Party on de island, mon. De drinks be flowin'.

So the Winter season is well underway on St.John. And of course that brings numerous parties and events. One thing you can surely say about the island folk is that they are generous. Several of the biggest island parties are fund- raisers of some kind. Guess what? JimBob got invited to one. The place: Pat and Ronnie Lee's home near Cruz Bay. The cause: Raising funds for computers to go in the islands' two schools.
      The party was held on Election Day, or Martin Luther King Day.  So all were asked to wear red, white and blue. I'd guess there were close the eighty guests. Pat and Ronnie (a theatrical producer on Broadway) put out an amazing spread. Check out their beautiful home. Perched on a cliff above the ocean, the home has a giant 'great room'. Note the theater curtains along side a Juliet balcony. I bet there are sold-out performances here. They even have a real theater seat near the grand staircase. Of course it is labeled Row 'A', seat 1. Front row orchestra, not bad! Anyway, as the party was taking off people stopped in front of the television which had the inauguration playing. So pop out for a drink, then check in with the Obama's. Fun. It was mingle, mingle, mingle.

After some serious cocktail time, the food began to come out of the kitchen. Yum; salads, beef stew, grilled chicken, pastas, you name it, it was there. Then, it was time for a speech by our host Ronnie. Of course he stood on the grand staircase. Drama! He made the announcement about the fund raising and he also had a little surprise. Ronnie offered two orchestra seats to the show that wins best musical at this years Tony Awards. He also promised a back-stage tour following the performance. So the bidding began at $500. But quickly it jumped. In the end the lucky winner shelled out $1700. Every single dime raised go the computer project, of course.

Finally, a toast to the lucky winners. Bravo! Encore!
Whatever. Ok, let's get back to the partying. More food and drinks, then cake. I love cake. Especially carrot cake with icing. Red, white and blue icing.
This island party was a huge success. We met many new friends.

Perhaps when you come down to visit you will meet them too. You are coming, right? Remember, we have a four bedroom house with plenty of privacy for all.  Maybe there will be an island party when you arrive. Or maybe we'll throw one in your honor before you leave for home. We promise not to make it a fund-raiser. Although donations to Bob's wine bar are surely appreciated.

Cheers!

De new house be starting.

It's official, Bob has signed a contract with Rob Crane AIA to design a home on St. John. After a bit of back and forth, we reached an agreement on January 16th. So how to celebrate the big event? How about a trip out to the vacant lot to check out the view and start planning!

But no trip to the east end of St. John would be possible without breakfast at the famous landmark Donkey Dinner. Yummy full-fat food! Although Jim had an egg-white omelette, Bob went full-out scrambled eggs and sausage with tons of toast. A meal fit for a donkey king.

Now that we are fully caffeinated and happy, we hit the winding road. Hey look, one of our new neighbors has shown up to welcome us. Isn't that thoughtful? Funny, he or she (since it's hard to tell unless they are you-know-whatevering) seems to be asleep by the road. We can't figure out if donkeys sleep standing up or laying down. But they all hang by the side of the road waiting for something. Maybe Godot? All the tourists stop to have their pictures taken along side them. But I digress.



Here we are at the base of our lot. Hey look, Bob has sheared away all the bushes and has revealed where the driveway will start. If you look uphill you will see a pink marker where the actual lot begins. Doesn't look like the grade is too steep. But in reality, the distance from the parking pad to the house will most likely be three stories high. Bring your hiking shoes! The house will sit uphill to the left. We expect to have a 180 degree view towards The British Virgin Islands. Lots of boat traffic to keep Bob busy.



                                       
Here is some of the natural plant-life.

Lots of cool cactus and spikey stuff. Bob has tried to get a better idea of the view by climbing a tree. He brought along his favorite shears to open up the vista a bit. Bob up a tree? What did you expect?

Hey look, another of our new neighbors has left a welcoming gift. Look closely in this bromeliad, a local goat has been around these parts. Hmmm. What are those lovely brown round things? We plan on putting up an animal barrier fence asap. The goats will eat anything you plant, and just about anything else. So the saying 'good fences make good neighbors' will apply here in spades.

Finally, a photo from up on the lot looking back down on what will be the driveway. We think it's great to be at the end of the road. No tourists expected because there will be no place to turn around. Ah, sweet privacy!













Time to head home and jump in the hot (now cold) outdoor spa. Bob, put those clippers down you're getting dangerous and the goats are looking at you funny.