El Paso and Charleston, SC - part 7

January 14, 2019 - January 20, 2019

I spent the week with my niece, Amy, and her family helping out in any way I could.  She is still in a wheel chair and unable to walk, but she is remarkably adept at moving from the wheel chair to a chair, the car, her bed, etc. by herself.  She is expected to have a full recovery, but the healing process is slow with such serious injuries.  I enjoyed playing with the boys, Alfredo and Maxi.  I read bedtime stories, helped with their bath, took them to the park, fixed their breakfast, and generally supervised their activity while they were at home.  The baby, Ofelia, was a delight to help out with.  Amy could perform all the necessary care except moving her from her lap to a stable place while she moved herself from the chair to the wheel chair.  I felt like I was basically a nanny; such fun! It was great to see my sisters Laurie and Becky as our care schedules overlapped a bit.  I’m so glad I was able to go to El Paso to help out.  The trip helped me see that the family was recovering well from the horrible accident they were involved in.

 As you can see, Amy is looking great!

January 21, 2019 - January 27, 2019

After returning to Charleston I became sick.  It started with an extremely sore throat.  I doctored myself with hot tea, hot cider, and warm salt water gargles, but nothing improved.  On Friday, after a great lunch at Mellow Mushroom, we walked to an urgent care facility on King street where I was diagnosed with an inner ear infection.  I was thankful that I went to the Dr.s as quickly as I did as the infection could have only gotten worse over the weekend. My condition improved after a couple of days on antibiotics and steroids (for the inflammation), but I continue to be tired.

Because of my illness we didn’t do very much this week, but I did start photographing some of the particularly notable houses in Charleston.  The architecture of the city is amazing and varied.  The styles include Colonial, Georgian, Regency, Federal, Adamesque. Classical Revival, Greek Revival, Italianate, Gothic Revival, and Queen Anne.  I will make an effort to identify these styles in the photographs I post of the lovely homes and buildings.

This street scene shows the variety of the architecture downtown.

The Custom House is Greek Revival style.

This house combines styles of Greek Revival with
Victorian iron work.

Here is an example of Federal Style.

This Antebellum style house has a side portico.

Here's another type of an Antebellum house.

Hopefully this gives you an idea of the beauty of the Charleston homes and public buildings.  I'm not completely sure that I identified the architectural styles correctly so if you can correct me just leave me a message.

Thanks for reading my blog.

Charleston, SC - part 6

January 8, 2019 - January 14, 2019

The weather has been sunny and warm (70’s) with a cool breeze.  Bob and I have been  riding our bikes to run errands and visit our favorite restaurants for lunch.  No rain is expected until Saturday, but it will cool down towards the end of the week. Regular chores are much more pleasant when the sun is shining brightly.

My big problem this week is trying to brush and groom the cats.  They both have hair mats under their forward legs (what I would call their armpits).  Jack is easy to catch, but quickly becomes intolerant of grooming even if I am being as gentle as possible, and he wiggles away.  Lola is almost impossible to catch when she sees the brush.  Bob researched this issue and came up with the idea of gently brushing her repeatedly and giving her treats if she tolerates the brushing, but this has not been very successful.  I have to admit that I become impatient with this technique quickly.  I have never been able to brush her for even a minute before she bolts.  I’ll keep trying and hopefully find some success.

At Christmas Bob and I decided to spruce up the main salon with some new pillows.  Some of our old pillows were showing wear and were a bit boring.  We found the ones we liked on various internet sites and ordered them.  The pillow covers and pillow inserts all arrived at different times.  The final two got here on 1/9 traveling all the way from Estonia.

The blue fluffy pillow in the back is the new one.
 We got the fish pillow in the Bahamas and
 I made the gold one to match our curtains.

My favorite is the water color style flower pillow.

The red pillow was ordered through Etsy and came to us from Latvia.

Since we are spending the winter in Charleston
we thought the map pillow would be a nice reminder of the area.

We are finding that condensation is becoming a major problem on the boat because of the temperature deferential between inside and outside.  The dampness caused by condensation can lead to mold.  We have made several changes to lessen this problem (going to a warmer spot in the winter will eliminate the problem next year). We purchased a small dehumidifier which collects an amazing amount of water each day.  I regularly clean out our storage cupboards with white vinegar to kill mold and prevent its regrowth, and  I leave the cupboard  doors open to allow more air circulation.  One spot that we were not sure what to do to eliminate the moisture was under our mattress.  We bought a product specifically designed to be used under mattresses in small spaces and installed it on Thursday.  Let’s hope it works! 

Here is the product we installed under our mattress.
 The top is cloth and the bottom is a series of stiff plastic
 strings curled around each other randomly.

Even though I cleaned the mattress and the platform
with white vinegar the mold stains remain.

I’ll be leaving for El Paso, TX on Monday to spend some time with my niece, Amy, and her family.  Amy was involved in a car accident in which she broke both legs and her arm and our family is rallying around her to help her and her family, which includes three small children, while she is recovering. It will be good to see her, but I wish it was under better circumstances.

Thanks for reading my blog.

Charleston, SC - part 5

January 1, 2019 - January 7, 2019

The weather in Charleston in December wasn’t great.  It was rainy, humid, and chilly most days.  We had five days of sunny dry weather during Christmas week which we took advantage of and biked everyday.  Most days in December the bikes were stored under the fore peak tent.

I repurposed the fore peak tent to protect the bikes from the elements.

Because of the poor weather, Bob and I have been discussing some projects that we can complete while we are here on rainy days. One interior sewing project that I could complete using my standard sewing machine is a curtain to cover the side of the quarter berth.  Like many spare bedrooms our quarter berth has become a storage area which is less than attractive.  My plan is to create a curtain with textilene (for air circulation) at the top (about one third) and curtain fabric at the bottom. I’m hoping to match the curtain fabric we used in the main salon. We’ve already located the hardware we will need to install the curtain at Sailrite. 

 Does your spare bedroom look like this?

We, also, have an issue with the cats climbing onto our clothing shelves and snagging the fabric with their claws. The covers of the shelves need to allow easy access to the clothing and also air flow.  Bob and I have not quite figured out how to accomplish this project, but we will probably work it out on a rainy day this winter.

Lola, naughty cat number one

Jack, Lola's partner in crime

Before leaving Baltimore I cut out several pieces of fabric and have been completing those tops and dresses when I get the urge to sew here in Charleston.  There isn’t a lounge here like in Baltimore so when it comes time to cut out some more fabric I’m going to have to be creative in finding a way to accomplish that.

Loose fitting tops like this one with 3/4 sleeves
 are the most comfortable for this climate.

Of the  seven church spires in the Charleston’s skyline, I have now photographed four. 

Matthew Lutheran Church on King Street is a
Gothic Revival church designed by
a local architect, John Henry Deveraux,
and constructed between 1867 and 1872.

Grace Episcopal Church on Wentworth Street
has Charleston’s most ornate spire.

I have restarted my physical therapy treatment to help me overcome the back and neck pain caused by the injury I sustained when rear ended in September.  Getting 100% healthy is a major project for me now as it entails twice a week sessions and doing the prescribed exercises twice a day or as needed for pain.  I’m making progress toward my goal.

I’ll keep you posted on all of these projects.

Thanks for reading my blog.