Blog of Events & Happenings

June was quiet.  We isolated and stayed at home.  Carey has been extra protective of me with COPD.  Just two people running around the house quietly.

In July we ventured out a very little bit.  We also enjoyed a visit from George and Polly for a week.  It was very nice to isolate with friends who are as careful as we have been.  We enjoyed the pool and ate most of our meals at home.  We did go out once to a Cuban restaurant where they rigorously adhered to the CDC guidelines.   We also took this time to have some mechanical work done on the boat.  Now we are getting a bit bored again and hopeful for leadership that gets this country out of the mess we are in.  We also enjoyed celebrating George’s 74th birthday.

Hopefully, a bit of normal will return next year.  We have purchased a dinghy and small gas engine for the boat so we can start short overnight trips on the boat.  It will be a way to isolate but still get out and around.  We’re looking forward to these trips in August and September.

After returning from our boat trip to the west coast of Florida COVID 19 took center stage and we started our harbor at home safety regime.  Carey wouldn’t let me out of the house.  We cancelled all planned trips and stayed away from activities outside the house.  Finally, we got the garage cleaned out and presentable.  We boat, read a lot, watched too much TV and dreamed about trips we wanted to take.  It’s now the end of May and we’re hopeful we can safely return to some low level of activity; however Carey and I will not be pushing to hard until we see what direction the virus takes.  At the end of May we did make one outing to Cobb’s Landing Restaurant where we ate outside 6 feet away from all other customers and enjoyed the view of the Ft Pierce City Marina and the new restaurant behind it.

 

February was for working on Paget.  She is now basically finished; painted, varnished and with new cushions.  I must spend a couple days cleaning up some painting errors but she is 99.9% done.  We are now discussing what to do with the boat.

In late February, after talking to George and Polly, we decided to go to their new home in St Petersburg, FL and help them with travel to medical appointments.  Polly had to have eye surgery and George had several cancer treatment appts.  We decided to take Apolonia, making it a boat trip also.  We left Port St Lucie 29 February and headed out.  After crossing Okeechobee Lake we stopped at Rowan and Martin’s Marina then Legacy Harbor in Ft Meyers.  While in Ft Meyers we visited with Randy and Barbara Semper, good cruising friends from Aqua Harbour, VA.  We continued the trip and arrived at St Petersburg municipal  marina on the 3rd of March.  We moved in with George and Polly and enjoyed their company and hospitality.  We became the automobile drivers for a week.  Luckily Darrell and Claudia Edgar had time to come to St Petersburg so we could visit with them for an afternoon.  We had a good lunch at a local eatery and enjoyed catching up with friends from Aquia Harbour.  George and I had to move Apolonia to Gulfport Marina on Wednesday the 11th as our reservation at St Pete Marina ran out and they had no room for an extended stay.  The move was a great 1.5 hour on the water for George and I.  During our stay in St Pete we met George’s daughter Liz and her partner Tom, as well as Fred and Linda, friends of Randy and Barbara.  Good week!

On Saturday the 14th we left Gulfport, starting the trip home.  Our first stop at Venus, FL was very upscale.  What a town.  The next night we planned to moor alongside Lazy Dolphin at Randy and Barbara’s house and dock.  We pulled into Gasparilla marina and picked up Randy to guide me to their place, while Carey rode with Barbara to get lunch ready for our arrival. Randy and Barbara have a small lock that must be passed to get into the canal system at their community.  It was a beautiful ride to their dock and a lot of fun to move thru the lock.  We stayed overnight and headed out the next morning for Sweetwater Landing on the way to Lake Okeechobee.  We had a fantastic visit with Randy and Barbara.  Sweetwater Landing was fun and we were able to have a good meal complying with distance requirements put out for the corona virus protocols. St Paddy’s day, the 17th, we decided to get home, pulling a 145 mile day to moor in our slip at the City Marina at Ft Pierce, FL at  7:15PM.  Below are a few pictures of the last few days.

It’s been a cool winter and Carey and I are discussing how we handle the two boats we have.  Paget is in a shed and I’m working to get it repainted and revarnished … looking as good as I can get it.  Once done, hopefully mid February, we’ll decide what to do with this boat.  Apolonia, the 37′ one, is sitting at Fort Pierce City Marina and we are discussing potential boat trips.  How much longer will be boat?  Not sure but I think this year will help us decide.  Lot’s happening in Florida and we may move on to a new adventure.

Jack and Ann Southard came for a visit on the 25th until the end of the month.  We really enjoyed them and this trip we decided to take a three day jaunt to Key West.  After a couple days at home, we traveled to the Key Largo area and an AirBnB Condo that the 4 of us stayed in.  It worked well.  On Tuesday we took the 2 hour drive to Key West and spent the day touring the town.  We even found a street in old town named Southard.  Jack and Ann got a kick out of this.  He even found a T-shirt for a restaurant on Southard Street that had the address on the shirt.  Wednesday we headed home. On Thursday Jack and Ann used our car and traveled to the west coast of Florida to see Ann’s sister.  On Friday they were able to see her brother, located just north of us in Fort Pierce.  Saturday we had to take them to the airport for their trip back to the “cold” northeast.  So sorry Jack and Ann.  A few pictures of our trip are shown below.

As Jack and Ann were flying home, George and Polly were driving over to the house.  We had not seen them in a while and needed our Cajigal fix (their last name).  They arrived late in the day Saturday.  We enjoyed each other’s company some great local restaurants.  Carey and Polly got to do some shopping and George and I got to preview the movie 1917 before the grammy’s.   And we also got to watch the KC Chiefs win the Superbowl.  All in all a great weekend visit.

Family and Christmas always go together, and we’ll get to enjoy both first hand this month.  There are three stories to cover this month.  Barny and Ginger are visiting from 11 to 16 December and Lauren, Cynthia, and the grandkids show up on the 27th.   Sandwiched in between will be a visit from Carey’s college friend Karen.  She’ll visit from 20 to 27 December.  Going to be a great Christmas season!

•  Barny and Ginger.  We picked up Barny and Ginger at West Palm Beach Airport on Wednesday the 11th.  We stopped by Conchy Joe’s for a great seafood dinner, then went home to settle in.  Thursday we relaxed a good bit and toured the Navy Seal Museum while the skies opened up giving us too much rain.  Friday was tour the area day and included a great seafood dinner (lobster and plenty of shellfish) at the house.  Saturday we enjoyed a bit more sun and an airboat ride over the Florida marshes.  Sunday, Jan (my cousin) joined Carey and Ginger for a tour of a local venue and a day with the ladies.  Barny and I went for a boat ride on Apolonia and prepared the boat for cocktails.  Tom, the ladies, and friends sailing thru the area from Virginia, Charlie and Marty, joined us on Apolonia for cocktails later that day.  And, then well ready, Tom, Jan, Barny and Ginger and Carey and I went to Chuck’s for dinner.  Monday morning we jumped in the car and drove them to the Miami airport for their flight to Panama, where they would be spending the Christmas period.   What a great visit!

• Karen’s Visit. Karen and Carey went to college together and have remained friends and in contact since then.  Karen, who lives in Virginia Beach, came for a visit 20 to 27 December.  Mostly, we relaxed giving Karen and Carey time to catch up on what had been happening in their lives.  It had been a long while since they had time to catch up.  We enjoyed showing Karen the area and enjoying some good food and time together; both at home and in some of the local restaurants.  Sadly the weather was windy and rainy most of the time and we did not get any time on the boat.  She brought her two dogs, Sasha and Niko, so Maddie had company and a good time playing with the other dogs.

 

• Lauren, Cynthia, Oliver, and Benji.  As we watched the taillights of Karen’s car leave for Virginia, Carey returned to the house to get ready for Lauren and her family.   Soon after arrival we held our family Christmas and then settled in with Italian takeout.  But no food was allowed by the grandkids until they had a couple hours in the pool.  Saturday was another great family day that included lots of pool time for the boys and a trip to our local favorite Mexican Restaurant.  Sunday they had to leave so we planned a day where the boys got another couple hours of the pool and on the way to the airport we stopped at a local arcade and miniature golf park.  It was a great day and of course tired the boys out for their flight home from West Palm Beach.  Already, we’re looking forward to our next time together.