October, 05

Oct. 31st, 2005, Here are some pictures from dinner we had at the Chart House in Annapolis during the weekend of Oct. 9th. We had this dinner during the Sail Boat Show with the rest of the crew from Cedar Mills.

We are all stocked up with candy for tonight as the neighbor kids play tricks on everyone. A few outside displays that we brought from the boat are on our porch. I stopped by the Marina this afternoon and saw that about 25% of the hull is shaved and that 80% of the mast is done. They are planning on painting the mast this weekend. Fingers crossed.

Oct. 29th, 2005, A first. Today we went to Annapolis for the worlds longest tug of war (Guinness book, 1600 feet) . Across the Spa Creek bridge from Annapolis is the town of Eastport. Most visitors still think they are in Annapolis when in truth they are in the Maritime Republic of Eastport (MRE). About 8 years ago, like Key West, MRE seceded from the United States and annually the USA is challenged by MRE to a tug of war (Slaughter Across the Water). Well, Nancy was a tugger on the women's team in this international challenge. The Coast Guard closes off the Bay to all vessels as the international competition takes place. The start time is at the crack of 10:30 a.m. To ward off the chill of a late October morning, about 20 booths from different charities line 2nd street in Eastport. They serve many different recipes of chili as well as beer and Bloody Marys and to date have raised $165,000.00 for charity. A rope is boated across the Bay from Eastport to Annapolis and the tug begins. The MRE team on the south side of the Bay and the USA Team (represented by the City of Annapolis) on the north. After the competition, no matter who wins, the Annapolis side crosses the bridge to Eastport and they have a street party for the rest of the day. We now sport a MRE flag on our boat. Hoo-rah!

Oct. 28th, 2005, Fall is starting. I think this next week or the one after will be the fall foliage watching week. This is just an example. The leaves are turning and the fall flowers are in bloom.

Oct. 26th,2005, Cool day today, with frost warnings in part of the bay area. Well, it happened. I have to admit that the pop machine that Nancy bought really works. Its like a home fountain machine. About the size of a blender, it doesn't require electricity and works with a CO2 bottle in the housing. The CO2 is about the size of two coke cans and is housed internally. It will make about 110 liters of pop. What I really like is that we don't have to buy pop at the store and carry it home and then carry the cans to the garbage. One little bottle of syrup makes 12 liters of refreshing soda. It really works. Frees up the frig also. All we have is a couple liter bottles of cold water stored there.

Went to Annapolis again to day and bought the new Raymarine "E" system. It is a navigation aid that displays information on a day bright LCD screen. It will show the ships radar, electronic navigation charts, Video, (T.V., camera, DVD, etc.), engine instruments, navigation instruments, in one to four screens shown like PIP (picture in picture) on the TV sets. I had to upgrade the ships radar at the same time so it would work on the "E" system. Now to install everything.

Mast work. I stopped by the rigger shop today and saw very shinny aluminum mast spreaders and boom. They had been stripped of all parts and paint. The mast was the next to be done. All wiring and lines have been pulled from the mast and will be replaced with new when the painting is completed. The new anchor light that was supposed to be waterproof had water in it so I called the manufacturer and they are sending a new one at no cost. A new amplified T.V. antenna will be installed at the top of the mast instead of the old location, at the spreaders (about half way up the mast). New cell phone antenna and cable are also being install at the top of the mast. The cell phone antenna is for our own onboard repeater/amplifier, that will extend our cell phone range to over 50 miles.

Oct. 22nd, 2005, Very light rain in the air today. Cool and calm. Last night Nancy didn't feel like cooking so we went to the Sports Bar at Herrington Harbour and participated in Happy Hour. Instead of ordering dinner, we had half price appetizers and made a meal from them. A baked Crab dip with home made chips and fresh baked bread, along with chicken wraps, four glasses of wine and a $25.00 bill. Not bad. After leaving the Sports Bar, we stopped by our favorite coffee shop for dessert. I just had my usual Cafe Mocha and Nancy had a Guatemalan coffee along with a Key Lime pie.

While we were at the Sports Bar, we noticed that plaid is in. Most of the men had on plaid flannel shirts. Sooo, this morning I got out my old blue plaid flannel shirt and walked across the street to the post office. As I was reaching to put a letter in the outside box an older gentleman was entering through the front door, as he held it open, he turned to me and asked "you coming in Capt'n?". The plaid shirt did it.

Well, we made a big decision. It will be another four to six weeks before the boat gets back in the water. We decided to have about 1/10 of an inch shaved from the bottom of the hull. After that is done, a newer type of glass mat will be put on. This glass mat is woven along with diagonal threads in both directions. This will make the hull stronger than the blown mat that was used at the factory. Another advantage is that this mat will not hold water as the other mat does. After that is done, a barrier coat of a poly material will be applied. This has proven to be better than an epoxy barrier coat that is also used on many boats. Then the final touch, bottom paint will be applied. The reason that we decided at the last minute to do this was so we would have a stronger than factory hull and a life time hull, free of any future problems.

Oct. 17th, 2005, There was a cool nip in the air this morning. The leaves are starting to change color. The yellows and the reds are just starting to show. A lot has happened since the last post. The boat is out of the paint shop and the new rub rail is going on today. Tomorrow the boat will be completely waxed. It is really starting to look very nice.

We went back to the Annapolis Boat Show this last week end and bought a GPERB (its a floating emergency beacon that transmits to satellites and gives our position in case of an emergency), a MOM-8 (A lighted emergency floatation device in case someone falls overboard) and Nancy's favorite, a machine that makes pop, about twenty different flavors. A few more purchases and the boat should be well equipped.

Nancy and I worked on the boat this last weekend also. Put up the outboard motor for the dinghy, put out the life raft, put up the bimini, dodger and side curtains. We also cleaned and waxed the cockpit area and put out the cushions. Nancy made the aft bed in the afternoon, laid down on it and immediately took a afternoon nap.

We are now stocking the boat so it will be ready when it is put in the water. Hopefully soon. The mast is still being worked on so we will put the boat in the water and when the mast is ready, drive to a boat well and have the mast stepped.

Oct. 7th, 2005, We went to the Annapolis Boat Show Yesterday. Steve Wallace, the Manager of Cedar Mills Marina Service Department had arranged for Valiant Yachts to provide VIP tickets for us. We went to the Valiant Yachts display and thanked Chris, Wally and the crew for the tickets and caught up on the news from our old marina. We met six of our old friends from Cedar Mills and a couple of friends from Winnipeg Canada that we had met in Bonaire last year. Small World. Later, the group from Cedar Mills met on Far Niente for cocktails and dinner at the Chart House. We bought a few things, a sail bag for the main ($23.00, can't get the material for that) and a new cockpit light. Back to the show today to see if we can find any other treasures. Hi Mary L., say Hi to Woody for us.

Oct. 2nd, 2005, Yesterday, after loading some more things into our storage areas, we drove the 21 miles to Annapolis and found our friend, Jay's boat. We talked to him on the phone and found out that he should be here in a few days for the boat show.

The little town of Deale is a sight from the past - from the main street, with its pint-sized Post Office to the little bridge coming into town that offers views of the fishing fleet.

What is really surprising, is how much the scenery changes in such a short drive, to the hustle and bustle of the large city. Deale has managed to stay a small town where everyone knows each other. We are already greeted by our first names at some of the local businesses. Town yard sales and gatherings at the fire department are the main town social functions. What a wonderful, quiet place to settle for awhile.

Sept. 29th, 2005, I spent the first night in our rented house last night. Nancy is off to work in D.C. today and I off loaded the truck and did a load of laundry. Its still not fun.

I drove straight through from Oklahoma City to Deale, Maryland. One 2 hour nap at a rest stop and that was it. I left Oklahoma City at 2:30 p.m. the 27 of Sept. and arrived here at 1:30 p.m. the 28th of Sept.. Twenty-three hours on the road including the nap. My drive time was 30 minutes less than Nancy's and she had the cats with her.

The Ford Hybrid SUV got 30.1 mpg fully loaded (overloaded). The sticker says it should get 31 mpg. I think it did all right since I was driving 70 to 75 mph depending on if I was Interstate or Turnpike.

Last night, after my arrival, Nancy and I went to a little bay side restaurant (about 4 blocks from our rented house and a short dinghy ride from our slip (real short, about 3 minutes) and had dinner. We sat on the patio over the water and had such a wonderful evening. The seagulls screamed just 10 feet from our table. Tippy would have had a heart attack.

I love this little town of Deale, Maryland. It reminds me so much of a small rural town that is struggling to survive. The main street is about 2 blocks long with empty lots in-between businesses. Homes are also along the main street. An Elks club and a Volunteer Fire Dept. just finish off this little fishing community. The latest business is a coffee shop with wi-fi. I hope it makes it but it is in a little town whose primary business is fishing. I just don't see a lot of guys sitting there having a latte with their crab pot by their sides.

Sept. 27th, 2005 I have just completed packing the SUV. It is full, full, full. I don't know where I can put this computer. I close on the house in one hour (12:15 pm). I should be through with that by 01:00 and I will then start the trip east. The next time I update this page is when I am in Maryland. Two days driving, I hope. House is empty and has that echo to it. At least I can say "Hi" and I get an answer. Time to unplug this equipment and put it in the truck.

Sept. 22nd. 2005, I am down to my last box to pack, plus my clothes bags, the computer bag, the iPod bag, the computer lan bag and the whatever else box. At least the end is in sight. The boat made it to Maryland with just a little bit of damage. Some truck in Alabama or wherever, hit the top of the mast and bent a bracket,

Nancy has made her second bus trip into work and it is taking 50 minutes to 1 hour to get in. She stands in line with all the other commuters and feels that the only thing she is missing in a little tin lunch box. The ride in is great and it gives time to relax before the day starts. Most of the people on board are sleeping. Blazey is finally coming out from under the bed. Most of her adventures are occurring during the evening (read in dark) time. Tippy is just needing attention and sleeps on Nancy's pillow and purrs all night. I have two more work days here in Oklahoma City (Friday and Monday). They might want me to work in Washington D.C. a few days since I am there, but October 14, 2005, is my last working day with the FAA. Nancy can support me after that (as it is written).

Sept. 17th, 2005, Nancy is now at her home in Deale, MD. Its about 2 miles from the boat, when it gets in. The black cat (Tippy) is exploring and talking and eating. I think that she is just glad to get out of the car. Blazey is under the bed and hasn't come out yet. Nancy went out and did a little shopping so she would have something to eat and is now resting. She has had 2 days of long hard driving. It is 1380 miles from here to there. About 21.5 hours of on the road. Nancy said that she saw some real nice country as she drove, lots of hills and trees. I call that "1/8 mile visibility, restricted by trees". I spent the day still packing things and loading them in the truck for Monday departure. I also packed box after box for Am Vets and set those on the porch for Monday pickup. I have about 1/2 of that job done. Tomorrow, finish what little is left in the attic, finish the Am Vet stuff and go through the house one more time. I always find something that we have forgotten.

August 30, 2005 More things are happening. We now have a offer on our home. We are packing more things everyday. Some of our belongings are being bought by neighbors and what ever is left Nancy will advertise in the paper and last but not least, the rest will go to some charity. We signed the contract for a small storage area at the new marina, that will hold some boat things and other items that we will continue to use until we start our voyage. The company that is going to do some electronic work on the boat called today to verify the boats arrival on the 19th of September and the Marina we have now also called and said the trucking company that is moving the boat was ready to pick it up this Friday. We said "Not yet" "We're not ready" "Its supposed to be shipped on the 16th". The trucking company called and said they were sorry for the mix up.