I’m the saver in this family. Dave’s the spender. In his words, he likes to “spend money like a drunken sailor.” I don’t know how or why he came up with that analogy, but I suppose it gets the point across.

He can cruise the mall – any mall in any town – for hours on end. Best Buy is his mecca. And he cannot resist the siren song of the Apple store. I, on the other hand, would rather wait in the hot car, windows rolled up, risking organ failure and asphyxiation, while he wanders the rows stocked with video games, digital cameras, and iPad 2s.

So when we moved to the Adirondacks, I was not-so-secretly pleased that the nearest Best Buy was now 45 minutes away. And the nearest Apple store was a 2 hour drive down the Northway.

Naively, it did not occur to me that our new home would present all sorts of temptations beyond video games, digital cameras, and iPad 2s. After all, what could he possibly want from the high-priced gift shops and clothing stores that line Main Street in Lake Placid?

But I had failed to take into account the handful of awesome outdoor retailers that are only a short drive from our house: The Mountaineer in Keene Valley and High Peaks Cyclery in Lake Placid, to name a couple.

And the antique and rustic furniture stores that feature the work of local craftsmen: Dartbrook Rustic Goods, Owl’s Head Mountain Rustic Furniture, Bald Mountain Rustics …

And the fun little pet store in Lake Placid that has taken on a new role in our lives now that we have three dogs: Jake Placid Dog House.

And now that it’s spring, the local garden centers – the new East Branch Organics in Keene, the Hott House in Saranac Lake, and Rivermead Farm in Keene Valley – that are brimming with native plants, hanging baskets, and seedlings begging for a new home in our yard.

Throw in the fact that most of these stores are locally owned and operated by our friends and neighbors… and Dave’s a goner. And, ok, so am I.

Drunken sailing all around. I totally misjudged this one.