One Flaw

I am sometimes accused of over-hyping Maine, of glossing over the state’s shortcomings. This is a fair observation, however, alert readers will notice that I never—ever—come up here in the winter, so I can only describe for you what I see. Summers here are just better than summers wherever you happen to be, that’s all.

But, in fairness, it must be admitted that summers in Maine are not perfect. I mean, they would be if not for one thing…

Yes, the dreaded deer fly—bloodus suckious—the bane of all hikers, bikers, runners and walkers in Maine from approximately June 1st through September 1st. I already know what you’re all thinking—We have deer flies here, they aren’t unique to Maine. Bless your heart….thats like someone from Nebraska saying to someone from the Florida Everglades—We have mosquitoes here, what’s the big deal? The deer flies of Maine are supernaturally mean, angry and relentless. One of the reasons we spend so much time at or on the lake while we are here is because it’s the only place the deer flies leave you alone. Well, thats not entirely true. I don’t recall being bothered by them while in town, for example. Primarily, the woods—including any trail or road which may go through them are where they thrive. Since I like to take long walks, this can sometimes be a problem. But, Mainers have devised a solution, a tool for the fight. This baby—

Meet the Bug-Zapper Deluxe 2000. This cross between a tennis racket and pickle ball paddle comes wired with electrical current, which with the touch of a button will come to life sending fly killing electricity surging to the racket head. When properly swung it lights up the deer fly and emits a delightful buzzing sound to let you know that the job was done. I can attest to the fact that no sound is quite as satisfying as the Zap-o-Death. Just a couple days ago I carried this baby along on my 3 mile walk through the dirt roads of Quantabacook and I lost count at 45 kills. Of course the drawback to this device is that now I run the risk of developing bug-zapper elbow simply by going for a walk.

Since I believe that God created the heavens and the earth and everything therein, I am left with the task of finding a reason for the deer fly’s existence. I have come to the conclusion that God created the deer fly for one reason and one reason only—to keep the good people of Maine humble. Because, were it not for this bothersome insect, the summers in Maine would in fact be perfect, which would make Mainers too proud. And as we all know, pride goeth before the fall.

The Magic Chair

There’s a special place in this camp. It’s upstairs in the main house. There’s a comfortable chair with an enchanting view of the lake. To access this special place you have to climb a steep ladder. 

There are two lovely twin beds up here, along with a small chest of drawers. I climb up here to do my morning exercises. Then after dinner, after the sun finally sets, I come up for inspiration. You see…in the ten years that we have been coming here I have written parts of three different novels sitting in this chair. It’s not the only place I write while in Maine. But, whenever I’m feeling blocked, this is the place I come to. There is magic in that chair. I bring a snack and a small can of Ginger Ale. I close my eyes then open them and look out the window at the lake and…poof…unblocked.

The only trouble is that the chair is a rocker and when you use the chair as intended, it has a squeak, not a loud and obnoxious one, but a squeak nonetheless. Pam, who is usually sitting down stairs right below me on the sofa doing her latest cross-stitch project, will sometimes complain about the noise. When she does I try to sit still while I write, something that isn’t easy to do. After a couple hours of productive creation, I will climb down the stairs until next time.

It is just one of the many magical details of Loon Landing, this small but elegant escape from the harsh realities of the world. 

A Big Day and Bad News

How’s the weather been? Although this question gets asked a lot where Maine is concerned, the truth is that it doesn’t really matter. Each kind of weather brings its own delights. But so far there hasn’t been any rain. Every morning has been cloudy with a bit of fog across the lake. Haven’t been treated to a sunrise show yet. The temperature in the morning is around 60. We sleep with the windows open. Its wonderful.

As the day progresses, the fog goes away and the clouds start to thin out. By the time the afternoon arrives the sun comes out for a few hours. The temperature tops out at 75 or so. There hasn’t been much wind to speak of, just a light afternoon breeze that dies down with the sun, leaving the lake still and calm for sunset. Pam takes her paddle board out around 7:30, golden hour.

Today is a big day up here. First there’s the annual Strawberry Festival in Lincolnville Center starting at 10:00. Last year we made the mistake of waiting until the afternoon to go and when we arrived literally every last strawberry was gone! We will be there bright and early this year. Then there’s the Arts and Book Fair in Camden. The first time we went was around ten years ago just after Labor Day on our last day in Maine. It was bright and clear, 72 degrees and as perfect a day as it is possible to have. Today it will be partly cloudy, but this event is always fun. So, after strawberries, we will drive into Camden and buy more things we don’t need and have a blast doing it.

Unfortunately, this beautiful place has made national news for a horrible reason. On Crawford Pond, about 15 minutes from here, a local woman has been murdered, last seen on her paddle board near 100 acre island 8 days ago. Several years ago we rented a place on Crawford, hiked that beautiful island, all six of us. Now, the entire place is a crime scene. The good people of Union, Maine are beside themselves with fear and worry. It feels like a violation, not just of an innocent woman, but of this entire community, this way of life. People don’t get murdered here. These are communities where people come to get away from the kind of world where people kill each other. To have one of their own struck down while enjoying the beauty of a place like Crawford Pond feels outrageous and grossly unjust. So, now news crews are up here for all the wrong reasons. 

Here’s my favorite photograph from yesterday..Pam on her paddle board.

Status Update on Lucy

I thought I would give everyone an update on Lucy, since it’s always the most popular question people ask me about Maine—How does Lucy like it? Well, Lucy loves Maine, but she is also a fanatic for her routines, and any change in location causes her much angst. It takes her a couple days before she feels comfortable with the new environment. First off she has to find her—spot—that one location that she claims as her private safe space where she can establish her dominance. For Lucy, its usually the sofa…

For this purpose we always bring her favorite blanket from home to protect Carolyn and Keith’s sofa. She prefers the exact spot on the sofa that takes up the maximum amount of space, making it difficult for anyone else to sit down. She allows it, but usually gives whoever sits with her the side eye.

The second issue is always—where to put her food and water dish. One would think that a dog could eat and drink from a dish set practically anywhere, but in Lucy’s case, not so. If it’s not just right, she will not eat. Oh, and even once we find the correct spot, she ain’t eating unless the two of us are sitting down and settled, and that is non-negotiable. Yeah, I know…weird.

The one thing she loves the most is swimming. Yesterday she jumped in for her maiden voyage with her brand new swimming vest with zero hesitation. Then a bit later she did one of her other favorite lake activities—accompanying Pam on a paddle board adventure…

When they returned from this paddle Pam noticed that Lucy seemed a little slower this year. Yeah, probably. She’s eleven now, slowing down a bit. But she still loves it.

Then there’s another favorite activity—fishing. Yesterday morning the two of us were down on the dock and I caught the first fish of the season—a smallish largemouth bass. Lucy was ecstatic, and sniffed and licked the thing to death. Later yesterday afternoon I was out there by myself doing some fishing, thinking Lucy was asleep in the house. I suddenly hooked into a pretty nice sized fish and was reeling it in when it jumped out of the water and wiggled off the hook. Immediately I heard an indignant growl/whine of disapproval from the house, turned around and saw Lucy standing at the screen door—judging me. I mean, it’s hard enough to catch fish without having to endure my dog’s deep disappointment!

So, I think its safe to say that Lucy has settled in and is living her best life.

We Made It.

We made it, a very low stress 14 hour drive with no accidents, backups, no construction delays and very little rain. My back held up, the hamstrings made it through without incident and the car ran like a top. It’s 854 miles and I’m stiff and sore, but compared to other trips up here, this one was easy.

We have unpacked the car, organized everything to suit us, and Pam even made a preliminary trip to the Hannaford’s in Belfast to pick up a starter-pack of groceries. Tonight, I picked up a pizza from Fraternity General Store while Pam made a salad. I washed it down with my favorite Maine beer—Baxter Stowaway. After dinner we walked out on the dock and watched the sun set. It was 70 degrees with a cool breeze on our faces as we watched the show…

In the morning the sun will rise around 5 am. It will be 60 degrees or so. I will take my coffee on the deck by the edge of the water. At some point I will take the kayak out for a spin, check out the water level down at the dam, pay a visit to Summer Dreams, then paddle over to the Eagle’s nest to pay my respects. We might head into Camden for a bit, or not.

I will go for my first swim tomorrow. The cold water will take my breath away, but I will quickly adjust, and when I come out of the water I will feel like a new man. Lucy will swim with me. We bought her a new swim vest and she is anxious to try it out. All the other dogs will be jealous because she will be stylin’.

So, there you have it. Vacation has begun. It’s here, wish you were beautiful.

5 Days

In five days we will turn left off of state route 131 onto Brierley Road in Searsmont, Maine. We will drive down the curving dirt road for about a mile until we arrive at Loon Landing. We will slowly emerge from the car after a two day, 14 hour road trip, bones cracking with each aching step. The first thing we will do, before unpacking anything is walk around to the lake side of the house, because we want to get our first look at this…

It was last fall when we last stood on this spot. So much has happened since then. I’ve retired. Pam has retired. We have a beautiful new grandson. But this place still holds our hearts with a tender grip.

For six weeks this lake will be our home. It will not disappoint. It never does. Just ask Lucy. She thinks that this is what heaven looks like.

She may be right.

A Milestone

So, a couple days ago this happened:

The Tempest is almost 15 years old at this point, so admittedly that’s a long time, but this is pretty cool. Over a million times someone has read one of my over 3000 posts. In the early days it would go months without attracted a thousand views. Now every now and then I’ll get a thousand in a day. I’m not sure what exactly this accomplishment says about The Tempest. Probably the most likely lesson is—stay with something long enough and eventually you’ll hit your number. There's something to be said for persistence.

However, the larger lesson for me is that I have had lots of fun here since December 30th 2010. Whether or not you have is, in the final analysis, beside the point. But, thanks for reading!