On the Fence

I have been away from the blog of late, though it has been on the sidelines of my mind frequently.  I kept thinking that I needed to get back to the routine of sharing the tales of this place and how could I fit it into the chores and the work related responsibilities that have monopolized the time.  With Summer School registration in place, I have a few minutes to catch up.

The calendar tells me that it has been three weeks since I jumped in here with an apology for letting the cameras blink out.  Since then we have had a mix of weather that has had an impact on life on the Point.  A twelve foot tide with a wind pushing brought stone and sand onto the walkway and into the road just as I was noticing the cameras were down.  The hardest hit was to the gardens around the parking lot and in the small courtyard in front of the office from which I type.  Neighbors lost a great number of plants and vegetables as well.  The salt in the air turned plants black that were otherwise untouched by the ocean.  It was a bad run of luck as Memorial Day weekend had seen the annual clean up of the Point and the planting of geraniums and marigolds to go along with the perennials I had put in place last year.  Things were looking good here until a freak tide turned back the clock.

The last few weeks has seen a recovery.  Julie and I went out the next day and shoveled off the walkway.  The Town sent some trucks down initially to get the big stones off the road and later, a street sweeper, to get the sand that was strewn across the parking lot.  I turned over all the gardens and got some fresh water into the roots of the perennials.  Some still did not make it though the daisies and the sedum seem unkillable.

An island garden as you drive off the Point was especially hit hard.  I worked on that one a while before I realized what it needed was a concentration of plants rather than the spread out approach, and a planting of grass around the rest.  I will be showing you the progress of that one as the summer continues.

There are some success stories. Hydrangeas are out in front of the cottage in pink and blue. A transplant from Hart Park came back to the flagpole garden.  Dave Ball donated a Lawson rose to the yard arm that holds up the blue and white Lighthouse sign.  That has seen significant new growth.  What had been a vegetable garden by the kitchen door is now a booming perennial garden that I will be able to steal from for a long, long time.  Everyone of those plants is loving the long days of sun and the big drinks of water they get when we rinse off from the beach.

Horticulture set aside, we have also had some guests of note. 

On a Saturday morning a few weeks ago I was working with the weed whacker when I stopped to meet a guy at the fence who knew more about fishing this coast than I ever will.  Spenser was waiting for his son to finish the ACTs and ended up swapping fishing stories with me.  Originally a Somerville guy, he was as jealous as anyone I have met at my luck having this spot. "A sweet gig", I believe was the exact quote.  He got that right.

Julie's sister and her husband have been making regular visits as well.  Fridays are set aside for them and for their dogs who take a swim and want to take another.  I have been setting up a pop up tent in the yard and as a result we are all out there much more often.  As kids we had no notion of the sun being damaging.  Call that lesson learned.

A neighbor has let his house to a couple originally from the Azores.  The gentlemen guest is responsible for this work of art.  Gathered entirely from objects he found on the beach and assembled seemingly in minutes. I watched two teenagers over the weekend slam on the brakes, park the car, hike up the side of the seawall, then walk around gauging this sculpture.  They were far from the only ones to do so.

Two sisters from the Regina Laudis order of Connecticut were in town and Julie invited them in to the Cottage for a visit after watching them cool off in the first tough heat of the year.  Both were wonderful visitors with a great many questions and a real enthusiasm for the Lighthouse.  We don't know for sure if it is the first time two nuns climbed up the Tower, but lets say that it was.

Finally, a student of mine named Nick Staples surprised me with a gift as the year closed.  Created by his father it is a perfect fit for the garden outside the kitchen door.  I officially kick off the contest to name the lobster. Winners will be announced in a later posting.