Friday, August 28, 2009

Dear Mom,

It's 4 in the afternoon and I'm sitting in the air-conditioned living room, watching Ken play Tiger Woods golf. We've been to the shops for groceries, and I've been to the library to get another month's supply of words. You've been waiting for more letters and Ken has been nagging me to write. But it's just so much easier to read and live a life than to find the words to describe one. Don't you think this is so?

We went to the boat on Wednesday. The weather was beautiful and we had enough wind to actually sail for a couple of hours. Definitely didn't break any speed records but it was fast enough for me. Life is about the journey, right? And jeez, what a journey! Three dolphins came right up to our boat and checked us out. We'd seen dolphins in the distance the last time we were on the bay, but this was like nothing I'd ever experienced. One of them came withing 20-25 feet of us and just stuck his little head out to say hello! Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures to show you as my camera was inside the cabin and I was paralyzed with awe. In fact, I believe all I could do was gape and say, "Holy shit!" over and over. It was one of the most beautiful moments of my life - I am so grateful for it.

Ken and I sailed back over to Blaksley's on Stradbroke island. It's such a nice and quiet spot, protected from the winds to make a peaceful night on the boat. We had a lovely dinner of homemade tomato sauce and pasta with garlic toast and a nice Shiraz under the stars. I'm getting very good at picking out the Southern Cross even though it is a little underwhelming. I keep expecting it to be bigger or brighter or something.

Thursday was warmer and completely calm. We messed around on the island, cleaned up the cabin and sorted everything while we waited for a breath of wind. Sadly, it didn't happen so we had to motor back to Coochiemudlo instead of sailing. It was still so beautiful and peaceful. I went for a swim once we got back to the mooring. The water was cold, but it felt so good after the heat of the last few days! And to just immerse myself in water was so lovely. I think I'll be a mermaid whenI grow up.

We were both so exhausted when we got back yesterday evening. A big dinner of Guinness stew, mashed potatoes and veggies fit the bill exactly. I barely stayed awake for Thursday Night Live, my favorite sports show ever! It's weird that I watch sports shows at all, let alone have a favorite, I know. But we were in bed by 9 and I slept almost 12 hours! Then up for laundry, grocery shopping and the library. It's nice to sit down finally. Even though I haven't done much today, work-wise at least, in this heat it feels like everything is an effort. It will be interesting to see how I do this summer when it gets really hot.

Tonight is a simple dinner of pasta, chicken and asparagus baked with cheese. The recipe comes from Ken's sister Lynn and we just love it! Tomorrow I'll bake some cookies and make a beef casserole in the slow-cooker while we enjoy the football games. It's almost finals time and I'm afraid my Brisbane Lions just won't have it in them to last too long in the race for the Premiership. But my backup teams are going pretty well, and have a great chance. We'll have a lovely lunch at Kerry and Brandon's on Sunday as usual. I can't wait to see what we're having! She's such a great cook and they are such wonderful fun.

I'll write again soon.
Love,
Courtney