Went golfing with my brother Bob at Crab Apple Ridge on Labor Day afternoon.  On Tuesday WICU news was here filming which I assume was for the upcoming tall ships.  The large field of tall grass between the campground and the south pier has been mowed and the area is looking pretty spiffy for the large crowd expected for the tall ships.  I went out on Wednesday and cleaned up the many bottles and cans which have found their way into the field over the years it has been growing.   Tuesday and Wednesday were shopping days to get ready for the Gumbo Fest we are having when the tall ships sail in.  We have invited the many great friends and relatives who have shown us their hospitality over the years.  We were supposed to visit a friend in Meadville on Wednesday but he was having some health problems and had to cancel.  Hopefully we will get to see him before we leave.  We also had a chance to offer our services as camp host again next year and they were happy to have us so we will be back to our little bit of heaven again next summer.  Thursday morning was gumbo cooking time and Alesa made a huge pot, which everybody agrees was excellent.  It must have been because there was only a small bowl left.   The crowds started gathering on the pier at about noon and all parking was gone by 4.  The police closed the road and we had to tell them to let campground traffic through.  All, but a few, of our guests made it and the tall ships started parading through the channel shortly after 5.  They had been anchored just outside the channel in Thompson bay for most of the day.  The parade was an awesome sight with 6 tall ships sailing between the north and south piers, both full of people.  Our group then came back to the campground for hot Gumbo, drinks, other snacks, a campfire and fun.  All this as we comfortably watched the traffic take over an hour to clear out of the parking lots.  This weekend is the Erie Heritage Festival coupled with the tall ships which will be open for touring.  The ships in the parade were: the Niagara, the Unicorn (built from the steel of scrapped Uboats after WWII and has an all female crew), the Bounty (aka "The Black Pearl" was built for the movie, "Mutiny on the Bounty"), the Lynx (training schooner from California), the Roald Amundsen (from Germany) and the Pride of Baltimore (a schooner captained by an Erie native).  What an awesome day!!!  You only live once which is enough if you do it right.