Viola Swamp coaches the Titans

On Thursday, the team had gotten very, very bad about quieting down to listen to me give instructions. So, on Friday, Halloween, I put on my best black cape, got a long, grey wig, and went to practice as Coach Viola Swamp (remember the books?). Coach LaRiviere, I said, had gone on an extended leave of absence to Tahiti. I, Coach Swamp had been called by the temp agency and would be filling in, but would accept no nonsense.

1st day of high school

Bike Trip 2008

Sam was first in the Kennebunk 1 mile Cove Swim.

Sal and Kristen Kate visiting at the lake.

Scott convinced Sal that the ride in the kayak was worth putting on the life jacket.
Low tide at Fortune's Rocks.

Kristen and Scott left Sal with me so they could go to Freeport. I gave Sal a bath and then we just hung loose until bedtime. Sal has been here 4 days now and I think she is feeling more at home here. I deeply fear making children cry, but she didn't cry until I put her to bed. What a feeling to have her keep coming to me and wanting to be held. Oh, sweet baby.

Happy campers with Sam at Saint John, NB for Maine Swimming championships.
Before the race.

With the 3rd place trophy for the overall combined score.

Shingle factory. We did 24 boxes on Saturday before Canada.

Shingles are nearly done on the apartment.

Dad and I tripled our speed dipping shingles. We are now up to three boxes an hour. First, I felt like the poor maid in Rumpelstiltskin. Now, I am hoping for a part in the Elves and the Shoemaker.

Dad went for his early morning bike ride yesterday about 5:30am.
As he came down Deerwander Road, at top speed, out of the woods came a deer, also going top speed. Dad says the hand of the Lord must have come down and spun the deer around. It turned so close to him that the deer's tail hit Dad's thigh. Big deer. Lucky Dad.
At night, Dad went to Pulsifer's orchard to help as he does must Tuesday nights this summer. He has been mowing between the trees with a small mower. This time, as he left our garage at home to go there, he thought, why don't I bring some gas. He has never done that, or thought of it before. But, this time, when he got to the orchard, Gerry Bagley told Wayne they wouldn't be able to mow that night because Fran had said they were out of gas and wouldn't be able to mow.

Wayne and I drove to Greenville and turned east to go see Valerie. She got us a couple days at Little Lyford Pond Camps because she is an employee of AMC.


Wayne fishing from the bridge Valerie's crew built last summer.
He got a bite from every cast.


















Screw Auger Falls

Valerie the tree-hugger in the Hermitage.

We ate a Friendly's Watamelon Roll out on the dock for his birthday. Four days later I found his new birthday chair in the bottom of the lake.

On Monday, I looked forward to going out rowing before I took off for a busy day. Instead, i answered an email with a question about Joseph Benson, that came from an ancestry.com member. Do I know the father of Moses Benson. I did and spent a little time answering. Then, with Bensons on my mind, I did some review of my information.
I missed my chance to row and Wayne thougtht I was just fooling around on the computer.
Here is the reply I got later that day:

Dear Martha, I moved to Sanford 3 years ago and am thrilled to have the opportunity to find my family down in Southern Maine. My parents are from the Searsport area, but I married and raised my children in Millinocket. My Benson family has been a mystery to me in many ways and I have been curious about the family I never knew, but protected me from afar. You just gave me information I have been searching for at least 25 years! God bless you for taking the time to answer me and I would love to meet you some time. By the way, if you ever wish, my phone number is under Bruce and Mala Morrison and I love genealogy. My mother says I bore her with it a lot. She says that jokingly, but an element of truth may exist. Mala R. Morrison

Biddeford Pool in June

Sal at Biddeford Pool