Our First Cruise: Day 1 (Thursday)

Part of the inconvenience of the power outage was that we were taking our first cruise on November 10th.  So dealing with the power outage and trying to get ready for that was a bit stressful.  Things like printing boarding passes, getting departure information, and even packing was proving to be more difficult than usual.  Since our flight was at 6:30 AM on Thursday, Ed and I also booked a hotel room at the airport for Wednesday night.  Thankfully they got power restored so that was not an issue.  When we got to the hotel Wednesday night, though, it was amazing to see the number of electric company trucks at both our hotel and those in the surrounding area.  While we were checking in, crews from the electric company where changing shifts--a bunch of guys checking in and a bunch of guys going back out.

Anyhow, my sister Cathy has previously been on two Disney cruises and earlier this year she decided her family was going to take a 3-day Bahama cruise on Carnival.  She sent out an invitation to the rest of the family asking if any of us wanted to join them.  Since Ed and I have never been on a cruise, we figured a short, 3-day cruise, traveling with "experienced" cruisers, would be a good opportunity to try out cruising.  What a trip!

Our flight from Bradley to Orlando left at 6:30 am Thursday morning.

Tim, Cathy, Nick, and Lexi waiting to board.

Me and Ed at the airport.

We surprised the kids and rented a limo to Port Canaveral.  We easily boarded without any long lines and were on the ship before noon where we had some lunch, the "drink of the day" and then toured the ship and enjoyed the beautiful Florida weather.

In front of our limo

Starting our cruise with our "drink of the day"!

The ship departed dock at 4 PM.  Our first day was spent checking out our stateroom and just walking around the ship.  We went to an auction before dinner (where at the end whatever you bid/won, you received for free!) and then all of us went to dinner.  Unbeknowst to me, the seas were quite rough and many people were in their staterooms instead of dinner and going to shows.  Of course, this was my first cruise so the fact that you couldn't walk around without swaying and holding onto things I did not realize was not normal (but Tim explained that to me).  Thankfully (depending on how you look at it), I need to take Dramamine or Bonine for flying (I used Bonine on this trip), so I did not have any problems with sickness that first night.  In fact, the rocky lulled me to sleep that night.

Lido deck; departing Port Canaveral

Our towel animal the first night.

The Year Halloween Was Cancelled

By now we are all aware of the extent of the damage and the thousands of people without power.  When all was said and done, we were without power for a week and without cable/internet/phone for another week.  Of course everyone has their own story to tell and here's a brief version of ours...

Monday, October 31st

On Monday morning we found out that power was restored at my work and at Ed's work.  So both of us went into work.  It was amazing the number of people at work but with heat, internet access, and running water I think folks took advantage of that.  I know I did.  I brought food in for breakfast and lunch for a few days and kept it in their refrigerators.  With power at Ed's work and a small frig/freezer, he was able to bring a good portion (but not all) of our freezer food and store it there.  We were also able to charge cell phones, refill water containers, get a cup of hot coffee, etc.

Ed also called an electrician he knew in Amherst and he was able to come out Monday morning and redo our meter box and wiring.  It was quite disconcerting to see we were now totally disconnected from the power lines, but in the end, it was the right decision.  Ed also went to the Spirit Haus to get ice and a cooler for the refrigerator food (thank you Marvin).

My sister Marion in Greenfield had power restored on Monday and my sister Theresa and her two kids (who live in Palmer) headed up there for the night.

Branches cleared off our wires but also showing the branches down in our yard and our neighbors.

Tuesday, November 1st

At about 3:15 am, power was restored to my sister Cathy's house in Hadley.  The previous night Ed and I discussed options for showering--going to the high school which was setup as an emergency shelter or washing up in the sink at his work.  But once we heard my sister had power, we both headed over there to get a hot shower and then head to work.

We were now getting into a routine.  We thankfully have a gas insert in our fireplace so we were able to heat the living room (although without the blower the rest of the house was still cool).  We used the gas grill to heat water and cook dinner. And after dinner we watched a DVD on my laptop (since I could recharge the laptop the next day at work).  Thankfully we had filled several containers with water before we lost power so we had drinking water and water to heat on the grill, etc.  We also had buckets for "flushing" the toilets and were able to refill those during the day with the melting snow.  I am also SO thankful for my smart phone which enabled me to text my sisters to get information but also be connected with the outside world.  I have to say radio stations were not a very good source of information, but Facebook certainly was and I think a good number of us relied on our smartphones to get and share information.  I know I did!


Wednesday, November 2nd

Wednesday afternoon my mother's power was restored and so we packed up a bag and headed over there.  My mother was so excited to have power that she cooked a roast for dinner that night which was waiting for us upon our arrival!  We then stayed with my mother until our power was restored on Sunday morning.  We got into quite a routine and I wish we had more time together.  It was actually fun and thankfully by the time we left, we all were sorry that our time together was coming to an end.  I guess that's better than the alternative!

Our shed is underneath there...so thankful that the garage and house were not damaged.

Saturday, November 5th

I have to say, we were lucky in that the weather all week was fairly good.  The days and evenings were cool enough to enable storing food outside, but warm and sunny enough to get work done outside.  On Saturday, Ed (with some friends) worked in the yard to cleanup brush, etc.  I worked in the house and cleaned out the remainder of the frig and also put away the Halloween decorations.  A crew from National Grid came by and reattached the wires to the house (since we were ready and waiting!!).  What nice guys and I thanked them profusely for all their hard work.  I don't care what others say, but I appreciate those who worked for National Grid and Charter to get things back up and running.  It was a tremendous mess and there was no magic button or technology that was going to make it happen any faster.  It was human beings on the ground, working hard many hours a day and I appreciate all their hard work.

Ed clearing the trees off the shed....and the crushed shed.

Back yard with the brush cleared and trees cut up.

Sunday, November 6th

Power is restored at our house! What an exciting day!! I can't remember everything we did that day, but I did use hot, soapy water from the faucet (!) to wash out the refrigerator and freezers before we restocked them.  We emptied out coolers and did laundry and vacuumed.   Cable/internet/phone was estimated to be restored by Thursday, Nov 10th.  So while at my mother's (and using her internet!) I added the hotspot option to my phone.  That way we had "some" level of internet connection while at home (which was invaluable!).

When all was said and done--we all survived.  We learned to "rough" it but more importantly we learned to appreciate all those things we take for granted every single day--electricity, heat, running water and family and friends and even strangers who reached out to help each other!

The Power Goes Out

Saturday, Oct 29th:  Evening

After we lost power, we finished dinner, put dishes in the dishwasher.  The snow was piling up much more quickly and heavier than originally predicted.  Around 9 PM, we could hear what ended up being branches snapping and crashing to the ground. As we looked out into the darkness it was only the shadows on the white snow that gave us an idea of what had fallen.  You would hear the cracking and a softer crash indicated it was further away.  One of the loudest occurred was when the wires were torn off the house.  I could see the shadow outside the office window and when we shone the flashlight out the window, we certainly could see the wires on the ground.  In my naivete at that time, I called National Grid to report it.  That was about 10 PM.  We then went to bed to try to get some sleep.  However, I have to say it was one of the scariest nights I ever experienced.  You would lie in bed and hear the cracking and just pray that nothing fell on the roof of the house.  As we were lying in bed, another very loud crash shook the house and we could see a large tree across the back yard and were quite sure it took out our shed behind the garage.  Somehow that evening we slept.  Waking in the morning light showed the extent of the damage.

Sunday, Oct 30th:  Early Morning

As we awoke, the damage was devastating...  Tree and large branches were all over the ground.  A second branch took down another portion of wires to our house.  Yes, the shed was crushed.  It appeared the house and garage survived unscathed.  Looking across to our neighbors, it didn't look so bad...a few branches down but his wires to his house were still intact.  Ed and I then ventured outside.  Ed moved some of the branches blocking the driveway while I ventured down the street.  That is when the full extent of the damage really sank in.  There were wires down across our street, many houses with wires torn off the house, tree limbs in the street and some still hanging perilously in the power lines.  The road was unpassable not only due to the damage, but due to the snow.  The total snowfall was closer to 18" than 6".  As I walked towards Route 9, the damage clearly extended well beyond our little, dead-end street.  Route 9 (which is a state highway) was not yet plowed and there were abandoned cars in the road and trees and branches down that only allowed a small, single lane to get through.  Wires were down on Route 9 as well.  It was clear this was huge.  The words used by several people to describe what we saw was "war zone" and that pretty much summed it up.

Back yard Sunday morning...This picture is pretty with the snow and blue sky totally opposite of the evening before.

Front yard showing the wires pulled down.

 

Back yard with a fallen tree.

Route 9 looking east.

Snow is Predicted

Today they are predicting some snow for the region.  It's way too early for snow, but they are quite sure it will hit us.  Snowfall totals for our area were at first 1-3", then upped to 2-4".  Ed and I went out to do our weekly grocery shopping, but got to the stores early since people were freaking out.  We weren't freaking out (yet) and reports were that power outages would be likely due to the fact that leaves were still on the trees and the weight of the snow would likely cause a power outage.

So after getting groceries we headed home to cleanup the yard.  We put away all the yard decorations and lawn furniture that had been out for the summer.  Although we usually don't do this until November, it needed to be done, so better to do so before we got a couple inches of snow.

I was also super productive and got the house cleaned, laundry done, and dishwasher run...just in case we lost power.  Last time we lost it for 12 hrs, so this way I didn't have to worry about what I wasn't going to get done on Sunday if we did lose power.  Ed also filled a couple containers with water so that we had some drinking water and water to flush the toilets as needed.

We were scheduled to go to Hardwick for a surprise birthday dinner for Ed's mother.  Ed was worried about driving back through the Quabbin, at night, with several inches of snow on the ground.  He called his sister Mary and said that we were just going to watch the weather.  Mary was also worried about Billy and Courtney driving from Brimfield as well.

By 2 PM, the snow had started--several hours earlier than originally predicted.  Within 10 mins, we had a good coating.  By this time, they had also upped the snowfall total to about 6".  So we decided we were not driving to Hardwick...it wasn't the drive out that we were worried about, but more so what we might encounter later in the evening while trying to drive home.

At 6:50 PM, while eating dinner, the power went out...

Columbus Day Weekend

Columbus Day weekend was absolutely gorgeous.  In fact, it was a bit freakishly warm with temperatures in the 80s.  We would have liked to go away for the weekend, but unfortunately I was sick with some type of flu-like symptoms, so we stayed home and did a couple things around home.  If I was feeling better, I would have spent a lot more time outside, but we found a balance between getting out and about and me being able to stay home and rest.

Saturday we ventured over to the Paradise City Arts Festival in Northampton. Some very cool stuff, but VERY expensive! Most things were in the hundreds of dollars and some were in the thousands. We did buy one thing (as a Christmas gift) but it was under $50 which was a rare thing to find. Part of the fun, though, was checking out the prices. A beautiful jacket for $800; a necklace for $4500... Really?? It was entertainment for sure!

On Monday we headed up to the Hardwick Winery and did their wine tasting and bought some wine.

On the way home, we stopped at the Quabbin Reservoir. It was a beautiful day so we spent time walking around the Quabbin and enjoying the views.  We even ran into a few people we knew!  I forgot what a great place this is to visit.

All and all a nice weekend!

October

My birthday was two days ago (Sept 30th) and lucky me has Dan home this weekend! He came home to play golf with Ed today (not because it was my birthday...but what a treat for me either way!). The golf tournament was originally scheduled for August but was postponed due to Hurricane Irene. So while the boys are out playing golf in the rain, I am doing laundry and putzing around the house. I just got done baking some apple crisp--one pan for us to enjoy tonight and then a smaller pan for Dan to take back with him tomorrow morning! It's a cool, rainy day and the house is now filled with the wonderful aroma of baked apples...yum!


On Thursday, 9/29, Ed and I took the day off of work and went to the Big E. Not the best weather...a bit rainy, but last year was a downpour and we didn't end up going, so we were determined to go this year. Walked all around through the State buildings and the Better Living Center...bought some gifts for Christmas and after checking out all the food selections, Ed ended getting a steak sandwich and then some Quahogs from the RI building. My only indulgence was a Maine baked potato...with the works, of course!


We then went to Carabba's for dinner on the way home and had a very relaxing, delicious dinner.

I couldn't ask for a better birthday celebration. Going to the Big E (which I love), having dinner with Ed (which is always nice), and having Dan home for the weekend (couldn't get better)! Life is good...

Nothing is better than having the family home together. I love them both!! Life is good...

September

After earthquakes and hurricanes in August, we were looking forward to a quiet September which it proved to be. Labor Day weekend was uneventful. Dan remained in Bristol since classes had just begun. Ed and I putzed around the house and had time to both get things done but also relax. We were hoping to make it to the 3-County Fair, but never fit that in.

On Sept 19th-21st I went to Tallahassee, FL, for work. It was cool here, but it was HOT there! Got out of the airport and it was about 90 degrees and humid!

On Sept 25th, we attended Grace's baptism. Grace is the daughter of our nephew Billy and his wife Courtney. After the Baptism, we went to Billy & Courtney's house. It was a nice day visiting with Ed's family (which we rarely get a chance to do). Below is a picture of Billy & Courtney and their daughter Grace and son William.

Returning to Original Treatments

On Sept 6th, Ed returned to his original chemo treatment--Avastin, Irinotecean, and Xeloda. He was definitely more tired for at least a week afterwards and also had some queasiness. Definitely not what he was used to with NO side effects at all. Mid-September he began to lose his hair. He could tell it was thinning but it was less noticeable to me.

On Sept 19-21, I traveled to Tallahassee for work. When I returned on the 22nd, Ed was losing quite a bit of hair in the shower each morning. By Saturday morning it was quite upsetting as there was hair all over the bathroom. Although Ed had no obvious bald spots, the amount of hair in the shower and on the counter/floor in the bathroom was significant and Ed was quite upset. Our first outward sign that Ed had cancer.

On one hand, I kept reminding him to be thankful...we'd gone about 16 months without any outward signs. So Ed called his barber and we went in Saturday afternoon to have his head shaved. Thankfully a lot of men shave their head so it's not like wearing a big sign saying "cancer" (especially since Ed still has his eyebrows, etc.). Unfortunately, though, for Ed, he is reminded every time he looks in the mirror.

Ed's Barber Matt....a great guy who kept us laughing through this momentous occasion.

The end result...

Other August News

Ed and his friends at Pine Grove Golf Course on "Hawaiian Shirt" Night (aka Johnny Pratt night).

Ed won this year's prize for the wackiest outfit.

In early August Dan took a road trip to Pittsburg with his girlfriend Cassie. They just went for 3 days with the primary purpose to visit his site for his thesis project. While in PA, they also went to see Frank Lloyd Wright's Falling Water and then also stopped in Hershey, PA on their drive home.

Dan and Cassie at Frank Llyod Wright's "Falling Water"

Later August was going to the beach again! This time staying with my mother who rents a place for two weeks (yes, same as the last couple years)! On August 23, we were all on the beach when we felt the 5.8 magnitude earthquake centered in VA. That was quite a feeling! I was laying on the beach and it took a few seconds before I realized the ground under me was moving!!

Ed cooking on the grill at Grandma's cottage.

Dan, Grandma, and Cassie

Ed and Dan

On August 24th, Dan returned to Bristol and his last semester of school. Ed and Dan were scheduled to play in a golf tournament on August 28th so Dan came home on the 27th. This was also the weekend Hurricane Irene was hitting New England. They evacuated the beach Friday at 6 PM and then the area we were staying in needed to evacuate by 6 PM on Saturday. Thankfully we had to checkout by 10 AM on Saturday so we were home safe and sound by the time the storm hit. And thankfully so wasn't Dan.

We lost power Sunday morning and got it back about 12 hrs later. Dan returned to Bristol Wed morning even though they were still without power in Bristol, but since power was restored on campus, classes were going to begin on Thursday (one day later than originally planned). Thankfully Dan got power back that evening so he only went 1 day without power, although his landlord and his roommates went 4 days without power!

Tree down in our backyard the morning Tropical Storm Irene hit.

Quite a month of activity!! Hopefully September will be quieter!

August 15th

As you may have noticed, there has been a lack of posting regarding Ed's cancer. That is because we've been holding it at bay. He's been on the same treatment (Avastin and Xeloda) since last summer and gets the treatment once every three weeks (versus every two weeks which he was doing originally) and no side effects. Of course, we knew this couldn't last...

On August 15th he had another CT scan and this one showed some growth in the tumors and some new tumors. So upon return from our vacation in late August, Ed went back to his original treatment which included Irinotecean (as well as the Avastin and Xeloda) every two weeks.

In addition, in July we unfortunately began to deal with insurance problems with 6 months of unpaid claims. This was eventually cleared up but caused us some stress in July and August while we worked to get this straightened out between hospital billing, our doctor's office, and the insurance company.

Although claims are now being paid, we are dealing with some residuals and additional costs as our oncologist is purchasing the chemo drugs via our prescription plan to address the insurance claims. What a business!!

July 2011

Of course July was kicked off by going to the beach! Our annual week at Misquamicut! It was a beautiful week! A couple mornings were foggy, but the fog burned off and it was HOT! Friday was the only day we got rain so Ed and I headed to Foxwoods that day.




Family was also able to visit throughout the week. Dan and his girlfriend Cassie were there for the weekend. My sister Cathy and her family came for a few days followed by sister Theresa and her kids. My mother also came for a couple days. So, all-in-all, a terrific week. I wish we could have stayed longer and had more guests...but alas, need to work and earn money to continue to enjoy these vacations!

June 2011

On June 16th, Ed and I celebrated our 27th anniversary. It was a weekday so it was a typical workday; however, we did celebrate the following weekend.


For Father's Day (which was the weekend after our anniversary), we went to see the Red Sox. The three of us went (me, Ed, and Dan) and we started the day by having breakfast at The RoadHouse in Belchertown. It was a beautiful day...hot and sunny and I even brought sunscreen with me (versus last year when we brought raincoats and sweatshirts!)!

An added bonus was that this was two days after the Bruins won the Stanley Cup and so the Bruins made a special appearance before the start of the game!

All-in-all, a nice day!

June also marked the end of our "choir" year at our church. It's been about 6 years that I've been singing in the choir. We had our party at the new rectory and spouses and family were invited as well. Ed and Fr. Vern get along quite well and enjoy the opportunity to get together for food, drinks, and conversation. I love the picture below, so just had to share it!

Ed and Fr. Vern at the Choir Party (end of June)

June 1st Tornado

Okay, I'm back tracking to catch up on missing posts in this blog. June...June 1st to be exact...the day a tornado ripped through western MA. It was quite devastating and touched many lives.

On that day, Dan and I were both working at ES. I was in a meeting and he overheard how a tornado touched down in Springfield. We both checked online and saw the video. At that time, though, we did not know the full extent of the storm. We thought it was an isolated tornado that touched down in one location...that's typically the only thing that happens when a tornado touches down in western MA.

It was a Wednesday, so Ed was playing golf in Northampton. No TV so he had no clue about the tornado. Because of the rain, he got out early and we all met at Arizona Pizza for dinner together. At Arizona Pizza there are TVs at most tables/booths and we all were glued to the news and the extent of the storm/damage began to unfold. We ended getting home before a second string of storms were coming through. We did lose power that night for a few hours, but that was it.

Overall, we were very thankful that losing electricity was our only inconvenience. Our nephew and his family live in Brimfield and the tornado hit less than a mile from their home (see photos below) but they were all safe and there was no damage to their home. As we watched footage and saw the damage in Springfield, Monson, and Brimfield it is amazing more lives weren't lost.

Most importantly, though, we were reminded to be thankful for each day and we were reminded how quickly, in an instance, lives can change.

Below are some pictures we took on Paige Hill Road in late September, four months after the tornado hit.

The Start of Summer...

A sign of Spring.

So much for writing monthly! But I guess no news is good news!! This weekend summer has arrived with 80-90 degree weather for Memorial Day weekend. It was only a week ago that we had a lot of rain and it was cold and rainy. Somehow we went from cold to hot...spring should have been in there somewhere!! I still haven't packed up my winter clothes, but I did bring out my shorts and t-shirts for this weekend.

Things are still going well for Ed. His last CT scan showed no changes and so Dr. B opted to go to once every three weeks for treatment. Thankfully Ed still does not have any side effects from the treatment.

March was pretty uneventful...still cold and winter. Dan came home for a couple days for spring break. We did go for breakfast at the No. Hadley Sugar Shack one morning. Lots of maple syrup on our pancakes! Yummmm....

April brought Easter and celebrating my brother Michael's 50th birthday. For his birthday, we put together a "memory" clothesline with little, cutout t-shirts with our memories of him. Then, the following week we all went to Goten (hibatchi place) for dinner--that was a lot of fun.

Dan on Easter at Grandma's with his cousins Matt, Nick, Lexi, and Ali.

Dan and Grandma on Easter.

In early May, Ed went to "Grandparents Day" in Westhampton for Amanda Tobin. He had a lot of fun. I guess "Uncle Eddie" is now "Grandpa Eddie"!

Amanda and Ed on Grandparent's Day

This spring we've been enjoying the wildlife in our yard. Lots of bunnies around this year and lots of birds...goldfinches, bluebird, pileated woodpecker, the hummingbirds are back, and we've even seen a scarlet tanager. Dan uses his cell phone and plays the bird songs and believe it or not, this does attract the birds. The scarlet tanager and the hummingbird was swooping around the back deck and the chickadees actually came and sat on the back deck next to Dan! Very fun to watch...unbelievable!


We've also got two Robin's nest in our yard. One is in the bush outside the kitchen window and the other is behind the Lilac bush. The picture above is from the one behind the Lilac bush...it's only a few feet off the ground so we can get good pictures inside the nest.

And, yes, Dan is home for the summer! Came home a few days ago. He'll start working at ES tomorrow and we're thankful they have work for him. He applied at a number of architect firms and there's no paying internship. He will be interning at TIA one day a week and he's got a freelance "job" (unpaid) for Kraus-Fitch. Hey, it's experience and better than nothing!

So life is good. Counting down the weeks til we get to go to the beach! It will be here before we know it!! In the meantime, we're enjoying the warmer weather. Ed is planting flowers (no garden this year) and I'm putzing around the yard (I am NOT into gardening!). Here's hoping I write more than once every three months! May you enjoy the spring and start of summer!!

My Mother's Day gift.