family


11
Jun 11

The last of the cruise pictures and notes

We’ll wake up in New Jersey tomorrow, so this is just to put a bow on the last of a great trip with nice people. There are a few pictures, a video, three panoramas and an interactive 3D photograph below.

Some people say this is the best beach in Bermuda. Tobacco Beach, was named by survivors of the famous Sea Venture after they discovered tobacco growing here. The snorkeling is said to be terrific. The cliff faces are limestone.

TobaccoBeach

One of the neat things about my father-in-law is the stuff he stores in his head. If he isn’t make a joke he’s trying to teach you something. I wonder what he’s telling her here:

Lessons

Our waiters for the trip, Delroy and Mario. They were quite good:

MarioDelroy

On this, the last day of the cruise, we had what the crew called a “lavish” brunch. They understand the definition of this word. It was ridiculous; it was divine. Whenever you have a chocolate fountain for breakfast you are living right.

Watermelon

We watched an ice carving demonstration yesterday. The guy just chopped up a block by hand into a screeching, striking eagle. After he finished people came up to take pictures of the sculpture. And then a woman stepped on a piece of ice, fell, knocked over a toddler and almost started a big fight by grown women. Remember, friends, ice is slippery. And watch your children.

Anyway, this was also at the brunch, and that’s a sculpture with utility:

Ice

Some panoramas I’ve shot the last few days, click to see the full image.

Horseshoe

Horseshoe

Horseshoe

Want to see how a big ship leaves port? Four casting lines, a guy on the back pushing for all he’s worth and port-side thrusters.

And, finally, I’ve fooled myself into thinking that I’ve just about figured out the Photosynth software. Here’s an interactive, 3D view of the lovely Horseshoe Bay.

Miss it already.

Tomorrow we’ll be back in the States, and then late in the evening we’ll be back home.


5
Jun 11

On a boat

Cruising

We’re departing from Bayonne, New Jersey for a cruise to Bermuda with The Yankee’s parents (see them in the background, there?). See you suckers fine people soon.


4
Jun 11

Other photos

We’ve found our summer home:

Beachhouse

Now someone just needs to tell the people that presently live there …

At any rate, this will be our view:

View

The Yankee, family friends John and Kate, my lovely in-laws Nancy and Bob and the irrepressible Wendy:

Folks

This is at the delicious Tutti’s Ristorante in Westport. The place is practically under an interstate and the building has the feel of an old mom-and-pop video rental store, but the food is sooooo delicious. We went there Thursday.


30
May 11

Happy Memorial Day

Many of the men and women in my family have bravely fought for this country of ours, but we’ve been lucky enough that they’ve all come home. A few were wounded in action, but in so far as I know, they all made it back home dating back at least to World War II.

I remember once, as a child, when my great-grandmother told me that I had uncles who fought in the Civil War. This was big news, impressed as I was at that age by the Civil War. My mother rightfully pointed out that lots of people had family members in that particular war. But my great-grandmother might have watched the Battle of Bull Run as an onlooker. (To a little kid she was very, very old.)

So, while I can’t say today I’m thinking of friends or family members who’ve paid with their lives, I thought often of my trip to Gettysburg with friends a few years back on a very warm Memorial Day. (Here’s a slideshow I made of the day.) Everyone that is able should make that trip at least once.

Today we caught the train from Boston, which required a cab, Dunkin Donuts and then a quick ride in the quiet car to southwestern Connecticut. At the train station yet another person asked Wendy for help with directions or details. I’m making her a sign that says “I’m new here.”

On the way you see this, in New London:

Sign

This is the Bank Street Roadhouse, according to Flickr, which yields to reviews on Trip Advisor and Yelp that the place is so, so, with average this, average that and attractive bartenders. A picture of the front of the place I found makes it look far more reputable.

The Yankee’s dad picked us up at the train station. We headed home and then out for Pepe’s pizza. Ordinarily I don’t take, let alone publish pictures of food, but Pepe’s is the stuff angels eat:

Pepe

Seven of us were there, we made short work of three pies.

Hope you’ve had a lovely Memorial Day, and I hope you’ll check out my slideshow.

Tomorrow: New York City!


26
Apr 11

Picture day (Show and tell)

ToniceOcie

This weekend my grandmother was talking to The Yankee about how she used to decorate her trees for the grandkids at Easter. You see it every now and then still, but when we were young this became the colorful yard decor of spring. My grandmother strung plastic eggs through her giant show trees on colorful strands of yarn.

She invented this decoration. Ask her, she’ll tell you.

Anyway. My grandmother went on the search for photographs to complete the story. Before my grandmother’s birthday dinner I looked through a few of the pictures myself, which is how I ran across this one.

These are my great-grandparents. The back of the photograph said it was their 60th anniversary, which would put this snapshot in early 2000. He died just under two years later. She died earlier this year. He was a farmer, she was a homemaker. I’ve written about them here from time to time, so I’ll try not to repeat myself. In sum, they were sweet, lovely, kind, gentle, Christian people. I miss them a lot.

Just to put all the pictures from around the site in one post …

I found this picture of them last Christmas at my aunt and uncle’s home. This would have been their youngest grandchild, if I am not mistaken:

ToniceOcie

This one is on the wall at their home. My great-grandfather was going off to Europe as a medic. The little boy is my grandfather.

ToniceOcie

As far as we know this is the last picture of the two of them together. We buried them each with a print.

ToniceOcie

(None of these are particularly sharp, obviously. With the exception of the last photograph they are all cell phone pictures of a print. The last picture is an upsized version of a digital image that’s been floating on my hard drive for a decade.)