Indian Summer, Again

6:57

6:58

Yep, it's 8:30, sun shining on the lake, 47º and I just returned from 55-minute kayaking, down to Bootey Bay and home, running into our neighbors, Tina and Jim, on their the last paddle of the year as they are closing up their house for winter,  Around 7:30, I was surprised by all the bass boats roaring around Tom's Point, heading north.  There must have been 15 or 20 of them, part of a tournament. 

Kayak Morning

Happy Heron

Downward Heron

Yesterday was a surprisingly warm day, temperatures in the 70's, warm enough for me to work up a sweat while working outside.  It was another busy day in the kitchen because we were having our neighbors, Joyce and Bill and their daughter Kathy, and fiancee, Medio over for dinner.  It's their last night on the lake and they will be heading home to Valley Forge, PA, after closing up the house, a sad day for all of us.  Evie started cooking early which meant I was doing the clean up early as well.  

A Good Mess

She started with an apple pie from scratch, with three recipes, the crust from Nora Ephron, the filling from the New York Times, the topping from Mc Call's cookbook.  It was worth it because it was the best apple pie I have ever had.  Once that was baking, we cleaned out the fridge, did up the dishes, and I drove off to the Transfer Station to get rid of our trash. 

When I returned home, I spent a good hour scrubbing the algae off the buoys, getting them ready for next year.  It's a pain but they look much better if they are white.  Once done, I let them dry, put them in a trash bag and stored them in the garage attic.  While I was doing this, our tree guy stopped over and ground up the stump for our Limber pine.  It took about 15 minutes and they were on there way.  By the time I was done outside, the dishes needed washing and drying from Evie's next step.  Once that was done, I had my lunch, the leftover chili, and spaghetti, and watched my show.  Evie was mostly done in the kitchen so she went out to enjoy another afternoon in the sun on our dock.  I tried to nap, ended up reading then joined Evie.  It was so pleasant that we decided to take a boat ride.  It was nice and calm so I took off the cover and we cruised over to Bemus, a mistake as the wind picked up and we struggled to get back, getting soaked a couple of times in the process.  Once we got back to Long Point and headed north, the lake was better so we cruised down to Magnolia and back before docking.  

Afternoon Sky

By 4:30, Evie was back in the kitchen, making coleslaw and wraps for appetizers.  I showered then went out and barbecued chicken thighs which Evie had parboiled, leaving the broth for noodles.  Our neighbors came over at 6:00 and it was warm enough to sit on the front porch. Bill and Joyce are 90 and 89 respectively, both spry, walking every day to keep healthy, an example for all of us.  They have been our neighbors for 39 years.  

Kathy And Her Dad And Mom,  The Old Smoothies

Better Together

Everyone loved Evie's wraps and once it got dark, we adjourned to the dining room for dinner, barbecued chicken, noodles, coleslaw, biscuits, and portabello mushrooms stuffed with goodies. We reminisced about the old days on the lake when our kids were young and enjoyed our apple pie in the living room.  They went home around 8:45 and we quickly did up most of the dishes so we could watch one more episode of Borgen before going up to bed.