A Sunny Thanksgiving.

As the wrath of winter continues to elude us (hope I didn't just jinx it) and December rolls on somewhat uneventfully, I thought I'd post up a few photos from my recent trip to Florida for Thanksgiving.

It was a quick but very fun long weekend full of quality family time, amazing food and drink, beaching, and even a trip to the zoo.

I hope yours was equally as fulfilling. And if not, there are a couple other holidays just around the corner to get it right.

I thought I might share a few in hopes that it might give you a brief respite from the doom and gloom of your daily news and status updates. Worked for me anyhow.

After all, life is just too short for gloom.

My niece living in the moment...

Come here often?

Such a cool zoo that lets you pet the giraffes. Just don't linger or you'll feel the fury of the crazy lady in the red shirt..

Five nephews/niece and counting..

Cousins out for a sunday drive...

Table under the mango tree..

We may never know whether he was pushed or just fell into the pool during the group shot. In any event, the rest of the kiddos got a good laugh out of it..

Rock, paper, scissors, shoot...

I know these next few weeks get pretty hectic with shopping, parties, wrapping, trimming trees, and making cookies, but I hope yours are only the best kinds of hectic. Full of good family, friends, and cheer.

Enjoy!

jim

What I did on my day off.

We interrupt our normal ice cream banter and meandering rants on life to bring you a mini-photo essay from this past monday, Patriots' Day. Thanks to a buddy with weekend season tickets to the Red Sox, I was able to partake in what is always a great day to be in Boston. That was especially true this year, with perfect spring weather for all.


I didn't take many shots, but my trusty Canon Digital Elph did manage to escape my pocket a couple times. Thought I'd share a few images with you...


Not a great game (especially compared to the last two walkoff wins), but as they say, a bad day at Fenway still beats a good day most anywhere else.

The cool thing about the Patriots' Day Sox game is it's an 11:05 a.m. start, which means when the game is over, it's just a quick couple of blocks over to Kenmore Square to catch the thousands of marathoners just as they're gasping toward the finish. Didn't quite make it out of Fenway to see the elite runners, but for me it's the 'regular folk' that most inspire...

Next it was a crowded T ride over to Faneuil Hall for post-game beverages and snacks with friends and the throngs of tourists that were doing the same.

While on our wander over, we crossed paths with this band. Always cool to bump into a gang of patriots on Patriots' Day...

Among the stops at Faneuil Hall, Kingfish Hall, for a tasty round or two of cherrystones and little necks on the half-shell. Not quite my Boston favorite, the Union Oyster House, but a new close second. Definitely a nice upgrade from the Yawkee Way sausage grinder for lunch (not that the grinder wasn't its own form of fine dining)...

A couple more snack and beverage stops later, and it was off on the obligatory dessert run to Mike's Pastry in the North End. Amazing pastries in all shapes and forms, gelato and great coffee. This place is chaos every minute of every day, but well worth the wait...

We ended up hitching a ride back to the burbs with some other friends. Probably not normally a mentionable part of the day, except when the commute home includes a trip on the commuter boat from the New England aquarium to Quincy via Hull...

Logan airport, no ash cloud in our airspace...

Catch ya later Boston. Been wicked fun...

Winter Photo Shoot. - Old Orchard Beach, Maine.

Winter, a lingering season, is a time to gather golden moments, embark upon a sentimental journey, and enjoy every idle hour. - John Boswell


Had the chance to escape to the coast for a brief post-Valentine's Day respite earlier this week. Not so much writing this time, but still managed to capture a few images. There's nothing quite like snow on the beach. Unnatural, yet beautiful nonetheless.

Hope you enjoy.

If you liked, here are a few more...

I hope you are enjoying this cold and nearly snowless winter so far. Pitchers and catchers arrived this week, so Spring must be around just a few more corners. Next week is looking to be a bit snowy, so perhaps not yet time to put away the snow shovel and boots. We New Englander's are a patient breed when it comes to the weather. Spring will get here when it feels like it. In the meantime, put a scoop of pellets on the fire and on your way to the couch, grab yourself warm (or cold) beverage and a comforter , flip on the Olympics, and savor the slower pace of life while it's still here.