The scent of place ties me to the memory of it. Walking into my shop and smelling varnish and linseed oil transports me to boat shops and boatyards where I've worked. Without a moment of transport, I've returned, even if it was long ago.
Tide
Choice
Some books make a difference. I've had a favorite game for years; I'll give a friend five minutes to pick the two volumes they'd take with them if they had to leave all the rest behind in an emergency.
Titanic
Salvaged from the Titanic, this carved panel still looks like the woodcarver finished yesterday despite having spent most of a century in the darkness of the North Atlantic.
B & E
For many years, my constant associate was a large gray cat with attitude issues. Clancy J. Bumps ( with an umlaut over the U) was a feral cat who claimed me while I was living in Ottawa, Ontario in 1969. Clancy entered my life by walking up to my friends and me one day. He looked us over, and choosing me proceeded to climb up my leg, my back, and onto my head. He thereby claimed me as his personal property.
Cunners
The cunners lurked below. They swam near the rock recesses and around the pilings of the wharf where we were eating lunch.
Inspiration
Boundless inspiration. It's not always available. That's why art books and museums are so valuable.
Adventures in Coastal Living – Clams
As an adult, some of my "research" grew bolder. Friends in Boston took me out for seafood and drinks the night before I shipped out for the first time. The ship sailed directly into heavy weather, and I spent the midwatch worshipping the throne. I deny that I was seasick. It had been the clams.
Adventures in Coastal Living – Navigation
Manhattan, by and large, is a grid. Except for some of the areas in the south of the island, navigation is by right and left turns. Street navigation then breaks down into east or west of Broadway. Or into what area you are going to; Meat Packer's district, Mid-town, the Garment District. The turns then followed by passages of long blocks. On moving to coastal Maine, I discovered that adequate roads and bridges were modern phenomena.
Cafe Why Not, Greenwich Village, New York City; 1965
The Cafe Why Not didn't stand; it lurked below ground level opposite the Cafe Wha in New York's Greenwich Village.
Pint XXV
I sealed Pint XXV shut last night, and that marked the close of another sapping season for the little sugarbush behind our house. Just a bit over three gallons of syrup, enough for family needs.This morning the dog, cat, and I went out to survey the slow opening of spring in our tiny woodland garden. …
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