Boot Cay Harbor
06 January 2013 | Marathon, FL
Lauren
Previous dinners:
Cereal
Bake mac n cheese with ham and a cut up leftover tomato mixed in (did not go to the pot luck Christmas Day
Boneless skinless chicken breasts marinated in olive oil, soy sauce, lemon zest and smashed garlic with long grain rice and sliced tomato
12/30/12 The day after Christmas, Brian noticed that our dinghy was tied to the boat - we always had it hanging off the davit lines. Apparently the clevis pin had worked its way loose (heavy winds last night) and the dinghy was floating away. Our neighbors on Legacey, Tim and Mimi were on their veranda having coffee and came to the rescue (Thank you again, Tim and Mimi). Apparently we were not the only boat to have things worked loose from the winds and went for a swim. After reviewing the last entry, looks like I need to review them a bit more carefully and use spell check. Last couple of days, we've been out walking the "strip". Started wearing a large-brimmed hat to protect my face from the sun (don't like wearing hats). I told Brian I was wearing it 'cause when we walked the "strip" it's lined with high tension wires that just sizzle really loud (want to protect what brain cells I have left - lol). Brian says I should line the hat with tin foil - brother!! I thought maybe I'd make note of any interesting signs I see along the way. The only one we could think of was the one we saw while in Charleston (mentioned below). Stopped at Lenchos, a Mexican restaurant and had an appetizer - very good. Bought ourselves a pedometer and I have it clipped on 24/7. (Brian likes to see how many miles he can put on it after 8 in the evening ((Brian, of course, wrote that - ha ha)).) It's interesting to see how many steps I actually take while on board (actually, I'm mostly crawling, bending, climbing over or in things, etc.) Haven't been able to meet up with Wayne and Corey much - he's working overtime. We are hoping the four of us can get together to take a bus ride to Key West to spend a day. The Marathon City Boat Yard has wonderful amenities. Decent sized library to exchange books, lots of tables in the office area for everyone to spread out and play games, read, check their emails and snail mail; yoga several times a week (yes, Judy I joining in); picnic tables at the Tiki Hut for anyone's use; plenty of showers and restrooms so you're not standing around waiting for one to open up; laundry room, recycling: cans, paper, plastic, gasoline, oil, etc.; an activity field nearby for baseball, soccer, tennis etc; skateboard park; and at 9am every morning on the VHF (very high frequency radio) there is a chat info session that features scheduled activities in the area, trivia session (Rona from "Hello World" always has interesting trivia - she also sails single handily) and then a buy/sell/trade session. Once the program ends anyone who wants to make connections with others relays what channel they want to converse on. Best of all the Pump-Out Boat comes around every week to empty everyone's waste tanks, so it keeps the harbor nice and clean.
Last night a cold front came through - the winds were whipping - 20+ knots. A good morning to bake something (Blueberry Lemon Bread). Brian has the generator going to recharge our batteries and also the water maker is doing its thing. Yesterday, Brian took a walk to West Marine and Home Depot. Waited for two hours for diesel mechanic to show and that fell through. We both took a walk to Walgreens to pick up an antibiotic for my sinus infection and then decided to take a dinghy ride to a beach our niece pointed out to us. I thought maybe a swim would help clear up my sinuses. The water was surprisingly cool, though very warm by New England standards.
Dinner: Potato Salad with Cheeseburgers
Signs: "One Free Beer with Haircut" Brian did see a sign that said "No Train Whistle" Wanted to know if we should take up a collection. I like hearing the train's whistle.
Reading Three Daughters of Madame Liang by Pearl S. Buck
Brian is reading Debt of Honor by Tom Clancy
12/31/12 Can't believe it's the end of the year! Took a yoga class this morning while Brian went, yet again, to West Marine. Found when we were running the generator we losing quite a bit of diesel - so he replaced the filter and bought Teflon paste. It solved the problem. One more problem down and too many to go. Got a dinghy ride back to our boat from Jeff and Katie of Mezzaluna - our neighbors. Tentative plans to meet at the Tiki Hut for New Years Eve Celebration.
1/1/13 Went to the Tiki Hut last night and there was a gentleman playing music on a synthesized keyboard - he had a wonderful voice - played a variety of music and even a CCR song (my favorite band). We brought Prosecco (of course) with nibbles and everyone there had a wonderful time. We did meet up with Jeff and Katie. There was a conch blowing contest and Jeff won - his prize was a bottle of pineapple rum. At 9pm we celebrated the New Year 'cause as live-aboards, 9pm is sailor's midnight. Brian and I headed back to the boat and sat out in the cockpit for a while just taking in the lights and sounds of the marina. We made it to 10:45. During the day we dinghied around the area and went looking for iguanas - saw a few of them - all different sizes. Brian couldn't resist showing me a large spider hanging out in the bushes lining the waterway - ugh! Stopped at the beach for a bit - saw Bonnie from yoga - met her husband, Phil and we all had a lovely time chatting. Brian bought himself a yoga mat (I know, can you believe it Judy? LOL)
1/2/13 Brian went for a run and I cleaned. Went to yoga while Brian met with Chuck Rose, a carpenter, we've used before. The yoga class was held at the Amphitheater on the town field - really needed to concentrate on listening to the instructor as there was soccer practice going on right next to us. At the end of class, we do a rest period and you're suppose to not think of anything (I'm bad at this - my mind goes a mile a minute - always) and concentrate on the music the instructor is playing (suppose to be clearing our minds). Anyway, I could barely hear the yoga music as someone at the far end of the park had Janice Joplin playing, dogs were barking, traffic noise, airplanes, bells on bicycles dinging and ZZZZzzzzzZZZZZZzzzz of those power lines - I chose to listen to Janice Joplin - worked for me. Chuck is remaking the box for our batteries. BTW: our dinghy is our vehicle - so in order to go ANYWHERE (groceries, gas stations, Home Depot, K-Mart, West Marine, pick up and drop of contractors, etc.), we dinghy to the dock and then WALK everywhere. I suppose we could take cabs, but unless it's absolutely necessary or just too far to walk, we just don't do it. So, dinghy to yoga, pick up Chuck, dinghy back so the guys can work on the boxes (in the bilge of course). Fortunately I was able to get a ride back with our neighbors. Was not thrilled to see the mess they made especially after the cleaning I had just done. But, the box they took out just disintegrated - it made mess (wood mixed with moisture) and was all over the place - so while Brian took Chuck back to the dock, guess what I did? Before they could even start that project, Brian had to shut all power down, disengage all wiring to the batteries and then pulled them all out - they are h-e-a-v-y!! Thankfully, he thought to label all the wiring as it made it a bit easier to reconnect. Later in the day we went for a walk and gave the pedometer a workout.
Dinner: Garlicky kale with rigatoni and plenty of freshly grated Pecorino
1/3/13 No yoga today. Brian went for a run, came back and cleaned out the dinghy then wiped down the boat - there is so much moisture in the air the boat is covered in the morning - he was working so diligently that I made him blueberry pancakes for breakfast. Our batteries are draining down too fast and we thought maybe because the freezer had such a build up of ice in it that we should defrost it. So, first we had to empty one of the outside lockers (it's deep - Brian can stand up in it) in order to get out our buckets to put food in (we had also borrowed his brother's cooler). So we had lots of lines, fenders and miscellaneous stacked in the cockpit along with full cooler. Chuck called and had the boxes (decided on two) ready for fitting so Brian pulled out the batteries and labeled the wiring again and went and picked him up. I got relegated to the cockpit while they did their thing - I had my scrabble game and started reading the National Geographic issue that is all about the brain - fascinating reading. Brian took Chuck back to the dock with the boxes - he has to tweak one and fiberglass and gel coat the boxes. Brian attended a class about batteries at the Tiki Hut - I offered to stay behind and work on the freezer and fridge box. We started the generator in order for me to use a heat gun as it had already been several hours and the ice just wasn't melting. Now the freezer section is deep - Brian can barely reach the bottom - so here I am hinged at the waist and hanging as best as I could in the freezer with the heat gun - not so good for the back. Oh, and for those that don't know of my usual hang out garb, I wore my usual working garb - my "Cinderella" dress (pics). It's a calve-length, sleeveless dress that has paint on it with a few holes. Before we moved aboard, I cleaned, gardened, painted, etc. in it - it's just plain easy to throw on and comfy. Glasses are always on top of my head 'cause I can't read a darn thing and now my hair is long enough to put in a ponytail. Not winning a beauty contest here - lol. I eventually got the front of the panels defrosted but the backs of them were still pretty iced up. Heated two kettles of water and reached in and flung cupfuls so that the water landed behind the panels - worked like a charm. Now to get the water off the freezer floor - there is no drain. I dropped a bath towel on the floor of the freezer to soak up the water but couldn't reach it to pull it out, so I used my kitchen tongs to pull it up and wring out the towel - lost track of how many times I did this. Then on my hands and knees sopped any water that was at the bottom of the fridge (fridge has both top and side openings). Because the freezer is so deep, we had bought two 4 or 5 gallon jugs of water - drained them a bit and placed them at the bottom. If we ever lose our power, these jugs will be ice blocks and keep our food a bit longer for us. So, I get those back in and start putting all the freezer food in when I get half way done, I turn and see two wooden racks that were suppose to be placed at the bottom. Out comes the stuff (using tongs) and worked liked the dickens to get out one of the water jugs - I could grasp the spout and pull it up, but I couldn't grab the handle because the opening to the freezer wasn't large enough - boy was I sweating, grunting (ok and a bit of swearing), BUT I did get it out. Hung upside down again and put the grates in and the jug back in and all the food (I also made a list of everything and quantity to ad to my excel sheet). After filling the fridge back up, then it was clean out the buckets, cooler, sop up the floor, put the rug and all the towels and rags out to dry and Brian came back from his meeting just as I was about to drop (perfect timing). This whole ordeal took hours. He took me in to the showers and when we got back he gave me a wonderful back rub (actually it hurt, but I knew it was going to help and it did). Finally able to meet up with Wayne for .25 c
1/4/13 Brian went for a run and joined me for yoga. Then we took a walk to the Hurricane for a Seven Seas Meeting (our first). Actually it was just a get together this time for lunch, but we did get to meet other boaters and discuss problems and upcoming events. Last night we discovered that our water pressure pump keeps running, but Brian had a spare pump and changed it out and the broken one is still under warranty - yeah!! Another issue is our new wind generator seems to work well - always whipping around, BUT it's not producing any power - so as I'm writing this, Brian is working on that issue. I suppose with all these problems, it certainly keeps Brian busy and we are certainly learning about the workings of the boat. Someone told us that this is what sailing is all about - going from port to port and once there, you fix things. Gosh, I hope not.
Dinner: Herbed rubbed chicken thighs with leftover potato salad
1/5/13 - Happy Birthday Dad!! Very hot and muggy today. While deciding what to do, if anything, we played Boggle and Brian did not fair so well, but he usually beats me at Cribbage. Went for a walk to West Marine with the failed water pump - none in stock but should have the replacement next week (could have rung us out by the time we got there - AC - yeah). Caught up on laundry and went to the Tiki Hut after dinner to listen to "Easy Listening" and a few other musicians that joined in. There was also a very young brother and sister that played and sang. Met people, some brand new to this way of life as we are - really interesting and funny conversations. Someone mentioned that we can take our dinghy and get to a dock fairly close to the Publix grocery store - that would be a great help. Not that we mind the walk, but you can only carry so much.
Dinner: Cut up leftover hot sausage with onions and peppers and sautéed with the leftover pasta and garlicky kale and of course, lots of freshly grated pecorino
Readin: The Brothers Karamazov by Dostoyevsky