This has been a very interesting week for sure. We started with an attempt at fishing in the Gulf Stream on Tuesday. I say attempt because the weather as usual was predicted to be marginal for a small boat. Waves in the Gulf Stream were two to three feet with some four footers. Keith and I decided to give it a try, so at 5:45AM we headed out. The 30 mile ride out to the "Stream" was rough and by the time we got there Keith was soaked from the water being blown over the boat. I was able to stay relatively dry cowering in the corner downwind of the center console. Getting all the lines baited and out was also a chore for Keith and it made him nauseous looking down trying to get all the lines set. We did not have the lines out 30 minutes when he said "this is ridiculous, we're going back in". So that is what we did. What a nightmare. That was a lesson learned. Fishing a 26 foot boat is definitely a completely different undertaking than fishing a 57 foot boat with stabilizers.
So after getting back to the dock, we chilled for the rest of the day. The next day was our second COVID shot. All went well with the shot which was in the morning. We even went out into the ferry channel and did a little Spanish mackerel fishing Wednesday afternoon. Just before dinner I decided to cut a few paper bead strips. Well about 10 minutes into this my ruler slipper and I proceeded to lop off the inside half of my thumbnail and a chunk of skin on my thumb. What a bloody mess (literally). And of course this is on an island with no full time doctor, and even the small health center was then closed for the evening. I did eventually get it to stop bleeding and realized there was nothing to suture anyway. So I am just keeping it clean and letting it heal. But boy was it painful. I now know why one ancient torture method is pulling off peoples finger nails. I will spare all of you the pictures of my mangled thumb. One good thing about the incident is the pain from my thumb far outweighed any symptoms from the second COVID shot. Plus I was taking two extra strength Tylenol every 8 hours after the thumb accident, so any major COVID signs were not noticed.
Thursday was a day to try to catch up on some sleep and get ready for our friends Ron and Robin Terry's visit. They arrived on Friday from Charleston. We had several great days with them.
Selfie at Sunset.
Left to right: Ron, Robin, Gail, and Keith
Collecting driftwood on Portsmouth Island for Robin's landscaping.
We deforested the beach. (This was our haul loaded into the dinghy).
Riding back from Portsmouth with our loot.
We also took a ride on "Lab Cab"
All of us ate too much, drank too much, spent too much while shopping, and had way more fun than should be allowed. The visit ended too soon, but hopefully they may be able to sneak back in the fall for another visit before we leave Ocracoke.
Ron and Robin in their Jeep headed onto the ferry to go back to Charleston
There are more friends arriving this week and the next several weeks should be busy. We are praying for some lighter winds so we can do some fishing with them. Once again fingers crossed.
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