Sailing the open seas

Today was another exciting day in the weekend. The three of us went down to the docks to check out the Puffin and Whale Watching boat that started its seasonal tours this weekend. Joe and I were pleasantly surprised to find out that the rumors we had heard are true: we get to go on the $50+ tour for free with a pay stub showing that we're working residents of Bar Harbor. This means we can take the three hour boat trip any time we want! We got ourselves onboard and bundled up for the windy journey. We went out to a small island that houses the second tallest lighthouse in Maine where we ran into some puffins--you can just barely make them out in one of the pictures. After the island, we headed out to open waters where we floated around a bit, looking for whales. But alas, we were not so lucky as to find any. It's still early in the season though, so the whales still haven't all migrated up here yet. Thankfully they have a policy of no whale=voucher, so Joe's mom can go on another boat the next time she comes out to visit.











It was really great to be out on the open water, albeit quite cold. It was the first time I seriously thought about the fact that I'm living in a vacation spot. The majority of the people in town are coming off of one of the cruise ships that dock in town or else coming in from a long trip form somewhere else, all to see the town and the park and the scenery that we get to enjoy everyday. Each meal we cook could cost over $20 at a restaurant and we can cook it for about $10 or less. We can go out boat tours and sunset cruises for free just for having a job in town. We've even been told that restaurants around town will give you a "local discount" just for being a local. I'm going to have to work on not taking for granted the fantastic surroundings I now inhabit.

To go off of that, we took a trip to the farmer's market on Sunday, and I was rather surprised at what we found. There wasn't much produce apart from lettuce, but when you consider the fact that it's just barely summer here, that's not surprising. There was, however, a selection of plants, including herbs--which I bought a number of and planted in some pots at home...something I've always always always wanted to do! We also found a large variety of fresh meats, fresh milk, yogurt, cheese, jams, preserves, maple syrup, and bread, as well as a variety of other goodies. I'm already excited to see what the summer brings in!

And on yet another note...I finished my work training last week and will be starting my first official day in the office tomorrow. I'm officially an ad designer! And I must admit that throughout my training, I was surprised at how comfortable I felt with everything they threw at me. U of M did me well and I'm kind of excited to get my own desk and get started. I get my own desk, and best of all, I get benefits with my job too--one of the best things to be able to earn as an artist these days!