CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY NINE: FAMILY, FRIENDS, FAMILY

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY NINE:  FAMILY, FRIENDS, FAMILY

One of the best parts of traveling along the Atlantic Coast is coming to a marina that is close enough for family or friends to visit us on Slow Motion. The Admiral and I both grew up in Pennsylvania (he continues to speak with a distinct Philly accent), and we still have family on the East Coast. Or in his case, he has family that has moved to the East Coast in recent years. Naturally, we would love to give all our family members and close friends the opportunity to cruise along with us on the Intracoastal Waterway or to enjoy the ocean breezes with us on those days when the waves are predicted to be 1 to 2 feet. But for any number of reasons, most of our invitations to board Slow Motion and leave your daily worries on the shoreline have not been accepted. Sure, sure, most people still work, and that’s a bummer. And those who don’t work have pets who are not boat savvy and who require someone to care for them – not just anyone – someone who really will give them tender loving care. Or they have adorable grandchildren, who commandeer most of their leisure time. Or they fear getting seasick, which is not likely at the speeds we travel and on the rivers, bays, sounds and creeks that form the ICW. Boating is not for everyone – I get it. But maybe, just maybe, one or two days and nights on Slow Motion are the adventure of a lifetime. More fun than Disney World and Disneyland combined, and not nearly so expensive. Have you seen the prices at those parks recently? It’s not like you’re visiting the real wonders of the world – they’re fake, people! Disney’s artists created them out of paper mache, glue, string, and lots of sequins. Contrast that “Land of Fake Believe” with the real wonders of racing with dolphins, watching eagles soar overhead, and riding real waves on a real body of water. Disney’s creations, while imaginative, are really no match for what Slow Motion has to offer. So, shake yourselves out of your daily routines, leave your pets with a loved one (or bring them along), let your fears melt away, and hop aboard Slow Motion for one or more carefree days of waterway magic. When you wish upon a star…oh, you should see the night skies from aboard Slow Motion. Even without fireworks, they’re pretty spectacular. Tonight the sunset was the pinkest pink on top and the bluest blue below. And the pink was reflected on to the canal, so we had a totally rosy view of the world.

We have already had some great visits this summer. The last Sunday in June, my niece Gretchen and her husband Jem, their daughter Kat and their three (3) dogs came to Solomons for a day at the beach. We went to Flag Pond Park, because you can find shark’s teeth in the Chesapeake Bay water and along the shoreline – at least most of the time. And this Sunday did not disappoint. As Kat was sitting in the Bay and sifting through shells, she suddenly held up a sharp black arrow-like specimen: “Is this a shark’s tooth?” And it was!  Beginner’s luck! I have yet to find one, but Kat’s random search is an inspiration to me. Almost as amazing as the shark’s tooth discovery was the fact that the bay water was really, really warm. As one who is now used to the 55 degrees of the Pacific Ocean water in Carmel and Monterey, this was a very pleasant surprise, just to be able to stroll around in the calf deep bay water and not worry about hypothermia. Back to the shark’s tooth for a minute. Nearby Flag Pond are the Calvert Cliffs, which are teeming with fossils, which include lots and lots of sharks’ teeth. There is an exhibit at the Calvert Marine Museum which shows dozens of different kinds of sharks’ teeth, which have been found around the Calvert Cliffs and places like the beach at Flag Pond. So I knew what we were looking for. After Kat’s discovery, a Park ranger walked by, and we proudly showed him our find. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a treasure trove of sharks’ teeth, a manta ray dental plate and bones from whales and dolphins. He claimed he had found all these fossilized body parts on the beach that very day. So if you have an urge to hunt for sharks’ teeth and other fossils, get yourself down to Flag Pond. Take a sifter or a strainer. Some women had a nifty contraption, a sifter with a long handle, so you could stand up and stroll along the edge of the water, while dragging your sifter through the surf. That’s the stylish way to go, rather than squatting in the sand pawing through the sifter with both hands. But hey, they weren’t shouting: “Shark’s tooth!” So maybe it’s all style, no substance.

As for the visit with Gretchen and fam, we hiked the half mile to and from the beach three times – so it was great exercise. Jem did the round trip four times. What a trooper! The grills and picnic tables are back near the parking lot at Flag Pond, so we took a break from hunting for primitive fossils to eat some modern day dogs and orzo – Thank you, Admiral! And when the sun started to really heat up around 4, we left the beach for a restaurant in Solomons that allows dogs, even three of them, to sit next to you while you eat. That’s Stoney’s Kingfisher, right on the water. Their crab dip is sooo smooth and full of crab. Gretchen’s a Maryland  crab lover, and she ordered crab from the entrée to the dessert. Crab strudel isn’t as bad as it sounds – just kidding! She had already had the crab cake for her entrée, so all that was left for dessert was crab pie or crab ice cream, so she tried both of them – again, just kidding! The dogs’ behavior was exemplary during dinner, until a huge black Lab/Rottweiler mix lumbered into their territory.  All three dogs had been sleeping, once again proving the truth of the adage: “Let sleeping dogs lie.” No dogs or people were harmed in the ensuing bark-off, and the Anderson clan returned to Front Royal, Virginia with a genuine shark’s tooth, satisfied stomachs and uninjured dogs. It was one of the best visits of all time.

The following week Lexi, the prodigious granddaughter of Janie and Mike, came to visit us on Slow Motion. Oooh, that girl is curious! And she makes a mean play dough angel fish, which she presented to me on arrival. She was only here for a little while, but she left a firm impression. Lexi for President! Have you ever met an 8 year old who uses the word “megalodon” correctly? I know! It surprised me too. If not President, then someone who influences our civilization like Albert Einstein or John Muir or Madame Curie. Of course, given her genes, it’s no surprise that Lexi excels. Janie and Mike are topnotch. Her parents are too. Janie made her own visit to Slow Motion on the 5^th of July, the night that Solomons put on a fireworks display. What is it about fireworks? I never get tired of them. Janie’s presence made the night special, as we go back to Jennings Street together, little kids getting our first “fireworks” from Bethlehem Steel’s blast furnaces booming and belching bright red clouds into the night skies.  Janie is special – my book buddy and full-fledged member (with Mike) of the Maryland intelligentsia.

Speaking of brilliant people, the Admiral’s estimable daughter, Sabina, and her friend, Bryan, came to visit us in Delaware City last weekend. Sabina has a very sharp legal mind, and Bryan, like me, is a sports fanatic. The Admiral had planned a fishing excursion for Bryan, but he needed his sleep more than he needed to hook sea critters. So we let him sleep into the late morning hours. Then Sabina and Bryan and I headed on foot to Cordelia’s Café and Bakery. They advertise baked French toast. I had to try it. The also advertise sticky buns, a specialty of my sister. Bryan and I ordered the French toast and Sabina went all in on the sticky buns. They are very filling, to say the least. Not sure a life preserver would be buoyant enough to keep you from sinking after eating just one slice of the toast. It’s the density of sticky bun dough, not Wonder bread. We waddled back to the boat. Bryan and Sabina had the good sense to go get some exercise kayaking on Lum’s Pond, Delaware’s largest fresh water pond. I vegged with the Admiral, whose knee has been acting up. We reunited for dinner at Crabby Dick’s – what a seafood festival that was! Bryan ordered “The Admiral’s Catch” or something modest like that. The waiter, a Blue Hen from UD, put in an order for the biggest pot of mixed seafood on the menu – even bigger than the Admiral’s Catch. Half the denizens of the Delaware Bay – steamed into submission – arrived in a humongous pot, crab legs hanging out three sides of it. We pointed out the mistake to our Blue Hen, and he said “Enjoy!” and charged for what Bryan had actually ordered. Meanwhile, the Admiral enjoyed his fried oysters and Sabina said her fried shrimp were amazingly tender and tasty. I had the Saturday special, a bowl of mussels, which did not disappoint. Score one for Crabby Dick’s and the Blue Hen.

As lovers of air conditioning, Bryan and Sabina headed back to their icy apartment in D.C. once they had digested the ocean’s offerings. They had spent the night before on Slow Motion, and it must have agreed with them, since they both slept long and well. But there’s nothing like your own bed, your own pillow, especially after you have had a satisfying meal. The Admiral and I nearly slept straight through until Monday, once our heads hit our respective pillows. So this is what we do when we tie up at a marina for several weeks at a time. We entertain family and friends, and when there’s a lull, we work on Slow Motion. Just this past week, she got a new fuel pump. The Admiral turned on the engines, and for the first time in months, they roared from the gitgo – no hesitation whatsoever. We can say with some certainty now that we needed a new fuel pump. Yesterday the Admiral climbed up the front of Slow Motion to work on the place where there had been a loudspeaker. He wants to get this working again so he can yell directions at his “crew”, he says. There is a mechanism to make this a two-way yelling device, but he says there’s no need for the “crew” to be yelling anything at the Admiral, so he’s leaving that part dormant. Such a kidder, the Admiral.

As you have now had a little sampling of the kinds of adventures we go on when you visit us on Slow Motion, schedule your visit now. We’ll be waiting. I don’t want to sound maudlin, but this will probably be our last cruising year with Slow Motion, so don’t delay. Seize the Day!