Today, Ellen went back to the Common Ground Fair and I went to Cushing, Maine, about a half-hour drive, to visit Phil and Deborah McKean, friends who for me go back 55 years! Their home in Cushing is in a beautiful location on a tidal river, with a garden and small orchard - an idyllic place. Deborah has Alzheimer's and I think today she was not sure who I was. So Phil is a caregiver and a wonderful one he is. Deborah lives very much in the moment, and today she and I sat together for a while in the sun and she shared her love for the color in the foliage and the monarch butterflies that were flitting about. We had a lovely lunch together - a veggie burger, sweet corn and a piece of melon - a lunch we dragged out for more than two hours with conversation. Phil is very much involved in a lot of things both in Maine and back in Claremont, CA, where they spend their winters. They also have two grown children and they have families, so there is a lot to talk about. Deborah is not able to participate very well in conversation which she has trouble following, and often will just content herself with reading or being quiet and looking at the beauty around her. I enjoy my time with them because our relationship goes back so far and for me is filled with rich memories.
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| This is where we sat and had our lunch |
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| Giant Russian Sunflowers Phil is raising |
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| Phil was measuring how much pipe he would need to install an underground irrigation system in his little orchard. |
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| A Jamie Wyeth print that Phil picked up yesterday for $20 at a little shop at the train station near the Common Ground Fair. Good deal! |
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| Phil and Deborah |
Yesterday, while Ellen was at the fair, I went to the Rockland Public Library. I had brought some paper files with me just in case I could digitize them there, and indeed, they had a printer that had the "scan and save" function. BUT - they charge $0.10 a scanned page! Same as printing! At the Putney Library and the Alpine Library in Wyoming, "scan and save" function is free. Which admittedly is a good deal because electricity and wear and tear on the printer are involved. But no paper or ink is needed. I could see charging $0.01 or $0.02, but $0.10 seems extreme. So, needless to say, I only scanned a few trial pages (which cost me $1.20), and that was that.
Then I came home and walked down to the shore near Jim and Mary's house, where the little cottage is. Lovely there and I had it all to myself.
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| The reading room at Rockland Public Library |
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| Down at the shore |
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| A touch of fall color |
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