Parentals in Paradise or Strip Yahtzee

April 5 - 11, 2006

Wednesday, April 05, 2006 - Volley Ball Beach, George Town, Exumas
By Tom

Day 4 of the parental units visit.

Today we met Mom and Dad over at their hotel. We didn't have anything planned, other than to just hang out. Amy spent several hours using the wi-fi connection while I channel surfed and just layed around.

I took time out of my busy schedule to arrange for four scooters for tomorrow at 9 am. I want it on record that I think it is a bad idea for Mom and Amy to ride scooters of their own for the first time in a country that drives on the wrong side of the road and allows only a choice of brakes or horn on its cars, not both.

In the afternoon we caught a cab for the whopping 3 miles ride out to the Palm Bay Beach Club for an early dinner. This is one of the nicest places we have eaten on the island. The prices are reasonable, but the portions are absolutely huge. I think we ordered exactly twice as much food as we needed.

Around 6 or so, we caught a different cab back to the hotel and we had a sundowner at the outdoor bar before Amy and I returned to the mother ship for a dinner of pressure cooker ribs and rice. Early to bed in anticipation of serious highway fatalities tomorrow.

Thursday, April 06, 2006 - Hamburger Beach Anchorage, George Town, Exumas
By Tom

We met the parental units at 8:45 and then proceeded en mass to the rental scooter pickup location. Scooter dude was 20 minutes late, but he made up for it by letting us keep the scooters until 6 pm instead of the usual 4:45 deadline.

We picked four scooters from the pile of eight or nine that looked road worthy and after filling them up with gas and explaining the operation to the girls we were off. In a surprising display of coordination and agility, both Mom and Amy had no trouble riding their own bikes!

We zoomed out of town with me leading the pack, followed By Amy, then Mom, with Dad riding shotgun over the herd. We were doing pretty well until I signaled for a stop at the Napa store so I could pick up a part.

Well, the lead machine had no trouble, but our number two and three riders just kind of blew by the parking lot. Hmm. In a cross between Fred Flinstone and a carrier arrest landing, our two wayward riders managed to slow down enough to turn back and join the rest of us at Napa. No harm, no foul.

The rest of the day was spent zipping along the island, visiting the various spots. See supporting evidence side right.

Near the end of the day, we came upon a 5000 foot, paved, abandoned air strip. Dad and I lined our bikes up and raced from one end to the other. Near 85 kilometers an hour, my dash board lights started flashing and my bike started sounding like a weed eater having a bad day. Needless to say, I lost the race, but I did feel just like Tom Cruise in that Top Gun movie where he was racing along side the jet on his motorcycle. (Editors Note - Only better looking! )

Worn out, but un-damaged from all the riding, we returned our scooters to their designated parking area and the parental units to their hotel before heading back across the harbour to our boat. Tomorrow we put Mom and Dad on the plane for home.

Friday, April 07, 2006 - Hamburger Beach Anchorage, George Town, Exumas
By Tom

This morning I stopped by the Anam Cara's to pressure test his engine cylinders. The cylinders had 125, 135, 140, and 85 pounds respectively. That last one is a little low, but it shouldn't keep the engine from running. Hmm.

I left Don and Sandi and went into town to see Mom and Dad off. Amy stayed behind this morning as she was not feeling well. We had a cup of coffee before the taxi arrived and swept Mom and Dad back towards the states. By Mom and Dad, miss you.

I returned to Don and Sandi's boat and I removed the head on their engine. The gasket doesn't look bad, uh oh! Shitty Death!

I replaced the gasket after cleaning up the head a bit and the engine still refused to fire. Don and I then replaced all of the electronics, but to no avail. Our next guess is to remove the carburetor and verify that we are getting fuel, but that will wait til tomorrow.

In gratitude, Don and Sandi took me to pizza night at the newly opened St. Francis Bar near Hole 1. Amy was still feeling under the weather and she decided to stay home and ferret sit.

Pizza and beers followed lots of conversation among the 100 - 110 people who showed up. I wasn't aware that it was also karaoke night at St. Francis and we secretly laughed from the bar as several cruisers we knew proceeded to embarrass themselves on stage.

What is it about a bar atmosphere that makes normally sane people think they are Elvis?

I returned to the boat around sun down and made Amy dinner before she went back to sleep while the ferrets and I watched Troy.

Saturday, April 08, 2006 - Kids Cove, George Town, Exumas
By Tom

We awoke to another sunny day here in the tropics. It hasn't rained here in so long I forget what it's like.

I mention this because the weather Dude says rain is coming. We're suppose to get lots of it in the next two days or so. Maybe I'll get the deck brush out so I can wash the boat.

We ventured in to town today to visit the book swap as well as pick up some vegetables and a bottle of rum. I'll leave it to you to decide what was for who.

In the afternoon I played volley ball with Jack and Juan and Jon. I don't know if I've mentioned it before, but Juan played professionally for 15 years in Europe. Consequently, Juan and anybody give Jack and I a run for our money every game.

We were lucky today and we won two games to one. Of course, if you add my age and Jack's we still don't equal Jan, but your only as old as you feel right?

Back on the boat we just hung out and had a quiet cocktail in the cockpit as the sun went down. Really eery looking clouds showed up around dusk. Hmm.

Sunday, April 09, 2006 - Hamburger Beach Anchorage, George Town, Exumas
By Tom

We moved the boat back to protection of the western island right after sun up. Once re-anchored, Amy kayaked in to the beach and did her yoga thing. Is that like yoga-ing? Maybe she yoga-ed? Not sure.

Anyway, the ferrets and I made breakfast tacos. Generally speaking, tacos are one the ferrets favorite foods. It's funny because Milo only eats the tomatoes and Mila only eats the shells, but everyone gets their fill from one plate.

Afterwards I did odd boat chores and made a trip into town for water while Amy worked on her computer. In the afternoon I headed in for the scheduled one o'clock games. I'm trying to squeeze as much ball in as I can because we are leaving sometime this week.

In the late afternoon we had Don and Sandi over for spaghetti dinner. Sandi brought garlic bread and you didn't hear it from me, but it resembled scorched earth more than bread. I feel sorry for Don.

In some sort of bizarre we have replaced your ferrets with Foldgers Instant Crystal scene, Milo and Mila were very well behaved dinner guests and neither one climbed into anybodys plate at the table.

Right after dinner the promised thunderstorm showed up. We had mega wide spread lightning and torrential downpours through out the rest of the night. The Anam Cara's had not closed their hatches and had to high tail it home to avoid sleeping in soggy bedding.

Monday, April 10, 2006 - Kids Cove, George Town, Exumas
By Tom

It stayed stormy and generally shitty through out the night. It blew well over 45 knots for an extended period of time and I ended up sleeping in the salon so I could keep and eye on the boat and make sure we stayed put through out the night.

Around 9 am the rain stopped and the skies sort of cleared up. I think I slept until noon and then hurried in to make my volley ball game. Today is Juan's last day as he is leaving for Panama tomorrow, weather allowing.

In the afternoon, we moved the big boat over to town to do our final Georgetown provisioning. It still sounds like we may get weather to leave on Thursday or Friday.

Around 5 pm or so, we headed into the managers happy hour at the Peace and Plenty. They have free meatballs and wings along with free rum punch from 5:30 to 7 or so. I took along a small ziploc baggie so I could smuggle a meatball home for the ferrets.

We met up with Ed off of Joy Bells and we sort of hung out and shot the breeze until 9 or so. We also met three people who were crew off of a Mega Yacht here. They were very impressed with themselves although I couldn't figure out why. It's not like they owned the boat or anything.

They informed me that they did not like Georgetown and the Bahamas outside of Nassau because it is too much like some of those third world nations in the Caribbean. Sure, ass.

We returned to the boat around 10 pm and had a moment of panic when we couldn't find the ferrets. After searching the boat twice, we started looking in various closed containers and found both of them asleep inside my guitar case. See supporting evidence at right.

I told Amy not to worry, guitar cases are to ferrets as coffins are to vampires. She says I'm an ass. Order restored and ferrets properly stowed in their up right seating positions, we turned in for the night

Tuesday, April 11, 2006 - Hamburger Beach Anchorage, George Town, Exumas
By Tom

I hooked up with Don off of Anam Cara and miracle of miracles, their engine has rumbled back to life. We aren't sure why and it's not running 100%, but it is sustaining combustion which is more than we could say before.

I rechecked the compression and things are smoothing out. I wanted to re-torque the head, but I left the sockets on my boat, so that will have to wait. We have decided to celebrate the pagan ritual of engine resurrection tonight on our boat by offering up virgin hamburger patties for sacrifice upon the altar of the barbecue grill Magna. Home made french fries and buns will also be in attendance.

Engine woes temporarily behind us, I retired to the courts once more for a little rolling in the sand and pounding of air inflated balls. The games were only so-so today.

Sandy and Don showed up around 5 pm and we had a cocktail in the cockpit before I char broiled our offerings to the engine gods. They were quite good and we enjoyed a nice evening just sitting around the salon table telling stories.

As a related side note, a lot of the other boats and couple we've hung out with over the last couple of years seem to insist on playing some sort of organized game at any kind of social gathering. Sometimes its cards, sometimes board games and sometimes, not often, but sometimes its strip yahtzee.

Oh yeah, I got your yahtzee right here.

My point being that the whole evening is structured around these games. What ever happened to just sitting around and talking? Maybe we are lame, or maybe its a generational thing, but I think the best times we've had hanging out are usually just hanging around doing nothing with friends we've made along the way. Weird huh?

Anyway, Don and Sandi left around 9 and Amy, the ferrets and I retired for the evening