Additional Lubec Views
While the rest of the eastern coastline of the USA is experiencing �real� spring weather and conditions, Maine has its own special season in April. It�s not winter, but it�s not spring. Lubec residents can expect at least one large snow storm and temperatures usually are in the 20s and 30s. Crocuses peek out of the ground, but are surprised by several inches of snow. The snow plows are still in use by the town, and individual small businessmen are looking for a driveways to be cleared. Surprisingly a handful of days replicate a true spring experience. Sunlight can be intense and temperatures might reach 65 degrees. Residents are lulled into a false sense of warmth. Foolish newcomers to the coast mention the word �summer� while those who have lived in eastern Maine for years, smirk and know the truth. Spring comes the second or third week in May, and is often referred to as �mud season�. Never, repeat, never plan to plant your seedlings in the garden until after Memorial Day. Such is the Maine tradition of spring.
April Story #1� Lubec IS a Quiet Town�: In mid-April, I visited a local acquaintance to deliver some papers. His small cottage is surrounded by a six-foot high fence. Two days of 50s temperatures made a wonderful excuse to get outside and hand delivery that which could have been sent by an e-mail. When I push open the back fence gate, I found Jeff, his wife and young son, leaning up against the back of their house staring out, beyond their small backyard into puckerbrush field. At first I thought they were sunbathing. After a few cordial comments, I noticed that their intense stares were undiminished. Handing him the papers, my curiosity got the best of me, and I asked what was it that had their complete attention. Without a beat, he responded that they were �watching the laundry drying.� Sure enough, I had completely overlooked the clothes on the line swaying in the coastal breeze, at the edge of the puckerbrush field. There might not be a lot to do in April, but some activities are inspired by the first hint of spring.
April Story #2 �No Anonymity in This town�: When arranging over the phone for a Easter floral arrangement, Lubec�s florist described the arrangements available and price ranges. I provided the person�s name the flowers were to be delivered to, her address and the message on the enclosed card, �Spring is coming, Love Clarrisa and Bob�. I told the florist that I would drive over and give her a check. She thanked me and started to hang up. I quickly stopped her and asked if I needed to give my full name, or if did she have caller-ID to identify me? No caller-ID on her line. Of course she knew who I was. Her explanation was, �You haven�t lived in a small town very long have you?� Obviously, in a town as small as Lubec, all new-residents are known by the locals quickly, especially by the local business people.
April Story #3 �Twilight Zone Experience�: The last week of April necessitated a trip to St. Stevens, Canada across the border from Calais ME. It was a fast hour drive on a bright sunny day. The temperature was in the 70s. This warmth might not seem unusual to out-a-staters, but the preceding days and nights were in the twenties, and we had had a small snow storm the week before. We were returning to Lubec in the afternoon, with our windows open with no jackets needed. Since we had purchased a new truck the preceding November, my husband suggested that we turn on the air conditioner and see if it worked, which we did. It worked quickly and the truck compartment lost its spring warmth. As we marveled at the cool air and bright sunshine outside, we drove by Long Lake, a typical Maine lake surround by leafless tress and unopened summer cottages. What was ironic about the experience, was that the lake was still iced over. No one would dare drive their vehicles across the ice, as they would have a month earlier, but the ice was still there. Here we were in an air-conditioned truck, 70 degrees outside, and enjoying the view of a winter scene out the side windows. Maine�s like that in April.
APRIL HUMOR
With this in mind, one comes to appreciate the smiles that result from �a wicked-good� story derived from DownEast April experiences which contain a large dollop of irony. These three stories happened this year and illustrate the point.
