I wanted to check out this rooftop garden in Kendall Square because we might see some free outdoor movie there sometime next month with another couple possibly. (Pretty in Pink, if you must know!)
I had some business at Earth-1, so after that was done I decided to bike on down there and scope it out. Found it pretty easily. Basically next to the train stop a door down from Legal Seafoods. It’s cute but small. I’d be down for hanging out there tho. Google has a huge office space there and there’s a bunch of MIT stuff.
On the ride home I trolled thru Central, passed by some places I hung out at back in the day. Although it looks pretty different now. The Middle East is where I’d see local rock acts in the early aughts like Angry Salad, Tootsie/Jaded, Waltham, and Damone. And at TT the Bears next door (long gone now).
There’s a Target in Central now??? Guess I’ve been out of the loop for a while!
This picture was taken from a wooden walkway like the one you see in the photo while looking back toward the sun after walking around the are for a bit. I always likes this picture for some reason. It’s one of my personal favorites. There really are a lot of scenic areas to shot down the Cape, this shot is from Brewster, one of the towns that we particularly like down there,
Did a bunch of things around the house yesterday. I finally got around to installing the new doorbell. It’s pretty sweet how it senses when someone’s outside. Mostly good to know when an package has been delivered. Went to the hardware store and got some screws to help address some issues with the side door and got a new hibiscus plant to be planted in the corner now that the new fencing is just about done. Ended up watching some tv, the first part of that Billy Joel documentary for one. It’s really good but be prepared to watch it for a while – the first part is almost 2 and a half hours long. For lunch LD drove me over to the Bubbling Brook in Westwood where they have different food trucks on different days and yesterday was Capt. Mardens. I was jonesing for a clam plate. Must have been all that beach time we had the other day.
I was planning on going to Maine this morning but I was too tired so instead I went to LD’s gym and used the hot tub, which I needed since my arm and shoulder were a little sore from all the throwing and splashing in the water yesterday. Ended up chatting with the trainer there today. Pretty cool.
Then, this afternoon we decided to hit the beach and meet up with another pal! Why not?
Also starting to set up a new doorbell this weekend with video capabilities as a side project.
Above, another shot from Cape Porpoise, Maine. I might attempt a quick jaunt up there tomorrow morning if I can get up early enough for an event, but that’s iffy. Going to spend the afternoon today at our friend’s pool. Ahhhh!
Had a fun fourth over at a friend’s house down in Fairhaven along the water yesterday. I ate a bunch of burgers, dogs, chicken, chips, desserts, etc. Hung with with 4 dogs. So cute. This was right after we celebrated LD’s achievement again at the pool at the gym – there were treats and balloons and a lot of fun. Also picked up a bunch more Dedham pottery bunny stuff in Swansea which was sort of on the way and today in Dedham of all places, obtained a bunch more, some of them cats with their kittens. So it was a good haul this weekend to be sure!
Enjoy this pic of the lilies on our friends property from yesterday.
Mr. History Post #14: The Most Photographed House in America at one time and I believe still the most photographed house in the state of Maine. It’s the Wedding Cake House! It’s up for sale if you want the slice! If you want a look inside you can check that here.
We headed off to Cape Porpoise for a little mini weekend getaway. I really enjoyed this trip. The Airbnb we stayed in was really great – I would surely return to it. It was so spacious and the hosts were super great. The first night we headed to the town over called Biddeford Pool because there was a food/store place called Goldthwaites that we wanted to try. It was good and the views from their back outside area were wonderful. I noticed you could even see the Stage Island Monument in the distance. I do so love this area of Maine. We also saw deer and what appeared to be a company of black swans, but could that be true?
Next day we did a bunch of things. We hiked a part of the Carson trail, which is part of the Rachel Carson Reserve Wildlife area. It was kind of too hot to really do too much of that though plus it was a little buggy so we didn’t stay there too long. There were a ton of chipmunks around I noticed. For lunch we drove into Kennebunk and I ended up getting a burger at a place called Duffy’s. We then headed back for a little rest before hitting Goose Rock Beach for the afternoon. While there we saw piping plovers, a cool sandcastle that someone built, and a very cute Bassett Hound named Baxter that we had to greet.For dinner we got some good eats at Mabel’s Lobster Claw.
Next day we went to Sunday services at St. Ann’s Church, What’s cool is that they do the service right by the water weather permitting. It was a bit rainy when we went so the service was actually indoors but even that was pretty cool. I actually really liked everything about this location and plan to return for some other services soon. We got breakfast at a place next to Mabel’s from last night called the Pantry. I decided to try the eggs benedict with lobster and it was damn good. Another afternoon at the beach afterwards I wanted to catch a sunset at the famous fish shacks. Thanks to LD for finding the perfect location for me to shoot from!
The fish shacks. I was always curious about these buildings. After taking these shots we eventually found a place where we could get some eats (a pizza actually) which was a bit of a struggle to find food since it seems all the places around here close at 8 or 9 o’clock. I caught the tail end of the Valkyries WNBA game as they beat the Suns. It’s nice that this Airbnb had all the stations you could want, they aren’t usually like that in my experience.
Finally on Monday it started to get really hot. We checked out, hit Stonewall Kitchen for a quick bite and Yummies to get some candy fix. Our freinds up in Georgetown were kind enough to let us stop by and use their pool for a bit so we could cool off before going all the way home. So we took a dip for an hour or two and were then on our way back home.
All in all, this was a fantastic trip! I probably left out a ton of stuff but these were some of the high points!
Currently Reading: Murderland: Crime and Bloodlust in the Time of Serial Killers
Saturday: Spent the early afternoon with a brunch invite over a good friend’s house. So nice to be invited and so delicious! Good chatting too.
Sunday: Pool invite up north, hung out, didn’t get to use the pool because it was too cold, but fun to see Molly again. The fire pit was relaxing though.
Monday: Today was the “get stuff done day.” Gardening and getting lobster rolls from Cousins Lobster food truck down at the Bubbling Brook ice cream place in Westwood. It was pretty good! I got the Connecticut style roll while LD got the lobster quesadilla. The gardening did take a while though, getting the plants, readying them, and placing either in the pots, raised beds, or hung depending on what kind of plant they were.
This morning was the annual spring bike ride that the city of Cambridge puts on that I try to do every year. This year’s theme was a tour of Cambridge’s off-leash dog areas. We also stopped at Fresh Pond for a water and restroom break and to hear from a guest speaker about the City’s biggest dog and wildlife hotspot. The ride was really good, mostly level terrain, with a police escort. If you weren’t near the front though I don’t think you’d actually know where the parks were because there wouldn’t be anyone to point it out to you as you rode by. This was a good 11 mile ride with about 115 participants. The best parts were the dogs that came along for the ride. After it was all over I headed to place a saw on Chronicle last week in my neighborhood that I wanted to try out, a Rwandan couple that has a coffee shop and serves coffee from their homeland, I must say it was pretty good! Would definitely go back and try some other things.
Mr. History post number 10: Powder House – the oldest stone building in Massachusetts, built around 1703! Oh yeah, there was some other pre-revolution history to it, too. Over the years it’s been used to store munitions and even pickles!
Started out the day walking a trail in Wellesley that I’d been meaning to do for quite some time but never got around to it until today. We had to be in the area so I decided to take the oppurtunuithy to get some steps in. The Fuller Brook Trail is really beautiful. Such a lovely trial to walk and enjoy.
After that I decided to treat us brunch over at The Cottage.
It was also Somerville Open Studios weekend so I decided to relive visiting the Museum of Modern Renaissance.
First really warm beach day outing of the year, sort of a test run if you will. Saw an interesting rock and then had a late lunch at a place called 135 Ocean which was pretty good.
Went to the home improvement store yesterday to get some plants and get a feel for the beginning of our garden season. We also had to get a CO2 monitor since the last one decided at 2:30 in the morning the other day to wake us up and let us know it finally reached it’s end of life. So there I was, groggy and 2:30 am trying to figure out how to shut the damn thing off. I got it eventually although it took me a few minutes. No wonder I was tired later on that day. Anyways, we got some plants, including a lemon tree which I’m apprehensive about keeping alive but we always wanted one so we’ll give it our best shot. We feel pretty good about the yard work we started to do today.
Currently Reading: As soon as I finish the memoir I’m reading now it’s off to read Save Our Souls: The True Story of a Castaway Family, Treachery, and Murder by Matthew Pearl.
Finally got a chance to check out the Daffodil Field over down in Dartmouth. It’s at the end of a short hike over a scenic trail to get there. I believe there’s also something similar somewhere in Rhode Island which may be worth checking out some time. Anyways, according to local lore, the daffodils were planted by Raymond Pettey in the 1940s to sell during WWII when the U.S. was unable to get bulbs from Holland. The war ended and the flowers remained!
This scenic and spectacular mile that crosses the Mattapoisett River estuary, salt marshes, and Reservation Beach at the head of Mattapoisett Harbor connects neighborhoods and conservation areas with car-free biking and walking. I also caught a glimpse of an American Oystercatcher, a first for me!
This one is so awesome, especially where the river meets the sea!
The last few pics for from Ned’s Point Light which isn’t too far from the rail trail.
It’s been cold and rainy up here for the past couple of weekends, including this last one. But I know that can’t last forever and that scenes like this one that I took some time ago can’t be too far off!
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