Garage Sale People

As usual, the picture doesn't relate to the content of my blog (usually), but it's just to make it a little more interesting

I had a garage sale a couple days ago.  I really needed to clean out stuff I had packed away and hadn't been using.  I mean, really, how does someone end up with 3 different desks in a small house?  Well, it was easy, I kept seeing ones I liked at other garage sales....

My sale gave me a chance to watch people and analyze them.  It was very interesting, especially having recently come from a job where everyone was complaining and unhappy, and that included the staff as well as the customers!

I kept an open mind and as I watched everyone.   I realized that, for the most part, people were friendly, and considerate of my belongings.  Some of them wanted to have discussions about what was for sale and why.  I got into a couple long conversations with a few people who wanted to know more about things I had done and wanted to know what it was like. 

There were a few others who tested my patience - there were a couple of women with a child who was allowed to touch everything, play with things and ended up breaking something, which they didn't pay for.  At least they purchased some things, which made it all worthwhile. 

One man had a smartphone out and was checking prices on it, criticizing my pricing.  Since I had already checked the pricing the previous week, I knew I was underpriced by more than half from the new cost of the item.  What he wasn't checking was the size of the items, both of which came in numerous sizes and I had the largest sizes of each.   He assumed he was right and kept muttering about people overcharging.  I said nothing because there were other people around and didn't want to create a scene, so I just walked away from him.   I'm sure it was his way of requesting a lower price, but that doesn't work with me.  I wouldn't have taken a nickel off for someone like him.  I'm not sure what an arrogant man like that was doing at a garage sale. 

The people who joked with me and nicely asked for a lower price or offered a lower price got the deals - quickly and happily.  One woman was buying things she was going to make craft projects from - not that they were craft objects, but everyday objects she was going to paint and arrange and hang.  She kept picking up things and I gladly gave her a package price she was thrilled with and I was happy to let her have them.  She was one of the more fun, likeable people of my day. 

It does take all kinds and certainly the day was a lesson in how to get the type of service you want in a store or other business situation.  Now, if we could somehow train some of the harder-to-deal-with people, the world would be a more enjoyable place.

Betty Karl
http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G

A Week Without Facebook

I just returned home from a week in upstate New York visiting my brother and his family.   It was good to get away and good to see them again, since I hadn't been there for five years.  They kept telling me that the week I was there was the best they've had all year.  And then they accused me of taking it back with me, because it was reported they would have rain for about 4 days when I left.  They kept telling me how warm it was, and since I'm from Florida, I felt silly having long sleeves on.  They were in shorts and I was in jeans, but I was perfectly comfortable.

My brother has a computer and I checked my email a couple times a day and a few other things while I was there.  I decided I should stay away from Facebook and other sites where I waste too much time.  I didn't even play one game of Spider Solitaire, and I'm really addicted to that!  Instead, we spent quite a bit of time in the evening in front of the TV.  I still don't have a TV, I watch a few shows on my computer and that's the extent of my TV knowledge.  Amazing how many channels there are, how much stuff that I've never heard of.  And I probably don't want to ever see most of it again.

I really didn't have withdrawal symptoms from the lack of Facebook.  I'm sure I missed some fun pictures and funny little signs.  When I got back, I didn't have the impulse to scroll down for hours looking for things I had missed.  I was fine.   Of course, now that I'm back, I do spend time looking at postings from everyone and making a comment or hitting like.

If you know anyone who thinks they can't live without Facebook, Twitter, or other sites, let them know it really is possible to survive without it.  It's an interesting site and I enjoy it but it's not the end of the world if I don't keep up with what everyone is doing.  Try it, see how long you can last.

Betty Karl
http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G

Customer Service?

Have you noticed there is very little customer service left in the States?  You can never find someone to help at Walmart and even if it's a 24 hour Walmart  - and the electronics department doesn't open until 9 AM, at least at my store.  If you do find someone, chances are they don't work in that department.....  If you call any office (except mine, it seems), you'll have to listen to a voicemail forest, pressing different numbers to try to get someone to talk to - if you're lucky.  Most of the time, you get to talk to a machine and maybe get  a call back in a couple days - or not.

I use internet in numerous places, mostly at home and at a couple different offices I work in.  In all those places, I get the message that my browser is "not responding".  This could mean that it will wake up sometime soon, far in the future, or never.  Usually, I get out of the program and go back into it.  It's frustrating.  Sometimes it's just slow.  I've had better, quicker service in places like Trinidad and Venezuela.

At home, my provider would give me a "great deal" if I had a home phone - also known as landline.  The deal would get better if I had a TV to connect to their great service.  All I need or want from them is internet service - good, reliable internet service.  And for that, I pay quite a bit per month because they penalize me because I don't want a phone or TV.   For the price they charge, I would expect great service, I would really like to get great service.  They entice you with the fact that it's "road runner", assuming we're all going to think it's really quick.

A few nights ago, I was on the computer at home on the internet.   I have a laptop with a router, which means I can take the computer anywhere in the house and it still works, very convenient.     Anyway, the other night, all of a sudden, it stopped working.  No excuse, no storms in the area, nothing going on.  I went in where the modem was and of course, there were no lights blinking.  OK, cable was out, according to my modem. 

I called up the service center and got some woman on the other end of the phone who told me to reboot the modem, which I had already done - I've been through this before with them.  Then, she said it looked good on her end and it should be working.  OK, but there are still no lights on my modem.  Somehow, she learned that I had a router and told me that must be the problem - she told me to disconnect everything - again - the modem and the router, both from power and the incoming cable.  After half a minute, she tells me to connect it all together again.  Then it magically works. 

She started telling me that every once in a while, the router needs to be "refreshed" and there was nothing wrong with their service.  Seems like I never had that problem at work, where there is also a router.  Also, the router in question is relatively new, having only been in service for a couple months.  The previous router worked for a few years without being "refreshed".  I told her that and then asked her where she was.  She had a bit of an accent I couldn't place, I knew she wasn't in India - I know that accent.  She told me she was in the Philippines.  I don't know how long that's been going on.

As a side note, that same company supplies the company I work for with internet - I had to call their office one day.  Seems that I can get a human on the phone but the office that takes care of the business accounts doesn't open until 9 AM.  What about the businesses who open at 8 AM?

Betty Karl
http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G

The Urge

Most of us have urges – they could be as benign as a shopping spree, you just had to do it. A lot of my urges have to do with food – mostly things that are poisonous – cookies, candy, sweets of all kinds. I know they’re bad for me, I know it as I savor the taste of the chocolate. When the urge strikes, sometimes you just have to go with it, it’s unstoppable.

My most powerful urge was so strong it could be labeled a “force”. Once started, there was no stopping me. That would be the urge to go cruising on a sailboat to the Caribbean. I dreamed about it for years and finally, I realized I absolutely HAD to do it! There was no waiting until retirement – I kept thinking I may never live that long. This force became so strong that I had a panicky feeling that if I didn’t take steps to make this long-time dream come true that I would regret it forever.

It didn’t matter to me that I had to sell numerous houses (some of them producing income). Didn’t matter to me that I had to sell my 1966 red convertible Mustang that I loved. I was determined, I was going to do it, no matter what. I realized that we would lose track of friends when we left, they would keep in touch for a few years, but then life would get in the way and we would lose touch with them. People always say they’ll stay in touch, but usually they don’t. As far as I was concerned, I knew I was never coming back to the same place.

Now if you’ve read this far, you’re thinking about what a stubborn person I can be. I’m not really, but like I said, this powerful force was driving me and I’d I had convinced my partner that I would take care of everything, if he would go with me – I told him how much fun it would be and the wonderful places we’d get to visit. Unfortunately, even though he did go with me for a time, he would have been happy to stay behind and keep on working and having two days off per week and maybe a week off sometime during the year.

I was tired of working to pay for a house, cars, insurance and all the things necessary to live on land and keep a job. I was never getting enough time off to recharge. Every year, I had taken trips to the islands, diving or Windjammer cruises. Every year, I was so unhappy to be headed home, it was all I could do not to cry on the plane. When I took a vacation, I tried to convince myself that I didn’t mind being back at work – for about 2 hours and then I realized how far behind I was. It felt like punishment for being gone for a week and having a good time.

Obviously, I have a bad case of wanderlust – I always want to go places and see things I’ve never seen before. Possibly I have gypsy or nomad blood somewhere in my past. Maybe in my previous lives, I never got to go anywhere and I’m trying to make up for it in this life. Whatever it is, it’s a very strong force – the urge to travel.

Betty Karl
http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G

Medical Costs Outside the U S

 

LaGuardia, Venezuela

 

 

Medical care is always scary, but especially so if you happen to be in a foreign country and need something done. Most of my medical care has been in the States, but I have had medical procedures done in two other countries where I happened to be when I needed something done. I needed to be a hospital patient in both cases, luckily only on an out-patient basis – meaning I was in and out on the same day.

The first was in Trinidad, a simple procedure and I had been to this doctor numerous times during my visits to Trinidad - I liked him and trusted his judgment. I can’t say it was enjoyable because when I woke up in the recovery room, I was freezing, no blankets. However, I can’t say anything bad about the care I received there.

I also had imaging and lab tests done there. In the States, we go to the doctor to get the order, go to the x-ray facility and then go back to the doctor for him to tell us what’s wrong, or not. In Trinidad, we get the order, go to the imaging facility, and then sit in the waiting room for them to develop the film and print the reports – and they hand it to us. Great, no visit to the doctor unless we think there’s a problem or we need further discussion with him. This saves time, money and makes much more sense. Same with the lab, although I had to go back on another day since the blood testing took more time to complete.

All of these services, and medications, cost way less than it would have in the States. You can actually afford to go to a doctor and pay for it in these places.

My second experience was in Puerto LaCruz, Venezuela. I went to the hospital for checkin, much more complicated since I had to go through their translator, my meager Spanish was not enough. They were great – in the recovery room, they had a nice blanket on me AND a hose pushing heated air under it! I was nice and warm, very comfortable. Again, this was done at a fraction of what it would cost in the States.

Medications were easy to obtain in Venezuela also, and cost only a tiny percent of the money we fork out in the States for the same thing. Certain medications that require prescriptions in the States were available over the counter there also.

A cruiser woman I knew was having treatment for cancer in Puerto La Cruz while I was there. Her husband told me that they had gone back to the States for a visit and checked in with their former doctor. He went over all the information they had brought back with them and told them that the treatment she was getting in Venezuela was the same that he would have ordered for her if she had been treated there in the States. And way more affordable.

If people go out of the States to get medical care and receive the same level of care we have here, why are our costs so high? The cost of insurance is outrageous and I don’t think it’s going to get any better. Doctors pay amazing amounts for malpractice insurance because they are open for lawsuits for any reason a lawyer might think of. Drug companies say the cost of medications is high because of the research and development, not to mention advertising, of any new drug. If that’s the case, why are the same medications available from the same companies in these other countries at a fraction of the cost? And yes, we’re talking about the name brand drugs, not generics.

I know what my opinion is and I’ll let you draw your own conclusions, but think about the information in the previous paragraph. The answers are there.

Betty Karl
http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G

　
　
　

 

How To Buy a Boat

  Sea Turtle

Back in time, I was looking for a sailboat to go cruising in.  You know, just sell everything, hop on the boat and get out of the States for an unknown time frame.  Destination – Caribbean!

We went to a large yacht sales office in St Petersburg, Florida and one of the salesmen started showing us some used sailboats, about 35’.  We spent a good part of a day looking at all kinds of boats.  The only thing that caught my eye was a 35’ Morgan with a centerboard and an aft cockpit.  It seemed solid and the layout was pretty good, although I grew to hate the fact that the galley was along the starboard side of the boat instead of being a little U or L shaped area near the companionway. 

We were going through the storage lockers, looking under the cushions and generally poking through things.  My partner found the cable that brings up the centerboard or lowers it and started playing with it and checking the little winch for it.  He jiggled things around for a while, then left the cabin to talk to the salesman on the dock. 

I sat down and looked around, just soaking up the atmosphere – it really didn’t have a bad closed-up-boat smell.  Then, I realized I heard an alien noise, there was water gurgling and it wasn’t the waves lapping the hull on the outside.  This was inside the boat!   Not a good sign! 

I called up to the guys on the dock – “Hey, I hear water running in, you better check it out!”  I heard the salesman make a comment to my partner, “She’s just hearing the waves on the hull.”  Furious, I stuck my head out the companionway and said “You can think that or you can stop this boat from sinking, it’s up to you.”  And I climbed out and got on the dock with them. 

Something about my attitude worried the salesman and he decided to check below and see what was going on.  Sure enough, when my partner was checking out the cable for the centerboard, something snapped and allowed the water to leak in the bilge from the tube encasing the cable.  It was the last touch that it needed to break apart from age and use.

We left the salesman there dealing with the problem and went home.  I did like the boat and it was the only one I liked that was in my price range.  The next weekend, we called the salesman to see if the boat had been saved and what the story was.  The problem had been fixed and the boat was still available. 

We went to see it again and decided to make a low offer, figuring the owner would be glad to get rid of it because it was just costing him money at this point.  The offer was accepted and in a short time, the boat was ours and would take us from Sarasota, Florida and on to the Bahamas, through to the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico and then to the Virgin Islands and down the island chain to Grenada.  And that’s where I found another boat I liked…….

Betty Karl
http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G
 

Nassau Rum Factory Tour

                                   

 

We got into Nassau at the end of a long day, just squeaking by a cruise ship that was on the way out the pass.  We anchored near town and got settled for the night.  The next day, the captain searched for an old mooring, the best way to stay put in Nassau since the tides run through the anchorage at a good pace.   He finally found a giant old ship’s anchor and attached our anchor chain to it.  We were now stuck for the duration.
 

We got together with a couple off another cruising boat and decided we should do a tour of the Bacardi Rum factory.  We found out from the locals which bus to take to get close, then we would have to walk up the road to the actual factory.

We arrived about noon the next day and walked into the welcome center.  It was set up as a small bar, with all the products displayed against a mirrored wall behind the bar.  The friendly bartender gave us a great big smile when we asked about the tour.  We weren’t smiling when he told us that the factory was closed for another two weeks.  But, he said, have a seat and I can serve you some of our products, whatever you want, mixed with whatever you want.  OK, then we started smiling.
 

We sat there for a few hours, listening to his stories of the island and the factory.  He was the perfect spokesman for the factory, he kept us entertained and made sure we weren’t upset about the lack of factory tour.  We sampled quite a few of their products, and of course, bought some to take back to the boat. 

Later in the afternoon, we decided it was time to wander down the road to the main road to catch our bus.  He told us he was going to close up anyway, and he would take us to the bus stop so we didn’t have to walk.  Good thing, I was really too relaxed at that point to think about walking very far.

No factory tour for us that trip, but we sure did have a nice relaxing time with a good storyteller from the islands.

 

Betty Karl

http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G

Salt Cay, Turks & Caicos

 

 

 

 

We left Grand Turk about 9:30 one morning, got to Salt Cay about 11:30, a nice little sail.  We anchored, had lunch, then dinghied to the island.  We stopped at the Brown House (which is NOT brown) and talked to Michelle, who we had known from Marathon. This is a huge house, full of history, and she was trying to refurbish it into a Bed & Breakfast.  Lots of work to be done, but it's a gorgeous setting.

She imported 14 cats from the Marathon fish house when she left.  When she walked around town, they followed her and the locals were in awe of this woman with all these cats. 

We had dinner that night with Michelle and she talked about moving there and how she was adjusting to island life.  She showed us her art work, she had collected plastic fishing floats and painted windmills on them to sell to tourists.  We decided that we should stay there a couple days, it was a very quiet island, the kind of place where you could disappear and never be found.

Town is about a mile long, dirt road, buildings built along the waterfront.  Everyone had a stone fence with conch shells cemented into the tops of the fences.  Old stone or wood houses are falling down right next to newer ones.  It’s all very picturesque.  Less than 100 people live on the island.  Right across from the houses on the beach are the salt pans.  They are still very well marked with stone walls separating them.  Most of the windmills were broken up, but someone was refurbishing them and one looked like it almost might work. 

We walked to the navigation light on top of the hill, an old cannon was found there and had been refurbished.  An old cemetery was on the way, with its own stone fence and iron gate.   Most headstones looked centuries old,  none marked, only a few newer-looking concrete box-type coverings, and only one of those was marked with name and dates. 

Horses and donkeys wander around the entire island, including the town area.

During the evening, we noticed cows appearing on the beach right after sunset.  We noticed a bull (with horns) wandering around the streets in town also.

Along the way, we collected some of the fishing floats that had washed up on the beaches and rocks of the island.  We took them back to Michelle so she could paint more windmills for the tourist trade.  She was so happy, she presented one she had finished the day before.  We were so happy to have a memento of our stay in this unique little island paradise. 

We sailed away the next day, on to more islands and more unique experiences. 

 Betty Karl

http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G

Chacachacare - Trinidad's Abandoned Leper Colony

                                                       http://youtu.be/DYT1Exsgjjy

Chacachacare is an island about 7 miles off the coast of northern Trinidad.  For years now, it has been inhabited only by the lighthouse keeper, iguanas and other wildlife.  It does include Trinidadians who arrive on boats for weekend camping and cookouts.  Cruisers also anchor there for weeks at a time.

In the past, it was a leper colony, but since leprosy was brought under control, the last patients left in the early 1980s.  It was just abandoned, no one bothered to clear out the furniture, medical equipment and records or other personal items.  The buildings are slowly being reclaimed by Mother Nature and time.  This was one of my favorite places in Trinidad, the buildings were great examples of wonderful architecture of the islands, set on the hills surrounding the bay.  Large windows and doors brought in the light and fresh air – no air conditioning for this community. 

The community was self-contained and included a bakery, hospital/clinic, movie theater, library,  numerous churches and dormitory-like buildings for the patients.  Patients well enough to work built the buildings, worked in the gardens and helped in other areas.  Patients were taken care of by Dominican nuns, who lived in buildings across the bay.  There are a couple cemeteries on the island, most notably, one by the nun’s quarters that contained graves of the deceased nuns who had worked there. 

These days, it’s deserted most of the time.  When we were there, we would always take a hike up to the lighthouse, about an hour walk.  There were great views of both Venezuela and Trinidad from the top of the hill.  The lighthouse keeper was always friendly, they had a rotating staff, but they still got lonely being the only person living on the island. 

Unfortunately, Chacachacare was downwind from Trinidad and the bay was open to the east.  During heavy rains, trash would flow into the rivers to the bays of Trinidad and over to Chacachacare, catching in the big open bay.  Every time we would go over there to stay in a quiet, uninhabited place for a while, we would go over to the beaches and make a big pile of the trash and burn it, trying to clean up the place for the next visitors.  The idea caught on and we found that other cruisers were also cleaning up the place when they went over. 

I felt like the island was a museum of sorts, a look into the lives of people who were unfortunate to have a disease that separated them from everyone they knew.  Some patients spent most of their lives there and had no idea what life would be like when they moved back to Trinidad when the colony closed.  Cleaning up the beaches in the bay was the only way I felt that I could show my respect for the island and the people who had lived there.

Betty Karl
Chacachacare slide show - http:/youtu.be/YT1EXsgjjyY

Arriving in the Dominican Republic

We left Sandy Cay in the Turks and Caicos right after noon - weather report says 10-15 knots of wind, 5' seas, sounded good. Reality is another story altogether - 20-25 knots of wind, and over 8' seas. We were making good time with double reefed main and tiny part of the jib, about 5-6 knots.

 At over 30 miles out, I was off watch, trying to nap in these lumpy seas and smelled electrical wires burning. Of course, my first thought was that we were hours from land in any direction and the water was VERY deep where we were – all in a flash. I kept sniffing, trying to locate the source of the smell – of course it was in the engine area. I finally located the general area and called my partner down to investigate further while I went up on deck to be sure everything was OK.


The problem turned out to be a faulty monitor that was supposed to check for fumes in the bilge area. Luckily, it wasn’t something critically important and since I couldn’t sleep, it was found right away when the problem happened.

I was sitting at the wheel when my partner came up to the cockpit to tell me what it was and that it could remain disconnected until it could be fixed. As the nervousness left my body and I relaxed, I realized I could actually smell land. It smelled distinctly like rich garden soil, green growing things, very lush vegetation smell. We had heard and read that this would be noticed, but I didn’t realize how powerful the smell would be. Possibly it smelled even better after the scare we’d had.

By dawn, we were only about 5-6 miles out, and in the distance we were seeing very high hills, then more mountains in the background. The smell of land was definitely more noticeable.

So much of a change from the Bahamas and Turks & Caicos - what a nice difference in its own way. We found our way into Luperon harbor with no problem and went into the inner harbor and anchored. The hills all around the anchorage were lush green vegetation, palm trees on the tops of hills, so very different from Florida and the Bahamas. 

Such a great landfall, a new island, new country, new day and so different!   So happy to have arrived safely.

Betty Karl
http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G

Beach Shopping

 

 

All through the Bahamas we walked beaches and the shores that were lined with porous rock known as “ironshore”.  On many of these beaches, especially in the outislands, we found objects on the beach, trash thrown over by boats, lost overboard, or tossed into the water from an islands east of where we were and guided by winds and currents to distant shores. 

Yes, it was litter that didn’t belong in the ocean, most of what we saw were plastic bottles of all shapes and sizes and colors.  Every once in a while we found plastic fishing floats, some covered in a line net and others not.  I was hoping that one day I’d find a glass fishing float covered in net, but I was never that lucky.  I spent quite a bit of my cruising life on these beaches, just looking for one. 

While we were in the Turks and Caicos, we went for a hike with a singlehander we knew.  The three of us walked quite a long way and ended up on a rock bluff on the windward side of the island.  The singlehander decided to climb down to the rocky shore where the surf was breaking against the rocks below.  After a while, he climbed back up to the top of the bluff where we were, grinning like he’d won the lottery.  In his hands, he had a small glass float, about 8” across, that he’d found down on the rocks.  It was a little scratched up, but still whole.  You could tell it was hand blown, a pontil mark on one side and the glass was thicker on the opposite side than the rest of the ball.  It had a little bit of a green tint to it and there were ripples in the glass that were on the inside surface. 

We talked about it all the way back to our boat, wondering about the origin of the float.  We wondered where it had traveled on its way to the rocky shore where it had been found.  We had found many of the large plastic ones, but none of them could compare with this treasure.

We got back to our boat and climbed into the cockpit to have a drink and admire the treasure.  Imagine my surprise and delight when he handed it to me and told me that he found it for me because he knew how much I wanted one.

Betty Karl
http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G

Seasick? Landsick.

 

Many people get seasick.  They leave the dock or a calm anchorage and get out the pass to the heaving, rolling ocean and the motion makes them seasick.  I've heard that it gets so bad that some people wish they were dead.  People who know that this happens to them decide to put on a patch, take a pill or some other precaution to alleviate the symptoms of mal de mer.  Of course, many people don't even bother with boats if this happens to them.  Unfortunately, they're missing out on some good experiences as well.  I have also known people who have crossed oceans or have sailed around the word, popping a pill before each long passage.  They say it goes away in a few days when they keep sailing day after day.

I'm the opposite, I have not yet been seasick.  I actually find the movement of the boat through the water, up and over the waves, heeled over and sliding along, to be very calming and relaxing.  I have been known to sit up in the cockpit on my watch and get so relaxed that I find my eyelids closing, then I shake myself awake.  When it gets to the point that the waves are crashing on the bow and tossing water over the bimini, it does get a little annoying, but it still doesn't make me seasick. 

After a passage where the waves have been active, I do have a different problem.  I get landsick.  My body gets so used to the motion of the boat sailing along that once I reach dry land - it's not moving but I feel like I still am.  I get vertigo if I go into a building and am closed in.  I once had to leave the customs office in St Lucia because I was getting nauseated and feeling dizzy.  I have trouble walking a straight line, and no, I didn't have any rum before I landed and went ashore.  One evening, we went to dinner with a few other sailors after a passage between islands.  The restaurant was nice and they put us at a corner table where the lights were low.  I sat there for about 5 minutes before my stomach was sloshing around way too much for me to eat anything.  I had to get out of there, it was getting worse the more I sat there. 

Other people have reported the same symptoms and whenever I've talked to someone about this, it's always the people who never get seasick that will feel the landsickness coming on once they get on dry land.  I always feel much better out in open air, even though I will still have some slight dizziness.  My only total cure comes when I get back to the boat and step aboard. 

Betty Karl
http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G

Merida, Venezuela

 

My trip to Merida, Venezuela came about when I was talking with a cruiser friend of mine who was in the same marina at Puerto La Cruz a few years ago.   We were both having work done to our boats and decided we needed a break.  So we did some research about how to plan the trip.

 

The easiest (and most reasonable) way to get to Merida is to get a taxi to downtown Puerto la Cruz to the bus station.  It's best to get a ticket a day or so in advance, so you can be sure to get a seat.  Be sure to wear heavy clothing - never mind that it's 90 degrees out, trust me, you'll need them.  Also, you might want to bring a little pillow and a blanket, the bus ride is 18 hours.  The air conditioning is so cold that everyone looks like they're in cocoons during the trip.  Apparently, the air conditioning units are engine driven and there is no way to regulate the temperature - so it comes out COLD.  They stop every few hours so you can have some food or a bathroom break.  There is a head on the bus, but if you use it, go early.  Toward the end of the trip, it seems to get very unpleasant in there.  Wherever you go, take your own roll of toilet paper, or tissues.  My friend laughed at me when she saw me pack the roll, but during the trip, my roll turned into "our" roll and she never laughed at me about that again.  Even at the "truck stop" places you stop for food, you will need it.  The bus has movies, some are American ones, with Spanish subtitles, but there were a couple Spanish ones that didn't have subtitles.   Actually, none of them were worth watching. 

 

It was an adventure, but certainly a trip never to forget, the teleferico was an amazing trip in itself.  It felt like a bus ride, but you look down and there is no road, only a valley far below.  There wasn't much of a noticeable sound and the car is moving slowly, so it was an eerie feeling floating along.  At the top of the mountain, 32 degrees, there was so little oxygen up there, we were stumbling around, giggling and feeling drunk.  It was all I could do to take a few pictures of the area.  It was a real shock to people who have lived at sea level for years.

 

If anyone ever gets the chance to be in the neighborhood, I'd recommend this trip.

 

Betty Karl

 

You Tube video of Merida, Venezuela - http://youtu.be/zHHpAzJU4a

Island Fever book  - http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G

Bait and switch ads?

 Baby Mangrove.

 

 

 

I realize that my photos sometimes (mostly) do not reflect what I'm writing about here, but they're probably better than a picture of this subject...

 





Last November 15, I went into Dick's Sporting Goods to purchase something that was advertised on the internet and in their local sales flier.  They didn't have any of the item left.   I went to the front counter to get a rain check and the girl commented that she knew exactly what I wanted, she had been writing those tickets all week.  I should have known then.....

It is now January, they have not called me to say that the items had arrived and I could come to pick them up.  OK, almost two months seems like enough time to get stock in.  I called the store today and was informed that they haven't had any of those items in since early November.  I asked her if they had any in at the beginning of the sale of the item.  I got what I'd call a non-answer, some mumbling about them running out of them quickly.  This was supposedly a "manager" I was speaking with. 

I then asked her if they expect any of the items in within the next month and she stated that she had no idea and the buying was all done by the corporate office.  Yes, Dick's Sporting Goods is quite a big organization, you'd think they would have fantastic buying power.  By that time, I knew I most likely was not going to be able to use that rain check at their store, the price had probably gone up dramatically and they were not willing to honor the lower price. 

I was somewhere else this morning and saw those exact items for sale at a dealer that was not a large organization.  That reminded me that Dick's never called me about those items.   Obviously, that dealer probably doesn't have the same buying power as Dick's does.  So, if that local dealer could find that product available to stock, why can't Dick's?

Anybody have that same type of experience at Dick's?  Elsewhere?

Betty Karl
http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G

Vandalism Warning

Someone in my neighborhood went around this evening, it had to be after 5:30, and taped folded notes to our doors.  I went out to the car to get something and noticed it.  It said that a few cars in the neighborhood had been vandalized the night before, and things stolen from them.  Supposedly, the police have told them that none of the vehicles were locked.  The note says the police will patrol more often.  That’s good, since they almost never patrol here unless they pull someone over on the main road and they pull in here to get their ticket.  Or they’re checking out the pedophile who used to live here, but since he died, they don’t check up on him anymore.  So, they really don’t patrol in here much at all.  Also, our “security” people will be patrolling – I’ve heard we have them, but I’ve never seen any security people around here.  I think they’re a myth.  

I was home,  lights were on, I wonder why they didn’t ring the bell or knock to let me know that there’s a problem here.  I could have found the notice tomorrow morning when I went to work.  It really doesn’t matter, since I always lock my car – ever since I saw a movie where some guy was mad at someone and opened the guy’s car door to take a leak inside.   

The message also says to report to the policy anyone who does not belong here or who is suspicious.  Half my neighbors are suspicious, so I’m just not looking. 

I’m hoping this silly message doesn’t keep me awake listening for noises in the dark.  My cat sure wouldn’t be much help with a burglar – she would just yawn and curl up again.  I’m sure it’s just kids from a few blocks over, they always shortcut through here. 

I’m not worried.   I don’t really think I am.  Well, maybe just a little, after all, I just got that “new” car a few months ago. 

 

Winter

Most people think of winter as cold.  People who live in the northern States have the idea that Florida is warm all the time.  This is to let them know that some people who live in Florida (and points further south) think that any temperature below 70 is cold.  That would be me. 

Today was an overcast day, high was about 55, about 10-15 mph winds and I was freezing!   Mostly, I stayed inside, with the heater on, still cold.  In the winter, I pretty much stay cold, and I'm sure that some of it psychological.   I know it's cold outside, so no matter how warm it is inside, I feel cold.  Did I just hear someone say something about a wimp?  Yes, that would be me.

I was raised in upstate New York, so I know what really cold is.  I lived in Florida for years and it's a damp cold as opposed to a drier cold up north.   Not to mention that my blood got really thinned out.   Then, I went cruising and spent years in the Caribbean, where I almost never got cold, except sometimes on night passages.  Especially in the winter, with the breeze and no sun - yes, the wimp got cold.  The picture above is from Union Island, by the way. 

After cruising, I moved back to Florida where the summers are nice and warm - actually they seem warmer than the Caribbean, except maybe Trinidad.  The winters here seem to have gotten colder than when I lived here before cruising, but it's probably me being a wimp again.

Yes, I am lucky I don't have snow to shovel.  I do have ice frozen on my car on some mornings when the dew has frozen and I have to turn on the car heater - I don't have an ice scraper.  I would never be able to live anywhere north of here.   I keep saying I need to move further south........

Betty Karl
http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G

New Haircuts

I always cringe when I have to go in for a haircut.  I wait until I can't stand it anymore, can't do anything with it and it's annoying me.  Then, I impulsively head for the salon and take my chances with whoever is free at the time.

When I was cruising on the boat, I cut my own hair.  I must admit, I did a pretty good job at it.  Other cruisers commented that they were impressed with the job I did.  It was cut short, a few inches long all the way around.  In the beginning, I tried to get my partner to do at least the back, since it was hard for me to do, but he was not good at it, just took lumps of hair and whacked it off where he thought it should be.  After fixing up a few of those experiments, I decided I did it better myself.

One time I was in Venezuela, a friend was going for a haircut in a local salon and convinced me I had to go and get a "professional" haircut after all my years of cutting it myself.  OK, I decided I'd take a chance, it would grow back anyway.  It was the worst haircut I've ever had  - she couldn't get one side to match the other in length, so she kept going from one side to another and clipping more off until I nervously told her it was enough.  I figured I could even it up and hope it would grow FAST!  It was SHORT!   I felt naked - quick, get the hat!

That was the end of my foreign haircuts while cruising.  While I was waiting for the boat to sell and planning to move back to land, I decided to let it grow a little longer.  While it grew, I'd trim the bad ends off and kept it looking decent. 

I've now let it grow about shoulder length and simple - it has to be simple because it won't do anything anyway  - no curl at all.  Any curl put in lasts about 5 minutes and I can't stand all that mousse or spray. 

I go to the same place now to get it trimmed and that gives me a little bit of security that I won't be scalped.  A new haircut feels good, the ends are fresh and they behave a little better than when they're split or old.  Maybe next time I won't wait until I can't stand it before I get it trimmed again.

Betty Karl
http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G

Merry Christmas - Happy New Year

As I write this, Christmas is pretty much over.  I've had a good day, made pumpkin bread this morning for dinner at a friend's relative's house.  In their family, traditional Christmas dinner is lasagna.  Not what I've been used to most of my life, but I love pasta, and therefore, was very happy with the choice.  Of course, I'm always very happy when someone else cooks for me.

I'm really not much of a Christmas person, I'm always glad when it's over.  The end of the year always seems like a good time to me.  A new year seems to promise new things, better things, maybe things will somehow magically be perfect.  Of course, I always say I'm going to make more of an effort at losing weight in the new year - how many years have I said that?  Well, some years I've succeeded, and then gained it again!

Whatever your feelings for the season, I hope you've had a wonderful time.  A time of memories full of good people, good food and good times.  Next year, I hope the world will finally be at peace.  I wish for peace and prosperity for everyone, and I hope they enjoy themselves.

Happy New Year!

Betty Karl
http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G

Windows 8

Just wanted to tell you all, be nice to your computer.  My 5 year old computer died a few weeks ago and I had to go out and get a new one.  The new one just happens to have Windows 8!  I am not happy with Windows 8!  I had Vista on my old one and Windows 7 on my computer at work, no problem.

Windows 8 wants to look like an IPhone or an IPad.  It has little squares app buttons on it, all preloaded, most of which I dumped.  Thank goodness, it also has a desktop app that you can work with.  There isn't a Start button in the normal place.  Instead, on the right side of the screen, right where you go to use scrolling for sites, it has a small window that appears usually when you don't want it to.  The Start button is in there, as well as settings (which is where you shut down) and a few other things.  It's where you can find your Control Panel and a few other things.  It's annoying because when I don't want it, it pops up  - then when I want it, it's bashful and takes prodding to come out. 

There are other things like a wrong swipe of my finger on the mousepad will make my screen go to the previous page.  Sometimes, a wrong sweep of the mouse will take me elsewhere.  My computer didn't come with a touch screen, which is fine with me.  Apparently, a lot of them do, which would make it more like an iPad.

The new computers don't come with Word or Excel - Microsoft wants you to pay extra for these programs that have been free for ages.  Some people can get away without these, but Word is important to me.  I have tons of files that use Word and the Word Viewer that I can download free does not do the trick. 

They even made my Spider Solitaire hard to work with.  When you're on that program, you don't have the time showing like you did in previous editions of Windows.  You need that to remind yourself how much time you're wasting!   You can't make the screen smaller so you can go play a game when you want to get away from whatever you've been working on and then easily go back to it.  They have a lot of graphics if you win a game - very annoying, unnecessary stuff you could turn off on the old systems.  I can't figure out how, or if, these can be turned off.  Yes, these are silly gripes, we all have our nitpicky opinions.

My IT guy at work told me of a program I can download that will make it look/work like Windows 7.  I want to be brave and just download it and think all this annoying new stuff will be gone.  However, I know that I've downloaded stuff before and have been VERY annoyed at the results, and  then spent a lot of time getting rid of what I spent a lot of time to get!  I will plan a day when nothing else is likely to happen. 

I guess the bottom line is that I had my old computer working the way I wanted, it didn't pop up with stuff I didn't want and couldn't figure out how to get rid of.  I was comfortable with it and now Microsoft wants to take me out of my comfy cocoon and make me learn to deal with their idea of great programs.  I was happy in my little rut. 

Like I said, be nice to your computer.  It may get even with you in the future.

Mental Jukebox

I like music, I have it on in the car all the time.  Whenever I walk for exercise, I have my little MP3 player going, all different kinds of music.  If I'm doing housework, painting, I have music on to make it more fun.

Sometimes, in the morning, I wake up slowly and I have a song going through my head.  I never remember the dream I was having that may have included it.  Maybe there was no dream, maybe it just popped into my mind or maybe it was next on my mental playlist.  But it's there, and I can't get it out of my head until I get more music into my head to replace it  A lot of the time, it's something I haven't heard for a while, could be months since I've heard it - was my mind just missing it and wanted to hear it?   Most of the time, it's music I like, so it's not a problem.  I usually enjoy what's playing in my mind. 

One morning, I woke up to a song running through my mind, and of course, I can't remember now what it was.  It was a song that I didn't like, REALLY didn't like, and my brain was repeating that chorus.  I had to find something else to listen to before it really annoyed me.  Whatever my theory is on this jukebox, I can't explain it playing music I don't like.  It was obviously something that was popular at one time and there was no way I could avoid hearing it.

I have no explanation for this, but most of the time, it's enjoyable.  Here's hoping if you have the same thing happening, it will be music you like.  I can't believe I'm the only one this happens to.

Betty
http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G



 

Psych Ward?

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Psych Ward?

   

I work in a doctor's office, have been at the same job for quite a few years. I like most of my patients. I know most of them by name, even know their spouse's name . They come in and we catch up on news, we're more friendly than some of my family members, actually more than most of them.

 

Full moon comes about once a month. Believe me, full moon does change things. People become a little bit more unreasonable, more demanding and then there're the ones who haven't been in for months and expect that we can see them NOW, doesn't matter that we already have a full schedule, and by the way, we're not a walk-in clinic.

 

At one time in my life, I owned a bar/restaurant and noticed that during full moon, we would see people we hadn't seen since last full moon. And the regulars got just a little bit more strange. It got REALLY interesting during "that time of month".

 

I've heard from police officers, medical staff in emergency rooms and other physician's offices (not to mention the actual psychiatric institutions) that they also notice during full moon the rise of unusual behavior. It can't be just me that sees this, other people have noticed.

 

Did anyone feel like howling at the moon a few days ago?? Did you feel like dancing on tabletops? How about any other erratic behavior (or erotic, whatever....)?

 

 

Backup!

My computer died the other day.  It was tired of working too hard, tired of being pounded on for hours, just tired of being on all the time.  It was over 5 years old and it had been acting cranky for a while - I knew it was coming. 

Luckily, I have an external hard drive, too bad I didn't backup more than I did.  I only lost a few things, which I've been able to reconstruct.  As long as my external hard drive is intact, I haven't lost any of my photos, of which I have thousands.  I think, after I get this new computer up and running and all my information on it, I'll back up my photos to DVDs also, just in case the external drive goes. 

Since my old computer was grumbling and non responsive so often, there were a few things I was working on and wanted to be sure I was able to save those, so I put them on memory sticks, just in case.  That's also a relief, I could have used them more often too.

It is not fun to find out that your computer will not let you into your records.  It refused to restore itself and now that I have a replacement, I'm sure it will never speak to me again.  The hard drive might be intact and I could probably pay someone to get the information off it, but it feels so good that most of my stuff is on that little black box, waiting to be put on a new hard drive. 

Not only do you worry about what you might have lost, but you feel disconnected, abandoned, out of touch.  You would like to research new computers, but you can't get on any websites to do so.  You can't check email.  Obviously, this is someone without an iPhone!

When was the last time you did a backup?

Betty

http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G

Bahamas

 

 

Everyone thinks of Bimini, Freeport or Nassau when you mention the Bahamas.  They’re too civilized and touristy for me.  When we cruised through the Bahamas, I loved the out islands, the southern islands that never get any tourists except by small boats.  Places like Acklin Islands, Mayaguana and Rum Cay, plus uninhabited places like Conception and the Plana Cays.

At one of the islands, instead of ice cream, they had frozen Koolaid in a cup, only $.25 each.  They also had a small souvenir shop called "Everglades Souvenir Store", with knick knacks for sale, all covered with small shells.  It didn’t look like they sold much, since they were pretty well covered in

dust. 

On Rum Cay, we were walking along the road exploring and an American man in a Jeep stopped to talk to us about living there.  He told there were about 6 couples/families living there, some of them have their own planes.  He got a phone a few years back and power was brought to the island in the past few years.  Before that, everyone had solar panels, and some are still in use on houses.  He said the locals were very accepting of them and very friendly.  Before deciding to build a house there, he had been cruising for 12 years in his sailboat.

On another island, some locals stopped to see if we needed a ride and asked us if we were on the yacht out in the harbor.  We were the only boat out in the harbor.  They see so very few people that they’re overly friendly and helpful.  We found a store on that island and bought some eggs.  The refrigerator at the store smelled funny when we got the eggs out, but I didn't think much of it.  Luckily, I looked at the eggs before I put them in our refrigerator - they had a couple maggots crawling on them.  We ditched the container and washed the eggs off.  Such is life in an island where the mail boat still only shows up once a week.

Mayaguana has an airfield which is no longer in use.  There were a couple airplanes off to the side, hadn’t been used in years.  There are a lot of stories about small planes and drug runners from a few decades ago.  We assume these were from that time, although we don’t know for sure. 

All these islands are sparsely populated and the locals are friendly.  Most of them didn’t have what we would consider a grocery store, but they had the basics.  Sometimes it’s nice to get off the beaten path to find out what a place is really like and what the people are really like.  And how simple life can be.

Betty

Island slide shows at http://www.youtube.com/user/IslandFeverCruising/videos?flow=grid&view=1 
Island Fever, the book at http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G