Hmmm packing up all of the boat "stuff", clothes, etc. plus the new addition of our bicycles - it is all familiar to us. This is our fourth "rodeo" - we are not new to this - however, this time we were certain we would be able to prep the boat and be out of Indiantown Marina quickly. Wiley has written another play - The Meltdown- about the great Chicago heat-wave disaster for the Leadership Academy and needs to be back at the end of January to see it produced. The show is on February 3rd.

We arrived late in Chattanooga on the way down - and had the unfortunate but entertaining experience of eating at a Waffle House - the only restaurant open at the late hour. The waitress called Wiley "darling", "sweetheart", as she served our greasy eggs and spoke with her southern accent - we really had a hard time understanding what she was saying except for the sweet words she offered to Wiley. We were in the south!

We stopped by Pat's on the way down. A familiar stop, but this year it is no longer my father and Pat's- just Pat's home. My father passed away in November and it is very strange to be stopping by without seeing him. I miss him. However, as we attempted to find ways to support Pat, we found her once again playing the role of the hostess. This was not our intent - we truly wanted to find ways to support her as she deals with this great loss. We shared a lovely meal, went out to an art gallery and lunch. And of course, more hugs to find our way.

We arrived in Indiantown and found that the boat inside was in great shape, however the entire outside was green - the jungle takes over whenever you are away in Florida. Wiley tells me at home that he does not do "projects" on the house - so this year I decided that I don't do boat bottoms - sanding or painting. So, this year Wiley did all the hard labor on the boat bottom while I cleaned, unloaded the truck, and put away all of our stuff. We both worked on waxing the boat and finally she looked beautiful and was ready to "splash". And that she did - she splashed but the engine did not work.

Our great adventure that has made this trip different from all others is that Wiley is the hero of the marina. He removed a 3 foot poisonous Cottonmouth snake from a sailboat. A scared couple came into the marina office telling everyone about the snake. No one wanted to do anything about it! The snake had crawled up from the water onto the boat and hid under the dodger of the boat. Wiley, in front of an audience of 8-10 chicken-hearted observers, bravely unsnapped the dodger and using a boat hook pushed the snake and he slinked off into the water! Needless to say - we are now constantly on the lookout for snakes - including on the boat - especially since our boat is in the same location that the boat that had the snake on it was located!

So- Déjà vu -here we are "stuck in Indiantown once again. Recalling being stuck previously when we had to have the engine replaced - there is really nothing to do or see in Indiantown. In order to pass the time we rode our bikes along the highway to Port Macaya - and discovered after about a 12-mile ride past sugar cane fields, swamp, the canal, and large trucks blowing past us carrying sugar cane we could climb a hill to see Lake Okeechobee and a bike trail. We then turned around and rode back.

We are on the wait and see list at Indiantown - wait and see if the alternator works, what else is wrong with the engine, and then we can decide if we will be able to move the boat.

Waiting in swampland - Déjà vu!