Sixty One Years of Accumulated Treasure

The waking days of the past couple weeks have been predominantly consumed by the difficult job of sorting and disposing of Wendy’s parents' stuff over at their riverfront home of over 60 years. Wendy has gone the extra mile, cleaning, doing laundry, sorting, boxing, and coordinating this whole exercise. What a girl!

Wendy arrives for dirty work.

To compound the challenge and augment the effort required, there’s a very unsightly shed located right beside the house. I remember years ago my friend David teased Howard, chiding him about the imposing structure. “What is this Howard? The packing crate your boat came in?” Not only has this shed, and another one beside it that we tore down two years ago totally blocked the gorgeous view of the river for around 50 years; it has I’m sure, also been the brunt of the neighbors’ comments for just as many years. Needless to say they would not miss its prominent place in their backyard views of the river panorama.

A view from the neighbor's yard.

Wendy’s brother Brad and his son Colton came down to stay at the house over the weekend with building demolition on their minds. “The neighbors should be buying the beer!” Brad exclaimed as we began carrying the loot out of the “depression era styled” structure piling it in the driveway. Radial arm, table and band saws aged by rust more quickly than normal because of the dirt floors, leaking roof and lack of winter heat were dragged in procession to the looming pile. The building contained thousands of items including a gasoline engine from a “Dispro" boat, two antique outboard motors, several sailboat masts and exotic hardwoods hidden for many, many years.

Stripping the shed.

The building; emptied of its museum vintage collection of things “too good to throw away” and “could come in handy some day” now stood precariously. Since it was stripped of its cladding and braces it had no integrity left to support the ton or so of joists, plywood, tar paper and corrugated tin that was its roof. There it stood impossibly, defiantly. The roof suspended twelve feet in thin air, the structure swayed slightly like a boxer sways right after the knock-out punch, just before the fall. Colton stood at a safe distance, and as we all stood by with our cameras ready he tugged the rope as lightly as you’d pull a rowboat to shore. In two short seconds we now had a new heap of rubble to sort through.
Click the arrow to see the movie


Goodbye old shack! Tearing down is certainly quicker than building.

In a new pile, beside the “treasures”, we placed old, rotting building materials including tar paper, corrugated steel and fiberglass panels, two by fours and sixes and chewed plywood full of bugs and mice pellets. Moldy tarpaulins and cans of paint and lubricants of all types complemented the heap. Nails and screws both from the inventory within and also extracted from the building itself littered the ground.

Neat stuff and garbage share the driveway.

Throughout the day Sunday a community spirit evolved as Wendy's other brother Doug and son Dougie came by to assist. Wendy displayed racks of Howard's extensive quantity of clothing and was thrilled to see that most of the garments found new owners within the family. My son Tim and Colton removed nails from many good timbers and sorted them into a separate stack of recyclable lumber. Howard would be happy to know that some of his old shack will likely end up at Brad’s cottage on Crow Lake in the form of a dock or shed.


Trying on clothes.

All this week, Wendy has been up before six, heading over with son Tim to work at the task of packaging up the rest of the items in the house. I usually go over later to help with the carrying but its not really my place to make the decisions and Wendy really does work well alone.

Dental Work Continues.

Back to Dr. Carr and my root canal at 10 AM. He was all finished in half an hour and I was relieved of another $695 for a grand total of $1600. (He does not bad for an hour and a half, but worth every penny I'm sure) Now I was left with only temporary fillings to protect all this valuable work, so I lucked out when Beth, my regular dentist Dr. Ted Gillis’ secretary called and announced a cancellation.

At 2:30 I was back in the chair getting reinforced fillings, one permanent, the other awaiting my next (May 17) appointment to get a crown on the tooth with the largest filling. Only $385 for this half hour job. The consolation prize is I’m paying all this with Mastercard so I get Air Miles. Maybe in some small way this will all lead to another cruise.

All in all, the whole thing has been physically painless. I told Ted I’d nodded off during my root canals. He said he hoped I wasn’t snoring. “Gosh, I hope not!” After he finished today he laughed “By the way, you fell asleep here today you know… And you were snoring!” Embarrassing or what? I know it won't help me live any longer, but I do get along well with my doctors.

Spring is Finally In The Air

Click the picture to enlarge
Spring is ready to burst forth and my thoughts turn to Point Edward. If you've ever been there or not, or you want to see what this Great Lakes paradise looks like, click here. I post this not just to brag, but to entice you to come and visit us this summer.

The Words "ROOT CANAL" Instill Fear... Sort of Like "TAX AUDIT" or "SUIT 'N TIE EVENT"

Yesterday I went in for my dreaded root canal. The endodontist, Dr. Carr took another x-ray to determine his strategy. He explained the procedure to the minutest detail, exclaiming that he was going to do both teeth in this one visit. After a relatively painless injection of local anesthetic and a short wait, he and his assistant began their work in a methodical, efficient, almost monotonous procession of procedures. Drilling, reaming and packing my teeth took most of an hour.

What a surprise. To say the whole thing was painless would be an understatement. At the end Dr. Carr said “I think you actually nodded off a couple of times. Sorry we woke you up with all the noise. You were great.” “You were too! Thank you.” I replied. He had completed one root canal and packed the second, and more severely infected tooth with a disinfectant which he’ll remove and complete next week.

That was it! My wallet was $875 lighter, and I have an appointment to come back next Tuesday. It was about as interesting as a getting a filling, and somehow almost anticlimactic... in a warped sort of way. But hey; I said my prayer, so I guess I'm now committed to brushing three times a day!

If you’d like to know more about a root canal and the procedure involved go to:
http://www.animated-teeth.com/root_canal/t1_root_canal.htm
Check with your dentist, and maybe you can have one too!

You Should Read And Decide!

I always thought it was a brilliant idea to freeze the water bottles so the water would stay cold longer - according to this internet article, it's NOT such a great idea! Truth or Fiction - you decide.

CANCER UPDATE FROM JOHN HOPKINS HOSPITAL
1. No plastic containers in micro.

2. No water bottles in freezer.

3. No plastic wrap in microwave.

Johns Hopkins has recently sent this out in its newsletters. This information is being circulated at Walter Reed Army Medical Center as well. Dioxin chemicals causes cancer, especially breast cancer. Dioxins are highly poisonous to the cells of our bodies.

Don't freeze your plastic bottles with water in them as this releases dioxins from the plastic. Recently, Dr. Edward Fujimoto, Wellness Program Manager at Castle Hospital , was on a TV program to explain this health hazard. He talked about dioxins and how bad they are for us. He said that we should not be heating our food in the microwave using plastic containers. This especially applies to foods that contain fat. He said that the combination of fat, high heat, and plastics releases dioxin into the food and ultimately into the cells of the body. Instead, he recommends using glass, such as Corning Ware, Pyrex or ceramic containers for heating food. You get the same results, only without the dioxin.

So such things as TV dinners, instant ramen and soups, etc., should be removed from the container and heated in something else. Paper isn't bad but you don't know what is in the paper.
It's just safer to use tempered glass, Corning Ware, etc. He reminded us that a while ago some of the fast food restaurants moved away from the foam containers to paper. The dioxin problem is one of the reasons.

Also, he pointed out that plastic wrap, such as Saran, is just as dangerous when placed over foods to be cooked in the microwave. As the food is nuked, the high heat causes poisonous toxins to actually melt out of the plastic wrap and drip into the food.

Cover food with a paper towel instead

This all seems to be a load of hooey. Click here to read an article from TruthOrFiction.com You decide, but I'm not buying into the idea that freezing water in a plastic bottle will harm anyone. I'll continue to do so. You can't believe everything you read on the internet. (my opinion) Ever heard of plastic ice cube trays and bins?

I Find Out I Need Not One, But Two Root Canals!

My worst dental nightmare is now a reality. Next Monday I get Root Canal number one for $750. Next comes #2 for another $750. Then the teeth must get Crowns to prevent them from splitting. I can only imagine that with such a Royal name that they will have a Princely cost. No group dental plan, so there goes the price of another cruise. Oh well... Ya gotta eat!

On Da Dog's Trail

Da Dog

Tim, we managed to track down the Dog house and the bail bonds place as we told you. Here is the pic of me and Dominic, Dog's son.

Donna, Pete, Cheryl and John were on a mission before they got on the plane to come home. They had to go to 1381 Queen Emma St. in Honolulu, the site of Da-Kine Bail Enforcement. This is the office of TV personality and reality show star, Duane (Dog) Chapman. Donna is a particularly ardent fan. Unfortunately Dog was apparently away in New York when they got there.

Cheryl at 1381 Queen Emma St

Donna

and John and Cheryl pose with "the Dog" cutout.

Back to Low Carb. Oh No!

Back Home, Safe and Sound.

Back Row: Tim, Barry, John, Cheryl, Peter
Front Row: Wendy, Holly, Donna

Wednesday - Honolulu and Homeward Bound

Room service neglected to bring our coffee at 6 AM so we slept is until 6:15AM when John called and woke us up. We were all to breakfast at 6:45 since we are allowed to exit the ship early if we are prepared to carry all our luggage off by ourselves. This is one part of the “Freestyle” program promoted by Norwegian that we all enjoyed. Everything worked out well and we were off the ship and driving West on H1 by 9 AM. We had never had time to visit the west end of the island last week so our first stop was the Marriot Hotel, near the marina. This is a beautiful spot. It would prove to be a jewel among the thorns so to speak.
Hundreds of "homeless" people live in tents on the Western coast of Oahu.
Deciding to drive north for ten miles along the coast we now see why the western coast is not shown on the tourist maps. This is obviously where people who have less money (or no money) live. It was our only glimpse of extended poverty that we’ve seen on these islands. It’s interesting that even though these people have very little money things are quite tidy and they still have million dollar views. I guess if you have to be broke this is the spot to be.

Tuesday – Kona, the Big Island, Hawaii

Enterprise “We pick you up” After a nice breakfast we are under way by 10:00 in two full sized, stretched Chevy Uplanders. Returning to the Big Island (Hawaii) the second island of our trip, it is as different as going to another island.
This side, unlike Hilo on the opposite side, is desert-like, although unlike a desert island in the Caribbean like Curacao, it is very lush. The desert like appearance is more like it is caused by the lava rock moonscape than the climate. We all drove from Kona down hwy. 11 to the Kealakekua Bay Historical state park at Captain Cook’s monument. The beach was all rock and unsuitable for sunbathing, so the others left to points north and the more traditional white sands. Pete and I donned our snorkel stuff and enjoyed exploring the colorful reef with its many fish.

The Painted Church was adorned with beautiful handpaintings.

After the swim, we visited a coffee factory and “the Painted Church” an old Catholic church with beautiful, quaint wall paintings and beautiful outside gardens. The ship last call was 4:30 so we took the rental car back around 3:30 and a short tender ride back to the ship.

Our last dinner, a lovely meal and we all decided if would he a good idea to get an early night since we were getting up early to disembark.

Monday - I Don’t Want To Ever Go Home!

Up before 6:00 AM we headed to the sports bar for the relaxed breakfast as the ship came closer and closer to the island of Molokai. This lightly populated island of only 9000 people has perhaps some of the most rugged shoreline terrain. Our wonderful Captain brought the ship within a mile or so of land so that we could see the wonderous sites that can only be seen from the sea or from the air. The only signs of civilization was some remote antennae, a lighthouse, an old lepper colony and the occasional house. All accessible only by mule or boat. At the extreme northeastern corner of the island of Molokai we feasted our eyes on the tallest sea cliffs in the world adorned by some 100 cascading rivulets streaming hundreds of feet down to the ocean below. All along the way we were treated to sightings of whales showing off for us some within 100yds. off the bow of the ship.

That evening we did "dress up" and got a group photo before heading to the dining room.. We had a lovely meal, I had the pork loin. John and Cheryl were celebrating their wedding anniversary so the wait staff sang a rather ragged version of "Let Me Call You Sweetheart" and we all had cake. Donna had arranged earlier for their room to be decorated and other special treats.

The grand finale of our day at sea comes between 10:00 and 11:00 PM as Captain Idar Hoydal steers the ship close to the shore of the Big Island and an active volcano (Kilauea) lava stream. We see the glowing red lava with steam billowing violently as it falls into the ocean. It is a scene that I have always imagined, yet seemed so surreal when viewed live.

Sunday - Another Perfect Day on Maui

A parasailer "leaps" off the side of the mountain and soars for miles. Click to enlarge.
We got up early this morning at 6:15 AM before the ship was about to dock. Room service delivered our breakfast and we were off the ship by 8:05 AM we grabbed the first shuttle bus to their rental car company, this time Dollar Car Rentals and we were on our way before 9:00 AM. We immediately drove to the top of Haleakala volcano. I’ll be glad when I’m back home and I don’t have to keep coming up more with more superlatives to describe each and every day! Oh how beautiful it was as we ascended the huge volcano to a height of 10,023ft.

We drove from tropical jungle through western looking plaines with cattle roaming freely, to above the tree line where the landscape looked like the surface of the moon (or Sudbury as Pete said) .Of course we never knew we were returning to Maui so this gave us the opportunity to do what we never had time to do before. We finished up at the beautiful, lush Iao Valley and then Wal Mart for soda.Holly and Barry and John and Cheryl headed over to the beaches north of Lahiena, Maui.

Saturday - Sick At Sea? Expect To Wait!

We had to turn around over halfway to Fanning Island. A life was at stake. Some people even griped.

We feel some of the anguish that the poor man and his wife must be experiencing as the ship’s TV displays the GPS image of the tediously slow progression of the ship towards its rendezvous today after noon. Slow and leisurely is great when you’re on vacation but this floating city; heading into a 10 to 15 knot headwind, can only do 18 knots wide open. With life hanging on by a thread, the days must certainly seem excruciatingly long.

Nine AM Friday (the turn) to 4:00 Saturday afternoon. Some 35 hours since his heart attack, 31 hours after turning the ship back northward, the Coast Guard helicopter finally arrives.The view from our window was beyond all others

For safety, all forward decks were cleared and the Forward Observation Lounge was packed to capacity. The best seat in the ship turned out to be our cabin number 8109. We watched through our picture window as the helicopter lowered a coast guard officer and a basket to the bow in 30 feet front of us. The copter left for a while as preparations were completed for the lift. A C-10 Coast Guard plane circled at a distance as fire personnel and security stood at the ready. The chopper returned momentarily, and then as we watched in amazement the gentleman with the heart attack was raised up into the helicopter. Then the Coast Guard officer and a younger woman were hauled up and whisked away. It was all over in 5 minutes. A cheer was heard as the entire ship seemed to wish the poor man well. Hopefully the Captain will update us on the man’s condition has the trip continues.

Tomorrow morning the ship docks back on one of our favorite islands – Maui.

Day at Sea - A Change of Itinerary

I did it again! I slept in until 9 AM. Very overcast, I was not too quick to get out of my cabin. As I stepped out onto the deck, I encountered Holly and Barry. I mentioned to Barry that that we must have turned into the wind because there was none last night under a ¾ moon. Barry noticed that the sun was off our starboard beam. This would indicate we were heading north instead of due south to Fanning Island. I confronted 3 crew members (2 of which were officers) with this revelation All denied, or at least were ignorant to the reality of the fact that we were now headed back to Hawaii.

Sure enough; minutes later, the Captain made the announcement that we were not going to Fanning Island due to a medical emergency. A man had suffered a heart attack and was in stable but serious condition. The U.S. Coast Guard helicopter will come to pick him up, but since the copter only has a range of 150 miles, (300 miles return) we are steaming at full speed (18 knots in a headwind) towards the Big Island. The Captain estimates we will be close enough to make the exchange between noon and 2 PM tomorrow. They will lower a basket to the bow right out our window. I asked the captain where we should watch. He said we could see well from our forward looking stateroom, but to hear and see the helicopter, the Sky Deck would be better, although there will be hundreds of people there.

The Captain said our itinerary has changed and we will be now going back to Maui, but to the other port of Kahului. (near K Mart) Also, we will now have the opportunity to sail past the active volcanic area on the Big Island and see molten red hot lava pouring into the sea at 10:30 PM on Monday on our way to Kona as previously planned on Tuesday.

Pete and Donna relax at the "swim up" bar on our day at sea

Everyone enjoyed an otherwise leisurely day data as we sailed back into the sunshine, inching ever closer to Hawaii. All this at the amazing fuel economy of 50 ft. per gallon, according to our Captain.