Day Trip to Rockport

Today Liz and I took a trip with friends Andrew and Josh up to Rockport, Massachusetts. It's about an hour drive and the seaside town has lots of little shops, restaurants and a picturesque harbor and jetty. Here are some pictures. The red house is supposedly the most often painted building in America.

Boston Harbor Sailing

I finally made it back out onto the water after a couple weeks off. Yesterday Liz, Mariah, Ryan and I went sailing with a group of people out into Boston Harbor and to the harbor islands in the hopes of seeing the Volvo racing boats set out for Ireland. We passed by them at the docks as we sailed out of the harbor but by the time of their scheduled 1 o'clock start a dense fog rolled in and we couldn't see a thing. Before the fog arrived we'd sailed all the way to Spectacle Island and tried to dock to use the facilities but they turned us away as they didn't allow any boat without a motor into their harbor. On this map (click on it to enlarge) we sailed from the very top left where it says Boston (we were towed out of the Charles River through the locks) out to spectacle island just left of the center of the map.
However, when the fog settled in shortly after we departed the island on our way back to see the start of the race we decided to turn back to the island in the hope that they might be a little more hospitipal, and they were. We docked and explored the visitors center and the island, which was beautiful by any standards but especially so considering it's made up primarily of land fill. You'd never know it from the flowers, grassy areas with picknic benches and variety of bird species. The island also has a ferry dock and visitors' center that uses solar energy, radiant heat and a no-chemical, no-water, composting sewer system.

The fog lifted mid afternoon and we sailed back to Boston on a broad reach until the wind died around the airport where they tied us all back up and towed us through the locks back to Community Boating.

Here's our boat safely moored in the marina at Spectacle Island

Here are some of the other boats in our group anchoring in the fog.


Not sure why I'm sticking my tongue out (Spectacle Island in the background after the fog lifted).
The afternoon sail home.
Here's Liz having a good time while we're towed around in circles waiting for a drawbridge to open (locks in the background).

Well this past weekend I did something I'd been thinking about doing for a while. I got my motorcycle license! I took a two day beginner rider course through the Massachusetts Rider Education Program (conducted by Motorcycle Safety Foundation certified instructors) and a company called Ironstone Ventures. The course was held at Bunker Hill Community College (yes, where Good Will Hunting was filmed). It was two days split between classroom work and riding drills where I learned all the basics like shifting, balancing, turning, starting and stopping as well as some things like emergency breaking in corners, driving over obstacles (we drove over 2x4's), swerving and quick stopping. I'm not sure if I'll be getting a bike any time soon but hopefully I can ride with some of you guys back in Oregon next time I'm out for a visit.

The Sheepfold

We took advantage of the beautiful weather today and took Roxy to meet some friends at the Middlesex Fells Sheepfold. It's a giant field near a reservoir with some hiking and biking trails and lots of people take their dogs to romp around in the field together. Roxy had been exhibiting some signs of cabin fever so we were overdue for some outdoor exercise and general mayhem.

Here's the main part of the field (note: you can click on any of the pics on this site to view them full size).

Mariah, Roxy and Liz heading towards the hiking trails.

If there's water (or better yet, MUD) around, Roxy will find it.

I don't think she knows how to swim but she loves to wade. Unfortunately this was the cleanest water she got into so she earned herself a bath when we got home.

Spring has definitely arrived!

It's Earth Day

I wanted to title this post "Happy Earth Day!" but after reading the paper today it's not that happy. Here are a few facts published in today's Metro:

-There are 16,928 animal species (that we know about) in danger of extinction.

-The rate of extinction with humans on the planet is 1,000 to 10,000 times faster than the natural rate.

-The Great Garbage Patch in the Pacific Ocean (primarily plastic debris) is now three times larger than Spain and Portugal combined. EVERY square mile of ocean is now believed to contain 46,000 pieces of floating garbage.

-Plastic NEVER biodegrades. It photodegredates meaning it breaks into smaller and smaller pieces of plastic, but it will always be plastic.

-Tigers now occupy just 7 percent of their natural habitat.

-There are only 4 northern white rhino's left (and nobody's seen them since 2006).

It's pretty but it's full of plastic.


So, why did I bother to depress everyone with these sad statistics? IT IS NOT TOO LATE!!! All of the following suggestions (borrowed from Green America, Metro, We Can Solve It and my own head) can help preserve and even improve our environment. Some of them might seem small but if everyone does them they'll really add up.

-Don't buy: styrofoam cups, bleached coffee filters and paper towels, teak and mahogany, chemical pesticides and herbicides, conventional household cleaners, toys made with PVC plastic, plastic forks and spoons, farm raised salmon and rayon.

-Do buy Organic, LOCAL and in-season fruits and vegetables, No-VOC paint, paper products with a high post-consumer recycled content, compact fluorescent light bulbs, Energy Star appliances.

-Combine several destinations into one trip so you drive less, or better yet take public transportation.

-Turn off lights and unplug appliances and other electronic devices when not in use. Turn down your heat and air conditioning. Buy electricity from renewable resources if it's available from your utilities company. Wash your clothes in cold water.

-Stop buying things you don't need and don't support these companies: Wal-Mart, Exxon-Mobile, Coca-Cola, Nestle, Monsanto, General Motors, Dominion, Citigroup, Shell Petroleum, McDonald's.

-Join me, Al Gore and 2,203,717 other people in supporting the We Can Solve It campaign. Be sure to sign the petition to Repower America.


Here's a picture I took of the jungle--hopefully a site we can preserve for future generations.

100 Site Visits!!!

Well this blog just received its 100th site visit! Okay so at least 50 of them were probably me updating and checking the site for comments and visits. My site counter is supposed to ignore my own clicks but I'm not sure if it's working or not. Anyway we've reached over 250 individual hits and 100 visits (when someone clicks on the site, then clicks a link and returns or views multiple pages). I hope you all continue to read and enjoy my ramblings.

A Saturday Drive

Liz and I (and Roxy) drove to Marblehead last Saturday. It's a nice little town just 17 miles north of us. There is an island connected to the mainland by a bridge that has beautiful houses and views all the way around with a little park at the north end complete with a lighthouse. I'd love to go back later in the summer when it's warmer and the harbor will be filled with boats.