Hello all. There’s a Swedish saying, travel is good but home is best,
\nand returning from Europe to our Maine house and garden bears that out.
\nWe’re harvesting squash, potatoes, chard, leeks, tomatoes and more,
\nmadly cooking and freezing much of it, the perennials are still doing
\ntheir thing, and in this my favorite month there are sweet transitions
\nand start ups of classes, meetings, Richard’s rehearsals–and today
\nenjoying “Six,” a raucous all female pop musical based on Henry VIII’s
\nwives. American Rep in Cambridge each year offers a preview of a play
\nthat is to go to Broadway (this one in February) and such consistently
\nwin Tonys. And before going to the Loeb Theatre, lunch and catch-up with
\nLibby Callard Olson, in Nahant each summer and otherwise traveling
\nwidely from Baltimore to visit family. She shared the experience of son
\nPeter and his family living on mainland China, where they get no news!<\/p>\n
So, it’s all good here. But the thing is, our travel took us to a home
\nanyway, back to our spiritual home, Stockholm, and it was, as always,
\ndeeply satisfying. Surely many of you have the experience of returning
\nto a place where you have lived or often visit: no longer you have the
\nneed to be tourist or seek out the touted restaurants, instead the
\nluxury of savoring great meals in neighborhood pubs, alive with the
\nchatter of happy Swedes, or discovering a small unusual museum tucked
\naway somewhere, or the serendipity of happening to pass by a magnificent
\nchurch where a noontime organ concert is just starting…Of course no
\nplace is perfect and during our stay, there were two daylight fatal
\nshootings of women in southern Malmo and north of Stockholm, both drug
\ngang-related and sadly connected with the large influx of migrants
\nwelcomed into the country.<\/p>\n
Hope none of you were really affected by Dorian; here it was incredibly
\ncalm though conditions on our Goochs Beach attracted a huge number of
\nsurfers this morning.<\/p>\n
Enjoy each day, Elsa Anderson van Bergen, 9\/7\/19<\/p>\n
and from Dottie, 9\/8\/19:<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n Thank you so much for a beautiful reading experience, Elsa! My travels echo yours. Returning to Rockport MA is like settling into a familiar chair. The difference is, unlike my life here in Tampa, Rockport is not rich with people and activities that enliven my days. So after I have walked the familiar streets, breathed the salty air, glutted myself on lobster rolls and scallops I am ready to come home. <\/em><\/span><\/p>\n Right now, though, Dorian has made the weather truly unwelcoming. Although we avoided hurricane winds and flooding, it sucked extremely hot and humid air into our part of Florida. No rain and temperatures in the 90s for another week or so. Of course I will take this version of Dorian rather than what others have faced. I am so, so sad that our nation is not offering the help we could easily give while our president sniggles and snaggles over a weather report. <\/em><\/span><\/p>\n Love to all, Dottie Smith Mann <\/em><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Hello all. There’s a Swedish saying, travel is good but home is best, and returning from Europe to our Maine house and garden bears that out. We’re harvesting squash, potatoes, chard, leeks, tomatoes and more, madly cooking and freezing much … Continue reading