Author: Pat D

Ready or not, here comes Valentine’s Day. Pat D’s Photos is offering porcelain night lights featuring local scenes and other favorites just in time for your Valentine. Each is 3″ wide and about 1.5″ deep and comes with a bulb. These night lights and other items can be viewed by following Pat D’s Photos and Adventures on Facebook or at PatDsPhotos.com. FREE DELIVERY to Cape Ann area. Contact me through the Facebook page or by commenting here with questions.

Here’s what they look like plugged in:

They can be purchased using PayPal here:

A great crowd turned out for today’s welcome and ribbon cutting to Maritime Gloucester’s new Maritime Science Education Center on the Harbor Loop. After 2 years of hard work, setbacks and achievements, the Maritime Science Education Center is now a reality. The Center was hailed by Mayor Greg Verga, Senator Bruce Tarr with proclamations to officially welcome it to Gloucester’s community. There was healthy representation from all over the community. Here’s a video of the Welcome Ceremony held in the Gallery as well as a video of the actual ribbon cutting in the new Maritime Science Education Center.

Photos from Jim Dalpiaz:

The freshly fallen snow sparkling under a bright blue sky at Maritime Gloucester was irresistible.

We went with our friends Susan and Leo to the new Oak to Ember restaurant on Rogers Street. Formerly the Cape Ann Brewing Company, the inside has been completely gutted and renovated to reflect an entirely new vibe. And it succeeds in being a real treat for the eyes as well as the palate. Our server Cheri answered our questions thoroughly and easily. We ordered calamari appetizer along with shrimp cocktail and oysters. Susan and Leo split a flat iron steak entree while Jim had the smoked chicken. I tried the wood grilled lobster, something new and delightful for me! We shared some apple cake for dessert. We lingered over our meal and drinks chatting with our friends. There was a steady flow of customers ranging from families to couples like ourselves. Cheri didn’t rush us out the door, which we appreciated. It was a delightful experience. Welcome to Gloucester, Oak to Ember!

Welcome to Gloucester’s newest immersive marine science experience! The Maritime Science Education Center at Maritime Gloucester on the Harbor Loop will be unveiled to the public this weekend and you’re going to want to put it on your calendar, especially for the children in your lives. Three new zones will be featured at this opening including the Plankton Lab, Exploration Station and the Impact Zone. Each is sparkling and newly renovated and features the work of artist Brian Murphy. Believe me when I tell you it’s stunning in its thoughtful design and visual appeal.

Members Only tours will be offered starting tomorrow (timed tickets required) Thursday Jan 26 and the ribbon cutting is scheduled for Fri Jan 27 at 3:30 PM. Saturday and Sunday will be open to all. Timed tickets are required and are available at this link with further information. Touch tanks, exhibits, aquariums and more! There’s something cool everywhere you look. You do not want to miss this!

The sun came out again and I couldn’t resist these footbridge reflections at Good Harbor Beach.

I am considering some new images for giclee printed notecards (thanks to our friends at Cape Ann Giclee) and would like your input. Which of these do you like for blank notecards from Pat D’s Photos for the upcoming season? Back Shore Snowy, Great Blue Heron couple, Barred Owl, Puffin or Baby Gull? Some of these already appear on different products but I’d like to spice up the notecard selection. When I thought about selecting some photos for potential printing, I did not realize they would all end up being birds! For other photos and to folow our adventures, check out Pat D’s Photos and Adventures on Facebook.

A first snowfall along St. Peter’s Marina recently brightened up the morning a bit.

We took a grey-day drive over to the Gloucester Marine Railways at Rocky Neck for a look-see. It was wet, windy and dreary but the sight of familiar vessels under rest and repair cheered me up.

Inspired by a friend’s photo of a juvenile bald eagle at Ipswich River Wildlife Sanctuary, we took a ride over there for a return visit. It’s a Mass Audubon property located on Perkins Row in Topsfield, a short drive from Gloucester. We checked in as members at the office, were given a map and off we went.

We did not find the eagle, but the discoveries we made along the way were nearly as delightful. We took note of beaver activity as well. We saw mostly relatively common song birds, but they are extraordinarily tame and will come to you looking to be fed. I have to admit it felt great to have them land briefly in my empty hand so that was worth the trip right there. We also saw a hawk atop the Wildlife Tracking Network Station. I wondered which does the better wildlife tracking job, the hawk or the machinery? Some additional photos and story details available at Pat D’s Photos and Adventures on Facebook.

We have been promising ourselves to stop by Capt Hooks on Washington St. We just happened to be driving by and decided to stop and fulfill our promise to ourselves. We hadn’t been there since the famous GMG tuna challenge and have never had dine-in there. It was later in the afternoon so the inside seating was plentiful, though take out orders were steadily going out the door. I got an Italian sub and Jim got the Italiano. I happened to hear another customer telling the counter help that the Italian sub was his absolute favorite so I felt secure in my choice! It was a very good sandwich and Jim very much enjoyed his as well. I was a little surprised by the wide variety of menu choices. The service was efficient and friendly. The dining area was clean and well kept. A nice little afternoon break. Thanks Capt Hooks!

I took a walk along the State Pier on a sunny day recently to take a closer look at some of the mighty vessels. I thought you might enjoy the same.

The planned flood control project to protect the high school, stadium and parking lot from future Annisquam River flooding is well underway. As many remember, the storm of January 2018 caused severe damage to those areas and this project was designed to address that and prevent it from recurring. Some details can be found at the following links: 16031 ENF Gloucester High School Flood Control Project from July 2019 OR the more recent Gloucester High School Flood Protection Project info from Construction Journal updated Dec 2022.

Dictionary definition of stalwart: “loyal, reliable, hardworking”. If they could add an image, she would be it.

We decided to give Boo-Bird on Central St in Manchester a try for lunch a few days ago and we are very pleased to report that we enjoyed it very much! They had just opened for the day so it was a little bit quiet upon our arrival, but take out orders and other patrons soon started appearing. The atmosphere is cozy and inviting. The bird theme is understated but unmistakeable. Your favorite Bird Nerd loved it. Olivia was our knowledgeable server. Jim had a burger with tater tots and I had the meatball sub with homemade potato chips. As most of you are aware, we are not foodies, but meatball subs sometimes fall short with me because I prefer a healthy scoop of red sauce in the sub. This one did not disappoint in that regard or in any other way! Outstanding. The sub was nicely sauced while the bread didn’t get soggy. Perfection. And GMG Jim ate every bite of his burger. We’ll be visiting again for lunch.

Sharing Instagram info updating Maritime Gloucester Museum hours:

Sharing information from our friend Bill Wrinn:

If you see this guy, get him a lobster roll! He needs one bad!

We have a famous gentleman cartoonist coming to town this weekend and he needs your help. You’d think with all his success, Keith Knight would have it all. But this North Shore native now lives in a North Carolina seafood desert and he is starving for a real lobster roll. Like REALLY starving.

It’s gotten so bad down there, he’s forced to chase the lone lobster food truck from town to town just for an overpriced knockoff. 

Why is he here? On Monday at 2 p.m., the Gloucester Meetinghouse Foundation will host Keith in honor of Martin Luther King Day. (Free, but lobster roll donations accepted)

Keith is many things to many people: artist, rapper, social activist, tv producer, husband, and father. He is also one of the funniest and most highly regarded cartoonists in America. For almost three decades, this multi-award-winning artist has brought the funny back to the funny pages with a uniquely personal style that’s a cross between Calvin & Hobbs, MAD, and underground comix. His art has appeared in the Washington Post, Daily KOS, San Francisco Chronicle, the Boston Herald, Ebony, ESPN the Magazine, L.A. Weekly, MAD Magazine, and the New Yorker. 

Keith’s autobiographical strip, “the K Chronicles,” launched in early 1990 and has won the Harvey Kurtzman Award for Best Syndicated Comic Strip. “The K Chronicles” has also won the Glyph Awards Best Comic Strip multiple times. He has brought his comic strip slideshow presentation – the same one he will be giving Monday at the Gloucester Meetinghouse – on America’s racial illiteracy worldwide, prompting the NAACP to recognize him as a 2015 History Maker. 

Keith has also won a Belle Foundation grant, earned a Comic-Con Inkpot Award for Career Achievement (one year before director Stephen Spielberg got his!), presented at the U.S. Library of Congress, and performed hip-hop naked at the Fillmore Auditorium in San Francisco. Keith’s work was also the subject of a recent exhibition at San Francisco’s Cartoon Art Museum. 

He is also the co-creator of the television show “Woke” that recently completed its second season on HULU. The show stars Lamorne Morris as “Keef” and is based on Keith’s life and work.

Keith is a 1990 graduate of Salem State University and the recipient of an honorary doctorate from the school in 2022.  His presentations are infused with urgency, humor, satire, politics, and race. Designed to provoke constructive, civil dialogue amongst people of all colors and orientations, the presentation has been a hit at university campuses and community organizations around the U.S. and in Europe. (For more on Keith and his work, visit www.keithknightart.com) 

If you’re skeptical, ask Bev Low. She’ll vouch for him. 

Hope to see you there and don’t forget his lobster roll!

The renovation project of the Beeman Memorial Playground seems to be nearing completion. We visited just as the final bell rang one afternoon last week and I can attest to the shiny new equipment and soft groundcover. This was mostly federally funded and the new “up-do” is looking great for our children!

When the boss asks you to bring a mudiga steak from Virgilio’s to the airport when you pick him up, that’s what you do. Thank you Virgilios! It was the perfect welcome home.

Fundraising event tonight at St. Peter’s Club. Hoping to see you there. Bring a friend.