Sailing again...

See that little white spec out there in the middle of the river? That's the St. Lawrence River by the way and that's John & Terry on the first sail of the season. While it is really beautiful looking out that direction, they said it was even more beautiful looking toward the camera. A rain storm had just gone over and there was a perfect rainbow over the island.

I suppose I really should share that all was not totally calm on the boat. The boat had not been in the water since last year and wooden boats do need a few "adjustment" hours in the water to allow them to swell before they become water tight. Let's just say John & Terry's pumpin' arms got a fairly good workout on this little excursion. However, they made it safely back to shore and Fred did not have to be called away from his watering chores to man the rescue boat.

Steam bending...

Sunday was Canal Fest Day at Chittenango Landing Canal Boat Museum. John volunteers there helping build an 1800's canal boat. The boat is being built in sections, never to be joined so visitors can how they were constructed. Bus loads of school kids come every year to learn about the canal and the boats.

This Sunday John helped with demonstrations on steam bending wood. Thursday they asked him if he could also appear somewhat in costume. The weekend saw me putting the finishing touches on a somewhat authentic (thanks to the internet) canal builder's shirt. John tells me the demonstrations (and the shirt) were a success and that many good looking women asked to have their pictures taken with him. (I confess, after the first bend of the wood, I decided reading a good book back at the car was my idea of a pleasant way to pass a Sunday afternoon.)

Several blades closer to roque croquet...

As you will recall (especially if you look at the last post) the refurbished roque croquet court was left barren but seeded three weeks ago with only God & Fred to watch over it. All that green stuff you now see out there is due to marvelous Fred who has spent literally hours keeping the seed moist, removing fallen branches, re staking stakes, contemplating spring, summer, the lack of rain and generally developing his watering technique. Without Fred's dedication it is VERY doubtful if the park's court would be playable for the coming championship season. Don't be surprised to see names such as Tiger & Rocco appearing on this season's line-up.

However, the hot dry past couple of weeks did leave a few patchy spots on the court so another layer of seed has been added. Two mule team Terry & John provided the power to roll the court both to level it a bit more and to press down that new seed. No, your eyes aren't foolin' you, those are snow shoes. One thing croquet does is bring out man's ingenuity. When the earth was still soft a couple of weeks ago and the court appeared in need of more seed, Terry strapped on the snow shoes and sallied forth. (Apparently the idea was not a success as the snow shoes were quickly abandoned - whether from spectator laughter or because they were not needed has still to be determined by this reporter.)

And now the lawn sprinkler has been discovered (what will they invent next?!) and Fred's hand has been saved. The spray is wide enough to reach both sides so Fred only has to move it once. How many times will he have to remove the dog?