Dispatches from fly fishing for striped bass and more along the Jersey Shore and the Delaware River
theaverageangler.com 732.261.7291 colin@theaverageangler.com
"Ya'll gonna make me lose my mind, up (in) here and down there"..... That's of course an edited line from the 1999 song from DMX titled, Party Up. Funny, I've had a lot of musical referrals lately, don't know what that's about. Anyway in today's “I'm losing my mind post” here's one that most guys, sorry girls, might agree with me on.
So imagine this. A middle-aged man at 58, middle-aged runs from 40-65, is in the midst of blowing up his life, for the better, and has, or is about to, "lose" everything he had and knew about himself. Now, truth be told, losing most of what I had or have is a good and healthy thing. People ask, "Don't you feel better?", and yes I do. The weighted-blanket of all the shit I have lugged around for years, most of it used, damaged, or even unused, could be criteria for some mental health disorder. I liken our "stuff" to having a towel wrapped around you when you get out of the shower with people in the bathroom.
Heading down to a 55 and over sounds like a dream, and it is, but it's scary as hell as well. My parents just did this at 78 and it was a HUGE adjustment for them. Going from the big house down to a more respectable house in a 55 and over. Now 78 and 58 is different, 78 is a senior citizen. At that age you're lucky to be rolling into a 55 and over and not an assisted living facility. But the point is they had to downsize in a big way, although they still have three storage units filled with things they need to edit through. I can say it's hard to "get rid of it all", but we have done a yeoman's job in doing that, but there's still just stuff.
Sun City Hilton Head is a huge complex. It covers 5,800 acres, has about 20,000 residents living in 10,000 homes. It's really a small town that is split by Beaufort and Jasper Counties. It started in 1996 and has grown exponentially in the last eight years as the flight of New Yorkers, Jerseyan's, and Pennslytuckians, flee the northeast. As we've looked for a home down there we have become half-ass experts, or at least more in the know. There's four sections, and each has its goods and bads. Older you get stucco and pop-corn ceilings but beautiful mature landscaping and newer you get new with none of the old stuff but they sit on clear cut lands and are stuffed in like sardines.
The only way I can describe new or newer construction is to refer you back to the final scene in "Goodfellas". It's there that Henry Hill, played by Ray Liotta, is shown adjusting to his new life in the witness-protection program.
And that's the part that's scary to me. Now the Tobacco Road yard that I've kept, which reminds me Sanford & Son, isn't mentally normal, but it is still a part of me and I don't know how I can let that go. So basically it comes down to a white-trash guy trying to fit into a non white-trash way of living.
In our search we've went from small, to medium, to bigger, and now back down to small. Basically everything in a 55 and over is two bedrooms and two bathrooms. If you need or got it like that more money gets you an office, a Carolina room, and a lanai. Of course upgrades drive up the price. One of those upgrades is an "extended garage", which is a whopping four more feet. But hey, they say size doesn't matter, but every inch counts, especially when you're downsizing.
And what I have seen is people who have made the jump design, stack, and cram, everything they couldn't get rid or, or need, into these cookie-cutter homes. Sometimes it's in the closets, in the pull-down access attics, or some wildly designed garages with things that slide, stack, and even hang off the ceiling. And in those garages are a slice of a guys past. A small toolbox, a table for tinkering, maybe even an electric lawnmower or edge trimmer, if landscaping in that part of the complex isn't covered by the HOA fees, and of course golf clubs or a fishing pole. There's nothing on the outside of the homes, no tools, no kayaks, no broken rotor-tillers, no garbage cans, nothing. It's sterile. It's tight. And it is questionable for privacy. And then there's the booming business of storage units. I don't want one, and don't want to pay monthly for one.
And what about privacy out here in Titusville. Honestly, these days, I piss outside more then I do inside. It's my way from anything from happening in the house, a house we don't even feel like is our's anymore. Needless to say I'm not stepping out of my 55-and over home and releaving myself in the bushes without someone seeing me. But maybe that does happen more often than not down there as dementia sets in, but not from a 58 year-old.
And what will I do with the boat? And all my fly tying and fishing stuff? The garage is supposed to be a place to park the golf cart and maybe a beach umbrella and some chairs. Tools- I don't want to see them anymore. So I, well we, came up with a solution. Buy a smaller place that really lives like a vacation home. Minimal stuff with all of the space livable. Buying small would mean less expensive, and that could leave some money to buy a place outside of the the bubble that is Sun City.
I found the above absolute perfect solution to my problem. A place to store the boat, all of my shit, a place to go and tinker and escape the sterility that is a 55 and over community. Luke can run the fenced in yard while I sit and feel like a man again.
Can you imagine the Jones parked under there? And the building could be just a great hang. I'll even bring my new buds up there when they need to escape for a bit. It seems like it's perfect. And the beauty is it's 20 minutes from two boat launches into the Broad River. Need I say more?
And on top of everything else it could be a good investment. While it's in a mixed use occupancy neighborhood now, that hood is changing. Just look at what's literally across the street now.
And when I look at Google Earth there are several foundations laid for similar type houses going up all along that street. I say go all in. Use it for a few years. Get my Tobacco Roadness out of my system before actually settling into true 55 and over living and then sell it to the developers, hopefully for a profit. But the truth is may be under contract or sold already, but it seems like it's a real solid plan that checks off a lot of boxes.
There's so many moving parts with this move, and for that to all work out. Unfortunately we have to wait for the closing here before we can make some of these moves. I've made a ton of dumb decisions in my life and this could be another, or actually one that makes sense all the way around. Stay tuned and follow the bouncing ball. But if you come and visit, we'll sight for reds and then head back to "Archer's Corner" to wash the boat, have a beer, and sit inside the air conditioned sugar shack. With electric, city water and sewer, already on the property we can go to the bathroom inside, like normal people.
While I had no part of the spring run of 2026 I have heard from a bunch of people that is was the best, maybe not ever, but in a long , long time. Usually it's the boat guys touting "epic" days which leaves surfcasters and fly rodders envious, and at times angry. But this spring it was great for the anglers who like boots in the sand.
The internet wasn't full of bad fish pics as much as I've seen in the past, Yes the above looks bad, but it's just a little nosebleed from a big eel hook that found the wrong vein. The bigger the hook the bigger the barb. If guys just pushed down those barbs I swear that would happen less.
The above poor chap had his face rearranged but after it "healed" it needed to continue to eat, and survive. While it may have "swam away strong" the damage that was done is obvious. I'm not trying to take a tree-hugger PETA stance but seeing pics like this always kinda bum me out. These fish are really beautiful, and resilient, obviously.
And was 2026 the year of the glide bait. Glide baits, and I'm no expert on them, were really designed as a freshwater lure. But over the past few years guys have brought them to the saltwater game with great results. They are articulated and have great action in the water, especially when there's herring or bunker around to mimic. The only problem with them is that second set of trebles, which can find their way deep down the gullet when a striped bass inhales
them. The second set of trebles down the hatch can easily find their way into the gill rakers, and once nicked, can cause an arterial bleed which can be fatal to the fish. They say replacing the trailing hooks with a flag impedes the action of the lure, so it is what it is.
I did miss out on the Delaware River this year, but that's okay. Last year was a great year for me and the best as far as numbers in the eight years since we moved here. Those memories
are etched into my brain and got me through not going this year. I can honestly say I never drove past the river this spring and felt I was missing out. The river was low and warm and just not appealing. But I do miss the fish, and the tank, and spending time just watching them rehab before their release.
And this year was good to the fly anglers along the Jersey Shore as well. Yes, the boat folks did well, but the sand walkers and jetty hoppers had a hoot of a time, especially at The Hook. While I heard there was always a ton of participation out there, between spin, bait, and fly, the fish, and good ones, were where the should always be and they were there for the taking. Fish to the mid-40 inch range weren't uncommon, and that's a great fish especially when the current is ripping at The Bug Light or The False Hook.
I've been having some dreams about the Vineyard this year. During my 13 years of going there I've never had it like they used to. When I would come back to the ranch and tell them I saw 20 fish and caught fish to 30 inches Bob would always kinda say, "That's cute", as he would remind me there were years when pods of 20-pounders would cruise the flats. I just have a feeling, with all the big fish we've been seeing as of late, that this could be my year to get a taste of what it used to be like. Of course the sun and the wind have to cooperate but I'm ready. It's also this year where I might be convinced that Dogfish Bar is a great place to fish as I've never seen much for fish and don't even know if I've caught one there. It's a little over a week before I head north, and I can't wait.
And in the "Another One Bites the Dust" category, we've lost another house down in South Carolina. Soon after we put in our offer on the above house another offer came in and somehow we were out. That's okay, things happen for good reason. We actually still own this house in New Jersey, and it's always, "It's not over till it's over", so maybe that's good that it fell though. While we're under a solid contract there's still a well and septic inspection the town requires, and the sellers are sending over their asbestos mediation contractor this Thursday, but that's on them. But, things can still go sideways. So we're going to pause on the search and driving our southern real estate agent nuts by having her run around previewing houses for us. In the end it's probably better to close up here and go down and buy down there. It's cleaner and easier. But then what do we do with our stuff? We'll see.
We do like our plan of selling our place in Cape May and upgrading within the same resort. I went ahead and teased it out on Facebook on the Cape Island Resort Friends page and got a few inquiries.
This is really a time of upsetting the apple cart in terms of our lives. We've blown up every thing was our day to day for years. Our closets, our possessions, our vehicles, our houses, all sifted through and scaled down for a new beginning. And while we think "We've gotten rid of everything", there's a ton more to edit down and get rid of. It's the stupid little stuff that gets thrown into bins and boxes which are just a weighted-vest that we refuse to take off.
And while my new to me 2004 Suburban has been a joy to own for the last month it comes with a few things that need to be addressed. I noticed some soft grinding from the front wheel when I turn right and the other day I jacked her up and had that up and down and side to side movement in the wheel. That's a wheel bearing and hub that needs to be replaced.
I replaced them before on the old Silverado so I think it should be a quick fix. Luckily there's zero rust on the Suburban so my fingers are crossed. I thought about going with Timpken or Moog, but settled for TRQ. I know AC Delco OEM should always be the first choice, but I wasn't going for that $$$$. I'm rolling the dice with A1 Auto, who have great tutorial videos to go along with their products. And lucky for me I dug through the ratchets and sockets I didn't sell and have that 36 mm socket for the wheel bearing locknut, which hopefully just spins off without a problem. That may be Friday's project, on top of mowing the grass once again, trimming the hedges, and going through the seasonal decorations in the attic.
I can't wait for this to all end and for life to get simpler.
A little after a year since a resolution was passed in New Jersey making June 1st Bob Popovic's Day family and friends gathered at The Shady Rest and the rose garden to remember Bob. I wasn't able to attend but those that went had great weather for the gathering. If I didn't have to give the students their mid-term exam I might have made my way down there.
It was about this time each year when it was the final countdown for the Martha's Vineyard trip. Each year it was a hold-your-breath time to see if Bob would make the trip. And one of the big reasons if he was in or not was the status of the roses. I don't know roses, but it came down to the flush, or the bloom, or whatever it's called. Was it a good weather and rainy spring? Would they pop early or later? If the timing was right he was in, if not, "I'll see you guys next year".
One of my favorite pics of Bob was taken by Tom Lynch. It shows Bob in a pensive moment admiring his roses in Shady Rest Rose Garden, probably accompanied by his cat. He was a many of many talents and passions, obviously fly tying and fishing, but roses, cats, pizza, The Shady, and of course his family and friends, and well strangers as well. No doubt I'll think of Bobby as I make the drive and jump of the ferry next week. I need this trip this year.
And to illustrate how guys, and gals, feel about their rides I bring you this update. A few weeks ago I sold my 2002 Silverado. It was the one where I proudly constructed a home-made bed for it. It was during the last hours of our estate sale when a guy say the "For Sale" signed I planted on it in the driveway. It took about 10 minutes for him to decide he wanted it. When he told me he was thinking of putting on a separate bed I was like, "Okay, but why?", as I was proud of my craftsmanship.
After I purchased the 2004 Suburban and had it painted at Maaco, more on that later, I of course sent the previous owner a picture. People get attached to their vehicles, and he was happy to see her in all her facelift glory. So yesterday I received the below pic from the new Silverado owner. He went and did exactly what he told me he planned to do.
He went and put on a "real" bed which suits is needs for his landscaping company and boy does it look legit. I'm kinda sad to see all of the hours I put into making the old bed be for
naught, but that's what happens when you sell things. The same will be said for what the new owners of our house will do to it shortly after we close, which will be on or before July 15th, according to the binding contract we have down in writing.
This is a busy time and we feel like we're in limbo. House here under contract, searching and making offers on houses down in South Carolina, and now the move to sell and upgrade down in Cape May. It's stressful, and overwhelming, having so many moving parts. And there's still a ton to do, septic and well water inspections, tackling the attic, filling and getting rid of the dumpster, and ending my time teaching at Capital Health. By August 1st this will all be over and every facet of our lives will begin anew. I can't believe it's all going down as planned. Needless to say we are very blessed and thankful and grateful.
Each winter we hem and haw about our place in Cape May. It always makes me think of the 1982 song from The Clash, “Should I stay or should I go". It's during the winter months we have to cough up $9,400 for the fees to have a place at Cape Island Resort. When we're not down there it's easy to forget how much we love it there. The "rent" allows us to have the place from April 15th through October 31st. They take care of everything including the pool and amenities. And it's just a stones throw from Cape May. We stuck it out this year and when we pulled in we were glad we did.
But the biggest pain in the ass with a seasonal place is the dreaded opening and closing. With prepping for the Titusville house sale we were late to the party this spring, and paid for it this weekend. With all the weather we had it was overgrown and needed to be weeded, power washed, awning put up, and decorated.
We got down on Saturday with chilly and windy weather but on Sunday it was beautiful. While it was a working trip we did get to grab a bite and beer from the C-View Inn, a place I would recommend if you don't want to drop a ton of money just to grab a bite.
We woke up Sunday with a new plan. We're thinking we should upgrade our place at Cape Island. The screened in porch is great, it's that putting up and taking down that awning that sucks. Luckily this weekend our friends were down as gave us a much needed hand. Once it's up it's good, but I've been putting it up and taking it down for six years. A hard top enclosed room is the way to go. The inside at are place is functional, but we'd like to do it over and then it’s a question if it’s worth it or not. So we took a look at what's around and maybe found an option.
Having a dedicated "tiny house" might be the way to go if we plan on being reverse sunbirds. winter down in South Carolina and head back to Cape May for the summer. It's a little more solid, newer, and has a double loft and enclosed porch with that hard top. That means it can sleep a bunch of people.
But getting it would change our plans up a bit for down south. The home we pick down there may wind up being a tad smaller, the gold cart might have to wait, and the boat refurbishment, might be on hold. This place is on a quiet tree lined street which helps keep it cool in the summer and doesn't tax the air conditioners. We'd probably be looking at $45,000, and part of that could be offset by the sale of our place, which we're looking to get $18,000 for hopefully, which includes the 2026 fees of $9,400. So for nine grand you'd have a place in Cape May for six + months out of the year. Call or text me if you want it, 732 261 7291.
By Sunday night we were beat, but did good work down there. It's pretty much ready to go for the summer. I tossed the outdoor chairs last year and the umbrellas are faded so new ones
would make the place pop. There's no neighbors on the yard side so there's a ton of privacy, perfect when you're having a campfire at night. It's a really great hang.
So for about $10,000 a year you'd have a place in Cape May, and right next to Wildwood, for $1,500 a month. Again, go and rent a place for a week these days. You can let family or friends use it, you just can't rent it out, which is a blessing. No in and outs, and you know you're neighbors, and we look out for each other and our places when people aren't down. And the best part is I'll be right around the corner, kidding of course.
This whole move thing is very fluid, and our expectations are low. In the end it will all be what it is. Selling in Jersey, buying in South Carolina, and now maybe making a move in Cape May, there's a lot of moving parts, and plenty that could derail everything. Fingers crossed, God willing, we're on our way to a better and simpler way of life.
I saw the above picture on Abe Pieciak's Facebook page while scrolling the other day. Of course it caught my eye. It was the S.S. Archer ready and waiting for use on Menemsha Pond. It seems like only yesterday I dragged Theresa down to North Philly to meet with a mad scientist
who designed and built her, HERE. That was in January 2024. I saw the ad on, but where else, Facebook Marketplace and as soon as I saw I thought two things, "I have to have it", and, "This would be perfect on Red Beach". It was last year when Abe and I were were standing over it and we both agreed it belonged on the Vineyard for good. Abe made some modifications and I can't wait to check it out in just a few weeks time. I have an attachment that allows for the mounting of a trolling motor so I'll bring that up and see if it'll work. Better to have horsepower over manpower to get this around. As much as life is a tad chaotic now I'm getting excited to head north in a few weeks. I really need a change of venue.
We're now officially under contract for the sale of the house. This is an attorney's contract, so no attorney review, it is binding when the ink hit the paper after the four of us signed.
The closing date was pushed back to "On or before July 16th" which allows some time to get the mortgage done and some breathing room for us to finish up getting out of here. Today we're heading down to Cape May to open up what might be our home for this summer. I thought about bringing down my fly rod and stuff to hit the jetty but my racing thoughts coupled with the need to get work done wouldn't allow me to enjoy it. If you remember it was May 25th of last year when I dropped a giant fish in some real sloppy weather, HERE. I know if I went the chances of catching a post-spawn fish would be pretty good. But I'll just have to wait until next spring. I spoke with Leif yesterday and we came up with an early plan for next year. I'll come back up, hit the Delaware River, then we'll go to the Upper Delaware for a few days before heading to the Vineyard. Now that sounds like a bucket list few weeks.
We've been looking for that perfect home down in Sun City but it's not easy. One, we're hundreds of miles away, and two, there's a ton of other people in the hunt for a home.
We keep finding homes we like and are ready to move on but often they are recently under contract and Zillow hasn't updating the status. So we get excited, and then bummed out. Two days ago we made an offer on a home only to find out yesterday morning they had another offer come in. We'd be buying it sight-unseen having to trust Zillow and our real estate agent who has a good feeling of what we're looking for. Being so far away you can't just jump on a plane every time a house comes up on the market. And having a contingency in the contract based on the sale of our house doesn't make us strong buyers. I wish we could close, have a pocket full of cash, and then just find one and write a check. So fingers crossed and we'll see what happens. The seller is in the hospital, status unknown, so that could be a little roadblock. But if it's not that one there will be another, and maybe better, it's all in God's hands anyway.
And if the stress of the sale and purchase, and opening up Cape May, isn't enough, work, while fun, comes with stress as well. This coming Monday the students will take one of two exams this semester. If you're a teacher then you know what the stress of exams can bring. You try and prepare them, write a good exam, and then hope for the best.
Yesterday I tried something new. In preparation for the exam I had the class split into two. Each group would write 20 questions, one group from week ones lecture, the other from week 2. They did a great job prioritizing the important stuff and came up with some pretty good questions. The exam is already printed out and in the Dean's office so it's not like I could take what questions they came up with and use them. I think they're ready and I anticipate high scores and happy faces on Monday. I hope so because right after the exam they'll sit for lecture on schizophrenia and psychosis, somatic, dissociative, and eating disorders.
But overall the timeline is looking good. Last day of class is June 12, leave for the Vineyard June 13-20th, final exam on the 23rd, and a few weeks until the closing the second week of July. We still have the attic to go through and have to get the dumpster picked up this week, but we'll get it done. It looks like things are going as planned, and pretty smoothly, but I say that not wanting to jinx it all. I'm sure they'll be a bump in the road, and we'll deal with it when it comes.
Big changes coming to South Carolina starting this July 1st. While I'm not a harvest guy for those that are then it's a big deal. The limit per angler goes from two down to one. And, the boat limit is two fish per boat per day. Now, while I'll about catch and release, having a two boat limit to me doesn't seem fair to the for-hire industry. Let's say you are a Captain running a guide service out of Hilton Head. Four guys on a bachelor weekend getaway hire you for the day. In the end you can only harvest two fish even though it's one fish per person, at least on foot? I think it's a little strict. I know that does remove the potential of boats including the Captain, mate, and infants from being the "angler" that is harvesting a fish.
They also went to the circle hook movement when bait fishing, which is a huge percentage of people who fish for redfish, and the other species down in South Carolina like jacks, tarpon, and cobia. They moved to make a minimum size hook a 4/0 circle, which is really good to protect those puppy drum. And while they can't be harvested charter Captain's do target them, they're relatively easy to catch, and they make clients happy, especially first timers and small children.
I'm not going to say anything just yet, but we made a move, well say say a perfect cast, we'll just see if they take a bite. I'm ready to set the hook on this one.
Selling a home, and buying a home at the same time, calls for all an hands on deck readiness 24 hours a day. While we have been trying to get things done each and everyday there comes a point where either through exhaustion or frustration that your efforts and accomplishments wax and wane day to day. Throw in day to day stuff, like work, and maintenance around the house, and we're left feeling we're not doing enough. And then there comes a point, like now, where things are out of our control and we're left waiting for the normal processes to develop.
Yesterday the last big items that we sold at the estate sale were picked up. It was our bedroom set that we contemplated taking down to South Carolina. We had, of course, found it on Marketplace some years ago for $500, and let it go for the same price. In the end we just rented it and we look forward in getting something new, or newer, that fits in the new place like it was designed to. One thing we see on a lot of the listings on Zillow is all the people from NY, PA, and NJ who lug their furnishings down from the north when they set up shop down south. And most times it just doesn't fit the house style or the room size and layout. It just looks out of place. So for that, and the 1,000 pounds the pieces weighed, it was good to let it go. Theresa watched as the set got loaded into the bed of a work pick-up truck before it's new chapter in life, and let's just say the operation wouldn't have received good reviews on Yelp!. But it's gone. Last night I reached over to put my phone on my nightstand only to hear the phone hit the floor. We're down to the bare bones here which is good in preparation for the move.
We've already decided that the move down south will be handled by the professionals. I put a post out on the Sun City Facebook page and asked for moving recommendations. A couple who just moved from Central Jersey to Sun City recommended "Piece of Cake Moving and Storage" so I dropped them a line and they got back to me. While it was hard to actually to outline all that we are bringing they came back with an estimate of $2,500. I'm sure that will go up as we finish up packing but at least the balls in motion.
Physically and financially it makes sense to have movers handle it. The thought of Theresa, me, and Luke in the front seat of a 26 foot box truck with the Jones Brothers towed behind it just seemed like a recipe for disaster. I dodn't need any more content for the blog, there's enough of that already. And one day, I swear, this blog will return to being all about fly fishing!
And as we do what we can do, it's time for the actually business of the sale to begin its snail-paced journey. We have a lawyer, as do the buyers, and now it's out of our control. We still don't have a signed contract because it's a little different when you sell without a real estate agent. There's no agent contract, with the usual three day review period with inspections thrown in, this is an attorney's contract, so it gets finalized first, and then signed, and then it's binding. The pace is killing me, and my attorney let me know that we're still far away from this being done.
Selling a home on your own means you have to be in the know and handle everything. Lawyers prefer real estate agents involved because they know how to guide the process and hit all the things that have to be addressed. When the lawyer asked me about septic inspections and well water testing I just about died. So, we're waiting for someone to check out the septic, which is luckily eight years old, and have the water tested, which we have scheduled at a price of $1,300. New septic systems run about $75,000, so luckily, and hopefully, we're good since ours is new. But it's another thing to sweat.
And while things are still fluid with the sale why not throw in a buy at the same time. Some advise that we should sell and rent down there looking for our final chapter of life home, but that's not the way we roll. We have seen a bunch of places while we were down there over the past few years so we had a good idea of what we are looking for. Couple that with 1,000 hours on Zillow and we've been honing in, and we may have found what we think would meet our needs.
These 55 and over places, especially ones that are newer or currently being built, are done so on clear cut swaths of land. So that means the homes are squeezed in there like sardines and there's not much for trees and landscaping, or privacy. We found the above house which checks off a lot of what we were looking for. Interestingly it sits on a cul-de-sac and it has the
biggest piece of the pie as far as property, a 1/4 acre with the neighboring homes sitting closer to the street, which makes you feel you're kinda all alone.
While we're hopeful this could be ours, but we know there's a ton of 55 and overs around the country surfing Zillow each night looking for their next home. But I could do this one. The backyard opens up to woods and water views which is perfect. But no doubt Luke will be eaten by an alligator if he wanders too close to the lagoon, so we had to consider that. So we had our real estate agent preview it and are going to make a sale and buy contingency offer in the next few days. That means another contract, and inspections, and things and a timeline that are out of our control.
And we know to not get all that excited about the above house. It's light years away and only takes a glitch to waylay the purchase, and the sale of our home as well. Right this minute, all our buyers have to do is flake out and everything is over. And with our contingency offer having a $5,000 Ernest money attached, we could be out that money if things were to fall through. And I haven't even talked about the cost of getting this all done, and frustratingly, all of our worth and monies will come at the closing at the sale of our house.
So in the meantime I spend what could be productive hours teaching class, in the psych units at the hospital and TPH, and writing exams and grading papers. This Saturday I have to head down to Cape May to open and spruce that place up before it looks abandoned and like an eyesore. That means pressure washing and weeding and making it look like a summer home. While it would have been easier to just unload it I think having that will still allow us to have a Jersey place to return to. We can visit friends and family, escape the Lowcountry summer weather, escape from each other if needed, and still allow me to come back and fish the Delaware Bay and River during the spring. So while the timing now is rough, I think it makes sense to hold onto it, at least for another year.
We're looking forward to this next new chapter. Small house, manageable, affordable, and simple. And I can't wait to spin around Sun City in our new golf cart between trips to the gym, pool, restaurants, shopping, and fishing. And while the decisions about us and jobs will come later it's too early to make any decisions as of yet. So in the meantime I'll just picture us sitting in the lanai or on the back patio enjoying the sunset and a Guinness and watching Luke get chased around by the alligators.
And just some advice for someone who's pulling the trigger. If you're getting up there in age or nearing retirement start the process now. Get a dumpster and get rid of all of your past, the truth is no one cares or wants it, have a yard sale, start hitting the donation bins and
Goodwill drop off locations, and start planning for the future. Do it before you get too old, or locked in to commitments and other people's life plans. "Get busy living or get busy dying", and yes, you're now closer to the day you will die then the day you were born.
It's 18 days until I leave for Martha's Vineyard. A trip that was in the books since September 2025. During the chaos over the last two months I've tried to get out and fish but was never all in when I got down to the water, and the skunk confirms how much my half-hearted efforts paid off. Zilch.
But now it's crunch time. We're ending and beginning a huge chapter in our lives and it calls for all hands on deck, not taking a week off to go fishing. But... In the next few weeks it'll be a mix of getting down and opening up Cape May. We have to do it not only to do it, but to make it
look presentable for our neighbors who have already opened up and are enjoying their home away from home. That'll happen this coming weekend. And then there's going through each room and emptying out the stuff that's left and finishing up some projects we told the buyers we would handle. Tonight we should have a signed contract in hand and that will enable us to make an offer on one of three houses we have our eyes set on. In the end it might come down to buying a house from 750 miles away.
And then there's school. I working four days a week and still have to tighten up each weeks lecture and write the mid-term and final exams. And with the deluge of rain, and a warm-up starting today, the grass and weeds will make this place look like Jurassic Park, so I'll have to spend some time with the mower, trimmer, and blower. Be careful what you wish for. But there's no doubt we're doing the right thing.
The Suburban doesn't have a tow bar and wiring through the bumper for the trailer for the boat. While I know I can do it myself, as it's basically a bolt on bar, I'm going ahead and making an appointment to get someone else to install it, properly, imagine that. And then after it goes on I'll have to bring the boat and trailer down for them to tune up the axles and lights before the trip down to North Carlolina.
Yesterday during round two of the clothes debacle I did have a light moment when I went through my ties and belts. I've had the below belt for some time, which means I never wore it.
Embroidered into the belt is the South Carolina state flag. On that flag are two things, the first, which looks like a moon is actually a piece of silver armor called a gorget, worn on the hats of revolutionary War soldiers, the other a Palmetto tree, which represents the Palmetto log fort
used to protect Charleston from the invading British naval attack in 1776. It's interesting how in the year's 250th anniversary of our freedom from the British we're moving from and to places that played such a big part in our nations history. In 1776, in South Carolina, the above happened, and here in Titusville, George Washington crossed the Delaware River and won at The Battle of Trenton.
So, that's why the Vineyard trip comes at a bad time. But, as of now, I'm still in. While all the reservations are made and the bill paid, it's being able to mentally go and have fun that I wonder about. If you can't relax and be in the moment and enjoy yourself what's the sense of going? I will have a week post trip before the closing to go all in so that is on my side. I'm realizing now how big a move this is and amazed that everything happened so quick and is going down sooner then later.
