I Was a Viking Once

I was a Viking once.  I led a ship, and I was a woman. I know it sounds crazy, because we don't hold Vikings to be suffragettes in the common sense of the word, but this was just one of the many positions of authority I supposedly held in my previous lives.  The Viking ID made the most sense to me.  I am still a major fan of Scandi Design and who doesn't love a well tailored, padded leather tunic?  I never pick up my iron spearhead without one.  But the underlying proof of my Viking past is my attachment to the sea.  Sort of like a mythical Irish silkie,  made land locked by her lover stealing her magical seal skin, I am just not myself when I get too far away from water.  In my imaginary life I live in a lighthouse, surrounded by lapping currents and crying birds.  And of course a huge Newfoundland dog, to aid in sea rescue.  A few weekends ago I lived that imaginary life, alas without the Newfie, for a mere 24 hours and it was truly magical.
     The Saugerties Lighthouse, in Saugerties NY, is one of several lighthouses on the east coast that were once made redundant, and then got a second chance as a bed and breakfast.  Built on the Hudson River in 1869, it was inhabited by a lighthouse keeper and family until 1954. That changed when the Coast Guard installed an automated light, no longer requiring a keeper, and the house fell into disrepair.  It has since been taken over by a conservancy group and fitted with two guest bedrooms.  Restored as it might have looked in the early 20th century, with a working Victrola and coal burning stove for heat, the lighthouse is indeed a century away from New York City, located only one hundred miles up the Hudson.  To add to the thrill of disengaging from modern life, you hike out about 15 minutes along a densely covered peninsula, to reach the lighthouse, and this must be done avoiding high tide, as the path is then covered in a foot of water.  You thought your last tour at Glastonbury was muddy...

After we spent our restful night at the lighthouse, under the newly installed watchful solar beam, and showered in collected rainwater held in a cistern, we ate a wonderful breakfast prepared by the innkeeper Patrick, and headed out for the Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary. A little chance and the calling of a handsome graphic made us screech to a halt at Lucky Chocolates.  Some of the best chocolates this side of Paris, I do declare (and remember I was a Viking and have traveled the high seas, so I should know).  Gorgeously handmade and exotically flavored, I loved the Earl Grey best, but don't stop there, try every flavor if you can.  A few doors down from Lucky Chocolates on route 212, is a shop entirely devoted to English food, if you are in dire need of Yorkshire tea, which it so happens I was.  Order has been restored to my universe, once again I am drinking my favorite tea, and all it took was a trip to a lighthouse on the Hudson to make it all work.
      The Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary is located 8 miles west of Woodstock.  It is a nonprofit organization that provides a home for animals who have escaped from slaughterhouses, rescued from abusive situations, or in some cases just had no where else to go, once a farm closed shop.  Their mission is education about the horrors of industrialized farming methods, but their goodwill ambassadors are such charming farm yard friends that they will have you re-thinking your last hamburger and start you on a quest to find ways to incorporate more lentils into your diet, or at least that was the effect it had on me. 
     I can't honestly imagine living in the early 19th century, where a broken bone would have most likely led to amputation, but I can yearn for a lighthouse of my own, and still dream about my idol Ida Lewis, and wonder why, at the very least,  she doesn't have a rest stop named after her.  In the meantime, regular trips to Saugerties will tide me over.

Comments

[Denise]

In my past life I was seamstress at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory and my job was to sew on buttons. And that is why in my house now, if you loose a button, well, you need to sew it on yourself.

[Dale Hazelton]

Not enough Viking epics in the "film" category. A movie about a woman Viking would be unique. Wish I could write a screenplay.

I think the sanctuary was in the NYTimes last week, featuring a goat that escaped from a butcher in Brooklyn (they theorized, I say Santa Ria ritual). Poor guy. I knew a three legged junk-yard dog once who was incredibly sweet despite his outward appearance. I could relate.

I flock of baby turkeys was trying to follow mom across the Taconic and I happened to hit one (I tried to wave people down to slow but a couple more were hit by people speeding by wondering why a maniac was stopped on the side of the road). Well mom and the flock went off into the woods and were long gone. I know you're not supposed to interfere with Mother Nature but I put the little fellow in a pillow case I had and cranked up the heater in case he was in shock (It was June). After an hour there was some rustling in the sack. When I got home I put him in a box and by the next morning the affectionately dubbed Mr. Peepers seemed all better. My local vet gave me the name of an animal rehab place and off he went, after carefully considering and rejecting the concept of having a pet turkey. I know he wouldn't have lasted on the side of the road and he was covered with ticks to boot, so I guess I did the right thing. I see male turkeys on the prowl and hear the occasional "gobble gobble" in the fields across from my house and I wonder if maybe it might be Mr. Peepers come back to say "hey.".

[sohbet]

Not enough Viking epics in the "film" category. A movie about a woman Viking would be unique. Wish I could write a screenplay