[Above photo: Red sails on a fully-fledged schooner passing Round Beach. Sorry for the quality—not enough pixels for enlarging an image on my phone.]
2 July 2023
I’ve just returned from 11 days on the Island. One of the difficulties of living on an island is having a regular source of fresh fruits and vegetables. Apples last a long time and dried fruit—figs, raisins, plums, mango—can, nutritionally at least, supplement the bounty of fresh summer fruit. Some vegetables can come frozen and be kept in that compartment of the refrigerator. But the leafy greens, for salads, stir-fry, or simply steamed with added vinegar, lemon juice, or a vinaigrette, don’t freeze well.
Lo and behold, the Island yields a vast treasure of greens. Dandelions [pick only the young greens] grow all over my yard. Triangle Orache is found on the beach, just above the tide line. It is substantial and crunchy raw, with a pleasant flavor, and is nice cooked. Wild Radish is peppery and prominent in the same area, as is Sea Rocket. Finally, there is yet another green whose name escapes me which grows heartily near the beach. Undoubtedly there are more to be found but from eating this selection of greens, all of which except the dandelions are plentiful throughout the summer, one can be happy. [If happiness were so simple!] The greens would do well sauteed with garlic and chanterelles, which will appear in a month. On to hone my mackerel-fishing technique.
Each year I look forward to the progress of my three high-bush blueberry plants, now 8 years old and not very high. The “Berkeley” produces almost no berries. Hm. The “Siena” and the “Blue Jay” are sterling, cranking out a lot of large, tasty berries. However, many of the leaves formerly on the first two have vanished. I searched for a parasite, knowing these plants are very hardy. After a call to the nursery, I realize that the deer, whose tracks our caretaker has seen this year, has been nibbling them down. A cannister of deer repellent granules at Mainescape cost $37.99. Being a Scot, I have peed in a circle around each plant, howling like a coyote as I did it, and if worse comes to worse, I’ll simply buy blueberries in the store. I’m encouraging our caretaker, who is interested in taking a deer with his bow. We don’t want deer ticks and Lyme Disease. Maybe it will just get the vibes it isn’t wanted and head to a different island, the best solution.
Regulars, a brother and sister with their families and my cousin, Amanda, with hers were on the island last week. It was rainy or foggy most days but it didn’t dampen their spirits. Michael, a RISD graduate, looked more content sailing the Blue Onion than any yachtsman I know. It’s always “The fuel scrubber isn’t working.” or “The through-hull fitting for the head is leaking.” or “The stuffing box requires tightening.” Since Blue Onion is a Sunfish, with a single sail, the problems it poses are minimal, as is the general upkeep. The teens, and including friends there were 7, sang and played music together on guitars and fiddles in the Barn and swam in the frigid Bay. On a near-sunny day I towed most of them with Stella, our diesel-powered lobster boat, on our home-made aquaplane. Although we never exceeded 12 mph, from the shrieks and howls you’d have thought I was driving a Chris Craft at 40mph.
Beside the regular photos, two of the girls, lovely in their bikinis, posed backs-to-the-camera, each with a hand gently resting on one of the other’s buttocks. Amid much excited and nervous squealing.
The last night of their vacation contained a communal supper and the traditional Talent Show. Many budding singer-song writers, laughter and poignancy. I loved how everyone felt safe enough to stumble through their part. They each threw themselves into it, which was especially touching in the teen-age girls, whose longing was palpable.
Ari and I had a good walk at a spectacular beach on the mainland nearby. It is coastal and forested land with stunning, sweeping beaches and rocks. She is very disciplined about her book, has finished the text, and has about 30 more illustrations to do for it. I am very excited for her!
The friends I mentioned in my last posting who were setting out to kayak the length of coastal Maine are a night or two away from Lubec at the northern tip. No undue incidents or near-disasters. Pretty wet and foggy weather for most of it. But journey’s end is near.
I am on a program of stretching and doing situps each morning and doing modest weight lifting before bed. I also kayaked several days, despite the weather. I am taking a kayak (qajac) rolling course at Burnt Meadow Pond in western Maine in 10 days and I want to be maximally limber—not likely. However, the stretching works and I move much better than previously. I hope it is a shallow pond so the water has warmed a bit.
Today is gray and wet, consonant with the previous week. As I look out my window I can see 3 older women, one walking a black lab on a leash. They are happily strolling and chatting in the drizzle. As in Seattle, people are hearty here and don’t let inclement weather interfere with their pleasures. Everything in my garden is doing fabulously, which is a treat. The borage is blossoming for the bees and the hydrangeas are bursting with color. The three lily bulbs I planted in October—actually, I’m not sure how many I planted but three are coming up—are ready to bloom. My herb garden is hugely successful and I must eat more as they are crowding each other, especially the mint. Everything is lush and lovely here in Portland, as on the Island. I treated myself to a croissant and a cardamom bun from Belleville, a bakery up the street, this morning; I’d been daydreaming about croissants on the Island.
I conferred with Polly and she has gotten us tickets to see the Hokusai (“36 Views of Fuji” and others) exhibit at the MFA in Boston next week. He was an early 19th century Japanese woodblock print maker and when at last his art left Japan, which was fiercely proprietary about all matters cultural, it had a significant influence on Western art. The curator of the exhibit has assembled 100 of his prints. The show ends July 16th or so. I’m excited.
I cannot say I am excited by our Supreme Court. It has demonstrated a total lack of respect for the Constitution and for Precedent, let alone honesty and open disclosure. I see little to lose in expanding it so as to nullify the voices of the Christian Right. Thomas is beyond the Pale, Roberts is weak-kneed, and all are schemers pushing their personal, religious, right-wing agendas. Let’s just all go back 70 years when Blacks, Gays, and Women knew their place, accepting it without protest and corporations could extract and pollute without regulations.
A Psychiatrist in Myanmar 