Cat Lovers in Dogtown - Trip Three

I thought before tomorrow and trip four rolled around I'd best relate a little about trip three.

This time we decided to try going In from the Gloucester side of Dogtown.  Much easier with a relatively smooth access road!  We passed several numbered stones that designated sites of cellar holes - the only remains of homes in Dogtown.

Number 20 marks the site of Granny Day's home

A cellar hole marked by stone carving 17

A bit further along and we were 'told' that we had arrived at Dogtown Square.  Wow, things must have changed a lot being as other than the sign there was no indication whatsoever that a town square ever existed.

We arrived at Dogtown Square!

We took a right turn and wandered slightly uphill to the commons, a relatively open area where the sheep and cattle of all the settlement would have grazed.  We passed some other numbered stones and, not seeing any cellar holes, didn't investigate.  If we had, we would have found a couple more Babson Boulders.  Oh well, we'll visit them tomorrow on Trip Four.

We did find 14 on this trip and I'll show a couple examples...don't worry won't post all the pics!  And the question of count will be answered with these two 'pages' of Babson's book.

Two sides of the same boulder have been carved.

While we were walking up toward the common pasture, we met a woman walking out.  As is custom in our small community, we said hello.  She greeted us and told us that there was a large pack of dogs up ahead.  Probably 15 or so, she said.  Hmmmm.  Then she added that they were friendly.  Double hmmmm.  I think she was trying to spook us.  Didn't work.  (Never saw or heard any dogs)  As a matter of fact, we haven't seen any wildlife at all in Dogtown.  No birds, no squirrels, nothing.

We doubled back from the commons pasture and took a side trip down the Babson Boulder Trail.  It was rough walking and a large portion was up and down hills.  We decided that when it reach 11:30 we would turn around and head back toward the car.  On the boulder trail we found the rest of our 14 count for the trip.  2 more are further along the trail and we'll grab shots of them another time.

Tomorrow we plan on making our fourth trip In.  Maybe starting at the top of Squam Road once again and follow the trail past Whale's Jaw to Peter's Pulpit (it's supposed to be a mammoth erratic) and then on to the Commons Road before turning around and heading home.

Cat Lovers in Dogtown - Trips One and Two

I have been trying to take Sunday off each week.  If I stay home I do tend to wander down to the workshop and...well...work.  This means we must head off, away from the house so I can't work.

'R' and I have decided that our get away from home destination shall be exploring Dogtown.

In 1741, 20% of Gloucester's population lived in what was then known as the Commons Settlement.  This area covers the majority of the center of our island and was primarily a farming and forestry based economy.  The fishing industry which eventually grew to be the main industry of the island was at that time nearly non-existent due to great losses to piracy.  The Commons Settlement was also the hub of the island with roads connecting Gloucester to Lanesville to Annisquam to Rockport.  Sixty of the most prominent island families called the Commons Settlement home.  It was the most desirable part of town.

The men of the Commons Settlement participated heavily in the Revolutionary War and at the end few remained to return to their homes on the island.  Their widows were left to try to eke out an existence on land that had been stripped of all the wood.  Many subsisted on the abundant berries found and killed their animals for the last remaining meals of meat.  Whether for company or for protection, the women left at the Commons Settlement kept dogs.  That, combined with the rapid decay of the area, seems to be why the Commons Settlement, once a thriving, desirable community became known as Dogtown.

With the end of the war and control gained over the local waters, the fishing industry grew.  Prominent families wanted to live in new, elegant homes at the harbor.  New roads were built that, in staying along the water, bypassed Dogtown.

In 1830, suffering from frozen feet, the last resident was removed from the cellar of a home and placed in the Poor House where he died within a few days. By 1841, there were only six of the original 80 houses left in Dogtown.  In 1845 the last house was torn down.  Dogtown was an embarrassment.

The land was left vacant.  Eventually Roger Babson purchased a large portion with the intent of keeping open space on the island.  In the years that followed, he not only donated a large portion to the city for a reservoir, he also hired out of work quarrymen to 'write' a book of morals by carving words in some of the large boulders of Dogtown.  The acreage of Dogtown is a vast expanse of terminal moraine.  Large granite boulders called erratics are strewn about the area and acres are covered in piles of granite 'rubble' left behind when the last great ice flow receded.

Trees have grown between the boulders in the terminal moraine

Present day Dogtown is filled with a maze of trails running between the old Dogtown Road, the Commons Road, and the Old Rockport Road (don't let the word road fool you...they aren't paved!).  Along the trails are markers indicating the 'cellar holes' and other bits of interesting things like Granny Day's Swamp. The casual hiker can easily get lost and 'R' and I were sure to bring several maps (even if they were a bit conflicting between themselves) and a cell phone.  We decided to explore with a definite plan and to keep track of the time at certain locations.  We always mark any turns taken from the main trail.  We are determined NOT to dial 911 as a tourist did recently!

Old Rockport Road

Our first venture In was from Old Rockport Road.  Not much to be seen along there!  It would have been far more productive to have entered from near Blackburn Circle (Blackburn Industrial Park) where it would have been a short wooded walk to see: The Babson Boulders!

and

and

Not mentioned on the map, but quickly spotted were:

Our first five Babson Boulders.  Only 19 left to find!

At that point it was getting chilly and foggy (and darn close to lunch time) so we headed back by the same route as we went in.  We decided to try a different hike in the afternoon.

Our afternoon hike was to Whale's Jaw.  Whale's Jaw used to resemble it's name much more than it does now.  Not long ago the 'jaw' portion split off and fell.  Some claim it was due to a fire being set beneath it.  I find it rather hard to believe that a smallish fire would break such a large boulder (about 18 - 20 feet at the tallest point).  My thinking leans more towards the hundreds of years of water freezing and thawing in the 'jaw' joint.

the 'jaw' that fell off is to the left

Since it was getting on toward sunset, it was a quick trip of about 45 minutes.

The jaw 'vapors'!

We'll head out (or In) past Whale's Jaw again soon.

On our third venture to Dogtown we followed Dogtown Road and saw some of the cellar holes.  From there we hiked the Boulder Trail and captured fourteen more Babson Boulders.  Only six left to find!  And for those of you doing the math, that little discrepancy will be explained in Cat Lovers in Dogtown - Trip Three

At Other Times

Times that I haven't been working or out and about, I've done a couple new paintings.  In gouache.  The first was done back in September and is based on a wonderful photograph that 'R' took of the Annisquam River.

The second I just finished and is from a photo I took up in Newburyport.

They need titles before I can post them to the Flickr account.

I've started on an oil painting that should, if all goes as planned, be an interesting, textural view of the Cape Ann Tool Company.

Happy Turkey Day

These two are as they aren't the chosen ones!

Two buddies at Raymond's Turkey Farm

When the Cows Come Home

or is that the saints marching in?

Mall Avoidance

'Tis the season.

Almost.

We always try to beat the crowds and get the majority of Christmas shopping done before Thanksgiving.  There are normally a few little things left to find and purchase after Turkey Day has passed to get one out among the throngs of crazed, to-the-mall drivers to sustain that holiday spirit!

Step in to the past

So...a few days ago 'R' and I trucked on up to Newburyport to look in the specialty shops there for one specific gift.  No luck.

The old luncheonette

But we had a good morning of it anyway and stopped for coffee at Fowle's.  Not much has changed there since it was built although now it's just a fully stocked newstand in one half and a counter or booth luncheonette in the other.

We roamed around long enough to have to stop for lunch on the way home.

A step back in time time.

I Love New Toys

 

 I mean tools...new tools.

Old tools new to me.

Found this gem at the dump!


I'm sure to find some use for it.









Things have been very busy around here.  As I type, I'm waiting for a tech to arrive with a set of piano keys needing work.  Another set is in the works in the shop, more were sent out during the past week.  I finished up a big melodeon rebuild job and that left on Tuesday.

Whitney melodeon from 1857

Then there's this thing on Tuesday night that I have been preparing for...for ages.  I'm giving a presentation on the Manning Organ Company for the Sandy Bay Historical Society.  I hate public speaking and I'm very uncomfortable about giving the talk.  Anyway, it's a PowerPoint slide show, complete with a recording of four pieces of music that Manning wrote.  Many, many thanks to 'R' who took my rough recording of a client playing the music and turned it into a quite acceptable CD.  So, be thinking good thoughts for me on Tuesday night, folks.

Can't wait until THAT's done.

Two Day Vacation!

That's right, I managed to take a two day vacation this year!

great photo day

Weather and work happily coordinated to give us a clear and colorful time off in North Conway, NH.  While this seems to be a recurring spot for our vacations, we do try to do something different on each visit.  That gets kind of challenging after 50 or so years of visiting the same area!  After checking in to our 'throw back to the '70s' (but very clean and friendly) Junge's Motel, we decided to head further north to be driven up the Mount Washington Auto Road.  No, I will not drive up the road myself.  ('R' now wants to drive it) Many do and most of them actually survive the trip, but I was not going to venture forth on the looks very, very narrow, too narrow to be two way but it is Auto Road.  Nope, not me.  Bottomless drop offs (well, by the time you would reach the bottom it would be irrelevant) on one side and washed out shoulders on the other and a mere fraction of an inch passing room between cars as they go up and down.  Our van driver told us that there have been times when the professioanl Auto Road drivers have had to drive the non-pro's back down.  Yep, it's that unnerving.  Back in the 1960's my dad would drive the road.  Seven times in our 1958 Chevy station wagon!  I think the road was a bit wider then...and fewer people actually ventured up and down it.  Anyway, there were no mishaps and we had a great time atop New England.  The weather was unusually good and visibility was great.  We took lots of photos.

A view from the top...there's a glider below (center)!

view from the top with the cog railway heading back down

We also did some touring around town and visited the old train station where last year's excursion occurred  (The train trip to Crawford Notch),

winner of weirdest vacation photo

went up to the top of Cathedral Ledge, shot photos down in the valley below, and after a night at Junge's headed home making a photo stop at beautiful Lake Chicorua.

Mount Chicorua

All in all, a fantastic two days!

Little Things...

DO matter!

As I was grabbing a few pistachio muffins for 'A' from the self-serve at a local grocery store, I gazed about the racks to see what other varieties were available...Cranberry Rasin, some other coffee cake type things and Apple Rasin.  Yes spell check, I typed R - A - S - I - N.  That's what the little signs read.   So being that things like spelling are important...at least to me...I very politely brought the error to the attention of a bakery department employee who just happened to be standing next to me.

And she said, "Oh, that's just a little thing.  It doesn't matter."

YES, YES, YES it does! *

(And those stupid backwards 'R' s in the Toys 'R' Us signs have always bothered me, too.)

How will anyone learn the correct way if no one cares when things are incorrect?

Oh, and another thing while I'm complaining...Mr. Driver at the top of Barn Lane...yeah, you who was supposed to stop at the sign that has the letters S - T - O - P.  Why did you feel the need to sound your horn at me and wave your middle finger my way?  I was on the main road with no S - T - O - P sign!

"You know you aren't supposed to be doing that!"

 *any spelling mistakes in this post, past posts, or future posts, are evidently just little things and not important enough to even be noticed.

Plane Show Sunday

Different weekend than Car Show Saturday.

B-24

'R' wandered out of his office with a question, "Are there any airports around here that would have some military planes?"

B-17

Probably not exactly what he said.....

So I told him about Beverly Airport and said that they have a website.  "Why?"  Seems he heard something military sounding overhead.  From a cellar office with the windows closed!  I think that I was running some machinery in the shop, too!

B-24

With a quick online check, he determined that there was a show at the Beverly Airport of some WWII planes.  The list included a B-17, the same type of plane that my Uncle Hughie was aboard when it crashed during a training flight.  My mom has wanted to see a B-17, a real one, not just a photo.  She was ten years old when her brother, Hughie, was killed in that crash.  He was the first serviceman from their city, New Bedford, MA, to die in WWII.  The Standard Times reporter that was sent to the house to tell my grandparents the terrible news found that my grandfather had just come home from the hospital after a heart attack.  The reporter then chose not to tell them that their son had been killed in a crash.  They heard the news later...on the radio.  You can read about the crash and the memorial that has been erected at the crash site here.

So, back to yesterday.  We decided to drive mom down to the airport.

Mom at one of the B-17 props

Truthfully, both 'R' and I wanted to go see the planes, too.  Along with the B-17, there was a B-24, a P-51, a T-6, a Corsair, and a Stearman biplane.

We spent a little more than an hour looking around and taking lots of photos.

Mom, me and R reflected at center

And......we got to go aboard the B-17.  Quite an experience for my mom to see what the plane was like and to imagine her brother aboard.

Mom at the starboard gun

So glad 'R' heard that plane overhead on Sunday morning.  So glad we went.

Car Show Saturday

Yes, I've taken time away from work.  Well, at the time there wasn't much work in the shop.  So we went up to Skip's for a car show and I played around with snapping some artsy shots.

Artsy shot number one:

Artsy shot number two:

And yes, artsy shot number three:

Finally, "Self-portrait with White Walls"*

*'R's clever title...thank you 'R'!

I Shouldn't Be Doing This

Writing a blog entry, that is.  You see, I've got 6 sets of keys (5 arrived unannounced) waiting for me down in the workshop, three more sets are due to arrive any day and....tomorrow it's the historical society in the morning and two tunings in the afternoon.  Thursday another two tunings.  Friday night is the Annual Meeting/Chowder Supper for the historical society and we will be attending.  I think Saturday and Sunday are relatively free.  Monday the dentist, Tuesday a tuning at the high school and a selectman's board meeting at night (where I may have to speak publicly...eeeewwwwww).  Wednesday morning it's out to Thacher Island to retrieve a big part of the reed organ for repairs over the winter.  Thursday another tuning.  Saturday night is the Jim Malcolm concert at the UU Church and Sunday afternoon is the reception for my one person show at the UU's gallery.  Amid all of that I've been finishing up woodwork for my mom and trying to get out for some fun stuff.

Which brings me to this post.

My new not-so-plaything toy.

A Concert Roller Organ!  It needs some repair that I'll get to one of these days (haha) and I'll need to find a really super machinist to repair the crank/shaft where it was broken off with the threaded section left in the handle.  Of course the exterior decals will have to be replaced.

The organ operates by cranking the handle.  Bellows create suction within the unit and the 'cob' (because it looks like one) turns.  The pins on the cob open the little valves that you see above the cob.  Behind each valve is a reed.  When the valve opens, that reed/note plays. 20 notes in all.  I've got 9 cobs!
Just thought I'd share for a few moments.  Now it's back to the workshop and keys, keys, keys.

Schooner or Later...

if you take thousands upon thousands of photos you are bound to get at least one or two that are worthy of being called 'artsy'. 

This morning 'R' and I went to the Parade of Sail which precedes the annual schooner races.  I took 130 photographs.  There are a few decent ones.  But then there is this one.........

The One.  The One has been printed and shall gain framing.  It may even get a spot in the Contributing Members Show at the RAA this Spring.

Garden Goodness

The first three carrots.  They are earlier than the rest of the crop.  They were just screaming at me to be pulled out!  Next year we must plant the seeds earlier (and more). 

The rest of the garden?  Well, the tomatoes have been delicious and there are still plenty more to go.  We lost a few in the heavy rain and wind over the weekend but there are still plenty.  The cucumbers continue and continue and continue to produce.  We haven't been too successful with our pumpkins.  I'm blaming it on the fact that they are suppose to be some hybrid huge things.  Next year we stick to the boring, even-an-idiot-can-grow-these type.  We have 3 cantaloupes.  One is large enough that it may mature before cold weather!  No broccoli.   If we try for it next year we'll have to be sure to start it earlier and plant it where it will get a lot more sunshine.

All in all, it's been great watching the plants growing from seeds to producing yummy veggies.  "R' has been a super gardener!

The Morning of Irene

And Mango is not impressed.

Although the storm is still not its closest............. 

The Calm Before the Storm

As Hurricane Irene moves up the east coast you can see that Mango is quite concerned.

Nothing like a long nap for storm preparedness.

Before the Storm

Generally speaking I've found that a few days before a major storm there is some rather lovely weather.  True this week and we took advantage of it.  Yes, I suppose that the good weather is given as opportunity to do the preparedness thing for the bad weather to follow...we've done a bit of that...but we took the day off on Wednesday to travel to 'the other Cape'.

The four of us loaded ourselves and some cut flowers into the car at 9 a.m. and headed for my dad's grave at the National Cemetery in Bourne.  As expected it was beautiful weather, not expected was the miserable traffic.  'R' makes fun of my complaints about highway traffic around here (I know, I know, it's not like real traffic in CA). Anyway, mid-week-after-morning-rush-hour and it should have been better on the roads.

This trip we would not be staying overnight at my cousin's house.  They already had company from out of state.  So.....the BIG drive there and back and a tour around all in one day trying to get home before too much night driving yet after Boston rush hour......phew.

We arrived at the cemetery before noon and found that they were doing some renovation work just where we needed to get by.  A slight detour brought us back on track with the first stop at my aunt and uncle's grave.  Then back to dad's.  'A' was surprised to find that her penny was still on his stone (well, slightly off the edge) from when she placed it there last year!  She put it back at top center and added another.  I guess it's 'a penny for your thoughts' kind of thing.

After the cemetery we headed along Rte. 6  west and stopped for lunch with my cousin 'D'.  Then on to cousin 'P's house for a quick visit with her and her family (those out-of-state guests).  By this time it was getting to be mid afternoon and we still had more traveling and stops to make.  Onward to New Bedford where we toured around the south end where my mom grew up and where we made another cemetery stop.  Rural cemetery is where another uncle and my grandparents are buried.  More flowers to deliver graveside and then off again!

Our next stop was to waste some time!  Yep, even though it seemed we had been traveling foreverrrrrrrr, it was too early to finish and head home.  It was only 4:15 p.m. and I didn't want to be on the road north until 5:30ish.  Had to miss that late afternoon traffic around Boston and Boston was only an hour away.  So we stopped at the Friendly's in Dartmouth for a drink  (lousy service!) before heading further west on Rte. 6 to check out the remains of Lincoln Park.

One of the spots where we could see through the fence (The Comet in the background)

Lincoln Park was a local amusement park from 1894 to 1987.  You can read a brief history here.  If you search for "Lincoln Park, Dartmouth MA" you'll find a lot more.  Our family spent many happy days at this amusement park from the 1940's through the 1970's and over more recent years have watched as the park closed, fires consumed familiar buildings and vandals left their marks.  We were curious as to how much would remain.  The answer?  Not  much at all except for a portion of the roller coaster.  The Comet, which lost it's BIG hill to collapse under the weight of snow in 2005 (I think).  When the park closed, all the rides were auctioned off.  The carousel was preserved and moved to Battleship Cove Park in Fall River. MA.  Neglect and fires destroyed what remained of the park's ballroom, rollerskating building, concessions, funhouse and arcades.  As much as the desire exists to discover old, hidden treasures within the off-limits grounds, they are just not there.

All that is left of a spot that brought so much joy.

So after a bit of peering through the chainlink fence for photo taking, we drove back east a mile or so to take a look at the house my grandfather built in the 1920's.  Then on to the highway and home, stopping only to get dinner at our local Friendly's.  It was still daylight when we arrived there but dark by the time we left for the final few miles to our door.

Eats

I rarely write about food.  I don't get very enthused about the subject.  Honestly, I think of it somewhat as a waste of money...just flushed down the...well, kinda literally.  You could eliminate the middle man and just send those bills on their way.

Oh well.

This week has been a good week for food finds.  First we visited a British import store while walking around Newburyport the other day and I found Lyle's Golden Syrup!  It's been a few years since I've been able to locate this favorite.  My grandfather got me hooked on the sweet syrup when I was very young.  Having found a new supplier, I bought two cans leaving one on the shelf for someone equally as fortunate to find it.

The other food doings became finding a recipe for sweet and sour cucumbers.  I remember Rosa making them.  I worked for Rosa and her husband, Aage, many years ago.  Aage was a Danish Masterbaker (Yummmmmmmmmmmy stuff).  Rosa used to make a hot lunch for me every day that I was there.  I particularly enjoyed her Danish meatballs with sweet and sour cucumbers.  Anyway, we've got a lot of cucumbers growing in our veggie garden and it has become obvious that we need to find a variety of menu options for them.  Today was my first attempt at the recipe below.  I just tried them...a bit too sharp.  Maybe I should switch to a different vinegar type?  Or try more sugar?

Sweet and Sour Cucumber
300ml white vinegar
75g caster sugar
1 cucumber sliced paper thin (I used two of our small bush cucumbers)
Combine the sugar and vinegar in a saucepan and heat, gently stirring the mixture to make sure all the sugar dissolves.  Bring to a boil then reduce the heat and simmer for 5 minutes.  Cool, then add cucumber and let sit for at least 1/2 hour.  Drain for serving and serve chilled.

Quieter...

just a little bit.

Sunday morning calm in the North Basin

Currently...'R' and I finally finished up ALL the keywork that had backed up over a couple of weeks time.  Nothing like having a month's worth of work appear within one week!  Then....a repair job came around on a pipe organ that 'R' accepted.  That took some time.  I really enjoyed helping him with it and learning about and exploring some unfamiliar workings.

I also found out that the walls of 'my' church looked quite different in the early 1900s.  Take a look past the organ guts at the back wall and you'll see the odd blue/green with gold stenciling atop a border of burgundy and gold.  Unseen in this photo and below the border is a rather cream colored paint.  The two walls in the corner that are hidden by the organ are like this, so I'm assuming that the rest of the sanctuary sported this unusual decor!

Check out that back wall (click to enlarge)!

So right now there are two sets of keys in the shop.  One for new keytops and fronts, the other for some ivory restoration work.  I've started taking apart the 1865 melodeon as well.  Time to get on with it's restoration.