Yesterday we had to refill the water tanks on the boat but when we restarted the pump for the pressure water system it just ran and ran. At first I thought that there was an air lock but this morning when I went under the floorboards to have a look at it, it was readily apparent that there was a bolt or gear sheared off as the pump motor was running its little heart out but the pumping mechanism wasn't going anywhere. We have already rebuilt it twice with workshop parts so unless it is something really easy I guess it's finally time to replace it. Some of the newer pumps are a lot quieter anyway and this one is nearly 30 years old so it doesn't owe us anything. We will check availability and price today at West Marine on the way to the Clearwater Aquarium and tonight I'll extract it from its cave under the salon and see if it really does need to be replaced. Part of me wants to make the replacement just from a reliability vantage point, but I suppose that the deciding factor will be if West Marine has a 24VDC model that I won't have to mortgage the boat to buy. We have other stuff to get there anyway - holding tank additive, anchor rode line, thimbles and shackles, plus Barb always claps her hands and makes "goodie, goodie, goodie" sounds when she goes into the discount area of the store on 22nd N. Who knows, maybe even Chris and Taunya will find more things that interest them.

Today is rather bittersweet as it will be our last full day with our son for at least four to six months and although we have already made tentative plans for him to visit us on the boat again next winter when we should be in the Caribbean Islands somewhere, we are still not looking forward to sending him back to his chosen career as a prison guard in Drumheller, Alberta. I gather that he is working with a good bunch of people but I can't get my mind away from the simple fact that he will be surrounded by other people who have proven that they don't want to live by the rules of our society. As a soldier I would often confront some other country's soldier, but for the most part we generally followed a code of conduct called the Geneva Convention. To the best of my knowledge criminals have no such convention so he is facing people who follow only their own rules, rules of self interest and greed. Barb and I are proud of how well both our kids have turned out, strong, self reliant and capable with good careers and lives ahead of them so we have that to console us when we go back to being empty nesters again. It still doesn't take away from our memories of our daughter as a tyke that we nicknamed "Buttons" because of her little round eyes, little round nose, cheeks and mouth, and our memories of Chris' early days as a very early preemie struggling for life in an incubator at 2 pounds body weight having steroids pumped into him to help develop his as yet not fully developed internal organs and occasional shots of caffeine to keep his heart pumping. He looked a bit like Gollum from Lord of the Rings but I didn't have the heart to nickname him that so we called him "Toad" instead. Now he is 6'3" and 240 lbs. So I think he made it. Ah well, he will see Kayt in March and we'll see her in June ourselves.

Anyway.... Enough of the self pity....Back to the day's activities. After breakfast we set off to the Clearwater Aquarium by way of West Marine. There, at West Marine, we were able to by the necessary to make the anchor bridle at a cut rate plus a tool box to replace my old beat off save-a-dive kit. We even ordered a new Canadian flag from them which should be delivered tomorrow and made plans to take our pressure water pump in to see if they have spare parts for it.

After that we set off for the Clearwater Aquarium. We had no idea what to expect of this place but we did think that it would be something like the Tampa Aquarium or the Charleston Aquarium that we have already visited. It is nothing of the sort. In reality it is not a real aquarium at all other than the fact that it has tanks and makes a home for sea life. Rather it is a marine life hospital. In fact their motto is the 3 Rs - rescue, rehabilitation and release. They maintain a fleet of wildlife rescue vehicles and are ready 24/7 to dash off to save a stranded dolphin or a motor boat struck manatee or such like. If necessary they bring them back to their facilities in Clearwater for some rehabilitation and hopefully they will be able to release them sometime in the future. In the extreme cases where for one reason or another it would not be possible to release them they become permanent residents at the aquarium. They have one famous guest, a young dolphin named Winter who was trapped in a fishing net and eventually lost her tail. She has managed to survive and prosper and they have fitted her with a prosthetic tail and she has subsequently become a model for human amputees and an inspiration for everyone facing difficulties. They have a website for her www.SeeWinter.com.

After visiting the Aquarium we decided to drive down the coast and boy oh boy am I back to feeling inadequate again! The size of the mansions lining the Gulf Coast was astounding. Even more astounding was the number of them that were for sale. I guess as an indication of the economy. Living life on the financial edge has short term dangers as well as gains I suppose.

Tonight we are going to Le Moulin Jaune for a "Family Dinner" special that they are having at $20/head for our last meal as a foursome. Tomorrow Barb and I will head over to the Fresh Market and to West Marine to let Chris and Taunya do their "final packing".