09.20.26 We're gettin' there...

     I think it would have been easier building the fence from scratch. But it is what it is. Working alone makes everything 10x harder. To avoid the boards twisting up I removed the fence in sections until I am ready to remove and then screw them into their final location.

     I took the ride to Beaufort in the morning to hit Lowe's as the closest Home Depot is on the way into Hilton Head which would have had me backtracking to get to The Fly Barn. Of course I forgot a nozzle for the hose and found that there is a lumberyard and hardware store about a mile from me in Ridgeland. So off I went. 

     I stood in the outdoors section of the store staring at the nozzles they had available. I eliminated those plastic ones because I play rough and one drop and it would be toast. I was drawn to the firefighter's nozzle type, I guess because I was a firemen, and it was better constructed. When I checked out the people and the desk and I shared how expensive everything has become. From housing, to food, to fuel, and to nozzles. Those cheap nozzles, ran somewhere around nine dollars. The one above, with the taxes, $27. Twenty-seven dollars for an outdoor nozzle for a hose? 

     We're starting to realize that while it is cheaper down here in the Lowcountry, it's not like free cheap. Expenses are expenses. HOA, utilities, and the taxes. I tell people that our taxes went from $18,000 to $1,800, give or a take, so that is a savings for sure. But there's other taxes, like each year you pay a tax, or a millage rate, on each car you own. It's basically the county tax rate x the vehicles assessed value. Some states have it, New Jersey did not. In New Jersey there's a 6% sales tax on just about everything, here, in Jasper County the sales tax is 9%. Other counties across the state are 6%. Hilton Head is 6% surprisingly. So I contemplated the idea of finding a yard sale to find a nozzle but in the end I just swiped my card, and headed back to work.

     After moving the sections it was time to tackle the 10 foot gate section. Not only is it long but it's heavy as well. By the time that I got to it I was under the cover of the big oak tree with the Spanish moss that hangs from it. If I got trapped under it at least I wouldn't burn to death waiting for someone to come and rescue me. 

     What you don't see above is me underneath it trying to lower it to the ground. It was all good until I had most of the weight on my shoulder and skull and luckily was able to transfer it to my arms before lowering it to the ground. Since I was dropping the height of the fence to four feet I sawzalled the eight foot posts so I could reuse them. What I spent on the nozzle I saved on the lumber. 

     This could have been a fun, and quicker, project if I had my son, brother, or Dad around to help. That's one thing I don't have down here, family, or friends. By the time I meet new ones this project will be done, so hopefully they'll help on the next one. 

     Believe it or not this property has a lot of eyes on it and gathers a lot of attention. With Town Hall just down the street there is constant traffic of Ridgeland town employees passing back and forth. When I went in to the Water Department to get service going the lady referred to The Fly Barn as "The Fence". Working on the weekend eliminated those eyes and any attention to what I was doing, both correctly and incorrectly. Better to ask for forgiveness than permission. 

     Today will be day three. If you see I have on the same clothes for each day as those are the "uniform" that I throw on when I get up there. I shower off, with my new nozzle, and change my clothes before heading back to the Sun City bubble. They don't need to see that get up, especially with the back shoes and socks. I'd love to wear white socks, but they would get destroyed with the dirt and sweat. Like underwear, I'm safer with the dark colors. 

     On this early morning I checked some emails and read one from the SC Board of Nursing. My application is under review and I was able to make an appointment for the finger printing and background check. While on the web I did some job searches and my ticket to earning down here 

surely sits with my nursing licenses, over fly fishing and guiding, which one day I hope will happen. My question is do I want to return to teaching or getting a job seeing patients and prescribing and documenting and....? Time will tell, but I'm blessed to have that earn anywhere-you-land card with a nursing license. 

Maybe if I pull in enough income I can start paying people to do these projects, or at least hire a helper for the day. Today Luke will be in tow, and he's not much of a help. 

09.19.26 "Sure, Ridgeland, I'll just move the fence.."

     Easy words to say, not an easy task to do, especially alone. Thank God the humidity has slowed dissipated this past week and I only had to deal with straight up heat, at 93 degrees during the hottest part of the day. 

     Basically what I'm doing is just moving the fence back over onto my property line and cutting it down so the blind corner that was created doesn't exist anymore. I have some of the tools that I 

need for not all of them. The biggest thing I miss is my transit. It's very hard to find level across a yard with some yard and a 6-foot level. Adding to the challenge is cutting down the fence from 6 foot to four. You just can't do that in a yard that has different elevations. 

     The fence, and there's a lot of it, is well constructed. It was built in October 2025 for $11,900. The same contractor wanted $1,200 to move it, like I'm doing. I learned a few things on day 1. Lowcountry soil is mainly a grayish-sand, kind of like I saw in Millstone, Central Jersey. That was a relief and the $20

That was a relief and the $20 Facebook Marketplace post hole digger worked just fine. But the big lesson learned was that you can't just deconstruct a section and stack it for when you are ready to reinstall. Almost before my eyes the boards I unscrewed and took dawn would warp right in front of my eyes. So after I learned that, I had to have my posts done, rails in place, and then unscrew a board and run it over before it realized it was free. 

     Above is the bear of the project. A 10 foot long six foot high homemade gate that has to be moved. It's going to be a challenge not only laying it out correctly but moving it into position. And this too has to be shaved down to a four foot height. 

     And I think I've found the location for the outdoor shower. It'll be a small stall and I can use the wood I have to construct it. It'll be meant for one person so size isn't and issue. I'll get to that after the fence is done. 

     I saw something comical on Facebook. It basically pokes fun at the insect handoff that it's occurring down in the Lowcountry now. It went from mosquito to love bug season. 

     When you drive through the love bugs it's like driving on Route 17 through Roscoe when there's hatch. I'm told they are attracted to white vehicles and the sperm or whatever love juices they excrete cause permanent damage to a cars finish. So that's another reason to get rid of the Suburban. 

     I told Theresa I was going to get up and out of here by 5 am today. It's now 8 o'clock and I'm sitting here dreading the day. I have to go one way to Home Depot and then the other to Ridgeland. I need some lumber and some concrete, and that's why I need a pickup. That old Silverado I had was perfect for what I need down here. 

     I paid $2,800 for that one and it served me well. One thing is for sure trucks down here are a small fortune, even beaters with 250,000 miles on them. I guess it's because they're southern trucks, which means no salt and no rust for the most part. 

Hopefully back to fishing this week after the fence is done. 

     

09.18.26 "Taking care of business..."

 

     I've been on a musical thing again when it comes to titling posts. If you remember the line, "Takin' care of business (everyday)", well that's from a song written put out in 1973 by Bachman-Turner Overdrive, or BTO. And yesterday was the torturous task of applying for nursing licenses by endorsement. Basically since Theresa and I are residents of South Carolina we can't practice 

under our New Jersey one's anymore. Theresa's multi-state, or Compact (NLC), that's good for 60 days until you switch everything over. 

     And is the application process easy? It kinda is, if you haven't just moved from another state and and still have your entire lives in bins and boxes. How easy is it to put your hands on your diploma, old licenses, and social security cards? Not very trust me. 

     I found a bag in one of the bins that has in it just about every ID badge I've ever been issued. Did you know I used to work for First Fidelity Bank on Brad Street in Newark in 1988? I did a short stint in the mortgage department there and my big memory was seeing Whitney Houston' s home equity loan for $1,000,000 when she lived in New Jersey. You can see that in the top center of the picture. 

     And what's funny is, that's not all of them. It kind of reminds me of the movie Catch Me if You Can, which is the true story of Frank Abagnale, Jr, who is a master of deception. In the end am I just a big faker? 

     By late afternoon I had found all that I needed and uploaded it, and then paid the fee to get the process started. If I am like Abagnale then I'm sure to get caught because the next phase is the background check and FBI fingerprinting portion of the vetting process. Once that's done and I get my RN and APRN licenses I'll be good to work, most likely teaching again in some capacity. 

     And my plan is to sell or trade in the Suburban for a pickup. Suburban's great, but I need a truck. There's still a chance I'll be able to score the one with the blown transmission, although that's not my biggest concern. There's something called a AFM (Active Fuel Management) installed in the engine which shuts down half of the cylinders when driving. It's like the cars these days that shut off at the lights. 

     The truck I'm looking at, this week, is a 2010 with a 5.3 V8. It's got some mileage on her, 208,000, but I'm more worried about the whole AFM thing over how many miles it's been driven. If it's not this one I'm sure it'll wind up being another bucket of bolts that I convince Theresa need. 

If I only still had my old Silverado, the diesel I owned (above) from 2021-2022. They would just love to see and hear that in Sun City. But with diesel at over $6 a gallon these days I'm glad she has a new home. 

What's funny as I look back, I've had just as many vehicles as I do old ID badges. At times when I scroll through my photos I find a truck and say, "I forgot I had that". One day I'm going to do a post on all the vehicles I've had since I was 18. That outta be fun.

09.17.26 "Holy Batman", let me get my jacket, and swing by Kismet Outfitters tonight....

     If I told you that downsizing and then moving is a full-time job, believe me, it's true. Between the unpacking, the still getting rid of, the paperwork and legal stuff, and shopping and decorating, you could spend your whole day, or week,  just busy. 

     Since I was down near the island in the morning I had to stop by a place I like to stop by. I was way early on the incoming but you know how I feel about putting time in and scouting. 

     I did more walking and waiting than fishing. Above, I found a creek that ran off a larger creek and I was able to watch it fill it. The water comes into the channels and then as the tide floods it rises over the banks and floods the flat. One thing that I'm learning are the different grasses and their heights and what they all mean. You can have water, and even tailing fish, but if you can't get your fly to hit the water then what's the point. 

     Part of the afternoon was going dreaded wedding dress shopping. Not for me, of course. We have three in October and believe it or not it went down pretty easy as we were in and out in about two hours, shoes included. While we were down on Hilton Head we finally got to use a gift certificate our friends got us for Theresa's 60th back in January. We pulled up there back then and they were closed for renovations. 

     The place is called Hudson's and is located on Skull Creek, which really isn't a creek at all. Besides great food and a great view the thing we noticed last night was the change in the weather. Call me crazy but I think fall has arrived in the Lowcountry. This morning at 630 it was 67 degrees out with no humidity. We've never been here when the weather is "normal" and it might have been a good thing we held onto our long sleeved shirts, pants, and jackets.

     As we were walking out I noticed the below to my right. It looked exactly like The Fly Barn, just a little shorter in height. I wonder, by chance, if it was the same builder. 

     And while surfing Facebook Marketplace I came across a listing for an outdoor shower. I clicked on it to get some ideas. My go-to would be the row boat idea but I've looked and they are priced in the upper hundreds of dollars. Since I have to take the fence down I'll have plenty of pressure treated wood on hand, so....

     Theresa's already getting on me about dragging dirt into the house. Either it's on Luke's paws, in my socks, or that grey mud that's stuck on my legs, it's all a violation. The ability to shower at The Fly Barn before coming home is a win all the way around.

     And lastly if you're up on the island for the Martha's Vineyard Striped Bass & Bluefish Tournament stop by Kismet Outfitters in Edgartown tonight. My buddy Abe Pieciak is holding 

a fly tying event where he'll be focusing on Bob Popovic's "Bucktail Deceiver". It'll be a great hang in addition to the fly tying demo, there will be some shop specials as well as Abe's artwork and swag to browse through. Bob always believed that sharing information between us is the most important thing we can do for the sport, and each other. I am sure Bob is proud when he looks 

down at events like this, and one's run by fly fishing and tying clubs, and sees that his work and dedication paid off. 

09.16.26 "Reunited and it feels so good..."

      That title should bring you back to the 1978 Peaches and Herb song, "Reunited". After weeks fishing without I finally found my sling back and my box of crab and shrimp flies. There was also a box of small minnow flies, both which will help, they just didn't yesterday. 

     It's been a bit since I fished and I wanted to really have a good morning, and I did. I got down way early before the flood tide. When you have such and expansive area, with mixed vegetation, mud, and depths, it's always beneficial to scout it out and know it like the back of your hand. If there was a straight line across this flat it's probably 1/4 mile long. 

     With the times I've been there, on low and high tides, I have a pretty good idea of the layout, and more importantly, how and when the water fills in and then drains out. And with the water comes life, and a lot of it. Yesterday it was a sheepshead convention in front of me. If I see the same today I'll video tape it, it pretty cool to see. 

     It going to be a week before I get back to fishing for real as after today it's go-time up at The Fly Barn. Luckily it coincides with the work just about wrapped up at the real house. We just have some crown molding left to install on the top of the kitchen cabinets and that'll be it. 

     One thing I can't wrap my ahead around is why 80% of the refrigerators sold these days are not counter depth, which means they stick out like a foot past the end of the counter, ie, see above. Stupid, stupid, stupid. And to boot they are hundreds of more dollars. Do you get more room? Yes, but talking about not fitting in. And down the road we'll get rid of the old school Volkswagen sized microwave. That'll mean getting that tile guy back....um, not. 

     In the evening we took a ride to Georgia, sounds weird right? We had to return two lamps we had previously purchased. As soon as we bought them home we were both like, yum, no. 

   

     It's a store called At Home which is mostly found down south. It's like a Home Depot for home decorating. The only problem is it's so big you kinda have to help yourself it you need something. Luckily we the style of lamp we thought would be perfect, and for 25% off each of them, it only

 solidified our choice. And luckily when we got home they fit both in size and look. We're basically all set with the big stuff and the next focus will be the garage and master closet, and you can forget those pretty $8,000 California Closets, not happening. I've got a truck with a blown tranny to buy. 

09.15.26 Had to jump in and then head to the water....

 

     Before we moved in and while we were back in New Jersey we had a line up of contractors doing work before we moved in. We had an electrician, a painter, floor guys, and stone workers putting in a new countertop. All went as planned, except the countertops when a little sideways. 

The gist of it was they chipped away the ceramic tile backsplash that we planned on keeping. They owned it and agreed to have a new one installed after we picked out the tile. 

     One things for sure, you gotta be there when the work is being done. Most "places" have a list of subcontractors they use and the checks and balances aren't checked and balanced. So for this round of work we made sure we were back from Florida to supervise. Around 9 am Juan showed up and I showed him around. He needed to cal his boss so she could translate what I was saying. When we opened the boxes we noticed the tiles were of varying shades of the color then the ones we picked out. Not a big deal, if you lay them out right, and have the colors kind of complement each other. 

     So the guy started the demo and I went outside to tidy up the plants around the house and check in with our neighbor. On Friday, as we were on our way down to Florida, their house caught fire. They had just moved in and renovated it and their new stove had an electrical malfunction and that was it. Of course the fire department had to rip out the kitchen and use water to extinguish it, so it's a complete mess over there. 

     When Theresa arrived back home I wanted to accompany her inside to show her how nice it looked.... crash, boom, bang. WTF? Well, the installer thought it wouldn't be a big deal to just run 

the tiles as they came out of the box. Needless to say it was a shit show dealing with the tile supplier (never told us about color variations), the tile contractor (who couldn't understand me), and the countertop company ( "Yes, I see what you mean"). As we were on the phone the guy who they sent basically surrendered and said he was going to lunch. So we had two options, tear it out and get different tile, or see if we could salvage what we had there and make it right. 

     So while he was away I pulled the tiles and had to take the mastic off the wall and back of the tiles before it dried. I them opened the boxes, laid out all the tile, and arranged them in a better color flow.  Now I just needed him to return so we could get this done, correctly. 

     I basically laid out the entire job and handed him each tile. In the end I think it looks better, and more importantly Theresa was happy. There was only a couple of rows remaining and I told Theresa I wanted to catch the outgoing tide. It's been a few days since I checked out the water so off I went.

     The water looked good in height and color, but there was no one home, or no one to be seen. I walked about a mile through the grass just waiting for a tail to pop up. One thing, senses wise, is what I hear when I walk. It's the sound of an army of fiddler crabs trying to avoid getting stepped on and munitions going off from Parris Island, the training grounds of the United States Marine Corp. 

     I had a good time although the real feel temperature was about 190 degrees. We're coming off the New Moon which was on Friday so fishing should be kinda good, somewhere. I'm not worried, I'll get em', but it is getting a little frustrating not even seeing anything.

     And then on my way home I stopped by a used car lot that's within a solid golf drive from my house. I wanted to see how much a Chevrolet Silverado in the front row was going for. 2018...$22,000. Okay, never mind. But then she caught my eye. A beauty located in the woods behind the lot. 

     "What's the story with this one?". "Not for sale. Blown tranny". "Okay, tell me about it". "2010- 218,000 miles, basically perfect condition and purrs like a kitten". Mmmm. So there might be a chance with this one. They guy loved, just loved, the Suburban. "Never saw one that old and so clean". He added, "That's worth some money". And that's when I said "I'm planning on leaving that here and driving that Silverado out". So we'll see what happens. He's talking about bringing it to a transmission place and having one put in with a warranty on it. Might be a good thing in the making.

     And then I got back home. As soon as I turned the corner into the kitchen I dam near shit myself. "You had one job to do...." And he blew it. I explained it all to him but the language barrier must have had his wires crossed. Are you kidding me? 

     If you didn't know it's the one in the upper right hand corner. I took my time and got it out and he can replace it when he comes back to grout it tomorrow. I always question whether I can do these things myself, and then I say, let me stop being cheap and just have the professionals do it. 

09.14.26 A three day tour of Florida....

 

     We left the heat and humidity, and rains, of the Lowcountry, and traveled down to Florida for some heat, humidity, and rain. Actually the purpose of the trip was to visit my Mom in Bradenton and the kids in St. Augustine. On Friday we loaded up the Suburban with stuff of theirs, that we had the movers bring down, and delivered it to their respective final destinations. With their stuff gone it opened up some much needed space in the garage for us to be able to breathe a bit and have some operating room as we continue to go though our stuff, a lot of it which shouldn't have made the trip down to begin with. 

     My Mom had been doing her own version of editing down her stuff which is down to tons of pictures, awards, and bad artwork from my siblings and I early childhood. 

     It's more of the same, "What do we do with all of this stuff?". Like for most of us these memories are stored in bins and boxes which rarely see daylight until it's decided to drag them out and open them up. That's me below after waking up to my first real bike on Christmas morning. I was probably five years old there (1973) when we lived at 538 Mackey Avenue in Belford, NJ. Remember those banana seats?

      Needless to say I came home with a box full of memories that one day my kids will have to go through when I croak, but they shouldn't complain as we've done our fair share of the heavy lifting that goes with downsizing and relocating. 

     The above picture was taken in 1972, when I was four years old. If I could go back now and advise my younger self on what to do, and not do, for the next 54 years I wonder what I would say. Looking though old pictures and stuff makes me think of the end of the movie Saving Private Ryan. In that scene an older James Ryan, played by Matt Damon, is seen standing over the grave of Captain Miller, played by Tom Hanks. At one point he turns to his wife and asks, "Tell me I'm a 

good man", which is his way of affirming that all of the sacrifices other's made to save him, and the decisions he made in life, were worth it. While we all have our life stories, filled with triumphs and regrets, in the end we all hope we did good for others, a lived a good life. 

     And in between the stacks of reports cards and SRA results, remember those dreaded tests, were the reminders that even as young man I was a lady killer. The above is proof of that, a love letter from my early days at St. Rose of Lima grammar school in Freehold, NJ. 

     And then this picture fell out of a stack. You know what that reminded me of, right? Well, first The Fly Barn as I've been using the same type of lawn mower to keep the yard neat since I took over ownership a month or so ago.

     And then it reminded me of the bad hat I wore this year up on the Vineyard while waking the flats. Same goofy hat, same goofy look. I think that's one reason why I keep all

of those love letters from my youth. Truth is I never really had style, or any kind of game, and really no girlfriend until high school. And if you look at me in the below picture from Disney 

Disney World you can see why. Yes, that's a Peter Frampton t-shirt I have on, "I want youooo, to show me the way...." I can't imagine why I couldn't get chicks....

     And then yesterday we braved the rains and took the drive from Bradenton to St. Augustine. It was weird visiting family and passing Disney World. Most times that I've been to Florida have been on a plane and in a rental car. In the end we drove 6 hours to Bradenton, then 3 hours to St Augustine, and then 3 hours home, give or take an hour or two. We had Luke on board so we had to stop for him along the way. 

     When we pulled up to the kids place it looked very much like Sun City. Homes that were done and homes under construction. There were Pulte signs everywhere. That's the home building company that does a lot of these communities down south. And while the kids unpacked their stuff I went and looked at the home under construction next door. Anytime I see a home covered in Hardie Boards or planks I stop and take a few pictures. 

     I'm always looking for ideas on how to trim The Fly Barn. As I made my way around the house I just had to take a look inside the dumpster, because that's what I do. Well that led to a quick dumpster diving session where I scored probably $100 with of Hardie stuff. 

     The amount of waste was mind blowing. The way it works is each one of these homes has a set amount of materials that are delivered, used, and then discarded. No one is picking through and saving pieces or sheets to save a buck. I guess it's not worth the time. Unfortunately people who live in the neighborhood use the dumpsters as well so it got in the way of my picking. 

     If I could I would drive around and pick through all these dumpsters and save a ton of money along the way. Like the other day with Ray and the refrigerator, "One man's trash is another man's treasure".