I've only been there once in the last few years now - and that was mostly a pass through on my way to Canada, with a brief look-in at Bar Harbor - but it's a state I've visited many times over the years. And it's a state that I'm tremendously fond of. (I'm writing this on Tuesday, November 2nd, so I don't yet know whether my ardor will be heightened or a bit quenched by the election results. I'm hoping that the weak and weasel-y Senator Susan "I'm Disappointed" Collins is shown the door, and that the state goes Full Blue.)
Maine is beautiful. It has some lovely beaches (so what if sticking your toe in the water, other than on the one day in early September when it warms up, can send you into quick freeze cardiac arrest). Some iconic lighthouses. Pretty and/or funky little towns like Damariscotta, Camden, and Bar Harbor. Excellent lobster rolls. Wild blueberries. Enough artsy-ness to satisfy the most-art loving among us. Lakes, oceans, mountains. Minor League Baseball. (Go, Sea Dogs!) A store that sells the wooden wares produced by prisoners. And a wonderfully cool small city in Portland, which has great shops and dining.
Sure, the weather's not all that great. But, hell, I'm a New Englander. And I do have to admit that once you drift away from the tourist, summer vacation and skiing spots, plenty of Maine is poor and bleak. (It's been 35 years since "The Beans of Egypt Maine" was published, but I doubt that life's improved much for the sort of folks whose lives the novel depicted.)
Still, I could see living there, and I don't say that about very many places.
It's also the oldest state. Not as in the state that's been a state the longest, which I'm pretty sure is Delaware. At least they were the first to ratify the Constitution. No, Maine is the oldest because its population is the oldest. Half of its people are 45 and up (vs. the U.S. median age of 37.9).
It's not because it's the Northern version of Florida or Arizona, with a bunch of old geezers transplanting themselves there when they retire. Sadly, it's because the young folks are fleeing the state because there's not all the much opportunity there if you don't want to trawl for lobsters, pick potatoes, fell trees, manufacture Bean Boots (L.L., not of Egypt) or work in tourism.
To keep the young folks from fleeing, Maine has to find mo' better ways to get them employed. So an organization called FocusMaine is trying to scare up some job opportunities. They're doing so by focusing on agriculture, aquaculture, and life sciences.
Agriculture and aquaculture? Gulp. Aren't those the depressing industries that young people aren't interested in? Who wants to spend their fall harvesting potatoes in Aroostook County? Who wants to be out on George's Bank trying to haul in a big catch of cod when a nor'easter's blowing in?
The goal, of course, is not to create more jobs for blueberry pickers. (Even though I wouldn't mind if it were easier to find those tiny wild Maine blueberries in the market.)
...the goal is to capture more of the value [of all that agriculture and aquaculture] through local processing and production of upscale products. (Source: Bloomberg)
Which falls under their broader FocusMaine mantra of "catalyzing jobs where Maine's assets meet global trends." (I'm feeling a bit generous, so I'll forgive them that "catalyzing jobs" thang.)
Anyway, anyone who's been in business knows that focus is good. And focusing on your strengths is even better. And for Maine, that's good food/good seafood. Not to mention (although I was not aware of it):
...a strong tech sector, anchored by the likes of Jackson Laboratory for Mammalian Genetics in Bar Harbor, the Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences in East Boothbay, and Idexx Laboratories Inc. in Westbrook.
To date, the results have been modest:
In its first three years, FocusMaine says, it has worked with more than 100 companies, helped place more than 1,500 interns, and helped create 260 jobs. Which is not a huge number, even for a small state like Maine, but a start.
Yes, it is a start.
And FocusMaine admirably wants to make sure that they can create jobs not just in the places where I like to visit, and could even envision living, but in places like the fictional town of Egypt, which are pretty poor and depressing. (A lot of towns in Maine are named for places people would rather be: Paris, Mexico, Bangor, Denmark, Naples, Peru. Calais. Even Egypt would be preferable to some of the god-forsaken spots in Maine.)
I wish FocusMaine the best of luck. For the sake of the state, and for my sake, too. Because if I ever do end up living in Maine, I'd sure rather there be people there who aren't my cranky, crabby, creaky old peers. Let's get that median age down!
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And Happy Birthday, Molly, to my wonderful niece.
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