blog.arithm

Ever since I was a kid I’ve been obsessed with hedge mazes. And no one ever wants to get lost in them with me. So this weekend, under the guise of some good old New England leaf peeping, the Japanese girls and I drove up to The Great Vermont Corn Maze at Patterson Farm in North Danville, Vermont.

Now, I’ve been through a garden maze or two, and figured that this would be more of the same. Ten, maybe fifteen minutes of meandering through a vegetable labyrinth. Boy was I wrong.

The Great Vermont Corn Maze is multiple acres of maize-made maze. The corn is ten feet high and uniform; one part of the maze is impossible to discern from any other part. The only distinguishing land marks are three wooden bridges and the occasional “cheater pole”.

Suffice it to say, we got seriously lost. Fifteen minutes quickly became seventy-five before we were finally were able to stumble out of the maize and ring the giant Bell of Success. And we apparently made record time. Other groups had been lost for well over two hours before finding their way out.

Fortunately for me, the girls enjoyed it. And we got to peak at the Vermont foliage from crests and bends in the maze. Altogether there are a dozen or so corn mazes in New England. I think we’re going to have to visit a few more before all the color is gone.

Here’s a shot of the same maze from a few years back to give you a sense of the scope of our predicament.

PS. Sorry for the corny title.

This weekend we went up to see the Fed Cup 2007 World Group Semifinals in the most unlikely of places: Stowe, Vermont.

Here’s a blurry shot of Venus Williams driving one back at Russia’s Nadia Petrova during the second game on Saturday.

Now, despite the fact that I took tennis lessons for almost an entire year in Junior High School, I have managed to survive into adulthood knowing absolutely nothing about the sport. (What is that whole “love” thing anyway?) These matches, I must admit, were pretty amazing to see up-close. Makes me wonder what I might be able to do if I too were, say, fit.

Potentially even more amazing than the witnessed feats of strength was the fact that the above stadium, such as it was, had been assembled just a few days before in a giant pasture; all in the middle of the mountains of Vermont.

I wonder how they evicted the cows.