Cruisin' along Route 133

Take any glorious autumn day, gas up the car and get ready for a winding adventure with many stops for spectacular leaf peeping panoramas, tastes and antiquing. The trick is to stay on Route 133, a very underappreciated road that starts in Lowell, runs through Andover, Boxford and Georgetown, to Rowley, where Route 133 runs with Route 1A southbound into Ipswich; crossing historic Choate Bridge, passing through the historic village before splitting once more and...

Rescuing Horses

By Jamie Lee Wallace There is a lot of injustice and cruelty in the world. Fortunately, there are also courageous and compassionate people who are willing to intervene. Working with a network of equestrians from the area, two such heroes are making a difference for horses who would otherwise be destined for slaughter. Janine Jacques of Boxford and Missy White of Hamilton founded Hope4Horses (hope4horses.org) in January 2010 after learning that over 100,000 horses lose their...

Beyond Wedding Bells

Photo by Scotland Huber of Give and Take Pictures. Here's to matrimony, the high sea for which no compass has yet been invented! ~Heinrich Heine All those nerves that lead up to the proposal and the poor couple has no idea what is to follow. One really does need a compass to navigate the seas of a blissful wedding. In come the plans, the guest list, the family input. It is amazing with all the added stress...

Make it a healthy, hazard-free summer

We all look forward to summer, particularly after a winter like the one we just had. But summer brings its own set of health hazards, so it’s prudent to remind ourselves of the dangers of the season and the steps we can take to stay healthy. Here are some common potential perils. Infectious diseases from ticks and mosquitoes – Lyme disease, West Nile virus and Eastern Equine Encephalitis are more prevalent in warm...

Happy, Healthy Summer Dogs

SHARING LONG SUMMER DAYS WITH OUR CANINE COMPANIONS is one of the season’s sweetest pleasures. After all, nothing makes a trip to the beach or the park more enjoyable than the company of a tail-wagging, face-lick- ing friend. Their boundless excitement is contagious and makes the simplest outings a cause for celebration. But the summer also brings with it some health and comfort concerns. Dr. Helen Noble and her staff of veterinarians for large and small animals at SRH in Ipswich provided...

Heirs Cutting Hair

Anyone who has attempted to cut her own hair or suffered the humiliating aftermath of a home-coloring mishap can appreciate the value of a really competent salon. And, because, like it or not, our hair is among our most prized physical accessories, it deserves some extra attention. As do our hands and feet that are subjected to scrutiny at various times of the year. The problem is the sampling process to find experts in whom we...

Welcome to Rockport

For very good reason, summer is the peak season in Rockport. Whether you come for the fresh hydrangeas overflowing the flower boxes of the delightful homes along the ocean, the fine coastal dining or shopping Bearskin Neck which is like entering a unique street fair with endless open galleries, gift shops and delicious treats Rockport is a favorite place to bring visitors or play tourist in your own region. Having grown...

The Putnam Boston Equestrian Classic

“There is something about the outside of a horse that is good for the inside of a man.”– WINSTON CHURCHILL In September, for the second consecutive year, this small community will indulge its devotion to all things equine when the Myopia Hunt Club plays host to an Olympic-caliber show jumping event – the Putnam Boston Equestrian Classic. As the name implies, the event’s title sponsor is Boston-based Putnam Investments. Its generous support has attracted some of...

Spring Showers Are Here

Inevitably springtime brings showers, but while everyone will be talking about the water level in their yards and basements, this is about the kind of shower that comes with celebrations: the bridal shower. If you are the one planning the shower for the beloved bride-to-be, start by embracing her personality, and the rest will start to click as you research the options. For the classic bride: Tea Rooms and Inns offer an elegant shower setting...

Spring Fever

It was Mark Twain who said, “It’s spring fever.... You don’t quite know what it is you DO want, but it just fairly makes your heart ache, you want it so!” And given the fact that he has a bestselling book out even though he’s been dead for 100 years, I guess you have to give the guy some credit for knowing his stuff. For me, it usually takes at least until mid-February before I start...

Changing the Feral Landscape

Hero (n): someone who takes action when others don’t or can’t. The Merrimack River Feline Rescue Society (MRFRS) has 12 core staff members and over 400 volunteers – each one a hero. This diverse group works around the clock to help the abandoned cats struggling to survive in the shadows of our communities. These cats, often assumed to be self-sufficient, are actually very much at risk. Most long for a family and a safe and...

Best Summer of their Life

In the blink of an eye, the kids will be home for the summer to proclaim their boredom. Now is the time to make some plans; camp offers fun outdoor play, adventure and even leadership skills. Camp offers a chance to put down the Wii remote and be adventurous, put on camp skits, to make “friendship” bracelets and sing silly songs. Overnight camp offers memories of a crackling campfire, the freedom of a summer night...

Visit Ipswich

People often like to plan for a vacation near the beach with fine dining options, history, recreation and cultural activities. Those who live in Ipswich do not take for granted what more than one million annual visitors come to find. If you were here for the 375th anniversary a couple of years ago, you already witnessed that this is a very talented town; one that stimulated John Updike to write “Couples,” inspired Arthur Wesley Dow...

Prescription misuse

Prescription medications are some of medicine’s best therapies. They prevent and cure disease and relieve pain and suffering. Sadly, they’re also at the root of one of today’s biggest public health problems. Prescription drugs are now the second most commonly abused category of drugs, behind only marijuana. Nearly 20 percent of people in the U.S. have used prescription medications for non-medical reasons. Abuse and misuse span the ages. Seniors are vulnerable because they develop more...

Wildlife Relations

When I was a little girl, I dreamed of having magical relationshipswith thewild animals that lived in the woods aroundmy Ipswich home. I picked my way along winding deer paths, sat in the grass watching wild rabbits, and spent hours waiting for chickadees and titmice to eat birdseed from my outstretched hands. Now that I’m grown up, close encounters of the feathered and furred kind usually involve an injury to the creature in question. Our paths...

Resolutions

Thoughts It's almost time to start another new year, meaning soon we’ll all be making resolutions to be better human beings, or at least eat fewer fried pork products. These resolutions will only last until halftime of the first New Year’s Day football game, but at least we’ll feel good about ourselves for those few hours. But I had an idea for some other kinds of resolutions when I took my parents to the House of...

Welcome to Gloucester Harbor

Enter Gloucester and find yourself transported to a seagull-chanting town where fishing boats and artists take on a magical co-existence. There is no place like Gloucester, established in 1623. Along the coast, settled among the most dignified seaside homes, are castles, six historic lighthouses, five gorgeous beaches, artist colonies and vibrant cultural communities. It really is “le beau port,” as French explorer Samuel de Champlain dubbed it in 1606. Geographically speaking,Gloucester consists of an inner-city center...

Slippery Slopes

When you’re 5 years old, getting ready to go sledding means having someone stuff you into a snow suit with extra socks, boots, a coat, mittens and a hat. Forty minutes later, you’re ready to hit the slopes. Up the endless hill with the toboggan and “whoosh,” you’re down to the bottom in 30 seconds. Back up the endless hill and “whoosh” a second, third and twentieth refreshing run down the hill. The wind is...

Buy the Book

BY CAROLINE FORRESTER A book is a gift you can open again and again,” Garrison Keillor so eloquently stated. Kindles may be everywhere, but they never willmatch the tangible experience of a book. Fromearly childhood, we learn to love books. They fill our heads with thoughts to dream on, soothe away the worries of the day and provide companionship. You can’t get that cozy with electronics. Just as children feel magically charged when they walk into a toy...

Welcome to Newburyport

ENTER NEWBURYPORT Driving into Newburyport on High Street (Route 113) is a history lesson through architecture, as early Colonial homes give way to grand Federal-style houses built by ship’s captains. Impressive church edifices, brick-laid sidewalks and iron fencing, framed in lush landscaping, serve as the welcoming gate to this gorgeous seaside city. Newburyport is situated on the bank of the Merrimack River where it reaches the Atlantic Ocean. Once a bustling fishing and shipping center – and known...

Destination: Salem

Welcome to Salem Land area: 8.10 sq. miles Water area: 10 sq. miles Nickname: Witch City Population: 40,922 (2007) Little known: A bronze statue of the “Bewitched” TV program star, Samantha Stephens, in Lappin Park By Caroline Forrester Salem is a vibrant seaside community loaded with summer activity. The difficult part is figuring out where to start. For history lovers Salem was one of the earliest settled sites and the first capital of Massachusetts, made wealthy by the East Indian Trade and home...

Crunch Time

Nothing warms a kitchen faster than the scent of apple crisp warming in the oven. But why stop there? In-season apples taste good in everything: wine, cider, donuts, pie, hot over ice cream, and especially crunching in to a juicy apple right off the tree. So many local farms offer autumnal experiences in honor of the apple. Start with the simple pleasure of picking apples and move on to enjoying a cider donut and warm...

Why we Love Dogs

Spencer was part of my family for twelve years, but we recently made the difficult decision to let him go. The details of his ailments and his passing are not important. He was a good dog who lived a long and happy life full of meandering walks, frequent naps, tummy rubs, and an abundance of treats. As the numbness of the initial trauma dissolved into a dull ache, I thought about the deep bond between people and dogs. What...

See You at the Fair

By Peter Chianca All over New England, farmers spend months preparing their soil, cultivating specially bred seeds, gently tending their crop with high-tech lamps while protecting it from the ravages from the sun. All so they can, at the end of their labors, deliver the perfect giant pumpkin to the Topsfield Fair, at which time my kids can declare, probably in unison, “Ew! That’s gross!” And of course they’re right, because it is gross: It looks like...