A Hazy, Lazy Friday Morning

6:16

6:24

6:25

A muted sunrise, as the haze has created a light pink morning sky and lake.  It's 6:45 and I have been up since before 6:00, sitting on our front porch until the sun rose.  It's 68º (humidity: 98%) and I assume we will be having another warm, close day, with a slight chance of rain.  Always slight.

Tres Chic

Granny And H and H

Marisa's Smile

Thursday was another busy family day at the lake.  As usual,  I went off to breakfast with the guys before anyone got up.  Four of us ordered our eggs, coffee and sides, the one time a week I eat supposedly unhealthy.  When I got home, the adults and even grandchildren were up because both Mitchell and Hayden wanted to get in a run over at Long Point.  So after a quick breakfast, five of us drove over to Long Point for a morning run or ride.  Jill and I rode our bikes, through the park and neighborhoods, all the way to Midway Park and back, and the rest ran through the woods and out to the tip of Long Point and back.  I came straight back, the others had to have their iced coffee and they shopped briefly at the Bemus Point Market.

The Bissells At Play

Dad And His Girls

Ladies Of The Lake

And that was it for trips until later in the day.  The girls were getting ready to go out on the dock with Evie and the gang would then spend much of the afternoon out on the dock, mostly lazing in their floats or rafts, the coolest place in Chautauqua County.  I did some weed gathering, took them up the hill, and mid afternoon, Evie and Mitch made a short cake, with lots of heavy cream.  Various groups of two or three would come in for something to eat or drink, but eventually head back out on the dock to enjoy the sun.

Around 4:00, Drew and I drove off to get a few things done. First, we stopped at Keystone Used Cars, to look at trucks.  I want a truck.  They had a couple that were interesting but when I checked the blue book prices, they were asking twice what the blue book said it was worth.  And so it goes. We then stopped at Wegman's and Home Depot briefly, then Hollyloft Bike shop to pick up another gadget for my bike that I don't need.  All this was preparation for the real reason for the excursion.  A stop at Brazil's Craft Beer and Wine Lounge.  Drew loved it, of course, a real local, yet upscale bar, and he ordered a flight of beers, one that had an 18% alcohol content.  Needless to say, he did not finish it.  We stayed for an hour, then headed home because we knew dinner was awaiting.

Neighborhood Duck

Up Close and Personal

Petting The Ducks

Toe Feeding

When we got home, all were in the front yard, as Mitch was flying his drone and the girls were at the water's edge, feeding a raft of baby ducks with cracked corn.  We then had some serious games of bean bag; once again Marisa and I lost in the first round to Mitchell and Evie, the eventual champions, and I got one chance to throw the bags before losing 15-0.

Bean Baggers

Around 7:15, Mitch and I fired up the grill and browned some marinated zucchini before filling up the grill with spicy Turkish koftes.  We hardly had room to turn them but between Mitch, Drew and I, we did a fine job of grilling them.  This Turkish Iskender kebab is a family favorite.  Once the koftes were done, dinner was easy, squash, green beans and salad.  And we had strawberry shortcake to look forward to after dinner.  We kept going back for seconds until we ran out of strawberries.  We then had to decide between a fire or Telefunky, a card game our family has played for years.  Telefunky won and we played until 10:30 and Mitch and Evie won again.  It seems to me as though the teams are fixed, with Evie and Mitch winning at both bean bag and Telefunky.

Dinner With Mitchell

Strawberry Shortcake

It's now 7:30 and Drew and Evie are up, talking politics, as we listen to a wrap up of the Democratic Convention on MSNBC.

Overcast And Cool

Sunset Over Woodlawn/Magnolia/Whitney Bay Taken From My Grandson Mitch's Drone at 9:00 PM

8:30 Sunset from Boat

Two Bikers And A Runner

I slept in until 7:00, came down to a cloudy morning, no striking sunrise, just a return to the good old days of Chautauqua gray.  Where have you been?  It's 64º out and today should be a carbon copy of yesterday, sunny with a high in the 80's.

Yesterday was a busy day.  I was up early as usual, waiting for the gang to arise, had my breakfast of oats, blueberries, and yogurt on the dock before any of the kids were up.  Jill was interested in getting another bike ride in, so she, Drew, Hayden, and I packed up our bikes and we drove into Mayville as I thought it would be fun to ride the Webb Trail, a well taken care of snowmobile trail.  It was a good trail to ride, as it follows an old railroad track, thus it's mostly flat though as we found out, on the way out, it's slightly up hill, thus on the way back, we really made good time.  We went to the end of the trail, to Bentley Road and back, about six miles, close to an hour of riding.  It felt good to be on my bike again, the third time this week, a record for me.  On the way home, I picked up some ice, and Evie had the cooler ready for me.  Only Beth and the girls were home because Evie was off to Wegman's for another mega grocery shopping trip, the first in quite awhile.

Evie And Her Gaggle Of Granddaughters

I took the girls out on the dock, and we sun bathed and swam until around noon, then I went in and had a lunch of pizza from the previous night.  The girls obviously missed not having Evie around, so they were patiently waiting for her as was I.  I needed the car because Beth and I were driving to Buffalo to pick up Mitch as he was arriving from Dallas a 2:45.  She got home just before 1:00 and the whole gang helped her unload the car.  Beth and I then took off for Buffalo, picked up Mitch on time, and were back at the lake by 4:15, an easy three hour drive there and back.  Everyone was either on the dock or porch enjoying the afternoon and waiting patiently for 6:00 when we would jump in the boat and cruise over to the Casino for wings.

Cruising To The Bemus Point Casino

Marisa!

Wings And Pitchers

Mitch, Evie and I had to take a swim, however, so we did not leave until just after 6:00.  We easily found a slip at the Casino despite the fact it was locals night, when wings are half price.  We found a table big enough for all of us, had great service, and within 20 minutes, had our pops, pitchers of beer, glasses of wine, and various combinations of wings and fries.  By 7:30, we were stuffed and went out to the swings before walking down to the main street of Bemus for our requisite ice cream cones after wings.

Halle At The Swings

The Girls With Our Friends From Hudson

 Surprising Ron and Linda At Lenhart Porch

As I was standing in line, a good looking guy walked up, introduced himself, and it was Frank Day, one of my English students from Reserve's class of 1986.  A great kid, he is now an ER physician in Portland and was visiting his parents who spend their summer's at the Chautauqua Institution.  His father also came up since we had gotten to know each other when Frank was in school.  At the same time, our good friend Barb C., who lives in Hudson, also came up to say hi, so it was old friends night.  On our way back to the boat, we also ran into our friends Ron and Linda, who were sitting on the porch of the Lenhart with friends from the CI.  So it was a night of running into friends for us.

Our Grandchildren Enjoying 'The View' As We Cruise Home

We took a slow cruise home on another lovely night on the lake, as the sun made its way through the western sky clouds.  When we got home, Mitch wanted to try out his drone, so all of us went into the front yard and watched him fly his drone off over Long Point, then to Tom's Point towards Bemus Point and back.  It's an amazing device and he flies it like a pro with a joy stick.  We all huddled around behind him as the camera sent pictures back to his screen, so we could see what the drone was filming.  He took a photo of the setting sun as well as filming the entire flight.  We came in, so the girls could watch another episode of the Fosters and Mitch showed Evie and I various films he had taken with his drone.  We went to be after the Fosters, tired, still full of wings, but happy.

It's 9:30 and I just returned from breakfast with the guys and everyone is up, ready to go for a run at Long Point State Park, a healthy crew.

Mitch, Our Drones-Man

Sunny At The Lake

7:10

Kayak Morning

I missed the sun rise...rats, getting up later than usual at 6:30, hopefully a new routine.  It looks like another crappy day at the lake, more sunshine, blue skies, calm lake.  How tiresome.  And it's even cooled off some, making it even more pleasant to be out on the dock.  Around noon, Beth and I are driving off to Buffalo to pick up Beth's son Mitch, a soon to be freshman at the University of Texas in Austin, who is flying in for 10 days from Dallas.  We cannot wait to see him.

As for yesterday, it was perhaps the perfect day, sunny yet not uncomfortable because of the nice breeze, the lowered humidity, and lots of sun.  The girls slept in as usual, so Drew, Jill, and I decided we needed some exercise on such a great morning, so we drove off to Bemus Point for a bike ride.  We parked just beyond the bridge, then rode through downtown Bemus, down Lakeside Park and through Long Point Park to its tip and back, a great ride, just under an hour, my favorite ride by the way.  We stopped for coffee at Wired, Jill did some browsing and then I stopped at Hogan's, filling up a couple of five gallon cans of gas for the boat and getting ice.  When I got home, I drained the cooler, filled it up with more beer, pop, and wine, covered it with ice and I was done with my jobs for the day.

Hayden Instagraming

Evie and the girls had been busy while we were gone, having a breakfast of pancakes, then pulling into shore a couple of our floats with small leaks, blowing them back up again, and taking them back out to the buoy, where they form a flotilla of floats to lay on, to play on.  The rest of the day did not vary much from the previous days, lots of enjoying the sun and water, some naps, the girls watching shows on their devices when they had enough sun, and Evie mowing the lawn, making sure the clover was kept at a minimum.  Drew took Hayden out for a boat ride, letting her drive some which she loved, especially when she went fast, a hot rodder in the making.

Marisa Editing Her GoPro Film

Really, Mom!!!

Twinsies

Late afternoon, Jill and Drew drove over to Bemus to have a couple of beers at Ellicottville Brewing On Chautauqua, just missing their happy hour.  They sat outside at the lounge, as the good seats were for those who wanted dinner. When they had enough, we called Coppolo's Pizza, also in Bemus, ordered three large pizzas, and they picked them up and brought them home for dinner.  We were all hungry, so it was a pizza and salad night and all seem to think Coppolo's was really good pizza.

Working On Halle's Passing

Yea

Whack That Ball!

After dinner, we sat on the porch, played some bean bag and volleyball, as Halle, our youngest, is becoming a real volleyball enthusiast.  I worked with her some and she is getting really good for a 6th grader.  Around 9:00, the entire crew, minus Evie and me, adjourned to the TV room to watch an episode of their favorite TV show, the Fosters.  Neither Evie nor I had ever heard of it until we found out our kids were into it.  By 10:30 before everyone went up to bed.

Yesterday Morning Rain, This Morning Sun

Bean Bag Champs

The Old Smoothies

6:16

Halle And A Johnny Cash Fan

It looks like my new wake up time is 5:40, just as some light begins to invade our bedroom.  It's a peerless morning of blue skies, sans clouds, just sun, sky and lake.  It's cooled off a bit, 68º when I got up but it will get up into the 80's again, later in the day.

Yesterday began with an early morning kayaking with Drew, over to Long Point and back to the reeds and home, just a half hour out, as Jill, Beth, and I had yoga at 9:30 in Lakewood.  We left Evie to herself, as Drew went out paddling again, down to Snug Harbor and back, and the girls still sleeping. Yoga was packed, as crowded as I have ever seen it to my amazement, as I thought the warm weather and summer heat would keep the ladies away.  I was wrong.  Beth and Jill both loved the Yin class, especially, the skill of Danielle, our teacher.  We stopped at Ryder's Cup afterwards, and they got to meet all the regulars, Janice, Joyce, her parents, Dave.  So now they are regulars as well.

Morning Rain

We were home around 11:30 and Evie was making chocolate chip pancakes for the girls who seemingly had just gotten up.  What a joy it must be to sleep in until 10:30 or 11:00.  I had forgotten to get ice so I drove off to Hogan's and picked up 20 pounds, came home and set up the cooler for the day, with pop, water and beers.  We then all sat on the porch as the heavy rains hit the area, much to all delight and satisfaction.  I watched my boat, sans cover, get pelted and filled with water, the most likely reason it rained.  If I had covered it, it would not have rained.  We got over an inch in less than an hour, the Woodlawn roads filled with puddles, the Woodlawn Creek flowing.  I can understand how the indigenous peoples' looked at rain as a miracle, how what was brown after a rain turned green.  A few of us then had lunch since we were not part of chocolate chip pancake gang.  I had leftover spaghetti, Beth eggs, and Jill and Drew sandwiches.

Enjoying Beer And Lemonades At Ellicotville Brewery

Tubing

A Tubing Afternoon

And then, around 2:30, it cleared up, the skies turned blue and the sun began to burn away the rain, the air, however, filled with humidity.  The gang had decided to go to Bemus to shop when it was still cloudy, but by the time they left, it had turned nice.  So they were gone until about 4:30, hitting the Bemus stores and getting their first taste of the beers of the Ellicottville Brewery by ordering a flight.
While they were gone, I found a fit of energy, cleaned the weeds up, took them up the hill and gassed up my boat, readying it for our cruises.  Evie and I then enjoyed a brewski on the dock until the gang returned, ready to go tubing.  So Drew and I took the girls out, tubed until they had had enough of bouncing around and hitting each other, and it was time to get cleaned up for dinner.

My Dad

Crazy Cousins

On To The Viking Club

We left around 6:15 via boat for the Viking Club.  As always it seems, the lake had turned choppy, the wind picked up, so we had a slow, wet ride to the club.  In fact, Evie's t-shirt was soaked by the time we got there.  We found a table outside, got our beers, and put in an order for four Cubans and a Ruben sandwich.  Everyone loved their sandwiches and despite getting five for eight of us, we took a sandwich home.  The girls played on the playground as we talked and enjoyed the setting sun.  We left around 8:15 and because the lake had calmed down, we took our time going home, taking lots of pictures of the setting sun.  It was a lovely evening on the lake, and we were one of maybe two or three boats on the lake, the good life.

Don't Take My Picture

OK

Moi

Cruising Home From The Viking Club

When we got home, we played a round of bean bag, ending up playing in the dark and to Evie and my dismay, Jill and Hayden beat the two of us, the old veterans, in the finals.  Jill was out of her mind, throwing ringer after ringer, leading her team to victory.  We then went in and the girls and Evie watched Michelle Obama's carpool karoke with James Corden (loved it!) and then her speech at the DNC (Evie was in tears).  Most went up to bed around 10:00 but Beth and I stayed up talking until 10:45 and Evie watched more of the Democratic speeches in the TV room.  By 11:15, we were all in bed, sleeping or reading.

Setting Sun