and we got to him as soon as we could. We’ve spent 2 weeks introducing ourselves and spoiling Schooner. I find it very interesting that these children will be growing up on Lake Erie, as I did. Perhaps one day they will end up in Gloucester the way we did! They are the great grandsons of a Gloucester Man so who knows? But we are back in town and intend to stay around a while. Hope to see many of you soon.

I spent some time at the shop recently (44 Main St for those of you that somehow haven’t heard) so was looking for lunch. I have mentioned how totally blessed we are to have so much available within easy walking distance. This time, I decided on soup and salad from Cafe Bischo on Main St.: lemon chicken rice soup and a chef salad. Enough for 2 meals so the pricing is extra reasonable. Perfect for a cold winter afternoon. Thanks Bischo!

In the next installment of the occasional and random Irish Coffee reviews I like to provide in March leading up to St. Patrick’s Day , we feature the Hale St. Tavern version. We recently went to the Hale St Tavern on Hale St in Beverly Farms for lunch with friends. I had Irish Coffee on my mind from the minute we decided to stop there. As you can see, it comes with a relatively plain and simple presentation…I always say yes to the whipped cream. This one includes the Bailey’s in addition to the Jameson and was perfectly tasty. It was a great way to top off a very satisfying lunch experience. Plain and simple, it does the trick. Slainte my friends.

I found the seals out at Brace Cove a while ago and it was amusing to watch. There were a number of large seals (presumably adults) thermo regulating atop the rocks while a single seal (presumably an active teenager) frolicking around in the water all my itself. It would climb aboard, slide down the other side of the rock then swim around leaping randomly out of the water. It looked joyous and it brought a smile to my face. I was thinking of those large family beach outings where the adults laze in their beach chairs and the youngsters let loose!

What a majestic sight! The CGS Warren Deyampert visted our harbor recently. Thank you Coast Guard (and special shout out to my CG nephew Tim)