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Frank sitting and Cathy strolling
Near McLean's Town at the East End of Grand Bahama Island Remember the old Pennsylvania Dutch expression: "The hurrier I go, the behinder I get"? Well we're working on a corollary of that, something like: "The less we do, the less we do-dee-do-dee-do". Hmmmmm? That's catchy. Maybe there's a song in that. See what I mean...?
Since we've taken to indulging ourselves as dock-huggers at the Grand Bahamas Yacht Club, we have had more time to do what we do most willingly... hanging out in good company.
So we find ourselves relaxing as we had hoped to do, when we started the boat project years ago. There are no worries about dragging anchor or being mowed under by a mega-yacht although we do have our big red fender balls out to prevent being shoved up against the dock by wind and wakes. Ultimately, finding company can be as easy as handling incoming boats' lines, responding to folks who knock on your hull from their dinghy, scouting the canal for fellow cruisers, taking a bus to town or getting chatted up by the good folks who live or work here.
An unprecedented delight was the visit of 3 incredible fellows from Sweden. Here as 'refugees' from snow and academia, on
their quest to cross the Atlantic...and back... we enjoyed a mind-filling evening of conversation with Lars, Urban Planning, Frederick, Pol.Sci/Economics and Cap'n Tomas, Mechanical Engineering. If the world ahead is guided by such bright, caring minds, we will be in great shape. Today Lars emailed that they have made Bermuda, after some bad weather and are getting ready for the next leg to the Azores. Fair winds. Having friends waiting for you there will speed your course.
As you well know by now, two things we live for are potlucks and music parties, which are not so easily come by when you live by the wind, with no fixed address. But the magic combination of food, friends and instruments has clicked a few times here. A memorable night occurred, starting as a fish grill with Doug, Cindy and their guests from Ontario. It end well with folksongs on the foredeck, including a lovely accordian solo by Natalie. It was dark by the time musicians rolled out their instruments. Thanks to Linda C. for taking pictures to mark the occasion.
We were beyond thrilled to have a visit from a good friend Cathy who managed to join us in
Winner!
Cathy cashes out on the 3rd pull at the Lucayan Casino. our retreat from the chilly breath of the northland. Hopefully she had a rest from her final exam before plunging back into a heavy schedule. Having Cathy here was an opportunity to break out of our resort world and explore this complex island. Now that we know how to get around and orgainze, we will look forward to more vistors on our next trip.
We appreciate that in better economic times, luxury marinas would be a privilege beyond our budget. But the waves of recession in America have had a strong ripple effect on the North Bahamas. Dock space is readily available and fees have been pared down to where they might fit the cruising sailor's purse. We decided to give ourselves a 'holiday' from cruising.
Like 'walk-ins' at the hair-dresser, boaters who cruise and mostly anchor are called 'itinerants'. Well heeled marinas, which turn the most profit, are becoming the norm . As they seek the highest return, they prefer to provide privately owned condo slips, followed by annual and monthly contracts. Since there are fewer well-to-do yachters touring as fuel prices escalate, there are more opportunities for do-it-yourself cruisers to throw their lines around a fancy
Cheers to Linda at Taino Beach!
Dinghed out the inlet to Taino Beach and back in Bell Channel. bollard and rub elbows with the dwellers of protected estates. In the process, staff might keep their jobs and just maybe the atmosphere is sparked up a bit by our down-home presence.
The last few weeks have given us time to go to the beach, visit parks, travel through small towns and countryside, attend a benefit concert for young musicians, visit a casino, stroll through straw markets, meet tons of creative people and act a bit like tourists. All good.
Still having a land-based (aka land-lubber) mentality where there is at least the illusion of permanence, FRank and I often get empty dock syndrome. At any given time either we or some-one else is departing or arriving. We haven't mastered the knack of constantly 'letting go' as many folks have in occupagtions like the caring professions and the hospitality industry. Lately we've said 'catch-ya-later' to helpful dock-mates like Donnie, Marilyn and Chloe from Lunenburg, Ken from Michigan, Marco and Debra from Italy, Nadine and Louis from Quebec and others whose pictures wouldn't download here. When we cast off we will miss our conversations with Tomas, Aaron, Ronda, Livonia, Roddie and all the pleasant people who work here.
Perhaps we need another casual quip to ease us through the daily revolving door of relationships. From our recent foray into the high-tech world of sports fishing, we might flippantly call the process "Greet and release." Or we could take a blase senior moments approach with, "Easy come, easy go." Right now, our best ideas are "Blogs and kisses", followed by the song, "So long, it'll be nice to e-mail."!
On that note, thanks to the thoughtful folks back home who take time to write messages on this blog. In 2 years we have had @3500 blog views and 72 messages. Those messages, no matter what you say, are another kind of music.
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Mike Moore
non-member comment
Delightful
Your photos are outstanding and I would like to be out standing in them! We are wet and cool to cold. Been a poor April with water everywhere and farmers not able to get going. Arrived back from Windsor a few hours ago. My sister and I went to Duffy's for a fish and chips dinner last evening and drove on down past where your mother used to be. There are acres and acres of solar farms all around Amherstburg; also some windmills. we came back through LaSalle. Say high to 'Super Puppy' too. M&M