The Inn at Long Lake

Rakey, Rakey, Stanley, Stackey...

Transitioning from an Innkeeper to other work has been a bit more complex to me than one might think.

Serving all of you (and countless others) was, truly, a dream come true for this New England boy. When you're the boss and, then, needed to work for others has ushered in some disconcerting (and epic) failures/life lessons.

One of the responses I've chosen (after my emotions settled a wee bit) was evoking my Property Services business called "The Property Butler." My accounts are primarily commercial cleaning gigs at present. I enjoy the same work (basically) that I did at the Inn for guests...just now, I don't have an $8,000/month lurking behind my back anymore.

Another (weirdly new in my life) skill that I discovered that I possess is wood stacking. Maybe it was all the arts & crafts and puzzles I did as a young boy, but there is something very cool about this type of project.

Here in Maine, many people (including me with a farmhouse with no heating system) heat with wood. I've stacked wood for both some neighbors and myself for winter preparedness. As the year wanes into the gorgeous Autumn of the Northeast, the smell of wood coming from neighborhood chimneys is an annual tradition sublime in its sensory goodness.

I'll wrap this up with some wisdom: Never underestimate the newness found when life peels back the layers of you! You are meant to reveal aspects of yourself...and, as you discover yourself, you will be delighted with yourself. Yes....even if you need some practice, more information, and a chat with your former beliefs about all you can do and learn may be necessary in that process.

That's all from Western Maine.

"COOKING INN STYLE"...LRTV COOKING Series BLOOPER #86

We were a low-budget, public access TV series. I wanted to empower my local Western Maine neighbors to try homecooking.

My Director had 2 missions: One was to add more original programming. The second was to shake me down while filming with his off-color humor.

This one (during my Mother's Day episode with own Mom) involved a lapse in what I was making and a bowl of white powder.
"Is this baking powder or baking soda, Ma?"

A voice from behind one of the cameras says "It's Co***ne!"

I lost it laughing, of course! My Mom did, too. We tagged it on the end of the episode. 😁