A picture tour of the last few days...

I thought I'd share some photos with you all, so you can get a better idea from MY point of view what life looks like here. I did take some video on Saturday in Jonesport at the Moosebec 4th of July celebration (where they cancelled the lobster boat racing...) and also the other day in Bar Harbor, but technical glitches are keeping me from being able to post that here quite yet.

(in other news, I have the local tech guy who runs the internet cafe down the street coming to make a house call to help me get my wireless stuff figured out on my desktop computer this morning...)

To start with the negative and go positive, here's what happened to my car the first night I lived here (a tree branch fell off of the tree above my car during a light rain):


Alas, once my car insurance policy for Maine comes back from State Farm headquarters, it'll be getting the car fixed time! Which will happen after I go and get my recall fixed on it tomorrow. Yay GM!

So this was last Saturday, when I was happily standing in the freezing fog waiting for lobster boat races to occur (taken with my camcorder):


Although it was pretty foggy, I still got a chance to see some working commercial boats up close and personal.

On Tuesday, I went down to Ellsworth and Bar Harbor for the day, for the purpose of FINALLY getting my license, registration, etc. It all worked out (after being at the BMV for three hours....I am so patient and had Harry Potter along to read), and then I got to go run around in BH. I was hungry, so I thought I'd stop at the famed Down East Lobster Pound, which is I believe in Trenton, Maine (last stop on the mainland before hopping on the island).

My second lobster roll...not nearly as tasty as the first. Folks are right...they are overpriced for what the are. I have BIG plans to boil up a lobster and find a tasty recipe for the lobster roll mix and make it myself! But, it was cool to stop at one of the "pounds" (still not sure why they call them that) and check it out. I did get to watch the guys throwing in sacks of lobsters, clams, etc.


I did walk around Bar Harbor (BH) for a while, but decided that was far too commercial and kitchy (sp?) for me, so I continued on to Northeast Harbor and Seal Cove. A bit more my style:


Bar Harbor was a good time (as described in the previous blog).

Now, onto Machias! I decided last night that I've been staying in my house a bit too much (every time I leave I have to spend money on something...ergh) so I just decided it would be good to get into a little bit more active of a lifestyle while I am not working here to start dropping weight again (goal of losing 15lbs by Halloween, 30 by Christmas). So, I went for a walk around the big block here a few times last night. It's amazing what you don't see when you are zooming around in your car!!


It would probably be helpful to explain where I live in town. So, there is Coastal Route 1 that goes...you guessed it...all the way up the coast of Maine. That is what the town of Machias is located on. There is the Machias River that goes through the middle of town, which I live one block off of (but far enough away from the coastal/tidal water that State Farm will insure me!). At the end of my block (I live at 81, which is about 4 houses from the dead end) is Route 1. Here is a shot of what I see when I am at the end of my road...one area of intersections of town:


Machias is small (about 3000 people, I think) but the community is very tight and mom-and-pop business oriented. In fact, there are but a few true retail/chain places in town (the grocery store, Radio Shack, McDonalds Cafe, and the Chevy dealer)...otherwise everything else is owned by townspeople...and many of the businesses are actually located IN people's houses...which is a real adjustment to just walk into someones house or garage or whatever. This shot is the back half of the buildings that are on my street, looking downtown. This is the Whole Life Market, which is the natural food store down the road from my house/on my way to work. They have raw milk, which I think I might ask to try! They also just had an electrical fire about a month ago, but are all rebuilt and open again!

Machias is also really charming and full of history, because the town is SO old. In fact, its so old that it was the sight of the first naval battle of the American Revolutionary War. All over town are these markers to say things about the history of town. I can't wait to get into the library and find out more!

Lastly, what comes with old towns but lots of old dead people? There is a huge old cemetary just a block over. With last names that are still in town, streets named after, buildings on the UMM campus named after, etc. As you can tell, the ground is granite...so burying people around here is a challenge. I would say they do more "covering up" than burying.

Alas, the apartment is still not in "presentable" shape as I have yet to be able to visit the town transfer station (it was closed yesterday) so after the mounds of cardboard are gone, I will take some preliminary pics of my place!