My Very First Amigurumi

My husband, Trevor , gave me Tiny Yarn Animals by Tamie Snow for Christmas. I immediately went searching in my bag for some yarn that I could use to make an animal. Amigurumi is Japanese for stuffed toy, in case you didn't know. I was at my parents' house at the time so didn't have my whole stash with me. I did just happen to have some pink merino yarn though. Valley Yarns Amherst Powder Pink to be specific. Tamie Snow recommends using the "cheap stuff" which I don't carry with me. I do have some "cheap stuff" but it's not what I use on a regular basis. Anyway, I pulled out some yarn and hook and got to work! I didn't work on it continuously but if I did I probably would have finished in 2 or 3 hours. I started it on Christmas day and by the next evening it was mostly done. I finished up on Saturday morning, with help from Elijah, my sister's cat. We were staying at their house at the time. So, to finish my yarn about the little pink piggy, I added it to the bag of gifts for Chloe's 3rd birthday, which was Monday the 29th.

You Do?

Last Saturday, the 20th, (my 44th birthday), we had a Little Christmas celebration with Mom, Dad, Wendy, Jon and Chloe. Wendy, Jon and Chloe are spending the holiday with the Snyders in Philly. During lunch I leaned over to Chloe (she's almost 3), who was sitting next to me, and said, "I love you, Chloe." and she said, "You do?".

Here she is enjoying some chocolate cake! Yum!

Merry Christmas!

A few years ago I gave up on sending Christmas cards. I prefer to send store-bought cards to close friends and family, Trevor prefers to send hand-made cards to EVERYONE he knows. I don't know if we'll ever compromise on this so I'm taking a Christmas card hiatus. Although, the other day, when I was in Broadside Bookshop in Northampton, I saw what I thought was the perfect Christmas card for a librarian to send...

Anyway, Trevor always comments on the photo cards we get from friends that feature their children but not the parents. And this Rhymes with Orange strip pretty much sums up his feelings on the subject. If you've been guilty of this just know what I wouldn't actually "clip and send" this to you (Kurt and Shelley....). I do have friends who pose with their children on their cards. Last year, Amanda and Michael posed with their children, Austin and Regan. They're a good-looking family. If I could find the card (I actually do save the photo cards- just not sure where they are) I'd scan it in and post it here. This year, Heather and Peter posed with their son, David. Some parents feel the way my friend Ken does about posing with the kids, "Just the pics of the kids alone.... Do you really want to see me hanging on your mantel for a month?? I didn't think so."

And speaking of cards, I'm always amused by the card that I get from Florence Savings Bank. Why does the bank send me a card? Because I went to them when I had to roll-over my IRA several years ago. This year, they sent a PHOTO CARD!

A Note of Thanks

My niece, Ivy (she's 5), was sick for a bit and so I sent her a get-well card and put some stickers in the card. Today I got this note in the mail with most of the stickers that I sent her! This is the second time I've sent her stickers and got back a home-made card with the stickers that I sent her on it! But this time, that's her handwriting! She's in kindergarten and according to her papa, she has the best handwriting in her class. I agree! I love her :-)

Boy Hat

I finished! I finished the hat in Cozy Crochet by Melissa Leapman that she calls "Boyfriend Hat". I call it boy hat. It's half-double crochet into the back loop only back and forth, etc, several rows. Then you just sew up the seam and weave the yarn through the edge and bring the top together nice and tight, and turn up the edge for a cuff. It's very simple. Yarn I used is Ella Rae Classic Elite. If it fits my big head (23" circumference!) I'm hoping it'll fit the guy I made it for. Can't tell ya... it's a Christmas present!

My First Attempt at Felting

I've been wanting to try felting something for a while. I just really like the way it (whatever it is) looks after it's been felted. I've already corrected a few times by my neice, Emily, that the process is actually "fulling" but since I think few people would understand what that is, I'll continue to call it "felting". I've also been wanting to crochet a bowl so I found the perfect project! I found a book called Felted Crochet by Jane Davis and requested it from my library through inter-library loan (too many details? too bad). I made the stiff yarn bowl and this is what it looks like before felting. Notice that it's 11". I used Valley Yarns Berkshire Bulky which is 85% wool, 15% Alpaca. It's double crochet all around then single crochet along the top edge in case you were wondering. (Asleep yet?)

Here it is in the washer with a few canvas bags to provide more agitation. It's also an excuse to wash your canvas shopping bags.

Here it is freshly felted (or fulled). It only shrank about 10%, a lot less than I was expecting but it's still has that fuzzy look that I like about felting.

Here's the bowl in use on my table next to my chair where I sit and work. Notice that it's holding yarn and, hooks, etc, and not soup or cookie dough. Some may want to call it a basket and that would be fine but I'll continue to call it a felted bowl.

Free Tickets

Yesterday, while I was sitting around crocheting a pink mitten and listening to WMUA, the DJ came on and said he had tickets to see The Bobs and if you want to see The Bobs at the Iron Horse Music Hall in Northampton tonight call him. So I did! And guess what? We went to see The Bobs at the Iron Horse last night! I'd seen them before back when, what I'm starting to think were "the good old days" of working at Northampton High School. The Bobs are a 4-person a cappella group from the West Coast. They've been in existence for over 25 years and sing everything from Led Zeppelin to Cream to The Beatles, etc. They're a lot of fun and it was really nice to go to a show for free! Well, not entirely free since we bought drinks and a basket of french fries! But, the tickets were free!

My Horoscope

I don't usually bother with reading my horoscope but it was staring me in the face today when I was eating my lunch. If you can't read the small type this is what it says:

"Start thinking about your future and what you have to offer. A change to career that is more stable or at least offers an ongoing paycheck will ease your stress and help you evaluate where you should be headed next."

Basically, it says, "Get a job."

Crochet is Taking Over My Life

You might think from the photos that the Surfer Chick Quick Cap in the Chicks with Sticks Guide to Crochet is taking over my life, but it's really not. I've got 3 other projects going right now: 2 scarves and a hat. Yes, I've made a total of 4 Surfer Chick Quick Caps. The top one is Plymouth Yarns baby alpaca and its soooo soft.

This Surfer Chick Quick Cap in Artyarns Supermerino color 111.

This one is Ella Rae Palmero. Don't worry, none of these are for me. I'm not saying who they're for in the event the recipient reads my blog. I don't want to spoil any surprises.

Crochet is taking over my life! When I'm not crocheting (which is pretty much most of my waking hours), I'm reading crochet patterns on Ravelry or in books or Interweave Crochet; searching for crochet patterns on-line; photographing and blogging about my finished projects; updating my stash on Ravelry; and buying more yarn at Webs. It's convenient that I live 10 minutes from the largest yarn store in the US. Recently, I was checking the balance in my bank account and was relieved that when I was done paying my bills I could still buy more yarn! My crochet teacher says it's okay to be passionate about your craft. I agree!

I can't crochet in the following situations:
driving a car
cooking
eating
sleeping
in church
in a dark movie theater
bathing
walking

It's safe to crochet:
as a passenger in a car (preferably in daylight hours)
in a chair
watching TV

The sun is shining and it's relatively warm for early December. I'm tempted to continue working on the scarf I started this morning but I'll go out for a walk instead.

Down on the Farm

OK, so these are in no particular order. We spent Thanksgiving in Vienna, Maine at Trevor's sister's house. They own an organic farm on Flying Pond. The farm is called, appropriately, Flying Pond Farm. The grow salad greens in the greenhouses year round. They raise chickens for eggs and eating. They have 2 Jersey cows for milk. There's also Charlotte, the Tamworth pig. And the barn cats: Trouble, Chaos, Snowball and Blizzard.

Trevor on the trail to French's Mountain. Yes, it snowed. It's Maine in November.

The view from French's Mountain in Rome, Maine. Those are the Belgrade Lakes.

Trail at summit of French's Mountain. That's Ben Grams in the distance.

The group at summit of French's Mountain, snowman included.

Flying Pond.

Barn kitten. I named them Snowball and Blizzard... can't tell which is which.

Barn kitten playing with Uncle Trouble.

Flying Pond.

Flying Pond.

Oak leaves under ice.

Cow. She has a name but I don't know which one she is.

Chaos. Momma cat to Snowball and Blizzard.

My Latest Obsession

This is my version of the Yarn Harlot's scarf. If you don't know what I'm talking about read her blog (to the right ->). She can't stop knitting scarves and I can't stop crocheting the Surfer Chick Quick Cap in the Chicks with Sticks Guide to Crochet. This time I bought Artyarns Supermerino in color 111 (above). I love this yarn. It's super soft and so nice to work with. I'm making this one for a dear friend. I hope she likes it. Then I'm making myself another one with Berroco Jasper 100% Fine Merino wool. Then I have two small skeins of Ella Rae Palermo that would also make nice Surfer Chick caps...

Health Advice Just in time for the Holidays

Someone (my sister, Audrey, I think) sent this to me. I thought it was HILARIOUS. If you haven't seen this anywhere else here it is:

IMPORTANT HEALTH ADVICE FOR WOMEN

Do you have feelings of inadequacy?

Do you suffer from shyness?

Do you sometimes wish you were more assertive?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, ask your doctor or pharmacist about Chardonnay.

Chardonnay is the safe, natural way to feel better and more confident about yourself and your actions. Chardonnay can help ease you out of your shyness and let you tell the world that you're ready and willing to do just about anything.

You will notice the benefits of Chardonnay almost immediately and with a regimen of regular doses you can overcome any obstacles that prevent you from living the life you want to live.

Shyness and awkwardness will be a thing of the past and you will discover many talents you never knew you had. Stop hiding and start living, with Chardonnay.

Chardonnay may not be right for everyone. Women who are pregnant or nursing should not use Chardonnay. However, women who wouldn't mind nursing or becoming pregnant are encouraged to try it.

Side effects may include dizziness, nausea, vomiting, incarceration, erotic lustfulness, loss of motor control, loss of clothing, loss of money, loss of virginity, delusions of grandeur, table dancing, headache, dehydration, dry mouth, and a desire to sing Karaoke and play all-night rounds of Strip Poker, Truth Or Dare, and Naked Twister.

WARNINGS: -

* The consumption of Chardonnay may make you think you are whispering when you are not.
* The consumption of Chardonnay may cause you to tell your friends over and over again that you love them.
* The consumption of Chardonnay may cause you to think you can sing.
* The consumption of Chardonnay may lead you to believe that ex-lover s are really dying for you to telephone them at four in the morning.
* The consumption of Chardonnay may make you think you can logically converse with members of the opposite sex without spitting.
* The consumption of Chardonnay may create the illusion that you are tougher, smarter, faster and better looking than most people.

Now Just Imagine What You Could Achieve With a Good Dry Red!!!

Enjoy a few glasses with your turkey tomorrow!

West Beach

I was in the Boston area on Sunday, had dinner with my classmates (all 4 of us, plus kids and one spouse - not mine) from the Salem State College Geology Department Class of '98 in Salem on Sunday night and then spent the night in Beverly Farms at my friend Heather's house. Since I was so close to the beach (1/4 mile), and even though it was 37 degrees and very windy, I went for an abbreviated walk on West Beach on Monday morning. On my walk back I stopped and photographed this old pier. At least I'm guessing it was a pier at one point. What do you think?

Dear Lane Bryant,

Your new sizing system for jeans sucks. Now that you've made it impossible for us "women with extra padding" to simply walk into your store and find the size we always wear; try them on; buy them or not; I'm not even going to try! And what makes you think that we "fat ladies" want jeans in sizes that are single digits? Give me a break! If you're going to do that please provide a conversion chart. "If you normally wear a 16W you now wear a 2." And don't have your sales associates offer to take a "few quick measurements". Last time I checked we don't like to disclose those numbers. Those are private. I won't be attempting to buy jeans in your store until you join the rest of us here in reality where women like me buy jeans in double digits with a "W" following.

Sincerely,
Nancy Little
"Big Girl"

Surfer Chick Quick Cap

OK, some I'm not a surfer and would likely never even try surfing but I'd certainly make another one of these caps. The pattern is from the Chicks with Sticks Guide to Crochet. It's very easy. It's mostly double crochet and chains. I made it on Monday. Maybe I'll try taking another photo so you can actually see the stitch work.

Making Progress (in some departments)

Wow! I've really been making a lot of progress lately! Since Sunday the 9th I've made:
4 hats
1 scarf
1 pair of fingerless gloves

I've started on a small pink hat made of 100% merino wool and discovered that I need more yarn!

Oh no!

Horrors!

I HAVE TO GO BACK TO THE YARN STORE!

If my camera were back I'd have already taken pictures and posted a picture with this post. Y'all just have to wait.

Right now I'm wearing today's creation - Surfer Chick Quick Cap from my new crochet book - The Chicks with Sticks Guide to Crochet. I crocheted it from some really cool hand-dyed, variegated yarn I bought several years ago at the Sheep and Wool Festival in Cummington. The yarn is from my ancestral home of Dorchester, MA. That's right! There are enough sheep in Dorchester for someone to make yarn. It might even only take one or two. I have no idea. Any way, once my camera is back from the hospital, I'll take some photos and post them.

A brief update of my job search:
It sucks.

The good news is I have a job interview tomorrow afternoon for a "little job", as my mother would say, at Barnes and Noble in Hadley for the holiday season. I'll keep you posted. It almost sounds like I already have the job, judging from my phone conversation but I won't get all excited about working in retail again until I'm actually there.

Just imagine! Now I can blog about my "stupid customer" stories!

I've also made very small progress toward getting a position in a library. Possibly at the Springfield City library as a volunteer and this is extremely tentative and I really shouldn't even mention it here because Mom will think it's a definite. But it's not.

I had a very productive phone conference on Saturday with other members of the Alliance of New Church Women in North America Executive Committee, of which I am Madame President. The only weird thing about phone conferences is the disembodied voices, that's all. Otherwise, it's a great way to have a meeting with people from other parts of the country.

Reality Check Part 2

Back in August I whined about my current frustrations and most of them haven't changed except for the fact that my cat is getting fed a daily basis. I'm still unemployed, and still don't have a new PCP (that's primary care physician). That's mostly because I haven't chosen one. How do you pick one just based on name, anyway?

I recently got access to my Simmons College email account and discovered that I have 139 messages in my in-box. Great! Another inbox to check. Most of them weren't very important except for the one from Student Financial Services dated August 29th (I didn't even get the packet of info from Simmons until late October). The message from SFS, as they like to call themselves, said, "you haven't filled out your loan application". Well, duh! If I don't get the user name and password until late October how can I do that? Thankfully, it's not to late to apply for the loan.

Registering for classes at Simmons so was painless that I almost didn't believe that I did it. Huh? That's it. How can that be? No tears?

Thinking back to when I was registering as a transfer student (lowest on the totem pole) at Salem State College in late August of 1994... (let's set the way-back machine....): My co-workers at Spectrum Color Labs in Boston had given me a fine send-off at a really cool restaurant/bar in the South End of Boston. I, of course, drank too much! So I spent the night on the couch at my younger sister Wendy's apartment in the Fenway. Orientation/Registration was the next morning at Salem State College (and, I think, a math placement test). It was late enough in the morning that I knew I could take the train home to Salem, go to my apartment and change and head to SSC. Since I didn't know anyone yet at SSC it didn't matter what I looked like so once I got to my apartment I changed and drove to SSC. I sat in on really boring orientation for new Education majors (that's how I started) and was told what classes to register for. Once it was time for me to register I quickly learned that pretty much all the classes that I was advised to register for were full and I had to choose different classes. Due to a number of factors (mainly tiredness), I started to cry in front of one of the very kind woman who helps students register. She said to me, (I'll never forget) "If you survive this, you'll graduate." And she was right!

Camera Update

I got an email from the Canon factory saying that my camera will be back in 7 days. Can't wait.

A Yarn

I went to Webs on Saturday with Emily and Beki. Webs is "America's Yarn Store", the largest yarn store in the US and it's right in Northampton, 10 minutes from my house. Not only is the store huge but they also have the "warehouse" in the back of the store that's loaded with close-outs and sale yarn. We were there for 1 1/2 hours on Saturday and that wasn't enough time.

Jon, Emily's boyfriend, has been yarn shopping enough with Emily to understand how it really works. He summed it up pretty well, "Oh, this is soft and pretty, I think I'll buy it." Later (much later) you make something with it. Knitters and crocheters (or at least the ones I've met) rarely go to the store and intentionally buy yarn for a specific project. How boring! The point of buying yarn is to build your stash. Some people even blog about their yarn stash. My yarn stash is rather minuscule compared to some. There are even books about yarn stashes and what to do with them if you feel guilty enough.

As you can see in the photo, Beki is very concerned that she doesn't have nearly enough yarn in her stash. She's the one on the left. Emily is on the right. They just finished winding all of Beki's yarn into balls with Emily's yarn winder. A yarn winder is a handy little machine that winds a skein or hank into a center-pull ball. They're fun and useful.

Anyway, to continue with my yarn... when I got home I tried out my new yarn. I wasn't too happy with the way it was looking and so put it away and pulled out some nice fuzzy, warm, yarn from my stash (see how a stash comes in handy?) and started to crochet a hat. I'm almost finished with the hat. It's a pretty simple single crochet around in circle and if my camera weren't away at sleep-over camp in Illinois, I'd take a picture of it. For now, you'll just have to settle for "borrowed" photos from Facebook ;-)

My Camera went to Sleep-away Camp

I had to send my camera back to Canon because it's been misbehaving. It'll be gone for 2 to 3 weeks. Boo hoo! I'm really attached to my camera. In the meantime I'll be "borrowing" pictures to post here.

Why the photo of the snowshoe hare? When Trevor and I were in the NEK (that's Northeast Kingdom) we almost saw a snowshoe hare at Pete's as we walked around his property and checked some of the newer trails that he's cut on the 70 acres. The snowshoe hare was moving wicked fast so I'll just have to trust Pete that it was, in fact, a snowshoe hare. Zeb, the dog, stayed in Michigan this time. It was a rare opportunity to see birds and small animals that normally run and hide when Zeb's around. Thanks for staying in Michigan, Zeb. We missed your unique way of greeting us - maybe next time?

Halloween in the NEK

Motivated by the image of Chloe dressed as a Strawberry Fairy for Halloween, I made it a Top Priority to be in the Northeast Kingdom for Halloween. Being home for under 24 hours after 3 days in the Boston area (cleaning a grimy house - but that's another story for another day) did not deter me from packing my cold-weather gear and heading north for a few days. Their were rumors of SNOW on the ground but not even that was going to stop me from seeing the Strawberry Fairy! The creepy house (above) is in Island Pond.

Wendy's pumpkin arrangement.

Chloe, the strawberry fairy (left); Reeve, the firehouse dog (middle); and her big brother, Ian the firefighter (right). Reeve and Ian live in Island Pond not far from the creepy house. Trevor and I didn't stick around to go door-to-door with them. I just wanted to see the kids in their costumes.

Chloe's house. It's too rural here to get any trick-or-treaters so they travel to Island Pond.

The Strawberry Fairy waiting to leave for Halloween in Island Pond.

Special effects courtesy of my camera that needs to be fixed.

Strawberry fairies move so fast you sometimes have a hard time taking a photo of them. I just barely caught this one in the viewfinder. She was moving very fast.

After we left the trick-or-treaters in Island Pond, Trevor and I went to Pete's and hung out with him until the party came to him. We enjoyed pizza and beer with Wendy, Jon, Chloe (no beer for her), Luke, Kerry, Riley (too young), Mom (she had a soda) and Dad (he had many beers).

Check it Out

My friend, Jim DuBois, is featuring one of my photos on his blog for the next week or so. You can look at here. If you ever see any of my photos in your travels through my blog or on Facebook and you'd like it printed, matted and framed I'm sure that you and I could agree on a fair price. Yes, my photography is FOR SALE.

This 'n That

OK, just to let you know right away, that's not Sarah Palin that we're chummy with. That's our friend Cathy McNally who does a fine job of impersonating Sarah Palin. Cathy's a stand-up comic and was performing at an event called "Comics for Change" which was a fundraising event for the Barack Obama campaign. Trevor's known Cathy for many, many, many years and so naturally we got a picture taken with her following the event. I'm pretty sure that Cathy didn't spend nearly as much on her wardrobe for this event as did the RNC for Sarah Palin's new wardrobe.

I've been getting regular exercise this week. We hiked into Fitzgerald Lake in Northampton; hiked to Sachem's Head in Greenfield; walked the trail in Haydenville that will some day be a bike trail; and I (alone) delivered almost 300 phone books to residents of South Deerfield. I feel like I've walked about 20 miles this week.

My mom's visiting for the weekend. We went out to Pittsfield to visit my older sister, Audrey. Her birthday (45!) was a few weeks ago. For lunch we went to a pub called the Forge Tavern. They were having a special Oktoberfest day complete with German menu and lots of beer. They were having special events for the day. One of the events was "Keg Bowling". After a little encouragement, Audrey and I went out to try our hand at "Keg Bowling". They had 2 empty kegs that were the balls and a bunch of empty cans set up as pins. I went first and knocked down 2 pins. On my second turn I got a "gutter keg". Audrey went next. She'd obviously been watching my form (and learning from my mistakes) and almost knocked down all the cans! We went back in to eat our lunch thinking that was the end of that, and silly though it was, had fun too. We were almost done eating when the guy who was organizing the Keg Bowling came back in looking for Audrey because there was "bowl off", the first time since 1987! She had to go back out and bowl against some young dude. She did really well and placed second! Her prize was a beer stein and a t-shirt. Guess all that candlepin bowling with our grandmother in the '70s has finally payed off!

Big Trees Grow in Northampton

Trevor and I went on a walk at Fitzgerald Lake Conservation area this morning. We walk there regularly since it's a short drive from our house and a relatively easy walk into the lake. Today's walk was led by a Big Tree expert. We only made it about half-way to the lake since there was a lot stopping to learn about the many, many varieties of trees at Fitzgerald Lake. Above is a red oak (I think).

More magnificent trees. I was mostly interested in the color of the foliage, I have to admit. Nothing against trees, honestly, it just happens to be Autumn and the foliage is impressive.
Trevor and I have gone in search of large trees in the past, and found an impressive small forest in Stockbridge, MA called Bullard Woods. If I remember correctly, there's a huge tulip tree there, as well as magnificent white pines. Today I learned that the largest sycamore tree in MA is in Sunderland. 25' in circumference!

Pretty colors.

The tree expert teaching us about tree rings.

Politics as normal?

"Cheney's heartbeat returned"

That was the first part of the headline and then it said "to normal". At first I only read what you see above and thought for a moment that he didn't have a heart...but it turns out he does and it was just beating abnormally. Too bad. Don't mistake me for a Republican. I was born and bred in a blue state and so it shouldn't come as any surprise that I'm a registered Democrat. I voted for a Republican once, William Weld.

And in other political news:
"W." a movie about our current president is opening in theaters this Friday. Would have been nice if they'd waited until the guy is out of office to release it. I wonder how much impact it'll have on the elections on Nov 4th.

As Trevor says, "No third terms." I agree.

Cape Ann Trip: Day 3

On Friday morning we packed up our stuff and left the cottage. We were a few minutes early for meeting Heather at Lobsta Land so we went to check out the village of Annisquam in Gloucester. It was our lucky day! The Annisquam Exchange was open. It's a thrift and consignment shop. We poked around in there for 15 minutes, found a few things we couldn't live without and then headed over to Lobsta Land. Heather and I have been friends since way back (1990) when we both worked in Boston in the fast-paced crazy business of commercial photography. About once or twice a year we get to see each other and it's always a fun time. Heather treated us to lunch at Lobsta Land in honor of our 10th anniversary.

After lunch, just for the halibut, we drove up to Halibut Point State Park . One of my favorite places to explore. There was once a granite quarry here. There's also all kinds of paths to walk down to the rocks on the ocean. I love it here! Trevor had never been here and he really liked it too.

Trevor enjoying the view at Halibut Point State Park. There's also an adjoining property that's owned by the Trustees of Reservations, it goes by the same name.

We came across these little rock cairns that someone left. It reminded me of the rock cairns marking the trails in Arches National Park in Utah. No ocean there, though.

More rock cairns at Halibut Point. After poking around for about an hour (I could have stayed a lot longer...), we headed back to the truck and then went in search of the $2.97/gallon (yes, it's true!) gas we saw the day before. Once the truck was full we hopped on Rte 128 South and headed home! All in all, it was a fabulous trip and I wish we could have stayed longer. We'll just have to go back !

Cape Ann Trip: Day 2

Lanesville, a village of Gloucester, was just 1/2 mile up Washington Street from our cottage. On Thursday morning we walked up there so that I could check out the local coffee shop. The coffee was OK but the coffee cake - loaded with cinnamon and chocolate chips - was YUMMY!

On our walk back to the cottage we walked down a little side street to Lanes Cove cemetery. I've always loved old cemeteries so had high hopes that this one, being right on the ocean, was going to be pretty special. I was right!

It was so peaceful, of course! Obviously the trees have grown up around the old gravestones.

I walked to the far corner of the cemetery and discovered there were several paths. Not seeing any "no trespassing" or "private property" signs I took that as a sign that it was permissible to walk out there. So we did and below is what we saw!

Lanes Cove.

In the afternoon following a scrumptious lunch of a lobster roll for me (when in Rome... or Gloucester...), and Trevor's standard breakfast (fruit and coconut) at Good Harbor beach (below) we drove to Eastern Point Light. The gabby old ladies at the visitors center in Gloucester highly recommended it but it wasn't easy to get there with all of the "no trespassing" and "private roads" signs. That didn't deter us though, we just kept going until we finally reached it. It's closed to the public and being used as a private residence now but you can walk out on the granite breakway. I walked out about 1/2 way. It was quite a windy day!

Good Harbor beach. Some claim it's the most beautiful beach in the world. Since I haven't been to all the beaches in the world I can't really say but it's pretty nice. The sand isn't as velvety as Wingaersheek beach, but it's pretty fine.

I'll take the house on the left with the yellow trim, please.

Trevor got a brief lesson in coastal geology while we were at Good Harbor beach. I wasn't lecturing. He just was asking a lot of questions. As you can see in this picture the island in the background is influencing the way the waves are hitting the shore. And I like the way the clouds are reflected in the water, too!

This is a pretty nice house too, on Good Harbor beach. My friend Heather, who lives in Beverly Farms painted this house. By painting, I mean on canvas. Not actually painted this actual house.

So, while I was there I called Heather and this is what I said:
"Hi Heathah. I'm callin you from the pahkin lot at Good Hahbah beach in Glosta. Do ya wanna meet at Lobsta Land tomorrow? Call ya latah."