Deployment Complete

I know it’s been a couple days since I posted here but you will completely understand after I recount how the intervening time was spent. Our week-long stay with my daughter’s family came to an end which was not what anyone really wanted, especially the FBR. She was inconsolable after going to bed Thursday night knowing we would be gone when she woke up. She was sobbing into her pillow and her parents had to go up at least three times to deal with her. The last time my daughter said the FBR had given them orders to talk us out of leaving and to request one last hug from each grandparent. Heart strings effectively strummed. While I’ll certainly miss my morning workout partner, if our time together had to end, the alternative isn’t that desolate. This is my view as I write this.

My View

Since Copa ended their direct flights to Panama from Boston during the pandemic we decided to fly out of New York’s JFK since we were already in New Jersey. There was only one drawback (well other than the smart remarks from the TSA agent about my Red Sox shirt), the flight left at 2 in the morning. Outside of some military flights, this was the weirdest hour I’ve ever flown, but it made the drive for Wingman to the airport from New Jersey a lot less problematic than it would be during the day. We got a couple hours of sleep on the plane despite the best efforts of a crying infant a few rows behind us. We landed in Panama just after sunrise. I don’t know if it was the hour of the day or a result of the pandemic but the airport was almost deserted. Instead of the usual bustling pace we literally walked up as the first in line every place we had to stop.

Some Last Photos from New Jersey

FBR Making Rice Krispy Treats With Abuela

The Important Sampling Phase

My Workout Buddy

Coaching Grandpa as he Rides Down Panamanian Causeway

Another Sign of Détente - Pee Wee on Our Bed

A quick comment on flying during the pandemic. I’m not sure if this was only Copa’s procedure but it was well done. They boarded the aircraft literally row by row starting from the rear of the plane. They reversed that when we landed with everyone required to remain seated until the row in front of you departed. Of course, there were the few idiots who didn’t want to listen but, when spotted, the attendants made an announcement which finally got through to them better than the withering stares from the rest us choosing to follow the rules. The result was an orderly departure from the plane instead of the usual mosh pit when the seatbelt light goes off. I know, weird to say something good has come out of the pandemic.

At My Mother in Law's House

After passing through immigration we walked over to the domestic flight gate and were in very short order flying to David, our final destination reached by air. The upshot of our very early morning departure was arriving in David around nine in the morning. Again, a deserted terminal but as soon as we walked outside, my wife’s family greeted us at a socially acceptable distance with balloons and non-stop laughter. It was quite a welcome. They came with our car and we made a stop back at my mother in law’s house to pick up some groceries they bought for us as well as a special fish dinner she had prepared for my Favorite Panamanian.

First Friday of the Week on our Balcony

After that all too brief stop, staying outside to keep everyone safe, we were on the final leg of our journey, the hour long drive to Las Lajas. I kept thinking I should be feeling a lot more tired than I was (2 hours of airplane sleep over previous 32) but since I was driving at highway speeds on a road fully stocked with Panamanian drivers, I was thankful for the exception. We had to pass a checkpoint where they took our temperatures before allowing us access to the road to our condo but sooner than we could have imagined we arrived.

Signature Sunset Last Evening

My sister-in-law and her friend had spent some time earlier this week cleaning and fully stocking the refrigerator which was a Godsend. Instead of the usual intense cleaning and waiting for the fridge to cool down that usually accompanies our after a return year’s absence it was like we’d never left, although the pillow did smell a little mothbally (I know, that’s not a real word). We prepared a meal and after eating the tiredness that had been noticeably absent descended in full force. We decided the full unpacking could wait until today.

Workout Location This Morning
Our Condo is 3d Floor Left Corner

There are Worse Places to Work out

We spent the remainder of the day staring out at the beach listening to the surf pound the shore. I’d forgotten that sound is so prevalent here and becomes white noise after a couple days but it felt almost like coming home to have it re-inserted into the senses. The sunset was Las Lajas spectacular and everything seemed to have returned to a year ago, before all the Covid implications.

Wife Took this Photo of me (Yellow Shirt) Going into Waves this Morning

I was out this morning for a workout on the beach. I had the entire beach, for at least a mile in each direction, completely to myself. I did however, miss a certain talkative five-year-old workout partner. I took it as a sign that my first attempted boogie board ride was a huge success, riding all the way into ankle depth. The boogie board replaces the bike workout, much as the water soaked coconut replaced weights for my workout. You work with what you got. Las Lajas reminded me not to take the surf lightly tumbling me a couple times and ripping off a pair of swim goggles as well. I think I’ll survive.  

My View up the Beach While Working Out

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RECURRING CHARACTERS                                           

BR3 – granddaughter #3, BRS - Blog Reader the Sequel - second granddaughter; FBR - First Blog Reader - first granddaughter, ABFA – Amazing Best Family Athlete = my daughter in law; Wingman – my son in law; Keene Friends 1 & 2 – friends since high school from my home town of Keene, NH; Soxfather - my brother in law; Great Aunt - my elder sister; Cantankerous Friend – friend since grade school who likes to argue about everything, poses as radical leftist to attract women; Kindergarten Friend – friend since kindergarten whom I reunited with after many years; Pittsburgh College Roommate – high school friend, also a “Minor Celebrity” in Pittsburgh; Deckzilla – our backyard deck which grew to monstrous dimensions once my wife got involved in planning; Maine and Virginia Musqueteras – two close friends of my wife – her US sisters, my wife is the 3^rd musquetera (musketeer); Riggins - also known as the Grandpuppy, son's dog; PanaGals – female relatives /friends of my wife from Panama; Panamanian/Latin Mafia – inevitable group of Latino friends my wife accumulates wherever we have lived & their spouses; Neighborhood Mafioso - wife's close friend and Panamanian mafia member, Favorite Panamanian - the wife (of course); First Friday – celebrations to mark the First Friday of the Week; Curbside Girls – close friends of my daughter acquired during her single days in Brooklyn