Make New Friends…and Keep the Old!

As one of my favorite poets, Emily Dickinson, wrote, “My friends are my estate.” One of the most wonderful benefits of workamping is that your “estate” constantly increases as you travel and work in different locations and continue to meet new and interesting people, many of whom grow into the dearest of friends.

For the past two weeks, my focus has been on friends, in two very different ways. First, our “estate” grew when a man entered the Atlantic Oaks Campground office during my shift, looked at me and said, “Yes, you are Karen.” Of course I thought that he had to be someone I knew but was unable to recognize. Then he said, “We drove from Connecticut to find you; we follow your blog!” He proceeded to introduce himself – Mike – and his wife – Betty – and then removed a sheet of paper from his pocket with a list of things to do and see on Cape Cod that he had read about in my blog! Needless to say, Mike and Betty Gill made my day! After introducing them to Bill, as well as to our managers, Katie and Dan, we went on to have a fascinating conversation sharing our workamping experiences. Mike and Betty have worked at Dollywood for several seasons and are already planning to travel westward next summer. They were absolutely delightful visitors, whom I’m sure will remain workamping and blog friends!

My friend focus shifted with the arrival to the Cape of my dear friend of almost forty years, Denise Rogers, and her partner in crime, Dan French. There is nothing better in a workamper’s life than to have friends and family visit. Not only is it great to see them, but it also gives you the opportunity to share your location and all of its beauty with your visitors. Although we had to work while Denise and Dan were here, we spent several nights with them and were able to enjoy a complete Friday playing tourist!

Our first stop was Sesuit Harbor Café for lunch, where cash is king, the line is long, but the lobster rolls are worth every minute you wait in line! Following our feast, we cruised through several typical Cape Cod towns including Dennis, Harwich, and Chatham, stopping in the latter to walk through the downtown area filled with unique shops and galleries. We then made a stop at Chatham Bars Inn, where the Adirondack chairs overlooking the water were at a premium! Our last stop of the day was the Orleans Inn, again on the water, where we sat on the deck and shared a final drink with our dear friends – for now! As we experienced the beautiful surroundings of classic New England, another dear friend, Ralph Waldo Emerson came to mind as he felt, “A friend may well be reckoned the masterpiece of nature!” I would certainly agree with that, and cherish all our friends – new and old!