Isla Files 3.17

I just noticed it’s been almost a month since I contributed to the blog. My, how time flies when you aren’t thinking about it. We have been busy with guests; after Susan and Joe, Peter and Debbie visited and then Riley over spring break. We enjoyed all; each brought their interests, ideas and perceptions which was interesting. Sydney and I have got to know ours pretty well by now.
Riley gets the Easiest To Have award, all he needed was sun, food and rest. He got all three and returned to Moscow Saturday with his batteries recharged, ready to tackle the last eight weeks of the semester. Turns out he is a pretty damn good diver, too. In the dozen dives he has in his career he’s already light years ahead of where I was at 50 dives. I do believe he is what may constitute a ‘natural’ when it comes to water, a more relaxed person I’ve not seen. Except maybe his mother. We had six terrific dives, during one Riley touched a sea turtle; a light caress of the shell and flipper to let Speedy know we came in peace. It was pretty neat to watch. Riley also gets his money’s worth as he drains every last drop of air out of his tank, to the point that he has to use air from the Dive Master during his safety stops. Now, that is economy!
We fed Riley sushi, most days let him sleep till he woke and then he camped out by the pool or beach for his allotment of sun. He got us up at 5:30am Saturday morning to go watch the sun rise at the SE end of the island. It was inspiring to be the first in Mexico to see it because there is a place, complete with a sign in Spanish and English that says this is the eastern most point in Mexico and if you watch the sun rise from this spot you are the first to see it. Unique is the best way to describe it.
Sydney and I begin our countdown until we leave on March 26. It’s going to be hard to leave a place that you’ve come to know so well, that has become home. I guess it means we just have to come back. It’s going to be different to return to a life where we have more responsibilities, albeit not related to 8 to 5 anymore. That’s what I’m looking forward to; our new routines at home with no work. Since we’ve not played that game yet, it will be fun to see what develops.
Yesterday, we spent the morning cleaning the condo because the little, bitty ants have been increasing. And I left a package of candy out which attracts them, well, like ants. (Guess I should’ve thought of that.) Anyhow, we cleaned top to bottom with Sydney even mopping the tile floors with her broom and a solution of vinegar and soap in between her bread baking. She has really become accomplished at this art, using a blend of whole wheat, regular flour and avena (oatmeal). We are thinking of starting a line called: Loaves by Sydney, when we get home. We resettled from our guests and are now ready for our last week. We plan on diving 3 more days, the last being a long dive day: morning, afternoon and evening. Three-a-day workouts, you know?
Yesterday afternoon we spent at the beach getting our sun allotments, along with our quotas of reading. I closed my eyes and listened to:
The sound of waves
The cry of seagulls out over the water, “Mine, mine, mine” they say
Dogs barking back amongst some buildings behind
A boat going by, the sound of the hull hitting waves, the drone of the engine
Mexican children playing baseball, Spanish in youthful voices
Mexicans in the ocean swimming, laughing
A jet flying high from Cancun
I spent time watching three Mexican men on the dock nearby searching for fish to spear. They made a spear out of a length of welding rod (?) and had fishing line attached. We talked to them later and they had one fish. I saw the one guy go 0 for 12 on his throws.
We also watched the sunset, which never fails to provide an aura of beauty. Looking west the land is flat and there are no obstructions to prevent the sun from literally sinking in the west. We have tried and tried to see the rumored blast of green light which follows the sun’s sinking; it’s a myth.
That evening, Sydney beat me again (18-11) in Cribbage as we waited for the chicken and rice to heat. She may be on her way to winning the 2008 Isla Mujares Cribbage Championship. But, it’s not over till the skinny Mexican sings, as they say. We are looking forward to attending the National Masters Cribbage Championship in Portland, Oregon in September.
Don’t know what we’ll do today, probably ride our bikes into town to post this entry at Adrian’s Internet Café, do some grocery shopping as Sydney has promised a batch of mango salsa for cocktail hour tonight. She also wants to buy some sunscreen that is made out of shark cartilage or some such potion. Aside from that, probably read Three Cups of Tea which is a very telling story of one man’s devotion to helping his fellow man. We’re definitely going to miss the reading when we go home; I hope we can somehow devote a couple of hours a day. Like we tell the kids; it’s all about choices.
Last, but not least, we want everyone to know that Hadley completed her Masters degree this past weekend! She has obtained it in Child and Family Development at Boise State and will go through commencement in May. Congratulations, Hadley, we are very proud of you for accepting the challenge of higher education. You have set the bar for all of us. Josh, you’re a great guy to be supportive of her the past couple of years.
So, if your family needs an overhaul, call Hadley, she’s your gal!
Thanks for reading; it’s been my pleasure to share. Adios, Esteben

Isla Files 3.6

Falling down on the blog.
Unfortunately I feel like I have abandoned my blog. So much has happened in the past several weeks. We have had company for most of the time and are getting ready for Riley’s visit today. It has been a truly inspiring 3 weeks.
We were fortunate enough to watch the full eclipse of the moon from our pool-side patio. It was a beautiful evening. Our friends Susan and Joe were here from Boise and we joined other friends to watch the shadow of the earth slip slowly over the moon. One of our friends had a very high tech telescope and we had our trusty binoculars but the moon was elegant to the naked eye. The Mayan people mapped the coming of the full moon through this century and beyond. Their calendar was more precise than ours and they made up the time more succinctly than having an extra day every 4 years. I am sure that events such as this eclipse were truly magical for the Mayan. It was so lovely to be able to recline in a lawn chair and just lay back and watch it happen as opposed to shivering from my front porch for a few minutes in the North.
We had good days of diving with Susan and Joe but also had a couple of severe days of wind. The bizarre weather across the Great Plains manifests itself as high winds that whip across the Gulf of Mexico and swirl around this island. When the winds are high, the port in Isla is closed to small boats. That is just as well as being out in choppy water isn’t a great deal of fun for me!
We have seen all kinds of sea creatures on our dives. Also, because of the currents associated with the wind, drift diving has been supreme. It is possible to drop down to about 50 feet, get set, and then just skim across the bottom with no effort at all. It reminds me of dreams of flying.
Susan and Joe left on Sunday, February 24 and Debbie and Peter arrived from Vermont on Monday, February 25. They have had a very hard winter with tons of snow and supreme cold. They have also had much going on in their lives: weddings, illnesses, and the birth of twins. They were in desperate need of a vacation and we had just the spot for them. They rented bikes and we proceeded to terrorize the island, checking out anything and everything that even looked remotely fascinating. One morning we even got up super early and road down to the South end (Punta Sur) to watch the sun come up. That is the Eastern most point in Mexico, so perhaps we were the first people to see the sun that day? The park at Punta Sur is guarded by the Armada. We had to request permission of a machine gun toting soldier to proceed to the point to see the sun. Very sobering! The soldier was friendly and didn’t hassle us at all.
Yesterday Steve and I were running around this end of the island on one of our usual routes. My hamstrings are bothering me a little so I was kind of poking along at the back of the pack. Steve smelled the barn and decided to pretend his last name was Prefontaine. He took off up the hill and as I watched him go, I noticed a large shape stretched out across the road. He ran by it within about a foot, so I was thinking it probably was a palm frond that had gotten hooked off of one of the trees by a large truck. As I got closer, I couldn’t help notice that it was moving. Imagine my surprise when I realized I was looking at a 12-15’ long boa constrictor!! It was just slithering across the road, minding its’ own business. It was pretty big around and probably had just had a rodent size snack. A local man on a scooter stopped and watched with me as it slithered off into the underbrush at the side of the road. We both yelled and whistled at Steve but he did not hear us. When I jogged up to the store and asked him if he had seen it, he was surprised. He had not!! Jose Luis tells us that he found one about that big on his patio last year. He hooked it with a stick and then put it outside the property. The snakes are not dangerous if you leave them alone and also if you are not a small rodent or lizard! I sure wish I had my camera!!

Steve and Sydney Stardate: 2.25

Last Friday we couldn’t dive because the ocean had an upset stomach. Instead, we went with our friends, Susan and Joe, to Cancun, where we thought they would enjoy some malling. We walked it, end to end. The only member of the group who saw something she couldn’t live without was Sydney. She found a darling* top that ‘called out to me,‘ as she says. We had a nice lunch, Sydney and I split a salad, our first in many weeks. It was worth the wait. We’ve been warned to stay away from lettuce, although not sure why. It was great to taste dressing, again. We went and saw the movie Vantage Point in the Cineopolis. Don’t waste your money or time; it was substandard beginning to end. Dennis Quaid tried way too hard and Forrest Whitaker didn’t try hard enough. On the way back to the ferry we stopped at a tile, sink, etc., distributor and found some incredibly beautiful sinks for $90. These are glazed Mexican style, very vibrant colors. While this is a steal, the problemo is getting them (x2) shipped to Boise. I’m going to see what DHL and FedEx can do. Joe and Susan returned to Boise yesterday, we hope they enjoyed the week as much as us. Thanks you guys for the beautiful silver candlesticks which will look so nice in the condo at Elkhorn! The wine is still flowing! They came bearing 8 bottles! They are both wonderful divers and the cause of our addictions to the sport!Today, Sydney’s cousin, Debbie and her husband, Peter, arrive. They hail from deepest darkest Vermont and we know they can use a good dose of sand and sun. This will be good medicine for them.Winter has been tough on everyone this year; we’re holding out that when we come home in a month, it has moved on. We lament the need to wear pants, shoes, socks, coats upon our return. Down here I wear one garment: shorts. Blue, maroon, or green. Take your pick! Sydney wears two: top/bottom. I have encouraged her to go ala’ European, no doing. She does that when we play Tarzan & Jane on the beach at night. Oops, sorry, over sharing.We thought about getting out Dive Master Certifications while we were here, realizing we had ample time for the course. They recommend a minimum of two weeks, but prefer at least a month. It would cost $500 each, plus the materials ($150) and a re-up on our CPR qualifications ($100). We decided to forego it this trip and shoot for next time. Speaking for me, the thought of studying every evening somehow just doesn’t have much appeal. At 1:00pm everyday my brain goes on break until the next day!Week before last, Sydney and I heard the most wonderful music while having a late breakfast in town. A little investigation, i.e., pawing through the CD cases next to the stereo, revealed it was Fernando Lima, Pasion’ Album. We had not heard of him, or the woman who does most of the vocals. This is an incredible arrangement if you want some nice bold Spanish music for a quiet evening. Of course, it’s all I listen to now. I bought it from Itunes, downloaded to my laptop. Technology is great! Saturday we had two very relaxing dives on the reef. I spent the dives helping a condo acquaintance, Jerry, with his dives, as he last dove years ago. He did fine; the reef was perfect for him to meet Mr. Ocean, again. Sydney saw a nurse shark, but was too far away to garner attention. Of course, we all thought, “Sure, Sydney, sure!” about her shark. But, we all said, “Wow,” “Really,” “Cool,” to legitimatize her find. Diving, hunting, fishing, it’s all the same: 50% real, 50% imagined! Anyhow, they were nice dives. Sydney and I did find a large grouper hiding in a coral cave; he had to go 100 lbs! He had the protruding lower jaw that made him look like a grandpa. Nobody messes with him! I think groupers might be my favorite fish, well, maybe moray eels, too! While on that dive I thought of a word that best describes the ocean; “teeming.” The ocean is teeming with life. God, I hope we don’t ruin that, too.‘Nough said, looks like another good day, how can’t it be? Think we’ll go down to the ferry dock and watch Americans come off all stressed and angry! Thanks for reading; I enjoy talking with all of you. Until next time, Nannu-Nannu! Adios, Esteben.*Notice my use of adjectives? Totally learned from weeks of female influence