"Typical Morning Squawk Box", 14x11, oil on linen by Maryanne Jacobsen

"Typical Morning Squawk Box", 14x11, oil on linen

While we were in Rockport, Massachusetts, I found myself waking up at the crack of dawn, excited to get outside and see the light coming up over the ocean. We woke up between 4 and 5 each morning, drove to the Dunkin' Donuts in the heart of town, and then with our morning coffee in hand, we proceeded to take pictures of the beautiful sunrises and light coming up over the Atlantic in Cape Ann.

One morning we sat right at the old port at Bearskin Neck and watched the fish and lobsterman take crates of fish off their boats in the early morning hours when the light is most magical.



The seagulls were squawking up a storm-definitely ready for the action, as they waited for their chance to steal a bit of stray fish from the looty taken of the fishing boats.

I caught this picture of a gull after he'd stolen some fish. Man, he was fast! He grabbed that fish faster than my cats would grab a Florida lizard!



Anyway, here is a picture that I took of two gulls scooting down to hopefully grab some breakfast. I was unsure whether or not I should attempt to paint this scene, since it was so complicated. In the end, I went for it- just like the gull went for the fish scraps!



Here is another photo of a gull after my coffee. Oh please! Really? It's only coffee and flavored with vanilla, not lobster!