Some Garbage from the Atlantic Ocean

I’m so sorry for the late blog post! I’ve been finding that my part-time job as a dementia caregiver sometimes leaves me pretty mentally worn out (and it is part-time, but it’s also 6 days a week, which definitely adds up). I try really hard to prioritize rest when I feel even a little run down - my immune system isn’t the greatest, and I’ll absolutely get sick if I let fatigue get the best of me. Anyway. I wanted to share some of the “whys” that fuel my art from my recent whale watching trip in Massachusetts. These photos are actually from New Hampshire - we went there to explore the tide pools after we went whale watching. We were able to pull some abandoned lobster traps and buoys out of the water. There was some rope that we tried to pull, but it was hopelessly woven in between the rocks, and we couldn’t remove it. This is known as ALDFG (abandoned, lost, or discarded fishing gear) or ghost gear. Ghost gear entangles and kills marine life regularly and also accounts for almost 50% of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. Whenever I see it in the water or close to shore, I pull it. Similarly, when I do a river cleanup, I prioritize pulling fishing line and styrofoam. Fishing line is an entanglement risk for fish and shore birds, and styrofoam can look like food to animals.

Pictured: Organic marine debris such as kelp, seaweed, and rocks. In the middle is a piece of rope suspected to be ALDFG. There is a man in the background (it's my husband James!) holding some Mylar balloons that we picked up from the rocks.

Pictured: Organic marine debris such as kelp, seaweed, and rocks. In the middle is a buoy suspected to be ALDFG

Pictured: The Atlantic seashore off of New Hampshire. There are two abandoned traps that we pulled up from the water.

Pictured: rocks on the shore of the Atlantic Ocean. In the middle is a piece of rope suspected to be ALDFG

Pictured: Organic marine debris such as kelp, seaweed, and rocks. In the middle is a piece of rope suspected to be ALDFG

None of the art that I make means anything without the why. And caring for bodies of water and the creatures that utilize them (which includes us!) has a very big influence on my “why.”