Consistent Updates

Wow, didn't I tell you I was horrible at keeping up with a blog? So, when was the last post? June? And I didn't even finish it properly? Sounds about right...

So it's October 8th. Kristin and I have been living in Maine for 4 months now. We had a lot of great adventures this summer exploring the state, including, in loose chronological order:

- Road trip along the coast from Ellsworth to Lubec, ME (the eastern-most point in the US) to see a lighthouse and then a quick hop across the border into New Brunswick to see FDR's summer house and another lighthouse (which we didn't see b/c it was bathed in fog). Along the way we got a healthy dose of the "real" Maine, visting little loberstering towns. We took a lot of beautiful photos of the coast. We even made friends with a smokehouse owner who was generous enough to lend us a cooler for the weekend so we could carry the smoked fish we bought on Friday. Unfortunately, I don't remember the name of the place. The guy loves Thailand and Sing Ha beer.

- Camping trip to Acadia National Park. We drove the loop and took a lot of pictures of the dramatic coastline of Mt. Desert Island, climbed to the top of the beehive, a trail nearly straight up a granite face (assisted by iron rungs along the way), cooked live Maine lobsters over a campfire, and had an amazing breakfast in Bar Harbor at the 2 Cats B&B (definitely recommend).

- For July 4th, we went down and visited Kristin's Aunt and Uncle. That tale is related in a previous post, but we had a fun time hanging with family and relaxing for a weekend.

- Camped at the Gulf Hagas and visited the old Katahdin Iron Works. The Gulf Hagas is known as Maine's Grand Canyon. Well, it was pretty cool, but mostly for the numerous waterfalls, pools, and the camp site we had. My first mostly-primitive camping adventure, our site was perched overlooking a 12 foot waterfall out int he middle of the sticks. It was nice to finally camp somewhere without seeing any other campers. We took a good sized hike to see the deep ravine cut in the granite, saw some sign of moose (but still no moose sightings...), then hopped into a cold creek for a bath. It was a really fun experience. All night we were treated to the white noise of a waterfall.

- Spent a weekend down in Rockport, ME for the Maine Lobster Festival. Apparently, it's a must-do when visiting Maine. It was a lot of fun and a nice slice of Maine life. Friday night we ate the obligatory steamed whole lobster in the big tent and listened to some Jazz ensemble from what may be a local nursing home. They were great and really got a kick out of it when Kris and I started dancing. We browsed the local artisans and bought some antiques (seaglass and a little ceramic pipe) that were pulled out of Rockport's harbor. Saturday was a little different. In the morning we went to the LobsterFest Parade and watched a little kid get run over by a Shiner in a go-kart. The festival was a lot busier than the laid back Friday experience. The line for lobsters was ridiculous, so we opted for a Lobster roll lunch. We spent the day in and out of the festival and went to dinner in downtown Rockport then went back to the festival to ride some rides and finally attend a concert by Freddy " Boom Boom" Cannon (the old guy really rocked it out, my favorite part by far), Jay & The Techniques, and Little Anthony & The Imperials (the original line-up!) . Although it was a little misty and cool, the music was fun and we had a great time.
The only downer of the weekend were our accomodations, the Megunticook Campground. One week after the quiet isolation of the Gulf Hagas, we were thrust into commercial camp world in one of the most compacted campgrounds I've ever seen. I was really frustrated, especially when we woke up on Sunday morning cold and damp after the misty night. It was by the sea, alright, but we were a little grumpy on Sunday....

- Bangor hosts the American Folk Festival every summer on the waterfront of the mighty Penobscot River. Again we went both days of the weekend and heard a lot of really great music, including some Norweigan, Haitian and Quebecquois folk (American folk, what?) I actually enjoyed the Quebecquois the most (band named Genticorum); Kristin's favorite was the tango quartet. A coworker and friend of Kristin who also took up a research position on UMaine came out on Saturday night. We had a good time, and it was an encouraging example of the surprisingly abundant culture in Maine.

In between, we went on a lot of hikes and have sampled most of the better restaurants in the Bangor area. My friend Brian stopped by in July for a few days. We went to the LL Bean HQ and saw Keb-Mo, a blues artist we like. I'm convinced LL Bean has some of the best outdoor wear out there. I always thought it was suburban-chic bullshit, but I was wrong.

In August I got a job with Liberty Mutual Insurance as a CSR. It's a bit of a step down from what I'm used to, but it's a good job for decent pay. I'll be able to keep up with the insurance industry from here and I work 8-415 and leave my work at work. I feel pretty fortunate to have a job right now anyway, especially in jobless Bangor, ME.

Well, cheers to an update. Let's hope I can keep this thing going. More pictures next time.