Category: Scenic Photography

The Best of Times and Tides

Posted on by Markman

It turned out to be a pretty good sunset over at the Creek after the day being mostly cloudy and overcast. We had dinner just before at a place called the Blue Island Crab and it was delicious! I think it may now be my favorite place to eat down here, the food was extraordinary! Great drinks too, one which actually got me pretty buzzed, which is not something I usually do.

Anyways, in the photo above you can see people way out in the distance. During low tide, you can walk out there for about two miles, which is crazy. When the tide does come in it can rise to a height between 9 and 11 feet in certain areas!

So, this has been a great time over at Earth-3 so far. Let’s see if I can quickly recap some things so I can remember all these times later on. So far, there’s been Rock Harbor sunset, two trips to the Chocolate Sparrow (as of yet), had a quick dinner over in Sandwich harbor, Checked out the General Store, checked out a famous crafter in Dennis, Eat Cake 4 Breakfast for some great pastries, swimming in the pool, some clams over at Mac’s in Chatham, Hole in One doughnuts a couple of times as of yet, Snowy Owl for coffee, Joe Mama’s for the best breakfast sandwich that I love, The Knack for burgers, Chatham beach a couple of times, went down to the dock to see seals, traipsed around Chatham’s downtown for the shops and the whale art, did the Eddy Trail, stopped over in Wellfleet for a bit, checked out Ptown’s Commercial Street and the library. Whew! What else? I know I’m missing stuff!

Entrance to the creek
Rocks, marsh and sun
The sun peeps out
This cocktail got me buzzed!
The sun sinks below the horizon

Not Everyday You See a Boat in a Library!

Posted on by Markman

We took a drive this morning out to Provincetown, to drop off our guest at the ferry and while there I decided to do some quick recon and grab some shots of this very flamboyant place. First thing to check out is the famous alley. The alley takes up the exterior wall of Shop Therapy, stretching nearly three shop lengths. It isn’t terribly wide, but it is big enough for a couple of people to walk down the alley at the same time. Wooden books depicting illustrations of Alice in Wonderland are found on one side, along with wire bugs and metal flowers coming out of the ground. The other side features pictures on pieces of wood. This artwork ended up a bit controversial, and probably not what you would call family-friendly. The edgy paintings range from Greek mythology to scenes from the Bible and Alice in Wonderland. Some of the artwork is a bit provocative and is made to capture your attention.

However what I really wanted to check out was this schooner that’s actually inside the public library. I had never heard of this before and just recently found out about it so I had to see it. The library itself is actually pretty cool as the building started life as a church in 1856 and the church origins are still very apparent. Go up a flight of stairs and there she is. That’s where a 55 foot replica of the schooner Rose Dorothea dominates the area. There is even a hole cut in the ceiling to accommodate the mast!

Hey sailor…
The backside of the alley
Some of the alley’s artwork
Another alley shot
The entrance to the alley
I’m Portuguese, these are my people
The old Lobster Pot
The Squealing Pig

Then it was off for an afternoon back at Harding’s beach in Chatham. It’s sort of become our favorite beach because it’s warm and quite wavy. Today was a little rough but still a great time was had.

Another Beautiful Shot of “The Flats”

Posted on by Markman

The sun may set, but the fun never truly ends on a perfect day.

I’m going to have to do a writeup of all the things we’ve been doing but I’m having too much time actually doing them right now! For example, some highlights from this morning were visiting Eat Cake 4 Breakfast, which is an amazing place and you have to get there early before the good stuff is gone for the day (we made it!), a nature hike, pool time again, and now off top spend some time in Chatham, and the beach and around town. The shot up above from from last night’s adventures – a little place called Breakwater.

At Eat Cake 4 Breakfast
Doing the Eddy Trail
This shirt describes me so well!
Hiking the Eddy Trail
Sharks!
Amazing art on Whales
More whales
Dog with a cute tie
Chatham Fish Pier
Sunset at Hardings

Where Faith and Wildflowers Bloom

Posted on by Markman

I had some business to take care of over at Earth-1 today and although I didn’t get to check out everything that I wanted to do this go round, I did do some things, including capturing the shot above. I contemplated not going later in the afternoon on my bike due to the heat but I told myself I’d take it slow and hydrate myself appropriately. I was fine, and I got this nice shot of this church again that I had been meaning to visit again, so I can cross that off my list. I was curious to see what the wildflower situation was in front so I took a gamble and peddled over there this afternoon. I also got a haircut while I was there. I hadn’t planned on getting one today, but things just fell into place for it to happen, so what the heck. Strike while the iron is hot, as they say!

When I got back late in the afternoon I figured I’d mow the front lawn, heat be damned. Besides, at this point I could feel the air starting to get a little cooler as supposedly a storm might move in and dump rain everywhere, and I wanted to get it done before that happened. Plus it needed to be cut real bad. I hadn’t had a chance earlier in the week due to it just being too darn hot and disgusting out. So, another thing I can cross off the list for today.

I thought about going down to the local village common here and seeing some live music at the gazebo but instead I’m going to take a shower, make dinner, and get ready for tomorrow’s adventures.

A Hot Day and a Little Birding Afternoon

Posted on by Markman

Here’s a picture from one of last year’s outings. I plan on going back to this location real soon!

It’s been a hot couple of days here, so I’ve been trying to stay inside as much as possible, which is harder than it sounds. I still have things I need to do on various days, which means I have to go out in the heat, but I try to stay in the shade as much as possible.

While I’ve been trying to avoid the heat, I have noticed a few interesting things. My neighbors have another robin that is using the nest that a previous robin used. In fact, that nest was originally built by mourning doves and used by them for three or four clutches of chicks. It’s really cool to see that nest get used over and over.

The web software I use to run this site just got an update and I’ve applied it so hopefully everything will be fine. Just an FYI.

Hanging with Some Serious Beachie People

Posted on by Markman

Revere last night was spectacular. We had so much fun with some friends for a meet up that we all ended up staying past 9 p.m.! We got off to a pretty late start due partly to all the construction going on in the basement, partly for other reasons, but by late afternoon everything looked better and so we decided to go to the meet up!

LD actually ended up spending more than an hour in the water! I guess it wasn’t really cold at all. I still have yet to go into the water, but I think that’ll definitely be changing by the end of the week!

I tried to get a viewing of the Oscar Mayer Weiner mobile today but it just didn’t work out – maybe next time it swings by.

Currently Watching: Eric, on Netflix.

A Bench Press Kind Of Day

Posted on by Markman

Yesterday ended up being a very busy day after all, even though it didn’t seem kike much was planned. I was pretty busy helping out LD since her car ended up being in the shop for much of the day for some needed TLC. First there was the drive to the gym to get some reps in. Looks like they instituted some system to make sure randos don’t come in and use the pool or hot tub without authorization (who would do such a thing? * me looking around innocently*). I’m sure it’ll pass after a few. Then it was back home for a little bit before heading back out to drive LD to a Dr’s appointment over at Newtown-Wellesley. We got a parking spot in the garage literally right at the very front, which never happens, so that was pretty amazing. While I was in the waiting room actually is where I learned about some of the places that I want to check out that I mentioned in the last post, by me going through some of the old magazines lying around in the waiting room to pass my time. After that it was off to Braintree for LD’s Pedi appointment. While she was in there getting worked on I took a stroll over to Sunset Lake. It was a hot and humid day but by the lake was nice and cool. In fact, that’s where I snapped the picture up above. I’ve taken some autumn shots from this location in the past. It was pretty quiet on this day though. I stayed sitting on a bench for about an hour until I saw the skies getting ominously dark above. I didn’t want to get soaked so I trudged back to my parked car by the spa but by then the sun came out full force and it got hot and humid again. Not the greatest time to discover that my car A/C system must need a recharge since cold air doesn’t seem to emanate from the vents anymore, which was weird since it was the day before. Just bad timing I guess. When LD got down we learned her car was ready so from the spa we drove to go pick it up. When we got home we made some pizzas., A couple of flatbread ones that came with the week’s meal kit, and then rolled some dough on our own and made another one, mostly because we had to use all the ingredients before they went bad.

We’re finally getting back to working on the basement! The redone stairs are almost done and the new doorway to bypass going all around the basement to get to the other side will be getting installed this week, it looks like.

Minutia but Make It Pretty

Posted on by Markman

Time for some boring minutia but I’ll pretty the post up with some pictures I took to keep you entertained, Got through a bunch of little errands this morning that I wanted to accomplish. First I dropped off a heap of clothes that LD wanted to donate and then I got gas for my car. Then I hopped over to the pharmacy to pick up some prescriptions and the bank to get some funds. I went to go make a payment on a bill and picked up the latest Yankee Magazine which is featuring some hidden spots on the Cape that I thought I might check out. Could be some new photo opportunities possibly, we’ll see. I also picked up a puzzle book, partly to keep my mind occupied for the trip’s downtimes, and partly to keep my mind working! Speaking of photo ops, check out Madaket below down in Nantucket, and the Cape above over in Yarmouth, a location I may need to revisit.

We Can Always See Ourselves to the Beach

Posted on by Markman

Today I went to the beach for a few hours in the afternoon, but I didn’t go into the water. LD, on the other hand, went swimming. We didn’t feel like cooking last night, so we ordered this giant pizza from a local place we love. We only discovered this jumbo-sized pizza last month when LD’s friend from the south was here. It’s so big and impressive, I had to take a picture of it, but it really doesn’t do it justice; you have to see it in person to get the full effect.

Yesterday we also finally got around to looking at those Hoka sneakers at Dick’s. I liked how they felt, but they didn’t have my size in the color I wanted. So, we took a picture of the tag and ordered them online. They should arrive by Tuesday. LD didn’t like the feel of them, but I do. You’ll probably be seeing me in those later in the week.

Later on tonight, we’re going to see Inside Out 2 at Chestnut Hill. It’s a movie LD has been wanting to see for a while now, and today’s as good a day as any. When we get back, I’m going to grill some salmon and cod and maybe some zucchini with sliced cucumbers on the side.

Hanging Out on the Fourth of July

Posted on by Markman

We had a wonderful time at my LD’s friend’s beach cottage in Fairhaven. We celebrated the summer and the Fourth of July with a cookout and a nice hangout. The wind was blowing hard, but it felt great blowing around me. We relaxed and enjoyed the scenery. One of the most memorable parts of the evening was the fireworks. The town of New Bedford and the surrounding communities and private homeowners light off fireworks in the bay, and we had a great vantage point from the back deck of the cottage that faces the waters of Buzzard’s Bay. It was beautiful to watch the fireworks light up the bay and reflect on the water. As the night went on, the wind died down, and we continued to enjoy the beautiful night.

Hammock Swinging in the Breeze
Sparkler City
Hanging at the Airbus

I went to pick up a piece of pottery this morning, and I’m thrilled with it! Yesterday, I noticed someone selling another Dedham pottery piece that I had never seen before, a napkin holder in the shape of a bunny. So naturally, I had to get it and add it to our growing collection of Dedham pottery. I drove over and picked it up this morning, and I’m really pleased with its size and quality.

Currently Reading: Mass Murders: Bloodstained Crime Scenes Haunting the Bay State. This book has a slight bent about the paranormal which I don’t really care for, but I thought some of the crime stories might be good.

The Good, the Happy and the Sad

Posted on by Markman

The Good:

The Nubble

The Happy:

Alright, tonight I’m going to attempt to make some linguine with zoodles that I’ll create myself and throw it together with some shrimp. The recipe called for scallops, but we don’t have any, hence the substitution.

Anyone want to guess how this is going to turn out?

I took another picture of the fire lilies out front surrounded by the hydrangeas. What do you think of this version? I played around with the tone I bit more in this one.

and the Sad:

I learned last week that a work colleague of mine passed away. It’s so weird when you hear things like that. That makes three now of people I used to work with for years (well over a decade, almost two), now just gone. We all started at ADL together and worked on projects for a decade until we got bought out by another company and we spent a good decade and a half there – before they laid us off. I lasted at the company a few years longer than he did. The business was changing and we were all aging out I suppose. Apparently it happened over a month ago, but I just found out about this a few days ago. The leukemia finally caught up to him. He beat it once. I wonder if he got it to his being exposed to toxic chemicals during his deployment to Iraq in Gulf War? We’ll never know for sure.

Two of the three—including the one who just passed—and I used to play Quake ][ deathmatches on the company network after hours. It was just the three of us. We logged many hours together playing that game. Sometimes I think back to those times and reminisce. I thought we would get together and play again someday for old times sake, however remote it seemed, but that’s never going to happen now.

Rest in peace, “Helmet.”

Felt Some Love at Sankaty Light

Posted on by Markman

Here’s a shot I took of the Sankaty Head Lighthouse while I was in Nantucket. I had never been to this lighthouse before so it was a treat to finally go visit it! Thanks to our hosts once again for the opportunity!

I grilled up some marinated chicken we had in the freezer downstairs and we then brought it over to LD’s old landlady and hung out there with her a bit and had a nice lunch. Now we need to meal plan for the upcoming week, this time we’re going to get the ingredients ourselves and put together some meals using recipes from a book for a change. So is the plan.

Currently Watching: Six Schizophrenic Brothers (2024). I had actually read the book about a few years ago and found it to be quite the story. We plowed through the four episodes last night.

In Search Of That Girl, You Know the One…

Posted on by Markman

While we down on the island with our most generous hosts we got to talking about how LD and I met and there was talk of a poem I had written at the time that she really liked. (I was some emo back then!) I finally dug it up and here it is in all it’s glory. Tell me what you think of it.

That Girl, you know the one, the one that makes you better, makes your friends jealous and your parents scared. 
That knows who she is, who she was, but hasn't planned out who she'll become.
That challenges you, tests you, competes with you, all while standing by your side. 
That can cheer you up with only a phone call or a smile, that's intriguing but never impossible to figure out. 
That knows what she likes, but is still learning what she loves. 
That isn't afraid of commitment, but holds onto her individuality. 
That doesn't feel she has to say she loves you, only prove it. 
Whose sense of adventure is never lost, even if its just during a trip to the grocery store. 
That sees a little humor in everything, and points it out even when it isn't PC. 
You know, that girl.

I'm looking for her.

Well, the good news is that I finally found her!

The pic above is one I took this morning after noticing that the fire lilies are starting to bloom. This is probably my favorite of all the various lilies we have growing. This morning I went to the gym with LD and decided to just sit in the hot tub the whole time and relax. It was a great morning for it but it’s made me sleepy most of the day and I don’t feel motivated to do the things that I thought I would get done today. Well, there’s always tomorrow, think I’ll just lay low today.

Visiting the Nantucket Serengeti

Posted on by Markman

There’s this preservation area on the island which looks amazingly like an African Serengeti plain. It’s so strange to see such an ecology as that on a New England island!

Yesterday I noticed one of my car tires would keep looking low so I figured it might have a slow leak. I took it to my guy over at Earth-1 since I was heading there for the day anyway and they discovered that there was a nail in it, which they happily fixed up for me, so that was good. I ended up taking my mom to Revere Beach for an hour or so because I felt she might like to get out of the house and get some fresh air. She wanted me to ride her over to Wellington Circle for something and since the beach wasn’t too far from there I suggested we hang there for a bit. I think she had a good time so that was nice as well.

Walking the Sconset Bluff Trail

Posted on by Markman

You will love the Sconset Bluff Walk. This trail is truly loaded with beautiful views. It makes me so happy I got to walk along it! The experience is constantly changing. One minute you’re walking through a quiet neighborhood, the next you’re passing through a yard and the next you’re walking under a canopy of trees. Flowers, birds, pathways to the water, and places to stop and take in the scenery are in abundance. This walk can be quick or long, depending on how much time you have. It’s a great place for a leisurely stroll or a more invigorating hike. Either way, you’re sure to enjoy the stunning views. I sure did!

I have to also express my gratitude to our wonderful hosts who were so kind to invite us to spend a few days with them on this beautiful island. They were so kind and generous with their time and hospitality, and I really appreciate it. We thoroughly enjoyed the beach, seeing the sights, and all the great meals and places we got to see like the Brotherhood and Millie’s and Claudette’s. I hope we can repay the favor one day.

The Rose Covered Cottages of Nantucket

Posted on by Markman

I’m so grateful for the opportunity to visit the rose-covered cottages in Nantucket. The winding lanes and idyllic scenery transport you to a simpler time. Each cottage has its own unique blend of architecture and blooming roses, which make it a one-of-a-kind experience. The smell of roses and salty sea breeze (and it was pretty breezy at times!) is a relaxing combination that invites visitors to immerse themselves in the serene beauty of Siasconset. It was a perfect place to slow down and enjoy the beauty of nature. I’ve got a lot more to say about the trip over the next few, but there’s a ton of things I have to get done around home first, so stay tuned!

Our Guest Has Gone Home

Posted on by Markman

That was a busy few days with the guest visiting and staying for a while. We got to do a lot of fun stuff while she was here. LD is an excellent host, and I’m delighted she got to spend time with her childhood pal. They visited the beach several times, we watched the Brats show on the Brat Pack, practiced Pig Yoga together, grilled a dinner one night and made two big batches of the lemon soup for the landlady down the street, (yes, our guest helped out!) and had brunch at a 60s-inspired diner. Even Carson got used to her being around after a while.

The girls went to see a sunset and capybaras yesterday (I’m a little jealous that I wasn’t able to go due to other commitments, but judging from the hundreds of photos they took, it looked like a great time. Perhaps I can return there for my birthday!) Anyways while they were doing that I was hamming and hawing it up watching the Celtics win the championship. So sweet!

Now maybe a couple of days of normalcy during this heat wave we are currently having before the next adventure!