Year 6
1999 - 2000
October ‘99
October of ‘99 is short and sweet with a brief recap of the summer highlights and an update of the extensive repair work being done on the keel of our Wandrin’ Star.
*Additional notes may appear in italics after my mom’s initial journal entries.
A ladybug means you should check the comments at the bottom of the page to see what Mom has chimed in on after reading these!
October 3, 1999
Lakeside, Az
I’m so bad here in the States about keeping up with this.
Peggy and Caleb’s wedding on June 9th was very nice. She did most of the planning and everything herself.
We found a house – 3 bedroom, huge house over in “Webbville”. It’s basically a new house, 10 years old, but never lived in. We are painting, among other fix-it jobs. It was awful outside when we moved in – now it’s really nice.
It rained nearly every day from July 1st to Sept 20th or so. It is real green and pretty, but thank god it’s sunny now.
John found lots of paying side-jobs painting houses, so he was gone most all weekends and evenings.
Danielle came up quite a bit. Chelle and Rick are expecting in April. Shine is still in Clay Springs and working in Lakeside for Pepsi. Peggy and Caleb bought Sam and Rane Jones’ old house in Show Low (they moved to Pima).
John put new tires and heavy-duty shocks on the van.
I worked in operations with Jim Watson this summer while Carol Heidt had back surgery. Nice change.
We bought a laptop computer and have the internet at the house. John turned into an internet junkie, looking up different things. Samie emails Megan, Angela and Tiffany a lot. If I can ever find it available, I’ll get on.
Arne and Janice, Renegade, got married on September 24th – after 6 years or so together.
Even with all the rain, I managed to keep a little tan.
I made new curtains for the boat. Really nice.
We found out we do have some major problems with the boat bottom – the keel was full of water. More about that when we get down there and know what it really is.
*That house has been vacant almost as much as it has been lived in! My parents live down the street from it now and it is vacant again. After we moved out of it, Danielle, Ben and their 3 boys moved into it for a few years before they went on to build their own house. Since then, I think there have been two other tenants. I can’t help but wonder what it is about that house that it is vacant so often? It is a simple house with quite a large yard, but the yard can easily get overgrown if not tended to, maybe that’s something that drives people away. Who knows!
Remember the days of one shared family computer and one phone line that was tied up as long as anyone was online!? And don’t forget that dial-up tone!
October 15, Friday
Last day of work again for another 7 months. Well, work in the 8 to 5 world, anyway.
October 16, Saturday
We loaded up the van, winterized the house and left Show Low around 10 am. Spent the night and John and Maryann’s.
October 17, Sunday
San Carlos
We left the States and crossed the border and 21 km – (green light and only 30 minutes total, VISAS and all). It was 2 pm when we got in to San Carlos. We stayed 2 nights at the Pink Palace. Before renting a house from Hilda for $500 for the month. That’s what it looks like for getting the boat fixed and back in the water.
October 28, Thursday
We have been in this 2-bedroom house for a week now. It’s an ok little house. It just needs emptied out and sprayed with a high-pressure hose. But it has furniture and beds and kitchen things.
John goes down every day to watch the workers grind away more of our boat bottom. They took the rudder off and fixed all of that area – building it back up with layers of fiberglass and resin. Most of the back keel is down to paper thin now with holes here and there – scary, really. But they’ll build it all back once they get all the soaked spots ground and dry.
Bill and Trisha got down here Monday, the 25th, it’s good to have them around.
We have spent time with Bill and Trisha. Samie and I are working at school and John watches every day as they grind away more of the boat.
November ‘99
November of ‘99 is slow, but steady while we pass the time waiting for repairs to be completed on the keel of the Wandrin’ Star.
*Additional notes may appear in italics after my mom’s initial journal entries.
A ladybug means you should check the comments at the bottom of the page to see what Mom has chimed in on after reading these!
November 1, Monday
Yes! We turned the corner – today they started putting new fiberglass ON the boat!
November 2, Tuesday
No workers today – it’s another one of their holidays. So we visited Bill, Trisha, also Pat and Mikey Speer’s, who are here to clean out their little trailer – they sold it.
Danielle called – her and Ben are expecting a baby the end of June – first of July! Cool.
November 4, Thursday
John and I went for a “sail” today, with Carl and Linda on Fido Pause, a 26’ boat. They are new to all this, so we went out just beyond the main bay and helped with the basics. No wind – Linda likes it that way, too. Neat people.
The workers have all the holes covered up now – she’s looking like she has a float-able bottom again.
November 8, Monday
Happy Bday Aunt Janice.
On Saturday 6th, we went to dinner with Carl and Linda, Fido Pause, at the internet café – Willy, China Moon, and Bob, ?, also joined us. Very enjoyable and great food.
The boat bottom is going back pretty good.
It’s been getting breezy in the afternoons and it’s cool in the shade.
Samie tested in science (A) and grammar (B). She’s starting to get bored here in San Carlos and especially in the house.
*Mom’s migraines strike again. 😩 I don’t know what her headaches have to do with me deserving a CD, unless this is when I started doing my best to help her with the headaches. I’d help massage her temples, neck and shoulders trying to help relieve any built up tension.
November 17, Wednesday
The one side of the boat is almost done with the rebuild and ready for the barrier coat. John is thinking that we might be in the water around the 6th of December.
Bill and Trisha took us, Bruce and Jeannie Tilly (friends of theirs that are here year round) on a sunset cruise aboard Prime Time. It was perfect! It had been slightly foggy all day and made for a beautiful sunset. We even had a whale swimming along at the surface. Then we all had BBQ chicken at the Gibson’s. As always it was a hysterical evening. This time, John had put new cinders in Bill’s BBQ grill and Bill had black smoke billowing and very crispy on the outside chicken.
*I’m glad I went on this outing, even though I don’t remember it. As I approached my teen years, I see how much I chose to stay home and do “more interesting things” like stay glued to the television or play on the computer and whatnot. Of course, I was enjoying my new little freedoms, but it bums me out now, looking back. I guess that’s what teens tend to do though, isn’t it?
* I love when Mom and I have our laughing fits, they’re the best! I can still make her laugh like this!. 😁The last one was when I had her going for nearly 20 minutes with a hill-billy accent and lingo that went on for so long, it nearly stuck!
I absolutely LOVED You’ve Got Mail, and still do. It and When Harry Met Sally are easily my two favorites.
November 23, Tuesday
Well, Duane and Camille Smith and Bill’s mom, Velma drove in on Sunday – Cecil and Joann Berry came in on Monday – let the fun begin. It really is a fun group. Bill’s mom is 82 or something right there – and just a crack up!
Last night we spent a couple hours with them all, Samie too.
Barb and Steve, Blue Chablis, drove in yesterday for a few days.
Goon called this am, they are doing fine. She’s off the pill now, after trying different kinds and all making her sick. She’s gonna go into the at-home business of selling products like my sister Jo. Hope it works out.
November 24, Thursday
San Carlos
Had a nice Thanksgiving dinner with Bill and Trish Gibson, Duane and Camille Smith, Cecil and Joann Berry, Bill’s mom, Velma and 2 more couples.
*Ahhh! The good ol’ days of internet cafés, paying for time online and sometimes not being able to connect! This place also had a selection of movies to rent and a restaurant - a little bit of everything.
Remember when we didn’t have these all-too-convenient cellphones and had to sometimes just go out into the world looking for each other?! My, how the times have changed, my friends! I am grateful to have known at least a little bit of life before the internet and smartphones and all this ever-present technology. As helpful as it is, there was a lot of magic hidden inside the seeming inconveniences of those times in the past.
I forgot about this Wild Hearts movie! It was good, might have to watch that again.
Yes! I loved these games that Barb downloaded for us, they were pretty comical. Take a look: here is Frogapult and Elf Bowling.
I swear you can’t go wrong with Goldie or Steve! What a cute movie.
November 25, Friday
Had dinner with Blue Chablis and Abientot.
Sure is nice to have cruising friends here – even thought they are going back to the States for a while.
*Another throwback with the chain letters we used to forward to each other when email was new and fresh. Remember the ones that threatened you’d be cursed with bad luck if you didn’t forward the email to a certain amount of people? Looking back, this was kind of like the original spam mail. 😆
Ha, I don’t blame Mom and Dad for getting after me at the internet cafe.
At least I tried to get on Mom’s good side the next day, but it was probably throwing us off school work. 🤪