Photo Project

Here are a few samples from the project that I did for the photography class that I took. I think I did pretty well and I am happy with the results. The only critique from the instructor was that I need to take some vertical shots and not have all horizontal shots in my projects. Let me know what you think (see comment link below this post). The first one is my favorite. This Snowy Egret was eating fish from the swimming pool of our marina because Ike flooded the pool! At one time we had quite a pond with crabs, fish and even shrimp.

Deana Jones, N.N.G.P.

There are no rules for good photographs, there are only good photographs. ~Ansel Adams

Post Ike Report

Not much to say these days. We've been living at the house and staying at the boat on weekends but it's really been a pain because the house is practically empty. At least we have the basics - bed, refrigerator, oven, washer and dryer, but that's about it. We're moving back to the boat permanently this weekend. There is no power to our pier so we will need to use the generator but at least everything will be in one place and I can begin to feel like our life is a little more organized.

One bit of good news. We thought we would not be able to sail in the Harvest Moon Regatta this year. We had been invited to crew with our friends Jim and Nancy Brown on their Endeavor 50 named s/v Topaz. We were really looking forward to this event. It's a sailboat race in the Gulf of Mexico from Galveston to Port Aransas (150 miles). Unfortunately Topaz suffered some damage from Ike. The good news is - she's been repaired and is back in the water and ready to sail! We will get to do the regatta after all. Troy and I are both really excited to participate. The race will start in Galveston on October 16th.

Also, I don't remember if I mentioned but Troy and I are both running for officers of TMCA (Texas Mariners Cruising Association) check out the web site at www.tmca.nu . Troy is running for Cruise Captain and I am running for Secretary. I am running unopposed so I'm pretty sure I will be the TMCA Secretary for 2009. Troy's office is opposed and he has to make a campaign speech at the general meeting on October 10th. If he is elected he will have a difficult job ahead of him since most of the destinations that we cruise to have been destroyed by Ike.

My photography class is wrapping up on Monday and I have a project due. I plan on posting it to the blog as soon as I have presented it to the class and instructor. It's been difficult to concentrate on photography while dealing with Ike's aftermath, so I hope I do well on the final project.

Happiness is inward, and not outward; and so, it does not depend on what we have, but on what we are. ~ Henry Van Dyke

IKE! (Yikes)

I don't even know where to begin this blog entry. Ike really dealt us a terrible blow here in the Houston/Galveston area with a direct hit. Troy and I feel so fortunate because Storyville came through with just a few scratches. She's a tough boat and we are thrilled that she is OK. Troy's shop and man cave (as designated by Darryl) didn't fare so well. Almost all of his big saws and woodworking tools are gone. Here is a link to some of the pictures that we have taken over the last week: http://imageevent.com/deanaj/hurricaneike?n=0

We are staying at our house in Spring right now. Thank goodness we haven't put it on market yet. We had several of our friends from our Marina and/or the Kemah area come and wait out the storm with us: Steve and Colleen, Jim and Kitty, Philip and Annette, Patrick, Duffy, Rick. We all watched the weather sites obsessively and worried about our boats. I couldn't have imagined spending the time with anyone else. We were "all in the same boat"!!! Thankfully, every one's boat made it through just fine. That is amazing considering how many boats in the Kemah and Clear Lake area are sunk or in a parking lot!

We are hoping to get back down to our boat as soon as possible, but for now the house is more comfortable with water and electricity. We did lose the tops of some trees in our yard and, unfortunately, Patricks 40' travel trailer parked in our driveway took a hit and was totalled. Everyone was so helpful in getting all the debris cleared from our yard.

We are starting to hear awful stories of friends who have lost their homes. Our friends Jimbo and Ernestine that own Channel Marker 17 at Double Bayou lost both their home and business as did most of our friends in the Oak Island Area. We are just so sad about all the losses suffered by everyone and hopefully in the coming months we can do what we can to help out others.

Hurricane Central

What Happens When Sailors Worry About Their Boats

Patrick and Troy

Jim, Philip, Annette, Kitty, Patrick, Rick, Steve

Trees Down in Back Yard

Patrick's Trailer

Cleanup Begins


The first rule of hurricane coverage is that every broadcast must begin with palm trees bending in the wind. ~Carl Hiaasen

Moody Gardens

We had a great time at Moody Gardens over the Labor Day weekend. We were planning on staying until Monday, but with Hurricane Gustav barrelling into the Gulf we decided that it would be smart to get back to our home base on Sunday in case we needed to prepare the boat the possibly evacuate. Fortunately that didn't happen. We did enjoy getting out on the water. I got to get some great dolphin pictures as they swam along with us for about 20 minutes in the ship channel.

Man has always assumed that he was more intelligent than dolphins because he had achieved so much...the wheel, New York, wars and so on...while all the dolphins had ever done was muck about in the water having a good time. But conversely, the dolphins had always believed that they were far more intelligent than man...for precisely the same reason. ~Douglas Adams

Dinghy Regatta / Bayland Cruise

We had a great time last weekend. We cruised to Bayland Marina with TMCA. We had the wind right on our nose Saturday so we didn't even both trying to sail and there was practically no wind on Sunday on the way home. Even though we didn't get to sail we were happy to be out on the water and having fun!

At Bayland we competed in TMCA's annual Dinghy Regatta. Lots of crazy fun events. The hardest one was the Greased Watermelon event. I fought so hard for that watermelon that I felt like I had been in a bar fight. I have the bruises to show for it!

Troy - Men's Rowing

Deana - Preparing for Women's Rowing

Deana (after getting a little help from Troy off the blocks) - Yes, those are my feet straight up in the air!

I managed to rally and snatch the gold medal from Lorna!

Blindfolded Rowing - this was fun!

What a game! It's hard to say who's winning this one.

Phil and Rhonda headed home on Slowride.

Around the Bay in One Day

We had a great weekend, even though it was a little wet. The girls rented a beach house on Crystal Beach to celebrate Sam's 21st birthday. They even consented to a visit from their parents! We decided to visit with them on Saturday afternoon and then continue on around the bay to see our friends at Channel Marker 17 on Double Bayou. I think it was 150 miles round trip and the first time that we've been all they way around Galveston/Trinity Bay in one day. Other than the rain we had a great time. We played on the beach with the girls and surprised everyone at Channel Marker, they're used to us showing up in a boat, not a car!

Tori did hear back from the Neurosurgeon on Friday. He reviewed her X-rays and MRI films and decided that she does not have Chiari I Malformation. He wants her to see a Neurologist and he recommended one - we scheduled an appointment for next week. That seems to be good news, we went from Neurosurgeon to Neurologist. On another note, she was on vacation with Danny's family last week and broke her leg jumping in the river. I just don't know what to do with that girl! Wait till you see the pictures of her enjoying the beach!

For more pictures of fun at the beach check out this link:

http://imageevent.com/deanaj/crystalbeach2008?n=0&z=2&c=4&x=1&m=24&w=0&p=0

Families are like fudge - mostly sweet with a few nuts. ~Author Unknown

It's a Boy!!!!!!!!!

Jessica and David are having a boy! The official word came today. We are all so excited. Troy's looking forward to having a little side kick to hang out with. Future sailor? How soon can we get him started? Now we just have to wait patiently while mom and dad figure out a name.

It's amazing how grandparents seem so young once you become one. ~Author Unknown

We had an awesome sail last weekend with some great friends and family. Robert and Carolyn, our friends from Blue Dolphin and Ronda and Kenny came to visit on Saturday and we had one of those perfect days out on the bay. Great wind, great company and plenty of cold Coronas!

Carolyn Dresses the Coronas!

Robert Loves to Sail!

Kenny Enjoys His Stogie

Ronda Enjoys the Day

A Visit from the Coast Guard on the Bay

"A sailor's joys are as simple as a child's" - Bernard Moitessier