Lens-Artists Challenge #246 – Still Life…
Category Archives: food
CFFC: Texture…
Several years ago I took a trip to Plymouth, MA to visit the Plimouth Plantation, the Mayflower II and the John & Priscilla Alden home in Duxbury, MA. Here are some of my pictures of textures from that trip including the delicious texture of a lobster roll 🙂
Lens-Artists Photo Challenge – It’s all about light…
A Photo a Week Challenge: Circles on circles…
This challenge was so much fun. I wanted to stop at a reasonable number of photos but once I got started I couldn’t stop. Definitely felt like I was going in circles after a while 🙂
Food
Miscellaneous
More miscellaneous.
https://nowathome.wordpress.com/2021/06/01/a-photo-a-week-challenge-circles-on-circles/
Challenge Your Camera #11 Still life…
And finally a Claude Monet painting seen at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in NYC and then a recreated still life at Grounds For Sculpture in Hamilton, New Jersey.
https://nowathome.wordpress.com/2021/03/19/challenge-your-camera-11-still-life/
Ragtag Daily Prompt Thursday: Cornershop
Maine – Meanderings and Museums Part II…
After spending the night in Waterville, Maine we headed to Portland. It was too cold and windy to meander around so we went to the Portland Museum of Art which was lovely.
Good-bye to Portland and onward to Kennebunkport where meandering was a little warmer and less windy. First stop was a coffee shop where we had tea and shared a delicious piece of blueberry crumb cake. Kennebunkport is quaint and sweet, lots of nice little shops to poke around in should you be so inclined.
Leaving there we headed back to Ogunquit for our last night in Maine. We stayed this time at the gorgeous Gorges Grant Inn. The room was lovely and our decision to have breakfast in their restaurant ‘Raspberries’ was a smart one. Yum.
After a good night’s rest it was time to say good-bye to Maine and head home to New Jersey. But wait… who said we had to go directly home, how about a stop in…. Salem, Massachusetts. Woooooooooo.
First stop… the Salem Witch Museum which I found very interesting (and not scary at all) 🙂 Second stop… Jolie Tea Company. The little cafe was a gem of a find, the tea was excellent as were the pastries… the staff was friendly and informative, we really enjoyed our short time there. Did bring home some tea and also ordered more from them.
This trip was all I hoped for and more thanks to my daughter Deb ❤
Maine – Cemeteries and Meanderings Part I…
My daughter Deb and I made a recent pilgrimage to Maine, not only to enjoy the beauty and crisp autumn weather but to visit the graves of our relatives.
Our first night was spent in Ogunquit at the beautiful Colonial Inn.
You cannot go to Maine, or Ogunquit and not do these two things… have lobster roll and maybe blueberry pie too, which we did at Barnacle Billy’s. Yum.
…and walk on Marginal Way and down on the beach.
One of the main reasons for our trip was to visit this tiny little cemetery in Rome, Maine where my great-grandfather Joseph P Littlefield, my great-grandmother Martha Jane Ellis and their 3 oldest children (they had 8), Margaret, Adison and Atwood are buried.
My great grandfather Joseph P Littlefield was injured in the Civil War at the Battle of Cold Harbor, he was sent home to Maine to die, which he did, not only of his massive injuries but also of typhoidal pneumonia. His wife and the 3 oldest of his 8 children died within months of him from it as well leaving my grandfather Charles G Littlefield at age 9 the oldest of the five remaining children. A tragic story and once we learned about it felt compelled to find their graves and honor them. Their small plot is off the beaten track in Rome, Maine but Deb found it and we traipsed through the brush to get to it. Worth the trip indeed. This was very emotional in that Joseph, Martha Jane, Margaret, Adison and Atwood have become very real to us and we feel very close to them. We weren’t able to bring them flowers but left 5 pennies to indicate we were there and remembering them.
That’s Deb’s car parked on the side of the road by the telephone sub station box, the path to the cemetery is where the flag is.
From Rome, Maine we headed to Waterville, Maine where my mother was born and where my above mentioned grandfather, Charles G Littlefield is buried in the Pine Grove Cemetery. Although my grandmother’s name, Albra Mae Littlefield is on the stone she is actually buried on Martha’s Vineyard with her third husband.
Also in this plot is my mother’s sister Tessa Mae Littlefield Robertson Poulin, her husband Joseph Ezra Poulin, one of their daughers, Helen Brown and her husband Laurence Brown.
Thus ends our first full day in Maine and our cemetery visits.
Flirting and Dancing At The Tivoli…
The Tivoli building… Oak Bluffs, Martha’s Vineyard (circa 1920)
The two story, full block Tivoli Dance Hall stood from 1901 until 1964. The bottom floor housed shops and an ice cream parlor. My godmother worked in the ice cream parlor and I always enjoyed visiting her there… one time in particular jumps to mind.
I was 3 years old and had newly mastered winking and was anxious to put it to use. Sitting at a table behind my mother and facing me was a sailor. Being that I was wearing a sailor dress I figured we had something in common and so I began winking at him… it did not take long for my mother to notice. She turned around and as she did the young sailor headed for our table. He smiled and said he was alone on the Vineyard for the day and wanted to tell my mother how charming he thought I was (blushing here). Not only did my mother invite him to join us at the table but she invited him home for dinner (this was mid 1940’s). I was amazed at how powerful this winking thing was. I’ve never forgotten him… I do however keep the winking thing to a minimum.
The entire second floor of the Tivoli Dance Hall was just that, the dance hall. It was huge, at least in the eyes of a 4 year old being dragged there against her will for a dance lesson. I did like all the windows and how far you could see out of them, I liked the clicking sound my shoes made on the floor, I loved the brand new sundress I had on …
…but, I did NOT like the group dancing part. I remember reluctantly getting in line with the other victims children, but my feet did not move, they planted themselves firmly in one spot and stayed there. Everyone danced around me but I did not care to join in, not only didn’t I dance I wouldn’t talk to anyone either.
My mother was not happy with me… we did not stop for promised ice cream at the Frosty Cottage on Circuit Ave for ice cream and we didn’t come home with a sailor for dinner either. 
Tasting and Tripping On The Vineyard…
Date: June, 1993 –
Place: Martha’s Vineyard –
Occasion: A Taste of the Vineyard
25 years ago my daughter Deb and I decided to treat ourselves to A Taste of the Vineyard, we’d never gone before and it seemed like a fun and different thing to do. Off we went to the Vineyard for a glorious long weekend of eating, shopping and tasting. The weather turned brutally hot all along the Eastern seaboard, it verged on 100 degress which is unusual for mid June. A few hours before the Taste was to begin welcomed thunder storms rolled in and dropped the temps about 25 degrees. The evening was cool and clear and perfect.
We donned our new outfits and headed over to the grounds of the Preservation Trust which are located at the Dr Daniel Fisher house in Edgartown. The house is a beautiful Federal style home surrounded by lush gardens. It’s gorgeous.
We gingerly and hungrily entered the tents where all foods and drinks were on display. Lots of eager tasters were already there. We got our dishes and start wending through the crowds. We found seats and set about our tastings.
The tables were set with crisp white tablecloths.. in the middle of the tables were mounds of sand with seashells and rocks scattered about and a large hurricane lamp with candle sitting in the middle of the sand. Simple and tasteful, much like the occasion. The bite sized portions of appetizers and entrees were just satisfyingly enough. Had to leave room for the abundance of dessert samples after all.
But… the thing that mostly interested me was trying for the first time the Frozen Cappuccino from Espresso Love one of my most favorite places on MV. I returned to our table with my cup, eager to taste what smelled and looked delicious. I set it on the table… or at least I thought I had…
…but no, I had sort of placed it precariously near the edge and it landed in my daughters lap, almost the entire cup of cappuccino!!!!! On her new skirt !
**(The part of the original skirt is now being portrayed by a stand-in)
Deb loved the skirt and had hoped to wear many, many times. I felt awful, I still do… it was an accident. I mean after all I myself had gotten a drop or two on my new shoes. We cleaned her up as best we could and I believe she went and got me a second cup of frozen cappuccino. I set it down on the table and… it hit the rocks and there before our eyes it oozed from the rocks and sand onto the table cloth. It looked like the tide had come in… it wasn’t pretty and it was embarrassing.
Could it be that maybe the third time would work! I had to find out so off I went for the third cup of frozen cappuccino. I walked carefully back to the table, avoiding being bumped or nudged. I approached the table… Deb grimaced… I held the cup tightly in both hands… I bent to set it down… and… I did it, I made solid contact with table. I then raised the cup to my lips and actually got to taste the frozen cappuccino and I have to tell you… it was good, it was very very good, it was joy to my taste buds. I loved it and I still do, I try to have one at least once during every trip to MV. And of course I feel compelled to apologize each time to my daughter for her long lost beautiful skirt.
This blurry picture of the two of us was taken at the end of the evening. At least we’re laughing because no matter what, we always enjoy ourselves on the Vineyard.
(PS.. apology #107..I’m still sorry about the skirt)
MV Obsession 