The In-Between Hiatus

Greetings and Merry Christmas/Happy New Year. Anticipating "cabin fever" or boredom during my "hibernating" season between the time I put Winnie II away winterized (November 10) and my next 2019 adventure (February 8), I decided to keep track of exactly what I do during the hiatus. Upon reflection it turns out I was not bored nor was I wanting for something to do.  So, what follows is a mish-mash of activities in no chronological order. And at the risk of sounding like your typical "Christmas Letter to Friends", which I happen to enjoy reading by the way, I'm reflecting on my very fortunate life surrounded by great friends and family and the observations that go with them. There'll be no sharing of age and numbers. Reason? I did the math and figured my first students are now on Medicare at age 66! Not a pleasant thought. Nor will there be any laments as to how body parts are (or are not) working, medical sagas, crises or dramas. You all have your own on which to reflect. My goal in life has always been to live forever and, at this writing, I'm accomplishing just that...so far so good.

The first big highlight was the wedding of my daughter, Marybeth to Carlo in September. I pulled this from her Facebook page along with the photographer's comment. For me her face captures true adoration and happiness.

"As a wedding photographer, I step into the bride and groom’s inner circle for a short time. Without fail, I am swept up in the spectacle of love, family ties and beauty that shows itself on wedding days. This sunny September afternoon was no different. I knew her as “MB,” my soccer captain and fierce teammate first. After her wedding day, I now think of her as Marybeth, bride extraordinaire. She and her husband said their vows in the leafy courtyard, sipped rose colored bubbly, laughed full-hearted laughs and melded their families in the most elegantly simplistic fashion. To say it was breathtaking is an understatement. Congratulations @mmmbee and @carlocitera ! The pleasure was all mine. ❤️🥂

By the way, an Italian treat if ever there was one, would be to visit his restaurant, Cosimo's in Poughkeepsie.  Everything about him and the restaurant is outstanding. Take a peek.  Meanwhile, in Peekskill, if you'd like to see where I live, we have an updated website. To visit, click the link:  https://riverhouseinpeekskill.com/ Yes, I did ask myself, "Why would anyone...?" The leaves are now gone, sunsets continue and the Mighty Hudson is once again visible to me and always impressive.

My cousin Norma flew up from Boca Raton, FL, and spent time having lunch with her godmother at Half Moon in Dobbs Ferry as well as friends in Connecticut (Dolce Wine Bar) and New Jersey (Ragazzi Italian Restaurant) . Wonderful dining experiences accompanied each visit.

And speaking of dining experiences. Highlights in RED will allow you to visit the websites should you be curious. I'll spare you photos of food. No need to thank me.

• My extraordinary dinners at Sakura continued on Mondays and Wednesdays. They were occasionally enhanced when friends and neighbors joined me: Diane, Ed and Diane, Gregg and Marina, Jack and Lynn.

• With friend, Dina, we enjoyed Table 9 in Peekskill and Spaccarelli's in Millwood.

• With my RV friends in the Hudson Islanders RV club, there was a November luncheon at Shadows on the Hudson in Poughkeepsie and our Christmas Party at Daddy-O's in Hopewell.

• I shared in the celebration of couple's 60th wedding anniversary at the Cortlandt Colonial restaurant. 60 years! Think about that.

• At home, I will be enjoying dinner with neighbors Ed, Diane, Stella, and Jack. Stella and Diane are preparing a Moroccan chicken and rice dish with an eggplant ratatouille and a Middle Eastern slaw that has almonds, cranberries and a drizzled dressing.  For dessert we will travel back down to the sixth floor and at Ed and Diane's meet more of our River House neighbors.

Working with Hen Hud's volleyball coach, Diane, we completed her 17th issue of the Hen Hud Volleyball Program Booklet. The booklet is just one of her awesome accomplishments. It has evolved into a wonderful piece of memorabilia for her players and the community that traces and displays the impressive achievements through her dedication and expertise in the sport over the years.

Before winterizing and bringing Winnie II to Cross River for its short-term storage, I had refrigerator/freezer warranty work completed. Weekly visits will have me running both the engine and the generator to keep them ready to move in February. Neighbor, Gregg (meet him below), provided his carpentry expertise and repaired one of the twin beds and made a "trap door" in the rear basement storage area so that I can more easily access the winterizing valves.

Florida friend and fellow RVer and Blue Mountain Middle School retiree, Vicki, informed me of a great wine promotion in her area and poof, just like that, I have a case waiting for me when I visit her during the week of February 11th. Thank you VC for doing that for me.  

One of the tabs on the right of this blog page, is a link to "WHAT ARE THE CHANCES" in which you'll see how many folks have the same birthday as mine. Similarly, in November, I had two cousins, a grandson and friend, Mare N, sharing the same birthday.  Through this time period I will have wished 65 people I know a happy birthday. Ha! Bet you didn't think I had that many friends. 

Here in New York, I enjoyed the snow storm of November 15th. No one else did but as a former teacher, those snow days were God's gift. Out in California on November 16th, a second big highlight was a big day for my son, Chuck. One month short of being with Facebook for eleven years, he retired.  Many of my readers are fathers and, like them, there's no one more proud of an offspring's accomplishment than "Pop." I cannot say enough about his achievements and certainly don't have the space here to do it. So I'll let LINKEDIN do it for me. This way he can't get on my case for bragging.  Click on the link and see why I can brag. I think he's a pretty fascinating guy. Just sayin'.

Then there was Thanksgiving. Here's hoping yours was pleasant and delicious. Celebrated mine with sister, Judy and mom. Afterwards, her favorite thing: "playing some games." So on this Thursday, like all other Sundays and Thursdays when I visit, we played games.

At 99 she's a terrific speller. Doesn't know what day
it is, forgot what she had for dinner, but makes words with no problems at all.
Big B'day will be on March 13, 2019.

My 2013 Caddy gave me a scare and blew a fuel pump on the road up in Poughkeepsie. With 216,700 miles it was a troublesome internal debate as to whether or not to dump the $$ for a new one--a high pressure fuel pump that is. I did and all is well.

I completed the 48th year of  my Topps Baseball Card Collection. 1970-2018. Each year, they come out of the factory set box, arranged numerically, usually 1-700, then placed in 9-pocket clear plastic pages and inserted into huge 3-ringed notebooks. The 1970 through 1975 complete sets are not mint as they were won through the eBay bidding process. That's as far back as I cared to go because their value, pre-1970, have 4-digits.











On the Saturday before Christmas I will drive up to Cragsmoor, NY where neighbor/friend Gregg Shults will perform "Mr. Dickens Tells a Christmas Carol."

​

Come to find out, Gregg is a sometimes actor. This is a
photo I found of him in his role as one
of the "Twelve Angry Men" 

And this is what he's been doing these past few Christmases:
"Gregg Shults will appear as Charles Dickens as he performs his one-man production of the famed writer reading from his book. Gradually, he transforming himself into each of the 23 characters, from the endearing Tiny Tim to the selfish Ebeneezer Scrooge, the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and Future, and all the supporting characters in between. " 

Granddaughter, Beca is on her way driving with boyfriend, Kevin, to Irvine, CA to do her accounting internship with KPMG.

Chinese New Year (2/5/19), the year of the Pig will be celebrated with my Sakura friends the Saturday before, the busiest day that will have the most employees in attendance. A special event for me with special friends. 

And so, with eleven days before Christmas, the usual good wishes, blessings and thanks go to my readers for a safe, healthy and terrific holiday season and New Year.

"I assume you don't want to put a wreath on the door either"

10/11 - 10/15 - Cape May KOA

The last 2018 outing with the Hudson Islanders...

Well, not quite. Factor torrential rain and not going with your gut as to
the easiest/quickest route, the trip was a little over 5 hrs.

...and the last adventure for my 2018 RV season. There was one stop for refueling and another stop after my dash lit up with "Check DEF level;"  What is DEF?  DEF (diesel emission fluid) is made by combining urea (1/3) and deionized water.(2/3). Urea is an organic compound made up of nitrogen, hydrogen, carbon and oxygen. (And, no, human urine should never be used as a substitute.) When DEF is mixed with hot exhaust gases, it breaks down into ammonia and carbon dioxide. Once those two gases meet the diesel fumes, they bond with the nitrogen oxides to create nitrogen and water before exiting the tailpipe. In other words, chemistry happens and diesel exhaust is cleaner. It is added to its own (about 5 gal) reservoir in the engine compartment  At 4,000 miles, this was the first time I added DEF to Winnie II. I'll be alert at 8,000 mile to see if the on-board computer detects the next refill point. I made sure I was well off the road as cars and semis sped by. Fortunately, skies were sunny and no wind. That was going to change later tonight...drastically.

A huge (88 acre) and spacious campground with amenities well suited for the in-season
 (6/29th to 9/3rd) crowd. We're here in their "off-season" (9/4th to 10/31st). In front of me,
in the orange section are Roberta, John/Nina and Tony/Doreen.

Back in site #34

As we all arrived after 4:00 pm Thursday, it was decided that we'd drive to a recommended Italian restaurant, Sapore Italiano for dinner. 

Elegant white tablecloth setting in a restored Victorian home.

We stopped in our tracks after it dawned on us
what BYOB meant. The owner told us of a liquor store
at the other end of their parking lot. So off I went. What
would an Italian meal be without a glass of wine?

Tony's entree: Gnocchi Al Gorgonzola:
homemade potato pasta with Gorgonzola and
a mascarpone, cream cheese sauce.

John's entree: Mediterranean sea bass hidden underneath
scallops, carrots, string beans, potato, roasted
red peppers and artichoke.

Charlie's entree: Chicken Francese:
Huge chicken cutlets (5) dipped in egg with capers
and lemon, extra virgin olive oil in a white wine sauce
over cappellini. Half of it was for lunch the next day.

After the special soup of the day, crab and asparagus, Nina had a huge salad consisting of beets, goat cheese, candied walnuts and baby greens in extra virgin olive oil. Doreen had chicken Marsala.  

Ah, Tiramisu; rich, creamy and delicious.
No, I was not the only one to have dessert. A
creme brulee at the end of the table disappeared
as fast as my tiramisu.

One of the five room on the main floor.

Check the website for more professional views.

Later Thursday night, remnants of Hurricane Michael brushed our area. I never heard the rain beat on the roof as hard as it did. Along with the up to 50 mph gusty winds, I felt cozy as the RV "rocked and rolled."

At 9 am you question whether
you should venture forth...

At 1 am you're glad you beat the storm,
got settled in and dealt with the torrential
rain and wind gusts up to 50 mph.  My strapped
down awning was withdrawn at 4 am.

The next day was mostly sunny and very breezy. No damage, drainage in the area was good and grounds crew was busy picking up branches that fell during the night. One for the books.

Friday we took one vehicle and headed to the tip of Cape May and Sunset Beach to view the 6:25 pm sunset.

Selected photos at Sunset Beach. For the "off season," the beach was quite crowded with other folks ready to photograph and experience the special sunset. Why special? It's the only location on the eastern seaboard where you can see the sun set into the water. (I don't think Key West counts as you are looking west into the Gulf..but it's still water isn't it?)

l. to r. Tony, Doreen, Roberta, Charlie, John, Nina

"The S.S. Atlantus was one of a dozen concrete ships that were built, and it criss-crossed the Atlantic several times, hauling cargo and troops. But when steel again became available, the S.S. Atlantus was mothballed. In 1926, she was docked in Cape May when a storm broke her loose and ran her aground, just off of Sunset Beach. She couldn't be pried off of the bottom because she was made of, well, concrete. For the last 90+ years her slowly crumbling hulk has been a tourist attraction, although not much of her is left above water."

What's left of the S.S. Atlantus lying in Delaware Bay

A better shot found on the Internet

It happened that the Cape May ferry just happened
to be sailing in front of us. I zoomed as much as I could
to make it seem close to land.

The actual distance shows the Cape May ferry "sailing into the sunset"
in Delaware Bay and headed towards Lewes, DE

What we didn't do (this time) was to search the beach for "Cape May Diamonds;" probably because our Cape May "tour guide," Roberta, didn't know about them. Take a minute to view this video and learn about Cape May Diamonds.

Saturday, we visited downtown Cape May. Some selected photos.

A beautiful day for the drive into town

l. to r. Roberta, Nina, John, Charlie, Doreen, Tony

Looking west down Washington Street

Our route east on Washington Street. But first....

...a lunch stop; right on the corner: Delaney's Irish Pub.

An Irish Pub? Shepard's Pie: Ground Beef, Fresh Thyme, Carrots,
Onions and Sweet Peas topped with Chive Mashed Potatoes.
Our waitress, Olaga, was from Minsk. Thought that added a nice touch.

I have a friend, Kathy, in North Palm Beach, FL, a fine Irish lass, whose been to Ireland a number of times in the recent past. She wrote me to say, "Kinsale is known as the gourmet capital of Ireland and even though I had many meals there, I never saw shepherds pie on any menu in any restaurant." Interesting. I think like the "gravy" term used by Italians here in America for the topping on pasta/macaroni, Shepard's Pie for the Irish is an American born tradition for that meal. In Italy, the term, "gravy" used on pasta/macaroni doesn't exist. Am I correct, Silvia? 

The Sea Star is typical of the brightly colored, well maintained
buildings that greet you as you enter the downtown area.

Yes, they had butter pecan (2 scoops) in a sugar cone: $5.16
Thank you, John.

Our Lady Star of the Sea church

Dallas, laid back and obedient....

Horse drawn carriage tours.

Roberta, Doreen and Tony would take the tour on Sunday.

Beautiful animals well taken care of and loved by their drivers.
A drink of water after the last tour.

Granddaughter, Beca, hopefully will add a comment below
and inform me about these special hooves; My guess is they're
painted (nail polish) and they're fitted with horseshoes
that gives that characteristic and pleasing clippity-clop sound
we associate with horse drawn carriages.

This was John's and my first stop, a Stewart's ice cream shop. The
building was obviously once a bank. That locked gated door
looked into another area of the restaurant. I don't think
their ice cream was that valuable. Unfortunately, John and
I waited about 5 minutes for service that never materialized
so we left and wound up in Ben & Jerry's.

And before you knew it, Sunday arrived with predicted temps in the high 60's. Another pleasant but overcast day. We drove to Beach Street and Uncle Bill's Pancake House for breakfast. This restaurant is one of eight. I did not find the tourist trade slowing down because it was "late in the season." It was a Sunday and it was bustling. The hostess did tell me it was "slow" for a weekend. Sam (Samantha), our busy and efficient waitress informed us that it remains quite busy right into the holiday seasons. This restaurant will stay open until January. A fifth grade elementary teacher of twelve years, she works weekends part time at the restaurant. Open only until 2 pm, their menu is extensive and the portions will not leave you wanting. Afterwards, we crossed the street and checked out the beach.

The view leaving the Pancake House

Tony/Doreen. Roberta's Samsung phone's
camera is so much better than my iPhone.

 

Roberta's photo of the beach across from the Pancake House.

From Beach Street we drove about four miles to the Cape May Lighthouse. The route we took along Sunset Blvd to Light House Avenue gave wonderful examples of the prime real estate with manicured and well maintained Victorian homes with wrap around porches, colorful coordinated clapboard siding and gingerbread trim.

When Doreen finds out that The Bread Lady Stand was located along this route, 657-699 Sunset Blvd, she'll go nuts. Hearing of long lines out the door and being a bread lover, this was a stop she wanted to make. Little did we know. I captured these photos from the Internet just for her:

The Light House.

The history here is fascinating. Built in 1859, the light house is 157' 6" tall with 217 steps within the double walled cone shaped structure. The outside wall is 3' 10" thick at the bottom, 1' 6" at the top and the inside wall is a cylinder with an 8½" thick wall which support the spiral staircase. The walls were designed to withstand winds several times above hurricane force. From the observation deck, a four point view...

East

South

West

North

 And my attempt at a panoramic shot:

This is the best I could do with the iPhone. I forgot my camera.
The massive structure to the left of the photo is an abandoned
WWII bunker that protected the Delaware Bay. Another was on the
Delaware side in Lewes. Built in 1942, the amazing history and
terrific photos can be viewed HERE.  

Next to the visitor center and museum was a garden loaded with
milkweed which attracted Monarchs. One flitted around and drew
the attention of a lot of folks with cameras.

This beautiful shot was captured by Roberta.

...their RV

Doreen & Tony and...

Photo shows how varied the weather
was. Nina & John and...

...their RV

Each site is provided a fire ring.

We provide the kindling, logs and flame.
Dear Jack, you were missed but Tony did an
admirable job.

Yup, got a tad chilly Saturday night.

And so ends the trip and a wonderful season of RV adventures. I don't know if this last blog post can qualify as a "Reader's Digest Condensed" version but, for me, it captures the highlights of an enjoyable four day stay with a great group of people (albeit 5). There's tons of stories and experiences to be had, all you need is a campfire. 

To the 97 readers (the highest number recorded this season for reading a blog entry) who have taken the time to read my blogs, I thank you for bringing my totals up to 3,370 views this year. My 2019 itinerary is set and available for your viewing by clicking on the right panel so labeled or you can CLICK HERE to view it.

Till next time, take care, stay well and enjoy the upcoming holidays.