Good Morning!
Well, I know that I missed last weeks email to you, but there were a lot of things going on! Life in an idyllic paradise can be pretty hectic. I think it has more to do with the times we live in than the location. Although both have played a part in my last week.
For starters, my "new" ten year old van that replaced "Trusty Rusty" had a waterpump failure about two and a half weeks ago. Now, anyone who has ever turned a wrench on a car knows that the water pump is an easy thing to replace. About an hour under the hood. Wrong. This "new" van has the water pump hidden under the engine, behind timing belts and air conditioner belts and under the intake maifold and.. well, you get the idea! I called the local shops, and they expected about six to eight hundred dollars to get the job done. And that's Cayman Island dollars, so figure around a thousand US.... Yikes!
It happens that my father in law is a mechanic, so we decided to fly him down and have him do the work. That way we know we get a good mechanic, and he gets to see the grand daughters. The twins have never been as excited as when their "Pappo" was coming.
About two days before he came down I got around to checking the oil in the van, and it looked like chocolate milk, indicating a blown head gasket and a lot more money.... We got a parts list to my father in law, and he was able to bring some of the needed items down with him from Texas. Then, my Hallie got very sick with bronchitis, and was home from school for a week. And I was in the middle of getting together album cover art together for the soon to be released reissue of "Postcards from Seven Mile Beach". So- I was getting pulled in a lot of directions and couldn't get the email letter out. I have been running to the auto parts store for tools and parts, I have been giving inhalation therapy to Hallie, driving Katie to and from school, getting Adela her car back to her when she needs it, helping to hold wrenches, making lunch for a mechanic and a sick little girl. Oh yeah, and working, too.
But, things are finally winding down- the van is nearly put back together, Hallie is back in school, I am going to work on my normal Monday day off (Canadian Thanksgiving buffet tonight).
Life on the island is working its way back to normal. We did manage to get out to Rum Point on the ferry yesterday, and take "Pappo" out on the 65 foot catamaran "Spirit of Ppalu" for a sunset sail last night. Sometimes you have to fight to remind yourself that you live in a wonderful place, and you have to remember to take advantage of it. Is that true where you live? Do you remember to prod yourself to get out and do the things that make the place you live special? I really think that wherever you live, there are things around you that make a place worth living in. But I also think that we get so caught up in going to work and passing out on our couches after work that we forget to go out and take a stroll on the beach, or a walk in a museum or park. It seems to me that wherever you live can be the "Laid Back Lane", if you only remember to slow down and look at life. So, this week, try to relax a little and break your routine by doing something to remind yourself of the good things about where you live. As a famous international recording artist and film star once put it:
"Blue skies- white sand- palm trees- I'm happy where I am....."
Once I get my head out of the weeds and look around!
See you on the beach-
James
This page last updated October 23, 1997
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