Catch Up Time

I know, I know. I've fallen behind again. Sometimes I just get busy living life and forget to write about it.

We've really been blessed with cooler weather again this week. Another nor'easter moved through on Tuesday, bringing rain and clouds. The clouds stuck around most of the week. Today we have a beautiful sunny day, but it is still cooler than usual. I'm lovin' it!

There hasn't been as much snorkeling going on this week either. I did go out Monday afternoon with Debi and Emily while Don was helping Bob do some wiring in his shop, but the winds had already picked up so when we got out of the water, it was chilly!

Don has been helping the Canadian team build a house for Concepción in one of the colonias. He said she is probably one of the poorest people up there. Her present house, the one being replaced, is  smaller than our breakfast room, maybe only 8 feet by 10 feet. That's her entire house, complete with a dirt floor. She does have her own outhouse though. The new house will be about 20 feet by 24 feet - a mansion! Her only income seems to come from collecting and selling aluminum cans.  She watches her grand-daughters during the day, and Don has fallen in love with one of these girls, Lady. He said she's just the most delightful little girl, very polite but inquisitive. Lady's 10 but is very small for her age, about the size of an 8 year old. Don has been practicing his Spanish with her in the mornings; she goes to school in the afternoon.
[Note: the island schools are so crowded that the children go in shifts: 7-12, 1-5, or 6-10 p.m.]

Don and I have managed to knock out the screen door from the guest quarters to the deck TWICE this week. The other day, I came home to find the screen door laying on the deck getting surgical intervention from Don. He took the screen with him when he walked through the door and had enough force to separate the door at two corners. He fixed those with brackets and screws and straightened the frame pretty well so that the door was again operational. It lasted about 5 days before I walked through it and bent it out of whack. Once again, Dr. Don was able to resusitate the door (with his trusty hammer!) and it still works (although it drags a little).

A sad note - Don's long-time friend and former business partner, Jon Maciejewski, passed away this week. We will miss him.