It's been awhile

Hi my family and friends! Sorry its been awhile since my last post. Bob finally made it back to the islands...woohoo! We've been really busy with kayaking, snorkeling and partying with our friends. I can't believe June is almost over. Island time still flies by... It will be sad to leave this island at the end of July. The islanders are getting ready for Carnival and the SunJam Fest. I'm anxious to see what its all about. I'm told its a huge party for a solid 15 days. The festivities will start July 19th so we'll be around to experience some of it. I know that all the hotels are booked up during that period which is great for all the local business here. The streets will be filled with party goers. Last night we went to Chris and Jody's for an awesome dinner party. It was a pot luck dinner and we had a great variety of food. We did a little dancing to some disco music and flat out had a blast. The weather here has been fantastic. I actually pulled my bike back out the week before Bob arrived. My most favorite time to ride is at night. The moon had been shining so bright that I didn't even need my flashlight coming down the backside where its pitch dark. I'm pretty sure I had mentioned the house we are staying in is on the backside of the island where the roads aren't paved and no street lights. The bike ride was fantastic. I was paying a little too much attention to the moon and the ocean that I hit quite a few potholes. Thank God I wasn't too intoxicated. Although one evening I was carrying some leftovers in my basket and when I hit one of the holes my food went flying out. It was pizza...my favorite! O' Well...the scenery was worth it. We've had a great breeze the last few weeks...in fact it's been a little chilly in the evenings. That's funny to write since the temp has been mid 80's. The breeze makes a nice difference. We've been getting some storms blow thru every few days. They blow in and out quick though. I think that's why I really like hanging out at the Driftwood. The deck/bar is built over the water and when working the bar you can see the storms moving across the ocean and feel the wind pick up. I love it. Especially when lightening is in the area. On the island we have a local TV broadcast...And guess what folks, I made the news. No, not as a flasher on the beach either. Chris, Jody, John, Monika and myself were playing FrisKnock on the beach. FrisKnock is the Frisbee game with post and beer bottles I wrote about before. This time I remember the name of the game. Anyway, the videographer taped us playing and aired it on the news. We were referred as "Monika & Friends" playing "tourist" games. It was quite comical. Monika is a hoot...When that camera was on her...she made no mistakes. She caught the Frisbee, her throws were accurate (in fact he knocked down my beer bottle) and she was a star but as soon as the video guys were gone...the next Frisbee throw is near the water and nowhere near the post. We've been giving her a hard time about that. She performs well. Well, I need to report to the bar. My shift starts at 5:30 - 10:00. Hope everyone is doing well. Miss you guys.

West End Players

I had mentioned we listened to some great live music in Roatan. Well the band, West End Players was so much more than great. They truly were one of the best bands I've heard in a very long time. Brion is the lead singer and electric guitarist. He is also the tentant that is renting Judy's house. Anyway, Mark May is one of favs to listen to live. I love the way he plays his guitar; well guess what...Move over Mark. Brion, is hands down my favorite. He is amazing. I've learned that he is very well known and has written lots of published songs for Janet Jackson and was a backup guitarist for the Rolling Stones while on tour. He looks like Prince. Small in stature but what a presence on stage. (Trechell, I know you are reading this and you would have been extremely proud on how he sang: Purple Rain, and Little Red Corvette.) I can't say enough about this artist. His vocal range, the way he plays guitar (makes love to it), and his performance is tops! I hope to go back to Roatan and hear him again. They played all kinds of music. It's a four man group and the bass guitarist had a fabulous voice too. They played U2, Staind, Prince, Hoobastank and so many others for 3 hours solid. Not one break. Ginger, when you guys come in July...I will find out Brion's schedule so you can check out for yourself It's Happy Hour now. Gotta go. Ciao.

Trip to Roatan w/the Girls

Monday we set sail to Roatan for the night. The girls include Judy, Barb, Shannon and me. The sail over to Roatan was very relaxing. We left around 8:30 a.m. for a 4 hour sail. The weather was overcast with occasional light showers. I planted myself in the front of the catamaran for the journey. The light rain felt awesome and I fell asleep. We were traveling over some large rolling swells in the ocean that just rocked me to sleep. As we approached Roatan they were having a nice storm. We could see lightening ahead of us and the thunder was all around. We thought we were going to sail into some really bad conditions the final hour but as we rolled in the storm was moving on. We had an amazing sail and by the time we docked in Roatan the sun was shining. Judy has a fantastic place on the beach in Half Moon Bay. Her backyard is a beautiful beach with Blue/Green crystal clear water and reefs. We stayed in the efficiency downstairs. It has 2 rooms. (one full bathroom and one room that has a small kitchenette and bed). Her patio is enclosed where we put down a mattress for additional bedding. The upstairs is rented out. It's a very nice place w/a one bedroom, full kitchen and bath and has 2 large decks. Sundowners is one of my favorite bar hangouts. And Judy's place is 200' from there. How perfect is that? The bar is on the beach and is a fabulous place to be during a sunset. I saw several friends that we've met on our travels to Roatan over the years. It was good to see some things don't change. Sundowners was still their local hangout. It was great catching up them while enjoying a few cold libations. I've been trying to get hold of my friend Jason Welch. He was on the island too. I had left several messages with the receptionist at the resort they were staying at and was hoping he was getting them. Finally, my phone rings around 7:30 p.m. It was him! He was on his way into town to meet up with us. By this time, we were starving and I sent my girlfriends to dinner and told them I would catch up with them. Jason was on his way. He showed up just shortly as the girls left so, I asked if he would mind if we could join them. I was STARVING! Of course it wasn't a problem. He was with his girlfriend, Lauren and her Mom. We went to Argentina Grill (another favorite of mine) for food and drinks. It was great seeing him and spending a little time with them. I was shocked when he wanted to pick up the bill for ALL of us. There were 12 people in our party and we were eating very well. Steaks, Seafood and Cocktails. I told him not to do it but he insisted. Many thanks to Jason!!!! He's one of a kind guy. Well, our one night in Roatan turned into 3 nights. We were having a blast. Roatan is so different from Utila. The pace, the crowd, the food, the scenary was a great change. We snorkeled for hours, we hit some great restaurants for Thai and Seafood, we listening to some awesome live music and we chilled at Sundowners. We set sail with Vern on Friday morning (10:30 a.m.) There were several more folks on the boat ride back. But it was fantastic. The sun was out and we had the winds in our favor. I laid in the hammock in front of the boat much of the way; catching some rays and water sprays. We took a break half way there. It is tiresome on a sailboat (LOL) and we all dove into the ocean to cool off. Since it was windy the waves were large but so refreshing. Once back on the boat we continued our sail back to Utila. Time to rest and rehydrate!

Photos of Jackie's going away party

B&B & Jackie






Bonnie & OK









Michelle, Bonnie & Judy










Bonnie, Barb & Kathy









Bon, Florida Steve, Barb & Kathy









Barb, Chris, Bob & Kathy












Food, food & more food. That's Jeff on the left whos' eyeballing Mandy's steak. Thanks Jeff for giving us a place to stay. Jeff thought we were only staying for a month. SUPRISE!









The lovely married couple of Jody & Chris.
That's Chris' Mom that is visting for a few weeks.









Go home people, the party's over.

If I never cook another cake...

That would be alright with me! Do you I cooked 10 cakes for this wedding reception to wind up with an amazing piece of art. The cake came out wonderful! Of course with the help of Sharon and Judy. I still had the problem with the cake crumbling but we kept it all together with a large amount of frosting. It looked beautiful. I made a 2 tier Pineapple cake w/white frosting and decorated it with Island Flowers and shells. Lots of pictures were taken I just need Judy to forward them to me and have Bob put on our site. The whole reception was fabulous and the bride/groom were very pleased with everything. Fortunately, a few of the islanders here are like me and have very little to do and they pitched in to help. Definitely a group effort with the flower arrangements, balloons, decorating and food prep. We started out with appetizers of Shrimp dip spread on triangle shape fried flour tortilla and jalapenos w/cream cheese wrapped in bacon. Entree included seafood soup, steak, fish, shrimp, baked potatoes, mixed vegetables and green salad. The kitchen was amazing and did a fabulous job. We were all pooped after this party but very rewarding. I have to admit that it wasn't all work and no play. Friday, I went with some friends to a party off one of the Cays. Bobby Thompson owns this spectacular piece of beachfront property and beautiful "vacation" home. He has this 2 story boat dock with all the bells and whistles. The 2nd story of this dock was a large bar/kitchen area. (fully stocked). We had our cocktails, appetizers and music playing. Some of the guys would jump off the balcony into the water. Very crazy. But what was so cute is that one of the guys had his dog (Irish Setter) that didn't want to be left behind. So, he would jump off the 2nd story balcony too. It was so fun to watch. The dog would then paddle to the stairs and with a little help from someone he would make his way back in line to wait his turn to jump. It was awesome. We also played this fresbie game on the beach that was a blast. We played with partners. There are 2 PVC pipes (6 ft in the air) about 40 ft apart, 2 empty beer bottles (one balancing on each of the pipes) and a fresbie. Monika and I were teammates. The opposing team stood at one end of the pvc pipe while we were at the other. The object of the game is for a team to throw the fresbie in hopes of hitting the pipe and causing the beer bottle to fall. It would be our job to catch the fresbie before hitting the ground and if the bottle gets knocked over then we would need to catch the bottle from touching ground too. Points are scored accordingly...If the fresbie touches the ground that is one point. The bottle touches the ground that is 2 points. If the both hit the sand it would be a total of 3 points but if the opposing team catches both then they get 5 points. Play till one team gets 21 points. My play time was cut short due to a slight injury. I cut the bottom of my foot on a piece of coral. That was pretty painful. Can't say that I can put pressure on it yet. It's still an open sore that I'm very careful to clean everyday. I'm told can get into an infection quick. I just wish it would hurry up and heal. I'm walking so ackwardly that my shin muscle is getting rather large and disportionate. (Is that a word?) Anyway the day at Bobby's place was a blast. Tomorrow (Tuesday) a couple of us girls...(Barb, Judy and myself) are sailing with Vern to Roatan. Judy has a house on the beach where we'll be staying. We're not sure how long we intend to hang out on this island but for sure 1 night. I have a friend, Jason Welch who is vacationing this week on the island that I hope we can hook up with. I'd love to see him. I'm trying to track him down and get the message to him to find us tomorrow. Shouldn't be too hard. I atleast know the resort he's staying at. Didn't do too much today. A little laundry and made my way into town to the internet. Driftwood is closed today but tonight is Pub Trivia at Skidrow. Since we are scheduled to sail at 8:00 in the morning...I may wimp out in going to Skidrow. Other than that...nothing much happening! And I'm loving it.

Howdy!

Hey how is everyone? Things are going well here although I miss Bob dearly. I attended a small dinner party last night with some friends (Chris, Jody, Cara, Monika, Luis, Barb and John). We had a great time. One of the guys we've met here on the island is a Chef. His name is John and had worked at some of the top restuarants in Houston. He's the one that hosted the dinner party last night. He kept it very simple with serving a Shrimp Pasta dish and Caesar Salad. Very refreshing and delicious. Of course provided several bottles of wine (which I still can't drink) but I brought some Rum. We hung at his place till about Midnight or so talking. Monika & Luis are amazing. They are awesome to hang with and we laugh so much. She is originally from Guatemala and Luis is from here, Utila. They own a bar called Tranquila. Where we spend time while away from Driftwood. They host a Texas Hold'em Tournament on Tues., Thurs., and Sunday's at 8:00 weekly. I plan to be there tonight! Chris, Jody & Cara - Chris & Jody are married and Cara is Chris's Mom. Cara has been visiting here for 2 weeks from Lake Livingston area. Unfortunately she leaves on Sunday. She is one spunky Momma that has not 1 but 2 Harley's. She has been blast! Chris and Jody are wonderful too. They live on the backside of the island where we are staying. They are caretakers of a beautiful rental property. Next year they plan to move to Houston and get real jobs. They are young and living life before they have to grow up and start a family. Bummer! Barb! What can I say about Barb...Party Animal. Of course she is. She's from New Orleans. We have had such a blast with her. She now lives here on the islands permenantly. She's retired from the Service and lives off her pension. She's very cool and has a heart of gold. As you can read we've met some amazing people here and some friends for life. That' not to say we've haven't met some weirdo's too. Well, there's Beverly & Ranger. They come to this island from Belize. Apparently they were run out from Belize. (Long Story) Beverly wanted a friend to talk to on the island and found me. I was there for her a few days till I decided I didn't need to surround myself or be part of the negative energy of this couple. Ranger beats her and yet she remains to stay with him. I don't mean to be cold but I can't help someone who doesn't really want it. This chick is loaded. She's the Granddaughter of Winn Dixie and she's roaming the Carribean with an abusive drug dealer from Belize. Not my thing. Next couple we met are Deb and Joe from New Orleans. These guys are moochers. They love to tell "feel sorry for me stories" in hopes to get on your good will and then rip you off. Barb was unfortunate to be on the receiving side of that. What can I say...Live and learn experiences. Bob and I are always on alert and have decent instincts. Sometimes I just want to give people the benefit of the doubt. But for some reason on this island we can really feel the good aura of the people and yet tense up when the bad aura appears. We hope that always stays with us thru our travels. Instincts always the best...Or was that incest always the best. LOL! Let's see what else is going on...Another couple of friends Paul & Ann has their daughter, Paula visiting them here from Dallas. Another great family. Turns out Paula knows some folks I went to High School with and Paul has a niece I worked with at Avista Energy. Can you say small world? Anyway, they were out one evening for dinner. When they went left the restuarant to go out to their golf cart...It was gone. What the heck! Golf Cart missing? Well they started to walk home when golf cart came tearing by with 6-7 kids hanging off of it. It was their cart. Paul went hollering and chasing them down the street. (Paul is mid 60's) All the kids jumped off their cart and scattered like roaches. He was so pissed but I'm laughing my ass off as he's tell me the story. Apparently any small key will start any one of our golf carts. So, everyone is subject to this. What else do we do....Our hot spots are Driftwood (of course) Sunday's is my favorite. The guys play horseshoes while the women play Farkel (dice game) Who would imagine a dice game being so much fun. We laugh so loud and have a great time. Not to mention the free flowing Monkey Balls. (Homemade Kalua w/Vodka) O'mammacita, very good! Monday's is Pub Trivia at Skidrow. They ask some hard questions. Fortunately I had 2 smart girls with me and we did alright. We came in 3rd place overall of about 12 teams. However, our team name won 1st place. Which means we get a free round of drinks next week. The name may not make since to you guys but we were called the Skinned Knees of Utila. Right now, there is so much construction going on and have most of the main road dug up to put in new sewer lines. Everybody seems to fall over here. How has that not happened to me yet? I'm the biggest klutz around...so I thought. It' so funny. When you walk the streets and pay attention to those walking around...almost everyone has some kind of street wound on their legs. The main street is where everyone walks or bikes and these holes are really tripping up folks. I've seen a couple of bad bike wrecks. So, what do I do...My bike is sitting in the garage at home. No way am I riding it while the roads are dug up. It's crazy! I ready for a siesta now. I'll be in touch soon. Have a great day! Lots of love. Bonnie.

Reception Party

Hi! Here's a little of what I'll be doing this week. As you all know Bob is back home taking care of some business so I have nothing but more time on my hands. Don't feel bad for the long hours at the restaurant / bar. I'm loving every minute of it. I get to drink, socialize, play dice, cook a little and take in the sites of a beautiful ocean. Trust me...I'm playing hard too while working. It's a tough job but somebody has to do it. This weekend we have a wedding reception taking place at our restuarant. Sharon and I are compling the menu, decorating, creating a specialty drink (lots of trial runs right now), and make a cake. Some of you know I'm not a baker. I can cook all day but baking is not my thing. And yet this is my major responsibility for the evening. Holy Crap! I baked 3 cakes yesterday. I'm not having a problem with the taste but I cannot keep them from sticking to the pan. I've tried, Oil/Flour and Pam. When I flip my cake out of the pan...I have a doughnut remaining. HELP! Any bakers out there have any comments. Yes, I am cooling before flipping. I'm hoping my problem is the Aluminum pans I'm using. I'm off to the store to see if there are any Teflon pans available. I'll keep you guys posted on how the event turns out. Sharon has asked if I wanted to help out with a Fishing Tournament. Some company from the states is wanting to host this event down here and asked Sharon for assistance. Heck ya, I'll help out. Sounds like a blast. Based on the number of people and being a "corporate" event; Sharon & I will be looking at Roatan for hotel accomodations and chartering boats for the tournament. This will take place mid-July. I'm very excited about it. Well, gotta go! Take care. I'll be in touch. Love ya.

Top 10 Island Challenges.

As promised here's our daily challenges. Hope you enjoy. Bonnie's top 10 10. Rolling Blackouts. Although this is happening less frequent, they still occur. Only a problem when I'm blogging. 09. Remembering to turn off everything before leaving the house. A/C, fans, tv and microwave. The clock from the microwave pulls extra electricity...We all know we can't have that happen. 08. Crazy drivers. Holy crap these locals are loco especially on their motorcycles. They'll travel 1 mile at the speed of 50 mph. What is there hurry?! 07. Sand flies. These creatures love me and bite the hell out of me. Every morning my routine includes a good application of Cactus Juice. Cactus Juice is an insect repellent that is non- toxic and has zero deet. It's the only thing that works on me. (Bob doesn't have this problem. The bugs stay off of him.) 06. The grit feeling. Like I mentioned above. I apply a lotion daily for the bugs. We'll its humid as hell down here and hot. So, I'm constantly glistening. The glisten is a great adhesive for salt, sand and dirt. 05. Banking can take up to 2 hours. The reason, anyone over 60 or pregnant women can jump in front of you at any time. 04. The Internet lacks the speed we are used to back home and have you ever tried typing on a Spanish keyboard. Good grief...drives me to drinking. 03. Produce sucks here. Nor do they carry cilantro or jalapenos on the islands. Didn't realize how much I used them. 02. Grocery shopping is an adventure. Can't plan a menu in advance. It's all about what the store has available at that moment. And if you see something on the shelf you think may need later; Buy it! I can't be picky on brands. Steaks need to be "Aged" before grilling. And spices I'm used to are hard to come by. 01. Fighting the "Dreadlocks" daily. OMG! In one day, I can have dreads. I've already had to cut some out. I must condition my hair twice a day with a "leave in hair" conditioner and comb it thru. Bob's top 10 10. Cost of Electricity. It's like being back in the 70's when I was growing up w/ no A/C. Man, it can get hot & ceiling fans can only help so much. One advantage though, you sweat out the beer faster in the mornings so you can get started again by Noon. At least we have A/C at night in our bedroom. 9. Road demolition to install new sewer lines. As the population of the island grows, I guess so does the amount of _____ (you fill in the blank). They are quick to tear up the roads to put in the new lines, but extremely slow to fill up all the craters that line the roads every 10 to 20 feet w/ concrete. & by 8 a.m. the backhoe has the road blocked so that we can't by on our golf cart. The other option is to go the back way thru the woods & by the airport, I meant airstrip, which adds 15 minutes to the commute. Good thing we have an electric cart & don't have to waste money on fuel. Second thought, since electricity cost so much & we charge our cart every night, a gas cart might be have been the better option. To late now to worry bout that. 8. Limited choices of restaurants & goods in general. You really learn to appreciate all the great places & types of food available back home. Don't get hooked on a particular brand of anything, because you take what you can get here. 7. No Golf course. Not that I played alot back home, but it would be nice to be able to play a round when we wanted. Maybe our next stop will have a course & their green fees will fail into budget. 6. see Bonnie's # 4. & it's expensive. It's like $3 for an hour of surfing. 5. Limited health care & no critical care at all. Clinic is open 2 hrs a day from M-F. If you have a major or serious health issue, than you better call a plane to come take you to the mainland. 4. Luxury vehicles. That's what I call them. Small little cars for no purpose but to ride around in the comfort of their A/C. This is a very small community. The only automobiles that should be allowed are trucks for picking up trash & delivery of supplies. 3. Only a few beaches that can be reached w/o a boat. One is OK, but & it's far from our casa. The other beach is private & is a little nicer, but they want $3 for ea visit. No way Jose. 2. Being away from our family & friends. We miss you all & hope to see ya real soon back home or at our next stop on our travels. 1. No domestic light beer. Man, I must have put on 10 lbs already & of course it's all gone straight to my belly. I'm so glad they invented expandable waistlines. & I refuse to pay xtra to drink that crap Miller Lite.

Awesome Storms!

Hola... Thank you guys for checking in with us about TS Alma. We are doing great. We are having some amazing storms right now with lots of lightening. I'm loving it. I'm blogging tonight from a friend's place, Judy. She's just off the water and has a spectacular view of the ocean. Her bedroom is on the 3rd floor and opens up to a deck which overlooks the water. I'm feeling the wind blowing wickedly and listening to the rain hitting the roof. I'm in heaven right now. The smell of the salt air is all around and the lights are flickering. Beautiful. Well dang! I need to close up. I want to sign out and watch this storm. Love everyone. Chat a little later.

Missing Bob!

Hey boys and girls...
How are you doing? I gotta say I'm a little blue. Bob left to go back to the states to clean up some work issues and isn't due back till June 19th. I got use to being around him 24/7 and I'm really missing him. If some of you guys get a chance to touch base with him; tell him to hurry back to the islands...His wife is missing him.