Lizard Hill

It’s been said one man’s misfortune can be another’s fortune.

This is what happened when Hurricane Irma destroyed the main house on a property named Lizard Hill on St. John . A friend of mine, Max, had been renting the cottage behind the main house for a few years and the cottage only had slight damage to one corner of the roof which was easily repaired. With the main house gone there was an incredible view of the ocean and beach below.

Max would only use the cottage about three times a year but kept up monthly rent payments because housing on St. John is so hard to find. He is good friends with my daughter, Michelle, and in fact Michelle was using his Jeep to keep it running on island because you cannot let a vehicle sit with all the salt air. When Max knew I wanted to come back to island for a visit in 2018, he offered up his cottage for me to use for a week. I jumped at the chance!!! Even though I could not do my usual 4-5 months, it was great to get out of Indiana for a week in February 🥶

I was blown away by the beauty of the property!!! Not only was the cottage all anyone could need, the view was unbelievable!!!

There was also another guest area to the east of the main house that was partially destroyed by the hurricane. Also, a bedroom below the main level. Unfortunately with the blown out glass, rain and wind did it’s damage and the owners of the property did not want to repair. But until they would sell , we were welcome to stay at the cottage 😅

So after my week on island in 2018, fast forward to 2019 and housing was still short, Max offered up his cottage to me with the understanding when he would return I would have to stay with a friend while he was on island. Also he said, “I don’t like that you and Michelle have to share the Jeep so I’m going to buy a truck because I need one anyway”. What a great guy!!!! One of the kindest and most generous people I have ever had the privilege to know!

And friends, Jeremy and Jess, own a construction company and coincidentally had lived in the main house and the cottage off and on years prior to the hurricane so they approached the owners of the property and asked if they could fix up the adjacent bedroom, dining, bathroom area so that they with their two small children could stay there since the place where they were staying was being turned into an Airbnb 🫤. They were able to fix things up to be habitable and even made an outdoor kitchen!! You can have that on island as long as you have an overhang and you are protected from the east wind. All the storms come from the east.

They even fixed the swimming pool!

Life on island is a great mixture of work and pleasure. My typical day: Number one, you wake up to a tropical paradise! 🥰 Even though Lizard Hill is located midway between one end of the island from the other, there’s still an ocean view. I get into the Jeep, drive down to Cruz Bay (10 minutes) and try to find parking. Then I get onto the ferry to ride 15 minutes to St. Thomas, where I work. Sometimes when I look over the side of the ferry, I will see turtles swimming, tropical fish including large barracuda and once I saw an Eagle ray. Some have been fortunate enough to see dolphins 🥰

Once I get on St. Thomas, I stand at the corner and catch a dollar taxi called a safari. And, yes, it is only a dollar unless you’re going far and then it’s two dollars one-way😍 After work, it’s the same…safari, ferry then Jeep. But the difference is after work, I usually meet up with friends! Monday nights are Bible study and dinner and fellowship at a beautiful villa called Mojo Rising (😂)where our minister and his wife live.

Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays are my days off ( yes, semi-retired) so I meet up with whoever is available to go hiking or driving to a beach to go snorkeling . Thursday mornings are usually my Hike, Snorkel, Devotion days with my Freshwater women tribe.

I’m not one to sit on the beach and just sunbathe. It’s boring, in fact I hide from the sun because I tan very quickly. I will sit in the shade with a hat on, a loose long sleeved white blouse and a sarong covering my legs when, on occasion, I’m on my own and reading a good book. Then often, we brush off the sand and hit a beach bar/restaurant for dinner and drinks and listen to local musicians/ bands.

Wednesdays and Thursdays, I will meet up with Cortney and/or friends in the evening to go to Sundog bar/ restaurant for dinner and open mic (Wednesdays) and Pickles (Thursdays) and dancing 💃 Luckily, most my friends, and especially my daughters, and I love dancing!! I especially like it when we have friends come to visit from the States. It’s GO, GO, GO to as many different beautiful beaches, interesting historical sites, hiking trails, favorite restaurants, open mics and band performances as we can squeeze in! ☀️🏝🎶

It’s so funny because my daughter and my younger friends will say I’m the one that gets them out and will keep them going😂 Life is too short to sit inside!! Especially on a tropical island with beautiful beaches, crystal clear blue Caribbean water, amazing local talent and great restaurants!

Sundays are church at Hawksnest Beach and hanging out afterwards for a picnic lunch and swimming/snorkeling/ kayaking. My Freshwater friends (male and female) call me, ‘Mermaid’ because I can stay in the water for hours 🧜‍♀️ 🌊🐠

On rainy days, I’ll work on my jewelry (wrapping sea glass with silver wire) or read. Since I live in a one room cottage, cleaning house takes less than an hour 😅

My life has not always been a successful one but I am one blessed woman to be able to work , be with my island friends, host friends from the States and enjoy my winters on beautiful St. John at this point in my life 🙌🏽

**** next blog will be underwater pictures I’ve taken so you will see why I’m so obsessed with snorkeling!