St. Thomas Heaven

Well, if my memory for my camera wasn't stuck in John's computer, I'd upload some wonderful photos but it is and I won't!

We got to St. John after a great plane ride during which I bonded with my seat mate - she has a timeshare at the Ritz and is me on steroids! She comes to St. John 4 times a year, this time, she left her husband back at the ranch (he's an exec in big pharma!) while she headed to the islands (mon!) with her 72 year old momma, her sister and 2 nieces. I'm sort of glad she doesn't live closer (she's from NJ and, no, Miss Lowe, she's not a typical 'Jersey girl' - um, not that there's anything wrong with that...). She and I hit it off from the start and ended up the plane ride finishing each other's sentences. She's a jewelry fan so she tuned me into the good stores on the island which I hope to visit on Tuesday. Julia was a blast - can't say enough about her; she kept me totally entertained, and John too. I'm thinking that we'll run back into her during the week when we crash the facilities at the Ritz.

So, we get here and wait an appropriate amount of time in island terms (that's an eternity to a DC girl...1 hour) for our bag which I'd packed chock full of suntan lotion (can't be too cautious), hair gel (can't be too frizzy), deodorant (can't be too smelly) and short dresses (can't be too...never mind).

Our darling friend Mo, an ex-bartender from La Mex who moved here 3 months ago picked us up in her car at the airport and delivered us to our ocean front condo which is da bomb....full kitchen, great breeze, incredible value. Gotta love all that. Anyway, poor Mo only gained 3.5 lbs of Jolly Ranchers, a bag of Werthers, and some cinnamon candies for her troubles. So, John and I did a very quick unpack and hit what we thought was the beach bar only to find it (gasp) closed! So, took a taxi to redhook and hit Duffy's Love Shack for some mojitos and nachos. Just right! Wandered the marina and fell in big love with a Sundancer 32 footer. Just right, again! Beautiful boat to island hop in!

So, I'm sitting here in our oceanfront condo, listening to the ocean's roar. John, poor young dear, is sleeping and it's 8:08! I've got a few hours to go so figured I'd blog for posterity sake.

Oh, didn't finish the story...

So, J-boy and I took a taxi into Redhook, after Duffy's, hit a few more local spots and ended up in a very nice bar where we met a great woman - Michelle, the bartender...all 24 years of her (give me a break)... But, she's a doll and ended up giving us a ride to the local market, where she waited for us to do some power shopping (wine, vodka, you know...the essentials). Michelle dropped us back at our condo and gave us some great lessons in etiquette for the islands (some things, like, for instance, saying 'Good morning, good afternoon or good evening' as greeting - who knew?) We're planning on seeing her again this coming week. She and her fiance are leaving the island next month to hike the entire Appalachian trail, starting in Georgia and working their way up. I'm sure she'll do exactly that - she's a great find.

It's interesting to me how these people come into our lives - I mean, really, I don't know Julia or Michelle from a hill of beans this morning (is that the expression), yet, despite our ages, life experiences and lifestyles, we all really connected. Our souls must have met before - that's what it feels like and, in fact, I'm sure that John and my's soul must have intermingled for countless ages until we found each other again in this lifetime.

Life, dear friends, is enchanting... can't wait to see what tomorrow brings.