My View of Life on the Dock
We are headed “Off the Island” for an extra long weekend with our “Goombas” up to the Bar Harbor/Acadia area. First stop of the road trip is to fuel up for the 5 1/2 drive at Lobsta Land!
Eggs Bene, banana walnut french toast and a veggie omelet!
Peaceful morning view of the marsh
It amazes me the beautiful creations the Altar crew comes up with each and every year. This year did not disappoint!
The Novena Committee welcome all to attend the Nightly Novena
7 pm, 6/13-21
The American Legion Hall on
Washington Street
Gloucester Ma.
Kathy Cuddyer (formerly of Stone Leaf) and the ladies at The Beauport Giftshop have pulled together some unique “Glosta” finds…make sure you stop by and say hi when you visit!
While we all love the ocean views that attract tourists to the newly opened Beauport Hotel, it’s THIS view that speaks to me the most. The “Cityside” view is what I’ve seen growing up all my life. A view that speaks of a hard working, loving community of my family, friends and neighbors!
Wine tasting until 4 today at Savour Wine and Cheese.…we stocked up on some delicious wines!
The Strawberry Festival hosted by our friends at The Bridge, Mile Marker and Marshalls Farm Stand is in full swing at Mile Marker today until 4. Stop by, grab some fresh berries and support local business!
Anna Eves from Cape Ann Giclee representing the GMG family!
Marshalls Farm Stand with some delicious fresh ripe strawberries!
Daisy Nell and Captain Stan entertaining the crowd
These ladies from Western MA are rocking their bag from Again and Again (oh…and some cool shades!)
Shelley Nicastro from the Essex Bird Shop ready with some treats for your pups!
Love watching these schooners coming in and out of the harbor everyday, especially in the evening when the light is so warm. It’s like adding a little “bling” to our already gorgeous landscape!
I look forward to getting out for night photography when the weather warms up! This is a night shot of The Friendship docked at Pickering Wharf in Salem.
The Salem East Indiaman Friendship was launched in 1797. She made 15 voyages during her career to Batavia, India, China, South America, the Caribbean, England, Germany, the Mediterranean, and Russia. Built for the Salem mercantile firm Waite and Peirce in the South River shipyard of Enos Briggs, she ended her activities as an American merchant vessel when she was captured as a prize of war by the British Sloop of War HMS Rosamond in September 1812.
The Friendship of Salem that now sits at Pickering Wharf is a 171-foot replica of the 1797 East Indiaman. It was built in 2000 in the Scarano Brothers Shipyard in Albany, New York. The shipsually operates as a stationary museum ship during most of the year. But it is a fully functioning United States Coast Guard-certified vessel capable of passenger and crew voyages; it makes special sailings during various times of the year. The Friendship of Salem is docked at the Salem Maritime National Historic Site, established in 1938 as the first such site in the United States. The site, which includes several structures, artifacts and records, is operated by the National Park Service.
I love photographing here, but the bugs will seriously pick you up and take you away, so I have fondly dubbed my favorite spot…Anni-squash-a-gnat! Happy Gratituesday!
We all look forward to bringing in the 4th with our families at the Horribles Parade on July 3rd, but most are blissfully unaware of how much it costs to pull it off each year! We all need to do our share to make sure this parade continues. You can donate to the FISHTOWN HORRIBLES GO FUND ME page or by sending your tax deductible donation to FISHTOWN HORRIBLES PARADE, PO Box 924, Gloucester, MA 01930 (Tax ID 04-2904097)
Please share the SAVE THE HORRIBLES GO FUND ME page with your friends on facebook!
Also stop by Jalapenos on June 8th from 4pm til close! (Eat in or take out) A portion of the proceeds will go toward the parade.
The 2016 Fishtown Horribles Parade is in serious danger of not happening this year! Many of you around town gather on the 3rd of July along the 1.5 mile route that twist and turns through downtown Gloucester. You all enjoy this great event with friends and family. But most of you have no idea what it takes for this parade to be put on.
We are completely self-funded only receiving police support from the city. The majority of our funding comes from the public the day of the parade. You all know the kids with buckets bothering you to dig deep and give, about half way through the parade, yeah that’s where most of it comes from. Well due to a multitude of issues we have had to turn to alternative ways of coming up with the necessary funds to pay for it.
But how much can a parade cost? Well that’s a great question.
The official break down goes like this:
Bands 6-7 bands: $26,500
Parade Supplies: $2,068
(Trophies, Prizes, float decorations, food & water for volunteers etc…)
Parade Insurance: $630
Mailings: $400 (Donation letters for businesses local and corporate)
Permits: $25
Total: $29,623
So here we are asking you to dig deep and give. The day of the parade I ask for your change pennies, nickels, dimes I don’t care we accept all legal US tender. Today I am asking for more. How much more? Well that is up to you. How much is it worth to you to make those memories that happen around the parade? Because it’s not only about the parade but it’s about the memories we create and the traditions we carry on. Thank for taking the time to read this and thank you for supporting the parade.
A rainy, foggy Sunday didn’t stop over 600 runners from hitting the streets of Gloucester for the Twin Lobster Half Marathon yesterday morning! 13.1 Miles from GHS around the backshore and back.
My daughter Lindsey and her fiance Jon were also running…this being Lindsey’s first 13.1 mile run, Jon was there to support and encourage!
AND of course the Mathews Clan was there to cheer them and the rest of the runners on at Mile 7!
Photo from yesterday’s foggy, drizzly morning!
The Friends of Rockport Council on Aging held their Annual Duck Race yesterday morning at Millbrook Meadow in Rockport. Lots of “Quacky” friends helped to make this a successful event!
Pictured above: Kathy Hurlburt, Judy Tocco,Diane Bertolino, Peg Picard, Joyce Davis, Kathy Tettoni, Paula Bertolino, Faith Ronan, Charlotte Jennings
There was a little mexican stand-off at the Mill River this morning. This poor young buck was waiting out this coyote who was on the hunt. At first it looked as though the deer may have been stuck in the river mud, but it soon became clear that he was just keeping a safe distance from the coyote. The coyote paced in and out of the woods. (thanks to hubby Neil for sharing his pics!)
At first the coyote looked like he was just going to wait for the tide to come in and draw the deer back to land. 
But he headed back into the woods and the deer began to move down the river a bit.
Since it doesn’t look like we will have much of a beach weekend, I share with you a different perspective of our beautiful GHB!
Pulled over on 133 in Essex to catch the sun setting over the Red Barn at Blue Sky Farm. Need to revisit this spot in early morning light!
A couple weeks ago I received this mysterious postcard in the mail with no return address, email or phone. I drove by one morning before work and didn’t notice any “birdhouse” looking dwelling because I think I was looking for a shed size house since the note said “large”. Since I love a good mystery I went back again tonight with back-up (husband Neil).
AND…there it was. Just an adorable little box on a post! (No, not a shed…I’m a little slow about the obvious lol!) The LittleFreeLibrary.org is a unique personal community exchange of books where you can “Take a book – Return a Book”. You don’t have to return the book you took, you are just asked to bring back a book to replace the one you took. I love this idea, and when I went to the website I found an awesome world map where you can find one of 36000 LittleFreeLibraries worldwide! I was thinking how fun it would be for a family with kids to venture out over the summer and see how many they can find! Our LittleFreeLibrary is perfectly situated at 954 Washington Street, so you can stop and grab a book to take to the beach if you like (but don’t forget to bring one back!).
They have titles for all ages…
My favorite part of my visit (other than the amazing smelling Lilac bushes) was that they put a guest book inside for you to sign and make suggestions or comments!
How it all started:
The People Who Started the Movement
In the beginning—2009–Todd Bol of Hudson, Wisconsin, built a model of a one room schoolhouse. It was a tribute to his mother; she was a teacher who loved to read. He filled it with books and put it on a post in his front yard. His neighbors and friends loved it. He built several more and gave them away. Each one had a sign that said FREE BOOKS. Rick Brooks of UW-Madison saw Bol’s do-it-yourself project while they were discussing potential social enterprises. Together, the two saw opportunities to achieve a variety of goals for the common good. Each brought different skills to the effort. Bol was a creative artisan experienced with innovative enterprise models; Brooks was a youth and community development educator with a background in social marketing. They were inspired by many different ideas:
*Andrew Carnegie’s support of 2,509 free public libraries around the turn of the 19th to 20th century.
*The heroic achievements of Miss Lutie Stearns, a librarian who brought books to nearly 1400 locations in Wisconsin through “traveling little libraries” between 1895 and 1914.
*“Take a book, leave a book” collections in coffee shops and public spaces.
*Neighborhood kiosks, TimeBanking and community gift-sharing networks
*Grassroots empowerment movements in Sri Lanka, India and other countries worldwide.
Check out the website LittleFreeLibrary.Org to see the whole story or to start your own LittleFreeLibrary!
Long weekends are too short! Neil and I love to head up to the White Mountain area whenever we get a chance and this weekend we spent some time taking advantage of the overcast day yesterday to explore some waterfall spots. The first spot is at Jackson Falls in Jackson, NH, which is a very easy access area, the falls are literally next to the road, but don’t go on a warm day if you want some photography shots because it’s a popular swimming area on a beautiful summer day!
The second spot we checked out was Glen Ellis Falls, Jackson, NH, which is about 8 miles away from Jackson Falls and while it’s only a .3 mile walk in, the walk back is pretty steep for anyone with knee issues. The Glen Ellis is a 64 foot drop and a pretty powerful. (AND…if you drop anything…you are not getting it back as I found out when I lost a camera filter down the ravine ~ I just can’t have nice things lol!) So happy exploring!
Every year the beginning of June the display of Lupines in this small NH Town of Sugar Hill is impressive! At Exit 38 off 93 just past Franconia Notch, this little Town of less than 600 residents is easy to miss, but if you are there the first 2 weeks of June, stop by…it’s a lovely sight to see! Hubster and I were up in the area yesterday so we went to check out the Lupine progress but there wasn’t much there….just a single Lupine bloom here and there, but in 2 weeks from now when the town holds a Lupine Festival June 11-12, there will be an abundance of them. If you are in the area, I would suggest stopping at Polly’s Pancake House for some great pancakes and also a tiny mom and pop store, Harman’s Cheese & Country store for their great Cheddar cheese (we stocked up!). In the meantime, enjoy some shots I took from last year!
Good Morning Gloucester 