A Cloudy Summer Day, Bartlett Pond, Manomet, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

We've had quite a few cloudy and rainy days here lately but the bee balm flowers don't seem to mind a bit.

The good news is that cloudy weather generally makes even, shadowless lighting, saturated color, and an abundance of plant life.

And sometimes the sun will peek out just as it is setting and line the clouds with golden light.

"Big Dig" Benefits, Boston, Massachusetts, USA

Boston's Zakim Bunker Hill Bridge (carrying I-93 traffic) crosses the Charles River into downtown Boston. The bridge and its associated tunnels, roads, and connectors are all part of the Central Artery/Tunnel Project but known informally and locally as "The Big Dig."  Completed in 2007 after 15 years or so to build, it was the most expensive highway project in the United States costing almost 15 billions US dollars. 

A side benefit of the project, this walkway connects the Paul Revere Park near the USS Constitution dock in Charlestown to the North Point Park near the Museum of Science in Cambridge so it is now possible to have a pleasant walk close to the Charles River between these two areas.  A skateboard park is also still planned.

Workers paint a bench in the North Point Park - the white dome of the Museum of Science is visible in the distance.

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

Amy's Garden on an early summer day.

These red bee bombs are a favorite of the hummingbirds.

And the bird bath is a popular feature for our feathered friends - both for drinking and bathing. I watched two different red-winged black birds take baths over a half hour period.  Each one did 15 dips and shakes in the shallow water before flying off to a branch to preen and dry off.  I wonder why 15?

This is an advantage of morning dew or fog. Advantage to me, that is, not to the spider who probably won't catch much with a wet web.

The day lilies have begun to bloom.

Here is some mighty fine pollen ready to be collected. Hope a bee finds it before the day of  life of the day lily blossom ends.

A Poodle Doodle, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

You never know what you will see when you go to the beach.........

IMPORTANT NOTICE FOR THOSE WHO RECEIVE THIS POST BY EMAIL:

 

Those of you that receive this blog via the email notification feature may experience some changes in the coming days.  I have been having issues with the format when the post is delivered by email. In the future, you should continue to receive email notification of a new post but you'll only get the new post title.  Please click on the link to view/read the new post.  I'm not sure how this will all turn out. Computers...............when everything works right they're great............

Swan Family, Bartlett Pond, Manomet, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

It is not often I get them all to line up just so - now if I could just get them to all turn their heads the same way at the same time.......

The young ones are pedaling furiously to catch up with mama (or daddy) swan.

This is not a friendly smiling gesture by papa swan. I don't understand his thinking - he swims over to me where I'm sitting passively and then honks and hisses and snaps because I'm too close. It's like the old "come closer, no, go away" game than young lovers play.

Here's what the scene looked like, photo courtesy of Amy Davies, founder and chief executive of the Plymouth Digital Photographers Club in Plymouth, Massachusetts.

Rock Balancing, Bartlett Pond, White Horse Beach, Manomet, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

This post is about balancing rocks. It is not about Milo the cat although he appears in most photos. He is a convenient living subject who never says "no" - however, he is a poor actor and he does not take stage direction at all - and sometimes he bites or scratches. 

Rusty the tinman keeps a one-eyed watch over the rocks. Rock balancing is an art, hobby, whatever, that requires no tools, adhesives, nor anything other than the rocks at hand. If you follow this Google link to "rock balancing" you can see some AMAZING examples. My efforts are childish by comparison.

Milo thoughtfully observes the stack. And then he rubs against it with cat-like grace and ......... 

........is startled when some of it clatters down in noise and disarray.

I should try bigger rocks like these - I don't think Milo could knock these down. 

Milo has the intensity and focus to balance rocks, he just lacks the desire - and the manual dexterity.

So, go find 8-10 rocks and try to stack them. It's actually a therapeutic exercise that requires focus, concentration, delicacy, and patience - all good things to practice on a daily basis. And you thought retirement was dull................

Bonfires and Fireworks, White Horse Beach, Manomet, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

At White Horse Beach, a long tradition holds that on July 3rd, bonfires be built and fireworks be exploded. It is a tribute to responsible behavior that random people can gather by the thousands, play with fire and explosives and few, if any, get hurt.  We humans somehow work it out.  

 Kids engage in typical beach activities waiting for the hoopla.

And as dusk settles, the bonfires light up the beach. Bonfires require a permit issued by the town. There are restrictions which include placement relative to the high tide line.  It's all very civilized - to the extent that towering piles of burning wood and exploding fireworks can be civilized.

And as darkness settles in, folks all along the few miles of beach randomly light their fireworks as the tide slowly overtakes the smoldering ashes of the bonfires. Although fireworks are illegal for plain folks to buy, sell, or ignite in the State of Massachusetts, many towns and cities have magnificent displays for their residents to celebrate Independence Day.  They do so with appropriate safeguards and are executed by experts with the requisite pyrotechnic skill. That is not necessarily the case here. 

Notwithstanding the law prohibiting fireworks, private citizens along this stretch of beach manage to set off quite impressive displays.  Personally, I regard it as a testimony to the sensibility and wisdom of the Town of Plymouth to accept this long-standing tradition and provide assistance, presence, crowd control, traffic control, haul away the inebriated misbehavers, but basically not interfere with adults making adult choices. How fitting to have freedom of choice in the land of the free.

Although White Horse Beach does have a small public beach section, there is almost zero parking and zero amenities and most roads are closed to non-residents by 6pm on this day.  If you don't live here or have friends who you stay with who live here, don't come - it's not that kind of event.

Frog Time, Bartlett Pond, White Horse Beach, Manomet, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

"Jeepers, creepers, where'd ya get those peepers" is a line from a song I remember as a young child.  (The song was written in 1938 but I heard it as a child during the 1950's).

Our frogs on the pond are singing up a storm this time of year - they usually start in earnest in early evening and galump until the following morning after dawn.  Seems that all that noise would attract predators in the darkness but I guess it works okay for frogs or they would have disappeared by now.

 It is difficult to sneak up on a frog.  They have such good peripheral vision that they can see most any approach angle.  This one let me approach because he could sense he was safe because I was a vegan and wouldn't harm him.  Okay, so I made that part up. That's one of the benefits of writing a blog - I can make up my own reality since I am also the editor and publisher.

USS Constitution, Charlestown, Boston, Massachusetts, USA

The USS Constitution, known as "Old Ironsides," was launched in October 1797 and is the oldest commissioned warship afloat in the the world. Crewed, maintained, and operated by the U.S. Navy, she is open to the public year-around for visitation.

I had the opportunity to visit recently with a group from the Plymouth Digital Photographers Club (PDP).

 The remarkably thick hull used live oak, unique to America at that time, and helped "Old Ironsides" achieve the 33-0 battle victory record.

All the many varied reflections, both in water and on brass, captured my attention.

These guns were capable of hurling a 24-pound solid iron shot nearly a mile.

Many hands have held this wheel over the centuries.

Old man in hat taking self-portrait in shiny brass.

I think this Van Gogh style reflection is my favorite image of the trip.

The forward mast is reflected in the ship's bell.  The mainmast is 220 feet tall and the mainsail is the size of a regulation basketball court!

Downtown Boston in the distance.

The World Ocean School's schooner "Roseway" sails by in Boston Harbor.

Downtown Boston is visible through the rigging.  At left, the white steeple of the Old North Church (of Paul Revere fame - "one if by land, two if by sea.") and at right, the former Custom House (now a Marriott property).

This Navy man supervised our after-hours tour. Thanks to PDP for making the arrangements!

Swan Family, Bartlett Pond, White Horse Beach, Manomet, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

Every spring, Bartlett Pond usually is home to two separate swan families.  Each takes up residence at opposite ends of the 30-acre boomerang shaped pond. Papa swan is not usually very tolerant of any other species (including humans) getting too close. Four cygnets are still alive in this year's brood. I sat mostly motionless on a dock for this series of images.

This is a particularly rare sight - the cygnets swimming more than a few inches away from mama or papa swan.

This is the more common view, snugged up very close.

Or sandwiched in between seems okay also.

The red winged blackbirds always build their nests in the tall reeds beside the pond. They are not happy when the swans are nearby and react by repeated loud squawks and diving attacks on the heads and necks of mama and papa swan.

Note:  I do not encourage nor discourage swans from approaching me. I simply observe them if they swim by.  I do not feed them as I especially do no want the youngsters to think humans are safe and reliable food sources - we are neither safe nor reliable.