Nantucket town on Dwellable
Nantucket - Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Nantucket Trip August, 2005
Nantucket Trip August, 2007
Nantucket Trip August, 2008
Nantucket Trip August, 2011
Nantucket Trip, August 2013
Nantucket Trip, August, 2016
It started with a bit of a stomach ache as we were leaving Oswego at 5:00AM. Didn't think too much of it, but it kept getting worse along the drive. It got so bad I asked Carol to drive, which I almost never do, and with her breathing problems it was difficult for her. By the time we hit Hyannis, I was back to driving, and sure something significant was wrong, but because Carol would have a difficult time staying in Hyannis without me, we took the ferry to Nantucket.
Once there, it was a quick trip to the Nantucket Cottage Hospital emergency room. The first diagnosis was diverticulitis which was a possibility since, although I have never suffered from it, a couple of diverticulum were discovered in my last colonoscopy (I know, too much information!) Anyway they took a CT scan & sent it off to their associate hospital - Boston Medical Center, and the result came back as an obstructed small intestine. All I can say is it was the most painful thing I can remember over my 64 years! They switched from the emergency doctor to the hospital's surgeon, Dr. Timothy Lepore. After a little morphine I was finally feeling no pain & the suggestion was to wait a couple of days (in the hospital) to see if it cleared. Meanwhile, they shoved a tube down my nose to pump out my stomach. Even with a good dose of morphine I don't recommend getting your stomach pumped out through your nose. Not al all pleasant!
To make a long story short, two days later I got my first helicopter ride (the don't do ambulances on the ferry) since Viet Nam (and the pilot promised that no one would be shooting at me even though we were going to Boston.) For anyone interested, the 1 hour ride cost $13,634.00. Thank God for insurance!
After a couple of hours settling in at the Boston Medical Center Dr. Pennington started with Laparoscopic surgery that turned into an open surgery because he discovered a damaged section of bowel. The next two weeks of my vacation was spent in the in Room 22-2, 7th Floor of the Menino Pavilion at the Boston Medical Center recovering. Not all that bad a hospital, in fact, a very good experience, however I would have preferred the beaches of Nantucket. Don & Anne came to Nantucket while I was in the hospital, and because it looked like I was not going to get out of the hospital until after the date of the ferry reservation to get the van off the island, Anne drove Carol home. The bad (or good, depending on your point of view) part of that trip was Anne deciding that a GPS is actually a good thing. Prior to using one she felt it would replace her as navigator - it doesn't!
I got a ride from my brother David back from the hospital to Oswego a couple of days after they left. A little rough in a Chevy 2500 truck, but the drugs worked. All in all, not my best vacation. And that is the tale of the 2009 Nantucket vacation!
So, starting with 2010. This will be my first Nantucket trip without Carol. She put up a valiant fight, but succumbed to emphysema on January 6, 2010. It won't be the same without her, but it will be good to see Dave and visit with the Guido's when they come.
I left around 5:20 AM and pulled into Hyannis around 12:15. As usual, much too early for the 2:45 boat, but since it is an expensive reservation, it is much better to be early than to have missed the boat. At least this summer they are not also running the Nantucket so they didn't put me on a smaller, earlier boat like they did in the past. An uneventful trip across Nantucket Sound. The number of cars waiting to load started small, of course, because I was early. Still, even after the ferry arrived, there were very few waiting for the trip to Nantucket. It may be because I'm a few weeks earlier than in the past. Anyhow, here are some photos of the wait & crossing:
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The "Fast Ferry" Arrives |
The Hyannis Ferry Terminal |
An Empty Loading Lot |
The Eagle Arrives |
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The Crew Exchange |
Still Pretty Empty |
Off loading the Eagle |
Hyannis Harbor |
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Leaving Hyannis |
Still Lots of Boats in the Harbor |
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Once I got settled in at Dave's, we took down the old non-functioning weather station and replaced it with a Davis Vantage Vue wireless system. I have one at home & felt it would be just the thing for Nantucket, at least if it doesn't get blown down. I also installed his printer on his new desktop Windows machine & am working on an old MacBookPro as a portable machine for him. The WiFi died in it, the Netgear USB WiFi stick doesn't do OS X 10.6 so I am reverting to 10.5. Looks like it will work out OK.
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Other
Trips:
Nantucket Trip August, 2005
Nantucket Trip August, 2007
Nantucket Trip August, 2008
Nantucket Trip August, 2011