A Respite From The Wind

White Water Kayaking On Chautauua Lake

6:39

8:24

It's a lovely morning here on a placid lake, with clear skies, and full sun filling the living room.  What a difference from yesterday's heavy winds most of the day,  constant 20-30 mile an hour, with gusts up to 50 mph.  We lost our electricity mid-afternoon for a couple of hours and the lake looked like I could have surfed the waves.  Neither of us had seen it so wild, the waves so ferocious, even feathering from the wind. It's 8:30, Evie's still sleeping and I just returned from a walk down to Chestnut Hill where I left my kayaks yesterday afternoon.  I dragged them out through the sludge into the water, hooked the runaway kayak on a rope up to my kayak, and paddled home to our lakefront.  Fortunately, the wind was just starting to pick up a bit so it was easy going all the way home. It's 9:10, Evie's up and is wondering when I am going to go get my kayaks, not realizing that I had already gotten them.  

Towing On A Kayak Morning

Today, however, I could easily kayak but that's another story for later in the blog.  Friday, then, we woke up to a cloudy, windy morning with no hope of a paddle.  We were not sure what the day would bring other than hunkering down in our home and doing the usual.  Around 10:30, however, we drove off to Art Sample's nursery where we have bought many of our trees and bushes.  Evie has been looking for a bush or tree that will create a wall of green behind and between our pine trees.  After browsing with Art's daughter, we found something we liked, Junipers, not our favorite but they are perfect for the job.  So we drove home with five of them and I began digging some holes for them when we got home, fighting the wind.  We decided to finish the job after lunch and my nap so we went inside and I had the leftover spaghetti for lunch and napped on a bed with clean sheets and pillowcases, always delightful.  

We finished up the planting around 2:30, went inside to warm up and Evie noticed a kayak floating down the lake, obviously taken from someone's yard by the wind. Foolishly, I decided to go get it despite the 25 mile an hour winds and waves. Fortunately, I was able to corral it, hook a rope on it but when I tried to paddle back the waves were breaking over my kayak and the wind was so strong I could not paddle north back to our house.  I made it finally to shore next to Chestnut Hill, beached my kayaks and pulled them up the shore so the wind would not take them.  As I was doing this, two neighbors, worried about me, came down to help and one even drove me home.  I won't be doing that again.

Fighting The Wind And Waves To Shore

Around 4:00 we lost our power and got phone calls from neighbors wondering if we too had lost our power.  We tried to call our provider, First Energy, something you would think was simple but it wasn't.  We decided it made sense to go out to dinner, called around and found the Rod and Gun also had lost their power and had restaurants in Bemus Point.  Finally, we called the Swedish Club and they and power so around 5:30, we drove over there just as the power returned at our house.  

Willows At Viking Club

The Swedish Club was busy but not full, with tables safe distancing, everyone wearing masks when standing.  We found a table next to the bar, ordered our beers and Evie went to wait in line to order from the kitchen.  She then joined me and we waited for our number to be called and I went and picked up our fish fry, silverware, coleslaw and potatoes.  The fish fries hit the spot though not quite as good as the Rod and Gun, too greasy.  We left about 7:30, ended up talking for a good ten minutes with a couple that we had met once before, both having graduated from Miami University about the same time that I graduated from Ohio.  We the ended up talking with Jaret, who owns a hair salon in Lakewood, and his two friends, Troy and Lorelei, getting a selfie before we left for home.  It ended up being a fun night at the club.

Selfie Of Vaccinated Five

We got home and watched Jeopardy, with a contestant from our hometown of Euclid, Ohio,  She did not win, alas.  We then watched the final episode of Season One of Unforgotten and ended the night with Colbert and very berry pie with ice cream.  What a day of contrasts.