Back.....With Reservations

OK...Gail talked me into blogging again and I went to the BlogSpot site and of course was met with a completely different sign in/page whatever...but I battled on and spent a couple of hours doing a blog which I published only to find out that I am now a different person with a different site and I have no idea where it was published. So...being a mature and patient adult I deleted that draft and now I think I might have found my way back to my old blog page. I'm just going to publish this whine and see if it appears on the  normal spot. If so ....I will be back . If not I will !#$@^%*&(+_#$@
                               I'm back... and I just love computers...and blogging...and Satan.

Righto....we got back from our Xmas in Oz and picked Jabiru up from Bruno's Zoo at Fort Lauderdale. She was very happy to see us and even happier to be on the move to her favourite anchorage at South Beach in Miami. Just so happened that the Art Deco Festival was on at (you guessed it) the Art Deco area of South Beach. There were bands and street entertainers and stalls and a bunch of beautiful old cars. Might have been a model T but these were the good ol' Yank Tanks . Chevys and Buicks and Chryslers etc,.The Firemen were out showing off their muscles....all for charity of course so I didn't want to embarrass them by removing my shirt.

South Beach is delightfully gay and there was a bevy of Shirley Temples on sight to look after us touristas.

South Beach is actually an island and over on the Miami (mainland )side is a light industrial area. Several blocks of small factories who happen to be next to an art college. The students ,and I presume any competent (really pretty fantastic )artists can paint this otherwise drab area of factories.

It's a whole day out . Quite amazing . Of course a piece of art the size of several blocks needs to be seen...live... but here's a few samples.

The real reason we were back in this part of the world is in previous blog City of Angels Nov. 2014

Unfortunately that didn't work out (yet?).The USA ,like most countries, only grant residency or the good old green card to rich investors or refugees. We ain't gonna get rich unless we rob a bank ,and that isn't exactly approved of either ,and I don't think they'll believe some story that our lives would be in danger if we returned to Australia. I mean believe it or not there are people there that don't like me ....but.. Of course one can marry a US citizen but Gail doesn't think much of that...unless she gets to marry Johnny Depp.

Anyway...I ramble.....again.

All was not lost , however. I got to hang out and learn the ins and outs of making the worlds best mouthpiece and did some test piloting of them for Nick. Extra cool was meeting and hanging out for a couple of days with my hero/idol Dave Sanborn. He's a lovely bloke and it was great just sax yakking and having a laugh with him. He's also very funny. He got me to play his 'spare' mouthpiece which was cool but no better than my new one. There's no way any one plays (or even touches) his ol' faithful Dukoff that he's been playing for the last 30 years or so. That's what he's doing there, just trying to get a replacement. Sounded to me that every one that he played sounded great but he da man that started the contemporary alto sound so......

This is why he needs a new one soon.

Note the corner of the tip...bent over!

After that we went over to Eleuthera in the Bahamas, for a few weeks.I covered that and Alice Town and all our friends there in last years blog so......nothing to add.It's like yet another home for us

Did meet a couple of Aussies from Kempsy. Geoff and Jenny. Bought a huge motor cruiser ,89ft, and after doing the Great Loop (up  the Hudson and through the Great Lakes , down the Mississippi across the Gulf of Mexico ,round Florida and back up  to New York )they dropped the anchor at Eleuthera .....and I don't think they're going to leave! Also ,Mike and Lori on Cheshire (friends from Oriental )were passing through. That's all of us piled into Maurice's limo on the way to a gig.

OK

Back to Miami and Hollywood (Florida) for a bit and then a swift ride on the Gulf Stream ,660 nautical miles in 3 1/2 days, up to North Carolina. Here we are in Oriental , yet again. We intended going all the way up north again but ya sorta get to Oriental ......and it's sorta home. The plan is to rent a car in a couple of weeks and drive ( so much quicker ) up to see Todd and Melody in Noo Joisey and Noo Yoik and then up to New Hampshire to Paul and Piper. We want to haul Jabiru in September, when it's a little cooler , and paint her bottom. Hasn't been done since Trinidad 3 years ago so she'll be happy about that, although I do clean her whenever we have nice clear water.

That's about it I s'pose. This blog is supposed to be about the travels of Gail and Peter and Jabiru but I don't think Gail's been getting much exposure.

Here she is in Fort Lauderdale...as beautiful as ever.

NO no no ....Gail not Fort Lauderdale