Invasion of the Winter Moths at Magnolia Historical Society

Posted on by God's Morning

winter moths

I’m sure you’ve noticed them everywhere the last couple of days.  Driving over to Magnolia last night for the Magnolia Historical Society opening of Art in the Schoolhouse with Charlie Carroll, it was like driving in a brown blizzard.  They are pictured here all over the front door of the place at 46 Magnolia Ave.  Also pictured are some of the partygoers at the opening.  If you missed the opening, stop by Saturday and Sunday (12/7&8, 14&15 or 21&22) from 10:00 – 2:00.  The moths may or may not still be there but the great artwork, cards, prints, calendars, books and more still will be (whatever hasn’t been sold anyway).

art in the schoolhouse opening

Now more about the Winter Moth.

The Winter Moth (Operophtera brumata) is a moth of the family Geometridae. It is an abundant species of Europe and the Near Eastand one of very few Lepidoptera of temperate regions in which the adults are active in the depth of winter.

The female of this species is virtually wingless and cannot fly, but the male is fully winged and flies strongly.

Winter Moths are considered an invasive species in North America; Nova Scotia experienced the first confirmed infestations in the 1930s. The moth is now found in British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Maine.[1] In Massachusetts, the moths have attracted the attention of several media outlets due to the severity of the infestation.[2] In northern Rhode Island, damage to fruit orchards has been attributed to winter moth, and it is now reported in mid-southern Rhode Island (Bristol/Barrington area and Warwick). Efforts at biological control are underway.[3] There have been unconfirmed reports of infestations in southern New Hampshire.

Wikipedia

Here’s a link to an article Kim Smith wrote about the relationship between songbirds
and the Winter Moth, back in 2010.  http://kimsmithdesigns.wordpress.com/2010/12/16/white-throated-sparrow-zonotrichia-albicolli/

E.J. Lefavour

It’s worth getting up by 9am on Sunday to catch “Curtain Up” on 104.9

Posted on by Vickie & Peter

Just in case you haven’t noticed, North Shore 104.9’s “Curtain Up” host, Aurelia Nelson, has been inviting Cape Ann musians to be her guests more frequently of late and it points to a trend of featuring locals on the station as a whole (see some examples here).

Tomorrow (SUNDAY) at 9AM, she does it again, this time with Henri Smith. Henri will talk about all the special guest he has pull together for his New Orleans Christmas show at the Larcom Theatre.

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Allen Estes ~ Marina Evans ~ David Brown @ The Dog Bar, Sat. Dec. 7th, 9pm Do not miss this…

Posted on by Joanne

evans estes &brown

Allen Estes, Marina Evans and David Brown…I got a feeling that the place will be packed!

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Gloucester, MA

Phone : 978.281.6565 

http://dogbarcapeann.com/welcome-1.html

Look at what’s coming for live music. By M.E. Productions and it’s so close to home!

Posted on by Joanne

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North Shore 104.9 & Senator Bruce Tarr Hit the Road for 18th Annual North Shore Holiday Toy Drive

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

With the need for toys at an all-time high for local children, Senate Minority Leader Bruce Tarr (R-Gloucester) and North Shore 104.9 will once again broadcast live all day from several locations on the North Shore to collect as many toys, gift cards, and monetary donations as possible to fulfill that need.

This year’s Holiday Toy Drive will take place on Thursday, December 12th from 6:00am to 6:00pm from ten locations on the North Shore. The live broadcast will feature local entertainment, school choirs and bands, great food, and interviews with local officials.  Even Santa Claus and Mrs. Claus will be lending a helping hand to support the cause!  The Paper Store has also partnered once again with Senator Tarr and North Shore 104.9 to present the 18th annual North Shore Holiday Toy Drive broadcast.

“The holiday season gives us all a chance to show just how much we care about our neighbors and the children in our communities,” said Senator Tarr.  “By joining together this year as we have in the past we can make a real difference in the lives of children who need to know that we think it’s important for them to have a happy holiday.  It’s about more than a toy; it’s about knowing they’re not forgotten.”

North Shore 104.9 President Todd Tanger stated, “We are thrilled to be a part of this wonderful event. The North Shore Holiday Toy Drive is such an exciting event that brings holiday joy to deserving children right here in the North Shore. We thank everyone for their overwhelming generosity and kind contributions, especially Bruce Tarr for his continued efforts and energy year after year. We appreciate listeners and clients allowing us to break from normal programming to broadcast this event and hope they help us bring some holiday joy to the lives of children on the North Shore this holiday season.”

The scheduled live broadcast locations, which are open to the public, are as follows (times are subject to change):

6:00am Capitol Diner 431 Union Street, Lynn, MA

Family & Children’s Service of Greater Lynn, Inc.

7:30am Devereux House, Marblehead 39 Lafayette Street, Marblehead, MA

Toys being collected for: Marblehead Counseling Center

8:15am The Paper Store, Swampscott 435 Paradise Road Swampscott, MA

Toys being collected for: Toys for Local Children (The Paper Store in Swampscott will only collect toys on December 12th.)

9:00am Flint Public Library, Middleton 1 South Main Street, Middleton, MA

Toys being collected for: Neighbors in Need

10:30am Dawson’s True Value Hardware 50 Enon Street, Beverly, MA

Toys being collected for: Beverly Bootstraps

12:00pm First Ipswich Bank 31 Market Street, Ipswich, MA

Toys being collected for: Action Inc./ Ipswich Caring

1:15pm Woodman’s of Essex 121 Main Street, Essex, MA

Toys being collected for: Action Inc.

2:00pm Manchester Athletic Club 8 Atwater Avenue, Manchester, MA

Toys being collected for: Pathways For Children

3:30pm Shalin Liu Performance Center 37 Main Street, Rockport, MA

Toys being collected for: Action Inc.

5:00pm Cape Ann Savings Bank 109 Main Street, Gloucester, MA

Toys being collected for: Action Inc.

In addition to the above broadcast locations, the below locations are welcoming any and all donations for the Annual North Shore Holiday Toy Drive. Please note that North Shore 104.9 will not be broadcasting from the below locations:

∗Wenham Museum

∗Cape Ann Savings Bank, Manchester

∗Marblehead Community/Aging Center

∗Abbott House, Lynn

∗Rosewood, Peabody

∗Align Credit Union, Danvers

∗First Ipswich Bank: Essex, Rowley, Gloucester

∗Honey Dew Donuts, Danvers

∗Delande Lighting, Salem

∗Beverly Chamber of Commerce

∗Additional toy donation locations listed at http://www.NorthShore1049.com.

Toys can be dropped off at any of these locations now through Friday, December 20th.  For further information, please call JoAnn Gillette at North Shore 104.9 at 978-927-1049 extension 19 or Senator Bruce Tarr at 617-722-1600.

Never Forget! December 7th 1941

Posted on by capeannpainter

 

Never Forget! December 7th 1941

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from the History Channel;

“Just before 8 a.m. on December 7, 1941, hundreds of Japanese fighter planes attacked the American naval base at Pearl Harbor near Honolulu, Hawaii. The barrage lasted just two hours, but it was devastating: The Japanese managed to destroy nearly 20 American naval vessels, including eight enormous battleships, and almost 200 airplanes. More than 2,000 Americans soldiers and sailors died in the attack, and another 1,000 were wounded. The day after the assault, President Franklin D. Roosevelt asked Congress to declare war on Japan; Congress approved his declaration with just one dissenting vote. Three days later, Japanese allies Germany and Italy also declared war on the United States, and again Congress reciprocated. More than two years into the conflict, America had finally joined World War II.”

CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO

Random Thoughts

Posted on by Fredrik Bodin

Random Thoughts: Last night was great, but I had no internet, phone, or credit card processing. I went back and forth between Citizens Bank and Comcast. I stopped by the bank this morning, and had a sit-down with the branch VP Brian. The problem was that I had money in my account, but Comcast couldn’t get it. Brian solved the problem. We still don’t know what the problem was.

Discover Gloucester Holiday & Awards Party Post re: some VIPs

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

Hey, Joey-

Perfect timing by EJ for featuring Potter Marty Morgan in her post yesterday, as Marty is receiving one of the three Awards that Discover Gloucester will give out at our 3rd Annual Holiday & Awards Party! We all remember, of course, that you were the first to receive one of the Awards 🙂

Marty is being recognized for her many years of work as a founding member of the Cape Ann Artisans, as well as for her thousands of hours of work and love making the Empty Bowl project such a success for The Open Door.

Joanne (Souza) Main will receive an Award for being the champion of the Schooner Adventure. Her many years of blood, sweat and tears to get the Adventure seaworthy has been quite the task- and she did it!

The third Award will go to a wonderful collaboration among Gloucester, Rockport and Essex folks: The four new MA Cultural Districts!

The Gloucester Harbortown, Rocky Neck, Rockport and Essex River Cultural District’s Committees will be recognized for their diligent work.

Everyone is invited to come honor our very worthy recipients & representatives at the Discover Gloucester Holiday & Awards Party on Tuesday, December 10, Noon to 2:30pm, at La Trattoria on Main St. in Gloucester.                                                     $20 per person for a delish Italian Buffet, payable at the door to La Trattoria. RSVPs are necessary, so Peter & his crew can plan. Let us know by Sunday if you want to attend to congratulate these fine folks- and we know you do! 

Reply to info@SeaportGloucester.org

On behalf of the Discover Gloucester Board, 

Linn Parisi  (Thanks, Joey!)

Last Catch of the Season

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

Hi Joey,

We fish 6 lobster traps in the harbor during the season, and this year our last haul was on Sunday.  We didn’t catch anything we could keep, but the last trap we pulled up had this Acadian Hermit Crab in it. ‘B’ thought this catch was better than any lobster he’s ever seen, because this crab was so much bigger than the much smaller hermit crabs we find in Wonson Cove during the warmer months.  He actually brought it to school to show off before we released it. 

According to Lisa Hutchings at the Mass Audubon’s Joppa Flats Education Center in Newburyport, this crab decided to make it’s home out of a Northern Moon Snail Shell. Hermit Crabs are unlike other crabs and have a soft abdomen that leaves them vulnerable when unprotected. They search for shells from dead crustaceans like moon snails, periwinkles and whelk and make them ‘home’ when they find one that fits.  When they outgrow the shell, they need to find a new one, and you can sometimes find two shell-less crabs fighting over the same ‘new’ shell!  

Enjoy!
~Bill O’Connor
North Shore Kid

Giant_Hermit_Crab_01Giant_Hermit_Crab_02

Community stuff 12/7/13

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

The Rockport Christmas Tree Committee, now in it’s 115th year, is Rockport’s oldest ongoing tradition.

Started in the early 1890’s by Rockport grocer Tim Sheehan, the tradition of remembrance is carried on today. Members of the Rockport community 80 years of age and older, shut-ins, residents with illnesses and others are remembered on Christmas Day with the delivery of a fruit basket and cookies. Residents of area housing, nursing homes and local hospitals receive a visit in the days before Christmas. Santa Claus himself visits residents of the Den Mar Nursing Home and presents each resident with a small basket of fruit and other goodies.

On Christmas morning at 10:30AM Santa arrives in Dock Square and gives all the Town children a bag of candy, fruit and goodies in the same tradition of the 1890’s.

Santa’s helpers will be meeting at Spiran Hall on Broadway at 7PM on December 22 to pack the bags and baskets. On Christmas morning volunteers are welcome to meet at Spiran Hall at 9AM to deliver baskets. All you need to help is willingness and a smile.

The Committee needs your help to continue this tradition. We rely solely on volunteers and donations. Donations may be mailed to the Rockport Christmas Tree Committee, % Doreen Carter, 2 Mary Helen Way, Rockport, MA 01966 or dropped off at any Rockport National Bank location or Smith Lumber and Hardware. Online donations thru paypal can be made atwww.rockportchristmastree.org. Donations are tax deductible.

We are all saddened by the loss of our friend and longtime chairman, Ray Smith, but his work goes on through this committee.

If you have a neighbor or friend who you think would like to receive a basket, just let any committee member know. Committee members are Bud Woods, Jay Smith, Gary and Faye Anderson, Nikole Gale, Lisa Littlefield, Doreen Carter, Judy Harris, Mary Helen MacLeod, Linda Johnson, Janice Ramsden, April Beaton, Sally Frithsen, Ruth George, Andrea Ritchie, Wanda Visnick, Jeff and Mary-Kathryn Gray, Judy Bogage, Pat Brown, Chris Murch, Darlene Trumbour and John Thompson or leave a note with name and address at the Lumber desk at Smith Hardware and Lumber.

The Harbor Gets a Tree

Posted on by Lowell Peabody

Not to be left out, Manchester Harbor sprouted a Christmas Tree! Wondering how they turn the lights on…

The Harbor Gets a Tree

Community Photos 12/6/13

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

The Beauport Princess coming back to port

Christian Derobert Photo

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Holiday Ambulance photos from Anthony Marks

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Fog was awesome tonight very Christmas in Gloucester.

—
Brian O’Connor

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Al Bezanson submits-

Service interruption ___ Deliveries will resume in two hours.

Tide Skipper

Service interruption

Beautiful Vintage-Style Handmade Prints of Gloucester and Cape Ann For Sale From Rusty Kinunnen at the Hive

Posted on by Kimsmithdesigns

More wonderful Cape Ann-themed holiday gift ideas, brought to you by Good Morning Gloucester! You can purchase Rusty and Ingrid Kinunnen’s work at The Hive, Cape Ann Art Haven, now through December 31st. For more information about their products and pricing, visit the Kinunnen’s website at Rusty and Ingrid Creative Company. 

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Vine from last night’s opening reception. I apologize for the bumpy Vine. I think the camera was struggling to focus on the shiny glass of the framed pictures.

Nelson Mandela

Posted on by Kimsmithdesigns

Nelson-Mandela’s-Top-Five-Contributions-to-Humanity

A life to celebrate and a spirit by which to be inspired.

“No one is born hating another person because of the color of his skin, or his background, or his religion. People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite.”

-Nelson Mandela

Fish on Fridays

Posted on by Marty Luster

The Fish on Fridays series is a collaboration between Gloucester photographers Kathy Chapman and Marty Luster. Look for various aspects of Gloucester’s centuries-old fishing industry highlighted here on Fridays.

On Wednesday, Skipper James Wood (on the forklift in the video) and his crew loaded and set up twenty brand new lobster traps aboard Still Kicking at the Intershell  Seafood wharf on Commercial Street. Wood, who lobster fishes year round, was checking the latest weather forecasts before heading out to Jeffrey”s Ledge, a fishing ground that runs northeastward from Cape Ann.

StillKickin


NewTraps
GroundfishBait
LobsterDoorPhotos © Kathy Chapman 2013
http://kathychapman.com

Video © Marty Luster 2013
youtube/editormard
matchedpairs.wordpress.com
slicesoflifeimages.wordpress.com

Maritime Gloucester

Posted on by Donna Ardizzoni

Sail boats and the Lynx Schooner in the background on the pier.
To see more information on The Lynx check out their website http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lynx_(tall_ship)

December 3, 2013 maritime Gloucester