RANDOM THOUGHTS

We went to Hawaii 3 times, only the Big Island, after all that's where her little boy was.  These visits were delightful and her and I fell in love with the place.  Shaun made for a great guide bringing us caving, volcano touring, sightseeing, snorkel diving and some pretty good dining.  She fell in love with turtles and we both fell in love with the people, friendly, laid back and courteous like nothing you find in New England.

Not too long after my romantic proposal, you know, "so when are we going to get married" I asked carol if she would rather have my grandmothers ring in a new setting or an expensive new one.  She picked the sentimental one, I knew this was my kind of woman, low maintenance, no bling.

Anything water, Carol was game.  We sailed, canoed, kayaked, snorkeled, swam, motor boated and just looked at the ocean.  .  She was game to learn to snorkel even though it was quite a feat, for her, to trust the snorkel. I had her under an overturned kayak to practice breathing the air trapped there, not for the claustrophobic inclined.  There was the one time I tried to show her how to bogie board.  Even though she was not confident about her dexterity I assured her that the one foot waves at East Matunuck was as easy and safe as it gets.  She was still suspicious.  I told her "no sweat".  Well some how she managed to go ass over teakettle and jam the board into her leg.  The look she had comming out of the water was, well, the term "evil eye" comes to mind.  I spent considerable time apologizing.

After almost two years Shaun and I stopped procrastinating and finally got around to delivering Carol's ashes to the ocean she loved.  We borrowed a boat from good friends and owners of Ocean House Marina where carol and I spent many good times with a sail boat right after we got married and a motor boat in more recent years.  We went off shore somewhere between
Green Hill Beach and "boat beach" in Charlestown ( a stretch of beach where we spent  many hours in our young days).  Since it was quite foggy I took a shot at "halfway".  If you want to talk to Carol you need to go to N 41 21.604 and W 071 36.394 or there about. 

1971 Kris Kristofferson released one of the greatest albums ever produced, The Silver Tongued Devil and I.  Carol and I sheared the passion of this and subsequent Kristofferson works as our love went from young love to a Love that overwhelms me to this day.  Many of the feelings we had were vocalized my this troubadour poet.  

OK So if you are feeling low, down and out, like the south end of a north bound skunk, this is what you can do.  Go to the Charlestown Town Beach and look to your left, or go to Green Hill Beach and look to your right.  Just ask for a smile and you will get it.  Carol had a bunch left over.  That's the closest to mystical your going to get from me.

Myself and the crew of the South Kingstown Land Trust stone restoration project made a stone bench along the back west wall this year and they let me put a small plaque in honor of carol, so there is a "carols smile" plaque overlooking the fields where we had the memorial.