Let me introduce myself to readers of the Searsport Shores blog. My name is Rolf Olsen and I call this my ‘retirement summer job’! Last winter, I retired from a career of going to one office or another for more than 40 years, and my wife and I built a small home here in Searsport, about a mile from The Shores. We’re not on the water, but we do have a bit of a view, and we can walk our kayaks down to the Searsport town dock in about five minutes and paddle around this beautiful bay or ours.

Why Maine and why Searsport? I was born in Seattle, but my family moved east to Connecticut when I was about five. I did much of my growing up in the suburbs of New York City, but moved to Maine back in the early 70s (when I had hair and it was down to my shoulders). My career has been primarily in the marketing and communication field in a variety of nonprofit performing arts organizations, and later in the healthcare realm. It’s been lots of fun, as well as hard work, and there have been lots of perks along the way. For instance, I’ve had the great good fortune to meet many very famous people, ranging from Ella Fitzgerald and Wynton Marsalis to Jerry Seinfeld. My wife and I even got to eat dinner with Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash back in 1991 (story another time, or ask me if you come here).

Now I’m retired. As I looked around to find something to keep me busy and out of trouble, working at a campground seemed like a good fit for me, especially so close to home. I wanted to stay active, work with other people, do something useful and be in a beautiful place. So far this has worked out wonderfully for me. I really enjoy Astrig and Steve and the eclectic crew they’ve assembled to keep this place such a tranquil and beautiful spot. I came to work here in the early spring, back in April. First I helped out with the various chores involved in getting the campground ready to receive guests in late May. We cleared leaves from sites and trails, picked up blown-down branches and generally cleaned the place up after fall and winter. Last winter wasn’t a difficult one in these parts, but still there was a lot to do to get this beautiful place ship-shape!

We also planted gardens, vegetable and flower, and they’re really coming along spectacularly! It’s amazing to see the pea vines that we planted just weeks ago climbing up the fence. Lupines are in bloom right now, and many other flowering plants. And the ferns and other forest flora are bursting forth. This is a special, beautiful place. Can you tell I’m excited to be here?

Now I’m working in the office, taking reservations, checking people in and responding to email messages from all over. I look forward to talking with you on the phone and hopefully meeting you when you get here.