Blueberries
Friday, September 5th, 2008

Blueberries are native only to North America. Wild Maine blueberries, like Maine lobster, are the best — finest kind. They are small and full of flavor, unlike the larger ones that grow higher off the ground in places like New Jersey, Oregon and Washington. Our friends in Maine will sometimes eat the larger, inferior blueberries from away but that’s an anomaly.
Blueberries are raked and it is difficult and back-breaking work. If you are good at it, you can make a big wad of cash during the season, typically the month of August. In the 90’s, that’s how teenagers in our town earned money to buy a car. Camille raked blueberries one day and that was enough. Sam did it for a while longer than that.
Here in California, we have found wild Maine blueberries, as well as those grown in the Maritime provinces at Trader Joe’s, in the frozen section under their own brand. Generally, Denise uses them for baking and my personal favorite is a coffee cake recipe she got from the baker at a country store in Maine. She had a good rep in town and the gentleman was happy to share it with her, under the condition that she never used it commercially and with the understanding that we were heading back to California. The secret was the crusty, sugary, tart, blueberry top on the cake.
You can buy blueberries in a variety of ways, but we prefer the roadside stand where you leave your money in a jar. By the way, this is a common practice in Maine for selling anything from camp wood to blueberries to pies or baked goods. Many of the stands will have a sign advertising blueberrys. Don’t be fooled by this marketing ploy — the obvious misspelling gives the stand or display a down-home, rural ambience. Denise enjoys blueberries al fresco and one at a time.



We decided to visit the 

One of our favorite places to visit is Camden Maine, which most people know as
When you’re in Maine, there are a number of rare treats you’ll want to track down besides the best lobster in the world. Emma and I love two Maine staples, common to the working class downeast; red hot dogs and whoopie pies. The best place to find them in Hancock County are at the 
On one of our trips to B&L’s, we drove by the home of our friends, Don and Jane. They offered us their typical brand of downeast hospitality and we sat in the kitchen for a couple of hours, exchanging bits of news about family and friends in town, as well as our opinion of Obama’s choice for a running mate. When we left, Denise snapped this pose of what could pass for two Maine male models, whose bodies have been sculpted by years of hard work, red hot dogs and whoopie pies. 
When we moved to Maine in ‘93, our first home was down on Naskeag Point, site of the
This is the cape we made an offer on, sight unseen. It’s a quaint little home, built in the 50s, out in the
So, we met some new friends in Sedgwick Me — Joanne and Doug. They told us that 
I’m sure you’ve all been wondering why the blog posts have dried up. In fact, I’m just sitting down to answer the backlog of thousands of email messages. We are winding up our trip to Maine and are finally relaxing on the shore of Allamoosook Lake. Emma is in a canoe, Denise is sitting in her Adirondack chair with a needlepoint and I’m doing what I like to do to unwind… writing. So, here are a few shots of the view from the lodge and a preview of posts to come.
There is a very picturesque island out in front of the lodge and it appears to have a camp with a dock out into the lake. It’s very quiet here, the loons and ducks are paddling by and there are only two boats out on the lake. I just heard some folks at their camp about a quarter mile across the lake discussing supper plans for the evening — Chinese food in Bucksport.
Emma is really enjoying her vacation and is now out in a canoe, trying to find an anchorage, so she can stop to read her book. I’ll plug away on a few posts about the house we let go out in Sunshine, the one that interests us in Lamoine, lobster supper, whoopie pies and, best of all, good friends.
Okay, so I’ve been a little nostalgic lately and I scanned some old photographs of our family. When Denise and I began dating, she had long blonde hair… naturally blonde. I had long hair, too.
This is Denise about one year after we were married on this day, July 10, 1976. Yes, that’s 32 years of marital bliss (not 31, Sam). This photo was actually taken the day before Sam was born on September 5, 1977. I remember this day - It was hot, I took time off work for the birth and we went to walk around the Mission San Juan Capistrano and I caught Denise in front of this big, beautiful Bouganville.
Did I ever tell you that Denise can make excellent tamales and carnitas? ¿No? Well, then… About the time Denise and I started getting serious, she worked at a deli and meat market, owned by Jess (Mexican) and Julianne (Polish). So, while I was off surfing every single day during the summer of 1974 (I couldn’t get a job, because I wouldn’t cut my hair — Idiot), Denise (Anglo) learned how to make carnitas, tamales, tortillas, menudo, peirogi, golumki and fresh/smoked kielbasa. Yes, she was always good in the kitchen, but this experience turned her into a serious culinarian. 
Emma just completed her first semester at Sacramento State University with a Big Four Point Oh! She’s pursuing a degree in design — leaning toward architecture. This was confirmed to Emma on her latest visit to Chicago, the birthplace of the modern skyscraper, as well as home to the Prairie School and Frank Lloyd Wright. 
Denise and I were down in Roseville, so we dropped by Sean and Camille’s new home. It looks a little plain. I think it could use something… I can’t quite put my finger on it.
Pastor Steve has been busy here in Nevada County. We’ve been to prayer meetings, a youth meeting and even a
On Tuesday, Denise and I said farewell to New York and flew out of La Guardia at 4PM. By 1 AM, we were back in Nevada City and I arrived at work in Camptonville by 7:30 AM on Tuesday. What a great time to be alive and who can deny that the United States is one of the best places on the planet to live?
On Sunday, Denise and I went with Sam to the MOMA. She got in free with Sam, because he’s a member… they even bought a couple of his pieces, but he doesn’t know what they are or when they were shown. How do you like that? Anyway, hope you like



