by Judy Handley | Mar 31, 2014 | Cape Cod USA, Sailing Logs Year 9 |
Day 162, Year 9: The Lion is Still Roaring
Date: Monday, March 31, 2014
Weather: Overcast with Mixed Precipitation All Day (ice pellets in the PM)
Location: Brewer Fiddler’s Cove Marina, North Falmouth, Massachusetts
This is the last day of March and it is still roaring like a lion. We had a couple of lamb days during the month, but for the most part the weather has been hostile. Today the wind was strong making it feel even colder than it was and tonight I feel like I’m in a wind tunnel here on Windbird. Tiny snowflakes fell on and off all day and mid-afternoon we got the storm of ice pellets predicted. So ‘in like a lion, out like a lion’ describes the weather for March 2014 on Cape Cod.
Jed made it home late this afternoon which was the high point of the day for Heather and boys. Otherwise, Heather had “one of those days” when nothing seems to go right. She came home early in the afternoon to hear from me that there was no heat in the house and no hot water. It didn’t take too long to figure out that we were out of oil. Thankfully oil was delivered a couple of hours later. But after that discovery, one thing after another went awry—nothing major, just a lot of little aggravations. On the up side, Jonah, Ollie, and I had a great morning at the public library and when we got home, Ollie went down for a nap and Jonah and I had some quality one-on-one time together. Tomorrow I will have just Ollie for the day and then I will head to Boston to spend the night with Mark. On Wednesday I will go with him for his last radiation treatment, celebrate with the ringing of the bell, and then help him do the required cleaning of his unit at the Hope House and head home to Windbird. Then when and if the weather improves, we’ll start thinking about getting the boat ready for another season. But right now all I can do is think about surviving this roaring wind which is blowing at a steady 30 to 35 knots. How do you tame a lion?
by Judy Handley | Mar 30, 2014 | Cape Cod USA, Sailing Logs Year 9 |
Day 161, Year 9: Trip to the Museum of Science in Boston
Date: Sunday, March 30, 2014
Weather: Overcast and Foggy with Rain–Overnight and All Day and Evening
Location: Brewer Fiddler’s Cove Marina, North Falmouth, Massachusetts
The weather forecast was correct this time. The 100 per cent chance of rain today became a reality and it is still raining. So our decision to head to Boston to the Museum of Science was a good one. We pulled out of the drive-way at 11 am and didn’t return until 9 pm tonight. We spent the afternoon at the Museum and stayed until closing. We then drove to Harvard Square in Cambridge to have dinner at a favorite Vietnamese restaurant. After dinner we drove back through Boston to take Mark to the Hope House in Jamaica Plain and then home. It was a big day, but all three boys really enjoyed the Museum. Ollie was fascinated by the BIG T-Rex model and the colorful butterflies in the Butterfly Garden. And Sam and Jonah loved racing against a moving light in the Science in the Park area. The hands-on activities are their favorites and Sam especially enjoyed using a touch pad to navigate a small moon rover to find certain objects. It was not easy, but without help he quickly grasped the idea and mastered it. At the end of the day Jonah said his favorite thing was the lightening demonstration—which is quite a show. And Ollie just enjoyed it all. He got right in there and ran the races with Sam and Jonah and attempted to do everything they did all afternoon. At the end of the day, we spent a long time watching balls drop down through what is called the audiokinetic sculpture. It is a two-story plexiglass-encased maze with all sorts of moving mechanical parts that challenge the rise and fall of balls. The balls never go up and down the same way twice and some of their movements make different sounds. You could literally sit there and watch it all day. This sculpture is set against a glass wall that allows you to look out over the Charles River and Boston. As I sat there late this afternoon, I was so glad I was IN the Museum and not outside. The view was one of the dreariest views of Boston I have ever seen. All of the tall buildings were shrouded in fog and the rain was still coming down, with more to come.
I am spending the night at Heather’s tonight as she has to be out of here by 7:30 in the morning. That will leave Ollie, Jonah, and me to get Sam to school and then we’ll head to the public library for Monday morning story time. Jonah, Ollie, and I will be spending the day together, so I’d better stop writing and get to bed so that I’ll have enough energy to keep up with them.
by Judy Handley | Mar 29, 2014 | Cape Cod USA, Sailing Logs Year 9 |
Day 160, Year 9: Sushi Party
Date: Saturday, March 29, 2014
Weather: Overcast Morning, Rainy Afternoon and Evening, Temp Upper 40’s F
Location: Brewer Fiddler’s Cove Marina, North Falmouth, Massachusetts
Mark and I got a slow start to our day by sleeping in. By the time we got up, there was an email from Heather with an attached photo of her morning walk to the bogs with the boys. The bogs are inherently flat, but there are hills on two sides and the boys decided to make their morning walk a mountain climbing adventure. This made Mark and I feel very lazy, but I had told Mark last night he was under house arrest today and had to sleep in and take it easy. So we did. Heather called late morning and invited us over for a sushi dinner party this evening and we jumped at that chance. We missed the ‘party’ part of the invitation and were terribly underdressed. Sam and Jonah both had on a shirt and tie and Heather was all dressed up as well. Ollie, on the other hand, decided not to wear anything, so our attire was somewhere in the middle. The sushi was delicious, so thank you, Heather.
This rain that we are currently getting is supposed to continue into tomorrow and then ice pellets and snow are forecast for Boston for tomorrow night into Monday. The forecast for here has changed a bit and we now have only a 40 per cent chance of getting the ice pellets and snow. The accumulation in Boston won’t be more than an inch, but with early Monday morning travel looking a bit iffy and the day of rain forecast for tomorrow, we have all decided to go to Boston tomorrow to the Museum of Science. At the end of the day, we will drop Mark off at the Hope House and he can then take the Hope House shuttle or T to the hospital on Monday. I will return home with Heather and boys and spend the night with them. This way there is no chance of either Mark or I having to drive in icy conditions. Heather has to leave for work at 7:30 am on Mondays, so this way I’ll be there so she can leave earlier if we do get the ice. Jed should return home from DC on Monday evening and I know Heather and the boys will be so excited to have him home. And then when Mark returns home on Wednesday, life should be back to normal here.
by Judy Handley | Mar 28, 2014 | Cape Cod USA, Sailing Logs Year 9 |
Day 159, Year 9: March is Marching On
Date: Friday, March 28, 2014
Weather: Overcast with a Few Sprinkles, Windy, Warmer Than Yesterday
Location: Brewer Fiddler’s Cove Marina, North Falmouth, Massachusetts
March is still being, well, like March. Even though the thermometer says it is warmer, it doesn’t feel much like it. And if the forecast is right, we have lots more of today’s weather to come—just add more precipitation. There’s a 90% chance of rain tomorrow and 100% chance tomorrow night and Sunday. So March is marching on and those April showers are beginning. Let’s just hope the temp stays above freezing and the precipitation comes as rain showers, not snow. Unfortunately, however, the forecast for Monday is calling for ice pellets.
My mother, whose name was Ollie, was forever starting one activity, then moving on to another before the first was done, and then moving on again and again. This was especially aggravating if you were waiting for her to go somewhere. It could take all day to get out the door because she would start in the direction of getting ready to go and then remember about ten things she needed to finish before leaving. In my family this became known as ‘Ollie’n around.’ And I think Oliver, aka Ollie, has inherited some of his great grandmother’s genes. Or maybe his grandmother’s, as ‘like mother, like daughter’ applies here. Or maybe he is just being two. But whatever, we make a great pair. We spend our days doing a little of this and then moving on to a little of that and just when I think we have settled on something, Ollie abandons all and decides he wants to go outside to play. So out the door we go. And today was no different. We just spent our morning ‘Ollie’n around’ and enjoying every minute of it. As I mentioned above, today was warmer than yesterday but it didn’t feel like it. But it was warm enough to start melting the snow and Ollie found great joy in puddle stomping. After nap, Granddad arrived from Boston and the first word out of Ollie’s mouth was, “book.” He loves to have Granddad read to him and this continued until Momma got home. Heather came home to take a quick nap before driving to Boston for an evening reception, so Ollie and I headed out to pick up Sam and Jonah and left Heather and Mark to nap quietly. On the way home from Woods Hole, we stopped by Peterson Farm again to see the lambs. They weren’t nearly as frisky today, but it was still fun to watch them.
Mark and I had a great evening with the boys. We had dinner and then headed upstairs for a long book fest before the 8:30 bedtime. The boys know their nighttime routines and did everything with very little prompting from us. Sam was out like a light the minute his head hit the pillow. And Jonah and Ollie weren’t far behind. So this house is as quiet as a mouse tonight. Heather should be home soon and Mark and I will head home to Windbird. Now we just have to dream up some rainy weekend activities.
by Judy Handley | Mar 27, 2014 | Cape Cod USA, Sailing Logs Year 9 |
Day 158, Year 9: Birds and Baby Lambs
Date: Thursday, March 27, 2014
Weather: Clear and Cold
Location: Brewer Fiddler’s Cove Marina, North Falmouth, Massachusetts
Today was all about birds and baby lambs . . . and add to that three delightful little boys. Heather headed to Boston this morning and Ollie and I played and watched birds all morning. There are lots of house finches hanging around right now and Ollie loves the flashes of red. At least I think we are seeing house finches and not purple finches. I’ll need my bird watching friend Patsy Decker to weigh in on this one. But whichever, the males are quite colorful right now. The day flew by and suddenly it was time to go get Sam from school. Ollie and I picked him up and the three of us went to the store to get some things we needed for our breakfast for dinner evening meal. We then drove to Woods Hole to pick up Jonah and on the way home we stopped by Peterson Farm to see if there were any baby lambs. There were quite a few and they put on a real show for us. Three little white lambs were particularly frisky. They jumped over one another and in Jonah’s words, “Played tag.” All of the babies were constantly nudging at their mothers wanting to nurse and that prompted this exchange.
Sam: “How do they know which mother is which?”
Jonah: “By the tag on their ear.”
Ollie was absolutely mesmerized and was very quiet for a long time. Then he started making the exact sounds that he had been hearing the sheep make. “Maaaa, maaaa, maaaa.” He had obviously been studying and the result was just too cute. We will have to return on the weekend and spend more time, but this evening we needed to cut our visit short and head home for dinner. All three boys played out in the backyard in the snow while I fixed dinner. I watched them through the sliding glass doors and cooked at the same time. Sam and Jonah were both so good with Ollie, but Sam was particularly taking his role as big brother quite seriously. He put Ollie behind him on a sled and took him for a ride down the hill which Ollie loved. And then all three boys just sat down and ate snow for the longest time. Ollie got very cold and had to come in before the big boys, but I couldn’t have been prouder of them for playing together so nicely. The love fest continued during dinner when Sam and Jonah got Ollie to eat his scrambled eggs by telling him it was candy! Oh well, it worked. Heather got home during their bath time and then it was upstairs for a book fest before bed. All three boys made my job today an easy one. It’s not always that way, but they sure were fantastic this evening.
I talked to Mark tonight and he is looking forward to coming home for the weekend. He has only three more days of treatment next week and then he is home for good. His energy level started to drop over the past week and a half, but he is feeling much more energetic now. His blood counts are still perfect, but Dr. Kwak did cut back a bit on the chemo dosage this week because she feels the drug is exacerbating the extremely dry skin problem that Mark has been having. I think it is just the cold weather, but since he was taking the maximum dosage, Dr. Kwak didn’t feel that dropping back a bit should be a problem. And it has helped. So all is well for now.
by Judy Handley | Mar 26, 2014 | Cape Cod USA, Sailing Logs Year 9 |
Day 157, Year 9: Clanging, Banging Blizzard
Date: Wednesday, March 26, 2014
Weather: Snowy, Windy (30 to 50 mph winds), and Cold
Location: Brewer Fiddler’s Cove Marina, North Falmouth, Massachusetts
While Jed is out of town, I stay at Heather’s until the boys are in bed and then I head home. Monday when I got home, the inside boat temperature was 58 degrees F. Last night when I got home it was 74 degrees F. I over-reacted to the cold the night before and left the heaters on high all day. So when I got home I turned them off for a bit to let things cool down. That didn’t take long and when I did turn them back on, I turned them down a bit. Mistake again. Around 4 am I woke up to a very loud clanging and banging sound and a very cold boat. The blizzard had hit and winds were blowing 30 to 50 knots. The plastic cover doesn’t do well in winds over 30 knots. The whole boat starts shaking and swaying. I had no idea what the clanging and banging was about, but Mark and I had heard the same sound during the last windy storm and could not figure out what was causing it. So I assumed the boat wasn’t sinking and I tried to go back to sleep. I moved into the main cabin, but the noise was just as loud there. So sleeping was a no go. The noise was just too loud and the boat was too cold. I turned the heaters up to full blast and by daybreak, the temperature was up to 66 degrees F and tolerable. I got dressed and went out on the deck to try and figure out what was making all the noise and it was an easy discovery. The metal frame that holds up all the plastic has upright poles and a ridge pole. The ridge pole was attached to the top of the uprights by wire ties. Well, those wire ties had all popped from the constant movement caused by the strong winds and the ridge pole had slipped down between the upright poles and the plastic and at each end it was loose enough to constantly vibrate against the uprights making the ungodly noise. I tied ropes to each end, threw the loose end of the ropes up and over the boom and pulled from the other side to slip the ridge pole back up and into place. I then tied down the ropes and the noise stopped. Success. But it was just too windy out for me to even open the door to look out. I waited until 8:30 to call Heather to tell her I was going to stay holed up until things settled down a bit, but about that time it got even rowdier with stronger gusts. I covered my head with a pillow and tried to get a little sleep. I was somewhat successful, but when I noticed that things were calmer (the wind instruments were now reading a pretty steady 30 knots), I decided to get up and get ready to go help Heather with the boys. About that time she called asking if I had taken the van keys by mistake. I had, so thankfully she didn’t have an emergency and I got the keys to her so she could back the van out of the drive way she had just shoveled. By this time all the snow had stopped but it stayed windy most of the afternoon. The wind is now down to 15 to 20 knots with gusts to 25. But that seems calm. And when I got home tonight the temperature inside was 70 degrees. So I finally got that right. Miracles never cease.
Jed got more bad news yesterday. His grandmother in Baltimore died. He lost his dad at the beginning of March and now his dad’s mother. Jed, we’re thinking of you and will do our best to hold down the fort until you can return. Hopefully April will bring better weather and happier times.
