Rainy Days Do Not Stop Us!!

Today’s forecast calls for a 94% chance of precipitation (about 0.28 in).  Showers this morning will become a steady rain during the afternoon hours. High 56F. Winds WSW at 10 to 20 mph. The chance of rain is 90%—rainfall around a quarter of an inch.

So, expecting it to be wet, we bundled up and headed to the garden for our morning walk.  Dang, if it wasn’t sun shining, the birds flew backward to see where they had been.  Blue skies and happy veggies.  The forecaster has done it again!

We prepared to go to Girls’ Night Out, and the weather was dry the entire time.  We met with the gang and enjoyed a delightful meal with fantastic company!

We confirmed our reservations and will have Michele and Franklyn with us that evening.

Once again, the Southland’s most acclaimed Irish band, THE FENIANS, is coming to the Santa Ana Elks Lodge to help celebrate St. Patrick’s Day. Doors open at 5:30 p.m. The buffet begins at 6:00 p.m. with upcountry salad, Irish soda bread, corned beef and cabbage, boiled potatoes, Jameson chicken, shepherd’s pie, fried fish, and cookies and brownies for dessert.

Also offered will be a selection of Irish beers: Guinness Stout, Harp Lager, and Smithwick’s Red Ale, plus Shillelagh shooters, Irish whiskeys, and delicious ciders. Then, the Fenians take the stage for an evening of Irish shenanigans and dancing!   They only have room for 280 in the Grand Ballroom and an additional 210 in the McCalla Lounge, so we got tickets early!

Upon returning home, we took out the trash cans for our neighbor Jeff and us, and of course, the meteorologist’s prediction came true; we got drenched.  The skies opened, and liquid sunshine splashed everywhere!

We then did what every self-respecting old person would do: we took a nap!

After the nap, we had some tea and attacked the paper monster (who seems to be winning).

Goodbye paper!!

We gave up in round 12, the paperwork won!  We headed for bed at 8:45 pm so Mary’s back could get some rest and we needed strength to attack the paper monster tomorrow!!

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We Are Having A Mid-Week Crisis!

Mary was back to normal after her coffee!

5:35 am, our internal clocks went off, and we popped up, made our way to the coffee pot, and began our heart beating.

As I walked back towards our office, the noises made me think about growing up, so I wanted to give all you youngsters a profound thought!

First things first: We put on our gym costumes and went to undergo an hour of agony! But at the end of the session, we both felt better and were ready to take on the day!

The gym session was excellent. We both waddled out and made it to the car before the first moan was heard. I think it was just our muscles protesting like grumpy children. We would have won “Best Waddle” at the animal Olympics if anyone had filmed it!

From the gym, we went to Goodwill to donate eight boxes of items. Mary cleaned her closet, and I had some stuff to put away. Without the van, I shoved everything into the Silver Fox; the trunk and backseat were full! The Silver Fox looked like a “Low Rider!”!g

On the way home, we discussed what we would wear to the upcoming St. Patrick’s Day dances. I remembered an episode of Amos ‘n’ Andy in which Kingfish needed to get Sapphire a new dress.  I found it on YouTube! It was fun!

Then it was home, where we dined on egg bites and grapefruit while we watched the last episode of season three of Resident Alien! After lunch, we headed to the office to prepare for our tax appointment.

Paper-less world, HA!!  We listened to Fox News while we worked!

We spent three hours in the office gearing up for tax time—the annual adult version of preparing for a trip to the dentist. Nothing says “fun” like sorting through a mountain of receipts while praying the IRS won’t discover our secret: We thought “deductions” just meant taking a long nap!

Our cleaning crew arrived around 4:00 pm, so we headed out.  On a rainy gray afternoon, Benji’s was our destination.  We called Jeff and asked him to look online for the menu and make a selection!  We will bring him dinner tonight! The menu is fantastic!

Mary opted for a salad, and I went for the meatloaf. However, I had to bring half of everything home as the portions were enormous!

We did a “fly by” at Jeff’s and then put away the Silver Fox for the night.  We watched a little TV and then crashed around 9:00 pm after my breathing treatment, which I am doing twice a day now!

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Tuesday And We Are Separated (For Two Hours)

Today started slow with a quick walk in the garden to see how the new plants did last night!  No rabbit gifts and all the laves were unscathed from pests!  The transplanted onions were perked up and ready for business!

Around 11:00 am, Mary fixed a light breakfast, and then we got ready to go our different ways.  Mary attended her painting class, and I went to the heart doctor.

We first strolled in the garden, where I was convinced the flowers were gossiping about us. I swear I heard a daisy whisper, “Can you believe they’re wearing those bathrobes?” Meanwhile, the tomatoes looked too young for a game of hide and seek—too bad they were all so well hidden! It was like walking through a botanical reality show, complete with drama and a side of bees auditioning for the next big buzz!

The apple tree is starting to blossom, indicating that we can expect to have homemade applesauce in approximately three months. This marks an essential phase in the fruit’s growth cycle, promising a rewarding harvest.

The apple blossoms will be here soon.

Our rotary garden is doing well; it’s just bursting with flowers. Soon, we will remove the flowers and substitute herbs instead.

The rotary-stacked gardens are going wild!

Around the side of the house, we have a loquat tree that is always going a little crazy.

Loquat fruits (Eriobotrya japonica), which grow on evergreen shrub-like trees, are related to the apple, pear, and quince. They are indigenous to China, known as pipa, and hugely popular in Japan, where they are known as biwa. In the U.S., you might see them called “Japanese plums” or “Japanese pears.” They look like apricots in color, size, and downy skin. Like other harder-to-find fruits, their taste is often described as a combination of other more familiar tastes; in this case, maybe apricot, cherry, or pear.

Loquat fruits are oval-shaped, bright orange, and contain large brown seeds. They are also known as Japanese plums.  Loquat fruits are eaten fresh and used in jams, pies, and juices to make wine. Over 900 loquat varieties have flesh ranging from white to yellow to orange.

We will be doing a Loquat dessert this weekend!

Mary did a great watercolor of a boat by the seashore.  She has a real knack for watercolors.  When I decide what color to paint the house, I will get ten gallons of paint and a six-inch brush and turn her loose on the house.

On the other hand, he made the journey to the heart doctor, Dr. Tyson Cobb (Ty Cobb), who is quite impressive.  He adjusted my meds and sent me home, saying, “All looks good; see you in 90 days!”.  I did upset a little bit during the exam!

Tyrus Raymond Cobb (December 18, 1886 – July 17, 1961), nicknamed “the Georgia Peach”, was an American professional baseball center fielder. A native of rural Narrows, Georgia, Cobb played 24 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). He spent 22 years with the Detroit Tigers and served as the team’s player-manager for the last six, and he finished his career with the Philadelphia Athletics. In 1936, Cobb received the most votes of any player on the inaugural ballot for the National Baseball Hall of Fame, receiving 222 out of a possible 226 votes (98.2%); no other player received a higher percentage of votes until Tom Seaver in 1992. In 1999, the Sporting News ranked Cobb third on its list of “Baseball’s 100 Greatest Players.”

I got home first, and I cleaned up the garage and stuffed the Silver Fox full of goodies to go to the Salvation Army (Mary has been cleaning out her closets and drawers).

We watched the address to the joint session of Congress when President Trump laid out his plans, and we were appalled at the Democratic response.  While I understand they cannot applaud everything, I was amazed they wanted men to be in girls’ sports, they wanted 100,000 illegals to come across the border every month, and a load of other common sense things like cutting waste.

I listened to 20 minutes of the Democratic response and had to shut her off; she was making no sense!

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Hello New Week! We Are Ready!!

Wake up, you sleepy head!!

Estimated reading time: 10 minutes

It’s Monday and time to go to work!  While Dr. Mary was getting ready for the gym, I looked up some healthy meals to make this week, and the pan-roasted salmon looked great!  We prefer wild-caught salmon, which is usually available at the local market, albeit at a higher price than the farmed salmon.

Looks fantastic, and it is easy to cook!

At 8:15 am, we took off for the gym to get twisted, turned, and walk out feeling better than when we came in.  We went to Peak Performance in Villa Park.  The gym was decorated with many little green and one large black leprechauns.

When does a leprechaun cross the road? When the light is green.

Antony Mitchell, the owner/operator, greeted us with a limerick

I need a front door for my hall,
The replacement I bought was too tall.
So I hacked it and chopped it,
And carefully lopped it,
And now the dumb thing is too small.

Led by Antony Mitchell, with over 30 years of expertise, Peak Performance delivers personalized fitness programs designed to achieve accurate, lasting results. They prioritize proper form, safety, and balance and guide you through tailored workouts in their exclusive, private facility. (Whips and chains are optional.)

His approach includes comprehensive fitness evaluations and individualized plans based on our goals, medical history, and core fitness metrics.  After he looked at my body and the laughing stopped, I was put in the TBD (To Be Determined) Category.

He did specifically ask me NOT to wear shorts for a reason I have yet to determine. M-m-m-m-m!

I also told him I remember being able to get up without making sound effects.

It’s fantastic that we’re getting out of the house and moving two mornings a week. Who knew that exercise could actually compete with brunch for my attention? At this rate, my couch might start charging me rent for all the time I used to spend on it! Our energy level is up, and we’re finding new methods of applying bandages and painkillers to our old joints!

However, tomorrow we will celebrate because it is “Fat Tuesday!”  They are our people!

We go twice a week and enjoy the workout and pampering by the staff!

After getting beat up and hobbling to our car, we went VFR to the Grove Coffee Shop and ordered a bagel and a pair of lattes.  All those calories got us ready to go to work for real!

The Villa Park bagel store is across from Dunkin’ Donuts, so we always choose the little guy!!

We opt for whole-wheat or whole-grain bagels to increase fiber intake and stabilize blood sugar levels.

Now, the Silver Fox gets to run!  We are off to the laundry and Roger’s Gardens to pick up some tomatoes and peppers from the Tomatomania Sale!  We have been going there for years, beginning in early 1990, and this year, they had over 200 varieties of tomatoes.

What do you call a tomato that self-identifies as a carrot? A Transplant.

We arrived at 11:00 am and parked in their back lot.  Mary and I sneaked in through the delivery truck entrance; it was easy as Mary made me carry six flats of tomatoes and kept saying, “Over here boy, and be careful!”

On our way in, we passed by the roses and looked for blueberries on our way to the North Forty!

My, talk about a selection of roses! They made 150 new roses on display!

We made it, and now we’re faced with so many decisions that it feels like we’re playing a game of “Would You Rather!” Do we order pizza or sushi? Do we binge-watch a series or take a nap? Decisions, decisions—it’s like being the president of procrastination!

We faced this dilemma head-on together. Yes, Mary went first, and I followed with the appropriately timed, “Yes, Dear!”.

We were at the North Forty! Time to make our selections!

Tomatomania is a series of spring events that celebrate tomatoes and sell tomato seedlings. It’s also the name of a book about growing tomatoes.

What is Tomatomania?

  • Tomatomania is a series of spring events at nurseries and garden centers.
  • It’s the largest tomato seedling sale in the United States.
  • The events include classes, sales, tastings, and social gatherings.
  • Tomatomania celebrates the tomato, America’s favorite garden vegetable.

Who started Tomatomania?

  • Scott Daigre started Tomatomania in the early 1990s at Hortus, a nursery in Pasadena, California.
  • He also wrote a book called Tomatomania! A Fresh Approach to Celebrating Tomatoes in the Garden and in the Kitchen.

What does Tomatomania include?

  • A wide selection of tomato plants, including heirlooms and hybrids
  • Expert advice on how to grow tomatoes
  • Supplies needed to grow tomatoes
  • Recipes and kitchen tips for using tomatoes

How do you get rid of unproductive tomatoes? Can them.

We stopped and picked tomatoes and peppers for an hour, going up and down each aisle, making our selections. Some were new and old standbys like Roma and Black Krim.

Ultimately, we were thirsty, especially after pushing the cart full of goodies all over the lot. Mary had me push the cart and wave a little flag so she could easily find me.

We went to the Farmhouse, part of the nursery, and asked to sit at the bar for some wine and perhaps some of their daily specialty soup (we had just downed two bagels earlier!).

I told Mary about the two tomatoes who were walking down the street when they decided to cross the road. On their way over, a car squished one of the tomatoes. The other yelled, “Come on, ketchup!”

We texted our location to friends!

Some people add color to their surroundings!  That would be us!  Black and Blue!

We did order their daily special soups and agreed they were both excellent.

The Silver Fox’s trunk was loaded with goodies. We might have gotten more, but the van was unavailable—that’s good! The back and front seats were full, so I carefully tied Mary over the hood and drove down the freeway to the sound of, “You wait until we get home!!!”

We had two flats of babies to plant!

We brought Roger’s flats home, put them in the garden, and immediately headed to Home Depot to get fresh potting mix and a few additional plants, including a new blueberry bush! Potting mix is a sterile mixture of materials used to grow plants in containers. It’s designed to be lightweight, well-draining, and provide plant nutrients.

We have three bags, and each one is about 60 pounds!

I carried them via wheelbarrow to the south forty, our “little garden,” where we had been preparing the beds for summer planting. We put in the new soil and then turned it to about the 8″ level to get a good mix. We do it by hand even though we have an electric rototiller! We like to look for worms (good) and grubs (bad).

OK, time to get serious!!

The bags are dumped into the raised beds, and then we mix everything up. Note that I wear my gardening costume, which I always wear unless it is World Naked Gardening Day (WNGD), which we celebrate on the first Saturday of May. On that day, we greet the garden in our “all-together,” which serves several purposes!

  1. It saves on washing clothes!
  2. Scares the birds away!
  3. Assures “the moon” comes out early
  4. Assures the tomatoes will turn red early!

After almost 200 pounds of fresh dirt, we are ready to plant!

We place tomatoes about 24-30′ apart and almost 36″ between rows.  This allows for air circulation and makes it easy for us to pick.  The older we get, the farther apart they will become.

We bury the tomatoes almost up to the first branch, adding three tablespoons of fertilizer to each one to get the roots moving quickly!

Onions are great for keeping away pests, so we transplanted these onions from their old location to between the new tomato plants. Due to their strong smell, onions are known to repel pests like aphids, cabbage loopers, Female Eye Doctors, carrot flies, Colorado potato beetles, rabbits, and most garden insects. Essentially, the onion scent discourages most small insects that might damage your plants.

Thank you, onions!!!

Dr. Mary and I are a team. I dig the hole and apply the fertilizer, and she comes behind me to plant the tomato, apply the mulch, and tags the tomato stands with the proper name (so we can remember later!).

Remember, good things come to those who dig deep.

The serious work starts now!!

We are so happy with the raised beds!  We do not have to get on our hands and knees; we have a place for the tools, and when we get tired, we sit!!!  Mary is dressed for digging in the dirt.

We make a great pair, just like peas and carrots.

It was three hours of work, and we are done with the tomatoes; tomorrow will be the peppers!

The tomato cages are in, and the straw mulch is in place.  Now, we will water the roots for an hour using the underground drip system.

We have the transplanted onions set between the tomatoes.

These cages are about fifteen years old!

After a quick rinse of the sidewalk/walkway, we head to the pool!

Have a nice nap, little ones!

We went to the “hot tub,” which was 85 degrees. The kids reset the temperature to 104, which was too hot for us. So, we attempted to readjust it yesterday, and we overachieved. Mary got out the instruction book, and now it is set for 96, our temperature.

We made a quick dinner—because we realized the only thing faster than our cooking skills is how quickly the meal gets cold!

We had hotdogs with fresh peas and pizza. Scout went bonkers and would not stop staring at us. Since he was old and we were weak, he joined us for dinner.

Poor baby, he looks so malnourished!

The pizza was called “Firehouse,” but Mary stippped hers clean of the jalapeos making it just a “house”, and they got added to mine!

Yummy!

After working in the garden, using the hot tub, and eating a good dinner, we crashed around 8:30 p.m.

We have dirty dreams all night long!

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Sunday And We Have Zero On The Calendar

Mary gets much better after the first cup of coffee!

It was a fantastic day.  Mary hit the office to get her taxes ready, and I surprised he by fixing bacon and eggs with toasted Irish Soda Bread. We spent the rest of the day piddling around the house, working on taxes and finalizing the latest cruise to Mexico on our website.

Boy oh boy, did we have fun!!!

Late in the afternoon, we headed for our TV Room (which is usually a Living Room) and we watched Season Threee of The Alien.  We then began to watch Casablance for the tenth time but soon discovered it was late, 7:00 pm.

All of our TV’s use streaming so we turned off the TV Room and went to the bedroom and watched it.

Tomorrow morning is the dreaded gym.

See you tomorrow.

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On The Go We Are!

We drove for hours today!!

Today was super busy, starting with a quick garden tour and preparing for a Costa Mesa funeral at 11:00 am.   We departed the celebration of left and returned home only to rest for a few minutes and then head to Colton (an hours drive) for a meeting of Mary’s Medical School graduating class.  It was the class of ’79 (that’s 1979!)

I overheard one of the doctors mentioning his patient.  Patient: Doctor, I get heartburn every time I eat birthday cake.    Doctor: Next time, take off the candles.  It was an excellent diagnosis!

The meal was a potluck; let me tell you, it was a culinary rollercoaster! One dish tasted like it had been marinated in a secret sauce of uncertainty, while another was so good I almost proposed to it. Who knew Dr. Kim’s mystery casserole could be both delicious and slightly terrifying? It was a feast of surprises—like a pop quiz for your taste buds! The food was all vegetarian, and Mary brought cookies.

We met at a classmate’s home, a mile from the Campus.

Mickey was the emcee for the evening and did an excellent job keeping people entertained.

Dr. Ask seemed to enjoy the company!

We got to share stories and update people on each other’s lives.  I was asked (even though I was NOT a graduate).  I told them I had been retired for 19 years but went back to work three years, three months, and eleven days ago.  They were puzzled until I mentioned that’s when Mary retired!  We got a good laugh!

We all shared what has been going on recently in our lives.

The stories were interesting and represented a wide range of medical activities.

One of the people reminded us that you might be an E.R. doctor if…

  1. Your favorite hallucinogen is exhaustion.
  2. You think that caffeine should be available in IV form.
  3. You get an almost irresistible urge to stand and wolf your food, even in the nicest restaurants.
  4. You believe the waiting room should be equipped with a Valium fountain.
  5. You have ever had a patient look you straight in the eye and say, “I have no idea how that got stuck in there”.
  6. Your most common assessment question is “What changed tonight to make it an emergency after 6 (hours, days, weeks, months, years)?

Great fun, and we talked fast (so the meal would NOT get cold)

We sat next to a fellow who had just had foot surgery, and Mary got to practice her German on him!

We were reminded of what you do NOT want to hear during surgery:

  1. Oops!
  2. Has anyone seen my watch?
  3. That was some party last night. I can’t remember when I’ve been that drunk.
  4. Damn! Page 47 of the manual is missing!
  5. Well, this book doesn’t say that… What edition is your manual?
  6. Ok, now take a picture from this angle. This is truly a freak of nature.
  7. Damn, there go the lights again…
  8. Everybody stand back! I lost my contact lens!

Mary found a friend who spoke German, and they talked a lot.

All the doctors had their pictures taken together, but half looked at the camera while the other half argued over who had the best scrubs. One doctor even tried to strike a pose like a model, only to trip over the cord of the coffee machine. Guess they should stick to healing rather than posing!

Then I heard:

Doctor: I have some bad news and some very bad news.

Patient: Well, might as well give me the bad news first.

Doctor: The lab called with your test results. They said you have 24 hours to live.

Patient: 24 HOURS! That’s terrible!! WHAT could be WORSE? What’s the very bad news?

Doctor: I’ve been trying to reach you since yesterday.

All the doctors got together.

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Friday Has Arrived!

The garden called bright and early. We headed to the garden and worked for a few hours in the lovely 80-degree sunshine. Mary picked the last of the peas.

Interesting Facts about Peas: Janet Harris of Sussex holds the world record for eating peas, having eaten 7175 peas one by one in 60 minutes using chopsticks in 1984! Thick London fogs of the 19th and 20th centuries were dubbed ‘pea-soupers’ because of their density and green tinge.

My own little “Pea Picker”

The straw mulch needs to be removed and stacked for later use. The beds will then be cleaned, rototilled, and replanted for the summer season!

We must turn this over within a week so we can plant tomatoes.

Thank goodness Ralph’s bags are perfect for delivering freshly picked veggies—fresh means they still have dirt on them!

We filled several bags with goodies and then sent them to the neighbors.

Just two more plants to go, and then we’ll be shelling them so long that by the end of the afternoon, we might as well start a support group for people who’ve lost their shelling sanity! Who knew gardening could turn into a full-time job for my fingers?

Even Carlos got to pick peas today!

We watched Resident Alien all afternoon. I prepared lunch with my trusty assistant.  Mary fixed the peas and potatoes while I fixed up two nice looking steaks!

Yummy!

During the remaining afternoon, we got ready to go to the Elks to see Larry Fresch. We arrived at 5:15 p.m. and walked in with Vicky and Jim!

Larry Fresch plays tonight.

The music was great, and we had a light dinner because of our steaks! I had the Hobo Steak and took most of it home. Mary just had the house salad, which is a meal in itself.

I pulled out my trusty camera and asked the girl to “Show me your tooth.”  Mary took it literally.

“Show me your tooth!”

We danced several dances, and drank some wine. And departed around 8:30 pm.

Get a room!

We met up with Brenda and Gail.

Ladies, time to dance!

We were tired from working in the garden and departed a little early.

Robin Arrives In Argentina Day 8

Today’s adventure started with a flyer from the ship noting that “due to local sensitivities, we were kindly asked not to wear any UK memorabilia if we were leaving the ship. After a quick wardrobe check, it is safe to say I was properly dressed in my favorite color- BLACK (red, white and blue to be found). We tendered to the shore and Maggie scouted out the nearest shopping area to our tour pick-up location. There were trinket stores galore and then we turned the corner and there it was, no – not Starbucks but a Hard Rock Cafe at the end of the world!. The store was very small and there were at least 6 ships in the dock, so finding a t-shirt was a challenge but I did manage to find one I think will fit Bob who has collected these T-Shirts from many locations around the world, he has traveled to. Success!. From there we went to the tour location that Maggie had arranged and we jumped on the shuttle and was taken to the Tierra Del Fuego National Park or Parque Nacional Tierra Del Fuego train station for a guided tour/ride through the park.

At the train station, we were checked in and greeted by personnel who were dressed in prision inmate and police costumes. Outside the train station there was some kind of commotion going on. We soon discovered those dressed in the costumes were taking photo ops in set-up crime scenes and having the tourists join them in the action for the photo fun. We had no clue what they were doing, so we just jumped in to the picture and instead of acting like we were “catching the bad guys”, we were laughing (yes, we bought the photo!). Once that was over, we boarded a train (similar to the train at Knotts Berry Farm), that had been used to take prisioners to a prision that was located in the forest/park. We had a narrator tell us over pre-recorded audio, the prision was shut down and removed years ago due to various reasons. We stopped at a few locations in the park, one of which was a beautiful waterfall that had a brick fountain built around it.

After the train ride, we got back in the van from the tour company and they drove us through the forest, pointing out various things and providing us with more history of the early civilization that lived there – claiming they were the earliest people in recorded history, dating back to the cave man era. One of the stops on this part of the tour was to “the end of the world post office” where Maggie and I took several pictures and then on to the end of the road where the road actually ends at Route 3 in the Tierra Del Fuego forrest (got pictures of that as well). The sign read 17,848 kilometers to Alaska *by waterway* obviously not by road as there isn’t one!

We made it back to the ship at 7PM. Maggie is posted all the day trips on her Facebook if you want a preview of the photos. She also adds in a little more of the high-end information.

Love to all,

Robin

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Off To The Elks!

We arose early and continued seasoning our new kitchen tool.  After having coffee, we visited the garden.   We worked a little bit before getting ready for the Elks.

On the way to the Elks, we dropped off Scout at his beauty parlor.  The baby is getting more beautiful every time!  But after the visit, he is pooped out for an entire day.  Probably over-stimulated by all the other doggies!

We had a great visit at the Elks!

We headed home about 1:30 pm.

On the way home, we called our tax man and delayed our appointment so we would not have to worry about getting ready by next Tuesday.

We piddled around the house the rest of the day, preparing for the rainstorms allegedly on the way. You’d think we were preparing for a hurricane the way we stocked up on snacks! I even tried to build a pillow fort “in case” we got flooded out. Who knew that taping the pillows to the wall with duct tape was a bad idea? At least if the rain didn’t come, I had a pretty sweet fort for my afternoon nap.

We continued watching Resident Alien until we both went ot sleep!

We are getting ready for tomorrow!!

Danger Will Robinson Day Nine Cape Horn

Today is THE DAY. The most “dangerous” part of the ocean to sail through. Maggie and I were prepared (well, Maggie was and I helped her)… we were expecting high winds, cold temps. and windy waves. Got the Dramamine, Advil, Green Apples and water ready. We went to bed early the previous evening, and watched a really good movie called My Friend The Penguin (based on a true story). It was a great way to end the evening as nerves were jittery due to the upcoming passage.

I woke up at 5:45 a.m. (Maggie stayed asleep) and I made my up to the Crow’s Nest to listen to the cruise director provide commentary and grab a cup of coffee. Sitting there staring out the window into the darkness, I could see a light flashing but didn’t know what it was. We were told that was the Lighthouse from Cape Horn and in a few minutes we would be passing the island (I’ll have to look up the name later) – that marks the point in the Drake passage at which the ship would turn to go to Antartica (2.5 days sailing time from where we currently were). As soon as he said that, I grabbed my stuff and made a beeline back to our cabin and woke up Maggie so she wouldn’t miss it. It was bitterly cold outside with the wind. Both of us were bundled up and could only stay out on the balcony for 20-30 seconds at a time. As dawn broke on the horizon, the Cape Horn Lighthouse came in to view and I was so happy it was right in front of our balcony (although a few miles away). The ship stayed there for about 30 minutes then turned for the other half of the ship to get their view.

Maggie took amazing photos and video. She was also relieved to know by looking at the waves of the ocean and see the weather that all her preparations for a rocky, wavy, stormy ride was all in vain as it was a beautiful morning lit by the sun rather than dark gray rainy clouds, and calm waves. We had more weather issues getting there than we did experiencing it. I will say, the ship was rocking a bit, there were smaller waves but it was nothing like what Maggie feared and what I was hoping for…. not 40 ft. waves, but maybe 15 ft. (that would have been fun!). I did note that both of us had headaches all day, not sure if that was all the activity in the Tierra Del Feugo excursion the day before or if it was part of the rocking of the ship. No pain medication helped it, so we watched the Drake lake pass us by from the spa where we indulged in headache reliving hydra pool therapy. We had dinner in the dining room, tonight they were serving up some Gorden Ramsey style New York Strip steak with garlic & butter (Bob makes them better! When we return to our cabins, there were certificates on both of our beds signed by the captain, congratulating us for rounding cape horn and becoming members of the Moss Back, which is a Maritime tradition, for bragging rights I suppose, Woo-Hoo!

Love to all,
Robin

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MId-Week And We Are Back To “Normal”

“Oops! The calendar says we must be at the gym at 8:30 am!!”

My, oh, my!  It’s more like doing the Chubby Checker dance once we get to the gym, but perhaps this morning, it might be different.   Nope, we went through our daily routine of toting the barge and lifting the bails.

After the workout, with the last ounce of energy we could muster, we went down three doors to Ralph’s Market and came out with $400 in groceries (which was easy!).    I was shocked that a one-quart bottle of olive oil was $30!  Oh my, the prices have gone crazy.

We had ten bags, making the haul $40/bag!  We spend 45 minutes hauling it into the house and finding places to put everything.

Our cleaning crew arrived at 1:30, so we took off and headed to Benji’s for an afternoon lupper (halfway between lunch and supper).  At the end of our meal, the waitress just happened to turn on the popcorn machine, and you know what happened!  Mary floated toward the machine and gathered a bag of popcorn, but it nearly didn’t make it back to the table because someone was munching!

Munch, munch, munch!

We did not have dinner tonight, but we did go into the hot tub and sit for two cycles or about forty minutes; it felt good.

We then went to the TV room and, on a lark, I selected “Gone With The Wind,” a four-hour movie.  Neither of us remembered many of the details, and we made it to 3 1/2 hours before stopping the movie and heading to bed.

The themes from “Gone With the Wind” that remain relevant today include the resilience of the human spirit in the face of adversity, the struggle for survival and adaptation in changing times, the impact of war and its aftermath, the complexities of love and relationships, and the power of personal determination.

We will watch the remaining 30 minutes in the morning!

Scout and I checked the backyard for elephants before we joined Mary.

 

Today’s adventure started with a flyer from the ship noting that “due to local sensitivities, we were kindly asked not to wear any UK memorabilia if we were leaving the ship. After a quick wardrobe check, it is safe to say I was properly dressed in my favorite color- BLACK (red, white and blue to be found). We tendered to the shore and Maggie scouted out the nearest shopping area to our tour pick-up location. There were trinket stores galore and then we turned the corner and there it was, no – not Starbucks but a Hard Rock Cafe at the end of the world!. The store was very small and there were at least 6 ships in the dock, so finding a t-shirt was a challenge but I did manage to find one I think will fit Bob who has collected these T-Shirts from many locations around the world, he has traveled to. Success!. From there we went to the tour location that Maggie had arranged and we jumped on the shuttle and was taken to the Tierra Del Fuego National Park or Parque Nacional Tierra Del Fuego train station for a guided tour/ride through the park.

At the train station, we were checked in and greeted by personnel who were dressed in prision inmate and police costumes. Outside the train station there was some kind of commotion going on. We soon discovered those dressed in the costumes were taking photo ops in set-up crime scenes and having the tourists join them in the action for the photo fun. We had no clue what they were doing, so we just jumped in to the picture and instead of acting like we were “catching the bad guys”, we were laughing (yes, we bought the photo!). Once that was over, we boarded a train (similar to the train at Knotts Berry Farm), that had been used to take prisioners to a prision that was located in the forest/park. We had a narrator tell us over pre-recorded audio, the prision was shut down and removed years ago due to various reasons. We stopped at a few locations in the park, one of which was a beautiful waterfall that had a brick fountain built around it.

After the train ride, we got back in the van from the tour company and they drove us through the forest, pointing out various things and providing us with more history of the early civilization that lived there – claiming they were the earliest people in recorded history, dating back to the cave man era. One of the stops on this part of the tour was to “the end of the world post office” where Maggie and I took several pictures and then on to the end of the road where the road actually ends at Route 3 in the Tierra Del Fuego forrest (got pictures of that as well). The sign read 17,848 kilometers to Alaska *by waterway* obviously not by road as there isn’t one!

We made it back to the ship at 7PM. Maggie is posted all the day trips on her Facebook if you want a preview of the photos. She also adds in a little more of the high-end information.

Love to all,

Robin

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It’s So Quiet!!

The kids made it to New Hampshire; we got a text message saying all was OK!

We were up early as I had another visit to the dermatologist/surgeon in Long Beach to remove another naughty-acting cancer on the forehead.  We had to be up at 5:00 am to hit the freeway at 6:45 am to make it to Long Beach!

Returning home, we just did chores around the house and got the house ready for the cleaning people tomorrow.

At noon, I took the Boss to her painting class in Tustin. She missed last week’s class, so the instructor gave her a work assignment to make up for it. Today’s work was superb and will be displayed on the wall leading to “The Loft.”

Dragon Flies (When I grew up, I called them “Snake Doctors”)

The visit with the kids (Jonathan and Sarah) was very special! We had so much fun together, and it was great to visit them!

Seven days of continuous giggling! Good for the soul!!

We decided to take it easy and watched two Sylvester Stallone action movies. You know, it’s just your standard preparation for a wild night—because nothing says “let’s party!” like watching a guy with muscles so big they need their own ZIP code! After all that excitement, we felt ready to create for the night—armed with popcorn and enough one-liners to make even Rocky proud!

Amen!!

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