A Slow Night at the Station, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

This dark and moody image was actually captured in downtown Plymouth though it reminds me of passing through west Texas late at night on a windy, winter evening. It will be frozen in time by the small sign that shows the gasoline price of $3.41 per gallon. (Click on it to view full width).

St. Catherine's Chapel Park, White Horse Beach, Manomet, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

St. Catherine's Chapel Park is maturing into quite a beautiful spot along White Horse Road just a few hundred yards/meters walk to the beach. Here's an earlier post about the park at this link.

"The Simes House Foundation now owns St. Catherine’s Chapel Park, located at 95 White Horse Road in Manomet. The site, formerly home to St. Catherine’s Chapel, was sold by the church to Good Properties Realty Trust, which built a beautiful, pastoral two-acre park. The park has been given as a gift to the Foundation, along with a $90,000 maintenance endowment. Historical village signage has been designed and is scheduled for installation. The public is welcome to enjoy the facility." (Source: The Simes House Foundation).

The signage has been installed and provides a fascinating journey into our local past.

Good Properties Realty Trust, a private entity, according to public town records, purchased the former church property in June 2012 for $379,000. They then demolished the church structure, dug up and disposed of almost two acres of asphalt parking lot, reconditioned the soil, landscaped, planted trees, graveled walks, built an entrance driveway, added fencing, lighting, and signage - and then DONATED the entire completed park to the foundation? WOW, what a wonderfully altruistic act! I don't know who the Good Properties Realty Trust people are but I for one, commend and thank them for their kindness and generosity to our community.

White Horse Beach, Manomet, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

A not-too-busy summer weekday at the beach. (The dark speck at center against the sky that looks like a helicopter in the distance is actually a dragonfly in the foreground - you'll have to take my word for it).

Pedestrians rule on Taylor Avenue - especially when there is very little traffic. The beach is about 100 yards/meters to the left. See the blue car fender sticking into the image at lower left?......

.....it's an old step-back-in time Cadillac from the days when all cars actually had lots of real chrome parts - late 1960's maybe? I'm not really much of a car-guy so I'm guessing the year.

Downtown, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

I always enjoy this view in downtown Plymouth when walking up the hill from the harbor on Leyden Street toward the Town Square.

Leyden street is reputed to be the oldest continuously inhabited street in the original thirteen colonies dating from the 1620's.  I think they had to narrow that distinction pretty sharply because there are older streets in St Augustine, Florida, though it was under Spanish dominion back in those days of the late 1500's.

Court Street, the main street through downtown Plymouth.

A mainstay of the downtown restaurant scene for almost twenty years,  this Mexican restaurant enjoys a great location in a converted fire station on Court Street. It's a great place to eat outside and watch the passers-by.

Three young locals hanging out at the Town Brook in the warm sunshine.

Amy's Garden, Bartlett Pond, White Horse Beach, Manomet, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

Why is it called a "dinner plate hibiscus."  

The reason is pretty obvious. Too bad it only lasts about a day.

Sometimes we invite select flowers indoors with us to be a close-up part of  the view.

Cast Party, Priscilla Beach Theatre, Priscilla Beach, Manomet, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

Following a whirlwind of activity this summer at Priscilla Beach Theatre (PBT), owners and guardians Bob and Sandy Malone, hosted the end of season cast party on this perfect summer day in New England. Over the summer, there were five different children's workshops on the outdoor stage each of which culminated with four public performances, one young adult production and performances on the indoor black box theatre, and one adult production and performances also on the indoor black box theatre.  Hours and hours of rehearsals had to be scheduled and held. All this while the major renovation efforts are underway at the adjacent barn theatre as well as other physical improvements around the PBT campus.

But summer is not the end.  Two new performances are already scheduled for the fall in the black box theatre. Visit the PBT website or call 508-224-4888 for more information.

More images from the party..........

Preparing for the group photo - getting all these folks lined up was like herding cats.

This was the first group photo before we realized some people were missing (the first image at the top of this blog post has everyone - we think).

The owners and directors.

Owners, directors, and production staff.

Director Connie DiLego and actors Geronimo Sands and Cliff Blake are the principals in "Tuesdays With Morrie."

This special group of folks were Tufts University students in the mid-1970's who rented PBT and created their own theatre magic. Over those three summers they produced high quality theatre while sticking to the traditional fast paced format of summer stock theatre.

The Tufts group.

PBT Artistic Director Emeritus Geronimo Sands taking the ALS Ice Bucket challenge.

The close-up of the critical moment.

The following images are folks enjoying the party.

And saving the best for last............here are the two people who make all of it possible - Priscilla Beach Theatre owners and guardians, Bob and Sandy Malone.

Note: While I was busy "herding the cats" at this event, all the images in this blog post (except the last two which I made) were created and provided by Amy Davies, founder and leader of the Plymouth Digital Photographers Club.

Kayaks, White Horse Beach, Manomet, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

Kayaks have become increasingly popular at the beach. They seem to be smaller, more easily carried, and less expensive to purchase than in years past. (For example, I have seen them for sale locally at Job Lot for $200).

Even at the peak of summer, water temperature only reaches the high 60's F (20C) so sitting in a kayak is an appealing alternative for those who don't like the cold water - in other words, wimps like me.

Priscilla Beach Theatre Restoration, Priscilla Beach, Manomet, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

The pace of restoration of the Priscilla Beach Theatre since my last post (at this link) is impressive. Above, the main entrance wall (southeast side) structural work is complete and the membrane and final sheathing is being applied.








The audience area wall (northeast side) is complete and ready for finishing.



The back of the stage and prop storage areas (northwest side) are complete and ready for finishing.



The corner beam and side stage area wall (northeast side) are being repaired.



The rotted wood and other construction scraps are loaded up to be hauled away.



Attention now is on the southwest side of both the stage area (at center above) and the backstage area (at left above).  Both had extensive sill and foundation issues so a poured concrete foundation is being built to properly support the wall.



Note the piece of plywood on the ground under the red door.  I'll come back to that in a moment.



Looks like quite a challenge but the folks doing the work, Colonial Barn Restoration, from Bolton, Massachusetts, take it all in stride. The corner between the "V" of support braces I mentioned in a previous post is remarkable because the corner post had completely rotted out from water damage. That will be replaced soon.



The footings are framed for the new foundation wall. Meanwhile, back to the piece of plywood on the ground which is just behind the man in the blue shirt.



Under that sheet of plywood is this amazing brick well about four feet in diameter. It lies within the perimeter of the original barn structure so it has presumably been here since the barn was built in 1875. It is 22 feet just down to the water level! The workmen dropped a weighted string down through the water and there was another 27 feet before it hit bottom!  Imagine that.  How did they dig the hole and construct this 50-feet deep round brick well almost 140 years ago?  It boggles my mind. The little brick protrusions look like steps to descend - I think I'll pass even though it might make a great photo..........

Mayflower II, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

Plymouth Harbor is home to the vessel Mayflower II, a replica constructed in the mid-1950's of the original Mayflower that carried the Pilgrims from England to the "New World" in 1620. The replica was built in Devonshire, England by private donations from folks in both countries and sailed to the United States in 1957.  It is a very popular tourist attraction.

The original Mayflower journey took 66 days with 102 passengers and crew of 25-30 in a vessel approximately 100 feet long by 25 feet wide. They arrived on November 11, remained living on board the ship until spring, and when the winter ended barely half the colony was still alive. Imagine all those people living in cold New England winter conditions in a space smaller than a tennis court. Some hearty folk those Pilgrims. According to the Mayflower Society, there are approx 10 million descendants from that original group.

In the late summer's day golden light, a man enjoys a quiet meal next to the historic ship.

"The Tempest," Priscilla Beach Theatre, Priscilla Beach, Manomet, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

Here is the cast of the latest production in the Children's Workshop series at Priscilla Beach Theatre. Produced by Bob and Sandy Malone, owners and guardians of Priscilla Beach Theatre, and directed by Geronimo Sands, this performance of "The Tempest," is the fifth of five children's workshops held over the summer at Priscilla Beach Theatre (PBT). Each workshop involves a couple weeks of rehearsals and then a few public performances. More information is available at this Priscilla Beach Theatre website link. Priscilla Beach Theatre isn't just for kids either. There are performances with young adult and adult casts, too. PBT is enjoying its 78th year bringing live theatre to our community!  Visit their website or call 508-224-4888 for more information. Support local live theatre in our community - or wherever you live in the world.

The following images are from the final dress rehearsal. It's a special treat to hear these young thespians speaking and performing Shakespeare!