A special art class

This morning I met a group of 10 students with their teacher. It was a special art class.

Five girls sat quietly in a row closest to the (fake) lighthouse here at Singlar Marina.

Five boys sat with the teacher in the back row.

This young man was so proud of his drawing and really wanted me to take his picture.

And this one did everything he could to entertain me.

Running around, making silly noises, and finally falling to the ground.
His teacher said he was a big "drama king."
He was thrilled when I said he could ride the small-wheeled bike I had with me.

Unwanted stowaway

I was working in the port hull when I spotted a rat. I screamed, he ran TOWARD me. I used my arms as a brace to lift my legs and continued screaming. I knew Dick was on his way. The rat ran the other way and I scrambled up to the bridgedeck. The rat was very lethargic and Dick was able to drop a plastic tub on top, slide a piece of cardboard underneath, and remove the whole mess OFF the boat.

My hero.

To Phoenix

Getting closer every minute.

I haven't seen Dick in 4 weeks 4 days, so this will be a very nice reunion.

See that narrow 12-foot length of something on top of our car.

It's our new dinghy - a folding boat. We bought it in Phoenix.

How perfect is this? In Tempe, West Marine right next to a bagel shop.

And now, we drive to Gauymas, all during daylight hours hopefully.

Are we concerned about "banditos"?

No, both headlights went out and we only have high beams.

Splat

Here, Dick is giving me the look that asks, "WHY are you taking my picture in WalMart?" Although he appears to be quite healthy, he's actually in pain.

On Sunday, November 1, the scaffolding Dick was working on broke and he fell about 4 feet onto concrete. He landed on his right side. His thigh and elbow were badly scuffed and required bandages. He probably fractured his collarbone, he couldn't move his arm at all. He had a lump on his (hard) head for a day or so. Needless to say, work on the boat came to a halt. No, he didn't go to a doctor, just started taking lots of ibuprofen.

To Bakersfield

I'm on my way to Guaymas, Dick, and our boat, Cuatro de Mayo.

Before leaving Sacramento, I must stop at Dick's favorite store: Blue Collar Supply.


This is NOT a woman's kind of store, even in the most widely-defined sense. The men leaving the store as I'm going in smile and say hi. The salesmen inside are most helpful. And I find the treasure Dick wants me to bring to Mexico:

Tonight I spent the night with Carol and Jerry.

Carol is my cousin, also a retired teacher, who now enjoys painting.

Jerry loves cigars and has recently added this Dodge Challenger to his collection of cars.

To Alameda

Thank you, thank you, Mark for loaning me your Thule rack and for installing it.

A little Dobie-style MacGyvering was necessary,
later causing much head-shaking by Justin.

First on the scene on the Broadway off-ramp on I-880 in Oakland.
The two people inside the car scrambled out the broken windows, they're standing on the right.
It was quite the flip from my point of view

After picking up the rigging, I met Cindy Silva at Wescafe in Alameda.
We haven't visited in person for 25 years,
but we picked up right where we'd left off.

Sunday evening in Palo Alto

Tomorrow I can pick up the rigging in Alameda.
Time for a family visit.

L-R: Leta, Mark, Carolyn.

Leta moved this week to a new apartment in Palo Alto.

Politically-active neighbors: