Lots to be Thankful for.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone. It’s a beautiful and sunny 28 degree day here in Bethel this morning. In just a few hours Lauren, me, and her parents Frank and Joan will be heading over to Rooster's Roadhouse to eat our Thanksgiving Day dinner. Lauren’s parents ate at Rooster’s Roadhouse last year on Thanksgiving Day when we were still out in California but after they knew we were going to buy this house we live in now. (They have a habit of scoping out the situation as soon as they know something is happening.) So last year they came across Rooster’s Roadhouse by chance and LOVED the meal they had. We heard about how good the meal was so many times from them that it has now become a joke….”You had a good Thanksgiving at Roosters? Really, tell us again, we’ve never heard that story before.”

It has been a busy November, TBTB…Too Busy to Blog. Just over a week ago we got our new washer and dryer installed and Lauren did the first load at the house. That was on Tuesday November 16th where I had Mike Field of Field Plumbing and Heating install the washer hookup and new drain. Then later that same afternoon Brian Strickland of Autumn Electric came over to install a new 220 volt line for the dryer and a 110 volt line for the washer. I had already installed the vent cowl for the dryer exhaust the previous weekend so by the time Lauren came home from working at her new job it was all systems go and ahead of schedule. So we are thankful for our new washer and dryer.

I’m also thankful for my new $5.00 thermometer I hung outside the kitchen window. I get to see just how cold it is every morning and I write the temperature down on the calendar. It has been a mild November so far with many mornings in the mid 40’s.

Now we’re going to go workout and swim at the Bethel Inn before we chow down our Turkey dinner. I hope everyone who reads this has something to be thankful for.

The First Time I Laid Eyes on Her

It was just a year ago. The first time I drove up and saw her standing there. Quiet and solemn, I also noticed that she looked a little “rough around the edges” and yet at the same time proud about her experience. Even though she was older she appeared to have good bones, her shape was classic and it was all enough to call out to me, to catch my interest and draw me in. She stood front and center on the street and seemed to say….what you see is what you get. I got out of the car and walk around her. I looked her up and down. It wasn’t long before I knew I liked what I saw so I made an offer….and it was accepted.


Yes, it was one year ago today when our offer on this house we now live in was accepted. I still think my girl stands proud and is rough around the edges. Day by day, project by project, this house is sharing her love with us. She’s not perfect but that’s okay because neither am I.

Desire moved us to this home and I feel the love.

Past Peak but...

Due to strong winds and heavy rain a few days ago many of the leaves were blown off the trees around here. There are however pockets of protection where Mother Nature has saved some of the leaves and color such as this shot above which is located right behind by back yard. That's my stone wall at the bottom of the lower picture. I love my stone wall. I took these photos yesterday, October 18th.

Today I awoke to the first frost covering the lawn, the car, the pumpkin, and the roof shingles. Across the street I saw a lone cross country skier on his training run, poles in hand, striding up the dirt trail at the Bethel Inn & Country Club Golf Course. With the frost covering the greens at this time it was easy to imagine a few inches of snow on the ground and it will be here soon enough.

How to Remove a 248 Pound Cast Iron Tub - from the Second Floor - with Ease

Yesterday I decided it was the day to act. The goal was to get rid of the 248 pound cast iron tub located on the second floor. The other goal was not to pull a back muscle, give myself a hernia, or damage the stairs in the process. Like all big jobs sometimes the best thing to do is break the task down into smaller pieces, like 10 pound pieces. To do this the tools required were:
-Sledgehammer or Splitting Maul in my case
-Safety Goggles
-Ear plugs
-Three or four 5 gallon plastic buckets
Thankfully cast iron is a relatively soft metal and is easy to break apart. This task only took a little more than one hour including the clean up time. The five gallon plastic buckets made it easy to haul it down the stairs. We then drove it over to West Paris Metal Recycling where they unloaded, weighed it and then gave me a check for $21.08. It was a good day.

More Foliage

Bethel, Maine

Lauren and I took a trip over to Marden’s yesterday in Rumford to pick up some stuff and took these photos along the way.  I bought another leaf rake, some copper piping insulation, a couple of wood chisels, some sheet rock nails and a few plastic buckets. We also conveniently found ourselves next to the Route 2 Diner in Rumford Center at lunch time so we pulled in and both had Hash Benedict where they make their hash fresh each day. The weather has been too nice lately which leads me to believe that there must be a big storm brewing for us in the future.  Enjoy the day!

Rumford Center

Androscoggin River at Rumford Center

Living in Number 2

The Homestead at 8:30 this morning

Living in number 2 is spectacular. In the current issue of Yankee Magazine they rank the Top 25 Foliage Towns in New England and Bethel, Maine comes in at number 2.   

http://www.yankeefoliage.com/ffeatures/top-foliage-towns-ne#/cms/images/image_8570.jpg

For the past three weeks I’ve been relishing the onslaught of colors presented here each day. Mother Nature seems pretty diplomatic on how she goes about this as well. Maybe she knows that not everyone can be in the same spot on one weekend so while one tree may be totally void of leaves the one next to it will be peaked with orange, red, and yellow, while the next tree to that will still be predominantly green saving itself to show off next weekend.

Color Diplomacy

It’s at times like this when I fantasize about being independently wealthy and artistic where I could just roam the countryside, situate myself in a beautiful spot and then spend the day painting it.  

A Fall Weekend with Friends

Moose

This past weekend our longtime friends Doug and Ellen Guidry came to visit us and check out the Bethel area.  It was Ellen’s birthday on Saturday and her wish was to see a moose.   As you can see by the picture above we were able to deliver her birthday wish.  We saw this Bullwinkle in Grafton Notch State Park after we had checked out Screw Auger Falls.  It was off to the side in the woods when I spotted it so I pulled over and shut off the engine.  Instead of going further into the woods like I expected it would, it walked up the embankment into the middle of the road, stopped and posed for us while we took this photo.   We continued on our leaf peeping journey working our way into the center of Andover, ME where we stopped for an ice cream cone at the Andover General Store and Diner on what was likely the last day for this season to get one according to the nice young girl who was working this day. We then showed Ellen and Doug the swimming hole at the Andover Lovejoy Covered Bridge which Ellen told me reminds me her so much of the swimming hole of her childhood in Pennsylvania.

 

Saturday night Lauren cooked up a fabulous dinner of Baked Haddock, Sunshine Squash, and Roasted Red Beets.   The beets and squash were locally grown in Bethel while the Haddock came from our lobsterman Tucker C. Jordan of Cape Elizabeth who sells it here at the local farmers market.

On Sunday before Doug and Ellen left to head back to Gloucester, MA we all stopped at the Swain Farm Stand to buy some squash and take pictures. This is the first year I ever ate Sunshine Squash and it is now, officially my favorite squash of all time.  It is a deep red orange color when cooked and is sooo…Delicious.  If you have never tried it before please do and then tell me what you think. 

All weekends must come to an end and the Gids eventually had to go. Thanks for coming to visit us Doug and Ellen. We really enjoyed your company and having you visit helps the house feel more like a home. 

The Pace of Life on Main Street in Bethel, Maine