3rd House Journal

October

Ah, where has the time gone? Busy with work, as ever. Avoiding sitting any more than already required for the job -- another impediment to blogging. However, I did just install a Varidesk sit-stand thingie in my home office, which means I can stand some portion of the time at my computer and I like it a lot! I may have to work from home a bit more since we don't have the means to stand at desks at the office. [photo: Beech tree in the Public Garden, Boston, 10/23/16]

After a very dry summer (we have extreme drought in this part of New England), we got a bit of rain over the weekend. It's starting to cool down to normal October weather, too, after some weird 80-degree days the end of last week. Tomorrow's forecast hinted at the possibility of snow flurries. I get up for work in the morning while it's still dark, though that will change for awhile when we turn the clocks back this weekend. Soon I'll be driving home from work in the dark as well. [photo: Newbury St in Boston; 10/22/16]

Despite the drought, we've seen some fall foliage around here that isn't just dried brown leaves. Further north of here in Vermont where we visited friends the first weekend of October, the foliage was spectacular. My friend and her husband have retired up there, although MJ just took a job at the local ski resort selling season ski passes. This gave her free access to the road that winds up the mountain to the peak (normally quite pricey), so we piled into her minivan and she drove us up for sightseeing, one of the last weekends before they close the road for the winter season. [photos below: Stowe, Vermont, 10/1/16] More photos from Vermont here.

  

 I had my 40th high school reunion the weekend before last, which was quite fun actually. I absolved D of coming with me (he had a friend visiting anyway) so I could catch up with friends I haven't spoken to in 20 years (I did go to my 20th, so long ago). We had a large turnout, not surprisingly since there were more than 800 people in my graduating class! Nice to be with so many people my age since everyone I work with is 15 to 35 years younger than me, and D and many of my friends are a few years to a dozen years older.

Other than that, I and many of my friends and, well, countrymen and women, have been existing in high anxiety over the political situation in our country. Things seem to be heading in a positive direction regarding the elections (just 2 weeks from yesterday), which eases the mind a bit, but nothing to be taken for granted. I will be relieved (presumably, fingers crossed) when the elections are over. But so much sorry behavior and sentiment. I hope lancing this boil to let these things come to light helps to eventually cleanse the country, however noxious it is in the meantime. I teeter between pessimism and hope.

Maybe it's the perfect season, Halloween, which brings out the ghouls and goblins and gives them their due. I remember years ago visiting a friend in Santa Fe, New Mexico for the annual Fiesta, where they bring out Zozobra, Old Man Gloom. People contribute mementos of the year's troubles, let Zozobra rail a bit, before burning him in effigy along with their troubles away for another year. I think we could use a similar ritual after the elections to cleanse our own spirits and make way for a merrier holiday season.

[Back Bay, Boston; 10/23/16] 

Vacationland

We went to Cape Cod for vacation this again this year. Last year we tried a new place on the Upper Cape, which was nice but not a favorite. This year we went back to a place on the Lower Cape we'd been to before. It offered a shorter drive and a prime location overlooking Vineyard Sound and adjacent to Falmouth Harbor. We asked for and got the same corner room we had on previous visits, a room that unlike most motel rooms you'd be happy to spend your whole vacation in. And get lots of sleep listening to the gentle waves lapping at the shore below.

Staying there also afforded the opportunity to spend a day with friends who were there for an extended stay (would that we could afford to!). These friends had recommended the place but had been out of town on previous visits. This time we were treated to a ride on their boat, through a lovely inlet where we saw an osprey nest, across the Vineyard Sound, and to lunch on Martha's Vineyard island. 

We also got out for a few walks -- up to the Heights beach while the the sunset reflected pink across the clouds, and along the harbor with its myriad boats, beach roses, cormorants, and lichen-coated fences.

We were there for four nights, then back to the city for a few days. Then, back to work again, all too soon.

A few more pix from the trip here.

Still here

Two months after my last post, checking back in. The news is unbearably sad or infuriating in turn these days here in the US. And yet there is still beauty and love.

On Saturday, we walked down the street to the Boston Pride Parade, which was fun and joyful despite the drizzle. A very long parade and disparate or maybe inclusive is the word - gay dad groups, drag queens, LGBT sports teams, church groups of all stripes, public education advocates, a pet rescue group, many large local corporate sponsors, and our liberal politicians including both of our US senators (including Elizabeth Warren, which was rather thrilling since she's becoming quite the rock star). With all the hateful stupidity bubbling up around the country, it's heartening to know at least that I live in a state with sane, progressive representatives.

[At the Boston Pride Parade; 11 June 2016]

Otherwise, we are enjoying the long summer days, which have been on the cool side lately, which I am perfectly happy with. I'll not be doing much beach going and sunning this summer after suffering through the past month healing from the excision of a swath of skin off my back to remove a basal cell carcinoma, nothing serious but very uncomfortable (and not at all easy to wash and dress by myself twice a day, bandage in one hand and mirror in the other navigating against reverse reflection to position the bandage in just the right spot). Better now a month later, no more bandage at least. 

We did get up to Rockport one very hot day in May, thinking the sea breezes would be cooling. No other road trips this summer as yet, but the summer has only just begun.

We have one more weekend together before we both fly off for a few days - me to visit my dad and D to attend a wedding (a friend's son). And then we have the 4th of July long weekend after we're back and some vacation time on the Cape in early August. Our summers are short here and go by so fast. Probably best to turn off the news and social media as much as possible and enjoy the long days while they're here.

The Inevitability of Winter

It snowed last night, rather unexpectedly at least to me. We haven't really had any snow to speak of yet this winter except for a few flurries. And it's been relatively warm, so we're a bit spoiled. But last year's first snowstorm wasn't until late January either and then we got 100+ inches. With the El Niño weather pattern this year, it's expected that we'll get a more normal amount of snow, which is still plenty and still on its way. We got just a few inches this weekend, but there's a potential snowstorm coming next weekend, so Old Man Winter is just beginning to mosey into town.

I was in Boston for the long holiday weekend (Martin Luther King Day in the US) and hadn't thought to pack my snow boots. I hadn't packed very much, in fact, because D was sick with a bad cold and I took a taxi into town on Saturday instead of the usual loading up D's car Friday night with a range of options to get me through the weekend. Anyway, after two days of mostly sitting on the couch keeping D company watching football and such, I had to get outside this morning for a walk. So I put on thick socks and laced up D's boots and went out walking to see what the first real snowfall of this winter left behind.

There weren't too many people out and about, but of course dog owners must come out and there were many of those out with their pooches. Over in the Public Garden, a slew of dogs were off leash and romping and rolling in the snow while their owners socialized - likely a regular play group.

The Make Way for Ducklings mallards in the Public Garden had clearly been visited by little feet by the looks of the small boot prints around them.

But the chilly wind was strong and didn't encourage visitors to linger on the lagoon bridge.

I did get out walking yesterday, but mainly to pick up cold medicine and groceries -- plus my favorite cold cure, the hot chili ramen soup from Wagamama, which seemed to help (and was quite delicious). Hopefully he'll be feeling better soon as it's been more than a week now, but seems like it might have developed into bronchitis as he's coughing a lot and feeling pretty lousy. He'll go to urgent care tomorrow if it doesn't seem to be moving in the right direction.

Meanwhile, I took my first Uber ride to get home this evening (I am decidedly a late adopter), which cost me half what the taxi cab ride into town did. It was pretty easy to do, so I may be doing it again soon.

December

On Friday night, a rare cold night this oddly warm holiday season, we stood outside watching the Mayor's Celebration of Lights projected onto the Boston Public Library (a Nutcracker scene above). D and I tried singing along to The Twelve Days of Christmas, although despite the visuals clearly depicting clues for the lyrics, we were quite incapable of keeping up. I had visions of my parents' black and white home movies from the 1950's with my aunts and uncles playing some drinking game with "One hen, two ducks, three squawking geese..." Alas we hadn't even been drinking, or at least no more than a pint with dinner.

The weekend before last, it was well above average temperatures for the annual Santa Speedo run, a charity race often run in sub-freezing weather in Boston. Above, a driver finds himself unexpectedly surrounded by nearly naked runners on Newbury Street.

Elsewhere, on staid Beacon Hill, one of our founding fathers or a replica thereof celebrates the season more properly.

In early December, I flew out to Ann Arbor to visit my dad, who turned 88 on December 8th. We had a nice visit, though I could have used a lot less of the television news on all the time. To escape that, I went out on my own a few times either to do a bit of shopping or to walk. There's a walking path across the street from his senior living apartment. It just goes behind some condos, but it's close by - and there are always some nice dried teasel there in the winter. One morning I found some all coated in frost.

I also drove over to the arboretum one afternoon. I'd only been in warm weather before, so it was nice to see it's still lovely in the murky days of early December.

And there were more dried husks and pods around.

There was also this red-tailed hawk.

The trip was a nice break from work, which has been exceptionally busy and continued to be as soon as I returned. But today I sent off my last project deliverables for the year and I am officially on vacation until Monday following New Year's. I don't know if I'll get around to blogging much or not. Mainly I need to catch up on neglected things like cleaning my apartment and, well, sleep. And hopefully seeing friends a bit. I managed to get a few Christmas cards in the mail, but have more to get to, likely arriving late. Oh well.

The solstice was last night, ever so slowly tilting back towards the light. I could use some of that slow turning right about now.

Season of fallen leaves

[Cemetery wall; 11/4/15]

We've gone from the season of lustrous fall foliage to the season of fallen leaves, dead and paper-dry. A few bright amber stars cling to catch the late light, but even their days are numbered.

[Shorn trees, St. Pat's cemetery]

[Leaf shadows]

Dead leaves fall in the cemetery on the dead, saints and souls, the long deceased and the recently buried.

[Old stone, newly fallen leaves]

Now at 5 pm, after sorting and uploading my photos, I notice my windows have gone dark, the sun extinguished over the horizon for the next 13 hours or so before rising again to stay up for 10 hours and 10 minutes tomorrow, 3 minutes less than today. Meanwhile, the leaves continue to fall.

[Barrels of leaf trash - everywhere]

October Light

[Paradise Pond, Smith College; 10/24/15]

This morning I had to get the ice scraper out of the trunk of my car to clear my windshield. Fall  weather was slow to arrive year, the fall foliage late by at least two weeks, but the nights are decidedly cold and getting colder. And more dark. This weekend we'll turn our clocks back and darkness will descend all too soon.

[Branches, Public Garden in Boston; 10/25/15]

In early October, we drove up to Stowe, Vermont to visit my friends who have a home up there. The last time we were there was in January, when we were charmed by the snow, not knowing that we'd be in for more than 100 inches of it in Boston by February. This fall trip was lovely, even though the color in the mountains was still spotty. More pics from Stowe here.

[Highland cattle, Trapp Family Center, Stowe VT; 10/5/15]

We also visited my alma mater last weekend for a bit more leaf peeping in Northampton, a couple of hours west of here. But the color is beginning to peak here in the Boston area as well, and everyone was out on Sunday afternoon in the Public Garden taking pictures in the slanting light before sunset.

[Picture taking at the Public Garden Lagoon; 10/25/15]

We also caught this photo op on the Lagoon Bridge on Sunday. I suspect it was a professional photo shoot rather than an actual bride and groom (of which we see many in the Public Garden on any given weekend) - the bride was too beautiful and they were too practiced at repeating the pose for the camera. Still, it was something to see.

[Lagoon Bridge swoon, Public Garden, Boston; 10/25/15]

--

We are entering the very busy season, or the even busier season, in my job. The clients need to spend their budget before the end of the year or lose it for next year. I have had some ups and downs with my ability to get a solid night's sleep, but hoping my latest remedy continues to work (self-treating with homeopathy for the night sweats and hot flashes now after every herbal remedy and HRT attempt have failed or caused intolerable side effects). It's amazing what a decent night's sleep does for one's mental and emotional capacity. Sleep, the miracle drug.

Anyway, as they say at the Trapp Family Lodge in Stowe, Vermont (just above my friends' place), Auf wiedersehen!

[Found art, on the trail in Stowe, Vermont; 10/5/15]

Into September

[Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow (The Children’s Chairs Project); East Boston; 9/5/15]

Back to school - that's what September has always been around here. In Boston, all the college students return, with their energy and verve, the vibrant music they play on the sidewalks around where D lives, and also their noise, crowding and indifference to older residents. For the much younger set, my work colleagues have been emailing around pictures of their children on their first days of school - the elementary school kids anxious or enthusiastic, the teenagers sullen or indulging their parents with a reluctant smile for the camera.

Despite the demarcation of the Labor Day weekend (the weekend that holds the first Monday of September), life is more fluid for me. I work full time in all seasons, and the summer is just hotter than the rest of the year. Our work isn't seasonal. But the longer days of light do give summer a sense of abundant time, the non-work hours more open for leisure and adventure. The same number of non-work hours in the fall and winter just don't translate to the same sense of plenty. But the fall has its own grace, the consolations of increasing quiet and inward-looking time - outside of work hours anyway.

[Marina, East Boston; 9/5/15]

The last weeks of summer are the busiest as we try to cram in everything we have not gotten around to doing but wanted to do before the summer is over. D and I went down to Providence for WaterFire the weekend before last. We'd gone a few years ago, D's first experience of WaterFire, always the most memorable (I'd been a dozen years earlier, and several times since, because I used to live closer by). We opted for the train this time, which took less than half an hour and dropped us off right at the RiverWalk area (even better, the train got us back without a sleepy~1 hour 15 minute drive home). And we got to see it in daylight before the lighting, which started while we were having a luscious dinner in one of the nearby restaurants.

[Gondolier, before lighting at WaterFire; 8/29/15]

[WaterFire Providence; 8/29/15]

This past weekend, Labor Day holiday weekend, we stayed closer to home, taking the T over to East Boston on the other side of the harbor with friends to see the Piers Point park and marina/shipyard area with its HarborArts installations. Piers Point is a lovely park with great views of the city and the harbor, so it's a great spot for wedding photos for the locals. We saw four or five different wedding parties having their pictures taken in the park at one point or another while we were in Eastie.

[Wedding party photos, Piers Point, East Boston; 9/5/15]

[Mural, Boston Harbor Shipyard & Marina, East Boston; 9/5/15]

[Piers Point, East Boston; 9/5/15]

On Sunday evening, we walked over to the river to watch the sun set over the Charles River.

[Sunset viewing from the docks in Boston; 9/6/15]

The sun sets noticeably earlier now. There is little time from when I come home from work until dusk falls, the light begins to slant lower in the afternoon, and in three months' time the sun will have set before I even leave the office. So we begin to savor the light and the relative warmth (well, today it was over 90°F [>32°C], so quite overly warm). The nights begin get crisp and cool. The crickets chirrup through my open windows. Even with plenty of warm days this time of year, the summer clothes get put away, out of place for the season. A new palette for both cloth and landscape.

More pics from WaterFire Providence.

More pics from Labor Day Weekend (still uploading more when I get a chance). 

Building boom

[Building in progress/lights at Lawn on D, South Boston; 8/22/15]

Buildings are going up all over the Seaport District in South Boston (all over metro Boston, actually). This area was a near wasteland for a long time. Friends and I used to go to the Institute of Contemporary Art on the waterfront and there was nothing out there, and seemingly the windswept frozen tundra in the winter. No more. Skyscrapers have dwarfed the ICA and though the wind still sweeps through it is channeled between buildings. Or parts of buildings as the spines of elevator shafts grow layers of skeleton floors around them and finally sprout skins of facades. 

One flat piece of land behind the convention center, the Lawn on D, has made an attempt to add some life to the industrial growth. It has showcased some public art (see the big bunnies from a few weeks ago) and there's a food and drink tent with a DJ to attract young urbanites to socialize in.

[Tent at the Lawn on D]

We old urbanites visited this weekend so D could try out the swings at the Lawn on D, but there wasn't much else going on. At least not at the hour we were there, early afternoon. There was a stage on the lawn for later live music, but nothing had started up. So we walked over to the waterfront to eat at our favorite Mexican restaurant before heading back home.

Between the waterfront and the Lawn on D venue, you pass through the lovely Eastport Park, another nice addition to soften the industrial landscape. On this late August day, the lush green vegetation wound around the mostly nautical themed sculptures of various sea creatures and sails.

[Shrimp, by David Phillips, Eastport Park]

[David Phillips' Hermit Crab, Eastport Park]

[David Phillips' Hermit Crab, Eastport Park]

[Fish Bench, by Judy Kensley McKie, Eastport Park]

---

I had a client meeting today across the river in Cambridge. The client, a pharmaceutical company, had built a beautiful "green building" (environmentally speaking) in 2003. I used to go there back when it first opened, for a freelance project back in my starvation days. Like the ICA on the South Boston waterfront, the building had been surrounded by mostly vast parking lots and a few small buildings. Now there are many other tall buildings, mostly life sciences companies, and cafes filled with young workers on their lunch breaks. 

Word fatigue and its cures

[Old hospital, decommissioned Fort Warren, Georges Island; 8/13/15]

I tried to write a post last night but was exhausted trying to string a few coherent thoughts together, or incoherent thoughts as the case may be. Writing professionally daily depletes my storehouse of words, a repetitive use strain of the brain. And so, perhaps just a few soothing images from my storehouse of photos from vacation...

[Beach in North Truro; 8/10/15]

[Adirondack chairs, Boston Harbor, from Georges Island; 8/13/15]

[Provincetown cottage; 8/10/15]

[Coneflowers (echinacea), Prescott Park, Portsmouth NH; 8/14/15]

[Beach at sunset, Provincetown Harbor; 8/8/15]