the futon cover
In the morning when I arose, I got a crazy notion to put on the new futon cover that Nancy had gotten. Since her social worker support group was coming over for their monthly meeting tonight, I thought it would be nice to have the new cover on. Well, I discovered why Nancy hadn't put it on. It is exactly the same size as the futon - not a micrometer of slack with which to maneuver. Do not try this at home, kiddies! This is a task for trained topologists only!
I unzipped the cover to the full extent of its zipper and laid it out on the futon frame - having removed the mattress from the frame. That way, I figured I could have some idea how to line this up. I found the one corner wherein lay the key to its fitting. Once I got that corner in, the rest was just patience and pulling and tugging. Heaving the futon around and pulling and tugging works up quite a sweat. Nancy found me dripping wet in my pajamas, proudly zipping the cover onto the mattress.
I have no idea how long this took, but I was more than ready for breakfast when I got done and Nancy had already showered and dressed...
I also search for Friday's Providence Journal-Bulletin, which Nancy said had a list of boat rides and cruises. I really really want to be on a boat. I can't find the the list. I tell Nancy it doesn't exist. We decide to ask at the visitor center at Waterplace after breakfast, which gives us incentive to dine downcity instead of on the east side where we always do.
downcity diner
breakfast in the back
Off to the Downcity Diner for breakfast for a change. A small crowd of people was milling around in the doorway and my first reaction was, darn there's a line and we'll have to wait and I'm wicked hungry. Then the waitress motioned for us to come in. The place was practically empty (it was still early for Sunday brunch). She said she didn't know why those people were waiting, and seated us in the back where one other table was occupied and the people wanted company.
my tattoo
The other waitress came over and asked me about the significance of the blue tattoo on my arm. "Tattoo? Those are bandaids. " "I thought they had some ritual significance." "Nope, just ordinary glow in the dark planetary bandaids. I got a cat bite."
Later the first waitress asked if anybody needed coffee - which we hadn't ordered yet - and waitress #2 said "yeah, the one with the blue tattoo."
I had eggs, home fries, and a Belgian waffle. It was scrumptious.
the bay queen and the law of conservation of flamingos
the quahog and art festival
The Bay Queen docks in Warren. Today is the Warren Quahog and Art Festival. I don't know if the art is supposed to feature quahogs or is done by quahogs. How do quahogs paint?
The quahog festival parking is pricey and far from the center of town and we are not really interested in either eating them or critiquing their art work, so we head straight for the Bay Queen dock. We've missed today's cruise but I get a schedule for the rest of the summer.
People are swimming in the bay at the town beach near the Bay Queen. It must be summer.
the Barrington flamingos
I went ahead and posted this entry before I got to this part of the outline so my friends would not think I was dead yet. I don't know why this is taking so long.
So, after I uploaded today's partial entry and yesterday's entry, I browsed around my journal looking for references to the Barrington flamingos, which I know I've written about before, but I couldn't for the life of me remember when and had no desire to reread every Sunday of the past year. So I futzed around with more yet net surfing (see below) and came up with the City of Barrington's official page - which does not mention the flamingos.
Nancy and I discovered the flamingo display last summer. They were all decked out with shades, sunscreen, beach chairs, and an umbrella for the beach. After that we made a point of checking out their seasonal attire as part of our East Bay ritual (including counting the swans at the cove, eating soft serve at Dari-Bee (in season) and riding the Looff Carousel at Crescent Park (in season)). The flamingos have fielded an entire Red Sox team complete with a cardboard green left field wall and scoreboard (and a flamingo umpire), a Patriots training camp lineup, Patriots fans for the super bowl, reindeer for Xmas (Rudolf the red nosed pink flamingo!), all kinds of scenes. I have a few pictures - which I'll dig through some other time.
Further down RI 114 from them we noticed another house that had started dressing flamingos and arranging them in seasonal vignettes - a Thanksgiving banquet, snow shoveling, stuff like that. Ah, competition. Flamingo arrangement could become an Olympic sport if Providence ever lands the Olympics. Hey, it could happen! If Buddy could move the river, he could get the Olympics. And Barrington is close enough that the competitors in flamingo arranging could bike there from Providence as part of like a Triathalon type thing - biking, flamingo arranging, and soft serve eating!
A few weeks ago we noticed the flamingo house empty and for sale. No flamingos. We felt very sad. We cruised down the street and noticed the competing flamingos were still there but had been in the same arrangement for what seemed like ages. Our Sunday East Bay ritual suddenly lacked the color pink...
So this afternoon the car pointed to the flamingos even though they've gone. Not ready to turn around yet, we continued south toward the other flamingos. Bingo! Flamingo! Flamingos galore! The other flamingo house has two separate summer flamingo arrangements! One is a flamingo Fourth of July parade - flamingo flag bearer and all. The other is a flamingo family in and around and inflatable swimming pool. These people really know how to take up the slack and fill the void created by flamingo flight!
the cove
at low tide
in a drought time
Tide's out at Watchemocket Cove. Way out. Way way way out. The side by the golf course is one vast expanse of mud with nary a drop of water.
Egrets are wading in the main part of the cove where I've never seen them before. A sandpiper of some kind is wading with them.
It's been a long time since it really rained any substantial amount. Could this explain the unusually low water level? I mean even for low tide, this is really really really really low.
Mute swans
28
Canada geese
15
Bonaparte's gulls
7
herring gulls
5
ring billed gulls
5
common terns
4
egrets
4
black ducks
4
house sparrow
1
great blue heron
1
crow
1
cormorants
1
Dari-Bee
Something has changed at Dari-Bee. Actually, two things have changed. One: the huge ice cream shaped wooden sign is gone. Two: they don't have those wonderful fruit flavored shakes/cabinets anymore. We were forced to get ordinary flavor cabinets. I had a coffee cabinet.
it's time to stop and shop
On to Super Stop and Shop for stuff for Nancy to feed the ravenous social work support group. Super Stop and Shop is so big it should qualify for a seat in the legislature.
the unblinking light on the answering machine
Home to here, where I live as a recluse with my cat, half a loaf of bread, etc. and confront the unblinking light on the answering machine. Actually I have no answering machine with unblinking light to accuse me of having no life. In fact, I pick up the telephone handset and hear the cheerful stutter tone announcing messages in my voice mailbox. Calloo, callay!
One message is from Mark. Gotta call him back when I'm awake.
Second message from Joan-east, announcing:
Benson's has the red raspberry ice cream!
Yes folks, it is now officially summer in the greater Boxford area! Benson's has the red raspberry ice cream! Just when I was thinking of installing a Benson's cam pointed at the sign so I could check without driving over there...
sunburn
I am nursing one whopper of a sunburn. The Daypro makes me more sun sensitive as does most of the medication I take. For some reason, I didn't code sitting at The Hot Club waiting for the captain from Texas who never came as "sun exposure". Ooops.
net.surf
I turn to the world of the internet to fill the void of my actual life with virtual life. First, I have got to find that list of boat rides and cruises that Nancy was claiming was in the Journal-Bulletin. Then info on the Lowell Folk Festival so I can see exactly what I'll be missing and how guilty I should feel for planning to go to the Black Ships festival next weekend. My insatiable need for sumo can only be addressed at the Black Ships, whereas there are other venues for folk music. Tough choice though. Very tough.
It is hard being a sumo fan around here. You don't see sumo in North America except in Newport at the Black Ships festival. Imagine my joy to find news of sumo in Canada coming up in 1998.
Roberta at the cat shelter refuses to believe a) I am really going to a sumo tournament next weekend, b) sumo is real, c) anybody actually watches sumo outside Japan.
The Hot Club
The view from The Hot Club.
in search of the water taxi
the visitor center
The visitor center has a wealth of information about various touristy things to do in Providence but precious little about boat rides. The only boat cruise they know about is the water taxi. The water taxi tours Waterplace and the harbor for about 40 minutes for $5 per person. This sounds like what we want.
Another group of tourists has asked about the water taxi and the tourist info ladies called the info number but got no answer. The tourist info ladies tell is the water taxi leaves from the dock at The Hot Club, and gives us directions to The Hot Club.
the hot club
OK, so like The Hot Club is reputed to be a singles bar, a young heterosexual mating place. Nancy and I are muttering "we can't possibly go to The Hot Club". I assure Nancy that young heterosexuals will not be mating at noon on Sunday - they mate on Saturday night and sleep in on Sunday. We approach. The place is empty except for one 3-generation family group with plenty o' gray hair having lunch, and one waitress. The water taxi is tied up at the dock. No sign of the captain nor any tours.
waiting for the captain from Texas
We order juice and sit at an outdoor table overlooking the harbor and the electric company building. It's a cozy, homey, pleasant way to pass the time. The waitress said she called the captain at home and on his cell phone and got no answer. The other people the tourist info ladies sent had already asked her about the water taxi. She told us that the captain is a guy from Texas who is up here seasonally and he sometimes comes in the bar at The Hot Club, and she'll come tell us if he shows up.
We sit and sip juice in the sun overlooking the water imagining we are in a resort town instead of Providence. It's downright pleasant to be here. The view is nice in a Providence sort of way - beauty among the gas tanks. We're enjoying just sitting here and start to forget about the captain from Texas. This is a good place to pass the time on a Sunday.
one good tern deserves another
A common tern shows up and we watch it dive for fish right in front of our table. It puts on quite a show. Tern watching is better than tv. We begin to wonder if this is the same tern we watched last night. We're across from India Point and in the general direction in which the tern departed after each catch last night. Who knows. I'm sure there are plenty o' terns in Providence.
The captain from Texas never shows. We are getting sunburned. We decide to drive around in search of possible other boats - namely the Bay Queen.
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