Fill the Steins to Dear Old Maine...

Kathy and I brought Chris & Sarah to school today, and helped them move into their apartments. They are living in the same complex, right across from campus. The units are very nice - and they share them with 3 other roommates, but are only responsible for their own rent. Above, Sarah is front of her building - while Chris is in the kitchen of his place:

They have their own bedroom, and share the living room, etc. They both had a great summer, saved some money, and I'm sure will both have outstanding years at the flagship university. I'm already looking forward to seeing them at parents' weekend. Good luck guys, I love you.

~MET

The Dinah & Divots

Last night M-S and I had dinner with my parents and Jim at the "China Dinah". If you have never been there...make the trip. My mom has long raved about the steaks, and I was truly amazed. I couldn't finish mine. All the food was great, and I will go back many times in the future.

Fab, Ladd, and I played a round of golf at The Meadows in Lithchfield. It was fun, but the course is frustrating. The 18 holes provide great views, big greens, and interesting challenges - but its not as well maintained as it should be. Still, you can't go wrong with good friends, green grass, and fresh air.

~MET

YES WE CAN!

Last night we had a small "Convention Party" at my parents' to celebrate Obama's historic nomination. Chris and Heather showed up ready to go with their Barack and Hillary masks. Here, Jim and I show who we are endorsing:

I thought the convention was fantastic - and I'm still shocked by McCain's pick for VP....so I'll have to comment on that one later. Yes, we are united:

I had a great day today teaching my first classes - and now M-S and I are going to the Chinah Dinah to have dinner with my mom, dad, and Jim. Talk to you soon.

~MET

A Great Start to the New School Year

We have had two days of workshops to prepare for the opening of school, and I must say this is the happiest beginning in several years. No construction, no drama, better superintendent, a more upbeat message, and people just seem in a better mood. I've never been anything but excited about the beginning of school, but the last few years there always seemed to have been some BIG problem to deal with as the great teachers in Winslow came back to work. Public education is a challenge everyday - and attitude is everything. This year we all seem to be ready, excited, and (for the most part), on the same page. The freshmen come tomorrow, and then I actually start teaching on Friday. Life is good.
~MET

It Begins Tonight!

The Democratic Convention begins tonight - and I can't wait. This time of an election year is a political junkie's absolute fix. Tonight there are two big events: Michelle Obama will speak, and is going to be accompanied by a video that is really supposed to be a tear jerker...and Ted Kennedy is going to make an appearance. There will be no doubt that when the 76 year old icon takes the stage, I'm going to cry. I watched his 1980 convention speech today, and could barely keep it together. I've been immersed in this stuff for 30 years, and can't remember being so excited about an election season. Thursday we are having a "Convention Party" at my mom's to watch Obama's acceptance speech in front of the 75,000 folks in Denver. Of course, this also gets me VERY excited to get in front of my American Government & Law students in a few days!
~MET

Continuing to Do Our Part...

...to stimulate the economy. We got the stainless-steel fridge to match our stove. I like it a lot, it has the ice and water dispenser, and is side by side. Its a bit of a challenge to get used to the long thin freezer. M-S is having a small case of buyer's remorse, but she always does.
~MET

Way to Go Joe!

A wealth of foreign policy experience, well versed on all the issues, born in the battleground state of Pennsylvania. The Ticket is set: CHANGE & EXPERIENCE IN '08!
Try to remember who's blog called it first - back on June 5th: http://met1963.blogspot.com/2008/06/joe-biden-for-vice-president.html
~MET

2nd Post Today - Could Be a Third!

My wonderful sister, Suzanne, is a vegan - and has put forth a "Vegan 100 Challenge", that I have copied to my blog. I may write again tonight assuming that Obama actually tells us his choice for VP. Anyhoo - check out the list below - there are lots of foods that are not vegan, I guess thats the point - I have not tried many of the vegan ones.
~MET

1) Copy this list into your own blog, including these instructions.
2) Bold all the items you've eaten.
3) Cross out any items that you would never consider eating.
4) Post a comment here once you’ve finished and link your post back to this one.
5) Pass it on!

1. Natto
2. Green Smoothie
3. Tofu Scramble
4. Haggis
5. Mangosteen
6. Creme brulee
7. Fondue
8. Marmite/Vegemite
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Nachos
12. Authentic soba noodles
13. PB&J sandwich
14. Aloo gobi
15. Taco from a street cart
16. Boba Tea
17. Black truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Gyoza
20. Vanilla ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Ceviche
24. Rice and beans
25. Knish
26. Raw scotch bonnet pepper
27. Dulce de leche
28. Caviar
29. Baklava
30. Pate
31. Wasabi peas (I LOVE THESE!)
32. Chowder in a sourdough bowl
33. Mango lassi
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float
36. Mulled cider
37. Scones with buttery spread and jam
38. Vodka jelly
39. Gumbo
40. Fast food french fries
41. Raw Brownies
42. Fresh Garbanzo Beans
43. Dahl
44. Homemade Soymilk
45. Wine from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more (this was M-S's fault)
46. Stroopwafle
47. Samosas
48. Vegetable Sushi
49. Glazed doughnut
50. Seaweed
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Tofurkey
54. Sheese
55. Cotton candy
56. Gnocchi
57. Piña colada
58. Birch beer
59. Scrapple
60. Carob chips
61. S’mores
62. Soy curls
63. Chickpea cutlets
64. Curry
65. Durian
66. Homemade Sausages
67. Churros, elephant ears, or funnel cake
68. Smoked tofu
69. Fried plantain
70. Mochi
71. Gazpacho
72. Warm chocolate chip cookies
73. Absinthe
74. Corn on the cob
75. Whipped cream, straight from the can
76. Pomegranate
77. Fauxstess Cupcake
78. Mashed potatoes with gravy
79. Jerky
80. Croissants
81. French onion soup
82. Savory crepes
83. Tings
84. A meal at Candle 79
85. Moussaka
86. Sprouted grains or seeds
87. Macaroni and “cheese”.......??????
88. Flowers
89. Matzoh ball soup
90. White chocolate
91. Seitan
92. Kimchi
93. Butterscotch chips
94. Yellow watermelon
95. Chili with chocolate
96. Bagel and Tofutti
97. Potato milk
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
100. Raw cookie dough

Getting Ready...

...for the first day of school. I love this time of year, and I am very excited to get going. I went to school yesterday to welcome the 14 new staff during their orientation, then went to my classroom to get some work done. I ended up mostly chatting with the other teachers who were there, and didn't get much accomplished. I'll go again Monday morning to really hit it hard. This year should be a MUCH better start than last year - the construction is done, the school looks great, our new superintendent probably won't kick off the year by insulting everyone, and we have an interesting new bell schedule.
~MET

Do You Remember?

This photo was taken in 1976. As a kid I used to love it when my parents drove by these two ships in Wiscasset - the Hesper & the Luthor Little. They have long since decayed and fallen apart. Does anyone remember them?

~MET

Monthly Meal - Cinco de Mira

Mexican was the theme last night, and I called it Cinco de Mira because M-S had a lot to do with the prep of this one. We started with Mexican music playing when they arrived, and chips with salsa and M-S's delicious homemade guacamole. The main course was Spanish rice and enchiladas with chicken, veggies, and sausage.
For dessert M-S made blackberry crisp with fresh berries ....lets say they came from Mexico, Maine to keep it on menu:
It was all very good, and we were stuffed by the end. I've no idea what to do for next month...I'm running out of themes. Any ideas?
~MET

Back From The Great Northwest....

....of Maine. I've needed to get to the woods, so I went to Jackman - which is now one of my favorite towns in Maine. Its got a nice little downtown, and reminds me of how Rangeley used to be. If you like woods and fishing this is your place. The BEST part was where I stayed. The "camping cabin" below costs the same as a tent site at a state park, and the picture above is the view from my porch.
A camping cabin means there is no kitchen...though there was a microwave, coffee maker, table, and tv. You do all your cooking with a camp stove outside by the picnic table. It was great. There was also a shower/bathroom building that was in excellent shape. Here is what the inside looks like:
I got to play a round of golf at the Moose River Golf Course, which was a challenge because the biggest green was about the size of my dining room table. It was still fun and the views were awesome:

I took this picture for my mom:
I think it was neat that St. Anthony's Catholic Church of Jackman, Maine has a huge gold Jesus. I asked around about a fishing spot, and was sent to a place on the Moose River, 15 miles into the woods down logging roads. There was a nice rocky area to cast from, and I'm not kidding - I was there for two hours and had a fish on my line ON EVERY CAST! They ranged from 6 inches to about 14 inches - salmon, chubs, and the Maine tiger trout. It was fun, but not much of a challenge - every cast.
I did a lot of reading, relaxing, and looking for moose. I only saw one. I love cooking while camping, and here is one of my dinners:
Mashed potatoes with chicken and gravy - it was delicious. I had a very good time, and will probably go back again next August to recharge for the school year. My parents come tonight for the monthly meal. I'll write about that later.
~MET

These Olympic Ones Are Too Funny - Be Sure To Watch Both!

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London Games in 2012 - We'll Be Ready!!!

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The scary thing is that these figures look a lot like us!
~MET

1972

The first Olympics that I remember paying attention to were held in Munich in 1972. They are somewhat significant to the Beijing games because Michael Phelps is about to break all of the swimming and medal count records of Mark Spitz. Everyone my age and older knows that name. And, the picture on the left is one of the most famous in Olympic history. He was Mr. Wheaties box back then, and the games really belonged to him - much the same as Phelps has taken them over this year. Of course, the Munich games were also our introduction to the idea of terrorism, though we didn't think of it in the same way that we do now. Eleven Israeli athletes were killed right in the Olympic village by Palestinians. There was also an 18 hour stand-off. Spitz (because he was Jewish), left the games before the closing ceremony for his own safety. The picture on the right is Spitz today, and he's kind of angry this week because the U.S. Olympic committee didn't invite him to the games as his records will be broken. Apparently lots of other former athletes were invited, but not him. Kind of a slap, in that the name Mark Spitz was synonymous with the Olympics for so long. Whether you are a fan of the games or not, my generation will certainly have his name stuck in our heads forever, along with Olga Corbett, Nadia Comonici, Bruce Jenner, and the 1980 hockey team.
~MET

Bumblebees & Boxers

There has been a LOT of bee activity in our gardens as of late. They really seem to like this one...M-S told me the name, but I've forgotten it already.
Burt has been healing up well, and he got the drain out yesterday. He still has stitches in two places, and he wants to lap those areas. For the most part someone is always with him, so we can get him to stop. Today, however, I have an important MEA meeting in Skowhegan, so he'll be by himself for a while. We have one of those big plastic cones - BUT HE HATES IT. As soon as you get it on he begins working to get it off. I'm sure I'd come home and the cone would be on the floor, his stitches would be loose, and one of his ears would be injured. So, we're stealing a page from the Suzanne Thurston book of animal medicine and rigged up a pair of boxers for him while I'm gone. I don't think he likes them, but he is leaving them alone.
What makes you think we spoil the dog?
~MET

An Update That is Not Easy to Write

Ok...I know I haven't written about the Nationals lately...but, wow do we stink. I still listen to a lot of the games, I check the web page everyday, read the blogs, and hope that we will improve. I'm listening now, and we're losing to the Brewers (AGAIN) 4-1. Right now we are 30 games under .500, and 20.5 games out of first place. I still love the team, and still have high hopes that the guys in charge know what they are doing. The Nats recently won 6 of 7, but then ran into a pissed off Milwaukee team, and they've smoked us. Oh well, Lets Go Nats!

The Curse Continues

Please don't let me endorse another candidate for president. I'll just vote for someone once the two parties have chosen one. I am the political kiss of death. You know what my choice of John Edwards did to him - but to rehash the past: I was a big Kerry fan...electability, etc - I said it out loud, and this picture appeared in the paper:
In 2000 I came out for Bill Bradley, and he made 3 speeches where he made no sense, and we got Al Gore.
I 1996, there was no Democratic election, so my curse took a holiday. In '92 I REALLY liked Paul Tsongas...and I gave the man cancer:
1988 was my most devastating year. I came out for Biden, and the plagiarism scandal emerged:
So, I switched to Gary Hart, and this picture appeared in the paper:
I then backed Dukakis, because there was no way he could lose to Bush I...but he did. I should have learned my lesson in 1984 when I backed Alan Cranston. He colored what little hair he had a "fire engine" red hue, and became a punch line.
I used to think that my choices just helped to determine outcomes. Now I realize that it goes way beyond that - I have the power to ruin lives. Let me end today's post by simply saying: OBAMA IS A DANGEROUS MAN - DON'T VOTE FOR HIM!!!
~MET

You Moron

Do you think its easy for him to look at this picture today?
~MET

A Change in the Camping Plans

The picture is me. I had to tell Chris that the fire in my gut that sent me up hundreds of mountains is...well...out. I love being in the woods, I love camping, but the desire to scale huge mountains is gone. At least for now. He's a good boy, and understanding, but a little disappointed that I won't be climbing the 5000 footers in NH. The truth is quite simple: I'm not a great athlete, especially at 45, and I need the benefits that adrenaline provides. I need to want to climb in order to gain that very necessary "second wind". For 10 years hiking has been the reason I went into the woods. I started hiking later in life - in my mid 30's. Bagging peaks was always the goal - and I got got a bunch of them. Looking back over my notes, I even surprised myself: all of the 4000 footers in Maine more than once, 70% of the 4000 footers in NH, Katahdin SIX times, and 327 total peaks.
My idea of camping now means a great site, sitting by a stream, going for long walks to see natural wonders, taking lots of pictures, cooking awesome meals, campfires, and reading the Washington Post while enjoying a cocktail in the campsite. Its both sad and satisfactory for me to admit this change. I'll still be hitting the woods of NH next week, but Chris wants to stay behind and visit with all of his friends who will be off to college soon. He's the kind of hiker who likes someone to hike with. I'm just glad that I was able to give the love of the trail to him, and when he is my age and looking back at the hills he's conquered it will blow my history away. I'm so glad that he and I got to do a lot of hiking together, and that my Dad and I did many mountains also. To honor this passage, I will list my top ten hikes:
#10 - The Owl, Baxter State Park - my 100th peak
#9 - Saddleback with Chris: backpacking, meeting thru hikers, it would be higher on the list, but I got a bad ankle sprain
#8 - First trip up Moxie-Bald - great hike and 9 moose & AWESOME bear sighting
#7- The Wildcats of NH - 5 peaks, 2 over 4000 feet, all in a day - and it was not a loop...over all five, and back over all five.
#6 - Old Speck - worst rain of my life, and many brook crossings along the way..the water rose 6 inches during the trip
# 5 - Baxter trip with Phil - 14 peaks in 5 days. We were in great shape and just went stupid - we did 2 smaller mountains one day in the middle of the week to "rest"
#4 - Moriah Stream backpacking trip with Phil - 8 peaks in four days - the BEST campsite in the history of backpacking, and a great base camp to climb from - the beginning of the egg tradition
#3 - Katahdin with Mira-Su - rime ice, deer in the campsite, a cold swim in the stream - and realizing I should spend the rest of my life with her - some of my best hikes were with her
#2 - 1st trip up Katahdin: 5/24/98 - My AP class, Dave McPhedran, Phil, and my dad (who was 60) - my real beginning - just amazing
#1 - Baxter trip with Chris - 7 peaks - knife edge - great talks - bears in the campsite one night - camping with your 12 year old son is difficult to describe - one that I'll never forget
~MET

An Unhappy Dog

Burt is home and resting comfortably. I was going to post pictures of his wounds...but one is really kind of gross. He has regular looking stitches on his hip, but his belly has stitches and two tubes that help drain the incision. In the picture you can see the place on his leg they shaved for his IV. He is leaving it all alone for the most part, and he gets the drain out on Monday. He doesn't really like it, and groans a little once in a while. We watch him pretty closely, so he doesn't have to wear the big Elizabethan collar - which he really hates. Owen has been especially nice to him, and seems to know that he shouldn't smack Burt on the rump right now.
~MET

A Birthday, Burt, Board Meeting, and Budget

Four things to write about today. Number one: Alex just turned 19. That gives us two 19 year olds, a 20 year old, and a 14 year old who wants to be 26. M-S and I will celebrate our 8th anniversary on September 1st, and we are lucky to have such great kids - and they have developed into wonderful young adults. Compare the picture above with this one from our wedding day:

The only one who looks familiar at all is Mira-Su. Chris is now taller than me, Sarah is a confident, hard-working young woman, Kori was no more than a peanut back then, and the birthday boy may have done the most dramatic metamorphosis. Alex was a chubby and shy kid - today he is an athletic go-getter, on his way to Full Sail University in Florida in the fall. We do have beautiful children...if I can still call them that.

Number 2: I dropped Burt off this morning to have a couple of surgeries:

He is having a mole removed, his teeth cleaned, all his vaccinations, and the biggie: a growth removed from his belly. The growth is about the size of a tennis ball now, and though it does not bother him, and you really can't see it, its close enough to his bladder to give him problems eventually. Plus, it should be tested. He was his normal wonderful self during his check-in - making friends with a poodle and impressing all the vet-techs. I'm going to pick him up around 4pm, and he'll need a few days to recover, and may have a drain in his tummy for a bit.

Number 3: the Winslow School Board voted NOT to consolidate with Messalonskee, so we are kind of back to the drawing board there. It was a bad plan, and I spoke against it at the meeting. That will mean more meetings for me - but I think the Winslow students and staff are better off.

Number 4: I have a Whitefield Town Meeting to attend tonight to help defend our latest budget. The town's Budget Committee has endorsed this one, so hopefully it will do fine tonight, and at the validation referendum next week. Today I start working on the courses I teach, and getting the WEA stuff in order to begin the year. It will be me at the laptop this week, sitting next to Burt while he recovers.

~MET

Ernie's Herbs

I went to have lunch with my parents today, and my dad made a salad that featured herbs and vegetables that he grew himself in his garden. Naturally, Tut has a different way of doing it - and all the stuff is grown in separate buckets. The salad was outstanding, and a perfect compliment to the sandwich. M-S's mom made us a blueberry cake, and I brought that for dessert. It was a nice visit. Tonight begins a series of meetings for me - and this evening's should be a hum-dinger. The Winslow School Board votes tonight on consolidation, and it should be VERY heated. I'll post about it late tonight or tomorrow morning.
~MET

Morning Hike

A muggy walk up Bald-Hope this morning. No views at all, because the peak was in the middle of the clouds. One nice aspect was the many blueberry bushes that lined the trail:
They made for a great snack, and a reason to pause and rest every once and a while.
~MET

40 is the New 25...

...well, at least for some people. Yesterday my wife celebrated her 40th birthday, and we had a great time. We got dressed up and went to Portland for the evening. We started at the Georgia O'Keeffe exhibit at the Portland Museum of Art:
M-S especially liked it, because she is a fan of southwestern forms of art. I was impressed with how many different things O'Keeffe did - painter, photographer, sculptor, and furniture designer. Really quite remarkable. We then went out to eat at a fantastic, and very authentic Italian restaurant called Cinque Terre:
The restaurant is named for a region in Italy that includes 5 fishing villages. Its gained rave reviews in the Boston Globe and the New York Times. You order from a very extensive menu to create your 6 courses: appetizer, salad, pasta, main course, a cheese course, and dessert. All of the vegetables and seafood are local, and the pasta is made on the site. M-S also had the 'wine flight", where the chef pairs your meal with 3 different glasses of wine. I had my usual cocktail - but the 3 mammoth olives could have been a meal by themselves - they were the best tasting olives EVER. The dessert was a mix of 3 tastes:
All the portions were perfectly sized, so we were very satisfied, but not stuffed - and we brought nothing home. The meal was great, and going to new places to eat is really our favorite activity together. In fact, we were trying to remember the hundreds of places in the many different cities and towns where we have enjoyed a dinner. I think we've only been to a place twice a handful of times. Cinque Terre may be one we visit again.
We finished the night with a trip to Whole Foods Market, because my mother, brother, and sister love it so much. OH MY GOD - this place is worth a drive to Portland just to walk through it. Its just a huge supermarket, except the food is mostly organic, and just better looking. The way the foods are displayed, the unbelievable variety, the hundreds of finished dishes that you can enjoy right at the store, the on-site sushi bar, all make this place unreal. The meats and fishes are simply amazing. Luckily, we had just come from dinner, or I think we'd still be there. I'll stop in every time I go to Portland from now on. We did get some wine and cheeses to enjoy after our meal tonight. I think M-S had a very nice birthday, and I must say that she looks better at 40 than most who are in their 20's. Happy Birthday!
~MET