But How Did Miss Rumphius Eat?!

So, my bicylce is currently out of commission...and in Connecticut. But, that is neither here nor there. The important issue is - how did Miss Rumphius get her food?

Yes, she lived in a beautiful town by the sea. But, many beautiful towns by the sea - such as the one that I live in, do not have grocery or general stores that are within a reasonable walking distance.

Yet... and yet. My grocery store is only 3 miles away which proves itself to be too far for trips more than once a week - yet I have found it such a challenge to go trek there weekly, when feeding two. Strangely, we're not large eaters. We are one light eater and one average eater. Yet - that weekly 6 mile round-trip to the grocery store proves a difficulty for me. Rather quickly I discovered that there are plenty of taxi cabs eager and waiting (well some are more eager than others) to pick up shoppers and carry them home with their purchases.

To rationalize this expense of taking a taxi cab home we have reduced our shopping trips to once a month. This has proven interesting and difficult. In ways it is wonderful to spend a half hour walking 3 miles to the  grocer. An hour or two meandering about the grocery store, marveling at the opulence of things available and then a quick 10 minute ride home before putting away our stores and preparing things for cooking, freezing and/or storing for the next month.

I doubt that Miss Rumphius was ever shopping to feed two. And, I also doubt that Miss Rumphius ever took a cab home from the grocer or market. I suppose this is a case, of another age and other customs yet I like to pretend that if it were just I- that I would be able to easily trek back and forth - though I know a 6 mile walk lugging groceries half the way, is a 6 mile walk with 3 miles of lugging groceries regardless.

We do have fantastic farmer's markets on Wednesday and Saturday in the town square, if you will, from mid April through the beginning of November. But, as wonderful and conveniently located as they are, they are not cheap. As anyone who knows librarians know, we love what we do  -money is not exactly something we really care about, or understand. So, unfortunately, the local farmer's market is not exactly conducive to a Librarian couple's budget.

Alas, our wonderful place by the sea has for us some adjustments to make - but stay tuned to see what we come up with, if it works and what we do if it doesn't!

On Becoming Miss Rumhphius

Just in case you're not familiar with Miss Rumphius by Barbara Cooney. It is a children's story about a girl who is raised by her grandparents. Her grandfather tells her wonderful stories of all of the places that he has visited and how he came to live by the sea. The little girl decides that she too would like to visit lots of places and live by the sea. Her grandfather tells her "that is all very well, little Alice, but there is one more thing you must do. You must do something to make the world more beautiful."

Alice, the little girl, grows up and becomes a librarian. She realizes her dreams by traveling to far away places and eventually goes to live by the sea. Eventually Miss Rumphius also makes the world beautiful by scattering lupine seeds all over the countryside.

The first time that this book was read for me I absolutely loved it and wanted to grow up to be Miss Rumphius. Through the years I had completely forgotten this story and the impact it had on me until I was at a cultural event where the realities of Maine were critically discussed via the interpretations presented through children's books. It was afterward when I was thinking about Miss Rumphius and remembering how much I loved that book that I realized - I became Miss Rumphius! I have traveled to far away places, I am a librarian and I now live by the sea!! Like Miss Rumphius I also walk or bicycle to my destinations but unfortunately I have yet to do my great bit to make the world a more beautiful place.

While I would like to do more traveling and certainly spend much more time being a librarian and living by the sea while I realize my project for making the world more beautiful, this blog will be dedicated to all of those pursuits and the adventures along the way.

So, here's to becoming Miss Rumphius!