Flat again

Where and when will we have the third flat tire? This morning Grandma was driving to town when a nail intruded into her left rear tire. AAA was more helpful to her than to me, and she had the flat repaired at Skip Cahill's in Bath. How odd the coincidence.
I pulled the mooring this morning with no trouble. Although the chain had wrapped around the anchor shank a bit, the 3/8" chain came loose easily. Lacking the extra 20 feet of 1/4" chain turned out to be a good thing, as the mooring weathered 40 MPH winds without moving. Good placement by Em and Gregg.
A gloomy weekend is on the way, but the leaves are turning at last and we might enjoy glory next week.

Pfui

So says Nero Wolfe, and so say I. We hauled Autumn yesterday from the south Bath boat launch...after splicing the trailer lights. On Route 1 just before Brunswick, I felt a bump and saw the right side of the trailer bounding a bit. When I pulled off into the  deserted Pancho Villa parking lot, I noticed the right trailer tire was ripped and deflating. Lucky to get that far. Anyway, a better spot than the Interstate where Bart and I suffered a trailer flat transporting the catboat to Essington on a Sunday. A friendly service manager at Bodwells lent me a lug wrench and jack and soon the spare was on and we were off to Strout's. More adventures on the way home, perhaps, as the lights aren't working right still. We shall see. Pfui.

Hannah was here

When Hannah was here in July, she planted some seeds behind the bunkhouse and in front of the outhouse. Although she thought they might not bloom until next year, as you can see, they have done better than that. We are grateful for her green thumb. And summer still rolls along, defying my previous post.

Summer's end

At last the trees are starting to show some color, much later than in any other year I can remember. The mornings are crisper: today we had out first fire in the woodstove. Autumn's last voyage will be either today or Sunday afternoon before she is hauled on Monday morning.
What a long and pleasant summer this has been. In the true GOP spirit of I got mine and screw the rest of youse, we welcome Climate Change.

Miss Movietime returns

 Musing on the paucity of information in our local paper, the Times-Record, I recalled my summer as a copyboy for the Camden Courier-Post, which I see is still in business, remarkably. I guess we have Cherry Hill to thank for that.

There were three of us copyboys. I was 16 that summer, and Brian was a couple of years older. His sister was in my class, he lived in the sticks toward Mt. Laurel, and was a stolid, unimaginative fellow. At the other extreme was Bob, who was 20, an Italian fellow with a lot to say and a great spirit of adventure. Bob liked to pull pranks on Brian, and some of them were excellent without being especially harmful, as Brian was a bit slow to figure things out.
Bob was generous with his car and fairly often we went out after work to see what was happening around the Delaware Valley. There were not many serious bones in Bob's body, but I always remembered one thing he told me about girls. "Look at her mother," he advised. "That's what she's gonna look like in 30 years." I retained this sound advice, and applied it. So, apparently, did my sons-in-law.

If you don't remember Miss Movietime, let her rest in peace.

Anniversary

This is Bart and Andrea's 16th wedding anniversary. We can always remember the number, because they are 30 years behind us and will not catch up soon. Memories from the wedding are fresh and enjoyable, like Ema and Aba in the limo and Pete dancing up a storm. So much has changes, so many passages. Happy Anniversary, and many many more.

Here at the Crotch we have been poking around and enjoying the best weather of the year. On Wednesday we rode across lumpy but pleasant seas to Damariscove, then in to Boothbay for lunch. The town was crowded with lunchers, waits at all eateries. Eventually we saw why: six large tourist coaches lining the street. Lotsa retired folks. Ah, that's us, too.

Relaxation

The days are finally becoming fall-like and the languid hours of summer seem to be slipping away. However,the leaves have not yet turned, although by now they are usually brightly colored. What a long summer we have had! We hope to do more boating in between the fall chores, and stretch it out while we can.
A great deal of time on the composting toilet may bring good results. The drain was not working, but seems to be, now. Also, it is always helpful to review the directions.

Pickled

About ten days ago I started making kefir. In the old USSR in 1985 the kefir was horribly sour and bitter, but powerful against digestive problems.  At the other extreme is the sugary stuff you can buy at the store. But the real stuff I have made is pleasant tasting as well as potent. I have also begun pickling our garden produce and the Maqoit cucumbers. All of this is simple, cheap, and very healthy. And just a bit Aba, might you say?

End of an Era

Not really an era, I guess, but today the final Arleigh Burke class destroyer, the Michael Murphy, headed down the Kennebec and out to sea. Many were on hand to see it, and we took Malcolm and two of his guests on Autumn.
BIW is now building superstealth destroyers. Probably they will be wearing disguises as they cruise silently to the sea.
It's always a thrill to see a BIG SHIP!

Autumn is here

Fog this morning and a bit of a chill... but then out came the sun and summer was back.

Em, Gregg, and I put in a mooring on the other side of Koofis Isle and Autumn is now on it. How long it will last, who knows.

We had a small, select Labor Day party. Oh, so quiet!

Into the Woods

With the families from Carlisle and Brunswick doing some heavy hauling, we added lots of dead wood to Ben's logs. The back 9 is much clearer than before, and, although there is much left to be done, "Porcupine Paath" looks much better than it did two days ago.
Things went well for a while, too, on the water, as Toby, Sam, and Suzanne tubed behind the Whaler. Bart and I used an underwater video camera to see that the mooring was caught on a huge rock. But I guess the mooring felt its privacy had been invaded, as this morning it cut Autumn loose, and she is now tied to Andrea Hansen's dock, while the two chains and steel mooring mushroom remain forever on the bottom.