04/09/2012
"Darwin may have been quite correct in his theory that man descended from the apes of the forest, but surely woman rose from the frothy sea, as resplendent as Aphrodite on her scalloped chariot."
― Margot Datz, A Survival Guide for Landlocked Mermaids
Working on the ship's cookbook....
So far we have found that we can make wonderful Greek yogurt on board from ship's water, nonfat dry milk and 2 teaspoons of live culture Greek style yogurt. Yumm. Once started you just have to be carefully to save the last spoonfuls for the next batch, Creamy, thick, smooth, luscious., all in a wide mouth thermos in 2 hours of rocking slowly on the counter. Add vanilla and honey for a special treat. Top on fresh strawberries...use in place of sour cream in savory recipes. Next batch I will run thru coffee filter lined strainer to make cream cheese.
Today we are rebedding the lifeline stanchions - every 15 years or so..(to keep water outa the boat! ) AND making homemade bread. Mix up a dough, sat it in the red bowl in the sun under the dodger to rise, kneaded and another hour in the pressure cooker out on the deck in the sun for the second rising. Then..it cooks on top of the range not in the oven!... The oven will take short pans, things in a cakepan high roasting pan. Rising bread would end up rising into the broiler unit in the top of the oven. So I thought to try my luck with pressure cooker/dutch oven baking. Bread is hard to come by in the islands. The local bakeries sell out and the factory bread comes old, frozen and expensive.
Ah.. the smell..maybe this will work!! It has been cooking on a very low flame with the pressure cooker lid on but not set up to pressurize. Just a big heavy pot with a tight lid. An hour with closed lid, then flip the loaf over and cook some more to brown the top.
Ready with the butter and jam...
The verdict!!! YIPPY!!!!!
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Comments [1]
Cheers for now
She is purring, warming up getting ready for the testing round. It was the STOP Switch...the mechanic reversed the plugs...stopping the fuel from getting to the injector pump..a quick change of plugs and click key and she started!!!
Water is coming from the new exhaust...so far so good..later for more
HOORAY!!!!!!
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Well, we were here two weeks ago to splash cimaise, she floated..but the engine did not start. It was late on a Friday and the mechanics had - had a enough and after checking the systems did not find the problem. She turned over, but....
We needed to return to Virginia and so put off the yard for a couple of weeks to solve the problem.
So now we are back, hopefully for months...The new shed has been built, there is room to bring additional stuff home as we sort off the weight. We took almost everything off her for the winter on the hard, renting a local storage locker (heated).
Today, we get to clean and start reloading the boat. Tomorrow the mechanic team arrives to start her up. Tomorrow we will have good news I am sure, VAROOM..putt putt putt.
The plans for spring and early summer are to go SAILING, as much and as often as we can. Out to the ocean as the weather permits. March in the Atlantic requires a good weather window so we will be planning accordingly.
Then as hurricane season arrives we will store cimaise on the hard in a well protected yard up the Intracoastal waterway -http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intracoastal_Waterway - and then plan to drive out to the Pacific Ocean and back visiting family and friends ( warning warning!! we are coming your way!!)
Then back here in late September to renew the bottom paint and then splash in prep for TAKE TWO!~!!!!~~~~~
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01/27/2012
Right whales spotted off Beaufort-Morehead City!!
Right whales are active off SC. Speed restrictions of 10 knots apply to vessels 65 feet or greater in specific areas and times along the U.S. East Coast. It is illegal to approach right whales within 500 yards. To learn more about right whales and rules protecting them, go to: http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/shipstrike/
· Right whales are the rarest of all large whale species and among the rarest of all marine mammal species.
· There are only about 300-400 right whales in the North Atlantic.
· Adult right whales are about 50 feet (15 m) long, and can weigh up to 70 tons (140,000 lbs; 63,500 kg).
· Right whales were severely depleted by commercial whaling; they have a thick layer of blubber, so they float when dead, making them an easy--and profitable--species for early whalers.
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Next time you come through, give us a hail.
The Bike lights work...a lot of light..cool...red..more photos in gallery..we can still remove them and use them on the bikes too!
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01/06/2012, on the hard
Ah...is it spring??? 62 degrees, blue skies, light warm breeze. Nope ! It is January.
Today we are back outside working on the exhaust reinstall. Three inch holes are made, fiberglass tubes are built (a 45 degree angle attached to the straight pipe). Steve is attaching the tube to the hull with epoxy and fiberglass tape, making it waterproof. It will be hidden under the teak riser, we will paint it when I paint the cockpit later this spring. Steve has to cut the hole thru the transom (back of the boat) to install the flapper valve hose exit. We are waiting on a special order 3 inch hose (extra flexible), should be here tomorrow. The final step is to attach the hoses with huge t-clamps and voila' an exhaust system -at least from the water lift to the stern.
We are still waiting news on Ms. Yanmar, JJ is still working on her.
Tonight is beer night, so we are heading over to the Royal James for dinner and maybe a game of pool.
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