Sort of Like Shopping in Kalamazoo

(Google Image)

   
       When I was little and a particularly rainy day occurred on a non-school day, my parents usually loaded us into the car and Dad drove us to Kalamazoo to go shopping.  You see, Dad was a farmer and he couldn’t do much in the field when it was too wet.  We always looked forward to going to Kalamazoo because, to us, it was the BIG CITY.  Not as big as Chicago, where many of our relatives lived, but Kalamazoo had huge department stores like Goldblatts, Woolworths, JC Penney's, and Sears Roebuck where you could buy anything you ever wanted! 
     The drive took about forty-five minutes on the two lanes of Red Arrow Highway, as it wound its way through small towns at crossroads along the route…Lawrence…Paw Paw…Oshtemo.  We knew we were almost there when one of us spotted what we called “the Nut House”, a narrow circular tower that jutted up out of the woods on the south side of the road.  To this day, I don’t know what that tower is, but it remains a landmark for me.
     By now I suppose you’re wondering where this story is going. 


     Well, it doesn’t rain often down here in the Caribbean, but when it does who would guess that the Captain’s favorite pass time is shopping online.  He’s not likely to order his First & Last Mate a new frock or stilettos or expensive baubles to wear with her swim suit “uniforms” as she carries out her daily duties.  No, the Captain is more likely to order the next best electronic marine gizmo, or replacement parts for the water maker, like pumps and filters or for the engine, like O-rings and more filters.  In short- he buys necessary things.  The Captain is a guy after all. (He recently calculated and e-filed our Federal Tax return, so maybe today he’s got a limit in mind.  Maybe.)   
     Now mind you, the First & Last Mate has indeed benefited from some of his shopping sprees.  For example, he sent for a compact washing machine on the occasion of my last birthday that is saving my precious hands from wringing, so that they can busy themselves in other useful ways.  Then for Christmas 2014, he ordered a new stove for the galley with 3 burners, an oven WITH a dial to regulate the temperature, AND a broiler!!  (Woo-hoo!) 


I'm thrilled to have a washing machine!

I never enjoyed cooking on board ES more!

        I washed and hung two loads of laundry this morning, but now it is a wee bit rainy.  And as I write this, the Captain is indeed online ordering a few things that will be shipped to our daughter Becky who coincidentally lives in Kalamazoo.  I’m flying home to Michigan soon to attend two special events:  our youngest granddaughter’s 5th birthday and our niece’s wedding. Guess what I’ll be bringing back with me when I return to Exit Strategy and my Captain in the USVI?
    
     It’s sort of like shopping in Kalamazoo.