I Go To Yaddo--In A Manner Of Speaking

So Saturday we're in a little museum in Saratoga Springs, and I see that Yaddo, the artists' and writers' retreat is in the area. I think, "Hmmm" and forget all about it, probably because on my way to the car I stopped at a public fountain to try some of the truly vile medicinal waters the area is famous for.

However, we're driving out of town and I see a sign saying that the Yaddo Gardens were open to the public. "Turn in here! Turn! Turn!" I shout to the family member driving. I figured, Hey, I can drive onto the grounds and maybe see some of those famous little cottages where writers go to concentrate on their work and go out of their minds because they have no Internet access. Well, that wasn't the case. We caught a glimpse of the original mansion and a small parking lot but no little writer huts.

The Yaddo website says, "Some believe that the land itself at Yaddo is the source of mystical creative power." What really struck me was how close that land is to the highway. It was probably all woodsy and isolated back in 1900 but now you pull out of the driveway onto a main road and just to your right is I-87.

I was a little disappointed. I'm more away from it all in my own home, and look how little I get done here.