Thanksgiving Weekend in Provincetown

This year we packed up the whole extended family (local branch) and headed to Provincetown at the very tip of Cape Cod, for the Thanksgiving Weekend, splurging on a nice guest inn. In some ways, this was a lunatic mission, since we decided to fix our entire turkey dinner the day before, and pack it all up in coolers and take it with us for Thanksgiving dinner. But it turned out well, and we spent much of the weekend hanging out in front of a fire, and in the hot tub, and walking along the streets and waterfront of Provincetown, and doing our best not to have any consumables left to carry home at the end of the weekend. A fine time.

In the course of our walking, we came across Carver Street, and so of course had to get some pictures. Here are a couple of them.

 

There’s a big tower called the Pilgrim Monument, which—after climbing a lot of stairs—gives a fabulous view of the surrounding town and the end of the Cape.

 

Or it would have  been a fabulous view, if it hadn’t  been raining. Ah well. By the way, the reason there's a Pilgrim's Monument in Provincetown is that that's where the Mayflower Pilgrims landed first. After finding it too inhospitable, they moved on to Plymouth, where they stepped off the boat onto a rock conveniently named Plymouth Rock. Or so the story goes.

Hope you all had a great weekend!

Organic Farming? Or Alien Produce?

Here at the Star Rigger Ranch, we believe strongly in organic farming, especially if someone else is doing the work. In that spirit, Allysen signed us up for a weekly allotment of organic produce through CSA (Community Supported Agriculture). Every week she brings home twice as much produce as we can eat, which encourages us to give. And some of that produce is some kind of weird.

In keeping with the Thanksgiving Feast theme of today, I present to you:

The alien carrot (organic)

The face-sucking alien chard (organic)

Bra-a-a-i-i-ns (organic celeriac)

Alien fractal cauliflower (organic)

And some regular veggies (organic), just to keep us off balance.
But we know what they're up to.

Enjoy your meal!

Happy Thanksgiving!

To everyone in the United States: Happy Thanksgiving! To everyone outside the United States: Happy Thanksgiving, even if you don't know what our holiday is about! Eat! Give thanks! Be merry!

Commas Rule, This July Fourth!

Do commas matter? According to an Ohio Court of Appeals, they do.

As we U.S. Americans celebrate the birth of our democracy today, it’s fitting to celebrate recent court victories on behalf of the common man (and woman)—and common sense. I’m not talking about the Supreme Court ruling in support of same-sex marriage equality, though I celebrate that, as well. I’m talking about the Ohio 12th District Court of Appeals ruling which overturned a West Jefferson, Ohio woman’s ticket-and-tow citation when she left her pickup truck parked on the street overnight.

The reason her truck was towed? A village ordinance makes it illegal to park “any motor vehicle camper, trailer, farm implement and/or non-motorized vehicle” on a street for more than 24 hours.

The woman argued that her truck was not a “motor vehicle camper,” and should not have been towed. The trial court ruled that the ordinance meant to say, “motor vehicle, camper, trailer, etc.” and that the missing comma was just a typo.

No way, said the Court of Appeals. If your meaning requires a comma, you need to put the comma in. We’re not responsible for your careless writing. Yay! Let’s hear it for clear writing, I say!

You can read the whole story in the Washington Post, which seems to have rereported it from the Columbus Dispatch.

Now, if I could just collect a fine every time I caught the Boston Globe mangling grammar, spelling, or punctuation (as opposed to “grammar spelling, or punctuation”). It would probably cover the cost of my subscription.

A special tip of the hat today to copy editors everywhere!

 

Happy Easter, 2015!

Whether you celebrate the day as a holiday of faith, or a holiday of chocolate bunnies and jelly beans, or both—have a beautiful day!

This picture from Muir National Monument seems to fit the occasion.

Merry Christmas! And Have a Great Day!

Here’s wishing you all a wonderful Christmas, and a totally blessed day whether you celebrate Christmas or not! 

On our tree, the dragon and angel ornaments have each other’s backs. This is as it should be.

Enjoy your holidays, everyone!