Winter's Bone

Winter's Bone is a 2o1o film I came across unexpectedly through Redbox. It has been compared by many online to Frozen River, another Sundance release I discussed earlier this year. Both movies profile a strong female lead isolated in a rural environment, recently deserted by the male in their family, and solely responsible for dependent children (FR on the Canadian border and WB in Missouri's bleak stretch of the Ozark Mountains).

Ultimately, the two women deal with their predicament differently. WB's Ree Dolly is restricted by a cultural code that determines how and when she can accept charity, when she should talk or keep quiet, and how much input she can give as a woman regardless of the severity of her situation. By comparison, FR's Ray Eddy makes decisions based on personal want and desire. She is limited only by her own small view of the world. While both women are to be admired, the relentless Ree Dolly is without a doubt the more courageous character and her success the more honorable one. Let me know if you feel the same.

Happy Christmas!

Santa on waterskis, an ordinary event in Washington, DC every Christmas Eve. Photo taken on the Potomac River near the Belle Haven Marina in Alexandria, VA and posted by the Xinhua news agency in China.

General Store

There's been a change in plans. The boat is being loaded onto the truck today and will still be transported to Virginia in early January but instead of going to Olverson's, Clementine will be now be delivered to the Lewisetta Marina on the Coan River. (There were several issues with the offload capabilities of boat yards in close proximity to Lottsburg.) This pic is of the historic general store that will soon be available to us. Online research tells me they sell deli sandwiches, make coffee, and have a reasonable supply of hardware. I'm still hoping they have showers and laundry facilities. Photo by R.W. Dawson.

Orange Line: Foggy Bottom (Kennedy Center)

A week or so ago, while on Florida furlough, I attended the symphony with my mom and dad. It wasn't until today that I realized it would make a good "orange line" post. All you have to do is take the orange line to Foggy Bottom and then catch the free shuttle bus to the Kennedy Center. This pic was taken before the performance began, even before the lights went down, but I was chastised for having a camera and had to pocket my iPhone. All in all, it was a very lovely evening.

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The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts

2700 F Street, NW

Washington, DC 20566

Delta Airlines

Over the last few months, I have travelled to Florida by train, plane, and automobile. It wasn't until my third trip on Delta that I actually noticed they have a logo. While the all-red "widget" received a lot of praise when the rebranding was unveiled in 2007, I didn't like it at first. I felt it was at odds with the rest of the wordmark, a little too heavy perhaps or not sufficiently coordinated with the type. Other critics have suggested the problem may be with the letter spacing and not with the symbol at all.

According to Delta's impressive style manual, they want to appear fresh and modern. Their typeface selection (H&FJ's Whitney) does this. Their approach to photography supports their goal as well. Images are cropped close with a focus on one small detail suggesting something "greater beyond the boundaries of the piece." The idea of mystery and potential resonnates with me in terms of travel but after three gate changes, one cancellation, and a lengthy delay on a rebooked flight, I think I'll give Delta a rest for now.

Fort Pierce

Clem came out of the water today and will go into storage for the next few weeks. We are paying C&J Transport to bring her north in early January. Cold weather aside, it's the only way to deal with the fact that Georgia doesn't maintain their portion of the Intracoastal Waterway and we don't have the ability to take her offshore. Florida has been a great place to take our shakedown cruise. We've learned so much and now have a good idea what work we need to do, both to improve our skill set and the condition of the boat. My next nautical post will be from Olverson's Marina positioned on the Yeocomico River in southern Virginia. Until then, on to different stuff.

Stuart

Here's what exhausted looks like! (That, and the lack of a hair dryer!)

So, we made it to Stuart and were right around the corner (so to speak) from the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway. Suddenly we were in civilization tied up to mooring ball 65 at the Sunset Bay Marina with a busy bridge and railroad track almost right above us. We were connected to the Internet and had everything available to us.

It was then I realized that s/v Kasidah was also in the Stuart Mooring Field! I posted a note to Jon and Arline's blog and they stopped by for a visit. Unfortunately, I wasn't on the boat. (I was in the lounge online, of course). They misunderstood my blog title and their conversation with Eric went something like this: Are you Adam? No? Well, are you Morgan? No? Do you know Leslie??? Later that day, I had an opportunity to speak with Jon and Arline and explained to them that Adams Morgan is a Washington, DC neighborhood. I didn't bother to explain that I no longer live there. I invite you to follow the adventures of Kasidah here. Jon and Arline: thanks for stopping by.

Indiantown

In spite of the difficult start, the lake proved to be a fine crossing and was a lot less stressful with s/v Antigone leading the way. After completing route 1, we passed through Port Mayorca, traveled another two hours, and stopped in Indiantown for a fully-catered 100%-free Thanksgiving dinner. The Indiantown Marina was exceptionally nice, the owners extending their generosity to all of those with slips and even those like us who were anchored out. They even let us dinghy in to use their showers and facilities the day after Thanksgiving. This photo is of the sunset we viewed from our boat.

Clewiston

It's been my practice not to bad mouth anyone or anything on "Leslie in Adams Morgan" but today I'm making an exception. After leaving Glades Boat Storage, we stopped at Moore Haven for a few hours, went through the lock, and then down the side of Lake Okeechobee to Clewiston for the night.

The Roland Martin Marina is the worst ever (although they do have an acceptable restaurant and a nice gift shop). The cleats on the dock are falling off and we had to try four or five electrical posts before we found one that actually worked. All of this for $56 a night, which is pretty pricey for what we got.

The worst insult, however, was when we specifically asked at sign-in about the canal's depth and believed the woman when she said 8 feet. I see on Active Captain now that the fuel dock depth drops to 7 feet but know for certain that it's much more shallow than that. Our 4.6 draft was definitely touching bottom. It was a tight turnaround but Eric made it and we were out of there and moving across the lake the very next morning. This map - courtesy of the marina - shows our route from beginning to end.

Martha and David (s/v Antigone)

The next day, we took off early and made our way to Labelle where I enjoyed a delicious latte at the Bridge Street Cafe. Life's pleasures at their most basic are a good cup of coffee and a hot shower. With that in mind, we slid like bandits up to the Glades Boat Storage dock a little after dark. We'd take our showers in the morning and be out of there before the office opened at 8am.

Upon arrival we met Martha and David, a cruising couple from Michigan who were headed for the Bahamas. They became our friends for the next few days and provided us with a lot of laughs, advice, and good humor. They even pulled us off a sandbar and didn't make too much fun of us for running aground.

Navigation Charts

When the weekend was over, we left Estero Island, passed through Fort Myers, and entered the Okeechobee Waterway which intersects the state of Florida. It was during this trip that Eric and I first started using charts to navigate our course. It turned out to be a great learning experience in a relatively safe environment. After a long day, we stopped at the Franklin Lock Recreation Center, an RV park with docks, showers, and electrical hookups. While the camp ground is nothing special, it's affordable, clean, and convenient. I recommend it for a night or two.

Pirate Ship

I've been away again ... in Florida, of course, but this time I started my adventure in Fort Myers Beach, a real tourist town with lots of restaurants, bars, and vacationing partiers. This pirate ship was docked near the Matanzas Mooring Field where Clementine was tied up. Twice a day, it blew canons and carried singing actors up and down the waterway. Their lively performance pretty much says it all.