Neighbourhood farewell dinner on our cul-de-sac street in France
The transition
Returning to the island is always a bigger deal than returning home to California or to France. There is the water system to turn back on, witch is no mean feat, 2 boats to launch and the phone and internet to have the phone company re activate. All of the outdoor furniture that is stored in the house to protect it from the harsh winter needs to be put back in place. And on and on.
We don't resent all of the work but it is still a multi day affair, when all goes according to plan. This year, it did not. We called ahead to have the phone, TV and internet re activated but none of it worked when we arrived. Had a fisherman accidently cut our submarine cable with his prop? Did a beaver chew the cable? Who knows? None of the boats or jet skis would start, some due to old batteries, some that have taken their toll due to the harsh winter climate and long storage period.
We attended a family affair within 48 hours of our arrival while jet lagged to the max only to return to a rare fog layer so thick we could not boat to our island and had to spend the night with friends who shuttled us back and forth till we got a boat running. Not to be outdone, we had scheduled the removal of our deteriorating dock upon arrival and had it replaced with a new one, requiring prep work to be completed beforehand.
The dock. Out with the old...
In with the new
You can see the flag on our adjacent "Pirate Island" we bought last year
This, to accommodate a new boat we purchased last fall that is now in the shop to have canvas made for it before my return from New Orleans. Oh, did I forget to mention that I went to (and currently am) with our daughter Kami for two weeks; working through her daddy chore list to get the new house she bought up and running?
I need a drink.
New Orleans
One by one, as the kids purchase their homes, it has been a real blast to go out and spend some time with them working on projects, renovations or just work through their daddy chore list to help out. Anyone who owns a home knows full well that there are always things that should be done but time is short when you are working and raising a family.
This time, it was daughter Kami's turn. There is no point in having all these kids if you are not going to show up when they need you. She bought a starter house that is actually two homes, so she is living in one and renting the other out. Smart! I flew out from the Island to spend two weeks with her and got busy working her list.
The left side is where she lives. The right side is her rental unit. Although often referred to as "shotgun" houses, it is technically incorrect. A "shotgun" house is one where you can see the back door through the house from the inside front door. Hence, you could fire a shotgun from the front door to the back. This one has a side hallway so you cannot see all the way back.
The joys of home ownership
OK, so was not all work from dusk to dawn. We did manage to slip in a tour of several "shotgun" homes and had a wonderful brunch in the French quarter.
Brunch in the French Quarter
Sadly, while New Orleans has all of the charm and history we have come to expect, the city fathers have yet to figure out how to manage its streets. Anywhere off the main drag are streets in conditions you would expect in Ukraine after the Russians had their way with them. Monster potholes, sidewalks upended as if there had been an earthquake. Surely I am exaggerating, you think. Except for the pothole I saw in the middle of a street that was so big and deep that a neighbor had put a traffic cone in the middle of it as a warning then filled the surrounding area with dirt and planted flowers. I kid you not.
The canoe arch as you leave the island
And a close up... Past this point, we cannot guarantee our guests safety.
