There's no going back.

I found some lyrics on the internet that express my feelings for the Park Seed Company. I don't know who to credit, but here goes:

• I tried my best to let you know
• That I'm not trying to test you
• It's just so hard to let you go
• When I have nothing against you
• Save your breath this time
• You'll need your strength to set this right

One of the joys I anticipated, as I renewed my love affair with the garden this year, was my reintroduction to two childhood friends: the Burpee and Park seed companies. The winter catalogs always held out the promise of spring and new gardens. I would spend hours planning; weighing the choice of the reliability of old tried and true tomatoes, over the risk of going with the new hybrids. After weeks of deliberations, I would place my orders. I knew my seeds and supplies would arrive in time for planting. Rarely was I disappointed.

It's tough to rekindle the romance of an old relationship, especially if one party is carrying around anger, frustration, and disappointment. Park uses the internet like a clown uses makeup: as a mask between reality and disguise. The advent of the internet has not been kind to us. The deceptive stock levels, order status notices and billing practices of the "new" Park Seed Co. is totally unlike my childhood friend. Yesterday I was told that a refund would take up to 30 days to process. This is for an item that was indicated as "in stock" when I placed the order and "ready to ship" when I paid. The order was placed over a month ago. Perhaps love was blind when I was young, and "too much information" has revealed the blemishes, wrinkles and true personality of a former infatuation.

In the words of another childhood friend, the folk singer Tom Rush: "No regrets. No tears good-bye. Don't want you back. We'd only cry." I am thankful for the product that was received. My plants are healthy, the garden bursting with colors and good things to eat. There's plenty of fish in the sea. My friends in Maine sing the praises of Johnny's. I'll be more cautious this time around. I won't throw myself out there like a teenager. And, I have some seed left over from my spring planting. I'm not yet a candidate for the botanical version of e-Harmony!

You may enjoy reading: I feel like a parent.

Also, may I recommend for your enjoyment: Sometimes I have believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast.

The Silver Surfer (Norrin Radd) is a fictional character, a Marvel Comics superhero created by Jack Kirby. The character first appears in the comic book Fantastic Four #48 (March 1966), the first of a three-issue arc fans and historians call "The Galactus Trilogy".

Originally a young astronomer of the planet Zenn-La, in order to save his home-world from destruction by a fearsome cosmic entity known as Galactus, Norrin Radd made a bargain with the being, pledging himself to serve as his herald. Imbued in return with a tiny portion of Galactus' Power Cosmic, Radd acquired great powers and a silvery appearance. Galactus also created for Radd a surfboard-like craft — modeled after a childhood fantasy of his — on which he would travel at speeds beyond that of light. Known from then on as the Silver Surfer, Radd began to roam the cosmos searching for new planets for Galactus to consume. When his travels finally took him to Earth, the Surfer came face-to-face with the Fantastic Four, a team of powerful superheroes that helped him to rediscover his nobility of spirit. Betraying Galactus, the Surfer saved Earth but was punished in return with everlasting exile there.

Stan Lee enjoyed the character and decided to feature him in his own individual title in 1968. John Buscema was penciller for the first 17 issues of the series, with Kirby returning for the eighteenth and final issue. The first seven issues, which included anthological "Tales of the Watcher" backup stories, were 72-page (with advertising), 25-cent "giants", as opposed to typical 36-page, 12-cent comics of the time. Thematically, the stories dealt with the Surfer's exile on Earth and the inhumanity of man as observed by this noble yet fallen hero. The Silver Surfer comic book series became known as one of Lee's most thoughtful and introspective works. Englehart writes that Buscema and Lee were "pouring their souls into the series".

Waldo County, situated in mid-coast Maine along scenic Penobscot Bay, has genuine New England character evidenced by working port towns and quaint rural villages. Visitors are awed by the area's unspoiled beauty. From striking coastal views to sweeping mountain vistas, dramatic natural settings abound. In addition great care has been taken to preserve and refurbish numerous historic landmarks, homes and buildings. Consequently, the Maine of yesteryear is still found here.

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