Reading about other people's experiences and talking with cruisers, we've decided that having a work room would make a lot of sense. It would be near the engine and hence increase ease of engine access. It would provide for all tools to live together comfortably, rather than being tucked in different lockers throughout the boat. A work room would also allow us to close the door on an ongoing project and go to dinner, to sleep or off the boat without wasting too much time cleaning up. Finally, and most importantly for the health of our marriage, it would take the oily tools and rusty parts off the galley counter where they already drive me insane, and give them a nice home. So if only we had a room ready for this, that life would be oh so perfect.

But boats, especially production boats, are not designed with the needs of cruisers in the foreground. So as soon as we finished thinking about the great idea of a work room, we came to the realization that we would need to sacrifice something to get it. In our case, it was our en suite head/shower. It is sad to be reduced to one smaller head/shower, but the benefits of having a workroom far outweigh the cost. So on we went with the project.

Admittedly it was a bit smelly to take the head out, but I was lucky enough not to be partaking in the fun. Paul and our friend Ben, who is up helping us with our long list of projects, were the two lucky gentlemen to dismantle an entire bathroom. Paul, was excited, to be able to see the joker valve before he really had to; he is now much more equipped to deal with our plumbing on the boat.

After all the contents of the old head were removed, I spent some time sanding and painting the workroom. Paul ordered a butcher block for it, which arrived last week. He did a beautiful job of installing the butcher block and shelving units; our work room is on its way to completion. I cannot wait to see all the tools go into their shelves in that room! Paul, however, is concerned that the beauty of his butcher block, which is admittely gorgeous, will be compromised by exposure to diesel and other fluids. He might have to cut a sacrificial piece of plywood to protect the block, at least for a little while.

Incidentally, we met Ted Hood, the designer of our boat, at the Newport Boat show last weekend. We told him how much we loved his design and how we were getting ready to leave soon. We also mentioned to him that we had turned the aft head into a work room. That took him by surpise, judging from his expression of "what exactly did you do to my boat???" We are just hoping that he didnt have some magic formula for the trim of the boat involving that head.