A Balance of Relaxation and Good Energy!

 As always there is a period of transition required.  We ventured out to the North Shore to find a respite from the general craziness of life and schedules.  The challenge is to find an effective way to apply the brakes!  It is never as easy as just flipping the switch.  We arrived with excitement and the urge to move around, explore and enjoy the wonderful shift in climate and scenery.  Our approach was to bounce back and forth a bit........in the first instance revisiting the highlights of Turtle Bay and the hotel, and in the second making sure we took every opportunity to just lie on a chaise and take a break.  So far it is working out well!

We made it through our 'time shift' jet lag adjustment without much disruption and got up around 7:00.  We then headed down to the pool for an early morning swim and 'hang out' in the pool chaises.  The plan worked and the pool was empty.  We were the only ones.  We took this  approach because it was clear from yesterday that the pool just got busier as the day went on.  This is school vacation and the hotel is totally packed. 

We headed up to the room around 9:00 and made it to breakfast by 10:00......again missing the crowds.  After eating way too much, we took an hour's walk around the perimeter of the Turtle Bay point.  The weather, the sun, the surf, the blue sky......and on and on......were just what the doctor recommended!  Just wonderfully stimulating and beautiful.

Lunch plans were reduced to splitting a sandwich from the lobby store due to our massive breakfast intake!  We ate in the room on our balcony and after a little catch-up on our emails we settled in for a two hour nap, each of us shifting between the cushions on the balcony and the bed.  It was a great way to catch-up on the time change.

Later in the afternoon we went back down to the pool to relax.  It was not as crowded a yesterday and the sun felt good. Back to the room for the sunset view and showers (and a tub!) and then off to cocktail hour in the lobby.  We had such a good time there talking that we almost missed dinner at the Sunset Grille......which stops serving at 8:30.  We really are slowing down nicely!

We did not have the energy to outline everything from yesterday afternoon and evening, but it was wonderful as well.  We misbehaved a bit at the bar (not really) and after a bottle of wine at dinner, I can say we had really found relaxation!

Time to Travel!

 Nothing like getting up early to head to the airport.  Actually it was not that bad.  Our flight was at 8:00 AM and our Uber pick-up was at 6:00.  We got up at 5:00 and had a pretty easy time of it getting to the airport.  Once there, check-in was fine.  The small hiccup was that the inbound flight was a bit late, so we had about a 20 minute delay in boarding.  

Now it's time for a break.  We had a good breakfast and are about to put our seats back and see if we can get some sleep!

and off we go!

and who can resist a Mai Tai at 8:30 AM?

The flight was smooth and about 11 hours total.  We got a 30 minute delay in taking off as the incoming flight was late.  We won't elaborate here, but the strangest part of the experience was a sad, but totally whacky lady that was sitting across from us in row 1.  It ended up that she had dementia........and was a total mess.  She was obviously uncomfortable with the travel and groaned, moaned and cried continuously during the flight.  She was traveling with her husband, who could not walk and seemed partially paralyzed, as well as a nurse.  The stress level was extraordinary.  She also was continuously trying to get out of her seat, being restrained by her nurse.  At one point her screaming got so bad that the nurse forced some type of liquid medication down her throat........and she slept for the last two hours of the flight.......only to awake as we were 5 minutes for landing and was screaming that she needed to go to the bathroom.  The flight attendants held her down as long as possible and then had to get themselves seated.  While she tried to get out of her seat during landing, she could not seem to undue her seatbelt.  Quite the experience

RITZ-CARLTON  AT TURTLE BAY - VIEW FROM OUR ROOM

THE ADULT HOT TUB IS THE "PLACE TO BE!"

THIS LOBBY BAR IS AMAZING!

The Day Before.......a bit hectic as usual!

 We made it through the weekend!  Fiske III went with friends to the Cabin for skiing at Sunapee and we were babysitting Molly for 4 days.  She was great, but always wanting to chase the squirrels at the bird feeders so we needed to be careful when we let her out.  Then we had a visit from a skunk, who brazenly walked back and forth on the back patio 'paths' for a couple of nights!  He then retreated to under the shed out back and my studio bore the brunt of the smell!  We needed to be really careful with Molly.

Saturday night we had our couples book group "ZOOM" call.  Our book choice, This Strange Eventful History, was less than a resounding favorite!  But it was nice to see everyone! Also, as this is school vacation week, everyone was on the move.  Aside from Fiske's trip to NH, Alex, Caroline and the kids (along with their cousin's families) all headed up for a ski trip to Mount Orford in Southern Quebec........and Chris, Courtney and the kids headed in for a few days at the Langham Hotel in Boston.  Everyone seems to be having a great time. 

That being said, Mount Orford got 24" of snow over the weekend and paired that with (this morning (-1 temp and -17 wind chill!).  Apparently it has been quite an adventure!  The other Crowell's seem to be enjoying the pool and spa at the Langham!

I headed in to the office (President's Day!) for a half day, and had breakfast with Rayford Law, one of my old KMW partners.......great to see him. 

Couldn't resist grabbing a shot of our 'horse installation' down the street!

and

We also seem to have developed a new 'pond' in our yard with this crazy weather!

And a serious afternoon and evening of packing.  It always takes longer than you expect!

The Beginning of Snow, Ice and Rain!

 The weather started to disintegrate as the week continued. Thursday, through the upcoming weekend, offered a nasty mix of snow turning to rain.......and freezing!  Not much to report here other than it was a nasty taste of winter!