Fishing in Virgin Waters 7.23.09

As if sailing wasn't adventure enough, we brought fishing rods with us, and Harrison was the first among us to catch among these waters. Lucky for him, this little guy wasn't big enough to feed all ten of us, so we let him go.

White Bay, Jost Van Dyke 7.23.09

Patricia Schultz in her book "1000 Places to See Before You Die" devotes a page and a half to Sailing the British Virgin Islands. Of all the places to experience in the BVI, she makes mention of White Bay as a beloved location in yachting circles. White Bay is located on Jost Van Dyke, the island that lies just north of Tortola (i.e. where we pick up the boat). The 3- by 4- mile island is home to approximately 200 people, and it's highway is an unimaginably gorgeous white sandy beach.

Our favorite place on the island is a little place called The Soggy Dollar, which is named for the soggy state of dollar bills used by those swimming ashore. It is the focal point of most who visit the island including us!




What do you do in paradise? We adults relaxed (hammocks are plentiful here) and played "hook" while the kids built a sandfort with shells, coconuts, and coral.

Halcyon III (Our Boat)

The Moorings, located in Tortola, BVI, is the charter base from which we sail each year. Home to many fleets and destinations, the BVI is definitely our favorite. The minute you step on the boat, your shoes instinctively fall off your feet, the steel drums start playing in your head and you begin to understand the island feel that consumes everyone around this place. It most likely is indescribable.

Our boat for the next 12 days would be Luther's 46 foot catamaran, Halcyon III (thank you, Luther!) When we arrived at the Moorings, the kids acted like pros, running through the base as if they knew exactly what to do. It was fun watching them as their excitement grew --full of knowledge of what was to come (this is our second year of sailing together). After finding the boat, within minutes, the kids had changed into their swimsuits, and were at the pool. It was the last fresh water (albeit chlorinated) they would see for a while, and they took full advantage.

Our night ended with Mahi sandwiches and some of the kids' left over french fries. Enough nourishment to last through the first Caribbean night.

Travel Time

Imagine a spend the night party with two 5 year olds and two 7 year olds where you have to try and rationalize why they need to go to sleep at a reasonable hour because 3:30 in the morning is going to come quickly. (Let me know when you find a sucessful approach to this!) John’s Cab arrived at 4:30 AM and we took 2 cars to the airport. Memphis to Miami; Miami to San Juan; San Juan to Tortola…a long day of travel. The kids did great; even the adults made it without too much complaining.

Let me introduce you to our crew-- The Finks: Lloyd, Shannon, Harrison, and Grayson. The Campbells: Glennbruce, Jennifer, Ari, and Iain. And, the Willhites: Andy and Mandy (soon to be a Willhite in October!).

Ten people essentially willing and wanting to live together in tight quarters for 12 days, 11 nights. Why might you ask? I'll tell you our story. An adventure that begins in The British Virgin Islands.

Anticipation

The British Virgin Islands is our place. For those of you who have been with us, you understand the anticipation. We're leaving for the islands on Wednesday and will be sailing for 10 nights, 11 days. Our departure can not come quickly enough. Consider this: White Bay and Soggy Dollar, Beef Island and Aragorns Studio, Bitter End Yacht Club, the far away sunken island of Anegada, Cooper, Peter, and Salt Islands (hello Conrad!), Deadman's Bay, Pirate Treasure hunting in The Caves, Virgin Gorda and the Baths.

Our bags our packed. Our guests are ready. We'll see you in August.

Store bought Corn? Not this girl!

Have you ever wondered how farmers can (verb intended here) and put up their vegetables that they grow for the long winter months? I’m a farmer’s daughter, but, definitely a city girl at heart. Why do all that work when you can buy it at EasyWay? All sarcasm aside, for years my parents have devoted an entire day to “put up” their corn. And, it's worth it! It’s a mystical process, because you don’t know the exact date on which this will occur… it’s usually an estimation (i.e. next week sometime). But, when the corn is ready, it’s ready. It must be harvested, and everything else comes to a standstill. So, last Saturday (the fourth of July no less… I told you everything else must wait!) my Mom and Dad put up about 200 ears of corn for the winter. How the two of them could eat so much corn is a subject for another blog. But, the fact that my 72 year old mother (with osteoporosis) stood in one place for 6 hours to do this on the 4th of July no less is a bit concerning. You’ve got to be kidding me!

Aching over curiosity, and not wanting to let this art die, I thought I might dabble in learning this technique before my dad stops tending to his 3 acre garden and sharing his fresh fruit with us! I’ve consulted several experts on the matter (my Mom and Dad, Mrs. Casey (from Iowa), and of course, Cooks Illustrated) and came up with simple instructions for those who are not as familiar with the farm. Here goes:

1. You must shuck the corn. General consensus is that you do not want to freeze the corn in the husks. But, I tried a few ears anyway (I have to learn the hard way). Most experts say that the corn will come out kind of mushy this way, but, I’m curious and courageous. And, I have a lot of freezer space apparently.
2. Blanch the corn. This involves boiling the corn for about 4 minutes, then, cooling in ice water. The reason for this is something about enzymes in the corn that degrade over time and make the corn lose its flavor, and blanching helps preserve the color and good flavor. I'll buy that as an important step.

3. After blanching, most will go ahead and cut their corn off the cob after it cools at this point. If so, the proper technique (my Mom’s) is to cut the tip off the corn and then scrape the rest with a spoon. This makes good ol’ creamed corn. You can store in Ziploc baggies, freeze, and enjoy when it's too cold to go to the grocery. If you are my children (truth be told... all my family), there is nothing better than Daddy Joe’s corn on the cob, and we’re in search of how to preserve the cob without it being mushy. Mrs. Casey, my expert from Iowa taught me that if you make sure the corn is cooled and dry before you freeze it, it turns out okay! She suggested that I not cook it for as long as I do fresh corn in order to keep it crisp. I’ll keep you posted on this tip.

I put up about 30 ears in about 2 hours time. There you have it. My lesson on corn. Please comment. What’s your favorite way to eat it?

Lemonade from Lemons

After church on Sunday, Harrison asked if we could go to Lenny’s for lunch. Lenny’s is an authentic Memphis sub shop, which my son should have stock in. He LOVES the place. As his father would say, “he’s a growing boy”. But, to mom, he’s eaten enough sandwiches in his lifetime to waste away his college education! So, you can imagine the disappointment when I suggested that we eat at home because of the expense of the suggested stop.

Without hesitation my 7-year old plainly made this profound observation: “It’s about time that I go to work and earn some money for this family.” His entrepreneurial spirit was as high as the heat. With it being 100 degrees outside, I was hesitant, but, figured he could always drink some of his inventory. For nearly 2 hours my children would wave at passers and with their charm were able to earn about $5. It was about the cutest thing you’ve ever seen. We’ve worked the stand one more time since then, and I’m happy to report that we might have enough money for a turkey sandwich. We’ll have to split it 4 ways.

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