John Hathaway

adventures of a gay geek in paradise 

Saint Croix on the horizon

The air here in Vieques is super clear today. We're about 45 miles from Saint Croix and it's outline is very clear on the horizon. Most days we can barely see it at all. 

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New on the Malecon

Duffy's added a new deck in the front. Gives some nice shade for the bar and makes it look more inviting.

And we apparently now have drive-by lobster sales along the malecon too. Never seen that before, but probably a smart idea for the fisherman.

Filed under  //   Vieques  

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Rainbow from the ferry

       

Took the ferry over to do some shopping on Friday. There was a gorgeous rainbow on the way into Fajardo.

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The pool's finally (mostly) done!

The pool's finally done! Well, enough to swim at least. 

Of course there was a fair amount of drama involved. The finish coat of the pool has to be done all at once and then have the pool filled within 24 hours. Our guys came pretty early in the morning to get started, fired up the mixer, and got one end of the pool mostly plastered when they decided that they weren't sure that they had enough material to do the whole thing. Now, this is Vieques, so there's no just taking the truck over the the pool supply place to pick up a couple extra bags. We had to abort.

The pool guy went over to the main island the next day, bought the rest of what we need, and brought it back on the cargo ferry himself. The following day they're set to go again, but decided that instead of starting first thing in the morning, they'd wait until the late afternoon and work into the cooler evening. Which they did. And as evening was approaching it was clear that they weren't even close to done. They ended up having the cement mixer going (loudly) until 11:00 and didn't actually finish until 1:00 am. I'm sure we're now at the top of our neighbors hate lists.

But finally we can swim again! The pool looks great. I really love how the steps and bench came out. The pump house/laundry is also mostly finished up and I'm loving the new washer and dryer. (We've actually not had a working dryer for about a year. We'll continue to mostly line dry things, but it's nice to have some backup for rainy days.) We still need to get some touch up on the pool surface, a railing on the deck, landscaping, new furniture, the pool light hooked up, and I'm sure 100 other little things, but it's very satisfying to have things to this point.

                     

Filed under  //   pool  

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Seattle

Had a great couple days in Seattle last week to meet with the rest of the VMG team. Rather than renting a meeting room, we rented a suite at the Westin and met in the dining room. Worked out great, had an inspiring view, and was cheaper too!

             

Filed under  //   Biz Trips  

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Boston

                   

Filed under  //   Biz Trips  

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Charlotte & Oliver

Oliver is already taller than Charlotte! They're starting to play a lot more together.

 

Filed under  //   Oliver  

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Oliver the puppy: week 7

 

Oliver's getting huge! When he first presented himself he was about 3.5 pounds. Not quite 7 weeks later: 13 pounds!  Charlotte's only 15, so he's almost caught up. (Charlotte's actually a lot skinnier than she looks under all the poofy fur.) His paws are ginormous, so he's definitely go more growing to do and is currently eating 4 times as much as Charlotte in pursuit of that goal.

Today Charlotte enjoyed having the house to herself for much of the day while Oliver was off to the vet to be fixed. They've actually been getting along well. Oliver will follow on Charlotte's heels where ever she goes, and generally she's pretty tolerant. Oliver can't jump up on furniture yet, so Charlote definitely uses that to her advantage to get away from him when she tires of him.

Charlotte's wearing the pink shirt not because she was feeling pretty today, but because she's had some kind of skin infection. It's mostly healed, but the shirt keeps her from licking off the ointment were putting on it.

           

Filed under  //   Oliver  

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Salt Lake City

       

Filed under  //   Biz Trips  

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pool update week 7.5

The deck's looking great. It got sealed with a new super-high-tech finish: diesel fuel with a little motor oil in it. 

Most of the work this week has been on the steps and bench, which are AWESOME!! It really changes the feel of the pool and is going to make for a great place to relax with a rum punch to enjoy the view. Note the Medalla can in with the fill. I'm sure there's not a wall in Vieques without at least one in there somewhere.

The other activity has been the footing and columns for the wooden deck and getting the top edge of the pool prepped for tile. The tile will go in next. Then the finish coat on the pool and water! I'm travelling through Sunday, and there's a chance that it MIGHT be done by then. We'll see!

             

Filed under  //   pool   Vieques  

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