Merriconeag Waldorf School - May Fair - Freeport Maine

Each year the Waldorf school ushers in spring with dancing around the May pole. The teacher's go all out in their medieval dress. This year, more than ever, this rite of spring to stamp out old man winter is particularly appreciated. www.merriconeag.org

Cricket Hunt School - Founder and Head of School Michele Gilbody

"Things deemed impossible, I dare" is from a poem whose author I don't remember. This quote describes Michel perfectly because of her fulfilment of a life long dream of starting her own school. Michele is from Wells Maine. She graduated from the University of Maine in Farmington. She has 15 years of teaching experience both in public and private school settings. She began her teaching career at the Breakwater School in Portland Maine. Michele liked the way Breakwater School took the time to understand each student's learning style and match it with the appropriate instruction. Michele's teaching career thrived at the Breakwater. Michele also enjoyed several years teaching in the public schools. Eventually the calling to start her own school was too great, and she took a leap of faith to embark on "an interesting ride" as she said to start a new school. In February 2001, she bought a building and renovated it to suit the needs of her new school which she named Cricket Hunt School. By September 2001, Michele opened her doors to five students. The following year she had 15 students enrolled. Michele could qualify for the Guiness book of records for multi-tasking, here is a list of some of her roles: Head of School, Teacher, Admissions Director, Sales Rep and Janitor. Cricket Hunt School now has two locations on Main street in Freeport. Michele will have a new facility located next to Wilbur Chocolates in Freeport starting in the Fall.

Don't miss her article in Kidz 'n Maine, the May 2008 issue titled "Inspiring your child's creative and independent thinking" Click on http://www.kidznme.com/

Do yourself a favor and contact Michele to discuss your child's educational needs. She is articulate and inspiring to talk with. She is an educational entrepreneur who believes her school can make a difference in your child's education. For more information, visit Cricket Hunt School online at http://www.crickethunt.com/ or call 207-865-9696. Her school is locate just across from the Casco Street corporate headquarters of L.L. Bean.

Vanity Plates you'll see in the Freeport area

When you move to Maine or if you live here already, you will notice an increasing number of vanity plates on the Maine roads as time glides on. That is what I've noticed in the 10 years that I've lived here. I was speaking with Don Cookson who is the Communication Director for the Office of the Secretary of State in August today and he notices this trend as well. Don's communication responsibilities include the Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles. In Maine, there are a wide range of license plates to choose from including the two you see above, the Chickadee plate and the Loon (Conservation Plate) to name a few. Recently the state has added a colorful Agricultural plate with vibrant orang, red and yellow colors. Don said he will send me some statistics on the number of vanity plates owned by Maine drivers. Off the top of his head, Don thought roughly 6% or 7% of registered cars in Maine have vanity plates. Don recounted how he was at an Augusta eatery recently and out of the 25 cars in the parking lot, he estimated that 15 to 18 cars had vanity plates. For license plate fans like me, Don mentioned a USA Today article that touched upon this topic last November, and it can be found here: http://www.usatoday.com/news/offbeat/2007-11-11-vanityplates_N.htm?csp=34

Don is also amazed how many people like me are interested in low number plates. I drive a 007 car...well, if you squint your eyes the car almost looks like an Aston Martin! Just the other day I was at Town landing in Falmouth and Craig and his wife Charlotte whose license plate is simply "C" asked me how I came to be 007. I mentioned it all started after I took my boys to see the last 007 movie, Casino Royale, starring Daniel Craig as the new 007. My boys and I have seen almost all of the 007 movies. Casino Royale was released in November of 2006 and shortly thereafter I had to register my car. I knew at that time that I wanted a low number plate, so I called the Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles in Augusta and spoke with a woman who was in charge of issuing low number plates. She asked me what number I wanted. I paused for a moment because I really didn't know what low number plate I wanted. Suddenly, I said "how about 007"? She responded and said that the conservation plate 007 had just became available. I said "I'll take it". Craig and Charlotte, owners of a Chickadee "C", enjoyed the story. Craig then told me he was a 007 in the Korean war serving in a naval intelligence capacity. It just so happened that his Navy retirement number is 007007.

Now you say, who owns the Freeport plate, spelled Freeputt that I featured above? I think it belongs to someone who works at Maggie's gas station at Exit 20 in Freeport.

Patriots Day afternoon on Bradbury Mountain

My son and I had a delightful afternoon walk up Bradbury Mountain today. Upon reaching the summit, we met Dane from Corpus Christi Texas who is the "raptor" counter hired by Wild Birds of Yarmouth www.yarmouthbirds.com. I had read the Sunday Press Herald piece several weeks ago and knew that Dane would probably be on the summitt. I also was having a "mandatory fun" event with my 14 year old. There wasn't much happening in the sky during our brief visit with Dane until we were about to head back to the parking lot. As we were about to hit the trail, a pair of Osprey dove from the sky right near us in what Dane described moments later as a spring mating dance. The male was in hot pursuit of the female. Moments later, they were both enjoy circling upward in a thermal. Dane said he heard a wind noise coming from the Osprey wings due to their close proximity. So we were treated to one of the most impressive and quite up close Osprey events Dane had ever witnessed. Dane expressed how fortunate we are to live in an area such as Freeport/Pownal with such a large state park. And such a large state park that happens to on a major raptor migrating route!

Sailboat "Apres Ski" at Brewer's Marine in South Freeport

The weather is starting act like "Apres ski" with temperatures in the 60's today and into the 70's tomorrow. All of us who have lived through the winter of '07 - '08 with it's record snow fall are a bit worn out! Hope springs eternal with this kind of weather. My wife and I have watched the snow on our property make a "dramatic retreat" as the snow moves off our land and into the forest.

By hey, Sugarloaf and Sunday River Ski areas are still open for business. I'm sure there will be a few "loafers" heading to the hills for one more ski.

www.sugarloaf.com and www.sundayriver.com

Freeport's CEO Fred Reeder

Especially in a town with national name recognition like Freeport, there are huge residential and commercial development pressures to contend with. The code enforcement officer, aka CEO, plays a critical role by making sure homeowners, landowners and commercial entities abide by the zoning rules in place so that Freeport doesn't one day look like Long Island, New York.

Meet Fred Reeder who is the CEO and has been since 1986 when he relocated to Maine from Southbury Connecticut. Fred's career unfolded as follows. Upon graduation from college, Fred taught for 2 1/2 years at the Deveaureax school, a private school in CT that specializes in teaching those with special needs. Fred then transitioned from teaching to picking up an entirely different skill set. Fred had the good fortune to wind up working for reputable Southbuy builders who taught him all that is required to build a new house.

Fred, his wife and three sons migrated north to Maine in 1986 and first lived in Richmond Maine. Fred's wife's sister lived in Richmond and consequently it was a good place to be as the Reeder family learned more about their new state. Fred thought he might get back into teaching until one day he found a position open in Freeport that was a perfect fit. He applied and was offered the Code Enforcement officer position.

For the last 15 years Fred has lived in the village of Freeport. Fred and other town officials including the design review committee have worked hard to keep Freeport from looking like a homogeneous American small town with big box stores and giant signs dominating the landscape. Most recently there has been a tempest in a teapot over whether or not the Pet Pantry was in compliance with the very bold color of purple color the owners chose. Fred thoroughly researched the issue to learn that Pet Pantry didn't violate a town ordinance.

For all questions, simple or complex, visit the code enforcement officer and his staff at town hall. You can go online to learn about zoning in place for each area of Freeport. www.freeportmaine.com

The "Lilly B" Bustins Island Ferry in winter storage at Brewers South Freeport Marine

The Bustins Island ferry, Lilly B, is all wrapped up in her winter blanket perched on boat stands sitting next to the Brewers South Freeport Marine building. Brewers had a fire last week created by a massive machine installing new dock pilons for the Brewers' new dock facility. These machines drive the pilons in so fast that extreme heat can build up to become flamable. The new homeland security camera mounted on the Harbormasters office at the end of the wharf determined that arson wasn't involved. Apparently a South Freeport resident woke up at 5 o'clock in the morning to see flames on a few pilons including a barge that was ablaze. The good news is that noone was lost and all the boats at Brewers and Strout's Point were safe.

I asked Rob Taisey whose family has a longstanding connection to the island for help learning about the Lilly B history. Rob has already given me a few leads for me to pursue including Al (Eliott) Spaulding who designed the boat. He and his wife Sue are Freeporters and I understand that Sue could fill in some historical details.

Leslie Berry is the Captain and you can contact her about getting the 2008 summer ferry schedule at 207-841-4944. The Lilly B is scheduled to launch on May 15th, just about a month away.

Buck's Naked BBQ - Freeport Maine

Today is Buck's Naked BBQ's grand re-opening in the building that formerly was a Dexter shoe store off Exit 20 in Freeport right next to Maggie's gas station. I didn't have an opportunity to sample the food, but I'm very encouraged that I won't be disappointed. Whoever was hired to design the interior of the restaurant did a great job. Upon walking inside, I was reminded of the "Gladstone Smokehouse", one of my favorite places to eat barbecue in Kansas City Missouri. As many of you know, Kansas City is legendary for great barbecue in addition to great jazz. I will be eating at Buck's Naked BBQ with or without my mostly vegetarian family soon and can report back later with first hand experience.

Owner Alex Caisse, featured at the far right in the picture above, is with his awesome kitchen staff. These guys are having a blast cooking up a storm for their patrons. I took the photo at 5 o'clock today on my way home from work. The parking lot was packed which augurs well for the long term success of Buck's Naked BBQ. I didn't get a chance to meet Wendy Caisse, Alex's other partner in the business. For more information, go online at http://www.bucksnaked-bbq.com/ You can also call the restaurant at 865-0600.

North Yarmouth Saltbox - This home will take you back 100 years!

Isn't this the quintessential New England saltbox home? I never tire of looking at this house when I take the North Road from Yarmouth heading either to Pownal or New Gloucester. Today I drove by this property on my way from Merriconeag Waldorf High School at Pineland Center to Yarmouth. I'd welcome any comment from my readers on facts relating to this property e.g. builder, age of home, etc. If you have any information, click on the "comment" box and share your knowledge with me.

Bayside Boat Sales in Freeport - Steve Trenholm Owner

Steve grew up with the ocean in his back yard in the Bayside summer community near Northport Maine. While attending the University of Maine, Steve played football for four years graduating in 1977. Afterwards, Steve embarked on a career at sea as a merchant marine working on 800' to 900' tankers carrying gasoline and chemicals to Europe and to Russian Black Sea ports. If you are having a hard time imagining tankers this size, just pretend you are standing in front of the John Hancock building in Boston. Now imagine laying that building on it's side in Boston Harbor!

Steve worked at sea two months on and then was ashore for two months. To keep him occupied while on land, Steve started a part time boat sales business. He began by fixing up Boston Whalers and selling them and then moved up to selling bigger power and sail boats. Steve retired from being a merchant seaman in 1988 and has enjoyed the boat business ever since. On his boat lot, Steve has a large barn like structure which he rents out to Mike Casey. Mike has an expertise in repairing both small and large fiberglass boats. Earlier in the winter I dropped into Mike's facility and he was restoring a beautiful French built 35' Jeanneau sailboat. If I had the money, I would have hired Steve as my yacht broker and bought that boat on the spot!

Steve naturally gets alot of summer traffic going by his facility at 369 U.S. Route 1 in Freeport. He finds that boat buyers typically come to his facility well informed about what they want because of the research buyers do on the Internet. The same thing is true for home buyers. Eighty five percent of home buyers start their search on the Internet and I'm sure the same thing holds true for boat buyers. Visit Bayside Boat Sales online at http://www.baysideboatsales.com/ or Call Steve at 207-329-0094

Steve Drake in front of Merrill Auditorium in Portland Maine

My wife and I saw several Freeport couples at Merrill Auditorium on Tuesday, April 1st to see a Portland Symphony Orchestra (PSO) performance dedicated to Russian composers. As my blog profile states, I do enjoy Russian classical music because I like thunderous instrumental sounds that optimize all of the instruments in the orchestra. My favorite piece on Tuesday evening was from Rachmaninov Concerto No. 3 in D minor for Piano and Orchestra, Op. 30. Stewart Goodyear, a 26 year old native from Toronto, Canada, had the audience captivated during his piano solos. Stewart drew 3 or 4 curtain calls at the end.

For those of you who are thinking of relocating to Freeport, Merrill Auditorium is a 25 minute drive from Freeport and parts of Pownal. The auditorium is located in the back of the City Hall building across from the Portland Press Herald building. The auditorium has a classy, metropolitan look. According to Joseph Silverstein, a highly accomplished violinist and an interim music director at the PSO, the Port city has a very accomplished group of musicians and an extremely supportive music community compared to other cities the size of Portland. For ticket information call 207-842-0800 or http://www.portlandsymphony.com/

Do yourself a favor and eat at the Freeport Cafe! - Take Exit 18 off 295

Amy Gillis will make you very welcome at this fine Freeport eatery. In our 20 minute interview today, I learned some very interesting details about her career with the Maine Course Hospitality Group http://www.mchg.com/ In 1994, Amy started work at the adjacent motel next to the cafe where she did laundry at nights. From there, she worked in housekeeping and then progressed to Supervisor. She left Maine at one point in her career to work in New Orleans where she took a very challenging job working for Firestone selling oil changes door-to-door. I could relate to Amy somewhat in that her sales job with Firestone was completely commission based. If she didn't make a sale, she didn't eat. She had to learn how to speak more slowly so that the slower speaking Louisiana residents could understand her. While working her way to top salesperson for Firestone, she dealt with the rigors of reverse discrimination and sometimes sales territory that wasn't exactly prime. When she returned to Maine, she worked for a time as a massage therapist. Eventually, she accepted a job offer to work as a server at Freeport Cafe. And today, she is at the top of her game again as manager.

Amy told me that she has introduced some new ideas to Freeport Cafe which sound pretty creative. For example every Thursday night, there will be a different theme buffet. So everybody needs to get out their calendars and mark the following Thursday meal themes starting this Thursday with a Mexican fiesta buffet. Thursday April 10th is a British Isles buffet; April 17th is a Vegan buffet; followed Thursday April 24th with a Polynesian buffet; and finally on May 1st there is a Southwestern comfort food buffet.

Now that our dollars is on par with the Canadian dollar, Amy has noticed an increase in the number of Canadians eating at the Freeport Cafe. Canadians have either a two week or three week winter break during March. Things really get hopping at the restaurant just after July 4th. Amy sees more tourists and fewer locals in the high season. She'll see more locals as the weather warms up because they will have more disposable income once they aren't spending a fortune to heat their homes. Tax rebates will also be another reason to draw the local crowd.

Great spot for Bikers, Birders, Skiers, Hikers, & snowmobilers

Bradbury Mountain State Park is a jewel in Pownal located 15 minutes by car from Beans in Freeport. At the summit of this "little" mountain you can see Eagle Island in Casco Bay where Admiral Perry, the Antarctic explorer, spent his summers. There are numerous trails for hikers and mountain bikers alike. In fact, local mountain bike associations are good stewards of the park by helping to maintain trails. I enjoy heading up the quick way to the summit which is .2 miles from the parking lot. It is a great way to unwind while looking at the bucolic farmland below and seeing a slice of Casco Bay and Eagle Island in the distance. I learned from using google that Bradbury Mountain is the only state park in southern Maine to offer shared-use trails for horseback riders, mountain bikers and snowmobilers. The Pownal Land trust should be thanked for their efforts to add conserved lands that abutt Bradbury and connect to Pineland Center. Maine birding News informed me that there were 38 Bald Eagles sighted during the 2007 season. Other significant bird counts include the following: 288 Osprey; 70 Turkey Vultures; and 805 broad-winged hawks. You will want to meet my Pownal neighbors, Derek and Jeanette Lovitch who own Wild Bird Center in Yarmouth for their sponsorship of the Bradbury Mountain Hawk Watch program For more information contact Derek or Jeanette at 846-8002 or http://www.yarmouthbirds.com/

Freeporters Sharpen their WWII History - Uboats off the Maine coast!

Thanks to Belinda who works at the Freeport library, Freeporters were treated to a fantastic history lesson Wednesday evening, March 26, 2008. Mason Philip Smith, Maine photographer and book author, featured in the photo is an expert about German U-boat activity and German spy activity here in Maine as well as North America. Mason has a bookd coming out called Bold Gamble. Among the approximately 50 people who turned out was a Freeporter who captained Becuna, an American submarine. The Becuna captain began his training aboard her after the war. However, Becuna did prowl the pacific during World War II sinking several Japanese ships. Becuna is now a floating museum based in Philadelphia. To learn more about Becuna history, click the following link. http://www.phillyseaport.org/ships_becuna.shtml If you see a Maine vanity license plate with the word Becuna spelled out, you will know that you are following the captain!

Did you know that two German spies rowed ashore from U-boat 1229 on Hancock Point November 29, 1944? The two German spies were William Colepaugh and a Mr. Gimble who set off to Bangor by walking down the west side highway near Scoodic Point as they headed toward Route 1. A local woman named Mary Fournier was on her way home that evening when she saw two unusually dressed men who were definitely not from here. The Germans were dressed in top coats that were not the kind men wore here in Maine during that time. Mary notified the police shortly thereafter. Meanwhile the two Germans flagged down a taxi and headed for Union Station in Bangor. They took the train from Bangor to Union Station in Portland and then boarded a train to Boston. The Germans stayed at the Hotel Essex near north station, one of them enjoyed the company of at least two American women while in beantown. These guys made it to NYC where shortly thereafter they were picked up by the FBI.

A woman who grew up in Bath during WWII asked Mr. Smith if the rumor about a German spy infiltrating Bath Iron Works was true. He answered that that rumor was true, but fortunately he was quickly apprehended by the FBI. Mr. Smith also confirmed the rumor that a German U-boat sank what I believe was a Coast Guard Ship off the coast of Cape Elizabeth during the war. Our navy had for years held to the position that the American vessel suffered a boiler explosion. Yet just a few years ago an article in the Press Herald confirmed that it was in fact a U Boat that sank the vessel. That same U boat was later sunk by allied forces off the coast of Block Island.

Mandatory Fun for my Freeport Teens

If you have teenagers and your family lives in the Freeport area, they will ask repeatedly to be taken to the Maine Mall. As my teens don't yet drive, such a request was made to me this past Saturday. I can't stand going to the Maine Mall unless I really need something I can't buy elsewhere. So I told my kids that I needed to go see some crashing surf before taking them to the mall. Periodically, they need to be reminded that they live in an incredibly beautiful state with some of the most dramatic coastline in the country. I think they enjoyed the view for about two minutes because a northerly wind was blowing between 20 and 30 knots. As you can see from my picture, I was having a great time even though I was suffering with a nasty cold. For more information about Two Lights, go to http://maine.gov/doc/nrimc/mgs/explore/bedrock/sites/jun02.htm

Briefly Two Lights State Park is in Cape Elizabeth covering 41 acres. From the parking lot you can climb an old WWII bunker used for U-boat sightings that affords a dramatic view of crashing surf that you don't get at Winslow Park in Freeport. You are just a half mile from Crescent Beach which is a favorite beach of ours in the summer. Both of these natural treasures are located 8 miles south of Portland.

Jeremy Schneider - Manager of Freeport Starbucks

Jeremy Schneider is the manager of the Freeport Starbucks conveniently located at 49 Main Street. He is a man with many talents which include boat building skills to singing-in-a-chorus skills. When he's not working, he enjoys singing with the Chorale Arts Society which performs in Portland area churches. He volunteers for the Compass Project, a non-profit organization which helps young middle school students learn boat building skills www.compassproject.org.

A native of New York, Jeremy and his wife made the move several years ago to start a new life here in Maine. Maine felt familiar because for many years Jeremy and his wife had visited his wife's grandmother's place in Naples along the lovely shores of Long Lake. I too spent 7 terrific years at Camp Owatonna which is at the other end of Long Lake.

While in New York, Jeremy gained extensive working experience at a Starbucks there. I forgot to ask whether he is from the city or perhaps "upcountry" New York. I'm not quite sure how New Yorks refer to those who live outside of NYC. What drew Jeremy to Maine was an opportunity to work at the Landing School in Kennebunk http://www.thelandingschool.org/. He went on from there to work at Portland Yacht Services (PYS) www.portlandyacht.com which is a large boat builder and repair facility. PYS helped Bruce Schwabb several years ago build his ocean racing sailboat which enabled Bruce to be the first American to race non-stop around the world. By the way, PYS sponsors the Maine Boat builders annual March show which is held in an old turn-of-the-century warehouse on Fore Street. Jeremy left PYS to take on a large boat building project at Six Rivers Marine in North Yarmouth

While at Six Rivers Marine in North Yarmouth, Jeremy worked on completing a 42' Westmack tuna fishing boat. The hull was brought down from Eastport and completed at Six Rivers Marine. The boat owner is a avid Tuna fisherman. Jeremy did some refrigeration work, fiberglass work, and woodwork. He also helped to install the GPS system. He sprayed on the exterior fiberglass compound called gelcoat which required many hours of sanding and buffing. The Westmack has an 800 h.p. Catepiller engine.

When Jeremy and his wife bought a home in Windham, they decided to pursue careers that weren't as cyclical as boat building. So they both went to work for Starbucks stores in the Portland area. Jeremy has 17 staff members which can fluctuate between 15 and 22. Jeremy looks for staff members who have positive energy and who are engaging. The summer season brings in a stampede of tourists to a facility that isn't as large and spacious as the new Falmouth store. When the Indigo Girls came to Freeport last summer, there was a line out the front door for six hours!

Jeremy told me that Starbucks' CEO Howard Schultz has recently taken the helm of Starbucks again. The company had grown rapidly and had diversified into new business lines that took the company off the mark from its original focus. The core mission of Starbucks is a cafe environment where customers can enjoy fine coffee drinks made by baristas. A barista is an Italian term for a highly skilled coffee drink maker. Italians invented the coffee cafe concept over a 100 years ago with the advent of steam milk machines. Starbucks strives to take care of its workers. Those who put in 20 hours or more each week are eligible for "Bean Stock" which consists of a 401K plan managed by Fidelity. These same workers can also apply to purchase health care insurance as well.

In an attempt to not be too long winded, I better close with saying that Jeremy one day aspires to a saiing goal that I reached back in 1992. In 1992, I sailed across the Atlantic, from Boston to Liverpool England, on the sister ship to our Coast Guard Tall Ship "Eagle" Jeremy too would like a trans-Atlantic crossing as long as he doesn't have to do a solo crossing. Yet for now, he's very happy with his Starbuck's management position in Freeport and a terrific lifestyle here in Greater Portland!

Freeport Village Station - Ground Breaking Event

I was glad to be invited to the official ground breaking for Freeport Village Station at a historic brick building that borders the new 3.5 acre site. Once again, Rich DeGrandpre who was featured on my blog yesterday, told those gathered that this is an important historical event for the Freeport history books. I had to edge around the local TV filming crews to get this picture of Rich DeGrandpre and Governor Baldacci. This project involved the cooperation of the Town of Freeport, L.L. Bean and Berenson Associates of Boston. Opening in April 2009, this large downtown Freeport development includes several shops, restaurants and a brand new free 550 space parking garage. Signed leases for the new retail space include Nike, Calvin Klein, Van Heussen, and Geoffrey Beane. The plan presented includes architecturally designed builders that are in keeping with Freeport's zoning ordinance to preserve the historical look of the village.

When the official part of the event began, Rich spoke about the long term planning that Freeport needed to do to prepare for a future after the heyday of the town's shoe making industry. It was fun to hear Rich teased Governor Baldacci about the awful condition of Route 136 as he came into town today. Baldacci returned in kind to tell DeGrandpre that when he reaches DeGrandpre's age, the governor would like to have a neck strap to hold his eyeglasses just like the one Rich has.

Dressed in his Bean attire including his bean boots, Baldacci joked with Chris McCormick and other officials for being over dressed for digging in the dirt today. Baldacci is a bullish promoter of Maine businesses and workers both in the US and overseas. In fact, Baldacci said he just returned from a trip to Japan where he learned that there are 12 L.L. Bean stores in that country. In his brief remarks, Baldacci said tourism will always be "big business" in Maine. During our summer months, the state receives approximately 3.5 million tourists and summer people which is triple the size of our year round population. He went on to say that tourists typically think of Maine in the following order: Lobster, Lighthouses and L.L. Bean. Chris McCormick, CEO of Beans, spoke briefly of how this project will benefit Freeport by allowing more green space because existing parking near the flagship store will be converted to green space with the addition of the parking garage. (Note Rich DeGranpre and Chris McCormick are featured with their shovels in the picture above. For the Portland Press Herald's full report, go to their website at http://www.mainetoday.com/

Rich DeGrandpre - Owner of R & D Auto in Freeport Maine

Don't let this picture fool you. Rich DeGrandpre rarely stays in one place more than 30 seconds as he deftly multi-tasks at R & D Auto located on Varney Road just behind Antonia's pizza on lower Main Street. I don't know Rich very well even though we were neighbors in Freeport for just shy of one year. It wasn't that we didn't like the neighbors, we moved just over the Freeport line to Pownal so that our young kids could have more space to roam.

Rich and his right hand man Darrell seem to keep abreast of the wide range of cars that R & D services. Today when I stopped in to photograph Rich, he was trouble shooting a SUV that had radiator fluild oozing out that looked like a Starbuck's Frappachino!

Unlike other garages, when you stop in for your ailing car to be serviced, Rich will educate you about current issues he's dealing with on town council and bring you up to speed. He's also keen to know what you think as well. Rich's other job is Chairman of town council. When I dropped a car off for service the other day, Rich was out of the office handling some important political matters. When he's out of the shop, he has Darrell and three other very capable service technicians to handle the work load. Several months ago I had a conversation with a relatively new Freeporter at Merriconeag Waldorf High School. She and I were talking about car repair facilities in and around town. This person mentioned R&D as the place where she has her car serviced. I inquired how she selected R & D auto? Her reply revealed that she walked into a nearby NAPA auto parts store to ask for a recommendation for auto repair. The NAPA employee volunteered R & D in Freeport. For more information, call 865-3452.

Happy St. Patrick's Day from the Freeport YMCA

What a wonderful thing to be greeted Monday morning by this happy YMCA executive crew and feel the spirit of the Irish! From left to right Bert Zuckerman, Suzanne Nelson, Tim Stewart & Susan Snyder. Scott Krouse with the large hat is the Executive Director. Tim Stewart is on the baord.

Tim invited me to attend the 6th Annual Casco Bay YMCA Auction Saturday, March 29th from 6 to 9 p.m. Hors d'ouevres & entertainment with an Asian theme to benefit the YMCA's adaptive services program. Tickets cost $30 for a single ticket and $55 per pair. The auction will take place at Delorme Mapping down the road in Yarmouth. For more information call 865.9600

ME Boatbuilders Show - Portland Maine

If owning a classic Maine built power or sailboat is your dream, then you need to attend the Maine Boat builders show on Fore Street each year in Portland. I was happy to help my friend Tony Widmann sell or attempt to sell boat show attendees who came by the Harbor sailboat display area. You can see a sliver of the Harbor 25 behind Tony and me in this photo. The Harbor 25 is a California built boat with classic Down East Maine styled lines. After the show, the boat you see in the photo is en route to Lake Sunapee New Hampshire for delivery to it's new owner.

I've known Tony for four years. Last year Tony hired me to sell his Freeport house when he decided to relocate to Connecticut. Tony is a venerable yachtsman and a terrific guy who owns Proper Yachts: Fine Sailboats and Powerboats for Sailors http://www.proper-yachts.com/ Proper Yachts has the New York and New England distribution rights to the Harbor 20, Harbor 25, and soon to be the Harbor 30.

I met many people at the show who know me as a Realtor; consequently I had many conversations explaining that I was still in the real estate business. Saturday morning, I had a showing at a wonderful listing of mine at 72 Webster Road in Freeport. The potential buyer is from Virginia and she couldn't have been more taken with this lovely home. You can see it on http://www.realtor.com/; simply select the price range from $400k to $450k option as the home is priced at $449,900.

After the boat show, Tony took me to the Muddy Rudder in Freeport for dinner. I enjoyed hearing about Tony's illustrious business career including a few good stories about his Navy days as an officer. Officer Widmann served in the Navy during the Korean war aboard a 350' (approximate length) ship called the APD Liddle. I laughed when Tony told me that APD was jokingly referred to by the crew as the All Purpose Dog. The Liddle had served in the Pacific theatre during World War II. The Liddle survived a Kamikaze attack which tragically killed many sailors, destroying the wheelhouse and communication tower. Although it's engines were unharmed, the Liddle limped back to port in Hawaii with a manual steering device which made it difficult to manoeuvre through the heavy swells of the Pacific. The ship was moth balled after the war and then brought back to life for the Korean war. Tony was an officer with about 100 men serving under him. The ship conducted a wide range of war game missions to keep the sailors prepared for anti-submarine fire including non-explosive torpedoes that were fired at the Liddle. Tony remembered a refueling operation in the middle of the Atlantic with an aircraft carrier. During one refueling mission, the Liddle almost had a dangerous collision with the aircraft carrier when the two ships got dangerously close. As I recall from Tony's story, the captain of the Liddle
was left speechless when he saw that a collision was imminent. Fortunately, a junior executive officer took decisive corrective action which prevented the collision. The captain tried to save face with his men and tried to blame the executive officer for the near collision. Several months later the captain was forcibly removed. He apparently made regular mistakes and bad decisions.

That's it for now. As you can see I can easily ramble on with nautical intrigue.

John Chatterton - co-discovered German U-Boat - Speaks at Topsham library

Do yourself a favor and read Shadow Divers - The True Adventure of Two Americans Who Risked Everything to Solve One of the Last Mysteries of World War II by Robert Kurson. John Chatterton standing next to me along with his German American partner, Richie Kohler (not pictured here) identified what was referred to in the book as the U-Who. John spoke to over a 100 people today at the Topsham Public library about his successful commercial diving career and how it led him to spend five years and most of his savings trying to properly identify the U-who, located 60 miles off the coast of New Jersey. In my opinion, John Chatterton should be as well known in Maine and New England as Tom Brady and Bill Belichick.

I promise you that this book will appeal to you whether you are male or female. Kurson is an unbelievable story teller. I'm not an avid reader, but I was spellbound by reading this book.

I'm very glad that I read my Freeport Community Library (865-3307) March newsletter this month. I learned about the John Chatterton talk from Marie McCann who was in attendance with 5 or 6 other fans of Shadow Divers. The library had a Shdow Divers Book discussion group that evening with led by fellow Freeporters Bob Lezer and John Karp. John Karp has an extensive underwater diving and sailing background. John had several harrowing underwater tales to share, two of which were life threatening! It was fascinating to have in attendance a World War II submarine captain who gave us a window into the world of submarine life and culture. He and his wife live off Flying Point Road in Freeport. Several attendees spoke about the recent movie by Nova titled "Hitler's Lost Sub" which features John Chatterton and Richie Kohler and their discovery of U-869, the alias U-Who mentioned above, that sits on the bottom of the ocean in 230' of water.

John Chatterton (http://www.johnchatterton.com/) describes himself as a diver. He related the story of having an epiphany when he woke up from a dream in the middle of the night and got the clear message that he was to be a commercial diver. He soon enrolled in a commercial diving school in Camden New Jersy funded by the G.I. bill. His first commercial dive took place in the Port of Philadelphia in what sounded like an old fashioned dive suit and helmet with people topside controlling his air flow. John said as he descended in the murky water he immediately felt alone and quite uncomfortable. He had almost concluded that when he returned to the surface, he would get in his car and head home, leaving behind commercial diving forever. Yet the calling to be a commercial diver outweighed his initial fears. He would perform many types of work underwater including matters relating to power plants with pneumatic tools, cranes, etc.

He soon became intrigued with ship wrecks and wondered how they ended up on the bottom of the ocean. Was it a hurricane or a torpedo? John started diving deeper. He's gone as far down as 500'. The majority of divers never go beyond 130' feet. John pointed out that there is a huge difference between the simply recreational diver and the diver thirsting for real adventure. One of his first significant dives was on the Andrea Doria that sank in July of 1956 off the coast of Nantucket. There have been 13 wreck divers who have died while swimming around inside that famous wreck. There is a high probability that the divers contracted nitrogen narcosis which John describes as a diver being able to think, but unable to control the functions of his body.

Getting back to John's discovery of U-869. The submarine was built in Bremen Germany and departed somewhere after April 15, 1944. John found a gas canister on U-869 with the 4-15-1944 date. Toward the end of the war, Germany was running short on raw materials including brass tags on hatches that made it more easy for divers to identify earlier U-boats. U-869 didn't have any brass tags on the hatches and the true identity of U-Who came from the electric motor room in a box. It was in the electric motor room that John Chatterton ran out of air after a heavy metal object fell on him. Fortunately, John had brought down extra tanks secured to the outside of the sub. He quickly bolted for the outside of the sub, swimming by his bewildered partner, Richie Kohler who thought he was going mad. John told me at his talk that he never thought about the possibility of death. He said that he berated himself for not being more attentive to his oxygen supply and that he was over eager to haul out several other heavier boxes that would hopefully had the indentity tags in them.

Well, I'd better sign off so that you can go buy a copy of Shadow Divers which has sold over 1 million copies and has been translated into 21 foreign languages. To learn more about the book go to http://www.robertkurson.com/

I'm always interested to learn how people transition from one job to another. I'm fascinated to meet people like David Young pictured here who do what they love to do and know that the money will follow. David started Freeport Book Shoppe in 2001 after working as Security Director for Maine Medical Center for 20 years.

David is from Bangor who with his family moved to Greenport, Long Island where he attended high school. David wasn't a book collector at an early age. However, he told me that he read all the classics before he entered high school. He moved back to Maine and I'm guessing in his 20's he signed up for the Army reserves. He completed his reserve committed in August of 2001.

In the last few years before David left Maine Medical center, he began going to book auctions. To his credit, he has invested well in real estate; including 176 U.S. Route which is headquarters for Freeport Book Shoppe. He does have a Raymond store that is only open during the tourist season. He is a self-taught antiquarian and used book expert. I rarely goes to a book auction these days. Rather, he has "book scouts" who know what David likes to buy for his store. He considers himself a book generalist, yet David learns quite a bit from his customers and their particular interests. While I was interviewing David, a customer from Farmington Maine was eagerly browsing the shelves for early English mysteries. Apparently, this person is one of his regulars!

He estimates that he has 40,000 books available for sale at any given time. He calculates this by determining how many books on average will fit in a linear foot and multiplies that by his total available shelf space. One he visited an estate sale in Bowdoin and discovered a treasure trove of books in a huge, classic Maine barn. There were books dating back to the 1700's and 1800's. He paid the estate a fair price and loaded up what amounted to 2 pick up trucks worth of books. The books easily sold once they arrived on his Freeport shelves. David sells books for as low as a dollar all the way up to $300 for a rare book.

David is on a book finding mission for me. He is looking for a book by a German U-boat captain about his perspective on submarine fighting during World War II. As you may know from my profile, Shadow Divers by Robert Kurson is one of my favorite books. John Chatterton who is the main character in this book now lives in Harpswell Maine. Chatterton and his partner Richie Kohler discovered and properly identified U-869 as being sunk 60 miles off the New Jersey coast. U-869 had previously been thought to have sunk off the coast of Gilbralter. Even if you aren't a submarine fan, you will be spellbound by reading Shadow Divers. Check out Robert Kurson's website at www.robertkurson.com

His busy time starts when the tourists arrive on Memorial Day and goes right through the end of October. January and February business tends to be a bit slow. For David and his wife, that's a good thing. He just returned from a trip to Mexico which helps to break up the long snowy winter. For more information go online at http://www.freeportbookshoppe.com/ or call 207.865-9524

Thai Garden - featured below is Prisa, the owner and manager!

Prisa is the proud owner of Thai Garden in Freeport. Whether you are a local or a tourist, you will want to eat lunch and eat dinner here. Prisa has a fascinating story which includes immigrating to the United States and arriving in Oakland California when he was 4 years old. Prisa's family left Vientian (the capital) of Thailand because of difficult political conditions. Apparently, there is a small wealthy group of individuals that control Thailand, at least that was the case when Prisa left years ago. Prisa lived for a period of time in Elgin Illinois where his mom's sister lives. His uncle successfully started a Thai restaurant in Bar Harbor as well as in Brunswick, Maine. Bankock Garden is the Brunwick Thai restaurant which has since been sold to another owner outside the family.

Prisa is a graduate of Deering High School in Portland Maine with one and a half years of college experience. He speaks Thai fluently; although he said he really doesn't read or write the language. He and his parents became United States citizens in December 2007. He is very excited to be an American. With American passports, he and his family can now plan their first trip home to Thailand since they immigrated to the US. Odd as it seems, Prisa says he knows more about American culture and history than he does about his native Thailand.

Prisa became active at Thai Garden in 1998 and 1999 starting out with odd jobs in the kitchen. He essentially grew up with parents who worked in Thai restaurants and consequently knows the business through his parent's and his uncle's experience. Today, he owns and manages the restaurant. Because business is doing well, he has hired two very helpful and friendly waitresses, both of whom are named Jenny.

His uncle started Thai Garden 12 years ago. Then another uncle took over for several years. Then that uncle's son ran the business until ownership transferred to Prisa. Prisa has a loyal Freeport customer base including my wife and me. Prisa and his Thai staff in the kitchen work 7 days a week from 10 in the morning until 9:00 in the evening with extended summer evening hours. He is very happy with the location of his restaurant and he benefits tremendously with all the Route One summer traffic. I didn't ask if he has a website, but you can try to google Thai Garden in Freeport Maine for more information, including the phone number. Thai Garden does a substantial take-out business!

Meet Jim - Freeport DiMillo's Yact Salesman

I pulled into DiMillo's lot this fine, sunny morning and saw some pretty impressive motor yachts under winter wraps. I did manage to fix my eyes on one lonely sailboat in the 30' length range for sale that piqued my interest. I will report on that at the end of today's post.

Jim and I had lots to talk about during our nearly one hour interview. Soon after sitting down, Jim was tempting me with glossy brochures of sleek, Down East style, aka lobster boat sytled, new power yachts. In fact, I'm drooling over the Back Cove 26' and the Back Cove 29' brochures as I write. Back Cove yachts is a sister company to Sabre Motor Yachts. Back Cove yachts offers less teak and bright work; yet imprssive style and less money than a Sabre.

I told Jim that I race on a Sabre 34' sailboat named Milady; owned by Kris, a Freeport cabinet maker. Kris keeps his Sabre 34' is top condition. He also is competitive and whips his crew into great shape for the Harraseeket Yacht Club summer wednesday evening races.

Jim manages the Freeport Maine office of DiMillo's Yacht Sales. His primarily function is to focus on selling new and brokerage yacts; including, Sabre, Back Cove and Criss Craft brands. Prior to yacht sales, Jim sold surgical supplies for 10 years.

DiMillo's is highly recognized name in greater Portland because of it's long standing good reputation for fine seafood on a floating restaurant with a floating marina next door. Chris DiMillo, son of the founder of DiMillo's restaurant, launched DiMillo's Yacht Sales back in 1998. Like Jim, Chris sold surgical supplies in California just after he got out of college. When Chris' dad called him to see if he would be interested in managing a yacht sales business, Chris jumped at the opportunity to be back in Maine. However, Chris wanted DiMillo's yacht sales to be his own venture; independent of his father. You might ask if Chris has been successful? The answer is a resounding "YES". Right now DiMillo's is the number 1 Sabre Motor Yacht dealer in the world. Jim says the Sabre Motor Yact dealers in Massachusetts are green with envy about the stellar success of Portland based DiMillos Yacht Sales.

Built in South Casco Maine near Sebago Lake, Sabre states in it's advertising "At Sabre, we believe every detail in a boat should have the power to move you - not just transport you." Check out the boats at http://www.dimillos.com/ and see if you agree.

DiMillo's has four locations including Portland Maine, Freeport Maine, Freeport New York and Montauk New York. Beginning this summer, DiMillo's will have a sales office in Bar Harbor which Jim feels will be an incredible venue to sky rocket boat sales with nearby Hinkley and Morris Yacht sales offices. DiMillo's has 25 employees; eight of whom are yacht brokers. There are six service guys including a master marine electrician, marine mechanic, boat washer and service manager. I should also mentioned that I had the pleasure of meeting Graham who is the service manager.

Jim picked up on my interest in that one sailboat on his lot. Like a good salesman, he encouraged me to make an offer. And yes, even to consider financing for a 1968 Netherland's built and sort of Bristol yacht styled Complex Contest. I had never heard of the boat manufacturer but the boat's sweet lines and wood trim spoke to me and give me something to bring up with my wife this evening. Fortunately, my wife likes to sail. With 3 kids heading for college, I'm not sure it would be a wise move to follow my instincts to make an offer on the Netherland's contest!

Say Hello to Josh at the Freeport Transfer Station

You will appreciate Josh when you make your weekly trip to the Freeport transfer station. He often lends a hand if you have multiple recycling bins to empty. Josh operates the scale for those who drive a truck or haul a trailer behind their vehicle with bulky or metal waste to dispose. The scale is hooked up to a personal computer and within minutes you will know the disposal fee. Josh acknowledges what a great community Freeport is and appreciates that residents treat him nicely.

Josh is from Durham, a fine town bordering Freeport to the north. A graduate of Brunswick High School, Josh loves to snowmobile in the winter during his spare time. He especially likes to snowmobile in Rangely or Greenwood, but will ride anywhere in Maine. In the summer, his favorite outdoor activity is either saltwater or fresh water fishing.

My Brazilian born wife has had it up to here with the snow! Aruba anyone?

We who live in Maine are somewhat concerned that the snow and ice may never recede. Perhaps the new ice age just started. We'll get through this record breaking snow fall, but you should know that April school vacation is just around the corner!

My wife would love to have you book your sun-filled Caribbean, Mexican or Florida vacation at http://www.mybesttraveldeals.net/ Call Heidi at 207.688.6242 to learn more about the following Spring Break 2008 specials. There are low, low prices that include air and hotel packages for the following destinations: Acapulco, Cancun, Daytona Beach, Jamaica, Las Vegas, Los Cabos, Mazatlan, Puerto Vallarta.

Heidi's travel business is associated with YTB International, headquartered in Illinois. YTB is a company that makes it easy to start your own travel company with discount travel and tax deductions that make sense. Sign up under Heidi Drake at http://www.mybesttraveldeals.biz/ and you can immediately qualify for an 8 Day "Taste of Europe" Tour that includes France, Holland, Belgium, Luxembourg, and Germany. This all inclusive trip for new travel agents is $1,099 plus $280.00 for airport tax is available through March 31, 2008. Please note that the price is subject to increase if the dollar slides more than 3% against the Euro. Enter Tour Code ES8.

Consider an exclusive 9 Day "Taste of China" tour for new YTB travel agents. This trip will take you to Beijing, Shanghai, Suzhou, Hangzhou, Xitang and is hosted by YTB & Spring Tour International, the largest tour operator in China. Simply enter Tour code: BT9. The cost is $999 departing from Los Angeles plus airport taxes of $280.

Heidi has excellent Freeport references. One Freeport family recently experienced huge savings by booking on Heidi's travel website for a church group heading from Portland Maine to New Orleans. After exploring all other travel websites and travel agents, these particular clients were astounded at the savings they received on Heidi's travel site! Call her today at 207.688.6242.!

Mike Perrino, Principal owner of Casco Bay Yacht Sales

I don't know about you, but I'm ready for spring! Like many sailors, I love to ski; however, after February school break I'm starting to long for the lazy hazy days of summer. Today I saw the first signs of spring at the Portland In-Door Boat Show off Warren Avenue. There were rows and rows of glistening new motorboats and a few new sailboats. Under foot on the walkways, there was a comfortable, soft green astro-turf on which to leisurely walk around and visit with the boat vendors.

I was hoping to run into Mike Perrino at the show and as you can see I was successful. Mike loves the used boat business and he loves his prime Freeport location on US Route One across from Cold River Vodka. During the summer, tourists will get off 295 by the Delorme mapping store in Yarmouth and cruise up to his facility in Freeport.

Mike grew up on Great Pond in the Belgrade area of Maine and has been involved with boats his whole life. Mike majored in Forestry at the University of Maine in Orono. He become involved with Casco Bay Yacht Sales in 2005 when he decided he would pursue a career that he really loves. He has a a few service technicians working for him as well as Heidi, the woman who manages his office.

I saw a few sailboats for sale that caught my eye. He has a 33' Hunter sloop listed at $21,000 which doesn't sound bad at all for a sailboat of that size. He also has a 20' foot 1975 centerboard Balboa with a full suit of sails on a trailer (no engine) for $2,495. Visit his office at 398 US Route One or visit his online store at www.yachtworld.com/cascobay/ His toll free number is 1-877-242-3472 or the local number is 207-865-4103

Meet Clinton Swett - At Freeport Town Hall

Clinton Swett is the Assistant Freeport Town Assessor and someone you will enjoy getting to know. He is knowledgable, helpful, organized and calm amidst all the demands on his job. Clint and I spoke about his Maine roots, education and career development in his very attractive corner office at Freeport town hall. Clinttold me that there are many Maine residents with the last name of Swett just as I know that there are many Drakes located throughout Maine. His mother is from Calais and his grandfather is from the Houlton area. There is a Canadian family connection too with several family members in the Bangor area. Clinton's mother remarried a Pharmacist in the Portland area which is how Clint arrived here in southern Maine. H graduated from Portland High School, one of the oldest and prestigous urban American public school systems in the US. He attended the Pittsburgh Pennsylvania Technical School where he focused his studies in the Travel industry. He obtained his first job as a computer operator for a Research and Development firm in Columbus Ohio where he worked for 18 years. Clint and I both share work experience in computer operations back in the days when computers were large behemoths requiring special air conditioned rooms. Clint joked about working a CDC mainframe computer that was water cooled. Clint moved back to Maine in 1998 and took a job at CMP in their computer operations department. When CMP outsourced their computer operations department to New York, Clint had been working a part time job in the town of Freeport Finance department. When Lynn Anderson, the assistant assessor, left her position, Clint was a natural choice especially with his extensive and highly developed computer skills. When he is not working, he enjoys dabbling at golf. He says it is a good day on the golf course when he doesn't lose too many balls and no one gets hit by one of his shots. He and his wife love to travel, especially to Quebec City. He also loves living in Freeport and marvels that he and his wife live in a town that attracts thousands of tourists from all over the country and the world. He and his wife are within easy walking distance from their Kendall Road home to local restaurants and shopping.