Vegan Pizza, Manomet, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

This is another post in my occasional series about, "what do vegans eat?"  Pizzas are always found among my favorites.  A whole wheat or corn based dough, slathered with tomato/pizza sauce, and topped with any and all veggies is always a winner. I'm especially partial to a corn based pre-made crust and found a supplier of vegan corn crust pizza shells at the Whole Foods supermarket chain.    

For this pizza, I spread the crust lightly with olive oil, then spread with marinara sauce with added ground spices such as peppers, onion, basil, oregano, sage, rosemary, garlic, tyme, parsley.  Then I added the diced broccoli flowers, sweet potato chunks, diced zucchini, garbanzo beans, and a soy based crumble (a ground beef like product without using dead animals) with onions, carrots, and celery.  Top it all with an arrowroot based "cheese" and bake for 13 minutes at 450 degrees on a pizza stone.

Doesn't that look good? It's good to eat and good for me, too.  And no animals were harmed in its production. Avocado chunks or guacamole are excellent topical add-ons  at table but - horrors!! - we were out of both.

Playing With Fire, Pinehills, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

The recent Pinehills annual Art on the Green event featured 80 different artists and their works including this glass blower,  Don Moore of Plymouth Glass Art.  Not sure how it all works, what with the little mouth valve he's using but, anytime someone gets to play with fire captures my attention.

Hot melted glass, flammable and explosive gasses, hardened steel tools - not a hobby for the imprecise or wimpy.

Granny's Juice Glass

My late maternal grandmother was born in 1883 and lived 93 good years in rural North Carolina. I still use her juice glasses almost daily (although only two from the set remain).  It made a nice image in the early morning light. It seems the simplest of mementos can be the most evocative - a good reason to clear out the basement, attic, and any other nooks and crannies rather than leaving a bunch of life's detritus for others to handle after death.  On the other hand..............isn't that part of the fun of dying - you don't ever have to deal with all that stuff!

Simes House, Manomet, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

The restoration of the Simes House, which began in August 2012, is moving ever closer to completion. The Simes House was built in about 1863 and was in need of tender loving care and repair and restoration. The Simes House Foundation was created to restore and maintain the Simes House and Manomet Commons as self-sustaining historical landmarks in the Village of Manomet. For the public benefit, the Foundation will enhance cultural focus and identity, provide education and encourage community service. 

Manomet is one of the villages of Plymouth, Massachusetts. It is a seaside village south of downtown Plymouth and adjacent to White Horse, Priscilla, and Manomet beaches. Plymouth itself is the largest municipality by area in the state and boasts at least 365 lakes and ponds within its borders - one for every day of the year. 

The exterior finish work is looking great! (This image post-processed with Photoshop Elements then further enhanced with Snapseed).

Apparently, the authentic paint style of the day was to use the same color for trim and other surfaces.

The newly finished front door entry. (Post-processed in Photoshop Elements).

(For comparison, the same view further post-processed with Snapseed.)

This is a good example of what the contractors had to work from. (Vareika Construction, Inc. from West Bridgewater, Massachusetts.)

The finished beautifully curving railing on the front porch.

Here's an old photo from around 1870. Note the lack of trees compared to today - much of the area was used for cropland back then.

While the exterior is nearly complete, the interior still needs a lot of tender lovin' care - and  buckets of money!  If you're one of those people with too much money and/or too much time, the Simes House Foundation in Manomet could use your support.  Here's the link: Simes House Foundation.

By the way, it's apparently pronounced "SIMS,"  a "short i" sound rather than a "long i" sound for those of you that remember your early English grammar and pronunciation lessons.

Red Onion

Sometimes the simplest images from nature just astound me with their beauty. Alas, the beauty  in this form did not last - this slice of red onion was finely diced into an ingredient in guacamole moments after this photo was taken - and yes, it tasted as good as it looked.  Here's a link to a previous guacamole post if you're not sick of that subject yet.....Joe's Guacamole ..... I wonder if it's possible to make chocolate-covered-guacamole? Hmmmmm..........

Random Sights Around Manomet, Manomet, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

A late afternoon walk around Manomet on a perfect spring day yields a good cross-section of pastoral and residential beauty in the area.  In this view, Cape Cod Bay is visible in the distance.

Unpaved lanes are not uncommon and add to the rural beauty and feel of the area. I quite enjoy strolling down these rural lanes with only the sounds of wind and birdsong as my companions.

I sneaked a peek into this idyllic back yard garden.

I bet this young girl will warmly remember this rope swing at grandma's house for the  rest of her life.

Some people even get mail delivered to their home - or at least close to it.

I like to take pictures looking into the sun but many distortions occur unless the lens is shaded properly - note to self: remove hand from field of view.

A quiet neighborhood pond hosts a pair of nesting green herons among many other forms of wildlife.

I think this might be called a dapple of late afternoon slanting sunlight - although I'm not sure one can properly use dapple as a singular noun...........

Dramatic Skies, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

This day had one of those mornings when the clouds, sun, light, color, and wind speak volumes about the beauty and drama in the natural world. I raced downtown to Plymouth Long Beach and Harbor areas to capture it.  

Long Beach looking east toward the tip of Rocky Hill.

The view north from the downtown public boat landing area.

The breakwater that protects and encloses Plymouth Harbor.  Rocky Hill in the distance.

Near where the Mayflower II would be docked - if she were in town - she is still out for maintenance after sailing away in January.

They took the Mayflower II away for maintenance but left her longboat behind.

The howling wind has this flag standing at attention near the Pilgrim Belle, a tourist paddlewheel cruise ship that plies the local harbor area.

Looking north from the Pilgrim Memorial State Park.  The Mayflower II would normally be visible docked left of center.  Plymouth Rock is off-camera-left, in the cove.  It was quite a morning of dramatic clouds and strong wind - but it wasn't cold!

St. Bonaventure Catholic Church, Manomet, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

Progress in early June continues on the St. Bonaventure Catholic Church construction in Manomet. Prefabricated insulated panels are being installed on the steel skeleton framework.

In May the prefabricated insulated panels were on site and beginning to be installed on the steel skeleton framework.

Early April the project looked like this.

A Walk in the Neighborhood, Manomet, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

I've wandered randomly around Manomet for a dozen years but never stumbled upon this gem.  To find a field that is left to just be a field is a rare treat. The green of spring is everywhere now.......

...interspersed with some little blue/purple flowers for accent.

...and the wind dances through the tall waving field grasses.

A bench in a private bluff-top yard from which to ponder Cape Cod Bay and the world. 

....and flowers continue their springtime blooms.

There is beauty everywhere - but we have to stop and look for it sometimes.

Water, Manomet, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

I recently received a water quality report brochure  from my town. In addition to facts about our specific water, they included some interesting information about tap versus bottled water. Citing an NRDC 4-year study, they say that about 25% of bottled water is actually bottled tap water. The brochure also says that we spend up to 10,000 times more per gallon for bottled than for tap water - not to mention all those plastic bottles, many of which are not being recycled.  Food (or water) for thought..........