Thursday, Thursday

5:58

6:09

7:40

It's early 7:54 and I paddled for over an hour, my usual, to Bootey Bay and back. It's another fine morning on the lake, the sky partly cloudy. with a light southernly wind and a temperature of 60º. Unfortunately, it's warming up and will get into the low 80s late afternoon.

Kayak Morning

Into The Sun

Osprey, Ready To Roll

A Noble Raptor

Wednesday was a surprisingly fun day. I got in a good kayak and helped Evie some with a few things like cleaning out the freezer before driving off to Lakewood, parking my bike, and riding to Celeron and back, just about ten miles and it took me an hour, an easy ride. Fortunately, there's not much traffic on the road so I felt confident about it. I then stopped at Wegmans, where else, and picked up a few things that Evie needed and was home easily by noon. 

I had a couple of cheese sandwiches with jelly for lunch and watched my show before hitting the couch to read some and nap. Evie meanwhile cut the rest of the lawn, worked some in her garden, and finished up the baked shells, stuffed with spinach,ricotta and mozzarella, then freezing them for when our family arrives. 

Old Friends, New Friends

We were meeting buddies from my college, basketball, and early teaching days at the Rod and Gun so we were showered and ready to go by 6:00. There were eight of us because Stan brought along his two daughters who were fun to talk with. I am sure, however, they were bored as we talked about the good old days,  our coaching experiences, and the players we played against in college and during the summers. We try to get together at least two or three times a year and have met for breakfast in Erie as well. All seem to be well. Stan just returned from the Villages with Carol and John and his wife, Penny, live in a suburb east of Cleveland. The three of us coached and played basketball together back in the late sixties. It was a fun night. We were home by 8:15, in time to watch some shows. 

Still Cool And Lots Of Sunshine

8:36

Well, it's 6:45, and surprise, Evie's up as well, enjoying the early morning sun and coffee. She's just walked outside to look at her garden, always spectacular early.  High in the 70s again today, just the way we like it. I paddled for seventy minutes, and shot photos of an eagle and heron but am getting fed up with Amish pontoon boats moored in areas where I usually spot wildlife. 

Kayak Morning

Great Blue Heron Preening

Majestic Bald Eagle

Yesterday was also in the 70s with a light wind, a perfect day to be outside. I kayaked for an hour, then had breakfast, wrote the blog, and was off to yoga class by 9:00. The class was fine, lots of us again, and afterward, I stopped for a coffee and talked with another yoga friend, Paul, who just returned from sailing the Virgin Islands. I avoided shopping, returning home by 11:30. Evie was enjoying her garden and there is always something more to do. Lunch was a leftover sub sandwich and my show, Peaky Blinders.

The only change in our afternoon routine was a visit from a guy to check out our Bosch dishwasher which is not working properly.  He came around 2:30 just after my nap. After he left, Evie mowed half of the yard, then had enough and I washed the front windows but they still are streaky in this morning's light.

Long Point Trail

When Evie started her Zoom call with her sisters, I drove over to Bemus and rode my bike for an hour, along Lakeside Drive, through Long Point park, and back. It's my favorite ride because of the tree-lined paths and roads. When I returned, Evie was putting on the rice and I turned on the grill and in 15 minutes, we had delicious teriyaki pork chops along with salad and rice, our go-to meal in Hawai Nei where we were first introduced to teriyaki marinades in the late 1960s. We watched Colbert, then a couple of more episodes of Seaside Hotel.  I forgot to mention that we found one of the characters really annoying and were not looking forward to seeing him for eight seasons. Well, the writers must have felt the same way because they killed him off. We went to bed happy. 

Chillin On A 50º Morning

6:10

8:15

Monday Morning

It's 6:45 and I have been up since 6:10, enjoying the cool morning, wearing my fleece to stay cozy. It's a clear sky and sunny morning, the living room bright and cheery.  It's 8:50 as we finish the blog. I had a great hour-long paddle although returning home was difficult because of the wind and waves. While I was kayaking,  Evie's been out in her garden, watering before it gets warm. 

Kayak Morning

Bald Eagle

Great Blue Heron

Yesterday was another fine day, cool and windy, but just the way we like it, without humidity and high temperatures.  I paddled for forty-five minutes, wrote the blog and we were off to Jamestown for Evie's doctor's appointment at 10:15. It was short and sweet and we were off shopping at Walmart for some reason, joining the hordes I guess, in an always busy store. We managed to spend over a hundred bucks somehow but who is complaining because I just ordered a new Apple watch since my old one's battery is dying. It would be hard for me to get by without my Apple watch which my son Tom gave me three or four years ago, 

We were home by noon and I had gotten an Italian sub at Briggioti's, a local, small grocery store that has great produce as well as flowers. Evie picked up a gorgeous hanging basket for our yard as well. I watched my show, enjoying my sub, and then finished my Dismas Hardy novel and started a new one, highly recommended called Vladimir, set in a small, northeastern college. Of course, I napped some while Evie was busy in the kitchen, making our dinner and a recipe of stuffed shells to freeze when our family arrives in less than two weeks. I helped as usual by cleaning up the kitchen. It was too windy and cool to sit on the dock so we tried the side yard before moving to the porch. Evie soon got bored so we set up our watering system, bringing lake water to Evie's garden via a couple of hoses and a sump pump. 

Monday Afternoon Sky

Amazing Clouds

Evie heated up the eggplant and pasta dish she made earlier in the afternoon, made a salad, and we had a delicious dinner.  Ever since we lived in Turkey, home of countless eggplant recipes, we have enjoyed it in many ways. We then settled down in our TV room and watched four episodes of Seaside Hotel a Danish series on PBS. We ended the night with Jeopardy and Everybody Loves Raymond for a laugh. 

Bright Sunny Day

6:28

7:11

8:11

It's 6:50, sunny with blue skies and a practically empty lake, quite a contrast to Saturday morning, It's  62º and we should have a pleasant day, not too hot, with a high of about 70º. It's 8:15 and I just returned from a choppy forty-five-minute paddle, with no birds observed, fortunately, because it would have been too wavy to take a photograph.

Kayak Morninng Along Bemus Bay

Western Sky

Sunday we decided to forego a walk. After my morning paddle and blog, Evie sent me off to Wegman's to do some shopping because she wanted to make dinner for our neighbors who were arriving Sunday afternoon. Both are in their 90s and it has been a tradition to make them dinner. I am always shocked at how crowded Wegman's is on Sunday mornings and yesterday was no exception, with long check-out lines and a packed parking lot.  I was home by 10:30 in time for Evie to start frying up the eggplant for an eggplant and spaghetti casserole. While she worked, I decided to get into the lake and start cutting weeds in our swimming area, getting it ready for our family in less than two weeks. I cut for a half-hour, gathering lots of moss as well as weeds. I left them on the dock to dry then went for a swim. 

Evie took time out from making the eggplant dish and fried me up a couple of eggs for lunch and I enjoyed another episode of Peaky Blinders. Once Evie was finished, we went over the final copy of last summer's Shutterfly book so Evie could send it off to Shutterfly. We relaxed until 3:00 when our neighbors, Joyce and Bill arrived for their 48th summer. We sat in their front yard for an hour, catching up on their lives in an independent living apartment near their daughter in Pittsburgh. They are more than happy to be back at the lake along with their daughter, Kathy, and her husband, Medio. 

Better Together

We left for Linda and Ron's and arrived at 6:00.  It had just rained and despite the heat and humidity, we sat out on their porch and enjoyed some appetizers and wine or beer. Around 7:00, Ron realized his grill was not working so Linda grilled the steaks in a couple of cast iron pans on her stove. I have to admit they with some of the best steaks I have eaten in quite a while.  Along with a salad and twice-baked potatoes, we had a delicious and delightful evening, ending with a lemon pot dessert with raspberries. We did not get home until 10:00, skipped the TV, and went to bed. 

Good Morning, Chautauqua Lake

5:56

6:00

8:29

It's 8:30, a bright, sunny morning, a light breeze cooling as I kayaked for almost an hour and a half, to Long Point, Tom's Point, Lakeside Drive, Sandy Bottom, and home.  And I saw nary a bird so there are no interesting photos this morning. 

Kayak Morning

Tom's Point

Saturday was one of the busiest days on the lake so far, as it was packed with bass boats, jet skis, pontoon boats, and speed boats. If they weren't cruising, they were anchored off the shoreline, swimming, playing their music, playing frisbee, or just sunbathing. I had a busy morning. After a good paddle, breakfast, and the blog, I was off to Mayville for a bike ride before it got too hot. I was out for forty-five minutes, a good ride, not too hot because most of it was on trails with shade. After my ride, I did a quick shopping at Tops and talked with a good friend who just returned from a great trip to Yellowstone, leaving just as the floods arrived. They ended up traveling close to 6000 miles, out and back. 

North End Of Lake

Mayville Bike/Hiking Path

I was home by 12:30 and Evie was finishing up cutting our neighbor's yard. Lunch was the last of the Peruvian chicken and rice and another episode of Peaky Blinders. For the rest of the afternoon, we relaxed Evie on the dock enjoying the sun, me napping and reading. At 5:30, we walked to the Woodlawn right away for a neighborhood gathering and meeting. It's always nice to see everyone, especially those who don't live here full time.  

Everyone brings appetizers and we stand around enjoying the food, a libation, catching up on news from the past winter.  And we have a brief meeting, usually to remind people to pay their dues. We left around 7:00 and had planned to go out for dinner but neither of us felt like it so we ended up on the front porch, working through the new Shutterfly book. Around 7:00, we had egg salad sandwiches for dinner, my request, and watched the first two episodes of a Danish Series on PBS called Sunset Hotel, set in 1928. So far we like it enough to continue watching. We ended the night with another Real Time With Bill Maher.

Evie's Garden This Morning

Sun's Up At 6:00

6:00

8:06

Early Morning Skiing

I have been up since 5:15, waiting for the sun to rise and now, at 6:00, it has filled our home with sunlight on a 52º morning. It's 8;15 and we are both up, enjoying a pristine morning, a light breeze, blue lake, and sky. I paddled for over an hour and didn't want to come in it was so pleasant. Lots of guys out trolling for walleyes. 

Kayak Morning

Neighbors, Tina And Jim

Great Blue Heron

Yesterday was a day of relaxing, enjoying what seemed like a Saturday but was really Friday. After a quick kayak, I drove to Loomis Creek where the Chautauqua Conservancy was having a gathering to discuss ospreys, as well as take a nature walk, looking for birds. I did learn quite a bit about ospreys, that they are monogamous, winter in the Amazon, have four toes, and are double-jointed so they can dive feet first for fish, which is basically their diet. Their young take six to eight weeks to fledge and while the male hunts for food, the female stays at the nest and feeds the chicks. Once they are ready to fledge the female leaves both the male and fledglings behind. The males and fledglings may stay until October before heading south. We also went for a walk where a horticulturist pointed out various grasses and bushes. I had enough after an hour and a half and headed home. 

Listening To A Talk On Ospreys

Once I was home, I was ready to relax, fixed my lunch by warming up the last of the chicken, mashed potatoes, and gravy, and watched my show. Evie spent a good part of the morning and afternoon just having fun in her garden. It was a lovely and cool day, perfect for garden work. I napped of course and helped some outside by turning the compost and fixing the wheelbarrow. By 4:00, Evie had enough and came in and started working on a new Shutterfly book. They are allowing her a free 'do over' (what a pleasant surprise) because she did not like some of the colors and forgot a number of photos. So she is redoing the book and should have it finished by this afternoon and on its way to Shutterfly.

Buddha Among The Astilbe

We decided to enjoy a drink on the porch with cheese and crackers and spicy cashews. Once again, it was a beautiful late afternoon to sit on the porch as the lake quieted down, the boats headed home. We had the leftover Peruvian chicken and rice for dinner and enjoyed the usual lineup of TV shows.

Crisp Morning Air

5:59

7:53

It felt good to feel the chill of a 55º morning, our windows open. It's sunny, with blue skies, hardly a breath of wind, perfect for kayaking. It was a good morning for kayaking, calm lake, few boats, and herons and osprey.

Kayak Morning

North

Osprey Breakfasting

Time Out From Breakfast

Yesterday was a busy but fun day, starting with a long paddle, then breakfast in Bemus and a very crowded Yin Yoga class. After class, I drove to the bike shop, picked up my bike, and was home just in time for lunch, the leftover chicken, mashed potatoes, and gravy. While I was gone, Evie had prepped our dinner because we were having friends from the CI over. 

After my nap, I helped Evie clean both porches, then we both mowed the lawn, Evie the first half, me the second. For the rest of the afternoon, we relaxed if you can call listening to the hearings on the radio relaxing. And the news that the Supreme Court made it legal for anyone to carry a gun without a permit is absolute madness. They forbid abortions but allow anyone to carry a gun, What kind of world are we living in? 

Dinner With Judy And Fred

Fred and Judy arrived at 6:00 and it was good to see them since the last time we got together was probably a year ago August. We settled on the porch with Manhattan's, shrimp cocktails, and spicy cashews and caught up on our health, families, and politics. It was a beautiful night on the lake and we were able to eat outside. Evie had made Peruvian chicken, with an amazing cilantro sauce, and cauliflower rice for a side. We enjoyed our dessert, raspberry and blueberry parfaits on the porch and talked until 10:00 when they headed home and we finished cleaning up the kitchen. It was a fun night.