<h2 style="text-align: center;"><em><u>Dad&#x2019;s Civil War Sword</u></em></h2><p>I cannot recall exactly when my father told me the story of how he acquired his famous Civil War sword. He had collected junk and castoffs during his time peddling in western New York in the mid l920&#x2019;s and found the sword in a pile of debris from a household somewhere around Elmira, New York. My father lived on and off for several years in Elmira, near his brother, Sam, who was newly married and had established a small grocery store business there. My parents were not yet married at that time. I picture my father --a handsome, tall, robust youth of around 18, a recent immigrant to the U.S., driving a wagon with a raggedy old horse. He would later graduate to an early l920&#x2019;s Model T truck for his travels throughout upstate. My father relished that he had found this antique, valuable sword dated l864. He promised it to me as a child as I was the only one of my siblings to show any interest in it. My brother and sister perhaps knew better. Occasionally he would take m...</p>

Here Back East

<h2 style="text-align: center;"><em><u>Fall Visit 2023</u></em></h2><p>This was our last weekend in New York City this fall before our return to Florida for the season. Coming up for air from the incredibly exciting U.S. Tennis Open, I anticipated quiet streets and empty restaurants with tennis journeymen having left town. But that is not the case this week. The United Nations is in session and traffic is backed up; police are everywhere with streets closed for dignitaries housed in various hotels in midtown. Those long black SUVs cruise the streets with police escorts. POTUS is in town, which doubles the congestion and traffic. Yet New York&apos;s weather is glorious this week. Coming off a hurricane at camp with rain for the entire time I was hosting my high school buddies, I was relieved to be able to walk around raincoat free.</p><p>In New York, the streets were empty of the homeless during U.N. week. I suspect they were relocated to nearby shelters and hotels to create the impression to visitors that our homeless problem is under control. Now the ...</p>

<h2 style="text-align: center;"><em><u>Music at Baskahegan Lake</u></em></h2><p><img alt="harp.jpg" src="https://imgix.cosmicjs.com/6835dd50-5300-11ee-a06d-a31b04d2d095-harp.jpg" class="fr-dib"><br></p><p>It was a rainy, gloomy morning at camp. We had all arrived at different times the night before. My trip from New York to Maine by air was the most direct. Harv came by bus via Albany and Arnie and Bob drove 700 plus miles from western New York. Our first day at camp looked downright crappy. All our pent-up expectations of fishing and hiking during our short stay were weighed down under a cloud of dense fog.</p><p>Being the optimist that I am, I went ahead and organized, with Greg&#x2019;s help, a cookout at Baskahegan Lake -- and some fishing if the weather permitted. I could not let those Harry Hots, Don and Bob&#x2019;s Hot Sauce and Genessee beer--all our teenage favorites transported direct from Rochester in the back of the car on that 700-mile ride--go to waste. With intermittent rain predicted throughout the day, we bundled up for wet conditions and headed off late morning. We followed in the Bronco as Greg led the way, trailering his boat loaded down with cooking supplies, fi...</p>

<h2 style="text-align: center;"><em><u>End of Summer Visit to New York City</u></em></h2><p>Starting in the early 1960s and for years afterward during the summer months, we fled New York City for the Hamptons at every opportunity. I could not be bribed into staying in New York City for a long holiday weekend. I was drawn to the country with its open spaces, white beaches, and fresh air. In the 1970s, I finally convinced my family to move out to the Hamptons permanently.</p><p>I left corporate law and started a country practice of my own for real estate, family law and some litigation. Today, some 50 years later, I still have my East Hampton firm, but surprisingly, I am spending Labor Day weekend in New York City, at the U.S. Open Tennis Championships, Arthur Ashe stadium. Who would&#x2019;ve thought? Change in direction comes to all of us. At this stage of my life, I am more open to new adventures. Some may not believe that going to a grand slam tennis tournament is adventuresome, but it is an exciting experience and an outcome of my renewed enthusiasm t...</p>

<h2 style="text-align: center;"><em><u>A Change of Scene</u></em></h2><p>Next week is my last scheduled trip north to camp. A planned visit with my high school friends, less one, is something I have looked forward to each year since 2020, when we all first ventured as a group to camp for a sleepaway. This year it is guys only. No plans for Wheaton fishing guides. Only local fishing with Greg, exploring around the lake in my 1950s motorboat, steak, and lobster on the grill and plenty of catching up. I am planning a walk to Sucker Lake and a picnic on the island. Bob likes to fish from the dock. Arnie enjoys the evening campfire. Harv always serves us the best of wines. And I just enjoy hosting my buddies. This year our friend Jer decided to rest his back, avoiding the long drive from Wellesley, Mass. We will miss him.</p><p>There is much to look forward to, however when I think about the usually pleasant drive north to camp from Bangor airport, I feel some trepidation. According to the Houlton Pioneer Times, our local weekly newspaper and a reliabl...</p>

Fishing the Morning