Stories from the Road
October 15, 2018
Boothbay Harbor, Maine

The coast of Maine zig zags through small inlets for hundreds of miles. Such topography creates many natural harbors. Boothbay is one of the most famous, but I have been attracted to some of the smaller harbor towns that are as scenic but less commercial. Rockport and Camden, the place where Murder she wrote took place, are two of my favorites. The further north you go, the fewer the people and the less expensive is the land.

Last night we ate at a local lobster place. The food was ok, not great. Many of the servers were from Romania, here for the summer and fall season. Our waitress, who was poised and articulate, will be heading to Naples, Florida to look for a winter job. You have to wonder who will fill these service jobs with the emerging immigration policy.

Yesterday we stopped for coffee outside Camden. The baked goods and lattes were excellent. Our barista and her parents had opened the shop ten months ago.  Originally from Boston, the family had lived a block from my friend Dennis, though they hadn’t known him. They seemed to be making a go of their high-end shop, which was right on Route 1.

We had tried to spend a night on Monhegan Island, twelve miles off the coast, but the few hotels there were full. Andrew Wyeth had a house there and painted many of his works on the island. A few years ago, when visiting the Olsen house on the mainland, where Christina’s World was painted, we stumbled upon Andrew Wyeth’s grave in a small cemetery overlooking the ocean. Appropriately, close by was the headstone of Christina Olsen.