Lake Plastic

The sky was clear this morning; the temperature cool but the wind mild. We walked into town to get breakfast so I could eat my weight in French toast. Afterwards, we “hiked” the two-and-a-half mile “trail” around Mirror Lake. The quotes are because the trail is really just a sidewalk that rings around ugly, rich people houses on the lake’s edge.

We’re staying at a house in Lake Placid — or, as my phone keeps helpfully suggesting, Lake Plastic — a ten minute walk away from downtown. Been here about five days now. We drove up late last week, stopping in Syracuse the first night. The next morning we took the boys out in their wagon and strolled around Syracuse University.

Yes, we have become people who cart our dogs around in a wagon. At 18-going-on-19, Fozzie gets worn out pretty quickly, and Kirby is partially blind, so long-distance walks can be a bit fraught. As such, a couple of weeks ago we bought a fold-up wagon. The boys have thus far enjoyed their new mode of transport — it lets them look at all the things and also be admired and petted by strangers. It’s a good arrangement for all involved parties.

We’ve spent several days hiking and generally bumming around in the Adirondacks. The leaves are changing colors, which has made for some pretty spectacular views. An interesting fact about the Adirondacks is that I am physically incapable of saying “Adirondacks” correctly. My brain keeps telling my mouth to pronounce it “A-dear-run-dax,” even though I know it’s wrong as soon as the mangled word escapes my lips.

We made one brief foray out of the area, on Sunday. Kirby was having some neck pain and, given his medical history, we were concerned it might be an issue with his spine. We called around and found an emergency vet in Burlington, Vermont, two hours away, who could see him. Turns out the pain in Kirby’s neck is muscle-related, which can be treated with pain meds and crating when we aren’t here, which Kirby just loooves. So now Kirby just remains the pain in my neck (har-har). While in Burlington, we also snagged some killer sandwiches from the Henry Street Deli.

As small villages go, I like Lake Placid a lot. Plenty of coffee shops and restaurants, a chill vibe, a cute indie movie theater, and proximity enough to the mountains to go do outdoor stuff. We’re here for a couple more days and will definitely be back in the future.