Monday 22 June 2020

After a scintillating drive through coastal Georgia and middle Florida we
arrived at our North Redington Beach room just before happy hour, a fortuitous
event as we were ripe for a bit of cheer. Trip to pharmacy for a few items then
rum runners and dinner at Seabreeze Island Grill and we were done after having
gotten up this morning at O dark thirty.

The Siesta is upper end of ratty beach motels based on many nights in much worse
all along the coast from Carolinas south. Air conditioner, cooling well when
on, is noisy even on low so we sweltered all night with an open window through
which no air passed leaving room a damp 80F. Since neighbors were up all night
making noise, hope to inveigle Jan, who doesn't like fans, to maintain cooler
running tonight.

Assumption Jan would have worse at dentist today didn't come close. Replacing
two crowns and re-cleaning for missed tartar from previous dentist kept me
chaired for nearly six hours. She went shopping. Lips bruised, gums hurt,
teeth ache. Bite may not be quite right so perhaps go back tomorrow morning
before returning to Savannah. Hate dentists; love teeth; go frequently. Dr.
Kinzler's mob is the best.

Tuesday

Most of ride back to Savannah was much nicer - Jan drove to Jacksonville
allowing balance of crew to play with computer. Having usable data most of the
way was great. Look forward to new satellite broadband when it comes on line.
Arrived at boat with thunder just before rain. Always good to get back home.

Breakie in town tomorrow then return car and depart marina late morning for
Hilton Head anchorage. Thursday midday into Beaufort where best mate Rich has
collected our mail and may collect us if we can get through bridge to Lady's
Island anchorage.

Wednesday

All as projected so far. Marina refunded fifth day to allow leaving early so
it's off to Hilton Head for the night. With so many rivers flushing silt out
along the coast it's very shallow with shifting shoals so we had to hunt and
peck our way between Wassaw and Calibogue sounds. Through on second try.

Large biting horseflies have given way to small usually non-biting houseflies.
Not much of an improvement as they're more numerous, buzz around your head and
are harder to swat. Otherwise, same deal as big guys, they go home at night.

Hilton Head is an expensive playground. Beach lizards and jetskis abound.
Parasailors get towed high then alternately dragged through the water. Probably
more fun than during pilot training where we were towed behind a jeep then cut
loose to land like a load of bricks. Couple of guys refused to go up a second
time. Definitely not comparable to the Golden Knights who stall their much
bigger chutes near the ground to land as light as feathers standing up. Show
offs.

Thursday

The ICW (actually it's the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway, AIWW, but nobody
calls it that) has been under-funded for many years making it virtually unusable
for many in some areas. The annual cost to keep the thing maintained is about
fifty million dollars. That is, for example, about 2.4% of the cost of a B2
bomber and less than the government pays to subsidize tobacco growing or to
manage wild horses. Hey, not saying Uncle Sam should even be doing it, but it's
a better use of tax dollars than a trucker weight-loss intervention program or a
study to discover why chimpanzees throw their poop.

And on that crappy note, this entry is history.

Jack & Jan