Spring is in the Air

Posted on April 11, 2013April 11, 2013 by Dusty Roads

Boy the last couple of days have been busy! As you probably figured out from my recent posts I made a trip to Newport for my “Mystery Monday” and then grabbed the “T” into Boston for one of our first really nice days which also happened to be OPENING DAY AT FENWAY.

Baseball is back in Boston! I also attended an all day seminar in resume writing and job hunting and applied for a position as a travel writer. Wouldn’t that be a nice gig?

Meanwhile back at Fenway I didn’t have tickets and wasn’t about to spend $50 for one of the “Cheap Seats” but it was fun to be a part of the excitement. Boston is a sports town where excitement always runs high but the Home Opener at Fenway Park is always something special.

Once most of the shouting mob was in Fenway I slipped into Uno’s in Kenmore Square for lunch and missed the best moment of the opening…the Fly Over! I’m not sure what kind of planes but as I was being seated I saw it on the big screen TV. What I wouldn’t have given to be outside to try to get a picture of that! It caught me completely by surprise!

But now I needed sustenance so over steak tips and salad I chatted with my waiter who hailed from South Africa. Must add a trip or two to that county to my bucket list.

From Uno’s I headed back to Park St.. The previously crammed subway cars were now empty making for a much easier ride if not as exciting.

I was now on my quest to see the “Duckling” statues. You remember the story Make Way for Ducklings? Well I had heard that someone had outfitted them with spring bonnets and I wanted to see this. Since rain was in the forecast I knew if I didn’t go right away they would be a wilted mess. Hard to believe that it was going to rain when I looked at the brilliant, cloudless blue sky.

I’ve seen the statues before but of course I couldn’t remember where in the public garden they were located.

Like most things that are lost, you find them in the last place you look.

In my case it was after I had walked all the way around the Boston Common.

But it was worth it.

Those little Spring Bonnets were just the cutest touch! 🙂

Wordless Wednesday

Posted on April 10, 2013April 10, 2013 by Dusty Roads

Allens Pond Wildlife Sanctuary

Posted on April 7, 2013April 7, 2013 by Dusty Roads

As many of you know The Daniel Webster Wildlife Sanctuary in Marshfield is one of my favorite places to go for wildlife photography.

I have never been there at dusk without seeing deer…plenty of deer. I have also seen muskrats, turtles, glossy ibis, swans, rabbits, and tons of birds, more than I can go into right now.

One year we even had an otter family pass through and I got to see them…briefly as they raced across the path to the pond. So you can see this sets the bar really high for other sanctuaries.

Since last year I have been hearing about another wildlife sanctuary that seems really popular, Allens Pond in Westport, MA. Daniel Webster and Allens Pond are both Mass Audubon sanctuaries so that means they are kept in really good condition.

In the week since the layoff at work I’ve been concentrating on rearranging furniture, cleaning out my storage area and just making changes to my living space. The weather hasn’t been great so I haven’t been out to shoot any photos. But finally we got a sunny day and according to the weather report we might break 60 degrees. I looked at the boxes of stuff I was trying to arrange and looked outside and the choice was made…I’m playing hooky!

Camera bag on my shoulder I decided to try to find Allens Pond to check it out. Westport is quite a bit south of Taunton but it was a nice day for a drive. The address I had for the sanctuary was 1280 Horseneck Road. I know Horseneck beach is a very popular beach in the summer so I wasn’t surprised when I saw the parking lot for the beach. Beyond the parking lot were some amazing dunes!

The sand here is so fine, like grains of sugar.

But as I continued on I was surprised to see the road was completely buried by stones.

These were smooth round stones…thrown up by the ocean in the series of storms we had this year? I don’t know because I’d never been this way before but it made me think of the roads on the Big Island of Hawaii that abruptly stopped, buried under lava flows.

The road followed along the beach by Buzzards Bay then made a sharp turn left and there was the entrance to a small parking lot.

Right away I noticed the field house was different. There were people inside, even a dog and cat and a rest room. No port-a -potty. I can see why that alone would make it more pleasant. But now the big test…what kinds of animals/birds will I be able to see here.

Change

Posted on April 1, 2013April 1, 2013 by Dusty Roads

When one door closes another one opens…or so the saying goes. No matter what, change is hard and sometimes scary. These last 3 months have been a roller coaster of emotions; sometimes exhilarating, sometimes sad, sometimes nearly panic only to swing back to excited.

I have worked many places with many people but no other work situation has fostered such close ties. From the dispatchers I shared the office with to the techs in the field it was like a big family. Things didn’t always go smooth. There were disagreements and arguments but there was also laughter, kind words, support and fun and over the years we began to feel like family. This made for great working conditions but now that it’s over there is a lot more emotion than just leaving a job.

This last week has been a concentrated version of the past three months. Everyone seemed to be wearing their feelings on their sleeves, one moment laughing, the next crying and the work demands never let up to give us a chance to come to terms with the “Last Day”.

This week the management team ordered pizza, the HR manager brought pizza, even one of the techs spent his own money to bring us pizza. Then the last morning we all brought breakfast food; juice, coffee, sweet rolls, coffee cake, apple fritters, fruit, bagels, muffins…enough food for an army. I couldn’t help thinking it was like a wake or funeral as more food poured in and visitors came by to say their good byes.

At a particularly loud moment it hit me hard. Yes like an Irish Wake without the whiskey and like a funeral after the burial those of us that remained would be…alone.

For all the complaining and groaning that goes on in a normal day-to-day give and take, when it was over those of use not going on to Malden would be alone with no place to go on Monday morning. No co-workers to chat with, fight with, laugh with…no work family.

But then the emotional swing went the other way arching back up to optimism. Look at all the opportunity, a clean slate . This is different because of the bonds made over the last 10 years but the job changing is not. Everything will be fine, not the same but it will be fine.

It will all work out and the adventure of finding where this path will go is still ahead.

The Final Countdown Begins

Posted on March 27, 2013March 27, 2013 by Dusty Roads

My last day at work is Saturday. By Saturday night the office will be closed . Relocated to another location north of Boston. I won’t be going. The extra cost of the commute, time involved and wear and tear on my old car put it out of reach. I’m sure something will come along and if I can find a local position I’ll save $200/mo. just on gas.

But through Saturday I am working 10 hours days so I am not sure how much time I will have to post anything interesting. If time allows I may repost some of my popular posts from the past. The equivalent of a TV rerun. 🙂 But I promise I will be back and posting on a regular schedule soon.

My blog has become a part of me and I would not be able to leave it behind but I also want to be sure that the content stays interesting and I don’t think I will be able to do that over the next couple of days. So if I am not here for a couple of days, fear not…I will catch you on the flip side.