Lake George Vacation 2015
13/September/2015 07:06 AM
Tuesday, the day after labor day 2015. I'm sitting here in Starbucks having a nice hot cup of coffee. Really need it. I stayed up a bit later than usual last night watching Netflix on m pad. Couldn't get the tv to work no matter which buttons I pressed. It wouldn't have been so bad had I not been alone at the place at the lake. Nancy went home yesterday to pick up Evan and bring him back to the lake after his class at Great Bay. I might have gone with her but he came down with a little something so it will be a full court press to get him back to the lake house within 24 hours. I'm not convinced that he wants to come up but I could be wrong. Nancy was willing to make the trip alone so that was that. I called her once she arrived and the trip had gone well. There had been no unexpected surprises and the traffic was not a problem. You know how Labor Day weekends go sometimes. Anyway, good to know she was home safely.
Nancy's sister, Debbie, and her boyfriend Willie, arrived on Sunday and left on Monday around noon or a bit after. We took in the usual sights including Sandy Bay, San Souci, and the sights and sounds of Lake George Village. There is a story to be told for each of those destinations so maybe I'll get there here today and maybe I won't. Suffice it to say that the water was fine, the spots in Sandy Bay elusive but available, the food at San Souci was not bad at all, and the village came with its own surprises. The biggest surprise there was the number of people cruising the streets and the ethnic and racial diversity of same. I was telling Rollie that the crowds of days past were 85% Canadian and 15% Warrensburg and those days are gone. As long as we continue to have a lawless president in the White House who insists on open borders and the purge of Christians we will be at risk for losing the heart and soul of our nation.
After sitting in the boat for a while on Sandy Bay and watching Nancy and her sister, Debbie, swim off towards the shore I decided it was time for me to go in as well and I left Willie to his own devices. A woman bumping around the bay in a kayak approached Willie when the three of us were off galavanting near the shore and asked if he was Woody (aka Rollie.) Too funny. Can't remember how that conversation went but Willie told it in a way that made us all laugh. I think the woman heard what Willie said about not being Rollie, knew in her heart that the man who said he wasn't Rollie was surely sitting in Rollie's boat, and decided to call him on it. "That's Rollie's boat", she said matter of factly. Maybe she gave up after that. Maybe she thought she had said enough but not too much and that it was a good time to end the conversation. She may have paddled off looking once or maybe twice over her shoulder not comfortable with how the conversation ended and the best course of action was to put as much distance between her and the man in Rollie's boat who said he wasn't Rollie as possible.
He didn't look like the kind of man who would follow her but she wasn't taking any chances. The bay was choking with activity and an unlikely place as one can imagine for a criminal act but she knew all too well that there were plenty of ways to die when and where nobody would be the wiser. If the man who said he wasn't Rollie was in fact not Rollie, but driving Rollie's boat, then he was certainly capable of much much more. Nothing sinister necessarily but she wasn't taking any chances. We never saw the woman Wille referred too so didn't know what had become of her. His descriptions were vague but not alarmingly so. We had no reason to be suspicious so laughed aloud when he told us the story in no more than two or three sentences. Two or three well thought out and crafted sentences that is retrospect ended too abruptly. It was laughter intended to deceive and we fell for it hook, line, and sinker. I thought to myself that it could have just as easily been me who had that conversation and maybe it ended well and maybe it didn't. Unlike Willie, I would have kept the encounter to myself. No need to leave a trail of any kind to raise suspicions when and where the specter of possible crime was involved. Drownings are all too common in this lake and they nearly go unreported except that they serve as a reminder to visitors near and far that the lake, while benevolent in its beauty and attraction, has a history of taking lives. One can never be too careful so it is best not to ask too many questions of people you think you know driving boats that as far as you know don't belong to them.
We had a nice ride on the lake heading north out of Sandy Bay with Elizabeth Island as our destination and kept going once we arrived at the island. The water was as choppy as it gets this time of the year with a roughness created by the horrendous cross currents of waves in the widest part of the lake that were akin to what they refer to as a perfect storm in North Atlantic lore. The winds were blowing out of the south enough to stiffen a flag but without the oomph to create white caps in the widest section of the lake. It was a sunny warm afternoon and the drone of the boat engine was ever present as we pushed past Camp Chingacook and points north where camps along the shoreline disappeared and vast sections of the Adirondack reserve rose thousands of feet from shore to mountain top. When we had had enough of dodging rogue waves we turned southward once again and hugged the coastline where the waters were less chaotic. Once back at the camp and after docking we noticed a slick of sorts forming at the rear of the boat. It took a while to sort out but by the time the next morning rolled around we were all feeling a little better about something that ended up, we think, being far less serious than maybe it could have been.
San Souci was busy as expected but we drove there nonetheless hoping against hope that we would both find a place to park and something of our liking to eat. Parking was the bigger of the two hurdles but a space opened up the minute we arrived and not a minute too soon since we were joined by others who we saw milling about outside the restaurant as we arrived. I was surprised that the restaurant was not busier and I think a little surprised that it was as noisy as it was for the few parties that were seated when we walked in. We had no problems finding something to eat both on the menu and on the specials board so ordered as quickly as possible so as to not to lose our seemingly positive momentum. It helped that our waitress was both attentive and easy on the eyes. She was equally vivacious and she may have notched our collective energies up just enough to get us past the noise and other distractions in what was probably standard fare at this long standing neighborhood haunt. And Nancy, true to form, took a liking to my coffee drink and despite my moving it here and there around the table to get it out of her line of sight she found it every time and sipped away at her hearts content. I rationalize times like this by telling myself that were I to drink the beverage as ordered that I would be perhaps unable or unwilling to drive having consumed far more alcohol than is usual for me. Far more indeed.
Rollie joined us on Monday and we looked at his boat together so that was good. After Debbie and Willie had left he stayed the afternoon and we chatted about everything under the sun. He played a tape recording that my father had made of a conversation he and I had in 1990. Did I know he was recording that conversation? It was benign as conversations go but funny nonetheless to hear my 1990 voice and perhaps more interestingly to hear my dad's voice again. It was really nice to hear his voice. God, Rollie and I kicked around a lot of things. That boy has a history floating around in his head that he really ought to get down on paper when he has a spare moment. I think our sister Kathy has a good recollection of things as well but her recollections are occasionally suspect and maybe even self serving from time to time. Memories fade but memories twisted and contorted to serve their masters desires and dreams live on as though etched in cement for eternity. I'm one to talk. I write it all down, well almost all of it, and put my own spin on events when and where the normal flow of events don't suit me. In other words, I make it up as I go along. Rollie and I talked a lot about uncle Karl as well and his relationship with dad which was nonexistent toward the end of Karl's life according to Rollie. As one might expect, the bad blood arose out of the supposed mismanagement of money and perhaps even a lawsuit about same. You just can't make this stuff up!
I keep putting this down and picking it up again. Can't remember what I've written and maybe don't care. Maybe I'll say it again but differently the second time around. I have to say that driving the 350Z that Rollie let me have for the week has been a little weird. It has an altogether different vibe that takes some getting used to. It isn't so much about how I feel driving it because you know that is going to be different compared to driving my 2000 Volvo station wagon. More noticeable than that is how other drivers respond when they come up on me in traffic, on the highway, etc. Just yesterday, for example, I was tooling down the road minding my own business (tell me if you've heard this story before) and I noticed that the vehicle behind me was tailing me in an odd sort of way. They were a little closer than they should have been and it wasn't any coincidence that they looked to be younger drivers. The fact that I could tell at all was not a good thing. It felt aggressive and testosterone driven. Responding in kind would have been irresponsible and reckless and I was not in any hurry to facilitate or otherwise encourage that sort of train wreck. True to form, they waited until we had rounded the bend and passed me with room to spare on the straightaway. I was happy to let them have their moment but the fact of the matter is that this never would have happened in my other more staid vehicle. I don't know if I want that kind of responsibility. Something to think about.
Looks like another nice day on the lake her in Lake George. Nancy and Evan arrived last night a little after 9. I'm glad they made the trip. Nancy drove home on Monday to pick up Evan after his class at Great Bay on Tuesday morning and promised a hasty return. The class never worked out, Evan was down and out with some asthma related illness, and they had a late day doctors appointment to make before getting on the road. They survived all of that and made the long trip back here despite the fact that Nancy was not keen on making any portion of the drive in the dark. It was unavoidable of course but she was clearly in the home stretch by the time darkness fell so perhaps not an issue. She looked none the worse for wear upon her arrival and Evan seemed better than I expected which was good. He coughed a couple of times as he got out of the car and mostly for effect I think. I stopped by Dirty John's earlier in the evening and bought three dogs for Evan which I microwaved when he arrived. I had a nice greek salad with chicken which I enjoyed when I sat down to have dinner well before their arrival. I spent a while tidying up the kitchen so that everything was in its proper place by the time Nancy and Evan arrived and all was well with the world. It was not an overly cool evening but neither was it oppressively warm and it is now just 69 degrees but is expected to reach the low 80's by late this afternoon. Just what the doctor ordered.
I always feel good when I stick to my usual biking routines while on vacation. There is something about just getting on the bike and doing it and maybe getting it behind you that resonates with me. Not doing it is akin to carrying unnecessary baggage so better to get it done. I'd like to say that is has something to do with the endorphin fix that athletes get when getting in a particular zone but I'm not sure that applies to me. Then again, I do think that I am a bit of a daredevil here and there and I take chances that others might consider risky. I think I like living on edge truth be told. So, it has less to do with endorphins and more to do with the thrill of taking chances. Speeding down hills at a breakneck pace with faulty brakes; not looking twice before crossing lanes with crushing and unpredictable traffic patterns; pushing myself up impossibly steep and elongated inclines until my heart is jumping out of my chest; and smirking to myself when drivers on the road, surprised by my crazy antics, lay on the horn with irritation and surprise. People do funny things when reacting to the unexpected. I would have been a formidable candidate with a rap sheet for a resume' had I sought employment as a bicycle courier in an inner city like Boston or New York. I would ride with the best of them and better than most. Don't know where that comes from. I always thought it had something to do with being more competitive than most but am rethinking that now. I fear it is something infinitely more sinister. We need not go there now.
I can hear the family stirring. This house if nothing if not a collection of wood aged and assembled with love and care. Every step taken by one or more of its occupants reveals direction, presence, and sometimes even resistance. The wooden floors creak with annoyance and thunder with a premeditated allowance for tomfoolery as traffic passes from room to room and in and out of the house over the course of the day. Wood used in the construction of this home on the lake still retains its original character and shape and each room has a different story to tell. The patterns of wood when laid down collide in unnatural ways but feel natural underfoot and provide just the right acoustics for voices heard and unheard. Waves caused by passing boats of varying sizes and shapes wash ashore just feet away from the front of the home resonating with a sound eerily like applause and carry through the house channeled by the open doorways. It is easy to take these sounds for granted. They are ever present and easily assimilate into ones comings and goings. Maybe this is what happens when the house welcomes back old friends and those who would protect and preserve it for future generations. Maybe it isn't applause at all. It is the collective sigh of a home with a soul coexisting in a harsh but otherwise loving environment.
What a difference a day makes. The high here today on the lake, if you consider it a high, is 71 degrees. The only good thing about 71 degrees is that it makes drinking my coffee that much more pleasurable. This is a far cry from the high temperatures of the last day or two which felt somewhat oppressive but perhaps less so here on the lake where the flow of air is constant and cooling. And, I think these cooler temperatures might be better all around for our biking activities wherever that takes us today. And, taking the family for a ride in the 350Z with the top down while overcast is preferable to doing that under cloudless skies. The sun can be overbearing and relentless sometimes and it gets to be too much. It is surprising to think as well that we've been here since Sunday and we have only been out in the boat once and that was four days ago as I sit here on the screened in porch overlooking the lake on a very overcast and cool Thursday morning. Granted, Evan has only been here since yesterday but it seems we found other things to do yesterday so we did not do any boating. And what about Saratoga? It is true that what I usually do when we visit that lovely town is to camp out in the local Starbucks with my iPad while Nancy goes shopping. I'm down (good) with that.
Outside this idyllic encampment, the world continues on it's merry or not so merry way. Financial markets around the world are topsy turvy as ever and feeling the pain of decelerating commodity values and devalued asset classes no longer buoyed by long stretches of quantitative easing; Ted Cruz and Donald Trump, two of the top tier presidential candidates for 2016, held a rally on the steps of the US capitol yesterday calling for the defeat of the process that will invariably give Iran the means to build a nuclear arsenal and further imperil the state of Israel and those who have opposed them over the years including the United States; Hundreds of thousands of Syrians are fleeing that war torn country while adjoining countries build walls and fortify their borders to keep their own populations and cultures from imploding under the collective weight of this immigration nightmare; Apple announced new versions of their Apple TV, the iPhone 6, the iPad Pro and the markets responded in ho-hum fashion by sending their stock down another 2 percent; Gas prices have come down and now average around $2.30 a gallon as crude oil seemingly bottoms out at around $42 a barrel; Hillary Clinton remains the likely nominee for her party but the coronation is on hold while the party gnashes their teeth over her plummeting poll numbers when it comes to trustworthy-ness and honesty - in the meantime, Joe Biden contemplates getting into the race and would likely quash yet another Clinton run at the highest office in the land; The impeachment of Obama is imminent and his collaboration with the Muslim brother hood and his alliances with countries and ideologies that call for the defeat of our great country run counter to the oath of office he took as he placed his hand on the Quran while repeating the oath. These laws, once broken, are punishable by death.
It was a good vacation on the lake this year by all accounts. We had just the right mix of weather, friends and family, and exercise. Next year maybe we'll stay longer than the one week we usually plan for. With any luck that will give us more time to see and spend time with family, more opportunity to do the things we like to do, and more time to enjoy the lake. I should like to revisit the new coffee joint in downtown Glens Falls and have another cup of their delicious java. And no, they don't have a coffee of the day. I'll have to remember that before bellying up the counter and making a fool of myself by asking such a question. They probably thought to themselves, what rock has this bozo been living under? Maybe he would prefer something from Dunkin Donuts, or worse if there is such a thing. Honey Bee Donuts maybe? And, we don't have a fucking drive in window so don't ask.
We never did get over to the cemetery so I regret not getting around to that. Rollie wanted to take a minute to go there on our last day at the lake and we had that conversation while we were sitting in our car packed up and ready for the long trip home in New Way Lunch's parking lot. It was too late and our long trip home ;ay ahead of us so we were not wanting to be unduly delayed or distracted from our task at hand. Fact of the matter is, ain't nobody over there at the cemetary going anywhere any time soon so our visit can wait. We also never got over to Lake George Village while the car show was in town. We we're close when doing the biking trail and the skies were overcast so it was perfect for picture taking but we just didn't do it. Never saw Lise or Kathy either despite our best intentions to do just that. We spent a bit of time with Denise not long ago so had no plans to get together with her other than the plans we usually have while in the are which is to take the sisters out for lunch or dinner. Also never saw Rollie's family but spent time with Rollie so was not completely in the dark on matters involving Terri and Carli. Neither did they see Evan so that was that.
Thanks to everyone who made this vacation possible, with a special thanks to Rollie for providing both a boat and a car which proved invaluable (and fun!) while Nancy was was away in New Hampshire picking up Evan.
Nancy's sister, Debbie, and her boyfriend Willie, arrived on Sunday and left on Monday around noon or a bit after. We took in the usual sights including Sandy Bay, San Souci, and the sights and sounds of Lake George Village. There is a story to be told for each of those destinations so maybe I'll get there here today and maybe I won't. Suffice it to say that the water was fine, the spots in Sandy Bay elusive but available, the food at San Souci was not bad at all, and the village came with its own surprises. The biggest surprise there was the number of people cruising the streets and the ethnic and racial diversity of same. I was telling Rollie that the crowds of days past were 85% Canadian and 15% Warrensburg and those days are gone. As long as we continue to have a lawless president in the White House who insists on open borders and the purge of Christians we will be at risk for losing the heart and soul of our nation.
After sitting in the boat for a while on Sandy Bay and watching Nancy and her sister, Debbie, swim off towards the shore I decided it was time for me to go in as well and I left Willie to his own devices. A woman bumping around the bay in a kayak approached Willie when the three of us were off galavanting near the shore and asked if he was Woody (aka Rollie.) Too funny. Can't remember how that conversation went but Willie told it in a way that made us all laugh. I think the woman heard what Willie said about not being Rollie, knew in her heart that the man who said he wasn't Rollie was surely sitting in Rollie's boat, and decided to call him on it. "That's Rollie's boat", she said matter of factly. Maybe she gave up after that. Maybe she thought she had said enough but not too much and that it was a good time to end the conversation. She may have paddled off looking once or maybe twice over her shoulder not comfortable with how the conversation ended and the best course of action was to put as much distance between her and the man in Rollie's boat who said he wasn't Rollie as possible.
He didn't look like the kind of man who would follow her but she wasn't taking any chances. The bay was choking with activity and an unlikely place as one can imagine for a criminal act but she knew all too well that there were plenty of ways to die when and where nobody would be the wiser. If the man who said he wasn't Rollie was in fact not Rollie, but driving Rollie's boat, then he was certainly capable of much much more. Nothing sinister necessarily but she wasn't taking any chances. We never saw the woman Wille referred too so didn't know what had become of her. His descriptions were vague but not alarmingly so. We had no reason to be suspicious so laughed aloud when he told us the story in no more than two or three sentences. Two or three well thought out and crafted sentences that is retrospect ended too abruptly. It was laughter intended to deceive and we fell for it hook, line, and sinker. I thought to myself that it could have just as easily been me who had that conversation and maybe it ended well and maybe it didn't. Unlike Willie, I would have kept the encounter to myself. No need to leave a trail of any kind to raise suspicions when and where the specter of possible crime was involved. Drownings are all too common in this lake and they nearly go unreported except that they serve as a reminder to visitors near and far that the lake, while benevolent in its beauty and attraction, has a history of taking lives. One can never be too careful so it is best not to ask too many questions of people you think you know driving boats that as far as you know don't belong to them.
We had a nice ride on the lake heading north out of Sandy Bay with Elizabeth Island as our destination and kept going once we arrived at the island. The water was as choppy as it gets this time of the year with a roughness created by the horrendous cross currents of waves in the widest part of the lake that were akin to what they refer to as a perfect storm in North Atlantic lore. The winds were blowing out of the south enough to stiffen a flag but without the oomph to create white caps in the widest section of the lake. It was a sunny warm afternoon and the drone of the boat engine was ever present as we pushed past Camp Chingacook and points north where camps along the shoreline disappeared and vast sections of the Adirondack reserve rose thousands of feet from shore to mountain top. When we had had enough of dodging rogue waves we turned southward once again and hugged the coastline where the waters were less chaotic. Once back at the camp and after docking we noticed a slick of sorts forming at the rear of the boat. It took a while to sort out but by the time the next morning rolled around we were all feeling a little better about something that ended up, we think, being far less serious than maybe it could have been.
San Souci was busy as expected but we drove there nonetheless hoping against hope that we would both find a place to park and something of our liking to eat. Parking was the bigger of the two hurdles but a space opened up the minute we arrived and not a minute too soon since we were joined by others who we saw milling about outside the restaurant as we arrived. I was surprised that the restaurant was not busier and I think a little surprised that it was as noisy as it was for the few parties that were seated when we walked in. We had no problems finding something to eat both on the menu and on the specials board so ordered as quickly as possible so as to not to lose our seemingly positive momentum. It helped that our waitress was both attentive and easy on the eyes. She was equally vivacious and she may have notched our collective energies up just enough to get us past the noise and other distractions in what was probably standard fare at this long standing neighborhood haunt. And Nancy, true to form, took a liking to my coffee drink and despite my moving it here and there around the table to get it out of her line of sight she found it every time and sipped away at her hearts content. I rationalize times like this by telling myself that were I to drink the beverage as ordered that I would be perhaps unable or unwilling to drive having consumed far more alcohol than is usual for me. Far more indeed.
Rollie joined us on Monday and we looked at his boat together so that was good. After Debbie and Willie had left he stayed the afternoon and we chatted about everything under the sun. He played a tape recording that my father had made of a conversation he and I had in 1990. Did I know he was recording that conversation? It was benign as conversations go but funny nonetheless to hear my 1990 voice and perhaps more interestingly to hear my dad's voice again. It was really nice to hear his voice. God, Rollie and I kicked around a lot of things. That boy has a history floating around in his head that he really ought to get down on paper when he has a spare moment. I think our sister Kathy has a good recollection of things as well but her recollections are occasionally suspect and maybe even self serving from time to time. Memories fade but memories twisted and contorted to serve their masters desires and dreams live on as though etched in cement for eternity. I'm one to talk. I write it all down, well almost all of it, and put my own spin on events when and where the normal flow of events don't suit me. In other words, I make it up as I go along. Rollie and I talked a lot about uncle Karl as well and his relationship with dad which was nonexistent toward the end of Karl's life according to Rollie. As one might expect, the bad blood arose out of the supposed mismanagement of money and perhaps even a lawsuit about same. You just can't make this stuff up!
I keep putting this down and picking it up again. Can't remember what I've written and maybe don't care. Maybe I'll say it again but differently the second time around. I have to say that driving the 350Z that Rollie let me have for the week has been a little weird. It has an altogether different vibe that takes some getting used to. It isn't so much about how I feel driving it because you know that is going to be different compared to driving my 2000 Volvo station wagon. More noticeable than that is how other drivers respond when they come up on me in traffic, on the highway, etc. Just yesterday, for example, I was tooling down the road minding my own business (tell me if you've heard this story before) and I noticed that the vehicle behind me was tailing me in an odd sort of way. They were a little closer than they should have been and it wasn't any coincidence that they looked to be younger drivers. The fact that I could tell at all was not a good thing. It felt aggressive and testosterone driven. Responding in kind would have been irresponsible and reckless and I was not in any hurry to facilitate or otherwise encourage that sort of train wreck. True to form, they waited until we had rounded the bend and passed me with room to spare on the straightaway. I was happy to let them have their moment but the fact of the matter is that this never would have happened in my other more staid vehicle. I don't know if I want that kind of responsibility. Something to think about.
Looks like another nice day on the lake her in Lake George. Nancy and Evan arrived last night a little after 9. I'm glad they made the trip. Nancy drove home on Monday to pick up Evan after his class at Great Bay on Tuesday morning and promised a hasty return. The class never worked out, Evan was down and out with some asthma related illness, and they had a late day doctors appointment to make before getting on the road. They survived all of that and made the long trip back here despite the fact that Nancy was not keen on making any portion of the drive in the dark. It was unavoidable of course but she was clearly in the home stretch by the time darkness fell so perhaps not an issue. She looked none the worse for wear upon her arrival and Evan seemed better than I expected which was good. He coughed a couple of times as he got out of the car and mostly for effect I think. I stopped by Dirty John's earlier in the evening and bought three dogs for Evan which I microwaved when he arrived. I had a nice greek salad with chicken which I enjoyed when I sat down to have dinner well before their arrival. I spent a while tidying up the kitchen so that everything was in its proper place by the time Nancy and Evan arrived and all was well with the world. It was not an overly cool evening but neither was it oppressively warm and it is now just 69 degrees but is expected to reach the low 80's by late this afternoon. Just what the doctor ordered.
I always feel good when I stick to my usual biking routines while on vacation. There is something about just getting on the bike and doing it and maybe getting it behind you that resonates with me. Not doing it is akin to carrying unnecessary baggage so better to get it done. I'd like to say that is has something to do with the endorphin fix that athletes get when getting in a particular zone but I'm not sure that applies to me. Then again, I do think that I am a bit of a daredevil here and there and I take chances that others might consider risky. I think I like living on edge truth be told. So, it has less to do with endorphins and more to do with the thrill of taking chances. Speeding down hills at a breakneck pace with faulty brakes; not looking twice before crossing lanes with crushing and unpredictable traffic patterns; pushing myself up impossibly steep and elongated inclines until my heart is jumping out of my chest; and smirking to myself when drivers on the road, surprised by my crazy antics, lay on the horn with irritation and surprise. People do funny things when reacting to the unexpected. I would have been a formidable candidate with a rap sheet for a resume' had I sought employment as a bicycle courier in an inner city like Boston or New York. I would ride with the best of them and better than most. Don't know where that comes from. I always thought it had something to do with being more competitive than most but am rethinking that now. I fear it is something infinitely more sinister. We need not go there now.
I can hear the family stirring. This house if nothing if not a collection of wood aged and assembled with love and care. Every step taken by one or more of its occupants reveals direction, presence, and sometimes even resistance. The wooden floors creak with annoyance and thunder with a premeditated allowance for tomfoolery as traffic passes from room to room and in and out of the house over the course of the day. Wood used in the construction of this home on the lake still retains its original character and shape and each room has a different story to tell. The patterns of wood when laid down collide in unnatural ways but feel natural underfoot and provide just the right acoustics for voices heard and unheard. Waves caused by passing boats of varying sizes and shapes wash ashore just feet away from the front of the home resonating with a sound eerily like applause and carry through the house channeled by the open doorways. It is easy to take these sounds for granted. They are ever present and easily assimilate into ones comings and goings. Maybe this is what happens when the house welcomes back old friends and those who would protect and preserve it for future generations. Maybe it isn't applause at all. It is the collective sigh of a home with a soul coexisting in a harsh but otherwise loving environment.
What a difference a day makes. The high here today on the lake, if you consider it a high, is 71 degrees. The only good thing about 71 degrees is that it makes drinking my coffee that much more pleasurable. This is a far cry from the high temperatures of the last day or two which felt somewhat oppressive but perhaps less so here on the lake where the flow of air is constant and cooling. And, I think these cooler temperatures might be better all around for our biking activities wherever that takes us today. And, taking the family for a ride in the 350Z with the top down while overcast is preferable to doing that under cloudless skies. The sun can be overbearing and relentless sometimes and it gets to be too much. It is surprising to think as well that we've been here since Sunday and we have only been out in the boat once and that was four days ago as I sit here on the screened in porch overlooking the lake on a very overcast and cool Thursday morning. Granted, Evan has only been here since yesterday but it seems we found other things to do yesterday so we did not do any boating. And what about Saratoga? It is true that what I usually do when we visit that lovely town is to camp out in the local Starbucks with my iPad while Nancy goes shopping. I'm down (good) with that.
Outside this idyllic encampment, the world continues on it's merry or not so merry way. Financial markets around the world are topsy turvy as ever and feeling the pain of decelerating commodity values and devalued asset classes no longer buoyed by long stretches of quantitative easing; Ted Cruz and Donald Trump, two of the top tier presidential candidates for 2016, held a rally on the steps of the US capitol yesterday calling for the defeat of the process that will invariably give Iran the means to build a nuclear arsenal and further imperil the state of Israel and those who have opposed them over the years including the United States; Hundreds of thousands of Syrians are fleeing that war torn country while adjoining countries build walls and fortify their borders to keep their own populations and cultures from imploding under the collective weight of this immigration nightmare; Apple announced new versions of their Apple TV, the iPhone 6, the iPad Pro and the markets responded in ho-hum fashion by sending their stock down another 2 percent; Gas prices have come down and now average around $2.30 a gallon as crude oil seemingly bottoms out at around $42 a barrel; Hillary Clinton remains the likely nominee for her party but the coronation is on hold while the party gnashes their teeth over her plummeting poll numbers when it comes to trustworthy-ness and honesty - in the meantime, Joe Biden contemplates getting into the race and would likely quash yet another Clinton run at the highest office in the land; The impeachment of Obama is imminent and his collaboration with the Muslim brother hood and his alliances with countries and ideologies that call for the defeat of our great country run counter to the oath of office he took as he placed his hand on the Quran while repeating the oath. These laws, once broken, are punishable by death.
It was a good vacation on the lake this year by all accounts. We had just the right mix of weather, friends and family, and exercise. Next year maybe we'll stay longer than the one week we usually plan for. With any luck that will give us more time to see and spend time with family, more opportunity to do the things we like to do, and more time to enjoy the lake. I should like to revisit the new coffee joint in downtown Glens Falls and have another cup of their delicious java. And no, they don't have a coffee of the day. I'll have to remember that before bellying up the counter and making a fool of myself by asking such a question. They probably thought to themselves, what rock has this bozo been living under? Maybe he would prefer something from Dunkin Donuts, or worse if there is such a thing. Honey Bee Donuts maybe? And, we don't have a fucking drive in window so don't ask.
We never did get over to the cemetery so I regret not getting around to that. Rollie wanted to take a minute to go there on our last day at the lake and we had that conversation while we were sitting in our car packed up and ready for the long trip home in New Way Lunch's parking lot. It was too late and our long trip home ;ay ahead of us so we were not wanting to be unduly delayed or distracted from our task at hand. Fact of the matter is, ain't nobody over there at the cemetary going anywhere any time soon so our visit can wait. We also never got over to Lake George Village while the car show was in town. We we're close when doing the biking trail and the skies were overcast so it was perfect for picture taking but we just didn't do it. Never saw Lise or Kathy either despite our best intentions to do just that. We spent a bit of time with Denise not long ago so had no plans to get together with her other than the plans we usually have while in the are which is to take the sisters out for lunch or dinner. Also never saw Rollie's family but spent time with Rollie so was not completely in the dark on matters involving Terri and Carli. Neither did they see Evan so that was that.
Thanks to everyone who made this vacation possible, with a special thanks to Rollie for providing both a boat and a car which proved invaluable (and fun!) while Nancy was was away in New Hampshire picking up Evan.