C.E. Grundler's Blog, page 10

It may not look like much right now…

but three layers of biaxial fiberglass/mat cloth, laid up with epoxy resin, is truly a thing of beauty.

Everything is level and smooth, flush and even.  Next step, one more layer of biaxial, covering the entire bridge from end to end. Yes, it might fall along the range of overkill, but once I’m done this deck should be reasonably resistant to leaks, as well as missiles and/or the zombie apocolypse. Anything worth doing is worth doing right.

As for those hole running along the sides of the bridge, I’ve cut access so I could pour in epoxy, filling the gap between the inner and outer walls of the bridge where it meets the deck — which was probably already completely sealed in previous steps, but then again, if you’re going to go with the overkill approach, you might as well go all out.  It was an interesting process involving a funnel and section of hose, but sorry, no pics. Whe I’ve saved the cutouts, which will be glassed back in place and faired out when all is done.

Meanwhile, on the opposite end of the boat, the new rudder bearing is securely in place. Progress moves forward.

I know I haven’t been posting much these days. I’ve been a bit busy, between hurricane damage to the house, the marina where the boat is, and the marina where I’m working. But rest assured, work aboard the boat still continues, and I still continue to write.  Something has to give, and these days it seems it’s my online time….along with my sanity. But that’s another topic.

Stony Point Polar Plunge 2013

The weather was bright and sunny, though the thermometer read 23 degrees. A bit brisk, to say the least.

A closer look (below) and you can see some smaller bits of ice on the river. All in all, a great day for a motorcycle ride.

Not too many other bikes on the road… at least not until we got down to the river. (And yes, I’m following in the ‘support’ vehicle, with warm clothes and dry towels.)

On one end of town, other motorcycles were gathering…

(photo by Dana BatGirl Carroll)

…while down at the river the crowd enjoyed all sorts of entertainment.

I didn’t catch the name of the band, and I hope the drummer, sporting only a pair of swim trunks, didn’t catch a cold, but I suspect he was just acclimating himself for an upcoming dunk. The four-footed audience, though, didn’t seem to mind the cold.

Plenty of emergency vehicles on hand, though no emergencies arose.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles… are they native to the Hudson?

And then it was Plunge time! Unfortunately I can’t seem to upload my own video (0r embed this one on Youtube) but someone else had a better angle and caught the excitement of the main event. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2pIQtySF_C4

I like the guy at the end, with the souvenier block of river ice.

And for more pictures and stories, check out the Stony Point Seals on Facebook.

And here’s some more pics…

 

Freezin’ for a reezin’

There has to a good reason a large crowd of people will be gathering along the shore of the Hudson on a bitter day in February to watch various brave souls strip to their bathing suits and jump into the river. And there is. It’s time for the annual Stony Point Seals Polar Plunge, and this year it’s to benefit North Rockland Hurricane Sandy Victims And my husband will be among those making that fridgid leap.

The homes pictured below line the road where the Stony Point Seals hold their annual Polar Plunge. These are just a few of many homes in the area which sustained significant damage from the storm surge. So if you’re in the area on February 3rd, come on down and lend your support. And even if you can’t stop by, you can still donate online and help our local families recover.

Something to ponder…

Yeah, it’s been quite some time since I posted much of anything. Hurricanes have a way of completely derailing plans, and a large tree falling on the house can serve as a pretty effective wakeup call. On the bright side, I suspect in the end this whole experience and the new paths it has put me on are exactly what I needed exactly when I needed them, and I know that’s a bit cryptic, but that’s all I’m saying at the moment. And on that note, I thought this bit on reading as it pertains to sharing other people’s experiences is highly appropriate.

Hurricane Sandy…

I did all my proper preparations, to the best of my ability. I’ve done all I could to make sure the boat would ride out the storm, and being that she’s in a (hopefully) sturdy shed at the highest point in the yard, I’m hoping she’ll be alright. I can only wonder how the river is handling the surge and flood waters flowing down.  And I did all I could to prep the house. But there is only so much that can be done. The news coming in over A.M. radio is troubling and the roar of the storm outside is truly terrifying. They just remarked that this is a night people will remember for years to come and I’m inclined to agree.

It’s 10:30 at night, and we still have power, for the moment at least, which seems ironic considering I have a tree through the middle of my house. Yes, one of those lovely massive oaks came down, there’s a trunk in my kitchen, and rain is pouring in. There are cracks in the hallway ceiling, another new skylight in the small bedroom, paintings were knocked from the walls. I’m just grateful no one was hurt, and all people and animals are safely bunkered down in the basement, and come daylight we’ll see just how bad the damage is. The police advised us to leave, but there’s nowhere to go. Every road is blocked, powerlines are dropping, driving was impossible, and ultimately we turned back as tree crashed down. The basement seemed the safest place, and that’s where we’re staying until this passes. But the lights are flickering, so I suspect I should sign off. I hope all of you out there are well and morning comes to find all well. Or as well as can be hoped for.

A nice little surprise from BigAl’s Books and Pals…

Lately, I’ve found the more I avoid the Interwebs, the more I get done. And trust me, I’ve been busy, which explains why my appearances online, either in posts, FB, or anywhere else for that matter, have been brief, not to mention few and far between. Here in presently gloomy, blustery NJ, winds are whipping rain sideways — just the sort of weather I find delightfully motivating, and I’ve been hard at work at my own usual plotting, scheming, and mayhem. But around this time of the afternoon I usually pause for some tea and a quick glance on the web, and I was pleasantly surprised to find a very nice review for Last Exit  from BigAl’s Books and Pals pop up in my Google alert. While I may quietly chuckle at some of the scathing remarks Last Exit has gathered on Amazon, I’ll admit, I much prefer reading an intelligent, well-written review from a reader who seemed to appreciate that the story didn’t follow typical genre conventions and formulas.

Thanks, BigAl. I’m glad you enjoyed my book.

Update, sort of…

A while back I posted about how I’d be posting here more regularly, and I did, at least for a short time. But I’m sure those of you who follow my blog have noticed by now that little burst of activity was short-lived.  That’s not to say I haven’t been writing, in fact I’ve been wearing away at my keyboard at an accelerated rate, which has left me little time and focus for much of anything else. On top of that, life’s been throwing me a few curve-balls, and in my determination not to be derailed from my most important tasks, blogging has, for the time being, fallen to the back-burner. In fact, any of you who also follow my posts at Write on the Water may have noticed today’s post is in fact a recycled post from this blog. I’ll admit it – my inspiration was spread a bit thin this morning, and it seemed appropriate for that site.

I’m hoping in the coming weeks I’ll have a bit more time and creativity to spare, and if that happens I’ll be sure to share some of it with my online readers. I thank you for your understanding.

Coolest birthday present in years…

Back when most kids were getting bicycles for their birthday, my parents instead presented me with a bright orange Snark, which was pretty much a Sunfish knockoff, constructed of styrofoam, covered in tough plastic. It was more or less an Igloo ice-chest in the shape of a boat, and at 45 pounds, it barely displaced any water. Considering I didn’t weigh a whole lot more, it had a tendency to plane along the surface, and while it was never designed for radical sailing, once I rigged it with a tiller extension and hiking straps, it was a blast to sail. In fact, in the many years and boats since that Snark, I’ve never quite matched the pure exhilaration I had aboard that little orange cork — and that even includes a Laser I sailed for several years. And in recent years, my lack of sailing has begun to wear on me to the point I’m climbing the walls.

Well, I can stop climbing.  The other day my mom called to inform me they’d found me the perfect birthday present. She needs a little work, but nothing a few evenings in the garage won’t remedy.  And yes, she presently lacks a sailing rig, but that’s easily remedied as well.

This is going to be fun!  (And is also the subject of today’s Write On The Water post.)

Yeah, I know…

I said I’d be doing all this regular posting, which clearly I haven’t been. Life has become a bit hectic, some of it good, some of it not so much. But that’s life. On the positive side, work is moving along aboard Annabel Lee, so much so, in fact, that I have zero photos to post at the moment simply because we’ve been too busy actually doing for me to stop and take pictures. On another (what I consider) positive note, I’ve acquired another boat, which in itself would be the definition of insanity, though it’s only a *little* insane, as in a pretty little dinghy that is, of course, in need of some work.Oh, and it is a design that can easily be converted to sail, and that will be hard to resist. Aside from that, I’m not going into details at the moment — I have much in the works beyond things that float, but for now I’ll just keep swimming.

A lesson in death…

Some of you may have noticed over the last few days I sort of dropped off the radar.  More of you were probably off having fun, and likely assumed I was also wrapped up in the extended 4th of July festivities that stretched over two weekends and cut the work week down the middle. As holidays go, the 4th usually tops my list. Kicking back with some friends, enjoying barbeques, hanging out on the beach and watching fireworks. Not standing in a cemetery and watching a young friend laid to rest.

Some funerals sting more than others. Though it’s never easy to lose someone, it’s easier to come to terms with their passing when they had a long, full life. But when it’s someone with so many years ahead and so much potential, someone with such incredible vitality, someone who touched the lives of so many around them, the loss hits hard. And it’s times like these make you step back and take stock in how you’re living your own life. It makes you wish you’d taken more time for the people and things that really matter, and it makes you realize that perhaps it’s time to start, before the next box goes in the ground and the chance is lost. There isn’t a do-over button in this game. We all go day to day, rushing around, wrapped up in our problems and worries, losing sight of the fact that we really need to take time for those who matter. Take the time while it’s there to take, because this is life, after all, and in the end, none of us are going to make it out alive. Take time to laugh with friends while they’re still above ground, because meeting up in a cemetery is a lousy place and time for a get-together. You taught us all some great lessons, John, right to the end, and beyond. We’re going to miss you, but for those who knew you, we’re going to live life and celebrate your memory.

As I wrote this, another friend posted her reflection on John’s passing, and she so perfectly put into words what made John special and why he will truly be missed.

Recently a friend and coworker of mine died. The fact that he changed me as a person makes me so happy and mourn the loss of a great person even more so. He was a man who lived life to his fullest, for better or for worse. Never have I met somebody who so kindly tried to encourage me to come out of my shell, while still being entirely respectful of my wallflower tendencies. It would be a disservice to his memory to stay locked away. Because of him I have decided to stop being afraid to live life.

R.I.P. John Vaillencourt. The most genuine bullshit artist you’d ever meet. Always the life of a party, a loving father, and someone who wore his faults proudly but could win over anyone with his cheer and good heart.