The Way Life Should Be (for a weekend now and then)...
Moose pond was choppy when we got there, choppier than a lot of regulars had ever seen it. Whitecaps kept the insects who usually dance and skim along the surface at bay and five eagles circled together overhead, which is more than a lot of regulars had ever seen in one place at one time. They made flight seem so effortless that I don’t think I saw one of them beat their wings a single time.
We made our way through the pond’s widest, deepest section by the beginning of the evening and then turned around, by which time the water was smooth as glass. My aunt lived up here somewhere and it was a friend’s birthday, but there’s no reception in the woods and I kind of liked the idea of being out of reach up there. Thoughts of a sailor’s life occur to me, not for the first time in my 24 years.
Our drive up was long and hot, and the standstill traffic in New Hampshire was enough noise and people for my weekend. We only almost crashed once, as the car in front of us swerved unexpectedly to reveal a vulture feasting on road kill in the center of the street. We’d hardly finished cursing the car ahead of us for its erratic behavior when the car behind us was honking, and was then itself exposed to the grisly dinner nature had provided for our viewing pleasure; horn rendered silent.
Now that we were in Maine, my plans were simple: to work on my t-shirt tan, eat as much grilled food as possible, and enjoy the multitudinous stars and cool breezes which can’t penetrate the city’s haze. Color me successful on all three ventures. There was lamb, chicken, naan, corn on the cob and several salads laid out at the dinner table and even the several resinated bowls that were our only smoke for the weekend couldn’t compete with the food, wine and beer as my stomach finally shouted “no mas!”
Sleep came naturally for me in these climes, but the dark and quiet seemed to only make it harder on S.G., who couldn’t get herself to sleep soundly despite our long and adventurous first day. I stayed up with her as late as I could but eventually succumbed to a long and pleasant slumber, awaking in early afternoon to chase my muffin and coffee with a deli sandwich, leftover chicken, some nuts and a cola.
Once we were all up and fed we decided to go kayaking. We packed a bowl and a lighter and zigzagged from shoreline to tiny shoreline. The trees came right up to the water in most places and above us on all sides were mountain peaks. I pulled a stick from the shore to scrape the bowl and we comically attempted a steady puff puff pass rotation, rowing our ways to each other to make the pass. When we got tired we lay in the kayaks and let the boaters’ wakes drift us along peacefully
We found a small inlet filled with lily pads. In the center there was a log where five box turtles stood, heads up and necks outstretched, all looking directly up at the sun as though they expected Helios himself to ride his golden chariot right up to the pond and take them away. All except one scattered when we got within ten feet, but one let us circle him and watch his bizarre ritual, looking by equal measures proud and curious.
By the time we were finished with our kayaking expedition, swam them ashore and carried the small boats to their dock I was feeling tired again. I changed clothes and lounged for a bit before embarking with S.G., her father, and the dogs to look for photo subjects for her industrial-themed final project. You’d think there would be nothing in Denmark, Maine but an ancient upright piano on a front lawn, an old dam and an oil and heating plant made for some the excellent shots you see here.
We made our way back to the house and I spent the remainder of the afternoon finally finishing the last Harry Potter installment, which I had read for 550 pages the night it came out and been unable to pick up since. The reading took me straight through our hot dog dinner and right up to the point where I was back in my flat in Boston. Not long after I fell asleep, exhausted.
Little synchronicities have been piling up around me lately in a way that tells me I’m making some progress in certain studies. To write about them all here would certainly delay or derail this progress, but I feel I should make it known that these phenomenon are occurring, even if I must be vague regarding the details. My full review of the Harry Potter series is forthcoming. I just need to gather my thoughts and process completely before I get into it, and I might give it more time before I start bombarding the world with spoilers. Suffice it to say for now that I was happy with the ending but not blown away by any sort of major revelations.
You can expect another update before Friday, detailing the week’s events as they go down. Until then I merely suggest that anyone who hasn’t gotten their hands on a leak of the new MIA album “Kala” do so immediately, and listen to the track “Paper Airplanes”. Joe Strummer would be beaming like a proud new parent.