So, I left Amityville, NY and as I'm driving home I start seeing signs for the "Walt Whitman Historic Site". What can I say? My interest is immediately peaked and my need to beat the rush hour traffic through the city dissipated. It turns out that Walt Whitman's birthplace is on Long Island. This was a big surprise to me. I always thought he was a city guy who was born in Brooklyn. Not true! The family moved to Brooklyn when Uncle Walt was quite young, but he was actually born in the house in the picture. I guess we learn something new everyday.

Of course, calling this Walt Whitman's house is a bit of a misnomer. Technically it was his parent's house. His father was a carpenter so it is a sturdy place located on what was a small farm. (Most of the farm is now a shopping mall across the street. *sigh*) I've visited Whitman's house in Camden before, where he passed away, and there is a marked difference. His parent's were incredibly tidy people while I'm not sure I can say the same for the poet. Alas, genius follows it's own direction...

Since I was unprepared to visit the house, I arrived in my work clothes and boots, but nobody seemed to mind. I remarked that Walt probably would have approved of someone visiting his house in their working clothes and the tour guide readily concurred. They were very kind to give me a thorough tour of the property, although I didn't really receive the same insights into his life as I got from the Camden house. There were photographs, original editions of "Leaves of Grass" and a film which I skipped. I figure the best way to learn about Whitman is to read is work. He puts his entire life on display there anyway.

A word of warning to anyone who visits... There is a $5 admission charge to tour the property which is a more than fair price. The problem is that the museum does not accept credit cards for charges under $10. Seeing as this was a serendipitous opportunity to visit the house and I was unprepared, I found myself standing their without cash. To remedy the situation, I bought a baseball cap for $10 along with my ticket. Walt would have liked that too. He was a big baseball fan.