A Wall Of Gray

6:53

8:46

All is gray at the moment although a half hour ago, the sun burst above the gray wall. It should be a decent day, with highs in 80s and lots of sun. It's 9:15 and I was out for 35 minutes on a mostly cloudy morning on the lake.

6:53

Bald Eagle In Victoria Tree

 Victoria Osprey 

Yesterday was a busy day for me and started with a quick paddle and a shot of a heron, the same one I see every morning I believe. After the blog and breakfast, I drove to yoga class with Julie at 9:30, always a good class. I did not linger after class but came straight home. Evie was still around but getting ready to go shopping for the week on 5% Tuesday at Wegmans. I had lunch, another half of a hoagie from Walmart and watched some of the Olympics. By 12:20, I was on my way to Erie for an appointment with my cardiologist at UPMC Hamot, about a forty-five minute drive. It was my six-month check up so it went quickly, just an EKG and talk. 

Afterward, I stopped at a Turkish coffee shop called Bakery On 5th Street. I ordered a coffee and two pieces of baklava and it was thirteen bucks. Wow. I left with a Napoleon for Evie, and was home by 3:15. I was tired from my busy day so I took a good nap and must have needed it.

Afternoon Rainbow

The rest of the afternoon went quickly with a couple of quick but heavy rain showers and a rainbow near Long Point. We watched it with a glass of wine until it was time for dinner, the pork and sauerkraust leftover from Tuesday, along with a salad, corn on the cob and potatoes. We watched most the gymnastics won my the American girls, led by Simone Biles. We ended the night with the finale of Season Three of TRYING and have one more season to go, alas. 

8:54

6:05

Sunny But Rain Later

7:56

I woke to bright sunshine but now, at 7:44, it's hidden behind some clouds and all have turned gray. It looks like a rainy day if you can believe the weather app. Yippee. We always like having it rain, especially in Evie's garden. It's 8:50 and I was out for only a half hour because I have yoga at 9:30. I did get a couple of good photos of a heron, probably the same one I see every morning. 

Kayak Morning

Northern Sky

Great Blue Heron

Heron

Yesterday began with a boring paddle, no wildlife to speak of so I was out for just over a half hour. I wasn't sure what I wanted to do so I texted my friend to see if he wanted to meet for coffee. I also decided to go for a bike ride in Lakewood, even if I had coffee. Well, I didn't because I had a long coffee clatch with my friends, Paul, his wife Ellen, and Neal. It was fun to see them again after a few weeks of family for both of us. On the way home, I stopped at the bank and Walmart to pick up a few things for dinner. 

When I got home, Evie had been busy both in the garden and house and was pleased with getting things done. I had a hoagie from Walmart for lunch and with the added sauce and pickle, it was pretty darn good, a surprise. I then read, napped briefly, read some more then got busy in the lake. First, I rearranged the buoys so they did not bother our neighbor's boaters. Since I was already in the water, I spent a half hour pulling weeds, filling a bucket with the bastards. Sorry for the language. Then, I spent a good 20 minutes scrubbing the bottom of my boat which was filled with small shells, perhaps zebra muscles but it was a pain scrubbing and trying to get them off. I then swam, showered, and met Evie on the porch for happy hour, with pretzels and beer cheese. 

Happy Hour

Dinner was done because earlier, Evie had seared some pork ribs, added tomatoes and sauerkraut and let it bake in the oven for a couple of hours. It was tasty, one of our favorite meals, and we watched the usual, some of the Olympics, TRYING, and the news. It was a good day. 

One Fine Day

Rhys

7:14

8:56

Guess what? It's sunny with clear skies and a warm 64º. And late afternoon, it will get up into the mid-80s alas, not our cup of tea. I got in a fairly short paddle, just over a half hour and did not see any wild life unfortunately. Still, it's always a good way to start the day, on the lake. 

Kayak Morning

Seagull And Duck

Northern Sky

Finally!

First Buds Opening

Yesterday was not a typical Sunday because we skipped walking the Chautauqua Institution. I did get a long paddle in, over to Tom's Point and back so I felt energized by my kayaking. Evie was up when I returned and helped finish up the blog. We decided that I would go for a bike ride in Long Point State Park and Evie decided to do a few chores around the house. I was happy with our deal. I drove over and parked by the bridge at 11:00 and rode through Bemus, to the park, around the park to the tip of Long Point, and back to my car, over an hour ride. It felt good to be out there, both on Lakeside Drive and the heavily wooded park. 

Biking In Green

Long Point: 2/18/24

Long Point

When I got back, I was ready for lunch,  a bagel with avocados, cream cheese, and tomatoes. I watched the USA basketball team struggle with Serbia in the first half but take over the game towards the end because Kevin Durant went 8 for 8, scoring 21 points in the first half. I was then happy to get back to my book Force Of Nature by Austrailian writer, Jane Harper. I also napped briefly of course and joined Evie out in the yard and read until we both became too hot and adjourned to the porch. I took a timeout to gas up the boat but we were both too tired by 5:00 to get out there and instead, stayed on the cool of the porch and had a glass of wine.

Coffee Time

We did not want to worry about dinner so I suggested hash brown potatoes topped with eggs, a new favorite so that's what we had. Yum. We watched the Olympics until we got bored then a couple of episodes of TRYING as they overcame one obstacle after another. I wish they would have a bout of smooth sailing instead.  I watched another episode of Justified after Evie went up to bed.

 

Getting Boring: Sunny And Clear Skies

Immature Wood Duck

6:41

9:06

I woke at 6:30 to the roar of bass boats, beginning their tournament as they rounded Long Point. It's 61º and will get up into the mid-80s in the afternoon. It's 9:30 and I had a wonderful paddle, cool and breezy. I decided to kayak to Tom's Point, a 25 minute paddle and was rewarded with a photo of both a bald eagle and wood duck, as well as three ospreys hanging in a tree on my paddle home. 

Kayak Morning

Kicking Back

Bald Eagle

Wood Duck

Can You Find Three Ospreys? 

Yesterday was a day in full for the two of us. It began with a good paddle for forty minutes as the day began to warm up. After breakfast and the blog, I got a few things done while Evie cleaned up the kitchen and gathered the trash. By 10:00, I was off to the Transfer Station then Hogans to fill up to five gallon gas cans for my boat. Once I returned home, I got ready for a bike ride and fastened the rack to my Outback and strapped on my bike. I drove to Mayville, parked and rode Webb's Trail to begin my ride. I was worried I would be out of shape because I have not really walked, hiked or rode my bike much in the last month. I felt pretty good, however, and road Sea Lion Drive as well, finishing in forty five minutes, not as long as I hoped but enough to make me feel better about myself. 

Webb's Trail

Same Trail, 1/8/2024

When I returned home, Evie had already mowed half the yard and was relaxing on the front porch. I was famished after my ride so Evie made me a roast beef sandwich and I watched some of the Olympics although nothing really grabbed me yet. I don't really know much about the participants except  for the men and women's basketball teams and the obvious, Simone Biles and Katie Ledecky. 

I am reading Force Of Nature by Australian novelist Jane Harper and so far, I am enjoying it. I also tried to nap but to no avail so I spent a good part of the afternoon reading until 4:00 when we went out to the side yard and Evie cut my hair and trimmed my beard. We then both showered, then Evie quickly put together corn fritters before we walked to our neighborhood gathering. We try to meet two or three times and summer, to catch up with our busy lives and this year, to vote for a new President and various officers. Evie's fritters were a big hit as everyone was grabbing them and talking about how good they were. We had our meeting, paid our dues and stood around talking until the gang broke up and everyone went home.

I was determined to go out to dinner at the Lakewood Rod and Gun because we had just paid our dues but had not been there in months. We sat at the bar and enjoying talking with a couple from Mayville and Florida and that was the highlight of our night. We got a crappy table in the corner of the dining room and Evie's prime rib and my New York strip were both overdone so we did not enjoy our dinners.  The club was packed because it was lobster night. We ran into my weekend kayak buddies, Tina and Jim and their grandchildren.

We were home by 8:30, watched some of the Olympics then an episode of TRYING before going to bed, tired from our busy day. 

Another Chilly, Cloudless Morning

7:04

9:08

It's 7:40, 56º and a quiet morning on the lake. Our neighbors' ski boat passed by ten minutes ago but that's about it for action other then the incessant, annoying cawing of crows. It's 9:15 and I paddled for forty minutes and photographed both an osprey, high in a pine and a heron, seemingly in the same tree as the past couple of days. 

Northern Blue

Heron

Kayak Morning

Yesterday began with a great paddle and shots of a couple of osprey. They seem more prevalent than ever, resulting from reinviting them to the area around ten years ago. I had in my mind a bike ride but working in the garden with Evie took precedence much of the morning. I did edging, and some weeding along with her until everything looked good. Then, because it wasn't yet lunchtime, I decided to go crazy and pull weeds out from the lake again. I called it a fool's errand the other day and still feel that way because once I get it cleared, more weeds appear almost instantly. Still, there's some satisfaction of a pile of weeds drying on the dock when I am done.

Evie likes to see me out working, pulling weeds from the lake or garden and she rewarded me with a couple of delicious BLTs. There isn't a better sandwich than a well-made BLT, with lots of mayo, crispy bacon, and juicy tomatoes. Yum. I was a happy boy. After lunch, I finished my book, Twilight Territory, about the French/Vietnamese conflict in the 1940s and 1950s and the horrors a family goes through as a result. It makes me feel so lucky to have lived in the US and guilty as well that people live such devasting lives as a result of Civil Wars. Could it happen here? I hope not but some of the MAGA crazies are threatening it if Trump loses. 

Of course, I also napped, and neither of us have much energy in the afternoon, especially if we had a busy morning. We ended up on chaise lunges in the side yard, in the shade, reading until it was wine time and we moved to the front porch. Evie was tempted to mow but decided to put it off until today. She's beginning to realize she does not have to mow every three or four days although her new electric mower is tempting.

Happy Hour

Dinner was marinated salmon, rice, corn on the cob, and a salad. We watched a couple of episodes of TRYING and watched the last episode of  Presumed Innocent. Neither of us much liked the series but we stuck with it. My advice: watch the film with Harrison Ford. We then skimmed through the bizarre opening of the Olympics. It was quite a spectacle, with dancers along the shoreline of the Seine, somewhat boring and, unfortunately,  raining. The highlight for us was Celine Dion's powerful performance from the Effiel Tower to celebrate the opening. 

Chilly Morning

Evie's Garden

7:01

7:06

It's 7:30 and we are both up, wrapped in blankets on a 55º morning. We love it. Fog hangs over the Bemus shoreline but the sky is clear above us and the lake. It looks like it's going to be another stellar day, sunny and relatively cool. It's 9:35 and I was out paddling for over an hour and a good morning for birding as I photographed three different ospreys, two herons, and one cormorant. 

Kayak Morning

Osprey Perched

Cormorant

Heron

Mouth Wide Open

Yaking?

Yesterday was Thursday but felt like Friday. You know what I mean if you are retired. Since it was a Thursday, I had breakfast in Bemus and did not get up early enough to also go for a paddle. When I came home, it was 9:30 so I finished up the blog and then Evie and I made a grocery list for me. By 10:30, I was off to both Wegmans and Aldis, then got my car washed before coming home. Both stores were crowded even on a Thursday. 

By the time I got home, I was hungry so I heated up my leftover Bahn Mi from the EBC and watched the last episode of Babylon Berlin on Prime. I guess if I want to watch the next three seasons, I will have to pay for it on another streaming channel. After lunch, I read some, then fell sleep for a bit before deciding to get a few things done in the yard. We moved the Russian sage, did more weeding, and worked more in the backyard, then Evie mowed it to make it look spiffy. 

By 5:30, we were enjoying a libation and cheese and crackers and commenting, again, on how lucky we were to be sitting on our porch, looking a the lake each afternoon. It was unusually quiet for a late July afternoon, with the sky clear and the lake a strikingly dark blue. Dinner was easy, roast beef sandwiches on brioche rolls, a salad and ice cream with peaches for dessert. We watched the pundits discuss the passion and rise of Kamala Harris.