Category: Living in Maine

Aroostook County, Portland, Boston Down And Back Quick Trip

The Aroostook County, Portland, Boston down and back quick trip.

Interstate 95 starts in Houlton, connects Maine with the Atlantic Canadian provinces and makes for easy traveling. This weekend Meg and I headed south to visit the oldest daughter and her husband in Boston MA. Had to check out some hardwood flooring along the way for a cottage winter rehab project. Quick swerve across the newest Twin City bridge to cross the Penobscot River without getting wet. Squeezing in the look see and the park then run in at the Brewer Mardens. To see how exactly the white oak looked all wired brushed and up close. Before ordering the flooring to be shipped to the Houlton store for the home town shopping credit. Snapped the cell phone image to relay to our local salesman Rich on just what to order from the warehouse.

Crossing In Or Out Of Maine. It’s Always Nice To Be Back In Maine.

Then throw it back into drive. Dart back across the third Bangor Brewer Maine bridge to merge with I-95 traffic and continue south to Boston, MA.

On the road again. We stayed in Portland at La Quinta Inn And Suites. The hotel staff friendly, the surroundings neat, clean, modern. Used the Uber app to flag down Jeffrey who appeared lightening fast outside the lobby to whisk us to the Old Port.

Our Uber driver carting us around the Old Port, from a small Maine town named South Baldwin. Claims he loves his job. Maybe because he is behind the wheel in Maine. Unlike many polled NYC Uber drivers that did not share Jeffrey’s passion for 10 and 2 carting folks from point A to point B. Not a one in the big apple on a recent trip said they loved their job. Half empty thinking about their employment as a personal taxi driver.

When the Boston Red Sox games are on, Jeffrey enjoys picking up and delivering his taxi fares. Providing the helpful local insider tips on what to do and where to eat suggestions. For someone brand new to Portland Maine who is traveling, the local taxi driver, your hotel desk clerk are huge valuable resources for the what is fun, where to have it suggestions. Jeffrey listed off a bunch of options of where to eat without reservations. The night before Jeffrey made 28 similar runs for passengers hitching a ride into the Old Port dining scene.

We decided spur of the moment quickly “how about an Irish pub setting” for refueling in the Old Port restaurant neighborhood.

Seems like that dining theme location is pretty popular. Because predictably made the same Irish Pub food in Bangor decision selection not too long ago covered in an earlier Penobscot Theatre blog post. So Ri Ra Pub Portland Maine the location for a delicious meal. Low lights, cozy warm fireplace, large window with the Old Port showcasing the colder side of the glass. We deep six-ed the original plan for Central Provisions on Fore Street to have dinner Friday night.

Super Irish Pub Meal Ar Ri Ra Irish Restaurant In The Old Port.

Evidently there was a fire last July that closed the Flatbread Co next door and the Ri Ra Irish Pub and Restaurant for three weeks or so. Tough time of the tourist season to have the pots cold, the door closed and lights off during damage renovations. But if you want to avoid the crowds, hit Maine in the winter. Or the shoulder season of going in or coming out of the hectic summer months to really enhance the experience.

Samantha from Augusta Maine our Ri Ra server working her way through college. Waiting tables in the Old Port restaurant expertly.

She was helpful, patient, attentive. Nothing mechanical or artificial and a real natural. For starters, the seafood chowder in the large bowl loaded with top to bottom, side to side fresh caught fish. Piping hot and big bowled for a perfect satisfaction. The boneless BBQ wings Jamison honey lathered and glazed. The perfect companion appetizer. One entree of haddock for me please. Make it salmon and asparagus with heavy lemon sauce for Meg.

While the fireplace finally made us move in one chair at the four place table from the outside to the inside. It became time for desert, are you crazy? “F” registered on the gauge for both of us so we settled the tab, added the tip. Bundled up to head outside. Fresh air, night stars, the harbor sights and sounds in Portland’s Old Port more enjoyable because not so many had the same idea. It’s like can you imagine the Magic Kingdom with just you, your family and only the Disney characters and no endless attraction lines on vacation? No parent upset because Jimmy or Suzie has to hit the bathroom because it is taking so long to inch along in the back and forth lines. Maine is like that when you need the all to yourself peace and quiet spacing.

Walking up, then down Commercial Street in the Maine’s Old Port is more enjoyable when the sidewalk is not shoulder to shoulder marching in step with other tourists.

Hungry? In The Old Port In Portland Maine?

It’s quiet, less traffic on the street too. No so dangerous to cross to see what you missed on the other side as you stroll. Maine vacation hot spots become more personal, the business owners available to talk and share when the temperature drops. The tourist traps suddenly are returned to smaller numbers to serve that is more sane, less hubbub. You get more attention and I think the servers are happier in winter. Not pushed so hard.

If you have only come to Maine in the summer months, Vacationland has three other seasons to sample. It only requires just a slight adjustment in your wardrobe. The shoulder seasons and winter especially makes your trip to Maine more personal with your servers no so rushed for time. No one staring in the lobby with sharp dagger icy glances aimed at you to say would you please hurry it up BUB? Because they want your table bad.

Meg and I had to get up early to continue the southern trek across the big green bridge. Heading south into New Hampshire Granite state, then the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to arrive in Boston MA.

We stopped just in time for Karaoke at the Commercial Street Pub. No, no singing of Johnny Cash’s Ring Of Fire for me or Walking After Midnight or Crazy like Patsy Cline for Meg on the open mike. But interesting conversation from a lady about

Places To Eat In The Old Port, One To Check Out Is Ri Ra.

to turn 60 who’s daughter was the bar keep. The next to the oldest of thirteen kids who grew up and remained in Portland Maine had an interesting and hard life. Meg the social worker felt right at home.

Hit the Uber app again for Stephen this time on the back haul return run to the La Quinta Inn And Suites hotel.

Nice price, no valet tips and parking fees and only 2.3 miles from the Old Port. When you are just passing through and not spending the extra money to be camped out in the Old Port, this place for the lay your head in the bed works well. Super hot and varied items at breakfast the next morning. It save timed and got us back on the turnpike after gassing up and snaking through a car wash to remove “The County” road salt. Arrived in Boston around noon time all rested and anxious to see the oldest child.

Let’s eat… so the four of us drove to a Mexican restaurant in Jamaica Plain MA called Chilacates Centre St.

All the walking around during the day prior to that works up an appetite. You always sample the local food too much when traveling right?

Hot, Spicy, Fresh. All Mexican Ingredients And Staffing. Chilacates Centre Street Food South Of The Border.

All the walking around during the day prior to that works up an appetite.

That night we eat at an Indian food restaurant called Tikki Masala. The food at both superb, served by the staff from the country the cuisine originated each session. You felt like you stepped into Mexico for lunch, India for dinner. Not bacon burgers or onion rings or chicken nuggets but real McCoy Mexican and Indian cuisine. Ordered in Spanish for lunch with a buzz of Spanish chatter and laughter in the busy kitchen above. The Indian food restaurant owner of where we ate dinner after sunset took us by both hands to thank us for eating at his establishment. Nice touch when you can meet the owner and express your gratitude.

The trip down and back over a weekend from Maine to Portland then Boston was not just about eating.

Plenty of grazing did happen this past weekend. Diets put on hold. But we had a mission at IKEA out in Stoughton MA too. That place is huge and don’t plan to drop in and race out like a pit stop at Wally World. The cafeteria tells you a big part if not all of your day is going to be spent following the floor arrows. To slowly move with the customers through each department like immigrants. Not planning to buy much but you always do.

The tramping has to be broken up and pace yourself like it’s a marathon run. Most we saw at IKEA were young couples with low to the ground, pint size families in tow.

Big Store, Takes Time To Tour. IKEA in Stoughton MA.

Looking for furniture, the kind you have to have the patience to build. Or the extra dough to hire it done if you do not feel like the assembly DIY exercise. Trying out bunk beds, opening and shutting kitchen demo displays, sitting in chairs eyes glassing over from too much shopping. You find what you want then head to the warehouse which can chew up a considerable amount of time too. Great expanse to walk and walk some more leaning on a cart. The dollar ice cream and large hot dogs the same price are a crowd and hunger pleaser at IKEA while you shop til you drop for furniture, bedding, rugs, lighting, plumbing, anything.

Also got some exercise earlier walking around the Aboretum of Harvard University.

281 Acre Arnold Arboretum In Jamaica Plain MA

The size of nearly 300 acres in one section, an old farm donated to be kept forever wild like Maine’s Mt Katahdin at Baxter Park is neat. Lots of flowers, trees and the level to rolling terrain lets you go over hill and dale. Up gravel paths, down granite steps like . Water running in the streams, lots of display information on where you are now in the walking tour. Signage to explain what exactly this vegetation is, what country it originates from on the globe.

You can spend the good part of the day walking and enjoying incredible open space where you can take a break. Forgetting you live in or are just visiting the Boston area. In Maine, we don’t have to create the open space. She is vast and sparsely populated, under developed. But in populated urban areas space is limited and even more precious.

Here are some images below from the walk around the Arnold Aboretum that is open every day of the year and no charge but donations gladly accepted.

Young families, joggers, bench sitters who are reading or talking… you don’t see a lot of people but there sure is plenty of plant life to study. If I lived in the Jamaica Plain MA area, I would use the Arnold Aboretum with daily visits for exercise and the mental health sense of natural space which recharges.

The quick Aroostook County, Portland, Boston down and back quick trip.

Where To Walk, Where There Is Space, Trails, Roadways For Bikes, Rest Benches To Reflect. … The Arnold Arboretum.

All Kinds Of Trees To Learn About. Plants Too Researched.

Open To The Public But Be Respectful. Clean Up After Your Pet, Watch Your Kids & Carry In, Carry Out.

Study The Layout, Visited Daily. The Arnold Aboretum.

Hear The Water, Plenty Of Open Space And Fresh Air Just Like Maine.

What You See And Hear For Birds.

Don’t ever think we are isolated or removed from the rest of the World living in rural Maine.

It is nice to take short trips into Canada or down into other parts of the Maine or into New England states. To hit a sports team game or musical concert event. Or maybe a historical event in Boston MA or let’s go to a show, the aquarium or museum, a book store. But it’s always a big glad sign of relief. To cross the big green bridge crossing the Piscataquis River to be back in Maine. We hit Augusta for an Applebee’s snack on the trip driving north on Sunday.

We Visit With Oldest Daughter, Her Husband, Little Paco The Dog.

Also stopped into the Maine Tourist Information Center in Hampden for a nature call. And to mix work and pleasure to do some detective work on some marketing material.

Making sure out Maine real estate brochures were in place and well stocked in the display case.

They were front and center and ready for pick up by traveling tourists. Making the same Interstate 95 and 295 road trip. Lots of snow sled trailers headed north because there sure was no snow in Boston, very little in Portland Maine. And the forecast this week for fifty degrees and sunshine spring like conditions. Until Thursday when five to eight inches of snow is predicted in Maine.

When your kids live local in Maine you see them a lot.

When the zip code is a lot different than the one you use, you travel to stay connected. In Boston you quickly notice how tightly nestled the housing is. The lack of space means fencing everything in around you is a popular survival skill. And the open space there is becomes so treasured to offset the high priced real estate and lack of land wrapped around the housing units.

Next up is a trip to Colorado to see son number one who is high up in Leadville. Will get lots of ski and dog sled team photography.

Stay tuned for future blog posts about that trip with words and imagery. As always, thank you for following our Me In Maine blog posts.

Just thought sharing what we did this weekend might be interesting to read.

Down to a Red Sox, Bruins, Patriots game or some other sporting or music event trips happen when you live way up here in Maine. Six hours from Bean Town. We do travel. We don’t want to leave Maine but we are not parked here all the time either. This time it was the Aroostook County, Portland, Boston down and back quick trip that filled the blog post hunt and peck writing exercise. I am sure if you live in Lewiston Auburn, in York or Cumberland Counties in Maine the trips to bright lights, big city of Boston where the tea party was occur more than central or northern residents take. But where I live hitting Baxter state park, accessing the Allagash Wilderness Waterway can happen easily and often. Venturing to Quebec City, Prince Edward Island or Nova Scotia is easier when you develop the travel bug and feel antsy. Always thinking of something interesting to share and post about life in Maine, Canada, New England.

I’m Maine REALTOR Andrew Mooers, ME Broker

207.532.6573 | info@mooersrealty.com |

MOOERS REALTY 69 North ST Houlton ME 04730 USA

February 24, 2020
Small Town Newspapers In Maine | Local Is Everything

Small town newspapers in Maine where local is everything.

More Wildlife Than People To Read The Local Small Town Newspaper In Maine. Bambi Does Not Pay An Annual Subscription For His News.

The local newspaper used to be the only way to learn what’s happening. What’s important in a small Maine town makes the approach to the newsprint layout different than the urban method. In small town Maine, there are no gangs, no drive by shootings. Not eighteen car accident pile ups and local weather is a big news item. So are local town elections and school or zoning board rulings. The local hospital in Maine does not have or need a trauma center for gunshot wound treatment.

The level of advertising income to salt and pepper the local community news. That’s another factor in how thick the latest newspaper installment becomes for area readers. What you pay per column inch is low because so is the population readership. Here is a list of Maine newspapers.

Some Maine newspapers are daily, some weekly.

Over the last forty years I have prepared local real estate ads for the weekly paper in my small home town of Houlton. The Aroostook Times published from 1857 to 1916 had a rival newspaper publication called The Aroostook Pioneer. the two newspapers merged to make one viable local voice to keep local readers informed on their community. This blog posted an article on early local radio and television stations in Maine.

Before the Internet, the interstate, small Maine towns were pretty self contained.

You worked locally, spent most of your money in the confines of the local town boundaries. Railroads helped open up commerce by supply the small Maine towns with goods and service work was done by local residents from the community. Passenger trains helped move the locals back and forth from out of town destinations. Telegrams came in to make sure twitter size announcements. Stop. Western Union wired money back and forth when a loved one was stranded, thrown in the hokey crow bar hotel. Where local dances were for the week. Public suppers were huge news you did not want to miss.

The only social media was what you picked up down at the local Grange hall. Or at the grocery store pushing the squeaky wheel wire cart with one wheel that had a mind of its own. Stopping to exchange news with other familiar shoppers. More news gathered by your partner with the window rolled down talking with the shopper you met inside’s other half. Sitting out in the Main Street parked car location waiting for the weeks groceries and the scuttlebutt of news to leave the store. Or local current news gathered while in the swivel pump up chair, getting your hair clipped or styled. You could get quite an earful of local news just like down at the local grain mill or hardware store picking up supplies.

Telephone operators and party lines were another news leak that might be reliable but dependent on the short term memory and number of how many people used in the round robin news gathering.

Recreational News, Anything Outdoors Is Covered In Small Town Newspapers In Maine.

Some passing on the local community news were hard of hearing and missed vital facts or recalled the news snippet with an agenda filtering. Even the local small town Maine newspaper editors were known for printing the news as they saw fit. Slightly colored, spiced with editorial spirit to increase readership subscriptions. The newsprint produced made it obvious where their political leanings supported on various local, state and even national issues. For the most part, it was all about the local news events.

Birth announcements, who died this week to take their turn in the obituary section of the small Maine newspaper. Who had a tea and who was there. What they wore described as if it was a royal wedding. Painting the picture for the locals who love a story that is close to home. Out of town guests, who they were, what the folks did while they had company all important stuff to readers in a small Maine town. What was served for food and even the dining on the open front porch location all part of the local news. The string of non-paid but eager to write community reporters from out in the far reaching areas of the circulation. The announcements on job promotions from out of town children of local residents filled the small town Maine newspaper columns too.

Who won the small town in Maine local spelling bee is front page and who’s son or daughter do you suppose that is Martha pondered.

Opening up the fresh folded hot off the local press newspaper edition in a small Maine town. Where is there a dance this week and who is calling the rounds or which band is playing live. Before television, folks were travel to the entertainment that was live and local. There was always a series of dances for all ages… out at the lake, at the VFW hall, in a hotel. There were no franchise motels and boarding homes were plentiful. Folks working on the railroad, in the woods or on the farms traveled into town from sparse unpopulated areas of their Maine county location. Working your room and board as a student attending school because where your family lived there was only so far you could go in the one room set up. Where the older ones helped the younger students.

Honor rolls, local police report on barking dog disturbances. There some newsprint set aside to report about the a grass fire that got a little out of hand when the wind came up last Monday. Which local Maine fire departments responded to the local blaze last week. If it is new reported after the last weekly newspaper came out it is still worthy news for this next edition. Maybe there is more known from local sources to add to the earlier reports doubling back to report the story developments.

Advertisements for jobs, the fine print of bankruptcy or foreclosure notices, the odds and ends for sale in a small Maine town.

Who has a vacancy in an apartment coming up and needing to be filled with a quality renter. That’s in there too. Local service providers with a business card size ad or a sale flyer insertion for buy one, get one free. What’s the price per pound for chicken legs or various cuts of beef down at the local Superette or Foodliner this week. In small Maine towns, there is not much for other competing media outlets to spread the news. Like a Paul Revere clopping through the back streets handing out handbills, the local newspaper delivery boy took over the task. Milk men made home deliveries too and picked up the glass empties. He had eggs, other dairy products to peddle in the door to door in a small Maine town.

Local Eye Candy, The Talent. It’s The Outdoor Settings And Wildlife We Enjoy.

The fifteen, twenty five or more years ago today rehash of what was going on in earlier newspaper stories.

Those have a corner spot just like the funnies too. Who’s away in the service and wouldn’t Ernie or Cliff appreciate a letter from home the editor reminds. Would you try to send them a little something for home made goodies and a heart felt note from the small Maine town to cheer them up? To know you appreciate their service in the armed forces and being away during the approaching holiday. Small town Maine newspapers shared the joy and pain and the awareness is greater. Now small local newspapers are combining with others in the same economic restraints of rising print production costs, the declining readership to be one strong viable County voice in Maine.

Anything local to print that would only be of interest to someone living in the small Maine town or with a connection to it.

Part of the small Maine town newspaper readership has always been from outside the geographic boundaries of it. On the mailing list to be kept in the local news circle with the newspaper arriving a few days late but still pertinent. To keep up with the small home town in Maine happenings… like a serial television show sequel. Small town local newspapers also produced letterhead, printed materials like wedding or birth announcements to keep their presses rolling.

ME Lighthouses Are Part Of The Attraction. So Is Local News That’s All Small Town Home Grown, Grass Roots.

Today with social media, the you are there instantly happens with anyone that has thumbs to type. Or a cell phone camera to whip out to capture the still image or local happening video loop. You and I are suddenly eye witness news gathers and reporters. The local population is the cub reporter in small town Maine. The small Maine newspaper that only publishes daily or weekly without a website can only feed the readership at set times. With technological advances, the small radio station can now stream video to deliver the local sporting events. Digital sub-channels on the carrier frequency broadcast other offerings in HD streams.

The Miss Aroostook Diner. Where People Used To Eat And Gather News. “What Did You Hear Down At Breakfast Coffee Ed?” The Black And Whites Bring Back A Flood Of Local Memories. Nostalgic Old Local Images Pull On Heartstrings Hard With Old Cars, Wardrobes, Small Town Mom And Pop Business Free Enterprise Operations Recalled.

I remember in the 1970’s and the FM stations worked at using a sub channel for Muzak.

Had to change the large reel to reels used to motivate the workers on the other end of the wireless signal. Depending on the time of day, what was played changed to be like a jolt of slow drip audio coffee. Used to tickle the ears to stimulate and make the mundane chore not drag quite so much. No no, that would hurt production efficiency. The Muzak subscription before XM and other music services feeding all the local banks, dentist offices and local grocery stores. The filler to avoid dead air did not have to be elevator music or clarinets of the big band era either. Dial in the background mood needed to the restaurant surround systems. Then watch the toes tap, smiles while the menu is studied or waitress is a tad delayed but it matters less.

The media outlet institution of today is branching out to do more than the one medium always utilized to deliver the message or information. If they want to stay viable and make the leap from analog to digital. My job as a Maine real estate broker is more than listing properties. It is being the local insider with community knowledge that can share that advantage of being here in Maine to someone that never was. Like when on vacation you ask for directions, where’s the best fish dinner in town or how do you get to the water slides, local matters.

Local small Maine town newspapers list the school lunch menu.

No more worrying about are we having bubble and squeak or stewed tomatoes, liver and onions. Or maybe it’s pigs in a blanket on the school lunch menu highlighted at area schools like it is a competition. It’s the default pizza or chicken nuggets everyday, maybe a salad bar.

Slower Paced, Important Topics Closer To Home In Small Town Maine Newspapers. Covering Lake Ice Out Contest Or Fishing Derby Results.

Or time to bring a homemade bag lunch from home if time allows and you have the ingredients for something custom made. To have it your way with homemade bread, extra layers of smoked turkey or veggie sticks with the ranch dip. Topped off with a devil’s eye date filled or molasses cookie or two. Carefully wrapped up with loving hands to make sure it stay fresh not dried out by lunch time consumption.

The small town newspapers in Maine have gotten thinner. Advertising dollars get poured into other methods to make impressions.

To captivate customers that have a call to action built in to make the advertising dollars well spent. Media information is pinging all around us. The small newspapers are merging and being absorbed to avoid duplication of services to increase efficiency critical to survival. Our low population makes a media buy of a small radio, television or newspaper still the old Maine broadcasting expression … “a dollar a holler” for a advertising spot. Print is not dead, just used in conjunction with other media options in advertising campaigns today.

You need someone that has lived in these parts for some time to add perspective, know the history and being able to relay it quick and efficiently. The small local Maine newspaper was the town crier. But as the editorial decisions on what’s front page, which stories to cover and in what depth are moved further from the community a disconnect occurs. The live and local aspect gets diminished.

Whatever delivered hopefully with friendly humor or a tad of entertainment using local expressions is what the small town in Maine local newspaper did deliver so well.

But as the ad revenue drops off, the increases in layoffs of writers and other support staff follows to belt tighten. The local newspaper turned county regional publication has watered down and not so just local. The deputized local column reporter for a local town aged out and was not replaced. Today, everything has to be entertaining, fed with the teaspoon of sugar to keep the attention and to go down easy. People’s life are too jam packed for anything else right? Less are chewing up full books and the term reading the newspaper means scanning the headlines. Like they are a bullet list of what you need to know today or this week. You need an analysis to tell you what the news coverage talking heads just said in case you missed it.

The yesteryear images of a small but bustling, vibrant small Maine town shot in black and white are nostalgic.

There are a number of Maine publications that just regurgitate the old images from the newspaper back room files. The old cars, wardrobe from earlier times and shots of buildings in the background of the small Maine town now long gone due to fire or progress have an audience. Aerial shots from farm properties in Maine back when every small town had lots of independent family agriculture enterprises are a popular item for stories. And for whoever now owns the property that may be missing some of the farm buildings, the big barn or open wrap around porch. But shot from the air during a good farming year road after road before the invention of drones with cameras are neat images to add to the blog post, the magazine article or newspaper article revisit to yesterday for their readership.

Thank you for reading our Me In Maine blog post about small town newspapers in Maine. The what is happening to them as they dwindle or get bought and pulled under larger media umbrella ownership. What is delivered means small independent bloggers are a source to turn to for the local community lifestyle and news events in the Maine area surroundings.

I’m Maine REALTOR Andrew Mooers, ME Broker

207.532.6573 | info@mooersrealty.com |

MOOERS REALTY 69 North ST Houlton ME 04730 USA

February 18, 2020
The Trip To Bangor Maine When You Live In Aroostook County

The quick down and back trip to Bangor Maine when you live in Aroostook County.

Maine is a big state. When you live here, the exploring it in bits and pieces small bites is enjoyable. Living full time based in Northern Maine, taking a little mad dash escape south out of Aroostook County is a treat.

Interstate 95 Traveling To Bangor In The Winter. Roads Bare, Plowing Done Right For Clear Sailing.

The length of time you are away is not so important. What you do in say Bangor Maine is not either. Could be a sporting event, shopping, picking someone up at the airport, or passing through to points further south. But just a change of scenery and getting on Interstate 95 to head to a little more populated area of Maine does a body and soul good. Small rural Maine living is peaceful but the cobwebs from house bound cabin fever take their mental toll during the winter months.

Keep Your Eyes Peeled For Deer, Maine Moose. They Like The Roadside Salt Used To Melt Highway Ice.

Before I-95 was clear cut and the highway added to the landscape, US RT 2A was the “Bangor Road”.

You’ve maybe heard the country classic song about all those truckers buried up in Maine along that cold, lonely stretch of highway through the Haynesville Woods? If you look close, there is a tombstone every mile according to the Fort Fairfield county boy who penned and sang the song wearing the patch over one eye.

This weekend, Meg and I climbed into the car, buckled up to zip down to Bangor Maine from Aroostook County.

A pair of tickets in hand with a bar code to scan to see the Penobscot Theatre live stage production of Don’t Dress For Dinner. Sitting close to the front in the center aisle section for one very good live community production perch. And after the show on the stage up the hill, then wandering down to Paddy Murphy’s Pub at the bottom. Study the menu and time for a bite to eat in Bangor Maine.

In a few past play runs to see a show in Bangor from Aroostook County I rented a 15 passenger van from Wayne’s Auto for the day. To take the local community actors group down to the Penobscot Theatre. The popular place to eat for that crew was the Happy China Buffet. It was not eat and run and when the crab legs make their entry, other delicacies were all expertly predicted by regulars who knew the routine.

Good Food, Easy Prices, Friendly Staff And Setting. Paddy Murphy’s Bangor Maine Near Penobscot Theatre In The Downtown.

Both of us lived in the Bangor Maine area when attending the University of Maine at the Orono campus.

We can share stories of renting an apartment at University Park even though each of us lived there at different times in our life. That’s why we both enjoy the quick trip to Bangor Maine from Aroostook County that is always fun. Done around the year when the schedule can be opened up to nail it down for let’s head to Bangor Maine.

Lights, Sound, Cell Phones Off. Another Penobscot Theatre Production Opens In Bangor Maine.

Pretty familiar surroundings and my brother Stephen lived in Bangor Maine most of his life… born there, died there.

He was a big advocate of affordable housing in the Bangor Maine area working at Penquis CAP. Even if your family’s combined household income is pretty low, as a kid Stephen thought you should still be proud of where you live. Growing up in a housing project does not have to be a blighted or negative experience Stephen reasoned your surroundings treated with respect.

Opening Music Act For Jerry Lee Lewis When He Rocked The Bangor Auditorium.

Miss you Stephen B Mooers. He played the keyboard ivories and sang in lots of local Bangor Maine bands as a part time nights and weekends gig. His most popular Bangor music band probably “Bootleg” that played at local bottle clubs.

Bootleg opened for Jerry Lee Lewis as the warm up act when “The Killer” came to the Bangor Auditorium to entertain the music crowd who could get a limited ticket.

Brother Stephen’s music therapy as much for him as the patrons. He reminded the dancers I know some of you are going through hard times, it’s been a bitch of a week. But forget all that, leave it at the door. And for the next two or three hours let’s just shimmy and shake.

The instructions for everyone to fun laughing, dancing, slurping some favorite concoction. And more importantly don’t forget to tip your waitress who is working her heart out to make sure like the band members that you have one memorable time.

If you have never lived in Maine during the winter it is so easy to think the worse about what it must be like.

Tall snow banks, howling winds, all alone house bound and hibernation come to mind. When nothing could be further from the truth. Maine winters are a time when we get outside to play in the white stuff. Just like the other three seasons.

We dress to match the temperatures of the day in Maine. More or less layers happens. The highway department does a cracker jack job of clearing the roads. Big side wings direct the snow back to pave the way for moving around on open roads. No fear of being stranded, no reason not to take a quick trip south to see how the rest of the state lives. The trip to Bangor Maine from Aroostook County because of I-95 is very doable and affordable.

Stayed overnight at the Bangor Airport. No, not stranded sleeping on the terminal floor homeless many miles from home and hungry.

Going Somewhere? BIA Is There To Whisk You Away By Air In Bangor Maine.

But not climbing on a silver bird to go anywhere this time either. The Priceline price for Bangor Maine lodging picked just right for the Four Points Sheraton. Bangor International Airport is not that busy with round the clock flights where it will keep you awake at night.

Walked around a few stores Sunday, hit Home Depot to dream about household projects and get some ideas.

Spent way way too long in lighting. Too many choices when used to a small town Maine hardware store for selection of just a couple that work just fine.

Picked up a few children clothes items for the precious grand daughter who just turned one today and lives local where she is enjoyed so much.

Hit BAM for perusing books and magazines. Those usually help inspire the next Me In Maine blog topic in some shape or form.

The trip to Bangor Maine from Aroostook County via Interstate 95 is quick and painless.

Cruise control for 75 mph and sit back, turn up the tunes and zing. Next thing you know you are on top of the Hogan Road exit heading down from Aroostook County.

Where to eat, what to sample, washed the car, jiffy lube changed the oil and fueled up to head back to “The County”. The one day down, next day back mini-vacations are great for a change up of the setting during a Maine winter.

The Maine high school vacation week is approaching. The Maine basketball, hockey tournaments for the eastern, western, state title are on the line. No doubt will be making another abbreviated get away trip to Bangor Maine for a short return visit to hoot and holler for the home town team.

When we were kids, the potato picking money earned out in the Aroostook County farm fields was ear marked for the school clothes.

The ones needed to look neat and clean and to be warm heading into a Maine winter. You take better care of what you buy with your own money. You stretch those hard earned dollars too. We always bought locally whatever there was for selection. But when a store did not have something locally, it was fair game to get the best deal you could to find. To maximize your potato picking money down in the woo hoo big city of Bangor Maine.

The return from Bangor Maine on Interstate 95 as dark sets in and the row of red tail lights ahead are folks that just did the same down and back trek.

Who are now weaving their way north too from Penobscot up into Aroostook County. Less than a two hour trip from Bangor to Houlton and add on another pair of 60 minutes driving segments if you go all the way to the top, the Crown of Maine.

Tourists, in Winter The Snowmobiliers Flock To Use The ITS Maine Snow Sled Trails. Over 14,000 Of Them To Enjoy Helps The Economy.

The St John River Valley is two more hours up US Rt 1 or the back way RT 11. Heading up Interstate 95 after a trip out of state or just down to Bangor or Portland, there is nothing like seeing one sign. It always makes me smile and sign in relief.

The exit for Benedicta Maine which only got one northbound signals you are in Aroostook County Chummy.

Like the Hotel California, you can enter but never get on I-95 in Benedicta Maine to leave. Check in any time you like but you can never leave. Or just not without hitting RT 11 further north and then boomerang ricochet maneuver using the Sherman south bound exit to get back on I-95. Benedicta Maine, still waiting for the south bound exit to get constructed when the DOT highway folks finally allocate the funds to do the job.

When you see the Benedicta Maine interstate sign, you know you are back in “The County” of Aroostook. Maine, come for a day and end up staying a life time. It happens easily when she grabs you by the heartstrings and just won’t let go in her playful four seasons ways. Maine is big, beautiful.

How Much Snow Did We Get Last Night? Check The Bottom Of The Maine Home Back Door.

Lots of Canadian vehicle plates on the cars and trucks you see on the highways of Maine.

We are related to most of them if you took the time to go back through the family DNA. Plenty of snow sled trailers being pulled up and down the Maine pike too. Come on up, lots of snow to play in. It’s a winter wonderland play ground.

Traveling to Bangor Maine from Aroostook County! We do it a lot! Maine is Vacationland. Southern New England, Portland and Lewiston area snowmobilers flock to Northern Maine when the conditions are right to hit the ITS trails. Ice fishing in Northern Maine is big just like downhill and cross country skiing is too. Thank you for following our blog posts on living in Maine.

I’m Maine REALTOR Andrew Mooers, ME Broker

207.532.6573 | info@mooersrealty.com |

MOOERS REALTY 69 North ST Houlton Maine 04730 USA

February 11, 2020
Maine Blog Posts

Maine blog posts don’t need a sea of words to relay worthwhile information.

In fact, images of Maine, videos of local Maine events can do the heavy lifting. Both easily relay what is it like living in Vacationland. Here are some images of Maine that I think do a pretty good job relaying the day to day experience. To transport you to Maine and to get a small taste of what is it like living here full time. Maine four season living offers lots of eye candy to share if you carry a camera and leave the safety off to bag and tag the imagery.

Farmer To Farmer MOFGA Meeting. Young And Old Farmers Compare Notes. Maine Organic Agriculture Is Big!

Heading To Church. Amish Mass Transit In Maine. Not Quite Bumper To Bumper Traffic Drive Time.

Clear Crisp Air. Moon Lighting Up A Small Maine Town.

Summer Concerts, Small ME Town Outdoor Music Events Always Well Attended By All Ages Who Hum, Sing, Toe Tap.

Float Your Boat, Living The Life In Maine. Water, The Kind On The Maine Coast. Lakes, Ponds, River Variety.

Dressed In White Snow Caps. Mt Katahdin At A Different Angle And Season Always Impresses.

Hang On, Get Sprayed, Rushing Through Maine’s Penobscot River Rapids.

Maine Is Vast. The Woods, Water, People Are Real. Mainers Are Outdoors Year Round. Just Dress For The Season.

Young Holstein Dairy Calf Says Hello From Maine Farmstead. Black, White, Pink And Brand New.

Something Unique From Maine. Local Artists And Crafts People Peddle Home Made Wares At Maine Fairs.

Picture Perfect Weather For A Small Maine Town 4th Of July Parade!

Waiting For Spring. The Maine Farm Pony Can Sense Spring Is Approaching.

Portland Head Lighthouse. She’s Actually In Cape Elizabeth Not Portland Maine. Maine Has Over 60 Lighthouses!

And videos on living in Maine. Show and tell, sample the local small town flavor. Visit with locals, be at Maine small town events.

Don’t those work best for the show and tell of the flavor of living in Maine? Roll the Maine video.

Better throw in a few Maine community videos into the media mix while we are building the newest blog post entry today.

Thank you for stopping by loyal Maine blog post follower.

The Wedding Cake House In Kennebunkport Maine Gets Camera Shot A Lot.

Past blog posts that might be useful today. Please send us a line, hit us up on social media circles you frequent so we can connect.

Ask lots of questions because everyone benefits from those. Many out in the audience are thinking the same thing.

We all need some information on the Maine topic that sharing with others produces. Please and thank you. Chime in. Be part of the Maine discussion using our Me In Maine blog channel.

Maine is small town living, a handful of cities.

She is one big and beautiful sixteen counties to explore and return to through out your lifetime. Maine is lots more than the four color tourist vacation brochures show case.

What do you like best about the state of Maine? Always looking for Maine blog post topics to mine and develop to keep it fresh and helpful. Hope this Maine photo and video highlight adds to the hunt and peck media stream we put online for blog posts.

I’m Maine REALTOR Andrew Mooers, ME Broker

207.532.6573 | info@mooersrealty.com |

MOOERS REALTY 69 North ST Houlton ME 04730 USA

February 3, 2020
Maine Bees Busy Pollinating Vacationland

Maine bees, the busy buzz pollinating benefits to flower enthusiasts and vegetable farming.

There are over 270 native Maine bee species in the state. Honey bees are not native to Maine and European settlers introduced them to what is now affectionately dubbed “Vacationland”.

Outdoor Flower Arrangements. The Best Kind For All To See. For Maine Bees To Enjoy Too!

Honey bees, bumble bees and roughly 4000 solitary bee populations reside in Maine and are some kind of busy.

Making the rounds, these bees pollinate agricultural crops, vegetable and flower garden plots. All plants found in the wilds of Maine fields and woodlands. The Maine pasture field clover, daisies, black eyed susans, lupines and Indian paint brush wildflowers. All those wild flowers get a shot in the arm from Maine bees making their daily rounds.

Parasitic mites reduced the Maine honey bee populations by twenty five percent. Pesticides, herbicides, insecticides used incorrectly have further threatened the bee population so important to local Maine farming pollination.

Bees pollinating Maine farm crops and producing honey and wax is an important state endeavor.

Like The Mail Man Or UPS Gal, Making Lots Of Stops. Maine Bees Are BUZZZ-sy.

This University of Maine Cooperative Extensive Bee bulletin outlines why bees are so important. Also your Maine property can be made more inviting to the bee population and to increase pollination activity. Read more on how to make your yard more bee friendly.

The work of Maine bees helps others out in the natural wildlife setting too.

Flowering plants, shrubs and trees create seeds and fruit, vegetables for other wildlife to live. In their daily flights, bees, birds, hummingbirds, dragon flies, butterflies and moths all help distribute the important pollen around the Mane plant population.

I was always told as a kid by my parents, older brothers bees don’t want to sting you and just leave them alone.

The fuzzy bumble bee dressed like a Boston Bruin hockey player trapped and buzzing in the rear car

Attracting Maine Bees, Inviting Them To Your Flower Beds.

window of a parked vehicle when you are little can make getting away from them a little harder. Fear to happen. But respect and helping them get out of a building, a vehicle instead of using spray or something else to kill them was something I was taught growing up on a Maine farm. We needed Maine bees. They like the potato beetle that ate an aphid that was no good was our friend!

Planting a mix of flower shapes knowing bees have different size tongues, using perennials that bloom yearly is not a bad approach to encouraging pollination, honey production of the sweet nectar.

Hand broadcast those meadow in a can flower seed collections. Scientists report bees like best vegetation loaded with blue, yellow, purple flowers. Lots of hand broadcast wild flowers with these colors and

Maine Honey Bees, Bumble Bees, Lots Of Buzz Flying Around Rural Maine.

planted in abundance will help assure visits from bees that do so much good to the Maine environment.

More from the USDA Natural Conservation Service education and funding to promote farmer help for pollinators like Maine bees are.

They report one of our every three mouthful bites of food in this country are thanks to the work honey bee pollinators do.

Learn more about honey bees and their benefits spreading pollen to fertilize other plants, for collecting nectar.

Here’s another video that shows even more up close and personal what Maine honey bee do each day and why.

You have a whole new level of respect for Maine bee pollination and how they can transport up to a third their weight in their busy day.

To take the bee pollen trapped on their body and to carry the honey nectar nibbling on flowers and loaded it up for the quick trip back to the bee hive.

The Maine State Bee Keepers Association established in Maine back in 1976.

Get social. Like the Maine State Bee Keepers Association Facebook page. And Google “Maine Bees“.

What’s All The Buzz? Eye Candy And Bee Honey Extraction.

Sometimes it is good not to mind your bees wax.

Growing up on a Maine farm, with potato blossoms to pollinate and a Mom who had three different flower gardens, bees were around our family. The white and purple potato flowers with the bright yellow, hard to miss parts were popular with the local bee population.

The apple orchard, rhubarb patch, the strawberry and corn fields all depended on the Maine bee visits.

The all natural honey sweetness is better for you than sugar. The health benefits of pure Maine bee honey was known and it was part of our medicine cabinet along with cold liver oil, coke syrup, salt water for soaking wherever we were sore. Lots of other simple ailment remedies to get us back on our feet used growing up on a Maine farm up in Aroostook County.

More on the health benefits of Maine honey. The antioxidants help lower high blood pressure, diabetics are cheerleaders of Maine bee honey too.

Are you fan of Maine honey and the bees that produce it?

Maine Farm Fields Buzzing With Bees Collecting Nectar, Pollinating The Acreage.

Before we know it, the birds, bees in Maine spring will be active as the season changes.

Maine bees. Pure and all natural honey from Maine. Is it a big part of your daily life in what you eat, in how your protect as a good Maine stewards of the land? Do you think about protecting Maine bees and their natural habitat? Like the song birds, the Maine bees would be missed greatly if their buzz was gone. Thank you for stopping by the Maine blog post to bone up on your knowledge of Maine bees.

I’m Maine REALTOR Andrew Mooers, ME Broker

207.532.6573 | info@mooersrealty.com |

MOOERS REALTY 69 North ST Houlton ME 04730 USA

January 27, 2020
Maine Winters, The Shoveling And Snow Plowing Under Control

Maine winter weather shoveling, snow plowing means watch and prepare for what’s in the forecast.

Except the open winters where a drought of the white stuff happens. For those in the blog post audience with no Maine winter experience, the wrong conclusion. It is easy to think no snow, warmer temperatures right?

Horses Waiting For Grain, An Apple Or Carrot. Winter Winds Down Slowly In Maine.

Don’t the two go hand in hand?

No snow can mean little precipitation combined with low frigid temperatures.

Your open, snow-less winters are the coldest and the outdoor recreation takes a hit. Less snow plowing and shoveling work outs.

But hard to down hill or cross country ski without the snow flakes piling up on the open ground. Good luck snow sledding without a blanket of white to lubricate the track slides and to steer with the carbide ski runners.

Snow is a house insulator believe it or not.

Those snow banks up against your Maine home foundation help protect it from the wind. Open winters with no snow means certain recreation increases. Ice fishing if temperatures stay at or below the freezing mark long enough keeps things chill. The winters with pretty much zip or too little snow make the other Maine outdoor sports kick it up a notch. Often we have the snow. Then lose it all due to an early spring thaw like weather pattern. Warm temperatures turn snow like Frosty to water that runs into the lakes, rivers, streams.

More bonfires, hot chocolate and spirited Maine ice skating pond hockey games in Maine open winters.

Ice fishing derbies to drilled the hole to open up the lake below angling. The ice arenas around that state

Hang On, Celebrate Winter in Maine. That’s What Moosestompers Is All About.

of Maine get higher hockey game attendance if the team is winning more than they are tying or losing games chasing the black circle.

In my small hometown of Houlton Maine, the first weekend in February is always Moose Stompers Weekend.

Waiting For Ice, For The Snow After That Signalling Maine Winter Has Arrived.

A celebration of winter started up at Loring Air Force Base in Limestone and re-ignited by town manager at the time Alan Bean.

Bean was the Loring air base colonel who mothballed the B-52 facility and applied the locks on the chain link perimeter fencing.

When how to handle and hopefully deter a nuclear war strategy changed. As the new weaponry came along and a change in the political winds happened. That suddenly reduced Northern Maine’s population roughly ten thousand service men and women calling Limestone, Caswell, Connor Plantation and other surrounding Aroostook County towns their home sweet home.

Moosestompers Weekend, January 31st through February 2nd 2020.

This one the 24th installment in my home town of Houlton Maine. I’ve worn the moose outfit that makes you slow, blind and hot. But climbing up the sliding hill and watching the snowmobile and horse drawn sleigh rides is family fun. We don’t hibernate and get out to celebrate Maine winter’s magic.

Watch a Moosestompers Maine Winter Celebration video.

But back to winter weather and how those not living in Maine wonder how and why do we do it.

When you wake up and overnight a new fresh fluffy layer of snow surrounds your yard and accumulates on your porches and in your drive and walk ways. We don’t feel marooned or stranded. We are prepared for winter, have experience removing it and driving on the plowed and sanded roadways. Put on the winter coat, zip it up high and grab your mittens and snow boots. Like everyone else in the neighborhood, the operation to clear the yard of snow begins in earnest. Watch a snow storm video that shows the process of how we in Maine deal with a storm.

Snow shoveling is a great work out employing upper and lower back especially.

Plus your abs, quads, shoulders and other muscles get to take part in the snow shoveling. White fluffy snow is balanced on the shovel load after load. The older, higher water content settling snow can be sliced into with the end of the shovel.

Maine Moose Tip Toeing Across Lake Ice. Hope Nothing Starts Cracking Under Those 4 Hooves.

Carving out the chunk you want to release from the snow bank. The one you can handle size wise and balance as you slide under and carry or toss it to where it needs to go. Easy on too heavy and lifting / twisting to avoid injury. Like lifting, the right way using your legs. Do the same with the shovel loads of snow when it is time to heave ho and here we go.

Snow in Maine, shoveling it is a great aerobic exercise.

Maybe more than you like with back to back snow storms but the satisfaction of a cleared walk and driveway couples with the calorie burns. How many calories does shoveling snow really chew up? Experts calculate 200 calories every 30 minutes is what snow shoveling causes inside your system.

Like most things in life, slow and steady is the pace to set shoveling snow.

Have the right length and size shovel matched to the operator. The kids pitch in and their smaller shovel size loads still add up as a family attacks and rearranges where the new snow goes. Snow scoops that slide and push under larger deep sections of snow are effective on driveways and hauled up ladders for long flat commercial roofs. A small storm of a couple inches or less can be handled easily with a snow scoop taking systematic runs. You will sleep better tonight with all that inhaled fresh Maine air. Trust me.

Singing Or Howlin’ Together. The Sound In Winter The Animals Make When Cornered. Heavy Snow Load Affect The Maine Wildlife.

Even the family dog plays in the new snow and the banks packed into place by the snow blowers and plows becomes the backyard fort. The snow tunnel dug out with shovel, hands and feet for the kid’s new play room.

Outdoor fresh air in Maine.

That will improve the appetite. No matter what age, everyone gets a healthy dose clearing the new snow and playing with it in it a variety of ways.

Pick up trucks marauding the small Maine in town streets, back road ways with blinking and revolving orange roof lights.

Their yellow, red and stainless steel snow plow blades angled and ready to drop and push the banks. The beep beep of backing up pay loaders and larger commercial truck mount snow blowers working their magic. Moving the snow out of the driveway and pushing it to the back of the in-town lot or well away from your country home and out buildings.

The big bucket machinery brought in at ninety dollars and up an hour to make short work of relocating large snow banks that become rock solid and more than an F150 can handle.

The industrial snow blowers and trucks with big wings cut through the heaviest of snow loads with ease. The snow plowing video above illustrates what a small Maine town looks like during and after a storm. How quickly it digs out and resumes to business as usual with a systematic snow removal attitude.

Slowly Fixed And The Land Worked To Feed The Family. Welcome To Maine!

Snow plowing with old worn out pick ups create a constant source of mechanical breakdowns when you need them the most. Snow plowing is hard on truck universal joints, electrical systems and all that picking up speed to ram and clear to push to make the banks.

If you are looking for an excuse to buy a new four wheel drive pickup with the plow and all the bells and whistles. Go for it.

Knock yourself out and convince the wife you need one. But every Tom, Dick and Harry in Maine has a plow or a cousin with one. For what it costs to plow out a driveway in my area, hire it done can make the more economic sense. But some love snow plowing. My Dad did.

His Benny Goodman, Artie Shaw, Count Basie or Glenn Miller cassette tape adding a music beat lowering the plow and pushing the Maine snow.

Your Little Brown Jug, In The Mood, etc with brass horns, clarinets and World War Two era dance music filling the pick up cab. As the 1999 Dodge four wheel drive pickup with now just turned 13,000 miles on the odometer continuing the snow plowing tradition around our Maine family farm property.

Snow plowing in Maine, those who have never done it think we are crazy.

Playful And In And Out Of The Long Open Winter Cold Lake Water. Otters Entertain!

But we live in a Northern tier state not unlike Michigan, New York, Wisconsin and the others along the Canadian border. Just like many of us are slaves to very big and long grassed lawns kept manicure with once or twice a week mowing rituals.

Snow plowing is in our blood and in Maine there are places like New Sweden, Stockholm, Denmark Maine with folks from those area of the World where snow is common place.

Don’t stay away and sample Maine in winter.

Come on up! Because the white snow makes all the difference in your Vacationland experience. Maine winter, we know how to handle the snow and it is a big part of our recreation and lifestyle.

I’m Maine REALTOR Andrew Mooers, ME Broker

207.532.6573 | info@mooersrealty.com |

MOOERS REALTY 69 North ST Houlton ME 04730 USA

January 21, 2020