Red Tide at Eastons Beach

At one of the beaches where we found the mermaid purses, we saw red water. The waves were wine colored. Red pieces of algae floated in the water and covered the sand. Where the red weed lied on the beach, little flies flew in clouds above it. We didn't walk in the red water but a few yards up the beach the water and sand were clear. A big machine went by a few yards into the water as we were walking. We could see where the machine had already combed the entire beach. Tire tracks and fluffed up sand lay in straight rows. We weren't sure what was going on but it looked like the machine scooped up the top layer of sand and some of the sand shook out the bottom. Later we asked a born and raised Newporter about it. He explained that there is a reef off shore that grows a red algae. When the wind is right, the red algae is blown toward shore. Beside the unsightly red color and unpleasant odor, certain biting fleas and chiggers live in that algae. So the city bought a very expensive machine to clean up the red algae. Now the city of Newport struggles to solve where to put all the truckloads of red algae and sand.

The Daughter of Time

My book club read "The Daughter of Time" by Josephine Tey. I read it too but it was a chore. I didn't like it. This book was touted as a mystery book for people who don't like mysteries. I don't like mysteries but I didn't like the book either. The plot involves a detective recuperating in the hospital. Forced to lie still for weeks, he sees a portrait of King Richard III. The detective thinks he is a good judge of character by looking at a person's face. Although King Richard III is believed to have killed his two nephews the detective sees an innocent face. He searches history books and by the time he has recuperated, he has King Richard III exonerated. The title of the book is from a famous quote from a play called, "The Life of Galileo" that says, "Truth is the daughter of time, not of authority."

Mermaid Purses

As we walked along the beaches in Rhode Island, we saw hard, black sharp things lying in the sand. I picked up a couple of them. They were hard like plastic and sharp enough to tear my skin. I wondered if they were part of a plant or an animal. We probably saw a hundred of them near the high tide mark on the shore. Later we went to a US Fish and Wildlife Refuge. Inside the museum was a children's table with stuff found on the beach and a book to look up what each item was. Turns out these sharp, hard plastic-like things are fondly called mermaid purses. Actually, they are an egg case from a skate, a ray, or a shark. The mermaid purses we saw are from a skate. I didn't know what a skate was so I had to look that up. Skates look like rays. I picked up the mermaid purse (egg case) again. I looked at it closely. As a mother, all I can say is, "OUCH!"

Pilgrim Hoax

While in Rhode Island, we took part of a day to drive up to Plymouth, Massachusetts and visit Plimoth Plantation. This is a self guided museum includes a reenactment of the early colonists and the Wampanoag people. We did a lot of walking. We walked through the Wampanoag village first and then the colonist area. The Wamponoag people talked in present times. The colonists talked as if it were still the late 1600's. I found the museum interesting because they were honest in describing the complex relationship between the colonists and the Wampanoag. For example, one of the Wamponoag people said, "A colonist asked if I would give up one of my children so he could give him to his brother as a gift. What kind of people are these?" The people in several Wampanoag villages were completely wiped out by the small pox brought in by the colonists. Although most of the museum was outside, one room inside was dedicated to the myth of Thanksgiving. The Pilgrims and the Native people did not have Thanksgiving that first year. Somebody made that up. As Europeans, the colonists had the custom of celebrating the fall harvest with a dinner but they did not dine with the Wampanoag. That story wasn't fabricated until the mid 1700's. ! As I read about this I felt myself getting angry. We were taught this in school. We were tested on the first Thanksgiving and it's just a story. What other stories have we been told? After the museum, we had a ticket to visit the Mayflower II, a re-creation of the English merchant ship the same size as the original Mayflower. We walked through the ship and talked with the costumed colonist actors.

Before we left we walked over to see Plimoth rock. I have to admit, I am bothered by the many spellings of Plymouth, Plimoth, Plimouth. Massachusetts must have creative spellers out there. Over the rock is a large plaque explaining that there is no evidence that the pilgrims landed on Plimoth rock. After landing on Cape Cod and finding no fresh water, they left and landed in this area. Plimoth rock is a landmark in this same area. Again, any documentation connecting the Pilgrims and Plimoth rock does not appear until the mid 1750's. Geez Louise, I traveled all this way to find out Plimoth rock and the first Thanksgiving are a hoax? !

Travel

We just returned from a trip to Rhode Island and it is good to be home. We flew out there and back. On the way out we changed planes in Milwaukee and again in Detroit; proof positive of my frugality. On our return we changed planes in Philadelphia. Airports and airline travel - yikes. I don't feel like a valued customer who just spent hundreds of dollars for a service. I feel like I am treated more like a threat. To use my ticket for which I spent a lot of money, I have to arrive 2 hours ahead of time. And don't try to park nearby to use the ticket at the airport! Get a ride or use a shuttle service. What other business does that? Then we're told to stand in line and wait. Hurry! Get in line! Wait there! Wait there for hours! I have to take off my shoes and jacket. I have to allow others to x-ray my bags and allow them to stick their hands into my luggage and rummage through my underwear. I even allow them to scan my body. Once you are on the plane you have to sit upright and belted into tiny little seats. I swear I'd have more room in a coffin than in a seat on an airplane. They offer you drinks but pour it into a small plastic cup. For the price I paid I deserve the entire can of diet cola. I know it's a 22 hour drive to the east coast because I drove it last year. With all the hassle and expense of airline travel, I'm not sure if driving might be a better choice. Once we got to Providence we were fine. We picked up our rental car (Ford Focus - ok to rent but I wouldn't buy one) and got to our hotel. Our hotel, like many of the hotels and houses in the area, had blue hydrangea plants. Blue hydrangea symbolize the beauty of the east coast. They just don't get that blue here in Minnesota. Offspring #1 met us and took us out to dinner at a local deli that serves organic food. The food was excellent and we finished it off by sharing a ginger creme brulee. We drove around town for a while and ended up at the beach. We stopped to admire a huge rainbow that began and ended in the Atlantic ocean. The pot of gold must have been in the water. As we watched we could see a second rainbow form above the first. The colors intensified and the stripes became more clear. Our maker was smiling at the three of us together again at last.

Graduate

Fair Winds and Following Seas

Here we are in the ocean state of Rhode Island attending the graduation of Offspring #1 from officer candidate school. He's in the second row on the far left. Check out the white shoes! These uniforms are awesome. I got lots of pictures because I doubt he'd wear this uniform willingly. Last night we walked on the wharf in downtown Newport. The air was calm and warm. We could hear live music playing. Some guitar player was playing "My Woman From Tokyo." The wharf was crowded with people. We were in a crowd. People stared at the handsome young man in the uniform. I wanted to say, "He's with us!" We wandered onto a dock. Yachts were tied on both sides of us. At the end of the dock a ferry boat to Jamestown parked and asked if we were going to board. We said no and watched the boat navigate away making small waves in the harbor, We picked out constellations in the sky. We had a moment to remember.