Broken Storm Shutter = People In Our Apartment

All of the windows in our apartment have storm shutters. As I was rolling the one in our bedroom up for the day, I heard a snap and the shutter went into a free fall. The cable was broken. The shutter was sitting at an angle and I was very happy it broke in the closed position.

I sent a message and picture to our landlord on Saturday and he had technicians here first thing Monday morning. We didn't like people in our home in the before time, but now! Aaaaaa! There were three men including our landlord. I asked him to make sure anyone that comes in the apartment must wear a mask. He reassured us that he would.

And indeed, everyone was wearing a mask. We wore our masks and stayed 20 feet away from them in the living room while they were in the apartment. The work to replace the cable took less than 15 minutes and they cleaned up after themselves and when our landlord showed Vince how easy the handle was to turn, he used a cloth to touch the handle. They were all so kind and professional and they were in and out in a flash.

We really wanted to do this!

Vince and I talked about how to protect, clean and make sure we have our bedroom safe again. After they left we sprayed disinfectant and closed the door for 3 hours to let any particles drift to the floor. Then we put all three of our industrial size dehumidifiers in the room for 8 hours to dry out the air. We washed the bed cover, sheets and pillow covers and wiped all the surfaces with alcohol.

We both felt so vulnerable. I think we did the best we could. I'm still scared. We had a nice talk about where we live, how we go about our day, how we try to be as safe as possible and that if we ever start to think everything is fine we will remind each other that we want to live several more decades and in order to do that we must remember how scary this is for our ages and our underlying health conditions.

So, we will continue to go through the ups and downs of this roller coaster of emotions and do what we feel is right for us. I will feel better tomorrow. We wish everyone well.

I Want To Be.....

I want to be an Astronaut

I want to be a Star Fleet Officer

I want to feel safe when I leave my home. I don't want to worry about going to the grocery store.

We personally know a microbiologist that worked in a world renowned research lab and published findings about RNA viruses. I know that Covid-19 has mutated 14 times...so far. Which means, like influenza, you can get each strain that comes along. That is why the vaccines for influenza needs to be changed and updated yearly. Because this virus is so new to humanity, it will be years before a viable vaccine is developed and available to the world population. It keeps changing.

In times of high stress and change in our lives I need to remember to ask myself, “What control over this situation do I have right now?” “Don't waste your energy on what you don't have control over.”

We are both over 65 years old, so high risk. I have permanent lung damage from breathing Hydrogen Sulfide 25 years ago. So, high risk. My doctor is the Secretary General of the European Respiratory Society and has been able to manage my condition with daily medication. I feel better than I have in years. However, he advised me, that until there is a vaccine, I should stay away from people as much as possible. We will not be accepting company, going for coffee, restaurants or shopping for unnecessary items. Thank goodness for social media where we can stay in touch with friends and family.

I would say that 90% of the time I have a good attitude and wake up in a happy mood, not letting the ills of the world bother me, but the other 10% can put me in a funk for the entire day. This seems to be that day.

I am trying to wrap my brain around the changes we must make in order to remain healthy. Now that people are going about their daily lives and businesses are open, life is appearing to look like it was before. We can not let our guard down. The danger is invisible and I want to be around for another few decades.

Take care of yourself....It's the only control you have.

One of the reasons we love Nazaré

I have put things in the closet never to be seen again. The rabbit hole of the internet is like that for me. It seems I completely forgot that I had this blog! So, lets play catch up, shall we?

The end of August 2019 we had a magical chat with a stranger at a coffee shop in Coimbra, Portugal. He asked us if we could live anywhere else in Portugal, where would we choose? In tandem, we both said, “Nazaré!” And that was that! By the end of September we had packed, arranged a moving truck and signed a rental agreement for a 2 bedroom apartment 50 meters or a two minute walk to the beach. We arrived on October 1^st and settled in easily.

Nazaré is a small fishing village of about 10,000 residents that has become a tourist summer spot and is also known for gigantic waves. 

 This wave is about 100 feet tall

Surfers and photographers from all across the globe come to witness extreme athletes defy the monster waves, holding on for dear life, falling at speeds of 50 mph down the face of waves 60, 80 and 100 feet high.

This one of a kind spot is due to a sea canyon that is 227 km or 141 miles long and 5000 meters or 16,400 feet deep. As it narrows closer to land, the water has nowhere to go but up.

The lighthouse is 165 feet above sea level. The surfers are towed on to the wave by powerful jet skis. When the surfer finishes the ride or gets crushed by it, the safety driver is right there to pluck them out 3 seconds before the next wave. It is a precision dance of coordination beyond comprehension. We are always holding our breath waiting for the moment we see the team back together again.

João de Macedo

After wiping out, loosing his board and washing up near dangerous rocks, he had to climb the cliff  to get out.

Wet suits are equipped with several strategically placed Co2 cartridges that blow up air bladders and pop the surfer up to the surface when they have been crushed by the wave. They also are masters of breath control and calmness when they are under holding their breath for up to 5 minutes.

We follow an app for surf, tides, wind, and weather called Magic Seaweed. When it shows 4 to 5 stars, the Sea Hippies (That's my cute name for them) show up in droves. Ages range from late teens to 45 or 50 years old. Many have sponsors like Red Bull, Mercedes, Adidas, Rip Curl, Tag Heuer, etc.

Maya Gabeira

Maya Gabeira is the Guinness Book World Record holder for the tallest wave surfed by a woman at 68 feet at Nazaré. She and several other women surfers fought very hard with the World Surf League to have women paid equal prize money as for the men. They were successful and I was able to thank her on behalf of all women, no matter what job they do.

Below is a video of Maya's surf partner Sebastian Steudtner. The wave is estimated at 90 and 115 feet. Maya towed him onto the wave and you can see her jet ski going off to the right....then you see the tiny person that is Sebastian.  Make the video full screen to see it better.

 You can see this photographer in the tall grasses, he is on the cliff edge.

 Patrick Jacobs (red jacket) is a friend of ours from Belgium

This is Vince

Professional and hobby photographers jockey to get the best spot along the cliffs. BBC, National Geographic, and many major news sites and magazines run stories when there is a competition. The surfers are in the water 8 to 10 hours a day.

Alessandro Marciano is  in the process of getting this photo blown up and framed for his home.

Vince's photography has become so good that online magazines and websites have published his pictures. But what thrills him the most is when he posts a picture on Instagram, tags the surfer and gets a response from them of how happy they are to have a picture of them on a wave.