Life Around Fort Myers

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The morning after Halloween looks exactly the same now as it did forty years ago. Even the candy is largely the same. I mean, plain Hershey bars? Do they even make those things the rest of the year. Who buys those? Our kids crack us up, too. These buckets of … Read More

Halloween

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People ask us about our kids’ schooling a lot. This is a pretty good example of “school” for them. The Edison and Ford winter estates are practically next door to us here. They walk around, see a bunch of cool stuff, listen to a bunch of random facts about two … Read More

Florida Family Fun

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Sanibel Island is just a few miles away. Always a fun spot for a few hours on the beach and some shell hunting. I love the look on this little girl’s face. The Sanibel Island Lighthouse, lighting the way since 1884. Hard for her to get her nose out of … Read More

Fort Myers

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We left LaBelle bright and early, motored quickly past the sailboat that left well before us, and spent the rest of the morning on the water by ourselves. After another lock we were back at sea level and salt water again. As we cruised into Fort Myers a few boats … Read More

Crossing Florida

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Indiantown Marina is at the end of a dead end road. Every evening the kids and I would grab the scooters and longboard and head half a mile up the road to this empty parking lot to just goof around on some smooth pavement. If you don’t think kids keep … Read More

Dribble

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I’m not at all proud of this score, but I am proud of that 2 on the final shot. Coming through in the clutch. Indiantown is a fine small town—it’s nothing special, but I’ve got nothing to complain about either. It’s got a nice hardware store, a modest grocery, and … Read More

Hard Top

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Online guitar lessons. When we’re on the move, it’s a pretty darn good solution. Plus, I’m learning, too—jamming the E minor and A major chords, and making up ridiculous lyrics to make my girl laugh. Back in the Turks and Caicos our fabric bimini really bit the dust. We’d hated … Read More

Fifteen Years On

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Ali and I realized recently that this month marks 15 years since we moved aboard Bumfuzzle and kicked off this life. Everything before nomadism now feels like a different life entirely. While we experienced life from the perspective of a steady day-to-day suburban childhood to a never-know-what’s-around-the-next-corner adulthood, our kids … Read More

Back Where We Belong

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Well, after a week in the work yard, one of these boats is ready to go back in the water. One of these years, when we’re in a country that doesn’t get paid $85/hr to do basic labor on a boat, we’ll give the bottom a good sanding and skim … Read More

Florida Boat Yard

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I’d been promising the kids their first motorcycle rides, so when I was set to leave the next day, there was no more delaying. I remember my first ride as a seventh-grader on the back of a friend’s dad’s motorcycle. He went so far as to pull a wheelie going … Read More

MN Summer

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Now that’s a kid who is comfortable on the water. We’ve got the same nose. Struck me as funny that Ali and the rest of the women in the family (sorry, Lowe) went to a flea market up the road and the only picture Ali took was of an outboard … Read More

From Sea to Shining Lake

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We left Rockaway Beach under a cloudy sky for the ride back to Portland. Stopped off in Garibaldi, just down the road, and managed to sneak some nickels onto the train tracks before the tourists rumbled by. Kelley Point Park in Portland is a fun “in the city” spot to … Read More