More On "The Loopers"

SHIP'S LOG:

Another beautiful day here in North Georgia! The effects of the front are gone, the sun is bright, the humidity is low and there is a gentle wind blowing. You couldn't have asked for a better day. . . . . . . except for the gnatz! So much of the area along the ICW here in Georgia, and I am afraid also in South Carolina and North Carolina too, is marsh and swamp. It is also the home of billions and billions of gnats! They stay away when the wind blows as they probably can't overcome the force of the moving air, but let the wind cease to blow, for even a moment, and they are on you like white on rice! A generous application of OFF or NO Natz or some other bug spray and they stay off you but only just. The swarm about a foot and a half away, just waiting. Occasionally some daring gnats will make the attempt at a meal , bravely battling through the chemical barrier only to die after the first bite. If you have any body hair, the bug spray sort of stiffens it and so you feel the little critters crawling on it which is almost as bad as them actually landing for lunch. And like I said, there are billions and billions of them.

Worse, while not as numerous, are the green flies. These little buggers bite like horseflies and can draw blood. They are so nasty they will attack through your clothes! Luckily they too don't like OFF and the other chemical defenses, but there is always one or two who try for a meal anyway. They too tend to hover just over there, waiting, looking for a chance to snack. I don't think I will ever complain about mosquitoes again!

Some "Loopers " departed this morning and more "Loopers" showed up to take their places. They all seem to be from the mid-west - Michigan, Ohio, Illinois - and most of them travel in Trawler styled power boats. Most have, as they put it, "no dirt homes," that is their boat is there home and everything , except for what might be in storage, is on board. Of course, it doesn't stop the "kids" from visiting Mom & Dad. Two of the boats got visits today. . . all the way from Ohio!

Most of the "Loopers" have very comfortable boats with lots of the "necessities," like flat-screen TV, satellite dishes and washers and driers. One particular boat, the trawler"Jeremiah," actually has a lawn on the back deck. Not artificial grass or a green carpet but honest to goodness sod. Harry the owner says he likes to "walk on grass" every now and then. I asked him if he "mowes the lawn," and he said," No. But every now and then, when it gets too unruly or starts to burn up, I simply dump it and go to a gardening store for a new lawn."


Looper" also seem to really be into dogs. They all seem to have at least one. Many have two. I have never been a big fan of dogs on sailboats though I do know some people who wouldn't think of leaving "Spot" or "Mr. Jingles" ashore when they "yacht." I would just be afraid of loosing the dog over the side or stepping on it or having it get in the way in at some crucial moment. Perhaps they work better on power boats, especially trawlers.

I noticed the other day that I am down to 590 miles to Hospital Point in Newport News VA, mile marker "O" for the ICW. even with the stays of a couple of days here and there, the trip seems to be passing faster than it did on the way down. I suppose that is just perception, that I was going " into the unknown" while now I have seen all these places before and they seem familiar and so they just seem to come more quickly.

I got to meet Kim's husband, John. Kim is the woman who handles the boast coming into the Isle of Hope Marina. Her husband is an Army office and when I was here in November, he was due back shortly from Iraq. She had been anxious and concerned but he got back safe and sound. He's very tall and has a voice that starts in his shoes. He came by early this morning to visit Kim at work . . . just before he went off to play golf! He has a close friend who is the local pro and they guy got Titlist(sp?) to donate 12 sets of clubs and 800 golf balls to his unit back in Iraq. The had created an 18 hole course in Iraq for the troops to play. No grass, all sand. And they had to play in combat gear and boots. But hey, it was tension reducing.

Tomorrow it is off to South Carolina!