Waking Before The Sun Rise

5:45

9:14

Our House

It's 7:25 and I just returned from an hour paddle down to Wells Bay and back. I was up at 5:45, alas, and out on the quiet lake at 6:00. I managed to shoot a couple of ospreys and a heron. My neighbors, Jeff and Nancy, were up as well, getting ready to ski, something they do most mornings during the summer.

Kayak Morning

Sun Rising

Sandy Bottom

Great Blue

Same Guy

Osprey

Another Osprey

Same Guy

Looking Over His Shoulder

Wednesday was not an ideal day, although it started and ended well. I got in a good, long paddle, off to Tom's Point and back, and was home in time for coffee, breakfast, and writing the blog. By 9:30 I was on my way to Jamestown, to the dentist's office, for a teeth cleaning. It's not as bad as getting a filling or crown, but it's still not fun — they dig around my gums so my mouth is sore for much of the day. On my way home, I stopped at Jamestown's Tops grocery and picked up some pork chops, two packages for the price of one, a good deal.

I was home around noon and read until 1:00, when Evie made me a couple of toasted ham and cheese sandwiches, and I watched my series. By 1:30, I was upstairs trying to nap, but mostly reading my new novel, Whistler, by Ann Patchett. We had a lazy afternoon after that, reading, watching TV, or trying to nap. I wasn't thrilled about sitting around but couldn't come up with anything I wanted to do, so I read and dozed until 5:00, when I showered and got ready to go out to dinner.

We were meeting old buddies from Cleveland, guys I taught or played basketball with. We try to get together for dinner with our wives once a summer, and meet for breakfast once or twice a year in Erie. We usually meet at La Cucina della Nona, an Italian restaurant in Jamestown. John and Penny live in Concord, an eastern suburb of Cleveland, and Stan and Carol spend their winters in The Villages and their summers here in Chautauqua. Since we only get together once a year, we had a lot to catch up on. I ordered my usual, chicken parm, and Evie had broccoli pasta. The waiter was attentive and made it a pleasant experience. We ended up talking and staying later than usual, and didn't get home until 8:00.

We watched some of the news — what's going on in Iraq — Evie went to bed, and I watched my show before heading up to bed at 10:00 to read and sleep.

A Spectacular Morning Sunrise

6:04

8:04

Neighbors Out Early For Skiing

It's 8:16, overcast, and the lake is fairly quiet, with few boats out. I was up at 6:00, out on the lake at 6:30 for 80 minutes, paddling north this time to Whitney Bay and Snug Harbor, then back. It was basically a half-hour paddle to Snug Harbor, the same on the way back.

Kayak Morning

Kayaking To Snug Harbor

Bald Eagles

Mature Bald Eagle

Juvenile Bald Eagle

Great Blue Heron

Tuesday was a good day, although once again, I was up too early at 6:00. I had a good paddle, and it was nice to be able to relax, in no hurry to finish the blog before leaving for yoga at 9:10 — the virtue of getting up at 6:00. Yoga as usual was rigorous, but I was mostly able to keep up. I stopped for coffee and ended up talking with two friends, Bob and John, who were sitting on the front porch. Since it was 5% Tuesday, I spent a good 20 minutes shopping at a busy Wegmans. It's surprising how many people want to save 5% on groceries, or maybe it isn't.

I didn't get home until 12:30 and had an easy lunch, the leftover hamburger and potato salad. I watched some futbol, the first half of the Argentina/Egypt game, and Egypt was up 2-0, which would have been a monumental upset, but they lost 3-2 as Argentina scored three goals in the last 12 minutes. I was tired from getting up so early, so I took a nap, finished my book, and started the new Ann Patchett novel, Whistler.

Our Neighbors, Barb And Jim, With Ripley

Around 3:00, Evie was busy putting together an eggplant appetizer because we were going over to our neighbor's house at 5:30 for drinks and appetizers. Since I was off after my nap, I decided to shower, and it always picks me up. We left for Barb and Jim's at 5:30, and it was a lovely evening to sit out on their front porch, sipping wine and enjoying various appetizers. We hadn't talked with them in a while, so it was fun to catch up on their trip to Colorado. They're always fun to talk to since they're also from northern Ohio, and we have a lot in common. We stayed until 8:00, then walked home at dusk. Evie was ready to go up to bed, but I stayed up and watched the last 30 minutes of Argentina's victory over Egypt, then a couple of episodes of Lioness, which is getting too violent even for me. So I was happy to go up to bed and get back to my Ann Patchett novel.

Partly Cloud On A Seven Heron Morning

6:11

7:43

It's 8:00, and I have been out kayaking since 6:15 for an hour and a half, across the lake to Tom's Point and then home along the shoreline. It was a quiet morning on the lake, with only a couple of fishermen out. I spotted at least seven different great blue herons and one hawk or juvenile bald eagle — not sure which. It's 69º and should be a pleasant day.

Kayak Morning

Bridge From Tom's Point

Kayak Morning

Heron #1

Probably A Juvenile Bald Eagle

Heron #2

Heron # 3

Heron # 4

Heron # 6

Heron # 7

Yesterday was finally a rainy day. It started in the morning and seemed to turn on and off during the day until the late afternoon. Ultimately, we only received a little over half an inch, but the gardens loved it. I was able to get in a paddle before the rain, then wrote the blog and had coffee when Evie got up. I had some shopping to do because I needed some new clothes for our trip to Topsail Beach in late July. So I left around 10:30 and stopped for coffee at Ryders Cup and ran into one of my buddies, John, a former art teacher. We talked and got me caught up for 25 minutes before I drove off and did a quick run through Runnings, then Target, then Walmart, hoping to find some shorts and T-shirts with little success. I guess I will just have to wear what I always have worn, 20-year-old tees and bathing suits. It was raining on my drive home. Finally, the weatherman was accurate. 

I was hungry because I skipped breakfast, so Evie made me a couple of tuna and tomato sandwiches, and I was happy. I watched the rest of the England/Mexico futbol game, which England won 3-2. I then relaxed for a bit and read before going upstairs and briefly napping. It rained on and off the rest of the afternoon, so we hung out, either on the front porch or on the couch. Around 3:30, we changed the water filter in the hot room, and it really needed to be changed. I then watched a good part of the Spain/Portugal game while Evie had a Zoom call with her sisters.

Dinner was easy, frying a couple of burgers and enjoying baked beans and potato salad for the third night in a row. We started watching the Broadchurch series while eating, but heard a strange noise in the hot room and realized that the water filter we'd changed in the afternoon was leaking. We'd worried about this when we put in the new filter because the O-ring didn't seem to fit, probably because it was five years old. So we were without water unless we got a new O-ring, so I left for Home Depot at 7:15, bought the ring, was home by 7:50, and had the filter in by 8:00, just as the US World Cup game was starting. How's that for a quick fix? I watched the entire game until 10:15, and Evie hung in there till the second half.

The US soccer team started out like amateurs, going down 1-0 in the first ten minutes to Belgium and being outshot 6-0. The US fought back, however, and in the 30th minute tied the game 1-1 on a free kick. Unfortunately, a minute later, Belgium scored on a header and went ahead 2-1. Belgium looked like the better, more skilled team in the first half. In the second half, it looked more even as the US got more aggressive and put on the pressure, until the US goalie made a silly mistake, flubbing a kick and giving up an easy goal. And that's all she wrote. The US team just didn't seem to be the same as in their previous two games, and ended up giving up a fourth goal with two minutes to go. How sad... and thank Trump for giving Belgium extra incentive to play hard.

World Cup Sunday

7:34

8:37

Weed Cutter

In Our Front Yard

It just turned 9:00, and I was up at 7:00, then out for a 50-minute paddle on a practically empty lake. I just returned from the dock, where I directed the weed cutters as they attempted to clear our area of weeds.

Kayak Morning

Paddling Toward Long Point

Yesterday, Sunday, was a good day to relax after the Fourth of July festivities. I got in my usual paddle before 8:00 and returned to write the blog, finishing just as Evie got up. Rain was predicted but, as usual, it was a false alarm — just like this morning, when thunderstorms were predicted and never showed. So after breakfast and the blog, and because the temperature was in the high 60s, 

Webb's Trail

I decided to ride my bike. I drove down to Mayville Park, rode Webb's Trail back, then took the Mayville walk to Chautauqua Street and the Mayville Cemetery. I lingered around the various veteran sites — the oldest monument was built in 1890, marking veterans of both the War of 1812 and the Civil War. It always amazes me how many vets are buried in the cemeteries in this area. After paying my respects to those who died for the freedom and rights we enjoy, I rode back to my car and drove home.

1890 Memorial

Veteran Of War of 1812

.

Civil War Veteran

It was 12:30 when I got back, so I had lunch — the last of the sub from Wegmans — and started a new series on Paramount+ called Special Ops: Lioness, about a women's special ops group operating abroad. So far, I'm enjoying it. After lunch, I tried to nap but left my windows open, and it was too noisy next door to sleep. So I came downstairs and read until the Norway/Brazil match. It was the first time I watched an entire match, and Norway won by two goals, both from Erling Haaland, the blond giant who dominates the football world. It was an exciting game, and Norway deserved the win.

I forgot to mention one of the joys of watching football: what's come to be called flopping. A player gets bumped or bumped into and collapses in apparent agony, and you expect a stretcher any second. Then no foul is called, play continues, and miraculously the player who was moments from a hospital visit jumps up and rejoins the action. Flopping has been perfected over the years in football, but it hasn't become quite the staple in NBA basketball.

I read until 5:00, when Evie and I relaxed with a glass or two of wine. We realized that the bottle we'd opened and shared the day before was terrible, and yet Linda never said a word about it. We tossed it and wondered where we'd even gotten it. Dinner was great — leftovers from Linda and Ron: Lighthouse hot dogs, Linda's baked beans, and potato salad. Yum. We watched an hour of a great film, The Remains of the Day, starring Emma Thompson and Anthony Hopkins, based on the novel by Kazuo Ishiguro. Evie went to bed around 8:30, and I watched three-quarters of the World Cup game in Mexico between England and Mexico. England won 3-2, but I felt Mexico outplayed them and deserved the win. Still, it was another exciting match — England scored two goals in five minutes of the first half, and it looked like Mexico was doomed, but they answered quickly, to the crowd's roaring approval, and were right back in the game. I'll watch the last quarter today.

Overcast And 68º

7:16

8:42

It's 9:00, and I have just returned from a 70-minute paddle, along Woodlawn, across to Long Point, then back across the lake to the Power Boat Club, then home. At times, I felt like I was the only one out on the lake.

Kayak Morning

Great Blue Heron

Same Guy Or Gal

The Fourth was a quiet day for us, like most years here at the lake since all our families live so far away. So it was a typical Saturday for us. I was up early and out on the lake by 7:00, and I enjoyed a good paddle since the temperature was just shy of 70º. When I returned, Evie and I had our coffee and planned our day since we were having Ron and Linda over for dinner, our usual Fourth of July routine. I ended up driving to the Transfer Station, dropping off the trash, then on to Wegmans to pick up a few things we needed for the day. It was open until 2:00 and crowded with locals like me who forgot something for the Fourth's meals.

I knew we didn't want to worry about lunch, so I bought a sub from Wegmans and enjoyed it while watching the final episode of my series, The Agency. The ending was expected, with things left open for another season. Still, I really liked the series and would highly recommend it. I then got back to my book and briefly napped, then helped Evie with the kitchen, cleaned the porch, and got stuff organized for cooking out. Everything was prepped by Evie at 5:00, and I was showered by then so I could watch the World Cup match between France and Paraguay. France was a heavy favorite but didn't score until late in the second half to win 1-0.

Fourth Of July Burgers, Dogs, Baked Beans, and Potato Salad

Linda and Ron arrived at 6:30, and we quickly poured our wine and beers. It was cool enough to sit on the front porch and enjoy Evie's appetizer — baguettes toasted in butter and maple syrup, topped with brie, our new favorite appetizer. We sat on the porch until almost 8:00, when Ron and I grilled the burgers and hot dogs from the Lighthouse grocery. Dinner was great, as Linda brought her famous potato salad and baked beans to go along with the burgers and dogs. It was cool enough that we could eat outside in our yard for the first time this summer. For dessert, Evie had made a peach crisp, so we had that topped with vanilla ice cream. The fireworks and flares began around 9:45, and Ron and Linda soon left. I took photos of both the fireworks and flares, then came in and cleaned up the kitchen. We were both in bed by 10:30, after a typical, quiet Fourth of July.

Victoria Fireworks

Flares Surrounding the Lake

Woodlawn

South Along Victoria