09/14/2017 In a day I’ll be heading north for a visit. It’s finally hit me and I’m still not prepared nor getting close to being ready to go. Denial that I have to leave the boys. I hated leaving my kids and now I hate leaving my dogs.
Not a lot has happened since my last blog so this will be short with more photos than thoughts. I’ve spent more time at home lately and I’ve really enjoyed it. Lounging by the pool reading books, listening to the damn dogs bark every time a leaf drops or a lizard moves.
We have had some gorgeous weather, hot sunny days with a slight breeze, and I’ve taken advantage of it, being in the pool and outside as much as possible.
On Thursday my friends Amy and Barb came over for the day. We hung in the pool and talked and drank wine. A lot of wine. They left at 4:00 and by 4:30 I was in bed. It was 10 PM when I woke up, starving for something to eat and dying of thirst. Bill had cooked bacon (yummy) and I got up and ate all that was left, chugged a lot of water and went back to bed.
The next day I went to my friend Marcia’s to go cruising in her gorgeous new boat. Marcia was learning to drive it so her boat guy, Christian, was with us. We left Carib Bight, headed out to the east. The boat started acting funny when we turned to go left. After a few minutes it stopped moving. Marcia was unable to get it out of neutral. We were at the mouth of Blue Rock, just bobbing along in the sea. Marcia called her boat repair guy and he said he would be coming right away. It sure didn’t take him long to arrive. He crawled onto our boat, took the cover off the engine and saw that the rubber ring on the prop was rotted and the prop wasn’t engaging. At least, that was my take on the situation, boat mechanic I’m not. He towed us to Trico and went to find a prop that would work on the boat.
Marcia and I had a few vodka and frescas and split an order of chicken nachos (which were delicious) while we waited. The boat guy came back, switched out the props and once we finished eating we were on our way to BJ’s.
Marcia’s boat is ultra sleek and fast, it’s in pristine condition and I can’t wait to go out with her again. I’m always up for an adventure, especially one on the water.
Saturday we celebrated Dia Del Nino, Day of the Children, in Flowers Bay. I took our 3 neighbor boys. I have talked about Eddy before, these are his brothers/step brothers who live with their grandparents. All of the boys living there have been deserted by their parents, who have gone off to find better lives for themselves, not caring about the children they have left behind. The boys I took never get to do anything fun, they have never been to the other end of the island. I made sandwiches for them and took water, sprite and chips. The 3 of them were strapped into seat belts in the backseat and were super quiet the whole way there. They had no idea what to expect, parties are not something they go to. Marcos, the oldest, doesn’t swim but Milton and David sure do. The party was on the water and Marcos asked if they could go in, I said sure.
My friend Layle came to do face painting, Ann was there with Abraham (a boy she sponsors at the Charmont Academy) and his sister Brishanne. My sweet young boyfriend from the Mother’s Day flower making at Cattleya was there also, Matthew, he is a doll. He has a smile that melts your heart and the sweetest demeanor. Paul went with me to help, Amy was there, Milesse, Judy and Toni came also to help. It’s usually feast or famine with the help, this day we had enough, sometimes we don’t. We were very grateful to those who came, it’s nice to have support from friends.
Layle was undoubtedly the hit of the party. She has never done face painting before but she came prepared with photos that she found online. She was excellent and the line for her skills never ended.
The kids did egg races, balloon races, 3 legged races, sack races, they had a spaghetti eating contest, a roll eating contest and a coca cola guzzling contest. The spaghetti contest was better than two years ago when one of the kids threw up everything they had eaten.
Around 3:30 I packed the kids and Paul up and we headed home. The boys each left with ice cream cones and a bag of candy and toys. On the way out of Coxen Hole I stopped at Nidia’s store and picked up the TOM’s shoes that were for the Cattleya school.
When I got home Paul left and the boys ran to the swimming pool and jumped in. They swam for about 20 minutes, then headed down the valley to go home. On Saturday some friends arrived to the island for a week to stay with us. They own a home here and were filming for the TV show Caribbean Life. This is the second couple who stayed here that was filming for the same show.
We have seen a few more large iguanas here, seems like this is a safe place for them, despite the 5 dogs. As long as the iguanas stay outside of the fence they should be good to go. Currently I have a 4″ gecko living in my car. As I’ve said before, I do NOT like geckos. I honestly would prefer a 4′ iguana over this little gecko guy.
The night before last I was in bed reading and a bug flew in my ear. I totally freaked out, while Bill is sound asleep next to me. I finally got it out with a Q-tip. Now when I read I stuff my hair in my ears. Yes, we have screens but they need replaced and our window guy was stuck in Miami, hopefully he will be home soon and come take care of the screens.
As most of you know, I write for Women Who Live on Rocks and so many of the other writers have lost everything they own, their homes and businesses are destroyed, they have nothing to go back to. Their once lush tropical island is now reduced to rubble and trees with not a leaf or frond left on them. If any of you would like to contribute, here is a list of places to donate. (click on list) Remember, these people lost every single thing they own. If you are contributing to Harvey victims in TX or Irma victims in Florida or the Caribbean, please do NOT donate to the Red Cross. In Texas the Red Cross threw out 500#’s of dog food, saying they didn’t need it. Obviously they forgot about all the poor lost animals left in the aftermath who are now in crowded underfunded shelters all over the state of Texas and now in Florida and all of the islands ravaged by Irma. They threw out kennels, blankets, cat litter and food, they said “they will get more.” There are many other more worthwhile charities to donate to.
I really need to start/finish my packing, I still haven’t decided what I’m wearing to the reunion but I am really looking forward to seeing my classmates. Some of these people I haven’t seen since we graduated a few years ago. (Cathilee)
Here’s hoping we have no more hurricanes this season and that the unfortunate folks ravaged by them are able to have a semblance of normal life soon.
I’ll be blogging about my parents and my class reunion next time so check back to see what kind of trouble I got into in Williamsport. This should be an interesting visit.
Mermaid on a Raft 