Author Archives: Kimsmithdesigns

About Kimsmithdesigns

Documentary filmmaker, photographer, landscape designer, author, and illustrator. "Beauty on the Wing: Life Story of the Monarch Butterfly" currently airing on PBS. Current film projects include Piping Plovers, Gloucester's Feast of St. Joseph, and Saint Peter's Fiesta. Visit my websites for more information about film and design projects at kimsmithdesigns.com, monarchbutterflyfilm.com, and pipingploverproject.org. Author/illustrator "Oh Garden of Fresh Possibilities! Notes from a Gloucester Garden."

GREAT EVENT FOR THE ATLANTICS AND ALL THE NEW ENGLAND MUSIC HALL OF FAME INDUCTEES!

1 Reply

Last night’s induction ceremony into the New England Music Hall of Fame was a tremendous honor for Tom and his Atlantic’s bandmates. Held at the Regent Theatre in Arlington, Boston rockers and rock industry media greats were honored, including Lizzie Borden and the Axes, Human Sexual Response, Robin Lane, Donna Summer, Steve Morse, Carter Allen, and Carmelita. I filmed a bit of Lizzie Borden and the Axes set and will post that asap.

DJ Dee Tension introduced the Atlantics. Tom’s song writing partner, bass player, and co-founder of The Atlantics, Bruce Wilkinson, passed away at a young age. Accepting the award in his place was his sister Bev and his nephew. Paul Caruso, the drummer, also passed away at a relatively young age, when he was only 50 years old. Accepting the award in his honor was his wife Susan and sons Christian and Zachary.Fred Pineau, Jeff Hartford, Billy McCarthy, Bev Wilkinson, Reese, Jeff Lock, Susan Caruso, Zachary Caruso, Christian Caruso, Tom Hauck, and Ray Fernandes at the mic.

Digging around online, I was happy to find another video of the Atlantics from back in the day – 

MY HUSBAND TOM HAUCK AND THE ATLANTICS INDUCTEES AT THE NEW ENGLAND MUSIC HALL OF FAME AWARDS!

1 Reply

My husband, Tom, is being inducted into the New England Music Hall of Fame tomorrow evening. Tom is one of the co-founders, along with Bruce Wilkinson, of the Atlantics, a 70’s/early 80s power pop punk band. He’s so low key about it. Tom had this band before I met him but still I am super proud of him.

The sold-out awards ceremony is taking place at the beautiful Regent Theatre in Arlington and we’re planning to make a night of it. Photos from back in the day and today. He’s still the same brilliant, funny, kind hearted man I met all those years ago, just wiser, and even smarter.

For Atlantics fans, read more here

APPLE PICKING AND MONARCHS AT RUSSELL ORCHARDS!

1 Reply

Last week on Election Day, the elementary kids that attend East Veteran’s had the day off.  Charlotte is in love with Cloud, the resident sheep at Russell Orchards, so off we went to go visit Cloud. We were in luck as one of my favorite apples, Gala, was perfectly ripe for the picking. To find out which variety of apples are available to pick, check out Russell Orchard’s website here.

After filling two bags with sweetly delicious little pink gems, we stopped at the gorgeous zinnia patch adjacent to the apple orchard. The patch was abuzz with myriad pollinators, including Monarchs, Sulphurs, Swallowtails, bees, and as is typical at this time of year, Yellow Jackets. The Yellow Jackers weren’t interested in Charlotte and I, only in pestering the Monarchs. One even alighted on a Monarch’s wings!

Russel Orchard’s zinnias are a knock this year and I believe the variety of zinnias is Benary’s Giant.

Flowers of the Air

WONDERFUL CONNECTING HISTORY ABOUT THE SCHOONER ROSEWAY AND SCHOONER DENIS SULLIVAN

2 Replies

Recently I was contacted by a gentleman, Bill Girolamo, who was a passenger aboard the magnificent Schooner Denis Sullivan during the Parade of Sail and race. He was hoping to find images of the Denis Sullivan from shore and after a google search he found mine. The Schooner Denis Sullivan is a 3-masted Great Lakes cargo schooner and was recently purchased by the World Ocean School. 2023 marks the first year the Denis Sullivan participated in the Gloucester Schooner Festival.

Photo by Ron Grant: the Schooner Roseway crossing Whaleback Lighthouse in Kittery Maine

Bill shares that the Schooner Roseway, also owned by the World Ocean School, is in Mystic, Connecticut, undergoing a complete restoration. I hope this means we’ll see Roseway in next year’s festival! Bill writes that “The Roseway will be 100 years old next year. There will be a Centennial Celebration for it once it is out of Mystic CT, in one more year. Its life was amazing, having been built originally in Essex MA by the owner of the Hathaway Shirt company from lumber on his land in Ipswich as a Schooner fishing boat and the story continues for the next 100 years… amazingly.”

Last year, in 2022, Bill was invited to sail aboard the Roseway during Schooner Fest as his uncle was a pilot on the Schooner during the years it was a pilot boat in Boston Harbor. The Schooner was also a patrol boat during World War II and was was mounted with guns and painted gray. Bill wrote the lovely sonnet in tribute to the Schooner Roseway.

Many, many thanks to Bill Girolamo for sharing these wonderful connections!

 

FUNNY PIPING PLOVER CHICKS NEW SHORT FILM

Leave a reply

Tiny Piping Plover chicks weigh about as much as a nickel at the time of hatching. Although capable of running about within a few hours after pushing out of their eggshells, one-day-old chicks are extraordinarily vulnerable. They are also adorably funny as they learn how to navigate the varied beach terrain and to forage for food. The hatchlings study their out-sized feet, stretch tiny wing buds, fall into mini fox holes, and tumble over even while only trying to scratch themselves. It’s not easy being one-day-old!

Mom and Dad spend a great deal of time helping the chicks to regulate their body temperature, especially in the earliest days of the chick’s life. In the last clips, Dad calls to the four siblings to warm up under his downy soft underwing feathers.  And by the way, Plover Dads are truly super heroes in the life story of the Piping Plover, co-parenting equally, and even then some.

The footage in this short is from the forthcoming film, The Piping Plovers of Moonlight Bay. Please consider making a tax-deductible donation to our online fundraiser to help complete our documentary. Filming is finished however, post-production and festival costs have sky-rocketed; they are much greater than when we released our sister film project about species at risk, Beauty on the Wing: Life Story of the Monarch Butterfly. Without our community’s help, we could not have launched Beauty on the Wing. Working with the community to produce Beauty on the Wing made it far more meaningful.

We are deeply appreciative of any gifts given. Thank you.

Please donate here to our Network for Good online fundraiser https://filmmakerscollab.networkforgood.com/projects/55077-filmmakers-collaborative-the-piping-plovers-of-moonlight-bay

 

 

THE QUESTION MARK BUTTERFLY?

Leave a reply

Question Marks LOVE sap. The freshly emerged beauty seen here repeatedly returned to the one spot at the deeply creviced branch, vigorously sucking up tree juice from a slit in the wood, while warming its wings in the sun, and also fending off flies – butterfly multi-tasking.

The Question Mark is one of two butterfly species that “punctuates, ” the other being the Eastern Comma. Look for the four dots on the dorsal side of the upper wing and the tiny question mark on the ventral side of the lower wings.

Question Marks on the wing at this time of year are the “fabricii” form, emerging from late August through October, as opposed to the darker “umbrosa” form seen in the spring. The wing pattern is prettier in the fall, more brilliant orange with anglewings tipped in frosted violet fringe.

To attract Question Marks, grow elms, nettles, and hackberry for their larval host, or caterpillar food, plants.

LAST NIGHT OF SUMMER SUNSET DID NOT DISAPPOINT! WITH TALL SHIP LYNX

Leave a reply

Last evening, the Tall Ship Lynx arrived to Gloucester Harbor just as the sun was setting. The sky grew rosier and rosier long after the sun had dipped below the horizon.

Tall Ship Lynx and Schooner Adventure

Autumnal Equinox Sunset Ten Pound Island Lighthouse

 

From the Tall Ship Lynx website – The Tall Ship Lynx is an educational organization dedicated to hands-on programs that teach the history and present examples of America’s struggle to preserve its independence. The ship is an interpretation of an actual privateer built in 1812. The maritime challenges during the War of 1812 are taught aboard Lynx utilizing a comprehensive, interactive program designed to enrich personal achievement through teamwork and the discipline of sailing.

In 1997 Woodson K. Woods embarked on a journey to build a privateer inspired by the original historic tall ship from the War of 1812 – The Privateer Lynx. His goal was to create a living history museum to educate children and adults alike about American history through active sail training aboard a real wooden sailing ship.

What went into Lynx was not just wood, rope, brass and canvas. It was not just sweat, blood, heartache and laughter either. What went into her goes far beyond history, ambition, inspiration, determination and commitment. In 2016 Lynx was purchased from Woods Maritime LLC , by the Lynx Educational Foundation, Lynx hails out of Nantucket Island, Ma. Donald Emmons Peacock, President and captain. Our partner in education is Egan Maritime Institute in Nantucket. Lynx winters in city of St Petersburg, Florida our winter home. Since 2015, Lynx Donald E. Peacock, president, and Captain Lynx winters in St. Simons Island, GA, November through May.

On July 28, 2001 in Rockport, Maine Woods’ vision was realized. Past and present converged as Lynx was launched in a gala event ordaining a magnificent future on the high seas.

​The creation of Lynx embraces eternal truths: passion, sacrifice, perseverance, honor and courage. All of these emotions gave her a soul long before she tasted her first saltwater. At sea, Lynx is the legacy of her creators: the thinkers, the designers, the builders, and most important, the dreamers…

ENJOY THIS LAST DAY OF SUMMER!

Leave a reply

Pretty clouds over Gloucester harbor skyline this morning.

Look to the sky over the next few days. Sunrise will be directly east at 90 degrees and sunset, directly west, at 270 degrees.

A BIT OF MONARCH FAKERY – THE BEAUTIFUL VICEROY BUTTERFLY

2 Replies

Over the course of past week, we on Cape Ann have been graced with a splendid mini Monarch migration across our shores, and many other species of butterflies too are on the wing. To my utter delight, yesterday while filming at what I like to think of as a butterfly hotspot, a pint-sized butterfly went zooming past. Wow, that is the smallest Monarch I have ever seen. But no, the butterfly traveled across the field, and when it paused for a few moments to warm its wings, I realized it was a Viceroy Butterfly! This was the first time I have observed a Viceroy on Cape Ann.

The Viceroy has a faster flight pattern than the Monarch and I was only able to get a few minutes of footage and only several photos before it disappeared over the horizon however; you can see from the photos how very similar the wing pattern is. To make a quick comparison when out in the field, the Viceroy does not have the mitten-shaped cell that the Monarch possesses and it has a prominent black line running along lower wings.

Monarch Butterfly

Viceroy Butterfly

To read more about Monarch and Viceroy fakery, read the following terrific article from New Jersey Audubon here: “Monarchs and Viceroys: A Tale of Mimicry”

The ‘royal’ butterflies –

 

THRILLER “BREAKWATER” OPENING NIGHT PREMIERE FREE SCREENING AT SHALIN LIU TONIGHT!

Leave a reply

Looking forward to attending the Boston Film Festival opening night premiere and Q and A of Breakwater at the Shalin Liu, tonight, Thursday, at 7pm.

See Gail McCarthy’s article in the Gloucester Daily Times for information about the film. Honors will be presented to actor Dermot Mulroney for Film Excellence as part of the event.  The following is an article from Variety –

From Variety –

Dermot Mulroney is set to star in the upcoming indie thriller Breakwater.

The veteran actor, of “My Best Friend’s Wedding” and “August: Osage County” fame, will team with writer-director James Rowe on the feature.

“Breakwater” will see Mulroney star as prison inmate Ray Childress, who charges a just-released fellow prisoner with finding his daughter. The ex-con soon discovers the daughter’s past may be more dangerous than anything he’s faced in prison.

“Dangerous charmers are a fixture in Southern stories,” Rowe said in a statement, “and Ray is a man whose surface cool masks a desperate volatility. Dermot’s appeal and his expansive range, along with his willingness to defy expectations, make him the ideal choice for this guy driven by conflicting impulses.”

Loose Cannon Pictures is producing the project, led by Matt Paul (the SXSW selection “Violet”). Larry Hummel and Edward Winters of Winterstone Pictures (“Adolescence,” Disney’s “Black Beauty”) will also produce. Casting directors Orly Sitowitz and Stacey Pianko will be rounding out the lead cast in the coming weeks for an early September start on North Carolina’s Outer Banks.

Mulroney most recently starred in the Netflix guilty pleasure “Deadly Illusions” opposite Kristin Davis and Greer Grammer. He has no less than seven films in various stages of production, including Netflix’s “Along for the Ride” opposite Kate Bosworth, “Agent Game” with Mel Gibson and “Umma” opposite Sandra Oh.

Mulroney is represented by Jim Dempsey at Paradigm Talent Agency and Nate Bryson at Luber Roklin Entertainment. Rowe is represented by Myman Greenspan.

DOGTOWN COMMON AT WINDHOVER!

Leave a reply

My Friend Kathleen writes,

Dear Friends,
I hope you’ll come to one of the two performances this weekend (Friday or Saturday) of “Dogtown Common.” If you were at our earlier production, you will see refinements (among them, Gabrielle Barghazi’s incredible backdrop) and if you have not already seen it….well, we think there’s something to it, and that you’ll be moved. Peter Littlefield’s retooling of this epic poem renders the place, the time, and the tragedy in a minimal, packed hour that reverberates weirdly with the present. I get to make some noise, too! Space is limited. It’s an intimate experience at Windhover….very special.

MORE VIDEO FOOTAGE – HURRICANE LEE TRIPLE EXPLODING WAVE

Leave a reply

With tiny shapes of human figures for scale

MAGNIFICENT #HURRICANELEE WAVES!

2 Replies

Favorite wave photo from today. If only all hurricanes could be this splendid and non-destructive (hopefully other communities managed as well as did Gloucester).

 

POUNDING SURF AND A RAINBOW SUNSET, WHAT WILL #HURICANELEE BRING TOMORROW?

1 Reply

Waves, wind, and a beautiful sunset –

 

Mother Ann awash in waves today

 

PLOVER T-SHIRTS ARE SELLING OUT AT ALEXANDRA’S BREAD!

Leave a reply

A huge shout out and many, many thanks to Jon and Alexandra for distributing our Plover tees and stickers. Yesterday I dropped off the last few from the initial order and am placing a re-order with Seaside Graphics today!

Jon shares that customers are loving the positivity of the stickers and tees. Thank you community for supporting our Cape Ann Piping Plovers <3

Tees and stickers are available for sale at our wonderful local bakery and home goods shop, Alexandra’s Bread, located at 265 Main Street in Gloucester. 

There are several ways in which readers can help support our forthcoming documentary, The Piping Plovers of Moonlight Bay. Approximately $12.00 per each T-shirt goes toward the film project, the rest goes toward making more tees.

To contribute a larger gift, please consider making a tax-deductible donation to our online Network for Good fundraiser DONATE HERE

To learn more about The Piping Plovers of Moonlight Bay documentary please go here.

BEE-UTIFUL!

Leave a reply

Filmed at my friend Paul Wegzyn’s sunflower field, at Felix’ Family Farm –

“Peter and the Wolf” by Sergei Prokofiev, performed by Leonard Bernstein and the New York Philharmonic Orchestra – downloaded from the Internet Archive of royalty free music.

A WHOPPER OF A STRIPED BASS!

Leave a reply

Over the weekend while out filming I met a gentleman who was just finishing up an all-nighter of night fishing. He was wearing scuba gear, a night head lamp, and was using a rod and reel. In the foggy distance, i wondered, what new creature is this?

Kevin had landed a Very Large Striped Bass but was trying to revive it to return to the sea. He didn’t mind that I wanted to take a few photos and while I was photographing he explained that all Striped Bass at this size are great breeders, and that you don’t really want to catch one this big.

According to Kevin, Striped Bass come out at night and can be found around rocks, where they like to hunt for small fish. We noticed a tag on the side of the bass. As I was curious, I called the number. It’s the USFWS line for reporting bass. I didn’t make the report as it was Kevin’s fish but I would love to know how old is this huge Mama.

PLEASE DO NO HARM! HOW AND WHY CAPTIVE BREEDING AND CAPTIVE REARING IS HURTING MONARCH BUTTERFLIES

2 Replies

Following mating, a female Monarch will be ready to begin ovipositing her eggs after only several hours. She travels from leaf to leaf and plant to plant, typically depositing no more than one egg per leaf and only one or two eggs per plant. It is thought that when the female lands on a leaf she is testing the plant for suitability with the sensors on her feet that are called tarsi. She curls her abdomen around, ovipositing a tiny golden drop that is no larger than a pinhead.

In the short video, in the second clip, you can she she ‘rejects,’ the leaf. She first tests it with her feet, then curls her abdomen, but does not leave an egg. In the third and last clip, success! She finds a leaf to her liking and leaves behind a single egg.

The female continues on her quest to find milkweed, possibly returning to the same plant, but more likely, she will go on to the next patch of milkweed. In the wild, female Monarchs deposit on average between 300 to 500 eggs during her lifetime.

It’s a very different story for Monarchs that are captive bred. The attendant will walk into the enclosure where the frantic males and females are kept, with a handful of milkweed leaves. The female is so desperate to oviposit her eggs, she will dump a whole load on one leaf, without even testing it with her feet. I have observed this behavior at breeding locations and it is really quite disturbing, knowing  how wholly unnatural it is for Monarchs to deposit eggs in large clusters.

Four reasons to stop mass breeding and rearing:

  1. Mass production of Monarchs makes it easy to transmit disease.
  2.  More virulent strains of pathogens are spreading to wild Monarchs.
  3. Reared Monarchs are smaller than wild Monarchs.
  4. A genetic consequence of breeding closely related individual Monarchs weakens the species.

The Xerces Society, Monarch Watch, Journey North, Monarch Joint Venture, and the petition to list Monarchs as an endangered species all recommend the following:

From the Xerces Society

Answers to a few frequently-asked-questions and answers about rearing

How can I rear Monarchs responsibly?

  1. Rear no more than ten Monarchs per year (whether by a single individual or family). This is the same number recommended in the original petition to list the monarch under the Federal Endangered Species Act.
  2. Collect immature Monarchs locally from the wild, heeding collection policies on public lands; never buy or ship monarchs.
  3. Raise Monarchs individually and keep rearing containers clean between individuals by using a 20% bleach solution to avoid spreading diseases or mold.
  4. Provide sufficient milkweed including adding fresh milkweed daily.
  5. Keep rearing containers out of direct sunlight and provide a moist (not wet) paper towel or sponge to provide sufficient, not excessive, moisture.
  6. Release Monarchs where they were collected and at appropriate times of year for your area.
  7. Check out Monarch Joint Venture’s newly updated handout, Rearing Monarchs: Why or Why Not?
  8. Participate in community science, including testing the Monarchs you raise for OE, tracking parasitism rates, and/or tagging adults before release.

 

JOEANN HART’S OFFICIAL BOOK LAUNCH FOR “HIGHWIRE ACT AND OTHER TALES OF SURVIVAL!”

1 Reply

Dear Friends, Family, & Colleagues,

I am pleased to announce that my collection of short fiction, Highwire Act & Other Tales of Survival, will officially release on September 15th. The launch is on September 14th at the Rocky Neck Cultural Center at 7pm, where I will be reading with fellow Black Lawrence Press author Sara Johnson Allen. I will also be reading at the Sawyer Free Library, the temporary location on 21 Main St, Gloucester, on October12th at 5:30 pm. These events are free and open to the public.The Bookstore will be selling copies at both. You may also order a copy directly from Black Lawrence Press or any of the usual venues.

Warmly,

JoeAnn

JoeAnn Hart’s extraordinary stories take you on a trip: to a dystopian future; to the tidewaters of Gloucester; to the chambers of a haunted mill.  But in the end, the real place she takes us is the center of the human heart. These unforgettable tales are generous, brilliant, and fierce.

—Jennifer Finney Boylan, author of She’s Not There, and co-author (with Jodi Picoult) of Mad Honey

In her fiction collection, Highwire Act and Other Tales of Survival, JoeAnn Hart’s characters go to the sea, deadhead flowers, eat artisanal pizzas, with humor and with humanity. These luminous stories shine long after you’ve read them.

—Ann Hood, author of Fly Girl

The fabulous cover was designed with a collage by Gloucester artist Hans Pundt.

In this collection, a young couple raise crickets for food, a woman in a caged complex is witness to the deterioration of her neighbor, a homeless man contemplates an infant’s grave from the Westward Expansion, and an uncompromising ego takes on a Biblical rain. These are among the stories in Highwire Act & Other Tales of Survival, where the climate crisis arrives not just as strange and violent weather, but as upheavals of our political and emotional climates as well. As characters struggle for survival with Covid, ecological destruction, grief, or mental illness, they attempt to find solace and restoration from a nature that is increasingly no longer in a position to give back. And with science unable to keep up, fake suicides, fairy tales, and delusion are the thorny tools humans are left with to carry on, yet carry on they do

KEEP MONARCHS WILD: WHY IT IS SO DETRIMENTAL AND UNCOOL TO RAISE AND RELEASE HUNDREDS OF MONARCHS

Leave a reply

Captive breeding and captive raising Monarchs in the hundreds, and in some cases thousands, is not the way to help the butterflies. You may feel you are taking positive steps, but we have learned over time that captive breeding and rearing in large numbers spreads disease and  weakens the species. Captive rearing hundreds of Monarchs is HARMFUL. The following is a science based and thoughtful article published by one of the foremost authorities on Monarchs, the Xerces Society.The thrust of the article is that captive rearing no more than ten at a time is educational and worthwhile, if the guidelines provided below are followed to a tee. If you are one of the folks that are rearing hundreds/thousands of Monarchs, please read the following –

Keep Monarchs Wild: Why Captive Rearing Isn’t The Way To Help Monarchs

By Emma Pelton on 15. June 2023

Instead of rearing—which is risky and unproven in helping monarchs—we should focus on more effective ways to conserve these glorious wild animals.

Many of us have been there: Finding a monarch caterpillar, collecting it in a jar, raising it on milkweed, and then waiting patiently for a butterfly to emerge and take flight. Helping a child (or an adult) learn about this captivating, up-close example of metamorphosis can be incredibly rewarding. Unlike many wild animals, monarchs are easily reared, so it is no wonder that bringing caterpillars into the classroom or home has been used by teachers and parents for decades as an educational tool—or just for the pure enjoyment of it. Rearing monarchs also has been a part of monarch research: From the tagging efforts started by the Urquharts in the 1960s to the multiple tagging programs of today. These programs, as well as other community science projects, have greatly expanded our understanding of migration paths.

Because rearing a butterfly in captivity enables people to share in the amazing transformation from a caterpillar to winged adult, it deserves a place in the future of monarch education and research efforts. However, we need to approach it thoughtfully and responsibly. Like any wild animal, we have to make sure that our interest in rearing monarchs does not harm the butterfly’s populations. This is particularly important today, with monarch populations down by 80-97%. These levels are so low that the migratory phenomenon to Mexico and coastal California is at risk. In an attempt to help reverse the monarch’s population free-fall, many people are attempting to save the species by rearing and releasing monarchs on a large scale. There are, however, serious concerns about this approach.

READ MORE HERE

For more about how you can help the magnificent migrating Monarch, visit my documentary’s website here – Beauty on the Wing

From the Xerces Society

Answers to a few frequently-asked-questions and answers about rearing

How can I rear monarchs responsibly?

  1. Rear no more than ten monarchs per year (whether by a single individual or family). This is the same number recommended in the original petition to list the monarch under the Federal Endangered Species Act.
  2. Collect immature monarchs locally from the wild, heeding collection policies on public lands; never buy or ship monarchs.
  3. Raise monarchs individually and keep rearing containers clean between individuals by using a 20% bleach solution to avoid spreading diseases or mold.
  4. Provide sufficient milkweed including adding fresh milkweed daily.
  5. Keep rearing containers out of direct sunlight and provide a moist (not wet) paper towel or sponge to provide sufficient, not excessive, moisture.
  6. Release monarchs where they were collected and at appropriate times of year for your area.
  7. Check out Monarch Joint Venture’s newly updated handout, Rearing Monarchs: Why or Why Not?
  8. Participate in community science, including testing the monarchs you raise for OE, tracking parasitism rates, and/or tagging adults before release.

SCHOONER DENIS SULLIVAN

1 Reply

Welcome to Gloucester! You are looking at the extraordinary three-masted schooner Denis Sullivan, as she wends her way though Gloucester Harbor during the Parade of Sail.

The only replica in the world of Great Lakes Cargo ships, the Denis Sullivan was recently acquired by Sail Boston. The schooner sailed from its former home in Milwaukee to its new home in Boston last October.

We hope to see the Schooner Denis Sullivan at the Gloucester Schooner Festival for all the years to come! I heard from the crew that they loved Gloucester and had a fantastic time!

Music by Donovan – “Catch the Wind”

 

A WONDERMENT OF GENTLE FARM ANIMALS AT FELIX’S FAMILY FARM!

Leave a reply

Come visit the spectacular sunflower field and ever expanding wonderful menagerie of animals at Felix’s Family  Farm. The flowers are peaking this weekend! See last week’s post about the sunflower field here

Felix’s Family Farm is located at 20 Lowe’s Lane, just off 1A/Rt. 133, in Ipswich. For tickets and more information, visit the Felix Family Farm website here.

Our Charlotte’s favorite, favorite thing to do at Paul’s farm is to feed and stroke the farm animals. Paul has been daily training all his animals to be super kid-friendly and it is working! I have taken Charlotte to many farms but have never seen animals, especially the alpacas, as comfortable around children as are Paul’s.

There is the Mama Belted Galloway cow, Cookie, and her baby calf Cupcake (Paul thinks of the best names for his mini zoo!).

Midnight the pony

super friendly Mama sheep and baby sheep

the most adorable friendly goats

And a herd of very gentle alpacas!

Our happy girl in her happy place!

WORLD SHOREBIRDS DAY – A CELEBRATION OF SHOREBIRDS!

Leave a reply

HAPPY WORLD SHOREBIRDS DAY! Today, September 6th, marks the 10th anniversary of Worlds Shorebird Day. Worlds Shorebird Day was founded to help bring awareness to the plight of  shorebirds. More than 50 percent of shorebird species around the globe are in decline. 

Our documentary, The Piping Plovers of Moonlight Bay, shines a light on the Plovers and how these remarkably valiant little birds are surviving the pressures of habitat loss, human disturbance, and a warming climate. Massachusetts is at the fore of Piping Plover recovery and we are doing much that is right however, the recovery is not going as well in other regions.

Please think about donating to our film. I think of Plovers as a gateway species, similar to Monarch butterflies. Through developing a deeper understanding of the birds, people will be inspired to do all they can to join citizens around the world in providing safe habitat for nesting and migrating shorebirds.  Our sister film, Beauty on the Wing: Life Story of the Monarch Butterfly is currently airing on PBS and has reached markets in 87 percent of US households, in all major cities. Wouldn’t it be wonderfully meaningful to have that kind of outreach for Plovers!

DONATE HERE https://filmmakerscollab.org/films/piping-plovers-of-moonlight-bay/

 

LAUNCHING OUR PIPING PLOVER FILM FUNDRAISING EVENT TODAY!

Leave a reply

Dear Friends,

As many of you know that while we Piping Plover Ambassadors have been looking out over Cape Ann’s PiPls, I have also been working on a documentary film about Plovers nesting in Gloucester, along with filming Plover populations found at communities all around the north of Boston coastal region. Our GHB Plovers first arrived in Gloucester in 2016 and it was evident from the very first days that they were struggling to survive under the pressures of human and pet disturbances. As we were learning how to best help the Plovers nest undisturbed, I began to document Plovers at many other beaches to learn how other communities managed their Plover populations. I focused mostly on urban beaches as they are most similar to Good Harbor Beach.

Over the course of filming, I have spent several years documenting nesting Piping Plovers pairs that are extraordinary in their parenting skills, similar to our original pair of GHB Plovers, Super Dad and Super Mom. The documentary, The Piping Plovers of Moonlight Bay, is based on true life stories and is set in a fictional Massachusetts coastal town to protect the location of the Plovers.

Today we are launching our fundraising campaign. I am very proud to share that we have received our very first grant, from the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife. Here is a link to our online fundraiser:

Link to our 501c fiscal sponsor Filmmakers Collaborative: https://filmmakerscollab.org/films/piping-plovers-of-moonlight-bay/
Link to the trailer: https://vimeo.com/818861213
Link to the Piping Plover Project website: https://wordpress.com/view/pipingploverproject.org

Gifts for The Piping Plovers of Moonlight Bay will support post production and distribution costs, including re-recording voiceover narration, color and sound editors, picture mastering, studio time, festival fees and applications, music and map rights, and an underwriting agent to bring the film to the wide audience of public television. Our goal is to raise $80,500.00 for post production with a total of $115,000.00 if the film is accepted to air on public television.

The names of underwriters contributing $10,000.00 and above will be proudly listed in the film’s special underwriting credit pod. What does it mean to be an underwriter? When you watch a film on public television and the announcer says (for example), “This program was made possible by gifts from Katherine and Charles Cassidy, by The Fairweather Foundation, by Lillian B. Anderson, and by The Arnhold Family, in Memory of Clarisse Arnhold,” that’s where your name, or the name of your foundation, will appear, at both the beginning and at the end of the film.

If you are interested in becoming an underwriter, please feel free to phone (978-290-3804) or email and I will be happy to send the formal proposal and budget.

All supporters, no matter how large or small the donation, will be listed on the film’s website. Any amount contributed is tremendously appreciated.

Thank you for being part of launching The Piping Plovers of Moonlight Bay!

Very best wishes,

Kim

PARADE OF SAIL WITH SCHOONER STROMBUS AND THE EAST GLOUCESTER GANG!

Leave a reply

I love trying to capture friend’s boats during the Parade of Sail. Here’s our neighbor’s Geoff and Mandy’s beautiful Schooner Strombus that they built and launched back in 2017, and the sweetest crew of East Gloucester friends!

The Schooner Strombus won the 2023 Betty Ramsey Award in the Marconi Rigged Class!

 

Strombus Schooner Launch Party, from July 2017-  

A new schooner was added to Gloucester’s growing fleet. The schooner was launched today at 11am from the Rocky Neck Marine Railways. Strombus, built by Geoff Deckebach, with help from his wife Mandy, was twelve years in the making. They began gutting and restoring the boat all those many years ago when work and raising a family slowed progress. About a year ago, Geoff decided to turn his full attention to the restoration. The schooner is simply beautiful. More work will continue on the interior and it will be ready enough to motor along in this year’s upcoming Schooner Festival.