I used to be tall, but at my age, I’ve been in my shrinking stage for a while. What I have lost in height has been gained on my “Grog Belly”. When I’m with people of my generation, I still rate in height. When I…
Posts tagged as “Mark C. Nuccio”
You think the Summer bays are crowded now! So, what can I bellyache about now? Last summer we were anchored in a small, out-of-the-way cove, that hasn’t been over-discovered yet. I was lying out on the deck enjoying the sun and doing some drawing. Suddenly…
From the glory days of the great sailing ships to the modern vessels of today, the ships that crossed the oceans most often carried more than human passengers. Yep! Ships can carry a lot of creepy crawly, scampering villains, both in olden times and on…
Tar, that thick, gooey, mess has been used on ships for many purposes since the beginning of ancient voyages. All types of tars and pitch formulas were used on hulls, decks, riggings, and even on a seaman’s clothing. It has always been the crew fighting…
“Pieces of wreck washed up on the shore near The Fire Island Lighthouse cannot be from the famed wreck of the first steam-powered ship to cross the Atlantic!”Most of you know about the first steamboat to cross the Atlantic in 1819. I won’t dawdle on…
I wrote an article years ago concerning the wholesale destruction of shore birds on Long Island’s Great South Bay during the 19th and early 20th Century. Many shorebird species were decimated due to the fashionable use of various feathers in women’s hats during that period.…
It’s July 4, 1776, and the official document of “The Declaration of Independence” is signed in Philadelphia by men such as John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin and many others including Long Islanders William Floyd and Francis Lewis. Though there had already been armed altercations…
Like everyone else, I was deeply saddened by the loss off life on the deep dive submersible “Titan” built by the company-Ocean Gate Explorations. Titan was operating as a paid, $250,00 per person “Tourist attraction”, offering trips down to the wreck of the Titanic. The…
The first horseshoe crab I ever saw was when a woman pulled a massive one out of the Rockaway surf by its tail when I was about seven years old. It scared the seaweed right out of me. A crowd had gathered around to see…
Listen to old sailor’s words and learn much about weather Check any waterfront, even today, and you may find some old salt who spent his life at sea, and is now grounded by age, (“setting out the anchor’’) He may be gazing out towards the…