Capitol of Creativity: Portland, Maine

---

As you know we have trouble letting go and why should we when we don't really have to? One new friend, Linda Anne from Rockport actually reappeared on her bicycle in Portland yesterday as she starts her holiday. Who knows, maybe she'll surprise us again and meet us when we cross over to Pubnico, NS, her hometown. So you're seeing a few more pics of great friends like Larry from Rockport, another bit of Plymouth and now into Portland, Maine. We came here to get away from impending bad sea weather in a few days. In the meantime we were trounced by a violent tornado type storm that came overland 2 days ago. When there are bad conditions I usually listen to the Coast Guard radio channel 16 to get my mind off my own trivial problems. By watching the AIS, the radar and listening to the distress calls we learn much about dangerous situations and how they are handled. The opening picture is the end result of a distress call we listened to during that bad storm. A boat had dragged anchor onto the rocks in a small bay north of here. Tow Boat US, a private boater and the Coast Guard spent an hour or two trying to find the boat and single-handed owner. We were debriefed after a long, heart-wrenching period, by being told the caller had been assisted. Sula, the boat did sink but was refloated enough to bring her to shore today. The owner, basically unharmed, is now working through all the real and traumatic issues that boaters most dread. We have the utmost sympathy for him and are glad to know that he escaped in good shape. Since the last blog we have stayed in a mooring field that holds 1100 boats at peak season, in Falmouth. It was deadly dull there so we moved down into Portland, to the Portland Yacht Service, a really cool place downtown, right next to the main cruise ship dock. There is much to see and do here. The folks are fascinating, live music venues are the norm, the culture is extremely rich and craft beer is a part of the local spirituality. A few of the amazing bands we have had the good luck to hear so far are Dave Gagne's funky EastCoast Radio, his very posh Post Provost and Jason Spooner's Sea Monster. Portland is probably the most creative place I have ever ad the privilege to visit. Like most of New England, people are very aware of global concerns and are actively working to build local solutions. We have met very diligent folks who are merging their work skills and personal interests by designing retirement careers around preserving and restoring...the earth and the human race. I'm very glad we've had this extra time-out while waiting out the weather, so that we could get to experience the hopefulness of this quiet but persistent revolution.

---