6/29/07

Wednesday, June 27, 2007—looking out my back windows to the Tunk Stream pond –a HOT hazy day in Maine—RARE!!


Dear family ones all---

Whoohoo!! On Merm’s computer at last!! The cretins with 2-digit IQ’s sent the missing powercord pronto…(for those of you who don’t know, Andrew Bennett picked up the computer from repair last week and sent it to me, but the store did not give him the power cord that goes with the computer…..duh…so I called them yesterday and said I was a doctoral student without a computer and they had better send it ASAP, which they did.)

Although I am loaded with work to do, I have been waiting to be on this computer to be able to write a letter to you all to catch you up on Maine.

I arrived here the 8th, after three long days of driving in my PACKED Honda with cat and Lily crammed in the front passenger space. I had with me a very cute drop-leaf table and 4 leaves, a gorgeous vanity and large round mirror (fully 36” in diameter), lamps, rugs, pillows, bedding ( two eiderdowns, covers, electric bedpad and blanket), table linens, pots, pans, books, dishes, dishes and more dishes and decorative items, five folding chairs of different kinds, 4 tote bags of clothes and one of shoes (no room for suitcases) and 7 ( count them SEVEN) briefcases and bags of files and references. Plus jammed in the back I had camping “e-qvipment” –inflatable mattress, bedding, single burner camp stove, tent, and minimal food and prep stuff.

After leaving my pretty apartment in Wausau with newly planted gardens all around in the hands of neighbors and Anna G’s friend Jan, I drove from 1 PM to 9:30 and got as far as the Sault Ste. Marie (known to all in Michigan, Canada and Wisconsin as simply the “soo” (Sault is pronounced soo). I found a gorgeous state (Michigan) run camp ground that cost $8/ night and was on the shore of Lake Superior and had only camping trailers besides me. I gleefully figured out how to put up the tent and mattress etc., took a walk in the dark with Lily to explore a bit—and then it started to rain—there went plans for a hot dinner. I stuffed cat and dog and food and clothes in the tent—poor animals were FREAKED out by rain pounding on the tent—Lily –a tick anyway—would not even let me go to the car right next to the tent without barking wildly—in a campground that was quiet as a proverbial cemetery… sigh.

I kept my chin up and set up the bedding—but found I did not have enough—and shivered in the damp and cold all night. Lily was wild to go out at 6 AM –so I gave up and decided to strike camp and get on with my trip. Everything was wet ( not bedding –except damp from surrounding air)—but rain held off for a couple of hours and I was able to partially dry the tent while I tried out my little burner and my Italian coffee pot, which worked like a charm.

Whether or not the border would be easy to cross had worried me for literally weeks—and I made the large tactical error of applying for a Wisconsin driver’s license just a few days before I left—only to find out that TSA has made our lives even more complicated by delaying delivery of licenses by 10 days while they check you out. I argued like crazy that I was going to be crossing the border and driving all over and the receipt they gave me for a license would not be enough, but of course it is like arguing with a bronze statue. I also had the foresight to get the animals vaccinated and get the appropriate papers, and to find out from Geico that the papers I had telling me I had insurance was sufficient for Canada. To my pleasant surprise, the Canadians were happy enough with my passport (still in the name of Lovrien Schwarz) , looked at my papers for the animals and waved me on with a smile.

Driving in Canada was both wonderful and awful—wonderful because I had never been in that part of Ontario and found it enchanting—rivers and lakes and mountains in the distance—very pretty—and lots and lots of gorgeous waysides—everyone on a beautiful body of water of some kind. Awful because highway 17, which is pretty much a straight shot from the Soo to Montreal, is 2-lane—with the addition of passing lanes every 8- 10 KM—and plagued with trucks and it passes through every GD town in central and eastern Ontario, too.

We got to the west side of Montreal, bypassing Ottawa, and again it was very late—I had stopped often to let dog AND cat out—cat on a harness and leash, though she is too arthritic to do much running—and to eat and get coffee because I was dead tired from stress and not much sleep…..I had decided after a rough night of camping to bag camping and find a motel—easier to let out the animals and get a hot shower without Lily going wild outside the shower house.

I had gotten AAA travel information on Ontario, but it was not much help with motels where I was, so I turned off the road and went to the first thing I saw—the Hotel Capri—Capri it was NOT……an east-Indian run dump of a place—but I asked the manager if he took animals and he hesitated a minute and said, “Sure, why not? Can I put you in a smoking room at the back?” It was—location wise—perfect –just a few feet from the back door of the hotel, which opened to a weedy parking lot and empty lot next door—Lily heaven.

But the room—let’s see—two beds of different sizes with different covers, two TV’s on a Home Depot folding table—one for games one for snowy local stations—IF you could match remotes and plug in the right TV…huge mirror in bathroom—5 feet by 3 at least—coming off the wall and wedged in behind the sink counter at a scary angle, one bulb of 5 in the lights over the sink, rusty toilet….but he took animals…and we all slept much better.

The third day was much easier—for having slept-- I still had cereal and milk and made my own coffee on my burner in the bathroom—greatest idea since I don’t know WHAT!! Off we headed through AWFUL roads and construction around Montreal to a gorgeous highway in high hills in southern Quebec Province and then headed past lovely little towns to New Hampshire. I stopped in one town in Quebec at what looked like an ordinary IGA to get some lunch stuff—and it was at least as good as Whole Foods—only with French/Quebecois goodies like paté, unusual yoghurts, etc. I loaded up! (no veg, though—border ahead…) Once again getting knots thinking about the border, I was seriously surprised—I crossed at a TINY little station with one lady in charge—she glanced at my passport and said “Welcome back” and did not even look at the animal papers……if anyone wants to smuggle in anything—might want to try there……

Now we were on seriously 2-lane roads winding, and I do mean winding, through a corner of New Hampshire and then on into Maine—passed Dixon Notch then Grafton Notch and miles of rivers, lakes, and deep, remote forest. It felt like a foreign country—soon arrived at Route 2, which comes to 95 below Bangor and finally were on the home stretch—arrived at 8:30-still broad daylight—to a yard with waist-high grass and things just as I left them—so many familiar things!!

I had already made arrangements to meet my friend Anne at the bakery first thing Sat. AM—so Lily and I walked down there – about ¼ mile—and then to the bakery-another ¼ mile—where we met the whole neighborhood and had great coffee and organic blueberry squares. Everyone knows the Fishes, so saying I was Jason’s mother-in-law always brought smiles. One man told me Jason had worked for him for several summers.

Then it was off to Milbridge—the next sizeable town up the highway—to the organic farmers’ market. How to describe the little gathering of about 6 vendors—in tie-dye, overalls, long hair, unshaven arm pits, children with blond dreads or just plain unkempt hair…..named Oceana and Blue and Sky —selling EXPENSIVE goat’s milk cheese and yoghurt, maple syrup, handmade castile soap, rugs made from hand raised sheep—(rugs started at $1,000…..) organic herbs and vegetables, etc. …It was hard not to imagine that these were all children of solidly middle class homes in Boston, NY, Chicago, etc who chose to “live natural” –it was 1968 in the flesh….not one was a native Mainer and the natives do not buy there—but there are enough people “from away” now to support them.

As Mormor would say—“each to his own, said the old lady as she kissed the cow…”

On to the newly expanded Bayside Supermarket—which puts every Wisconsin super market to shame with its variety and carefully chosen selection of goods—also chosen with the people from away in mind—great wine, organic fruits and vegetables, great cheeses, premium meats, etc—and lots of choices of high fiber bread, to my joy.

Needless to say, once I got the groceries home, I pretty much collapsed! Lily and I went down to dinner at Anne’s—she is yet another splendid soup maker (how do I fall on them—Mary, then Laura, then Anna Gresch, now Anne??) --and enjoyed fresh corn, my bread from the fancy store in Quebec, goat’s milk mozzarella balls in oil with basil and garlic, and some soup sort of like pho—yum!!

The next few days were spent getting stuff out of the car and getting a room ready for Anna and Jason, who were due the 14th on their way to Jason’s sister’s wedding. I had to go shopping at Marden’s—remember Marden’s you guys????? (it’s one of those job lot stores—we shopped there in island days) Heaven—got all kinds of things on my list for the house—tools, kitchen stuff, pint, garden tools, and a new mattress-=-the one here is pretty awful. Then it was off to Providence, where I stayed with Lisa and she took in Lily while I continued on to DC—that chapter you all pretty much know about. The best part—other than Babbo’s and my outing to a wonderful production of Pirates of Penzance—was that the school where I have been consulting reported that they were extremely pleased with my work and the effect of it and they want me back for next year, which puts me in DC about every two months.

I drove to Providence because Lisa had offered a futon for the house—but once I looked it over, I realized it was huge and gainly and there was no place for it, really. So back to Boston, where, as I had privately plotted, I hit the big three in Brookline: Clear Flour Bakery (got about 2 weeks worth of bread and morning buns—and some of that fruit spread I had longed for and never tried) then on to Cheap Chic, the best second hand furniture and furnishings store in the east, on Harvard at Brighton Ave, where I found a great bookshelf, ironing board and blender—not having the futon was the key here!!—and then to TJ’s on Beacon—the HOME TJ’s. Passed Dwight with great longing—what a great apartment.

Got in late Sat the 16th and realized Anna and Jason had never made it—turns out there had been an air traffic controller slowdown on the 14th and they sat for hours in three different airports and spent the night in Portland instead.

It has been a busy time since then—ALL the Fishes—well, all here in Maine—6 plus Anna--came for dinner for Yassa---got to use my cute new table—except that when I went to open it, one half fell over because it was not fastened to the leg mechanism… spent 45 minutes on my back putting it together—but later had to redo the entire mechanism. But I got to use all the Hadley and Babbo’s stem glasses he gave me, and the Dansk silver ware and candle holders from Anna Gresch—it was great!!! I did the yassa the day before—something like 6 pounds of chicken—and there was not an onion piece left!!

I had dinner at the Fishes twice, too—lots of fun to have the big family meals. Anna and Jason spent one night here—Jason was too long for the antique bedstead—Anna stayed one more night and then moved to the Fishes. She enjoyed the gorgeous vanity and she and I got to do one day of junking together--- we went further north to Cherryfield –about 20 miles from Steuben-- and found a pretty, tiny antique and art shop in an old bank building. The shop was being minded by an elderly gentleman who turned out to be a neighbor here in Steuben along with his partner—he was Frederic, the other is Richard—of course they have one of the cutest houses and by far the most beautiful garden!! Transplants from Virginia. Anna and I found two other wonderful junkier shops, where, Jules, we can find many dishes etc. for your future store!!

Last week, the new friend Agnes- the one who has property near me and whom I met in New Jersey when there with Laura in Feb. 06 and with whom I came to Maine last summer and found my house—came up last week with her daughter, Annette, to their new house—a prefab cape cod –cute as a button—which sits out on the point of the wharf road. Agnes is 80+ but a ball of fire—runs a literacy program in Ocean County, NJ—her daughter is in her 50’s—very nice 5th grade teacher who works in a greenhouse in the summer. We hung out all last Saturday—bakery, then booksale in Milbridge supporting the library, then antiquing—I introduced Agnes to Richard and Frederick—then lunch and they came for dinner here—chicken korma with that amazing sauce from TJ’s.

Other neighbors, Steve and Linda, are from Maryland—Frederick—and have had us ( me, and then Agnes and Annette) in twice for wine and cheese and a look at their amazing 200 yr. old house with original fireplaces, double staircases and views to kill for down the cove. They are redecorating in high “rich” style—deep reds and creams, oriental rugs on dark floors, library lined with fancy books and leather furniture. They have two of the unruliest dogs imaginable—a boxer and a setter—both just 6 months old—Lily HATES them!!

And last night I had Anne and her two little kids, Hattie (6) and Beckett (9), in for more yassa. (Dad was at a school board meeting.) They ate like there was no tomorrow—corn and salad and rice and chicken—ice cream and nectarines for dessert. They are cute kids—even if they have been raised in full “natural’ style- never disciplined, never apart from parents—literally—and Beckett and three other 4 year olds were present at Hattie’s birth… in a tub of water in the middle of their living room. I paled….Beckett is in public school this year because they couldn’t afford the Waldorf-type program where he had been—he was not, says his mother, “introduced to reading yet” at the Waldorf school—which caused considerable consternation at the public school when he started second grade essentially illiterate…..their house is built entirely of recycled material and they have their own solar power-they are entirely “ off the grid”—in more ways than one…. Anne now has a conventional job running the adult learning program in Sumner, down the coast—she has lived all over—a long time in Sri Lanka, where her parents were educators, I think, and in eastern Europe. She is really interesting—and a fun friend.

(WOW—here I sit in the middle of nowhere in downeast Maine and in three days I have had three special deliveries from UPS and FedEx (computer, its cord and a contract)—the neighbors must be puzzled….)

(And more Maine-only news—three people killed when they collided with a moose—and another vehicle attempting to avoid it….I have yet to see a moose—Linda ( neighbor) said she saw a moose cow and calf last week across the cove from them)

So--- Maine is FUN—social and gorgeous. Every morning Lily and I walk down to the wharf road, past Agne’s house, and observe the state of the tide—dead low in the days when we first arrived, now high-- the shore is muddy here so it is hard to walk at low tide, but the bubble sea weed is everywhere, and the sea lavender is just getting ready to bloom ( remember Jane Braun collecting it on the island?)

Yesterday I heard a lot of laughing and screaming just below the house and Lily and I went down to see what was going on. The wonderful family next door, the Martins, were all ) Mom, dad, 12 yr old son, 14? Yr old daughter, 6 yr old daughter) down at the stream and pond—son Tylor and littlel girl and dad were swimming and throwing sticks for their gorgeous big black lab, Tunk. Mom and older girl sitting on huge wonderful rocks in the rapids. It was a lovely afternoon and the view down the cove was amazing. The bald eagle was hovering in the tree near by ( I am just listening to a report from Maine Things Considered that the Maine bald eagle is about to be taken off the national endangered species list—429 nesting pairs were sighted this year) – right out of Norman Rockwell

Today Lily and I walked around on Roger’s Point, which is the point past the Fishes—it sticks out facing east and west and has little satellites which are islands at high tide—I love to walk around them at low tide because they are so reminiscent of the island—tall pines and grass surrounded by rocky beaches and ledges of granite covered with that bubbly seaweed,- beaches crunchy with mussel shells and snails and broken clams and those little conch-looking shells the seagulls eat--boats everywhere—it is a fun place. There were several people there today because it is so hot—everyone was cooling off. Three ladies were up to their knees in the water—I asked if their legs were numb—one said, “Well, if you stand in one place a few minutes you can stand it” – remember that feeling at the island??? Only the crazies swim in the ocean!!

Needless to say I have been gardening, too. I have discovered a few plants here—but have had to re--dig beds—I did the one in front of my house and put in hostas, which I harvested in DC in March—poor things flew to Wisconsin in a suitcase, then sat in bags for weeks and weeks and then got sent to Maine in a box because they couldn’t go to Canada—they are slowly recovering. I painted the window boxes fresh black and put in impatiens and put boxes of flowers on my little deck along with rail pots with herbs—it is even better than Wisconsin in being so handy!! I have wonderful new friends from up the highway toward Milbridge who come to mow and they are going to help me rototill the gardens because I am sick of sod busting. Then I will transplant irises, daisies and roses—LOTS of roses. I have so many plans for here—but will do like the island for now—plant things that will survive on their own. Lupines grow wild all over here, so I have several already—and a fat bed of blue flags –small irises – I used to gather them with golden daylilies for grandpa’s birthday bouquet—never missed a year while they were on the farm—except when I was in Africa.

Moving in completely is taking a long time—I keep opening boxes with more treasures in them. The egg cabinet is all arranged—but seems twice as full as I remember. I decided to paint the little room that will be my office and another guest bedroom—it has planets around the top of the walls—not my taste—and I got a piece of indoor outdoor dark red carpeting, so furniture will sit more easily—the whole house leans this way and that,--the office sinks to the middle, so the office chair rolls downhill—will have to move the secretary…;) I am also working on the mudroom, which is quite spacious—but now full of gardening tools and camping stuff—I got plastic shelves for storage and will put up hooks. I gleaned two porcelain door knobs off an old door in the hopes of creating a coat rack like I saw in Santa Fe—all made of old door knobs—very chic.

–Oh, and Babbo—tell Mohammed that the sideboard he rescued for me is up and functioning and looks VERY nice. I was able to replace one leg and put a square of wood under the corner that is not visible in the room. I got shelving and brackets to put up the Robin Lovrien memorial shelves, that I have in every house I live in—over the sideboard. Anna and Jason can attest to the way everything seems to fit right in and look great in this house. Everyone has commented on how homey it looks already. I polished one brass table and am contemplating the other……and the wooden box shelves—Julie,, do you remember those from your childhood at Farragut Street? --look great in the living room/ In the interest of the shabby chic look, Anna has forbidden me to stain them so they would look newer---they are full of the usual artifacts—shells, boxes, iron pieces, the Haitian angel, that iron candlestick thing, books, games, African pottery….you know….

I have been going to the local libraries to get on the computer—Steuben has a nice, tiny library literally up the street from my house—it has only one computer but free wireless, so I will be there a lot now that I have Merm’s computer. I have also gone up to Milbridge, which has a tiny library in a terrible, run down crowded building housing the town offices among other things. It has four computers that are hardly ever in use so I can stay there a long time (Lily permitting). I asked the librarian why they were there, and as any librarian can relate, I am sure, she told me the whole long sad story of Milbridge locals basically not wanting to pay for a library because they don’t think they need one. Beatrice Fish told me the Steuben library suffers from the same attitude—it is the people from away who are increasingly supporting the libraries.

I also went down to Ellsworth yesterday—it has a grand, newly renovated library in a beautiful old house on the Union River—but limited time on the computers…Ellsworth reminds me of Georgetown—shops like “ Seaglass Creations, The Plot Thickens ( garden shop, of course) The Bookshelf and Cleonice—a FABULOUS tapas bar—plus one of the world’s BEST kitchen shops—money is a wonderful thing.

Speaking of money--- I have three –no, five—wonderful contracts (haven’t heard from the dissertation grant application yet) and will be able to pay for my credits as soon as I can submit them!!! AND < I will be able to buy myself a laptop at last—One of my contracts is to create and facilitate an online course!! I am so excited about that—and I have an invitation to a conference in Dallas in early August—I HATE Dallas in early August—but it is good money—and I will get to see the Lovrien boys, I hope. ( I am hearing that Texas around Austin is about to float away—poor people—they don’t know what water is……)

But to get this $$ I have to spend a lot of time writing and researching—thank you MOOMIE, for letting me use your computer to get started. It will give me good focus to be able to work at home—then run up the street to connect to the internet and send things and check e-mail. I have to balance work and house stuff—my carrot. I work 4-6 hours and then launch on some project or other.

Kitty Baby is loving this house—she sleeps in the sun and climbs the stairs to perch on my feet. Lily loves Maine a lot---she gets to be out a lot—though there is no fence yet—we can walk in lots of places where she can be off leash. The only hard part is that she will not be apart from me without hysterical barking. I finally decided to leave her at home rather than leave her in her cage in the car—it is cooler and she might as well suck it up. I am missing a water dog, though, and may decide to get her a spaniel companion. I miss Tessie to this day.

Well—I am trying your patience, I am sure—but it is hard not to have anyone to share all the fun with. Write me---all of you—and come when you can. I was due for visits from the Bennetts, but they didn’t come and Lisa can’t come because she is waiting for hip replacement surgery. Gresches ARE coming at the end of July. Except for this week, it is usually cool and lovely here—have only slept WITHOUT a duvet one night!! The huge bullfrogs across the street in the tiny pond croak me to sleep…

Oh –forgot to tell you about the newest suitor—a navy veteran in the assisted living house next door—he is so lonely—Lily and I stop and talk and now he says he is looking for a mate, should I be interested……he is fat and unkempt ( I am talking dried snot on the nose…) but may clean up nice—I promised him we could go to eat somewhere sometime—no cost to being nice to him. He brought me a lobster last week—made great lobster salad…..:))

Love, Mama.