Early fall = long winter?

This was easily the mildest summer we've had since we've been here.  Don't get me wrong.  It hit 80 and I complained, loudly!  But all things considered our days of 90 degrees or more were pretty few and far between.  We usually at least had somewhat of a breeze to accompany it.  So I shouldn't complain.  Not that I won't.........

I just came in from walking the dogs.  While out there I noticed how many leaves came off the trees last night during our storm.  And it was a mild storm.  Not even enough to wake and upset the dogs!  Everyone is saying this is supposed to be a very cold and wet winter for this area.  I'm praying for lots of snow and no ice! 

Maine photos

These are some of my favorite photos I've found on line of Maine.

Winter.............

Fall...........

Spring / Summer..........

And last but not least, my second favorite island, Monhegan..........

*All photos were taken from the internet.  Owners are unknown.  If these are your photos and you'd like the removed, please just contact me and I'll take them down.

Captain's Log............

For over a decade I've had a major crush on the state of Maine.  I'm talking SERIOUS crush.  Eastport has my heart.  A small little island full of social people who truly embody what it means to be a community.  I like that.  It reminds me of 'home', back when Marco Island, Florida was a nice place to be.  Now?  Well, if you like concrete and construction and cars lined up bumper to bumper while snobby people act like you have no business on 'their' roads, I guess you'd like it.  Me?  Not so much.  I preferred the wide open beaches for public use.  The sea oats and shells covering the white sand.  Driving the main road and being able to see dolphins playing in the water.  Now you see concrete condos.  Just not my cup of tea.  Not to mention it's summer year round.  Well, except for about three nice days per year.  And during those summer days the heat is so severe for three to four solid months that you step out your door and it takes you breath away.  So hot that I'd accidentally left a twelve pack of soda on my front seat at work one day and came out that night to head home and found the cans had exploded from the heat!  Did I mention the life sucking mosquitoes?  Yeh, seriously not at all my type of 'paradise'.

In 2000 I took a two week vacation from US 1 in Key West all the way north to the end in Maine.  I was hooked on the state.  In June going through the White Mountains in NH it was in the 30s at noon.  In June!!!  Summer?  Pish!  They laugh at the thought.  And with my hatred of heat and humidity...............LOVE!  So for the last ten years or so I've pined and dreamt of a move north.  I'm in TN now and I do love the mountains and the small town lifestyle.  But I miss the water.  I miss opening a bedroom window and hearing a seagull or smelling the salt air.  I think when you're born on the water it's in your blood and you can't ever escape it.

My husband grew up in Jersey and the family had a summer home in Mantoloking.  He was the only boy in a house with three sisters.  He got the third floor bedroom with the sleeping porch and took full advantage of that.  He has fond memories of the beach.  We met in Florida, both working for the same agency, but like me, he hated the heat, humidity, bugs, traffic, snobby tourists, etc that came with life in Collier County.  So when the economy started to tank and life was too hectic and way too expensive, we moved to middle Tennessee.  It's been a great seven years.  But we're really feeling like it's time to go again.  Maybe not for good or forever.  But definitely need a change of scenery.  He needs better doctors than you can find in this area.  And cooler summers for sure.  So Maine has come up again the last five years or so.  And now, it's come up in a serious way.

Jobs here are pretty much non-existant.  It's very much a good ol boy network.  If you're an 'outsider' don't expect to get a job.  And when it comes to state jobs, you can really forget it.  The corruption is so incredible here that once you realize how bad it is, you don't even want to get a job in that field anymore.  I don't ever want my name associated with the agencies around here.  So, maybe it's time for a career change.  I've contacted some colleges and plan on going to school to get an RN degree.  Nursing is a field that's very short of staff at the moment and with the new healthcare laws going in, it's about to get much, much worse.  So nursing seems ideal.

Currently the plan, which could change any second and usually does, is to go back to school on the two year super intense RN program and get my degree.  Find a job at a school here so I have summers off.  Sock away every single penny we can't live without and get finances in line.  Once we're stable, the house in Tennessee is remodeled enough to make me happy and some money is in the bank, rent a summer rental home in Maine where we'd like to buy and start looking around.  Ideally we'd love to build.  We found a floor plan for a home a while back that we liked and I started 'tweaking' it some and came up with this:

Super cute little lighthouse style home.  We got married in a lighthouse so it really spoke to us.  Friends for four years, we used to joke about buying a lighthouse and running away to live there together.  Maybe deep in our hearts we knew we weren't joking.  But we had fun chatting about it at work.  Anyway, the floor plan is ideal for us.  Split plan so there's room for visiting company.  Good size living room with a sleeper sofa and there would be room for the kids to come with the grandbabies.  Because of hubby's health, we've got a nice big master suite that could have a mini-kitchen and seating area so he doesn't have to go far on bad days.  On the nice days there's a big porch for a table and chairs to eat breakfast or dinner and watch the sun come up or go down.  A deck out back for cooler afternoons to lounge about and have a glass of wine.  And a nice big kitchen for me since I've at some point gone from a horrific cook to a baking maniac.  This is what the house style would look like:

That second floor looking space?  Only a higher ceiling over the living room to let in even more light.  Maybe remote control windows up there too.  And with windows and french doors all over the place, we could keep the house opened up most of the year.  The fireplaces in the living room and master suite ensure we won't get too chilly.  Certainly not a huge house by any means, but perfect for living in for three or four months out of the year.  

So the next thought is if I am working in a school in TN as my primary job I can work at a VA hospital in Maine during the summer months.  Since it's a VA I wouldn't need to transfer my license.  Perfect!!  So that's our current plan.  Who knows what the plan will be next week.  Could very well change.  There is a lot about Tennessee that is great, but also a lot that's not ideal.  Which is sad.  But I guess we'll cross bridges as they come.  In the meantime we're having a good time talking and planning and working toward our future goals together.  And that's really what it's all about anyway, right?