Appreciating the milieu of life.

I have had almost no down time since I returned from my trip. I am heading out for an actual paid job related travel trip (yeah, shocking huh?) for the next week and a half. I've just uploaded a few of my trip pics on my Facebook profile, so that will have to do for now.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2390361&id=5026895&l=e3237b01d5

No matter how bright your lighthouse may be, darkness still reigns at the foot.

AYCJ Journey 1: TPA- NYC, NYC - PWN

My first flight had me leaving Tampa at 6AM through to Portland, Maine, with a quick layover at JFK. When I arrived at JFK, I got a twitter message from Chris Butz, some with whom I was planning on traveling in about a week in Oregon. Apparently he had a quick layover in JFKas well for about 20 minutes, checked my TripIt itinerary, and met me at my arriving gate to say hello. This would be the first of many AYCJ related meetings; some random and some planned. We chatted for a little while about the upcoming trip together, squaring away some details, before he had to take off. When in the terminal I saw, as would be the custom for the next month, someone had sent out a Twitter message basically saying "I'm here, who else in in the area?". After a few days, most people figured out to add the hash tag of #aycj to their messages to make it easier to filter posts related to those using the pass. Coincidentally, this person also mentioned that they were heading to Portland ME as well. I looked around but didn't locate them before I had to head to the gate and board the plane. Just by chance that same guy was seated next to me. He lived in NYC and was going to use the pass today simple to go to Portland for lunch, do some work for a while on his laptop, and then fly home later in the evening with some fresh lobster to take home. He was just planning on taking a taxi, but I offered to drive him into town for lunch since I was planning on heading downtown anyway. After walking the docks and fish market for a while, we headed over to Three Dollar Deweys just in time to make their opening to enjoy a scrumptious lobster roll and some local seasonal beer. While eating it was a great feeling to realize that just a few hours prior I was waking up in Tampa and now having a fresh lobster lunch at the waterfront of Maine.

After eating, Eric headed off to work for a while at a local cafe and I headed to the coast to take some pictures and enjoy the scenery. I headed over to a famous local landmark, the Portland Head Lighthouse. I got a few pictures for a while and sat out on the rocks enjoy the sea smells once more before decided to find a couple of geocaches nearby. There is a geocaching iPhone application that has made the hobby much easier than it used to be. Then the hobby first started, one had to load geocache coordinates into a GPS using serial cables and then print out cache info and descriptions. Later I got a Palm PDA just to load up cache information for paperless geocaching, but still had to make database queries every few weeks to get updated cache information to upload into the GPS device. Now everything is done in real-time using one application. Since the 3GS has integrated GPS and a magnetic sensor, finding caches is much easier. I can now search for local caches, get descriptions/logs/hints and then make a log entry once it is found. Often when I went out caching, I'd carry my phone, GPS, camera, and PDA as separate devices, now it is all contained in one unit! sometimes being a geek is fun and useful.

After making a couple of finds, I headed over to a vista overlooking the coast for some more pictures. I was taking a few shots when I started getting some error messages regarding communication with the lens and camera body. This did not bode well for me. After another dozen shots I started to hear a whirring and the lens would no longer focus. Apparently the drive motor for the focusing of the camera decided to finally give up the ghost such that even manual focusing didn't work. Unbelievable. The first day of a 31 day trip and the camera lens that had been working perfectly well on even recent events had now completely quit functioning. This very same thing happened when I was in Sydney in March of 2008. Just as I first arrived and took a few shots there, the camera lens I was using locked up completely without any prior indication of a problem. At that time, I had someone back home that I relied upon to graciously overnight their personal, identical lens, so that I could take pictures on the trip. This time I really didn't have many options, so I used the iPhone to locate a local Canon dealers and to provide me with specific directions to get to the store across town. I tried looking through Craig's List with a local search (using a convenient app), but could not find any used Canon lenses for sale. The iPhone Google Maps app became a lifesaver many times on this trip, overwhelming exceeding my expectations. I headed to the camera store and ended up purchasing a new Sigma 18-125 3.8-5.6 lens and mailing back home the carcass of my old lens. I certainly wasn't expecting to spend this kind of money, but I was in a bind with no other option available to me, but did end up getting a decent deal since the lens was on sale and it was technically better than my old lens since it had a better zoom for the same speed. On the way back through downtown Portland I picked up Eric once again to drop him off at the airport since I had to meet up with another AYCJ traveler. On the way there I mentioned that I was going to be in New York City in a week or so and was going to find a hostel in which to stay and Eric simply said "Well, I'm going to be out of town that weekend using the pass, you can just stay at my place". And just like that I had a free apartment in which I could stay.

Mike G and I had communicated over the past few weeks through Facebook and would be traveling together through Maine and Buffalo/Niagara and later in the month on another trip. I hit another couple of local caches since I had time to burn before Mike came it. Since the flight was pretty late due to a missed connection, I was able to get a little sleep before he finally came in late in the evening. We immediately hit the interstate to head north so we could get to Bar Harbor and Acadia NP as early as possible. We ended up driving for a few hours before getting pretty tired and then pulled off on an exit and drove for a short while before finding an empty field in which to throw up the tent. The first day ended up being pretty eventful (and expensive due to having to purchase a completely new lens), but it was overall a decent start.

Jet lag is when you arrive and your luggage looks better than you do.

After losing my position at the company with which I worked in early August (state legislature seriously cut funding to Fl Housing Corp to redirect funds elsewhere), I was feeling pretty low. I had worked with the company part-time for a while and then full-time in late June, however very quickly the funding changed, thus making me change with it. However with that I suppose came a silver lining. Just a week or so later I found out through some deal forums (e.g. slickdeals.net) that JetBlue was going to sell an 'all-you-can-jet' pass that would be good for ALL flights between Sept 8 and Oct 8th. The $599 pass would include all the taxes and fees for domestic flights, leaving only some taxes for international destinations. Taking a look at the route map, I realized that this would be an opportunity for me to check off a significant portion of my life list. In 10th grade religion class at Bishop England High School, where I grew up in Charleston, our instructor gave us a project to make a list of goals for our lives. In class he gave the example of a group of friends that had done this when they were in school. At the funeral for a friend many years later, those students were surprised to find that each of them still independently kept and carried that list with them. So, I made a list of 100 things I've wanted to see and do throughout my life. Maybe one day I'll share that list, but the point was this was suppose to be a lifetime dream list of not just places to visit, but also accomplishments, goals, and honors. I have been so extremely fortunate to have been given the opportunity to accomplish and experience so many of those goals and they have been so worthwhile. I still have some significant milestones to pass, and the list is dynamic enough to need adjusting at times, but it has been a great tool.

Anyway, after consulting my work schedule, open, my savings account, tolerable, and my enthusiasm, high, I decided to just go for it. So, knowing this would be a popular thing, I called up JetBlue and made the purchase. I loved the flexibility of the program such that a passholder was allowed to make as many changes as they wanted without penalty as long as it was done three days prior to the day of flight. I read that someone had created a Facebook discussion group for AYCJ passholders so I joined in. Here people were throwing out itinerary ideas, so I too spent some time mapping out where I wanted to go. I spent a week or so during free time coordinating with anyone else that expressed an interest in visiting the same place as I may have been and setting up some ideas.

Realizing that I'd need to stay connected, I finally broke down and purchased an iPhone 3GS. It is funny/dumb that even with my technical background I had fought the idea of having one for a long time. I had a once close friend that had an original iPhone and can recall how many times it was handy looking up something when on the road, however I had been against what I considered spending/wasting money on things like text messaging ('why not just call someone') and mobile e-mail when I could do it at home for less money; however over the last year I've reevaluated a lot of my old stupid habits and quarks and the general cost of them. Besides the trip, the iPhone finally got to the point where it was extremely useful and did just what I wanted, including copy/paste, video, focusable camera, speed, and memory capacity. I had been using an iPod Touch for quite a while and found it invaluable in Italy in May and decided it was time to upgrade. I am glad I finally caught up. The new device is exactly what I needed and the versatility made it an invaluable tool for the upcoming trip. On most trips, I would only have a few flights that would be easy to track, however this trip would involve at least 14 flights, 2 countries, multiple time zones, and many different car rentals. It was suggested to those using this pass that we should check out tripit.com. this became an incredibly invaluable service that made organization so much easier. Instead of simply having to enter data by hand, whenever a flight, hotel, or car confirmation was received, one simply had to forward the e-mail to the company and everything would be organized automatically. The company even had a free Tripit iPhone app available that gave easy access to the itinerary at all times, even when not connected to a network. The best part was that the tools and services I needed were free, though there is a paid 'pro' version that provides a lot more services, such as travel delay alerts, useful to travelers. Several of us also made use of the ability to share itineraries to keep track of friends' progress. I also started using Twitter, twitter.com/mblitch, for the first time. While I'm not someone to post constant status messages of mundane activities, I did start to find it useful to stay connected to local events, friends, and travel companions. I attended a Tampa Bay Tweetup event in May at the @flaquarium, but really hadn't done too much with it until planning this trip. Though my knowledge is quite rudimentary, I did learn a fair amount from someone once quite involved in mobile advertising (e.g. texting codes to get information/coupons) and several other friends that were quite involved in social networking and SEO. On this trip, I found that Twitter became a wonderful way to stay connected, share information and ideas, and feel a part of the trip for others. As I'd later find, it really did help improve the quality of many of the trip experiences.

So, after a lot of planning, packing, and preparing, I was ready to get started. I had decided to make the most use out of this pass, so I set my first flight out of Tampa for the earliest possible, 6AM on the first day (9/8/09). So that no one would have to get up so ungodly early in the morning to take me to the airport, I had my father drop me off at 11PM. My plan was to find a quiet, dark place in the airport to sleep until I had to get up to go through security to catch the first place. I learned in past airport experiences that airport chapels tend to be about the best place since announcements are turned off on the room and no one ever really seems to come through. So after making sure everything was charged and everything checked off my mental checklist, I caught a little sleep to prepare for what may be a last big youthful adventure. I was excited about the experiences I was going to have, the people I would meet, and hopefully the good memories that would be made. What also made this trip a little exciting was this morning I got a call from one of my former directors asking me to come in to discuss a few things. Though I didn't say exactly what I was doing, I did indicate that I was going to be unavailable for the next month and then, upon request, scheduled a meeting on the first day I was back home. Maybe things will work out, but for now, I was ready to hit the road. I have my new netbook and iPhone with which to stay connected, a stack of magazines piled up over the months to go through on my first flights, and a stuffed backpack containing just about everything I would need for the next three weeks. It was time for a walkabout.

My sleeping area for the evening

I'm only walking since I don't have my flying license yet.

"The traveler sees what he sees, the tourist sees what he has come to see" - G. K. Chesterton

Last year was the best year of my life, one I'm unsure of ever being able to top. There were so many elements that made it complete and I am glad to have such a lasting memory. But, things can change; jobs and the economy, residency, hobbies, choices, outlooks on life, relationships, plans, a total way of thinking, and even people. There is always something upon which to reflect and try to learn/understand. So, I'm going to take advantage of an opportunity that presented itself a few weeks ago and take off for a while. So, over the next month I'm going on a walkabout. I'm hope to be able to tick off a lot of the remaining items on my life list of goals; something that was created in 10th grade religion class project at Bishop England HS so long ago and still remains quite relevant to me today. I'm going to just get out of Tampa for a while and see more of what is out there. I know I'll meet some cool people along the way and find some adventure as well. So in light of the quote above, I'm going to go spend some time to see what there is to see for a little while and hopefully return; at least rejuvenated if anything. Lord knows one cannot find solace in a bottle, but maybe I can experience one more transcendentalistic moment. I know where I've been, I just don't know where I am going; then again maybe I don't want to.

“Traveling is a brutality. It forces you to trust strangers and to lose sight of all that familiar comfort of home and friends. You are constantly off balance. Nothing is yours except the essential things - air, sleep, dreams, the sea, the sky - all things tending towards the eternal or what we imagine of it.” - Cesare Pavese

NASA: There's no such thing as a free launch.

After several failed attempts, I finally got to see my second shuttle launch up close. I have been pining to see a night launch for a long, long time. On Monday I drove to Cape Canaveral for a 1:30AM launch only to see it canceled due to weather just ten minutes prior to the end of countdown. Just before heading over, I learned of a hash part at a friend's home as a welcome back party. So instead of battling for a parking spot and sitting around for a few hours, I hung out with the group for a while. About 30 minutes before launch we walked the two blocks to local park for a good viewing spot and direct view of the shuttle pad. After seeing previous videos (e.g. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P282wFz_Pgg) I knew this was one site I did not want to miss. Unfortunately, this is the last planned launch in total darkness before the end of the current shuttle fleet next year. The new shuttles probably will not be ready for a while, so I was not going to miss this opportunity. I loved how the entire sky light up as the multi-million dollar roman candle arced across the sky. I was only disappointed by the lack of sound or chance to really feel the vibrations as I was able to experience the first time. Apparently this mission had a light payload, thus not requiring as much thrust as is normal. There is something about space flight that really drives the imagination and sense of wonder. The pics didn't come out as well as I'd hope as I found it difficult to anticipate the intensity of the light and ended up having my aperture a little too high I think, but I was glad to have been able to simply sit back and enjoy being a witness to such an event, especially when able to do so in the company of a few friends.

The closest to perfection a person ever comes is when he fills out a job application form.

This is for a platonic, outdoor chick to accompany on various camping, kayaking, and hiking trips. Applicants are encouraged to make up their own responses. Creativity, humor and references to criminal or sexual deviancy are encouraged and subject to a more favorable score. There are several positions available for this placement, so check the links of past excursions on right side of the blog and see if you're interested in similar adventure.

1.) I would describe my physical appearance as
A. I'm hot.
B. I clean up real good.
C. I can barely see through my dreadlocks and am currently eating cold refried beans out of a can with a stick. Soap weighs too many ounces.
D. My mama says I look purty.

2.) I would complain vocally if
A. I had a minor sunburn.
B. The incompetent cad at Starbucks made my expresso latte the wrong temperature.
C. Both my legs showed broken protrusions.

3.) Pancakes and eggs are
A. Some kind of breakfast food.
B. One of the great pleasures in life.
C. I wouldn't know. I'm a vegan and only eat non-violently harvested soybeans.

4.) I would react to a non life-threatening injury of my friends by
A. Turning a funny color and passing out.
B. Rushing to his or her assistance with a first aid kit and the knowledge of how to apply.
C. Pointing and laughing.

5.) I am filling this out because
A. I fell off the jungle gym and wound up in here.
B. This keeps me from masturbating so much.
C. I like to endlessly tease Mike Blitch by crushing his hopes and fantasies like a kumquat.
D. I want to be the best damn token female camping chick I can be.

6.) I comfortably climb
A. The stairs at the mall
B. 5.09 or below
C. 5.10 or above

7.) I would describe my mental stability as
A. I'm fairly level headed.
B. Unfuckwithable.
C. Sometimes I watch you sleep.
D. "It puts the lotion in the basket!!!"

8.) I am fearful of
A. Heights.
B. Unusually large chipmunks.
C. Absolutely nothing, you pansy

9.) My mental acuity would best be described with the phrase
A. What does acuity mean? My favorite color is clear.
B. I'm gonna go to tech school to be a welder.
C. I's smart enough to read this here sentence.
D. I have a Masters degree or Ph.D and can school you into the ground, bitch!

10.) As far as Paris Hilton goes
A. She is my role model.
B. I want to slap her with her dead rat dog.

11.) One of my most defining characteristics is
A. My sense of humor.
B. My ability to push past minor discomfort and focus on the trail or task at hand
C. My addiction to crystal meth.

12. The craziest thing I've ever done on a scale of 1-10 would be_________. If "1" were to equal you walking around all day at the mall and not finding anything that fits, and if 10 were to equal you being in a cage fight with a wildabeast while rabid wolves are gnawing on your armpits.

13. My friends would describe my personality as:
A. Bubbly and sometimes a little air headed
B. Fun and witty
C. A tourettic homicidal maniac diagnosed with advanced delusional schizophrenia and involuntary narcissistic rage.

14. When someone mentions "The Great Outdoors" the first thing that comes to your mind is:
A. "Do they take credit cards?"
B. "I hope the showers and toilets are clean...there aren't going to be bugs are there?"
C. "Camping, and having a GREAT time with the coolest Tampa hiker around!"

15. When it comes to drinking:
A. I only have a few...just enough to get a buzz and then I'm done.
B. I don't drink
C. Sometimes I wake up with puke all over my hair and rug burns on my knees.... thats about the time I notice that I'm in bed with 3 dudes, a chick, peanut butter everywhere, and I've got absolutely no clue where I'm at, My keys and purse are gone...and ironically so are my pants....Drinking rocks!

16. When it comes to cell phones I:
A. Had it surgically attached to my head
B. Answer it when it's someone important
C. Hate that godforsaken electronic object.
D. Just turn it on vibrate and write my number on all the bathroom stalls.

17. When it comes to drama...
A. My life is like a soap opera with a shiny smile
B. I hate my parents and the world. The army of darkness is upon us all.
C. Not too much...I try to stay away from it.

18. I make fun of fat people:
A. Only when it's necessary
B. Every chance I get
C. I would never make fun of an unlucky overweight individual.......(don't lie...fat people suck.)

19. When it comes to smoking...
A. I do sometimes when I'm drunk
B. I have a free motorcycle and bedroom set from Marlboro.
C. If I smoke it's probably only because I was recently on fire.

20. My occupation is...
A. I am a goat herder.
B. I pay someone to take pictures of me and call myself a model.
C. I don't want to talk about my job.
D. Joe Redner is my sugar daddy.
E. Hurray student loans!

21. Clothing is
A. Recommended during business hours with a professional attitude while conveying comfort, and yet vitality, at evening events.
B. Used mainly to whisk away sweat and block UV rays.
C. Completely optional.

22. Children are
A. The joy of our lives and best hope for the future.
B. Able to carry 15% of their body weight in gear and food and heal quickly.
C. Best when they belong to others.

23. In terms of spontaneity, I
A. Keep an extra change of clothes in my car at all times
B. Need to check my calendar, ah yes, I can pencil you in for the afternoon of the 12th.
C. Give me 20 minutes and I'll be showered, packed, and already on the road. Tell me what we're doing later.
D. Talk to me next year or around retirement age.

24. In terms of knowledge regarding nature I
A. Can mimic the mating call of the bald eagle
B. Can usually tell the difference between flora and fauna and categorize by Kingdom.
C. It either comes in a box, the frozen section, or in the produce section of Publix.
D. Hey look, an adorable little bear cub, let's go get a closer picture with him. Hmm, where's mommy?

25. My navigation abilities would best be described as
A. I get calls from Garmin and Magellan looking for insight.
B. Know for sure the direction I'm heading just by looking at the sun in the early morning or late afternoon.
C. On Star!! Help!!

26. Nature is:
A. Best kept outdoors and viewed through a picture window.
B. The sole reason I exist and mother of my soul.
C. Ahhhh, get it off me, get it off me! Ahhhhhhhh.

27. Why do you want to apply?
A. I find you very attractive
B. You seem interesting
C. You're funny, even though looks aren't everything
D. I've evaluated many possibilities and you seem to have the best genetic makeup

28. My idea of a vacation is:
A. Driving to a local beach and sitting out in the sun all day with occasional toe-dippings into the water.
B. Flying to an exotic foreign beach and sitting out in the sun all day with occasional toe-dippings into the water.
C. Working hard all year so I can go out in the woods and pretend I am homeless for two weeks.
D. Sitting at home catching up on episodes of Hell's Kitchen and Desperate Housewives.

29. I'd say my level of ability to communicate is:
A. You better know what I am thinking/feeling at all times without any hints from me.
B. I prefer txting to actually talking since I am afraid of confrontation or any level of conversation.
C. If something bothers me, I'll let you know. If it continues to bother me, I'll actually continue to be forthright and sharing of my concerns.
D. Grunts and clicks reminiscent of pre-verbal societies.


__________________X I agree that the above information is correct and I have never been a part of any facet of any investigative news reporting and/or a women's right organizations.

Now that I've muddied the waters it's time to paddle off!

In taking a break from a research project, I decided to head out and d a paddle/kayak event with the Tampa Adventure Group to Shell Key Preserve. I got out there a little late, but still was able to arrange to meet up with one of the other member that needed to borrow a boat. We were fortunate to have the wind to ours backs as we made our way to the island around 5 o'clock. Although most expected it to be hot, the temperature was quite comfortable, even if a little chilly due to the wind coming from passing thunderstorms. Stan built a nice fire and most of us sat around and chatted throughout the evening. Funny how we'd be ready to go out on the town normally, but by 9:30-10 most were ready for bed after a day of paddling and sun. I had already set up my hammock tent in the wooded area and had a comfortable sleep even when there was some brief rain. Apparently those on the beach did get a bit wind blown during the evening. We all took off relatively early in the morning since it was obvious stronger winds would develop due to an approaching tropical depression in the Gulf. The wind was even stronger heading back and we had to face it directly pretty much the entire time. Two of the groups in canoes had to make for Ft. DeSoto park instead of toughing it out and heading for the boat ramp. I guess they didn't anticipate the changing weather conditions and packed way too much stuff they weighed them down, but in the end the rest of the group was able to make it in.

After packing up I headed over to Fort DeSoto itself to take a few pictures. I hadn't been here since my last incredible trip here over a year ago for a different kayaking trip. After getting a few shots that I will eventually geotag and throw onto my Panoramio account for inclusion into Google Earth, I headed to Oldsmar to meet with someone from whom I would purchase my newest lens, a Sigma 70-200mm f2.8 lens that will be considerably better in low light than my old 70-300m f5.6. Though it'll be less of a zoom, I think the pictures will turn out more crisp that will even allow 'zoom by crop' to be just as effective. It is a little too heavy to be a general walk-around lens, but I think I'll suffer the weight just for the opportunity for some good shots in Peru in December and on my upcoming trips.

People who cough a lot never go to the doctor...just to movies, concerts, and lectures.

I enjoyed the Dave Matthews Band show tonight. Traffic was kind of tough getting in, but I was able to make it to the venue well before the opening band started. This was my first DMB concert and I really enjoyed simply relaxing under the cool evening sky and listening to the music. I'm not much for dancing at concerts, but I absolutely loved the combo rendition of 'All Along the Watchtower' (which is about my favorite ever song and easily verified when I used to drive someone nuts by playing the DMB cover of it it all the time while on the road) and 'Stairway to Heaven'. It was well mixed as they seamlessly transitioned from one song to another. I was hoping for just that one song and was not disappointed. It started with a soft opening rift of the first bit of StH, jumped into AAtW, and then mixed them up again and again.

Here is a video of a different concert, but about the same gig: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qF5WH_e8JAk

This is a good video of just AAtW: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yam6mrCCvD4

Never buy a house at a fire sale.

With the previous tenants moving out at the end of May, graduating, job moves, etc, my old home near USF was empty for the first time since I moved there in almost 12 years. I decided to take the time to remodel it a but and update things before getting new tenants for the Fall semester. Since this was before I got my full-time job in June, I had a little time. After the job, I had to come over early in the morning or on weekends. The first order of business was to get rid of all the old carpet upstairs. Putting down new carpet would be cheaper, but then I'd have to do the same thing again in another few years of constant use, so I decided to just replace it all with tile. Once I got the carpet off the stairs to replace with wood laminate flooring, I saw how bad a condition they were. So at that point the project got even more complicated when I decided to completely replace the stairs and just stain them. This was a major PITA and I had to hire a carpenter friend for some of the finer points or measuring, cutting, and placement, but I think the end result came out well. I repainted all the bedrooms, fixed holes in the wall, replaced all the old windows with new energy efficient ones, cut up and removed the old hot tub (I needed the parts for the hot tub at my current home and honestly didn't want to deal with the liability and maintenance any more), landscaped the yard, replaced the toilet with an efficient dual-flush model, and numerous other little fixes. I was finally able to get everything finished and cleaned up the morning the first new tenant came it. Though it sucked to not have the income for the summer, I think the place looks a lot better and can be a good home environment (and rental producer) for many more years.

Before Pics

After Pics

A meteor is an example of a rock star.

After working today and meeting the last of the new tenants at the USF house and dealing with a squirrel problem (apparently one snuck into the house when the doors were open during the month and made a home for himself in an old mattress), I loaded up the kayak and headed to the Ruskin area. One of my kayaking acquaintances had set up a group paddle event on the Ruskin Beach near Little Harbor to hopefully paddle out and watch the Perseid meteor shower; supposedly the largest of meteor showers for 2009. Unfortunately, Florida weather found the skies to be somewhat obscured by clouds. In combination with the light pollution of St. Petersburg just 9 miles across the water I didn't get to see a single streak across the sky. I did, however have a really nice time simply paddling around and enjoying the quiet, cool breeze of a summer's eve. The water was fairly flat and it was nicely quiet and made for an enjoyable evening that at least kept me from the house.