Bill and Cathy McArthur Spring/Summer/Fall 2006: 6

   The 4th of July weekend was hot and humid, as it should be. We finished cleaning the house, bought new closet doors at Lowe's, and dropped the RV in storage on Monday, July 3rd. Bill kayaked amidst the many jetskis and boats. Later, we walked into the street fair in Town Bank. We cooked burgers on the grill and watched "Daily Show" DVRs while the fireworks went on outside. We thought that it would be too buggy for comfort to view them outside. On Tuesday, Cathy worked at the bookstore. Bill decided to celebrate Independence Day by riding his bike to Cape May Point and then walking the entire beach to the edge of the Coast Guard Base below Poverty Beach. It was hot and humid, so the beach crowd tended to sit as close to the water as possible. By the time Bill got home, Cathy had returned from her 9 to 5 shift at the bookstore. Shortly afterward, thunderstorms rolled through and cleared out by sundown. A group of idiots tied a PVC fishing rod holder to the platform at the end of the Hollywood Avenue beach access path and set off sky rockets up over our house. Bill was very close to calling the police, but wasn't sure if a particular neighbor was involved. On Wednesday, Bill completed his first "Wednesday" NY Times crossword puzzle without using any resources to help. Although it was warm and humid, Bill took a sweaty 4 mile run before lunch. After lunch, Carol Matthews came over to get some advice on buying a laptop computer. Afterward, Bill used email to report the fireworks incident (naming no names) to the County Fire Marshall, the Township Dept of Parks and Rec, and the Township Council. Later in the afternoon, Bill had a run-in with three unruly teenagers who were trespassing right next to the house. He hoped that no neighbors heard the barrage of F-bombs that he unleashed on the kids. In the evening, we had our first dinner at the Oyster Bay Restaurant in Cape May. We were favorably impressed and will likely repeat the experience. During the evening, overnight, and into Thursday morning, it rained very hard. By lunchtime, the rain had cleared. Bill ran for 5 miles on a hot Friday and kayaked on Saturday morning before we drove to Alex and Phil's to celebrate Erin's 7th Birthday. It was a warm afternoon, so lots of kids opted for the swimming pool. Bill spent some time as life guard and a little time in the pool himself. On Sunday, Bill took another 5 mile run and then finished replacing the closet doors in the downstairs hall. On Monday, Cathy worked a short shift while Bill rode his bike to Cape May Point and walked the 3 mile round trip of beach to Cape May. Around 4 PM, Sue and Jack Beatty and Chris and Jim Devine arrived for a few days visit. We had a wonderful cookout of swordfish and filet mignon. There was a delightful breeze so that the solarium was a perfect place to dine. On Tuesday, Cathy went to work, and the Beatty's and Devines went to Cape May and Wildwood, respectively. Bill kayaked into a stiff south wind down to the canal and then walked for 6 miles. Jack and Sue ate dinner with Jack's brother, while we and the Devine's ate a good dinner at Lucky Bones. On Wednesday, Bill did a sweaty 3 mile run. Then we all rode the Devines' minivan on the ferry to Lewes, DE. We met with Don and Bern Ernakovich, ate lunch at Gilligan's Restaurant on the canal, and then browsed around Lewes. We took the 4:15 PM ferry back. As a thunderstorm began, we piled into the minivan again to go to a great meal at Tisha's. The Beatty's and Devine's generously treated us. On Thursday, Bill had to spend the day working on changes to his Wildwood motel clients registration software to accommodate a hurry-up change of the sales tax from 6 to 7 percent. Bill made the changes to the program and installed those changes at 3 motels. Cathy worked the late shift at the bookstore. Bill joined Chris and Jim, Jack and Sue, and the visiting Beattys at the Lobster House for takeout. It was a lovely night for eating alfresco. Bill picked up Cathy at 10:45 PM. On Friday, the Beattys and Devines left in the morning. Bill joined neighbor Tom for a fishing trip on Tom's boat. Bill caught too many Croakers to count, one small Flounder, and a small Weakfish. We had another great dinner at Tisha's on Friday night and both of us turned in early, very tired. Cathy worked on Saturday. Bill went to Avalon with Joe and Maria Link and ran the Avalon 5 Miler. It was a very humid morning, but Bill averaged a bit over 9 minute miles while staying very comfortable in his running. It threatened to storm all day, so Bill chilled out. On Sunday, Bill went fishing with Tom to Brandywine Shoal. It was hot and the flies were thick out there. We caught no "real" fish, just a shark and some skates, until Bill hooked a huge Cownosed Ray and brought him to the boat in a hard 15 minutes fight. On Monday, we spent the day preparing for our beach party on Tuesday. Bill ran an early, sweaty 5 miles to get the hot, hot day started. On Tuesday, we did all of the preparations for the party. Then, Bill paddled down to the canal to "test the water", as he said. The party was a great success, aided by Mother Nature, who supplied a hot, humid beach day with a refreshing southwest breeze to make the beach tolerable. We had lots of help and lots of kayaks and kayakers. The last people left after 10:00 PM when a line of thunderstorms were threatening the area, but got killed by the Bay as usual. We had 37 people at the party. The rest of the week was spent dodging thunderstorms and hiding from the heat and humidity. Bill ran a 5K on Sunday, July 23 in Avalon. We went to see "Clerks II" at the new stadium theaters in Rio Grande. Surprisingly, Cathy also enjoyed the movie. We really enjoyed an excellent, if pricey, meal at Black Duck on Sunday night. On Monday we took a 6 mile walk as Cathy's hip felt better. Later, Bill went out fishing off of his kayak with no luck other than a beautiful afternoon on the Bay. Tuesday was a big day for Bill while Cathy worked. First, in the morning, Bill did a 5 mile run. Then, at 12:30 PM, he headed south to Joe Link's beach and together the two paddled around Cape Island. The SE wind was stronger than forecast, so the paddle down the Bay to the Concrete Ship was pretty tough into the wind and waves. As they rounded Cape May Point, there were lots of dolphins close by and the choppy water was replaced by fairly large swells. It was a great trip as it always is. The pair got back to Joe's beach around 5:30 PM and Bill got back to our beach a bit later. On Wednesday, Cathy worked again while Bill prepared for our trip to Colorado to Drew Ernakovich's wedding near the Continental Divide. Our flight to Denver: 8:22 AM Thursday from Philadelphia; return: after midnight Sunday night.

        Bill and Cathy