Anyway, this was a chance to get together and relax, bullshit, and share old memories. J and I have been friends for 41 years now (we met when 17 as Cornell freshmen). J introduced me to my wife, E (featured here and elsewhere) when we were all in grad school together.
This was a winy, feasting holiday. We ate well and drank well. J has a lobster as big as his head here. I had scallops. My earnest belief is that real food either has no exoskeleton or has a human process that removes it before I see it.
Earlier that day we had won a sailing race against the local champ, P. P is a natural pisser. The man has bullshit, pretty much unparalleled. He is a good sailor, though inclined to forget which side of the starting line he is on. Early in the race this is the only view we got, the back of his wife's boat.
L was the loyal crew in our boat, while E and I were ballast (about 1/4 ton, most of which was me).
J was at the helm, looking much like Ted Kennedy (a very distant cousin). J was in his element here, wind, water, and sun all playing a part. He also displayed his usual competitiveness. Note the GPS, so that we knew that we reached 7.0 knots on the downwind leg (well above the hull speed of 5.8). Me, I just noticed the salt spray, birds, youngsters frolicking on an island, and suchlike. I was just happy to be on the water with my friend, regardless of the outcome.
Somehow, though, we won. P claims he threw the race, which may or may not have been part of his BS. We did notice that he was in irons way too long on one tack!
In the evening we joined others at the river's edge for the ritual. Most people arrive on their golf carts, drinks in hand, to view the sunset and shoot the shit. Here are E and I having some wine at dusk.
P and his wife A were here, too. They are quite a couple. They have a house on the other side of the river and a "shack" on this side. The shack is kind of a bachelor pad, where P can ride out storms or entertain his grandchildren. You could fill a book with his stories!
J and L shared wine and a nice evening.
The focus was on the sunset, the outcome of the race, tales of grandkids, ribbing about the race, and general reminiscing. Sunsets are gorgeous here, turning the boats into objet de arte.
Animals are always part of the mix. This ones name is Sandy. NB: H and D - get a blond lab like this - she is sweet!
People watch fires here, too. This was down at the rivers edge, though people have fires on their decks, too. There is something comforting just sharing the warmth, the dancing flames, and a nice conversation. This is one of "life's simple pleasures."
The next morning we spent in a power boat inspecting the river. We saw a lot of osprey nests, but without occupants (except for gulls impostering).
Young people have a ball on this river. Here is a young guy getting ready to show off for a boatload of girls. He jumped right after I got frustrated waiting for him. Go figure!
Sadly we had to leave for a long drive home. Along the way we stopped at Zip's Diner, somewhere in the boonies of Massachusetts. The food was kind of uniformly disappointing except for my chocolate frappe. That was outstanding, in much the same way as the championship "speckled puppies" displayed by our waitress. She was cute and blonde, too.
Parked right next to us was this car, complete with crank. The guy at the table next to us adjusted the spark and started it up with only a slight pull. His family piled in and away they went on Route 6, up the hill and out of town.
Then we were on our way, too. Nice weekend! Thanks to our friends.
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