Odd Man Out

I've just returned from vacation in Maine and Boston, a two-week trip that accounts for my longest period sans computer in years. Yes, it was hard.

So M and I made a loop through Maine up to the Grand Lake Stream, returning along the coast and ending in Boston. We stayed at a number of B&Bs and ate all over the place. So here's my collection of advice and endorsements on the off chance anyone is interested in a New England vacation.

First, of the B&Bs, all were pretty good. We didn't hit any disappointments. Our favorite was the Peacock House in Lubec, Maine. Lubec and neighboring Campobello Island are beautiful and well worth a visit. Peacock House is well-kept, clean and comfortable. Breakfast was simple but tasty, consisting of a fruit salad, sausage quiche and muffin. On a side note, Campobello is actually in New Brunswick, Canada; you must pass customs to go over, and is notable for a having been the summer home of Franklin Roosevelt. If FDR were running today, would Republicans tease him for being "cosmopolitan" and unAmerican? Lubec also has the Quoddy Head lighthouse, which marks the easternmost point in the US. We had dinner at the easternmost pub in the US.

Behind Peacock House, I would place Nonesuch Farm, outside Bangor Maine. It is considerably more rustic, consisting of one of those rambling New England farmhouses that's undergone two centuries of chaotic additions. It's also an actual farm. There were sheep outside my window, and the innkeeper apologetically let me know the sheep would probably wake us up at 6AM, which they did. Still it was very clean and pleasant and sported the best breakfast we had during our trip. It was in a single course and was composed of fruit, muffins, waffles and optional whipped cream (real), blueberry sausage (surprisingly good) and ideologically pure bacon.

The highlight of the trip, for me, was a two-day stay at Weatherby's at the Grand Lake Stream. It's a rustic lodge about two hundred yards from the Grand Lake Stream. For those not in the know, the waters thereabouts are legendary for landlocked salmon and smallmouth bass fishing. Now this place is an actual sportsman's lodge. It's comfortable but rustic. You stay in one of several cabins on the property and eat in the lodge dining room. You won't see any overstuffed chairs, nor elegant nouvelle cuisine. The beds are not especially comfortable. The cabins are simple. The food is simple. Things are clean and uncomplicated; I don't mean this as a euphemism for "primitive." There's indoor plumbing and running, hot water.

The place exists because of the fishing, which is stellar. I went out one day with a guide (Jeff, the current proprietor of Weatherby's, which is one of the oldest sporting lodges in the US) to the St. Croix River. The St. Croix runs between Maine and Canada, a wide, moderately-paced river stained Earl-Grey tea brown by tannins. We fished most of the day, from maybe 8AM to 4PM, catching quite a few smallmouth bass, several on the large side. In fact, I hit the "20-inch club" twice that day (only the second to do it this year), once with a 23-inch pickerel and again with a 20.5-inch bass. We also caught plenty of chubs, some surprisingly large. Jeff fed a couple of those to the bald eagles that hung around, which is a hell of a thing to behold.

If you're interested at all, I recommend Weatherby's highly. Pay for a guide. It's worth it. Weatherby's does cater to new and even first-time anglers, although the bulk of their clients are old hands. Most have been there before. In the fall, they also arrange guides for hunting birds, bear, deer and moose. I have no idea if they have firearms for rental, although they certainly have plenty of fishing tackle that can be rented and/or borrowed. Check into it.

Avoid Salem, MA. M was interested in seeing it because of the whole witch trial thing but the witch-related sights all sit deep in the most irritating tourist schlockery possible. Beautiful architecture, but otherwise a waste of time. The House of Seven Gables is there, inspiration for the Hawthorne novel, and is moderately interesting. That's the best thing I can point out.

In Boston, Mike's Pastries is worth a visit. It sits in the North End, Little Italy really, and sells a wide variety of really nice pastries. The ricotta chocolate chip cannoli was especially good.

The only real problem with the vacation is that I must now absorb several megabytes of text in order to become current again. I note that Donald posted extensively while I was away...

Unless you've been living under a rock, you've probably heard about the cheating controversy surrounding the New England Patriots, and their coach Bill Belichick. As far as I can tell, Belichick had a cameraman videotaping his oppenents' defensive coaches, the goal being to steal the signals by which they communicate with on-field defensive players.

You see, football actually requires a great deal of thinking on the parts of its participants. Defensive players must react to how the offense lines up after its huddle and their basic approach to that is usually signaled into play by the defensive coordinator. The DC generally signals to a central defensive player, such as a middle linebacker or free safety. That player then gets his teammates into position. If you watch a lot of football, you'll almost always see a lot of motion among defensive players. Most people glue their eyes to the offense. Watch the defense next weekend. You'll see what I mean.

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So I now hold, in Washington State, a concealed weapons permit. I can carry a loaded pistol, as long as its concealed, pretty much anywhere except Federal buildings, schools, bars and outdoor music festivals. (This last will be understood by anyone who's ever been to the Gorge Amphitheater, and yes, it is specifically called out in the state code.) As it happens, I have no desire to carry a pistol. I've lived in Seattle a while now and I've never felt sufficiently threatened to want a pistol. In fact, the only time I've ever thought to myself, "I wish I had a gun" is when I've been well outside the city. We have both cougars and meth labs here, both found in abundance outside the city. No, I actually applied for the permit because getting one requires a full background check. One must be fingerprinted and backgrounded by the FBI. Because the check is more thorough than the standard I'd-like-to-buy-a-handgun check, one can generally assume that a CPL holder with ID is safe bet (that's Concealed Pistol License). Many of the sellers in the Washington State Arms Collectors will no longer sell to people they don't know and who don't have a CPL. It's about liability. No one is afraid of criminal liability, but a civil wrongful-death suit could, hypothetically, be made to stick, even though secondary sales are not regulated here. Some ranges will not accept people without background checks. Also, I'm now exempt from the usual waiting period. Usually, buying a handgun in WA means a 10-14 day wait. CPL holders are exempt from it. So in the end, I got the CPL partly as a convenience and partly so that I can easily convince people, "hey, I'm alright here." (Obviously, I mean gun-owning people. I'm aware it has the opposite effect on others.)

I own and enjoy guns. I do, however, think gun control is a great idea. I loathe the NRA. Now most of the gun control laws out there are half-assed at best, but the principle is sound. And my odd, residual liberal guilt about acquiring a CPL forces me to jot down some thoughts about that principle.

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Here's my dirty secret. I've been reading Harry Potter books for the past few weeks. I started reading them to see just what the heck everyone has been talking about.

Here's the bad part. I've actually been enjoying them. Their root appeal, I think, is very similar to the appeal of Middle Earth--although "lite"--and has a few facets. As with Middle Earth, one gets the sense that the books provide a window into a world that exists independently of ours, with a rich history and culture. Unlike LotR, the main characters are interesting and flawed people, which is what makes them so effective as protagonists. The books are also unusually honest about big things like death. I can see why kids enjoy them so much. I remember being able to sense condescension and I didn't like it. The Potter books are accessible but never condescending.

Apparently, heterosexual men are not supposed to enjoy children's literature. While it's okay for adult women to read Potter books, and fine for gay men, as far as I can tell, it's unmanly for an adult male het. I think it would be kosher if I were reading them as by way of "examining a pop culture phenomenon." Reading, however, out of curiosity is a little suspicious. Enjoying the Potter books is out of bounds. Everyone to whom I've mentioned my Potter books, male and female alike, has given me a gentle ribbing about them, or at least given me the sort of look generally reserved for aging bachelors who live with their parents and speak Klingon.

What gives?