Cycling

On Sunday the 3 of us went to the Italian Festival at Bellview Winery in Landisville. What a gorgeous day! The sun was shining and temps were in the 60's. Wine tasting, assorted foods, and a band made this a memorable time. We came back with some of our favorites like the Syrah and Chambourcin. And we bought pepper pasta and an apple pound cake. Good stuff. At 2:00 Chris & Kevie took off for the vineyard tour and I left to see Nadeem.

Landisville is about 20 miles from Millville so I had followed Kevie on my bike. Got to Nadeem's house an hour later and spent the afternoon with him and the kids. Fun, relaxing.

I'd had bad performance problems with the motorcycle ever since I started to ride it regularly this fall and was glad to see that running a tank of fuel additive perked it back up. When I got home in the evening I greased the chain (5704 miles).

The Washer

We had the washer repaired on Columbus Day after the spinning mechanism broke again, $165. He replaced a belt and a pulley. He said that the drain hose was kinked where it goes into the PVC drain pipe and that was responsible for the problem. Makes sense to me that if the tub is spinning and the water aint going anywhere that it could tax the mechanism. The repairman wired the hose to the subfloor to try to prevent it from happening again but it kinked again after a couple loads of laundry so we bought a metal goose neck at Lowes and hope that we have a more permanent fix.

On The Town

Martha & Brian were in NYC for a short vacation and we met up Tuesday night for dinner & a play. Great to see them and catch up.

The last thing we saw on Broadway was Movin' Out and before that was Spamalot. I didn't like either one but on Tuesday we saw August: Osage County and it redeemed my interest in Broadway. This wasn't a musical and it had a real story. It was about an extended family that comes together after the father goes missing. At 2.5 hours it was a long play but the time flew. I liked the dialog and the character dynamics.

End of Our Beach Season

On Saturday we took the boat to Chestnut Neck. It took less than 2 hours to get there. Didn't go to Spring Garden this year. Asked that they repack the stuffing boxes and fix the float in the holding tank. Now it always reads full regardless of when it was last pumped out.

We didn't unload the boat at Sunset Marina thinking that it would be easier to just pull the car up to the boat and unload once it was on land. We waited for a couple of hours for them to power wash and block it before we got access and then Kevie made another trip on Sunday to clean up and bring back another load. Next year we unload a bunch of stuff before we leave the dock and then just leave the boat for them to do their thing instead of waiting.

On Sunday I changed the oil on the car. Turn the key to run (don't start the engine) and step on the gas 3 times to reset the oil change reminder light. Mileage was approx 128,700.

I put a new battery in the motorcycle and it started right up but when I twist the throttle it dies. I can rev it up using the choke and have no problem riding after I get out of first gear. Went to the auto parts store and got one of those additives that promises to clean the carburetor, put it in and after some 80 miles of riding it is better but still not good. Will run the whole bottle through and hopefully avoid taking out the 4 carbs and cleaning them by hand.

Entertainment

We saw Eagle Eye on Saturday and the consensus was thumbs up. It was one of the most implausible plots ever conceived but I thought Shia LaBeouf really conveyed the perfect sense of disbelief. Loved the action and special effects. They reminded me of a James Bond movie.

On Sunday we went to Bisque for a pre fixe dinner. Our idea is to take in some of the intriguing LBI dinner spots in the off season so we don't compete with the madding crowds. I had the steamed mussels appitizer, Manhattan clam chowder, and a pistachio encrusted salmon. Everything was fresh and well seasoned but the soup wasn't really hot enough. The big disappointment was the service. The waitress disappeared for a half hour after taking our order. When the appitizers finally came K made a remark about being forgotten and that seemed to accelerate the service and get us more attention for the rest of the evening. There are enough restaraunt choices in the area that I won't be returning to Bisque anytime soon.

Seadoo Goes for Winter Storage

Chris and I took the Seadoo back to Surf City Marina on Saturday for winter storage. The water was cold and I was afraid to go fast and get sprayed but he wanted to hit it. Such a change has come over him.

Aside from the normal storage I asked that they mount a ski pole and put in a new compression bar to keep the lid up. When we pull the inflatable toy the front lip will dip into the water and the inside where you sit fills with water. I figure that attaching the line at a higher point off the water will cure that prob. They quoted me $600 - 700 for the ski accessory.

I'll call to remind them as the weather gets warmer next year.

Night on the Town

On Thursday I met Vic for dinner at Winberie's in Summit. A nice bistro whose claim to fame is that it hosted Vic's parents the night they bought the house in Chatham some 50 years ago. The same house that he lives in today.

Later we met Jim S at the famed Rod's Ranch House in Morristown for drinks. Vic has been telling me about Rod's for years but this was the first time I got to go. Seemed tre elegant and it was a great place to sit and discuss the financial bail out bill till the bar closed.