Sunday, August 14, 2016

LL Bean



You may have think I disappeared but that is not the case. I was on a weeks Vacation in Rangeley , Maine with my family. Rangeley is in the Western Mountain Part of the State. It is about a 2 1/2 hr drive from the Inn. There is so many things to do. It boasts one of the largest Lakes in Maine as well as many Mountains to hike. The Appalachian Trail runs through Rangeley. One of our hikes is to Piazza Rock which is on the Trail. If you want to visit another part of Maine I highly recommend Rangeley. Their High Season is actually Winter as they are home to Saddleback Mountain and many snow mobile trails.

I must talk about the Weather. What is going on??? This is Maine, we don't have humidity. Go away humidity. I can not remember a Summer that was this Hot and Humid for so long. The AC Units are running more this Summer than ever before. We had an intense Thunder,wind storm yesterday. It blew down several Large trees on the Islands. It even blew the window off the hinges at Sue's house. It felt like we were in Oz.

It's not like me to talk about Shopping. But  I have to tell you about my trip to LL Bean in Freeport. I had to return a headlamp that was broken and get a new one. LL Bean has the most lenient return policy of any store I have ever been to. The lady in front of me had a bunch of stuff to return. One of the items, ( I am not sure what it was)she returned  the clerk told her was bought 13 years ago! They would give her the credit of the price that it sold at then. Good Lord, really... 13 years is a long time to use something and return it. I got my headlamp credit, which was less than a year old, got a new one and went to checkout. I got joking with the clerk about how Hot it was out and that I was going to get an Ice Coffee. He said I wish I had an Ice Coffee on my break. I left the store and got to thinking. What a great store with great employees. I went back in to the CafĂ© bought an Ice Coffee and took it to him. It was a small gesture but what that store represents is Maine and the way Life Should be.

The Inn has been crazy busy. There are not to many days in August with vacancies. Terrence starts School in less than two weeks and before you know it the leaves will be turning colors. It will be interesting to see what happens with the colors this year as we have had such a drought. Our Fall rates will start September 6 . There is still time to book for my favorite time of year in Maine.  Yes, Sue is still alive and mostly well. She recently had rotator cuff surgery. It was successful and is on the mend. It also means she is taking a break from plant shopping..

Blessing, Alicia