June , 2009

©Ian Coristine/1000IslandsPhotoArt.com

Some of our 1865 islands are very basic and modest

Want a riddle?

OK, try this one. What has 8,000 parts, is delivered in 17 boxes (three the size of your car) and has “Some assembly required” and “Batteries not included” stamped all over them? Need another hint? OK, it actually has 8002 parts if you include the floats.

Give up? Why it’s my flying machine! It was delivered 48 hours after our arrival, to a local warehouse at an undisclosed location, where I want to sequester myself for the foreseeable future. The only part that bugs is that I will see little of the islands for some time to come as I attempt to do this correctly. Let’s see now… “Insert sub-assembly ‘A’ (wing) into sub-assembly ‘B’ (fuselage) and fasten securely”…

It’s pretty wild to think you can spend as much as you would for a decent car and in return get the parts for an airplane that will look and be delicate (the entire airplane weighs 500 pounds), susceptible to being easily damaged (Aluminum frame and fabric skin), has no finished interior (except the seats), and is designed to be flown only in good weather.

And so it begins...

Your car on the other hand is fully assembled, has a plush interior with CD player, air bag, air conditioner and has a nice solid sound when you slam the door.

But….It’s not a magic carpet…and that makes alllllllllll the difference in the world.

Of course the first question I am always asked is “How long will it take you to build it?” The factory sales literature says 150 hours. A far more experienced and knowledgeable source told me it would take 300 hours. But I heard about a guy who took 900 hours and read about another who has been working on his for 7 years. So you tell me…

The thing is that I have no ‘must meet’ timetable, nothing to prove, no records I am trying to beat so it will take the time it takes. I want to do it well but sooner rather than later. I know enough to know everything takes longer than you plan and unexpected things always pop up. Already I have almost a month of commitments and visitors that will bring all assembly to a virtual halt. “C’est la vie” (That’s life!)

Home at last!

So we are back. Whew. The milk run, which felt like criss-crossing the continent back and forth to catch up with all the kids and grandkids, is over for now. After 7 weeks we were beginning to feel like we would never spend another night in a bed we were familiar with, but we are finally back and settled in. As I left off last month, we were on our way to California where we had a great visit with our daughter Kami in Los Angeles.

Returning to our home in Arroyo Grande for a mere week, we replaced and painted some of the 3 bar fence that surrounds our property, painted the metal flashing around our large solar panels, mowed 3 acres, repainted the garage door, re-oiled all the Mahogany entry doors, replaced a toilet, sealed 300 feet of a 500 foot long driveway, found time to visit as many friends as we could and complete some ‘honey-do’s’ for my favorite mother in law. You know, as much as you would typically do in a week at home.

Our fanatical focus at getting better organized and more efficient in our transitioning from one home to the other has begun to really pay off. This time we arrived at the island well after dark and within 48 hours we were completely up and running. Consider that it was not long ago that this was a 6 day chore. “Up and running” means that the water pump is back in the river and the system functions without leaks from the winter freeze, satellite TV, telephone and internet are turned back on, the fridge and larder are stocked and the boat is launched. I even had time to get a haircut and take delivery of my airplane.

Our initial grocery run is much like anyone’s on the day they move into a new house. Since nothing can be left behind for 7 months (especially anything liquid that will freeze) we have to start from scratch every summer. (Catsup, mustard, salad dressing, butter…everything)

Performing one miracle after another...

No sooner were we back that our friend Ian invited us to a ground breaking of sorts for the Thousand Island Maritime Museum that is slated to be built nearby. Janice volunteered me to perform some magic for the event and so we meet the owners and developers. ( additional photo in this month's edition of "Thousand Island Life " magazine at http://www.thousandislandslife.com/BackIssues/Archive/tabid/393/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/264/Navigating-Lost-Channels.aspx)

The following week end we were invited to sail on the owners 117 foot (35 meter) 2 masted schooner “Fair Jeanne” through the islands. The kicker was that several of us got to climb to the crows nest and bow spit (the part that sticks out from the front of a sail boat)

Sailing away on the "Fair Jeanne"

I was invited to sail on her from our area to Quebec City next week for 10 days but had to decline as our grandson will be visiting. There are opportunities for having too much fun around here.

Climbing out on the bow spit

View from out on bow spit

Climbing the crow's nest (see height below)

Stopping by Singer Castle on Dark Island, which by the way is...

For Sale

Listing # 1014, Sotherby’s International Realty. $26,000,000.
“Unoccupied castle: 28 rooms, clock tower, 13 fireplaces, 2 boathouses, icehouse, secret passages, dungeon…”

Some of the features of Singer Castle, on Dark Island in the Thousand Islands just a short boat ride from our cabin.