Same As Yesterday, Overcast And 60º

6:59

It's 8:04 and I was out paddling for forty-five minutes, down to Sandy Bottom and back. Not much action until I photographed a heron in a Victoria tree. Evie's been up since 7:00 and has school today and I am going to yoga. 

Kayak Morning

Osprey

Monday was not a day of much work, to be honest as we took it easy most of the day. I got in a good paddle and by 9:30, I was on my way to run a few errands for Evie, then shop at Wegmans. First, I stopped at Ryder's Cup for a coffee, then went to drop off a couple of boxes of goodies at the Salvation Army, but if their truck is loading, they will not accept anything. This is the third time this has happened to me. After that, I went to Wegmans and picked up a few items for a soup we're going to make, as well as other necessities. Finally, I stopped at Michaels and dropped off packages to send back to Amazon. 

Lunch was the leftover garlic noodles and a hot dog, and I watched my show. After lunch, I read, briefly napped and relaxed on the couch, and read until 3:00 when I decided to do something. I grabbed our weed-eater and spent a good forty-five minutes working up a sweat, clearing the weeds and grass from our brick walk. I used to do it by hand until I discovered the weed eater does just as good a job and is quicker and easier.

The Birthday Girl

We both showered around 5:00 and picked up the birthday girl, Linda, and Ron at 5:30 and drove a half hour to Fredonia to the White Inn. We were fortunate and found a place at the bar. We celebrated Linda's birthday with a nice bottle of sauvignon blanc and a calamari appetizer before our dinners. Our dinners were decent, not great, but we enjoyed the atmosphere, the bartenders, and it was a surprisingly busy place, with people sitting outside on the front porch as well as the dining room and bar. We left around 7:45 and drove home through a striking, green countryside as the day waned. We dropped them off and were home by 8:30. Evie went up to bed because she knew she had school the next day and I watched the first half of the Thunder/Pacers game. 

Overcast And 60º

Evie's Garden And A Gorgeous  Hydrangea Vine

6:33

8:01

It's 8:08 and I was out paddling for over an hour, and got lots of shots of herons, both along Woodlawn and down at Booty Bay. It's distressing to paddle along Wells Bay because of the weeds, hanging on my paddle as I kayak. 

Kayak Morning

Kayakers, Jim And Tina

Northern Gray

Heron At the Mouth Of Woodlawn Creek

Perched Along Bootey Bay

Osprey

Sunday was a day to relax for me, after all, it was Father's Day. I paddled early, for close to an hour, a good way to start the day. When I returned, Evie had a present sitting on my computer, and I opened it to find a new pair of AirPods, as my old ones no longer worked because I had dropped one on the kitchen floor. Around 10:30, my daughter Jill called, and they are doing well; her husband, Drew, had just returned from a week working in Kazakhstan. Around 11:00, I went out and took the cover off my boat so it could dry out for the rain. I also gassed it up, used a siphon to put 10 gallons. It's back from being repaired and hopefully ready for the summer.  We are doing some deep cleaning and yesterday it was the upstairs bathroom. I took everything out of the cupboards and medicine chest, washed them so that Evie could come in later and give the entire bathroom a cleaning and throw out much of the stuff in the cabinets and cupboards that we no longer need. It was surprisingly how humid it was because we both worked up quite a sweat.

Around 12:30, Evie made me scrambled eggs and a bagel, a nice respite from the cleaning, and I watched my series. I then read and took a brief nap as usual, then read some until our son Tom  FaceTimed us, and our great-grandson was also at his house, so it was fun to see him and his parents. We talked for a good half hour, then decided to relax on the porch with a Manhattan and a good cheese.  Since we had lots of the leftover garlic noodles, we decided to have an easy dinner, a couple of hot dogs, making it easy. We watched the usual, the news, and some home improvement show until Evie went to bed at 8:30. I watched another episode of Blue Murder, then went up to read and sleep, the end of a good day. 

Parly Cloudy With Occasional Sun

No King's Day

8:43

It's 9:10 and we are both up, listening to the terrible news (shooting in Minnesota/the Middle East/Ukraine). I was out for over an hour, enjoying a fine morning after yesterday's inch of rain. 

7:20

Kayak Morning

8:04

Heron

Breakfast

Post Prandial Walk

Eagle

Yesterday morning was busy despite the rain. I was up early and sat around until 8:45 because it was raining hard enough so I couldn't paddle. At 8:45, I drove to the Mayville Maintenance building and disposed of all the paint, thinner, and insecticides that had been sitting in my garage for years. I drove home and Evie had the trash ready for me to take to the Transfer Station. So by 10:00, my chores were done. I then showered and went over to our neighbors' house, who were driving into Jamestown for the NO KINGS.

Jack And Diane

Umbrellas 

Jamestown Citizens

Typical Signs

We were able to find a parking spot and join the crowd of maybe 400-500 who bravely stood in the rain for a couple of hours, listening to speakers, most of whom we could not hear. Still, it was great to see so many people care about what is happening to our country and are willing to stand up and be heard and seen. We had the most fun standing along the streets with our signs as cars went by, either honking their horns in support or giving us the finger. Evie saw three young kids holding up signs, went over to congratulate them for coming, and realized one of them was a student from her kindergarten class. We stayed until 1:00, then drove home. When we returned, it stopped raining, of course.

Six Year Olds Who Care

We were both exhausted from standing around for a couple of hours, so I heated up a chicken pot pie for lunch, then took a hour and a half nap, needing it because I was up early. I taped the Caitlin Clark Fever game. The first half was as exciting a game as I have ever seen, with Caitlin hitting seven three-pointers from literally half court. She also had a few great assists. Her second half was back to normal, but her team ended up defeating the undefeated New York team by 14 points. It was fun to watch.

We had a brief happy hour then made our dinner, another recipe from our new cookbook called San Francisco Style Vietnamese Garlic Noodles. It was basically noodles with 20 smashed garlic cloves, a sauce of soy, fish sauce, and oyster sauce, topped with Parmesan cheese. Once again, we really liked it and will make it again.  We watched some of the celebration of the Army. It was amusing to watch Trump doze off, and the parade seemed more like Macy's. We ended the night with a couple of episodes of the Norwegian series Pernille, an emotionally draining series. We highly recommend it, thanks to my sister Ellen. 

A Morning Of Gentle Rain

6:22

It's 6:55, and I have been up since 6:15, hoping to kayak, but I'm stuck inside because of the rain. It's 62º and the rain will last much of the morning. 

Friday was another busy day, starting with an hour paddling on the lake. After finishing the blog, Chris dropped off the boat, having put in a new lift motor, and I dropped him off at his truck at Prendergast Point. I wanted to go on a bike ride since there was no yoga on Friday, so I drove into Lakewood, decided to stop at Ryder's Cup, and met friends for half an hour. I then biked down to Celoron and back, an easy ride on the streets of Lakewood, and I was gone for about forty-five minutes. After my ride, Evie needed a couple of things from Wegmans, so I drove there and was in and out in 15 minutes. 

Chatauqua Harbor Hotel  Island Patio In Celeron, NY

When I got home, Evie had cleaned up the kitchen and was writing end-of-the-year poems(with the help of ChatGPT) for each of her kindergarteners. She made me lunch, a couple of scrambled egg, tomato and cheese sandwiches for lunch before going out and mowing the lawn. It's nice to have a wife who likes to mow. I had lunch, watched my show, then read and took a brief nap, my usual afternoon routine. 

Evie took numerous breaks but got the yard done just before it started to rain, about 2:30. Around 4:00 I was bored and decided to organize the shelves in the garage and throw out all the paint, thinners, cans of insecticides that have been sitting on the shelves for years. Today, from 9:00 to 3:00, Chautauqua County is having a Waste Disposal Day so I will be able to get rid of all chemicals. It took me over an hour to finish organizing the shelves.

We listened to the news and enjoyed a glass of wine. By 6:30, the baked potatoes were done, so Evie baked the breaded haddock filets from Wegmans and cooked up some spinach for our dinner. We watched three episodes of Penille and then some news before Evie went to bed. I didn't realize the NBA game was being played, so instead, I stuck with the news and an episode of Banshee before going up to bed. 

We will be driving to Jamesstown with neighbors today to participate in NO KINGS DAY from 11:00-1:00.

No Comment Needed

Overcast With Some Sun

6:35

8:01

It's 8:20 and I was out for over an hour, down to Booty Bay and back. It was one of those mornings when I chased off an osprey but got a few photos of a juvenile eagle.

Kayak Morning

Bootey Bay

They Are Back: Jeff And Nancy

Amazing Sky

Juvenile Eagle

Yesterday was a good day for both of us. I got in a paddle before heading over to Bemus for breakfast with the guys. When I returned, I finished the blog, and by 9:30, Evie was showered, dressed, and ready for school. It was a perfect morning for a bike ride, some sun, and yet not too warm. So I drove over to Bemus, parked by the bridge, and biked through Bemus, down Lakeside Drive to Long Point State Park, then rode through the woods, out to Long Point, and back to my car, about an hour ride.  It was a good way to fill my morning. 

Long Point: January 15th

Long Point Yesterday

Tip Of Long Point State Park

When I returned, I decided to take something off my to-do list that had been bothering me for a week, painting the benches we put on the dock. Unfortunately, it took me ten minutes to find a paintbrush, but I found one upstairs in a closet. So, I used a brush on the bench, removing as much paint as I could, and then spent a good hour painting it. By the time I was done, it was time for lunch, and I made myself two peanut butter and jelly sandwiches on toast and watched my show. 

I then read some and tried to nap, probably did but it did not feel like it so I came downstairs and Evie was back,  enjoying popcorn and cherries. She had a great time at school, saved the stories for happy hour because I wanted to get outside and finish painting the second bench. It took me another hour, so by 3:00, my conscience was assuaged. I put things away, the drop cloth, the bench, and the table, and joined Evie at 5:00 for a glass of wine. Her kids have been missing her because she skipped a couple of days because of a cold. They are going to miss her when school ends; she will miss them as well. 

Dinner was the leftover chicken from Thursday night, and it was just as good as the night before. We watched a new show, recommended by my sister, Ellen, Penille, a Norwegian series, on Netflix, and are enjoying it. After a couple of episodes, Evie went up to bed, and I watched the terrible news, the bombing of Iran by Israel. It's always scary when something like this takes place because we don't know where it will lead, especially with Trump in the White House. 

Another Hazy Morning Sun

5:58

6:00

5:58

It's 7:30 and both Evie and I are up, enjoying the early morning sky. For some reason, I woke at 5:00, got up at 6:00 and was on the lake paddling for an hour by 6:15. You would think I would be the only one on the lake, but the Amish, avid fishermen, seem to always beat me out. I also shot another heron, Henry, most likely the same one I see almost every morning in a tree above the reeds. 

7:28

Yesterday was back to normal for me, a nice day of leisure and rest for Evie. I got in a good paddle as usual, finished up the blog, and had breakfast by 9:40, when I headed off to yoga class. It was a good class, by that I mean it was different, the virtue of Tara, my teacher. Her classes are rarely the same. After class, Evie sent me a list on the Wegman's app, so I shopped for some goodies on another busy and expensive day at Wegmans. I can't get out of there for less than a hundred bucks lately. 

Kayak Morning

North

Henry Heron

Henry

Henry

I had lunch after putting away the groceries, the last of the chicken soup and a hoagie from Wegmans and watched my show. The rest of the afternoon is unclear, mostly because I didn't do anything but lie around, read, nap, and worry about not getting something done out in our yard or garage. In other words, I don't like being lazy for long, or I want to do something but don't have enough mojo to do it.

Dinner was interesting because I ordered another cookbook from Amazon, something we certainly don't need. After all, we have loads of them and rarely look at them. It was called Easy Weeknight Dinners, and since I downloaded it to my Kindle, I was able to look at it and liked it. Well, when I tried to find a good recipe, like most cookbooks, none of the recipes looked good when I went to find one, I finally picked one out, and Evie thought it looked good: Skillet Chicken With Tomatoes, Pancetta, and Mozzarella. And once it was served, we both loved it, the chicken tender, the sauce spicy. We were not ready to start a new series, so we stayed with The Resident until Evie went up to bed. I then watched most of the first half of the NBA game, but was tired, so I turned it off before halftime and went up to read and sleep. 

A Hazy But Sunny Morning

6:40

8:27

It's 8:10, and Evie came downstairs just as I returned from an hour kayaking on the lake. It was a windless, 55º morning, so it was an easy paddle. In that hour, I shot photos of hawks, an osprey and a heron, so it was a good morning. 

Kayak Morning

Northern Blue

Juvenile Eagle Perched On Tip Of Long Point

Heron Hunkering Down

Wide Awake

Osprey

Yesterday turned out to be a good day. It started with a long paddle, although I did not see any interesting birds. When I got home, Evie was up and showering because she was feeling better and decided to go to school. She left at 9:30, and about 10:00, our boat guy came over to take the boat back to his house and put in a new lift motor. It was too late to go to yoga so I decided to go for a bike ride. I drove to Mayville, parked my car, and took my usual ride, down and back on Webb's Trail, then down and back on Sea Lion Drive, about 50 minutes. It felt good to be back on my bike, but it was a struggle for the first 15 minutes. 

Webb's Trail

Scenic Ride

I was home around noon and enjoyed a hoagie and chicken soup by 12:45. I also started a new series, one I had watched a few years ago, called Banshee. I doubt if I will stick with it, but it was nice for a change from Blue Murder. Evie didn't get home until 2:30, and though she was tired, she loved being back with the kids, and they, of course, loved having her back. I then started a new novel, The Twelve Lives Of Samuel Hawley, and napped briefly. Neither of us did much the rest of the afternoon, and rewarded ourselves with a good cheese, Saint Andre, crackers, and a Manhattan. Dinner was easy: the leftover pasta and chicken from the night before and a salad. We watched a couple more episodes of The Resident before Evie went up to bed, and I watched a couple of episodes of my series before going up to read and sleep. It was a good day.