TRAVEL
MY MOM SWEARS my first camping trip was when I was six weeks old. She would repeat this answer no matter how many times I asked her. I would try and trick her, nope, same answer – “6 weeks, Alyson.” But that is where my travels went. Destinations you could drive with a camper in tow. Stuff tied to every possible spot above and around the camper as if home was really home away from home. This went on for 30+ years. Never thinking I was sleeping amongst wild animals. That I could become one with the bears. Fast forward to 2015, the year I met my husband, Pato. He doesn’t own a camper. He likes hotels. And not just any hotels. Hotels in destinations I only dreamed might have existed. The past few years I have seen the world. Well, a lot past our country’s borders. Pato bought me my first passport. And we had to try it out. I was so excited. We drove to Canada only to be disappointed to pass through without a stamp. A huge disappointment.
With no further ado, and in no specific order, please enjoy my journey of words and visuals that are sure to wow you.
AM – Visual Storyteller / Moments Told
Toronto Superstars
The story of ALLEY PATIO ended up not being about patio furniture at all.
JULY 30, 2017 – Toronto, Canada
IT WAS A SIGN
Pato was sent to Kincardine, Ontario to visit a customer at a nuclear plant. The closest he could get by plane was Toronto, a 3-hour drive away. So he flew in early on Sunday to meander the city streets, and there it was – the “mother” of all signs! The sign was in front of Fifth Pubhouse and clearly it was our sign. Pato was like “how cool is this?!” He changed his Facebook profile picture to reflect our awesome global relationship with a sign several hundred miles away. I did not even notice. I was too busy at home – work, laundry, tending to the kids. Birds singing happily. Dog snoring under the bed.
We each own a stake in this sign. It reads “ALLEY PATIO” in blaring orange neon. “ALLEY” for Aly and “PATIO” for Pato. It just says it all. Of course, all the locals know that “ALLEY PATIO” is actually an alley where people gather to drink and socialize.
I really thought we were getting patio furniture. The chair pictured on one side of ALLEY PATIO was exactly the kind of chair I wanted. Those fancy wooden Adirondack types. Pato did not come home with a chair.
Instead, our annual ALLEY PATIO house party is now complete with a 40”x30” canvas transfer adorning our kitchen wall as a welcome sign to our humble abode. I plan on making a small rectangular sign to put above our back sliders to the deck where we entertain our guests. After all, an ALLEY PATIO is a patio in an alleyway of Toronto where people gather to drink and socialize.
Buttons, the print shop watch bird.
This VW Rabbit traveled many many times from Peekskill, New York to New Milford, Conn. and parked way up in my backyard for some reason every time.
Chandler & Price Co. Antique Printing Press. Our family still has this.
Life Outside Camp Smith
How childhood memories of a print shop, a great aunt and the Army National Guard makes New York my favorite state to be in.
June 6, 2020 – Bear Mountain State Park, Bear Mountain, New York
GREAT AUNT MOLLY DROVE A RED VOLKSWAGON BEETLE. She was cool. Grandma Sutyak lived across the street from her and had a huge rock occupying most of her basement. Two houses further up Sandy lived, sometimes. Aunt Molly was Sandy’s grandmother. Grandma Suityak was another grandmother to Sandy but fun to visit, mainly because of her rock.
Aunt Molly and her clan lived in New York. I lived in Connecticut. Yet the distance didn’t seem too far. I can drive the route in my sleep. I know where all the shortcuts are. Aunt Molly and my grandmother, Margaret, were best sisters. Sandy moved in with Molly when she was in middle school. I moved in with my grandmother when I started college. We both stayed a long time. Great memories. A better understanding of caring and love for others to this day.
Sandy’s family owned a print shop on Washington Street, in Peekskill, New York. When I was a child, my family would drive one weekend a month to drop my dad off across the street from that print shop, at the New York Army National Guard. Literally, right across the street. We would stay the entire weekend with Aunt Molly. Armed with pillows and sleeping bags, we would rush into her house before the crack of dawn and claim our spots in her living room. My favorite memory of Aunt Molly? The glass-covered pedestal where her prized sponge cake would be, or, if she was short on time, glazed donuts!
Portland Head Light
In 1776, eight soldiers stood guard to protect residents against attack. In 2020, several Park Rangers stood guard to protect the Light from me.
August 25, 2020 – Portland HeadLight, Cape Elizabeth, Maine
A BEACON OF LIGHT, a protector of life. This historic lighthouse has towered over the land known today as Cape Elizabeth for 400 years. Residents slept soundly in 1776 under the watchful eyes of eight soldiers standing alert at the entrance of Portland Harbor. Their mission? To protect the residents from British attack.
In 2020, visiting Portland Head Light presents a different challenge. Every photographer, including me, wants a picturesque sunset photo of the Light to hang on their wall. Unfortunately, Portland Head Light is located in lovely Fort Williams Park where park rangers patrol the park right before sunset, closing time.
Well, who wants to leave before sunset? If I go out far enough on the rocks I cannot hear their requests to leave. And, by the time I am forced to go, I might be lucky enough to leave with the prize of the day.