Poltrack Blog

 It was windy all week in Cape Cod with some impressive surf during the first half of the week. The yellow flags came out. It was a good time to fly a kite. My nephew affixed a GoPro to a kite with mixed reviews (sorry, no video yet). He gave my sister a lesson and together they managed to touch the wind. A little assist from a beachcomber to launch the kite Susan has it under control The lesson The kite was almost out of sight

Back when I was a lot younger, I would go to the Cape with a sleeping bag, camera and guitar. I would sleep on the floor in my cousin's barn on Commercial Street in  Provincetown. A number of times I awoke with several spider bites. The place had nooks and crannies for the critters to enter. In the 1980s we did a lot of camping at Nickerson State Park , a wonderful spot for biking and fresh water swimming.  However as we age we opted for a rental near the beaches in Eastham. These places are expensive but comfortable and are large enough for a group. This place was nicely landscaped and VERY close to Nauset Light Beach I love having an outdoor shower but this one had no pressure. It may be a deal breaker if we decide to rent this place again Nice backyard, quiet. One night I could hear the surf Deck Screened porch was nice for reading All the rooms had overhead fans, a welcome addition but... Hypnotized by the Ceiling Fan The livi...

There is an acronym in photography called SOOTC which means "Straight Out Of The Camera". It refers to an unaltered version of a photo with no adjustments, cropping or alterations. When I shot with slide film I had no way to change the result. What I shot was what I got. I guess it taught me discipline but now I can't imagine making some edits. Here is an example from our week at the Cape. Which photo would you choose? My Grandnephew Alex enjoys a popcorn snack at Coast Guard Beach (Cropped) This view is of something completely different

We spent a week in Cape Cod which kept me away from my weekly volunteer duties at the  New Ipswich  Green Center  recycle center. Thankfully my son and his girl friend found this place in Wellfleet on Route 6 which has a similar vibe. When I saw the Nash Rambler, I knew that this was the place for me. However our Green Center has better prices and better organization, even without the car. Rustored Salvage is located on US 6 in Wellfleet. I remember when this used to be an A&P Grocery Store For some reason, there seemed to be a large number of outboard motors. My Dad had one like this that he kept in the cellar when it wasn't in use. Two tone, needs some work And the horse it rode in with. Another outboard motor The had a number of religious items One the left, Home Soda returnable bottles from Leominster. I used to buy the root beer for ice cream floats. Lots of vintage toys Yikes Not one but two scapulars Rock N' Roll ...

It was heart-breaking to visit the Center for Coastal Studies in Provincetown. On display is the skeletal remains of "Spinnaker" who died as the result of complications caused by entanglement with fishing gear. The Center works to free sea animals from entanglements and studies other problems caused by human activity such as plastic garbage. Anyone who goes on a whale watch should spend some time here to get a sense of the size of these magnificent animals.  Hump pback whale “Spinnaker”, disentangled by CCS on May 14, has been found dead off Maine by our colleagues at the  College of the Atlantic . “We have been studying “Spinnaker” since her year of birth (2004) as part of our Gulf of Maine population research, and have also been part of three separate events to disentangle her from fishing gear” said Jooke Robbins, PhD, Director of the Center’s Humpback Whale Studies program. “Her death comes as difficult news, particularly after our latest disentanglement effort, bu...