by Judy Handley | Jun 25, 2016 | Sailing Logs Year 11 |
Day 247, Year 11: Just a ‘Normal’ Day
Date: Saturday, June 25, 2016
Weather: Sunny and 77 degrees F
Location: At Home in The Studio #8, Falmouth, MA
Wow! We just had what I would call a ‘normal’ day. That doesn’t happen around here very often, but hopefully now that we are getting settled it will happen with greater regularity. At the end of our very ‘normal’ day, Jane Woodin sent a text asking when a good time would be to deliver a lamp she had offered to give to us. When I met her for coffee a couple of weeks ago I mentioned that we didn’t have lighting for the apartment. She offered a lamp she had hidden away in her basement. She and Bruce brought it over this evening and it looks just perfect on the table next to the sofa. And we had a great visit as well. Thank you, Bruce and Jane.
Tomorrow is Jonah’s birthday party, so we’ll probably head to the Goldstones in the morning to see if we can help with set-up, and then we’ll enjoy the celebration. Jonah’s Grammy Goldstone was supposed to arrive today. We didn’t hear anything to the contrary, so we will assume she is here and we’ll enjoy visiting with her tomorrow as well. Sounds like another totally normal day coming up.
by Judy Handley | Jun 24, 2016 | Sailing Logs Year 11 |
Day 246, Year 11: Not Quite as Smart as a TV
Date: Friday, June 24, 2016
Weather: Clear; High Temp 79 degrees F
Location: At Home in The Studio #8, Falmouth, MA
It was a good day, but tonight we are feeling not quite as smart as a television. I’ll run through the day and then I think you’ll understand why we feel that way.
Heather and Jed dropped the boys off on their way to Woods Hole. A couple of them were a bit on the grumpy side, but we took it slow and easy and finally everyone was in a good mood, sun screen was applied, lunches were packed, and we were ready to walk to the beach. We put all of our ‘stuff’ into the beach wagon and off we went. If we walk the back streets, it is only a half mile to the beach and it took us about 15 minutes. The water felt cold at first, but once we got used to it, it felt delightful. It was a perfect day as the waves were gentle, the sun was shining brightly, and the air temperature was just right. We all got in the water right away. Sam and Jonah were on their boogie boards and played together while I stayed with Ollie. I would walk way out into the water and then follow him back as the waves gently pushed him toward the shore. And once we got there, we’d go back out again. Mark walked down to the beach to join us for a bit, but the sun was so intense that I thought he shouldn’t stay long. He had his little beach umbrella that Heather and gang gave him on Father’s Day, and that does help, but the chemo drugs cause him to be extremely sun sensitive. When Mark left, the boys and I had lunch on the beach, played for another bit before we headed home. We might have stayed longer, but I felt like I needed to put sun screen on them again. And when I tried that with Sam, I turned him gray! The boys had taken turns burying each other in the sand, and even though the sand was brushed off, it left a residue that, when mixed with the sun screen, gave a grayish tint to the skin. No one wanted that, so we just packed up and went home. I don’t think any of us knew just how tired we were until we got in the car to drive them home. We were all exhausted, but it was a good day. And we all love that we can walk to and from the beach.
While we were still at the apartment, Mark had to get behind the TV to connect a stereo speaker and while doing this, he noticed that a television cable was twisted. In trying to get it untwisted, it broke off inside the TV. It was the main cable connection and there was no way to fix it. The TV was an old one that we brought from Lynn’s condo and we knew we were going to have to replace it at some point—just not today. But after we took the boys home, we went to Best Buy in Hyannis to buy a new Samsung Smart TV. Mark had done the research and knew what he wanted. The particular Samsung was on sale, so we bought it. When we got home, we learned that the TV is smarter than us. Mark is usually pretty savvy with hooking up electronics, but this one has him stumped. I’m sure we’ll figure it out at some point, but calls to Samsung and Comcast tonight have not been helpful. We’ll continue tomorrow.
One last thing. We woke up this morning to the news that the people of Great Britain actually voted to leave the EU. Our daughter-in-law Jo is a British citizen, as are Ziggy and Coco. And it just so happens that Justin, Jo, and kids flew to England yesterday to attend the wedding of Jo’s brother. We’ll be anxious to talk to Jo to see what she and her family thinks of this vote. Mark and I have been following this and knew it was going to be a close vote, but we were very surprised at the final outcome. Politics these days on both sides of the pond are most interesting.
by Judy Handley | Jun 23, 2016 | Sailing Logs Year 11 |
Day 245, Year 11: Camp Oma Off and Running
Date: Thursday, June 23, 2016
Weather: Clear; High Temp 79 degrees F
Location: At Home in The Studio #8, Falmouth, MA
Yesterday was the last day of school for Sam and Jonah, so Day Two of Camp Oma was off and running and included all three boys plus a few neighborhood friends. We decided that for the first ‘free’ day the boys should just be able to stay home and play. And that they did. Sam’s friend Zack who lives just around the corner came over early and Molly and Joey from next door followed right behind. So there were really six children at the Goldstone ‘homestead’ most of the day, but they played so nicely together that having the extra children was not a burden. In fact, I think it is easier to have the ‘extras’—that way they can mix and match and no one is ever left out. I spent most of my time doing laundry for Heather and Jed as the kids really took care of themselves. I did fix lunch for them and delivered to the picnic table in the backyard. The kids had been playing Army all morning, so I told them lunch was being delivered to the mess hall. They loved it. There was one little problem just after lunch, but with the help of Melissa next door, we resolved that and continued on. After lunch the kids decided they wanted to set up a lemonade stand. We had no frozen lemonade in the freezer, so I told them they would have to go next door and see if Melissa wanted to support their endeavor. She must have mixed the lemonade for them and I gave them money to make change and did a little mini-lesson about borrowing money from the bank and then sent them out to do their thing. Jonah came back inside to make some signs and then I heard them hawking their goods. “Lemonade, lemonade. Ten cents a cup.” Oh yes, I did help Sam find some paper cups, but we had only a few. But it was enough for them to make over $8.00 in about half an hour. Bikers stopped and truckers stopped and got out of their trucks to buy their lemonade. Everyone game them way more than 10 cents a cup, but they were delighted with their success. Each of the six kids made $1.35. I helped Sam divvy up the money and made sure he paid back the bank. But that’s all I had to do. It was a low-key day, but a great beginning to the summer. And I must mention that both Sam and Jonah ended their school year yesterday on a high. At the end-of-the-year award ceremony, Sam got to read his award winning haiku poem and Jonah was awarded an Academic Excellence award and was named PeaceBuilder of the year for his classroom. So both boys were feeling really good about the world today.
Mark stayed at the apartment all day and had a good time unpacking a few boxes and going for a two mile walk. He is so happy here in the apartment that I don’t worry about leaving him all day. It really is the perfect place for us just now. He walked to CVS to get sunscreen, walked to a Radio Shack to get an FM antenna for a radio he unpacked, and in doing so discovered a little Italian Deli with all sorts of goodies. And I have to mention how much I am enjoying the kitchen. I cannot believe how much easier and faster it is to cook dinner in a land kitchen versus on the boat. This kitchen is laid out a little like the galley on Windbird, just bigger. It is a small kitchen, but it is so much bigger than the galley on Windbird that it feels luxurious. It takes me about half the time it would on the boat too prepare food. I love it.
Tomorrow is a beach day with the boys and Sunday is Jonah’s birthday party, but on Saturday we will spend the day at home unpacking more boxes. Fun, fun, fun.
by Judy Handley | Jun 22, 2016 | Sailing Logs Year 11 |
Day 244, Year 11: Hear, Hear
Date: Wednesday, June 22, 2016
Weather: Partly Cloudy with Mid-day Rain; High Temp 79 degrees F
Location: At Home in The Studio #8, Falmouth, MA
Hear, hear. Mark can hear! On our way home from Boston late this afternoon we stopped to pick-up Mark’s new hearing aids. So far, so good. He is hearing sounds he has not heard for years and finds the hearing aids totally non-invasive. We are currently sitting here watching television with the volume turned way down and Mark can still hear it when he goes back to the master bedroom. I’m sitting in a rocking chair that has a terrible squeak, but Mark has never been able to hear it. Now he wants to fix it because the squeak is so loud. He just said, “I’m loving this.” And so am I. The new technology is amazing.
We are thinking of our good friends Linda and Mike Stuart, and their son Garrett, tonight. Linda and Mike left New York in August 2014 on their bicycles with the goal of eventually biking around the world. Earlier this week they were in Columbia in South America when they got word that Mike’s mother was dying. They flew home in time to have a day with her before she died. We can’t be with them, but we send our most positive thoughts.
Tomorrow is a full day of Camp Oma with Sam, Jonah, and Ollie. So it is early to bed tonight.
by Judy Handley | Jun 22, 2016 | Sailing Logs Year 11 |
Day 243, Year 11: Happy Birthday, Jo
Date: Tuesday, June 21, 2016
Weather: Rain Early, Turning Sunny and Windy; High Temp 77 degrees F
Location: At Home in The Studio #8, Falmouth, MA
Today was our daughter-in-law Jo’s birthday. Happy Birthday, Jo!!! We talked to her via Skype on Sunday. On Thursday they leave for a trip to England to visit with Jo’s family and will be there for almost a month. Jo’s younger brother is getting married and then the whole extended family is headed to France. Sure hope they have a wonderful trip.
Today was also the first full day of Camp Oma. We had Ollie yesterday for the afternoon, but today he arrived early and was ready for a full day of activity. The morning was low key just playing at home, but the highlight of our day was an afternoon walk to a little park just down the block. It is really just a green with a swing set and some park benches, but Ollie thought it was great. Granddad pulled him in the little red beach wagon which was fun for him. When we got home, we went out for a little shopping trip and then it was time to head to East Falmouth Elementary to pick up Sam and Jonah. We brought them back home with us and waited for Heather to show up. She ran from Woods Hole to here and then still had the energy to go on a walk with us back to the little park. By the time we were ready to go, Jed was here, so we had a family walk. We went through MacDougall’s boat yard to see a 46-foot Beneteau that was dismasted this weekend when the captain decided to try and make it through the Eel Pond bridge as it was closing. The boat was going very fast, as seen on captured video, but not fast enough. A call to the bridge tender to declare his intentions would have been a wise thing to do. The mast is still lying across the boat, but most of it is submersed in the water, along with the furled sail. Painful to see.
by Judy Handley | Jun 20, 2016 | Sailing Logs Year 11 |
Day 242, Year 11: Solstice, Full Moon, and Happy People
Date: Monday, June 20, 2016
Weather: Beautiful Day, Very Windy; High Temp 76 degrees F
Location: At Home in The Studio, Falmouth, MA
Tonight the full strawberry moon coincided with summer solstice, the longest day of the year. Add to that two very happy people settling into their new home and you have a great beginning to the summer. We made some progress today in terms of unpacking boxes. We’re going for the ‘slow but sure’ approach. We had Ollie with us for the afternoon and once we took him home, we continued the unpacking into the evening.
We really are loving it here, but being right on the water means that it is cooler than a few blocks inland. And today it was super windy making sitting on the deck just a little chilly. One part of the deck is protected from the wind, so I set Ollie up to play in that area. If the wind continues, I’ll encourage Mark to move his chair to that area of the deck as well. But today he put together a steel and glass desk that belongs to Justin. We got it out of the storage unit and will use that to house our computers.
Tomorrow we have Ollie all day and will mix play with unpacking more of these boxes. The more I unpack, the more I am amazed by the amount of storage we had on Windbird. The owner of this apartment complex came to visit yesterday. He took a look around and asked, “Was all of this stuff on your boat?” Since he was only looking at the boxes stored in the dining area I could reply with a definite ‘yes’. And I must admit that it is really hard to believe that a 42’ sailboat could hold this much. Now the daily challenge is to find a place to store it in this apartment. We are so grateful to have the chest and dresser given to us by Alan and Helaine Kanegsberg. Having a place to put clothes is such a luxury. And the entertainment center that we bought at the Restore for $50 was such a good deal. It was just what we needed to hold all of the extra food from a well-provisioned Windbird. I’m going to call it our garage.
