Skip to main content

Mary's Shed


Good morning everyone. A very chilly 3 degrees here this morning. The stars twinkle more brightly than ever. First light is coming over the ridge. Today we pause to remember the events at Pearl Harbor. On the way home from work yesterday I had a myopic driver on my tail and was thinking of a bumper sticker I would like to put on my truck, "Slow down...Life is fragile." I should thank that driver sometime for reminding me of what I value most.

Bruce and I are pounding along, literally, on Mary's new shed. The walls are all framed up. The building takes a little more form. Mary warmed the day with steaming hot blueberry muffins for coffee break. I told Mary she could start moving the wood in any time she wanted. We are all taking a day to attend to our other jobs. Bruce is a caretaker of a small island summer cottage while Jen and I have a meeting this morning. We will get to the rafters and roofing next week. We are having fun and that makes the chilly days as warm as Mary's muffins. If you have ever had a chance to sail with Bruce you know he is full of stories. Ask him to tell you the one about the chalk line.

Have a great day. Be well. Do good.

Comments

Anonymous said…
Jen, what are you doing letting Barry out of bed to write a shop report at 0310. He should be fast asleep, dreaming of next year's sailing adventures.

Otterbein Greg

Popular posts from this blog

Hail Mary

My heart is heavy with sadness as I write this particular blog. Since the beginning of August our dear friend and cook for the last 12 years, Mary Barney, had been struggling with cancer. I have intentionally respected Mary’s privacy and I apologize to you for not sharing any news about Mary’s health sooner. On Monday afternoon Mary passed away very peacefully at home, surrounded by friends and “family”. Her departure was as graceful as the rest of her life. Many people, including Jen, have been doing heroic work to support Mary these last few weeks. Oddly enough Mary was never very excited about transitions though this was about the fastest transition she ever made. And as I struggle to let go of Mary I realize I am terrible with transitions as well. We used to joke about how we liked things just the way they are, thank you very much, so why change what is working already even if it might be less labor intensive. Hard works is its own reward. I used to joke about getting Mary a Cui...

We are Nuts

Good morning everyone. Well I just had to say it before you did. Yes, we are truly nuts. Now we have gone and added one more adventure to our already full lives. As you can see she is some cunnin'. We have named her Colby. We had a sign... literally. We were in the car brainstorming names on the way to get her at WalMart (yes, you heard it right) and there at the Waterville exit was a sign for Colby College. Colby just happens to be dear Mary's alma mater. It is also the name of one of my favorite ledges in Jericho Bay, the Colby Pup. It just seemed to fit just like the way she came to us. Nothing about our Sunday was going to be different than any other except that I just happened to be helping a friend get her generator back in the barn while Jen and the kids met her new puppy Sherman. They fell in love... so easy to do. We called and there were had two pups from the same litter available... no commitments yet. We had been having the long family debate for weeks about the k...

Darkness and Light

Good morning everyone. OK, so this blog does not have a whole lot to do with schooners or windjammers or sailing vacations so if you want to leave now I will not be offended. Today is the winter solstice, as you know, the shortest amount of daylight in our calendar year here in the northern hemisphere. Of course it is the summer solstice on the other side of the equator. So I guess if you wanted to celebrate the summer solstice you wouldn't be at all in the wrong. I would applaud your ability to see outside the box. Map from Wikipedia commons Living and sailing in the mid latitudes (remember, Maine is half way to the North Pole) as we do, we experience a balance that spans a year's time, maybe many years' time. To feel the darkness of winter creeping quietly into our homes is not as bad it may appear from the outside. This is our season to rest... emotionally if not physically. We know it takes more physical energy to live and work here in winter. But when the sun goes down...