USMB Coffee Shop IV

[007]

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Here's another "Sail" for you beautress... these girls crack me up...

 

[beautress]

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Here's another "Sail" for you beautress... these girls crack me up...

Think they're having some serious fun there, 007, nice music.

 

[gallantwarrior]

My daughter doesn't like driving too far away from home, which is kind of funny since Okinawa is about 36 miles long by 6 wide, so we've been exploring local places. We walked along the sea wall one day, went to the beach the next. Yesterday, she took me up to some pretty rugged place where they like to go diving. There are caves and coral to explore. I'm not much of a photo chronicler, but here are a couple of shots, the first is a view over the South China Sea (never thought I'd see that!), the second is a collection of she-sells: ​

View attachment 250273
View attachment 250274

Wow, gallantwarrior. What lovely shells !!!!!. Are the guys in kayaks scuba divers, too? Looks like somewhere close there's a world-class aquarium with spotted sharks and other large (and small) fish that people can go and see.

I put "Tropical fish in Okinawa" into bing, and put some small pictures here: Sea Fever and the Ocean's Colorful Creatures

Those were surfers, and scuba diving is a real big thing here, too. Yes, there is an aquarium where they have whale sharks on display. Daughter says they bring them in to study them and then release them again. When I asked here where they kept such large beasts, smartass told me in really big tanks. I guess it's way up north so we might not have the time to get up there.

 

[gallantwarrior]

It's been seasonably warm here. I'm currently hunkering down in the partner's city place, waiting for a military "hop" to Japan. Crossing my fingers for the flight scheduled to Yokota, Japan Friday. The schedule sucks but the price cannot be beat. I really just want to spend some time with my daughter and granddaughters.
I hope the partner will survive the commute to the "country" place. He locked the keys for the Lexus in the Lexus and has to drive the old Dodge truck until the dealership gets a new set of keys for the commuter. The old Dodge truck has no heater, no current registration, and needs the transmission overhauled. His fault, though, he's such an ass. I've told him how to minimize problems like this but his passive-aggressive illness will not allow him to take good advice. His problem. I'm going to Japan. I have no idea when I'll be able to travel again.

Bon voyage, Gallantwarrior. Have a wonderful time and take lots of pictures! Maybe you took your laptop and can communicate when you're on the bus going to see something nice.

Yup, done and done. I forgot my camera, so pictures will be from my cell phone. At least that function still works. So far, it's been dim, gray and rainy, but I am given to understand that this is how Okinawa is. Oh, and warm! These temperatures are hot summer temps for me. My daughter and I are having a blast, my granddaughters did that "Meh!" [shoulder shrug] common to teenaged communications. I smacked my SIL in the head, drank a few beers with him, yelled out agreement about some political issues, and then I fell asleep, exhausted by the journey.
If any of you can fly military Space A, I recommend it. The deal is, an unfilled airplane is wasted space and wasted cargo lift. So, to maximize the "bang-to-buck" ratios, the military will allow certain military-affiliated folks to hitch a ride. It has its drawbacks, like really crappy scheduling and you take your chances what type of aircraft you might be flying on. But you sure cannot beat the price! I was loaded into a C-17 Skymaster, the Air Force replacement for the C-140. It's a heavy lifter with lots of space, hell, we could have played soccer in the cargo hold!
My ride looked like this:
View attachment 249457

Seating was really great, too. No windows, so no window seats. No middle seats, either. Everyone had lots of elbow room when seated and as soon as we reached cruise altitude, most everyone tossed their sleeping bags or hammocks out and had nice naps. Here's what the passenger accommodations on board looked like, those are seats stowed up along the bulkhead (wall):

Great pics, pard! And yes, I CAN ride military air craft as a 100% service connected disable veteran. Last cargo plane I flew on was a C-141 stretch. I'd have to coordinate with Truax Field in Madison, WI, but I just might do that. I FULLY trust military a/c over civilian. In fact, if I ever had go down in a plane crash, I'd be proud to do it in an AIR FORCE plane...

Have you got a return flight arranged already, or how does that work?

This was my first hop and I liked it. I was on a C-17, which replaced the C-140 series. Space-A (available) means just that, if they have the space, you have a place. You can register up to 60 days ahead of your desired departure for a number of points of origin. Then you monitor the flight schedules, which are posted most of the time 72 hours in advance. (On Okinawa right now, they can only post a day in advance because their system is down.) Then you take you chances. Just because a flight is scheduled doesn't mean it will fly because they tend to reschedule, depending on mission requirements. It was great coming out though. My daughter clued me in and I was prepared with a thermarest and nice, warm blankie and was able to sack out on the deck.

So then you'll have to just keep an eye on the schedule for a flight back?

I've been watching every day. I'm not planning on leaving until next week, but I might get an idea what's available. Can't beat the price, fer shur.

 

[gallantwarrior]

My daughter doesn't like driving too far away from home, which is kind of funny since Okinawa is about 36 miles long by 6 wide, so we've been exploring local places. We walked along the sea wall one day, went to the beach the next. Yesterday, she took me up to some pretty rugged place where they like to go diving. There are caves and coral to explore. I'm not much of a photo chronicler, but here are a couple of shots, the first is a view over the South China Sea (never thought I'd see that!), the second is a collection of she-sells: ​

View attachment 250273
View attachment 250274

Some of those shells on the inside look to be Conus marmoreus (marbled cone snail), poisonous, predatory snails. It's toxin can kill a human.

I suspected the possibility, that's why I made sure they were just shells before stashing them in my bag.

 

[beautress]

My daughter doesn't like driving too far away from home, which is kind of funny since Okinawa is about 36 miles long by 6 wide, so we've been exploring local places. We walked along the sea wall one day, went to the beach the next. Yesterday, she took me up to some pretty rugged place where they like to go diving. There are caves and coral to explore. I'm not much of a photo chronicler, but here are a couple of shots, the first is a view over the South China Sea (never thought I'd see that!), the second is a collection of she-sells: ​

View attachment 250273
View attachment 250274

Wow, gallantwarrior. What lovely shells !!!!!. Are the guys in kayaks scuba divers, too? Looks like somewhere close there's a world-class aquarium with spotted sharks and other large (and small) fish that people can go and see.

I put "Tropical fish in Okinawa" into bing, and put some small pictures here: Sea Fever and the Ocean's Colorful Creatures

Those were surfers, and scuba diving is a real big thing here, too. Yes, there is an aquarium where they have whale sharks on display. Daughter says they bring them in to study them and then release them again. When I asked here where they kept such large beasts, smartass told me in really big tanks. I guess it's way up north so we might not have the time to get up there.

Well, if you don't get to the Okinawa aquarium, you can go there vicariously as I posted some pictures of it and some really nice tropical-type fish that hang around in the lovely waters there: Click here, you're there, well a little >>> Sea Fever and the Ocean's Colorful Creatures <<<

 

[gallantwarrior]

View attachment 250244

I just wanna cuddle every dang little kitty I see. I think they're the most adorable little critters there are... well... I like baby ducks too...

My daughter took me for my first visit to a cat café. They had a variety of purebred kittens and to feed them treats cost about $11 for 10 minutes. If you buy the day pass, it's about $20. People refreshments were gratis, but no outside food allowed. Instant friendship, as long as the treats held out.

 

[beautress]

We've had two pretty warm days in the 50's up nort' here, and wow did that melt a lot of snow. We actually have lots of bare ground showing, and when the sun got a chance to hit that today it warmed things up even more. I LOVE IT! I'm in Spring time mode now...

There's been some rain and wind. I was in the shop here today and one gust hit and made the whole building creek and groan. Never heard that before. Made me wonder if it wasn't even a microburst or something.

Glad to hear you finally got some decent weather, 007. That minus twenty stuff is yucky, imho, although some people like it.

 

[beautress]

View attachment 250244

I just wanna cuddle every dang little kitty I see. I think they're the most adorable little critters there are... well... I like baby ducks too...

My daughter took me for my first visit to a cat café. They had a variety of purebred kittens and to feed them treats cost about $11 for 10 minutes. If you buy the day pass, it's about $20. People refreshments were gratis, but no outside food allowed. Instant friendship, as long as the treats held out.

Isn't it fun to see how people on the other side of the planet do things we'd never thought of, but seem like fun.

 

[gallantwarrior]

View attachment 250244

I just wanna cuddle every dang little kitty I see. I think they're the most adorable little critters there are... well... I like baby ducks too...

My daughter took me for my first visit to a cat café. They had a variety of purebred kittens and to feed them treats cost about $11 for 10 minutes. If you buy the day pass, it's about $20. People refreshments were gratis, but no outside food allowed. Instant friendship, as long as the treats held out.

Isn't it fun to see how people on the other side of the planet do things we'd never thought of, but seem like fun.

Oh, boy, howdie! While very different in many ways, Okinawa is small and there are lots of Americans here. You can still find a rare place that serves only Japanese, but most businesses sport signage in English as well as Japanese and many of the people speak enough English to do business with us.
I noticed that almost all the houses have grates or bars on the windows, even several floors up. I was puzzled because Japan is notorious for being relatively crime free, clean, and polite. Daughter told me that those are there to prevent typhoon damage. A lot of buildings look like concrete bunkers and have flat roofs. I'm guessing they don't have to shed a lot of snow?

 

[beautress]

View attachment 250244

I just wanna cuddle every dang little kitty I see. I think they're the most adorable little critters there are... well... I like baby ducks too...

My daughter took me for my first visit to a cat café. They had a variety of purebred kittens and to feed them treats cost about $11 for 10 minutes. If you buy the day pass, it's about $20. People refreshments were gratis, but no outside food allowed. Instant friendship, as long as the treats held out.

Isn't it fun to see how people on the other side of the planet do things we'd never thought of, but seem like fun.

Oh, boy, howdie! While very different in many ways, Okinawa is small and there are lots of Americans here. You can still find a rare place that serves only Japanese, but most businesses sport signage in English as well as Japanese and many of the people speak enough English to do business with us.
I noticed that almost all the houses have grates or bars on the windows, even several floors up. I was puzzled because Japan is notorious for being relatively crime free, clean, and polite. Daughter told me that those are there to prevent typhoon damage. A lot of buildings look like concrete bunkers and have flat roofs. I'm guessing they don't have to shed a lot of snow?

I have to confess the day you left I went over to the Earthquake page at USGS, and I'm not sure where, but off the coast of one of Japan's remote islands there was a 4.something quake a hundred miles out. I can't bear to look anymore, but sending up a little prayer that all will be well while you're there. When I was active in my quilt business in Wyoming, one of my favorite quilt fabric suppliers had their cotton quilt fabrics spun and printed in the northern areas of Japan, and one day, the entire city was flattened by an earthquake. Think there were close to a million people there, but most made it through. Right on the shoreline, though, people had homes, and about ten thousand got washed out to sea. That's why if I ever went there it would be a short and sweet trip. Their fabrics were so terribly beautiful, I loved it when the Hoffman boxes arrived from CA, where they were sent to. Not only was it beautiful, it was just good fabric, it needled well, and was so totally lovely in every way.. Well, fortunately a small town doesn't sell fabrics very quickly, so in less than 6 months, they recuperated, rebuilt, spun and printed fabrics every bit as beautiful as before. Only one shop has them around here, but it's 50 miles west of here, so I only go there a couple of times a year. Our local shop has a few bolts from time to time, but styles change, and I like the prints that you can still see on a 1" postage stamp sized fabric, because I do a lot of fine work, but all on the machine.

Those folks get right back up, dust themselves off and start all over again. Kudos to a lovely people there in Japan. And I hope you have the time of your life for the duration of your stay there.

 

[Ringel05]

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Here's another "Sail" for you beautress... these girls crack me up...

Think they're having some serious fun there, 007, nice music.

Now ya got me thinking about my favorite sailing song and no it's not yo ho me hearties........

 

[Ridgerunner]

Feel it all with a willing heart
Every stop is a place to start
If you know how to play the part with feeling
I play with feeling

 

[beautress]

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Here's another "Sail" for you beautress... these girls crack me up...

Think they're having some serious fun there, 007, nice music.

Now ya got me thinking about my favorite sailing song and no it's not yo ho me hearties........

REALLY Nice music, Ringel. Thanks for sharing.

 

[beautress]

Feel it all with a willing heart
Every stop is a place to start
If you know how to play the part with feeling
I play with feeling

Pretty music, Ridgerunner. Thanks!

 

[beautress]

Goodness. It's nearly 2 am. here. Stay safe and warm, everyone.

 

[beautress]

Sun's up! Happy good weekend, everyone. Trying to figure out how they did this...

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[Ringel05]

​

Here's another "Sail" for you beautress... these girls crack me up...

Think they're having some serious fun there, 007, nice music.

Now ya got me thinking about my favorite sailing song and no it's not yo ho me hearties........

REALLY Nice music, Ringel. Thanks for sharing.

If you like harmonies.........

 

[Ringel05]

Great news for today, just received word the wife was approved for Medicaid. Now we have to see if and how much the bank will pre-approve for a home loan once all the documentation is in.

 

[Foxfyre]

Sun's up! Happy good weekend, everyone. Trying to figure out how they did this...

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That's wild. I would like to know the technique.