April 16, 2003
Smalltown USA
I think I like living in a small town (Peacham, VT = Pop. 650). At least so far that is -- I guess it has only been a few months.
But one of the things I didn't anticipate was the people stopping by thing. Since we have been in our house, we have had at least a half dozen neighbors just stop by unannounced to say Hi, and that is with the terrible winter weather we have had. I suspect more people will come by as the weather gets nicer.
Last night the guy whose dairy farm is right up the road stopped by. For the past several years, he had rented our land from the previous owner to grow corn and hay for silage. Since I am trying to get certified as an organic farm, and he is not an organic dairy farmer, he and I have worked out an alternative arrangement for this year that seems to work for both of us. He stopped by to drop off a bunch of oat seed that he is going to sow on parts of our land this year. After helping him unload the truck in the barn, he came in and we sat around the kitchen eating Maryellen's yummy carrot cake and yaking for about an hour.
Anyway, I guess I have spent so much time bouncing around the last 15 years or so, that it is nice to have finally committed to living somewhere and to feel a little like a part of a community.
Posted by peter at April 16, 2003 08:11 AMPeter-(and Maryellen)
I just love the BLOG. I'm sorry I didn't sing its praises last week when I was snowed under with work but I've been reading it! Such a great idea.
How come I never saw your checkerboard haircut????
Also, I'll be interested in how you both adjust to the slower paced life.
Alice/Mom
Well Mom, there may be a number of things you never knew about . . . and we should probably leave it that way. :)
Seriously though, I think the haircut was a one night thing. Do you remember the shaved head phase, right before the beard plus shaved head phase? Well, during the shaved head phase, my hair grew in a little, and we shaved a checkered flag into my hair because we were going out to race go-carts that night. I don't think the haircut helped me win any races though.
Posted by: peter at April 16, 2003 12:08 PM
One of the things I remember most as a little kid in Fair Haven is people dropping in to visit. Most of the time it was family, but sometimes, neighbors, too. And it tended to become a ritual, every Sunday morning or whatever. Those kinds of relationships were important and obviously I remember them very clearly fifty years. I don't know if that will develop in Peacham, but it's a richness of living that doesn't come about easily in Bronxville, or on 45th Street!
I wonder whether its money, activity or personality that determines how free people feel to just drop in?
Everyone on this Blog should feel free to drop in on us in NYC. We have a pull out bed in our loveseat and a very comfortable couch for sleeping.
Posted by: mike, pgg brother at April 19, 2003 07:39 AM