I won't prolong the suspense. The limerick, dated 1924, goes:
There once was a man from Nantucket
Who kept all his cash in a bucket
But his daughter, named Nan
Ran away with a man
And as for the bucket, Nan tucket.
There are followup limericks immortalizing the towns of Nanhasset and Pawtucket but you get the point.
Wrapping things up in Nantucket
(And the original words to the "There Once Was a Man from Nantucket" limerick)
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I've spoken relatively little about the great food we enjoyed in Nantucket, which is grievous considering its significant contribution to our visit. I'll just quickly point out a couple of key places. To the right is the Atlantic Cafe, which -- because the bar side was all you could see though the windows -- we initially dismissed. However, on the recommendation of a local, we wound up trying it and it turned out to be quite good with a pleasant family atmosphere. This was one of the few times I didn't have seafood, as their buffalo chicken sandwich was calling me. I had to have my bleu cheese dressing fix.
At the Lobster Trap, however, there was no way any of us would forego the delicacies of the deep. Between the five of us the table was filled to brimming with shellfish of every description.
Overall, our week in humble yet elegant Nantucket gifted us with an escape from the big city pace and took us back to a simpler, more innocent time. We returned with a renewed appreciation for simple pleasures.
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If there's any New England specialty I crave more than fried clams, it's steamed clams served with clam broth and drawn butter. At the Lobster Trap an enormous serving (in a bucket) helped me finally satisfy my craving. Since no one wanted the fried clams and mussels on their seafood platters I wound up eating many of theirs too. I'm happy to say that by the end of this meal I reached maximum mollusk capacity, even for me.
And one night Adam and I went out for a special meal, just the two of us. We checked out this place which we'd been seeing all week. It was dark and fun and I have no idea what we ate. I only remember that I enjoyed a very nice evening with my son.
We weren't on the go all the time, of course, and spent many relaxing vacation hours back at the house talking, reading and watching video rentals including Little Nicky, What Women Want, Bedazzled, Pay It Forward and Men of Honor. We also frequently found ourselves caught up in the nostalgia and challenge of the Game Show Network. At a gift shop the boys bought some inexpensive Lacrosse rackets and it was a nice feeling just watching them play together at a tennis court.
And on a literary note, in Mary Margaret's library and at the downtown bookstores I saw several titles that I would like to read someday.
