Running Away Has Never Been Better April 28, 2008

There are days when you just can’t take it any more, and my husband and I had one of those last Saturday. We still had work to do over the weekend, but we decided that if we were going to have to spend the weekend working, we ought to at least have an incredible view. We decided to run away for the night to Phippsburg, ME, a tiny town on the “fingers” of the Maine coast, about an hour north of Portland. We tried the Popham Beach Bed & Breakfast first, but they were full. The recommended the Stonehouse Manor, and we couldn’t be more grateful.

 

Jane and Tim were the most magnificent hosts. We sipped hot tea while we worked on the sun porch overlooking the lake, and when our computers wouldn’t work with the Manor’s wireless, Jane even went so far as to loan us her own laptop to e-mail our assignments in before deadline. The only way it could have been better is if we could have skipped the working part and spent the afternoon walking on the beach, which is a five-minute, lovely walk away.

 

Our room, the Lake View Suite, couldn’t have been cozier. The bed was the perfect cushiness without being too soft. If it wouldn’t have made me what I imagine would be a very creepy guest, I would have stayed in the velvety robe and slippers all day. And the love seat and chair in front the huge windows made the perfect place to sip my morning’s first cup of coffee.

 

Jane recommended a fantastic restaurant – Solo Bistro in Bath- for dinner. Recommendations are even more important when your husband is vegetarian; it’s pretty easy to stumble around the countryside and find almost no restaurants with a few good vegetarian options, if you’re working blind. But Solo Bistro had several options, and even better was the customer service. First, Kevin ordered the Parmesan risotto. Unfortunately, he didn’t like it. I saw several other people happily eating it – and I tasted it myself – and I can assure you it was a matter of personal taste, not bad food. It was just heavy on what I think was oregano, and it wasn’t to Kevin’s taste. He asked if he could order the cavatappi pasta instead, and he insisted that they charge us for the risotto. 

 

They quite graciously refused and returned with his pasta in a matter of minutes. The pasta, by the way was a splendid and rich grown-up mac and cheese, with fresh basil, pine nuts and swimming in cream and Gorgonzola. In the meantime, I had what was at least in the top five of my favorite burgers of all time. Perfectly cooked (medium-rare, in my opinion), topped with tangy city of ships cheese, a mound of tiny fried onions and a balsamic reduction, that burger will be on my mind for a while. Fortunately, Bath is a pretty short drive from Portland.

 

Back to Stonehouse Manor. The next morning, Jane greeted us with one of the most glorious breakfasts I’ve ever had at a B&B, and that includes the chef-rich B&Bs of Hyde Park, NY, home to the CIA. I had to use extraordinary restraint not to absolutely stuff myself on her omelets stuffed with ripe cherry tomatoes, spinach and herbed cheese; blueberry pancakes with maple syrup; homemade toasted bread with butter; and a plateful of delectable fruits. Jane is not a chef, by her own admission, but that does not get in her way. Her food is delightful. Oh, and the coffee was also fantastic, which, if you think about it, is a B&B must. If you’re a coffee person, that is. 

 

After only one afternoon, a night and a morning, we begrudgingly left to go back to even more work, but not before taking a sadly abbreviated, but perfectly serene in a very chilly way, walk on Popham Beach. We would have loved to stay the entire week. I’m not sure I would ever tire of a life in Phippsburg at Stonehouse Manor.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Is it so wrong to love a good run in a graveyard? April 23, 2008

I’ve never had a more fulfilling run. Of course, part of the reason is because I was actually able to run the whole time – a big accomplishment for me, really. And this place has hills! Yea! But, honestly, I think even better was the way my imagination ran wild. Does it say something weird about me that I find tombstones inspiring?

Today I chose the Portland Trail Map’s trail number five: the Evergreen Cemetery. The largest cemetery in Maine, and maybe the most beautiful cemetery I’ve ever seen, Evergreen is a glorious place to be, whether you need to get some exercise or get some peace. You can run (or walk or bike) on any or its crisscrossing paths, some dirt, some paved, so that you can make your run as long as you want without feeling like you’ve passed the same thing fifteen times. Of course, the place is so big, you probably wouldn’t have that problem anyway, unless you’re training for a marathon. And if you are, please write to me. I am fascinated by you.

Every time I passed a tombstone, stories leap into my head. Who were all these people who died the same year, who all have the same kind of tombstone? One woman would have been 15 when the Civil War started. How would it be to come into womanhood at the same time the country is ripping apart? When I left, i felt totally recharged for the writing I had ahead of me. I only wished two things: that I had brought my camera, so I could share photos with all of you, and that I had a guide to tell me some of the history of the place and its many distinguished, and touchingly simple, monuments. I could have spent all day there, and I mean to do exactly that very soon.

Trails of Portland April 15, 2008

I’ve never been a very good runner, but I’ve always wanted to be. There was a time – before the move took over my life – when I was running a 5K on the treadmill five days a week. I won’t lie. I thought that was pretty incredible. I realize that a 5K is simply nothing to a real runner, but as an in-no-way-real runner, I was pretty impressed with myself. And yet, that was two months ago. I had a period of three weeks since then when I was back in the gym regularly, but I’ve been out again for a couple of weeks. So today, since the weather is finally, beautifully warming up, I thought I’d check out one of Portland’s trails.

This Web site maps all of Portland’s many trails, and today I chose the 3.6 mile loop around the Back Cove (trail 1). Let me tell you, I was not prepared. Granted, running on a treadmill, as I’ve been doing all winter (well, not ALL winter), is a completely different thing than running outside. But this was unexpected. I probably ran a total of maybe one mile out of the whole loop. Holy cow. Now, I’ve had a cold, but I thought I was over it. My lungs thought differently.

My out-of-shapeness aside, the run was beautiful. The Back Cove loop is mostly sand and gravel, too, which means you’ve got to be paying attention to your feet. But it also means that, unlike when I used to run on the Brooklyn sidewalks, my shins won’t hurt for days after I run.

I’ll be checking out, and reporting on, more trails as the summer moves on, hopefully with better news about my running capabilities, too. If anyone has any particular favorites, let me know!

When Will My Backyard Emerge: A Poll March 26, 2008

So this is our backyard:

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I know, it’s kind of pitiful looking right now. But that’s not the point. The point is that when we rented the place, all we could see was a big space that looked something like our own personal Arctic corner. Over the past week, though, the snow has begun to recede, and we’re delighted to see this lovely brick patio appearing. The place has potential! But, as you can see from the photo, there’s a problem. The house shadow. It’s keeping the final third of our backyard under deep ice cover, and what I want to know is WHEN? When, friendly Mainers, will I see the whole backyard?

I’ve checked the weather, and it promised be 47 degrees tomorrow but also to return to freezing nearly immediately. This tundra seems like it will require more than just one day of warm temps, so I’m guessing tomorrow won’t be the day my idyllic courtyard fully appears. I’m guessing I might get a glimpse of my future summer by April, though. Whad’ya think?

Also, on a little side note, does anyone know what that little dome structure is? Something to grow some sort of vegetation on, maybe? Kevin suggested that it’s a miniature playground. I’m thinking no.

Portland Wildlife March 20, 2008

We had a brush with the animal kingdom today, and here’s where I need your help. A bird sort of large, not huge though – landed on the tree in our backyard this morning. I was watching it, cupping my mug of hot coffee. I was excited. You know, interesting bird to watch, and all, until … it started tearing flesh from the bundle of what I now realize was tiny dead animal in its claws. It stayed there for quite a while, and of course, I was sickly mesmerized pretty much the whole time. And when it finally flew away – it left a gross little pile on the limb as a reminder of its visit! I can only hope it rains soon.

 Anyway, I snapped a shot of the bird, albeit a terrible one. Does anyone know what it is? A hawk? That would be so cool …