Tuesday, April 30, 2013

What I have been doing

I've had a busy time lately.  I spent the weekend on a trip down to the ACE Basin.  I asked a fellow that I know to ride along, thinking that he would give me a hand at the wheel so that I wouldn't be at the helm for 8 hours. I found out that he really doesn't know much about boats.  And that's really okay, because I had made the ASSumption that because he belonged to a boating organization, he might know something.

He is an affable fellow so we had good discussions on a lot of things. He lost his wife six years ago and is still sad about that.  He said that his life pretty much went off track after she died.  Not the drinking kind of off track but just not really there, if you know what I mean.  We talked politics because he shares the same leftist liberal views that I do.  I can tell you that if he weren't, we would have had a lot less to talk about because I don't discuss politics with most people.  We talked about his being Jewish and his going back to synagogue.  And we talked about what kind of boat he would like to get. He spent a lot of time on the iPhone too.

We passed the time and eventually met up with some fellow boaters and sailors at a marina.  Happy hour was pretty happy but not over the top.  And the dinner was at a resort restaurant.  I was seated across from a lady and her husband who were doing the Great Loop which goes up the East Coast.  Interesting stuff, except that she was really snippy and rude to her husband who seemed to want to talk incessantly.  He was working on his third Dark and Stormy, repeating the earlier stories, and she was telling us how she knew who she was at 20 and didn't need to learn much more about herself.  I finally said that I didn't have a clue who I was at 20 and was really getting to know who I was over the past decade.  I am really happy that I have made that progress.  And I know enough to realize that I can last through a two hour dinner with just about anyone, learn something, and then walk back to the boat.

On Sunday, we headed back up the coast to my home port.  I was tired and in need of a good soaking shower when I got home.  But here are some photos of the scenery on the trip.
At the dock
Lots of marsh and lowlands

Storm clouds coming in 
Paddle boarders going by 
A bridge opening on the ICW
Old boat shed along the way
Yes, that is a manned gun boat telling me to stay away. 
And then there is the garden.  It is coming along nicely.  My wife has a green thumb.  We have mulched, planted, amended, and irrigated.   The flowers are her pride and joy.  I like them but am partial to growing the edibles.  I do like the strawberries and blueberry plants.  I had best show you the way it looks now because later in the summer, it will not look nearly as pretty or lush.  


The blueberries!
Irrigating the raised beds
Potatoes coming up 

The walkway to the front door
Today is also my mother's birthday.  I usually write a tribute to her here.  My tribute to her this year is short. She was an inspiration in so many ways.  I miss her every day.  She loved me as her child and taught me about dedication, science, a love for books and research, and to pursue my dreams no matter what.

21 comments:

  1. minus the iphone, it sounds like a fun trip......ha on your assumption...smiles...but he does want a boat...lol...it was probably helpful with him still dealing with the loss as well...

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  2. Oh my gosh...your garden!! THAT is my dream garden. It is so huge!! How big of a plot is that? And I have another question for you, and its personal so you don't have to answer if you don't want to....during happy hour, do you drink or no? Either answer is neither good or bad in my opinion. I am just curious. Because I don't drink and happy hour is always so uncomfortable for me. I try to have it not be, but the facts are that it is. I loved what you said about being able to have dinner with anyone for 2 hours and then walk back to your boat. That sums it up. This too shall pass. :o) Glad your trip was enjoyable.
    Also my girls played this song for me yesterday...and I thought this is Syd's song!
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UJbG7256ZLY

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    1. Annette, I will have a drink if I want to, but lately, I haven't felt much like having anything except a light beer. I like a glass of wine occasionally and once upon a year, I was a bourbon drinker. I am a true Al-Anon because I can have just one and that's enough. But most often I just have seltzer water. I have given up diet drinks with aspartame and enjoy the company of friends without having a drink.

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  3. I was looking at the pictures and thinking how much we have in common in what we love for our eyes to see. It's true. Your water pictures look like what I love here when we're on the coast and also, where I lived as a child. And your garden-although it is a far finer garden than mine- looks very similar in some ways. Our potatoes certainly resemble each other!
    And tomorrow is my mother's birthday.
    Anyway, be well. I am glad you are in the world, Syd. I surely am.

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    1. I have noticed that we do have similar tastes in habitats and gardens and in politics and religion! Fellow hippies I think, know each other.

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  4. Ahhhhh - - - the sweet thought of your private respite - - - the garden! No more needs saying.

    Welcome home!
    Anonymous #1

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  5. I had to raise my eyebrows at the lady who alleges she knew herself at 20. She doesn't sound like someone who I'd enjoy spending much time talking to.

    Your garden is enviable! Our daffodils only just bloomed-- it's a late season up here. Thank you for sharing your greenery!

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  6. Syd I also feel you and I are kindred spirits from half a world away because we do think alike on so many things. Those shots of life on the water are beautiful.

    And I love the flowers as well as the edibles, such attractive pots with bright flowers. Do you put yoghurt on terracotta or clay pots to encourage lichen? A very welcoming entrance!

    I love the yearly tribute to your mother -- that is what really mattered, that she loved you so.

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  7. Very brave of you to go out in a boat with a stranger...lucky for you to share the same political views. I sat on a 5 hour plane ride
    next to a conservative. The good thing was the ride had an end.

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  8. I envy your ability to spend the day with such boorish people and not complain about it. LOL
    Love the garden, sugar.

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  9. One of the best things about living with spiritual principles is that we tend to find common ground and just respect each other for the things we don't agree with. I cannot imagine calling someone "a liberal" or "a conservative" and acting as if they are a sub-specie. But what do I know?

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    1. And that's why I don't discuss politics because it often ends up with my feeling like something sub-human in this state. SC has some extreme politics. I like to have balanced discussions but in reality, few people have the benefit of living with spiritual principles and would just as soon condemn me for my views. So it's best for me to simply not bring it up. However, I did enjoy the discussions with the fellow on the boat because we could talk in terms of what we thought without any rancor.

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  10. I have serious garden envy after looking at your pictures. I'm now determined to finally buy a rototiller for our upstate land this year. Love, love, love the pictures.

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  11. Thank you for the time and love you spend on your blog. I have read about your life for years and always enjoy your latest adventures.

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  12. I so much like hearing about your boat adventures. I love being on the water but I am of the powerboat crowd. grew up water skiing. Thought I was good at it until I skied in tournaments and saw what good really was, LOL. Your pictures tell as much of he story as your words.

    Guess I'm like you, I can suffer through most people for a couple hours but then I need time to recuperate. It is much easier when you can discuss politics with someone that shares your values than argue politics with someone that you don't share ideas and values.

    The garden looks great. We use to do the vegetable garden thing but I wasn't very good at it and in the summer weeds took over. I now have a small orchard of apples, peaches, pears, plums and grapes. That works much better for me. You know they say with many people there last names in long ago times were an indication of their job. Maybe Grover, as in orchard tender was something bred into me 100's of years ago.

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  13. Now THAT'S a garden - so beautiful ! Thanks for sharing. Always love reading what you write. Enjoy all the boating - I've spent quite a bit of time on boats & my daughter was a yachtie for a few years - such interesting experiences she had - on a 193 ft. long vessel - such a different type of life from the rest of us landlubbers.
    My hats off to you for your diplomacy with your dinner companion. I have an uncle who I work at visiting with in much the same fashion. Enjoy your edibles & flowers. : )

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  14. Syd, I like reading your blog! Really!

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  15. Your mom done good, Syd. I am so glad you received your love of science from her. We have a teen boy at our house, and we are in the place where mom is embarrassing to him. It will pass, it will pass. I have to trust the foundation that has been set.

    He has a writing talent and I am thinking to employ him when I get my business back on track.

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  16. I guess it is possible to know yourself at 20 maybe nothing earth shattering happen to you between the time you were born and 20 that needed to be undone. I like the idea that that is possible.

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  17. Wow...you and C must have green thumbs. You put me to shame. I loved all your pictures but had never heard of paddle boarding.
    Have a good weekend. Sending a hug to you both.

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  18. I think that your tribute to your mother is sweet and to the point. It sounds like she had a huge influence on you. I hope I can do the same in my son's life and that one day he will have such kind and warm things to say about me.

    I think I have a green thumb, too, but apartment living is not really conducive for gardening. I have a huge bed of aloe vera plants outside my front door...they do really well and are constantly putting off new plants and the big one even blooms! I also planted a knockout rose bush- pink- and it is doing fairly well. I've grown jalepeno's in the past, living here, but I worry about doing too many edibles (like berries) because people around here would probably pick them.

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Let me know what you think. I like reading what you have to say.