Which means travel, thunderstorms, and hurricanes. Our trip to New Hampshire and Maine was my opportunity to sell and sign some books and to take some pictures of the places I love so much. It was also an opportunity to show Tim more of Peterborough. On previous occasions I played the role of the landlady with business to attend to, taking care of my house. Not this time. The first evening, after we arrived and ate dinner, we sat down at a table alongside the Contoocook River. It was, as they say, a perfect evening. It made me happy to be able to show Tim a slice of life in Peterborough.

The next order of business was to sign copies of my book and read some of it to folks at the Toadstool bookshops in Peterborough and Keene. It was wonderful to see everyone. The weather did not cooperate in Keen but we had another taste of New Hampshire on the ride back to Peterborough. As I stared at my phone looking at menus, asking Tim what sounded good to him, he slammed on the breaks. I looked up to see a bear cub scrambling across Route 101. We didn’t see Mom, but hopefully she had already made it across the road and her little one was following.

After breathing a sigh of relief that all went well, we were off to Portland, Maine to visit Tim’s cousin Anne and husband Rob. We planned a picnic lunch at the Portland Yacht Club. Shortly after we arrived, we saw Chuck, the launch operator that had taken us out to Little Prince on the start of our adventure. Because I had mentioned him a few times in Uncharted, I went to the car and grabbed a copy of the book for him.

Now for my confession. After lunch, the men folk, Tim, Rob and his son and grandson went for a ride in the launch. Waiting on the dock I saw that Chuck had placed his copy on the table in the dock house. It looked like the perfect picture, and it was kinda. Well, add a little Photoshop to the mix and it was. Here’s what the original picture looked like and here’s my new and improved (ie photoshopped version). It is, after all, what Photoshop was designed to do. Sometimes things just need a little help.

Next on our trip, mid-coast Maine to see Diane and Mark. I don’t even know what’s up in Northern Maine and how far a person has to go to get there. Getting to Diane and Mark’s was far enough upstate. Finally, after lunch back in Portland with Tim’s sister we jumped on a ferry to Peaks Island. In the ferry terminal’s bulletin board were pictures of cottages for rent on the island. After spending the afternoon riding around the island in a golf cart, I was already thinking about next summer and what if….

Seeing old friends and family was a delight and I am ever so grateful for their love and support. I don’t know where I’d be without you!