I think the photos in Greetings from New England (below, down 2 posts) deserve some caption information. Sorry about that.  

If you look carefully, you'll find:

John F. Kennedy's sailboat, outside of the Kennedy Museum on Boston Harbor
Quincy Market, Boston
Fenway Park (home of the Red Sox), Boston
City dock, Burlington, Vermont
A replica ship under construction in Gloucester, Massachusetts
A view of Lake Spofford, New Hampshire, from a rear deck
The French King Bridge over the Connecticut River
Bridge of Flowers, Shelburne Falls, Massachusetts
Several buildings at the Shelburne Museum in Vermont
The Heath Fair in Heath, Massachusetts
Newport Harbor, Newport, Rhode Island
Downtown Wilmington, Vermont
Lake Whitingham in Wilmington, Vermont
A view of Greenfield, Massachusets, from Poet's Seat Tower
A family of geese crossing the Green River, in Greenfield, Massachusetts
Our cabin in Wilmington, Vermont
Mountains in southern and central Vermont

Downtown Wilminigton VT

Dear Reader,

Summer's finally here, and as soon as the rain clears (if ever), it'll be time to get out on the lake, the ocean, the hiking trail or at the cabin to enjoy what summer has to offer.

Here are a few photos I've taken of the New England I know and love. Some are recent, others are a year or two old. Click on the photo to enlarge. Most pictures were taken on a cell phone, so please excuse the fuzzy focus.

Scenes are in and around Gloucester, Cape Cod, Boston, Greenfield, Colrain, Shelburne Falls and Heath, Massachusetts; Wilmington, Burlington and Shelburne, Vermont; and Newport, Rhode Island. 

I hope you like them. Have a wonderful summer!

Wish you were here!

Paula

 

Dave and I are in California, spending some quality time with a few children, grandchildren, sibs and in-laws. The weather is a bit chilly and damp, but that's a small price to pay.

Below are some of the sites and scenes we encountered on a trip up the coast from Oakland to a bit beyond Mendocino. We stayed at a very small inn in a very small inland town. It was the kind of place where you pay extra for no amenities--no phone, no television, no wifi, no cell service. Just peace and beauty. Very pricey.

You have to do this now and then for your soul.
At least, I do.

So, dear reader, this is my postcard to you:

Hi,

Having a wonderful time.

Find your own place. It's important!

Love,

Paula

 

This is how I spent my birthday -- surrounded by blooming bulbs (and other plants). How lucky to be born on the first day of spring! 

This is the time of year when people in snowy climates start losing their minds. We’ve had enough of the cold and the white stuff, yet there could be more snow well into April, even into May.

When the days are above freezing---here, they’re in the 30s and 40s---and the nights are below---in the teens and 20s---the sap starts to run in the maple trees. The month-long sugaring season gives everyone something to look forward to, just when cabin fever really starts to set in. Wood fires abound and, if you step outside on certain days, you can smell the heady mix of wood smoke and maple sugar.

Once you start boiling the sap, you must keep it going or lose sap to evaporation. It takes roughly 50 gallons of sap to make one gallon of syrup, so every drop counts.

Anything as labor intensive as this requires many hands. Sugar masters make the chores as pleasant as possible. They organize potluck meals, and ask people to bring along their musical instruments, children and dogs. There’s nothing like a party to make the work flow.

Here are some photos I took a few years ago of a sugarhouse operation. Dave helped gather and stack wood. I helped chronicle the event with pictures. We both enjoyed the people, the music and the food. 

Click to enlarge any photo.