Well, my plan to dip my toes into both oceans on this trip hasn't come to fruition, but it's ok. It's been raining and cool here in NH, which really doesn't bother me at all. I got to read The Help straight through. I always experience a fleeting sense of guilt when I jump onto the bandwagon of a popular book, but then I remind myself that there's a reason things become popular. And I enjoyed this book. Quite a bit, actually. As I was telling my dad about it, I said something quite flippant - "You wouldn't like this one, Dad...it's a girl's book." As usual, he surprised me by saying he'd heard about it and wanted to read it. Never assume, right? Good to be reminded of that. Anyway, as usually happens after I read a good book, I feel inadequate when I try to write my own words. So instead of putting together clear thoughts, I thought I'd just share some of the more interesting observances from my last few days in New England.
Friday night activities included attempting to drive to Manchester to pick up my brother and his girlf...er...fiance. However, a lack of working brakes on my dad's car ended that pretty quickly. Being able to stop is a good thing, it turns out.
Saturday, the five of us piled into the rental car and drove to Weirs Beach, where we boarded the Mt. Washington, a small cruise boat that has been cruising Lake Winnepesaukee since before I was born. We had a nice day on the water; it's really beautiful on the lake. I miss New England architecture. And it was probably no hotter than 70 or 72 degrees. Amazing.
Sunday brought a day trip to Boston. On the way, I saw a snowplow driving down the road (in the summer!) and spent about 20 minutes in IKEA (just that little bit was awesome). All I could think was that, if they removed the exit signs from the store, one could literally get lost in there and NEVER find your way out. Which I suppose is the point. Then on to Jamaica Plain, MA, where I got to meet Elsa, the two-month old daughter of one of my college roommates. What a sweetie. I love hanging with babies, especially when I get to hand them back to their mamas after a while. Then a slow, easy evening with my parents, eating spaghetti and listening to the rain.
Today's been equally quiet and slow. It's great. I finished my book, and now my mom and I are going shopping. A time-honored Mother/Daughter tradition.
Life is so different here. In a good way. It makes me realize that, like a good recipe, life should be made up of many places and paces and styles. Use one spice? The food is boring or overwhelming. But have a mix of flavors, and your food is tasty.
Well, adios, New Hampshire. It's always fun to hang out for a few days. Tomorrow will begin the West Coast portion of our menu. Stay tuned.
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