salem witch trials and father's day

we thought it would be nice to get out of boston for a day and go somewhere that dad hadn't been so we took him to salem...the little known town famous for the salem witch trials back in the 1600's...thought this would be interesting town to visit based on all the history there...well so we decided to go to the Salem Witch Museum...which when you hear museum you would think that there are pictures and things for you to look at and read about the history of what happened and how it all came about...WRONG...we paid $30 to sit in a room and hear a voice tell the accounts of what happened...as the story progressed different sections of this room would light up to show what was being described in the story...it was amazingly bad!!...we didn't even do the 2nd part of the 'museum'...we walked around town a bit found a restaurant to have lunch...after lunch we headed back into boston on out way back into town we stopped at bunker hill...not a lot to see here but we did climb to the top of bunker hill...(i do have pics of this but need to get them from dominic)...
i swear...ill have one post that is going to be all pics...haaaaaaaaaaaaaa
that night we went to dinner at a great italian restaurant...we were having such a great time that dominic and i decided to stay another night in boston...we sat in dad and shar's hotel room and hooked the computer up to the tv and watched our videos and looked at our pictures from the weekend...it was so fun and relaxed....then it was off to bed...

watch out for the whales....

saturday came bright and early...we were on our way to the whale watching boat...it was beautiful out...high 70's low 80's and lots of sun...we joined the rest of the crowd as we were herded onto the boat...we chose the top deck (out of 3) in the middle so as to try and avoid getting sea sick...(shar and i took dramamine as well for added reassurance)...it took just over an hour to get out to the bay where whales had been spotted...we were fortunate enough to see 3 humpback whales...the boat stayed out for about 45-50 min getting pretty close to the whales at times...(we got as close as 50 yards)...it was amazing!!! we have video footage but i need dominic to show me how to put it onto my computer and then link it to my blog...stay tuned for that...
on the way out to the bay we were hitting swells that were 4-6 feet...it was cold and windy because we were moving pretty quick...the four of us were in the clear as far as being sick..but there were others that weren't so lucky...there was a french guy with his girlfriend and a group of other people that was not feeling well and he quickly went from bad to worse...he was standing at the front of the boat on our deck puking into a sick bag that had been provided to him...he filled it and leaned back against a pole that was behind him...during all this his girlfriend was by his side...(that didn't last long)...he then proceeded to fill another bag...(as mean as it sounds the 4 of us were cracking up...he looked horrible and none of his friends were helping him)...he slid down the pole and was now sitting on the floor of the deck...he then while being sick tipped over to the side and basically passed out...at this point all of his buddies were taking pictures of him and his girlfriend had moved herself away...far away and was sitting on a bench...not looking so good herself...needless to say the staff came up and moved him down to a lower deck and he did not see any whales...
there was also this family of 4...dad, mom and 2 daughters...one of the daughters got sick and was puking in her bag...soon the whole family was puking into bags except dad...he was taking care of them...then when we stopped and were looking for whales the dad got sick...the entire family had done this big whale watching trip and none of them got off the bench to see any whales because they were all sick...bad idea for a family outing....
anyway back to the whales...as i said there were 3...a mom, her calf and her male escort as they are called...that made me laugh...it was so amazing...can't wait to be able to show you the video...
we made our way back to the shore...i was so excited by what we had seen because i honestly didn't think we were going to see anything...
we ate lunch at a place called legal seafood...very good...then we walked around the aquarium for an hour or so...i thought of jake a lot during this because they have a ton of penquins...of all different kinds...and these are jake's favorite animal...love you jake!!
we then headed back to the hotel for a nap...woke up and went to a local grocery store and got some snacks...we sat out by the pool and ate...then to bed...had a big father's day trip planned for my dad the next day....

walking, walking and more walking

well...it has been almost a week since i last posted and a lot has happened...ill start where i left off...
the interview on thursday went great!! i felt really good about it...i was myself and felt very relaxed...the people conducting the interview were great as well...after the interview we drove to boston for the weekend...we got into town about 8pm or so...checked into our hotel and then went to dad and sharon's hotel for some dinner....we ate in the hotel restaurant...which was a trip...dom said it right when he said we walked into the looney bin...the lady who waited on us looked as though she had walked through a wind tunnel...and spoke as though she had lost her marbles years ago...dinner was good and it was fun to catch up with dad and shar...
friday brought with it a lot of adventures...

we got our coffees on our way to the far side of boston common...we met ann and maggie (friends from bonaire that live on the cape)...ann had the whole afternoon planned out for us...we started walking the freedom trail...clifford loved it...

we didn't do the whole freedom trail...(thank goodness it is a lot of walking)...we stopped and saw where paul revere and mother goose are buried...(funny thing is that their bodies are there but probably not under the stone that they should be because a long time ago they moved all gravestones and put them in rows so they could mow the lawn easier)...i think that is so funny!!!


we finished our tour and ate lunch at a cute little italian place in the north end...very good food...after lunch we walked around boston...we said goodbye to ann and maggie (they were heading back to the cape)...the rest of us headed back to the hotel for a nap...we went to dinner at Cheers bar...it was fun...the inside doesn't look anything like the show...the food was good...

this ended our first day in boston...

baa haa baa

or as anyone that speaks english bar harbor was our next stop...we left roxbury maine mid-morning on sunday...we drove along the coast which would sound really pretty but in all actuality i think we saw the coast a handfull of times along the way...we rolled into bar harbor maine around dinner time...we found a place to stay which was nice enough...we had a perfect view of the ocean but as we stepped inside we were taken back to the 1950's...
this was the view from our motel...(i have noticed that there are a ton of motels up here and not a lot of hotels...hmmmm interesting)
we grabbed dinner and watched the cubs play...monday brought with it new adventures...i went for a 5 mile run...which was ok...the knee is still giving me a decent amount of pain...but i tell you what...the 'hills' we have in minnesota are nothing compared to the 'hills' in maine...the run kicked my butt...which i guess is good...maybe some of it will disappear? (i can hope)...then we walked through town for awhile...got some great ice cream...then we headed into acadia national park...this was amazing...it rained off and on but not hard enough for us to not be able to enjoy the views...

we got out and hiked around as well...this was amazing...i will add photos of the cave that we went into down by the ocean...the tide was out...after our adventures in the park we went back to town for dinner...tuesday was another day...we were planning on going back into the park and hiking from the summit of one mountain to the summit of another...but alas the rain was still with us...we decided to make our way south...the further south we went the better the weather...we got to sam and alyce's house around 4 in the afternoon...(dom and sam met in training for ge years ago)...we had a nice relaxed night chatting with them...oh yeah i forgot to tell you...i got a phone call around 6pm asking me if i could be in vermont thursday for an interview...yikes...i said i didn't think so and the lady said she would get back to me...after talking with dominic and discovering that we really aren't that far from vermont (4-5hours) he said we could get me there for a thursday afternoon interview...stay tuned...as we went to bed tueday night the plan was for sam, dom and i to go fishing in the morning...we were going to try a couple of different places...the marsh, the rocks along the ocean, and off the beach...weeeelllll...we woke this morning and it was raining...shocker there...the bad weather seems to follow dom and i..(hopefully not to boston this weekend)...well the fishing was still on because don't fish always bite best in rain...(yeah right)...there were only enough supplies for 2 people to fish...bummer...i went for my 9 mile run instead...it was fine...better then i thought it would be...i ran out 2.5 miles and had to pee right from the get go...but of course there wouldn't be a porta potty anywhere around...i was on the 2.5 miles back when i couldn't take it anymore...i had to pee...so i figured...what the heck im in the middle of the woods...no one around...im already wet from the rain so it wouldn't be sooo bad...so i copped a squat...i was able to run much faster after that!...haaaaa shhhhhhhh don't tell anyone...haha...well the boys were VERY cold by the time i made it back to the start of my run and they wanted to go get into dry clothes and get full rain gear on before heading back out...this said and done we went to the beach...i finished the last 4 miles there...wow...these hills still kicking me...ha...but legs felt ok today...hip and knee hurt after the run (could really use an adjustment lisa...:-))...anyway the boys had no luck with fishing so dominic made his wings and jalapeno poppers and corn on the cob for dinner...very good well done dom!!....we have spent the rest of the night watching episodes of planet earth from the discovery channel...off to bed now...have a big day tomorrow....oh crap that's right i forgot to keep you updated...i talked with sid...the lady that called about the interview again today and im all set to interview tomorrow (thursday) at 3:30...so here we go...ive also had interaction with other contacts for a couple other jobs...i think i am meeting with one of them next week...ill let you know how the interview goes...quoting dominic...'stay tuned'

my first lobster

this is the first lobster i have ever eaten...it took some getting used to...not going to lie...i had to get past the beady little eyes staring at me and the fact that i was ripping this odd creature apart...i was told i was lucky because when i pulled the tail off the meat stayed attached and just the shell came off...(i think this also helped me because i didn't really have to dig much meat out)...i have also discovered that i am a big fan of melted butter!!!...add that to the list...haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa...clifford also had his own lobster...he had a tough time getting past the fact that he had met and made friends with the lobsters before they met their fate...
this is where clifford jumped into the cooler with the lobsters to bide some time...(thank goodness he got out before the lobsters 'left')...but as the circle of life goes...the lobsters lives ended and clifford was left with eating his friends from maine...









here he is with lucky the lobster

the day of the lobster

this was by far the most interesting day for me...sorry about the underline...not sure how to get it off?? we woke to thunder...which didn't excite me very much being as we were in a tent...we joined some folks over by their rv and grill...we ate venison, bacon and more moose for breakfast with a mango juice and rum to wash it down...not a bad combo actually (it was after 11am)...the fire from the night before was still going...moe and his brothers were tending it...sitting 2 cider blocks high were these thin metal plates...as

soon as the plates were warm they put fresh seaweed covering the plates..then they took the lobsters out of the cooler and put them on the seaweed along with corn on the cob in the husks...then another layer of seaweed...more lobsters and corn...then a final layer of seaweed...they then put a canvas tarp over it all...there is a slit cut in the tarp where they put in a couple of raw chicken eggs...when the eggs are hard boiled the lobsters are done...here are a bunch of pics showing what i have just described...including me putting a lobster on the fire...

change of pace...

we arrived in roxbury, maine friday afternoon...the house was the size of a double-wide trailer and the yard the size of a football field (the house sitting in the middle)...it sits along side an amazing brook and across the road from a beautiful river...we pulled into the driveway and up onto the back lawn...surveying the yard and you would see about 10-12 rv's parked around the outskirts of the lawn...the garage has massive tarp tent connected to it so as to extend it another 10-15 feet...there were people everywhere snacking on food and drinking whatever quenches their thirst...it was about 75 degrees and sunny...we put off pitching out tent for awhile...we joined in the festivities...
i had no idea what i was in for and neither did dominic...most of the people there were people that had worked for this guy moe at ge at some point in time...so i met a bunch of people that dom has worked with and some that he hadn't...in this process we had some beer, heard some great stories, and i even ate moose!! i know, i know....don't fall of the chair...kaela ate moose...it was really good...tasted like venison...as the night went on the music started (there were a bunch of musicians there)...not going to lie it was the most country western music i have been around for years...and im not talking the garth brooks kind of stuff...im talking songs that whine about being your own grandpa and wife is your daughter...strange but was fun to have music going...some of the guys got up and sang with the guitars...
the night carried on until 4am...dominic and i only made it til about midnight...(guess we're getting old)
there is so much more to tell but im getting tired...it's almost 11pm here...im off for now...will write more later...
remind me to tell you about fran, lobsters, clifford, rain, fires, smelt, crepes, mosquito bites, welts, kick in the face, smores, throwing rocks, foreign languages and anything else that comes into my head...haaaaaa
well not anything else....
night