July 17-July 20                       The Lakes Region of New Hampshire

Before leaving Texas, we made plans to visit by car more areas of New England.  Our first trip would be to the Lakes Region of New Hampshire, a beautiful, historic area of the state which is a popular summer destination for Bostonians and New Yorkers.  For a lengthy period, our neighbors Jocelyn and Bill Wuester had a home on Bear Island in Lake Winnipesaukee and Suzanne and I had visited them there many years ago.  It was truly a scene from the delightful movie “On Golden Pond” complete with the mail boat.

After considerable research, we finally booked three nights at Lake Opechee Inn and Spa at Laconia, New Hampshire.  It had the desired ambiance and it ALLOWED DOGS (David refused to leave Pretzel).  It proved to be a great choice!  The building had been a textile mill and later a manufacturing facility before being abandoned for many years.  With considerable funding from local and state sources, a trio of investors (one a scion of the DuPont family) did an amazing exterior and interior transformation to create a lovely inn with first class amenities.  The on-site restaurant was excellent, and we enjoyed two evenings dining on the patio watching the sun set over the lake.

Meredith, one of the main towns of the area, was no longer the quaint place I remembered from my previous visit.  Urban sprawl and many fast food, tourist attractions and realty offices lined the lake.  A long drive on the opposite side revealed a number of beautiful, spacious homes on heavily forested lakeside lots.  Weirs Beach, several miles away, was a throwback to another era with small wooden buildings housing arcades, bumper cars and tacky tourist garb.  We enjoyed a quick lunch of excellent fish tacos and clam strips at Weathervane near the boardwalk (rain seemed to be imminent).

On Wednesday, we perused several antique stores in Laconia.  I found a small ceramic nativity for my collection ( now that should be 137!) 

Adjacent to the Inn is an exceptional car museum privately owned by one of the owners.  A staff member arranged a private tour for us and we spent a delightful hour or so with a most knowledgeable guide who knew well the history of each vehicle.  The collection included an amazing assortment of race cars, antique autos, army trucks, toy replicas and even a bumper car.  Carefully assembled and beautifully displayed throughout a 12,000 square foot building, it seemed to have something for everyone—even a London taxi.

That evening, we returned to Weirs Beach to board the MS Mount Washington for a dinner cruise on Lake Winnipesaukee.  The vessel was well maintained, not crowded and very comfortable.  Dinner was quite good and the two- and one-half-hour sunset cruise was delightful.  We were amazed by the many homes lining the shores of this enormous 70-mile lake.  Most boats were barges or runabouts.  All the boats were less than 30 feet in length. 

                           

On Thursday, we returned to Wickford by a scenic route which avoided most of the Interstate Highways.  The journey was longer but we saw more of the countryside and small towns.  We also visited several antique shops (spent abou $10.00 total).  Pretzel was a hit wherever we wentl.  She was well-behaved throughout the trip and is always happy when she can be near David.

 

 

 

 

 

 

                         

 

July 7-July 16                North Kingstown, Rhode Island

Days have been unseasonably warm and humid.  We have been subjected to frequent rain and several torrential thunderstorms which lasted for hours.  These have been good times to complete inside tasks, needlepoint, read and work on cataloging our Southwestern Indian pottery collection (David).  Napping, of course, is a favorite afternoon activity.

Once again, Maria Carpenter and I attended the annual Art Show in the local park.  The number of participants had grown considerably, and it took several hours for us to peruse the many exhibits.  We were amazed by the ingenuity and creativity of some of the exhibitors.  Maria bought a great photograph of a swimming turtle electroplated (?) on aluminum which had a sheen that reminded me of a few works at the Kimbell Art Museum painted on copper.  I could not resist a watercolor print of a red barn with a field bordered by a stone wall (so typical of New England).

Work on the TV system and the dinghy have been frustrating.  Promised assistance has not been forthcoming.  Everyone is busy and help is scarce.  As we cannot do the work ourselves, we are learning to be patient and wait. 

Last weekend while I was shopping inside the local Walgreen’s, a new Porsche sedan rammed into the car parked next to David.  Apparently, the driver, an elderly lady, hit the gas instead of the brake.  No one was injured but the damage to both cars was significant.  David took a photo of the scene and was immediately accosted by the passenger in the Porsche who yelled at him to stop.  She described him to the driver as “just an old man sitting in his car taking pictures” (which, of course, he was!). 

She was more incensed when the driver of the other car approached David and asked him to send her the photo.  David reacted with humor to the situation and refrained from retaliating with disparaging remarks about the angry woman’s immense size! 

 

 

                         

 

 

 

June 23-July 6              North Kingstown, Rhode Island

Following Charles’ departure, our schedule became once more involved with boat tasks.  There is always something to be done and David wants it done yesterday!  Unfortunately, the very expensive davit utilized to raise and lower the dinghy became locked in an upright position and was useless.  A bolt needs to be removed and o-rings must be replaced.  The bolt refuses to budge and David and Rupe have tried various methods to loosen it but so far they have had no luck.  Numerous calls to the manufacturer were not helpful until David finally reached a VIP in the company who made things happen in a hurry.  We are hoping the problem will soon be solved.

Our satellite TV system (another expensive item) suddenly no longer responded to our pleas and we are now dependent on our Firestick.  We hope to have the new system installed next week (as my wise friend Esther once said, “it’s not a problem if it can be solved with money.”).  She is right and that TV inconvenience will soon be solved, and our bank account will bear the blow!

The Fourth of July was a day of rain and thunder.  No fireworks and no boat parade.  The fifth was sunny and warm.  Boats of all kinds went into and out of our channel loaded with people in bathing suits ready to party. A great fireworks display occurred at the beach only blocks away.  We enjoyed it from the bow of the boat and then went to the stern to welcome back the long line of boaters who returned from the beach area.

We were delighted to have our long-time friend, Doug Rosensky come for a brief visit.  Doug is the broker who found The Bottom Line and negotiated the purchase for us.  He and David stay in close contact.

Doug and his extended family were enjoying a week at a rental in Cape Cod.  He drove four hours to join us in Wickford.  With freshly shucked oysters and lobster rolls, we spent several hours on the aft deck enjoying a delicious lunch.  We were pleased after a lengthy inspection; Doug praised The Bottom Line as one of the best maintained older Hatteras boats he had seen.  Afterwards, he once again braved the traffic across the Cape Cod Canal Bridge to his vacation home.