Wednesday, November 2, 2016

Stateside

It's really hard to believe we've been stateside since August. Now that the seasons are changing we are well aware of how far we are from SV Kelly Nicole, our home. This is really going to be a long stay for us and one we will probably not repeat unless there is another Grand baby on the way. Three to four months in the States seems about the right length of time. It's pretty much all we can afford as the States are expensive relative to living in the islands.

Living out of an old hockey bag

The family has been missed terribly. We are really soaking up every moment we are here. I am pretty sure though that the thrill of having Mom and Dad living in the spare room has worn off considerably. The kids have been great and we really appreciate the savings opposed to living in a hotel or renting an apartment but seeing Dad every morning sipping tea and commenting about the world news has got to get to you after a while.

Our Grandsons are incredibly funny. Such personality in both of them. They really get me going and I tend to egg them on a bit which gets them in trouble from time to time. Grandpa also gets in trouble. The other evening Aiden grabbed my hand and said "C'mon Grandpa" and proceeded to lead me into the kitchen. My daughter asked what we were doing and I said Aiden wants to see the scissors. I got yelled at by both parents. My humor is lost on them sometimes.


Mason the comedian greeted Grandma
at the door with a snake surprise.

Aiden, master of facial expressions and
tester of patience. Both are happy kids.

Pretty soon we drive up to the north country for baby girl to arrive. We managed to snag a cottage rental for cheap while in NY. Problem is it's about a 45 minute drive to our daughters house which doesn't seem that long unless you add snow. Believe me, there will be no escaping driving in the snow or ice. This will suck but for now we are still soaking up warmth in Florida and Georgia

We ventured to Vero Beach the other day to visit the Doc. It appears that all is well. We both feel healthy and our blood work came back good. My BP has been spot on despite taking the meds every other day because I was running out. Makes you wonder why I take them at all, but after driving around Florida for the last week I think I might actually double up on the meds! These people crash into each other like bumper cars down here. Pretty scary stuff even if we hang out in the slow lane.

So we are in the waiting room for blood work. The place is crowded. No seats available. This elderly couple comes in, one with a walker and the other with a cane and neither one is moving very fast. They walk to the end of the waiting room looking for a seat. They pass by several guys in their 30's who see them but ignore them. I stood up and offered my seat to the woman and Debra offered hers to the man. Both thanked us and were all smiles to discover that someone actually cared. I glared at the twits who never offered and wondered why they are such assholes but they never looked up from their phones. I guess that answered my question.

The Doc told me something interesting when I mentioned that my left ear plugs up and refuses to drain after snorkeling. He said my left ear canal is smaller than my right. He said it's very narrow. Damn. I'm not symmetrical! This bothers me. I'm going to have to measure a few other parts of my body and see if the left is smaller than the right. Maybe that's why my left turns in hockey were always better than my right. What if the left side of my brain is smaller than the right side? Is that why I am bad at math? My right shoe is always tighter fitting. My eyesight is better in my right eye. I even think my left ass cheek is smaller than my right because my wallet always fit better on the left. WTF! I feel so unbalanced.

At the time of writing this I am watching the world series. Go Cubs! Funny thing about baseball is it's so boring that the announcers never shut the hell up for fear you might fall asleep and miss a pharmaceutical commercial.

While we are poking around the area we stopped to visit a few pals. Deb and Tim on Kintala (Retirement Project) are parked momentarily and it was great fun visiting with them. Deb made a fantastic dinner and we shared a few laughs and some stories. It was great seeing them again and enjoying their company.

A good reunion with Kintala

Long time friends Deb and Don also made a great dinner and entertained us on their Key West sport boat with friends Ron and Joyce who have a trawler nearby. Great fun being on the water again even at high speed. We all met each other while we sailed, raced and cruised lake Ontario. Izzy the wonder dog was also there! Good times except for the sunburn. You know, I live 10 degrees from the equator for months at a time and never get a sun burn. Two hours on a powerboat and I scorch my face. I look stupid.

Our new old car. We hate owning a car.
Renting for 5 months was $$$


Having our own transportation has been nice while here. Yesterday we traveled up to Beaufort to see our always smiling friend Annie. We had a nice lunch and chat. Thanks for the brewski's Annie!

Our time in Florida and Georgia is almost up and before long we hit the road for the north country. Getting excited about the baby girl and it will be a joyous time having everyone together for the holidays. The ice and snow will be no contest for the warmth in our hearts.

Cheers!
P
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