North End, Boston, Massachusetts, USA

Slowly but surely, each visit to the city I see more and more people out and about - including kids playing in a fountain in the Rose Kennedy Greenway at the intersection with Hanover Street.



And speaking of Hanover Street,  it is so delightful to see folks enjoying the converted North End parking spaces  - now offering al fresco dining - buon appetito!

A Summer Storm, Downtown, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

A summer storm starts with a stiff breeze blowing.



Followed by more wind, and lightning, and rain, and dark and foreboding clouds over Plymouth Harbor.



Not the best time to be out in the harbor on a sailboat.



The storm has passed just to the north of White Horse and Priscilla Beaches.

Pond Life, Manomet, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

There was a perfect mirror reflection image on the still pond, until.......



....this critter unexpectedly exited the woods and wandered along the pond edge nibbling leaves and making ripples.



She is alone today - I don't know what happened to the rest of the winter herd.

It's a Hot One, Manomet, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

A magical sky on a hot summer day in New England.



It's unseasonably warm - in the high 80's F with high humidity.



Sometimes, the shady cool of stone feels pretty good.

Summer at the Beach, Manomet, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

Summer has arrived in Southeastern Massachusetts.



Air temps are in the 80's F, water temps up to 70 F.

Summer doesn't last long but, it sure is nice when it's here.

15,000+ Steps, Boston, Massachusetts, USA

It is another glorious spring day to be out and about in my favorite big city - Boston. From my base at Post Office Square, I visited the areas of downtown, the North End, Beacon Hill, the Esplanade, the Public Garden, Downtown Crossing and,  15,000+ steps later ended up back where I began.

Above, the weekend Haymarket market is back open and folks are out in public to shop. This market has been a fixture for hundreds of years and is one of the oldest open-air markets in the United States.



Folks were good about wearing their anti-Covid masks - both the shoppers and the vendors. The Custom House is in the distance against the sky.



Over in the North End neighborhood, many restaurants have reopened for outside service and the look is much different this time around. The city closed off the parking lane on both sides of Hanover Street so restaurateurs could use the space for outside dining. What a wonderful outcome! I hope it becomes a permanent feature of the North End. It makes it feel like I am in Italy - where diners and humans get priority instead of parking cars along the curb.



My only complaint is that the use of metal crowd control barriers and the ugly plastic white and orange automobile traffic control barriers are way too tacky for a long term solution. If curb service becomes a permanent feature, I hope we see a more aesthetically pleasing solution......



........maybe barrels and ropes and planters and hedges for example.



It is such a different ambiance than in the past.



This was another delightful addition to Hanover Street, too - a second floor balcony opera-style live singer to regale the passers-by on the sidewalk below.



I don't know if the North End has tried curbside dining in the past but, I hope it works out for the restaurateurs and becomes permanent in the warm weather seasons.



It is quiet in the shady space of the private Louisville Square park in the Beacon Hill neighborhood. Many/most of these brick townhomes are valued in excess of $10M each according to Zillow!



The tourist magnet Acorn Street didn't have many lookers when I passed by today. These properties are valued in the single-digit millions.



Window box gardens are ever-popular with the residents.



Another narrow old lane in the Beacon Hill area. (Cedar Lane Way)



The ducklings at the "Make Way for Ducklings" sculpture (based on the 1941 Robert McCloskey book of the same name) in the Public Garden are sporting multi-color vests in acknowledgement of the recent Supreme Court decision which ruled the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits sex discrimination, applies to discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.



The performing arts theatres are all still dark along Washington Street.



And not many pedestrians out in the Downtown Crossing area because shops aren't open yet for indoor browsing.



Along the Charles River, the Community Boating fleet is still quiet..... maybe next weekend they can reopen.

It is strange being in such a dynamic vibrant city, Boston, but seeing so few people and so few signs of pedestrian life.

Long and Late Light, Manomet, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

It's late afternoon/early evening and the light is long - low on the horizon as it is this time of year, as far around to the west as it goes before it starts the journey back towards winter. The air is still with just a touch of cool.



It's quiet on the pond except for the frogs and the kingfisher diving and swooping. The pair of green herons I've seen most years, would normally be darting about, cavorting and squawking but, the red-shouldered hawk seems to have been successful in chasing them away this year. It's a beautiful time of day and time of year in New England. Just small splashes of light here and there.



I don't often see the red-shouldered hawk posing in a bright patch of light but, today I was lucky.



And something made him stick out his neck like a chicken instead of the usual hunkered down appearance. No tellin' what he saw but, I suspect he was hoping it to be his next meal. It wasn't me, I was inside the house looking through the glass.

A Few Favorite Pictures from "First Date," Priscilla Beach Theatre, Priscilla Beach, Manomet, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

Since the performing arts seasons are all delayed this year due to the pandemic, I thought it would be fun to go through my thousands of images and pick just a few from each production and re-publish them. It was difficult to narrow down the choice to just a few - I picked ones that spoke to me personally - they may or may not be representative of the show or the lead roles - they are just images that warm my heart and bring back fond memories of the production - I am first and foremost, a fan of these performances, my role as a photographer is a distant second.

I hope you enjoy them, too.












As performed at Priscilla Beach Theatre in October 2016 and also here October 2016. Click on those two dates to see the original posts. Produced by Bob and Sandy Malone, Directed by Conni DiLego, Production Manager Joshua Patino, Music Director Chris Ricci.

Rhododendron Season, Manomet, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

They unfold gently like the parts in a symphony.



A passing rain shower helps them along.



In any neighborhood, you can often find them growing and blooming in brilliant explosions of color alongside the road.

And of course, humans aren't the only creatures to appreciate them.

12,000+ Steps, Downtown, Boston, Massachusetts, USA

It was a gray, breezy, showery day but still pleasant enough to be out and about in my favorite big city. Above image is in Boston harbor as viewed from a part of the waterfront Harborwalk near Rowe's Wharf.



This brick building in the financial district was built in the late 1880's as the Chadwick Lead Works. The downstairs establishment - "Howl at the Moon" - I love that name - is a live music party place. Dress code for men: "must have sleeves" - that's pretty clear, and maybe kinda' sorta' sophisticated?

The old Northern Avenue bridge awaiting an uncertain future. Black and white with a pen and ink effect.



I didn't expect to see a Trader Joe's in an old brick building in the Seaport District but here it is. And yes, masked folks are lined up waiting to get in.



Not many folks out today along the Harborwalk in the Seaport District in the cool and breeze.



Boston Logan International Airport  traffic control tower in the distance framed by masts in the harbor.



Looks like a king's crown to me.



Another quiet city street resplendent in the fresh spring foliage.