Saturday, September 5

Mom's Here!!!

What a rain! The skies emptied today. Rain came in sideways through the jalousie windows. As the rain poured onto our wireless router positioned near the window, I jumped into action. I moved the router onto dryer counter-tops and then noticed the spare bed we've got sitting in the living area was also getting a dousing of rain. I pushed it around on the floor to get it away from the window. A GIANT scorpion was left hiding in the corner between the wall and the floor. Two inches of mean scorpion tail were staring at me. I don't want to get stung by the critter so I went back to my room to grab my zapping racquet. By the time I returned from the other room, the scorpion was gone! I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I do not find him again in less favorable circumstances.


Yesterday:
Ater work, I went out to AquaBistro for my evening Budweiser and to hang out with good friends. There was a funny joke I heard at the bar from one of our favorite bartenders: “Looking for a job with big tips? Circumsize Elephants.” It may be a bit colorful to share on this blog but it made me laugh in a deep belly-jiggling kind of way, so I just had to share it!

After AquaBistro, we headed into town and for the first time, I had some Chinese food from Lucky Pagoda here in Cruz Bay. Keith and Breslin came over to enjoy the good eats and indeed, the Kung Pao Chicken and fried rice with a spring roll were a great dinner. I think they each ordered General Tao's Chicken, which they also enjoyed.

Today:
I woke up and gazed out the window. There is rain today. Lots of rain. I debated on the topic
of when and how I should get down to Cruz Bay and the ferry dock, since eventually, I need to meet mom after she gets off the ferry. It's wet out there. I grabbed my dry bag reluctantly (it's leaked the last few times I've used it) and then my raincoat. I walked down the trail that I know well and avoided the guts and drainage streams easily. The red flowing muddy water gushed downhill. The image of the flooding trail catapulted me into imaginations of the lives described in the book I've been reading, Death in Grand Canyon. These small streams of runoff appear harmless to me, but is that how those ill-fated people regarded the small eddys and rapids as they rode down the Colorado? St. John's water-filled guts are not quite the Colorado, but I've heard flooding can get quite nasty when the cisterns start over-flowing island-wide. I let my thoughts wander to what might happen if I, clad in my Chaco's, stepped into one of these streams of water and was carried off down the hill into Cruz Bay. The vision turned comedic, as I'd likely just get dumped onto a concrete roadway and then the marina with its 2 feet deep water. After every possible thread of my shorts was soaked, I finally arrived at Mongoose Junction. I think I chose the most absorbent shorts possible for this trip. I hovered over the toilet at the Deli and wrung out my shorts. A few cups of water dripped out into the bowl. That's a lot of water for a pair of shorts. They are still quite soaked and I'm thinking a few hours at the Air Conditioned Deli will lend itself well to leaving here with somewhat dryer clothes. My top stayed entirely dry, as the Mountain Hardwear Conduit material is space-age with its water proof qualities. My dry bag fared far worse. Last time I opened the dry bag (Soggy Dollar visit with Kevin when he was here) was after a short swim. I opened the bag and water had collected all around the top of the bag, which then flowed into the bag as soon as I had opened it. This time I precariously opened the bag, wiped it dry, then reached a napkin into the bag to dry out the immediate inside, while carefully keeping the bag horizontal, so as to avoid any water from being gravitationally pulled into the bag. It was somewhat silly looking, if anybody were paying me any attention. Fortunately, things in the bag stayed dry, which this time, included my phone, laptop, wallet, and camera. I may have to consider some alternate dry bag or dry box for future excursions.

I love knowing a place well enough that you feel happy to see a familiar face. I greeted the usual folks working at the Deli Grotto and filled up my large coffee. I do love getting my coffee here. Usually I'm here by 8am. Today, the time was closer to noon. I was jokingly reminded that I was late. I felt happy at hearing the comment. I got my cup filled with delicious French Vanilla, cream, and sugar. Next, I enjoyed my plain bagel toasted with cream cheese. Delicious. Nearly an hour after plopping down here at the Deli, I'm still quite drippy in the shorts. I suppose I will need the help of a real mechanical dryer if I expect to completely dry out anytime soon.

In the Deli, I came across more familiar faces! The group I had been diving with last while at Low Key Watersports was in full force at the Grotto! The group of travelers greeted me and re-thanked me for an excellent time diving this past week. I was only sad to report that I didn't get to go out with them on Thursday, as they had requested; I'm not in charge of scheduling. They all agreed that their diving had been quite fantastic and truly appreciated my help during the three times that I helped each of them with the small rescues that took place on our trip. It was noted that my professionalism was spot-on. I owe this mostly to Kim and Jake. Yay for having such fantastic dive instructors back at the Scuba Club at Virginia Tech! I will definitely need to call Jake and Kim and share the story of the dive with them soon.

Mom and I have been playing tag over text and voicemail. Looks like she was a bit slow getting into Miami, with delays on the runway, waiting to get into a gate. From there, there were delays with flights leaving Miami, due to the rain. I imagine they are talking about the rain that is hovering over St. Thomas right now. The rain, based on satellite images, looks to be torrential. With 4 inches expected in about 2 hours, looking at the most non-conservative estimates, that's a lot of water. I'm eager to have Mom get on the island and start enjoying the tropics. Hopefully, by the time she gets here, it will dry up a little and she can see some of the glorious sunshine!

After the Deli, I walked over to Starfish Market to pick up a few rolls of toilet paper. Fabulously, I stumbled across a hot dog eating contest! In three minutes, grown adults wolfed down as many hot dogs as possible to compete for a shopping spree at Starfish Market. The winner consumed 8 hot dogs in the allotted three minutes and then ate two more in celebration of his win. At one point he was double-fisting with the hotdogs. I enjoyed a complimentary hot dog (don't worry, I didn't participate) and a cold Heineken. At the Book and Bean, I got some thank you cards for folks at the park that have helped me have a great internship. There's no favor too small to warrant a thank you card. From the marketplace, I ventured back down the hill to the ferry. With plenty of time still until Mom would arrive, I hung out at the visitor center for a short while. Weather reports indicate the storms are going to stay away for a short pause, but more rain should pour down later this evening. I'm hoping the break in the clouds is long enough to get the luggage from the ferry to the house.

While continuing the wait (the day sure turned out to be a lot of waiting), I grabbed a bottle of juice from the Bayside Mini Mart. I don't think I've been in that mini mart but a handful of times. They do carry one of my favorite juices- Nantucket Nectars' Pomegranate Pear. I wonder if I can get that at the grocery next time I'm there. Nothing quite like a satisfying bottle of juice.

During the final moments of waiting for Mom's arrival, I checked in with Jini on the Dream Weaver. We're still a go for tomorrow's trip to Jost Van Dyke. Yeah! for painkillers and beautiful sandy beaches.

Sometime about an hour or so after I thought she'd arrive, mom did finally step off the ferry and onto St. John. The reality that I'm closer to home is hard to grasp. With mom's visit comes the joy of sharing such a neat place, but also the terrible knowledge that it's coming to an end.

We found a temporary home for the luggage at Slim's lot and continued on to the Beach Bar. There, we met up with Keith and Breslin for some cocktails and a bite to eat. Of course, Mom was starving after a day spent traveling. We got cheeseburgers, which were tasty. I ordered a bushwhacker for mom (I think either Beach Bar or Morgan's Mango have the best bushwhackers, of what I've tried). For me, a Lime & Coconut hit the spot. Bellies full and livers working hard, we went home with the luggage, just in time for the rain to start again.

In my continued reading of Death in Grand Canyon, I've found a few more items that would make a hike into any canyon a little bit more survivable. I'm going to have to add a whistle, signal mirror, and dry matches in a waterproof box to my list of things to pack for the next big hike (I've got a whistle built into one of my packs and I always carry a magnesium stick).

Old News:
Back in August, I fruit-snacked the bed. It's not quite like wetting the bed, but it's just as annoying. I sometimes will have a snack just before falling asleep, if I get late-night munchies. One night, I had such a craving for some fruit snacks. Typically, the tasty Welch's fruit snacks are perfect for writing and late-night reading. I woke up in the middle of the night feeling something gooey and sticky on my leg. I felt my legs and found more on my thigh. Curiosity got the best of me and I tasted what the sticky substance could be. It was sweet and fruity. Strangely, it was a lot like my fruit snacks. Half asleep, I had a eureka moment and realized I'd fallen asleep with a few gummy fruits right in my bed. Orange flavored. It had melted in the heat and was spread across the full width of the bed, smeared into the sheets. Gross. My fears turned to the ants swallowing me whole as they swarmed the bed, hunting after the sugar. Surviving the night without having ants in my pants became a huge priority. I got up and started collecting my sheets and items to run them through the washing machine. I had some fears about waking up a housemate that sleeps near the machines, so I opted instead to sleep on the spare bed in my room.