Great to see you on the Cape, Ann

Sometimes great things are saved for last. Before we left for Cape Cod Getaway 2021, my blogging friend Ann Koplow and I emailed back and forth to find a common day for her to take the drive from her home near Boston to Dennis Port. Our last full day on the Cape it was. We…

Yes, this was a wonderful surprise

As we prepared for this year’s Cape Cod getaway, my dear wife Karen instructed me that I could not plan anything for the first Sunday of the stretch. Then she told me to make sure I packed my swimming trunks. A surprise was in store. Hmmmmmm. But it was early Saturday afternoon when a knock…

Another painted rock surfaces at last

I don’t know if it was the discovery or the social media posting that took time, but my terrific daughter Elisabeth let me know that another one of the rocks she left behind in South Padre Island during our family reunion trip in the summer of 2019 had been found and flaunted. I must say…

Before we wave a final goodbye to the trip to Texas

Thank you for sticking with me through the chronicles of our family trip to Texas. I can wrangle many posts out of my vacation travels. And still I have this final day of miscellaneous photographs to share. Yes, my terrific daughter Elisabeth brought decorated rocks to spread her unique cheer throughout Texas. She left the…

Do not mention the word canceled, please and thank you

We sat in San Antonio waiting for the plane to arrive. We missed a connection in Chicago and scrambled to stay overnight. The next morning, we saw all flights to Syracuse canceled and wrangled our way onto two separate flights to Buffalo instead. George rented a car. We got on their earlier flight thanks to…

So much to see out there by the jetty

There was a jetty out there near Dirty Al’s, and the five of us were going to walk out on it. No matter that the temperature was (again) about 100 F. We would rock this venture. Religious statues and soaring birds would not stop us. Blue water and a breeze beckoned. An extremely friendly pelican…

I’ll take the shrimp and the shrimp at Dirty Al’s

Dirty Al’s advertised the best friend shrimp anywhere. The Syracuse four plus brother-in-law Scott decided to take them up on their offer. First I made an executive decision to order a pound of peel-an-eat to set in the middle of the table. And peel-and-eat we did for a moment before I remembered to take the…

Sunsets and fireworks match well

Yes, The Longboard would have a table big enough to fit our big party. No, we never tired of taking our meals together! Or catching a beautiful sunset over Laguna Madre. Or posing for cherished photographs. Or mugging for selfies. And catching fireworks rising over the stage.

I can see for miles and miles

The Port Isabel lighthouse is a pretty thing. I looked up and imagined it welcoming old ships to new things. I looked up again and readied myself for a climb. First exit was an open-air landing some dozen feet from the very top. I tried to find the handful of our crew who stayed below…

A walk around the little city on the other end of the bridge

On our drive to South Padre Island, we were so excited about starting the third edition of my dear wife Karen’s family reunion that we hardly noticed the near side of the big bridge. After we’d stopped at the supermarket sister-in-law Lynn told all about beforehand and stocked up with bottled water, other beverages and…