Then - 234 // Now - 193

When I decided to throw caution to the wind and move to Saba I made a commitment to myself to lose some weight and get in better shape.

Well, one of the boxes that arrived yesterday was a new scale! (I'm not sure if that's a good thing or not)


My official weight loss totals are:

Weight in Falls Church, VA as of September 25th - 234 lbs.
Weight on Saba as of this morning, January 30th - 193 lbs.
41 pounds and counting!!

Finally, I am not looking at myself in the mirror and thinking I look like Bernie (above)

Paul and I are gearing up for a busy week end at Tropics. We are playing the SuperBowl on the big screen on Sunday and having a Texas Style BBQ. We anticipate a big crowd since no one else on the island will have the game playing on a large screen.

I'm sure by the 2nd inning I will be bored!

The Cargo Container has arrived!

It always feels like Christmas when the cargo container arrives. Christmas in January, Yippee!

Today we got a bunch of office supplies, some fixtures from Pottery Barn for the house and our new grill and hammock for outside.



I never know what is going to come since Paul is "the queen" of online shopping. I'm going to call him the The Imelda Marcos of the Internet.

I took a couple of hours off from the restaurant today to put together the Weber Grill and Hammock. Now all I have to do is find some time to actually enjoy them!

We are still waiting for our new patio furniture, umbrella, chairs and benches and then we are officially ready for the island party and BBQ at the house.

Come on down!

Our St. Maarten Day Trip

Our day in St. Maarten got a little more hectic than we (I) had planned. We were scheduled for the flight over at about 9am so we could have "the whole" day to get things accomplished first and then head to the beach for some sun and frolic. Well, our flight got delayed by over an hour and by the time we got the rental car and were on our way it was almost 11am.

It was a little bumpy on the way over and I had to wonder whether Carolyn Bisset Kennedy had this very same view as me just before her demise??

We DID end up getting a lot of things accomplised while we were there, had a nice lunch at Pineapple Pete's in Maho

and got to the the hotel just after dark. We got ourselves all freshened up and went back into Maho for dinner and little gambling at Casino Royale. I lost my entire allowance ($10.00) in the first 42 seconds on The Wheel of Fortune slot machine and then watched Paul and Travis play Black Jack for the rest of the time. We got back to the hotel after 2am and were up at dawn to catch the return flight home to Saba.

Although we were pretty tired on only a couple hours of sleep, it WAS nice to wake up to this pretty view overlooking the beach with a couple huge yachts in the distance.

Paul did surprise me with a gift of this really awesome piece of art glass. It is a hand blown glass bowl with oranges and blues from a gallery in Maho Plaza. Pretty cool!

Saturday Night Update

Well, the all gay group has left the island and they were very nice. The Pin Up image that I had (from my previous post) was, simply that, an image (with one exception) but the entire group was really good. They all left today and our new dive group has arrived from Canada. 11 people arrived today on the last flight from St. Maarten and they all had dinner at Tropics.

Just getting home from work at nearly midnight and need some sleep before a busy Sunday Brunch tomorrow.

The good news is that we are taking the day off on Monday and taking a quick trip to St. Maarten for the day for some shopping, relaxing and spending some time on the beach in the sun! Not sure if "Chris" is ready for the skimpy swimsuit yet but I'm definitely ready for some R&R.

Got a little chilly today, being Winter and all with low's around 72 degrees.

Speed Bumps

So as they day progressed yesterday at an exhaustively slow pace due to my recovery condition from the night before I noticed and found additional scrapes, bumps and bruises on both of my elbows, wrist, both knees and shins not to mention a VERY bruised ego especially when I was told "how I fell".

Apparently I was walking down the hill and tripped over the speed bump and toppled into the wall and over the edge.

Needless to say my sudden new nickname is, can you guess, SPEED BUMP.

Chris is a Stupid, Stupid Boy

Last night we finished with our "shift" at the restaurant and decided to go to Swinging Doors for Open Mike Night and listened to some live music. As the night progressed a handful of us made the UNWISE decision to go to another place and play a couple of rounds of pool.

Paul, bless his heart, was the smart one and said he was going home and I told him that it was not a big deal and that I would walk home later.

This is the sad outcome of an empty stomach, plenty of cocktails, too many rounds of pool and trying to "walk" up the mountain to pour myself into bed at some UnGodly hour of the night.

Paul, I am sorry and Chris; you are a stupid idiot!

Health Insurance on Saba

When Paul and I decided to take over Tropics Cafe we formed an N.V. ("island for corporation") which is CFPC Hospitality, N.V. Now that we're officially employed by ourselves we qualify for health coverage on the island.

This morning we go to pick up our health insurance cards and are now covered. What a relief to NOT have to pay for health insurance premiums from the states. What a rip off that was.

Hopefully Obama can put into measure some changes that can curb the costs for all Americans who have to pay out of pocket for so many basic necessities related to it.

Obama's Big Day

For a minute (I mean a second) I wished that I was in DC to commemorate the swearing in of Obama on this inuaguration.

And then I read the reports of estimated crowds in DC today by the National Park Service saying the the crowds could break records with numbers topping 4 million people, 19 degree weather, a chance of snow flurries, Barricades and bridge closures. Goodness Gracious Me!

So my "wise" decision is to watch the swearing in and all the festivities with THIS in my hand

and THIS as my view with the "to do's" showing via satellite feed.

Happy Obama-fest Day from Saba.

My new necklace

Statia beads are highly collectible trinkets in the Netherlands Antilles and come from St. Eustatius or "Statia" as it is nicknamed. These beads were originally made in Holland with molten blue glass and formed into beads. The belief is that they were used as a form of bartering for the slaves in the 18th Century.

Some say that an individual slave who wanted to marry had to collect enough beads to wrap around the waist of the woman they wanted and another story is the number of beads a slave was given measured their value.

I located 3 of these Statia beads and had them made into my new necklace. It's kind of cool to have a piece of history like this not only because they are more than 250 years old but have such a profound history in the slave trade of the 1700's throughout the Caribbean.

Monserrat and Mustaches

This morning I got some pretty cool photos from our deck showing the higher levels of volcanic cloud and ash in the air from Monserrat.

It looks like there's a layer of low lying dark grey clouds all around. It really makes for an eery feeling as I look around. Pretty cool though.

Last night after we finished dinner service Paul and I decided to go to one of the local "watering holes" for a nightcap. One of the guys from this new dive group went with us. As we were sitting there a young obnoxious Indian woman came in and started ordering drinks and beers for her group. She asked if they "sold cigarettes" and requested 2 Marlboro Lights. The bartender/Owner gave her 2 packs and she said "No, I just need 2 cigarettes, not 2 packs"

"Well we don't sell cigarettes one at a time" he says

So, a little disgrruntled, she buys a whole pack and then demands a lighter or matches.

His response as he gave her a light was "Now honey, try not to burn your mustache with this"!!!

It's a wonder that we didn't fall off our bar stools from laughing so hard.

Monserrat, "A Cloudy Day" today

Today the winds were blowing from the South and the island Monserrat was not being very happy today and was belching a good bit of volcanic ash. That resulted in what appeared to be an overcast and "cloudy" afternoon and sunset.

It did make for a pretty awesome sunset though. Wish I had my camera with me to share it with you (so I had to borrow this image from another Dusty Sunset)

Our dive group checked in today. All but 2 guys made it over by the last flight just before dark. (Saba airport doesn't have any lighting so air service to the island stops at dark)

They had their Welcome Meal at Tropics and all enjoyed! I got a kick out of some of the conversations going on at the table. A couple of guys were actually comtemplating "not diving" on Tuesday so they could watch the swearing in of Obama. I guess I'm not that interested in History. Does that make ME shallow or them ANAL??? I wonder... There I go again.

A Little Cold "Snap"

"They" say it's rather chilly in DC right now. I had a chance to talk with my Mom yesterday and she said it was something like 10 degrees. Yikes! Coldest weather in over a decade she says.

We're about to recieve our own little "cold (OH) snap" today when a dive group of 12 checks in. It's an all gay travel group coming in from various spots around the country. OK, my brain is telling me this is what will get out of the taxi this afternoon in front of the hotel

BUT in reality I will most likely greet this instead

Ah well, at least they'll spend some good money at the restaurant!

Inaugural Traffic Jams

I'm getting reports from folks in DC that the traffic jams are going to be horrendous over the next several days in preparation for the inauguration. I realize now that when I have to stop for a handful of goats crossing the road on Saba, things aren't so bad.

Paul and I have lots of prep to do to get ready for a large dive group coming in today and tomorrow for a week. They are staying onsite at the hotel so we'll have a captured audience at Tropics.

Wishing you a Happy Friday from Saba!!

And I thought the water was cold right now

With "Winter" upon us here on Saba I thought the water was a little chilly but after watching the live feed from the US Airways crash into the Hudson River today I decided that it wasn't nearly as cold as I thought.

All I can say about that is "What the F#$&ck!!!

And I'm bitching about demanding customers, foggy and rainy conditions and lack of sunshine. Come on Chris, get a life!

Obama is in "Da House"

My friend Sean posted this photo op on his Facebook page so I thought I'd borrow it to share with you.

It's a photo of President Elect Obama getting his chili dog while visiting "world famous" Ben's Chili Bowl in Washington, DC.

2 thoughts crossed my mind when I saw this:

1: Where did "Shaniqua Gurrll" get that awesome leopard print bag on the counter and
2: Did Barack get diarrhea like I did every time I went there for a loaded chili dog. Hmmmn.

I wonder sometimes if I think too much.

Today's a Rough Day

Yesterday was a really, really long day at the restaurant. We had a pretty good lunch crowd follwed by a decent dinner service BUT the last guest left at a little after midnight and then I had to finish sweeping and mopping the place and we got home at just before 1am.

10am until 1am?

What the Hell was I thinking when I agreed to go "into the restaurant biz"????

This morning I woke up a little groggy but felt that a nice shower would do the trick and get me back on my feet along with a nice cup of coffee when the power went out! No power means no water pump to get the faucets to run. No coffee and No shower makes Chris a grumpy boy...

Now I get to work all freakin' day with just a "whores bath" and a little cologne.

"Nice"

"My Friend" Theresa

Tonight we went to our friend Earnest's birthday party at his house. Lots of good food and friends were there to celebrate his day with him.


As a joke he was given "Theresa" and was told that he now can have a beautiful blond to share his bed.

Paul got a little jealous and wanted some one on one time with her as well.

It wasn't a late night for us because we had way too much fun last night at Swinging Doors and I was fading fast once dinner was served and I had a belly full of food. Time for beddy-bye for me.

The Manta Ray

I would loved to have taken credit for this image and talked about the Manta Ray "first person" but will have to live vicariously through the other scuba divers that saw it the other day.

There is a group of college students here on a study course and they went out diving. When they came back all they could talk about was this Manta Ray they saw. Without exaggeration they claim it had a "wing span" of about 16 feet! These kind of rays are fairly rare to this area so it must have been a real treat to witness it.

Their dive instructor Kat posted this image on her Facebook so I've borrowed it to share with you.


Don't shovel too much snow up there! Clear skies and 75 degrees today from Saba. :)

An Incredible Sweet Tooth

In my quest to lose weight, I've tried really hard to stay away from desserts and more importantly (my weakness) ice cream.

Yesterday, however, I caved into my sweet tooth and splurged on not only a bowl of ice cream but a big ol' slice of my homemade chocolate chip pecan pie.

Now I'm going to have to stay away from the scale and the refrigerator for the next 10-15 days as punishment.

I'm happy with the weight loss but I still look at myself in the mirror and see this looking back at me.

I think I need therapy......

The "Big Game"

We had a special request to "air the Big Game" on the big screen tonight at Tropics which we agreed to.

The result was a bunch of locals and a whole lot of medical students coming to drink beer, eat nachos and Buffalo wings and watch the game... from 8:30pm until NOW nearly 2am!!! I'm freakin' exhausted.

Not sure it's worth about $800 worth of cheap beer deals and bar food.

I think I need my beauty sleep more than that!!

A Wonderful Conversation

A new guest checked into the hotel earlier yesterday and needed some assistance because he is blind. Luke helped him out to the pool and hot tub and I was asked to walk him over from his room for dinner last night. We were fairly quiet so Paul and I had a chance to sit down and talk with him after his meal. WOW, what an interesting, fascinating and powerful man he is.

His name is Johannes Christian and he survived a brutal attack when a young 15 year old boy set out to "kill someone" and threw a large rock over the edge of a freeway overpass and hit Johannes. After nearly 30 surgeries, a very long recovery and authoring a book to talk about it, this man simply amazed me with his power to forgive and to see the good out of something as horrible as this.

http://www.docchristian.com/

He now travels the world doing missionary work, volunteering and giving talks and speeches to schools, prisons and outreach programs about his ordeal and in an attempt to steer kids towards the "straight and narrow".

I feel honored that I had a chance to meet someone as special as this.

The World

A new "brand" of cruise ship arrived on island today. The World is a "Condo" cruise ship that affords the super rich a floating condo apartment which travels the globe and the owners can pick up and live in their residence at any time in any place that the ship is docked. Pretty Snazzy!

The smallest of the condos begin at a mere $2.4Million NOT INCLUDING condo fees, etc.

We had a handful of folks from the ship today for lunch today and they came from places around the globe, England, Germany, Texas and South Africa. For the most part, they were very pleasant and enjoyed their meals. One woman who dined alone (probably because she was a total bitch and no one wanted to be in her company) was confused as to why she couldn't get FRESH, FRESH, FRESH seafood. She said "why can't you just go down to the docks and get some fresh fish for me and I only want it if it was FRESHLY caught today". Ummn, because if I go down there NOW, it would take, like 2 hours, and then you'd have something else to complain about! Besides, it doesn't "work" that way here.

Our friend Travis got to tour the ship and said there is a jewelry store onboard that was having a sale and offered a 15.9 carat diamond ring for a mere $1.2M. What a steal.... :)

I told Paul that if there was an elderly Gay Man on the boat with serious health issues and a heart ailment that "I was out of here". (that's a joke)

Our first official BBQ

On Mondays the restaurant is closed and this was our first "real" day off in a while with all the planning for the holiday dinners and New Years. We kicked off 2009 on our day of rest with our first official BBQ at the house.


I even got my first house warming gift from Wim and Johanna! It's a glittery Barbie tiara and necklace set with matching earrings. Gosh, they are so thoughtful and generous. :)


Since we don't have patio and deck furniture we had to improvise a bit and used the lumber for the fence project as our table top.

We feasted on grilled ribeye steaks, salads and corn on the cob. Oh, and some refreshing Sangria, beers and Mojitos.


Before the BBQ I went by the postal service to check and see if we got any mail and my (belated) Christmas gift from Paul had arrived! It is this awesome Celestron telescope. It even has a GPS tracking system on it that can find anything in the sky once you program in your coordinates. Very Cool!


You can capture images on it and download them to your computer and record things you've found. I haven't begun to understand how to do that so I just put my little camera up to the lense and shot this picture of the moon.

Happy Tuesday from Saba!