Crimson Over cardinal!

Wednesday morning, we drove back to Portland from lovely Bar Harbor. We hated to BH, since the people were so nice, the weather cooperated for a change, and the Maine lobster was outstanding if not better. So, in a driving rain storm for most of the three hour ride back, we hit the highways and byways of central Maine. We must have hit every road delay with one way traffic. But as we pulled into Freeport (home of LL Bean) for a brief stop to stretch and have a little soup, we were glad to be back in the city, and on the irritating toll roads.

Thursday, we are continuing the drive back toward Boston. So after a hearty Maine breakfast at Becky's Diner, we will head south. We may stop in Kennebunkport to say hello to George and Barbara Bush. We are spending our last night of this trip in Cambridge, Massachusetts, home of Harvard and all that Ivy League stuff. Many years ago, I almost decided to go back east and attend either Harvard or Johns Hopkins in Baltimore for graduate school. Fortunately, neither one was affordable for me, so I went to U.C. Berkeley, and fortuitously, got a better education.

Harvard University is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States, founded in 1636. It is also the oldest corporation in the United States. It was named Harvard in 1639, when a young English clergyman named John Harvard, donated 400 books and 779 British pounds to the University. Harvard also has the second largest endowment at $26 billion, standing only behind the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

The banks of the Charles River always sound so romantic, but it is not the prettiest from the Cambridge side. I would imagine the big 4th of July celebration here is great fun, with over a million people attending the concert and fireworks. Someday, we will join in too. But Boston always has a charm that brings out the "Freedom Trail" in all of us. And the Red Sox are in the playoffs, and the Patriots are finally on track. Hockey season is in full bloom, and the Celtics are favored to make the NBA Finals again this year.

But we will take a stroll through Harvard Yard, peek in a few stores near campus, and have dinner at Sandrine's Bistro near the Yard. We head back to California early Friday morning.

Maybe I will get our dog a Harvard t shirt or sweatshirt. Maybe not. I cannot fathom the thought of wearing Crimson myself, as it is too close to the cardinal red of Stanfurd. Of course, either of these schools would probably run my Cal (football) Bears into the ground after the last two weeks. But I firmly believe that a Harvard education is over rated. Most of my friends who have attended have reluctantly agreed with me.

There is something magic about this place. Whether as a student, visitor, or intruder, Haa-vaad is a place that is special in American history and lore. So, here's to you, John Harvard, and John Houseman, you deserve it!

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