Just Stuff

Well, my plans to blog from Maine hit a big snag, so here is a recapitulation of the visit. We arrived in Boston the evening of May 22; after some delays, picked up the rental car and headed North. The first thing we noticed was that the tulips were in bloom, and the lilacs, forsythia, and fruit trees were just breaking into bloom. The second thing we noticed was the price of gasoline; $3.93 per gallon (went as high as $3.99/gallon while we were there, eased back to $3.87/gallon on May 29th). Anyway, once we were on our way, we made the trip to our motel in about 3 hours. After a short night, we were up for the Friday festivities. Interestingly, the campus was all busy in preparation, and we found that by early afternoon, we were exhausted. Back to the motel for a few hours of rest, then back to campus for the lobster bake (for us, the non-lobster version), at which time the temperatures dropped dramatically, and the outdoor festivities were interrupted by heavy rain, blowing around due to heavy winds. Kind of like Kansas storms this time of year, only about 20 degrees cooler. After dinner, visiting with some of Lindsay's friends (and their parents), off to the a capella concert in the chapel. Two things; the chapel is truly gorgeous, and has great acoustics; the school groups are many and very talented. We visited a bit with some more of Lindsay's friends, and then to bed. Saturday morning came shrouded in rain and wind; a raw day. I must say I've never worn a sweatshirt on May 24th before, and been glad for it. We watched the baccalaureate ceremonies on closed circuit TV from a classroom, as there isn't enough room in the chapel for all the graduates, faculty, et al., and were happy to be inside out of the weather. Once this was over, we met our daughter in "the street", and then went to lunch with her and two fellow American Studies majors, and Professor McFadden (head of the department). Once finished there, we went to the departmental reception, where we met other faculty, and were informed that Lindsay had received the award for best Honors Thesis, which came with a $200 cash prize. We then hit the "bookstore", and purchased some stuff, a long sleeved t-shirt in my case due to the weather, and skipping the President's reception (it was outside, and it was a bit cool), went to enjoy an evening with our daughter, taking in the second night's a capella concert (same groups, different songs featuring the Seniors in the groups who did not perform the night before), then back to sleep, as commencement was at 10 a.m. the next morning, and we had been warned about the need to get there early to get a seat. Sunday was sunny and warmer; we got to campus to get a seat, and, during the ceremony, realized that 1) we had forgotten to apply sunscreen, and 2) my hat was back at the motel; so, I got sunburned on my head, which is now finishing peeling. After the ceremony (2 and 1/2 hours), we met up with Lindsay, and enjoyed the post-graduation luncheon. Once that was finished, back to the dorm to get our daughter out by 6 p.m.; we met many parents of graduates who were similarly employed. We made it, barely; then, back to the motel, accompanied by Lindsay. Monday was a beautiful day; we left the motel about 8, traveled to Bar Harbor for "touristy" stuff, including breakfast at Jordan's, which is highly recommended. Following two hours of wandering around Bar Harbor (where my wife found a t-shirt at a place called "Cool as a Moose" which is just too "cool" (didn't have one in my size, darn it)), off to Freeport for a few hours, then down to Portland where we spent the night. Tuesday was busy; first, we did the tourist stuff in Portland for a few hours, really neat stuff in Old Town and the Port area, then back to Waterville, to move Lindsay into her summer room (she is working two jobs on campus), get a motel room for the night (it's amazing how the rates went down once commencement was over), and enjoyed(?) record heat for that time of year; it hit 86 that day. After dinner with the kid, and back to her place, we called it a day. Wednesday dawned with temperatures in the high 30s; air conditioning to heat in 24 hours! To campus to take Lindsay to lunch, then spent a bit more time in Waterville seeing the sights, taking in the college art museum (truly impressive), then off to Boston to spend the night before heading home. Thursday came much too early; our flight left Logan at 7:15 a.m., and we finally got back home about 9 last night; we arrived in Wichita about 4, but by the time we gathered our luggage, had an early dinner, did some grocery shopping, etc., it was about 9 when we finally got home. Some impressions: Maine is quite beautiful this time of year; the tourists haven't hit yet, as the New England states are still in school, so the prices and costs are still reasonable. The fact that sunrise is before 5 a.m. is a bit disquieting, as one wakes about 5:30 and thinks it must be 8 or so, given how light it is. The campus at Colby is on a hill, as I think I've indicated before; but what isn't obvious is the hills within the hill, if I may. Let's just say there is one "short cut" on campus that rivals anything at KU in vertical climb over a short distance. My age and lack of physical conditioning showed. Great places to eat in Waterville: Big G's (sandwiches, but huge; a 'half-sandwich" is large enough to feed two people, I'd hate to see a full sandwich); The Last Unicorn (pricey, gourmet type place, well worth the money); Jorgensen's (luncheon, coffee shop, just too much to take in at one time); Governor's (a state-wide 'franchise' which is really good food at a reasonable price). Of course, there are the typical McDonald's, Wendys, other national type franchise places. I've already mentioned Jordan's in Bar Harbor. Old Port Sandwich Shop in Portland was a great place for lunch, frequented by the locals, especially professionals (lawyers, accountants, staff), very good food at rational costs. It was interesting to see the early spring flowers in full bloom in late May, to be sure. Demonstrates the different climate. Most folks were mowing their lawns for the first time over Memorial Day, something to envy(?) I think. More later as it occurs to me. I recall Linda is headed for Boston today for a few days, and I'm sure she will have a good time and much to tell us. While we said we wanted to see as much as we could as we likely wouldn't be returning to Maine, I think another trip is in our future, as we didn't get north of Bangor, and there is much to see "up there" which we want to see. Tired, but it was worth it.