2017 Life Logs, Day 264: No Word from Justin and Family
Date: Thursday, September 21, 2017
Weather: Overcast and Rainy, Windy; High 67, Low 59 degrees F
Location: At Home in The Studio, Falmouth, MA
We have still heard no word from Justin and family in Puerto Rico. Hurricane Maria ravaged the entire island, leaving it without power and without cell and wi-fi. So, I assume we haven’t heard from them because they have no way of communicating. But thinking that doesn’t make this any easier to live with. There’s no way to know how long this communication void might go on. I have checked-in with the Red Cross site that people can register with to let family members know they are okay. Justin and Jo haven’t registered with them, but there could be no Red Cross involved in western Puerto Rico. I have checked my HAM radio email account—nothing there. I have found two different phone hot lines, but both are continually busy. I will keep trying. I have checked in with the Puerto Rico Maria Updates page on Facebook, but nothing there either. Jo’s mom and dad in England are keeping in close contact with me, but all we can do is hope and wait. If you are reading this log, I know you are familiar with the beautiful, smiling faces of Justin, Jo, Ziggy, and Coco.
Thank you for keeping them in your thoughts. It helps to know that so many people are sending their positive thoughts to Justin and Jo and all of the people of Puerto Rico.
Long before Maria was spawned, I had made plans to go on a bus trip today to Salem, Massachusetts, to the Peabody Essex Museum. I was going with Olivia White, and I decided to go. Otherwise, I would just sit here and worry and that does no one any good. Salem is north and east of Boston and it took two and half hours to get there and more than three hours to get home. But it was worth it. The museum is fabulous.
We had an hour-long guided tour through Maritime Art, American Art, Native American Art, Asian Art, and a section called Ocean Liners.
We saw a large model of the Friendship of Salem ship. The original ship was built in Salem in the late 1700’s and the model was at least five feet long and tall, was built aboard the ship as it sailed to the Pacific Northwest.
A replica of the ship usually sits on Derby Wharf in Salem, but it was hauled out in July of 2016 for routine maintenance. Not sure when it will return, but I would love to go see it when it is returned to its homeport. I learned that Salem was a hub for merchant ships in the 1800’s. I never knew that. The ships sailed to the Mediterranean and to the Pacific to the Pacific Northwest and to China. The museum highlights those areas and the trade items that were exchanged. Salem has a rich history, including the Salem witch trials. But that will be the focus of another trip. After the guided tour, I toured the Yin Yu Tang, a Chinese house that was dismantled in China, shipped to Salem, and rebuilt onsite at the museum. The house was originally built by the Huang family around 1800 in the mountainous Anhui Province in southeastern China.
This was a definite highlight of today’s tour. Then it was off to Pickering Wharf for lunch. Olivia and I finished up in time to visit the adjacent historic district. The Customs House was a highlight of that quick tour before we had to head back to the bus.
Tomorrow we go from summer to fall. The autumnal equinox occurs here at 4:02 pm EDT. I will spend my day preparing for a Saturday evening dinner party I am hosting. But at the same time, I will continue trying searching to find out about Justin and Jo’s situation. I know they, along with the other 3.5 million Puerto Ricans, are without power and water and any means of communicating with the outside world. That must be a very frightening realization. It is one thing to anticipate it. It must be quite another to live through it. Justin, Jo, Ziggy, and Coco—please know that friends and family from around the world are waiting to hear from you and hope that you are safe. Oma, Grandma and Grandpa in England, your aunts, uncles, cousins, and friends of all of us love you so much! And at the same time, we are thinking about the other hurricane victims of Harvey, Irma, and Maria, and the people of Mexico City dealing with the aftermath of the earthquake. And as I write this, the winds of Jose are still whipping through the Falmouth Harbor. Almost too much to bear.
