by Judy Handley | Jan 17, 2012 | Cape Cod, USA, Sailing Logs Year 7 |
Day 70, Year 7: Cranberries and Buffleheads
Date: Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Weather: Overcast and Rainy, Temps in the Upper 40’s
Location: Brewer Fiddler’s Cove Marina, N Falmouth, MA
We live in the land of cranberries and Buffleheads . . . or maybe Bufflehead
x Hooded Merganser hybrids. At any rate, there are loads of ducks and
cranberries in “these here parts.” This past weekend all of the cranberry
bogs that have been so brilliantly red and beautiful throughout the fall and
early winter were suddenly flooded and underwater. The flooding is done
intentionally to protect the plants from being frozen. They evidently
survive cold winter weather better when frozen water. And Fiddler’s Cove
has more than its share sea birds these days. My favorites are the little
black and white ducks that I think are Buffleheads. They like to winter in
small flocks on lakes and bays, and our flock chose Fiddler’s Cove. There
were a few here when we arrived in November, but the numbers have
multiplied. They are very shy and that makes it hard to get good
photographs. But I took a few pics today and will post them with this log.
I think they are Buffleheads, but if anyone has other ideas, please let me
know.
Our daughter Heather leaves tomorrow for a conference in North Carolina.
She will be gone until the early hours of Sunday morning. So Jed will have
both boys for the next few days. Mark and I will pick them up from school
and spend the afternoons with them as usual, and we will spend part of our
week gearing up for Sam’s 5th birthday this weekend. Our son Justin, along
with Jo and Ziggy, will headed to a conference in Las Vegas at the same
time. So it is a busy week for our kids. Mark found out today that his
follow-up appointment with his surgeon, Dr. Sylla, and the oncology team
will be next Tuesday at 1 pm. We are hoping that he will find out what the
plan will be for chemotherapy, but there might be other tests that have to
be done first. We just have to patient, but waiting is very difficult for
both us. In the meantime, Mark is regaining strength at an incredible rate
and is feeling great.
We spent most of evening on the phone. My Aunt Ethel who is 95 years-old
called to see how Mark is doing. She is a truly incredible woman. She
still gardens and cuts her own grass. If I am doing as well at 75 as she is
at 95, I’ll feel like I am a lucky woman. When we got our new Yamaha dinghy
motor in Malaysia we named it Aunt Ethel in hopes that it will run forever.
We then talked to my sister-in-law Conda who is battling cancer at the same
time as Mark. She is currently undergoing chemotherapy with an experimental
drug and so far, so good. She is feeling good and has an incredibly
positive outlook. And then I talked to my sister Patsy. It was truly a
marathon telephone night.
by Judy Handley | Jan 16, 2012 | Cape Cod, USA, Sailing Logs Year 7 |
Day 69, Year 7: Pajama Party with the Grandkids
Date: Monday, January 16, 2012
Weather: Mostly Sunny with Temperature Rising Quickly
Location: Brewer Fiddler’s Cove Marina, N Falmouth, MA
Last night the low was 8 degrees F. Brrrrrr! Tonight the forecast is for
the low to be in the 30’s with a daytime high of 50 tomorrow. It was
strange this evening to see the temperature rising after the sun went down.
That is definitely not the norm. But I’m not sure there is a “norm” in
terms of weather these days. I hear our daughter saying that it is rumored
that the Artic Oscillation is going to get itself turned around and bring us
normal winter weather in the next couple of weeks. The past two Arctic
winters were dominated by a negative phase of the Arctic Oscillation, but to
date this winter it has been positive. This means that the coldest winter
air is kept in the Arctic while Europe and North America get warmer
conditions and lower snow cover. I guess we’ll just have to wait and see
what happens in the next couple of weeks.
Last night we slept over at Heather and Jed’s and this morning both Sam and
Jonah decided that we all had to keep our pajamas on and have a pajama
party. It was a great way to spend the last day of this long holiday
weekend. Sam said we’d need to stay in our pajamas for six hours, but we
didn’t make it quite that long. Jed made us all French Toast for breakfast
and then we had a hair cutting party. We were just in a partying mood! I
cut Mark’s hair and Heather cut Sam and Jonah’s. Then we all worked on
putting together the bee hive we got Heather for Christmas. When we opened
the box it looked like a huge set of Lincoln Logs-many pieces of wood. It
looked a little overwhelming, but with no problems we got the hive body and
one super put together. Sam and Jonah enjoyed doing the hammering. During
the week Mark will work on putting the frames together. Into each frame, a
wax foundation is inserted onto which the bees will build their honeycomb.
Jed whipped up homemade chicken noodle soup for lunch and then Mark, Sam,
Jonah, and I went for a walk in the sunshine. It was much nicer walking
outside in the fresh air today rather than in a building. And if it is not
too rainy, we’ll continue to walk outside this week while the weather is not
so chilly.
Mark and I returned to the boat at naptime and I cooked while Mark slept.
He is still doing great-just needs lots of rest.
by Judy Handley | Jan 15, 2012 | Cape Cod, USA, Sailing Logs Year 7 |
Day 68, Year 7: Walmart to IKEA
Date: Sunday, January 15, 2012
Weather: Frigid Temps Ranging from 10 to 20 degrees F
Location: Brewer Fiddler’s Cove Marina, N Falmouth, MA
We moved up today. Instead of walking in Walmart, we went with Heather and
family to IKEA and did our walking there. Of course, we had to drive an
hour each way to get there and back, but we had a good time playing in the
children’s department with Sam and Jonah and had an IKEA lunch which costs
very little. So it was a fun way to spend the day. When we got back to
Falmouth it was almost time for Sam and Jonah to go to Sunday night ice
skating. We got dropped off at the boat, gathered our things to spend the
night at Heather and Jed’s, and headed to the ice arena. I must digress
just a bit to explain why we were going to Heather and Jed’s for the night.
When we were here on Friday night for dinner Sam really wanted us to spend
the night. But we had just returned from Boston and really needed to get
back to check on Windbird. So we promised we would do an overnight on
Sunday. Tomorrow is a holiday, so we can spend the morning having fun. Now
back to the ice arena. We missed Jonah’s first time on the ice last
Sunday, so we went tonight to see him. He wasn’t as enthusiastic as last
week when he simply took off even without the milk crates, but he did go out
three times. All of the other kids except for one little girl are all older
and bigger, so it must be a bit intimidating. But he is a trooper and
really prefers walking on the ice without the milk crates. Sam is also
doing great. I’ve attached a few photos of them, proud Oma that I am.
The weather is frigid, but promises to warm up by Tuesday. The low last
night was 11 degrees F and the high was no more than 20. The wind is still
blowing and even though we were toasty inside Windbird last night, going
outside today was a bit of shock. So I can think of no reason why it ever
needs to be this cold again!
by Judy Handley | Jan 14, 2012 | Cape Cod, USA, Sailing Logs Year 7 |
Day 67, Year 7: Never Thought
Date: Saturday, January 14, 2012
Weather: Beautiful Day, Still a Bit Windy
Location: Brewer Fiddler’s Cove Marina, N Falmouth, MA
The highlight of today’s activity was a walk through the aisles of Walmart.
I NEVER THOUGHT I would say such a thing, but here it is in print. Now for
the explanation. We got up this morning to sunny skies, but it was still
windy. It had settled down from 55 knot gusts to 30 knots, but with temps
in the 20’s it felt cold. Mark really wanted to take a long walk, but
unfortunately he has a cold. It is either the same cold he had when he went
in for surgery resurfacing or it is a new one, but no matter, I didn’t want
him out walking in such windy weather. I tried to think of where we could
walk indoors and then I remembered that people sometimes walk in malls to
get out of the weather. But we don’t have a mall here in Falmouth. The
biggest store we have is a Walmart, so that’s where we headed. Heather had
called earlier in the morning to ask if we wanted anything from the Farmer’s
Market. We did, so we stopped by her house first to pick up the bounty. It
was nap time for Jonah and Sam, but Sam had delayed his nap convincing his
parents that he had to wait to “greet” us at the door when we arrived. You
can tell that he is going to be five years old this week. He talks more
like an adult these days than he does a little boy. My, the years have
flown by so quickly. After visiting for a few minutes, we then went to
Walmart and walked the aisles for quite a while. We spent time admiring the
orchids for sale. These orchids cost $10, but the same ones in Thailand
were only $1. I was too cheap to buy them there, so I certainly couldn’t
allow myself to buy one today. So I just admired. We bought an
indoor/outdoor digital thermometer so we keep track of the temp outside the
boat and in the aft cabin where we sleep. We already have a thermometer
that tells us the temp in the main cabin and on deck under the plastic
covering. And, by the way, we are keeping very warm in the boat. We stay
anywhere between 68 and 72 degrees F, so no worries about us freezing to
death. But we wanted the extra thermometers to help keep a check on things.
We were amazed this morning when the internet was telling us that it was 20
degrees F outside but inside the plastic covering it was 42 degrees F. We
don’t think the plastic should make that much difference, so we think it
must have been warmer than 20 degrees F here. Now that we have a way to
know the outside temp right here in Fiddler’s Cove we’ll see if we get the
same differential.
We took it slow today, trying to rebound from yesterday’s news that Mark is
going to have to go through chemotherapy. I think the following message
from our friend Lynda Kaufman in South Carolina sums it up best. “You were
on such a roll of everything going extremely in your favor it had to be a
shock to hear (the biopsy report). This is only a patch of rough water to
negotiate. It may make you sea sick and weary but when it is past you will
be no worse for the experience. Mark will have to lose that lovely head of
hair all the other guys his age envy so much but his will grow back at
least. Just remember this is still very curable and you are in good general
health and clearly have hit the jackpot with doctors. Fight like hell.”
And that is precisely what we plan to do.
by Judy Handley | Jan 13, 2012 | Cape Cod, USA, Sailing Logs Year 7 |
Day 66, Year 7: Triskaidekaphobia on Friday the 13th
Date: Friday, January 13, 2012
Weather: Partly Sunny and VERY Windy
Location: Brewer Fiddler’s Cove Marina, N Falmouth, MA
It is most definitely Friday the 13th and I have learned that
triskaidekaphobia is fear of the number 13. From Greek, tris means ‘3’, kai
means ‘and’, deka means ’10’, and you know what phobia means. Well, I have
never liked the number 13 and have always been a bit superstitious. I don’t
walk under ladders and I turn and go another way if a black cat crosses my
path. And I really don’t like leaving on a passage on a Friday. So getting
the biopsy report from Mark’s surgeon on Friday the 13th was probably not a
good idea. But we did get the report and it was not what we had hoped to
hear. We were so hopeful that the cancer had not spread to the lymph nodes,
but it has. Four of the sixteen nodes removed were cancerous and this means
that Mark will have to have chemotherapy. I think both of us were just a
little too optimistic as the news hit us both pretty hard. We’ll rebound
and fight the fight, but I have definitely moved from being
triskaidekaphobic to being friggatriskaidekaphobic, the specific fear of
Friday the 13th. I think the ancient Persians had it right. They believed
the twelve constellations in the Zodiac controlled the months of the year
and that each ruled the earth for a thousand years. At the end of rule of
the twelve constellations they believed the sky and earth collapsed in
chaos. So Persians leave their houses on the thirteenth day of the Persian
Calendar to avoid bad luck. Good idea.
Mark is still feeling great and all systems are working. He is no longer on
any kind of pain medication and we are still mystified by the fact that he
had absolutely no pain post-surgery. He can now slowly resume a normal diet
and I think none too soon as he has lost a few pounds this week. We need to
fatten him up before he starts the chemotherapy. He might have to return to
Boston next week to have some additional testing done, and will then meet
with Dr. Sylla and the oncologist the following week. Until then we really
won’t know exactly how to categorize the stage of his cancer. We read on
the internet that there is a difference between having cancer in 1-3 lymph
nodes and 4-6 nodes in terms of staging. But we also know that the tumor
had not broken through the outer colon wall and that the cancer is not in
other organs. So we will remain hopeful. We are so grateful and thankful
for so many things that it is hard not to be hopeful. Friends and family
have been so very supportive and that has meant so much to us. I don’t dare
try to list the names of everyone who has emailed or called us this week as
I am afraid I would inadvertently leave someone out. But you know who you
are and we thank you from the bottom of our hearts. Dr. Sylla and her team
at MGH were absolutely fantastic, as were all the nurses and the entire
facility. John and Sue Reed were so gracious to take us into their home for
a couple of days after Mark was released from the hospital and we really
enjoyed our time with them. It was so reassuring to know we were only 10
minutes away from the hospital in case anything went wrong. The
cardiologist here on the Cape that was relentless in his search for the
cause of Mark’s shortness of breath will certainly get a Valentine’s gift
from us this year. If Dr. Christman had released Mark once he determined
that his problem was not his heart, we might not have identified the problem
as cancer for months. And to our friend Dick Wicklund, we will be eternally
grateful for his referrals to Mass General. He knows all the right people
in all the right places and has graciously called on his friends to help us
out. So you see that we really can’t focus on the bit of ‘not so good’ news
that we received today. We have too much else to be grateful for with such
a huge net of friends and family to support us. Thanks to all.
I can’t end this log without talking a bit about the weather. We woke up
this morning to spring-like weather in Boston. The temp was near 50 degrees
F, there was a gentle warm breeze blowing, the sun was shining, and the
birds were singing as if it were springtime. Even the forsythia bush in
John and Sue’s yard is thinking that it is springtime as it’s buds look like
they are ready to burst into bloom. As we drove south from Boston, however,
clouds moved in and the wind was blowing so hard that the car blew sideways
a couple of times during strong gusts. When we got home to Windbird it was
VERY windy. The gusts today have ranged from 35 to 55 knots with 25 to 30
knots of wind blowing steadily. The outside temperature is dropping and
will get down to about 10 degrees F tomorrow night. But so far, we are snug
and cozy inside Windbird. Heather and Jed invited us over for dinner
tonight and we were so excited to see Sam and Jonah. Sam really wanted us
to spend the night, but we told him we needed to come home and make sure
Windbird was okay. But if it gets too cold on the boat, we’ll just call Sam
and get an invitation to spend the night at his house!
by Judy Handley | Jan 12, 2012 | Cape Cod, USA, Sailing Logs Year 7 |
Day 65, Year 7: Out and About in Cambridge
Date: Thursday, January 12, 2012
Weather: Rain All Day, Temp in the 40’s
Location: At Home with John and Sue Reed, Cambridge, Massachusetts
The weather today was just nasty. It was windy and rainy and dreary, so we
decided to stay in Cambridge until tomorrow. We saw no need to fight the
weather. It is supposed to rain tomorrow as well, but we are hoping that
forecast will change. The good thing is that it is not cold, but the cold
is coming this weekend. Mark is still feeling great but he stayed in all
day due to the weather. Sue and I, on the other hand, were out and about
Cambridge both morning and afternoon. We went to hear a special speaker at
one place in the morning, brought a friend of hers home for lunch, and then
went back out this afternoon to hear another speaker. So it was an
intellectually stimulating day for me.
This morning Sue took me as a guest to the Thursday Morning Talks for the
benefit of Mt. Auburn Hospital. Today’s speaker was Ellen Fitzpatrick,
Professor of History at the University of New Hampshire and commentator on
PBS’s NewsHour with Jim Lehrer. She has recently published a book called
“Letters to Jackie: Condolences from a Grieving Nation.” She started her
presentation by looking at the audience and stating that she could tell by
the color of our hair that each of us could probably instantly recall
exactly where we were on November 22, 1963, when we heard that Present John
Kennedy had been shot. There were head nods all around the room affirming
that we all remembered. She then thanked us for coming out on such a dreary
morning, but she added that we were probably happier to be listening to a
speech about condolence letters rather than sitting at home writing one, or
worse yet, having someone else writing one about us. That got a chuckle
from the audience, but the remainder of her presentation easily brought
tears. Fitzpatrick has chosen 250 of the 1.5 million letters that were
written to Jackie that exemplify the “heart-wrenching grief and soul
searching of a nation in a time of crisis.”
The afternoon presentation was not emotionally charged, but it was most
interesting. This was a meeting of the Thursday Mothers’ Club of Cambridge
which started in 1920 as the Mothers’ Query Club. It was then mostly the
wives of Harvard professors who met “to promote discussion of subjects of
interest to mothers, and to secure a better acquaintance among its members.”
Although it keeps the name of “Mothers’ Club”, today you certainly don’t
have to be a mother to attend. The topic of this afternoon’s presentation
was about the Shosoin, a treasure house in Japan that belongs to Buddhist
temple/monastery complex of Todai-ji in the ancient city of Nara. Todai-ji
has a Buddhist temple that houses the world’s largest bronze statue of
Buddha Vairocana in the world’s largest wooden building. The Shosoin, which
is built in the azekura log-cabin style, is in the same complex and dates
back to 701 AD. The title of the presentation was “Treasures of the Silk
Road” and the speaker, Elizabeth ten Grotenhuis, former professor at Boston
University, did a wonderful job of explaining the importance of the Silk
Road which led from the Far East to the Middle East. As I listened, I got
inspired to put together a presentation based on the textiles of the various
places we visited on the Voyage of Windbird-the molas of the San Blas
Islands in Panama, the tapa cloth and woven fine mats of the South Pacific,
the songket and ikat weavings of Indonesia, the recelet from Madagascar.
And we were leaving, the hostess of the meeting said to me, “Welcome back
from the World.” That sounded like the title of a book and has rekindled my
desire to write about our adventures. So maybe some of this will get done
in 2012.
