Goals 2011

Before taking my “trip of a lifetime” and moving to Maine, I had participated five years in an off-road triathlon, a few 10ks, and a half-marathon. This coming year it’s time to begin some new traditions. The plan is to run a 10k, possibly the Beach to Beacon race in Portland, and ride in a cycling event, probably the Dempsey Challenge. I am still researching the various events in Maine, so, the actual events are subject to change.

I have also updated my “list” of places I want to visit and things I want to do. I had to revise the list after my 6 month trip around Europe and Asia. Once I visit the states/provinces of USA/Canada I will have visited all the states/provinces of North America.

Maine: hike the entire portion of Appalachian Trail located in Maine, hike Mt. Kathahdin,
USA: Alaska, South Dakota, North Dakota, Wisconsin, Wyoming (Yellowstone), Minnesota, Oklahoma, Delaware
Canadian Provinces: Saskatchewan, Nova Scotia, Alberta
World: Australia/New Zealand, Tanzania (Victoria Falls), Peru (Amazon),
Egypt (pyramids)

Christmas 2010

This Christmas was non-eventful, I had to work both Christmas Eve and Christmas. This isn’t the first time I have been away from family for the holidays. Three years in Japan I missed all major holidays with family, however, I had a network of friends in Japan which became a pseudo family. Although this past year in Maine has been tons of new experiences, adventures, and meeting new people, I have yet to develop a strong network. I hope that changes in 2011.

I received several packages making it feel a little more like Christmas. Thanks Karen for the chocolate covered blueberries, Steve for the Oxford American special on music from the great state of Alabama, Dennis & family for goodies/starbucks, Lisa for magazine subscription, Mom for the blanket/pillows, and Dale for jeep seat cover and the star from home. The star I refer to is the one that hung in the eve of our house in Sylvania, he surprised me by sending it this Christmas, couldn’t have come at a better time bringing me a little piece of home.

October/November/December

October started with a promotion at work and a weekend camping trip bordering New Hampshire and Vermont. Lisa and I had not seen each other since our return to America almost a year ago, other than the rain storm the first day, the weekend was perfect. We went on a hike, ate at a deli, did some shopping, made a fire, and resorted to our usual meals of hard boiled eggs and spaghetti made with the jet boil. I even saw my first moose on the way to meet her in the early morning hours.

Football:
It goes without saying that one of the best qualities of fall is football. I have to say it has been an adjustment living in New England during football season. As it goes in the South, Saturday is the “day” for football. Here in Maine the “day” is Sunday. I find the change a relief, as no one here opposes my love of Auburn football. Actually, most folks have helped me to cheer this fall.
The beginning of the season I was pleased to see Auburn looking to be much better than I had expected. At this point, having another undefeated regular season, another SEC championship, and an upcoming visit to the BCS National Championship game the Auburn Tigers have far exceeded all of my expectations. This has been one fun season to watch college football and I say loud and proud, “It’s great to be an Auburn Tiger!!!” “War Eagle!”

Kumiko

Over a year ago I returned from a six month trip around Europe and Asia. The last stop was a visit to the land of the rising sun, my home for three years. During my three years in Japan I came in contact with some of the most incredible people in the world, quiet literally, as I met people from Europe, Australia, all over the States, New Zealand, Africa, Canada, the Middle East, South America, and obviously Japan.
The family that was of the most influential during that time was the Itou family. Kumiko-san was the mother of the family and a living example of the person I would someday like to be.
I spent countless hours with this family and I am proud to call them my Japanese family.
Upon my return to America I received a call from Yu-chan telling me that Kumiko was diagnosed with cancer. Having lost my own father from cancer the news hit me hard. Somewhere in between my visit in Canada with Maureen, another friend from Japan, and the visit from Karen and Tricia, Kumiko lost her fight with cancer.
It’s hard to describe the difficulty of dealing with the death of someone who was such an impact on my life. It was almost as hard as losing my own father.
However, after months of processing, I consider myself a very blessed individual. Many people go a lifetime without having one such person in their life, whereas I have not only these two, but a few others who are still alive and well. It is my hope that I will honor the memory of my father and Kumiko by striving to be the type of people they were while here on earth.
Kumiko, you will be missed and I cherish the fact that I was able to spend those two weeks with you while in Japan.

August/September

Summer in Maine was about to come to an end as I was visited by two friends, Karen and Tricia. The three of us just happened to find ourselves in Japan at the same time years ago. We played the part of typical tourist for much of the week, giving me the opportunity to visit places I have never been in Maine. We visited Boothbay Harbor, Bath, Reid State Park, Wilton’s Blueberry Festival, and took a ferry to Peaks Island where we rode bikes around the island. The timing of their trip couldn’t have been better. I was still in the process of dealing with the death of Kumiko. As she was an influence on each of us in different ways, we spent part of the visit sharing stories of this incredible lady and how she touched our lives.

The end of summer, I became friends with Nook. Nook is related to one of my neighbors and we met while I was walking Gilmore. Nook enjoys riding his bike around town and we began riding bikes together. On our rides I have been introduced to parts of Jay that I didn’t know existed. There is a white rock granite quarry, an apple orchard park, and several beautiful scenic roads. I have also been inspired to get a new bicycle; mine was stolen before I left Tennessee.

Fall brought the change in the color of the leaves and a trip on the lake courtesy of my friend Jon. Flagstaff Lake is located at the foot of Bigelow Mountain and is the choppiest lake I have ever seen. This was also Gilmore’s introduction to riding in a boat. We made our way around the lake making a stop on an island and visiting a portion of the Appalachian Trail.
This trip inspired me to make a list of all the hiking trails located in my area and begin visiting each of them on my days off. Gilmore and I have covered a lot of ground on the trails this fall.

June/July

In June, I had the privilege of visiting my friend Maureen in Canada. Maureen is a friend I met while living in Japan. She was in the St. John area playing the violin for a play. We had not seen each other since Yu’s wedding in Texas over 5 years ago. An added bonus was to see the sights of St. John, St. Andrew, and the drive from Central Maine to Canada.

July brought more visitors, this time from Tennessee, Andrea and Kelsey. I met these lovely ladies in Cleveland while working with the BCM at Lee University. They were making a graduation trip through the northeast and I was lucky to be a stop on their journey. We were able to make the usual rounds of the Portland Headlight, old port, the lobster shack, and the metropolis of Jay. They were also just in time to accompany me to the opening of New Moon.

I traveled to Alabama in July to visit family. The trip was a short one; my time was limited mostly to immediate family. Mom, Clarence, and I took a road trip to New Orleans to visit with Dennis and his family as well. Emma is growing up so quickly and doesn’t slow down all day. Dale and Amy are doing well; I hope to upload some pictures of their family soon. They have a couple of kids with them now but I can’t post their pictures at this point because they are still in the foster care system.

My return to Maine was met with more visitors from Tennessee. Stacy and a group from the BCM were here for a couple of weeks. Gilmore and I camped in Portland for a portion of their stay. We were able to hang out at some of the usual sights, eat some great food, and have some fun at the beach.

March/April/May:

I started my new job in March and with the newly acquired income finally took a ski trip to Saddleback Mountain, in Rangeley, a beautiful mountain with some incredible views.
March also brought my birthday, which I celebrated by taking a trip to the Carrie Underwood concert in Portland.

As spring approached and the snow began to melt I was introduced to the fifth season in Maine, mud season. Mud was everywhere. This makes it difficult to keep things clean including Gilmore, who with each walk came home covered in mud. Next year I will be invested in some mud boots.