We woke up this morning and were so surprised to find that it was Saturday! We are quite unsure where the past ten days have gone to but maybe all the storms and storm fronts swallowed them up!
Over the last ten or eleven days we have had eight cold fronts come through, bringing with them heavy rain, some hail, and huge winds. The highest wind gust we recorded on the wind instruments on board was 100km per hr. And all of that of course has kept us in the safe haven of our harbour marina. Beyond here there have been towns that have experienced what are called mini tornado's, all sorts of damage. It has been quite something - especially when you live as much of an outdoor life as we do - in and out all the time! But when the sun shines and the sky above our heads is blue - well we appreciate it so very much! We sit outside, we eat on the deck, we walk without our jackets.
On Monday we sold our car. This was yet again so easy. I had put a 'For Sale' sign on the car a week or so before and one day at the shop someone had approached me and asked about it. The next day they came and said they would buy it and on Monday paid us and drove off.
It was quite a potent moment for us. Not because we had sold the car, but because this car was the last thing we owned that held us to the land. We needed to sell it before we left Albany and while we hadn't been in a hurry to sell it as we were not planning on leaving before the end of September, the selling of it marks our total commitment to our adventure!
Watching it drive off Peter and I looked at each other. One of us, I don't know who voiced it first, said, 'Wow - that's it then,' and we both knew that that indeed was 'it' - nothing but the weather prevents us getting up in the morning and saying, 'let's go then'. It's a thrilling and slightly daunting thing all at the same time but definitely more thrilling than scary!
Of course selling the car also means we have no car! Duh! Now we have to walk everywhere, but then of course this is how things will be for us when we arrive anywhere else, so again it simply reminds us of the plan and the future we are sailing into! Still this was perhaps not the best week to begin a life without a car! It poured every day and while for the most part we can organise ourselves to pop out to the nearby shop in a dry moment, at least once we got caught in an unexpected downpour. We arrived at the places we each needed to go to quite the worse for our drenching!
On the days that the weather has permitted anything outside Peter has been replacing the 'rat lines' that go up to the masts. They were made of rope and suffering quite a bit of wear. After talking to Darren, the shipwright, when the boat was slipped, and considering all the possible options, he decided to replace the rope steps with solid timber ones. There are 13 steps up to the top of one mast and 14 up to the other (we have two masts). That's quite a bit of timber to measure and cut - but of course the really tricky bit is getting them up there! It took several days of work when the wind was low and the sky clear, but I am happy to report that there are only three steps left to go. Peter has the steps all cut but we have run out of the bolts needed - having bought all the fixtures the local hardware shop had! We have to wait now for them to get some more in - or walk the ten or so km each way to the Bunnings store across town! I think we will wait!
While Peter has been attending to the mast climbing steps, I have been organising our wet weather gear. While there was some stuff on board, most of it didn't fit me or the children, and what fitted Peter was not serviceable - broken zips and elastic that has lost its 'give'. So I have walked to local suppliers, sourced appropriate gear for the kids and myself and then fixed the really good wet weather gear on board that fitted Peter. I am quite pleased with the result of my repair job - the gear is pretty costly, so to be able to take out and replace zips etc represents a good saving (which, by the way I put to excellent use!!!).
My next sewing task is to learn how to repair sails. I have all the right gear, but I can only repair sails when there is no wind, so looks like it might be a minute before I can start!
The other thing which has taken up a lot of my time this week, during the rain, has been trying to get our internet fixed. It has been the biggest hassle. I won't bore you with the details - I can tell you though that if I did you would groan and sigh with me - but I am happy that for now at least, it seems as if our problems are resolved. I have at this point made a formal complaint to our supplier and am thinking about contacting the ombudsman but I think I will wait to see what happens with my complaint. It's been two months of hassle and I really hope it's over!
We have only a few jobs left to do to feel prepared to leave - little things mostly - it's quite a fantastic feeling to be so close to actually beginning what we came to do!