The first thing I did when I awoke was try the light switch--nope, still no power. I then tried to contact my company (supposed to be driving up today) and the owner of the cottage. While I waited for their reply texts, I went online to the power company site.. Based on the information on that site, guess we won't have power until Tuesday at 5AM. How do they know that that is when power will be restored? There are 142 households on this road alone without power and that's one of at least 100 other neighborhoods still without power.
Anyone who really knows me, knows how disconcerting it is for me to have not showered for two days, dirty dishes in the sink, a toilet with yucko in it that we can't flush, and other problems that come from having no power and no water.
Bob went to the local market and bought a lot of ice and two coolers. We then spent the last hour and a half packing up refrigerator stuff into the iced coolers. The freezer stuff is still frozen, so we probably have a little time for that stuff. The veggies will have to be thrown out, probably. Bob is on his second trip now in search of dry ice (for the freezer stuff). I already called a number of grocery stores and hardware stores in the area and no one sells dry ice. It's a Sunday, so even if we found a seafood retail shop that might have dry ice, it's probably closed.
Margo is coming tomorrow instead of today. I hope the power company is ahead of the game and restores power tomorrow (Monday) instead of Tuesday.
Sunday, July 6, 2014
Belfast and Portland--Bye, bye baby!--July 5th
A huge storm--wind and rain, sometimes at a horizontal angle--and our power is out. Since we had done shopping and a lot of cooking for guests coming in this week, I had hoped that it would be restored before the food went bad. None of us could shower, so we got dressed and hit the road. (the Water system here is also tied to electricity--in order for the pump to turn on).
What--already? Bryn left today. We drove down the coast, stopped in Belfast, had lunch (me-- fried clams and sweet potato fries and cider, Bryn--haddock sandwich and coleslaw and a beer, Bob--steak salad and beer. We went to Eat More Cheese and bought cheese and wine. Bryn and I visited Northwest Woods Gourmet Girl shop and she tested some caramel. We went to the kitchen store to marvel at all of the tools. Then we continued to drive down to Portland, via the 95 and 295. In Portland we landed at the same place we had visited two years ago. We had appetizers (buffalo sauced chicken tenders, pretzel sticks with honey mustard dipping sauce, and I had a cup of clam chowder. We each had a beer. We had a bit more time to shop around (another kitchen store) and then it was time to take Bryn to the airport. It was sad to see her go. The time was short and went far too quickly. We love our Brynners.
It took us almost 4 hours to get home and once we got home, we discovered that the power was not restored. UGH! The cottage was cold--we had no light--no water. To bed at 10:30 PM after finding some candles and flashlights.
What--already? Bryn left today. We drove down the coast, stopped in Belfast, had lunch (me-- fried clams and sweet potato fries and cider, Bryn--haddock sandwich and coleslaw and a beer, Bob--steak salad and beer. We went to Eat More Cheese and bought cheese and wine. Bryn and I visited Northwest Woods Gourmet Girl shop and she tested some caramel. We went to the kitchen store to marvel at all of the tools. Then we continued to drive down to Portland, via the 95 and 295. In Portland we landed at the same place we had visited two years ago. We had appetizers (buffalo sauced chicken tenders, pretzel sticks with honey mustard dipping sauce, and I had a cup of clam chowder. We each had a beer. We had a bit more time to shop around (another kitchen store) and then it was time to take Bryn to the airport. It was sad to see her go. The time was short and went far too quickly. We love our Brynners.
It took us almost 4 hours to get home and once we got home, we discovered that the power was not restored. UGH! The cottage was cold--we had no light--no water. To bed at 10:30 PM after finding some candles and flashlights.
A lazy day----Friday, July 4th
It was a drizzly day. We woke up fairly early. Mostly we hung out, read, hammocked, and at night, Bob made pizza with fresh mozzarella, roasted veggies, prosciutto and sauce. We had a salad as well. Bryn got to do some relaxing and reading today and she certainly needed the time to just chill.
Thursday, July 3, 2014
July 3rd
Today, we awoke around 9AM. We had yogurt with Maine maple syrup and granola. I also had a chocolate croissant. And we all had coffee. We hung about for a short time and Bryn was up, booted, and ready with her bucket to do some serious musseling.
Bryn and I started to clean the mussels and I got tired, so she finished and did all the cooking while I wrote this blog. So now we have fresh (not frozen) garlic fries, mussels in a tomato red-wine sauce, a salad and garlic bread. YUM! YUM! Lunch is ready (even though it's 3:34PM and we missed our chance to go kayaking). This was so much better, as we were together in the kitchen--just as it should be.
Bryn Arrives: Northeast and Southwest Harbor Exploring--July 2
Since we weren't expecting Bryn until around 5:30 PM or later, we decided to explore the other parts of Mt. Desert Island. Desert is pronounced dessert because of the French Acadia influence. Mount Desert Island is part of the Acadia National Park system and is stunningly beautiful. We had driven up to the top of Cadillac Mountain in past years and we had camped in Acadia National Park a couple of times. The first time we went there, my mother cared for Bryn, Matt, and Sean, and we drove up to camp in Acadia. It was a beautiful drive and we had a wonderful time. Then the rain came and it continued coming. We were not able to dry anything out and we got a bit tired of being wet everywhere so we went back to Albany. When we got there, however, we heard the weather had changed in Maine and we decided to drive back with the three kids. That was a wonderful vacation. We took them to the beach where Matt attracted a crowd as he dug a huge hole trying to find what was at the end of a rope sticking out of the sand. They swam in the ocean with us, made sandcastles, and camped in the woods--these children of the desert and Long Island loved it. We took them to the Oceanarium where they handled sea creatures and learned about the ecology of the area. We often pass the Oceanarium and are tempted to revisit.
We drove to Bar Harbor and instead of taking the fork in the road for Bar Harbor, we took the fork for Seal Harbor, Northeast Harbor and Southwest Harbor all on Mt. Desert Island. Southeast Harbor was adorable. Main Street in Northeast Harbor was very quaint filled with local artisans shops, unaffordable and affordable boutiques, cottage furniture stores, gift shops, naturalist stores, restaurants, bars. Oh, oh, oh! So much fun. And the markets, too, in these towns are like mini-AJs. Everything is adorable. We stopped at a bakery/pizza shop/cafe run by Serbs. The bread in the window beckoned us. We also saw a few of the pizzas being consumed (inhaled by two couples eating at the sidewalk tables). Bob ordered a prosciutto sandwich on a baguette with melted provolone cheese and roasted peppers. I had a BLT wrap with guacamole. All delicious. We picked up some pastry for breakfast tomorrow (and I bought a peanut butter cookie for dessert). Then we shopped (yes, I bought another pair of shoes--sigh).
Bryn had been texting us her whereabouts and ETA. She visited Freeport and Wiscasset, had lunch at Red's Eats (she later showed me a picture of the lobster roll she had--1 1/2 pounds of lobster in it--oh my God!). She was having such a good time, and so were we. So when we knew she'd be at least 2.5 hours, we decied to explore Mt. Desert Island further. So on we went to Southwest Harbor and Seal Harbor. This Main Street was similar but the shops were very upscale. I love to shop and I used to buy stuff even if I couldn't afford them. Now that I can afford them, I shop more carefully and only buy little stuff that is reasonable priced. The market here was amazing. Very small, but it had so many unusual (many locally made) products, fresh fish, lovely meats, wonderful condiments, great bread. I visited one of the most amazing kitchen, dinnerware store--wow! Of course, it made me realize how many kitchen things I actually had. I have to admit, I do use mostly everything we have and that's because both Bob and I love to cook and entertain. I did buy a citrus juicer (the hand-held kind) and a small mandoline. Actually, the owner of the cabin is a cook and baker (not by trade) who had a pretty well-equipped kitchen (including a
Here are more pictures of Northeast Harbor and Southwest Harbor.
Some of the sights of Northeast Harbor and some of the sights of Southwest Harbor.
When Bryn called with just an hour ETA, we left and headed toward Trenton (Bar Harbor Airport Hertz). She arrived at 6:30 PM and checked in the car. We were then on our way to Bar Harbor where we had reservations for a restaurant we had visited before called Cafe This Way. The food is unusual (bistro style) and in an old house with a big old porch. We were seated in the library area. We had a duck confit tostada for an appetizer, Bob and Bryn ordered an organic pale ale and I had a drink called Nathan, Darryl & Darryl--all melons with vodka and it was delicious, as was the tostada. Bryn had baked haddock with a puttenesca sauce with a side of saffron rice and brocollini. I had a red snapper escabeche with garlic mashed potatoes and Bob had a ribeye steak with a port reduction sauce and blue-cheese butter with garlic mashed potatoes. Yummy. For dessert, Bob ordered blueberry pie (Maine is known for its blueberries) with ice cream and I had pots de creme (Bryn tried both).
Then home--one hour plus. We were beat and by the time we all went to bed it was after 10:30 PM, way past our bedtime.
We drove to Bar Harbor and instead of taking the fork in the road for Bar Harbor, we took the fork for Seal Harbor, Northeast Harbor and Southwest Harbor all on Mt. Desert Island. Southeast Harbor was adorable. Main Street in Northeast Harbor was very quaint filled with local artisans shops, unaffordable and affordable boutiques, cottage furniture stores, gift shops, naturalist stores, restaurants, bars. Oh, oh, oh! So much fun. And the markets, too, in these towns are like mini-AJs. Everything is adorable. We stopped at a bakery/pizza shop/cafe run by Serbs. The bread in the window beckoned us. We also saw a few of the pizzas being consumed (inhaled by two couples eating at the sidewalk tables). Bob ordered a prosciutto sandwich on a baguette with melted provolone cheese and roasted peppers. I had a BLT wrap with guacamole. All delicious. We picked up some pastry for breakfast tomorrow (and I bought a peanut butter cookie for dessert). Then we shopped (yes, I bought another pair of shoes--sigh).
Bryn had been texting us her whereabouts and ETA. She visited Freeport and Wiscasset, had lunch at Red's Eats (she later showed me a picture of the lobster roll she had--1 1/2 pounds of lobster in it--oh my God!). She was having such a good time, and so were we. So when we knew she'd be at least 2.5 hours, we decied to explore Mt. Desert Island further. So on we went to Southwest Harbor and Seal Harbor. This Main Street was similar but the shops were very upscale. I love to shop and I used to buy stuff even if I couldn't afford them. Now that I can afford them, I shop more carefully and only buy little stuff that is reasonable priced. The market here was amazing. Very small, but it had so many unusual (many locally made) products, fresh fish, lovely meats, wonderful condiments, great bread. I visited one of the most amazing kitchen, dinnerware store--wow! Of course, it made me realize how many kitchen things I actually had. I have to admit, I do use mostly everything we have and that's because both Bob and I love to cook and entertain. I did buy a citrus juicer (the hand-held kind) and a small mandoline. Actually, the owner of the cabin is a cook and baker (not by trade) who had a pretty well-equipped kitchen (including a
Here are more pictures of Northeast Harbor and Southwest Harbor.
Some of the sights of Northeast Harbor and some of the sights of Southwest Harbor.
When Bryn called with just an hour ETA, we left and headed toward Trenton (Bar Harbor Airport Hertz). She arrived at 6:30 PM and checked in the car. We were then on our way to Bar Harbor where we had reservations for a restaurant we had visited before called Cafe This Way. The food is unusual (bistro style) and in an old house with a big old porch. We were seated in the library area. We had a duck confit tostada for an appetizer, Bob and Bryn ordered an organic pale ale and I had a drink called Nathan, Darryl & Darryl--all melons with vodka and it was delicious, as was the tostada. Bryn had baked haddock with a puttenesca sauce with a side of saffron rice and brocollini. I had a red snapper escabeche with garlic mashed potatoes and Bob had a ribeye steak with a port reduction sauce and blue-cheese butter with garlic mashed potatoes. Yummy. For dessert, Bob ordered blueberry pie (Maine is known for its blueberries) with ice cream and I had pots de creme (Bryn tried both).
Then home--one hour plus. We were beat and by the time we all went to bed it was after 10:30 PM, way past our bedtime.
Cleaning Day-July 1
Did some laundry and cleanup. Got the bedroom ready for Bryn and my linens ready for the futon. Tomorrow, another adventure exploring other small coastal towns we had not visited previously.
Bryn arrives at Portland airport at 11:30 AM and then rented a car to drive up the coast so she can stop at the coast towns on the way up. Cannot wait to see and spend time with our baby girl.
Bryn arrives at Portland airport at 11:30 AM and then rented a car to drive up the coast so she can stop at the coast towns on the way up. Cannot wait to see and spend time with our baby girl.
A Lot of Shopping--June 28-30
I am ashamed. I am very, very ashamed. We have done a lot of shopping for our company, Well, I'll admit it, it was for me. I guess my lack of self-esteem makes me want to be good at something and that something in this case is making my guests feel happy, welcome, and special. We have so much food and booze you would think that the entire neighborhood is coming to call. Instead, only four people are visiting in July and then two are visiting in August. I am crazy. I have to stop this extreme consumerism and perhaps I'm ready to do that right now because I am sincerely nauseated at the amount of STUFF in our freezer, refrigerator, cupboard, and behind the couch (where we keep the wine and liquor). My guest better be hungry and hankering to drink--A LOT! and hang out so we don't eat out all the time--just some of the time.
We went to two different grocery stores (very small ones in this neck of the woods) and was so excited to see all the different foods. Then there's the new wine and cheese place. Please understand that most of these places are miles and miles away (except one grocery store). The liquor place is about a 45-minute drive. We hate Walmart and do not shop there usually, but it is the only place we could find some of the things we need--like rope, clothespins, etc. So we also stopped there to pick up a pitcher and a few things. So our cupboards are anything but bare. The 1/2-sized refrigerator is full to the brink as is the little freezer. TOO MUCH! I'm not complaining about the money--it's the lack of restraint and common sense that bothers me. I'm glad I won't have to worry about what we'll eat or drink, but when everyone leaves and there are leftovers, I'll go through this funk again when I have to throw stuff out (or get drunk every night to justify all the booze we have in the house).
On Saturday, Bob and I hung around most of the morning and, all of a sudden, at the same time, we got up and decided we had to start cooking. So we poached the chicken, Bob made marinara sauce (Margo is a vegetarian) and meat sauce and meatballs. I roasted peppers, eggplant, zucchini, and plum tomatoes. There was quite a whirlwind in the kitchen. It was not a cool day, so it was a bit warm in the kitchen. Hoping it would cool at night, we hustled to get everything that had to be baked and boiled done before dinner time. I made eggplant Parmesan. It was a productive day and we felt very fulfilled.
Meanwhile, Bob has been a bit bummed about the lack of birds in the water and at the feeder. When we first put the feeder out, we had the Phoebe family feeding and an adorable Goldfinch and a Chickadee. Then came the pair of Bluejays, called the Bullies of the Birdfeeder. We had also seen hairy woodpeckers, downy woodpeckers, and pilated woodpeckers. The last time we were here, we saw tons of sea birds--including, besides the seagulls, terns of different types. Then, almost all but the seaagulls were gone. Bob is also not feeling that great physically (arthritis), so he's been a bit "down." Losing his prescription sunglasses just about did him in. We spent almost a full day and part of the next day calling places we had visited and looking every where in the house for them. They were expensive and would be necessary for our cross-country trip. Anyway--all that was soon to change.
Little by little the birds returned, not in the numbers or frequency that they had previously. Then, Bob was dumping the garbage and found his sunglasses. All of that and the fact that our beautiful daughter was soon to arrive perked him up a bit.
Soon, there would be relaxation and rejoicing.
We went to two different grocery stores (very small ones in this neck of the woods) and was so excited to see all the different foods. Then there's the new wine and cheese place. Please understand that most of these places are miles and miles away (except one grocery store). The liquor place is about a 45-minute drive. We hate Walmart and do not shop there usually, but it is the only place we could find some of the things we need--like rope, clothespins, etc. So we also stopped there to pick up a pitcher and a few things. So our cupboards are anything but bare. The 1/2-sized refrigerator is full to the brink as is the little freezer. TOO MUCH! I'm not complaining about the money--it's the lack of restraint and common sense that bothers me. I'm glad I won't have to worry about what we'll eat or drink, but when everyone leaves and there are leftovers, I'll go through this funk again when I have to throw stuff out (or get drunk every night to justify all the booze we have in the house).
On Saturday, Bob and I hung around most of the morning and, all of a sudden, at the same time, we got up and decided we had to start cooking. So we poached the chicken, Bob made marinara sauce (Margo is a vegetarian) and meat sauce and meatballs. I roasted peppers, eggplant, zucchini, and plum tomatoes. There was quite a whirlwind in the kitchen. It was not a cool day, so it was a bit warm in the kitchen. Hoping it would cool at night, we hustled to get everything that had to be baked and boiled done before dinner time. I made eggplant Parmesan. It was a productive day and we felt very fulfilled.
Meanwhile, Bob has been a bit bummed about the lack of birds in the water and at the feeder. When we first put the feeder out, we had the Phoebe family feeding and an adorable Goldfinch and a Chickadee. Then came the pair of Bluejays, called the Bullies of the Birdfeeder. We had also seen hairy woodpeckers, downy woodpeckers, and pilated woodpeckers. The last time we were here, we saw tons of sea birds--including, besides the seagulls, terns of different types. Then, almost all but the seaagulls were gone. Bob is also not feeling that great physically (arthritis), so he's been a bit "down." Losing his prescription sunglasses just about did him in. We spent almost a full day and part of the next day calling places we had visited and looking every where in the house for them. They were expensive and would be necessary for our cross-country trip. Anyway--all that was soon to change.
Little by little the birds returned, not in the numbers or frequency that they had previously. Then, Bob was dumping the garbage and found his sunglasses. All of that and the fact that our beautiful daughter was soon to arrive perked him up a bit.
Soon, there would be relaxation and rejoicing.
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