Italy Part 1

Vultures, vultures, vultures everywhere.

As many of you know, we are on a month-long stay in Italy at the moment.  The Glass Art Society conference is in Murano in mid-May this year and we decided to make a vacation around the event.  Mrs. T writes about the first part of the trip in Italy below. However, the adventures really started during the transition between Mexico and Italy which the editor will relate.  We have had quite a month. We are not describing this to elicit any particular emotions but just as straight reporting. Sometimes you get a lot of curveballs.

Mrs. T and I are not fleet of foot anymore and now regularly obtain wheelchair assistance at airports.  Not only is this helpful but the 'pushers' usually know the gate we need. Fortunately our travel planner leaves ample time for transfers between planes.  Returns to the US have by far been our worst experiences; US airports are terrible. And Atlanta on the return from Mexico was not fun. At foreign airports the same assistants take us from plane to plane.  Not in the US. We are taken from holding area to holding area, handed off like hot potatoes. And they are understaffed. We feel like stockyard cattle going to slaughter. (Lots of metaphors to work with -dt)  The international gates are miles from the rest of the concourses. And we need to go through the near strip searches at security. Atlanta was another of the poorly organized and badly managed examples of the 'free market' at work; handicap assistance is contracted and it is obvious the lowest bidder wins.  It is surprising that anyone travels out of the US. But we made it back to Philo.

There we encountered another adventure.  The house was COLD. Not freezing but in the 50s; not what we wanted returning from the tropics.  And no hot water. And no oven. It took us a while to ascertain that we did not have any gas. We learned from our wonderful neighbors that there had been a leak somewhere in the gas lines that crisscross our area and somehow our line had been shut off.  I managed to have our gas reconnected and we had heat. However, the hot water tank seemed to have self-destructed some parts of its internals which will need repairs when we return. Cold showers are bracing. Makes one appreciate the travails of the pioneers.

Well, on to Mrs. T's account of the first part of our Italian adventure.

We managed to get to Milan, Italy by way of Chicago (think Atlanta again -dt) and Copenhagen (no problems -dt).  The plane to Copenhagen was not full so we got two seats each. This gave us room to spread out but not enough room to lay down.  We caught a train to our hotel. Here I must state that Learn Italian in 5 Days (on YouTube  -dt) did not work very well even though I practiced it for at least 10 days.  However most people smiled at me and answered me in English. Our hotel in Milan was clean and functional and being exhausted we slept well.  

The next day we went downtown on the Metro and saw a bunch of very expensive stores. (Milan is known as a shopping Mecca  -dt) We looked in the windows but did not go in. When we passed the Chanel store a whiff of expensive perfume escaped out the door.  There was a Prada Store but although I peeked about I saw no devils. I admit some of the clothes looked pretty nice but I did not see any fat lady shops.  

We also saw La Scala one of the oldest theaters in the world where they  invented modern opera, theater, and ballet. It was closed. We saw the outside of the Duomo, a very ornate old church.  The plaza in front of it was full of all kinds of people speaking all kinds of languages. I was a little overwhelmed but fortunately Dan was not.  There were a lot of soldiers hanging around in dress uniforms. We did not know then but found out later it was Liberation Day with parades and such coming in the afternoon.  We found a very old stationary store but it was closed. Dan had wanted to visit it so this was disappointing. (Many stores were closed because of the holiday. -dt) We were tired and ready to go back to the hotel.

Unfortunately the soldiers had blocked off access to the entrance to the Metro.  We were told we had to go back to the previous stop. At least I thought that was what we were told. (Everyone was being screened to go into the Duomo Plaza.  -dt) This was confusing because instead of the Yellow Metro line we would be on the Green line. A nice man told us how to transfer to the Red line so that we would end up at our stop.  The Italian people are so nice and friendly to strangers - I thought.

The stop was very congested as two stops crowded into one.  We managed to squeeze onto the next train. The train was swaying back and forth as we sped along.  Everybody was bumping into each other. (sardines in a can -dt) Suddenly there was a big lurch and somebody gave me a serious shove and I fell down.  Hands came from all around me lifting me up, giving me my cane and my purse, and reattaching me to the bar I was holding onto. "You get up and let the lady sit on the seat," said a friendly lady.  At least that is what I imagined she said. She could have been saying something quite different. A teenager got up and I was helped into the seat. Another person moved and Dan was seated beside me.  Well that was not so bad, these people are really quite nice, I thought again.

As the train rumbled to the next stop another younger woman held out my money purse and Dan's leather notebook.  "I think these are yours", she said and disappeared out the door. I was confused and by the time I realized my money had vanished with her they both were long gone.  I was devastated, not to mention somewhat impoverished. (about 200 euros -dt) I was not only angry that they had done this but very sad that I had thought they were so nice and they were not.  I also felt extremely stupid. I suppose I should be grateful they did not take my credit cards. Dan was furious but not at me. He was sweet, me telling me it was not my fault. Sigh. He had his little leather notebook in his pocket; they must have thought it was his money which was in another pocket which fastened shut. (We admitted whoever - and there may have been more than one - did the deal was skilled -dt)(R now stores money in her personal bank -dt)

The next morning we went down to breakfast which was quite good.  We were still both bummed out. It was after we left the hotel and were on our way to Stesa we realized that Dan's phone (and the leather notebook again -dt) was gone. Dan was absolutely incensed!  I was beyond caring. Milan was a hard luck town for us. Fortunately Dan had his phone passworded and fingerprinted. But he had all kinds of information about our trip on the phone and in the notebook (easy to read -dt), not to mention all his addresses and such.  After about an hour I gave up trying to comfort him while he raved. We sullenly sat thinking our own sad thoughts as the train rolled on. (We are rather savvy travellers, but these were first-time events for us -dt) (As an added precaution I had the phone locked when we reached Stresa.  -dt)

Some photos from Milan:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/9151458@N07/shares/606oPC

As you may recall R's phone was damaged in Hurricane Irma and so is turned off in Philo.  If you want to contact us it is probably best to use email. We hope to have new phones by the end of May.

Well, that is a description of the beginning of our journey.  Next time Mrs.T will talk about our stay in Stresa, Lago Maggiore - a great time there.

Ciao.

Dan and Rebecca

www.casa-de-terrible.blogspot.com

Casa de Terrible www.casa-de-terrible.blogspot.com We are still around. You may have thought we fell off the planet as we have not posted anything in quite a bit. But we are doing well at our winter home, mostly normal activities.

                   

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AT THE WINTER HOME

We are still around

You may have thought we fell off the planet as we have not posted anything in quite a bit.  But we are doing well at our winter home, mostly normal activities. We watched the Olympics and enjoyed the Gold Medal by the USA Men's Curling - sorry Canadian friends.  As Mrs. T discusses below, the Terrible Airbnb was in full swing at the beginning of 2018. We had a great time hosting and we think our visitors enjoyed a relaxing time becoming expert lollers.  The annual festival was held but seemed a bit down in attendance this time. There are a few pictures from the last peregrination; be sure to watch the short video.  And the puzzlers have been at it in full tilt; they even completed one in about 24 hours.  However, they rebelled at a particularly difficult one of butterflies labelled 'Impossible'.  Not to be deterred, Dr..Puzzle took it to her place and did it on her own; that is why Judy is the puzzle doctor.

Festival and few other things:  https://www.flickr.com/gp/9151458@N07/o59sQ9

Puzzles:  https://www.flickr.com/gp/9151458@N07/Q7me1Q

On a more serious note, normalcy was interrupted by illness.  Rebecca had some intestinal hemorrhaging from ruptured diverticulars.  She had not been previously diagnosed - or we had not been told - about her having diverticulosis.  We are familiar with the symptoms of infection as the editor has had the condition for several decades.  But this was a different situation. She went to the hospital and was scoped from end to end. She healed up on her own rather quickly.  But her energy was diminished by her blood loss and the two night stay at VMC. Right now - mid-March - she seems to have recovered quite a bit; a blood test later this week will tell if her iron levels are back to normal.

I persuaded Mrs.T to put together a little story as we have been in the dark for a while.  I think too much lolling lead to the somewhat morose initial thoughts.

Some of you have inquired what is or was wrong with me.  That, of course, is a rather involved subject. However recently I developed a rather severe case of diverticulitis which involved significant internal bleeding and landed me in the hospital for a couple of days.  I emerged weak, grumpy, and anemic. (But no infection -dt) The doctors suggested I eat lots of beans, spinach, broccoli, that sort of thing. (I love this good stuff. -dt) I suggested steak and hot fudge sundaes.(Midwest farm girl -dt)  I lost!! I was also temporarily forbidden such activities as SCUBA, horseback riding, and boogie boarding. This accounts for the grumpy part.

I think perhaps I have to admit it:  I am growing old. One question is how I should go about it.  One problem is hair. I had decided to let my hair grow. (See the current  Prince Valiant look -dt) In the south for no reason I know of your hair grows a lot faster.   But another odd thing is that here for the first time my hair curls. My friend Judy explained it is because of the humidity.  At any rate because of all my pool lolling my hair was turning a particularly unattractive brown grey. (More yellow than brown -dt) I was told the answer was to wash my hair with purple shampoo.  I know this sounds silly but it turns out it is true. If you do it properly your hair turns out a lovely silver. Of course if you overdo it you end up with blue hair. (She had been warned -dt) As many of you know I have never been one to do things with a subtle touch.  "Is your hair blue?" Dan asked in amazement, unable, I suppose, to quite believe his eyes. "Well, yes," I answered and then I explained. (Where the hair length is going is anybody's guess -dt)

Another problem with growing old is the creaking.  When I move around I sometimes sound like the Tin Man from The Wizard of OZ.  This does not really hurt but it seems as if my bones are jumping around and rearranging themselves at will.  I don't know what to do about this. (The editor sounds like a box of cereal. -dt)

In Mexico almost everyone has a tan. (We can tell newbies by their paleness -dt)  This works well in covering those unsightly blue veins and brown spots which appear with age.  Then there is toenail polish. Since all the old ladies around here wear either sandals or flip flops nail polish works well to distract from unfortunate foot variations that develop with age.  Luckily pedicures in Mexico are quite reasonably priced. Colors currently in style include almost anything. Today I am wearing dark purple. (No surprise there -dt)

A serious problem with increasing maturity, as it were, is memory problems and mental acuity.  In terms of memory I remember just about as much as I ever did. (Correct -dt) It just takes me longer to recall something.  Perhaps it is because I have to go through so much remembered stuff before I get to the thing I am trying to recollect. Quite often I will be walking down the street and will turn to Dan and say "Jeanine" or some such thing.  He will respond, "Of course that was her name." He knows immediately I am talking of a name I was trying to remember in a conversation we had three days earlier. When we are watching Jeopardy  I still know a lot of the answers, but most of them I merely recognise (Probably the Brit spelling; see below -dt) after a contestant says it.  A totally different problem is short term memory.

I think a lot of what passes for difficulties with short-term memory is actually hearing problems.  Both Dan and I do not hear as well as we once did. The difference is I admit it but then I know Dan cannot hear either. (My tests come back normal -dt) (I think he cheated rt) We often adopt the smile-and-nod response method.  Sometimes we get caught and our confusion might be attributed to short-term memory loss when in fact we never heard about the thing in the first place.

This winter we had lots of family visitors.  These are very precious to us as the family of our youth diminishes.  Dan's sisters, Rachel and Janice, were our first visitors. As they had visited before they enjoyed going out on their own where they shopped and beachcomed.  I went with them to Destiladeras where we boogie boarded and saw lots of whales. (There have been quite a lot of whales this year; the beach at D. is a favorite spot to boogie board -dt)  A lot of the time we puzzled and lolled about. I think they both are honorary pool princesses.

Our son Nick was our next visitor,  He went horseback riding with me. He said he enjoyed it but did not go a second time. (He rode when he was growing up -dt) Nick and I went to Destiladeras and saw whales.  We walked on the beach and picked up shells. Nick and I painted together. I painted a blue tree and red sun under a tangerine sky. It is odd but I like it. (Definitely nice -dt) Everyone wants me to paint again and perhaps I will.  Nick puzzled a bit and was a definite loller. (But generally not in the water -dt) He gave Dan some kind of computer advice. Alas poor Nick is the only visitor still working full time so we encouraged him to loll.

Our last visitors were my sisters Ruth and Rita.  The three Rs ride again. Shortly after my birth our aunt Genie - Genevieve Swingle - dubbed us Reading Ruth, 'Riting Rita, and little 'Rithmetic Sue in a poem about the Three Rs.  Do any of you remember? (Only a few of you will understand the references -dt) I am not sure about Rita and I but Ruth is still reading with great gusto. (All three read quite a bit -dt) On Valentine's Day Dan gave us good chocolate candies and took us out to our lovely French restaurant the Bistro.  What a prince! (Just timing; Rebecca and I go there every year -dt) The three of us went to Destiladeras where Rita and I boogie boarded to Ruth's entertainment. We walked on the beach and munched on beach food. Ritta and I SCUBA dived while Ruth rode in the boat. Alas, I then got ill (Not from the food -dt) but Ruth and Rita soldiered on without me, going shopping and visiting our beach. They left plenty of time for cosseting me.  Ruth and Rita went horseback riding in my absence and had a great time. And of course we all lolled around the pool and did puzzles.

Both Dan's family and mine are games players and we played with all of our guests.  Janice played enthusiastically and Rachel carefully, Dan always plays to win. I want to do well and have a lot of fun.  We mostly played word games. Dan and his sisters had an advantage in that they spell very well. I on the other hand am creative and make up words that none have spelled before.  Anyway everyone won some and that was good. Nick played with us and sometimes won without having the methods of either of his parents. (Super Big Boggle was a favorite  -dt)

With my sisters, Rita found lots of words quickly and usually accurately.  Ruth was the best speller of us all. I don't think one of Ruth's words was ever disqualified.  Dan played intensely and usually accurately but when he could not find words would sometimes make them up. (Rarely, especially when compared to Mrs.T.  See following -dt) When I played, spelling was not an issue because everybody knows that I cannot spell. However sometimes I saw letters that spelled what I thought must be a word so I wrote it down.  Sometimes I was right, sometimes not. (Still she managed to win with outstanding scores sometimes -dt) I still maintain that if we were playing with the Oxford English Dictionary (The gold standard for many -dt)  of my words would have counted. (Only in ancient Norse -dt) What all this says about my, and for that matter everybody else's, brain power with advancing age I do not know. But if I figure it out and remember in two or three days I'll let you know.  He! He! He!

A glimpse at our visitors:  https://www.flickr.com/gp/9151458@N07/8fq6Cz  (Thanks Brenda for the picture of the painters -dt)

Well that was a summary of what has transpired since the last post.  As you can see we have been a bit busy. Now we are glancing at the calendar and noting that return to Philo is not far in the offing.  However it will then be only a short time until we depart for vacation in Italy.

Stay warm and dry.  See some of you in about a month.

Dan and Rebecca

www.casa-de-terrible.blogspot.com

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HAPPY NEW YEAR!

POOL  PRINCESSES

Since her Hurricane Irma story Rebecca has been low key on the newsletter front.  Between American Thanksgiving and New Year it is tranquilo in Bucerias before the hordes of turistas show up for either New Year or Christmas.  We have emphasized many times that we are not on vacation, but just in our winter location.  So the climate is better, especially for our health; hope you are enjoying your white Christmas season.  But life basically follows the same routines.  Here Mrs.T does have her SCUBA - she has been out a half dozen times already - and she can enjoy the pool; as many of you know, your editor does not do water.  And the jigsaw puzzle activities have been in full swing.  (Right now Dr. Puzzle is back in B.C. visiting family.)  As she relates below, R has had some difficulty lining up horse riding but that seems to now be under control.  And starting in a few weeks our Airbnb will be in full swing with many welcome visitors.  Here is a between-the-holidays update from the resident muse:

Well we did it.  We finally got solar heating for our condo pool.  This means that Brenda and I spend a fair amount of our time lolling about.  Some renters a bit earlier were fairly athletic.  ('Athletic' has a different meaning for the editor. -dt) We generally frown on this but we let them stay anyway.  They took advantage of our generosity by showing off in the pool doing a thing called synchronized swimming.  This seemed to involve standing on their heads in the pool and kicking their legs about.  While it is theoretically possible that Brenda and I could put our heads underwater, we did not want to ruin our hair.  (We are still waiting for this theory to be tested.  -dt) After a bit of this I had had enough.  So I invented a new water sport:  SYNCHRONIZED FLOATING!!!  I got long blue foam floating tubes which Brenda and I put under our necks to stabilize us a bit.  Then on my command we stuck our right foot out of the water.  We continued with: Left foot out, both feet out, kick, right hand out, left hand out. But when I got to the next command - tubes up - the troops rebelled.  Brenda, unfortunately, thought I said 'boobs up'.  She not only was unsure exactly what I meant by this command but was also unsure if she wished to participate.  By the time we had gotten this straightened out our audience had who had been watching with bemused curiosity wandered away. (Waiting for the second show  -dt)

I was unsuccessful at trying to connect with the place I rode horses last year.  I decided to try to ride one of the horses who frequent the beach giving rides to tourists. (Western style is better for R in any case.  -dt) Of course when I went to the beach there were no horses in sight.  I waited and waited,  I had put on my boots so even standing on the beach hurt my feet.  Eventually when I was getting ready to go back to the condo in the distance I saw horses riding up the beach.  As they came closer I saw that they weren't really horses.  It was two little boys racing ponies through the surf.  After they passed me I realized that I should have asked them about horses.  Well I thought, if they rode up the beach they should ride back eventually.  I waited and waited.  Finally when I had almost given up I saw them in the distance trotting slowly back.  "Vaqueros," I called to them.  When they rode up I told them that I would like to go for a ride.  They looked me over assessingly.  "You will need a bigger horse," the older boy said doubtfully.  I assured him that I knew that I could not ride one of their ponies.  I suggested that perhaps his father had a bigger horse. "You wait here," the boy replied.  I thought he was about 8-10 years old. "You wait here," the little brother, maybe 5 years old, parroted. And the two of them galloped off down the beach.  Again I waited and waited.  Some time later the two little boys rode up on their ponies leading a larger horse behind them.  

I looked at  the horse.  He was a tubby unenthusiastic looking horse but he looked quite healthy and was considerably larger than the boys' ponies.  "I need a chair to get on the horse," I told the little cowboys.  They were confused.  I had hoped that some adult would come with the horse but alas not so.  I demonstrated my inability to get my leg above my head to the stirrup.  This puzzled the boys as they had never before encountered such a disabled individual who still wanted to ride.  But they did understand the problem.  We lead the horse over to a nearby beach chair and I clambered up.  I could then get my left leg into the stirrup but was not quite able to throw my right leg over.  Fortunately Mauricio, a beach jewelry vendor, hurried over and gave me a boost in the butt and soon I was sitting in the saddle.  (Sorry, no picture of that  -dt)

The elder boy attached a rope to the horse's bridle and started leading the horse down the beach.  After awhile of this somewhat embarrassing travel I asked the boy if he was getting tired and suggested he might try riding his horse.  I guess he decided that I was not going to fall off even in my advanced state of decrepitude.  We went back to where the younger brother was holding the ponies and we all traversed the beach at a very slow trot.  I was trying to converse with them in Spanish.  They were very enthusiastic but talked too fast for me to follow.  They knew only a few phrases of English so after a while we just rode.  It was a  very pleasant ride even though my horse seemed to be loping along at his ease.  I tried to find the boys on other days but did not. Now I have an arrangement with some older cowboys who bring a little white horse to our condo once a week for me to ride.  Life is good.  (You will find pictures of that below.  -dt)

Pool, pasada, puzzles, and more:

https://www.flickr.com/gp/9151458@N07/rh43o4

And courtesy of Brenda - who provided the stepstool - we have some short videos (be patient while they load):

https://1drv.ms/v/s!Ar_LTkWEqhbYkGTe314H14SWwhbi

Gerry from Manitoba also decided to ride:

https://1drv.ms/v/s!Ar_LTkWEqhbYkGXLaWCezY5l_eqs

https://1drv.ms/v/s!Ar_LTkWEqhbYkGIcvmGv3G1XiTGb

As mentioned at the onset, we know many of you had a white Christmas and some are still in a deep freeze.  Stay warm.

Best wishes,

Dan and Rebecca

www.casa-de-terrible.blogspot.com

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Home Sweet Home

I WANT TO GO HOME

I was not too worried about Mrs.T.  She had called me after her arrival and briefed me on the situation as preparations were beginning.  She indicated that the hotel seemed well-prepared; I misunderstood that she said there was a storm shelter.  More importantly, Rebecca seems to always muddle through.  She is resilient.  And she has a 'I-am-a-nice-person' aura and people always like her - someone would be certain to help her out.  Rebecca would eventually pair up with Nickie, her Guardian Angel.  I did worry a bit that she could run out of medicine and then her mental state would change.  But otherwise I figured she would be okay.   But yes, I did try to contact her routinely although I knew the communications had been essentially destroyed.

Irma has passed.  The people of Tortola, similar to those of USVI and now Puerto Rico, were less than satisfied with the response of their government, the 'B' in BVI.  But Rebecca and the small band at Sebastian's needed to push ahead and get through each day.  And Rebecca wanted to get back to Philo.  She and the others did not yet know about Maria and how small was the time window for her to leave.  Here is the final installment of her vacation adventure:

When I was allowed outside I walked along the beach picking up shells.  Beachcombing was fabulous. (Sebastian's is quite literally on the beach.  -dt) I have never seen so much coral of many different kinds on a beach.  There was brain coral, tremendous globes. There were great sheets of sea fans.  There was elkhorn coral and many other kinds.  Shells were everywhere.  They were nice big shells that were of many different kinds.  Of course there was housing debris everywhere  I didn't pick up tiles, but then it would take weeks (probably months -dt) for the tiles and sea glass to be polished by the waves.

At night we had a supper of little rolls with a small lump of tuna with sweet pepper.  This was our first protein in several days.  It was delicious.  We also had cookies and fresh figs.  For drink we had tea.  I am not really sure exactly what food we had which day; you get the idea we were eating light but somewhat bland meals,  Wanda left me the ginger snaps and peanut butter so I munched on that now and then.  They drank wine every night.  Anyway we got by.

The day after the road opened Wanda called me excitedly to talk to her friend.  This lady had a phone that worked.  I don't know for sure or if she had a satellite phone or what.  She had a stenographer's notebook full of messages people wanted sent.  I wrote down Dan's number with the message 'Rebecca is okay'.  I hoped it got through.  (I did get the message  -dt) Wanda had already called someone but we did not know if it got through.  This seemed more possible.

One morning the big yellow shovel was back.  It was digging a humongous hole in the land across the road.  Then it started dragging all kinds of debris and putting it down in the hole.  They are going to bury it I thought.  But no; they lit a big fire.  Since it was down in the hole it did not spread.  That night as I looked out I could see a line of big fires all along the beach. There was always a person or two watching the fire and throwing on more stuff as it burned down. Although by this time the Royal Marines and Engineers were there, I was impressed by how hard the local people worked clearing the roads and cleaning up after the hurricane.

One day a person named Keith showed up to see how I was doing.  Keith worked for the tourist board.  Wanda and I told Keith that I was almost out of medicine and also I would like to go home.  There still were not any commercial flights, only military and charter.  Well Keith would take me downtown and see what he could work out. (Sebastian's is some distance from the major city, Road Town.  -dt) First Keith took me to the hospital and got me in line to see the doctor.  Keith was going to get in the line for gasoline.  If I was done with the doctor I should wait at the hospital and he would pick me up.  Well in a couple of hours Keith came back but I was still waiting.  Keith got me a sandwich and some water.  Then Keith was going to get in the line to buy water.  When Keith came back from buying water I was still waiting but getting nearer the head of the line.  When I saw the very nice doctor she gave me a ten-day prescription for all of my medicines except one for which she substituted something else.  Then I had to go to the pharmacy to wait in line to buy my medicines.  All of them together cost $33, which I thought was quite reasonable.

Then Keith tried to find out about getting me home.  There was a rumor that there was going to be a boat to take Americans home but no one knew for sure or any details.  Then Keith tried to find me a place to stay downtown near the dock.  One dock was open by then.  But there was no room in the inn or in any hotel either.  Keith took me back to Sebastian's.  

The next day Wanda was going to take me to the dock to try and get on this hypothetical ship home.  I had too much stuff to carry a long distance by myself and everything had to fit into one bag.  I agreed to leave my fins and most of my diving stuff.  Wanda promised she would mail them to me later.  But I had to get rid of more stuff.  I picked out a nice collection of shirts and underwear that Wanda would give to some needy fat lady.  I deposited most of my funds in the bank of Rebecca.  I was going to deposit my credit cards there too but that would be uncomfortable.  Wanda said they could be replaced if there were a problem.   But I flatly refused to give up the shells I had collected.  

Wanda drove me to the area of the dock and left me in the car while she went out to scout around.  There was a fair number of people hanging  around but no line and no one knew if there would be a boat or not.  The ferry office was closed.  Wanda met Nickie who was waiting for the boat.  Nickie was one of the ladies who sheltered with us during the storm.  Nickie agreed to help me and try and get me on the boat if one did appear.  I was beginning to feel like the bad card everyone passes around in the game Old Maid.  The benches were all full so I was sitting on a thing they tie ship lines around to secure them to the dock; I forget the word for it.  (Mooring post  -dt)  It was very hot.  After a while some guys picked up a bench some old lady was sitting on and moved it so it would be in the shade.  Nickie chased some kids off it so I could sit in the shade also.

Nickie asked me if I had a phone.  I told her I did but it did not work; it had gotten wet in the hurricane.  It used AT&T.  At that time that was the only network that worked on the island.  Nickie is quite technological.  She took my phone apart, wiped off all the parts with a hankie.  She took out a big box (The battery -dt)  and two little boxes (The memory  -dt) and then she put it all back together.  The phone came on but said it needed electricity.  Nickie asked if I had my charger.  Amazingly I did.  (Yes, amazing  -dt)  "Don't worry," Nickie said, "I'll get some electricity!"  Shortly after that the two ladies who ran the ferry office arrived and one of them was Nickie's aunt.  We got plugged in and took turns calling everybody.  First I called Dan.  We both had been worried about each other.  I could only say I was okay and was waiting for a boat that might come to take me home.  Nickie called and told her grandfather approximately the same thing.  Nickie is an American citizen but her family is from BVI.  (Her grandfather was in Miami -dt)

But before we could make any more of our many phone calls something very exciting occurred.  Nickie's aunt got a phone call with more official info.  There was going to be a boat - it was a cruise ship - to take distressed Americans home from St. Thomas.  There was a ferry to leave Tortola to take passengers to the ship; only American citizens could go.  You must be on the LIST.  About then Keith showed up.  He knew about the list but did not know how to get on it.

Well we were both American citizens, but how do we get on the LIST?  Auntie did not know.  A number of bribes were offered by crowd members to no avail.  Updates came through periodically.  Green cards did not work.  No dogs  or pets were allowed.   Service animals were allowed.  Some people said they had called the embassy for help.  The crowd was restless.  What about Australians?  An American school group had a few students from others countries  - what about them?   Finally another call came.  People at the ferry office could sell tickets to anyone on the LIST or anyone who could show them a valid US passport.  Of course Nickie soon got her ticket and grabbed my passport to get a ticket for me.  But here's the thing: I was already on the LIST!  To this day I don't know why. (Probably due to her trip to the hospital  -dt) The phone number of the LIST was announced and was immediately tied up.

We still had to wait hours until the ferry left.  It was supposed to be there in two hours but we were afraid to leave so we did not miss it.  It was so very HOT! Two different people gave me bottles of water.  This made a total of four bottles I had drank.  I think either the people of BVI are very kind or I looked like a desiccated wreck - probably both.  We heard that we were going to be on a cruise ship.  I was ready.  (About this time I receive a call from Nickie's grandmother and another from Keith asking if R was okay.  -dt)

Finally the ferry came.  There was some to-do with people who were not on the LIST who tried to get on the ferry.  But we had tickets and were official.  The ferry's name was Native Son.  Nickie carried my bag which was kind of heavy what with shells and all.  And I dragged hers which had wheels.  Nickie and Wanda were especially nice to me. (And commendable work by Keith.  -dt)  Sometimes it is almost worth it being old.  Nickie and Wanda are both young and enthusiastic.  Nickie is an auditor.

At the dock we saw another of  Nickie's aunts and her grandmother.  There were lots of hugs all around. Nickie wanted to go and pick up stuff to take back but Grandma said "Absolutely not; you are not taking a chance on missing this boat!" So there were more hugs and Nickie and I got on the ferry to St. Thomas.

In St. Thomas we boarded the Norwegian Sky after being checked off the LIST.  They immediately gave us sandwiches and pop which we and everyone else ate enthusiastically.  We were told this was a snack; supper would be later.  Watching our fellow passengers I figured I was not the only one who had been eating light for the last week  Then we went to our room to take showers.  OH SHOWERS!!  It was wonderful!  I think we would have both taken second showers if the announcement for dinner had not come.

The cruise ship was large and confusing but Nickie has a great sense of direction. (Something Mrs.T definitely lacks.  -dt)  The food was plain but plentiful: sandwiches, hamburgers, and hot dogs at every meal. Lots of fruits but no dessert unless you count jello or nut bread.  At first we were so grateful for food we didn't care.  The ship was paid for by FEMA but after a couple of days I was ready for a menu change. (Fortunately the ship reached Miami about then  -dt)

Evidently someone had decided that no one could say we were enjoying entertainment because we weren't.  I can understand no floor shows but no movies seemed a bit extreme.   By the second day they relented and reopened the children's program for the sanity of everyone.  What really annoyed me was that they locked up all the books in the library.

Meanwhile Nickie and I were making phone calls telling everyone we were finally coming home.  Nickie was calling determinedly trying to find a flight home for me from Miami and I was taking lots of showers.  Astoundingly Nickie succeeded.  After we docked I had only a short flight and I was in Columbus.  I thought about kissing the airport floor but I figured I couldn't get back up.  And then I kissed Dan.

There you have it - Mrs.T happily reached home.  We hope you all enjoyed and were informed by this first-person account of Irma.  Nickie has thoughtfully called routinely to check on Rebecca; it seems that she really does have a new angel looking over her. The editor looks forward to meeting her sometime.  We hope to communicate with Wanda and James soon to see how recovery is going.  Please keep these and the many other folks affected by recent weather events in your thoughts and prayers.  They have many months of work ahead to get back to normal.

A technical note:  We now have approximately 300 correspondents in our distribution list.  Emailing is a bit complicated and sometimes someone is missed or overlook.  I apologize if you did not receive all three parts of the Irma saga, but you can see them - and other adventures - at the blog page.  Please let me know if you are changing your email address or if you would like to be removed from our list.  And you are welcome to distribute our stories or recommend other people to add.

Best wishes to all.

Our winter home beckons.

Dan and Rebecca

www.casa-de-terrible.blogspot.com

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IRMA - PART TWO

OUT OF THE EYE

Mrs.T's story continues.  Many of you were captivated by Part One of her encounter with Irma.  And although it has been over a week since she returned, the episode still holds a grip on her.   As the eye passed through there was more to come:

As the sky darkened, the noise of the wind increased to a small roar.  Wanda served everyone a glass of water.  The building would shake or tremble when debris or water crashed into it,  We had a small flashlight for comfort more than illumination.  The two guest ladies, Nickie (R was not sure what spelling you preferred.  - dt)  and the other one I didn't know, were talking to Wanda about mutual acquaintances.  The four guys and I said pretty much nothing.  I noticed that water had begun to seep under the doorway.  At first it was still a sheen, then an inch, then two.   The storm surge was rising.  I began to imagine the water rising over our heads and us floating out to sea.  BOOM, pause, BOOM, pause, BOOM, pause - the waves shook the building. I looked down and the water was rising over my ankles. Victor was sitting in the chair next to mine. I held out my hand to Victor,  "Do you want me to help you up, Princess?" he asked.   Victor always called me princess.  "I want you to hold my hand," I replied.  "I am a little nervous." "Of course," Victor answered.  I sat there holding Victor's big, strong, brown hand.  BOOM, pause, BOOM, pause, BOOM, pause.  The water continued to rise.  Eventually the sound of the waves quieted and the the water stopped rising.  I thanked Victor and he assured me I could hold his hand any time.  Slowly the water receded and the wind abated.

I don't remember lying down. But when I woke during the night, I was lying on one side of the bed with Ally beside me in her carrier then Wanda, and then James.  Ally gave a dissatisfied yowl.  "I know " I whispered comfortingly, "I know."  Everyone else was sprawled around the room with pillows and blankets on chairs and the floor. This was how it used to be when we visited aunts and uncles when I was a child.  It is going to be okay I thought as I drifted back to sleep.

When I awoke I heard Victor muttering something about 'looter' as he clanged about in the room next door.  I concluded that he was bringing his pots and pans, and stuff upstairs in an effort to save them.  I think it was James who said something about Rebecca.  And Wanda said, "I'll take care of her."  Would someone want to loot me I wondered.  Would they think I was a rich white person?  Silly looters.

Wanda brought in my breakfast.  It was ½ cup of oatmeal, three cookies, ¼ of an apple, and a cup of tea.  The oatmeal was made with cold water so it was kind of soggy and chewy.  The tea was hot they must have had a battery operated coffeemaker. (Probably a small propane heater  -dt)  Under the  circumstances it was better than I would have expected.  I thanked Wanda sincerely.  I think maybe she was pleasantly surprised, having expected complaints.  I figured Wanda was feeding the four of us so we each got ¼ of an apple.  She was an excellent quartermaster for our meager rations which had been pooled among us.

"Rebecca," Wanda explained " a lot of the hotel has been blown down and torn up.  So James and Victor and I will be very busy trying to clean it up and save what we can."  "I want to help," was my immediate response.  I'm afraid there is lots of broken glass, and nails and things and if you got hurt we could not get you to the doctor because the roads are blocked.  I want you to stay in your room today and lock the door.  Don't let anyone in but James or Victor or me.  "May I have the radio to listen to?" I asked.  "Of course, Wanda replied..  It worked on batteries and had only one station.  When I got tired of it would I turn it off to save the batteries.  Did I need anything?  Wanda left me two bottles, one of Coke and one of water,  If I got hurt or anything I should stick my head out the window and yell real loud.   Nobody was fooling me.  You don't need to lock the door to keep[ out broken glass.  It was those looters.

I looked out the back window and saw a lot of young men wandering around.  Several of them had bags or backpacks.  Victor was arguing with one who slunk away.  Three or four got together and started rooting through the debris where the restaurant had been. (Part of Sebastian's  -dt) Every so often one would stop and put something in his bag.

I turned on the radio.  The news was first.  There was no electricity on the island.   It had all been intentionally turned off before the storm hit.  This would prevent accidents and make it easier to turn power back on.  Second there was no water.  People should use seawater to flush toilets and bottled water to drink.  It was against emergency law to sell food, water, or building materials at inflated prices.  There was a $200 fine for each offence. (BVI uses US dollars -dt)  Third, there should be no looting.  The police had emergency powers.  There was a strict curfew from 6pm to noon.  All schools were closed.  All commercial establishments should observe the curfew.  The airport was closed.  All three harbors were closed.  The hospital was open.  More news in twenty minutes.  Then there was light island music for a while.  When  you got sick of that there was gospel music for a while.  Then there was light classical music.  After that there was a repeat of news.  It was the same except it listed two roads that were now open.  Do not go to the hospital unless you are sick or hurt the radio commanded.  Also the Queen is thinking of you and is sending help.  The Queen is sending Royal Marines and Engineers and supplies.

It was nice the Queen was thinking of us I suppose.  After all old ladies have to think of something.  I thought they really meant the government of the UK.  But I could be wrong; I have read about all these Royal charities. Maybe some of that was really coming our way.  I was tired of  the radio.  I took out  my little sudoku book and did a few puzzles.  And fell asleep.

Lunch was six cookies, a handful of walnuts, and half of an orange.  We got a small glass of orange carrot juice to drink.  It was enough.  I asked how it was going.  James reported they had two rooms cleaned and boarded up.  Victor mumbled something about looters.  Could I help?  No not today.  Victor remarked that it would be better when the Marines got here.  Those looters were afraid of them.  The Marines had big guns.  No one was afraid of the police.  Was there anything I wanted?  I asked for books.  After lunch I went to sleep.

When I woke up I thought about looters.  After every emergency there seems to be lawlessness.  If your house is blown away and when you go to the store they charge you $6 for a gallon of water,  there seems to be a certain Jean Valjean justification for looting.  (Of course things are always more expensive on an island even in good times  -dt)  But last week in the BVI there was a makeup store called Glam that was emptied from floor to ceiling.  Explain that.  At Sebastians looters took TVs from some of the rooms even  though there was no electricity and would not be for months.

James and Wanda and Victor were afraid of the looters.  Fourteen people had moved into one of the downstairs rooms and declared it theirs.  A bunch of young men came and went at will in another room.  White people in general were a target; white people who had lived there for while, like James, seemed to be exempt to me.  In Jost Van Dyke, a smaller island in BVI,  there reportedly were armed gangs of young men who were going into homes and stores and taking what they wanted.  We all waited for the Royal Marines.  

Supper was six cookies, ¼ of an apple, and some walnuts.  We had grapefruit soda to drink.  One of my pills that I take for anxiety had gotten wet and crumbled to a powder.  I was distraught.  Wanda scraped out a little bit of the powder into my hand and told me to eat that.  I felt much better.  Wanda could handle anything.  I had my own room to sleep in.  James and Wanda were next door and Victor on the other side.  I slept restlessly.  I woke  in the night and heard men's voices singing.  It turned out that some of the looters had found liquor from the bar and were having a party.

The next day a big yellow shovel came and spent time pushing all the trees and broken buildings and trash off the road.  The shovel belonged to the brother of a lady who lived down  the troad.  We were no longer trapped.  I saw one of our neighbors getting a delivery.  A boat came in fairly close to shore.  A paddleboard was put down beside it.  A bunch of boxes were loaded on the paddleboard.  A guy from the boat swam to shore pushing the board where someone was waiting to get the delivery.  Now the road was open Victor and James went to town to see if they could get anything.  It took them hours of waiting to get water and gasoline and an odd combination of groceries.  They found three pounds of spaghetti and two jars of pasta sauce.  Also two cans of tuna fish, a jar of beets, and a box of kitty litter.  Wanda was very good at making a little go a long way.  We decided to have a pasta party.  James was going to invite some of the looters in an effort to make friends with them.  We were all excited about having pasta.  Our chef Victor found some herbs to add to the sauce.  James reported it was pretty calm downtown and Wanda could go shopping next time, but not me.  Sigh.

As you have read above, after Irma's passing began the new phase of the aftermath.  Rebecca still had a few more days on Tortola.  She had to deal with some other challenges there including getting back to the mainland.  She will finish that in Part Three.  Writing this should have a cathartic effect.

Meanwhile, unbeknownst to Mrs.T Mexico had an 8.1 quake offshore of Oaxaca and Chiapas and was felt all the way to Mexico City.  Our friends L&J visiting the capital at the time were literally shook up by it but thankfully unharmed.  And since then there was the 7.1 temblor right in the capital which left hundreds dead.  Our hearts go out to all that suffered.  Bucerias has not been impacted.

As we have witnessed, shortly thereafter Maria devastated Puerto Rico.  Rebecca says Tortola looked even worse after Irma.  Although not directly hit, Tortola was also traversed by Maria - a cruel one-two punch.  Much smaller Tortola has many fewer resources than Puerto Rico.  We await an update on their situation.

And we do not want to forget our friends in Houston impacted by Harvey.  It seems a distant zephyr now.  But we know they are at the beginning of a longer recovery.  Fortunately access is much easier on the continent.

We need to respect Mother Nature.  Could there be more hurricanes or quakes in the offing?

Dan and Rebecca

www.casa-de-terrible.blogspot.com

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Irma - Part One

BAD TIMING

Many if not most of you think of Mrs. T as a 'woman of adventure'.  And she does have a streak of doing things a bit out of the norm.  But much of this stems from her lack of sitzfleich - she just cannot sit still sometimes.  And she is working her 'bucket list' - my bucket has a hole in it.  There is also her need to get away from the mundane, i.e., the editor.  So occasionally she goes on a solo vacation or maybe with a small group of women friends.  Sometimes she has a great time and sometimes things end up with a bit of tragedy.  Remember the broken leg at the end of the whale shark adventure?  Well, she felt the urge recently and she erred.  Here is the first part of a long essay about her recent trip.

Well I had been under a lot of stress. (Probably caused by the editor  -dt) One of my friends suggested a vacation.  I talked to Dan about it.  He was not going to take a - rude word - vacation. ('Darn' is a rude word for R.  -dt)  So I decided to go by myself.  One of my favorite things is SCUBA diving. (The real reason I did not go  -dt)  I looked on the internet the best places for diving in the Caribbean were Saba, the British Virgin Islands and some others.  The safest  (Low crime  -dt) places to visit included the British Virgin Islands (BVI)  whose language was English and money was the US dollar.  Well I signed up for a week for a nice little hotel on the beach. (Her travel agent made the arrangements.  -dt) There was a little storm developing out by Africa but it would probably not go near the BVI.

The next week as he drove me to the airport Dan remarked, "I'm not sure you should go the way that storm is growing."  "Oh I'll be fine I replied ," confidently.  If you ever want me to do something tell me I shouldn't.  (Amen to that -dt) Besides I was still a little grumpy that he wouldn't go.  By the time I landed the storm had a name, Irma, and was headed towards the BVI.

Several hours later when I arrived at Sebastian's on the Beach  preparations were under way.  The owners suggested I have a good meal before the hurricane came.  Although I wasn't very hungry I had a burger and fries.  Victor the chef, a huge soft-spoken bronze man, was busy packing his pans and utensils.  The meal he made for me was simple and delicious.  In fact it was very life sustaining although I did not know it at the time.  All the people at Sebastian's said I was a very brave lady.  In fact  you might substitute the word silly for brave; oh well.  Everyone else except two tall Americans had cancelled their bookings.

The things is, to get to BVI I had to take 3 different airplanes with waiting in between as the prognosis of the storm got worse for BVI and I was unaware.  When I arrived Irma was already rated as a number 4 and the revised storm path had the eye coming right over Tortola where I was staying.  OOPS!!  As far as my plans for SCUBA diving, I could forget about that because all the dive boats filled up some extra cans of gas and motored away as far and as fast as possible.  Boats that didn't leave mostly ended up in the middle of the island upside down.  There was one place that was called hurricane bay where it was supposed to be safe to anchor to ride out a storm.  Alas not so.  Several boats that tested this theory  disappeared completely and have not been seen since.

After my supper Wanda and James,the proprietors of Sebastian's, told me they had moved me from a first floor room to a second floor room.  My new room had a concrete roof so it should not fly off.  Well that was good.  They failed to explain that the second floor room was good because the storm surge, the wave of high water, was expected to be over 20 feet.  In this case a second floor room was a very good idea.  Also the room had stormproof windows.  I was all set.  As I started unpacking I decided not to put anything in the bottom drawers of the dresser just in case.  

When I unpacked I found a necklace that Dan had slipped into my bag.  This day was my 67th birthday.  I called to thank him and to report that I had arrived safely.  I wandered downstairs and a lady asked me if I wanted to buy any hurricane supplies from their little store. I thought about it.  After Irma arrived there might be no electricity.  And no water!!!

I bought a lot of packets of crackers and cookies, called biscuits for some reason (It is the British Virgin Islands  -dt), maybe 8 packets each holding 8 to 10 biskies.  I bought a jar of peanut butter.  I bought a large plastic jar, about a quart, of tiny ginger snaps. I bought three candy bars.  And to drink I bought a large size bottle of water - two liter;  it was the last water they had except 20 liter bottles.  I bought 4 cans of PEPSI and two plastic 1-liter plastic bottles of COKE.  I bought 4 glass bottles of a grapefruit drink.  I had no can opener for these.  I bought four 12 oz bottles of juice drink - two of carrot orange, one of carrot mango, one of pear Hawaiian punch.  I was pretty sure I would not like these - I would be wrong.  I figured I was prepared for a couple of days - how long could it be - wrong again.    These supplies cost over $40.   

I was settling in when Victor and some other guy came up with two 5-gallon buckets of seawater for flushing.  They also brought up 3 plastic gallons of drinking water.  I think this is when the birthday flowers from Dan arrived.  It was a large bowl of yellow roses and some tropical pink flowers.  Everyone was impressed.  I put them on my dresser.  I felt loved.  I knew I would be okay now.  I arranged my small bag with my passport, my money, my credit cards, and my medicine around my neck.  I got my two books to read.  Wanda came up to give me my instructions and my key.

First of all I was perfectly safe.  The roofs never came off when they were made of concrete.  This turned out to be untrue but my roof stayed on.  Irma had been upgraded to a level 5, the highest intensity hurricane.  It had 190 mph winds.  The eye was supposed to come right over where we were.  When it did it would seem like the hurricane was over but it was not.  I was not to come out until  Wanda or James or Victor came for me.  I would be all right.  Wanda gave me the key and told me to lock the door when she left and not to let in anyone but her or James or Victor.

No one told me why this was but I knew.  After the hurricane came LOOTING.  I moved the food close to the bed opened a can of PEPSI and a candy bar.  I peered out the window, which was clearly labeled storm proof.  The wind had picked up but there was not much rain.  I kept my shoes on as I lay down and tried to read.  I could not pay attention to the book and I kept getting up to peer out the window.  I decided this hurricane was not going to amount to much.  I hoped it at least had an eye; I was wrong again.  I decided to use the potty while it was still flushable.  I peeked out the tiny bathroom window and saw there was no surge under us yet.  This was good.

I tried to read but that proved difficult as the wind noise kept getting louder.  Suddenly there was a huge crash and I saw a large tree fly by.  A couple seconds later a big flat blue thing that I thought was a roof sailed by. "We are not in Kansas anymore," I thought.  The rain suddenly fell in sheets which the wind swirled in patterns like curtains blowing.  CRACK!!  CRASH!!  BANG!!! The two large stormproof windows, broke out shattered and were gone.  A sheet of rain washed over me.  The wind blew my breath away.  "Oh SH_T!" I thought.  I frantically grabbed all my crackers and  drinks and retreated to the bathroom.  I yanked shut the door which was resisting until the latch caught.  I peered cautiously out the small window which was intact.  The water was rising rapidly. Every few seconds there was a clear view and each time this happened there were fewer houses and trees in sight. What had been a beautiful tropical neighborhood with flowers and trees and gayly colored houses was turning into a rocky moonscape littered with broken houses and trees.  The Sebastian trembled as each wave crashed against the lower floor.  Thank goodness I was on the second floor.  Then slowly the winds quieted and the rain stopped.  The water drained away.  We were in the eye.  I noticed that I was breathing fast as if I had been running.  So much for being a brave lady I thought as I tried to concentrate on breathing slowly.  I probably should do something but I couldn't think what.  Don't go out I remembered.

"Rebecca are you OK?" Wanda called."Yes," I replied.  "We are going to move you to the room next door.  Its windows did not break," Wanda explained. I emerged from the bathroom.  The mattress was torn from the bed and lay twisted on the floor waterlogged and covered with shattered glass.  The bedspread was stretched across one side of the room.  My flower arrangement was still beautiful and intact.  My phone was damp and did not work.  The book I had been reading was in soaked clumps of pages.  As I poured water and glass from my duffle bag I noticed that there was an inch or two of water on the floor.  It came in the windows I thought.  The waves did not get that high.  Wanda and I stuffed all my undamaged stuff in the duffle.  We brought in my dive equipment and my flowers too.  Victor arranged all my food and drink with a large pile already on the desk in one corner.  Victor's window had broken too.  The roof had blown off Wanda and James's place so the four of us were holed up in the one undamaged room.  Also there was Ally who was Wanda's cat.  James was carting up buckets of flushing water.  Victor was bringing food and water.  Wanda was bringing dry pillows and blankets  I sat on the bed trying to breathe slowly.  Ally, every few minutes would let loose one very grumpy meow.  She did not like this hurricane one bit and she expected us to make it stop.  It was beginning to get darker and the wind was picking up when a lady whose house had blown completely away showed up asking for shelter.  In the next few minutes three more refugees appeared.  The eye had passed and the second half of Irma was upon us.

Thus ends the first part of Mrs.T's essay on the Irma adventure.  Still more harrowing things to come.  And I was concerned that Irma was headed towards Rachel's in north-central Florida.  Plus Harvey had recently paid a visit to our friend JT land her family just west of Houston; she seems to have gotten through that relatively unscathed thankfully.  And Mexico had deadly earthquakes; nothing untoward in Bucerias.

To see pictures and other stories of Irma in Tortola check out the BBC, The Guardian - https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/sep/17/tortola-hurricane-irma-british-virgin-islands  , or other British news services.

As you can guess Rebecca eventually made it back to Philo.  But that is for the next parts of the story.; I will be encouraging her to write more while things are still fresh in her memory.  Stay tuned and feel free to share.

Dan and Rebecca

www.casa-de-terrible.blogspot.com

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