The Pure Life: Winter in the Keys

My Sis

We brought up those pesky northerlies in our last posting; well they are still pesky and blowing like hell. As we sit in our comfortable secure slip it is blowing a gale today and who knows what the wind Gods will bring us tomorrow. Anyway Christmas has past and a new year is marching briskly along with these winds.

We have a new niece named Matty who was born in Key West at the end of November. Michael’s sister Beth visited her new Grand-baby in Key West and came up to Marathon and stayed with us for a fun filled few days. We introduced her to Pura Vida (The Pure Life ) and I think she liked it, a lot!!!

Dock Dynasty lunch

Windy

And like the winds from the north our girls blew through the Key’s for the holidays. We have a blurred memory of our time spent in Key West with them but our credit card company called twice to confirm the frequent swipes there. Sloppy Joe’s, Capt. Tony’s, The Schooner, Irish Kevin’s, Jack Flats, Smokin Tuna and of course Margaritaville. If I could remember the rest I would but some things just aren’t possible. To dry out we took the boat out to a beautiful anchorage just west of Marathon enjoying the quiet sounds of a brisk breeze, the site of a Florida Key’s sunset and the stars so bright you could reach out and touch them. The following day we defied the weather (35 knots) and went sailing. The girls were brought back to their childhood memories of all the good times we had sailing off the coast of So. California when they were growing up. With the family together once again on the water it was tempting to just keep going to distance lands forgetting the new responsibilities they both had but like the cat in the cradle they had become us, young adults and had to get back to the grind to forge their own lives. So like a scene in a movie that keeps repeating itself we kissed them goodbye and watched them until they quickly fade away down the long ramp wishing all along that we could just keep them and sail away. Southwest giveth and Southwest taketh away. So we are left here alone to enjoy the daily dock parties, the frequent happy hours, the weekly golf outings, trips to the beach, Friday night pot lucks, Dinghy poker runs, fishing, lunch out because we never catch any fish, music at the Docksider and of course an occasional day sail out to the reef for some snorkeling. Oh well life is a bitch then….