Thursday May 10, 2012

Hello All,
Well today will be in my memory for a very long time. After seeing the documentary "The Way We Get By" about the troop greeters in Bangor Maine Gar & I really wanted to greet the troops! It kind of became a quest for us, finding a contact, planning this trip with it really starting there and hoping against hope that we would be in town when a plane came in. Well, as we were packing our car (in the pouring rain) this morning the call came from our contact that there would be a plane landing in an hour if we would like to go to the airport we were more than welcome. Would we? OMG! I couldn't believe that it was really going to happen.
I can't tell you what it felt like to first be welcomed by the troop greeters themselves. They were just this amazing group of older men and women most had served in the military in WWII or Korea.They wanted to know all about us and what brought us to Bangor. After talking for about 1/2 an hour the plane landed and these young men and women were about to come off their plane that is bound for Iraq.You think you are ready to shake their hands and applaud them as they come off the plane, I mean how hard is that? Well, let me tell you when that first young man hears your applause and sees about 25 people standing in a "receiving" line ready to shake their hand, and you realize that this is some one's, son, brother, friend going so far from home to protect you so you can go on a nice vacation to Bangor. I just started to cry........
But I had to suck it up as I wanted to make them feel welcome, not see some red faced women crying her eyes out. So amazingly I stopped and was able to shake all the hands and even hug one young man without losing it again. Some are uncomfortable with the clapping and hand shaking I'm sure it embarrassed them at first, but they all were smiling and thanking us for being there. I had to stop one young man and say "No sir, thank YOU. He smiled the biggest smile and I knew why theses troop greeters get up in the middle of the night to do this. After shaking about 300 hands and seeing 300 smiles, we were done.... The soldiers fanned out all over the airport and some of the vets were talking to them. It was something to see... Then we were talking to our new friend Lou (he kinda helped us when we first got there) and he said, "Did you see the documentary?" we said yes we did and then right next to him was one of the stars of the documentary Jerry. He shook hands and told us many tales with his dancing devilish eyes and gift of gab. He was funny, charming and sweet and reminded me so much of my Uncle Bill. He gave us a Troop Greeters coin that will have a special place in our home and told us that when his documentary won some awards in Hollywood, that he gave a coin like that to Morgan Freeman. He said Mr. Freeman took the coin, walked away and then stopped and looked at it. He then went back to Jerry and told him that the coin means more to him then any other award he had won to date... I have to agree, it is so very special.
The picture is of Lou, me and Jerry. Not my best picture, but it will always be special to me.

After we left the airport, we headed to Wells. Maine to go to the Main Diner. We saw it on the food network and since we were so close, we had to go. Let me just say that it was worth the drive. Lobster Mac & Cheese....I don't think I have to say anything else... A picture says a thousand words.... Yes that is a giant piece of Lobster at the end of my fork!!

Off to Boston tomorrow. We are starting with a walking tour of the "Freedom Trail" and ending with the JFK Library and Museum. Should be a patriotic history filled day.......... Much like today....

See ya on the road,
Ter :)
　
　
What a day!!! It started out with......care to take a guess?......RAIN! Yesterday we hit a laundromat and dried out the car cover because it works better if it goes on the car dry. This morning the cover was again soaked but the car underneath was quite dry....until the cover came off.
We had come to Bangor to participate in the Troop Greeters program but the call never came. Literally, as we were pulling out of the motel we got a call from our contact that a flight was coming in an hour! We postponed leaving by hitting the laundromat again to dry the cover and then headed out to the airport. Terry hit the very high points, safe to say it was a great way to start our trip south, enjoying the freedom these men and women are fighting to keep.
The route south was primarily Hwy 1along the coast, just like California, except the ocean was on the wrong side. Beautiful drive, less rain as we headed south, even a couple bouts of sunshine! We had a great dinch (an early DINner, late luNCH) at the Maine Diner.....WOW!....I had a bowl of split pea soup with huge chunks of ham, Terry had lobster mac & cheese....with drinks it was twenty bucks and carried us over for the day. Another trouble free drive, this time through Maine, then New Hamphire to Boston, Mass. We've driven over 4,000 miles....I wouldn't have believed it!