Maine Summer Fun

Too lazy to put the a/c unit in at home I have taken cover from the heat by going to my dad's air-conditioned office. It's suppose to be a high of 87 today but it is actually 93. I was planning on working all day but instead I have only worked a few hours and finished up some paperwork. What I really am trying to do is warm up to write out some of my book about this past year.

For the last two weeks the prep for the Clam Festival took place and finally it happened over 3 days. Now most of the grass is dead, but that is probably from the heat. One of the three evenings of this event my dad and I road bikes down to the carnival rides and it turned out we were on time for the fire works. Between the thousands of lights, rides, and explosions I managed to get some video I really enjoy. Listen for my dad's crazy laugh.

I also got a few of my all time favorite photos. Dusk is my favorite time to takes pictures. The light changes rapidly and it provides an enjoyable challenge. It's also when the human made lights become more prominent and eventually take over. When the two sources of light fight back and fourth is my favorite but I cannot deny how much I love thousands of tiny light sources mixing together but staying apart.

I have also been working to earn some of my more expensive items for college. I have been painting, moving things, and planting. Last weekend it took my dad and I 7 hours and two 4 feet wide 2 feet deep holes to plant 2 trees.

Before:

After:

Isaac, Zoe, and me got on the bus to Boston for some exploring.

Isaac is in some Harvard summer program focusing on architecture during the day but the three of us hang out in the evening. We walk around and go to places like Dosa Factory or the Falafel Palace for dinner.

The brick is a big shocker after being around concrete for so long in Asia. Boston does seem much more beautiful now that I have been to more cities, although I still like Barcelona a bit more because it has insanity mixed in with beauty.

The evenings were early and I slept very well. The first night in Boston I slept from 10-9.

I did the touristy stuff in Boston for the first time in Ages with Nancy and Tracy, good friends and visitors from out of town. It was really nice and tempts me to do some similar activities within Portland. This is us at the capital in Boston.

The most exciting experience in Boston was going to the Harvard Natural History Museum for the first time. It has recently been re-done but Zoe has assured me it has not lost too much of it's quirkiness or nerdy-ness.

Home at last.

I made it safely back to home on three moderately uneventful flights. We literally ran to the exit of the airport where I found my mom and the Woodbury-High's waiting for Zoe and me. It was a great reunion. Zoe hung out in Boston for a night while I went straight back to Portland. It all felt good but very surreal, maybe it was from being so exhausted.


Jet lag lasted a week but was tolerable. Once I stopped wanting to go to bed at 5 things were pretty good. For the most part I slipped back into Maine life almost too well. It was really nice to see everyone and receive a few gifts, dad got me a Buddha lamp for at college.

A "Maine theme" party was put in order for a good welcome back. I made a pinata for the occasion of a Ferry, which Charlotte thought was the mystical pixie like being, but instead took form of a boat that transports people from island to island off the Maine coast.

The Pinata was huge. We filled it with salt water taffy and other cheap candy from "Renys, A Maine Adventure," and painted it the appropriate colors. It took a while to hang because it was so heavy but once up the vessel peacefully swayed in the summer breeze.

It then met death via croquet mallet and a girl in a dirndl. There were also many other kids there who took many swings until it gave up the simple carbohydrate treasure within the hull.

Since I have been back I have gone bowling:

And I have enjoyed our most explosive and important holiday of the year, the 4th of July:

I have been getting my drink on, it has mostly been moxie actually.

And hanging out near the castle. Right now the past year feels like a crazy dream that never actually happened but I know that it did. The large gap in my blog is due to my effort in putting a book together about this past year, which I hope to complete before college. More on that soon.