Day # 8

This morning we were driving east. Kaylyn was sitting in the passenger seat, in the sun. I was in the driver’s seat , not in the sun. As usual, I was in pants and a sweater. Kaylyn was in a sleeveless top and shorts, and close to melting into a squishy liquid heap from the heat. She turned on the a.c. – I closed my vents, she directed hers to her face. Finally, eyeing my sweater, she couldn’t stand it any longer. “Pull over, I’m going to drive.” We switched so she was in the shade and me in the sun.

I spend my entire life trying to stay warm. I am generally unsuccessful. My cousin David has me thinking. Each day we were at his house he commented to me, his sweater-clad cousin, on what a beautiful day it was. David truly loves to be outdoors, much more than he likes to be indoors. He loves to feel the fresh air and enjoy the natural beauty around him. I, on the other hand, spend much of my outdoor time trying to stay warm. Blowing wind, air conditioning and fans all make me even colder. So, I have a hard time enjoying the out-of-doors like David does.

David camps because he enjoys being outdoors. I camp because it makes traveling more affordable, and I love to travel. But I am really trying on this trip to stop and note the pleasant temperatures, the clear air, the beautiful trees around me in this campground. Tonight I spent a few minutes enjoying the starry sky peaking through the canopy of trees surrounding Miss Marshmallow. And it is beautiful! So far the weather has been quite pleasant. I will try to maintain this good attitude when the weather gets colder – no promises though!

We were settling in today’s campground when a gentleman came to greet us. He is a fellow Scamp owner, but has the ‘big sister’ of our Marshmallow – the 16’ model. He is from Traverse City, Michigan, where Kaylyn worked this summer. It was noon, so we ate lunch. This may seem like an everyday occurrence, but Kaylyn and I have not had lunch since we left home a week ago. Each day we are busy dashing to the next place to tour before it closes.

We headed into Plymouth so Kaylyn could see Plymouth Rock. We took pictures of the replica of the Mayflower, admired the view of the ocean, and climbed around a cemetery with graves dating back to 1681. We headed south to Cape Cod and stopped at the Sandwich Glass Museum. A man named Deming Jarves took the money his father left him and built himself a glass-making factory. The company, Boston & Sandwich Glass Company, ran successfully for decades until it closed in 1888. The glass on exhibit was beautiful and many of the items had interesting uses. The most enjoyable aspect of the museum was the glass-blowing demonstration. A young lady who is a glass blower demonstrated how she makes a blown item, a pressed item, and a pulled-glass item. It was fascinating. And while she cleaned up her shop from her last show of the day, the small audience lingered and she chatted with us about how she got into her occupation, the challenges, and the long learning-curve. She said, “Learning to blow glass takes a lot of work, and I don’t mind a lot of work.”

Also in Sandwich we stopped to photograph the Hoxie House, built about 1675 in the Saltbox style. A pastor, his wife and their 13 children lived in this house. Note the small windows. Glass was a precious commodity. Think of how dark these houses were inside. Walking outside was no doubt a welcome relief! As we drive Kaylyn and I are listening to the book Caleb’s Crossing which two ladies from my writing group recommended. It is about a girl growing up in this area, Cape Cod, back when the Hoxie House was built.

After a stop at a tower to view the Cape, we headed back to Plymouth. We were encouraged to visit the National Monument to the Forefathers by a man I encountered in the campground office. It was indeed impressive in size alone. Kirk Cameron starred in a documentary featuring this monument, “Monumental: In Search of America’s National Treasure.” Kaylyn and I will have to watch it.

Before returning to the campground we spent time at a Laundromat which had wi-fi (accomplishing two tasks at once) and stopped at the grocery for Kaylyn’s pumpkin. Then back to the Marshmallow for, finally, our 11 p.m. dinner of pumpkin pancakes.