We're back!
I haven't posted anything on the blog for a couple of days, and that's because we weren't here. When we got up Wednesday morning and looked out to a white world with an obvious snowstorm off in the hills of Walden, we said, "Let's get out of here!" and promptly left. As we drove away, I was thinking I should have at least let you know we had snow on the ground, but we left in a rush, and in a snowstorm . . . (Our driveway Monday a.m. - we had snow squalls most of the way on Rt. 2 east until about Gorham, NH.)

Actually, we didn't leave quite that abruptly, we had been watching the weather for a few days and knew snow was coming here but that it was going to be nice on the coast of Maine. We have gone there each fall for many years, sometimes in early spring, too, before the "tourists" arrive. We visit friends and familiar places, enjoy sea food and sea air. This time we went by way of Rumford, Maine, where we stopped to see one of my college roommates and her husband. The weather and road construction held us up so we arrived there late and didn't spend as much time with them as we'd have liked. At our destination in York, another friend was waiting, so we felt we had to keep moving.

We stayed at the Union Bluffs Hotel on York's Short Sands Beach. It's an old hotel, not particularly distinctive on the outside, but inside it has lots of charm, very pleasant staff, and great food. It has been nicely updated over the years and is very comfortable. We walked on deserted streets in York Beach village, admired the mostly summer homes along the shore and met a very interesting retired gentleman who makes his home at York's Short Sands Beach, but originally hailed from Lowell, MA. He said he and his wife go to Florida for a while in the winter, but consider Maine their home. He was reading in the sunshine on his deck looking out over the water. We always meet such nice people on these trips.

We also enjoyed the nearly deserted streets and shops up the coast in Kennebunkport. (We didn't bump into any of the Bush family, neither did we go by to check their compound to see if they were there.) The numerous little shops at the port were quiet. Owners and staff were busy updating inventories and decorating for the Christmas season. There was Christmas music playing for inspiration, and while it seemed really early to us, I'm sure they must gather their resources however they can after a busy summer. A lot of them will close after the holidays. We took this picture of the beautiful South Congregational Church in Kennebunkport, Maine; below, deserted streets and shops.

We had wonderful meals at some of ur favorite spots - fish, clam chowder (served in bread bowls) and for breakfast at the hotel this morning before we left, Fred had the largest stack of pancakes either of us had ever seen. The pancakes 12 inches across and stacked about four deep, with bacon piled on top and lots of maple syrup. I've never known Fred to be unable to "eat the whole thing" when it comes to pancakes - never, ever, until this morning. We commented to our waitress about the size of the pancakes, and she just muttered and shook her head. It seems the chef at the hotel gets a little wild sometimes. I ordered two scrambled eggs with bacon and I'm sure he scrambled at least three eggs, or maybe they have extra big hens in Maine. Or, I could have been eating seagull eggs - maybe they're larger . . . anyway, our breakfast was delicious, and we enjoyed watching the surf just across the street, and a seagull that hung out like a lonely beggar, hoping for a handout from each passerby. Some of the hotel staff tried unsuccessfully to chase him away - I guess the management would prefer not to have them bothering the guests. (View from our 4th floor room.)

On a brief trip to the Nubble Light, which we usually walk to, but this trip we swung around in the car on our way to lunch, we found cormorants hanging out on the rocks. We also spotted a loon - we are pretty sure it was one from Joe's Pond - and a flock or two of geese heading south. There's never any shortage of gulls, especially around the Nubble where folks feed them popcorn, french fries, bread or whatever is handy.

When we left the coast this morning, the weather was cloudy and raw. Everyone was complaining about the cold. Actually, it wasn't really that cold - perhaps in the low 40's, but Thursday had been sunny and comparatively warm, so folks were disappointed, I guess. As we got closer to home, through the White Mountains, the sun was nice and showed off the snow on the high peaks. Fred got some pictures from the car - not an easy task when zipping along on the throughway at 65 m.p.h. We arrived home to a stack of mail, including newspapers I'll catch up on tomorrow, and I had a couple dozen e-mail messages. Fred had fewer e-mails, but most of the snail-mail was his so we're both doing catch-up.

It's good to be home. Woody the Cat was happy to see us - well, as happy as cats get. He's kept very close to me most of the evening and is right now curled up on his "bed" on my desk, occasionally stretching out a paw to push a pencil off the desk or to gently poke my arm for attention. He snores! I think it has to do with his sleeping with his head upside down - his mouth opens a little when he's sleeping very soundly and is completely relaxed.

On Monday's blog I told you about Jamie and Marie's new puppy - at that time rumored to have been assigned the name, "Otto." That is the correct name - but, as promised, here's the rest of the story: Jamie was inspired by an auto repair sign he saw on the way home one night so he told Marie he thought "Auto" would be a unique name for the new puppy. Marie didn't think so. So they compromised: the puppy would be "Otto" and his middle name would be "Pilot." So, we now have a new pup in the neighborhood named Otto Pilot. Marie says that's fitting - he's on "otto"-pilot most of the time, wrestling with their cat, "Ricco," and racing through the house. Their older cat, "Tillie" will have nothing to do with either Ricco or Otto. You see, Tillie hates Ricco; so probably no friend of his will ever be a friend of hers. Ricco is a bit of an outlaw, so we can only hope Otto doesn't pick up any bad habits. Marie told me tonight they wrestle together like a couple of bear cubs, so she monitors their playtime closely to insure neither one gets hurt by the other. After all, Ricco was rescued off the streets of St. Johnsbury as a friendly but street-wise "survivor," and Otto is just a baby.

Speaking of babies - we are very happy to announce the arrival of Hannah Prentiss Brown on Nov. 7th. Her Grandpa Tom called us when we were on our way to Maine on Wednesday. Hannah and her mommy, Sarah, are both doing well and her daddy, Dean, proudly sent us a few dozen great pictures. Here's just one - we thought it was a lovely family portrait. She is the first grandchild for Tom and Ella, and I guess that makes her our grand niece! Her Unc Fred and Ant Jane are just so tickled to welcome Hannah to the family!