bosalisbury.com Posts

Published September 5, 2008 by

Blueberries

Blueberries are native only to North America. Wild Maine blueberries, like Maine lobster, are the best — finest kind. They are small and full of flavor, unlike the larger ones that grow higher off the ground in places like New Jersey, Oregon and Washington. Our friends in Maine will sometimes eat the larger, inferior blueberries from away but that’s an anomaly.

Blueberries are raked and it is difficult and back-breaking work. If you are good at it, you can make a big wad of cash during the season, typically the month of August. In the 90’s, that’s how teenagers in our town earned money to buy a car.… Read the rest

Food Maine: The Vista From Away Travel

blueberries Maine

Published September 5, 2008 by

Confession

I coveted. This watercolor was hanging in our motel room in Wolfeboro and I wanted it. I wanted it so badly. I was pleading with Denise to offer the owner 10 bucks for it. I even thought we might be able to trade Emma for it.

Now, I’ll need some help from all of you art afficianados. It is signed by one, Marty. It reminds me of a Maxfield Parrish, but I’m not sure why. I don’t think it’s his style, but I believe it may reflect his palette.… Read the rest

Art • Design • Culture

Marty Maxfield Parrish watercolor

Published September 4, 2008 by

Glen Cove Is Real Maine

Before I begin on this post, I have to make an acerbic comment. I just looked at my blog in Explorer and it doesn’t render properly. This is WordPress, for crying out loud. Why doesn’t Explorer play by the rules? I’m actually glad Google has come out with Chrome to compete with Microsoft in the browser battles. I prefer Safari now or Camino, the Mac version of Firefox. There, I said it and I feel much better now.

As we moved south toward Portland, we found this wonderful place in Glen Cove Maine, the Oakland Seashore Motel. The cottages were cute, but we stayed in the motel.… Read the rest

Maine: The Vista From Away Travel

Glen Cove lobster boat Maine quahog sternman Torrey Island

Published September 4, 2008 by

Lobster

What trip to Maine would be complete without a lobster bake? And, why do they call it a bake, when you boil or steam everything? Well, that and other weighty questions of eternal consequence will have to wait until later. Right now, we’re talking about downeast cuisine.

We headed down to Brooklin to buy some lobsters from John Candage and found them for just over $5 a pound.

We got together with Bruce and Terri, Paul and Mary, Leah and Emma for some lobster, steamers, fresh corn on the cob and, of course, pie. Mary made the best coconut cream pie, with a great whipped topping.… Read the rest

Food Maine: The Vista From Away Travel

clams lobster Maine

Published September 3, 2008 by

Getting High In Maine

We decided to visit the Penobscot Narrows Bridge near Bucksport and take a trip up to the observatory at the top – 420 feet high, to be exact. Denise and I were vacationing and hunting for investments just about a year ago and happened to visit when the bridge was opened for the first public walk-across and Bridgefest. It was impressive.

While we were waiting, Emma was wishing she had brought her sweater. She did, however, bring a book along. It was one of about 8 she read in our 12 day vacation. Sidebar: Emma has always been a voracious reader.… Read the rest

Family • Friends Maine: The Vista From Away Travel

Bucksport Castine Maine Penobscot Expedition Penobscot Narrows Bridge

Published September 2, 2008 by

Camden ME

One of our favorite places to visit is Camden Maine, which most people know as Peyton Place. We know it as the home of Cappy’s Chowder House and the site of a wonderful webcam.

I love the library there. The town outgrew the old library, so they built a new one under the park out back, down by the harbor, and connected it to the original. Most of the holdings are in the new addition, while the original library provides a wonderful place to relax and read, as well as some wonderful views of town.

The first photo is of Denise and I in the underground addition, under the skylight that sits in the center of the lawn in the park.… Read the rest

Family • Friends Maine: The Vista From Away Travel

Camden Cappy's Chowder House library Maine

Published September 1, 2008 by

Red Hot Dogs, Whoopie Pies and Maine Male Models


When you’re in Maine, there are a number of rare treats you’ll want to track down besides the best lobster in the world. Emma and I love two Maine staples, common to the working class downeast; red hot dogs and whoopie pies. The best place to find them in Hancock County are at the Eggemoggin Country Store or, as the natives call it, B&L’s (it was established years ago by Billy and Lorna… but, that’s another story).

Danny makes the best whoopie pies, bar none, anywhere in New England. He also serves up the most righteous cookies and baked goods.… Read the rest

Family • Friends Food Travel Uncategorized

Eggemoggin Maine red hot dogs whoopie pie

Published August 31, 2008 by

It's A Buoy!

When we moved to Maine in ’93, our first home was down on Naskeag Point, site of the famous Revolutionary War battle. Denise and Emma’s passion for beach glass was born there. We ran straight down to Naskeag, as soon as we arrived on the Blue Hill Peninsula. Emma wanted to bring home a lobster buoy for a souvenir and immediately found a pink girl’s buoy on the shore. Unfortunately, the buoy she found is still an active, licensed color. It’s never a good idea to mess with someone’s lobster gear, so she left it at the shore. She didn’t find much beach glass this time, but plenty of clam shells.… Read the rest

Family • Friends Travel Uncategorized

lobster Maine Naskeag Point

Published August 30, 2008 by

Dairy Bar!


I’m sitting in a very comfortable motel room in Wolfeboro New Hampshire, which I’m sure you know was the first resort town in the United States. We found a wonderful little place on the lake, where Emma and Denise are relaxing in a gazebo, on the lawn, watching some kids being delightedly dragged and tossed about the lake on some big rubber boat by their irresponsible parents.

We finished some takeout for lunch and two pints of hand-packed Morrissey Ice Cream, followed by a nap. Now, I’m ready to get down to some serious Bible study, following this post.

Ever since our first trip to New England, Denise and I have trained our eyes to detect each and every dairy bar along the road, in search of the best soft serve and homemade or local dairy’s hard ice cream.… Read the rest

Food Travel Uncategorized

Gifford's Ice Cream New Hampshire Wolfeboro

Published August 28, 2008 by

The One That Got Away


This is the cape we made an offer on, sight unseen. It’s a quaint little home, built in the 50s, out in the Sunshine area of Deer Isle Maine. The owners thought our offer of $90k was way too low (starting at $139k and lowered to $125k when we got interested). They countered high, so we waited to see it.

The property is beautiful, near some nice ledge and it is a short distance from the Eggemoggin Reach and swimming, as well as the Haystack Mountain School of Crafts. We had hoped to make it a vacation home and rental for students / faculty / boaters.… Read the rest

Family • Friends Travel

Deer Isle Eggemoggin Reach Haystack Mountain School of Crafts Maine Sunshine

Published August 28, 2008 by

The World’s Smallest Bookstore


So, we met some new friends in Sedgwick Me — Joanne and Doug. They told us that Pushcart Press, the world’s smallest bookstore, is in the building at the back of what was once Donny and Eleanor’s garage and auto dealership. We stopped by to check it out. The Pushcart Prize is a prestigious literary project, pioneered by Bill Henderson over 30 years ago. As it turns out, Mr. Henderson is now a resident of Sedgwick, where I once served as Postmaster and our family wintered for a year before moving up to Blue Hill. From the PP website:

The Pushcart Prize – Best of the Small Presses series, published every year since 1976, is the most honored literary project in America.

… Read the rest

Books • Literature Family • Friends Travel

Maine Pushcart Press Sedgwick

Published August 27, 2008 by

Blog Clog Resolved


I’m sure you’ve all been wondering why the blog posts have dried up. In fact, I’m just sitting down to answer the backlog of thousands of email messages. We are winding up our trip to Maine and are finally relaxing on the shore of Allamoosook Lake. Emma is in a canoe, Denise is sitting in her Adirondack chair with a needlepoint and I’m doing what I like to do to unwind… writing. So, here are a few shots of the view from the lodge and a preview of posts to come.

There is a very picturesque island out in front of the lodge and it appears to have a camp with a dock out into the lake.… Read the rest

Family • Friends Travel Uncategorized

Allmoosook Maine Travel

Published August 12, 2008 by

Krazy Kitsch


Hey, kids! Let’s have a sock hop at the Salisbury’s pad! I bought each one of these albums at the same yard sale for 25¢ apiece — much less than the original owners paid. They threw in the album stand for free! The entire display goes well with our entertainment center, don’t you think?

Bo had the Box Tops album, when he was in the sixth grade. The Fontaine Sisters and Herman’s Hermits were before our time.… Read the rest

Just Plain Fun Music Uncategorized

albums dance LPs music Records retro

Published August 7, 2008 by

Krazy Kitsch


I’d like to introduce a new feature to our tens of thousands of readers. Krazy Kitsch serves to provide you with a virtual tour of our Home on Piety Hill, which Denise is transforming into a varitable museum of off beat, kitcshy kollectibles and questionable art, furniture, kitchen utensils and, well, just about everything else. Now, mind you, some items will not actually be kitschy at all, but we’ll use that as a sort of catch-all label for just about anything we think is cool. Here’s a good definition of kitsch from Wikipedia:

A term of German or Yiddish origin that has been used to categorize art that is considered an inferior, tasteless copy of an existing style.

… Read the rest

Art • Design • Culture Just Plain Fun Uncategorized Wacky • Weird

ballerina paint by number

Published August 3, 2008 by

Young Love


Okay, so I’ve been a little nostalgic lately and I scanned some old photographs of our family. When Denise and I began dating, she had long blonde hair… naturally blonde. I had long hair, too.

Denise also bought a brand new Landcruiser FJ40, which I loved to drive and she snapped this photo, as we drove by the 76 station at the corner of Painter Avenue and Lambert Road in Whittier.

In the Spring of 1974, after Denise graduated from Sierra High School, we drove north to pick up Denise’s brother at UC Davis and brought him home. We stopped in one of our favorite destinations from our desert days, Virginia City NV, and I took this photo of Denise.… Read the rest

Family • Friends Travel Uncategorized

Bo Denise hippies Landcruiser Virginia City

Published July 10, 2008 by

One Year Later


This is Denise about one year after we were married on this day, July 10, 1976. Yes, that’s 32 years of marital bliss (not 31, Sam). This photo was actually taken the day before Sam was born on September 5, 1977. I remember this day – It was hot, I took time off work for the birth and we went to walk around the Mission San Juan Capistrano and I caught Denise in front of this big, beautiful Bouganville.

Happy Anniversary Denise!… Read the rest

Family • Friends Uncategorized

anniversary Denise pregnant

Published July 8, 2008 by

Carnitas!


Did I ever tell you that Denise can make excellent tamales and carnitas? ¿No? Well, then… About the time Denise and I started getting serious, she worked at a deli and meat market, owned by Jess (Mexican) and Julianne (Polish). So, while I was off surfing every single day during the summer of 1974 (I couldn’t get a job, because I wouldn’t cut my hair — Idiot), Denise (Anglo) learned how to make carnitas, tamales, tortillas, menudo, peirogi, golumki and fresh/smoked kielbasa. Yes, she was always good in the kitchen, but this experience turned her into a serious culinarian.

Denise is not threatened by others, with more sophisticated or advanced skills.… Read the rest

Family • Friends Food Uncategorized

carnitas Coca Cola golumki peirogi pupusas tamales tortillas

Published June 29, 2008 by

Emma Is On Her Way


Emma just completed her first semester at Sacramento State University with a Big Four Point Oh! She’s pursuing a degree in design — leaning toward architecture. This was confirmed to Emma on her latest visit to Chicago, the birthplace of the modern skyscraper, as well as home to the Prairie School and Frank Lloyd Wright.

Emma’s strength, I think, is in photography. She has always had a good eye for an interesting composition and Photoshop is the logical extension for the skills she learned in the dark room years ago. Here we see two Photoshop projects and the final example is a graphic design assignment using Adobe InDesign.… Read the rest

Art • Design • Culture Family • Friends Uncategorized

Adobe architecture Frank Lloyd Wright graphic design InDesign Photoshop Quark

Published June 26, 2008 by

Phil Keaggy

Why is Phil Keaggy one of my favorite guitarists? Here are four reasons, spanning nearly forty years from his days with Glass Harp (and a really cool macramé vest), through his “Alan Holdsworth period,” into the “Windham Hill era” and on to the present. Now, the second video is fairly long, but please be patient… Phil will turn himself and one guitar into an entire band by the time he’s finished with an incredible run. I hope you enjoy….

… Read the rest

Music Uncategorized

Alan Holdsworth Eric Johnson Fernando Ortega Keaggy Michael Hedges Windham Hill

Published June 17, 2008 by

Got Mine!

Uncategorized

Published May 29, 2008 by

The Burrito Blog


Now, here’s a blog I get. Jonah travels the length and breadth of America, sampling the fare from taquerias of all sizes, posting his reviews on the Burrito Blog. As of this writing, he hasn’t sampled the best yet, which can only be found at El Tepeyac. ¿Es verdad, mi familia?

Now, if you’re ever in the Los Angeles area, you want to head over to East LA and find 812 N Evergreen Ave., between Brooklyn and Wabash. El Tepayac is across the street from a large Catholic church, in a neutral zone, and there’s usually a real long line outside.… Read the rest

Blogging Food Uncategorized

Published May 15, 2008 by

Promaster


Yes, that’s Promaster and not Postmaster. Although many of you know me as a Postmaster, I am also a harp player since about this time last year. I took up the harmonica, because I realized that the nerve pain in my right arm would probably prevent me from playing the guitar seriously.

I’ve really come to enjoy the harmonica, thanks in large part to my friend, Tom B., an excellent harp player. He dropped by one afternoon with Amy and a large suitcase full of harmonicas. Being a generous mentor, he gave me a handful of Big River harmonicas, Pucks, a tremolo harmonica and a nice Hohner Chromatic 260.… Read the rest

Music Uncategorized

Published April 28, 2007 by

Okay, So One Little Post Can't Hurt

Uncategorized

Published April 13, 2007 by

The Electric Flag Featuring Mike Bloomfield

Oh, my. I found this great little clip of the Electric Flag — Mike Bloomfield is in fine form. I was too young to see the original Flag, but caught them on a reunion tour with Moby Grape in about 1974. Fantastic! We were in the orchestra pit and Mike Bloomfield was right in front of us. His guitars were totally memorable. He played a Les Paul that was beat with the standard white knobs from a Stratocaster replacing the originals which he must have lost somewhere. He also played a blue Telecaster that looked like he had painted it himself — there were drips and runs across it.… Read the rest

Music Uncategorized

Published April 9, 2007 by

What If Christians Imposed Their Morality On Others?

 

517668242_02b0512b78I was pondering this question the other day, after hearing that old chestnut about how Christians are trying to impose their will on the rest of us (as if the religious left, scientific atheists, secularists, materialists, pagans, and agnostics stand passively on the sidelines, while the great cultural and ethical debates rage).

So, what could we expect to see if Christians imposed their morality on others? Well, duh, it’s not like it’s a big mystery or something. We are standing on the shoulders of hundreds of years of western, Christian, democratic history. You don’t have to speculate. You also don’t have to wonder how the imposition of Christian morality would stack up against the imposition of socialism, atheism, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, paganism or progressivism on society, since there are plenty of those states or governments around to examine, many of which have been functioning for a good long time!… Read the rest

Christianity • Religion