See how our thoughts of the barn seep into our every day lives!
So we've had the first sign that small town living can be tricky. A neighbor would like to build something on his property which interferes with our deed. He is a reasonable and kind man and came over to discuss the possibility of us changing the deed to accommodate. It is not a crazy request but it also will definitely impact our property and the property of other neighbors. We talked to some folks around the streets and have decided we are going to say no thanks. gulp. Not fun. Tougher being tough when you aren't surrounded by lions.
The previous owners seemed to be really great people. We don't have total details but at one point they owned many many acres and gave away or sold for a pittance many of the acres and outbuildings to friends and other neighbors. They put deeds in place so the beauty and rural feel of the land could still be maintained even as they subdivided it. It is right in town but really feels private and quiet. Just perfect. Ok, we are definitely going to the barn this weekend. I am starting to daydream. :-)
We love all kinds of music but truth be told i really love to get my folk on and what better place then in the Adirondacks. While I search for a player to embed in the blog, here are some favorites:
Not only do we live in Manhattan, we live in probably the nuttiest place to live in Manhattan. It's midtown, not really a neighborhood, essentially Times Square. Surrounded by lots of business folks and tourists, the kind of tourists who never leave...Times Square. The silver lining is as "business folks", Joe and I can walk to most business meetings and are a short subway ride from all. The other silver lining is that we are walking distance to lots of fantastic arts venues, Central Park, and museums. (Of course the biggest silver lining is that our move here from Chelsea reduced our rent so much that we could buy a barn and still have money left over).
Today, we woke up and went over to Moma (7 blocks). We spent a few leisurely hours seeing the new exhibits. (here's today's favorites ) and then grabbed some Asian for lunch. The boys and I then headed over to the ginormous Times Square movie theater to watch National Treasure (thumbs up) while Joe popped into office to get some work done. We are now watching the presidential debates, Clarke is jamming on his guitar, while we enjoy some tropical weather by our blasting heat -unregulated - with 50 degree temperatures outside. All in all a great day. And last week, we were stoking the wood fire in our fuzzy slippers. It's schizophrenic. As is obvious, the upside is a deep appreciation for both and a mandate to make the most of our lucky living situation. But it's weird.
The last thing I want is the lame country/city cliche "the people are nice but I miss the sushi". There are amazing people, arts, intellectual stimulation, and food (of course) everywhere. But there are things that are not replicatable (if that's a word) in both places. For instance, I don't know if we can continue our careers, which we both like, upstate. Also for instance, I don't think I could possibly replicate our stress levels from the city anywhere else. The stress levels here are truly monumental. So which is more important?
I'll get up from the couch now. Thank you doctor. Will you send me the bill?
This is NOT a resolution list. Serious, life changing decisions don't come at year end but it's a good time for task lists.
Sometimes a dog comes along that, though not an Adirondack resident, truly embraces the spirit of the Adirondacks. During break, we had the honor to host Sebastian, (or "Sebaby") the Bower family beloved mutt. Who cares if he may not be brave enough to stare down a cat. Who cares that he may not be a canine rocket scientist? He romped in the snow and had brunch at the compost bin, lounged by the woodstove, and collapsed into a submissive rub position if you even looked at him - all components of a great Barn Dog of the Month. The pup is all heart and he loves his life.
The 10 days at the barn were heaven. It snowed virtually every day. We skied 5 days, had some family down time, had a rocking time with my sister Ann, Doug, and the "Bower boys", Connor-16 (thanks for the blogging), Colin- 13 and Cormac -10. An impromptu party arose as we drank way too much wine with Linnae and Sandy and ended the night at Casa Del Sol.... We saw our friends Tess and Linda and Rick from NYC and met some new Saranac Lake/Manhattan residents for dinner at Caribbean Cowboy. Joe and I snow-shoed ( after Casa Del Sol). The boys found new ways to tempt the fates by sledding down a new steeper hill that shot them off a rock. We had a brief visit with Joe's dad and enjoyed some nice catching up before he headed back down to civilization. Oscar and Cormac discovered their mutual love of Monopoly and Annie and I are hoping they will fund our retirements with this business acumen. Our neighbors stopped over and we enjoyed the fruits of Joanne's baking. Our house was in constant chaos and never seemed cozier. We tried to be grateful for every last minute.
Yesterday was truly depressing as we headed back to the city. We kept putting off the inevitable, not leaving the house until almost 6pm. Joe is usually quite sage about these transitions but even he admitted it was getting very difficult to leave these days. We have to get serious about how to make this our permanent home.
