September, 2009

©Ian Coristine/1000IslandsPhotoArt.com

Some of our islands have many cottages.
some have few. Some have one.

“All the news that is fit to print”

For the past 2 years, we have been using a service called ‘Earth Class Mail’. This company receives all of our snail mail regardless of the source and serves as our permanent address for correspondence purposes. Whether a letter comes to us from France, Canada or the US, it all gets directed to our mail drop in Oregon. There, it gets scanned and sent to us as an attachment in an email the moment they received it. We can print it, delete it or have the actual physical letter sent to us wherever we are at the time.

It has been a foolproof system that has been a godsend to us as mail forwarding services we had used previously were notoriously unreliable and tardy. We have had some mail travel around the globe for weeks going to places we had just left and being forwarded to places we would not be returning to for months.

The point of all this blather is that I got a call from a reporter from the New York Times. She wanted to ask if I would endorse the company and talk to her about our experience with the service as she was writing an article about how they were expanding in Europe. For reasons I simply cannot fathom, she chose not include my witty, insightful, forward thinking opinions on current political matters. Anyways, here is the link to the article.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/13/technology/internet/13mail.html?_r=1&scp=7&sq=earth%20class%20mail&st=cse

Small towns

Much like in France, it is hard to beat the small town lifestyle we enjoy here. Only in a small town can you walk into your bank and have the new teller say “Hello, I don’t recognize you. My name is Linda. Have you been banking with us long?” as she reaches out to shake your hand. Then, having walked down the street to the post office, the postmistress says “I know you, you are the magician. I read the article about you in our local magazine”. I love large communities but it is hard to beat the small town everyday relationships that we built in them.

You are under arrest!

View of the US from our Island

We had some excitement here about a week ago. We woke up one morning to find that US and Canadian Customs officers had arrested 3 guys (including an Australian and an Ukrainian) for trying to cross the border within a few feet of our island. It seemed that the bad guys were ferried across from the Canadian side to the US by a man who picked them up in a boat.

Having been tipped off, agents equipped with night vision goggles had staked the area out during the night. They might have been Canadian terrorists trying to sneak in or just folks trying to get away from the Canadian health care system…

Da Plane, Da plane!

It has become a sad fact of life that I have to come to grips with. I won’t get it in the air this summer. I aimed high and expected more of myself. While I fell short, I can’t very well ask my kids to do what I am not prepared to myself. Meanwhile, I am surrounded with a bunch of “I knew it!” and “I told you so’s”, but it’s OK. At the end of the day, I still have an airplane so I am not what Texans call city cowboys: “All hat, no cattle”. Clearly, I have nothing to complain about.



I have not exactly sat on my laurels. I worked over 182 hours on it in the past month alone, working 6-9 hours a day on most days. I should note that for every 3 hours I spend building, another hour is devoted to reading assembly manuals, watching instruction video's, writing emails for advice and ordering parts. I always make sure I have at least a weeks worth of work ahead of me where I have an idea of what I should be doing, including allowing for "I am sorry but that part is on back order".



By the time we leave next month I should have made another huge stride. I recently heard that the average build time is spread out over 5-8 years. Yikes! Every morning, the thought of working on my airplane lights my pants on fire and gets me jumping out of bed, do my snoopy dance, go into my Wilbur Wright mode and run off to assemble another component of the Thousand Island Air Force.

Each day after breakfast my bride packs me a lunch for the stars, I head for the mainland like a laborer and don't return until 7 PM. Working on this project is the most time I have been away from my bride since I retired nearly 5 years ago. Because she does not share my unfettered devotion and zeal to this undertaking, Janice stays on the island.



My days go from doing one thing after another that I have never done before and haven’t a clue where to start. This past week I built doors. The week before I finished the wings and got them ready for paint. I still don’t quite know when I will be done, but I think I see a faint glow at the end of the tunnel and I don’t think it’s a train. Still, it's the kind of thing where you can do it well or do it fast. If it sounds like I am rationalizing here, I most certainly am. But it is my story and I am sticking to it.

It is frustrating that the Federal Aviation Administration refers to my efforts as an “Amateur built, experimental, light sport aircraft”. I like to refer to it as “Custom built, conscientiously hand crafted with meticulous attention to detail”. It may be aeronautics, but sometimes it feels more like rocketry where the learning curve is straight up.

An interesting aside was a concern I had about being able to bring my airplane to our island. I am not allowed to fly into Canada until I have a somewhat more advanced license than is required in the US. The temporary solution was in the details. “Flying in or into” was the issue, but a taxiing airplane is technically a boat. [ More than technically actually as I will be required to have life jackets for the pilot and passenger, 50 feet of floating safety line, a paddle, a whistle and a fire extinguisher] I am permitted to taxi from my dock to US waters (10 meters) and take off. Upon my return I can land in US waters and taxi to my dock. Perfectly legal and completely doable because of our location. At least until I upgrade my license.

Taking a stroll down memory lane

A few months ago, we celebrated our 25th anniversary but we were reminiscing of our 10th anniversary also. That one was pretty cool.

A full year ahead, I had decided to take my trophy bride on her first trip to Europe by planning a trip to England. (It was a big deal then). I spent the entire year getting myself organized as I wanted it to be a surprise. I secretly made arrangements with her boss to schedule her to be on vacation, got my favorite in laws to agree to watch the little monsters while we would be away and got Janice’s sister to con her into getting a passport based on a bogus story about them tripling in price.

First time across the pond

Several months out, I began surreptitiously photographing her as she would leave for work so I would have a reference when it came time to assemble the proper combinations when I packed her clothes. I never told any of the kids, so holding a globe to the camera, I made a video that my in laws could play in daily segments describing where we were and what we were doing that day. I was hoping that the kids would feel that we were not so far away and they could ‘participate’ in our travels.

I drove to Los Angeles Airport a week ahead to meet with the shift supervisor to explain the situation and persuaded him to allow me to check in luggage early and permit us to board without Janice having to come to the ticket counter. Bear in mind that this was pre 9-11… and could never be replicated today. My cover story to Janice was that we were picking friends up at the airport. She would have actually boarded the aircraft and be seated before she knew what was happening.

One of the fun things I planned was our attending the “Ceremony of the keys”. I had requested and obtained tickets a year ahead, as was required. With only one exception, this nightly ceremony has been held at precisely 9:53 PM at the tower of London for the past 700 years. During WW II, a bombing raid knocked the guards to the ground and they were a few minutes late. The guard was required to write a letter of apology to the King.



This ceremony is where the tower gates are locked for the night and the keys are taken to the Queens quarters for safekeeping, indicating that "All is well". Only about 30 people are permitted in the courtyard to witness this very formal event. Most visitors have never even heard of it and by the time they do they are a year late in trying to get tickets.

In spite of my best laid plans, some serious last minute drama with teenage kids raised issues that could potentially have canceled the trip. That required me to spill the beans to Janice just 48 hours before our departure for her input as to the go / no-go of the adventure. It was a go.

August 2009

©Ian Coristine/1000IslandsPhotoArt.com
A friends Island

Incoming...

Mandy helping dad prepare a wing

This month we had a few more visitors. After dropping daughter Mandy off at the airport, we returned home to meet aunts and uncles from Ottawa and Arizona. They dropped in for a quick overnight visit and we had a great time with mini boat cruises and the obligatory view of the Starfire skunkworks (the airplane build).

Enough aunts and uncles to beat the band!

Shortly thereafter, my sister Loraine’s family came with my mother, while my brother Marc came from Montreal to spend the night. There were seven of us and as small as the cabin is we actually have beds for 10 people. Which begs the question…where were you? The object of this mini invasion was to facilitate getting my mother from my sister’s place in Toronto where she was visiting, to my brother’s place in Montreal. We just happen to be located at the midway point in between, so we were chosen as the meeting place for an overnight stop.

Sister Loraine, brother Marc and Mom

As chance would have it, it happened to be Mom’s birthday so we whooped it up and BBQ’d up a storm. Following their departure, my sister and her family stayed for the remainder of the long week end.

Adirondacks or bust!

Our digs in the Adirondacks

We have had over twenty requests to rent the island this summer including one person wanting to rent it for two months. (Yea right, as if!) Our first of this summer’s two renters came early this month while we took a week off to visit the Adirondacks. The home we stayed in for this exchange was featured in an architectural book of the regions homes as well as “Adirondack Life” magazine. I still have to pinch myself to think that due to our doing a home exchange while renting out the island we are being paid…generously- to visit places like this at no cost. Is this a great country, or what!

To see the video of the cottage, click on the arrow

We certainly took advantage of the time to visit more of the area including Saranac Lake, Crown Point and Lake Placid, home to America’s Winter Olympic skiing training center. It was exciting to see future hopefuls giving it their all. Since this is summer, they brilliantly use a pool for their landings.

To see the video, just click on the arrow

Still, I didn’t forget that I am trying to build an airplane this summer so I took some smaller components with me to work on while we were away. OK, so my bride was not impressed. Something about not knowing anyone whose husband takes a rudder and horizontal stabilizers to work on while on vacation...

Fly little hatcheling, fly.

Vacation? What vacation? We have been on vacation for the past 5 years. Every day is a vacation, isn’t it?

The 'Dancer'

Our second week of renting the Island coincided with a long planned trip up the Rideau Canal (A World heritage site since 2007) on our friends Wayne and Barbara’s yacht. What a kick it was traversing the locks as well as seeing a couple of hundred miles (300 kilometers) of this stretch of the river. Parts of it are fairyland in nature and history abounds. It was our first time living aboard a boat for a week and I got promoted to first mate! Now I am qualified to not only swab the deck but clean the latrine. It will be some time before I stop saying "Arrrr" and "Ahoy" a lot but I had to knock off the "down to the galley, you scurvy bilge rat" when Janice refused to make lunch. What fun we have.

Let’s Party!

In June I mentioned that I had performed some magic for a groundbreaking of sorts for the Thousand Island Maritime Museum. No sooner had I finished, that I was asked to do it again for a charity fund raiser for a local Heritage Museum.

Polaris Island

This was a rather upscale do, where 100 of us were taken aboard a 63 foot (21 meter) yacht, to a stunning home on a private island for a an evening party that was catered by several of the local restaurants. At a $125 a head, we were well catered to. There was a band, hors d’oeuvres to die for, enough champagne and wine to sink a ship and wonderful desert trays. I had been asked to perform walk around magic as an ‘ice breaker’, a means for people to be introduced to each other and get the event off to an elegant start.

The invitations called for a white dress code, an unusual requirement for islanders whose idea of dressing up usually consists of wearing pants with a functioning zipper. It was also the first time we have been to an event that seemed to consist primarily of fellow island owners, albeit the majority of which were considerably above my pay grade. These folks own some serious toys… All in all it was a great evening, giving us a glimpse of a lifestyle we would love to become accustomed to.

“I know a guy”

Whenever the conversation turns to my summer project, the first question I am always asked is “When are you going to be finished?” It’s the darnest thing to not really have a clue. I could easily estimate how long it would take me to re-do any part I have completed (about a third of the time it took me to do it the first time) but I am clueless as to how long the remainder will take as I am a first time builder.

I have finally come to understand why it takes some guys a few hundred hours and others over a thousand. The devil is in the details. Like many other things in life, you have a choice regarding what 'good enough' will be. Don't get me wrong, none of these details involve safety. There is zero tolerance for compromise here. Rather it involves comfort, convenience and aesthetics.

Since I am an owner builder, I can decide if the 'finish" on the airplane will be rougher looking or take the time to make it look smoother and professional. It will fly just the same but you get to decide how much pride you want to take in your work. Do I take the time to round out the rough cut brackets on the doors? (Yes) ...or call it good enough (No) Minor details and modifications that increase the WOW factor take time. A lot of time. In some ways, it is like working on a project at home. If I take the time to finish it well, you will never notice. If I don't, it will stand out like a sore thumb.

I am not making excuses here. I am sure that there are many builders that are faster, smarter and more efficient than I. But I will take all the time I need to do this right. On the other hand, I am not trying to build a piece of art here either. I want to fly this thing in THIS lifetime and I am aware that the summer is quickly slipping away.

I do know that when we are 'company-less' I don’t fool around and I spend long days in my hangar. In fact, I am so focused that recently I came home after a long day and while changing out of my work clothes I noticed that I had worn two different shoes. Janice on the other hand, is growing weary of my being as frugal as an Amish farmer. "Enough", she says, as I calculate if we should buy the big box of cereal that is a deal or if it will tie up too much capital.

Inevitably, at some point in the conversation, I am told about ‘the guy’. ‘The guy’, as in “I knew a guy who was killed in one of those airplanes…” Sometimes it was something they saw or heard about in the news, sometimes it is a story they heard from someone else. But somehow the conversation almost always concludes with them recounting a story of a tragic end to a private pilot.

I don’t want to make light of things but I am curious as to why if someone mentions that they bought a new car, the conversation does not automatically become about knowing some ‘guy’ who burned to death when his car went over a cliff. Yet, it happens, right? I guess private aviation is still largely unfamiliar to most and there is a fear of the unknown. For the record, I know of dozens of pilots who fly often and on a whim with none the worse for wear.

The art of the
1 word question

While in Europe, I sometimes write about some of the cultural contrasts I see compared to what we are accustomed to here in America. One struck me the other day as I was shopping.

Here, we have a tendency to really get to the point of the business at hand. In Europe, or France anyway, there is a “let’s warm up to the idea” concept that I still feel is foreign to me. Let me explain.

When I am looking for something in a store for instance, I can ask my question in one word. “Milk?” with an inquisitive look will get me a gesture or short answer like “aisle 4”. We are not getting married here so there is no need for idle chatter. The same goes for asking directions. If I am ‘location challenged’ and I am driving by someone on the street, I can slow down and shout “10th street?” with the same ‘where the heck is it?’ look.

Most often the response will go something like “two blocks then left” with appropriate gestures. You will note that I said slow down as there is no need to actually stop. Quick and to the point. You know, efficiently American. In France however, this would never work. Many times in France I have forgotten this ‘vive la difference’ and felt like a real dolt. There, it’s all about relationship building. You always begin the conversation with a greeting. In most cases, where possible, a handshake.

The kicker is when you are asking for directions from your car to a passing pedestrian.

“Hello” you begin after coming to a complete stop, blocking all traffic.

“Hello, can I help you?” he might respond.

“Yes please. I am looking for a street that I am not familiar with” you say.

“That’s OK, I know the area well” “What street are you trying to find?” he asks (In America the driver behind you would be wondering what the problem was and why don’t you get going!)

“Well, I have an appointment on 10th street and I have been driving around but I can’t find it” you answer. (Here in America, the driver behind you would be honking his horn and making “gimme a break!” gestures while shaking his fist!)

“Oh, 10th street is easy to find. Just keep going straight for two blocks, then turn left at the bakery. Be careful not to miss the turn or you will have to drive two more blocks before you can make a U turn” he explains.

“Thank you, you have been quite helpful” you say as you glance in your rear view mirror noticing that the driver behind you here would be reaching for a baseball bat or loading his 45 for a clear cut case of justifiable road rage.

Life on these two continents is just not the same.

July, 2009

©Ian Coristine/1000IslandsPhotoArt.com

Our Islands come in all shapes and sizes

Greetings from the Thousand Islands

This was a busy month for receiving visitors. First to arrive was our 15 year old grandson Alex who flew in for a week from Washington State. We didn’t do that much, really. Except for a boat tour of the islands, of course. Well, we also did have Wayne volunteer to drag us around in his boat while I taught Alex how to water ski. This was my second attempt as my efforts two summers ago ended in a dismal failure. This time, at untold cost to my pride and dignity, after demonstrating all the ways that would result in a catastrophic failure, I finally got up and skied successfully.

To see video, click on arrow above on bottom left of the screen

With such a thorough demonstration, he was up in no time.

Then again, we did manage to take in our local yearly motorcycle rally and even spent some time working on my airplane. Of course we were not about to miss the air show at Ft. Drum, home to the 10th Mountain Division. These soldiers have been deployed from Afghanistan to Iraq for years so the area is very much a military town. We always make a point to thank them for their service to our country anytime we see them in public and I am pleased to see how much they seem used to being approached in this manner. It appears that it is something they are quite used to experiencing.

Alex in Alexandria Bay

We couldn’t very well let the kid die of boredom so we visited Ft. Henry also, Canada’s version of West Point. You know- lots of history, guns, explosions and all manner of things a boy loves.

Finally we spent a day in Ottawa (Canada’s capital) where we visited the Rideau Canal, the Parliament buildings and testosterone heaven, the National War Museum. Like all museums, many displays are narrated by people who lived what they are describing and this one was no exception. Incredibly, in one display, were photos and a recorded interview of my grandfather describing his war service in France during WWI. In the National War Museum!

WOW!

Like I said… we didn’t do much all week.

The magic carpet: CH2-2858

The significant amount of time I spent NOT building my airplane this month was a choice and I make no apologies for it. What a problem to have, so many things I want to do and so little time to do them all in. It’s my idea of having a life. Between inviting company and participating in social events, I still managed to sneak away tor a total of 54 hours to work on it. It was a little intimidating at first and often felt that like flying itself, aircraft assembly involves learning a whole new language.

I remember looking at the inventory sheets and seeing parts called “Ronny brackets". I was looking at 17 boxes full of parts and pieces and thinking “what the devil are ‘Ronny brackets’, much less ‘where do I put them?’ Then there was the ‘control horn’. You’re kidding right? Airplanes don’t have horns! Then I thought ‘maybe it’s for when you are taxiing and you want to warn other ground based airplanes’.

Wrong! It’s a part that controls the elevators. Elevators? An elevator in an airplane? Get out-a here! Do I look like I have ‘stupid’ tattooed to my forehead? ...and back to the instruction manual I would go. A month later I am hardly a pro at this but I am edjamakated to the point where I can scratch and spit and talk trash about root tubes, longerons and jury struts with the best of them. I am like a kid who plants a seedling then wakes up in the morning to see if there is a tree to climb. I can hardly wait...

Island Reflections

Last March I mentioned that another magazine article was being written about Honey Bee Island and was scheduled for release in June. True to her word, Kim’s article appeared in a magazine called “Island Reflections” The name change from the original “Island Treasures” series reflected that it was now under the auspices of a new publisher. With a run of 40,000 to 50,000 the magazine was included as a special insert in local newspapers on both sides of the river in the USA and Canada and in local marinas, tourist information centers, restaurants and other public venues.

You can read the article by double clicking on any page

Finally, shortly after we arrived, we noticed that a new viewing area had been built on the roadside between the US and Canadian custom stations between the two bridge spans that cross the river. The thing is that the only thing that you can view from this spot is Honey Bee Island (between the flags). We are flattered that they would feel the view justified the effort and expense they clearly went to. Maybe we could set up one of those big commercial binoculars that charge .50c for a peek!

Mandy

Next on the visiting schedule was darling daughter Mandy. She had flown in from the Netherlands to Washington DC the previous week after successfully completing this years exams. There, she was joined by her sister Kami where the two of them had volunteered to participate in the “People to People” program. Mandy had tacked on a side trip to get a little face time with us as we were unable to see her this past winter due to school demands.

Mandy is now an old hand here, knows most of our friends and has seen many of the local sights. Yet, aside from wanting to be with her wonderful parents, when it comes to the islands, like her brother Wesley and sister Cassie who have also visited several times, she ‘gets it’ too. For those who do, it is not just a cool spot to visit, it is a place you are drawn to be at.





Of course, she wanted to spend some time working on dads airplane, but with an eye to the future, was also interested in learning all about the various aspects of being able to be here on her own (or rather with Mr. wonderful in the future). To that end she learned to operate and dock the boat and worked at getting more familiar with the area so she could find her way back to the island once she leaves to go anywhere.

We had a blast driving to the Finger Lake area of upper New York State to go raspberry and cherry picking as well as lounging out on the dock, swimming and dragging her in the doughnut behind the boat. Finally, we spent a day in Ottawa, visiting my aunt and uncle Dave and Monique (a Federal Judge) who had arranger to have Mandy tour the Supreme Court. Very cool

Taking it to the next level

I have blathered in these pages many times about our numerous home exchanges. In fact, we have several more in the works for fall and winter. It is ironic that the best one to date was the one we did not use.

Last fall, we suggested to our daughter Amy and son in law Vance that perhaps we could set up a home exchange for them to use and offer our home in France in return. This was pretty much a shot in the dark since they require a home large enough for the two of them, their 5 children, two nurses who need to accompany them to help provide round-the-clock care for Christopher and enough room for a hospital full of equipment, wheel chairs, etc.

"The cabin"

We set them loose on our home exchange web site and they found a place that was perfect for them. It was a stunning 8 bedroom, 4300 sq. ft. (400 sq meter) lakeside log cabin in the Idaho mountains that sleeps 15. The master bedroom has a deck overlooking the white sandy beach on the lake on one side and a 4 story atrium inside the house on the other.

Believing that it was unlikely that these folks would be interested in exchanging for our modest little digs we decided to ask anyway and were thrilled when they enthusiastically accepted.

So last week the kids drove up there and had a great week paddle boating, BBQ'ing and hanging out at the beach.

TA-DA!

Last May, when we left France, I said that I would post some pictures of our "Juliet Balcony" when I got it installed at the Bee. This was what I spent way too many hours hand forging in France this past winter and dragging half way around the world. This was no mean feat when we (read I) had to drag this disassembled 50 pound (23 kilos) box in and out of the subway in Paris [up and down staircases] in and out of airports all over kingdom come- along with the rest of our luggage - from Europe to the West Coast back to Canada. Well worth it, according to my bride.



Obviously, it had to fabricated and transported in pieces as it could not be checked in at the airport assembled. Then, once on the island, I had to reassemble it for final installation. Now that the drudgery and hassle is becoming a distant memory I am very pleased with the result, including the detail of the leaves. The 'Juliet Balcony' is little more than a safety barrier, preventing someone from falling out the open second story door.

Why have a door with no outside staircase you ask? Aside from giving us a large screened open 'window' to the warm nigh time breezes, it is to allow us to bring in or remove large pieces of furniture from our bedrooms as our interior circular staircase is too narrow.

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.

May 2009

Happy Birthday

Yet again, our beloved Honey Bee celebrated another important milestone this month by turning 100 on May 3rd. Understandably, people ask us “how can the cabin be 134 years old when the Island is only 100?” The answer lies in estimates.

When we bought the property in 2000, the previous owner told us that the cabin was estimated to be a 100 years old when he purchased it in 1975. We checked with 2 owners previous to him and the estimates held. We understand that the cabin was actually built on shore nearby in Rockport, disassembled, brought over to the island and reassembled in place. You can still see the Roman numerals carved into the ends of each log marking their reassembly sequence.

A local history buff has suggested (but not proved) that the oversized logs could have come from one of the British forts that were nearby. The cabin saw the addition of its large pink granite fireplace in 1927 and the addition of the kitchen and upstairs bedrooms in the 1940’s. If you are so inclined you can read the entire history at http://www.honeybeeisland.com/history.html

On the road again..

Last month I mentioned that we had just left Brittany for the season and were off on a 7 week trip, transitioning before arriving at the Bee for the summer. After driving through the Loire Valley, we stayed in Salon De Provence (home to Nostradamus) in the south of France on the Med for a week.

"A Good Year" was filmed here

While there, we went wine tasting at Chateau La Canorgue in nearby Bonnieux (you might recall that Russell Crow filmed “A Good Year” there), had a picnic in the olive grove in Glanum that Vincent Van Gogh used as a backdrop for his painting “Olive Grove”, and toured the Roman theater in Orange.

Roman Theater in Orange

Built in the year 400, this theater is the best preserved in Europe and is a Unesco World Heritage Site (WHS), making it the 86th WHS I have visited. Orange was the retirement haven of former Roman officers who had served the Emperor at least 20 years. (My slave driving boss made me work 30!)

Dave and Monique and view from our Chalet bedroom windows

We then drove to Sion in southern Switzerland to meet my aunt and uncle Dave and Monique from Ottawa who were joining us for a week (of our two week stay) at a beautiful chalet we had in the mountains overlooking the city. We meet them at the train station as planned but Monique hobbled off the train in crutches. She had hurt her knee in Venice where they were arriving from and needed to go to the hospital immediately. We spent the next 6 hours in the local emergency room while they X-Rayed, blood tested and prodded her to no avail.

Our Chalet in Switzerland

Realizing that she would be unable to do anything that we had planned (Switzerland is not an ideal place to try to hobble around on crutches) they decided to fly home early. After a mere 48 hours with us we drove them to the train station and ran them out of town on a rail.

The Matterhorn

When the going gets tough, the tough get going. So, we drove to Zermatt to the foot of the Matterhorn for a day trip. We then drove across the Italian Alps into northern Italy to the Bellagio and Lake Como areas for a few days. A stunning picture postcard area, we came upon the Villa Belmonte in Tremezzo where Mussolini and his mistress were executed. Having explored the area and not having met the same fate, we returned to our digs in Switzerland for another week.

Blondes just want to have fun

Lake Como area, Italy

We visited the fortified mountaintop Abbey in Sion, home to the world’s oldest working organ (1435). The salt mine in Bex was great and with 50 KM (31 miles) of tunnels it has been operating continuously for 300 years. It’s most prominent visitor was Duchess Marie Louise Bonaparte, Napoleon’s wife in 1815.



We drove half way across the continent back home to tuck our car into our garage for another season but made the time to stop in Vezelay on the way. The big draw for us was the Basilica which was built in 1050 and is a WHS (# 87). It was out in the middle of nowhere in the Burgundy region of France on a gorgeous day. We figured we might be the only two people from out of town but arrived at the village square to find 15 Lamborghini cars on a rally. At $350,000 a pop, we were looking at over 5 million dollars in automobiles.

Once home, we took the train to Paris for a week’s visit. We are always surprised to see that some of the worlds best known tourist attractions, like the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, while magnificent, don't hold a candle to some of the lesser known Cathedrals in Amiens or Chartres. It's all about location. 'Notre Dame' is in Paris so it is visited by millions more than the others, off the beaten tourist path.

It is a real treat to be able to spend a week in Paris where we don't have to feel that we have to rush out morning, noon and night to see as much as we can as fast as we can. Yes, we visited the Louvre, walked along the banks of the Seine and hung out by the Eiffel Tower again as we have before. But part of the time, we enjoyed just hanging around the neighborhood because we have the luxury of ...time, and we are very grateful for it. Paris in the spring...ahhh.

We flew back to Seattle, Washington on May 11th.

Fantastico!

While traveling through Italy on our last trip there, aside from the wonderful family we home exchanged with, we meet a young couple in Sila, in the southern most part of the ‘boot’ of the country where few Americans travel. We hit it off big time and have stayed in touch since. He is a lawyer who has represented some of the most nefarious characters of the area while she is a journalist. (People in both those professions seem to gravitate to us) Recently she asked if she could write an article about our visit there (I told you they don’t see many Americans) and our penchant for moving around. Of course they couldn’t resist printing a picture of my HOT California babe in our hot tub.

Interestingly, the article is in English and then translated into Italian on the same page. Minor facts and figures got lost in translation but all in all it was pretty sweet.

To read, double click on article pages

Final thoughts
on living in Europe

OK, this will be the last in my little series. For one, by the time you read this we will no longer be in Europe and for another you have had quite enough. I have ranted in these pages before about the fact that being a long term tourist in Europe had some real pluses and minuses. Some are just a novelty. Some are ridiculous. Many though, are quality of life issues.

A tough one for most North American visitors are the traffic “roundy-rounds”. Those are the circular ‘intersections’ where it [admittedly] looks like a Chinese fire drill and appears like you are taking your life into your hands. Actually, it is a rather sophisticated choreography. After 5 winters here, we are HUGE fans.

The trick is to really understand the rules and drive around enough of them for it to become second nature. That simply will never happen on a 3 week vacation to Europe so we Americans always leave with a feeling that it is a crazy system. We are wrong. It is by far the most efficient way to move traffic with a minimum of delay for everyone. You can easily have 5 to 20 cars proceeding safely in all directions simultaneously. It’s a darn shame that our country will not adopt it in our lifetimes.

Ditto for the Metric system. We are wrong, wrong, wrong. I love the fact that America will stand up to the world, fiercely defending our independence, our ideals and way of life. But it is embarrassing when we insist on doing things one way simply because we are used to it. It’s like climbing the ladder of success only to realize you have it leaning against the wrong wall. The Metric system is much simpler and far less prone to errors. Come on America, let’s save ourselves for the big battles in life! Crushing despots like bugs, regime changes, tossing bailouts about like popcorn and important stuff like that. Let’s get our heads out of the sand and other dark places.

Then there is the history….. having read the Epistle before you surely know how enamored we feel about this place.

On the other hand, Europe has some… well, ‘issues’.

As a visitor you would surely notice that the price of gasoline at home currently averages about $2.50 a gallon. Yesterday we saw it here for $7.50 a gallon (Over $2.50 [Canadian] a liter). Road tolls are prevalent all over Europe. So, a day long road trip cost us $350. (US) for gasoline and road tolls only --and we have a cheesy little Toyota! Consider that if you drove here you would have to add a car rental (twice the price as you would pay at home), meals and hotels.

As long term tourists (or short term residents depending on your point of view) we get to experience some of the other idiosyncrasies. I was in the store the other day, looking for a replacement sponge head for our little floor sponge/ mop. $3-4 at home, $20 here. A cup of plain black coffee at a gas station: $7.50 I still can’t get over the fact that we pay $225. per year TV tax. This is for the right to receive free over the air signals.

Two more things that are not my favorite. ALL motorcyclists here are like the Hells Angels. They are absolutely lawless. They drive where they want, how they want, as fast as they want with no apparent consequences.

Finally, if you come to Europe don’t forget to pack your toilet seat. After 5 years, I have simply given up trying to figure out why virtually all public bathrooms (and a heck of a lot of restaurants) have no toilet seats or lids. We are not fans.

If it’s Tuesday,
this must be…

As I mentioned above, we have flown the coop, returned from political exile and landed in the state of Washington where we began our bi-annual visit to kids and grand kids. We began by spending several days with daughter Amy's family. As I write this, we are in Idaho with # 1 son Wesley for several days then onto Oregon to see Cassie and kids. Finally, we will be off to home in the Golden state of California before flying out to the Bee for the summer.

I do love coming home.