Animals

We've had a tough couple of weeks with our animals - a big reason why I haven't posted for a while.

KTJ, Elaine's rescued Thoroughbred, started running a fever, quit sweating and quit eating grain. Her temp yo-yoed up and down between just over 100 (a little above normal) to nearly 105 degrees (dangerous!) The vet has been coming daily, giving her IV antibiotics, vitamin supplements (because she was anemic) and water (because she was dehydrated). We think/HOPE she's turned the corner. Her temp has been stable and normal for over 48 hours now. She's eating better but still not enough grain. But it looks like she's on the mend.

Jazz, our 10-year-old vizsla, has developed major anxiety issues. It really started during the chaos when we did the most recent round of construction. Now anything out of the ordinary sets him off and goes into El Distructo mode. He's torn up the back of the couch, boxes, books, plastic storage tubs. I took him with me running errands last week. I left him alone in the car while I ran in the grocery store for six items. When I came out, he had ripped up the back seat of the car. There was foam padding everywhere. He didn't tear the upholstery though. Oh, no - he bent the metal frame of the seat and ripped the padding out from underneath.

KT is getting better and some days we have to drug Jazz just to get through an Ola Lola's evening. But hey - it's all part of the adventure!

Fun at Ola Lola's

(I found this unpublished post from a couple years in our "drafts" folder. It's still fun - and still true!)


Most people think Ola Lola's is just a cute little bar with great food. It is so-o much more than that!

Take for example our friend Stace. She went surfing for the first time and then came to Lola's with her friends to celebrate. She was a bit intimidated by horses but met Chocolate and took her first horseback ride. It was short but she was so inspired by that little ride she went to Tropical Trailrides the very next day and took the tour.

Stace is not the only one. Tito has given several people their first horse rides here.

We have become a defacto tourist information center. (We've been told we give better information than the real tourist information center at the airport - and our hours are better.)

At other times we have:

-- done (or found someone to do) minor car repairs on the spot;

-- given first aid for sprained ankles and scraped toes;

-- removed sea urchin spines from tender feet.

There's a lot more but you get the idea.

diving again

It's been almost a month since the last time I went scuba diving. Yesterday Darryl and I headed off to Natural for a morning dive. What a great way to start the day!

We're not sure why but visibility has not been great of late. Yesterday proved to be more of what we've had all summer - so-so visibility and a moderate current out of the south. It was a good dive though. We saw a couple of spotted eagle rays but they were too far away in the gloom to photograph. Then there was this guy. By the time I took this picture I was close enough to touch him. Darryl was shooting video from the turtle's other side looking back at me shooting pictures of him and the turtle.

It's is supposed to stay pretty flat all weekend so we have another dive scheduled for Sunday morning. Here's hoping! I miss blowing bubbles.

The next chapter in the adventure

Of f and on over the last five years we've kicked around the idea of having breakfast (and lunch) at Ola Lola's. One thing we knew for sure: we weren't the ones making breakfast. We needed someone(s) to take over the breakfast time slot. We've talked to a couple of people about it but the fit just wasn't right.

Last winter, Courtney and Christine Parks were here on vacation and found their way to Ola Lola's. A conversation started then and continued over the next several months. The culmination of that extended conversation is The Breakfast Club @Ola Lola's which opens tomorrow.

The "Cs" or "the breakfast people" as they have quickly become known, were living in Washington, D.C. They came to this side of PR and like us fell in love with it. They saw an opportunity here to simplify and downsize their lives. Through our conversations we were convinced these were the partners we were looking for, this was the right fit.

Courtney is a chef who honed his skills in Florida, Chicago and Washington. Most recently he is known for his "inventive take on breakfast and lunch" at Open City in Washington.Christine was in the restaurant business for a number of years before moving to hotel sales with Four Seasons Hotels, Ritz Carlton and Klimpton Hotels & Restaurants. They bring a wealth of hospitality industry experience to their new gig at Ola Lola's.

The Breakfast Club @Ola Lola's starts tomorrow. They open Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Monday and Tuesday from 6:30 am until 2:00 pm. Anytime you're in the neighborhood drop by for a fresh cup of coffee, great food and fabulous company.

No Hoarding thanks to Jazz

Our 10-year-old Vizsla, Jazz, has developed separation anxiety this past year. Even if we are only "downstairs" or "out front" with Ola Lola's he tends to spazz out, try to bury himself somewhere and chews through boxes, papers, foam mats, and a variety of other items. He has most certainly kept us from qualifying as hoarders! When we come back in he will usually greet us with a shoe - just one - in his mouth and wagging his tail. The end result is no fun for any of us...we're still looking for any helpful suggestions! In the meantime we submitted his photo to dogshaming.com....a very funny website devoted having dogs publicly shamed (and thereby at least giving their owners a laugh as well).

Happy birthday, Beege

He was born in a thunderstorm and has been raining fire and thunder on the earth ever since! Happy birthday to our oldest, John David!

Everybody's Birthday in September Party

What a party! On September 30 we threw the (almost) 6th Annual Everybody's Birthday in September Party. (We missed last year because a death in the family.) It was a great party. We celebrated with more than a dozen September birthday people. With apologies to the sensibilities of our vegetarian and vegan friends, this guy had the place of honor at the table:

Rique Colón (with occasional help from Dottie) got people up and dancin'!

We also formally introduced Christine and Courtney - "the breakfast people" - to the crowd.

All in all it was a great night to share with our many many friends. Thank you all so much!

Trip Advisor

Why a restroom photo? To start a discussion about Trip Advisor.

First, let me say in general, I like Trip Advisor. If you're not familiar with it, it is a site where "real people" can post "real opinions" about restaurants, hotels, attractions, just about anything travel related. The idea is travelers can read what other travelers say about a place before they go.

I honestly don't expect everybody to like us (although I secretly do expect everybody to like us). Some people aren't happy because we don't have rice-and-beans. Some aren't happy because there is nothing fried on our menu. Everybody has an opinion about food, good, bad or indifferent.

The opinions I don't mind. I do object to factual errors. Our first bad review complained about an "$8 banana." The same review stated we said desserts are our specialty. Neither of these statements is true. Why does it matter? Because other people read this stuff and believe it. We can - and do - write "management responses" to every review. It takes 3-5 days for management responses to be reviewed and posted. In that time some number of people have read the misinformation and don't know about the response. So that factually incorrect review is all they see.

Some reviews I just don't understand, like the person who said our menu was like "a high school or hospital cafeteria." Dude! What high school did you go to? Elaine spent six days in the hospital in May and the menu wasn't anything like ours.

Which brings be back to the restroom. The picture is our men's room (although it doesn't matter because the two are mirror images of each other). On reviewer described this as a "nasty skanky latrine." Say what? Other people have told us our restrooms are cleaner than those in the nearby big international chain hotel. But that comment didn't make it to Trip Advisor, just the "nasty skanky" comment.

Oh well, it's all part of the business. Gotta take the nuts-o with the good.

It's early fall in Puerto Rico

It's the beginning of fall here in PR. A lot of people from more temperate climes, where the four seasons are definitely more pronounced wonder how we can tell.

There is a definite change in the light, just like there is in the north. Cooler temperatures haven't hit yet; that won't really be noticeable until December. But some trees to change color.

The almond tree for example changes to a red-orange and loses it's leaves. But at the same time, it gets new leaves and flowers. Strange tree. It's part of that "drops something - leaves, flowers, stems or almonds - 365 days a year" thing.

Birthday adventure continues

Elaine's sister Amy came to visit for Elaine's birthday - and just to "get away." As part of Elaine's birthday adventure, we went paddleboarding on Rio Guajataca with Amy (the sister), Amy (the daughter) and Miguel with Miguel from Verde Azul. We had a blast!

And to close out the day, Elaine and Amy (the sister) went horseback riding on the beach on Chocolate and KTJ. I think Amy liked it.

FuFu

 Mango-orange-agua de coco sangria at Fu-Fu

 Elaine planned her own birthday lunch with her sister Amy (visiting from Ohio for Elaine's birthday) and our Ola Lola staff. She took us to a (relatively) new Afro-puertoriquean restaurant called Fufu.

Fufu is a food made from starchy vegetables that originated in Ghana and is common in West and Central Africa. Local variations here in the Caribbean include mangú and mofongo. At FuFu, fu-fu is firmer and more mofongo-like rather than doughy like it's African ancestor. This one had plantain and yuca with vegetables and shrimp.

FuFu also has pasta like this, also with vegetables and shrimp.

It's just a small place but it's wonderful (kinda like Ola Lola's - but way different). We will definitely go back. There's lots more on the menu to try.

We capped off the day with a get-together complete with birthday cake at Amy and Miguel's.

9/11 (but not what you think)

Today, of course, is 9/11. All over the country people are offering remembrances of that horrific day 11 years ago. Here, we are quietly (or not so quietly!) celebrating Elaine's birthday. Of course we remember those who died in the World Trade Center and on flight 93 and their families who still struggle with the memories - how can we ever forget? But this date was Elaine's birthday first.

We talked and talked and talked about how to continue to celebrate her birthday in light of those events. First we decided we'd move her birthday celebration off by six months and celebrate in April, not realizing that every news, infotainment and propaganda organization would do a six-month retrospective replay. Finally, we - or rather she - decided to claim her birthday as her own. After all, she was here first.

So despite the tragic undertones, here's wishing mi dushi, mi amor, my love a wonderful and very happy birthday.

Horses on the move

For five years we have had the great privilege of waking up and looking out our window or off the balcony and seeing the horses hanging out under the big almond tree or in the yard next door. For five years our neighbors have very graciously allowed us to keep Chocolate and KTJ literally next door. 

That arrangement ended this week. Our neighbors are planning to remodel the house and the yard and don't want the horses helping with the landscaping. All we can say is thank you for five amazing years of having our horses right outside the window.

For the past couple of weeks we've been building a new home for them - right across the street! Our other neighbors offered part of their land as pasture for Choco and KTJ.We had to move bunch of rock and construction material to make a safe space for them. That was a much bigger undertaking than anyone imagined. First we tried a front-end loader. That didn't budge it. Then we brought in a Cat D-4 bulldozer. That moved some of the rock but couldn't clear the whole area. The construction people wanted to bring in a Cat D-6 - at a mere $1200 a day. And they couldn't guarantee it would be done in one day. Ya know, it's tempting but...no. We'll work with what we have. 

This could be a temporary solution as well. If the family finds a buyer for the property, we have to move them again. Given that, we're using electric fence for most of the perimeter.It's much easier to remove if and when we need to. This weekend we built another small wood corral for them. It's not as pretty as the first one I built but so far it's holding them and they seem happy. And Ola Lola's guests get to watch them grazing right across the street.

We have such great neighbors! Thank you!

 

First early season swell

Lilac Alvarado rips on a wave at Middles

We got the first little taste of a swell on Monday. It was great timing since most people had the day off work for Labor Day, I went to Middles for a great early season session. This photo of Lilac Alvarado was just one of a number of great photos. You can see all the good ones on our PuertoRicoSurfPhoto.com website.

SwellInfo.com is still predicting six-foot plus waves for the weekend. We'll see how that pans out. I'm ready for it.

Happy birhtday, JI

Today would have been my father's 88th birthday. (He's the tall one in the photo.)

He used to say his birth date was easy to remember - It was the day World War II started. (Hitler and Germany invaded Poland on September 1, 1939.)

I think celebrating his birthday is way more fun. Happy Birthday, JI!

Guns don't cause crime

A friend of mine posted a really stupid photo (I could editorialize here and say, "are there any other kind?") of Ted Nugent waving two of his automatic weapons with the caption "If guns cause crime, then all of mine are defective."

This is one of the propaganda tricks of the gun lobby. It goes right along with "Guns don't kill people; people kill people."

This is just stupid because it misses and sidesteps the obvious: People WITH GUNS kill people. Yes, people kill with knives, poison and any number of other assorted weapons. But only guns are designed to kill. They have no other real purpose.

Guns don't "cause" crime. No one ever said they did (except the gun lobby propaganists). Guns just make it easier for people to frighten and intimidate other people. And guns make more crimes deadly. 

This is written by a person who has been robbed at gunpoint - me. Without the guns the people in the black ski masks were pointing at me, there would have been no robbery. 

So, no, the guns did not "cause" the robbery. They just made it possible.

Isaac a dud

We're very happy to say that Tropical Storm Isaac was, for us at least, a dud.

We did a lot of work to prepare, to tie things down, to be ready, and...nothing. Well, not really nothing. We got about half-an-inch of rain and 35-40 knot winds but that's it. And honestly, we're grateful.

Elaine has been in a couple of tornadoes; I've been in or very near four. We both agreed we don't really need/want to experience a hurricane. Last year Hurricane Irene went right over us. Fortunately (for us anyway) she'd dumped all her rain on the eastern third of the island. All we got was 70-80 knot winds. Seventy to 80 knots winds are nothing to sneeze into. They are dangerous and deserve respect. But - we had 60-70 knot winds in Michigan, usually when it was about 10 degrees. Here at least it's 80 degrees. Anyway, the point is Irene is as close to a "real" hurricane as I want to get.

Tropical Storm Joyce, the next one in line, is already churning across the Atlantic but she's already well north of us. The surfers are all hoping she pushes some waves our way.

Waiting for the hurricane

Last year it was Irene. This year the first hurican to skirt us is Isaac. He became a Tropical Storm yesterday and is forecast to be a Cat 1 by Thursday afternoon just as he passes south of PR. This morning's projected track indicates Isaac has slowed a bit and will develop into a Cat 1 a little farther east than earlier predictions. The track has also moved north a little bit putting more of PR within the "cone of possibility." Let's hope it doesn't veer too much farther north.

I went out to do our weekend shopping last night. Stores were a little crazy as people began stocking up on canned goods and water. Many shelves were already empty. There were lines at the gas station as people filled their tanks in anticipation of power outages that render gas pumps useless. Of course, we many not be allowed to open Friday regardless. Last year when Irene went through the governor ordered all bars closed and a ban on all alcohol sales - except beer. I guess beer was allowed because it's considered a food group.

Anyway, we're hanging in for now, watching and waiting. Stay tuned.

I'm me again!

When I got my Puerto Rican driver's license almost four years ago, they made a mistake in my name. In spite of a couple of (half-hearted) attempts, I couldn't get it changed. This meant among other things I had to use my passport to fly because the name on my ID (i.e., my driver's license) didn't match the name on my ticket. One of the big tourism selling points for PR is you don't need a passport to travel to and from the U.S. Well, I did need my passport. Renting a car was sometimes interesting. I had to explain why my DL name didn't match the name on the reservation.

Yesterday I was at CESCO (the PR version of the DMV) and finally got it changed. This time it was amazingly easy. I was truly surprised. Unlike previous visits to CESCO, people were helpful, the process was pretty straightforward, and made sense in this age of instant electronics. In about half-an-hour (including standing-in-line time) I had a new, correct driver's license.

The whole passport thing is not a really big deal but it was a pain. Now I can just use my shiny new Puerto Rico driver's license.

Names are funny things. Having the name wrong somehow felt like it wasn't really me.  Because it wasn't really my name on that little plastic card, it wasn't really my card in spite of the picture and all the other correct information. For reasons I can't fully explain I feel a sense of relief that my card now has my name on it.

At Ola Lola's we recognize the importance of names. We introduce ourselves to guests and ask their names. We try very hard to remember the names so when guest return a second (and third) time, we can greet them by name. It's a little thing and we don't always succeed, but we think it's important, part of the welcoming, the-first-time-you're-a-guest-the-second-time-you're-family feeling at Ola Lola's.

New dive site

There is a new (to us at least ) dive site we've gone to a couple of times now over the past couple of weeks. It's a really great reef right in downtown Aguadilla, appropriately known as (wait for it) Downtown. It's a pretty short swim out to the reef. We drop in about 25 feet of water. Along the outside the reef drops to 70 or 80 feet, almost like a wall dive. There are some very interesting, very healthy coral on the reef with lots of varied life swimming around. Considering it's location we were pleasantly surprised at the health of the reef and how unspoiled and untouched it is.

The two times we dove this reef visibility hasn't been very good. That may be one factor in why more people don't dive it more often. But the limited visibility has given me the chance to play with my new underwater flash.In the murky water you have to get close to things to photograph them so I got work with the flash set up close up. The colors really pop with the flash. Some things, like that purple sponge, look brownish under water because the water filters out various wavelengths of light as you go deeper, starting with the reds. So anything with a lot of red in dulls out as we descend. But the flash adds all the wavelengths back in, letting us see the "thing's" true colors.

 We're all looking forward to diving Downtown on a clean day. Hopefully this winter, after hurricane and the rainy season, we'll get some cleaner days on the reef. It should be diveable most of the winter, even in surf season. Because of where it located, it should be pretty well protected unless there is a lot of "west" in the swell.

Here's looking forward to a bunch of great dives on a new site!

beach clean-ups

There is a beach clean-up at Playa Pastillo this Saturday. Pastillo is a beautiful beach on the other side of Isabela. We've been there a number of times, just not recently. It's below the cliffs of Royal Isabela Golf Club and runs all the way to Guajataca.

We used to participate in beach clean-ups a lot when we first got here. We're still members of Rescate Playas Isabela (Rescue the Beaches of Isabela). Once a month or so I volunteer to take water samples at various beaches so they can monitor bacteria levels. But we don't go to beach clean-ups any more and people wonder why.

There are really two reasons. First, we do beach clean-ups every day. Every day when I run the dogs on the beach I pick up trash people left behind. It's usually plastic grocery bags, plastic cups (yesterday I picked up over 100), beer cans and beer bottles that people brought to the beach but were too drunk, too lazy, too ignorant or too apathetic to take home (or at least to the trash cans in front of Ola Lola's).

I come from a hiking/backpacking/canoeing and now snorkeling/diving background. The rule is "take nothing but photos and memories, leave nothing but footprints" and in the case of canoeing and diving, leave nothing. In other words, you carried it in, you carry it out.

"My" bit of beach runs from the end of the little calle we take to get to the beach to about the end of Yippie Calle aka Deadend Road. It's about a quarter of a mile of beach front. Not at lot, but it's "mine" and I want it clean.

Does my small effort help keep the beach at Jobos clean? No. And that brings me to the second reason we - or at least I - don't do beach clean-ups any more. I'm just not into picking up other people's trash. If people are too (see above) to pick up their own trash, they deserve the trashy beaches they get. It's not my job (paid or unpaid) to pick up after them.

I'll donate money. I'll work on education projects. I'll pick up on my own little stretch of beach. But I won't spend my free time picking up trash somebody else was okay bringing to the beach but was too inconsiderate to pick up and dispose of properly.

Here endith my rant.

NIght dive last night

Night dive! I won't bore you with the two seahorses or the two starfish or the school of mackeral scad or the whole bunch of decorator crabs or the octopus or the beautiful lionfish we saw. I'm just going to jump right to the baby reef squid. I love the reef squid! This is the first time I've seen them at night, fluttering in our lights, changing colors. They were a little freaked out by the lights I think so we didn't focus on them too long.

(I hate that lionfish are here. They are a terribly destructive invasive species. But they are beautiful.)

Sorry - no photos from this dive. We're working on a light setup for night dives.

Spring

 We've known for several years there was a cave and fresh-water spring at the base of the cliff near the beach called Dunas. Dunas is past Villa Pesquera about 6 miles east of Ola Lola's. Hole 13 of the Royal Isabela Golf Club is on top of the cliff, right straight up the cliff face.As I said, we've know about it for a long time but never found it until yesterday. The spring came up again in a conversation with our friends Stanley, David and Tito Monday night and we decided to hike back and look for it again. This time we found it.

It's a beautiful setting with lush greenery hanging over the cave and ferns growing on the racks around the pond. No one is really sure but rumors are the pond is 60 feet or more deep. There has been talk about scuba diving into it, just to see were it goes but so far there are no solid plans for that.

It's a bit of a hike along the beach to get back to the spring from the end of the Paseo Lineal (the biking/walking trail from Jobos to Villa Pesquera) by the Isabela del Mar condos. Deep soft sand makes getting back there by vehicle impractical. Walking is about the only way to see it. It was well worth the hike. I'm really glad we found it.

1000 Peanut Butter Burgers!!!

 Elaine, wielding the Ola Lola Sword of Super Powers, congratulates Tim Flatt for ordering and eating our

1,000th Peanut Butter Burger!

A handmade, specially seasoned 100% beef patty grilled to order. Sweet pickle relish. Creamy smooth peanut butter melted on top. Served on lightly toasted bakery-fresh bread. All brought together with love.

If Ola Lola's has a signature, the Peanut Butter Burger is it. We have people from all over the country - indeed, the world - come and say something like, "What's a peanut butter burger? I heard about it and I hear it's really good."

It IS really good - amazingly surprisingly wonderfully good. As of last night we've sold more than 1,000 Peanut Butter Burgers since we put them on the menu. Tim Flatt ordered Peanut Butter Burger number 1,000. (Yes, we really do keep track.) Tm got a big celebration at Ola Lola's and a gift pack that includes a Stand Up Paddleboard adventure from our friends at Verde Azul.

We're sending out a huge THANK YOUs not only to Tim but to the other 999 adventurous souls who the strange-sounding but unbelievably good Ola Lola's Peanut Butter Burger.

If you haven't tried one, you should. And even though we sold number 1,000 Ola Lola's Peanut Butter Burger month continues all through July. Everyone who orders a Peanut Butter Burger this month gets a little gift. C'mon down and get yours!

It's a holiday - who knew?

I've been trying for nearly three weeks to get some documents to the Environmental health people so we can finally get our health department permit. Ours expired in October. We've been inspected and passed; now it's just paperwork. I've been there several times and they were closed - too early and the office wasn't open yet, closed for lunch, too late in the day, whatever.

Today on what appeared to be a normal sunny beautiful Monday I cruised to the hospital where the health department office is located. I felt like I'd driven into the Twilight Zone. There was not one single car in the parking lot! Rod Serling's voice in my head, "This is strange." I parked in my personal choice parking space and walked up to the hospital door. Locked. A hospital door locked? Yep. Granted it's a small hospital. But locked doors?

I called Elaine and said, "I'm in the Twilight Zone here. Is this a holiday I didn't know about?"

"I don't know. Let me check."

Sure enough today is Luis Muñoz Rivera's birthday. Luis Muñoz Rivera was born on July 17, 1859. He was a poet, journalist and politician and a major figure in the struggle for political autonomy of Puerto Rico from both Spain and then the US. His birthday is a government holiday celebrated the third Monday of July.

Postcard from 30 feet down

A school of mackerel scad under the piers at Crashboat Beach yesterday.

I've been diving every day. Except today. This one of those "yes-we-live-here-and-we're-not-on-vacation- so-now-I- have-to-catch-up-on-all-the-things-I-haven't-done" days. I could have gone diving  but I gotta go to the bank.

More "postcards" to come.

Return of Ola Lola's

Tonight marks the return of the "regular" Ola Lola's menu. Peanut Butter Burgers are back. Trinidad Burgers are back. Borinquen BBQ Pork is back.Coco-lime Chicken is back!

Our deepest heartfelt thanks goes out to all our Guest Chefs in the month of June - Chris, Tami, Mimi, Julie and Danny. You all more than exceeded our hopes! Our guests were blown away by the wonderful food and wonderful choices you offered. Thank you all so much! We will do some variation of Guest Chef Night/Week/Month again.

Sometime this month we will reach our 1,000th Peanut Butter Burger. We have a package of prizes for the lucky diner who gets number 1,000, including a Stand-Up Paddleboard tour courtesy of Verde Azul. Check back for updates.

Fourth of July

Back again. The 18th day of my 61st year. More on where we've been later. For now, this is a KAP (Kite Aerial Photography) of Playa Jobos - one of the most popular beaches on our end of the island - at about 1:30 today, the Fourth of July.

Jobos gets so crowded and the road is so narrow on holidays they close the road and route traffic up the hill and around the beach. When I was going to the beach, a police officer parked his motorcycle across the eastbound lane. However, this intersection is a "Y," not a "T." So everybody - including me - turned right on one leg of the "Y" and then turned left on the other leg, went around the cop and continued on. The cop in the mean time was standing at the bar across the street drinking bottled water.

There are more photos from this session on our Flickr page.

Today - or more properly tonight - is Noche de San Juan, the Night of Saint John the Baptist. Originally a religious "holiday" now it is one of the premier party-at-the-beach days/nights.

The premise is that at midnight you throw yourself backwards into the ocean three times - or is it seven times? Or 12? Depends on who you talk to and how drunk you/they are. The dunking in the ocean is a symbolic re-baptism, ironic since baptism itself a symbolic act. Anyway, this dunking is supposed to somehow honor St. John the Baptist and bring good luck for the coming year. 

But since the dunking doesn't take place until midnight, there are all those hours to fill. What to do, what to do? Partying on the beach waiting for the clock to strike 12 seems like a great idea. And after the dunking? Might as well keep partying!

So thousands of people will spend this evening - and much of the day leading to evening - partying hardy on the beach. Many of them will pitch tents and camp (illegally but unmolested) for the night.

All that is fine and wouldn't bother me at all if the thousands of people took all their trash home with them. Unfortunately, in past years many of them have chosen to leave piles of trash on the beach. And many many people spend days following this holiday picking up garbage on most of Puerto Rico's beautiful beaches. Hopefully this year, people will choose to enjoy themselves, but show their gratitude to Mother Nature and this planet as well by taking their trash with them and disposing of it properly when they leave.

Today is the seventh day of my 61st year. Elaine got to ride both her horses today. I mostly worked to on the on-going house projects and to get ready to open Ola Lola's.

Not day 4

This is not Day 4 of my 61st year. This photo was taken on my birthday but the work goes back to the week before. "They" (whoever "they" are) took the old dome off one of  the radar towers at the end of the airport. For a while the radar antenna was exposed. Then "they" put a new dome on. during the construction process it looked like a cracked egg. It was like watching a film of the radar antenna hatching in reverse. I usually carry a camera with me but for some reason this week I didn't so I don't have pictures until near the end of the reconstruction.

Day 4 of my 61st year was mostly uneventful. On Day 5 of my 61st year, I spent the day building new saddle racks in Elaine's new tack room and cleaning up.

Day 3

The kind of morning I call "platinum grey." It was a mixed bag on our walk on the beach this morning. The dogs were good and had a great run. I enjoy my morning walk until I slipped on something on a rock at the ocean's edge. I went down hard and landed on the camera that took this picture. RIP little Canon. Now looking for a replacement.

On a better note, even though business was slow tonight, Guest Chef Chris Fulcher rocked it with Japanese noodles and seafood. Simply fabulous. Sorry if you missed it. You should be sorry you missed it too. Tonight was Chris's last night as Guest Chef. Next Monday night Danny Rivera, formerly of Nomadas, brings "Mexican Monday" to Ola Lola's.

p.s. NOTE!!!! By popular demand, Chris WILL BE BACK at Ola Lola's on Sunday, July 1st! This is your chance friends. This is your chance! Don't miss it!

Day 2

Day 2 of my 62nd year. All that was left of my birthday cake which I ate for breakfast.

My cake was an apple charlotka (a Russian recipe) made for me by Tami, our guest chef last night. It was FABULOUS! Thank you, Tami and Elaine!

Happy birthday - to ME!

Yep, today I started my 62nd year. And we started it in style!

We used to have a tradition in our family that on your birthday you gave a gift to someone else. The practiced reinforced the "better to give than to receive" idea with the kids.

This year I gave Elaine an adventure gift for my birthday. With the help of Scott from VerdeAzul we went stand-up paddle-boarding (SUP) on the Guajataca River. It was amazingwonderfulawesomecrazyfunbeautiful. And I guess we're hooked. Elaine is already talking to Scott about buying a couple of SUPs. I truly did not see this coming. So our little birthday adventure is turning into and yet another expensive (at least initially) outdoor activity. But then this is why we moved here, right? We loved it.

It's really good exercise as well. It looks like it's mostly arms but it's great for the core and legs. If we get out at all regularly, it should help us both in our other activities - horseback-riding for Elaine and diving for me.

I didn't take any pictures this time but Scott did. As soon as I get them from him, I'll post them.

Sad day in Wisconsin

I can't believe Scott Walker is still governor in Wisconsin.

If things had worked out differently - i.e., if I had been offered a job in Madison or Milwaukee - we might not be here in Puerto Rico right now.

Now more than ever and for more reasons than ever, I'm glad we're here. Things are screwed up here but not that screwed up!

WWKW

I think this happened last year too: World Wide KAP Week has come and gone and I did not take a single KAP photo. I was sick part of the week (lame excuse!).

The biggest problem was no wind. We live in a place where the wind blows 25-30 knots a good part of the time. For the last two weeks - nada. It has been hot (unseasonably, August/September kind of hot), muggy and very very still.

So my list of KAP projects remains, becalmed by the early summer doldrums.

Swimmin' critters

We took Chocolate, Amber and Jazz swimming at Shacks yesterday. We - and they - love it!

June is Guest Chef Month at Ola Lola's

What do you do when the chef wants a month off? Invite half-a-dozen fabulous local chefs to step in!

That's exactly what we've done. We're closing the Ola Lola kitchen for the month of June. We have six  amazing chefs coming in, each one bringing something completely different to our tables. Of course the bar will be open serving our usual fabulous selection of local and craft beers and tasty refreshing drinks.

Here's the Guest Chef line up:

 

FRIDAYS (June 1st, 8th, 15th, 22nd, & 29th) – Julie, chef/owner of Café Aroma

Sandwiches, quiches, salads & more!

SATURDAYS (June 2nd, 9th, 16th, 23rd, & 30th) – Tami, from La Tierra Promentida and deli & bakery manager, Econo Gate 5

Artesan grilled pizzas

SUNDAYS (June 3rd, 10th & 24th) – Chef Mimi Rodriguez

Fresh fish and chicken tacos

SUNDAY, June 17th – Father’s Day PIG ROAST!

MONDAYS (June 4th, 11th & 18th) – Chris, chef/former owner of 18-67 Restaurant

Roasted and smoked pork and chicken, plus other delights!

MONDAY, June 25th – Danny, chef/former owner of Nomadas 

“Mexican Monday” - delicious Mexican food!

We've got great chefs, delicious food and lots of fun! Don’t miss it!

No KAP yet

So far my contribution to World Wide KAP Week is exactly zero.I've been fighting the flu or something all week and just didn't feel up to going out. I missed a crowed holiday weekend on the beaches. Oh, well! There are still a few days left in WWKW. You can see what other KAPpers around the world are doing on Fickr in the KAP group and the WWKW group.

I did go diving at Shacks yesterday and saw (among other things) this gorgeous French angelfish.

Albert Nobbs

I don't "review" the few movies we watch very often but this one I have to talk about

We watched a movie last night called Albert Nobbs starring Glenn Close, who also co-produced and co-wrote the screenplay.

Neither of us heard of this movie until saw it on the video store shelves. Real video stores are like real libraries - you know, the ones with real books? You browse the shelves and something catches your eye and you say, "hmm, haven't heard of this one. Think I'll give it a try." That's what happened with Albert Nobbs.

Oh, my - what a movie! It is probably the best thing we've ever seen Glenn Close do. It is some of the most subtle acting I've ever seen. Her face - and the way she uses it - is nothing short of amazing. Close has been nominated for the Best Actress Oscar. I can't imagine her not winning! Hollywood politics be damned!

World Wide KAP Week

Playa Jobos on the 4th of July

World Wide KAP Week (WWKW) starts Saturday. So what's this all about anyway?

First, if you've followed us at all, you know I'm into KAP - Kite Aerial Photography. Basically, KAP is taking photographs with a camera suspended from a kiteline. KAP rigs can be as simple as a single-use film camera with a rubberband timer to release the shutter or as complex as gyro-controlled platforms with video downlinks so the KAPper can see what the camera in the sky sees.

My rig is somewhere in between. It is radio-controlled with system modified from an RC airplane controller. I can rotate the camera 360 degrees horizontally, 90 degrees vertically from straight out to straight down, and push the shutter. I could modify it further to allow me to zoom as well but I haven't done this as yet. I don't have any kind of video downlink so no, I can't see what I'm shooting. Most of the time I like the "Forest Gump's mother's box of chocolates approach" - I don't know what I've got 'til I get home and download the pictures. Except when I'm actually shooting a project for an actual paying client, I like the surprises, good and bad. I almost always learn something from a KAP session.

 WWKW is a week when KAPpers all over the world make a special effort to get out and KAP and then post their efforts in a special Flickr group. No prizes, not a competition, it's just a time to focus (pun intended) on KAP.

I have a list of places that I want to KAP this week, places I've been but not KAPped before. I hope to stretch my limits this week. I'll be posting the best of the efforts here and on Flickr so check back often.

More goodbyes

Last night was the last night for this gang to be together. Pichi (left), who has been Elaine's help in the kitchen for almost a year-and-a-half, is leaving us for a new life and love in Florida. Chelsea (second from left) has been behind the Ola Lola bar for a little over six months. She is leaving the island for the summer to work on the East Coast. She'll be back in the fall. Albert (far right), aka Cousin Raul, is heading off and back to Jersey for a well-deserved vacation. Dottie (in green) fortunately is staying here.

We wish Pichi all the best in her new life and want to send her off in Ola Lola's best Puerto Rican style. So, on June 17th we're having a Pichi-going-away-Fathers' Day-John's birthday lechon asada (pig roast) with all the fixin's. Everyone is invited! If you're in the neighborhood, come by and help us say adios to Pichi.

Sorry, Chelsea - you're coming back so we're not doing a going-away party for you. But there just might be a welcome back party in your future!

Kite festivals

The kite festival season is in full swing in the Midwest. This weekend is one of the biggest and best - the Great Lakes Kite Festival in Grand Haven, Michigan. Next weekend is another of the biggest and best festivals - Family Kite Fest in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

We used to perform at these and many other festivals in the Midwest. Many of our best friends are from the kite community. When people ask us what we miss about our former home, our kite friends and the kite festivals are always near the top of our small list.

We tried several years ago to start a kite festival on the beach here in Isabela. We thought then - and still do - a festival like the ones we know in the States could be a great thing here. There is simply nothing like it here. We had performers from the States ready to come. We had some funding lined up and people helping us get more. The stumbling block was the Departamento de Recursos Naturales y Ambiente - the Puerto Rican Department of Natural Resources. We needed a permit from them and got absolutely nowhere. It was one of the few times in Puerto Rico we felt truly discriminated against because we're gringos and not fluent in Spanish.

After months of working on it we finally said "enough!" We thought, "Is this how we want to spend our time and energy?" Between us, Elaine and I have produced more than a hundred successful kite festivals. That's not counting the ones we performed or competed at. (At one time we were ranked sixth in the country.) We don't have to prove anything. Move on to other things.

This video is one we produced then to show potential sponsors the kind of festival we we're planning.

Our new beach dog

Almost every day, when I take Amber and Jazz to the beach to run, Oz comes along part way then turns aside. He has his own little tour of the neighborhood. And the couple of times he's been to the beach, he hasn't really liked it all that much. So he trots off an does his own thing.

The last few days, he's decided he too is a beach dog. He's come along with the other two and just had a merry ol' time on the beach.

Yesterday, we went a little farther than he's used to going. I don't know if he got confused or just tired or what but he ran up over the dune at the end of Yippee Calle  (aka Deadend Road) and didn't come back. I went back to look for him but didn't find him. Amber and Jazz and I came home, hoping (at least I was) that Oz was already back home.

He wasn't. He'd gone missing.

Elaine went out driving around looking for him. I went back walking the beach looking for him. Elaine came back and saddled up Chocolate to go look for him. Neighbors and friends on Yippee Calle were looking for him.

Near the end of a three-hour ride, Elaine and Chocolate found him in the pasture near the end of Yippee Calle and brought him home. He drank about ten gallons of water and then lay down on the deck. Amber knew something was wrong: he went over and  laid down right next to Oz.

We already had an appointment to have Oz groomed today. What great timing! He was a mess after his adventure. This is what he looked like when we picked him up this afternoon:

No so oso! ("Not so much a bear!" in really bastardized Spanglish.)

But we're really glad to have him back. He gave us quite a fright. He's welcome to go back to the beach with us but for a while he goes on a leash. For my peace of mind if not for his. 

This morning at Middles

 

Guess I was a little premature with my "dive season" post. We've an on-going swell here on the North Shore that the surfers are having fun with. It's not big but it's clean and fun. Surf reports show it peaking tomorrow but continuing waist-high into the beginning of next week. I hope I'll be able to get out and get some pictures - since it doesn't look like we'll be diving this weekend.

More pictures from yesterday and today will be posted on our website, www.PuertoRicoSurfPhoto.com later today.

Joy and sadness

We planned to post a big HAPPY BIRTHDAY to our good friend and caballero Tito today. But the joy of celebrating his birthday is tempered by the loss of his mother who passed away yesterday.

Our thoughts go out to Tito and his family as they grieve and adjust and deal with their loss. And we hope Tito found something, some little thing, to celebrate, something that brought him a flash of joy on his birthday.

The hardest thing about Paradise

I think I've written about this before but because of events this week it bears repeating.

In this wonderful place so many wonderful people come into our lives - and then leave. So many people here are just "passing through," maybe for a couple of years, maybe for 15 or 20. But saying goodbye to those wonderful good friends is the hardest part of living this paradise. It's not the idiot government or rules or restrictions. Those are just distractions. The hardest part is saying goodbye to good friends.

This week we said "via con dios" to two close friends. Robin, former manager of Villa Montaña, left la isla for his native South Africa. And our good friend Patty's job has taken her to Dayton, Ohio. I know Dayton well (I grew up in Cincinnati and went to college about 35 miles from Dayton). I'm not sure how this SoCal girl by way of a tropical island is going to do in flat, dry, cold boring Dayton.

Regardless, we wish them both the very best of luck. Robin, Patty, know that you go with our love and whatever blessings we can bestow.

Yesterday at Natural

Dive season is here (I hope). This was a cool (in more ways than one) picture from a dive yesterday at Natural. It was a beautiful dive: with a school of Atlantic spadefish, turtles, and a few thousand other fish.

Elaine's IV plumbing

These are the bags o' stuff and all the lines Elaine was hooked up to. She's feeling much better and hopefully will be out of the hospital soon - like today!

Sorry

I promised a good good friend that I would post more often. But this has been a very very strange stressful week.

Elaine has been in the hospital since Saturday morning with a as-yet-undiagnosed intestinal infection. She was in acute distress with severe cramping and diarrhea that turned bloody. I took her to the ER on Saturday and they admitted her on Sunday. 

They have tested just about everything but it takes time for the results of the cultures to come back. She's feeling much better today and starting to get feisty. She's had about enough of IVs (she feels like a pin cushion she's been stuck so many times) and being cooped up inside. She may bust out today even if it's AMA (against medical advice). 

We'll see. David, I'll try to post updates more often.