Summertime, and the Living is... Easy?!? by Delsora Lowe

I live in Maine, near the coast. Just far enough inland to NOT smell the saltiness in the air or feel the sea breezes. For that, I have to drive twenty to thirty minutes, down spits of land that thrust into the ocean, almost like islands, surrounded on three sides by the Atlantic. Lovely views…and gives me the feeling of being on vacation, even if it is just for a few hours. Plus, a yummy candy shop on the way (Island Candy Company – with handmade chocolates — and they SHIP!)

Island, Atlantic Ocean, and Beach Plums

Inlet Leading to the Atlantic and Filled with Anchored Boats

Although I do live blocks from a major river that flows from our western mountains into the Atlantic. As the river winds between my town and the town on the opposite bank, we do get some strange weather patterns. Just upriver it can be thundering at this time of year or piling up the snow in the winter. And by the time it reaches us, the weather has shifted. It happens all the time, that twenty miles inland they can have a blizzard, and we might get a few flakes. Looking at a map, it is as if this town sits at the widest part of a funnel. And the weather changes on either side of our funnel.

Our weather has changed a ton in the almost 35 years I have lived here. The winters are milder. And the summers are hotter. Since I moved here from a hot and heavily humid area so many years ago, I’m not so sure I appreciate the increasing heat. However, it is nice to have a cookout in July in Maine where I’m not still wearing knee socks and a sweater, as I did when I first moved here.

So now, the living is definitely easier during the summers in Maine.

As the song "Summertime" circles my head, I think of lazy rivers and sunny days, where one wipes one’s forehead constantly, to dispel the effects of that new version of summer heat in my neck of the woods. I think of lunches on the deck at a restaurant situated in the renovated brick factory that overlooks the rushing water that has spilled over the falls within sight of the deck. The water that now rushes to move the river toward its destination of the Atlantic. That lazy river above the falls, turns into a churning frothy rush of water. Beside the falls is a fish ladder, built to allow the alewives to “climb” the waterfall and travel up the river to spawn.

When I first moved to this town, the brick buildings were still in use as factories. On those still, hot days with no breeze, or a day with the wind blowing toward town, the stench of factory smoke was overwhelming—like a zillion eggs rotting on a sunny day. They now hold numerous condos and businesses, each with beautiful views down the river, where in the winter, when the river freezes over, sit the little wooden houses sheltering ice fisherpeople.

Now, as we move into summer and the living seems easier, we can enjoy so many things that were not here in this small town when I first moved in or have been greatly improved.

Farmer's Market and Town's Famous Tall Pines

We have a downtown green space with a gazebo that is large enough to hold a small orchestra. In the summer there are Wednesday concerts, when folks bring their lawn chairs and a picnic. We have the farmers market set up every Tuesday and Friday mornings on that green and in the winter if the weather permits, they flood that area with water for ice-skating. The town hosts first Fridays, where businesses stay open late and offer specials. We have lovely, small-town parades on certain holidays such as Memorial Day and the 4^th of July.

My town is building more housing and retail, that now stretches farther away from downtown. We have welcomed refugees. We have a private 4-year college, as well as a satellite campus for the state’s university system, which means our population increases at certain times of the year. 

Also on the campus is the infamous Maine State Music Theater, where actors clamor to be chosen to work the summer theater plays. I recently learned that the nine singer-dancers, aged eighteen to early twenties, were chosen from casting calls that started out with a pool of over 3,500. Coming to Maine for the summer to work with seasoned actors, many from Broadway, is a dream job. You have to be very special if you are one of the nine chosen.

We have a population of almost 22,000, up at least 3 to 4K from when I first moved here.

So, to say … summertime and the living is easy … might be a slight exaggeration as we all carry on with daily life as usual. But the special moments of gathering as a town or taking advantage of the wonderful summer offerings, certainly do feel as though the living is easy.

Lobster Boat at Dawn

Oh…except for the increased traffic and the crowded grocery store. But hey, that’s what taking a breather is all about. Driving to the coast to watch the ocean flow around the islands dotted along the shore or waking very early to hear the chug of the lobster boats and observe the lobsterpeople haul in their catch and reset their traps. Or listening to the seagulls squawk at the first signs of sunrise, awakening those who have summer rentals and might want to sleep beyond early dawn. Or watching the gulls swoop in and pluck out a fish. Those same seagulls have a nasty tendency to interrupt a picnic table dinner—hold on to your food, folks!

Seagulls Scavenging for Food After We Tossed Lobster Shells into the Water

But yeah, the living is much easier and more fun in the summertime.

No shoveling!

Does summertime seem to be easier?
Or harder? And why?

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~ cottages to cabins ~ keep the home fires burning ~

Delsora Lowe writes small town sweet and spicy romances and contemporary westerns, from the mountains of Colorado to the shores of Maine.

Author of the Starlight Grille series, Serenity Harbor Maine novellas, and the Cowboys of Mineral Springs series, Lowe has also authored short romances for Woman’s World magazine. The Love Left Behind is a Hartford Estates, R.I. wedding novella. A Christmas novel (The Inn at Gooseneck Lane) and novella (Holiday Hitchhiker) were released in late fall 2022. Look for book 3 of the cowboy’s series, as well as book 2 of the Hartford Estates series, in 2024.

Social Media Links:
Author website: www.delsoralowe.com
Facebook Author page: https://www.facebook.com/delsoraloweauthor/community/
Amazon Author page: https://www.amazon.com/Delsora-Lowe/e/B01M61OM39/ref=ntt_dp_epwbk_0
Books2Read Author page: https://www.books2read.com/ap/8GWm98/Delsora-Lowe
BookBub Author Page: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/delsora-lowe-93c6987f-129d-483d-9f5a-abe603876518
Goodreads Author Page: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/16045986.Delsora_Lowe
Instagram: #delsoralowe / https://www.instagram.com/delsoralowe/

IMAGES: 
Lazy River: clipground.com/pics/get / clipart of a river 10 free Cliparts | Download images on Clipground 2024  
Conga Line: https://www.clipartkey.com/view/xhRoJi_conga-line-conga-line-clip-art/    
Lobster Boat, Seagulls, Farmers Market, Ocean and Landscape Views: photos taken by the blog author

Lob-sta and the Annual Family Picnic: A Look Back at Summer ... Delsora Lowe

I would classify our annual lobster bake as a family picnic.

Every July, my daughter, son-in-law, and two grandsons leave Denver to descend on Maine. They coordinate the trip with my daughter’s best friend from high school and her family, who now live in Atlanta.

The fun begins.

Boat rides and kayaking off Bailey and Orr’s Island. Checking out our favorite- and some brand-new restaurants, zeroing in on seafood. But the highlight of the week is the “family” picnic, which includes high school friends, as well as their children and parents who still live in the area. We all bring salads, desserts, and hors d’oeuvres. Then we steam lobster in big pots over a fire outside, plus grill for those who don’t like—shaking my head, because who could say NO to
—lobster.

The entire event is a mini-reunion every summer. And, in essence, aside from the “rivalry” between graduates of two area high schools, one big family picnic.

But the true joy to me, is the entire week leading up to the grand finale of the lobster bake. My daughter and friend have been “besties” for over thirty-five years. The two were either at my house or her friend’s house all through high school. They were in each other’s weddings. Their children are similar ages, and despite living in different states, they see each other often, and spend the week in Maine glued to each other. Both ended up marrying two wonderful men they met at a college reunion, who are also best friends, having met at the same college.

So, for me, my daughter’s friend is like my second daughter and her husband is like my newest son-in-law. I’m lucky to have a wonderful son-in-law, and his bestie college friend, who always treats me like family.

This year, with a rental cottage right on the ocean, the views are spectacular, with plenty of kayaks, sailboats, and motor boats, plus seals, ducks, seagulls, and we suspect, from following the shark app, an occasional Great White who have been invading our coastal waters as they have warmed substantially.

Ocean winds, cloud formations, the slant of the sun, and the rise and fall of tides ensures the view continually changes. Add the beautiful day lilies, cornflowers, and beach roses with the rosy-orange rose hips ripening into fall, the setting is ideal for a summer vacation.

So, on a scorching summer July evening, being on the water with breezes and temps ten-degrees cooler than the middle of town, fifteen miles away, we enjoyed a wonderful “family” reunion, with plenty of chatter, eating, and excitement at the end.

The sun dipped in a fiery orange ball and bounced off equally tangerine-colored clouds. The woman next door flew a rainbow-colored, box-kite for her young son. The tide moved in, causing waves to lap against the rocks in front of the cottage and surge through the opening under the bridge.

And within seconds a mass of seagulls stormed the shoreline, squawking and swooping in from every direction to pluck the remains of the lobster shells from the rocks where we set out their buffet.

  

Memories abound and will be forever stored in the treasure chest of favorite occasions in the farthest reaches of our brains. Here’s to another great summer. Already looking forward to next year’s “family” picnic.

What kind of Summer fun did you have? Or are you looking ahead to Fall fun?

The Inn on Gooseneck Lane

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cottages to cabins ~ keep the home fires burning ~

Delsora Lowe writes small town sweet and spicy romances and contemporary westerns from the mountains of Colorado to the shores of Maine.

Author of the Starlight Grille series, Serenity Harbor Maine novellas, and the Cowboys of Mineral Springs series, Lowe has also authored short romances for Woman’s World magazine. Her newest novella is The Love Left Behind. Look for both a Christmas novel (The Inn at Gooseneck Lane) and novella (Holiday Hitchhiker) later this fall.

Social Media Links:
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Facebook Author page
Amazon Author page
Books2Read Author page
BookBub Author Page
Goodreads Author Page
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 Photo Credits: Delsora Lowe