Brunswick, Maine

We lived in Brunswick for four months this summer and were delighted with the little college town. Such a contrasting culture to the Portland Streets and the Island of Saint Simons off the coast of Brunswick, Georgia. But this blog is about Brunswick, Maine. What is it about this place?

• Proximity to the coast. So many delightful trips in the red truck with the dogs around the inlets and mud flats of Harpswell and Bailey/Orr's Islands. Good roads. Sharp turns. Incredible scenery. The memories are pumped up by my fondness for both my father's truck and for one of my dogs who we have since lost. 
• Ocean Kayaking (though I prefer fresh water, rough weather kayaking most... Bob Muller's camp was the best. Snow Pond is next...)
• Neighborhood... eclectic, honest, heartfelt, interesting people. 
• Being needed... or useful... or "adding value" to family, to old friends, to new friends.
• Walking the cemetery and the street at night with Sampson.  We really enjoy it. He impresses me. He's 15 and not at the top of his game. He's deaf. He has seizures. He's stiff and an old dog. But he marks every post, every plant, every bush where he smells another scent. An exercise in patience for me, but what else does he have. Even without balls, he is still in the game. Instinct? Courage?  Yeah, probably both... but impressive.
• Weather; being so close to the coast, there were some pretty good blows. One brought the big Silver Maple out by the road down on the front yard. Miraculous placement. Minimal damage.. a broken windshield.
• Sounds: the church bells at the college, the train whistle at 6:45, wind in the "tees" .
• Walking Bowdoin Common. Watching the young people laying in the grass, playing frisbee, the dogs running free, visiting the chapel, attending a musical at the theather.
• Visiting Joshua Chamberlain's home, his statue and his grave. An extraordinary man.
• The Farmer's Market in the park. Fresh, local produce.
• The local restaurants; Vietnamese pho, Italian pasta, Wild Oats for veggie burritos.
• The local theater, the smell of mildew, the overstuffed couches.
• Richie and Tess. Eleanor and Bill. Jamie and Bobby... well, maybe not Bobby and his 3:00 am noisy returns from the bars.
• The awesome, expansive kitchen with plenty of counter and cabinet space, the dishwasher, the food processor. 
• Days at Stover Cove at the tip of the Harpswell Peninsula with K&E and R&K. A great little beach.
• Weekends with everyone there, playing hearts and cribbage, eating vegan... ;-)

Many thanks, Rita, for renting us your home. Although we try to never do anything twice, who knows? We may try to come back next year.