The Kindness of Strangers

Where I live there are two beaches. One is accessed through two little footpaths and the other has a small, gravel resident parking lot and boat launch.


The area is filled with wild sweet peas and beach roses. The neighbors have set out big pots along the lot edge and planted geraniums, too.



Some people who know the area like to take a detour off Scenic 1-A and drive along Seaview Avenue to take in the view. It is a slightly sloping hill right down to the sea. If you love the bay, it is pretty impressive – you can see from Portsmouth to Jamestown. We also get birders who sit by the roadside with binoculars to watch the herons and egrets.


Recently, my neighbor was plating geraniums in the lot and a woman drove by for a look at the bay. She made a comment about the flowers and my neighbor said that she wished she had more because the few she had did not deter boaters from dropping trash into the flower pots. (I know, hard to believe, but some people are really thoughtless – even boaters) That was it and the woman drove off.


A little while later, the woman returned with a couple of dozen geranium plants! They were donated by Wickford Flowers. It turned out she works there. We don’t know her name but we thank her and Wickford Flowers very much. What a nice thing to do!

A Wonderful Place In A Calming Location

A real center of the community in Wickford is the library.



The statistics say it is one of the busiest in the state and from what I can see, that is very true.


I’m there at least 2 or 3 times a week and the place is always a beehive of activity. Patrons range from toddlers to seniors and everyone seems to be enjoying themselves.

Not only do they have any book, movie or music CD you could desire but they have so many wonderful programs and activities for all ages. Art exhibits, French practice, music performances, guest speakers, knitting for kids, walking tours through Wickford by local historian Tim Cranston, poetry reading and discussion and book discussion groups. There is also internet access and a quiet study room.




The setting is wonderful, relaxing and contemplative. Waterfront on Academy Cove, you can sit in the meditation garden or walk down to the footbridge to see what the ducks are up to. I’m sure your local library is just as wonderful (I also LOVE Narragansett Library) but if you would like to explore a bit, try Wickford. Then you can go into town and have a sandwich and do some shopping.

Culprit Revealed

Every spring I await the beautiful tulips in my gardens. And for the past few years, something very strange has been going on – someone or something is snapping their pretty little heads off!


It is a precise chop right at the top of the stem. Every morning, very early, I look out to see how they are doing and invariably the morning comes when I see the damage done. A beautiful tulip head just kind of flopped over.


The first year I saw it, of course I blamed my dog, Ollie. At the time, he was an only child so he got all the blame. I just looked at him and shook my head because he can’t help the fact that he tromps all over everything in sight - and if a cat should happen to sit outside the fence and tease him, all hell breaks loose – delicate flowers or not. I lost 3 or 4 tulips that way the first year.


But last year, I was looking out the window and actually saw what was happening. A bird – I think it was a mocking bird – swooped down and with the precision of a fighter jet – sliced the head off the tulip! I couldn't’t believe what I was seeing. I had never heard of this and have only seen it the one time. The bird didn’t even stop to admire his handiwork – he flew right off without a backward glance.


This morning, history is repeating itself. One of my little tulips chopped down in her prime. I wondered if anyone has had this experience and wondered what the heck was going on. Now you know!

Gifts from the Sea

Every once in a while, when we have a big storm like we had last night, the waters of Narragansett Bay creep up into my neighborhood. The sea water climbs up the beaches and spills into the streets. We wake up to find seashells littering the lawns. What a treat!



Most of the houses where I live are set high on a 10 or 12 foot bank. So they are not in any danger of flooding. And the lower lying houses, across the street from the beach, have gently sloping lawns. Sometimes the water gets pretty close to those houses.

Bits of seaweed, rocks, sand and shells leave their mark on the streets and lawns. They leave a high water mark that is unmistakable.

On gray days like this, nature has a way of making the sea, the sky, even the trees, all the same tone and the world seems very soft. A silvery gray color.


My neighbor, John, was walking his dog, Zoe, this morning and called to me, “Did you find any quahogs yet?”

I do live in a zany neighborhood. Wild Goose Point just outside of Wickford. I love it there.

If You're Driving Through Wickford

There is a little intersection in Wickford Village that really throws out-of towners for a loop. You can tell a person is unfamiliar with the road because they stop where there is no stop sign, don’t want to stop where there is a stop sign and aren’t quite sure what to do with the yield sign. Their heads start to swivel back and forth looking from one side to the other with a most bewildered look on the face.

You locals know where this is already, right? At the little bridge where Boston Neck Road, Brown and Phillips Streets all meet in this strange, triangular trap. Making it even more peculiar to the unsuspecting and uninformed driver are the three pedestrian crosswalks smack dab in the triangular intersection.
Brown Street (the street everyone refers to as ‘Main Street”) curves through the village and out over the bridge – there is no yield or stop sign there. The traffic is meant to flow smoothly through so as not to get backed up.

There is a stop sign on Phillips – that means STOP!! It is not fair that those folks have to wait a little bit longer but that is the design, so we live with it. You could actually sit there for quite a while in the summer. Newcomers assume it is like a 3-way stop intersection where everyone takes a turn – but no, not quite. Those people have a look like – Hey! When is it my turn!?? Sorry, you have to wait.

Then there is a yield sign at the end of Boston Neck (right across from Phillips) so you YIELD. If you want to turn right, proceed with caution. If you are trying to cross over to Phillips, TAKE EXTRA CARE. Watch out for the people sick of waiting to turn left onto Brown who could shoot out at you any second, and please, watch out for the pedestrians. They could be coming from literally 6 directions! And they are on vacation so probably a little bon vivant.

With the pedestrians added into the mix, pity the poor guy coming down Brown, uninformed about our quirks, and watch the head swiveling, deer in the headlights thing happen. He’ll stop – Is it my turn? – look around at everyone and then the guy in back of him will hit the horn! Go – you don’t have to stop!

There are actually very few accidents here, as far as I can tell. I think sometimes the unexpected actually makes people more cautious. It is a great little village and we love it just the way it is. Once you learn the rules of our quirky road, it is smooth sailing. And great shopping.