Minerva Wanders

 When I was a kid, I dressed up as Joan Jett for Halloween.  I'd like to say it was because I was a badass cool kid, but the fact was I was invited to a theme party.  It was an excuse for the hostess to be Madonna.  It was the 80's.  Well I was at a loss, and we had this Joan Jett 45, I Love Rock and Roll to be specific.  So somewhere I got a pink jacket and a neckerchief.  I lip synced to I Love Rock and Roll with zero flare.  That's ok.  I was known as the shy kid.  They were nice, even though I was boring.   So fast forward what, 40 years?  I visited the Rock N Roll hall of fame recently.  It was my second time there and I enjoyed it much more the second time.  Good Elvis exhibit.  Good girl music exhibit.  Beatles, Hip Hop, Rolling Stones, Bon Jovi.  What I really liked was the interactive stuff.  Wanna pick up an Ax (or guitar, ahem, for you poor non musical bastards) and give it a try?...

I love coffee. I love to sit quietly, either in my quiet office or quiet house and savorrrrrrrrrrr.  I love the heat radiating thru my mug.  I love the smell.  I love the steam.  I breathe into my cup and let the steam reflect back.  I love the quiet. I love the peace.  Then after all that foreplay, I sip.  The bitterness of the coffee offset by the cream is a unique combination that just feels right. Tea doesn't do it for me.  Nor do any other hot liquids.  Soup is a distant second.  It tries but it's just not, well, coffee.   Is it the caffeine?  Knowing that I'll perk up?  If so, why don't I do energy drinks?  Maybe it feels 'adult'. Rereading this post feels 'adult'!   Whatever.  Coffee feels like love.  

 Suddenly there she was.   He had known it was a possibility.  He wasn't sure if he hoped to see her, or if he preferred the memories.  It didn't matter now, because there she was.   Of course, there were the changes you'd expect after almost 30 years.  She wasn't wearing the uniform of her youth, t-shirt and jeans.  Weight gain, well, haven't we all?  How she moved though was the same, unhurried, carefree, too confident really for her age at the time.  It seemed to fit her well now.  But he remembered that contrast in her then, the look and feel of maturity, paired with the uninhibited goofiness of a kid. It was unique, or at least he had thought so.   What really struck him now was the change he saw in her eyes.  He realized it was the eyes that captivated him as a young man.  They had been innocent, full of mischief, yet at the same time, you felt like she saw you, really saw you and held you without judg...

 First I want you to know what Down East means. in New England you have to sail downwind to go east.  So it doesn't sound like how you would describe Maine if you're like me, a land lubber.   Now let's get to the review Tourist towns are everywhere.  That's not a bad thing, but they do kind of run together.  Cute shops full of stuff I shouldn't buy, restaurants, coffee shops, candy shops, bars.  Are they any better than what you have at home?  Actually, sometimes yeah.   Portsmouth NH sticks in my mind.  They had a lot of cute, interesting shops, good and bad coffee, and bakeries.  Two very important things to me, coffee and bread.  Now you don't travel to find coffee and bread but while you're there for the history and natural beauty that permeates New England, why not?  I also love that vegetarian options are becoming more available.  For a seafood town, it was surprising.  Plus they have this awesome stat...