The weekend has turned out to be more exciting than I expected. We started our Cambridge Pantry report operation on Saturday and Sunday afternoon, just about halfway there. We’ve replenished the list from 12 items to seven. Seven inexpensive options remain, from $1.67 for Salad D … | Continue reading

Last week, the demand for food support was so overwhelming that it completely depleted the Cambridge Food Pantry Wish List. In response, I proposed a holiday weekend service to replenish the shelves, prompting me to act swiftly. Most of us are familiar with the items; they are th … | Continue reading

Good news and bad news. This week, a record crowd of families came to the Cambridge Food Pantry, but they removed every item on the Cambridge Pantry Wish List from the shelves. They need everything on the list now. I’m thinking of a watch-the-list shrink contest through Monday. T … | Continue reading

Today, as the pantry prepared for more families needing goods—the crowd was enormous—Sarah introduced me to the Cambridge Food Pantry’s newest and youngest volunteer: Ava, a 10th grader at Cambridge Central School. She was excited to be there. “It’s a beautiful cause,” she said. … | Continue reading

Every day, Sarah Harrington,  our esteemed director at the Cambridge Food Pantry, tirelessly seeks ways for us to contribute easily, swiftly, and economically. She’s a master at spotting bargains in the vast realm of Amazon, ensuring the pantry shelves are stocked as the demand f … | Continue reading

We had lunch at a local restaurant yesterday. They gave us a lot of potato chips with our sandwiches. Neither of us eats potato chips, but Maria loves to wrap them up,  take them home, and feed them to the chickens and donkeys. Food never gets thrown out here. Of course, we forgo … | Continue reading

I decided to take my Iphone 15  PRO Max out of my pocket and out to the fresh air this afternoon. I love shooting flowers in the morning, as I started doing two years ago; the Leica cameras have crowded the scene a bit. What hat works best is using all three: the Iphone, The […] | Continue reading

Today was the kind of day my grandmother would have called a “Farplontern” Day. I loved hearing the Yiddish she spoke, but I only remember a few words. ‘Farplontern’ was one of my favorites; it means having a wild, up-and-down, chaotic day.  Sometimes it means being unfaithful to … | Continue reading

Maria is at her belly dancing class, and I always worry about her driving on these roads at night. I finally realized why it makes me nervous, apart from the obvious. I started my journalism career as a police reporter, and one of my tasks was to beat the police to the scene of c … | Continue reading

Today, I’m asking for support for myself, the blog, and payment for my work. A few years ago, I realized that my great and risky blog adventure would only succeed if I had the financial support of those who find value in my work and are willing to voluntarily support it. There wo … | Continue reading

Pantry Director Sarah Harrington focused on hygiene and tooth health today. The pantry is running out of toothpaste for children and customers. She always searched for the best food at the lowest price to help us get food they couldn’t order or afford. She’s done it again. (Above … | Continue reading

I got up early and went outside with my camera this morning. I saw Zip stirring in the wicker chair, so I snapped a photo, thinking it might be a cute morning shot of him waking up. It wasn’t until I looked at the computer that I saw the expression on his face. I don’t […] | Continue reading

I appreciate the sunlight and am taking advantage of it. I loved Zip hiding in the grass, popping out to scare Zinnia half to death, and then ducking down again. He loves to do this. He has some devil in him, for sure. The view from the farm was breathtaking today. | Continue reading

New Horizons: Mapping at System’s Edge by Paul Gilster | May 21, 2024 | Outer Solar System | 0 comments Dust between the stars usually factors into our discussions on Centauri Dreams when we’re considering its effect on fast-moving spacecraft. Although it only accounts for 1 perc … | Continue reading

Project Hephaistos and the Hunt for Astroengineering by Paul Gilster | May 15, 2024 | Astrobiology and SETI | 14 comments For a project looking for the signature of an advanced extraterrestrial civilization, the name Hephaistos is an unusually apt choice. And indeed the leaders o … | Continue reading

Today, there is no rain and no cold. It is a good day for photos. We are going to Vermont briefly to help a friend who needs her house and dog cared for while she gets some medical tests. We will be back after lunch. I might be playing chess with Ian McRae tonight. I […] | Continue reading

I ran amok today, rushing from flower to flower to catch the sun, adjust the focus, and try not to be blinded by the light. I sometimes succeeded and sometimes failed, but I was happy at the end of the day. You are invited to come and see this photo journal on the Souls of […] | Continue reading

My posse grew larger today; Zinnia wanted to join Zip (Zud) and me and walk around the farm as the clouds gather. I love my farm photo journals at dusk; it seems like a beautiful time here, and it’s always something to photograph. I’m never alone out there. (And yes, that is a Ta … | Continue reading

From the bottom of my heart, thank you for your incredible generosity and compassion. I greatly appreciate your quick reply to my plea to help get Sharon, a beloved poet and Mansion resident, a new computer tablet. Sharon, who is currently battling a severe illness, will soon be … | Continue reading

“All over bouquets of roses, O death, I cover you over with roses and early lilies, But mostly, and now the lilac that blooms the first, Copious I break, I break the sprigs from the bushes, With loaded arms, I come, pouring for you, For you and the coffins, all of you, O death” - … | Continue reading

Somehow, Zip always gets the last word. Maria was out in the barn stacking firewood, and Zip hopped up on the tarp and startled her by crawling under it. She saw it moving and thought it must be some kind of wild animal. It was just Zip, who then ran over to the fencepost between … | Continue reading

I took one of the most significant steps of my adult this week, the most transformative since getting married to Maria. I stopped seeing my longtime and much-beloved therapist, who has been working with me for more than 20 years to control my impulses and my anxiety. My fears hav … | Continue reading

Zip and I were sitting on the back porch, watching the raindrops, when Maria came by to show me this video she had taken in the back pasture. It captured the sound of a beautiful country creek and the dozens of birds singing their morning song. The birdsong is lovely. This video … | Continue reading

“In the dooryard fronting an old farm-house near the white-wash’d palings, Stands the lilac-bush tall-growing with heart-shaped leaves of rich green, With many a pointed blossom rising delicate, with the perfume strong I love, With every leaf a miracle—and from this bush in the d … | Continue reading