Learning to Tow a Skier

Fran Skiing the River
North Fork Saint Lucie River, FL
August 2, 2023

 Our Wednesday boating day turned into a fun day of exploration and learning how to tow a waterskier. 

We headed off to the marina fairly early and were in our boat headed off to the North Fork of the Saint Lucie River about 9:30 AM. The day was beautiful. A bit hot, but mostly blue skies and white puffy clouds. The river was almost flat and our boat, Sea Bean, was purring along smoothly. 

I was very trepidatious about pulling a waterskier. Having never done it before and knowing how easily fun can turn to tragedy, I really wanted to understand what was expected of me and the boat before letting him jump off into the murky river and try to stand up behind my speeding craft. We went over the signs and after a couple miscues on the start, he successfully rose up on plane and skied! It was fun watching him, but I mostly kept my eyes forward. Fortunately, the area of the river recommended to us by the marina staff is not heavily traveled and we did not encounter any other watercraft during the time he was skiing. 

Chris served as the spotter and also took some images and a quick video.

The video is a bit choppy, but it was taken from a moving boat at about 22 mph. 

We also spent time exploring the North Fork of the river and then checked out a new sandbar, where we saw huge jellyfish. They were all around and were easy to avoid--but we had to remain vigilant. 

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Look--in the Surf!

Flat Atlantic
Jupiter Island, FL
August 1, 2023

 Chris and I managed a morning beach walk yesterday. I write managed because we actually got around and gathered Finnegan to hit the beach and enjoy the morning. 

The Atlantic was flat. I was surprised  to see how flat the ocean was, but I enjoyed looking at it and even getting into the water for an enjoyable couple of minutes. I love the ocean when it is flat. 

Nurse Shark Along the Beach
Jupiter Island, FL
August 1, 2023

I walked the beach mostly with my feet well into the water. The occasional wave would hit well above my knees. So I was actually walking in the water.

As I was looking into the surf, I noticed a small shark swimming along with me, just in where the water begins to get deep. The shark was hunting, but also pacing me as I walked along the beach. I called Chris over and she also saw the shark.

I did manage to get an image of it. I had another one, but the light was such that you really cannot see the shark in the water without actually knowing that it is there. 

This is the second time that I have seen a nurse shark right along the beach in the past month. I need to keep a wary eye on the surf. 

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Getting a Trim

 

Trimmed Palm
Tequesta, FL
July 25, 2023

As I have written before, one of the things that I have learned from living in South Florida for the past year is that palm trees require a lot of maintenance. Much more maintenance than I had previously understood. Falling fronds and coconuts are a hazard to people and property.

Untrimmed Palm
Tequesta, FL
July 25 ,2023

In an effort to reduce the palm debris which occurs during wind storms, the palms must be trimmed regularly. 

The palms look scalped after they are trimmed, but they return to fullness within a year when they must be trimmed again. Hardwood trees generally do not require the same year-after-year care and only require trimming when their slower growing branches begin to interfere with power lines or sidewalks. 

My community had the palms trimmed last week and after the thunderstorms of the past few days, it was clearly obvious that there is far less debris on the ground. That is a good thing because palm fronds are not small and can do damage to cars and property when they fall. Palm trimming is an annual event here and I see the palms being trimmed all around the community generating a large amount of debris. But, at least the debris is being collected for recycling and not dealing during windstorms ad causing damage. 

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Monday Musings - July 31, 2023

 

1. The last day of the hottest month in the history of the planet has arrived. It is the 5th Monday of July. There are just 21 Mondays left to enjoy 2023!

Atlantic Ocean Evening
Jupiter Island, FL
July 25, 2023

2. Image of the Week. The Atlantic was calm and inviting one evening last week as Chris and I went for a walk. The long shadows of the sun are already covering most of the beach all the way to water's edge. The day had been unbearably hot, but the evening on the ocean's shore was enjoyable and almost refreshing even with the thermometer reading more than 90 degrees.  The only problem was Finnegan. He was not excited about walking the beach and that meant we were only able to enjoy the beauty of the evening for a short time. 

Cranes
Jupiter, FL
July 26, 2023

3. There was a funny reference made to the construction occurring tin South Florida on a local station the other morning. They were showing the outdoors conditions on a live weather camera and made reference to the Florida State Bird: the crane! They showed an image of the cranes deployed around the US-1 bridge construction in Jupiter. Very similar to the one Chris took from the deck of our boat last week.

4. Don't forget to sing a fond goodbye to July this afternoon at Happy Hour. 

5. Today in History. On the morning of July 31, 1975, James Riddle Hoffa, one of the most influential American labor leaders of the 20th century, is officially reported missing after he failed to return home the previous night. Though he is popularly believed to have been the victim of a Mafia hit, conclusive evidence was never found and Hoffa’s fate remains a mystery.

Born in 1913 to a poor coal miner in Brazil, Indiana, Jimmy Hoffa proved a natural leader in his youth. At the age of 20, he helped organize a labor strike in Detroit, and remained an advocate for downtrodden workers for the rest of his life. Hoffa’s charisma and talents as a local organizer quickly got him noticed by the Teamsters and carried him upward through its ranks. Then a small but rapidly growing union, the Teamsters organized truckers across the country, and through the use of strikes, boycotts and some more powerful though less legal methods of protest, won contract demands on behalf of workers.

Russian missiles hit central Ukrainian city, Kyiv says - CNN

A massive $1.05 billion Mega Millions jackpot is up for grabs - CNN

Clock on the Fed's 'soft landing' may already be ticking - Reuters

July set to be world's hottest month on record - Reuters

Morning Bid: Wall St shines, China misses again - Reuters

While Everyone Else Fights Inflation, China's Deflation Fears Deepen - The Wall Street Journal

Local Malls, Stuck in ‘Death Spiral,’ Plunge in Value - The Wall Street Journal

DeSantis’s campaign faces troubling signs in his home state as Trump dominates - The Washington Post

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Back on the Streets

 After a couple days of false starts, Chris and I managed a 15.5 mile ride yesterday. We had headed out on our bikes on both Thursday and Friday only to have our rides shortened by passing rainstorms--on both days! It actually rained on us yesterday as well, but we pressed on sensing that it was only a light passing shower. That the road did not get wet, with the raindrops evaporating almost as soon as they landed, helped us to make the decision to press ahead. 

It was a good ride. We noticed that, in places, the rain had fallen rather hard with the road being wet. We took a comfortable pace and enjoying the ride and finally getting back out onto the streets. 

It is hard to ride when the heat stress index is touching on 100 degrees, which it has been doing by about 10 AM most days. Fortunately the winds changed from the West to the East and we are having more normal Florida summertime weather. That written, it also appears that there may be a potential hurricane lurking out. in the Atlantic--it may form in the next 7 or so days. Time will tell. 

I really don't need a hurricane.

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Torture Chamber Arrived

Oxygen/Atomization Enclosure

 OK, so it really isn't a torture chamber, it is an oxygen/atomization enclosure. It is supposed to allow me to deliver asthma medicine to Riordin.

He thinks it is a torture chamber.

The problem is that it arrived without instructions. After a lot of trial and error and with the help of an image that Chris found on-line, I was able to get everything functioning and Riordin received his first treatment. I'm not sure it did anything other that antagonize him. Being in the box for 20 minutes was a bit more than he could tolerate.

I will give him a second albuterol treatment today and I hope it will go a bit better. The enclosure is large enough for him to be comfortable and move around. 

Cat asthma is tough. 

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Tab A into Slot B

Looking from Dining Room to Patio
Tequesta, FL
July 28, 2023

 Assembly projects. 

They can be daunting. Some companies are masters of selling items with "some assembly required," like Ikea and Wayfair. 

Yesterday Chris and I assembled the patio furniture that we ordered from Wayfair. 

Riordin on the Sofa
Tequesta, FL
July 27, 2023

Yes, we finally decided to upgrade the patio and make it into that outdoor living space that we have been missing since we left Maryland. We did not bring our outdoor furniture with us because it was too large for the tiny patio that we have now. And so, we have been waiting to find a properly scaled set to help us enjoy our screened paradise.

Riordin quickly decided that he liked the sofa. He napped on it for most of the afternoon. His asthma seemed better in the warm, humid afternoon atmosphere.

Assembly projects remind me that I still need to be able to use skills I learned in kindergarten: Insert Tab A into Slot B! The assembly project went well, except for the obligatory problem. Every assembly project has at least one problem and this one was an improperly drilled screw hole. I was able to overcome the problem by finding a larger bolt. There is always something, but I have to admit, the instructions were generally good, if not humorous in the way they were written. The translation from the original language into English left something to be desired. I don't understand why companies can take a moment to hire native language speakers to ensure that the written language can be comprehended. For instance:

"Locate each Left arm (A) and Right arm (B) to the Chair backrest (C) by the pre-drilled threads."

Huh? Seriously, and I retained the original capitalization of the instruction. 

Ah, the joys of assembly projects.

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Day on the Water

 

US-1 Bridge Construction
Jupiter, FL
July 26, 2023

It was Wednesday and that meant it was our boating day aboard our trusty boat, Sea Bean. Sea Bean is a dual console 2023 Cobia 220 with a single 200 hp Yamaha outboard and electronic throttle. Sea Bean is not mine actually, but is my favorite boat to reserve from the club in which I am a member.

Yesterday was a day Chris and I decided to sojourn down to Jupiter, which is close to where we live. Even though I am newly authorized to head out into the wild Atlantic, the ocean seemed a bit rough when I was checking the weather. We decided we wanted to enjoy the ride to Jupiter and to see, from the water, the US-1 bridge construction. The bridge and roadway are gone and we are having to detour when driving around the area. The view from the water is impressive. The area looks like a crane convention. We counted 7 cranes, I don't think we could get them all in the picture. But we motored right through the middle of the construction. The smell of fresh concrete was strong.

Alternate A1A Bridge and Railroad Drawbridge
Jupiter, FL
July 26, 2023

Another goal for the day was to motor under the Alternate A1A bridge and adjacent railroad drawbridge into the Loxahatchee.

Chris and I successfully navigated the bridges and started up the Loxahatchee, but we became a bit concerned about the dark clouds forming over the ocean and decided to begin the hour-and-a-half journey back to the marina which is in Port Salerno. 

I forgot to mention, we enjoyed lunch on the Intracoastal Waterway anchored to a sandbar near Tequesta. We see boats anchored at the sandbar at low tide and we wanted to check out the sandbar for ourselves. It was a much needed stop along the way and out trusty boat has two anchors which allowed it to be secured so it would not drift onto the sandbar. 

The trip back to the marina was uneventful, but enjoyable. Along the way, during the day, we spied a green turtle and a few dolphins along with a multitude of pelicans and ospreys. 

It was our longest outing since becoming "boat" people and by taking up most of the day, we were provided with a necessary diversion from the stuff with which we have been dealing.

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Advanced Boating

Green Turtle in the Ocean
Off St Lucie Inlet, FL
July 25, 2023

 I completed my off-shore boating certification yesterday and am officially dangerous!

I am certified to take a small boat out into the mighty Atlantic Ocean. The club that I am in limits me to no further than 10 miles offshore, but considering at 10 miles land is mostly out of sight, except for tall buildings, and the water may be over 1000 feet deep, I'm not sure why I would be out quite that far anyway. 

It was a short, but fun day on the ocean learning what I needed to get certified. 

Atlantic Ocean from Jupiter Island Beach
Jupiter Island, FL
July 25, 2023

I also had fun watching dolphins and one green turtle that actually swam around the boat twice while we were at idle working through our man overboard procedures and covering some radio call situations.

After I piloted the boat back into the marina, we finished the paperwork and I was certified. 

But, that was not the end of my day on and in the ocean. Chris and I headed out to the beach after the heat of the day passed. The ocean was nearly flat as sunset was preparing to occur. The breeze off the water seemed cool, yet the temperature was still in the upper 80s. 

It was our first evening beach walk in quite a while. Finnegan tagged along, but was not as excited about walking the beach as either Chris or I.

Maybe the oppressive heat is beginning to dissipate. I can only hope.

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Saga of the Cat

Riordin on the Laptop
Elkridge, MD
January 5, 2012

 Yesterday wound-up being devoted to our recently diagnosed asthmatic cat, Riordin. 

Riordin had a scheduled appointment with the vet. We made it to the appointment without incident and by indecent I mean that Riordin did not puke. We are now at exactly 50 percent, 2 of 4, for trips to the vet with puke. And the appointment went well. He received another steroid and B12 shot for his asthma and we discussed nebulizer treatments. 

We were finished with the appointment and after leaving less than $200 with the vet, we headed home with Riordin looking good and seemingly feeling good.

Not so fast!

About halfway home, Riordin began panting and breathing rapidly. He was in respiratory distress. My initial thought was let's get him home and quiet and do a breathing treatment. As we grew closer to Tequesta, the vet is a 35 minute ride away, Riordin's distress became more severe. Chris called the vet and instructed us to return, which we did. Unfortunately it took almost 20 minutes to get back. 

When we made it back to the vet, they put him immediately into an oxygen tent and told us to come back in 2-2.5 hours. So, Chris and I headed off to lunch, got some gas at Costco, and did some shopping at Home Depot instead of driving all the way back to Tequesta only to turn around and drone back to the Vets office in West Palm Beach.

Evening Thunderstorm in Tequesta
July 24, 2023

I asked the vet about the incident and he told me that asthmatic cats have breathing episodes. The only thing to do is take them to a vet for oxygen treatments. We are going to be providing regular breathing treatments and have purchased a small enclosure designed for oxygen and breathing treatments. It is amazing what can be found on Amazon!

We did make it successfully home after the second vet visit of the day. We were concerned that Riordin was in the beginning stages of another incident, but he made it home and is doing fine. He is eating and drinking and being his old general nuisance--which is why I love him.

By the time we were settled at home it was Happy Hour and time for the evening thunderstorms.

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL