away

Off to Maine. Back in a week.

long ago when we still had sunny days

edges

thwarted

Back before the rainy season took hold, a few weeks ago, David and I decided to go canoeing on the Concord River.
He went to get the canoe that hangs upside down in the barn and came back shaking his head.
There would be no paddling that day. Our canoe had become a rookery. In fact someone was about to take her first flight!
She stared at us as her parents flew frantically back and forth above us. We left them in peace. When we returned the next day, the babies were gone.

Lonesome Lake Hut

Well, I'm home for a 3-day stint for my first set of much-needed days off.  For the past 2+ weeks, I have been working hard launching my third summer in the huts, this time as hutmaster of Lonesome Lake Hut in Franconia Notch.  Things are off to a promising start, and despite low guest counts, my 6-person crew is enjoying the mountains and each other.  Here is a handful of photos to paint a picture for far-away folks and perhaps inspire a visit sometime in the next few months... I'd love to see any and all!

Sending love,

Eliza

sunday

I don't know how I can do justice to the event at Concord Bookshop yesterday.
I meant to take more pictures but I was so riveted by John's talk and so
busy talking to people before and afterward that I forgot about photos!

The place was packed. Standing room only. People had come from as far away as Summit, NJ, Manchester, NH, Rhode Island and all over Massachusetts. There were friends from elementary school, middle school, Andover and Harvard, many of whom John had not seen in decades. Mrs. Corby and Susie (in the photo below with me) were next door neighbors and dear family friends in Summit.

John spoke for over an hour, and read passages from the book. People around me were barely breathing, they were so captivated by what he had to say. After the talk, he signed all the books that were piled up next to him on the table and then the store employee brought out another stack and he signed those also. People bought multiple copies for family and friends. According to The Sunday Boston Globe, Loon is the sixth best selling hardcover nonfiction book in New England, and that was BEFORE this event!

But the number of books sold is not the point. I know it's interesting and affirming to look at the numbers. This book has already accomplished great things. For the soldiers who fought at LZ Loon, they can know the story has finally been told. Their families can at last begin to understand the horrors endured, descriptions of which never made it into the letters home. Old friends have been given a way to reconnect. Former teachers are reaching out to John, so sorry to have been out of touch all these years. Our family has certainly been brought closer because of it. Hands across the water. I am in awe of all the communications John has received from people he knows and from people he has never met. This book has been a lightning rod and a vehicle for healing and connection. That alone is monumental.

Never doubt the power of the written word.

author, author!

reminder!

Tomorrow June 14th is the day the great up and coming author Jack McLean will be speaking and signing books at Concord Bookshop in Concord, Massachusetts. 3:00 pm. See you there!

cape

Cape Cod is the go to place for many Massachusetts vacationers. "Goin' down the Cape" is the answer I overhear at the grocery store when the person in front of me in line is asked about their weekend plans.

The ocean beach is dramatic, the bay is lovely but I prefer the ponds on the outer cape. We visited David's Aunt Florence Phillips last weekend at the camp that David's Uncle Jack built over sixty years ago, long before there was a National Seashore. In those days the Cape was considered a mosquito infested sand bar. A family friend left the land to Jack on his 21st birthday. He built a simple camp on a pond. When David was 18, Jack hired him to help him build a studio and some small one story houses. Over the years Jack sold off parcels of land to support himself. Today, the small descrete cottages that dot the woods situated on a series of ponds are the result of those transactions. Nothing has changed.

As you take the short walk through the woods, you begin to hear the roar of the ocean. The sandy path through low scrubby trees brings you to the top of a forty foot sand dune. The only way to get down is to traverse it at an angle. The beach was deserted last weekend except for nesting terns. We had a wild windy walk on the beach but I was glad to get back to the solitude of the pond.

Tim and Carrie goofing off in San Fran

Hello everyone- My summer break is ending Monday when I go back to Seeds of Peace to work as a facilitator but I've been doing very little and taking it easy for 3 weeks and feeling carefree. Though I'd send along some photos of Tim and me goofing off in the Bay area where we went over Memorial Day weekend for a wedding of Tim's best friend from the Peace Corps. Love to all, c 

WRBC radio/death by beets

Friday mornings will never be the same. At 8:45 am every Friday since January, I have lifted the lid of my laptop, clicked on the iTunes icon to find WRBC, the Bates College radio station. If I heard "Robo DJ", I would know that the show was successfully 'streaming' beyond greater Lewiston, Maine. I'd make a cup of tea and settle into a chair waiting to hear the early morning slightly sleepy voices of the radio hosts, Maddie McLean and Eliza McLean O'Neil.

Around 8:02 am, I'd hear the lilting greeting; "Good Morning...." which marked the start of the show. And so the riff would begin. First they announced the theme of the day which dictated what music would be played, what commentary would be offered and EVEN what the hosts would be wearing. Eliza and Maddie dressed to match the theme. We had to just believe them and try to imagine the banana outfit for the food show, the woven bamboo dress for the environmental awareness show, the tutu for the dance show, the bikinis for the 'all about summer' show and yes, the side pony tails and oversized sweatshirts over stirrup pants for the 80's show.

Each week we the listeners were asked to call in requests for songs that fit the theme.
Transportation? "Baby You Can Drive My Car", The Environment? "Paved Paradise, Put Up a Parking Lot", Food? "Wild Honey", Summer? "Summer Nights" I heard new songs and jotted them down so I would remember them. I heard oldies I had forgotten.

Our skilled hosts did station identification, Public Service Announcements, answered the phones, played calming music to wake us gently during the first hour then blasted us during the second hour to get us energized for the weekend. Most of all, they conversed in the privacy of the basement studio on Fry Street and we listened from as far away as Hong Kong, Davis, California, LA, Evergreen and Boulder, Colorado, Lincoln, Ma, Martha's Vineyard, Fort Lee, New Jersey, and Ashland, Oregon.

We learned about travel opportunities, we learned to care for the environment, we learned about animals and unicorns. We heard their childhood stories, we learned how to eat well. We were given a glimpse into college life and into a deepening friendship. It was a great run. Thanks to Maddie and Eliza for keeping it real for five months. "Streaming for the people" as they once said.

And the people loved it. By the way, our hosts were each asked along with eight other students to make a short speech about their Bates experience at the Baccalaureate service during graduation weekend. Each spoke eloquently. Are we surprised?

Keep an eye out for these two in the future. Ever heard of Cousin Brucie or Mattie in the Morning? Well, Death by Beets can't be far behind. Thanks for listening.

Loon Opening, DC

 

Hi family! 

I wanted to post some pictures from the Loon opening in DC that Tim and I had the privilege to attend. The turn out was wonderful, as was the entire event. Unfortunately the light was coming in directly in, making the pictures a little bit washed out, but here they are. 

Congrats to Uncle John and love to all, Carrie

college grad

Hi All,
Let it be known that Eliza McLean O'Neil graduated from Bates College on May 31, 2009. We didn't send out invitations or announcements knowing that most of our family is too far afield to easily make it to Lewiston, Maine. This is one of the uses of a blog! We know you were all there in spirit and sending virtual hugs to Ei that will have to last until you see her in real life, hopefully this summer.