by Judy Handley | Sep 2, 2019 | 2019 Life Logs |
2019 Life Logs, Day 245: Gardening and Dinner with the Goldstones
Date: Monday, September 2, 2019
Weather: Sunnier Than Expected; High 80, Low 64 degrees F
Location: At Home in the Cottage, East Falmouth, MA
The gardening part of my day took much longer than I expected. When I went sailing with Bruce and Jane on Saturday, Jane’s friend Ellen asked if I would like to come dig up some iris she wanted to get rid of. I mentioned this to Karen Baranowski yesterday and she was also interested. We arranged a time with Ellen and headed there late this morning. Digging up the iris was harder than expected, but we did it. I then had to come home and prepare a place to put the new addition. Rearranging things and getting it planted took most of the afternoon and then it was time to head to Heather and Jed’s. I had wanted to have them here for dinner, but since tomorrow is the first day of school and the boys needed to get to bed early, it seemed much more sensible to have dinner there. I bought salmon and calamari and Heather and Jed provided the rest of the dinner. We feasted on food and I got to hear all about their camping trip to the Outer Cape. They had a great time. They did a lot of biking, a lot of playing on beaches, and they found one beach with lots of gray seals. Of course, where there are seals, there are probably sharks, so they didn’t get in the water there. I’m so jealous. I want to see the seals. So I plan to make a day trip to the Outer Cape and hope the seals are there at the same beach.
Tomorrow is the first day of school. Sam has to catch the bus to Lawrence Hall at 7:20 and Jonah catches the bus to Morse Pond at 7:45. Then there is a break of an hour before Ollie needs to leave for East Falmouth Elementary. This is a new schedule for Sam and Jonah, and it will take time for the whole family to adjust to the earlier start times. The biggest adjustment is for Jonah who is usually getting up at about the time he now has to leave. When I left at 7:30 tonight, the boys were ready for bed, so hopefully they will all get a good night’s sleep and tomorrow morning will go smoothly. I’ll be anxious to hear how the first day of school goes.
My heart aches for the people on Grand Bahama Island that have endured Hurricane Dorian sitting right on top of them for almost 24 hours. Hard to imagine what that must feel like, but easy to imagine the total destruction that they will be left with. This hurricane is moving so slowly, but by tomorrow morning it should start to move on and we will have a much clearer idea of what its impact will be on Florida and the southeastern coast of the US. It is expected to head north without making landfall in Florida. This is the best case scenario, but still there will be high winds and storm surge. Let’s hope for the best.
by Judy Handley | Sep 1, 2019 | 2019 Life Logs |
2019 Life Logs, Day 244: First Day of September
Date: Sunday, September 1, 2019
Weather: Mix of Sun and Clouds; High 78, Low 58 degrees F
Location: At Home in the Cottage, East Falmouth, MA
Growing up, September was my favorite month of the year. I loved the cooler weather, the changing colors of the leaves, and the football season. Both of my children were born in September, so that added to my love of the month. But as I grew older and lived in colder climates, I began to resent September as it represented the end of summer. And anyone who knows me, knows I LOVE summer and am always reluctant to let go. Now I feel like I am entering the mellow years where resentment has no place. So, I embrace September, not as the end of summer, but as the bridge month to Cape Cod’s lovely (and hopefully long) autumn. So, welcome September.
I was kind to myself today and didn’t worry about getting anything accomplished. I got up and went to Heather and Jed’s to feed the guinea pigs and finish up one last organizational task in the basement. Then I drove to Hyannis to do some food shopping. Shortly after I returned, friend Karen Baranowski came by and we managed to talk away the afternoon. After she left, I put my bike rack back together and went next door to visit with Shirley and Doris. In between activities, I watched a lot of coverage of Hurricane Dorian. When I sailed in the Bahamas with Sam and Dawn aboard Windbird in 2017, we visited a few of the islands in the Abacos that were hit so hard today. Elbow Cay, where Dorian first made landfall, is the home of Hope Town. 
It is one of the most beautiful little communities in all of the Bahamas and it is where the iconic candy-striped lighthouse, first opened in 1864, stands proud. Sure hope it is still standing after Dorian. It made me very sad this afternoon to think about the devastation there. It brought back memories of Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico in September of 2017 . . . dark memories that will live with me forever. I can’t even imagine how the people going through this feel. The Abacos have not been spared, but let’s hope the storm does take the turn northward and only grazes the coast of Florida, Georgia, and the Carolinas. Especially thinking of sister-in-law Sue and Brad in Boynton Beach.
by Judy Handley | Aug 31, 2019 | 2019 Life Logs |
2019 Life Logs, Day 243: Sailing, Sailing . . . Motoring
Date: Saturday, August 31, 2019
Weather: Another Beautiful Day BUT No Wind; High 84, Low 57 degrees F
Location: At Home in the Cottage, East Falmouth, MA
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It was a beautiful day for a sail, but unfortunately there was no wind. That does not, however, preclude having a delightful time out on the water. I met Jane Woodin at her house, as did her good friends Ellen and Bob, and we drove together to the West Falmouth Boat Club where Bruce and Sam Patterson had L’Escargot waiting for us at the dock. Bruce and Jane bought the sailboat this spring from a long time Woods Hole friend, Ellen Bailey. And this morning Ellen and her husband were also at the dock to see us off. We had hoped to make it to Kingman Marina for lunch at the Chart Room, but the winds and current just didn’t cooperate. We tacked back and forth in the little wind we did have and joked that we might make in time for dinner. Finally, we gave it up, turned on the engine, and headed back to West Falmouth Harbor. We then chose a different location for lunch at Sopranos on Falmouth Heights Beach. So not a lot of sailing, but a lot of fun.
I then managed to spend the rest of my day and evening on the phone. I had a long conversation with Lynne Kirwin. Neither of us loves talking on the phone, but when you live far apart, the phone is what you’ve got. And thankfully so. While I was talking to Lynne, I saw that another friend, Susie Klein, was calling me. So, after Lynne and I solved all of the world’s problems, I listened to the voice mail message from Susie. She and her husband Jim were anchored in Tarpaulin Cove south of Woods Hole and were thinking of me, so she called. I last saw Susie and Jim when I made a presentation to their sailing association in Wayland (west of Boston) last November. At that time, they were preparing for a sabbatical in France. They returned in early August, just in time to launch their sailboat, Reveille, for some late summer sailing. After that phone conversation, it was time to fix dinner and shortly after dinner, Justin called and asked if I would like to Skype with the kids. They are just getting settled in after returning from their month in England in time to turn around and head to New Mexico next week. They have been invited to be in a couple of fall music festivals and they will take advantage of their time there to catch up with good friends and check on their converted Greyhound bus that is still in storage in Albuquerque. Both Ziggy and Coco were born in New Mexico, but neither has very clear memories of their time there. Justin and Jo, on the other hand, have very good friends there and are very anxious to visit with them. It was great to see the kids on Skype and hear about their current interests. Ziggy has plans to build a robot that can navigate by latitude and longitude directions and Coco is perfecting her acrobatic skills using Jo’s yoga swing and flying through the house on the roller skates I got her for her birthday. They light up when in motion and glow in the dark and she loves performing in them. I also got the full report of their visit with their cousins in England. I am still amazed with and thankful for the technology that allows me to see and talk with my grandchildren on my cell phone. We take it for granted, but it really is amazing.
by Judy Handley | Aug 30, 2019 | 2019 Life Logs |
2019 Life Logs, Day 242: Another Day ‘Down Under’
Date: Friday, August 30, 2019
Weather: Beautiful Day; High 82, Low 60 degrees F
Location: At Home in the Cottage, East Falmouth, MA
More beautiful weather here, but I chose to spend my day ‘down under’ in Heather and Jed’s basement. Today I attacked the corner of the basement where boat ‘stuff’ has been stored. I found the red and white candy-striped boat cover we bought in Malaysia to cover Windbird when we were returning to the US for the births of Ziggy and Jonah in 2009. There were various sails—not sure what boat they belonged to. And the list goes on and on. I know some of the things were stored there by Mark and I and others were stored by Heather and Jed. But that corner of the basement is now cleared out and when Heather and Jed return, I’ll check with them to see if there is anything they want to keep. If not, I’ll get rid of it. Progress is being made. Hurray!
Today’s dealing with things nautical was the perfect readiness for tomorrow. I have been invited to go for a sail with Bruce and Jane Woodin aboard L’Escargot and I am really looking forward to that. Otherwise, not much is going on here. I am still watching the progress of Hurricane Dorian. It has intensified, but there is now a chance that it will not have a direct hit in Florida. If the Bermuda high weakens, as currently projected, that could allow the hurricane to curve up the coast and eventually go out to sea. The only thing that looks certain at this point is that it will hit the Abacos in the Bahamas on Sunday night and into Monday. Then we’ll know more certainly how it will impact Florida. I’m sure everyone on the southeast coast of the US will spend this Labor Day Weekend preparing.
by Judy Handley | Aug 29, 2019 | 2019 Life Logs |
2019 Life Logs, Day 241: A Visit with Friends
Date: Thursday, August 29, 2019
Weather: Beautiful Day after Overnight Rain; High 86, Low 61 degrees F
Location: At Home in the Cottage, East Falmouth, MA
Just before 1 am, the heavens opened and the rains poured down in torrents. There was even a little thunder to punctuate the sound of the pouring rain. We haven’t had a soaking rain for quite some time, so it was welcomed. It rained off and on throughout the night and then this morning, the sun came out and dried up all the rain. It was an absolutely beautiful day and it looks like the next few days will be the same. I’m so happy for Heather and family who headed to the Outer Cape to camp for the weekend as it looks like they are going to have perfect weather.
I headed north to Dedham (close to Boston) this morning to visit with good friends Alan and Helaine Kanegsberg. Alan had a knee replacement two weeks ago and I went to see how he is doing. He is moving about and doing great, but as ‘nurse’ Helaine pointed out, he is a bit resistant to doing those daily exercises prescribed by the in-home physical therapist. Believe me, I know how hard it is to discipline yourself to do them, but I am a believer. Alan is scheduled to have his other knee replaced in November, so he needs to be aggressive with the rehab of this knee so he will be ready for the next surgery. He starts out-patient physical therapy next week, so hopefully that will go as well as the in-home therapy and he’ll become a believer in daily exercises. So important.
After visiting, we had a delightful lunch and then a little later in the afternoon Helaine took me to Voltante Farms in Needham, the town next door to Dedham. I love these names. Both towns were settled in the 1600’s and named for towns in England. Dedham or Dedam, Deddum, or Dowdam is a town in Essex in England. Needham comes from Derbyshire, Norfolk, and Suffolk in England with Irish origins, and is so named from Old English ned ‘need’ or ‘hardship’ plus ham ‘homestead’ or a place that provided poor living. Needham, Massachusetts is certainly not a place of poor living today. It is just the opposite and Volante Farms is a fantastic place selling locally grown produce grown, plus bakery items, a deli, and a greenhouse with beautiful plants. When we got back home, Alan did launch into his exercises. Go, Alan! But by this time it was mid-afternoon and time for me to head home. When I am in that part of the world, I shop my way home with stops at Whole Foods, Costco, and Home Depot. It was a beautiful day spent with good friends and ended with successful shopping ventures. Life is good.
