Place to Live

There were times while on vacation, that I would fall in love with that town and wished that I lived there. Some of those places were Sausalito, San Francisco, Gettysburg, Avalon and Cooperstown. Eventually, I would realize that what made them special was that I only visited them once and others a few more times. Now, I have narrowed it down to one place –Cooperstown.

If I didn’t have a family or all my children, I would really love to live in Cooperstown, New York. Cooperstown is a village and is bordered on one side by Otsego Lake or the Glimmerglass as referred to by the author, James Fenimore Cooper, in his Leatherstocking Tales.

Cooperstown is famous for the Baseball Hall of Fame, which I have visited a few times. I love the Hall of Fame, where you pay once, have your hand stamped, and you can actually re-enter the Hall of Fame as many times as you want for the day. If you are a baseball fanatic, Cooperstown and the Hall of Fame is the place to visit. I am humbled when I walk through the exhibits and see all the memorabilia and all those famous plaques of the men who played the game. Yes, I do have a few favorite players like Lou Gehrig, Sandy Koufax and Roberto Clemente.

To me the town of Cooperstown is magical. On the main street there are memorabilia shops, gift stores, and some delightful eateries. The homes in Cooperstown are mostly large Victorian ones with beautiful flower gardens. And of course there is the Otsego Resort and Hotel near the lake. It is a beautiful place to just walk around the ground or eat a meal there. It is a bit pricey but someday, I am going to throw caution to the wind and indulge myself by staying at the Otsego.

My last trip to Cooperstown, I included a visit to the Farmers Museum and the James Fenimore Cooper Museum. I could have passed on the Farmers Museum but not on the other museum. The James Fenimore Cooper Museum is another treasure in Cooperstown. The building overlooks the lake. The interior is beautiful with gorgeous old wood floors.  They were beautiful polished wood planks. The walls were painted different hues of blue, which seemed to show case the pictures that were on display. The Museum has a number of papers and items belonging to the author, James Fenimore Cooper. I was amazed at how small Cooper wrote but I was also impressed with the beauty of his cursive writing. The day I visited I found a special exhibit for Winslow Homer. The room itself was painted a nautical blue which only enhanced this exhibit of Homer’s works.

We bought lunch and shared it on the outside patio, which overlooked the lake. The patio was surrounded by lush foliage and gorgeous flowers. Everything seemed to be so healthy…the huge ferns everywhere were a deep green, along with the deep red geraniums, tall blue lavender, and large hydrangeas of various colors. Maybe it is because it was Cooperstown but everything seemed better, larger and richer.