I drove around the Amesbury — Newburyport area today while my power was out. Not much else to do. I had my camera with me but some how I only got around to taking two photos. These were on Ferry Road in Newburyport, at Curzon Mill Road. Curzon Mill Road was completely blocked off from a couple of large pines that were totally uprooted:

There was a lot of this in the area today. One of the worst storms I remember from my years here earlier in life. It’s good to be home…

I posted here last night that we were in the midst of a wild storm with driving rain and howling winds. Soon after I lost power. We’re in hour 21 now of the outage and I have heard through the town rumor mills that it could be Monday before power is restored in some of the many places that have power outages in the area.

I’m hanging out in Starbucks in downtown Newburyport right now with my laptop and a cup of Pike’s. Power is on in most of downtown Newburyport and downtown Amesbury. My house is right off downtown Amesbury, but we’re not among the lucky ones.

The temperature in the house was 54 when I left a couple of hours ago. Thank goodness it is not bitter cold out. The stove works (gas) and we still have hot water. I’m grateful for that.

I went out with the camera today but did not get far with taking photos of the downed trees that were in big part a cause of the power outages. I’ll be out tomorrow and will be post some photos… Not much to do with out power but hang out in Starbucks and partake of the WiFi.

UPDATE: I got home from Starbucks and my power was on… Thank goodness. Lot’s of folks I know are still in the dark.

I thought I might find more color in the evening sky tonight when I took my walk at Newburyport’s Waterfront Park. No such luck. It was more like a winter sky:

I’m not sure if Hurricane Bill’s presence off the coast of Massachusetts attributed to the winter sky effect this evening or not…

Still, I am totally enjoying the ever changing vistas of the Merrimack River in downtown Newburyport and my walks have been great for my spirit and given me more energy. I should start walking in Amesbury too. It’s such a beautiful town, right next to Newburyport. But so far I am enjoying the drive along the river that takes me to my walks at the Waterfront Park.

A view of the old Firehouse from Newburyport’s Waterfront Park:

Last night in Newburyport an 80 pedestrian bridge was raised over Low Street, filling in “the last gap in the trail that will connect” the train station in Newburyport to the Waterfront.

So much has changed around the Newburyport area in the 19 years I lived in Los Angeles. Still it’s good to be back here living again (in Amesbury), reflecting on my childhood in the area and the first 30 something years of my life.

I think the bridge will be a welcomed edition to Newburyport and as I continue to take daily walks around downtown Newburyport and the Waterfront Park, one day soon I will check out the trail and the bridge. I enjoyed reading Joel Brown’s piece on the bridge raising complete with a bit of local Newburyport color.

I could sit all day at the Waterfront Park in Newburyport and take photos of the boats on the river:

Of course the Summer will wind down into Fall in before I know it and most of the boats will be put into dry dock.

I moved home to Massachusetts two months ago and have been enjoying settling in and reminiscing with old friends while balancing my business, a part time job and my 3 blogs. Whew… my plate is way too full.

I’m living in Amesbury, the next town over from my hometown, Newburyport. I love Amesbury. It’s a beautiful little city with lot’s of great countryside and the Merrimack River which ambles along towards its final destination, the Atlantic Ocean.

Okay… enough rambling. I read in the local newspaper tonight, that there’s a new bookstore that just opened in downtown Amesbury. I love a good bookstore. I can’t wait to check it out.

At the Waterfront Park in Newburyport, MA:

I love to walk at the Waterfront Park in Newburyport. We’ve had a lot of rain this summer, but on the good days, it seems so perfect to watch the boats in the river: