We've been anticipating this regatta since summer began--it officially marks the halfway point of the sailing season (that's a bummer) & is a 3 day regatta down on Solomon's Island.
This year my skipper was away so we had a guest skipper with most of the regular crew plus 3 others (Xing Fu) was one. Our skipper was from Puerto Rico & occasionally there was a little language barrier--it was actually rather cute & she was so optimistic despite never cracking the top 10 (there were 16 in our PHRF B fleet) that it was just nice to sail with her. We had three days of pretty flukey wind too. Only the last day did we have the expected "no wind on the Chesapeake" so abandon race problem & for the most part there was pretty decent air for a change. And on our first race we were about a minute and a half late for the start--unlike last year the Race Committee did not have a gun, only a horn, nor did they really announce starts very loudly over the radio. That was actually our best race--we came in 11th--crazy! But we had a great time!
Xing Fu & I did something a bit nutso--we drove back to Baltimore after the first day's races (3 total)--about a 2 hour drive from Solomon's Island & went to a concert at Pier Six--Peter Frampton. Definitely music that Xing Fu chose-but it was fun listening to music that brought me back to my very early teens & the boy who introduced me to Frampton & the Who. For me though, by the second set, I was sitting in my seat & nodding off. One minute I'm listening to very good guitars & the next thing I know I'm on Bump...hearing one of my crew members telling me to trim the kite... And then the 2 hour trip back down to Screwpile--arriving at 1AM. Dock time 8:30 AM...you get the picture. But it was fun, fun, fun! (And I have a great BF--he gave me his red hat--there were only 4 in the skipper's bag & we had 8 crew. The skipper got one & we drew for the rest. He can be so sweet!)
And now, we are leaving for the beach on Saturday for a week. Nonstop summer--it has been another great one so far except now my A/C is out during the hottest heat wave to hit B-more! But amazingly once the A/C guy got here, looked at the unit he saw the most amazing thing & apparently pretty rare--my A/C has been attacked by ants! Yup, they'd crawled into the connector & prevented one part from touching another which communicated with the thermostat--thankfully a VERY easy & relatively inexpensive fix. A/C up & running as the temps her in B-more continue to climb, climb, climb!
Ok, so I've been MIA for a while--not necessarily a bad thing. With the sailing season in full motion--Screwpile is coming up starting on Sunday--Xing Fu is sailing with Bump... which is always fun, and a bunch of parties including my buddy's (Baltimore Diary) pig roast (that I'll actually get to go to this year), a Peter Frampton concert (yeah, not my typical fare--guess whose??), my kid spending a week on the Schooner Sultana, & very shortly off for a month at summer camp, oh, & work too, I've lost track of time. I can't believe that we're already in July & that tomorrow is my birthday! I also can't believe that I'll be 44--I just don't feel that old....I can hear my sister now--"You are that old..."
This summer has been nonstop--just days after Screwpile, Xing Fu & I are taking off with his kids to the beach--yup, my kid will not be with us (camp). That part will be quite strange. But a week at the beach without my family & with my man is something new--something I've been looking forward to--I rarely take a vacation. I think the last real vaycay was to Amsterdam two years ago--wow--it's been two years already! I'm looking forward to a pause in the action--a time to just breathe & regroup--plus being by the ocean is always a good place for me to be. And with Xing Fu...'nuff said.
And, contrary to all the stuff I've seen written about blending families (jealousies, obnoxious kids, the ex-factors & a thousand other nasties that I've read about), things continue to go really well with our kids & us. I even received some texts from one of Xing Fu's kids today--for some reason that was the best affirmation that things are going well--that familiarity & comfort in being able to text me--cool.
