Posts made by author 'Paige O. Roberts'
8
Could Your Yard Become a Sniffspot?
On Facebook, there is a fairly large group dedicated to dog-friendly spots throughout New Hampshire. The group also serves as an information hub for both locals and visitors, oftentimes where people will post questions regarding dog walkers, groomers, etc. I saw a post earlier this week from someone looking for a safe and private place to walk their dog that wasn't a public dog park, as their dog wouldn't do well in that type of setting. I scrolled the comments and over and over I kept seeing mention of something called
4
Community in a Small Town
When I was a younger person, growing up in Small Town USA could feel so boring at times. I would have given anything to live near a shopping mall, just to have a place to hang out with my friends that wasn't one of our parents' basements. The mall was like an exclusive foreign club, and every other teenager I met from anywhere-but-here had a membership to it. I was desperate to be in that club; desperate to have that club nearby to even have the option to be in it at all. Back then, I truly never thought I'd want to stick around my hometown of 500 people—all who seemed to be my parents' age or older, too.
But then I grew up, and now I'm the age my parents were then, and I get it. In this phase of my life, I am often reminded why I love living here so much, and one main point of that is the closeness of the community. People show up for one another in times of need but also in times of celebration. I am sure that exists in other places, but it's hard to envision an entire city coming together for somebody in the same way a small town does.
17
Another Home Project
There is this content creator that posts videos about his old house and fixing it up, except he does so with self-deprecating humor and many clips of him crying in the car on his way to Home Depot. Albeit filled with profanity, his videos are very relatable, and they do make me laugh. A few weeks ago, I felt like I was a special guest on his YouTube channel as my boyfriend and I finally addressed the bowing boards on my front porch. I had ignored them all summer and tried to pretend that they would just go back to normal. I was wrong, obviously.
I've peeled away enough layers of projects on this house by now to know that if I prepare for a one-day project, it will double at the very least. My front porch was no exception. As we ri...
10
Vacationing to Maine
One of the many reasons I love living in New Hampshire so much is because it offers so much without needing to travel very far. We have the mountains and we have the ocean, lots of lakes to swim in, trails to explore, small towns with vibrant art scenes and local businesses, all while still being within driving distance to cities like Boston or even New York. We also get to experience all four seasons—although winter tends to last much longer than any of the others. I rarely take trips outside of New Hampshire, because I've always been able to find everything I need right here at home.
It's no secret that I am a self-proclaimed homebody, but on occasion, I will find a reason to travel. It's a little embarrassing to admit, since it's so close, but I realized recently that I've only been to the coast of Maine maybe once in my entire life, and I was too young to really even remember it. After having arguably the busiest summer of our lives, my boyfriend and I decided to book a trip a few hours up the coast of Maine and take a true, well-deserved vacation.
26
Thinking About Floors
I never would have expected that in my life I would think so much about floors. At some point, something ignited within me that now causes me to examine the floors inside practically every building I enter and compare them against the floors in my own home. Most of my floors are pine, and I like them well enough, but I am jealous of beautiful old maple boards. Pine is a softwood, so they scratch and scuff easily, though it doesn't bother me too much. I try to find the silver linings, like how they pop and creak in places when I walk on them—I honestly love that they have that rustic charm. They certainly aren't perfect; nails pop out in places and the boards are further apart than I'd like, allowing for dirt and dog hair to get into all of the seams (but of course not far enough apart for the vacuum to fit into!) Still, they've held up fairly well over the years and make sense in my little house.