Memorial Weekend 2011

For as long as I can remember our family has visited the cemeteries just before Memorial Day.  We make sure the grass is mown and we put new flowers in the vases.  This year as usual we put flowers on the graves of seven of the most influential people in my life.

 My Mom and Dad...  It takes years of being without them to really realize the influence they had on you.  Mom was the homemaker...Dad told her when they were married "You keep the house and I'll provide for you and the family".   I do not remember a time getting off the school bus that Mom was not home.  She cooked simple hearty meals, sewed and patched our clothes, worked in the PTA, cleaned the church, was the church secretary, tended our scrapes, bruises and pride and showed us Christ through her life...

My Dad was the hardest working man I ever knew...he was a carpenter, real estate broker, auction clerk, used-furniture store owner, repaired tractors and farm equipment...he was a jack-of-all-trades and master of all of them!  He taught me how to swim, fish, hunt, ride a bike, throw a ball, hit a ball, How to use a shovel-pick-post hole diggers-spud bar-hammer-saw-wrenches-welder-cutting torch......At times I resented having to work when other kids were on the ball teams or out on the town but Dad was wise and kept us busy to keep us out of trouble!  He was a quiet man that never raised his voice but could keep us in line with just a look!  I never remember him telling me he loved me but I never have doubted it because of the time he spent with me.....

 Elmer and Alma Riggs to everyone else...Momo and Popo to me!  Popo gave me many stories to tell of working with him on construction projects and hunting expeditions...He was one of the most impulse men I have ever known!!  Momo was never "rattled" by anything.  Always calm, cool and collected!  She was my spiritual rock in a stormy sea when I was a young Christian...

 My Aunt Mary...her mind was affected by a high fever when she was around two years old.  Through her I came to realize that every human life is special and God makes no mistakes. 

I didn't get to know my Grandpa Fox very well since I was only six when he passed but I do have my memories...riding in his old car, watching him roll his prince albert cigarettes, him singing "Old Jim Dog" to me, the stories he would tell with my Dad and Uncles...
Grandma Fox...different story!!!...The highlight of her day was to scare the bejeebers out of somebody!..Oh the stories I could tell...!!! I wish someone could fry chicken like she could...I would pay big money for it!  Her steady Christian life made me know that in all of life's adversities, we can still have a fun and laugh!

Bunker Hill Monument

 This is the view from High Street in Charlestown, MA looking northeasterly up Bunker Hill (or as it was known then...Breed's Hill)  When I go to places like this, I consider myself to be walking on hallowed ground.  I know we are living in the day when it is fashionable to give lip service to love of God, country and flag but visits to sites such as this give me a reality check.  Imperfect men with a burning in their hearts for freedom from tyranny gave themselves for a dream of liberty.  I am forever grateful to our forefathers...the true Patriots....

 Colonel William Prescott, commander of the colonial forces at Bunker Hill

 "Don't fire til you see the whites of their eyes"

 Before it was "Bunker Hill"....

 You can get on Wiki and read all about the battle of Bunker Hill and the redoubt that Colonel Prescott ordered built.

Tami standing at the north corner of Withrop Square with the Bunker Hill obelisk in the background.  We had taken a boat tour around Boston harbor and they docked at Charlestown to allow passengers to tour the USS Constitution for an hour.  We opted to make the 1/2 mile hike to the Bunker Hill monument.  We thought we had missed it because it wasn't on our Freedom Trail tour but this worked out real good for us!

Below is one picture of the USS Constitution.  It was like going through airport security to go on the tour so we decided not to go

Conte's 1894 Restaurant

 Okay...for any and all of the food buffs...as in "Man vs Food"...Cheryl at the Berry Manor Inn BB in Rockland ME told Tami and I about "Conte's 1894 Restaurant".  It was in her list of recommended restaurants and when asked, she said eating there is an adventure....nuff said!!  We had to GO!  Enjoy the following pictures.....

 This is the view toward the front door...which has a sign that reads something like "Open at 5...Maybe".  From this view Tami's words were "Ray    are you sure.....????"

 View of the restaurant, street is to your left, notice there is no sign to indicate this is an eating establishment.  Just word of mouth!!!

 Not a very good picture of the menu because of the flash but this is it!  3½'x5' chalkboard wrote out by the chef, changed every day, completely unreadable to the common public...the waitress was the interpreter!!  I asked her if we should be seated before we order.  Her reply..."I ain't hauling this big ole board to your table...you order here"   This wasn't said offensively just straightforward and we ordered THERE!!!

 The table cloth is newspaper, the bread is cut off of a 2' loaf beside the menu (didn't get a picture), lit by a candle stuck in an old wine bottle (already emptied)...!  The waitress found out it was our 25th anniversary and agreed to take our picture...we smiled and repeated what we thought was the Italian version of "Cheese"... which she then interpreted.......it wasn't "Cheese"....believe me you don't want to know...my face gets red just typing this...so glad we were the only diners at that time!!!

 None of the chairs matched the tables, newspaper table cloths, well used candle wine bottles...

 The food...everything is served over pasta.  Mine is baked haddock with medium marinara sauce.  Tami's...crab meat, whole soft shell crab and sea scallops.  You could eat the entire soft shell crab, which we did, legs and all.  They were kinda crunchy like overdone onion rings.  The scallops...perfect!  The marinara was a little more spicy than I was used to (definitely not RAGU!!! ) but very good!

This was our anniversary cake from Conte...a "Little Debbie" oreo cake cookie with a candle....we felt VERY special!!!

If you ever get to Rockland, ME do not miss this place!!!

Monhegan Island Survey Markers

 While Tami and I were on Monhegan I had a chance to explore the island and it was amazing how many survey markers and benchmarks I found.  A few years back the American Surveyor Magazine had an article about the original? survey of Monhegan Island and it was very interesting...but never in a million years did I think I would actually be on the island, let alone find one of the markers!  The following is a link to the article in the AS (copy/paste     http://www.amerisurv.com/PDF/TheAmericanSurveyor_Falla-MonheganLetters_August2008.pdf )  As I noted in an earlier post...sailors notice ships, readers notice books and bookstores, preachers notice chicken farms...(couldn't resist)...Surveyors notice....survey markers!   Here are the pictures with explanations...

 This was one of the first ones I saw it is a 3/4" smooth rod set in a rock outcrop at the corner of a street.  Since this whole island is one gigantic rock this probably is not uncommon.

 Rebar with plastic cap sticking out of the ground about a foot....probably hit solid rock!  Most of the marker I saw on the island were like this.  However...I did see some on the mainland that were like this so it may be local custom.

 This 5/8" rebar with plastic ID cap was set by Michael D. Falla, Maine PLS2364

 This is a bell monument at the top of the hill near the Monhegan lighthouse.  You can see a brass tri-station mark in the foreground.  Didn't notice this until I published this post but you can also see Tami's shoe in the left side of the photo...

 This tri-station appears to be set by the US Navy.  I couldn't find it in the USGS database.  USGS Station "Monhegan Light", PID OB0378 states:

STATION RECOVERY (2004)
 OB0378
 OB0378'RECOVERY NOTE BY US POWER SQUADRON 2004 (LM)
 OB0378'RECOVERED AS DESCRIBED. ALSO FOUND A STANDARD DISK IN GRANITE LEDGE
 OB0378'APROXIMATELY 80 FT SW OF LIGHT MARKED MON 1961
 

 View from 6'

 The views above and below are of what may be a marker on the line between Lots 4 and 5 (refer to AS article, map on page 5) near where the trail crosses the line leading to the "Seal Ledges" (where...by the way I did see about 20 seals..).  It is a 3/4" smooth bar set in a bore hole and has the appearance of being very old.  You can see how close this marker is to the trail.

The views above and below are of a 5/8" rebar with aluminum ID cap set by Robert C. Clunie, Jr., PLS1213.  Found this on the north end of the island out in the timber near the marker found above

 Plastic ID cap on a 5/8" rebar set by Mark H. Daiute, PLS2129

 1" pipe survey marker

 Another 5/8" rebar with plastic cap.

This is a USCGS benchmark marked "No. 3  1945".  No info about this in the USGS database but according to the info on the cap you can write to the USCGS in Washington DC for it.  This benchmark was about 50 ft from the dock on the north side of the road.

Harvard (or Haavod) Square!

This was a guy playing the guitar in from of one of the cafes.  Purty Good!  Found out from Chris that this is called "busking" and the people are called..."buskers"!

 The offices of Dewey Cheatam & Howe...of "Click and Clack the Tappett Brothers" fame!

 This guy is gettin' down on the trumpet!!

Bertucci's Brick Oven Pizzeria

 This was some outstanding pizza!  Hand tossed and real Italian sausage!

Wasses Hot Dogs! Rockland, ME

I had the everything dog and Tami had the western dog...mmmmm good!!!  We were STARVING when we got off the boat from Monhegan Island, so, we went downtown Rockland ME and had hotdogs at Wasses!  They fry'em in peanut oil and saute the onions that go on the everything dog, along with mustard and relish (mine sans relish...).  Tami's dog had baked beans, ketchup, sauted onions and bacon....Woot!  Look this place up on the net, it is incredible!!

Port Clyde, ME!

View from the dock!

Plymouth Rock

 Our ride to Plymouth...The commuter rail!!  Kingston/Plymouth line, boarded at Braintree station.

 Behind us...The Mayflower II, a replica of the original

The view eastward from Plymouth Rock

 Same view from the top of Coles Hill

 Mayflower II

 Looking southwesterly toward Plymouth Rock

 Tami and I standing aft in the Mayflower II...Yes me hearties, I's pickin' up the talk'o'the sea!  Do you know the difference between aft and stern?  stern and bow?

...and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.  Heb 11:13b  A view of Plymouth Rock and some role playing characters aboard the Mayflower II.

I know that the godless people in our country have tried to rewrite history and portray the pilgrims as money hungry, selfish and narrow-minded with fortune as their only purpose in sailing to the new world...but I choose to believe what I was taught as a child in school and by my parents...because of their vision, I have no fear today of typing a contrary view to the prominent world view today...Thank God for our pilgrim forefathers!