Kindling the Hearth of the Soul

Captain’s Log   5,922

And so it is again…..being home.  I crashed really really REALLY early (after putting everything away and starting laundry).  Too tired to really eat anything.  I laid down and tried to read the book I started on the plane.  And that was it.  Down for the count.  I woke up around 2:00 AM ravenous and ready to hit the road.  

It was quite a trip!  We toddled around for six days.  We put almost 1,000 miles on the little silver Mitsubishi Lancer (that performed beautifully).  We traveled to Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont.  We saw cities and small towns.  LOTS of small towns!

The first night there, we stayed at the Days Inn in Portland.  I have never seen such a long hallway in my life!

Redrum!  Redrum!

We met great and lovely people.  It’s such a pleasure to meet other online journalists you only know through their writing.

At the Boynton in Worcester, MA.  From left to right….  Harriet Vachss Harris, Rebekah Sue Carolla, Heinous D’Clown, Poolie, and Diane Sanford.  Pam Velador took the best group shot so she isn’t in the photo.  Sorry, Pam.

We had more fun telling stories, talking about bloggers who we enjoy (or enjoyed since so many of them stopped writing).  It was like being with old friends.  Harriet, Rebekah, and Diane are all exactly they way I thought they would be.  Lovely lovely LOVELY time!  

We saw so many wonderful things.  One of the highlights for me was stopping at the Ben & Jerry’s production facility in Waterbury, Vermont.

You can’t take photos inside the plant, so this silly thing is the best option.

.  We saw a lot of leaves!  Pretty pretty!

Sugar maple.  Boil up the sap and make syrup!

On the small road to Rutland.  This was in western Vermont where the mountains get high the skiers fall in love with winter.

The town of Woodstock.  It’s one of the few thriving communities in that part of the state.

Covered bridge in the town of Woodstock

The folks in New England really get into Halloween.  I mean REALLY get into it!  There were pumpkin zombies all over the place.  Every house had something in the yard.

Happy pumpkin family!  What is most astonishing is that nobody destroys them.  In San Diego, they would be trashed in a few hours.

Even Darth got into the spirit of things at the cinema in Springfield.  “Luke, I am your Halloween farmer father!”

We took a cruise on Lake Champlain and learned a LOT about the Revolutionary War.  AND we froze our katchookies off out there on the water.

I fell in love with the Portland Pier.  Too bad it was our last day.

This place is still in use.  I wanted to see inside!

On the other side of the bait shack.  This building is still in use too.  So much charm and character!  Here in San Diego, if something is 40 years old, it gets torn down and they build more condos.

But why does everyone go to New England in the fall?  It’s to see this.  I got lucky taking this shot from the freeway.

Miles and miles and miles of this in all four states.  Words cannot describe it.

So yes, I fell in love with New England.  I fell in love with the charm and the grace.  I fell in love with the people and the slower pace of living.  I decided I could be a novelist and live in Montpellier.

Steven King, eat your heart out!  I can live in a scary house too!

But then I remembered winter.  There is always winter.

This should be called the New Hampshire Park and Nosedive!

And while were in New Hampshire, we saw a sign that informed the community they would be spraying for ticks.

How could I forget the ticks?

So all in all, there’s no place like home.  Having lived in three different states, I know that home is not a place.  It’s a state of mind.  So whether I am in California or Vermont, I carry my torch with me always.  The hearth of the soul can be kindled anywhere.