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From the kitchen window I see a thermometer and a rhododendron. Both give accurate readings of cold outdoor temperatures—mercury drops and leaves on the rhododendron curl. Northern Cardinals occupy territories in our neighborhood yearlong. I’ve counted fifteen lined up for a turn at the sunflower station. Cardinals whistle a winter song—Whacheer whacheer…cheer cheer cheer. |
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Every so often I take out the button jar, unscrew its yellow metal lid and spread the contents out in a single layer—pearl, glass, plastic, fabric, metal, wood, big, small—an endless assortment of brightly colored buttons inherited mostly from my mother. I select fifty-six in all, including seven hearts. Someday I plan to craft brooches from the most interesting ones. Till then, back into the jar for safe keeping. |
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Many people believe that charms or amulets have magical powers to ward off evil or bring good luck. For them, this is serious business. Others like me are merely fascinated by the cultural stew of hand-me-down superstitions. Three keys unlock doors to health, wealth and love. A feather represents the journey of the soul to another realm. Anyone holding the long side of a fowl’s snapped collarbone is granted his wish. Pressing four-leaf clovers between a book’s pages, crickets singing in a house, horseshoes, and a rabbit’s left hind foot—all are objects of auspicious fate. |
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The Sampson Fund for Veterinary Care is a non-profit agency founded in 1986 with a gift from the owner of Sampson, a Cape Cod cat. A yearly auction of birdhouses is the organization’s biggest fund-raiser. Money raised by the event is distributed to area animal care centers to help pay unexpected veterinary bills for dogs and cats. Anyone can volunteer to create a birdhouse. |
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“Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May...”
(Shakespeare, Sonnet 18)
May is the month of flowering trees. Named after a mountain in Japan, the Kwanzan cherry tree was introduced to America in 1903 and made famous by the Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington, D.C. Blooms are carnation-like double pink flowers which last about three weeks. New leaves are reddish-bronze in color. I documented flowering beginning May 6th. As Memorial Day neared, a blizzard of petals drifted through the air ushering in summer.
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My first ride on a merry-go-round was at Lake Compounce, an amusement park in Bristol, Connecticut. As many of these parks closed, carousels were dismantled and sold in pieces as prized antiques. Fewer than 200 wooden carousels remain in the United States—four in Connecticut and six in Massachusetts. A fine hand-carved carousel by Charles Looff operates in Sandwich, MA. |
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This comes under the category “Can you believe it?” Like many small towns, Chatham has a great Fourth of July celebration. Small business lemonade stands run by young entrepreneurs like Lucy pop up here and there. Last year the Board of Selectmen received a complaint from a downtown merchant that one stand at the corner of Main Street and Cross Street was selling candy, an item similar to that sold by the Main Street merchant. The Board decided to allow the sale of bottled water and lemonade only, “but no candy or other items.” |
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Queen Anne’s Lace blooms throughout the summer along roadsides and in open fields. “Wild carrot,” has a deep thick taproot (the carrot) and feathery leaves. The white lacy “flower” is actually a compound umbel. (Time out! An umbel is an inflorescence {flower cluster} which consists of a number of short stalks {pedicels} which spread from a central point somewhat like the ribs of an umbrella.) At the center is a dark purple floret. In legend, this is where a drop of Queen Anne’s blood fell onto her lace. As seeds ripen, the umbel turns inward resembling a “bird’s nest”—another name for this plant. |
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After sea kayaking in the San Juan Islands north of Seattle, my sister, Joan, and I returned to Cape Cod and bought new kayaks. Since then we have launched from Salt Pond and paddled to the barrier beach. We have launched from Herring River and paddled to Nantucket Sound (stopping at Rt. 28 for fried clams in the summer). We have launched from Oyster River and paddled to the Mill Pond in Chatham. And we have camped out under the stars dining on duck and Pinot Noir. Quigley, my Irish Terrier of many talents, knows his nautical routine. He hops aboard, centers himself on my lap, and takes in the sights and smells of the harbor. |
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Mushrooms—the fruit of fungi— are organisms that lack chlorophyll and reproduce from spores. Some mushrooms have gills. Make a spore-print by placing a cap (gill side down) on light or dark paper. Cover with a bowl to keep out breezes. A “print” appears from the spores dusting onto the paper. In a dry season, Barometer Earthstars can live for months with their ray-shaped arms tightly closed. But when cool rains begin, the rays absorb water, causing them to open. The exposed puffball splits, releasing millions of spores.
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Clementines (Citrus reticulate) are a small seasonal variety of mandarin orange—easy-peeling, sweet, and usually seedless. Imported mostly from Spain and Morocco, Clementines were first successfully marketed in the United States when a freeze destroyed domestic orange production. Since 1997 they have gained popularity and are grown now in California where growers have invested heavily in producing fruit with fewer than two seeds per orange.
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Cutting stencils can be tricky. A design must be cut in such a way that paint applied to the open part of the stencil creates an image on the surface beneath. I used Photoshop to create a brush, and stippled white “paint” into a selection. No X-Acto knife needed!
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