Load 'Em Up, Move 'Em Out

This is our very last week in Crisfield, and at the risk of sounding cliche, it is a bittersweet time. We are looking forward to being on our own soon, and enjoying some quality family time, but we will certainly miss our new friends here at MDS and in the community.

For example, a few weeks ago we had a group of 21 young ladies from Indiana and Ontario. They were a lot of fun, and the kids had a blast playing games with them in the evenings. They played musical chairs, slap, spoons, human pyramid, and more.

When the girls left, they gave Aaron (who was the crew leader for 8 of them) a bonnet. Since it wasn't really his style, he handed it over to Mim. She thinks it's great, and I love the incongruity of the bonnet and the x-box controller or the sweat pants.

Mim became the second-string sous-chef, and has been helping Ms. Frey and Ms. Bender in the kitchen. The kids helped shape and deliver soft-pretzels to the crews once a week, and I've been reliably informed that we have to make those pretzels when we're on our own, too.

The weather has been pretty rough for our last two
 weeks here, as if the Bay is trying to make sure that we don't miss it too much. We've had now, cold winds, very low temperatures, and the bay frozen solid all the way out to the islands. It's pretty, but not my cup of tea. Speaking of which, I've been drinking a lot of tea, and thinking with the occasional guilty pang about the men and women out on the job sites.

Everyone has been working hard, but I'm especially impressed with the crew that has been framing, undaunted by the cold temps and the snow. They were excited to stop for pretzels when the ladies arrived, and the neighbor's dog was pretty thrilled with the proceedings as well.

 Here's something I won't miss. When it gets cold enough our pipes freeze inside the trailer, so we have to bring water out to the bunk house for flushing, washing dishes, brushing teeth, etc. I will be glad to hit warmer climates soon so I can have access to running water as if I still lived in a first-world country.