Sailboats are good for people who love to organize. The process of checking all the fittings, organizing the lines, and making the sailboat into a functioning machine is gratifying and enjoyable to me. Doing so also teaches me more about the sailboat and makes things safer and more enjoyable on the water. One of my projects this morning was to get the lines organized and secured. This picture shows how I tied the mast to the bow to secure it. That line coming off the left side goes down to a cleat. When I left the sailboat after the gin pole incident last week, things were kind of disorganized. The sailors out there will understand how sometimes, when things don't go as planned, you just want to leave the boat in whatever condition it is and come back to it when you are fresh and have a more healthy attitude. I feel a lot better about things in light of the progress we've made since then. The new fittings should arrive this week and I'm hoping to have the mast back up and down properly by next weekend. The next time the mast comes up, I can also make sure the new shrouds fit properly. The process of getting the sailboat ready to cruise is as enjoyable in many ways as the cruising. Just spending an hour or two puttering around and slowly moving the refit forward is enjoyable for me. But it is a means to an end. That end being the sailboat trip.