Greetings from the Green Mountain State. So far my impromptu vacation is turning out to be one of the best ones I have taken in my life. It started on Saturday by attending a Black-Tie event for the Triangle Organization. It was a fun rewarding evening, despite the fact that I was missing the festivities in Vermont I did have a good time. It also provided a good opportunity for my co-worker Katie and to bond. The Hyatt in Cambridge is a rather nice hotel. I had not realized this until I stepped foot in it Saturday night.
Its really apparent to me this weekend how varied my tastes are. As happy as I was Saturday night all dressed up, driving around the city at night, listening to Sinatra on the radio after coming home from this gala event. I was just as happy up here in Vermont. As fancy as the dinner was on Saturday, the cookout Sunday night at Mitch's house was just as enjoyable. I can't help but be reminded of how much more pleasant people in Vermont are. From standing in line at the store to letting people go in traffic. There is simply no comparison. To be honest I have met Mitch only a handful of times, the longest time I spent with him was last year ( see post: Ka-Ching ). Granted I helped him out but I felt like family at his house the other night. Honestly meeting people like that this day and age does make me sad at how cynical I have become over the years. I suppose Boston has its charm, but the city folk can be less than charming.
The sun set and so passed Sunday. Monday I awoke really without having to much planned. I knew there were a couple of things I wanted to do but really I was just going to let the day go as it unfolded. I was able to sleep in with no alarms and my own internal clock decided to shut itself off until about 10AM can't tell you the last time I slept that late. I had a nice lunch downtown at a favorite restaurant called Sweetwaters. This lead to me driving a short while down route 7 to South Burlington. There I went exploring in Red Rocks Park. I opted out of the beach and went for the trails which were so curved and looping I estimate I walked about 3 miles on the trail and and down hills.
It was time well spent as I was able to experience, even for a short time, that connection to nature. Yes the scenery was classic Vermont. Yes it was a beautiful day, not to hot and not too cold. I did though run into a few things you don't see everyday. First I was able to take notice of the various birds. While resting a woodpecker landed right in front of me on a tree and started pecking away. It was kind of fun to watch him do his thing. Shortly there after I was able catch sight of a Hawk close up. Now I've been in the city so long I forget what the birds sound like other that seagulls and pigeons. I was truly a marvel to see the Hawk in its natural environment as it stalked its prey.
Then as I was walking back I turned the bend and came across a man and his wolf. Yes wolf. It was as long as the man was tall and it was a great beast of a creature. Your don't realize how big they are when you always see them in pictures. This one was well behaved, I know it was domesticated but you can't help notice the sheer power and build of the animal. It may have been passive but you can't help but respect the creature and to my surprise I was not scared in the least. Not sure why my flight or flight never kicked in. Eventually we parted ways after a passing conversation and as I was heading back I decided to head down closer to the water to stick my feet in the lake.
The date is May 5th. Just a few short weeks ago it was still snowing in Vermont so of course the lake is no where near swim worthy, but it was refreshing just to stand in for a few minutes to cool off. As I was sitting on the rocks with my feet in the water I became aware of movement behind me. Not footfalls like a person, but of an animal. So I turned and found myself face to face with my wolf friend. Who stopped looked at me and quietly walked past me into the water. He too decided he needed to cool off. I cursed myself for not bringing my camera I only had my cell camera and it was buried in my bag. Finally he decided he had enough and went back on to the rocks and sat by me for a few minutes. I know he was a he because his owner soon started calling him and his name was Aaron.
Call me nuts or a fool, or both but I felt this connection to this creature and knew that it would not harm me. Even though it is fully capable of doing so. Soon Aaron and his owner were on there way and I decided to follow suit since I needed to be back in time for round two of my day.
To Be Continued . . .
Its really apparent to me this weekend how varied my tastes are. As happy as I was Saturday night all dressed up, driving around the city at night, listening to Sinatra on the radio after coming home from this gala event. I was just as happy up here in Vermont. As fancy as the dinner was on Saturday, the cookout Sunday night at Mitch's house was just as enjoyable. I can't help but be reminded of how much more pleasant people in Vermont are. From standing in line at the store to letting people go in traffic. There is simply no comparison. To be honest I have met Mitch only a handful of times, the longest time I spent with him was last year ( see post: Ka-Ching ). Granted I helped him out but I felt like family at his house the other night. Honestly meeting people like that this day and age does make me sad at how cynical I have become over the years. I suppose Boston has its charm, but the city folk can be less than charming.
The sun set and so passed Sunday. Monday I awoke really without having to much planned. I knew there were a couple of things I wanted to do but really I was just going to let the day go as it unfolded. I was able to sleep in with no alarms and my own internal clock decided to shut itself off until about 10AM can't tell you the last time I slept that late. I had a nice lunch downtown at a favorite restaurant called Sweetwaters. This lead to me driving a short while down route 7 to South Burlington. There I went exploring in Red Rocks Park. I opted out of the beach and went for the trails which were so curved and looping I estimate I walked about 3 miles on the trail and and down hills.
It was time well spent as I was able to experience, even for a short time, that connection to nature. Yes the scenery was classic Vermont. Yes it was a beautiful day, not to hot and not too cold. I did though run into a few things you don't see everyday. First I was able to take notice of the various birds. While resting a woodpecker landed right in front of me on a tree and started pecking away. It was kind of fun to watch him do his thing. Shortly there after I was able catch sight of a Hawk close up. Now I've been in the city so long I forget what the birds sound like other that seagulls and pigeons. I was truly a marvel to see the Hawk in its natural environment as it stalked its prey.
Then as I was walking back I turned the bend and came across a man and his wolf. Yes wolf. It was as long as the man was tall and it was a great beast of a creature. Your don't realize how big they are when you always see them in pictures. This one was well behaved, I know it was domesticated but you can't help notice the sheer power and build of the animal. It may have been passive but you can't help but respect the creature and to my surprise I was not scared in the least. Not sure why my flight or flight never kicked in. Eventually we parted ways after a passing conversation and as I was heading back I decided to head down closer to the water to stick my feet in the lake.
The date is May 5th. Just a few short weeks ago it was still snowing in Vermont so of course the lake is no where near swim worthy, but it was refreshing just to stand in for a few minutes to cool off. As I was sitting on the rocks with my feet in the water I became aware of movement behind me. Not footfalls like a person, but of an animal. So I turned and found myself face to face with my wolf friend. Who stopped looked at me and quietly walked past me into the water. He too decided he needed to cool off. I cursed myself for not bringing my camera I only had my cell camera and it was buried in my bag. Finally he decided he had enough and went back on to the rocks and sat by me for a few minutes. I know he was a he because his owner soon started calling him and his name was Aaron.Call me nuts or a fool, or both but I felt this connection to this creature and knew that it would not harm me. Even though it is fully capable of doing so. Soon Aaron and his owner were on there way and I decided to follow suit since I needed to be back in time for round two of my day.
To Be Continued . . .
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