quote of the day - how to make a conviction worthwhile

"The worth of every conviction consists precisely in the steadfastness with which it is held."

- Jane Adams



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quote of the day - celebrate each one

“In life one has a choice to take one of two paths: to wait for some special day - or to celebrate each special day.”


― Rasheed Ogunlaru

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quote of the day - sweet fruit

“Patience can be bitter but her fruit is always sweet.”

― Habeeb Akande

 

 

 

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quote of the day - how to leverage talent

“Talent is nothing without persistence.”


― Dean Crawford

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quote of the day - the keys

“Patience and persistence are the keys... The keys to unlock doors of success... With these two virtues, you grow in reasoning and experience.”


― Ogwo David Emenike

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quote of the day - be whatever you must

"All I can do is act according to my deepest instinct, and be whatever I must be - crazy or ribald or sad or compassionate or loving or indifferent.  That is all anybody can do."

- Katharine Butler Hathaway


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quote of the day - keep knocking

“Rain puts a hole in stone because of its constancy, not its force. Just keep knocking on doors until the right one opens”


― H. Joseph Gerber

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quote of the day - omnipotent qualities

“Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not: nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education alone will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent.”


― Calvin Coolidge

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quote of the day - another word for giving up

“There is no such thing as helplessness. It's just another word for giving up.”


― Jefferson Smith     www.theinsearchofsite.com

quote of the day - act as if you were behind

“If you wish to be out front, then act as if you were behind.”


― Lao Tzu

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quote of the day- the greatest gift

My father gave me the greatest gift anyone could give another person, he believed in me.

- Jim Valvano

 

 

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quote of the day - just do it

“Do it badly; do it slowly; do it fearfully; do it any way you have to, but do it.”


― Steve Chandler     www.theinsearchofsite.com

quote of the day - do not sit still

“Do not sit still; start moving now. In the beginning, you may not go in the direction you want, but as long as you are moving, you are creating alternatives and possibilities.”


― Rodolfo Costa     www.theinsearchofsite.com

quote of the day - perseverance vs obstinacy

“The difference between perseverance and obstinacy is, that one often comes from a strong will, and the other from a strong won't.”


― Henry Ward Beecher

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quote of the day - what character consists of

“Character consists of what you do on the third and fourth tries.”


― James A. Michener

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Road trip 2013 - searching for what makes Maine the way life should be

Log (late in posting) finishing up on the rest of my trip through Saturday morning!

• Picking up at the Lakewood Theater, and the watching the production of Self Help.  Wonderful old theater (that allows you to bring food and beverages to your seat :).  Self Help was very well written, although the lead male actor seemed to be a little out of sorts, stumbling on many lines.  Few in attendance, but early in the season.  Fun time never the less.
• Drove down to Farmington where I spent my last night on the road.
• Met my friends Leigh and Doug at their house for coffee.  Doug was off to the school he teaches at to assist with graduation ceremonies that morning.  Leigh and I went to a fantastic yoga studio called Source 365 Living Arts Center.  She teaches yoga at her farm house in a beautiful country setting.  Sara Mulvey is the instructor, and is amazing!
• After yoga, drove Leigh back home, then headed back to Portland to rest for the balance of the weekend, and to take care of some overdue chores. 
• So grateful to have had the opportunity to do this trip, to meet such wonderful people, to start my book project in earnest, to be living my dream.
• Namaste. :)

quote of the day - how to climb a mountain

“You never know what's around the corner. It could be everything. Or it could be nothing. You keep putting one foot in front of the other, and then one day you look back and you've climbed a mountain.”


― Tom Hiddleston

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quote of the day - on getting what you want

"You gotta believe."

- Tug McGraw (duing the NY  Mets miracle year, 1973)


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quote of the day - the best pharmacy

"The best and most efficient pharmacy is within your own system."

- Robert C. Peale, M.D.


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quote of the day - an important point

“If you have an important point to make, don't try to be subtle or clever. Use a pile driver. Hit the point once. Then come back and hit it again. Then hit it a third time - a tremendous whack.”


― Winston Churchill

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Road trip 2013 - searching for what makes Maine the way life should be

Log, early Friday evening

• Set my alarm at 7:00am to watch the semis of the French Open from my motel room in Jackman.  What, only the Tennis Channel is carrying it??  $%%$$%$$!!!!
• Found a sports bar in Skowhegan doing a google search.  Made it there by 11:00 when it opened and caught the 5th set of an epic match between the two great rivals - Nadal and Joker. 
• Okay, time to meet some people!
• Stopped in the Chamber of Commerce.  Met Corey.  Great guy who was receptive to my request for an interview.  He sent me to the Margaret Chase Smith library and to the Lakewood Theater to meet more people.
• At the library, I met Angela.  Very friendly woman who shared with me her perspectives on Maine.  She used to be Margaret's personal secretary until Margaret died.
• Next, the Lakewood Theater.  Beautiful location on the lake.  Oldest operating theater in the country (running non stop since 1901).  Interviewed Jerry (the owner).  He loves Maine simply because it is home - and especially Lakewood.
• Then back into town in Skowhegan.  Found a great bakery/coffee shop called "The Bankery", because the building used to be a bank.  Get it? :)  That's from where I type now. 
• Going to see "Self Help" at the Lakewood theater tonight.  So excited! A comedy and a theme that is right up my ally!

Road trip 2013 - searching for what makes Maine the way life should be

Log, Thursday night

• Travelled Rt 11 once again, this time from Millinocket down to Dover-Foxcroft
• Went into AW Gillman & Company Grist Mill.  Met the owner.  Very bitter man regarding the state of our state.  Very angry about government control and regulation, especially as it impacts the cost of power.  Thinks we should be putting up more hydro power dams along rivers in Maine to enable cheeper electricity costs.  Feels they shouldn't have to put electricity from local energy supplies like that back into the grid.  He gave me a lot of him time to talk about his agenda, but did not want me to interview him because he said he was not in a positive frame of mind.  True.
• Interviewed a couple people as they came out of the local Shop & Save.  Right, not Hannafords.  In northern Maine, I have seen many Shop & Save stores still.  Hmmm.
• Then stopped at the Historical Society of Dover-Foxcroft.  Lucky day!  The propieter was there, as was a guy who was born in 1930, and who used to work as a sports journalist in that very building when it was a news paper printing press house.  Great stories and observations from my interview with him (Lou).
• Then up to Greenville.  Interviewed Mike, the owner of a sporting outfitter store.  Really nice guy.  Then interviewed a young woman who makes fresh crapes at a road side stand.  I had one with goat cheese, spinnache and onion that was out of this world!  And I got her to interview for me. :)  She then refered me to Becky, who owns the art gallery just down the road.  Becky was awesome too, and so enthusiastic about life, my book, her world.
• Then up to Jackman
• My strategy here was to try to get some interviews this evening so that I could watch the French Open live tomorrow morning at 7:00 (Nadal vs Joker in the semis). Went to the grocery store.  No luck.  Went to an ATV dealer.  Talked to the owner.  He told me he is not a very good talker (and he sells stuff to people for a living) and didn't want to interview with me.  Then stopped at a house with a rafting company sign on it. Bingo - interviewed Jess, who is the business side of the business.  Her husband does the guiding.  Very good interview.  Then stopped at the school (at 4:20pm so well after school is out) and met the principle in the parking lot as she was leaving.  She invited me back at 6:00 when they would be holding the athletics banquet and awards night, and said maybe I could talk to the athletic director too.  So I went.  Amazing.  The graduating class of Forest Hills HS (the name of the Jackman HS) is comprised of ten (10) kids.  And this school had something big to celebrate tonight.  For the first time, they had brought home a boys class D state championship in basketball.  With a total school population of a little over 50 kids!!!  The school is so small, they are allowed to have 8th graders play on the HS varsity team.  Anyway, I watched the 2.5 hour long celebration, heard some fantastic stories about what some of these kids and teams have achieved, and ended up interviewing the principle and the athletic director after it was done.  I left feeling honored to be part of such a special night for this very close knit community.

Road trip 2013 - searching for what makes Maine the way life should be

Log, Thursday morning

• Went into downtown Millinocket yesterday evening.  So many store fronts empty, and run down looking.  Ghost town ish.  Went into the Appalachian Trail Cafe and met a couple hikers, but both from out of state. 
• Walked south down mainstreet and found an inn for AT through hikers.  Tried to find someone there to talk to but nobody was around.  As I walked away though I passed a guy on the sidewalk who was approaching a car that had just stoppped.  It was friends of his.  I stopped and waited for him to finish (because he seemed like the friendly type), and when he was done asked if I could talk to him.  He said sure!  Rick Lax.  Born and raised in Millinocket.  Working with his dad at his carpentry business.  Never gonna leave Millinocket.  It's home.
• Went for a run down a road that led to the Millinocket Airport (which has two runways).  Saw one small plane parked on the tarmack.
• Showered up.
• Went back into town and stopped for a beer at a relatively new bar/restaurant called Pelletier Loggers Family Restaurant.  Rick told me about this place.  The only new business in town I think.  Built about 3 years ago after a reality TV show did a story about loggers in Millinocket.  Met a guy at the bar who has through hiked the AT, and who now actually works for the AT.  He has also through hiked the Pacific Crest Trail.  The bar tender was a very friendly woman too.  She turned me on to a new beer from Vermont called Switchback Ale.  Also turned me on the a French Canadian dish called poutine.  French fries, gravy and mozzerella cheese.  Oooeeeyy goooeeyy yum.  Met the owner on my way out of the place.  He was sitting at the bar with customers.  Had had a few too many already.  Would have asked to interview him, but I don't want to do drunk interviews. (although that could be another book idea!)
• Back to my hotel to catch up on the French Open.  Watched Joker crush Haas and watched Nadal crush Wawrinka. 
• Finished synching up photos and interviews for the day.
• Bed!

quote of the day - the best way out

“The best way out is always through.”


― Robert Frost     www.theinsearchofsite.com

Road trip 2013 - searching for what makes Maine the way life should be

Log update, Wednesday around 4:00

• Arrived in Belfast around 5:00 yesterday evening to spend the night with my Dad, Mr Ed Hardy.  After a quick trip to the grocery store, and then a very welcome cold Heineken, we enjoyed a very tasty dinner at the Weathervane restaurant.  Lobster and Fajitas for dinner.  Oooooh Yeeaaaahhh.
• After dinner, we watched a Federer get smoked by Tsonga at the French Open.  Ouch Roger!
• I headed out early morning for my first stop today: Bangor.  Walked into this great bakery/cafe for some breakfast and met a woman named Terry enjoying her breakfast.  We got to talking, and she agreed to interview for me.  Found out she is between jobs, and between life situations - and so is couch surfing at friends houses.  Very interesting woman.
• Terry told me I had to talk to two other people in town - an artist named Brian Monahan, and Jim, the chancelor for the U-Maine system (who's office was across the street).  Went to Jim's office building (3rd floor) and unfortunately he was on his way out to a meeting in Augusta.  But had a nice conversation with the receptionist and got some more names of people to talk to.
• Then went to Brian's 2nd floor art studio on Main St.  What a great studio and vibe! Brian was fantastic to talk to. Great and very interesting life story to get to where and who he is today.  Bought a couple of his art pieces too that he sells across the street out of a hotel lobby.
• Then interviewed the manager of the hotel who sold me the art work!  His name is Paul.  We sat outside in the tree covered square outside the hotel.  What a beautiful day!
• Wow, great stuff.  Now up to Millinocket, but first a stop in Orono to check out the U-Maine campus (never been before - nor had I been to downtown Bangor, which is a very cool little city!
• Went into the visitor center at UMO and met Justin - the manager of the center.  He was great and was more than happy to interview for my book.
• From there, cruised up Rt 2 to go through Old Town before getting on I-95.  Noticed on the map that there is a Penobscot Indian reservation in Old Town.  In fact, it's on an island in the Penobscot River.  This is where I met a young man named Gabe, a true Penobscot, who works in their cultural center and teaches native indian language to kids growing up there.  Really, really nice guy who appreciates much about Maine.
• I am typing this now from my motel room in Millenocket.  Soon, will head into town and see who else I have the good fortune of meeting.  Ciao!

quote of the day - a thousand fibers connect us

“We cannot live only for ourselves. A thousand fibers connect us with our fellow men; and among those fibers, as sympathetic threads, our actions run as causes, and they come back to us as effects.”


― Herman Melville

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Road trip 2013 - searching for what makes Maine the way life should be

Log, Tuesday afternoon around 3:00 EST.

• Woke up around 6:00 on my own, after a Words with Friends chime went off on my phone.
• Took some photos of the river in front of the back deck of my motel room.  Beautiful view in the morning sun!
• Went for a run down an ATV trail in Machias
• Packed up, took some photos of the trail, got breakfast to go, and hit the road from Machias to Southwest Harbor
• Beautiful sun out today!
• Past Hancock Pt (a Hardy family reunion spot a few years back)
• Memories driving toward Mt Desert Isl (driving past the airport where Nicole and I went up in a glider)
• Arrived in Southwest Harbor
• Talked to a guy selling seafood in a roadside truck.  Said this is the only place on the Island without an ordinance against this kind of business.  He did not want to be interviewed for fear of getting in trouble.
• Went down the road to the SW Harbor marina. 
• Talked to a woman (Lisa) making covers for boat bumpers.  She recommended I go upstairs to talk to the owner of the sail making shop. 
• Went upstairs.  The owner (I forget her name) referred me to interview Rufus, a young guy who was "her slave". :)  Anyway, Rufus interviewed with me, and had some very poignent remarks to make about Maine relative to whether or not it is in fact "the way life should be".  Very articulate and intelligent.
• Then met a guy and his daughter (or grandaughter) walk out of Hamilton Marine.  Asked him where he was from, and he said North Carolina.  I told him that he was disqualified from my book!  But he referred me to Jane, the manager of the marina.  He walked me down to her office on the dock and introduced me.
• Jane was a hoot!  She is from New Zealand, but lived also in the Carribbean with her mothner at times.  Now she lives in SW Harbor with her husband (who is from Holton) and loves it.  Jane introduced me to her dog, Marina. :)  Jane gave me a great interview and let me take a couple photos.  She showed me her husband's new motorcycle which was parked outside.  Said that it was a bone of contention though between them.  I won't say why here.
• Then drove into the main part of town.  Went into the library and interviewed three very friendly librarians!  And, they want me to come back to do a talk after the book has been published!
• Lunch in a great bakery next to the library.  Yummy sausage and pepper parm sandwich on Frocaccia bread.  Mmmmm. :)
• So 5 interviews done in SW Harbor. Great!
• Now to Ellsworth and Friend & Friend motorcycles shop. 
• Saw and interviewed Terry (who was in my motorcycle school in Bucksport).  Took a photo of him sitting on his 500cc Honday cafe racer.
• Then met and interviewed Lou (who Dad recommended I see).  Lou was also great.  And he introduced me to Cooper Friend (the 4th generation Friend to run this shop which started as a Ford dealership almost 100 years ago!)
• Now typing this blog in the Ellsworth Public Library.

quote of the day - what success is

“Success is stumbling from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm.”


― Winston Churchill

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Road trip 2013 - searching for what makes Maine the way life should be

Log, Monday night:

• Hit Main St after granolla bar and coffee in my motel room
• Went into a book store.  Stuffed with books everywhere (really).  The owner was the only one there.  Her name is Carole Heinlein.  Interesting woman.  Didn't want to be interviewed.  Not enough good to say about Maine.  Probably will move out of the state again at some point.  From Key West.  BUT, she did send me to a couple people who turned out to be great interviews.
• The first was Diane.  VP at Bank of Maine in Calais.  Walked into the bank, asked the teller if there was a Diane there.  They said she's in the back.  They rang her phone, told her Scott was here to talk to her and that Carole had sent me.  She said "send him in"! 
• The second was Vicki at the visitor center.  She was very careful to not mix work with business, and did not want her photo taken.  But she gave me a great interview.  Vicki then introduced me to Julie who is Director of the Calais Chamber of Commerce.  Super friendly and gave me the interview and photo.
• Satisfied with Calais, I headed to East Port.  Great town.  First met Chris, the owner of a boat supply and hardware store.  He got busy as soon as I introduced myself, so I told him I would be back.
• Then went into little consignment shop and visitor center.  Very nice woman there told me about the tides, island and Roosevelts idea for harnessing the tides for power.  Then she mentioned a real power generator went in recently and told me the company was right behind her store, and I should go watch the video.  I met Bob, who was busy but told me to come back in 15 minutes.
• In the 15 minutes, I wandered into a gallery and a woman was behind the desk painting.  Her name was Cynthia, and she gave me a nice interview and photo of her painting.
• Went back to ORPC and listened to Bob tell me all about hydro keneticks for about 45 minutes.  And I saw the video.  This guy was great to spend so much time with me.  But then he didn't want to be interviewed, although was great about letting me take a couple photos.  He recommended aI  call Susie Krist to get an interview!  She is PR for ORPC.  Anyway, through Bob's message about this hydro power technology and project, I learned something about Maine that I think I can include with his photo.  I learned that it was really a community effort, with community buy in, based on relationships and trust, built over time.  ORPC truly tood a stakeholder approach to this project.  And it has been a big success.
• Then went back to Chris and I got a great interview and picture from him finally!
• Then down to Machias.  Not very much luck for interviews here, but did get kind of a fun one from a Zumba instructor as she was setting up for her class!
• The dinner at Blue Bird, then here and now!

Road trip 2013 - searching for what makes Maine the way life should be

Monday, June 3rd.  Log of thoughts.

• Just south of Long Lake, saw my first moose of  the trip.  Tried to back up and get it's photo while it was standing on the side of the rode.  By the time I got back to where it had been, it had ambled it's way just into the shadows of the woods.  Still got a photo, but hard to see!
• I arrived in Madawaska Saturday Evening. 
• Checked in at Martins Motel, and based on the recommendation of the woman who checked me in, went to Molly's for dinner. 
• There I met James, who was dining alone also, at the table next to mine.  I was very nervous to start talking to him, but I finally decided to go for it.  To break the ice, I asked him where the bridge was in town that takes you across the St John river to Edmundson, CA.  That was all it took to get him talking, and led to me getting a great interview with him while we ate dinner.
• Sunday morning, my alarm clock woke me up an hour earlier than I had wanted, because it had automatically reset to be in the Atlantic time zone.  It also was saying I was going to be paying international roaming charges on my phone.
• Went to the bridge and after talking to the straight faced customs official who told me it was okay if I walked halfway across the bridge to Canada. I did just that.
• Couldn't find people walking around on Main St, so I drove to a Walgreens store and stood outside the front door.  Got my second interview from Melissa.  Nice woman but no photo.  Then tried to get an older gentleman to talk to me, but he said he didn't have time because he was off to church.  Soon after the manager? came out and asked if she could help me.  I explained what I was doing and almost! got her to interview with me.  But being the true professional she is, she said she could not do it on company time.  I gave her my business card and asked her to send me her thoughts and photo via e-mail.  She seemed enthusiastic about it.
• Then went to Saint Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church to try to find some people.  Mass was about to start and I talked to the Father (Jaque) on the front steps just in time.  He was excited for me about my book project, and told me he'd make an announcement in the church that I would be outside after and looking to talk to people about helping me with my book.  So I sat through my first Catholic mass, and then interviewed 3 people after! Bernard, Tom, and James.  Tom had his two boys with him, who were excited to participate too!
• Feeling great about the flurry of e-mails, I set off to my next stop, Fort Kent.  On the way, had to stop at the little airport I had seen a sign for Saturday evening.  After winding my way up quite a few miles into the hills, there I found the airport on a plateau.  And there I met David, the airport manager/pilot/plane owner.  He was the only one there, and gave me a great interview.  As I was leaving, he commented about my Prius and said it was great I was using something that was easy on the environment.  I responded back saying it sure was saving me money on gas with all the miles I am putting on.  But then he emphasized that the real important thing was that I was reducing greenhouse gass emissions.  In that moment, I felt a little ashamed that I deflected his first comment about helping the environment.  I hadn't acknowledged him complement, partly out of fear that he was maybe being sarcastic about it and my car.  He was not.
• Made it into Fort Kent.  Got two interviews outside a restaurant (Susan and Melanie), and then one with a really nice guy (and park ranger) named Ronnie, who was cleaning up around the Fort Kent historical site.  Ronnie really emphasized the friendly community aspects of Fort Kent.  Said he had a son who lives in Cumberland and he and his wife are engineers.  They would like to live in Fort Kent, but no work there for them.  Fort Kent is a trade off between economic opportunity and quality of life.
• After Ronnie, I hit the road for Calais.  Went Rt 11.  Beautiful countryside!  Roling hills, vistas, lakes, farms, old barns, school busses sinking into the grass. :)
• Stopped in Portage.  Quite tiny town on Portage Lake.  Finally saw an older guy filling up his riding lawn mower at the local gas station.  So I approached him, said hi, and tried to engage with chit chat about his mower (I originally thought it was an ATV so I made a comment like "that looks like fun" - duh... :)  So after some small talk, I told him what I was doing with the book project and asked if he would talk to me about it.  He stood up straight, stopping what he was doing, looked me square in the eye, and said, "I hate Obama".  I should have ended it right there - but I couldn't! He kept talking (after I replied, "well, that isn't really what I wanted to talk about, I want to talk about Maine").  He went on to tell me about how he was a vietnam vet, was losing his toes one by one due to agent orange, that he went into the war supporting it, but later changed his mind and is now anti war.  He said the US can't control all these 'tribes' around the world.  He finally talked a little about Maine.  Said he was living in the only part of the state he could, because it is conservative.  The southern part of the state is liberal.  But even where he is has changed, not as great as it used to be.  He wished me luck with my book and went on his way.  I felt sad for him.
• The next guy that arrived at the gas station was Travis.  Really nice younger guy who was eager to help me with my book! 
• Hit the road again - satisfied that I had taken lots of great pics, and got a good number of quality interviews.
• Road through a tremendous T-storm.  Unbelievable sheets of water coming down.  Major wind gusts moving my car around.  Rain stops, the hail!  I ducked into some guys driveway near Holton to hide under his tree.  He was on his front porch talking on his phone when I asked if it was okay to pull into his driveway.  He yelled "what?"  I just rolled up my window and pulled in!  It was over in less than 5 minutes.
• Landed in Calais.  Went for a run along the river path.  Then dinner/beer at a great little pub called Karen's.  Karen is the owner, and she was the bar tender last night.  Originally from Canada, she told me she had laid sheet rock for the first 20 years living in Maine.  Then when the local diner went up for sale, her daughter said she should buy it.  Karen did buy it, the very next day!  Then when the space next to her diner went on the market, she bought that too!  Made that a pub.  Keeping the two separate.  She is a character, and very friendly and likeable.  Great bar tender.  No idea how she did sheet rock for 20 years.  Oh, and she told me she and her husband were doing sheet rock for the motel I am staying at now (The International), when he stepped on a loose floor joyce and fell 10 feet onto the basement  floor and broke his back.  He recovered!
• Now it is Tuesday morning, and time to talk to some more Calais people!

quote of the day - what comedy is

"Comedy is acting out optimism."

- Robin Williams


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quote of the day - turning around irretrievable defeats

“My greatest point is my persistence. I never give up in a match. However down I am, I fight until the last ball. My list of matches shows that I have turned a great many so-called irretrievable defeats into victories.”


- Bjorn Borg



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quote of the day - reading with cold feet

“My grandfather once told her if you couldn't read with cold feet, there wouldn't be a literate soul in the state of Maine.”


― Marilynne Robinson, Gilead     www.theinsearchofsite.com