In Pursuit Of Maine: May 1, 2014 - May Day

Thursday, May 1, 2014

May 1, 2014 - May Day

May Day is cold and dreary and wet today, although the sun is threatening to shine in the early evening. It's a good thing that I have seen other May Days, so I know what this day means. A long time ago in a warmer climate, I remember flowers on trees, green grass everywhere, and leaves full and green and lush. Everything was bursting with fertility then. And that will happen here, too, even though today makes it look like only a faraway dream. I have faith in the good Earth, and she will not let me down. Yet it is not just the fertility of the Earth and the animals that I am thinking about. It is also the fertile grounds of the mind and especially the heart. My mind can always pull out secret blossoms that I stash away for somber and hungry times, but my heart has been gray for too long. Today I looked into the mist, and even though the island across from me is shrouded in fog and cold and is barely visible, somehow I smelled the blossoms from long ago. And I knew that life was returning to me.

"The Plain Maine Cookbook" is my own collection of vintage Maine recipes that will immediately bring you back to a simpler time, a less confused time. These recipes are more than just comfort food. They're family food, traditional food, simple food, plain food. One bite and you'll say, "Ah, yes! I remember my grandmother used to make this. I had forgotten all about it!" Recipes for whoopie pies, funnel cakes, fried fiddleheads, haymaker's switchel, coffee can bread, glogg, and much more are in these pages. There is even a recipe on how to render lard. So open the door and go back to some simple, time-tested foods you can prepare easily. You'll find that you save money and waste less by "making do" with commodity cooking. What's in the pantry or in the garden is what's for dinner.

"So You Want to Move to Maine" is an invaluable little book in helping people to make a permanent move to Maine. It will save you a ton of time because all the initial footwork is done for you, including 100 links on how to find work and living quarters, getting your driver's license, pet requirements, programs for people with disabilities, programs for senior citizens, getting married in Maine, hidden taxes and expenses, hospitals, health insurance, handling a real winter like a pro, etc. Stop being "just a number" or another face in the crowd. Walk away from the rat race. Become boldly individualistic and make your mark in life. You can still do that in Maine, one of the last holdouts of ordinary, old-fashioned, kind, and decent American living.

I’ve chosen 37 unique fairy tales that will be loved by both adults and children as they can be read and interpreted on many levels. But if you are looking for only sweet tales that end in joy and fairness, you may want to pass this book by. Some fairy tales are simply “dark,” and that is because sometimes life is simply dark. Not always, of course, but often enough. Sometimes the hero lives; sometimes he dies. Check out my book, “Fairy Tales of Maine,” in the photo link below. If you are brave, you might just meet yourself in one of these tales.