Exploring Maine

My husband and I are winding down today, relaxing at Kawanhee Inn this morning and spending the afternoon with my sister and brother-in-law at Webb Lake beach. A quiet, early dinner in Farmington and then to bed early. We will leave around 6:30 a.m. tomorrow for a nine hour journey home. It was worth it! 

While we were here, we drove into New Hampshire to visit Mt. Washington. My brother-in-law is fearless and drove the big truck up a winding mountain road. My sister Diane kept shouting, “Everyone lean to the left!”  It reminded me of our trip to Portugal when the tour bus driver had to navigate a narrow road up the mountainside of the Douro Valley to visit the Sandeman vineyards and winery. But when we got to the top of Mt. Washington, the scenery was so breathtaking!  The only other way up is by the Cog Railway. Three trains are diesels and one is a steam-operated train specialized for this job. We actually saw ravens soaring on the breezes. The temperature at the mountaintop was 55 degrees – a bit chilly. The highest wind velocity was recorded on top of Mt. Washington – 131 miles per hour! It is a world record for measured wind speeds not involved with a tropical cyclone.

Our trip to Camden included viewing the town from the top of Mount Battie, exploring wonderful shops, and taking a sunset harbor cruise on a sailing ship. It was so peaceful and relaxing to be on the Appledore, first launched in 1978.  It will soon set sail for Key West to continue to take tourists out into the water.

A little snag before our trip to Camden – I must have picked up a nail somewhere on the way to Maine and one of the tires had dropped to 30 pounds. So luckily, we found an auto shop that took us right away and patched the tire. Phew! Last summer, our air-conditioning quit while we were in Portland, so this inconvenience was much smaller and easier to deal with!

Of course, before we left Portland, we took a harbor cruise and had dinner with Chandra Lowe at the Saltwater Grille.  In between, I managed to finish all the edits that were assigned to me (Stacey and I had split the job while we were together in Lambertville doing revision work). I had extended checkout, and still I was typing the last sentence while housekeeping was knocking on the door to come in and get the room ready for the next guest!

I m getting better at vacations. My workaholic tendency does not always allow me to enjoy downtime. My friend and principal Joe Waters warned me about retirement because he said he knew me  better than I knew myself. In a way, he was right. But I have not retired – I have plenty of professional learning days, conference presentations, and writing to do. I like to keep busy!  But now, I can see the value in vacation time. A fresh outlook on everything – renewed energy, time with family and friends, time to refocus and breathe in all this world has to offer!