DeMellier Family

Computers

2011-12-07T12:49:00.000-06:00

March 1968, Jersey City, New Jersey.

Public Service Electric and Gas, Hudson Generating Station Unit 1 control computer.

Posing in front of this massive computer is a 20 year old engineering student from Bergenfield NJ. He is nearing the end of his second co-op assignment. As a sophomore at Drexel Institute of Technology (later to become Drexel University) he is very interested in computers and only mildly interested in the electric generating station where he works.

The computer was custom built (I think by RCA) for this application. The design predates integrated circuits which is why this thing is so large. My guess is that it has less memory and is significantly slower than my smartphone today.

It received all sorts of data from the plant indicating the position of many valves, the temperatures of boiler feedwater at various stages of the cycle, and the status of the turbine and generator (i.e. temperatures, speed, control valve position, lube oil pressure, etc.). When given control of the unit (which seldom happened while I was there) the computer could control valves and other peripherals to maintain the unit at peak efficiency. All output from the computer was logged through an IBM selectric typewriter which was the only human readable interface. In addition to the computer control there was a complete analog control system operated by plant staff.

Sailing Adventure

2011-11-11T16:00:00.001-06:00

Tuesday morning Sonia left for work at her usual time but didn't come home. That was expected. She flew to Columbia South Carolina to attend a class presented by a power cable manufacturer. She is due back this evening (Friday 11/11). I decided that yesterday (Thursday) would be my day to take Teazer to the lake and do a little sailing.

The weather forecast was for temperatures nearing 60 with winds 10 - 15 mph. I wandered down into the garage around 8:30 and got everything ready to leave about about 9:00. Off I went on the nearly hour long drive to lake Logan Martin to Sonia's Aunt Polly's home.

View Larger Map

I got Teazer launched and tied off at the somewhat dilapidated dock that serves the launch ramp. Once I untied the painter from the dock the wind was blowing out of the north was trying to drive my little boat against the rip-rap lining the shore line. I rowed out some 50 yards or so and got the dagger board and rudder in place. I raised the sail and off we went. It was an exhilarating ride. I steered NNE with the wind off my port bow and Teazer took the wind and ran. I had started with the short tiller I made this summer and found that in that wind I needed the leverage and length of the old tiller.

I came to into the wind and changed out the tillers. Now we took off in a northwesterly direction with the wind and spray coming across the starboard bows. I was sitting on the bottom of the boat as far to starboard as I could go. I had my GPS unit out just to track my speed. I must admit it took a good bit of coordination to handle the sheet (the line that controls the angle of the boom) and the tiller. The wind was a little gusty causing Teazer to really lean over to port when the wind gusted. Lean over enough to make me decide that I needed to either steer a bit away from the wind or let the sheet out to luff the sail and slow down.

I could not pay close attention to the GPS but I did see 5.7 mph on a tack and 4.9 sailing downwind.

I guess I'd been sailing back and forth for nearly an hour. I was heading east just north of the marina that is in the southeast corner of the map above. The wind was strong and I could feel the pressure on the rudder through the tiller. All of a sudden I heard a sound like cracking splintering wood. The boat gibed the swinging boom knocking my hat off my head as I ducked just in time avoiding a nasty blow. I tried to correct the direction of the boat but every time I moved the tiller I heard the sound of splintering wood. I looked back and saw that the tiller was broken. One of the mahogany plywood cheeks cracked and broke. I hurriedly replaced the tiller with the short one and got the boat back under control.

I tacked back around and headed out to more open water so I could have a few minutes to calm down and get settled in. That's when I realized that the boom had taken my glasses off of my face when it took the hat. I had not even missed them for the few minutes it took me to get the tillers swapped out and the boat under control.

I decided it was enough sailing for the day and headed back toward Polly's. That leg of the trip was completely uneventful. I sailed the boat to about 20 feet from the dock, pulled the dagger board and rudder, lowered the sail and rowed the last few feet to the dock.

I loaded Teazer up on the trailer battened every thing down and headed home. Once home I realized I was whipped. It was only 1:00 pm and I felt as if I'd been at hard labor for 10 hours.

10 - 15 mph winds may just be too strong for me and my boat. But lesson learned. No one was hurt and no real damage to Teazer. Now I have a winter project to repair or replace the tiller.

It's Been Too Long

2011-10-27T11:18:00.000-05:00

It's been a long, long, long time... so a bit of catching up is in order. I see that the last post was in August shortly after Alex was commissioned and shortly after my elbow surgery. You might think nothing has happened in the intervening months but you would be wrong. Nothing as important as surgery or commissioning but still life goes on.

Three weeks following my elbow surgery (see blog post dated July 28, 2011) I started physical therapy. Twice a week for three months I went to have my right arm warmed by sonic waves and heat packs, stimulated by a Tens Unit, massaged, stretched, twisted and exercised. Gradually, by fits and starts (and just a little pain), my right arm mobility and flexibility got better. At the start of therapy I could straighten my elbow to -25 degrees or in other words I was 25 degrees short of a full 180. Tuesday, after therapy it was 8 degrees. So, will I ever be able to straighten my right arm completely? Probably not. But the goal is to have functional use of my arm, which I have. And to be pain free, I'm almost there too.

When therapy started I could not open a jar or even shake hands without sharp pain in the elbow. Even eating was painful because getting a fork to my mouth meant twisting my forearm in such a manner that the pain was too much (no, I didn't lose a lot of weight because I found I can eat left handed). Now, I seldom have pain. There are a few movements I can't do, like scratch my neck just behind my right ear with my right hand but I can reach there with the left so... It doesn't hurt to reach behind my ear I just can't get my hand there.

The x-rays above were taken Wednesday October 26 during my final visit with the surgeon. The top one was taken with my elbow bent about 90 degrees. While the titanium screws are visible I can't see where the break was so I guess it is healed. The bottom picture is two shots of the elbow with it straightened about as far as I can get it without a great deal of massaging and warming up. The two shots on the second image differ only by how I twisted my arm.

The upshot is no more therapy, I will kind of miss that, and no more visits to the surgeon unless I start having problems.

What else has happened? The first week in October I went up to Maine and spent the week with Doug at High Landing Camps in the North Maine Woods. We had a really good time. It was especially nice to be able to sit around with Doug and talk about old times, old friends, our family and to reminisce about our misspent(?) youth. We even did a little hunting for partridge. At least the locals call the bird we were hunting partridge. It is really a ruffed grouse. While we didn't bag our limit every day we did shoot some birds. (Not the obscene hand gesture kind.)

The top picture is Doug with the first bird he got and then the bottom pic is me with the only bird I got.

I guess that's all for this entry. I will try to be more diligent in adding posts.

OCS SUYA

2011-08-13T16:45:00.002-05:00

This video was made by another parent from the Navy OCS class 13-11. You should be able to spot Sonia's son Alex.

Science Friday on Tuesday

2011-08-09T08:53:00.000-05:00

A friend on Facebook shared this video and I just had to share it here too.

So even though it's not Friday we can once again be amazed by nature.

Elbow Day

2011-07-28T14:28:00.001-05:00

Just a quick update, typed with my left hand only, to tell everyone that my alarm clock went off at 3:50 this morning so we could be at the hospital by 5:00. After showering with an anti-microbial wash I dressed and we left. At 7:11 I was wheeled into surgery a mask was placed over my nose and mouth then the next thing I knew it was 10:30 and I was back in a room with people talking to me. All went very well but a little different than the plan. Instead of gluing bone pieces back on I got three titanium screws.

Back to the doctor in a week.

The before x-ray is the top left. Can you spot the piece they had to move around and screw into place?

Mother's Day

2011-05-05T21:44:00.000-05:00

Last weekend we traveled down to Florida to visit Mom and watch the launch of the space shuttle Endeavour. We flew down to Jacksonville early Wednesday afternoon, just ahead of the terrible storms that devastated so much of central Alabama. We had quite a wind storm early Wednesday morning but nothing to compare to what happened in Tuscaloosa and other areas in central Alabama.

Thursday we (Mom, Sonia and me) went to the Alligator Farm in Saint Augustine. We had a great time looking at the alligators, crocodiles, birds, turtles and more. There are lots of pictures on my web site at http://demellier.com/gallery3/index.php/Alligator-Farm.

Then Friday we headed down to Titusville to watch the shuttle launch. We got there plenty early in order to get a good seat with a view across the water to the launch pad. Of course the launch was delayed and we went back to Mom's place without seeing anything spectacular.

Recent Travels

2011-03-14T12:48:00.001-05:00

The last weekend in February Sonia and I traveled to Phoenix to visit Chris and to celebrate his birthday. We had a great time with Chris and visiting several sites in and around Phoenix. The first day we drove up to Sedona to see the red rocks. Then that evening we had dinner with Chris (Jenifer had to work).

Red rocks outside of Sedona

Sonia

More red rocks

Saturday morning Sonia, Chris and I had breakfast at Jenifer's store, La Grande Orange which was super. Sonia and I then took a tour of Taliesin West, the winter home of Frank Lloyd Wright. Taliesin West is also the home of the Frank Lloyd Wright foundation.

Taliesin West

The view from the rear of Taliesin West

Ed talking with Chris from the grounds of Taliesin West

Saturday afternoon we met back up with Chris and toured the Desert Botanical Garden just outside of Phoenix. Unlike any other botanical garden I've visited this one features almost nothing but cactus. There are other desert plants on display but a really astounding number and variety of cacti.

Sonia and Chris check out the map of the gardens

Chris and his Dad

The sign says it all.

Saturday night we had a birthday celebration dinner at a unique restaurant called Monarch Cafe. Christopher (not DeMellier) is the owner, the chef, the waiter, and the entertainment. Chris is a very friendly inventive chef who delighted us with his personality as well as the food he served. The menu is essentially whatever he felt like making that night. We chose from three entrees, braised beef short ribs with polenta, grilled salmon, or grilled shrimp with polenta.

Our table at Monarch Cafe

A view of the interior with the kitchen on the left

Jenifer had a good time.

Chef Christopher was great fun and served wonderful food.

Sunday afternoon we went to Goodyear, Arizona to attend opening day of Spring Training. We watched the Cincinnati Reds defeat the Cleveland Indians in a game that featured many players, lots of offense and a beautiful day.

A cool but sunny day for a ballgame.

Monday morning Sonia and I headed out of Phoenix traveling up the Apache trail. This route goes through some of the most rugged terrain I've ever seen. We had lunch at Tortilla Flat a very small community which boasts a population of six.

Canyon Lake one of the lakes on the Salt River

Sonia took our picture while I was taking scenic pictures

Tortilla Flat

We arrived home late Monday night after a very comfortable flight on Southwest.

Thursday evening came and we were on the road again this time to Fort Morgan, AL to spend five days with Sonia's family. Her mom and dad, Lynn and Ellis, invited us along with her sons Ryan and Alex. Lynn wanted Alex to have a relaxing vacation before he goes off to the Navy in April. He will be attending officer candidate school in Newport RI starting in early April. Ryan had never visited Lynn's beach house so it was a new experience for him. We had a great time playing cards, dominoes, walking on the beach, attending the Mardi Gras parades in Josephine and Gulf Shores. A lot of good food was eaten some of which I prepared.

Alex, Ed and Ellis playing Royal Rummy

The beach as the afternoon fades toward sunset.

Ryan, Sonia, Ellis, Alex and Chase following the Gulf Shores Mardi Gras parade.

In addition to the pictures above there are a great many more on my picasa site. The Arizona pictures and the beach/Mardi Gras pictures.

No sailing today!

2011-02-10T16:30:00.000-06:00

We had more snow again last night. I don't remember a year here in Alabama where it has snowed so often.

She Swims!

2010-10-23T09:37:00.003-05:00

Yesterday dawned clear and the forecast called for a sunny day with light winds from the east northeast.

The boat, officially christened "Teazer," had her sea trials (perhaps lake trials would be more apt) yesterday and she performed beautifully. I wish I could say the same for her skipper as he proved that he has much to learn about sailing a small boat. However, here are a few pictures of Teazer afloat.

The first trial was to see if she could float and I could row.

She floated better than I rowed!

Just "beached" her after the first row.

The launching ramp, at Sonia's Aunt Polly's house, is at the end of a small cove on Logan Martin lake. Yesterday, that little cove was down wind of the main body. Thus we were on a classic "lee shore." After struggling unsuccessfully to beat my way off that shore (sorry no pictures of that fiasco) I lowered the sail and rowed out into the lake to have room to maneuver.

The mast is stepped and I'm heading out to the deeper waters.

I'm hanging the rudder on its bracket.


The sail is going up.

The main sheet was belayed to the pin which if you have been reading this blog since the start of the boat building you will recognize as the first boat part that arrived.


Then lo and behold the wind filled the sail and we were off.

You might notice that I'm wearing my PFD just in case.

Yes, I'm wearing my Mary Day hat.

We even had a bit of a bow wake.

After a couple hours of solo sailing, practicing some tacks and experiencing some gibes Sonia got in with me and we enjoyed about an hour cruising around.

Soon the sun was getting low in the sky and we had to haul Teazer out onto her trailer and head back home. All in all quite an experience. I'm looking forward to our next sail.

There are more pictures at my Picasa site.

Ready to Sail

2010-10-19T13:14:00.000-05:00

What can I say? After more than a year and a half the boat is ready to sail. Weather permitting, and the reports look good, we plan on taking her to lake Logan Martin Friday morning. Boat working days the past few weeks have been devoted to painting. Late last week in addition to painting I was also getting the sail and spars rigged. Today I pulled the boat, on its trailer, out onto the driveway. I stepped the mast and for the first time set the sail. I think the following pictures tell a better story than I can.

Starboard side, rudder in place, sail set

The rudder and tiller will be shipped aboard for trailering

There was a very slight breeze in Pelham today and the sail kept swinging to port.

The obligatory registration numbers have been installed. She looked a lot better before the numbers were added.

This picture clearly shows the mast, yard, and boom. There will be a report on this blog with more pictures after her "sea trials."

For a idea of all that went into building the boat see my Picasa page titled "Shellback Dinghy."

Painting the Boat

2010-09-02T14:54:00.000-05:00

Things are coming along at the DeMellier Boatworks. The dinghy now has coats of primer applied, sanded, and re-applied three times. The spars have been varnished and rubbed with bronze wool and re-varnished four times. The rudder, tiller and centerboard have also been given multiple coats of varnish. The following pictures show the boat with it's final coat of primer and the brightwork (varnished parts) all but done.


The outside with three coats of primer

Since that picture was taken the outside of the boat has had two coats of boat enamel applied. The basic color is a high gloss bright white. There will be a blue stripe along the top garboard.

The spars with four coats of varnish.

The spars are ready to go. I am very pleased with the way they turned out.

The centerboard.

I decided to varnish the centerboard and the rudder because the wood looks so interesting especially where it was beveled creating the stripped look.

The rudder.

As I mentioned above the rudder has been given four coats of varnish.

The tiller.

Varnishing the tiller has posed the biggest problem. It is curved and difficult to cover all the sides with the same application of varnish. I tried hanging it up but it swings all over the place as I try to brush on the varnish. I'm learning.

Last week I took delivery of a boat trailer kit (gotta love kits). In just a few hours I had it all assembled. Today I got a trailer hitch installed on Sonia's car and hooked the trailer up and drove it around the neighborhood. I think it's going to work very well.

By the middle of September all the painting should be complete and we will be ready for a launch and maiden voyage. That assumes my application to the Alabama Marine Police for a hull number comes through. I need that before I can apply at the county courthouse for a license and boat ID number. We gotta be legal!

The Keel is On!

2010-07-22T16:46:00.000-05:00

After a few months of delay, due to circumstances within my control, I am back to working on the boat. Yesterday, I completed shaping the keel for installation. I was planning on waiting a day or two before attaching the keel but changed my mind and after a couple of dry fit-ups I marked where to drill the last few holes and made sure the keel was centered.

The plans call for a 4" long bolt to be installed through the keel and bottom. This requires that a hole be drilled vertically through the aft section of the keel near its widest point. Monday I fabricated a jig designed to make sure the hole would be properly centered and drilled true and perpendicular. So Tuesday morning I mounted the jig and drilled the hole. Just so no one thinks I'm perfect my jig failed me and the drill came out the side. I drilled another hole, this time just by sight, and got it right. So I mixed up some epoxy and filled the bad hole as can be seen in the photo below. The keel is attached with a bunch of wood screws and 3M 2500 compound. The compound is white as is seen in these photos.

The triangular gray shape is the epoxy filled mistake.

At this point all the assembly is completed (I will have to install the thwarts after the painting is done) so it is time to get serious about varnishing and painting. I spent some time Monday and Tuesday getting the spars ready for varnishing. Today I rigged up a place where the three spars can be supported at their ends to allow me to varnish the entire length.

I still have lots of cleaning to do in the garage to make sure the wet paint/varnish doesn't get dusty which would mar the gloss finish I want. It will be a few weeks before I will be able to get to the painting but when I do it should go pretty quickly. The spars will require quite a few coats of varnish starting with a thinned mixture and working up to pure varnish. I also need to finish all the sanding on the outside of the boat before the varnishing starts so it can be painted while the spars are drying.

Now that the Jaguar is gone I have plenty of room in the garage to get the varnishing done. It is really nice to have the space.

We are married!

2010-07-15T18:15:00.000-05:00

We are married as of about 6:00 local time. It was beautiful.

Old Photos Part 2

2010-07-09T10:22:00.000-05:00

Another old photo that I scanned today. I wonder who is pictured in this one?

The End of an Era

2010-06-29T19:30:00.001-05:00

Today, I sold the 1964 Jaguar 3.8 Mark 10 I bought in 1972 and last drove in 1973. Since 1973 the car has gathered dust in the garage of one house or another. On two occasions the car came out of the garage. The first was when Dad and I tried to get it properly aligned in the garage in Northport and ended up giving Chris a ride off the side of the driveway. The second time was when we loaded the car into a moving van to bring it from Northport to Pelham.

The following pictures were taken with my cell phone.

Goodbye Jag.

Old Pics

2010-06-02T12:14:00.001-05:00

Lot's of work going on here in Pelham as I try to get the house ready to put it on the market. Painting, cleaning, and digging through the stuff accumulated over the past 26 years living here. Among those things were the following pictures. They bring back memories. You can also view these pictures on our web site at http://demellier.com/gallery/main.php?g2_itemId=13576

Steering

2010-04-22T10:47:00.000-05:00

I have been working recently on the steering for my little boat. The rudder came to me cut to shape but needed to have the leading and trailing edges tapered to provide a smooth flow through the water. The following picture shows the rudder shortly after I finished with the bevel. Note the upper left corner of the picture. I have been wearing gloves for a good bit of the work. Safety first. Target Zero!

The picture shows the rudder cheeks temporarily in place along with the rudder hardware. As you will see in the next few pictures the hardware wasn't yet located correctly. That is why I "dry-fit" everything before drilling, screwing or gluing.

You might notice the different colors along the edge of the rudder. The rudder is mahogany plywood and when tapered each layer (ply) has a different color. When painted it will all be white. As the rudder is tapered I can judge how evenly I'm shaping the wood by the uniformity (or lack thereof) of the colored stripes.

This week work started on the tiller. It too was cut to shape but needed to be rounded and smoothed. The tiller cheeks had to be fitted and glued on so that the tiller can be attached to and removed from the rudder.

The above picture shows the tiller in place on the rudder. The tiller is made of solid mahogany and I plan on varnishing it because it is a beautiful piece of wood. I stained the tiller cheeks so that they will contrast with the remainder of the tiller.

The pictures above and below show the rudder and tiller in place. The holes for mounting the rudder hardware have been drilled and the rudder mounted temporarily. The hardware will be removed for painting. The pintles on the rudder itself have been permanently installed by using copper rivets (copper nails inserted through pre-drilled holes cut off and peened over). The pintles fit over the rudder cheeks very snugly and I decided to install them permanently and paint around them.

So what is next? The rudder comes off as does its hardware. The thwarts come out. Then she gets turned over to have the keel fitted and installed. While that is being done I will also be beveling the centerboard (as I did the rudder) and attaching its stop block. Once the keel is finally screwed, glued and bolted in place there will be more sanding and then paint. I can hardly wait. I'm thinking a June launch is not out of the question.

Inwale and Thwart Knees

2010-02-02T15:24:00.000-06:00

Progress has been made. Although I haven't posted anything in a long time the boat has seen some progress. The thwarts (seats) have been fitted shaped and sanded. The knees for the forward thwart were shaped to fit and installed today. The port inwale (inner rail) has been under-construction for several weeks as I had to cut spacers, glue them to the rail and then fit the rail to the boat. Today the inwale was glued and screwed in place. I have also been shopping for an expansion bit to drill a hole around 3" in diameter in the forward thwart for the mast. I purchased such a bit and have been experimenting with cutting holes. I've also been working on rounding the mast. So everyone might think that Edward/Ed/Dad/Uncle Ed has been lazy but that is not quite so.

Next will be the layout and fit-up of the starboard inwale and then its installation. The oarlock pads and sockets get installed next. Then it will be time to turn the boat over again to attach the keel.

The picture above shows the port inwale installed waiting for the epoxy to cure and then sanding will occur.

Lots of sanding and hole filling yet to go before painting but the painting is now in the foreseeable future! Once painted I can install the rudder hardware and we will be ready for launching.

Above is a shot showing the center thwart, dagger board trunk, forward thwart and knees.

Above is a picture of the forward thwart with the knees in place. The knees are there to counteract the twisting action affected by the mast when sailing.

The picture above is of the "dagger board trunk" which covers the hole I cut in the bottom. The "dagger board" is a removable center board which provides resistance to leeway when sailing. When rowing, the "dagger board" is removed and a cap placed on the trunk.

Above is another picture of the "dagger board trunk."

Elf Dance

2009-12-03T10:29:00.000-06:00

We had such fun rehearsing and filming the following movie that I just had to find a way to get it into the blog. I hope you enjoy it as much as we enjoyed making it.

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Seats and Rubrails

2009-11-25T22:23:00.000-06:00

The rubrails are finished and the seat supports installed. The seats seen in the following pictures are simply placed on the supports. The seats will be screwed in place later although they will not be epoxied. They must remain removable so hull maintenance and painting can be performed.

The following view is looking forward. One of the next steps is to bore a hole in the forward seat for the mast and then install the mast step on the bottom.

In the next picture the rubrail can be clearly seen as it bends around the midships toward the stern.

A knowledgeable observer carefully viewing the following picture will see that the aft seat has been cut too short. I am now in search of a piece of lumber to build that seat correctly.

The next steps are the installation of the inwales (inner rails), the mast step (the block of wood on the bottom that the mast fits into) and the dagger board trunk. In my last blog entry I mentioned cutting a hole in the bottom. That hole will be under the dagger board trunk. The dagger board (or center board) is the removable keel that will be used while sailing to control some of the leeward motion of the boat across the water. The trunk holds the dagger board in place and keeps the water from getting into the boat. When the dagger board is not in use, i.e. when rowing the dinghy, a cap is placed over the dagger board trunk. I will have to make that cap too.

I'm starting to run out of pieces to install. Yesterday I took delivery of the sail. I held off buying the sail until I was pretty sure the boat would get finished. Partly as an incentive and partly due to my confidence that the boat will get launched in 2010 I went ahead and ordered the sail. I've also order and received the marine varnish for the spars.

Spars are any of the wooden parts of the rigging when they are down on deck and not in service. Thus the mast, boom and gaff are all spars when in my garage being rounded into shape then sanded and finally given their many coats of varnish.

Still a good bit of work left to do but it will get there. I find that I'm eager to get started working on the boat every morning now that she's coming into shape.

I'm also thinking about a name for the boat. I've been toying with the name "Teazer." Teazer is the name of the first command Thomas Kydd has in the series of novels written by Julian Stockwin about the royal navy during the Napoleanic wars. I am open to suggestions for a name. A boat must have a name so please help me out.

Breast Hooks and Stern Knees

2009-11-12T11:53:00.001-06:00

See anything different? Yes, the transom has been trimmed and shaped. The stern knees are in place as seen in the first three photos below. The stem and center frame will soon be trimmed down once the rubrails have been installed. The rubrails are the next to be added this time to the outside of the hull along the top of the sheer plank. Then the seats come next with the inwales soon to follow.

The next two pictures show the breast hooks in place at the stem. As can be seen in the first picture the breast hooks come together at an angle forming a crowning affect. It took me quite a while and many fit-ups to get the bevels correct. I'm quite proud of the result.

I also built the dagger board trunk. What is that, you say? Well, stay tuned for the episode where this neophyte boat builder cuts a hole in the bottom of his boat! There will be pictures.

Boat News

2009-10-01T15:32:00.003-05:00

The boat is upright! After a great deal of filling holes and cracks then sanding followed by filling smaller holes and cracks then sanding followed by ... well you get the picture; it was time to turn the boat over and so doing take it off the mold. The following pictures show it upright for the first time. Now I get to fill more holes and cracks followed by more sanding then ...

After that there is a bunch of stuff that gets installed to provide additional strength and the all important seats. In the meantime I've been working on getting the spars round and preparing myself mentally for attacking the mast, mast step, and rudder.

Progress is being made. Tools to buy! Anybody out there want to lend me about ten 3" or 4" c-clamps? I guess I could use larger ones but I need at least 3" and at least 10 of them.

From Shellback Dinghy

See the curved line along the top of the transom in the picture above? That defines the cut line to remove the sacrificial portion of the transom. I will be making that cut pretty soon. Then ,because I'm not confident enough to make that cut very close to the line, there will be a good deal of planing and sanding to get the curve right.

From Shellback Dinghy

I built the horses that I've been building the boat on. They seemed the perfect height when the boat was upside down. Now that it is upright and I have to reach over the gunnels to fill holes and sand inside the boat the horses seem too tall. A slight dilemma; do I build new, shorten old or "get over it"?

From Shellback Dinghy

Roller Derby

2009-08-31T20:38:00.003-05:00

I went to see the Tragic City Rollers (that's Birmingham's roller derby team) back in July. I took a bunch of pictures and just now thought it might be good to share them on Picasa. So if you want to see some pics of my night watching girls skate follow this link.

Roller Derby July 18, 2009

I plan on attending another bout this Saturday night. It was really a lot of fun.

Back From Florida

2009-08-12T19:31:00.003-05:00

Had a great visit in Palm Coast this past weekend. I arrived Friday night, Alicia came Saturday, Brian and Chris on Sunday (they were supposed to arrived on Saturday but that is another story).

We visited the Kennedy Space Center Sunday and spent Monday swimming in the Atlantic and the pool. Monday night we had a great dinner at Billy's Tap Room in Ormond Beach.

Brian, Chris and Alicia had to leave Tuesday afternoon but not until after we had a good pizza lunch.

News of Some Import

2009-08-04T15:36:00.004-05:00

Ed's Retired

Effective August 1, I became one of the gainfully unemployed. After 35 years and 11 months of working for Alabama Power Company I finally decided to hang 'em up.

Today, by popular demand, I got back to work on the boat. Not a lot accomplished but I have temporarily attached the outer stem and started to bevel it. Once I have it properly beveled it gets epoxied and permanently screwed in place. A few pictures follow:

The Last Planks Installed

2009-06-07T15:24:00.005-05:00

This weekend saw some noticeable progress. All the temporary screws from the mid-planks were removed. The mid-planks were planed to accept the sheer planks. Then the sheer planks and the middle planks had gains cut into the inner (sheer plank) and outer (middle plank) surfaces so that the planks are flush at their seam as they come together at the stem. Then in a wild fit of energy I fitted and glued both sheer planks. That means all the planks are now installed albeit with temporary screws still in place. However, a few days from now should see the temporary screws removed. The next step is the installation of the outer stem which requires planning the planks at the stem to create a flat place to connect the curved outer laminated stem.Then lots of filling of holes and gaps with epoxy and plenty of sanding. Then it will be time to turn the boat over. Plenty of more work to go with the breasthook, knees, and rails to be installed. Not to mention installation of the rub rails, seats, seat blocks, the daggerboard and trunk, the mast partner, inwales, and maststep. Then turn the boat over again to add the keel. Finally, the rudder, tiller and oarlocks have to be mounted. Oh, then more sanding and painting. I might live long enough to see this project to completion.

It is looking a lot like a boat now!

Boat Report - May 17

2009-05-17T16:27:00.004-05:00

More progress to report. Saturday the temporary screws were removed from the starboard garboard. Those screws were only there about two weeks surely enough time for the epoxy to cure. I planed the garboard flush with the bottom. Then I worked on fitting and eventually installing the port mid-plank. The accompanying pictures shows the mid-plank still fitted with the temporary screws in place. The epoxy takes 24 hours to cure at 75 degrees. While I work up quite a sweat working in the garage I'm not sure it stays 75 down there. For each 5 degrees lower it takes an additional 24 hours. So I leave it alone for several days. I'm not in a rush. I fitted the starboard mid-plank but have not installed it. As seen in the photos it's held in place by clamps. I also filled some of the screw holes and spent several hours today sanding. Many more holes to fill and lots and lots of sanding.

The port mid-plank installed with the temporary screws still in place every four inches or so along the upper (actually lower) edge of the plank. And yes I know port is the left side of the boat and this appears to be the right side. Remember the boat is still upside down.

A view from the stern looking at the transom and the starboard side. The mid-plank is fitted and held in place with clamps. I got tired and decided not to drill, clean, mix the epoxy, spread the glue and screw down the plank. I'll leave that for another time. You might notice the epoxy smears on the transom. I had a difficult time getting the mid-plank screwed down to the transom. I even twisted off a silicon-bronze permanent screw trying to tighten the plank down to the transom. The transom is concave where the garboard attaches but it's convex where the mid-plank goes so I had to try to hold it in place with two hands while driving the screws with my remaining hands. The screws going into the transom have to go in at the proper angle because the transom is not perpendicular to the sides. While fiddling with that connection I smeared a bit of the epoxy on the outside of the transom. Upshot is that after I trim off the excess material from the bottom and planks I'll have a good bit of sanding to do on the transom.

A view from the bow (stem). It's starting to look a bit like a boat isn't it? If you click on the picture you can see signs of the sanding I've been doing. Lots more of that to come. Lots of screw holes to fill.

A view looking at the port side from the stem. Maybe she'll swim some day.

Starboard Garboard

2009-05-02T17:22:00.004-05:00

I finally got the starboard garboard permanently mounted. I had some trouble with the mold (which I modified a bit) and with getting clamps to hold the plank. But with some clever clamping and the use of some temporary nails I got the pilot holes drilled, the epoxy mixed and spread and the plank mounted, with permanent screws and the temporary drywall screws. I did have one adventure when the drill bit I was using for the pilot hole broke off in a hole. I had to do a bit of digging but I got it out.

It's starting to look a bit like a boat.

One Garboard Finished

2009-05-02T14:21:00.005-05:00

It has been two weeks since I glued on the port garboard. I removed the temporary screws, sanded the epoxy where I had used it to fill holes and then planed the garboard flush with the bottom.

Next up is gluing on the starboard plank. Which I did today. Pictures in the next installment hopefully tonight.

A Bit of Progress

2009-03-27T20:53:00.004-05:00

I've made a bit of progress on the boat. I've got all the planks scarfed together and the epoxy sanded smooth. I worked the bevel on the port side of the bottom until I think I've got it right. As you can see in these two pictures I did a little dry fitting of the port garboard. During this exercise I realized that the stem must be beveled also. So more planing. Then it was on to the starboard side of the bottom with the larger smoothing plane followed by the smaller block plane. Yes, to those of you who knew I was having lots of trouble getting the blade of the smoothing plane sharp enough to cut, I did get it working. However, when it came to doing the finer work the block plane won hands down. It's just easier to control. I got tired by mid-afternoon Sunday (3/22) so set it all aside. I did go down later in the day and dry-fit the port garboard again with the final bevel on the bottom, the stem and the transom. It fit real well. I've still got some work to do on the starboard side of the bottom and the transom to get the angles correct. Not this weekend though! Sarah (or Mom as the case may be) has been released by her foot surgeon for 3 months. So it's down to the beach we go. I'll be back Sunday but she will stay for 3 months or so. I hope to make some more progress on the boat especially now that I'll be in Pelham on my own.

I also want to welcome Doug (Uncle Doug to some of you) to the ranks of Blog readers. At least I hope he will start reading. It seems that for a long time now I have not had his current e-mail address so he has been left out of the messages. That has been fixed.

The Boat has a Bottom

2009-03-14T17:27:00.006-05:00

Today saw some progress. I finished sanding the epoxy from the bottom plank. The epoxy is applied rather thickly and it oozes out when the joint is clamped together. The excess cures (hardens) and then must be removed from the wood. That means sanding. It's not hard to sand down the epoxy it just takes time and therefore patience.

The first picture shows the bottom dry-fitted on the mold. There is a clamp holding it at the stem and one screw on the transom. The garboards came out of the clamps early this afternoon and they need sanding to clean up the excess epoxy. This picture shows the port and starboard planks waiting for me. As you can see my garage clean-up efforts did not extend to under the work bench. Perhaps I'll get to that someday soon. I dry fitted the remaining two planks. I then decided that I could glue up the last two planks and glue and screw down the bottom. So I mixed up a bunch of epoxy, got everything lined up and ready to go and did it. Monday evening I should be able to take the clamps off the last two planks. In the meantime I have to plane a bevel on the edge of the bottom to accept the garboards when they get attached. So I've taken an irreversible step toward building this boat. Still lots of work to do.

Glueing, Planing and Sanding

2009-03-08T22:03:00.011-05:00

Okay - I promised photos of scarfing. The first photo shows the two sections of the bottom prior to being glued together. These sections have been scarfed in a "step scarf" where each ply of the plywood has been machined to provide a very strong joint. The second picture is a side view of the scarf joint dry fitted and without any pressure applied. The mating of the step scarfs can clearly be seen.
The next picture is how the joint should look once glued together (this photo was taken with the parts dry fitted).

I made all my preparations. Read all the instructions. Devised a way to clamp down the joint once the epoxy had been applied. I mixed up the epoxy using the thickener provided (trying to get the consistency of mustard {but not grainy mustard}). I thought I had mixed up plenty but it turned out to be just enough as I was literally scraping out the container I mixed the stuff in. But I got a liberal coating on both surfaces aligned the two sections placed the plastic on top followed by a scrap board. I weighted it down with my tool box and then wood screwed the board to the workbench top. I won't be able to know how well I did until Tuesday because the epoxy takes 24 hours to set at 78 degrees and you add 24 hours for each 10 degrees below that. So to be safe I won't touch it until Tuesday night.

There are other things to do. I went to work on one of the spars planing and sanding it to turn it from octagonal shaped to round. I don't know how clear the following before and after picture is but the spar on the left is as it arrived from the factory. It was formed from a square piece of laminated wood. The corners are cut off forming an octagonal shaped cross-section. But the cross section should really be round. So it's my job to plane the vertices and turn that octagonal shape into a hexadecagon (16 sided) and then cut down each of those vertices slowly approaching a round cross - section. This is a place where the proper tool is a spokeshave but I don't have one. I planed with a small smooting plane and then sanded by hand. I'm pleased with how it turned out.

Boat Parts - I Have Boat Parts

2009-03-05T22:22:00.010-06:00

The shipment left Baltimore Tuesday and went to Newark, NJ (why?) then Wednesday left at 10:00 am on a truck headed for Richmond, VA. The three crates left Richmond at 8:55 pm headed to Charlotte arriving at 2:00 am Thursday. They departed headed toward Atlanta at 3:35 am and arrived at 8:25. They headed out to Birmingham at 9:50 am arriving at 11:50. Out for delivery by 12:30 pm and delivered at 3:45 pm. Now the fun begins.

The kit came in three packages. Two boxes and one long crate. One box contained the mold the other most of the mahogany plywood sections.

The long crate held the mast and the two other spars along with the solid mahogany pieces like the keel, mast step and oar blocks. The long crate also had the hardware. Brass wood screws of various sizes and lengths, oarlocks, line, epoxy, etc.

After inventorying all the parts and a brief break to cook and eat supper I was back down in the garage ready to assemble the mold. The mold is the jig that the parts are shaped around and some of the parts are temporarily fastened to the mold.

The last two pictures show the mold assembled. There are three parts of the actual boat already in place. In the first shot we're looking at the bow and the curved portion is called the outer stem. Two sections back from that is the center frame assembly. In the next picture, taken from the stern you can see the transom held in place by the mold with some temporary screws.

The next step is to study the book some more in preparation for epoxying the bottom plank together. The bottom plank, garboards, middle and sheer planks are all made of plywood and must be spliced together to get the proper length. But more on that another time. For the next blog entry I should have some photos of the scarf joints and how they get glued together with the epoxy.

Snow in the Heart of Dixie

2009-03-01T08:27:00.006-06:00

Words are unnecessary so I will let the pictures do the talking.

One comment though - The little blurry spots are not me trying to be arty but rather snow flakes on the lens.

A Clean Garage?

2009-02-21T15:10:00.005-06:00

Well half of it is cleaned up. I've completed the chore of cleaning the Augean Stables of the DeMellier household. I wish I had a before picture but here are some after pictures.

In this view you can see the plans table I built today. I can layout the drawings and then turn around and work on the boat. At least that is the plan. As I said in my last post those of you who have seen my garage in the past 10 years or so know what a mess it was. When Dylan was visiting with his Mom and Dad he stuck his head into the garage and was heard to exclaim, "Wow!" It probably was a curious kid's paradise. Wooden Boat told be the kit is scheduled to be shipped on February 24 so it just might be here by next weekend so I had to have the garage ready. I've added four florescent lights in an effort to light the work. The back of the garage is still a bit dark so I may need to add another. This boat building project has me looking at and purchasing tools. I picked up a reconditioned Ryobi miter saw and a Ryobi cordless driver/drill. They sure made building the plans table much easier and more accurate. There are over 400 screws to be installed in the boat so the cordless drill will get plenty of use.

That's all for now. The next post should be when the kit has arrived.

Belay That!

2009-02-17T22:16:00.007-06:00

Many of you have come to realize that over the past few years I have developed quite a passion for sailing. At least for sailing on the schooner Mary Day. That passion has grown. I recently decided to build my own sail boat. Now this adventure does not comprise the building of a 96 ton schooner; no I plan on building a 100 pound Shellback Sailing Dinghy. I have purchased a kit from Wooden Boat in Brooklin, Maine. The first partial kit shipment arrived Friday. In that shipment I got the plans, a book on how to build a Shellback Dinghy, and a belaying pin. For those of you who don't know what a belaying pin is I've attached a picture.

I have also started cleaning out the garage here in Pelham. Those of you who have visited here in the past few years might have noticed that we haven't thrown away a cardboard box, any packing material, nor any unused, unwanted, unneeded, toy, electronic gadget, cooking utensil, tool, bat, or ball since we moved in here in 1984. Not to mention a 1964 Jaguar Mk X which takes up half the garage space. I maintained a narrow aisle to allow access to the washer and dryer but other than that the stuff in there was constantly threatening to bury me under a "landslide" of boxes, wood, styrofoam peanuts, and dust. I have broken down many boxes and sent them to be recycled. I took six very large garbage bags of packing materials to our local UPS store where the owner thanked me vociferously for the donation. I've already had the trash pick-up dispose of 15 large plastic bags full of trash and there are still another 8 bags to go. That's just from one half of the garage. Thankfully though there can't be too much more left because, as I said, the other half is mostly filled with a car that hasn't run in over 35 years.

The remainder of the kit is due to ship on February 24. I plan to document the progress of building this boat right here on this blog. So stay tuned and let's all see if Ed can pull this together and float his boat.

A couple of pictures from the web of other shellback dinghies. I don't expect mine to be the same colors.

November Sun

2008-11-23T12:42:00.013-06:00

Here in L.A. the weather in November can be cold and wet, warm (not hot) and breezy, or cold, blustery and sunny.

Sunrise November 21, 2008

We are spending Thanksgiving week in Fort Morgan. The weather has been sunny with temperatures in the 40's and 50's during the day with winds varying between 10 - 20 mph.

Mid-morning sky November 23, 2008

One never knows what the skies will bring. From a sunny early morning to overcast skies at mid-morning to blue with scattered clouds.

Early afternoon November 23, 2008.

Wednesday November 26. I rose at dawn and found myself on the beach with my camera, Mac, and Bosco. We starting taking pictures of the rising sun. After I got back inside I thought why not make it a video. So here are two versions. The first sized for Mom (and anyone else using dial-up) and the second for those of you who have broadband access.

Above - The dial-up version.

Ike's Come and Gone

2008-09-14T12:57:00.004-05:00

Hurricane Ike has passed by L.A. (that's Lower Alabama) and left behind a wake of some damage but nothing like what happened in Texas. Kate went out to the Townhomes earlier today and sent back these pictures.

Above is a shot of the "S" units which are the ones facing the beach. The concrete slab on the sand was, before Hanna and Ike, on the sand at the level where the paint stops.

Another view of the "S" units. The new unpainted wood is from renovation work being undertaken before the storms blew in.

Our place, from what we can tell we fared very well with no apparent damage.

Ike is Passing By ...

2008-09-11T20:47:00.003-05:00

The other day I wrote about the hurricanes and where they are going. Well for a while it looked like Ike would be a huge terrible storm. And it is! Although it looks like the Fort Morgan area will not be subjected to the brunt of the storm it has wandered far enough north to have a significant impact on us. At last report the Gulf of Mexico had waves breaking beneath the beach side units at our townhome complex. The stairs to the 8 units along the beach are gone as I'm sure are the ground level store rooms.

This morning Kate took a 30 second video of the water running under and passed her friend Colin's house which is about 1 mile east of the Townhomes and located on the beach. She uploaded the video to YouTube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kHF-NfBFED8

It does look like Texas is going to catch it this time.

Hurricanes and Us

2008-09-06T11:46:00.005-05:00

Labor day week was supposed to be a vacation for Teal and family. We invited them down to the beach for the week. As the time approached so did hurricane Gustav. On the Thursday before Labor Day Sarah and I talked and decided the vacation was off. I drove down to the coast and brought Sarah, Mac and Bosco back Saturday ahead of the evacuation traffic. At first, Teal was skeptical about why we needed to call off the vacation when the storm was predicted to his Louisiana and we're in Alabama. Well after seeing some of the satellite photos of the storm superimposed on a map he realized the size and extent of the storm.
If your geography is pretty good you can see that as the eye of the storm passed over the Louisiana coast Mobile Bay and the Fort Morgan peninsula were well in the storm area. While our place went undamaged the complex did experience some damage with the storm surge pushing sand up under the buildings right on the beach.

Now we sit in Pelham wondering what will happen with hurricane Ike. The projected track brings it into the Gulf of Mexico after passing through the Straits of Florida. Where will it make land fall?

It's not looking too good for the northern Gulf coast. As in all things time will tell. All we can do is sit and wait; all precautions have been taken.

Turning Left

2008-08-09T00:12:00.003-05:00

Through YouTube and our shared love of sailing I've met a man named Dylan Winter. He is a Brit and apparently a videographer. I have been really enjoying his videos of his trip circumnavigating the British Isles. If you're interested here is the first of 22 (so far) videos he has put together.

He also did the following video which I find fascinating.

I hope everyone is doing well. More soon.

Photos from Maine

2008-07-14T19:55:00.004-05:00

I'm just back from my fifth trip sailing aboard the schooner Mary Day and I thought I'd share some photos with you. I put them on Picassa, just click on the picture below.

Mary Day July 7 - 12, 2008

More From George Jr. II

2008-07-02T20:25:00.003-05:00

This pic is the last reunion for the DeMellier siblings. Top left is Henry followed by Edna and my Dad.

Bottom row is Ann, Bette and Carol.

They met up at Bette's place in northern Florida. It was taken around October 1st 1988 and Dad died a week later. Ann, Bette and Carol all live in Florida and Edna has since moved to Colorado. I talk to Bette several times a year but she and Carol just went to Colorado to visit Edna.

I don't have Edna's number so I called Ann and she doesn't have it either. I also called Bette's son and there was no answer. I'll try again later and maybe get lucky.

I thought they might like to see your site and to ask about any pictures being posted. Again if that's your plan.

George

More From George Jr.

2008-06-30T19:58:00.005-05:00

I got three notes from George today. I'm posting two of them here.

Hi Ed, WOW -- another picture that I've never seen! I do believe that is me! I'm not totally sure on the lake but if I had to -- I'd say that it is. The house on the left does look like the one two houses down from them.

When we lived in Pa. I had a business meeting to go to in Albany and I planned on heading south on the way home to see if I could find their house. I was shocked how much of that part I remembered and found the place on the first try. It was about 2 in the afternoon when we arrived and we decided to knock on the door and tell them about the history of the house. This was back in the early 80's. This guy came to the door in a robe like he just got out of bed so that ended any hope of possibly getting inside for a look. We talked a bit and asked if we could go out back and look around. He said sure and that was the last I seen of him.

As a kid I spent many a weekend at that house and many weeks during the summer. Very very good memories. Also on that trip we tried to find my Aunt and Uncle's house in nearby Claremont. I was close but I needed help and we saw a guy watering his grass so I stopped and he came over to see what we wanted. I told him what we were looking for and he proceeded to guide us in the right direction. Then my wife decides to tell him that we just seen my Grandfather's house on the lake. Keeping in mind that we are now no where near the lake, and my wife continues with " maybe you know him -- his name is George DeMellier." The guys says " yes -- isn't he the one that had the triplet daughters?" I just shook my head that my wife has this knack of finding these people. :-)) He said he worked at the local bank and he had worked with George P. and got to know him well. Small world I guess.

The other day my son came in and I was showing him your site. He's like his mother -- loves genealogy! After a bit he kinda felt the pics of an older man looked like your father. I agreed and he then went to some site and found that a Edward H. DeMellier passed away in 2002. So I guess he was right on that one. We couldn't find anything on your mom and now I know that she's still with us so that's just great. I hope your dad had a good life. Nice to hear about your kids and grandchildren. We have one son only -- no daughter-in-law or grandchildren --- yet. I'll end for now on this E. As for my first E and your blog plus family info-- I'll do that next. George

That one was first then followed by this one:

Hi Ed, To give you some info on my side of the family I'll go back to the late 50's. We moved from Floral Park N.Y. in 1958. I was 14 at the time and we started in Miami living next door to my Grandparents.(George and Anna) I think they moved down there in 1956.

By 1959 we were living in our new home in Fort Lauderdale where I finished school. In 1963 I met my future wife Sally and we got married on leap year day 1964. By the end of December of that year our son Robert was born.

We bought our first home in Pompano Beach Fl and lived there until 1973. In August of that year I transferred at my job to Bradford Pa., this is where Sally was born and raised. Our son graduated in 1983, he couldn't find employment in our small town so he moved back to Florida in 1984.

My Mom (Martha) and Dad (George) had built a new home in Port St. Lucie Fl and moved there in early 1980. Sadly my Mom passed away in 1985 at 65 and my Dad died in 1988 at 71. I was the only heir so their house was left to me and we moved back south in 1989. I again was able to transfer from my job at Sears and we have lived here since then.

My Grandfather, George Peter (your Grandfathers brother) passed away in 1969 and my Grandmother Anna passed away in 1973. My Dads brother -- Henry passed away I believe in 1993.

Dad's oldest sister Edna and his triplet sisters, Ann, Bette and Carol are alive and well. Edna resides in Colorado and Ann, Bette and Carol all live in Florida. That about covers the basics of the DeMellier clan on my side. There are many side stories but that could be for another time. If you are interested in anything else, by all means feel free to ask. George

In his last message today, George asked that I not post it until he has a chance to check with Edna, Ann, Bette and Carol. He has a number of pictures he would like to share but wants their permission. I hope he gets the permission and we learn some more about that part of our family. A part that I know my children know very little about.

We've Been Found!

2008-06-29T19:33:00.004-05:00

A couple of days ago I got an e-mail from George DeMellier Jr. Below is the text of his message.

Hi Ed, George DeMellier Jr. here. I found your site looking for another DeMellier but I couldn't tell for sure if this was the New Jersey DeMelliers. After seeing who I'm sure is your mother, I then felt sure where I had landed. I love the pictures but of course aren't sure who many of them are. Then I came across a couple of pics with my Mom, Dad, Aunts and Grandmother and I was shocked. It is nice to see pics of them that I have never seen before. I barely remember being at your Dad's house, maybe once back in the early 50's. And for some reason your Mom stuck in my head. I wasn't even sure if that is your Grandfather and Grandmother but I believe it is. I remember seeing them a few times at the lake in Elizaville N.Y. where my Grandfather (your Grandfathers brother) built a house on the lake. I was told back them to call them Uncle Ed and Aunt Millie. Here's one story from one of those winter trips we all made to the lake house. Our Grandfathers and a few other men were out on the lake walking around on the ice. The ice broke and your Grandfather fell in the water and I was told to go up to the house and tell Aunt Millie. I was maybe 10 at the time and I have to this day never forgotten what was said. I went in the house and I told your Grandmother what had happened and she looked at me and said " you're not telling a fib are you?" I assured her that I wasn't and I don't remember anything after that. Also I looked all over your site and couldn't find your e-mail so I made an entry in the guest book. Then my darling wife found it and teased me for not seeing it. She basically doesn't know much on a computer so she was happy to get one over on me. So you can ignore the guest book entry. If you need to know who's who on those pictures with my side of the family I can help you. Sadly when it comes to both sides of my family I know very little --- just enough to get by. :-)) I wish many years ago I had asked more questions, but I never did so I'm lost most of the time. Gotta go, take care -- George

I have replied to George. The text of my reply follows.

George,

Great to hear from you. I know a little about your side of the family. My Dad often talked of his cousin George (I assume that's your father and that the triplets were your aunts) and I certainly remember the incident on the frozen lake. In fact, I have a picture of my Grandfather, Edward Peter DeMellier with me, my brother Douglas and another boy (you?) on a frozen lake that I have always thought was the lake where he fell through the ice. The way my father told the story Grandpa and he were walking along the ice and came upon a soft spot which Grandpa proceeded to poke at with the heel of his shoe saying, "Hey Slim, look the ice is soft here." at which point down he went. The punch line from from my Grandma was, "Did you get a picture?"

That's my Grandpa on the left then Doug with me on the far right.
So, you've seen our little web site and you know something about me and my family. I haven't put a great deal of biographical information there but I would like to know about you and your family. My Dad lost track of your father. In his later years he seemed to not care about any of his extended family. He died in November 2002. My mom is still living and doing very well on her own in Palm Coast, Florida. I currently live in the Birmingham, Alabama area. I have three children, two married sons who live in Seattle and Huntsville, Alabama. My daughter lives in Fort Morgan, Alabama. We have two grandchildren ages 6 (girl) and 2 (boy).

I also maintain a blog where I occasionally share thoughts, pictures, news, etc with others from the DeMellier family. I'd like to post your e-mail on the blog if you'll agree.

I look forward to hearing more from you.

Ed

I will keep everyone posted when I get more information from George.

Another Mary Day Video

2008-06-01T22:34:00.008-05:00

I put together a compilation of photos into a video slide show set to music. Again celebrating the schooner Mary Day. This time I focused on the hard work the captains and crew put in to make her "shipshape." Each winter and spring untold hours of scraping, sanding, and painting are put into all the big things the passengers see like the cabins and saloon. But just as difficult and more important is the effort put into the unseen things that must be maintained. For example, each of the more than 70 blocks is disassembled, cleaned, lubricated, painted and reassembled. My guess is that most passengers never think about that. Anyway, you can view the video at YouTube or the DeMellier web site. I've also added it below. Like last time if you have a slow internet connection you might want to request a CD. Mom - I'll bring you one when I come down to see you in a few weeks.

Until next time, be good, be careful, and look for the beauty that surrounds you.

Sailing Vacations A Maine Windjammer: Happy May Day!

2008-05-07T20:47:00.001-05:00

Sailing Vacations <br />A Maine Windjammer: Happy May Day!

Captain Barry King from the Mary Day, Alton and I sparring with words. Check out the link to the Mary Day blog above.

TR 4

2008-04-06T15:47:00.003-05:00

My first car. I found one of Dad's slides with this image. I guess I took the picture.

Wildflowers

2008-04-06T14:17:00.007-05:00

A week ago today, March 30, we were down at the beach. The weather was beautiful, bright sun, gentle sea breeze, warm and wildflowers in bloom in the wetlands, along our entrance road and up on the dunes. I went out with my camera to take some photos trying to capture the beauty of the scene. I didn't fully accomplish that but here are a few photos none the less.

We haven't had any real tropical storms the past two years, which is a good thing, but it also means that the pine trees are making a comeback in the wetlands. You can see them in the picture above as they 're about 2 - 3 feet tall. When the salt water gets to them during a storm they die. The pines along Dixie Graves Parkway are almost all dead due to the salt spray they endured during Hurricane Katrina. Most of the other trees and bushes recover after being doused with salt water but the pines just can't handle it.

Be well, do good, find the beauty in what surrounds you.

Ed

"Death in Them Thar Hills"

2008-03-17T20:37:00.000-05:00

Death in Them Thar Hills

A dinner play in one act. The cast, members of the management and staff of Alabama Power's Transmission Department. It's 1883 and in the dry, little, gold prospecting town of Cactus Gulch, Arizona a group has gathered at the local saloon to honor Dusty Jones who was the first and only man to find gold in them thar hills. Ten prominent Cactus Gulch citizens are asked to speak their piece about ole' Dusty. At the conclusion of the speeches Dusty makes his final speech and a toast with his favorite Gila Gold Tequila. Shortly thereafter Dusty falls over - dead.
Who did it? Was it the Mayor? The Banker? The School Teacher? The Doc? or was it one of these two mean looking hombres?

Hannibal P. Hanks, Newspaper Editor or Flint Flames, Blacksmith.

There were clues aplenty with every upstanding citizen of Cactus Gulch having motive, means and opportunity to murder Dusty. Who did it? Keep your eyes peeled for the next edition of The Cactus Gulch Gazette.

The suspects are nervous as the marshal solves the case.Flint and the School Teacher Bonnie Crockett have a laugh at Dusty's expense.

Flint Flames - Blacksmith and Horse Trader

PS - More than $4,000 was raised for Children's Hospital in Birmingham.

Who Done It?

2008-03-16T19:38:00.006-05:00

The concluding chapter in the saga Death in Them Thar Hills.

The late Dusty Jones, owner of the TAqIlA gold mine, died quietly as a result of an apparent poisoning. Dusty, speaking what turned out to be his final words, told the audience to "...reflect on the mine."

The list of suspects include:

Chief Hawk Who Watches

Dime novelist J.P. James

Mayor Beauregard T. Brady

Sharpshooter Annie Elmley

Banker Abraham Patton

School Teacher Bonnie Crockett seen here with the victim shortly before his murder most foul.

Saloon Keeper Cattie Adams

Doc Tricia Trueheart

Blacksmith Flint Flames

Newspaper Editor Hannibal Hanks

Upon the discovery of Dusty's death Marshal Nate Dillman sealed off the saloon and deputized all the spectators. After some period of time during which the posse questioned the suspects the marshal took over. He proceeded to reveal the motive of each suspect. It seems that each of the town's leading citizens had been hurt by Dusty and might well want revenge.

Marshal Nate Dillman

The marshal talked about each suspect one at a time finally coming to Dime Novelist J.P. James. Marshal Dillman revealed to everyone's surprise that Miss James is actually Dusty Jones' older sister Patience Jones. It seems Miss James (or rightly Miss Jones) lost her true love to another when her brother, Dusty, played a trick on her to break up the romance. As they say, "A women scorned..." Dusty had a premonition as can be seen in the name of his mine, TAqIlA, which when viewed in a reflection, reads AlIpAT. Yes, Dusty was done in by his own sister. It was she who poisoned the dish of nuts at Dusty's place at the table.

Patience Jones, alias J.P. James was arrested for the murder of her brother.

New Web Site

2008-02-23T19:36:00.002-06:00

I have been threatening for years to subscribe to a web service and create a DeMellier web site. Well, I finally did it. Demellier.com finally exists. Check it out. It is still early days but there are quite a few pictures from both my Mary Day trips and the Heiberger past out there. There is more to come. So if you have any interest stay tuned because I plan on adding more content. Bye the bye I've had all but a few sips from a bottle of fine wine (French of course) and perhaps this missive is incomprehensible.

To all a good night.

Ed

Powergrams July 1981

2008-01-26T18:15:00.000-06:00

What is Powergrams you ask? Why, it is the in-house magazine of Alabama Power. But why July 1981? Because on page 2 in an article titled Finding quiet places the following text and picture appear.

Alton and I were reminiscing the other day and he pulled out some photos of our early backpacking trips. That led to a discussion of the Powergrams article where it said we "have often been far from civilization." So I dug out the old copy of the magazine and scanned the two paragraphs and the picture.

Oddly enough the picture was taken by balancing the camera on a rock with the self timer enabled. This was our first trip and the only one we didn't complete. It was an ordeal. The night before we stuffed our packs with way too much. I remember packing a 6 cell flashlight simply because there was room for it in the pack. The tent on top of my pack was a Coleman canvas pup tent that must have weighed 7 pounds including the poles and steel stakes. See the knife on my hip? I made that knife and scabbard. The scabbard is looped on a wide leather belt which the hip belt of the backpack drove into the skin of my hips and waist. I had scrapes and bruises that took weeks to heal.

We began the day at the base of Mt. Cheaha with the goal of hiking to the campground at the top. Somewhere along the way I slipped crossing a large wet boulder and hyper extended my knee. This was mid-June and by mid-morning we were drenched with sweat and I was limping. We were saved by Dale South who was smart enough to start his hike at the top. He piled us into his VW mini-bus and drove us back to our car. Instead of eating the freeze dried meal we packed we had fried chicken from Jacks. We were both home that night to sleep safely and very soundly in our beds.

First of 2008

2008-01-10T22:38:00.000-06:00

January 10 - a special day in the life of a special brother (one of the two special brothers I have). Doug made it to 58 years old today. I guess he never would have imagined when he was a little guy following me around in the house in Bergenfield that he would get to be that old. I know I didn't think anyone could be as old as I am now. Later, when we fought like cats and dogs and Mom was down to her last shred of patience, we didn't think about the future we were only in the present. High school years we went our separate ways. Then I went off to college. I moved to Alabama Doug to Maine. Now on those rare occasions when I see him I realize that I do miss him and in our own way we do care for and love each other.

Now a little ego-tripping. I got mentioned in the Mary Day blog again. I am a frequent contributer to the comments section of Captain Barry's blog but this time he chose to take a section of an e-mail I sent him a month or so ago and put it in the blog along with a nice photo of me with my friend Alton. So if you're interested check out the blog at: http://www.mainewindjammerblog.com/

This year, I'm planning another trip on the Mary Day. Alton and his wife are going in June so I'm planning on my trip in July. It will be different this time because as of now I'm going alone. I have been looking forward to another cruise on the Mary Day since the day I walked off her deck in September last year. By the way, my little Mary Day video has been viewed more than 125 times on YouTube. I suspect that is almost entirely due to Barry mentioning it on his blog.

Fair winds, following seas, and good words to you.

Edward/Ed/Dad/Uncle Ed

Mary Day Video

2007-12-01T17:26:00.000-06:00

A weekend alone in Pelham. It's December and the temperature dipped to the 30s last night but was in the 70s this afternoon. A beautiful day but not Christmas weather. I suppose the weather in California at Christmas isn't too disagreeable and I know that Mom expects the weather to be sunny and warm unless it's sunny and hot.

I spent this morning doing necessary stuff like paying bills. This afternoon I went out and bought lunch, wrapping paper, bows and a Christmas tree. I then spent a few hours playing around with Windows Movie Maker instead of working on the kitchen floor like I should have. The kitchen floor needs to be the subject of another ramble but I find it too depressing to ramble on about.

Anyway, I ended up with a video of still images taken mostly from my trip this past August although I did sneak in a couple of shots from the September trip and a few from earlier years. I've put it out on YouTube where it will probably be banned because I used a song without obtaining permission. I have become quite a fan of Diane Schuur. Ms Schuur sings jazz and many of the songs Mom would remember from years past. Songs that are now called "standards." I have listened to this rendition many times but today it just caused me to think of the Mary Day and my trips. So I put together this video.

For those of you interested here it is on the blog. Mom (and anyone else using dial-up) this will probably take a long time to load. So either be patient, don't care, or send me a note and I'll send you a CD.

If you would rather watch it on YouTube here is the link: Aboard the Mary Day August 2007

A Walk on the Beach or Pelicans in Flight

2007-11-25T00:43:00.000-06:00

Late this morning the guys and I took a walk on the beach. "The guys" is a term we use for Mac and Bosco. The pelicans were feeding and flying around on a cool, windy, and overcast day. I thought some of the pictures I took might be interesting.

What is it? Look closely, can that be a bird? The pelican glides above the water looking down. It spots its prey and begins the dive. Click on the individual images for a more detailed look at this remarkable animal.
Splash down!Back to the surface. I wonder if it caught a fish. I was too far away to see. We see many pelicans but only rarely do I notice one with a fish. I think the fish is inside the bird before the bird is back on the surface.

Just imagine the force experienced each time the bird makes this kind of dive. Yet that is how they feed.

These birds often fly just above the surface of the water. Look carefully at this shot. I think its right wingtip is in the water.

A Grandfather's Boast

2007-10-24T07:50:00.000-05:00

No grandfather would ever brag about his granddaughter. Not much. We got this picture from Kathy the other day and I couldn't help but add it to the blog. Pretty good art work for a 6 year old! Or for a 60 year old!

Notable Insights from the Past

2007-09-13T07:03:00.000-05:00

I ran across the following quotes from H.L. Mencken (1880 - 1956) whose birthday was yesterday (9/12).

"Moral certainty is always a sign of cultural inferiority. The more uncivilized the man, the surer he is that he knows precisely what is right and what is wrong. All human progress, even in morals, has been the work of men who have doubted the current moral values, not of men who have whooped them up and tried to enforce them. The truly civilized man is always skeptical and tolerant, in this field as in all others." - Minority Report (1956)

On July 26, 1920 Mencken wrote an article in the Baltimore Evening Sun titled "Bayard vs. Lionheart" wherein he wrote of the presidency: "On some great and glorious day the plain folks of the land will reach their hearts' desire at last, and the White House will be adorned by a downright moron."

I think that says all that needs to be said.

Peace.

The Log of Ed's Third Trip on the Mary Day

2007-09-07T19:00:00.000-05:00

Sunday, August 5, 2007

We arrived in Camden at 5:00 pm after visiting with Doug and Joan in Waldoboro. When I got to the boarding ladder I was greeted by Saffrona, Jenny and Jen. Jenny was an apprentice deckhand on our first cruise aboard the Mary Day in August 2005 now she is a senior deckhand and a high school student. Saffrona was new to me; she is a student at the Maine Maritime Academy and was working as a deckhand this season. Jen (Captain Jen Martin) recognized me immediately and gave me a big hug. She told everyone on deck that I was a frequent commenter to the Mary Day blog. This brought some recognition from other passengers who said that they knew me from there. Saffrona said, “You’re the one who wrote the lyrics to, 'Sailing on the Mary Day'." which I modestly acknowledged. Jen also told me that they had something planned for me later in the week. She told me later in the week that they had planned on printing out the backpacking picture of me and posting it on the bulletin board in the saloon but Sunday evening they couldn’t find it on their computer so were unable to tease me with that.

I had been scheduled to bunk in the starboard single which is accessed from the saloon. Instead they gave me cabin 7, a double, all to myself. They did this in part because of my CPAP machine as it seems it was easier to wire cabin 7 than the starboard single. They also did not have a full complement of passengers.

Dinner on shore and then to bed around 10:00.

Mary Day III Day One

2007-09-07T18:00:00.000-05:00

Monday, August 6, 2007

I awoke to the pre-dawn around 5:00 am. Came up on deck to find Alton perched in the rocking chair. It seems he had had a bad night and was up since 3:00 am. Coffee was served by the mess mate, Jake, at 7:00.

Shortly before breakfast was to be served Alton and I helped Jenny and Saffrona re-position the starboard anchor by hauling on the anchor burton. When we completed that and had stowed the line I turned around to find Barry watching us. He seemed very pleased to see us and held out his hand for a hearty shake.

Breakfast, of scrambled eggs, kielbasa, and coffeecake, followed at 8:00. As the eating subsided Barry entered the saloon and greeted everyone. He talked about the week ahead and his hopes for great sailing weather. He asked each of us to give our name, where we were from and what we were world famous for. My fame, at least as I stated it, was as a frequent commenter on the Mary Day blog. He then told us that we had shore leave until 10:00. I stayed on the boat while Alton and Martha went ashore for some last minute shopping and looking around.

10:15 found all the passengers amidships for the safety briefing. Around 10:30 we loosed the moorings and the yawl boat, Arno, with Jen at its helm, towed us out to the Camden outer harbor. Once out there we had a nice fresh breeze. As is my now habit, I helped raise the mainsail, and foresail and we were underway. I went astern to help raise Arno to its cruising position on the davits aft of the stern rail. After we got it up and secured Barry said, “Ed, you still remember how to drive this thing?” I replied, “Yes, sir.” (Of course) I asked him what course he wanted me to steer and he simply said he had some things to do and that Alton was to navigate. Then Barry left the deck. So there we were, I had the wheel, Alton was diligently going from chart to GPS and back. We discussed where we wanted to go. We manned the helm and charted our course for a good hour and a half. When Barry did show back up he had his camera in hand and took pictures from the main cabin house roof of Alton and me.

We experienced good winds the remainder of the day. It started raining shortly after lunch was over. Lunch was a great minestrone soup and salad. During my tour of duty at the wheel the staysail, jib, jib topsail, fore topsail and main topsail were all unfurled and set, meaning we had the full complement of sails aloft. I tacked the ship twice. The rain slowly increased in intensity until around 3:15. By that time I was in full rain gear.

We headed into Mackerel Cove off of Swan’s Island and anchored. Barry said, “Al and Ed, you guys know how to furl the mainsail don’t you?” We hopped to it as the rain poured down. We furled the main and the fore, set the main and fore awnings along with the crew and maybe two other passengers. The remaining passengers seemed content to seek shelter in their cabins or the saloon rather than helping.

I had planned to make notes of our position and the time for each tack. That effort died before it even started as I was coiling rope when we got underway and manning the helm for the first two tacks. Alton and I handled the centerboard burton, and tacked the jib top. I also helped bring in the jib top.

Dinner was baked haddock with capers and onions. Mary had baked some great bread to go with the broccoli pasta. We ended with a tasty blueberry dessert.

After dinner I had a nice conversation with Barry. Nothing notable other than he seemed relaxed and I enjoyed the talk. In my cabin for the night by 8:30, read and wrote this journal until 10:30 and it was lights out.

Mary Day III Day Two

2007-09-07T17:00:00.000-05:00

Tuesday, August 7, 2007

Dawn broke over a dense fog in Mackerel Cove. I showered on deck (in my swim trunks) around 5:15. Jen came up on deck from the fo’c’sle and whispered good morning. Coffee at 7:00 then breakfast of pumpkin pancakes, bacon, and fruit (peaches and raspberries). Most of the passengers went ashore to visit Swans Island, I stayed aboard. Barry brought on board the lobsters for the evening’s dinner. Jen and Jenny rigged a hose to the large tub of lobsters to keep fresh sea water running on them. I helped take down and stow the awnings and made ready to raise the sails. I had an interesting conversation with Jen about the camel pictures. She said that they weren’t sure the pictures were real. I assured her they were and gave her the abbreviated story of how and why I was in Egypt and how I came to be up on a camel with the great pyramids in the background. Later that day she told Barry, in my presence, that she had talked to me about the pictures and that they were taken in a Sears & Roebuck! That I was just posing in front of a painted backdrop.

We weighed anchor around 10:30 with me helping with the anchor burton as well as raising the fore and main sails.

The winds were light all day so we had all the sails set. Dinner was on shore on a small island. My pre-dinner excursion was with Nadie (Jen and Barry’s daughter Courtney). She took me on a tour of her imaginary castle. I was shown the grand entrance, the game room, the princess’ bedroom, the throne room and much more as we walked along the edge of the beach. We got back just in time to eat. I only ate three lobsters and one extra claw.

After dinner we weighed anchor and pushed around to Center Harbor and Brooklin, the home of the Wooden Boat School where we anchored for the night. After we were safely anchored Alton and I smoked a cigar on the stern and had a nice conversation with several of the other passengers some of whom were smoking and all were drinking.

Below decks and into my cabin by 9:30. I read a little, listened to the NOAA weather report and wrote in this journal. The forecast for Wednesday – rain. We will see.

Mary Day III Day Three

2007-09-07T16:00:00.000-05:00

Wednesday, August 8, 2007

Up at 5:07 and the weather was overcast and cool. I took my morning shower and greeted Jen with a whispered good morning. Coffee was served under the awning because the rain was imminent. Breakfast was served at 8:10; oatmeal, summer sausage, and fruit. I was already in my full rain gear.

After breakfast most of the passengers as well as Jenny and Saffrona went ashore to visit the Wooden Boat School. I stayed aboard, in part because Barry told me that Jane Ahfield, our navigation instructor from last year’s Wooden Boat Course, was bringing her sailing class out to the Mary Day for a tour. For the last few days Barry had been teasing Alton and me that Jane was preparing a final exam for us and that we better be ready. Jane recognized me immediately as she brought her boat load of students alongside. She called out from the helm, “Hi Ed, it’s great to see you!” One of the students handed me the stern sheet which I held as they climbed aboard. Jane was about to get on the ladder and noticed that I was still holding the line. She said, “Well aren’t you going to tie us up?” So I did, but I must admit my rolling hitch wasn’t quite right, but it held until I untied it as they cast off an hour later.

The sailing class gathered under the awning on the port quarterdeck. I hung back but Barry called me over and introduced me as a passenger and a graduate of the Wooden Boat Course. He told some of the history of the Mary Day, talked about her dimensions and answered quite a few questions. He told them that he had to go because he had promised his kids a trip on shore. As he left he said that any other questions they had I could answer. In fact, as he motored away in the Arno, he told Jane to take down the awnings and raise the mainsail.

Jane looked at me astonished and said, “Is he serious?”

I replied, “Sure, we know how to do it.”

She looked shocked and said, “That’s too important, we can’t do that.”

I relented saying, “No, we were only teasing.”

Jane then started teaching again. She asked the class, “Then, how would we set sail on the Mary Day.”

One said he would lower the centerboard.

She replied, “Ok, where is the centerboard and how would you lower it?”

After some looking around and guessing they decided the centerboard was at amidships but they had no idea how to raise and lower it. Jane turned to me and asked if I would show them. I showed them the centerboard burton and pointed out the system of blocks and tackle employed to handle it. Then someone wanted to know how to raise the mainsail. I showed them the peak and throat halyards and explained how we manhandle the sails up.

Around this time Alton and Martha returned from their tour of Wooden Boat. When Alton came on deck Jane recognized him and called him over to her. She asked him if he could explain to her students the pin rail on the port side. He proceeded to the fore pin rail and began his explanations. Jane came over to me and we had a pleasant reunion. We talked a bit about how each of us was doing and then about Alton. She was amazed that he knew all the pin positions. I told her that he has studied them throughout the year and how he had given me a layout of the deck with the pins shown but not marked and told me there would be a test in two weeks. I also told her how we had drawn the pin locations on the white board in my office and together practiced identifying them.

Shortly after that the rain started coming down harder, the passengers were returning from their shore leave and it was time for Jane and her class to leave. They climbed down into their boat, we said our goodbyes and they shoved off.

We sailed off the anchor that morning in a fresh wind and steady rain. The rain lasted most of the day varying from a light shower to a downpour. Through it all I stayed on deck in full rain gear. I even ate my lunch of split pea soup and a salad on deck in the rain. When I went below to get lunch it seemed unbearably warm and close so I thought a little rain wouldn’t hurt the soup or salad. Under the rain jacket I wore a tee shirt, long sleeve shirt and wool sweater, it was pretty chilly on deck. Most of the passengers were in the saloon reading, playing cards, playing the organ and generally staying dry during the day.

At 3:30, the weather cleared as we entered the mouth of the Penobscot River and anchored. As the sun broke through the clouds the temperature climbed and I got out of the rain gear, sweater, and long sleeve shirt.

We had a dinner of baked chicken breast, rice, fresh green beans, and fresh bread. We celebrated two birthdays and two wedding anniversaries (31 and 51 years) with three chocolate layer cakes.

After dinner Barry was in the saloon playing guitar and singing to a very appreciative audience. As it was getting on toward 9:00 Jenny came down into the saloon twice with lanterns to relight them. Barry asked her if it was getting windy out there. She said it was and that she was having trouble keeping the lanterns lit.

Shortly after 9:00, Barry said he had to cut short his playing and see about his boat. The anemometer was reading steady winds of 20 – 25 knots with gusts over 30. Of course Alton and I followed Barry up on deck to see what was going on. After a brief counsel with Jen he decided to put out the storm anchor. Well, Alton and I hadn’t seen that done before so we had to watch and help out if we could. As we proceeded forward along the starboard rail the Arno, tied off to that rail, was bucking wildly through the swells caused by the wind.

Barry climbed down into Arno, cast off and moved her to a position just off the port bow. Remember, the normal anchor is on the starboard side. The crew threw him a towing line which he made fast to a cleat amidships in the Arno. Then he moved the Arno out against the wind and swells in an attempt to pull the bow of the Mary Day over to port in an effort to get enough separation between the two anchors. Barry and Arno strained for as much as five minutes to pull the bow around. Barry stood on Arno’s deck as the little boat’s engine churned its prop in the water and strained against the wind and five foot swells. When he decided the Mary Day had moved as much as she would he called out, “Ready anchor!” Jen replied, “Ready!” A few more moments passed and Barry called out, “Go!” The large anchor dropped into the sea and the chain rattled out the hawse hole for more than a minute as some 200 feet of anchor rode was released.

Barry brought the Arno around to the stern where Jen was getting ready to work with Jenny and Saffrona to bring it up on its davits. When she turned around to grasp the bow falls she realized there was a crowd of passengers there. I said, “Can we help?” Two minutes later the Arno was safely raised and tied off. Barry climbed out and onto the deck saying, “That was fun.” Jen turned to the group who helped with the bow and stern falls and very sincerely said, “Thanks for the help.”

My notes for the evening end as follows, “All in all an eventful evening. Things should be secure.”

Mary Day III Day Four

2007-09-07T15:00:00.000-05:00

Thursday, August 9, 2007

I slept in this morning arising at 5:40. I showered on deck in a 15 knot breeze and greeted Jen with another whispered good morning (is there a pattern forming here?). NOAA weather forecast: Northwest wind 15 – 20 knots with gusts to 30 knots. Before raising the sails the crew took a reef in the mainsail. The wind blew hard all morning. It took quite awhile and some unusual effort to weigh in the port (storm) and starboard anchors. We had the Arno down pushing to help bring in the anchors; otherwise we sailed off the hook. We set the main and fore sails before weighing the starboard anchor. We ran out of the Penobscot River hitting 10-1/2 knots.

As usual I made myself available to help with lines or anything else. Barry, Jen and the crew have begun to look for me to help out. We had a really great day of sailing. We anchored in Bucks Harbor. The wind was great and it was sunny and warm (at least it was warm for sailing in Maine). The sunset was fabulous which I recorded with a few pictures. In fact the weather and sailing was so good today that I found time to take quite a few shots.

Dinner was meatloaf, steamed summer squash, bulgur pilaf and cottage cheese and rosemary bread. Dessert was a delicious gingerbread served with a little whipped cream.

Mary Day III Day Five

2007-09-07T14:00:00.000-05:00

Friday, August 10, 2007

Today would have been my father’s 87^th birthday. I got up shortly after 5:00, showered on deck. Greeted Jen with my usual whispered good morning. After dressing, I returned to the deck with my book to finish reading it. I also took a number of sunrise and calm water pictures. Breakfast consisted of granola, yogurt, fruit and hard cooked eggs.

The weather report called for a sunny day with moderate winds. The winds were so light that we pushed with Arno until the wind picked up around 2:00. We hauled in the yawl boat and enjoyed some good sailing with speeds hitting 9 knots. Late in the afternoon the winds died down and we glided into Gilkey Harbor on the tide anchoring around 6:00.

Dinner was roast turkey breast, with dressing, green peas, mashed potatoes and gravy, cranberry sauce and homemade ice cream for dessert.

Mary Day III Day Six

2007-09-07T13:00:00.000-05:00

Saturday, August 11, 2007

I was up on deck and showering around 5:15. I greeted Jen, as she came from the saloon with two mugs of coffee, with my whispered good morning and she replied, “I see you slept in this morning.” Later in the morning she was anxious to tell Barry that I had slept in because she saw me as she was going to rather than coming from their cabin in the fo’c’sle.

Coffee was served with poppy seed muffins and pecan sticky buns. Mary Barney, who Barry calls the Mary Day’s Executive Chef d’Cuisine, is a treasure. She prepares wholesome, tasty, comfort food and is a gifted baker. I don’t know whether it’s the salt air, or being outside all day, or perhaps working the boat but I eat heartily but don’t feel overfed.

Brunch was served around 9:30 as we pushed with the yawl boat, Arno, toward Camden harbor. Mary had prepared three brunch casseroles one with sausage and vegetables, one with bacon, ham and vegetables and one vegetarian not to mention fresh bread.

As we entered Camden’s outer harbor the crew made ready for mooring. The passengers were asked to man fenders to drop into place if we neared some obstacle like another boat. Alton and I manned the centerboard burton with instructions from Barry that when he signaled us he wanted it raised handsomely. Jen left to get into their Zodiac while Jake manned the yawl boat. As we entered the inner harbor, Barry was on the VHF radio announcing to all boats that the Mary Day was coming into her berth. As we coasted in toward the moorings, Barry, Jake and Jen, working in unison, spun the ship around such that her bow was again pointed out to sea. As soon as the turn was accomplished we got the signal to raise the centerboard which we did with alacrity. We secured the burton to its pin and coiled the line. Then Barry called me to the stern and asked me to help haul in the mooring lines. We hauled in a ¾” synthetic line that was tied to a 3” line that we made fast to the port mooring post. We furled the main and fore sails one last time and our trip was over. We posed for a few pictures; called the crew over and thanked them for a great trip and gave them a nice tip that was collected from all the passengers.

Our bags were packed, I got the car, we loaded up and began our trek back to Alabama.

2007-09-07T01:31:00.000-05:00

2007-09-07T01:29:00.000-05:00

Reunion Pictures

2007-09-07T01:19:00.000-05:00

Hello all,

I haven't blogged i quite a while now but I saw something on here that made me want to contribute. I was looking at some past pages on the blog and ran across one that had Dad saying that he was going to put on more pics from family reunions and so I am calling him out to go ahead (almost 2 years later) and put those on. I Know he has been busy sailing around the world but he could take a little time to post pictures of the family. Anyway I just thought that I would throw that out there.

p.s. The picture is unfortunately the last costume that I wore as a member or Oregon Ballet Theatre.

Back From Another Great Trip

2007-08-18T10:48:00.000-05:00

A week ago today we moored the Mary Day back in Camden Harbor after six very interesting and very different days aboard. Alton, Martha and I left Birmingham Saturday and had an uneventful flight on Delta to Cincinnati and then on to Manchester. Hertz gave us a Mustang which was a tight fit but we managed. Sunday, after stopping in Freeport to visit LL Bean we visited with Doug and Joan. We went to the Co-op for lunch (a lobster roll for me) and then to the Pemaquid lighthouse.

We boarded the Mary Day Sunday, August 5 and after meeting some of the other passengers and the crew we found our cabins and began to settle in. Jen was on board to greet folks while Barry was at home with the kids.

Monday morning I was up early and enjoyed the peacefulness of Camden Harbor at sunrise.

We got underway around 10:30 and as soon as we got beyond the outer harbor we had a good wind. A great day of sailing ensued with speeds regularly above 9 knots. We anchored in Mackerel Cove just off Swans Island.

Each morning I arose early, usually around 5:00, showered on deck and then enjoyed the quiet while the boat came to life. I kept a journal this trip which I updated every evening with some notes about where we went, what we saw, what we ate, what we did and of course about the weather. I plan on transcribing that journal and will place an edited version in the blog along with more pictures. I have placed a bunch of pictures on Picasa at http://picasaweb.google.com/edemellier

Four days at work (I took off Friday to come down to the beach) were not enough to bring back all the stress I lost while on the trip. I can assure you that it will all come back. But I am looking forward to the September trip with Sarah.

The first picture was a sunrise in Camden Harbor so I close with a sunset over the Camden Hills taken on our last night on board.

I'm a Published Author at Last!

2007-05-14T23:07:00.000-05:00

This may take some explanation. You may be aware that I have been following the exploits of the captains of the Mary Day as they make nearly daily entries in their blog (see the link to the right). Last Monday the schooner returned from the yard where she had been taken out of the water, inspected, had her bottom cleaned, scrapped and repainted. Then this past Friday the blog announced that almost all of the topside painting was finished. Included in that blog is a photo of the Mary Day's stern with the ship's name noticeably missing from the transom. So I took a few liberties with photos from the Captains' Blog and sent the following e-mail to Jen Martin and Barry King (the captains of the Mary Day).

Barry and Jen,

It took some doing but with the proper research and the help of several search engines I found the following pictures of the Mary Day crew working very hard to finish the painting and the results of their hard labor... (scroll down)

After viewing the results of their work the crew realized their mistake and tried to correct it.

Okay, so I took a few photoshop liberties.

You guys do a great job, obviously with the schooner but also with the blog keeping the curious among us up to date and engaged. From my perspective it doesn't seem like you have a business with customers but rather a large network of friends who contribute a little money from time to time for the privilege and joy of sailing with you.

Looking forward to sailing with you in August and again in September,

Ed

Barry replied to my e-mail as follows:

Dear Ed,

Now you would think that someone who is keeping the entire electric supply service of the SE quadrant of the US up and running would have way better things to do with their time. So here are the options. You 1) have done a great job of "empowering" your employees to do your job for you, 2) you have empowered Al to do all your work for you between rounds of Texas hold'em, 3) you are so efficient that you can get it all done yourself with the stroke of a few keys and play a recording of you talking on the phone and typing that is wired to remote sensors that trigger every time your boss passes your closed office door behind which you are actually drinking lattes and playing sudoko, or 4) you are a veritable genius, the kind of person the rest of us are envious of, who can problem solve and execute decisions in a fraction of the time it takes me to type this email or 5) you are an insomniac with way to little to do with your free time. Have you though of taking up knitting?

Thanks for the belly laugh. Jen and I were delighted to see your "perspective" this early in the morning. Very very funny.

Have a wonderful day!

Barry

To my astonishment Barry posted my entire e-mail on their blog last Saturday. He added the following post script:

PS Thanks Ed, for sharing your great sense of humor, and giving us a refreshing perspective. A warning to you all, beware the perils of what you publish on the web!
Ed's agent, attorneys, representatives of the 3 major networks, and Ed's stunt double, infuriated over the miscarriage of justice and assault on his civil liberties have set the phone lines jangling. Who said freedom of speech is free?

In the meantime my friend Alton, after seeing the Saturday blog decided to send Barry and Jen a picture of me he took on one of our backpacking trips in the Smokeys. Of course I was not aware that he sent them the photo. My first inkling that something was up was when I read my e-mail Sunday night and found this:

This poor soul was recently seen wandering aimlessly in the Camden Hills.
Thank goodness for friends!

Have a great day,
Anonymous

P.S. We have Photoshop too, and we are not afraid to use it.

Tonight I replied with this message:

Jen and Barry,

Now that I have had a little time to settle down from the belly laugh I shared with my wife, Sarah, and Alton told me how you obtained the picture Sarah has suggested that I send two more pictures .

These are pictures of a man who you have sailed with on two occasions and who you have taught to man the wheel, steer by the compass, chart a course, pull on a line, tie knots, even operate the fog horn. Even though you trained him and knew what he was capable of you allowed him to book passage again this summer and fall. These pictures show him on his first ride on a ship. Now he had experienced row boats, canoes, cabin cruisers, the Staten Island ferry, even ferries across the Chesapeake Bay and Lake Michigan but nothing to compare with his first ride on a traditional ship with an ancient heritage. It was 1982, October, and he went on an adventure far from home, far from the safe shores of his native land to a world that time had nearly forgotten. He wore the garments of the men who have handled these ships throughout the centuries. He wore the visage of determination required to master and control the ship. He used the rigging and tools that tradition and long experience had taught generations of sailors before he came to the shores and climbed upon the ship. Many went before him and many followed in his footsteps but no trace of him remains upon the sea where this ship sails. The sands of time have obliterated all but the smallest memory and these precious photographs are the last and only record of that fabulous journey.

So I say to you: "Would you sail with this man?"

Perhaps you recognize the Camden Hills in the background with the waves breaking upon the rocky shore. No?

No animals were hurt during the making of this e-mail. All photographs are original and the property of their respective copyright holders. Any resemblance to persons living or dead is purely coincidental and not intended to depict any actual sailor. Caution: Pregnant women should avoid use of camels especially smoking them. Men should avoid riding camels if they ever intend to get a woman pregnant. Frequent use of camels can be deforming to the spine and posterior. Ask your archaeologist if camel riding is right for you.

Fair winds (it helps to blow the camel stink away)

Ed

Chloe is 6!!!

2007-03-24T16:30:00.000-05:00

Kathy sent some pics of Chloe celebrating her 6th birthday. I'm trying something a little different with the photos this time. I've placed them in a Google Picasa web album. Just click on this link and you should see her pictures.

I also put some other pictures on the Picasa site. In two albums there are some pictures from my trip last July on the Mary Day. By the way I've made reservations for August to go again with my friend Alton and this time with his wife Martha. So look for more pictures from that trip later in the summer.

To my surprise Sarah has expressed an interest in sailing the Mary Day. We have reservations for a four day fall foliage cruise in September. I can't tell you how excited I am that I get to go twice this year and that Sarah is going too. I sure hope she enjoys it and finds it as peaceful and relaxing as I have.

The Capitol Steps in Birmingham

2007-02-25T15:52:00.001-06:00

Friday night (2/23) I went to a Capitol Steps concert at the Alabama Theater and had a great time. The group is from Washington DC where they perform regularly. Their specialty is political satire usually in the form of popular songs with new lyrics. One of my favorites from the show Friday was "God Bless my SUV" turn on your speakers and click the link to hear it.

Then there is the portion of the show where one of the cast steps up to the microphone and says , "LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, when people in our line of work see a vicious scandal, they say 'what could be better?'" and then he begins "Lirty Dies." An artful and funny session of twisted talk that proves that a mind is a terrible thing to waste. I'm afraid you will have to read from this link but to be effective read it aloud preferably with someone else in the room. I found one you can listen to so try this link, "Gush and Bore."

Some Pictures of Chloe

2007-02-25T14:24:00.000-06:00

Kathy sent us a CD with some pictures of Chloe. These are from Christmas, her backyard and at basketball. She looks so sweet and demur. She certainly knows how to pose and smile. She also can be very animated when expressing her joy. The second picture shows a rather exciting little girl. I hope she got what she wanted!

The shots from their yard included this one. Is she just being coy or did the photographer request such a coquettish pose? I wonder if the boys in school have any idea what they are in for 10 years from now.

Click on this link to see a short movie of Chloe practicing one of her cheers. Turn up the volume, unless you're an Alabama Fan then you might want to mute your speakers.

Chloe Cheering

A couple of the shots from her basketball team. These pictures are rather dark so to see them better click on each one to open it up full screen. The first one shows Chloe's team in the dark jerseys, with Chloe's back to the camera, but look at the eyes of the "kids" on the other team (silver jerseys on the right side). It's gotta be tough playing against a team of 5 and 6 year old zombies!

One more from the basketball series. Chloe played so hard and got so sweaty that as soon as play stopped she just had to get the sweat bands off her wrists.

More Pics of Bosco

2007-01-14T13:50:00.000-06:00

I took a few more snaps of Bosco today and I wanted to add some of them to the blog. He is very gentle and very friendly. He seems to be quite comfortable here with me now. Last night when the neighbor's car doors were slamming he started barking and acting like he needed to protect the house.

Bosco's First Visit to Pelham

2007-01-13T13:38:00.000-06:00

I went down to Clanton last night an picked up Bosco for a weekend visit. We got home safely although he was quite nervous. So a little accident happened but I have to learn his signals. Then Saturday morning we had breakfast, threw his new retrieving toy and practiced heeling. He is a natural at retrieving and is doing remarkabley well at heeling. In fact we went for a walk over to the park across the bridge and even successfully tried heeling without the training lead.

A few photos shot Saturday afternoon.

Christmas 2006 - Fort Morgan

2006-12-28T13:56:00.000-06:00

Mom (Grandma) came to visit for Christmas. We spent the holiday at the beach in Fort Morgan. On Saturday the 23rd Mac and I walked out to the mailbox and I carried my camera. I took some pictures of wildflowers growing and blooming along the driveway.

These are very small flowers. Click on the image and look at the detail.

I also took a snap of our Christmas tree. It was almost dwarfed by the presents.

On Christmas day we called everyone and it sounded like it was a good holiday for all.

Mom left today, her flight from Mobile left at 6:00 a.m. it's about a 1-1/2 hour drive from the beach to the airport. She wanted to be there an hour early so we got up at 3:00 a.m. and left about 3:30. She got to the airport around 5:00. She was scheduled to get into Daytona at 10:52 eastern time. I'm sure she is tired today.

That's all the news from Ft. Morgan where the sky is clear, the temperature is around 63, the surf is rough, and the wind is out of the east at 20 - 25 knots.

Early November - Fall in Alabama

2006-11-13T21:13:00.000-06:00

Taken 11/05/2006 at Little River Canyon Mouth park.

I had a weekend to my self, the weather was absolutely wonderful. I took my camera got in my car opened the sunroof and drove up to northern Alabama to enjoy the changing leaves, the sun, and to relax.

Just two of the many shots I took. The light was great. The air was clean and crisp. A great day.

News from the Northwest

2006-10-12T22:01:00.000-05:00

Hello all. It has been a while since I last updated everyone with what is happening here with Jenifer and I. As I told you all before Jenifer and I closed the store and that has been a huge relief. Jenifer has now been promoted to V.P. of Romy. Because of this promotion we are going to be moving to Seattle which is rather exciting. I have also been offered a position as warehouse manager for the same company. We are both looking forward to the move and new adventures that these jobs will bring. I hope that everyone else is healthy and happy and I hope to hear from you all soon.

Some Pictures of Mac

2006-09-09T14:11:00.000-05:00

It's been awhile since anyone has posted so I thought I would publish a few pictures I took of Mac while at the beach.
Mac always enjoys the beach if he is not hunting for crabs then he is retrieving his toy. He just loves the water.

We got a name!

2006-08-23T20:42:00.000-05:00

After much deliberation and very little (okay no) participation from anybody in the family we chose Bosco. The breeder/trainer says she likes the name and so does Bosco.

That's all the news that's fit to print.

We Need a Name

2006-08-14T22:09:00.000-05:00

Name this adorable male chocolate lab and you could win an all expenses paid visit to the Labrador! Okay, no faboulus cash and prizes only the undying gratitude of the new parents. Okay, not really parents but owners sounds so ... well slave like.

Name suggestions so far, Willy (as in Wonka), Mo (as in SatchMo), Charlie (as in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory), Lord Godiva (well we couldn't call him Lady Godiva could we?), and Bosco (as in chocolate milk).

There is a deadline. We must decide upon a name by Sunday, August 20.

We are looking forward to meeting "____" in September the next time Sarah is up north. He will be staying at the kennel where he was born to receive some much needed training because Sarah doesn't want to try and housebreak a puppy from the second story of our townhome on the beach.

Add your suggestions as comments to this post. I get an automatic e-mail everytime someone posts a comment so your submission will not go unnoticed.

Hey, what about Farfel? You have to figure that one out.

I even did this post in recycled chocolate electrons to provide some motivation. Good luck to all contestants and remember all entries will be read by our judges and given due consideration before they are discarded.

YUM YUM

2006-08-14T15:24:00.000-05:00

I tried this recipe and loved it so I thought that I would pass it on. Next time though I think that I will add a little cayenne to the sauce for a little more kick. I also took the shells off so the shrimp could really soak up the good stuff. Hope you like it.

Chris

GRILLED NEW ORLEANS-STYLE SHRIMP
Serve these spicy grilled shrimp with bread for sopping up all the sauce.
Active time: 40 min Start to finish: 40 min

1 1/2 lb large shrimp (21 to 25 per lb)

2 tablespoons olive oil,

3 medium garlic cloves minced,

3/4 teaspoon salt,

3/4 stick (6 tablespoons) unsalted butter,

2 teaspoons chili powder,

2 teaspoons black pepper,

4 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce,

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Special equipment: 7 (12-inch) wooden skewers Accompaniments: a baguette and lemon wedges
Snip shells of shrimp with scissors down middle of back, leaving tail and first segment of shell intact. Make an incision along length of back where shells are cut and devein, leaving shells in place. (Shells will prevent shrimp from becoming tough on outside when grilled.) Toss shrimp with oil, garlic, and 1/2 teaspoon salt and marinate at cool room temperature 15 minutes.
While shrimp marinate, prepare grill for cooking. If using a charcoal grill, open vents on bottom of grill, then light charcoal. Charcoal fire is medium-hot when you can hold your hand 5 inches above rack for 3 to 4 seconds. If using a gas grill, preheat burners on high, covered, 10 minutes, then reduce heat to moderately high.
Heat butter, chili powder, pepper, Worcestershire sauce, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt in a small heavy saucepan over moderately low heat, stirring, until butter is melted, then remove from heat and stir in lemon juice.
Thread 4 or 5 shrimp onto each skewer and grill, covered only if using a gas grill, turning over once, until just cooked through, 3 to 4 minutes total. Push shrimp off skewers into a bowl, then pour butter mixture over them and toss to combine well.
Cooks' note:• Shrimp can be broiled on a broiler pan 6 inches from heat, turning over once, about 6 minutes total.Makes 4 main-course servings

News from Portland

2006-08-14T14:03:00.000-05:00

Hello everyone,
It has been a while since my last entry and I guess the big news from here is that as of 6p.m. pst. on Monday Aug. 14th House Dressing will be officially closed. It is a little bitter sweet but all in all a good thing. On the upside Jenifer has taken a job that has great growth potential and we are excited by the new possibilities in store for her. As for me, I am hoping to be able to go to school on a full time basis. This would be great so I could get off the 10 to 15 year plan and onto a 4 to 5 year plan, which I feel is a little more reasonable. Well, that is all for now from the great northwest, take care and blog soon.
Chris

Brian's First Time Checking In

2006-08-12T00:30:00.000-05:00

Hey there fellow DeMellier family members, Brian here, just checking in for the first time and trying to figure out how all of this works. I'll try to contribute something worthwhile sometime soon, but I just finished my second week at a new job, working in a corporate office type of place, (a whole new experience for me) and I'm kinda beat, so tonight is not the night. Perhaps on my second ever blog entry, I'll attempt to include some photos!

Return to Work

2006-08-11T21:42:00.000-05:00

When I left to go on my trip aboard the Mary Day I put a message on the white board in my office which said, "At sea on the 'Mary Day'." When I got back from the trip I found this:

I just had to grab a picture of it and put it here.

Another Month and Things to Report

2006-08-09T20:54:00.000-05:00

Wow, another month has passed since my last post. One would think nothing of any importance had happened in my life. I spent another week on the Mary Day. This time it was the Wooden Boat Course. The passengers were divided up into four groups of six and each day we rotated through four different watches. The watches were Helm/Galley, Navigation, Marlinspike and Bow. During each watch we learned and applied skills related to that portion of sailing a schooner.

So on Helm watch we learned about steering by the compass, reading the GPS, operating the VHF radio and radar as well as tacking.

The Navigation watch taught us how to read marine charts, find our position using GPS coordinates and dead reckoning. We plotted and planned our course.

Marlinspike included such skills as knot tying, learning all the ropes (47 pin positions on the Mary Day), and learning about the use of the block and tackle (pronounced "taykle") on a ship. We even had the opportunity to sew our own ditty bags.

On Bow watch we learned the rules of the road, the signals for different vessels, the duties of the bow lookout and I even got to operate the fog horn.

The Pictures (Top to Bottom) - 1. Me on Helm watch. 2. The red team (my team) on Marlinspike watch sewing ditty bags. Clockwise starting on the left that's Bill, Kim, Nate (deck hand) Peter, Susan and Alton. 3. One of the other teams on Bow watch with Annie. 4. The faculty and crew planning the next day's adventure, clockwise from the starboard, Nate (Marlinspike watch) , Bill (deck hand and Jane's particular friend), Jane (Navigation watch), Annie (Bow watch) and Barry (Helm watch).

It's Been a Month

2006-07-11T20:55:00.000-05:00

It's been almost a month since my last post. Sometimes there just doesn't seem to be anything to write about. Then there are the California DeMellier's who just seem to have lots going on. Alicia graduated with honors and her proud dad was kind enough to share a few pictures with us.

Can anyone doubt that she is happy?

Then there is California Chris who has taken up the middle-aged male sport of golf. With visions of a great future as a PGA star he has begun that long climb to the pinnacle of the links sport, the ultimate accomplishment of attaining the noble and oft sought after title of "Duffer."

Keep that left elbow straight, Chris.

But not to be outdone, Chloe graduated from kindergarten recently and her mother sent me some pictures:

Last but not in any means the least I got a wonderful Father's Day card from Jenifer. I know I've never recieved a more heartfelt note. Thank you, Jenifer, for the kind words.

ECD 07-11-2006

Another Week and News from California

2006-06-12T22:41:00.000-05:00

Tynna sent some photos of Chris. She sent them to show off his new glasses but what I see is the boy who is so much older than the last time I saw him. As I said about the picures of Alicia - time flies (tempus fugit) see I knew all those years of high school latin would pay off.

Ed

World Cup

2006-06-11T16:05:00.000-05:00

The World Cup is here and in full swing. All of us should sit down and enjoy a full month of the greatest sport in the world. I know for you East coasters the broadcast hours are better but interfere more with work hours but sacrifices can be made. I for one have been getting up at 6 a.m. to catch matches on Univision, the Spanish channel, because I don't have cable. I have also borrowed a 5 inch t.v. from a friend that I can use while at the store. The way I see it, this only happens once every four years so I want to try and enjoy as much wonderful football as possible and so should you.

p.s Go USA if they lose Go England

Alicia Ready for the Prom

2006-06-07T21:28:00.000-05:00

Wednesday night sitting here wondering what should go into the blog tonight when I get an e-mail from Brian. It seems his beautiful daughter Alicia allowed her picture to be taken before going off to the prom. So at the risk of violating her privacy I've posted the pics here.

I'm sure her Grandmother thinks her beautiful dress is a bit risque. I think it is simply gorgeous.

It is hard for me to believe that Alicia is all grown up. It is a constantly amazing how fast time flies.

Soon she will be out on her own. I wish her great happiness, health and love.

Uncle Ed

Parades

2006-06-07T19:41:00.000-05:00

I don't know how many of you know this but it is Rose Festival time here in Portland. A full week of activities including a fair, sailors, a Rose fest queen and way to many parades. My dad knows quite well how easily one can get caught up in the excitement of a parade here. The first parade is the Starlight parade which is kind of cool because as the name suggests they do the parade at night with lights on the floats. Then there is the actual Rose parade. Same as Starlight but during the day. (ooh ahh) The best of all the Parades though is the Gay Pride parade which really just seems to be a huge party stretching 13 blocks with a permit. It is a lot of fun and pretty easy to get caught up in. Definitely more entertaining than the other two if you ask me.

Wow Another Grandchild

2006-06-06T23:30:00.000-05:00

Chris - I'm glad you love your Missy but I really don't think she is as beautiful as Chloe. Sorry, son.

2006-06-06T15:25:00.000-05:00

Me and my daughter Missy

2006-06-06T15:17:00.000-05:00

Thought I would add a pic of myself with my beautiful bride Jenifer.

Chris's first post

2006-06-06T12:47:00.000-05:00

Hello everyone, this is Chris, Ed's son not Brian's. This is my first time blogging and I am not quite sure what to say but I thought that I would be the first to join my father on here and hopefully pull the rest of you out of the woodwork. I think that this could be a great way for us all to stay in better contact and reconnect. I know that I often have the urge to get in touch with Grandma to see how things are in Florida, or Doug, to find out how the fishing is this year. I would like to be able to find out what Alicia and Christopher are up to and how Brian and Tynna are doing. Yes, I have now called all of you out and challenge you to join and share along with my father and I. This is a simple way for us to stay in touch and maybe allow us to open up and really get to know each other a little better. Well, that is all I have to say right now on that subject so I hope to see something from everyone soon.
Until next time.

A Hectic Day

2006-06-05T21:10:00.000-05:00

I suppose most every work day is hectic. Today just seemed to fly by with one problem after another falling in my lap. Some I took care of, some I let others deal with. I often think that life should be slower with time to reflect and enjoy. I imagine that is the allure of retirement; the idea that one can slow life down, think, have fun, enjoy. I wonder, however, if after so many years of always being on the go one will really find peace and contentment in slowing down. Will having time to reflect lead to thoughts that are gloomy? Will peace and quiet be the harbingers of depression?

I started this entry with the idea that it would lead to some discussion of family and love. I got a comment on the Blog today, the first I've had. After all I only told my family about it yesterday. The comment was from one of my kids, Chris I assume. Each time I visit Brian he says how great it would be if we lived close enough to get together for dinner or drinks. I feel that love, I miss the feeling of being a part of a family. I suppose that is part of what I get at work. I'm part of a family. No, I don't feel the same sort of love but there is a caring and there is also the knowledge that the responsiblity I have at work does not require the same level of commitment as the responsiblity I share with my family. So in some ways it is easier to deal with work because I can walk away. I can't walk away from my family.

Enough of that - Over the next few days and weeks I hope to publish some pictures from our family reunions. They were good times and I think we should be remembering them.

Pelham - 06/05/2006A family reunion, '60's style.

Aboard The Mary Day August 2005

2006-06-04T10:41:00.000-05:00

Here is a photo of the Mary Day although not taken by me and not taken when I was on board I think it obvious that she is a beautiful ship. She carries some 5200 square feet of sail, is 90 foot long on deck, and carries 29 passengers. She sails the waters of Penobscot Bay out of Camden Maine. There are many beautiful islands in the bay and each night of our 6 day trip we anchored in a different cove or harbor. In the mornings we went ashore to explore the island. There was much to do and learn aboard the Mary Day. The passengers were encouraged to help raise and lower sails, anchor, centerboard, as well as manning the helm. One day we sailed on a long reach out to Desert Island Rock beyond which is the Atlantic Ocean. I had the helm for most of the sail out which I enjoyed immensely as can be seen in the next photo and yes I could stand to lose a few pounds.

One of highlights a trip aboard the Mary Day is the food. Everything is prepared fresh on board in and on the ship's wood fired stove. The cook is Mary Barney who gets up long before daylight to begin her long day of preparing three meals and a mid-afternoon snack. She even baked the bread when we had sandwiches for lunch. There is one meal not cooked on board and that is the lobster bake - a picture should suffice.

That's Mary Barney herself adding a lobster to the pile.

Check out the Mary Day web site at:

http://www.schoonermaryday.com/

Here is another picture of me taken by Jim Dugan who besides being a great photographer is a great guy.

It's been a long time and much has happened.

2006-06-04T10:33:00.000-05:00

Since the last post Sarah and I have become grandparents again with the birth of Dylan Conner DeMellier to Teal and Stephanie in October 2005. We have suffered through hurricanes Ivan and Katrina. I went sailing on the schooner Mary Day and became addicted to sailing. Kate is trying to get on with Gulf Shores as a fire fighter/EMT.

Some photos will follow.

Ed

June 4, 2006

2005-02-19T13:15:00.000-06:00

Cooper's Pond in my hometown, Bergenfield New Jersey. This picture was stolen from the Bergenfield High School alumni web page.