News from the Grove

So what have we been up to these first few weeks in Coconut Grove you may be asking - lots of scoping out the neighborhood trying to get a feel for our new hood (let me help you, it's WAY different than KW) and lots of drying out the liver that was sorely tested those five months in Key West let alone the two years of cruising!!! We also have been trying to get back into shape (did I mention those 5 months in KW??) We joined a gym within walking distance of the marina and believe it or not have been there almost every morning - in fact when we signed up, we each got 3 personal training sessions and I had my second one yesterday. Needless to say, today I can barely walk let alone squat or even move and my shoulders are so hunched over from the thousands of arm, shoulder and chest exercises that I resemble an ugly quasimodo - I am convinced that Yvonne (that evil woman who claims to have my best interests at heart and has the nerve to call herself a personal trainer) lies awake at night devising one scheme after another solely to torture me and then she has a way of smiling during my agony while claiming her exercise was too easy so maybe we'll just "modify it a bit so I burn a little bit more..." Well it's burning so much I'm in hell....probably for a lot of reasons....so enough already!! Actually she's great - a total KW, diving, water sports lover who in another life if she wasn't my demented torturer I'm sure I'd be hanging with having drinks!! and besides, tomorrow she is Doug's vehicle of torture - I don't have to see her until next Thursday!!!

Have I mentioned yet that we miss the Keys - especially all our friends from the dock (our ghetto buds) and in town as well as the live music. We were going through Keys and music withdrawal the other day, so we hopped in our little car (having not had one for 2 years, that still sounds so weird - but for all our cruising buddies passing through Miami - we have a car and can take you to provision - hint hint!!!) and you guessed it, headed to the Keys!! From Coconut Grove we are about an hour from Key Largo where it just so happened our friends Scott Kirby and Country Dave were playing at Snappers - yahoo!!!! A friend and music fix all at once!!!

Scott and Dave Playing at Snapper's

Those guys were awesome as always - we got to hang outside on the water with Scott's wife Michelle, abuse our livers again and listen to great music - definitely needed!!

It Was a Windy Night at Snapper's

Scott and Dave unfortunately head out soon to tour the country for the summer so we'll miss seeing them for awhile - we're already hearing from our Chesapeake Bay buddies to see if we're coming to all his shows up there this summer. Sorry guys - we'll be there in spirit though - hoist a coldie or two for us!!!

Speaking of friends, I had a visit from one of my bestest high school buddies the other day - Margaret Arpano Hogue - who was in town on vacation.

Tammy and Margaret

You know how there are just some friends that you have that you can go a year or two without seeing and you just pick right up where you left off??? Well Marg is that kind of friend - man did we laugh (although I could have done without her telling some of our old high school stories to Doug - after all he did meet me as a very serious, uptight attorney........ok maybe the last two years have dispelled that notion!!!) What, didn't everyone drive around in an old woodie station wagon with a flip up bar in the third seat or use a friend's grandmother's lake camp as party central where we slept in inner tubes, ate spam sandwiches and brushed our teeth with beer??? No - then I think you missed out on some good times in high school!!! Great to see you Marg - ya know you could work down here in the sun!!!!

[Note from Doug] I did meet Tammy as an attorney but she was NEVER a "serious, uptight attorney". She was a great attorney, just never serious and uptight. If she had been, would I have married her? Now I ask you!

Bootsie is still loving life on the boat - she is adjusting to life in the Grove just fine although she doesn't much like when Dad has to go off to work.

Bootsie Enjoying Life in the Grove

I keep telling her that he's only doing it to keep her in the style to which she's become accustomed which seems to placate her somewhat although she's going to be pretty mad at me tomorrow when I leave to head back to MA/ME to see family and friends for a week.

Bootsie is Not Happy that Mom's Gone for Six Days

Doug just got back from his first business trip to Dallas (what a culture shock after two years on the boat and no plane travel!!!!) so he will keep the Bootser company and be her slave (heh at almost 24 years old she deserves lots of TLC!!!) While Doug is doing lots of business development stuff, I just recently started the whole job search - can I just say YUCK!!!! I had to wear a suit AND heels yesterday - yes I know Doug's been doing it for a couple weeks but this is me we're talking about!!!! and did I mention I was in HEELS - what sadistic pr_ck invented those???? But gotta do it I suppose - God I hate navy blue........

We finally got out the other day to explore the Grove a little - yes we've hit Moe's, Flanagans and the Sandbar for happy hour and to watch Celtics games since we don't have cable on the boat and yes they were fun, but this is seriously not KW!!!! I've not seen anyone in drag, nor have I seen Spiderman or the Rabbit from Monty Python sitting in the street playing guitar, there are no X-rated bed races or dogs sitting at the bars drinking beer, not even any girls showing us their tattoos where they shouldn't be in front of the web cams (miss you Ron!!!) or guys with ponytails for gosh sake!!! No parrots sitting on shoulders or drag queens passing around joints, no $1 pork sliders or $0.50 oysters!!! It's an artist community up here they tell us and there are funky statues all over the place but there's no live music!!!! I know, I'm sounding like a broken record, but there's really none!!! Give me a break - I'm still trying to adapt to this you need to work for a living thing again!!

Color in the Grove

Interesting Architecture in the Grove

Statues in the Grove

Cool Benches in the Local Park

One thing they do have here though are some really cool birds (I'm trying!!) - they hang out on the local working boats early in the morning so we see them when we walk over to the gym.

The Working Boats of the Grove

We went for a long walk trying to find a cool breakfast joint the other morning (it was closed...) and got some great shots.
We wound up walking through some neat residential areas before finding that one of our favorite new haunts the Sandbar serves a really kick butt breakfast - you know the sad part about it was that all I could see around my carne asada steak eggs benedict was the evil face of Yvonne telling me she was going to make me pay and pay and pay.....nobody did that in KW!!!

...When Have You Seen Doug Drinking Coffee in a Bar?

The other thing we did was go through all the stuff we had put in storage before we left two years ago since we needed business clothes and shoes, etc....that was a fun day let me tell you (it was the day after my, and the day of Doug's, first torture session with Yvonne!!) There's nothing better than unloading a POD full of boxes that were packed in haste in 90+ degree heat with the blazing sun beating down on you trying to find that elusive pair of blue shoes (never found them) or those silk dress shirts (not them either) but we did manage to find enough to make us look presentable (well...don't say anything!) Once we got back to the boat, the only question was what do we do with it all - clothes, shoes, ties, belts, OH MY!!! Doug to the rescue - he turned the front cabin into a walk in closet - kind of - but it's a boat so getting dressed for work in the morning is as much a project as anything else on a boat!! The joys of boat living - wouldn't trade it for the world!!!!

Now Where are We Going to Put All These Clothes?

Think that about catches you up for the moment - we probably won't blog quite as often as we used to but we will make sure you know what is going on with us and where we end up!! We're thinking of moving to a marina a little farther north as soon as I get back into town - in the West Palm Beach area which will be closer to Doug's office and clients and has cable (can you tell I'm a little sick of watching the Celtics on an internet gamecast!!! Boy did I get spoiled in KW - think I became a dock b_tch - I never missed a TV for the two years we were cruising - what has happened to me???) Keep your fingers crossed for us - just read that this year's hurricane season is supposed to be ugly!!!!