Winter Whiteout

Snowflakes started falling mid-morning on Sunday and didn't stop until around midnight, blanketing the island with eight inches of snow. This is by far the most snow we've experienced since we moved to Nantucket. Here is a winter scene from an historic cottage out in Sconset. The bright white of the snow provides a new look to an otherwise grey winter landscape.

The ferries and planes connecting Nantucket with the mainland stopped running until late Monday afternoon, stranding travellers on the island. We enjoyed an extra day with our weekend houseguest Emily, who was on her first visit to Nantucket. Undaunted by the delay, she created a clever limerick in honor of the occasion. Thanks, Emily, for sharing with us and we hope you will return to Nantucket in warmer times ahead!

I once took a trip to Nantucket

And never thought I would get stuck. It

then started to snow

and I shouted "Oh no!"

When Cape Air called to say that they'd chuck it.

The Reverend Brooks was so kind

Her warm boots got me out of a bind

Without them my feets

Would be redder than beets

Lucky me that her deeds match her mind!

I thank goodness for Linda and Craig

Who, given my trip's extra leg

Took me in as a guest

For some food and some rest

And did not, even once, make me beg!

Snowy Sunday

A blanket of snow with light flurries greeted us this morning, just enough to make walking on the cobblestone streets a little tricky when we went downtown to church and to create this beautiful frosting on a Main Street windowbox. With many of the shops and restaurants closed on Main Street during January and February, year-round Nantucketers really appreciate those retailers who brave the off season weather, keeping their doors open. This has been an especially difficult winter on the island with three high school students committing suicide over the past 11 months. The third such incident took place on January 8 and since that time a team of mental health experts has been dispatched to the island to help teachers, parents, students and the community-at-large deal with the issue. When the weather is especially bleak and the sun has chosen not to shine for days on end, I'm especially appreciative of the many Main Street windowbox displays that decorate and delight from January through December. They're a positive diversion in light of the difficult times of late.

Art Here and There

We've been in Southern California for the holidays, reconnecting with family and friends and enjoying the warm, sunny weather. It will certainly be an eye-opener when we return to Nantucket later today where there's snow on the ground but we look forward to a great year of opportunities and adventures as 2008 unfolds.

Yesterday it was 75 degrees here and I took the opportunity to not only spend a little time at the beach but also see the Wayne Thiebaud restrospective at the Laguna Museum of Art in Laguna Beach. I've always liked his pop images of cows and cakes but especially enjoyed this particular exhibition, which included charcoal and pastel drawings from his early days as an art student.

Fortunately there were some other great exhibitions at area museums during our visit and, as usual, I had a list of "must see" shows to keep me busy over the past two weeks. About Face: Portraiture Now, co-curated by Ron Nelson, my friend and colleague at the Long Beach Museum of Art, was outstanding and was a highlight of our visit, along with a long lunch at Claire's at the museum. Other shows we enjoyed were the mind-stretching Murakami exhibition at the MOCA Geffen Contemporary in Los Angeles, Birth of the Cool: California Art, Design, and Culture at Midcentury at the Orange County Museum of Art in Newport Beach, and Julius Shulman's Los Angeles photographic retrospective at the Los Angeles Central Library's Getty Gallery. We also spent a day at the Getty itself in Brentwood, appreciating some favorite works like Van Gogh's Irises and wandering around the lush and varied gardens. The Restaurant at the Getty is a great place to enjoy outstanding food, service and views if you're visiting LA. It's never disappointed us.