More Vacation

I'm beginning my second week of vacation tomorrow. I think that it takes about a week to get accustomed to not going to work. Today was a satisfying day of not working. Busy, fun, and I'm wonderfully tired now. I biked to a pancake breakfast in Lava, New York. There really isn't a town called Lava. It's more like someone drew a circle on the map and said "wouldn't it be cool if we called this circle Lava? People will always wonder why we called it that and wonder what's there." As far as I can tell all that is in Lava is the firehouse. This has not been one of my favorite events of the summer but today it was surprisingly good. Lava is only about 6 miles from where we are but I took a roundabout route through Narrowsburg and made it an 18 mile circular trip. I went alone and sat next to three enormous people. They were friendly enough.

Lava's pancake breakfast distinguishes itself by being a buffet where most of these events are sit down and served family style. Lava's also includes home fries and cake which aren't found in the others. For the record, my favorite pancake breakfast (which I missed this summer) is in Youngsville, New York. This is followed closely by Obernburg, Callicoon Center, and Jerfersonville.

The rest of the day was spent mostly hanging around by the lake; swimming and playing with the kayak. We took a short drive before dinner to take photos of the new gas pipeline that is being laid near hear. It's huge and scary looking. Fortunately, they are going to bury it.

Ninety

My Mom turned ninety this past Monday. This really is quite a remarkable achievement considering that she's been telling me for the last 40 years or so that "she won't be around much longer". We had a small party for her at an Italian restaurant in the neighborhood that she's lived for the past 51 years. Besides her various infirmities she is in remarkably good shape and mostly in good spirits. I know that there are days that she really doesn't want to live anymore but I try to remind her that she still has much wisdom to impart. She's just started attending a poetry and short story workshop at the senior center and her work is not bad.

The Italian restaurant where we had her party deserves a mention. The place is called Conchetta's and it's one of those places where you only can pay by cash or check. Checks need to be made out to cash. It's hard to believe that this isn't Mafia and the fact that we were the only customers for much of our 3 hours there seemed to support that theory. No one complained about the food or service.

On Vacation

I've been off work since Monday and I am finally beginning to get that feeling of really being away from work. It's been a bit hectic. We came up to our summer home last Friday evening but left again on Monday morning to attend my mother's 90th birthday party. Tuesday we took a day trip to Grounds for Sculpture in Hamilton, NJ and then Wednesday morning it was back here.

Today was a true vacation day. I went with my friend and neighbor Bill Gottlieb on a short canoe trip on the Delaware River. We put in at Narrowsburg, New York and went to Ten Mile River a distance of about 6 miles. It's a lovely quiet stretch of the river but we got caught in a wild thunderstorm. We paddled towards a bridge to take shelter but it was a railroad bridge and it seemed as wet underneath as out in the open. An adventure and a stretch of the river that I'd like to try in my kayak.

The tween sensations The Jonas Brothers were playing at Bethel Woods Performing Arts Center. Raisa and I biked over there late this afternoon to see what the scene would be like. I've probably never seen so many 12 and 13 year old girls in one place. Each was carrying a handmade sign or a homemade t-shirt. There were a few boys but they looked like they were there under duress.

I'm deliciously tired now.

Back by Poplular Demand

Thank you all for noticing that I hadn't posted in a while. I can't promise that future posts will be interesting but I will promise more regular ones.

The summer has been slow to get started. Although, it has been quiet at work I don't feel as if I've gotten into the swing of things. Generally, we spend the summers shuttling between New Jersey and Lake Huntington, NY. This summer we've only been there twice although starting this Friday I'll be on vacation for two weeks and I hope to spend much of it up there.

The highlight of the summer has been a bike ride that I took with my daughter from our home in New Jersey to Lake Huntington (again). Two days and 132 miles. She was an incredibly good sport despite heat, hills, and an error that cost us an extra 22 miles. The scenery was wonderful except for a pretty long stretch on Route 206. We had a wide shoulder but the traffic whizzed by us at an alarming speed. I was reminded during this ride how rural much of New Jersey is. We passed farms and fields and large stretches without cars or people.

Here's what I learned from this trip: always carry identification. I had booked a room around half way but they wouldn't let me have it because I had no ID. We had to backtrack 11 miles and it was a good thing because there was a neat lightning storm that night. It probably worked out for the best because the motel we ended up at was nicer with a very pleasant Italian restaurant right next door.

I'm looking forward to my next ride and I'm looking for suggestions. I'm not sure Raisa will accompany me again but I was glad she did this time.