I posted this several days ago but it did not post. I was not able to put pictures in it due to internet problems. I am trying again today. If you go to MY FAVORITES, MY PICTURES, you'll find the pictures in folder 011208.
It looks like I have been able to post pictures today on this post. So I will add a few here as well. You can see more in my Picasa web albums though.
Brett and I have been working hard to get the boat ready for move in. Though much work still needs to be done, we can do a lot of it after we move in. This week I have been staining/varnishing the rest of the interior wood that Brett spent the last three weeks installing for the galley and nav station. Everything looks fantastic. Beautiful. My stain job is far from perfect but its 
nice to have woodwork in the boat. The end result will be worth it. We are hoping to get everything installed we need to move in by next month. Brett has gotten the plumbing installed and the hot water heater going. We have 110 electricity and some lights are installed. The only things needing to be done now to move aboard are to finish some wiring, install the drain in the head sink, lay the rug down in the salon that we purchased cheaply and a couple other things. We need to install the propane and hook it up to the oven/stove. We have no cupboard doors or drawers yet but there is so much room on the boat, we shouldn't have a problem finding places to put things for awhile.
The day before yesterday, while I was staining the interior, Brett installed our wind generator pole onto the stern pulpit. It took a lot to get the wind generator itself mounted atop the 8 foot pole but he was able to hammer it on. All that is left for it is the blades. The wind generator uses wind power to help charge batteries. We had also bought a solar panel from Charl to help natural resources charge our batteries which means less time running our engine every day when out to sea.
A couple weeks ago, we arranged to buy ML and Russell's marine BBQ. We finally got that from them and Brett mounted it onto the wind generator pole. It's a large party version. We are really excited to finally have a grill to cook on. We are big time grillers. We had to be careful where to mount it as we are hoping to someday mount a wind vane on the stern of the boat. A wind vane is a complicated yet simple, expensive self-steering mechanism that is really a MUST on cruising boats. It is much more reliable than an autopilot sometimes. It moves on a pendulum with the wind which in turn moves the rudder. Very very expensive but very very much needed when long-term
cruising. It helps us not to have to steer 24-7. This will be our largest and most expensive purchase yet (much more than the engine). I keep a watch on Ebay for a used one. Used ones with missing parts average 1,000-2,000. A new one averages 3500-7000.
(yes, Shannon- I know- I am rambling. You know you love it.) Hee Hee
I have joined an art league that is here at the park every Thursday where we all sit and paint for a couple hours or longer. We get to leave our supplies in the Rec Hall so we can go there at will and paint. I have contributed a lot of my supplies for others to try out like my colored pencils and watercolor paints. I am excited to be painting again.
Eddie, our friend we've talked about, has decided to take his boat to Houston next week and wants Brett and I to take it with him. It's about a 24 hour sail through the Gulf or we may take the ICW (Intercoastal Waterway). Brett wants us to go the Gulf so Eddie and I can experience it and learn from it. It will be an overnighter which is a little bit frightening aspect on a 24 foot boat but Brett feels confident that I am ready for it. Eddie has sailed for 40 years but never out of Tres Palacios Bay. His boat is a BEAUTIFUL Pacific Seacrest. He has totally outfitted it with tons of electronics and generators, etc etc. It's very funny a
ll the equipment he has installed just to sail in the Tres Palacios Bay (a branch of the Matagarda Bay here).
I am nervous but excited to be able to do this with them this time. It's a deeper plunge than I wanted, sailing at night in the Gulf so soon, but the winds and weather sound like they may cooperate. And Eddie has an autopilot so it shouldn't be too bad. The only part I am apprehensive about is my turns for night watches and the Galveston shipping channel can be hairy, too. But Brett has been there done that, and I have a lot of confidence in his ability to keep us safe.
I am contimplating a job at the ACE hardware store for temporary income. We have been jobless awhile and boat jobs fell through for Brett. I owe a LOT in sales tax the end of the month and am getting worried. We are doing okay but it's a constant thorn in my side to have the bills we do. I am hoping I get into some shows starting February to pick back up our income.
The weather has been incredibly warm this month, much warmer and dryer than last year. We have been averaging the 70s! I have been wearing tee shirts most days! It is really weird. Last year, I wore my ski coat a lot. It has been really windy though. We've not been able to take the boat out because the days we wanted to, were too windy and then the calm days, we were working on her.
A lot of people here don't understand that when you are working on a boat or living aboard, you can't just drop the lines and go. Also, a lot of people don't understand that this boat is very old and hasn't been stressed in years. We want to make sure everything is up to par. Her hull is strong enough but we want to really inspect the thru-hull fittings and the prop, etc before we really stress her. We're trying to be safe and level-headed about it. We have no qualms about the sea and would LOVE to take her out in a gale northerly.
A lot of people at the park and other boaters that take their small day sailors out in Northerlies just don't understand why we don't take our boat out for a spin. The new people, Steve and Pam, also get the same thing. They just bought a full keel, 36' Cape Dory here and have moved aboard. They have spent weeks trying to go through all the gear that was on the boat and to try to adapt to this small way of living on a boat. They are brand new to sailing a large boat and have a lot of things to learn before they take her out. A lot of the RVers and boaters have questioned them as well about not taking their boat out. Outfitting a boat for cruising and living aboard is complicated and time consuming and I think a lot of people don't realize that.
Well I am really rambling, and I am sure I've lost half of you in my sailing terminology. But I hope you are all well. I love you and miss you dearly. I definitely have that home itch again but with all the work we're doing on the boat, it keeps me occupied.
The internet (as USUAL) is not working right so I'll have to upload my pictures onto Picasa web album and you'll have to see our new pictures there, Sorry. It's under MY FAVORITES and then My Pictures. There are a lot of new pictures, too. I put them under album "011208".
nice to have woodwork in the boat. The end result will be worth it. We are hoping to get everything installed we need to move in by next month. Brett has gotten the plumbing installed and the hot water heater going. We have 110 electricity and some lights are installed. The only things needing to be done now to move aboard are to finish some wiring, install the drain in the head sink, lay the rug down in the salon that we purchased cheaply and a couple other things. We need to install the propane and hook it up to the oven/stove. We have no cupboard doors or drawers yet but there is so much room on the boat, we shouldn't have a problem finding places to put things for awhile.
The day before yesterday, while I was staining the interior, Brett installed our wind generator pole onto the stern pulpit. It took a lot to get the wind generator itself mounted atop the 8 foot pole but he was able to hammer it on. All that is left for it is the blades. The wind generator uses wind power to help charge batteries. We had also bought a solar panel from Charl to help natural resources charge our batteries which means less time running our engine every day when out to sea.
A couple weeks ago, we arranged to buy ML and Russell's marine BBQ. We finally got that from them and Brett mounted it onto the wind generator pole. It's a large party version. We are really excited to finally have a grill to cook on. We are big time grillers. We had to be careful where to mount it as we are hoping to someday mount a wind vane on the stern of the boat. A wind vane is a complicated yet simple, expensive self-steering mechanism that is really a MUST on cruising boats. It is much more reliable than an autopilot sometimes. It moves on a pendulum with the wind which in turn moves the rudder. Very very expensive but very very much needed when long-term
cruising. It helps us not to have to steer 24-7. This will be our largest and most expensive purchase yet (much more than the engine). I keep a watch on Ebay for a used one. Used ones with missing parts average 1,000-2,000. A new one averages 3500-7000.(yes, Shannon- I know- I am rambling. You know you love it.) Hee Hee
I have joined an art league that is here at the park every Thursday where we all sit and paint for a couple hours or longer. We get to leave our supplies in the Rec Hall so we can go there at will and paint. I have contributed a lot of my supplies for others to try out like my colored pencils and watercolor paints. I am excited to be painting again.
Eddie, our friend we've talked about, has decided to take his boat to Houston next week and wants Brett and I to take it with him. It's about a 24 hour sail through the Gulf or we may take the ICW (Intercoastal Waterway). Brett wants us to go the Gulf so Eddie and I can experience it and learn from it. It will be an overnighter which is a little bit frightening aspect on a 24 foot boat but Brett feels confident that I am ready for it. Eddie has sailed for 40 years but never out of Tres Palacios Bay. His boat is a BEAUTIFUL Pacific Seacrest. He has totally outfitted it with tons of electronics and generators, etc etc. It's very funny a
ll the equipment he has installed just to sail in the Tres Palacios Bay (a branch of the Matagarda Bay here).I am nervous but excited to be able to do this with them this time. It's a deeper plunge than I wanted, sailing at night in the Gulf so soon, but the winds and weather sound like they may cooperate. And Eddie has an autopilot so it shouldn't be too bad. The only part I am apprehensive about is my turns for night watches and the Galveston shipping channel can be hairy, too. But Brett has been there done that, and I have a lot of confidence in his ability to keep us safe.
I am contimplating a job at the ACE hardware store for temporary income. We have been jobless awhile and boat jobs fell through for Brett. I owe a LOT in sales tax the end of the month and am getting worried. We are doing okay but it's a constant thorn in my side to have the bills we do. I am hoping I get into some shows starting February to pick back up our income.The weather has been incredibly warm this month, much warmer and dryer than last year. We have been averaging the 70s! I have been wearing tee shirts most days! It is really weird. Last year, I wore my ski coat a lot. It has been really windy though. We've not been able to take the boat out because the days we wanted to, were too windy and then the calm days, we were working on her.
A lot of people here don't understand that when you are working on a boat or living aboard, you can't just drop the lines and go. Also, a lot of people don't understand that this boat is very old and hasn't been stressed in years. We want to make sure everything is up to par. Her hull is strong enough but we want to really inspect the thru-hull fittings and the prop, etc before we really stress her. We're trying to be safe and level-headed about it. We have no qualms about the sea and would LOVE to take her out in a gale northerly.
A lot of people at the park and other boaters that take their small day sailors out in Northerlies just don't understand why we don't take our boat out for a spin. The new people, Steve and Pam, also get the same thing. They just bought a full keel, 36' Cape Dory here and have moved aboard. They have spent weeks trying to go through all the gear that was on the boat and to try to adapt to this small way of living on a boat. They are brand new to sailing a large boat and have a lot of things to learn before they take her out. A lot of the RVers and boaters have questioned them as well about not taking their boat out. Outfitting a boat for cruising and living aboard is complicated and time consuming and I think a lot of people don't realize that.Well I am really rambling, and I am sure I've lost half of you in my sailing terminology. But I hope you are all well. I love you and miss you dearly. I definitely have that home itch again but with all the work we're doing on the boat, it keeps me occupied.
The internet (as USUAL) is not working right so I'll have to upload my pictures onto Picasa web album and you'll have to see our new pictures there, Sorry. It's under MY FAVORITES and then My Pictures. There are a lot of new pictures, too. I put them under album "011208".
"I WAS NOT ABLE TO GET ANY MORE PICTURES ON HERE. PLEASE GO TO THE LINK "MY PICTURES" TO SEE THE REST. THE INTERNET IS JUST NOT WORKING...."
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WE NEED PICTURES!!
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