I walked over 16,000 steps around the island, including one jaunt I thought would take me to a nice lookout point. Turns out that lookout point was a lot farther away than I estimated and between Christina’s shoes being completely inappropriate for walking and the fact that I had to be back for dinner, we never made it. But we did find a little private beach at the end of a dirt road and a very well-hidden trail. Christina was tickled.
Category: 2023 Highlights
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June 28
Lots of rain this morning, and then fog, and then a moment of sun, and then more fog, but we managed a family bike ride around the island and I got a short walk in afterwards. There are thousands of pictures I still need to take! We enjoyed a Lions Club dinner courtesy of Uncle Bob.
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June 27
We had a great day exploring the area. At one point I suggested a walk around the island. We got as far as around the corner, but I loved watching the girls explore the rocky beach, which they have never experienced. We were there for well over an hour. They discovered quartz, sea glass, snails, and even a crab.
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June 26
Made it at last to Maine. Today’s drive was much easier than yesterday’s. The weather leaves a little to be desired; cold and foggy. We had a nice lunch overlooking the water before getting on the ferry. The kids enjoyed biking, although Robin is not used to hills or requiring use of bike brakes and she rode directly into a bush and halfway into the ocean. Now she doesn’t want to bike ride anymore. We’ll break her in. It’s been great spending time with Aunt Cathrine and Uncle Bob. Looking forward to a quiet week ahead.
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June 25
I forgot NYC traffic. I think I got one or two new gray hairs today. The traffic itself doesn’t bother me, but the cutting in and out drives me crazy. People are so disrespectful on the roads, it is unbelievable. And completely draining to deal with. A 7-hour drive took 9+ to complete because of traffic, and we didn’t even go over the George Washington Bridge or through the Bronx as the Yankees game was ending. But here we are, and I had awesome ribs and mashed potatoes and beer for dinner and now the kids are at the pool and honestly, it’s good. A few more little old hours and we’ll be on the beach. Cannot wait!
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June 24
The trip is underway. We were delayed a few hours because our a/c stopped working last night. The technician came by this morning and luckily it was a quick, easy fix. And then on the road! We couldn’t agree on where to go for dinner once we arrived in Virginia, and Robin and Christina weren’t thrilled about where we ended up, but turns out the food was great and they had something for everyone. I even got a BLT, which I had been craving in the car but never thought in a million years I’d find on any menu anywhere on our way. We hit traffic as we crossed into South Carolina for about 50 miles, but otherwise was smooth sailing. Tomorrow we head through Washington, DC, Baltimore, and NYC… headed through the Bronx at the end of a Yankees game… so I am not expecting great things, traffic-wise. I made a great 60’s playlist (I mean, truly great), and it is 19 hours of music, so it should get us to New Haven, no problem. I sang almost the whole way today. I’m sure I drove Billy crazy, but OH FUCKING WELL.
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June 16
It was a hectic day. We spent time at a memorial service with Billy’s friend, Huie, whose father recently passed away. It was a lot of driving and I let myself be pulled in too many directions, but it was good to see old friends that we just don’t see very often. Next time it will be under better circumstances.
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June 2
We are more than four and a half hours into Christina’s dance recital dress rehearsal. I made the mistake of skipping lunch (and breakfast), so it has been approximately 26 hours since I last ate. I brought a book, but the house lights are down and I can’t see. I am bored and hungry and grouchy and I just want to go home. This is one of those things they don’t tell you about when you say you want kids.
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May 29
It was a busy day of deep cleaning, clothes shopping for Christina, since she had grown out of nearly everything she owned, going to see the new Guardians of the Galaxy movie, and dinner out at Al’s Pizza. Nice way to wrap up a long weekend.
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May 24
I apprenticed a NAMI family support group tonight, preparing for facilitating at some point. After like 15 hours of training, I learned tonight that the group is not run anywhere near the way I was trained to do it. I brought all the scripts with me and we never even came close to anything even resembling them. It wasn’t ineffective, just nothing like what I expected. I took the long way home and detoured to my favorite park to watch the sunset. I only spent 15 minutes there – couldn’t spare any more than that – but it was 15 minutes of beauty.
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May 11
At dinner tonight, Billy asked Robin to name the main types of rocks and she listed off: igneous, sediment, and Dwayne Johnson.
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May 7
It turned out to be a good trip. I made a kick-ass fire and sat watching it until almost midnight. And then we did some hiking along the river. We saw a couple of bunnies on the trail, too. The weather was perfect, no bugs. I’m glad we did it.
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May 6
I got a call on Friday night while we were sitting at dinner saying that we hadn’t shown up for our camping reservation, so here’s the gate code so you can get in after hours. I thought I had cancelled that reservation months ago. My first inclination was to go ahead and cancel the second night. We hadn’t planned on it, Billy had to work… But then I thought, why not? So we did.
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April 18
This is not the photo I wanted to take, but it’s the photo I got, not unlike the 15 years of marriage we celebrated tonight. I don’t mean that to sound like a bad thing. Life rarely turns out the way we hope or expect. Part of living it means we roll with the punches and see what comes next. Tonight we got pork chops and mussels and bourbon and Sambuca. Tomorrow… hot dogs. Tonight I enjoyed a little bit of perfection with just the right amount of imperfection to make it worthwhile. You get what you get… and maybe that’s pretty good, after all.
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April 14
Christina’s on fire tonight. We went out to eat and she didn’t stop talking for two straight hours. Tonight’s Christina-ism: “I’m a tailgater because I have a tail and I’m a gator.” Comes close to a couple weeks ago when she started choking and stopped to catch her breath with her hands up just to say, “My mind is full of knowledge.” This child is destined for greatness if her public speaking skills continue at this level.
Year in Photos 