Shouldering Through

Hello from Sonoma, CA! I'm sitting in the morning sun while molasses cookies cool... 

So much has happened since my last post that I get bogged down when I try to write and never actually post anything. So, here are a few highlights....

>I sailed to Cape Cod and snagged a mooring in Stage Harbor. Staying at Silverleaf, I found that I could carry my mom's sweet old poke boat to the end of Water Street in the dawn twilight, paddle out to the barrier beach, and walk for hours on a beach I had entirely to myself, occasionally ducking into the waves for a minute of kicking and splashing. 

>Cynthia got me a replacement rescue dog, Bandit.

He started out poorly (as did Monty), but gradually got better and better. Unfortunately, he never got smaller or lighter, so can't fly with me unless I abuse the system to declare him a service dog and I have trouble with that. So, he left with Cynthia at summer's end and she says he is doing better and better, abandoning his aggressive fearful personality for one of eagerness to meet and greet new friends. 

>Bandit and I sailed for a week with my brother Paul! I do not believe we've ever had that much time together since we were kids and it worked out very well. We had lots of fun sailing, fishing, puttering around tidal creeks, watched the amazing topography of the Maine seafloor on sonar as we sailed over it, and even saw a porcupine on a cliff. 

>In the fall, I sailed to Jamestown, RI, then to Block Island where I awaited better wind for several days and explored beaches.

I met a couple gals who walk their big dogs at dawn and told me they are out there for sunrise about 320 days a year. Nice to meet a couple early-am dog folk like me!

>Cape Lookout Bay was delightful (but crowded), as usual. So many fish, so many fishermen! I met a couple who built their own boat and had sailed it down to FL, but mostly puttered around the Outer Banks area and we walked the beach and talked and looked for shells. The chilly sunrise walks were absolutely awesome! 

Now the boat is in a marina in Bridgetown, NC (next to New Bern) and I'm in Sonoma working on diagnosing and healing my shoulder. While here I'm meeting new friends, seeing old ones, hiking with my beloved Sonoma County Wanderers, hugging friends, and petting dogs! Life is not bad.