November 27 - Massachusetts

Good afternoon, friends and followers. How time flies... hard to believe it has been almost two weeks since my last post! Much has happened. Apologies up front; not many pix until the end.

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving; I know I did. I spent the day with my family and got totally stuffed. The best part of it was spending the day with the people I love best: my sister and her Significant Other who hosted, my brother, and my niece and her fiancee.

Yes you read that correctly! That was the best news of the day! My niece and her boyfriend are engaged!! They had told my sister (her Mom) of course, and announced it to the rest of us that day. I was so happy I actually leaped out of my chair and hugged my niece and cried a bit - happy tears! My niece and her fiancee have been dating for some time (quite some time), and he proposed to her the week before Thanksgiving. He is a great guy, and we all already loved him like family. I am so very, very happy for both of them!

They are going to keep the wedding low-key, with a very small ceremony and small cocktail reception the next day. Quite sensible, as they want to finish saving for a house - currently they live in his 1 bedroom condo - and start a family. Doing the happy dance!

Thanksgiving was wonderful, and as usual my sister went all out with the food. Breakfast sandwiches followed by appetizers mid-afternoon, and then the main meal! She is a most awesome hostess and puts together the best parties :)

This week is very busy. Had a ton of phone calls to make today, errands to run tomorrow. Appointments the rest of the week. Getting my snow tires put on Wednesday. A bit late in the season, but not as late as last year. The 'Stang does not do well in the snow without her snow sneakers. I do not run all-season tires year round. I prefer performance tires in the summer and am willing to trade that preference for the minor hassle of changing the rear tires twice a year.

What can I say? At this point in my life I get to call the shots! I sold my small truck (it was a second vehicle) several years ago, so.... it is just me and the 'Stang through the winter months. Works for me.

Before I forget (again), I finished my Dutch girl outdoor cement statue well over a month ago. I keep forgetting to post pictures of Ghiselle and Nick together! Here are some before and after pictures. They have been happily reunited on my porch for quite awhile, and I smile when I look at them :) Stay tuned.

Nick - Before

Nick - Before

Ghiselle - Before

Ghiselle - Before

Nick & Ghiselle - After

Nick & Ghiselle - After

Nick& Ghiselle - After

Nick & Ghiselle, happy at last!

Tuesday, November 14 - Massachusetts

Good evening, my friends! Looking at the calendar (and emails from my sister), it is hard to believe Thanksgiving will be here next week already.

Wow - what a long, strange year it's been. And - I have so very, very much to be thankful for.

After last week's "Panda incident", and a mini flood which occurred a week before, I finally broke down and bought a mop. I did not have one; have put off the trip to Walmart because, well, I just really, REALLY dislike going to Walmart.

A few weeks ago we had a nasty storm - high winds and torrential rain. I was sitting at the table reading, and noticed a huge puddle of water forming on the kitchen floor. It was seeping in under the back door due to the high winds. An anomaly, yes, but quite a mess at the time.

I did not have a mop and had to use a ton of paper towels and few older towels to mop it up. Took a lot of time! Then the Panda incident occurred. Grrr. So I got a mop on sale last week at the grocery store. Figure now that I have one I will not need it (one can only hope!). Paper towels are not really the best line of defense for kitchen floor flood clean-up!
The past few weeks I have plowed through quite a bit of paperwork etc. My life is quite complicated. Too much for my liking at this point. I am trying to make it less so.

I have mentioned many times - I like to read in the evening for awhile. I recently picked out of my books-that-made-it one of poetry by Dylan Thomas; a collection that contains many of his earlier poems. Probably one of the hardest poets to get through and definitely not for a novice poetry reader!

Dylan Thomas

A Welsh poet - tormented by demons, of course - he died at the very early age of 39. He left behind a wealth of words. Ingenious and actually quite rhythmic. Deep. I find myself reading his poetry out loud. Dylan Thomas had a fascination with words and the images they concoct. He is best known for "Do not go gentle into that good night" and "A child's Christmas in Wales".

Yes, I do indeed have a great many things to be thankful for this year. I am thankful for every single one of them, and each and every moment. I have a cat who is going to be 20 years old in a few months. I have had the privilege to share her life since she was 6 months old. I have some outstanding friends, and I have a family with whom I am very close; especially my siblings.

That, my friends, means the entire world to me. That is what matters. Stay tuned!

Saturday, November 11 - Massachusetts

Good afternoon my friends! It has been awhile since I posted. Appointments, errands, and paperwork have kept me busy. Household chores, and starting to button things up here for the Winter. Not many pictures today.

This will be the first Winter in my new place. A few things to do outside, along with outdoor Summer furniture to be put away. My most awesome Brother has been helping me as he can.

I met my most supportive sister for lunch two weeks ago for her birthday. Her birthday was not for a few days yet, but that was the day we could meet. It was really nice! She loves puzzles, and every year I try to find one more challenging than the previous year. This year's was an ocean sunset, which I chuckled over in glee when I bought it! It was 1500 pieces, and many of the colors are the same across the puzzle. That is what makes it difficult :)

I believe she groaned when she opened it :) My sister is really, really good at puzzles. Me - not so much. My brain skews in the opposite direction in creativity. I have absolutely no doubt she will complete it however!

And we had such a wonderful afternoon!!

Had a "small incident" with my kitty Panda yesterday. Caused me much consternation and there was much scolding involved at said kitty. My kitchen table is rather small, and I keep some (revolving) paperwork on it. Along with my laptop. I have a chair in which I sit and can fire up the laptop. Cell phone etc. set down next to it.

Yesterday afternoon Panda started to chase a small flying-type bug & raced across the living room, leaped from the floor onto the table, and knocked over a full glass of water. The glass holds about 13 oz. of water, plus ice cubes, and was almost full. I quickly rescued the electronics (laptop, cell phone), but the damage was done.

Water everywhere! Mopped up the table as quickly as I could. Dried off the electronics (obviously they still work). Papers got soaked. Took a bit longer to mop up the floor. Amazingly the glass did not break. It rolled all the way across the kitchen floor intact.

Three seconds and spaz-cat emerged. Panda. I love her to pieces, but she is the antithesis of what cats are supposed to be! She is not delicate or dainty. She is clumsy and uncoordinated. And - she is beautiful. Loving. How could one not forgive this little face? Of course I did. :)

Stay tuned! Things happening :)

Wednesday, October 18

Martha's Vineyard, Day 5 - Tuesday, October 10

Good evening! Last Tuesday - our last day on the Vineyard - dawned sunny, warm, and beautiful! I have come to believe it is my fate that the day I leave is one of the best weather days!

Short-ish post  tonight (compared to the past week's!), and a few scattered pix.

I slept in a bit (well, not much). Enjoyed morning coffee and a smoke on the back patio. Packed my stuff and readied everything to go. :( Car packed & checked out, Brother headed into downtown for breakfast. Linda Jean's! We both ordered eggs Benedict; long day ahead. We were booked on the 1:15 ferry, and it is about a two-hour drive home from here.

Taking the time, Brother drove around through some of the more neighborhood-type streets, just kind of wandering. We ended up at a small harbor not far from the ferry. Sat outside enjoying the day along the waterfront.

Brother wandered down to a small market to get an ice tea for him and a bottle of water for me. I was happy to park myself on a bench and revel in the beauty of the day. After Columbus Day the Vineyard pretty much shuts down. All Monday's ferries were booked solid with returnees. Brother wanted the extra day, and without the crowds it was so well worth it!

Ocean harbor

Ocean harbor

 And Tuesday! It was such gorgeous weather and magnificent. Crowds were gone. While I was sitting on the bench snapping pix of the harbor, I met some random local people who were very friendly. A lady jogging said hello. A couple bicylcling. An older couple walking a totally cute dog also stopped, greeted me and we spoke.

Harbor

Harbor

Finally it was time to head to the ferry.

Hotel grounds

I had a wonderful, almost magical time this year. The cliffs of Aquinnah - the alpacas - the food!! (Think I gained about 10 pounds!) The lighthouses Brother indulged me in (thank you!!)! The weather was pretty perfect this year! Everything.

Looking forward to next year and its adventures :) Stay tuned, my friends, lots happening around here as well. I leave you with some pix of the hotel.

Hotel grounds

Hotel & grounds

Tuesday, October 17

Martha's Vineyard, Day 4 - Monday, October 9

Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen! Apologies for the delay; spent yesterday dealing with paperwork, phone calls, errands. Today you are in for another very long post and a lot of pictures!

Last Monday dawned a bit drizzly and gray, so Brother and I decided to head into Edgartown. We stopped at Edgartown diner for breakfast. We "discovered" it on last year's trip, and it was well worth a return trip. It is one of those truly old-fashioned New England-style diners that serves breakfast almost all day (I think the menu said untill 3:00 PM). It is not large, but sparkling clean with interior decor straight out of the 1950s! Brother had eggs Benedict, and I had 2 pancackes (quite large, but I finished them!). Good, honest food served quickly. One of the best deals on the Vineyard for a hearty breakfast!

Edgartown Diner

Edgartown Diner

We drove around Edgartown for a bit. Being a holiday, it was quite  crowded - most of the parking in Edgartown is on-street.  We contemplated visiting a museum there (the oldest house on the Vineyard), but there was absolutely no parking anywhere near it. Even if Brother had dropped me off he would have had quite a hike to park the car etc., so we opted to take in the sights and put the museum on the list of possible things to do next year.

Downtown Edgartown is not large. There are several streets filled with some very upscale shops and galleries (think Boston's Newbury Street). I suppose one could call it the Manhattan of the Island. Heading out of downtown, lo and behold I saw Brother was driving towards East Chop! The lighthouse!

We had visited it last year, and it was a bit busy (and rainy), but this year we were the only visitors :) Plus the weather was a bit better. Still rather overcast, but the drizzle had stopped. Here are a few pix I took that day. I thought it was very sweet of him to indulge me in another lighthouse!

Telegraph Hill at East Chop lighthouse

East Chop lighthouse base

East Chop lighthouse

After that we headed back toward Oak Bluffs and decided to visit the Cottage Museum. It is a short tour of the interior of one of the iconic "gingerbread" Victorian cottages. Figuured for $2.00, we could not go wrong! The gentleman who gave the tour was well-spoken, and very well versed in the history of the cottages.

Rather self-explanatory!

In a nutshell: The cottages have a long history, which began in in early 1800s when the Methodists came for a week or so a year for their "camp meetings". Tent revivals really; Methodists were what one would call the original "Holy rollers". In 1835 it became a permanently established "tent" colony. Originally it was called Wesleyan Grove. The main church gatherings were held in a large tent, and families erected smaller tents over the years as the Society grew. By 1855 there were 200 tents that accommodated families, shops, etc.

The wooden cottages began to spring up between 1859 and 1864. Other families besides the Methodists also built cottages along the outskirts, and eventually the roads were paved, but the "core" was (and remains) the religious center for the community. By 1880 there were 500 cottages! Over time some fell into disrepair and were demolished; others were moved to various parts of the Vineyard. Today about 315 cottages remain.

Your mini-history lesson for the day! There is (of course) so much more to it than that, but I tried to condense it. We drove around some of the streets that afternoon, and of course I went overboard taking pix! Here are a few that really struck me.

Cottages

Cottage

Cottage

The cottages vary in size, but most are quite small. They are a designated Historic Landmark, so there are strict rules about what one can and cannot do regarding renovation. The only thing the Historical Society does not govern is the exterior color! Which accounts for the lovely, bright colors :) Occasionally one comes up for sale; you too could own one of these for around $400,000!

Cottage

Cottage

Fresh shrimp!

After that, Brother was a tad hungry so we headed to the Lookout Tavern. He ordered shrimp cocktail, and we each had a beer (yes, I did indulge in a few shrimp myself!).

Brother wanted one last ride on the carousel, and we were right there. I admit it - I too love that carousel! One is never too old to ride the carousel :) There are just as many adults as children that ride the carousel. Alas, I did not get a brass ring.

Carousel

Headed back to the hotel. I wanted a hot shower and clean clothes for dinner that evening. We went to the Ocean View again this year - it is becoming the tradition to go there for dinner the last night on the Vineyard.

What an excellent dinner! Badly in need of a steak fix, I had sirloin. Brother ordered lobster. Both meals were to die for! My steak was cooked perfectly, and not only did Brother polish off his lobster but ordered dessert as well. Key lime pie, one of his favorites, made with REAL key limes! I stole a bite; it was heaven!

Remains of the lobster!

Key lime pie

Our server that night was the same one we had last year! A very nice young man, Branho. He was moving to the mainland the following week (this week), with an eye toward bettering himself. I wish him well; he is a smart kid with a positive outlook on life who knows what he wants. Here is a picture of him with Brother that evening.

Brother and Branho

After dinner we headed into the bar for my dessert - frozen mudslide! For some reason there is a severe shortage of blenders on Martha's Vineyard. Only 1 restaurant (and one bar) we have visited in 2 years possesses this coveted piece of equipment. I do not know why. It makes it extremely difficult to obtain my nightcap of choice, which also doubles as a dessert. Perhaps next year I will bring my own blender.

Dessert!

Brother called the taxi to pick us up, and while we were waiting the manager, Jen, came over and spoke with him at length. The owner was there as well that evening (I do not recall his name; I was blissfully enjoying my frozen mudslide), and also spoke with Brother at length.

Rolled out of the taxi into the hotel (yes, I was that full!). One last smoke on the back porch, and hit the hay. One last half-day left... Tomorrow, my friends!

Friday, October 13

Martha's Vineyard, Day 3 - Sunday, October 8

Good evening! As promised, last Sunday's adventures.

Sunday dawned cloudy and drizzly. Started the day with brunch at a restaurant a short distance from our rooms. Their website made it sound great - brunch until 1:30, Bloody Mary bar. In reality, for me, it was overpriced and did not live up to expectations. The OJ, however, was freshly squeezed and came in a gernerously-sized Mason jar :)

I (wrongly) assumed "Bloody Mary bar" meant you got to pick out the condiments of your choice. I did end up with a very good Bloody Mary (top-shelf vodka). Slim pickings on the food - not exactly what one would expect for brunch. Definitely not as advertised.

After Saturday's adventure to Aquinnah, Brother & I decided a visit to the Island Alpaca Company was a good plan for Sunday. They are in Vineyard Haven, not far from where we stayed.

What a day I had there!! The alpacas are SOOOOOOO darn cute! So friendly and gentle! Today's post will be mostly pix of them, which I will scatter throughout the post.

Alpacas

I loved this one!

Alpacas are adorable! Huge brown eyes, so soft. I took over 30 pictures that day. Some here, some at the bottom. They eat constantly (and have very large teeth).

They had two babies on the farm in a separate pen with their mothers. They were out of this world adorable! Alpacas are pregnant for 12 months, then give birth to a 22 pound baby! Wow. Alpacas are not large animals. They are about 120-190 pounds.

Baby - about 12 wks.

Baby - 8 wks.

Like llamas, they do spit (although not as much). If they feel threatened, or their babies are, or if you touch their faces. Alpacas do not like their faces touched, nor do they like loud noises or voices.

The farm had the requisite gift shop and a very hovering sales lady. The shop was small, and the lady kept bouncing around in my way and I got a bit claustrophobic.

So I wandered back to the barn pens. It began to rain a bit more steadily by that time, and all the alpacas all headed inside! It was as if it were choreographed!

Heading inside

Yup, nice & dry in here

I fell so in love with the alpacas :). Do not tell my kitties! According to their literature, you too could own one for about $1,000!

 Not quite full grown

 Heading inside

We left shortly afterwards (both Brother and I were seriously sneezing by that time).






Headed back into Oak Bluffs to ride the Flying Horses Carousel! It is tradition now!

It was really rainy and the wind had picked up by mid-afternoon, and both of us wanted libation. A lot of the places in downtown Oak Bluffs were packed by then, so we headed back to the Dockside area. Found a seat at Coop de Ville (again). Good choice! We wet our whistles, and Brother had a bowl of mussels (another of his favorites).

Mussels

Headed back to the hotel, hot shower and dry clothes from the day"s wind and rain.

Both Brother and I were starved by then, so he called a taxi (there are tons on the Island), and headed to Red Cat Kitchen for dinner. Awesome meal! I had pulled pork BBQ which was outstanding. Unusual for me; I am not normally a pork person. This sounded great though, and sure fit the bill after the day's chill! I could not tell you what Brother had as I was so busy eating :) Really cool place. Wish I had more pix besides the exterior of the restaurant. Next year!

Red Cat Kitchen

We spent two more days on the Vineyard, but I will not be posting until Sunday. Grocery shopping etc. occurs tomorrow. Otherwise my kitties and I will not get to eat next week (that would not be a good thing).

I will leave you with more pix of the absolutely adorable alpacas!

No caption needed!