Rifkin's Reflections

The Colors of Cotuit

The Colors of Cotuit

As August comes to an end, it appears to be another glorious week in Cotuit.  Particularly in the morning when all is quiet and a little corner of the world called Cape Cod is just waking up.

   Katie White of Ashton Mass., gets coffee and watches the sunrise at Ropes Beach in Cotuit before her kids wake up.

   Steve Redgate, of Bar Harbor, Maine (which is also drop-dead beautiful) captures Cotuit in the morning.

   Bob Blackwell and Bailey set out on their sailyak in Cotuit Harbor.

   And they're off (with Bob doing most of the work).

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The early photographer catches bird

  Monday at dawn at the Cotuit Town Landing

The quality of light at dawn and just after is different.

The morning air may not have been warmed as yet by the rising sun, and there is often a soft mist or fog rising from the water which has not been ruffled by the wind as the air warms and begins to move it.

It's my favorite time of day for shooting pictures like the one above.

A half hour later, as the sun creeps up the side of the hill on the harbor, the light gets more intense, as the photo on the right shows.

This may be the most dramatic time of day for photographs, that, and late on a Fall afternoon with the  "low light" so loved by many artists.

The same harbor in the middle of the of the day with the sun high above takes on the look below.

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Cotuit Mosquito Yacht Club and two dawns

A few summer dawns in the bucolic Cotuit

Early morning-  looking out from Oregon Beach, Cotuit.

A July morning at the Cotuit Mosquito Yacht Club Association which teaches children ages 8-12 general and racing sailing.

These small mono-sail prams are called Mosquitos, and are handled much like a classic Cape Cod Catboat or even a Sunfish.

The Association of the Cotuit Mosquito Yacht Club was founded in 1950 at the request of the Cotuit Mosquito Yacht Club at its Fourth of July meeting for the purpose of organizing a group of interested parents to more efficiently run the rescue operations for the yacht club races. Prior to this time, in the early days of the club, the rescue of capsized sailors had often been done by local oystermen who were out on they bay.

Below; Wade Behlman goin' for conch fishing out of  Cotuit Harbor at sunrise a week ago.

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Chatham mussels and horseshoe crabs at Cotuit Town Landing

Wade Behlman of Hyannis, is shown on right at the Cotuit Town Landing with Chatham mussels and horseshoe crabs that he uses as bait for the conch he gathers outside the Cotuit Harbor.

After fishing that morning, Wade's catch of the day is shown above.

What IS a conch?

A conch (pronounced in the U.S.A. as "konk" or "conch", is one of a number of different species of medium-sized to large saltwater snails or their shells.  Many people believe that the sound heard when a conch is placed against the ear is the sea. However, it is actually the echo of the blood circulation in your head.

True conchs are marine gastropod mollusks in the family Strombidae, and the genus Strombus.

The name "conch" however, is often quite loosely applied in English-speaking countries to several kinds of very large sea snail shells which are pointed at both ends, i.e. shells which have a high spire and a noticeable siphonal canal.

In Hindu and Buddhist tradition

A Sankh shell (the shell of a Turbinella species in the gastropod family Turbinellidae) is often referred to in the West as a conch shell, or a chank shell. This is a major Hindu article of prayer. It is used as a trumpet, as a part of their religious practices, blowing on it during worship at specific points, accompanied by ceremonial bells and singing.

In the story of Dhruva the divine conch plays a special part. The warriors of ancient India would blow conch shells to announce battle, such as is described in the beginning of the war of Kurukshetra, in the Mahabharata, the famous Hindu epic.  The god of Preservation, Vishnu, is said to hold a special conch, Panchajanya, that represents life, as it has come out of life-giving waters.

Cape Cod CONCH
Conch is also the name of a group of people who live in Chatham and Harwich who meet to develop friendships, and enjoy social, sport, games, outdoor and indoor activities. Membership is open to residents of both towns. An acronym for Continuing Newcomers of Chatham/Harwich, CONCH. In Literature, Cape Cod and Key West

William Golding's Lord of the Flies features frequent references to "the Conch". In the book the conch is used as a trumpet to call everyone together and held by whoever is speaking at meetings, symbolically representing democracy and order. When a boulder released by Roger, Jack's lieutenant, smashes the conch, it is a sign that civilized order has collapsed and Jack's domination has begun.

Many Cape Codders spend the winter in Key West, where the residents are also called Conchs.

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Cotuit Fourth of July Parade

There were Peace Pins galore along the parade route

The Cotuit Fourth of July Parade has taken place every year since 1976. It is organized by the Cotuit Civic Association.

I asked several of the marchers to hold my Peace Pin for a photo, and they all did. You may recall that I gave the first Peace Pin a couple months ago to Senator Kennedy at his home.

This year the most funky, Norman Rockwell-like happening had over 1,400 participants and, as estimated by the Barnstable Police Department, over 15,000 spectators.

A very popular feature was Peter and Susan Morgan and their all-clown family and a Cicada holding a Peace Pin. Another man rolled (literally) through the village with a Peace Pin, and the big group is Cotuit Realtor Bob Powers and family.

Below, even our local State Rep. State Rep Eric Turkington showed up with a Peace Pin and a friend of Nick's and you could buy  a old, glass of lemonade if your were thirsty.

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A Vermeer-like morning opens into a Buddha beautiful day

The way is not in the sky.  The way is in the heart. The Buddha

Here is the story that goes with this (what I think of as a Vermeer-like) photo of an osprey circling high over Ropes Beach in Cotuit Monday morning

I got up at 3 AM this morning, messed around on my computer, and out the door to walk my dog Nick with camera at 5. I the beach I took this God-given gift of an image, and returned to my house to put the dog away before drove to my restaurant in Waquoit.

Our cooks are both off today so I had to "open" the place between 6-7AM.

My wife Ellen replaced me at 7, and I went to the Stop & Shop in Mashpee for produce and stuff for the cafe.

Getting out of the car, I couldn't find my camera which I take with me always wherever I go (who knows who I would run into at Stop & Shop.)  I freaked out when the camera was nowhere in the car. I retraced my actions in my mind and realized I must have put the camera (in its case) on top of my car after taking it off my belt and getting in the car to go to work.

It must have rolled off the car somewhere! I was in a frenzy as:
1- The camera is very expensive
2- I had some gorgeous images in it that I had just captured this morning like the one here.
3- My camera is more important to me than almost anything else.

I retraced my route several times praying for a stroke of luck that I realized probably
wasn't going to occur. I then borrowed a camera from my head waitress (as I feel NAKED walking around without one.)

The greatest prayer is patience. The Buddha

At 9AM I went with a reward poster to the Cotuit Post Office. The postmistress sympathized with my tale of woe and gave me permission to hang the poster. Resigned
to being depressed and angry at myself the rest of the day, I left the P.O.

"A good man is not a man who does good -
A good man is a man who does what he wants to do, and what he wants to do is good." Tao Outside on the sidewalk, two men who I had never seen before were talking. I interrupted them by telling my story of the lost camera and suggesting if they hear anything, please  get in touch with me at the poster phone number.

One of the men was looking at me very strangely as I was telling my story and replied:  "This is your lucky day! I was bicycling this morning and found your camera on School Street, a mile from my house. Follow me to my house and I will give it to you."

The goosebumps I experienced were soon overcome by my shouting out "Hallelujah, thank you God!" for all Cotuit to hear.

I followed John Janowicz, a seaman home on leave, and got my camera (which is unscathed).  I asked him what he was planning to do with the camera. He hesitated and responded: "I sure did like that camera". He had already taken a picture with it.

I offered him a monetary reward, but he declined. He did accept some free chow for his family at my cafe, the Moonakis. Below is the same scene in a photo I took last Thursday morning at the same time of day. It must be the same osprey.

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Cape Cod Dog Days

 A day without dogs is like a day without sunshine

Coutit, Falmouth and Waquoit on a hot June day

Some days are just for the dogs around here.
We had a couple like that on the Upper Cape last week, and since most of you haven't got the foggiest idea where Cotuit is, I even will show you a map, but please, don't consider that an invitation.

That's Steve Colleran and his dog Buford above on Main Street in Falmouth. Goes to show you who is the boss in that family.

My dog Nick below is from Cotuit, and he is even cuter than Buford, except when he steals the fish I just caught on the right.

Of course then Nick has to rest in the shade of a picket fence for a while.

We like our peace and quiet around here. If you must have a taste of our paradise, settle for a visit to my joint, the Moonakis Cafe, on Route 28 in Waquoit.

I bet you don't know where Waquoit is either.

Paul Rifkin, wit and photag.

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Cicada Stew and Osprey's Breakfast

A Cicada Stew on many Cape Cod trees this month

We can only hope the Oaks in your yard don't look like these.  I wish ospreys liked them.

An Osprey hunts over Loops Beach, Cotuit- Sunrise

Thursday morning dawned bright,  and a quick run to Cotuit Harbor allowed me to capture this mighty osprey soaring above the waves searching for breakfast. Scroll down to my previous blog posts to see more Cape Cod critters and sunrise scenes. - Paul Rifkin.

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When a turtle has to mail a letter...

Fe-mail Eastern box turtle laying eggs next to the Cotuit Post Office
and a beautiful Stone Horse sloop on Popponesset Bay

  This must be a "mail" Eastern Box Turtle which I photographed today at the Cotuit Post Office when she was about to start her new family by laying her eggs abaft the building.

The Terrapene Carolina is one of two species of box turtles found in the United States.  Box turtles are very slowly reproducing, but they are a long-lived species as well. The female like the one above lays between 3 and 6 eggs each spring in a shallow nest.

The unguarded eggs hatch in late summer or early fall. The hatchlings are 1.25 inches long, and feed on insects and hide in brush and leaf litter, luckily something we have a lot of around here.

They reach sexual maturity between 7 and 10 years old when they are 5 or 6 inches in length. They can live as long as half a century.  The red sailed sloop below is another favorite of mine. It's a Stone Horse Sloop sailing in Popponesset Bay.

A breathtaking beauty

Sam Crocker designed the Stone Horse in 1931 in the tradition of the small working vessels that evolved along the New England coast during the days of sail. In 1968, Edey & Duff adapted it to fiberglass but retained both the performance and beauty of the original.

Technically a sloop with two headsails, the Stone Horse, with its large mainsail, moves in the merest whisper of a breeze while the long keel holds it on course and facilitates self-steering. Some puists insist it's a cutter with it's two headsails. The boat is safe, kicky, and a sheer delight even in high-wind conditions that leave other boats at their moorings. The 8-foot cockpit welcomes guests and stays dry.

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Helping to re-elect a great State Rep

Matt Patrick's kick-off get-together

State Representative Matt Patrick was given a get-together at the Moonakis Cafe in Waquoit on June 20. Matt is running for re-election as State Representative in the  Third Barnstable District and was feted at a kick-off fund-raiser. The restaurant was packed with enthusiastic supporters including State Reps Cleon Turner and Eric Turkington. Matt is a shoo-in again.

  If you need another reason to be happy, check out this magnificent Waquoit Osprey.

   Photos by Paul Rifkin

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