Sunday on the island

More stream of consciousness happenings in Paradise City and my little piece of paradise:

• Saint Patrick's Day madness has gripped the town this weekend.  It all started on Friday with a continuous party going through Saturday. Peace has returned to the land and the villagers are happy once again. The streets are now clear of drunken partiers.  The drunken crackers, drag strip officials, NASCAR losers, vacant fratboys, vapid sorority chicks, dudes that have a Budweiser as an appendage, and loutish jerks are now a thing of the immediate past.  This town isn't as crazy as Savannah, but the streets still smell like a frat house after a wild beer bash.  I was glad to get away from the city yesterday and head back to the sublime silence of the island, punctuated only by the sound of waves breaking on the sandbars and birds singing and performing their morning concert. 
  
• The blue glow of the moon has ushered in a new day that promises to be beautiful and peaceful. The seabirds fly in the sea breeze and dolphins cruise just beyond the breakers that gently lap the shore. There is a hint of rain coming. Today will be an inside day to work on furniture in the workshop. And at noon, I am meeting an old friend from college that I haven't seen in many years. We are going to catch up on life. 
  
• Two of our dogs, Deacon and Tobias, decided to take off around 11 PM on Wednesday night.  He and the rest of the dogs were out for their evening pee. The rascals must have gotten scent of something so they decided to head down the drive.  We live a mile down a dirt road--lots of things to smell.  So C. and I drove the road calling for him until 2 AM.  I found Tobias walking along, looking sheepish.  But no Deacon.  Early on Thursday morning, we put flyers in mailboxes in the area, called people, put up a large sign on the front fence and drove the roads every couple of hours.  I think that we both gave up by Friday morning. We knew that it was going to be a body recovery, looking for buzzards in the sky to give us a clue.  Our hearts were leaden. Neither of us could eat much.  I thought--here we go again with death and grief.  On Friday night around 10:30 PM, we got a call from a neighbor at a nearby plantation telling me that she thought she had our dog. I had called them on Thursday, and they kept the information.  Evidently, Deacon had followed their beagle Woody through the short cut wooded trail to their plantation.  He was happy relaxing with Woody in their house when we got there.  None the worse for wear, we hugged Deacon and the good people who took him in and called us.  Extra precautions are being made to make sure that Deacon and Tobias don't go out for their evening walk without a leash on.  After getting the wayward boy home, we slept soundly for the first time in a couple of days.  
  
• The anniversary of my father's death passed without sadness. I thought of him many times that day. Now, I am concerned about my first sponsor who has been diagnosed with lung cancer. I am hoping that it can be treated. More will be revealed for him. For now, he is accepting of the diagnosis. 
• At the District Al-Anon meeting yesterday, I volunteered to do additional service work for the District.  I was really motivated by a speaker at the convention who was inspirational in what she does. After the meeting, a group of us went out to lunch.  It was great fun to have a meeting after the meeting and enjoy some great discussions.  
• Friday is my wife's birthday.  We are going out to a play on Thursday evening.  Friday we leave for a cruise up the waterway to another favorite anchorage.  Some other boats will be joining us there. 

Hope that you are enjoying your Sunday.

Moon struck

I just got back to land after three days out on the boat. It was restful and rejuvenating. I slept, read, walked on the beach and took photos. These are the activities of a person who is grateful for no emergency phone calls or drama. The most exciting thing that happened was a thunderstorm that I watched from afar.

We have scheduled Pop's memorial mass for the week after July 4th. I thought about him a lot on the boat. He was sick with complications of liver disease for almost two years. He bled from varices in the esophagus. He was in a coma several times from edema and ammonia building up in his brain. He had a damaged heart from an infarction years ago. A part of his aorta had been replaced due to an aneurism. Yet, he lived to be 92. Amazing really. 

And now Mr. Mandela is near death after a life of fighting for freedom and rights and the betterment of all. Old bodies wear out no matter how much will to live one has. I wish for a kind transition for the old warrior and statesman. Others will continue the fight for equality on all fronts. We still have a ways to go but progress continues to be made in the face of fear and bigotry.

I am tired now. It's very hot and humid back on land. Tonight more storms are forecast. And the moon that shone so brightly last week is now waning. It's blood pull no longer disrupting my sleep. I was moon struck for a while. Now I feel peaceful. Time for me to take a nap for an hour and then finish up with cleaning the boat. 

Photos from the week:

Pop is gone

Death came for Pop last night.  I received the call that he was not doing well around 10:30 PM.  I threw on some clothes and drove to the nursing home.  But I was too late as he died about five minutes before I got there.  He liked to do things on his terms so I suspect this was another opportunity to slip away when no one was there.

I spent time alone with him, before the night nurse came in to wash the body.  It wasn't coincidence that she was someone that I met and worked with during the Presidential campaign.  And then the same Hospice nurse who had attended to Mom when she died in February was there as well. She said that it was special to be there for both of them.  We talked about how he seemed to give up after Mom died--not wanting to eat, talk or participate in activities. After being together for so many years, I suppose it just was too much to fight to live anymore. 

And when the funeral home staff came to take him away, his gurney was draped in the American flag. Another special and reverential act that was  tremendously moving to me. He was a veteran of WWII, serving in the Pacific on landing crafts.  The fellow from the funeral home was also kind, and physically reminded me of my own father--tall and distinguished looking with white hair. 

I'm glad that I spent time with Pop and pushed him around the complex over the weekend.  He sat in the sun and listened to the birds. We went to a meditation garden, and he seemed to enjoy being outside.  I told him about the vegetable garden and what I was harvesting,  how his cat was doing and that C. was out of town for a few days.  He seemed to be tranquil and peaceful. 

I debated about whether to call my wife, but thought that she would want to know.  So I talked with her this morning, and she seemed accepting. I want her to enjoy the rest of her vacation.  I'll go to the funeral home this morning and make calls to his siblings.  Everything is taken care of here. 

It's a lot to absorb right now.  I will miss my visits to him.  He was a force. And now he is gone.

Enjoying the day

I left to go on the boat this morning. We had our home-cooked turkey dinner on Sunday. And on Thursday, I'll be fixing a turkey feast on the boat, even if on a smaller scale.

This is our first Thanksgiving without my wife's parents being here with us. Her dad is in the nursing home. He is frail and can no longer walk. Her mom is living in their home with the two caregivers. So C. is going to visit both of them on Thanksgiving day. I have one of the Labradors with me. She and I will enjoy some beach walks and snoozing on the boat.

Not much new has been going on. I have been to my usual meetings, took in an open AA meeting, worked with those I sponsor, and have signed up for a class in Radar which will give me an endorsement for that on my Captain's license. Towboat work is slow now so I decided another course would be good.

We celebrate our wedding anniversary on Monday November 26. We were married in our twenties. Some days it seems long ago and others not so long at all. I know that we love each other a lot.

I'll leave you with a few photos from the day. Have a great Thanksgiving if you celebrate it.

Tropical storm

We are out at an anchorage near the deserted island, tucked away on the lee side. Last night, the lights of the city were pretty as we passed by. The day was overcast but little rain fell.

Today, it was another overcast day with a brisk NNE wind. The round the world sailors left this morning for France where they will be given a hero's welcome. Little did we know as they departed that they would be sailing into a tropical storm. At the moment, the storm is about 130 miles off where we are anchored. The coast is under a tropical storm watch.

We are going to stay here until morning and then head back going with the tide. The only effect we will feel is a bit of wind, some increased swells, and possible coastal erosion.

After a walk on the beach, with heads down into the wind, I rowed us back to the boat. We fixed egg plant parmigiana and garlic bread with spaghetti for dinner. The eggplant was from the garden and was delicious! C. baked bread before we left, so we had quite a feast.

This has been another day in our lives. It has been peaceful. I am grateful for no anger, gripping fears, or obsessive thinking. It has been an ordinary day, but I have come to appreciate the ordinary. It is often under rated.

Easter Weekend

It has been a beautiful Easter weekend. On Friday, we took the parents for lunch. They said it was a nice time. It's hard to tell because my mother-in-law thinks that Pop is her brother and that I am her husband. Pop is quiet and not very conversational. But there were cards and flowers and good food.

Yesterday, we met up with a number of other boats for the day. It was nice to hang out with some fellow sailors and have a few hours to spend having good food on the host boat.

Today is Easter, and we are anchored in an inlet near the beach of a beautiful undeveloped island. This is a place of great peace with the wind and surf the only sounds. The trails wind among a maritime forest of live oaks, cedar, and palmetto. Here are a few photos from our Easter weekend:

I hope that you are enjoying the day and all that it means to you.

Muchness

We came out to the anchorage yesterday morning. It was a beautiful day with enough breeze to keep the biting flies away. Collecting shark's teeth as we walked a couple of miles on the beach, we marveled at the beauty of the island that seems so isolated, yet is still close enough to the city that the church steeples are visible.

We stayed on the beach for several hours. Both of us got a little too much sun, and Amelia decided that the solution would be to lie in some small tide pools.

The previous owners of our boat stopped by to visit. They rafted alongside and came aboard to exclaim over how great the boat looks. It made me feel happy that they know she is in good hands. They asked if we wanted a beer a few times. This used to bother me, but I don't worry about that with my wife anymore. She has her program and is steady with it.

Last night, we feasted on salad, corn on the cob and snow crab. It was a sumptuous dinner after all day in the salt air. The mosquitoes made their assault later. Big, hungry marsh mosquitoes looking for blood drove us to spray insect repellent and turn on the fans.

This morning I awoke to muscle spasms in my lower back. I was fixing breakfast and was just about brought to my knees by the pain. So now I am eating ibuprofen and taking it easy. I got a good back massage from C. earlier which helped some.

It is supposed to storm later today. We are snug and comfortable as the boat rides gently at anchor. I am grateful for all the muchness in my life today.