Month: June 2005

We made it to Little Harbor Marina, where our boat is currently docked, on Monday, June 20. We’ve spent the last week moving aboard in freakishly hot and humid temperatures, but we are getting acclimated. Rod has spent most of his time crawling around the bilge and engine compartment getting to know the “nuts and bolts” of our new home, while I’ve been trying to find all the nooks and crannies within which to stow our stuff. We took the boat sailing on Tampa Bay on Sunday for Rod’s birthday. Our first voyage went well and we were successful in getting the boat back into the slip on only the third try and without any damage. Whew. We plan on moving over to St. Petersburg in the next few days to finish the provisioning and maintenance before heading out. We will have better access to internet at that time and can provide a more detailed update then. ~ Fair Winds, Lisa.

Yeah!!! We’ll be back on the road to Florida tomorrow (Saturday). Our truck is back in working order thanks the Great guys at Hays Ford.

We spent our week in Hays visiting the local sites and contributing to the local economy. The Hays area is rich in history based on the lore of Buffalo Bill Cody, Wild Bill Hickok, and General Alexander Hays. The westward migration provided the previously mentioned men plenty to shoot at, whether buffalo, outlaws, or Indians.

The original townsite of Rome, about a mile West of the current site of Hays was founded by Buffalo Bill Cody and Wild Bill Hickok actually shot a man in a saloon in downtown Hays. We actually had lunch at that site. Charges against Hickok were dropped on the basis that the shooting occurred as part of his duties as a lawman.

Hays was the center of the largest population of Buffalo on the High Plains. There were once over 60 million buffalo roaming the Plains, providing an economic base for the Plains Indians and food for the westward migration. That population was ultimately decimated to the point of near extinction when only 300 remained. I am happy to report that we visited the local “herd” and viewed several young and healthy calves.

The site of Fort Hays provided a fun afternoon viewing military artifacts and remaining old structures including officers homes, the garrison, and an old sandstone defensive structure. The fort was a major post built to provide protection to immigrants from the local Indian population. I think close to two hundred soldiers were stationed at the Fort and many lost their lives protecting many of our ancestors. Highlights of the tour included a detailed display of artillery used during the mid 1800’s including a variety of cannonballs. I was surprised by the range and accuracy that could be achieved.

More modern sites we visited in Hays included Fort Hays State University, population 6,000, and the Sternburg Museum of Natural History. I was surprised to learn that, some 100+ million years ago, Kansas was part of a great sea and was populated not by buffalo but SHARKS! The museum has the bones to prove it! The Sternburg Museum is famous for its collection of marine and dinasour fossils collected within Kansas, including the FAMOUS Sternburg Fish-Within-A-Fish. Apparantly the big 15 foot dinafish had just completed a meal of a whole 5 foot fish before meeting a sudden demise and settling into the sandy bottom for later discovery. The fossil is a complete fish skeleton inside a much larger fish skeleton. I believe the large fish may have died of gluttony or choking. There were many other exhibits at the museum and any kid, young or old, will enjoy the dinasour exhibit including and animatronic life-size T-Rex.

Our unplanned stay in Hays has provided a great opportunity to relax and refresh ourselves between the hectic departure from Boise and the sure to be busy arrival at our new home. It is an interesting town full of history and a young and friendly population stereotypical of small-town mid-America. However, we are looking forward to moving on now. We expect to arrive in Florida by Monday evening so please keep your fingers crossed. ~Rod

Car troubles have us awaiting repairs in Hays, Kansas while hurricane Arlene passes by “Lucky Peek” in Tampa. We got to experience a pretty wild thunderstorm last night but escaped the 7 tornados that had visited this area the night before. Chris and Susan checked on Lucky Peek this morning (thank you!!!) and reported that all is well and that Arlene has passed leaving sunny skies in Tampa. Whew! We expect to be here at the Hays Best Western through the weekend and into next week… ??? There is a university here so maybe we can take some classes.

After 6 weeks of selling personal property, sorting, packing, storing, re-sorting, re-packing, etc., etc., we are on the road! We left Boise a couple days after our planned departure because at the 11th hour we sold our Hunter 26 along with our Ford Expedition (so the new owner could pull the boat!). We set off in our newly acquired Isuzu Trooper at 5pm on Wednesday, June 8 and I waved a final goodbye at Micron as we passed by on I84. By the 9th we had passed through 3 states and spent the night in Watkins, CO. The most important part of this log entry is to thank all of our friends and family who have helped us over the past few weeks. We absolutely could not have done this without all of you. From the frantic yard sale weekend to the exhausting days (and days) of moving out of our house, then to consuming the Nelson’s garage (and guest room) with an overwhelming amount of “stuff” for the final sort. We actually got most of it into our 4×8 U-haul trailer and only had to hide a few things in Alan and Laura’s house. Again, thanks everyone!

Today is a very strange day for me because it ends my 13+ year career at Micron. It is impossible to tell everyone goodbye in person, especially since some of you are sprinkled across the globe, so this message will have to take the place of a personal farewell. I’m not good at goodbyes anyway, so I will keep this brief…

Even though I am embarking on an adventure of a lifetime, it is bittersweet in that I’m leaving a rewarding job and a great number of friends that have not only been a wonderful support network over the years, but have provided me with many laughs and good times. Just like family, you can’t always pick your co-workers, but I’ve been fortunate in having worked with all of you. So, thank you for your professional support and personal friendship. When it comes time for the cruising chapter of our lives to end then I look forward to coming back to Boise and picking up again. ~Lisa