I have a live-aboard boating (barging, actually!) friend whose husband gave her a clock with the days of the week on it...that's all! No time keeping, just the days. I think we need one too!
We tend to forget what day it is, and since my new wristwatch doesn't have a date window on it, we forget the date too. We often look at our salon clock with shock and horror, to discover the date is now...yes, the 21st of July! Heavens!! We are half way through the year...egads! and right now it is NOON!
No wonder Waz thought it was almost lunch time.:)
We have spent the morning with an estimator from the Hinkley Boat Yard in Savannah (he was grateful to spend two hours in the air conditioned comfort of his vehicle, there and back) where we will take our baby to get various items patched and painted, and a little bit of fiber-glassing done.
We are flexible on timeframe, which is good for them, but the weather is against us. Summer rain/thunderstorms rather put the kybosh on any continuous work when she is out on a dock. Ideally we would want to put her into one of the many buidings on the work site, but that all adds to the bill.
Our estimator is the f/glass and paint foreman, so it was really good to talk to the man who will do the bulk of the work. We know it is in good hands!
We also had a quote from Topstitch in Fernandina Beach, to replace the canvas on all the outside cushions, with Sunbrella Marine fabric. It came in much less than we anticipated. This is because we had a quote from a Port Charlotte company at Christmas for much more, without the cost of the fabric factored into the quote! aieee! major $$$.
We will wait to get the glass and paint quote before we confirm the canvas replacement...which includes the re-stitching of the Bimini....then we can apportion funds accordingly.
The Monday before last, Waz had his colonoscopy. Not fun, the three days leading up to the deed.
He had to eat nothing but protein for two of those days, then the third was liquids only. He has decided that chicken stock really isn't that good to drink! He got through the three days with minimal fuss...well, maybe just a little FUSS, while watching me eat yummy food while he downed a glass of something, but he was a real sport!
The day came and went, and we have had biopsy results...all clear, thank goodness. He doesn't have to have another one for ten years. Good thing our Medical Insurance loves us for our preventive measures and there is no co-pay for these procedures.
Well, it is now July 26th.
Mon had a family Doctor get-to-know-you in JAX a couple of Fridays ago, and went in for a mamo appt. referral, and an orthopedic Doc referral, and came out with a referral for a colonoscopy (Waz couldn't stop chuckling over that one!:) ) and a bone density test as well. Hey, why not? All preventive! I had a colonoscopy about thirteen yrs ago, so I am well overdue, according to the young woman Dr. I was delighted at how thorough she was and even though she was a little 'overloud' in her manner, she was obviously smart and totally 'onto it'. I like that.
I will have to call for all the referrals tomorrow, they haven't come through my St Vincent's Health Portal. Everything is done online now, and we can read all the results of tests, communications et all, on our own password protected portal. Love it!.
So what else have we been up to?
Well, we have thunderstorms every couple of days. We also have had record heat..aieee! 110 with the heat index, last Thursday. The oxygen had been taken out of the hot air, so it was literally hard to breath. The AC has been working over time and our electricity bill reflects that.
A couple of photos of storm clouds, which I never tire of recording. Bear with me here.:)
This is often how they begin. The air is humid, but the sun is strong and stinging. We feel almost thick in the head, at such times.
Then we look out the boat window, and all of a sudden, there are the dark clouds.
...then they get darker, and now there is a line of dark against the blue of the southern sky. This is looking directly west. (above)
This one looks south...
...and this is what it looks like on the radar. We are down on the middle right hand side...Can you see Brunswick? That cloud, the red and yellow stuff, kept coming, and lasted all night!
Looking west, again, you can see the rain cloud touching down, almost straight ahead.
These next three photos are from yesterdays (25th) storm. I somehow don't get tired of photographing storm clouds. They are all so different.
So, apart from storms, what have we been doing?
We went to St Simon's Island yesterday to photograph the old Light House there. We took our big cameras, and almost instantly regretted the extra weight, in the heat. We were already carrying water bottles in our shoulder bags, and it all added weight to make it uncomfortable. The results, however, were well worth the effort. We didn't stray far from the car, which was parked in the shade of a large Live Oak, fortunately, so we had relative cool to come back to.
I forget the history of this structure, but some time in the early 1800s (1830's?) she was built, and the building at the base is authentic, and now houses the Museum, which we didn't pay to go into. Yes, we are cheap! BUT, it was the weekend and the place was really busy. We don't do crowd really well. I waited quite a while to take this photo without a bunch of people at the front entry.
This is the gift shop entry, and we went in here seeking cool. We found it and a whole lot else. History, being the main thing. Lots of photos and information for us to read and look at, and we found some fabulous maps..see below...to give you an idea of where we are in relation to everything in the Golden Isles.
I hope that is large enough for you to be able to read .
On this coming Wednesday we are going to Sapelo Island with our marina neighbors, Suzie and Brent. They invited us to share a boat there, and we leave early morning, returning around noon. Exciting, as you need to be invited to go out there. This is where tobacco giant R.J Reynolds had one of his plantations and one of his gorgeous antebellum homes. Photos will follow, be assured. You can see Sapelo ( Pron. Sap and ello (as in hello)).
We had heard about this hotel so many times, from locals, and it was fantastic to finally see a photo of it. This is the circa 1835 Oglethorpe Hotel. It was built on Newcastle Street, between that and the Railway Station, which is no longer. The town council, in their infinite wisdom, agreed to demolish this gorgeous structure, in 1957, to make way for another MODERN hotel like Holiday Inn, or something similar. That hotel no longer stands either. The front porch on this lovely building measured 240 feet long. What a travesty! Like so many of the old buildings on Newcastle street....which are falling down....see below.
Notice how the brick façade is leaning out? into Newcastle St.
This was once a beautiful building.!
Oops..I didn't finish the St Simon's story. Sorry!....
This is Island Style Condo's opposite the light house, which is on the beach facing Jekyll Island.
We left the Light House and went further around the island looking for Antique stores. We have passed so many of them on other journeys, and never stopped to look. Well, there is probably a really good reason to NOT go into any of them...we find WAYYY too much to look at, and ooh and ahhh over, and some of it is glorious, and some of it is just plain sad. Nonetheless, we had a fun afternoon, coming home around 5pm. We often decide to leave the boat around lunch time...strange that!:)
and we went back to our favorite bakery on the Island, which has grown in size and now has new menu options. I had a hot spinach Empanada, and Waz had a chicken sandwich on a roll...washed down with a coffee. Fortified, we set of for the Antique looking.
We didn't feel too much like eating a large meal, when we got home, so I decided to make something that had inspired me from one of my friends on Facebook. The avocado I was intending to use was dead on arrival, so I had to improvise. I had a small packet of smoked salmon in the fridge, and some sour cream, fresh garlic chives, and a bottle of capers. A little cream cheese, and we were in business. Not much left in the fridge to choose from, but this hit the spot perfectly.
This morning, I used the very last of the blueberries and a rather OLD banana to make banana/blueberry muffins, for breakfast. Those with a mango, and we were set for the morning.
We have done more laundry and hung that out back to dry...except that there was so much humidity, it never really dried.
We keep doing odd jobs, clearing paperwork and making appointments for this and that. Tomorrow, being Monday, I am going to check up on the specialist appointments. This all has to be done! bah!
Heat is exhausting. I had an afternoon nap, today, and woke up feeling like a cat had slept on my head....how does that feel??? fuzzy!
So, we decided, with very few options available in the refrigerator, to go somewhere inexpensive for dinner. We met Suzie and Brent on the way to the car, and though they had just eaten Italian on St Simon's, and thoroughly enjoyed it, they decided to come with us for dessert. We settled on DQ (Dairy Queen) at the other end of town. Waz and I had our meal while we all chatted about the real estate in the town that we are all looking at. S and B had been out with a realtor, looking at old homes, this afternoon. They too are interested in renewing and rejuvenating a Victorian. The house in question, for them, is about to go to auction...they couldn't sell it at $40k, and it may go for anywhere from $5k up, depending if anyone goes to the auction. It is a duplex, and in ok shape, but it might tae $100k to renovate. They are up to the task.
On the way home from dinner, we all went looking at our various interesting homes, nearby, and discussed their various features and what we might do with them. We are still stuck on one particular home, and don't see anything else to compare. We will keep you posted!
Well, Waz is sleeping beside me yet again. It is 11.15pm, and I have spent time on Skype with the youngest child, tonight, and helped him get sorted. He is currently unemployed and looking for work. He is managing to stay reasonably positive, but it is challenging. He was made redundant.
Im outta here, and off the shower. Another day and another week tomorrow. I will leave you with some photos I took on Newcastle street, the other day. Details of some of the old buildings. Always fascinating!
Looking through a window in a restaurant, to the other street.
3 Generations of family have owned this Hardware Store on Newcastle Street. I wish they would restore the old building. It is a classic, but in desperate need. This is one set of doors.
A little further down, are these cherubs on the door knocker of an apartment upstairs.
Night Night.
I enjoyed reading your post! I'm a newer resident to downtown Brunswick and I've enjoyed getting involved in the community and researching the history of the area. A couple of updates/corrections in the years since you posted:
ReplyDeleteThe building you photographed "leaning" toward Newcastle Street has just been beautifully restored. It's part of the property owned by Silver Bluff Brewing Company, which opened on Newcastle this year. The restored portion of the building will soon be condos and retail/restaurant space for Brunswick.
Regarding the Oglethorpe hotel: It is for sure the city's biggest loss. Your date of circa 1835 was very early. The hotel was actually constructed in 1888. Lots of folks want to blame a clueless city council for demolishing the hotel, but this wasn't the case. The Oglethorpe was privately owned. Newspaper articles from the time show there were many citizens and lawmakers who wanted to save the hotel before it was demolished in 1958. The property owner wanted to fix up the hotel, but the costs to bring it up to code were astronomical. There were many foundation/plumbing/electrical issues throughout the building. The owner even sought out a buyer who intended to restore it, but even this new owner couldn't justify the costs, and the building was scrapped for materials.
Hopefully this info fleshes out the story of Brunswick a little more. There are many exciting things happening downtown here - it's a great time to be a part of it all!