pH Up pH Down

Well we have managed to kill the green. So the water is looking much better. But we can't seem to get the pH right on the pool water. I would love to have some good old fashion Litmus paper strips or a real pH meter. It was low so we added some chemicals to raise it. Well they worked because now it is way to high. This causes the cloudy water in the picture. So this morning we added some acid which will bring it back down. So hopefully we can get in the thing at some point.

Jay

Spring Time

Spring time in the islands......hot, hot, hot. But according to the VI Now website, spring time is not much different than Summer or any other season. (http://www.vinow.com/usvi/weather.php) The temperatures stay fairly consistent year round. The hottest month is August (as in most places), but hopefully it doesn't' get much hotter than today. It's 84 degrees but it feels like 90. I had to go out at lunch to run an errand with Jay (a left over from yesterday) and it is blazin' outside and not a whole lot of breeze either. Today's walk is going to be fun!

Deb

Day Off Island Style

Well since we spent the previous weekend sailing. We haven't got much done errands wise. So I am off today and it will be a to do list kind of day.

Take Deb to work
Talk to the accountant again about taxes
Go to Sea Chest Hardware (Pool Supplies)
Get the Propane Bottles for the Grill Refilled
Go To Deliver It and get some dive gear out of storage for a Friend
Go To Cost U Less for Groceries
Go To Home Depot for new Vanity (apartment downstairs)
Install The New Vanity
Get the Mail
Pick Up Deb from Work

I am pretty sure work would be easier.
Jay

Carnival

Carnival, originally uploaded by captainjay.

I'm enjoying the Carnival parade from the sideline. Last minute decision not to walk but to enjoy it as a spectator....maybe next year I'll walk now that I have an idea how it works. UVI's troupe looked great! This is just one of the many entries in the parade.

Friday Beach Pic

Friday Beach Pic, originally uploaded by captainjay.

I forgot today was Friday. It feels like Saturday since I was off. So
here is another beautiful beach on St. John.

Carnival Childrens Parade

Carnival Childrens Parade, originally uploaded by captainjay.

We're here at the parade and finally got to see the band we've been listening to practice since we moved in the house. They were great. I'm getting myself prepared for tomorrow... I'll probably regret doing it, but what the heck!

Jouvert

Well the bands at Carnival Village quit around 2:30 in the morning, as we can hear them from the house. Then Jouvert started around 5:00 this morning, we are having breakfast and can hear them moving along the waterfront. It sounds like the soundtrack from a Gilligan's Island episode.

It looks like Deb is going to be in the Adult parade on Saturday with the UVI troupe. She was fitted yesterday for her turtle costume. The turtle costume is the one on the right in the picture. This year, the University of the Virgin Islands celebrates 46 years of creating a learning environment for marine biology. During Carnival, UVI's troupes will symbolize an aquatic escape, representing the coral reef.

I hate that I have to work but I am sure some pictures will show up from some place:).

iPhone Update

Well there has been a flurry of questions about the iPhone on http://www.vingvimovingcenter.com so I thought I would do a little update. We have now used Deb's on St Thomas, St John, St Croix and up to ten miles off shore. It works great, some places are a little faster connection to the Edge Network than others but all in all it works better than my Nokia cell phone. Although we have not changed Deb's phone over to 340 yet, a friend of ours on St John, Matt from Lion In Da Sun, recently upgraded his existing ATT account to an iPhone,he did the activation through iTunes and only had a one hour delay during the "verification" process to get it set up . By island standards anything that gets done in a hour is fast. So there is the most current info I can give you on the iPhone.

Jay

Good Bye Jim

I went by Hook, Line & Sinker yesterday after my walk to say good bye to Jim. He and Ellen are moving to Florida and I missed their going away party on Sunday, so I wanted a chance to say good bye. When I got there, it was all boarded up. Apparently there had been a small kitchen fire and since they had already planned on closing for Carnival, I guess they decided to go ahead and close early. So no good byes. So Jim if you read this, I wish you and Ellen the best, and we're really going to miss you!

Deb and Jay

Another Wall Mart Order

Well Deb and I ordered some odds and ends from Wal Mart again. Their chosen shipping method is as usual a little off. They use some combination of Fed Ex and US Mail. Part of the order got to Puerto Rico in about a week the other part is sitting in Atlanta with Fed Ex. The last time we ordered the Puerto Rico leg which is handled by the Postal Service took and additional week. Even mail and shipping move at Island Time.

Jay

Monday Morning and Back To Work

We had a great weekend which makes the whole going back to work thing a little easier to take. I have to say from what we saw of St Croix it is worth a look as a vacation destination if you want to do a different Virgin. The diving was very good and Christiansted is very nice. We also made it over to the Casino it was nice but a little small. If you are into gambling they have all the normal stuff from one armed bandits to table games.

Jay

Perfect Weekend ...

Perfect Weekend ..., originally uploaded by captainjay.

Sweet

Sweet, originally uploaded by captainjay.

Perfect weather, calm seas, fair winds, cold beer. Doesn't get much better.
Jay

Lobster Breakfast

Lobster Breakfast, originally uploaded by captainjay.

Sailing to St Croix with a friend on your weekend off. ... Cost of provisions....Diving the wall ... Free air...Fresh Lobster, really fresh :), omlettes for breakfast ... Priceless

Jay

Brew Pub

Brew Pub, originally uploaded by captainjay.

We're sitting at the Fort Christian Brew Pub. Jay was looking forward to having a local brewed beer. But.....they ran out of hops because the shipment was delayed. So no brewed beer. So I guess its bushwaker time!

St. Croix here we come

St. Croix here we come, originally uploaded by captainjay.

We made it to St. Croix in about 4 and a half hours. It was an awsome sail... Great weather, 2 to 4 foot seas, good music...priceless!

Captain Jay

Captain Jay, originally uploaded by captainjay.

....at the helm and loving it. We're 7 miles out and filling the air tanks. Looking forward to our first dive since we moved here.

60 Feet At The Waterline

60 Feet At The Waterline, originally uploaded by captainjay.

And nicely making way. 17 KTS of wind, 60 degrees off of the port bow.
Jay

Under Way

Under Way, originally uploaded by captainjay.

Well we are under way to St. Croix. We got up at 5 am and by 5:20 we were heading out to sea. Captain Gary doesn't mess around....when its time to go, its time to go.

It looks like we will only have iPhone pics from this trip. Jay brought the camera, underwater housing, batteries, and charger. But forgot the memory card. So no sailing videos....bummer.

Stay tuned for more.....
Deb

On the water

On the water, originally uploaded by captainjay.

We are finally on the water on a friends boat for the weekend. It is awesome; I feel like I am home. We are enjoying a much deserved weekend off. More too come.....

Friday Beach Pic

Friday beach pic, originally uploaded by captainjay.

Here is another installment of the "Friday Beach Pic" series. This was also taken by a forumite on St. John.

Enjoy!
Deb

Real Post Soon Come

We were busy this morning packing for a weekend off so we didn't have time to come up with much to post. We are going sailing for a couple of days with a friend so we promise some fun pictures and stories for the weekend via the iPhone assuming it works properly.

Jay

Pueblo Prices

We haven't posted about the food prices in a while so I thought I would put a few items up from the trip to Pueblo yesterday evening.
90z Package of Ham or Turkey (lunch meat) $5.99
Six Lender Soft Bagels $1.99
Gallon of Low Fat 1% Milk $7.39
96oz Tropicana Pure Premium Orange Juice $7.29
One Dozen Large Eggs $1.95
Sour Cream $2.79
Ripe Bananas 5 about a pound $1.28
Three small vine ripe tomato $3.35
Gallon of Generic Bleach $2.09
Box of Honey Bunches of Oats Cereal $2.87
2 Bars of Dove Soap $4.75
Can of Del Monte Green Beans $1.29
12 Pack of Diet Coke $4.99

It looks like if you were hard up for money you could actually live on Bananas and Eggs as these stand out as the obvious values among the list. I have to say that lunch meat and some of the other staples are significantly cheaper at Cost U Less but sometimes you just don't have the time to take the trip.
Jay

Well Carnival is Rapidly Aproaching

Carnival gets into full swing this weekend. Then gets really large next weekend. The Governor has given government employees a half day on the 23rd and a full day on the 24th as well as the scheduled holiday on the 25th (Deb only gets the 25th), so it won't be a good week to get much done in a government office. We will try to post some pictures through the next week. Traffic and parking will be a major issue. They have already shut one lane down in front of the police station to give the police a place to park since their lot is being converted into a plywood food and drink booth mini mall. Here is a link to the Daily News Magazine about Carnival: http://carnival2008.vidaily.com/

The official Carnival site: http://www.vicarnival.com/

UVI Carnival: http://carnival.uvi.edu/

Jay

Featured on the Web again

I just found out that our blog was featured yet again on another popular web site....Frank Barnako's News of St. John blog. (http://barnako.typepad.com/news_of_st_john_usvi/2008/04/west-va-blogger.html).

Pretty cool how that keeps happening....it's a small world out there.

To the Doctor's office we go

So we finally made an appointment with the doctor's office just to get established with a doctor so that when/if something happens, we'll already be in the "system". We chose Yacht Haven Family Practice which is part of the Red Hook Family Practice. It's a really nice office; new, clean office with friendly people. I felt really comfortable with their service. One less thing to worry about.

Pool Maintenance

Pool Maintenance, originally uploaded by captainjay.

Well today we learned an important lesson of pool maintenance. You actually have to do some to keep the pool looking like it supposed to. ;-) Its a little on the green side so I've been adding chemicals and more water and letting the pump run longer than normal and checking the levels and adding more chemicals, you get the picture. We're going to let it rest tonight and check it again tomorrow. Hopefully we can get it back to the pretty blue it was when we first moved in.

Bug zapper

Bug zapper, originally uploaded by captainjay.

Forgot to mention that I got my bug zapper in the mail this past week.
I've been zappin' Mosquitos all week. Luv it!
Deb

Friday Beach Pic

Friday Beach Pic, originally uploaded by captainjay.

We hadn't posted yet today so I thought I would post a nice beach picture to end your work week. I may start doing this every Friday. One of the forums that we visit has a member that posts a beach pic every Friday and it's a nice way to kick off the weekend so I guess I'll steal his idea.
Enjoy!
Deb

BTW - most of the good beach pics we have were taken by some VIOL forum members (not us). This one was taken by MBW. So I want to give credit where credit is due. Thanks.

Walk with a View

Walk with a View, originally uploaded by captainjay.

I decided to walk the waterfront today instead of walking the track at the university. Much better view...I think I'll do that for awhile and see how it goes.

Land Fill Fire

There was a fire/explosion yesterday at the Bovoni Land Fill. The smoke could be seen from both ends of the island. We could smell the burning plastics and rubber all afternoon in Frenchtown. The cause is still under investigation but I have heard through the Coconut Telegraph that it was some kind of tank the exploded and caused the initial fire. Here is a picture that I borrowed from the paper and a link to the article.

http://www.onepaper.com/stthomasvi/?v=d&i=&s=News:Local&p=1206159254

The Gym Not Likely Soon Come

Well after Deb's experience with the Gym last week. I did a little digging on the USVI Relocation Forum. It appears that the business may be down for the count. I read through the posts and tried distill them down but in the end it is definitely a modern day "Don't Stop the Carnival" moment. So instead of trying to edit two pages down I will just post the link to the thread. Have fun with this one. http://www.vimovingcenter.com/talk/read.php?4,72255,page=1

Jay

I was one day away from being caught up in the mess. I went in on a Thursday to check it out and pick up the paperwork. I was going to go ahead and pay, but decided to wait until Saturday when I came back for my first workout and that's when I found out that they were closed. Crazy. I would have been soooooooo mad if I had paid and then they closed the next day. So, now I'm exercising at the house and walking around the track at UVI after work until time to pick up Jay. I guess it worked out for the better.

Deb

Better Weather This Week

Well after last weeks big wind this week is looking a little more like normal. We will still have steady trade winds but it looks like the 20 to 30 knot gusts are finished. Here is the current marine forecast for this week.

ATLC WATERS FROM PUNTA CADENA TO MOUTH OF RIO GUAJATACA THEN E
BEYOND 100 FATHOMS TO ANEGADA PASSAGE N TO 19.5N BETWEEN 68W AND 64W-
419 AM AST MON APR 7 2008

SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT THROUGH THIS EVENING

TODAY
EAST WINDS 15 TO 20 KNOTS. SEAS SUBSIDING 6 TO 8 FEET IN
EAST NORTHEAST SWELLS. ISOLATED SHOWERS.
TONIGHT
EAST WINDS 15 TO 20 KNOTS. SEAS 5 TO 6 FEET. ISOLATED
SHOWERS.
TUESDAY
EAST SOUTHEAST WINDS 12 TO 17 KNOTS. SEAS 5 TO 6 FEET.
SCATTERED SHOWERS.
TUESDAY NIGHT
EAST WINDS 11 TO 16 KNOTS. SEAS 4 TO 5 FEET.
SCATTERED SHOWERS.
WEDNESDAY
EAST SOUTHEAST WINDS 11 TO 16 KNOTS. SEAS 4 FEET.
ISOLATED SHOWERS.
WEDNESDAY NIGHT
EAST SOUTHEAST WINDS 9 TO 14 KNOTS. SEAS 4 TO
5 FEET. ISOLATED SHOWERS.
THURSDAY
EAST SOUTHEAST WINDS 8 TO 13 KNOTS. SEAS 4 TO 6 FEET.
ISOLATED SHOWERS.
FRIDAY
EAST WINDS 8 TO 13 KNOTS. SEAS 5 TO 7 FEET IN NORTH
NORTHEAST SWELLS. ISOLATED SHOWERS

Sunday, bloody Sunday

Sunday, bloody Sunday, originally uploaded by captainjay.

Well Jay is at work today so Shaunda and I decided to try the brunch at Hook, Line & Sinker and have their famous Bloody Mary's. Next we are going to walk around downtown and check out the shops. There is only one ship in port so it shouldn't be too crowded.

Last night we went to Bella Blu in Frenchtown for dinner. WOW! That was all we could say with every bite. The food was very good. The prices were middle of the road not over the top expensive but not cheap either. The atmosphere is very cozy and the service was excellent. If you are in St. Thomas looking for a good comfortable place its definitely worth going.

No word on the gym in Nisky so I exercised at the house. I may check in to using the fitness center at the university. Oh well.

Deb

Joinin' the Gym

Well I finally decided it was time to join the local gym and get out of "vacation" mode. Waiting at Hook, Line & Sinker everyday for Jay to get off from work, is not doing me any favors. So this morning, I got up, put on my work out clothes, filled out my gym application and took Jay to work. I get to the gym and this is what I find........

......it figures! The gym had been closed for awhile and finally reopened under new management. I guess they haven't worked out the kinks yet. There is another gym somewhere and a Curves, but they're kinda out of the way. This gym was in the perfect location for me to get off from work, go to the gym, then pick up Jay. I'm going to wait until this afternoon and see if they get this thing worked out and try it again. If not, I guess I need to find the other places. Bummer.

Deb

More of the Same

Well the wind and sea advisory are still going strong. Sustainedwinds in the 15-25 range and gusts over 30. Not your typical Caribbean weather by a long shot. It has been almost cool in the evenings. Deb has taken to wearing her hooded long sleeve sweat shirt around the house in the mornings and evenings.

Here is the current wind advisory.


weather.gov National Weather ServiceWatches, Warnings & Advisories


Local weather forecast by "City, St" or zip code

High Surf Advisory
COASTAL HAZARD MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN JUAN PR
1131 PM AST THU APR 3 2008

SAN JUAN AND VICINITY-NORTHEAST-SOUTHEAST-NORTH CENTRAL-NORTHWEST-
CULEBRA-VIEQUES-ST. THOMAS/ST. JOHN/ADJACENT ISLANDS-ST CROIX-
1131 PM AST THU APR 3 2008
...HIGH SURF ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 AM AST FRIDAY...
A HIGH SURF ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 AM AST FRIDAY.
STRONG EAST WINDS OF 15 TO 25 MPH WITH GUSTS OF 30 TO 35 MPH WILL
CONTINUE ACROSS THE REGION THROUGH FRIDAY AND WILL GENERATE LARGE
EASTERLY WIND SWELLS WITH PERIOD OF 9 TO 10 SECONDS. THESE WIND
WAVES WILL BE SUFFICIENT TO CREATE BREAKERS OF 6 TO 10 FEET ON
BEACHES WITH NORTHEAST...EAST OR SOUTHEAST EXPOSURE. THEREFORE THE
HIGH SURF ADVISORY IS BEING CONTINUED.
THESE BREAKING WAVES AND STRONG WIND DRIVEN CURRENTS WILL GENERATE
STRONG AND DANGEROUS CURRENTS WITHIN THE SURF ZONE... CALLED RIP
CURRENTS. THESE NARROW OUTWARD FLOWING CURRENTS CAN CARRY PEOPLE AND
ANIMALS AWAY FROM THE COAST LINE AND OUT TO SEA. IF YOU BECOME
CAUGHT IN A RIP CURRENT...DO NOT PANIC. CALMLY... REMAIN AFLOAT...
GATHER YOUR BEARINGS RELATIVE TO THE BEACH...AND SWIM PARALLEL TO
THE BEACH. YOU WILL EVENTUALLY LEAVE THE GRIP OF THIS NARROW
CURRENT...AND BE ABLE TO SAFELY SWIM TO SHORE.
LOCAL BEACH GOERS...AND INEXPERIENCED SURFERS AND SWIMMERS ARE URGED
TO STAY OUT OF THE WATER UNTIL THESE HAZARDOUS SURF CONDITIONS
SUBSIDE. PERSONS ON THE BEACH SHOULD BE VIGILANT FOR LARGE BREAKING
WAVES SURGING UPON THE SHORE...WHICH CAN CARRY PEOPLE OF ALL SIZES
INTO THE OCEAN. YOU SHOULD AVOID BEING NEAR THE SHORE LINE AND STAY
OFF OF ROCK FORMATIONS.
THESE SURGING WAVES WILL ALSO CREATE THE POTENTIAL FOR BEACH EROSION
DURING TIMES OF HIGH TIDE.
THE TIMES AND HEIGHTS OF THE HIGH TIDE FOR THE FOLLOWING
LOCATIONS ARE:
SAN JUAN HARBOR: 1.3 FEET AT 7:21 AM FRIDAY MORNING
MAGENS BAY ST THOMAS: 0.9 FEET AT 10:38 PM FRIDAY EVENING
CHRISTIANSTED ST CROIX: 0.4 FEET AT 3:44 AM FRIDAY MORNING
PLEASE STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO FOR THE LATEST INFORMATION
ON THIS DANGEROUS MARINE SITUATION...FROM YOUR NATIONAL WEATHER
SERVICE FORECAST OFFICE IN SAN JUAN.
THIS PRODUCT...ALONG WITH OTHER WEATHER...HYDROLOGICAL AND CLIMATE
INFORMATION...IS AVAILABLE ON THE WEB AT HTTP://WWW.SRH.NOAA.GOV/SJU
OR AT HTTP://WEATHER.GOV.

Another Ground Hog Day

Well the rain is helpful for the cistern but the winds and the seas are both up again. Here is the current forecast from NOAA.

URGENT - MARINE WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN JUAN PR
604 AM AST THU APR 3 2008
...STRONG AND BROAD SURFACE HIGH PRESSURE SINKING SOUTHWARDS
ACROSS THE CENTRAL ATLANTIC WILL MAINTAIN STRONG AND GUSTY WINDS
ACROSS THE REGIONAL WATERS TODAY THROUGH AT LEAST FRIDAY...
AMZ710-720-730-740-031815-
/E.EXT.TJSJ.SC.Y.0146.000000T0000Z-080404T1800Z/
ATLANTIC WATERS NORTHWARD TO 19.5N AND BETWEEN 64N AND 68W FROM
NORTHWEST COAST OF PUERTO RICO AT PUNTA CADENA EASTWARD TO MOUTH
OF RIO GUAJATACA EXTENDING BEYOND 100 FATHOM LINE TO THE ANEGADA
PASSAGE-
ATLANTIC NEARSHORE WATERS FROM MOUTH OF RIO GUAJATACA EASTWARD TO
CABO SAN JUAN THEN EASTWARD TO CULEBRA ST. THOMAS ST. JOHN AND
ADJACENT ISLANDS OUT TO 100 FATHOM LINE.-
CARIBBEAN WATERS FROM PUNTA VIENTO TO CABO SAN JUAN EXTENDING
SOUTHWARD TO 17N AND EASTWARD TO 64W INCLUDING THE CARIBBEAN
WATERS OF CULEBRA AND VIEQUES AND OF THE U.S. VIRGIN ISLANDS.-
CARIBBEAN WATERS FROM PUNTA VIENTO TO PUNTA MELONES AND THE
WATERS OUTSIDE OF 12 NM FROM PUNTA MELONES TO PUNTA CADENA
EXTENDING SOUTHWARD OF TO 17N AND WESTWARD TO 68W-
604 AM AST THU APR 3 2008
...SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY NOW IN EFFECT UNTIL 2 PM AST FRIDAY...
ALSO...A HIGH SURF ADVISORY IS IN EFFECT ACROSS THE NORTHERN AND
SOUTHEASTERN COASTS OF PUERTO RICO AND NORTHERN COASTS OF THE U.S.
VIRGIN ISLANDS UNTIL FRIDAY MORNING.
A 1030 MB SURFACE HIGH PRESSURE SYSTEM OVER THE CENTRAL ATLANTIC
THIS MORNING... WILL SLOWLY SINK SOUTHWARDS TODAY. THIS HIGH WILL
CONTINUE TO INDUCE A FRESH TO STRONG TRADE WIND FLOW AND HAZARDOUS
SEAS ACROSS THE REGIONAL WATERS THROUGH AT LEAST FRIDAY. LONG
PERIOD NORTHEASTERLY SWELLS WILL AFFECT THE REGIONAL WATERS
THROUGH THE END OF THE WEEK AND GRADUALLY DIMINISH ON SATURDAY.
MARINE CONDITIONS WILL REMAIN VERY ROUGH AND CHAOTIC...IN A
COMBINATION OF EAST NORTHEAST WIND WAVES...AND EAST NORTHEAST AND
NORTHEAST SWELLS. EASTERLY TRADE WINDS OF 20 TO 25 KNOTS ACROSS
MOST OF THE LOCAL WATERS WILL MAINTAIN HIGH SEAS...AND STRONG
LITTORAL CURRENTS ALONG THE COAST LINES. MODERATE TO LARGE
BREAKING WAVES ALONG THE LOCAL REEFS...SHOALS...AND BEACHES WILL
COMBINE WITH THE STRONG CURRENTS TO MAKE FOR VERY HAZARDOUS SURF
CONDITIONS THROUGH AT LEAST FRIDAY.
A SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY MEANS THAT WIND SPEEDS OF 22 TO 33 KNOTS
AND/OR SEAS OF 7 FEET OR GREATER ARE EXPECTED TO PRODUCE
HAZARDOUS WAVE CONDITIONS FOR SMALL CRAFT. INEXPERIENCED
MARINERS... ESPECIALLY THOSE OPERATING SMALLER VESSELS SHOULD
AVOID NAVIGATING IN THESE CONDITIONS.

Say it ain't so...

Say it ain't so..., originally uploaded by captainjay.

I just found out my favorite bartender Jim at Hook, Line & Sinker is leaving in three weeks. I'm so sad :-( It won't be the same.
Deb

Electric Mosquito/Flyswatter

Deb has order her new electric Mosquito killer. It's in the mail and will soon come :)

http://www.mosquitotechnologies.com/index.htm

100% Chance of Weather

Well we have showers and gusty winds today. Winds in the 20 to 30 MPH range. I guess spring has sprung in the islands. We also have a really cool crescent moon this morning.

Jay