Now You See It. Now You Don't!

Most days, like today, it is very easy to distinguish between sea and sky on the horizon.

Some days, it is not.

Cape Abilities Farm

I am a big fan of Cape Abilities. Besides having a clever name, the organization has a great mission:

The mission of Cape Abilities is to serve individuals with disabilities on Cape Cod by educating, counseling and providing residential, therapeutic, social and employment supports that empower individuals to achieve meaningful and valued roles in the community. 

I've spoken of my most-beloved Cape Abilities Thrift Store on Route 28 in West Yarmouth. 

                            

I'm a frequent visitor, and, in addition to the star fish throne chair and ottoman, I've gotten some Sandwich-focused artwork by a local artist who is retiring; a Beatrix Potter puzzle with only one piece missing; some cute tops that Christina didn't want, and I'll never wear; a few sugar and creamer sets, just because they're cute; and some pink tea cups (for the same reason). Here is a smattering of my finds from just the other day:

Total Cost: $5.00

Now, it's time for me to shower my praises on the Cape Abilities Farm on Route 6A (Main Street) in Dennis. The Farm is an equally fabulous place.

Cape Abilities Farm in Summer

The farm market features locally and organically farm-grown produce, as well as flowers, gifts, and art. Although not easy to find when using GPS (identify the address as 6A, not Main Street), a large sign and American flag let you know when you have arrived.

Then, of course, the Cape Abilities Farm truck, parked just below, is a sure sign that you're there.

Due to the time of year, the offerings are scaled back, although what they do have is plentiful. When I first visited, I walked into a post-Christmas sale, which was amazing! I bought some great Christmas tree ornaments for next year, plus some little sticker books for my grandchildren and chocolate treats for TSO. Of all my purchases, however, my pride and joy is a Cape Abilities Farm reusable grocery bag!

A Usable Souvenir

Now that it's winter, the farm looks much different from its appearance during the height of the season, but that doesn't change its ability to operate and offer fresh foods to its customers. There is fresh produce (not necessarily local in winter), bread, milk and other dairy products, including lots of cheeses, and many frozen items, such as various iterations of shepherd's pie. Yum! Of interest to TSO and me is the Winter Farm Box program. 

I was unaware of the Cape Abilities Farm until late December when I received an invitation to participate in the Winter Farm Box program, which includes a head of lettuce from the Cape Abilities lettuce house. TSO and I hopped right on board, signing up for the every-other-week box, plus a dozen eggs.

The produce is packed in a sturdy box, which also includes a sheet of paper identifying the items in the box and, for those who are timid in the kitchen, recipes that incorporate those items.

Lots of Vitamins

The box of eggs comes from a local farm. The eggs are always brown, except for this week. Now, several decades ago, I was stunned to learn that there is such a thing as brown eggs. So, imagine my surprise when I opened the box and discovered blue eggs mingled with the brown!

Blue Chicken Eggs

The only blue eggs I had ever seen were those that had been dipped in Paas egg dye for Easter, and those blues were never so subtle as this blue. I would describe the color as a very pale Robin's Egg blue with a very light grey undertone. I would love to have a house with that color painted everywhere, inside and out! I was simply bowled over. My sister-in-love, Camille, tells me that the Araucana chicken lays blue eggs. I've since researched the subject, and there are other blue-egg-laying chickens around as well. Who knew?! I wonder whether Benjamin Moore can match this color? "Cape Abilities' Chicken Egg Blue." That's a long name.

The Planetarium Life

Never mind Salt Life, whatever that is. TSO and I are living the planetarium life!

When I was a child, I loved going to the Fels Planetarium at the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia. It was magical to sit under a faux night sky with all the stars perfectly placed above and to learn about the constellations present at that particular time of year, all thanks to a projector that looks like some weird giant mechanical ant sitting in the middle of the round, domed room.

Fels Planetarium Back in the Day

I would love to show a picture of the faux night sky in the Fels Planetarium, but, unfortunately, I cannot, as the need for money being what it is among non-profits, most of the pictures on the internet are of couples getting married in the Fels Planetarium under a giant moon. Good grief! It's not worth the potential copyright violation to post even one of those here. Instead, I have posted something from a different planetarium.

Giant Mechanical Ant Head under the Faux Night Sky

When the sun goes down here in East Sandwich, we find ourselves under a real night sky. Ours is the only house with lights on in the evening. The street lights are few and far between, and the one closest to us is not working. We have before us a giant bay with absolutely no lights, except for the dim dots of illumination provided every now and then by a vessel anchored on the horizon overnight. In other words, it is DARK here.

Every single time I find myself outside, when it's clear and dark, and I look up, I am astounded by what I see. The moon. Random stars, shooting and stationary. Constellations. Planets. The Milky Way. Even a comet. There is no shortage of amazement! Yesterday was no different, except that we were amazed both day and night by what flew overhead.

Yesterday was a beautiful day. The sky was clear, and there was no wind, thus making the 48 degree temperature feel a bit warmer. At about 4:45 p.m., TSO called me from his tidal travels to report that someone was flying above in a powered paraglider and that he was headed toward the beach house.

Here's a picture of someone using a powered paraglider:

Here are pictures of our local flyer:

Paraglider Approaching Beach House

Paraglider Overhead

Paraglider Going Back to Where He Came From

As exciting as it was to see the powered paraglider yesterday afternoon, the piece de resistance of the day took place last night under the dark, severe clear sky, when SpaceX's Starlink satellite train flew overhead. TSO and I had been out on a grocery and romantic Valentine's Day dinner takeout pick up run, knowing that we had to be back at the house and on our deck by precisely 6:33 p.m. to see this phenomenon. We made it just in time. Imagine 50+ reindeer, all with very shiny white noses, pulling Santa's sleigh, single file, across the sky. That's what this sight reminded me of. 

We weren't able to take pictures, but, thanks to the internet, this is what we saw zooming across the sky above Cape Cod Bay:

Is This Cool or What?!!!

This truly was one of the most thrilling celestial events I have ever witnessed. No planetarium show is even close!  

To learn more about Starlink, go to:

https://www.nbcboston.com/weather/stories-weather/did-you-see-strange-lights-in-the-sky-last-night-you-might-see-them-again-tonight/2973561/

https://thehill.com/homenews/nexstar_media_wire/3856598-see-a-string-of-lights-in-the-sky-what-it-is-and-when-you-could-see-them-again/

www.findstarlink.com

I wonder whether we'll ever see a Chinese "weather" balloon fly overhead....

Big Balloon

Seafoam Green

One of my favorite colors in the standard 64-count box of Crayola crayons is seafoam green.

Not My Crayon, Not My Fingers

News flash, Crayola! Sea foam is not green. Well, not here on Cape Cod Bay anyway. Or New Jersey for that matter. I have no recollection of every observing that the sea foam in that state reminded me of my favorite crayon color in any respect. 

Here at the beach house, the sea itself often alternates between various shades of blue and green, especially on bright blue-skyed, sunny days. When the storms -- and their accompanying sea foam -- roll in, it is quite a scene. The sea foam often breaks up into small pieces, which jump around like little sea foam bunnies, almost as though they are chasing each other. They hop and bounce, sometimes over and around each other, in a whimsical, teasing kind of way. 

These bouncing sea foam bunnies do not look like something you'd find in an Easter basket, however. 

No, in my mind and my eyes, real sea foam and its little bunnies look more like the foam atop a root beer float.

Root Beer Float Foam

Sea Foam on the Sand

Or does it?  You be the judge....

Generational Arctic Blast

So, overnight last Friday into Saturday, the temperature in East Sandwich dipped to -4 degrees. The high temperature on Saturday was 16 degrees. On Saturday night into Sunday, the temperature went down to -9. These were actual temperatures, not wind chill figures. As for those, it felt like -31 degrees due to wind gusts of 40-50 mph. I'm not really sure of the wind chill -- can't remember exactly, and there's no record I can find at this point. I'll say this, however. IT WAS COLD!!

Our pipes managed to stay intact. TSO says that's because they are made of some kind of plastic and are wrapped with some kind of electric blanket. On Sunday, our washing machine didn't work, and we couldn't figure out why. Perhaps its pipe somehow broke? Nope. A plumber came on Monday to tell us that, coincidentally, a pump had broken. He fixed it and went on his merry way. 

I'm curious about the phrase generational arctic blast. There are so many crazy terms and phrases nowadays. Bomb cyclone. Polar vortex. Tornadic activity. I swear these weathermen make this stuff up just to keep things interesting. I remember back in, I think, September 2004. There was a big flood when the Delaware River overflowed. It started in the Catskills. They called it a 100-year flood. The trouble was that another super flood happened about 2 years later. Instead of a 102-year flood, they called that a 500-year flood. Seriously?  

It seems that winter here consists of a few sunny days followed by a few cloudy days and rain. A few sunny days followed by a few cloudy days and rain. It is windy 6 out of 7 days a week. 

On Friday of this week, there is a possibility that the temperature may reach 54 degrees. If the sun is out, and the wind is minimal, I'm plopping my arse in the detrital beach chair and soaking up the rays. I can't wait!! 

Precipitation

The Sandwich weather is the gift that keeps on giving, rainy day after rainy day, interspersed with some snow and some sun in between. For the month of January 2023, the precipitation on the Cape ranged between a total of 8 to 12 inches!

February is off to a precipitous start as well. A light snowfall greeted the first of the month.

Next up: arctic blast this weekend with a projected overnight low of -5 degrees on Saturday. Brrrrr!