Where Were We?

We had a nice day for Michael's final day at work. His crew and a few others he worked with had wanted to give him a proper send-off, so had a surprise lunch for him at Reggae Beach Bar & Grill. Michael's right-hand-man, Glenn had come by the house the day before to invite me to this gathering and came and got me. That was so thoughtful and I really appreciated his gesture. Yep, Michael was surprised.



After the meal, Michael's original boss gave a speech to the crew about how much Michael had brought to the project, and then Glenn said some words on behalf of the crew and handed Michael an envelope.



I know Michael needed to hear those words and felt a sense of closure afterwards. He deserved it. Lots of slapping and man-grunting ensued.

I truly have no words for this face. Thanks for the memories (nightmares?) Ryan.

Michael had to tie up some loose ends, so I just hung back on the beach. During the hurricane season, we only get one cruise ship/week and I hadn't been around vacationers in a while.

I decided it was too crazy there, so walked over to Lion Rock Bar (plus they're cheaper). While I was people-watching, I was getting all emotional and Angela asked me what was up. They know Michael because he always brings them the empty beer bottles he and his crew find during their beach clean-ups. Those deposits add up to a lot of cash and they're very appreciative of Michael's efforts. They were sorry to see him go, but Angela told me to buck up. Well, ok, sniffle. Michael finally arrived and there was lots of hugging and congratulations on a new life and all that.

Now, Angela had been giving me a hard time about being so sad about leaving, but when she saw the card the guys had hand-made (with a photo of Michael fighting a peninsula fire) and the surprise inside, she got a little teary-eyed too. Locals are not overly sentimental, so even she knew that Michael had meant a lot to the crew.