Cardboard Boat Regatta 2009

This actually happened a couple of months ago. I had downloaded all the photos and was ready to post it but apparently I have short term memory and forgot about it. Maybe I should start taking Saint John's Wart. Isn't that supposed to help with memory? See, I can't remember. Anywho, I missed the actual race because I had to catch a plane to Jacksonville for a conference.  

This was my favorite entry. Made by some of my favorite people. In case you are confused the red boxes at the bottom don't go in the water. They are there for presentation purposes only. 

I'm not sure what this is supposed to be. I think maybe their creative juices were not flowing while designing this monstrosity. Yes, I do believe you will be needing that life vest. 

This was a giant boat with cute little sayings written all over it. Like this one. 

This is an upside down hat. 

This is the Marine's entry. It's upside down. I think it's lovely.  

Banana Watch 2009 - Day 49

We are back from Puerto Rico and the bananas have grown a tiny bit. I thought by now I would be eating banana bread, banana pudding and banana splits. Alas, we have a long way to go. 

Lessons not learned or Oops I did it again

You would think that I learned my lesson. You would think the memory of scratching until I bled, sleepless nights, applying and reapplying ointments would make me more careful. Apparently I forgot all this pain and ventured out of the house in shorts, at dusk. Yes, I was wearing bug spray but No-See-Ums (sand fleas) laugh in the face of deet. Again, I am covered in bites. From my neck all the way down my body. 

We are getting ready to leave for Puerto Rico this week. I have all my shorts packed for the trip. Now I'm afraid I will scare the people of Puerto Rico with my quarter sized oozing welts covering my body. But you can't go on vacation and wear long pants the entire time. The good people of PR will just have to suffer. 

Another perk of living on GTMO is the easy access to Puerto Rico. We are so excited to experience a new culture. I am ready to shop. They have a 6 story mall. Yes, 6 STORIES!!!! Oh Happy day. I will update as soon as I get back. 

GTMO Q&A

I enjoy getting comments on this blog and am delighted that many of my readers are former residents of Guantanamo Bay.  I would like to share some comments and expand on them a little bit. 

Bill Lewis said....

Are the big bleachers still at the NAS movie? That used to be the largest outdoor theater in the world in the 60's.

Yes Bill, they are. I don't recommend sitting on them for long periods of time or your behind will be really sore. I Googled to see if it was still was the largest in the world and didn't find anything. 

Anita Lewis Isom said......

When I last lived in Gitmo from 84--86 up at Corinaso Point in a Burns and Roe trailer - we had an iguana named Stubby that lived outside our trailer. I do not know if she is still there or not but the one in your pic sure looks like her!



There are actually several Iguanas running around GTMO that have no tails. I think it's a combination of bad drivers and that fact Iguanas love to sun tan in the middle of the road. 

 

Nee Nee said........

 

All the years I lived in Gitmo and I never ate those crabs - didn't know we could!! Squished a lot coming across Sherman Avenue - but never ate them.


Well Nee Nee, I think people will eat almost anything. They are supposed to be rather tasty. I still have issues with eating things I have seen alive so the crabs in my yard are safe.  Crab road kill is still a problem here. Especially when it rains. They will puncture your tires if you're not careful. 

 

Anonymous said.........

Hello My husband and I were stationed there in 75-77. I have no idea what your bottle is. We have been trying to find out for years for we have several bottles we also found when they were digging the new ferry landings. One lady found bottles that they figure Columbus dropped. It was a rare jewel. Is the old sucken ship still behind East Bargo? Is the auto dump yard still Sears and Roebucks? Cubans still worked on the base when we were there. there were some Cuban families that lived in trailers near the commissary, if it is still in the same place. Thanks for taking me down memory lane, it was wonderful!



Why thank you Anonymous. I still have no idea where this bottle came from. We have found dozens but it's still my favorite. Yes, the old sunken ship is still behind East Bargo. The auto dump yard is now run by Burns and Roe. There are many Cuban still living on base. They are now in regular housing in the Bargo area. They are getting very elderly and many of them are living in houses converted into nursing homes. Several have passed away in the year we have been here. It is a joy to see them out in the community. It must be incredibly hard to know your family is right across the fence but you will never get to go home and see them. 

 

Anonymous said...

I am in fact the guy who was nailed by that shark. So there are no discrepancies, it was a bull shark, around eight feet long. Although my leg is pretty chewed up I did not lose half my calf. Last point: one can theorize all they want, or read all they can, but until it happens, no one knows what they would do if in a similar situation. Thank you for your time

I am very happy you did not lose your calf. I got another comment from another shark survivor and thought I would share. Hope you are healing up well. 

Thanks for posting information on the shark incident. 

My name is Al Brenneka and I run a online shark attack file and a support group for other shark attack survivors like myself. 
We are interested in learning more about the shark incident you wrote about. You can visit us at www.sharkattacksurvivors.com. Please use the contact us form with any further info or post it here.

Thanks,
Al Brenneka

Mary in MN said...

I just fell upon your blog by doing a search for banana rat. I was stationed at Gitmo 15 years ago. Wow, what a blast from the past!!! I LOVED the time I spent there. I was telling my son stories of Cuba and he wanted to know what a banana rat looked like. That's how I ended up on your blog. I really hope you can find the good times among the restrictions of being on such a small post. Do I ever remember the 'it's on the barge'! 


I'm glad you are enjoying my blog Mary. It's been lots of fun for me as well. Yes, we still hear it's on the barge more than we would like. For those of you that don't know pretty much everything comes in on the barge. From toilet paper to socks it all comes in on the barge. If they are out of something at the Commissary you can't just run down to Wal-Mart and pick it up. You just have to wait until the next barge comes in. It's a trade off for living on this fabulous island. It's a trade off I'm willing to accept. 

Thank you all for your comments. I enjoy getting them. I now have over 11000 hits on my blog. I never in a million year thought I would have so many readers. Of course many of them are from the middle east and the rest are from my Mom.  I will leave you with a few more pretty GTMO photos.