Do Yourself a Favor

It’s a PERFECT day to be out of doors. The sun hasn’t begun to appear over the horizon yet; it’s that special time between night and dawn, where just the outlines of the mountains and trees are visible against a pale blue, crystal clear sky. You can see your breath and smell the wild earthiness of the leaves, although it’s not yet light enough to see their colors. I love this time of day and experience it every morning, although I must say the days are no longer ‘hinting’ about getting shorter ... they are yelling it!  This ‘special’ time of day is coming later and later, and you sit up now and take notice.  It's -1 with windchill at the moment on Mount Washington, but it may reach 50 degrees 'down' here at the 2000' elevation this afternoon, perfect for fall at the ‘old time country’ Fryeburg Fair. Now I’m not a ‘crowd’ person so I’ve never been to the Fryeburg Fair, although my husband, kids and just about everyone I know enjoy it each season. It is a wonderful old-fashioned fair, complete with skillet throws, pig catching, log splitting and horse-pulling contests, blue ribbons, demonstrations, etc. (and that’s just the tip of the iceberg). I always seem to have to work the hardest during Fair week, as that is our busiest time here at The Lodge. While the fair is great, my idea of a rousing good time is taking my journal, a sketch pad, a good book and maybe my recorder with a book of music into the woods, and to make an afternoon of it by myself with a thermos of tea and only the birds and the wildlife for company. (I'm not antisocial or anything ... its just my antidote to being in the hospitality business surrounded by people!).  During my jaunts, a brook is always nearby, and a big rock, one of those glacial erratics that dot the hills and vales in the White Mountains. Today is the perfect day to be out amongst them, and now you know it, too, but so does half of the world, many of whom will be flocking to this part of New Hampshire for the next few days for the Columbus Day weekend. What many of them don’t know, is that this is THE busiest weekend of the year in these parts. It will be my 6^th year as an innkeeper, and the crazed frenzy of people trying to find a room on the Saturday night of Columbus Day weekend reaches a fevered pitch. So here’s some advice: If you don’t already have a reservation, stay home! Do not come up thinking that you will book a room once you get here … ‘it ain’t gonna happen’! I’ve tried to console people who were tired and in tears, desperate to find a place to sleep.  People have offered me insane amounts of money to sleep in a closet or the living room or the parking lot (there just weren't any parking places left!), and ended having to drive most of the way back to New York before they found a place to sleep. Tip of the Day: There isn’t a hotel room to be had within a 100 mile radius tonight.  If you must come this weekend, bring your sleeping bag, food & water, and plan on camping out in your car!