Mood:
lazyDragonflies:
My weekend was fantastic. Lennie took me to Wilmington, NC for a romantic weekend. We had been planning this for a month and all Lennie really had to do was book a hotel. As the weeks approached I kept asking him if he had managed to find a place. He would get this look on his face and would just say, "I'm working on it." Friday evening I picked him up and we headed south. As we got closer to Wilmington I asked where it is we would be staying. He smiled and said that he decided that we would just find a place when we got down there. I got a little angry. I didn't want to be driving all over Wilmington trying to find a place to sleep and end up in some bug infested rat trap. I took the exit for Market Street because I had stayed at the Wingate Inn there a couple of times. As I made the turn Lennie whipped a piece of paper out of his pockets that had some instructions on it.
ME: What is that?
Lennie: Directions
ME: Directions to what?
Lennie: I little place I found.
ME: What place?
Lennie: Some little place called the Dragonfly Inn
At this point I wanted to pull over and give him a huge hug. See I collect dragonflies and the fact that Lennie would remember that and would find us a B&B called The Dragonfly Inn was so sweet I just wanted to cry.
The Dragonfly Inn is a restored Colonial house in historic Wilmington. Both ladies who run it worked in the health care field for many years. All products from the food you eat, to the linens on the bed, and even to the soap you use are made of all natural organic products. It was such a fantastic place to stay and I felt totally relaxed there.
Battleships:
On Saturday Lennie and I got up and headed to the newly opened Aquarium in Ft. Fisher. They have done a great job with the layout of the museum and the exhibits. There are only a few changes I would like to see like the placing of animal identification plaques. Some were not right next to the exhibit so it made it hard to identify certain fish. I also felt the exhibits lacked interpretation. They seemed to be more informative. Which isn't bad but I think you really need to express to people why they should care that the sea turtles are declining in numbers not just...here is a sea turtle and this is what it eats. Maybe it is still a work in progress.
After lunch we decided to tour the USS North Carolina. I have been down to the Cape Fear River many times and have seen the ship but I never took the time to go on board. Lennie was in the Royal Navy when he lived in Scotland and is now in the US Navy Reserves here in the states so this was right up his alley. He took me around and explained everything to me. It was so fun to watch him get excited about something. At one point we went into the engine room and he lit up like a little kid. All I could do was smile.
Sunday morning we went for a hike at Carolina Beach State Park. Actually it wasn't really a hike. It was more like a really long walk. But it was nice and the weather was perfect.
I took some pictures and once I get them uploaded I will post a link.
Home Inspections:
Part of securing a loan and buying this house is getting both a building and a pest inspection. Both were scheduled for this morning but the pest guy called and said he was sick and wouldn't make it till tomorrow. My realtor and I met the home inspector at 10AM. He had gotten there early and had all ready done the outside. There were some minor problems inside like the kitchen sink was leaking and the hot water pressure was weak. The outside of the house was a totally different story. They didn't place a house wrap on under the siding so some of the wood was getting wet and starting to rot. The shingles on the roof appeared to be defective. They were drying out, curled up on the edges and cracking. They had done some repair work to the roof but it apparently was a homemade fix because he said they didn't lay the shingles right. There was no flashing on the roof or windows and there weren't any gutters. *sigh* So now I have to wait for him to give me the detailed report and then I go back to the sellers with what I found. Hopefully they will fix it all. The inspector stated that sometimes the builders cut corners and go with the bare minimum required by law. That way they can build cheap and sell high. He said there might be a warranty for the roof but that I would have to check.
Helicopters:
It appears that tomorrow I will be flying in a helicopter over the lake. I went last year so it was someone else's turn. The person who was supposed to go is in TX this week so I have been chosen to go in her place. I had a great time last year and I am really looking forward to going again.
Well I think that brings you update. Hope everyone had a great weekend. I will try to get pictures up soon.
