9 December 2024
Today was an exhausting day for both Clark and myself. Last week I tackled cleaning every nook and cranny of the salon and the pilot house. Today I attacked our master stateroom. It seems that every square inch had accumulated grime on our trip south. I crawled all over that room - frequently on my hands and knees. While I scoured the stateroom, Clark was slaving away on the exterior of the boat - cleaning and polishing outside the upper helm.
When I was done with my chores, I took a break and got to see this big guy fishing from the dock by the boat. I think he knew I was watching him because as shown below he turned to look directly at me and the camera.
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| "You lookin' at me?!" |
Clark had a surprise for me today. He decided we needed to have romantic dinners on the boat and bought two LED candles. These go well with the other gift he bought for us - a Firestick to stream television so we no longer have to use our phone data plans.
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| Romantic Candlelight with Pumpkin Pie on the side |
10 December 2024
I started the day by raking sea grass out of our slip. I wanted to push it on its way before it decided to stick around and start to rot. After I did as much of that chore as I chad time for, I got ready to go to the library to play Mahjong.
I have been excited to try Mahjong since we arrived here, and this was my first opportunity. The library is about 2 blocks away, so I walked there. I arrived just a couple of minutes before 10:00 when the games start. As I walked up to the entrance, a woman was coming the other way and said, "Are you here for Mahjong?"
When I replied in the affirmative, she said, "It's been moved to Key Colony Beach." Someone else was using the room designated for Mahjong, so it was canceled. My options were limited. Art started at 9:30, so I was late for that and not dressed in "paint" clothes. I could go anyway, or I could walk back to the boat. However, when I said to the woman leaving, "I have no way to get to Key Colony", she said, "Yes, you do! Me!"
The last time I played Mahjong was in the 1990s. I knew I had fun playing. I even bought a Mahjong set that I never used again because I had no one to play against. I still have it at home! I figured I would need a refresher and understood from talking to folks at the library that "newbies" were welcome to come.
I dithered around about what I should do. I told her I would be considered a beginner having not played in 30 years. She convinced me that it wouldn't be a problem, and that I should come. I finally agreed and got in the car, with the woman I later learned was named Donna, ready to go find the rest of the Mahjong players.
Before starting the car, however, she turned to me and said, "You have your card, right?" When I replied that I had no card and had no idea what card she was talking about, she said, "Oh you must have a card to play." Her repeated insistence that I needed a card with my repeated response that I had no idea what she was talking about was so frustrating that I was ready to start crying. I told her that I appreciated her offer, but I should just go back to the boat. I was certainly ready to get out of the car and walk dejectedly back to the boat!
Somehow she convinced me that we could work out something. If all else failed I could watch people play to get an idea of the game played with a card. I swear that in 199? no card was part of the game! I was not in the library when she learned the session was canceled, so I don't know what she was told, but when we arrived at the Key Colony Inn where she believed it to be, no one was there, and the restaurant appeared closed. Hmmm! Could this day get any better?
Donna really wanted to play Mahjong. She had run out of options. She decided she would teach me, and to do this, she decided that we would set ourselves up at the Docksides restaurant and play outdoors at one of their tables. Donna first took me to her house where I waited in the car while she made a photocopy of her "card" so I would have something to work with.
In my wildest imaginings, I would never have guessed what a card would look like. To play for real, I would need a card, and not just any card, I would need a 2024 issue card!
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| Sample of a Mahjong Card |
The chairs at Docksides are hard metal. The tables have holes for umbrellas in the center. Neither of these amenities are conducive to playing Mahjong. She insisted we bring a table cloth, so tiles wouldn't fall through the hole in the table. She insisted on seat cushions for obvious reasons. Of course, she just happened to have these items handy at her house.
Her house is very near Docksides, definitely walkable for a younger person, not so much when carrying a Mahjong game set, cushions, table cloths, etc. My "let me see if I like Mahjong outing" had turned into pure madness. However, I am generally a go-with-the-flow type of person, and she definitely swept me away!
When we got to Docksides, we were welcomed with big smiles and "Welcome Back!!!" This from the owner, whom I learned is named Simone. Simone was truly excited to see us as she says cars in the parking lot bring more patrons to her place of business.
In the past, Donna held Mahjong sessions at Docksides on a weekly basis and had 3 to 4 tables of players each week. Sadly, all her friends have either passed away or moved away from Marathon to a place where they partake of assisted living or nursing homes.
Mahjong at the library was scheduled for 10:00. By now it was somewhere near 11:00, and I had yet to see a single Mahjong tile! We finally got started, and she introduced me to the tiles. Her Mahjong set includes Jokers. I am 99% sure that my set at home does not. I was hoping I could learn and teach my granddaughter Violet the game. My set may not meet the needs of this version of the game.
First, she taught me the names of the suits of tiles and explained about dragons that are associated with each suit. Then she explained how to decipher the code on the cards to match up with the suits and dragons. My head was spinning, but we decided to play our first game. I got hopelessly confused and, of course, there were rules that popped out of nowhere during play that made the game even more interesting. Because I got confused reading the card, I made a mess of it and could not possibly complete a hand to win on that first game.
When that game ended, we decided to buy lunch at Docksides and play another round after food. I quick texted Clark that he needed to find his own lunch today. Since it was Taco Tuesday at Docksides, it seemed only right to order from the Taco Tuesday menu. We both got nachos.
Surprise surprise! We played a second game, and I won! I actually matched a tile solution to one of the cryptic patterns on the now infamous-to-me "card"! After that, we packed up, and she drove me back to the marina. She made sure to get my contact information before she let me out of the car, so we can play again in the future.
When I got back to the boat, I found Clark working on installing the new stern camera that just arrived.
Taking down the old one ...
Finally the connector appeared, and Clark disconnected the old camera.
Voila! We now have a working stern camera, so we can see what is coming up behind us on the waterway. It may prove somewhat useful for docking but really does not show enough of the swim platform to be of much use for that.
By the time the camera was in place, it was time for Clark to head off to the library for band practice for Sunday's church service. While he was gone, I decided to do some art. Our Christmas tree looked pretty pathetic. Last year, the tree sat on the floor. This time, attached to our door, it appeared to be floating in air. It needed some work, so I gave it a tree trunk and presents under the tree.
I had just put my artwork away when I got a pleasant surprise, my granddaughter, Lillian, called me for help with her homework. She had a questionnaire to complete on family history - specifically when her ancestors arrived in the U.S. and where did they come from. It was a fun chat to be sure.
After dinner, Clark decided we needed a more permanent solution for our Firestick TV. Our television is hidden in a cabinet and getting to the back for connections is a real pain. However, having wires hanging out of the cabinet that need to be connected / disconnected every time we want to watch something was not fun. Happily, Clark discovered that he could do what he needed through an access hole in the back of our food cabinet. It took a lot less effort to plug in the Firestick than we thought it would.
Tuesday night is CBS FBI night. We watched "FBI" using our Firestick, and then, since we had missed the show "60 Minutes" on Sunday because we were out to dinner, we used the Firestick to watch that as well. What a really great Christmas gift!
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