Chapter 7

After four weeks at home Matt was starting to get antsy and was thinking about where he should go on his next trip. He remembered fondly the good fishing he had and the exciting women he had met on his visit to the northwest.

Matt visited with both of his children and they brought him up to date on what was going on in their lives. Neither one said anything about getting into a serious relationship with anyone but the hesitancy in their voices when he broached the subject made him think something was going on. Matt knew that when it was time they would tell him if they were serious about anyone.

Katie and Kyle asked him about his trip and he gave them the highlights. He talked about the beautiful and scenic country he had seen and the wonderful and nice people he had met. The great fishing and the size of the salmon interested both Katie and Kyle.

Matt had received a phone call from the attorney in Olympia that the closing on the house he had purchased was done. Matt was now the owner of the house. Since he had purchased an insurance policy on the house there wasn't anything further Matt needed to do. Shannon said she would handle the utility change over and all the minor things a new homeowner was required to do.

When he broke the news to his kids about his purchase they became excited. Matt told them he was going to be renting out the house when he wasn't there but if they wanted to go there and vacation they were welcome to do so. He just needed some advance notice so he could make sure the house wasn't being rented out. He said he had given his realtor instructions not to rent it out past June of next year. Katie and Kyle asked him to keep July open for them.

Matt asked how their mother was doing they both said they didn't have much contact with her. When they did see her she seemed to be okay in her current marriage but they could tell she had regretted whatever she had done to end the marriage with Matt. She still would not give them any details on what caused the divorce.

Katie asked Matt if he was dating anyone. He couldn't suppress the smile he had on his face. "Let me say that I met some nice people in Olympia on this trip and let it go at that. If anything was to develop you kids would be the first to know."

The remainder of the evening was spent discussing the house and its location. When he told them he never did go inside the house before he made an offer to purchase they both were surprised. Kyle said that this realtor must be something special if Matt took her word on the house's condition and made an offer on the property.

'Yes she is," said Matt. "In fact when you go out there I will ask her if she will take you fishing and show you how to catch those salmon. Besides being a good fisherperson she is a very nice lady and I think you would enjoy meeting her."

The next morning Matt phoned Jimmy at the marina. He told him of his recent house purchase and wanted Jimmy to do a few things for him.

"Shannon is taking care of the house but I would like you to check out the boat and motor that came with the house. Make sure the motor runs right and if a tune-up is necessary please do one. Shannon has the keys to the house. I am also looking to purchase another boat. Maybe you have one or will keep your eyes open for one. Somewhere around a 23 foot boat with something on the back end of it like a 140 horsepower outboard. The boat will be used primarily for salmon fishing."

Jimmy said he had a few boats of that size on consignment.

"Can you email me photos of the boats? Oh, since there maybe women on board it would be nice if the boat had toilet as one of its features. Going over the side is rather difficult for women and now it's against EPA regulations."

Jimmy laughed and said, "There are things that are easier for a man to do than a woman. I do have two boats about that size that have that feature and are relatively new and in good shape.

When the photos were sent to Matt, he studied them and selected a 25 foot boat with a small cuddy cabin that impressed him. He phoned Jimmy and told him of his selection. Jimmy told him the price and Matt said it was a deal.

Matt continued, "I would like for you to add two rear mounted electric downriggers along with the cannon ball weights. I want the boat to have a folding canvass top, side curtains, an extra battery if you think it needs one, a bilge pump, rod holders, all required safety equipment, a marine radio and a state of the art fish finder with GPS. I would also want it to have a full canvass for storage. In other words I want it to be set up to be all weather boat like a fishing guide would have. I would also like for it to have a ten horsepower outboard mounted on the transom that can be started, steered and operated from the console and would be used for trolling. If you can think of anything else I would need to add just let me know. Use my email if you need to contact me. I will send you a check for the boat now and you can give the title to Shannon to hold for me. You can give her the bill for your services and she will send it to me. I hope to see you next year and I think my children will be out there vacationing next July."

Matt had thought about buying another boat and had done so for two reasons. The first reason was that he wanted a boat that had all the modern bells and whistles that would improve his chances of catching fish at any given time of the year. Secondly with Katie and Kyle saying they were coming out and maybe in time some grandkids, he wanted a boat that could handle more people and still be safe and comfortable. Matt would wait till he went back there before he started buying his fishing tackle.

With those things taken care of and Shannon managing his house Matt could get serious about where to go on his next trip. It was fall, leaves were falling and it still was about two months before it would start to snow were some of the factors he considered. School being in session would reduce the tourist activity. Now he thought would be the right time to visit the east coast. He made a plane reservation for Boston. Matt also phoned a car rental company and reserved a car that he would pick up in Boston but drop it off in Washington D.C. He was made aware of the drop off charge. He told Katie and Kyle about his plans and that they could contact him by cell phone if necessary.

Next week Matt was stepping off the plane in Boston after an uneventful flight. At the car rental desk the clerk recommended several motels he could stay at. She volunteered the information that if he was planning on seeing the historical sites around town he should consider taking a small tour bus rather than driving himself. She said there were brochures at the motels that offered a variety of tours.

Matt checked into a motel and selected from the large tourist rack a number of tour brochures. In his room he reviewed the brochures and selected one that visited all the famous historical spots and did so using a small tour bus rather than a large bus. He made a phone call and his credit card number was given to the tour company which assured him that he would be picked up at the motel at eight in the morning.

For dinner Matt walked across the street and ate at the Outback Steakhouse. It was a good meal of a large steak filet.

The tour bus came exactly when they said they would. It was a small bus that had seats for 22 people but there were only 12 on the bus and with Matt and one more stop the total number of people on the bus was 15. They stopped at all the famous historical places he read about in the history books. Old Ironsides, North Church, and the Bunker Hill Monument were some of the highlights. They even stopped for a little while at Harvard University.

Next morning Matt regretted that he had walked the almost 300 steps to get to the top of the Bunker Hill Monument. He had thought he was a little out of shape but the soreness in his legs told him he was more out of shape than he thought. This soreness was worse than the first day of high school football practice when the coach had them running up the stadium steps. After taking two aspirins Matt wanted to get on with his sightseeing.

It was a leisurely drive up Cape Cod stopping periodically to stretch his legs and have a bite to eat. The lobster roll he ate was a first for him and was quite tasty. There was a vacancy sign posted at a motel that was just short of Provincetown. After he registered he went to his room and made a reservation to go on a boat that was going to do whale watching. Other than that there wasn't much to do so it was an early night.

The following morning after breakfast Matt was down at the dock waiting to board the whale watching boat which had double decks and was a good size boat. There was a large crowd of people of various ages waiting to board the boat. Matt had been told that it was a two hour ride to where the whales where so he brought a newspaper along to read during the ride out to see the whales.

It was a little windy which made the ride out as they say, 'A little sporty.' The shifting of the boat caused a few of the passengers to leave their seats to go outside and bend over the railing to say goodbye to their breakfast.

When one of the ladies who were sitting in the same row as Matt left to go to the railing, the lady sitting next to Matt said to that lady, "I told you that you shouldn't have had those two margaritas last night."

She looked at Matt and said, "That's my older sister who has been telling me what to do since I was born. When I try and tell her to do something she won't listen to me."

"Well sea sickness can be rough. I wouldn't wish that on anyone."

"Oh I am not wishing it on her, it's just that it's hard to feel that sorry for her."

"My name is Matt Block. This is my first trip to see the whales. I am not sure what to expect."

"My name is Peggy Carr. I have done this boat ride a few times but this is a first time for my sister. Don't expect too much. You will see the whales and their blowing air but it won't be like you see in the pictures or on television."

"You sound like a native Bostonian."

"I was once but now I live in Sarasota Florida. I do like warm weather but I will admit the summer humidity at times is a challenge."

While she was talking Matt he took the time to appraise her. She appeared to be in her early thirties and was of average height with shoulder length dark hair. Her figure was slim and in proportion to her height. He wouldn't say she was facially beautiful but her personality coupled with her looks made her attractive.

Matt continued to talk to her and they both walked out to the railing when the boat slowed down having spotted two whales. It was about one half hour of whale watching and then another two hour sporty ride back to the pier. Peg's sister was back in her seat but wasn't in any condition to contribute to the conversation. Peg mentioned that she was divorced and a nurse. She talked about Sarasota and Matt said it sounded like a nice place to visit. He told her about himself and his plans to visit the various sections of this country. She told him that if he ever was in Sarasota to give her a call and she would show him around. He asked her about having dinner with him tonight but she was committed to going out with her sister and the sister's husband. She was flying back to Florida tomorrow and again encouraged him to phone her if he was ever in Sarasota.

Dinner consisted of two large bowls of a chunky fish chowder and a fish sandwich. It hit the spot as the sea air had given him a good appetite. He wasn't interested in an adult beverage so it was another early night. He slept like a baby.

The next three days involved a lot of driving. He went back up through Boston and all the way up into Maine stopping to see interesting places along the way. He turned and headed to upper New York and then down heading to New York City. Along the way he saw some beautiful woods and scenic country. He had the thought that a person wouldn't believe all of these forests existed on the east coast. It was sort of a miniature version of what he saw on his trip out to the northwest.

Matt registered at a motel that was on the outskirts of New York City. He knew from his experience in Boston that this was another place that he did not want to drive around in. He signed up for a Gray Line tour and the next day he saw all of the famous places you hear about or see in the news. The Statue of Liberty was his favorite but there were many other interesting places that he saw as they drove pass or stopped to visit.

While New York is a great and famous city it gave Matt a feeling of being crowded and he preferred the more open spaces. The next morning he was on the road heading toward Washington D.C. The drive down on the interstate was easy although he encountered some traffic going through Baltimore. He had phoned ahead and made a reservation at the Inter-Continental Hotel.

Instead of taking a tour of this city he was going to see it by walking to these famous and historic places.

After breakfast next morning he started out by visiting the Vietnam Memorial. It was a somber experience made more so when he saw the name of a former neighbor engraved on the wall. He headed over to the White House for their first tour of the morning. Matt had been able to secure tickets for this tour through his Senator's web page. The Senator leanings were left of left as far as Matt was concerned but he did handle his constituent's requests for tickets promptly.

The tour started off as a cattle call with all of the visitors bunched together and then they were broken up into smaller groups. A lady standing next to Matt made the remark, "At least at Disney World they keep you moving to give you the illusion that you are getting closer."