Grand Lakes Stream Folk Art Festival trip

Yesterday we took off and went to the Grand Lake Stream Folk Art Festival http://grandlakestreamfolkartfestival.com/ in Maine.  It took about 3 to 3 1/2 hours to get there and it was well worth the trip.  We went to see birch bark canoes because this is one of the few places where you can see and touch them and after reading John McPhee's book, Survival of the Bark Canoe, I wanted to see one and see just how beautiful they are.  And they are.

http://stevecayard.com/ 

These canoes are made completely by hand and are signed. Usually working full time only about 2 or 3 canoes are made a year.

 The following pictures are details of the canoes

Remember, this is all hand done from beginning to end.  Even to the hand carving of the paddle.  Though I know they are sturdy and resist dents by the nature of the birch bark's flexibility, I would be rather hesitant to actually put one to the test. I have no idea how these canoes are made and how much they cost.

The man that John McPhee wrote about, Henri Vaillancourt http://www.birchbarkcanoe.net/builder.htm, Is more of a purist and uses no materials that a Native American would not have access to and would have used.  His canoes cost anywhere from $850.00 to 950.00 a foot to build. He wasn't there, needless to say and the canoe builder we saw is not connected to Vaillencourt in any way.
We looked at the canoes, walked around and had lunch. 

 And after that I knew it was time to walk around some more.  And we needed to find a friend of ours, Nanne Kennedy,  who does yarn, sheep and sheep dogs.  http://getwool.com/  Seacolors yarn.  And, she curls with Bob at the Belfast Curling Club.

And now for a shameless self-centered appeal. I know someone with a birthday coming up that would love to have a skein or 2 of Nanne's yarn and would gladly make a scarf/shawl for the person that gave me the yarn :)  Back to the fair.
There was a booth with old pictures of people that live and vacationed there.  Apparently Ted Williams

 used to hang out at Grand Lake Stream.  And even though I know my family never vacationed in Maine I'm pretty sure  my sister Kathleen and I would have fit right in with these sisters and would have had a ball.  They obviously were cutting edge cowgirls with these outfits.

 A detail from another hand made boat (Bob's picture).  This one was made in Canada.

 A picture from the truck as we drove along.  To get to the fair we went through Washington County which is the poorest county in Maine.  Along Route 9, the Airline, there were sections that had no electricity and though we saw dirt roads going in off the Airline, there were no power or phone lines. The townships aren't named-they're numbered.

Another interesting area we passed through was the Passamaquoddy Tribe Indian Township.  http://www.fourdirectionsmaine.org/passamaquoddy-tribe-indian-township
Another beautiful and devastatingly poor area .
We went up Route 9 to get to the fair and came home Route 1, down through blueberry country and I should have taken pictures. The blueberry fields had a blue tint to them from all the blueberries just waiting to be picked and were marked and ready to be harvested Monday.  These are the low, small delicious wild Maine blueberries that are oh so wonderful.

Company 2

Company 2 arrived and Ben Boone wasn't sure which way was which.  Front or back?  Only Ben knows for sure.

 It was another wonderful relaxing visit with family.  They swam, we played, we sat and talked and it was delightful to have them here.








Connor and Ben getting the fire ready for s'mores.

Ben and Connor around the fire

Ben Boone making a guest appearance.

 Kristine, Connor and Ben relaxing in the motel pool.

Brian and the boys having a great time in the pool.  With the temps in the mid to high 80's this was definitely the place to be.

Brian relaxing

 It wasn't cool in the evenings at all, long sleeves and pants were worn for bug protection.

Kristine having a drink-of water

 Ben at the motel beach with Belfast in the distance.

 The back of the motel with the boys passing each other like 2 ships.... in the daylight grass?

Another shot of downtown from the Belfast Harbor Inn.

There are no pictures of them in the car driving away because it would be too hard to post them.

We're so fortunate to have both families.  They are wonderful beyond words.

And now its time to return to reality, work, weaving and summer here in Maine.  The lilies are in bloom at the back of the house, the lettuce has gone by and we have eggplants and tomatoes coming.
Pictures of the gardens next time.

I read 2 stories for my modern Irish authors class (It's not your Grandfather's Ireland) at the Belfast Public Library.  One by Maeve Binchy (The Evening Class-the chapter Bill and a short story by Roddy Doyle (The Black Hoodie).  I really liked them both and am thinking of downloading and Binchy to the Kindle.  I just hope the other people there are as interesting as the stories.
John McPhee has been put aside for the time being.

Company 1

 July 5th Owen, Carter, Sarah and Colin came to visit.









We went to the city playground and played on the swings, went down slides, up walls, climbed in trees and had a great time while Sarah and Bob went to the farmer's market.

 The 3 boys taking a wild and crazy ride down the slide.

Later we went to our favorite bookstore and caught up on what's new in books and the classics, like Green Eggs and Ham. Nothing like a comfy overstuffed chair on a hot afternoon.

One evening Colin got the tractor out and gave the boys and Sarah rides around the yard before the fire in the fire pit and s'mores.












Unfortunately, the time to leave came and they sat in the yellow chairs for pictures.

 Everyone but Bob got in the car and went back to Hamilton.

We got to stay here and welcome the next round of visitors!  And by the way, the walking group is still going strong and actually, getting stronger.  We love it, not the walking and exercising but the support from the other members.

Day 1 of walking

This is the official first day of the walking group.  Yesterday we had 2 members cut grass for exercise, one member walk, and the 4th laugh herself silly with her best friend.

So far on Official Day 1. 2 people have reported in.

First person wanted to stay home but went and took pictures.  I can't get her picture of the harbor imported to the blog but it is near her house and its beautiful.  Maybe tomorrow she'll have more.

I did the usual walk surrounded by horseflies.  At least they make me move faster...

Bob came home last night in time for dinner.  Kind of a surprise since his emails weren't coming through and I thought he was coming home Tuesday for dinner, but it's good to have him home safe and sound.  He had a good trip and fun with his buddies, so all is well there.

I made the first recipe from the new cookbook and did tzatziki with a suggested addition.  I've had tzatziki numerous times (yogurt, cucumber, lemon juice with some salt and pepper ) and always felt that it was missing something.  The new cookbook suggested adding chopped Greek olives and it made all the difference in the world.  Put that together with a nice wine spritzer and its a nice light summer appetizer.

Tonight we're doing chicken breasts marinated in lemon juice, oil, cumin, garlic and allspice.  I was suppose to add sumac but didn't have any.  Plus, I thought sumac was not good for you, but I must be wrong.  Anyway, that's dinner with a fresh garden salad.

Getting ready with new things to serve for the company that's coming.  We're getting the house dusted, swept, vacuumed and tidied up so the little house will look great.