A Fine Morning For A Paddle

7:11

7:11

8:25

It's 8:30 and I just returned from a 55-minute paddle on a calm lake, finally, little wind, a partly cloudy sky, and 29º. I didn't see any interesting waterfowl, the usual geese, mallards, and scared off groups of buffleheads. The sun has tried to burst out through the clouds to no avail, although it has been lighting up the southern sky.

Kayak Morning

Bemus Bay, Looking East

Northern Sky

North, Again

Monday was another snowy and windy day, thus no morning kayaking. We didn't do much early on, other than listening to our favorite radio show on Sirius Radio, the Michael Smerconish show. I knew I wanted to get out of the house, so I volunteered to go to Wegmans and pick up a couple of prescriptions for Evie and some necessities for our dinners this week. 

Long Point Yesterday At 10:24 AM

I stopped for a coffee, then shopped for a few things, then headed home, arriving around noon. Evie was busy making cookies with peanut butter and chocolate chips. I was hungry since I only had a banana for breakfast. Evie also had made a pot of mushroom barley soup, so I had a bowl of it along with the leftovers from our Sunday night Mexican dinner. I watched another episode of Slow Horses on AppleTV, then read and briefly napped. 

Jim And Ripley

Looking North, Towards Victoria And Woodlawn

Woodlawn

Afternoons are usually our time to relax, but by 3:00 I was bored and wanted to get in some exercise since I wasn't able to kayak, so I walked our woods for forty-five minutes. It's an easy walk, mostly through woods, and in our backyard, so we are lucky. I ran into my neighbor Jim, out walking his dog, Ripley. I was home by 4:30, and by 5:00, we were enjoying a glass of wine and sushi from Wegman's. 

Last Night's Sky At Dusk

Dinner was baked cod, with lemon, salt, and pepper, and hot sauce, along with baked potatoes and spinach. We have rarely if ever, had cod, so it was a pleasant surprise, and we will certainly buy it again. We watched a couple of episodes of All Saints, but both of us are getting tired of it, too many depressing episodes. Evie went to bed early, and I watched some Monday Night Football for 20 minutes, then another episode of Slow Horses before bed. 

A Couple Inches Of Snow Overnight

7:55

8:42

It's just about 9:00, and Evie is just making her coffee, having slept in, a lucky gal. I didn't get up until 7:45, looked outside, and thought I could kayak; the wind didn't seem too bad. So I put on all my gear, grabbed my coffee, and went out, unfortunately. As I started out, a wave hit the side of my kayak and splashed over, soaking me. I stayed out for another ten minutes and decided it was crazy to continue, and came in. I was out maybe 15 minutes. After coming in, I grabbed a sponge from the garage and soaked up any remaining water in the kayak, as I didn't want it to freeze.

A Wavy Kayak Morning

North

Victoria

Sunday was another day on the couch, watching too much football. Because of the heavy winds most of the day, I couldn't kayak so it was a long morning coffee. By 10:00, however, I decided to 'do something' and drove over to the Chautauqua Institution for a walk. It was a good choice as the rain or sleet let up and the sun came out briefly during my 45-minute walk. I was home by 12:15 and Evie was on the phone talking with our daughter Beth, who lives in Dallas. We usually go to Dallas for Thanksgiving but this year, we are heading east to our daughter Jill's home in northern Virginia, a much shorter drive.

Thunder Bridge

Typical Canvas Porch Covers In The CI

Brick Walk In Bestor Plaza

A Walk Into The Clouds

Around 1:00, as the Bills began, Evie made a menemen, Turkish scrambled eggs with cheese and tomatoes. It tasted great, of course, and we sat there for the next three hours, watching the Bills finally play well, defeating  Tampa Bay, 44-32. Once that game was over, the Chiefs game came on so we watched much of that game until 5:45 when we drove off in a snowstorm to pick up Ron and Linda. We were going out to dinner in Mayville at the fairly new Mexican restaurant called Pueblo Real. The place has had many restaurants over the years, so we hope his one survives. It was not crowded but there were people at the bar and a few tables. Three of us ordered beers and Evie ordered a margarita, a huge glass with a straw. Our dinners were decent, not great, but we liked the place enough to go back and try other entrees. It's nice to have a choice, other than a burger, wings, and beer place, which is the usual. We were home by 8:00, and Evie was really tired so she went up to bed, and I watched, yes, more football before deciding to watch Slow Horses, starting with the first season, which we watched a couple of years ago and liked. I hope to stick with all six seasons.

A Blustery And Brief Sunny Morning

7:38

7:47

7:47

8:09

8:09

It's 8:40 and I have been up for over an hour, listening to the wind blow, watching the whitecaps on the lake, and enjoying a brief but spectacular sunrise. It's 38º and snow is predicted later in the day and tomorrow. Winds are 18 mph with gusts up to 37mph, so I guess I won't be kayaking.  I walked outside to take a couple of photos and noticed we received a couple of inches of rain in the past 36 hours, a surprise. 

Side Yard At 7:47

Saturday was a good day, with lots of variety and relaxation. I managed to get in a 50-minute paddle before 9:00 and took a couple of photos of eagles, my favorite way to spend the early morning. Evie was up just before 9:00, having gotten a good night's sleep. We were in no hurry to get chores done, so I decided to walk our Woodlawn/Victoria woods around 9:45. It was good to be outside, listening to music on my Apple AirPods, enjoying the barren trees and the fallen leaves on all the paths. I was out for 35 minutes, just right. When I returned, we gathered the trash, and I was off to the Transfer Station around 11:30, and to my surprise, I was the only car there. Usually, there are eight or nine cars, so I must have picked an off time. 

Woodlawn Creek

Still Some Green

Tree Trunks And Fallen Leaves

Woodlawn Front Yards

By 12:30, Evie was mostly through with her work, and I was ready for lunch, so I heated up the leftover shrimp pasta for the second day, and I loved it. The recipe is a keeper, easy and tasty. I watched my show, The Asset, and have one more episode to go. I was looking forward to getting back to my book, "What We Can Know, by Ian McEwan, and taking a nap. I spent the rest of the afternoon either watching some football, reading while Evie binged on an old series called The Big C. We were going to stay home for dinner, but at the last minute decided to go to Steeners Pub. So we both showered and got gussied up and left at 5:35. It was already crowded when we arrived, but we found the last two seats at the bar. It felt good to be out again and quickly order beers, peruse the menu. I ordered the Italian breaded fish and chips and Evie the fish sandwich, both with fries. My dinner was good, Evie's so so. 

After finishing our dinners, we started talking with the couple sitting next to Evie. They had recently moved to Bemus but knew the area well and had lived here for quite a while. We hit it off, mostly because, Clar, Kathy's husband, wrestled at Oklahoma State and traveled as a wrestler or coach in both Romania and Russia, so he had lots of stories and since we lived in Istanbul for seven years and traveled in Romania one summer, we had stories as well. We must have talked and gotten to know each other for a good half hour before vowing to get together again in the future. 

Dinner At Steeners With Kathy And Clar

We left about 7:45 and were home and in our pajamas by 8:00, ready to watch a couple more episodes of our show on Hulu, All Saints. We have watched over a hundred and twenty-five episodes so far and have a couple of hundred more to go if we don't get bored. Once Evie went to bed, I watched the final episode of  The Asset, but during much of it, the subtitles disappeared so I had little idea as to how it ended. I may watch it again today to see if there is a change. 

All's Gray And 36º

7:53

8:57

It's later than usual as I start this, 9:15. I didn't get up until almost 8:00 (yippee), and Evie's still sleeping at 9:15. I was out on the lake by 8:10 and was out for 50 minutes, my usual paddle down to Sandy Bottom, back, and along Woodlawn and home. 

Kayak Morning

Northern Gray

Eagle Sitting On Tina and Jim's Pine

Crow

Feeding At the Mouth Of Woodlawn Creek

Friday was a good day because we got a lot done. I got in my usual paddle, making my morning. I then finished the blog, had breakfast, and fixed one of our kitchen drawers, which is always a pain, especially for someone like me. I then relaxed a bit, helped Evie a bit, and then realized it might rain in the afternoon, so I went outside, did some leaf raking, and powered up the lawn mower to mow and mulch the lawn, hopefully for the last time since the trees have lost their leaves. It took me a little over half an hour and that was my exercise for the day.

Lunch was the leftover shrimp pasta, still tasty, and I watched my show. I had a dentist appointment at 2:00, so I tried to take a brief nap, but to no avail. I read until 1:40, when I left for the dentist's office. I was getting a temporary crown so I will no longer need to wear a retainer.  I still have to be careful when I eat, avoiding the crown, but I will be able to go out to eat for the first time in weeks. It took around half an hour, and I have to go back to get it checked in January. If all goes well, then I will finally get a permanent crown. On my way home, for some reason, I must have wanted to spend money, so I stopped at Walmart and picked up goodies for a few dinners: frozen shrimp, freshly caught cod, and a chicken pot pie for two. 

I was home by 3:30 and read and relaxed until wine time at 5:00, when I read and relaxed once again, this time with a beer. Dinner was an Evie favorite, steaks and mushrooms, with baked potatoes, and we watched our show until Evie went up to bed. I don't change much so I watched some of the NBA and my show, The Asset, then went up to bed just after 10:00.

A Bright Shinny Morning

7:26

8:44

It's 8:55 and we are both up, listening to the radio. I just returned from a 50-minute paddle and spotted a couple of eagles and a gang of buffleheads. It was tough going south, into the bright sun, but easy returning home.

Kayak Morning

Northern Blue

Long Point

Bald Eagle Above Sandy Bottom

Buffleheads Are Back

Bufflehead

Thursday was a typical day for us. We were up early, at 7:00. I had breakfast at 8:00 in Bemus and Evie likes to have lots of time to prepare for her day with kindergarteners. After breakfast, I returned home, grabbed my yoga blanket and bolster, and left for class at 9:40. The class is easy, which is why it's popular, as it's close to overflowing, with women and two men. After class, I went straight home because I had a car appointment for my KIA at 1:00 in Jamestown. I heated up a leftover dinner from Tuesday, watched my show, and was on my way to Jamestown by 12:35. 

It took close to an hour and a half to get new air flaps, whatever they are, but I have to bring it back because one of the wires was frayed, and they had to order a new one.  I was home around 3:00, and Evie had just returned from kindergarten. The snow had melted, and our side yard was strewn once again with leaves from our tulip tree. So I got out my trusty rake (no leaf blower) and raked for about 20 minutes, filling another garbage pail with leaves, and took two pails up the hill to the wood pile.

At wine time, I broke tradition and had a Blue Moon beer. refreshing after yard work. The late afternoon sky was an amazing accumulation of puffy clouds and blue skies. Around 6:00, Evie put together our dinner, a shrimp and spinach pasta dish, and it was great. We watched our show until 8:45 when Evie went up to bed, and I watched some NFL on Prime before returning to my new series on Netflix called The Asset. And that was it for the day.

The First Big Melt

7:11

8:58

It's 7:30 and Evie and I are both up, Evie getting ready for kindergarten, me to have breakfast at 8:00 in Bemus. The snow has mostly melted, the lawns are green once again, and I had to chase a bevy of Canadian geese off our neighbor's yard this morning.

Wednesday was a strange day. I was up early and out on the cold lake by 7:15 for the first time in a couple of days. I was out for forty minutes, photographed a heron, and was dressed in layers so I wasn't cold. When I returned, I decided to go to yoga in Lakewood at 10:00. Just before I left, our plumber stopped by to check on our boiler. It had to change a zone valve because we were not getting heat in a couple of upstairs bedrooms. When I arrived at the studio, the lights were off and no one was around. I waited around for a few minutes, yelled if anyone was home, then left for a cup of coffee at Ryder's Cup. 

Ryder's Cup Friends

Neal, one of the regulars, was there, so I sat down with him for 15 minutes when our good friend, Paul, and his wife, Ellen, stopped in. Paul's been suffering from lung problems and is in a wheelchair. It was great to see him since he's usually been a regular until his health problems. He seems to know everyone, as anyone who came in for a coffee stopped to say hello. We sat around for nearly an hour talking. I left around 11:30, stopped at Kentucky Fried Chicken for our dinner, and came home to kitchen cupboards taken apart. 

Lunch was easy: the leftover dinner from Tuesday night, and I finished my series, Lone Wolf. After lunch, my afternoon went as usual, with a nap, reading my new book, a new novel by acclaimed novelist Ian McEwan called What We Can Know. Evie's afternoon was similar, finishing up the kitchen, watching some TV, and waiting, like me, for 5:00 when we could have a glass of wine. I tried to do a few things outside, but it was raining, so I just came back in. 

Afternoon Skies

Dinner was Kentucky Fried Chicken, Evie's favorite, and we watched three All Saints, although I have to admit that I am losing my interest in it, or like most series, it had a few bad shows before picking back up. When Evie went to bed, I watched a new series from Denmark, I think called The Asset, and it looks decent, and I watched about ten minutes of the Lakers/Thunder game before going to bed.

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