May 17th: The Visit and Getting Ready to Head to California

 

Sailor Dave and Kelly

Dave and Kelly arrived and we were fortunate to have a good weather day for a boat ride. That was on the to do list because Kelly had never been on a trawler. Part of the reason for their visit was to allow Kelly a chance to see if she wanted to live on a trawler. Mychael, my friend who is going to stay on the boat and work on it while I am gone, came along. Mychael is an experienced boater and it was great to have him with us.

Kelly's only other experience living on a boat was Dave's 32 foot sailboat. Not nearly as comfortable. Kelly was sold on the idea by the time they left. There were four other items on the "To do list". The Turtle Hospital, the Dolphin Research Center, a lobster dinner and Key West.

The Turtle Hospital is always enjoyable. It's great to see all the displays about the sea turtles and the ones that have been rescued.More info about the Turtle Hospital 

I took a few pictures and videos but the ones on line are better. 

If you look closely at this large turtle swimming in the video below you'll see two round discs on its shell. When a turtle gets hit by a boat it can develop an air pocket under the shell. The air pocket prevents the turtle from diving down to swim and eat. The hospital staff attaches weights to the turtles shell so it can swim under the water. Unfortunately these turtles cannot be released because as the turtle grows it sheds the outer covering of its shell and the weights fall off. These turtles become permanent residents.

This little Hawksbill turtle is cute and very colorful. They don't grow as large as the green sea turtles.

The hospital staff members were giving this turtle a good scrubbing with some type of ointment. Something you don't see every day. The turtle didn't seem to mind too much.

They do wonderful work at the Turtle hospital and all the locals know to call the hospital if they see a distressed turtle. The person who contacts the rescue team gets to name the turtle. Most of the rescued turtles are cured and released. Many are suffering from eating plastic bags which they mistake for jelly fish, their main diet. 

Kelly & Steve at the
Dolphin Research Center

The Dolphin Research Center is always entertaining and informative. Again, the pictures on line at their website are much better than I could get. Kelly signed up for being able to shake hands/flippers and pet the dolphin. She had a lot of fun and was able to send pictures to her grand kids who were duly impressed. 

Also at the Center were some pet birds, Macaws, Parrots, etc., that have been taken in because their owners no longer kept them for whatever reason. This particular bird could say "Pretty Bird" quite clearly. The staff said the birds are starved for attention and miss their owners attention so we were encouraged to stop and talk to them!

Chef Mychael, Dave & Kelly,
watching the lobster pot

Years ago, when Linda and I were in Baltimore and met Dave, we invited him to our trawler for a lobster dinner. He wanted Kelly to experience it also. So Dave ordered four live, 2 lbs. Maine lobsters delivered to the boat. Mychael was happy to join us and he arranged for the pot, etc., to steam them. 

Dave and Mychael decided we needed some appetizers so off they went to the seafood counter unsupervised!. They returned with enough seafood to feed the marina. Originally they were just after "A few" clams and oysters. They ended up numerous beer options, oysters, clams, mussels and two pounds of shrimp! I said there was no way we could eat all that before a 2 lbs. lobster. Sanity prevailed and more than 1/2  of the other seafood was saved for the next day.

A few appetizers

The lobsters were delicious. In case you are interested, you can get live lobsters on line from numerous sites delivered in 24 hours!

We all enjoyed the lobster dinner. Kelly was duly impressed.

We completed the fourth item on the list by going to Key West. It's definitely a tourist city. Kelly and Dave shopped for souvenirs for the kids and grandkids. Then we had lunch on the beach at Salute"s, a great Italian restaurant. We had a table right on the beach in the shade. Very pleasant. 

Lunch at Salute's Key West

Next we did the Conch Train tour, Conch Train info which covers a lot of the history of Key West. Then we went into the air conditioned Key West Shipwreck museum. It was quite warm so after getting some ice cream in the shade we headed back. It was a beautiful day so it was a nice ride over the ocean on the way back.

That evening we were sitting on the fly bridge enjoying the sunset, looking West. When I turned around I noticed a cool cloud formation to the northeast. The sun was almost completely down but the clouds were high enough to catch the sun shining.

New aft hatch cover

While Dave and Kelly were here Kelly helped me sew some new hatch covers. The old ones were quite sad. 

Old aft hatch cover

Old forward hatch cover

New Forward hatch cover

Dave and Kelly at Porky's for breakfast

We enjoyed several great breakfasts while they were in town. The Cracked Conch has an excellent seafood omelette. Dave liked it so much he said we had to go back for a second try. We also went to Porky's which is fun because it is right next to the water in a little harbor.

The next day Dave and Kelly headed to Idaho to visit family and hit many national parks along the way.

I mentioned above that Mychael was going to stay on the trawler while I was gone. He is an excellent mechanic and carpenter and was looking for a place to stay. He was willing to complete some challenging projects that I was dreading in return for staying on the boat. Plus, I didn't have to put the boat on the hard for the summer. The marina is relatively safe as far as hurricanes go but I wouldn't leave it in the water without someone to look after it. Upon returning to the boat every Fall it was a major job to clean it up and get all the systems running again. It will be wonderful not to need to do that and come back to a boat with many improvements. 

Stuff emptied from the closet

Two in particular involved the engine and exhaust system. There is an exhaust elbow that needs to be replaced. The hot exhaust wears it down just like a muffler on a car. I replaced it last time and it is not fun. Also, after our boat ride I felt certain I smelled some exhaust. I didn't need to check it while Dave and Kelly were here. To get to it I had to empty a closet in the aft cabin and open up a panel. 

Worn out 4 inch exhaust hose

Sure enough, there were two small holes in the exhaust pipe that runs from the engine all the way to the back of the boat. Very difficult to get at it. Mychael will take care of both these major items! Way to go Mychael. He is also going to work some cosmetic issues. It's been twelve years since we refinished the teak and wall paper and it all needs to be redone. 

I'm certain you can see why I am happy things worked out for a win-win between Mychael and me.

May 2nd: Just hanging out, a little fishing and cleaning for the arrival of Sailor Dave and Kelly

The day I returned from Ohio we had a heavy rain. We get very little rain so we could always use it, and it never lasts too long. During the night I woke up feeling a drip over my head. Hmmm. We've had this problem before. The caulking on the walk around deck gives way and leaks. Fortunately, it was not dripping much so I just moved over and figured I'd deal with it in the morning. 

I removed most of the old caulking behind the sliding door, which is above my bed. It clearly needed to be replaced. Let it dry out for a day and then caulked it. The new caulking is to the left of the railing shadow in the picture.

New caulking in place

There was a spot in front of the door that was much worse. When I started checking there was a soft spot below the fiberglass. I started digging and ended up with quite a hole. 

I had fiberglass repair supplies so I replaced the rotted wood with 5 layers of fiberglass. That should definitely do it. It took several days to complete everything and all is good. 

The only issue was my white Brightside paint was so old it's not white anymore. But it will still protect the fiberglass until next year.

No more leaks! I checked it with the hose, just in case. It was fortunate I found these issues before I left for the season. If I had missed them, water would have been leaking in for 6 months!

 

Steve and Michael

Dennis and Lois had a visit from their 20 year old grandson, Michael. He wanted to go fishing in salt water, a first for him, I said I'd be glad to take him. I warned him that it had been pretty windy and that usually means the fishing isn't great. Shortly after we arrived Michael caught a Hammerhead Shark. It took a while, but he was able to land it. Well, bring it alongside the dinghy so I could release it. No way that hammerhead shark was coming in the dinghy! I was able to get a video. Definitely provided some excitement. Later, he hooked another shark, I had a tarpon on for just a few seconds and we caught quite a few grunts. We had fun and came home without fish to clean, not all bad!

Location of the removed
 swivel lamp

I decided the boat was in need of some cosmetic improvements. Some of the wall paper was coming loose and a swivel wall lamp had gotten very rusty over the last few years.

Rusty swivel lamp

Wallpaper repaired and lamp restored

Wallpaper coming loose

There were several places like this where the wall paper was coming loose. It's a vinyl wallpaper and very tough but the thinner pieces seem to be shrinking and coming loose. I glued them back on the best I could but replacement will be another project for next season. The wallpaper did last 11 years so I can't really complain!

Becky's baby hummingbird

I received some fun information from Rebecca. Her dog Trevi was in the garage barking like crazy. She went out to see what was going on. She found a baby hummingbird that couldn't fly. She rescued it and fed it some sugar water. She looked on line and found a nearby lady who rescues hummingbirds. She delivered the bird and the lady said she had the correct food to give it and it will be just fine. She learned that hummingbirds can't fly for the first ten days on the ground. Sounds pretty dangerous to me!

Cindy with a Yellow Jack (2018)

I was able to get out fishing two days ago with my friend Bill. We fished from my dinghy under the bridge and did very well. We caught around 15 Yellow Jacks. They're great eating and fun to catch. Most were 3 to 5 lbs. After keeping 9 we started throwing them back. That's a lot of fish, even sharing. This time of year more than half the people left for the summer so not many to share with. Unfortunately, I didn't think to lay the fish out and take a picture before Bill and I cleaned them. I dug in my archives and found a good picture of Cindy holding a nice Yellow Jack she caught a few years ago. Most of ours were about that size. Unfortunately, Randy and Cindy no longer come to Banana Bay. I sure do miss them! We hope to get together on our boats in Canada this summer if COVID allows it.

Speaking of fishing, my friend Mike with the fishing boat is still fishing for Tarpon. He uses live mullet as bait. The mullet are 8 - 10 inches long and shaped like a torpedo. This time of year the mullet come into the marina in large schools. I always alert Mike if I see a school. Here's a video of Mike trying to catch some with his throw net. There is an art to it that he is just learning. It's difficult in the middle of the marina because it is deep enough for the fish to swim under the net before it drops to the bottom. But he did get a few!

Natalie

While Mike was fishing, Natalie spotted a cute little weather vane sailboat sitting on the rocks. The sails turn based on wind direction. Sometimes we're easily entertained!

Linda and I met sailor Dave in Baltimore 6 or 7 years ago. We spent five weeks together as I was recovering from my shoulder break. Dave was rehabbing from a back injury and resurrecting a 32 foot sailboat he had bought sight unseen! He is very talented and can fix anything. 

Dave on his sailboat MaraLee

We had a lot of fun together and have reconnected a few times over the years. We enjoyed a lobster dinner with Dave who had not had the experience. 

Over the years Dave sold his sailboat, returned to long distance truck driving and this last Christmas he married Kelly. He and Kelly will arrive Thursday to spend a week with me on the boat. They are looking for a trawler to move to and this will be a nice chance for Kelly to check it out. Obviously Dave remembered the lobster dinner fondly because he told Kelly we'd have to show her what a real lobster dinner is like! We are hoping for good weather so we can anchor out some nights. Either way it will be fun. Kelly has never been to the Keys so there will be a lot of fun stuff to show her.

It almost feels like deja'vu. I've been going to Key West to see Rosie for physical therapy to repair my left shoulder, (not the one I broke). I did something not good to it in California and decided I better seek help. It turned out a lot of the stretching and exercising I was doing, made the problem worse instead of better! I'm now improving but not there yet. And Dave is still struggling with back issues! In spite of all that, I'm sure we'll have a good time and Dave could use the break from driving.

April 24th: Trip to Ohio

I had planned to go to Ohio when I left Florida mid May. But due to lots of wind and people I wanted to visit travelling elsewhere at that time, I decided to make the trip April 13th. I hadn't had an in person visit with my family, Linda's family nor friends since Linda's death.

Cindy, Randy & Cricket at the farm

I did not intentionally plan the visit on the anniversary of Linda's death, April 14th, but I was grateful to be with friends and family. A bonus was that Randy, Cindy and Cricket, our Canadian friends, just happened to be driving through Ohio the day I was flying in. They joined me at the farm for two days which was wonderful. We all agreed that Linda had somehow arranged it from above. I enjoyed showing them around the farm, Pleasant Hill Lake and the Perrysville dairy, which was open! It had a new name but the menu looked the same and the hot fudge sundaes were excellent!

Steve and Randy

The weather was perfect. Sunny and low 70's during the day and cool enough for a nice fire at night. Cricket loved the fire!

Steve and Cricket

A tremendous bonus was finding some morel mushrooms.  My niece Mandy had brought some over for us and Randy, Cindy and I truly enjoyed them. It's been several years since we were at the farm and found morel mushrooms. 

Steve preparing the mushrooms

Almost there

Finished!

I went to the Cleveland Clinic for my long overdue physical. My primary care physician is Dr Yudelevich who is wonderful. All my tests came back very positive. Nice to have that behind me at the beginning of my visit.

Scott and Steve

Thursday I headed up to Olmsted Falls to Scott and Terri's house. It is always fun to get together with them. We played my favorite game, Can't Stop. It was great to get together in person again. And Scott had made me a new DVD of music. He's very good at that.

Terri and Scott

The next morning Terri and I went for a walk in the Metropark. It was perfect weather for walking and nice to get some exercise. Then my sister Julie and cousin Marialice and friend Emily joined us for a great lunch and visit. Again, it was wonderful to see everyone in person for the first time after losing Linda. Somehow it helped. 

Saturday it was back to the Loudonville farm to meet with the Drouhard family. I made Reuben sandwiches thanks to Julie making a trip to Davis bakery for the best rye bread ever and excellent corned beef.

While I was at the farm I took some pictures to send to Linda's brother Tom. He planted the fruit trees and flowers. They are doing great but he's in Arizona so he doesn't get to see the blossoming. I sent him a lot of pictures which he enjoyed. Here are a few. 

Pear tree and peach tree

Jax and Brandy

Sadly, I didn't take any pictures of the people at the Drouhard gathering. To the best of my recollection everyone looked pretty much the same except Jax and Solomon, Mandy's children, have grown. Brandy the cat loves Jax. She wouldn't get friendly with me but came running any time Jax called her. The tulip Jax is holding is the prize for finding the most mushrooms. She had an advantage, she's a lot closer to the ground.

Miriam & Annie

So next it was on to the Puffers' house in Medina. It was truly old home day. Paul & Miriam Pendleton plus Sue Hinkle, friends since 1976 in Galion, Ohio; LauraPurnell, friend since 1987 at South Euclid, Ohio, and Dave and Sue Puffer, friends we met at Sagamore Hills in 2,000. But of course Annie, Puffers' new Golden Doodle Puppy was the hit of the visit. Very cute and lovable. I don't think Miriam ever put Annie down!

From Left, Miriam & Paul Pendleton, Sue Hinkle,
 Steve, Dave Puffer, Laura Purnell (Sue Puffer photographer)

We had a great lunch and enjoyed telling old stories. There was of course more food than we needed, but all was good! Great appetizers, (Including Ohio favorite, trail bologna and Swiss cheese), Rueben sandwiches, apple and berry pie, just to mention some items!) We agreed we need to get together sometime when this coronavirus craziness ends! Hopefully at the farm.

Euclid lakefront project

After the lunch gathering at Puffers' I drove to Euclid to spend my last night with my sister Julie. We walked to the end of her street where a three year lakefront project is coming to a close. It was wonderful to see such a great use of the lakefront. We saw a canadian goose sitting on a nest at the fishing pier. Seemed like a strange place for a nest, but then I'm not a goose!

Julie's lemon meringue pie

Julie provided some liver and farina dumplings soup. It was a great way to finish off the Ohio food journey. But then wait, Julie also made a lemon meringue pie! I haven't had that in a long time and it was wonderful.

My flight the next day was in the afternoon so we went to our favorite breakfast place, Gus's. Neither of as had been there since the COVID crisis began so it was a special treat. We had breakfast early enough that I had another piece of lemon meringue pie before I left. After all, it was a long flight back to Florida!