July 2026 – Exhale on the Water

Raindrops keep falling on my head

Can you name that artist, without the help of Mr. Google? Here’s a few of the familiar lyrics:

So I just did me some talking to the sun
And I said I didn’t like the way he got things done
Sleeping on the job
Those raindrops are falling on my head, they keep fallin’

Actually, we need more rain. Lake O is so low, we can’t cross it, forcing us to take the long way around. And Canada is on fire, again. So bring on the rain!

Buttercup hates the sound of thunder. Recently she figured out how to climb onto the bed. Game over.

We waved goodbye to Tonto’s Reward at the Lauderdale Yacht club. They are heading north via the east coast of Florida, while we are heading back to Fort Myers via the west coast of FL.

There is a BIG bridge in Fort Lauderdale, when it is open it appears the architect/engineer wanted to signal it’s all okay!

Coral Reef Yacht Club, Miami

Exhale returned to Coral Reef Yacht Club, which was closed on Monday.

Security – I mean cat – Guards kept an eye out.

Here’s a fun boat name, look at that transom, it’s the image of a devilish sting ray spearing a hogfish – for Tom and Faye Turke!

Key Largo

Departing Coral Reef before sunrise we were headed to Pilot House marina, Key Largo, roughly 50 nautical miles (nm), that’s a 7-hour run at roughly 7 knots.

the sun peaks through

6:01 AM, just a hint of light in the clouds

Yes, Capt Rick is amazing, and yes, it helps to have reliable Garmin instruments.

Capt Rick, navigating before sunrise, 6:05 AM

Buttercup was not interested in the early start – If she could talk I think she would say, “sleeping is what should be happening right now.”

A little Lighthouse for Caryl

Marathon, Florida

Departing before sunrise, again. The run from Pilot House to Faro Blanco in Marathon was 56 nm. It’s still dark out at 6:06 AM

Good planning Capt Rick, as the sun rose we could see the water conditions were smooth, so far. Oh yes, here comes the sun!

Naples City Dock

Another run in the rain, we left Faro Blanco at 6:00 AM, headed to Naples City Dock for a 94 nm run. That’s 12.5 hours for us. UGH!

Smooth waters, for now, Dave Lubs. While I was running the boat Capt Rick took a nap, Buttercup decided to share his pillow. Let there be no doubt who that dog loves the most. Sorry Pamela.

Final leg – Naples to Fort Myers

Ready to be back on Wittman – looking forward to seeing Libby! We pulled off the dock at 7:45 am. The final run was 37 nm.

Yes, there was more rain! About that 1969 song, Written by Burt Bacharach, BJ Thomas recorded Raindrops are Falling on My Head. Click here to listen to this moldy oldy!

Fort Myers, FL

Happy to be back, we tied up Exhale at our home dock on Saturday, July 18.

What’s Next? We have a few Air and Land Trips planned to see family in Cleveland, Los Angeles, and Alaska – where cooler weather awaits!

Celebrating Milestones

Birthdays: July 22, Ray Houle, Julie Hildebrand; July 26, Barry Hildebrand; July 28, Diana Giraldo; August 3, Carly and Andrea; August 4, Weston Straley; August 6, Tanja Elliott is 45; August 19, Julia Goral and Alisha Silverstein.

Anniversary: July 22, Matt and Michele; July 26, Larry and Laura; August 19, Danielle and Sandra celebrate 10 years.

August 2, Celebration of Life for Mike Gillespie

For the Love of a Cat

We begin with a special message from Patches, “this is where it all began.”

Patches was a community cat – that means it was a bit of a nomad, wandering from house to house to eat the finest food, and to sleep in the best of accommodations. By definition, a community cat does not have an “owner” and, it is an outdoor cat – so a kitty litter box was not a requirement.

Patches played a key role in the courtship of Tony and my daughter Alisha (they know why), so it is deemed a “cool cat” in my book.

Cool Cat

This is a good time to share a Queen Original from 1982, “Cool Cat”, yes, that falsetto voice is the great Freddie Mercury, singing about his favorite cat! Click on the song, it’s great.

Anniversary

For the love of Patches, Tony and Alisha, are now celebrating their first anniversary! We hope you are having a fabulous trip in Alaska. Saying hello to our family and friends!

Time has passed so quickly! Thanks again to David, Gail, Craig and Maureen for joining us at the phenomenal California wedding one year ago.

July 12, 2025; Alisha and Tony got married!

Key Biscayne

Back to the boating adventures – when the heat in Florida is Opressive the sunsets can be IMpressive!

It was another magnificent sunset for Tonto’s Reward (on the left) and Exhale (on the right).

Buttercup

July 7 marked a special anniversary, as Exhale celebrated four years with Admiral Buttercup on board. Thanks Buttercup, you fill us up with love.

Adieu, sweet friend.

It is very hard to say goodbye to another special friend, the beautiful Paula Rocque. In the words of her husband, PC Greg Rocque “Paula was the best wife, partner, mother, daughter, sister, aunt, and friend anyone could ask for. She had a gift for making people feel loved, and just about everyone who knew her loved her in return.”

For me, she was a GREAT friend, she always knew exactly what to say, to give comfort, and to generate laughter. She had a fabulous sense of humor and she NEVER complained.

You may not know that she fought and WON her battle with lung cancer. She recently rang the bell many of us know too well! She was so brave and strong willed, a beacon of light.

So, her sudden death from a stroke is simply horrible. Horrible. The unexpected loss is cavernous to her family and to all of the St. Charles community. Words cannot express the grief. We are thankful she is at peace now. Sending big hugs of support to the Rocque family.

Dr. Joe

We are also sending warm hugs to Dr. Joe, and his family, wishing you a well deserved rest.

There has been a lot of sobbing on Exhale as of late. It’s time for some good news, cheering for Craig and MO! And of course we are rooting for England, Argentina, Columbia and Mexico. Hey Pamela – “Ole! Ole! Ole!”

Here’s a little cochinita pibil, Miami style, for Ryan – congrats on the new real estate!

Celebrating Milestones

Birthdays: July 10, Jamie Hendry; July 12, Eric S; July 14, Gabe.

Anniversary: July 7, Buttercup; July 12, Tony and Alisha.

Up Next: We are at Lauderdale Yacht Club (LYC) with Tonto’s Reward for three days. Here’s a little flashback photo: Zach Silverstein, Alisha Silverstein, Holly Pilato, dinner on Exhale at Lauderdale Yacht Club, May 2025. Te Amo.

Our next stop has not been decided.

Your comments and “likes” are encouraged. Travel Safe!!!

Is 250 a really big deal?

It depends, 250 of what? 250 pennies – not so much.

250 cats – that’s a lot of cats (more on that in this post).

250 snakes – Sideways says, no thanks!

How about 250 years as a country – without being taken over? Why yes, it’s a big deal.

Perhaps you know there are 195 recognized countries in the world. If you include Taiwan and Kosovo the count is 197. Of those, roughly 20 or 30-ish countries have lasted for more than 250 years, including San Marino (known as a “micro-state” it’s only 23.6 sq. miles, completely surrounded by Italy), Iran, Egypt, Vietnam, Japan, China, Switzerland, Portugal, France and a few more. Click here for a list of 20 old countries from History Snob. You might be surprised. You will also find some fabulous photos from each country.

Capt Rick asked, what about the UK?? Answer: the United Kingdom has existed in its current form only since 1922 (over a century), when most of Ireland seceded as the Irish Free State. Northern Ireland remained, finalizing the present-day composition of four constituent countries (England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland).

I repeat, 250 years as a country is a big deal.

First, a little US flag history. The Continental Army flew this flag until 1777.

First “official” flag of the 13 colonies known as “the Continental Colors” or “Grand Union Flag.”

The first “non-British” version was the Betsy Ross flag, with 13 stars and 13 stripes.

Designed and sewn by Elizabeth Griscom, aka Betsy Ross.

The flag design changed as new states were added. The current US flag has been in place for 67 years, and it is actually the twenty-seventh version of stars and stripes. Introduced in 1959 when Alaska (the 49th state) and Hawaii (the 50th) were added to the mix, it displays 50 stars and 13 stripes.

If you are curious and want to learn more about the history of the US flag, click here.

Mind you, the physical borders of our country have changed significantly over time. In 1776 the newly formed United States was roughly 430,000 square miles. 250 years later – through land purchases, treaties, forced displacements, and brutal conquests – the US land mass is now roughly 3,619,000 square miles, more than 8.4 times the original foot print.

To give you some perspective, the top five countries by land mass are:

Russia: 6,601,665 sq miles
Canada: 3,855,101 sq miles
China: 3,747,877 sq miles
United States: 3,618,783 sq miles
Brazil: 3,287,955

Fun fact, Alaska consists of 665,384 square miles. Brilliantly purchased from Russia in 1867.

It’s no surprise that Russia (notably the largest country) has also experienced serious growth via brutal measures, starting at 1.1 million square miles in 1547, today it is roughly 6.6 million square miles, that’s 6 times the original territory.

Ocean Reef, Key Largo

Signal Flags correctly spell out Ocean Reef, thanks Gail B.

Every time we have the privilege of staying at Ocean Reef we relish the spectacular experience. Thank you Luann Lowen, once again, for spoiling us!

When you hang out with Morgan, the first stop is a lengthy visit at the island cat rescue, managed by ORCAT (Ocean Reef Community Cat Action Team). Now operating out of the spectacular Grayvik Animal Care Center.

ORCAT runs a Trap-Neuter-Release (TNR) program, and it has a beautiful visitation room for adoptable cats.

Imagine, 250 Cats! Currently, the ORCAT population hovers around 200, close enough.

With vet care on the ground floor, the new facility is stunning.

Magnificent cat tree, Ynot, you could use this!

While the girls were chilling with the cats, Capt Rick went on a fishing expedition with Wittman neighbor Greg Wasmuth (Luann’s son) – the fresh bounty was perfectly prepared at the Burgee Bar. All I can say is wow. Oh, and YUM! Libby, you should be here!

While we were waiting for the food to be prepared, Morgan crafted unique bracelets for everyone!

Shout out to Joe Occhino, we found the CIC burgee!

Thanks Morgan, so much fun!

Celebrating Milestones

Birthdays: July 2 – Belated Birthday Wishes to our grandson, Leo Perez (so sorry we missed you in our last post); July 5, Gail Doyle; July 7, Rodger Swink; July 10, Jamie Hendry; July 13, Laura Jo; July 14, Gabriel turns 2!

Anniversary: July 4, Tanja and Jason – celebrating 13 years since their Elvis themed wedding.

Sending VERY positive vibes to Craig Adford – you got this!

Happy 4th of July weekend everyone! 250 is a really big deal.

Next Stop: Key Biscayne