Author: paultmorrison

SUP the Coast, all downhill from here.

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The epic adventure continues, Will Rich (grew up in Bayview) and Mike Simpson are now paddleboarding from Key West, Florida, to Portland, Maine to raise money for the Wounded Warriors Project and SUP Cleanup.

They have now made it across the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay. I’ve crossed this bridge, tunnel, bridge, in the safety of my car and wondered how someone was going to paddleboard it. Maybe go around and do the coastline of the bay? Nope, read here in their blog how they made it across.  (Took two tries.)

Googlemap that bridge then imagine being out there with the wind suddenly coming up 25 knots from the east and eight foot swells appear. Nice shallow water for big waves to pop right up. Gives me the willies reading it while sitting on my couch but Will and Rich took it all very calmly.

Still easily on track for July 4th arrival in Gloucester.

SUP the Coast website

SUP the Coast on Facebook

Caption This!

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Write your own caption to this photo and place in the comments.

I have no idea what Joey is doing to Rubber Duck. Post your best guess. Here, I’ll start:

Rubber Duck: “Oh boy I should never of had that second helping of Joey Fries at Passports. I feel like I’m giving birth to a lobster broker.”

Now your turn. First prize gets a visit from none other than the rubber one.

Twin Lights Half Marathon Last Weekend

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Homie don’t do marathons. Looks like work to me. But after watching these runners take the turn out at Andrews Point after running over from Good Harbor Beach I might change my mind. There is no way I am doing it but it sure looks like these crazy people are having fun.

Lobstah

Halfway through 13 miles and happy. Crazy.

Dottie

I took a few photos and in a comment to this post I will list numbers I can see. If your number is there post it or send me an email and I’ll send you a photo. Lots of numbers missed or covered up. if you see a number of someone next to you half way through the marathon that might work too.

Astronomy Photo of the Day

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Astronomy Photo of the Day is something I usually try to catch. Stunning photos of galaxies and stuff. Well, APOD has a video for today, May 16 which has a few useful items in it for Gloucester. (Read the paragraph under the video for the non-Gloucester explanation.)

1) At 27 seconds in the setting sun with a green flash. If you have never seen one of these check it out and then the next time you are in Lanes Cove or a decent sunset viewing spot see if you can see the green flash.

2) Clouds as waves crashing into Brace Cove. at one minute and several other places.

3) Star field spinning around the North Star. You don’t have to go to a desert to get this. Go to Halibut Point State Park where the Cape Ann granite shields you from light pollution from Boston and lay on your back. If your cheap point and shoot has the ability to shoot movies in time lapse just fire it up and point it straight up. You will be amazed at the results. A tripod and pointing it at the north star helps but not necessary. You can even capture multiple shooting stars this way.

Click. Then right click and open video in a separate window so you can make it as big as possible. Watch this movie until the sun comes out. Rumor has it the sun may return in June.

Khan Studio & Madfish heating up on Rocky Neck

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Rubber Duck was the first to sign the guest book at the Khan Studio & Good Morning Gloucester Gallery last night.

Hey Roxie, I want to change my name too, any suggestions?

EJ gives the duck tour of the new gallery. Duck also needs to bring a gallery warming gift of white wine since she was pounding them back.

Then it was on to Madfish and Jenny Dee and the Deelinquents but Rubber Duck was carded, one bummed duck pressed against the glass.

While the duck stayed outside we checked out the first set by Jenny Dee and crew.Rubber Duck thinks Rocky Neck has to be added to the weekend duck tour for the rest of the season. Madfish Grille is open for the season with Safety, 80s Party tonight, and Groove next Friday. Khan Studio open Noon to 8PM every day except Monday and Tuesday.

Lesson Learned: On the Island Forever

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I learned my lesson last week so Homie and I are on the island for good. Hey, big guy, can you buy a girl a Fisherman’s?

Thanks. Rubber Duck tip of the week: Stones Pub & Eatery is known for great food but don’t skip over the bowl of Mac ‘n Cheese with Bacon just because you make it at home. Trust me, you don’t make this at home. The good part of the bowl is I can get right in there. The bad part is there is no room for the Chocolate Mousse Pie. Girls gotta watch her figure.

Happy Mother’s Day from Homie and the new family

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Proud Parents

Homie playing with the kids:Homie even showed off his family to his old high school pals. They played a rousing game of tag. (I might not release those photos.)

GMG cub reporter on double probation

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Boy did I screw up. As cub reporter here at GMG I have a couple of defined tasks. My two big ones are cover the arrival of Rockport Santa and cover seasonal openings. I think I have nailed Santa pretty well the past three years but today I get the email I dread and that is I have failed miserably on the seasonal openings. I can blame it on a new beak or keeping up with Rubber Duck (crap, she has got a hollow leg when it comes to boilermakers) but today I blew it big time.

The Cupboard opened today! The Cupboard Opened Today! They always have a soft opening on the first Thursday of May and I plumb forgot. I am cutting my Friday short so I can order a Fish sandwich with cheese tomorrow delivered onto that well worn and familiar formica then maybe take it down to Cressy beach and eat the lunch that defines the beginning of the season. Or as Churchill once said, the end of the beginning of the season because The Cupboard is open! Get that boat in the water! Go catch a striper!

The Morning After

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Turn that damn light off! Can’t a girl get some beauty sleep?

Put the notebook away and do something useful like fill my coffee cup.

OK, Chapter one, paragraph one, it was a dark and stormy night, I would call it weather only a rubber duck could enjoy and I was enjoying the night out but it took over seven hours of watered down Fenway suds before the Red Sox lost then the free drinks started stacking in front of me and I learned how to drink boilermakers out of a straw then a shot rang out as shots are wont to do and everyone hit the floor sounding like a bag of seedless watermelons thrown off a Dorchester Triple Decker since I think we landed up downstairs at Down Under and they hadn’t mopped up yet and the wet splat of large garden fruit was the last thing I remember before I woke up rubber side up in your lobster tank and I never ever want to hear someone cackle “bottoms up” again and no, you cannot see my new tattoo.

Got all of that? Got any leads on Homie? And not any Homie, my Homie. I heard of your idea of tying some fresh herring around my neck and tossing me in the harbor which I think totally sucks. What kind of girl do you take me for? OK, scratch that. Oh, my achin’ beak – any good Cinco de Mayo parties tonight – hair of the Rubber Dog and all – who made this coffee – hit me again –  thanks bro.

Leftovers: Saint Patrick’s at Lee’s

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Checking through the hard drive leftovers and forgot to post our Saint Patrick’s Breakfast at Lee’s.

This Leprechaun may as well be saying, “You’re not from around these parts now are you?” Yes it is true it is the first time we had breakfast at Lee’s. I know, hard to fathom. Can you see the Steve Connelly sign in the background? I have been there.

A look at the menu:

Ordered the Nathalie with Hollandaise and hash. Wicked pissah.

Then it was back home to plant the peas which is something that has to be done on Saint Patrick’s Day. They already need thinning.

SUP The Coast, Almost halfway here!

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Will Rich (grew up in Bayview) and Mike Simpson are now paddleboarding from Key West, Florida, to Portland, Maine to raise money for the Wounded Warriors Project and SUP Cleanup.

Their onboard GPS system sends out a tweet every once and a while. That is how I know they have taken the turn at Cape Fear, North Carolina. That is about halfway to Gloucester if you start in Key West. Click on the links below to hook up and watch their process as they move up the coast towards us. They’ll be in Gloucester around 4th of July!

SUP the Coast website

SUP the Coast on Facebook

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Ed Collard is taking up a new challenge. Not food this time. Ed will be in a kayak at the starting line of the 25th running of the BlackBurn Challenge on Saturday, July 23rd. I told him there was beer and pulled pork at the greasy pole finish line and he said he would think about it. I mentioned cupcakes and he is all in.

Ed will be paddling in my last year’s craft the green one in this photo. I am making a slight upgrade to the white one.

We have 85 days left to get in shape as noted here on my timer. I use Lattof Farm Monkey Bread for my training regimen and I believe Ed just inhales everything.

Anyone else want to do a quick paddle around Cape Ann with a few hundred other boats in July? We should be able to find you something to sit in. It’s the Silver Jubilee running. Once in a lifetime.

Annual Easter Peeps Battle

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OK, you’ve pigged out on the chocolate bunnies and the jelly beans and the sugar rush is peaking. What to do? Mom has the ham ready and is out in the garden on this beautiful
day finishing her coffee. It’s time to sneak into the kitchen and get some use out of those peeps. You can’t eat them raw, they need to be fluffed up in the microwave. Time for the Annual Easter Peeps Battle.

1) Select four sturdy Peeps, two per color. (You can add a whole regiment but only in new construction with wiring up to code.)

2) Four toothpicks or cut some wooden skewers down to jousting length.

3) Arrange on a plate. You can dress your Peeps up. Waterloo, French and British complete with Napoleon and the Duke of Wellington. Get creative. Add that fake grass and jellybeans for cannon balls. They may even blow up. Or Yankees vs Red Sox. Boston Bruins vs the Montreal Divers. Mine went commando today.

4) Place in center of microwave, select 30 seconds and hit start. Get really close because you don’t want to miss any of the action. They can get so enormous they press their little peep faces against the window. Package end peeps tend to expand lopsidedly and are good for flanking maneuvers.

Waterloo in 30 secondsYellow looks to be fadingAh, pink may have struck first but pink also attacked their own. Yellow wins 2011About ready to eatYes, from the GMG blimp this shot proves yellow wins.Oh, the humanity.

Brought to you by Good Morning Gloucester. Happy Easter.

Warning: If you do try this at home. There is a small window of time  wherein a fresh peep microwaved is quite tasty. Before that window the peep will sear your throat sending you to Addison Gilbert ER. After that window the peep will pull all your fillings out sending you to the dentist. That window is small. Test them out on your baby sister first.

Peep Art 2010

Peeps Get Big 2010

Looking for Homie in all the wrong places …

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Rubber Duck has had a change of heart. She misses Homie and now is in search of that one special Homie.

Are you my Homie?

Hanging out with the tourists?

The rubber duck is losing weight pining for Homie. Will She ever find him again?

ps. I’m trying out a new photo website, Imgur. The three photos, Rockport dump, Motif#1 and Capt Joe & Sons Fair Weight Scale, all reside there. I think if you click on Motif #1 you will get a larger photo which if you click again, gets even bigger. Notice the wave over the breakwater last Saturday.

Homie in Love Part I

Homie in Love PartII to XI

Homie in Love Part XII to XIV

Homie in Love Part XII to XIV

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“Can I hide in here?”

Or maybe I should take sailing lessons and get the hell out of Dodge?”

“Maybe I’ll just go surfin'”

(This was Hoop Pole Cove this past Sunday, April 17.  Second time in three years there were two surfers out there trying to catch some monster waves curling around Andrews Point.)

Part I and PartII to XI

Homie in Love Part II to XI

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Previously on Homie in Love Part I

But first, the back story. Two lonely birds.

Solitude of the lonely Homie.

Cold, lonely, rubbery, but Patriotic!

A little stand offish at first.

But soon the connection was made and time stopped.

They’re eyes locked and Homie was in love.

“So how many children should we have?” Homie wasn’t wasting any time.

“I have a lovely nest on Milk Island.”

“You’re not listening to a word I’m saying!”

“We could make it work!”

“I am so out of here!”

“Do you think it’s safe to come out?”

In our next installment R. Duck takes up surfing and considers sailing lessons to help her forget Homie.