Post Fourth Of July Haze

Boating On The Fourth Of July

6:21

It's 6:30 and I have been up for an hour.  The sun is high in the sky, its power modulated by a morning haze.  The skiers are out as are the fishing boats but just a few.  It's already 70º as I write this so it should be another warm day although not as hot as yesterday which had a high of 86º.  It's  just after 9:00 as the four of us are sitting on the porch and we finish the blog.  I was out for a good hour paddle and took a swim before anyone else woke up.

A Heron Morning

Mallard And Baby Ducks

The Morning After Fireworks

We had great weather for the fourth until 4:30 when Ron and Linda were supposed to arrive.  It poured for about 20 minutes, an inch of rain, ruining the possibility of sitting or eating in the yard.  The day, up till then was classic, sunny and warm, a blue lake, lots of people in yards enjoying Independence Day.  I began the day with a paddle along with many others as kayaks have become hip on the lake.  We had a leisurely morning with Ellen and Walt in no hurry to get moving.  Around 10:00, we decided to go for a cruise. By 11:00, we were boating beyond the bridge and back along the Bemus shoreline, on a delightful morning on the lake.  It was a good choice.

When we returned, Evie started to put together lunch and I drove to Hogan's to pick up some ice, getting one of the last bags.  Hogan's was a busy as I have ever seen it, with three cashiers and three lines of patrons.  We were able to eat lunch in the yard, under the shade of our maples.  Evie had made cauliflower soup earlier in the week and put together ham and cheese sandwiches and toasted them in the oven.  It was pleasant in the shade, with a nice breeze.  We then spent the rest of the afternoon either on the dock, under the umbrella or on the porch reading or napping.  The lake was busy as usual on the Fourth so we were happy to have gotten in our cruise in the morning.

Linda and Ron arrived around 5:30, after the storm bearing food, Linda's best potato salad and baked beans.  We sat out on the front porch drinking beer or wine and enjoying appetizers until 7:00 when I fired up the grill.  It was pleasant enough on the porch but we couldn't play any bean bag or bocce because of the wet yard.  Evie had made juicy lucys for dinner, burgers stuffed with American cheese.  I grilled them along with Sahlen dogs, with the help of Ron and Walt.

Dinner Inside, Alas

We ate in the dining room and everything was great, the burgers, dogs, potato salad and beans, a perfect Fourth of July meal.  We then were unable to resist temptation so we watched some of Trump's reading off the teleprompter to celebrate the Fourth, boring and out of character.  It wasn't the Trump Show. We quickly had enough and went out on the dock to watch the firework displays.  It was amazing how many areas had fireworks, not only the villages but individual homes.  They went on an on for at least 30 to 40 minutes.  At 10:00, I put out the flares along with most lakeside residents, a tradition to ring the lake with flares.

The night ended around 10:30 when Ron and Linda headed up and we cleaned up the ktichen before going to bed around 11:00, a good day despite the rain.