Well here it is, the last night of my va-work-cation up in New England.
I started off this trip with an email to you all, and now I will end it with a bit of a summary. Thank you for tagging along.
What a marvelous way to finish off an eventful summer, despite the 4-hour drives between destinations. My little RAV4 is holding up so far, and it’s quite packed with paper-making supplies, two birch trees, and a set of torn-out tree roots from Kareem’s property. She deserves a good, long oil change upon my return.
Some highlights were staying with Tatiana in her Winter Harbor Airbnb. We had opposite schedules where I was up early doing yoga and writing, while she worked late into the night writing, but we had lovely moments of sharing Matcha in the morning and going out late at night to see the stars and the Milky Way from the Schoodic Peninsula, where there was very little light pollution.
A consistent sound I experienced while in New England by the ocean: lobster motorboats as they trawled the waters, checking and laying out their lobster traps.
And the sight of their multi colored lobster trap buoys bobbing in the water
Granite, granite, and more Granite along the shores of Rockport, where the foundations of the houses seem to be anchored down into the stones, quarries filled with cool, inviting waters. And being gifted a heart-shaped stone of pink and purple named Strawberry from Kareem’s younger daughter.
I had the joy of diving into my favorite New England foods, which included freshly caught clam steamers, corn on the cob, coleslaw, clam chowder, a quart of wild blueberries, and one amazing crab cake.
I even took a swim off of Back Beach in Rockport. Cold and bracing, with waves of warm water as clear as water from the Atlantic can be, seeing all the way down to the sandy bottom of Sand Bay with gentle gentle waves, just perfect for the non-wild swimmer in me. When I got out, I actually felt wobbly, like the sea legs I had when I used to stay for long stretches on my parents’ boat.
What brought me up here was to run a two-day version of my regenerative paper-making workshop at the Joppa Flats Audubon Education Center near Plum Island. I had 4 participants the first day, and then only 2 on the second, But it was perfect. Just the right amount of time and space to cover a lot of ground and for the two dedicated attendees to leave with some really new knowledge and experience with the medium. I was awarded a grant from the Manship Foundation to run the workshop, which had to be done up here along the Great Marsh, so I tied the trip in to a visit to Maine and finally see the growing compound of Kareem’s home he is building with his wife for them and their three children. They are literally building the house by themselves, which also includes a sauna and a green house. Kareem has been a loyal supporter since 2014, maintaining my websites, editing videos, and coming up with all sorts of creative money-making ideas. Can’t wait to give them a try.
So I leave you with a few photos of the journey. I hope to catch a show at the Cape Ann Museum on my way out in Gloucester, focusing on early works of Avery, Gottlieb & Rothko: By the Sea. And then off I go, back to NY to hopefully make more paper during Summer Tea in Prospect Park this Sunday, as long as the storms are held at bay. And then to also get back to casting more trees in Van Cortlandt Park for my next show opening after Thanksgiving.
