Jersey Shore and some other local sights.
Quick NJ December Trip
Category: Memories
It’s Been a Long Week
It’s been kind of a long week hence no updates. Yesterday was fully packed as LD finally bought a new car and in the evening we got invited to a holiday dinner at a friend’s house who has a very nice family.
It’s been a tough year in a bunch of ways, but there were some high points. I’ll try to put together my top ten list together at some point.
Here’s to hoping the next year will be good with a lot of new beginnings.
Meeting the Makers of Craft Colas
Checking out Wander Cat Cola in Somerville yesterday afternoon at a vegan market that was held in the Armory. A building that use to use National Guard troops and where I had to take my driving test with a state trooper back in the day. Now it’s some kind of art space but they hold markets and other events in there during the year. Fun fact: LD knew this girl from when she was just a teenager!
Wish I could get the shadows out of our faces but this was the best I could do!
Throwback Thursday – Long Beach Island Sunsets
This here is one of my favorite shots I ever took and when I was starting to get into taking scenic photos. This was shot down in Long Beach Island, New Jersey which is a barrier island kind of like the Outer Banks in North Carolina. I can’t seem the remember the exact town in LBI this is in, perhaps Surf city on the western side.
Prelude is Happening
Sad to be missing Prelude up in Kennebunk this year but there’s just too much other stuff going on at the moment. At least I still have this classic picture I took last time!
After putting up the xmas tree yesterday afternoon we took a trip out to Wayland to check out some holiday fair but it was kind of lame. I did get to see this rather interesting three wheeled car though!
Stand By Me: Forty Years Later!
Stand By Me, 40 years later! Screening and actor talk! This was actually really fun! Great film and still as as impactful now as it was 40 years ago, (Would you believe I had never actually seen the whole thing before!?) For a few moments it was like Teddy and Vern stepped out of the screen and into the stage, and Gordy was a calm, grounded presence. It was actually a wonderful evening. I didn’t realize that this was only the third show that these guys did for this. Wil was Wil, Jerry was funny, and Cory was definitely Cory!
Throwback Thursday: Rachel, NV
Throwback Thursday in and around Rachel, Nevada (population 48!) just outside Area 51! I was working on the Yucca Mountain project at the time and during a break my boss and I took a drive out to Rachel. Very different vibe from Las Vegas for sure. Probably won’t ever go back there and I imagine it hasn’t changed at all, but it was cool to see it. This place is literally the middle of nowhere. Just miles and miles of desert nothingness. The pic in the top right you can see a road that literally goes to Area 51.
The Cutest Little Gift Shop
It’s in the Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital – Needham. You should definitely check it out if you’re in the area. Little shop called Windows of Hope. I was just there the other day as I was in the area and was enamored with all the cute little things. I thought I would give it a plug because I endorse it.
I saw a bald eagle fly right above me this morning – that was really cool!
Currently Reading: If Anyone Builds It, Everyone Dies: Why Superhuman AI Would Kill Us All
Plymouth Seal Artwork Makes Us So Happy!
I had been meaning to check out these Plymouth Seals artwork installations all along the Plymouth waterfront, and Sunday was a perfect afternoon to do it. I was psyched that Plymouth wasn’t busy at all, didn’t know how it would be with the Thanksgiving holiday coming up and all, but it was pretty dead. Anyways, these seals are so cool! I love them! They really do make you smile, and placed in such a scenic location by the waterfront! My favorite is the one in the first pic below. It’s name is Jacques CouSeal. The pilgrim looking one was really cool too. LD’s fav was Taylor Surf over up on Court Street. That’s the glittery looking one. I also got my new hoodie so I wore that out for the afternoon as well. Topped it off with lunch from a place there called Woods Seafood. Not as fancy and the East Bay Grille which is also there, but was perfect for us at this time, and the food was great!
Why seals? According to the Plymouth Chamber of Commerce, “As playful and iconic coastal creatures, seals represent the spirit of Plymouth’s harbor and the vibrant marine life that calls it home. Each sculpture tells its own story—paying tribute to the town’s seafaring roots, its artistic community, and the scenic beauty that defines our corner of the South Shore.” I couldn’t agree more!
Seeing a Play at the Vokes
Morning – did yard work, collected and bagged leaves, put glass panes in doors replacing summer screens, donated food down the street to a woman who was collected food donations. Was really quite productive.
Evening: Seeing a play at the Beatrice Herford’s Vokes Theatre in Wayland, MA. A very small venue. You can read more about it here if you’re interested. It was cool seeing the actresses in the photos along the wall who all acted there in the early 1900s. We ended up seeing a play called Vanya Sonia Masha and Spike. Serious abs on the Spike dude, but all in all, kind of a weird play. At least it was something different!
Just a Memory But a Good One
Here’s another shot I took over the summer that was just sitting around in my archives, so I figured I’d dust it off and put it out there. The cool thing about this shot is the kayakers way out in the distance. I have a bunch of shots where I zoomed in more on them but then I figured I liked this long out shot better with the rocks in the foreground. What this shot doesn’t show you is all the bugs flying around and biting people. That’s why at a location like this I wear a hoodie and cover myself up even though it was like 90 degrees outside. I’ve tried the bug spray and all but that doesn’t work. I find the hoodie actually works best. As an aside, I believe this was also the night that we went here with another couple (a good longtime friends of LD’s and her boyfriend) and they had to park really far away since the lot here was so small and they had a police officer basically telling people they couldn’t park there because it was full. So when we were close to done he was literally running all the way down the street to get the car, and it was quite a ways. Not really sure why he was running though. I think we eventually picked him up before he got to his car. The details of the night sort of escape me now but I do remember that being a part of it.
Wedding Celebrations and Chill
Had a nice get together Saturday night in Concord celebrating our friends who recently got married so Sunday was pretty much a chill day and clean up the house a little and binge some shows. Here’s a shot I took from the other day of some young people taking a picture in the public garden.
Flowers Make Us Happy! Dresses Made Out of Real Ones!
Discovered this year’s Fleurs de Villes installation at the Pru and it’s a must-see! Made entirely out of real flowers. Fleurs de Villes combines the love of flowers, local design talent, and bespoke, utterly unique displays, for experiential events like none other. Which one catches your eye?
In other minor things that have been keeping me occupied as of late:
Gametime: Proton Path. You know I love these sorts of puzzle games.
Currently reading: The Cars: Let the Stories Be Told by Bill Janovitz. The back story behind the classic Boston band.
The Colors of a New England October in Mt. Auburn
An updated shot from last year around this time. I believe I took this from along the Indian Ridge Path if you want to visit the same vantage point.
The Goatfather Part 2
Yesterday we got to hang out with some goats with our friends who live up in Georgetown. We got to dress them up in costumes, which was not that easy! Naturally I had to be the Goatfather. It really is a pretty cool feeling to hang out with these animals, and the babies are so warm and snuggly. Studies have shown that goats can distinguish human facial expressions and prefer to interact with humans who appear to be happy so they are pretty emotionally intelligent animals. A cat names Penny also appeared to be pretty attached to me, which was cool. After the mingle we went over to our friends’ house and hung out for a while and had lunch. Sat outside for a bit on the patio, it was pretty nice outside in the sun.
Currently Reading: Fetishized: A Reckoning with Yellow Fever, Feminism, and Beauty by Kaila Yu.
Jersey Shore in a Storm
Well, we braved the weather and made it to the shore. There were areas of the shore that did flood, but thankfully not at all where we were. The weather wasn’t the greatest but we did get to see the power of nature. The waves were huge but the wind was the real nasty. Didn’t stay on the beach long because the sand would whip into your face like little stabbing needles. Glad we went though! I got to hang out with my four pawed friend Charlie, he is like the sweetest doggo.
What Would You Tell Your Younger Self?
What would I tell my younger self? I feel for me it would be to figure out what’s important in life. and just let myself be, everything happens in good time.
Yesterday was an action packed day, from doing to usual day to day, to getting a rental car, to decorating a hotel room for a friend who is visiting Massachusetts, (Salem actually, uhmm that’s so nuts this time of year) it was pretty busy. I think the hotel decorating was probably the most stressful as we ran into a bunch of issues with the front desk (and it’s a place we would never ever stay at in our lives, just saying) but we got it done and hopefully the recipient was pretty surprised to see the room all decked out. Stupid of us not to get a picture of the stuff but we were pretty cramped for time.
The rental is pretty sweet though, one of those decked out Pallisades! Going on a road trip this weekend, really hope the coming storm doesn’t affect us too badly! 🤞
Bloom Boldly
Here’s a shot from the church I like to shoot now and again before I go on those bike rides.
Here’s a page from our upcoming graphic novel!
Biking and The Bridge of Happiness
Started out doing the Cambridge city bike ride but toward the end peeled off and went to the Charlestown Navy Yard to check out the massive Bridge of Happiness animal sculptures. Also got a chance to bike over the newly opened Bill Russell bridge to get there – very nicely done. I had never actually been inside the navy yard before. The USS Constitution was there but like I said, I was there to see the sculptures. I might check them out again sometime when I have more time and it’s not so crowded with families taking pictures with it. LOL. Pretty cool to see it in person, it’s pretty big.
Haven’t been much updating lately – busy busy, car shopping and a bunch of other things getting in the way.
Gametime: Wild Willy 2. If you liked Super Mario Brothers, you’ll like this with a Mickey Mouse theme.
Grab a Handful of Little Ol’ Me!
Who wants a copy of this little doll of myself?
It’s been quite the busy week thus far, IYKYK. Tonight we were supposed to go to another outdoor movie on the rooftops in Cambridge with one of our couples friends but it looks like it’s going to be raining all day, so we’ll be nixing that. It’s ok though, I’m glad we went when we did last month. (Was that only a month ago?? It seems like so long!)
Possibly more later today as it goes along…
The Littlest Cider Doughnuts
We checked out this little farm in Canton today, just to get out for a little bit. It’s good to because after this little outing LD car died on the road back and had to be towed to shop. Thankfully not too far from the house. More on that stuff tomorrow I guess. (Last pic is from yesterday, I just really liked it and forgot to add it to yesterday’s entry.) Anyways, these cider donuts are just too cute!
Both my knees were starting to feel a little sore today. Here we go again!
This Fluff Festival was Fire (We Getting Burned!)
We checked out this year’s fluff fest over at Earth-1. It was it’s 20th anniversary and boy was it packed! We also brought along our friend Emily and her dog Pippa which was nice seeing as we haven’t seen her since March. We would have checked out more things but there were just too many people and some of the lines looked just way too long for us. That said, we able to score some fluff treats which were delicious including some Fluff croissant from Union Sq. Donuts and some cookies and fluff cannoli from some other vendors. Speaking of vendors, one of the ones there was the niece of one of LD’s best friends in life. I would have loved to try the product, but once again, the line was just too long. Man, they must have worked like crazy! After trudging through the festival we drove over to Revere Beach for a much more quiet hang and some sandwiches. The beach was a completely different vibe, very quiet and hardly anybody there which provided a nice balance to the day. It was also more Pippa and LD’s speed, LOL! We finally got back around dark and needed to decompress. In in all, we’re all glad we went though. It was a fun afternoon!
Currently Reading: Murder in the Dollhouse: The Jennifer Dulos Story. Another one that popped up on my Libby app. I remember seeing a Dateline about this story, but this book goes much more in-depth into the victim and her life, really tragic and sad.