"First Date," Priscilla Beach Theatre, Priscilla Beach, Manomet, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

Priscilla Beach Theatre (PBT) is in the final week of rehearsal for the musical comedy, "First Date," which will open on the Barn Stage on October 7 for five performances. This is the last major show on the Barn Stage for the 2016 season.

This show is directed by Conni DiLego and produced by Bob and Sandy Malone, owners and guardians of PBT.

The story line is: "When blind date newbie Aaron is set up with serial-dater Casey, a casual drink at a busy New York restaurant turns into a hilarious high-stakes dinner. As the date unfolds in real time, the couple quickly finds that they are not alone on this unpredictable evening. In a delightful and unexpected twist, Casey and Aaron's inner critics take on a life of their own when other restaurant patrons transform into supportive best friends, manipulative exes and protective parents, who sing and dance them through ice-breakers, appetizers and potential conversational land mines. Can this couple turn what could be a dating disaster into something special before the check arrives?" Source: PBT website.



These images are from a recent rehearsal.











































Contact PBT either online or by phone at 508-224-4888 for tickets or information.

The last performance on the Barn Stage this year will be the fall Children's Workshop production of "Music Man, Jr." in late October directed by Ross Magnant.

Season tickets for next summer go on sale December 1. (Individual ticket sales will follow a few days later).

Here's the lineup for Summer 2017:

"The Marvelous Wonderettes" in May,
"Nunsense" in June,
"West Side Story" in July,
"The Producers" in August,
"All Shook Up" in September, and
"Little Shop of Horrors" in October.

Support local, live theatre in our community. Come out to PBT - you'll enjoy great entertainment by first class casts and crew!

Highland Light, North Truro, Cape Cod, Massachusetts, USA

What is it about lighthouses? The romance of the sea? A welcoming beacon signaling safe harbor? A cautionary beacon warning of dangerous land?

Highland Light in North Truro on Cape Cod is easily accessible in the Cape Cod National Seashore. Unlike Race Point Light, Wood End Light, or Long Point Light, when visiting Highland Light, one can drive right up almost to the front door. No stumbling around in the sand when you leave after dark.

Highland Light is the oldest and tallest on Cape Cod.  The original wood version was authorized by George Washington in 1797. In summer months, for a few dollars, it is possible to climb the stairs up to the top......



....and see the view and the actual light itself.



We arrived for sunset but, alas, the existing sky was a bit flat and mostly overcast so I modified it in post-processing to this freakishly apocalyptic version.



Back to "normal" view, here is the perspective toward the west and the mostly hidden sunset......



.....and the eastward view. Pretty spot - and my shoes stayed dry the whole time. The grounds are open year-around.

Out and About, Provincetown, Cape Cod, Massachusetts, USA

Provincetown is a creative kind of place with interesting works of art randomly displayed outside in addition to regular indoor galleries.



A view of the public library from the downtown wharf area.



Cute name for a boat. I can't figure out what the bare feet mean.



Walking the dog on the main downtown beach as a roll cloud moves in.



Kayaks waiting for customers to go for a ride in the harbor.



Another art sculpture in a yard. Note the recycled bicycle chain for a cheek.



See ya next time!

Sunrise, Provincetown Harbor, Provincetown, Cape Cod, Massachusetts, USA

Slug that I am, I didn't make it downtown to the wharf for sunrise with Amy's group but, I did walk out of the hotel onto the beach. This is sunrise the next morning after the wet trek to Race Point Light which I blogged about last. A ten-foot low tide makes a wide sand flat. The light was magical.



With the tide way out, I was able to wander out onto the wet sand for the added reflections.



There were also some clouds to make it even more interesting........

.....and a couple random cooperative birds put the icing on the cake.  Life is good at the end of the world in Provincetown, Massachusetts.

Race Point Light Sunset, Herring Cove Beach, Provincetown, Cape Cod, Massachusetts, USA

I didn't intend to walk in the water.  Really.  I am an adult not a 5-year old. I had on regular shoes and socks - not the waterproof kind. The tide was going to be low, I was optimistic, and I thought I could stay on dry sand or sand bars and successfully walk from the Herring Cove Beach parking lot to Race Point Light under the conditions......



....but it was a long walk and it turned out even at low tide that there was a lot of water between us and the lighthouse.



I was with a group of Amy's photographers and our goal had been to photograph the sunset at Race Point Light and then a short while later, the moonrise from the opposite horizon. We were almost successful. The sky was certainly glorious enough but........



....try as I might, I couldn't get across all the water to get closer



I carried both of my point-and-shoot cameras on this walk.  My regular camera has a 1" sensor (Sony DSC-RX100M2) but only a 3.6X optical zoom (equivalent to about a 105mm zoom in 35mm camera language), and, my older model with a tiny 1/2.3" sensor (Sony DSC-WX500) but it has a 30X optical zoom (equivalent to about a 700mm lens).



The water was warm on my soggy feet, the air temp and breeze were comfortable, gulls were crying out, and the sky was on fire.



It was a special moment in a beautiful spot on the planet.



After I returned home, it took my shoes three days to dry out....... I'm not sure they'll ever be the same. I like being 5-years old again.

I walked way farther over more difficult sand than I had expected or desired. The long trip back to the parking lot was in near total darkness but, all in all, I felt enriched and inspired by the beauty of this hard-earned sunset, standing in a wetlands with an iconic lighthouse in the distance, feeling the richness of natural life all around me.

I earned that view and it was even better because I had to expend a lot of effort to achieve it. Another life lesson........especially for a 5-year old in wet shoes.

Sailboat, Bartlett Pond, White Horse Beach, Manomet, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

After my post from yesterday with the beautiful sail boats in Provincetown Harbor, this image seems anti-climactic. I don't often see any sailboats on Bartlett Pond - and hardly ever a fancy wooden one like this with two sails! It creates a nice retro kind of mood, though. (And yes, I added some blurring and focus effects in post-processing).

Sailboats, Provincetown Harbor, Provincetown, Cape Cod, Massachusetts, USA

There was a fresh breeze in Provincetown Harbor on this day. It is the last weekend this summer and the sailors were out enjoying it to the fullest.



These three are passing abeam the tip of Long Point.



Long Point Light comes into view. Congress began in 1826 to earmark money to put a lighthouse at this location.



It is a long walk out there if you are a beach-goer, but a beautiful place to sail by.

This boat takes visitors out for a few hours of sailing on a classic vessel.

Tree Branches, Manomet, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

I enjoy the look of this tree along my walking route. It reminds me of the Southern Live Oak species in the southeastern United States - the only thing missing is hanging strands of moss.



I haven't learned how to create hanging moss but, I re-processed it with an infrared effect which looks like this......



.....and then added a zoom-burst. It's not moss but, it's pretty cool anyway.

Technology has afforded the amateur photographer an endless choice of ways to play with and improve images. At least, I think it is an improvement.

Whole Food, Plant-based Eating, Manomet, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

Whole food, plant-based eating has been shown to be the best and healthiest diet for humans.  Not to mention the benefits to the animals and the planet.  I repeat: whole food, plant-based eating has been shown to be the best and healthiest diet for humans.

If you'd like to read more about that rather provocative opening statement, see "The China Study," a book by Cornell University professor T. Colin Campbell based on a comprehensive nutrition study conducted over a 20-year period jointly by the Chinese Academy of Preventive Medicine, Cornell University, and the University of Oxford. The book itself has sold more than one million copies since its publication in 2006 and is one of the most popular publications on nutrition in the world.

In a nutshell, it questions and then scientifically upends the current belief in the animal-protein-based diet currently embraced by the Western world.

Anyway, back to the subject at hand: here's a whole food, plant-based pizza. Start with a thin whole wheat crust (store-bought or made from scratch), brushed with olive oil and tomato garlic sauce, ground basil and oregano, a layer of ground-beef-like-crumbles (store-bought, made with soy and other vegetable protein sources), zucchini, squash, green beans, and not-cheese (a mozzarella-like product made with vegetable sources). Bake for 9 minutes, top with avocado or guacamole and eat. Tasty and healthy! And no sentient creature died in the making.



What could be better?

Morning Walk, Manomet, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

The storms have all passed leaving a cool fall-like morning in Manomet. Sometimes, it is just too pretty for words here.

(The above image is a panorama created in Photomerge by stitching two images together).

Farther south along the bluff it is just as glorious. Life is good in Manomet.