March 1, 2009
Sunday
Sunny and warm
81* at 9:00
Other than Renee leaving us today it was a beautiful day. Not much chop, the sun is shinning and already warming us up quite nicely at 9:00. Unfortunately, things went down hill from there. Barry’s friend Sue gave us a call to let us know that Jim had passed away last night. I hope he is happier in the afterlife than he was in this one for the past several years. This was a very sad moment for Barry. No more Wednesday night dinners with Jim, and Barry cannot believe this has happened. But, sadly, it has. It is now nearing 10:45, I say my sad good byes to Renee, and Barry cruises her over to the dinghy dock and bus stop where she will head for the airport and home. Twelve inches of snow is expected in the Worcester area and she is fretting she may not make it in. While Barry is toting Renee I start cleaning the boat to freshen it up. There was a pretty good breeze coming from the bridge window and the spearmint plant was knocked over creating quite the mess. No worries as the vacuum was coming out anyway. With all that done we relax and read a bit. By 2:00 the weather changed severely from no chop and wind to breaking waves in the harbor and 30 mph winds. As promised, a norther is coming thru. I headed down in to the cabin for the comfort of the couch and the warmth that was not available on the aft. Now Barry discovers pump 1 of the water maker is not running and scanning the owner’s manual he finds the head will need to be replaced. Sure, why not, we have not had any major issues in some time, but now is as good a time as any I suppose. Let us not forget one of the computers is still not working and it has the same symptoms as the one he replaced when we were home at Christmas. Hoping it is just the power cord this time, and nothing else! A little Upwords, TV, dinner and bed. I hope tomorrow brings us better tidings. Love to all!
March 2, 2009
Monday
Cool and 61*
Sunshine
We slept in this morning not getting up until 10:00. It is cool and choppy out there. Not as choppy as yesterday, but still chopping. Barry is having a bit of a problem with the tooth extraction site as he is loosing some of the stitches. I am urging him to contact the dentist, but I know he is hesitant as he does not want to venture out with the dinghy and get wet by the salt water chop. Pussy! He has an appointment to go back on Thursday and, in my mind, I know he will put off the call and opt to just keep the appointment he has. We basically relaxed and read today….tomorrow we head out.
March 3, 2009
Tuesday
Cool and 63*
Sunny
We were up and out by 10:15 to nab the 10:45 bus to town. There is a computer store on Truman where we anticipate dropping off the Dell for repair. When we arrived…Ah, it was closed. Damn! He was out on an onsite call, as we discovered when calling to see why the store was closed. We took a walk to the visitor’s center and discovered that Dry Tortouga may be a place we want to venture. It is 70 miles from Key West and doable by Sea Fox but probably more reasonable by the tour boat considering the amount of fuel we would consume it the 2-3 days it would takes for us to get there and back again. They provide high speed boats similar to the high speed ferries we are all accustomed to along with breakfast and lunch. The island offers a tour of Ft. Jefferson, snorkeling and the like. It may be something we will consider for the weekend as the weather is supposed to improve. Right now it is chilly and we still cannot get our heads around the fact that we are in the most southern point of Florida and it is, what we now consider, cold. After the visit to the center we headed back to the computer store to discover it was still not opened so we hopped on the bus to the market and to another repair shop in the Winn Dixie Plaza. We dropped off the computer and headed to Hong Kong for sushi…very good. From there we took a stroll to Albertson’s as it was only the next plaza over and definitely our choice of markets. We picked up what we needed to sustain us for a few days and headed back to the boat. It was a wet, crappy ride back. I cannot wait for the wind to come from anywhere except the NW and to calm down a bit. Our clothes and all the groceries were dampened with salt water by the time we got home. With that mess cared for we plopped ourselves on the aft deck to read a bit and received a wonderful call from Danielle letting us know she was accepted to Suffolk University to obtain her masters. Kudos to you, Danielle….we are very proud. She still awaits a response from others, but I am so happy for her with this acceptance! We also heard from the computer repair guy who can rectify its ailment for $80…done deal…and will pick it up tomorrow. The water maker is still a hindrance. Barry is pretty sure he knows what ails that and will work on the repairs tomorrow. So fortunate he is so capable and adept. Ciao for now! Tomorrow is another day and we will head to town for yet more adventure. Love to all.
March 4, 2009
Wednesday
71*
Sunny and choppy
The water maker is getting on our nerves. It should be running perfectly, but it is not! Barry spent 6 horrific hours trying to rectify the problem and, of course, he succeeded. Poor guy! We changed the filters, cleaned the pump, etc. It is working fairly well at this time and hopefully will continue. We spent the rest of the day relaxing (much deserved) and reading. Wonderful seared tuna and mozzarella and tomatoes, from our vines!, for dinner. Tomorrow we head out. It was so choppy that we probably would not have gone anywhere today anyway so it was a great day to work on the boat.
March 5, 2009
Thursday
75*
Sunny
As we headed out into the chop Barry whined! He hates being slapped by the salt water, but there was much to do on land. Laundry, retrieve the computer we dropped off and a dental appointment for him. We had a nice lunch between tending to laundry and the dentist and all of that sucked up most of the day bringing us back to the boat by 3:30. It was quite warm and we enjoyed it to the fullest! Better than the crap happening back home. We do not miss the snow at all and send wishes for an early spring to all. We spent the rest of daylight reading on the aft and cooking dinner on the grill…my favorite! Everything tastes so much better on the grill. We are awaiting Jon and Kyle’s arrival and we spoke of tasty treats to spoil them! Can’t wait for their arrival!!!! It is still quite warm out and the forecast advises high 70’s for the remainder of the week and thru the weekend. It is a very welcoming thought! Night to all and all of our love!
March 6, 2009
Friday
75*
Cloudy
I awakened at 10, bit of a late night last night and I need my 8 hours, to Barry already up on the aft and reading away. Still freaking choppy and I really wanted to get off the boat for some more walking today, but by 1:30 we were so engrossed in our books it seemed fruitless. What we needed to do on shore could wait another day. Our time here is up on the 9th and we have decided to move to the anchorage across from the Harbor Walk. Barry thinks we might encounter less chop over there, but we will have boat traffic creating some rocking and rolling. I think I can handle the bit of rock and roll, especially since the most of it would occur on the weekend when locals are out enjoying what we enjoy on a daily basis. We also would be able to tie up to the dinghy dock at the Turtle Krawl that is right on the Harbor Walk and direct access to downtown. We will stay there for a few days and see how it goes. We can always come back to the mooring field if we feel we will be better off. We also found out that on Sundays there is a restaurant in town called Help Yourself that has an outdoor market with fruit and veggies. Very much looking forward to checking that out as I would much prefer to buy from there than the supermarket. Maybe stuff will be better…who knows. Cannot believe this week passed so quickly. We are so relaxed and content! Till next time…..
March 7, 2009
Saturday
80*
Partly sunny and warm
We are off and to town by 9:25 and caught the 9:50 bus. It was cloudy when we were heading over and caught a bit of a rain shower on the way. We were well equipped with our rain jackets and took it in stride. By the time we tied the dinghy the shower ended and we were on the bus to town. We started out walking Duval in search of breakfast and ended at La Te Da….great eggs Benedict and a wonderful view of Duval and people watching. We then walked to the most southern point and found a beach right on the ocean with a bar and restaurant that we had not discovered prior to today. Very nice spot where chairs can be rented and a bar and restaurant to boot. Great spot and we will be back. From there we walked back on Simonton Ave, which is a block away from Duval, to catch a different view. So many store fronts vacant! It is the same here as everywhere else…bad economy! We moved on to the Harbor Walk to The Conch Republic for a drink. Right on the water and the drinks were pretty good. Today was a bar crawl as we had coupons for buy one get one and since it is Saturday and crazy on Duval we were up for the challenge. We moved on walking almost the entire length of Duval because Barry thought there was a roof top bar near the most southern point, but he was mistaken. We turned around and landed at The Bull…it did have a veranda and a roof top. We started out on the veranda which over looked Duval and had great drinks while watching the happenings below on the street. Chatted with another couple who gave us a heads up on the upper level that was clothing optional! Okay, we had to check it out but within a minute’s time we were back down on the deck.. Eeeweee, who wants to look at cellulite-laden women and big, fat naked men! We will not be visiting the 3rd floor of The Bull anytime to soon again! Yuck! On the other hand, the view from the veranda and the fact that they have pool tables and pin ball machines and great margaritas is enticing and would visit again for those attributes. While on the veranda Barry was eavesdropping on a conversation of three guys next to us who were critiquing women below passing by and scoring them…ummm, very interesting! We also spotted a man walking by with a huge snake around his neck…only on Duval! Enough! We moved on toward Mallory Square for the sunset stopping at Dicks for yet another cocktail. Great margaritas! We were sitting on an outside deck right on the sidewalk that gave us a bird’s eye view of the passers by. So much fun! A woman passing by had an African Grey, Zachary, on her shoulder that she had rescued from a nearby bar. Gorgeous bird! From there we moved on to Mallory Sq. and Sunset Pier for a bite to eat. Great fish and chips and burger for dinner while we watched the sunset along with a wedding going on further down the pier. What a day! And the day/night goes on with a walk along the Harbor Walk to Turtle Kraal for espresso and dessert. What a wonderful day. We headed to the bus stop, but we waited a bit…no bus…so we walked back to the dinghy dock…it was merely a ½ mile and it was so warm we did not mind at all. We saw the bus pass us by as we were walking…it was very late and so out of character for the bus system. It really did not matter as the night was wonderful and the walk so refreshing. The cruise back to Sea Fox was wonderful…no chop, no wind, no nothing! This was the first in a long, long time, and in no time we were back at the boat and dry as could be! Simply wonderful and amazing! Tomorrow we will venture back to Old Town to the open market for fruit and veggies…we hope! Night to all! Stay warm!
March 8, 2009
Sunday
80*
Delightful
There was no chop when we got up and headed out for another day on shore. We did not realize it was daylight savings time so we actually got to shore at 10:45, not 9:45. Also, in rechecking the bus schedule there was not a bus that would take us to town, so we hoofed it to Help Yourself to shop at the open market. Very disappointing! Not much there except for a couple of local farmers selling their wares at astronomical prices, calling them organic! We have all they were offering on our boat garden, also organic, so we had to pass. We did enjoy a bagel from the restaurant…quite good! We made a stop at West Marine so Barry could exchange the faulty inverter that he purchased a couple of weeks ago and the assistant manager was happy to oblige. From there we moved on to Dante’s and hung by the pool for a couple of hours. It was dead when we got there, but by 1:30 it was hopping with spring breakers. They lined themselves on beach towels by the pool as by now all the lounge chairs and tables had been taken. Name of the game….get there early, and we will keep that in mind for future returns. We headed to the bus stop with a detour to the mini market/liquor store. Outside there was a local with her dogs going to “the island.” I asked her about this and she guided us. Perhaps a good place to hang out another day. We can get there by dinghy for some seclusion during the week when everyone else is working. The ride back was a bit more wet than going in this morning, but still not bad at all. I could get used to this and would love if the wind would accommodate us. Back at SeaFox we managed, with some difficulty, to Skype with Barry’s family as they were all at Kris’ for Mike and Reilly’s birthdays. Nice to speak with everyone! It was another wonderful day in the neighborhood and it is now almost 7:00 with the sun still screaming in and we have hopes of a beautiful sunset. Till tomorrow! Love to all….and happy birthday to Mike and Reilly!
March 9, 2009
Monday
80*
Simply wonderful
We awaken to calm! Oh my! The winds are 9 MPH gusting to 11 MPH. This is what we have been yearning for. The trip to the dinghy dock was a 5 minute trip and we were as dry as can be. We caught the bus to Albertson’s and shopped only to be back on the bus within the hour. We picked up enough provision for at least a few days. Back at the boat Barry paid bills and we checked on places for the boat to be hauled and found one that was reasonable in Marathon. We then moved on to finding a hotel that could accommodate us for 5 days as that is how long it will take to paint the boat and we cannot stay aboard while that is happening. We found a couple that would do. We also want to wax the boat while it is out of the water for our trip to the Bahamas…it needs to be done, big time. The pump out guy visited us today…very good, and much needed. He advised the wind we had been experiencing was out of the ordinary and he was glad to see it gone also. I managed to do a bit of laundry by hand and hung it on the bow and it was dry in no time. It was such a beautiful day and we even ventured to the aft for the sunset…now at 7:30 and the day seems endless. Simply beautiful. Wonderful tilapia for dinner and we settled in for the evening. Tomorrow we will venture to the anchorage across from the Key West Marina. Only time will tell if that is better for us. If not, we can always come back to the mooring field. Night to all…love you!
March 10, 2009
Tuesday
Mid 80’s
Sunny
As wonderful as it is here in the mooring field, we decided to give it a shot at the anchorage on the other side of Fleming Key…so we unleashed the beast and took a short cruise to the other side. There were not many spots to choose from but we managed to secure a spot that would keep us pretty much protected from the wind. The sun is shining and I love the view. We can clearly see the town, the cruise ships and the sunset will be an unobstructed, magnificent view. We have neighbors who stopped by to introduce themselves to us…Greg and Jo from South Dakota! Wow, they are a long way from home and have been cruising since May. Nice people and I am sure we will see more of them as time goes by. We gave Sea Fox a much needed, and deserved, bath using about ½ tank of our precious water. The water maker can replenish what we have used by early afternoon. Having a salt-free boat and clean eisenglass is definitely a plus. It is a bit rolly from boat traffic, but we can deal. The view is refreshingly new and we like it here. Access to town will be much quicker and, other than Albertson’s Market, pretty much everything will be accessible without need for the bus. I did a bit of laundry and hung it out on the bow to dry…great drying weather! After lunch a peak at the clock said 3:00…OH MY, where has the day gone. Barry read a bit and I tidied the cabin and showered. At 5:00 we headed to the dinghy dock with hopes of finding the dock master for a sticker for the dinghy, and that is a requirement or they can tow the dinghy from the dock. It was too late and he was gone for the day…another time I am sure. We walked to CVS for a couple of things and then headed back toward the Harbor Walk, which is also here the dinghy dock is…directly in front of Turtle Krall. Greg and Jo had suggested B.O.’s as a place to catch a quite bite to eat. We have passed this place, on Caroline St., so many times, but never stopped in. It is an outdoor restaurant where you walk up to the grill, place your order and then it is brought to you by a runner. We shared the most wonderful burger and a soft shell crab sandwich….Greg and Jo were on the money. This place is great. One of the best burgers ever and the crab sandwich was right behind the burger for goodness. We waddled back to the dinghy dock and headed back to Sea
Fox for an amazing sunset. This definitely is a great spot and Jon and Kyle can buzz back and forth on the dinghy if they choose to without worrying about catching a bus and then cruising back to the boat in the dark if they want to venture out at night. Love it! Love it! Boston Legal and American Idol await our attention…night to all!
March 11, 2009
Wednesday
Upper 80’s and HOT!
Loving the warmer weather and our new location. Today was a hang around the boat day. I did some cleaning of salon windows while Barry took care of “business.” There are still bills to be paid and that kind of stuff. We also made reservations for the boat to be hauled and painted in Marathon after the boys leave, along with a hotel that was a recommendation from Bruce at the boatyard. No staying on the boat once it is hauled and we will be grounded for about 5 days. Hopefully we can buff the old wax off the boat and apply the new product he purchased from the same guy he bought the fuel additive from. Supposedly it will only need to be done once a year according to this guy. We shall see, but the additive he sold us is phenomenal! No more soot on the stern…what a great product. Afterwards we read a bit and, before we knew it, it was 4:00. There is a small island across from us, not too far, so we headed out for a dinghy ride to explore. There are no trespassing signs all along the island, but there are also many people walking around on it…including a bunch of people we saw exiting their dinghies with guitars heading a bit inward to what appeared to be a small camp. So much for “no trespassing.” We have not seen much in the way of sea life recently, but Barry did spot a skate and small fish, along with something aqua blue in color and of good size buzz by us. There is lots of coral both along the shoreline and in the water. One would definitely need water shoes to get around on this small island. We took a nice long cruise and enjoyed the sun, as it was still relentlessly beating on us. We headed back to the boat and had a bit of a smorgasbord for dinner trying to get rid of the remaining leftovers from the fridge. The sunset was just past 7:30 today and it is still 75*. I am not complaining…this is what we came here for. Bed early tonight….big day tomorrow and we need to head to town. Final dental appointment for Barry. Night to all!
March 12, 2009
Thursday
Sunny, as usual!
80* and wonderful
We headed out and Barry made his appointment by 1:30. From there we headed over to the Garrison Bight Marina to pick up the water filters he had sent there. We headed to DOT to catch the Orange bus back to Key West Marina and waited for 20 minutes and when it came he buzzed by us….not stopping. Barry was not happy…it was hot as Hell and the next bus was not coming for 45 more minutes. He headed into DOT and complained and they called the bus to come back for us! Oh my….I could not believe it. But, the driver should have been looking for us…so now he inconvenienced everyone else on the bus, but did come back for us. We would have walked the ½ mile back, but man, it was so hot! To top it all off, Barry hurt his back this morning while cutting his toenails and he was in pain. There was no walking for us today. We headed back to the boat and indulged on great turkey burgers and potato salad. It was so hot on the aft that at 6:00 we had to move inside. We read inside, instead of being pounded by the sun. So much for today and tomorrow is another day in a wonderful neighborhood! Ta ta!
March 13, 2009
Friday
80’s
Sunny and hot
Just the way we like it
March 14, 2009
Saturday
Hot and Sunny, as is now the norm!
80’s
Barry is still a cripple and needs assistance, and drugs for that matter. The hydrocodone he was given for tooth pain has come in somewhat handy, but does not do much to help his back pain. AUGH!!! We needed to go to the market and on the way spotted an urgent care center so we got off the bus only to find it was closed. There was a festival going on just near the bus stop and I asked the police officer directing traffic where we could possibly go otherwise, but he advised all of the urgent care centers are closed on the weekend and suggested the hospital. That was a big NOT for the captain, so he will have to suffer until Monday. We did a quick spree thru the market and picked up most of what we needed for the week to come and were back on the bus heading home within an hour. We relaxed and read for the rest of the evening, awaiting Jon and Kyle’s arrival tomorrow.
March 15, 2009
Sunday
88* Hot as hell
Thank God for a breeze, otherwise we would be sweltering on the boat. I cleaned, did some laundry and did the gypsy thing off the boat…Barry’s favorite! I love hanging laundry outside to dry…it is dry and pressed by the wind in no time. The clips we bought at a boat show have come in quite handy, but I only wish I had more. Barry, on the other hand, is glad I only have 8 keeping the laundry hanging off the boat to a minimum. We continued to read and Jon called at 3:00 saying they were in Miami and getting on a 4:30 flight to Key West. They were here by 5:45 and on the 6:00 bus to Mama! We met them at West Marine and they were a sight for sore eyes! I was so happy to see my baby….and the spoiling begins! We were back at Sea Fox in no time and I was preparing Roberta’s fabulous pasta with tomatoes and mozzarella for dinner as Barry, painstakingly, mixed Margaritas for the boys. I am in my glory! They boys hung on the outer aft catching the last of the sun and then the sunset. Glorious sunset tonight and it is still warm with temps in the mid 70’s. We had dinner and chatted catching up on things going on at home. The evening winded down and we have plans for tomorrow. I will familiarize the boys with downtown and places that I think they may want to explore while they are with us and Barry has his final dental appointment and a trip to the urgent care center to get drugs so he can be pain free. He did soak in the water a couple of times today that helped considerably, but not enough. I am no doctor, but the captain needs some muscle relaxers to relieve his pain….and quick! Love to all….I am looking forward to a wonder week of spoiling Jon and Kyle! I just do not want it to fly by to quickly!!!!!
March 16, 2009
Monday
Hot, again…upper 80’s
Today we explored a bit to familiarize the guys with their surroundings. Barry went to Urgent Care and the dentist and the boys and I walked Duval to the end. We had lunch at the beach and headed back, scooping up Barry’s Prednisone and Flexaril from Walgreen’s. We met him at one of the bars along the Harbor Walk for a drink and then headed back to Sea Fox. We set up the grill and had chicken and risotto for dinner. The boys left to discover more of Duval and Barry and I hung back to give them some space. They, I am sure, do not need the mother hen hovering over them. Bed was somewhat reasonable tonight as tomorrow we are early to rise to head for Sand Key. Night to all!
March 17, 2009
Tuesday
Happy St. Patrick’s Day
Hot again…in the upper 80’s
Fuel: 150 gallons at $2.35….not bad $363.00
We headed out by 9:30 for Sand Key… It was quite cloudy on our trek over, but the clouds left us….thank you very much! Barry is feeling better, not the best, but better with the drugs and we head off. By 11:00 we arrive and the boys venture out and are gone for about an hour. Once they are back we had lunch and Barry and I ventured off the boat to discover….so many wonderful fish, lobsters, rays, and most importantly the huge barracuda stalking the boat awaiting a fish that would be great prey! It was an absolutely wonderful day that I wish did not have to end. We stayed as long as we could and ventured back at 5:30. Pizza….not Barry’s great crust as we were unable to buy dough and had to settle for the pre-made pizza shells…but not bad for dinner. There is no such thing as buying dough here….On occasion we can get it but the times are few and far between. The boys headed to shore for St. Patty’s day celebration….I so want them to have the time of their lives!!!! Love them both at this point…such good kids!!!!
March 18, 2009
Wednesday
Cloudy, but still 80*
Barry and I headed out early leaving the guys to sleep in…late night for them last night. I headed to the doctor and lab for annual check up, and Barry to the dentist as he is not happy with the work they have done for him so far and he wants things corrected. He hates the bridge they have made for him. My trip was successful and I should be all set. Barry, on the other hand, has now opted for a crown instead of the bridge. I met him for lunch and he took off again back to the dentist to start that process. I went back to the boat and scooped up the boys and went to town for lunch. I cannot believe they will be leaving in 2 days….I have already started to get sad about that. We had a wonderful dinner. Treated the boys to ribs and twice baked potatoes. They headed off to town later in the evening for one of their last days here….I am so sad. Tomorrow they will help Barry change the oil in the boat (something that Kyle does all the time) and then plan to head to town for the rest of the day and evening to treat them to their last day here. Night to all….as I mourn.
March 19, 2009
Thursday
Sunny 80’s
Much to all of our dismay in the end the oil gets changed. It was a very, very, painstaking process for the boys. They were like two little monkeys down in the engine area climbing all over things to get to the filters that had been put on so tightly it took forever for them to be loosened. After 3 hours of this hellish work they were done with only 4 filters, but this would have to be enough. It was now noon and they had been at it since 9:00. The rest of the changes would have to wait for another time and done by the marina. It is not something Barry can do on his own as the couch needs to be moved and it takes 2-3 to accomplish that. We had lunch, the boys swam and sunned, and Barry and I read. At around 5:00 it was time to head to town to party the night away. After a quick drink at Rick’s we headed to the boy’s choice for dinner…Hard Rock Café. The food was quite delicious in spite of the quirky waitress. From there we headed to Mallory Sq. for the sunset and entertainment of the street performers. They were great tonight and the boys had a wonderful time. Unfortunately, they never ventured here when they were in town alone, even though we told them to. Too bad…they would have preferred Mallory Sq. over trawling Duval on prior evenings. From there, when things died down, we attempted to get into Bill’s where there is a mechanical bull Jon wanted to ride, but the age limit was 21 and there was no getting around it. It was nearing 10:00 so we headed back to the Harbor Walk and ended up at Schooner’s. Great bar on the water front and Jon actually was served. No other place along Duval would do it. It is spring break time and all of the bar owners were watching their backs. We closed that place and headed back to Sea Fox on simply flat calm seas. Great ride, so much so, that Barry, Kyle and I headed out for a dinghy ride. Gorgeous night, and Jon missed it…he was too tired and opted to stay behind and head for bed. Barry and Kyle whiled the night away to 5:30 am. Crazy boys! I headed for bed at midnight. Tomorrow will be another full and sad day!!!
March 20, 2009
Friday
Sunny 80*
The boys left us today. My heart aches and my eyes weep. I can say nothing else.
March 21, 2009
Saturday
Sunny 80*
1388 engine hours at day’s end
We are up and running by 8:00. It was a very, very bad day for us today. The computer Barry just had fixed died again, so no Captain charts and we resorted to the paper charts…not a problem. As we leave Key West we drifted over a small fender attached to some kind of anchor that someone was using, for we have no idea as it has been there since we arrived. It got caught in the prop and the line cutters did cut it off from under us but the boat was not performing up to speed, to say the least. It was too much for the spurs to handle, so Barry thought. Not quite sure but we will figure it out. We had no choice but to move on and hoped that it would fall off. Our max speed was 11 kts., and not Sea Fox’s ability at all. We trawled along at the 11 kts and made it to Marathon by 12:00. We did see a huge sea turtle and 4 dolphins coming into the harbor. Once we arrived Barry realized the starboard window in the forward cabin had leaked and soaked his little library of books and charts…okay, so what else can happen??? The forward cabin floor was wet along with all of the books. Our first mission was to wash the boat as it was covered with sea grass due to our pounding ride over. Water was rushing over the bow for most of the ride and sometimes into the bridge window…what a mess. With that done we tackled the books and charts. Barry worked the microwave and I the hairdryer trying to save all that we could. The most important ones were taken care of first and hopefully the others will dry out and not be melded together. I moved on to prepare something for dinner and during this time a torrential down pour came thru. Nether one of us realized we left the aft cabin windows open and the rain flooded the vanity area soaking all of my pictures…I think I am ready for bed with the hopes of tomorrow bringing better times for us. Today was ridiculous.
March 22, 2009
Sunday
Dismal and windy
It was quite windy today. Good for continuing to dry out the books. Barry managed to get pump 1 of the water maker running successfully for a while with some tweaking. He also took care of the clip on the forward cabin window. It will need repair, but the lesser of the evils that need to be fixed/replaced. I cleaned the accumulated mold from the bridge and 210 polish was applied to the eisenglass. They looked so much better. The wind was whipping all day, but finally calmed down around 3:00 giving us a calm and beautiful afternoon. Tomorrow we will hand the boat over to Marathon Boat Yard for the bottom painting and we also hope to be able to wax the hull, at least, while she is out of the water. We also move to our hotel, supposedly across the street from the boat yard and we will have access to the boat to water the prolific plants that have served us so well. Tomatoes and herbs have provided us with ingredients for dinners that we have not had to purchase otherwise. We will keep you informed as to our upcoming trek! Love to all.
March 23, 2009
Monday
Sunny and warm
Breezy and 77*
We pulled Sea Fox into the boat yard and onto the lift and in no time we were out of the water. Lo and behold the remains of the line was wrapped around the starboard prop and that is what made the boat perform so badly on our way over from Key West. It also broke off one of the spurs and another part that is essential to making the cutters work properly. That will be fixed. The bottom got a good power washing. We hope they will sand tomorrow and paint by Wednesday. The forward cabin window has proved to be a bit more difficult to fix. Another hole is going to be drilled and the latch replaced. Loads of laundry was done today and we settled in to the Blue Waters Motel across the street from the boat yard…quite convenient as we can go back and forth to the boat easily, and the efficiency is very nice and they even have a pool…not sure we will have time to use it, but one never knows. The owner of the boat yard offer his car to us and we will certainly take him up on that so we can go to the market and top off food and other needs as we prepare to finally make our way to the Bahamas. We hope to accomplish that within the next week or two, of course, depending on the weather. Night, night!
March 24, 2009
Tuesday
Sunny and warm, what else!
80’s
The surveyor, Rick, came to the boat today. We need this for insurance purposes. He gave Sea Fox a commendable report, not that I had any doubt. He told Barry it was one of the best maintained boats he has seen…again…never a doubt as anal man is just that….anal, and any repairs that need to be taken care of are always attended. We borrowed Bruce’s (marina owner) truck…everyone here has trucks…big trucks. We hit just about every store in the area to replenish our needs for our move to the Bahamas. We did pretty well for the time we had with use of the vehicle. We saw many places we missed when we were here last time with the aid of wheels. After everything was loaded on to the boat we headed back to our temp residence, Blue Waters. We met a dog here tonight, Honey, and she came and spent some time with us. Quite the ball fetcher…she can play run and seek quite nicely. She belongs to one of the workers in the office and roams the property…maybe part spaniel. Barry did meet one of Honey’s owner, Ronnie, and had a lengthy conversation with him about just about everything. He also invited us to “The Legion” for dollar beers tomorrow night…that might be interesting. We shall see. It is a gorgeous night…cool, but very nice especially with the door open and letting in the breeze.
March 25, 2009
Wednesday
Hot and sunny, 80’s
Today was a wash out. They had not taken the wax off the boat when we went there to check at 11:00. Bruce promised it would be done by late afternoon. Barry contracted with another guy, Eric, to have the dinghy taken to his shop and fix the leak we have been experiencing for a couple of years now, and were getting tired of bailing all the time. We hung by the pool and read for the afternoon. Very relaxing. At 4:30 Eric called and advised the dinghy was repaired so we headed over to the boat yard to assist with getting her back up where she belongs, and also to check out the wax removal. The dinghy was put away, but Barry was not happy with the results of the wax removal. There were still so many streaks and marks that did not come off. Bruce will call “his guy” to see if he is available to compound the boat to get rid of the rest of the “scars.” Barry has his final dental appointment tomorrow in Key West to get his permanent crown, so that will kill tomorrow also. While he is there he will also bring the computer back to where it was repaired with the hopes they can repair it for good this time. I can only hope they can do it while Barry is there for the day, otherwise another trip back to Key West will be necessary to retrieve it. We relax again…watching American Idol and bed early as we need to be up early tomorrow….night all…love to all.
March 26, 2009
Thursday
Hot and sunny again 80’s
Barry left for Key West at 8:20 for his hour and a ¼ ride. I was on boat patrol making sure things were being done right and in a timely fashion. When I arrived at 9:30 the hull was being primed for the painting. I got on board and put away all the stuff we bought a couple of days ago, organizing and cramming stuff where ever I could to make room for more “stuff”, and I did. We need to borrow Bruce’s truck again and make another run as there is a significant amount of space that I created that can be filled with more provisions. Bruce gave me a heads-up with purchasing beer for trade for fish. The Bahamians, he says, will trade fish for beer as they love American beer….works for us! We don’t drink beer, but whatever works is good for us. I went back and forth between the boat and motel all day checking on the progress. It was good. Bruce also managed to get Stuart to commit to compounding the boat to get out the nooks and crannies that Barry was not happy with and hopefully they will accomplish that tomorrow and we would like to follow along with the waxing. The product Barry bought is amazingly simple to apply and should not take much longer than a couple of hours. Barry finally arrived home at 4:00 and a cocktail was in order. I went over to the office for suggestions for dinner and Debbie recommended Porky’s just a bit up Overseas Highway. I have to say….the best baked beans and coleslaw ever along with yellow snapper! Oh my. Barry had grilled shrimp that he said was fantastic. We also had Parmesan encrusted scallops as an app..delicious! A short walk back to the motel and we are finally relaxing for the evening…another big day is ahead of us. Good night…love to all.
March 27, 2009
Friday
Hot and sunny….80’s
We headed over to the boat yard around 10:00 figuring we would be polishing the hull today. The compounding was not yet done on the entire boat, but we started our polishing. After 2 hours we said forget it. This marine polish was not as easy to apply as we hoped so our (Cuban, Mexican, Hispanic) friend who did not speak English (and why would he?) was advised to wax the boat also. We put the provisions we purchased, again, today away and headed out back to the motel around 4:00. Our neighbors, Scott and Brenda, were outside and we sat and chatted with them for a while and learned that they went fishing today…$500 smackers… and caught some very nice fish. Mackerel and grouper were caught…the grouper was put in the freezer and the mackerel they wanted for dinner. Porky’s cooks your catch and they invited us to join them for dinner to enjoy what they had caught. We were going there anyway so we took them up on their invite. The fish was delish and I had the opportunity to have more of their famous baked beans….so yummy. We headed back to Blue Waters just in time for Debbie and Cap’n Ron to nab us to head, finally, to the American Legion. We obliged this night. Actually, it was pretty nice. It is definitely a local’s place with live music and many “elders” dancing. Miss Lynn, a 70 plus women was the bar tender. Drinks were cheap and entertainment….not bad. We made it an early night only to meet up with all of them on Sunday on the boat for a few cocktails. Barry will dinghy them out to the harbor. That is it for today…
March 28, 2009
Saturday
Again…hot and sunny mid 80’s
Congratulations, Michelle! You passed the state board with flying colors and you are on your way to a wonderful career in nursing. Very proud of you, as always!!! Love you much from Barry and me!!!
We cleared out of the motel by 9:30 as Sea Fox’s splash was scheduled for 10:00. The boat yard was on the money and ready for the launch. Very, very interesting to watch everything happening. We were in the water by 10:30, tied onto the dock, the cleaning began and did not end until 4:30…she is spic and span and we are exhausted. Once we decided to stay at the dock for the evening and Barry hooked us up and he realized things were not just right. The boat is not peeing as she should and he things the strainer is clogged….OMG….we thought we were home free! We are spent by now so that will have to wait till morning. It is a bear of a job to clean the strainer, but it will have to be done and are grateful that it happened here at the dock instead of anchored or moored out. Till tomorrow….we leave you with love and exhaustion!!!!
March 29, 2009
Sunday
Upper 80’s
We had a great morning as Barry found that the “not peeing” thing was air in one of the lines. With that repaired we were good to go. We headed out to the harbor and anchored for our company of Scott and Brenda and Debbie and Capt. Ron. In spite of Capt. Ron who is quite the character we had a wonderful afternoon enjoying our company. Ron is a native Canadian and thinks everyone here is out to get him…so go home, Ron, if you feel that way. Debbie and Ron left around 4:30 leaving us to Brenda and Scott…quite peaceful now that Ron and his stories of the afternoon have passed and the four of us enjoyed pasta for dinner. Scott and Brenda are two of the most down to earth people we have met and so much enjoyed their company. They were gracious to the point of offering to drive Barry and me to Key West to retrieve the computer. Their plans are to leave tomorrow and head to relatives in Cape Coral and going back to KW would really put them out of their way. All in all it was a wonderful day!
March 30, 2009
Monday
Hot, no wind!
We have decided we need to stay in Marathon for another week before crossing over due to the fact that another computer needs to be purchased. Scott called again to offer a ride to Key West…so wonderful…but a call to the computer store revealed that the transfer of info was not complete and passed on their generous offer. The guide books for the Bahamas arrived at the boat yard and we picked those up. One is missing and they cannot guarantee we will have it anytime soon. We will punt, I suppose! All will be good. We checked in with Marathon Marina and signed up for a week on a mooring ball. If we are staying here for another week we will have to replenish food so we will be hiking to Winn Dixie or Publix again before we leave and getting the boat in tip top shape in the mean time. Barry did order a computer online and it should arrive in a few days. More money, more money! It seems to be the thing to do…spend money. Still, we are having a great time, believe it or not. Many dolphin sightings today…two of them right by the boat. We also tried to buy more fish from Poncho’s dock, but the weather has been so bad the boats have not gone out…tenderloin for dinner instead and we start to diminish our provisions that we had hoped to use for the first week in the Bahamas…but we do have to eat! Love to all ; > )
March 31, 2009
Tuesday
Upper 80’s
Water temp also 80
The computer store called early this morning to let us know the disc of info from the computer was ready so Barry hopped on the 10:45 bus to Key West. I did a couple of things around the boat and settled in for the afternoon with my book. Gorgeous day and I enjoyed the “me” time. Barry returned at 4:00 and we both headed over to the marina for a walk to a restaurant/fish market that he noticed on the way home. Keys Fisheries and the outdoor bar area, The Fish Tank, was very cool. Directly on the Bay, it has a magnificent view especially from The Fish Tank as it is situated about 20 feet above the ground. The fish market had many delightful choices for dinner. First we checked out The Fish Tank and found that between 3-5 they offer shrimp, stone crab and sushi tuna for $2.50. Quite the bargain. We had a beer and decided we will come back tomorrow for the appetizer happy hour. Everyone at the bar was eating platters of stone crab that looked so good we decided to take some home and indulge ourselves. The crabby along with crab and spinach spread was delicious. We relaxed the rest of the night on the aft watching the sunset…beautiful tonight. American Idol tonight…cannot miss it. Night, night.
