Irving has a subscription to the Maine Antique Digest. He used to pick them up freely distributed when we'd poke into New Hampshire antique shops over the years taking breaks from our mountain hiking expeditions. It's a quality magazine, with excellent well-researched articles and photographs of antiques at auction and plenty of advertisements that pique our interest. And would have even more so back in the days when we were free to travel for hiking holidays in the White Mountains. We'd done so for many years and loved every one of those trips.

 

 

It's hard to say, coming into our 85th year, whether we'll resume that long drive and the fuss associated with packing, unpacking, re-packing and caring for two little dogs to ensure their safety and comfort during semi-annual one-week trips where we'd rent a housekeeping cottage in the Waterville Valley and re-visit all our old hiking haunts.

 

 

We had first started out that tradition many years ago when our children were in their pre-, early-teens and beyond, introducing them and ourselves to the exhilaration and pleasures involved in mountain climbing. Those side-trips to antique shops were Irving's special indulgence. He looked for affordable, authentic 19th Century paintings and over the years amassed quite a few to hang on our walls.

 

 

The global pandemic changed a lot of peoples' habits. Impacting everyday life in a multitude of ways as well as the ability to move about freely in-country and on foreign trips. Receiving that monthly magazine was another way to 'keep in touch' with what was happening on the art and antiques market. We firmly believe, from our experiences in awaiting those posted magazines, that the U.S. postal service seriously delivers. Canada Post, not so much.

 

 

There are times when an issue is late, times when one never makes it to arrival. The August issue was one of them. So after waiting three weeks and nothing in our mailbox, Irving called their office, spoke to the helpful receptionist who assured him she would send out another. It wasn't the first time this happened. The September issue, she told him, had already been dispatched. A week later, there was a package in the mailbox with a note from Canada Post, apologizing that the 'enclosed' had been damaged by them so they had placed it in a large manila envelope for safety sake and sent it on.

 

 

When Irving opened the package there was a note from the sympathetic receptionist who said she was aware we'd been experiencing difficulties with postal delivery at our end, so she sent along both a replacement August issue and the following September issue. And there they were. The original, missing August issue has never arrived, and nor has the September one, so we were fortunate she was so thoughtful. Our postal service is sub-par, unfortunately. The postie who services our group mailbox is notorious for placing people's mail in the wrong slot...and they mysteriously disappear.

 

 

It's hard to believe we felt as though we were melting from the heat and humidity only two days ago in a prolonged heat wave. Yesterday we were greeted with relief when a cold front arrived. And today it's cooler still, at 19C and no humidity, but a cold wind. And the threat of rain under heavily grey-streaked skies. When we arose in the morning it was raining. When it stopped in early afternoon out we went for our usual plunge into the ravine and our forays through the forested trails.

 

Although we wore rainjackets on the chance it would rain again since the forecast was for ongoing rain and the possibility of thunderstorms, we needed them for comfort from the cold, not to shield us from rain, as it happened. And nor did we have to whip out Jackie and Jillie's little raincoats in a downpour.