Preview of the "Shrimp Run"

On July 27, 2013, "Ski's Shrimp Run" will begin in the parking lot of the Sea Dog Pub in Topsham, Maine. Arrive around 10 AM, embark on a 32 mile ride at noon. Read all about this scooter rally at Ski's Shrimp Run on Facebook.

For those coming from a distance, space at the Thomas Point Campground will be available. Mike and I rode up there last Sunday - Mike planned the ride, so the 45 mile, 2 hour round trip measured 85 miles and five hours. But it was a beautiful day for a ride, so we didn't mind a minute of the afternoon.

 

First things first - Mike and I take pictures of us taking a photo of the other.

 

We parked in the driveway of the farmhouse next to the campground. Built in 1830, this marvelous brick home with attached barn is in mint condition.

 

Across the road, even the bird house is freshly painted and ready for residents

 

A dozen apartments, low rent, pay heat and utilities, no pets

 

This snow will melt, the meadow will turn gorgeous green, and by June, it'll most likely be full

A variety of sculptures dot the landscape

 

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Well, at least it's melting fast...

We all knew it was coming, but since our weather prognosticators have been so wrong so often over the past winter, we hoped that the forecast of a foot of snow on the first day of Spring would be as fantastical as many of the previous mistakes.

 

Well, this time they were correct. Happy Spring - now dig out the shovels!

I'm on the outside looking in...

...at a well-used snowblower and a neglected Vespa.

It's like looking at an archeological dig - layers of past storms, reminders that this has been a winter of too much snow

The driveway is clear...

The street is passable...

...but my first load of firewood for next winter has arrived, and Kathy is home from work, so I'll ride tomorrow.

 

 

 

 

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Well, at least the snow is gone!

The tide was extra-high in the Scarborough Marsh, and the sky threatening, but at least the snow is gone.

And what is this? A skateboard on the beach!? At least this guy isn't trying to ride it. What's next - some goofball riding a scooter on the sands of Old Orchard Beach?

This surfer contemplated the cold, windy, dismal sea...

...and wisely said, hell no!

 

This couple made the same decision after a couple of minutes watching the waves pound the Pier

In about six weeks, this coaster will be open for the season. But on this dark day, it's just a forlorn reminder that summer is so very short along the coast of Maine - and that winter is so very, very long!

 

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Absolute Joy

It's not all that often that we get to experience utter and total joy. Mike and I watched a young boy express that wonderful emotion during a visit to Doc's Cafe in Cumberland.

 

This kid came to Doc's on a Sunday morning with his father and sister. Dad ordered cinnamon buns for the trio, asking that the children's pastry be cut up. When his was delivered, the boy actually applauded the sticky treat!

 

 

 

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More Snow Sunday, and a three-day storm on the way

Mike sent me a text message Sunday afternoon:

Yes, in fact, Kathy and I busily took photos of this rare Maine winter phenomenon

 

I've got a lot more, but they all look the same, and the forecast calls for a storm starting Wednesday evening, lasting into Friday afternoon. The weather people are predicting between five inches and a foot. If any of them look different from the last 50 snow shots I've snapped, I'll surely post them.

Oh, goodie - I just saw a snowflake...

 

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Well, it seemed like a good idea...

It was a beautiful day, warm and sunny, dry roads, so Mike and I rode down to Biddeford, then back up through Old Orchard Beach. So inviting was that marvelous seven-mile-long stretch of golden sand that I decided that riding right on down to the sea was a really good idea.

It wasn't

Mike examined the situation with a straight face - for about 30 seconds. If laughter is the best medicine, Mike won't be sick for a decade, so great was his giggle fit.

It took the two of us about 10 minutes to wiggle, jiggle, lift and coax the Vespa to safety

I'm sure this will a funny to me as it was to Mike, and to Kathy, one day. I'll let you know.

 

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That's a lot of snow!

While weather forecasters are often wrong, or at best, close-but-no-cigar, the crowd of computer-model-watching geeks got it really right this time. They stated that the Blizzard of 2013 would break records, and up my way, it certainly did.

In Portland, half a dozen miles to my east, the old record for a single storm was 27 inches - the city got 31.9 inches as of Sunday morning. Gorham, six miles west, received 32.9 inches.

 

My dear wife Kathy holds a yardstick in our driveway, indicting 30 inches of snow.

 

In the back yard, the drifts were nearly five feet tall

 

This has never happened to me - the snow was too deep for my snowblower to move!

 

Sunset over the neighborhood - good bye blizzard - hello spring

 

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Let it snow - I know it's really spring!

 

According to the weather prognosticators, my part of Maine is going to experience a blizzard unlike anything we've seen since 1979. Since Spring Training starts on Monday, it must be spring in my little world. So I am going to ignore the two feet of white fluff and focus on warm weather by digging out a few photos from summers past.

 

This is what we've be told to expect for the next 36 hours

 

But I am going to remember a summer sunrise over the sea

 

I'll remember the lady with the hat sitting by the bay

And I will marvel at the ways people will configure themselves to get an all-over tan, down to the palms of the hands and the soles of the feet

I'll envy the courage of those who surf in water that never, ever gets truly warm

And I will remember that it really won't be that long before I will enjoy another picnic in the woods beside the sea. So let it snow - it'll melt soon enough, and I'll be riding my scooter by the sea

 

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Weird Weather

Obviously, we can do nothing about the weather, except complain. So, I think I will. Up here in Maine, we are experiencing one of the weirdest winters I can remember. (Unfortunately, my dimming memory goes back only about a decade, lately.)

 

OK - one day it's 62 degrees. Two days later:

One day, the snow is gone.

Three days pass, and:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

That's all I've got to say, for the moment.

 

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Now this was a genuine treat!!

Just a week ago, I posted pictures of deep, dismal snow:

The temperature on this ride was in the high 20s

Now look at this delightful photo of my very accurate Vespa thermometer:

 

From a favorite spot to view a large part of Sebago Lake, a pair of young ladies walk along the shore

While the clouds look menacing, it never rained on this marvelously mild Monday afternoon

The field of blue here isn't water - it is a yard full of cocooned boats, waiting impatiently for the spring

Notice how little ice covers the lake - and how perilously thin it is

The ice is only safe for birds

I must post this picture again in closing - 62 degrees at 1:11 pm on January 14, 2013!

 

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