"sun not needed"
it was a cloudy morning at skaket beach last week, but that didn't really matter. The amphitheater quality of that space at low tide is magnificent in any weather, and watching the early risers enjoy the beach and each other I felt, strangely, that the sun was not needed.
There were two little boys practicing their slide boards in a puddle while mom and dad chatted and watched. The younger boy was in constant motion and utterance. "my turn!" floated urgently over the flats. Mom and Dad gave each other a high five and I wanted to give one to the whole happy family.
Right by them went a very nice couple holding hands. I watched them out onto the flats, until I almost couldn't see them; it seemed they were going to walk all the way to Provincetown, holding hands forever.
I never even walked. I just stood up at the top and watched these people quietly happy on the beach below. There was so much good cheer that they didn't need the sun - they made the light.
"a note to Rachel"
It was a darkening morning in Woods Hole, no rain, but a palpable thickening of the air and lowering barometer as I walked around. I ended up sitting next to Rachel Carson staring optimistically out to sea, notebook and ballpoint pen in hand, as if one more note would undo the devastation she chronicled. I guess the weather affected my mood, which was, to put it positively, reflective.
Woods Hole didn't feel like such a safe harbor, but why should it? Harbors may be refuges, but they are also the center of our comings and goings, our darings and dangers. I have crossed that hole maybe a thousand times and managed to miss the rocks ..... although I hung up late at night on a lobster pot line ..... and I marvel at the way the ferry backs out of its berth, stops short of the ledges every time, and steams positively to the Vineyard bearing its charges safely.
Carson's message was that same hope in the face of swirling eddies and perils seen and unseen. I took solace from her company, and from the very nice popover I was munching, and went on.
"off the rocks"
"partial view"
new website, old website
"foreboding"
thanks for coming by. This is the third time I have moved my website to a new "engine" in about fifteen years of activity.
The first was a pioneering online website builder, that never lived up to its promise. The second was a very powerful development package published by Apple, "iWeb", which they abandoned at the time that they abandoned "Mobile Me". I have continued to use it, but it now crashes with the latest version of OSX, Mavericks, and I felt it was time to move on.
My son in law recommended this engine, supplied by squarespace, and I have really enjoyed rebuilding the site and discovering powerful new tools.
I'm looking forward to lots more interactions and sharings with people who view my images.
All the best,
~Robert