As this season slowly comes to a close we are enjoying the late shade garden blooms of the toad lily, turtlehead, the last of the daylilies, astilbe, impatiens, begonias, and hosta, and a second bloom of avens.

This year we put out seed and suet birdfeeders in addition to the hummingbird feeders we have had for several years. Tired of the red squirrel after a week of gluttony and pillaging we hung the feeders on thin wire between the trees, ten feet away from the nearest tree and five feet off the ground. It would be ok if the squirrels just helped themselves to a meal of seeds but they emptied the feeders daily! The red squirrel let us know how upset he was for days! The chickadees, red-breasted nuthatches, downy woodpeckers, mourning doves, goldfinches, blue jays, and cardinals were frequent visitors with the occasional sighting of a pileated woodpecker. I was surprised to see a single plover at the beach on recent afternoon.

The Sprucewold Association BOD met recently and TENTATIVELY began a calendar of events for the 2008 season:

Saturday, July 5, opening party at the Lodge from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m.

Saturday, July 19, park fundraiser

Saturday, August 2, Sprucewold Annual Meeting, 1 p.m. at the Lodge

Saturday, August 2, Sprucewold/ LHA Picnic on the Green

Sunday, August 3, 9:30 a.m. - Indian Trail Walk

Friday, August 8 Cabbage Island Swim and possible lunch

Saturday, August 9, Sprucewold House Tour.

The Linekin Heights Association meeting is always on the Green at 9 a.m. on the first Saturday in August; the 2nd in 2008.

The park fund-raisers are always fun and a great way to support the Sprucewold community. The Park Committee's past fund-raisers have included silent auctions. We donated a smoked turkey two years ago and last year an entire smoked rib dinner for six. Esta Parrish took her turkey this year when she had a houseful of grandchildren. In August Sharon and Dennis Ring invited us to share the smoked rib dinner along with Sandy and Karen Young and Jim Powers. It was a nice way to meet new neighbors and spend a delightful evening with old ones as well.

Sprucewold has seen its share of visitors this summer. John Walton welcomed his son, Fred, from Lynchburg, Va. for a week in July. A good friend and fellow widower from Kentucky came for a visit to commiserate with John. To beat the heat in Durham, N.C., John's granddaughter and two great- grandchildren came for a cool visit as well.

Wally, Kathy, and Sydney Moulaison had a cabinful this summer with their grandson and nephew Jacob, 18 months, and his four older brothers ages 5¾ to 10 years of age: Dustin, Joshua, Dakota, and Jason. Son Keith came for a quick trip in late August. The two oldest boys had a marvelous time at YMCA day camp and the two younger boys attended the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens Camp. Joshua told us that it was so much fun that it felt like it all went by in a minute!

Jack and Sarah Angel enjoyed their annual week in August with their daughter, Christy, and grandsons, Trent and Shawn from North Carolina.

The Rittershaus' were pleased to have son, Ahren, and daughter-in-law, Katie, from Charleston, S.C., as well as daughters, Annaliese and Claire, from Boston, for a week-long visit in August. Youngest daughter, Emily, spent her second summer working for Phil and Laura Chapman at the Blue Heron Seaside Inn and is now back at McGill University in Montreal for her junior year. The inn was the perfect spot for Katie's dad, Todd Hyman, and his friend, Connie Jones, who joined the family from Virginia Beach, Va. for their first visit to Maine. The weather in the south this summer was over 100 degrees for a long time and they were thrilled to be out of that dreadful heat. The Inn also has kayaks which Todd and Connie took advantage of to see more of the harbor. The Virginians and the South Carolinians were so happy to be in beautiful and refreshing Maine that they spent some time looking at Boothbay area real estate.

Please remember to get your copies of the "Rusticator" either from the Otto's, Sherman's Bookstore, or the Boothbay Region Historical Society. Order forms are in the back of your 2007 directory. Bob Murray is the go-to person for the fall/winter.