Molly Maguires by the Mohawk

After signing the petition to save my local post office, fueling up at my favorite local gas station ($3.79/gallon! score!), and running various other errands, my family and I found ourselves on the shores of the Hudson. Or was it the Mohawk? Let's just say we found ourselves beside the Erie Canal in Waterford, NY, the oldest incorporated village in the US. It just so happens that the Hudson and Mohawk Rivers converge in this apparently very old village.

The Waterford Harbor Visitor's Center happened to be celebrating the 10th Annual Irish Heritage Day (or something momentous of the sort) and my very favorite Irish American band, Hair of the Dog, was the featured act. This was especially exciting since I missed them playing at Irish Night at our local baseball stadium last week. The band was stationed on an old barge (see below), a fairly appropriate stage in this instance...

So, in my dad's endless endeavors to secure future employment for me, we began talking to a National Park Service employee who entertained my dad's hopes that there may in fact be library positions in the Department of the Interior. I found the ranger's stories of traveling the NY canal systems and the possibilities of exploration by water much more fascinating. I'll leave you with our federal employee friend's comments about setting "sail" from Waterford: "If you dump in here, you can go anywhere in the world."