Nothing.

I am sitting on an old wooden picnic table painted red many seasons ago thinking about thinking about nothing.  It is the peaceful morning on the north coast of Nova Scotia in a town called Antigonish that has brought nothing to my mind.  Is nothing attainable?  Do we really want to do nothing.  Is there a living nothing or even a post life nothing?
I am reminded of the Seinfeld episode where Jerry and George pitch the show about “Nothing”.  Is nothing something?  Do we go on vacation to do nothing?  Does that make a vacation the quest for the nothing?
Sitting here, drinking my coffee, looking out at the sea doing nothing, I am actually doing more than nothing. I am doing something.   But it is the kind of something that feels like nothing.  Hoping to see a whale breach or catch a seal looking at the shore is an amazing something.  Is nothing a scary reality for some?  Nothing is a time to reflect, a time to smile, a time to cry and a time to remember.  I find that when I am doing nothing I open myself up to emotions and more thoughts that I have when I am doing something.  Does this process protect us or hinder us?
So many of us are so busy doing something that we forget about doing nothing.  For the next week while I am here on this beautiful shore I will try and accomplish as little as possible.  I will take lots of photos, continue to write and spend as much time with my wife as I can doing nothing.

According to Wikipedia; “In contemporary usage, a picnic can be defined simply as a pleasure excursion at which a meal is eaten outdoors (al fresco or en plein air), ideally taking place in a beautiful landscape such as a park, beside a lake or with an interesting view and possibly at a public event such as before an open air theatre performance, and usually in summer.”In the world we live in, it is my belief that one pines for a daily moment of simplicity.

I know that with all of the electronic devices and connected portals that we deal with, a picnic with my wife is the best way to for me to escape.

I am reminded of a commercial where a bunch of guys on a quest for the perfect camping site look for a place with no cell service.  Is that the new heaven on earth?  Even when I am “not connected” I find myself taking photos in the hope of posting to Facebook and tweeting when service returns.  The overwhelming force to share the moment with the world is very strong.  I am looking for my inner Yoda to help me.  What is wrong with me, why can’t I just enjoy the moment?

Well, thank God for my wife and that look.  You know the one.  Every partner has one.  It’s that look that makes you come back to center and be back in the moment.  Personally, I love that look.  Wine and cheese always follow.

WD4F, The First Drive recap

When Monica and I set off on this journey we weren’t sure what we were thinking or what we were doing.  All we knew was that we made the time had a few bucks and were going to do it.

We sat next to each other for 6 weeks, most of the time holding hands, a camera or the navigation source (map or iPhone) and talked.  The radio was hardly ever on.  I have to say that this kind of a trip is not for everyone.  You need to be able to communicate, compromise and know how to go with the flow.  I remember when I first started a post on the 356 Registry forum, the first responses were all essentially the same, “drop her off at the nearest airport and enjoy yourself”.

This could not have been further from the correct response for me.  I consider myself a very lucky man to have married my best friend.  We love food, wine, the drive and each other.  The journey was one of personal growth, awareness and understanding.

One of the original reasons for the journey was the growth of our business, a small specialty cheese and wine store in Ridgefield Ct. Recently, a large gourmet chain store started building a new store within a 20 min. drive from our shop.  So the question presented itself, how does a small shop compete with the big boys?  The answer for us was hit the road and meet your cheese producers, vintners and farmers and experiences this great country, that’s how.  One of the fundamental elements that lacks in the larger stores is the ability to connect with the customer.

Monica and I have experienced what most can only dream of.

We’ve traveled over 6000 miles, visited countless restaurants, vineyards, farms, cheese producers, B&B establishments and hotels along our way.

We love when a customer comes to our store and we can tell the story of the product because we have been there.

We started in Los Angeles, drive up the coast to Whistler, across Canada through Revelstoke, Banff and into Alberta.

We then turned back to the USA and through Glacier National Park, Montana, Wyoming and Colorado and home to Connecticut.

The car was in retrospect the perfect road trip vehicle.  It has about a 250-mile range, smooth and comfortable on flat roads, amazing in the corners, enough storage with the back seats folded down for two and a great reliability factor for a vintage car.

Newfoundland this spring…..maybe

Check out the archives (May / June 2011) to see all of the details.

January and still driving the 356

This has been one of the most amazing winters for the vintage car enthusiast. Not just one day of driving this weekend, but two!

This weekend I was invited to a barn on hill for lunch with two friends and a late 356 “A” coupe. I was to bring a bottle of wine and a little something else.  I decided on some ibérico de bellota ham from Spain.

If you have never had it and you eat ham, you must find some.  This is the 4-cam of hams! Scallops with mushrooms and thyme were to follow; a great rustic lunch in a barn with cars.

It was 55 degrees, sunny and I was looking at two 356’s, I really can’t complain.  After a great meal and some even better car talk, I headed out for a cappuccino.

You gotta have a cappuccino after a meal, don’t you?  Tusk & Cup is a new shop in Ridgefield, Ct that I have been meaning to get to for some time, so…. Great cappuccino and I did get a homemade gelato sampler, even better! (Thanks Laura). Is there another weekend of driving around the corner?  One can only hope.

Our last 356 Drive of the season was a nice 4-hour drive through the country.  Monica and I set out for a breakfast destination called Patty’s Restaurant in Litchfield CT.

It had received rave reviews from various magazines and most reviews from Yelp were also promising.  The short of Patty’s was really big pancakes all of it just good.

As always, we were able to find a ridiculously long 60-mile back-road route to go what should have been more like 20 miles.  We find that not having a plan always leads to new finds and usually an extra culinary find.  Today we found fresh eggs, maple syrup, Arethusa Dairy and The Bantam Bread Company.

The must go of this Drive 4 Food is absolutely The Bantam Bread Company and Arethusa Dairy.

Make sure you get a Dirt Bomb from the bakery and chocolate milk from the dairy.