2025 Life Logs, Day 193: Not Feeling Like July
Date: Saturday, July 12, 2025
Weather: Partly Cloudy; High Temp 69, Low 63 degrees
Location: At Home on Lakeview Avenue with My Shadow, Falmouth, MA

The last four days have not felt like July on Cape Cod. It has been overcast and misty with very little sunshine. Not your typical beach days. I expect June to be like this, and a day or two here and there in July. But not four days in a row. And looking at the forecast for the next 10 days, there is not one day forecast with full sun. Hopefully the projected partly sunny days will be more sun than clouds for those of us who love our sunny summer Cape Cod days.

Claire is here to attend a reunion of the Martine Biological Lab’s summer class of 25 years ago. Those attending the reunion weekend were students of science back then, abut are now scattered around the country teaching and researching at various universities or working in one way or another as scientists. They chose to spend their Saturday afternoon together kayaking in Mashpee. So, Claire and I spent a good deal of time in the morning, hauling my kayak from under the house and getting it cleaned up and ready to go. We both searched and searched but could not find the back of the kayak seat anywhere, so we went to Heather and Jed’s and searched their garage for something to use as a substitute. A folding camp seat did just the trick, so off went Claire. When she returned from the kayaking adventure, she then went to Woods Hole to spend the evening with her former classmates. Tomorrow, each of the ‘graduates’ present a talk to this year’s students, and Claire wrangled an invitation for me!

2025 Life Logs, Day 192: Claire Arrived
Date: Friday, July 11, 2025
Weather: Mostly Sunny; High Temp 73, Low 64 degrees
Location: At Home on Lakeview Avenue with My Shadow, Falmouth, MA

After an eight-hour car ride from Guaymas, Mexico, to Phoenix, Arizona, then an overnight flight from Phoenix to Boston, and finally a bus ride from Boston Logan to Falmouth that took almost three hours due to Friday traffic, Claire finally arrived in Falmouth just after 11 am. She hadn’t eaten or had her morning coffee, so we headed downtown to Devour to have lunch and coffee. We stopped at the French bakery to get bread and then at Windfall Market to buy what we needed to make a tomatillo stew and strawberry-rhubarb crumble for dinner. Kevin called while we were putting the strawberry-rhubarb crumble in the oven and was very jealous that he wasn’t here to enjoy it. But in his place, I invited Heather and Jed over for the Claire-prepared vegan dinner from her cookbook which we all really enjoyed. Thank you, Claire! Heather and Jed were childless tonight as Sam is still in Europe, Ollie is still at camp at Mass Maritime, and Jonah was going out to a movie with friends.

2025 Life Logs, Day 191: Happy 92nd Birthday to My Sister Patsy
Date: Thursday, July 10, 2025
Weather: Overcast with Misty Rain, Cooling Down; High Temp 72, Low 64 degrees
Location: At Home on Lakeview Avenue with My Shadow, Falmouth, MA

Patricia Jane Martin Kerwood was born in Covington, Virginia, on Monday, July 10, 1933, during the depression. During those years, my parents moved between my dad’s home in Laurel Branch, WV, my mom’s home in Wikel, WV, and Covington, VA, a larger town where work could be found. They were dirt poor and forever grateful to Franklin Roosevelt. I have one picture of my sister Patsy and my two brothers, Bennie and Dickie, that is one of my favorites. Patsy was probably 5 years old when the photo was taken just after they had been playing in the mud. They were standing on the porch of a newly built house they rented from the government, built by the Roosevelt administration.

Now at 92, my sister lives in an assisted living facility in North Carolina. My nephew Tommy, and friends Brian and Judy Thompson, took her out to lunch and bought her an ice cream cake—her favorite. Happy Birthday, Patsy!

My day was filled with meetings. And tonight, I anticipate the arrival of Claire in the morning. Luckily, I have no meetings for the next 4 days while Claire is visiting!

2025 Life Logs, Day 190: Going Through the TO DO List
Date: Wednesday, July 9, 2025
Weather: Overcast and Misty; High Temp 76, Low 69 degrees
Location: At Home on Lakeview Avenue with My Shadow, Falmouth, MA

Today was a day with only one appointment. That was early this morning and since then I have been working on that To Do list. It has gotten very long in the last few weeks, but I did manage to make a dent in it today. Three of the things required a trip downtown and that was not easy. I had to go to the Congregational Church, Town Hall, and the library. Main Street was closed today for the annual July Street Fair. I was able to drive to the church and park long enough to make the reservations for future Encore meetings at the church, but I didn’t stay as they were charging for parking today. Every available parking spot downtown and at Lawrence School down the street from me was taken. So, I drove home and walked to the library and Town Hall. It was worth it as I got to peruse the arts booths lining Main Street. Tomorrow is another day of meetings, and on Friday morning early, Claire arrives. She will spend most of the weekend at MBL in Woods Hole, but she reserved Friday just for the two of us to do things together. Can’t wait.

2025 Life Logs, Day 189: Book Club and Board of Library Trustees Meetings
Date: Tuesday, July 8, 2025
Weather: Mostly Sunny, Humid; High Temp 78, Low 70 degrees
Location: At Home on Lakeview Avenue with My Shadow, Falmouth, MA

It was a day of meetings. I hosted members of my book club at my house this morning and into the afternoon, but it was not a regular meeting. We knew some members could not attend in July, so we decided to have a meeting to talk about books other than book club choices that we are currently reading and to just catch up on life. It was great fun, but as soon as everyone left, it was time for me to get ready to go to a ‘learning’ meeting with two other Library Board of Trustee members who have been helping me get up to speed on my new position as Treasurer. And as soon as I got home from that meeting and had an early dinner, it was time to go to the monthly meeting of the Board of Library Trustees. Meeting, meeting, meeting. But none of it was stressful. I enjoy relearning how to use Excel and learning more about our wonderful
Falmouth Public Library.

2025 Life Logs, Day 188: In Remembrance of Captain Greybeard
Date: Monday, July 7, 2025
Weather: Rain AM, Partly Sunny PM, Humid; High Temp 77, Low 71 degrees
Location: At Home on Lakeview Avenue with My Shadow, Falmouth, MA

Mark would have celebrated his 83rd birthday today. But it is the memory of his 71st birthday that I will always remember so fondly. It was the only birthday where he had both of his children and all five of his grandchildren with him to celebrate. We strung pirate flags on Windbird, and we all dressed in our finest pirate gear. With Captain Greybeard at the helm, we headed to Tarpaulin Cove Beach, on the southern side of Naushon Island.

When we took the dinghy ashore, we told the grandkids that it was Treasure Island.

Jo had created a treasure map so with shovels in hand, the ‘fabulous five’ struck out to find the treasure. What wonderful memories we made that day!

2025 Life Logs, Day 187: Lovely, Lazy Sunday
Date: Sunday, July 6, 2025
Weather: Mostly Sunny, Temp Just Right; High Temp 74, Low 68 degrees
Location: At Home on Lakeview Avenue with My Shadow, Falmouth, MA

Garden work, yard clean up, and house clean up sums up my day. The weather is just perfect, so I enjoyed this laid-back Sunday. Jed came by to take the window air conditioner out of my bedroom and into the living room. Ollie came with him, so I got to give him a big hug as he is off to Mass Maritime for a two-week summer leadership camp. For the next two weeks, my only Camp Oma duties will be to get Jonah to and from soccer games and practice when needed. Claire will be here visiting from Friday to next Monday, and I have a meetings that I scheduled knowing Ollie would be away. I spent my evening relearning how to do spreadsheets on Excel as it is time to do the end of the fiscal year summaries for the Board of Library Trustees. I made progress but certainly have more to do.

2025 Life Logs, Day 186: Rally, Ollie’s New Boat, Jed Home from Switzerland
Date: Saturday, July 5, 2025
Weather: Sunny; High Temp 77, Low 66 degrees
Location: At Home on Lakeview Avenue with My Shadow, Falmouth, MA

The 4th of July fireworks were great last night. Heather, Ollie, and I chose to stay far away from Falmouth Heights Beach. Instead of fighting the crowds, we drove out toward Woods Hole and parked at Trunk River. We then walked a way back toward town on the bike path and found a stretch of beach all to ourselves. We sat close to water and listened to the waves lapping ashore while also listening to the music on Heather’s phone that accompanied the fireworks. Jonah had been at an all afternoon party at Corner Cycle and spent the evening at the home of one of the guys that works there, enjoying his parents’ pool and hot tub. So, we missed Jonah, but he had a great time where he was. Sam and Jed are still in Europe, so we didn’t have them either.

Today it was back to the Green for the every Saturday Freedom Rally. The regulars that attend includes on a very few people I know and none of my circle of friends. But I enjoy being there and each week and I leave more encouraged than when I arrive.

I stopped by Heather’s on the way home and found Ollie in the driveway taking the tires off a trailer that had a Sunfish sailboat on it. He bought it at a neighborhood yard sale and I took him to Sullivan Tires to order new tires for the trailer. He saves all the money he makes mowing lawns, so he had enough to buy it on his own with a $100 contribution from his mom.

Jed was not home yet, but he did get home from his week in Switzerland later in the afternoon.

2025 Life Logs, Day 185: The Fourth of July, Today and 249 Years Ago
Date: Friday, July 4, 2025
Weather: Perfect Cape Cod Summer Day; High Temp 77, Low 58 degrees
Location: At Home on Lakeview Avenue with My Shadow, Falmouth, MA

This post is borrowed from my daughter’s Facebook page. I reposted it on my Facebook page and copy it here because it says everything that needs to be said on this day.

249 years ago. In between the parades, cookouts, and fireworks, please take a few minutes to sit with these words and reflect on their meaning.

July 4th does not mark victory in the war for independence, but rather, the moment when the need for drastic change and the gravity of the situation were formally recognized, and the principles for a new beginning were articulated. The world has changed in countless ways both large and small (including our ideas about capitalization as you will see as you read on), and we have yet to fully live up to those principles and ideals. Still, they are the foundation of our nation and important to remember.

Government is established to secure the inherent and equal rights of all people to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Its power derives from the consent of the governed.

=====

In Congress, July 4, 1776
The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America,

When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.

Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shown that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed.

But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security …

2025 Life Logs, Day 184: Sad, Angry, but Determined
Date: Thursday, July 3, 2025
Weather: Mostly Sunny, Wind and Rain Late Evening; High Temp 76, Low 63 degrees
Location: At Home on Lakeview Avenue with My Shadow, Falmouth, MA

Well, that big, UGLY bill was voted in this afternoon. It makes me so sad and angry that the US Congress would pass such an egregious budget bill: sad for what the one trillion dollars taken from Medicaid is going mean for so many Americans and angry that the richest Americans are getting the benefit of that. It is Robin Hood in reverse. But being sad and angry is not going to do anyone any good. I am more determined than ever to do whatever I can to turn around the direction in which our country is headed.

Otherwise, my day was a typical day. I started with routine medical appointment and then went to the Farmers Market for the first time this summer and had lunch there with Heather and Ollie. Afterwards, Heather took me to pick up my car. The oil was changed and the windshield wipers replaced, but the check engine light was still on. They determined that car needs a new oxygen sensor and gasket, but the cost for that is almost $400 with labor. I was told that not fixing it right away is not going to damage anything, so I will wait and have that work done when I am feeling richer than I do today.

This afternoon, Ollie cut my neighbor’s grass, I took Jonah to the high school for an unofficial soccer practice, and when I headed to Bruce and Jane Woodin’s for an evening with my dining-in group, Heather and Ollie headed to the beach. Dinner at the Woodin’s was outside on their deck. We had bruschetta for the appetizer, an edamame salad over arugula and mixed greens salad, grilled chicken and veggies for the main course, and s’more squares for dessert. A perfect summer cookout on a perfect summer evening … until after dinner when we had quite the windstorm followed by rain. That moved us quickly indoors.