Just a quick note to a couple of concerned readers: since being back in Maine, I have not been hit by any form of natural disaster, and the “devastation” featured in my Flickr stream of late is of the planned variety.
The original listing on Realtor.com for the place here in Maine described it, as I recall, as a real “fixer-upper.” As the most geographically convenient family representative – this was years ago when I was living in Boston – I was drafted to check out this “great location.” When I phoned my parents on the way back from my initial scouting trip, my two word review for the state of the structures on site was: “hell. hole.” Fabulous location, but one that would need a lot of work.
Due to equal parts neglect and impersonal nature, the main house and two cottages here were more or less uninhabitable. One of the untold stories of RedMonk’s past, indeed, was how I spent some of the early months post-startup living in a house with a.) no hot water, b.) unfiltered, orange water that was laced with iron, c.) no phone, d.) no internet, e.) no TV, f.) no stove (we did have a hot plate, though), and g.) an in-house squirrel population that probably reached into doubled digits (Az and I hadn’t met yet, otherwise I’d expect that number to be far, far lower). After moving up here, in fact, I had to join the YMCA so that I could shower without a.) getting hypothermia or b.) fatally poisoning myself by showering in water that was more iron than hydrogen or oxygen. I remain hugely grateful to my parents for giving me a free place to live while we got RedMonk off the ground, and beggars can’t be choosers, but the conditions were…challenging.
Over the years, in addition to trying to regain some form of control over the beserking vegetation, my parents have been carefully upgrading each structure in fine fashion. The first structure was completed a few months after I moved here way back when, and the second a year or two after that. What you’re seeing in the Flickr stream is the last step in that process, as the final structure – deemed non-salvageable by the builders and architect – is knocked down and replaced with a structure that has a real foundation. I’ll have to find an office soon, actually, because they’ll be blasting for for that.
So as a belated answer to the couple of folks that have emailed, and a preemptive answer to those who were thinking about it, all is well here. We’ve had no earthquakes, tsunamis, or tornadoes, and I’m hoping that we won’t see any – despite my continued presence here.
