Day 286, Year 11: Happy Thoughts About Boats
Date: Wednesday, August 3, 2016
Weather: Beautiful Day, No Humidity; High 78 degrees F
Location: At Home in The Studio #8, Falmouth, MA

We talked to our son Justin this afternoon and he explained a photo that we saw on Facebook on Monday. It was a picture of our grandson Ziggy getting on a small sailboat called a Sunfish and the tag said, “Ziggy, keeping the Handley’s afloat. It’s a family tradition!” When we talked to Justin this afternoon he explained that Ziggy is taking sailing lessons and he’s loving it. This certainly elicited a big smile from Granddad and me. Justin was never in love with sailing. He would always rather be on a surfboard. Ziggy has followed in his father’s footsteps to this point and loves surfing. But evidently he has also inherited the sailing gene. Go, Ziggy!!!

160803 Day 286 Cape Cod, USA–Ziggy on Sunfish

And good luck to Justin. We found out in our conversation that Justin had just accidentally split open the entire length of his left index finger. Jo applied butterfly bandages and Justin was not planning on going to the Emergency Room. But he was in extreme pain and we are worried.

Today we received another photo, this one from Sam and Dawn, the young couple in the process of purchasing Windbird. They are spending the week on Windbird and today Sam was out and about in the dinghy. We assume Dawn got the great pic of Sam zooming through the harbor. Sam reported that after six months of dormancy, the dinghy engine started on the third pull. Of course, this was after having to cut off the lock that secured the motor to Windbird’s rail. We think we have the key, but we don’t know where. So Sam and Dawn were able to use the bolt cutters on the boat to cut off the lock.

160803 Day 286 Cape Cod, USA–Sam on Dinghy in Coquina Harbor

I don’t dare show this photo to our four year-old grandson, Ollie. Almost daily Ollie reminds us how much he misses driving Windbird’s dinghy. Hopefully before summer’s end we’ll get Ollie, and the rest of us as well, out on the water in some sort of boat.

I had a short day with the Goldpebbles today. Heather left for Nantucket today and Jed took the boys for the afternoon. Mark and I used the free time to do some hardware and grocery store shopping and then came home to spend the evening together. Heather returns mid-day tomorrow and I think she plans on taking possession of the Goldpebbles once she gets home. So Mark and I might have another afternoon together. Then on Friday we head to Boston for yet another biopsy. Once we have the results of this biopsy, we should be able to make a decision on what the next treatment will be for Mark.

Day 285, Year 11: Falling into the New Daily Routine
Date: Tuesday, August 2, 2016
Weather: Overcast and Cooler, High in the low-70’s F
Location: At Home in The Studio #8, Falmouth, MA

The first three weeks of Camp Oma were all about heading to the beach each morning for swim lessons and then just enjoying the beach time. Last week our schedule changed when classes at the School of Science in Woods Hole began. Sam was sick the latter half of last week, so we are just now falling into our new schedule. I arrive at Heather and Jed’s at 9 each morning and they take off with Sam and head to work in Woods Hole. Sam stays with Heather and reads until his class starts at 10:15 am. In the meantime, Jonah and Ollie enjoy time just playing at home. At 11:00 we stop to eat lunch and at 11:15 we head to Woods Hole to drop Jonah off for his class and pick Sam up. Sam, Ollie, and I have been driving back to Falmouth while Jonah is in class, getting lunch for Sam and playing at our apartment. I leave Sam and Ollie playing with Granddad while I drive back to Woods Hole to pick up Sam. This keeps Ollie and Jonah from having to spend so much time in the car. But when I return with Sam and get lunch for him, we then all drive back to Heather and Jed’s so the kids can just play away the afternoon. I busy myself with laundry and house cleaning chores, and before you know it, it is after 5 pm and Heather and Jed return from week.

At the same time that the schedule changed for the boys, Mark’s schedule also changed. We no long go to Boston on Wednesdays, but this week we go on Friday for Mark’s last biopsy. Soon after that we should hear Dr. Kwak as to what her recommendation will be for treatment. Lots going on and I just can’t keep up with correspondence. If you have sent emails my way and I haven’t responded, please forgive me. I will write to you as soon as I can. Right now I’m treading water and losing ground.

Day 284, Year 11: You Can Take the Girl Out of West Virginia . . .
Date: Monday, August 1, 2016
Weather: Partly Cloudy, High in the mid-70’s F
Location: At Home in The Studio #8, Falmouth, MA

I’m from West Virginia and as the saying goes, “You can take the girl out of West Virginia, but you can’t take West Virginia out of the girl.” I’m sure many of you have pictures in your mind of a West Virginia backyard filled with old cars, old refrigerators, and old anything else. Not knowing it, I think I have spent most of life fighting that image. I’ve always tried to keep things tidied up, but the move to this small apartment with WAY TOO MUCH STUFF has put me over the edge and I’ve fallen back into my West Virginia ways. We have this huge deck and I decided that it would be fine to store a few things tucked away in the back corner. There is a window there that always has the blinds closed, so we figured it must be someone’s bathroom or maybe a storage area. We could never figure out to whom that window belonged. Today the woman in the apartment next door moved out and this evening when I got home, I got a call from Camille. She and her husband Paul own this property with all of its apartments and the docks on Falmouth Harbor. She wanted to invite me to see the apartment next door that had been vacated today and point out that “the window” that looks out onto the cluttered back corner of our deck is a living room window in the next door apartment. And the view of the water was being marred with our plastic bins, fishing rods, kayak and paddles, recycling bins, our beach wagon, and other nefarious items. Camille explained that the tenant that moved out never mentioned the obstructed view, but when she and Paul were inspecting the apartment after the move, they opened the blinds and saw the mess. She offered a key to the dock house down on the dock where we can keep our kayak and explained that there was no hurry in tidying up. But it was obvious that we need to clean up our act. And this triggered something inside of me that sent me over the edge. All of a sudden all of these blue and gray plastic bins that are sitting everywhere in our apartment became overwhelming, almost choking me. That, plus the fact that Sam, the new ‘almost’ owner of Windbird called this evening wondering where he might find the key to the lock attaching the dinghy motor to the rail of the boat. We remember seeing lots of keys in a bin that was sent north in May, but neither Mark nor I can remember what we did with them. In fact, we can’t seem to find anything. So we are doing nothing other than unpacking, storing, or throwing out items until everything has a new home. Our wonderful friends, Tom and Detta Porat from New Hampshire, sent a text this evening wanting to take us out to dinner on Wednesday night on their way home from Rhode Island. But I had to stay strong and decline the invitation. We simply have to spend every free moment completing this move. Sure hope Tom and Detta will forgive us, but that text just came at the very worst time. Maybe things will look brighter tomorrow. At least I sure hope they do. Otherwise you might read about this crazy woman found throwing plastic bins into the Falmouth Harbor!

Declaration: I love West Virginia. It is a beautiful state and I am always proud to declare my origins. John Denver had it right when he wrote the song “Almost Heaven, West Virginia.” Still the reputation for trashy back yards is well founded in many parts of the state. Hopefully that has changed since we left there in the early 80’s.

Day 283, Year 11: Another Day of Unpacking
Date: Sunday, July 31, 2016
Weather: Overcast AM, Partly Cloudy PM, High in the mid-70’s F
Location: At Home in The Studio #8, Falmouth, MA

As always, Sam was up early this morning, but Jonah and Ollie slept in until almost 8 o’clock. We took it slow and easy, had breakfast, and weren’t ready to head to the beach until 10:30. It was overcast, so no one was eager to get to the beach, but once we were there, all three boys had a great time. They were adamant that they weren’t going to get in the water, but I knew that wouldn’t last long. Soon after we arrived, we were all in the water. Heather ran the more than four miles to the beach from her house to meet us, and shortly after her arrival, Jed drove to meet up with everyone. I headed home to get fishing rods and tackle boxes for the boys as they really wanted to go fishing with mommy and daddy. I then spent the rest of my day unpacking more plastic bins that Mary Ellen and Lee delivered last week from Windbird and some that we brought from the storage unit. Mark hung pictures on the bedroom walls and I finally have all of the books unpacked and on shelves. We are making progress, but there are still more plastic bins lining the perimeters of the apartment anywhere there is space. I’m really hoping that in the next couple of weeks we will finally be fully moved in.

160731 Day 283 Cape Cod, USA–Falmouth Heights Beach with SJ&O

Day 282, Year 11: Happy Birthday to Coco Annabelle
Date: Saturday, July 30, 2016
Weather: Mostly Sunny, High in the Upper 70’s F
Location: At Home in The Studio #8, Falmouth, MA

Happy Birthday to Coco Annabelle! Coco is our youngest grandchild (four months younger than Ollie) and she is our only granddaughter. Coco is a girly girl—loves pink, loves fancy dresses and has her own very definite fashion sense, loves dollies, and loves mothering baby animals. But never fear. She most definitely can hold her own with the four grandsons. She has curly, wispy, white hair and a smile that will take her far in life. We got to see her this morning via Skype video, and she was already in her party dress preparing for her afternoon birthday party. Coco, we love you.

160730 Day 282a Cape Cod, USA–Happy Birthday to Coco

Lee and Mary Ellen left this morning at 6:30 am. Mark and I got up to say our farewells, but headed back to bed once they left. They are headed to Illinois to visit with family and friends, but were only planning to make it as far as the Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, area tonight. We so enjoyed their visit and are still amazed at how much we accomplished. Thank you, Lee and ME, for everything you did for us.

Mark spent a lot of time on the phone this afternoon with Sam, Windbird’s new owner. Although not all of the paperwork has been finalized, we have all agreed to proceed as if it is a done deal. Sam and his wife Dawn arrived in Little River today and will spend their first week aboard Windbird overseeing repairs and upgrades and just getting to know the boat. We both remember how overwhelmed we were with our first introduction to Windbird and we want to do everything we can to help Sam and Dawn. Mark assured Sam that we are just a phone call away and that he should feel comfortable calling as many times as needed. We are hoping to be able to fly to Myrtle Beach in late August or sometime in September to actually sail with them. We’re not sure Mark will be able to do this, but if he is, we would love nothing more than to personally show them Windbird’s ‘ropes’. Sam, Jonah, and Oliver are doing a sleep-over with us tonight while Heather and Jed are enjoying a night out. When I put Ollie to bed, he said, “Oma, I wish I was sleeping on the boat.” It is going to take time for all of us to get used to the idea that we can’t just drive to Quissett Harbor and spend the night on the boat. But we are so happy that Sam and Dawn chose Windbird. Or maybe Windbird chose them. Sam emailed the other night saying that he was reading our Year 10 logs and discovered that in March of 2015 he and Dawn crossed paths with us. Sam wrote, “On Sunday, March 29th as you were on your way from Warderick Wells to Hawksbill Cay, I landed in Nassau to pick Dawn up and then we flew across to Norman Cay to meet our friends. From there we flew quite low (500-1000 feet) down the Exumas to Staniel Cay, presumably passing right over Windbird along the way. You may have heard or seen us. And as we were over the Exumas Land & Sea Park, I was looking down at all the boats below in that spectacular water, both pinching myself at how lucky I was to fly my own airplane over it and also wishing I that had the time and a sailboat to explore it from the water. That short flight from Norman to Staniel Cay was one of the triggering events that made us decide to look into cruising sooner rather than later. And it turns out we were flying right over our future boat.” It is an amazingly small world.

160730 Day 282b Cape Cod, USA–Windbird at Anchor in the Bahamas

Day 281, Year 11: Long Day in Boston
Date: Friday, July 29, 2016
Weather: A Tad Cooler, Sprinkles Early AM; High 80 degrees F
Location: At Home in The Studio #8, Falmouth, MA

It was a long day in Boston, but both the weather and the traffic were much better than predicted. Heavy rain with flash floods was the weather prediction, but all we had were sprinkles on our way to Boston this morning. We drove in just after rush hour, returned right in the midst of late afternoon rush hour, and somehow lucked out on both ends. The endoscopic procedure Mark was having done in order to get a lung biopsy was easy and quick, but he had to wait a long time before the procedure was done. We arrived at 11 am and left at 4:30 pm. I was not supposed to go today as it was a Camp Oma day. But Heather sent a text late last night when she got home saying that she and Jed could share the kid load today. She really wanted me to go with Mark. So I did. Thankfully Mary Ellen and Lee were with me as I spent most of my day trying to figure out how to send a document from my phone to the Key Bank headquarters in New York City. This is the bank that held our boat loan until it was paid off a week ago. My problem with them today was that they will not accept any paperwork via email. The quest started shortly after arriving at the hospital when we received an email from Sam Weigel who is trying to purchase Windbird. I say ‘trying’ because getting all of the paperwork together is being a bit of a challenge. I won’t bore you with the details, but it took over an hour to figure out that the information on the Key Bank website about branch banks in Massachusetts was way out of date. There are none. The closest branch bank is in New York City. So going to a branch bank to get the paperwork processed was not a possibility. I talked to the head office again and was told that faxing the paperwork would be the next fastest option. This required me to walk to Staples in Government Center to print the document on my phone and fax it to New York. I would never have left the hospital today if I had been alone. When Mark is having any procedure done, I am always afraid to leave for fear that something will happen with no one there to deal with the situation. But today I had Mary Ellen and Lee to stay at the hospital while I ran around town, and this allowed the work to get done. The document got faxed and Mark’s procedure went smoothly. But he was a hungry bear as he had to fast all night and day until the procedure was completed. I bought some snacks for him to eat on the way home, but since the traffic was light during today’s rush hour, we decided we could afford to stop in Plymouth to eat dinner and for Mary Ellen and Lee to see the Plymouth Rock and the Mayflower. They leave early in the morning and we are going to miss them. They helped us accomplish the impossible—being storage unit free. And we are so very grateful. Thank you, Mary Ellen and Lee.

160729 Day 281 Cape Cod, USA–Mary Ellen and Lee

Day 280, Year 11: Ride on the Cape Cod Central Railroad
Date: Thursday, July 28, 2016
Weather: Even Hotter; High 90 degrees F
Location: At Home in The Studio #8, Falmouth, MA

It was a great day for a ride on the Cape Cod Central Railroad. The temperature outside was hot, but the train cars are air-conditioned so we could enjoy the beauty in comfort. The ride went from Hyannis to Bourne which takes you along the northern shore of Cape Cod following the Cape Cod Canal. Before you get to the Canal, you ride through an area of salt marshes along the Cape Cod Bay. It is really beautiful and the train ride made it easy to see. Sam, Jonah, and Ollie loved the ride and were such good kids. Thank you to Mary Ellen and Lee for taking us all on the ride.

Last night I forgot to mention any thing about Mark’s procedure at Mass General yesterday. He went to have fluid removed from around his lungs and it was a super quick and easy process. He went in at 10:30 am and was out by 11:07. They extracted about a liter of fluid but it doesn’t seem to be helping with his shortness of breath issue. Tomorrow, Mary Ellen and Lee will once again drive him to Boston for a biopsy that will require an endoscopy. This means he will have to be sedated, so it will be a longer day. He goes in at 11:30 am but probably will not be out until 2:30 pm. That will put them right in the midst of Friday afternoon traffic headed to the Cape. I am so thankful that ME and Lee are here to help out with these Boston trips. They leave on Saturday morning, so I’ll be on my own once again.

Once again, it is late and all the things I wanted to write about last night are going to have to wait another day or so. When we returned from the train ride, we took the boys back home and I fixed dinner there for all of us. Heather had to work tonight and Jed was still out of town. After dinner Mark, ME, and Lee drove home while I stayed with the boys. I laid down with Ollie when I put the boys to bed and went right to sleep myself. Jed got me up when he got home at 10 o’clock. I drove straight home and got to see the last of Chelsea’s introduction of her mother and Hillary’s whole speech. Sure glad the conventions are over and we can get back to an earlier bedtime schedule.

Day 279, Year 11: Unpacking Continues
Date: Wednesday, July 27, 2016
Weather: Same, Same—Sunny and Hot; High 84 degrees F
Location: At Home in The Studio #8, Falmouth, MA

In between keeping grandkids and spending time with Mark’s sister and brother-in-law, the unpacking continues. Albeit slow, I am making progress.

Tomorrow we are taking a complete break from the daily routine. Mary Ellen and Lee have made reservations for all of us to go on the Cape scenic railway ride. So we will spend our afternoon doing that and then return to Heather’s for dinner. Heather will not be home tomorrow night as she is giving a presentation, so after dinner, Mark, ME, and Lee will head home and I will stay with the boys until Heather gets home. And Jed gets home from Vancouver tomorrow night as well.

It is late as Mark and I have been watching the Democratic Convention speeches tonight. We watched the Republican Convention last in its entirety last week and are trying to watch as much of the Democratic Convention as possible. Tonight was especially powerful with speeches by both our Vice-President and President. Mark and I are both political junkies that just have to see it all. But it is late and anything else I was going to write about will have to wait until tomorrow night.

Day 278, Year 11: Storage Free . . . Yippee, Yippee
Date: Tuesday, July 26, 2016
Weather: Hotter Than Yesterday; High 86 degrees F
Location: At Home in The Studio #8, Falmouth, MA

After 13 years of paying storage fees, tonight we are storage free—yippee, yippee! Mary Ellen and Lee came with the agenda of helping us clean out our storage unit and they have worked doggedly to make it happen. By the time I got up this morning, Lee was saying that today was the day to finish the job. Neither Mark nor I thought it could happen. But it did. We moved the West Virginia cherry lumber to Heather and Jed’s storage shed. We loaded the van with things that needed to be taken to the town dump and then went back to the storage unit. There we loaded Lee and ME’s car with the last of the things that needed to be taken to our apartment and the remaining things in the storage unit that needed to go to the town dump in Heather and Jed’s van. Mark and ME headed home and Lee and I headed to the dump. I thought we were done for the day, but Lee insisted that we go back to storage to get the last bits that needed to be taken to Heather and Jed’s. He won and we completed the job. In order to take down an iron pipe that we had used as a clothes rack in storage, Lee climbed up on an antique chest to untie the thing. Thank goodness Lee is in better shape than any 75 year-old man I know, but I was sure glad when he jumped down and all was done. We still have an apartment full of things that need to find a home, but that can be done over time. So many people have helped us get to this point and we are so grateful.

Mark got two calls from Mass General today. He has to go to Boston tomorrow (Wednesday) to have fluid removed that has collected around his lungs. Evidently this is a routine procedure down by inserting a needle. Lee and Mary Ellen will drive him to Boston for this. Then on Friday he has to return for the first of three biopsies. The one on Friday is a biopsy in the lungs that is achieved through an endoscopy. That leaves Thursday open to have some fun, so Lee and Mary Ellen are taking us and the grandkids on a scenic train ride. Lee’s dad worked on the railroad all his life and Lee loves trains. This will be a special treat for all of us.

Tonight Lee and ME treated all of us, including Heather and boys, to a special dinner. Lee grilled steaks and asparagus and we had corn on the cob. Everything was delicious. Thank you, Lee and Mary Ellen. Unfortunately Sam didn’t get to enjoy the dinner. Heather thinks he was suffering from heat exhaustion as he had all of the classic symptoms. He slept through dinner but awoke with his high temperature significantly lowered. This happened to Jonah on Sunday. It certainly is hotter than normal here, and I think the boys get busy and forget to drink water. We actually turned on the AC in the apartment last night due to the heat and humidity and I think we will leave it on until Friday when the temperature is supposed to moderate.

Day 277, Year 11: Storage Unit Progress
Date: Monday, July 25, 2016
Weather: Hot and Humid; High 84 degrees F
Location: At Home in The Studio #8, Falmouth, MA

Although I am totally overwhelmed with the amount of ‘stuff’ that is now in this apartment, our storage unit is almost empty. Lee’s goal is to empty that unit tomorrow so that we will finally be storage unit free. There are a few things that we just don’t have room for here in the apartment, but once again good friends have stepped forward with an offer. Bruce and Jane Woodin are willing to let us put a few things in their basement and that will help tremendously. Thank you, Bruce and Jane. I have been constantly overwhelmed with the generosity of our friends and family. We are almost there. Thank you to everyone who has pitched in to help us. And a special thanks to Lee and Mary Ellen. Today they got three boxes of books packed up and sent to Windbird’s new owners in addition to getting more things transferred from the storage unit to here.

Today was the first day of classes at the Science School in Woods Hole for Sam and Jonah. Our schedule worked out quite nicely. We all drove Sam to his class at 10:45 and then Jonah, Ollie, and I went to the Woods Hole Exhibit Center. The classes last an hour and a half, so after exploring new things to us at the Exhibit Center, we went to pick Sam up and drop Jonah off for his class. On normal days Sam, Ollie, and I would hang out doing something in Woods Hole until the end of Jonah’s class, but today Jonah had a mid-afternoon doctor’s appointment, we Sam, Ollie, and I headed home and Heather picked up Jonah and took him to the doctor. It will take us a few days to get into a workable schedule, but we are so fortunate that there are so many things to do in Woods Hole.

Tomorrow is my day off Camp Oma, so I will be able to help Lee and ME with the move of the last things from the storage unit. We have some strange items that need to find a home—cherry and walnut boards cut from trees on our farm in West Virginia in the early 1980’s, the skull of our milk cow from that same era, a musical instrument called a kora from West Africa, a djembe drum Justin made while living in West Africa, a small loom, a horse collar and hames, an antique hand wringer for clothes, a scythe for cutting tall grass, lots of things we purchased while sailing around the world, hundreds of old records, and on and on. What a weird collection of things! None of this is worth much, but it is so hard to part with these things. Stuffing it all into our small apartment, making it hard to walk around, is probably the best solution. It will not take long to know what we really want to keep and what we really want to get rid of as soon as possible. Whatever we do with the items, tomorrow is Lee’s deadline for emptying the storage unit. Once that is done, we’ll switch gears and get ready to have Heather and boys over for dinner tomorrow evening. Lee and ME are treating us to steaks on the grill. Then there is a Chicago Cubs game on ESPN. The Cubs are Lee’s and Jonah’s favorite team, so for sure we’ll watch part of the game before Heather has to get the kids home and in bed for the night.