All Aboard!

"Home" has taken on a completely different meaning now.  We've both moved all our stuff on board, with the exception of Carla's last four sets of work clothes, so when we refer to "home", we're talking about C-Time.  Carla has gone back to Columbia to finish wrapping up a few loose ends and to work her last four days.  I have to go back to work on Friday to complete the separation process.  We've already sold the last two cars, but will be able to use them right up until the end of the week.  When Friday arrives, the only thing remaining will be the arrival of our new grandson.  We enjoyed a wonderful weekend out in our enclosed cockpit and can't wait to make it a daily ritual. 

$2,000 and counting...

Have you ever spent $2,000 on groceries before?  I have and I have to tell you - it's a little scary.  I mean, I've spent $200 at the grocery store before (when company was coming to visit - for a week) but I have NEVER spent $2,000 or anywhere near it on groceries before.  We have filled the boat 3/4 the way full - if you ask Daniel he will say it IS full - but I still have some spots to fill.  As a sample, our grocery shopping included 15 cans of chicken, 10 cans of tuna, 8 (reluctantly, I only wanted 1) cans of green beens, 8 cans of baked beans, 8 cans of asparagus and 8 cans of corn (see a pattern here?).  We have spaghetti sauce, alfredo sauce and boxed pizza mixes.  We have popcorn, peanuts, and granola bars.  We have hamburger meat, frozen chicken, frozen meatballs and frozen chicken wings (that was a spur of the moment purchase and in our defense, we hadn't had lunch yet and it looked really good on the package) and one package of ribeye steaks.  The list goes on and on, but you get the idea.  We think we have bought a 4 month supply of food items - only time will tell.

To Grandmother's House we go...

As we continue our preparations for leaving, we are taking time out for family and Christmas visits.  We are on our way to Memaw's house (Daniel's Mom) to see her and our nieces (Cassy and Chrissy).  We would be seeing Daniel's sister, Kathy, during this visit but she decided to go into the hospital and have her gallbladder removed, very unexpectedly.  Some people will do anything to avoid Christmas fruitcake!  The mom in me is sad for the visit because it's the first visit without all of our "boys" going to Memaw's for Christmas.  Many trips, with a car full of presents and goodies comes to mind as we make the drive to Muscle Shoals, Alabama.  Justin and Brian will be celebrating in Bogota, Colombia this year and Matt is home with a 9-month pregnant wife.  So, they have good excuses, but it doesn't make it any easier on Mom.  This year we have a mostly empty car and a container of pecans to munch on.  I have to remind myself that life is about changes and we have one big change to look forward to in 2014 with moving onto the boat and sailing away.

Add this to having to start saying "good-bye" to some wonderful friends at work and it has been an emotional roller coaster for me lately.  We had a wonderful "good-bye" Christmas dinner at my boss's house with a bunch of my co-workers.  It was a really special time to just sit around the table and share with each other.  I have 6 more "in office" work days and am dreading having to tell everyone a final good-bye.  Some of my wonderful co-workers I have known for 23 years!  You get attached to them after all that kind of time.  Most are excited for us and have been planning ways to "stow away" and go with us.  Some think we're nuts - but they are kind enough to keep it to themselves.

While waiting on my last 6 days at work expire, we are in "wait" mode to leave the dock - waiting on Joshua Daniel to arrive.  As mentioned, Mollie is 9 months pregnant and about to explode with child.  As soon as we get to meet Joshua in person and cuddle with him, we will kiss him goodbye and begin our journey to parts unknown (to us anyway).  I'm dreading the good-byes but getting more excited about what's coming!

Moving Aboard

It's been a week now since I bid farewell to my friends at work.  It took several trips to the various buildings to see everyone, and there were still several people that I didn't get to speak to.  The guys in my work group threw me an awesome party, complete with a cake and a large framed and signed photo of the construction project.  We're trying to decide which flat screen TV to throw away so that we can hang the photo on the boat.  Thanks guys for the wonderful send-off, the meals, cake, and framed photo.  I'm sure our paths will cross again in the future.

The car had been loaded to the gills the night before, so after work I immediately headed to Charleston and moved all my remaining stuff aboard C-Time.  Keep in mind that we've spent the last year selling, giving away, and throwing away anything that wouldn't fit on the boat or in a 10'x6' room in our son's basement.  Also keep in mind that this is just Daniel's stuff.  Carla is still working and living in Columbia, so she still has all her stuff there.  It's taken nearly the whole week to find places to put everything, just in time for Carla's visit this weekend.  This was the first phase of transitioning from a land-based home to a water-based one.  I'm sure many of these things are unnecessary, and as we cruise we'll probably get rid of even more stuff.

Carla and I spent all day yesterday on the second phase, provisioning C-Time.  To give you an idea how much several months' worth of provisioning weighs, a year ago the boat listed to starboard about one degree, so I started installing everything on the port side.  By the time I had added 36 gallons of fuel to port-mounted Jerry cans, she was listed to port about two degrees.  After stowing all the food provisions, she is just about even-keeled.  Of course, she sits a couple inches lower in the water now.  This photo is from ONE of the four trips to Sams and WalMart.  By the time we were finished shopping, we had spent more than $1500 and the car's trunk, back seat, and front seat floor was filled to the brim.  Carla was even carrying a case of frozen meat in her lap on the way back.

Speaking of meat, we went a little crazy picking out meats to freeze.  We both underestimated the size of our freezer, so by the time we had vacuum sealed all the meat into meal-sized portions, the freezer was packed to the lid.  If we catch any fish on the way to the Bahamas, we'll either have to eat it all or give the rest away.

Tomorrow, I send Carla back to Columbia to work.  Although she loves her job and the people she works with, we both are getting more anxious and excited about leaving.  T-minus 3 weeks and counting!

Too Late For a Refund

Ok, we're all set to close on the hangar this week.  The only things left are a big carload of stuff to take to the boat, a washer and dryer, and a car.  In case we didn't mention it elsewhere, the buyer of our hangar has volunteered to adopt Shula Bear, our 135 pound yellow-haired "baby.  That hasn't kept Carla from shedding a few tears as the time draws near, but I know she's very grateful to have a caring new owner for our fella.  My last day is Friday, and the "Good-bye's" are progressing well.  I'm looking forward to Monday morning when I'll be unemployed for the first time in 32 years, and I get to lay up in bed while Carla finishes up her last weeks at work.  I still have a number of things to finish up, but if it's alright with everyone, I'm going to savor the feeling for a couple hours.  Hey, I may even go out to the bow of the boat and yell to the world, "I'm unemployed!".

Yesterday I ran into someone who had cruised solo for a few years.  He was thrilled to learn of our plans, and stated several times that it will be the best decision we'll ever make.  Many people are impressed that we are gutsy enough to make such a drastic change.  As Carla and I become more aware of how enslaved we've been to "stuff", and how the next few years will be full of life-changing experiences, we don't really see ourselves as "stepping out".  Instead, we view it as embracing a more diverse and rewarding lifestyle.  As for a refund, no thanks.

Walked The Gangplank

It looks like we'll close on the hangar next week, so there's nothing holding us back now.  We have a truck reserved for the weekend and we'll be taking the last load to Matt's house for storage.  I (Daniel) have been selling our remaining items at deep discounts, and Carla has been taking trunk loads of cloths to a local charity.  I took that most important last step off the end of the gangplank when I turned in my 2-weeks' notice at work.  It wasn't too surprising to most folks who know me, especially when they saw the dishes go up for sale on the company bulletin board.  This whole change probably won't really sink in for several more weeks.  Until then, we still have a lot left to do.

Like A Fish Out Of Water

This weekend we had the boat hauled at the Charleston City Boatyard about 5 miles up the Wando River.  This was our third time to use that boatyard and we're very impressed by the facilities and staff.  This was the last major step in preparing C-Time before casting off.  We had several tasks on our list, including repainting the bottom, waxing the hull, replacing the cutless bearing (see the Port page for details), and replacing a thru-hull valve.  As much fun as all this may sound, we were very glad to get her back in the water where she belongs.  Carla commented that it just didn't feel right not having the motion of being in the water.  Although this is the way boats are secured for a hurricane, I just don't like the feeling of it being stood up in the air like that.

Another final cleanup task that we've started is refinishing the floor boards.  We brought all the removable boards home, sanded out most of the scratches, and put two coats of polyurethane on them.  This may not help C-Time glide through the water any more efficiently, but it will sure make the interior sparkle.  We can't wait to get them back on the boat, as walking to the head in the middle of the night without floor boards can be treacherous.

As the countdown ticks down to less than a month and half, we're getting excited and worried at the same time.  Suspicion at work is growing, and we can't wait to spill the beans.  We still have a lot of stuff to sell, so it's a good thing we started nearly a year ago.  We don't want to wait too long about selling things like the washer and dryer, but we also don't want to sell those last things too early, so we're constantly evaluating our schedule.  We take the last load of things we're keeping to our son's house on Thanksgiving, so we'll be roughing it after that until we close on the hangar.  Christmas will be right around the corner, then the birth of our second grandchild, then off to the Caribbean!

Boat Show Adventure

Last weekend we took a mini-vacation to the U.S. Sailboat Show in Annapolis, primarily to attend some of the seminars.  It pretty much rained all weekend, and my (Daniel) leather shoes were soaked several times.  However, we did manage to sell our old 45-pound CQR anchor to a guy from Alberta, look at several new and one used yacht, buy a couple of toys, and attend several excellent seminars.  Here's a photo of a couple of the new toys (hand-held sonar and a hand-held VHF radio).  The radio has DSC capability, which means we can query the radio on C-Time and it will send it's GPS location to the handheld radio.  So while we're on land, we'll be able to determine if her anchor is dragging or if she's been stolen.

The new boats at the boat show looked pretty much like they have for the last two years.  We spent a little more time looking at catamarans this year to see if we have multi-hull envy.  They have a lot of nice space, but boy do they look like a lot more work to keep up.  Twice as much hull to wax, twice as many engines to maintain, and twice the cost for a slip.  Even if we had the extra money that a cat costs, I'm not sure we would want the extra headache.  But they are nice!

The most enjoyable seminars were those presented by Pam Wall.  She did an excellent job of talking about cruising the Abacos and how to prepare a boat for cruising.  She's quite a character and I hope we have the opportunity to run into her while cruising.

We have several things going on for these several weeks, so we're missing seeing our girl.  I'm working on boat projects at home during the week, so you can read about those on the Port page.

Sinking Boat

I saved us!!  Our boat was sinking and I saved us.  Okay, that might be a tad bit dramatic but I did stop water from flowing into the boat.  Daniel was on deck doing "Daniel stuff" and I was down below doing "Carla stuff".  The radio was on and the music was up, but I heard water pouring, like when Daniel washes the boat.  But it made me think, he wasn't washing the boat...where was the water coming from?  I turned off the radio and started listening.  I looked up to make double sure he indeed wasn't out there washing the boat (he washes the boat, a lot) and I heard it.  Pouring water.  I looked in the forward stateroom and water was pouring on the pretty teak floor boards!  I first holler:  "honey, come quick we have water coming in" and then second, I flipped the switch on the electrical panel to turn off the water pressure.  Yup, I thought of that all by myself.  The water stopped flowing.  I saved the day!  Daniel came in and found a hose had come off the water maker.  I was thinking, I really, really saved the boat but alas, the boat only holds 150 gallons and the best I did was save us from a lot of clean up.  Bottom line though, it is nice to know I can think through "in an emergency" and act.  We're going to make it just fine.

Geek Stuff

It's not often I get excited about software, but I ran across a real bargain last week.  By now you probably know that we have a Garmin chartplotter that integrates a GPS, navigation charts, radar, water depth, and wind speed and direction.  To get electronic marine navigation charts for our entire cruising area, we ordered two SD cards with the eastern and western Caribbean charts loaded on them.  There's a small fortune in those two little SD cards, but a ton of valuable information is contained on each of them.  Wouldn't it be nice if you could also use the charts that are on those SD cards on the laptop. 

"Nesting"

I remember when I was pregnant with each of our 3 sons.   There would come a time during each pregnancy that I would basically turn into a crazy person.  There came an overwhelming need, usually about the 8th month, to clean my house and get everything in order for the new baby.  I thought people were nuts when they would say "Oh you're just 'nesting'".  Getting your home ready for the baby to come into the world and live in its new home.

I think Daniel is nesting.  He isn't getting ready for a new baby to come into the world, but he is working like crazy to get our "new home" ready and in order for our future life.  I watch him in amazement.  He moves from project to project.  Never complains (at least not loud enough so I can hear it) and is constantly moving and accomplishing new improvements.  He is nesting.  My heart bubbles over with joy.  He wants our new home to be perfect for our new adventure.  Nothing says "I love you" more than newly created and partially installed bug netting.  When we get to the islands and the bugs are making us miserable, he will be able to pull out the bug netting and keep his first mate happy.

Daniel has spent most of this weekend, so far, sewing new covers for our living quarters cushions.  Did we "need" them before we left.  No.  Do they make us feel like the boat is ours and it's our home?  Absolutely!  They are gorgeous!  13 hours of sewing, stuffing, and ripping seams yesterday and he has 1/3 of the inside cushions done.  When he "sat down for a rest" he would do other stuff like check the water maker to make sure it didn't have any leaks.  He filled the water tanks on the boat (all 150 gallons) so I had water to wash a load of clothes...all this after running 3.1 miles this morning.  He's wearing me out watching him.  I'm glad he is such a happy "nester" and I love all the improvements in my new "home".  Only 4 more months and we're permanent residents!  Thanks, honey!

"Old" Is Relative

I think I may have mentioned in an earlier post that many people are surprised to learn that C-Time is 15 years old.  Because she has been cared for, she looks and runs like she's much younger.  In contrast, there are a couple boats in our Marina that look much older than their actual ages.  Their owners have neglected to regularly run the engines, air out the interiors, repair leaks, and clean and wax the decks and hulls.  One in particular has taken its owners on adventures to many parts of the world, but has spent the last several years tied to the dock.  Most of us are disappointed to see such a fine vessel ignored for so long.

This week, however, the marina was abuzz with activity on this, and another, sailboat that have sat idle for several years. 

The "Ideal" Plan

So, yesterday we were enjoying Applebee's riblets when Carla asked, "Ok, what is your ideal plan?"  Having been married for more than 30 years, I immediately suspected that this was just her way of starting a dialog.  She confirmed my suspicion when she responded to my ideal plan with, "Ok, what is your second ideal plan?"  For months now I've been counting down to December 1st, but she doesn't want to leave her employer shorthanded during their busiest time.  If we wait too long, we'll be rushed to make it to Trinidad before the 2014 hurricane season starts.

Meanwhile the countdown continues, sometimes working in our favor.  For example, retailers are starting to mark down their summer clothing, of which Carla and I took full advantage this weekend.  Summer shorts, shirts, tops, and dresses were reduced up to 70% at Kohl's, AND Carla had a 30% OFF coupon.  We walked away with arms full of clothes for only a few hundred dollars.  Considering we'll probably wear next to nothing most of the time on the boat, these clothes should last us decades.

Running out of time can also have a negative impact on our pre-adventure.  Of the 16 or so weeks left, I still have at least 3 weeks of work on the cockpit enclosure, 4 weeks on the interior upholstery, a couple weeks of travel to the Annapolis Sailboat Show and a business trip for Carla, cleaning out and moving from the hangar/apartment, diesel engine and diesel generator maintenance, deck waxing, final interior cleaning, and finally boat provisioning.  Oh, and we still have to obtain boat insurance, health insurance, and life insurance, and we have to notify everyone of our change of address.  It's really starting to get exciting now!

INSERT CARLA, DANIEL, AND C-TIME HERE

Looking "Sew" Good!

Daniel is working hard already on sewing us a new enclosure and some other things.  I wanted to share with you his work area and a picture of him hard at work.

Shoot! We Got The Anchor Dirty

We're frequently bashed by one of our marina buddies, Ann, for not leaving the slip very often.  This weekend two Customs and Border Patrol guys were walking the docks and stopped to talk with me.  I started asking them questions pertaining to foreign travel, and one of the guys asked if we sailed in and out of the country very often.  I responded, "Not very often", to which Ann commented, "Hah!  They never leave the slip!".  Well, I want everyone to know that we left the slip yesterday, AND Carla was at the helm.  She did an excellent job despite her nervousness and my 30-minute pre-trip technical lesson on pulling forward out of a slip.  This is all part of the preparation for the unlikely event that I become incapacitated or otherwise unavailable.

Anyway, back to the dirty anchor story. 

Of Course You Can Oil All The Interior Wood

I couldn't resist sharing a photo of Carla hand rubbing oil on all the interior woodwork.  The Hunter 410 has a lot of wood cabinetry, and I doubt that it was ever oiled prior to our purchasing it.  I think this makes the 3rd time that Carla has gone over the entire interior, and it looks more magnificent each time she touches it.  Let's see, 2 small pieces of exterior wood that I sanded and finished with 3 coats of varnish, and the whole interior that Carla hand rubbed with oil.  I'd say we're about even.

Always a Surprise

I never know when I leave the boat, what I will find when I come back.  My captain/mechanical engineer is always fixing something and making things better.  I was only gone for a few minutes and I come back and find him hanging upside down in the locker outside.  Don't get me wrong, I'm very proud of all the fixes he makes on the boat...but sometimes finding  him hanging upside down is a little...strange.

And then I get up this morning and walk outside and I find the pedestal our steering wheel is attached to in pieces.  It was fine when I went to bed last night...

  

I'm happy though, he was able to get it all back together and didn't have any parts left over :-).

Varnishing Teak - Yuk!

Unless you're someone who enjoys working tirelessly around your house so that you can win the "Yard of the Month" award, you probably wouldn't enjoy the yearly task of varnishing all the exterior teak on your boat.  Some captains have a lot to dread, but in our case the Hunter 410 only has a few small pieces of exterior teak.  This past weekend, the companionway hatch handles received a good sanding and four coats of varnish.  We constantly have people commenting that C-Time doesn't look like a 15 year-old boat, and I think that small efforts like this one are worth the effort to get those compliments.  Of course when we finally leave for the Caribbean, we'll have to trash her and make her look undesirable so we don't have a problem with theft.

I read in a cruiser's blog last week about a couple who painted their dinghy's outboard motor bright yellow to deter thieves.  Our first sailboat, a 14' enclosed bow boat, was yellow, and we never had a problem with someone trying to steal her.  Maybe that's the answer.  Paint everything yellow so no one else wants it.  Nah.  We prefer the compliments.

No Terry Cloth Bath Skirt This Father's Day

I would dare say that most fathers enjoy a card or a call from their children on Father's Day more than the gifts that they typically receive.  You all know I'm right.  They may have bragged on that ugly tie or hand-crafted coffee mug, or even that terry cloth bath skirt, but deep down they really cherished the thought, time, and effort more than the actual gift.  Well this year my Honey excelled on all counts.  I had been trying to decide whether we should get an inexpensive waterproof case for our iPhones for taking underwater photos, or make a big investment in the new GoPro camera.  Carla took the initiative and not only bought me a GoPro Hero3 Black Edition camera (http://gopro.com), but she also bought several additional accessories for it.  Eat your heart out Fathers.

And thanks Drew, Matt, and BA for the special Happy Father's Day wishes.  I hope that all of you eventually know the pride and joy of being a Father.

Is It Too Late to Get Our Deposit Back?

I read another cruising couple's blog (http://morejoyeverywhere.blogspot.com) during lunch today that was very different from all the other cruisers' blogs.  After almost two years of enjoying the cruising lifestyle, they have become self-proclaimed Anti-Inspirational posters.  They once shared the same dream that many wantabe cruisers have, and that is to quit the jobs, sell everything, and cruise the world.  Now that they've enjoyed enough of the cruising lifestyle, they want to share the "honest" side of the story.

So why does anyone want to leave the normal comforts of a land-based home to endure the hardships of a cruising lifestyle? 

I can see clearly now...the rain is gone...

A beautiful song and yet, my boat windows!  Who knew that there were actually other boats next to us at the  marina?  One of Daniel's weekend projects this past weekend was replacing the badly worn, damaged plexiglass in the windows.  What a fantastic job he did.  He says he did other projects and I actually was at the boat to see them on Sunday night, but they aren't nearly as neat as the windows.

                    BEFORE                                                                                              AFTER                  

                 

Mother's Day Presents

I got Friday off from work and went to the Atlanta airport and picked up our youngest, Brian, who flew in from Dallas.  It had been a while since we had seen him and it was a wonderful idea for him to come for Mother's Day.  We arrived back at home in time to pick up Daniel, swing by my office and pick up a package that we had ordered for the boat and then head to Charleston for a fun weekend at the boat.  Brian had been wanting to go sailing but with our long list of things to do it was going to be hard to swing it, but we came up with a compromise.  He helped us clean and wax the top part of the boat and since he was such a big help, we had plenty of time to go sailing!  (What he doesn't know is that we were going to take him sailing anyway, but we were very grateful for the help he supplied.  Thanks, B!)
 

It wasn't enough that we went sailing in 15-20 mph winds with Brian steering the boat for the first time, Daniel decided it was a good time to get in the stern locker and have a look around.

 

 

 

 

 

To the casual observer one might think Daniel is kissing the boat – the man does love his boat – but he isn’t.  When we worked on the buff and wax job this past weekend he removed some snaps, and before reinstalling them he blew out each hole to get the extra dust/wax out of the holes.  Then he added some kind of sealant into the hole…you know what – I better let him explain.  Daniel??

We finished up our wonderful weekend with breakfast out and a present for me...flowers, a new dress, nope - a brand new, stainless steel fishing rod holder!  Yup, who could ask for more?  No, I do not own a fishing rod.  I have a bad feeling I know what I'm getting for Christmas.

Galley's Make Excellent Workshops

The doctor told Carla to stay off the boat for a while to give her inner ear a chance to heal.  I reluctantly went to the boat by myself (No, really.  I was reluctant.  Ok, maybe not reluctant, but I did feel sorry for her), expecting that she would join me on Saturday to sit on the dock and enjoy the nice weather.  Well, that didn't work out as expected.  Winds were howling 15-30 knots all weekend and it rained much of Saturday and Sunday, so Carla decided to stay home and clean out some more junk  I was able to finish a few small projects outside between rain events, but when it came time to saw and stain some boards for the new cabinets it was raining hard.  Maybe she won't notice the sawdust behind the seat cushions.

Amazing Weekend Projects

I have to brag everyone - my Captain is amazing.  I'm not sure how he does it every weekend, but he always does.  Projects that just blow me away.  The best for the weekend, so far, is this huge cabinet Daniel constructed to go around the washing machine.  It turned out beautiful!  I'm really very proud of him - not surprised because he has been building things for a long time, but WOW, this just turned out so good!

        

   And then for "safety" he added the hold bar you see on this picture.  It turned out great too.  This will really come in handy in rough seas. 

BUT THAT'S NOT ALL....here are more of Daniel's projects from this weekend:

A water spout in the anchor locker to clean the chain and anchor (and deck) when it comes up out of the water.

A new flag pole (with a brand new U.S.A. flag) to show our country of origin.

A new Mantus anchor (notice Cooper River Bridge in the background).  We can't wait to try out this new anchor!

Beats me what this thing is called.  But Daniel knows and he installed it.  It holds the spinnaker pole to the deck. 

Lastly, a motor lift to, you guessed it, to lift the 100 pound motor off the dinghy. 

I would say this was an amazing weekend of completed projects!



D - Time

If our boat's name is C-Time (Carla) I think our dinghy's name is D-Time (Daniel).  Come on, it's cute!  We finally got to take D-Time out for its maiden voyage.  After owning it for 2+ months, but since my slip and fall trying to take it for its initial run on my birthday in February, we never got to take it out.  So, one Tuesday afternoon after work, we loaded up the dinghy and pulled it 30 minutes to beautiful Lake Murray, in Columbia, South Carolina.  It was the middle of the week so we really didn't expect the lake to be crowded but as we pull up to the local dock we were mistaken.  Apparently every Tuesday night at this particular dock they host a fishing tournament.  The whole parking lot was filled with $20,000+ boats and us...with our little dinghy.  We didn't care.  Daniel got out of our car (most everyone else was there in their pickup truck pulling their $20,000+ boats) to put the motor on D-Time and put our life jackets in the boat.  We waited our turn and Daniel backed us into the water.  Here comes the hard part.  I had to get out of the car, on the slanted boat ramp.  Last time I was on a boat ramp an ambulance came and took me away.  To say I was a little nervous is an understatement.  I made it out of the car and onto the fixed dock area.  I held the dinghy while Daniel parked the car.  I made it fine and we jumped in the dinghy and motored her around.  Our little boat was a champ.  She planed out and she went fast.  It was a wonderful first trip.

Up the Mast

Not once, not twice but THREE times Daniel had to go up the mast to install the tv antenna wire.  Guess who turned the winch and pulled the line to get him up 50+ feet each time?  Yes, it was me.  It was very hard work, I was sweating afterwards and he just sat in his little bosun's chair relaxing.  Okay, it can't be very relaxing sitting at the top of a 50 foot mast when a barge goes by and rocks the boat.  Poor fella!  It did take 3 times to get the wire up the inside of the mast but it has been done and now we can watch more tv channels!



What in the world are you doing??

This is a frequent question I ask - as you can tell by the picture below it is extremely difficult to tell.  This is the electrical panel and it is pulled down while Daniel is working on installing new wires for (1) a television antenna; (2) wi-fi connection and (3) who knows what else!  He has spent the better part of the day with the electrical panel in this condition and him pulling wires from all over the boat.  The good news is, I am typing this update by using the new wi-fi connection and when I get finished typing I'm going to turn the television on and look at all the new channels we receive.  So far, instead of 1 PBS channel it looks like we're getting 3 and they're all cooking shows.  Maybe I will learn something new. 

 

 

 

As a side note, it has been a nice day at the boat.  It's overcast and about 75 degrees.  There are lots of people out and about.  We really like the marina - everyone is so friendly and our "neighbors" are all really nice.  Everyone helps each other - which is really wonderful too.  Earlier today a man and his daughter that we met last week arrived on their "new to them" sailboat a couple of docks over and were trying to take down their old sails.  They wrestled with them for about 20 minutes and Daniel ended up walking over to check on them to see if they needed any help.  They were getting ready to do something drastic with the sails because they were not budging and were not coming down.  They had lots of people standing around giving advice but Daniel had told the guy last week how to take the sail down.  Anyway, Daniel offered his help and pulled out a clip that was holding the sail up and the sail just came barreling down.  The guy was really happy.  It's nice to share.  We've had lots of people help us when we need it and it was really nice to be able to help someone else.  Sailors are the best!

 

 

Carla Report (Finally)

Every weekend I spend lots of time reporting about all the wonderful improvements and changes Daniel has made.  Even as I type he is up to his arm pits in the electrical panel, but more about him, later. For  this entry is all about ME.  Usually it is "honey, can you hold this board while I cut it...honey, can you hand me a wrench...or would you mind vacuuming up this big mess I just made?" but not this week.  This time you get to see what I do on the boat.  I have my "specialty" and it is considered a "glory" job.  I get to spread teak oil on wood that needs it.  Before I touch it, it is just dull, everyday wood...but after I add my special teak oil...it shines!  It usually takes me about 5 minutes to accomplish a job like this and it usually takes me the rest of the day to get the leftover teak oil off my hands - but it's worth it.  Look at it shine!  Okay, back to vacuuming.

If at first you don't succeed...

drill another hole.  NOW I know why he sounded so frustrated.  The hole was unintentional - he drilled a hole at the bottom where the hinges were already located.  It was the wrong place for a hole.  So he had to drill another one.  Now we are actively trying to come up with something to fill the hole.  We are thinking about installing a fan over the hole.  The fan would blow air on the inhabitants of the forward berth.  I think it's a wonderful idea. 

 

 



Sweetie, What Are You Working On Now?

Daniel:  I'm working on the water maker.  Why do you ask?
Carla:  I'm posting to the blog and wanted to make sure I wrote about the right thing.

Isn't she cute?  In her defense, she did offer to help me on several occasions.

This was one of those weekends when everyone around us were out sailing while we stayed at the dock and worked on projects.  "A" dock was buzzing with activity Saturday afternoon.  It was great to see everyone having a good time, and to be able to talk with several of our friends.  Winters sometime seem quiet and lonely around the marina.

I CAN cook on a Boat!

I was a little worried about whether I would be able to cook "stuff" on the boat.  I mean, I know I can grill steak and chicken, I can make a pot of chili, but can I cook "from scratch"?  I put it to a test today.  Okay, it wasn't totally from scratch - I used a box mix for bread.  One and half hours later, I produced our first boat cinnamon rolls!  I feeling very domestic now...I might even cook dinner - after taking a well deserved nap. 

 

SSB Radio - the fun continues

Everyone needs an SSB radio if they are heading towards the high seas.  Okay, not everyone but I do.  Another item needed to make the boat "livable" for us.  I want to be able to send and receive e-mails from family and friends while we are cruising and the best way for us to do that is with an SSB radio.  Believe it or not, these things are expensive.  So if you can find a good, used one, well you snatch it up.  We found a great deal on ebay or craigslist for a slightly used radio so we bought it.  Below you will see a picture of it.

 

What?  All you see is a hole?  There's a reason for that...not everything you buy on ebay or craigslist actually works!  We received the radio and Daniel installed it.  He worked for about three weeks on it trying to get it to work and it never would.  Now, he doesn't give up easily so we mailed it off to a radio repair shop.  After the initial "look over" it was determined that it was going to take a lot of money to fix it.  Bottom line, please say hello to my brand new SSB radio.  It was received yesterday and was installed and is working in less than 1/2 a day. 



LESSON LEARNED:  not every "good deal" is a good deal. 

Watermaker

As we've said, the boat needs lots of upfitting and items that we want to make the cruising life more enjoyable.  One of those things is a watermaker.  We received it two weeks ago in 3 boxes.  It was a little scary to me - there were so many parts!  Daniel was like a kid with a new set of legos.  He couldn't wait to start installing it.  It was so funny, he walked all over the boat, opening every cubby hole he could find to try to find the best place for the new watermaker.  Finally, he found it's permanent home.  (Don't ask me how many times he hit his head on that table - too many to count!)

 

Flea Market Finds

Since I pelted my head 3 weeks ago, I wasn't able to travel to the Dania Beach Flea Market.  We had been planning on go to it for about a year - lots to buy to outfit the boat.  I was really disappointed I couldn't go but I still was not able to travel...so Daniel attended without me and did wonderfully.  How many girls can say they got a new washer/dryer combo for their boat?  I certainly can.  I was so excited about the washer I almost forgot to ask about the other treasures Daniel found.  He got us a new transom ide the boat, some new fenders and a fender holder. 

So, after traveling almost non-stop for 2 days, Daniel arrived home with our treasures.  He got a few hours sleep and we left this morning for the boat to install some of these things.  He spent the morning building the frame for the solar panel and then with the help of a fellow boater and a marina staffer, he installed the solar panel.

Most people would call it a day here, but not my captain.  Poor fella!  He now had to install the new washer/dryer combo.  He spent a while designing and building the area the washer was going into and then again, with the help of some more fellow boaters (different ones this time - you don't want to wear them all out) he installed our new washer/dryer combo!  It just fit through the doorways.  It was so close - what a day!

But We Got The Dinghy

We've been looking for the perfect dinghy for a while now, so when it finally popped up in West Palm Beach, FL, we jumped on it and drove down to get it.  Since it was Carla's birthday, we decided to stay an extra couple days and take our new dinghy for a spin on the ICW.  Carla remained at the boat ramp, holding the dinghy's line, while I parked the car and trailer.  Before I returned, she stepped on the slippery stuff in the water and fell backwards on her head.  We spent the next four days in a local hospital due to a fractured skull and concussion.  After she was released from the hospital, we made our way back to South Carolina where she will recover at home for the next several weeks.  It was not a pleasant way to spend her birthday, but we got the dinghy!

Here's Carla and "D-Time" before the accident, waiting for me to run the car through the car wash.

Flags

When you travel to foreign countries, once you've cleared their customs department, you are supposed to raise the flag of that country on your boat (This is called a courtesy flag and is flown from the starboard spreader). We purchased a bunch of flags and I came home last night to this display up our driveway at home. I laughed so hard. Someone is ready to do some traveling. 

Honey, I just drilled a hole through the hull.

I'm sure those words were not what she wanted to hear.  Nevertheless, I had made a dumb mistake and I wasn't going to make another one by not telling her about it.  Fortunately for us, the new hole was above the waterline and didn't threaten to sink our new home.  However, it cost us $50 and a couple hours filling the hole, sanding the filler, and replacing the gelcoat.  In my defense, punching holes through the hull of a boat is not uncommon.  It's just better if you do it on purpose.

Introductions

About 6 months ago we brought our Hunter 410 down from Deltaville, VA to Charleston, SC and began the major task of outfitting the boat for Caribbean cruising.  We want to share all the details of our preparations for the trip, but it's a little difficult beginning a blog after we've already done a lot of the work.  The initial posts may seem a little random as we try to "catch up" to present day.

Probably like many couples, we realize that each of us thinks in a different way, but that both of us have something to contribute to the blog.  Rather than intermingle our musings, we came up with the idea last night of having separate pages within the blog.  Daniel, with a dominant left-brain tendency, will speak tech-talk on the "Port" page while Carla, with a dominant right-brain tendency, will be the creative one on the "Starboard" page.