Tag: Bill O’Connor

‘Stock the Tank’ Exhibit at Maritime Gloucester From Bill O’Connor

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

Hi Joey,

The ā€˜Stock the Tankā€™ Collography exhibit at Maritime Gloucester is closing on Monday, and I would encourage people to go see it before itā€™s gone! Itā€™s a pretty cool exhibit that was created by Camilla McFayden with help of community members who attended her collography workshop earlier in August.  You can stand inside ā€˜Stock the Tankā€™ and experience an underwater world without getting wet! Check it out on Heritage Day at Maritime Gloucester (free admission all day) or during business hours through the weekend!

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People can read more about it through our story at North Shore Kid or by checking out our Flickr Set

Enjoy!
~Bill O’Connor
North Shore Kid

Crab Larvae From Bill O’Connor

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

Hi Joey,

We were catching jelly fish Sunday and found this little creature swimming near the surface of the water. It’s some sort of crab larvae, and the strangest thing about it was the way it swam. It used its tail like a lobster does, but it swam pretty quickly in a forward direction – lobster use their tail to swim backward. Another behavior we noted was that it would roll itself into a ball and sink when it perceived a threat – it looked and felt just like a little pebble.
B studied this creature for most of the day, and encouraged me to share it. The finger in the photo is Bā€™s and itā€™s only about 3/8ā€ wide. 

Enjoy!
~Bill O’Connor
North Shore Kid

Blue eyed crab larvae

Yo, If any of you twitter folks out there don’t know it, Maritime Gloucester Has a Twitter Account.

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

Someone asked me for a couple of the must do things in G Town and I replied a sunset cruise on The Lannon, A Visit To Maritime Gloucester, The Cape Ann Museum and a mudiga steak bomb sandwich at Virgilios.

Bill Oā€™Connor from North Shore Kid just so happened to send me in this little blurb about Maritime Gloucester-

Hi Joey,

One of the best things about Maritime Gloucester is that this time of year, thereā€™s always something new to see.  We stopped by on Monday and they had a couple of baby squid in the large tank.  This one was only about 2 Ā½ā€ long, and was doing his best to camouflage himselfā€¦

Enjoy!
~Bill O’Connor
North Shore Kid

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What you twitterites may not know is that Maritime Gloucester has a Twitter presence an dthey are pretty active.  follow them here- http://www.twitter.com/MaritimeGlou

Video- When the catch becomes the bait….

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

Forwarded by Bill Oā€™Connor

Enjoy!
~Bill O’Connor
North Shore Kid

Boy Meets Seal From Bill O’Connor

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

Hi Joey,

I was fortunate enough to witness this encounter that a boy had with a baby seal in Wonson Cove today.  Iā€™m not sure who had the bigger smile when it was over, but they were both very happy!  The kayaking he is using is a fantastic boat for small kids and a great value! Check out our write up about them here: http://northshorekid.com/story/lifetime-wave-kayaks-are-great-starters

Enjoy!
~Bill O’Connor
North Shore Kid

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Nice Flotsam! From Bill O’Connor

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

Hi Joey,

This floated into the cove (the tube is sealed) and it seems like an expensive piece of something.  Itā€™s made of stainless and I was thinking it might be a stern ladder.  Can you post the photo to see if anybody lost it overboard?  The wind was blowing from the SW when it floated in so it could be from Cohasset for all I know. If this is yours contact me through the commentsā€¦

Enjoy!
~Bill O’Connor
North Shore Kid

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Double Rainbow fades to Bright Single Rainbow From Bill O’Connor

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

Hi Joey,

After the storms rolled through tonight (June 22, 2012), a double rainbow  formed over Hawthorne Point that was only partially visible from my perspective.  The cool thing about it was that as the double faded, the single inner rainbow became brighter and brighter ā€“ it seemed like the color from the outer rainbow amplified the inner one!

Enjoy!
~Bill O’Connor
North Shore Kid

Hawthorne_Point_Double_RainbowRainbow Over Hawthorne Point

Barred Owlet at Ravenswood From Bill O’Connor

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

Hi Joey,

We had a nice walk through Ravenswood Park this past Sunday, and even though it was pretty wet, we still had a great time!  We were fortunate enough to see the barred owlet perched on the edge of the tree he temporarily calls home. When I scoped the trees with my telephoto lens, I saw the mother owl in the next tree over keeping a close watch!  In the wider shot, you can see the mother blurred in the background near the left edge of the photo, and the owlet on the right edge.

Ramona Latham, Ravenswoodā€™s Program Director,  seems to think heā€™s getting ready to spread his wings!  When he does, heā€™ll leave the nest and head deeper into the woods.

Enjoy!
~Bill O’Connor
North Shore Kid

Ravenswood_Barred_OwletRavenswood_Barred_Owlet_and_Mother

Weak Eye from Bill O’Connor

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

Hi Joey,

I had to change some chains for our docks recently and was mortified when I dug up the stem of one of the 150lb. mushroom anchors that hold them in place to find this.  Iā€™m pretty sure I was one storm away from disaster!

Enjoy!
~Bill O’Connor
North Shore Kid

Anchor_Eye

Thomas Laighton on the Rails From Bill O’Connor

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

Hi Joey,

The Thomas Laighton was on the rails the other day and I was fortunate to be around to take this shot.  Sheā€™s owned by the Isles of Shoals Steamship Company out of Portsmouth, NH.  Apparently she is a replica of a victorian steamship and is named after the Thomas Laighton, a native of Portsmouth who was known as a politician, writer and businessman who left it all behind to live on the Isle of Shoals, first as the lighthouse keeper on White Island, then as a hotelier and land owner having bought up the other islands: Hog, Smuttynose and Cedar, and is remembered as the the ā€˜Kingā€™ of the Isles.

Enjoy!

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Ravenswood Woodpecker From Bill O’Connor

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

Hi Joey,

My son and I took a walk through The Trustees of Reservationsā€™ Ravenswood Park today and we came across this woodpecker that was eating the snow.  I thought it was pretty funny because Iā€™ve never seen this behavior from a bird, but it makes better sense than having to fly to the nearest water supply to have a drink!

Enjoy!
~Bill O’Connor
North Shore Kid

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Rare Bird Sighting Bird In Danger- from Bill O’Connor

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

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Hey Joey,

On New Yearā€™s Eve I was headed over to Horizon Chinese Restaurant to pick up our New Yearā€™s Eve feast, when I came across this bird literally standing in the middle of the road.  I almost ran it over, and couldnā€™t tell what it was at first ā€“ I thought it was road debris.  I stopped the car and got out to check what it was, and when I saw the feet it kind of freaked me out a little bit.  This bird did not flinch a bit even though it was fully lit with high beams and fog lights from my car which was only a few feet away, so I figured it was sleeping.  I snapped a couple of photos of it with my iPhone, then I nudged it with my toe a couple of times before it woke with a startle and scurried off.  

The birdā€™s behavior was pretty strange so I submitted it to the Mass Audubon and they determined it was a rare sighting for this area, and the bird was a young Purple Gallinule that hatched in 2011.  The one I saw looked like this: http://tgreybirds.com/PurpleGallinule5.jpg  When they are full grown they look like this: http://tgreybirds.com/PurpleGallinule1.jpg

Thereā€™s a lot of concern for the well being of this animal because itā€™s not equipped to survive the cold of the North, so if you see it around ā€“ report it to the Mass Audubon at mass_audubon@massaudubon.org ASAP.

Enjoy,
~Bill O’Connor
North Shore Kid

Up the Creek From Bill O’Connor

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

Hi Joey,

I was in Essex today and stopped by the Essex Shipbuilding Museum to take a few pictures and noticed the Ardelle at Harold Burnhamā€™s on the low tide mud. Lewis H. Story was on her starboard.

Enjoy!
~Bill O’Connor
North Shore Kid

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The dangers of surfing an kayaking! from Bill O’Connor

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

Hey Joey,

These folks never saw this coming!

Thanks,
~Bill O’Connor
North Shore Kid

Wingin’ It

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

Hi Joey,

Nice day for windsurfing!  This guy was sailing from Niles Beach across the outer harbor.

Enjoy!
~Bill O’Connor
North Shore Kid

Winging_It

Video- Seven Seas Navigator Depature Timelapse From Bill O’Connor

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

Hi Joey,

I took this time lapse of the Seven Seas Navigator leaving port just after dusk, and thought it might be fun enough to share! Ā I forgot to lock the auto focus, which is why it gets blurry at the end.

Enjoy!Ā ~Bill O’Connor

North Shore Kid

Washington Street’s Savour Fire Photos From Bill O’Connor

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

Bill writes-

Hi Joey,

Last night when I went out side, I could smell fire.  The wind was blowing from the North so I knew something was up downtown.  I drove over to the Paint Factory and from my point of view it looked like there was a building burning in the fort.  I took some shots and headed over to town, and was surprised to learn that the fire was burning at the Savour Wine and Cheese shop on Washington Street.

There was a lot of activity, with a huge response from neighboring communities.  I saw engines and personnel from Rockport, Beverly and Manchester in addition to Gloucester.

The fire was still burning when I got there and the wind was blowing pretty hard, fanning the fire and making it difficult for the crews fighting it. Apparently the fire started at Savour, then jumped to the building next door because of the wind.  The Street would be clear of smoke, then a slight change in the direction of the wind would create a thick blanket of smoke ā€“ making it hard to see (and take photos).

Thankfully nobody was hurt, but Savour was totaled from what I could see.  Anyhow, I thought I would share the photos I took.

North Shore Kid

Natural Selection at Work

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

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Bill Oā€™Connor Writes-

Hi Joe,

Hereā€™s a photo of two near winners of the Darwin Award from yesterdayā€™s storm.  This was a few minutes before high tide at Good Harbor Beach.  Obviously, their need for attention far outweighed the value of the life of the person who was going to pull them out of the water if the undertow had taken them. Just a reminder to all the parents out there ā€“ make sure you teach your kids that itā€™s never a good idea to enter the surf in a storm surging tide during a Hurricane! The ocean is a powerful force and you should never taunt it like this.

Thanks,
~Bill O’Connor
North Shore Kid

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and hereā€™s my Photo from 5:05 PM the Day of Hurricane Irene-

I was shocked that there were people bodysurfing and could not believe the stupidity.

(click the photo for the larger view)

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Crab Grass in Gloucester

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

Hey Joey,

Iā€™ve heard of crab grass taking over a lawn, but this is a little extreme!

Enjoy,
~Bill O’Connor North Shore Kid

Crab_Grass

One Man’s Junk….

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

Hey Joe,

Iā€™ve noticed this floating around Cripple Cove since February or March and finally had a chance to check it out.  Itā€™s actually tethered in the cove.  I thought it was a wonderful re-use of the flotsam floating around and wanted to pass it along to share.  Somebody made this, and I applaud their creativity and effort.  

Enjoy,
~Bill O’Connor
North Shore Kid

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