Tall Ships On A Summer Afternoon

It was the perfect day to be on the river looking at tall ships at the dock and under sail.  Unfortunately Durwood was having a particularly bad breathing day so I went by myself but that was okay too, not as much fun but okay.  ( I really HATE this disease; it's capricious nature and the strictures it puts on his life are just unbearable.  If you smoke, STOP RIGHT NOW.  I mean it, that nicotine high's just not worth years of breathlessness and the shrinking of a person's world.  As an ex-smoker I know how hard it is to quit but you can do it, it'll make such a difference in your life--and wallet.)  Aaaanyway, there were seven or eight ships tied up on the river, each more beautiful than the next.  The Unicorn is made out of salvaged metal from German subs and has an all female crew.  The Peacemaker is crewed by native people from four or five continents. The Sorlandet is a floating school for junior & senior high school students.  (Don't you wish you'd gone to school there?)  The Niagara was a warship last fighting the War of 1812; it has cannon ports down its sides.  The Hindu was a luxury yacht in New England, sailed to India in the spice trade (where it earned its current name), patrolled the east coast for German subs in WW II, chartered out of Cape Cod and Key West, and was finally saved from the wreckers just a few years ago.  The Windy is Chicago's flagship and offers tours of Chicago from the lake.  Built in a parking lot in Milwaukee, the Denis Sullivan is Wisconsin's flagship and works to preserve the fresh water of the Great Lakes.  The Appledore IV is used for educational programs.  A few of the ships offered a ride from Sturgeon Bay to Green Bay as they arrived.  It was pricey but wouldn't that be fun?  I'd love it.  Heck, I loved the hour-long putter up the river and back to the dock yesterday in the sunshine and breeze.  It was great to be out and about on a boat again.

Today we're going to lunch at Kroll's with my brother AJ and his wife K.  We haven't been to Kroll's in a long time so we're looking forward to juicy burgers with pats of butter melting on them served on hard rolls.  Oh, and I might be ordering fried cheese curds too.  What the hell, it's Sunday.  (isn't it?  yeah, it must be, the newspaper was gigantic today.  Sunday, gotta be.)

August 18--Egypt, Apis Bull Statuette.  Morgan knew he shouldn't buy the little ivory statue of a bull.  He could tell that it was real ivory and he knew that buying and selling ivory was illegal, and that wasn't even considering the question of its antiquity.  He was certain it was old, maybe even B.C.  The statue was small enough to stand in the palm of his hand and he liked the way the ivory warmed as he held it.  The shopkeeper in the bazaar wrapped it in brown paper and tied it with some twine so he could carry it back to his hotel.

To be continued tonight.  I was tireder than I thought I was and I lost control of my pencil.  I'll be sure to go to bed earlier tonight since I had more of an idea than that little bit up there.  Time to get ready for our lunch date.  Toodles.
--Barbara