Almost, Maine

Things you should know about Maine and Almost, Maine:

Maine, the eastern-most and northeastern-most state in the United States, is the largest state in New England. It comprises almost half of New England’s total land area, but has only 9% of the region’s population -

1.3 million people. The most sparsely populated state east of the Mississippi River, Maine has only 40 people per square mile. (Consider this: Vermont has 65 people per square mile; California has 234.) However, Mainers don't despair: Maine has more moose per square mile than any other state. This shouldn't be too surprising when you consider that Maine is the most forested state in the country: It is 90% woods!

Were it to exist, Almost, Maine would be located in the remote heart of Aroostook (say, “uh-ROO-stick”) County, the northernmost county in Maine. Aroostook is the largest county east of the Mississippi River: It is almost as big as the state of Massachusetts and is considerably larger than Connecticut and Rhode Island put together. With a population of about 72,000, and only 11 people per square mile, Aroostook has the same population density as the Dakotas.

Unorganized territories make up more than half of Maine's total land area. Almost “is” located in the heart of this unorganized territory, in what is officially designated as Township Thirteen, Range Seven, or T13-R7. T13-R7 is seventy-five miles northwest of the northern terminus of Interstate 95; two hundred miles northwest of the ocean (at its closest); and 450 miles north of Boston, MA. It is obviously far away from things.

Winters in Almost, Maine are long and cold: It feels like winter from October to May. Average temperature in January is 9 degrees Fahrenheit. (On January 22 of this year, it was -34!) Average July temperature:

65. Average annual snowfall is 110 inches. (It seems quite appropriate, then, that one of Maine's two U.S. Senators is Olympia Snowe. Senator Snowe. For real!)

On the northern lights:

National Geographic once printed something to this effect: “They call Montana ‘Big Sky Country.’ Well ... ‘they’ haven’t seen Northern Maine.” Northern Maine’s big,

open sky and wide open spaces make for prime viewing of the northern lights (aurora borealis) -- the brilliant, ribbon-like, otherworldly displays of light that are most common in the Arctic. Northern Mainers are fortunate: They live just inside the southernmost tip of a ring defining the area in which the northern lights regularly appear. Growing up, I remember being treated to a northern lights show at least once a year.

The northern lights occur when atoms become “excited.” During solar storms, electrons are sent streaming towards the earth. As these electrons enter the earth’s atmosphere, they strike and excite atoms, ionizing them -- charging them by knocking out an electron. When this happens to enough atoms, the brilliant, colorful light display that is the aurora borealis hovers and streaks across the sky. When the aurora fades, it’s because the affected atoms have returned to their grounded state. Almost, Maine is a play about people who are normally very grounded, but who have become very excited by love ... and other extraordinary occurrences. I hope you enjoy it. And I hope you believe that places like Almost, Maine exist.

John Cariani
January 22, 2008