Postcard to Self

Cap't Cass Seafood, Rock Harbor, Orleans. It closed during the pandemic; a new owner is remodeling it. Can't wait to get another clam roll. Photo by Meggy. Check capecodchronicle.com for "New Owner Eyes Spring Reopening For Cap’t Cass Restaurant."

The view from Salt Pond Visitor Center terrace. A tonic.

With Meggy at the Audubon.

Ornithologist James at the 8:30 a.m. bird banding program.

Highland Light, Truro. Photo by Meg.

Dear Present and Future Alice,

You had a great time this week. You drove to the Cape with Sis in her Connecticut car. As the promised land came closer, you looked for cranberry bogs to the right, on Route 6 East. Each mile driven was another measure away from drama and fear over teen struggles. You filled your lungs, unclenched your heart and breathed. Dan was good to hold down the fort for five days; school was in session.

Meg and Greg came from Vermont. You all took so many walks. You had two dinners at home (Meg made jambalaya and Sis, chicken with lemon, shallots and kale) and ate two dinners out. You enjoyed calm companionship and conversation.

You put your feet in the sea, let the water swirl around. You stood tall. Your gaze held steady on the horizon. You picked up a rock tumbled by the waves and a broken clam shell, souvenirs. Broken shells are better because they are real, like imperfect life. Jagged maybe, but still beautiful.

The pink and white salt spray roses smelled sweet. How resilient they are, how plucky. Blooming by the rugged sea, thriving by saltwater, churning and rough. Honeysuckle perfumed the air on the paths. You saw old touchstones from childhood. Coast Guard Beach. Salt Pond Visitor Center, with that hidden, unchanged museum. Scrimshaw and a whaling captain's top hat, recordings of Wampanoag stories, an empty wooden cradle, a primitive bicycle. Memories of Cape Codders gone by.

Now, home. You can't pour from an empty cup, the young DBT therapist, E., said this morning before starting a telehealth appointment with Punch. You had mentioned your time away, and E. had approved.

The bathroom mirror. You looked in the bathroom mirror up there on the Cape, where you have sought the truth and judged your beauty since age 19, when the house was new. Then, no makeup. Now, mandatory concealer and brow pencil. Mascara. Then, longer hair. Now, shorter, and colored. Skin crinkles. It's okay. It's all okay. The secret to beauty is accepting yourself.

You saw yourself there as a young mother and wife, with Dan and Figgy. All the things you did with them. Your short white nightgown with thin straps and scattered flowers, you turning the faucet, adding the bubbles, filling the tub for Fig so she could drift to sleep clean and fresh. Then Punch as a restless baby, never tired. Dad, of course. Friends and their children.

Already, less than 24 hours back home, the stress meter is up. Problems don't vanish. You're not saying that out of self-pity, or for sympathy, only out of self-truth. But you do not have to amp up the stress.

Remember your cup. Remember to fill it. 

Love, Alice, age 62

Selfie.

Ranger-led lecture on lobsters.

Meggy, dear friend and roommate from Douglass College, with her camera.

Sis looks good in that hat!

This Is 30 Years: Just the Two of Us for a Beach Day

In Maui on our 1991 honeymoon, I chose two souvenirs: Chic golden sandals from a fancy hotel boutique and a miniature glittery, golden pineapple from a plantation for the linked charm bracelet Dan gave me for Valentine’s Day, three days before our wedding. Today, at our 30th anniversary dinner in the time of Covid, we purchased the waterproof foldable guide above from the restaurant gift shop as our memory touchstone. That, and our delicious seafood meal (a splurge, counting appetizers and tip) will be enough. Nature is a big part of the joy and marveling Dan and I share.

Can’t believe it’s 30 years since we got married (Sunday, February 17, 1991).

We’ve been wanting to get away overnight, but it didn’t work out with the pandemic, frequent snow and high Airbnb prices....and life....so we drove to the beach today...to Sandy Hook. It’s just a one-hour car ride.

Want to get to sleep....THAT’S what #30 is like...trying to go to bed at the same time, with our books.

So a BULLET LIST of goodness today:

• Our sandwiches from home, wrapped in tin foil.
• No entry fee (off-season).
• The lighthouse at Sandy Hook, built in 1764, amazing. Longest running lighthouse in the United States. Soaring, sturdy tower, red and white. Lamp, originally fueled by whale oil, now electrified.
• A mom with her little girl (age 2 or 3) and the girl’s pink tricycle.
• The older kids with their moms....I plan to take Punch/Skippy and a friend back there one day soon. It’s a living classroom, water lapping to shore.
• Signs of World War I and World War II U.S. Army occupation and officers’ life, right in the cove of Sandy Hook. The “Officers’ Row” houses were built around 1798. So sturdy, still standing. How many storms have they withstood? We saw ammunition (torpedo shapes?), lookouts/fortresses over the water, the old Officers’ Club and the chapel, which was used by the whole base.
• Deer, hawks, sunshine, bird nests, old trees, bike trail, people out walking.
• Dinner at Bahrs in Highlands, New Jersey (“Famous for Seafood Since 1917”). We didn’t plan to eat inside; have not done so during the pandemic. But the manager let us sit in an area off by itself, still with a pretty water view.
• Dan’s Wellfleet Oysters, my crabmeat-stuffed flounder. Warm biscuits. Beet salad. Cloth napkins. Small, silver-tone coffeepot on table.
• Our second honeymoon souvenir: Tidepools of the North Atlantic folding pocket guide. I love this guide series and have Shells of the New England Coast on the kitchen counter, to remind me of Cape Cod, where I bought it, and help transport me there in my mind. This evening in the gift shop, it was tidepools, owls or common bees. I think I made the best choice.
• THE OCEAN. But too cold and windy to sit on the beach. I dragged my chair on with Dan, sat a couple minutes, quickly retreated to car with him.
• THE TRIGGERED BEACH MEMORY of little, walking Figgy (age 2?) in her aqua terrycloth Gap dress; she did not want to step on the sand. The beach must have seemed so foreign to her, like another land. Shaky underfoot, not dependable or known. Dan had to carry her over to our beach blanket. “She was so timid,” he said with a smile today. “I love her so much."
• BEACH MEMORY of Asbury Park with Fig and Punchy. The memory of that, about seven years ago, took on a new spin in my eyes now. Her context for past life melding with new life.
• NEW YORK CITY on the horizon. Striking, remarkable.
• TALKING ABOUT LIFE AND AFTERLIFE AND PHILOSOPHY on the car ride home.

Above, the guide I keep on the kitchen counter: https://www.foldingguides.com/product/shells-and-beach-life-of-the-new-england-coast/

Good night, sleep well.

Such Luxury of Time

I'm so happy my friend Anne and I took this girls' trip. I qualify this Anne as my friend because, well, IDK, but my Mom spelled her name Anne and Figgy's real name is Anne.

We spent about $125 each per night ($245 each, total), counting taxes and fees, for this Airbnb stay at the Rugosa Guest House in Eastham. I would highly recommend this place. In season, of course, the rates for this spacious suite would be higher. It includes two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a deep tub with water jets and a small deck with table and chairs. 

In early October, I received a press email from Gayle Conran of ConranPR regarding the "Annual Monumental Yard Sale" in Provincetown this weekend. Anne loves yard sales. I knew she would literally drive to the end of the earth to get to this one, and I was right. Ptown is where the land meets the sea.

Fun today:

• A morning shower with my Twilly d'Hermes Body Shower Cream.
• Coming across Sarah Kain Dresses on Commercial Street in Ptown! The designer upcycles fabrics...I bought a beautiful scarf (red velvet one side, mauve fabric the other, with fringe trim) and a dress she sewed from vintage denim.
• Good coffee.
• Pretty views.
• Nap.
• Walk along beach in Provincetown.
• Exploring the Jewelry Studio of Wellfleet. where two sisters polish their craft. Gorgeous silver and gold, sea glass, turquoise, miniature Wellfleet oyster charms. Browsing, just browsing.
• Checking out every T-shirt on God's green earth so Anne could get some for her husband and kids (and one for herself, which she loves, a Mac's Seafood one with a mask on the fish.) I didn't mind a bit. No rush, pure fun. Where Anne seeks out bargains and stylish tees, I seek out velvet scarves and vintage dresses.
• Chose cute gift for Figgy! at Utilities, a kitchen/home shop I will definitely revisit!!!!!!!!
• Steamed Chinese food for dinner. Lots of vegs.
• Continued chatfest with Anne.
• Lovely audio text from Punchy! Lovely calls and texts from Dan, Figgy, Sis. Even when we stray from home, it's nice to be grounded.

Good night. We head home tomorrow at noon. But Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary before that, and last stop at Hot Chocolate Sparrow!!!

This Is Why I Love Cape Cod--a story on Medium

 

5 Top Secrets of Cape Cod Beauty All Year Long

Alice Garbarini Hurley

Oct 9 · 3 min read

Now more than ever, wide open spaces mean so much. Follow this Cape Cod nature map, from the old bird blind to the the boardwalk that crosses over the salt marsh to the water’s edge. Image* from HERE.

1. Highway to heaven. The journey is a key part of the trip — there’s gold in those paths you ride to the Cape, leaving everyday life farther and farther behind in your rearview mirror. Look for cranberry bogs on Route 6 East, the big canal glittering under the Bourne Bridge, Cape Codspelled out in trimmed shrubbery when you land on the other side. Behold the rotaries (traffic circles). Point your car east for Provincetown, the very tip of the Cape, where the land meets the sea.
2. Old magic. My parents took a honeymoon road trip to the Cape from New York City in June 1951. Much of the sandy spot remains unchanged. Lighthouses that guided sea captains still dot the coast, though the beacons are now automated, and many have been moved back (very carefully) from perches on eroding dunes. Storybook windmills stand on village greens — one in Eastham dates to 1680. Are you into buried treasure? John F. Kennedy Jr. did a 1985 dive into the old Whydah shipwreck, a pirate vessel captained by badass Sam Bellamy. It went down in 1717, with all hands on deck (nearly 150 people), and a lot of silver and gold. Visit West Yarmouth or Ptown to see some of the loot.
3. Seaside history. Your car might hold five people holding modern devices, but you will pass historic highway signs (Entering Eastham, inc. 1651) and houses where oceangoing whalers once lived. My husband, Dan, even stumbled upon an ancient tree bearing rare snow-white apples behind the Captain Penniman House, built by a famous whaler in 1868. We hoisted our girl, age 12, up in our arms to search for the elusive fruit.
4. Nature walks. About 150 years back, the land at the Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary was farmed for turnips, asparagus and salt hay — now walk its quiet, pine needle-padded trails, looking for turtles and frogs in the ponds. Marconi Beach, with a sweeping view of the Outer Cape, has a trail that feels prehistoric, slicing through a stunted oak and pine forest and the Atlantic White Cedar Swamp.
5. Timely and timeless conveniences. Remote as it is, the Cape’s WiFi is now up to speed. But you can still order “slow” food — old-fashioned cranberry walnut kettle fudge, for example — on your fast smartphone and pick it up at the Hot Chocolate Sparrow in Orleans. Or, as Patti Page sang in “Old Cape Cod,” her 1957 golden hit, “If you like the taste of a lobster stew, served by a window with an ocean view,” sit down at a restaurant (or a seafood shack, for a warm lobster roll).

*I wish I knew the name of the talented mapmaker--that's my beloved Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary pictured above--so I could credit her or him. If you know, please LMK.

Please note: I had live links on the Medium story, but they didn't pop up here. For #2, check https://www.nps.gov/articles/whydah.htm. For #4, see  https://www.massaudubon.org/get-outdoors/wildlife-sanctuaries/wellfleet-bay/about/trails

Alice Garbarini Hurley first went with her family to Cape Cod at age 4, sitting between her parents in a white Ford Falcon while her three older siblings were squished in the back seat. Her writing has appeared in Coastal Living, InStyle and Good Housekeeping. She has blogged daily for more than 10 years at Truth and Beauty.

• Cape Cod
• Massachusetts
• Family
• Nature
• Nature Trails

Good Night to--

1. Perfect weather on a silver platter.
2. A drive past verdant green and blue marshland.
3. First squiggle of sunscreen for 2020.
4. The boardwalk.
5. A short walk at the beach and a rest in the sand when I drove down to Atlantic City to deliver Punchy to her young Mimi and Poppy. A few people wore masks, most did not. We had ours around our necks.
6. Old Atlantic City--a monument to soldiers, memories of Miss America, ornate architecture, South Jersey accents, saltwater taffy, breezes that whisper of grander days gone by.
7. Finding seashells for Sis, Dan, Fig and me--3 sun-bleached white clams, 1 small perfectly edged gray-blue scallop.
8. Soft sand.
9. Kids [two brothers and a sister] digging w pail and shovel, burying the big brother.
10. Passing the Pinelands on the Parkway. I want to go back there soon; it's been years.
11. Hawks slicing through the sky.
12. Memories of old friends and beach days all along the drive, from the Atlantic City Expressway to exit 172. 
13. "The New Yorker Radio Hour" from 6 to 7 pm.
14. Dinner w Sis and 2 friends.
15. Going to sleep in Connecticut, Buttercup snuggled tightly by my hip. Sis and I will go out on the water tomorrow--a private tour on Captain Bobby’s fishing boat.

Until tomorrow. Xx

To the Ocean to Reset

Beautiful Asbury Park image from tripsavvy.com.

Sis drove from Connecticut with her sweet little dog, Buttercup, and then Sug and I drove down to the Shore with them in Sis's Chevy Malibu.

The ocean is bigger than us, bigger than our worries. We went to Asbury Park, loved seeing old Convention Hall, the boardwalk, etc. Then past Ocean Grove, through Avon-by-the-Sea, Bradley Beach, Belmar, Spring Lake.

When we left Montclair, it was sunny and warm. By the time we pulled away from Spring Lake, it was gray and cold. The Spring Lake dream houses looked pretty, as always--perfect sky-blue and white, sea-blue and white, the landscaping manicured, with perfectly rounded shrubs, carefully edged lawns. No shaggy trims allowed.

Good night.

TCOY

1. Walked by ocean with Sis, Buttercup, Sug.
2. Talkied to Sis. "Look forward," she said.
3. Helpful phone call.
4. Women's group tonight. Grace. Gratitude. Goodness.

$ MONEY SPENT OUT OF POCKET

• Booskerdoo Coffee + Baking Co. in Asbury Park--my new friend Linda's daughter and son--in-law roast their own beans and Amelia bakes and they now have 6 locations! Got large cold brew and bag of Black & Tan coffee beans, plus tip, about $16
• Italian food shop, Sis and I shared a chicken cutlet sandwich and I bought a box of whole ravioli with vegetable filling to bring home....it said non-dairy so I figured great, vegan for Figgy, but after I was gone, I saw whole egg on ingredient list, about $21.
• Spring Lake, bag of nice roasted cashews from chocolate shop, $3.

Total daily spend: $40.

Ongoing monthly spend as of Feb. 24: $1,996.30.

Avg daily spend: $83.18.

Working Hard, Even in Newport

Writers who have laptop/will travel--it's both a blessing and a curse.

Nice to be in Newport but just had to work for 3 hours, from 8 pm to 11 pm, to write/edit a magazine story.

It's okay. I'm grateful I have a skill I can take with me wherever I go.

Sis is a member of the New York Yacht Club. She was/is a good sailor in her own right, but her membership is as the widow of her husband, Don, who died two years ago. For many years before that, women were barred from membership.

Don was a big deal as a sailor. He grew up in Chicago and joined the New York club in 1972. It's hard to get in. The club in NYC has a reciprocal relationship with the New York Yacht Club here in Newport, in an historic mansion right on the harbor. Sis said Don's son, Charles, and his friend sailed up to this Yacht Club from Connecticut when they were 17. Right up to the dock. Wow! Such a different youth than our humbler one.

It was pretty to sit outside with our drinks and watch the sun setting, the bridge lights twinkling. I asked the bartender, and he said the most popular cocktail is the Dark and Stormy. Of course it is.

It was lovely to dine inside...white tablecloths; many utensils arranged around your plate left, right and top; Yacht Club china pattern; an elegant atmosphere with mantels and wood paneling. I loved the look of the older couple to our right, maybe in their 80s but she was still so pretty, blonde, black eyeliner, young eyes, in a tightly fitting long-sleeved, midnight-black blouse with lace sleeves, visible after she shrugged off her Lilly pink jacket in a ladylike way....he was wearing a navy blazer and khakis..she reached out and took his hand after dinner and they sat that way for a while.

To our left, I overheard a couple talking about their latest race, how it went and that they should have a party for the crew in January or February.

And no money was exchanged. Sis signed a piece of paper and will be billed in the mail.

It's a different world and I loved stepping into it. No cell phones allowed inside.

Good night.

$ MONEY SPENT OUT OF POCKET

• Flo's Clam Shack (since 1936). I gave Sis $15 cash toward bill. $15.

TOTAL DAILY SPEND: $15.

Ongoing spend for month as of October 13: $969.64.
Average daily spend: $74.59. 

COMPARE TO TWO PRIOR MONTHS:

TOTAL SPEND FOR SEPTEMBER (30 DAYS): $2,214.43.🍎⬇️

AVERAGE DAILY SPEND: $73.81.🍎⬇️

TOTAL SPEND FOR AUGUST (31 DAYS): $2,895.06. ⬆️

AUGUST AVERAGE DAILY SPEND: $93.39.  ⬆️

Slice of Heaven in the Hamptons: Monday & Tuesday Catch-up

Electricity was back on by about 1 p.m. yesterday [tree fell around 7 p.m. the night before, and it was very hot and very hard to sleep] but internet still out and I haven't been in town to post. I was cleaning my office for hours again today. It feels good.

Yesterday was my annual day-trip to the Hamptons, the one I do when Punch is on an extended summer visit with Mimi. Dan came one year, but usually prefers not to do 3 hours one way and then turn around and come back. He stays behind and works.

For me, the sunset over Road D Beach in Southampton is just so beautiful. I feel like I am touching heaven, or seeing what it would be like. I can't put my cell phone down, for the camera. Everywhere I turn, another expanse of beauty. Pinks, purples, oranges, blues.....as I told a couple of women friends tonight, I want to tap into this striking beauty when dealing with complicated or trying issues. I need a well to tap into so my spirit does not run dry.

I also love exploring and observing in Southampton....the fancy stores, the history, the people. Too late, in the dark of night, I discovered the Gretchen Scott store on Jobs Lane, with a 30 percent sale in the window. Those colors and styles, so pretty.

Not that I had money to spend there, but I like to take the lay of the land, see things in person, touch them, gauge how sizes run.

Did not know that back home, one of my writing paychecks and one of Dan's had both arrived in the mail basket. It's ok!

Punchy comes back to us tomorrow eve.

TCOY

1. Cleaning my office, sorting, tossing things.
2. Seeing my slice of heaven at the edge of Southampton. Standing with my feet in the ocean waves as the sun streaked the sky all around me.
3. Blowout scheduled for tomorrow morning. And then I'm going into NYC to explore some work options. Can't live in my flip flops forever, though it is fun.

$ MONEY SPENT OUT OF POCKET MONDAY & TUESDAY

MONDAY

• Gasoline for drive to Hamptons, $20.
• George Washington Bridge toll, since our E-ZPass bill was late; paid cash, $15. That's one expensive bridge toll but also one majestic, important bridge.
• Garden State Parkway tolls, about $3.50.
• Tate's Bake Shop, one chocolate cupcake and one large iced coffee, about $7.
• The Golden Pear in Southampton, lunch plus jar tip, about $17.50.
• Second Nature health food store on Main Street, Hu coffee beans to bring home a taste of my trip and Dr. Hauschka lip care stick, which I love, about $31.
• Carvel, before long ride home at 9 p.m., small soft vanilla cone plus topping, $6 plus tip, $7. Pricey.

TUESDAY/TODAY

ZERO!

TOTAL DAILY SPEND: $101.
TOTAL MONTHLY SPEND AS OF AUGUST 20: $2,192.75.

AVERAGE DAILY SPEND FOR MONTH SO FAR: $109.63.

[I added in all Cape and travel days now.]

Punch was on Cape for 10 days with us, but then followed by 10 days with Mimi in North Carolina,
Atlantic City etc. So I should try to bring our bill down until she returns Thursday. It is spiking high with Cape Cod spends.

Hot, big-money spends in August, or how I spent our bread:

🥖 Health food store in Southampton, Dr. H. lip balm and Hu coffee beans, $31.

🥖 La Couronne, Montclair, dinner to go for Dan and me while watching Saturday night movie, $66.

🥖 Cafe Giotto, Montclair, dinner w Elaine, my part with tip, $53.

🥖Fill gas tank twice on Cape Cod, $46 x 2= $92.
🥖Idle Times bike shop rental for Punch from noon Saturday until 5 p.m. Sunday, $31.
🥖T.J. Maxx, four designer dresses, Adidas sneakers, knock-off lightweight Burberry scarf, Olga bra, Lauren pillow, shorts, etc. etc., $338.

🥖Pizza+/fancyish restaurant dinner with Punch after swimming in pond in Brewster until after 7 p.m., $77.

🥖Mac's Market & Kitchen, lobster, clams, kale salad, mango salsa and other Sunday dinner ingredients, $53.

🥖Brewster bakery, including cookbook I somehow lost, maybe a message from God because it was packed with recipes for sweets, $25.
🥖2 Massachusetts mugs, one for Cape and one for home, $28.
🥖Commando.com, black half-slip, $65.
🥖Arnold's Lobster & Clam Bar, fried clam belly basket plus tip, $30.
🥖Pure Vita, the new CBD [not for me] and natural home care store with essential-oil bar and pretty pineapple throw pillow case for Cape house, votive candles, seaweed/lavender bath sachets, $52.
🥖Stop & Shop, Cape groceries, $29 + $40 + $52=$121.
🥖Lobster roll supper with P. at Adams Lodge in Wellfleet, $32.
🥖Eastham info booth, pink sweatshirt, $30.
🥖Mass Audubon annual family membership, $65.
🥖Sunbird breakfast sandwich w citrus mayonnaise on grilled ciabatta plus expensive coffee beans from, of all places, Portland, Maine, plus tip, $27.

🥖Audubon gift shop, small turtle rug for home; bird gift for Figgy; goat milk body wash; Bee Boss Body Balm, which I love for lips, too; small owl wall calendar for family, with member discount, $88. 
🥖Vineyard Vines, candy-pink gingham skort, orig $98, now on sale for $68.99, plus shipping, $79.
🥖Mac’s Market & Kitchen, lobster, scallops, salmon, lemon, cornbread square, crackers, $49.

COMPARISON SHOPPING. That long Cape Cod vacay in August really drove the numbers up so far.

TOTAL SPEND FOR MONTH OF JULY [STARTING JULY 5; I LOST A FEW DAYS THERE]: $1,610.81. 👛 🎯 ⬇️
JULY AVERAGE DAILY SPEND: $59.66!  👛 🎯 ⬇️

TOTAL SPEND FOR MONTH OF MAY: $2,348.24.

MAY AVERAGE DAILY SPEND: $75.75. 

TOTAL SPEND FOR MONTH OF APRIL: $3,634.28.

APRIL AVERAGE DAILY SPEND: $121.14.

Eye on Atlantic City

Vintage image from truejersey.com.

In the 1970s, Sis went to Atlantic City on an overnight trip--she was a member of the Junior Women's Club and the girls attended the Women's Club convention at the resort destination.

She is my big sister, seven years older. This exciting venture must have loomed large in our sometimes dull Dumont lives. Sis brought back a toenail clipper for Dad, with a white enamel inset that read ATLANTIC CITY. Dad had it til his death; we don't know what became of it.

I first went during college or over the summer. My long-time boyfriend, Jeff, lived with his family a few exits from A.C. His brother worked at the Golden Nugget Casino.

I remember us being with Jeff's brother in his car, the casinos lit up on our left on the Atlantic City Expressway, cutting a swath through swaying sea grass. The towers looked glittery and glamorous, bright night lights.

Also: Back in the early 1980s, casino buses ran from North Jersey. I caught one in the next town, Bergenfield, and was dropped off about 2 1/2 hours later. Each of us then went inside to the cashier, past the slot machines and tables, and received a roll of quarters, theoretically to feed the slots. I can't remember if that meant I broke even on my ticket price or made a profit. But I took the roll and met Jeff for a ride the rest of the way to his house.

Flash forward to the late 1980s, when Dan and I were dating. He was often booked with a popular party planning company named Le Clique, which provided a busload of colorful entertainment--including Dan, the 60-Second Novelist--at New Year's Eve parties for high rollers. One year, he took the party bus down early to work the event and I drove the Garden State Parkway from my apartment in Ocean Grove in time for midnight.....at which point I saw the Le Clique troupe dancing in a conga line. Dan was the one in the gorilla suit. 🦍

Now...my overnight stay with Punch this week at her Mimi's condo unit...formerly a hotel.

Notes:

• Saltwater taffy still a big attraction--those pretty, beachy colors and flavors like orange, mint and vanilla. But now you can also get it dipped in dark chocolate and wrapped in colored foil instead of traditional waxed paper. I didn't try; wanted just one, not a pack. The counterperson at Steel's Fudge explained that the other location had some by the piece but the boardwalk location didn't. It's really hard to make, she said. It must be, dunking sticky taffy in melted chocolate. 
• Red Atlantic City lifeguard hoodies. Mimi got one of the sweatshirts for Punch at a boardwalk shop for about $15. She has been living in it.
• Cornhole. 🌽 I'm not sure I ever played this before. But it was a throwback to simpler times and I liked tossing the bean bags in the hole on the boardwalk at Biergarten, team me/Mimi against Poppy/Punch. We creamed them. Then two men in their early 30s--plastic beer cups in hand and visiting from Westchester, NY--played Mimi and Punch.
• Seagulls. Punch liked seeing them when we walked on the beach, and so did I. I also liked hearing them at night before drifting into restful sleep.
• Restaurants. Big draw here. A lot of sushi, upscale Asian....plus raw oysters, shellfish towers and famous restaurants like Carmine's.
• Entertainment. Names up in lights. Diana Ross will be in A.C. June 29 for Diamond Diana Tour.

That's it for now. Punchy home sick from school today, as if a 10-day spring break [counting weekends] wasn't enough. She threw up once and was up for hours in the middle of the night, so I kept her home. Now, of course, she seems fine.

I have to fit in a source interview and write article today.....

Punchy and I made this Two-Cheese Pasta with Cauliflower. P. grated the aged Provolone and the Pecorino Romano and cut the garlic clove [it was supposed to stay whole, but that's ok]. We made some vegan, too, with mock smoked Provolone cheese. Figgy just said Ummmmm!

Enjoy your day.

TOTAL DAILY SPEND: ZERO. TRAPPED IN HOUSE WITH PUNCH.

MONTHLY SPEND AS OF APRIL 29: $3,526.72.
AVERAGE DAILY SPEND SO FAR THIS MONTH: $121.61.

Big-ticket April spends so far [numbers rounded off], 29 days into the month:

Lamp, $79; luxe hand cream, $55; Giotto dinner to go + jar of imported Italian artichokes, $46; dog groomer/beauty salon, $75; vet for hamster, $157; necklace extension/repair/new clasp, $128; blowout, $55; Over the Moon, bday gifts for Punch friend + book for me, $60; Kings groceries, $132; liquor store, $32; bra/underwear/tights, $126; Joyist, $39 one day while working on assignments there; second blowout w service tips, $52; Punchy, Lululemon, $28; Justice, bday gifts and gift bag/pink tissue for Punch friend + shorts for Punch + $2 donation at register, $58; Kings groceries, $63; Joyist, $25 one day while working on deadlines; bike delivery, $35; Whole Foods, $69; CVS & Kings, Easter gifts/basket treats [counting lemon curd for tarts], $97; zoo day and lunch, spring break, $42; A.C. apps + drinks, treat Mimi & Poppy, $85; A.C. pretty lilac drape-neck top, $49; A.C. breakfast, treat Mimi + Poppy, $55; A.C. Skechers flip-flops, $35; A.C. sushi dinner, split bill, $52; Sis bday cards + gift, $35; Joyist, counting body oil, $71; Williams-Sonoma, gifts plus, $55; Kings, Sis bday lunch of caviar/blini/lox/small layer cake etc., $113; and Whole Foods, a lot of groceries, including scallops and lox, $201. Steep subtotal of $2,204.

MONEY THOUGHTS: I could have bought stuff online today! Chocolate, makeup, clothing. I'm glad I didn't. This accountability helps.

keeping my eye on

SO FAR: TOTAL APRIL SPEND OUT OF POCKET: $3,526.72.

MY TOTAL MARCH SPEND OUT OF POCKET: $4,128.41.

TOTAL FEBRUARY SPEND OUT OF POCKET: $3,159.25.

Top 10: Navigating the Cape in March

Look how pretty. I drove from Eastham to Highland Light in North Truro with Dad and young Figgy
when it was being moved back from the eroding coast. Anne and I
saw it in the dark tonight, with the supermoon hanging close and bright. PHOTO LINK.

I'm getting sick, but Anne packed Tylenol. I don't like getting sick up here--especially since we only have three days/two nights. I also don’t want to give my friend the unwanted gift of a cold.

We leave our cottage on Bayberry Lane tomorrow by 8:30 a.m. I guess I shouldn't be surprised to feel feverish, since at Punchy's bday sleepover Saturday night, one of the girls had chills and shivers, a sore throat and a fever of 101. Her Dad had to come get her.

Anyway, we had a great day and had nice treats and saw so much beauty:

1. Sunbird in Orleans for breakfast....Anne had been there, but I never had...I liked the coconut milk steamer with turmeric and ginger. I've heard a lot about golden milk, but this was my first taste.
2. Another thrift shop....Anne loves thrift shops....I got 3 books.
3. Very short walk on bike path, just because we were near it.
4. Hot Chocolate Sparrow.....my pal is true to her Frozen Mocha Sparrow...I got a pound of single origin Ethiopian beans for my French press; a gift for Sis; and a bag of pink-foil-wrapped dark chocolate hearts for my girls. I want to get Dan something.
5. Best.lobster.roll.ever at Mac's Seafood on Route 6 in Eastham. Six ounces of tender meat picked from the shell, served warm, on buttered brioche roll with lemon wedge to squeeze. SOOOO good. I asked the young man who made it about the popularity of the classic mayo-style vs this buttery lobster roll and he said the mayo one is much more popular here. Not for me!
6. The Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary! Peace, nature, fresh air, birdsong, pine-needle-strewn paths, large turtles basking in the sun. Plump turkeys hogging at the bird feeders. Our whole ritual of checking in at the desk as proud members, quickly scanning the gift shop inventory, looking for wildlife on the trails.
7. A Truro bay beach where you climb up the sandy bluff and then down, and can see the hook of the Cape narrowing and extending right to Provincetown, Pilgrim Tower and all. #amazing perspective
8. Farm stand outside a house on our drive back...one dozen Wellfleet eggs [shells are pale blue, brown and white], $7. Wood box to pay by honor system. I look forward to eating the eggs at home.
9. Tonight, the supermoon...brighter and closer....we drove to see it at Highland Light, the old lighthouse, and also at Long Nook Beach...pretty moonlight shimmering on the water...
10. We love this cottage, such a great price in March of $94 per night, but would cost a lot in season, since Truro is high on the desired list....We only paid $140 each for total stay, including $60 cleaning fee and $31.99 service fee. The cottage has everything, from tea bags to clean towels....I opened my bedroom window to breathe the air through the screen.

$ MONEY SPENT OUT OF POCKET

• Sunbird, delicious bacon and egg breakfast sandwich and $1 jar tip, $9.56.
• Sunbird, ginger-turmeric steamer to go, $4.82 and $1.18 jar tip, $6.
• Thrift shop, 3 books, $3.
• Hot Chocolate Sparrow, coffee beans plus gifts for Sis and girls, about $33.50.
• Cottage Street Bakery, Monster Bar [oats, PB, choc chips--small portion] plus $1 jar tip, $4.05. 
• Mac's Seafood, lobster roll, $22.99, and container of excellent kale salad, $27.38 plus $1 jar tip, $28.38.
• Dozen Cape Cod eggs from farm stand, $7.
• My half of fee for two nights in cottage, $140.

DAILY TOTAL: $231.49.

RUNNING TOTAL FOR MONTH AS OF MARCH 20: $3245.81.

SO FAR, THAT'S AN AVERAGE DAILY SPEND OF: $162.29.

MONEY THOUGHT: Nature is free, and a top lobster roll is priceless. Splurge. Yum. [They have 4 or 6 oz. version; I got the larger one.] Renting a house or hotel costs money, but going off-season is great.

Palm Beach Playland

Sis & me on Worth Avenue today at 1:30 p.m.

Note the beautiful bougainvillea.

Ta-boo Restaurant has been a star-studded favorite since 1941. [JFK ate here.]
Pretty wicker chairs and glam ceiling lights! The Bloody Mary was said to be invented here.

The public beach, a glorious gift,
all wrapped up in clouds and rolling blue waves.

Please forgive my formatting on this hotel biz center computer!
Oh, Palm Beach. Quite the opposite of my beloved, rustic Cape Cod, with its
 scrubby pines,
towering dunes and lighthouses that dot the shifting, hook-shaped coast.

No, Palm Beach is privileged, polished and very, very pretty. Birthplace
of fresh-squeezed
 Lilly Pulitzer colors, still visible on the women passing on the sidewalks
and on the mannequins in the shop windows.
The melons, lime greens, true sailor blues.

My Sis--who was in the Peace Corps for two years in Western Samoa and
does not tend toward the frivolous--agreed to spend our Sunday there.
I had been there only once, on an afternoon with Dan a few years ago,
and never forgot the beauty, the tall,
sculpted privacy hedges, the stunning beach, the hot pink bougainvillea.

I drove our little silver Thrifty rental car 1 hour and 15 minutes from the
Miami Airport area....and felt like I was on a raceway. These Miami drivers
don't fool around. But as I learned on long drives with Dad, these
 times in the car
are important, golden hours to talk and reminisce.

First stop [after nabbing free street parking up to 2 hours on Worth Avenue]
was a
 luxe restaurant I will be writing about for the
ASPIRE DESIGN AND HOME website.
We sat and sipped and sampled and talked. It was lovely.

Then we walked around...most stores were closed, it being Sunday
 afternoon and off-season, but not Stubbs and Wootton. We admired
embroidered slippers that started at about $500 a pair for women, $525
 for men.
We did not buy them.

We liked the vias, the quiet courtyards, the window shopping.

Then we headed for the public beach. Siri helped us find it. It was
 so lovely.
We are so lucky to have ocean water in our veins, along with blood.
Our parents took their 1951 honeymoon road trip to Cape Cod,
New Hampshire
 and Maine, and then took their four kids in the white Ford Falcon
to summer
 weeks on the Cape or days in the Rockaways. They loved the water.
 So do we.

You can't help but be moved when your eyes settle on that sea, that rolling,
 moving beauty.

Well, I've been down in this hotel business center for a while.
The most time-consuming part was downloading the photos from my
 iPhone--and now this disastrous formatting and ragged line breaks!
That's not Palm Beach perfect!
Sis is upstairs in the room, and I will go up now.

Signing off thankful for the beauty we saw today and for my
 generous sister,
 who treated me to this four-day, three-night trip!!!! She leaves from
 Miami
Wednesday for a weeklong tour of Cuba.

Good night to you.