Decor

Ok. So I have, on several occasions, mentioned "boat projects". This is what Darryl spends his day working on. I spend my time on, well, domestic chores. Not very interesting or challenging. So I decided to make some new cushions for the boat. Cushions on a boat serve several purposes - the obvious ones being decor and something comfy for your back. The not so obvious one (at least for non boaters) is storage. Our boat cushions are stuffed with toilet paper, paper towels, jackets and dog food. And although they are mostly utilitarian, I still like to use nice fabric to make them and had chosen a lively,colorful, tropical one. Fast forward to putting the cushions on the boat...

Darryl- " that green doesn't match"
Me- "you mean the tiny bit of green on the leaf stem?"
Darryl- "yes. We don't want too many different things going on"

WHAT???? Are you kidding me? We are not exactly a better homes and garden standard. The cluttered chart table alone houses radios, suntan lotion, flashlights, a lantern, fishing tackle, old Captain Tom's ashes and our only bottle of rum. And when the light is right it reflects every colour of the rainbow. Our upper deck has on it four blue water containers, two yellow diesel ones, two red gasoline tanks and a multi coloured deck box. The sail covers, dodger and bimini are varying shades of sun bleached "buttercup". So EXCUUUUUUSE me if a tiny green stem doesn't match. House Beautiful? Maybe not. But when it comes to storing toilet paper, we are number 1!

Getting Ready. STILL!

I really don't have much to report. Last week was spent continuing to work on the boat projects. They are winding down to the point where we have started loading the provisions. Provisioning involves stocking up from the land of plenty for the land of not so plenty. A lot of things in the Bahamas, depending on where you are, are either cost prohibitive or not available at all, and a trip to the store always involves a dinghy ride, a backpack and calm weather. Besides that, we like to be relatively self sufficient. We also plan meals differently than we would if we were at home because both water consumption and garbage disposal are issues when on a boat. And we have limited refrigeration, no freezer and not a lot of storage space. Basically we mostly eat peanuts and drink wine out of a box. Not a bad life really.
We have also started to pay attention to the weather forecasts in earnest now. By that i mean the WIND forecasts. It will take two days for us to get to West Palm Beach from here and then 10 - 12 hours to cross the gulf stream to West End, Grand Bahamas. For that we need to be confident in the three day forecast. The Gulf Stream is the real issue. Without getting into too much detail, we need the wind to be no more than 15 knots with a direction of anywhere between south and west. The prevailing winds are easterly, with south and west winds occurring just before a cold front when the winds shift to the north and the Gulf Stream becomes VERY unpleasant. Been there. Done that. Not doing it again. For this reason I consult no fewer than six weather sources - passage weather, sail-flow, windfinder, barometer bob, weather underground and NOAA (buoy data, synopsis and forecast). Join me if you'd like! Just kidding. As of this morning the forecast for the rest of the week is east winds 15-20 knots. Of course it could change but for now we are staying put, and I will stay busy watching the weather.

A Dog's Life

This is a walk I can take at a park in Stuart when it is not too hot. Lots of shady trails, Scooter loves it!

The Week

Wow! A whole week has gone by. And for no obvious reason it seems like
we haven't gotten any closer to leaving the boatyard. Every day I go
down to the boat and it looks exactly the same as it did the day
before - like a floating toolbox. (Except for last Friday, because
Thursday we painted the decks with a non skid paint so the dog would
have an easier time maneuvering.) There are tools everywhere, waiting
their turn to be involved in some boat project. I have yet to see the
project list, but because Darryl spends the better part of the day on
the boat I am assuming there is one. Between boat projects, he
DISCUSSES boat projects with the other guys who also have boat
projects. At some point the boat projects end and we all go sailing.
We hope.

Also last week we had friends come and visit for lunch one day, and on
another we went to a friend's boat for a farewell dinner (their
projects were complete!). We were in Delray Beach for an engagement
party on Saturday, and skipped the cruisers pot luck that night partly
because we were tired and partly because Moose was cooking the pig
they had caught earlier in the week. Since he (the pig) had made eye
contact with me when I walked by the trap, I just couldn't bring
myself to participate in the meal. Hopefully they let the two raccoons
go who were in there yesterday. However this being central Florida,
you never know. Like today, no one even blinked when Eric, the yard
manager, drew a pistol and SHOT the water moccasin (snake) who refused
to leave the swim platform on our neighbor's boat. Hello? The gator
didn't even move. (he was sitting behind our boat, perhaps waiting
for a tool or two to slip in the water). I don't want to be
presumptuous but i didn't see anyone retrieve the body from the
water, so I am assuming they don't eat snakes here. Yet. Who knows
what this week will bring.

Moose

I suppose I should have included this in the wildlife post, but it is
actually somewhat of a grey area. Our immediate neighbor, beside our
camper is a man named Moose. I don't know what his real name is, or
even if he has one. I suspect they started calling him that in the
first few minutes of his life. One's imagination could take flight
thinking of the possible reasons why...
As I understand it, he is the boatyard owner's uncle's nephew's
brother's son... - well you get the picture. It is enough of a
connection that he lives and works here because of it. We don't really
know what he does when he works, and he is large, moves rather slowly
and is shy. Kind of like, well, a moose. I do know that in his down
time he watches tv. I know this because of the very large satellite
dish in front of our camper. Shiny and new. Sort of like a beacon.
Hard to miss. Unless you are me, and you are backing up the car. I
honestly didn't think I had hit it. I mean, it barely moved!
Thankfully Moose wasn't around at the time, but I knew by the look on
his face later on that date night with his 12 pack of beer and the
football game had been cancelled. I never said a word...
Anyhow, the "dish" repairman showed up early the next day. The
conclusion was that there had been enough wind to " jostle" it out of
position somehow. Phew! And no charge to Moose. Bigger phew. I had
avoided a close encounter with a moose. In Florida...

Men.

So today Darryl went to town to get, and this is key, MILK and a HOSE CLAMP. He came back with TWO FISHING RODS. Does anyone else have this problem?

It's HIM!

Wild Life

Aside from the cruisers here who, every saturday night, are determined
to re-live their teenage party years, there is plenty of wild life at
the boat yard. There is a very large alligator who stations himself in
the middle of the boat basin, daring anyone to toss him a small dog or
child. He has eluded capture several times, including last march when
they brought in some very sophisticated sonar which was supposed to
mimic a female alligator "ready for a good time". Included in the deal
was a dead chicken. After one hour he hadn't moved, and we all agreed
his posturing was similar to that of a man after a thanksgiving meal
and several beers. He didn't even budge when my friend Mary fell off
her boat into the water about five feet from him and everyone started
screaming. Just like a man! They finally gave up and now seem to have
accepted him as a permanent resident.
We also have regular visits from turtles, osprey, blue herons,
armadillos and wild boar. The wild boar are the most elusive, perhaps
sensing the large barbecue in the picnic area. Last spring the
armadillo actually cruised around the picnic area scrounging for food,
stopping every now and again to be admired. The other day a blue heron
sat on the bank opposite the boat, perfectly poised and still, waiting
for a fish. At those moments the Marlin Perkins in me emerges and I
race to get my camera. As soon as I actually GET a picture, I will
post it. In the meantime, it's Saturday. I have to get ready for the
pot luck...its a wild life!

Florida, after 55...

Here in Florida you can bask in the sunshine, spot the occasional alligator, curse the personal injury lawyers who advertise on billboards every two blocks (no this is NOT an exaggeration) and - DRUM ROLL PLEASE- get a seniors discount at age 55! At least at Walgreens. On Tuesdays. Was it the pack of 250 Aleve I brought to the counter that tipped the cashier off? Or the streak of grey running along the center of my head (5 weeks since I last did my roots). As I graciously accepted my 15% discount I remembered the first time Darryl was given a seniors discount. It was a Jiffy Lube, in Florida. He was 53. I was in shock. He WASN'T OLD! I seriously don't even consider my mother a senior. Although I do remember taking her shopping with me on "discount" days. I guess now I don't have to. I am all grown up...Right?
On a boating note, the riggers put the new sails on the boat today. They are extremely crisp and white. (I can't be sure, but I may have seen Darryl caressing them). It will be fun to get them up and see the difference they make to the sailing experience. I am sure it will be quite noticeable because one sail we replaced was thinner than an old bed sheet. It had actually reached the point where it doubled as a hammock. Which wasn't necessarily a bad thing. Except if you needed it as a sail...
Well, it is 11o'clock. I'd better go. Time for bed. I AM, after all, a senior...

Someone is ready to be a boat dog!

Boat at the Boatyard

Putting up the wind generator

Making Dinner

Yesterday was a busy day. I had to make a pasta salad for the Saturday night pot luck for the cruisers. That took all day. First, I had to drive  20 min each way to the grocery store. (Of course, on the way to the grocery store I had to stop at Bealls to look for a pair of shorts. That took an hour and a half.) When I got back, I had to set up the camper to cook. This involves moving everything off the stove to the couch, off the table to the patio  and scotch guarding everything else. (If you have ever dropped an open container of salad dressing you know what I am talking about). The next hour and a half was spent boiling the water for the pasta because our stove doesn't generate much more flame than a small match. Then there was the ten minutes spent sweeping up dried pasta off the floor. Eventually everything was assembled and it was time for clean up. Here's where I truly embrace the American idea of everything disposable. Toss it all in the garbage and replace it the next day.  (You are welcome China!) Of course that is not what happened. I just left the mess for later...
Fast forward to the pot luck dinner. A good time was had by all. And it seemed the effort I put into the salad was appreciated, because by the time we got up to get our food it was all gone. Except for one chick pea. Next time I will eat before we go.

Boat about to go in the water

In The Shade

It's warmer today. I don't know the exact temperature, but I don't have to wear my fleece jacket, so its over 50. No matter what the temperature,  Scooter prefers to  lie in the shade by the car. I think it is because it is cooler, although I suspect he senses his vantage point for catching the attention of admirers as they walk by. Yesterday someone walked by the camper, patted him and said "hello scooter!" Apparently my dog had introduced himself to this person earlier in the day...
As of now we are still waiting for the travel lift to come and get the boat and put it in the water. We are hoping it floats, since one year we put it in, it did in fact start to sink. (They quickly pulled us out again and let Darryl put in the plug he had forgotten about). The good news is we would only have gone down six feet. Let's hope we "splash down" in a relatively uneventful fashion this year. Keep your fingers crossed!

Plant life and other things...

This is my Christmas poinsettia which I tenderly transported all the way down here from Rhode Island. So it wouldn't die a lonely death up there. Aside from being stepped on, it seems pretty happy where it is, and it provides a cheerful element to our cluttered patio. Also providing cheer and decor are Scooter and the Keurig coffee maker. Once it warms up we will be able to drink coffee in our screened patio in the morning.
On the subject of boats, the riggers are coming today to re-install the masts, new rigging  and sails. For that they bring in a large crane and a crew who are so limber they could probably perform with cirque de soleil. Hopefully it will all go smoothly, and the boat will be ready to go into the water tomorrow. I will keep you posted.

Good? Morning

Good morning loyal followers! And I mean both of you! It was 32 deg here this morning, which doesn't seem too bad except when you are basically living outside. We are now up to 43 deg, and there seems to be hope for bigger numbers by the weekend. Darryl has gone off to work on the boat which is still up on jack stands. Hopefully no more emergency calls now that the ladder has been securely attached. As for me, I managed to find the not so elusive fire ant mound this morning. Yes, you definitely know when when you have discovered one. I won't get into any more details.  After I apply the cream, I think I had better start looking for my rose coloured glasses...

Indiantown

Here we are with our camper, in FREEZING cold Florida. And it is very very windy. This morning Darryl got up and went to check our boat, which right now is up on jack stands in the storage area. He took the ladder with him, also the dog. I decided to have my first shower in 4 days. It was lovely. Got the blow dryer out, which is somewhat of a luxury down here, and had the little heater in the camper going full blast. I was dry, warm and toasty. Unlike Darryl, who had tried to call me on my cell phone 4 times. Apparently when he got up on the boat the ladder had promptly blown over leaving him stranded in the cold and wind (because he couldn't remember the combination to get INTO the boat). The dog, who was below on the ground, had managed to tangle the leash and himself up in a patch of burrs. The two of them were quite the sight when I finally showed up. Darryl spent the next hour huddled by the heater, while I brushed burrs out of the dog. Who has more fun than us?

Can you guess what this is? Ok. It's a bar-b-que. with a plant growing inside

Inside the camper

Another view...

Day 1 at the boatyard

A new year

Ok, so dropping my toothbrush in the toilet at the KOA campground wasn't the first thing to start my new year, but it was enough of a punctuation mark this morning for me to say "REALLY? THIS IS HOW IT'S GOING TO BE?"
Happy New Year everyone. Keep your toothbrush safe.