Last Wednesday, very early morning, Pattie and I departed RDU for a thrice-postponed trip to Bonaire. So we’re on an island in the Netherlands Caribbean, just north of Venezuela, near sister islands of Aruba and Curacao. We have been to Aruba before, and at that time we were neither scuba diving, nor aware of the wonders of Bonaire’s rich reef ecology.

Bonaire is reknowned as a diver’s paradise, and that’s why we’ve come here. We’re staying at a “dive resort,” which means that they seriously cater to divers’ needs, supply unlimited tanks of commonly used gas mixtures (air and enhanced oxygen “nitrox”), and provide a truck and hearty breakfast.

There are lots of options for boat dives, but this island is really known for the many (about sixty) shore dives...

Jackson’s now two (plus a week), and his little brother’s just two months away from arrival. Some pictures of the little guy on the days around/on his birthday:

“Live Every Voice,” commonly known as the Black National Anthem.
James Weldon Johnson (words), J. Rosamund Johnson (music)

Lift every voice and sing   
Till earth and heaven ring,
Ring with the harmonies of Liberty;
Let our rejoicing rise
High as the listening skies,
Let it resound loud as the rolling sea.
Sing a song full of the faith that the dark past has taught us,
Sing a song full of the hope that the present has brought us.   
Facing the rising sun of our new day begun,
Let us march on till victory is won.

Stony the road we trod,
Bitter the chastening rod,
Felt in the days when hope unborn had died;   
Yet with a steady beat,
Have not our weary feet
Come to the place for which our fathers sighed?
We have come over a way that with tears has been watered,
We have come, treading our path through ...

No better reading today than this entry in the series by

Read this:

The construction behind us continues to move along at an impressive pace:

Hurricane Elsa seems to have taken it easy on folks in Florida, and hopefully the same in NC. Beach forecasts are for lots of rain; here in Raleigh we expect more than 3″, which is a ton, of course.

Have been reading a Master’s Thesis in prep for a defense tomorrow (zoom). It’s centered on Kendrick Lamar’s Damn, and focusing more on the musical elements, rather than the text/lyrics. This is a good document, albeit in need of some editing, and I’ve quite enjoyed this particular student’s approach which, to be honest, is one of the best thesis documents I’ve read at ECU. This student, Shawn, seems to “get” the idea of such a study; research, absorb, synthesize, and suggest conclusions. And, as a good paper should, his conclusions are both logical and interesting! Lots of years of r...

Hurricane season is upon us, and Elsa is headed our way after ravaging the Caribbean and the west coast of Florida. So I drove down/back to Surf City yesterday to bring the furniture in from the deck, away from any potential wind damage. It’s about 30 minutes further from here than it was from Greenville, but the round trip was uneventful.

Back here in Raleigh, continually amazed at the progress being made on the buildings in this development. The pix below represent four days’ work:

Now about 80% settled into this new place, which feels good. But certainly getting that final 20% settled involves lots of work yet. Most rooms are livable, if not completely as we want them. There’s at least one thing to do in every space though–finishing the spackle/paint around the medicine cabinet in the master bath; unpacking a few boxes in the master bed; dealing with furniture arrangement in living room, etc. The laundry space, the hall bath, the guest bedroom and bath, and just about everything related to Pattie’s mom’s space are set, though. Six ceiling fans installed, lots of handyman work, which I enjoy.

Pattie’s sewing room still isn’t finished–painting, some shelving–and it was part of what we’ve already paid for, to have been done before our move in on June 9...

The pace of the building of this development is really something to observe. I feel like a kid watching the crews work each day, and noting the progress. The builders are aiming to begin/complete a building (4-6 townhomes in each building) every 4 weeks. And they may just meet that aim.