You've Got to Be Kidding.

This isn't funny anymore.

     We have had one storm after another for the past few weeks. Just when it seems the wind dies down, it picks back up again. The ferry cancelled Wednesday because of the weather (that's the 4th trip cancelled due to wind since October, for those of us counting). We had scheduled no school Wednesday and Thursday so we could all go off to Christmas and grocery shop (we build these days right into the school calendar so that there doesn't end up being only one or two kids at school for 2 days).

Well, that's OK; we're used to having to punt when it comes to weather ruling our lives. 

We re-grouped, decided to have school Wednesday, and take off Thursday-Friday instead. (We have a policy in place with the ferry service- if the ferry cancels Wednesday, there is a scheduled make up trip Friday. It was a long time coming, getting that policy in place, and we are very happy to have it.)

And all would have been right with the world...except that the boat ended up being pulled out of service to work on the pen at Swan's Island (due to some technical details that I don't fully understand. They needed the boat. Awesome.)

So, no trips Thursday, Friday, or Saturday either!

Ok...re-group again.

We decided to have school Thursday-Fri-Sat, the Xmas party Saturday night, and take off the following (this coming) Wed-Thursday.

Um, no.

We have our lovely art teacher, whom we all adore, Anne Claude Cotty, scheduled to visit those days. We cannot cancel art with Ms. Cotty!!

We re-grouped again.

After much haggling and debate, a bottle of wine, some tears, and a lot of swearing (hmm, who would that have been?) we settled on just having school every day but the first (original) Wednesday. Whoever really needs to go off the 17-18th, will just take the hit on the missed school days. It worked for the teachers who would have been the ones to really get tanked; parents have the option of pulling our kids out of school, the teachers are obligated to be there. They are leaving the island for Christmas, and didn't need to shop before then.

whew.

Then I sat down with phone and a calendar to figure out how to get mail to and from The Rock on those days....and minutes later...

... the ferry called to say they'd be able to run us a couple of trips...Thursday and Friday.

Oh. My. God.

Re-group, again. By this time, even I don't want to take calls from me!

 We decided to just leave the school schedule alone. 

(Seriously, I couldn't take any more, and I had only just begun to coordinate mail runs!)

The mail, I said, can come on the Thursday ferry. I'll juggle the mail schedule to use the Friday make-up trip to run mail Friday. And My Hero Paul will run for me Saturday.

And all was right with the world!

Nate brought the incoming mail on Wednesday night.

Thursday's mail went on and off the big ferry, hallelujah.

Aaaaaaand then it blew again, and the Friday boat cancelled. (yup, that's 5. Mother Nature? You'd already set a record by trip #3. Now KNOCK IT OFF.)

How am I not on Prozac?

Chris and Emmie ran mail Friday-both on and off (thank you guys...you're awesome!), plus picked up the stranded islanders who couldn't get home.

Paul Joy did the regular mail run Saturday.

Poor Chris; he ran his boat across Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday.

And we had to get Lewis to do an emergency run Saturday night;  Kay suffered a small stroke (she will be fine after a bit). Scary stuff.

Oh yeah,

     The Big Guy left today on the ferry to go after his dragging gear. (What? the ferry ran?)

He's going scallop dragging.

Trip fishing.

I'm going to be left here on the Rock all winter, alone, and outnumbered by my kids.

Awesome.

(This isn't the first time. Last time I was still nursing thing Two. The boat sank that year. And I couldn't drink wine because of the nursing. Good Times. That's a story for another day!!!)